Khuligirl's planted 20 long

[Bert2oo1]

I'm doing pps pro, but about 1.5x recommended dose for macros (3ml) and I mixed it a bit stronger on the phosphate.
Photoperiod is about 7 hours.

Do u dose Micro to PPS pro aswell?

I started with PPS pro and then went to EI and found EI a lot better for my tank. A lot less algae and my growth was a lot better. Might be worth trying EI dosing?

 

[Khuligirl93]

Yes I also dose micros but I just do the recommended dosage.
I have considered that, but would hate to use up more ferts than my plants would absorb. I guess my test results tomorrow (I'll test before dosing) will tell me if I have any deficiencies.
When I had that huge hygro in my tank it sucked up nutrients like crazy and I still didn't have any crazy low readings with daily pps pro dosing, so I doubt with the slower growing plants I have now that there would be any. Especially because my h2o2 dip seems to have stunted some plants in the last few days.

 

[Bert2oo1]

Yes I also dose micros but I just do the recommended dosage.
I have considered that, but would hate to use up more ferts than my plants would absorb. I guess my test results tomorrow (I'll test before dosing) will tell me if I have any deficiencies.
When I had that huge hygro in my tank it sucked up nutrients like crazy and I still didn't have any crazy low readings with daily pps pro dosing, so I doubt with the slower growing plants I have now that there would be any. Especially because my h2o2 dip seems to have stunted some plants in the last few days.

In a 30g I dose 1g of kno3 and 1g of phosphates and 0.3g of micro mix. It's really not much in the way of ferts. 500g will still last u 500 days and your only dose 4 times a week.

It's really worth a shot. Fixed all my algae issues apart from abit of BBA here and there but I'm pretty sure that was from me dosing too much micro

 

[Bert2oo1]

Oh and to stop the bending put the spray bar from back to front so your flow drags back on them. Only when they grow to the heigh of the bar will they start to bend and then it's pretty much time for a trim

 

[Fresh2o]

So you did a thing. Sometimes you have to.
I once had a huge piece of DW in my tank (first post in my Planted tank build in 2013). It was a bit oversized and created a lot of shade. But it created a unique look to the tank. And it collected algae. DW in my current tank is also a BBA magnet. Can't win.
Regarding the algae, you may have to cut the light back a bit in terms of hours. Once you get things under control you can increase the duration. Physical removal of the string algae with a toothbrush is needed because it won't go away on its own.
Just a suggestion: to decrease the force of the flow from the spray bar, try increasing the size of the holes. This won't affect flow rate through the filter. Start with a couple of holes.
Yes, the direction of the spraybar as mentioned above will actually "lift" then to a degree or push them back a bit. But I really like that you have the flow spanning the entire length of the tank.
Hang in there. Your tank is a unique setup and what works or doesn't in others tank may or may not in yours. It is a learning process.

 

[Khuligirl93]

Oh and to stop the bending put the spray bar from back to front so your flow drags back on them. Only when they grow to the heigh of the bar will they start to bend and then it's pretty much time for a trim

Oh good idea! I forgot the original reason I put it on the side was because of the wood.

 

[Khuligirl93]

Ok, so this is where I'm at (BEFORE daily dosing):
http://i349.photobucket.com/albums/q381/bnz0429/24FF6A5D-1BAD-40A6-8F9A-68DB1EEF814D_zpsz8vdxuwn.jpg
Left to right: ammonia, nitrite, nitrate, phosphate. I guess it's safe to say I'm not lacking phosphates (and yet I'm still getting GSA)... and nitrates look fine to me- In that vague 5-20ppm range. Do you guys really think I need to switch to EI? There are so many other things like potassium and micros that I can't test for, so I guess it's still possible I have some unknown deficiency.

Also I forgot to mention my new microswords! (Lilaeopsis?) Hopefully they'll grow a nice little carpet. They were definitely the most difficult plant I've ever planted (they were grown in a mat made from material that felt like horse hair, and it was very difficult to tell apart the leaves, roots, and rhizomes.
Any advice on their preferred conditions, trimming, etc welcomed.
http://i349.photobucket.com/albums/q381/bnz0429/005C5830-198D-406D-8CE7-492C92408093_zpsytxo2vyl.jpg

 

[Fresh2o]

Good luck with the microswords. Never tried them. They remind me of dwarf sag and chain sword.
I've been doing PPS-Pro for almost 3 full years under various lights including the one you are using. I don't do 50% WCs. I don't think there is a deficiency in there. Stray nuisance string algae, yes. Unexplainable GSA, yes. Sufficient CO2 and phosphate, yes.

 

[Bert2oo1]

Ok, so this is where I'm at (BEFORE daily dosing):
http://i349.photobucket.com/albums/q381/bnz0429/24FF6A5D-1BAD-40A6-8F9A-68DB1EEF814D_zpsz8vdxuwn.jpg
Left to right: ammonia, nitrite, nitrate, phosphate. I guess it's safe to say I'm not lacking phosphates (and yet I'm still getting GSA)... and nitrates look fine to me- In that vague 5-20ppm range. Do you guys really think I need to switch to EI? There are so many other things like potassium and micros that I can't test for, so I guess it's still possible I have some unknown deficiency.

