plant ??'s

[Nicole29]

In my 33g planted aquarium I have 2 hygrophilia difformis, 5 Amazon Swords and 4 crypts. My tank is pretty well stocked with fish as well.
Right now I have two 24" Coralife dual T5 light strips (total of 56W) and an aqua clear 300 filter.

Should I be using CO2 to stimulate more growth?? I've been told that using regular and daily dosing of Flourish Excel will be ok instead of the C02.

Would adding on another filter (a Fluvial 4 plus) be a bad idea? I heard you should have more than one filter but then I read you don't want to overfilter a planted tank so now I'm a bit confused.

Is my lighting ok for the plants that I have?

 

[rich311k]

With your plants excel will be fine. You do not technically need CO2, but it will certainly help promote more growth. If you don't already, you could add fert tabs under the sword plants. If you do decide to go with CO2, try and keep the levels steady, bouncing levels can cause algae problems.

What kind of filter do you have now? With a 33 gallon tank a decent filter should be more than enough you don't need two.

 

[Nicole29]

I have an Aqua Clear 300

 

[rich311k]

I think that filter is a bit to small for your tank. Upgrading to an Aquaclear 70 may be a better choice than the 4P. It is about the same price and you wouldn't have that big unsightly thing in your tank. I have one in my turtle tank and it is a fine filter, but it is kind of large to hide.

 

[fish_4_all]

CO2 will never hurt but i would stop short of recommending it for 1 reason. 5 amazon swords will absolutely out grow your tank if you give them much more light or any CO2. If you want the swords, then go for the CO2 and and be ready for them to cover your entire tank. 1 Red Melon Sword outgrew my tank in a matter of 3 weeks when I added CO2, granted it was a 10 gallon but it grew "OUT" of the tank meaning the leaves touched the glass cover. I had it planted on one side, about 4 inches away from the side and the leaves almost reached the other side of the tank before I removed it. I say try the excel if you want your plants to stay a little more manageable although that might be too much. As for the hygrophilia difformis, it will outgrow your tank all by itself but it will be easier to manage. I think you will be happier with the cryps and the hygro with DIY CO2 than the swords.

Just a note on the Crypts, be patient with them and leave them alone once you plant them. They will not dissapoint once they get their root system going and they will grow rather well with DIY CO2.

 

[Zezmo]

Swords can be pruned heavily to keep them at a reasonable size. Peel the leaves from the outside, like an artichoke. Most swords if limited to 5-10 leaves max will stay a reasonable size. Remove the leaves that are too big, consistantly, and the plant will "learn" how big of a leaf it is allowed to have.

 

[BillD]

I think that filter is a bit to small for your tank. Upgrading to an Aquaclear 70 may be a better choice than the 4P. It is about the same price and you wouldn't have that big unsightly thing in your tank. I have one in my turtle tank and it is a fine filter, but it is kind of large to hide.

The AC 300, and AC 70, are the same filter. You definitely don't need more filtration on that tank. I filter my planted 30 long (48") with an AC150.