tetrin
Aquarium Advice FINatic
i have a 40g breeder (36*18*16) tank with the following:
lights - 4*40W GE plant & aquarium bulbs (yep, they stick out a bit), roughly 3 wpg
substrate - 2 bags of eco-complete mixed with black gravel
co2 - DIY co2 diffused via AC300 (thanks steve )
fertilizer - pmdd from greg watson's store (for last 3 weeks)
the tank has been set up since may. i can't give any tank parameters as i am really broke right now, even though i tried to go planted the cheapest way possible . also, if things go well, i intend to scrap the water testing altogether (working on a cichlid tank ).
i'm trying to use tom barr's estimative index, slightly modifying it on the way. as the tank is heavily populated, i'm assuming there's enough nitrates and phosphates. so, at the moment i'm dosing only K(1/2 teasp., twice a week, underdosed) and micros (CSM+B with extra iron, 10 ml twice a week, underdosed).
recently i'm noticing a lot of holes in the giant hygrophila (hygrophila stricta?), both small and large, some of them perfectly circular and some of them with jagged edges. i have a quartet of clown loaches in the tank, but i've never seen them nip at plants.
i'll be glad if someone can provide some insight into these (w)hole business. also, i'm having to scrape off a lot of stubborn green algae off the glass. is this common in planted tanks?
TIA, and sorry for the long rant.
lights - 4*40W GE plant & aquarium bulbs (yep, they stick out a bit), roughly 3 wpg
substrate - 2 bags of eco-complete mixed with black gravel
co2 - DIY co2 diffused via AC300 (thanks steve )
fertilizer - pmdd from greg watson's store (for last 3 weeks)
the tank has been set up since may. i can't give any tank parameters as i am really broke right now, even though i tried to go planted the cheapest way possible . also, if things go well, i intend to scrap the water testing altogether (working on a cichlid tank ).
i'm trying to use tom barr's estimative index, slightly modifying it on the way. as the tank is heavily populated, i'm assuming there's enough nitrates and phosphates. so, at the moment i'm dosing only K(1/2 teasp., twice a week, underdosed) and micros (CSM+B with extra iron, 10 ml twice a week, underdosed).
recently i'm noticing a lot of holes in the giant hygrophila (hygrophila stricta?), both small and large, some of them perfectly circular and some of them with jagged edges. i have a quartet of clown loaches in the tank, but i've never seen them nip at plants.
i'll be glad if someone can provide some insight into these (w)hole business. also, i'm having to scrape off a lot of stubborn green algae off the glass. is this common in planted tanks?
TIA, and sorry for the long rant.