First Attempt On A Planted Tank

[puppyjess123]

Ok so I am trying my first planted tank
I hope it will look better, please comment!

Tank Volume: 191 litres: 120cm x 40cm x 40cm

Filtration: Fluval 305 external and Fluvall 4+ internal

Substrate: Black gravel

Has low lighting. No co2. TPN+.

Fish
2 angelfish
zebra danios
3 bala sharks
cherry barbs
opaline, gold, pearl gourami
albino, bronze, peppered cories
platys + swordtails
neons
common + albino pleco

Plants
Ordered 25 off ebay and already have 3. Will be removing all ornaments in my tank and starting again.
Will Mostly have:
Java fern
Java moss
Anubias
Crypts
Vallis
Amazon swords

Going to get some redwood along with the mopani and bogwood I already have.

Heres the tank currently, im sure its going to look amazing planted. I've gone off the fake look.

EDITED: Progress so far

- Lucy

 

[puppyjess123]

If your interested these are the plants I bought
Click here

 

[shelaghfishface]

Hia Lucy
the tank looks fab!

Shelagh xxx

 

[hensonc4098]

Last Trading Post IME were very good - I got Vallis from them and I got about twice as much as they said I'd get so I rate them very highly Hopefully when your plants arrive they will be very good too!

 

[puppyjess123]

Thanks hensonc4098 i'll check them out

Also thank you Shelagh, Im sure it will look better soon though

-Lucy

 

[hensonc4098]

lol That's who you get your plants from

 

[puppyjess123]

Omg Im such an idiot

Anyway thats great to hear

-Lucy

 

[puppyjess123]

Hello again,

I've just read up that plecos (of which I have 2, albino and normal) like to eat plants. Is this true?

Also what shall i do if it is?

Thanks,

-Lucy

 

[hensonc4098]

Don't worry about it - I have those kinds of moments all the time!

Plecs generally don't purposefully eat plants, more accidently damage them. They have rasping teeth that they use to scrape algae off of surfaces, however sometimes these teeth can damage certain, more fragile, plants. Things like amazon swords seem to suffer as if one of their leaves is damaged at all from anything, it will not heal itself and instead the whole leaf will die. This is why people often don't like to keep plecs in planted tanks as they can accidently damage them but end up making a lot of the leaves die.

On the other hand, I guess it would depend on the size of the plecos as when they get bigger, they will be too big to hang on plants to suck them, so plants will suffer less.

I would say to try planting the tank with them in, but if you find that the plants are being damaged by them then it would be up to you whether to keep the plants or the plecs...

If you like having plecs in your tank, I think there are a few kinds that don't really damage plants as much - I think one called a rubber lipped pleco or a bullnose pleco? I'm not 100% though, but you could always check it out

Claire

 

[puppyjess123]

Thanks for the advise, mine are quite big so hopefully they wont be able to hang on

Also, i just bought some black gravel and have added it to the aquarium...

Unfortunately I am an idiot and forgot to wash it So now its up to my filters and UV to clean it.

Will post pics once it has cleared

-Lucy

 

[puppyjess123]

Heres a picture of what it looks like now

By the morning it should be crystal clear, i'll need to give the filters a good clean though

-Lucy

 

[puppyjess123]

^ clearing nicely now

Also i need some advice on planting my plants.

I bought 2 vallis and one amazon sword. I took them out of the pot and into seperate bits (their were different bits of roots if you know what i mean) I took each one and put them around the tank.

Should i have kept them in the pots and sponge because they keep breaking and floating to the top. The swords are okay its just the vallis which is being difficult

Thanks for your help,

-Lucy

 

[Truck]

If the vallis isn't rooting very well, push it down as far as you can and leave it a week, by that time it will have anchored itself and you can then pull it up and make sure the rosette is not covered by some of the substrate.

 

[Loops]

No, you were right to take them out of the pots

What do you mean they keep "breaking"?

 

[puppyjess123]

Thats good loops

By breaking I mean they get bent over and then start to go brown as i'm guessing there cut off from the food??

Truck I will do but what is the rosette?

Thanks,

-Lucy