newbie with a 30 g tall hex, tank

O

ouiouigirl

AC Members
May 21, 2006
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Fort Lee, NJ
Hi to all,
so here is the story, I bought a hexagonal 30 g tall tank with hood and light. (was not my favorite shape but for $45 with the stand and all the equipment, I could not pass. Anyway, in teh past I had African Cichlids and plants and cichlids together was not a good choice, first they chewed up or uprooted the plants, and those that survived the furry of my fish, eventually dies from the brackish setup.
This time around I want a fully planted tropical community (like gouramies, tetras etc. I want to do a plant cycle since it is faster and much more practical considering the height of this tank (planting anything with a full load of water will be quite a workout, not to mention water up to my chin.
I would like to get sugestions about the type of plants and how many would look nice and well planted for a 30 g tall hexagonal tank. I want tall plants in the background and work a gradient towards the front with a few rocks and driftwood. Any suggestion would be greatly appreciated.
thanks,
Sophia
Ps: also, is gravel only okay or should I add some type of soil underneath. and what do you think about undergravel filter?
 
Hello Sophie,

I'll try to help you out as much as I can.

The light that came with the tank, is it a 20w bulb? If it is, then you can grow only low light plants in your tank. You might want to think about upgrading your lights since you definitely will need light penetration.

However, if you can't at this time, you can stick to low light plants. Ex. Java Moss, Java Ferns, Anubias, Anarchis, Hornwort, etc.

Regular gravel is fine, but if you want, you can add a layer of peat underneath it, otherwise, I wouldn't worry so much.

Most people don't use undergravel filters for a planted tank, although you'll find a few that do. I wouldn't recommend it. Just my opinion.

This is a good place to visit and learn about planted tanks.
http://www.csd.net/~cgadd/aqua/articles.htm.


HTH

Lissette
 
It's a Phillips 15 w natural sunshine, I guess I'll have to upgrade. I looked at your pics and what a gorgeous tank you have, I love the thin fern like plant that looks like fennerl, what kind is ti?
 
Thank you.

I'm always changing something. I've replaced a lot of the plants that are in my Photo Gallery. Now, I have some new plants (L. Cuba, L. Aromatica, R. Macrandra, and H. Corymbosa Compacta) that I've just ordered through AquaBid. I'm trying my luck with them.

You should consider upgrading the lights. 15w is barely enough for your plants. You can try DIY if you want. Go to AH Supply. You'll get excellent customer service. It's not that hard at all to build one. Hey, if I did it, anybody can do it. Most likely, you can do it with your current hood.

Regarding the plant in question, I believe it's the Pogostemon Stellatus. A beautiful plant, as long as you give it what it wants. In my tank, it's Ca and Mg that drive these plants. Without it, they stunt.

You can visit this webpage and see it here as well:
http://www.aquaticplantcentral.com/forumapc/plantfinder/all.php


Lissette

P.S. In case that you're interested, here's the website for DIY lights
http://www.ahsupply.com/
 
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