buying plants tomorrow

[royta]

My tank finally finished the fishless cycle yesterday, so I'll be buying plants tomorrow. Just your basic low light plants to start with, as I only have a 17w T8 fixture right now. I'd like to upgrade to a 2x24w T5HO fixture in the future.

Is there anything I need to do with the plants prior to putting them in my tank? I thought I read that people would soak them in tap water to kill off any snails that might be on them. I could be mistaken though.

Any advice would be appreciated.

 

[The_Desacrator]

I'd rinse them in cold water, but just as a warning tap water wont kill snails. If you have a local Petsmart, they sell "snail free" plants.

 

[Mr. Limpet]

My tank finally finished the fishless cycle yesterday, so I'll be buying plants tomorrow. Just your basic low light plants to start with, as I only have a 17w T8 fixture right now. I'd like to upgrade to a 2x24w T5HO fixture in the future.

Is there anything I need to do with the plants prior to putting them in my tank? I thought I read that people would soak them in tap water to kill off any snails that might be on them. I could be mistaken though.

Any advice would be appreciated.

Dip them in H2O2 for 30 seconds, then rinse in cold running tap water. Works for me and I think eco23 tried it and he had good luck with it too.

 

[-Mac-]

Both my local petsmart and petco have plants in tubes.... NOT ONE of which was a true aquatic plant, so buyer beware. If you buy from the separate plant tank, I'd still give them a good hard inspection and cleaning. Them critters hide everywhere!

 

[Mr. Limpet]

Both my local petsmart and petco have plants in tubes.... NOT ONE of which was a true aquatic plant, so buyer beware. If you buy from the separate plant tank, I'd still give them a good hard inspection and cleaning. Them critters hide everywhere!

+1

My Petco sells 1 plant that's aquatic (java fern) and the rest are half dead from being in water or in those tubes no one buys. I actually found some good aquatic plants at walmart and didn't dip them because I wanted snails for my GSP. I wasn't disappointed and ended up with a 100+ colony of them .

 

[rich311k]

I generally just plant them. I like snails though so that does not bother me.

 

[laughing]

Many people just go for it. Myself included!

I got anacharis and didn't QT it or anything and never had one hitch-hiker. My new plants I know has them and im excited to see the free stuff! A lot of fish will eat the fry and baby snails. Assassin snails will also wipe out snails.

You'll be good either way!

 

[BigJim]

I usually just plant them, although I found a nasty-looking red worm when I was peeling away the rock wool from the roots of a potted crypt the other day, so give the plants a good look before you plant them.