Also I forgot to mention my new microswords! (Lilaeopsis?) Hopefully they'll grow a nice little carpet. They were definitely the most difficult plant I've ever planted (they were grown in a mat made from material that felt like horse hair, and it was very difficult to tell apart the leaves, roots, and rhizomes.
Any advice on their preferred conditions, trimming, etc welcomed.
http://i349.photobucket.com/albums/q381/bnz0429/005C5830-198D-406D-8CE7-492C92408093_zpsytxo2vyl.jpg

I've grown a lilaeopsis carpet before! Basically all it needs is co2 and good light so u should be fine. I used to trim mine every 10 days or so just to get it to spread (it carpets fast when trimmed) mine turned into a hair algae magnet though but that was before I had balance in my tank. Your levels look good so I wouldn't worry about EI unless u run into some serious problems. Hopefully it all settles now your have a better spread of flow etc.

Looking good!

 

[Khuligirl93]

Alright, thanks for the encouragement both of you. I guess I'll continue what I'm doing (maybe make photoperiod an hour shorter), continue removing the thread algae, and hope things move in the right direction with the better flow and CO2. I'll update when my atomizer comes in

 

[Bert2oo1]

Atomizer will make a lot of difference too gives a great spread with the spray bar. In regards to the GSA don't feel bad about upping the phosphate even more. I 4x dose phosphates with EI so brings me up to close to 20ppm per week.

After doing some research about phosphate I found that phosphate has no negative effects at all untill it reach's a ridiculous level. So u can always push it abit more and see if it gets rid of that GSA I also read that a guy drilled a few holes in the bottom of this spray bar to get flow down his back glass and this also killed all the GSA on the back of his tank. I thought that was interesting.

Hope I've helped

 

[Khuligirl93]

I also read that a guy drilled a few holes in the bottom of this spray bar to get flow down his back glass and this also killed all the GSA on the back of his tank. I thought that was interesting.

Hope I've helped

You're always helpful, Bert! I love that idea about the spray bar, if only I had a drill...

 

[Fresh2o]

Try using a small Phillips head screw driver to enlarge the holes of the spray bar. Or perhaps a kabob skewer.

 

[Bert2oo1]

That's a good idea by fresh. Maybe even some nail scissors would work. Poke it in the hole and twist it around abit. Don't put too much pressure though as u might crack the tube!

 

[Khuligirl93]

Just for fun- my alpha male
Not sure if he's the only male in the group, or if being the boss just makes the red on his fins darker than the other males.
http://i349.photobucket.com/albums/q381/bnz0429/86238297-F278-4440-97EA-AC4B4C959F3F_zps4xzzezzq.jpg

http://i349.photobucket.com/albums/q381/bnz0429/47D407A4-0809-4376-8336-4AD3DDFF26B8_zpsujmdu1d4.jpg

I picked up another piece of Malaysian driftwood that I believe is the right size to make the 2/3 ratio in the tank. It's still soaking but I'll posts pics when I add it!

 

[Barliman]

Just for fun- my alpha male
Not sure if he's the only male in the group, or if being the boss just makes the red on his fins darker than the other males.

He's tiny, but he's tough.

 

[Khuligirl93]

Yes he is!
I've also noticed one of my sparkling gouramis is alpha male as well. I have 3 of them, but he always makes sure he gets first choice on food and gets the best hang out spots.

 

[Caliban07]

Nice fish indeed [emoji846]

 

[Khuligirl93]

Got 4 otos the other day. Every flat surface is clean now! The AR mini and red ludwigia leaves are shiny and colorful with zero algae. The LFS said they'd had these guys at least 3 weeks, and they only had a few left, so they should be pretty healthy. I don't have a quarantine but so far so good.
The fuzzy algae is extremely resilient. It seems like wherever it sticks, it grows no matter what. Strong flow? Loves it. CO2 bubbles shooting right at it? Perfect. Peroxide dip didn't even kill it. It seems like the key is physically getting it out. It's the fragments that get blown around that start new clumps.
http://i349.photobucket.com/albums/q381/bnz0429/CA7E79BA-7CC5-4DF8-9C60-CA4366B444D6_zps4dfmbukr.jpg
On the bright side, I think every other algae type is gone besides the GSA.

 

[Caliban07]

Got 4 otos the other day. Every flat surface is clean now! The AR mini and red ludwigia leaves are shiny and colorful with zero algae. The LFS said they'd had these guys at least 3 weeks, and they only had a few left, so they should be pretty healthy. I don't have a quarantine but so far so good.
The fuzzy algae is extremely resilient. It seems like wherever it sticks, it grows no matter what. Strong flow? Loves it. CO2 bubbles shooting right at it? Perfect. Peroxide dip didn't even kill it. It seems like the key is physically getting it out. It's the fragments that get blown around that start new clumps.
On the bright side, I think every other algae type is gone besides the GSA.

What colour is the fuzzy stuff?