# My P's HATE the big light!



## mose (Oct 12, 2009)

so my P's are really active swimmers, relaxed, not scared when the lights off. they'll even eat in front of me.

but when i turn it on (it's a 4 ft, 40 watt fluorescent which can also be used to grow plants), they FREAK OUT. they start madly swimming and then hide in the corner in a group.

now i put about 15$ worth of live plants (small ones) from the LFC in, and i'm wondering if it's not going to be worth it, since my P's really enjoy a 20/4 dark/light cycle, or even a 24/0.

i just don't see a way to keep the light off for such a long time and still grow my plants.

anyone else had similar problems?

also, they don't seem to be affected by the light in the room at all, just the tank light.


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## FEEFA (Nov 19, 2007)

Dont worry about it man they will get used to it.
Your the boss not them and if you want plants with your lights on for8hrs than by god it shall be done









The lil p*ssy's will be fine


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## Lifer374 (Dec 5, 2003)

put the lights on a timer. With time, they'll get used to it.


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## Soul Assassin (Nov 21, 2006)

that's why I dont have live plants, but they will get used to it eventually, it could take a couple of months though depending on their size/level of skidishness


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## SpecialEffect (Aug 7, 2009)

I know what your talking about.... I took out my x2 t5 power glows, and put 2 marine glows because of my pirhana being a little bitch... And now, im suffering from brown algae and a bit of green tiny dots around such places....

Im thinking about putting back my original light's and telling him to man it up. lol


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## philbert (Mar 8, 2007)

they will get used to the lights put them on a timer.


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## SpecialEffect (Aug 7, 2009)

Do you guys think that x2 power glows are tooo bright?

18k each


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## mose (Oct 12, 2009)

well i solved my problem, i turn the light on from 12 pm to 10 pm. the fish are a lot less skittish now, and actually swim around a lot with the light on. i think they freaked out because i had the light off for a few days trying to treat an eye infection that was really just a nibbled eye.


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## SpecialEffect (Aug 7, 2009)

Mose may i ask, what type of lighting you use?


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## mose (Oct 12, 2009)

40 w 4 foot fluorescent. real light spectrum. looks a bit purple. threw out the box so that's all the information i have.


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## Da' Manster! (Sep 1, 2009)

In my 25 years of keeping piranha, I've very rarely turned on the lights...I was fortunate to windows in almost every room of the house that I live in so that natural light was more than enough to enjoy the fish..It also drastically reduces the amount of algae you will get on your tank...Yes, when you turn the lights on, piranhas freak out and start going bezerk...this cause undue stress to them..It's also one of the reasons why I have never used real plants..only plastic ones....looks just as good, and a lot less maintenance!


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## philbert (Mar 8, 2007)

Da said:


> In my 25 years of keeping piranha, I've very rarely turned on the lights...I was fortunate to windows in almost every room of the house that I live in so that natural light was more than enough to enjoy the fish..It also drastically reduces the amount of algae you will get on your tank...Yes, when you turn the lights on, piranhas freak out and start going bezerk...this cause undue stress to them..It's also one of the reasons why I have never used real plants..only plastic ones....looks just as good, and a lot less maintenance!


i definetly think a real plants planted tank that is maintained well is way better looking that one with fake plants. also if you just use a timer or just give them time they will get used to it. i think that sunlight promotes more algea growth than tank lights.


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## Da' Manster! (Sep 1, 2009)

philbert said:


> In my 25 years of keeping piranha, I've very rarely turned on the lights...I was fortunate to windows in almost every room of the house that I live in so that natural light was more than enough to enjoy the fish..It also drastically reduces the amount of algae you will get on your tank...Yes, when you turn the lights on, piranhas freak out and start going bezerk...this cause undue stress to them..It's also one of the reasons why I have never used real plants..only plastic ones....looks just as good, and a lot less maintenance!


i definetly think a real plants planted tank that is maintained well is way better looking that one with fake plants. also if you just use a timer or just give them time they will get used to it. i think that sunlight promotes more algea growth than tank lights.
[/quote]

Hi Philbert,
Well, like I said it's a pain in the ass to maintain real plants and your tank will get real messy once the piranhas start eating them..Besides, IMO, plastic looks just as good...and I've never had an algae problem as long as I've had tanks...I guess I was rather lucky but I do know for a fact that all the piranha I have ever owned are more aggressive and less skittish and a lot more active because of the "natural" environment....I had a diamond rhom that I grew out and sold to a member on this forum and he constantly did "figure 8's" all day long.


