I am new to this and i like this forum an am looking for some help. I have a 10g with standard lighting(18W), soon to be upgraded to PC (appx 3W/gal). I have 2in of flourite substrate, i dont know if is good or not, it was all the lfs had for planted tanks. Right now i have a piece of driftwood, some java moss, and 5 tetras. The tank has been set up for about 2 weeks and everything looks good. I am wanting to start adding some plants but i dont know what would be good for the setup i have now and wont get baked when i get the new light. I have been keeping both fresh and saltwater tanks for about 6 years so i am not that new but this is going to be my first planted setup. i do know that i would like to stay away from a co2 setup if possible but if i upgrade the lighting i think i might need one. someone please help me with this because i dont really know what i am doing and i dont want to get raped by my LFS, they like to talk you into stuff you dont really need. they tried to sell me some kind of plant the other day that i know my mom has planted in her yard so i dont think it would do so well in the aquarium. its that kind of place. i am planning on getting the advice from here and if i cant go buy it there, get it from the net. any help is appreciated. my goal is something that is fairly low maintenance but has the beauty of a natural environment. thanks in advance.
Noremac82
Three watt/gal is considered high lighted, so you may need to add some source of CO2. If you don't want the mess of a DIY co2 or the expense of a pressureized system, you can dose with florish excel from Sechems as a CO2 source. With that kind of light you should probably dose daily. Your substrate should be fine as long as you add other fertilizers like potassium, nitrates, phosphates, and trace elements. Hope this helps.
Jeremy
Jeremy
Flourite is a commonly used substrate in planted tanks so you should be fine with that.
In case you haven't noticed it, in the gold bar at the top of the page on the left hand side is the PlantFinder. This lists a lot of the common aquarium plants and is a great resource. You can sort by difficulty of keeping, light-level needed, scientific name, etc.
In case you haven't noticed it, in the gold bar at the top of the page on the left hand side is the PlantFinder. This lists a lot of the common aquarium plants and is a great resource. You can sort by difficulty of keeping, light-level needed, scientific name, etc.
Has your tank cycled yet?
There's a good chance that you will have to work on keeping down the algae at 3wpg. I'd recommend some plants like water sprite and water wisteria to help hog the nutrients and out-compete algae, as well as some critters that will eat algae; maybe snails or shrimp.
What kind of tetras do you have? Are those the only fish in your tank right now?
There's a good chance that you will have to work on keeping down the algae at 3wpg. I'd recommend some plants like water sprite and water wisteria to help hog the nutrients and out-compete algae, as well as some critters that will eat algae; maybe snails or shrimp.
What kind of tetras do you have? Are those the only fish in your tank right now?
I think im going to stick with chicken on this one ... 3wpg on a 10 gallon is I would imagine at best medium to medium-low light... considering when you get less than 20gallons you should measure in lux per sq inch. I know I have seen talk of this on these forums several times. I think I would wait for a difinitive answer from from someone who knows this stuff better than I
-
?
-
?
-
?
-
?
-
?
-
?
-
?
-
?
-
?
-
?
-
?
-
?
-
?
-
?
-
?
-
?
-
?
-
?
-
?
-
?
