Need Help Setting Up Low-Light, Low Tech Planted Tank

[Jeremy180]

Okay, so I've decided I want to put some real plants in my 29 gal (110 liter) 18 inch (45 cm) tall tank.
 
 
I'm wanting to try to keep things as simple as possible, which means, if possible, no CO2, no special substrate, and minimal fertilizer.
 
I'm guessing the current lighting (17 watt t8) is pretty much insufficient for anything to be doing any significant growth, so I'm going to upgrade.
 
I was thinking either a singl high output t5 fixture, or a double T5 Normal Output fixture, would this be sufficient light for a decent variety of plants without being high enough to require heavy ferts or any CO2 injection, and if so, which would be better?
 
My current substrate is 20 pounds of black Aqua-terra sand mixed with five pounds of purple gravel.
Both are ceramic-coated and the sand is pretty lightweight, too.
 
Ideally, I would want all or at least the majority of nitrates to be provided by the fish, with only occasional micro-nutrient ferts and root tabs being added.
 
So, What kinds of plants, if any, would work in this type of setup?

 

[daizeUK]

I would start with

• anubias tied to wood/rocks.  Anubias nana is a good choice
• Java fern tied to wood/rocks.  Have a look around for different types of Microsorum, you can get some attractive cultivars such as Mini or Narrow Leaf which personally I prefer to the broad-leaved java fern.  Stay away from Trident which I've found to be a bit more demanding.
• Mosses.  I'd receommend Christmas Moss if you can get it, or plain Java moss will do.  Again, tie it to wood or rocks, preferably using fishing line or you can use cyanoacrylate superglue.  Use tall pieces of wood with mosses attached to the end to get some greenery into the upper levels of your tank.
• Cryptocorynes.  Stick to the hardier crypt species such as Wendtii and stay away from the fancy ones such as parva or balansae.  There are lots to choose from.

Note that root tabs would only benefit the crypts as the rest of these plants have no roots in the substrate.  They will all enjoy a small dose of comprehensive liquid fertilizer weekly.
 
I also wouldn't be in a great rush to upgrade your lighting.  17W/29G sounds very low but depending on your tank dimensions sometimes a little light can go a long way.  I would start by keeping the lights on for 8 hours and gradually increase this by 1/2 hour per week until they are running for 11-12 hours a day.  If you see signs of algae, cut the time back.  If by the end of this you can see no algae but the plants are struggling then you can upgrade to about 1.0 to 1.2 WPG.

 

[greenmumma141]

^^^Agreed!!! 
 
Anubias, java fern, mosses, and crypts are all pretty basic, low-light plants. I would try the light you've got now (maybe replace the bulb if it's old). Remember, the more light you have, the more ferts and co2 you will need to keep a good balance. So start at the lower end and like Daize said, if after a couple weeks your plants aren't doing so well, then upgrade the lighting, but I would still wouldnt go over 1.5 wpg (watts per gallon).
 
If you want to use a basic weekly fertilizer, I would recommend Seachem Flourish.

 

[daizeUK]

Replacing the light bulb is a good idea, fluorescent tubes should be replaced at least once a year to keep light output optimum.  Another good option is to add a reflector if you haven't already got one.  I like the Arcadia reflectors.  They're a cheap way of boosting your light output without overpowering it.

 

[greenmumma141]

0o0o yeah, a reflector it a good idea too. Kind of tricky bc then you're not really sure the exact amount of light you're putting out, but if it works great, then it doesn't really matter does it?

 

[Jeremy180]

Wow!  so many replies!

I would start with

• anubias tied to wood/rocks.  Anubias nana is a good choice
• Java fern tied to wood/rocks.  Have a look around for different types of Microsorum, you can get some attractive cultivars such as Mini or Narrow Leaf which personally I prefer to the broad-leaved java fern.  Stay away from Trident which I've found to be a bit more demanding.
• Mosses.  I'd receommend Christmas Moss if you can get it, or plain Java moss will do.  Again, tie it to wood or rocks, preferably using fishing line or you can use cyanoacrylate superglue.  Use tall pieces of wood with mosses attached to the end to get some greenery into the upper levels of your tank.
• Cryptocorynes.  Stick to the hardier crypt species such as Wendtii and stay away from the fancy ones such as parva or balansae.  There are lots to choose from.

Note that root tabs would only benefit the crypts as the rest of these plants have no roots in the substrate.  They will all enjoy a small dose of comprehensive liquid fertilizer weekly.
 
I also wouldn't be in a great rush to upgrade your lighting.  17W/29G sounds very low but depending on your tank dimensions sometimes a little light can go a long way.  I would start by keeping the lights on for 8 hours and gradually increase this by 1/2 hour per week until they are running for 11-12 hours a day.  If you see signs of algae, cut the time back.  If by the end of this you can see no algae but the plants are struggling then you can upgrade to about 1.0 to 1.2 WPG.

Yeah,  I like the look  of the anubias and the java fern, as well as the java moss.
 
Are all varieties of wendtii equally hardy? I'm particularly interested in the "Florida Sunset" variety.
 Also, what other crypt species are more forgiving? I'm getting conflicting information on this.
 
Also, I've definitely decided to upgrade to a double t5 Normal output, as the tank is 30 inches long and the bulb I have now is only 24 inches, at 17 watts I currently have  about 3/5WPG.
the double T5 NO are 18 watts each, which makes it 36 watts for both, or about 1&1/4 WPG, keeping in mind that this is also a deeper tank, and finally, considering the fact that during the fishless cycle with the current lighting,  some brown algae showed up on the driftwood that's about 10" (25 cm) tall.
While the algae is pretty thick on the uppermost portion of the driftwood, it rapidly thins as the distance from the light increases, until there's none at the bottom of the tank, so apparently the current light isn't even enough to grow brown algae on the gravel...
 

