Advice on cover plants for my 125l tank

[Notimetoulouse]

Hi everyone, first ask for advice.
As you can see from my profile, I have a Fluval Roma 125l planted tank, Seachem Tidal 75 and a chinese UV filter (which is handling algae growth perfectly). The tank has grown a little untidy but with perfect water parameters. Harlequin Rasboras, Chili Rasboras, Panda Corys, Threestripe Corys, Neon Tetras and a couple of Endler Guppies. I'm just about to introduce a 5cm Snowball Pleco and that's the tank as I want it, population wise. The Aquarium has four or five small external house plants dipping their feet in the water as nitrate hoovers, and they seem to be working well.
After an initial brilliant 6 months of plant growth I suddenly had a major dieback when I removed a very large piece of settled bogwood that was displacing a vast amount of water and it hasn't really been the same since. I've decided to leave it a tad messy rather than continually stressing out the fish by disturbing the aquarium by fiddling around with new plants.
The Tidal Hob is on the side of the tank and so precludes using Fluval's Roma tank cover, leaving my tank open. This is not a problem as I have a very large kitchen and any evaporation is lost in the house, with replacement water added as necessary along with Seachem Stability.
My problem is... the Tidal is brilliant as a filter, but I simply cannot get any plants to live on the surface to provide cover for my fish from above. I've tried the lot (except duckweed) but no matter how strong the root system, they all seem to die back within a fortnight as the Tidal flow rate continually wets the leaves and has them floating round the tank like a maelstrom - even on the lightest setting.
As stated earlier, my water parameters are 0 nitrate/nitrite, Ph 7.2 with no ammonia, but, as with everyone keeping fish in Lincolnshire, very hard water.
I'm actually thinking of the dreaded duckweed, with a feeding circle. It would just be nice to give the fish a bit of extra security by giving them some overhead cover.
Could anyone point me in the right direction please?
Thank You.

 

[hypnogogia]

A couple of things spring to mind - nitrate/nitrite both at 0 is not good. Plants need nitrate to grow. Are you fertilising? Also, you mention evaporation and topping up. What water do you use to top up? If your hard topwater, then gH and KH will slowly be rising in your tank.

For more help, you'll need to provide more information:

Thread 'Please read the guidelines for plant help!'

27 Apr 2020

Dear Member

Please give as many details as possible regarding your aquarium set-up, when requiring advice/help!

The above should be posted at the start of each help request.

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Copy and Paste the list below...and add your answers to each number on the list!
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1. Size of tank.
2. Age of the system approximately.
3. Tap water parameters.
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• G H Nelson

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[Notimetoulouse]

Thanks for getting back so quickly. Yes I'm fertilising with TNC complete (I also have Aquadesign Carbo but deign to use it after seeing some reviews). I top up with tap water stabilised with Seachem Prime. I've just done another strip test which is showing 75 hardness and 80 carbonate and when I leave the strip for the full 60 seconds is showing Nitrate at 50 Nitrite still 0. Total hardness straight out of the tap is 75
The filter has three layers of media, two bags of biological media (Seachem and Fluval) two small bags of peat pellets and some Seachem Phosguard in a bag. Some plants are already growing on bogwood, and I have just bought a piece of dragon wood to (hopefully) help soften the water somewhat. I have also just realised on putting up this thread I need to invest in a full testing kit rather than rely on these test strips, which seem, with hindsight, to provide too broad a spectrum of water analysis.
I also top up the aquarium with de ionised water at least once a week.
Panda Cory's are breeding, up from 4 to 9, Three striped Cory's have had one offspring and the Chili Rasboras have somehow produced 2 new. There is a dense planted area to the right of the tank where fry can hide successfully until big enough to mix it.

 

[dw1305]

Hi all,

As stated earlier, my water parameters are 0 nitrate/nitrite, Ph 7.2 with no ammonia, but, as with everyone keeping fish in Lincolnshire, very hard water.

is showing Nitrate at 50

I think probably 50 ppm NO3- is more likely. In hard water the pH is likely to be ~pH 8, purely for <"reasons of chemistry">.

and some Seachem Phosguard

Take it out, basically all plants (including algae) <"need phosphate (PO4---)">. Seachem's advertising <"is often misleading">.

but I simply cannot get any plants to live on the surface to provide cover for my fish from above. I've tried the lot (except duckweed) but no matter how strong the root system, they all seem to die back within a fortnight

I'm guessing that this is, at least partially, a nutrient, <"rather than flow">, issue. Have a look at <"What is the “Duckweed Index” all about?">, if it isn't PO4---, I'm guessing that iron (Fe) <"may be your problem">, purely because you have hard water.

I'm actually thinking of the dreaded duckweed, with a feeding circle. It would just be nice to give the fish a bit of extra security by giving them some overhead cover.

It should be OK, Duckweed (Lemna minor) is a <"good plant for hard water">.

cheers Darrel

 

[Notimetoulouse]

Darrel, this is great advice and I thank you for it. The phosguard is in because I bought an API phosphate test kit that had it right in the upper echelon blue of the card spectrum. It's out now!

 

[dw1305]

Hi all,
@Notimetoulouse when did you start using the PhosGuard <"Seachem - PhosGuard">? Was it before plant growth declined?

The phosguard is in because I bought an API phosphate test kit that had it right in the upper echelon blue of the card spectrum.

I've found that a few times with tap water be have sent me and I've tested. Phosphate (PO4---) is both <"relatively easy to test for, and is added to ~all UK tap water">. It is the prime marker of eutrophication <"https://consult.environment-agency....ser_uploads/phosphorus-pressure-rbmp-2021.pdf"> in both aquatic and terrestrial systems in the UK, and it would take <"a thousand years"> to reduce the levels to background levels if we stopped adding it to the natural environment tomorrow.

However, none of that is really relevant to our aquariums. for example a <"lot of people"> actually use elevated levels of PO4--- to control GSA <"GSA and Phosphate">. I still don't know why this works, but I'm now willing to accept that it does - <"Nutrients and eutrophication">.

Because phosphate forms a lot of insoluble compounds (<"Seachem Purigen Head Scratcher">) it is easy to remove the water column.

It is also highly mobile within the plant, so that the plant can continually shuffle the PO4--- ions to new leaves, via its vascular tissue, and it takes a long time for deficiency symptoms to appear.

Algae don't have any vascular tissue, ions diffuse into each individual cell, so as soon as the phosphate ions go out of solution any algae stops growing. This means you have a window where the PhosGuard has "worked", before the plants begins to suffer with <"deficiency symptoms">.

cheers Darrel