# Converting to Live Plants



## Kaitbug93 (May 8, 2012)

So I have an established aquarium with 6 harlequin rasboras and 1 guppy. It used to be 2 guppies. I was given some very pretty plastic plants as a gift when I started my aquarium and, since they were a gift, I felt like I should put them in my tank. Yesterday my guppy Iggy got stuck in one of the plants while I was at work. I removed him, and he was barely breathing and I found out when he passed that he was also very very injured. His dorsal fin was ripped and he had a few tears in his tail. All of the fake plants (except for the ones on the rock bridge that all of my fish love to swim through and play in, they are a very soft silk) have been removed. 
My substrate is a white gravel with brightly colored gravel mixed in. 
How do I convert my tank for live plants? Do I need to remove the gravel and put it back? Will this change my tank chemistry? What should I do with my fish if I have to change out all the gravel? 
Also, this tank will be coming to university with me in the fall. So, what plants move easily? I go to school an hour, hour and a half away from home. Ideally the plants would be easily moved, hardy, and fairly low maintenance. I'm a pre-med student so very busy. I plan on setting aside three to four hours a week for tank maintenance, and enjoying my tank the rest of the time while I'm studying my brains out. Also any advice on upkeep for the plants is very appreciated!
Thank you!!!!


----------



## Gizmo (Dec 6, 2010)

Kaitbug93 said:


> 1. My substrate is a white gravel with brightly colored gravel mixed in. How do I convert my tank for live plants?
> 2. Do I need to remove the gravel and put it back?
> 3. Will this change my tank chemistry?
> 4. What should I do with my fish if I have to change out all the gravel?
> 5. So, what plants move easily?


Welcome to the world of live plants, and sorry for your loss.

Here we go! Hang on...

1. All you'll need is a 5500K bulb for your light fixture (I'm guessing it's a T8), some root fertilizer tabs, and some liquid plant food like SeaChem Flourish.
2. Only if you want to put better gravel in, like Fluorite, Eco Complete or Floramax. Otherwise, you can get by (like I did, in the beginning) with regular gravel and root tabs.
3. The plants will, but the changes probably won't.
4. You might want to remove them and keep them in a bucket while you plant. Might be easier that way.
5. All of them! I would suggest some anubias nana, wisteria, java fern and/or java moss to start.


----------



## Kaitbug93 (May 8, 2012)

Thank you so much! I really appreciate the advice! I've seen these floating moss balls in my friends tank that I think are really adorable. Are those java moss?
As for the anubias nana, my brother has a few beautiful plants growing in his tank. Do they grow well off of a cutting, if I were to take a piece of his plant and bring it to my tank? Or is that better off being purchased as a whole, new plant?


----------



## jrman83 (Jul 9, 2010)

I definitely recommend live plants over fake ones, especially if your fish have had issues with them.

I will just comment on the answer you got:

1. Anything in the 5500-10000k will work. Each light will make your tank look slightly different, just comes down to personal pref. There will be no growth differences within that range. Ferts may or may not be needed. Just depends on how well they do and root tabs aren't always necessary if you dose with other types of ferts. Your light will drive the need for ferts more than anything else.....more light, more need. 

2. and 4. Not all gravel is created equal. The smaller the rocks the better, but chances are yours will be fine. Eventually, you may want to get to more substrates better suited for plants and a lot of people go for a more natural look along with some driftwood thrown in somewhere. Replacing with fish and water in the tank can be done, done it twice myself, but probably easier if removed.

3. Your chemistry should only be minimally affected. Plants will cause very slight fluctuations in ph during your lighting period that will reset the ph back to where it was approximately while the light is off, all to start all over the next day. Plants will definitely stabalize your tank and help you keep phosphates, nitrates, ammonia, etc under control.

The moss balls are actually a form of algae and are very easy to grow because of it. Java moss is something totally different, but a good thing to get if you can find it. You should be able to clip plants from your brother's tank with no problem. Eventually nearly all plants have to be clipped and most just get replanted. The part left will sprout new growth after you cut it. I would also add that you can get nearly any sp. Anubias or Crypt and these are good low light, fairly sturdy plants.


----------



## Kaitbug93 (May 8, 2012)

Thank you very much! At the current moment I think I'm going to leave my gravel in the tank, and switch it out next summer for a more natural substrate. The only fake think I'm leaving in the tank for now are the couple of silk plants attached to the rock bridge I have. My other guppy, Bubbles, loves to swim though and around it and the rasboras like it too. I'm thinking though of clipping off the fake plants when I do my next large water change in about 3 weeks.


----------



## Kaitbug93 (May 8, 2012)

Okay another question. A friend of mine was keeping a Betta tank with a nerite snail in it for about three years, and the old died last week. Their new Betta is very, very aggressive and won't leave the snail alone and he was wondering if I wanted it. I saw the new Betta on Monday and it started throwing itself at its own reflection... Will a nerite snail eat the plants I'm about to put into my tank? It's been in a tank with all silk plants for the past three years so he doesn't know if it likes to eat plants or not.


----------



## jrman83 (Jul 9, 2010)

The nerite should leave them alone.


