# DIY ADA Ferts



## Tom (18 Jan 2008)

Following on from the discussion about brighty k (and making your own from Pot Carbonate), I am wondering if I can imitate all 3 ADA ferts I use with powders? Brighty K seems easy enough, but is it known about the concentrations of each substances in Step1 and Special Lights or have ADA kept it a secret?

I'm guessing the Step1 is just micro's, but if it differs from Step 2 and 3,  the concentrations would be useful to know. 

If Brighty Special Lights is just N and P, to what ratio would it be? (10:1?) And how much would you add for, say, 500ml R/O water to keep the doses the same?

I'm thinking I'm going to try this when my ADA runs out, and use the same bottles I'm using now as I think I've got the dosing more or less spot on at the moment with ADA. 

Tom


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## Ed Seeley (18 Jan 2008)

According to the ADA catalogue;
Step 1 has lots of trace elements and some iron
Step 2 has trace elements and lots of iron
Step 3 has trace elements, iron and potassium

The only guide to amounts is that it has one circle if they're present and two to indicate higher levels.

K has lots of potassium and chlorine neutralizers.
Lights and Shade have Nitrogen, Phosphate, Potassium and trace elements.

It doesn't go into any more detail than that in the one I've got.


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## George Farmer (18 Jan 2008)

This has been discussed in detail on APC.

ADA won't release their exact ingredients/compostion.  Can't blame them really.

The Steps get progressively more concentrated, as the aquarium matures and some of the substrate nutrients get used up.

The smart move would be to use Step 3 all the time, just less qtys, at the start.  Save some Â£Â£.

I think Tom Barr is analysing them and will publish results on his site.


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## Tom (18 Jan 2008)

OK thanks.

I think i want to get the powdered ferts rather than ADA because of price, but judging on my last attempt with EI I'm nervous   
hence thinking I might be able to to it in "ADA doses" which I can do


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## George Farmer (18 Jan 2008)

The key with EI is cram full of weeds at start up and religious 30ppm CO2.

Plenty of 50% water changes if you see algae.


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## Tom (18 Jan 2008)

I think my problem was, as you say, not having lots of plants at the start (big open foreground) and inconsistant CO2 more than anything else (500g bottles that ran out every week)    I'm going to have another try starting monday and see how it goes.

Tom


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## George Farmer (18 Jan 2008)

Good luck mate.


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## plantbrain (12 Feb 2008)

I do know what is in each ADA liquid ferts.

All you have to do it run a test.

Regards, 
Tom Barr


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## George Farmer (13 Feb 2008)

plantbrain said:
			
		

> I do know what is in each ADA liquid ferts.
> 
> All you have to do it run a test.
> 
> ...



When's the newsletter out, Tom?

Welcome along BTW!


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## Hanuman (8 Jul 2019)

I know this thread is ANCIENT, borderline prehistoric but I though I would add the link to Tom's Barr analysis on ADA's Brighty Series fertilizers just for the sake of having the thing in one place.

https://barrreport.com/barr-report-resources/old-newsletters/Analysis-of-ADA-liquid-fertilizers.pdf


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## alto (8 Jul 2019)

Except ADA reformulated their fertilizer line a couple years back 

(last I checked, there was no detail how that analysis was done so I’m somewhat sceptical of its comprehensiveness ..... perhaps it’s been updated?)


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## Hanuman (8 Jul 2019)

Yes it doesn't matter if the formula was updated. It's still valid for anyone wanting to make that formula. 

As for the comprehensiveness of the analysis, I can't comment on that. I simply posted here the results (and pdf) that I found on internet in this thread for the sake of completeness. Nothing more .


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## rebel (8 Jul 2019)

alto said:


> (last I checked, there was no detail how that analysis was done so I’m somewhat sceptical of its comprehensiveness ..... perhaps it’s been updated?)


I think Tom used ?Mass spectrometry but probably need multiple techniques and quite a bit of expertise to analyse a complex solution. It's the best result we have so far AFAIK.


