# Need advices on 2.5 gallon low tech planted tank



## brt_p (Nov 16, 2008)

you have the right start...
but, i have a crazy idea about ur tank..since banana plant can grow larger than ur tank, i prefer it would be a moss scape with a banana plant in the middle of the tank..(just a suggestion :redface


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## Homer_Simpson (May 10, 2007)

Welcome TPT. I setup a 3 gallon at work as per Tom Barr's Low Light Method, daily excel dosing, pinch of dry ferts weekly.
http://www.barrreport.com/articles/433-non-co2-methods.html

I had a great deal of success on that tank with this method. The plants that grew really well were Ambulia, Apongenton crispus, and anubias nana. Growth was nice and slow so I did not have to trim, other than the ambulia which grew like a weed. The java ferns did not fare well, largely because I ended up with a major pond snail problem and the stupid snails mutilated the java ferns. The cryptocorne I had in the tank melted and never recovered. There was no algae whatsoever, but the pond snail problem was so out of control that I had to finally tear the tank down. The whitecloud minnow and Amano Shrimp did really well in the tank.

I would get rid of the banana plant, as it will definitely outgrow your tank. Eventually even if it does well, the tubers will rot. I believe that you are overstocked with 2 whitecloud minnows and Betta. I would have suggested that you stick with one or the other. You may be inviting problems over the long run. In a small tank like that overstocking can not only stress all the fish out but lead to too high levels of dissolved organic waste. I am beginning to believe that high levels of dissolved organics may play a major role in the development of algae such as Blue Green Algae so watch out, you could end up digging yourself a hole that you may find difficult to get out of.


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## x2h (Dec 23, 2008)

Thanks for your quick response! I think one of the plants in my tank is indeed Ambulia, it's encouraging to know that it grows well in a small tank. I think I will add more of it as well Java fern to my tank. 

Any suggestion to the foreground plants? I am not a big fan of moss since I think they look like "weed". :icon_mrgr


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## lauraleellbp (Feb 3, 2008)

Welcome to TPT!

I think you're likely to have more luck with carpeting plants with at least a smaller-grained substrate (smaller pea gravel or even better some plant substrate like Flourite, SMS/Turface, Eco Complete, etc). This will encourage better root development than the larger gravel you have in there right now.

Some plants to try would be Marselia minuta (dwarf clover) or E. tenellus 'narrow' (narrow pygmy chain sword).


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## rpayer (Jun 9, 2008)

Did you seed the filter with any filter media from another tank? If not you should test your water and be prepared to do a few water changes or you may lose your fish. The stress zyme will help speed things up but you are still going to see some fluctuating levels right at first until your biological filter is established..


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## x2h (Dec 23, 2008)

lauraleellbp said:


> Welcome to TPT!
> 
> I think you're likely to have more luck with carpeting plants with at least a smaller-grained substrate (smaller pea gravel or even better some plant substrate like Flourite, SMS/Turface, Eco Complete, etc). This will encourage better root development than the larger gravel you have in there right now.
> 
> Some plants to try would be Marselia minuta (dwarf clover) or E. tenellus 'narrow' (narrow pygmy chain sword).


Thanks! I will look into that! This makes my holiday season fun!


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## x2h (Dec 23, 2008)

rpayer said:


> Did you seed the filter with any filter media from another tank? If not you should test your water and be prepared to do a few water changes or you may lose your fish. The stress zyme will help speed things up but you are still going to see some fluctuating levels right at first until your biological filter is established..


Thanks for the advice! I do have BioMax from Red Sea in the filter so the bacteria could attach to the surface. I was afraid of introducing, so didn't use water from an established tank.


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## x2h (Dec 23, 2008)

lauraleellbp said:


> Welcome to TPT!
> 
> I think you're likely to have more luck with carpeting plants with at least a smaller-grained substrate (smaller pea gravel or even better some plant substrate like Flourite, SMS/Turface, Eco Complete, etc). This will encourage better root development than the larger gravel you have in there right now.
> 
> Some plants to try would be Marselia minuta (dwarf clover) or E. tenellus 'narrow' (narrow pygmy chain sword).


