90 x 40 x 40 cm setup (3 feet) advise please

[cs_sg]

I have just cleaned up my 3 feet tank today. Spent hours washing the lapis.
Now its really serious thinking about what to do with this emptied tank.

I'll appreciate if you can throw in your suggestions if I were to have the following setup:

Lighting Intensity(No of Watts) :
Number and type of Lighting (FL/PL/MH) : 2x 55Watts PL

CO2 Injection Rate (bps) : None
Type of CO2 (DIY/Cylinder) : None
Method of Injection (e.g. Diffusor/Reactor) : None

Liquid fertilisers Used (Product name. E.g. Seachem Flourish) : Dr Mallick's lushgro
Fertilization regime (Frequency and amount per dose) : Suggest please

Substrate:Lapis & Root Monster inserting 1 every 10cm apart. No base fert

Other additives (Product name. E.g. Seachem Prime) :

Type of Filter :Eheim cannister (probably a 2215)

2 DIY DC Fans over tank.

I am thinking of planting the following plants:
Foreground:
APP

Midground:
Moss (Christmas/ Erect on bogwood)
Petite Nanas
MM

Fauna I'm thinking of adding after 1 week:
6 Yamato / 20 Malayan shrimps
6 ottos
6 Angels OR 6 juvenile Discus
6 Pencil fish
2 zebra snails

about 50 Cherry shrimps after 1 month

Any other plants which I can add in this non Co2 injected tank?
Is my livestocks ok? I'm a little worried that the Angels/Discus might peck on the shrimps.

Thanks

[Phillipians]

your angels are definitely bound to 'makan' your shrimps.... maybe only large malayan shrimps and your yamatos can make it. Hmm.... with APP you better get some Kno3 as they are nitrate hungry... and also your lights may not be suffiicient... but then again its up to you

[cs_sg]

Thanks, Phillipians

What should I get for my lighting then?
I have not gotten the lighting yet..Can you please suggest?

[aquarius]

If possible go DIY a T5 light set with Aquaz parabolic reflectors. It'll have a better spread over your tank than a PL since it's a FL, it's less hot and it's very much brighter when installed with the Aquaz reflectors.

[cs_sg]

Hi Aquarius,
If I DIY a T5 lighting, is there a 3ft 54w 6500K lighting tubes?

Phillipians,
Can you suggest any fish (besides tetras) which I can keep quite 'safely' with the cherry shrimps?
Some bigger fish other than the tetras since I already have other smaller tanks for them.

[izzat]

If I DIY a T5 lighting, is there a 3ft 54w 6500K lighting tubes?

Hi Chyrl,

For 3ft HO T5, there is only 39W, 54W is for 4ft HO T5
I would suggest you to go for High Output (HO) T5 and not Normal Output (NO) T5.

[cs_sg]

Thanks, Izzat.

Does the 3ft HO T5 comes in 6500k?
If so, are they difficult to get around the North area?
How often do we need to replace those tubes for planted tanks?

We rang the T5 lighting guy and he said he only had those that comes in 10,000k.

[BFG]

Aquaz has 6500k HO T5 bulb.

[cs_sg]

Aquaz has 6500k HO T5 bulb.

Hi BFG,
I saw in another thread that you use them.
May I know where can I get them? And the estimate cost of tube.

The posts on T5 keep mentioned that its we benefit in the long run,
What does that mean??? Longer tube life as compared to PL ones?

[Phillipians]

actually many fishes do go well with shrimps, but not shrimplets heh. Hmmm depends on what kinda fish you or 'look' you want your aquarium to have.

Tetras are good, but if you dont like the common ones, you can get fish like ember tetra which i am currently rearing. Darios should be interesting too, of if you klike to see fish school together, get like 100 bororas maculatas, or if you have more money, briggittae. You can also get betta pugnax, or 50 of bororas + 50 of another kind of fish. Personally, i m into smaller fish as it makes your tank look bigger.

You could also list out a variety of fish you like and let us advise you on compatability, yepz...

actually with APP (elatine tiandra) you will need co2 + prob, 4 x 36 W lightings will do. T5 lighting is better of course but if you intend to save cost PL will do just fine. What budget are you looking at?

If you want to stick to 2 x 55 w and no co2, just think of getting plants like ferns, nanas, Moss, Hairgrass, e tenellus? These are ok without co2 and lesss maintenance, APP is really hard to maintain, and i m speaking from experience.

