Nutrient uptake.

Hi guys.

I want to know if adding pressurized Co2 to a tank will increase the plants nutrient uptake? I know that adding light does, and then in High light C02 is needed to limit algae growth.

My tank is 200L with low light (0.25 Watts per L), and low tech plants. I dose half the normal dosage for EI since it was a low tech tank. Now I've added Co2 and wanna know if I should increase my fert dosing? I don't plan on increasing the light right now. I don't have any deficiency problems. I do have hair algae thats growing but by no means taking over.

And on the Co2, what bubble rate would be a good one to shoot for with my current specs? I don't test my hardness, PH is around 7.5

Thanks.

 

I stand to be corrected , but from my understanding all the things are in relation to each other. Therefore, more ferts = more lights = more Co2 and visa versa.

 

From my understanding, C02 is normally the major nutrient of which limits plantgrowth under water. Since the main ingredients in photosynthesis is C02 and light, there should be a direct link between the two. Adding one without the other would probably not make a big difference, unless there was an obvious shortage of the one or the other.

So if you have a nice balance between the CO2 and amount of light, then the plant should start growing like crazy and also need more of the other ferts.

The difficult part is thus to figure out whether you have enough, too much or too little ferts as it currently stands...which is very difficult without proper testing. Personally I would not add more ferts in the beginning and see what happens. Be on the lookout for the signs of shortages of the various ferts and dose accordingly.

 

Thanks a mil @JJFury.

So the best would be trial and error until I find the perfect balance?

 

I've noticed that even if you increase CO2, but your lights don't increase, the effect is minimal. So you need to increase both, if possible.

I agree with @JJFury, that you should keep the ferts as normal and adjust up, instead of down.

 

Would it help if the photo period of the lights were longer, or do the lights need to be brighter/more wattage?

 

It should be brighter / more wattage from my understanding. You will see on the other guys tanks, for example Shihr's tank, that he has massive amounts of light! I think it was like 8 x T5s.

I think you have to find the right balance for how long the lights stay on... too long = algae and too little = not optimal growth.

 

Yeah ok. I'll try to add some lights sometime soon. Thanks a lot for the help.