Timer on Filter?

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jmcclain

Aquarium Advice Newbie
Joined
Oct 16, 2005
Messages
7
Location
Chicago
I saw this on azgardens.com. Has anyone tried this?

"READ THIS TIP! Timers provide automatic timed lighting, or filtration for your aquarium. About 15 years ago, our company started putting filtration on a timer (The AAG Method), so our filters/pumps would "die" at the 6th hour of "lights on" and our filters/pumps would re-start after 2 hours of being off. This allowed our plants incredibly to adsorb helpful gases and natural CO2 during peak photosynthesis. Plants start going through "peak photosynthesis" after/about the 6th hour of daylight. (if you are not clear about what we are explaining here, re-read this paragraph again)."

Has anyone tried this? I thought about trying this out - but thought I would get some advice before messing with another timer :D
 
I have not tried this but don't see how trying it will hurt. Please post your results if you try it.
 
First off I want to say that I have never studied this or tried this method. That being said, my advice would be be to advise against anything of the sort. Your filter is a bed of nitrifying bacteria that requires a constant supply of oxygen to remain alive and effective. Cutting off this supply of oxygen would, in my opinion, lead to the death of this vital nitrifying bed. It would, in my mind, be like squeezing the oxygen tube of a patient in intensive care, and assuming that, because it didn't kill him, he was better for it. Not a good idea IMHO.
 
Let me just say that I am thinking by typing, and you should not listen too much to me because these are only thoughts. :D I do not mean to suggest it is good to potentially harm pets for experiments.

Assuming biomedia stays submerged, 2 hours is not a very long time. It would make sense to me if part of the concept is in the peak hours the plant uptake is so high and efficient they are outcompeting nitrifying bacteria. While oxygen for our animals would be high assuming a heavily planted healthy tank, I think Travis's point about little oxygen to the biomedia makes sense, depending on its location.

Personally I think peak hours is when plants would want current the most as it will bring them nutrients and CO2. While I have not tried this AAG Method I have tried Walstad style tanks with and without current, and doubt I will ever want to run a tank without current again.
 
I don't think its a good idea either. You're killing bacteria in the filter when it's not circulating, and you're letting the filter water sit stagnant.
 
FWIW, I agree with Travis & Malkore, 2 hours is a lot of time for a cannister filter to go anaerobic. Also, Reefers used to do that with powerheads to create waves, and it burns out the power heads faster than leaving it on constantly.
 
if you have a cannister filter, you may also have a hard time with it starting up again by itself. i know that when i turn both my fluvals off, i have to prime them by hand to get the flow started again and it can be a REAL pita!
 
I have a vague (and possibly incorrect) recollection that photosynthesis gets up to full swing in only 60 - 90 min. Is this correct? If so, there would be little point to turning off the filter after 6 hours.
 
Tips of my plants open after about a half hour and I see pearling soon after, but this may be due to my setup being high oxygenation. Opposite happens before lights out (tips close). It is feasible to me that the uptake rate of plants changes in between and has a peak period, but I do not know. Some very successful aquarists use medium light with a short "noon" period of high light to grow very demanding plants, and the method seems to show that plants need only a short period of high uptake, and I would not be surprised if they adapt uptake rate even under constant light intensity. HTH some.
 
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