# Help a noob arrange his plants



## jmowbray (Dec 20, 2009)

Where did you get your plants from? Please don't tell me the pet store!!!! Some of them look like house plants. :icon_conf


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## Darkblade48 (Jan 4, 2008)

Most of the plants in your 29g appear to be terrestrial plants. I would suggest you take them out before they start to rot in your tank


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## Franco (Jun 13, 2010)

Let me guess, petsmart? Petco? In those plastic tubes?

The broadleaved ones except for the amazon sword are not aquatic plants and will die within a couple months.

Stupid chain petshops sell those because they make people buy more stuff to try to keep their plants alive and buy new plants, i.e. lighting, ferts, substrates.


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## Casie (Jun 8, 2010)

Hi TimeTwister =)

I did the exact same thing you did. My Petsmart sells those plants in tubes labled aquatic but in actuality they are bog plants and will not longer than a few months submerged.

http://aqualandpetsplus.com/Plant, Bog Plants.htm

The corn plants and mondo grass I removed from my tank are doing great growing outside on the patio right now. heh!

When you are ready to try some new aquatic plants try looking here in the buy/sell section. People are always trimming thier tanks and offering the cuttings pretty darn cheap.

I do like your rocks. And they all look good to me! =)


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## TimeTwister (Jul 23, 2010)

Wow...you all were spot on with your assumptions. About all the plants in the 10 gallon were from the plastic tubes from Petco (all labeled and sold as aquarium plants). All the stuff i have in the 29 gallon was from a plant tank also in Petco. Are there any plants, other than the swords I can keep or should I yank all of them now? Ugh....talk about feel like an idiot. Between the two tanks I spent a decent amount of cash on all those.


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## fresh.salty (Jul 2, 2010)

You can't blame yourself at all. I'd also expect a plant sold to me by a company that size to be compatible with the environment they claim. It still gets to me when I see them in the stores.
The practice is counter productive to the hobby. You buy them a few times and they keep rotting. So you just give up and sell the tank in a yard sale. I quick few bucks and then off to find another customer.


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## jmowbray (Dec 20, 2009)

You can e-mail the store headquarters and tell them that they are misrepresenting items in there stores. They will most likely call you and talk to you about it. But in the end you could get your money back. You can also kill them on purpose. If they are from the brand Top Fin (that's petsmart's own mark up brand) they have to honor and replace them if they die. When you bring the dead one in tell them you don't want an exchange you want a refund because they are not for aquariums. 

I went through the same thing so don't feel bad.


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## TimeTwister (Jul 23, 2010)

So now that is seems like I need to completely redo my plants do you all have any suggestions. Right now I don't have any C02, a 50 gallon aquaclear filter and the lights pictured above. I'd like to get a nice sized patch of low ground cover. I like the look of micro swords but read the are very slow to grow. Can you recommend and low laying, "whispy looking" ground cover that will grow with reasonable speed in my setup? I'd also like the look of plants that grow to the surface of the water (like lilly pads) but I am afraid it will provide too much shade and darken my view of the tank (true false?). Other than that I'd like something that would add a splash of color and anything else you can all recommend.

Thanks for your help everyone!


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## Franco (Jun 13, 2010)

Keep the anacharis (Egeria densa) in the back left corner and the amazon sword. I am not sure what the ferny looking this is in the back right but it might be ok to keep too. The mondo grass in the front left and the corny looking plants---broad leaved rosette plants--- will have to go.
Petco is a bunch of SOBs for selling half the crap they do.
Don't feel bad. Just b*tch and moan like the rest of us and try to get them to give you some rooted plants from their plant tank, not the plastic tubes.
Make sure to desnail and dealgae them though.


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## TimeTwister (Jul 23, 2010)

Thanks for the advise all. The corn looking plants and mondo grass were actually both from their "plant tank". The fern looking thing (which grows fast, but notice a leaf here or there is "melting". Hate to get rid of it since it grows so well and the leaves look different, but not keeping it at the expense of the health of my tank. I yanked the mostly dead java moss ball from the 10 gallon and the broad leaf stuff and grass already and will be making a trip to petco tomorrow. I don't know if I feel comfortable getting any more plants from them except maybe more swords since those and the densa are the only thinks i am sure are ok. Most of the plants in their plant tank looks half dead (which is why i picked the corn plants since they still looked healthy). Hopefully I will see some more good price package deals show up on the forums again soon so I can know i am getting good stuff.


