My new 2ft planted tank

[tjchan]

Tank size: 24" x 16" x 16"
Volume: 100litre (25 gal)
Temp: Unknown (fan cooled)
Filter: Eheim 2215 (cemramic rings, sponge and biohome red)
Substrate: Ada Amazonian II
Lighting: 2 x 24W T5HO
CO2: Nil (substituted with excel)

Intended dosing: JBL Ferropol, Fleet Enema, Seachem Nitrogen, Seachem Excel (low tech dosing = 10-20% of actual recommendation)

It's up and running for a week now. Water has cleared and some plants are showing signs of growth.

Please give comments. I intend to add shrimps and oto from week 2 and fish from week 3.

Please help ID the background plants and the plant beside the downoi please.

[Blue Whale]

Good start.

1. Use ph test kit to monitor the ph perimeter.
2. Use your hand to measure the water hardness. How? Well you always bathe with soft water, if the water gets harden, your hand should detect it right away just running the water through the fingers.
3. How about pushing one week back to allow you to monitor the plant's reaction and the tank condition. Should be still in time for CNY. Feb 14. Watch your plant, if the lights which should be at 2 WPG is insufficient, then you might think of adding one more light. Minus a bit for your sand, should be at 23-24g. You need to see the % of water also, as usually we do not fill it up to maximum. So calculating the wpg, you might be looking at 48 divide by either 23 or 24g.

[tjchan]

thanks, blue whale. i might delay a week too. i have an extra 24W which I've left off cos I don't want to subject the newly set up plants to such strong lights. and also to reduce heat. the plants behind my downoi and the downoi itself is starting to melt a bit.... wonder why. the red rotala(?) is growing well though and hairgrass has signs of rooting already. japonica has signs of new leaves as well.

[AquaObsession]

Downoi will not survive if planted like that in ADA amazonia. A little bit more work is required!

[Blue Whale]

Okay, when you are free, take a 50% water change. Then dose 1-2ml only especially on the excel. Nitrogen won't cause melting. Be light on the dosage as your ADA soil already have some of subtrate that the plant need. The extra light will come in handy. Do more observation first. Just make sure the power end got sufficient outlet. I personally user a 3x3pin (Connect with a timer). Timer branches to another extension which consist of 1x3pin and 4x2pins. I have 3 lights connected to the timer along with the fan.

JBL Ferropol also temporary stop dosing.

[tjchan]

Downoi will not survive if planted like that in ADA amazonia. A little bit more work is required!

hi bro. will you explain a bit more to a plant noob like myself?

[Blue Whale]

AO means you are using Amazonia soil with Thailand plant. Incompatible.

[sfk7]

wow, didn't know plants have to select the locality of soil too.

what brand of soil come from thailand?

[tjchan]

wow, didn't know plants have to select the locality of soil too.

what brand of soil come from thailand?

tom yum gong soil.... juz joking... i think maybe the soil acidity too high for downoi... let's hope it will grow back well.

[Shadow]

Please help ID the background plants and the plant beside the downoi please.

Either Ludwigia arcuata or Ludwigia brevipes. The different is L. brevipes leaves are wider than L. arcuata

[tjchan]

Either Ludwigia arcuata or Ludwigia brevipes. The different is L. brevipes leaves are wider than L. arcuata

after searching through a few website and reading threads here, my assumption would be I have the following plants here, listed also for the benefit of other bros and sis who might need ID of plants as well.

(in order from left foreground to right, left mid/background to right)

1) Pogostemon helferi (downoi) - http://www.tropica.com/article.asp?t...aristic&id=609

2) Staurogyne sp - http://www.tropica.com/article.asp?t...aristic&id=864

3) Eleocharis Sp. (japanese hairgrass)

4) Hemianthus micranthemoides ( MM/weedgrass) - http://www.plantedtank.net/forums/my...themoides.html

5) Creeping moss?

6) Blyxa japonica - http://www.plantedtank.net/forums/my..._japonica.html

7) Crypt?

Didiplis diandra (Blood Stargrass/Water hedge) - http://www.plantedtank.net/forums/my...s_diandra.html

9) Heteranthera zosterifolia (stargrass) - http://www.plantedtank.net/forums/my...terifolia.html

[vinz]

AO means you are using Amazonia soil with Thailand plant. Incompatible.

Blue Whale, that answer makes no sense... elaborate? What is it about ADA Amazonian soil is not suitable for Thai plants?

[tjchan]

Blue Whale, that answer makes no sense... elaborate? What is it about ADA Amazonian soil is not suitable for Thai plants?

i think it doesn't matter about the soil. i've done a search on google on downoi and melting. almost everyone who plants downoi experienced melting due to a change in condition, this plant adapts very slowly to changes but once it's stabilizes, grows back well. i'm seeing a couple side shoots coming out from a couple of stalks... let's hope they grow well.

[Blue Whale]

Blue Whale, that answer makes no sense... elaborate? What is it about ADA Amazonian soil is not suitable for Thai plants?

I don't. Refer to AO (aka AquaObsession):
Downoi will not survive if planted like that in ADA amazonia. A little bit more work is required!

Myself, I don't care, you can tell from my Operation Maximus thread, I just go ahead and mixed 3 soils together, then hoping to get my range correct. I don't even bother much to id the plants so long I know the rough range it can survive. Hee hee. But.....that's just me, I don't advice the rest to do it.

[vinz]

I thought your AO = short form for 'Aiyoh'...

However, I think there is a huge difference in meaning between 'more work is required' and 'incompatible'. Better leave it to AquaObsession to explain.

[Blue Whale]

Yeah, good to point out not to use shortform. Better to wait for AquaObsession to explain then.

[tjchan]

1mth updates.

2 otos,
30-40 cherry shrimps
20+ hengels rasboras
10 green neons (under ich attk cos not eating dry food...)

[Blue Whale]

tj,
=) Any updates for CNY?

[tjchan]

tj,
=) Any updates for CNY?

more or less the same as the previous update. plants are all growing slowly but surely as according to the low tech planted tank method. 2 green neons still struck with ich that doesn't want to go away. added 6 galaxy rasboras. think my fish overcrowded now... gotta stop buying. haha

[Blue Whale]

ha ha...fish temptation. understand understand. Most of us kena this poison when we started to rearing fish/plants. If the ich problem escalate, you might need to upgrade from OceanFree to AquaMedi(AM) series. Note that the med from AM is stronger, so your water should change after 1 ~ 2 days and downgrade to OceanFree again. I always use OceanFree for prevention and AM one for curing.

If got small algae, you can just pick two mollies and they will keep the algae under control. Although they do go for micro pellets, they too will like to snack on algae. I have a pair red/white albino mollies. As they do know their mathematics (multiply), I bought both same sex so the population won't increase.