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#1
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10gal planted tank?
Greetings.
My LFS told me that to have a planted tank I need to have the bottom of the tank with potting soil and gravel on top. If so, how many pounds of soil do I need to make it at least 1 inch deep of soil and how many pounds of gravel would I need to make 1 inch deep of gravel? Or should I use more/less? Should I use sand(non argonite)instead of the gravel? The tank will have two 36W PC lights, maybe a power head and a HOB filter. Where can I find a list of livebearers online that are compatible with other livebearers and that won't grow too large? Thank You. -- Take Care. JuanMa Please remove NOSPAM to reply. |
#2
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10gal planted tank?
Hey, for your tank I wouldnt even bother with soil, if you can afford
it all you will need is one bag of Seachem's Flourite... (it runs about 25 bux in LFS and about 15 with shipping online the last time I checked) Flourite is made for planted aquariums with a very small rock size for the plants, all I have heard is good reviews from people on this product and the stuff really does look good in your aquarium. And are you considering running any Co2 because there are some inexpensive co2 systems out there that are made for smaller tanks... On Tue, 29 Jul 2003 22:44:44 GMT, JuanMa wrote: Greetings. My LFS told me that to have a planted tank I need to have the bottom of the tank with potting soil and gravel on top. If so, how many pounds of soil do I need to make it at least 1 inch deep of soil and how many pounds of gravel would I need to make 1 inch deep of gravel? Or should I use more/less? Should I use sand(non argonite)instead of the gravel? The tank will have two 36W PC lights, maybe a power head and a HOB filter. Where can I find a list of livebearers online that are compatible with other livebearers and that won't grow too large? Thank You. |
#3
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10gal planted tank?
JuanMa wrote in message ...
Greetings. My LFS told me that to have a planted tank I need to have the bottom of the tank with potting soil and gravel on top. If so, how many pounds of soil do I need to make it at least 1 inch deep of soil and how many pounds of gravel would I need to make 1 inch deep of gravel? Or should I use more/less? Should I use sand(non argonite)instead of the gravel? The tank will have two 36W PC lights, maybe a power head and a HOB filter. Where can I find a list of livebearers online that are compatible with other livebearers and that won't grow too large? Thank You. I would say that 10 lbs of soil will give you 1 1/2" and you should be good with the same amount of gravel. If your tank is only 10g, and your placing 72w over the tank. Then thats WAY to much light for some.It would give you 7.2wpg. I have a difficult time with algea at 4wpg so be cautious and ready to spend $$$ on other things like fertilizer, a c02 system.Maybe only use one bulb if possible this would be about 3.5wpg and you'll still require a co2 system but you will have better luck. Good Luck, Matt |
#4
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10gal planted tank?
"JuanMa" wrote in message ... Greetings. My LFS told me that to have a planted tank I need to have the bottom of the tank with potting soil and gravel on top. If so, how many pounds of soil do I need to make it at least 1 inch deep of soil and how many pounds of gravel would I need to make 1 inch deep of gravel? Or should I use more/less? Should I use sand(non argonite)instead of the gravel? The plants in my tanks grow at a stupid rate - both of them just have 1-2" of sand on the bottom. I have reasonable lighting, CO2 & feed them regularly - sometimes I wish they'd slow down a bit! |
#5
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10gal planted tank?
JuanMa wrote:
My LFS told me that to have a planted tank I need to have the bottom of the tank with potting soil and gravel on top. If you follow their advice, you're going to have an unholy mess on your hands. There are several brands of aquarium gravel specifically for planted tanks, most well-know being Flourite from SeaChem. These gravels are much easier to work with than potting soil would be. The tank will have two 36W PC lights, maybe a power head and a HOB filter. That's a lot of light for a ten gallon tank. That's not a bad thing, but you're going to have to battle algae until you get the CO2 and fertilizer balance worked out. -- www.ericschreiber.com |
#6
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10gal planted tank?
I have a 10 gallon planted tank which I operate opposite from every advice
that you have heard. Here are some rules that I break: -Don't use under gravel airstone setups with plants, the roots don't like it: I do and it works great. I believe the system actually pulls fish waste and uneaten food toward the roots which they find nourishment from - Don't use power heads with plants, they don't like water that moves too much: I use a dual-riser under gravel setup with low powered powerheads. The water is always fresh with oxygen, and last I checked plants out in the wild grow in moving water. -Use soil or flourite: I just use fine stone and the roots are nicely dispersed in them. -Use CO2 for growth: I use lower lighting so I don't have to monkey with CO2. The plants grow, but slowly which is fine by me. I keep the tank away from the window so I don't get any algae. The water always smells fresh when I do water changes. It's not what you would call a show quality tank but it's nice and it's low maintenance. Oh, yes the fish - just assorted kinds of gold fish, colorful but low maintenance. Thinking of trying shrimp. "Eric Schreiber" wrote in message ... JuanMa wrote: My LFS told me that to have a planted tank I need to have the bottom of the tank with potting soil and gravel on top. If you follow their advice, you're going to have an unholy mess on your hands. There are several brands of aquarium gravel specifically for planted tanks, most well-know being Flourite from SeaChem. These gravels are much easier to work with than potting soil would be. The tank will have two 36W PC lights, maybe a power head and a HOB filter. That's a lot of light for a ten gallon tank. That's not a bad thing, but you're going to have to battle algae until you get the CO2 and fertilizer balance worked out. -- www.ericschreiber.com |
#7
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10gal planted tank?
