Needing Help Making EI Dosing Easy

[Super_Blueberry]

Hey guys. I've been struggling for a couple months now with the lower portions of my stem plants, red ludwigia, wisteria, a couple others. My swords, anubias, and other non-stem plants are doing fine. Whats happening is I notice some melting of the leaves, but not overall....more like lines. After a week or so, that leaf falls off. Now most of my stem plants are bare at the bottom, but plenty of new growth up top. I've just been clipping the new growth off and planting that, but the mess from the dead leaves and the replanting is getting kind of old. I don't know if its a lack of proper fertilization or something else. Currently I have 96watts of t5ho lighting on my 55g on a split timer, 4 hours in the morning, 5 off, 5 in the evening. Its gravel substrate with seachems root tabs scattered throughout, which I replace every so often. I've also tried the osmocote fertcicles, but when the balls pop up during replanting and gravel vacs it tends to add to the mess. I also dose seachems trace twice weekly, and spot treat with excel as needed...luckily not that often. I have pressurized co2 to come on an hour before each light, and off an hour before lights out. Weekly 50-60% pwc's.

Anyway, I'm starting to wonder if my heavy plant load is just too much for the co2, liquid and root ferts to be effective alone and was wanting to try EI. However, I'll be the first to admit that from what I have seen on my own reserarch, I'm intimidated by it. I'm hoping that someone on here can explain or post a link to an 'beginners guide' to EI. From obtaining and mixing your own ferts, scheduling the dosing, and testing the levels.

Thanks as always for the advice!

 

[aqua_chem]

It might be easier to you to tell us what you aren't understanding about the EI dosing method rather than repeating an entire guide. It would be hard to give any meaningful advice without knowing where you're getting caught up.


A few thoughts on your tank as well. I agree that the first thing you should be looking at at this point is a solid fertilization regimen, so good call on that. Do you have a drop checker in place to monitor co2? How much circulation do you have right now and how are you injecting the co2? Finally, what brand of light do you have?

Losing lower leaves can be indicative of several problems, including insufficient light, co2/circulation, and severe fertilizer deficiency, or possibly a combinations thereof. Fixing the problem could potentially be a length case of trail and error.

 

[Super_Blueberry]

The lights are generic Menards 22"? fixtures holding two 24 watt t5HO bulbs each. They are about 6 months old, so I wouldn't think they need replacing yet. Circulation is a HOB filter and a red sea 500 co2 reactor at ground level which is how the co2 is dissolving. The drop checker solution stays a nice light green and is replaced twice a month.

as far as the ei confusion goes its the getting started. obtaining the correct materials to make the solution....how to make the solution in reasonable amounts, what gets mixed with what to prevent precipitation. once the solutions are made, i don't think following the schedule will be a problem, its just making them correctly and knowing how now to overdose that to me is the intimidating part..... i realize its probably not hard, but i haven't found a nice easy to read how-to.

 

[Rivercats]

This link might help you: AquaScaping World Magazine - Estimative Index Fertilization Method

 

[Super_Blueberry]

This link might help you: AquaScaping World Magazine - Estimative Index Fertilization Method

I saw this one, and though it explains the concept well, it lacks the step-by-step details I was hoping to find somewhere that would give me that boost of confidence and that "well heck, i can do that" feeling.

To start off, where is the 'best' place to find the dry powders needed?

 

[fort384]

I buy from Planted Aquarium Fertilizer - , , , , Planted Aquarium Fertilizer - , ,

 

[Rivercats]

I get mine from GreenLeaf Aquariums.

 

[aqua_chem]

Green Leaf Aquarium also ships them. That's where I get mine.

As far as your other concern, I wouldn't make a solution unless you're going to set up some sort of an autodoser. Just dump the dry salts into the tank according to the recommendations.