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## Chucklett (Jul 24, 2010)

Hi all,

Do you mind if I butt in?

Im new to this forum (and fishkeeping). I too am interested in what are good plants to have and looking for tips on aquascaping. Im saving for a 240 litre tank and am doing plenty of research in the meantime so I have a better idea of what to get, what to do & how to do it when the time comes!!

I have my heart set on the shimmer effect and believe TMC GroBeams are also great for plant growth too so I plan to remove the lighting that comes in the tank and have 4 strips of them instead.

Plants I love include the Twisted Vallis and Crinum Calamistratum (with Alternanthera Cardinalis behind it to show it off better - though Ive discovered *some *female Japonicas with eggs love to dessimate this plant  ) I want to be careful not to get anything that can easily get out of control and take over the tank (apparently moss can do this).

I am interested to know how do you hoover the gravel in a moderate-heavy planted tank? Or does the tank look after itself in that respect when its more mature, or better planted? My current 200 litre tank only has plants down the back & sides so its easy to hoover the gravel in the large non-planted area in the middle. Ive only had it 3months, so although the filter is cycled, the tank itself is still establishing.

Also, I believe a more heavily planted tank would need more CO2, so would a thick corner of oxygenating plants be a fair substitute for a CO2 kit? (I have neither in my current tank)

I will follow your thread, but wont interrupt it too often TimeTwister - I just thought it would be easier for folk to give tips to help us both at the same time rather than start another thread so they have to reply to us separately! (If anybody would rather I did that, let me know)

Thanks for any help & tips anyone can give :smile:


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## TimeTwister (Jul 23, 2010)

Chucklett, I don't mind at all combining this into a thread for both our issues/questions as long as they are similar. While being new I obviously can't answer many of your questions but I have also searched for other threads regarding how to vacuum a planted tank and most of the people say that they don't at all, or just vacuum the few non planted stuff. Others say they just hover the vacuum over the plants to get as much junk as they can.


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## Chucklett (Jul 24, 2010)

Thanks for that info TimeTwister :smile: I did wonder if things look after themselves a lot in a planted tank once the tank has matured. Have seen some stunning display tanks in shops and wondered how on earth they get the hoover in!!!!

Looking forward to seeing how your tank progresses and what tips you get on aquascaping them :smile:


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## DevonCloud (May 9, 2010)

Chucklett said:


> Also, I believe a more heavily planted tank would need more CO2, so would a thick corner of oxygenating plants be a fair substitute for a CO2 kit? (I have neither in my current tank)


There's no real substitute for CO2. Some people use SeaChem's Flourish Excel as it provides a carbon source that plants can utilize and have great luck with it, but one plant cannot substitute the carbon necessary for proper development of another plant. Depending on if you're looking into a low or high tech tank will determine whether you'll want to invest in a pressurized CO2 system or use something like Excel.

As far as vacuuming the tank, I usually hold my siphon just above the plants to catch any extra food or waste that it can pickup. You aren't going to want to dig into the gravel as you normally would as it will disturb your plants, particularly if they have roots.


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## Chucklett (Jul 24, 2010)

Thanks DevonCloud.

I'd planned on Low Tech, with shimmer effect lighting, but lush plants - is that a contradictory in terms?


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## DevonCloud (May 9, 2010)

Not necessarily. I've seen quite a few tanks that the growers themselves considered low tech that were beautiful. Low tech typically means lower lighting and the absence or at least reduced amounts of CO2 and fertilizers.So depending on your patience for growth rates and selection of plants, you could create a very beautiful tank. You mentioned a 240l tank. I don't have any experience with the fixture you're looking at, but consider that LED's can provide an intense amount of light and if you begin providing high amounts of light w/o CO2 or ferts, you're going to have a lush algae farm.


