John's 45g Planted Noob Build - Start to Finish

[Fishcraze]

Hello everyone!
I recently got the boss's approval (My wife of 21 years) to start up a planted tank and yes, it will be my first. I have had several saltwater tanks though so I am not completely nieve. Based on what I have read thus far though, a saltwater reef tank is much different than a planted aquarium. My last 250g reef tank cost me roughly $9k with the display tank on the main floor and another 150g sump downstairs. I am hoping to do it a little cheaper this time around! ?
So how did I arrive at a 45g? I was browsing our local online version of craigslist, when I came across a guy who was selling this 45g (13 x36 X 24) tank with the stand, filter, fake plants, yada yada yada. It sounded like a good deal, so I bought it and drove it home. So let me first say that when I was originally looking for a fish tank, it wasn't going to be a planted tank. It was just going to be a quick setup, bubble scuba diver on the bottom, throw in some neon tetras for the kids and be do done type of tank. Made the mistake of googling freshwater tank setup and saw images of these beautiful planted tanks. I even saw one with a sand fall which I had never seen before and I was just captivated.

So yes, this went from a small undertaking to a major project. I'm not complaining because that is just the type of person I am. Now the wife on the other hand.....not so much. ?. That's okay. She will love it in the end. Getting back to the tank. Although I love how deep tanks look, I know this is going to be a challenge to successfully illuminate. I had the same issue with a deep tank and corals. Nonetheless, that is what I have to work with. 13" depth from front to back doesn't allow a lot of room either. I'm sure this would have made a better fish only tank. Still, I'm going to do my best and perhaps upgrade at a later date. The tank stand (as shown in the link I provided) is black so the boss immediately vetoed the color. My first project will be to paint it white. I think I'm just going to get some Krylon Fusion white and spray several coats over the black. I've has pretty good success with the Fusion brand in the past.

I have ordered some equipment already. I probably jumped the gun as I should have started this thread first but I think I'll be okay with the little bit I have ordered. It includes:

Filter: Cascade CCF3UL Canister Filter, 100g, 265 gph
Lights: Finnex Ray2 Aquarium LED Daylight, 36-Inch
Test Kit: API Freshwater Master Test Kit

If you have any opinions on what I have purchase so far, keep it to yourself. Kidding! ? Please share your thoughts on these and anything else that can be ordered now. I realize the carts before the horse by buying lights before deciding on the plants but there was actually a reason. My rationale is that A) I'm limited to high how high I can mount the lights because the boss wants it aesthetically pleasing and B) It was the highest amount of light I could find in a 36" fixture short of using MH. There was one other company I found that offered an even better LED but IMO, it wasn't worth the additional cost. The boss is going to keep a tight cap on this project and I'm already trying to figure out how to sneak through the house with Co2 canisters. ?

Okay, I'm out for now. Photos to follow. I'm headed to Home Depot for the Fusion paint. Thanks for the read. I know it was long! Sorry, I tend to ramble. Please subscribe though. I need the help and I'm sure it will assist someone else down the road.

 

[Barliman]

Sounds like a fun project! I'd recommend starting with low to medium light plants, such as java moss, java fern, and cryptocorynes. You can create a gorgeous tank with those and not have to get a lot in extra equipment. Are you planning to add driftwood and rock, as well?

 

[Fishcraze]

Thanks for the comments Barliman. I've been watching a lot of YouTube videos on plants for beginners. The ones you mentioned are suggested quite a bit. There are a few others I am interested in and they include Bacopa, Jungle Val, and Dwarf Lily. I'm not sure if the Lily will work in a 24 inch deep tank though. I am a glutton for punishment though so I am sure I will make it as hard on myself as possible. I will definitely be adding Co2 though. My limited understanding is that Co2 is good for even low light plants. Yesterday I ordered two 20lb bags of Eco-Complete. Hoping that it will be enough for about 2" deep.

These arrived late yesterday:

Yesterday I started with the changeover from the stand color black to white. Kind of bummed that two cans of primer only did this:

I guess I'll buy a couple more cans of primer. I had originally planned to use that primer/paint in one can but the guy at Lowes advised against it. He said I will always get a better finish if I do the primer separately. I was originally going to use Krylon Fusion but they don't carry it at Lowes. Actually, I feel better doing the primer first anyway. I want the finish to be hard and last a long time. There's nothing worse than spending the time to paint something only to later have it chip and scrape off.

