New tank plant strategy

[DrDeath]

Asking for course correction before I get in too deep with a new tank. I am setting up a 40 breeder with a UGF covering about 80% of the bottom -- planning on using two pipes with airstones, although I could switch to powerheads if needed. The UGF will have a layer of landscape fabric to keep detritus in the substrate, which will be primarily gravel with some sand areas for corys. Going low-tech -- no CO2, with an Aquarium Co-op light. My eventual stocking plan is a herd of 6-8 corys and two schools of 10-15 tetras, probably one thinner like bloodfin or cardinal, and one thicc variety like diamond or serpae. Maybe a trio of otos.

My plan for starting the tank is to add some filter sqeezin's from my established 5g tank and start with stem plants or rhizomes like java fern, as it seems like it would take a while to build up enough substrate nutrients to support swords, bulbs, etc. I am guessing small, regular doses of fish food would help build and maintain the bacterial biome for a couple months to get things established before adding the first residents.

Does this make sense? I realize I could add root tabs to start root feeders, but I'm a little worried the UGF will end up spraying the nutrients all over the tank. 

 

[Mmiller2001]

Why use an underground filter? Yes, it will definitely pull the root tabs and spread unknown amounts of nutrients into the water column. A recipe for disaster.

Non of the plants you will likely grow are so called root feeders. As such, root tabs aren’t necessary. Just dose the water with controlled levels of nutrients.

[JoeQ]

I'm not exactly sure of the strategy? On my ugf tank I added some aqua soil to my eco complete, hopefully adding some level of CEC to the substrate and gaining the ability to absorb nutrients from the water colum.

Adding root tabs to the substrate in an ugf setup (IMO) will equate to adding time release fertilizer into the water colum at a expedited rate!

Edited Tuesday at 05:18 PM by JoeQ

[Pepere]

 

Here is a view of a 29 gallon tank I have set up with UGF plates and Black Diamond Blasting Sand (BDBS) as substrate with Safe T Sorb fired clay underneath. Just water column dosing for ferts.  Air risers are Aquarium Co Ops Easy Flow kits with air collars fitted to an adapter as they flow much more than stock air risers and airstones.   No root tabs…

 

I also have a Fluval 207 canister filter with an inline CO2 diffuser.

[DrDeath]

Gorgeous! And reassuring!

[Pepere]

The thought behind the Safe T Sorb in mesh bags under the BDBS is that it has a high Cation Exchange Capacity with the ability to adsorb nutrients from the water column being pulled down through the UGF plates and have them available for the roots of plants.

I don’t “know” that this bears out in practice, but I can say that plants do send roots down into that layer…