10 Gallon Tank. Need lots of help.

Zbbal

Zbbal

AC Members
Jul 9, 2009
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Sevierville, TN
So I have a 10 gallon planted tank. I've had my plants for a couple of months, but I've seen only small growth and all my plants have black spots, etc.
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Lighting: 15 watt bulb.
Hours On: Nine hours.
Ferts: Used to have tabs, but switched to sand substrate and found them hard to use.
Substrate: Pool filter sand.
Plants: 3x Java Fern, 2x Lace Java Fern, 3x Anubias.
Tank Inhabitants: Six -scared, colorless- Ember Tetras.

I just want my Embers to be more at home, and if I can get my plants growing again maybe my Embers will feel safer.

I want to switch to a darker substrate, and I was wondering what you all recommended. I like the natural look of pool filter sand, but Embers prefer darker substrate. A substrate that was fine -because I plan on getting some dwarf corys-, and possibly beneficial for my plants would be appreciated.

Also, I have two different lights for my 10 gallon, and I was wondering which one would be better for the plants. One of the lights is a GloPower-Glo 18" 15 watt T8. The other light is an Eclipse Natural Daylight F15T8 18". The Glo light casts a white light with blue/purple hues, and the Eclipse casts a white light with yellow/green hues. I thought about before making my own hood for the tank and putting both lights on it, but I would be pushing 3 watts per gallon and then I'd need CO2...which I can't afford.

Any help is appreciated, as I want to make this tank homey for my Embers and pleasing to look at as it's on my nightstand.
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T8 bulb on a 10gal isnt much, i would turn your lights on at 8 or 9 in the morning, and turn them off at around 9 or 10. if you want more light, go to walmart and get the cheap $20 hoods, or do like you were saying, make your own with both. if you do both bulbs, and you start to get algae, turn your lighting down, i have mine set so that i get maxium plant growth, but least ammount of algae.

if you want to switch substrate, that is up to you. ive never heard of a fish needing a certian color of substrate, but if you want black, Floruite sand is good, and a lot of people use thiatan moon sand (sp?).
 
I would just get some black gravel and sprinkle some on the sand. Looks very nice, and diffuses the light :) Are you using a background? This also helps.

I use two 14 watt CFL bulbs on my 10 gallon tank (cheap $20 Walmart hood, rather than buy that I would be tempted to get their 10 gallon kit for $45) and don't get any algae to speak of. (I don't dose CO2, not even Excel.) My Java fern had lots of spots on it, but it got much better now that I started dosing Nutrafin Plant Gro (micronutrients and chelated iron) once a month.

They would really like some floating plants, even just some hornwort would be great. And you might want to try some Indian almond leaves - doesn't hurt and might help, will also tint your water slightly tannic.
 
I have tons of algae growth as is...and I'm only using one light at the moment. I'll just have to find something to eat algae for me or something.

Embers are very shy little fish and they like to be in the dark. Mine are absolutely thrilled when I turn the tank lights off and just turn on my room light. The fish and I have conflicting ideas. They want a dark, cozy tank...and I want a nicely planted one. >.>

I don't think I can afford Floruite or the Moon Sand. Is there a less expensive option.
 
Yeah, you could try a soil substrate - like a Walstad tank. Just cheap topsoil from the garden center, rinsed and rinsed, capped with sand. It grows plants quite well, but it can be messy.

I don't think your algae is because you have too much light. I think it's because your plants are all slow growers. Fast growing plants are the key to outpacing algae. Did you have worse algae troubles when you started using root tabs? Root tabs aren't necessary for Java fern and Anubias...more like heavy root feeders such as Amazon swords. I wouldn't bother with anything but liquid ferts with the kind of plants you're keeping.

Still, if you're looking for algae eaters, olive nerites do a great job and are the perfect size for a 10 gallon tank. Don't put otos or anything in there, would be my advice. They are touchy fish and do better in more stable [bigger] tanks.
 
platytudes said:
I would just get some black gravel and sprinkle some on the sand. Looks very nice, and diffuses the light :) Are you using a background? This also helps.

I use two 14 watt CFL bulbs on my 10 gallon tank (cheap $20 Walmart hood, rather than buy that I would be tempted to get their 10 gallon kit for $45) and don't get any algae to speak of. (I don't dose CO2, not even Excel.) My Java fern had lots of spots on it, but it got much better now that I started dosing Nutrafin Plant Gro (micronutrients and chelated iron) once a month.

