name the missing fert!!

[Glenstorm]

I have an Aponotegon that I have recently tranplanted into a new tank. I actually have switched from a 20 to a 20L. I am doing DIY CO2, and have 3.2Watts/G. Everything is doing great, except for this Aponogeton. It is throwing up lots of leaves (the most I have ever seen it produce). But they are clear and changing to a healthy green. What am I missing?.

I have been using:
Flourish Trace
AquaPharm Root Tabs w Fe
and FloraPride

My substrate is Laterite

[djlen]

I don't understand the question. If it's throwing up plenty of green healthy leaves what's the problem?
Len

[Glenstorm]

Right, sorry, I left out a critical word in my description. . .

They are NOT changing to a healthy green. They are just emerging as reddish shoots and turning clear, almost grayish.

Now I know why no one has responded. Thanks djlen!!!!

OK now what do people think?

[Tempest]

With that much light, you certainly need more nutrients than just trace elements. What is your ph and kh for starters?

Once your CO2 need is met, then you need to look in to the plants needs for nitrate, potassium, and phosphate. It is doubtful that fish feeding would supply enough if you have high light and CO2.

[Glenstorm]

Originally posted by Tempest
With that much light, you certainly need more nutrients than just trace elements. What is your ph and kh for starters?


pH = 7
kH = 8

Which I figure to be about 24ppm of CO2

[djlen]

You have good light, good CO2, good traces. I'm not a big fan of root tabs and don't know much about them, and also don't know what's in "FloraPride". It sounds like a nutrient is low or missing. What's in FloraPride?
Len

[Skittyfish]

Try this http://www.nfis.com/~hartland/aqua/pmdd.htm.

[Glenstorm]

FloraPride is

3.00% K2O - Soluable Potash
.19% Fe - Iron
.0005% Mo - Molybdenum

Regarding the PMDD mix, I have found the Epsom Salts, but the other things have been giving me a harder time. I have found a couple of stump removers but they did not list ingredients. Has anyone ever used Revenge. It claims to use a "pulp formula" or something like that.

Would the Florapride be sufficient for my K requirements? If so. . .

I have:

K from Florapride
MgSO4 from Epsom Salts
Traces from Flourish Trace

Does this cover all my bases or should look online for the real raw ingredients?

[Tempest]

I get the chemicals online from Plant Guild.

http://www.plantguild.com/index.html

With a high light tank, it gets much much cheaper to fertilize this way. I don't mix up a PMDD but use each element separately.

[djlen]

Most stump removers don't list the ingredients. The one I bought was Spectracide Stump Remover. I bought it at Lowe's.
On the back instead of ingredients it said, "caution, contains Potassium Nitrate". If you can find that brand at Lowe's get it.
The other fert. you need is phosphate. When I first heard this I was really resistant to using it. I'd spent a lot of time trying to keep phosphates out of my tanks. But you need to dose this unless your tap water contains it and even then once your plants start growing heavily, they will suck phosphates up like crazy.
Get yourself a decent phosphate test kit and test your tank and tap water. I use Hagen's. If you get that brand open the box and make sure the reagent bottle #3 is glass. If it's plastic don't buy it. #3 has to be glass or the whole kit is worthless. I try to keep my level at 1.0ppm and I have to dose twice a week to keep it there. The product for phosphates is called Fleet Enema. You get it at your local pharmacy(dirt cheap) and it's a liquid. You'll be dosing drops of this stuff if it turns out you need it. You probably will.
If you're comfortable with the FloraPride use it. I like the raw stuff myself. You can get the equivalent to K2SO4 at the super market in the form of KCl. The product to buy is NuSalt. Again, pretty cheap.
Len

[Glenstorm]

Out of curiosity. . .

Does anyone know what happens to all the extras that we add into out tanks. . .

For instance if I use KCl what happens to the cholrine? Does it just hang around till the water change, Does it react with water and form HCl, does it precipitate out as some other compound?

I guess this question also applies to the MgSO4 from Epsom salts. Where does the SO4 end up? Also seems like it could potentially react with water and make Sulfuric acid, right? Isn't that where acid rain comes from?

I think I remember enough chemistry from Chem 101 to get me into trouble. . .

[Tempest]

50% a week water changes help to dilute out the unused ions. After reading some of what Wetman has said I've started also alternating the use of K2SO4 with KCl also. I use one one week and the other the next. Combined with 50% changes thiis keeps the unused ions even lower. I say *unused* advisedly because I think some of them are also used but maybe at lower levels and I also don't think my technique has anything to do with why Wetman uses KCl either. :) It's also probably totally unnecessary too.