^^^Agreed!!! 
 
Anubias, java fern, mosses, and crypts are all pretty basic, low-light plants. I would try the light you've got now (maybe replace the bulb if it's old). Remember, the more light you have, the more ferts and co2 you will need to keep a good balance. So start at the lower end and like Daize said, if after a couple weeks your plants aren't doing so well, then upgrade the lighting, but I would still wouldnt go over 1.5 wpg (watts per gallon).
 
If you want to use a basic weekly fertilizer, I would recommend Seachem Flourish.

The bulb is about one month old, full spectrum light.
Does Flourish have the same problem as exel, in that it can cause some plants to melt?
 

Replacing the light bulb is a good idea, fluorescent tubes should be replaced at least once a year to keep light output optimum.  Another good option is to add a reflector if you haven't already got one.  I like the Arcadia reflectors.  They're a cheap way of boosting your light output without overpowering it.

 

0o0o yeah, a reflector it a good idea too. Kind of tricky bc then you're not really sure the exact amount of light you're putting out, but if it works great, then it doesn't really matter does it?

Hmm, I've heard mylar tape being suggested as a very cheap reflector material, has anyone tried this?
 
Also would 1.25 WPG be enough for water sprite? What about any other stem plants?
Are there any "colored" plants that could tolerate this light?
Also I think I would like an African water fern as a centerpiece and maybe marsilea hirsuta as a carpeting plant,
and possibly either frogbit or azolla Carolina (Floating fern) as a floating plant, Would this work?

 

[daizeUK]

I'm not familiar with 'Florida Sunset', sorry.  I've personally had success with crypt Beckettii and Amicorum (won't stop growing!).  I've had less success with parva and balansae and I'm currently trying out Undulatus.  I can't advise much further as I don't know what types of crypt you can get in the US but I use an online website to order all my plants and they usually have good descriptions about which plants are easy to grow on the website.  Most crypts are usually safe as long as you stay away from the very small varieties.
 
The lighting you are considering sounds good if you have a deeper tank.  When you've got new plants settling in it's always a good idea to start the lighting low and gradually increase it (as algae will adjust to new lighting faster than plants will), so it is still a good idea to start with 6 hours photoperiod and gradually increase it by 1/2 hour per week, watching out for algae as you go.
 
You don't need to keep lights on during a fishless cycle - ideally the tank should be kept dark.  Algae loves ammonia + light and the bacteria don't need light to cycle the tank.
 
Flourish Comprehensive is a mix of mostly micro ferts, it does not contain a liquid carbon source like Flourish Excel and so will not melt plants.  They are different products.  There are other brands of fert you can consider such as EasyLife Profito and others which I forget.  You can also get dry ferts if you fancy mixing your own, I moved from Flourish Comprehensive to dry ferts as it works out much cheaper in the long run.
 
I've not heard of mylar tape but I would recommend you wait until your tank is well established and stable before considering boosting your T5 light output any more.  More light = more algae.  Generally speaking the more light you have, the more ferts your plants will consume so you may need to start adding carbon and macro ferts if your lighting exceeds a certain level.
 
Personally I've not had much luck with stem plants, they are very fast growing and tend to grow very well for a short while (while they use up their stores of nutrients) and then they melt away.  To sustain  this kind of growth they need more ferts than the slow-growing plants I've suggested for you.  By all means try them if you like.  I've had the most success with Hygrophila polysperma, personally.
 
Coloured plants - it's unlikely you'll be able to grow bright red plants but some crypts come in 'brown' varieties which can make a nice colour contrast.  Beckettii and Wendtii Brown are some examples.
 
Bear in mind that floating plants will block your light to the lower levels of the tank.  I can't see this working if you want a carpeting plant.  Marsilea hirsuta is a good choice but you may need to supply carbon and ferts to get a nice carpeting effect.  No harm in trying!

 

[Jeremy180]

Thanks for the reply, DaizeUK.
 
And thank you for all the help, just a couple more questions, please.
 
I'll Definitely have cherry shrimp and nerites in the aquarium, and possibly a Bamboo/ Flower Shrimp as well, once the tank has been established for about half a year.
 
Will Flourish excel harm any of these animals?
 
My LFS also sells reptiles, and they have sandblasted Grape Vine branches in that section for a good bit less than an equivalent sized piece of Aquarium driftwood.
Do you know if this would be safe to put in the aquarium (after Boiling it, of course)?

 

[daizeUK]

Excel (and similar liquid carbon products) are not generally recommended with shrimp.  Opinion is somewhat divided, some shrimp owners refuse to use it while others say they have no problems with their shrimp and liquid carbon.  Personally I would love to add shrimp to my tank but haven't because I dose EasyCarbo quite heavily.  I'm thinking of switching to CO2 gas, partly for the benefit of my plants and partly so that I can add shrimp safely.  If you do add shrimp with liquid carbon then keep the dosage small to start with and gradually increase each week, watching for problems along the way.
 
Grape vine isn't ideal for aquariums as it tends to float and rot under water.  Some people have used it in aquariums with success though so give it a try if you like, but be prepared for trouble if it starts developing mold or won't sink.

 

[greenmumma141]

Wow, I didn't realize liquid co2 was not good for shrimp, that there was even a debate about it. That would explain why all my blue pearls died
 
  I always recommend that people starting with liquid co2 or even a new fertilizer, start dosing 1/3 the dosage for the first week, 2/3  the second week, etc.
 
I wouldn't actually put the wood into boiling water, that will break the wood down and could cause it to rot once in your tank. just pour the boiling wood over the top of it and that should do it

 

[CrimsonBoli]

Just a response to your light reflector. I use aluminium tape in the top of mine and got about 10% more light into the tank if it helps...