# Crashing and Burning



## thotta (May 22, 2018)

You need to stop dosing the nilocg! It has nitrogen (and probably P as well...) it will help your plants to grow but also your algae 


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## swarley (Apr 12, 2018)

Try keeping photo period consistent and 6hr for now I'd say. I don't know the concentration of Thrive. I dose my water daily in my Dirted 10gallon without CO2 and I do have algae but I'm not concerned yet. The plants are growing well and pearling daily. I use a DIY Liquid Fertilizer (PPS-PRO). 

Could try dosing even less Thrive, once every three days. Obviously nutrients in the water doesn't mean algae will benefit always. You don't want to starve your plants of nutrients because algae will be able to take advantage of the struggling plants.


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## JJ09 (Sep 11, 2014)

one thing I have done that helped against algae was to reduce the light intensity. You can try raising the light off the top of the tank some (on one tank I put it on some narrow building blocks from my kid's room), putting a piece of window screen between the light and the glass, or diffusing the light with plastic sheeting - I have two or three sheets cut to fit and taped over the LEDs. For my tanks it made a huge difference.


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## Nlewis (Dec 1, 2015)

thotta said:


> You need to stop dosing the nilocg! It has nitrogen (and probably P as well...) it will help your plants to grow but also your algae
> 
> 
> Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


That’s bad advice


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## vigilanterepoman (Mar 16, 2018)

Nlewis said:


> That’s bad advice


What would you suggest? Do I need to balance my nutrients more? I have the individual macros that I used before thrive, so I could boost one if you think there is a deficiency.


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## vigilanterepoman (Mar 16, 2018)

JJ09 said:


> one thing I have done that helped against algae was to reduce the light intensity. You can try raising the light off the top of the tank some (on one tank I put it on some narrow building blocks from my kid's room), putting a piece of window screen between the light and the glass, or diffusing the light with plastic sheeting - I have two or three sheets cut to fit and taped over the LEDs. For my tanks it made a huge difference.


Won't that starve some of the plants of their much needed light? Or will they be okay? Thanks for the advice.


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## vigilanterepoman (Mar 16, 2018)

swarley said:


> Could try dosing even less Thrive, once every three days. Obviously nutrients in the water doesn't mean algae will benefit always. You don't want to starve your plants of nutrients because algae will be able to take advantage of the struggling plants.


My trouble is I can't ever seem to find that sweet spot between starving algae and saving my plants. The hornwort should pick up some of the slack but idk.


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## jmontee (Mar 20, 2009)

vigilanterepoman said:


> Hi guys,
> 
> I have been in the aquarium hobby for 8+ years and in the planted tank hobby for about 1.5 years. I have tried so many different things and I feel like I am still coming up short. I find that no matter what I do:
> 1. I can't keep groundcover/carpeting plants alive for more than a month (cuba, montecarlo, hairgrass, you name it). It always stalls then promptly dies off.
> ...


So I honestly see a few issues here that might help, albeit not by tomorrow. It looks like you are not testing for nitrates in your tank from the numbers you have above. That is one of, if not THE, most important thing you should be testing for. Also, you really should have 0 nitrites and be shooting for around 10 to 20 ppm Nitrates as much as possible. How much are you dosing of the Thrive? The dosage on the bottle is for a 10 gallon tank so you need to adjust accordingly but most importantly you have to know what nitrates you are starting with. My guess is that it will be very high as you don't have a huge number of plants and they are probably not doing well enough to take up what you are putting in. 

The Thrive in and of itself is NOT a deterrent to algae but a more of a way to make sure that your plants have everything they need to be healthy and out compete the algae. If you are over dosing the Thrive to a point that the balance is completely off and your plants don't have the other nutrients that they need then algae can take over. Flourish Excel or other glutaraldehyde solutions are very good at killing off algae but the balance still needs to be right. 

Also, are you using a drop checker to ensure that you are getting enough CO2 into the water column and ensuring good circulation? You may also want to try to up your KH to 5 or 6 but that is just nitpicky.

