Convict's First Go at a Planted Tank

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Convict2161 said:
Also I want a very small bio load, a few pieces of driftwood, rocks and as mentioned before open space somewhere in the tank that's NOT planted.

I'm getting pumped!!
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Convict, are you set in those smooth-like river stones as depicted in james findley's GM tank you linked to earlier? I find that the stones commonly found in iwagumi nature scapes to have more character with their inquire ridges and crevices. Check out Seiryu stone (as in Billbug's 12L), yamaya (in my 6g GLA), ohko, or manten.. They're a little pricer but go along way in the overall appearance of the scape IMO.
 
Brian_Nano12g said:
Convict, are you set in those smooth-like river stones as depicted in james findley's GM tank you linked to earlier? I find that the stones commonly found in iwagumi nature scapes to have more character with their inquire ridges and crevices. Check out Seiryu stone (as in Billbug's 12L), yamaya (in my 6g GLA), ohko, or manten.. They're a little pricer but go along way in the overall appearance of the scape IMO.
Click to expand...

Not set in anything yet! Most that know me, know that things are going to change throughout. That's why I'm not going to bore everyone with all details. My scape is open, it's what moves me, it will come to me one day and I will start drawing and taking pictures etc of things I wanna use. In short... Nothing is set in "stone" pun intended :cool:

Question, planted tanks use regular filters? Like an aqua clear? Or is there a special filter or filter someone can suggest.
 
Convict2161 said:
Not set in anything yet! Most that know me, know that things are going to change throughout. That's why I'm not going to bore everyone with all details. My scape is open, it's what moves me, it will come to me one day and I will start drawing and taking pictures etc of things I wanna use. In short... Nothing is set in "stone" pun intended :cool:

Question, planted tanks use regular filters? Like an aqua clear? Or is there a special filter or filter someone can suggest.
Click to expand...

If you're going rimless, is say go with a canister filter.
 
Agreed... Canister. You can (depending on budget) get lily pipes from the start or do what Bill and I have done, and just start the tank with the stock canister hardware and upgrade to glassware later. At least you'll have that upgrade potential. We both use Fluval '06 cans btw.
 
:banghead::banghead::banghead: the canister lol. Well you guys/gals would know better then me. Looks like its gonna be a rimless 30 gallon. And ten finnex Ray 2.

Budget without sounding full of myself I set at $2,000 I hope that's enough to accomplish a tank that will supersede anything I've ever done :dance::dance:
 
Looks like you are forming some good plans.

I might be biased (ok I am definitely biased) but it is hard to beat a rimless tank.

As far as lights, if you are still looking, someone linked these the other day and I thought they looked really interesting. I like the 3W diodes. E.shine Systems - LED Grow Light & LED Aquarium Light

Of course, whether or not you need 3W diodes depends on the final tank selection. 1W diodes in the finnex may be more than enough.

Good luck!
 
Either of those substrates will be quality. I prefer aquasoil, especially when starting a tank from scratch. I have had aquasoil that lasted for YEARS in planted tanks. It is good stuff.
 
So are you thinking of the Mr. Aqua 33.6 (24.8 x 17.7 x 17.7")? If so, I'd be a little apprehensive that the a single Ray 2 will color up any stems that usually color up with intense lighting. I have the 24" Ray 2 on my 26g Bow Front, and due the 18" distance from light to sub, I'm getting reduced PAR -- which places it around medium light. Don't get me wrong, in fact and single Ray 2 might be good for you since you're just starting out. The added distance will be easy on you in terms of algae or whatnot. But just keep in mind, you 'might' have to add a second Ray 2 down the road if you want high-light -- especially to get stems to color up other than greens.

Growth factor is definitely there, but the lack of my red hues coming out in my stems is somewhat bothering me. I'll be experimenting by adding two Ray2's side-by-side shortly to report my findings. I'll also be experimenting with phosphate and iron to see if it helps.
Here's my 26g I'm referring to:
ibcvMYcPovYkV9.jpg


However, the 16" Ray 2 on my 6g Rimless has only 11" distance from light to sub. Everything else is the same in terms of co2, ferts, etc... and I'm getting great coloring from stems like the Rotala Colorata, Ludwigia sp. Red, and the alternanthera reineckii (now removed).
 
fort384 said:
As far as lights, if you are still looking, someone linked these the other day and I thought they looked really interesting. I like the 3W diodes. E.shine Systems - LED Grow Light & LED Aquarium Light

Of course, whether or not you need 3W diodes depends on the final tank selection. 1W diodes in the finnex may be more than enough.

Good luck!
Click to expand...

Or... what about those sleek looking Current Truelumen Pro's you had on your 12L Fort? Those look real nice too!
 
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