New setup advice needed

[angtc11]

Hi bros

New to this forum and would need some advice and reccomendations.
I am intending to setup a 4 feet planted tank with some tetras and shrimps. Currently have a 1.5ft planted tank with lights only, nothing fancy.

1) What soil/base substrate would you reccommend? Had done some research and was thinking of
a) Gex soil
b) JBL Aquabasis and some gravel

Understand that Gex might breakdown over time, usually how long can it last? Any remedy for this besides clearing out the whole tank? Any other suggestions/combinations welcome.

2) Filters that are reccommended. The important attributes to me are in order.
a) Must not leak (Otherwise tank will be decomm by order of wife....)
b) Ease of use/maintenance
c) Durability
d) Noise level (I intend to place it in a cabinet, 4m away from tv)

3) Lighting
Very intrigued by the LED lighting reccommended by NA due to the low heat and durability.
a) Any bros ever bought from them before and can comment? Their 4 feet LED is apparently equivalent to 120W
b) The LED costs ~170 more than the T5. Any other more economical options available?

4) Lastly, the approx cost for setting up a 4 feet tank was approx $1700. Is this about right?
10mm tank with cabinet $7xx
LED lights $2xx
Ehiem 2028 $3xx
Gex soil $1xx
5L CO2 with solenoid $2xx

Last but not least, any tips, suggestions, reccommendations would be welcome
Thanks in advance!

[blink_willie]

Answers in red

Hi bros

New to this forum and would need some advice and reccomendations.
I am intending to setup a 4 feet planted tank with some tetras and shrimps. Currently have a 1.5ft planted tank with lights only, nothing fancy.

1) What soil/base substrate would you reccommend? Had done some research and was thinking of
a) Gex soil
b) JBL Aquabasis and some gravel

Hmm,ADA Amazonia II?

Understand that Gex might breakdown over time, usually how long can it last? Any remedy for this besides clearing out the whole tank? Any other suggestions/combinations welcome.

As far as I know all soil will break down over time and turn into powder form.No need to change everything.Just take care of the soil, including regular vacuuming of the top layer to remove dirt and debris and making sure the base fert isn't depleted (This happens after some time,like a few years.) Topping up the base fert is as easy as sticking fertilizer sticks/balls etc into the substrate.

2) Filters that are reccommended. The important attributes to me are in order.
a) Must not leak (Otherwise tank will be decomm by order of wife....)
b) Ease of use/maintenance
c) Durability
d) Noise level (I intend to place it in a cabinet, 4m away from tv)

Hydor Prime 30 for your tank.I am using the Prime 20.So far I haven't had any problems with it and it meets all of your criteria!


3) Lighting
Very intrigued by the LED lighting reccommended by NA due to the low heat and durability.
a) Any bros ever bought from them before and can comment? Their 4 feet LED is apparently equivalent to 120W
b) The LED costs ~170 more than the T5. Any other more economical options available?

No comment,as I am using T5.But I know that some bros here do use LED lighting from NA.

4) Lastly, the approx cost for setting up a 4 feet tank was approx $1700. Is this about right?
10mm tank with cabinet $7xx
LED lights $2xx
Ehiem 2028 $3xx
Gex soil $1xx
5L CO2 with solenoid $2xx

If i recall from the top of my head correctly,yeah,the cost you stated is right.About there.

Last but not least, any tips, suggestions, reccommendations would be welcome
Thanks in advance!

[Shadow]

1) What soil/base substrate would you reccommend? Had done some research and was thinking of
a) Gex soil
b) JBL Aquabasis and some gravel

ADA Aquasoil?

Understand that Gex might breakdown over time, usually how long can it last? Any remedy for this besides clearing out the whole tank? Any other suggestions/combinations welcome.

No remedies, both GEX and ADA will break down after sometime. Usually people will top up new soils on top. Last probably around 2 years, though my aquasoils have not breakdown after more than 2 years.

2) Filters that are reccommended. The important attributes to me are in order.
a) Must not leak (Otherwise tank will be decomm by order of wife....)
b) Ease of use/maintenance
c) Durability
d) Noise level (I intend to place it in a cabinet, 4m away from tv)

I vote for Eheim clasic have very good experience with it. My eheim 2217 got it from coleague been running since 1995. I only need to change the O-ring when I got it 2 years ago.

3) Lighting
Very intrigued by the LED lighting reccommended by NA due to the low heat and durability.
a) Any bros ever bought from them before and can comment? Their 4 feet LED is apparently equivalent to 120W
b) The LED costs ~170 more than the T5. Any other more economical options available?

How deep is your tank? If it is more than 1.5ft deep/tall and you are planning to grow creeping foreground plant like glosso or HC then I would recomend Metal Halide (MH). Not sure if LED have the same penetration level as MH. At this moment I'm at wait and see mode on LED light set

[blue33]

From personal experience, as below
1) What soil/base substrate would you reccommend? Had done some research and was thinking of
a) Gex soil
b) JBL Aquabasis and some gravel
Ans: Do consider "Seachem Fluorite Black Sand" also(life time use), dont need anymore base ferts.

