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Struggling a bit - can't work out why

They are the standard JBL spray bars. The holes are slightly bigger than a cocktail stick, which is handy, as that is what I unblock them with..... Daily :)


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Maybe consider making up a new one piece full length spray bar ... it seems like you have most things in place but I would expect to see lush plants loaded with oxygen bubbles from your set up!
9 x out 10 the issues revolve around not enough C02 feeding the plants for whatever reason.
 
BBA. Everthing I have gleaned says it is caused by unstable CO2 which questions flow,You could experiment with some new fast growers() stems and trial an error with a small powerhead or small filter.The filtration on your filter the inflow should hit sponges first then biological media then finer sponges/floss in final chamber /s with any media carbon or purigen before going back into aquarium
 
Hey Paraguay

That is what it does, the water is returned down the side of the filter, through a presponge, and then is pumped from the bottom, up through the media.

cristal%20profi%20funzionamento.jpg


I think it is fair to say with a faulty UP inline a few months back, there is a high chance I had unstable CO2 which might have led to currect BBA.

I think I will remove dragon stone and treat with Liquid Carbon and put back in, and see if the BBA returns.

Thanks
Aaron
 
foxfish said:
Maybe consider making up a new one piece full length spray bar ... it seems like you have most things in place but I would expect to see lush plants loaded with oxygen bubbles from your set up!
9 x out 10 the issues revolve around not enough C02 feeding the plants for whatever reason.
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Yeah I think I might need to look at a better spray bar option :)
 
A question on CO2 - if bubbles are visibly all over the tank, and the CO2 level is such that some fish start to gasp, is it reasonable to conclude that Co2 might not be the issue?

Could it be that some other issue is causing problems with plants, these problems in turn create an ideal environment for BBA to sneak in and thrive?

I can't inject any more CO2. I guess I could switch to @George Farmer approach and move inline atomiser to the intake of the filter in the hope it better dissolves CO2?
 
aaron.c said:
if bubbles are visibly all over the tank, and the CO2 level is such that some fish start to gasp, is it reasonable to conclude that Co2 might not be the issue?
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unfortunately not.
aaron.c said:
Could it be that some other issue is causing problems with plants, these problems in turn create an ideal environment for BBA to sneak in and thrive?
Click to expand...
anything is possible until you have an solution :)
aaron.c said:
I can't inject any more CO2. I guess I could switch to @George Farmer approach and move inline atomiser to the intake of the filter in the hope it better dissolves CO2?
Click to expand...
sure you can, you might need more surface agitation or shorter running period...

Hey Aaron, a couple of things id suggest...
have a look at your filter, if the filter is working correctly you shouldnt have to clear the spraybar holes daily. Either dirt is bypassing the floss/ sponge in your filter or the tank needs cleaning better.

Get a eheim surface skimmer. Surface film is created when plant health isnt great, that same film also buggers around with your co2 concentrations as it cant off gas which will make BBA issues even worse. Worth looking at ways to mesh the top of it though as they eat shrimp and small fish. It wont solve your problems but it will definitely help.

I wouldnt say there is any issue with the anubias (aside BBA) new leaves will always be light in colour.

Change the inline atomiser to pre-filter, it can make a surprising difference but be aware it can also cause toxicity to the fish as the concentration rises so do it when your home for the day.

Dont triple dose ferts, it doesnt help. Majority of tanks ive had issues with (which is most of them) have seen improvements almost every time by reducing ferts. I am normally a bit slap dash with just chucking them in though so could just be me. Unless you see a deficiency issue aside co2 just cut back, the plant mass isnt huge so demand is likely quite low.

Liquid carbon would be worth trying, if you dont see improvement in a few weeks then the injection method isnt the issue, however flow may still be. Also great for spot dosing the BBA.

The fact all the stems have no bottom leaves suggests that flow isnt great at the lower levels, keep playing with it. You dont want a washing machine just a nice gentle flow all round. Too higher flow can actually stop plants accessing the co2 that that you are putting in.

keep plugging away, you'll figure it out sooner or later :)
 
Thanks for this great reply Iain.

I did have a surface skimmer on the tank but it broke, so I will look to get a new one, either that, or run an air pump at night? Got plenty of those kicking about.

I removed most of the dragon stone to try and improve the lower circulation. Hoping this will help.

I am definitely going to reduce the ferts.

Aaron
 
Hi all,
aaron.c said:
This plant is at the end of the tank which should get less light as the bars don't extend to the full length of the tank
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Looking at the colour of the new leaf that looks pretty conclusive as a nutrient deficiency.

Because it is new leaf, iron deficiency becomes a distinct possibility.

I'd try adding some <"FeEDTA"> (other sponsors are available).

cheers Darrel
 
I am currently double dosing EI Micros - which I don't really want to do, given that actual plant load is fairly low.

So I will not increase Micros, but I will continue to dose Seachem Flourish Iron.
 
Hi all,
Iain Sutherland said:
I wouldnt say there is any issue with the anubias (aside BBA) new leaves will always be light in colour.
Click to expand...
Assuming the colour balance is right on the photo, I don't think they should be that yellow. I don't add CO2, or nutrients regularly to any of the tanks, (all of which contain some Anubias plants) and none of them have really yellow new leaves.

Paler green, but not yellow.

This one is cheating because it has become emersed, I'll try and get some photos tomorrow of submerged new growth.
lid_up_zpsf2edd702-jpg.16073.jpg


cheers Darrel
 
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Hmm I actually thinks it is more a light green than yellow. I will watch the leaf as it matures and see if it goes green


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Hi Aaron, I've had some small BBA issues with my current tank and found that reducing micros helped a lot and also reduced surface film. All tanks are different of course....

For the spray bars, that suggests something must be amiss with your filter, mayde a rubber seal out of place or something? Is the tank water crystal clear aside from the micro bubbles? If it is then that should rule out dirt getting through the filter... which then suggests rapid bacteria film growth in the tubes which to me suggests over fertilisation.

The mega dosers on this forum may want to shoot me down... but reducing ferts reduced the brown slime build up in my clear pipes considerably (weekly cleaning reduced to 2-3 weeks) and I was no where near dosing double EI but I am using nutrient rich ADA Aquasoil

Try no ferts for a week or more and see what happens... if things improve that gives you a clue, but don't go too long or you'll get new problems..
 
Thanks Chris. I am going lean with my dosing to see what happens :)

Then If that doesn't work I am going to try moving the up inline diffuser to the filter inlet pipe.

One change at a time though so hopefully we can say definitively what caused any improvement *fingers crossed :)


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So, I have reduced trace to half EI dose, has been about 2 weeks.

Surface film is not as troublesome. I did a few big (80%) water changes to get the levels reset.

I have noticed that the Riccia has really taken off since the levels were reduced. The polysperma also seems to be growing well.

No change to BBA yet, but early days still.

Next step will be to move the CO2 diffuser to the filter inlet, this is more to get rid of the fizzy pop effect, which I really don't like.

I have uploaded a video of the flow from the JBL Cristalprofi

 
That flow looks to be excellent!
 
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