Live plants vs plastic plants

[Fishstick18]

What do I need to know my boys?

Are they worth rhe effort? What is the effort?

 

[FishMommy8962]

I personally prefer live plants over plastic, and here's why.

Live plants are beneficial to your tank. They can absorb harmful things in your water, therefore contributing to the overall health of your tank.
There's a wide range of plants to get, ranging from huge to petite, super easy to extremely difficult.
It really is worth the effort.
There's two things that you have to worry about with plants. Well, three.
First, you have to worry about ferts (fertilizers).
Second, you have to worry about proper lighting.
Third, you have to worry about the type of plant you have and if it needs it's rhizome to be out of the substrate or not. I made that mistake and learned my lesson.
It does seem like a lot to worry about, but it's really not. Live plants also look much prettier.

Now plastic plants. I really don't think there's any nice looking variation of it. It's not beneficial to your tank, and can rip long fins of your fish.

If you don't want live plants, at least get silk. At least they look a little closer to lives and they'll be softer than scratchy plastic ones.

But if you can, lives are really, just best.

If you could tell me what type of plant(s) that you were considering, I could start you off from there. Do you want some suggestions of easy plants?

 

[Swampman]

There isn't any thing like a planted aquarium. Beauty is the first reason. Second reason is the water stays in good condition. Third it uses fish waste as a nutrient. You still will have to use some nutrient supplement depending on how many and how large the fish are in your tank. Forth is when your plants grow you can use the babies in other tanks. Floating plants grow like weeds. But if you have livebearers in the tank. The babies will have a place to hide. The down side if this is one you must have the proper light on the tank. T5 fluorescent lights are a standard. But remember they need to be replaced every 6 months or so. Even though the light looks good. They lose the light spectrum after 6 months. Than you plants start looking stringy. My advice is to buy an LED light. Make sure it grows plants. Fluvial make an LED just for lighting the fish. Unless you have cichlids without plants don't buy it. My tanks have the fluvial plant and fish LED. The cost is more than a fluorescent but you save money buy not having to replace the tubes twice a year. Sure aquarium plants are a hobby just to themselves. Some plants need a CO2 injection. Make sure the plants you buy don't require that. There are lots of plants that doesn't need it. You can get liquid CO2. Excel is the one I use. But you don't even need that. Plants make a tank an aquarium.

 

[Coursair]

I will never go back to plastic.
All my tanks are real. All are a work in progress.

Some old pics and some new
This is all the same 10g over the years




My other 10g

 

[Coursair]

My 55g

 

[Coursair]

If you go insane and want to become a major plant farmer you can try to learn from Tom Barr
Aquasoil
Injected CO2
High Light
Weekly water changes
Ferts 2-3x weekly


( not my tank, this is Tom's)

 

[Ashenwelt]

Nice.

Yep. Planted or don't do a tank is the way I look at it. Why plants?

1. Plants supplement your filter or when extreme can be a backup or even primary filter.
2. Plants clean water of nitrates that can easily build to toxic levels if left unwatched.
3. They give fish a home to hide in or relax on or a spot to get some shade or in a pinch... To nibble on.
4. They just look nice.
5. They make an aquarium dynamic... They simply change constantly.


A few months ago or so

Just now taken for this post.

 

[Ashenwelt]

And I have no idea why one photo was double posted.

And now its gone. LMAO

 

[bullyboy]

Also one thing to consider is if yer paying local LFS prices for Silk plants (proper) its actually cheaper to go live if yer looking at item cost individually, for a LOW to MED. lighted tank.

Also the amount of knowledge gleaned from having live plants will be nothing but more bennefiting to you as a keeper, and youll enjoy your hobbie more

 

[bullyboy]

Now if all you want is a low tech tank without having to get really knowledgable about the whole inner workings of it than by all means go with silk plants....but never plastic

 

[Ashenwelt]

Both my five and the 45 that I posted are low light and low tech.

 

[Sambo7475]

I have plastic in my 55 gal community, only because the silver dollars destroyed everything I have ever tried to put in there. Literally stripped them down the the root crown within an hour. My harlequins like to dart in and out of the plants, so there is a use for plastic in some applications. My 20 gallon is planted, and the above points are well taken, I prefer live plants, but some with fish I can't have them.

 

[bullyboy]

I had an issue once in a tank where the plastic was actually leaking toxins.
It was not a good scene

 

[Potluck]

Also one thing to consider is if yer paying local LFS prices for Silk plants (proper) its actually cheaper to go live if yer looking at item cost individually, for a LOW to MED. lighted tank.

Also the amount of knowledge gleaned from having live plants will be nothing but more bennefiting to you as a keeper, and youll enjoy your hobbie more

I hear you on that, I paid 35.00 for a fake live tree even though it looks amazing, I won't get rid of it I don't think but will use it as part of a scheme im conjuring up in my head.

 

[Ashenwelt]

I would rather build a moss tree than buy a fake... Just so expensive for something you have to clean.

 

[max h]

I prefer live plants now, my 55 gallon started with plastic and slowly planted it with live plants as I could get them. Now that I replaced it with a 110 gallon everything is live plants, they make a big difference.

 

[Potluck]

I would rather build a moss tree than buy a fake... Just so expensive for something you have to clean.

You sometimes have to clean live plants as well to remove algae but yes live plants are a lot better not only the look they actually contribute to the tank

 

[Caliban07]

If you go insane and want to become a major plant farmer you can try to learn from Tom Barr
Aquasoil
Injected CO2
High Light
Weekly water changes
Ferts 2-3x weekly
View attachment 291224

( not my tank, this is Tom's)

I didn't think Tom Barr used overly excessive lighting. In fact I recall that he classed his lighting as low albeit his idea of low may fall in to others category of medium.

Did you happen to gather any information on his lighting during your visit? Just curious [emoji846]

 

[Ashenwelt]

The other direction is D. Walstad. She uses no filters at all and is insanely successful... Just plants.

 

[Coursair]

I didn't think Tom Barr used overly excessive lighting. In fact I recall that he classed his lighting as low albeit his idea of low may fall in to others category of medium.

Did you happen to gather any information on his lighting during your visit? Just curious [emoji846]

His garage tanks used a $90 4ft 4 bulb fixture from a local hydroponic supply store. His show tank uses an 8 bulb fixture.

He mixes the bulbs to achieve a spectrum that will grow Red and Green plants.
View attachment 1

All his tanks get Aquasoil and CO2. Indoor tanks get ferts and water changes. Garage get leaner conditions and grow slower.

He has 2 Kessil Tuna Suns over his Cypress tank.


I'll see if I can find a picture of the Buce tank

His tanks are custom and tend towards wide and shallow so easier to get decent PAR at substrate level.

He did say he had LEDs over a tank, but his red plants weren't coloring up so he went back to fluorescent.