# Window proximity



## Qwe (Jul 8, 2013)

Usually it causes lots of algae problems... It's possible to have a planted setup in a window without algae problems, but can be tricky to achieve.


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## LRJ (Jul 31, 2014)

Are there any tricks to making it work? The tank would be directly to the right of the window. The window faces the South.


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## Mariostg (Sep 6, 2014)

I have a tank right against a window facing west and I put a background. Which I could remove should I dare to... The sides of the tank do receive some day light. I guess it also depends how heavily planted the tank is. Mine is low tech, heavily planted.


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## LRJ (Jul 31, 2014)

Guck said:


> I have a tank right against a window facing west and I put a background. Which I could remove should I dare to... The sides of the tank do receive some day light. I guess it also depends how heavily planted the tank is. Mine is low tech, heavily planted.


Thanks, I may just give it shot then (and maybe end up regretting it). It's really the only spot in the room that offers a good viewing angle.


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## g4search (Aug 10, 2014)

*day light*



LRJ said:


> How concerned should I be about placing an aquarium near a window? Given the room where the aquarium will be located and the scape I have planned, the perfect placement would be just to the side of a window. The window does receive a decent amount of sunlight. Are algae problems likely to occur?


LRJ,
don't assume just because you have day light (window) in the room where you have your aquarium that that will cause an algae problem.
Remember before algae can grow in your tank you have to introduce them (as cysts, spores, or starter algae). They usually hitch a ride with plants, or - to some extent - with water including fish.

During the summer I grow wisteria and ludwigia in plastic containers directly on the window sill and I have never seen any algae in these containers.
I am actually also trying to grow algae, but had only limited success. 

I invite you to do an experiment: take a clean container (glass or clear plastic), fill it with tap water, set it on the window sill, and wait if any algae will start growing? Provided that you covered the container (so that nothing can fall into it), you will never see anything growing in there.

As far as your aquarium is concerned, there are many things you can do to keep contamination with algae to a minimum. Think about it!


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## goodbytes (Aug 18, 2014)

I used to keep my aquarium on the wall immediately to the right of a large picture window and I never noticed any increase in algae growth. I had algae eaters in the tank though which are a must anyway but its not like you're going to potentially see some sort of explosion unless you place it directly in front of a window with no blinds on it.


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## BruceF (Aug 5, 2011)

Are you talking about direct sunlight or indirect sunlight? I find south facing windows tricky because when the sun gets low in the winter there tends to be more direct sunlight.


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## AnotherHobby (Mar 5, 2012)

BruceF said:


> Are you talking about direct sunlight or indirect sunlight? I find south facing windows tricky because when the sun gets low in the winter there tends to be more direct sunlight.


This is a good point. I feel a pictures is worth a thousand words, so below is a picture of my tank that is adjacent to a south facing window. In the summer it gets zero direct sunlight. In the fall the windows to the right will hit it with sunset for about an hour or two. The plants will perl a little harder on that side, but no algae issues.

In the winter, the trees drop their leaves in the back yard, and I end up with several hours of direct sun coming in the left side all morning. It looks _really_ pretty, but I do get a little bit of algae on the plants on that side from it, so now I black out that side of the tank with a cover during that season.


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## LRJ (Jul 31, 2014)

I would say it receives fairly direct sunlight in the morning. It's a second floor apartment, so there's nothing outside blocking the light. Given the tank's perpendicular orientation to the South wall, blacking out the East-facing side would mean blacking the front of the aquarium. I may just have to sacrifice optimal viewing and move the tank to the other side of the room. I would hate to set myself up for major algae issues from day one. I imagine algae could be enough of a problem anyway, without extra help.


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## dzega (Apr 22, 2013)

turn the tank by 90degree and push it against windowed wall. paint or lay black adhesive on windowed side of the tank and use nontransparent lid. there you go, no sunlight


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## BruceF (Aug 5, 2011)

I have aquariums that get direct early morning light at certain times of year. How long do you think it would last? You could always close the blinds for a while.


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## NJAquaBarren (Sep 16, 2009)

Same Question as brucef. I have tanks that get an hour of morning sun, has no impact at all. 

Time and type of sunlight matter.


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## Ziggy (Sep 2, 2011)

Slightly OT, but with some people putting about a zillion watts on a tank (with copious fertz and CO2), I've sometimes wondered why they dont _purposely_ position the tank to catch some free, not to mention 100% natural, light.


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## g4search (Aug 10, 2014)

Ziggy,
very good point. Light is not the enemy, ALGAE are!


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## LRJ (Jul 31, 2014)

dzega said:


> turn the tank by 90degree and push it against windowed wall. paint or lay black adhesive on windowed side of the tank and use nontransparent lid. there you go, no sunlight


Thanks. For my situation though, turning the tank would throw off the viewing angle, which is the point of placing it by the window anyway, and I'd really like to keep the tank open.



BruceF said:


> I have aquariums that get direct early morning light at certain times of year. How long do you think it would last? You could always close the blinds for a while.


I'd say it would receive direct sunlight from the time the sun comes up through about midday. It's enough sunlight to grow cacti in that corner.



Ziggy said:


> Slightly OT, but with some people putting about a zillion watts on a tank (with copious fertz and CO2), I've sometimes wondered why they dont _purposely_ position the tank to catch some free, not to mention 100% natural, light.


Good question. I assumed that natural sunlight was too intense or too difficult to control. But maybe some experienced members can provide some insight on this.



g4search said:


> Ziggy,
> very good point. Light is not the enemy, ALGAE are!


Thanks. I was under the impression from my research that excessive light is a recipe for algae, but maybe not.


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