high light needs high co2 and ferts its a simlple as that.
by all means have a high light tank, but dont come back asking why you have a tank covered in algae!
you can grow almost anything under 2 30w T8 tubes with the correct co2 and fertilisers.
seriously, sont up your lighting as you will be jumping in at the deep end finding you cant swim.
up your co2, ferts, substrate and flow and see what difference it makes, then after a few months when you have actually learned some basics, begin to slowly up your lighting.
plants exposed to air get around 300ppm of co2, whereas underwater through co2 inkjection we can normally aim for about 30ppm without gassing the livestock. without any co2, imagine how much of a limiting factor this is?
think of the fire triangle
oxygen, fuel, Heat
take one of these away and you have no fire....
now imagine it aquarium style (but a square)
light, Nutrients, Flow, co2
after you have mastered this in, you can make it a pentagon with substrate.
Flow is a crucial part which many people dont recognise, without this how can you expect your co2 and ferts to get into every part of your tank?
Nutrient based substrates or those with a high cation exchange capacity (CEC) can give you a slight margin for error, they can absorb ferts from the water column and store it in an accessible form to plant roots. if you forget to dose for a few days, it will not be as much of a big issue as the roots can still feed on the substrate. many are nutritious in their own right and provide a stable base to heavy root feeders such as crypts and echinodorous sp.
by all means have a high light tank, but dont come back asking why you have a tank covered in algae!
you can grow almost anything under 2 30w T8 tubes with the correct co2 and fertilisers.
seriously, sont up your lighting as you will be jumping in at the deep end finding you cant swim.
up your co2, ferts, substrate and flow and see what difference it makes, then after a few months when you have actually learned some basics, begin to slowly up your lighting.
plants exposed to air get around 300ppm of co2, whereas underwater through co2 inkjection we can normally aim for about 30ppm without gassing the livestock. without any co2, imagine how much of a limiting factor this is?
think of the fire triangle
oxygen, fuel, Heat
take one of these away and you have no fire....
now imagine it aquarium style (but a square)
light, Nutrients, Flow, co2
after you have mastered this in, you can make it a pentagon with substrate.
Flow is a crucial part which many people dont recognise, without this how can you expect your co2 and ferts to get into every part of your tank?
Nutrient based substrates or those with a high cation exchange capacity (CEC) can give you a slight margin for error, they can absorb ferts from the water column and store it in an accessible form to plant roots. if you forget to dose for a few days, it will not be as much of a big issue as the roots can still feed on the substrate. many are nutritious in their own right and provide a stable base to heavy root feeders such as crypts and echinodorous sp.
That`s the plan anyway.
