Journal Fluval Spec build

[BigWave]

Here is what I'm dosing currently:

DIY Trace Recipe:
Dose: 1mL per 10 liters daily
DI RO H2O: 500mL
I doubled the amount of water and dosing 1ml to get half dosage due to it being quite a bit for this little tank and my lean dosing.

MnSO4.H2O: 0.77g
ZnSO4.7H2O: 0.90g
Na2B4O7.10H2O 1.3228g
Na2MoO4.2H2O: 0.019g
CuSO4.5H2O: 0.040g
NiSO4.6H2O: 0.011g
Fe Gluconate 12.46%: 4.0128g
Fe EDTA 13%: 1.9231g
This adds:
Mn 0.050, Zn 0.04, B 0.03, Na 0.03, Mo 0.002, Na 0.001, Cu 0.002, Ni 0.0005, Fe G 0.1, dGH 0.01, Fe EDTA 0.05, S 2.0413

DIY Macro Fertz Clone:
Dose: 1mL per 40 Liters daily
DI RO H2O: 500mL
KNO3: 48.918g
KH2PO4: 10.030g
K2SO4: 35.676g
MgSO4: 20.281g
This adds:
1.53 NO3, 0.35 PO4, 1.78 K, 0.10 Mg
1.35% N, 0.45% P, 5.95% K, 0.39% Mg
Note: The K2SO4 is a wee bit too much for this mix and doesnt completely dissolve. Think to fix this issue would have to buy KCl. (Potassium Chloride.)

 

[Count Krunk]

Tank looks good with the initial planting.

As for tank backgrounds, I'm black spraypaint all the way. I've only used the cheapest can from Home Depot and it works great. Yeah it if scratch it it will come off, but not scratching the outside back glass is very very easy haha.

 

[BigWave]

A bigger update. I'm done with ordering plants for a while lol
Planted Hygro chai, Crypt flamingo, Purple knight, Ludwigia white, Bocopa platinum and Dwarf mini cardinals white. All but the Ludwigia were TC cultures. L white was immersed.

Now to wait and let nature do it's thing.







She definitely is a head turner when walking into the room.

 

[BigWave]

Side note. It's been about a week and half. Tanks full cycling. Starting to see the classic brown dusty algae of new tanks. Might have to invest in some Otto's and red cherry shrimp soon.

 

[BigWave]

Made a DIY tool holder for the side of the stand today. It fits snuggly right underneath the wooden tray.

 

[BigWave]

Also took a trip to Petco and bought a Fluval bubble counter and wide range pH test kit. Currently (mid CO2 cycle) pH is about 6.0. Took out a sampe of tank water to let set for 24 hours for the degaussed pH.





As it turns out my stupid regulator has been acting up. Being all inconsistent etc. I feel that's what kick started this damn algae. I had to put the big boy Conica on my 5lb bottle. It's so big the bottle will tip over if it's not strapped down. Also found out I'm going to have to raise up the middle shelf if I want the bottle inside the stand

 

[FrankZ]

Made a DIY tool holder for the side of the stand today. It fits snuggly right underneath the wooden tray.

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Is the Bacardi your secret ingredient to the fertilizing? LOL

Looking very good so far man. Can’t wait to this filled out.

 

[BigWave]

Why yes, yes it is. Haha. I've got all sorts of official dosing bottles. Even very good pump bottles. Always seem to come back to good ol glass bottles for whatever reason.

 

[FrankZ]

Why yes, yes it is. Haha. I've got all sorts of official dosing bottles. Even very good pump bottles. Always seem to come back to good ol glass bottles for whatever reason.

My back ground is chemistry and plastic storage vessels bug me because of it. I don’t think you can get it fully clean. Probably being way over analytical but that’s what chemists do best. The engineering side of me ruins everything else by over thinking.

 

[BigWave]

Tanks not looking so hot. I call this the ugly phaze. Damn diatomes and all the TC plants adjusting to being submersed.
I am doing 65% daily water changes and have been doing homework (reading up) on Erios and Syngs from all over the web and forums. Seems the general consensus is dose very very lean if at all. Have not decided if I should cut back on dosing or not yet. You can definitely see the new growth almost daily though. Heck even the Toninia's which are supposedly slow growers.

