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Dosing on WC day

Discussion in 'CO2 Enrichment' started by girthvader, Nov 24, 2006.

  1. girthvader

    girthvader Junior Poster

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    Just curious how many of you dose the tank after a WC or do you give it a full day without ferts?

    ziggy.
     
    #1 girthvader, Nov 24, 2006
  2. VaughnH

    VaughnH Lifetime Charter Member
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    I dose on the principle that if I want the plants to grow I need them to have access to all of the needed fertilizers. So, I dose right after a water change. I don't see a need for plants to have a day of rest.
     
    #2 VaughnH, Nov 24, 2006
  3. Vladimir Zhurov

    Vladimir Zhurov Lifetime Members
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    I dose macros and Equilibrium right after WC and micros the morning after.
    As to EI paradigm the purpose of WC is to reset nutrients level in a tank. So you have to do two things: 1) replace 50-70% of water; 2) add nutrients to some known level.

    Plus, as Hoppy mentioned, what good does for a plant a day with nutrient levels lower than usual? I can envisage scenarios where it can be in fact relatively bad.

    Regards.

    Vladimir.
     
    #3 Vladimir Zhurov, Nov 24, 2006
  4. Professor Myers

    Professor Myers Guru Class Expert

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    Skipping a day...

    Catholic by any chance ? LOL :p If I were to skip a day of nutrients I'd be more inclined to do it the day before a WC. At least I would be more confident of the nutrient potential at that point. Skipping dosing after a WC would almost certainly guarantee an instability, and a 24 hours lapse might very well spark an algae bloom at the very least. I doubt the livestock would enjoy the osmotic differences either ?

    It's my own opinion that plants thrive on stability, but we all know they go through nutrient cycles in nature. Whether they enjoy that remains to be seen, but even very slight imbalances can wreck a Biotope.

    A 50% WC is a pretty good swing. Why push it ??? Mi Dos Centavos, Prof M
     
    #4 Professor Myers, Nov 24, 2006
  5. JoeBanks

    JoeBanks Prolific Poster

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    I think the point of skipping a day was to keep a set schedule for convenience.

    Mon, Wed, Fri micros. Tues, Thurs, Sat macros.

    If you don't skip a day, the schedule reverses each week and it can get confusing unless you write down your dosing each day which is a pain.
     
    #5 JoeBanks, Nov 24, 2006
  6. VaughnH

    VaughnH Lifetime Charter Member
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    I handle the confusion about which to dose by having my ferts in a small box, lined up front to back. When I dose KNO3 and KH2PO4 from one end of the box, I reverse the box in the under tank cabinet. Next day the end with the CSM is in front so I dose that, then reverse the box. Next day.........
     
    #6 VaughnH, Nov 24, 2006
  7. Tom Barr

    Tom Barr Founder
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    I always dose right after a water change, that's the best time to add ferts!!

    Plants have been washed good from the current, they have plenty of CO2/exporsure to the air/CO2, and less organic materials interefering with uptake.

    Regards,
    Tom Barr
     
    #7 Tom Barr, Nov 26, 2006
  8. girthvader

    girthvader Junior Poster

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    good to know. I only asked because I happened to see it when I was looking at the Seachem website and their dosing chart and wondered if there was any validity to it. I dose qdaily but thought perhaps I was doing it wrong. I actually dont follow the EI. I guess im more PPs in terms of testing and keeping levels where I have seen the best results. Although I do dose my CSM+B a little heavier, but I keep my Macs in standard ranges.

    ziggy
     
    #8 girthvader, Nov 26, 2006
  9. VaughnH

    VaughnH Lifetime Charter Member
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    How do you calibrate your test kits so you can trust them? A lot of people go wrong by trusting a test kit when it tells them they have far too much or too little of a fertilizer, especially phosphate. Then they generate a problem by trying to adjust things.
     
    #9 VaughnH, Nov 26, 2006
  10. girthvader

    girthvader Junior Poster

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    A friend of mine is the Fish Room manager at my local Big Als and I use to bring my kits to him, but I recently purchased a kit from my Municipality water works company. They just went to digital tests and I asked if I could purchase one. I got it for $100 but I know they paid well over $1000 for these, so I trust the readings to be true. I also have RO for drinking water, so I test tap, RO and tank. I then compare my tap results with the city readings once a month, and the RO water comes with a purities list that I contrast as well. Perhaps I could be doing more, but I'm sure that my readings are true enough for my use, if not perfect. The only test that is not bang on is the drop tester for CO2, but it's close enough for my use. I also have a PH controller on a solenoid, however I really regret buying the controller as once you dial in your CO2, a severe PH crash is unlikely. However I still view it as insurance in case I fry my solenoid, at leat I will hear that awful alarm. :eek:
     
    #10 girthvader, Nov 26, 2006
  11. Tom Barr

    Tom Barr Founder
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    That my friend is not PPS:D
    Test kits are far far far from the exclusive domain of PPS and if you read that whole thing, it almost sounds like Edward invented using testing kits to dose planted tanks.

    Clearly that's not the case.

    You do water changes, you dose, you use test kits.
    This is much more in accordance with the old version:

    References

    1997-1998

    This pre dates PPS by 8-10 years.
    PPS has a Excel chart to enter the data.
    PPS suggest calibration of test kits(Seldom done by many users)
    PPS suggest no water changes are needed.
    None of these methods are the exclusive domain of PPS.

    It's the same stuff with a new name.
    Folks do not have to do water changes, but they do help and they are very effective at resetting a tank. Every winning scaper I've met/well known scaper does them, a lot of them and frequently.

    I can eyeball a tank for many weeks without using test kits by watching the plants, they are much much better to watch and look at than a test kit reading. Most experts will tell you the same.

    Think about that for awhile.
    Spend your time doing that, scaping, gardening, or testing? I've learned a lot more by watching plants in my successes than watching test kits.

    Regards,
    Tom Barr
     
    #11 Tom Barr, Nov 27, 2006
  12. girthvader

    girthvader Junior Poster

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    perhaps you could lead me to the post/site that has the PPS dosing reg contrasted with the EI approach. I have been keeping plants for some time but I have never really dosed by a certain outlined regimen. Yes I test, but I'm definitely consumed by testing. I agree that the plants and algae tell the whole story if you know what to look for. But I would like to read the 2 regimens. Makes for good throne reading material :)

    I also would love to see some scaping ideas with detailed layouts ect. is there a site that ppl share these? I don't expect Amano or yourself to pour every scape you have done but it would be nice to see some tanks with the scape layout and try one myself.

    As of right now, I have plants in my tank, but would love the challenge of a nice scape. The next thing would be to try and find the plants here in Canada.

    Cheers.

    Ziggy.
     
    #12 girthvader, Nov 27, 2006
  13. Professor Myers

    Professor Myers Guru Class Expert

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    The last line holds the greatest truth ! The 3 biggest hurdles to get over are Apathy, Guilt, and Over Compensation. Folks don't pay attention for any number of reasons but almost always over react creating yet another wide swing in Water Quality perpetuating a cycle of instability. This is not the best hobby for Co-dependants ! :D LOL.

    Regular maintenance and W/C's are the key to long term success. If A person is prone to neglect the system they should be realistic and stock with a basic Dutch method and be patient. Even neglect is O.K. as long as you're reliable ! ;)

    50% of the test kits sold merely enable the Masocist...:eek:
     
    #13 Professor Myers, Nov 28, 2006
  14. IUnknown

    IUnknown Lifetime Members

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    I dose micros the day after a WC because I figure I get enough Macro's from my tap water. So I guess it would depend on each persons situation.
     
    #14 IUnknown, Dec 2, 2006
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