"Zion Hill" wrote in message ... I have a 10 gallon planted tank which I operate opposite from every advice that you have heard. Here are some rules that I break: -Don't use under gravel airstone setups with plants, the roots don't like it: I do and it works great. I believe the system actually pulls fish waste and uneaten food toward the roots which they find nourishment from Root need O2......you are giving it to them. - Don't use power heads with plants, they don't like water that moves too much: I use a dual-riser under gravel setup with low powered powerheads. The water is always fresh with oxygen, and last I checked plants out in the wild grow in moving water. Plants need water movement in order to have nutrients available, else the area next to the plant becomes void of the nutrients they need. -Use soil or flourite: I just use fine stone and the roots are nicely dispersed in them. Sure, gravel and sand......why not.... -Use CO2 for growth: I use lower lighting so I don't have to monkey with CO2. The plants grow, but slowly which is fine by me. I keep the tank away from the window so I don't get any algae. The water always smells fresh when I do water changes. It's not what you would call a show quality tank but it's nice and it's low maintenance. They get CO2 from your water. It keeps enough CO2 disolved from your water circulation. Oh, yes the fish - just assorted kinds of gold fish, colorful but low maintenance. Thinking of trying shrimp. Sounds like you are covering all the bases......whom preaches against these things, except the goldfish? "Eric Schreiber" wrote in message ... JuanMa wrote: My LFS told me that to have a planted tank I need to have the bottom of the tank with potting soil and gravel on top. If you follow their advice, you're going to have an unholy mess on your hands. There are several brands of aquarium gravel specifically for planted tanks, most well-know being Flourite from SeaChem. These gravels are much easier to work with than potting soil would be. The tank will have two 36W PC lights, maybe a power head and a HOB filter. That's a lot of light for a ten gallon tank. That's not a bad thing, but you're going to have to battle algae until you get the CO2 and fertilizer balance worked out. -- www.ericschreiber.com |
#8
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10gal planted tank?
My LFS told me that to have a planted tank I need to have the bottom of
the tank with potting soil and gravel on top. If you follow their advice, you're going to have an unholy mess on your hands. Why is that? My neighbor has potting soil covered with sand and it works very well for him. He helped me set up my 15 gallon the same way. Michael |
#9
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10gal planted tank?
"Michael" wrote:
If you follow their advice, you're going to have an unholy mess on your hands. Why is that? My neighbor has potting soil covered with sand and it works very well for him. He helped me set up my 15 gallon the same way. It'll work fine except when you have to either remove an established plant or put in a new one with a large root system. In those cases, which involve digging or disrupting the substrate, the sand won't suffice to keep the potting soil from entering the water column - hence the mess. I'm not saying it can't be done - potting soil would probably be great for the plants - but substrate intended for aquarium use will be a lot easier and cleaner to work with. -- www.ericschreiber.com |
#10
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10gal planted tank?
The way I use soil in one of my tanks was pretty easy to set up. I went to the
local cheap craft store (Garden Ridge). Bought a bunch of small clay pots. Got some 100% silicone sealant from the hardware store and a caulking gun. Sealed the drain holes in the pots. Poured a very small bit of Iron Sulphate in the bottom of the pot (use very sparingly), then put 100% top soil in the pot to about a couple inches from the top. Planted the plant ( or a bunch, depending on the plant) and then covered the soil with a couple inches of small gravel. Works like a charm. Easy to re-arrange things, and not too shabby to look at either. Also easy to vacum the bottom of the tank at cleaning time. --Jim |
#11
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10gal planted tank?