So if you have read this far today, you might actually really be following this thread! Thank you! My question for today is regarding the plants available in the tubes you can find at Petsmart and Petco. Does anyone have experience with these? The sales person told me that if they die I,can bring them back within 14 days. Is that really enough time to evaluate whether a plant s going to survive?

 

[Barliman]

Thanks for the comments Barliman. I've been watching a lot of YouTube videos on plants for beginners. The ones you mentioned are suggested quite a bit. There are a few others I am interested in and they include Bacopa, Jungle Val, and Dwarf Lily. I'm not sure if the Lily will work in a 24 inch deep tank though. I am a glutton for punishment though so I am sure I will make it as hard on myself as possible. I will definitely be adding Co2 though. My limited understanding is that Co2 is good for even low light plants. Yesterday I ordered two 20lb bags of Eco-Complete. Hoping that it will be enough for about 2" deep.

I've never tried dwarf lily, but I don't see why it wouldn't work. I used two bags of eco-complete in my 20-long to get about 1.5-2" of depth, so you may find you don't have enough for what you want.

I've read posts from people who've tried the "plants in a tube" from Petco and Petsmart and had good results. As long as they're genuine aquatic plants, I'd say give a few a try.

And yes, I'm following this project.

 

[Caliban07]

Following along. Seems like you have done some homework. I'm a little concerned with the canister. Planted tanks benefit from more flow in my opinion. It's not a rule per se but normally planted tanks run up to 10x tank volume per hour. With your canister stuffed with media it'll probably be less than 5x. It's not a major issue but just be aware that it could be an issue distributing the co2 efficiently to all areas of the tank. More so in a deeper one.

I'm getting a PAR of about 30 or maybe less at substrate level with your lighting. Should grow plants ok. You will get healthy growth using injected co2 nonetheless just might be slower with that fixture but I'm not a hardware nut.

Probably is better to aim for the less demanding plants as mentioned above but I wouldn't be afraid to try some more demanding plants.

Have you thought about a nutrient dosing regime?


Sent from my iPhone using Aquarium Advice

 

[Fishcraze]

Following along. Seems like you have done some homework. I'm a little concerned with the canister. Planted tanks benefit from more flow in my opinion. It's not a rule per se but normally planted tanks run up to 10x tank volume per hour. With your canister stuffed with media it'll probably be less than 5x. It's not a major issue but just be aware that it could be an issue distributing the co2 efficiently to all areas of the tank. More so in a deeper one.

I'm getting a PAR of about 30 or maybe less at substrate level with your lighting. Should grow plants ok. You will get healthy growth using injected co2 nonetheless just might be slower with that fixture but I'm not a hardware nut.

Probably is better to aim for the less demanding plants as mentioned above but I wouldn't be afraid to try some more demanding plants.

Have you thought about a nutrient dosing regime?


Sent from my iPhone using Aquarium Advice

My goodness, I feel like I just lost the wind from my sails. Let's talk about the lights first. Now when I had my saltwater tanks, LED was still in its infancy. LEDs were only being used as moonlights. I admit, I was surprised when I,saw that LEDs are now being used as main lighting for plants. That said, I'm starting to get the impression that LED is not ideal for plants. I spent probably 3 hours reading in the forums and tiring to find the strongest LED setup that I could. So is LED inferior to CF or are there better options? As I mentioned, the main reason I bought these particular lights were that the sit right on top of the tank and are not hanging. Another reason would be energy savings. California electricity is outrageous. When I had my reef tanks I was in Washington state where power is 1/5 the cost. It's really incredible. Lastly, if the white LEDs are anything like the blue moonlights I use to have, they created that shimmer effect that I could only get from metal halides. I don't know if that is the case now though.

I guess this is the time to be discussing this. Lighting is incredibly important for a planted tank right? I,hadn't mentioned it yet but yes, I do want to eventually try some more exotic difficult plants eventually. Or at least I would like the option to perhaps add one to my tank without worrying whether or not they will have enough light. I'm wondering if perhaps I can bump up the level of the Eco-Complete to perhaps 2 1/2" if that will help. Well, give me some feedback gentlemen.

