Jkeating8
Aquarium Advice Addict
You could always go cheap with a clip shoplight from lowes, a 6500k CFL, and a Zoo Med stand. A 23 watt CFL would definitely give you highlight.
The PAR ratings they show it says "Quick PAR reading below 24 inch fixture" so when it says 12 inches is that a 12 inch fixture? Or for a 12 inch high tank?
If it's a 12 inch high tank then I should have closer to 88 par since my substrate is 4 inches up at the highest point and 80+ PAR is considered high light correct? But my foreground will be more on the medium/close to high range.
Not sure if you did or didn't, but be careful of how deep you make the dirt layer in the back. If its too deep the substrate can eventually go anaerobic and possibly rot the roots of your plants. I'm not completely up to par on my knowledge of the subject, but it may be worth doing some research in to the matter. It'd be a shame to have to rip it all apart. Just thought I'd point that out. Good luck, the scape looks great so far!
Yeah, I was going to do the 2 and 2 but just wanted it a bit higher back there. Good to know the MTS won't be an issue, do you recommend them in a dirted/planted tank or you just happen to have them from buying plants?
If you're going to keep bee shrimp of any kind, I don't know that I would do a dirted tank.
How come you wouldn't recommend bee shrimp in a dirted tank? I've never kept them before so just curious. Are they relatively hard to keep?
Bee shrimp are relatively hard to keep and require precise water conditions. Most people who keep sensitive shrimp use an active substrate such as Aquasoil Amazonia and/or use RO/DI water to achieve the best water conditions. I'm not sure how dirt would affect the water parameters especially when uprooting plants. Im not sure, though. I would just be cautious. If you're going to keep nice shrimp, I would setup a specific tank for them.
I feel the same way about LEDs. I like how modern, slim, and efficient they are. The only thing is that we're seeing is that they are still evolving and new advancements or better ways of doing things are being implemented in the next model. For example, the idea that plant LEDs can benefit from multiple wavelengths/bandwidths (i.e. 460nm to 640nm) and not just all white is becoming more apparent. It reminds me of reef LED lights which are more advanced and more expensive... but they incorporate seperate diodes that emit blue, red, violets, along with the whites. Specific combinations for planted tanks are being dialed in. The BML fixtures are a good example of this. Then you see Finnex announcing their "planted+" with red diodes. It's a continuing evolution.
We'll also start to see prices come down... But with that said, today's LED options for planted tanks are much much better than they were not too long ago.
Yeah, and mixing shrimp and bettas is always iffy. I've tried. Tigers, I guess. There are some really cool neos out there, too. Some like the Carbon Rilli, Blue Diamond, and Orange Rilli are really neat.Yeah I'm still undecided on whether I want to do the betta or just shrimp or something else. Which type of shrimp would you consider the easiest to care for that is a non neocardiana species? I've heard tigers are quite easy to care for, but then again I could be wrong.
Yeah, and mixing shrimp and bettas is always iffy. I've tried. Tigers, I guess. There are some really cool neos out there, too. Some like the Carbon Rilli, Blue Diamond, and Orange Rilli are really neat.