# Algae and growth problems.........



## Ludlow (Jun 3, 2014)

I've been battling algae for some time now and need help! I have got BBA and staghorn (I think - I'll post pics when I get home).

Here's my setup;

Tank - 60g long. 

Fish: Guppies, mollies, cories, swords, ozzie rainbows, neons. Plants: Amazon swords, pygmy chain, various hygros, vals, rotala, water wisteria, java ferns, anubias. 

Lights: Finnex Ray2 plus 2 x 15w plant bulbs. On for 6.5-7 hours a day.

Ferts: PPS Pro. I removed nitrates and increased the potassium to 40g. Dosing 12.5ml macro and 10ml micro daily.

Co2: seems to be good. drop checker always green/yellow by the end of the day and by using the ph/kh chart (tom b's version) I'm always in the red for ppm.

Glut: 5ml daily to help with algae. 

Maintenance: 50% PWC weekly and I clean the filter and gravel weekly too.

Params: 0 ammonia, 0 nitrites, 10ppm nitrates. 

Water flow: I have a HOB in the middle of the tank which seems to distribute the co2 pretty well. I did have a powerhead but that seemed to make the algae worse (especially on the plant near the p/head) and i was told sometimes too much flow can cause algae so I removed it.

I also have issues with the plants - I can't get the sunset hygras to grow, the vals were doing great but now growth seems stunted - same with the pygmy chain. My rotala has never done well - really pathetic looking and spindly.

So - please share your thoughts/help on my algae and growth issues!


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## evaninspace (Feb 19, 2014)

Just throwing some questions out there

Are you zapping the filter bacteria with improper cleaning?
are your light bulbs very old?
are you vacuuming really good?
is the substrate old or toxic by way off excess root tabs?
why remove the nitrates? another source?

Your rotala description makes me think of inadequate flow or inadequate light reaching the lower leaves.


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## BayazGouramiz (May 13, 2015)

Ludlow said:


> I've been battling algae for some time now and need help! I have got BBA and staghorn (I think - I'll post pics when I get home).
> 
> Here's my setup;
> 
> ...


Im new so I'm sure someone with more experience will chime in soon. However, I feel like from what you are saying that you have a few issues. 

Im not sure what your plants require. From first glance though it looks like you got some low light plants with some high light plants. Ppl say that you can grow low light plants in a high tech tank, but from my short experience they don't like it, don't do well, and don't use as much fertilizer as a high tech tank may need if your dosing according to your tank size. I would not take nitrogen away. 10ppm is nothing. If anything you need to bring it up( 20-40ppm), you need more plants that require more food, you need to dose 2 times the amount of excel as your supposed to . Dont just drop it in the tank either, you need to apply it to the areas most infected by algae. Get some amonos, SAE, and or Silver Flying Fox. I'm pretty sure that my algae outbreak was from not enough GH and KH. My plants look exactly like you explain unless I consistently keep the GH and KH above 3. I have been getting it to 4 and it sure is helping them so much. 


Increase your co2 slowly over the course of a week. If you see the fish stress then back it off. My fish have become more tolerant of the co2 and I was surpised I could increase it more. My drop checker is a light green heading towards yellow and they are fine. No stress. 

So Excel, increase co2, add more plants, dose what you are supposed to dose. Add fish that eat staghorn and BBA, clean filters, feed less, and clean off algae by hand, and its gone!

Excel overdosed is amazing... 

After reading your post again, I can see that I think your main problem is that even though you may only have medium light, you are essentially trying to run a high tech tank with low light plants that don't grow fast. Most of the plants you mention can grow with t8's and very little par, and don't require EI's style of feeding. You have to have fast growing stems, and a tank that's at least moderately planted to have any chance at not growing algae. 

My tanks algae is going away, and I have my nitrogen around 160ppm, no sign of stress to the fish (maybe the plants) ... I only have 20 fish in my 75 and I feed lightly. I dose it based on the EI for a 60-80, and I don't think I have the tank filled in enough to do that so I've droped it down to w/e it is like 40-60 gallon guide. Still 160ppm.... Stupid osmocte tabs for ya. If your new and don't know how to hardscape properly, dont know how many plants you should buy, and may have to move stuff around because you have a vague idea of what a plant is going to do, then I would suggest not using root tabs until you have things setup well. Most of my stem plants dont even have big roots. I wish I would have nvr put them in my tank.. Every where Osmocote plus popped up there is BBA... 

anyways if you got something out of this good luck to ya


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## BBradbury (Nov 8, 2010)

*Controlling Algae*

Hello Lud...

