equipment for planted tank

cutechic

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ok, so i've decided on taking out the plastic plants in my 5 gallon, and adding live ones. i've made a list of things people have told me i need:

* timer for lighting $8
* flourite $20
* plant plug/ peat plates $4-$9
* driftwood $8
* carbon dioxide $25
* co2 reactor $40-$160
* fertilizer $11
* plant pots $5
TOTAL: $185 CAD

have i forgotten anything?
 
imo all you really need is a light my plants seem to do quite well with just the light and for a 5 gallon perhaps you would want some fish or an airator of some kind the rest i would add if i was looking after a plant i considered irriplaceable. due to the average cost of plants being low and the fact that they last a year or so at minumum. hmm i dunno i hope im not treading on any toes here but if i where you id just give the plants a go on there own first see if you like em. the fish will like em im shure.
 
You don't need to spend that amount of money on a 5 gallon tank i would personally spend it on a bigger tank, but if you don't have the room then i would go for good lighting, API Laterite Gravel additive, and that's about it. I have a 5 Gallon tank and that's what i am using in mine. Plants are doing just fine.
 
well, i just really want the plants to look good, and i thought all these things were necessary to have a clear-water aquarium, especially since i've never kept plants before

so i dont need the co2 or the co2 injector? i thought that was the most important part of plant-keeping, after lighting and substrate.

i currently have medium-sized gravel. at my lfs, they said that i should not mix gravel with either flourite or laterite, i should take out the gravel and add flourite or laterite.

i have 15 watts of lighting (3 watts per gallon) so lighting is not a problem
 
well its up to you allot of people say add co2 injection as they have had good results with it but i personally dont think it will make a difference in a tank of that size as plants ive had in similar tanks have done fantastic imo on just the things ive mentioned but if you do get all that stufdf i spose it would be likle an investment for the future perhaps.
 
yes, i guess so. but i'd rather not spend all that money if i dont have to. i thought those things were required, but i think i'll just get the plants and substrate, and some fertilizer, and see how the plants grow. i can always get the co2 and the co2 injector later
 
why dont you get a 10 gallon with a flourescent light and thats basically all you need.....And thats still less than your shopping list you got going :D Plus you can fit a lot more plant in a 10 gallon. gl wiht your decision though
 
why dont you get a 10 gallon with a flourescent light and thats basically all you need.....And thats still less than your shopping list you got going :D Plus you can fit a lot more plant in a 10 gallon. gl wiht your decision though

My plants were fine until I got a blue lobster and he gobbled them up :D
 
You can make a CO2 injector system out of a pop bottle. I recently read instructions on how to do it. I'll see if i can track it down. Here you go. CO2 Injector DIY HTH
 
thats a really helpful website, impur. the one thing im uncertain about is that the write said he has high pH flucuations, and he is a far more experienced hobbiest than i am. i dont want to make a mistake that will end up killing my fish :unsure:
 
Id guess thats due to the regulation of the CO2 - i havent looked at the link but CO2 effects pH fo if not regulated you will get fluctuations. It has to be released in a measured regular way - hense the one bubbke per hour etc or many systems. Also CO2 will effect O2 levels so you have to balance the needs of the fish with the needs of the plants.
regards,
C
 
ohh ok. it sounds sort of confusing to me right now, but i will probably understand it better when i actually set up the co2 system. does the diy injector work just as well (or almost as well) as the expensive ones available at the fish store?
 
There are many things to take into consideration. Some "harder to grow" plants "need" CO2 injection, and some don't. Maybe a list of the plants you intend to place in the tank would help.

As a general rule, darker green and faster growing plants don't "need" CO2. Red and brighter green plants benefit from CO2 injection.

Also, you also need to consider the gas exchange of the water. A tank with a larger surface area is less likely to need CO2 supplementation. A taller or "show" tank is more likely to need supplementation, because there is less surface area to allow oxygen/CO2 exchange.

Basically, I would get good lighting, a good substrate, and give it a while before trying CO2 injection. CO2 is used by plants during the day. But, at night, the plants use oxygen (in respiration) to produce the food and other elements necessary to get them through the night. So, excess CO2 in the water at night, soften the water. Then, during the day, the CO2 is used by the plants, returning the water to its true pH. This is the cause of the pH fluxulation. This, with a moderate-low level of injection/supplementation, will only make a small difference in pH tolerable by most fish. If keeping sensative fish or needing large amounts of CO2 injection, I would suggest a "liquid CO2" addative. This can be added daily in the AM, thus the CO2 will be used up by lights out. In a larger tank, say 50+ gallons, you can use electric reactors, but aren't reasonable for small aquariums.
 
Cryptocoryne beckettii or Cryptocoryne wendtii as foreground plants, and Anubias barteri var. nana attached to driftwood as the centerpiece of the aquarium. i'd also like to get some background plants, but i haven't found any suitable for my tank yet. any suggestions?

*marineland hex 5 system: L=16 cm W=16 cm H=21 cm
* lighting: 10 W flourescent daylight
* substrate: medium sized gravel
* fertilizer: slow release fertilizer (terrapur: gets put in same hole in gravel that plants go in)
* wet/dry filter w/ biowheel
* 2 white clouds and 1 black neon

i'm also going to get a liquid fertilizer

the liquid co2 you mentioned. . . i just add that directly into the water, or do i make a diy co2 injector?
 

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