Adam_Chambers
New Member
Morning everyone,
Firstly, hello to all of you. I have been here before and had an account but couldn't remember details and no longer have access to old email so started a new one. Hope you have all been well as it has been a number of years now.
I am looking to get back into this lovely hobby now that life has settled down and I have been in my new home for the last 18 months.
I am looking to buy a complete set-up for a heavily planted community tank (previous have only done a 350 litre low tech with old T8 bulbs and no C02 a Fluval Edge Betta and a small puffer tank) so have a lot of questions etc that I am needing some help with answering but for now it's the hardware.
I have a maximum space of 2m footprint to place the tank in but this would be massive for the room so am looking to get something anywhere between 1.2m to 1.5m in length. depth between 0.5m to 0.6m (to maximise aquascape options) and height isn't an issue. This would give me between 250 & 400 litre depending on exact tank selected.
Due to the cost and setup I will be looking to do this via finance so will have to all be from one shop for the larger parts of this build (tank, lights, filter, C02 kit) so this will limit my build a little. Currently been looking through the Charterhouse Aquatics site as they seem to have a great tank selection but once that is made up I can check other online stores.
Aquarium Tank & Stand
With this in mind I have been looking at the Eheim Proxima Plus 325. It is open topped and comes with the LED lights right from the get go. My only thought here though is I could buy the normal Eheim Proxima 325 and spend what monies I save on getting some lights that would be able to day/night cycle (it's about £400 cheaper but the actual tank and stand are the same) and I would have a lid and T5 light unit spare for future. Thoughts on this?
Lighting (assuming not with tank)
If I did go down the LED lights being separate, what options are there? I don't mind bar or tile systems as long as they are ceiling hung or can be mounted to a floor stand. I only want to go this route if I can get something that has a day/night cycle available.
Filter
Filter wise I was originally going to go for an Eheim Pro III thermal 2180 as I have had a Pro II but I don't like the three tube set-up they have taken with them. No point having a lovely rimless tank and then hundreds of tubes visible. So with that I am pretty set on trying out the Fluval G6 filter. I want to pair this up with some stainless steel inlet/outlet so any recommendations there?
Heater
Assuming no one persuades me to buy the Eheim 2180 instead of the G6 what heater would you all recommend. I really wanted to try the Hydor external but it seems to have had a few rough years with issues including one that I read shot to 42 degree and killed all the fish!! But someone stated that they have sorted them and are OK now? Again want to try and keep the tank minimal.
C02
I have no idea about this, I was looking at the ADA kit but I don't know how it works, do I need a bigger bottle for the larger tank? Do I get all the parts and just buy a tank local (what tank do I need?) any help on this would be greatly appreciated. This is the sort of thing I wish I knew someone local with a setup so I could either see theirs or ask them to come help when the time arises.
UV
There is so much info on this and it has all got confusing. The biggest report I get is although it is not a prevention measure for algae but a band-aid it does generally keep the water clearer so are they worth the cost for that and is there a preferred brand. Again I know Eheim but they appear low wattage compared to most the others considering their size?
Powerhead
In regards to this, I had one even on my low tech as I felt the flow was always low from the filter. This appears to only be more critical and the more the better pretty much. With that in mind I was looking at the Hydor koralia gen 3 9000. Although that would be roughly 20x water movement so would the gen 3 5000 be a better option really and not quite such overkill?
Substrate
I know this is really not hardware but it is key to going with everything. With the above and the premise that I am going to try and do a heavily planted tank of some sort I have read that ADA Aquasoil is spot on, I can put it in, fully plant up and leave it to almost cycle itself for 3 weeks or so due to the Ammonia release creating a fishless cycle and the plants helping the filtration (info from thegreenmachine & UKAPS forum). Do I need to mix anything with this, do I need a base layer or topping layer with Aquasoil?
I think that covers where I am at really but just a quick breakdown of current thoughts on hardware then for a reminder if you have made it this far and now can't remember what was said first as I ramble though ten thousand thoughts.
Aquarium - Eheim Proxima Plus 325
Lighting - With tank (unless otherwise as above)
Filter - Fluval G6 or Eheim 2180 thermal
Inlet/Outlet - Stainless Steel
Heater - Hydor External (unless otherwise suggested)
C02 - ADA kit (or otherwise parts specified)
UV - Eheim/Different Brand/Not Needed (depending on feedback)
Powerhead - Hydor Koralia Gen 3 (5000 or 9000 depending on feedback)
Substrate - ADA Aquasoil (anything else needed? Other recommendations)
If you made it this far and read all the post then tank you and I hope I haven't bored you all. Look forward to catching up with you all in the near future.