Okay, the filter. I thought for sure someone was going to tell me that I went way overkill on the filter. In fact, while reading info about this model, there was a guy who was considering the next size up for a 55g and he had responses telling him that he would destroy his plants if he went with that size. I don't recall off the top of my head what the next size up on the Cascade is but ya, I thought this was going to be crazy flow. Options? I guess I could return it but.......I hate paying for return shipping with Amazon. And this filter wasn't exactly cheap either. I don't get it. This filter is huge IMO for just a 45g. How about in tank flow instead? I use to use Tunze a lot. Not sure if it's used in freshwater.

I guess I'm not off to a very good start am I? I guess I will ask for alternatives to the lights and filter. At least then I can begin exploring options. Thanks for the input though. I'd rather here it now than after the tanks is all set up.

 

[Fishcraze]

Are you planning to add driftwood and rock, as well?

That s the plan. I've been looking for a source for the driftwood and haven't had much luck in my area. I don't have much room anyway but I would like to have at least One or two pieces to lay down on the bottom. Perhaps something with a branch. Rock, not sure. I have such a tough time deciding on this type of stuff. This week I may look for a reptile store. I was told they carry driftwood.

 

[fishenthusiast]

That s the plan. I've been looking for a source for the driftwood and haven't had much luck in my area. I don't have much room anyway but I would like to have at least One or two pieces to lay down on the bottom. Perhaps something with a branch. Rock, not sure. I have such a tough time deciding on this type of stuff. This week I may look for a reptile store. I was told they carry driftwood.

Try spider wood. It is the best driftwood that I've owned. It releases less tannins and can add great character to a planted tank.


Sent from my iPhone using Aquarium Advice

 

[Caliban07]

My goodness, I feel like I just lost the wind from my sails. Let's talk about the lights first. Now when I had my saltwater tanks, LED was still in its infancy. LEDs were only being used as moonlights. I admit, I was surprised when I,saw that LEDs are now being used as main lighting for plants. That said, I'm starting to get the impression that LED is not ideal for plants. I spent probably 3 hours reading in the forums and tiring to find the strongest LED setup that I could. So is LED inferior to CF or are there better options? As I mentioned, the main reason I bought these particular lights were that the sit right on top of the tank and are not hanging. Another reason would be energy savings. California electricity is outrageous. When I had my reef tanks I was in Washington state where power is 1/5 the cost. It's really incredible. Lastly, if the white LEDs are anything like the blue moonlights I use to have, they created that shimmer effect that I could only get from metal halides. I don't know if that is the case now though.



I guess this is the time to be discussing this. Lighting is incredibly important for a planted tank right? I,hadn't mentioned it yet but yes, I do want to eventually try some more exotic difficult plants eventually. Or at least I would like the option to perhaps add one to my tank without worrying whether or not they will have enough light. I'm wondering if perhaps I can bump up the level of the Eco-Complete to perhaps 2 1/2" if that will help. Well, give me some feedback gentlemen.



Okay, the filter. I thought for sure someone was going to tell me that I went way overkill on the filter. In fact, while reading info about this model, there was a guy who was considering the next size up for a 55g and he had responses telling him that he would destroy his plants if he went with that size. I don't recall off the top of my head what the next size up on the Cascade is but ya, I thought this was going to be crazy flow. Options? I guess I could return it but.......I hate paying for return shipping with Amazon. And this filter wasn't exactly cheap either. I don't get it. This filter is huge IMO for just a 45g. How about in tank flow instead? I use to use Tunze a lot. Not sure if it's used in freshwater.



I guess I'm not off to a very good start am I? I guess I will ask for alternatives to the lights and filter. At least then I can begin exploring options. Thanks for the input though. I'd rather here it now than after the tanks is all set up.

There's nothing wrong with the things you have purchased. I'm just letting you know what plant keepers tend to aim for with planted tanks. There is no reason why yours will not work.

