# Adding live plants to help fish in cycle?



## xfatdannx (Jan 25, 2013)

I went to LFS today and my guy up there advised that adding a live plant may help in lowing ammonia and help with the general cycle process. Anyone have opinion or info to add to this? Anything to help my fish through the cycle process.

(read about fishless cycle AFTER i added my fish...that will be preferred method from now on)

Tank:
6gal fluval edge
1 Serpae tetra


----------



## tbub1221 (Nov 1, 2012)

How long how long now in to this cycle are you did you put in the fish recently , and what are your ammonia , ph , nitrates and nitrites reading . 
I only ask because im trying to understand completely whats going on because there are plants that absorb nitrates but i am not sure thats what your needing .


----------



## susankat (Nov 15, 2008)

Plants will help with the cycle, but you will need to load the tank with a lot of fast growing plants. keep an eye on your ammonia and nitrites when one gets to .50 do a fairly large water change.


----------



## xfatdannx (Jan 25, 2013)

These tests were done friday...

1. nitrate - 20ppm - safe

2. nitrite - .75ppm - This is between caution and stress so i need to get this taken care of

3. hardness - between 150 and 300 ppm - i was told keep this the same until my tank is completely populated then worry about it. LFS said its going to be about the same there as here bc we get tap from the same local supplier.

4. alkalinity - 300ppm - test strip said its high LFS said not to worry about it at this time also

5. pH - 7.8ppm - LFS also said to not worry about this too much right now bc its based on out tap water system also.

oh ya and my API test shows between .5 and 1 ppm for ammonia.

Fish has been in 4 weeks as of today (monday) fish went in day three. I am new to aquariums and followed my Fluval Edge's instructions which said day 3 was good. Read later i should have waited. Tank has been up 3 days longer than fish has been in so tank is 4 weeks 3 days old.

i work over nights and will be testing again when i get home. I will update these then.


----------



## xfatdannx (Jan 25, 2013)

also my fluval edge had 2 x 10w Halogen lights, not the LEDs if that makes a difference.


----------



## xfatdannx (Jan 25, 2013)

This may also be important to note. 2 days ago i notice algae. The algae is only on the pirate ship sails near the top (most light). Below is a picture i took of my tank with my iPod.



The TOP of the masts are the only spot that have started to turn green.

From what i was reading on another site, this is a good sign that my aquarium is able to support life on its own now.

As always thanks for your opinions and comments.


----------



## dalfed (Apr 8, 2012)

Plants will definately help remove ammonia Plants and Biological Filtration - The Free Freshwater and Saltwater Aquarium Encyclopedia Anyone Can Edit - The Aquarium Wiki but like Susan said you will need alot of fast growing plants to balance. I would suggest to add the plants that you want but keep up the testing and the water changes.


----------



## ChessieSFR (Dec 30, 2011)

It sounds like your cycle is on the verge of being complete. You're getting nitrates, which is great. The nitrites in all of my tanks have cycled through within a week at most, so you are probably only days away from the coveted, O:O:20 mark.

The algae is going to grow where there is an abundance of light. Personally, I let it grow on decorations, and just try to keep my glass clean. I don't think you need a ton of plants. It's not going to change your cycle a whole lot, and you're almost there.

If you want to try a planted tank for planting's sake, then go for it. I love my live plants. They just kick the care up a touch. I'm constantly fighting the live plants vs algae issue.


----------



## xfatdannx (Jan 25, 2013)

its my understanding if you have fast enough growing plants they use the nutrients and starve the algae. is that true in your experience?


----------



## ChessieSFR (Dec 30, 2011)

That is true, but it is hard to starve algae. The amount of light is key, not really the nutrients. I've found keeping the lights on a schedule and no more than 8hrs on helps with CO2 to promote "good plant" growth. If there is too much light, algae comes back with a vengeance. I have all low light plants, and they do okay with the limited hours.

What I have noticed is that my nitrate levels go up very slowly, so theoretically, I could do less water changes, but I end up doing just as many water changes just to "clean up" the tank anyway.

The biggest benefit is that the tank looks much better. If something gets ragged, I just snip it off. If there's too much algae growing on something, I can cut it back and wait for new growth. You can't do that with non-living plants. I've found I tend to treat it like a mini very wet garden.


