Hello,
I was wondering if anyone could help me complete this list for the ideal ppms of the following nutrients...my main source was Chuck's Planted Aquarium Calculator.
Nitrate - 5ppm (though I thought it was supposed to be closer to 10 in a planted aquarium...any thoughts?)
Potassium - 20ppm
Magnesium - 5-10ppm
Phosphate - 1ppm
CO2 - 20ppm
Iron - ??? (I think I read somewhere it should be 1ppm, but I could be wrong)
Also, according to this awesome little tool, which I highly recommend, my Co2 is currently at 15ppm based on my PH reading (7.2) and KH reading (8). Is this a pretty safe way of knowing your Co2?
I have just ordered a phosphate, co2, and iron test kit, but how does one test for magnesium and potassium? I have been unable to find a test kit for these. I did find a magnesium one but it said it was to measure magnesium and calcium in saltwater, so I figured that wasn't what I was looking for.
Is calcium something I need to worry about as well?
I currently have a 46g infested with algae. And I just got a 55g tank that I have yet to start running. I am trying to make sure I have all the materials I'll need first before I run it and plant it. I am really wanting to be successful with this one as much as I can be. By which I mean, no algae, or as little of it as possible. My plants in the other tank are pretty much invisible now as they are covered in four different types of algae. I have pretty much given up on that one, so I'm trying to get started on a new one. Heh... It's probably a backward thing to do, but I'm hoping that if I just make sure I have everything I need and have educated myself properly, I can try as hard as possible with it, and then bring that knowledge to my poor 46g. My algae problem is so bad, I have needed to trim the plants to nothing. They used to be soooo healthy and beautiful, and now they're just little stumps with poor little baby leaves covered in fur. Water changes did nothing, cleaning and scrubbing did nothing, cleaning the filters did nothing. Not fertilizing, over fertilizing, less light time, more light time. Less co2, more co2. Low ph, high ph. Blah... I'm just thankful I didn't kill any of my fish in the process due to stress at so many changes. One other thing I considered could be temperature. Because my apartment is always at the same temperature, I don't heat my tank in anyway. I do use two different thermometers, a little sticky kind and a regular submersed mercury kind, and they are always at 74. I do like it a little lower than most would keep their tanks because of my Dojo Loach, he gets grouchy and sluggish when it's hot (but he loves his snails!). Does anyone know if this would affect algae growth. I have yet to read anything on this.
Of course, the only fertilizers I used were flourish and excel and fluorite. However, my ten gallon only has regular gravel, I never fertilize it, it only has 15w of light, and the plants growing in there are beautiful and there isn't a speck of algae to be seen. It's become my little jungle. In it I keep a mean chinese algae eater who used to beat up all the bigger fish, and 2 male guppies that won't stop harrassing the gals (horny little boogers), and a disgusting amount of snails (rams and regular pond snails) and cherry shrimp (they just won't stop reproducing). I thought maybe it was the snails and cherry shrimp so I started throwing them into the 46g but they just become food and within a few hours there are none to be seen. I know ... very cruel.
Anyway, this wasn't the point of my post. I guess basically I wanted to make a list of the nutrients and goal ppms. I also really wanted any other recommendations as far materials. The most important thing that I did not do with my 46g tank was read and research nutrients and dosing, I only stuck with what pet smart sold. Now I have researched this website and others and feel like I'm almost ready to begin. So far I have the following for the 55g:
Flourish
Flourite 30lbs
Eco-Complete 40lbs (I'm mixing the two substrates)
co2
lights (260w, I read that's a lot, but I can decrease it by 65w intervals, as it takes 4 65wbulbs, or just leave the two blue ones, since they don't really affect plant life and they kinda look pretty)
Potassium Sulfate for K 1lb bag
Flourish Iron
Phosphate Test Kit
Co2 and Iron Test Kit
Nitrate Test Kit
Ammonia, Nitrite, PH, KH, GH test kits.
I have still to get Fleet Enema for P, and anything else for Nitrate, though I am planning on it this weekend. What is the best thing for Nitrate? On the sticky I read of a few, but any opinions on the best and easiest to measure out, etc.?
I know there's a lot to sift through in this post, but please if anyone has anything other info they wouldn't mind sharing, I'd really appreciate it. I don't want another fuzz tank, but I just love this challenge no matter how badly it makes me want to shove my head in a wall at times.
Also, how do you dose flourish iron? I have seen different things and don't know which to go with. I think that the last one I saw was 5ml/20g 2x a week. Is this fairly accurate? Does it depend on how much iron you already have in your water?
Ooooh, and one last question!!! Since the tank is 55g, should I calculate everything by 55g or make it more like 50g since there's substrate and decor, etc.?
Thanks in advance! Any help will be appreciated!
