Advice On Large Planted Aquarium

[stevereade]

I'm planning sometime in the near future another Discus tank in the region of around 400-500litres, I want it heavily planted so I'm going to buy a plant collection from Aquarium Gardening.
https/aquarium-gardening.com/details.php?prodId=370&category=6&secondary=&keywords=
I'm going to set it up differently to the picture shown as I want to put my stamp on it, but I was wondering whether to do as it says and go with high lighting, CO2 and ferts or low light, CO2 and ferts, the reason I wondered is because I don't want stupid fast growth. All my plants in my high tech planted tank grow so fast that they loose their bushy structure and go thinner and higher, I just don't want to get it all set up and rather than it stay thick, all end up looking spindly and thin. Idea's anyone?
Stocking will be,
8 Discus
8 Rams
30 Cardinals and a clean up crew
I'm gonna be buying captive bred as I know they can take slightly higher PH and I don't want the water too soft for the plants.

 

[ian]

i think with discus tanks, the discus come way way way before the plants. Some have success with plants in a discus tank, some people really struggle. To be honest Steve, if you want a tank like the one in the pic, you need to be running pressurised CO2, not DIY. Discus are still gonna need soft RO water, however plants can adapt to these conditions, more than of that a discus adapting to a hard watered planted tank. As for lighting, i think we can safetly say high light isn't needed to run a successful planted tank. Good C02 and ferts with good flow are a must IMO.

have a read of this, this always impresses me.

http/www.fishforums.net/index.php?/topic/278474-1600-gallon-ei-dosed-discus-tank/page__p__2311030&

 

[stevereade]

i think with discus tanks, the discus come way way way before the plants. Some have success with plants in a discus tank, some people really struggle. To be honest Steve, if you want a tank like the one in the pic, you need to be running pressurised CO2, not DIY. Discus are still gonna need soft RO water, however plants can adapt to these conditions, more than of that a discus adapting to a hard watered planted tank. As for lighting, i think we can safetly say high light isn't needed to run a successful planted tank. Good C02 and ferts with good flow are a must IMO.

have a read of this, this always impresses me.

http/www.fishforums.net/index.php?/topic/278474-1600-gallon-ei-dosed-discus-tank/page__p__2311030&

Thanks, btw this wont be the first time I've kept Discus and I've never had probs with them so I'm quite confident lol, the PH will be 6.5 - 7 and I've kept them in harder water before and the breeder I go too keeps and breeds them in 7 and has no trouble. What WPG is your corner tank?

 

[ian]

sorry Steve, didn't know you had kept them. My corner is 1.3wpg, however my bulbs are t5ho, so you can't really put a wpg on it, cos it really doesn't apply. I was talking to AC about this the other week and there isn't anything on the wpg and HO bulbs. It works for me, for others it doesn't. What lighting was you thinking?

 

[stevereade]

I have no idea yet lol, thing is I want good growth but real dense thick growth, hence needing the advice. I don't know a lot about lighting tbh, I just thought I'd get as much advice as possible to get it right first time, its a way off yet but its been in the back of my head for a while and bugging me now lol. I don't think the missus will be pleased if I spend £2000 on a tank and plants and kill it all or am not happy with it lol so need all the help I can get lol.

BTW that link of the 1700gal tank was awesome.

 

[jpeterson]

What about one of these.... http/www.tropica.com/layouts/experienced/interzoo-2010-(270l)/description.aspx

http/www.tropica.com/layouts/experienced/show-aquarium-(297l)/description.aspx

 

[ian]

you also need to be looking at you plant list, steve. Some plants don't do so well at the temps discus like, the last thing you want is dying plants in a discus tank. I know plants like Aponogetons, hygrophila and swords don't mind these temps. I wouldn't put crypts in discus tanks.

 

[stevereade]

Yeah I was thinking that too Ian, I think most of the plants should be fine really, had a good look into them and they'll be on the verge of pushing it a bit at around 29 but should be fine.

 

[stevereade]

So for keeping the plants thick and bushy and not having the stems hitting the surface in two days and going spindly and thin do you think I should go low light with CO2 and ferts or high light with CO2 and ferts and just keep trimming lol.

 

[Biulu]

Trimming is key if you want compact growth, whether you have low or high light. I have low light, left my plants 3 weeks and the cabomba e.g. has been growing large and thin....

If you look closely at Tom Barr's composition, you will see he has used very little stemplants. There is a lot of anubia and moss in the background (I guess he has mounted it on a corkwall or similar). He has cryptocoryne in the left front. The main stemplant standing out is the one on the right hand side. I can't get the picture bigger, but it might be an A. reineckii.