Need help

[hadog]

Hi all
I have been patiently reading threads for the past month or so while waiting for my "stuff" to arrive. It is to say the least, mind blogging!!
My problem is that I have a fair amount of algae...and the plants don't seem to be doing well....some have just disappeared.
This is what I have:
75 gal tank
CO2 pressurized
240 watts of lighting 10 hrs per day
the usual ferts not using IE
fish load is light
substrate is eco-complete

My water is:
ph 6.8 to 7.0
KH 5 dKh
GH 8 dGH
KNO3 10ppm
PO4 2ppm
CO2 about 24 ppm/turned off at night

The KNO3 is a bit low usually I keep it at 20ppm
I add iron and micros one a week.

No other buffer, etc added.

Can someone...in plain terms ( I am old) tell me what schedual to follow to improve this tank?

Thanks in advance

 

[ervis]

Re: Need help

At first glance I question if you have enough potassium. Do you add any?

Also, when you say, "the usualy ferts", is that traces?

steve

 

[hadog]

Re: Need help

Hi
Yes I add potassium and by micros I mean traces.

The only thing I don't add is PO4 because it has been very high...is coming down slowly.

 

[fosteder]

Re: Need help

up the co2. A lot of algae can point to that. Turn it up until you see the fish start acting funny, and then back it off some. (do it in small increments and do it when you have time to spare). 24 ppm is good, but your tests could be off and you may have less than you think. Plants and algae do not lie.

 

[Tom Barr]

Re: Need help

How many plants do you have in here?
Add more!
The rest seems fine.

Weekly water changes, dosing after and 3x a week.
Clean well and prune as needed.

Regards,
Tom Barr

 

[hadog]

Re: Need help

Hi Tom

Where I live it is difficult to get plants but I try. I have a small selection right now...a number of hydros....some vals which are disappearing, some java moss, a couple of swords which are now pretty small. I have been trying to keep up with the algae but it is almost a losing battle.

The CO2 system has just been running for a week so far.

Adding ferts 3x aweek ok but in what amounts for 75 gal?

 

[Tom Barr]

Re: Need help

I'd make sure to keep up on the cO2.
You should not add any light, plants or ferts till you get the CO2 going.
If you want algae free tanks, lots of plants and CO2 and then nutrients.

You need to clean your tank good, then do the water change, add fresh cheapy plants back, then add nutrients.

For a 75 w/240w:

Fully planted with good CO2:
1/2 teaspoon of KNO3 every other day
1/8" teaspoon of KH2PO4
Dose 15mls of traces 3x a week on the off days.
Do weekly 50% water changes.

You'll need to preen the plants and clean them for awhile because you let the algae get out of hand and had no CO2 for awhile.

So it'll take a little while, but this is what you need to do for now and after a couple of weeks things will balance out.

Dose 1/2 the rec's the first week, then after adding more plants and after things look better, add more.

Regards,
Tom Barr

 

[hadog]

Re: Need help

Hi Tom

Ok will do

Now for the dumb questions:
what is a common source for KH2PO4? What is the common name?

Can you convert teaspoons to ml, my KNO3 is now in liquid form...2 tablespoons per 250 ml of water

last questions...honest ........... for a while

 

[Roman]

Re: Need help

what is a common source for KH2PO4? What is the common name?

Not sure what you mean with common name, but KH2PO4 is mono potassium phosphate. You can get it from Greg Watson.

 

[Tom Wood]

Re: Need help

Go here to calculate dosing:

http://www.aquaticplantcentral.com/forumapc/fertilator.php?

TW

 

[hadog]

Re: Need help

Two things

I keep going to that site....I am a member of it but explorer keeps closing everytime I try to access the fertilizer prg


and

so this chemical is for phosphate (KH2PO4)??

 

[GreenStuff]

Re: Need help

Hadog, How are things in Sydney. I'm in PEI, and I know all about TRYING to get plants. (It can be very trying.)
I think the common KH2PO4 that you're looking for is Fleet enema. You can get it at most drug stores. I buy the Childrens version to avoid anyone at the counter thinking it might be for me. Ha! It's the same as the adult only with a smaller bottle.

 

[hadog]

Re: Need help

Things in Sydney are fine....we are getting Spring...(I think) Haven't been over to PEI in a bit, always had a great time there.
yep these tanks can be a real cure. I wonder if I should just start over from scratch might be easier. How is yours finally coming?

 

[GreenStuff]

Re: Need help

I wish I could say my tank was doing well, but truth is most of my fish are dead and the algae is taking over again. Plants are growing like crazy though.