Life Aqua - Lighting
Aquarium lighting has become an increasingly important aspect of aquaristics ever since the first aquascapes were created in the 1930s. With the emergence of the natural aquarium and the accompanying increased demands on technical equipment, innovative products from numerous manufacturers have been developed to cover the various scenarios and niches of the market.
Imaginative companies such as Life Aqua have developed modern aquarium lighting systems that have come a long way and no longer just provide light. Apart from very high luminosity, they offer other modern features such as wireless connectivity, gentle dimming through pulse width modulation, independently adjustable colour channels, simulation of daily cycles and much more.
First, a few important facts about aquarium lighting in general:
Choosing the right lighting plays a key role in ensuring that the aquarium runs stable in the long term. The factors of lighting intensity and lighting duration should be matched to the project in question. A complex natural aquarium with numerous different aquatic plants, ground covers, perennials, stem plants and also rarities needs to be supplied with sufficient light energy of the right spectrum to promote plant growth and the well-being of the aquarium inhabitants.
A shrimp tank or iwagumi with a focus on hardscape can get by with fewer plants in certain scenarios. Excessive lighting or too long lighting periods can then lead to increased algae growth, especially in less densely planted aquariums. To avoid this, it should be possible to adjust the lighting duration and intensity according to requirements. So, the more flexible the luminaire, the better!
Life Aqua aquarium lights are dimmable in 7 steps, can be freely programmed via WiFi or operated with buttons on the lamp. In order to be able to realise individual and creative lighting scenarios, it is possible to set the RGB channels independently of each other. In addition, all luminaires can be set up or suspended with the Life Aqua accessories available in our online shop and thus offer a high degree of variability and flexibility.
The light sources of the Life Aqua Master Pro II and Prime Pro EX produce a balanced light spectrum in the factory state with a high proportion of blue and red light, which can be optimally utilised by plants for photosynthesis.
Green light is reflected by most plants, which is why we perceive it as green; red and blue light are largely absorbed and used for photosynthesis. Blue light promotes leaf growth, red light promotes the development of flowers. Life Aqua pays particular attention to the correct ratio between the light spectra. Too much red light, for example, can lead to sparse shoots and unstable growth.
The light temperature of the Prime Pro EX and Master Pro II luminaires is modelled on natural daylight, which also makes green plants look exceptionally vivid in the aquarium. Depending on preference, the light can also be set colder or warmer to emphasise different colour nuances of the aquarium.
Besides a visual effect, the light temperature also has a certain influence on the growth of plants and the behaviour of fish in the aquarium. The closer a lamp comes to natural daylight, the healthier for fauna and flora.
For a natural environment in the aquarium, however, a daylight cycle should also be simulated. No underwater inhabitant, be it aquarium plant, shrimp or fish, can live with 24-hour lighting in the long term. This can be achieved either manually by switching the lighting on and off or automatically by simulating the course of the day. As a rule, the lighting should be switched on for about 10 to 12 hours a day once the run-in phase has been completed.
Life Aqua luminaires are equipped with energy-efficient, powerful and long-lasting RGB light sources. They generate less waste heat than conventional fluorescent tubes, HQI burners or halogen lamps, but are more flexible, lighter, flatter and yet considerably more powerful. All colours of the visible wavelengths can be mixed from the three main colours red, green and blue. White light is produced when all channels radiate with the same intensity. RGB LEDs are generally less luminous to the human eye than pure white-light LEDs, but plants can make much better use of the optimally coordinated light.
For additional optical depth and a particularly impressive play of light, Life Aqua has developed the RGB+W Light Screens. A Light Screen illuminates the entire aquarium back wall over a large area and creates an almost three-dimensional effect with its wide-area illumination. The aquarium appears deeper and radiates a particularly high-quality flair thanks to the indirect lighting. Diorama layouts in particular benefit from such background lighting. Life Aqua uses RGB+W technology for the illuminates. This means that 24 different lighting scenarios can be realised.
Thanks to the well-thought-out overall package of luminosity, ease of use and high quality, Life Aqua luminaires are also up to special lighting requirements such as huge aquascapes with outstanding hardscape and particularly demanding plant species.