Checking water parameters in a small 5 gallon planted......

[Emg]

I have a 5 gallon AllGlass tank which has a screw in 10watt flourescent bulb for lighting.

The parameters are:

GH-80 mg/L
KH-100 mg/L
PH-8.0
ammonia-0
nitrite-0
nitrate-0

One Whisper 2-10i internal filter
25watt heater set at about 76-78F

substrate:
a layer of spagnum peat moss underneath a layer of Echo-Complete substrate for planted tanks

Plants:
water sprite, 2 lily bulbs which have sent out quite a few shoots and a few of some type of crypt plant I believe. I have been dosing the tank with the appropriate amount of flourish Excel about every other day or so.

This tank has been set up for quite a while now and is completely cycled...I don't know why there are no nitrates showing up in there unless the plants are doing a good job of sucking it all down.

The fish load in there are only one bonded pair of 2 inch german blue rams which have attempted to raise a brood of fry recently...but I think the filter got them.

Anyway.....I am beginning to set up a 20L and will be moving everything from that tank into the new one, plus all the plants from my other tanks...The new 20L will have only 40watts of lighting total..which since it's a rather shallow tank, that should be enough for med-low light plants I would think.

What I am wondering is.....How does this look for a planted tank as far as parameters/plants/substrate/lighting/etc. for a successful planted 20L ? Is there anything here I should be concerned with in general ?

I am planning on starting the 20L out using the filter from the 5 gallon and also a sponge filter (30 gallon size) that I am presently seeding in one of my fry tanks. With the substrate from the 5 and possibly a 2 gallon I have with similar plants and the same substrate....and...the addition of a new 20lb bag of the Echo-Complete....the cycle should be well on it's way right off the bat I would think.

Any suggestions for other types of plants/fish that will likely do well in these parameters and lighting? Anything I can do to improve on this ? Any and all constructive critisizm or suggestions are greatly appreciated and encouraged.

Thanks for reading all this, and thanks for your input !

 

[Emg]

Gee.....anyone ??

 

[djlen]

First of all, I would suggest that you keep the pair of Rams in the 5 with a sponge filter and attempt to breed them successfully. I will head the line for the young you produce. Nice, tank raised Ram fry are really tough to find here in the Northeast.
Plants always tell the tale with regard to the conditions in a tank. If your plants are growing well in the 5, keep on dosing as you've been dosing. They will tell you if they need more of anything.

Quote: 'What I am wondering is.....How does this look for a planted tank as far as parameters/plants/substrate/lighting/etc. for a successful planted 20L ? Is there anything here I should be concerned with in general ?'

I don't understand exactly what you're looking for here. If what you mean is that you intend to use the same type plants and lighting ratio along with the same type substrate set-up, my reaction is that it should work fine in the larger tank. The excel will also still be efficient and cost effective in the 20L.
And again, keep me in mind when the Rams are ready ......please!

Len

 

[Emg]

Djlen,

I have rams ready to go now if you are interested. I am in Ct...not far from UCONN. There's a fella here..."Bawlsy"...who bought a pair from me. You can pm him and ask him about what I have. He's been at my house and has seen my setups.

If your close enough to come and pick some up....that would be alot easier for me and alot less expensive for you...I'm not sure about shipping...I've never done that, but I do know it costs ALOT for overnight shipping. I need to move these out by next week, so let me know.

I guess what I was asking is....how do my parameters look as far as plants go...I have read that your ph, gh, kh should be at a certain reading for optimum health and plant growth....now, my plants in the 5 gallon seem to be doing ok...not fast growth or anything, but adequate I guess, but I do get some algae on the sides and plants from time to time which I keep under control with regular water changes and wiping down the sides of the tank. I'd like to have less algae..(which, with a zero nitrate reading, I don't know why algae would be much of an issue, there must be something else at work here)...I'll probably add some otos to the 20L to help out there a bit with that, but I'd rather have it balanced out properly....always looking to improve !

 

[djlen]

pH,kH,gH have little impact on most plants or their growth.
Certain plants, native to waters that tend to be soft prefer softer water, but most plants are completely adaptable to pH anywhere from 6.0 - 8.5 and even higher.
kH becomes an issue for those who inject CO2 as it is a stabilizing force. But you have good kH should you decide to inject at some point in the future.
The relationship you want to carry over from the small tank to the larger is the plant mass/light(wpg)/nutrient ratio that you've established in the small tank.
From the look of your tanks, it appears that you've achieved good balance between these variables and no reason to think you won't do the same in the 20L. And as I mentioned previously, you're plants will tell you how much extra (more than what the fish supply) they will need from a nutritional stand-point. I think you will find that it does become more of a balancing act in the larger tanks.
I'm in S. Jersey so I think you're a bit too far north for me to travel for the fish.
I'm going to have to find out where U Conn is, but I think it's in the Hartford area and that's about a 2.5 - 3.0 hour ride from here. I'll research that a bit more. It's a shame because I've looked for years for Rams that are raised locally without success.

Len

 

[PurpleSmurf]

If you wanted to use CO2 you could probably get your pH down to 7.5 or even lower depending on the amount of saturation you could achieve.