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## Chucklett (Jul 24, 2010)

Hmmm, that had crossed my mind. I hope to be able to use ferts & EasyCarbo in my new tank as it wont have Otos or Molly fry in it - Ive had deaths with both these fish in my current tank every time I try to add ferts / EasyCarbo (even though I halved the dosage recommendation). New tank will be shoals of small fish - Tetras, Harlequins, that sort of thing. Also, I plan to put 3 or 4 of my SAEs into the new tank (as I think 6 is too many in my 200 litre when they get bigger :icon_eek: ) and possibly my Japonica Shrimps if they dont leave my Alternanthera alone!!!! (so far so good since I swapped the females for males!!!) I also want Dwarf Chain Loaches, but not sure at the moment which tank to put them in (probably new one). I will also put plant substrate under the gravel like I have in my current tank. This seems to help. Am I still looking at an Algae Farm if I dont use CO2 with LEDs?

As much as I have the patience for slow-growing plants, its my understanding that these type of plants aid the algae? Presumably, a few are OK if you also have medium and fast-growers to balance it out and keep algae at bay?

Thanks


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## TimeTwister (Jul 23, 2010)

Hey all, quick update. I yanked all the plants that were not fit for an aquarium and picked up a bunch of moneywort and added my wood that I had soaking for a week. Also added some more wisteria (think that is what it is) to the right side by where the corn plants were. Water is a little foggy from stirring up the substrate so much. What do you think?


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## DevonCloud (May 9, 2010)

TimeTwister said:


> Hey all, quick update. I yanked all the plants that were not fit for an aquarium and picked up a bunch of moneywort and added my wood that I had soaking for a week. Also added some more wisteria (think that is what it is) to the right side by where the corn plants were. Water is a little foggy from stirring up the substrate so much. What do you think?


Looks nice. I just noticed your fixture on the first page. That's a lot of light, are you going to be or are you currently running some type of CO2 on it?



Chucklett said:


> As much as I have the patience for slow-growing plants, its my understanding that these type of plants aid the algae? Presumably, a few are OK if you also have medium and fast-growers to balance it out and keep algae at bay?
> 
> Thanks


Hoppy would be much better then I am at determining how intense the LED's will be for your particular setup. You may be able to run it perfectly fine without the need for CO2. Also, slow growing plants do not aid algae growth. Algae fails to takeover when everything is in balance and the plants are out competing it. This all is determined by what you're giving the plants. If you give them a lot of light, but not enough nutrients or a good source of carbon (CO2), then the algae begins to gain a foothold.


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## Chucklett (Jul 24, 2010)

Thanks again DevonCloud - sounds like a bit of trial & error then! I was beginning to think last night that perhaps I should add a CO2 kit to my list, but it sounds like its worth trying without to begin with and only get one if things start going pear-shaped.

TimeTwister - Beginning to take shape now. I like the giraffe-shaped wood! Will be lovely when your plants start to grow.

In view of what DevonCloud has been saying about lighting & algae, maybe you should check out you're not going to fall into that trap with your lights? Its quite frustrating when algae starts to get a hold. And from what Ive read, algae-blooms are quite common in new tanks (all part of the settling process while you get the balance right, wait for plants to grow, etc). Do all you can now to keep it at a minimum :smile:


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## Captivate05 (Feb 23, 2010)

T5HO (high output) lights are intense. You're definitely going to want CO2 and a good fert routine going if you stay with those lights. 

As of now with my 29g, I'm running two 2 liter pop bottles of DIY co2, and change out one liter per week. It keeps the drop checker in the lime-green range. This is temporary, as when I move I'm setting up a pressurized system. This tank has four T5NO (normal output) bulbs, and I'd consider it in the low end of high. T5HO bulbs have much more intensity.

I also dose per Tom Barr's EI. It's super easy, and my plants have responded to it wonderfully.


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## TimeTwister (Jul 23, 2010)

DevonCloud said:


> Looks nice. I just noticed your fixture on the first page. That's a lot of light, are you going to be or are you currently running some type of CO2 on it?


Right now I don't have any CO2 at all but I am thinking about trying a DIY setup to see if I like the effects before I spend the money on a store bought kit. Also found some marimo balls at a store close by. Is $8 an ok price for those (2-3 inches in diameter). Also are they actually beneficial or more just an aesthetic thing?