Now, about your substrate. Is there a reason that you decided on miracle grow dirt with Fluval Stratum, which is a buffering substrate, for your combination? Usually if you are doing a dirted substrate with a cap you would use a an inert cap like Ecocomplete or Fluval black. The Stratum will buffer your parameters which may be why your KH is so low and may be a overkill in your set up. Also, 2 inches of dirt and 2 inches of Stratum is a bit deeper than I would have gone as I would have gone with 2 inches of miracle grow with one inch of an inert cap at the high end. Usually Stratum is used for more acidic type environments for special shrimp (Taiwan bees, CRS and the like) or for Toninas, eriocaulons or other acidic loving plants. 

IMHO you may want to restart (which in a 3 gallon system is not a huge undertaking) with a setup that is more like what you would need for the shrimp that you have in there. In fact, the shrimp would probably also prefer a bit lower temperature too, like 73 to 74F. I would take a good look at what you really want to keep and make some changes to your set up. If neocaridina and amanos are your goal then you could use the substrates above and, most probably, straight tap with a good dechlorinator like Prime and have a more simple/easy set up. If you choose the right plants you wouldn't even need to add CO2 and could also decrease the amount of ferts you are adding (which I think needs to happen anyway). I don't know very much about your light but in a such a small tank and with your current plant list you could probably get a way with a shorter light period, like the 5 to six hour mark. FYI, Rotala macrandra is not a simple plant to keep and does have some specific requirements for it to really do well. 

Here is my disclaimer: All of the above is purely opinion and may or may not work in the end! Good luck and keep us posted!


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## OVT (Nov 29, 2011)

The short of it is that you have 2 gallons of chemical soup.

In a water volume this small you want to start really simple: < 2" of innert substrate, low light, basic plants, and lean water column fertilization. Once your plants stay green with no algae for a couple of months then you can rev things up bit by bit, starting with co2 and then moving to stronger light and then more demanding plants.


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## auban (Jun 23, 2012)

vigilanterepoman said:


> My trouble is I can't ever seem to find that sweet spot between starving algae and saving my plants. The hornwort should pick up some of the slack but idk.


something you can try is making a small internal upflow algae scrubber. the idea being that you encourage algae to grow in a small spot where you can regularly remove it, while discouraging it from growing in the rest of your tank. you could then cut your lights back to just enough to keep the plants alive while growing the algae in the scrubber to deplete the rest of the tank of nutrients that the algae needs.


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## thotta (May 22, 2018)

vigilanterepoman said:


> What would you suggest? Do I need to balance my nutrients more? I have the individual macros that I used before thrive, so I could boost one if you think there is a deficiency.




It’s not really bad advice, of course you should use fertelizers but this brand is glorified. Buy a fertelizer with less N,P, the plants will get enough nutrients from the water and the algae will die off.


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## oscarlloydjohn (Dec 3, 2017)

thotta said:


> You need to stop dosing the nilocg! It has nitrogen (and probably P as well...) it will help your plants to grow but also your algae
> 
> 
> Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk




This is poor advice, by limiting nutrients, plants will grow even slower and will have deficiencies, leading to more and more algae. Algae can survive with very limited nutrients, plants cannot.


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## thotta (May 22, 2018)

oscarlloydjohn said:


> This is poor advice, by limiting nutrients, plants will grow even slower and will have deficiencies, leading to more and more algae. Algae can survive with very limited nutrients, plants cannot.




Not really, it is basic biology knowledge that nitrogen and phosphorous will help algae grow. The algae itself is an indication of enough nutrients, one should still dose micros. There is only one fast growing plant that would consume all those nutrients from the water column, the hornwort. Sure the other floating plants will help but not much. Increasing fast growing plants would help, the fact that ”the plants do not have enough nutrients” is not really true - the deficiencies are probably due to other factors.

Another piece of advice is to use RO/RODI water, I don’t but a lot of people that have problems with algae and start using RO water gets rid of their algae.


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## roadmaster (Nov 5, 2009)

thotta said:


> You need to stop dosing the nilocg! It has nitrogen (and probably P as well...) it will help your plants to grow but also your algae
> 
> 
> Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


Plenty of folks with no algae here that add nitrogen,phosphates and trace minerals daily to once or twice a week.
Myself included.


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## JJ09 (Sep 11, 2014)

vigilanterepoman said:


> Won't that starve some of the plants of their much needed light? Or will they be okay? Thanks for the advice.


