aaronnorth
www.ukaps.org
Back To Basics
Here, I hope to condense all the information about planted tanks into one guide, so you get all the basics; providing links to the more detailed tutorials about each subject.
You need to get a balance between Light, CO2, Nutrients and Flow in order to maintain a successful planted tank, with no algae.
More recently, a higher number of people are having success, growing high light plants such as Hemianthus Callitrichoides in lighting as low as 1WPG, with the key to success ensuring there is sufficient CO2 and Nutrients available. If you are lacking either, then success rates drop.
Light
First thing to consider is light. Depending on how much you have will determine the growth rate of the plants. Quicker growth also means a higher demand for Nutrients, and CO2.
So there are two routes you can take,
#1 high tech high light, fast growth, CO2 injection, high nutrient dosing and lots of trimming!
#2 low tech low light, slow growth, no CO2, no fertilisers, or maybe a weekly dose to keep the nutrient levels sufficient.
I would recommend sticking with 1WPG T5 or 1.5WPG T8 for a low tech tank.
2WPG T5 or 2WPG T8 for a high tech tank.
If you go above those figures, then managing a balance between CO2, Ferts, and flow becomes much more difficult and algae will more than likely strike.
The reason I state less wattage for T5 is because they have a higher intensity than T8s, giving off more watts per square inch meaning less wattage is needed to achieve the same results.
The Kelvin rating of a tube doesnt make much difference; I have grown plants under 2700k, right up to 18,000K.
Cheap tubes are available at Lampspecs
CO2/ Carbon
If you go into the High tech zone, CO2 becomes a necessity, more importantly pressurized CO2. Fermentation systems or the small push & fill cylinders are not up to standards. The CO2 supply is unsteady, and usually too low to meet the needs of plants, which results in algae.
Pressurized systems can be expensive, with branded kits ranging from £100-£250, and they only come with a 500g cylinder as standard. A much cheaper and cost effective way is to build your own, using a fire extinguisher. One can build an FE setup for £80-£100 which includes a 2Kg FE!
Fire Extinghuisher CO2
Equipment Needed to Set up a Fire Extinghuisher
Another option which is more viable for lower light systems is to use a fermentation kit. These cost pennies to setup and they are great. Here are couple of guides:
Tropical Fish Forums: DIY CO2
Aquatic Eden: DIY CO2
I would recommend you use 2 bottles, and connect them via a T-Piece, then, change one mixture at the weekend, and the other midweek. This keeps a constant supply of CO2 entering the aquarium.
These arent ideal for larger setups, as they require a lot more bottles making it high maintenance.
Finally, there is liquid carbon. Strictly speaking it isnt liquid carbon, it is Glutaraldehyde (C5 H8 O2), and plants use various chemical processes to break this molecule down into carbon.
Algae do not have the ability to do this, so instead, it becomes toxic. However I do not recommend you buy this solely for its algae killing properties.
It is also toxic to humans so dont consume it!!
Overdosing is an option, however please note some plants react adversely to this, mainly 100% aquatic plants such egeria densa, vallisneria and liverworts & bladderworts. However, it seems they are all fine with the recommended dose.
It comes in the form of Seachem Excel, Easylife Easycarbo and AE AquaCarbon.
Liquid carbon stays in the water column 24hrs so daily dosing is required.
You must measure the amount of CO2 you are injecting (applies to gas only). There is only one way that is accessible to most hobbyists, and that is via a drop checker, for more information, see the Drop Checker Guide
Another option is to buy a CO2 analyser, but these cost a few thousand
You may have heard of a pH/ KH relationship chart. This is when you measure the pH and KH, then refer to a table to work out the CO2 level, however this relies on no acidic substances in the water, except bicarbonates which is almost impossible as we dose acidic substances such as Nitrate, and plants and fish excrete substances which are converted to humic and nitric acid.
For example if you have KH4 and pH6.6 straight out of the tap, this would work out to be 30ppm CO2 without even injecting any!
