Flop: Natural lit tank

[gregorsamsa]

hey folks,

i setup a 2ft by the window tank just to house a red Tiger Lotus, however it has since been overwhelmed by green water.

link to the sole pic is as follows (i could only take one pic because you ant see anything from the top)

http://www.arofanatics.com/members/g...sa/greenwater/

tank specs are as follows

tank is 2 ft held by just the window ledge
Lighting ambient all the way, direct sunlight from 1-5pm
DIY CO2 bell jar (seen from pic)
no filter
substrate: cocopeat topped up by black gravel
fertilisers: root monsters for sole lotus

Plants are growing well except for the initial bunch of reds which turned green because of suspected P deficiency.

Glosso
Elatine Triandra
Nymphea ZEnkeri
Valisi Spiralis
2 unknow stemmed plants
Cambomba, h. difformis and the plant given by little fish are grown floating for nutrient absorption

My question is, would the green water go away given enough time and space? personally i feel green water is alright but considering that it is in my balcony by the living room, it is rather unsightly.

And i have an observation, that a smaller tank (cocopeat base too) that only recieves indirect sunlight, the water is clear and the leaves of the Ammania gracilis is better form and redder.

[PeterGwee]

Direct sunlight (very high light) with DIY CO2 or gas CO2 is asking for trouble. Unless you are able to keep up with the CO2 demands, you have a problem. Stop using the sunlight..block it out and use low light FL would be much better for your setup. A bell is not an efficient way of diffusing CO2...use a reactor.

Regards
Peter Gwee

[gregorsamsa]

i noted the bell jar peter.

anyway im doing this as a holiday "get a lotus bloom" experiment, cause i have setup with supplied electrical lighting. Most probably will wait a few more days before bringing it indoors cause there is a cash flow problem to get one more set o lightings.

thanks peter

[bclee]

I have done something similar...

If you have limited budget, you can try to go non-CO2.

First, it is better to pack the tank with as much plants as possible. The amount of plants you have in the picture is too little. Try also to get more rossette type of plant so that you do not need to disturb the substrate while triming. This will help you deal with the ammonia that causes greenwater. Some suggestion for plants: E. tenellus, Cryptocoryne sp., H. corymbosa "compact", frogbit (good for blocking out some lights), and your current nymphea lotus.

Do away with CO2 if you do not intend to invest in a proper CO2 system. Bell jar is definitely not good enough for a 2-footer. My suggestion is to go CO2-less. For a non-CO2 injected tank, don't change water too frequently (prob once every 2 months or longer), add little or no fertilisers depending on bioload and do not disturb the substrate.

Try to give it a partial shade. It will give you less problem with a little less light.

BC

[gregorsamsa]

BC noted. i wanted to use the nutrafin flipper as i have one, but daren't to try cos of potential algae problem. The DIY co2 i used two coke bottles inlined with a t-joint.

the plants look less because ieither gave away my tall valis the other time, and also while replanting for this tank, the remaining valis were dried up in a very short time due to the afternoon sun.

As for shading, sadly, it cant be done because that is the only location on my balcony that can support the tank without tipping over. It recieves direct sunlight not only from the top, but also from the sides as my flat faces west.

will keep in view for future references. i have to wait for next year till i decide what to do cos of budgetary constraints.

thanks

[gregorsamsa]

just to confirm,

M i safe to say that the green water is the result of prolonged and ecessive lighting, exacerbated with a possibility of leaching from the base? An another aggravating factor is because it is sparsely planted?

[bclee]

[quote:c168d7f9b9="gregorsamsa"]just to confirm,

M i safe to say that the green water is the result of prolonged and ecessive lighting, exacerbated with a possibility of leaching from the base? An another aggravating factor is because it is sparsely planted?[/quote:c168d7f9b9]

The trigger for greenwater is usually ammonia (NH3). This can come from the base fertiliser, fish waste, rotting plant matter, etc. Having a densely planted tank helps to deal with the ammonia.

From the picture, your plants seemed to be in a bad shape. I am speculating that it may be due to the high temperature. If your temperature is >29°C, you have to choose plants that can withstand higher temperatures.

BC

[gregorsamsa]

Roger that BC.

i believe that only the Valis are dying. The stemmed plants are actually sprouting side stems.

BTW, any plants that are indigeneous to high temperature waters you guys recommend that are available in the market. Ive tried the flora album and most of them just place a wide range or arent specified


cheers

[David]

Bclee......One can place a plain cup of water with nothing in under direct sunlight and after a week or so, besides mosquitoes larve, you get green water.........

[PeterGwee]

[quote:2ce6e96d94="David"]Bclee......One can place a plain cup of water with nothing in under direct sunlight and after a week or so, besides mosquitoes larve, you get green water......... [/quote:2ce6e96d94]

Mmmm...are you sure what you place in the cup is tap water? Did anyone add anything special (jia liao) to the cup? :P

Regards
Peter Gwee

[David]

Serious.....its tap water......

[tranquillizer]

[quote:fa5d9b8689="bclee"]I have done something similar...

If you have limited budget, you can try to go non-CO2.

First, it is better to pack the tank with as much plants as possible. The amount of plants you have in the picture is too little. Try also to get more rossette type of plant so that you do not need to disturb the substrate while triming. This will help you deal with the ammonia that causes greenwater. Some suggestion for plants: E. tenellus, Cryptocoryne sp., H. corymbosa "compact", frogbit (good for blocking out some lights), and your current nymphea lotus.

Do away with CO2 if you do not intend to invest in a proper CO2 system. Bell jar is definitely not good enough for a 2-footer. My suggestion is to go CO2-less. For a non-CO2 injected tank, don't change water too frequently (prob once every 2 months or longer), add little or no fertilisers depending on bioload and do not disturb the substrate.

Try to give it a partial shade. It will give you less problem with a little less light.

BC[/quote:fa5d9b8689]

Hi BC,
Do u mean using liquid C02 instead or totally no C02 at all ?
But without C02 won't the plants rot even faster ?