Fluval Osaka 155 T5 lighting?

[Franks]

I'm trying to grow a new scape and get conflicting advice the more I read on the Web.

Is this light unit sufficient enough put me in a medium light range to pretty much grow anything? It's dual T5 24W each bulb. I double dose Easycarbo and a full dry fert mix daily. Results aren't too bad, I'm getting growth from most plants and stems are throwing side shoots but carpets never work out. My substrate is sand.

I'm wondering if the liquid carbon is melting the Monte Carlo too...?

I've seen a range of BeamWorks light units for sale and can't help but wonder if it's light or co2 related.

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[MrHidley]

Monte Carlo only melts in my experience when there is insufficient CO2/Flow (in relation to the lighting) or it's transitioning to it's submersed state. So it's sounds like you have a balance issue.

Example here ,

My 27 litre tank only runs with one 8w T5 bulb and is 30cm deep, so par at the substrate is under 10, it's also shaded, yet the plant grows very healthy, although incredibly slowly. Substrate shouldn't be an issue with montecarlo as I've grown it in everything from aquasoil to inert gravel to tying it to lava rock. What kind of filtration are you running as i suspect flow/distribution is the root of the issue here?

 

[Franks]

It's funny you mention flow as last night I cleaned my filter (SunSun 1400lph) and adjusted spraybar to point down into the rear corner which was dead and the other half up for surface agitation. Because it's a deep tank I also run a allpondssolutions wave maker. Between the lot, I seem to be able to make everything dance but it's not always been this way.

I've also been considering a triple dose of Easycarbo seeing as after my 7 hour lighting period, I have no pearling. Not even when changing 30 litres of water. I'd have thought either the surface agitation is gassing off the excess O2 or the plants have consumed all they can from the Easycarbo double dose and it's not enough to saturate the water column with O2 and create pearling.

As mentioned, growth seems reasonable so I want to rule out the standard 2x24w T5 light as a deficiency.

Thanks

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[MrHidley]

Are you running pressurised co2 or just liquid carbon?

 

[Franks]

Just Easycarbo liquid and dry mix fert daily. (micro and macro).
It's a 155l tank and I dose 6ml daily. (instructions recommend for heavily planted tanks to dose 1ml per 25l)

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[MrHidley]

I doubt it's your does of easycarbo killing the plants, i also doubt it's a case of too little light, i've only ever had smaller tanks <60L . So it would be useful if one of the low tech gurus read this post.

 

[alto]

Aquarium Dimensions: W 61cm x D 46cm x H 61cm
That water column height is a consideration - PAR will be rather low at substrate level ... I've a 53-55cm (H) tank that I can carpet with "easy" plants such as M 'Monte Carlo' & Eleocharis acicularis 'mini'
Gratiola viscidula is doing OK now that I'm more consistent with CO2 & photoperied, I've inter-planted a few bits of Glossostigma elatinoides but it mostly likes to grow up & it's rather slow (except for the upward shoots),
Eleocharis parvula is likely the easiest to get carpeting

Definitely optimize the light you have - use HOT5 (I use Giesemann Daylight) & make sure your reflectors are well designed (look at where the light falls with room lights off)

I suspect that adding CO2 gas would do more to facilitate plant growth rather than changing out the lights (assuming that you've done the above)

 

[Franks]

I've just bit the bullet and bought a Co2 art advanced kit and plan to run it off a 2kg FE.

The reflector in the Osaka is actually quite good and now very clean like a mirror. Its running a single T5HO gro bulb (red hue) and an unknown white bulb. If I put both red gro bulbs in, things start to look too pink and not very bright.

I'm also currently hanging a tropica pot of hairgrass in the tank to allow it to acclimatise should the MC completely fail. Within 2 weeks I've lost over half of it and every morning the surface skimmer has caught more. What remains looks good and some has even lay flat and grown runners. Perhaps it would have adapted easier with gas?

My light unit is ontop on the rim edge and approx 22-24 inch from the substrate. Those par charts on Google put me at medium to nearly high lighting but I'm dubious of going off those charts.

Thanks for the input.

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[alto]

Don't go with red gro bulbs, get any "daylight" or "tropical" HO T5 that's visually appealing, plants will do fine
Bulbs with 6500 - 8000K usually appear "natural" & bright to the human eye.

What remains looks good and some has even lay flat and grown runners. Perhaps it would have adapted easier with gas?

this should fill in fairly quickly now, most plants do grow more rapidly with CO2 gas
I don't know the secret why some plants "melt" rapidly under the same conditions where the replacement 1-2-Grow cup "melts" not at all
I try to get the replacement plant from a different shipment