High KH low GH

[dantra]

I'm in Texas and basically the water is liquid rock. I'm trying my best to work with the water we have however getting a RO/DI would make life easier but that's isn't going to happen. My KH is anywhere from 12 to 16, depends on whether we had a lot of rain or whether we suffered a drought. My GH is 3 at best, because of that I'm adding magnesium sulfate.

I'm mixing my micros as follows, 3:1 CSM+B to DTPA Fe 10%, the tank is 25 gallons. I also add 1/8 tsp sometimes a 1/2 tsp of EDDHA 6% and finally 1/16 tsp of MnSO4.H2O just because I have it laying around. I also have EDTA Fe 13% and Fe Gluconate 12.46% in a box in the closet and was wondering if I should/could use it. My question is would adding EDTA and Gluconate be a waste of time because of the water. Out of the tap the pH is 8.0 - 8.5. When the water is tested out of the aquarium the pH is around 6.5 - 7.0. because of aquasoil and co2.

If it is beneficial to add EDTA and Gluconate to the mix. I'm looking for a rich iron solution. If there is no benefit to mixing the two extra chelates in the solution then I'll just add more DTPA.

Thanks
Dan

 

[dantra]

NVM figured it out.

 

[Biollante]

Interested In Your Thoughts

NVM figured it out.

Hi Dan,

Mind sharing what you figured out and how?

Biollante

 

[Tom Barr]

Sounds like they do partial lime softening and still have high KH.
I'd not bother with gluc and stick with DTPA, add about 1:4: DTPA:CMS+B

 

[dantra]

Thanks guys, Tom I actually mixed 3.5:1 CMS+B DTPA. Looks like I was off by a half. My son is somewhat undecided on a scape because the plants weren't growing... they were growing it was just too slow for him. So I purchased some plants for so he can redo the scape. I sold the plants he didn't want and purchased some stems and others so he can prune and feel like he's doing something.

I sat him down and showed him what to look for when observing the plants. I showed him what CO2 deficiency looked like in the Rotala macrandra Narrow Leaf. (arrow pointing to curled leaves in photo below) because he insisted that the CO2 was more than enough for the plants. He and I went back and forth about CO2 and it didn't take long for the signs of CO2 deficiency to show up. He called me and asked what did he do wrong? The plants don't look the same and the color is gone.

I told him what he was looking at were signs of not having enough CO2 supplied to the plants. When I got home I started to show him what the plants looked like when there is a lack of CO2. He insisted that everything he read indicated that he had enough CO2. I couldn't help but laugh and asked him if he was up to the challenge of reading a big boys forum.

Yes, you guessed it. I showed him, "The Barr Report"! The topics discussed here are way over his head but I read along with him and helped him understand what he is reading. I'm surprised that he actually likes to read about CO2 and I'm happy to report he has added CO2 and said I was right . I simply explained to him that he cannot add plant mass without adjusting CO2 as well. We have adjusted CO2 a few times throughout the week and the plants bounced back. Just look at the leaves above the curled ones for comparison. I left them there purposely to show the difference between the two.


Now the discussion about ferts came up and I told him that he was dosing EI right from the start. I shared with him that dosing ferts on the rich side does not cause algae. I showed him that the macros and micros he was dosing were slightly more than recommended by EI. I told him it was ok to adjust his dosing regimen to what the plants demanded not what some label or book said.

So now we are at the point of dosing on the rich side and that was the reason for my original question above. I want to show him that ferts does not cause algae and it is good to not restrict plants of nutrients. He has come a long way and I am enjoying the journey. I let him believe what he thought to be true about planted tanks and one by one I am correcting him by allowing him to make mistakes. Here is a photo of the tank and the plant mass. The foreground is C. Parva, if interested I'll list the plants.

He added the moss three days ago. He has a lot more to add but I just don't have the time to do it right now. This weekend I'll redo the moss for him and help him add the rest.

Dan