# Starting a Ten Gallon Heavily Planted tank



## BabyNemo

Hey guys. I have a little over 200 dollars to start up a new tank with and I was going to do a guppy tank maybe a cartoonish feel to it and another one heavily planted. I have never done a planted tank before and need all the help I can get. Sorry if I'm being too broad, I just know absolutely nothing about planted tanks. Thanks.


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## chenowethpm

Once you go live plants, you never go back. Planted tanks cover a wide spectrum from low tech to high tech. But they all share some common things. Number one being light. You need your light to be in the proper spectrum. That starts at 6500k and up. The amount of light you have will determine some things. A low light tank will only grow low light plants. A high light tank will require more supplementation,ie. Co2, fertilizer. All can be beautiful. High light, high tech tanks will require more maintenance such as trimming because of the faster grow rates. Do a lot of research, ask a lot of questions, decide how much time and energy you are willing to put in. It's worth it. Did I mention choosing one of the many different options of substrate?


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## BabyNemo

chenowethpm said:


> Once you go live plants, you never go back. Planted tanks cover a wide spectrum from low tech to high tech. But they all share some common things. Number one being light. You need your light to be in the proper spectrum. That starts at 6500k and up. The amount of light you have will determine some things. A low light tank will only grow low light plants. A high light tank will require more supplementation,ie. Co2, fertilizer. All can be beautiful. High light, high tech tanks will require more maintenance such as trimming because of the faster grow rates. Do a lot of research, ask a lot of questions, decide how much time and energy you are willing to put in. It's worth it. Did I mention choosing one of the many different options of substrate?


I think I found a light on F&S. It's supposed to stimulate plant growth. I'll check the spectrum now. 
How does this look? T8 Fluorescent Aquarium Lamps: Aqueon Floramax Plant Growth Fluorescent Lamp
Or this?
Fluorescent Aquarium Lighting: Zoo Med Flora Sun Fluorescent Bulbs
If neither, are there any on D&R that would work?
Also I looked at substrate such as:
Amazon.com : S.T. International Aqua Soil for Aquarium Plants, 4.4-Pound, Black : Pet Supplies
I thought I didn't want to do a high-tech set-up, but I really love how they end up looking. I don't understand how the CO2 things work, at all, or how tanks like these 'work'.
I'm a highschool junior, so I have a bit of time on my hands especially with summer vacation coming in a few months and being a senior next year. I'm either home or at school, so there's about 6 hours a day I can put into my tanks.
I hope I'm allowed to link to other websites, if not I'll edit the links out.
Thank you.


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## big b

if your going to do a guppy tank then it has to be a all males or all females tank.if you mix them up then you will be over run with fish.


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## kalyke

For 200, I would have done a low tech dirted tank, 30 gallons or so. You know, the big chain pet stores have those dollar per gallon sales. No one needs special soils or lights. A lot of this hobby is about who can impress others with the most expensive gadget. Just remember, a wise buyer never pays full price. 

And as bigb says, live bearers are not the best choice for tiny tanks.


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## Gizmo

You can look on Craigslist and find some really sweet deals on full setups. I'm contemplating a 55 gallon acrylic with filter, heater, light, substrate, and all the fixins except water and fish for $200. He just lowered it from $250 to $200 a week ago.


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## vreugy

I think shrimp would be great in a ten gallon. I have two ten gallons, one heavy planted, but it has a spectacular male betta in it. I just couldn't dethrone him. The other isn't planted much as it has red, blue and pink ramshorn snails. Good luck with your new tank.


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## big b

yep 10 gallons have so much potential if you take the time to think of the possibles.i came up with 4 and more if i had the space *wonders if he can stick another 10 gallon somewhere*.i came up with 1 housing several dwarf orange crayfish,2 housing shrimp,3housing snails,4 being planted with a school of cardinal tetras.


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## chenowethpm

I love my planted 10g with red cherry shrimp and a pair of peacock gudgeons!


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## BabyNemo

Gizmo said:


> You can look on Craigslist and find some really sweet deals on full setups. I'm contemplating a 55 gallon acrylic with filter, heater, light, substrate, and all the fixins except water and fish for $200. He just lowered it from $250 to $200 a week ago.


I already have a 75, I don't have room for anything bigger than a 10. As someone else mentioned, though, I could maybe do a 30 or something. I'll look into it more.


