Simon's Planted Tank Journal

zig said:

Hiya Simon

Im not suggesting we cut back on trace dosing for good just for a week and see what happens, im sure you know this but i just thought id clarify (makes me feel better) just see if the growth of the hair algae slows down at all.

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To be honest with you zig i have a funny feeling it is the trace mix thats doing it, i,m not sure whats actualy in it as it is my lfs own brand.

So i think it might of been a mistake on my part buying it, i,m going to order some seachem trace, and start with thats next week.

my water stats now are;

PH....6.8
KH....7.5'
GH....11'
PO4...2ppm just raised it a little
NO3...10ppm
CO2...35.7ppm

Interesting......if you dont dose trace for a week you should find out.

It might not be any harm to increase the nitrate level to around 15ppm to keep some balance between the po4 and no3.

Water change is due tonight Zig, since stopping using that trace mix from my lfs there seams to be a reduction in growth from the fine green hair type algae.
It's still there but it doesnt seam to be growing at a frightening rate anymore, my Otto's are feasting.

What should i do stop dosing trace for another week, and see if it disappears altogether, and then start a fresh with seachems trace mix next water change?

Well thats great news mate, we were both on the right track it would appear (fingers crossed) Simon if it was me i would do a huge water change 80-90% or as much as i could, and then i would dose the tank with 10ppm no3 and 1ppm po4, and then the next day add maybe half the normal amount of trace and only add a half ration of trace for the rest of that week, now if doing a major water change is to much trouble i would just do the normal 50% and add the macros no3 and po4 and not add any trace probably until the next water change, the macros will be used up much quicker than the trace, or you could add tiny amounts of the Flourish maybe 1 or 2 ml instead of 5ml for every 20 US gallons.

The easiest thing to do is probably a huge water change dose the macros no3 and po4 as normal and only dose a limited amount of flourish until the next water change and then go back to full dosing the next week, and hopefully no algae.

If you notice the algae increasing stop dosing the trace again.

Fingers crossed

A update, i did a 80% water change and redosed with macros on wednesday, i,ve give up with the trace mix i got from my lfs as i think it's mixed to be used as a single fert, that's what you get for being a cheap skate.

I'm leaving of the trace until next water change, then i,m switching over to seachem flourish which i hope will be better and not carse a algae explosion.

All seams to be well on the algae front, i,ts just a case of getting rid of whats there.

I,ve been messing with the filer as well wasn't happy with the flow as its to strong, so i put a spray bar on it now which i happy with finally lol, its not a bad colour it doesn't stick out like a sore thumb like the last one.

Glad the algae seems to be losing the battle for you.

Interesting idea with the spray bar. I like the black background and substrate too (mmmm.... wonder why!)

gf225 said:

Glad the algae seems to be losing the battle for you.

Interesting idea with the spray bar. I like the black background and substrate too (mmmm.... wonder why!)

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Thanks

I,m afraid your famous now AGA PFK mag, and you know what happens when your famous people copy you all you need now is a storker.

Arrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr!!!!!!!!!! algae @??><?++#####

If its not one thing its another, the fine green stuff has almost die down, but now it a fine darker green algae has started to appear, which is quite thought to remove.

I,ve just started to dose potassium, because my amazon swords are starting to showing signs of it.
I think it might be a factor in the algae as well, well i can only try, its all part of the learning curve

The co2 level a has dropped a little, haven't been watching to closely due to work, i,ve adjusted the levels will retest tomorrow so see where i am.

Got a bit of a problem with my hygrophilia polysperma, it seams to crawl across the bottom and isnt growing up, whats up?

As some of you will of already read i'm having a few algue problems, it's got to the stage now where i think it's time to start again.

I,m begining to think the EI method isnt for me, with all the fancy test kits, ferts and co2 injection, ironicly my low tec solution seams to be doing the best.

I,ve a record 60 with just one betta and a aquaball filter with some wood as decoration, with an amozan sword, java moss, vallis, pigmi sword grass, java fern and Hydrocotyls Verticillata which all seam to be doing well, with weekly water changes and 5ml of the plant food that was carsing a load of aggro in my planted tank and no water tests.

I,m thinking putting my ottos into the record 60, and strip the tank compleatly.
The only thing worth saving is the vallis for my wifes tank, her chiclids seam to like a vegie snack every now and then.

