Adjacent lighting in fish room

[Dan Ponchak]

I have a ceiling light approximately 6 feet above and slightly in front of my dt. Could this cause algae growth in tank? Standard box type recessed lighting. What type of light bulb should I use to minimize algae?

 

[Peace River]

Algae is often impacted by both light and organics in the water. Also not all types of algae is affected in the same way by the same lighting. I suggest that you pay attention to the kelvin rating of your bulbs and try a whiter bulb to see if that helps. Normal lighting in a home often ranges from 2,300k to 6,700k which are often also good for growing green plants and algae. You should be able to find lights in local stores that are closer to 10,000k. These lights will be more white and not yellow - like what you would see in a kitchen or laundry room. On a related note - is the tank getting any window light? Good luck!

 

[Bret Brinkmann]

I have 20K LED lights on my tank and after I installed them the algae, and coral, grew like a champ. More light almost always means more algae growth. White light will have the full color spectrum even if it is heavy on some colors more than others. It has to have at least a little of everything or else it wouldn't be white light.

House lights typically don't have near as much intensity as aquarium lights plus they are higher up in the ceiling verses a few inches above the water like aquarium lights. So the PAR added to the tank and more specifically the green spectrum from your ceiling lights will be minimal.

A lot of people have the same conditions in their homes but still never report any algae issues traced back to lights in their ceilings. Direct sunlight from a window yes, but not house lights.