Sun Lit Reefs

[kar93]

If a reef was outside and lit by the sun lets say it was 280gallon. Would rain or bad weather affect it?.would i need a heater etc, obviously i would need filters and skimmers and all of that.
I have seen a thread on a Sun Lit Reef somewhere before

 

[new_world_disor]

spose where u live determines if you need a heater. but id say yes. wherever u live. just incase of a cold spell.(would be a disaster otherwise) rain and bad weather shouldnt effect it ( asuming its got a lot... so rain doesnt get in ) a lot of people find that direct sunlight causes uncontrolable algae blooms ?

 

[useskaforevil]

i get a fair amount of direct sunlight and it might be causing algea blooms on the front glass, but i just run a magnetic cleaner on it 2-3 times a week, its a little annoying but i think the sunlight helps the corls infront just as much as it helps the algea

 

[BigH55]

Couldnt the rain pollute the water?

 

[billford]

hi guys i just started a 125 and it sits in front of 3 southfacing windows.no problems yet. i think its free light.but ill let you know what happens in the summer

 

[OneReef]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=11869139#post11869139 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by BigH55
Couldnt the rain pollute the water?

It would really affect the salinity....

 

[billford]

is using sunlight a noob idea.has anyone else tried sunlight.please let us know what happened.very curious

 

[seapug]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=11872146#post11872146 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by billford
is using sunlight a noob idea.has anyone else tried sunlight.please let us know what happened.very curious

Uhhh...there's this thing called Nature, it's where corals come from and they don't have artificial lighting there.

There are a number of coral farms as well as hobbyists that use greenhouse setups to house their corals. Sunlight is the best thing to use if you can keep temperatures under control.

To answer the original poster, yes, rain would affect the salinity of your tank, not to mention all the electrical hardware. A sunlit tank is a real possiblilty, but that doesn't mean moving your tank and stand out to the middle of your yard and running an extension cord to it.