Plants And Lights Needs

[Sam2105]

I bought a used tank with stand, hood and light fixture, aquarium dimensions are 36" X 12" X 18" which is I believe is a 33 Gallon tank. 

I get exited and the next day I went to petsmart and I get two amazon swords, one water sprite,one flame moss and a red and green plant with short leaves .I know made a mistake because I didn't read the plants requirements before I bought them. the guy at petsmart also recommended to buy some chemicals tablets for plants which I believe they are fertilizers ( I read the instructions on the bag and it says to put one tablet for each 15 cm radius ). my light fixture is 36" but the light fluorescent tube itself is 23.5" long. the lamp wattage is 17 Watt and I can't install more than one light tube in the hood. so basically myhttp/www.fishlore.com/fishdictionary/w.htm#WPG is 17/33 = ~0.5 WPG.
After doing some research I found out that the http/www.fishlore.com/fishforum/aquarium-plant-profiles/119471-amazon-swords.html and the water sprite needs more than 2 WPG.
My questions:
1) Can i keep those plants without CO2 system ( I have no idea about CO2 and how it works)
2) Is my light enough to grow those plants (except the flame moss which I believe will do well with the current light)
3) if I have to upgrade my light, can I find a fluorescent tube lamp that is 30, 60 or 90 Watt without changing the whole hood.

 

[Byron]

We can easily get you going with the light fixture you have, with a good tube.  Before getting to that, I'll offer a general blurb on light intensity and plants.
 
With all the different types of lighting options today, it is not possible to use any sort of watts per gallon guide.  Watts is not a measurement of light intensity, but merely the measurement of how much energy (electricity) a tube or bulb uses to produce its light.  Back in the days when we all used basic fluorescent T12 tubes, this was not a bad guide, but those tubes were less intense light than even the modern equivalent which is T8.  [The "T" refers to the tube diameter in eighths of an inch, so T12 is 12/8, and T8 is 8/8 or 1 inch, much narrower; for your fixture you want only T8 tubes.  Another, T5, will not fit and is a very different tube.]  I have a 33g tank of the same dimensions (one of my seven at present) and it has a 30-inch tube fixture which gives me a bit more light than your 24-inch; I have this sized tube over my 29g.  Fluorescent tubes in T8 come in one wattage for the tube length, so unfortunately we cannot get more intense tubes (high wattage) in a 24-inch, or 30-inch.  Now, here is where watts would indicate more intensity, but only when dealing with the exact same type of tube (the Life-Glo) in different sizes.  My 30-inch Life-Glo is 25 watts, while my 24-inch is 20w; but I can only use what fits the fixture.
 
Retaining the present fixture can work, but there is really only one tube I would get for this, and that is the Hagen Life-Glo.  I use this on both of my single-tube tanks.  It is more expensive, but it does produce considerably more intense light for the size.  It should be replaced every 12-15 months.  As fluorescent tubes burn, they lose intensity, and it is basically gradual, but I have found that after 12 months I begin to see differences in plant growth, and sometimes algae increases, which are signs the light has weakened.
 
To your plants.  The mosses should be fine.  Amazon swords (the "common" green-leaf plant) will manage.  I would only have one or two, no more; first, they get large (ironically, the lower light will actually make them grow a bit larger in height), but second, they are heavy feeders but adding too much in the way of nutrients without stronger light can cause other issues that I won't go into now.  The Wisteria will almost certainly not last too long, though you might try it floating.  Floating plants are appreciated by many fish, and they do restrict the light further of course, but as long as you keep it in check and assuming it manages, this could work very well.
 
There are some other plants that would work here too.  The pygmy chain sword is one; though moderate lighting, I have it doing well in both these tanks.  Java Fern is a low-light plant that attaches to chunks of wood or rock and is useful for corners to hide filter tubes and heaters.  Anubias is another low-light plant that attaches to wood or rock.
 
None of these need CO2 diffusion.  And in any case, without brighter light, and much brighter, CO2 would not improve the plants but only lead to algae.  The light and nutrients must be relatively balanced for the plant species, otherwise algae is ever ready to increase.  As for other fertilizers, the substrate tabs are OK, but I would not use them indiscriminately but only next to specific plants.  Here, the large swords would benefit, one tab next to each plant.  Which brand did you get?
 
I would however suggest a complete liquid fertilizer; I use Seachem's Flourish Comprehensive Supplement, and another almost identical is Brightwell Aquatics' FlorinMulti.  You use very little of either, once a week after the water change.  Another source of nutrients is the water change, which replenishes the "hard" minerals; do you know the GH (general hardness) of your tap water?  This you should be able to ascertain from the municipal water authority.  Swords in particular need these minerals for cell structure, and sometimes the level in the liquid fertilizers is not adequate if the tap water is very soft.
 
