Lighting has much more impact on the health of fish, the growth of aquatic plants, and the annoying algae control than you think. Don’t think that just light it up in the fish tank. Maybe your fish will be depressed, aquatic plants will strike, and algae will drive to party until you collapse. Today, let’s talk about the “metaphysics” of lighting, which is a bit funny, and I guarantee that you will never dare to install lights in the fish tank after watching it.

Let’s talk about the fish first. Do you think the fish in the fish tank swim around every day because they love sports? Wrong, they may have been forced to be schizophrenia by the lights. The impact of light on fish health is not a joke. Too strong, the fish will feel like living in the spotlight, like a star forced to open business, with great pressure. Too weak, they will think that the end of the world is coming, and hide in the corners all day long and shivering. Scientists have said that the biological clock of a fish is closely related to the light. If your fish tank is turned upside down day and night, the fish may directly perform "Day and Night Syndrome" to you, sleeping during the day and staring at you at night, as if saying, "Master, can we stop doing this?" Not to mention some fish, such as angelfish or neon fish, are as sensitive to light as an artist. The light is wrong. They go on strike and don't show you the beautiful colors, and act like "I'm not doing it anymore."

Also, the intensity and time of light must be adapted to the fish. A tough guy like an African cichlid likes a bright environment. If you give it a dim light, it may feel like you are humiliating its masculinity. Like some benthic fish, such as the distant relatives of clownfish, they like darker light. If you give them the entire sun, they may wonder if they have been exiled to the desert. So, lighting cannot be done in one size fits all, it has to be based on Yu'er's personality, otherwise your fish tank may become a fish version of "Trumen's World". Yu'er acts every day and will collapse.

Let’s talk about aquatic plants. Water plants look quite low-key on the surface, but in fact they are extremely picky. Do you think they can survive as long as they have water and soil? The pattern of Tucson is broken! The demand for light of aquatic plants is even harder to handle than your wifi signal. If there is not enough light, they will wilt, and the leaves are as yellow as autumn, like a malnourished little pitiful person. If the light is too strong, they will feel burned again and will directly perform the "Wild March" for you. Moreover, aquatic plants also pay attention to the spectrum. There are more red lights, they grow faster, and there are more green lights, and they look good in color. If you buy a light bulb and install it, the water plants may protest collectively: "What a broken light? We are going to quit!"

I have a friend who bought a cheap lamp, but the aquatic plants grow like weeds and keep falling leaves. Later, he gritted his teeth and changed into a professional aquarium lamp, claiming to simulate natural spectrum, but the aquatic plants directly transformed, like a tropical rainforest, and even the fish couldn't help but look at it. So, how much impact does light have on the growth of aquatic plants? Going big! Without good lighting, your aquatic plants may not even have the courage to survive, let alone create an "underwater garden" for you.

Of course, there is another side effect of lighting, that is algae control. Do you think algae are uninvited guests in your fish tank? In fact, they are the true fans of lighting. As the light became stronger, the algae would crawl onto the glass, decorations, and aquatic plants as if they were injected with chicken blood. The whole tank was filled with their world. Especially the green algae, which sticks to the wall of the tank, is like a layer of green paint, so ugly that you are embarrassed to invite friends to see the fish. I tried once and forgot to turn off the lights. When I woke up the next morning, I saw that the fish tank was as green as jade, and I couldn't find the fish. I almost thought I had a frog pond.

However, algae are not useless. They can also photosynthesis, adding some oxygen to the fish tank. But the problem is, this guy is so algae that you don't control the lights, it controls you. Have you heard of the "light time management master"? Algae are. If you turn on the lights for more than 10 hours a day, congratulations, algae will turn your fish tank into their colony, and even the fish have to give way to them. On the contrary, if you control the lighting time to 6 to 8 hours and then use a reliable lamp, the algae will not be so arrogant. After all, they are also afraid of being "power limit".