Where can I find a small package (~3 lb) of the substrates you mentioned above? None of the above products I find online have a small size package. Thanks.


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## merk1_99 (Nov 11, 2008)

I think you are overstocked. I would look into a Diane Walstad El natural tank, or the Tom Barre modified natural approach for no water changes. I would also add more plants like petite nanas, bacopa, or maybe a small crypt.


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## Kayen (Oct 14, 2007)

x2h said:


> Where can I find a small package (~3 lb) of the substrates you mentioned above? None of the above products I find online have a small size package. Thanks.


Those usually come in larger packages.
But hey, you'd have some left over.
The cheapest would be SMS/Turface/Shultzes Aquatic Soil, i would go with Turface / SMS as for it's dark colour. If you wanna dish out a bit more , go with Flourite Black (Sand). But you'll have left overs either way, as i doubt they sell in 3 lb proportions.


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## Homer_Simpson (May 10, 2007)

x2h said:


> Where can I find a small package (~3 lb) of the substrates you mentioned above? None of the above products I find online have a small size package. Thanks.


Someone living in the same city as you may volunteer to give you some leftovers. Shipping costs from Canada to US make it cost prohibitive or I would have sent you some leftover commercial substrate that I have.

Just so you know, many people have found that poolfilter sand over plant fert tabs(for deep rooting plants) seems to work well on such small tanks and is relatively inexpensive.


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## x2h (Dec 23, 2008)

Homer_Simpson said:


> Someone living in the same city as you may volunteer to give you some leftovers. Shipping costs from Canada to US make it cost prohibitive or I would have sent you some leftover commercial substrate that I have.
> 
> Just so you know, many people have found that poolfilter sand over plant fert tabs(for deep rooting plants) seems to work well on such small tanks and is relatively inexpensive.


Thanks very much. I ordered some substrate from ADA (I think it might be Amazonia) 3 liter. It's not cheap at $12 plus shipping, but, oh well.:icon_sad:


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## Homer_Simpson (May 10, 2007)

x2h said:


> Thanks very much. I ordered some substrate from ADA (I think it might be Amazonia) 3 liter. It's not cheap at $12 plus shipping, but, oh well.:icon_sad:


IMHO, ADA Aquasoil is probably the best substrate money can buy. How well it would work on a small tank, I cannot say. I am just testing it for the first time so cannot recommend it for smaller 2.5-5 gallon tanks one way or another until I see what happens after 3-6 months with my experimental tank.

You should be aware that for the first little while the Aquasoil has a tendency to leach ammonia into the water so you will need to do frequent water changes for a while to get around this problem and ensure that you don't put any fish at risk.
Here is an article on one method of preparing the Aquasoil.
http://www.theshrimpfarm.com/blog/archives/28


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## x2h (Dec 23, 2008)

Homer_Simpson said:


> IMHO, ADA Aquasoil is probably the best substrate money can buy. How well it would work on a small tank, I cannot say. I am just testing it for the first time so cannot recommend it for smaller 2.5-5 gallon tanks one way or another until I see what happens after 3-6 months with my experimental tank.
> 
> You should be aware that for the first little while the Aquasoil has a tendency to leach ammonia into the water so you will need to do frequent water changes for a while to get around this problem and ensure that you don't put any fish at risk.
> Here is an article on one method of preparing the Aquasoil.
> http://www.theshrimpfarm.com/blog/archives/28


Wow thanks for the tip! I will follow that article for sure.


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## NightSky (Feb 16, 2009)

Homer_Simpson said:


> I am beginning to believe that high levels of dissolved organics may play a major role in the development of algae such as Blue Green Algae


Sorry to bump an old thread but just wanted to comment on this. You are correct in that assumption. BGA has grown in my tank in instances of forgoing WCs for over a month or so. I also tended to get the red algae near the high oxygenated areas by the HOB during such an environment too. Eventually I've had to take all the fish and plants out and clean the whole subtrate mixing it with my hand so all the detritus comes out and change the water several times 'till it comes out clear after swishing. The result ends up being a clean, no crazy algae tank unless detritus builds up again.


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