Potassium nitrate (Spectracide stump remover) dosing steps

[Russ265]

has anyone tried calcium nitrate? a bag is like $5 or so.

yup. people use that and sodium nitrate.

i think this thread is on potassium nitrate (spectracide stump remover) dosing though.

 

[kewadiak]

Its 2 tablespoons to 2 cups RODI

Thanks!

Thank you!

 

[twilliard]

has anyone tried calcium nitrate? a bag is like $5 or so.

Randy can give insight on that

 

[beaslbob]

I'll ask in the chemistry forum.

 

[Orly20]

Red sea algae control kit is what I use the no3 pro is perfect IMO

Ok great! Placing an order now

 

[twilliard]

yup. people use that and sodium nitrate.

i think this thread is on potassium nitrate (spectracide stump remover) dosing though.

Good morning Russ!
And thank you!
To all.. I have done the observations for potassium nitrate to verify that there is no notable increase of potassium.

 

[beaslbob]

yup. people use that and sodium nitrate.

i think this thread is on potassium nitrate (spectracide stump remover) dosing though.

that's true. I was just wondering though

 

[twilliard]

that's true. I was just wondering though

You can use that but dosing amount I would not know.

 

[Russ265]

You can use that but dosing amount I would not know.

yeah. same as me with spectracide stump remover. i just know what flourish nitrogen does. glad you are taking the time, and hopefully others will post their doses with whatever products they choose.

thanks twilliard for documenting

 

[Crackem]

you can use either. spectracide stump remover is cheaper in the long run. imo, seachem flourish nitrogen is more readily available.
both contain potassium nitrate.

i can advise roughly how much to dose per gallon with seachem, i believe twilliard is doing a writeup on the stump remover.

1ml per 5 gallons will net you +3ppm no3.

Can this be added at once or should I hook up a doser?

 

[twilliard]

Can this be added at once or should I hook up a doser?

I like to add it at first in equal small doses so I don't over shoot my desired level

 

[Russ265]

Can this be added at once or should I hook up a doser?

best to take twilliards advice and go half that dose. test after an hour. then increase until desired ppm is attained.

monitor the nitrate consumption over 72 hours and see if it just needed a kick start, or if you really need to continue dosing.

after a couple weeks to a month you should have an approximate gain or loss depending on feeding habits.

i auto dose now. but then again, i manually dosed and kept track of my ppm drops for months.

 

[Crackem]

Sorry if it's been asked but what test kit do you recommend? I use salifert but I have a very hard time differentiating between different shades. Was that the Red Sea kit that was posted? Is it easier than salifert?

 

[cadmanof50s]

What your describing sounds like my tank exactly. I can't wait to try this! Can I ask how you went about starting to dose and how many gallons your tank is. I'm not sure where to start I'm not good at numbers I have 320 gallons in my system any suggestions on where to start.

I used this site to figure out how much KNO3 to use, how much RO to dissolve it it in, etc.
My target was 4 to 5 ppm (up from 0). I over shot my target so I would urge to be a little more conservative than I was ..maybe starting at 2 ppm and work your way up. But please make sure you check your tank's NO3 levels daily..especially while you are dosing this stuff.

http://www.theaquatools.com/fertilization-calculator

V. Brincat

 

[cadmanof50s]

Sorry if it's been asked but what test kit do you recommend? I use salifert but I have a very hard time differentiating between different shades. Was that the Red Sea kit that was posted? Is it easier than salifert?

You are not alone. Especially in the red/pink area...I had a heck of time with the Salifert NO3 test kit color chart. I switched to Red Sea and I find it easier to compare using their color wheel. It is more time consuming, though.
BTW, this is by no means a slight to Salifert. They make great test kits and I use their brand for everything else....I just find that that their NO3 is especially difficult to read.

V. Brincat

 

[Russ265]

You are not alone. Especially in the red/pink area...I had a heck of time with the Salifert NO3 test kit color chart. I switched to Red Sea and I find it easier to compare using their color wheel. It is more time consuming, though.
BTW, this is by no means a slight to Salifert. They make great test kits and I use their brand for everything else....I just find that that their NO3 is especially difficult to read.

V. Brincat

their po4 kits always gave me false 0s. i just use red sea and hanna now.
99% of the time it is red sea though. hanna is just to cross check

 

[twilliard]

Sorry if it's been asked but what test kit do you recommend? I use salifert but I have a very hard time differentiating between different shades. Was that the Red Sea kit that was posted? Is it easier than salifert?

Red sea pro algae control kit is what I suggest

 

[KWSanders]

too much nitrate is bad. None at all is worse. Think of it like blood pressure too high is bad but none at all.... Well, I think you get the point.

as a doctor, I understand. thanks.
Kevin

 

[Crackem]

What about the Red Sea po4 kit? I think my Hanna po4 tester is a pain.

You are not alone. Especially in the red/pink area...I had a heck of time with the Salifert NO3 test kit color chart. I switched to Red Sea and I find it easier to compare using their color wheel. It is more time consuming, though.
BTW, this is by no means a slight to Salifert. They make great test kits and I use their brand for everything else....I just find that that their NO3 is especially difficult to read.

V. Brincat

 

[twilliard]

The red sea algae control kit is the best but still the po4 to me is a pain.
I rely on my triton tests for po4