Well try it for a week and see if there is any improvement. If you use window screen or a loose sheet of plastic, its just temporary and then you could find a permanent solution like raising the light or something. Worth a try. In my case, LEDs (I have a finnex stingray on one tank, aquatic life on the other) were just too strong and the plants couldn't keep up with it in low tech, so algae was growing a lot instead.


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## thotta (May 22, 2018)

roadmaster said:


> Plenty of folks with no algae here that add nitrogen,phosphates and trace minerals daily to once or twice a week.
> 
> Myself included.




Yes. Plenty of people with NO ALGAE, the problem is dosing nitrogen and phosphates once you have algae in the tank. I personally dose nitrogen and phosphates in my tanks as well 


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## OVT (Nov 29, 2011)

thotta said:


> Yes. Plenty of people with NO ALGAE, the problem is dosing nitrogen and phosphates once you have algae in the tank. I personally dose nitrogen and phosphates in my tanks as well


Alright, lets see them.

As far as bad mouthing a brand, first think what it took to build it up. Can you build and run a business that is held in high regard by the community?

If that kind of thinking does not come easy, then think again about giving others advise you do not follow yourself.


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## thotta (May 22, 2018)

OVT said:


> Alright, lets see them.
> 
> 
> 
> ...




I gave the advice based on having algae on the tank. If you do not have algae in the tank it’s a great idea to dose N,P. I don’t have algae and I dose N+P, if I get algae I would stop dosing N+P! My advise is based on science. Read more here  https://buceplant.com/blogs/news/advice-on-algae-in-the-planted-aquarium


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## thotta (May 22, 2018)

OVT said:


> Alright, lets see them.
> 
> 
> 
> ...




Also, there is nothing wrong with the brand, they have good options but considering the one used...


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## SkyLight (Feb 5, 2018)

I've found this very helpful: http://www.plantedtank.net/forums/26-planted-tank-faq/110422-methods-algae-control.html


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## OVT (Nov 29, 2011)

thotta said:


> My advise is based on science. Read more here  https://buceplant.com/blogs/news/advice-on-algae-in-the-planted-aquarium


We are not in disagreement that you can repeat the words of other. What I am questioning is how you personally apply that scientific advise in practice in your own tanks. If you talk the talk, then you are expected to walk the walk. Don't you agree?


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## vigilanterepoman (Mar 16, 2018)

thotta said:


> Another piece of advice is to use RO/RODI water, I don’t but a lot of people that have problems with algae and start using RO water gets rid of their algae.


What about the RO process discourages algal growth? Thanks for the feedback!

Bump:


JJ09 said:


> In my case, LEDs (I have a finnex stingray on one tank, aquatic life on the other) were just too strong and the plants couldn't keep up with it in low tech, so algae was growing a lot instead.


What did you end up switching to?


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## The Dude1 (Jun 17, 2016)

vigilanterepoman said:


> What about the RO process discourages algal growth? Thanks for the feedback!
> 
> Bump:
> 
> What did you end up switching to?


Using RODI will just require you to add minerals. I dose dry ferts but I assume NilocG has dosing recommendations based on tank size. Follow them. Do a good cleaning inusing vacuuming substrate. Clean out all the algae that you can. Remove and treat plants with H202 and / or glut if you have any. Add some faster growing stems. Wisteria is good. Add some floating plants like salvinia to reduce light and compete with alage. Not sure if you can raise C02 with the shrimp. Reduce your photoperiod to 5 hours. Use a timer. 1 day of excess light is all algae needs to get a hold. Manually remove algae as often as possible until you get a handle on things. It takes a while and it takes some tinkering.


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## Greggz (May 19, 2008)

thotta said:


> I gave the advice based on having algae on the tank. If you do not have algae in the tank it’s a great idea to dose N,P. I don’t have algae and I dose N+P, if I get algae I would stop dosing N+P! My advise is based on science. Read more here
> Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


Personally I would rely more on actual experience than science. 

In my tank, too few ferts creates more issues than too many. I've never seen an outbreak of algae from dosing too many ferts. 

Plants that are weak and starving are magnets for algae, and healthy happy well fed plants are the best defense. Many times part of the solution is MORE not less N & P. 