There's no mystery to controlling algae. You remove its food source, either by feeding less phosphate and/or using a fast growing floating plant to reduce the excess nutrients. The best is Common water weed, Egeria densa, or Anacharis. These are names for the same plant. Just drop some individual stems into the tank, no planting is needed. It grows quickly when directly under the light source. Don't mess with the tank lighting, it's the plant's energy source. Light needs to stay on 10 to 12 hours a day. The aquatic plants are tropical and used to long hours of daylight. 

Allow the floating plant to grow large, but keep it from overtaking the whole tank. Keep it above the plants that prefer filtered or lower light. As the plant grows, it gives off a mild toxin that algae doesn't tolerate.

B


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## bsantucci (Sep 30, 2013)

I wouldn't trust test kits at all. They just are not accurate for nitrates, unless calibrated, and even then it's still far too difficult to read when nearing 20ppm and higher.

Stunting sounds like not enough nutrients. Maybe switch to EI from PPS and start dosing no3 again. EI ensures you do not lack any nutrients. This is key, it's one less thing to worry about. See how the plants respond to that, then you can see if there is another culprit, be it lighting or co2.


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## FatherLandDescendant (Jul 24, 2014)

BBradbury said:


> Hello Lud...
> 
> There's no mystery to controlling algae. You remove it's food source, either by feeding less phosphate and using a fast growing floating plant to reduce the excess nutrients. The best is Common water weed, Egeria densa, or Anacharis. These are names for the same plant. Just drop some individual stems into the tank, no planting is needed. It grows quickly when directly under the light source. Don't mess with the tank lighting, it's the plant's energy source. Light needs to stay on 10 to 12 hours a day. The aquatic plants are tropical and used to long hours of daylight.
> 
> ...


It's been debunked time and time again, excessive nutrients DO NOT cause algae growth. If it did all of us who run EI dosing regimes would have uncontrolled algae, I for one DON'T.

Time and time again is has been shown that POOR PLANT GROWTH, not excessive nutrient load promotes algae growth.


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## mattinmd (Aug 16, 2014)

+1.. phosphate limiting is an ideal way to control all plants, algae and otherwise. IME it is generally harder on the higher-order plants than the algae.

Adding Aanacharis is a good idea in general, it's a great fast-growing plant that ends up suppressing algae (not by nutrient competition, EI methods debunk that). That said, the tank already has sunset hygro which fills the same role.

However, one of the OPs problems is BBA, which suggests there's CO2 instability... Take a close look at how you're turning your CO2 on and off... usually folks start CO2 1 hour before lights on, and ending 1 hour before lights off.

Also, another thing that jumps out is the OP is using PPS-Pro on a high-light CO2 injected tank with 50% weekly water changes... I'd seriously consider switching to EI dosing. PPS-pro is mostly used by low-tech tanks, and EI mostly by high tech. Since you're already doing the water changes EI needs, might as well dose using that methodology. Odds are that PPS-pro is running short in these conditions, but rather than figure out which one, just go with non-limiting. 

The fact that sunset hygro isn't going really suggests nutrient deficiency is going on, which is probably helpful to the algae.


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## Ludlow (Jun 3, 2014)

Thanks for the responses. Answers to questions.......

No I don't kill the bacteria from the filter - I always clean it in tank water.

I do as good a job as I can cleaning the gravel - where there are no plants I get deep into it but of course can't get to all areas due to plants.

I took out the nitrates as it was super high! Maybe I need to add some back but at a lesser amount? Is 10ppm not enough? I thought I was supposed to aim for 10-20ppm. 

Re gravel being toxic from too many root tabs - maybe? I only add new ones every 4-5 months or so though so I would have thought that was ok? How can you know?

Re the rotala - I don't think it's in adequate flow as it's right by the HOB. do you think a finnex ray2 on a 60g long should be enough light for rotala? Maybe it's just not enough light.

