New 15 gallon planted

[adam_aloi]

Hi guys. So I'm new to this forum and I have a few questions as to setting up a 15 gallon tall tank. It's 20" long, 10" wide and 18" high.

For substrate, I have a fluorite gravel and I will be putting an inch or so of sand on top.
What's really got me confused is the lighting. I know I want a planted tank, but I do not know where to go with the lighting - there are just too many options. If anyone could help steer me in the right direction, that would be great.

BTW, I was thinking of peacock gudgeons, blue-eyed forktail rainbows and possibly lyretail killis. If anyone has input on these species that would be great too!

Thanks in advance!

 

[adam_aloi]

I plan on going to my LFS this week because they're having a great sale, so please, does anyone have suggestions on lights/fixtures?

 

[brennae]

I have peacock gudgeons and I think a 15 is too small for more than one pair, or maybe one pair of killies. Do you have a backup tank for when they breed? Lots of people on here use the Finnex Fuge ray lights.

 

[adam_aloi]

Yeah I would only do one pair. And I have a fluval edge that I plan on starting up after the 14 gallon which could be used. And okay I'll definitely have a look thanks so much for the reply! Much appreciated!

Edit: how are the finnex fuge ray lights attached to the tank? I didn't see a fixture or anything to go with it that would fit on the tank?

 

[nkim1994]

Do you know what type of plants you want? Like low light plants medium light?

generally you might want to aim for at least 2 watts per gallon if you are doing plant lighting for low light plants... so I have a 20 gallon so if I want 2 watts per gallon i need a 40 watt light...

you might be able to grow medium plants with 1.7 watts per gallon...

Depending on if you want high plants, depending on the ligght it will emit heat, so take that into account. The added heat and such may result in the need for Co2 injections but that gets complicates...

Im using seachem flourish for my plants too...

Im using the same substrate... rinse it a bit though, not too much or youll get rid of the good stuff...

if you rinse and let it dry out I heard it makes the water less cloudy...

lmk if you want more info...

 

[adam_aloi]

Thanks for that reply! I'll definitley take those suggestions into account!
As for plants, I was sorta aiming for the beginner plants (Java fern and Java moss namely) but I also fell in love with drawf baby tears and microswords. However, I have a tight budget so if the latter
Pants require a stronger (and consequently more expensive) lighting system and CO2 injectors, I'll scratch them off the list.

 

[brennae]

Aquinas and crypts would work well with java ferns.

 

[nkim1994]

I have Java fern, and amazon swords and 2 diff. plants but im not sure what they are a type of wisteria... pretty sure they are medium to lowlight.

my amazon sword plant has a lot of growth... and my Java fern is growing plantlets and from the rhizome.

make sure you dont bury the rhizome on the java fern, or itll rot and die.

rn Ive only had standard lighting on the amazon and java and they are doing fine... I'm experimenting.

you may not need to change your lighting for hardy low light plants...

I can give you more info if you want it. just lmk ^^

 

[brennae]

Aquinas and crypts would work well with java ferns.

Anubias. Sorry auto correct.

 

[Brian_Nano12g]

What's your budget on lighting? We can better recommend options knowing this.

With today's lights, watts per gallon becomes irrelevant. It's probably only suitable for light measurement with t8, t12, and cfls. But with LED's and t5ho, WPG is irrelevant.

18" is fairly a tall tank for light to penetrate. So you'd have to consider the distance from light source to substrate when estimating the light level you'll be at. Instead of watts, we use PAR (photosynthetic active radiation) as an estimate of light intensity. For low light, low tech planted tanks, you want to be around 20 to 30 PAR.

Edit:

Here's a good read on lighting:
http://www.plantedtank.net/forums/showthread.php?t=184368

 

[adam_aloi]

Thanks for the replies everyone!

And my budget for lighting & fixture would ideally be less than $80.

 

[sam24]

Dwarf Baby Tears and Micro Swords will require high lighting (2 1/2 - 3 watts per gallon) and you won't be finding a NEW fixture that can support those for under 80 bucks. If you do send me the link because that's a great deal.

I run Aquatic Life Dual t5 HO fixture on one of my tanks and you can find those online for around 80 bucks or so.


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[Brian_Nano12g]

Current Satellite LED+ 18-24" for low light. Has effects, dimmable, and RGB LEDs for color control.

Or.. a 20" Finnex Planted+ ... for medium-low light. Has higher output than the Sat+ but no special features. Has red and white LEDs for a nice warm color, and some blue LEDs for moonlight.

Both under 80$ and never need bulb replacements like a t5ho would.

Research them both to make an informed buying decision.

Edit:
Down the road if you ever want to grow more light needy plants that need CO2 injection, you can always double up on either light to increase PAR.

 

[Brookster123]

Current Satellite LED+ 18-24" for low light. Has effects, dimmable, and RGB LEDs for color control.

Or.. a 20" Finnex Planted+ ... for medium-low light. Has higher output than the Sat+ but no special features. Has red and white LEDs for a nice warm color, and some blue LEDs for moonlight.

Both under 80$ and never need bulb replacements like a t5ho would.

Research them both to make an informed buying decision.

Edit:
Down the road if you ever want to grow more light needy plants that need CO2 injection, you can always double up on either light to increase PAR.

+1 if you're wanting an easy start I'd say go with the Sat +. I have both of these fixtures and I can pretty much gauruntee the finnex will give you algae issues if you're not 100% ready for the needs of a planted tank. Where as sat is dimmable so you can tune it to your needs for the time being and double up if/when you're ready for higher light..

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[adam_aloi]

Thanks everyone! So if I went with this fixture ( Current USA Satellite Freshwater LED ) would I be able to support the java ferns and he other plants listed?

 

[nkim1994]

If only I didnt have a hood on my tank... Iguess I'll keep experimenting for now... till I have to upgrade...

but wow so much info on lights yay^^

 

[Brian_Nano12g]

Thanks everyone! So if I went with this fixture ( Current USA Satellite Freshwater LED ) would I be able to support the java ferns and he other plants listed?

Yup.. you'll be at around 30 PAR at substrate. So medium-low light. Capable of low light plants. A single fixture wouldn't be able to grow the dwarf baby tears or micro sword, though. You can try crypt parva and other low light tolerant species.

 

[adam_aloi]

That's perfect for right now. Once I have enough money, I'll attempt using CO2 and another lighting fixture to get the dwarf baby tears and microswords, but this is a good start
Thanks for all the help everyone!

 

[Brookster123]

That's perfect for right now. Once I have enough money, I'll attempt using CO2 and another lighting fixture to get the dwarf baby tears and microswords, but this is a good start
Thanks for all the help everyone!

I may be wrong but current stated something along the lines of growing hc with non issue under a sat + and finnex planted plus.. that could be your end game?

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[adam_aloi]

Hi guys. Bad news. I bought a java fern mat and 3 anubias today. I was going to buy the lighting fixture mentioned above, but my LFS had it for $120 and I found it online for $59.99. Anyways, as I was preparing to put the plants and all in, the tank shattered completely on one of its faces. So now I only have my fluval edge 6g left but I was really hoping to set up the 15g first. Anyways, if anyone has suggestions on a tank I should buy (preferably 24" long or less) please let me know! Also, if anyone has suggestions on a lighting fixture for my 6g fluval edge that would enable me to have some high-light requiring plants, please let me know. Thanks in advance!