Arowana Tank on EI Method

[FLIM1]

Hi,
My planted arowana tank has been around for 10 months. Still can't find a good way to suspress all the stubborn BBA at the backdrop and foreground .
Hope to get some good pointers from the experts out there .

All the while, I have been using Dennerle products. But for the past 3 weeks, I have switched to try out EI methods.

My tank capacity is 400L. PH=6.2, KH=3.

Bioload (Number and type of fish and plants)
------------------------------------------
1. Arowana 14" x 1
2. Siamese Tiger 4" x 1
3. 3 small fishes 1" to 3"



Please view more pictures in my gallery on Aquatic Quotient here

Thanks in advance.

cheers....lim
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Tank Dimensions (LxWxH, specify units):151 x 51 x 62 cm (400L)

Lighting Intensity(No of Watts) :144 W
Number and type of Lighting (FL/PL/MH) :PL
Age of light bulbs :10 months
No. of hours your lights are on :9 hours

CO2 Injection Rate (bps) :Lost count
Type of CO2 (DIY/Cylinder) :Cylinder
Method of Injection (e.g. Diffusor/Reactor) :Both with mist.

Liquid fertilisers Used (Product name. E.g. Seachem Flourish) :
Amtra

Fertilization regime (Frequency and amount per dose) :
EI method :
1.Amtra fertiliser: 20ml (every other day. The dosage is half the
recommended weekly dosage)
2.Lushgro K2NO3 solid : 8 grams (every other day)
3.Lushgro K2H2PO4 solid : 1 gram (every other day)


Other fertilisers (Product name. E.g. Root Monster) :

Other additives (Product name. E.g. Seachem Prime) :

Type of Filter (overhead/internal/canister, Product name/model if possible) :
1.Juwel internal filter ( 600L/hrs)
2.Eheim 2026

When was the filter last washed :
Filter media used :
When was the media last changed :
What was changed :

Age of setup (i.e. since initial setup or last major re-do ) : 10 months

Water change frequency : Weekly
Amount changed :50%

Water surface movement (None/gentle/turbulent) : gentle
Circulation (None/gentle/turbulent) :gentle

Tank Temperature :26.2 - 26.8 degree celcius (with Chiller)

Chemical Properties (Fill what you can)
-------------------------------------
KH (dKH): 3
GH (dGH):
pH : 6.2
NH4 (ppm):
NO2 (ppm):
NO3 (ppm):
PO4 (ppm):
Fe (ppm):

Bioload (Number and type of fish and plants)
------------------------------------------
1. Arowana 14" x 1
2. Siamese Tiger 4" x 1
3. 3 small fishes
4. Blyxa jarponica
5. Tenullus
6. Crypts (a few types)
7. Tiger Lotus
8. Downoi
9. some stem plants

Describe your problem :

[benny]

Hi Lim,

That's quite an impressive set up you have. I assume that it's a Juwel Rio 400 system? You mentioned that you are using PL lights. Did you modify the lights from the original multilux light set?

Also, are you using a pH controller? If not, how are you regulating your pH/CO2 in the tank.

Lastly, what do you feed to the fishes and the frequency of feeding?

Cheers,

[FLIM1]

Hi Benny,
Yes...My tank is Juwel Rio 400. I have upgraded the original flap set to Juwel multilux flaps. So now I can house 4 PL lights (4 x 36W).
I don't have ph controller ...I wish I can afford to get Dennerle latest set At the moment, I am using a solenoid regulator to regulate the ph during photo period.
Most of the time, I feed my fish with market prawn once every other day. Occasionally I fed them 5 to 6 times per week.

[benny]

So you don't use the original FL light tubes supplied by Juwel... I'll be curious to see how you converted the original FL light set to PL. Was it a custom job or a DIY solution?

As for pH controller, there are a variety of options in the market with no distinguishable performance difference. You might want to consider...

Given the fact that you feed market prawns (and I assume nothing else, even to your other fishes), your nutrient management might need more consideration. The N content in your water column might be extremely rich.

Cheers,

[FLIM1]

Benny....Sorry...wrong info ....The lights are FL not PL. I am still using 2 original tubes and the other 2 are Dennerle amazon day light.

On the NO3 issue, I believe it is should be quite rich. Sometimes I wonder if dosing KNO3 is necessary. Any suggestions ?

[FLIM1]

Should I continue to dose NO3 ? Experts out there please advise....Thanks.

[benny]

Lim,

Stop the NO3 and PO4 dosing for a start.

I suggest you get a NO3 test kit and get a reading. This will help us give you better advice. I suspect that your NO3 may be beyond 30 ppm and also, your organic phosphate may be very very high, hence the never ending nightmare with algae.

Also, can you share how your filter inlet and outlet are placed?

Cheers,

[PeterGwee]

Benny, thats not the issue (Weekly large water changes will reset the tank and prevent buildup...hence its not an issue. Stopping the dosing will be an issue.). No fert regime would do well unless the CO2 is good when used. The BBA simply doesn't lie...