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## BabyNemo

I think I'm going to stick with the ten gallon tanks since I have two I'm not using at all. Even though I love the look of some of the more fancy tanks . Like I love the tanks that are cubed shaped.


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## BabyNemo

I really like the idea of having a betta in a heavily planted tank. Is that possible?


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## BabyNemo

I just read that smaller planted tanks are harder to maintain? Could I start out with a lowlight lowtech planted tank, and then once I'm more comfortable change to a high-tech tank?


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## chenowethpm

BabyNemo said:


> I just read that smaller planted tanks are harder to maintain? Could I start out with a lowlight lowtech planted tank, and then once I'm more comfortable change to a high-tech tank?


I like this idea! My ten gallon is what I would call super low tech and it's probably my favorite tank. It has a floramax substrate capped with a little pool filter sand and the light was a regular T8 10k strip light although I recently upgraded the light to a current satellite led(which I like a lot). No co2, no ferts, the low light plants grow slow but they're thriving and my shrimp are multiplying. And I just came home today to peacock Gudgeon eggs! Pretty stoked!


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## BabyNemo

chenowethpm said:


> I like this idea! My ten gallon is what I would call super low tech and it's probably my favorite tank. It has a floramax substrate capped with a little pool filter sand and the light was a regular T8 10k strip light although I recently upgraded the light to a current satellite led(which I like a lot). No co2, no ferts, the low light plants grow slow but they're thriving and my shrimp are multiplying. And I just came home today to peacock Gudgeon eggs! Pretty stoked!


My only problem is finding good lights. Could you recommend anything that isn't like 3,450,293,466 dollars? Lol.


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## chenowethpm

I really like the finnex planted plus led lights. And the current satellite LEDs. I have one of each. Both pretty inexpensive, low energy usage and you will never have to change the bulb.

Finnex Fugeray Planted Plus Moonlights Aquarium LED Fixture | eBay

Current USA Satellite Freshwater LED Light for Aquarium | eBay


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## BabyNemo

chenowethpm said:


> I really like the finnex planted plus led lights. And the current satellite LEDs. I have one of each. Both pretty inexpensive, low energy usage and you will never have to change the bulb.
> 
> Finnex Fugeray Planted Plus Moonlights Aquarium LED Fixture | eBay
> 
> Current USA Satellite Freshwater LED Light for Aquarium | eBay


Thanks! I'll take a look
The first one is a little expensive, and the second only takes PayPal payments which I don't have.


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## chenowethpm

Check Amazon for these as well and everywhere else. Did I mention no bulbs to replace every six months!


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## Gizmo

I think that smaller planted tanks are easier to maintain due to the simple presence of the plants. They help ease shocks from water quality variations much better than an un-planted tank. I can run my ten gallon planted with my eyes closed!

I would suggest a Finnex Planted+ for your ten gallon, I have one and love it, you can get one for about $80 on Amazon.


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## BabyNemo

chenowethpm said:


> Check Amazon for these as well and everywhere else. Did I mention no bulbs to replace every six months!


I read this last night, but fell asleep so I didn't get a chance to reply. I'll look for those on amazon (amazon prime ftw). I'll let you know if I find them.
Thanks!


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## BabyNemo

Holy crap those lights are ex-pen-sive!
Also, how does this look?
Foam Aquarium Biological Filters: Azoo Oxygen Plus Bio-Filters


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## BabyNemo

Amazon.com : Finnex Ray2 Aquarium Day/Actinic LED Light, 18-Inch : Pet Supplies
Would this work?

Oo Oo, actually this
http://www.amazon.com/Current-USA-S...1-5&keywords=Current+USA+Satellite+freshwater
I'm pretty sure that's the one that was mentioned before.
http://www.amazon.com/Finnex-FugeRa...+Planted+Plus+Moonlights+Aquarium+LED+Fixture
Or this?


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## big b

BabyNemo said:


> Thanks! I'll take a look
> The first one is a little expensive, and the second only takes PayPal payments which I don't have.


well your not the only one to not be able to use paypal.dont worry about it that much,it just makes you look a bit more for stuff.


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## Gizmo

The Satellite Freshwater, the Ray2, and the Planted+ are all great fixtures, as evidenced by reviews on here and Plantedtank.net.

The Satellite gives you great control for color variation, the Ray2 spits out a LOT of light, and the Planted+ gives you a little red mixed in for improved freshwater plant growth at shallow depths, i.e. a 10G.


