Blue carpet/change of photoperiod question

[danieljames]

How sensitive would a blue carpet be iye with a complete change of photoperiod? I don't mean a change in length, but a change in when the lights are actually on. Say from 12pm to 12am is what it's used to. Going to 12am to 12pm in a day would cause how much stress?

 

[phender]

I don't think it would cause any problem at all.

 

[nickterp]

Assuming.... you don't make that change by leaving the lights on for 24 hours in a row right? I'm not sure how you would make that change in one day without doing that, hehe.

 

[nickterp]

Maybe just shift the hours by an hour or to each day. Like 1pm to 1am, then next day, 2pm to 2am, etc. The problem woudl be by switching all at once is either leaving lights on for too long or leaving them off for too long. I think either one of those things can cause some shock.

 

[phender]

Why can't you leave the lights on for 24 hrs in a row? That's a lot better than leaving them off for 24 hrs in a row.
What type of shock do you see that causing?
If you were expecting the animals to spawn, it could certainly throw them off a bit, but I don't think that is a concern here.

 

[nickterp]

Its not something I totally made up , just something I concluded from other things I've read about acclimating livestock to new lights or new photoperiods. Based on the idea that its recommended to keep lights on a timer, so that the animals have a constant feel of day and night, it would seem reasonable that a sudden switch between day and night could confuse them for a while and could be somewhat of a shock.

I would guess with fish that they would be a little confused, but fine, but anemones are much more sensitive to light changes. Mine changes in appearance between darkness, to just actinics, to actinics and daylights.... he reacts to all those changes. I could definitely see a 24 hour photoperiod causing an anemone to panic a little. They build up there UV protection overtime to account for the amount of light they recieve. An extended photoperiod could cause some shock in that sense.

Also, isn't it the safer way to handle all changes in reef aquariums the slow patient way? I seem to remember the phrase "IN A REEF AQUARIUM, ONLY BAD THINGS HAPPEN QUICKLY" .

I'll just conclude with the fact that with the slow change method its extremely unlikely there will be any adverse affects to the change in photoperiod, with the quick way you could just listen to someone who says "yeah why not", lol.

But yeah I definitely agree its worse to leave the lights off for 24 hours than it is to leave them on for 24 hours.

 

[55semireef]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=8138258#post8138258 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by nickterp
Maybe just shift the hours by an hour or to each day. Like 1pm to 1am, then next day, 2pm to 2am, etc. The problem woudl be by switching all at once is either leaving lights on for too long or leaving them off for too long. I think either one of those things can cause some shock.

Thats not true at all. Think about it. In nature, there are heavy thunderstorms, or really cloudy days that can block the sun for the whole day. Keeping your lighs off for a day in your tank will hurt nothing. In fact, every once in a while, I keep my tank lights off the whole day ast to imitate nature. I notice the next day when the lights go back on for a while, everything seems happier.


So what I would do is just keep your lights off from 12:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. and then turn them on at 12:00 p.m. Then start your schedule from there. Your anemone won't know the difference.

 

[danieljames]

Thanks for the replies

 

[55semireef]

So what route are you taking? I would go with the lights off for 24 hours and then start your new photoperiod. Its safer to go with the lights off than lights on from what I have read.

 

[danieljames]

I'm gonna give it some thought bro. I'm more concerned about moving her than anything. She's tucked in the back of the display she is in, and i don't want to move her after she is already stressed from a move in the tank. So the owner is gonna get her in the shade and see if she goes for a walk. She's a large blue, around 12". Interestingly, i believe she is attached to a rock. Not sure how odd that would be for a haddoni?
If she does go on the move, what is my best bet for removal? Credit card gently on the foot? I truely appreciate you, phender, and nicks replies/help from the forum.
http://www.a1webdesign.com/House/bluecarpet.jpg

 

[bajabum]

The only problem with turning lights off is if you are using algae to process waste. Leaving them doesn't hurt if it not to intense. I use sumps with algae with light 24/7 to keep any ammonia from developing in my anemone tanks. A day of darkness doesn't hurt except for ammonia build up.

 

[55semireef]

Ammonia should not build up in one day. NEver did with mine.