That Fish Blog – Aquarium Advice and Information

With the growing popularity and availability of fish like GloFish and GloTetras and decorations like our own Pure Aquatic Glow Elements line, “glow-in-the-dark” and fluorescent aquariums are becoming more and more common. Most of these animals and decorations are brightly colored in any light but under special lighting, the colors will really glow. There are two main kinds of light that are used in these aquariums: “blacklights” and actinic lights. Knowing the difference between these two can play an important role in making your tank really stand out, as well as in keeping it healthy. For this blog, we will be focusing in general terms only for community aquariums. Aquarium with invertebrates and corals will have different needs since their light requirements are much more specific and extensive.

First, the science…

The colors we see around us come from the light’s wavelength, measured in Terahertz (THz) or nanometers (nm). Most people can see light ranging from about 700nm (reds) to about 400nm (purples). Blacklights and actinic lights both produce light from the bottom of the visible light spectrum (the BIV in ROY G BIV). Most actinic lighting for aquariums has a wavelength of about 420-460nm. The higher end of this range (460nm) produces a more blue color light, while the color shifts to purple approaching the lower end (420nm). This type of lighting is still well within what we are capable of seeing. “Blacklights” emit a light below what we as humans are able to see known as ultraviolet or UV light. Yes, this is the same UV light that we wear sunscreen to protect ourselves against! UV lighting is separated into three major ranges. Blacklight bulbs are UV-A bulbs (315-400nm), the spectrum which causes our skin to tan. For comparison, the UV Sterilizers popular in aquariums for eliminating algae, diseases and parasites are UV-C bulbs (200-280 nm), a destructive spectrum that is mostly filtered out by Earth’s atmosphere and the UV-B range in between is the more damaging rays from the sun that causes sunburn and other harmful conditions. Read More »

The choices for lighting your aquarium have never been so vast. Whether you are setting up a new aquarium, replacing an old light fixture, or adding to your existing light, there are many decisions to be made.  New technology, and improvements on older lighting methods, provide today’s aquarium hobbyist with a dizzying array of lighting choices for any aquarium. So, how do you choose? What is the best light for your aquarium?

Here are a few questions to ask yourself, to help you with the decision:

Is the light that you are looking for only going to be used on your current aquarium habitat, or are you planning on a more advanced aquarium in the future that may require a higher output light source? You may want to consider a stronger light than you need for your current livestock, as basic lighting may limit what you can keep in the tank down the line.   Read More »

That Fish Place now has the latest LED strip lights from Current USA, the TrueLumen Pro Series.  The TrueLumen Pro LED lighting system is modular, easy to use, environmentally friendly, and extremely energy efficient. The strips are available in four sizes (12”, 24”, 36”, 48”) and four different color spectrums. These lights can be adapted to any aquarium setup, offering brilliant lighting for any set-up.

8,000K Sun White – Brings the color of natural sunlight into your aquarium, perfect for freshwater planted aquariums, marine refugiums, and general lighting purposes

12000K Diamond White – Crisp white light for excellent shimmer and light penetration,  coloration on freshwater and marine fishes, limits growth of nuisance algae.

Deepwater Blue – 453nm actinic blue color provides proper wavelengths for enhanced coral growth, and intensified coloration in corals and fishes.

Marine Fusion – Blend of the Diamond White and Deepwater Blue LED colors to provide an ideal single light source any marine or reef aquarium. Can also be used on freshwater aquariums to enhance fish colors.

TrueLumen Pro LEDs come with a mounting bracket, that allows them to be easily attached the inside of a canopy or solid surface for an easy retrofit.  Aluminum mounting legs are also available for a more traditional tank frame mount setup, or they can simply be set on top of a glass canopy. Available inline dimmers and splitters allow for a wide range of custom installation possibilities.

The aluminum housing of the TrueLumen Pro is also a heat sink, that allows for cool operation of the LED chips, which will give them long life, and high performance. LED chips are also sealed in crystal clear silicone protectant, keeping all the electronic connection protected from any accidental splashing or corrosive salt creep.

The DC transformer power supply is sold separately, and can power up to 6 TrueLumen Pro light strips with the use of the available three way splitters.

Whether you are looking to upgrade, or replace your old lighting, the Current USA TrueLumen pro LED strips are worth taking a look at, they may be just what you are looking for.

We recently upgraded the lighting on our large cylinder display tank in our Lancaster, PA retail store.  Out with the old technology and in with the new.  We said good-bye to the power hungry,  ceiling mounted, heat producing 400W Metal Halide fixture, and installed a sleek, energy efficient, high output 50W LED Cannon LED pendant light — WOW what a difference!  The compact size of the Ecoxotic Cannon does not distract from the display and it provides incredible brightness and shimmering light into the aquarium.

The Ecoxotic 50 Watt Cannon Pendant uses state of the art Multi-Chip LED technology, which allows incredible lumen output in a small package.  Even though the light is only 50 Watts, the Cannon pendant easily illuminates this four foot deep, four foot diameter acrylic cylinder . These fixtures are also incredibly energy efficient, which can lead to big savings over time.

With the help of our friend Ike at Ecoxotic, we chose the 12,000K 50 Watt Cannon for this aquarium, but Ecoxotic has several other options to choose from.  Also available in the 50 Watt model is a 453nm actinic blue pendant. The 50 Watt versions have built in drivers, and are ready to be wired out of the box.  For those of you who need more light output for a serious display or coral farm, Ecoxotic also makes an even more powerful 100W version of the cannon, also available in 12000K and 453nm blue. The 100 Watt cannons use a remote driver (sold separately), swivel bracket mount and standard and dimmable versions are available.  Don’t let the 50 and 100 Watt ratings fool you, these are really powerful lights not intended for nano tanks and other smaller set-ups.

If you visit the store, check the new fixture out for yourself to see the amazing effect it has on the display.

Thanks,

Dave

While LED lighting is still relatively new to aquariums, practical applications of new LED fixtures have shown the effectiveness of this technology for growing plants and corals. But what about cost? It’s common knowledge that LED’s use much less energy than metal halides or compact fluorescents, but did you ever consider their overall longevity and cost advantages they also offer? Well, let’s take a look at the numbers to see how popular lighting types stack up.

Consider this: Read More »