View Full Version : lights,plants,etc
kygrl
02-06-2008, 12:43 AM
Okay everybody, i've got 65 plants coming tommorrow and lights coming tommorrow. I will spread the plants out between my 55 and my 75 gallon tanks.
My husband got a really good deal on lights, the problem however is that they are 260 watts that will go over my 75. Now I am scared that it's just too much light. I have ordered Excel and it's arriving tommorrow also.
It will be at least a couple of months before I can even consider getting a good CO2 sytem. Is it possible to keep algae at bay and maintain good plants with this much light?
Bk828
02-06-2008, 12:48 AM
Okay everybody, i've got 65 plants coming tommorrow and lights coming tommorrow. I will spread the plants out between my 55 and my 75 gallon tanks.
My husband got a really good deal on lights, the problem however is that they are 260 watts that will go over my 75. Now I am scared that it's just too much light. I have ordered Excel and it's arriving tommorrow also.
It will be at least a couple of months before I can even consider getting a good CO2 sytem. Is it possible to keep algae at bay and maintain good plants with this much light?
65 plants nice, where you ordered from??
260watts over 75g isnt 2 bad, just keep the lights on for 8-10hrs. Also make sure the bulbs are for freshwater and ideal for plants. And careful with excel since it can kill some plants.
Mgamer20o0
02-06-2008, 12:50 AM
depending on the plants i would look to keep 1/2 the lights on for the full 8-10 hours with a burst in the middle of 2-3 hours of all the lights.
Fishy_Fun
02-06-2008, 6:57 AM
i have to agree with mgamer on this one.I am also curious to where you bought your plants
loaches r cool
02-06-2008, 7:35 AM
I take it this is a 4x 65W CFL fixture. That is a bit much without co2. If you can shut off half the lights until you have co2 running I think that would be best. At full power you'd probably need good co2 and a good fert routine to keep algae at bay.
Squawkbert
02-06-2008, 8:40 AM
^^ or you'll be going throught he excel at a pretty costly rate.
PS - if you're not from Kentucky, I don't want to know why you chose that username.:eek3:
I ordered from Aquarium Plants.com. I have a couple of friends who order from them and always sing their praises. I read a lot of reviews and there were a lot of bad ones but there in turn were a lot of good ones. I wish I knew how to post pictures but I don't. But I will let everyone know how they look.
I will go to Wal-Mart this morning and get a timer. The light fixture has two switches so I can turn them on and off seperatly. I am looking into the DIY C02.
I appreciate your advice.
This may sound like a stupid question but is a small amount of CO2 better than no CO2 at all?
Cory Keeper
02-06-2008, 10:13 AM
I'm inclined to say yes, almost any carbon is better than none at all. I've had to start dosing nitrates, I can go from 20-25 PPM to 0 PPM in about 5 days. Even with elevated nitrate levels my algae is slowly disappearing with my otos eating it (little fat bellies :D ) with almost no new algae because the plants out compete the algae.
You might be able to get enough CO2 with about 4-6 yeast bottles as a temporary measure untill you can get a pressurized system.
kygrl
02-06-2008, 10:23 AM
Thanks for the quick reply. I have a five gallon water bottle and I am considering using this for now. I wish there was a thread here showing different DIY CO2 systems. Sometimes a picture is worth a thousand words!!!
Mandairn
02-06-2008, 10:46 AM
I like this one. http://www.cichlid-forum.com/articles/diy_co2.php
kygrl
02-06-2008, 10:54 AM
My plants are here!!!!!!! They look beautiful!!!!! Big and beautiful!!!
irishspy
02-06-2008, 11:14 AM
My plants are here!!!!!!! They look beautiful!!!!! Big and beautiful!!!
Good luck with them! :thm:
What kind did you order?
My plants are here!!!!!!! They look beautiful!!!!! Big and beautiful!!!
post some pics !!!
(when you reply to thread,go down to manage attachments,browse to your pics and hit upload )
I promise to try and post pictures soon. I am so happy, it's like Christmas!!!
My lights came in this evening and they have 2 65watt actinic bulbs, 2 12,000 k bulbs and some small (night lights in the back) I have two more daylight bulbs coming. So give me your opinions.
Plecosterone
02-06-2008, 10:20 PM
Definately use the daylight bulbs. You can use either or both of the others for looks but won't do much for the plants. When I first tried co2, I only used one 2 liter bottle on my 75 gallon and saw an amazing difference in the plant growth, so I would say that any co2 is better than none. I myself would only use the 2 daylight bulbs to start as I find that if you have never had a planted tank before lots of light can be a real head-ache. 130 watts is plenty to start with. I use less than that in both my 75 and 90 gallons and have no problems growing plants (see sig).
Mgamer20o0
02-06-2008, 10:39 PM
http://www.qsl.net/w2wdx/aquaria/diyco2.html
thing with co2 is its good to have stable co2 amount. with bigger tanks its harder to get to the levels and keep them stable.
My 55 - These both were taken with my phone.
fishorama
02-07-2008, 11:21 AM
Very nice! I suggest you take the weights off & plant the stem plants individually or only a few together. A PITA but they will grow better & be less easy to uproot.
You'll have hours of fun rearranging as some plants grow faster & taller than others. We'll need an update in a couple months.
FtwayneFish
02-07-2008, 11:51 AM
Looks nice, let me know what you think of mine. there in the link below.
Bk828
02-07-2008, 12:08 PM
Very nice, looks like you will have some great coloring other than green.
Mgamer20o0
02-07-2008, 12:13 PM
Very nice! I suggest you take the weights off & plant the stem plants individually or only a few together. A PITA but they will grow better & be less easy to uproot.
You'll have hours of fun rearranging as some plants grow faster & taller than others. We'll need an update in a couple months.
i highly agree.
loaches r cool
02-07-2008, 12:24 PM
Looks good. Just be mindful of your light /fert / co2 situation or those nice plants will turn into algae ridden eye sores. Good luck!
Thanks everyone! I know I have a lot of work ahead of me. Since I am a stay at home mom it gives me something to do. My husband is a mechanical genius and he is looking into the CO2 for me.
After cleaning the plants yesterday, which took a while I just kinda placed them in temporary positions. The woman in me will have them moved around several times before the month is through! They were very clean looking but I just didn't want to take any chances.
I do wish I had ordered some riccia. I think it is gorgeous. Oh well maybe later.
I had the plants in for about four hours and one of my Angel pairs have already laid eggs on one of the swords.(Leaf on the left) Mom's on the right and Dad's on the left.
FortWayne-Your tanks are beautiful!
I wanted to give an update on my plants. I have lost a few and now I am battling ick in my 75 but here are some pictures of the 75 and 55.(just in case the 75 doesn't look like this in a couple of weeks!
We have all done a good job at taking care of them. Thank you!
grannylvsfish
03-01-2008, 4:32 PM
very nice!! Sorry bout the ick, I am battling that to :(