Trying to grow plants

If you added all that KNO3 to your tank you should have a reading. What kind of test kit are you using? Something is wrong for you not to be getting a reading. Don't add anymore KNO3 until you re-test. If necessary take a sample to your LFS for a test.
I use an Aquarium Pharmaceuticals test kit and it has two re-agents in it for testing. If I don't shake the second bottle for 30 seconds I will get a zero reading for KNO3. This could be a problem with your kit.
I did a 50% water change in my 40 and 55s yesterday and added back 1/4 tsp in all of them. Today my numbers were 10ppm. In a 29, you should be getting a reading.
Len
 
That's the problem. According to Aquar. Pharm. it MUST be shaken for 30 secs. and then wait 5 mins. for the color to completely develop. I really like the kit.
If it comes up real high you may have to do a partial water change to bring it down. You added a lot of N! You want to stay in the 10ppm range KNO3. I dose only when it reads at 5ppm or below.
The plants won't mind it, but the fish will if it's high.
I do the same thing with PO4, BTW. Keep it at 1.0 and only dose when at or below .5ppm.
Len
 
You're going to want to be really careful dosing without supplemental CO2. You've got modest light and the Excel, or a modest carbon source. Part of what you'll need to figure out is getting very modest ferts balanced to match the other two levels.

The plant growth will be limited by whatever you have the least of. If you let one of the other factors get too far ahead of this limit you'll have created an imbalance in your tank that algae will exploit.

Tests are good as far as they go, but keep an eye on the plants and be prepared to scale back if you start to see algae showing up. Its very easy to have too much of a good thing with this -- its really about the balance.
 
Well nitrate read at 10ppm so I lucked out I guess. I will only dose half teaspoon if a full teaspoon gave me 10. Tempest, I am using spectracide per djlen's recommendation. Thanks for the tips carpguy. I noticed a little hair algae starting just on the top of the glass, right where the filter pushes the water against it, don't know if that means anything. Carpguy, everything seems to be going prettywell right now. I am wondering about adding the root tabs as like you said I am afraid it will increase the nutrients and create and imbalance that algae will exploit. Am I correct in thinking that root tabs are mainly for iron and that since I have no yellow leaves I might not need them?
 
Scott, I would leave the root tabs out for now.
Just dose 1/4 tsp. KNO3, and only when needed. Let's call that when the test results go below 5ppm. You're not going to need a lot of it with your plant load and you can always add more if you don't see any increase from 1/4 tsp. Better to err on the light side.
Carpguy is right about an imbalance or at least the possibility of one occurring.
If there is no way for you to inject CO2 you're going to need to keep up with your Flourish Excel daily. Test for pH and kH and let us know what they are.
BTW, in answer to one of your original questions, "how many plants can I add?". The more plants the better, so go for it. Plants compete with algae for nutrients.
Len
 
Okay I will skip the root tabs, thats what I was starting to think. I will also pick up some more plants tommorrow and add them to help absorb any excess nutrients since I am starting to see a little algae. I will go with the quarter teaspoon of stump remover. I will keep up the excell daily at 2ml. ph and kh are currently 7.5 and 2 respectively. I added some arragonite to help with the kh. Thanks for all of the help, I'll post back to say how its going!
 
1/4 teaspoon of dry KNO3??

Just for reference, I use 2 teaspoon of KNO3 in a 200 ml jar and then dose 1 ml per10 gallons to add 1 ppm. So to add 5 ppm to all tanks, the 10 G gets 5 ml, the 20 G gets 10 ml, the 29 G gets 15 ml. I consume about 60 ml of that solution a week, so the 2 teaspoons lasts about a month.

All my tanks are near 2.0 watts per gallon, which is what those two 33 watt bulbs are giving you.

I'm just a bit worried to hear about you adding 1/4 teaspoon here an 1/2 teaspoon there. I'm thinking that is a serious overdose and too much nitrate is a bad thing,
 
I hope you are reading the other posts that are coming in. You can't let your tank get out of balance or you'll experience serious algae issues.
I think you said you were going to do your water change tomorrow(wed.). Afterward follow the instructions on the bottle of Excel. I thing they call for 10mls after your water change and then 1ml for every 10 gals.(for you 3 mls.) per day. I'm hoping that this is going to give you enough carbon.
If you refer back to that sticky you originally read you'll find sources for K(potassium) and P(phosphates), but remember that the dosages you read are for, in most cases, tanks with injected CO2. Your dosages need to stay light on everything due to the lack of CO2. Ask questions before you dose anything else. These people along with myself have all made most of the mistakes(I think I've made them all) and learned the lessons. Ask and learn.
You can have a beautiful tank without CO2, but you have to find the balance of fertilizers to go with the Excel.
Hope this has helped.
Len
 
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