12 or 14 hours of light?

[mhfan305]

I would like to run my vivariums lighting for 14 hours a day, but I'm worried that if I go over the natural 12 hours of light and 12 hours of no light that it might damage the plants and the animal. Is this right? Can I leave the lights on for 14 hours with out any damage happening?

 

[Lazy Boy]

I run my lights for 13 hours on with no problems. Its not 12/12 in the wild. But changing from 12 to 14 hours do it in steps. Add 30 mins every 3-4 days and I think you will be fine.

 

[jamjam]

14 should be just fine, I think many people do it according to what the sun is by them. I'm also doing 13 now in the summer will probably go to 12 in the winter

 

[mhfan305]

My only concern now is the plants. I have no animals in the vivarium. Can I change from 12 to 14 hours or do I have to do the 30 minute increments, even though I just have the plants to worry about?

 

[Mike Fisher]

My only concern now is the plants. I have no animals in the vivarium. Can I change from 12 to 14 hours or do I have to do the 30 minute increments, even though I just have the plants to worry about?

Plants don't care what you do. They'd probably do fine with light 24/7.

 

[junglefries]

Flowering plants require a 12/12 cycle. Sprouts or regular plants will usually do just fine with a 24hr light cycle. 14hrs of light is perfectly fine for lots of plants. Actually, you start most plants on a 24hr on cycle, cutting back to 20/4, 18/6, 14/10 and down to 12/12 to begin flowering. Or similar cycle. As long as they aren't already flowering or aren't the type to, you can immediately switch.

 

[ChameLIonLover]

I didn't know there was such a big deal with how much late you gave them! Good to know. Thanks. Flowering plants isn't what a lot of people care about necessarily. At least for me, as long as it's healthy enough and growing then I'm good with it. As long as the cham is happy, I am too.