Nitrates should be between 5-20ppm. Add some Potassium nitrate (KNO3) or
maybe less than 20% weekly water changes, or aim for slower growth by
lowering CO2 to 15ppm and lighting.

"laz" wrote in message
link.net...
Alright good people here is my problem...
I have a 55 G planted tank.
Here are the specs.: ph 7
kh 7
gh10
ammonia 0
nitrates 0
temp ~78-80
water changes 1/3 weekly
CO2 1-2 bubbles / sec (DIY)
fertilization ~ 1cc PMDD and ~1cc Flourish
Iron daily, Flourish ~ 2cc weekly, jobe's stick once a
month
substrate: bottom layer ~1" Laterite, next
is
~ 2" Shults' Arcillite substrate ( like baked clay ) used for
aquaplants in ponds, got it from a garden center, on the top of it ~2" of
washed play sand and on the
top
of these ~1/2 " of 2-3 mm gravel. ( maybe overkill don't know...)
lights: 220W (Jally A18) 4 X 55 W compact
fluorescent lights, 12 hours daily (7- 7)
filtration: Fluval 304 mainly for bio and
H.O.T Magnum for couple of nights a week with micron
filter. ( no charcoal )
Plants: few Alteranthera sessilis, Java fern, penny, Vallis, Anubias,
Water
cabbage, Amazon swords, Aponogeton.
Fish: 1 pictus cat ( lost his friend recently cannot figure out why... )
1 glowlight tetra ( lost her 5 friends within the same time
frame...)
3 Rasboras ( they lost 3 of their friends in the same horror...)
3 Black mollies
2 Clown loaches
3 Dwarf Pleco
2 Oto ( they lost 3 of their friends)
I have no idea what happened I found these poor guys floating one
morning.... It was no fun. :-(
Anyhow here is my question I hope some of you guys with more experience
can
help me.
I keep reading about the photosynthesis and how the bubbles forming on the
leafs. I don't have bubbles!
The plants just barely hanging on. They are growing but not to my liking.
Some of the old leafs on the swords turning yellow that according the Krib
might be N deficiency. I put more Jobe's stick to their roots, added 1
more
tablespoon KNO3 to the PMDD but still no bubbles. Increased the time of
lighting still nothing, Doubled the DIY CO2 to 2 bottles, (Setting up
fresh
ones every weekend so the CO2 is pretty much constant, I have a good
diffuser, but I tried the CO2 to the Fluval intake as well) but still no
bubbles.
Does it mean that there is no photosynthesis? According the Krib's chart
the
CO2 level is ~ 21 mg./l which is pretty high.
So good people out there , What do I miss???
What can I do to make the plants happier?
Any input will be appreciated.
Laz