----------



## xfatdannx (Jan 25, 2013)

i was looking at anacharis...it seems you can just cut it anywhere and plant what you have just cut as long as you weight it so it can grow roots, does that sound accurate?


----------



## ChessieSFR (Dec 30, 2011)

Anacharis is easy to care for, but needs a lot of light, or it needs to float close to the light, otherwise, the bottom half of it the leaves start to rot and make a mess in your tank, while the top half grows pretty green. I've always taken it out and clipped it down to the healthy bits, and let it float for as long as it lasts, but I haven't been able to establish it steadily in my aquarium. My best plant has easily been my java lace fern. It grows great, does well with the low light, it has tough leaves that I can scrub algae off if I need to, it fancies up my decorations, and the fish like hiding under the leaves and my assassin snails love laying eggs on it.

My moss balls have also been low key and fun to have in the tank. Wysteria made a mess, Hornwort was cool and grew well, but it also shed all over everything.

I also like my java moss, but I'm having trouble finding just the right spot for it that it really likes. It isn't very messy though, and any fry I have in my tank love to hide in it.


----------



## xfatdannx (Jan 25, 2013)

well i just bit the bullet and decided to grab anacharis today, it was 2.99 per "bushel" about 5 or 6 12" stems. so 10-12 total. i trimmed some down and they all seem to have decent light from the roots substrate to about half way up, thats where the ones in the back start to miss the light. (My fluval edge has 2 directional 10w halogens) I also have the Java Fern on the opposite side. that came on a coconut husk wrap, but one was falling off so i grabbed a rock from the rock garden, rinsed it real well and scrubbed with a green scrub pad, tied the stray JF to it and am seeing if that will make it. The rest still seem fine. My nitrates and nitrites are at good levels, once i get the ammonia under control i will FINALLY be ready for more fish.


----------



## xfatdannx (Jan 25, 2013)

i like the Emperor Tetras and the Rummy Nose, but i am seeing that usually (not always) you need to have like fish together for them to school.


----------



## coralbandit (Jul 29, 2012)

whether those will school I can't say,but there is not alot of room for them to not look like they are schooling.They will all get along fine.Your stray java fern should do fine also as they don't really want their roots buried.I have anacharis and java fern in my edge with the same lights and they're doing fine.I even have "baby"anubias with them.


----------



## xfatdannx (Jan 25, 2013)

coralbandit said:


> whether those will school I can't say,but there is not alot of room for them to not look like they are schooling.They will all get along fine.Your stray java fern should do fine also as they don't really want their roots buried.I have anacharis and java fern in my edge with the same lights and they're doing fine.I even have "baby"anubias with them.


does the rhizome continue to grow also? will it eventually be able to cling to the rock without the fishing line?


----------



## ChessieSFR (Dec 30, 2011)

Yeah, but it takes a while, It does better with things that the roots can grow into like pores and cracks. It sticks well to wood. Honestly, the fishing line won't hurt anything and it will keep it secure.


----------



## xfatdannx (Jan 25, 2013)

Thanks! The fishing line was a tip i read elsewhere, it just looks tacky imo. I have changed my aquarium from the pics i have on here, The lava rock is now my center piece with each kind of plant on either side. 

There are some lava rocks in the rock garden outside my place, maybe i will find a few of those to tie them all to them and get rid of the coconut husk all together, they are more porous than the smooth rock that i used for the one. I will get another pic today to show the current set up. 

Im starting to wish i would not have gone with a white substrate as i see the darker colors promote better fish colors but i was looking for contrasting colors and the fluval stand,back piece, and cover are all black. I thought it would just be too much. I don't want to change now as i would have start my cycle all over.


----------



## coralbandit (Jul 29, 2012)

Once your bacteria is properly established(seems soon) you could change your substrate.Just do not disturb your filter and keep stocking lite for a couple days.Most bacteria really attaches to surfaces inside your filter.In fact little BB usaully resides in the gravel.That being said(and I have same tank) the filter is kind of small,so if you really want to do this try before you up your stock.
I would pull 50% water and fish out(to bucket for temporary housing of 3 hours),remove gravel,replace and re-fill with new treated water and let run 1 or 2 hours.Then acclimate fish and you should be good.Wait a couple days before adding new fish.