I agree that excel overdosed does a great job keeping algae at bay but when I was doing that my fish kept dying all the time. People over on the AA site use high doses all the time with no ill effects on fish but it was a problem for me. 

Thanks for all the tips so far. I'll add nitrates again and maybe I'll try EI instead of PPS pro.

Anyone else think the problem is that my plants don't mix? I thought people routinely put low and medium light plants together? Plus I don't think my light is that high.....that's why the rotala won't grow.

Bump:


mattinmd said:


> +1.. phosphate limiting is an ideal way to control all plants, algae and otherwise. IME it is generally harder on the higher-order plants than the algae.
> 
> Adding Aanacharis is a good idea in general, it's a great fast-growing plant that ends up suppressing algae (not by nutrient competition, EI methods debunk that). That said, the tank already has sunset hygro which fills the same role.
> 
> ...


Just saw this response. Ok thank you I will try EI. I already have the dry ferts - I will just research the formula for making it EI and try that instead. Yes I've never been able to get the sunset hygro to grow which is weird as most say it's an easy to grow can't get it wrong plant!

Also FYI I start the co2 2 hours before lights and turn off 1 hour before lights off.


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## mattinmd (Aug 16, 2014)

Ludlow said:


> I took out the nitrates as it was super high! Maybe I need to add some back but at a lesser amount? Is 10ppm not enough? I thought I was supposed to aim for 10-20ppm.


10-20ppm is fine, more towards the 20 in high-tech though.. but don't trust your test kit if you haven't calibrated it, these tests often read VERY HIGH compared to actual levels. See the fertilizer and water parameters forum sticky...




Ludlow said:


> Anyone else think the problem is that my plants don't mix? I thought people routinely put low and medium light plants together? Plus I don't think my light is that high.....that's why the rotala won't grow.


I don't see your plant mix as a problem per-se, but you'll want to put anubias and java fern in parts of the tank where taller plants will partially shade them. Slow growing plants like these become algae magnets if blasted with lots of light.


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## klibs (May 1, 2014)

I agree that you should bump up the CO2 gradually.

I also think that it is unnecessary to clean your filter weekly. Clean in monthly at the most IMO.

With med-high light, CO2, and ferts your rotala should be taking off. My best guess is that you don't have enough CO2. Can't comment on ferts because I dose EI - not PPS

Also - pics of your tank will help a lot


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## BBradbury (Nov 8, 2010)

*Controlling Algae*



FatherLandDescendant said:


> It's been debunked time and time again, excessive nutrients DO NOT cause algae growth. If it did all of us who run EI dosing regimes would have uncontrolled algae, I for one DON'T.
> 
> Time and time again is has been shown that POOR PLANT GROWTH, not excessive nutrient load promotes algae growth.


Hello Father...

I'm less certain. In addition to the phosphates, let's add any of the forms of nitrogen to the list. Drop the forms like ammonia and nitrite to "0" and nitrates to 20 or less and you'll see algae shrink in a matter of a few weeks. Algae is no different than other plants. If you remove the food source, you remove the algae.

If you need a brief refresher on algae, go to Foster and Smith's site on "Controlling Algae". The company has been in the aquarium business for more than 30 years and has a bit of experience.

Good chatting with you.

B


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## Zapins (Jan 7, 2006)

Pictures of your plants are needed.


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## mattinmd (Aug 16, 2014)

BBradbury said:


> Hello Father...
> 
> I'm less certain. In addition to the phosphates, let's add any of the forms of nitrogen to the list. Drop the forms like ammonia and nitrite to "0" and nitrates to 20 or less and you'll see algae shrink in a matter of a few weeks. Algae is no different than other plants. If you remove the food source, you remove the algae.
> 
> If you need a brief refresher on algae, go to Foster and Smith's site on "Controlling Algae". The company has been in the aquarium business for more than 30 years and has a bit of experience.


Personally, I think I'll take advice from Tom Barr on this one... he's got the professional experience and the PhD in plant sciences. 

Foster and Smith is a retailer, a well established one.. but let's face it, they are run by veterinarians.. Animal specialists, not aquatic plant specialists. 

