New five gallon planted tank

[WillDuncan]

Hello!
I am looking into starting a new 5 gallon planted tank I would love some advice on substrait plants and fish or shrimp to put in it diy and low budget preferred because im a working student im looking for something to spice my dorm room up a bit



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[flchamp89]

Plants will depend on your par, co2, and desire/knowledge of macros and micros. Shrimp in a 5g is great idea. Fish choices are limited in a small tank. Fish choices will also affect the ability for shrimp in such a small space. A 5g makes a great betta tank. But shrimp may or may not survive. Other choices s.badis, single flag, pair of male endler/guppies. There are other micro fish that may work as well. Or an adf.

If you can consider a 10g your options will grow substantially.

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[WillDuncan]

Plants will depend on your par, co2, and desire/knowledge of macros and micros. Shrimp in a 5g is great idea. Fish choices are limited in a small tank. Fish choices will also affect the ability for shrimp in such a small space. A 5g makes a great betta tank. But shrimp may or may not survive. Other choices s.badis, single flag, pair of male endler/guppies. There are other micro fish that may work as well. Or an adf.

If you can consider a 10g your options will grow substantially.

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I could offord a ten gallon and the water I would be using is deionized I could buy some mineral supplements and I was thinking of maybe some dwarf grass any suggestions on fish or shrimp?



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[**sarahp**]

If you're going to consider fish you need to cycle the tank before you do anything else.

Have you read Byron's reply to your question about your 15g?

 

[WillDuncan]

If you're going to consider fish you need to cycle the tank before you do anything else.

Have you read Byron's reply to your question about your 15g?

Yes I have and my 15 gallon appears to be cycled already thank you for the concern though, im curious tho would haveing this planted tank speed up my cycling process and how long would you estimate it takeing



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[flchamp89]

Since you have a cycled tank bring media over too the new tank. Dhg will appreciate medium par and co2

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[**sarahp**]

OK, I don't mean to harp on but I'm a tad concerend about your other tank and I think that before you start removing filter media from it we need to be absolutley certain that things are ok with it.

You say it "appears" to be cycled - how do you know? Have you tested the water for poisons such as ammonia and nitrtite? Do you still have the bala shark and the silver dollar in there?

I think you need to sort out the potential issues you have with your 15g before you embark on a new 5g.

 

[WillDuncan]

OK, I don't mean to harp on but I'm a tad concerend about your other tank and I think that before you start removing filter media from it we need to be absolutley certain that things are ok with it.

You say it "appears" to be cycled - how do you know? Have you tested the water for poisons such as ammonia and nitrtite? Do you still have the bala shark and the silver dollar in there?

I think you need to sort out the potential issues you have with your 15g before you embark on a new 5g.

Ok I see what your saying I will purchase some test kits and see the levels of ammonia and nitrate.



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[WillDuncan]

OK, I don't mean to harp on but I'm a tad concerend about your other tank and I think that before you start removing filter media from it we need to be absolutley certain that things are ok with it.

You say it "appears" to be cycled - how do you know? Have you tested the water for poisons such as ammonia and nitrtite? Do you still have the bala shark and the silver dollar in there?

I think you need to sort out the potential issues you have with your 15g before you embark on a new 5g.

I will get the 15 sorted out before I embark on the ten, thank you for you genuine concern for the wellbeing of my fish I will purchase some testing kits and see what my ammonia and nitrate levels are.



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[**sarahp**]

That's good

An API master test kit is probably the best - test strips are a bit useless. Also taking a sample of your tank water to your local shop is also a bit useless. Generally better to test yourself. It's also good to have the kit around. Over the 8 ish years that I have been into this hobby I've had few times where being able to test the water at 10pm has been useful - whether to tell me to do a big water change NOW or it's ok dont' worry; having to take a sample to a LFS is just not possible at that time of night!!

Did you take the bala and the silver dollar back to the store?

 

[StevenF]

I could offord a ten gallon and the water I would be using is deionized I could buy some mineral supplements and I was thinking of maybe some dwarf grass any suggestions on fish or shrimp?

Be sure to cycle the tank before you stock it.
http://www.fishforums.net/threads/cycling-your-new-fresh-water-tank-read-this-first.421488/

A good choice of supplements is Flourish Comprehensive in the 50ml or 100ml bottle size. This is the smallest size and it will last you a long time in a 10 gallon. When you get it put about 20ml in a small pill bottle and then freeze the rest of the bottle. It will slowly start to spoil once the bottle is opened. Also DI and RO water is too soft for plants and animals. Use SeaChem equilibrium to to increase the water hardness (GH) to at least 3 degrees. Also put one or more sea shells in the aquarium. This decorative shell will slowly dissolve over the years and help stabilize PH. For a small basic plant aquarium you don't need CO2 but a light that puts out 1500 lumens should be adequate. Fluorescent lamps are the most economical. LEDs are also good but will cost you more. Also get a timer to automatically turn the light on and off. The lights should be on for about 8 hours a day. Be sure to get a water test kit I personally use test strips and find them accurate when compared to reference samples and other test kits. Get whatever kit you think will work best for you.
http://www.seachem.com/flourish.php
http://www.seachem.com/equilibrium.php

For Shrimp I would start with Cherry shrimp and since they are easy to care for and low cost. I would also put one Nerite snail in the aquarium to help keep the glass clean. Try avoid plants infested with pond snails. For fish focus on small fish like neon tetras, . Most of these only grow about 1.5 inches long and a small school of six should do ok in a 10 gallon.

im curious tho would haveing this planted tank speed up my cycling process and how long would you estimate it takeing

In theory if you have a planted tank with healthy growing plants you don't need to cycle because plants will consume Ammonia, Nitrite, and Nitrate. However the Key words are Healthy and Growing. Unfortunately with DI or RO water plant growth may not happen if the nutrients are off or there are problems with the lighting and filtration. If the plants don't grow, ammonia will appear. For this reason I recommend cycling the tank and then planting it. That way the tank will have the needed bacteria if you have unexpected problems with the plants. That way Ammonia is unlikely to appear and your animals will not suffer.

When I set up my aquarium with RO water i put in plants and figured I didn't need to cycle it. I was wrong. Without fertilizer my plants kept dying. Somehow I got lucky and didn't loose any fish in my unicycle tank with dying plants.

 

[thrujenseyes]

When you get it put about 20ml in a small pill bottle and then freeze the rest of the bottle. It will slowly start to spoil once the bottle is opened.

I always mean to ask...
how long will a bottle stay fresh and safe? I'm pretty sure I bought my bottle in September. I keep in a cool dark cabinet, but never froze some of it like you suggest. I will definitely do this with my next as a small bottle will last an eternity when you have a 6 gallon tank!

 

[StevenF]

I always mean to ask...
how long will a bottle stay fresh and safe?

When it is frozen It will last indefinitely. When I kept it in the fridge it did last months but eventually mold started to grow in it. Out of the fridge or freezer its 2 to 3 months before mold starts.

 

[**sarahp**]

And what do you do, defrost it and replenish your 20ml pill bottle and then refreeze? Or once it's defrosted is that it??

 

[NickAu]

According to Seachem, the mold is harmless, Seachem also recommends that you refrigerate Flourish.