Fernando
I was wondering if anyone could help me complete this list for the ideal ppms of the following nutrients...my main source was Chuck's Planted Aquarium Calculator.
Nitrate - 5ppm (though I thought it was supposed to be closer to 10 in a planted aquarium...any thoughts?)
Potassium - 20ppm
Magnesium - 5-10ppm
Phosphate - 1ppm
CO2 - 20ppm
Iron - ??? (I think I read somewhere it should be 1ppm, but I could be wrong)
Also, according to this awesome little tool, which I highly recommend, my Co2 is currently at 15ppm based on my PH reading (7.2) and KH reading (8). Is this a pretty safe way of knowing your Co2?
I have just ordered a phosphate, co2, and iron test kit, but how does one test for magnesium and potassium? I have been unable to find a test kit for these. I did find a magnesium one but it said it was to measure magnesium and calcium in saltwater, so I figured that wasn't what I was looking for.
Is calcium something I need to worry about as well?
I currently have a 46g infested with algae. And I just got a 55g tank that I have yet to start running. I am trying to make sure I have all the materials I'll need first before I run it and plant it. I am really wanting to be successful with this one as much as I can be. By which I mean, no algae, or as little of it as possible. My plants in the other tank are pretty much invisible now as they are covered in four different types of algae. I have pretty much given up on that one, so I'm trying to get started on a new one. Heh... It's probably a backward thing to do, but I'm hoping that if I just make sure I have everything I need and have educated myself properly, I can try as hard as possible with it, and then bring that knowledge to my poor 46g. My algae problem is so bad, I have needed to trim the plants to nothing. They used to be soooo healthy and beautiful, and now they're just little stumps with poor little baby leaves covered in fur. Water changes did nothing, cleaning and scrubbing did nothing, cleaning the filters did nothing. Not fertilizing, over fertilizing, less light time, more light time. Less co2, more co2. Low ph, high ph. Blah... I'm just thankful I didn't kill any of my fish in the process due to stress at so many changes. One other thing I considered could be temperature. Because my apartment is always at the same temperature, I don't heat my tank in anyway. I do use two different thermometers, a little sticky kind and a regular submersed mercury kind, and they are always at 74. I do like it a little lower than most would keep their tanks because of my Dojo Loach, he gets grouchy and sluggish when it's hot (but he loves his snails!). Does anyone know if this would affect algae growth. I have yet to read anything on this.
Of course, the only fertilizers I used were flourish and excel and fluorite. However, my ten gallon only has regular gravel, I never fertilize it, it only has 15w of light, and the plants growing in there are beautiful and there isn't a speck of algae to be seen. It's become my little jungle. In it I keep a mean chinese algae eater who used to beat up all the bigger fish, and 2 male guppies that won't stop harrassing the gals (horny little boogers), and a disgusting amount of snails (rams and regular pond snails) and cherry shrimp (they just won't stop reproducing). I thought maybe it was the snails and cherry shrimp so I started throwing them into the 46g but they just become food and within a few hours there are none to be seen. I know ... very cruel.
Anyway, this wasn't the point of my post. I guess basically I wanted to make a list of the nutrients and goal ppms. I also really wanted any other recommendations as far materials. The most important thing that I did not do with my 46g tank was read and research nutrients and dosing, I only stuck with what pet smart sold. Now I have researched this website and others and feel like I'm almost ready to begin. So far I have the following for the 55g:
Flourish
Flourite 30lbs
Eco-Complete 40lbs (I'm mixing the two substrates)
co2
lights (260w, I read that's a lot, but I can decrease it by 65w intervals, as it takes 4 65wbulbs, or just leave the two blue ones, since they don't really affect plant life and they kinda look pretty)
Potassium Sulfate for K 1lb bag
Flourish Iron
Phosphate Test Kit
Co2 and Iron Test Kit
Nitrate Test Kit
Ammonia, Nitrite, PH, KH, GH test kits.
I have still to get Fleet Enema for P, and anything else for Nitrate, though I am planning on it this weekend. What is the best thing for Nitrate? On the sticky I read of a few, but any opinions on the best and easiest to measure out, etc.?
I know there's a lot to sift through in this post, but please if anyone has anything other info they wouldn't mind sharing, I'd really appreciate it. I don't want another fuzz tank, but I just love this challenge no matter how badly it makes me want to shove my head in a wall at times.
Also, how do you dose flourish iron? I have seen different things and don't know which to go with. I think that the last one I saw was 5ml/20g 2x a week. Is this fairly accurate? Does it depend on how much iron you already have in your water?
Ooooh, and one last question!!! Since the tank is 55g, should I calculate everything by 55g or make it more like 50g since there's substrate and decor, etc.?
Thanks in advance! Any help will be appreciated!
Fernando
