Thinking of starting a 2 gallon low lighted tank

[Dylan5359]

Thanks to fort's and rookie's planted tanks, I now want to start one in like October. (since I'm not old enough for a job, my birthdays then so I can afford this projects need. Any fish related project my dad makes me pay for.) I'm thinking a 2 gallon is a good size. Any tank suggestions, like those fluval chi's? I'm too scared to attempt a co2. Is there any nano fish that would be okay in this tank? Or would I have to stick with RCS? What type of substrate? Whats types of plants can I use? Thanks guys.

 

[fort384]

2 gal is pretty small... but you can do a lot with it in terms of inverts and plants. I would not recommend any fish in that setup. There are a variety of shrimp out there that would work out well, so don't just limit yourself to RCS (I love RCS, don't get me wrong ).

You don't need to run CO2, especially if you keep it low light. There are a few interesting plants out there that would do well in a tank that size. I would be looking at different kinds of moss, and also look into anubias nana petite. It is a great low light nano plant (though a slow grower).

For substrate, if you are going low light, just about anything would work.. PFS, gravel, dirt, etc.

The fluval chis are cool - though the stock lights aren't good for growing much of anything. You would probably have to mod it a bit. There are some other nano tanks that are cool...

» Mirror Glass Packages

Azoo makes some really neat setups that range from 1/2 gallon to 3 gallons. The green clip on light is a CF 13W bulb, which is a great light for growing low light plants in a 2-3 gal tank.

 

[Dylan5359]

I was hoping you'd find this thread. Since I have close to no aquascaping skills I wanted to keep the tank small. The highest I'll go is a 5 gallon with this project. Is there anything I could use to give a type of grass affect? I wanted to use a small branching driftwood, and Put some java moss on the branches. Then just a small rock and some background plants.

 

[fort384]

I think the driftwood/moss idea would be great. I would consider going with that, some anubias nana petite in the front, and maybe some anubias nana in the back... or a small variety of crypt in the back.

And btw, I had no aquascaping skillz when I started out, and compared to some, I still have none It takes time and patience. Each time I do a new layout, it looks better to me... so eventually i will do one that I am happy with.

 

[Dylan5359]

I like that mirror circle, 3 1/2 ! I'll be looking at other FW shrimp. But for the mean time do RCS need heaters?

I think the driftwood/moss idea would be great. I would consider going with that, some anubias nana petite in the front, and maybe some anubias nana in the back... or a small variety of crypt in the back.

And btw, I had no aquascaping skillz when I started out, and compared to some, I still have none It takes time and patience. Each time I do a new layout, it looks better to me... so eventually i will do one that I am happy with.

Also would these plants need any special care? Like root tabs or something?

 

[fort384]

none of the plants I mentioned will need any special care.

Honestly, I don't keep a heater on either of my 5.5's, but I also live in the Georgia, and keep the temp in my house pretty constant. If your house gets under 72F, or if the temp fluctuates at all, a heater might be a good idea. The smaller the tank, the more susceptible it will be to temperature changes.

Obviously, the smaller the better for that size tank. AZOO makes a pretty small heater as well: » AZ60050, Titanium 50W

I have looked around quite a bit, and haven't found too many suitable nano tank heaters (Except the ones that you bury under the substrate, and those are just not accurate enough imo). When I move to Illinois, I will be adding inline heaters to my 5.5 gal tanks, but that is a possibility since I am running cannisters... on something smaller that obviously will not work.

 

[Dylan5359]

Yeah. I'll definitely need a heater. What would be the limit of RCS in a 3 1/2 gallon. (not going to buy this amount, I'll let them breed, just wondering) I'm definitely going to do this now. Is there any substrate you prefer to use? I've had a bad history with gravel. I'm leaning more towards sand. Soil sounds. Messy. Lol.

Also how do you order from the site? I don't really see an add to cart button or anything.

 

[fort384]

Soil would be messy... I really like ADA Aquasoil, but it is expensive. Pool Filter Sand would be a good cheap way to go.

» New Jersey <--that is the listing of new jersey retailers for AZOO. There might be some online distributors as well.

In a 3.5, I think you could easily have a colony of 20-30 RCS.

 

[Dylan5359]

That scruffy one doesn't sell the tank. The fish bowl doesn't have a site and is 1 hour away from here. I'll keep looking for some online distributors.

 

[fort384]

If they are azoo distributors, they can probably order 1 for you (if the "scruffy" one is close to you).

 

[Dylan5359]

The scruffy pet center is about 18 minutes from here so when the time comes I'll ask them to order it. Thanks fort for everything.

 

[Dylan5359]

Could I do some dwarf hair grass? I kind of wanted just the driftwood with some java moss idea and the dwarf hair grass on the bottom? Would I need a stronger bulb?

 

[Dylan5359]

Scratch the dwarf hair grass idea, I really want to go with Glossostigma Elatinoides to give it a light grassy look. What type of bulb would I need?

 

[adadkins1]

Since plants like Glossostigma Elatinoides need medium-high to high light requirements, I would go with about a 10 watt, 6,500k compact fluorescent bulb for a 2 gallon. Since it is such a small tank the watts per gallon rule does not hold true. No expert here, fort will know the exact wattage needed.

 

[Dylan5359]

Would the bulb upon this tank need an upgrade? http://www.aquabuys.com/p/ecoxotic-ecopico-5g-aquarium.html

 

[Dylan5359]

Lol never mind I want Lilaeopsis Brasiliensis instead. Looks more like grass. It requires high lighting but I'm willing to pay for an upgrade.

 

[adadkins1]

All of your "carpeting plants" such as the ones you are looking at require high lighting. I am no expert on LED plants, maybe BigJim or some other planted expert.

 

[fishfanatic]

I am following I want to see what folks say about that slick tank with the led light.

I love LEDs I have LESs on my 40 gallon but they are not 1200K they are 10000k