Hello, First try at a small tank – 7 gallons

[ancient11]

This is my very first attempt at a small tank and I am worried about the LED lighting for this tank will be mostly about plants and I really don't think that the LED light's that come with this kit are strong enough to do the job. This will also be my first attempt at plants.

The unit that I am buying is the AquaView 7-Gallon Fish Tank, I really would appreciate someone telling me what to do about the lighting on this tank.
Thank you very much

 

[IHaveADogToo]

It depends on the plants, honestly. I've had some plants do exceptionally well with LEDs. I've had others die within a week.

It sounds to me like you're going to have to look for plants that do well without UV light. I've had a lot of luck with Java Fern, personally.

Welcome to the forum!

 

[ancient11]

I was thinking about watergrass, hair grass, Java fern and another type of Java. I was thinking about adding a clip on – say about 6 W. What do you think of this, do you think it will be enough?
Thank you
oh yes, as far as fish goes – – I was thinking about the 2 mosquito or 4 female guppies. The problem is where to get the guppies without having a $25 shipping charge. Hopefully you might consider telling me where you buy your fish – smile.
Thank you very much for your help

 

[IHaveADogToo]

This is what happens to hairgrass that doesn’t get enough UV light. (See picture)

I know you’re not doing a black water tank, but you might want to look into what plants do well in black water tanks because those are low-light conditions. I’m not really an expert botanist though. I have plants die all the time. Maybe @NickAu or @Colin_T can offer you some really good low-light plant suggestions.

I’ve been getting my fish locally. Both from fish stores and pet stores. It’s scary getting fish from a chain pet store though, they often are sick before you even buy them. Local fish stores aren’t bad, but even they can be hit or miss. Certainly a step up from a chain store though. I haven’t tried online stores yet, as the idea of having fish shipped to me freaks me out, but many members here (and some of my real life fish keeper friends) swear by it.

 

[ancient11]

Well, my little tank turned out quite well (after some duzzy Bu Bu's) and I have received much enjoyment from this tank but I do have to keep after the frogbit. The hard part was trying to hide the hardware as much as possible in this small of a tank, well that- and keeping control of myself to not overstock the tank.