4ft bullet tank planned new setup - tips please

**zeotz** · 3rd Mar 2006, 12:03

decided to transfer my gfish to smaller tank with sump and now I have this 4ft bullet which I want to do planted.

At the moment I have the following hard & live ware:

1. 200l bullet tank. 120cm long x 40cm wide x 60cm deep.
2. 1 inch of lapiz sand inside tank + 10kg pack lapissand + 1 tub (yellow color) base substrate with fertilizer (now sure what brand)
3. CO2 tank with regulator, bubble counter & ceremic diffuser (not yet setup)
4. Jebao 915, 1000l/hr canister filter. INlet thru surface skimmer / Outlet submerged rainbar)
5. V shaped DW about 40cm x 40cm footprint with thick java fern
6. 24W x 2 PL lights, 21W x 2 T5NO.
7. 2 guppies

Thats it, and I am totally new to planted, altho I have spents a few days reading up on the beginners basics.

Any tips on what I should be getting and what I need to throw out?

About the base fert, what options I have if I do not want to drain out the water and take out the lapiz sand?

The landscape I am looking for is a simple one, but need to intergrate the java fern on DW. with some space with grass and some tall plants. Any recommendations? Is a tiered platform good idea? I may get very lost when people refer to names of plants so pics would be most helpful. thanks alot peps!

**kensk** · 3rd Mar 2006, 12:47

I am starting up a 4 X 2 X 2 lapis sand planted too. Transfering excess plants from my half yr old 2 feet planted setup.
Using DIY Co2.
You may want to use root monster instead of base fert.

**zeotz** · 3rd Mar 2006, 14:10

what thickness of lapis sand required if using root monster? IS root monster a brand name or a type of fert?

Any disadvantages or limitations when using root monster instead of base fert?

**kensk** · 3rd Mar 2006, 16:05

I think if you can bury the root master totally is enough...maybe 2 inches..
it is a type of fert.
Adv n DisAd I not too sure. But it is good enough for me.

**zeotz** · 3rd Mar 2006, 17:26

is it root master or root monster? If I ask any LFS specialising in planted they should know what I am talking about I hope.

**grey_fox** · 3rd Mar 2006, 17:31

Remember to do the first thing if your tank is or setup is new.

1. Plant thickly.

being an uncreative person myself, I think you really need to think about what your layout design would be like. You can read the basics here. http://www.aquaticquotient.com/forum...ad.php?t=12744 helped me out a lot

You can find out more about the three basic shapes also. Maybe this will give you a better idea on what or how you want to scape to look like. Also a lot of the fellow members have beautiful scapes, maybe you can take a look at the gallery for more ideas.

Remember to read up on Estimative Index too

Do a search for E.I or Estimative Index to read up or look at the threads that I have opened. I have one which explains E.I in layman terms for easier understanding.

BTW, it's root monster.

**zeotz** · 3rd Mar 2006, 17:57

OK, got it. good homework to work on

**grey_fox** · 3rd Mar 2006, 19:25

Bro,

Maybe you can sift through this thread I started to get more indepth information.

http://www.aquaticquotient.com/forum/showthread.php?t=17434

and this.

http://www.aquaticquotient.com/forum...ad.php?t=18448

It's a collective thread of information when I started out too.

Just don't want you to make the same mistake as I did.

**zeotz** · 3rd Mar 2006, 22:36

thanks for sharing bros

**valice** · 4th Mar 2006, 15:17

Since you already bought base fert, you don't need to use root monster already. You will only need them after some time when you find that the base fert has depleted... But if you regularly dose liquid fert, the plants can still take in the necessary nutrients from the water column...

**taz_boy** · 4th Mar 2006, 19:22

Originally Posted by zeotz

is it root master or root monster? If I ask any LFS specialising in planted they should know what I am talking about I hope.

full name is Oceanfree "Rootmonster"...comes in different qty...10 or 22 per packets..price range is ard 10 bucks

**zeotz** · 5th Mar 2006, 21:56

cool. sounds good. i can already think of a few possible options with these tips.

But if you regularly dose liquid fert, the plants can still take in the necessary nutrients from the water column...

bro Valice .. can recommend a liquid fert for this purpose?

**valice** · 5th Mar 2006, 22:06

For ferts, you need to take care of the macros and micros... Macros can come from Seachem's line of Potassium, Nitrogen and Phosphorus and follow its instruction... Micros can come from the different brands like Lushgro, Seachem Flourish or TMG...

**kennedy_ng** · 5th Mar 2006, 23:03

Since you have already bought the base fert, I don't think you should waste it. But it is quite troublesome to put it under ur lapis sand, now that you have set up your tank. I heard some people wrap the base fert in a easily disintegrable and push it down the layer of sand. The paper will break apart, leaving the base fert there.

If you don't intend to use your base fert, you can just stick some of these root monster down the sand near the plant.

Try to have at least 2 inches of lapis sand if you are growing rooted plants, even more if you have plants with large root system.

Regards,
Kennedy

**zeotz** · 6th Mar 2006, 17:51

..hmm.. even more possibilities. I;ll soon have to decide on what kind of plants I intend to get so I can conclude what to do with the substrate.

Since my tank is quite long and narrow, only about 40cm, and relatively deep 60cm, any suggestion what kind of landscaping suits this type of tank plan?

**Weirong** · 7th Mar 2006, 14:46

Originally Posted by zeotz

..hmm.. even more possibilities. I;ll soon have to decide on what kind of plants I intend to get so I can conclude what to do with the substrate.

Since my tank is quite long and narrow, only about 40cm, and relatively deep 60cm, any suggestion what kind of landscaping suits this type of tank plan?

Vallisneria species!!!

A whole tank of it will look really graceful and it's a really easy plant to begin with.

**zeotz** · 7th Mar 2006, 18:38

cool idea, in fact I like vallis. hope it goes well with my java fern on the DW.

Plus maybe some foreground plants for the curved part of my tank, as that side is magnified, and if tall plants grow there, will block the whole view from the side. Whats good and easy/low maintenance for foreground plant?