Their phosphate limiting approach entirely ignores the fact that phosphate is an absolutely essential nutrient for all plants. Remove the nutrients and you'll kill the plants. All of them. There are no plants that can survive in a phosphate-free tank. On the upside, that includes algae.. On the downside, that includes any desirable plants as well. Note that nitrates, phosphates aren't really "food" for plants, as they provide no energy, they're more like vitamins and minerals are to us.

Phosphate removal is an excellent idea in a non-planted tank.. it is an absurdly foolish one in a planted tank, unless you're trying to convert it to non-planted.

You can perhaps get away with it as a short-term measure, but this is really just the same as using an algecide.. a one-off kill, but you can't maintain it without killing off your plants.


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## Ludlow (Jun 3, 2014)

mattinmd said:


> 10-20ppm is fine, more towards the 20 in high-tech though.. but don't trust your test kit if you haven't calibrated it, these tests often read VERY HIGH compared to actual levels. See the fertilizer and water parameters forum sticky...
> 
> 
> 
> ...


Oh Ok thanks. I'll look into that. I'll figure out how to calibrate the kit. And thanks I'll move the low light plants to a shadier spot. Great stuff thanks!



klibs said:


> I agree that you should bump up the CO2 gradually.
> 
> I also think that it is unnecessary to clean your filter weekly. Clean in monthly at the most IMO.
> 
> ...


My co2 was showing as at least 50ppm or more.....shouldn't that be enough?

Thanks I will post a pic of the tank when I get home.


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## FatherLandDescendant (Jul 24, 2014)

BBradbury said:


> Hello Father...
> 
> I'm less certain. In addition to the phosphates, let's add any of the forms of nitrogen to the list. Drop the forms like ammonia and nitrite to "0" and nitrates to 20 or less and you'll see algae shrink in a matter of a few weeks. Algae is no different than other plants. If you remove the food source, you remove the algae.
> 
> ...


I'm quite certain, and of course I don't pay much mind to a retailer who would like nothing more than repeat sales, be it Fosters and Smith or the LFS. 

I dry dose 1/4tsp EACH N,P,K four times a week and 1/8tsp CSM+B three times a week in a 40b, given the substrate & hardscape displacement actual volume is roughly 35gal so why don't I have uncontrollable algae? As I've said nutrient loading has been debunked time and again, just ask Tom Barr, but by all means keep on keeping on your way, and I'll do the same over here... Algae free:wink:


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## Ludlow (Jun 3, 2014)

My tank


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## Ludlow (Jun 3, 2014)

Algae


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## Ludlow (Jun 3, 2014)

More...


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## Ludlow (Jun 3, 2014)

More


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## BayazGouramiz (May 13, 2015)

Yeah my plants were almost that bad, and after upping the co2 a little/ stabilizing it, dosing excel, adding fish that eat it, and increasing my KH and Gh, I no longer have any. Well maybe a tad  

I do have one Belem that has some green string algae on it, but other than that even the BBA is almost all but gone.

I'm so happy about this, and in my opinion, risking the fish was a necessary thing that I had to do. It looks like I may of lost one fish from the whole ordeal. It was a little scrawny Sparkling Gourami, that nvr did well and wouldn't come up for food much so I'm not even sure he died from the Excel.

It sounds weird that GH and KH would contribute so much to the health of my plants, but at least in my setup with this soft water we have here in the Pacific NW, and a substrate that leaches KH and GH (Turface) its imperative to make sure that I regularly add GH booster and Baking Soda to make sure its always above 3. When I see that my plants aren't growing and look kind of weird, I test my water and sure enough its down to 1-2 GH and KH. After I boost it up to 3-4 I can almost see the difference immediately. So maybe you have some sort of deficiency like that. Its hard to figure out what it is to, because I cant tell whats wrong by looking at pictures and reading descriptions.. A lot of them look the same and one leads to the other, and none of the pictures matched what I was seeing. 

