pmdd question....HELP

[dean9922]

hi there...just recieved my dry ferts and have several questions....
what i recieved was the following:
K2S04
MGS04
KN03
CSM+B trace

my first question is if you follow the Conlin & Sears formula they say to add 1tbsp of trace, 1 tbsp of MGS04, 2 tbsp of K2S04 and 1 tbsp of KNO3 mixed into 500 ml of distilled water and recommended dosing of for each 10 gallons add 1/12 ml. to start with and measure and monitor the Fe level and the NO3 level. Does this sound correct. If so, it makes life easy as I have a 30, 76 and 100 gallon tanks and calculating proper amounts is easier.
I've been on fert calculators and it's so confusing and some seem to contradict each other with amounts to use.
secondly, if this is "not" a good recipe for pmdd does anyone know of a simple one to follow within reason, as i do realize you have to monitor your levels.
thirdly, can you mix all ingredients together or should you do them seperately.

any help would be appreciated as i am starting to get confused......i should also mention i am not running CO2 but definitely need some ferts as i am getting black algae on the leaves of my plants, so they must be missing some nutrient or something. Only running about 1.5w for about 10 hours a day....low tech tank i think everyone calls it.....
any help would be appreciated. thank you

[Chad Hughes]

You're on the right track.

What I typically do is leave the calculators alone and start dosing small. As time goes by you can increase the dosage if you like but once you see undesireable effects, back off. I never mix the CSM+B with the macros. I keep two seperate bottles. One macro and one micro. THis allows me to adjust midstream if I want. For example, if I want to have less KNO3, then I can put less macros in the tank.

Remember, CO2 is a nutrient and can cause algae problems if not used in conjunction with ferts. It all builds on each other. High light requires fertilization which requires CO2. With a nutrient missingor in abundance, it's considered limiting. The limiting nutrient must be added or reduced (if there is too much) to balance the system.

I like to just play it by ear until you like what you see, then stick with that! Don't try to calculate it. It'll give you a headache.

Hope that helps!

[dean9922]

hi avionics....you are so right about the headache thing....lol

[Chad Hughes]

Trust me, I've ben there.

[calihawker]

Definately keep the macro's and micro's seperate like chad says. Also agree wih some kind of carbon source. Wether it's c02 or excel. I'm curious about the ratio of KN03 to K2S04. it seems backwards.:confused:

I do EI and I only add MGS04 as part of my gh booster during water change.

Just curious.:)