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## philbert (Mar 8, 2007)

Da said:


> In my 25 years of keeping piranha, I've very rarely turned on the lights...I was fortunate to windows in almost every room of the house that I live in so that natural light was more than enough to enjoy the fish..It also drastically reduces the amount of algae you will get on your tank...Yes, when you turn the lights on, piranhas freak out and start going bezerk...this cause undue stress to them..It's also one of the reasons why I have never used real plants..only plastic ones....looks just as good, and a lot less maintenance!


i definetly think a real plants planted tank that is maintained well is way better looking that one with fake plants. also if you just use a timer or just give them time they will get used to it. i think that sunlight promotes more algea growth than tank lights.
[/quote]

Hi Philbert,
Well, like I said it's a pain in the ass to maintain real plants and your tank will get real messy once the piranhas start eating them..Besides, IMO, plastic looks just as good...and I've never had an algae problem as long as I've had tanks...I guess I was rather lucky but I do know for a fact that all the piranha I have ever owned are more aggressive and less skittish and a lot more active because of the "natural" environment....I had a diamond rhom that I grew out and sold to a member on this forum and he constantly did "figure 8's" all day long.
[/quote]

maybe your perception of being "more agressive" is in reality just them being used to not having lights. have you ever tried raising a piranha with the lights on the whole time? my point is that they get conditioned and used to their surroundings. which in return makes them come out of their shell. my Ps barely react anymore when i turn on the lights. and my rhom is more agressive and will finger chase when the light is on, but will ignor ppl when the lights are off.

also i wouldn't want a tank that has no lights. i am home in the evening and enjoy watching my fish which would be impossible at night. unless i had every light in the house on.

there is no wrong or right with lights. just what you can do to get them used to it.

when did you sell your rhom?


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## Da' Manster! (Sep 1, 2009)

philbert said:


> In my 25 years of keeping piranha, I've very rarely turned on the lights...I was fortunate to windows in almost every room of the house that I live in so that natural light was more than enough to enjoy the fish..It also drastically reduces the amount of algae you will get on your tank...Yes, when you turn the lights on, piranhas freak out and start going bezerk...this cause undue stress to them..It's also one of the reasons why I have never used real plants..only plastic ones....looks just as good, and a lot less maintenance!


i definetly think a real plants planted tank that is maintained well is way better looking that one with fake plants. also if you just use a timer or just give them time they will get used to it. i think that sunlight promotes more algea growth than tank lights.
[/quote]

Hi Philbert,
Well, like I said it's a pain in the ass to maintain real plants and your tank will get real messy once the piranhas start eating them..Besides, IMO, plastic looks just as good...and I've never had an algae problem as long as I've had tanks...I guess I was rather lucky but I do know for a fact that all the piranha I have ever owned are more aggressive and less skittish and a lot more active because of the "natural" environment....I had a diamond rhom that I grew out and sold to a member on this forum and he constantly did "figure 8's" all day long.
[/quote]

maybe your perception of being "more agressive" is in reality just them being used to not having lights. have you ever tried raising a piranha with the lights on the whole time? my point is that they get conditioned and used to their surroundings. which in return makes them come out of their shell. my Ps barely react anymore when i turn on the lights. and my rhom is more agressive and will finger chase when the light is on, but will ignor ppl when the lights are off.

also i wouldn't want a tank that has no lights. i am home in the evening and enjoy watching my fish which would be impossible at night. unless i had every light in the house on.

there is no wrong or right with lights. just what you can do to get them used to it.

when did you sell your rhom?
[/quote]

Yeah, I just was never a light person...it doens't matter either way...I do suppose the P's will eventually get used to the lights being on, but in my house there was always more than enough sunlight so it wasn't necessary...And I sold my rhom a few days ago...didn't want to part with him, but i needed the extra cash to get my other tanks up and running...I had him since he was dime size and got him up to 9"...He was healthy, aggressive and had beautiful blue, silver, and purple scales on him with big red eyes...I sold him to a friend and member of this forum who only lives a few miles from where I live.