Of course, that is assuming that your fert schedule has anything at all to do with the algae. Far more likely is too much light, too little CO2, or poor tank maintenance. Many times a good pruning/trimming, reduction of plant mass, substrate vacuuming, filter cleaning, and a big water change will do more to curb algae than any change in fert dosing. I would take the time to get those things right first before you make any big changes to ferts.


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## thotta (May 22, 2018)

Greggz said:


> Personally I would rely more on actual experience than science.
> 
> 
> 
> ...




Well it’s personal depending on what water you have and equipment of course, and I based my reply on science and experience, sorry for not being clear. Also, your reply implies that I said ferts was the cause of this problem - not at all, it is most likely something else (like lighting for instance) - fertz are never the reason for an outbreak. However, in my experience (+ science  ) dosing N+P can increase algae growth. And yes, of course it depends on the health of the plants - but then we are back to square one, are the plants unhealthy due to the algae or were they not good from the beginning... before the algae outbreak


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## thotta (May 22, 2018)

The Dude1 said:


> Using RODI will just require you to add minerals. I dose dry ferts but I assume NilocG has dosing recommendations based on tank size. Follow them. Do a good cleaning inusing vacuuming substrate. Clean out all the algae that you can. Remove and treat plants with H202 and / or glut if you have any. Add some faster growing stems. Wisteria is good. Add some floating plants like salvinia to reduce light and compete with alage. Not sure if you can raise C02 with the shrimp. Reduce your photoperiod to 5 hours. Use a timer. 1 day of excess light is all algae needs to get a hold. Manually remove algae as often as possible until you get a handle on things. It takes a while and it takes some tinkering.




True but using rodi you would have full control... but yes it’s a lot of work. I would also say decrease the temperature if possible.


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## Greggz (May 19, 2008)

thotta said:


> Also, your reply implies that I said ferts was the cause of this problem - not at all, it is most likely something else (like lighting for instance) - fertz are never the reason for an outbreak. However, in my experience (+ science  ) dosing N+P can increase algae growth.


My point was that it's possible that too FEW ferts is the cause of the algae. Poor plant health.

And in my experience, reducing ferts rarely if ever reduces algae growth. I'm just saying, that in some cases, dosing MORE not less is a better solution.


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## thotta (May 22, 2018)

Greggz said:


> My point was that it's possible that too FEW ferts is the cause of the algae. Poor plant health.
> 
> 
> 
> And in my experience, reducing ferts rarely if ever reduces algae growth. I'm just saying, that in some cases, dosing MORE not less is a better solution.




Sure I agree but it also depends on what you’re doising... and in the end it also depends on what compund the N/P is in...


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## Maryland Guppy (Dec 6, 2014)

vigilanterepoman said:


> Specs:
> -2" of miracle grow infused with root tabs
> 
> I really appreciate this community and any help is beyond welcome.


This is the one thing that sticks out for me.
2" of Miracle-Gro with root tabs.

Presently I am converting all tanks to dirt and never use over 1" of miracle-gro and certainly not adding root tabs.

Do you test for ammonia and phosphates?
Readings are?


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## madcrafted (Dec 23, 2017)

JJ09 said:


> one thing I have done that helped against algae was to reduce the light intensity.


This is the easiest way to reduce algae. Reducing light will reduce the plant's demand for nutrients and CO2... which are most likely in low supply. I can't say I've ever had issues with algae because of an excess of macro or micro nutrients. Ever.


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## Orichid123 (Feb 25, 2018)

i use the same fert and only dose once a week with water changes and all is well so do not know why you are dosing so often just cut back on dosage and things should turn around for you goood luck


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## vigilanterepoman (Mar 16, 2018)

Maryland Guppy said:


> This is the one thing that sticks out for me.
> 2" of Miracle-Gro with root tabs.
> 
> Presently I am converting all tanks to dirt and never use over 1" of miracle-gro and certainly not adding root tabs.
> ...


Yes, if I were to go back and do it again I would definitely decrease the amount of substrate.

my ammonia is 0 and my phosphates are at about 1ppm

Bump:


thotta said:


> I would also say decrease the temperature if possible.


