# Want to start doing a planted aquarium...assistance pls



## Cagepride (Nov 30, 2013)

Hello everyone,
I have been buying some love light aquarium plants and testing how it goes. So far I really like it, but there seems to be a lot of different opinions online on what is best to do.
I am a beginner in the aspect of doing freshwater live plants. So I am not sure what substrate is best, is co2 a must, more filtration ect?
I currently have a sufficent light system and a fx5 filter on my 144 gallon half circle aquarium.
A nice detailed list and opinions of the experienced hobbyist would be a great help. Some mopix their substrate, some use only one.....
As much help as possible would be great.

I am also curious on when I do change the substrate, do I remove the fish and put them in a cooler as I take out all the exciting gravel, and wood ect

Thanks I'm advance everyone....want to do this right and not lose any fish and all that fun


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## TorontoPlantMan (Aug 16, 2013)

Go through the different stickies on the tops of the pages, Darkblade also has another good one on CO2. Everyone will give you different answers based on what they like to use and their experience, it's best if you do a bit of research first and then ask more detailed questions in terms of things like "diy co2 or pressurized" "store brought substrate or diy? "dirt or no dirt" so on and so forth.

http://gtaaquaria.com/forum/showthread.php?t=11247

http://gtaaquaria.com/forum/showthread.php?t=12271

In terms of your fish though, put them in a bucket with your aquarium water and put your heater in there and if possible shove an air stone in there or little HOB as setting up a new tank usually takes a few hours.


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## Fishfur (Mar 4, 2012)

Just curious, when you say 'when I do change the substrate',, do I remove the fish ? It sort of sounds like you're planning to change substrate more than once. Usually once you've got it in there and planted, it's there to stay unless you find you truly dislike what you picked.

Fish should be removed for major rescapes, or changing entire substrates, it can stir up a great deal of crud and dirt. You may find it easier to catch them using a large clear plastic container and a net.. or two nets. Use one net to gently chivvy the fish into the plastic container or the other net. I like the container, personally, less stress for the fish, hopefully, as he never actually leaves water. Just gently submerge it and let him out underwater.

To start with, you can use Excel, [ API makes a brand of this too], rather than C02 right away. Gives you time to see if high tech is really what you want. It's not quite as good as the gas is, but it's pretty good for most plants.

You can buy the makings of your own dry ferts at hydroponic stores, which saves quite a bit on premixed frets, like Flourish. You'll need test kits, possibly including one for iron, which does not come in a master kit. Master kits have most of what you need, cheaper than buying them separately.

Filtration, a very personal sort of subject. So many filters, so many opinions. Mainly the idea is to keep the water clean, with Zero levels of ammonia, nitrite, and moderate levels of Nitrate.. 20 ppm or less, because that's what fish need for good health. Planted tanks usually don't have too much trouble keeping nitrate levels down, but you still need to do some water changes, to replenish the minerals that get used up by plant and fish metabolisms. If you don't plan to have fish, you would not need to cycle the tank to start with either. If you do have fish, a cycled tank is necessary. Fastest way is to get used media from an established filter to seed yours. Speeds things up enormously. Once cycled, you need to continue to feed the filter ammonia, or put some fish in, and their waste will feed the filter.

If you have enough PAR to grow anything you want, then research on the plants is what you need. Another forum called The Planted tank, has lots of very good info. Some plants are a huge pain to grow, needing constant attention. Many are less picky, given enough light and food. Generally carpet plants, those grown on the bottom, to look like carpet or lawns, need a fair bit of attention to look good. Regular trimming, and other plants will need to be cut back, trimmed, reduced, etc. Some spread by runners, some flower out of water. Some need very specific water conditions to thrive, and not all plants can be grown will all other plants.

Be aware some stores sometimes sell plants for aquaria that aren't true aquatics. Some are actually terrestrials that will survive for awhile, some are marginal pond or bog plants that may live for varying periods, but not do well for too long. They simply don't adapt. If you aren't sure, look up the botanical name to find out what it is. Some of the toughest plants [ meaning most difficult] are those with brilliant colours, mainly reds, and some that need soft or acidic water.

You also need to decide what kind of fish you want, or if you want a underwater garden without any fish. If there is no livestock at all, you have to fertilize a bit more for macros, since the fish won't be supplying the converted ammonia.

There is so much information, and everyone has their opinions, so it can be a bit of a challenge to wade through it all. But I'd start with some of the simpler plants, because they won't die on you in a week or two if you mess up a bit. You can always sell them later if you decide to replace them.

Look at some books or at least pictures of tanks from folks like Takashi Amano, or the Dutch school, and display tank contest winners. Look up dirted tanks too. All have their charms, pluses and minuses.


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## deepblue3 (Jan 11, 2014)

If you know what plants you want to keep, then you can determine their nutrient and lighting demands- which substrate would be best and what amount of lighting you need. Good luck!


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## arturo (Jun 29, 2014)

Cagepride said:


> Hello everyone,
> I have been buying some love light aquarium plants and testing how it goes. So far I really like it, but there seems to be a lot of different opinions online on what is best to do.
> I am a beginner in the aspect of doing freshwater live plants. So I am not sure what substrate is best, is co2 a must, more filtration ect?
> I currently have a sufficent light system and a fx5 filter on my 144 gallon half circle aquarium.
> ...


I can give you a little help with the substrate change since I was in your situation not too long ago. I bought my first tank around the same time last year and quickly got into planted tanks. It was an uphill battle from the start because when i set the tank up, i had less than optimal lights and substrate. When i switched out the substrate and went fully planted, it took me about 8 hours from prep to completion, and that was only 29 gallons....so be forewarned!

