# Am I on the right track? Suggestions for 55 gallon setup?



## Diana (Jan 14, 2010)

You can attach the Java Fern and moss to the wood. This will give you some greenery higher up in the tank. 

There are different Amazon Swords. The tank is probably too narrow for the really biggest of them, but anything from a bit small to mid size ought to work. 

Wisteria is a good one for when you first start the tank, it soaks up any excess nitrogen pretty well. 

Crape Myrtle works well in aquairums. Very hard wood. Loricariads ate all mine, over several years. 
Try this:
Lay out a towel the size of the tank, or use the tank itself, and try different arrangements of the wood and rock. Take pictures and post them. Many people like to comment on the arrangements, so you can get some input of other ways of arranging things. 

Ferts: Read the labels on the products you have. What is the guaranteed analysis of each product? 
Plants need over a dozen elements to live. 
Fish food can supply N, P and most traces. 
Tap water, or water with GH booster added can supply Ca and Mg. 
The nutrients that seem in the shortest supply in low tech tanks are K, Fe and C. 

Have you been thinking about fish?


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## FLGirl (Jan 19, 2016)

:Thanks.

I'm planning on attaching all the java but I was in a rush at the end of the day of setup since I was simultaneously breaking down all my small tanks (10 to 20s - both with and without fish) and there are quite a few java ferns despite all Iv given away. 

The sword will stay, it was a random gift...a baby from someone's plant so I'm not sure what kind exactly but I threw it in a 10 gallon, it was tiny but took over the tank in time. The light fixture on that 10g tank it was in had broken recently and was only partially working so it did suffer some damage in that time but I hope it will recover and adjust to the new tank. It's off to the side but in the middle depth wise vs the back or a corner so hopefully that helps room wise. The root tabs are flourish too.

This tank was somewhat insta-cycled since I used all the media from my very well established tanks in the filter when I completely broke them down. However, I will still be keeping an eye on parameters just in case (Test using API master test kit, 0 ammon. 0 nitrite, trace nitrate.) since it is a very big change. Perhaps I should say it's an upgrade vs. new setup.


Do you have any thoughts on the lighting?


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## Hoppy (Dec 24, 2005)

A 4 foot long Finnex Planted Plus light sitting on top of the tank will probably be too much light for a low tech tank. You should get around 45-50 PAR intensity, which means you need a source of bioavailable carbon to support the plant growth rate. And, that growth rate will also require that you dose NPK and trace elements.


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## sohankpatel (Jul 10, 2015)

Here is my 55g high tech, shows how scaping a long, thin tank can be done


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## Coursair (Apr 16, 2011)

This is my 55g work in progress


















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## FLGirl (Jan 19, 2016)

Hoppy said:


> A 4 foot long Finnex Planted Plus light sitting on top of the tank will probably be too much light for a low tech tank. You should get around 45-50 PAR intensity, which means you need a source of bioavailable carbon to support the plant growth rate. And, that growth rate will also require that you dose NPK and trace elements.


Ah, I see... the last time I bought lighting LEDs were not even a thing. I did ask someone about the fixture and they told me I would need 2 of them to get to having a medium or highlight planted tank so I guess I assumed one would be ok for a little lower. I've always taken a casual approach to planting and never took the time to fully understand PAR, I guess I better try reading up on it more. Do you think letting the azolla and dweed grow in a bit would help? Or would an option be adding excel + the other ferts (which Id have to research the best means of dosing)..

Thanks your help!




sohankpatel said:


> Here is my 55g high tech, shows how scaping a long, thin tank can be done


Gorgeous, thanks for sharing. I love seeing other's tanks! What all do you have in there?



Coursair said:


> This is my 55g work in progress
> 
> 
> 
> ...


Loving it!! The placement of everything is so lovely. Thanks for sharing!


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## Coursair (Apr 16, 2011)

A talented club member scaped it for me. I provided the vision that I was aiming for [emoji6]


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## FLGirl (Jan 19, 2016)

They did a great job with your vision!


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## Freemananana (Jan 2, 2015)

I think vals go a long way and I would suggest some floaters (frogbit being my favorite) since you have quite a bit of light. You may want to go with some screen (screen porch stuff) over the light to diminish the par (approx. 30% putting you at 30 par, a good amount for low tech). You can also go another route, which is to suspend the light. There are some great DIY hangers for lights made out of conduit. They can really look slick, hide wires, and are a simple project.


