Photoperiod

[Marc1t]

Hi
Have had my tank running for a year now & have just converted to Co2 injection. My tank is a 24" cube 270l so fairly deep & lit by 2 t5 HO 24" tubes with reflectors I am having a bit of a rescape so have pulled a lot of plants out & will be replanting soon.
My question. I used to have the lights on for 4 hours in the morning 4 hours in the evening with a 3 house off in the middle to keep algae at bay not really had too much of a problem but not sure whether this really works.? Now because of the co2 timer & solenoid to avoid complication I ve changed to 8 hours flat 2pm till 9 after reading the lighting tutorial, & it suggests that plants don't recognise photo periods less than 4 hours.
Can I turn the lights on for an hour or 2 in the morning, no Co2 witth no detrimental effects I e algae issues etc, Or too much light for the plants?
I was also wondering what photo periods people are using with high tech aquariums? Lighting levels etc

 

[ceg4048]

I used to have the lights on for 4 hours in the morning 4 hours in the evening with a 3 house off in the middle to keep algae at bay not really had too much of a problem but not sure whether this really works.?

Hello,
It doesn't really "work" per se. Obviously, the fact that you have used this method and have not had any problems might seem to be a contradiction but it is more likely that the results were due to other factors. In fact there are plenty of people who use that method and still have terrible algal blooms and plant health issues.

It's another seeming contradiction that people who switch from non-CO2 to CO2 often suffer CO2 related problems. There are a few reasons for that.

In any case, an 8 hour photoperiod is fine, but search threads on CO2 techniques and measurement. How you apply and monitor CO2 is more important than length of photoperiod in this sense.

Cheers,

 

[darren636]

Hello,
It doesn't really "work" per se. Obviously, the fact that you have used this method and have not had any problems might seem to be a contradiction but it is more likely that the results were due to other factors. In fact there are plenty of people who use that method and still have terrible algal blooms and plant health issues.

It's another seeming contradiction that people who switch from non-CO2 to CO2 often suffer CO2 related problems. There are a few reasons for that.

In any case, an 8 hour photoperiod is fine, but search threads on CO2 techniques and measurement. How you apply and monitor CO2 is more important than length of photoperiod in this sense.

Cheers,

Ceg4048

What would you say is the minimum worthwhile photoperiod length- in terms of plant physiology and efficiency.
Thanks .