# Old open tropica fertilisers



## Ady34 (21 Jan 2019)

Hi,
I think I’m confident in saying fertilisers have a pretty indefinite shelf life, however it has come to my attention that my several year old tropica fertilisers are not sealed 
The top should have a pump button but they don’t so the tube leaves an open highway direct to the fertiliser.....(see images)
Should I chuck them or will they be ok?

Thanks,
Ady.


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## Mick.Dk (21 Jan 2019)

If stored (relatively)  cold and dark, they can be stored a really long time. Have a look for fungi,  though.  Though rare,  this can happen and will show itself as a thin "curtain" in the fluid. In case of fungal attacks,  dismiss the bottle.


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## Ady34 (21 Jan 2019)

Mick.Dk said:


> If stored (relatively)  cold and dark, they can be stored a really long time. Have a look for fungi,  though.  Though rare,  this can happen and will show itself as a thin "curtain" in the fluid. In case of fungal attacks,  dismiss the bottle.


Thanks Mick.Dk, 
they seem clear, no curtain and have been in a garage in a box so should be ok from what you have said 
Thanks again.


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## Siege (21 Jan 2019)

I’ve had a mould in bottles before, free fish food......


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## Mick.Dk (21 Jan 2019)

Garage storing sounds ideal,  really, I do this,  too


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## Ady34 (21 Jan 2019)

Mick.Dk said:


> Garage storing sounds ideal,  really, I do this,  too


Only thing that really concerned me was that they weren’t sealed.


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## Mick.Dk (21 Jan 2019)

Siege said:


> I’ve had a mould in bottles before, free fish food......


Problem is,  the fungus may have changed composition of the fertiliser.


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## Mick.Dk (21 Jan 2019)

Ady34 said:


> Only thing that really concerned me was that they weren’t sealed.


Personally I would not worry about that. Just check for fungal attacks in each bottle.


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## Ady34 (21 Jan 2019)

Mick.Md, sorry while I have your attention would you recommend 2x or 3x dosage on the bottle and only the specialised rather than alternate specialised/premium? Tank is mainly epiphytes, co2 injected, no soil just sand substrate, lighting level is low as it’s a new system but will get more intense although not high light by any stretch. 460 litre, 2x twinstar 600sp  (45w each). Currently only on max 25% intensity, likely only up to 50% in the coming weeks. Very lightly fish stocked, will increase to medium stocked I guess. I know it may be like how longs a piece of string but many suggest 3x dosage stated on the bottle.

Thanks
Ady.


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## alto (21 Jan 2019)

FWIW I dose fairly close to bottle recommendations - just split the weekly dose into daily 

At tank start up when plant mass is low, I dose less than recommended, increasing as plant mass increases 

eg, 60 x 45 x 53cm dosing 1-2 pumps Special and 1-2 pumps Premium (my tap water has virtually zero minerals etc - imagine a peat lined reservoir full of rain water)

Note the newer squat bottles have a 2ml pump rather than the older ~1ml pump ... I find this annoying for nano tanks as it means having an extra bottle that I’ve diluted or messing about with a syringe 

After a large water change, I’ll often dose 2 each
Day 2 dose 1 each
Day 3 dose 1 green, 2 brown
Day 4 dose 2 green, 1 brown 
and so on

My usual bad photo (reflections etc) and misc stuff in tank BUT plants are alright 






I’d actually like to slow down growth on this tank - it was excellent during that first 6 weeks while plants were establishing - but if I limit fertilizers too much, then new leafs show whitening ...

Finally did a massive trim on the back stems yesterday - such a relief to see some hardscape again ... and plants that had been buried under stems


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## Ady34 (23 Jan 2019)

Thanks @alto, tank is looking great so it’s working well 
Lowering lighting intensity is best to reduce growth as it dictates the rate, as for the trimming, not a bad problem to have 
Cheerio


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## alto (23 Jan 2019)

Except with Kessil as you reduce intensity, the dimensions on the “cone” of light also decreases significantly ... (when staring with the A160’s) I wondered why I was getting such strong “shade” effects when I was running the Kessil’s at 50-60%, then noticed how much the light distribution changed with intensity - very obvious in a dry tank with hardscape late at night    

If I ran 3 x A160 on the same tank (thinking of my 90cm tank rather than the 60cm in the photo) or 2x A360, it would be a different light game ... I just wasn’t willing to put out the dish for the A360’s  

Obviously substrate PAR also decreases, especially noticeable in taller tanks 

If you go through Mark Evans journals, there’s a later one where he explores limited nutrient dosing and reduced lighting (lights kept getting pushed higher away from tank as T5s etc rather than LED)


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## zozo (23 Jan 2019)

I always liked to Tropica ferts, used it in several occasions, nothing wrong with the contents.. But one critical point definitively is the dispenser bottle quality, all 3 bottles i used the dispenser snapped off before the bottle was empty.

Lets just say, it's not made for clumsy people like me..  Tho in my personal feeling what more can i do or do wrong when pushing it in?..


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## ian_m (23 Jan 2019)

Of course the ferts are contain protons which are reckoned to have a finite lifetime, probably greater than 

 years, so yes the ferts will degrade over time. You may be OK though.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Proton


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## tam (23 Jan 2019)

zozo said:


> I always liked to Tropica ferts, used it in several occasions, nothing wrong with the contents.. But one critical point definitively is the dispenser bottle quality, all 3 bottles i used the dispenser snapped off before the bottle was empty.
> 
> Lets just say, it's not made for clumsy people like me..  Tho in my personal feeling what more can i do or do wrong when pushing it in?..



I don't think it's you, I had two out of two bottles do the same. Just got a new style one I'm being gentle with and seems to be surviving so far, although it's crusty around the pump like it's not well sealed.

Glad the consensus is old stuff is ok, I'll use up the broken topped one I have too then.


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## Mick.Dk (23 Jan 2019)

Ady34 said:


> Mick.Md, sorry while I have your attention would you recommend 2x or 3x dosage on the bottle and only the specialised rather than alternate specialised/premium?
> 
> Thanks
> Ady.


Tropica premium contain all essential nutrients minus N, P and less K.
Tropica specialised is exactly same recipe plus N,  P and more K.
So basically first one is designed for tanks high in fish and low in plants (fish and food are supposed to provide N,  P and K)  and second one is designed for tanks high in plants and low in fish (where plants will soon exhaust system of N,  P and K). You can use the specialised as your "main-source" and then lower amount of N, P and K added to your tank,  by changing a percentage of total amount into premium. I do this,  when I "feel" it is needed in my test-tanks.
The amount to give is ofcourse dependant of plant-mass and -growth. Your "epiphytes" would be the slowgrowing Anubias,  Bucephalandra and Microsorium,  I suppose,  so this will influence how much this tank need,  as will density of plantation. When upping amount of fish, you might consider change percentage of how much of premium and specialised you should exchange, ofcourse.
- But you have the experience,  to "read" your plants,  Ady,  so this is the best advice/info I can give.
In the tanks for Tropica IZOO show,  I often dose more than 10 times recommended. These are run on "Ferrari speed", light-wise though... .....


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