How Soon Do You Column Dose?

[BioChem]

Hi all! Super excited here. I've finally completed my hardscape and have ordered all of my plants. I actually painted the background myself

I'm using Brightwell Aquatics aquasoil, b/c it doesn't leach ammonia. Fish will contribute enough on their own. I'm wondering, how quickly after planting do I start to column dose? I've read in some forums, its not necessary to immediately dose, because the aquasoil will leach nutrients into the column.

How quickly should I begin? What physical signs should I look for? Which method would be better - PPS or EI?

Thanks for the help!

 

[Bert2oo1]

Hi all! Super excited here. I've finally completed my hardscape and have ordered all of my plants. I actually painted the background myself



I'm using Brightwell Aquatics aquasoil, b/c it doesn't leach ammonia. Fish will contribute enough on their own. I'm wondering, how quickly after planting do I start to column dose? I've read in some forums, its not necessary to immediately dose, because the aquasoil will leach nutrients into the column.



How quickly should I begin? What physical signs should I look for? Which method would be better - PPS or EI?



Thanks for the help!

I started dosing straight away. I started with PPS pro but I switched to EI a few months ago. I'd say EI is much better. Since switching I've had a lot less algae and my plant growth is ALOT better.

Any pictures?


30g planted, 90g Oscar tank

 

[BioChem]

I started dosing straight away. I started with PPS pro but I switched to EI a few months ago. I'd say EI is much better. Since switching I've had a lot less algae and my plant growth is ALOT better.

Any pictures?


30g planted, 90g Oscar tank

Thanks for your feedback. I had already chosen the EI method, for the simplicity of solution preparation and dosing schedule. I'm wondering, though, how a lower concentration of column nutrients contributed to your algal blooms. Perhaps you have many slow growing plants?

My aquarium really doesn't look like much at the moment. As I mentioned before, the background and hardscape are complete. I haven't added the aquasoil yet - waiting for plants to arrive. Below are some pics of my setup so far.

The background I painted.

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35 lbs of Ohko Stones and crushed Lava Rock. I used the lava rock for volume, and also to fill the underlying support system.

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The support system. Its difficult to see, since I've added enough crushed lava rock to fill it.

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[Fresh2o]

That looks like a nice, solid foundation for this build. Background transition adds depth to the scene. I've heard positive things about the Brightwell substrate.
What equipment will you be using?
Plant list yet?
I chose PPS-Pro because of the simplicity and cost. I only need to measure out dry salts approximately every 250 days. Daily dosing is 2 mL using a plastic pipette (20g). Last night I mixed up the 5th batch of micros (how the macros and micros got off sync idk) from a fert pack ordered in DEC 2013 for about $30. This should last until ~mid 2017 (need to order more micros then). Another reason I chose PPS-Pro is that I did not plan on doing 50% weekly PWCs.

 

[BioChem]

That looks like a nice, solid foundation for this build. Background transition adds depth to the scene. I've heard positive things about the Brightwell substrate.
What equipment will you be using?
Plant list yet?
I chose PPS-Pro because of the simplicity and cost. I only need to measure out dry salts approximately every 250 days. Daily dosing is 2 mL using a plastic pipette (20g). Last night I mixed up the 5th batch of micros (how the macros and micros got off sync idk) from a fert pack ordered in DEC 2013 for about $30. This should last until ~mid 2017 (need to order more micros then). Another reason I chose PPS-Pro is that I did not plan on doing 50% weekly PWCs.

Thanks for your feedback! I'll most def look further into the PPS method.

Here's my equipment and plant list.

Equipment
SunSun HW-504B
Finnex Planted + 24/7 (30")
Eheim Skim350
Brightwell Aquasoil
Flourite Black Sand (Had a lot left over from previous setup)
RO/Di System
CO2 System: 7lb tank, Milwaukee MA957, Inline CO2 Reactor
Macros, Micros, GH Booster, Seachem Acid, Alkaline Buffer, Gluteraldehyde and Hydrogen Peroxide

Plant List
Rotala indica
Ludwigia arcuata
Hydrocotyle tripartita
Ludwigia Narrow Red
Alternanthera reineckii "mini"
Ludwigia brevipes
Bucephalandre
Staurogyne repens
Pogostemon helferi
Ludwigia peruensis
Didiplis diandre
Wisteria
Flame Moss
Hemianthus callitrichoides
Micranthemum Monte Carlo

 

[Bert2oo1]

Interested thought on the algae blooms. I did fight have to fight off 4 types of algae over a 3 month period. My worst was GHA but I think that was due to lack of flow more than anything (I changed to a stronger filter and a full length spray bar) it became so bad that I ended up having to get rid of all my carpet plants.


30g planted, 90g Oscar tank

 

[BioChem]

Interested thought on the algae blooms. I did fight have to fight off 4 types of algae over a 3 month period. My worst was GHA but I think that was due to lack of flow more than anything (I changed to a stronger filter and a full length spray bar) it became so bad that I ended up having to get rid of all my carpet plants.


30g planted, 90g Oscar tank

I too am worried about flow. The SunSun HW_504B I'm going to use does have a spray bar that runs 3/4 of the tank's length. I'm hoping this will be good enough to create a good flow.

 

[Bert2oo1]

I put down most of my issues to lack of flow and lack of co2. I also started with DIY co2 and went to pressurised later on. All my problems disappeared after flow and co2 were sorted out


30g planted, 90g Oscar tank