Plants Aren't Growing And I Have Algae Issues

[SuperColey1]

Noticed these whilst looking for something else earlier. Just after writing my last post. lol.

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Fresh-Sea-Sal...2?pt=UK_Pet_Supplies_Fish&hash=item4cf038850c

Apparently they just fit onto the nozzle of your powerhead and then you rotate it to where you want the direction to be Looks a tad better than those 'deflectors' that come with powerheads which seem to do nothing. lol.

AC

 

[Ryefish]

my siamese fighter fish died this morning he was the only one that was really affected by the flow of the powerhead, i think the other fish are able to handle it more

 

[KittyKat]

my siamese fighter fish died this morning he was the only one that was really affected by the flow of the powerhead, i think the other fish are able to handle it more

That is unfortunate, but did you not know that Bettas are unable to handle flow? They do come from stagnant puddles, as with many other labyrinths.

 

[SuperColey1]

That is unfortunate, but did you not know that Bettas are unable to handle flow? They do come from stagnant puddles, as with many other labyrinths.

People used to tell me that however when I had a Betta it used to head straight for the flow. Just like all my fish have. They seem to enjoy it like exercise.

AC

 

[KittyKat]

That is unfortunate, but did you not know that Bettas are unable to handle flow? They do come from stagnant puddles, as with many other labyrinths.

People used to tell me that however when I had a Betta it used to head straight for the flow. Just like all my fish have. They seem to enjoy it like exercise.

Everything, always, depends on individual fish, but out of the odd 30 fancy-tailed males I've had in the past maybe only one or two could put up with decent flow. There's nothing wrong with trying to see if the fish like the higher or lower flow, but if it's obvious that the fish is being affected in a negative way and is known to come from quiet waters..?

 

[Ryefish]

my siamese fighter fish died this morning he was the only one that was really affected by the flow of the powerhead, i think the other fish are able to handle it more

That is unfortunate, but did you not know that Bettas are unable to handle flow? They do come from stagnant puddles, as with many other labyrinths.

He didn't die because of the flow. I am not an idiot. If a fish can't handle the flow then you obviously don't force them to live in that. He was the reason why i had the powerhead placed in the position it was in, not where it created a whirlpool. Now he has passed i have moved it and hopefully it will benefit the whole tank more.
I moved the powerhead after my last post to circulate the tank more and lowered the fert to 5ml a day. I haven't noticed any changes so far but i understand this will probably take a few weeks atleast before changes are noted

 

[KittyKat]

my siamese fighter fish died this morning he was the only one that was really affected by the flow of the powerhead, i think the other fish are able to handle it more

That is unfortunate, but did you not know that Bettas are unable to handle flow? They do come from stagnant puddles, as with many other labyrinths.

He didn't die because of the flow. I am not an idiot. If a fish can't handle the flow then you obviously don't force them to live in that. He was the reason why i had the powerhead placed in the position it was in, not where it created a whirlpool. Now he has passed i have moved it and hopefully it will benefit the whole tank more.

Sorry, it sounded to me like you were saying that he was still having problems.

 

[coldcazzie]

What's your KH? That will have a lot to do with your pH. My Tap water comes out at 7.4, but my tank sits at around 6 naturally (maybe lower, I dont know because the kit only goes down to 6!), and that's because I have a KH of 3. I panicked about it at first, but now I just compensate for the low KH by doing larger water changes (50-70% weekly) rather than smaller ones. If I start to add CO2 then I may have to up the water changes to 40-50% twice weekly, if I see a problem with the pH, but tbh I don't care, and the fish don't seem to either! But then I don't have snails...(at least, not intentionally ) could you perhaps move your snails to another smaller tank where you can buffer to compensate for low PH and protect their shells, without having the added complications of plants and co2?? I know somebody on here (cant remember who...) has a KH of 0 and injects co2 like nothing on earth and has no issues...

 

[SuperColey1]

You were right at the beginning. Worry about the KH, forget about the Ph. CO2 altering the Ph will not cause a problem.

AC

 

[Ryefish]

I have no idea what my KH reading is but i imagine it is very low. Im not worried about it. The coral gravel i added to the filter has buffered it enough to keep the PH stable since i added it in.

I haven't noticed any difference with the tank yet but it has only been a few days

 

[coldcazzie]

Your fish might not like you messing with the KH of the water...although to be fair you haven't mentioned any fish as far as I can see (just skimmed back).

 

[SuperColey1]

I wouldn't worry too much about the Kh wither unless its crashing. I haven't tested Ph for a year or more and never tested for KH.

With me doing the non water change non CO2 route the KH may well have reduced to zero over time as the plants find alternative sources for their C But it will have benn a gradual reduction.

AC

 

[Ryefish]

I have noticed some changes in the amount of algae on my plants since adding the new powerhead. there is definately a lot less bba. There is still brown algae on the glass and around the sand but i think thats due to the sand. My tank is a little overstocked atm and im buying a new, better and more powerful filter in three weeks to compensate for it and to clean the tank up a bit more. Im getting annoyed with the lack of media space in my eheim and buying a fluvel 205 or 305 instead, havent decided which one yet.

A lot of my plants are still browning and have holes in so there is definately a deficiency in there. The plants arent getting enough from the tpn+. Im thinking of giving EI a try when its payday at the end of the month. Also thinking of a different scape and shotting out the swords and some others. Ill have to update my journal later

A little preoccupied with siamese fighter fish at the minute lol

 

[KittyKat]

I actually found that a box-shaped equivalent Eheim holds about double the media of a 305.

Keep us posted on how the dosing is going..

 

[Ryefish]

I dont know where i can get a box eheim the same price i can get a fluval for from work. Ill have a look about though. Thanks for the advice