As you can see they dont work at all.
If you dont inject CO2, then going down the route of no water changes for a few months is the better option, as weekly water changes fluctuate the CO2 levels so that algae attacks. Because plants growth is slow, it takes time to produce the enzyme RuBisCo which is needed for Carbon fixation. Algae do not have to worry about this step which is why it is quick to strike.
Have a read of Non CO2 Methods for a more detailed understanding.
Nutrients
First off can i just say Excess Nutrients don't cause algae. If you have any questions on this please ask as i can give out lots of information that shows otherwise.
Nutrients feed algae, they do not cause algae.
And that is the important thing, and it is a big difference between cause & feed, that is where most of the confusion comes from.
Algae is never CO2, or nutrient limited. Even the small amount of nutrients released by fish waste is enough for algae there is no way around it. So using chemical removers means algae grows slower... it also means plants suffer.... which then means they leach ammonia and algae still has a source of nutrients
Removing nutrients only makes problems worse, you need to address the cause, which is explained below under "algae"
New Setup, Noob question
There are two main categories. Macro & Micro elements,
Macro consists of Nitrogen, Phosphorous, Potassium (NPK) and Carbon
Micro consists of trace elements such as Magnesium, Boron, and Iron etc. Sometimes these are referred to as CSM+B
Macro nutrients are required in larger quantities than Micro nutrients; here are the targets you should aim for per week.
NO3 20ppm
PO4 2ppm
K 20-30ppm
CO2 30-35ppm
As stated above, CO2 isnt always necessary depending on your light levels. The other macro elements need dosing, unless you have low light levels, and high stocking but high stocking is not advised as it raises ammonium levels which may cause algae.
Nutrients can be added through liquid or dry powders. The most popular liquid fertiliser is tropica plant nutrition+ (TPN+) which contains all macro and micro elements needed for plant growth.
Dosing daily at a rate or 1ml per 20litres is a good place to start; you can then adjust the levels as necessary.
Another popular liquid fertiliser is seachem flourish.
Dry powders gives you a lot more control over your dosing regime, you can mix the powders into a liquid solution, or add them straight into the tank. There are various dosing methods for you to use, but Estimative Index (EI) is the most popular.
Here is a good site for various dosing regimes, including more information on the two above, and how to make a DIY TPN+ mixture.
James' Planted Tank: Dosing Methods
Algae
Algae is unwanted in a planted aquarium. The most common of causes is:
Ammonia spikes, poor CO2 & nutrients, poor circulation.
Each algae specie is triggered by a different factor, so it is hard to cover each one in this guide. Here is a useful site to ID and rectify your algae problems.
James' Planted Tank: Algae Guide
Algae Guide 2
Ammonia comes from high stocking levels, disturbance of the substrate, rotting plants and other organic matter, and dirty filters.
Doing water changes removes algae spores, organic waste and dilutes ammonia.
Poor CO2 is unstable/ fluctuating CO2 and poor distribution. This is easy to fix with a pressurized system, less so with any other method.
Poor nutrients is easy to fix. Just add more!! Nutrients feed algae, they dont cause algae and that is the important thing to remember.
Limiting nutrients can induce some algae species such as Green dust algae and blue green algae (cyanobacteria). Limiting nutrients also results in poorer plant health, so they start to release ammonia which then triggers algae.
Turnover and Circulation
In a planted tank, it is reccomended you aim for a minimum of 10x turnover. Eg. In a 240litre tank, one should aim for 2400l/ph turnover whether it be through filtration or powerheads.
Filters usually work at half the manufacturers stated flow rate, however, you do not have to worry about this as the 10x guideline takes this into account.
Now you have turnover covered, you need to be efficient in using this to achieve the best circulation around the whole tank. This is to ensure nutrients & CO2 get delivered to all four corners of the tank, no dead spots (no water movement which could lead to algae), and to ensure detrius is moved around the tank so it can be picked up by the filter. Some people use a spraybar on the back wall, and point it directly at the front wall so it is pushed down and around the tank. Others rely on powerheads, and some can get away with using just the filter(s) alone.
