Is a tank which gets sunlight doomed to fail?

[Sb1415]

I currently have my 29 gallon tank in the entry to our home which is where I would be placing my upcoming new 23 gallon as well. This area is in front of a large window in the front and above it, east facing. The tank receives direct sunlight about 1 hour a day. Over the last 6 months I have noticed Cyanobacteria in the front between the substrate and glass and manageable algae on slow growing plants in the front but has not been a major issue. Since I don’t have any other wife approved places to keep the tanks, I am going to continue to keep the tanks in this location.

I am curious to know if people have algae free tanks in occasional direct sunlight or if it is not possible. Any suggestions to mitigate algae as I plan my new tank in regards to sunlight (and no the window/door cannot be blocked)

Thanks all

 

[ElleDee]

Certain times of year my tanks get some sunbeams at the end of the day and I usually get more algae on the glass right where it hits. It's very manageable, but the angle is low and the duration is short. FWIW, the light hitting my fish from the side looks fantastic. My old nano tank got a lot of indirect light and I needed to reduce the duration of my photoperiod significantly as a result and that dealt with the algae.

 

[Art]

I had a tank once that received 3-4 hours of sunlight per day as you can see above. It's doable. I did have GDA on the glass in areas that received a lot of sun but by staying on top of it, I was able to manage no problems.

 

[ElleDee]

What direction are those windows facing @Art?

 

[Art]

West

 

[gjcarew]

This tank got a few hours of sunlight every day, this is it in full sun. I didn't notice any worse algae problems in this tank than in any other. As long as you have a heavy plant mass, they will out compete algae.

 

[Sb1415]

This tank got a few hours of sunlight every day, this is it in full sun. I didn't notice any worse algae problems in this tank than in any other. As long as you have a heavy plant mass, they will out compete algae.
View attachment 9422

Thanks reassuring!

 

[Sb1415]

View attachment 9399
I had a tank once that received 3-4 hours of sunlight per day as you can see above. It's doable. I did have GDA on the glass in areas that received a lot of sun but by staying on top of it, I was able to manage no problems.

This looks great, love the view. Good to know.