Why do we measure still by WPG?

[dskidmore]

Indeed, the LFS is definitely not the locale to accept planted tank advice. Not enough "know-how" there certainly.

Very frustrating. My LFS has beautiful planted display tanks, but has a really horrible selection in thier plants for sale. I don't usually ask them for advice though, I expect them to want to make money off of me, not look out for my best interests.

 

[Skyrmir]

Clean living area, adequate room, sufficient food and friendly tankmates. That's easy to conceptualize. But when you look at plants you need to think of lighting and a lot of extra equipment. With plants you don't need food so much as the actual nutrients. This is probably why some people never really get their plants to live...there's a lot that goes into it.

Also you can see the food you give your fish. You have to test to find out if the food your plants need is there, and how it compares to other nutrients.

I think czcz summed up the use for the WPG rule pretty well. It's a guidline to when you need CO2 and when higher light plants can be added. As for what's best for a particular plant or group of plants, that's when you'd start breaking it down to what light ranges and more exact power ratings, ferts, etc are needed.

If it wasn't for you guys I'd probably be trying to grow my plants in my .66 WPG of NO lighting as recommended by the LFS.

heh, Try going into a fish store that sells lighting. If I'd listened to them I'd have had 120 watts and CO2 on my 30 gallon LOW light tank.

 

[muddlehead]

wpg isnt all that complicated if you read the stickies or just pay attention to specific threads, from early on i recognized that my NO lights didnt have the same characteristics or intensity that a PC setup would have, i just started experimenting with plants in my 10 gal with 20 wpg of NO and im doing ok but i know that i could benefit from CO2, like someone said earlier conditions are a huge factor to plants, the plants in my 10 gal used up all the trace nutrients in a week and half and stopped growing so i had to get some ferts, i think the wpg rule is a good basis for selecting plants and lighting because everything in this hobby is kind of a matter of experimentation, no tank is alike, i had no problem understanding wpg, the problem im having now is ferts, which i think is far more complicated and confusing

 

[dskidmore]

My tank is still classed as low-light, but it is nitrogen limited by my water quality tests.

I'm in the middle of a light upgrade, going to 160w over my 75 gal, will definatly need to start fertilizing as soon as my iron test kit comes in.

 

[Codefox]

I don't know if the LFS was trying to make money...they have very odd ideas on tank equipment :

No canisters. They looked at me like I had a 3rd eye when I said I wanted a cannister on my 55g.

Low lights only. She claimed that she couldn't grow plants in anything other than a standard AGA hood with a pair of NO lights.

 

[dskidmore]

Very odd.