Understand that Gex might breakdown over time, usually how long can it last? Any remedy for this besides clearing out the whole tank? Any other suggestions/combinations welcome.
Ans: As above.

2) Filters that are reccommended. The important attributes to me are in order.
a) Must not leak (Otherwise tank will be decomm by order of wife....)
b) Ease of use/maintenance
c) Durability
d) Noise level (I intend to place it in a cabinet, 4m away from tv)
Ans: So far Eheim is the best you can find, they famous for reliability. Get 2 set Eheim 2217 than just one filter, each at one corner. Also consider Eheim quick release adapter for maintenance purpose.

3) Lighting
Very intrigued by the LED lighting reccommended by NA due to the low heat and durability.
a) Any bros ever bought from them before and can comment? Their 4 feet LED is apparently equivalent to 120W
b) The LED costs ~170 more than the T5. Any other more economical options available?
Ans: If you are going for highlighting, then you can forget about LED. Go for T5 with good reflector, you'll not regret

4) Lastly, the approx cost for setting up a 4 feet tank was approx $1700. Is this about right?
10mm tank with cabinet $7xx -> braceless at less 12mm, 10mm too thin, you can opt for only front glass for stapphire glass(local call crystal glass), if you have the budget, you'll not regret.
LED lights $2xx -> go for T5 with good reflector, you'll not regret
Ehiem 2028 $3xx -> choose 2 set 2217 instead of one 2028.
Gex soil $1xx -> individual preference, Seachem(life time use)
5L CO2 with solenoid $2xx -> JBL solenoid(around $130-140), 5L is $75(NA having promotion)
->Thermometer
->PH meter
->CO2 indicator
->reactor or diffuser, for such big tank go for external reactor
Ans: Should be enough, dont forget the plants and ferts also, etc... Oh, you need fan to cool down your tank also.

Last but not least, any tips, suggestions, reccommendations would be welcome
Ans: As above, happy planting...

[angtc11]

Thanks for all the suggestions, will take note of them. Hae further questions from the replies though

Blink Willie
May I know approx how much is the hydor prime 30 and how many years warranty?

Shadow
You mentioned that people top up new soil. Does this mean that the previous soil is left at the bottom and the soil is getting thicker and thicker?

The Ehiem 2217 does not have priming feature right? This means that I need to suck thru the tubes each time i stop it to prime it? Or is there any gadget to achieve that? Approx how much is Ehiem 2217?

The tank should be 2 feet deep. Was thinking of some HC. Approx how much MH light is needed (Cost and wattage)?

Blue33
For the Seachem Flourite may I know approx how much for 4 ft tank? Understand that its quite cloudy too, any thing to add to the tank to prevent cloudiness besides rinsing?

For the T5, how many watts is sufficient? How to determine if the reflector is good?

Whats the meaning of braceless tank? Can't really tell the difference when I googled it. It usually comes out with rimless too.


Thanks in advance

[Shadow]

You mentioned that people top up new soil. Does this mean that the previous soil is left at the bottom and the soil is getting thicker and thicker?

yes in the sense, but usually my scape won't last more than a year new year new scape

The Ehiem 2217 does not have priming feature right? This means that I need to suck thru the tubes each time i stop it to prime it? Or is there any gadget to achieve that? Approx how much is Ehiem 2217?

Yes there is equipment that help you suck the water. I usually use those hand pump that sell at neighborhood shoop for $2. The trick is connect you inlet to the tank and don't connect your outlet (filter under the tank). Connect the $2 pump on the outlet, suck the water from the tank. You just need couple of pump squeze, the gravity will take care the rest . Once gravity take over put the outlet to empty bucket. Let the water run free to the bucket, shake the filter a bit to remove all the trap air. Once done connect the outlet to the tank and turn on the filter.

The tank should be 2 feet deep. Was thinking of some HC. Approx how much MH light is needed (Cost and wattage)?

My 3ft need only one 150W. cost wise I bough 2nd hand so quite cheap. if you are ok with simple MH you can check the link below. There also clip on MH light, saw it at NA. for 4 feet I would say 2x150W
http://www.viclite.com/aqlight.htm

Whats the meaning of braceless tank? Can't really tell the difference when I googled it. It usually comes out with rimless too.

I think rimless and braceless is the same. Check out the ADA web site, all of its tank is braceless
http://www.adana.com.sg/productsPage...rium_tank.html

[blink_willie]

angtc11:Prime 30 should cost no more than 6 blue notes.As for the warranty,I am not too sure,I can't find my filter's booklet.Hopefully someone else can enlighten you on this.

[Loopy]

Hey there, everyone else has great replies and suggestions. And I agree with them.

I have one question though. What are your exact dimensions of your tank?

I would like to advise that how deep aka height changes up things wildly and your experience might go down the drain if they are not properly addressed now.

