# black lighting



## jer1986 (Dec 24, 2004)

is it safe to put black light on a piranha tank?


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## jonscilz (Dec 2, 2004)

ive always wondered that myself... i think it might be bad but you never know. i do know it would look cool as hell. hope somebody has a suggestion


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## fishofury (May 10, 2003)

I wouldn't do it. it can't be good for their eyes


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## icedizzle (Feb 3, 2005)

I wouldn't say no to the black light... it can't be any worse then putting normal lighting on your tank... I think the key with most tanks is to only turn it on when you need it because it is generally hard on the fish.


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## JAC (Jan 19, 2004)

yup, I heard it can actually make them blind overtime .


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## jonscilz (Dec 2, 2004)

blacklight makes them blind? or standard flourescent tank lighting?


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## HighOctane (Jan 2, 2003)

A blacklight is bad for their eyes. Don't use one.


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## Supa Samoan (Jan 13, 2005)

HighOctane said:


> A blacklight is bad for their eyes. Don't use one.
> [snapback]887381[/snapback]​


 If it's bad for their eyes then why do aquariums use black light on over 80 % of their exhibits. I think black light would be fine for home aquarium use. Just go to any aquarium and look for their tropical fish section and their you go. the black light kills certin amounts of harmful bacteria any way it might help to clear up your tank. It is the same principal as a UV sterilizer but at a lower intensity. go for it


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## frogguy1 (Jun 9, 2004)

Those arent black light over the aquariums. Those are saltwater bulbs called actinics blue bulbs which have a similar apparence but are safe. You could put these on your tank and your piranha would be fine.


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## Speedy (Sep 25, 2004)

Hey,
If "black lights" are so bad for the eyes... Then why do so many Stripper-Bars use them. Are humans different in the regard?
I've been going to them for years and still see what I need to, just fine!!!!

Hmmm?....
Maybe that's why I had to make that appointment with the Optometrist...


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## jonscilz (Dec 2, 2004)

Supa Samoan said:


> HighOctane said:
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> 
> > A blacklight is bad for their eyes. Don't use one.
> ...


haha... you dont konw what youre talking about man.







by tropical fish you meant to say saltwater and by blacklight you meant to say metal halide or as frogguy said actinic bulbs... same pricipal as UV sterilizer!?..... wow


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## jamesdelanoche (Dec 15, 2004)

you guys are very mis informed. Actnic bulbs are not "saltwater" bulbs and metal halide are another style of lighting, it has nothing to do with color they are able to produce a lot of wattage effectivley and last a long time. I don't think black light would be bad for your fish, at least not more so than normal flourescent bulbs. Anyone have an educated opinion about this? I too would like to try this.


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## Atlanta Braves Baby! (Mar 12, 2003)

jamesdelanoche said:


> you guys are very mis informed. Actnic bulbs are not "saltwater" bulbs and metal halide are another style of lighting, it has nothing to do with color they are able to produce a lot of wattage effectivley and last a long time. I don't think black light would be bad for your fish, at least not more so than normal flourescent bulbs. Anyone have an educated opinion about this? I too would like to try this.
> [snapback]888638[/snapback]​


actinic bulbs are actually used on saltwater aquariums. They often use 50/50 lights on them. I have heard man times that "black lights" are bad for Ps eyes but dont know the info behind it. Also, why is everyone dieing to put one on their fish tanks when the amount of light is so minimal?


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## frogguy1 (Jun 9, 2004)

Actinis are primarily made for saltwater use so I dont know where you are getting your info Jamesdelanoche. I have happen to have many saltwater takes the majority reef aquariums so I would think I knew a thing or two about lighting. Thatswhy you always find them in the saltwater sections. Metal Hilades have more uses that just salt water though, that is correct.


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## MR.FREEZ (Jan 26, 2004)

Speedy said:


> Hey,
> If "black lights" are so bad for the eyes... Then why do so many Stripper-Bars use them. Are humans different in the regard?
> I've been going to them for years and still see what I need to, just fine!!!!
> 
> ...


beer goggles help block the bad rays


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## jonscilz (Dec 2, 2004)

mr.freez said:


> Speedy said:
> 
> 
> > Hey,
> ...


its true...


