Need help and advice... quite desperate

[Lighthammer]

Hello everyone, i'm new to this forum... found it after doing alot of searching.
Can anyone give me some advice? I'm really interested in keeping a planted tank and i'm not really sure what are the equipment i need to setup one... i'm sure i need a tank...
and what type of plants to do that lawn effect but are easy to maintain. Hope you all can help me becoz i don't really have green fingers... thanks a lot! Btw anyone staying in the Pasir Ris area?

[budak]

you don't need green fingers, just a willingness to read up plenty before you even start buying anything. One relative newcomer to this forum with a tank to die for noted that he did tons of reading before setting up his tank. The thing, there is no quick fix or easy answer to this hobby - a lot matters on what you are aiming for and the resources/time you can spend.

Try this site: FAQs. Also Dennerle database and Tropica database for plant info. Also trawl through the back archive of postings on this site. Many beginners have posted queries on virtually all aspects of the hobby and there are many posts there which anwser Newbie topics.

Don't forget as well the members tanks sections and the LFS list.

Armed with this, you should be able to know better what you want and from there, any specific questions or detail that arise from your readings can be more profitably answered, as you will be more familiar with the terms and jargon used.

[pipsqueak]

hi light hammer, let me be the first to welcome you, and also to tell you, try seaching this forum.

Trying out how to add hyperlink....so might as well test...

Click here

and some sites that are worth visiting...


the krib
Aqua Botanic

[PeterGwee]

Hi Lighthammer, a warm welcome to AQ! There is an aquatic FAQ section created for newbies which I think you will find it useful. As for your other question of plants that do the lawn effect but low maintenance..you can go for moss but temperature is critical though (28 degree celsius and below is recommended...anymore than 28 degrees and your moss will probably not grow well or worst die on you.)

[Lighthammer]

Thanks for the advice guys... really appreciate it. Hope i can manage a decent planted tank... Can i ask another question.. which is : How much can i expect to spend? Thanks again guys..

[Rummynose]

Hi....
I got my equipment at NA (check LFL List).
2ft tank n stand for $42
Lighting 2ft( 72watts) $100
Co2 set manual regulator for $130, or u can choose DIY co2.
External filter will cost abt $100plus, but internal will be much cheaper...
Sand n base fert wii be around $50....

That is abt all, i guess.
Hope it helps....

[sherchoo]

There are many many ways and methods to how you want to setup a planted tank. Different budget are often derived with this endless types of setup. May I suggest you look thru some of the members tanks in the gallery (above) and get a rough idea what you want. From there, we can discuss what you need and then only will know how much it will cost you.
If you're planning to get a tank, I strongly advise you to get the biggest tank your space and budget allow. A 2ft height is most recomended.

If you need help, you can ICQ me and I will try to help you in anyway possible if time permits.

[Lighthammer]

hallo guys its me again... went to the pasir ris fish farm that area... saw a 3ft tank with stand, overhead filter and lighting for $200... is it worth it at that price? Or any old bird here can recommend something to me for a better price? i just need lighting, 3ft tank and stand.. coz i got a eheim external canister filter for my 2ft community tank now... intend to use it... Or maybe some old bird can meet me up and teach me a thing or two? I live at elias road in pasir ris... thanks a lot for the advice guys...[]

[hwchoy]

do not use overhead filter for planted tank, you'd lose all the CO2 injected into the water.

[xter]

you can read through the articles @ http://www.aquarticles.com/ too. [:]

[toledosun]

I've just started my tank too so I'll share my own experience.

Firstly, you'll need to ask yourself what you're after a) a planted tank that looks nice, but easy to maintain; or b) a tank which may end up very nice but requires more time to maintain.

In my case, I got all excited looking at the riccia bubbles and went to buy extra lighting, CO2 canisters, solenoids etc (basically, all the high tech stuff for a heavily planted tank).

Soon realized that's a bad idea because the high tech stuff that's used for a heavily planted tank are there to encourage plant growth. The faster the plants grow, the more maintenance is required.

Also, the more high tech your tank, chances are the more fragile your tank's environment. If you read some of my posts, you'll realize I lost a lot of fishes from PH crashes and other unexplained causes.

Now, all I'm trying to do in my tank is grow some "grass like plants" as foreground (got them from rainbow. looks like the echinodorus tenellus but not sure) and X'mas moss. Turned off the CO2 as well and used airstone instead.

So, my advice is this. If you're new to this, you may want to start slow. Use hardy plants and do without CO2 at the initial stages. Invest in those expensive equipment at a later stage when you think you really need it and are ready for it.

