Hello everyone. I am brand new to the newsgroup and do not (yet) have a
planted tank although I currently have several non-planted tanks. It
started a few years ago when my wife suggested my then three-year-old
daughter would like "a fish." She of course meant a goldfish in a bowl.
Being the obsessive person I am, I did all my homework and decided that
would just not be a nice thing to do. Anyway, things quickly got out of
hand and today I enjoy the 6, 10, 30, and 55 gallon tanks I have living
happily throughout my house.

I've always been interested in a planted tank though. I've held off knowing
my overboard nature would quickly leave with expensive lighting, a CO2
injection system, and me obsessing over the water chemistry. So what? It's
time... I'm going to invest in a CO2 injection system with a pH controller.
I've learned if I try real hard, I can shop around on the online auction and
other places to make the whole deal affordable for me. I'm also investing
in the lighting upgrade and decided to plant the 55 gallon tank. So the
reading has been very helpful but as usual, has also generated many
questions. I know a lot depends on what kind of plants, what kind of fish,
what kind of water, etc. but I am hoping for some general suggestions.
Sorry if I am asking too much at once:

1. Using the conventional wisdom of 2-4W/gal. and my desire to keep medium
to bright(er) light plants, how much light do I really need? Using the
formulas, I've calculated I need over 200W to keep the bright(er) light
plants in my 55g. I'm planning on compact fluorescents and have seen a lot
of the fixtures available with four 55W bulbs. I might even make a fixture
and hood. But another option is to retrofit the two 2-foot strips I
currently have with a single 55W in each. One online supply house some of
you may know boasts 163% lighting efficiency with a kit using compact
fluorescents and a shaped silver reflector. If I go with this plan, I am
already getting a straight 110W from the bulbs (or 2W/gal.). Am I getting
an effective 180W (110W x 1.63) and is this enough? Seems like it would be.
Is the fact that the lights would be shining through the "slits" of the old
hood (only about 4.5" or so wide) too narrow an opening? Would it be better
to get a glass top and a fixture with legs a few inches or so above the
glass top instead?

2. I have a canister filter on the tank loaded with charcoal. Will the
charcoal remove the trace elements and nutrients from the water and
adversely affect the plant growth/health? It is a 350gph filter with
biowheels. The biowheels oxygenate the water so I keep the filter outlet
below the water line so I don't really agitate the water much. Good, I
understand, to not agitate the water in order to keep the CO2 from escaping
the water too quickly. Also, is it best to put the CO2 reactor right in
line with on the canister filter's outlet line? Will enough CO2 stay in the
water if it is coming out of the filter outlet at 350gph a few inches below
the surface of the water?

3. I'm worried about my current substrate. When I initially set up the
tank, I bought a lot of the slightly larger size gravel. There is nothing
as to its size or dimensions on the bag but measuring it, I can safely say
most of it between 1/8" (3 mm.) and less than 1/4" (6 mm.) with the majority
being the smaller stuff. I hadn't planned on the plants being potted in the
substrate. Is this gravel too big? If so, would I need to remove it? I
wouldn't think this wise with a living, established tank. Anyone ever do
this?

4. Finally, I haven't found much on actually introducing the plants to the
aquarium, or an established one anyway. I've read it's best to try and stay
ahead of the algae. Seems like it would then be best to fully plant the
tank all at once as opposed to phasing the plants in if I am going to all of
a sudden inject the environment with a bunch of CO2 and sunlight... no?

Okay, that's it. Congratulations if you made it through all that. Sorry to
be so long winded...

Arnim