Beginner Planted 60G Questions

[Rebekkah]

Hello! The name's Bekkah. I started out my aquarium experience with a 10G tank, and I was going to start a fish-less cycle with some simple plants. I had the whole thing planned out, but never went through with it as my cycle failed due to a few problems I ran into unknowingly.

I then received a 60G tank for free from a friend who was moving some of his stuff out, and it sparked my motivation to try again. I have a few questions regarding how to start the planted tank process, and I wanted to get them clarified before even filling up the tank with water and starting the cycle.

1) The tank I received unfortunately did not come with a hood. I'm assuming I'll have to order one off of the internet somewhere, but I wanted a little more clarification on lighting. I plan on building a Low Light Low Maintenance tank, as I'm a beginner when it comes to plants. How many watts per gallon would I need for my 60G? The Kelvin rating would be between 5000K and 10000K, correct? Is there a certain hood/lighting brand you guys could recommend for my size of tank?

2) I tried gravel substrate when my cycle failed in my 10G, and the entire time I had it I was considering switching over to sand. Since I'm starting fresh with this 60G, I've decided to use a sand substrate. I was going to go with Black Diamond sand, until someone suggested I go with aragonite sand to help keep my pH levels steady and such. Is this something you guys would recommend? If not, what is a sand substrate that's beneficial to planted aquariums? Substrate has to be 3 inches deep at the least, correct? So how many pounds of substrate do you think I'd need for a 60G?

3) I bought your generic, simply Tetra HOB filter for my 10G. I was told for a larger tank I'd be safer with a back up filter along with my main filter. I was also told a sponge filter would help further with cycling my tank. What would be the best brand for my size of tank, in your opinion? I'm trying to avoid CO2 injections, seeing as I don't have as much time as I'd like. I was also told an air stone would be beneficial for planted tanks?

4) I have an API master test kit, as well as a test kit for GH and KH levels. Do I need something to specifically test for phosphate, iron, and potassium?

5) What can I use to feed my plants? I've heard root tabs, brands like Flourish and SeaChem. Do you have any specific suggestions?

6) What kind of plants would fit well in a 60G? I know I have a lot more leg room now than I did with my 10G. The plants I was considering for my 10G were as follows:

Java Moss
Marimo Moss Ball
Dwarf Rotala
Red/Glandular/Red star Ludwigas in five or more
Dwarf/Narrow-leaved Anubias
Anacharis/Elodea
Bacopa caroliniana
Water Wisteria/Dwarf Hygrophila

Would any of those work for my 60G? What are some Low Light/Maintenance plants I can potentially put in my larger tank now?


Any and all feedback can help me out! I do appreciate it.

 

[Thrills22]

I remember my first cycle and the difficulty in watching a tank with nothing in it besides water when you're so eager to get started. But right now all you need is

1.pure ammonia
2.Liquid Test Kit
3.Thermometer

Purchase nothing else besides the above. Do not put plants in there. Due to the high concentrations on Amonia, Nitrite, and Nitrate in your tank they will likely die. Also don't add gravel for the above reason. I cycled using by raising my ammonia level to 5ppm and considered the cycle complete once 5ppm could be removed by my filter in under 12 hours. As for your questions...

1. As of right now this is of lesser importance and you can take your time deciding on lighting, Kelvin, Hoods etc

2. Never try to supress your tap parameters or alter PH/GH etc doing so can and often does cause crashes. Pursuing this path can also be very time consuming and exspensive ie pro ro water units etc.

3. For a 60 gal I'd recommend a exernal canister filter. They hold more media and will speed your cycle in comparision to a hob filter. Also you'll only need one of these filters. They key would be to get one that can turnover double your tanks volume in an hour. Ehiem is considered one of the quietest. In short your looking for a canister which can filter 450L or 120gal in an hour or there abouts.

4. Knowing your params is important in terms of future stocking but as of right now keeping an eye on ammonia, nitrate and Nitrite is most important. Also PH because this will crash every so often during a fishless cycle and slow down the process. FIxed with 90% water changes.

5/6 Low light low maintance would determine which plants you get. Most if not all root tabs are good for this type of setup.

I hope this helps.

 

[Mebbid]

I'll give my go at both answering your questions and adding in comments r/t the previous poster's suggestion.

1 - A single t8 flourescent fixture spanning the length of the tank should be sufficient for a low light / low upkeep planted tank. However, you don't even need to buy a hood for your tank. Instead there are light fixtures out there that have legs and will sit on the rim of your tank. I would suggest something like a Finnex Fugeray that's appropriately sized for your aquarium. You will save money going with a LED fixture vs a flourescent fixture because you won't have to replace bulbs and use less electricity.

2 - Unless you're planning on keeping an african cichlid tank (which wouldn't work with plants) I would absolutely advise against the aragonite substrate. It will spike up your pH into the low 8s which is higher than most tropical fish prefer. 9 times out of 10 Regular water changes is all that's needed to keep your pH steady.