Does a lower temperature discourage algae growth? How much would you lower it?


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## Greggz (May 19, 2008)

Maryland Guppy said:


> This is the one thing that sticks out for me.
> 2" of Miracle-Gro with root tabs.
> 
> Presently I am converting all tanks to dirt and never use over 1" of miracle-gro and certainly not adding root tabs.
> ...


Agreed. Miracle-Gro and root tabs together who knows what the parameters are.

Root tabs in general are a wild card. No idea how much or what they are releasing into the water column. To me, best used sparingly if at all.


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## Nlewis (Dec 1, 2015)

Is this tank newly setup? Are there any fish or inverts in the tank yet?


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## Danu Buntoro (May 26, 2018)

invest in co2 and use EI fertilizer


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## Jorge_Burrito (Nov 10, 2010)

Probably not what you want to hear but moving to a somewhat larger tank would probably be beneficial for you. When your tank is so small their is not a lot of room for error and clearly you are still figuring how to balance things out, which is that much harder as your water volume reduces.

I would try reduced photoperiod otherwise though...those Finnex leds are strong on shallow tanks. Start their and see how the tank responds.


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## roadmaster (Nov 5, 2009)

thotta said:


> Yes. Plenty of people with NO ALGAE, the problem is dosing nitrogen and phosphates once you have algae in the tank. I personally dose nitrogen and phosphates in my tanks as well
> 
> 
> Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


We dose the nitrogen and phosphates,Potassium,and trace minerals daily to weekly to encourage good plant growth from the beginning.
Poor growth of plants brings the algae, along with too much light,and poor distribution/availability of CO2,poor tank maint to control organic waste from critter's and plants.
Tellin folks to stop feeding plant's, assumes that all the plant's need's can be found from fish food's and fish poo and this MIGHT be true in low light,NON CO2 tanks with organic loading of soils and or the numbers of fishes and feedings to maintain plant's demands.
Can't really compare wet land enviornment's in nature to that in a glass box of water where no one is performing weekly water changes to clear and reset nutrient and mineral values.


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## OVT (Nov 29, 2011)

Another side of science, invasive aquatic plants:
https://www.kcet.org/redefine/5-invasive-plants-currently-messing-up-californias-delta
https://plants.ifas.ufl.edu/manage/why-manage-plants/floridas-most-invasive-plants/
etc, etc, etc

Perversly, that is what we want in our tanks: healthy plants taking over. Give them food and they will come.

There is no magic or major revaluations here: dont' start with with a tea cup full of nutrients and expect your single rotala macrandra to bloom. Instead, start clean, start with ambulia, hornworth, water sprite, floaters - all of them being "invasive" spiecies. No, they will not out compete algae for nutrience, just for the living space.

Coming back to science, a family friend, a Professor of Statistics at UC Berkeley had a favorite saying:
*There are liars, damn liars, and statisticians*.​


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## auban (Jun 23, 2012)

when it comes to algae, there aren't a lot of one size fits all methods for controlling it. personally, i absolutely love algae. i have set up a whole lot of tanks with nothing but algae, of all kinds. i am that kind of weird oddball that collects different kinds of algae from all over the world to find different ways of using it. for instance, i have given away hundreds of dollars worth of plants i grew in my tanks in exchange for plastic bags of pond scum or algae covered rocks from peoples local open water sources. 

the simplest thing i can come up with for controlling algae is to actually encourage it. each kind of algae needs different nutrients, different water qualities, etc. if it is growing in your tank, then your tank has everything it needs. if you have a LOT of algae in your tank, then your tank has a LOT of everything it needs. so, how do you get rid of it? it could be your substrate that is making the algae love the tank. it could be the food you are feeding the fish. it could be the water you do water changes with. 

if you are lucky, then you can get some plants to outcompete the algae, but that wont work if your plants are not clearing the water of the nutrients that the algae needs. the only thing that is GUARANTEED to pull _those_ nutrients out of the water is the algae itself. and this is why algae scrubbers work so well. unfortunately, with such a small tank, it is going to be difficult to install an algae scrubber. it might even be easier to install an overflow into a second tank, and install a scubber in that second tank. i mean, i have set up "refugiums" for fresh water tanks that were four or five times LARGER than @vigilanterepoman's whole tank!

but, that second tank, or refugium, or whatever you call it, would probably be the best way to deplete the tank of the algaes essential nutrients while also stabilizing the water. it would double the water volume and give the algae a place to thrive. concentrating algae into its own little part of the system is the only method i have ever found that seems to work time and time again. all other methods seem to be a shot in the dark or nuclear options.