----------



## Kaitbug93 (May 8, 2012)

Thank you so much. I clipped my brothers anubias today. I also picked up a moneywort plant and a cabomba plant from my LFS. They are currently being quarantined before I add them in tomorrow when I do my water change. 
When I was looking at lights though I ran into an issue and got a few more questions. My hood holds two small screw in bulbs, not one long bulb. Do they make a good plant friendly light for the type of hood I have? Or should I purchase a different hood the accommodates the single bulb?


----------



## jrman83 (Jul 9, 2010)

Yes, try some screw in CFLs in the 6500k spectrum. They make 13w that may work for your tank, depending on size. There are other sizes, just depends on the hood and whether or not the bulbs will fit (larger ones) and your tank size.


----------



## majerah1 (Oct 29, 2010)

Those are great choices for beginner plants,should grow well.On the silk plant,you should find that they are only glued in with what seems like hot glue.You should be able to either pull them out easily or pluck them out with a knife.Just be careful in the process.I did this with a few of my decor way back when and attached java ferns to the spot the silks were in.Im sure the anubias can be done the same way if you want.


----------



## beaslbob (May 29, 2009)

If it were me I would drain (and save) the tank water then do the methods in the link in my signature.

But that just my .


.02


----------



## jrman83 (Jul 9, 2010)

There are much easier and less evasive methods of changing your substrate than that ^. I have found that Eco-complete is the easiest replacement method. Not a Eco fan-boy or anything, but it requires no rinsing and you just drop right in. Can't get any easier than that. I have a couple of Eco tanks that have been running now for a couple of years.


----------



## majerah1 (Oct 29, 2010)

As Ben said,Eco Complete is way easier than beaslbobs methods.I myself have tried his and was not happy with the results,and I get much better growth and less smell from the Eco Complete,and even blasting sand.


----------



## Kaitbug93 (May 8, 2012)

Thank you, Beaslbob for your two cents, I do appreciate it. However I don't think I'll use your method because my tank will be moving back and forth from university with me a few times over the year. 
I'm very nervous about transporting my tank to start... I go to school about an hour to an hour and a half (traffic over the Delaware Water Gap can be terrible) and I'm planning on putting my fish in a 5 gallon bucket with the tank water and an air stone for the ride, and leaving about an inch or two of water in my tank so the plants have some water for the ride. With your method I'm not sure if the transportation will work well. 
As for the Eco-Complete suggestion, I think I will try that, thank you!


----------



## Chrisfrey007 (Oct 5, 2011)

I used Eco-complete in my tank. My plants seem to be doing alright. I'd like to try dirt next though, I'm just not in the mood to tear my tank down yet.


----------



## Kaitbug93 (May 8, 2012)

Hi everyone! I wanted to post an update. I've planted my tank, and everyone is super happy! It's been about a week now, and it's going great. My fish seem to have even more energy then they did before. The rasboras are schooling beautifully, and my guppy is very happy nibbling on all the plants. I also now have a great little oto cat. He's very healthy and happy (very nice round belly!) and I never know where he'll be in the tank. It's hide and seek every morning! My water seems a bit clearer too, and my parameters are great. Thank you everyone for helping me with all my questions!


----------



## Kaitbug93 (May 8, 2012)

This is my tank before. The guppy by the heater was Iggy, who was trapped and killed by the bright pink plant he is swimming towards. The yellow guppy down at the bottom of the shot near the yellow flowers is Bubbles, he was my younger brothers birthday present. He is very happy and doing great in Jake's tank, with a nice harem of three female guppies. Now that I really look at the tank, it just looks so fake and unnatural. Holy plastic. But hey... I'm almost 20 years old and I love bright colors and I wanted something cute, not beautiful like a tank should be and I lost a guppy to it and I'm so happy I have changed from the hideous fake plants to the great looking real ones.


----------



## Kaitbug93 (May 8, 2012)

[/url]

And this is my tank after. The blue guppy is named Einstein (he is very smart!) and my oto cat is named nothing other than Otto. The frill plant in the corner got decimated between Einstein and Bubbles before Bubbles went into my brother's new tropical tank. I can't blame them, it's so soft and I guess it's also very yummy! The floating ball in my tank isn't a marimo ball. Instead it is java moss that has been turned into a ball and is weighted down so it doesn't float. Every once in a while I see Otto on it, though he never stays there for long. I'm looking into getting a nice piece of driftwood for him this weekend. Also, I'm very excited about changing out my gravel soon. For now its the same brightly colored and white gravel, but I'm getting new substrate very soon and it will complete the natural look I'm trying to get in my tank. For now it looks a little odd but it won't be that way for long. Thank you everyone for all your help!!


----------



## Kaitbug93 (May 8, 2012)

Oops, it looks like my photos aren't showing in the thread. If you're curious to see, I uploaded them to my photo gallery. =]


----------



## beaslbob (May 29, 2009)

i think you done good.


----------



## susankat (Nov 15, 2008)

Fixed your photos for you. Facebook photos don't show on here because a person has to have permission to view your photos. Upload to gallery and use the top link and that works.

Nice start on the tank.


----------



## Kaitbug93 (May 8, 2012)

Thank you so much for your help with my photos! I will keep that in mind.


----------

