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Re: LightSwords, PCs, and total light energy
Tom Wood wrote about lighting levels and algae growth:
> Then I read Wright Huntley's post about AH Supply CF
> lights
> being 160% efficient compared to other lights based on the
> watts/gallon
> rule. So I turned off one of the three 96 watt CF lamps I have over a
> 90
> gallon. No more hazy water. Even though I was running a UV 24/7 and
> using a
> micron filter, the green water had been able to grow fast enough to
> cause
> hazy water when all three lamps were burning. I had recently
> re-lamped, so
> there was obviously way too much light energy going into the tank,
> even with
> CO2 and relatively high fertilization. Conclusion: LESS light led to
> a
> better tank in this case. N and P are still at or below test
> detection
> threshold levels and the tank looks great, lots of pearling and
> minimal
> algae.
I had a very similar situation with 4x96 plus 2x55 PCs on a 150 gallon.
(Some other factors could be involved -- my case isn't a controlled
experiment.) The 55s, along with high dosing of potassium, just pushed
the tank over the edge. I began adding KNO3 and KH2PO4 as necessary to
bring the levels up to about 10 and 0.5-1 respectively, plus I cut out
the 55s. The tank is coming back -- starting to behave itself again.
The PO4 and the NO3 hasn't boosted any algae, quite the opposite. I
used Diatom filtering instead of high percentage water changes. That
hasn't seemed to cut down the hazy, which has to be algae being
produced quickly. But I'm confident that the fert and new lighting
regimen will bring the tank back to better days. I have to stop typing
now -- it's too hard to do with my fingers crossed ;-)
Scott H.
Scott H.
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