Tank Upgrade

[JustKia]

As hubby has agreed to upgrade our 125L to 240L I want to think about planting it up better - I've got quite a lot of plants in the current tank but it's all rather haphazard.
I love having sand substrate and so was thinking of putting some form of nutrient rich substrate underneath the sand for the plants - any suggestions? (preferably not too expensive and UK based)
I have a decent amount of long and twisted valis but would like something similar (ie long leaves) but broader to add in at the back of the tank (amazon sword?).
Any suggestions for some mid height plants? And for low height foreground plants?
I currently have baccopa monnieri, ludwigia repens, hygrophila difformis, Egeria densa, long and twisted vallisneria, nymphaea rubra, tiger lotus, anubius (nana?), java moss, marimo moss balls. I did have cabomba but it seemed to literally fall apart. I want to keep all of these and work with/add to them.
Is there some way that I could maybe cover the back wall of the tank, with say a moss of some sort, instead of putting a background on it?

I want to stay reasonably low tech, I think (IIRC) the tank comes with T8s - one of each 40watt PowerGlo & AquaGlo, it will have Fluval 305 and 405 external filters.
I will be adding the current stock from my sig as well as adding more small, peaceful, shoaling type fish and so would like to give them plenty of places to swim in and out of.

 

[aaronnorth]

you could use akadma
http/www.theplantedtank.co.uk/algae.htm

14L = £18 posted from kaizen bonsai. You will need around 28l of substrate.

or there is something like JBL aquabasis+
5L = £8 from zooplus. this needs capping with sand or gravel.

tropica clay substrate
5L = £18 from most stores, this again needs capping.

most echinodorous species have broad leaves, or you could try some larger cyrtocoryne species such as C. Balansae.

check the pinned thread for a list of plants, or try plant geek
http/www.plantgeek.net/plantguide.php

moss background would take a long time to fill out, or it will cost a lot in order to get a decent proportion covered on a 240l. But it would look good!

 

[JustKia]

Cheers Aaron, will take a look at those.

I've been thinking about creating a terraced effect - similar to below.
This tank would have one each of Fluval 305 & 405 external filters. Should I aim to put both filter intakes where the lowest terrace is or would it be OK to have the 305 intake just above the upper terrace (left on the pic) and the 405 at the lower terrace (right side of pic).

I would go with sand capping on the lower and upper terraces, small (roman?) gravel capping on the middle terrace.
Would using one of the plant substrates from Arron's post prevent pockets of anareobic bacs building up in the deeper substrates? Or should I keep the the plant substrate to an even layer and increase the depth of the capping substrates?

Not sure atm about what to use as retaining walls for the terraces. I've seen the jewel ones but I think they might be too deep - I was thinking of having each terrace ~1.5" deeper than the previous. Also they look solid and I want to do as much as I can to help prevent dead areas building up where possible. Maybe something like THIS plastic canvas stuff?

Oh and if you have more info on the moss background - I'd appreciate it. I'm not too fussed if it takes a while to grow over and my LFS has a pretty decent amount of java moss available most of the time, so I could get a reasonable start on it.

----------------------------------------

 

[aaronnorth]

This tank would have one each of Fluval 305 & 405 external filters. Should I aim to put both filter intakes where the lowest terrace is or would it be OK to have the 305 intake just above the upper terrace (left on the pic) and the 405 at the lower terrace (right side of pic).

anywhere will be fine. Position it so circulation is best as it can be

Would using one of the plant substrates from Arron's post prevent pockets of anareobic bacs building up in the deeper substrates? Or should I keep the the plant substrate to an even layer and increase the depth of the capping substrates?

I wouldnt worry about anerobic pockets forming. They are harmless, and in fact quite useful. They help to break down (de-nitrify) NO3 and convert it into nitrogen gas. And usually, it is Nitrogen bubbles in the substrate rather than H2S. If the bacteria in the substrate are aerobic then they can keep elements such as iron locked up in their oxide precippitates which are of little use to plants, and it also means that the substrate will more happily accept electrons, so therefore positive elements are attracted to the substrate and it brings K+ and Ca+ etc into the substrate.
Have a 2" thick planted substrate, then 1" capped substrate, this is just a minimum so you can have it higher.

here is a useful guide on a moss wall
http/www.fishforums.net/index.php?showto...mp;hl=moss+wall

However, i would reccomend not sandwiching the moss, but rather attach the moss with fishing line to the grid. This way, it doesnt take as long to cover the grid, and also, it looks better from the start

 

[JustKia]

Great info
Thanks Aaron, much appreciated.