low temperatures lately... good for plants

[juggler]

Last night seem to be one of the coolest I have ever experienced.

With the DC fan turned on in my tank and the cold wind blowing in from the windows, my 2.5ft tank got a low of 23.6C this morning. No chillers. Normally it would be about 26C on warmer mornings.

The other 5ft tank measured 24C. Both are near the windows.

I noticed the plants seem to be growing faster and with bigger leaves this cooler season. The Ludwigia inclinata "Cuba" suddently branched a lot. The H.leucocephala showed bigger leaves. My dosing and water change regime remaining the same.

Lower temperatures really make a difference for plants.
Anyone also noticed better growth in your plants lately?

[bclee]

I think most plants are more efficient at lower temperature. One of the reason may be lower photorespiration at lower temperature.

BC

[PeterGwee]

Colder water tends to hold more CO2 and other forms of gases. That is probably one of the reason why your plants are putting out larger leaves...its the CO2. Most are never really critical about this requirement when they use it. They measure it at one point and assume it will never move forever. Not always the case though... Be critical about it, measure it often at various points of the day whenever you can. (Are you in good range? Notice less pearling towards the end of the day even when everything seems right? Measurements are not always accurate you know..).

Regards
Peter Gwee

[vinz]

I've been getting much better plant growth since I started using a chiller. No changes to other factors like fert dosage, etc.

[|squee|]

Same here. Although no "boom" of growth has been detected in my case, I've noticed my tank looking somewhat "glowing in health"

[cs_sg]

Yes, cool temperature is good especially for people like me who does not have a fan/chiller for most of the tanks

I do notice that my moss seem to have better growth and my thermometer read 26deg for the first time last night with just one Profantec fan. Hope that antique thermometer is not faulty

[vinz]

Does anyone else have less of the "oily film" on the surface? Does your water seem clearer then ever?

[cs_sg]

[quote:acb1949295="vinz"]Does anyone else have less of the "oily film" on the surface? Does your water seem clearer then ever?[/quote:acb1949295]

You mean the protein buildup on the water surface?

I do noticed that I get less of this ugly film recently for my smaller tank. It used to be worst than now under the same condition. It maybe the filter change from internal to 'HOB'..so..

[juggler]

[quote:fe696f5661="vinz"]Does anyone else have less of the "oily film" on the surface? Does your water seem clearer then ever?[/quote:fe696f5661]

I have this low-tech tank in the air-con office. Since setup it has an oily film as there are no livebearers in there to help eat it. But it seem to slowly go away after a few months. Now the top is almost clear. Same situation with the low-tech tank at home. Both non-CO2 and no water change.

[Fei Miao]

I have similar experience, plants in tank have good growth, maybe it's a good time to take some shots

[|squee|]

[quote:c9fee61803="vinz"]Does anyone else have less of the "oily film" on the surface? Does your water seem clearer then ever?[/quote:c9fee61803]

hell yea

[foxxkat]

my tank temperature average 23deg but still hav those oily film on the surface.. do i need to cultivate bacteria in the filter?

i wil go chk it out