JadeIceGreen's Project Nanos

Originally Posted by peanut8787

Wa, swee leh. Look like perfume bottle

Haha, you're right bro, now that I see it from your point of view.

[darter]

Dun keep us waiting leh bro.

Originally Posted by darter

Dun keep us waiting leh bro.

Update coming in a few hours.. Sorry! Have been busy recently, and these updates take time.

Hardscape and flora form the aquascape in which our fauna live in, and around. The aquascape is then supported by all the other equipment, the major ones being filters, lights, CO2 and chillers. In the middle of it all, is the medium in which is so important but often overlooked, water.

From reading around and my interaction with new aquascapers, I realise that liquid conditioners and fertilisers are areas that these aquascapers do not give much thought to, as compared to the other aspects of aquascaping. More often than not, after being inspired by a stunning aquascape and investing in equipment, hardscape and flora, they do not achieve the success that they have hoped. When an aquascape fails due to poor plant growth or massive algae outbreak, there are a few reasons why and proper fertiliser management and water conditioning is one of them.

In this post, I will be introducing you to the liquid conditioners and fertilisers that I will be using for Nano I.




Seachem Prime is no stranger to us and some do swear by it. Proper water conditioning to remove chlorine and chloramine is basic Aquarium 101. For those new to the hobby, always ensure that your water conditioner removes chloramine and not just chlorine as Singapore's water has both.

Good water conditioners like Prime do much more than just neutralising chlorine and chloramine. Prime converts toxic ammonia into a safe and non-toxic form, detoxifies nitrite and nitrate to facilitate removal by the bacteria colony in the biological media. It also detoxifies heavy metals and promotes a healthy slime coat for the fauna.

Although using Prime does not mean that we can take it easy with the usual aquascape maintenance due to all its benefits, it does mean that it adds a safety buffer which is always welcomed.




There are primarily two ways to seed a new filter. The inhumane way is to use a hardy fauna to produce ammonia while the humane way is to use a product like Seachem Stability. Instead of seeding ammonia, Stability seeds a synergistic blend of aerobic, anaerobic, nitrifying and denitrifying bacteria. This bacteria will then take home within the biological media in the filter.

I typically take about 7-10 days to completely seed my filter using Stability. For all the aquascapes in Project Nanos, I will be monitoring the ammonia levels accurately to show exactly how effective Stability is.




Seachem Potassium will be the source of Potassium for Nano I. Potassium is vital to flora, especially fast growing flora such as Glossostigma elatinoides, Hemianthus callitrichoides, Eleocharis acicularis and Riccia fluitans. It runs out quickly in a brightly lit, CO2 enriched aquascape and will be a limiting factor to good and strong plant growth.




For all of Nano I's requirements for trace elements, Seachem Trace will provide. Trace contains 9 trace elements; Boron (B), Cobalt (Co), Copper (Cu), Manganese (Mn), Molybdenum (Mo), Zinc (Zn), Rubidium (Rh), Nickel (Ni), Vanadium (V).




Iron is another important element that flora needs to grow healthily. Seachem Iron will prevent iron deficiency such as short and slender stems or yellowing between veins. Sufficient iron will also improve the colouration in flora.




I've been using ADA fertilisers the last few years and though they do work nicely, they are pretty taxing on the wallet. This time round, I decided to go with Seachem's fertiliser range as I'm already a firm fan of their liquid conditioners and filter media. Going the non-ADA route does not mean having to tolerate ugly bottles though. As you can tell in the picture above, I will be re-bottling all the liquid conditioners and fertilisers into these PET bottles, which hold the same amount of 250ml as the stock bottles.

Uniformity is essential for turning a good set up into a great one. There is no one method of uniformity that we are to conform to, although there are great examples. ADA, Dennerle and Fluval are some that have their own styles when it comes to full set ups, they are all different in style but similar in uniformity across the brand. When we take the effort to create a uniformity in our set ups, the end result is an environment that encourages the beauty of the aquscape and not distract us from it.

[Jon-san]

Hi Isaac, I would have swapped out the Prime for Safe powder. More concentrated and definitely more cost-saving. Essentially the same stuff.

[peanut8787]

Originally Posted by Jon-san

Hi Isaac, I would have swapped out the Prime for Safe powder. More concentrated and definitely more cost-saving. Essentially the same stuff.

Correct correct. I also always use the safe powder. Cheaper as in quantity but same in quality.

[darter]

Where u got the bottle from bro.

[washywashy]

Bro JIG, are those PET bottles from Muji or Daiso? Looks familiar! Btw, why do you prefer these fertilizers instead of other brands? Also, are these enough for plants? A total noob here

[sixthbrand]

Originally Posted by washywashy

Bro JIG, are those PET bottles from Muji or Daiso? Looks familiar! Btw, why do you prefer these fertilizers instead of other brands? Also, are these enough for plants? A total noob here

Dude i sense sth coming up!

Originally Posted by Jon-san

Hi Isaac, I would have swapped out the Prime for Safe powder. More concentrated and definitely more cost-saving. Essentially the same stuff.

Originally Posted by peanut8787

Correct correct. I also always use the safe powder. Cheaper as in quantity but same in quality.

I agree. But for a nano tank, I rather work with Prime as the cost is not high. And I do get to use those nice bottles!

Originally Posted by darter

Where u got the bottle from bro.

Originally Posted by washywashy

Bro JIG, are those PET bottles from Muji or Daiso? Looks familiar! Btw, why do you prefer these fertilizers instead of other brands? Also, are these enough for plants? A total noob here

Muji.

Fertilisers from other brands are alright. The concentration will be different from brand to brand. I use Seachem this time instead of ADA because its cheaper and I want to give it a shot. I chose Seachem because they know their stuff.

I will dose till it's enough for the aquascape. What I'm going to find out is how much is enough.

Originally Posted by sixthbrand

Dude i sense sth coming up!

washywashy want to start planted tank?