Sunlight on tank....

SHLove16 · 05/10/2007, 01:21 PM

From my family's home-decor stand-
point, my tank (12G nano cube)
is best located on a windowless
wall in the living room 12 feet from a glass
French door that is located in an adjacent wall.
In Summer the tank would be exposed to early
morning direct sunlight for 1-1/2 hours maximum
(and zero hours of direct sunlight in Winter).
We can reduce the sunlight from direct to some-
what attenuated direct sunlight using thin white
curtains (Mom does not want to install light-
blocking curtains over the door, makes the living/
dining room too dark). My question is, is 1-1/2
hours (max) of direct morning sunlight on the tank
a good thing or a bad thing, and would filtering
it a bit through thin curtains be better, or should
I block the sunlight in the AM from the tank with
a cardboard screen that sits beside the tank and
is just big enough to shade the tank from the
direct sunlight in the morning?

thanks,
-Simon

smcdonn · 05/10/2007, 01:24 PM

There is nothing wrong with sunlight other than you need to watch the temps. On a tank that small, it could heat up fairly quickly. Just keep an eye on temps and if you don't see any major fluctuations, you should be good.

cdangel0 · 05/10/2007, 01:29 PM

And hour-and-a-half in the early moring when the sunlight is naturally diffused and weaker probably will not cause you any issues. The tin white curtains would definitely help.

Best advice I can offer is to set it up and watch it for those first few days to see what effect the sunlight will have on the temp.

Travis L. Stevens · 05/10/2007, 01:31 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by smcdonn
There is nothing wrong with sunlight other than you need to watch the temps. On a tank that small, it could heat up fairly quickly. Just keep an eye on temps and if you don't see any major fluctuations, you should be good.

I completely agree. Heck, it might be slightly more beneficial since you will add a wide range of color temperatures to the tank as well. People will chime in that sunlight increases algae growth. This only holds true with improper tank maintenance. If there isn't any nitrates and/or phosphates in the system in the first place, algae won't grow. You'll be fine.

seapug · 05/10/2007, 01:40 PM

My tank gets a band of sunlight that passes across its entire length from a window during the winter. Looks really cool and saw no probs as a result. Try to put some SPS in the spots that get the sun. They will love it.

elegance coral · 05/10/2007, 03:38 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by Travis L. Stevens
I completely agree. Heck, it might be slightly more beneficial since you will add a wide range of color temperatures to the tank as well. People will chime in that sunlight increases algae growth. This only holds true with improper tank maintenance. If there isn't any nitrates and/or phosphates in the system in the first place, algae won't grow. You'll be fine.

I agree with everything you just said except the part about algae growth. There are nutrients that algae can use in every tank. Not just those that are neglected. With very bright light algae can take advantage of these nutrients, even in very small amounts, and begin to spread. With that said I don't believe 1 1/2 hours will make a big difference.

05/10/2007, 01:21 PM	#1
SHLove16 Registered Member Join Date: Aug 2006 Location: Johnson City, TN Posts: 208	Sunlight on tank.... From my family's home-decor stand- point, my tank (12G nano cube) is best located on a windowless wall in the living room 12 feet from a glass French door that is located in an adjacent wall. In Summer the tank would be exposed to early morning direct sunlight for 1-1/2 hours maximum (and zero hours of direct sunlight in Winter). We can reduce the sunlight from direct to some- what attenuated direct sunlight using thin white curtains (Mom does not want to install light- blocking curtains over the door, makes the living/ dining room too dark). My question is, is 1-1/2 hours (max) of direct morning sunlight on the tank a good thing or a bad thing, and would filtering it a bit through thin curtains be better, or should I block the sunlight in the AM from the tank with a cardboard screen that sits beside the tank and is just big enough to shade the tank from the direct sunlight in the morning? thanks, -Simon

05/10/2007, 01:24 PM	#2
smcdonn Registered Member Join Date: Apr 2006 Location: Fayetteville, AR Posts: 925	There is nothing wrong with sunlight other than you need to watch the temps. On a tank that small, it could heat up fairly quickly. Just keep an eye on temps and if you don't see any major fluctuations, you should be good. __________________ 180g IN WALL, REEF Current Tank Info: 180 gallon

05/10/2007, 01:40 PM	#5
seapug Registered Member Join Date: Dec 2006 Location: 4980 ft. Posts: 7,954 Blog Entries: 1	My tank gets a band of sunlight that passes across its entire length from a window during the winter. Looks really cool and saw no probs as a result. Try to put some SPS in the spots that get the sun. They will love it. __________________ insert clever saying here. Current Tank Info: 200 gallon custom Marineland DD peninsular tank. LPS dominated mixed reef. Previous 90 gallon mixed reef TOTM April 2009.

05/10/2007, 01:29 PM	#3
cdangel0 Moved On Join Date: Dec 2006 Location: Delaware Posts: 905	And hour-and-a-half in the early moring when the sunlight is naturally diffused and weaker probably will not cause you any issues. The tin white curtains would definitely help. Best advice I can offer is to set it up and watch it for those first few days to see what effect the sunlight will have on the temp.