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## OVT (Nov 29, 2011)

You can perfect that approach by allocating a 5g sump to algae and a 40g tank to the plants.


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## auban (Jun 23, 2012)

OVT said:


> You can perfect that approach by allocating a 5g sump to algae and a 40g tank to the plants.


that is pretty much what i do. that said, however, i have also set up tanks that had larger sumps than the tank themselves. 

i did this on a marine tank once because on tiny marine tanks, evaporation becomes a real problem. i know of no other practical way to keep a two gallon reef tank that does not require constant maintenance. the sump/refugium was a 20 gallon tall.


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## Subconfish (May 10, 2018)

I suggest stop adding ferts until the system settles. I was using ferts and thinking it was my photo period then thought it was my water quality, then tried my water source. But i realized it was a combination. 

How I settled things was slow, typical 8 hour photo period. I kept that constant. Same water source. Checked NH3, NO2-, and NO3-, to keep it constant. I let it sit then watched my tank react. Algae reduced slowly. Plants were reaching after a month so I increased light intensity. Still no algae and plants stopped reaching and started spreading. This was the middle point of growing and algae bloom. This is when you want to start feet and watch for algae blooms or increased plant activity. 

Fixing your problem. Don't add ferts b/c other people say so. Adjust everything one step at a time while keeping the others constant.


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## Surf (Jun 13, 2017)

> of miracle grow infused with root tabs capped with 2" of fluval stratum and sand mixture
> -okho stones
> -1 bps injected co2 when lights are on
> -6-8 hour photoperiod
> ...


Is this the fertilizer you are using?
Thrive 500ml | Premium Liquid Fertilizer | NilocG Aquatics
Also do you have hard or soft water and what brand root tabs. 


The Central idea of EI dosing is that all essential nutrients are in the water at levels slightly in excess of your plants needs. To do that you have A CO2 system and and you add fertilizer and you have potting soil in the tank. You are assuming these would supply all the nutrients plants need. However you don't know that for sure. And odds are that there is a nutrient missing.

For example the fertilizer Link I list above (the fertilizer I think you are using) does not have Calcium, Sulfur, and Chlorine. These are all essential nutrients plants need. Yet Most fertilizers on the market don't have these or are missing other nutrients. Typically tap water has these. But if you have soft water your substrate maybe the only source for these nutrients. And if your water changes may have already depleted the substrate of these nutrients you could have a sever deficiency of something.

My experience with sever deficiency is that light intensity and one time changes are not effective. Switching to RO water would also not help because it even has fewer nutrients than tap water. Also changing the fertilizer dose doesn't help because the fertilizer is still missing some nutrients. 

If you can pull up your local water quality report and fertilizer and root tabs ingredients list you might be able to determine which nutrient or nutrients you might be short on. The essential nutrients plant need are nitrogen, potassium, Calcium, Magnesium, phosphorous, sulfur, Chlorine, iron, boron, Manganese, zinc, copper, and molybdenum.


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## roadmaster (Nov 5, 2009)

1bps CO2 when light's are on would be where I looked first to increase before increase of anything else.
Would want CO2 level at optimum at just before light's came on for the day at 2 to 3 bps.
Should be no issues releasing more gas if plant only tank, but might take little by little adjustment to accommodate fishes or invert's.
As mentioned,not all distribution of CO2 method's are same/same, or bubbles per second for that matter, so is not as easy to say you have proper CO2 availability or ppm.as some claim, and you can only add or increase the gas as much as fishes will tolerate. 1bps CO2 ,,you should begin there.IMHO


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## rhiro (Sep 21, 2012)

NilocG Thrive all in one has the following nutrient concentration: 1 x 2mL pump per 10g will add 7ppm NO3, 1.3ppm PO4, 5ppm K, and 0.25ppm Fe. Essentially you have 2 gallons of water so every dose is actually 4-5 times the listed ppm. Dosing every 2 days or say 3x per week would give you a weekly dose of 7*4*3 or 84 ppm NO3 as an example. Either dilute Thrive or stop Thrive and mix your own or buy a lower concentrated fert such as Easy Green from Aquarium Co-op. Note I have never used Easy Green as it is too light in nutrients for my purposes.


