New 25 gallon tank

[shrimparecool]

Hey everyone,

I posted last week about my filter issue with my little 5 gallon Marineland. I decided I’m tired of that tank, so I went to petsmart today with the plan to upgrade to a 10 gallon. Well turns out they were having a Labor Day sale... I ended up walking out with a 25 gallon. Oops.

It’s a 25 gallon bowfront and it came with a filter and heater. I bought 50lbs of gravel. I’ve only had up to a 10 gallon tank before, this is my first decent sized tank. I’ve got it set up and the filter is running. I put the log from my 5 gal in the new tank to get the bacteria going.

I need some advice on a hood/light. It came with one, but I’d like to grow some plants and I’m assuming that light won’t be enough. I’m going to move my java moss mat and another little plant over. I just bought a clip-on light for my 5 gal and I’m not sure if it will be strong enough. It’s a cobalt mini LED growlight. The guys at my lfs said it’s great for nano tanks, but I’m not sure if it’s enough for this 25gal.

Now if I can keep using that light, the hood won’t work unless I cut a hole in it. Should I cut a hole in the lid? Go without a lid? Make one from plexiglass? Any suggestions would be wonderful.

Thanks!

 

[myswtsins]

"A hobbyist walks into a fish store..." Congrats on the upgrade!

• That clip on light will not suffice for this new tank.
• Is that stand really sturdy/solid? 25gs is quite a bit heavier than 5.
• What does the hood look like? It looks really nice semi-rimless. I'd keep it open top personally.
• Can the filter be moved to the back? It may get in the way of the new light.
• How long is the tank?
• Do you have specs for the light that came with the 25g?
• What kind of plants do you want to grow? If it is just java fern, anubias type stuff the stock light may be enough. If it is high light plants than that will affect our light recommendations.

 

[shrimparecool]

The stand is actually pretty sturdy. I bought it specifically for the 25 gal, the 5 gal is currently on the kitchen table. The only thing that concerns me is that it might not be wide/deep enough, that’s why the filter is on the side of the tank. It’s sturdier with the tank against the wall :/ obviously don’t want it to tip forward. If I use the hood and move the filter to the back, I will end up looking for a different stand. If I don’t, my boyfriend said he could anchor the stand to the wall just to be safe haha.

With the hood, the filter is obviously supposed to go on the back of the tank. I’m not sure about the details on the light that’s on the hood. It just says “LED” light. Here’s the link to the tank info if that helps.

https://www.petsmart.com/fish/start...e-bow-front-aquarium-starter-kit-5277171.html

The tank is 24” long and 14 inches wide at the front of the bow.

I don’t think I really want to be limited to just growing “low light” plants. I’m actually a horticulturist, so having a nicely planted aquarium would be cool

 

[fishorama]

Ooh, nice! Your light will not likely grow any plant other than "medium" light, at best. The problem is the bow front, the light isn't over that part of the tank...so ground covers will not be happy.

It's not that you can't have an attractive tank, you can! But not all plants will work well if at all.

Jen, it's nice to "see" you again, I've missed you

 

[myswtsins]

As long as the entire tank fits on the stand I"s say anchor it, if the bow hangs off than you can add a piece of thick wood to the entire top of the stand to make it bigger.

That LED would leave you very limited and with you being a plant person that's just not gonna work lol. You could try it though, especially if you don't want to spend a bunch more money right now and then upgrade later if needed. I am sure it will grow some low light plants and there are a lot of varieties these days.

I just found this article Best LED Lights and it's got a decent list going that covers pretty much every niche, between cost and features there is something for everyone. I've never heard of the COODIA but all the others I've heard great things about. I'd be especially interested in the Nicrew myself IF I needed a light less than 36" (I have a favorite 36" light but they don't make a 24" model) and I was looking for a budget no frills get the job done though light.

As far as the bow not getting much light this is 100% true! Just don't put light loving plants there (like groundcover, like fishorama said).

Have you considering fertilizers yet? Your gravel choice will not offer any nutrients so you will probably need to supplement.

Jen, it's nice to "see" you again, I've missed you

Thanks, missed you too. Been on the road for months, good to be home!

 

[shrimparecool]

So for the bow problem, what if I had two lights. One towards the front of the hood and one towards the back. I would obviously need to find a couple light bars that fit just like the one that came with the hood, or ones that are shorter but just as thin. Also what is the attachment area for that I circled in blue?

The entire tank fits on the stand but it’s on carpet, which makes me nervous moving it from the wall. I may move it to our tile floor so I can move it away from the wall to make room for the filter.

 

[the loach]

You could easily put a couple of cheap 6500K led strips in the hood. They're only like $25 for 10 foot. And the CRI is better as anything targeted for aquaria. (Do check specifications before buying, and consider anything that doesn't have Lumen/Kelvin/CRI ratings as unfit) Just being able to grow low light plants is limiting though converting for high light plants is overkill, there are so many med light species to choose from.

 

[shrimparecool]

You could easily put a couple of cheap 6500K led strips in the hood. They're only like $25 for 10 foot. And the CRI is better as anything targeted for aquaria. (Do check specifications before buying, and consider anything that doesn't have Lumen/Kelvin/CRI ratings as unfit) Just being able to grow low light plants is limiting though converting for high light plants is overkill, there are so many med light species to choose from.

Any suggestions on a source for these? These would work for medium light plants?

 

[the loach]

Of course you can grow medium light plants with them, that is not restricted to type just to Lumens (light intensity). K(elvin) is the color temperature which in an aquarium you want at least 6000K to prevent it from looking yellow. CRI stands for Color Rendering Index and this is how natural various colors look. You want it to be at least 88-89 (maximum is 100)
I use a 12v 3M 300MP led strip but there are many brands and non brands, just look for led strip shops or on Ebay, and look for the specifications.
Hiding those specifications is a red flag, for any type of lighting.

 

[shrimparecool]

Awesome, thanks for the info! That all really helps. What sort of lumen range am I looking for?. I guess I should have put this in freshwater newbie

Would something like this work?

LEDENET 12" 6500K-7000K White Super Bright 18LEDs 5050 Aquarium LED Strip Lighting for Fish Tanks - Waterproof Aluminum Lighting 12V DC LED Linear Bar Lamp (Cold White, 12" Long) https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00TZC7Y1W/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_SIPJBbJXMCCC7

As for fertilizer, what would y’all recommend? Like I said before, I know how to take care of plants on land but not so much in an aquarium. Is there liquid fert safe for fish and shrimp that I can just add to the water?