[eternity302]

Okay, I just started planting just a little while back!
Anyways, is there such a thing called too much light?

I'm only at 84w (3x24w) T5's in a 60 gallon tank which is 2.5feet deep!
Most plants are thriving since I added the additional bulb! 2 x 6700k + 1 x 10000k! BUT, some of the plants seem to getting brown on the top! Is it too much light? or is it because of the 10000k bulb? As I read, 1w per 1g is already very very minimal, and I already dose seachem flourish once every few days! So i'm guessing it's not the mal-nutrition, and it's not too much light, so could it be the 10000k bulb?

Any help or suggestions would be great! Thanks
btw.. only the top is getting brown, but the bottom leaves are doing fine... so that's why I dun suspect malnutrition!

 

[2wheelsx2]

It's not too much light. But it is too much light relative to nutrition. You changed the balance by adding more light. Are they HO T5's? With properly reflectors? Or is it a DIY rig with no reflectors?

Are you dosing anything besides Flourish? Excel? Macros? What kind of fish load and water change? Water parameters?

I suspect the tips are going brown because it's getting a lot more light than the rest of the plant. It would aslo help if you told what plant it is and whether all your plants are doing it. I am assuming you are getting this in a stem plant.

 

[eternity302]

Not HO, Just the regular Coralife Single strip T5 that came with my setup, and Coralife Double Strip that's brand new~

Dosing Seachem flourish, sera root tabs, PH7, KH3, 0 Ammonia, 0 Nitrate! Fishloads are several rainbows and several congos with a yoyo loach and apisto! Water change is weekly 30% - 40%! Only vaccuum whatevers on the top of the gravel without disturbing the plants and vaccuuming whatever area without plants! And also DIY co2 that's connected to the the top of fluval 3 plus! running a eheim 2215, fluval 3 plus x2 with lowest flow rate possible!

Amazon plants are doing normal? hardly any growth and hardly any melting!
I dun recall all the plants name, there's one that looks like cabbage leaves LOL, they're doing extremely, roots and leaves are flying all over the places!

And you're correct, it's a type of stem plant! the bottom seem to be umm.. not as healthy? but still really green and not dying! The top is a little brown!

Does 10000k light make any affect to plants or doesn't do anything?

Thanks for the expert advice

 

[2wheelsx2]

0 nitrate is your problem. With 0 nitrates, plants cannot utilize phosphates, hence 0 uptake. So you're going putting in trace and whatever your fish is outputing. You need to start some sort of dosing scheme, and I suggest using EI.

The 10000K is fine. I just a combination of 10000K and the Colormax and really good growth with the Coralife NO t5's.

 

[eternity302]

Okay... so put in trace...! ~.~" sigh... so I guess one easy way of spiking up the nitrate is let them poop! HAHAH!!

I'm planning on buying 4x65w compact fixture from one of the member! Anyways, I guess i should just buy it and leave it on the side first!

So what's EI? And what should i actually do or buy? =) Thanks

 

[2wheelsx2]

Estimative Index dosing. It is combination of dosing trace and macros: NPK. There are many links which provide better instruction than me. And Shawn had a nice sticky on it in the old forum under planted tanks.

Here's a link that explains it: http://www.plantedtank.net/forums/fertilizers-water-parameters/21944-_dosing-regimes_.html

 

[cheesekipper]

There's a good link to EI as a sticky in this subforum check it out, you'll probably have to do a little reading around to get a real good grasp on things, at least if your anything like me that is.. the link to purchase the chemicals required for EI that's provided in the sticky I've had troubles with navigating the website and actually buying anything

 

[Adz1]

Okay, I just started planting just a little while back!
Anyways, is there such a thing called too much light?

I'm only at 84w (3x24w) T5's in a 60 gallon tank which is 2.5feet deep!
Most plants are thriving since I added the additional bulb! 2 x 6700k + 1 x 10000k! BUT, some of the plants seem to getting brown on the top! Is it too much light? or is it because of the 10000k bulb? As I read, 1w per 1g is already very very minimal, and I already dose seachem flourish once every few days! So i'm guessing it's not the mal-nutrition, and it's not too much light, so could it be the 10000k bulb?

Any help or suggestions would be great! Thanks
btw.. only the top is getting brown, but the bottom leaves are doing fine... so that's why I dun suspect malnutrition!

some ones math is not working.....
3x24 is only 72w
also if I'm not mistaken T5 lighting counts as 1.5 watts per gallon as the watts per gallon rule was built around the standard fluorescent bulb.(T12 or T8) i believe.

 

[eternity302]

some ones math is not working.....
3x24 is only 72w
also if I'm not mistaken T5 lighting counts as 1.5 watts per gallon as the watts per gallon rule was built around the standard fluorescent bulb.(T12 or T8) i believe.

OOPS! My bad, this is what happens after a few beer!
Anyways, and it's 28w per T5

So the t5 shouldn't take that rule eh? so what rules should a T5 take? been roaming around trying to learn and make a good plant tank.. other than this one type of plant, everything else is thriving!!

