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+1 Floating, low light/no CO2. regards, TomBarr

Not many have that, I keep mine for seeing how bad things where back then and how gullible folks where. Myself included, sent me on a warpath ever since.:rolleyes: 1988 is when I got it. Diana's book has lot more right things she's stated that will stand the test of time far more than the...

Yea, just not buy a 240 Gal tank,m a reefflow pump, mega Watt light and then claim you are too poor to buy a gas CO2 and decent sediment:) Don't ask, I think I've had the above 20X or more over the years.:duh: If I cannot afford to replace my Transmission, I have to go to the junk yard and fix...

It does not need replaced, you need to start dosing the water column more as it slowly declines. 3+ years old, sold plenty of RCS, lots of this foreground plant etc. I like it and use it, I know more about DIY sediments than most, they are good if poor, too cheap to pay, work well, but each...

For a 55gal, 2x54 W T5 is plenty if not too much even. Better option might be DIY t8's. Say 3 of them spaced evenly across, and run them say 9 hours a day. Good current, good CO2, good sediment, good dosing and care. There's no plant you cannot grow with that amount of light. Regards, Tom Barr

So, what is easier, using LESS light or more light? Do not answer that, you already did.:thm: The highest ranking ADA contest tank from the USa and most of the top ranking tanks had a mere 40-50 micromol of light which is certainly at the lower end. My own tanks have about the same amount as...

It's okay to move and uproot some, just do it on the day of the water change and only do maybe 10-20% of the tank at most. With plain sand, you can do maybe 1/3-1/2 the tank without as much issue\ between hacks/uprooting etc. I try and space out the real good hacking/uprooting so I do not...

Send me some of the weedy L panatanal, I'll send the Starourgyne. GF wants some of it again. Does not like some of the other red plants which take less work:yuck: Oh well, Regards, Tom Barr

You can always send them to me, I'll grow a bunch and send them back to you:) See the response on TPT. Looks like CO2/KH issue, as far as the ADA AS, deep vac it, gently, do say 1/8" to 1/4" of the tank with a 50% water change, do this 2x a week, in 2-3 weeks, the tank's soil will be nice the...

You understood it correctly. Yes... there's a germination signal.....put another way spores, seeds etc just do not grow for no good reason ........all the time.........24/7........some seem to imply that, by suggesting plant/algae competition senario, it's not the only game in town.;) You need...

Because the plants define the system, not the nutrients. That's the simplest explanation. when you have 30-50% plant coverage, good growth etc, they will modify and control the system. Algae will wait till the seasons change to make their life cycle, much like a annuals and perennials. Algae...

Yes, make sure you have decent flow across the surface, but not breaking the surface. A little bubble here or there is fine. Evaporation changes this level a lot, so refill the aquarium often(PITA with the lily pipes). I got tired of this and added too much water one day and no O2 for my fish...

Dang, you blew some $. I think you are okay for current, just reduce the light intensity down. Is this aquarium open top? If so, you can raise the light up pretty high, generally most ADA tanks run about 12-14" height. This reduces the intensity a good bit, gives better spread and reduces the...

No one "needs" a pH controller. It's debatable if they even help, they may some indirectly........ I'd focus on efficient dissolving and misting of the CO2, some are decent at DIY parts. If so, a dual stage regulator for CO2 off ebay, a nupro or Swagelok or Ideal 1/8" thread male or female TPF...

Here's a tank, 70 Gal with 2x 54 W lights: Are you sure you want more than 2 x 54W? Regards, Tom Barr

I think I used a double negative or something, you want to have plenty of CO2, nutrients are less important and will not become limiting if there's poor CO2. If the CO2 is good, then algae and other issues are not a problem. Bad CO2 leads to 95% of the issues folks have, master CO2, the rest is...

I'd keep the CO2 the same if not higher, a tad at a time. You do not want to run ,low on CO2 more than anything else. Regards, Tom Barr

Well, with fry involved, this is a different goal, they take primary importance. You can worry about algae and issues later. Excel is a general biocide BTW, I think fry will be more susceptible, do not overdose that, Prime can be as well. Dips are better outside the tank. You can also take the...

How big is the tank? I did not recall seeing that, maybe I missed it. 16 x 48, I doubt it's much more than 18" front to back, so you have 70 gal or less. Here's a tank of similar size, but with 1/2 this amount of light: I doubt you need more than 2 bulbs running, there's only 2 on this tank...

Sort of, plants and algae are not competing really though(maybe for light, but that's it). I think we often make this mistake(most everyone has at some point, do not feel bad). For competition: you need both of them going after a limited resource, say nutrients or CO2. Plants are often...