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## philbert (Mar 8, 2007)

damn how long did you have him?


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## Da' Manster! (Sep 1, 2009)

philbert said:


> damn how long did you have him?


I had him approximately 5.5 years...Didn't want to part with him, but when you got bills to pay and tanks to get up and running, and if you are really strapped, sometimes you have no choice.


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## alexandar75 (Dec 18, 2007)

http://www.piranha-fury.com/pfury/index.ph...p;#entry2439785
Just look at the light in my tank and be patient...





















they will be used to light... checked!!!


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## Da' Manster! (Sep 1, 2009)

alexandar75 said:


> http://www.piranha-fury.com/pfury/index.ph...p;#entry2439785
> Just look at the light in my tank and be patient...
> 
> 
> ...


Alexander,
your tank rocks like Iron Maiden concert!..





















....I'm just saying that in the day time I have more than enough sunlight in my house so it looks just as natural and brightly lit...I have windows in just about every room so it's not a problem...I might consider turning them on at night though just for something different.


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## alexandar75 (Dec 18, 2007)

Yup man, and the favourite one of my piranhas is fear of the dark


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## Fordfanatic (Feb 2, 2006)

Da said:


> damn how long did you have him?


I had him approximately 5.5 years...Didn't want to part with him, but when you got bills to pay and tanks to get up and running, and if you are really strapped, sometimes you have no choice.
[/quote]

Not trying to hijack this thread, but there is a pic of Da'Manster's fish I just got from him in the pictures section.


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## Da' Manster! (Sep 1, 2009)

Fordfanatic said:


> damn how long did you have him?


I had him approximately 5.5 years...Didn't want to part with him, but when you got bills to pay and tanks to get up and running, and if you are really strapped, sometimes you have no choice.
[/quote]

Not trying to hijack this thread, but there is a pic of Da'Manster's fish I just got from him in the pictures section.
[/quote]

Thanks Fordfanatic!...I hope you love your new pride and joy!


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## HGI (Oct 27, 2009)

Don't mean to jack this thread also but I was told 1 to 1.5 W per gallon of water from a friend, I'm going to be looking for lights soon... I've been thinking this light 
http://shop.aquatraders.com/Odyssea-72in-4...ure-p/51206.htm
but since I'm not going with live plants I've been thinking of just getting 2 cheaper 36inchers with 1 bulb each since from what I'm reading P's aren't a big fan of bright lights.

I've also been thinking, since I get a good amount of daylight in my basement (wont be any direct sunlight on the tank) I'll just use those night viewing bulbs for when the sun goes down.


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## JoeDizzleMPLS (Nov 5, 2007)

HGI said:


> Don't mean to jack this thread also but I was told 1 to 1.5 W per gallon of water from a friend, I'm going to be looking for lights soon... I've been thinking this light
> http://shop.aquatraders.com/Odyssea-72in-4...ure-p/51206.htm
> but since I'm not going with live plants I've been thinking of just getting 2 cheaper 36inchers with 1 bulb each since from what I'm reading P's aren't a big fan of bright lights.
> 
> I've also been thinking, since I get a good amount of daylight in my basement (wont be any direct sunlight on the tank) I'll just use those night viewing bulbs for when the sun goes down.


save your money and buy a shop light at home depot for 20 bucks... if you ran that fixture on your tank, you would most likely be dealing with algae blooms. unless you are growing plants, there is really no need for expensive lighting, and even then, you can find much better lighting options for a lot less than that.


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## HGI (Oct 27, 2009)

I'm leaning more towards saving money even more with just buying those moonlight led lights since my basement is fairly bright during the day. I'm just wondering if my rbps will stay healthy with out having a bright light above them for 6ish hours a day.


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