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Thread: Help with LushGrow fert

  1. #1
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    Help with LushGrow fert

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    Hi all,

    Need some guidance on how to use their ferts, do I dose according to what is recommended by them? Or do I use the online calculator to calculate the dosage? I bought the HPC set 1 and dose according to what was written. Then my fishes started dying. Have already done a 50% water change hoping none will die somemore. Need urgent help here, cause my tank is 4ft and is heavily planted with CO2. Now is only lacking the fert regime.

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    Re: Help with LushGrow fert

    Are you referring to this package deal?

    http://www.ecocityhydroponics.com/hp...hobbyists.html

    The recommended dosages are okay and shouldn't affect most livestock (i've done that before in a tank with fishes and shrimps and they were all fine, even when i double and tripled the dosages as the plant density increased)... though if you have particularly sensitive fishes, then have to reduce dosages and only gradually increase it over a period of time so that those fishes can slowly adapt to it.

    The only additive i don't use is Sodium Bicarbonate (NaHCO3), especially if i'm maintaining a planted tank with active aquasoil (ie. ADA Amazonia) that already buffers KH and pH lower. Adding NaHCO3 can push up the pH from acidic to alkaline and cause an imbalance, its the sudden swing in pH that creates issues for certain livestock.

    Btw, what kind of fishes where those that died?

    In the meantime, do also check the other parameters in the tank and also the Co2 levels, it might be possible there could be other causes of the fish deaths too.
    Last edited by Urban Aquaria; 24th Feb 2016 at 17:11.
    :: Urban Aquaria ::
    www.urbanaquaria.com

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    Re: Help with LushGrow fert

    2 of my dicus died so far, a couple of otos and SAEs. It's almost like after I started add the UREA, my ammonia spiked by a lot causing this. So it's okay to daily dose the entire package (except the Sodium Bicarbonate)?

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    Re: Help with LushGrow fert

    Yup, it's that package, the other parameters seems fine. Even the ammonia dropped to acceptable level after the 50% water change.

    As for CO2, I have no idea how to check. It's like no matter what I do, the drop checker still always remains as green. I'm using 4DKH water with API's PH testing liquid. Even when I pump oxygen into the tank, it still remains as green.

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    Re: Help with LushGrow fert

    Quote Originally Posted by ZacNg View Post
    2 of my dicus died so far, a couple of otos and SAEs. It's almost like after I started add the UREA, my ammonia spiked by a lot causing this. So it's okay to daily dose the entire package (except the Sodium Bicarbonate)?
    Oh no, Urea is a form of Ammonia, no wonder your fishes died!
    It is stated in their website,"DO NOT USE in planted tanks."
    http://www.ecocityhydroponics.com/urea.html

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    Re: Help with LushGrow fert

    Yeah, sounds like the sudden ammonia spike from the urea fertiliser component of the package probably affected those sensitive fishes like discus and ottos. I guess you will have to skip dosing that component, or only dose very little and observe the livestock reactions before increasing the dosages.

    Btw, what are the plant types and their density in your tank? A photo of your tank would help alot. In a densely planted tank with fast growing plants, such ferts are usually used up very quickly so livestock are not overly affected. If livestock start dying when these ferts are added, it could be due to too little plant mass/slow uptake which results in excessive nutrient concentration lingering around for too long in the water column. In such cases, you'll have to reduce the dosages accordingly.

    Dosage recommendations and calculators are only general guidelines, since they can't know what exact type and quantity of plants and livestock every user keeps... so there is still a measure of trial and error required.

