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Unfortunately Tetracycline tablets do not affect BGA. You need to get hold of some Erythromycin tablets or Maracyn (not Maracyn 2). The dose is 1 x 200mg tablet per 10 gallons of tank water, per day, for 5 consecutive days. You may find a blackout will have the same affect. Good luck!

Too much bogwood in a tank can play havoc with water chemistry. This may be the cause of the falling KH. Some people can have lots of bogwood in a tank and not have any problems, others can have different experiences.

It's safe to use bicarbonate of soda to raise KH. 1/4 tsp will raise the KH of 50 litres of water by 1 dKH. However, it will also raise the pH slightly also. Could there be some other acid in your tank eating into the KH? Have you recently added any bogwood?

As kjb has suggested, adding some potassium may help. It is often difficult to diagnose a particular deficiency, as too much or too little of one nutrient can inhibit the uptake of another. The hygro certainly looks like it is having problems uptaking one of the mobile nutrients though. Here...

A blackout is unlikely to help you with GSA or BBA. It can be effective against BGA (cyanobacteria) and green water. SAE's have been known to eat BBA, but I think it's a bit hit and miss.

Ok. You need to start adding a trace fertilizer such as Flourish . This will add the vital micro nutrients that your plants need. I would also advise you to get a GH test kit. You can then assess if you're tank's deficient in magnesium or calcium. A PO4 kit will also give you an idea of the...

Is there any chance you could post your water parameters please? pH, KH, GH, PO4(phosphate), NO3(Nitrate) etc .....if you have them. Also are you adding any other fertilizers other than Flourish Iron?

Wow I'm impressed Zig! Haven't got a clue as to why it would work, but it obviously did. :D I'd like to echo George's comments..........you should share your findings on other forums too. Well done! :good:

Yes, you must ensure you are not injecting CO2 during the blackout. Good luck!

This topic has been debated quite a lot recently on planted tank forums. My personal belief is if you are using pressurized CO2, there should always be a certain amount of surface movement. Yes, when plants pearl during the lighting period there is plenty of O2 available. But, as andywg...

EI shouldn't alter the KH of your tank. I have seen several reports of Eco Complete raising KH. I believe it usually returns to normal after several water changes. Do your other tanks have Eco Complete in them?

Yes, I understand that. :D The point I was trying to make, is some people have virtually no movement whatsoever. Pearling is fine for during the day, but at night the situation changes. Some run CO2 24/7. Plants don't pearl at night and O2 levels can be used up by morning. I always ensure...

I noticed at the start of your journal a couple of weeks ago (nice tank by the way), you had 3 dKH. Why is it now down to 2 dKH? Has the KH of your tap water changed or is something in your tank eating into it?

I'm not surprised you had success using this method. As you stated, creating surface agitation ensures a constant level of CO2. By ceasing the agitation, you stopped the constant supply of CO2 for the plants. Chances are, the plants would begin to run out of CO2 several hours after lights on...

To test for CO2 you need to know the pH and KH levels of your tank water. You can then use the calculator posted by fishkiller_nomore. Do you know the KH level? I'm suspecting it is quite low, if your tap water has a pH of 6.8 . If you think the pH of your tank may have fallen below 6.0...

There appears to be something in your tank that is messing with your KH reading. Possibly your substrate, or maybe an ornament or decoration that is causing the KH to rise. You will never be able to use the pH/KH chart accurately until you find the cause. You could try removing some substrate...

jkc, The level of CO2 in the atmosphere outside is usually around 0.3-0.5 mg/l. In our homes it tends to be higher. If you are sat in a room all day with the windows closed, you will be constantly adding to the CO2 level of the room. It will generally average out at around 2- 4 mg/l. It can be...

At least you won't have to add any more PO4 this week! :D

Have you checked the ammonia level? Fish gasping at the surface obviously isn't right. You also appear to have something skewing your KH or pH readings. You haven't been using any sort of pH buffers have you? A non-CO2 injected tank would usually have around 2- 4 mg/l CO2. 21 mg/l is way off...

You say you've been working to get the parameters to KH 5 or >. What have you been adding to the tank to do this? Is this a brand new tank as of yesterday?

How much phosphate have you added to the tank? You say it's a 5ppm. Is that the highest reading your test kit goes up to? 5ppm of PO4 isn't going to harm your fish. My tap water comes in between 4-5 ppm PO4 and my fish don't have any problems. However, if you think the phosphate level could be...

steve711, It sounds like you have been in this hobby for quite a while. The idea of dosing nitrate, phosphate, potassium etc, is a totally alien concept to you. I understand where you're coming from. This concept goes against everything you've ever learned about keeping a planted tank. I was...

I would agree, iron could well be the problem. Do you have a high GH? If so, dosing Flourish Iron can sometimes cause the calcium/magnesium carbonates in the water to precipitate, resulting in cloudy water.

Zig, I think you'll find the dosage quoted by fishRfriends is for 200mg tabs. If you have 400mg tabs you may be better only dosing half that amount.

I'd agree with that! How can a dechlorinator remove chloramine but not chlorine? Chloramine is basically chlorine with ammonia added to it.

It's said that high CO2 levels inhibit the growth of algae spores. It does not necessarily kill off mature algae. Algae infested leaves need to be pruned until all algae is removed. It also helps plants grow to their full potential, providing all other nutrient requirements have been met.

It sounds like diatoms. This is usually seen in new tanks, which can have excess silicates in the water which encourages the growth. It is also sometimes seen in tanks where the lighting is too low. Do you think your fluorescent lighting is on the way out? Failing that .......ottocinclus...

Does the algae wipe off easily?

How long has your tank been set up? If it's a new tank, I wouldn't worry about it. Brown algae (diatoms) is often seen in new set ups and usually diappears by itself after a few weeks.

Njw, the total use of RO water in a planted tank isn't recommended. RO water can be used to dilute hard water, but you should always make sure the plants are left with enough nutrients to survive. Your GH, NO3 and PO4 levels are all too low for plants to stay healthy. They may appear healthy at...

It isn't unusual for tap water to come loaded with CO2. That's why you should let it sit in an open container for 24 hours or so before testing to get a true pH reading. HTH.

It's certainly a possibility. Any acid, other than carbonic acid, will eat into the KH. It would be a good idea to reduce your nitrate level via water changes. Good luck!

I've seen this quoted several times before, but I think it's a myth. When my tank had BGA, the Egeria was covered in the stuff. :no:

No, it won't be harmful to the plants. Running an airstone will keep the water aerated, which will benefit the fish as well.

That's good news. Hopefully if you keep up your EI dosing it shouldn't return. What did you use to medicate the tank....Maracyn?

The information you have been given is correct if you plan on running CO2. However, if you don't intend utilizing CO2......... running an airstone won't do any harm at all. Good luck!

Are you dosing any potassium? Also, what are you using for dosing traces and how much of this do you dose? It may be a good idea to start a proper dosing routine like EI and stick with it for several weeks. This way you can be sure you are not missing any vital nutrients. Good luck!

The siesta idea appears very popular on this forum, not so popular on some others. Some people swear by it, others say it's a waste of time. I've used it myself in the past, but I don't think it has any effect on most forms of algae. I used to have a siesta period so I could view my tank for...

Yes, Steve Hamptons page on Water Chemistry is well worth a read. I totally agree with his views on "pH shock". For those into planted tanks, the whole site is worth reading.

Maybe we're both boring everyone to death! :D I think the only conclusion we'll come to is we'll agree to disagree! :lol: I was hoping someone else would throw their hat into the ring and maybe give us another perspective.