New to this...

[fbm]

I am setting up a 80 gallon bowfront planted freshwater tank.

I am going to use my old reef lighting system which I realize will probably be too powerful, but I am going take some bulbs out. First questions is will 10k's and actinics work on plants as well? Or should I replace them with 6500k?

Next question is I tend to do everything the DIY way and as cheap as I can go without sacrificing the end product. So as far as substrate goes is flourite available at Home Depot (just potting soil right0? or when can you get it at a non pet store. Then I was just going to through some very small pebbles over it or do I even need to do that?

Can I use RO/DI water? Will this okay for planted freshwater as well? Or do I need to just use my well water. I don't like the taste or smell of my well water but after it goes through the softener it is tolerable.

Thank you very much

[Ulan]

Hello and welcome :).

10,000 K's are fine. The actinics will be more benefitial to algae growth than for the plants, so you may want to exchange them at least partially for 6,700K's.

The substrate depends on what you go for. You can use some topsoil without fertilizer and coarse sand (like pool filter sand or playsand), but that's a difficult start (look for some "El Natural" articles on the internet). Look at the "substrate" section of Rex Grigg's guide for beginners here (http://rexgrigg.com/). He mentions a few alternatives, like Profile and Turface, which are both unpleasantly light :).

Pure RO/DI water has to be re-mineralized, which might be costly. Alternatively, you can mix your water with RO/DI water. Don't use the softened water, as it contains too much salt (= NaCl). If your water before softening doesn't contain any poisonous minerals, you might be better of using it directly, bypassing the softener.

[Rex Grigg]

Flourite is NOT potting soil. And potting soil belongs in a pot. Not an aquarium. You might find Flourite at a pet store. If you have a store that specializes in fish your chances go up.

It's best to not try and top the Flourite with anything. If you want you can mix the Flourite 50/50 based on depth with a coarse sand of the same grain size. If the grain sizes are not close then the larger substrate will end up on top.

Raw well water in most cases would be better than softened water. RO/DI except in very rare cases is not needed. The RO/DI process takes out nutrients that the plants need which you will need to add back in.

Take a few minutes and read my Guide. It's going to answer questions you have not yet thought to ask.

A planted tank is a totally different animal than a reef tank. We add what reefers try and eliminate.

[fbm]

Thanks for chiming in guys.

First off all the thanks to you Rex for your website. I just found it and read everything, including your recipe for fruitcake.

My lighting system will be 8x54 watt T5 High Output for a total of 432 watts over a 72 gallon tank. I do not need to use all of the bulbs for this to work. So is there any advantage to using 10,000k (currently have) or switching to the lower kelvin bulbs? I did see that my actinics are useless in plants. I would like to be able to keep all plants, as I do not know exactly what I will end up with, yet.

I did use my well water with my reef tank and had serious issues with algea formation. I attributed this to all the farms in my area that fertilize alot. I assumed that some of this fertilizer was making it into my tank via my well water and causing this problem. That is why I switched to RO/DI water.

The reason I am getting out of reefing is the cost of upkeep. But I want to start things off right this time, too many costly lesson learned mistakes from reefing. So flourite is the best substrate choice or is there a better one, or is the best a mixture of flourite and sand?

Thank you very much.

[Rex Grigg]

You don't need near that much light over a 80 gallon tank. In fact for a planted tank that's an insane amount of light. It's possible to keep it stable with those lighting levels but not probable for someone just starting out.

I personally don't use 10000k bulbs or T5 lights. I do know that the GE 6500k bulbs are very popular.

You really want to start in about the 3 wpg range before you try your hand with more light. And of course you will need pressurized CO2.

I have tanks with both pure Flourite and the Flourite/sand mix. Too tell the truth I really prefer the Flourite/Sand mix.

One substrate that is really gaining traction is the ADA Aquasoil. I have not yet tried it but the people that have tried it love it. There are many posts about it over at www.plantedtank.net in the substrate section.

[Ulan]

I have tanks with both pure Flourite and the Flourite/sand mix. Too tell the truth I really prefer the Flourite/Sand mix.
Interesting. Does the Flourite/Sand mix stay stable, or does the sand migrate to the bottom of the tank? And do you take normal pool filter sand?

[Rex Grigg]

If you are going to do the mix then buy the Flourite. Then take a sample to some place that has different sizes of coarse sand. Match the grain size as close as you can. It will not separate then.

I have had my 55 gallon tank setup with the mix for over 4 years and it has not separated. I got my sand from an industrial supply house. Not a lot of pools here in Portland OR. So the BORG doesn't carry pool filter sand. And I never thought of going to a pool shop to buy sand.

[Ulan]

Thanks. I'll have to try this. Here in the Phoenix AZ area, there's no shortage of pool supplies ;). But you are right, the stuff is probably overpriced.