New tank challenge. (For me anyway)

2315 Views 8 Replies 4 Participants Last post by C_perugiae, Feb 28, 2004

bannor9

Discussion Starter · Feb 26, 2004

Hi, newbie here...

I have 6 tanks, 2 x 55 g (1 planted), 2 x 29 g (1 planted) and 2 x 10 g (none planted YET).

I have setup and fishless cycled the latest 10 gallon. Has a Eclipse system hood, filter and light combo, single bulb 15 watt T5 florescent, so I guess it will be a low to mid light tank.

Has small sized mixed gravel, riverbed colors, but mainly looks white. these are 1-3mm size grains, which I think are ideal for plants, larger than sand, but smaller than gravel.

My intention for this tank is a species specific with only minor variations. IE: all tiger barbs with a few ottocinclus for algae control. maybe 3 corry's for added dimension. so, say 6 barbs, 3 ottos and a pair of corry's or just the 6 barbs with the ottos.

I have some java-moss already in the tank but otherwise, it is bare gravel. Since the tank is so small, 10 gallons only gives 200 inches of floor space, and only 13 inches tall, I can't use any of the large variety plants. So, no amazon swords in the tank.

What would be a good choice of plants to make an interesting view? This tank is situated behind the main chair of the dinning room table. Black painted back and sides, since it is between two sun-filled windows.

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Steve Pituch

· #2 · Feb 27, 2004

A good way to find the plants to use is to look at other peoples tanks. You can look at the small tank category from the AGA contest. This should give you a lot of ideas of what plants you can use. Go to:
http://showcase.aquatic-gardeners.org/

Steve Pituch

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bannor9

Discussion Starter · #3 · Feb 27, 2004

Thanks for the link!

I have and will look at different tanks setups. I think I may have already seen this particular site though...

After I posted the original message, I found another thread here where someone listed (a long list) of plants that would fit in my tank with the proper light levels etc...

Now, all I have to do is learn what looks like latin so I can figure out the names of plants to ask for...

My LFS is only a Petsmart or a Petco (one of each) and one guy that carries nothing but plastics. So getting a good selection to choose from is spotty at best.

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Steve Pituch

· #4 · Feb 27, 2004

You can also try to find plants locally in ditches, ponds, rivers, etc. This is initially harder to do until you get proficient at IDing what might work underwater. But many people on this forum do this and get great satisfaction doing this. Look at the other lists here like "biotopes" for more info on what people have found.

Steve Pituch

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tsunami

· #5 · Feb 27, 2004

Or, you can always order online for plants that you need which is probably the most convenient. There are about half a dozen major stores out there:

www.aquariumgarden.com
www.aquaticplantdepot.com
www.azgardens.com
www.aquabotanic.com
www.fishvet.com
www.aquariumplant.com

The plants generally arrive in very good condition, and you will have at your disposable a very large variety of plants to chose from. My personal favorites are www.aquariumgarden.com and www.aquaticplantdepot.com as their prices on individual plants are good, plants arrive in great shape, and low shipping prices.

Carlos

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bannor9

Discussion Starter · #6 · Feb 27, 2004

Thanks for the links...

I had a very bad experience from that company in Arizona. I live in the boonies... they don't ship until friday... my plants were not delivered until the following monday and were baked into the newspaper wrappings. I fought with them for over 9 months before I got a refund and they did NOT refund my shipping costs.

I had called the day of delivery and the slow talking individual on the other end of the phone said that it would be taken care of within days. I called again a week later, and then 3 weeks after that... of course, now it was beyond the 30 day max to get a refund from Fed-Ex, which the guy finally told me I had to do... so I was totally screwed. Ended up costing me $48 for overnight that was not delivered overnight for a product that was totally dead upon arrival. Lost use of my money for 9 full months before it was deposited back into my account. What a pain.

Since that time, I am very hesitant to order plants online.

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Steve Pituch

· #7 · Feb 27, 2004

The other option is to get to know the people here and trade and purchase from them. There is a guy on ebay called lowcoaster that everyone raves about. His name is Charley and I had him put me on his list. His email is:
[email protected]

Look at the other comments throughout this forum about him.

Steve Pituch

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bannor9

Discussion Starter · #8 · Feb 27, 2004

Thanks Guys and Gals.

Looks like www.aquariumgarden.com is the place to go. I am about to place a test order from them just to see what happens. First venture in over a year for ordering plants online... wish me luck! (Although, I may also look for some ad's on ebay for the person mentioned and see what he also has to offer.)

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C_perugiae

· #9 · Feb 28, 2004

Aquariumgarden.com is an EXCELLENT source of plants. I've ordered from him twice now and was pleasantly surprised at the quality of the plants and the way they were packaged. He's a great guy and will answer any questions that you have about the plants, as well as compatibility with your setup, etc...

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