# Dosing TPN+



## TDI-line (13 Feb 2008)

Was wondering how much anyone else was dosing with TPN+?

The dosage recommends 5ml per 50 litres per week, followed by a 25% water change every 2 weeks.

So i have been adding 60ml per week for around 600 litres (tank 720 litres - rock - substrat), and a 25% water change every weeks, usually.

Does this sound right, or should i be adding TPN aswell as TPN+. 

Should i be adding other ferts too? ADA ones?


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## JazzyJeff (13 Feb 2008)

I think you need too add both as one is Pottasium and Nitrogen and the other contains Trace Elements, Iron etc ........ I was looking at them on the Aqua Essentials site earlier and was contamplating swapping over too them from the Seachem range as it can get exspensive !!!!


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## ceg4048 (13 Feb 2008)

Hi,
    Actually TPN+ has exactly the same trace elements as TPN but it adds P and N and K, so it's really an "all-in-one". You don't need to use TPN if you are already using TPN+.

On the other hand, iIt's _awfully_ expensive to dose exclusively on a 720 liter.   I would suggest using regular  TPN for traces and then dosing the dry powders for the macros. If you don't like the messiness of the powders just add a months worth of powder dosing to 1/2 liter or 1 liter of water and it will feel the same as dosing a commercial liquid. Your wallet will love you for it.  

Cheers,


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## TDI-line (13 Feb 2008)

Thanks Ceg, where do you get these powders from, and what are they btw?


But i did invest in a  5000ml tank of TPN+ from AE.


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## ceg4048 (13 Feb 2008)

TDI-line said:
			
		

> Thanks Ceg, where do you get these powders from, and what are they btw?
> 
> 
> But i did invest in a  5000ml tank of TPN+ from AE.



Hi TDI, that,s no problem at all, it won't go to waste because you can still use it as a trace and it will last a heck of a lot longer in that role!   

EI nutters like myself use the following powders:

Potassium Nitrate - KNO3 provides *N*itrogen and *P*otassium

Potassium Phosphate - KH2PO4 provides *P*hosphorus  and Potassium.

Magnesium Sulfate (Epsom Salts)- MgSO4 provides Magnesium (but Mg is already in TPN+ and may be in your tap so this is optional - sort of belt-and-bracing)

AE sells these powders: http://www.aquaessentials.co.uk/index.p ... th=145_146

There is another place that sells them cheaper but i lost the link that George Farmer gave. I'll look around for it in another post.

You can buy Epsom Salts at Boots I reckon.

I've had a visit to the Saruman's White Tower and he provided me with the following baseline dosing for 720L:

3X per week 2.5 teaspoons KNO3
3X per week 5/8 teaspoon KH2PO4
2X per week TPN+ dose per bottle (6ml more or less)

If needed, 2 teaspoons MgSO4 at water change.

50% water change once weekly and dose immediately afterwards. Ensure at least 30ppm CO2 check the CO2 measurement article in the "Cookbook" Forum Section.

You can adjust these values up or down based on the tanks performance.

Cheers,


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## George Farmer (14 Feb 2008)

Hi Dan,

The Tropica guidelines for dosing are assuming low-med light, low CO2 set up.

I dose 5ml per day per 100 litres with 1/3 water change per week.

TPN+ is all I use at them moment.  It's good stuff, but expensive for larger tanks, like Clive suggests.

Dry ferts are much cheaper, of course.

We can discuss details when you pop over next week... ;


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## TDI-line (14 Feb 2008)

Thanks guys.

I have a 39W of T5 D+D lighting x 8 = 312 W.

The T5's also state they give 10% more light per watt obtained from an HQI (?).

10% 31 W.

= 343 W.

Then take into account the volume of the tank 160 UK gallon empty, which would make 2.14 W per gallon. Is that the right calculation, or should we take into account 10 cm of substrat. The tank is 2000 x 560 x 560. Also whould the tank be classed as medium light?


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## ceg4048 (14 Feb 2008)

Hmm..all those conversion factors might be splitting hairs. WPG is normally only a US Gallon  calculation, and it's all just a rule of thumb type thing anyway. If you've got  1/3 kilowatt of High Output over your tank you'd really have to consider that high light from a nutrient dosing and CO2 application point of view.

Cheers,


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## Ray (14 Feb 2008)

See SuperColey on the WPG subject here: http://www.ukaps.org/forum/viewtopic.php?t=537&start=16

627L = 140 USG with 312W = 2.2WPG * 2 for T5HO (See SuperColey) = 4.4WPG

Its a lot of light.  You might not want to run them all all day.  I have no experience of this personally but according to conventional wisdom I'd start running half only and gradually bring the others in for a midday burst.


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## sks (15 Feb 2008)

TDI-line said:
			
		

> Thanks Ceg, where do you get these powders from, and what are they btw?
> 
> 
> But i did invest in a  5000ml tank of TPN+ from AE.



I made 5 litres of JamesC's PMDD + trace recipe. This is now attached to a dosing pump that dumps 25ml of the stuff daily. Total cost about Â£13, good enough to last for 200 days!   That's my dosing done then.


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## TDI-line (16 Feb 2008)

Thanks for the replys, i'm sure i'll be using them in the future.


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## nry (16 Feb 2008)

But the dosage rates of TPN and TPN+ are identical - if you are dosing TPN and want + too then it is little more expensive to dose TPN+ over TPN, you're still adding 5ml per 50litres per week.


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## ceg4048 (16 Feb 2008)

Yes, but if you just want to use it for traces you could  get away with halving the dosage or less. Also traces are added only 2X per week versus macros at 3X per week, so you could stretch it at least an extra 30% even if you used the 5ml per. If you dose 2.5ml per @ 2X per week it's a bonus.  

Cheers,


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## TDI-line (16 Feb 2008)

No no, i meant the dry fert concoxtion. I'll stick with TPN+ for now, and forget TPN.

Thanks  again.


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