BettaFishMommy Posted July 1, 2009 Report Share Posted July 1, 2009 ok, i'm confused. i thought that plants would 'eat' the nitrates that are present in a planted tank, yet i'm still getting readings of 40ppm or so the day before water change day, sometimes even a lil higher than 40. I know i'm not going to get a nitrate reading of zero, but dontcha think that is a lil high for this tank? 55 gallon tank, substrate is sand and small gravel mix. i stir up the unplanted areas during water changes, and water changes are done every 7 to 10 days and are 40% to 60% each time. any decaying plant matter is removed asap when there actually is any, which is rarely. my filters are cleaned on an as needed basis with old tank water, usually once or twice per month, and filter floss is changed out with every water change. i don't have co2 running nor do i dose any ferts. lights are on about 12 hours a day, Eclipse "daylight" florescent, wattage unknown. open topped tank. plant growth is really good, the wisteria is the newest plant in there and its grown at least three or four inches in less than two weeks. ph is 7.8/7.9 (just tested it 2 minutes ago with both normal and high range to be sure. ph out of my tap is normally 7.8 i don't know my gh or kh - don't have the tests for those temperature is always between 78 and 80 ammonia and nitrite always test zero (and yes, i use an API test kit, and it is not expired) stock: 1 large angel 1 4" albino rainbow shark, juvenile 4 emerald cories 5 long fin rosy barbs 1 unknown small striped barb 1 very small BN pleco, juvenile 4 adult brigg snails lots of baby briggs, number unknown a few ramshorn snails, dang hitchhikers! lol. plants: (i think i have them all confirmed) giant vals huge amazon sword medium 'rose' sword wisteria octopus plants bacopa stargrass two types of crypts of varying sizes one small bright green unknown rosette style plant three marimo moss balls filtration: Aquaclear 110 hob, with sponge, biomax, and filter floss Marineland Pengiun 350 dual output biowheel hob with filter floss only (both filters have good flow and create lots of oxygen bubbles in the water and good surface agitation. water level is usually dropped an inch for clutch laying) feeding schedule: twice per day, but small amounts. dry prepared foods such as granules, crisps, or flake in the morning and frozen foods such as bloodworms or mysis (1 hikari cube) in the eve. snail jello every three days (1 ice cube size piece) and NLS h2o stable algae wafers every second day (but not on same day as snail jello). once in a while i will give a half dozen or so shrimp pellets for a treat for the cories and a zucchini slice about twice a week for the pleco. so can anyone help me with the nitrate mystery? or is it not a mystery at all? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ruadh Posted July 1, 2009 Report Share Posted July 1, 2009 I'm not sure aboout a non-fertilized tank, but I know you want n'ite's for plant growth when ferts are used. I have a planted tank with co2 and I dose ferts to keep the n'ites at 50 ppm. I don't think you can get them very low with all the critters you have in there. All that fish poo adds a lot which is probably why your plants are doing so well. I really don't think you have any thing to worry about, that tank looks really good and healthy. Rick Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BettaFishMommy Posted July 1, 2009 Author Report Share Posted July 1, 2009 (edited) thanks Rick! i just worried that the high nitrates are due to something being amiss in the tank, but i think i'll relax now, lol. as for the stocking, it doesn't seem excessive for a 55 gallon, does it? all the baby snails are not staying, btw. Edited July 1, 2009 by BettaFishMommy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ruadh Posted July 1, 2009 Report Share Posted July 1, 2009 No, I don't think you're over stocked at all. Your tank parameters are stable so I don't think there's any concern. Rick thanks Rick! i just worried that the high nitrates are due to something being amiss in the tank, but i think i'll relax now, lol. as for the stocking, it doesn't seem excessive for a 55 gallon, does it? all the baby snails are not staying, btw. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
