What defines "High tech"?

[Plantbrain]

What defines high tech methods?
CO2 enrichment?
High light?
Excel dosing?

And the counter, what defines "low tech"?


Regards,
Tom Barr

[Raven]

Welcome.

To me hightech is lots of light, co2 and a fast growth of plants.
Liquid carbon such as excel is more of a midtech since its easy enough for everyone to use but require daily dosing.
Lowtech is cheap, simple, low demanding and doesnt require much maintenance.

[averater]

My personal thought would be that adding carbon dioxide (pressurized or other, or any other gas) makes a aquarium high tech. But on the other hand one can have a much more high tech aquarium with a lot of chemicals and measurements in a non carbon enriched aquarium than what is standard for "normal" high tech aquariums if one chooses to...

[peterhaack]

High-tech Co2 gas, Nutrients and reactors.

Here in between there Excel or/and only nutrients and so on

Low-tech No Co2 No Nutrients nor och rectors.

[elexidor]

High tech
With help of technology and other aids create a shortcut to healthy and fast growing plants without forgetting the biology in the mini marine environment in the tank.

Low tech
With a minimum of technology…

[Lingonfil]

To me high-tech = technology rich. The more gadgets the more high-tech.
Low-tech would be the opposite. A 'natural' (gadget free) approach. E g Sensing the temperature with your finger instead of using a thermometer.

In a high-tech tank Co2 will be suplemeted with several advanced and expensive gadgets. Low-tech would use DIY. No-tech would be you breathing Co2 bubbles out into the tank with a straw.

So, high- vs. low-tech wouldn't be a matter if you use Co2, high light etc. But how you make it.

That's what I think high/low-tech should mean. But what people generally mean when the refer to high/low-tech is probably something slightly different. Semantics...

[PatrikMalmo]

High tech
With help of technology and other aids create a shortcut to healthy and fast growing plants without forgetting the biology in the mini marine environment in the tank.

Low tech
With a minimum of technology…

I´ll drink to that...

Hilsen,

/P

[Clas]

+1

[TYB]

I think I heard some where a definition I liked, I think it was something like this…

High Tech – High light. (more than 0,5 W/l)
Pressurized C02.
Fertz of some kind on a weekly or daily basis, often using the EI method.
Large filtering/flow of the water/weekly large WC, often 50%.
Nutrient rich substrates. (type Eco Complete or Aqua Soil)

Mid Tech - (Heard this expression somewhere and it stuck with me)
Something in between High Tech and Low Tech. One or more aspects of High Tech is not yet fulfilled. Often a DIY substrate or not a pressurised C02 system or not enough light (W/l). I think most of us plant nerds are in this bracket even if we want to belong to the High Tech group.

Low tech - Low light (less than 0,5 W/l)
No Co2 (or DIY C02 alt. Easy Carbo)
No Fertz or only Fertz when the owner feels it is appropriate.
Low filtering/flow or almost none, long time between WC.
Nutrient rich substrates DIY/often the only sours of nutrients to the plants.

Welcome to PlantSwap Mr Barr, good to have you with us.

TYB

[bena]

i really don't know how to describe a high tech/low tech, but i know this:
if you do bi-weekly (or even once per month) water changes, and only change 20% water, and only need ONE dose pmdd or *insert brandname here* at max, then you have a lowtech.
if you need more than one dose per week, then you might have a high tech.

my point is that a high tech "can't" sustain a healthy growth without plenty of nutrition, and if you need plenty of nutrition, then you probably have lots of light and co2.
then of course there are many ways to slaughter my point.

*stops rambling*