Newbie help - ferts, readings, algae, and more

neilanh · Post by **neilanh** » Mon Apr 09, 2007 6:47 pm

Alright, so time to get to the nitty gritty I guess.

I'm struggling at 1) understanding exactly what's going on here, and 2) knowing what to do about it.

My plants don't seem to enjoy any nutrients. There appears to be no uptake of NO3 or PO4 at all.

20g high tank
65W of PC lighting (dual daylight 6500k/10000k bulb) 8 hours
Pressurized CO2 that runs at 38ppm using pH/kH
eco substrate
Greg Watson Ferts

Saturdays I do 50-60% PWC, afterwards I dose KNO3 (20ppm), KH2PO4 (2ppm), and K2SO4 (20ppm). On Sunday, Tues, Thurs I dose traces (CSM+B)

I was dosing KNO3, KH2PO4 and K2SO4 on Mon and Wed as well with the same levels as above, but for the past 2 weeks I've stopped KNO3 and KH2PO4 since I didn't see any change. The more I dose, the higher the levels got, just kinda seemed pointless.

I'm also dealing with GSA, which I've read is attributed to low phosphates. This doesn't jive with my PO4 readings, so several weeks ago i experimented with double-dosing the KH2PO4 for a while with no change in anything noticed. I should add I've tested with both the API and Seachem phosphate test kits, which both read at 3 or greater.

I realize the accuracy of the tests is the obvious first choice. I don't have any reference for NO3, but the seachem kit does come with a reference solution which tests out spot on.

As this is my first tank, I'm really starting to get aggrevated, primarily with the GSA. Tank has been setup for roughly 5 weeks now.

ANY help would be muchly appreciated.

THanks!

Ben Belton · Post by **Ben Belton** » Mon Apr 09, 2007 8:16 pm

What kind of plants do you have?

neilanh · Post by **neilanh** » Mon Apr 09, 2007 8:51 pm

That seems to change here and there, but currently
Bacapa, Anubias Nana, 2 Crypts, Wysteria, Hygro, stargrass, amazon sword, dwarf sag, riccia.

Plants seem to be doing pretty well, nice growth. THe hygro and the anacharis I pulled out the other day were growing like crazy.

Ben Belton · Post by **Ben Belton** » Mon Apr 09, 2007 8:57 pm

Well, you have a mix of fast and slow growing plants.

What is your GH?

neilanh · Post by **neilanh** » Mon Apr 09, 2007 9:04 pm

gH is 9°
kH is 5°

Ben Belton · Post by **Ben Belton** » Mon Apr 09, 2007 9:08 pm

pH?

How much CSM+B do you add?

neilanh · Post by **neilanh** » Mon Apr 09, 2007 9:10 pm

pH during CO2 is around 6.6.

For CSM+B, I dose 5ml every other day of a solution that was mixed at 250ml of water and 2.5tsp of dry fert.

Ben Belton · Post by **Ben Belton** » Mon Apr 09, 2007 9:44 pm

ugh... OK you got me. Where is everyone else?

Do you add 2.5 teaspoons to 250ml or should you be adding tablespoons? I don't use CSM+B unless I just spoon the powder into my tank, so I'm not certain, but 5ml of that mixture doesn't sound like much. I hope someone else will come along here. I use Flourish.

Try adding Magnesium. Your GH might be all Calcium. I had this problem where I used to live.

For what it's worth, I use 10ppm of KNO3 and 1ppm Phos. Might help your algae to back off a bit... (I hope Tom Barr doesn't read this) and it is still plenty for the plants.

Lastly, if the plants are growing like crazy as you mentioned, maybe just dose twice a week and don't worry about it

Ben

John G · Post by **John G** » Tue Apr 10, 2007 7:03 am

I'm a believer in doing things the easy way. Why not start with the recommended amount of a standard supplement, such as Seachem Flourish Comprehensive Plant Supplement? Unless you like the thrill of experiment, or have some reason to think your plants need a special diet...

Aaron · Post by **Aaron** » Tue Apr 10, 2007 9:11 am

It looks like you're trying the EI method. It's not my favorite method. In my humble opinion it's wasteful and not necessary for good plant growth.

While a 10:1 ratio of nitrogen to phosphate is ideal in a planted tank with water column dosing, a dosing solution of 3:1 is about what is needed to achieve that ratio. The phosphate will get used faster. Even though your phosphate is high, your nitrate is likely through the roof and less available to your plants. Try dosing only PO4 for a little while to see if things improve.

Try dosing daily as follows:

Mix a 500 ml solution with 21 grams of KNO3 and 8 grams of PO4.
Mix a 500 ml solution with 2 tbls of CSM+B.

Dose daily 4 mls of the macro solution and 4 mls of the trace solution. Does one in the morning and the other later in the day. It doesn't matter which one gets dosed when.

Do only small water changes every week or every other week. I think you'll be a lot happier with the results.

Newbie help - ferts, readings, algae, and more

Newbie help - ferts, readings, algae, and more

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