how much do i use

[waynermills]

hi people,iv read ei article and james's planted tank and i still cant get my head around what to dose,(im not very clever)iv bought these chemicals,mono potassium phosphate 1kg,epsom salts 500g,potassium nitrate 1kg,and 900g trace mix off aquaton on ebay,can some one spell it out in child terms to me please,many thanks for your time


i have 750lt moderatly planted tank
6 145cm t5's 85w each
9hrs of light
50% water change every week


this is easy one for some of you guys,but definatly not me

 

[Arana]

750 litres! thats a big old tank, are you using Co2? and can we see a pic please

If you want to go full on EI then i would dose something along the lines of:

KN03 19g
KH2P04 3.7g
MGS04 33g
Trace 2.25g

Dose 3 x a week, dosing the trace on a different day and having one day off, keep up with the water changes
Most important though is that your flow and co2 disturbution are ok, and in a big tank like that this it may take some experimentation and a few extra Hydor Koralias

 

[waynermills]

many thanks for that arana,
its give or take a little 750l 180cm 65cm x 64cm
i wish it wasnt so deep as i struggle to reach the bottom without getting shoulder wet,the tanks completly
home made,but im new to the plant world,just recently got pub co2 bottle regulator needle valve and running it into filter (5 bubbles a sec)into upside down 2l bottle as a temporary diffuser (not in this pic) ,iv got a little algae but its slowly getting better.maybe ferts may help boost the plants,also all the fish in this pic iv had for years when they were tiny,they have all grown a little too much,
http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?pid=5 ... =597005068
http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?pid=5 ... =597005068
http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?pid=5 ... =597005068

iv just placed a random selection of plants in the tank for the moment,and then when i get the hang of keeping algae at bay
i will try something like the all the pro's on here,

i have 2 fulva 4+,2 maxijet 1200 power heads,and canister filter aqua one cf-1200,im looking at buying this jet engine of a pump,
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/NEW-HYDOR-KORALIA ... 2307d8034a
its going to take many weeks to save up for it

and sorry for sounding so dumb but those calculations you just gave me,do i mix them into 1l bottle 1st or dose that amount strait into the tank 3 times a week, thankyou again

 

[Arana]

Wow you have made a great job of building that tank and the fish are pretty awesome as well
How much and what type of light do you have over it?

just recently got pub co2 bottle regulator needle valve and running it into filter (5 bubbles a sec)into upside down 2l bottle as a temporary diffuser

Great start but i would get yourself 1 if not 2 decent diffusers asap, something like these willd do:
http://www.aquaessentials.co.uk/tmc-aquagro-co2-glass-diffuser-2919-p-4392.html
but shop around there are lots of alternatives and ebay is always good for a bargain
If you havn't already got a drop checker to monitor your co2 levels then you will need one of them too, something like this:
http://www.aquaessentials.co.uk/ae-design-drop-checker-p-1231.html

iv just placed a random selection of plants in the tank for the moment,and then when i get the hang of keeping algae at bay
i will try something like the all the pro's on here,

Very wise learn to grow healthy plants first and worry about the scaping later

i have 2 fulva 4+,2 maxijet 1200 power heads,and canister filter aqua one cf-1200,im looking at buying this jet engine of a pump,
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/NEW-HYDOR-KORALIA ... 2307d8034a
its going to take many weeks to save up for it

not sure how much flow this all adds up to but if you stick to the 10X rule then you need to be turning over 7500 l/ph

and sorry for sounding so dumb but those calculations you just gave me,do i mix them into 1l bottle 1st or dose that amount strait into the tank 3 times a week, thankyou again

Ha! i can tell you are far from dumb i prefer to stick my powders straight into the tank but many prefer to dilute first so by all means put a weeks dose in any 1ltr bottle and a dose a 3rd of it 3 times a week, don't mix it with the traces though, do a seperate solution for this or dose the trace powder direct.

Good Luck and keep us posted

 

[waynermills]

perfect,understand now.i have 6 85 w t5s.iv got drop checker in the post,will get proper diffuser soon,thanks for the advice

 

[danmil3s]

hi waynermills nice looking tank ive got a 750l tank and run less light than you (342w you've got 510w) and have 2 dennerle cyclone reactors in my sump. i think youl need some thing manly to cope with demand for co2 as your plant mass increases
as for flow i fond 10x just want enough.30 on a budget theses are good

http://shop.ebay.co.uk/i.html?_nkw=Subm ... m270.l1313

and for ferts i put in
½ a teaspoon of potassium phosphate
1 teaspoon of potassium nitrate
3ml of mikro trace (e bay doesn't cloud my hard water)
although ive been told that's a bit rich

 

[waynermills]

thanks for that,
those pumps look good for the money,they are definatly next on the list!
il copy ur doses and see how i get on!
do you have any pics of your tank??
many thanks

 

[danmil3s]

i haven't any recent pics of my tank i dont have a decent camera. the shots my phone takes aren't very good and i cant get the whole tank in. when its grown in a bit ive got a mate who takes photos im going to ask him.