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I have a 5 gallon that I broke down and put in brand new gravel. The old gravel was purple and white and now I have river stone. I have tiered it so that I am able to make the black underground filter burry and to make more space for a few plants.

I was going to get an Amazon sword for the tiered area and then line the back with some thicker plants then I’m going to get some driftwood that I have soaked (just something small) and I am going to see if I can get some moss for it. I might get some aquatic grass as well. I will take pictures and post them in a little bit (… and will edit this post).

Mrwizerd,

A redo is always a nice thing.

But the Amazon Sword is way too big for a 5G tank.

What is your lighting situation?

Ingo

---

Proud Member of the New Jersey Aquatic Gardeners Club

Single incandecent 15w grow bulb, I am thinking of switching it to a flouresent if I can fit it in the hood. Which puts me at 3wpg I must have a seriously baby sword then heheeh. Here are pictures of the tiers and the moneys wart and some other plant not sure wich would have to go look at tags hehe.

http://www.cityofmist.com/halls/graphics/5gal1.jpg
http://www.cityofmist.com/halls/graphics/5gal2.jpg
http://www.cityofmist.com/halls/graphics/5gal3.jpg

SWITCH TO FLOURESCENT! Not many people have good luck with incandescent. If you like swords, get al small type. Go to http://www.tropica.com to see what typpes there are. With 3 watts, you should have no problem growing one unless the substrate is not good.
heres the links for everyone for easy access


http://www.cityofmist.com/halls/graphics/5gal1.jpg
http://www.cityofmist.com/halls/graphics/5gal2.jpg
[link=http://www.cityofmist.com/halls/graphics/5gal3.jpg ]http://www.cityofmist.com/halls/graphics/5gal3.jpg [/link]

i would remove the ugf and get a different filter, plants dont like ugf's. The other plant is some type of ludwigia. You should consider getting that lone tetra some buddies since they are schoolers.

Now that you say that i remember that it is a broadleaf ludwigia, that’s all its called on the tag. I don't know of a better filter for it since the only ones i have seen have all been a little large for the tank, plus the hood is very picky on what goes thru it. On another note, I did put a piece of blue construction paper behind it for backing. The tetra that is in there I have another in the 30 but the 30 is planted and is excessively difficult to catch anything but the killifish, which I can catch by hand... they love me. I also didn’t want to put to much in there because when I replanted it, I completely broke it down so I have to cycle the water, and I am worried that it they will die being that the 5gal is about as stable as i am on a tight rope haha.

Hi,
Throw away the incandescent bulb for several reasons...
While it gives off light, most of the energy it uses
is given off in the form of heat, and that heat, in the
summer, can make the tank water hot.
It gives off the wrong "kind" of light, light in the wrong
parts of the spectrum for plants.

Instead of it, go to any hardware store, and purchase
a screw in flourscent bulb that is labeled either
DAYLIGHT or SUNLIGHT. It will screw right into the
socket, and give you light in the 6700K range that is
perfect for viewing your tank and for growing plants.

Frank


-->>> The Confidence of Amateurs, is the Envy of Professionals <<<--

Just a note on the driftwood.

I bought some from my LFS. Soaked it until the water was clear and put in it my tank. That was about hmm....a month ago and my tank water is still brownish yellow. Even after major water changes very often.

Im going to take down the whole tank because I dont like the yellow colored water. Just got it stable too! UGH!! Feel like its dying my fish. I wouldnt even put my new male betta I bought today in there because I felt like the water would hurt his color. Hell be in a big fish bowl until I get another tank sat up. Sorry Blue!!

So, Id soak it alongggggg time before putting ANY in a 5 gallon. I mean months. The smaller the tank, the darker the water.

Last edited by ladiejl at 13-Nov-2005 00:27

Ladie, I think it really depends on the person.
Personally, I add peat to my filters, not just
to soften the water, but because I like the nice
tea color. Looks more natural to me.
Some types of Driftwood will release
tannins for years.
The large peice I have in my 75g tank is
Hemlock, and its been in water for 2 years now
almost, and it still hasnt sunk, and still is
releasing tannins.
Ladie, carbon or zeolite in your filter should
remove most of the tannins. Have you tried adding
these, or adding more?
A whole tank breakdown seems very much overdoing it
to get rid of the tannins. I would just remove the driftwood and then subsequent water changes will remove the remaining tannins.


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Yes, I added extra carbon. The gravel in the tank will not match what I am going to redo it in.

Well I thought maybe putting mosses in larger lava rocks, or possibly ones that have holes in them... would mosses attatch to the lava rock?