"g_in_k_o" <g_i_n_k_o@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
> wrote in message
news:13nijuqlhp7u5ed@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
> In rec.aquaria.freshwater.plants Reel McKoi
<dorundayREMOVE@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
>
> wrote:
> :
> : Where does the water in nature get the CO2 from?
> :
> High tech, high light planted aquariums are not at all natural, they
only
> appear to be so :-)
>
> In nature, a relatively small amount of CO2 dissolves into water. If
you
> super-saturate the water with CO2, plants that can barely survive at
best
> under water become showcase specimens. This is because CO2 is a primary
> limiting factor in underwater plants.
It should then also enter aquarium water and be added by the fish as they
breathe.
> Even in medium light, supplementing with CO2 doubles the growth of
plants.
> This tends to help the plants more than the algae, so it gives more
> return for your effort than other costly things to try.
>
> You can bubble your own CO2 with yeast, sugar and water in a 2 liter
soda
> bottle. It's a pain to keep feeding the yeast, but it's pretty cheap
and
> does a good job for many plants. Google "DIY CO2" should get some info
to
> you.
>
> : How much are you spending yearly for the fertilizers, the RO unit, the
> : electricity to run it etc?
> Dry fertilizers are cheap, ****pping is not. Order several years worth
> with a few people and your annual cost will probably drop to less than
> $20 a year.
I have no one to share an order with. No one I know grows aquarium plants
although they keep fish.
> RO and CO2 units cost several hundred dollars up front, but annual
> maintenance after that is pretty low.
>
> All my costs get dwarfed by the electricity bill. Lights with efficient
> reflectors lets you run the fixture for fewer hours and use less tubes.
> Still I have more than a dozen fixtures, only a few have optimal
> reflectors:
>
> 4 tube * 54 watt T5 HO tek Light, 8 hours/day
> 4 tube * 24 watt T5 HO tek Light, 8 hours/day
> 2 tube * 32 watt T8, 12 hours/day
> 2 tube * 32 watt T8 overdriven, 12 hours/day
> 2 tube * 28 watt T5 strip light * 4 strips, 12 hours/day
> 2 tube * 14 watt T5 strip light * 4 strips, 12 hours/day
> 1 tube * 32 watt T8 modified strip light with good reflector
> 1 120 watt PC hydroponic fixture over large cube tank 8 hours/day
> 1 96 watt PC "quad tube", 12 hours/day, to be replaced.
>
> Add up the kilowatt hours and plug into your local rate :-)
Electricity where I live isn't very expensive.
--
RM....
Zone 6. Middle TN USA
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