Last chance - Green Thread Algae

Liebig's law explains if one nutrition is not availible (or limiting) that even dosing the other nutritions can not balance this.
But this did not automaticly mean that bad plant grow or bad Co2 adjustment will always result in any algae outbreak and this can simply be proofed:
Take a clean box with clean tap water and put as much light as you can do over it and tell me in 1month what algae you got.
And I think you should normally not get any single thread algae, because "good" Tap water did not contain any algae spores.
So that means thread algae will always be transfered with new plants.
The cause is Not light and also not nutritions like PO4, just putting new/unclean plants in a tank are the primary key-reasons for most algaes.
Certainly once you have introduced any algae in a tank, much light and worst plant conditions will help a lot each algae to grow just even better.

So most ppl. focus on their plant grow, because if plant grow is good, the plants may ouperform some algae.
But we may consider: If you have a tank like Dan without any (thread) algae eaters like Amano shrimp and so on. .. it will most likely not work to get such a (high light) tank really full algaefree even if you adjust Co2+ferts pretty good..
Having a tank with or without Algae eaters makes a very huge difference and even the best plant grow can never do what algae eaters can do for us:
Algae eaters will eat algaes, plants not.

 

Hi Dan, nice to see you on this forum as well!

Tom recently had an encounter with hair algae, check it out here, that thread is a great read anyway with or without the algae fight: http://www.barrreport.com/showthread.php/9553-120-gallon-Dutch-Planted-something-or-another?p=82705#post82705

Also, check your PM box

Florin

 

Hi Dan,
Correct, daily doses it is.

If you can get it, don't forget the 1/2 teaspoon (about 3 grams) of Seachem Equilibrium once a week with the water change. Until you know your Ca, Mg levels are non-limiting. IME, the K+ in equilibrium dose not hurt anything and makes sure there is some for the plants - the NO3 from your tap might not provide potassium. If not equilibrium, dosing 15mL of Easy Life Potassium with the water change will make up for any levels of potassium not found in your tap water.

All of these things together, proper filtration, water flow, appropriate lighting, manually removing the algae, etc., should turn the tide. You will see improvement in your plants but try the 3% Hydrogen peroxide treatment and the methods Garry mentions to fight algae for a one-two punch.

Hang in there dog and get yourself a back massage.

 

Just for the sake of accuracy and info, here's the ProFito numbers used by the calculator. Anyone have new results or some numbers from a label? Has Tobi mentioned any source he has? Happy to change these if incorrect.

Code:

Easy Life ProFito:
  Fe:     0.12
  K:      0.7
  Mg:     0.09
  dGH:    0.02
  Mg:     0.09
  Mn:     0.04
  I:      0.02
  B:      0.008
  Cu:     0.002
  Mo:     0.002
  Zn:     0.002
  Li:     0.002
  Ni:     0.001
  Al:     0.001
  Co:     0.001
  Sn:     0.001
  F:      0.001
  target: Fe

If you ever want the numbers used by the calc by the way, you can find them here: https://github.com/flores/yet-another-nutrient-calculator/tree/master/constants

 

Just did some reading and found someone dosing ProFito on the same day they dosed PO4 resulted in cloudy water. Presumably, the Fe reacted with the PO4. Dan if this happens to you, please post. It might mean dosing every other day or spreading out the daily dose.

P.S., thank you wet.

 

On several occasions I noticed that tanks with EI fertilization might get low on traces with the standard amount of Profito. Double the amount of the prescription seems to be ok though.

 

Hi Wet,

I guess the changes in his calculator were based on this 2 topics, where a User told that he asked the EasyLife support how much Fe/K it adds:
http://www.flowgrow.de/nachricht168070.html
http://www.flowgrow.de/naehrstoffe/profito-mit-kcl-mischbar-t19276.html
The User posted an EasyLife Email and after doing so (I guess) the calculator was updated.

But, I personlly don´t know what informations are true at last.
And so obvisiouly, it would make perhaps sense to ask EasyLife to verifiy if those new informations are now finally correct (or not).

 

Some, maybe. It depends.

Dan,
Could you provide the amounts of nutrients listed on the bottle of Profito or contact Easy Life for an answer?

I have gone two weeks on occasion without a water change and I dosed a little less in the second week but yes, at the very least, a 50% water change. Some of your questions would be easier to answer if you had an exact analasis of what is in your tap water to begin with. Are you getting your water tested?

As far as dosing half the amounts. Based on what duchy has experienced, I personally would not reduce the amount of Profito even if you go two weeks between water changes.

I would keep the dose fore Nitro at 2mL a day during the second week.

If you only dosed 5mL of the Fosfo a day during the second week or missed a day or two you might be fine but for the first week I would keep the dose to 10mL a day. Keep your eyes open for any Green Spot Algae. The presence of GSA seems to be an indication of low levels of CO2 and PO4 in planted tanks. In my case GSA got worse rather quickly when I tried dosing less phosphate (PO4).

 

Dan,
I just thought I should say, you have a very nice tank and with consistent dosing, weekly water changes and more attention to CO2 it will only continue to get better.

 

It took them long enough.

I passed the information on to wet.
I've got to say, their product looks a little wonky to me but unless your seeing something terribly wrong I wouldn't change your doses - until advised otherwise. The chelating agent is pentetic acid which I believe is DTPA. Anybody with a brain out there? My straw is burning.

 

Man, I am not good in doing math.
What means the analysis now and what calculator was right at last?

 

To me it means several things;

1. The chelating agent is pentetic acid (DTPA). Good stuff.
2. It explains the difference in Dutchy's observation and wet's recommended dose.
   
3. Based on the analysis provided by dan_lup, wet's nutrient calculator is low by about half. To me that means, the 10mL dose provides 0.2 ppm of iron, not 0.1 ppm as it reads on the calculator. Not a problem - due to our frugality we got lucky and added an amount that insured non-limited trace. From there it is much easier to adjust the dose down a little, once a week or two, until the plants are showing signs of nutrient deficiency. Any reduction in dosing should be done gradually.
4. The product analysis also lists a good amount of K2O in Profito. So while I was concerned about adding K once a week by using a GH booster, that shouldn't be necessary. There could be a need to add Mg but with 8.7 dGH it's likely the water has plenty of both Ca and Mg. But, it's good to know how much of each you have just in case the GH is mostly made up of Ca as happens in some places.

Wet is in the process of updating the nutrient calculator. The feedback and posts have been very helpful in this regard. I have also asked wet to include an option that provides ppm based on the percentage of stuff listed on a product's label. That should provide a way to double check the calculations it provides for a product and reduces the need to add an endless list of new products.