Plants /water changes /fish behavior

[Potluck]

So it's not new news about me adding an abundance of plants into my tank, every since I have done this and they have started to grow and fill out my rainbows seem to prefer being at the bottom weaving in and out through the plants, one (herbalexrodi) has even become a bit aggressive to my serpae tetras chasing them out of her new "area", the boseman and irani red are still mid swimmers but also go down and weave in and out of the plants, I dint know if this is normal so fish are healthy as an ox.

As far as water changes I have been doing 50% a week, I was going to go with 2x30% or 2x50% but in a 55 gallon it's really taxing on my neck (digenerative disk disease), but that's not the big deal as I can just do smaller buckets, but my water just went up, my water bill is $450.00 every 3 months with me only doing 1 50% but I've read that with heavily planted tanks you want to do more water changes to reset the parameters so that things don't get crazy?

Right now I have a lot of crypt melt that's falling off and sticking to my filter inlets but a lot of new growth so I'm curious if it's okay to just stay with 50% or start doing 2x? And see how much it increases my bill?

Ammonia 0
Nitrite 0
Ph 7.4
Gh 7
Kh 6.5
Phosphate 1.4
Nitrate 30-35

 

[coralbandit]

Hey Rick ,
Most of the plant heads I know do 50% weekly on their EI schedule..
They don't do more they just adjust their ferts to keep the tank in line...

 

[Potluck]

Hey Rick ,
Most of the plant heads I know do 50% weekly on their EI schedule..
They don't do more they just adjust their ferts to keep the tank in line...

Okay thanks CB, I just am on a tight budget with my disability and I Cannot afford $500.00 every 3 months lol, maybe I could cut back on my showers lmao, Ty bud and gorgeous fish in your thread.

 

[coralbandit]

You seem dedicated enough that you could just 'turn down the volume' on your tank .
By reducing light,ferts ,co2 and foods you can reduce water changes IMO..
Thanks for the compliments , I am inspired by what I see others have still.
Your expense for water is like 3-4 times mine at the volume I consume ...That is a shame as clearly they are just charging you more ...You can not be going through more water then me....

 

[agrasyuk]

That water bill seems very serious. Probably location and municipality differences but my bill is nowhere near (maybe I'm not changing enough...) I'm curious what is your actual usage listed on paper.

 

[V227]

Wow, Rick. Maybe it's time to move to Oklahoma. I've got a house full of females who have no limits regarding water consumption, and my water bill is "much, much" lower than yours. Of course you do have to dodge a tornado every once in a while.

 

[mbkemp]

Oklahoma does have cheap water. When we lived in south east kansas it was at least 150 a month for four of us and no aquarium.

If you have a tds meter you can use that to keep an eye on fertilizer accumulation. Adjust the amount you change based on what you see

 

[V227]

All jokeing aside, AA' s most devoted water management member, IMO is BBradbury. Might contact BB when time permits. His posts are always very informative and helpful regarding all things water.

 

[Potluck]

Reason the water bill is so high is because they just built a $365,000,000 dollar water plant a couple years back so we're paying for it I guess, I Also have 8 other people that live with me YIKES lol, I'm sure my tank doesn't contribute much to the water bill as estimated 100 gallons a month for the 55 and about 60 for the 30 gallon (160 gallons) , the washer, shower, dishwasher are always running it drives me insane, they actually call our water liquid gold where I live.

As to the tank, the water parameters aren't sky high alough I would like to get nitrates back down to 20-25 but I'm sure once all these plants take off that won't be hard to achieve, I have cut the ferts back to 1.5 pumps a week which helped with the brown algae (diatoms) that were starting to form on the glass, and no CB there's no way I use more water than you Holy mackerel you have alot of tanks lol.

As far as seeing a bill I will try upload one I just have to blank my name and address out first, im super leery about people knowing things like that

Regarding B I know he's always saying to change most of your water weekly but I'm not sure that's good for plants, when I looked up a post written by Tom Barr in one method they do water changes every other week some once a month, forgot what the method is called.

 

[Potluck]

Oklahoma does have cheap water. When we lived in south east kansas it was at least 150 a month for four of us and no aquarium.

If you have a tds meter you can use that to keep an eye on fertilizer accumulation. Adjust the amount you change based on what you see

I don't have a TDS Meter I was going to get one but when I asked about one on a different forum (I think, might of been this one) I was told it would be pointless for my tank, but now that I have a lot more plants I think I'm going to invest in one, can you recommend one that I don't have to constantly calibrate with the liquid?

