starting EI today

[danski]

okay i would like to start my EI today but wanna double check to see that i am on the right track. well i plan on making my nitrate mixture in a 500ml quantity of distilled water and heres what i think i should be doing. According to the calculator if i add 79 grams to 500 ml of water i come up with a ppm of 1.0ppm in a 29gal tank. Is this what im after? I hope because maybe im understanding what im reading
i wanna premix so that each ml will gives me one ppm.Is this correct?
thanks

 

[houndour]

OK, you want 1ml of solution to equal 1ppm.

If thats the case, I work out that you need to add 90g of KNO3 to 500ml water. So your calculations are right, you just had it for 0.1ppm (as you stated). This based on 29 gallons (110 litres).

//edit
since I posted this you've edited your post lol

 

[danski]

yah i had it at 0.10ppm first and went and recalculated it to 90 grams instead of 9. of course thats why i asked i knew i would overlook somethin. so 90 grams will dissolve in that little amount of water ha? i was just telling my wife how 500ml of water doesnt look like that much water could even hold 90 grams.thanks for lookin out for me houndour. well im to the phone to look for a cheap digital scale to weigh out my powder then

 

[zig]

hondour is correct you add 90 grams KNO3 to give 1m/l = 1.01ppm which is fine.

 

[danski]

okay so i am going to make up my mixtures after picking up some water and a scale and i wanted to share my other numbers from todays tank water. todays stats were
kh-8
nitrite-0
nitrate-0
ammo-0
ph-7.2 (normally lower but im due for a mixture change too)
phosphate-0.5
so as my nitrate is bottomed out i understand i need to add 1ppm per daythen to slowly build it up or can i safely add more?
i know my phosphate is also low but how do i measure the 0.20 out of my premix solution?
should i be using my tank numbers for no3 and po4 or tap?
i realise my o2 is below target but im hoping its only because i need to change a bottle, its normally at 25 to 30ppm.

 

[zig]

okay so i am going to make up my mixtures after picking up some water and a scale and i wanted to share my other numbers from todays tank water. todays stats were
kh-8
nitrite-0
nitrate-0
ammo-0
ph-7.2 (normally lower but im due for a mixture change too)
phosphate-0.5
so as my nitrate is bottomed out i understand i need to add 1ppm per daythen to slowly build it up or can i safely add more?
i know my phosphate is also low but how do i measure the 0.20 out of my premix solution?
should i be using my tank numbers for no3 and po4 or tap?
i realise my o2 is below target but im hoping its only because i need to change a bottle, its normally at 25 to 30ppm.

[snapback]896837[/snapback]​

For the PO4 mix 20 grams with 500ml water to give you 1m/l of solution = 0.25ppm PO4, i think in my guide i have 0.20 but 0.25 will be fine. Dose 0.25ppm today, and tomorrow dose another 0.25, and then check your reading with a testkit and see if you are at 1ppm PO4, if not dose another 0.25ppm PO4 the next day, keep dosing until you reach 1ppm. The phosphate will be used up a lot slower than the nitrate.


Add 1ppm nitrate today, 2ppm tomorrow, and increase it by 1ppm each day until you get a reading of 10ppm on a testkit, it will probably take about 6-7 days to reach 10ppm, dont forget the plants will be consuming it during this time as well so dont be surprised if you lower readings than what you have dosed if you were to test 24 hours later.

Use your tank numbers primarily for your dosage quantities, but be aware of your tap readings, and when you do a 50% water change and add the new tapwater to the tank, then do tests to see what readings you are getting for PO4 and NO3, and top up with the required dosage to get 1ppm PO4 and 10ppm NO3, but that will be next week after you have gotten over the initial buildup dosages you are doing this week.

Anyway hope that makes sense, just ask if your not sure about anything, best of luck with it, it becomes really easy after a few weeks once you get into the routine.

 

[danski]

okay zig thanks for the info. i will keep everyone informed of my progress. yes you made things really clear thanks again.

 

[danski]

okay i think i have successfully started on the EI method. I have premixed all my solutions did my 50% water changed changed my co2 added 1ppm of nitrate added .25ml phosphate.
2 questions
1) whats the best method for storing my mixtures. its currently outside in the garage,and gets pretty hot.
2) do i still dose my micro nutrients(seachem flourish) tomorrow along with my po4 and no3 ? i thought i read dosing my micros with the po4 would result in cloudy water.
thanks.

 

[zig]

okay i think i have successfully started on the EI method. I have premixed all my solutions did my 50% water changed changed my co2 added 1ppm of nitrate added .25ml phosphate.
2 questions
1) whats the best method for storing my mixtures. its currently outside in the garage,and gets pretty hot.
2) do i still dose my micro nutrients(seachem flourish) tomorrow along with my po4 and no3 ? i thought i read dosing my micros with the po4 would result in cloudy water.
thanks.

[snapback]897249[/snapback]​

Its really only when you dose PO4 and an Iron supplement (Fe) that you will get cloudy water in that case you would dose the iron on days you dose the trace.

Its normally not recommended that you will dose PO4 and trace (the flourish) on the same day either, but in a startup phase i wouldnt worry about it, its only going to take less than a week to build up the PO4 levels sufficiently and next week after your first water change you will dose them seperatly on alternate days, the PO4 and the KNO3 will be dosed on the same day and the trace the next day.

Dose them every day until you reach the target of 1ppm PO4 and 10ppm no3, you will reach the target for po4 in about 4 days and then you stop dosing and check it a couple of days later and if it has'nt diminished that much wait until your water change and then dose 1ppm phosphate directly to the tank, same for the nitrate on the day of the water change dose 10ppm directly to the tank, and now you are starting off afresh as it were and then the next day you will dose the trace.

I would store them in a cooler place if you could, but i dont know the long term effects of keeping them in hotter conditions, if you ever get around to useing the plantex instead of the flourish, that will be stored in the fridge.

 

[danski]

thanks zig. sorry to keep bothering

 

[zig]

thanks zig. sorry to keep bothering

[snapback]897690[/snapback]​

No problem danski just ask away, it takes a bit of time in the beginning to get your head around what you are auctually doing, so better to check if your not sure, i didnt really have anyone to ask things when i started on EI so i understand how confusing it can be at times, you will get the hang of it in a few weeks, but if your not sure just ask, and soon enough you will be able to guide people yourself.

 

[danski]

yah thats what im looking forward to helping others also . ive already passed along qiete a bit that ive learned from you already. cant wait to see what happens to my tank when EI really kicks in.

 

[George Farmer]

thanks zig. sorry to keep bothering

[snapback]897690[/snapback]​

No problem danski just ask away, it takes a bit of time in the beginning to get your head around what you are auctually doing, so better to check if your not sure, i didnt really have anyone to ask things when i started on EI so i understand how confusing it can be at times, you will get the hang of it in a few weeks, but if your not sure just ask, and soon enough you will be able to guide people yourself.

[snapback]897711[/snapback]​

zig - otherwise know as Saint zig!

 

[zig]

thanks zig. sorry to keep bothering

[snapback]897690[/snapback]​

No problem danski just ask away, it takes a bit of time in the beginning to get your head around what you are auctually doing, so better to check if your not sure, i didnt really have anyone to ask things when i started on EI so i understand how confusing it can be at times, you will get the hang of it in a few weeks, but if your not sure just ask, and soon enough you will be able to guide people yourself.

[snapback]897711[/snapback]​

zig - otherwise know as Saint zig!

[snapback]897759[/snapback]​

lol......first ive heard of it !!