To Blue or Not To Blue, that is the question.

King of Hyrule

Discussion Starter · #1 · Mar 10, 2015

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Here the run down. 29G tank, light by a 24" Finnex Planted+, hidden within the Aqueon deluxe hood. Ehiem spray bar(2x) and intake tube, connected to a Fluvial 206. As for plants and fish what you see is what I've got. Chili Rasboras up top, Green Fire Tetras below, Cory cats on the bottom and some Otos and a Dwarf Puffer, on snail patrol.

Here's the question, to quote my old friend Bill Shake-Sphere: Too Blue or not too blue?

With all LEDs (including blues) on.

LEDs (no blues)

I've been looking at my tank, with and without the blue lights on. (I cropped the images, but did not adjust the color.) The color is what my iPhone captures. I see the color the difference more on my iPhone then my iMac. Maybe your screens show it better. When I look at the tank in person the color difference is stark to me. The colors might also be lost in the JPEG compression. I'm hoping you can see it better on your computers and I do mine. The tank without the blue LEDs looks more yellow and has a deeper contrast.

I've come to like the tank without the blue lights on. It seems more green to me. What do you think? Is running without the blues on reducing the growth rate of my plants?

Only blue LEDs on

(I put this here for contrast) I never run only blue lights as I think it looks silly.

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Raymond S.

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Joined Dec 29, 2012

5,927 Posts

#5 · Mar 10, 2015

I know: Apples and Oranges...but bare/w me.
I tried a 50/50 bulb in my tank(10,000K/420nm) and hated the color it made the tank.
Also in three weeks I didn't see any difference in plant growth.
What Friendlyfire01 said about the white lights is true, but...If you like both ways
of the light being on and there is no reason to turn off the blue ones because they do add more of a spectrum which plants use.
If there IS something about the color which you don't like when they are on, then
refer to what Friendlyfire01 said.