[Phillipians]

heh didnt read properly, seems like you dont like tetras...

well, like i said bororas are really nice, darios are also good. Look up on net to take a look on them.

Also, my suggestion is tat if you are going non co2, 2 x 55 is ok but no APP or MM they wont survive long unless you intend to use seachem excel.. but honestly it isnt worth it using that, you might as well invest in a co2 sys which is honestly high initial cost but works out to be fine over time, seriously consider this, as it affects the plant variety you will have

[cs_sg]

Thank you, Phillipians.

I had my share of the tetras. I strongly agree that they look cool when they school..but I would like to keep bigger fish for this 3 footer so that I can still see the fish when I sit and view from far. Somehow, I feel more 'attached' to a bigger fish than a tetra when you watch them grow from juvenile size too...kind of can identify and give them nicknames. :P

I always wanted angel fish or discus with bars (in-bred heckels).
i.e. fish that has that bar across the body ..like 'zebra stripes'

Currently, I have moved my school of pencil fish (about 10) into my 15gallon, so I'm not considering getting another school of small fishes.

Danios make me nervous when they 'dash' around in the tank :P
I have 2 left in my 2 feet tank and I had them for about 2yrs now.

I had some APP in this tank in the past using DIY CO2 only. Wasn't successful and I thought it might be my poor lightings.

I'm still looking at the lightings. Not decided yet.
If a T5 cost less than a hundred to DIY (saw the kit for 85$) I will go for it.

Do you mean 110W for 38G is insufficient for APP :O?
That's about 2.8W/G.

[Fei Miao]

Bosemani rainbow are nice for planted tank

[cs_sg]

Bosemani rainbow are nice for planted tank

Hi Fei Mao,
No........Not the frontosa.
you referrring to the cichlid right?

'zebra striped' fish I meant those with a vertical bar across their body, like the scalare /altums angels/ heckel discus. Not looking for a wild one but the locally bred.

[cs_sg]

heh didnt read properly, seems like you dont like tetras...

well, like i said bororas are really nice, darios are also good. Look up on net to take a look on them.

Hmm... Did you mean daRios or daNios?
I've done a search on this but 'no search results' for a fish.

[Fei Miao]

Hi Fei Mao,
No........Not the frontosa.
you referrring to the cichlid right?

'zebra striped' fish I meant those with a vertical bar across their body, like the scalare /altums angels/ heckel discus. Not looking for a wild one but the locally bred.

Yeah I realised that when i read your post again
Heckles are nice, seen some at QH, bit pricely though. Do a Heckle biotope! (got me excited just thinking about it )

You can try Rainbow, the one at Sungei Tengah, not the one at Serangoon, they have quite good discus.

[taz_boy]

HA....should be DANIOS i think, search in google

[cs_sg]

Yeah I realised that when i read your post again
Heckles are nice, seen some at QH, bit pricely though. Do a Heckle biotope! (got me excited just thinking about it )

You can try Rainbow, the one at Sungei Tengah, not the one at Serangoon, they have quite good discus.

Heckle biotope? Haha..Choice Plants first, fish second for me.
.
By the way, my tank has low height, so I can't have the swords.
Maybe some E. orientals :P The forever gorgeous one.

For some reasons, i don't visit these aquarium 'mega mart' for fish. First, pricely , and second, I didn't like the way the fish are displayed.

I spoke to a heckles discus breeder a year back who had some heckles.
As a beginner, I'm not going for the higher grade ones (those with more prominent bars). Just nicely shaped juveniles.

I am not sure if he is still breeding though..so I have to dig out his contact number and see if he's still selling. But ..first.. I need to plant the tank first....
Meanwhile, can try my luck if i can still find this guy.

[Simon]

FYI, Gan got some excellent looking blue face heckels on sale now.. quite surprised with his latest shipment, normally, he gets a few of these blue face heckels but this time round, the entire shipment.. don't miss it, if you really into heckels

[cs_sg]

HA....should be DANIOS i think, search in google

Oh, if its danios, I was thinking of sending my 2 existing ones for adoption.. but i'm not sure if anyone wants them.
Now they're in my 2feet tank with 3 hockey sticks.

These danios are forever so NERVOUS when you watch them. Dashing and chasing all day!