paekakboyz Posted July 6, 2007 Report Share Posted July 6, 2007 Hi All, Currently have a 90cm (L) * 37.5cm (D) * 60cm (H) - 205L or so... Had a custom tank built about 12 years ago when I was really into angel fish and wanted a deep tank. I've recently set it up again and have found the height to be a real pain for a couple of reasons... firstly cleaning etc is a pain - its just high enough that reaching the bottom is awkward. secondly the issue of light from the dual 90cm tubes that I've got penetrating to the bottom of the tank - I've got pretty good growth etc but I'm sure that it would be much improved if the tank was only 45-50cm high. Currently looking at a tank of 120cm * 45cm * 45cm (10mm glass) - I really enjoy the longer tanks and lowering the height while increasing the depth will give me better access and more room for planting etc.. I'd really appreciate people's advice/ideas about the design... thanks, paekakboyz Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alanmin4304 Posted July 6, 2007 Report Share Posted July 6, 2007 I have a tank that size that grows plant realy well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ira Posted July 6, 2007 Report Share Posted July 6, 2007 Stay with what you have and put better lighting on it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wok Posted July 6, 2007 Report Share Posted July 6, 2007 I have the 4ft you describe and works well for me. double 4ft light seems to be ok for my amazon swords and tiger lotus Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
markoshark Posted July 6, 2007 Report Share Posted July 6, 2007 About 240 L? I'd be tempted to go for 120 * 45 * 50. Gives larger fish more play room. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
paekakboyz Posted July 6, 2007 Author Report Share Posted July 6, 2007 cheers guys... Ira the main driver for a change or upgrade is the issue of the tank height... just makes maintaining things difficult. Also in looking through pics of people's tanks I've realised how much I enjoy a longer tank... due to $$ and space at home anything over 120cm isn't feasible. I guess if I'm pretty set on 120cm long and 45cm high (unless there is a really good reason to go to 50cm or something) the thing I'm debating is depth/width? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
markoshark Posted July 6, 2007 Report Share Posted July 6, 2007 50cm to keep the height as high as possible, for the taller plants, and 50cm is tall enough to reach the bottom easialy, and 60cm is far too deep Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ira Posted July 6, 2007 Report Share Posted July 6, 2007 I wouldnt' go any smaller than 1200X600X600. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
paekakboyz Posted July 6, 2007 Author Report Share Posted July 6, 2007 could you explain why Ira? I would see the advantages as you've got a bigger tank overall (Litres wise), that there is a heap of space up and back for fish... ahhh - how high is the stand your tank/s are on? I just got to thinking that perhaps my problem is the height of the tank/stand combined ( :oops: )... However ( ) I do want a longer tank so my previous reasoning stands!! ha ha Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ira Posted July 6, 2007 Report Share Posted July 6, 2007 600 is a good height for a tank. May need a step ladder if the stand is tall but it's still shallow enough to reach the bottom of the tank easily...Back corners are a bit of a stretch. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
paekakboyz Posted July 6, 2007 Author Report Share Posted July 6, 2007 what sort of lighting setup do you have on that tank Ira? And Alan ditto for you on the similar tank to my current one? there is easily space for another set of 2x90cm lights... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wok Posted July 6, 2007 Report Share Posted July 6, 2007 What I have been told is that 1200 x 450 x 450 is the max for 6mm glass and anything more tha 450mm in height or depth would mean thicker glass and higher costs. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alanmin4304 Posted July 6, 2007 Report Share Posted July 6, 2007 If you want to propagate plants successfully you need to remember about the light. If you are growing plants successfully in a tank that is 300mm high then you will not need twice the light on 600mm high but probably 10 times to get adequate light to the bottom of the tank and at this stage you may have too much at the top and cause algae problems. I have a 1200 x 500mm tank which grows plant well but it contains mainly large Echinodorus plants and they grow almost to the surface and get adequate light that way. The shorter plants don't do as well though. It only has 60 watts of floros but they are on 17 hours/day. Works for me. The tank is also on a low stand so it is easy to get at. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ianab Posted July 6, 2007 Report Share Posted July 6, 2007 What I have been told is that 1200 x 450 x 450 is the max for 6mm glass and anything more tha 450mm in height or depth would mean thicker glass and higher costs. Yes, that seem to be the case. I just got a stock 1200x350x450 tank, it's 6mm glass and was relatively cheap - big jump to the bigger sizes in thicker glass though. Cheers Ian Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
