light exposure

[scrimman]

'Lo y'all
I'm wondering about lighting.  I keep reading on the net that plants need 12 hrs of light, but what happens if they get more?  Does that stress them?  Mine are getting about 16 hrs a day, and I'm wondering if I'm slowing down thier growth that way. ???

Thanks

[arcab4]

i would keep it to about 12hours or less. i think 16hours a bit too much. do you have any algae problems?

johnny

[clothahump]

As with all forms of life, plants need to rest, tropical plants have evolved to live under 12 hours of daylight, and 12 hours of darkness.
The main problem you will face is algae.
Algae will be able to flourish under such conditions,your livestock will also appreciate the rest period. 8)

[scrimman]

'Lo Y'all
Thanks for the quick response!
I sort of have a problem with a brown alge that's trying to overtake my creeping charlie and anacharis, but the plants are winning.  I used to have beard alge, but it died off; whether by my collecting it everytime I saw it or my fish/shrimps I can't say.
Well, I'll try out using a timer and see what happens.

Thanks again!

[arcab4]

brown algae is usually caused by lack of light. by that i mean intensity. you might not have enough watts. increasing the time-amount of light won't do a thing. u need to increase the wattage.

[scrimman]

Yep, did that.  
Read about proper lighting at the krib, and decided 15W wouldn't do for a 20H.  Two weeks ago I upgraded to 60W and added a DIY CO2 unit.
The length of time the light is on is actually a function of me wanting to see my fish.