Best substrate?

[KeonTheKing]

Hey been a long time since i've been on SD, i wanted to know what is the best substrate for growing plants in a Ram/tetra aqarium, and since my tank is tall what kind of lighting is best?

[Sameen]

http://www.marineandreef.com/Hagen_F...rate_s/728.htm

Best for plants and carpet plants will grow like crazy. very light and porous and good for smaller fishes. not ok for discus as you can not vaccum the gravel after its settled. you wont need to.

[KeonTheKing]

So sand is not good? Also what is better for a planted tank a overhang style filter or canister?

[russren]

sand is not good. Use a canister, it will minimize turbulence which could dissipate co2

[Sameen]

No dont use sand. sand is for no plant biotope or other kind of fishes. And plants cant root easy in that. Sand is heavy too.u need light gravel. Just give it a try what i told u. I use the same one. And trust me my (baby tears) plant is growing like crazy where it is extremely hard to grow. It provides good filtration and save hatching of eggs of various shrimp and small fishes.

And use a canister filter not HOB. Canister filters outflow direction can be directed in any angle. And if you can afford, go for the Eheim Pro 3e. Its flow rate can be auto set for day and night. so that the surface agitation at day time is less so u keep more co2. and at night u need o2 for plants respiration, so more flow at night. And if you need help with Co2 diffusion or reaction then let me know, i have a very unique way for 99% reaction. it so efficient that u cant even see the bubbles. they instantly gets mixed with water. All u will need is a powerhead.

[KeonTheKing]

Yeah im going to try and get a canister filter and a co2 system and lighting. Ill try to get that substrate any suggestions on lighting?

[KeonTheKing]

http://www.amazon.com/H-T-Magnum-Canister-Filter/dp/B000260FVQ/ref=sr_1_8?s=home-garden&ie=UTF8&qid=1304489695&sr=1-8 Is this a decent canister filter i don't want to spend to much. :(

[Sameen]

HOT magnum is a good filter. But it gets clogged pretty frequently due to its micron filter cartridge. It can polish your water to give a crystal clear water. It has one type with bio wheel with it. but that one will cause too much surface agitation for your plants. so get this one.

[Sameen]

And for lighting, my personal fav is LED as it makes that shimmering affect. For plant you need bright and full spectrum light that glows all the spectrums, visible and non-visible. I would say, get a t5 set.

[Sameen]

and for c02, you can make your own with yeast. and for reactors, no commercial one is good enuf. you will always get few bubbles leaving the tank. i would say get a co2 commercial tank as with those you can regulate the bubble out put as per your need and efficiency of reactor.

[russren]

As Sammen says, don't use the magnum for every day use. I agree that eheim would be a great choice. Go with a Eheim classic to keep costs down. I have two, and they are bulletproof. Also, the magnum is VERY noisy for every day use. The eheims are almost silent. DIY co2 will work very well too. Been doing it on my 90 gallon for ten years. The one thing you can't skimp on in a planted tank is lighting. Not enough light will mean poor growth=algae. be sure and load up on plants initially to keep algae at bay. It will take time to find the right balance between lighting, co2, ferts and bioload. be patient. As for the ram / tetras, don't throw anything sensitive like blue rams or cardinals in until you find that balance. Start with more hardy varieties.

[KeonTheKing]

Ill go with an EHEIM canister filter because apparently they DONT EVER DIE.
What wattage of light is enough for my 37 gallon Tall. Any suggestions on good value T5's? And ill probably do DIY co2 ( if its not messy).

[KeonTheKing]

Is an eheim 2211 Enough for my 37 gallon or should i spend the extra 15 bucks and get a 2213

[Sameen]

eheim 2211 is enough for upto 40 gallon.

[Sameen]

Go there and do a little research
you need:
1. T5
2. atleast 40 watts in total
3. Full spectrum
http://www.bigalsonline.ca/Fish_Lighting_81665_102.html

[KeonTheKing]

http://www.thatpetplace.com/pet/group/1392/product.web
Is this good?

[Sameen]

Yea it looks like a good one. You can get that. T5 and with pink light sounds good. Get it and my friend if you are considering carpet plants such as glosso then let me know. You can dry grow them before you fill the tank with water. It works best with any short plant. It is also very quick in growing plants and gets more out of the lights that way. It will at least save you six months of time. So let me know if you want that.

[Len]

Since you are in California, you may want to look at http://www.catalinaaquarium.com

Good quality, price and you can ask them to customize a fixture if they don't have exactly what you are looking for (which is unlikely)

[russren]

Sameen, not to hijack the thread, but what do you mean by dry grow? I have never had much luck with carpet plants. The algae always takes over.

[russren]

my two cents on lights would be to get a few more watts, maybe something in the 80 to 100 watt range. I know watts per gallon isn't a great rule, but I would shoot for 2 to 2.5 watts per gallon. Just going off of personal experience, but a 1 x ratio on watts to gallons has never been enough for me. Plant selection will have something to do with it though. Crypts will do well with 40 watts. Pick your light by what you want to grow.

[Sameen]

russren, have a look at the links...
http://www.aquaticplantcentral.com/forumapc/journals/62048-medreds-paint-numbers-ada-60h-iwagumi.html

http://myaquaticlife.com/dry-start-method/

http://ukaps.org/forum/viewtopic.php?f=35&t=11757&start=30

[russren]

thanks Sameen. I will remember this next time I start a tank.

[KeonTheKing]

Yea it looks like a good one. You can get that. T5 and with pink light sounds good. Get it and my friend if you are considering carpet plants such as glosso then let me know. You can dry grow them before you fill the tank with water. It works best with any short plant. It is also very quick in growing plants and gets more out of the lights that way. It will at least save you six months of time. So let me know if you want that.

I dont really want carpet plants i want Tall plants that have broad leaves The kind that cover the surface. Kind of canopy style.

[Sameen]

I dont really want carpet plants i want Tall plants that have broad leaves The kind that cover the surface. Kind of canopy style.

ok then dont worry. Just set your plants on the gravel. and add fishes after 2 weeks and enjoy :)

[oscarzx]

nvm!

[oscarzx]

Should of read first -_-

[DYE69]

Sameen, just out of curiousity how do you set up your CO2 diffuser?

[Sameen]

Attach the co2 output on the inlet of a powerhead. the water coming out of powerhead will be fully mixed with the co2 after water and co2 pass through the powerhead fan. cant even see a single bubble. even better if you divert the powerhead outlet downward.