werner Posted July 1, 2009 Report Share Posted July 1, 2009 i don't have co2 running nor do i dose any ferts. lights are on about 12 hours a day, Eclipse "daylight" florescent, wattage unknown. With no CO2 addition, and moderate (or lower?) lighting, you're not going to get the super fast growth that gobbles up nitrates. However, since you're not fertilizing, the plant growth (and potential N uptake) may be limited by a lack of some other nutrients (P, K, iron, etc.) It's hard to tell from your picture if there are any issues. Have a look at the signs of nutrient deficiency and check out your plants (faster growing stem plants often show signs first- eg. your wisteria.) If everything looks good, then they're probably getting enough of the other nutrients via the fish food and you have a good balance. If not, you may need to add a bit of fertilizer. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BettaFishMommy Posted July 1, 2009 Author Report Share Posted July 1, 2009 (edited) i'm a lil leery of adding ferts due to the chance of algae rearing its ugly head, lol. here is a photo of the tank when i set it up in March, to get an idea of the plant growth since then. the large sword and stargrass are in the same locations (stargrass on far right, sword on left) and the stargrass has had to be trimmed once and i pretty much cut all the stems in half and replanted and they are back to the top of the water as far as growth. this trimming and replanting happened two weeks ago. so would you say this tank is needing ferts dosed (after looking at the photos)? and thanks for the link! very informative. Edited July 1, 2009 by BettaFishMommy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
werner Posted July 1, 2009 Report Share Posted July 1, 2009 Can you get any clearer photos or closeups of the plants? If you do need ferts, it wouldn't be tons since you aren't going the high light/high tech route. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EDGE Posted July 1, 2009 Report Share Posted July 1, 2009 Plants need a balance of N-P-K-Ca-Mg-Trace (micro). Even though your water is high in N right now, it might be low in P and or K. Your plants are growing at the rate of the nutrients are available to them. What is your Phosphate level at? The plants you are growing don't require a high tech setup. How long have you had the Echindorus 'Rose'? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fishclubgirl Posted July 2, 2009 Report Share Posted July 2, 2009 My comment would be "are you happy with the growth and the look of this tank?" If so, throw out the test kits, enjoy your tank and save yourself some money. If not, follow the advice of people who know more than the "idiot savant" that I am. I do have some tanks that are lower light and I do fertilise and have no problems with algae. Granted there's some sort of algae eater in all my tanks but with healthy planted tanks in my humble and very simple opinion, the plants take away the nutrients from the algae. Hopefully my good friends Werner and Edge will give you a better explanation. I'm a big fan of KISS principle and don't own a test kit but run many healthy planted tanks(I think). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EDGE Posted July 2, 2009 Report Share Posted July 2, 2009 fishclubgirl is right, if you like the way the tank is with all the plant, don't start tinkering with fertilizer because you will throw the natural equilibrium off. If you decide to stop fertilizing, the tnak will take a while to revert back to the natural cycle. That being said. a very small amount of K usually help the plants chug along provided that you have a decent amount of N and P in the water column already. For your tank All you need to do is add 5 gram of K2SO4 Potassium Sulphate in 500 ml of water. add 30 ml once a week and you should notice the plant growth speed up a bit. This is a very weak dosage roughly 1.5 ppm of K. Or you can just get Seachem potassium. Follow recommanded dosage for low light setup. Potassium in the aquarium control the speed of growth for plant. The faster they grow, the more nutrients and carbon they will need. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fishclubgirl Posted July 2, 2009 Report Share Posted July 2, 2009 Thanks Edge. The information that I get from the forums has helped my tanks so much!! I'll use some Seachem potassium (which I got at a garage sale) next time I fertilise. That's why I have people like you and Werner to help me out. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BettaFishMommy Posted July 2, 2009 Author Report Share Posted July 2, 2009 thanks to all who replied in this thread and thank you for some great technical info on ferts and plants. i think for now i will keep things the way they are as far as ferts and such go. i'm slowly adding more plants to create a more diverse underwater wilderness, as well as upping my cory school once the snails are out of there, so maybe once it's really a jungle in there i may consider dosing ferts. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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