Plants Stopped Growing

[mister-t]

well it seems like my plants have suddenly stopped growing and maybe algae is begining to form.
i have pressurised co2,drop checker i would say is more yellow than green,sand substrate.its a 180ltr tank,with two 30 watt bulbs.now i dont want to go the ei route,so would anyone have an alternative method of replacing any nutrients that the plants may be lacking,or should i just leave alone and see if the plants decide to regrow.i had noticed that one or two of the plants had stems that had turned a white colour,and where very brittle,slightest touch and the stem broke.any help as always much appreciated
mister-t

 

[SuperColey1]

Can you answer the following questions for us please and then you are sure to get many replies (most probably differing)

You have 60W light. What size lights are they T5, T8, T10, T12, PC and what typw of bulbs are you using.

what is your current fertiliser regime? Off the shelf, dry ferts, None?

What plants do you have?

Some pics of the tank may be good too, to see the poitioning of inlets, outlets, diffusor etc.

My initial guess from your descriptions would be a nutrient defficiency most probably nitrate or Boron. Take a look at this link and see if any describe your problems and be sure to post your answers. It may be a little slower in terms of responses over the next few days but we'll do our best.

LINK TO DEFICIENCIES

Andy

 

[mister-t]

the lights are as follows,warm-lite 30watt,day-lite 30 watt
fertiliser regime is tropiflora as directed on bottle,which i do every water change,
the plants are as follows,
10 X MICRO SAGITTARIA
3 X DWARF SWORDS
2 X SAGITTARIA NATANS
BUNCH (7) BABY TEARS BACOPA
5 X CRYPTOCORYNE WENDTII
1 X NARROW SWORD
BUNCH (10) MYACCA FLUVIATILIS
BUNCH (5) CREEPING JENNY
BUNCH (5) HYGRO. POLYSPERMA
BUNCH (5) STRAIGHT VALLISNERIA
BUNCH (5) ELODEA DENSA
BUNCH (5) LUDWIGIA NATANS
BUNCH (5) GREEN CABOMBA
BUNCH (5) BRONZE BACOPA
BUNCH (5) TWISTED VALLISNERIA
2 X SAGITTARIA NATANS
3 X WATER WISTERIA
2 X BULB SPECIES
BUNCH (5) RED SPECIES
5 X SALVINIA FLOATING
2 X AMAZON SWORDS
BUNCH (4) THAILAND STRICTA
sory unable to take pics at the moment due to faulty camera

 

[SuperColey1]

Of your 2 lights the warm Glo is not much use for plants. The daylight is OK but you should really get a pink light to go with it. Hagen as per the others should be OK.

You have low light at approx 1.25WPG. It is workable though but you need to work with a more restricted amount of plants. Saying that there are still plenty tochose from. LLJ whos is one of the mods on this section is an expert at his sort of thing.

The tank in the following link is a 1WPG 125Ltr tank also has pressurised CO2 and also uses off the shelf ferts just like yours. He doses daily at a rate of approx 1ml per 60Ltrs.
125Ltr Low light tank

Notice the plants he has there are all low light Crypts, Ferns, Anubias etc. This is what you need to do but shouldn't feel restricted to these 3 types of plants as there are plenty more.

From your plant list I would have to assume that with no pictures that you have too many plant for the nutrient they are getting. CO2 should be OK and although you have low light the plants are needing more than the fishwaste and ferts are providing.

Most of your plants seem OK although you may struggle with the Bacopas and Myacca under your lights. Therefore I can only asume that it is the ferts and once you replace the warmlite with a pink light you should be able to get this tank growing again.

Sorry I couldn't help any more.

Andy

 

[mister-t]

SuperColey1 thanks for all your help,the lights came with my tank,a juwel rio 180,so if i upgrade the lights as you suggested and dose with some good ferts then i should see an improvement.would root tabs make a difference?
anyway thanks again for all your help
mister-t

 

[SuperColey1]

Root Tabs would help.

Are you in the UK? If so I would go to AquaEssentials.co.uk and buy the Tropica Root Tabs. Then replace your existing liquid fertiliser with the Tropica Plant Nutrition+ (make sure is +) Then you should be on the same level as the tank in the link. (Tropica is about the best plant fertiliser around.)

They have all the plant lights on the same site too.

Andy

 

[mister-t]

SuperColey1,as always thanks very much for your help,but a bit confused about the lighting,t5,t6,t8,not sure which ones to get,also do i get two of the same,for example two daylights.also tube legnth,the tubes in my rio are 895mm so would need replacements at that size.
once again thanks for all your help,and yes im in the uk

 

[SuperColey1]

The T number refers to the diameter of the light in eighths of an inch. Therefore T5 = 5/8ths of an inch. T12 = 1½inches.

Not sure what is available in the US so try somewhere like Doc Fosters & Smith or other pet suppliers. What you will want ideally is a pink/purple light (for plant growth) and a daylight to balance out the pink colour.

You also definately want reflectors to go with these. Nothing expensive. Some cheap ones that just clip on to the bulbs will suffice.

Andy

 

[mister-t]

im in the uk my friend,just been on the juwel website and the t5 tubes will fit my light unit,and will also invest in some reflectors,once again thanks for all your help
mister-t

 

[SuperColey1]

I would check first. Juwel have only just changed their I-Bars to T5 ones. As a guide T5 is the width of an external hose whereas T8 is your standard light size.

If you are UK then I would suggest looking on AquaEssentials or follow the other light threads on here. Not cheap lights for planted but then you get what you pay for.

Andy

 

[mister-t]

ok thanks m8,i removed one of the light tubes and measured it at the end,across the face and it was 1inch.
once again thanks for all your help
mister-t

 

[SuperColey1]

1" = T8 then - Available at Pets at Home but online prices are better.

I would buy the following:

Link to Reflectors - Arcadia and Juwel (I would suggest the Arcadia ones)

Arcadia 30W Freshwater

GroLux 30W Pink Light

There may be cheaper alternatives and maybe cheaper sites but I always get top notch service from these and when you are ordering light bulbs they need to packaged very well (as these people do)

Hope this helps and good luck

Andy

 

[Rob.S]

There may be cheaper alternatives and maybe cheaper sites but I always get top notch service from these and when you are ordering light bulbs they need to packaged very well (as these people do)

Oh yes; lots & lots of cardboard protection when you buy from them.

 

[mister-t]

a little update,ive ordered the root tabs and the tropica plant nutrition +.
could only get one of the lights today which was the arcadia fresheater light.so i replaced the warm glo with the new light,its sort of given the tank a pinkish tint.reflectors ill get next weekend and will see if i can get a grolux pink light.
mister-t

 

[SuperColey1]

you sure you bought freshwater? This should give the tank a whitish green tint.

The Original Tropical is Arcadia's pink light! You didn't buy this one did you?

The freshwater combined with a pink light (preferably not the Orig Tropical because that is a very pink light) should give a balance in between the green and pink and look much more natural to the human eye.

Andy