Kind Regards,
Adam
Firstly, hello to all of you. I have been here before and had an account but couldn't remember details and no longer have access to old email so started a new one. Hope you have all been well as it has been a number of years now.
I am looking to get back into this lovely hobby now that life has settled down and I have been in my new home for the last 18 months.
I am looking to buy a complete set-up for a heavily planted community tank (previous have only done a 350 litre low tech with old T8 bulbs and no C02 a Fluval Edge Betta and a small puffer tank) so have a lot of questions etc that I am needing some help with answering but for now it's the hardware.
I have a maximum space of 2m footprint to place the tank in but this would be massive for the room so am looking to get something anywhere between 1.2m to 1.5m in length. depth between 0.5m to 0.6m (to maximise aquascape options) and height isn't an issue. This would give me between 250 & 400 litre depending on exact tank selected.
Due to the cost and setup I will be looking to do this via finance so will have to all be from one shop for the larger parts of this build (tank, lights, filter, C02 kit) so this will limit my build a little. Currently been looking through the Charterhouse Aquatics site as they seem to have a great tank selection but once that is made up I can check other online stores.
Aquarium Tank & Stand
With this in mind I have been looking at the Eheim Proxima Plus 325. It is open topped and comes with the LED lights right from the get go. My only thought here though is I could buy the normal Eheim Proxima 325 and spend what monies I save on getting some lights that would be able to day/night cycle (it's about £400 cheaper but the actual tank and stand are the same) and I would have a lid and T5 light unit spare for future. Thoughts on this?
Lighting (assuming not with tank)
If I did go down the LED lights being separate, what options are there? I don't mind bar or tile systems as long as they are ceiling hung or can be mounted to a floor stand. I only want to go this route if I can get something that has a day/night cycle available.
Filter
Filter wise I was originally going to go for an Eheim Pro III thermal 2180 as I have had a Pro II but I don't like the three tube set-up they have taken with them. No point having a lovely rimless tank and then hundreds of tubes visible. So with that I am pretty set on trying out the Fluval G6 filter. I want to pair this up with some stainless steel inlet/outlet so any recommendations there?
Heater
Assuming no one persuades me to buy the Eheim 2180 instead of the G6 what heater would you all recommend. I really wanted to try the Hydor external but it seems to have had a few rough years with issues including one that I read shot to 42 degree and killed all the fish!! But someone stated that they have sorted them and are OK now? Again want to try and keep the tank minimal.
C02
I have no idea about this, I was looking at the ADA kit but I don't know how it works, do I need a bigger bottle for the larger tank? Do I get all the parts and just buy a tank local (what tank do I need?) any help on this would be greatly appreciated. This is the sort of thing I wish I knew someone local with a setup so I could either see theirs or ask them to come help when the time arises.
UV
There is so much info on this and it has all got confusing. The biggest report I get is although it is not a prevention measure for algae but a band-aid it does generally keep the water clearer so are they worth the cost for that and is there a preferred brand. Again I know Eheim but they appear low wattage compared to most the others considering their size?
Powerhead
In regards to this, I had one even on my low tech as I felt the flow was always low from the filter. This appears to only be more critical and the more the better pretty much. With that in mind I was looking at the Hydor koralia gen 3 9000. Although that would be roughly 20x water movement so would the gen 3 5000 be a better option really and not quite such overkill?
Substrate
I know this is really not hardware but it is key to going with everything. With the above and the premise that I am going to try and do a heavily planted tank of some sort I have read that ADA Aquasoil is spot on, I can put it in, fully plant up and leave it to almost cycle itself for 3 weeks or so due to the Ammonia release creating a fishless cycle and the plants helping the filtration (info from thegreenmachine & UKAPS forum). Do I need to mix anything with this, do I need a base layer or topping layer with Aquasoil?
I think that covers where I am at really but just a quick breakdown of current thoughts on hardware then for a reminder if you have made it this far and now can't remember what was said first as I ramble though ten thousand thoughts.
Aquarium - Eheim Proxima Plus 325
Lighting - With tank (unless otherwise as above)
Filter - Fluval G6 or Eheim 2180 thermal
Inlet/Outlet - Stainless Steel
Heater - Hydor External (unless otherwise suggested)
C02 - ADA kit (or otherwise parts specified)
UV - Eheim/Different Brand/Not Needed (depending on feedback)
Powerhead - Hydor Koralia Gen 3 (5000 or 9000 depending on feedback)
Substrate - ADA Aquasoil (anything else needed? Other recommendations)
If you made it this far and read all the post then tank you and I hope I haven't bored you all. Look forward to catching up with you all in the near future.
Kind Regards,
Adam