As far as substrate goes, you have plenty of options depending on your flexibility, and i say this because you already have fish and certain substrates require cycling time.

*The most hassle free option i can recommend is eco-complete*. Its a porus substrate that is said to absorb nutrients that the plants need, roots can grip on to it pretty well and it wont affect your ph.

Another alternative is florite, but personally, i think its ugly, its sharp so it will scratch your glass and it clouds your water like hell when you put it in.

...then you get into dirt, this is where your flexibility comes into play.

ADA is arguably one of the best substrates you can use in a planted tank. It's very pricey, and for a tank your size you will break the bank on it. You will also need to figure out what to do with your fish because its going to take at least 3 weeks to leach out any ammonia. You're also going to be more inclined to use co2 and high light with this setup because it is jam packed full of nutrients which could lead to algae down the line, but i cant say that you absolutely need it. Netlea is another brand of aquasoil available at Aqua Inspiration but i havent seen or heard much about it. It's also more expensive.

You could also look at fluval stratum. looks like ADA soil but i don't believe it leaches ammonia. you might want to do some additional research on that.

'miracle grow organic choice potting mix' is another great substrate and it's literally dirt cheap, but it requires a lot of cleaning and preparation. I have a friend who did a substrate switch with i was concerned that he was going to have a huge ammonia spike. Apparently he managed to do this without one, so i was wrong there. You will want to cap the dirt with a layer of sand. Black diamond blasting sand seems to be the go to choice if you want to keep costs low.

i have pals that go all out with the miracle grow route and do a base of clay baked with osmocote and all that jazz, but DIY isn't my thing.

Okay, now for the fun part.

Like Fishfur mentioned. You absolutely must remove your fish.

1) Go to walmart and get a nice big rubbermaid tote (food grade if possible)

2) Take anything out of your tank, decorations, wood, rock whatever and put them aside.

3) Add water from your tank to the totes.

4) now catch your fish and put them in. Work quickly and carefully.

5) Add your heater and filter to the totes.

6) remove the rest of your water from the tank and keep it in some 5 gal buckets

7) remove substrate, give the tank a light wipe down if you want

8) add the new substrate - Depending if you went with soil or not, decide if you think your fish are going to be okay in rubbermaid totes. In your situation, i strongly suggest you go the eco complete route.

9) add water from the buckets back to the tank

10) add plants

11) put the fish,

12) top off with fresh water if necessary

13) filter/heater back in

you get the idea... let me just tell you, that re subbing a tank is not fun AT ALL if you have fish and the tank is established. and to be honest, if i had to do it again, i wouldn't.

if you're not too attached to your fish, i would sell them and then start from scratch because it allows you to take your time.

Hopefully this wasn't too long and gave you enough insight to make your decision lol


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## tranceaddict (Apr 3, 2011)

everything depends on how much money and time you have. 

If your willing to spend the cash and have the time to maintain the tank then, i'd suggest high light, and and expensive substrate. As this option will not limit the species of plants and fish that can be kept. (high light/ low light plants)

If your a little on the cheap/poorer side, with little time to maintain the tank then I would suggest a low tech tank. Low light (cheaper), and can even do an organic soil covered by sand. 4 bucks for a 30kg bag of sand, and 10bucks for organic soil. You cannot use regular soil. With a low tech tank your are limited to the types of plants that will survive in your tank. and also less maintenance on the tank as a whole (less algae scraping off glass)

whatever you choose you have the option to ask for advice on here


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## pyrrolin (Jan 11, 2012)

There is no best choice, there is just the best for you, needs, wants, budget, time, resources. My tanks are organic top soil capped with sandblasting sand. What I would like is eco complete fine black but that would break the bank.


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## Rmwbrown (Jan 22, 2009)

As others have said it's big tank and it is going to cost you. I have never used soil before, but I have capped fluorolite with sand and done various work arounds to try and save money. Trying to save money is going to cost you in the long run. It will cost you time, labour and at times, less than desirable returns. If you don't have the money for the right stuff, save your money 'till you do.

That said, you would need to be in the business to even contemplate totally filling this with *any substrate*. The only nice planted tank is tank where the plants flourish. You can drop a ton of money on a project, build the biggest set up, and if your plants aren't doing well, it just looks like garbage.

Since you are new to this, you are talking lower light, and medium growth. 
That said, I don't think you should even contemplate going to all this work unless you're going to be using pressured C02.

In my mind the answer is to set up a fern tank. Get some neutral rocks from a landscaper, 4 or 5 pieces of nice drift wood, and then strap on African fern for the mid ground, and something like trident or needle leave fern for the top/back ground to make an "island" of plants amonst the wood and rocks that will fit perfectly with the shape of your tank and the various viewing angles. Once this stuff gets going it will fill out quickly and look amazing (I grew 30 feet worth of African Fern in one year). More over, if your Co2 is set up right and your not getting any BBA, you could start filling in the foreground with anubias and a few mosses.

The better part? You don't necessarily need any substrate. Just cover the base of the tank with a thin layer of sand that can be vacuumed out and replaced as its starts looking bad. Or, if you really want some rooted plants, just use rocks to partition off spaces and fill this with a high quality substrate like Aquasoil. Say for, instance, some Vallis. or long hair grass in the background, or clumps or glosso in the foreground.

Do a quick image search and you will find a dozens of tanks like this online and most look stunning.


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