They would really like some floating plants, even just some hornwort would be great. And you might want to try some Indian almond leaves - doesn't hurt and might help, will also tint your water slightly tannic.
Click to expand...

I have some black gravel...but it has lots of sparkles in it. Kinda bothers me, but I guess I can try it. What do I do with the gravel when I stir the sand once a week?

I don't have a background, but the tank is about five inches away from a wood paneled wall. Do you think I still need a background? If so, what do you suggest? I would need something cheap, as I don't have a lot of money. (No more than $15 dollars on this whole thing.)

I have a cheap hood, but it only has enough room for one light. I was thinking I would just get a piece of glass or something and place the lights I already had on top.

Hornwort? I'm unfamiliar with this plant. And yeah, I know they would appreciate some floating plants, but my LFS doesn't sell floaters...ever. I can't afford to get some shipped here, either. Once a day my largest anubias floats to the top of the tank for some unknown reason, but I usually leave it there until night because my Embers like it.

I've wanted my water to be tinted for a while, but where do you purchase those leaves, and how much do they cost?
 
platytudes said:
Oh, by the way, what is your regular routine with the tank? Water changes, filter maintenance, etc.? And how often do you feed?

All these things can have every bit to do with algae as light. It just indicates an imbalance of some sort. What kind of algae is it? Here's some more info:
Dealing with algae in freshwater aquaria
Click to expand...

Weekly 50% water changes. I have an AquaClear 30 filter with a sponge over the intake. The sponge gets squeezed one a month in old tank water. I don't ever mess with the media inside the filter. I feed once a day, and I only take a good pinch and grind it up for the little guys.

Definitely have diatoms -in all my tanks-, and possibly some green or brush algae.

The algae problems started after I quit using the tabs.

Don't worry, I'd never buy ottos. They need to be in schools, and I don't think they'd appreciate a tiny ten gallon. ;)
 
"Sparkles" hmm...? I don't know about that ;) I was just thinking plain black gravel would be best. You can still stir your sand like you usually do (although you should probably get some Malaysian trumpet snails, which many people, including myself, would be happy to give you for free). The idea is to just add a little sprinkling, so it adds flecks of gravel...to break up the stark white which is reflecting so much light back.

This isn't an aquarium, but rather a model - but it does get my point across:
http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_BJ2gLYxrfkc/SwNx68Ra5ZI/AAAAAAAAAhY/7F4LWfqoh1c/s1600/IMG_1571.jpg

You can just use black or dark blue construction paper. Wrapping paper, if you can find dark blue or green, is fine too. Some people also like using grass mats or cork tiles. I have taped nature scenes from calendars in a pinch.

Anything you put on the back is going to make your tank darker inside. All of my fish freak out when I take the background off - I know that's because they're used to it and I suppose they can get used to being without it - but I still think they feel more comfortable with at least one side, if not 3 out of 4 sides, covered. Many breeding techniques include covering the sides with dark paper.

Hornwort and anacharis are two very easy, very common plants that you can grow floating. You can Google all about them - they're about as common to aquariums as peace lilies and dracaenas are to houseplants.

I wonder why your anubias is doing that. It would probably grow better if it could anchor itself to something solidly. Maybe tie it with some cotton twine to something, like a piece of driftwood? The cotton twine dissolves in time.

You usually find IAL on Aquabid or eBay. Sometimes right on here :) Check it out, here's 30 of them for $7.50 shipped:
http://www.aquabid.com/cgi-bin/auction/auction.cgi?breeding&1270178225

But oak leaves will also tint your water. Make sure there are no pesticide residues. Might be best to just pluck some off an oak tree and dry them yourself. Do you have "turkey oaks" in Tennessee? These really stain the water.
http://www.floridata.com/ref/q/images/quer_la1.jpg
 
Hmm...do you use pool filter sand in all your tanks? Because even though the science does not equate (pool filter sand is silica sand, silica = glass, your aquarium is made of glass, so adding silica to the aquarium does not increase silicates) I have definitely noticed diatom issues the two times I tried to set up tanks with pool filter sand.

All my tanks (except one with an UG) use sand, but it's softer sand, called "leveling sand"
 
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