Where can i get the best price?

[p0ip0i]

Hi everyone im new to planted tank and has a spare crystal glass tank of measurement 45cmx30x30 and a canister filter currently.
Where should i go for the best price of substrate/co2 equipment/fertilizer/plants/fan/lighting?
anyone help?


was planning for just maybe some driftwoods/stones and growing some carpet grass and neon tetras. Been reading alot recently, i personally loves DIY stuffs,
been to C328 only saw GEX SOIL? everyone was talking about ADA amazonia where can i get this and how much is it? 3L sufficient? 9L?

do i really need a fan?
and lighting requirement, if LED lights for my tank whats the cheapest i can go for? and enough for like carpet tiny grass patches around it.

CO2 can i just use like Seachem Excel? or DIY a Co2 Reactor?

Fertilizer just use seachem Flourish is it possible? (i saw at c328 its only $9 for 500ml)

[bryan]

I prefer Nature Aquarium or Seaview. Pretty well stocked, reasonably priced and easy to find.

[adidasvintage]

I do not think u need a fan unless your area is super hot. You can get ADA aquasoil at many place, depending on where you stay. 3L maybe a bit little while 9L is too much. For lighting, since your tank is only 30cm height, get the UP LED for plants will do. For carpeting plants, best to have CO2 system, without it also can but result is greatly slower. For fertilizer, depend how you wanted? EI dosing or just follow commercial brand recommendation, if using Seachem series, Flourish is the basic for NPK, you might need to add Trace.

[Urban Aquaria]

For soil substrate, ADA Amazonia aquasoil is the most popular and reliable for planted tanks so far, its a tried and tested substrate used by a majority of aquascapers. For your tank base dimensions of 45 cm x 30cm, 3L of soil will only fill up to around 2-3cm height of soil, which is quite shallow. It would be better to add more soil, perhaps 5-6L to get more soil height so that plants have space to develop a deeper and more stable root system, and also allowing you to slope the soil higher to the back to enhance depth perception too.

You can get a standard 9L bag of ADA aquasoil for around $38 at places like Seaview, it works out cheaper per liter to get a 9L bag instead of 3L bag. Any extra soil you don't use can be stored for future usage or easily resold to others. Other popular places like Polyart and LFS Aquarium (both also situated at Clementi Blk 328 and 325 area) and Y618 (at Yishun) stock ADA aquasoil too.

[p0ip0i]

first of all thank you for all the guidance and help.

noted the above comments, so i should go get myself a 9L ADA amazonia bag,
sry few more questions
UP LED <- any pictures or places i could get it? rough price?
i measured my room tank temperature 29 degrees constant.
i got myself a diy CO2 system (those bottle cap with valve and gauge, a friend pass it to me as he didnt make it successful).
was planning to have just hair grass and Monte carlos with neon tetras will do. (Do i need to aerate them?(the fishes)) or my canister filter with poppy glass will do the aeration during the night?

[Urban Aquaria]

For the Up Aqua Z-Series Pro LED (45cm) model, it usually retails for around $60+ at Seaview (they have additional 15% discount on equipment, so it'll work out even cheaper).

Based on your setup, you could get pretty much everything you need at Seaview.

As for aeration, if you are using lily pipes and feel the need to improve oxygen levels in the tank, just position its top section slightly above the water surface (during the night) to create more surface movement and agitation, that will help to oxygenate the water.

[Urban Aquaria]

Btw, for easier reference this is what the Up Aqua Z-Series light looks like:



Photo from Google Images.

There are many other brands and variants of similar lights available in the market now, some are cheaper models with less LEDs and less power, yet the casing designs look similar. So it can sometimes be abit confusing.

Also make sure you get the "Plant" version, not "Marine" version.

[shrimpaholich]

ebay if you can. theres some nice led flood lights for cheap. best substrate is pool filter sand with root tabs with diy ferts no fan unless you get over 76/78 and diy co2 is the way to go with a small tank like that


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[p0ip0i]

ok, so i'll just get the
1)ADA amazonia aquasoil
2)Up Aqua Z-Series Pro LED (45cm) model

swee.. Thank you.. will get it during my off days.

[p0ip0i]

This is the one right ?
Guys I bought it.. Was like searching quite some time for this 45cm.. Yes the boxing almost all looked the same. $54 after discount.


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[Urban Aquaria]

Yes, thats the correct one.

[p0ip0i]

ok guys, i now have my lights/tank/filtrations/substrates.
1)Where do i get nice Stones/rocks?
2)can i plant ELEOCHARIS SP. ‘MINI’ as my carpet in a low tech plant? is it easily avail? Seaview? C328? Green Chapter?
3)Fertilizer needs for future? any brand or particular bottle/tablet i need to use?

[Urban Aquaria]

1) For good selections of various types of rocks, you can check at LFS that specialise in aquascaping, like Green Chapter, Aquatic Avenue, East Ocean Aquatic etc.

Alternatively, if you are adventurous enough, you could also travel off the beaten track and visit rock suppliers to find suitable hardscape, like the place at 40 Jln Lekar, here is a link to the discussion thread:

http://www.aquaticquotient.com/forum...40-Jalan-Lekar

2) Eleocharis sp "mini" can be found at places like Green Chapter or East Ocean Aquatic (Tropica brand 1-2-Grow cups) or Aquatic Avenue (HortiLab cups) or SunPets (both Tropica and Dennerle cups).

This plant can grow in low-tech tanks, but growth rate tends to be very slow without Co2 injection. You'll have to wait many months for it to grow out (compared to just a few weeks in high tech tank). So have to manage your expectations.

3) ADA Amazonia Aquasoil will usually provide sufficient nutrients for plant growth during the initial few weeks and months, but it's usually recommended to also dose additional potassium (K) and micro/trace fertilisers throughout to support healthy growth.

You can consider using all-in-one fertilisers like Seachem Flourish Comprehensive, Tropical Specialized or Premium, ADA Brightly K Step 1-3 etc. Just do some googling online to read up about their features and usage.

[p0ip0i]

Seriously , you are a guru!!! You have all the answers that I needed after searching since 5pm I was like looking here and there and what to choose. Really really thanks


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[p0ip0i]

I dunno if this works
It's my first time anyway... Pls commend to improve or good or bad welcome ..



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[p0ip0i]

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[shrimpaholich]

looks great


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[p0ip0i]

Dimensions: 45x30x30 cm
Lights: Up Aqua Z-Series 45cm 8Hrs Daily
Filtration: Canister 450L/hr
CO2 injection: Nil
Substrate: Ada Amazonia Aquasoil
Parameters: not measured
Fertilisation: Nil
Water change: Top up only.
Water temp: 29C
Plants: ELEOCHARIS SP. ‘MINI’ & Monte Carlo
Bioload: Soon will add Some Tetra and shrimp

No Need Co2? or should i add in Co2? base on above, is my lighting 8hrs enough?

[Urban Aquaria]

It'll be good if you can use Co2 injection in the tank, that will greatly speed up the plant growth. If not, the plants will still eventually grow out, just that it'll take a much longer time. Need alot more patience.

8 hours light photoperiod is okay.

You'll probably have realised by now that the soil granules are mixing and littering onto the sand path (it will get even messier when livestock are added). Consider putting rocks or wood chunks on the sides of the path to create barriers to seperate the sand and soil. Also try making the path thinner and giving it a twisty path shape (wider at the front then gradually becoming narrower to the back) to enhance the depth perspective.

[p0ip0i]

Ok noted, yup I'm ok with patience without injection. Trying as Low maintenance as possible.
Will go source for small rocks.. And make path thinner


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