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## BabyNemo

Gizmo said:


> The Satellite Freshwater, the Ray2, and the Planted+ are all great fixtures, as evidenced by reviews on here and Plantedtank.net.
> 
> The Satellite gives you great control for color variation, the Ray2 spits out a LOT of light, and the Planted+ gives you a little red mixed in for improved freshwater plant growth at shallow depths, i.e. a 10G.


Would it be okay to get the Satellite Freshwater? it's the best one for my budget and my mom said the Planted+ is way too much and won't let me get that even with my own money lol. Unless this one Amazon.com : Finnex FugeRay Planted+ Aquarium LED Light Plus Moonlights, Cliplight : Pet Supplies
would work.

Also, how do I build a stand for this? I have a 75 sitting on my floor and I think what I'm going to do is either lift it off the floor a few inches, like 6, or leave it on the floor and have the stand over it. The stand will have to hold two ten gallon tanks, possibly more in the future but I'll have room on the stand for it. I wanted to do like a cloth skirt under the 10 gallon tanks to hide the ugliness of the bulky filter and lights above the 75 gallon. Is this possible? We were going to get the wood tomorrow and I was going to build it.


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## majerah1

The Satellite is a great fixture. I would highly recommend it.


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## BabyNemo

majerah1 said:


> The Satellite is a great fixture. I would highly recommend it.


Okay, thank you! I love how that light looks.


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## BabyNemo

Is Flourish a good brand to use for plant nutrients and stuff?
If so, what do I need? They have
Flourish Excel
Flourish Iron
Flourish
And they have Flourish root tabs thing.


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## chenowethpm

BabyNemo said:


> .
> 
> Also, how do I build a stand for this? I have a 75 sitting on my floor and I think what I'm going to do is either lift it off the floor a few inches, like 6, or leave it on the floor and have the stand over it. The stand will have to hold two ten gallon tanks, possibly more in the future but I'll have room on the stand for it. I wanted to do like a cloth skirt under the 10 gallon tanks to hide the ugliness of the bulky filter and lights above the 75 gallon. Is this possible? We were going to get the wood tomorrow and I was going to build it.


How are you going to change water with the tank in the floor or even 6 inches off the floor? It's hard to siphon water with no elevation from suction point to output point.


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## BabyNemo

chenowethpm said:


> How are you going to change water with the tank in the floor or even 6 inches off the floor? It's hard to siphon water with no elevation from suction point to output point.


I have a aqueon water changer thingie that attaches to the sink. I've changed the water already and it works perfectly.

The ten gallons will be about 4 feet off the ground, which is why I need to knowhow to build a stand for them asap.


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## chenowethpm

I love my aqueon water changer thingie, as you so eloquently put it. 

About building a stand. How comfortable are you with power tools? There are lots of ways to do it. Some very expensive some less expensive. It's a matter of what you want, how much you want to spend, specific needs, experience with building so on and so forth. Aquariums are quite weighty and need sturdy support.


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## BabyNemo

chenowethpm said:


> I love my aqueon water changer thingie, as you so eloquently put it.
> 
> About building a stand. How comfortable are you with power tools? There are lots of ways to do it. Some very expensive some less expensive. It's a matter of what you want, how much you want to spend, specific needs, experience with building so on and so forth. Aquariums are quite weighty and need sturdy support.


I've never used any power tools in my life. All I know is I can get wood from Home Depotfor like 10 dollars. And then I want to paint it black. So it'd need something to protect it from water damage right?


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## Gizmo

Flourish is great, I use the root tabs, comprehensive, and iron. Research the plants you want and what they need for fertilizers and you'll have your answer. Lots of plant profiles are easily searchable. Here's a great link to start you off on the right foot:
All Plants - Plant Profiles

For the stand I would suggest the following tools: hand saw, drill gun, drill bit set, 1" wood screws, sand paper, paint, 2"x4" planks, 1/2" thick ply-wood, and 4"x4" posts for the legs. You can draw up designs yourself, but you'll want to really research how to properly secure the middle shelf to the legs. The top won't be an issue - cut plywood to the footprint of your tank, set it atop 4 evenly-cut 4x4 legs, screw in 2x4s as runners in between legs. Drill the holes before you drive the screws so you don't split the wood. You can also get the pieces pre-cut at the store if you have the right dimensions. Sand everything before you paint, it will prevent it from looking shaggy.


