LED lights and fish

[CindyA]

Does it hurt my fish (1 koi and 2 goldfish) to have the lights on all the time? I have LED lights and they light up the water in my small pond quite nicely. I will eventually get a timer but for now, I love looking out at night and seeing the glow. My fish seem to like it too! Just wondered if it messes with their little fish psyche.

 

[Mmathis]

Does it hurt my fish (1 koi and 2 goldfish) to have the lights on all the time? I have LED lights and they light up the water in my small pond quite nicely. I will eventually get a timer but for now, I love looking out at night and seeing the glow. My fish seem to like it too! Just wondered if it messes with their little fish psyche.

Some people say it does, but there are lots of people who light their ponds and I've never heard of any ill effects.

 

[peter hillman]

Mine's lit up like a disco, never heard any complaints.

 

[Faebinder]

All animals sleep and light messes their circadian rhythm. Having said that, if you get a timer, I dont think there would be an issue if it turns off 11. It would give the fish 6-7 hours of no light. Messing a circadian rhythm is not a big deal in a pond with no predators tbh.

 

[bettasngoldfish]

I don't leave lights on any of my fish for 24 hours a day. They need that day/night sleep cycle just like we do.

Besides they don't have eye lids and I feel better giving them some rest for their eyes

 

[adam9280]

... I have LED lights and they light up the water in my small pond quite nicely. I will eventually get a timer but for now, I love looking out at night and seeing the glow...

http://www.monoprice.com/mobile/product/details/13849
I have an outdoor timer with 2 outlets that's controlled by a photocell. It's nice to have it automatically come on when it gets dark regardless of the time (in Michigan it goes from getting dark at 10pm in summer to 5:30 in winter) . A few of its options are 2 hours, 4 hours, etc.

 

[Meyer Jordan]

Fish are like any other animal, they require sleep, but when they sleep depends on the fish. Fish that are primarily plankton feeders such as Goldfish and Koi stay awake all night foraging as that is when zoo-plankton is most active(during the daytime it stays at the bottom of the pond and rises to the surface after the sun goes down.). Because of this ingrained feeding pattern, Goldfish and Koi sleep during the daylight hours. I am sure that everyone has noticed their fish sitting on the bottom of the pond during the day. Yep, they are sleeping.
So night-time pond lighting will not affect the sleep-wake rhythm of most pond fish. It may, however, affect the availability of night-time snacks as the zoo-plankton will remain at the bottom of the pond hiding.

 

[sissy]

I don't have in pond lights I think they leak and add to water quality problems .I have down LED lights that light up the pond from above and it helps me also see the whole pond on my security cameras .

 

[Lisak1]

I think they leak

Leak what @sissy ?

 

[sissy]

The seals are not really good on a lot of them and can cause shock hazard to fish .I had 2 sets before I gave up on them and then hubby had eye surgery and could not take lights shining up at him .The covers on them had to be cleaned often and no matter how hard I tried to seal them nothing ever worked and they always made the water look dirty .I also got shocked by one and even though they are low voltage it can hurt .

 

[Faebinder]

I'm using these...

 

[morewater]

I've used these on several of the last builds and was pleased with both the quality and the price. Brass housings. LEDs have pretty well replaced the old halogen lights, which were prone to failure due to water getting past the seals and penetrating the halogen bulb.

As far as these lights "leaking" anything, there simply isn't anything to "leak".

As to having the lights on "all the time", why bother? Hook the system up to a timer and have them turn on at dusk and stay on until, say, 11pm or whenever you're no longer out there looking at it. There's simply no point in lighting it up if you're not around. Outdoor 12V transformer/timers aren't expensive, are easily installed, weatherproof and cost-effective.

Mosquito larvae congregate around the lights, which the fish are more than happy to consume. Unfortunately, I've been unable to find suitable sunglasses for my fish, as each had a different personality and therefore require different frames. I don't think that they require polarized lenses, however.

 

[Lisak1]

Ah! Gotcha! I agree - the set we bought (that we paid BIG BUCKS FOR!) lasted one season. The lenses all cracked (they should have mentioned "install below the freeze level of your pond" - maybe a "duh" for most people, but for DIYers, the more info the better) and the one that is still working is dull, dim and just not worth the effort. I'm hoping someone comes up with a better idea than wired lights for the pond. Battery operated maybe? I've looked at some of the pool lights that are out there, but they require a flat surface to install. I'll keep looking! I love underwater lights.

I will add - we run our lights all night (the outside the pond ones) to keep the pond well lit in case someone should decide to cut through our backyard at night. The yard is completely fenced, but there's no telling what some people might think is a good idea. Same for any small animals that may wander through - hey! that's full of water! Don't fall in!

 

[sissy]

My lights out of the pond are on light controls and with the cameras I installed it is easy to see the pond .I added a camera now that has an alarm on it that now goes off when it senses heat and movement .My sons geek friend told him about it .Hubbies eyes can't take in pond lights and I love the lights that point down on the pond .I can see the fish swimming around even close to the bottom and the new camera has zoom when it captures heat movement from any animals or humans and follows the movement .After the dog it was worth the extra money to get it .I wish he had told us before and the cost for the camera was 45 dollars and he installed it for me Thinking now of adding one to the driveway side of my house

 

[morewater]

Hence the brass bodies. Expensive? Sure. But a set of plastic cheapies, replaced with a set of plastic cheapies equals a couple of quality brass-bodied units.

With an adequate wattage transformer, additional lights can easily be added at a later time.

Solar is too weak, supplies feeble light, batteries need to be replaced...........I'd rather spend the dollars.