New tank update

March 24:

New tank is struggling a bit. Blue-green algae has started to grow.

• Ammonium: 0 ppm
• Nitrate: 20 ppm
• Phosphate: 2.0 ppm
• pH: >= 7.6

Nitrate and phosphate are quite high, which is probably what spurred the blue-green algae growth. Perhaps it is leaching out of the soil? I can't imagine where else it could be coming from in that quantity.

Vacuumed the gravel and added some trumpet snails. Transplanted more stem plants from the old tank.

The old tank is holding steady in nitrate and phosphate, but ammonium is a tad high:

• Ammonium: 0.25 ppm
• Nitrate: 10 ppm
• Phosphate: 0.5 ppm
• pH: >= 7.6

Vacuumed the gravel here, too.

March 30:

Old tank is still 0.25 ppm ammonium. It seems otherwise fine.

Blue-green algae is coming in pretty thick in the new tank. Cleared out some manually and performed a 50% water change (nitrate 10 ppm and phosphate 1 ppm after the change). Started dosing Erythromycin.

Early April:

Water test after we finished dosing Erythromicin. Can't find the results now (wrote them down on a piece of paper), but I remember the new tank had high ammonium (0.5 ppm) and low pH (7.2) but everything else was typical values. Performed 50% water change.

April 14:

New tank:

• Ammonium: 0 ppm
• Nitrate: 10 ppm
• Phosphate: 1.0 ppm
• pH: 6.8

Didn't retest the old tank except to verify that its pH is still >= 7.6

Performed a small water change and will start trying to equalize the two tanks.

April 23:

New tank:

• Ammonium: 0.25 ppm
• Nitrate: 10 ppm
• Phoshate: 0.5 ppm
• pH: 7.6
• KH: 4°
• GH: 4°

Old tank:

• Ammonium: 0.0 ppm
• Nitrate: 0 ppm
• Phosphate: 0.25 ppm
• pH: 7.6
• KH: 5°
• GH: 5°

As you can see, we got a hardness test kit. I was concerned because the pH in the new tank was low earlier this month, but its hardness now indicates adequate buffering capacity. Strange that the old tank's nitrate is so low...I wonder if it's measurement error. I've always been suspicious of that second bottle of nitrate test reagent because you have to shake it before use.

Performed a 20% water change and am mixing water from the old tank into the new one. Possible signs of a blue-green algae revival in the new tank.