Some go as high as 20x, which would be the maximum i would reccomend, anymore and the benefits it brings start to decrease.
Having a high turnover is good, but without circulating the water properly you are wasting the advantages it brings.
Cycling With Plants
So we know ammonia is often the cause of algae, therefore, cycling and plants isnt the best idea, as ammonia + light = algae. There is one of two ways you can go about this,
a) fishless cycle and add the plants after it is complete
or
b) Do a "silent cycle"
This involves planting the tank heavily (75% substrate coverage minimum) with fast growing plants. You can then add a few small fish such as tetras or shrimp which dont produce much waste (therefore little ammonia). The ammonia produced will be utilised by plants, and whatever ammonia passes through the filter will go towards the establishment of bacteria. It is advised to run purigen or zeolite (or any other form of ammonia remover) in the filter, this helps to minimize algae. Add this last in your filter, so ammonia is still in contact with the sponges & biomedia first.
If applicable, run the CO2 & nutrients as you would with a mature tank to ensure healthy plant growth.
A minimum of two 50% water changes per week is advised, as this removes algae spores and ammonia which again helps to minimize algae growth. I performed a 50% water change ever other day for the first 3 weeks, then cut down to two per week, and after 6 weeks i have just got down to doing one water change per week. I use a pump to make water hccnages easy and quick on my 216litre aquarium. I did more water changes than advised, but i have been rewarded with an algae free tank, all be there a bit of diatoms along the substrate.
With plants and filter media removing most of the ammonia, your fish will be safe, and the bacteria can still establish as usual. Just stock slowly adding abpout 6 fish every couple of weeks and build up gradually.
Why We Should Not Fishless Cycle Planted Tanks
Useful sites and pieces of information
James' Planted Tank Web Page
Green Needle
Planted Box
Aquatic Eden
Aquascaping World Magazine
Question about the science of CO2
Thanks, Aaron
Any questions please ask.
Here, I hope to condense all the information about planted tanks into one guide, so you get all the basics; providing links to the more detailed tutorials about each subject.
You need to get a balance between Light, CO2, Nutrients and Flow in order to maintain a successful planted tank, with no algae.
More recently, a higher number of people are having success, growing high light plants such as Hemianthus Callitrichoides in lighting as low as 1WPG, with the key to success ensuring there is sufficient CO2 and Nutrients available. If you are lacking either, then success rates drop.
Light
First thing to consider is light. Depending on how much you have will determine the growth rate of the plants. Quicker growth also means a higher demand for Nutrients, and CO2.
So there are two routes you can take,
#1 high tech high light, fast growth, CO2 injection, high nutrient dosing and lots of trimming!
#2 low tech low light, slow growth, no CO2, no fertilisers, or maybe a weekly dose to keep the nutrient levels sufficient.
I would recommend sticking with 1WPG T5 or 1.5WPG T8 for a low tech tank.
2WPG T5 or 2WPG T8 for a high tech tank.
If you go above those figures, then managing a balance between CO2, Ferts, and flow becomes much more difficult and algae will more than likely strike.
The reason I state less wattage for T5 is because they have a higher intensity than T8s, giving off more watts per square inch meaning less wattage is needed to achieve the same results.
The Kelvin rating of a tube doesnt make much difference; I have grown plants under 2700k, right up to 18,000K.
Cheap tubes are available at Lampspecs
CO2/ Carbon
If you go into the High tech zone, CO2 becomes a necessity, more importantly pressurized CO2. Fermentation systems or the small push & fill cylinders are not up to standards. The CO2 supply is unsteady, and usually too low to meet the needs of plants, which results in algae.
Pressurized systems can be expensive, with branded kits ranging from £100-£250, and they only come with a 500g cylinder as standard. A much cheaper and cost effective way is to build your own, using a fire extinguisher. One can build an FE setup for £80-£100 which includes a 2Kg FE!