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## Chucklett (Jul 24, 2010)

Tom Barrs EI???? :icon_conf


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## TimeTwister (Jul 23, 2010)

Well some good news. While she said it was against policy a sales clerk at petco let me exchange the bad plants. Nothing there looked good so with my credit I just got some liquid fertilizer and some stuff for the rest of my pets. Now I need to research some diy co2 setups.


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## Captivate05 (Feb 23, 2010)

Chucklett said:


> Tom Barrs EI???? :icon_conf


It's basically slightly overdosing dry ferts to keep from getting deficiencies. Basically, it's six days of fertilizing followed by a large (50% or more) water change to "reset" levels.

There's alot of info online and on this forum. It's worth taking some time to research. roud:


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## Chucklett (Jul 24, 2010)

OK. Thanks Captivate05,

Ive never heard of it so I shall indeed research it. Thanks for the tip


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## DevonCloud (May 9, 2010)

EI = Estimative Index and as Captivate said, there's a lot of info on this forum and over the internet about it. Dry ferts are the cheapest route though it can require a bit more work if you're like me and like to measure/weigh the compounds to keep a tight dosing routine. However, you will see results rather quickly using EI if your lights and carbon source are in balance.

As far as CO2 TimeTwister, DIY is great in my opinion if you're saving the cash for a pressurized system, but in the long run, will cost more by the time you factor in ingredients and most importantly, time. A pressurized system you can dial in at the rate you want and walk away. Depending on your tank size and bubble rate, for several months. Much more constant delivery then DIY. With that, I have a pressurized system on my 29g that cost me, tank included, about $153. My 10g however I am opting for DIY as it has slow growers and lower light. 

And marimo balls are just like any plant. I have one in my 10g for aesthetic purposes, but it functions like any other aquarium plant. Pretty hard to kill though.


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## TimeTwister (Jul 23, 2010)

Thanks for the input devon. From some of the pictures I've seen it looks like from the diffuser back to the co2 source is the same for diy and pressurized. So hopefully I can do diy for now and just add a tank and regulator when I have the funds.


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## DevonCloud (May 9, 2010)

There's many products out there that work as a diffuser. My 10g uses a glass diffuser with a ceramic disc. For my 29g, I have it routed into a CO2 reactor that runs inline with my canister filter. That method results in nearly 100% diffusion. The glass/ceramic ones are definitely a popular choice if you like the look of the tiny mist of bubbles floating up. Fairly efficient also.


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## Hilde (May 19, 2008)

I have found that some chain stores have a few decent plants in water, like Pet Smart. Seems to be the problem with the personal being ignorant and not caring about what they are doing to earn their cash. Thus the Pet Supermarket near me got closed down but 1 in the next city, which independently owned, has fish that are in such great condition that they are breeding.

I am still working on scaping. The trick seems to be have plants with different types of growth and leaves next to each. Also need gradation of levels created with rocks and wood. Then it is good to have a eye catcher 1/3 from a side.



Chucklett said:


> Otos or Molly fry in it - Ive had deaths with both these fish in my current tank every time I try to add ferts


I have problems getting them to live too. My gh and kh are low with 7.4 ph. What are your readings? 

Your lights(HO) are the type that require Co2 injection. Possible to correct this imbalance by hanging the light 4 to 6 in above the tank. Something once read Hoppy suggested. Pro is that you can grow clover and hair grass and Lilly's. The Lilly's can be allowed to grow to the top or trained to grow at the bottom.

Here are some ideas that may work for you
Dr. Acula 29 Gallon









fishbreath has instruction on how to make rocks









FromLaredo
http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4124/4836101290_3740d83713.jpg

legomaniac89 20G low tech


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## TimeTwister (Jul 23, 2010)

I am hunting around trying to find a good deal on components to piece together a co2 setup that won't cost a fortune. Also in the mean time i will be raising the light off the tank. I bought a couple metal conduits and put a 90 degree bend in them to try to make a diy ADA light hanger like a lot of people on the diy forum have done. That will allow me to adjust the hight from a few inches to probably a foot away from the water surface. Once I find some I also plan to add some floating plants and maybe a lotus to add shade to the aquarium. Not sure if the lifted light and shade plants will do enough to negate my need for co2 but it should hopefully buy me some time.

