What bulbs did you buy with those shop lights- there must be a kelvin rating on those. It might say cool white, warm white, full spectrum etc, or 4000k/ 5000k etc. You need close to 6000K. GE and Phillips makes those.
NEED ADVISE! considering a 72 gallon planted tank
- Thread starter APAC
- Start date
I'm not sure if I should go with CO2 or not. My main goal is to have a good lookin, low maintenance planted tank but I'm not sure if that's possible w/out CO2. I checked the bulbs and they are Phillips Plant Aquarium Bulbs at 40watts and 2700K a piece or 1600 lumens. I have those two and my normal aquarium light which is 32 watts so a thats not quite 2 watts per gallon.
Ok. Go back to that store and try to get a normal light. Check for kelvin rating. It should be around 6000K. Anything below 4000K is for people with money but no idea about what they are doing are quite useless. Co2 is always a good idea. If not get flourish excel and kick back and enjoy. I am not in favor of DIY co2- just too much hassle for me and flourish excel does the same thing for much less trouble. Return that bulb.
I already have everything set up. Check out my progress by searching for 72 Gallon Conversion. Here's how it looks as of now...
Why would I need different lights. I read that 2 watts per gallon is optimal for most plants and that some plants require less lighting, I'm hoping the few I have selected are hardy enough but I'm only 32 watts off on the lighting. Eventually I'll upgrade and get another shop light to have 4 4footers
Why would I need different lights. I read that 2 watts per gallon is optimal for most plants and that some plants require less lighting, I'm hoping the few I have selected are hardy enough but I'm only 32 watts off on the lighting. Eventually I'll upgrade and get another shop light to have 4 4footers
That looks great! Now all you need to do is buy more 'easy grow' plants.
e.g.
Cryptocoryne sp (becketii, wendtii, Mi oya, balensae)
Echinodorus sp ('Small bear', 'Marble Queen', 'Ozelot' Spoon sword, melon sword) These make great centre plants.
Hygrophilia sp (polysperma)
Bacopa sp (caroliniana)
Vallisneria spiralis
And a personal favourite of mine...Nymphaea.
Nymphaea rubra or Thai nymphaea.
N lotus or Tiger lotus. These aren`t used that often, but I think they add something special to a tank.
In my opinion you`ve got ample lighting, and if you want low maintenance, forget CO2 coz you`ll be forever trimming!!!
Here`s a pic of one of my low light low tech tanks. It gets 8 hours light a day, from a single 32w 3ft striplight, and everything is growing great. Not too fast, not too slow. Oh and of course no CO2!!
e.g.
Cryptocoryne sp (becketii, wendtii, Mi oya, balensae)
Echinodorus sp ('Small bear', 'Marble Queen', 'Ozelot' Spoon sword, melon sword) These make great centre plants.
Hygrophilia sp (polysperma)
Bacopa sp (caroliniana)
Vallisneria spiralis
And a personal favourite of mine...Nymphaea.
Nymphaea rubra or Thai nymphaea.
N lotus or Tiger lotus. These aren`t used that often, but I think they add something special to a tank.
In my opinion you`ve got ample lighting, and if you want low maintenance, forget CO2 coz you`ll be forever trimming!!!
Here`s a pic of one of my low light low tech tanks. It gets 8 hours light a day, from a single 32w 3ft striplight, and everything is growing great. Not too fast, not too slow. Oh and of course no CO2!!
since the glass lids are not on the tank, should I be concerned about the particles and insects that end up on the surface of the water? is it even necessary to have the glass tops off?
another question!!! how long should I wait to fish back in the tank. I have my current stock for sale on craigslist and am looking to buy corycats, a farlowella, and either angel fish or lots of rasboras and tetras, not sure yet.
Top being on or off is not such a big deal. You will likely not have too many things fall into water.
The fish will need to be put into the tank after you have cycled the tank.
The fish will need to be put into the tank after you have cycled the tank.
APAC;3690023; said:
A lid will stop fish jumping, conserve heat and stop evaporation. I wouldn`t worry to much about fluff & bits falling in. I`m sure the fish would enjoy any insects!
APAC;3691117; said:
I`d give it a few days to let everything settle down, and then start to introduce new fish. When you do this add them a few at a time. If you`ve not changed your filter your bacteria should still be OK and will be able to handle a slow increase in fish waste. Adding too many fish too fast will result in problems, ie, Nitrite/Nitrate spike and because of excess nitrates you`ll get algae problems also.
Hope this helped.
