5 gallon build

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GodFan

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I have a 5 gallon I am curently using for fry but as soon as they are old enough to go into the main tank I am redoing the tank. Here are a couple of my thought tell me what you think!

1) I considered doing a simply heavily planted tank with crystal red shrimp.
2) I thought about letting some banana plants grow to cover the top of the tank and have a betta and some frogs or something. I would do it open top so I could see the flowers.

So what do yall think? I am so stuck. I know I need low bioload because My filtration is going to be wierd. I will be running a marina slim s10 but the filter media will be absent. Instead I am going to fill it with gravel and grow terestial plants out of it. It would be like a sponge filter in essence.
I am leaning toward simply heavily planted with rcs and clams but I am not altogether sure. But I am leaning strongly toward that right now. What lighting would you sugest for a 5 gallon on a budget?
Thanks and God bless!
 
Is there a way to sucessfully keep fw clams in aquaria? I know they're filter feeders. Wouldnt you have to constantly add suppliments?
 
Mumma.of.two said:
Frogs and bettas need access to the waters surface to breathe. If the lilly pads cover the surface they could suffocate.
Click to expand...
I thought about that and thought it would stil;l leave enough room to breath but if you dont think sooo.....
Cichlid Kid said:
Is there a way to sucessfully keep fw clams in aquaria? I know they're filter feeders. Wouldnt you have to constantly add suppliments?
Click to expand...
I have heard of sucess with them with no supplements but I would be watching carefully.
 
Ok I am thinking about doing this.
Hardware: Marina s10 filter, Top fin 20 filter, 15 watt flourescent 8000K. (one filter will be filled with gravel and terrestial plants. Already ordered the pothos vine :))
Plants/decor: (NOT set in stone) Driftwood with flame moss attached, cabomba, crypt wendii, water sprite, banana plant, maybe a fern, and a ground cover maybe?
Fish/inverts: Pygmy cories (maybe haberous later on), chilli rasboras (If I can get a hold of them), crystal red shrimp, and maybe a clam or two (this doesnt count the ever present snails)

So any thoughts or suggestions? I think it will be pretty cool! I also considered one sparkling gourami but I wasnt sure if he would be happy by himself.
 
Ok I pretty much have decided I am going with a heavily planted tank. I got the pothos vine in and it is sitting in a cup (I got a few stems so I got a couple in plain water and a couple in gravel (will be flooded with water at next water change) will seachem flourish help them get started?
I have 3 questions though.
1) How do I care for crystal red shrimp!? lol
2) Can 1 sparkling gourami be happy in a tank?
3) Which filter should I flood with gravel and terrestrial plants?

oh and any suggestions on lighting?
 
1) Crystal Red Shrimp .:. Caridina cantonensis sp. "Crystal Red" .:. Freshwater Aquarium Shrimp Species Information Page (y)
2) I have no idea, LOL. I know you can keep them together, but I'd say a single one would be fine.
3) I don't really know what you mean by flooding a filter with gravel and plants.

As for lighting, it depends on the set up. I would suggest a 13W CFL on a clamp light or hood if you are going to use one. You can always use a higher wattage if needed. I find that for tanks that are 10g and under, CFL's are much more cost effective for medium light tanks.
 
adadkins1 said:
1) Crystal Red Shrimp .:. Caridina cantonensis sp. "Crystal Red" .:. Freshwater Aquarium Shrimp Species Information Page (y)
2) I have no idea, LOL. I know you can keep them together, but I'd say a single one would be fine.
3) I don't really know what you mean by flooding a filter with gravel and plants.

As for lighting, it depends on the set up. I would suggest a 13W CFL on a clamp light or hood if you are going to use one. You can always use a higher wattage if needed. I find that for tanks that are 10g and under, CFL's are much more cost effective for medium light tanks.
Click to expand...
Thanks! What i meant was I am filling the..... tank? part of the filter with gravel. Its a hob and I am filling it with gravel and planting it.
I have a 15 watt bulb hood with a 10 watt (50/50) CFL but the light looks bad I think (color wise) and does not light the whole tank. Any suggestions for improivement? I found a 15 watt spiral CFL at 6500K. I just hope if I go that route it will be ok with the humidity lol
 
Hmmmm, never heard of a planted filter!

I know what you mean about not lighting the whole tank, about one third of the tank is fairly dim on my 5g tanks. I'd suggest going with no hood and trying some type of clamp on light for a fully lit tank.
 
adadkins1 said:
Hmmmm, never heard of a planted filter!

I know what you mean about not lighting the whole tank, about one third of the tank is fairly dim on my 5g tanks. I'd suggest going with no hood and trying some type of clamp on light for a fully lit tank.
Click to expand...
I worry about the evaporation like that but I may try it. I found a 16 inch flourescent strip but the only bulb I can find is 8000K.
 
GodFan said:
Thanks! What i meant was I am filling the..... tank? part of the filter with gravel. Its a hob and I am filling it with gravel and planting it.
I have a 15 watt bulb hood with a 10 watt (50/50) CFL but the light looks bad I think (color wise) and does not light the whole tank. Any suggestions for improivement? I found a 15 watt spiral CFL at 6500K. I just hope if I go that route it will be ok with the humidity lol
Click to expand...

I would definitely get a 15w spiral CFL, make sure it is daylight.
 
Yeah, I've never personally done a open top tank since all my tanks have critters that will jump.

Can you link me to the light fixture? You are good for temp color since most people recommend anywhere from 5,000K to 10,000K. If you like the fixture you can try it, but I still think CFL's are a bit easier to work with for a 5g.
 
GodFan said:
I worry about the evaporation like that but I may try it. I found a 16 inch flourescent strip but the only bulb I can find is 8000K.
Click to expand...

In my 5G I have an open top and the water level only goes down about half an inch per week. With weekly water changes you should have no problems with evaporation anyway.
 
Evaporation isn't too bad. I loose about half a gallon every 2 days or so from my open top 8g. Doesn't take too much to top it off. I suspect the plants above it use most of that.
 
Oh, I also recommend getting a power compact fixture that is the right length for you tank. Most of them are clip on. You could get a 27w 10,000K bulb and it would be awesome. It would be considered high lighting.
 
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