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Although it’s not strictly necessary to light your White Cloud Mountain Minnow tank having a tank light does have its benefits. I’ve always had a tank light for my White Clouds and it definitely makes a difference.
Although White Cloud Mountain Minnows can do well in an unlit tank there are reasons for lighting your White Cloud aquarium. One reason is that having a tank light shows off the White Cloud’s colours at their best. Another reason is to provide your White Cloud Mountain Minnows with a way of telling the difference between day and night. Which is important if you plan to breed your White Clouds because they spawn at first light.
While these are probably the main reasons why you would want to add a light to your White Cloud Mountain Minnow tank there are other reasons too.
Let’s take a look at some of the other things that make lighting your White Cloud tank a good idea.
A Light In Your White Cloud Mountain Minnow Tank Looks Good
Not only does having a tank light mean that your White Cloud Mountain Minnows will be shown to their best advantage it shows off the rest of the aquarium too.
Without a light a fish tank just looks like a dull glass box sitting in the corner of the room. It’s not interesting to look at all. You can’t see the fish, plants, or tank decorations very well.
Which is rather pointless.
When you set up your aquarium you spent time and energy getting it to look just right. Then you added your White Clouds and maybe a few tank mates so that you could enjoy seeing them. And the whole point of the aquarium hobby is to enjoy seeing your fish and their friends thrive in their aquarium home.
Having your tank lit allows you to get pleasure from watching the life going on inside the aquarium. Plus, the whole setup that you worked so hard to achieve is highlighted in its full glory.
Tip: An important point in favour of having a light in your tank is that it makes it a whole lot easier to monitor the health of your fish. Checking to see if your White Cloud Mountain Minnows, and their tankmates, are showing signs of illness or distress is important. And it’s something best done on a daily basis. So the easier it is to see them the easier it is to monitor what’s going on.
Do Your White Cloud Minnows’ Tankmates Need A Light?
If you keep a community aquarium you have to take the needs of all the inhabitants of the tank into account. So even though your White Cloud Mountain Minnows might not mind too much if there’s no tank light in the aquarium their tankmates might.
It’s always best to check out the lighting needs of any fish, shrimp and snails that share your White Clouds’ home. Their needs will vary depending on each particular species. So doing a little research is a good idea.
If you can find a happy medium to keep everyone healthy you’ll have a thriving community tank to enjoy.
Do Planted White Cloud Mountain Minnow Tanks Need A Light?
There’s a huge variety of live aquarium plants available. So choosing one or more for your White Cloud tank is a personal preference thing. Which plant(s) you choose for your aquarium will depend on what you like the look of and on how much work you’re prepared to put in for their upkeep.
Fortunately, there’s lots of easy care aquatic plants around if you’re not keen on having too much extra work to do as part of your tank maintenance. But making sure that even the easy-to-grow ones get enough light is important.
All aquarium plants need at least some light. Some need very little, or prefer low light, and others need several hours of fairly bright light everyday.
Either way the plants you keep will help you to decide whether you need a light in your White Cloud tank. It’s also likely to help in your choice of what type of light you should have and how bright the light should be.
Even though your White Clouds won’t be fussy about what light you use, your plants might be. So get some advice before you buy plants for your aquarium.
Tip: White Cloud Mountain Minnows benefit from a live planted tank. The plants help to keep the aquarium water clean while creating a more natural environment. Plants are also important for White Cloud Minnows when they breed because White Clouds use the plants to spawn in and scatter their eggs on.
Should I Turn The Tank Light Off At Night?
In the natural world there are periods of light and dark. So when we create an artificial environment for our White Cloud Mountain Minnows it’s best to keep it as real as we possibly can. Replicating the difference between day and night is part of this.
Just like most creatures on our planet the White Cloud’s way of life is influenced by the way our planet works. The things that White Cloud Mountain Minnows do during the daytime are different from what they do after dark.
Turning the tank light off for the night is an easy way to recreate a more natural cycle.
The amount of time you should leave the aquarium light on will depend on the needs of your White Cloud Mountain Minnows, their tankmates, and any live plants you have too. Although the White Cloud isn’t considered a light sensitive fish it does need the darker hours to rest.
So it’s another case of finding a happy medium.
As a general guide for most fish, shrimp, snails and live plants, 8-12 hours of light is enough. It is only a general guide though, so it’s best to check if you’re not sure.
When it comes to breeding White Clouds the difference between light and dark is important. White Cloud Mountains Minnows spawn at first light. Which means there needs to be a distinct difference in lighting for them to do this. If you never turn your aquarium light off you’re highly unlikely to breed your White Cloud Minnows successfully.
Not only will lighting your tank 24/7 interfere with the breeding process but it will stress out your fish. And not just your White Clouds but all the other tank inhabitants too.
Tip: Leaving your tank light on for an excessive amount of hours a day encourages the growth of algae. While a little algae in an aquarium is a good thing, too much algae can cause problems. If you’ve developed an algae issue try reducing your tank lighting time.
Depending on what type of tank light you have it’s often possible to set your lighting period using a timer device. Having an automatic timer can take the hassle out of remembering when to switch the light on and off. Particularly if your work life means you keep irregular hours, or you go away from home for a few days for a well earned rest.