Lighting is characterised by PAR. In short photosynthetically active radiation is light emitted between a lower and upper wavelengths. It is visible light and is the light that plants use for photosynthesis. The unit of PAR is a millionth of a mole of photons per square meter per second and is based on the inverse square law (stay with me, it will make sense)



As you can see the closer to the light source the more the more photons there are in a smaller area. The further you go away from the source (or the deeper the tank) the less photons there are over a given area. If you have more of S then you will have more photons of light reaching a greater area of your given depth.

In planted tanks there are classification that determined whether you have high, medium or low light (or PAR). The classification varies depending on where you get the information from but it goes something like this low light = 15-30 PAR, medium light = 35-50 PAR and high light 50> so to get more light to the substrate it makes sense to have more PAR.

Some plants don't require a lot of PAR and can grow fine in the lower levels. Some plants require more light to stay bushy instead of 'leggy' and to keep their colours. Generally the higher the light the more important it is to use co2.

The flow is important to get the co2 and other nutrients around the tank. Co2 first has to dissolve in to the water column and the small percentage that actually does before it is gassed off then has to get to the plants. Poor distribution can lead to problems. Flow is also important to transport oxygen around the tank. Based on the numbers you gave me, your filter is about 5x turnover per hour without anything in it and probably without tubing and spraybars etc. BUT there is nothing to say that this isn't adequate nor the lighting. You just have to give it a go and see which plants do well and which plants don't.

I don't think Eco complete has any nutrients I think it just has a high cation exchange capacity which means it sequesters more nutrients for plant roots.

Hope this helps.


Sent from my iPhone using Aquarium Advice

 

[Fishcraze]

Aquarium Stand finished.......

 

[Fishcraze]

Caliban
Hey, thanks for the info on the lighting. Reading it took me back to the lighting on the reef tank. If you want a lighting challenge, try some Acrapora and other hard corals. I wasted a lot of $ in that education. Glad to see that it wasn't a complete waste as much of it will apply here as well.

I was wondering if you had any specific information on the Ray2 that leads you to your conclusion of PAR 30 at the substrate. I will clearly need to do some more research. Right away I'm tempted to just order the exact same fixture again and have them sit side by side but something tells me that it won't double the par. Nevertheless, I need to figure something out. Need some outside help here. I would like to have the option of PAR 50 at the substrate but also the option to dial it down if necessary. I'm not sure if these Finnex lights can even be "dialed down" but maybe it means only having one fixture on for 12 hours and the other on for 8 hours in the middle of the photoperiod. Thoughts?

 

[Caliban07]

Caliban
Hey, thanks for the info on the lighting. Reading it took me back to the lighting on the reef tank. If you want a lighting challenge, try some Acrapora and other hard corals. I wasted a lot of $ in that education. Glad to see that it wasn't a complete waste as much of it will apply here as well.

I was wondering if you had any specific information on the Ray2 that leads you to your conclusion of PAR 30 at the substrate. I will clearly need to do some more research. Right away I'm tempted to just order the exact same fixture again and have them sit side by side but something tells me that it won't double the par. Nevertheless, I need to figure something out. Need some outside help here. I would like to have the option of PAR 50 at the substrate but also the option to dial it down if necessary. I'm not sure if these Finnex fans X turns can even be "dialed down" but maybe it means only having one fixture on for 12 hours and the other on for 8 hours in the middle of the photoperiod. Thoughts?

No problem. I'm not a reef keeper but I can imagine the challenges reef keepers face when growing corals.

As for the Ray 2, I didn't look too long and found this. Could be inaccurate?

https://youtu.be/ap9wpDcbyhA

It's actually gone up a tad. The one I saw yesterday in sure was 30, could have been just the Ray. I think this light is enough. I don't want to encourage huge amounts of lighting if this is ample. I'm from the UK so we don't get finnex but there will be some people here who can help with that.

Problem with higher lighting is that because light intensity dictates the rate of photosynthesis things can go downhill fast if the balance is unkept. So for a beginner I would err on the side of less light. You can always add more later.

I keep lights on for a total of 8 hours. Duration becomes less important if the plants are unlimited in carbon and other nutrient supply.

I'm hoping someone can help with this fixture.

I have two t5HO fluorescents over 20 inches.

And have good growth and for the first time in three years no algae.


Sent from my iPhone using Aquarium Advice

 

[Caliban07]

Sorry I linked the wrong thing.



