Transistion to Piranhas

[tdalke]

I'm upgrading to a 55gal and after looking at everyones posts, I think I'm gonna have to get me some piranhas (2-3). I have a couple questions that people might be able to answer for me (be kind I'm new) that have to do with building an awesome setup.
1). Are live plants a good idea for piranha tanks? Floaters? or should I just get artificial. Its going to be a low light setup.
2) I definitely want to get some driftwood to add to the scene but I don't know the proper method of settling it into a fish tank. (boiling method? etc)
3) Is sand or tiny gravel preferred? As well as what colors i SHOULDN'T go for.
Thanks again!

 

[jp80911]

First of all, WELCOME~!!
if you haven't bought the tank yet I would suggest a 75g, the width of 55g is ok for just 2-3 but not the most idea. the 18" width of the 75g makes a big difference, it'll make the fish turn around more comfortably (when they get bigger of course) and gives you more aread to play with aquascape as compare to the narrow 55g's 12" width.
now to your questions
1) personally I don't like using fake plants, they look...well....fake. there are some plants can be used in low light setup, amazon swords, java ferns, some java moss, etc. there are some fake silk plants that looks decent but that's totally up to you how you like the look. real plants also can help with take care some of the nitrite.
2) driftwood release tannis which will make water turn into tea color (aka black water), some people like the look of blackwater and some don't (piranhas love blackwater). if you want to reduce the tannis in driftwood before you put it in the tank you can soak it in a bucket over a period of time (replace water every few days) that will remove some of the tannis or you can boil the wood for a good amount of time. usually 15 minutes but I've tried to boil some driftwood for couple hours and the water still truns into blackwater. but with weekly water changes the tannis eventually will disappear and your water will be clear again.
you do however want to give the wood a good scrub regardless you boil it or not. soak it for a while then scrub, then you can either put it in your tank righ away or boil it or let it soak some more.
3) both sand and gravels can be used, some like sand better some like gravel better, it really depends on which look you like better IMO. but other than looks there are some pros and cons such as gravel can trap debris easier than certain type of sand, there's higher chance of sand getting into filter if filter intake is positioned too low, etc. and as for color I would stay away from some unnatural color, such as pink, red, orange, blue, etc...especially if you want to make the tank look as natural as possible. dark color substartes help darken the color of your fish and light color substrate lighten the color of your fish.
if I miss anything I'm sure others will fill in

 

[Otherone]

Welcome to MFK;
Yes live plants can be a good idea and do work very well with Piranha. In some cases it's maintence free in others -work.Your live plant choice will dictate your substrate. For low light anubius and java ferns work well however they can't be planted, they'll need to be tied to either driftwood or lace/holey rock. With this set up sand is just fine. If you'd choose grasses or swords or other larger plants flourite and rock sub would be better. In this set up organic decomp will filter it's way into the sub and the plants will eat it. Plants expell oxygen in the darkness - sand will trap the 02 forming alege/oxygen pockets deep in the sub. The O2 will dry out the root stock and the aleges will eat up all the nutrients.
Floating plants like Duckweed require more lighting than that of anubius or java fern. Other floating types like water hyacinth require a lot of space - several feet of surface to lighting space and a foot or so underwater space for their trailing roots.
Pond lilies or Lotus plants can grow very large quickly but can easily be pruned back or the bulb can be seperated to reduce size. Lilies do not require any special lighting.
As for boiling driftwood - if your gonna go get wood from a creek - yes at least 10 min. to kill off any biology. If your gonna buy it from a fish store- probably not. All plants contain tannic acid live or dead. The Tannis in driftwood will disipate in time, the tannis produced from live plants will continue for their lifetime.
A few commonly sold plants to steer clear of - Mondo grass and Borneo ferns, these are Bog plants and will rot if submerged for long periods of time. Madagascar Lace Leaf plant, it requires much cooler water temps than that needed for Piranha.
The addition of C02 will dramatically increase your plant choices to Vals, Aponogetons, Swords,and Criniums to name a few. However plants like Lilies, Brazillian Spears, Wendtii, Hornwort, Anabus, Java fern, Java Moss, Onion Grass, and Cobomba, to name a few,can theirve without.
Hope this helps.

 

[Diogenes]

 

[tdalke]

Wow a lot of great information. You guys really know your stuff, thank you very much!