We talk about redosing our macro's after our larger water changes (50%) but we don't seem to talk about redosing trace minerals.

Are all of your adding just a regular daily dose of trace after a large water change?

If not, how much should I add after a water change?

Assume TMG type trace.

Regards,

Jeff O'Neill

I typically wait a day and dose the micros the following day.

Regards,
Tom Barr

Does it matter if you dose the trace after the water change & then the macros the next day, traditionly were told macros after WC & micros the next day.
Regards

Nope, no real difference, various theories abound however.
Mostly my own

I suggested along time back: add only traces so that the rest of the macros get mopped up and you start even at a lower level prior to adding more.

Another ideas was to dose heavy the 24 hour prior to the water change with Macros, so called "mega dosing", and then doing a larger water change and adding them back there after, plants have plenty for a about 1-2 days for whatever you add, but no too much more. You can do lower residuals and dose daily also. I miss days too much doing that and get all messed up.

So whatever routine that you can stick to consistently likely in a more significant issue than daily vs 3x a week etc or split days for macro/micros.

While some cloudiness occurs with some tanks with Fe and PO4, I still do not think you have much less growth if done that way.
If you use TMG, there is very little cloudiness on the same days you dose PO4, some add PO4 in the morning or Fe, and the other later at night.

You can toy around with various routine........but..........when folks tend to do this for improving their tanks, they often claim whatever they are doing makes things better, and attribute it to the routine...............rather than to them suddenly becoming more consistent for a few week's time.

All planted tanks will do better if you start taking care of them.

Having tried quite a few methods, I know now that it is not the method's fault, it's generally our fault.

Consistency is a huge part of planted tanks as are routine water changes, you may do them 2x a week etc, or a less % than 50% or more.
There are no hard rules here.

More is better for water changes, but we balance the trade off with planted tanks health and our own routines we can live with.

Keeping planted tanks is every bit as much as Social Science as it is Plant Science.

Some clowns like to suggest like it's pure science and they are infalliable and only changed this or that in their one trial run.
That's a croc.
They are human and so am I. We have to double check ourselves and confirm and figure out ways to make sure or at least get closer to the "truth".

We can do this process till we turn blue etc.........but we can make some reasonable assumptions easy enough and go from there.

I know that folks can do a daily routine and a 3x a week routine with equal success and have the same growth rates. So I think it really does not matter because both sets of routines have similar effects. Some claim oh their way is better, perhaps for them, but as far it being better, as far as plant growth in a significant manner, that is really questionable...............anmd it needs to be significant to really be well....significant, Doh!

But folks wanna go on about these subtle extremely hard to measure effects with no units, no way to measure them etc, crap, I might feel bad that day and that might be the cause of the subtle effect in what I see!

A large % of folks need to see the difference for it to be arguable I think.

I also know it's not critical/significant to dose micro or macros that same day, I like to personally, but I use TMG also and generally add the PO4 last/late in the day.

Try it and see. See if you can produce the same effects and do the routines carefully for 3-4 weeks.

Your tank will look better either, because now you are paying more attention to it and looking and primping it.

so either way, you win

Regards,
Tom Barr

great stuff guys. And how much are you adding on that second day? Are you adding a normal days dose?

bump! anyone?