Hi bros

New to this forum and would need some advice and reccomendations.
I am intending to setup a 4 feet planted tank with some tetras and shrimps. Currently have a 1.5ft planted tank with lights only, nothing fancy.

[angtc11]

Hey there, everyone else has great replies and suggestions. And I agree with them.

I have one question though. What are your exact dimensions of your tank?

I would like to advise that how deep aka height changes up things wildly and your experience might go down the drain if they are not properly addressed now.

Hi Loopy

I intend to get one with a height of 2 feet. Should be a standard height?

[blue33]

2ft height i guess you have to use Metal Halide, but that will bring up the water temperature, do take note.

[angtc11]

Hmm, i was hoping to avoid them due to the heat problem. Heat was the main reason why i was looking at the LED lights. If it was 1.5 feet height, would T5 do?

[blue33]

1.5ft, T5 would do the job.

[ghim]

I am using LED light set for my 60x40x45 cm tank. As I am growing glosso at the foreground, I pushed the lights to the front . Currently the glosso are creeping.

Now I feel the light not bright enough. As I just got a 30x30x30 Optiwhite next to it. The blue hue from the optiwhite is

Currently considering adding 1 more tube(making it 3 tubes of LED). But seriously feel that LED lights works better with good placement. Squeezing 1 more tube may not be the correct solution. Or may just get 1 more PL or T5 light set.

So depends on what you want to grow. You may want to consider a combination of LED and T5. It is not about budget/$. But to get the best combination out of the light sets.

[angtc11]

I am using LED light set for my 60x40x45 cm tank. As I am growing glosso at the foreground, I pushed the lights to the front . Currently the glosso are creeping.

Now I feel the light not bright enough. As I just got a 30x30x30 Optiwhite next to it. The blue hue from the optiwhite is

Currently considering adding 1 more tube(making it 3 tubes of LED). But seriously feel that LED lights works better with good placement. Squeezing 1 more tube may not be the correct solution. Or may just get 1 more PL or T5 light set.

So depends on what you want to grow. You may want to consider a combination of LED and T5. It is not about budget/$. But to get the best combination out of the light sets.

Hi Ghim

May I know how many watts of LED are you using? The one I was recc was 120 watt equivalent for 4 feet. Want to get a better picture of the comparison of prices and effect.


I think your suggestion to use both makes sense considering LED is in its infancy, though its going to cost more

[ghim]

Mine is from NA - 2ft LED. He did mentioned it to be equivalent to 2 tubes of T5 - which is around 50W. Energy consumption is 15W. The fact is, this is currently the cheapest LED light set you can find in singapore. It has around 58 rows x 3 LEDs = 174(if i never counted wrongly). If you count based on 174/$55 = 3.16 LED per dollar. If you go and buy individual LED, it will cost you $1-$1.50 per LED.

Actually LED is not in it's infancy. It is only in recent years that scientist are able to develop a true white light emitting diode. It is the high price that most merchant demanded, that makes this technology slow moving.

For those who are interested, you can read http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Light-emitting_diode

Wanted to add 1 more tube today, but no stock

[blink_willie]

angtc 11:I just stumbled upon my filter's booklet.Hydor Prime series comes with a 24 months warranty.

Cheers!

[angtc11]

Thanks Blink willie for taking the time to look up your warranty.

After more reading up, think I have decided on Eheim classic filters. Can't afford to have them leak....

Some more questions

The hand pump that Shadow mentioned can be purchased any place? I presume the NA people will know about it?

Do I actually need 2x 2217? The uncle at Yishun 600+ actually told me 2 x 2213 enough for 4*1.5*1.5

Where can I get good priced cardinals? Thinking of getting 50-100. Then some rummy nose, oto, shrimps and cory

The tank should be able to support right? Whats the max capacity of 4*2*1.5 assuming the filtration is good?

Regarding the lights, how many watts is sufficient if I put Co2? Thinking of trying out the LED, but quite exp, so take a 4 ft or 120W equivalent according to the NA uncle

For the soil, think i will try the Gex for shrimp and plants

Intending to buy my stuff this weekend at NA, anything that any of the bros here would like to warn me before I jump in?

Thanks!

[Shadow]

2x2213 I would say not enough. 2213 is 400l/h pump flow rate, after you put your media, it probably left only 280 l/h (30% lost). Total from 2 filter is around 560 l/h. Barely enough for 3ft tank. Not to mention all the hose, that will reduce the flow further. My 2217 with 1000 l/h after fill in filter media, external reactor and pipe-ing left only 500 l/h

Typically for fresh water you need to change the water 3 to 4 times per hour. In other word you need filter with flow rate about 3 to 4 times your tank volume

[ghim]

You haven't order the tank yet? It may takes some time. Thus giving you more time to consider your shopping list.

For buying 50-100 pieces of tetras, you can it from seaview. Cheaper when you buy 50 or more.

If you are really getting the LED lights. I would suggest getting 2 sets with 2xLED tubes each. Below is how my glosso is growing after 3 weeks. Now fighting BBA

[Shadow]

your glosso creep nicely, I guess LED is workable