ok so i was using covers on my res for a while and it was just a pain so this last time around i tried using no covers. here's the situation.. 30 gal res under my ebb table so its not getting any direct light.. i tried both methods with and without a cover and i didnt notice any difference really but im wondering if its worse for the plant to have no cover because i know about the algae growth.. what i've been doing also is using a lot of fresh water every single day and i run 4 oxygen stones 24/7 .. plus ive been using this product called hygrozyme which helps to keep the roots and nutes fresh.. i havent noticed a lot of algae growth in the res and also theres absolutely no smell on it either.. the air in my room is well circulated and the fresh water every day keeps it good.. by using this method on my last batch but im still skeptical to keep going with no covers because i dont know if its hurting the plants? anyone know?

covers are a pain in the butt ....i keep it under the table....like you said keep it out of the light

gotta cut out the light. maybe stick some mylar over your pots and rocks in your ebb n flow. dont want clear tubing in the system. as long as your res is not receiving any light you should be good.

i dont use a cover on my res. but did get a lot of algae in my drip systems because my tubs were white and light went right into them. covered tubs in dark plastic and put mylar on top of my baskets to prevent light hitting them. still have clear tubing with algae growing in them but doesn't seem to be spreading. tho they do need changing. system stays pretty clean now.

When light hits water = algae. You could use some kinda UV light to kill the bacteria but other than that your really better off using a cover...

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