 

[MananaP]

OOPS! My bad, this is what happens after a few beer!
Anyways, and it's 28w per T5

So the t5 shouldn't take that rule eh? so what rules should a T5 take? been roaming around trying to learn and make a good plant tank.. other than this one type of plant, everything else is thriving!!

That is T5HO which is about 1.5-1.6w if you want to compare to a regular CFL.

 

[eternity302]

Thanks, that helps! =) I always thought CFL were more than T5!

WOW! that link is crazy... sigh... plants arent cheap to take care of! LOL! I knew it could get crazy, but that's just insane!

 

[Morainy]

Sometimes brown can be caused by diatoms or brown algae, especially in aquariums that are fairly recently established. If you are finding brownish scum on the glass walls of your tank (near the bottom) then the brown on the tops of your plants might be diatoms. You can sometimes wash or wipe the brown off the plants.

CRS_Fan told me that otos eat diatoms and he must be right because my planted oto/betta tank never suffers from this but my other tanks do.

 

[eternity302]

I have a school of 4 otos working inside with 2 filter shrimps, so somehow I'm doubting it's brown algae, but thanks for the input as well =( just want this tank to look pretty, but wow... that link on EI dosing is seriously to the extreme! just to buy all the fertz will be over $100

 

[2wheelsx2]

It'll cost you under $30. If you're uncertain about it, I can provide you some to try. At Solar, with the discount, we can pick up NPK for under $20 (well maybe not including taxes). A 1 lb tub will a 20 high light tank years. I use a 5 lb KNO3 tub for my 125 and so far, it's been more than a year and I still have 20% left. I think my 5 lb cost me $35.

 

[eternity302]

I'm a little confused when you talk about things like NPK?? 1lb tub of? KNO3 tub? =( sorry, I'm not that good, im only using sera root tabs and seachem flourish! As for reading that whole link, it wuz completely interesting, but when I try to look for stuff online, it's not as specific as those do! =) thanks again! I'm an idiot!

 

[2wheelsx2]

Sorry, I meant a 1 lb tub of KNO3. It's the component that's used the most. NPK = nitrogen phosphorous potassium. KNO3 for nitrates, KH2PO4 for phosphates and K2SO4 for potassium. And yes, you're dosing K with N and P, so in a lower light tank, you may not need potassium sulphate (depending if you are relying on fish waste for some N and P. Since KNO3 is dosed at a ratio of 4:1 to phosphates, the consumption of KNO3 is highest. At the end of the week, the 50%+ water change "resets" all the parameters.

Don't be intimidated by the dosing scheme. I know I was until I started doing it. I asked lots of questions and starting dosing dry and now I don't even think about it. When I leave instructions for dosing when I have to go out of town, people think I'm an alien.

It's essentially NPK macros 3 days a week, and trace (your Flourish) 3 days, on alternation days (apparently phosphates block some uptake of trace minerals, particularly iron). And on the 7th day, you don't dose and then you do the big water change and start all over. It's actually quite simple. There are many members who use it here and other dosing schemes, so just post up in the plant forum and someone may explain it better than me.

Everyone has to start somewhere, so don't be too embarrassed to ask questions.

 

[eternity302]

Can you simplify that? HAHAHA!!

And trust me, I rather look like an idiot than pretend I know alot!
HAHA, or maybe I should just come to find you on day 3 and day 6!! LOL!

 

[target]

^^I'm with you. The whole dosing thing is still a puzzle to me. Need to spend a lot of time over at Gary's watching him do his tank before I can figure it out.

 

[eternity302]

^^I'm with you. The whole dosing thing is still a puzzle to me. Need to spend a lot of time over at Gary's watching him do his tank before I can figure it out.

He's like my new mentor right now! Unless he can simplify that.. i will have to sit at his house on day 3 and day 6 just to figure it all out!

 

[2wheelsx2]

Can you simplify that? HAHAHA!!

And trust me, I rather look like an idiot than pretend I know alot!
HAHA, or maybe I should just come to find you on day 3 and day 6!! LOL!

Your wish is my command (sitting in an airport with nothing to do anyway, even though I know you're half joking):

Let's use a 20 gallon with high light for example, say 48 watts of T5HO with good individual reflectors:

Sunday, Tuesday, Thursday: 1/4 Tsp-KN03 3, 1/16 Tsp-KH2P04,
If you want, you can dose 1/2 Tsp-GH booster once a week. I dose 1/2 tsp of epsom salts and plaster of paris instead

Monday, Wednesday, Friday: 5ml or 1/16Tsp-Trace (This is you Seachem Flourish)

Saturday, dose nothing.

Sunday, do a 50% (or more) water change and do it all over again.

That's it. If you have red plants, you may dose iron with the trace. And you may dose K2SO4 with the macros if you want.

So you can work out the number by multiples or fractions of 20 gallons. If you have lower light, lower demand plants, you can start to cut it back slowly by observing your plants. As soon as you see adverse effects, up it a bit and then just keep it up.