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First i'd like to thank all the people who without knowing have helped in the setup of my planted tank. i've been reading many logs (LITTLEFISH & TETRATECH), not to mention the great bensaf.
background:
Started a planted tank, its a 20g long, (fully stocked)
moderately planted, 5xcorkscrew val(small) 2xcrypt wendtii, 1x ozelot, 2x anubias nana, 1x sword, 1x java fern, 2x 'unsure'
2WPG on for 9 hrs, originally dosing nothing but locally made plant fert (lists nothing but iron and cobalt)
I'm getting growth but it seems to be a bit weak, so i decided to change to all seachem products (lack of anything else i've heard good reports on)

So here is my plan

day1 Flourish 1.5 ml
day2 Excel 2ml
day3 Phosphorus 2.5ml
day4 excel 2ml
day5 flourish 1.5ml
day6 excel 2ml
day7 small water change 5%?

note: i using phoshorus because i have a slight problem with green spot algae.

once again thanks for all your help.

Cheers
Cynical

Hi,

Not too sure about the "great" bensaf, more like "the increasingly aging and pathetic but still got a boyish charm bensaf"

Your off to a good start, but a bit off balance. I don't see any Nitrogen ?

Yes, phosphate will keep away green spot but it needs to be added as part of a complete program. Nitrogen is the one I see missing. Phosphate will increase nitrogen uptake by the plants so this will compound the problem. If your nitrogen bottoms out you'll end up far more seriuos problems then green spot.

You can add nitrate through Flourish Nitrogen or Potassium Nitrate (which I believe is quite hard to find in Aus).

With the Excel and other goodies going in I'd definately reccomend you add Nitrate to the dosing regime ASAP.

Go for a bigger water change, it'll give you more room to maneuvere with dosing. 30-50%.

Last edited by bensaf at 18-Oct-2005 21:54

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Some days you're the pigeon and some days you're the statue.

Remember that age and treachery will always triumph over youth and ability.

Thanks.
I only just received my online order of flourish (literally 2 while writing this), so will place another for nitrogen.

so the amounts i'm dosing seem quite fine? not too little? i'm just going from what seachem suggest, but with excel going in there should i up the dosage a touch?

p.s. if anyone in melbourne knows of a LFS that sells the seachem flourish stuff it would be great, i have to order everything online.

Thanks again.

Cynical

Last edited by cynical at 18-Oct-2005 22:24

oh, and reason for 5% water change was to keep nitrate levels up, my tests and guess'imates suggest 20ppm levels fairly steady.
so i just do a quick gravel vac in my open areas. still think i need nitrogen? and larger w/c?

Thanks
Cynical

Sorry never used the seachem products so no idea of the corresponding doses. I'd follow the instructions.

Relying on fish to supply Nitrate is dodgy. Mainly'cos they don't actually add Nitrate, they add Ammonia which is converted by your bateria colony.You are also at the mercy of your test kits accuracy, nothing a place I'd like to be at.

Better to control everything yourself. By adding the Nitrate you know it's available and the 50% WC is good safety valve giving you a wide margin of error. Basically yoo're re-setting your tank and starting afresh every week. Very safe. You have control and certainty.

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Some days you're the pigeon and some days you're the statue.

Remember that age and treachery will always triumph over youth and ability.

Here's my current dosing regimen with Seachem ferts in my 23g (1.7 wpg):
day 1 - 20-30% water change, Excel 2mL, Equilibrium 1/4 tsp, Nitrogen 5mL, Phosphorus 2.5mL
day 2 - Excel 2mL
day 3 - Excel 2mL
day 4 - Flourish 1.75mL, Nitrogen 5mL, Phosphorus 1.5mL, Potassium 5mL
day 5 - Excel 2mL
day 6 - Excel 2mL
day 7 - Excel 2mL

My tank is understocked, so I need the 10mL Flourish Nitrogen (=+10ppm Nitrate) otherwise my nitrate bottoms out (my plants use almost 2ppm nitrate a day). You probably won't need this much if you're fully stocked.
I use Equilibrium because I have heaps of it and it's a good K source (as well as Fe, Mg). Flourish & Flourish Potassium should work fine too. Flourish Phosphorus has some potassium too, so you can just watch your plants (esp. the swords) to see if they show any K deficiency (e.g. holes on old leaves).
Here's an online calculator that tells you how much of each Flourish liquids to use to achieve the desired ppm level for each element: http://www.fishfriend.com/fertfriend.html

HTH and good luck!

-P

where do you get your seachem stuff from? online? in melbourne i couldn't find a single shop that stocked it. and any that said they could order it was about $20 over my online price.

Cheers
Cynical.

Yup, from http://aquaticlifeaquariums.com.au/. With 10% member discount, they have the cheapest Seachem prices I've found even after postage, cheaper than what I can find at local LFS's here in Brisbane. You may also want to search hydroponic stores in Melbourne for the solid ferts (KNO3, K2SO4, KH2PO4). They're much cheaper than Flourish Nitrogen/Potassium/Phosphorus in the long run, but the trick is to find a place that would sell them directly to the public and in small quantities (instead of bulk). HTH!

-P

Cynical

Well I'm glad you got something out of my log besides a headache. It appears you will be using excel as your main source of carbon and not co2. I don't know how efficient the uptake of nutrients is with excel compared to co2, my guess is it will not be as great, so I would definitely stay on top of water changes. Also is your lighting CF?

My Scapes

upikabu-

yer thats where i got my last order from, i was using aquaria.com before that. prices are the same, but no 10% discount for membership. just oredered flourish nitrogen and iron, dont know if i need potass. coz its in both phos. and in normal flourish. i'll keep an eye on the plants and see how i go.

tetra- i using 2x 24" flouro tubes. with displacement from gravel and deco its probably over 2wpg. as far as how much i gain from excel. well i'll keep you posted. i'm keen to see the results myself.
and once again thanks for all that great reading and info. gained heaps from it.


Cheers
Cynical