The next step... Fertilization!

[Myarbro]

Alright ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls of all ages!


As some of you might have read in other threads, I am setting up a 72"x18"x24" tank. With you alls help, I have gotten my lighting squared away and ordered. I also know exactly what CO2 setup I will be purchasing. Now on to the next step, fertilization! Hopefully other people out there, setting up their first planted tank, can read my threads, and the advice given to me, on all of these topics, and get something awesome out of it like I do!


So I have read a ton about fertilization methods, and to be honest, the EI method seems pretty much what I want to try. With my 40 gal, I am currently using Seachem's Flourish Tablets, Excel, and Iron with wonderful results, so going the Seachem route with my 72" tank is also an option. Although the Seachem route WILL be more costly.

According to the EI method, this is how I would dose my tank with dry fertilizer.

1 1/2 tsp KNO3 3x a week
1/2 tsp KH2PO4 3x a week
1/2 tsp K2SO4 3x a week
1/2 tsp (30ml) traces 3x a week
Weekly 50% Water Change

This is what I would follow if I use Seachem products... (Will not need Flourish Excel bc I will have a Pressurized CO2 setup)

Day 1:
Flourish (2 caps full)
Iron (2.5 caps full)
Phosphorus (1.5 caps full)
Nitrogen (1.5 caps full)

Day 2:
Trace (6 caps full)
Iron (2.5 caps full)

Day 3:
Potassium (4 caps full)
Flourish Iron (2.5 caps full)

Day 4:
Trace (6 caps full)
Iron (2.5 caps full)
Phosphorus (1.5 caps full)
Nitrogen (1.5 caps full)

Day 5:
Potassium (4 caps full)
Iron (1.5 caps full)

Day 6:
Flourish (2 caps full)
Iron (2.5 caps full)

Day 7:
50% Water Change
Prime (12 ml)

So, what do you guys think? I am almost 100% sure you will all point me in the direction of dry fertilizers bc of the cost of Seachem products. HOWEVER, I am good friends with someone that orders from Seachem in bulk, and can purchase from him at a discounted price. Gotta love friends with connections!

 

[jcardona1]

heading out to work, so ill reply when i get back to the office

 

[jcardona1]

ok i'm back. my vote is for bulk dry ferts all the way, no question about it, it's a no brainer! the Seachem stuff is the exact same, all they do is dilute it with a bunch of water for you, slap it in a pretty bottle, and charge up the wazoo for it.

Rex Grigg actually did the math when it comes to costs. For a 60 gallon tank, it will cost you approximately $2.75 per week to dose with the full line of Seachem stuff. Using bulk dry ferts, $0.062. Like he said, Seachem dosing is 44x more expensive than using bulk dry ferts ah the effects of brilliant marketing

I recently ordered all of my ferts from Green Leaf Aquariums (GLA). total spent was about $50 with shipping. this will last me well over a year, hell, even close to 2 years I think. GLA sells a full kit for $19.99, but it comes with 1/2lb quantities of some ferts. I wanted 1lb of everything, so i ordered seperately and it came out to be a little more.

I also ordered a GH Booster, which is added 1x per week after you do your water changes. A common problem in planted tanks, and any aquarium for that matter, is that over time as the tank becomes mature, your hardness starts to drop. this is bad not only because you can get bad ph swings because of your very low buffering capacity, but also because plants need a certain hardness level to thrive. this is where the GH Booster comes in.

Also, take a look at this thread: http://www.plantedtank.net/forums/fertilizers-water-parameters/21944-_dosing-regimes_.html
these are the current dosing routines. the latest methodology is such that folks use no longer dose K2SO4 (potassium, or 'K'). this is because the other ferts you use contain potassium and will give you enough. for nitrates, we use KNO3 (potassium nitrate) and for phosphates we use KH2PO4 (mono potassium phosphate). you'll notice each of these contains potassium, or K. not to mention the GH Booster also contains a little bit of potassium. therefore it's not necessary to add it seperately via K2SO4. I still went ahead and ordered some just to have it on hand. it's only $3/lb so it's no big deal.

I also ordered a pound of Iron chelate. all plants need iron, so i'll be adding this the same days i dose for traces via Plantex CSM+B

 

[jcardona1]

and the reason EI works so well is that by dosing this way, you eliminate the possiblities of having any of these nutrients be the limiting factor. problems start in a planted tank when you have a limiting nutrient (co2 or ferts). all this of course is driven by your lighting (remember when i said lighting is your gas pedal??? ) the more light you have, the more your plants will demand co2 and ferts. if you dont have enough co2 or ferts, youre gonna get algae and it will turn into a disaster.

by dosing via EI, you will ALWAYS have excess nutrients in the water. this is why we do big 50% water changes every week; to 'reset' the levels in the tank. the thought is that whenever the plants want/need a certain nutrient, it's their in the water for them, at any point in time. THIS is how you grow lush thriving plants. this eliminates the need for testing your levels. some guys like to test the levels for every single nutrient, then measure and dose according to what you need. this is silly and time consuming. there's no need for it. extra nutrients dont give you problems, this is a myth. like i said, the problems start when you dont have enough of a certain thing.

dose via EI, and forget about the rest. this is honestly the easy part. the harder part in my opinion is balancing out your co2 and light demands. but do remember, that the doses shown are not set in stone. they are rough guidelines, and assuming you have a heavily planted tank. when first starting out, if your tank is lightly planted, try dosing half of the recommended doses, maybe less. once your plants grow, you may need to increase it. you may find that you even need to go above the recommended doses. this is all about tweaking and customizing your dosing. no two tanks will be identical when it comes to this.

 

[Myarbro]

Just checked it all out at GLA! If I get 2x the 1/2lb complete package, 1 lb of Iron Chelate, and 1 lb of GH Booster, that's just $65!!! That's a steal. Well now that I know what to get, I will need to probably do a bit more research on how much to dose. I have a decent idea like I state in the OP, but like you said, I might need to start with less bc the plants will most likely be smaller.

Oh, and how to you handle it all if you go out of town. I was kinda thinking that you could use auto feeders to keep the fertilizer in and let it auto dose. What do you think?

 

[jcardona1]

going out of town is definitely an issue. when i was gone on vacation i had my cousin come over and do the dosing. its an easy so you can label it out for somebody step by step, day by day. do you have anybody trustworthy?

 

[jcardona1]

and yes, lots of guys set up auto-dosing systems. search on plantedtank.net, youll see several examples

 

[Myarbro]

Yes, I do have someone trustworthy that could do it. He is competent too! We usually try and fine someone to house sit so we don't have to pay to get our 2 German Shepherds boarded. Don't usually have to pay either, just give them access to our double kegorator and most people are more than happy to do it!

Thanks once again!

Going to have a fun filled and busy weekend here soon so I will probably be making my next thread Monday... The one where I try and figure out the plants I want. Some sites sell nice packages, so I might start with that!

 

[jcardona1]

double kegs? hell id move in while youre gone lol!

 

[Myarbro]

double kegs? hell id move in while youre gone lol!

Yup, my roommate picked it up from a local bar as they were about to throw it away. Little did they know that we got it fixed and running like new for about $100. It's a full bar sized one too. Heavy as all hell though.