First Planted Aquarium

[RoyBoy]

30 Gal (Tall) Planted (24" X 24" X 12")... Rena Filstar XP3 Filter... Hagen Life-Glo II Fluorescent Bulb (24W).... Seachem Flourite Plant Substrate... Java Fern X4, Anubias, Anacharis and Onion plant bulb.. Also have 7 Mystery Snails..

Ive recently gotten into the hobby and started with a tropical fish only aquarium (75Gal) and as I did more and more research I wanted to try a planted tank..

I love it! after i conferm that I am able to do the whole planted thing right I plan on converting my 75Gal into one, or get another tank

I add 15ml of API Leaf Zone Aquarium Plant Food every monday, and 3ml of API CO2 Booster every morning

Questions..

Does it matter that I am putting the CO2 booster in the morning? or should I do it after I turn the lights off? I figure if it helps with photosynthesis it should prolly be done with lights on

Are the snails bad to have? They seem to be doing ok but I dont want any trouble for my first planted tank..

What temp should I be keeping the water at? I have it around 80 now.. The only plant i think may have a problem is the Anubias? but ive read it will do fine in tropical climates..

I guess i dont really have that many questions, just hoping im doing everything right... Ive had everything together now for about a week..

Thankyou for input

Roy

 

[mandell]

so far I think your doing good. the CO2 dosent madder when you add it in the water the plants get to it when they need it till then it just is in the water. your anubias will do fine in almost any water this plant is vary hard to kill. do some looking around on the inter net for information on your plants http://www.plantgeek.net/, or http://www.aquaticplantcentral.com is a good sorce of info on a lot of plants. your mystry snails are fine as long as your not over run with common snails that some times get a ride into your tank on new plants. I suggest a yo yo loach if you run into this problem they controle the small snail problem but leave the bigger ones alone.

Hope this helped good luck with your tank.

 

[fort384]

Hi Roy, welcome to AA. my answers are below.

30 Gal (Tall) Planted (24" X 24" X 12")... Rena Filstar XP3 Filter... Hagen Life-Glo II Fluorescent Bulb (24W).... Seachem Flourite Plant Substrate... Java Fern X4, Anubias, Anacharis and Onion plant bulb.. Also have 7 Mystery Snails..

Ive recently gotten into the hobby and started with a tropical fish only aquarium (75Gal) and as I did more and more research I wanted to try a planted tank..

I love it! after i conferm that I am able to do the whole planted thing right I plan on converting my 75Gal into one, or get another tank

I add 15ml of API Leaf Zone Aquarium Plant Food every monday, and 3ml of API CO2 Booster every morning

Questions..

Does it matter that I am putting the CO2 booster in the morning? or should I do it after I turn the lights off? I figure if it helps with photosynthesis it should prolly be done with lights on
It is a glutaraldehyde similar to seachem excel. Adding it in the morning is the best way to dose it.
Are the snails bad to have? They seem to be doing ok but I dont want any trouble for my first planted tank..

Nope, they are great for a planted tank. They stir the substrate and help with a little cleanup too. They won't eat healthy plant tissue.

What temp should I be keeping the water at? I have it around 80 now.. The only plant i think may have a problem is the Anubias? but ive read it will do fine in tropical climates..
80 should be just fine for pretty much any aquatic plant.

I guess i dont really have that many questions, just hoping im doing everything right... Ive had everything together now for about a week..

Thankyou for input

Roy

 

[mfdrookie516]

^I agree with fort...

Now- Go get a background on that thing! That'll really improve the looks IMO

 

[fort384]

^I agree with that as well

 

[RoyBoy]

no ganging up on the newb! what color?

 

[fort384]

Blue, or black would be my recommendation. Not a fan of the photo-type ones.

 

[Fdsh5]

Go for the black. It will really show the plant colors

 

[mfdrookie516]

I prefer black. My 125 has a blue background and I hate it.. but I love the black on my 40

 

[RoyBoy]

Ok so I got a black background.... Should I put it on the sides also? I've seen both.. What's the preference?

 

[mandell]

The preffrence is yours I like just the back and plant my tank so I have a nice view from one side to another. However if your tank is up on something you don't whant to see when you look at your tank black. It out you will like your tank even more.

 

[TropicalAquariumExpert]

It's missing some carpet plants or other small stuff in the foreground. Learning to work and shape carpet plants is a good experience for a newb aquascapist.