This is what I meant to attach I must have forgotten to copy and the phone remembered that link from another thread.


Sent from my iPhone using Aquarium Advice

 

[Fishcraze]

I was looking around on my photobucket account from years ago. As I am dealing with equipment, I'm reminded of the old days:

 

[Caliban07]

That is some setup. Makes you wonder why we do it really haha.


Sent from my iPhone using Aquarium Advice

 

[Delapool]

Wow - what is the equipment all doing?? Think I understood the first photo only

 

[Fishcraze]

So I wrote to Finnex tonight and gave them my tank specs and told the that I had bought the Ray2. I want to see what they have to say. I also invited them to check out this thread as well.

I measured the tank tonight and what we have is 23" from the tank bottom to the top of the glass cover. This means that once I have the substrate in, we will be talking 21". Maybe that will help. I received the fixture today. Nice of Amazon to not pack it a larger box. It was also taped at both nods which may have been Amazon but there were also no instructions. Idk. Maybe there wasn't supposed to be any. Tthere was a safety sheet but that's it. I thought I had read that this setup was supposed to include moonlights but I saw none.

Regarding the aquarium top. I could use some advice here. He gave me two covers. Here they are:

Glass cover

Plastic

So, the first thing I thought was, "Definietly the glass one" but then I remembered that I will need a place for pipes, cords, etc. that black plastic thing is so ugly though and notice there is just one sliver of clear plastic for light to pass through. This can't happen right? Options?

 

[Fresh2o]

First off, the embedded images look nice (I think I was on another thread related to linking Flickr images...)
I have three Finnex fixtures (FugeRay, Planted+, 24/7). I think the latter comes close to the Ray2 PAR wise. I grow plants in medium to medium high light conditions (depends on which range you use). On my planted tank I use separate timers for the FugeRay and Planted+ because was getting algae issues when they were on at the same time (I allow an hour or two of overlap). I have a shallower tank (12") with EcoComplete.
Ironically, the strongest light I have (24/7) is on the tank that needs the least amount of light (my moss filled shrimp tank). The 24/7 is adjustable and I run it at 10-20%.
Flow is important. The HOB filter I have yields a turnover of around 7-10 per hour. I modified the lip on my HOB filter so that water is directed along the surface away from the plants. I believe you can achieve the same effect with a canister by using a spray bar.
The glass top should have a plastic strip that runs the length of it. You can cut it up to allow for filters and cords.


Sent from my iPhone using Aquarium Advice

 

[Caliban07]

First off, the embedded images look nice (I think I was on another thread related to linking Flickr images...)
I have three Finnex fixtures (FugeRay, Planted+, 24/7). I think the latter comes close to the Ray2 PAR wise. I grow plants in medium to medium high light conditions (depends on which range you use). On my planted tank I use separate timers for the FugeRay and Planted+ because was getting algae issues when they were on at the same time (I allow an hour or two of overlap). I have a shallower tank (12") with EcoComplete.
Ironically, the strongest light I have (24/7) is on the tank that needs the least amount of light (my moss filled shrimp tank). The 24/7 is adjustable and I run it at 10-20%.
Flow is important. The HOB filter I have yields a turnover of around 7-10 per hour. I modified the lip on my HOB filter so that water is directed along the surface away from the plants. I believe you can achieve the same effect with a canister by using a spray bar.
The glass top should have a plastic strip that runs the length of it. You can cut it up to allow for filters and cords.


Sent from my iPhone using Aquarium Advice

So what PAR are we talking for the ray2? Is the fugeray the same as a ray? Just curious.


Sent from my iPhone using Aquarium Advice

 

[Fresh2o]

So what PAR are we talking for the ray2? Is the fugeray the same as a ray? Just curious.


Sent from my iPhone using Aquarium Advice

I don't have the PAR charts handy, but from what I recall, at 12" the fixture/PAR values are:
FugeRay / 44
Planted+ / 65
24/7 / est 65-75
Ray2 / 80

Not sure if FugeRay and Ray (1) are the same. I do know that after the release of the Ray2, the number of red LEDs were included in subsequent fixtures to help with plant growth and prevent the "washed out" appearance.
The Ray2 is a strong light.


Sent from my iPhone using Aquarium Advice