# Montecarlo melting! Please help!



## Jaap

Hello

I woke up this morning to see this







As you can see in the front the plant melted within the night. No change has been made the past 15 days and now this happened.

All of the information of my tank are here
http://www.ukaps.org/forum/index.php?threads/33795/

The light is a tmc aquabar 600 55cm from substrate and at 30% light intensity. I dose EI and co2 is through a reactor via pressurised bottle. I can add more co2 since it already build up in the tank. I have a spraybar in the back of the tank comnected to a 1000 l/h filter but not at full power since it will uproot everything. The temperature of the tank is 29 degrees Celsius. 

Why and what can I do?

Thanks


----------



## ceg4048

Not sure what this means mate:


Jaap said:


> I can add more co2 since it already build up in the tank.


If this means there are lots of bubbles than the CO2 diffusion technique is questionable.



Jaap said:


> I have a spraybar in the back of the tank comnected to a 1000 l/h filter but not at full power since it will uproot everything.


Maybe uprooting everything is better than having Monte Carlo die. I don't get this kind of philosophy. You clearly need to find a way to improve flow. If disruption to the plant beds is an obstacle then it has to be overcome. You need to figure out a way to do this instead of paying the penalty of death. Maybe you can enlarge the hole sizes of the spraybar, or increase the tube diameter.



Jaap said:


> The temperature of the tank is 29 degrees Celsius.


That's too high right now. Is there a way to lower it?

I think I advised you before to float the plants for a few weeks before you  plant them. That helps them to adjust easier to being submersed.

You need to solve the difficulties you're having with flow rate and dissolution methods.

Cheers,


----------



## Jaap

ceg4048 said:


> Not sure what this means mate:
> 
> If this means there are lots of bubbles than the CO2 diffusion technique is questionable.
> 
> 
> Maybe uprooting everything is better than having Monte Carlo die. I don't get this kind of philosophy. You clearly need to find a way to improve flow. If disruption to the plant beds is an obstacle then it has to be overcome. You need to figure out a way to do this instead of paying the penalty of death. Maybe you can enlarge the hole sizes of the spraybar, or increase the tube diameter.
> 
> 
> That's too high right now. Is there a way to lower it?
> 
> I think I advised you before to float the plants for a few weeks before you  plant them. That helps them to adjust easier to being submersed.
> 
> You need to solve the difficulties you're having with flow rate and dissolution methods.
> 
> Cheers,


Hello Clive and thanks

Here is my flow






doesnt flow look good?

Cant dissolve more co2 because the reactor fills up with co2 and is half full of co2 and half full of water.

The plants were never emersed they were always submersed.

I have a fan and it dropped the temp from 32 to 29 and it will drop more as heatwave passes. At the moment i have the ac on for a couple of days to help out.


----------



## ceg4048

I think we mentioned to you previously that the spraybar was too low, generally and that distribution might be better if it was raised. Again, no guarantee, but generally, this has been the case.

Can you split the gas flow so that some enters the filter inlet and some is ported to the in-line diffuser? 
It may be that reducing the filter throughput you have also reduced the ability of the diffuser to dissolve the gas.

As mentioned before enlarging the spraybar holes can reduce the exit velocity but will increase the mass flow through.
This requires experimentation so it might be better to get some cheap PVC or even thick walled hose to run easy checks on instead of drilling the spraybar that you have.

Cheers,


----------



## Jaap

ceg4048 said:


> I think we mentioned to you previously that the spraybar was too low, generally and that distribution might be better if it was raised. Again, no guarantee, but generally, this has been the case.
> 
> Can you split the gas flow so that some enters the filter inlet and some is ported to the in-line diffuser?
> It may be that reducing the filter throughput you have also reduced the ability of the diffuser to dissolve the gas.
> 
> As mentioned before enlarging the spraybar holes can reduce the exit velocity but will increase the mass flow through.
> This requires experimentation so it might be better to get some cheap PVC or even thick walled hose to run easy checks on instead of drilling the spraybar that you have.
> 
> Cheers,


Could it be the temperature of 29 degrees Celsius?

Because as i said earlier distribution and co2 have been worked on well are both on the high. I mean 31 days the plant is fine and growing and on the 32 day is melting? i am pamping so much co2 that i had to refill my 3kg bottle in 21 days and i am dissolving it through a reactor attached to a filter 1000 l/h which is almost full throttle....as i said its about 800 l/h now on a 40l tank....honestly i do believe anymore co2 or filter power will cause such a turbulance that no hardscape or plant will remain in place. At some point my plants were getting better and the past 2-3 days the temp is up and they are doing worse...

I must overcome this...its easy to say co2 or circulation but its not always that...


----------



## viktorlantos

29 celsius is way too much for most of the aquatic plants


----------



## Jaap

viktorlantos said:


> 29 celsius is way too much for most of the aquatic plants


Thats what i thought...I put on the A/C until the heatwave goes away...the temp is now 26...


----------



## limz_777

You will be surprised, many of us down here in a tropical country, trying to grow plants in 28-30 temp, had no issue with MC, HC is a pita plant with high temp.


----------



## Jaap

limz_777 said:


> You will be surprised, many of us down here in a tropical country, trying to grow plants in 28-30 temp, had no issue with MC, HC is probably the only pita plant with high temp.


Any suggestions then? How do u deal with high temps? Increase co2?


----------



## limz_777

Are you using a cooling fan?


----------



## DanielC03

Parana-i guazu as we call it in their place of origin has no difficulty even above 30º C. Every year in my tanks supports weeks above 35º C without showing deterioration


----------



## Jaap

limz_777 said:


> Are you using a cooling fan?


Yes...but some days temps are so high outside that the tank temp reaches 29 celsius even with a fan...there is not much i can do except a chiller...how about co2 diffusion method? Apparently reactor isn't diffusing as efficiently as we want to...


----------



## limz_777

Personally to beat the heat, my tank photoperiod starts at night, a aquarium fan install directly on the tank for evaporating cooling.

Read thru your thread, I feel the lighting is quite dim, someone mention your manado soil can be a issue as well, you can add root tabs just in case. 
I won't worried on co2 too much, 3-4 bps should be sufficient for your plant mass


----------