 

[coralbandit]

This is the TDS meter I use and recommend.
https://r.search.aol.com/_ylt=A2KLf...00VTQM70/RK=0/RS=vVySm2i6Bo8UXmUYBYDEUBLPu88-
Needs no calibrating that I am aware of. Last until you drop it in water completely...Had one for years [just not the same one !]
I have bought cheaper and they are crap and need calibration if they even come close..
HM is a reputable company and is actually the manufacturer of the TDS meter included with my RO unit from BRS ...Cheaper then an API master kit and tells temp also !

 

[Potluck]

This is the TDS meter I use and recommend.
https://r.search.aol.com/_ylt=A2KLf...00VTQM70/RK=0/RS=vVySm2i6Bo8UXmUYBYDEUBLPu88-
Needs no calibrating that I am aware of. Last until you drop it in water completely...Had one for years [just not the same one !]
I have bought cheaper and they are crap and need calibration if they even come close..
HM is a reputable company and is actually the manufacturer of the TDS meter included with my RO unit from BRS ...Cheaper then an API master kit and tells temp also !

It won't let me see the link says can't process request

 

[mbkemp]

https://www.amazon.com/HM-Digital-TDS-4-Measurement-Resolution/dp/B0002T6L5M
This is the one I have. Works fine for me

 

[coralbandit]

It won't let me see the link says can't process request

It is the HM 3.
$2 more then one mbk linked same manufacturer.
Does temp also so that would be the $2...

 

[Potluck]

This one HM Digital TDS-3 Handheld TDS Meter With Carrying Case, 0 - 9990 ppm TDS Measurement Range, 1 ppm Resolution, +/- 2% Readout Accuracy https://www.amazon.com/dp/B000VTQM70/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_32rAAbBMW4N8Q

 

[coralbandit]

Yes that is the one I use .. Since dropping my first in a 32g barrel of RO and buying a cheaper knock off brand a couple of years ago I now have two in the fish room.. I am not paranoid I know things go awry sometimes .
For me with my rams and high TDS source water I would go without all other test to keep this if I had to. I use it to make water more then keep tabs on it although it clearly can do that also.

 

[Potluck]

Yes that is the one I use .. Since dropping my first in a 32g barrel of RO and buying a cheaper knock off brand a couple of years ago I now have two in the fish room.. I am not paranoid I know things go awry sometimes .
For me with my rams and high TDS source water I would go without all other test to keep this if I had to. I use it to make water more then keep tabs on it although it clearly can do that also.

I have to learn about tds now too grrr.... Lol, so tds will also give an example of ammonia/nitrite /nitrate /pH?
Like example what number would I be shooting for in a planted tank with tetras and rainbows, I will do some reading on in in a few, it's time for my pwc so imma get that outta the way while my neck isn't locked up lol.

 

[mbkemp]

Tds will not give you any kind of reading on ammonia, nitrite, nitrate, etc. what you will get is a sense of accumulation of other nutrients. Potassium, magnesium, phosphorus, calcium, iron, etc. example, my source water in the spring runs about 175ppm with my meter. If in April I am reading 234 then I am not changing enough water to reset tank levels, it is accumulating

Make sense?

 

[mbkemp]

The second question you posed is loaded. Lots of opinion about ro in a planted tank, calcium to magnesium ratio, etc. I think it is more important to know where you start and understand enough about how fertilizer and your water interact with your plants

 

[coralbandit]

Not in a way you will know what is accumulating yet ..You just know where you start and how much dissolved solids are accumulating. What they are is still on you per say to figure out ..Anything that dissolves becomes a 'dissolved solid'. It is a learning curve I guess that you will need a base line on the tank to figure . Test your source and test tank. Do water changes to understand how they reduce TDS. Most tanks run higher then the source . Figure what the foods and waste do to the water. The TDS should rise over the week with these additions.Some things in the tank may also contribute to tanks TDS level like drift wood or leaching rocks. These should by now be consistent and will have the same weekly effect .
Add your ferts and test to see how they effect the level. See if the TDS reduces or gains over the week in line with the rise created from food , waste ,wood ect. .
Ideally you just want to reset the tank back close to your source water if that is what is regularly used.
I know it seems like a lot but it really isn't.
Once you understand your tanks behavior a quick check will tell you all in a second .