I think switching to EI's is a good idea too. Its cheaper and very ez. Nilocg on this forum sells it very cheap to. Using dry ferts is simple, all you do is take a little water from your tank add in how much ferts your supposed for the day, shake it up, and pour it in. I think that some ppl just measure out however much they need for the day like 1/2 tsp or w/e and just toss it in the tank. I really don't see why ppl use PPO. Sure you don't have to bother with taking a tsp out of a bag, but wow i'm lazy too but that to me seems ridiculous 

I forgot to mention I like your tank to. It kind of looks exactly like what I want my 40b that I just started to look like. I even have the swords in the same spot as you. I'm hoping it does well, with only a sponge filter, and one current led. I had to get it for my Gourami pair because the male was tearing my tank apart. He ruined my whole foreground, and was making my water so dirty... He's happy now building is bubble nest in peace where he can rip w/e he wants up... lil bastard


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## Raymond S. (Dec 29, 2012)

Still no mention of how tall this tank is. I say this mostly because the RayII is very
potent and I seriously doubt that PPS Pro has the amount of nutrients for fast growing plants under that much light and injected CO2. That especially applies to any "Potassium hog" which Hygro is one of.
In any other thread about filter changing the thing that most sticks out in my mind is that I've heard many say never touch the bio part till it falls apart. The sponge/pad before that I've heard various times from weekly to monthly, but how much gunk it is collecting I think would determine that rate.
If you mentioned which type of Rotala I must have missed it. So which type is it ?


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## Steve0 (Nov 7, 2013)

Looks like a 24" tall?
I have a ray2 with a fugeray on a 60. I start with the fugeray for an hr .then it turns off and the ray2 kicks on for a few hrs. then both are on for another few hrs. My tank exploded with bba. Found out my co2 wasn't high enough, then I aimed for a ph drop of 1.2 and now my plants are throwing off so many bubbles it's hard to see the fish! And bba is slowing. 
Try getting the co2 right as well as doing ei and things may turn around for you. GL


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## mattinmd (Aug 16, 2014)

Raymond S. said:


> Still no mention of how tall this tank is.


From this thread, it is a "60 long".. from an unrelated thread also by Ludlow:



> My tank is a 60g long (so 24" high).


So it's a 60 gallon tank.. 48" long (left-right), 13" wide (front-back), 24" high (top-bottom)

So a 48" ray2 at 24" is about 50 PAR. the 2 15w plant bulbs are probably adding something like 5-10 par onto that.. so 55-60? That doesn't seem outrageous for a CO2 injected tank...



Raymond S. said:


> I seriously doubt that PPS Pro has the amount of nutrients for fast growing plants under that much light and injected CO2.


I do too.. (as I suggested in post 7).. it also seems particularly strange to use PPS-Pro dosing with 50% weekly water changes. 

That said, ludlow already said they would consider switching to EI in post 8. 

It seems the logical first step to me is to deal with the nutrient issues and see if the plants take off and fight the algae.

I don't think CO2 level needs increasing, assuming the levels in post 1 are correct, but I'll admit my CO2 experience is limited... However, it is worth checking the timing of the dosing for consistency.. Just reaching a high concentration of CO2 mid-day doesn't help much if you're starting it late and end up having a period where it bottoms out before the gas starts. I did CO2 manually (and inconsistently) for a while and got a mad case of BBA from it.

Is the CO2 timed on a solenoid? Does it come on 1 hour before the lights as most suggest?


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## Ludlow (Jun 3, 2014)

BayazGouramiz said:


> Yeah my plants were almost that bad, and after upping the co2 a little/ stabilizing it, dosing excel, adding fish that eat it, and increasing my KH and Gh, I no longer have any. Well maybe a tad
> 
> I do have one Belem that has some green string algae on it, but other than that even the BBA is almost all but gone.
> 
> ...


Thanks - glad you like my tank! It's still very much a work in progress but I'm having fun getting there.

Thanks for all the info. i will look into all your suggestions and seems like EI is a consistent suggestion so definitely doing that!



Raymond S. said:


> Still no mention of how tall this tank is. I say this mostly because the RayII is very
> potent and I seriously doubt that PPS Pro has the amount of nutrients for fast growing plants under that much light and injected CO2. That especially applies to any "Potassium hog" which Hygro is one of.
> In any other thread about filter changing the thing that most sticks out in my mind is that I've heard many say never touch the bio part till it falls apart. The sponge/pad before that I've heard various times from weekly to monthly, but how much gunk it is collecting I think would determine that rate.
> If you mentioned which type of Rotala I must have missed it. So which type is it ?


