Why do we not see more underwater reef lights?

[Dkmoo]

It seems to me that "reduce shadowing" and "light spread" is key for coral growth so people pay top dollars for lights with diffusers or adding strips, multiple sources, to reduce shadowing and increase spread.

However, eventually, as your colonies get big, the underside will be covered in shadow that cannot be addressed by adding more lights w/o also impacting how much the top of the colony will get.

So, it seems to me, that the most effective and direct way to address this is to put a strip on the sandbed or "spotlights" on the sandback pointing upwards. Even weak lights set up this way will be way more effective than adding more lights on top.

We already have submersible electrical things thats 24/7 underwater (ie, powerheads) so it seems to me that the technology is available to make it happen, and I do see submersible algae lights already in the market.

So, the question is, why don't we see similar things specifically targeting reef tanks?

I get that it can look weird, or you dont want light to shine in your eyes, but I feel like aethethic can't be the only reason, ie, lights can be placed in the front bottom corner/edge pointing to upper back.

 

[hebdizzle]

I’ve never seen this question posed before, looking forward to the responses

 

[ying yang]

Maybe aesthetics like you say.
I noticed in freshwater that submersible lights and plastic ships or other stuff like this is popular ( well more than saltwater ) so far on r2r in 9 months I only seen maybe 2- 3 examples where someone has plastic ship or plane and dont think seen anyone with underwater lights.
But as you say if could light up underneath coral colonies it could aid the corals ,and if was bothered about seeing the leds themselves could glue/ fabricate some rocks to block view of seeing the led lights but underside of corals still get the lights .

I know my freshwater tanks have internal sponge filters and all that so leaves more room for ornaments and such,and I my saltwater tank if I didn't need all the rocks as the filter I would be tempted to add plastic ornaments and possibly lights, I know I once had few spotlights on freshwater tank years ago and looked quite cool

Edit: like hebdizzle says ,good question and be interesting to see why others don't want add underwater lights or never thought about it etc

 

[MaxTremors]

I think most people are trying to simulate a natural reef and submersible lights wouldn’t be conducive to that.

 

[M Stein]

Probably because of maintenance.
Having underwater lights would require they be cleaned at least every other day in well-established tanks.
Just think of all the algea that would build up over the light source.

 

[SMSREEF]

Heat and because algae will grow on glass/acrylic covering led.

With that said, I have used a submersible Nicrew LED in a macroalgae QT tank.

 

[Calm Blue Ocean]

Tunze makes submersible LEDs but it looks like people still usually put them at the top pointing down.

 

[trido]

Or, just let the corals grow and die back naturally. Then after a couple years clean up the dead undergrowth and enjoy a newly planted coral garden. After doing this for many years, I can tell you, you need to clean up the display tank sooner or later, a refresh can be as exciting as setting up a new tank.

 

[HeyLookItsCaps]

I use a tunze submersible fuge light to back up my kessil in my display fuge.

I love it

 

[davidcalgary29]

Why not just insert a few mirrors in choice locations instead to reflect light at darker areas? Some people do that in shady gardens -- quite successfully, I've heard -- to stimulate plant growth. It could be quite pretty! Or garish, but I'm sticking with pretty.

 

[REEFCRAFT]

The less equipment inside a tank the better

 

[M Stein]

Why not just insert a few mirrors in choice locations instead to reflect light at darker areas? Some people do that in shady gardens -- quite successfully, I've heard -- to stimulate plant growth. It could be quite pretty! Or garish, but I'm sticking with pretty.

Algae won't cover a mirror in a garden.
It will do so in a fish tank.

That said, a clean white sand bed can function as a sort of mirror to reflect the light.

 

[NowGlazeIT]

Probably because of maintenance.
Having underwater lights would require they be cleaned at least every other day in well-established tanks.
Just think of all the algea that would build up over the light source.

Nailed it

 

[Karen00]

I think maintenance is part of it, but also submerged lights aren't conducive to creating a natural reef look. I would also have to think that cryptic, burrowing and dark seeking inhabitants would not do too well with light blasting at them. My freshwater tank also comes to mind when I think about this question. I'm trying to create a biotope with that tank and I would never think to submerge lights in it. I feel the same about my reef tank. Just my 2 cents.

 

[polyppal]

yeah a light in the water would essentially turn into an algae scrubber. not to mention corrosive water + electricity would likely at some point end up in some lawsuits

 

[KrisReef]

Why not just insert a few mirrors in choice locations instead to reflect light at darker areas? Some people do that in shady gardens -- quite successfully, I've heard -- to stimulate plant growth. It could be quite pretty! Or garish, but I'm sticking with pretty.

Great answer!
In nature a clean bed of coral sand will reflect a lot of light back at the coral. The ocean waves clean the dirt off to help keeping it "maintance free."

 

[Koh23]

Yes, i wonder in nature, where is the sun, above, or bellow reef.....

 

[TheDragonsReef]

From a growth perspective you may very well be able to grow coral a bit faster by lighting shaded areas. And may be beneficial in a coral farm or something.

As people mentioned cleaning algae and coraline off it would be a hassle but the biggest reason i wouldnt is from an aesthetic stand point, it wouldnt look as nice. A beautiful image whether art or an aquascape is about balance. Shading is just as important as lighting to really make a tank pop, but you often need to trim large corals so that they dont shade others too much.

 

[davidcalgary29]

Algae won't cover a mirror in a garden.
It will do so in a fish tank.

That said, a clean white sand bed can function as a sort of mirror to reflect the light.

Well they can be cleaned, you know.

 

[NowGlazeIT]

The cleanings would be another reason to dip your hands in the tank. Some of us get coraline build up within a week. Would be a cool idea with the right design.