eolith Posted January 17, 2022 Share Posted January 17, 2022 I'm still relatively new to planted aquarium keeping. I have a low tech 10 gallon that has been going reasonably well, so I just took the plunge on setting up a 29 gallon. I ordered a "combo pack" of plants that turned out to be way more plants than I was expecting. I'm not totally sure that they'll be very compatible. There's everything from low-light plants (java, crypt, anubias) to the higher-light plants (dwarf baby tears, pearl weed, vallisneria). I tried to place the plants somewhat strategically, but may not have been entirely successful. Have I gotten myself into trouble? I have several more questions for anyone who has the time and willingness to share their experience and thoughts. Feel free to pick and choose topics you have interest in: I expect that most of the plants will melt back and take a while to really begin growing. Should I limit the lighting and fertilizer during this time? Any thoughts on what might be a good initial baseline for lighting/fertilizer? (There are not any fish residents just yet.) The current light is just an Aqueon OptiBright LED that the tank came with. I probably need something a bit better for the plants -- right? I haven't taken the plunge into CO2 just yet... should I? If so, any good resources for a beginner? Any tips on staying ahead of algae? I've included a photo. The water is still a bit hazy from the initial fill and planting. Feel free to offer critique. 6 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Patrick_G Posted January 17, 2022 Share Posted January 17, 2022 It looks pretty good to me. I think many folks make the mistake of using to few plants. It seems like in a new tank the more plant mass the better. 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Randall from Texas Posted January 17, 2022 Share Posted January 17, 2022 Looks great! Set the lights on a timer if they're not already. Start at about 8 hours and see what you get. What fertilizers are you planning on using? 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Patrick_G Posted January 17, 2022 Share Posted January 17, 2022 I wouldn’t rush out to get a different light or co2 unless you really want to. Most of those plants will grow with lower light. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GameCzar Posted January 17, 2022 Share Posted January 17, 2022 I didn't see anything you listed that would need really high light. Looks like fluval stratum which is incredibly good (in my experience) for growing plants. Looks like you did a good job with your combo pack! 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Levi_Aquatics Posted January 17, 2022 Share Posted January 17, 2022 I wouldn't go with c02 right off the bat. Those plants look happy right now and I would wait to see how they do. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lefty o Posted January 17, 2022 Share Posted January 17, 2022 6-7 hours a day light to start with, and i would fertilize day 1. since you have no fish, there's no fish poop to provide nutrients for the plants. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PedroPete Posted January 17, 2022 Share Posted January 17, 2022 Agreed with all the other advice above - and I recommend changing water , at least 10% but up to 60% every few days… for the first two weeks. That can help prevent algae, too. Nerites and amano shrimp can help stay on top of algae, too. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JoeQ Posted January 17, 2022 Share Posted January 17, 2022 I would not run out and buy a co2 system. That will only give you more variables to fine tune. At this point I would simply watch the tank and it will tell you what it needs. Particularly the plants, you're actually ahead of the game starting with a lot of plants. Watch if they are opening and closing in sync with your lighting schedule, if they are you are on the right track. Watch for nutritional deficiencys, if the plants look good, you are on the right track. If you see algea, consider getting a clean up crew (according to the type of algea) before making other adjustments. Overall all I think another thing you should do at this point is know your water (from the tap, after aerated for 24h, and in your tank), watch the tank and have most importantly have patience, nature will tell you what it needs. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mmiller2001 Posted January 17, 2022 Share Posted January 17, 2022 (edited) On 1/16/2022 at 7:47 PM, eolith said: I'm still relatively new to planted aquarium keeping. I have a low tech 10 gallon that has been going reasonably well, so I just took the plunge on setting up a 29 gallon. I ordered a "combo pack" of plants that turned out to be way more plants than I was expecting. I'm not totally sure that they'll be very compatible. There's everything from low-light plants (java, crypt, anubias) to the higher-light plants (dwarf baby tears, pearl weed, vallisneria). I tried to place the plants somewhat strategically, but may not have been entirely successful. Have I gotten myself into trouble? I have several more questions for anyone who has the time and willingness to share their experience and thoughts. Feel free to pick and choose topics you have interest in: I expect that most of the plants will melt back and take a while to really begin growing. Should I limit the lighting and fertilizer during this time? Any thoughts on what might be a good initial baseline for lighting/fertilizer? (There are not any fish residents just yet.) The current light is just an Aqueon OptiBright LED that the tank came with. I probably need something a bit better for the plants -- right? I haven't taken the plunge into CO2 just yet... should I? If so, any good resources for a beginner? Any tips on staying ahead of algae? I've included a photo. The water is still a bit hazy from the initial