Tank Talk Magazine June 2011 | Page 24

Culture Vessels; The jars I now use for culturing the algae are made from glass, 2x tall spaghetti jars are now my container of choice. I previously utilised 2ltr Lemonade bottles but they didn't seem to give me the yield that I was seeking. The density of the algae would always be less in a plastic bottle as opposed to glass for some strange reason, perhaps this is due to one of the following reasons, (i) residue from the plastic, (ii) cleanliness or (iii) light dispersion. Lighting; Within the cupboard I choose to call my Live Food larder I have incorporated an energy saver light bulb. This has a two fold function (i) it provides light and (ii) it provides a gentle heat source crucial for the development of the many other live foods contained on the shelves of the cupboard. The light source is a 15 watt, Daylight spectrum, 6500k energy saver mini twist bulb. This little bulb is excellent for my needs it warms the cupboard to a constant 70'f. It is the single most item on which many life forms depend. Heating; It is my belief that green algae cultivation needs a certain amount of heat to flourish. I keep the jars at around 68'f provided from a light bulb as mentioned above. This seems to help the algae.