Help with Clams and Lighting

Rpmgreen88 · Apr 12, 2021

Pardon the unfamiliarity, my grandma gifted me some smallish (2-3 inch) pismo clams that she had bred in her tank, in hopes that I could raise a few of them on my own. She recommended quite a bit of heavy duty lighting equipment, but I'm tight on money and was wondering if there is a way I can do right by these clams with what I have available. I read online that some strong LEDs will work in place of halidaes, and I have a quite strong Ott lamp that I figure will do the job, but my questions are
1. Will this light even work as food for their symbiotic algea bits?
And
2. I read some folks online "feed" their clams with light for 12 hours at a time, but I also read that clams need a slow adjusting period to light. Is it dangerous to go from bright light to near complete darkness in between these 12 hour cycles?

(I'm not trying to eat these guys, just wanted to raise some little friends)

Mr. Mojo Rising · Apr 12, 2021

clams are photosynthetic, they need light to survive, clams like very strong lights. They are also filter feeders, so they can benefit from phytoplankton, but light is their main source of food. I have mine under 8 hours of MH lighting, not many people keep their lights on for 12 hours since that would fuel algae growth. (LED's will work but someone else will need to recommend that for you). Sorry, but if your light is inadequate, it will die in a few days.

EDIT: Sorry, not sure if this applies to pismo clams. good luck