Fire Extinghuisher CO2
Equipment Needed to Set up a Fire Extinghuisher
Another option which is more viable for lower light systems is to use a fermentation kit. These cost pennies to setup and they are great. Here are couple of guides:
Tropical Fish Forums: DIY CO2
Aquatic Eden: DIY CO2
I would recommend you use 2 bottles, and connect them via a T-Piece, then, change one mixture at the weekend, and the other midweek. This keeps a constant supply of CO2 entering the aquarium.
These arent ideal for larger setups, as they require a lot more bottles making it high maintenance.
Finally, there is liquid carbon. Strictly speaking it isnt liquid carbon, it is Glutaraldehyde (C5 H8 O2), and plants use various chemical processes to break this molecule down into carbon.
Algae do not have the ability to do this, so instead, it becomes toxic. However I do not recommend you buy this solely for its algae killing properties.
It is also toxic to humans so dont consume it!!
Overdosing is an option, however please note some plants react adversely to this, mainly 100% aquatic plants such egeria densa, vallisneria and liverworts & bladderworts. However, it seems they are all fine with the recommended dose.
It comes in the form of Seachem Excel, Easylife Easycarbo and AE AquaCarbon.
Liquid carbon stays in the water column 24hrs so daily dosing is required.
You must measure the amount of CO2 you are injecting (applies to gas only). There is only one way that is accessible to most hobbyists, and that is via a drop checker, for more information, see the Drop Checker Guide
Another option is to buy a CO2 analyser, but these cost a few thousand
You may have heard of a pH/ KH relationship chart. This is when you measure the pH and KH, then refer to a table to work out the CO2 level, however this relies on no acidic substances in the water, except bicarbonates which is almost impossible as we dose acidic substances such as Nitrate, and plants and fish excrete substances which are converted to humic and nitric acid.
For example if you have KH4 and pH6.6 straight out of the tap, this would work out to be 30ppm CO2 without even injecting any!
As you can see they dont work at all.
If you dont inject CO2, then going down the route of no water changes for a few months is the better option, as weekly water changes fluctuate the CO2 levels so that algae attacks. Because plants growth is slow, it takes time to produce the enzyme RuBisCo which is needed for Carbon fixation. Algae do not have to worry about this step which is why it is quick to strike.
Have a read of Non CO2 Methods for a more detailed understanding.
Nutrients
First off can i just say Excess Nutrients don't cause algae. If you have any questions on this please ask as i can give out lots of information that shows otherwise.
Nutrients feed algae, they do not cause algae.
And that is the important thing, and it is a big difference between cause & feed, that is where most of the confusion comes from.
Algae is never CO2, or nutrient limited. Even the small amount of nutrients released by fish waste is enough for algae
there is no way around it. So using chemical removers means algae grows slower... it also means plants suffer.... which then means they leach ammonia and algae still has a source of nutrients Removing nutrients only makes problems worse, you need to address the cause, which is explained below under "algae"
New Setup, Noob question
There are two main categories. Macro & Micro elements,
Macro consists of Nitrogen, Phosphorous, Potassium (NPK) and Carbon
Micro consists of trace elements such as Magnesium, Boron, and Iron etc. Sometimes these are referred to as CSM+B
Macro nutrients are required in larger quantities than Micro nutrients; here are the targets you should aim for per week.
NO3 20ppm
PO4 2ppm
K 20-30ppm
CO2 30-35ppm
As stated above, CO2 isnt always necessary depending on your light levels. The other macro elements need dosing, unless you have low light levels, and high stocking but high stocking is not advised as it raises ammonium levels which may cause algae.
Nutrients can be added through liquid or dry powders. The most popular liquid fertiliser is tropica plant nutrition+ (TPN+) which contains all macro and micro elements needed for plant growth.
Dosing daily at a rate or 1ml per 20litres is a good place to start; you can then adjust the levels as necessary.
Another popular liquid fertiliser is seachem flourish.
