Thinking about a planted tank

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BlackShark11k

Jack Dempsey
MFK Member
Jul 8, 2009
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I currently have a 72g bowfront salt tank that I figured might actually look best as a planted tank :D

As for lighting, the tank currently has coralife "aqualight" with two 65 watt 10,000k light and two 65 watt actinic blue lights, I think thats about 4.3 watts per gallon. Will this be good for most plants?

I'm wondering what exactly I could do with this tank? I don't want to cram it with plants, but you know, a few here and there. ;)

I've never kept a planted tank before either- I had a few plants here and there but most of that ended in failure. Anyways, one of my favorite plants are the creeping red ludwigia (Ludwigia repens). I think it would pretty nice with some nice tall green-type plants and then a few creeping ludwigia dispersed throughout the tank.

Is this do-able? Is there anything I need to know about trying this? I take it that a c02 dispenser will not be needed. I also have a UV bulb on there too for algae control.

Thanks
 
You have some really nice wpg there. If i were you i would go heavily planted.

Like this:
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Skim through some videos on youtube and see what plants people are using and what fish they have.

Your light level is considered high lighting. So you can keep some of the brown/red plants. But before you buy them research them; make sure you research them to see if they will be suitable for your tank.

But you said you just want some plants here and there. If you just want some simple low maintenance plants, get some amazon swords, java ferns, java moss, anubias and others to brighten your tank up. They will be a very bright green with that lighting. But there is a chance of algae growing on some of the slow growing plants like Java fern and anubias because of the high light. I would go with ALOT of medium-high light plants and stuff it full of plants. It adds so much depth to the tank.

Good luck
 
BlackShark11k;3957797; said:
I currently have a 72g bowfront salt tank that I figured might actually look best as a planted tank :D

As for lighting, the tank currently has coralife "aqualight" with two 65 watt 10,000k light and two 65 watt actinic blue lights, I think thats about 4.3 watts per gallon. Will this be good for most plants? Get rid of the actinic bulbs, they don't do much for plants and IMO are very ugly in a planted tank. Replace them with 10,000K bulbs

I'm wondering what exactly I could do with this tank? I don't want to cram it with plants, but you know, a few here and there. ;)Check out the planted tanks here, you will find many different aqua-scapes and plants...choose the loook that apeals to you most! Or, just create your own scape ;).

I've never kept a planted tank before either- I had a few plants here and there but most of that ended in failure. Anyways, one of my favorite plants are the creeping red ludwigia (Ludwigia repens). I think it would pretty nice with some nice tall green-type plants and then a few creeping ludwigia dispersed throughout the tank.

Is this do-able? Is there anything I need to know about trying this? I take it that a c02 dispenser will not be needed. I also have a UV bulb on there too for algae control. Check out the planted tank for beginners stick here, it has plenty of good info. Also, with the lighting you are using, you may want to consider using CO2

Thanks
Click to expand...

Hope that helped!
 
MDK500;3958006; said:
Hope that helped!
Click to expand...

Thanks for the info guys!

As for lighting. Should I just remove the two actinic bulbs and replace them with two "normal" bulbs?

I also forgot to mention substrate. You guys got any recommendations for a good brand/kind or should I just browse around myself?

Thanks again guys! :)
 
i'd lose the actinics, only needed for coral. Replace them with some plant pros from arcadia
 
BlackShark11k;3958494; said:
Thanks for the info guys!

As for lighting. Should I just remove the two actinic bulbs and replace them with two "normal" bulbs?

I also forgot to mention substrate. You guys got any recommendations for a good brand/kind or should I just browse around myself?

Thanks again guys! :)
Click to expand...

Yes, remove the actinic's and replace them with normal bulbs (10,000K). I would personally recommend ADA aqua soil, but it is very expensive. It's amazing for plant growth though. If you want something a little less expensive, I'd recommend Flourite.
 
BlackShark11k;3959129; said:
Great! Gotta say this one is by far my favorite, I think I'll try and base my tank a little bit off of it.
http://showcase.aquatic-gardeners.org/2009.cgi?&op=showcase&category=0&vol=2&id=23

Can I use submerged logs like this guy did? I imagine I'd have to silicone them to tile or something and then place them in the tank. Would it have any negative effects on the water quality?
Click to expand...

If you are able to boil them and soak them, then you should be completely fine. I love that tank too. ;)
 
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