[Allen_1971]

TS,

I've got a differing opinion... there are a lot of high tech gadgets that a beginning planted tank hobbyist can do without like substrate heaters, ph controllers, even a solenoid. But I would say that CO2 is important. I would never advise anyone to start without CO2 unless they really can't afford it... and then I would still encourage them to DIY. Really, I don't see any reason not to inject CO2.

[budak]

Without CO2 injection, we return to the 80s when plants were afterthoughts to fish and bubbling aquagardens a flight of fancy.

In this venture, the first few months will inevitably demand the most time and trouble-shooting. The important thing, again, is a clear understanding of how the CO2 injection/KH/pH ratio and the nitrogen cycle work, and of course the personal discipline NOT to dump shoals of fish/shrimp into the tank until it's stabilised. Other essential stuff, IMO, would be a high capacity filter, sufficient lighting, test kits and generous base fert (and maybe a fan unit).

So-called High-tech tanks can be low or high maintenance, depending on the kind of plants and effect you want to get. I don't see any link between tank stability and high-or low tech. In low tech (and presumably low light) setups, most plants are not growing optimally and ammonnium/nitrite/nitrate spikes would be more likely, You can choose to use slow growing, low maintenance plants like ferns, mosses, anubias, crypts etc... AND get much better results with CO2 injection and careful fertilisation. But the beginning is the best time to experiment and learn from personal observation what works and what doesn't.

[peterkoh]

Hi All

How true is it that overhead filter is not good for planted tank ? I'm using a 2ft Jebo cube tank with built in overhead filter and light (upgraded). There is little surface agitation but I must admit not all my plants are doing well though some like the blyxxa are growing very well. I have never acheived those jungle-looking aquarium in my 1 yr into this hobby even though the light is 56w for a 2ft (~80 litre) tank. I'm using DIY CO2.

Thks.

[chia2k]

overheadfilter is not good for planted tank . i use to have an overhead filter when i bought my tank(came with the tank). it takes up valuable space(at that time thought 1 light was enough) and it releases my co2 . so i went to NA and bought a cheap 17 dollars internal filter. man i tell u , it was worth it ! plants started to grow like mad! bubbling like crazy and i have to trim every week!

[toledosun]

I'm not saying that CO2 is unnecessary or bad. All I'm saying is, if lighthammer's objective is like mine (currently), i.e. to have a simple planted tank which doesn't take up too much time and effort, then CO2 may not be the most important factor. Instead, he could look for hardy plants which fit his concept. Actually, he could go to Nature Aquarium and see how beautiful a moss lawn could be.

However, if his objective is to have a heavily planted tank, where plant growth is at the optimal rate, then yes, he should have CO2, sufficient lighting etc.

However, I feel that since he is a newbie like myself, it may make sense to start slow rather than rush into CO2 and heavy lighting etc.

[Allen_1971]

you do realize that Nature does CO2 injection right? just that Chan uses external reactors instead of internal ones... so you don't see it.

[Lighthammer]

Thanks for all the advice guys... so i will not need to spend on the high tech stuff for the time being? just need the basic equipment until i get more experienced?

[budak]

There are stuff which we would advise you to use right from the beginning: a good base fert, good canister filter, test kits.... but if you mean the CO2 as high-tech, I would say it's pretty much a given if you want to do the kind of planted tanks you see in the shops and in the member gallery. What some do is try using the DIY or cheaper instant yeast CO2 setups available at some shops to see the effect, and later switch to the pressurised canisters. But my own view is that if you want to do it at all, go the full measure as far as the essentials are concerned. This can best be answered if you have a clearer idea of what you want: e.g. what kind of plants you want to grow, simple vs complex aquascape, type of fish.

Of course, the common advice given is a good one: get as big a tank as possible. Many people use 2 ft tanks, but I think the diff in maintenance time between 2 ft and 3 ft is very minimal. the larger the tank, the more stable it is, with room for error.

[sherchoo]

I find CO2 rather an important element in a planted tank. I would agree that the pressurized CO2 is quite expensive thus, DIY CO2 will be your next best option. Not only it will benefit your plants, but also you are able to learn the pH an kH relation which I feel is quite essential for beginners to be familiar with to achieve a more troublefree aquaria.

Giving your plants an edge in growth, they are also able to outcompete unsightly algae from croping up due to excess nutrient in your water collumn.

With CO2, the variety of plants are widen giving you more choices making planting more interesting.