Dry powders gives you a lot more control over your dosing regime, you can mix the powders into a liquid solution, or add them straight into the tank. There are various dosing methods for you to use, but Estimative Index (EI) is the most popular.
Here is a good site for various dosing regimes, including more information on the two above, and how to make a DIY TPN+ mixture.
James' Planted Tank: Dosing Methods
Algae
Algae is unwanted in a planted aquarium. The most common of causes is:
Ammonia spikes, poor CO2 & nutrients, poor circulation.
Each algae specie is triggered by a different factor, so it is hard to cover each one in this guide. Here is a useful site to ID and rectify your algae problems.
James' Planted Tank: Algae Guide
Algae Guide 2
Ammonia comes from high stocking levels, disturbance of the substrate, rotting plants and other organic matter, and dirty filters.
Doing water changes removes algae spores, organic waste and dilutes ammonia.
Poor CO2 is unstable/ fluctuating CO2 and poor distribution. This is easy to fix with a pressurized system, less so with any other method.
Poor nutrients is easy to fix. Just add more!! Nutrients feed algae, they dont cause algae and that is the important thing to remember.
Limiting nutrients can induce some algae species such as Green dust algae and blue green algae (cyanobacteria). Limiting nutrients also results in poorer plant health, so they start to release ammonia which then triggers algae.
Turnover and Circulation
In a planted tank, it is reccomended you aim for a minimum of 10x turnover. Eg. In a 240litre tank, one should aim for 2400l/ph turnover whether it be through filtration or powerheads.
Filters usually work at half the manufacturers stated flow rate, however, you do not have to worry about this as the 10x guideline takes this into account.
Now you have turnover covered, you need to be efficient in using this to achieve the best circulation around the whole tank. This is to ensure nutrients & CO2 get delivered to all four corners of the tank, no dead spots (no water movement which could lead to algae), and to ensure detrius is moved around the tank so it can be picked up by the filter. Some people use a spraybar on the back wall, and point it directly at the front wall so it is pushed down and around the tank. Others rely on powerheads, and some can get away with using just the filter(s) alone.
Some go as high as 20x, which would be the maximum i would reccomend, anymore and the benefits it brings start to decrease.
Having a high turnover is good, but without circulating the water properly you are wasting the advantages it brings.
Cycling With Plants
So we know ammonia is often the cause of algae, therefore, cycling and plants isnt the best idea, as ammonia + light = algae. There is one of two ways you can go about this,
a) fishless cycle and add the plants after it is complete
or
b) Do a "silent cycle"
This involves planting the tank heavily (75% substrate coverage minimum) with fast growing plants. You can then add a few small fish such as tetras or shrimp which dont produce much waste (therefore little ammonia). The ammonia produced will be utilised by plants, and whatever ammonia passes through the filter will go towards the establishment of bacteria. It is advised to run purigen or zeolite (or any other form of ammonia remover) in the filter, this helps to minimize algae. Add this last in your filter, so ammonia is still in contact with the sponges & biomedia first.
If applicable, run the CO2 & nutrients as you would with a mature tank to ensure healthy plant growth.
A minimum of two 50% water changes per week is advised, as this removes algae spores and ammonia which again helps to minimize algae growth. I performed a 50% water change ever other day for the first 3 weeks, then cut down to two per week, and after 6 weeks i have just got down to doing one water change per week. I use a pump to make water hccnages easy and quick on my 216litre aquarium. I did more water changes than advised, but i have been rewarded with an algae free tank, all be there a bit of diatoms along the substrate.
With plants and filter media removing most of the ammonia, your fish will be safe, and the bacteria can still establish as usual. Just stock slowly adding abpout 6 fish every couple of weeks and build up gradually.
Why We Should Not Fishless Cycle Planted Tanks
Useful sites and pieces of information
James' Planted Tank Web Page
Green Needle
Planted Box
Aquatic Eden
Aquascaping World Magazine
Question about the science of CO2
Thanks, Aaron
Any questions please ask.
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