Does My New Aquarium Need a Light?

I got a good deal in the local classifieds. This 30 gallon tank, with an Aquaclear 70 filter, a heater, thermometer, some cheesy decorations and the stand for $60 Canadian. Woo hoo, not a bad deal.

Prob is, there is no light. (There is a hood) LFS wants $55 for a 30" strip light which means I will literally double my expenditure.

I posted some local want ads looking for such a light, but in the meantime, do I need the light?

I will not be growing plants. I don't want my fish to be miserable, but there is light in the room all day. I wouldn't keep them in the dark.







My wife is getting more interested in fish. (Awesome!) She wanted a school of bleeding heart tetras in our 20 or 55 gallon tanks, and she wanted a small 5 gallon table top bowl for the kitchen.

Well, I talked her into getting this 30 gallon for the kitchen. Now she can keep her bleeding heart tetras in there, and I can keep my 55 gallon for Rainbowfish.

We had a dining room table, but our son took the dining room for a playroom. So we put the table in our kitchen (we always eat in front of the TV anyway, we're those people). Now, to accommodate more fish, our table is stored in the basement, and the bar has come up from the basement, into the kitchen, to create a white trash breakfast nook.

Nice tank though.

Shame there's no light.

 

The fish won't mind not having a light it won't hurt anything. Keep your eyes peeled you can find some for super cheap used. Just takes some looking around.

 

Looking good. Tetras like it darker so will be fine w/out a light. I see there will be plenty of light w/ that window.

 

How exactly is the hood on that tank set up? I can't really see. If you don't want plants you can buy a shorter fixture to light the tank( so long as it won't fall in the hood).

 

Ya fish don't have to have a light. If your doing fish only the light is more for the appearance

 

Without plants, you don't need a light.

Fish get any light you could consider they "need" from just being in a room that isn't pitch black. If there's a window during the day or a light on somewhere, that's enough. Look at it this way, consider a river in the rain forest, covered by a dense canopy of trees. Add to that the natural habitat of these little guys isn't, shall we say, crystal clear.

Which lighting is closer to the amount they would naturally be getting? Low light from a window somewhere in the room or a light on somewhere, or the bright lights that fill most aquariums with light? Just like funny colors and shapes in dog food or treats, it's there more for our enjoyment than our pets.