high tech?

[linds3y]

I would kinda like to go high tech on my 10 gallon but I have no idea where to start or what I'd need? Can someone point me in the right direction and lend some advice/info to help me decide if high tech is the way to go?

Currently I have bronze wendtii, water wisteria, moneywort, anacharis, a marimo moss ball and a sword. I like that "jungle" look that comes with heavily planted tanks and also a little open area with carpeting plants.

Light is a marineland led bar. Where do I begin!?

 

[Rivercats]

Don't know what kind of lighting you have but your plants seem to be growing and healthy as it. You can always add DIY CO2 or get one of those little tank CO2 kits I've seen but what in your tank do you want to change or grow that you want to go higher tech... just curious.

 

[linds3y]

Yeah I was thinking about co2 because I really like the look of carpeting plants, like a carpet of dwarf hairgrass but I read that requires co2

 

[Rivercats]

It requires high light, don't know what you have. You can also go with liquid carbon, products such as Flourish Excel. I have a high light, heavily planted 220g that I use liquid carbon on and dwarf baby tears grew fine (had to get rid of them because my yo-yo loaches would continously dig the ends of them up.

 

[mohican]

Yea, going with some sort of co2 will def help u be able to keep more "difficult" plants. Ur lights do seem to be ok too. For 10g, DIY co2 would be cheapest and easiest route. U can also look up sicce co2 dosers as well if u don't want to go diy route. Besides u can always go full co2 units.

 

[aqua_chem]

First, is that a single bright LED, double bright, or one of the new "freshwater" strips? The light difference between single bright and double bright is Significant.

Second, I'm noticing that most of you light is being blocked out by taller plants. A lot more will need to be getting to the substrate level if you want to try DHG.

 

[linds3y]

First, is that a single bright LED, double bright, or one of the new "freshwater" strips? The light difference between single bright and double bright is Significant.

Second, I'm noticing that most of you light is being blocked out by taller plants. A lot more will need to be getting to the substrate level if you want to try DHG.

Its a single bright, yeah I was worried it wouldn't be bright enough :/

 

[linds3y]

The girl I talked to said it would be good for moderate light plants. I think I could plant dwarf hair grass and it would live but probably wouldn't spread like a carpet. I use Flourish though, I forgot to mention that,

 

[jefferzbooboo]

I don't know what you'd call it, but in my 10g I inject 1 bubble per second and fallow the EI Dosing regiment and everything grows great. For lighting I use an incandescent hood with 2 13w screw in CFL bulbs and I use the Atomic paintball system from Green Leaf Aquariums. The tank lasted 4 months.
I'd remove the sword now, it will get to large for your tank and when you pull it out the runners will be long and tear up everything.