180 watts ok for plants

[donkey]

Hello all
is a 180 watts ok to grow plants with over a 50 UK gallon tank

 

[George Farmer]

What type of lighting - I assume fluorescent T8/T5?

3.6 WPG is a lot of light over a 50G - the WPG rule becomes more leanient as tank size increases.

Assuming it is good quality light with reflectors then you will definitely require CO2, I strongly recommend pressurized in a 50G, DIY will cause unstable CO2 leading to potential algae issues. With 3.6 WPG you leave little room for error where algae is concerned. Get your CO2 sorted BEFORE lighting - aim for a stable 30ppm, this will be very easy with a pressurized system.

You will need to plant heavily with fast-growers from the outset to establish a biological equilibrium and fend off algae. See the pinned algae article for a list of suitable plants.

I highly recommend using EI too. With the inevitable growth rates you will experience you will go through a lot of ferts. EI is very cheap and very effective. Since using it I haven't experienced ANY algae issues whatsoever.

 

[donkey]

theres 2x T5 and 2x T8 over the tank . what kind of fast growing plants would be best for a set up like this ,and how much ferts would i need to have .i am getting a pressurized co2 . would it be better to take the two T8s off the tank ?

 

[George Farmer]

Extracted from the pinned algae article -

Hygrophila species
Ludwigia species
Rotala species
Egeria species
Brazilian Water Ivy
Small Ambulia
Mexican Oak Leaf
Water Sprite
Hornwort
Floating plants (careful they don’t block too much light)

I recommend buying your macronutrients from here -
http/www.fishforums.net/index.php?showtopic=101458 and your micronutrients (Plantex CSM+B ) from here
http/www.gregwatson.com/proddetail.asp?prod=CSMPlantex1
I would buy 500g of Potassium nitrate and Potassium phosphate. I personally don't bother with the Potassium sulphate.

And 1lb of Plantex CSM+B.

These will all last you years, the KNO3 being used up the quickest but still lasting well over a year.

As for lighting - stick with what you have, you'll be able to grow anything. Just ensure you get your CO2 and ferts sorted beforehand.

 

[donkey]

Thanks for that
can the stuff from greg watson be sent to the U.K

 

[George Farmer]

yes. I'm going "halves" with a friend of mine on some CSM+B. 1lb costs £18 in total. Sounds expensive but will last many years.

 

[donkey]

sounds good .do they take paypal as payment ?

 

[George Farmer]

No idea. Have a look!

 

[donkey]

have done cant see anything about payment

 

[George Farmer]

I've just had a look. They take PayPal. Just go to buy it and it will ask you how you want to pay.

 

[donkey]

Thanks .im new to all this plant stuff .and that stuff from greg watson looks a little hard to mix and dose to me .

 

[George Farmer]

It is daunting at first once you've figured it out there's no turning back.....and no algae!

Just ask any questions you may have. zig's article is a good start and he is our resident expert. I'm sure he'd be more than happy to answer any queries as will I - spare time permitting of course!

EI is the way forward in this hobby, it would be great if we had another UK user. As a country we are embarssingly far behind the US etc. You only have to see the previous entrants in the three biggest international aquascaping contests to see that.

Regards,
George

 

[donkey]

Thanks George
everthing you are telling me is a big help to me .i have kept fish for a very long time but plants is all new to me .my first lot of plants died cos of BGA so i dont want to get it wrong this time .so now i have co2 .and i want to get my ferts right this time .do you have any links on how to mix the greg watson stuff .
Thanks again mate

 

[George Farmer]

Read zig's EI article. To find out what mixtures you need - http/www.csd.net/~cgadd/aqua/art_plant_dosage_calc.htm

 

[donkey]

Thanks again