jays tank need help

[jmeheliboy]

hi all

so i have been keeping fish for about two years but 2 mouths ago
my wife got me the aquaone 275 cube marine tank with sump but i use it as freshwater but really need some help from people who know what there talking about the plan was for it to be a planted tank but the plant are not doing well at all im use eco-complete substrate and trying to grow hairy grass and a red plant that i dont know the name of i started using diy co2 2 days ago
my plants just seem to be dyeing away
dose any one no what im doing wrong

 

[nereksnad]

greetings.

the lights used for marine/saltwater tanks is usually above 10k kelvin degrees, which is not suited for plants. this could be one of your troubles, also what fertilizer are you using?

 

[aqua_chem]

Can you give us a complete rundown of the tank? Lights, ferts, how you're injecting co2, plants, parameters, and anything else you can think of?

 

[jmeheliboy]

hi thanks for reply
ok lights are 4 t5 24w all 4 are for high plant growth im using eco-compete substrate and i be told but maidenhead aquatics i will not need fert for about 6 months im using home made co2 but had to restrict it a little because all my fish where gassing from the top i have not tested the co2 level because i dont have a text kit for that nitrate holds at about 5ppm there are some pics if you click on my name i just dont know how to get them on my post

 

[aqua_chem]

Well being as EC doesn't really contain much for macronutrients (nitrate, phosphate) and a questionable supply of micros, you should probably look into dosing something. High tech plated tanks come down to a delicate balance of light, CO2, and fertilizer, but by the sound of it you don't have a firm control of any of those factors. Depending on the size/dimensions of the tank 4xT5HO can be an absolutely monstrous amount of light. Without proper fertilization, you have a recipe for disaster. You also need to look at getting your CO2 dialed in. If you do not already have a drop checker, you need to get one ASAP so that you can have some way to reliably measure your CO2.

 

[jmeheliboy]

Lights are fine I have a very deep tank
I make a mistake Iv using flora base not Eco complete
The only reson I have not use furterlisers is I did a lot of reading up on flora base and every where said no need for furterlisers for 6 mouths and I didn't wnt to over do it
And start an alge bloom but I will get some as soon as pos and let you know
Thanks for your help

 

[CorallineAlgae]

Most plant substrates benefit from root tabs. Eco Complete needs them for root feeding plants, too. Think of root tabs like algae wafers. It's just food for "bottom feeding" plants in the same way as liquid ferts are food for "column feeding" plants. It's easier to understand how fertilizers work when you think about using them in a similar way to how you feed fish. We provide food to fish that feed off the bottom and different food for fish that feed from the water. Even though we can't see plants actually feeding, they are just as particular as fish when it comes to where they like to feed.

I find it hard to believe that a tank with an overflow and sump could have an excess of co2 using only a DIY system. Did you modify your sump to prevent off gassing? Did you seal it up or is it still open?

 

[jmeheliboy]

No Iv got the co2 going state in to the pump where it's getting smashed up in micro bubble and pushed around the tank

 

[jmeheliboy]

Qwertyu