Yes it's a 60 long so 24" high with substrate 2-4 inches. rotala - I think it's Rotala rotundifolia. Re the filter - yes I never do anything to the bio. The sponge I clean weekly as it gets pretty gunked up. 



Steve0 said:


> Looks like a 24" tall?
> I have a ray2 with a fugeray on a 60. I start with the fugeray for an hr .then it turns off and the ray2 kicks on for a few hrs. then both are on for another few hrs. My tank exploded with bba. Found out my co2 wasn't high enough, then I aimed for a ph drop of 1.2 and now my plants are throwing off so many bubbles it's hard to see the fish! And bba is slowing.
> Try getting the co2 right as well as doing ei and things may turn around for you. GL


Thanks - will do!



mattinmd said:


> From this thread, it is a "60 long".. from an unrelated thread also by Ludlow:
> 
> 
> 
> ...


Yes the co2 comes on actually 2 hours before lights and goes off 1 hour before lights off. 

Yes I will definitely switch to EI and see how that changes things. Thanks so much for all the tips! I'm still reading so let me know if anyone has any more thoughts......


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## Ludlow (Jun 3, 2014)

Guys 'n gals

I'm at home now and looking at my ferts and looking at EI dosing instructions. Why does my PPS pro package have MgSO4 but if I look at the EI instructions its the same nutrients......but without the MgSO4? Don't you need it with EI? Why not?

Also does it matter what time of day you dose? I've been doing it daily (with PPS pro) in the AM so it's there before light on but I assume with EI since it's 3 times a week not a big deal what time of day?


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## FatherLandDescendant (Jul 24, 2014)

Ludlow said:


> Guys 'n gals
> 
> I'm at home now and looking at my ferts and looking at EI dosing instructions. Why does my PPS pro package have MgSO4 but if I look at the EI instructions its the same nutrients......but without the MgSO4? Don't you need it with EI? Why not?
> 
> Also does it matter what time of day you dose? I've been doing it daily (with PPS pro) in the AM so it's there before light on but I assume with EI since it's 3 times a week not a big deal what time of day?


MgSO4 is used to alter general hardness (gH),as to do you need it or not would be determinate on what your gH is in your tank. Some people need it others do not. If you don't need it for your particular setup then you can throw it in a tub of hot water and soak your feet in it, nothing like an Epsom salt soak to quieten down those barking dogs.

As for when to dose, I would think as long as one is consistent you should be fine. Some would argue to dose when lights were off that way the nutrients are available for the plants during the entire photo period, I however think if your dosing EI which is NON-LIMITING, then it's irrelevant because there should already be sufficient nutrients in the water column that is maintained at NON-LIMITING levels.

That being said, I dose mine early morning 6am, 8am, sometimes even as late as 10am... every once in a great while I'll either forget all together, or won't remember until as late as 1pm...

I also do my water changes at night (somewhere between 6 & 8pm) and on WC day I don't dose the tank (N,P,K) until I refill the tank.


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## Ludlow (Jun 3, 2014)

Hmm OK thanks. Well I know my tank has hard water so maybe I need it. I will research optimum levels I guess and from that figure it out. 

So you do a WC on the same day as a dose day? I thought it said 3x a week then WC on the 7th day so I was going to do dosing mon/weds/fri with PC sunday. would that be OK?

Also, can you make a mix at the weekend that is enough for the whole week? I assume there's no reason I can't mix three times the doses and then measure out a third of the mixture when I dose?


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## bsantucci (Sep 30, 2013)

I use a Sun-Sat pill box for my ferts. Sunday while filling my tank I weigh out my ferts and put them in the appropriate day. Then just dump them in on their noted day.


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## FatherLandDescendant (Jul 24, 2014)

Ludlow said:


> Hmm OK thanks. Well I know my tank has hard water so maybe I need it. I will research optimum levels I guess and from that figure it out.
> 
> So you do a WC on the same day as a dose day? I thought it said 3x a week then WC on the 7th day so I was going to do dosing mon/weds/fri with PC sunday. would that be OK?
> 
> Also, can you make a mix at the weekend that is enough for the whole week? I assume there's no reason I can't mix three times the doses and then measure out a third of the mixture when I dose?


If you have hard water you probably don't need it, you should test both the gH and kH of your tank and tap, then we could answer the question "do I need it of not?".

