I just got back from Lowes trying to see if they had the right ballasts and that was a no go. Do you think Big Al's would have the ballasts or do I need to go somewhere else? Thanks
Nearly 5 years ago I purchased a light fixture from Big Al's that was made by Current USA. It is a 96w 36" dual compact bulb unit. About two years ago one of the bulbs died (or so I thought) but as the 2nd bulb was putting out more than adequate light I didn't bother replacing the first...
Might possibly be diatoms, a fairly common occurrence in new tanks. Usually the problem takes care of itself after a few weeks or you can get some oto's. You'll need them anyways and they love diatoms.
You can either mix the fluorite with gravel, use fluorite exclusively, or put down the fluorite and then layer your gravel on top.
72 watts over a 30g would allow you to grow most plants. They might not grow as fast as they are capable, but they'll grow.
I agree with Swimfins that your...
How does one plant have the ability to attract algae more than another? Either you have have algae or you don't. The type of plant has nothing to do with it.
I won't order from anybody else. Never had a problem of any kind. The only thing that bothers me a little bit is they tell you your order has shipped when it actually sits in the warehouse for a day or two.
You need to get your nitrates up to 10ppm and your phosphate to 1ppm. What is your CO2 concentration? BPM doesn't tell anybody anything. How long are you leaving your lights on? Anything more than 10-12 hrs and your asking for trouble.
I can guarantee you without fear of contradiction that there is no way in h**l that that snake is 6 months old. Using the guy that's holding its tail as a reference I would guess that snake is 8 ft minimum. A year and a half possibly. More likely two.
Corys don't mind some current but that would be way too much. Most of the time cories are found in relatively still waters where they use their ability to "breathe" atmospheric oxygen to their andvantage. Plecos and farlowellas however would be good candidates for such at tank, I believe.
You'll definitely need to bump up the wattage of your lighting to probably something like 100 to 150. Would be hard to recommend a specific light without exact tank measurements.
As far as ferts go make your next order thru Greg Watson
He has everything you need at much better prices...
You can try one of the smaller loaches. Dwarf puffers are great snail killers but they also nip fins. If there are no plants in the tank you can try one of the liquid snail removers that your lfs would have.