My regrets so far: not using a sand substrate and using a heater cable.
I,ve got a feeling that the new tetra plants substrat, combined with UG heater cable is part of the problem, i have a funny feeling it is pump an excesses of nutrients into the water, which the plants arnt able to take up.

I,m in the process of cutting back on my EI dosing to see if it makes a difrence, even if it works my tank wont of been saved, but a valuble lesson will have been learnt (the hard way as usuall)

is that an overflow on the right back corner? if so what type of filter is being run on it?

It's a juwel filter, it came with the tank.

I've blacked the tank out, and stopping dosing for 3 days, i don't know if it will do any thing, buts its worth a try.

OW i didnt say i had a major fishie disaster the other day, tested my tank and found i had a co2 reading that was off the scale over 225ppm and a KH of 18.
I did and immediate water change and turned the co2 down, luckily all 4 ottos survived, the poor things where lying on the bottom Nealy asphyxiated.
The Cambodia had doubled in size, and so had the algae.

have you tested your phosphate mate? sorry to ask such an obvious question but when i was dosing full EI i stopped testing phosphate. after a month of algae problems i checked it. it was about 6ppm. WAY too high. the plants weren't using nearly as much as i was putting in so it built up over time. i stopped dosing it for 2 weeks but stuck with the nitrate dosing. tested it last night and phosphate was 0, nitrate 10. i'm now only dosing 1ppm phosphate on water change day and no more through the week.

apart from that i cant think what the problem can be. it's obviously not lack of co2, LOL (sorry been there, done that).

the only other thing i can think of is spectrum shift in your tubes. how old are they?

jimbooo said:

have you tested your phosphate mate? sorry to ask such an obvious question but when i was dosing full EI i stopped testing phosphate. after a month of algae problems i checked it. it was about 6ppm. WAY too high. the plants weren't using nearly as much as i was putting in so it built up over time. i stopped dosing it for 2 weeks but stuck with the nitrate dosing. tested it last night and phosphate was 0, nitrate 10. i'm now only dosing 1ppm phosphate on water change day and no more through the week.

apart from that i cant think what the problem can be. it's obviously not lack of co2, LOL (sorry been there, done that).

the only other thing i can think of is spectrum shift in your tubes. how old are they?

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I,m positive it's no phosphate, i'de been testing every day at first, now four times a week before i top up po4 and no3, and its never gone over 2ppm.
The funny thing is i,m getting green spot algae, which i believe can be related to a lack of phosphates?
I tried upping the dose slightly still no change.

I think your suggestion about the light is a possibility because they are old tubes bar one, i intended to change them one by one, but haven't had the money, with Christmas around the corner.
I even thought i might have to much light is that's possible.

simonbrown403 said:

jimbooo said:

have you tested your phosphate mate? sorry to ask such an obvious question but when i was dosing full EI i stopped testing phosphate. after a month of algae problems i checked it. it was about 6ppm. WAY too high. the plants weren't using nearly as much as i was putting in so it built up over time. i stopped dosing it for 2 weeks but stuck with the nitrate dosing. tested it last night and phosphate was 0, nitrate 10. i'm now only dosing 1ppm phosphate on water change day and no more through the week.

apart from that i cant think what the problem can be. it's obviously not lack of co2, LOL (sorry been there, done that).

the only other thing i can think of is spectrum shift in your tubes. how old are they?

Click to expand...

I,m positive it's no phosphate, i'de been testing every day at first, now four times a week before i top up po4 and no3, and its never gone over 2ppm.
The funny thing is i,m getting green spot algae, which i believe can be related to a lack of phosphates?
I tried upping the dose slightly still no change.

I think your suggestion about the light is a possibility because they are old tubes bar one, i intended to change them one by one, but haven't had the money, with Christmas around the corner.
I even thought i might have to much light is that's possible.

Click to expand...

too much light and you would keep seeing low nutrient readings on testing. if the uptake is normal it's not too much light. i have the same sort of problem in my 40G. i've got rid of the cobweb algae by upping the co2 level but now have thick horse hair type algae growing on some of the gravel. i've checked and rechecked everything and in theory the water is absolutley spot on. all my tubes are about a year old bar 1 which is about 4 months old.

however 4 new tubes = £60 and it's christmas. damn it these things have no consideration for us little people

i am having exactly the same problems and am using eco-complete with under heater. Have you tried turning your under heater off to see if anything inproves