New Planted Tank

[Silent Circus]

Hey all, let me just say first that I am somewhat experienced (and well read) on planted tanks. I've had spectacularly good results with a 29 gallon tank planted mostly with sag, cryps, frogbit, and a steady rotation (as I get bored) of vals and different swords moving in and out.

As it stands, though, I graduate college next Saturday and I have a beeline on a well paying job (though it may be six to nine months down the road). One of the things I'm interested in is that when I move out I want to setup a larger display tank (and probably keep my 29 as well). The tank I'm interested in is a 75g standard Oceanic with a height of 21.5 inches. I'm curious as to if I could transfer the same basic premise from my 29 to my 75. I'm interested in doing the same plants and everything. Just on a bigger scale.

The 29 is setup without CO2 with four bulbs at around 2.3 wpg. I filtered it with just an Eheim Ecco filter at first, but I later added an internal Aquaball. The bulbs were two daylights and two plant bulbs from ZooMed. I added only Flourish tabs and Flourish Excel, and threw in some Aquarium Pharm. laterlite when I set up the tank. Like I said, everything really took off. I was using the frogbit to filter out the light and excess nutrients, but I eventually had a duckweed outbreak (over Midterms a year ago) that choked off the Frogbit. I managed to just about eradicate the duckweed with a kitchen mesh strainer, but the algae problems I half expected never materialized.

For some odd reason the ZooMed bulbs don't have the same output as other bulbs of their size, and so I decided to switch over to Hagen's "Glo" bulbs with the same number and type of bulbs involved. I figured out the 75 would have a 2.13 wpg on it, which isn't that much different from the other tank, but then there is a good three inch-plus difference in height. Is this at all a big deal?

Also, I'm looking for filtering suggestions. I really like the Eheim wet/dry canister, but I'm afraid it'll bleed off what CO2 does exist within the system. I'm skiddish about all of Eheim (outside of my beloved Ecco) products too, largely because they're not self-priming. Am I being unreasonable, and should I just go with a canister, or would the wet/dry canister work just as well in such a setup?

[superjohnny]

Originally posted by Silent Circus
...but then there is a good three inch-plus difference in height. Is this at all a big deal?

It does make a difference. You don't get as good of light penetration with taller tanks.


Also, I'm looking for filtering suggestions. I really like the Eheim wet/dry canister, but I'm afraid it'll bleed off what CO2 does exist within the system. I'm skiddish about all of Eheim (outside of my beloved Ecco) products too, largely because they're not self-priming. Am I being unreasonable, and should I just go with a canister, or would the wet/dry canister work just as well in such a setup?

Wet/dry filters do gass off CO2 which is bad for planted tanks. Try a Rena Filstar XP3, they're great. Way too much for a 29g tank, but great for a 75g.

HTH :)
Johnny

[rdmpe]

If you are not adding CO2, then the only way co2 is getting into your water in the first place is from the atmosphere.

So if you are not adding co2, there will be no "extra" co2 to outgas. You will probably be better off because you will be mixing co2 from the atmosphere into the water where the plants are using it.

I think that the only time you would be able to take CO2 out of the water is if there is more there than you are mixing in from the atmosphere.

I'm no chemist, but that seems to me to be the way it works.

I use eheim 2213's on all of my tanks. I have four of the 2213's. Priming isn't that big of a deal since you have the cutoff valves. Once you get a little system down it's pretty easy.

[RTR]

CO2 is contributed to the tank water by the fish, the plants, and the myriad microbes living in the substrate, water column, and filters. All aerobic organisms produce CO2 as the result of respiration. My tank CO2 levels run about 2x atmospheric equilibrium levels by avoiding excessive surface breaks. The levels are lower than supplemented CO2, but are non-trivial and adequate for low light tanks.

So, it is not true that you must supplement CO2 to blow off CO2.