I love the look of legomaniac's tank that you linked to. His will be a big inspiration for my path forward with my tank. I plan to get a new stand for my tank soon (walmart stand i got is giving me nightmares of a slight breeze knocking the whole thing over), so since I will need to drain most of the water to move the tank I will use that as a good time to rearrange my plants without have to deal with the water floating everything I am trying to plant. Hopefully by the time I do that I will find a good deal on some ground cover so I can do that before I refill it.


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## Chucklett (Jul 24, 2010)

Hilde - Clover?

I soooo wanted a shamrock or clover looking plant in my tank but was told that they would only produce two leaves once completely submerged. From what you say, does it mean they would do ok under good lighting? Is there a particular plant that does better than others? Can you give me a name? I plan to have LED lights (TMC GroBeams) in my next tank, hopefully without the need of CO2. Do you know if theres a Shamrock/Clover type plant that would do well? (preferably not anything that could easily grow out of control and take over).

Many thanks.


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## Hilde (May 19, 2008)

Chucklett said:


> I soooo wanted a shamrock or clover looking plant in my tank.


Pennywort is the closest to shamrock look.


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## TimeTwister (Jul 23, 2010)

hmm, well my water and fish have been doing great, but my poor plants, other than one sword and my wisteria are doing horrible. My moneywort keeps melting where the stem meets the gravel and eventually breaks free and floats to the water surface. The Anacharis isn't doing as bad as the moneywort but it isn't exactly thriving either, and also tends to break free of the gravel and ends up floating around.

So basically I have to major issues....one is general plant health which I am guessing most of you will tell me is due to my lack of CO2 (though i am using some plant fertilizer i bought at petco). The other issue is stem plants breaking free of the gravel and floating up.

Any suggestions?


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## TimeTwister (Jul 23, 2010)

Well I just did a minor rescape today. After looking at the tanks here mine just didn't look like it flowed as well as others.

So here is the latest before picture. Only new thing was a marimo ball I added today.









I didn't like the face statue thing any more, especially since I wanted a more natural planted tank look. The rest of the tank also looked like I just shoved stuff where there were spots.

My goals for the rescape were to remove the statue and to group the moneywort and anacharis into small bundles instead of planting each stalk individually. I am hoping this will make it look a little better and to also help it stay anchored better.

Well here is the finished product...excuse the cloudy water but needless to say I stirred up the substrate quite a bit.










As you can see I swapped the statue out for a couple flat stones, cleaned up the wisteria and contained it to just the back corner. I then planted the swords around the stones. I left the wood where it was because...well because I liked it how it was positioned already lol. I made three large bundles of anacharis and planted a bundle at each point the wood met the substrate and where the wood met the glass. I decided I didn't care for the moneywort much, but it is all I have for now so I threw out any bad pieces, cleaned it up and bit and planted a few bundles behind the wood to give the fish a place to hide.

Now here is just some more random shots of the new scape.

Tigers fighting over their new favorite spot









New rosey barb exploring









Janitor










So I am pretty happy with the new layout. I'd like to replace the moneywort with something that will still provide that forest effect that the fish love to swim through, but maybe with some color or just a different look in general. I also want to add some kind of moss (haven't decided on type yet) to grow in between and on the stones and also some moss (thinking flame moss) onto the exposed ends of the wood. Other than that I am looking for some kind of ground cover (micro sword maybe) to fill in some of the more open areas on the substrate and then wrap up the whole thing with a couple floating plants.

Oh and I picked up some yeast today and am cleaning out a 2 liter, so once I run to the LFS for some tubing and an air stone (to use just until i order a glass diffuser) I will finally get some CO2 into the tank.

Ok, so what do you all think?


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## Casie (Jun 8, 2010)

Heeeey TimeTwister, your tank is looking good! Great changes!


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## DevonCloud (May 9, 2010)

Yes, looks very nice.