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## Hoppy (Dec 24, 2005)

FLGirl said:


> Ah, I see... the last time I bought lighting LEDs were not even a thing. I did ask someone about the fixture and they told me I would need 2 of them to get to having a medium or highlight planted tank so I guess I assumed one would be ok for a little lower. I've always taken a casual approach to planting and never took the time to fully understand PAR, I guess I better try reading up on it more. Do you think letting the azolla and dweed grow in a bit would help? Or would an option be adding excel + the other ferts (which Id have to research the best means of dosing)..


Floating plants do reduce the light intensity below them, but then you have to walk the tightrope of keeping enough floaters to be effective, without letting them grow too thickly and over shade the plants below. If you dose Excel, or Metricide 14 day, which is much cheaper, you will be helping the plants by supplying the carbon they need. The faster plant growth will then require that you also dose NPK and traces - see http://www.plantedtank.net/forums/11-fertilizers-water-parameters/21944-_dosing-regimes_.html for a very good way to do this.


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## FLGirl (Jan 19, 2016)

Thanks.

I think I will go with the excel (or look into the other you mentioned) and figure out the fertilizer thing. I guess I don't mind putting some extra effort into. Its the only tank I have now and I'd like it heavily planted (not with algea). I'll try to take advantage of the light. Looking at the dosage regimes made my head hurt a little but I'm sure it will be very helpful once I know what it all is.. ..


Or do you think it wold be better to just look into doing co2 along with ferts instead of excel? I guess I need to do some more research on my day off. I don't want to do it if it will be too expensive or throw everything into a worse balance.


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## Hoppy (Dec 24, 2005)

I don't recommend anyone who is just starting out with a planted tank using CO2. It is far better to reduce the light intensity enough that you don't need CO2, then learn how to care for a planted tank without the worries about horrendous algae attacks. Once you get that part learned you can try using more light and adding CO2.


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## FLGirl (Jan 19, 2016)

I guess 7 years isn't enough. Lol


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## jmelvin (Aug 11, 2014)

I've had a 55g for the last ten years. It's been through many different states of planted to turtles. My current setup is over a year old. And by far my favorite! I had two different swords and both have out grown the tank. Sometimes I wish I had more depth (front to back). Mine is a high tech setup. Hit me up if you have any questions.










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## Straight shooter (Nov 26, 2015)

Agree with Hoppy (as usual). Learn how to get a low tech running well, there's more room for error. Plant growth is slower and you can do without the maintenance of injected CO2 (trimming, algae control, daily fert dosing etc) while you figure out how to provide the best conditions for plants. 

Once you're happy and your plants have grown in well, and you're not seeing much algae, you can add CO2 in conjunction with increasing fertilzer (no new plants, just the existing plants). This helps to ease into the new learning associated with CO2. Too many times I see people add CO2 as beginners in combination with a complete rescape, new plants, new lighting etc. Best to just add it to your existing setup and slowly note the changes and work to fix those, then replace plants in small lots to avoid massive swings in nutrient requirements etc that encourage algae.

You can achieve great things with Excel, Metricide etc (forms of glutaraldehyde). Glut can make a significant difference to the health of the tank if you're running higher levels of light in low tech terms. CO2 deficiency is a major cause of algae woes and higher light = higher carbon requirement to ensure unlimited plant growth. 

You should dose Glut daily if possible. It has a half life of ~10-12 hours so daily dosing may be necessary to ensure that consistent levels are maintained.

Check out this example from Australia. A full UG carpet grown in using medium/high light and Glut alone:

http://www.aquariumlife.com.au/showthread.php/63926-2ft-UG-Iwagumi-Low-tech


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## FLGirl (Jan 19, 2016)

jmelvin said:


> I've had a 55g for the last ten years. It's been through many different states of planted to turtles. My current setup is over a year old. And by far my favorite! I had two different swords and both have out grown the tank. Sometimes I wish I had more depth (front to back). Mine is a high tech setup. Hit me up if you have any questions.
> 
> 
> 
> ...


It's beautiful! I'd love more depth as well but the 55 is the most my space allows. 



Straight shooter said:


> Agree with Hoppy (as usual). Learn how to get a low tech running well, there's more room for error. Plant growth is slower and you can do without the maintenance of injected CO2 (trimming, algae control, daily fert dosing etc) while you figure out how to provide the best conditions for plants.
> 
> Once you're happy and your plants have grown in well, and you're not seeing much algae, you can add CO2 in conjunction with increasing fertilzer (no new plants, just the existing plants). This helps to ease into the new learning associated with CO2. Too many times I see people add CO2 as beginners in combination with a complete rescape, new plants, new lighting etc. Best to just add it to your existing setup and slowly note the changes and work to fix those, then replace plants in small lots to avoid massive swings in nutrient requirements etc that encourage algae.
> 
> ...


I'm not doing CO2 so no worries. Thanks!


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