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## Supa Samoan (Jan 13, 2005)

jonscilz said:


> Supa Samoan said:
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> > HighOctane said:
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Members ask questions and others give answers. I am in my eighth year in the Aquaria Hobby, My Uncle is a Fish distributor out of LAX and my Brother in Law is the "Tropical" Pacific exhibit curator at the Aquarium of the Pacific. "They use high intensity Black Light in exhibits to intensify the florescent pigments in Tropical Corals". I am lucky to have information at my disposal, most aren't. FYI "Topical" is a Term that describes water tempature. If you think that MH are the same as Actinic then your way off. A member asked for advice and I gave it . About Black light sterilization check municipal code in any county and you'll see a statute Pertaining to FDA guidelines that states a certain amount of Black Light sterilization in any factory that produces consumer food products or states product is manufactured in a clean room(a sterile environment) is required to have a certain number of total sterilization watts per sq ft. of production space. Here are a few of the 2million snippets of info on on the web. You can find all kinds info on the web. But please before you Knock someones post please be sure to get your facts straight.

"A straight, or linear, fluorescent lamp is a fluorescent lamp of straight tubular form and bi-pin electrical connections at either end.

The colour properties of straight fluorescent lamps are determined by the phosphors used to coat the inside of the tube. Halophospate and triphospate are examples of such phosphorous materials.

Straight fluorescent lamps for general purpose can be defined as lamps used for general lighting solutions, in contrast to lamps used for special purposes (see item 3 below).

Top of page

3. Mercury in straight fluorescent lamps for special purposes.

Examples of such lamps are black light lamps(disinfection lamps, medical/therapy lamps), pet care lamps (e.g. aquaria lamps), lamps with special components (e.g. integrated reflectors or external protection sleeves), lamps with special ignition features (e.g. designed for low temperatures), long length lamps (length > 1800mm) and amalgam lamps"

"courtesy of frick-n-frags
Let's talk about flourescent lights.

Basically, it is a tube of mercury vapor than gets ionozed by a voltage and electrons get knocked out of orbit. When these electrons drop back into orbit, they release a photon of a specific energy. Each element(like mercury,sodium,oxygyn, neon, whatever) has a specific pattern of light frequencies(the higher the freq, the higher the energy,and the more destructive it can be). So UV is more energetic than purple and way more than red.

Anyway, flourescent lights typically make use of the certain pattern of light from mercury because it puts out mostly UV that can flouresce phosphors painted on the inside of the tube. This is why flours come in a bazillion colors. You get out your glow paints and mix up whatever you want.

The only bulb that does not make use of this coating is the black light. This uses a type of glass as a lowpass filter. This means that light of a certain frequency and LOWER gets through, the rest gets blocked, no phosphors, just sunglasses, if you will. ONLY near UV gets through. These are safe for humans and absolutely safe for aquaria. The UV in sunlight is far more dangerous than what gets out of a blacklight, and next to actinic blue light, near UV light penetrates the deepest into the ocean. Life evolved with a strong component of near UV in its light since day one!

If you break the outer glass on a MH bulb, now you have lethal UV. Your skin burns in seconds as those blistering photons, really cranked up, just shred the wimpy organic bonds in your skin and disrupt(mutate) your DNA as they rocket through."















Good luck with you tank man I'm done with this thread.


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## Fido (May 21, 2003)

HighOctane said:


> A blacklight is bad for their eyes. Don't use one.
> [snapback]887381[/snapback]​


any scientific information to back this up? no offense--just link plz.


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## WorldBelow07 (Dec 16, 2004)

^agreed


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## Speedy (Sep 25, 2004)

jonscilz said:


> mr.freez said:
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> > Speedy said:
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Lucky for me then!!!


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## Winkyee (Feb 17, 2003)

I've checked it out , reading page after page and have found only comments that"It makes your water look cloudy". I found nothing concrete that it will damage your fish's eyes. I tried it and didn't like the effect.


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## b_ack51 (Feb 11, 2003)

I thought a black light would look cool on my tank, the moment I put it on my first red belly tank my fish freaked out and smashed into everything, then swam weird. I removed the light immediately and will never do that again.


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## jer1986 (Dec 24, 2004)

winkyee said:


> I've checked it out , reading page after page and have found only comments that"It makes your water look cloudy". I found nothing concrete that it will damage your fish's eyes. I tried it and didn't like the effect.
> [snapback]891342[/snapback]​


thanks for the info man.


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## samandrenee (Feb 6, 2005)

u know i priced those moonlights and then i thought..i had some lights from x-mas....they r the tubed ones...so i used the red and it looks nice so i do not even use my actual hood lights hrdly..its nice and their colors glisten when they swim..i have canopy top and glass hoods so it illuminates well...
check out my album at homepage 2nd link aol pics


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