Have to give up on reefs for a while, anyone into fw planted tanks?

[won digity]

I have to give reefing a break for a while. Few factors like lack of time, money, and the fact that I have enough gear lying around entice me to try this. Plus I'm feeling like a rather incompetent reefer at this point after my last tank crash. So, who heres got a planted FW tank? I'm setting up a 10 gal as I write this, lol.

[JN Reef]

Planted FW tank. I have a 50lbs filled CO2 bottle for sale if you need it, since you will have a planted tank.

[epicfish]

I have 3 planted tanks.

[JeffersonReef]

sammoorsfield has a nice planted tank... maybe drop him a pm. i am doing one for my father in law, and sam gave me some good advice. GL

PS - If your leaving reefs cuz of time and money, planted tanks might not be the way to go. They can also be pretty expensive and time consuming to setup as I understand... maybe just go FOWLR? Just MHO.

[Duddly01]

I have a 24DX nano planted tank. I am not dosing CO2 and the plants are growing like crazy (Amazon Sword, Tiger Lotus, Cabomba). I have two to three new leaves on the Tiger lotus every week and have to prune regularly to keep them from getting to the surface and blocking out the light to the rest of the tank. There are some plants that require less upkeep than others. Some that will not thrive without co2, others that will do just fine.

[won digity]

Originally posted by JeffersonReef
sammoorsfield has a nice planted tank... maybe drop him a pm. i am doing one for my father in law, and sam gave me some good advice. GL

PS - If your leaving reefs cuz of time and money, planted tanks might not be the way to go. They can also be pretty expensive and time consuming to setup as I understand... maybe just go FOWLR? Just MHO.

Yeah, I'm doing more research into it and I'm finding that out. luckily I think I'm temporarily ok with the equipment I have left over.
I'm hoping that with a little of my left over gear I should be ok for a while, though I would love some glass pippetes.

[arcab4]

wish i still had mine set up!

http://www.myfishtank.net/my-29-gall...eshwater-tank/

[ktrandc]

I have the fluorite sand needed for plants for free if you need it.

Mike

[won digity]

sweet tank arcab!

Ktrandc, sending ya a pm on that flourite.

[bergzy]

here is my 29g fw planted tank in its heyday/peak beauty.

from personal experience, i wouldnt do a fw planted tank again as it is 'almost' as much work as a reef.

fw plants are cheaper though than corals.



i have the tank set up with:

- 5 lb co2
- reef fanatic pH controller
- aqua medic 1000 co2 reactor
- ehein ecco (the largest one which isnt that big)
- hydor 200w inline heater
- 150w de 5700k halide on a hamilton reefstar with electronic ballast
- eco complete substrate
- seachem fertilzer tabs
- 5g water change with ro/di balanced with kent ro right...done twice a week
- fish: 3 discus, 8 cardinals, 8 rummy nose, 2 albino cory's, and another 3 tetras i cant remember.

i have since let it slide a little as i go all my fish out except the two spawning discus...which lay a ton of eggs every week or so...but always eat the fry in a couple of days...maddening.

[SOREVIV476]

any sites with helpfull info?

[bergzy]

Originally posted by SOREVIV476
any sites with helpfull info?

http://www.aquaticplantcentral.com/

http://www.plantedtank.net/forums/

[Scissorhand]

On a scale of 1 to 10, is a planted tank just as hard as keeping sps?

or if not, where would they be on a scale of 1-10, 10 being the most difficult.

I've never kept planted tanks before but always wondered.

never much into fresh water but I love planted tanks.

[bergzy]

Originally posted by Scissorhand
On a scale of 1 to 10, is a planted tank just as hard as keeping sps?

or if not, where would they be on a scale of 1-10, 10 being the most difficult.

I've never kept planted tanks before but always wondered.

never much into fresh water but I love planted tanks.

hmmm,

i dont think it's hard keeping fw plants...just read up on it like anything else. there are some tricks and tips etc like any hobby.

the most infuriating thing you will experience is green water, really nasty hair algae and snails (desirable in salt...not so in fw plants).

on a scale of 1-10? to get a really nice display? about a 6 for moderate plants and a 7 for the harder stuff.

growth has never been an issue for me. it is the algae issues...it is the exact reverse of reef. slow flow, max co2 saturation to the point to 'almost' killing your fish, high nutrients (ferts anyway...no phosphates, nitrates etc) and start with A LOT of plants rather than one coral at a tme. trim as you go.

hope this helps a little!

[HenryTran]

if done right, a plant tank is very soothing. check out this site:

http://www.adana-usa.com/index.php?m...=afa_portfolio

[pjhaddock]

I spend less time caring for my reef tank than I did my planted tank. It took HOURS every week (some plants twice a week) to trim and replant the plants. Lighting is just the same as a reef. You have your Co2, reactors, PH Controllers, the lovely "green water" that happens. DE filters, daily dosing of Nitrate, Phosphate, Potassium, etc... I liked it, but for the time/money and what you get out of it, reef all the way. Here is a pic of mine at one point.

[xtm]

I have a FW planted.. it's very soothing. I've been doing planted tanks way before I started reefkeeping.


On a scale of 1 to 10, is a planted tank just as hard as keeping sps?

I would rate planted tanks as 2/10. Plants are not as expensive as SPS and there is not too much at stake. You kill a plant, $2.50 gone.. big deal. You bleach a colony, $100 worth of zooxanthellae turns into white skeleton. IME, the real challenge with plants is keeping nuisance algae in check. This is difficult as there are not too many FW fish/inverts that will eat algae. Plecos get HUGE, real SAE's are hard to find, and snails don't do jack. In reefkeeping, you have shrimps, snails, fish, the whole cleanup krew. Also it's difficult if you choose to plant Glosso's... they are planted one-by-one. It's as difficult as rice painting.

[Foogoo]

Hey man, good to hear you're not done with tanks completely! I have a 55w PC you can use. I almost went back to FW planted after the move btw...

[phender]

I don't remember planted tanks being very hard. I never did the CO2 stuff.
I was constantly having to sell back swords and val. Crypts and apons did very well also with just 2 normal fluorescent grow lights, 2 daylight fluorescents, laterite in the gravel and a canister filter.

[Foogoo]

If you've kept SPS successfully in a reef, planted tanks are cake.

[sammoorefield]

My planted tank is ez except for algae is a pita. Its a 27g with no filtration and a co2 tank on a timer. I use the 65w light from costco. flourite substrate and flourish fertilizer every once in a while.

[guppyy]

Heres my planted tank. Low light moss and slow growing plants = less work =]

[ktrandc]

Hey Guppyy beautiful tank. I used to have a 180 gallon planted tank and it was so much harder to do than a mixed reef tank.

Check out the Amano books. He really knows how to do planted tanks.

Mike

[won digity]

Cool tanks you guys. I need to get this thing going. I like the fact that plants are cheap, but the algae scares me. I'm going to take some time and plan this system out, no rushing.

[sammoorefield]

Those algae fix additives do work well with green water and a few other types of filamentous algae. If you want cuttings from my tank let me know... I have no snails either.