Substrates And Ferts?

[Truck]

my tank is coming in 2 weeks

there are so many substrates out there...

besides tropica plant substrate, what else is there im eyeing up tetra plant complete on fleabay, is it any good?

and besides TPN+ what others are there that compare with it that are easy to get hold of?

 

[SuperColey1]

TetraComplete is OK but there isn't much price difference between that and Tropica (which is very very good) so I can't see the point in trying to save pennies for the sake of it. You have to put gravel or sand on top of both of them.

There are loads of Ferts out there but many are not that good. The only thing in Europe that can compete with Tropica TPN+ are dry powders and mixing them yourself. The others get nowhere near or entice you along the lines of buying X number of bottles to use in combination with each other.

Believe me stick to Tropica rather than trying to save a couple of pounds. You will end up spending the saving on rectifying problems if you don't!!!

In the medium priced substrate range where Tropica is the only one I would use is Eco-Complete.

AC

 

[aaronnorth]

tropica is better than the tetraplant as it has a high CEC.

again TPN+ is generally regared as the best fert to use as it contains every nutrient you need. The second option would be seachem excel, although this does not contain as much NPK.

 

[Truck]

ok ill go for tropica ferts, but apart from aqua-essentials where else can i get it from online?

and the tropica substrate where else is that available online as AE dont have any at the moment

 

[SuperColey1]

the green machine (wrexham) or ebay.

Aaron of course means flourish not Excel Seachem are one of the companies that try to entice you in to buying many bottles to use in conjunction with each other.

AC

 

[Truck]

no luck with ebay for the tropica stuff , but the flourish items, ive been browsing and i see that seachem do flourish (nitrogen, phosphates and pottasium), would using these in condjunction with each other be benificial?, as i have trouble ordering over the internet as i dont have a credit card.

 

[Truck]

ignore my above post.

ive ordered tropica plant substrate 5 litres and tropica plant nutrition+ 500ml. anything else i should consider buying ferts-wise?

thanks A coley, the green machine is a perfect place for me to buy my items from.

 

[SuperColey1]

I see from the above you bought the Tropica which is a wise choice. There is no benefit from the Seachem products being used in conjunction compared to using an all in one like Tropica really. It makes it look more technical and therefore the user may think more advanced but Tropica is what is used to grow Tropica plants and therefore you can already see how well it performs!!!

The only benefit to the brands that you have to use in conjunction would be for the end user once experienced enough to use more or less of each component as he/she sees needed which is where dry ferts would be just the same and a lot cheaper.

I assume you'll be visiting TGM then??

You shouldn't need any ferts at the moment. Time for lighting/Co2 method to be planned

AC

 

[Truck]

I see from the above you bought the Tropica which is a wise choice. There is no benefit from the Seachem products being used in conjunction compared to using an all in one like Tropica really. It makes it look more technical and therefore the user may think more advanced but Tropica is what is used to grow Tropica plants and therefore you can already see how well it performs!!!

The only benefit to the brands that you have to use in conjunction would be for the end user once experienced enough to use more or less of each component as he/she sees needed which is where dry ferts would be just the same and a lot cheaper.

I assume you'll be visiting TGM then??

You shouldn't need any ferts at the moment. Time for lighting/Co2 method to be planned

AC

ive purchased tropica plants from my LFS from a new shipment and i was like , quality is excellent.

no im not visiting TGM ive ordered via internet and there posting it to me. ( i twisted my mothers arm after showing her all these recomendations


when i set the tank up im cloning the filter from my current tank, what should i do first? lights then CO2 then ferts? or CO2 lights then ferts?

what would be a good light period? 10 hours?

 

[aaronnorth]

the green machine (wrexham) or ebay.

Aaron of course means flourish not Excel Seachem are one of the companies that try to entice you in to buying many bottles to use in conjunction with each other.

AC

Yes Flourish

Set the CO2 up first, it helps with algae issues. 10hrs is fine, although some people choose to have a 6-8hr period when starting off, as this again minimizes algae due to the possible ammonia presence.

 

[Truck]

ok ive ordered my CO2 from my LFS ive gone for a giant fermentation kit, which states it can be run in tanks of up to 200 litres (but i bought 2 to be safe) i will set one up first and check with a drop checker and if theres not enough ill add the second unit