Considering the size of my greenhouse growout system, in light of recent conversations on carbon dosing, I pondered if carbon dosing was required and would it be cost effective. Was carbon dosing even necessary to grow macro algae? Until very recently my product was Red Ogo as a food for people. Trace mineral addittion was mainly accomplished using Instant Ocean as the Red Ogo absorbed major and minor nutrients from the water. This depletion of salt was noted by a falling salinity even with extensive evaporation rates, which should have increased the salinity. I realized that macro algae was up taking the nutrients, which was validated by chemical analysis of Red Ogo from Ward Labs.
Coupled with the above question, I have noted an explosion in amphipod populations. In reading Paul's thread, "I overdid it with pods", I was intrigued with his point that pods like flat surfaces. In the initial system design, my goal was to provide the reef hobby market with an economial live rock grown in a greenhouse using Edwards Plateau dense limestone that was deposited when a shallow sea covered the Texas Hill Country. To that end, I built The Tank under a 20' by 40' greenhouse. The Tank measures 4' deep with a footprint of 12' by 24'. Two large shelves were built to be used as tables to hold rock curing within 1' of the water surface. These tables are held up with a 2" PVC framework which was augmented with concrete cinder blocks. After Paul's thread, I turned over some extra cinder blocks that were left on top of the corrugated polycarbonate roofing material. Eureka, abundant pods. In further investing some 150G Rubbermaid tanks with a conglomerate of red moss macro algae, I was amazed at the proliferation of the amphipod populations within the matrix of moss. It seems that my business plan is changing from people food to macro algae for herbivores and pod consumers.
If my goal is to grow pods, what do they need to flourish? Obviously, it is already in my system, but where does it come from. The obvious answer is that carbon dioxide in the air is soluble in water and is the source of my carbon input to the system. Because I use regenative blowers to move water, carbon input enters the system that way. However, my requirement to use evaporative cooling presents, IMO, an even larger source of carbon input. A 1/2HP pump sends 5000GPHr water jets made by drilling 1/8" holes in two 20' lengths of PVC pipe running the length of The Tank. During the hottest part of the day, two 1/2HP exhaust fans draw 10,000 CFM of hot dry air across the surface of The Tank and through several hundred 1/8" water streams that rise to the top of the greenhouse and fall back to the water surface. This process evaporates 100 GPD during 100 degree weather and maintains system temperature between 81 and 78 degrees.
I don't know the chemical equations that convert CO2 as a gas to carbon, but I do know that it is happing by the results I see. Does CO2 solubility into water provide any substantial measure of carbon dosing in our reef tanks. I will leave that one to the scientist.
Patrick
Coupled with the above question, I have noted an explosion in amphipod populations. In reading Paul's thread, "I overdid it with pods", I was intrigued with his point that pods like flat surfaces. In the initial system design, my goal was to provide the reef hobby market with an economial live rock grown in a greenhouse using Edwards Plateau dense limestone that was deposited when a shallow sea covered the Texas Hill Country. To that end, I built The Tank under a 20' by 40' greenhouse. The Tank measures 4' deep with a footprint of 12' by 24'. Two large shelves were built to be used as tables to hold rock curing within 1' of the water surface. These tables are held up with a 2" PVC framework which was augmented with concrete cinder blocks. After Paul's thread, I turned over some extra cinder blocks that were left on top of the corrugated polycarbonate roofing material. Eureka, abundant pods. In further investing some 150G Rubbermaid tanks with a conglomerate of red moss macro algae, I was amazed at the proliferation of the amphipod populations within the matrix of moss. It seems that my business plan is changing from people food to macro algae for herbivores and pod consumers.
If my goal is to grow pods, what do they need to flourish? Obviously, it is already in my system, but where does it come from. The obvious answer is that carbon dioxide in the air is soluble in water and is the source of my carbon input to the system. Because I use regenative blowers to move water, carbon input enters the system that way. However, my requirement to use evaporative cooling presents, IMO, an even larger source of carbon input. A 1/2HP pump sends 5000GPHr water jets made by drilling 1/8" holes in two 20' lengths of PVC pipe running the length of The Tank. During the hottest part of the day, two 1/2HP exhaust fans draw 10,000 CFM of hot dry air across the surface of The Tank and through several hundred 1/8" water streams that rise to the top of the greenhouse and fall back to the water surface. This process evaporates 100 GPD during 100 degree weather and maintains system temperature between 81 and 78 degrees.
I don't know the chemical equations that convert CO2 as a gas to carbon, but I do know that it is happing by the results I see. Does CO2 solubility into water provide any substantial measure of carbon dosing in our reef tanks. I will leave that one to the scientist.
Patrick
