Extreme Overdosing

[puopg]

I had a question regarding overdosing. I found out yesterday i have been adding twice the reccomended for EI for about 5 weeks now, which assuming 50% uptake, would put me at 13.3 ppm Phosphate and a crapload of Nitrates (im like over 120ppm). I wish I could test my phospahtes but if i assume 100% uptake for single EI, then that's 50% of twice EI. Realistically, my tank is lightly planted which probably puts me at even higher.

As I have come to understand it, overdosing has been tested with no issues. But, what if one pretty much nuked the tank with ferts? I'm talking serious overdosing (like 20x EI) and prolonged exposure and potentially also factor in current plant health.

fyi...I am looking more for the affects on PLANTS not algae.

 

["Q"]

I found out yesterday i have been adding twice the recommended for EI for about 5 weeks now

Perhaps you should tell us. How are your plants doing?

Better yet, what were things like on a different dosing schedule?

From what I remember about your lighting your CO2 demand is going to be far more than a diffuser can deliver.

 

[puopg]

I wish I didn't change so many variables all at once but...

With my older lighting a 2x14w t5 fixture over my 10 gallon, running pressurized CO2, growth was good. I could tell that after getting my dry ferts, my alternanthera reinecki was developing much larger and flatter leaves. CO2 was still too low, but my hydrocytle tripartia actually needed trimming. This was last photo recorded on 12/13/2012.

Plants have started showing decreased health since 2.5 weeks ago. It seemed like diatom outbreak since i had messed with my substrate, but upon closer inspection, not all brown can be removed. Additionally, when i got some new healthy S. Repens from Tom, within 1 day, i started seeing browning around the edges of my leaves. Still sounds like diatoms, but i manually removed a leaf today to examine it, and its not coated with brown, rather the leaf is just very unhealthy, almost like its beginning to become translucent. I have healthier S. Repens floating in water in my quarantine tank.

However, the data suggests that it is not a dosing issue as there have been reports of others severely overdosing and seeing no negative impact. Which leads me to wonder, how good are these diatoms at killing plants ?

 

["Q"]

Well for reference, I'm using a single 39w T5 6in above the tank with almost no reflector on a 40 tall and I push the CO2 pretty hard for my fish.

Granted, shorter bulbs are less efficient but, I'd say your original lighting was overkill, if what you have now is brighter at all, it's way, way overkill.

 

[Tom Barr]

The issue when testing overdoign ferts; CO2 is still a larger factor with algae, poor plant growth.

Realize that EI is about 1/5th Hoagland's modified solution. 210 ppm N, 235 ppm as K+.
You have to screw up pretty bad, and likely have little business adding much to any aquarium if you are this far off.

 

[puopg]

Alright thanks Tom. I am going to raise my light and decrease photo period and up the CO2. I hope that will help some