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## TimeTwister (Jul 23, 2010)

The diy CO2 is finally installed. I didn't have a lot of supplies handy so I still need to tweak my setup but at least the tank is getting some much needed CO2. Basically I just have the 2 liter bottle with a line to a check valve and then to an air stone. The air stone produces bubbles that are too big and shoot to the surface so I am guessing I am wasting a lot of CO2 but it is better than nothing right now. Ebay is flooded with 99 cent glass diffusers but I question the quality. I've seen a lot of simple setups where people take a small, dirt cheap in tank filter, put a corse sponge on the outlet and the co2 tube into the input that seem to work pretty well.


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## dinthbrgh (Aug 2, 2010)

Quick word of advice, Timetwister. Watch your co2 jugs carefully the first hour or so after connecting the lid. The co2 will bubble and if it bubbles up into your tube you will have a tank full of yeast...especially if you hook it up and, say, go to work. A tank full of yeast wil melt your plants, and kill most, if not all, of your fish. Wish someone had warned me. It is not a fun venture to have to clean that mess up and try to save plants and fish! I had about 35 inches of fish in my 10g after I "yeasted" my 75g! Believe it or not, though, everyone survived.


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## TimeTwister (Jul 23, 2010)

dinthbrgh said:


> Quick word of advice, Timetwister. Watch your co2 jugs carefully the first hour or so after connecting the lid. The co2 will bubble and if it bubbles up into your tube you will have a tank full of yeast...especially if you hook it up and, say, go to work. A tank full of yeast wil melt your plants, and kill most, if not all, of your fish. Wish someone had warned me. It is not a fun venture to have to clean that mess up and try to save plants and fish! I had about 35 inches of fish in my 10g after I "yeasted" my 75g! Believe it or not, though, everyone survived.


Thanks for the advice! I actually filled my bottle with a little less water than what most people do just because of all the horror stories I heard with yeast getting in the tank...especially since I did not do the second bottle gas separator/bubble counter portion.

My big concern now is my fish. I know everyone says that a diy co2 setup cannot gas my fish, but I am still a little paranoid anyway. I noticed some of them swimming a little higher in the tank than normal, but they aren't gasping at the surface. I have a HOB style filter so I figure that should be aerating the water enough.

Well now that I got some DIY pumping and a slightly new layout, anyone have some advice for what plants I should add to improve the setup?


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## dinthbrgh (Aug 2, 2010)

Hi time,
As far as the co2 goes, I popped a little hole into the intake of my HOB and tucked the end of the co2 tube right intothe hole. It sucks the co2 up into the filter water before shooting it out the outlet. Helps a little to dissolve it. Check your ph in the morning before the lights come on, and at night before the lights go off. If there is a substantial fluctuation; ie lower ph in the morning, add an air bubbler at night to help burn off excess co2. Too much co2 can lower the ph. I found it took my fish a couple of days to adapt to the slightly lower oxygen levels.

As for plants...it looks good so far. I would suggest a couple of red or bronze wendtii crypts up front on the left, maybe a red rubin sword up front on the right, and some red ludwigia in the back center would set it all off nicely. Stem plants are difficult to get started. Be patient. I will also suggest a red tiger lotus bulb right in front of the back leg of driftwood, center tank. The bulbs are cheap and can be purchased online. It's the shipping that'll kill ya! =) Just possibilities to think about. Red plants require more lighting but you might have enough for these.

Good luck, and keep at it! I am!
D


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## Hilde (May 19, 2008)

TimeTwister said:


> My moneywort keeps melting where the stem meets the gravel. The Anacharis isn't exactly thriving either. The other issue is stem plants breaking free of the gravel and floating up.
> 
> I am guessing most of you will tell me is due to my lack of CO2 (though i am using some plant fertilizer i bought at petco). Any suggestions?


I think the plants need potassium nitrate. Have found that Spectricide stump remover from Lowe's is %100 potassium nitrate (KNO3). Check out Rex Griggs website about how to make a solution. 

What ferts are you using? I haven't found any decent ferts from Petco. Pet Smart has some Seachem products.


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## Hilde (May 19, 2008)

dinthbrgh said:


> Quick word of advice, Timetwister. Watch your co2 jugs carefully the first hour or so after connecting the lid. The co2 will bubble and if it bubbles up into your tube you will have a tank full of yeast.


