# new to the hobby



## bakery Joe (Jun 2, 2011)

Im new to the hobby I would like to start a planted tank but im not sure what kind of plants to start with and the whole lighting thing scares me some one please HELP!!!!


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## hoffmanjj19 (Mar 4, 2011)

Hi,

I'm by no means an experienced planted tank keeper, but I recently went through the same situation as you (not knowing where to start). I can't help you much, but I can lay the ground work for others to help you. If you could please answer these questions, people will be able to give you more specific advice:

1). How much are you willing to spend? 

2). How big is your tank?

3). How much time can you commit to the upkeep of your tank?

4). What are the water parameters coming out of your tap? (if you will be using tap water for water changes)


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## majerah1 (Oct 29, 2010)

Agreed,we need a little info on your tank.

There are many directions you can go.Low light low tech, high high tech.If you want something that you can set up and just let do its thing,then the low tech setup is the way to go.Low light you will not be able to grow a whole lot,and really no reds.PLants like java fern,java moss,anubias nana,are very easy plants.Or if you go a little higher,you can get more varieties.

IF you decide to start out high tech then you will need to get a good light and most likely a pressurized CO2 setup(depending on tank size.)and possibly a fert dosing regeme.


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## fishman81 (Jan 12, 2011)

bakery Joe said:


> Im new to the hobby I would like to start a planted tank but im not sure what kind of plants to start with and the whole lighting thing scares me some one please HELP!!!!


Do a lot of research on lighting... Lights are expensive, flourescent seems to be best bet for a lot of people. The shorter the tank the less light needed, you'll read all kinds of #'s on watts / gallon and light color measured on the kelvin scale(6700k, 10000k, etc). Plants do good w/6700k lights (plant lights aren't always in this range). A typical light that comes w/ a tank is not good enough in my limited experience. I like java moss, amazon swords, and hornwort, all pretty easy to keep with decent but not super expensive lighting. CO2 is not always neccesary and is super complex if your just learning. Stick with easy plants. give some more info on tank size, could help out a bit more knowing that.


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## Gizmo (Dec 6, 2010)

Without going into too much detail (which I can do if asked), I would advise the following:

1. Lighting: T5HO fluorescent, and try for 2-3 Watts of light power per gallon.

2. CO2: Look up DIY CO2 on the DIY section of this forum. There's a few really good threads on how to Do It Yourself using sugar and yeast.

3. Substrate: Get good substrate and/or root fertilization tabs, something like Fluorite or Eco-Complete as your substrate.

That's it if you ask me!


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## beaslbob (May 29, 2009)

bakery Joe said:


> Im new to the hobby I would like to start a planted tank but im not sure what kind of plants to start with and the whole lighting thing scares me some one please HELP!!!!


for smaller tanks I use the spiral (pig tail) compact flouresecent. For 4' long tanks I use shop lights from building supply stores.

either way I try for 1.5-2 watts/gallon (actual flourescent watts not incandescent equalivant watts) of 6500K (Kelvin) color temperature.

For plants I use a mix of fast growers (anacharis, vals) and slower growers (small potted crypts/swords) and one (or a few) amazon sword centerpieces.


For substrate I use 1" peat moss, 1" play sand, 1" pc select (or aquarium gravel). I lay down a layer, add water, clean then add the next layer.

I then plant the plants before filling the tank with water poured over a dish.

I then do nothing for a week so the plants get established.

I then add 1 fish (or 1/10g for larger tanks) usually a a male platy.
the do nothing for one week (no food added).

I then add more fish (couple of females for platies) and start feeding very lightly like 1 flake per day or so.

You might also want to look up "beaslbob builds" which is basically the technique above.


my .02


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## Gizmo (Dec 6, 2010)

beaslbob said:


> I then add 1 fish (or 1/10g for larger tanks) usually a a male platy.
> 
> I then add more fish (couple of females for platies)


Get ready for babies!


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## jrman83 (Jul 9, 2010)

Just don't try to mix watts per gallon (WPG) rules with T5HO lights. You'll end up with a light that will be too much and end up needing CO2. WPG rules do not work for them.


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## Gizmo (Dec 6, 2010)

My bad. T5HO is too efficient for the old WPG rule. JR - how do you determine what T5HO light is best for your tank then? I always aimed for about 2 WPG, but my 48W over my 29 tall barely satisfies low light Lux readings at the bottom of my tank (using the proper Lux-PAR conversion for the bulbs I have).


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## jrman83 (Jul 9, 2010)

Your 48W is probably close to high light - especially if they each have their own reflector. There is no way to easily determine a light. I just go by the data that others have collected on TPT using a PAR meter.


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## Gizmo (Dec 6, 2010)

I've got my light meter that measures in Lux, and using a conversion factor with a Lux measurement of ~100, I get ~25 PAR, which is VERY low


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## beaslbob (May 29, 2009)

Gizmo said:


> I've got my light meter that measures in Lux, and using a conversion factor with a Lux measurement of ~100, I get ~25 PAR, which is VERY low


From what I understand par meeters are very expensive and LUX /Par cannot be converted unless there are very large assumptions.

that is simply because LUX is weighted on what the human eye "sees" but PAR is weighted to frequencies plants "see". So a given light source may have only those frequencies that are measured in lux but not measured in par.

i think

my .02


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