Hobbies/fish tanks

Discussion in 'The Good Life' started by Double Edge Dougy, May 13, 2016.

  1. whaap

    whaap Active Member

    My wife and I went for a tank around 50 years ago. I was never able to come up with the right combination of fish to have a quiet, peaceful tank. If you don't know what you're doing (and I didn't) you will not put the right species of fish together and it will end up being like a war zone. We gave up and gave the whole thing to a friend of my wife's.
     
  2. Double Edge Dougy

    Double Edge Dougy Well-Known Member

    Sorry to hear that...happened to me when i first got my fish...had to gold fish they were doing fine introduced a third and i think that lil guy brought the virus....now with the beta i use a pinch of salt and water treatment
     
  3. markjnewcomb

    markjnewcomb Well-Known Member

    Yeah, I am convinced it came with a otocinclus that I bought from the local fish store. Unfortunately, I don't have a quarantine tank. So, it infected all of my other fish. I can't use the usual medications because I have lots of snails in the tank, so heat & salt was the only reasonable way I know of to treat it.
     
  4. Slow Joe

    Slow Joe Relishing his obsession

    I'm still learning. I have just ordered some new lights, upgrading from the energy saving bulb that came with the tank to some t8s, so that will be fun.
    The main problem I have is brown spots on the plant leaves i dont know what to do to get rid of it, any ideas?

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  5. markjnewcomb

    markjnewcomb Well-Known Member

    Assuming that you can't wipe off the spots, which means it is probably not caused by diatoms, I would argue that it is almost certainly a nutritional deficiency. What fertilizing routine do you use? Also, do the brown spots keep getting bigger and cause the leaves to die?
     
  6. Slow Joe

    Slow Joe Relishing his obsession

    For fertilizer i have a layer of soil under the gravel , and with each water change i add some liquid fertilizer. Sometimes the leaves do die. How do I know what I need to add? I do get a little brown algae too. Could that have something to do with it?
    Thanks fir the help.

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  7. markjnewcomb

    markjnewcomb Well-Known Member

    A little algae is expected and wanted in a planted tank. It is when algae grows too fast compared to the plants that we have issues. Because some algae is always present, it will always grow. If there is an excess of nutrients that the plants do not absorb, algae will use it. So, what I try to do is to stimulate the plant growth and add just enough fertilizer to grow plants without growing algae.


    What do plants need in way of fertilizer: (stolen from the web)
    Macros / Macronutrients (NPK) – there are three major macronutrients: Nitrogen (N), Phosphorous (P), and Potassium (K).

    Micros / Micronutrients / Trace Elements – the most popular include: Iron, Boron, Manganese, Plantex, Miller Microplex.

    Nitrogen (N) – the most common source is Potassium Nitrate (KNO3). It is the staple nutrient of all plants. It helps plants produce enzymes, proteins, and amino acids. A lack of nitrogen halts plant growth and promotes decay.

    Phosphorous (P) – the most common source is Mono Potassium Phosphate (KH2PO4). Assists in plant DNA and RNA replication, and growth related processes. A lack of Phosphorous can result in the decreased ability for plants to uptake or absorb nutrients, leading to excess nutrient in the water and potential algae conditions.

    Potassium (K) – potassium is found in compounds such as KNO3 and KH2PO4. For tanks with potassium deficiencies Potassium Sulfate (K2SO4) provides the element of potassium. Potassium plays a very important role in photosynthesis optimization, while keeping plant processes and production in a constant state of activity.


    What the above left out are two key ingredients:
    Light (I assume you have enough lights to make plants grow.)
    Co2 Plants breath in CO2 and breath out O2. If you have enough CO2, your plants will "pearl", sending an almost constant stream of O2 bubbles into the water. do you use a CO2 system? I use a $2.50 DIY CO2 reactor that gives me plenty of CO2 for a 100 gallon tank.


    Finally, how much fertilizer and how often:
    There are about 50,000 methods you can choose. My preferred method, which I have been using about 3 years, is called PPS. I bought my original kit here. This method does not require additional water changes to flush out excess nutrients because it gives the plants only as much as they can use in a single day. And, the result of limiting nutrients is that algae really never gets a chance to take hold. The minor disadvantage is that I have to add fertilizer daily instead of one a week.
     
    Slow Joe likes this.
  8. Slow Joe

    Slow Joe Relishing his obsession

    Thanks for the information. It will give me plenty to thank over. The algae doesn't grow that quickly at all, so after reading your message I'm no longer worried about that. Thanks again.

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