List of my newbie planted tank questions

Kuthoht said:

1. how do you vacuum substrate if your tank is heavily planted with something like a ground cover?

Let some the waste accumulate around plants and act as a fertilizer. Obviously only to a certain extent as you don't want to foul up the water with excess waste, uneaten food, etc.. With ground covers you can probably do a quick dusting of your vac without disturbing the plants.

2. Will DIY C02 with a 2 liter bottle lead to excess levels of c02 during the night when lights are out? Unlike a high tech pressurized there is no solenoid to control on and off. Or is DIY really not powerful enough for this to be an issue?

Not powerful enough at all. I run three 2L bottles 24/7 on my 30 gallon with no issues.

3. Which of the seachem plant supplents other than basic flourish is a must have? From what I've read the main problem nutrient tends to be potassium? I also hear that Excel is a must have?

Excel is liquid carbon so if you run Co2 it's not necessary. Flourish is a basic supplement but you want to make sure you get your macro's (NPK) in for sure along with mirco's (Fe, Mg, etc.) in smaller doses. The flourish line carries them all and are great for beginners. I would also highly recommend checking out www.aquariumfertilizers.com for dry ferts. Instead of paying for the water inside the bottle, you get the dry ferts in bulk. Saves money and it is an easy way to create your own dosing schedule.

4. One thing that worries me is how to spot and correct nutrient deficiencies. Obviously whatever dosing I decide to do, it most likely wont be ideal and I'll have to tweak it. So is there any sort of basic way to determine this without alot of water testing and buying every nutrient?

It really depends which way you go in terms of ferts dosing. There are numerous dosing schedules out there that can act as guidelines but obviously each setup will be different. You can tweak your dosing according to certain problems that arise (certain nutrient deficiencies tend to cause certain problems in plants) and go from there. Even the plant "gurus" rarely test speficic nutrients so don't worry about that.

5. Does the 2 liter bottle used with a DIY setup have to be sterilized via hot water after each use?

I've never been told to do that. I usually empty and refill.

6. Is it better to buy alot of plants to start out or to buy a more modest amount and let them grow in?

Most plants are going to propogate easily especially once Co2 and ferts are added, so for me I would save money by purchasing a smaller amount and letting things grow in more naturally. For some plants it's as easy as cutting and planting.

7. Is 12 hours of light a day too much? I'm currently using 12 hours a day but could cut this back if needed.

8-10 is more acceptable for planted tanks, otherwise you will run into algae problems.

8. Is quarantining or doing some sort of chemical dip on new plants necessary before introduction to the tank?

It's not necessary unless you suspect something is hitchhiking on your plants. I weak bleach solution can work.

9. I have a 20 community tank with some tetras in it currently established for about 3 months. I'm considering taking the play sand out and changing to eco complete. I would take the fish out to do this. I also would put all my plants that I intend to order at once in a package into the tank. Would this be an issue for the fish when I'm done and add them back into the tank? The filter wont be changed at all of course.

I've done substrate changes without any harm on fish. I would suspect that as long as your bacteria colony remains in tact, your fish will be fine. A little stressed maybe, but they'll live.

10. Is there any kind of basic guide on how to prune and trim common aquarium plants?

It really depends on the plant. Stem plants such as horwort and rotala can be trimmed anywhere on the plant and placed back into the substrate where it will continue to grow. Other plants you can trim and toss.

11. Are snails pretty much guaranteed in a planted tank?

I wouldn't say guaranteed but its always a possibility. Careful feeding will keep their populations in check.


Ok so these are things I've been thinking about as I plan my planted tank. I realize some of these are opinion questions and I'll get varied answers. I also realize some of these may require complex answers.

This will be my second effort at a planted tank. My first effort was about a year ago. I had decent success over the course of about a year. Then my tank slowly died off. I never did ferts or co2. So I made myself a promise next time I try I would go the xtra step to try to be more successful. So some of my questions are things I either had issues with or have never really understood.

Feel free to answer any of the questions you wish. I dont expect someone to answer the whole list lol.

Thanks

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Comments in red

tackful said:

And I would recommend using as much existing tank water as possible when you make the change, in order to ease stress on the fish. You can always do a water change a few days later.

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