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## BabyNemo

Gizmo said:


> Flourish is great, I use the root tabs, comprehensive, and iron. Research the plants you want and what they need for fertilizers and you'll have your answer. Lots of plant profiles are easily searchable. Here's a great link to start you off on the right foot:
> All Plants - Plant Profiles
> 
> For the stand I would suggest the following tools: hand saw, drill gun, drill bit set, 1" wood screws, sand paper, paint, 2"x4" planks, 1/2" thick ply-wood, and 4"x4" posts for the legs. You can draw up designs yourself, but you'll want to really research how to properly secure the middle shelf to the legs. The top won't be an issue - cut plywood to the footprint of your tank, set it atop 4 evenly-cut 4x4 legs, screw in 2x4s as runners in between legs. Drill the holes before you drive the screws so you don't split the wood. You can also get the pieces pre-cut at the store if you have the right dimensions. Sand everything before you paint, it will prevent it from looking shaggy.


I ordered excel, and flourish and the root tabs. Thank you for help on the tank. I'm going to show it to my dad and maybe he can do it. I don't want to mess up.


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## BabyNemo

Can not believe I've already spent 141.86. A lot of that is coming from that dam*ed light.
Going to have to start finding deals on stuff.


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## Gizmo

I told ya, shoulda looked on Craigslist. FWIW, the light is THE most expensive thing you'll purchase for the tank. Everything else is downhill from there.

Consider doing a substrate of miracle gro organic potting mix (MGOPM) capped with some pool filter sand from your local home spa/pool store or some VERY well washed Quickrete play sand from your local hardware store. The price will beat the pants off of any of the fancy stuff like Flourish or Eco-Complete, and the MGOPM will provide a ton of nutrients for your plants.


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## BabyNemo

Gizmo said:


> I told ya, shoulda looked on Craigslist. FWIW, the light is THE most expensive thing you'll purchase for the tank. Everything else is downhill from there.
> 
> Consider doing a substrate of miracle gro organic potting mix (MGOPM) capped with some pool filter sand from your local home spa/pool store or some VERY well washed Quickrete play sand from your local hardware store. The price will beat the pants off of any of the fancy stuff like Flourish or Eco-Complete, and the MGOPM will provide a ton of nutrients for your plants.


I already y ordered substrate. 22 dollars. Not bad. I'm just glad the rest will be relatively cheap. The tank is gonna be running fish less for a long time. And I really hate craigslist. At least around here, it's not the kind of place to look for tanks. People usually don't have stuff like that around here. I wish they did. And I've had some super weird experiences with people on Craigslist.


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## BabyNemo

Brought the price down to 136.86. That makes me happier.


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## chenowethpm

The light maybe the most expensive part but for planted tanks it's also the most important equipment. Without light, plants don't live. I have the current satellite on my 10 gallon planted tank and I love it!


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## BabyNemo

chenowethpm said:


> The light maybe the most expensive part but for planted tanks it's also the most important equipment. Without light, plants don't live. I have the current satellite on my 10 gallon planted tank and I love it!


I'm glad! I really like the tank of those lights! Lights and substrate are coming in Friday and Saturday, and the Flourish stuff and aquascape stuff and heater and filter come in in under 5 business days.


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## April R

BabyNemo said:


> Thanks! I'll take a look
> The first one is a little expensive, and the second only takes PayPal payments which I don't have.


You don't need a PayPal account to pay with PayPal. Just pay as a guest and use a credit or debit card. Just FYI 
https://www.paypal.com/us/cgi-bin/webscr?cmd=xpt/cps/general/OptionalAccount-outside


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## BabyNemo

The light came in today. It's beautiful. Tomorrow substrate comes in and the other things just got a shipping label and should ship out tomorrow and be here by Mondayish. We're building the stand tomorrow.
Yay!


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## BabyNemo

We're going to Home Depot today and we're going to look at metal shelving. I really hate how metal shelving looks but my dad keeps making excuses that "wood will not hold a 75 gallon tank".


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## April R

Your dad knows what he is talking about.


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## BabyNemo

The rest of the stuff, including the filter will come in Wednesday. I'm trying to figure out what day to order plants to be able to put everything together in the same day. Or, should I get the tank set up with substrate and water and filter and wait a few days until I add plants?


