6th tank, sage advise needed

[Brookster123]

I'll check it out!
How do you guys feel about dry ferts?

We all use gla dry ferts.. well most of "us". I dose modified pps pro.. closer to ei at this point bit still mixed into the dosing bottles wet. I have to many different regiments to measure daily..

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[Eggheadfish]

What about MCI? I just had to do a bunch of reading to respond to your post ...never read about dry ferts before...slow and steady for me Brooks I'm still new! It sounds like EI over provides...so I guess the risk there would be that it's more likely for algae to take advantage if you're not up to par with your light schedule and CO2?
Would the PPS pro need to be modified to take the nutrients from the soil and clay into consideration?
Also, this may be a stupid question but bear with me. Since fish produce CO2, would overstocking to a degree provide any benefit to the plants as long as I'm monitoring water parameters otherwise?

 

[Eggheadfish]

Ok Brooks. I'm breaking down. If you could choose a light and pressurized system for this tank...what would it be.

 

[mikem691]

I think he's going to say the satellite + pro and the aquatek paintball setup.

 

[Eggheadfish]

That setup isn't dual stage right? And I still would have to buy the tank, tubing, diffuser, ph regulator, and what else?

 

[Eggheadfish]

This was supposed to be fun. I'm not feeling it right now. Too much stress rather than enjoyment trying to figure out what to do. I'm sorry for whining.

 

[Brookster123]

Hehe.. $$$$$ the pro would work yep.. bml would be best on a taller tank. Aquatek premium on a 5# tank would do. You'll need.co2.tubing and a diffuser and drop checker as well.

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[Eggheadfish]

What's bml?
I'm gonna have to quit school to have the money time and brainpower for this stuff.

 

[Brookster123]

That's why I recommended tall low.light angel tank at first it's expensive to high tech this tank.. I'd high tech your 15.. it will be far more.manageable and rewarding. Trust me!
This tank...pool filter sand, vals, crypts, anubias.. cheap.. easy.. and it will look awesome! 4 angels and rainbows!

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[Eggheadfish]

Alright. Low tech is fine for this tank. What's done is done. Would camboba still hang in? If i could do that and moss I can still stick to my original scape. I don't really want to change the stocking plan cause my bf is excited he got to pick. If it were up to me I would sell it and get something else. Or put some brichardi in there.
I don't really want to soup up the 15 because it's tall and doesn't have a big footprint, it's hard for me to work in - I don't want to scrap what's in there already either. I'm seriously annoyed that I was told I was getting a 40b and got a 40 high. This just means I have to shelve my plans for yet another tank.
So I guess I can dig out the 20 long I have somewhere and leak test it. Maybe that will be the winner for plants. Time will tell. Then I can do glosso all day!
Edit: what I thought was a 20 is actually more like a standard 15, 24"x12"x13" approximately.

 

[Eggheadfish]

Hi friends. I put the aquaclear on my 20, the sponge filter was just not doing the job I was cleaning the tank like 3x per week those messy little Shellies.
Gonna keep the sponge in there so it's seeded for the 15. I'm debating whether or not to use it as a high tech planted tank (betta sorority? Shrimp? Dunno) or reserve it as a breeder for my cories and aspidoras.
Anyhoo, do you think a Marineland HOB would be ok for the 40 or should I get my first canister? Don't know what model the HOB is exactly it's in the bottom of my closet. I've never used canisters before.
Snow is still hampering anything getting done.

 

[mikem691]

Hi friends. I put the aquaclear on my 20, the sponge filter was just not doing the job I was cleaning the tank like 3x per week those messy little Shellies.
Gonna keep the sponge in there so it's seeded for the 15. I'm debating whether or not to use it as a high tech planted tank (betta sorority? Shrimp? Dunno) or reserve it as a breeder for my cories and aspidoras.
Anyhoo, do you think a Marineland HOB would be ok for the 40 or should I get my first canister? Don't know what model the HOB is exactly it's in the bottom of my closet. I've never used canisters before.
Snow is still hampering anything getting done.

If the shellies you have are anything like the multis I had I would recommend getting a prefilter on the intake. The multis would kick up enough sand to stall the impeller on my ac.

 

[Eggheadfish]

Yeah they haven't been digging that I've seen and it's a 20 tall so it should be ok, but I'll definitely look at getting one. I had to stifle the outflow too. Thanks!

 

[Timber Wolf]

The only sponge I know of that can handle a 20g is a mattenfilter. You can get the best ones through swisstropicals.com. Their filters are long lasting and don't disintegrate like sponge filters. I have them in most of my breeding tanks, 3 20g and a 40g. Then water stays clean, but you still need to do regular water changes to remove detritus that has accumulated on the bottom of the tank.

 

[Eggheadfish]

Found some helpful math for noobs like me to determine lighting:
Take tank length x width x distance to substrate.
Multiple by: .08 for low light, .12 for moderate light, and .27 for high light plants.
Divide by 11 to get total needed wattage.
Example: 40 breeder. 36" long x 18" wide x let's say 15" to substrate = 9720. Multiple by .12 for moderate = 1166.4. Divide by 11 = 106 watts of light (about 2.65 per gallon)
Albeit, this doesn't address light period length, spectrum, and all other factors but just a helpful starting point.
So if I wanted to do high light in this tank with 2" substrate I would need 254w (equivalent to 3 T5 fixtures with 2 bulbs each at 39w per! Zoo Med for example would cost me ~$270)

 

[Eggheadfish]

I have a new strategy for this tank. My boyfriend decided he's going to build me a rack for some plant/breeding tanks, so I'm just gonna build this tank around what he likes. Got my styrofoam out today. Making a mess. Wish me luck!

 

[Eggheadfish]

Not much to report, but have a question. How many kuhlis could fit comfortably in this tank?

 

[Brookster123]

In response to pm. Couple things.. by 30b you mean 30 breeder? Doubt you'll find that at petco, a 40b for sure, one sat plus will give you low.light on that tank, you be best with a finnex planted plus suspended a few inches higher for better spread
Ps- clear your inbox

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[Eggheadfish]

Thanks Brooks. Inbox only has two messages so I guess it's the sent stuff clogging it up. Have to upgrade to supporting member I guess.
I have $300 on the gift card, limited to that website I didn't see finnex I don't think, but I believe they had coralife T5 fixtures. Just trying to spend free money, could get an RO unit instead.
I was really hoping to find the 30b cause of the height but I won't cry if it has to be a 40.

 

[mikem691]

Thanks Brooks. Inbox only has two messages so I guess it's the sent stuff clogging it up. Have to upgrade to supporting member I guess.
I have $300 on the gift card, limited to that website I didn't see finnex I don't think, but I believe they had coralife T5 fixtures. Just trying to spend free money, could get an RO unit instead.
I was really hoping to find the 30b cause of the height but I won't cry if it has to be a 40.

You can delete the sent messages.