12 Gallon Plant Attempt

[Loony Fish]

Hi all,
In a magazine, I saw the top 10 planted tanks and i want to make my 12 gallon planted.
I'd like to fallow these guidelines:
Low Tech,
Easy,
under $50-100
high light.
I'm open to all suggestions about plants and some fish that will go well.
Thanks!

 

[Truck]

i dont think the words, low tech and high light would work

if you want low tech stick to low light

 

[Loony Fish]

ok, the light has 2 bulbs, could i just take one out?

 

[Truck]

no not really, what are the wattages of the bulbs and are they T8's (inch in diameter) or T5's (5/8 of an inch in diameter)

 

[Loony Fish]

forgive me, i'm a total noob at fancy lighting and plants,
it's a coral life light with 2 bulbs and the thing the plug into says 96 watts.

 

[Loony Fish]

wow that made absolutly no sense did it.

 

[three-fingers]

i dont think the words, low tech and high light would work

if you want low tech stick to low light

Not neccesarily, and it really depends on what your definition of 'high-light' and 'high-tech' is.

It's just a case of choosing the right plants, and also how much carbon your plants can get.

Loony Fish - Can you take a picture of the bulbs in your light unit?

Also, if you want to go low-tech, can your measure the KH and/or GH of your tank water?

 

[Loony Fish]

i dont think the words, low tech and high light would work

if you want low tech stick to low light

Not neccesarily, and it really depends on what your definition of 'high-light' and 'high-tech' is.

It's just a case of choosing the right plants, and also how much carbon your plants can get.

Loony Fish - Can you take a picture of the bulbs in your light unit?

Also, if you want to go low-tech, can your measure the KH and/or GH of your tank water?

i can do all those things. the pics might be tommarrow, it's about 11:00pm so i'm going to bed, not much of a night person.

 

[Loony Fish]

how fast does the average carpet plant grow?

 

[Truck]

if you plant them in single plantlets it can take as little as 3 weeks

 

[Loony Fish]

i was thinking today, my 37 gallon discus tank is much better suted for plants (wattage, water condition,etc). the only problem i found is fertilizer. for my 12 it would cost about $8 a month to fertilize but the 37 wound cost $50 a month . what is a good cheap fertilizer and should i use liquid and/or tablets? thanks a bunch!

 

[three-fingers]

Cheapest way is to buy powders and mix them yourself: [URL="http/www.aquaessentials.co.uk/index.php?main_page=index&cPath=145_146"]http/www.aquaessentials.co.uk/index.php?...p;cPath=145_146[/URL]

 

[Loony Fish]

that might work but i still have a few questions
about powder:
is there anywhere other than the url to get it?
does it go into gravel or dissolve into water?



ALSO, the tank i have is doing so well droping all these chemicals and powder and who knows what else might be a little like throwing a monkey wrench at it if you know what i mean.

 

[aaronnorth]

some garden centers may sell it, garden direct ( http/www.gardendirect.co.uk/ ) sell larger quantities for less money.

You can put the powders straight into the water, or you can mix it up into a solution and dose it as a liquid fertiliser.

The powders are just salts, they wont harm your tank unless you chuck a lot in, althou some people dose 3x EI without any problems, and quite a few dump thw hole pot of powder in buy accident. Better to stick to the guidelines until you get the hang of it first though.

 

[Loony Fish]

do i HAVE to use powder or could i use liquid fertilizer from the pet store?