Post by Carl on Dec 1, 2021 13:33:17 GMT -5
A basic but excellent article from our friends at "Fish Beginner"
www.fishbeginner.info/home/aquarium-lights-lighting-which-to-choose/
Excerpt:
"Lighting is an important consideration for both freshwater and reef aquariums. It can make a difference on how natural your aquarium appears, as well as brown diatom algae is often a problem in established FW tanks with poor lighting.
There is also some evidence (not conclusive) that good lighting aids in correct Redox which is a water parameter that has a definite effect on fish health. Human studies in lighting shows that lighting that has the same optimal PAR & PUR required by photosynthetic life is beneficial for human health, so extrapolating this to a fish only tank is rather logical.
Besides that, plants, reef, coral, etc, need proper lighting to survive.
For these reasons, obtaining the best light your aquarium keeping budget can afford is highly recommended. This admittedly can be confusing with the plethora of new lights now available on the market, many of which having low energy efficiency and poor PUR, especially with LEDs sold at many discounters.
Advertising slogans also confuse or convince buyers of certain qualities.
An example being a brand advertising “what corals crave” seems great but when we look into the science of lighting including the spectrums at the depths of many of these corals, we quickly find this particular light might be what people crave in coloration but is far from what corals crave.
Worse, when we look at the efficiencies of such lights, we find that the input wattage needed for output PAR is often half that of better LED lights.
Of late many if these heavily marketed lights are now failing at higher percentages than the better built LEDs such as the AAP AquaRay line. "
www.fishbeginner.info/home/aquarium-lights-lighting-which-to-choose/
Excerpt:
"Lighting is an important consideration for both freshwater and reef aquariums. It can make a difference on how natural your aquarium appears, as well as brown diatom algae is often a problem in established FW tanks with poor lighting.
There is also some evidence (not conclusive) that good lighting aids in correct Redox which is a water parameter that has a definite effect on fish health. Human studies in lighting shows that lighting that has the same optimal PAR & PUR required by photosynthetic life is beneficial for human health, so extrapolating this to a fish only tank is rather logical.
Besides that, plants, reef, coral, etc, need proper lighting to survive.
For these reasons, obtaining the best light your aquarium keeping budget can afford is highly recommended. This admittedly can be confusing with the plethora of new lights now available on the market, many of which having low energy efficiency and poor PUR, especially with LEDs sold at many discounters.
Advertising slogans also confuse or convince buyers of certain qualities.
An example being a brand advertising “what corals crave” seems great but when we look into the science of lighting including the spectrums at the depths of many of these corals, we quickly find this particular light might be what people crave in coloration but is far from what corals crave.
Worse, when we look at the efficiencies of such lights, we find that the input wattage needed for output PAR is often half that of better LED lights.
Of late many if these heavily marketed lights are now failing at higher percentages than the better built LEDs such as the AAP AquaRay line. "