Miracle Gro, Stratum and root tabs is over kill. Use either MG or Stratum as the base and cover with an inert substrate. Don't add root tabs. For such a small foot print 3 inches of substrate would be fine.


Start off by removing as much of the algae as possible. Using a toothbrush helps. Cut off algae caked leaves. Discard plants that have noticeably degraded. Cut lighting to 5 1/2 hours. Find easier low light plants that grow fast to start then once the algae has subsided you could replace existing plants with those you desire. Replace 1 plant at a time and wait till it is established before replacing the next plant. You don't want to disturb your tank balance as I learned the hard way. Even when I trim I only do a few stems at a time.


Continue the CO2. It will help new plants to get established.


If you decide to rebuild the tank don't add any ferts for the first 2 weeks or even longer as the substrate is rich in nutrients. Don't add live stock unless necessary.


However my best advice is to be patient.

Edit: Don't forget to clean your mechanical filtration. How often is dependent on how dirty it gets. How is your filtration set up?


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## vigilanterepoman (Mar 16, 2018)

rhiro said:


> Don't forget to clean your mechanical filtration. How often is dependent on how dirty it gets. How is your filtration set up?



It is a submersible filter and the mechanical filtration is simply a filter sponge sheathing on the outside of the intake. I clean it whenever it gets noticibally clogged up. Thanks for all the great advice. I know that the nilocg is more than my tank volume so I adjust the amount I put in accordingly. I have each macro and some micros that I have made DIY style, so if there is a deficiency I can bump it up.

Bump:


Jorge_Burrito said:


> Probably not what you want to hear but moving to a somewhat larger tank would probably be beneficial for you. When your tank is so small their is not a lot of room for error and clearly you are still figuring how to balance things out, which is that much harder as your water volume reduces.



I recognize that a larger tank would likely be beneficial, but I am currently in the middle of my advanced schooling and having anything bigger than a 5 gallon was out of the question. It might be worth making the bump up though


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## houseofcards (Mar 21, 2009)

You got way too much going on. Soil, rootcaps, co2, etc, etc, etc. 

Soil is tough to work with if your not that experienced, because it has a tighter set of parameters to funtion under. Almost all of these type of algae issues are due to light and the organic load in the tank. Soil has a ton of organics so you need to change alot of water and have a very short light cycle especially in the beginning. Algae spores are always there, way before they become full blown algae, it's conditions that bring them out.

Another thing with soil is, if it's stirred up or moved around it will release alot of organics into the water column and since it's your tank we don't know what factor that played in things.

With all the stuff your adding to your tank, you could have gone with just sand and gotten the plants to grow with less issues to worry about. Most use soil because they don't want to dose that much or add their own co2.

I would shorten the light cycle to around 4 hours, change around 50% of the water twice a week. Trim and remove any dying or algae covered leaves. Make sure you don't disturb the substrate and add more plants if you can. The inorganic salts that we add for N&P are the least of your worries.


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## vigilanterepoman (Mar 16, 2018)

houseofcards said:


> I would shorten the light cycle to around 4 hours, change around 50% of the water twice a week. Trim and remove any dying or algae covered leaves. Make sure you don't disturb the substrate and add more plants if you can. The inorganic salts that we add for N&P are the least of your worries.


Thanks for the advice. I did go overboard with the soil as is clear, and won't make the same mistake in future setups. Will water changes of that quantity affect the shrimp?


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## madcrafted (Dec 23, 2017)

vigilanterepoman said:


> Thanks for the advice. I did go overboard with the soil as is clear, and won't make the same mistake in future setups. Will water changes of that quantity affect the shrimp?


With shrimp in general, it's best to to match the GH and temperature of water going in of that that came out of it. In other words, if you use GH+, add it to the water and allow it to dissolve before pouring/dripping it into the shrimp tank. They don't like big temperature swings either.


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