Can this be prevented by using a gas separator bottle as in this picture.


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## dinthbrgh (Aug 2, 2010)

Hilde,
I believe you are right. I haven't tried it. I went with the simplest setup because I am scientifically challenged!:icon_lol: I'm really just a newbie helping another newbie. I'll leave the difficult and really important stuff to those who have more experience.


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## TimeTwister (Jul 23, 2010)

The diagram that Hilde posted is what I ultimately plan to setup for my DIY. I just wanted to hurry up and get something going so that is why i slapped together the bottle with just an airstone and check valve setup. Once I get some time I will do the multiple bottle and better diffuser thing.

Yeah, petco is pretty weak when it comes to ferts. I grabbed whatever they had to use for now. I also swung by Petsmart and Hilde is right, they are a little better but still limited. I am just going to order some excel on the weekend and maybe some other ferts.

I also like the suggestion to add some red plants to break things up a bit....but I think I am going to wait until the ones I have now start to thrive. This way I know I have my plant health situation under control before I spend money on better plants.

Unfortunately all that is on hold right now while I treat a full blown Ich breakout in my tank. Lesson for this week is that a quarantine tank is not a "nice to have" item, it is a must if I will be adding new fish.


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## dinthbrgh (Aug 2, 2010)

FWIW...when you make aquascaping, or for that matter, any big changes, to your tank, it stresses the fish out. Then they become susceptible to Ich. Treating Ich can be tricky with a planted tank. I have used Para Guard in the past with success. It doesn't harm the plants or the bio. Plants don't care much for salt and a lot of products will kill your plants. Especially delicate new plants. Read your packaging carefully.
Just FYI.


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## Noahma (Oct 18, 2009)

TimeTwister said:


> Thanks for the advise all. The corn looking plants and mondo grass were actually both from their "plant tank". The fern looking thing (which grows fast, but notice a leaf here or there is "melting". Hate to get rid of it since it grows so well and the leaves look different, but not keeping it at the expense of the health of my tank. I yanked the mostly dead java moss ball from the 10 gallon and the broad leaf stuff and grass already and will be making a trip to petco tomorrow. I don't know if I feel comfortable getting any more plants from them except maybe more swords since those and the densa are the only thinks i am sure are ok. Most of the plants in their plant tank looks half dead (which is why i picked the corn plants since they still looked healthy). Hopefully I will see some more good price package deals show up on the forums again soon so I can know i am getting good stuff.


I keep a list of plants that would work in my tank with me on my Iphone. Both common and scientific names. Petco does get true aquatic plants in, but you have to be careful of the terrestrial ones. The petco up the street from me has a very knowledgeable person running the fish department, and usually will quietly steer people from the non aquatic plants in the plant tank. They usually get a random mix of plants every other week, I have purchased some very nice Crypt. from them, they are usually labeled just as crypt, so doing some research is essential from them. Of course there is the swap and shop here on the forums that is GREAT for getting ahold of some good plants for a low price.


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## TimeTwister (Jul 23, 2010)

Noahma said:


> I keep a list of plants that would work in my tank with me on my Iphone. Both common and scientific names. Petco does get true aquatic plants in, but you have to be careful of the terrestrial ones. The petco up the street from me has a very knowledgeable person running the fish department, and usually will quietly steer people from the non aquatic plants in the plant tank. They usually get a random mix of plants every other week, I have purchased some very nice Crypt. from them, they are usually labeled just as crypt, so doing some research is essential from them. Of course there is the swap and shop here on the forums that is GREAT for getting ahold of some good plants for a low price.


 
I started doing something similar but instead of storing them on my phone I just use it to google any plant I see that I like. Do the same for fish now. Especially after they sold me not one, but two fish that would greatly outgrow my tank I stopped trusting them so I google everyone. Smart phones are handy for stuff like that.

I do keep an eye out in Petco and Petsmart still though, because like you said they do get good stuff here and there. They had some anubus and some more swords last time I went, but I held off since their prices weren't that special and the plants just didn't do anything for me. Once my tank re-stablizes I plan to just buy a plant package from our swap and shop forum. I trust my fellow forum mates here more than I do the store.


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