New to Planted Tanks

[bostonbass]

Hi everyone! New to the board, new to planted tanks. I apologize in advance for any questions I ask that have been covered a thousand times over.

So I have a 20g high tank that is currently silent cycling. The only thing in it is 40 pounds of planting substrate. I intend to rely on my local aquarium shop for which plants to get. I want it medium density and it needs to be able to do well in low light (all I have is the lousy LED bar that came with the kit.)

Once the plants are happy, I'm looking at what fish to add. I also have a 10g unplanted tank and i don't want to repeat fish (except for one which i'll mention in a minute). The 10g has 4 Amano Shrimp, 3 Cherry Barbs, 8 Cardinal Tetras, 3 Corys, and 1 rubbernose pleco.

For the 20g, I want to go in a different direction. In the 10g, everything swims (or crawls) very low. I want medium or high water fish in the planting in addition to bottom dwellers.

I'm not stuck on schooling fish so fish that do ok solo or in pairs is ok by me. I'm planning on sticking with Amano shrimp for cleanup duty (8 should do it)

What else should I be looking at? What stocking combo would you recommend? Is a liquid CO2 additive adequate or do I need to put in a diffuser system?

Specs:
tank: 20 gallon high
filter: Fluval 3 stage 150gph
heater: submerged
lighting: LED, probably 3-4W total


thank you thank you thank you!

 

[Barliman]

Hi there!

First, welcome to AqAd!

I did the silent cycle on a 10g several years ago. You may want to go heavily planted from the start, or add your fish very gradually. Also, I'm not sure the typical low-light plants are good for this, since they won't remove ammonia as fast as fast growers. Others here will know more than I, I'm sure.

As for plants, you're kind of limited to plants that do well in low light, such as anubias, cryptocorynes, and java fern (those aren't the only ones, of course). But you can make a very beautiful tank with them.

One suggestion for fish is zebra danios. Very pretty, very active, and they tend to stay in the upper part of the tank. They like to chase, though, so you'll want 5-6 at least so they chase each other.

Good luck and be sure to post pics!

 

[fishenthusiast]

Low light does not require pressurized CO2, but it would help. Any liquid carbon should be fine though. I recommend Anubias, Crypts, Java Fern, and Echinodorus. Check out my tank's thread, and/or Sk3lly's tank thread if you want to go with pressurized CO2. You may want a bit more light if you follow in those footsteps. It might give you some ideas though. This other thread may give you some ideas as well, as there are many different combinations of scapes and difficulty level.

Low Tech Tank Show-and-Tell
http://www.plantedtank.net/forums/showthread.php?t=99729


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[rachelives]

I'm my low light 10 gal, I have water wisteria and Amazon swords that grow really well. My water wisteria grows very fast, especially after I have started dosing Excel.

 

[bostonbass]

Great information! Thanks all. I'll keep you updated as the tank progresses.

 

[howardg]

Found this little guy in my old neglected ( sorry I was sick) tank. Forgot the name. Any clues? Thanks


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[howardg]

Found this little guy in my old neglected ( sorry I was sick) tank. Forgot the name. Any clues? Thanks


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[Caliban07]

It's a variety of Anubias. It is adapted to shaded areas and so prefers low light tanks. It's easily overrun with algae in higher light settings but it's hardy overall. Perfect beginner plant best tied to hardscape to avoid rhizome rot which can occur when the rhizome is placed deep in to the substrate.


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[howardg]

Thanks. Came out of the tank growing on a rock. Seems happy. Slow grower??

 

[Caliban07]

Thanks. Came out of the tank growing on a rock. Seems happy. Slow grower??

Yes very slow.


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