direct sunlight good or bad?

[cathoai]

Hi guys,

my tank is sitting next to the window where it gets about 1 hour of direct sunlight. Is direct sunlight bad for the corals?

[WaterKeeper]

Probably no problem if it is only an hour. The main drawback of having a tank in direct sunlight is that it can cause over heating especially if you don't use a chiller. A short exposure like yours should not cause that to happen. Actually the sunlight is good for most corals as it provides spectrum range that no artificial lighting can provide.

[mikemartinez]

I cant imagine it would be bad for the corals.. The only negative I can think of is that you'll get algea alot faster... My neighbor has some tanks in his garage and when the door is open the light shines on one of his tanks and algea grows really fast...

[cathoai]

Thanks guys

[RickySan]

i wouldnt, due to evaporation and the constant change of your salinity but if its only for an hour, it might not be a problem. Just make sure to keep a close eye on your parameters mainly your salinity!

[boxfishpooalot]

I would use the sun even in direct sunlight all day, hands down. The spectrum of the sun is far superior to any lightbulb, I have tested them myself. None come close to the sun. Imo a 400 watt halide warms more than direct sunlight does, being since a canopy traps a lot of heat, where the sun just warms the water, not the air above it. So theres a cooling effect. Basicallly algae or no algae I think your tank will benefit more with sunlight.

I agree with Waterkeeper.

[rustybucket145]

Is direct sunlight bad for the corals?

You do realize that in nature corals are in direct sunlight all day.... right?

My tank gets direct sunlight from sunrise til around 10ish then indirect for the rest of the day. It's located in a sunroom with windows floor to ceiling on three sides. Corals do great, polyp extension and color is phenomenal during the morning hours when the tank receives the direct light.

So yes, I would suggest that anybody who can utilize ANY direct sunlight to do so.

[Randall_James]

A project I would love to take on is a solar lit tank myself..... I know heat gain is a real issue in direct sunlight but the solar tubes are a different story I guess.

http://reefcentral.com/forums/showth...ight=solartube

[hensleyrobw]

for a short time period it's probably ok, everything i understand about direct sunlight has to do with algae growth, with your own lights you can limit the amount of light the tank recieves.

[WaterKeeper]

There are mainly public aquariums that are naturally illuminated. Often their tanks are so deep that using artificial light would eat massive amounts of power so sunlight is a better choice. If one practices good nutrient control then a sunlight tank should not create any more algae than an artificially illuminated tank.

I don't know much about that product Randall. We'll let you try them out.

[Randall_James]

Originally posted by WaterKeeper
There are mainly public aquariums that are naturally illuminated. Often their tanks are so deep that using artificial light would eat massive amounts of power so sunlight is a better choice. If one practices good nutrient control then a sunlight tank should not create any more algae than an artificially illuminated tank.

I don't know much about that product Randall. We'll let you try them out.

Well if I did not mind punching a hole or 2 in my roof I would install them in a heartbeat. But I think I need an "inwall" setup for this next experiment (and I need someone qualified to pop holes in my houses roof/ceiling

[WaterKeeper]

See Travis Stevens he loves to cut holes in things.