Regards
Peter Gwee

[PeterGwee]

Lim, try getting more flow and circulation to the tank. The single eheim 2026 likely will not cut it together with the jewel filter. Add another eheim 2026-2028 or a bigger size filter with more flow. Even current to a big tank is the key.

Another issue is the CO2 (You likely don't have enough or the problem comes from lack of circulation in some region.). Consider getting a manifold with 2-3 needle valve outlets (bubble counts should be easier with more manifolds since the rate is even out). Feed CO2 into powerheads with sufficient flowrates such that the mist will cover all the tank area especially the plants. The bottom to top flow pattern is the best. Using spraybars with the powerheads along the rear-back edge of the tank pointing forward is the best I found.

Regards
Peter Gwee

[FLIM1]

Benny,Peter,
Time to time I will do measurement on NO3 and PO4.
Just last week I did a measurement. N03 was at least 40ppm (can't really differetiate well using the color chart..it is red color) using AP test kit .
PO4 was like 2ppm using Sera test kit.

Strange but true...some BGA appear on the backdrop top-edge .

I have CO2 reactor and diffuser to work on the C02. Original Eheim rainbar is hooked on the left side of the tank and the diffuser is placed near the rainbar so mist is blown across the tank length from left-to-right.

On the right side, a reactor is attached to the outlet of the Juwel internal filter as shown in the picture in this tread (Thanks..Benny) so dissolved CO2 and mist are blown from right-to-left across the tank length and the backdrop.

Thought that the CO2 level should be good near the backdrop.. but lots of BBA are still surviving on the backdrop

The PH can reach 6.8 to 7 in the morning during CO2 cut-off period.Is it normal ?

I doubt my plants are doing well . Tiger lotus start to have holes and the leafs are brown and not smooth and shiny.

I tried to upload some pictures taken yesterday nite after WC but failed.
You can refer to some of my recent tank picture in http://www.arofanatics.com/members/f...der=myarowanas

[vinz]

I had BBA issues too when I had a planted arowana tank. In the end, I discovered it's the distribution of CO2 that was the issue. You have to improve the circulation of water and distribution of CO2.

The best I've found so far is to install a rain bar across the entire length of the back of the tank, pointing the jets towards the front of the tank.

Also ensure you are injecting sufficient CO2.

Large tanks have circulation issues. The strong out-flow from the filter from one or two outlets cannot compensate for wisely placed multiple outputs with weaker out-flow.

Also try to have multiple inlets to the filter. One at each end usually suffice.

The large water surface areas of large tanks contribute to faster CO2 lost. So do the turbulence from strong water flow at the outlets. Splitting to multiple outlets help prevent the later.

[vinz]

Arowana tanks have high NO3 from the feeding. Stop the NO3 dose and measure over a few weeks. If it can maintain at abotu 10 to 20 ppm, your ok. Compensate with higher PO4. PO4 affects NO3 consumption.

Dose Seachem Equilibrium once a week for calcium and magnesium. I find that seems to be a missing factor in my tanks. Dose at 1/3 the recommended dosage. The tiger lotus should respond to that.

I'm not familiar with Amtra, but EasyLife Profito works well for me (dose at recommended dosage, but divide it into a weekly or biweekly dose).

[Plantbrain]

BBA=> add more CO2, make sure you have enough surface moevement, you can always add more gas, main thing is getting the gas to the plants.
So blasting the mist froma diffuser directly into the plants beds does the job better than anything I've found or anyone else for that matter.

If you are producing higher NO3 levels with a large beast, you can and should use K2SO4 instead of KNO3.

Food is typically richer in NH4 than PO4 for plant needs so you will and should still add PO4.

As the loading of NH4 does cause algae at higher levels, adding another filter is prudent, better to have bacteria than algae.

As you add more CO2 this will create more O2 from the plants, which in turn will take up more NH4 and provide the fish with O2 and the bacteria with plenty of O2 to decompose any left overs.

Regards,
Tom Barr

www.BarrReport.com

[vinz]

Oh, and BBA will not go away by itself. The usual remedy is to increase CO2 or improve CO2 distribution, but that only prevents BBA recurrence. It does not help to KILL existing BBA. You have to clean off the existing colonies of BBA.

You have stryro-foam background? I would suggest you just get remove them completely, and trim as much BBA as possible from the plants. You cannot get rid of algae with half measures.

BGA at the top edges, just siphon off first and clean the surfaces in those areas throughly. In my experience, small out breaks like that can be solved with prompt cleaning. If, however, you let it get a foothold, a blackout or anti-biotic treatment is the only sure-kill remedy. You have sufficient NO3, so it wouldn't be an issue. Circulation is probably more likely.

[FLIM1]

Benny,Peter,Tom,Vinz
Many thanks to you guys for your kind sharings.... . That is really informative and I am learning new things .
Seems like I have to give more focus on the water circulation and CO2 distribution. Time to get hands dirty again

BTW...Vinz...if I recall correctly you have one inflow/outflow position diagram
in one of your posts. Can't remember which one...can send me the link if you happen to find.

[vinz]

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