 

[BigWave]

Have been monitoring pH daily. Seems I'm almost at a 1.0 pH drop but not quite. Bubble counter is going faster then I can read it and I'm also using a new Aquarium Neo Diffuser. This tells me I very much need to figure out an inline or reactor option.

 

[Burr740]

Lud white converts easily from emersed, you'll get a new branch from nearly every node. Dont be surprised if the odd one or two comes out as cuba

I am doing 65% daily water changes and have been doing homework (reading up) on Erios and Syngs from all over the web and forums. Seems the general consensus is dose very very lean if at all.

Ive never experienced Syns or Erios balk from a rich water column, literally none that Ive ever tried. KH is what matters and (as Im sure you know) the lower the better

By rich I dont mean EI rich but say 20/5+/30 in the water

Yes KCL and/or MgCL would let that macro solution dissolve. And if you have more than just a cloud that hasnt dissolved, like actual undissolved salts in the bottom, Id just go ahead and make a new one. Idk what it is, in my mind it makes sense to say OK its just a little low on whatever hasnt dissolved, but anytime Ive just gone ahead and used one like that things seem to go bad. Just my experience, ymmv

Any reason you chose to get the majority of your Fe from gluconate? .1 daily from gluc is a pretty strong dose. Not that it will necessarily hurt anythinbg just curious really

 

[BigWave]

you'll get a new branch from nearly every node

Awesome.

Ive never experienced Syns or Erios balk from a rich water column, literally none that Ive ever tried. KH is what matters and (as Im sure you know) the lower the better

Alright ill start dosing normally again.

Any reason you chose to get the majority of your Fe from gluconate? .1 daily from gluc is a pretty strong dose. Not that it will necessarily hurt anythinbg just curious really

I ran out of EDTA and DTPA at that moment so improvised. Did order more since then. Now as your well aware creating larger amounts of solution lasts quite a bit longer in small tanks.

 

[BigWave]

Not much to update about. Got bored so took pH samples throughout the lighting cycle. Greenish color is degaused tank water left out for 3 days. Onward to right before lights turn off (6am to 3pm).



There is new growth quite a bit actually on all the submersed species. The immersed (TC) ones are finally starting to show new buds and leaf tips ever so slowly. My theory is they are utilizing all their energy into root propagation because the TC leaves are about usless underwater. Once that happens they then start growing the new aquatic leaves.

 

[Yugang]

Since this is an all in one tank there isnt really a way to setup an inline reactor without adding an external pump.

You may consider CO2 Spray bar it would be nice and compact, hardly visible for this tank when placed on the left side. And using it in overflow mode you don't need to worry about your expensive regulators anymore as it is the geometry/dimension of the spray bar that stabilises the CO2 injection rather than the CO2 gas flow.

Not much to update about. Got bored so took pH samples throughout the lighting cycle. Greenish color is degaused tank water left out for 3 days. Onward to right before lights turn off (6am to 3pm).

Usually it is difficult to read pH stability without a probe, but it is hard to miss that this one doesn't look very good. Are you sure you have enough surface agitation for the CO2 to stabilise? A cheap mini in-tank circulation pump would work.

Nice tank!

 

[BigWave]

A little update. Have beaten the diatoms and the plants are responding in a good way. Totally changed up dosing to try and promote more / better growth. So am now dosing classic EI dry powers every other day.
I also setup an imersed setup underneath to grow out some of the rares.

 

[Mr.Shenanagins]

I had to put the big boy Conica on my 5lb bottle. It's so big the bottle will tip over if it's not strapped down.

Had the same problem with my Victor. 15lb steel bottle solved that issue

 

[BigWave]

Had the same problem with my Victor. 15lb steel bottle solved that issue

That's an odd size. Never seen a 15lber.

 

[Mr.Shenanagins]

 

[BigWave]

Water change info from Rotala Butterfly.
Think I did it right
Dosing all 3 KNO3, KH2PO4 and Millers MicroPlex every other day right after about 75% water change every other day.