to moonlight or not to moonlight...

[rxdoc_85]

so...on my light fixture there's a moonlight function, and i've seen said function mentioned in some recent posts. i just thought it was some extra, fancy thing, but is this something that i need to be sure is on at night every night? i've had it on some nights, but not every night. i don't have any corals yet...but i'm not sure if that makes a difference...

 

[Ace25]

It is there simply to help you see into your tank at night without disturbing the tank. Nothing in the tank requires the moonlights to be on.

 

[Grins]

Not sure about that fixture but you might consider putting it on a timer so it comes on when the others go off.

 

[dolfans1]

I don't think you need to have the moonlights on for the fish's benefit, but one of my favorite times to watch the tank is at night when only the moonlights are on. It's like a different world. If you have them, I'd definitely recommend using them.

 

[rxdoc_85]

thanks guys! i figured it was just to watch the tank at night without disturbing the life in the tank, i just wanted to make sure it wasn't something i needed to do for the health of everything in the tank.

 

[Reefscape]

The only time i have ever seen moon lights used to full effect is when i saw an aquarium where all their lighting was setup to actually match the years moon cycle...Its was done with the spawing issue in mind...For me, as a general aquarists, i feel they are just their for our viewing pleasure...

 

[Boltster]

I use mine in conjunction with 3 timers. One for the moonlights. One for the dusk/dawm lights that stay on all day. The other timer controls the main lights, which stay on for about 6-7 hours a day. Once they're set, it's gravy.

 

[Dustin83]

I also agree that it's purely for viewing pleasure. As matter of fact, I have seen my fish still awake and swimming around in the middle of the night because of the moonlight... whereas they would hide in the rocks and not come out in the complete darkness...

I guess it's up to personal preference but I don't use it.