Underwater Lighting

[The Pond Digger]

What is the general feeling on underwater lighting on the "SERIOUS SIDE" of koi keeping?

Common Practice or avoided all together?

Pros?

Cons?

Protrusions?

Do gunite construction ponds get swimming pool style lights?

Installation suggestions for bare liner ponds?

Suggested watts? 20 Watts? 50 Watts? 250 Watts?

Low Voltage vs. 110 volt?

Respectfully,

The Pond Digger

[Campcheryl]

I have had underwater lighting but found that lights that are above and shining down on the pond was much better at viewing the fish when it was dark. JMHO

[schildkoi]

Ditto Cheryl and a few other points.

You alluded to protrusions, never a good thing in a koi pond. Also, it doesn't take very long for the lenses to become coated in algae...another maintenance item. I have even had pool lights in a koi pond and although protrusions were not an issue, keeping the lense clean was.

Like Cheryl mentioned, overhead lighting is preferrable to me, afterall, koi are bred to be viewed from the top anyway.

Steve

[MikeM]

Appropriately installed to avoid protrusions, I think the only problem is suddenly turning on the lights after the fish are adjusted to being in the dark. Startling any fish is not a good idea. I've been pondside with underwater lights on and found the koi beautiful in clear water... not so nice if the water is even slightly murky. I do not have underwater lights because: (1) It did not seem worth the effort to deal with it when I was planning my pond, (2)I'm not by the pond much after dark, and (3) seemed like 'just something else to go wrong'. For others, the lights may add to their enjoyment.

[powerman]

my pond has two 500 watt underwater lights......i put them each on a dimmer switch so i can bring them up slow so as not to startle the koi.....the pond looks awesome at night with the lights on and i am glad i put them in....at least now....i suppose if they became a problem for some reason my opinion might change.....i put the lights in on the front wall so from the normal viewing side they don't glare at you....i tried feeding the fish once with the lights on and that didn't work out...with the light coming from the side they couldn't see the food on the top......one last note...they don't protrude into the pond at all....

[The Pond Digger]

Well Powerman I guess you just shed some light on your User Name. Got some electritian in your bloodline?

I really enjoy underwater lighting in a pond environment. I DO have some overhead light on one of my ponds but the ambiance is much different. The overhead light I have on one of my ponds is set up VERY high so it lights up EVERYTHING!

This topic certainly has me thinking differently. I suppose some over head lighting could be installed a foot or two above water level HIDDEN in the landscape for a nice touch. That way the nightscape lighting in the rest of the landscape and the lighting in the waterfalls wouldn't be effected by the OVERHEAD pond lighting.

A great deal of the ponds I install are very much a part of backyard living environments for the homeowner so outdoor lighting is important. I will have to play around with that. You know I see a high potential for Serious Hobbyist, Seriouls about Nightscaping!

Still looking forward to additional feedback, installation suggestions and photos.

The Pond Digger

[Meg]

underwater lighting lights up any and all small particles in the water . so water that appears crystal clear when light from above may not when lit from within.

[powerman]

i would like to put some more lighting around the pond.....i need to finish my landscape......yes, pond digger, i am a lineman...work on power lines...much higher voltage than 120-240 generally.....but i do my own home electrical......this time of year in the pacific northwest we seem to always get a pattern of storms that come in and keep us busy working lots of overtime......the overtime slows some the rest of the year but never really goes away.....i try to get my pond and yard projects done in between work and the rest of my life....but lighting is something i would like to incorporate into the pondscape.....i had some wood milled for the pergola i am going to build and i think i will have a couple of spot lights....low intensity....shine down from the pergola to light up the waterfalls.....i will try to take some pictures when that is done....the pictures i took in the dark with the pond lights on didn't turn out very good....i need to work on my photography skills....i put the camers on automatic and the pictures turn out how they do.....i guess i should read the book and see what settings work best in low light situations......anyway from the hot tub on the deck, with the lights on in the pond...on a summer night with a tanqeray on the rocks.............winter is going to end isn't it

[The Pond Digger]

I can see the reasoning here amongst the "Serious", the desire for above pond lighting. However I am not fond of waterfalls that are illuminated from above or should I say lights out of water.

There is something special about a waterfall that is illuminated from below water! In my opinion, it just can't be matched from above.

Respectfully,

The Pond Digger

[Russell Peters]

There are a lot of good points brought up here so far both pros and cons of in water lighting. I think that the best lighting I have ever seen is lighting from directly above. If you have a good system and the water is clear the water seems to disappear and the Koi look as if they a floating. It is really cool.