meesheelly Posted February 6, 2007 Report Share Posted February 6, 2007 I have 2 4ft tanks and both are planted. However the plants are not how i would like them to be. I have also recently got annoyed and pulled out all the scrapy looking plants so they are pretty bare. Both are around 200L and both have a double lighthood with 2X30W of lights. I have Daltons aquatic mix under gravel in one and under propagating sand in the other. On is set up as an asian tank and the other an amazon with lots of swords (which are starting to look really sad). I would love to go all out and get a full Co2 system and MHs but in reality im a student and im poor. So what can i do that wont cost heaps but will help my plants. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fishboi Posted February 6, 2007 Report Share Posted February 6, 2007 looks like u need more lights which there is not really a cheaper way to go about it unless u can wire ur own. wouldn't bother with much else like fertilizer.....etc as with out a good light source ur just going to get algae problems with those. some basics to help ur amazons are remove all damaged leaves [yellow or torn with brown patches] as amazon sword are incapable of repairing themselves. Snip off any non-white roots and snip the tips off any healthy roots. all these will help encourage new growth and avoid the "dieing off" process which is the plants own way of saving it self. when the swords get too damaged it triggers itself to die off and start over. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GZ_Loach Posted February 6, 2007 Report Share Posted February 6, 2007 DIY CO2 this is just a basic example: empty clean coke bottle cut a hole in the lid and push some long tubing through and silcone the edges so theres a secure seal unscrew the lid and chuck in some yeast and some warm sugar water, screw the cap back on then mix it by swirling/shaking the bottle. place the bottle somewhere and put the end of the tube in the water, wait 10-15m and if you dont see any bubbles then check the bottle for a leak or make sure the bottle is below the tank etc. i dont know if thats all of it but thats all i can remember Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
meesheelly Posted February 7, 2007 Author Report Share Posted February 7, 2007 ok so more lights. I thought that was a problem. Could i put higher wattage bulbs in the existing lights or do they need different fittings? does anyone know of anywhere where i can get lights for cheap? I know you can get tubes from mastertrade, do they do the whole fittings too? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SpidersWeb Posted February 7, 2007 Report Share Posted February 7, 2007 Cheapest aquarium type fittings I've found are from SwitchedOnGardner, just the normal AquaOne/BigBoy types. ~$120 for a double 4ft. I've got a 150L planted tank with 2 x 20W tubes, and its going great with or without CO2. My 200L tank has 5 x 36W tubes and is a pain in the bum with beard algae, so dont be in too much of a rush with lights Mastertrade etc will do full fittings too, but they'll be designed for roof mounting, so you'd need to wire them up yourself and they wouldn't look pretty. Oh and DIY CO2, I use a $35 Elite filter (200L/hr) as a diffuser, some air hose, some yeast, some sugar, some water, and a coke bottle. Getting the amount of yeast right is the hard bit, but it works well and will get the plants pearling in my 200L for under 50 bucks Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
meesheelly Posted February 7, 2007 Author Report Share Posted February 7, 2007 Also I think i maybe lacking nutrients coz my swords look like they are going rusty? Whats the cheapest way to go? Flourish or PMDD or someting else? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fishboi Posted February 7, 2007 Report Share Posted February 7, 2007 I've got a 150L planted tank with 2 x 20W tubes, and its going great with or without CO2. My 200L tank has 5 x 36W tubes and is a pain in the bum with beard algae, so dont be in too much of a rush with lights is ur 200L a high tank? i find T8 tubes dont penetrate very well anything deeper than around 40cm. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
meesheelly Posted February 7, 2007 Author Report Share Posted February 7, 2007 i think they are both 50cm. Im looking at some lights on trademe. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Rimbauer Posted February 7, 2007 Report Share Posted February 7, 2007 I updated my lights from Gro-lux tubes to 6500K energy saver fluorescents (Phillips 'Tornado' type) in a unit I built myself to fit under the hood. If you know a friendly sparkie I'd recommend this. I spent just under $70 to make it, which was cheaper than buying a new unit. Plus I hooked up a blue moonlight setup into it at the same time, for about $10! Sweet! After that I found CO2 was a problem, so I moved the spray bar so that the surface was very ruffled by the spray to increase the CO2 getting into the water. This was enough to get the plants pearling, but I eventually went to DIY CO2, as GZ_Loach describes. My plants haven't looked back, and the missus claims the tank looks much more appealing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joze Posted February 7, 2007 Report Share Posted February 7, 2007 I have a 6ft cool white light and a 4 ft 8500 kelvin going 24/7 over the tank, no CO2. Additives used are in this order. 1. wonder-gro Others can tell you as to the success of this. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GZ_Loach Posted February 7, 2007 Report Share Posted February 7, 2007 I have 2 4ft tanks and both are planted. However the plants are not how i would like them to be. I have also recently got annoyed and pulled out all the scrapy looking plants so they are pretty bare. Both are around 200L and both have a double lighthood with 2X30W of lights. I have Daltons aquatic mix under gravel in one and under propagating sand in the other. On is set up as an asian tank and the other an amazon with lots of swords (which are starting to look really sad). I would love to go all out and get a full Co2 system and MHs but in reality im a student and im poor. So what can i do that wont cost heaps but will help my plants. try removing the plants (except the delicate ones) and placing them in an tank (no fish) with gravel filter heater and wait a week or so, you should notice the plants looking alot healthier. i did this with some of my yellowy/brown plants that my convicts feasted on and there now a healthy green. must be the clean water Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
evilknieval69 Posted February 8, 2007 Report Share Posted February 8, 2007 I only have 2* 36W flouros over my 250L planted tank. I think that you need to buy some PMDD off someone. I think freshwest sells it and Luke* does. Also co2 will help yes... You think your poor!!! :lol: Im poor as and i still have a pressurized co2 setup 8) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alanmin4304 Posted February 8, 2007 Report Share Posted February 8, 2007 I have a tank of about the same size (1200 x 500mm high) with 2 x 30watt flouros. It has E. martii, red special and ozelot all with runners. It has CO2 injection because it contains fish and the lights are on 17 hours/day. Make sure the light tubes are replaced regularly and the lights are on a bit longer if your wattage is a bit low. Don't aerate the hell out of it and the fish will generate CO2 (aeration drives off CO2) And you will have a great system befitting a student budget. Cheers. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alanmin4304 Posted February 8, 2007 Report Share Posted February 8, 2007 Echinodorus sp. go through a dormant stage when transplanted. If you transplant a mature one then dig it up a few months later you will find all the original roots have died and it has grown new ones. When it has a new root system it will then go through a growth spurt but while a bit dormant it is susceptable to algae and the outside leaves dying off (which can be removed) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
meesheelly Posted March 13, 2007 Author Report Share Posted March 13, 2007 AN UPDATE I have got some more lights so i now have about .5W per litre. I have just got some flourish excel to see if that helps as well. My swords have all taken off, and my grassy stuff (sorry no idea of the name) has started getting a nice red tinge. PROBLEMS My stupid brush algae has come back in force and I seem to have a lot of "floaties". Dont know what is causing the floaties thought it was cos the filter was dirty so i cleaned that but it hasnt made a difference. Also a few of the leaves on the swords are getting brown patches. So what do i try now? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SpidersWeb Posted March 13, 2007 Report Share Posted March 13, 2007 Daltons Aquatic Mix 8) $9.95 for 10kg. Swords no longer starve of nutrients, and hairgrass grows like Oprah on cheesecake. Seems to have solved my problem anyway. Pull some out of the tank and leave it for a day or so, if it turns red (like mine did) its actually red algae, in which case I'm told high phosphates (bloodworms/heavy feeding) is the cause and PhosZorb can be used in the filter to pull it out. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
meesheelly Posted March 14, 2007 Author Report Share Posted March 14, 2007 i have aquatic mix under my graverl in one and propagating sand in the other. Does the pet store test for posphates if i take a sample in? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fishboi Posted March 14, 2007 Report Share Posted March 14, 2007 Does the pet store test for posphates if i take a sample in? yes, some shops charge couple of dollars Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
davidb Posted March 14, 2007 Report Share Posted March 14, 2007 i'm sure someone in on her in wellington will have a phosphate test kit... everyone with reefs will anyway. phosphate readings can be deceptive though because you can have a phosphate reading of 0.0 ppm and still have algae because the algae uses phosphate which is why it is there in the first place. Hope I didn't confuse you!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lduncan Posted March 14, 2007 Report Share Posted March 14, 2007 It's because hobby test kits only measure orthophosphate, there are numerous and much larger sources of organic phosphorous which can fuel algae growth. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wasp Posted March 14, 2007 Report Share Posted March 14, 2007 and hairgrass grows like Oprah on cheesecake. :lol: :lol: :lol: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
reef Posted March 14, 2007 Report Share Posted March 14, 2007 In a planted tank zero phosphates is no good as plants will not grow. i had to actually add some as it was to low. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alanmin4304 Posted March 14, 2007 Report Share Posted March 14, 2007 I agree with reef, it is just a matter of how much. Since all living thinks contain protein and that is a string of phosphates with various amino acids hanging off it I can't see how plants can grow without phosphate. What is not desirable is more than the plants can use. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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