Excel dosing when lights are off

[Masha]

My aquarium lights are set to go on only at 11am. The room is fairly bright, but the tanks are far from the windows, no direct sunlight.

Is there any downside to dosing excel several hours before the lights go on? As I understand it, the plants need light to use it. Will it just be present in the water until the lights go on, or is it better to dose when the lights are on already?

 

[rhsoto94]

People usually do it an hour to half an our before lights go on so it can circulate completely before lights go on, excel generally lasts from 12-24hrs.


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[Masha]

Thanks. That sounds as though it's okay, then.

 

[Jferrante]

I wondered the same thing...

During the day it gets bright enough that the fish all know it's day time and some of my low light plants still grew quite a bit. At least they grew pretty well before I managed to buy the light. The others I'm not sure if they grew or just adjusted and stayed mellow but now with the light the Reinickii is growing back it's bottom leaves which it actually never had at the store. I'm pretty happy about that since it's just a Current LED + with 15" so only like 33 par.. but probably more with the white quartz gravel brightening it up even more. anyways I am pretty on an off with the Excel dosing and often dose it at like 11 or noon since I have my lights rigged so the tank is displayed more so at night when everyone is around to look at it.
It is winter here though and we get some snow so it covers up the sun room sky lights. My tank isn't in my sunroom because that'd probably be algae heaven with like 2000 par haha but during the summer I get a nice ray that peeks through the the sky light and goes diagonally and crosses through the tank for about an hour. I put all the medium light plants in it's path since they'd get the best benefit out of it.
I haven't figured out a Co2 plan nor have the money to drop right now on it so I just use Excel for the time being. I don't really like the idea of using yeast so when I do set up Co2 I'd prefer a completely automated system like I've seen some people set up on youtube videos. You have to get that ph controller for that though and it costs a chunk of cash but is probably worth it. Eventually I want to set up a 20 gallon high tech planted tank which I'd probably move all that to and just go back to excel but Idk it's all still in the planning process and need better income for it to try that.

But I hope You can keep me posted on this subject so I can hear more on if it still works for you despite dosing when in a bright room... Probably will be hard to tell lol but so far my tank seems to be coming along as far as new growth even with random dosing. Excel also doesn't seem to bother my more sensitve plants like Italian val but maybe it's because of my aeration and placement of those allowing for quicker circulation and dilution before reaching them.