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## chenowethpm

BabyNemo said:


> We're going to Home Depot today and we're going to look at metal shelving. I really hate how metal shelving looks but my dad keeps making excuses that "wood will not hold a 75 gallon tank".


Not trying to discredit your dad but if built right, a wood stand can hold whatever size you want to put on it. It can also be quite pricey. Whatever you go with just remember that a tank full of water and substrate, rocks, deco,etc. weighs 10+ pounds per gallon. So with your 75 it weighs minimally 750lbs, probably closer to 1000Lbs though cause glass is heavy as well. Your house is probably held up on wooden beams.


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## BabyNemo

chenowethpm said:


> BabyNemo said:
> 
> 
> 
> We're going to Home Depot today and we're going to look at metal shelving. I really hate how metal shelving looks but my dad keeps making excuses that "wood will not hold a 75 gallon tank".
> 
> 
> 
> Not trying to discredit your dad but if built right, a wood stand can hold whatever size you want to put on it. It can also be quite pricey. Whatever you go with just remember that a tank full of water and substrate, rocks, deco,etc. weighs 10+ pounds per gallon. So with your 75 it weighs minimally 750lbs, probably closer to 1000Lbs though cause glass is heavy as well. Your house is probably held up on wooden beams.
Click to expand...

I showed him countless number of builds of wooden stands for even larger tanks than mine, but he still insists on a metal shelf. Will they hold a 75 gallon tank?


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## chenowethpm

Just depends on the shelf.


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## BabyNemo

chenowethpm said:


> Just depends on the shelf.


What should I be looking for? We're on our way to Home Depot now.


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## BabyNemo

So we didn't find a shelf. Gotta go online and order one. Which is gonna take even more time. Yay.


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## big b

tell him that some guy on here i think but a 1000 gallon tank on wwod.it may be on another site though.but i would not trust metal stands for fish tanks.
*he says this while he thinks of how his mom convinced him to get a metal stand to hold his 4 10 gallon tanks*


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## BabyNemo

Alright so, in the meantime i'm looking at which plants I want to stock the tank with. Getting excited! I think I want dwarf baby tears (Hemianthus callitrichoides). I'm not sure if my tank, with using the USA Satellite Lights is considered a low light, medium light, or high light tank. How do you figure that much out? This is the light I have http://www.amazon.com/Current-USA-Satellite-Freshwater-Aquarium/dp/B00C7OTHTC/ref=pd_rhf_gw_p_img_6 on a 10 gallon tank.


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## chenowethpm

What's your plan for this shelf? 75 on top 10 on bottom? Other way around?


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## BabyNemo

big b said:


> tell him that some guy on here i think but a 1000 gallon tank on wwod.it may be on another site though.but i would not trust metal stands for fish tanks.
> *he says this while he thinks of how his mom convinced him to get a metal stand to hold his 4 10 gallon tanks*


I was always told that metal stands are more secure? The one we _did_ look at held up to 8000lbs distributed throughout six or so shelves. We're looking for a four foot long stand instead or the six foot one we found. Metal stands, though, are by far the UGLIEST thing I have ever seen in my life. I even said that when my dad pointed them out to me at Home Depot. Yuck.


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## BabyNemo

chenowethpm said:


> What's your plan for this shelf? 75 on top 10 on bottom? Other way around?


75 is going on the bottom, two 10's are going on the top or middle and if I decide to have three shelves I'll have the top shelf for storage for chemicals and food and such.


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## BabyNemo

I think the tank stand and tanks are going to look amazing when everythings done. Just, getting to that point is driving me insane with my parents not wanting to listen to any advice but their own in their heads.


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## chenowethpm

If I were you and I had to get a metal stand, I would look for a doubl stacked stand made for two 75s. I would put the 75 on the bottom, and the get a 3/4 inch piece of plywood to fit the entire top and that is where I would put the other 10g or two 10g's


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## big b

BabyNemo said:


> I was always told that metal stands are more secure? The one we _did_ look at held up to 8000lbs distributed throughout six or so shelves. We're looking for a four foot long stand instead or the six foot one we found. Metal stands, though, are by far the UGLIEST thing I have ever seen in my life. I even said that when my dad pointed them out to me at Home Depot. Yuck.


they are really safe but i still dont trust them enough to put anything bigger then a 10 gallon on them.


