Plants in Community Tank

[Missy]

I just purchsed a 55 gal for my new house. I'm slowly starting to set it up and plan to use Arogonite sand (if I can figure out where to but it). I know I don't have the best lighting for plants, ( i only have what the tank came with, (2 17watts I think) but I can't afford to upgrade. Do you think I can keep some plants alive? I would really like a natural looking aquarium and like live plants better for the fish. Should I add a little laterite to the bottom layer of sand? Also, I will set a timer for the lights to be on 12 hrs per day. Any other suggestions would be really appreciated. I'm trying not to complicate things to much as this is my first large tank.

 

[Wilsta]

I found this site very useful it tells you what plants you should get for your aquarium

http/www.aquazoo.co.uk/page.cfm/Type=Plants

 

[revengeishere]

I just purchsed a 55 gal for my new house. I'm slowly starting to set it up and plan to use Arogonite sand (if I can figure out where to but it). I know I don't have the best lighting for plants, ( i only have what the tank came with, (2 17watts I think) but I can't afford to upgrade. Do you think I can keep some plants alive? I would really like a natural looking aquarium and like live plants better for the fish. Should I add a little laterite to the bottom layer of sand? Also, I will set a timer for the lights to be on 12 hrs per day. Any other suggestions would be really appreciated. I'm trying not to complicate things to much as this is my first large tank.

First, try searching online fore a cheap planted tank. Actually, here is a link:
http/www.thekrib.com/Plants/kelly-intro.html

You can get light fixtures called shop lite at home depot, for cheap, and get one(or two)that can fit 4 flourescent bulbs.

Buy four bulbs with the names Daylight, Super Daylight. These bulbs are as effective/the same as the more expensive specialty models, but cheper!(5-10 dollars for the "generic" compared to up to 30 for the specialty).

For the substrate, its up to you, soil, laterite, flourite. Caution with soil, dont get the ones with organic stuff in it, and always top it off with gravel.

For co2, try the DIY method.

Thats pretty much it. Try to also plant heavilly in the beggining. About fertilizing, read more about it, but you should not need this until after your tank has somewhat matuired.

Thats the brif summary, but please do read more.
Revenge

 

[Bol]

Missy,

A standard 55 gallon tank is 48" long, and you say you have the lights that came with it. Are they two short bulbs, put in one line to stretch the length of the tank, or are they two full-length bulbs placed next to each other?

'Standard' flourescent bulbs seem to be rated at 10W/foot. So, if you have two half-length bulbs, you probably have 2x20W=40W of total lighting. If you have twin full-length strips, you would have 80W of lighting.

If you have 40W, that may be tough (or not, seems peoples' results vary). If it's 80W, you should have decent luck with low-light plants.

I can't comment on substrates, CO2, 'high-level' lighting, etc., because I also don't feel that I can justify the expense for them (right now ). Here's what I have going, for info:

Right now, I've got a 46 gallon tank, with 30W of (10000K, 'Aqua-Gro') light. Regular gravel as a substrate. I use liquid ferts occasionally (Flourish and Flourish Excel -- a four-to-six month supply cost me $18 online). The plants that do well there are Java fern, Java moss, crypt wendtii, hygrophilia, and Amazon sword. Also, surprisingly, I have some Cabomba (sp?) that's doing almost too well, even though everything I read says they need more light. I also have a few species of Anubias (barteri, nana, etc.) that I'd say is doing well enough -- some leaves yellow and die, but I get many more new leaves to offset them. A couple of moss balls that seem ok, but they never change, so who knows . I also have some anarcharis (sp?) which grows well, but my gouramis and angels seem to like to eat it.


In short, personally I think you could, with a little research, get pleasant results without the expense of extra hardware. Of course, the results would almost certainly be better with the extra equipment, but that's a personal decision.

 

[Lateral Line]

>>> and plan to use Arogonite sand

That rang some pretty serious alarm bells with me - possibly wrongly - but...

Is Arogonite some kind of brand or what?

The reason I ask is that there is a mineral ArAgonite, (with an A), which is the high temperature form of Calcite, i.e. almost pure CaCO3. Unless you are keeping certain rifts - a sand made from aragonite would be COMPLETELY inappropriate in a fresh water tank. Fine in a marine set up.

Just a heads up in case you were searching for something that you really didn't want anyway!!!

 

[Rose]

Sand isn't the best thing to use for a planted aquarium. Mainly because the sand will compress and has been known to crush the roots of plants there by killing the plants and you not know why. If I were you I would use Florite or Laterite for the tank instead of sand. I have used both of these and I get better results fromt he Florite. However it's way more spendy than the Laterite. Laterite is a bit messier than the Florite if you disterb the gravel while cleaning it. Laterite also need a layer of gravel to go on top of it so it doesn't keep the water red. Florite does not need gravel to go on top of it.

Rose

 

[Lateral Line]

>>> Sand isn't the best thing to use for a planted aquarium

I disagree totally.

In my experience, plants grow better in a more natural substrate, which in all but a few unusual cases, is a silty sandy substrate. I have collected tropical plants on 3 continents in all but one case, from localities with a thickly organic muddy silty sand.

It is certainly true that in an aquarium, certain types of sand pack down to hard for maintenance purposes - building sand, silver sand etc., but I use swimming pool filter sand - and would never use anything else now for a planted tank. Even the really buoyant plants stay rooted in a close substrate.