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Entry Date
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Nick Name
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Location
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Sunday, June 16, 2019
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Matt D.
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Connecticut
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Entry 102 of 210 |
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Carbon Dioxide Enrichment System: Current Reading 884ppm
The carbon dioxide enrichment system is operating as planned. The Titan Atlas 8 Digital CO2 Controller with Fuzzy Logic may be on the expensive side, but you pay for what you get. (The term “buy once, cry once” comes to mind.) The features it has certainly do keep CO2 costs to a minimum so plant productivity is maximized while CO2 costs are minimized.
I have been adjusting the target CO2 level as low as 750ppm, but with my newly automated ventilation system, I have upped it to 800ppm. I am using 50 pound tanks, which is just the CO2 and does not account for the actual bottle weight because the filled tank weighs in at 163 pounds total weight. A single 50 pound tank lasts for about 12 days or so, as it depends on the weather.
Days that the ventilation system is off for longer periods of time (cool and cloudy weather) use more CO2, because there is an automatic shut-off that when the exhaust fan is running the CO2 system remains at idle and will not inject CO2 that will simply be exhausted out the ventilation system. Having this feature saves on CO2 and makes things very efficient.
The current target CO2 level is 800ppm with a 50ppm dead band (50ppm above or below the set target) which has been working out well. I also think that the compost added is giving off CO2 because every evening the CO2 levels increase even though the enrichment system is turned off. There is also a photocell in the sensor that only will activate the system if the light levels are able to support photosynthesis which is when the CO2 is needed. I have seen it climb to over my preset level (sometimes as high as 1,000ppm) after sunset on a consistent basis. This is an advantage of having the CO2 levels displayed on the readout.
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