David R Posted July 6, 2007 Report Share Posted July 6, 2007 I'd go for 120lx60wx50h. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alanmin4304 Posted July 6, 2007 Report Share Posted July 6, 2007 As you are proposing, my 1200 x 450 x 450mm is 10mm glass. If you want a spectacular looking planted tank go wider rather than higher and place mirrors on the ends and back and the plants (with reflections)look like they go on forever. I bought some thin mirrored glass that is plastic coated and it looks great. It also seems to increase the lighting. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Warren Posted July 6, 2007 Report Share Posted July 6, 2007 My planted tank is 2400 x 840 x 650 (L x W x H) and I'm finding it a bit small. The biggest shortfall is in the height. I find most plants start growing out the top of the tank unless pruned back. Many of my swords grow with the tips sticking out of the water. Big swords easily grow to 500-600 long or even bigger so a deep tank is necessary. You'll be quite successful with a 450 high tank but it will limit what plants you can use. You'll be restricted to the smaller dwarf swords that grow 200-400mm long. Keep in mind you need to substract the gravel thickness off the tank height as the usefull area for the plants. As your gravel needs to be at least 50mm thick for most plants, you're only left with 400mm for the plants assuming you fill it right to the top. At the rate my plants grow, in 400mm of space I would have to trim most of the stem plants every 3-4 days. It's not uncommon to get 75-100mm growth a day out of some stem plants (like Cabomba) and 50mm+ from others. Sword plants can grow one full new leaf every 2 days. I prune my tank weekly as it's starting to look a bit overgrown in that time. If it's left for 2 weeks then there's no light left to get to the bottom as it's blocked out by the fast growing plants. There's nothing wrong with using a shorter tank, just be prepared to limit the range of plants you can use and maintain it more often. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
paekakboyz Posted July 8, 2007 Author Report Share Posted July 8, 2007 thanks guys thats some excellent advice... 120cm*50*50 is looking like a winner at this point. In terms of glass thickness I'd prob go with 8mm minimum and most likely end up with 10mm for a really robust tank. I don't mind spending more for peace of mind! Alan that was a good idea about mirrors and added width... there was a pic of a cube tank on the site and you could see how the extra space let some plants really develop well. Warren - I hadn't factored the substrate height in so that was useful info! I really like swords and will try and get hold of the smaller varieties... I'm almost sick of cabomba myself - it just grows so fast!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
evilknieval69 Posted July 8, 2007 Report Share Posted July 8, 2007 Warren!! PICS!!! PLEASE!!! Paekakboyz, i have a tank which is 1200 x 400 x 500 (lxwxh) made from 10mm glass. It could be 8mm, or even 6mm if braced properly, but the 10mm just gives it that extra solid strength and peace of mind. It used to be a planted tank, and my swords were growing out the top... one sword had all its leaves at least 10cm out of the water, so it was over 60cm!! Go as high as possible, you wont regret it once your plants realy start to grow! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
paekakboyz Posted July 9, 2007 Author Report Share Posted July 9, 2007 ok - just to muddy the water a bit more... I've been in contact with a person recommended by fishy friends on the site (Port N Glass) After having a yarn about tank size etc he suggested thinking about a sump. Now I've got myself kinda clued up about sumps from reading how people set them up etc But what are the pro's and con's of a sump setup? I have to say I really like the idea of having the tank clear of any heaters, filters etc... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
evilknieval69 Posted July 9, 2007 Report Share Posted July 9, 2007 Pros: no equipment in tank extra water volume Cons: very hard to keep co2 in (important in a planted tank) Can be noisy if not done correctly Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
paekakboyz Posted July 9, 2007 Author Report Share Posted July 9, 2007 thanks evil - I had wondered about the noise factor... are there particular designs/features that make the sump louder? In regards to CO2 what sort of impact does a sump have? I'm not really looking to add a CO2 setup to the tank - I was going to continue using substrate and liquid ferts... although I am going to convert to a sand/gravel substrate mix (layers). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
David R Posted July 9, 2007 Report Share Posted July 9, 2007 This is something I won't say very often... Don't go for a sump if your main goal is a planted tank with a small fish population. If you're going to have big fish, or a heavily stocked tank then a sump is the only way to go. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
evilknieval69 Posted July 9, 2007 Report Share Posted July 9, 2007 thanks evil - I had wondered about the noise factor... are there particular designs/features that make the sump louder? In regards to CO2 what sort of impact does a sump have? I'm not really looking to add a CO2 setup to the tank - I was going to continue using substrate and liquid ferts... although I am going to convert to a sand/gravel substrate mix (layers). Its pretty hard to 'safely' have a sump that is quiet, simply because the easiest and safest way to get the water from the tank to the sump is through an overflow. overflows = air + water... air and water entering the sump is always going to be noisy.... If you fully seal the sump (so there is no air exchange at all in it) then its possible to keep the co2 in there, but the water falling down the pipe with air will make all the co2 escape anyway.... Even if you dont add co2, your fish waste will still be making it so you will want to save as much as possible. so much easier to go with a canister filter and hide a heater down the back of the tank behind some driftwood or something. or you could go the whole hog and buy one of those expensive canisters that have a built in heater..... depends if you want to buy a filter or put a deposit on a house :lol: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
paekakboyz Posted July 9, 2007 Author Report Share Posted July 9, 2007 I did really want to focus on a planted tank and was looking to have 30 or so Cardinals Mix of other tetras several danios several BN and maybe a pair or two of rams.... for a 300L tank it wouldn't be too heavily stocked so perhaps staying with a cannister is the way to go. thanks for that advice guys - its been extremely helpful! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.