Speaking of this, I have to talk about my own painful experience. Once I had a sudden idea and thought the lights of the fish tank were not cool enough, so I bought an RGB lamp, which could turn red, blue and green. After installing it, I felt very fashionable. What's the result? The fish were so scared that they hid in the corner, the aquatic plants grew crookedly, and the algae even took the opportunity to occupy half of the tank. I stared at the colorful fish tank for a long time, and finally came to the conclusion: This is not a fish tank, this is a nightclub. Later, I decisively changed back to the ordinary white light, and the fish finally dared to go out to swim, the aquatic plants began to operate normally, and the algae were driven away by me with a brush. This tells me that the lights are not for you to play tricks, they have to be scientific, otherwise the fish tank will not live in the fish tank, but a tragedy.

So how do you choose a light? You may say, "Isn't it just buying an expensive one?" Hey, the expensive ones are not necessarily good, and the cheap ones are not necessarily bad. The key depends on the parameters, such as color temperature, lumens, and spectrum. If you buy a lamp with too high color temperature, the fish tank will be turned on as if the air conditioner is turned on, and it is blue and faint, and the fish may feel that they live in the North Pole. The color temperature is too low and warm like summer, and the fish are so hot that they burst into bubbles. Generally speaking, the color temperature of around 6500K is relatively reliable, which simulates natural light, is neither cold nor hot, and is liked by fish and aquatic plants. As for lumens, it is simply brightness, and it depends on the size of the tank. Do not use too bright lights for small tanks, otherwise the fish will be blinded, and do not use too dark for large tanks, otherwise the aquatic plants will be hungry.

There is also the spectrum. As I said just now, aquatic plants love red light, and fish rely on blue light to show color. Therefore, professional aquarium lamps will be marked as "full spectrum", which means there is a little bit of everything, like a buffet, and you can pick any fish and aquatic plants. If you are too lazy to research, you can buy a big brand of LED lights and you will basically not be overturned. Don’t imitate me when I bought a miscellaneous brand for cheap, but the light broke a few days before it was on, and the fish even gave me a look.

Speaking of this, you may think that lighting is too troublesome, so you might as well not turn on the lights. No! If you don’t turn on the lights, your fish tank will become a black hole. The fish are depressed, the water plants wither, and even the algae are too lazy to visit. Think about it, a black fish tank is placed in the living room, like a supernatural incident scene, who dares to get close to it? Therefore, lighting is troublesome, but it is the soul of the fish tank. Without it, your fish tank is at most a glass box containing water, and it is not a question of ecology.

I also have to remind you that the lights are not installed and you have to observe them. Whether the fish swim happily, whether the aquatic plants grow well, and whether the algae have secret meetings, these are all feedback from the lights. You have to stare at the fish tank like a detective, and adjust if you find something wrong. For example, I found that aquatic plants always lose leaves, but later I realized that the lighting was too long, so I changed it to 8 hours a day. Therefore, raising a fish tank is similar to raising a pet. You have to be careful, otherwise the fish and water plants will not be polite to you.

Of course, the lighting also has a hidden function - making you happy to see it yourself. You spend so much effort on raising fish tanks, just to stare at them and pretend to be the creator of nature? The lights are well selected, the fish are bright in color, the aquatic plants are lush, and the whole tank is like a living work of art. Even people passing by will praise you: "Oh, this tank is really well raised!" If the lights are not selected, it will be miserable. The fish are dim and the aquatic plants are sparse. When others see it, they think you are doing some ruins themed exhibition.

So, the lighting in the aquarium is really no trivial. It can make your fish live like a star, the aquatic plants look like models, and can also control algae in obedience. If you still think the light doesn’t matter, then wait for the fish tank to stage a “light tragedy comedy” for you. Don’t cry and look for me at that time. I can only say, “I told you a long time ago that the light influence is more than you think!” Think more before buying the light next time, and don’t let the fish and water plants pay for you. After all, the fish tank is just a detail, and the lighting is the finishing touch.