Newbie with planted tank

[douglas]

Hi All,

I have a 2ft tank which I am keen to do planted tank. I idea is to set up a simple tank that requires weekly water change. I also do not want to use CO2 at the moment..

I would like to know what are the things/equipments I will need and what types of plants I have start with. Currently, I only have the tank.

Is it ok if I purchase things/equipment such as rock, drift wood, and soil second hand?

[SeVenZ]

Welcome to AQ!

you would need a proper substrate , good lighting ( around 2wpg ) and a filter , im using a 2213
next you would need low demanding plants. i'm not really good with plant names so maybe other bros will help you out

just for your info , im using a 2ft by 1ft by 1.5ft for my planted.
am using ada amazonia new and a 55w light (not the best)
i dose excel daily and used root monsters.

soil better not get 2nd hand because some soil do "expire". the rest is okay, just make sure u boil it first to remove any pest or anything it might carry.

cheers !

[jamesneo]

Do not be too hurry to put in any livestocks. Cycle the tank first for 1 or 2 weeks first.

[SeVenZ]

oh crap. i meant boil the wood/rocks etc.not the soil

[Blue Whale]

Douglas, what fish or plants do you have in mind first before you start your shopping list?

[felix_fx2]

oh crap. i meant boil the wood/rocks etc.not the soil

Japanese curry will be made if you boil substrate :P

For TS,

Maybe you want to have a mindset of what to keep for low tech.
Plants which are slow growers. Eg: crypts, java ferns. Do fairly well in low tech.
There are some other plants which can be kept in low tech but when compared to high tech setup it's much slower growth. This reflects more on lawn/foreground or ones which grows via runners. Eg: glosso, APP, e. tendllus, amazon swords(some).

I do recommend getting a new pack of substrate as fert in it might have been depleted if it is a used one. Of course you can still get used one since plants do absorb some nutrients from leaves.

lighting and tank. Recommend you to check what your able to accommodate. Then based on that, do a little search see what others are using for that tank size.

Very often this is neglected and most often upgraded within the 1st year of the planted hobby starting.

I'll Stop here for now. You can't absorb too much at one go.

[douglas]

Hi everyone,

Thanks for all the replies and advices.

Currently, I have purchase some DW and some lava stones. I intend to have some moss and some java ferns to start of. I will add some small fishes at a later stage.

Questions:
1. My filter is a internal one. ie. it is part of the tank. Will it post a problem in setting up a planted tank?

2. What type of substrate should I be using? I have read that some uses a mixture of soil and sand. Can I just use soil?

Thanks again for all the advices.

[SeVenZ]

just using soil is better for plants but no harm if your using sand for "aesthetics" purposes liek the top layer.

the internal filter is fine, but many would advise that you get an external canister filter.

[felix_fx2]

internal filters are ok for a small tank since most canisters are costing more, but most folks get canister for 3 reasons

• Larger filter media volume (storage), this will greatly aid bio filtration.
• Easier maintenance, less clouding of water then internal filters. in essence, unplug power and tubes and replace filter pads
• Eyecandy, less equipment in a tank more plants and fish.

This is preference based, i do recommend getting aquasoil types like ADA,GEX.
Aquasoil is premixed soil which is compressed pellets of premixed soil that is aquarium friendly and easier to handle then plain soil.


The soil + gravel way is referred to as Walstad method, you can read more up in the below link.

http://theaquariumwiki.com/Walstad_method


Simply speaking, if your not careful during planting or flooding the tank. You make yourself some coffee :P

[Blue Whale]

I would recommend GEX Ext filter, hanging type. size L. Makes maintenance easier. The thing with int. ones is they tend to mess up during the cleaning stage. Soil even if you put two layers, eventually they will mix and look ugly, tried, look very bad, suggest you use one type only. Eg. Gex big and small granule but same type, like that aha, I think can.