    As for your Co2 drop checker, seems like it's not working as properly as it should. Not sure how accurate it can be using pH test solution, but it would be best to switch to a pre-mixed Co2 indicator solution, so that you can base the measurements on a standardised tried and tested solution.
    :: Urban Aquaria ::
    www.urbanaquaria.com

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    Re: Help with LushGrow fert

    IMG_0202.jpg

    This is a pic of my tank,quite densely planted already, consist of HC, Alternanthera Reineckii "mini", Ammania Bonsai, Nana petit, Echinodorus Tenellus, Lobelia Cardinalis, Eleocharis Vivipara, Erio Vietnam, Eriocaulon Sp. Truncatum, Pogostemon Helferi, Spiky Moss
    Some unkown crypt from my other tank.

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    Re: Help with LushGrow fert

    For LushGrow on planted tank, I thought most people just use the Aqua and Micro? And KH2PO4 for phosphorus. But you have to dose much more for heavily planted tank. The recommended dosage on label is PMDD method.

    Sent from my HM 1S using Tapatalk

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    Re: Help with LushGrow fert

    But if I'm not wrong, none of those above provide a source for N. The only source for N in that package is only thru UREA, the other source is if purchase another calcium nitrate.

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    Re: Help with LushGrow fert

    Given the fishes in your tank, if you feed them frequently, their waste should provide enough N with lushgro aqua.
    Or you can dilute urea in a bottle of water, cycle the bottle of water, before dosing into tank
    Last edited by WingCher; 25th Feb 2016 at 13:16.

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    Re: Help with LushGrow fert

    Right now, I'm doing KH2PO4, K2SO4 & MgSO4 at 1g per day, 20ml of lushgro aqua, 0.2ml of lushhgro micro and 1.4ml of Aquavito synethesis and activate daily. Hopefully my plants will grow well now.

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    Re: Help with LushGrow fert

    The plants in your tank look like they were recently added so i guess the plants are probably still in various stages of transition... that could explain the lower nutrient uptake during this period. Though its still better to supply the plants with ample nutrients to use, rather than too little.

    Unlike off-the-shelf branded bottled ferts which are more conservative in their nutrient concentration (hence less issues with livestock)... those DIY ferts tend to be much more aggressive in nutrients levels so there is a higher chance of affecting the more sensitive livestock.

    Btw, since you have fishes in the tank, i assume your filter is fully seasoned and cycled? Usually a cycled filter can convert ammonia quickly so that it become less toxic to livestock. Perhaps at that point in time when you dosed the urea ferts, too much of it stayed in the water column un-used and the filter cycle couldn't catch up in time.

    Alternatively, you could use CaNo3 (calcium nitrate) instead, that should be a safer alternative. Ecocity also sells that in powder form too.

    Actually the LushGro Aqua liquid already contains some N (nitrogen) so there is some supply of it from there.
    :: Urban Aquaria ::
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    Re: Help with LushGrow fert

    The plants, some were from previous tanks and some were new.

    My filter media was also transferred from my previous tank and I dosed bacteria since day 1.

    I have already ordered the CaNo3 from Ecocity but it seems to be lost in transit. Ordered on Monday until now I still have not received it yet.

    I am now supplementing the LushGro Aqua with Aquavitro Synthesis to increase the N hopefully to help the plants grow faster, they are appearing to be melting a lot faster recently.

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    Re: Help with LushGrow fert

    Too much nitrate not just burn the gills of your fishes, but also will burn your plants. I would suggest you get a nitrate test kit and start monitoring nitrate before it hits toxic level.

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    Re: Help with LushGrow fert

    hmm...Think I will try 1 week using the dosage as per Ecocity guidelines and see how it goes. My carpet plants don't seem to be doing well with the fert regime now. It's all melting away...

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    Re: Help with LushGrow fert

    It is recommended weekly dosage or 1-2 times per month or whenever water change. Dosing it daily might be overkill.
    I have been using HPC package 2 for many months with no such problem on the fishes.

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    Re: Help with LushGrow fert

    Oh, my dosing daily is I take the weekly dosage and divide it by 7days and I dose everyday.

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    Re: Help with LushGrow fert

    Is that true that Lushgrow Aqua does not contain K? It has N, P and others.

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