Mebbid
Aquarium Advice Addict
So a common algae control tactic has always been to reduce the photo period of a tank and it obviously works very well. But due to my overly curious nature I feel the need to ask why exactly does this work?
Hello Mebb...
Aquautic plants need water, nutrients and light. If you limit or take away one, then the growing process (photosynthesis) can't take place.
B
Yeah, I got that already but why does limiting light to a shorter amount of time affect algae. Bringing the photo period from 10 hours down to 6 should drop the algae growth down by 40% but instead it appears to not even grow.
Then there is the suggestion for a siesta period that I've seen thrown out there a dozen times or so.
From what I've read and understand, algae typically takes longer to start the photosynthesis process than plants, which is why shorter photoperiods help control algae, but still allows plants to grow.
This is what originally prompted my question. Reducing the photo period down to 6 hours daily shows suppressed algae growth. The nutrients are in the water and being used by the plants but if the algae worked in a similar fashion to plants then it would still be growing out of control because of the free nutrients that hadn't been absorbed by the plants yet.
I have a hectic schedule and have been told more than a few times that I should adjust it down to at most 8 hours daily. But my lighting schedule is set to a 6 hour on / off cycle What difference does it make running my lighting like that as opposed to 8 hours on and 16 off.
O do the same photoperiod on 2 different tanks with completely opposite results.. my 55g is doing amazingly well while my 10g has been trouble since it started.
I think the one thing we know for sure is that it's complicated. I've heard a few theories, ranging from reasonable to deranged. Probably the most reasonable theory is not so much that algae takes longer to start photosynthesis (which seems the opposite of what is probably happening).