This should get you started.  Just to show you what is achievable, I am attaching photos of some of the aquascapes I have had in my 33g over the last seven years.  I have changed this around a bit over time, but all of these were left for at least a year and most a bit over, so the plants did manage fine with the light and nutrients.
 
Byron.

 

[Sam2105]

Thank you very much byron for the useful advices you posted. I will change my light tube to Hagen Life-Glo as you recommended. by the way where can I find this brand of tubes? PetSmart, Wallmart, HomeDepot? Regarding the fertilizing tab the brand is SEACHEM flourish tabs. I will search in PetSmart for the liquid fertilizer. I am not sure about my GH, although I have a water test kit. I should do more frequent water change since i started this as a new aquarium lately.

 

[Byron]

Thank you very much byron for the useful advices you posted. I will change my light tube to Hagen Life-Glo as you recommended. by the way where can I find this brand of tubes? PetSmart, Wallmart, HomeDepot? Regarding the fertilizing tab the brand is SEACHEM flourish tabs. I will search in PetSmart for the liquid fertilizer. I am not sure about my GH, although I have a water test kit. I should do more frequent water change since i started this as a new aquarium lately.

 
Life-Glo, like the other tubes in this series, are intended for aquariums so fish stores are probably the only outlet, other than online.  As you are in Canada (as I am), I have seen this series in Petland (though very expensive), and a couple of local independent stores.  T8 (which is what you need) is becoming less readily available than T5 and these tubes are available in both, so make sure it is the T8.
 
Flourish Tabs are OK, I use these too.  One next to the very large plants is all you need, replaced every three months.  I'm not sure if PetSmart carries the Seachem Flourish line, this is a store I very rarely enter.  Online will almost certainly be less expensive.
 
Check the GH (and KH) on your municipal water authority's website.  You can buy a test kit, but unless one is altering water chemistry you may never use it but the once.  GH and KH will stay close to the tap water unless you specifically target the hardness somehow.
 
Water changes should be weekly, around half the tank volume.
 
Byron.

 

[Sam2105]

By the way below are my water test results:
PH: 9
Nitrite: <0.3 Mg/L
Ammonia:0 Mg/L
GH: 9
KH: 4

 

[Byron]

By the way below are my water test results:
PH: 9
Nitrite: <0.3 Mg/L
Ammonia:0 Mg/L
GH: 9
KH: 4

 
There should be no issue for your plants with these numbers.

 

[daizeUK]

By the way below are my water test results:
PH: 9

 
Er, wow.  Are you sure that's correct?  I'm not sure there are any fish that would be happy in pH 9 water, short of mbuna maybe.
 
Do you have any rocks, shells or similar features in your tank which could be raising the pH to such a high level?
 
What is the pH of your tap water (after letting it sit in a glass for 24 hours)?

 

[Sam2105]

Yeah Daize I tested the water and it seems like my PH is 9. Yes I do have some rocks in the tank. that was a good idea, I'll test the tap water to see if the rocks are raising the PH. I have 6 Zebra Danios, 1 Clown Loach, 1 Pleco, 1 Neon Tetra, 3 Guppies and they seem fine. Do you think they won't tolerate such PH level?

 

[eaglesaquarium]

The guppies would be the best in that water, but even they top out at a pH of about 7.5-8.0.  
 
Plecos, loaches and tetras all come from low pH acidic water... so, they will be 'fine' for a while but they are not best quite in water at that pH for a long period time.
 
As Daize suggests, I'd look to see if there's something in the tank raising the pH as that is abnormally high.   
 
Leave the tap water to sit in a container for 24 hours to gas off anything that might impact the pH (like CO2, for example).

 

[Byron]

I was thinking plants previously, but daize and JD have raised significant issues for the fish side.
 
The pH is high and the suggested testing should confirm things more reliably.  The GH is the more important measurement and assuming "9" is measured as dGH (rather than ppm) suggests moderately hard water.  Another assumption is that these readings are all of the aquarium water.  You should ascertain the values for the source water (presumably tap water) on its own so you know what you have to work with.  If something like the rocks in the tank is raising the pH, the GH (and KH) may be rising similarly from the source water levels.  You should be able to ascertain the GH and KH of your tap water by checking the online site of your municipal water authority.
 
Another concern on the fish mentioned.  The clown loach must have a group, at least five, but your 33g tank is much too small for this.  Like all the Botine loaches, this species is very social, and individual fish usually do not last but succumb to health issues related to the loneliness.  Attaining 8-12 inches means at least a six-foot tank, so I would seriously consider re-homing the loach.
 
Tetra are also shoaling fish requiring a group, no less than six but more is always better, but we can delve more into this when we have the parameters confirmed.
 
Byron.