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I see the link to how to calculate how much of something to add to get so many ppms but where can I see what 'good' levels are for these like say potassium or phosphate?

I have Excel but stopped using it after I got the CO2 injection going. Is that the same thing as Met14? Not familiar with that. Also not sure what you mean by spot treating with this. I am probably overstocked, 10 glow tetras some pretty big and two clown loaches about 2-3 inches long. My tank...

I have Thrive but stopped using it because it contains Nitrates so I was getting to much of them in order to get the rest of what's in there. Seachem Flourish is what I am using now, it's just the micro nutrients so maybe not the best but I am not sure how to add the other macro nutrients. I...

I have been in a long battle trying to control algae in my tank and the latest idea was based on reading that you want to fertilize your plants via the substrate not the water column. This means the plants get the nutrients and not the algae. I have read a few things hear and there and it...

I don't think it's Dinoflagellate as I have never noticed anything 'stringy' accept normal green algae that has grown stringy on one of my worse algae weeks. The tank is fairly clean again, scrubbed off all the green/brown and a little black gunk. The only additive I have is one pump of Thrive...

I built a custom set of LED lights into what was a fluorescent hood. I got tired of the bulbs wearing out and I also had problems even finding bulbs for my old hood. I have two types of LEDs, these: TrueLumen Pro LED Strip Light, 12, 000K Diamond White and these: TrueLumen Aquatic 10-Inch...

I did two 33% or so water changes today, and yes I understand the math. I have six air stones already. I plan to do a couple more water changes over the weekend and yet more algae/whatever this stuff is cleaning. I have read so much on controlling this algae and tried so many things but I just...

Last week I had five happy clown loaches but this week all hell has broken loose. One jumped out of the tank and died sometime before Tuesday. I just found a dead one today and another clearly in severe distress, laying on it's back at the bottom 'panting'. I saw another one just hiding but it...

My regular schedule is once a week, 8-10 gallons of a 30 long which has probably 5 gallons or so of rocks and gravel. I have not got back to that schedule yet, I have been doing several extra water change days trying to get dialed in with the correct 'mix'. Did one yesterday and I will be...

I am already dosing twice a week with Aqueon plant food and Flourish Excel.

My fish load is lower than normal, usually it's overloaded so I am guessing my plants are consuming all of the nitrates. I was going to add more fish once I got my water stabilized a bit. I do regret adding the salt back in the mix, I thought it's benefits were needed as I read many people who...

My 'tap' water is softened water which means the Ca and Mg is removed. I have been running with mostly that water for quite a while and I am tired of having to clean algae (or some nasty black stuff if I kill the algae) every week off of everything in the tank. (I have a lot of live and fake...

Turns out my stage 6 RO filter does not really add any measurable Mg or Ca. I have started adding Mg and Ca in "5 gallon" doses, meaning I add enough MgSO4 (2g) and CaSO4 (2.5g) to bring 5 gallons to 10 ppm and 30 ppm respectively. The problem is after adding 15 gallons worth of them to my 30...

I have been using stage 5 RO water as it has the lowest TDS of 9 or 10, but looking at the sixth filter stage I wonder if everything in it is all good and maybe all I need: "Improves the taste of RO water by adding back minerals such as ionized calcium, magnesium, sodium, and potassium ions"...

Just to be clear, I have a fresh water tank and the calcium and magnesium levels can be tested/maintained with products I see that are advertised for Salt water tanks right?

Can you be more specific about mineral needs of fish? I add plant food which contains trace elements for the plants. Something is also raising the PH beyond what the plants do with their day/night cycle, like I said above I suspect sediments in my under gravel filters. The TDS of the aquarium...

I just retested the RO water I had sitting in a cup for a few hours and it now measures about 7.2. I also tested a capped bottle I had drawn an hour or so ago and it was 8.0. Does fresh RO water need to 'off gas' for a while to lose PH? I don't want to deal with that every week when changing...

I have been trying to control algae in my aquarium so I have tried a few times to add some Ottos, but only two of five have survived. I read that they prefer a lower PH so I have been trying to get my PH down to 7.5 or so but my tank just keeps coming back to 8.2 or higher. I have used mostly...

This is what the new growth looks like, no bubbles for like two weeks now so something has changed.

This black stuff rarely grows on the glass, sometimes some small dots of it which I take off with a tooth brush. A bit harder than green algae so maybe it's cyano. I did speak to soon however, this week some of the fake plants are accumulating something brown now pretty fast but the live...

It doesn't stink and it's not really slimy. It will wipe off live plant leafs fairly easily however. Not sure what had the most affect but the power head and a phosphate absorb-er in the filter seems to have really put a damper on it. My new Otto's are nowhere to be seen, maybe they come out...

Talk about night and day. I just received four healthy Oto's from LiveAquaria.com within like 40 hours of placing my order. I paid $38 all in and it included UPS overnight, Styrofoam and heat pack (free). I got an email from UPS that let me watch the truck on a map as it moved towards my house...

The site said that but when you go to submit a loss form you have to have pictures of the dead fish within four hours of delivery. I didn't read that until I had already flushed two dead ones. They don't answer their phone and the message says to send a text message, which I did but I am afraid...

I finally got 1 tiny live Oto and 3 dead ones today, rescued from the post office a day late, $70 wasted mostly shipping cost to the incompetent USPS.

I have not moved it up yet as I want to be sure it's below the low water line when I change the water, but I did point it up at almost 45 degrees which seemed to help a lot. I will adjust again during my water change this weekend. I had originally tried the propeller for 'laminar' flow which I...