Current at night?

bammbamm74

Member
How many of you turn off a couple of pumps to slow the current down at night? I was thinking of doing this for the fish. Would the corals mind?
 

jumpfrog

Active Member
Good question.
Do the reef currents change at night in the wild?
I'd be interested to know as well.
 

bammbamm74

Member
I would think that the currents are a little less at night. I was thinking of putting my MaxiJet on a timer. There will still be movement, just not the max. I wonder.
Anyone else?
 

bammbamm74

Member
Thanks, I have a RIO 600 and a Maxi Jet 600 ( I think) plus my Prizm skimmer and my particulate filter that came with the ViaAqua hood. I am going to update my pics soon. I was thinking of turning off the maxijet at night. It blows across the top of the corals. There are a few spots where the current isn't too bad with it on though. I was just wondering what everyone else did. Do bubble anemones like a little less current at night?
 

broomer5

Active Member
I like to vary the flows and circulation in my tanks.
But I would not consider reducing circulation for any great lengths of time, especially over a 6-8 hours (night) period.
I don't think the fish care so much about flow and water circulation - as they do the quality of the water.
Poor or reduced circulation can lead to drops and rises in pH and other problems that I would imagine impact the fish more than water currents in and around a stack of liverock.
We don't like a draft of air on us as we sleep - but that doesn't necessarily mean that a fish doesn't like water current as it rests. Comparing a human's sleeping comfort to a fish's resting comfort is just speculation in my opinion.
I keep the water moving and changing for all fish and inverts.
 

broomer5

Active Member
Just the fact that I've read many posts here asking if we should turn off pumps at night - indicates to me that we are comparing a fishes comfort to that of our own.
Why else would one ever think of it ?
Do you think the fish look at us and think to themselves - dude you look cold, you should get yourself a blanket ?
I think not :p
I know jeff - I don't know where I think this stuff up. Please bear with me - and it's time for my medication now <img src="graemlins//urrr.gif" border="0" alt="[urrr]" />
 

dsa_mom

Member
Ha! funny you should mention this, my daughter has two powerheads in her 37 gal tank which is in her bedroom. One squeaks a little, so we've started turning that one off at night for her comfort, not the fishes!!!!
 

bradsmack

Member
Yeah if you notice, most fish seem to hide in rock nooks and caves so the current really does not effect them.. im sure all is fine.
Im running 1 Rio 400 on a spray bar, 1 Aquaclear 200 bottom corner, 1 Rio 600 Which runs the Protein Skimmer, and a NEW addition as of yesterday a Powersweep 228! A really cool piece of equipment! this thing really gets the water moving, no more film on the top of the water and the Anethelia is waving more than ever! All of these in a 29 gallon.. to much?
 

duecey

New Member
I have installed highend wavemaker timers on large reef tanks that have had a night time setting. They reduced the flow but didn't stop the flow. I think reducing the flow at night would be a natural thing. Hard to say if it would really make a change though. Who's going to know the answer about that one other than the fish and corals?
 

azonic

Active Member
The only fish I have which seems to be bothered is the puffer. But he seems to cope by sleeping on top of one of my powerheads :)
My sebae lodges himself between my thermometer and the side of the tank...and my yellow tang has dug a hole in the sand bed behind my live rock in the back left corner...and every night he curls up in his hole for sleep :)
 

frankl15207

Member
I use a wavemaker that goes into night time mode. I can't really tell you if it makes a difference or not, but everything in the tank is doing fine.
I'm just not sure that it's worth the expense or is needed to be successful. I put it in more to keep the heat from the tank building from the powerheads running constantly.
I also have a 10 gallon with a few small soft corals in it and a low level powerhead that runs constantly and everything in there seems happy too.
 

chrisrench

Member
I was told to turn off 1 pump at night (I have 2) so I did and it seems to work fine. It is probably better for the fish than for the corals. The fish seem to be able to relax a little better without the current always beating them around. During the day the 2nd pump turns on and the corals seem to like it.
 

lnarobbins

Member
in my tank I have mostly fish at night they just find a hole in the rocks or swim behind them to go night-night. I know this because I spy on them w/a mag light I don't want them to get the upper hand on me or plan a revolt <img src="graemlins//urrr.gif" border="0" alt="[urrr]" />
 

susiepan

Member
OK Guys,
I have a book called The Marine Aquarium Problem Solver. By Nick Dakin..If anyone has this, on page 46, under Water Circulation, Under the Q & A section,,Quote
"Should the flow pattern be altered at night?"
Answer is "Yes, Most Corals and fish go into a resting mode in the dark, and calm conditions are appreciated."
Some circulatory pumps can be switched off altogether, connecting them to the lighting circuit is a good idea..
I dont know how they "Know" this, but just FYI, this is what it says..
~Susie ;)
 

banshee

Member
I use a wavemaker that has a "night mode", also. I use it, but I can't really tell the difference when it is running in "night mode". I wonder.....
 
Top