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Hi
A while ago I coverted an old Aquarium into a growtank for a few of my lowland Neps. It has lighting from tubes at the top, and heat/humidity from a heater which is in about 3 to 4 inches of water at the bottom of the tank. The plants stand on upturned pots so they are not sitting in the water. The humidity is constant as is the temp.
My ampullaria really loves the conditions, but others like mirabilis, gracilis & distillatoria are not happy. The growth is soft, sappy & goes prematurely black!
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I am guessing that the plants are just too wet & humid. I have read about people adding fans (such as computer fans) to increase air movement. Might that do the trick? Is it a good idea using these fans in such a wet atmosphere?

What else might cause these problems?

cheers

bill
 
bill,
Sounds like a problems with air circulation. Is it totally covered? You should leave a substantial air gap on top of your aquarium, and better yet, install a computer fan (they're cheap at Radio Shack or any computer parts vendor). That should help out a lot. Nepenthes love fresh, circulating air!

Capslock
 
I agree too much moisture and lack of air movement. I also think that light levels are too low based on your description of soft sappy leaves.
Tony
 
Hi folks,
Sounds like the problem I had but my leaves werent sappy. Premature black leaves and my pitchers wouldnt open. It did turn out to be poor circulation. I opened half the top and just made sure the heat wasnt escaping.

Joe
 
Hi everyone,
Thanks for your help.
If I added a fan to the tank, is that safe given all that moisture?
Would a different source of heating help? I currently use an Aquarium heater which is under the water. I had wondered whether using a soil warming cable might be better as I could reduce the amount of water in the tank. What do you think?

I guess light might also be an issue. But as the tank is fairly small can't see how I could increase the number of tubes
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cheers

bill
 
I use a fish heater in my tank with about 2 1/2" of water. I have it set to 72 degrees.
I have an undergravel filter that is set on cat food cans. Then covered with aquarium pebbles.
I have a 2" opening the entire lenght of my tank.
I also use the Tropic Aire humidifer / air exchanger. I thought of this after I purchased it, A long bubble wand could have done the same thing in the tank. http://www.petdiscounters.com/aquariu....nd.html

http://www.geocities.com/elgecko1989/Woodworking/stand.html
 
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