I have a 40b I take 1/4tsp each N,P,K (M,W,F,SU) and 1/8tsp of CSM+B (T,T,SAT) and just dump them in the tank. I scoop the measurement out into another little container and dump it in, my CSM+B I just take the container to the tank, scoop and dump.

My Monday dose is done late at night after a WC and because I typically do 70% to 80% WC.


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## Mikeygmzmg (Mar 19, 2015)

Yeah Ray 2's are on another level. Need to raise them up high and work your way down. Increase the co2 as high as possible.


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## Ludlow (Jun 3, 2014)

bsantucci said:


> I use a Sun-Sat pill box for my ferts. Sunday while filling my tank I weigh out my ferts and put them in the appropriate day. Then just dump them in on their noted day.


Brilliant idea I love it!! I'll get one today. Thanks!

You (and others) seem to be talking about dumping the dry ferts without mixing with water first?? Is that ok? Doesn't it just sink to the bottom and sit on the bottom or anything?


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## FatherLandDescendant (Jul 24, 2014)

Ludlow said:


> Brilliant idea I love it!! I'll get one today. Thanks!
> 
> You (and others) seem to be talking about dumping the dry ferts without mixing with water first?? Is that ok? Doesn't it just sink to the bottom and sit on the bottom or anything?


Perfectly fine, I've been dry dosing for over a year now with no issues, some of the CSM+B will not dissolve right away, I use a gH booster that will sit on the bottom of the tank until it dissolves. Other than that all the rest dissolves rather quickly.


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## Noobaquariumguy (Aug 26, 2015)

I have some green growth on my aquarium rocks i can not tell what it is can anyone help me out
I have a eheim 9 gal tank
Ph 6.5
Nitrates 0
Nitrite 0
Kh 40 ppm
Gh 60 ppm
The tank is almost 3 weeks in and contains 3 zebra danio java moss and dwarf hair grass


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## FatherLandDescendant (Jul 24, 2014)

Noobaquariumguy said:


> I have some green growth on my aquarium rocks i can not tell what it is can anyone help me out
> I have a eheim 9 gal tank
> Ph 6.5
> Nitrates 0
> ...


Might want to start your own thread but...

First off nitrites being 0ppm (not to mention gH and kH #s seem low as well) tells me @3weeks your bio-filter may not have taken off yet, provided your running the test right, that regent 2 bottle has to REALLY be shaken up.

Lighting levels, what kind of light are you running and a full tank shot will be helpful.


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## Noobaquariumguy (Aug 26, 2015)

Sorry not sure how to create my own thread on here just getting use to the site 
Its a 7 watt light and i had it on for 9 hours a day i toned it down to 5 hours because i dont want this stuff to spread quickly. Also im using API 5 in 1 to test the water


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## FatherLandDescendant (Jul 24, 2014)

Noobaquariumguy said:


> Sorry not sure how to create my own thread on here just getting use to the site
> Its a 7 watt light and i had it on for 9 hours a day i toned it down to 5 hours because i dont want this stuff to spread quickly. Also im using API 5 in 1 to test the water


Go to a sub-forum and look for this icon at the top of the page







From there you can post new threads.

The strip tests are notoriously inaccurate and unreliable. You could take a sample of tank water to a local fish shop and they should test for ammonia, nitrates, nitrites, and pH. If they'll test the kH and gH as well that would be a bonus.

Aside from that not a lot of plant mass, I'd suggest some fast growing stems. What spectrum is the light, are you using any fertilizers, and what is the ammonia level?

Also with this being a 3 week old tank with the bio-filter still trying to get going, not to mention transplant shock, your plants are trying to get established as well.

Healthy plant growth will limit algae growth.


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## Noobaquariumguy (Aug 26, 2015)

Thanks for your help I'll definitely take a sample to the LFS i believe its a led light and im not using any fertilizers and i have nothing to test the amonia levels


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## BayazGouramiz (May 13, 2015)

Ludlow said:


> Brilliant idea I love it!! I'll get one today. Thanks!
> 
> You (and others) seem to be talking about dumping the dry ferts without mixing with water first?? Is that ok? Doesn't it just sink to the bottom and sit on the bottom or anything?


That is a great idea, I may do that... Glad to see your switching to EI.


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