BF McUmber Posted June 15, 2021 Share Posted June 15, 2021 I see many guides for plants have the top of the PH range at 7.5 or 8.0. The water I have at work is at about a Ph of 8.2, gh=14, kh=7. I have been struggling a little with plants so far. Me/my coworkers/and my amano shrimp have just about successfully murdered 4 plants so far. I had a water sprite that was doing great but now it is looking sadder with patches kind of like a phosphate deficiency. (I was advised earlier to not use root tabs with my eco-complete, but I may pop one in to see if it perks the water sprite up some.) The guppy grass that I got for free with my shrimp is growing like crazy though. I have fairly simple reasonings as to why my previous plants have died, but does having a ph of 8.2 put more stress on a plant that will contribute strongly to its demise? 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fish Folk Posted June 15, 2021 Share Posted June 15, 2021 On 6/14/2021 at 10:09 PM, bwar said: I see many guides for plants have the top of the PH range at 7.5 or 8.0. The water I have at work is at about a Ph of 8.2, gh=14, kh=7. I have been struggling a little with plants so far. Me/my coworkers/and my amano shrimp have just about successfully murdered 4 plants so far. I had a water sprite that was doing great but now it is looking sadder with patches kind of like a phosphate deficiency. (I was advised earlier to not use root tabs with my eco-complete, but I may pop one in to see if it perks the water sprite up some.) The guppy grass that I got for free with my shrimp is growing like crazy though. I have fairly simple reasonings as to why my previous plants have died, but does having a ph of 8.2 put more stress on a plant that will contribute strongly to its demise? I do not know of any really hard and fast guide that would strike out plants with a pH that high. Often, a pH that high is accompanied by "hard water" - minerals dissolved in the water - which is perfect for most plants. It appears that's your situation (GH = 14 / KH = 7). I'd assume something is perhaps off with the balance of your lighting type / photoperiod / spectrum / depth; your water temperature; and your fertilization. For my part, I've done a lot of root tabs in Eco Complete. Plants do great. Here's a few photos from my planted tanks with Eco Complete that I've use Root Tabs in . . . 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
laritheloud Posted June 15, 2021 Share Posted June 15, 2021 Nope, not too high for plants. My water has a Ph of 8.2, also with eco-complete in my 29 gallon tank. I'm still working through nutrient/light balance, but none of my plants are struggling terribly after the initial settling in. I do dose with Easy Green, Easy Iron and I just started adding some extra potassium after noticing pinholes on an anubias leaf. 1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
laritheloud Posted June 15, 2021 Share Posted June 15, 2021 Disclaimer: I’m not a scaper and this is definitely a jungle 🤣🤣🤣 1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BF McUmber Posted June 15, 2021 Author Share Posted June 15, 2021 On 6/14/2021 at 10:21 PM, Fish Folk said: I do not know of any really hard and fast guide that would strike out plants with a pH that high. Often, a pH that high is accompanied by "hard water" - minerals dissolved in the water - which is perfect for most plants. It appears that's your situation (GH = 14 / KH = 7). I'd assume something is perhaps off with the balance of your lighting type / photoperiod / spectrum / depth; your water temperature; and your fertilization. For my part, I've done a lot of root tabs in Eco Complete. Plants do great. Here's a few photos from my planted tanks with Eco Complete that I've use Root Tabs in . . . oh wow, ok I'll go into putting the tabs in with a little more confidence then. I am going to use a little makeshift inserter though. It was a little annoying holding onto them with my tweezers last time. Thank you for the response! On 6/14/2021 at 10:32 PM, laritheloud said: Disclaimer: I’m not a scaper and this is definitely a jungle 🤣🤣🤣 Thank you for the response! I am an engineer so art is not really my forte, but I think that tank looks good. You should be proud of it! Since you have a 29 I'll ask a follow up question. How do you like the size of it? 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
laritheloud Posted June 15, 2021 Share Posted June 15, 2021 On 6/14/2021 at 10:43 PM, bwar said: oh wow, ok I'll go into putting the tabs in with a little more confidence then. I am going to use a little makeshift inserter though. It was a little annoying holding onto them with my tweezers last time. Thank you for the response! Thank you for the response! I am an engineer so art is not really my forte, but I think that tank looks good. You should be proud of it! Since you have a 29 I'll ask a follow up question. How do you like the size of it? I like it okay. The height is great for taller plants. But if I had to do it over again, I'd choose a 40 breeder as my beginner tank for the longer footprint. 😉 I have a 55 gallon tank waiting to get filled. I'm going to start building it once I get everything I need together, and this time around, I'll see if I can figure out some moderation and scape it a bit more thoughtfully instead of trying everything out! Thank you so much for your kind words! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BaRanchik Posted June 15, 2021 Share Posted June 15, 2021 What are the temperature, lighting period, dosing schedule, stocking and age of the tank? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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