Hey everyone,
So my 20 gallon planted tank has been set up for around a year now. For the first few months or so, plant growth was minimal but noticeable (mostly the moneywort). I had significant cuts of water sprite and micro sword that never grew but slowly melted away. I have a few other species that did ok but recently have been suffering.
As of about 4-5 months ago I started having bad algae problems. Many different varieties over time and as of today, the algae is completely suffocating my existing plants reducing them to nearly nothing.
I understand that the algae took off because some nutrient required for plant growth was insufficient, plants didn't utilize available resources and the algae opportunistically flourished. That or my water changes have been too infrequent. Whatever it be, I have been using the same fluorite substrate since I started the tank. I'm thinking that the plants exhausted the iron in the gravel and that is a cause of the stifled plant growth and algae bloom. The algae is so thick on the leaves and stems that it isn't reasonable any longer to remove it by hand. Not to mention the afflicted plants have become too brittle to withstand much cleaning.
My plan moving forward is to break the tank down and restart by throwing down an inch of soil and two inches of a fine gravel or sand. Maybe after time I'll place some root tabs but in the mean time I am considering going with a full blown pressurized CO2 system. I am curious if people think the CO2 is necessary with a 20 gallon. I previously tried Flourish Excel with no noticeable changes (I was however being conservative with the doses for fear of harming my fish) but am now looking for something to really stimulate plant growth.
It is worth mentioning that I am using a single aquarium T5 bulb over a 20 gallon high. I can't exactly remember the details but I think my lighting is insufficient, especially if I add CO2.
I apologize for the length of this post but if anyone has any suggestions or possible causes for my aquarium failure I would love to hear them. My main objective is to set up a thriving, sustainable system, with healthy plants and fish. I have tried to be a proponent of the low-tech set-up but it just does not seem to be working for me with my patience and time I am able to dedicate to the tank. Thank you!
So my 20 gallon planted tank has been set up for around a year now. For the first few months or so, plant growth was minimal but noticeable (mostly the moneywort). I had significant cuts of water sprite and micro sword that never grew but slowly melted away. I have a few other species that did ok but recently have been suffering.
As of about 4-5 months ago I started having bad algae problems. Many different varieties over time and as of today, the algae is completely suffocating my existing plants reducing them to nearly nothing.
I understand that the algae took off because some nutrient required for plant growth was insufficient, plants didn't utilize available resources and the algae opportunistically flourished. That or my water changes have been too infrequent. Whatever it be, I have been using the same fluorite substrate since I started the tank. I'm thinking that the plants exhausted the iron in the gravel and that is a cause of the stifled plant growth and algae bloom. The algae is so thick on the leaves and stems that it isn't reasonable any longer to remove it by hand. Not to mention the afflicted plants have become too brittle to withstand much cleaning.
My plan moving forward is to break the tank down and restart by throwing down an inch of soil and two inches of a fine gravel or sand. Maybe after time I'll place some root tabs but in the mean time I am considering going with a full blown pressurized CO2 system. I am curious if people think the CO2 is necessary with a 20 gallon. I previously tried Flourish Excel with no noticeable changes (I was however being conservative with the doses for fear of harming my fish) but am now looking for something to really stimulate plant growth.
It is worth mentioning that I am using a single aquarium T5 bulb over a 20 gallon high. I can't exactly remember the details but I think my lighting is insufficient, especially if I add CO2.
I apologize for the length of this post but if anyone has any suggestions or possible causes for my aquarium failure I would love to hear them. My main objective is to set up a thriving, sustainable system, with healthy plants and fish. I have tried to be a proponent of the low-tech set-up but it just does not seem to be working for me with my patience and time I am able to dedicate to the tank. Thank you!