Planting my 75gallon brackish tank

  • We are currently upgrading MFK. thanks! -neo
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Daeorn

Feeder Fish
MFK Member
Jul 19, 2007
275
0
0
NY
Hey guys.

Ok, so, for the last year or so of my tanks life, I've JUST had fake plants.

They definitely looked nice, and natural but I wanted to really do it.

I added a 40W floura-glo bulb to my 48" light strip.
The substrate is 1" in front to 4" in back of play sand, toped with pea gravel and agronite.

Right now I've added about a dozen java fern to the tank as well as clumps of java moss tied and inlaid to the drift wood and course mangrove root ornaments - as I want them to have a mossy real look.

To make sure there are enough nutrient in the substrate, I insterted some sea-chem root tabs to give the plants a bit more food.

Will this work?

Just wanna make sure.

It looks REALLY nice now. The real and fake plants blend well so you can't even tell unless you're up close.

Pics later today.
 
how high will the salinity be? I tried java fern in SG 1.010, but it did not fare well.
 
Staying 1.006-1.008 tops for now. It usually is low end brackish 1.004-1.008
 
Sand isn’t the best substrate for plants – hard to root, and not much nutrient retention. I’ve seen great planted tanks w/ sand but the sand was over a 2-inch layer of fine gravel or even soil. Good move on the java fern and the moss, but you can also consider using a couple pots to hold rooted plants, like swords or crypts. Just punch a couple smallish holes in the bottom of clay flower pots, fill ‘em with dirt or gravel and go nuts. Also, anubias grows well affixed to a log or rock, same as java fern. And, consider some Windelov – it grows in a big ball. Very cool.

as for the brackish water... beats the hell outta me :)
 
I have Sand in my planted tank for years and ive had very good results. Some plants Did not take well to it But my favorite ones did. Two different types of anubis And some Sunset Hygro. My lighting is a coral life 10,000 i love my plants. But Things might be different in Brackish water.
 
Anyone know the light wave/wattage necessary for a 75gal to be considered medium light? I'll never really need high light, but I definitely don't want to kill anything :)
 
if this 48" you can get a HO 4x54watt fixture or a VHO that has a a few more watts. I think current makes a 6x54watt fixture that's 48". Granted these are just commonly available styles, all will put you in a safe range.
 
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