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well i would like to know exactly how much lighting need... because today i saw this: http://www.petfish.net/gallery/TOTM-Winners/Eclipse6

its a 6G tank with loads of plants and i dotn think that the lil eclipse 6 hood would have much lighting.. if i get a deluxe stiplight with a 32" florescent tube, would that allow me to get swords and plants like that guy has?

i dont really think i can afford dual tubes or a PC light.

That tank's quite low-light; I doubt the owner has augmented the lighting at all. He's keeping low-light plants - Anubias, java moss, the swords (which won't do well in the long run in that tiny tank but are fine for the moment), etc.
With some, say, java fern to replace the sword, you could have a copy of that tank running in no time flat, and almost certainly doing quite well.

For tanks that are less acheivable but incredibly inspiring, have you seen the [link=AGA contest?]http://showcase.aquatic-gardeners.org" style="COLOR: #4040FF[/link]

-Molly
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wow...

that is a nice site.

i might decide to make a tank just for plants, get an eclipse 3 or 6. but i was wondering would i need to stick fishes in there to produce CO2 or can i jsut use fertilizers like this: http://www.petco.com/product_info.asp?familyid=4132&sku=4700261066&tab=3&dept_id=1036&c1=1029&c2=1036&c3=&ct1=Conditioners+%26+Treatments&ct2=Plant+Fertilizers&ct3=

You don't need fish, but I wouldn't use those tablets. Stick to a reliable fert line like Flourish or Tropica - without fish, you'll need to dose nitrogen and phosphorus (which is why it might be easier to just put a few fish in), along with trace elements and so on.

Have you been to [link=The Krib]http://www.thekrib.com" style="COLOR: #4040FF[/link]? Unbeatable information on every possible plant topic.

-Molly
Visit shelldwellers.com!

thanks a lot.

im going to have a HUGE excess of guppies soon cause i have 30-40+ fry.

maybe ill stick in 2 guppies to breed in the tank since the plants would be a good hiding area for fry.

Sounds like a good plan. Hope you enjoy poking around the Krib, it's great in there. (For a fun read, try out the "Gaston" story in the Misc. section)

-Molly
Visit shelldwellers.com!

hmm... i just remembered something.

i have a spare 10G tank with all teh equipment i need >.<

im an idiot lol

should i use the 10g? i would get 1.5 WPG on that, the eclipse would give me 2WPG

and i have another question, if i dont have fishes in the tank, do i still need air? no right?

do i need to cycle a tank for just plants?

should i use an AC 150? or Penguin Mini?

*slaps self* cant believe i forgot i had the 10G...

Hi,
Actually, you are doing good.. The last time I pulled a
similiar stunt, it turned out all I had to do was open up
the window to see the link I thought I was missing.

The 10G tank would be fine. I'd use a small HOB filter,
and yes, I would cycle the tank, with the plants in it.
You really can to that. The thing is, that if you have
enough plants in it, you won't see the spikes of ammonia,
nitrite, or even nitrate, as the plants will use them
up as fast as they occur.

What are you going to use to keep the plants alive?
They use the byproducts of fish (fish waste, excess
food, dead/dying plant material) to create the nutrients
for them to survive. W/o fish, you will need to add
fertilizers to the tank. Better to do it naturally
by having some fish in the tank.

Frank


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

what happens if i leave the tank at a window? i read that if u have a lot of plants, there wont be algae, but it never mentioned anything about sunlight....

i want to keep atleast 2 or 3 med-high light plants, and the only empty spot i have is the window... is it horribly bad to put it by a window?

For a planted tank, I'd go with the eclipses, mainly because you can slap a compact flourecent bulb on there and get nice lighting, for things like a glosso carpet .

wait.. u can stick a PC light in an eclipse hood????

Sure. The smaller eclipses come with a socket for a standard light bulb, which can be substituted for a compact corkscrew flourecent available in any hardware store.

Last edited by Cup_of_Lifenoodles at 20-Nov-2004 23:57

Actually, the Eclipse 3, 6, and 12 all have flourescent lighting, so a screw-in PC won't work. Of course, you can still have a really nice tank without the extra light, and with the 10 gallon, since it's so short, that bulb will allow you to grow some "high light" plants better than most 1.5 wpg would. My first planted tank, a 10, had Ammania gracilis, Rotala indica, Hygro difformis, and a mat of Riccia fluitans on a piece of driftwood. All I did for that tank was add some Flourish Excel twice a week.

Here's an awful pic of a pretty decent Eclipse 12 gallon tank, to give you an idea of what can be done:
http://pg.photos.yahoo.com/ph/centromochlus_perugiae/detail?.dir=868a&amp;.dnm=b8be.jpg&amp;.src=ph

Really? I could've sworn...Hm, well, I guess wolfie's right. Sorry about that.

EDIT: Btw, are those your tanks, wolfie? They are quite simply put: freakin awesome, especially the first nanocube.

Last edited by Cup_of_Lifenoodles at 23-Nov-2004 00:48