# Cow Manure / dirt



## thelub (Jan 4, 2013)

Have you seen Dogfish's dog poop tank? Anything is possible if setup correctly. Have your ammonia levels gone up at all?


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## Jnad (Aug 17, 2012)

No, all ammonia measurments have been zero.


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## thelub (Jan 4, 2013)

I bet you'll have some beautiful plants growing in that setup


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## Ozymandius (Jan 13, 2013)

Would love to see photos.


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## Jnad (Aug 17, 2012)

Hello!

I only have pictures of the smallest of the tanks, and the pictures is some weeks old. The pictures is of the first 13 days of growth, probably have seen this tread beafore, but this is a tank with 30% cow manure.

http://www.plantedtank.net/forums/showthread.php?t=266170

Jnad


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## DogFish (Jul 16, 2011)

Jnad said:


> Hello!
> 
> I am currently running a couple of nano dirt tanks, against most recommandations i have used dirt that contains 30% cow manure. There is no sign of algae beacuse of high nutrients in these tanks. One of the tanks have been running for a couple of months now and looking good.
> 
> ...


Your tank looks very nice & healthy. Your dirt has been composted for 3 years so I do not think you will have problems with algae if you manage your water changes, feeding and filtration and have appropriate lighting.

This is my "Toxic Ten" tank.
http://www.plantedtank.net/forums/showthread.php?t=154884&highlight=

I used what gardeners refer to as "Hot Compost" and as you can read there were plenty of people that 'advised' against it. You can also see, in the bad pics, that the sky didn't fall, there was no Anebolic Appocolypse, and the tank is running just fine. 

I do need to update some pics.


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## Jnad (Aug 17, 2012)

Have read trough your Toxic Ten, impressive work you have done.

Jnad



DogFish said:


> Your tank looks very nice & healthy. Your dirt has been composted for 3 years so I do not think you will have problems with algae if you manage your water changes, feeding and filtration and have appropriate lighting.
> 
> This is my "Toxic Ten" tank.
> http://www.plantedtank.net/forums/showthread.php?t=154884&highlight=
> ...


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## happi (Dec 18, 2009)

i will be hiring an elephant when i setup a bigger tank


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## GraphicGr8s (Apr 4, 2011)

Jnad said:


> Hello!
> 
> I am currently running a couple of nano dirt tanks, against most recommandations i have used dirt that contains 30% cow manure. There is no sign of algae beacuse of high nutrients in these tanks. One of the tanks have been running for a couple of months now and looking good.
> 
> ...


This is something I posted in another thread. It pertains to some searching about compost I did many, many years ago.



> Compost being high in nutrients is a myth. Look at a bag of compost from the store. The three primary nutrients are low. Home made compost is very variable in nutrients also but are never very high. I use tons (enough that I borrow the neighbors front end loader to put it down.) I love compost. But it's not the nutrient value I count on. Compost will make nutrients that are already in the soil (Florida has no soil it is 100% sand.) more readily available to the plants. So why use compost? Well it isn't really for the nutrients. Compost lightens clayey soil so it will drain and help build up sand so it will retain moisture better. Why it works for both types of dirt is beyond the scope of this post.
> Even though I use compost I still have to add nutrients. I add blood meal and bone meal in addition to the compost. I also add things to increase the beneficial micro-organisms. Compost is only one part of an organic garden. It's a good start but there's more to it.
> One reason I could think of not to use compost in a tank though is the amount of particles that want to float.


 Quote:


> The composted cattle manure and straw bedding contained the following amounts:
> Nutrient	%
> Nitrogen	2.6
> Carbon	27
> ...


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