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## alto (8 Jul 2019)

Yes I “think” so too but even with MS etc, you only find what you look for 

It would be so much cleaner if he’d actually list Materials and Methods ..... which should be such a habit for anyone that’s competed a Masters or PhD


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## alto (8 Jul 2019)

Hanuman said:


> I simply posted here the results (and pdf) that I found on internet in this thread for the sake of completeness.




I’m certain (just read an article about the Dunning–Kruger effect though so perhaps I’m just imagining my recollections ) there’s another more recent thread about simulating ADA fertilizers


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## Hanuman (9 Jul 2019)

alto said:


> I’m certain (just read an article about the Dunning–Kruger effect though so perhaps I’m just imagining my recollections ) there’s another more recent thread about simulating ADA fertilizers



There might be, yet not the point here . I was simply closing the loop.

Refer below:


plantbrain said:


> I do know what is in each ADA liquid ferts.
> 
> All you have to do it run a test.
> 
> ...


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## dw1305 (9 Jul 2019)

Hi all, 





rebel said:


> I think Tom used ?Mass spectrometry


Have a look at @xim's comments in <"Testing for EI">  





rebel said:


> but probably need multiple techniques and quite a bit of expertise to analyse a complex solution


If you had access to the analytical equipment you could do the analysis fairly quickly, but it is high spec., expensive kit.

The process is reasonably straightforward, because:

Everything is in solution, 
you know which fourteen elements you are looking for, 
and their approximate levels, 
You could do all the elements in one go with an "inductively coupled plasma - optical emission spectrometry" <"ICP-OES">, but you would need access to it and the scientist who can use it. 

cheers Darrel


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## Ed Wiser (9 Jul 2019)

https://www.triton-lab.de/en/products-services/icp-oes/the-triton-icp-test-kit/

could do a water test and find out.


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## Thumper (25 Nov 2019)

ADA has to release guaranteed analysis in terms of how much N-P-K and Traces it adds.

Brighty K: 2,6% K2O - as it also raises KH we can assume they use only KHCO3.
Neutral Brighty K: 5% K2O - as there is no N, P, KH added i'll assume its KSO4
Brighty Nitrogen: 0,4% N (total 0,4% Urea Nitrogen) - its CH4N2O
Brighty Mineral: 0,003%Mg, 0,03027%S, 0,002708%B, 0,001957%Cu, 0,01%Fe, 0,004519%Mn, 0,0002473%Mo, 0,0042074%Zn - this should be "lightly" chelated.
Brighty Iron: 0,068877%S, 0,05%Fe - this should be "slightly" chelated.


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## dw1305 (25 Nov 2019)

Hi all, 





Thumper said:


> Brighty K: 2,6% K2O - as it also raises KH we can assume they use only KHCO3.
> Neutral Brighty K: 5% K2O - as there is no N, P, KH added i'll assume its KSO4
> Brighty Nitrogen: 0,4% N (total 0,4% Urea Nitrogen) - its CH4N2O........


Yes, they definitely look about right. 





Thumper said:


> Brighty Mineral: 0,003%Mg, 0,03027%S, 0,002708%B, 0,001957%Cu, 0,01%Fe, 0,004519%Mn, 0,0002473%Mo, 0,0042074%Zn - this should be "lightly" chelated.
> Brighty Iron: 0,068877%S, 0,05%Fe - this should be "slightly" chelated.


Back to the <"World's most expensive water"> competition.

My suspicion would be that most of the ADA users wouldn't contemplate investing £5 in a kilogram of "Miracle-Gro", but there is no difference in the urea (CH4N2O) or potassium in either product.

The urea will still be converted to ammonia and the potassium will go into solution as K+ ions, whether the fertiliser cost £5 /kg or £50 / kg.

cheers Darrel


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## Hanuman (25 Nov 2019)

dw1305 said:


> Back to the <"World's most expensive water"> competition.



One day I had fun calculating how much doing my own ferts cost me in actual ferts. Be the juge. The plastic bottle alone cost me nearly 3 times that. This is the cost for a 500ml bottle.


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