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## BabyNemo

chenowethpm said:


> If I were you and I had to get a metal stand, I would look for a doubl stacked stand made for two 75s. I would put the 75 on the bottom, and the get a 3/4 inch piece of plywood to fit the entire top and that is where I would put the other 10g or two 10g's


Where can you find a double stacked stand made for two 75's?


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## chenowethpm

Aquarium Stands & Furniture: Titan Eze Metal Aquarium Double Stands
This is what I'm talking about although it is $99 before shipping


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## big b

but here is a trick i have learned through a few years. just say"who is the fish person in the house?""i am pretty sure i know what i am doing so i would appreciate it if you let me just do it my self"
WARNING IF YOU SAY THIS THERE IS A POSSIBILITY THAT YOU MAY GET IN HUGE TROUBLE!!!!1


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## BabyNemo

chenowethpm said:


> Aquarium Stands & Furniture: Titan Eze Metal Aquarium Double Stands
> This is what I'm talking about although it is $99 before shipping


Ouch. That is some painful costs. Allso I don't like how there's empty space. That makes me nervous. I like the tank to be supported by supports under every couple of inches of tank. That's just me, though. I did order filters and flourish from Dr Foster & Smith. So, I hope they are a trustful place to order from.


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## BabyNemo

big b said:


> but here is a trick i have learned through a few years. just say"who is the fish person in the house?""i am pretty sure i know what i am doing so i would appreciate it if you let me just do it my self"
> WARNING IF YOU SAY THIS THERE IS A POSSIBILITY THAT YOU MAY GET IN HUGE TROUBLE!!!!1


Lol I just said that and my dad says "You tell the people on the forum that I was a fish person before you were even imagined."
Haha.


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## chenowethpm

Fosters and smith are trustworthy. Those stands are built to hold the weight and they will. It's all about distribution of the weight. The four corners take the load so it it spread out.


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## BabyNemo

chenowethpm said:


> Fosters and smith are trustworthy. Those stands are built to hold the weight and they will. It's all about distribution of the weight. The four corners take the load so it it spread out.


I will probably leave that as a last choice and keep looking at commercial shelving. I've seen people use them before and maybe I can find some that aren't an eye sore.


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## BabyNemo

I guess we are going to Lowes and Walmart tomorrowish to look for more shelving. Amazon definitely does not have what we're looking for. Well, it does, but it's not in stock and won't be for another two months.


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## big b

BabyNemo said:


> Lol I just said that and my dad says "You tell the people on the forum that I was a fish person before you were even imagined."
> Haha.


LOL dude that is so funny

well you can tell him that i dont care.


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## BabyNemo

Are there any online places that are good to buy plants from where the shipping isn't insane?


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## big b

bobstropicalplants.com it has free shipping on plants.


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## BabyNemo

big b said:


> bobstropicalplants.com it has free shipping on plants.


Shipping was 78+ when I just looked.


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## majerah1

Aquabid.com and plantedtank.net are both great places to buy plants.


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## BabyNemo

majerah1 said:


> Aquabid.com and plantedtank.net are both great places to buy plants.


I'm looking at AquaticArts and Dustinsfishtanks right now. Dustinsfishtanks has 7 dollar flat shipping rate and AquaticArts has 11 dollars flat shipping rate. Those numbers make me happy .


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## BabyNemo

Stand comes in Wednesday, Flourish comes in Wednesday, filter comes in Wednesday, plants are either coming in on Thursday or Friday, but I'm expecting Friday. Then the long wait to cycle. I think I'm going to do the "Silent Cycle".


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## Gizmo

If you have live plants and are able to get some dirty filter media, you shouldn't have to wait to add fish at all. Silent + Seeded = GO


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## BabyNemo

Gizmo said:


> If you have live plants and are able to get some dirty filter media, you shouldn't have to wait to add fish at all. Silent + Seeded = GO


I have my 75 up and running cycled and everything. how do I put the dirty filter media into the ten gallon since I'm running a biofilter and not a hob filter?


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## BabyNemo

And I'm going to put the tank up and running on Wednesday, when the plants come in I'll add them. And then if I can use seeded filter media I could potentially get fish/inverts that same weekend?


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## big b

BabyNemo said:


> Shipping was 78+ when I just looked.


really?i never noticed that,well sorry for getting your hopes up.