I've also previously used black diamond sand and tbh, I don't like it at all. I don't feel safe putting some bottom dwellers into the tank with that substrate (primarily cory cats) If money is an issue then I would definitely say go for the black diamond sand. However, if you can afford it I would suggest Flourite Black. It's a plant substrate that will help the root feeders grow.

3 - There's no huge benefits in my mind of using a canister filter on any tank that's not obscenely overstocked. The extra media space in a canister is a big selling point, however all HOB filters have more than enough room to house all the BB a tank needs. Also, contrary to what the previous poster said no filter will grow BB faster. It grows at its own pace and there's very little you can do to effect that. It's also best to shoot from anywhere between 2x to 10x the tank volume in flow per hour. 120gph - 600gph.

If you're trying to save money go with HOB filters. If you like the idea of canisters and can afford them, go with a canister.

I will say 1 more thing about filters. 1 filter will almost never cut it in a tank; they will leave many dead spots that will collect detritus and have poor water circulation. This is also the reason why I like to go towards the higher end of the spectrum for flow.

4 - Nope. You are fine. The API kit has everything you need. Also, like the previous poster said: Keep an eye on your pH during cycling. When the pH hits below 6.5 the cycle slows down and eventually stops altogether. Water changes or a bag of crushed coral in the filter can remedy this.

5 - Take a look at this thread to see my experience with root tabs.
http://www.aquariumadvice.com/forums/f24/mebbids-diy-root-tabs-308735.html

For a low light tank water column ferts should be unnecessary. Seachem flourish comprehensive could potentially help if you really wanted to. I also wouldn't worry about carbon supplementation (one of the great things about low light tanks)

6 - Of the plants that you selected the Anacharis, anubias, Marimo moss ball, and java moss would be a good fit.

Other plants that can work are Java moss, bolbitis, and nearly any type of cryptocoryne.

Take a look here for a more comprehensive list of low light plants.
Excellent List of Low Light Plants - The Planted Tank Forum

The small selection of plants is the downside to a low light planted tank.

 

[Thrills22]

3 - There's no huge benefits in my mind of using a canister filter on any tank that's not obscenely overstocked. The extra media space in a canister is a big selling point, however all HOB filters have more than enough room to house all the BB a tank needs. Also, contrary to what the previous poster said no filter will grow BB faster. It grows at its own pace and there's very little you can do to effect that. It's also best to shoot from anywhere between 2x to 10x the tank volume in flow per hour. 120gph - 600gph.

If you're trying to save money go with HOB filters. If you like the idea of canisters and can afford them, go with a canister.

I will say 1 more thing about filters. 1 filter will almost never cut it in a tank; they will leave many dead spots that will collect detritus and have poor water circulation. This is also the reason why I like to go towards the higher end of the spectrum for flow.

To be fair, I never said a canister filter will grow BB faster. To clarify, I said that it will speed up the process. This is related to the rate in which the amonia reaches the BB and the amount of BB op is able to grow in a canister in comparison to a hob filter.

 

[Mebbid]

To be fair, I never said a canister filter will grow BB faster. To clarify, I said that it will speed up the process. This is related to the rate in which the amonia reaches the BB and the amount of BB op is able to grow in a canister in comparison to a hob filter.

Fair enough; however a canister is not going to speed up the process.

The bacteria is going to grow at the same rate whether it's in an air driven sponge filter, HOB filter, or a moving bed filter. The water getting pushed through the filters has a much higher concentration of ammonia than the BB in a cycling tank can begin to burn through.

The only type of filter that would influence the speed at which bacteria grow would be a trickle filter.

 

[Thrills22]

Fair enough; however a canister is not going to speed up the process.

The bacteria is going to grow at the same rate whether it's in an air driven sponge filter, HOB filter, or a moving bed filter. The water getting pushed through the filters has a much higher concentration of ammonia than the BB in a cycling tank can begin to burn through.

The only type of filter that would influence the speed at which bacteria grow would be a trickle filter.

I had to read this twice because I think were talking about completely different things here. The process of cycling a filter and the speed at which Nitrosomonas and Nitrobacter grow while related are not the same thing.

That said, op could speed up the rate in which the BB multiply by upping the temperature to 27C/80F and ensuring there is a lot of oxygen/surface tension via an air stone or spray bar. That's proven to speed up the rate the bacs both multiply and consume ammonia and nitrite.

But again, the two are completely seperate points in my opinion.

 

[schpanky]

Hi. I would recommend staying away from Anacharis if you are going to use liquid C02. It may melt. I flooded my room many times with a canister filter, but I'm sure they make em better these days as that was 13 years ago. Now I always stick with HOB's, IMO much lower maintenance. Good luck with everything. Some great info above.