phytoplankton culture help

[Ross]

I'm assuming that you are talking of the mamaroo phytoplankton kit.

Originally Posted by donkey77

my ? is do i fill it up all the way with saltwater leaving enough to put 500ml of phytoplankton in and the f2 fert

and the air line and light.

I wouldn't fill it to the brim.
Leave a few inches for the bubbles to pop against other wise it will leak unless you fully tape the lid on to it. If you do that, you will end up with a sludge that forms behind the tape and has to be cleaned everytime you open it up.

Originally Posted by donkey77

when i split do i leave half in and put new salt water in and the fert to keep the culture going,

yeah pretty much
read up on the amount of f2 required. It's not a lot.
http://www.melevsreef.com/phytoplankton.html

Originally Posted by donkey77

do i have to put the split cultures in the fridge

I always have, not too sure if you must.

[donkey77]

is it going to be ok if i have it in my fish room or does it need complete darkness, cause my sump light is on 18hrs a day

[donkey77]

yes it is the mamaroo kit

[Jakegr]

Originally Posted by donkey77

is it going to be ok if i have it in my fish room or does it need complete darkness, cause my sump light is on 18hrs a day

To maximize growth rate, light the phytoplankton 24/7. It does not need a period with the lights off. The phytoplankton gets its "dark" time as the cell circulates in and out of the inner parts of the culture. I'm not sure what species you have, but typically 100 umol (PAR) is a conservative light intensity for microalgae.

Also, this website details the F/2 medium and gives some information about general algae culture.

https://ncma.bigelow.org/node/79

F/2 can be purchased in bulk from aquatic ecosystems. The 1 gallon jugs of part A/B would last most hobbyists a very long time. To make it easy measuring-wise, you can make pre-mixed "stock-solutions" and keep them in your fridge. This would allow you to add (for example) 1 mL of stock solution per L of culture to achieve the appropriate concentration.

http://www.aquaticeco.com/subcategor...F-2-Algae-Feed

[donkey77]

so i have to keep my f2 in the fridge , and why does everybody say 16hrs light and 8 h darkness iam confuzed

[Myka]

Originally Posted by donkey77

why does everybody say 16hrs light and 8 h darkness iam confuzed

I always get best results 16 hours on, 8 hours off.

[donkey77]

myka do you keep yours in the fridge too

[Myka]

Originally Posted by donkey77

myka do you keep yours in the fridge too

The f/2? Yes. I haven't had any luck with f/2 though, I think I got a bad batch. I've been using Miracle Grow and Kent Essential Elements, but I worry that f/2 might make the phyto more nutritious, so I'm going to order new f/2 and try it...eventually.

I don't put any phyto in the fridge.

[Jakegr]

Originally Posted by Myka

I always get best results 16 hours on, 8 hours off.

You are likely using too intense of light then. From a physiological standpoint there is no reason to give microalgae 8 hours of darkness. The dark reactions occur on the order of milliseconds and the light reactions occur pretty much instantaneously. The cells get their "dark" period on the inside of the reactor, when they are not illuminated. If you give the algae 8 hours of darkness, they are likely switching to respiration, which will lower growth rates. Try reducing light intensity to 30 umol on a 24/7 schedule, and then slowly ramping up the light intensity over time.

[mameroo2000]

As a plant to grow properly you need to provided the right habitat, which depends of the species they need usually a light intensity of 2500-5000 lux (250-500 footcandles) Conversion of foot candles to lux or lumens is: one ft. c = 10.8 lumens or lux, for nannochloropsis oculta (the mos common phyto to culture) you need 2,500-8,000 lux...You would get that intensity in a led warm white light on a 16 hours on that will allow the micro algae to breething co2 and you need 8 hours in full darkness for breething oxygene...like this system you will have a balance with your PH level inside the reactor chamber. Light shading by algae cells would become limiting as density increase, at high densities incoming light is shade from all but the cells currently at the outer surface of the reactor, that is mean is time to harvest the culture.