New artificial plants

[TheFishMan2021]

Hi! I just got some new artificial plants on amazon and they arrived today. I want to clean/sterilize them properly before I put them in the tank but I don't know where to start. Do any of you guys have a good method that works well? @Colin_T @Essjay @Fishmanic @WhistlingBadger I'm tagging you because I know you're very knowledgeable in the hobby.

Thanks,
TheFishMan2021

 

[Colin_T]

Fake plants that are new can be rinsed under tap water and put in the tank. There is no need to sterilise them if they are new. Just wash the dust off them and put them in the tank.

 

[CaptainBarnicles]

Or you could chuck them out and buy real ones

 

[ThatFishGirl6231]

Or you could chuck them out and buy real ones

i think that’s a great idea!! i second that

 

[TheFishMan2021]

Yes that's very funny...BUT I have had issues with keeping live plants alive so I'm simplifying things .

 

[Myraan]

try hygrophila and limnophila - those buggers grow like weeds. And they close up like daisys at night which can give u a clue if ur photperiod is too long or short

 

[TheFishMan2021]

Sounds nice but I just dropped like $40 on a lot of plants so I'm gonna stick with those for now....thanks for the suggestion though .

 

[Colin_T]

Yes that's very funny...BUT I have had issues with keeping live plants alive so I'm simplifying things .

What sort plants did you try?
What sort of light unit is above the tank?
How long is the light on for?
Did you add any aquarium plant fertiliser?
What did the plants look like when dying?

 

[TheFishMan2021]

What sort plants did you try?
What sort of light unit is above the tank?
How long is the light on for?
Did you add any aquarium plant fertiliser?
What did the plants look like when dying?

I don't know what many of them were called because I bought them at my lfs and they didn't have labels...now I know how silly that was...but beginner mistakes, you know. I have a white LED light because the tank I bought doesn't have the option of a light that's better for plants. I bought substrate with fertilizer added so that was taken care of. The light used to be on for 8-10 hours a day, but now I keep it on for 4 hours because that solved my really bad algae problem. The plants went brown and then sort of started to decompose and at that point I pulled them out. I'm sticking with the fake plants for now because my tanks is just not the best for live plants. Thanks for all of your help

Edit: here are some pictures of my tank and the plants I'm putting in.
My tank:

A close-up of my (almost) dead plants...

Yes, my heater broke yesterday....I'm going to fix it when i put in the plants tomorrow

And the plants I ordered...

After I add all of the plants and clean my tank really well I'll post some more pics. Thanks for your help guys

 

[ThatFishGirl6231]

do you still have those almost dead plants? i suggest getting Flourish Root Tabs if you don’t have them already. They are great!

 

[Colin_T]

The live plants include
Cabomba (short feathery plant). It seems to have growth on top but either does well or doesn't.

The big strappy leaf plant looks like a crinum species. They love nutrients and the plant looks good apart form the algae on the leaves.

The plant with small round leaves and is covered in algae, looks like baby tears, which sometimes does ok but does better in the garden.

------------------
The algae is probably from an imbalance in nutrients and light. Shrimp might help pick some off as would small algae eating catfish. More plants might help or less light or less nutrients.

 

[TheFishMan2021]

Update: Here's a picture of the tank now that I put the stuff in...I'm pretty happy with it, but what do you think?

 

[Colin_T]

Update: Here's a picture of the tank now that I put the stuff in...I'm pretty happy with it, but what do you think?

needs a picture on the back but apart from that it looks nice.

 

[TheFishMan2021]

needs a picture on the back but apart from that it looks nice.

Yes, I'm going to get one pretty soon. I'm probably gonna get a blue one. They're pretty cheap at my lfs so I'll get one next time I'm there.