# New tank- Should I add ferts right away?



## puopg (Sep 16, 2012)

Flourite is inert so yes, fertilize. You have CO2? Might be a good idea to look into using it as it will help plant growth and nutrient uptake. I have no idea where your light falls but hey even if you are low light, CO2 helps! Even DIY it. Once you hit medium light, you need CO2 and a steady supply of it. Then you need pressurized, well i strongly advise pressurized.


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## fred1163 (Jan 23, 2013)

No CO2, probably will add it eventually. Can I add these nutrients right away without causing an algae bloom?


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## puopg (Sep 16, 2012)

haha, you are gonna hear this so many times here, really try to understand, it is not ferts that cause algae blooms but if you provide an environment that is very inviting for algae, then yes it will come. As long as plants are thriving, algae will be struggling to keep up. And CO2 is a major player in this in higher tech tanks.


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## fred1163 (Jan 23, 2013)

I hear you puopg , but again, I'm starting a Brand New tank that has not been cycled yet....

I've got about 200 plants to put in now...gonna go light with root tabs for now...Thanks!


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## BBradbury (Nov 8, 2010)

*New Tank*



fred1163 said:


> Just received a shipment of plants for my 90 gallon, low light (32W T8 x4).
> 
> Substrate is all Flourite. I have on hand Seachem Excel, Seachem Flourish liquid, and Seachem Flourish Tabs.
> 
> ...


Hello fred...

The flourish liquid isn't a good choice for your Vallisneria. The "Gluteraldehyde" in this liquid can damage primitive plants, like Vals, ferns and mosses. Your plants will take some time to get used to the new water conditions in your tank, but I'd dose a liquid fertilizer, just once a week when I did my water change.

Fertilizers don't need to be dosed more than once a week and just when you remove nutrients like when you change out the tank water. You also have the benefit of the fertilizer the fish produce, which is very good provided you feed your fish a balanced diet.

Just a suggestion.

B


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## fred1163 (Jan 23, 2013)

BBradbury said:


> Hello fred...
> 
> The flourish liquid isn't a good choice for your Vallisneria. The "Gluteraldehyde" in this liquid can damage primitive plants, like Vals, ferns and mosses. Your plants will take some time to get used to the new water conditions in your tank, but I'd dose a liquid fertilizer, just once a week when I did my water change.
> 
> ...


What about root tabs? Should I hold off on those for a bit? BTW.. No fish in the tank yet.


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## BBradbury (Nov 8, 2010)

*New Tank*



fred1163 said:


> What about root tabs? Should I hold off on those for a bit? BTW.. No fish in the tank yet.


Hello again fred...

Any brand name fertilizer in liquid, dry, granules or tablets is fine. I've never used tablets, because my tanks are heavily planted and I didn't like disturbing the substrate getting the tabs into the gravel. Liquids just seem easier to me. 

The tabs are fine for the plants that need to be planted and as the tabs dissolve in the tank water, those nutrients will benefit any floating stem plants too.

B


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## Diana (Jan 14, 2010)

I would start with the root tabs. They are slow release, so the plants can take some time getting used to the new tank, and the fertilizer will be there when they are ready to use it. 

Perhaps a week or two later start with the lowest dose of the liquid ferts, perhaps half dose of Excel. 

You can do the fishless cycle through this. Some plants do not like too much ammonia, so I would try this:
Add ammonia twice a day, but never any higher than 1 ppm. This still provides plenty of ammonia for growing nitrifying bacteria, but not burn the plants. 

Here is the fishless cycle:

The fishless cycle was developed by a couple of scientists who wanted to be able to fully stock and over stock a Rift Lake tank all at one time. They knew they had to get the bio-filter up and running ahead of time, and wanted to grow the right species of bacteria as fast as possible. Their method is to add ammonia (food for the bacteria) daily until the bacteria colony had grown to be able to handle all that ammonia. This is MORE ammonia that would be produced by the largest reasonable stocking level, so all the fish can be added at one time. It takes about 3 weeks if you omit step 2. 

1) Set up the tank with water that is great for growing these bacteria:
GH and KH over 3 German degrees of hardness, and much harder is just fine. 
pH on the alkaline side of neutral. Anywhere in the 7s is OK, upper 7s to low 8s is great. 
Some other minerals. I am not sure what the bacteria need, so if you already have plant fertilizers such as phosphate, potassium and trace minerals, use these. 
High oxygen, good water circulation. 

2) OPTIONAL: Add a starter culture of bacteria. If you use a bottled product make sure the label says '_Nitrospira_'. All other bottled cycle bacteria have the wrong species.
Other sources: Filter media from a healthy, cycled tank. Decorations, substrate or anything else from a healthy cycled tank. The poorest source is water from a cycled tank. Live plants that have been growing under water. The right bacteria will be on the leaves, stems and roots. These bacteria live on surfaces, not drifting free in the water. If you add nothing the right bacteria will find your tank. 

3) Add ammonia. This can be ammonia from a bottle. Just make sure there are no surfactants, no perfumes. You could add a shrimp or prawn from the grocery store, or even fish food. These need time to decompose, and you do not have the fine control of the ammonia levels. 
Non-planted tank: Add ammonia to test 5 ppm. 
Planted tank: Add ammonia to test 1 ppm. 
A non-planted tank: test once daily and add ammonia as needed. Keep it at 5 ppm for a few days. At first there is nothing to remove the ammonia, unless you added a generous starter colony of bacteria, so you may not have to add much. 
Planted tank: Test twice a day and add ammonia as needed. Keep returning it to 1 ppm. The plants will be removing some ammonia.

4) Test for nitrites. When the nitrites show up allow the ammonia in the non-planted tank to drop to 3 ppm, then maintain it there with once a day test and addition of ammonia. If the nitrite goes over 5 ppm do a water change. The bacteria do not like too-high nitrite. In the planted tank continue adding enough ammonia to test 1 ppm, and continue to do this twice a day. I would also continue to add the other aquarium plant fertilizers so the plants and the bacteria have all the minerals they need. This may not be needed in a non-planted tank. 

5) When the bacteria (or the combination of bacteria and plants) can remove all the ammonia, and no nitrite shows up the tank is cycled. 
The non-planted tank will remove the 3 ppm ammonia in 24 hours or less. The planted tank will remove the 1 ppm in less than 12 hours. 
You can continue growing the bacteria by continuing to add ammonia, or you can add fish, shrimp, snails. Do a really big water change, especially on the non-planted tank, to remove nitrate before adding livestock. I have seen nitrate at the end of the fishless cycle over 100 ppm in a non-planted tank. You may also need a water change in the planted tank. The plants might or might not be removing all the nitrate. You might also want to do a water change if you are keeping livestock that demand very soft water and low pH. The bacteria do not do so well under these conditions, but now that the colony is well grown it will probably do OK.


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## fred1163 (Jan 23, 2013)

Well, thank you puog, Diana, and B for your advice. This is a great place with great people! :thumbsup:

Added about 2/3 the recommended dose of the Flourish tabs (most of my plants are rooted plants, only about 50 total stem plants). Didn't add any Excel, or anything else yet yet.

As far as the cycling, I'm going to try "Dr. Tim's One and Only", while adding the included ammonia solution for a fishless cycle... 

Thanks again!


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