fill and planting. Feel free to offer critique. I would say get more plants . At a minimum, 70% planted is the least you want to have. You are almost there! Why? Because that will give you the least problems as the tank matures. You should be dosing fertilizers, but what is your substrate? And I would dose lightly and ramp up as they start responding. Depending on how strong the light is, you may want to limit the intensity. At a minimum, limit duration to no more than 8 hours. If you see algae (you will get some regardless) either lower intensity or reduce duration in hour increments but no less than 6 hours. IMO, 6 hours is too few. I would rather go 8 hours with less intensity. The Baby Tears is going to be tough, that's more of a CO2 plant. Give the Pearl Weed time and it will do well eventually. If you want to grow plants a bit better than a stock light can do, and want to have a lush planted tank, I would look into upgrading the light. That said, you get what you pay for when it comes to lighting. Just don't get fooled by fancy apps. Message me if you want my opinion on lighting. I 100% encourage you to plunge into CO2, there is no better upgrade for a planted tank. Nothing compares and it's not difficult. It just takes some reading and desire to put a bit more effort and understanding into it. Here is a great resource on beginner CO2 CO2 101. Also, a good CO2 system probably costs 1/4 to 1/2 of what your cell phone cost! Your single best defense against algae is water changes. You want to keep organics as low as possible while you begin cycling and maturing your tank. I would also lightly gravel vacuum your substrate with each water change. I started a competition tank and man did I have a huge GDA outbreak, I mean it was snowing Green Dust Algae. I started 90% water changes 3 times a week and now I believe I have won this battle quicker than I should have. Water changes, water changes, water changes! Make sure your source water is ammonia free. I would test it for all 3 so you know your baseline parameters for your water source. On a side note, if that substrate is an aquasoil, you must do water changes to control the ammonia spike that's coming. Okay, I'm too long winded now. Your tank looks really good, you are off to a great start! Keep at it. Dosing wise, if using an Aquasoil, I would dose 7-12ppm NO3, 1-4ppmPO4, 10-25ppmK and .2Fe(proxy) with 50% water changes on day 7 of each week and (personally) I would do a 50% change mid week too. Edited January 17, 2022 by Mmiller2001 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
anewbie Posted January 17, 2022 Share Posted January 17, 2022 Be careful about planting too many plants are you may end up with: or worse neither of these tanks use co2.... so you definitely do not need co2 to be overrun with plants.... but you do need patience.... 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eolith Posted January 17, 2022 Author Share Posted January 17, 2022 Thank you everyone for the tips (and reassurance that I'm not too far off track just yet). 😅 A little more info for those who asked: I'm planning to use the Aquarium Co-Op Easy Green since it is what I have on hand. The substrate is ADA Amazonia Ver.2 My tap water does not have ammonia or nitrates and PH is around 7.4. I tested this new aquarium just now and the PH is especially low (6) -- should I be worried about this? Or just do some water changes and hope that PH will eventually stay closer to 7? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JoeQ Posted January 17, 2022 Share Posted January 17, 2022 (edited) Good on the ph, but its also especially helpful to know your kh which is your ph shield so to speak. I am seeing a lot of wood in that tank which will eat at that shield quickly. And if your tap water doesn't have a good amount of kh in it, you will be facing a ph crash eventually if you aren't buffering. Edit: a tank ph of 6 is pretty low, considering that your tap is 7.4, that is from all of the wood in the tank. Remove some and you should see it staying relatively close to your tap water. Btw the quick aquarium coop multi test strips are a god send! Edited January 17, 2022 by JoeQ Misread tank ph Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mmiller2001 Posted January 17, 2022 Share Posted January 17, 2022 (edited) The wood in your tank will have little to no effect on your water pH. Over a long period of time it may, but if you are consistent with your water changes, it will have no impact. However, your substrate choice is affecting your pH and is the sole reason it's a 6. Amazonia has a high CEC value and is pulling the carbonates out of the water. This is how the substrate "buffers" your water down to a 6 (along with other processes but the effect is the same). If you were to add carbonates to the water, you would have a temporary increase in pH, but several days later, your substrate will consume those carbonates and your pH would return to 6 or so. Now after some time, the substrate will reach a point of saturation and it will no longer consume carbonates at a high rate. You will just have to check, periodically, how this process is going. I would just choose fish that do well in, come from, soft water environments. That's a huge selection to choose from! So take your time when looking. You will have a nice ammonia spike shortly, that's just the nature of aquasoils. Keep up those water changes until it stabilizes. Focus on keeping those plants healthy. Don't worry about your pH, get your light and nutrients right! Plants love low KH and pH. The term pH crash is from yesteryear when people didn't have the same understanding we have today. FYI, my 75 gallon is at a 5.0pH and my 40 is at a 4.85pH and I run 0KH in both tanks. Edited January 17, 2022 by Mmiller2001 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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