Liquid ferts or substrate

[King Fisher]

I'm not sure if flourish has everything thrive has. I've heard Thrive is better but I've never personally tried flourish.

 

[ZxC]

Flourish is overpriced bottled water. Go with Thrive or build your own ferts.

It's cheaper and more customizable to build your own. Let me know if you want help piecing together fertilizers. I'm assuming you live in the States?

 

[Mr.fresh]

Flourish is overpriced bottled water. Go with Thrive or build your own ferts.

It's cheaper and more customizable to build your own. Let me know if you want help piecing together fertilizers. I'm assuming you live in the States?

I live in canada but i would love the help im really lacking on my knowledge with plant requirements..

 

[ZxC]

I live in canada but i would love the help im really lacking on my knowledge with plant requirements..

I live there too

If you want to build your own fertilizer buy this:

https://theplantguy.ca/collections/dry/products/estimative-index-combo

You may also want to buy this:

https://theplantguy.ca/collections/dry/products/plantguys-potassium-sulphate-k2so4-500g

What is the pH of your water?
Do you have a gH / kH test kit?
Do you have access to a local municipal water report?

If pH is above 6.5 (which is likely is) you can purchase some 11% DTPA Iron or Flourish Iron and dose accordingly. I will suggest a small scale to properly measure out your ingredients:

https://www.amazon.ca/Portable-Digi...92011&rnid=5690384011&rps=1&s=gateway&sr=8-10

 

[Mr.fresh]

Ph is 7.9 and no i dont have a kh or gh teaster , i do know that out water is fairly hard , almost everyone uses a water softener (not us). This is the citys water report from 2017 , ive checked and its pretty much the same as the updated version

 

[ZxC]

Ph is 7.9 and no i dont have a kh or gh teaster , i do know that out water is fairly hard , almost everyone uses a water softener (not us). This is the citys water report from 2017 , ive checked and its pretty much the same as the updated version

Okay so:

KNO3 for nitrogen and potassium
KH2PO4 for phosphorus and potassium
KHSO4 for potassium - however you may want to strictly rely on the first 2 for potassium.
Trace mix for micros
Flourish Iron for ... Iron
and finally I would dose 10ppm Mg using Plain Epsom Salt from your local drug store (100% MgSO4 - Magnesium Sulfate) make sure there are 0 additives. I use "life" brand Epsom salt.

Or, forget all of that and buy this LOL :

https://angelfins.ca/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=28210&products_id=3376

**Still dose 10ppm of Mg even if using Thrive!

What is your water change schedule like?
What are your lights?
What substrate do you have?
What types of plants do you like?

 

[Mr.fresh]

So my next question is how do i find out the ppm for the mg ? Im running a 20w t5 and a cheap amazon led light , i do water changes once a week about 30 40 percent , 35g tank and i do 2 full 5 g pails, the sub is poolfilter sand with one 4kg bag of florite sand mixed in it (was a leftover bag from a friend) i like all plants , i prefer faster growing because i get to actually see the changes day to day but i also kinda like everything lol, right now i have java fern, jave moss, anubias nana, bacopa caroliniana, cardamine lyrata, some amazon swords some scarlet temple(really not doing the best)rotalla indica(not thriving) and some form of grass i cant remember the name but its finally kicking out runners and filling in a bit. i most recently added cryptocoryne crispatula

 

[ZxC]

So my next question is how do i find out the ppm for the mg ? Im running a 20w t5 and a cheap amazon led light , i do water changes once a week about 30 40 percent , 35g tank and i do 2 full 5 g pails, the sub is poolfilter sand with one 4kg bag of florite sand mixed in it (was a leftover bag from a friend) i like all plants , i prefer faster growing because i get to actually see the changes day to day but i also kinda like everything lol, right now i have java fern, jave moss, anubias nana, bacopa caroliniana, cardamine lyrata, some amazon swords some scarlet temple(really not doing the best)rotalla indica(not thriving) and some form of grass i cant remember the name but its finally kicking out runners and filling in a bit. i most recently added cryptocoryne crispatula

I used this dosing calculator: https://rotalabutterfly.com/nutrient-calculator.php

I recommend playing with it to get the hang of it. You can use DIY compounds and Pre-Made compounds too.

If you want to keep it simple, use Thrive at the recommended rate. Also use Flourish Excel at the water change rate daily.

If you could bump your water changes up to 3 x 5 gallon pails, you'll be in a little better shape too.

If you want to go DIY, lets get the tank to 30ppm NO3, 5ppm PO4 and 25 - 30ppm K. Also, 15ppm Mg. Then, simply take your new water change water, dose them to these levels and the tank should stay fairly stable at those concentrations for the plants to use. This assumes fish production matched plant uptake.

The trace elements can be dosed 3x per week, targeting 0.15ppm Iron, then because of your pH, dose Flourish Iron to reach 0.15ppm Iron.

Trace mix: 0.260 grams into your tank 3 x per week.
Flourish Excel: "after water change" rate 1 x per day.
Flourish Iron: 1.7mL 3 x per week.

If all that is too much, stick with Thrive or simply follow the directions on theplantguy's website.

 

[Mr.fresh]

I used this dosing calculator: https://rotalabutterfly.com/nutrient-calculator.php

I recommend playing with it to get the hang of it. You can use DIY compounds and Pre-Made compounds too.

If you want to keep it simple, use Thrive at the recommended rate. Also use Flourish Excel at the water change rate daily.

If you could bump your water changes up to 3 x 5 gallon pails, you'll be in a little better shape too.

If you want to go DIY, lets get the tank to 30ppm NO3, 5ppm PO4 and 25 - 30ppm K. Also, 15ppm Mg. Then, simply take your new water change water, dose them to these levels and the tank should stay fairly stable at those concentrations for the plants to use. This assumes fish production matched plant uptake.

The trace elements can be dosed 3x per week, targeting 0.15ppm Iron, then because of your pH, dose Flourish Iron to reach 0.15ppm Iron.

Trace mix: 0.260 grams into your tank 3 x per week.
Flourish Excel: "after water change" rate 1 x per day.
Flourish Iron: 1.7mL 3 x per week.

If all that is too much, stick with Thrive or simply follow the directions on theplantguy's website.

Wow that sounds super confusing lol i might have to just get some theive and some flourish excel and slowly learn everything else lol