My LFS told me that to have a planted tank I need to have the bottom of the
tank with potting soil and gravel on top Some people do that, but you don't have to. I would consider using Flourite instead. Much easier, especially for a beginner. Or sand mixed with laterite, if you can't get Flourite where you live. The tank will have two 36W PC lights, maybe a power head and a HOB filter. That is way more light than you need. If you are new to planted tanks, I would consider using half that amount of light, at least at first. 36W over 10 gallons is plenty of light, enough so that you'll be able to grow whatever you want. A ten gallon with 72 watts of light over it would be a challenge for even an experienced planted tank keeper. If you do everything right, you'll have plants growing more than an inch a day, all in a pretty small tank. You'll be pruning daily. If you do anything wrong, you'll have an algae farm at best and a tank full of dead fish at worst. I hope you are planning to inject CO2 in this tank. If you go over 3 watts per gallon, CO2 injection is mandatory. Where can I find a list of livebearers online that are compatible with other livebearers and that won't grow too large? Try FishProfiles.com: http://www.fishprofiles.com/profiles...id=Livebearers The profiles list the size the fish grows to, and describes its temperament, as well as how easy it is to keep. Leigh http://www.fortunecity.com/lavender/halloween/881/ |
#12
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10gal planted tank?
It is very hard to keep small tanks in balance due to the small margin for
error. Keep it simple and go for slow-growing plants. Fast-growers with sufficient light and CO2 will fill up a 10g in no time - you would have to prune very often which can get frustrating after you get over the feeling of triumph after the first one or two prunings. Be careful with nutrients because, again, there is a very small margin for error with only 10g of water plus light. Regarding the soil substrate: I recently spent about two months trying to get a soil substrate to work in a 29g, and I wouldn't recommend it to anyone now. I tried two different products that are meant for use in ponds with plants. One was a peat/sand mix, and the other was a clay/sand mix. The peat/sand mix was too light and would cloud the water for hours after the tiniest disturbance. The clay/sand mix cloud easily as well, and also settle and stick to everything - plants, rocks, fixtures, glass, everything. I finally drained the entire tank, left about an inch of the clay/sand mix, and put on a couple of inches of Carib-Sea's new Eco Complete Planted Aquarium substrate. This seems to be a winner so far. I especially like the dark color. You can easily mix black gravel with it like I did to save a little money. That my two cents. Jody "JuanMa" wrote in message ... Greetings. My LFS told me that to have a planted tank I need to have the bottom of the tank with potting soil and gravel on top. If so, how many pounds of soil do I need to make it at least 1 inch deep of soil and how many pounds of gravel would I need to make 1 inch deep of gravel? Or should I use more/less? Should I use sand(non argonite)instead of the gravel? The tank will have two 36W PC lights, maybe a power head and a HOB filter. Where can I find a list of livebearers online that are compatible with other livebearers and that won't grow too large? Thank You. -- Take Care. JuanMa Please remove NOSPAM to reply. |
#13
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10gal planted tank?
I heartily agree with the recommendations regarding light. However I have
had good luck with using soil in my tanks. I start with plain cat litter on the bottom. Then I sprinkle some fertilizer over the litter. Then a layer of potting soil. These 2 layers take up about 1" in a 5 gallon and about 2" in a 15 gh. Realizing that a disturbance to the gravel may cloud the tank, over the 2 previous layers I put about a .5" of fairly fine sand. I then followed with standard aquarium gravel. After all this I then planted and then filled with water. The tank cleared up in less than a day. "Jody" wrote in message . .. It is very hard to keep small tanks in balance due to the small margin for error. Keep it simple and go for slow-growing plants. Fast-growers with sufficient light and CO2 will fill up a 10g in no time - you would have to prune very often which can get frustrating after you get over the feeling of triumph after the first one or two prunings. Be careful with nutrients because, again, there is a very small margin for error with only 10g of water plus light. Regarding the soil substrate: I recently spent about two months trying to get a soil substrate to work in a 29g, and I wouldn't recommend it to anyone now. I tried two different products that are meant for use in ponds with plants. One was a peat/sand mix, and the other was a clay/sand mix. The peat/sand mix was too light and would cloud the water for hours after the tiniest disturbance. The clay/sand mix cloud easily as well, and also settle and stick to everything - plants, rocks, fixtures, glass, everything. I finally drained the entire tank, left about an inch of the clay/sand mix, and put on a couple of inches of Carib-Sea's new Eco Complete Planted Aquarium substrate. This seems to be a winner so far. I especially like the dark color. You can easily mix black gravel with it like I did to save a little money. That my two cents. Jody "JuanMa" wrote in message ... Greetings. My LFS told me that to have a planted tank I need to have the bottom of the tank with potting soil and gravel on top. If so, how many pounds of soil do I need to make it at least 1 inch deep of soil and how many pounds of gravel would I need to make 1 inch deep of gravel? Or should I use more/less? Should I use sand(non argonite)instead of the gravel? The tank will have two 36W PC lights, maybe a power head and a HOB filter. Where can I find a list of livebearers online that are compatible with other livebearers and that won't grow too large? Thank You. -- Take Care. JuanMa Please remove NOSPAM to reply. |
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