----------



## xfatdannx (Jan 25, 2013)

thanks coralbandit. 

i got a completely separate problem now. The Serpae, being shy like they are, now has a place to hide. Which he goes to hide when i put my hand over the tank to feed him. By the time i walk away and he comes out, the filter has pushed it down and it has settled on the substrate. Will he find it if he is hungry enough or will he be stubborn and starve himself if he doesn't see the food coming down? BC of the design of this tank i only have a little 6"x6" opening on top to put the food so it will always be pushed down by filter.


----------



## ChessieSFR (Dec 30, 2011)

Get a feeding ring and attach it on the opposite side of the tank from your filter. It will keep the food from being pulled into the flow of the filter output and give him more time to come out to eat. He'll also know right where to go to eat, and that helps with shyness.


----------



## ChessieSFR (Dec 30, 2011)

I had dark substrate, but changed it to light because the tank became a "black hole" for light and always seemed gloomy. Now I have speckled substrate and my corycat has returned to a speckled color instead of pitch black. I honestly didn't see any difference in the color intensity of my other fish, and lava rocks should work great for your plant roots.

The roots will grow and hide the fishing line eventually anyway, even if they don't anchor well on their own.


----------



## coralbandit (Jul 29, 2012)

Your serpae should find the food if it's hungry.Try feeding every other day for a week, I'll bet he becomes happy to see you.Feeding ring will probably not work easily in the opening.The filter does have flow adjustment, so you could slow it down at feeding time also.


----------



## xfatdannx (Jan 25, 2013)

ive been feeding everyother day for a little over a week alredy and the filter is on its lowest setting :/


----------



## xfatdannx (Jan 25, 2013)

Okay so an update.

As stated before i tested my tap water and there were and still are trace amounts of ammonia. On a whim i pulled out our drinking water from the fridge, a Brita filter pitcher. Poured a small glass and tested it. NO ammonia was detected in this water. I also tested PH and GH and everything seemed to be okay. The ph was a little lower than my tank but i figured the ammonia being at zero was a bigger benefit that the ph levels being harmful. I did a 40-50% water change with the filtered water. (not straight from the fridge, that would be too cold) Ammonia levels were cut in half within an hour. From the 2ppm to 1ppm. So i think i have figured out my source for water changes. Very inconvenient but worth it for the fish.

Now that i am slowly getting the finishing stages of the cycle under control, i am still worried about his eating habits. Again, as i stated, he will not eat now. He gets scared and hides when i go to feed him now that he has the hiding spots. I think adding more fish will help him in the end but i do not want to add more fish to the cycling aquarium. If i would have done my research before setting it up and buying i would have no fish in there but here i am now. I tried covering the sides so he couldn't see me and drop food in when he is out and about, nothing. I tried putting the flakes in a syringe and squirting it to his hideout, just a nibble. In the last 5 days he has only eaten one small piece of food and i am getting worried it will not be good for him soon. 

Any other suggestions?


----------



## ChessieSFR (Dec 30, 2011)

He's stressed, and fussing over an already stressed fish will cause more stress. The best thing to do is stay on top of the water changes, get the tank well established and cycled. Let things settle down, then get more fish. He may not be the best suited type of fish for this tank.


----------



## xfatdannx (Jan 25, 2013)

Going back to the main point of this thread, the plants. I think i was blasting my plants with a little too much light earlier. I was basically lights on for 16 hours and off the 8 hours of the day i was at work. Lately, bc i don't have a timer yet, i have been getting my girlfriend to chip in on light duty. I turn them on at 8am when i get home from work and she turns them off at 6pm (while im sleeping). My anacharis seems to be EXPLODING! I will have to trim more often but thats fine.

My question is, is that normal? Is anacharis like corn, in the sense that it takes in nutrients during the light hours and uses them to grow during the dark hours?


----------



## coralbandit (Jul 29, 2012)

Anacharis is basically like a weed.It is one of the plants that do WELL for me.On any giving day from any of my tanks I can pull out pieces over 6' long.Grows very fast.


----------