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## big b

i knew that something didn't make sense when you said it did not have free shipping. here's a link to the shipping page. if you go down to the plants shipping it says that Express Shipping is fully guaranteed. Shipping Policy - Bobs Tropical Plants


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## Gizmo

BabyNemo said:


> And I'm going to put the tank up and running on Wednesday, when the plants come in I'll add them. And then if I can use seeded filter media I could potentially get fish/inverts that same weekend?


You can take the sponge from the 75 and cut it to fit in your new filter, and if there's any more room you can add some brand new media to the same filter to seed that.

Yes, if you can get your tank seeded and planted right away, I don't see why you can't add fish and inverts right away.


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## BabyNemo

Drfoster&Smith order came in a day early! Yay! The only thing was that some liquid, apparently the Flourish, had spilled in the box and got absolutely everything soaked with it. The magazine they give is soaked and covered in goopy sticky brown liquid. I would order from them again, just not any liquids. .


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## BabyNemo

The tank is going up tomorrow! Stand came in today, just didn't have the man power to move tanks and move stands.


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## big b

you dont got the "man power" to move it?then how can you call your self a man!! NAH LOL im just joking with you.i have been there i once had to move a 300 pound TREE,YES TREE not a skinny little sapling it was a good foot or so in diameter about 200 feet to our burn pile....it took me about 3 days using a system of ropes and stuff.

i love to be silly like that i hope you dont mind me being like that


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## BabyNemo

Can someone please tell me what this is?! It came with my plants!


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## BabyNemo

big b said:


> you dont got the "man power" to move it?then how can you call your self a man!! NAH LOL im just joking with you.i have been there i once had to move a 300 pound TREE,YES TREE not a skinny little sapling it was a good foot or so in diameter about 200 feet to our burn pile....it took me about 3 days using a system of ropes and stuff.
> 
> i love to be silly like that i hope you dont mind me being like that


Lol! We got it done today. Took forever. I'm just now getting ready for bed and it's almost 11! Geez


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## vreugy

That thing that came with your plants looks very much like a dragon fly nymph. It will eat any fish it can catch. I had one once that cleaned out all my baby bettas. If you haven't put fish in yet, I would redo the entire tank and somehow clean the plants to get rid of any other eggs that could be there. Lots of work, but this thing is deadly to small fish. Maybe someone will have another idea on how to clean up the plants. Good luck


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## BabyNemo

vreugy said:


> That thing that came with your plants looks very much like a dragon fly nymph. It will eat any fish it can catch. I had one once that cleaned out all my baby bettas. If you haven't put fish in yet, I would redo the entire tank and somehow clean the plants to get rid of any other eggs that could be there. Lots of work, but this thing is deadly to small fish. Maybe someone will have another idea on how to clean up the plants. Good luck


I haven't put fish in yet and won't for a while. I'll do some research on them.


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## BabyNemo

Finally able to post a picture of the whole stand after it was put together. I'll get pictures of the ten gallon tonight since it's finally starting to look established. Yay!


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## big b

ok 2 things.
1st off i think that is you put the turtle in the 10 gallon for a while he could eat any dragon fly babies.not sure but it's just a hunch.

2nd off the 75 gallon on the bottom how do you get the gravel vaccum to work?i have a stand like yours but i am using it to house my 10 gallon tanks in.so i have 2 stands that are like that and i have the tanks sitting on there with nothing in them.*it shall take a while to get everything i shall need*sighs**i am just not sure how i will get the suction going if i go through like this.


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## BabyNemo

big b said:


> ok 2 things.
> 1st off i think that is you put the turtle in the 10 gallon for a while he could eat any dragon fly babies.not sure but it's just a hunch.
> 
> 2nd off the 75 gallon on the bottom how do you get the gravel vaccum to work?i have a stand like yours but i am using it to house my 10 gallon tanks in.so i have 2 stands that are like that and i have the tanks sitting on there with nothing in them.*it shall take a while to get everything i shall need*sighs**i am just not sure how i will get the suction going if i go through like this.


My sink in my closest bathroom is pretty far to the ground. But, it does take a lot of patience and running between the tank and the sink to make sure the connection to the sink doesn't break (again). Honestly, sticking a suction hose out the window is easier for me to drain it, and then use the syphon on the sink to fill it. I just use my mouth to suck on the end of the hose so it starts it, then quickly shove it out the window lol.


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## big b

ok then...i guess i will just keep on doing it with my gravel vaccum and be patient.


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