Starting a planted aquarium

The friendliest place on the web for anyone with an interest in aquariums or fish keeping!
If you have answers, please help by responding to the unanswered posts.

chompsticks

Aquarium Advice Apprentice
Joined
Nov 28, 2009
Messages
26
I am sort of new to the planted aquarium scene and have been trying to get plants to grow, mostly just swords, some bacopa, and another plant I cannot remember the name.... Anyways I have a few questions...

I have a 120 long with two rena xp3s and the tank is sort of heavily stocked with fish. 10 tiger barbs, 2 rams, 7 assorted rainbows, 5 cories, 4 ottos, 1 rubbernose pleco, 5 bala sharks ( the sharks may go back to the LFS ( they will get to big eventually). The tank will be torn down and moved in two months so I am trying to stock up on things that I need for a rebuild.

Right now I have two 30 in T5 HO 2x24 fixtures a total of 2 6700k and 2 10000k. I also have two standard 10 gallon light fixtures( the ones from walmart) should I even use those?
Is that enough light/ wattage? I know there is a 2 wpg rule, but with these lights it is soooo bright and there is also a lot of sunlight in the room (not directly hitting the tank though)

I really would like to get either dwarf hairgrass or micro swords growing, but I have been having trouble with both

Not doing CO2 or ferts, about to start dosing with excel because of a breakout of algae, and most likely keep dosing excel because of the recommendations from different people.

Also wondering about substrate.... Right now I have a mixture of black and white sand, it is not deep enough, but I will add more soon, just need move my tank to the new place first. Would a mixture of sand and gravel be better for the root systems or just all sand?
Any suggestions?
 
thats going to be really low light maybe try anubias and java ferns. there isnt a correct answer for light. it really depends on what you want to grow more then anything. might want to go with some new fixtures that gets a little more light spreed over the tank....

i would just stick with sand.
 
Hairgrass and microsword need pretty strong light to do well. I'd add some more T5HO lights. The T5HOs penetrate down deep in the water. Most other types of lights don't do so well on deeper tanks (18"+).
 
If you use sand and gravel you will have some problems. I asked this in another thread (http://www.aquariumadvice.com/forums/f12/pool-filter-sand-126784-5.html) and they said that you will have disadvantages from both.

Doing part sand and part gravel doesn't present any new problems, but the problems with gravel (muck getting stuck down there) and with sand (anaerobic pockets of toxicity) would both be present. Also, they will inevitably mix together so if you were thinking of something detailed or separated, you can do it but it might not last."
 
Well that is good to know! So no sand and gravel mix.

About how many more t5 bulbs should i get? 2 or 4 more at the same wattage?
 
Well that is good to know! So no sand and gravel mix.

About how many more t5 bulbs should i get? 2 or 4 more at the same wattage?
Hey there!!

I think 2 bulbs are enough, CO2 is much more important, in my case atleast :)
 
Did you check out the sticky on everything you need to know for a planted tank? I am currently immersed in some of those articles right now, because I was getting confused with all the talk of CO2 and nutrients and bulbs and whatnot.
http://www.aquariumadvice.com/forums/f24/read-this-first-resources-and-references-83826.html

I am currently planning on starting my first planted tank as well, I am going to start out with low light hardy plants because I don't have a green thumb in the first place. I don't know how they will do with PFS substrate though, I am a little nervous as to how that is going to work out. I am thinking of keeping the gravel in my 10G and just filling the 25G with PFS and planting them both to see how it will work. I want to get Java Fern and Java Moss. I don't remember how the moss attaches but I think the Java Fern needs to be attached to a rock or something until its roots attach on their own.

Sorry went off on a little tangent there lol
 
Did you check out the sticky on everything you need to know for a planted tank? I am currently immersed in some of those articles right now, because I was getting confused with all the talk of CO2 and nutrients and bulbs and whatnot.
http://www.aquariumadvice.com/forums/f24/read-this-first-resources-and-references-83826.html

I am currently planning on starting my first planted tank as well, I am going to start out with low light hardy plants because I don't have a green thumb in the first place. I don't know how they will do with PFS substrate though, I am a little nervous as to how that is going to work out. I am thinking of keeping the gravel in my 10G and just filling the 25G with PFS and planting them both to see how it will work. I want to get Java Fern and Java Moss. I don't remember how the moss attaches but I think the Java Fern needs to be attached to a rock or something until its roots attach on their own.

Sorry went off on a little tangent there lol

Don't know who we should tell, but most of the links in the fertilizer article are broken (at least for me anyways)
 
I think I might stick with just the bulbs I have in that case, more light equals more co2 needed and since I am not using a co2 system, but dosing with excel I probably do not need more light. I think what I my try to do is get a raised portion of the tank (ie some kind of decor to make a flat area up closer to the lights so I can have a mat of hairgrass or microsword on the top)
 
Hairgrass and microsword need pretty strong light to do well.
hair grass is a low light plant though. i have mine in a 60 gallon with 2x32w t8 with bulbs several years old. in my case though its not as deep so the plants are closer to the light.

About how many more t5 bulbs should i get? 2 or 4 more at the same wattage?
I think 2 bulbs are enough, CO2 is much more important, in my case atleast
lighting is always the most important factor in a planted tank then co2.

is the tank 72x24x18? 2 more bulbs of the same fixture you have would only help the small area they are over.
 
the tank is 60x26x18, sort of kind of deep... So far the things that will be fixed/changed....

More substrate (not nearly deep enough)
Cleaning of the algae issue
replace HOBs with cannister filters to reduce water splash and loss of CO2
Daily dosing of Excel
Possible additional light fixture (homemade from home depot??)
Hopefully with just those minor changes it will help out...
 
Back
Top Bottom