Low Tech Planted 10 gallon help?

OMG that's awesome, and u had lily pads! I was wanting to do lilys in mine too! I'm gonna do a rimless open top and hang the light above the tank. Thanks for that thread, that tank was awesome!

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You don't want any T5HO bulbs for the tank you will have algae problems and will need CO2 to help the plants out compete the algae. 1 or maybe 2 T5NO or T8 bulbs will be plenty. A single 24W PC bulb will work also.

 

I would add them as soon as the tank is set up or atleast as soon as you start using lights. However keep in mind too much ammonia can be a bad thing for plants, you shouldn't run into that problem if you stock the tank intelligently(i.e not adding every fish at once).

I don't know about potting soil, but the plant substrates for tanks are actually made up of the nutrients, meaning the plant must actually absorb the soil for it to run out(or become root bound). So they aren't mediums coated with fertilizer but mediums made of fertilizer. Keep in mind they aren't totally made of fertilizer, but part of them is. (I'm using the term fertilizer loosely, there is no ammonia in them.)

personally I wouldnt use regular potting soil in the tank, all organic may be different but regular potting soil is a mess when wet.

also rinse any substrate you get, especially if you get flourite! unwashed flourite isn't pretty. However I still recommend regular sand, then perhaps root tabs if you need them. root tabs are little fertilizer tabs you can stick in to the sand.

 

Thanks 2in10. I would've over lit the tank haha. I want something that looks decent hanging above the tank. I'll have to look around for some T8 fixtures. Maybe even a black shop light

 

Thanks a bunch for all the helpful info. So I'm thinking about using some of the black sand from caribsea.

 

Just throwing this idea out there. I have no idea if anyone in the FW planted world has dabbled with LED's yet, but I was thinking about trying one of these.

www.LEDwholesalers.com - Dimmable PAR30 7 Watt LED Spot Light DayLight E26

It's dimmable so I can adjust it. I think one of those mounted above a rimless 10 gallon would look sweet, nice and clean. Anyone see any obvious reason's it wouldnt work?

 

I probably wouldn't do it considering they don't seem designed to grow plants. not to mention they will have to be mounted kind of high to cover the whole tank, then you have to buy or build something to mount it.

your tank is so small, there wouldn't be much energy savings.

your could do it, I'm just not a huge fan of LED's yet unless there is significant heat difference (I do have a led fixture btw).

 

this is gonna be awesome!

 

Well can someone tell me what light temp in kelvin that freshwater plants prefer? I was thinking around 6500k is ideal. That LED light is 5000k or a lil higher. Seems like it would be fine to me.

I wouldnt do LED for energy savings, and I do not mind making a mount for the bulb, I would actually prefer some DIY work. The main reason I was looking at a PAR30 is for looks. I'm trying to make this tank stylish. Typical 10 gallon hoods and light fixtures are completely out of the question. This will be a rimless open top tank with a single par30 or 2 par30's suspended above the tank. I want to keep amazon sword, java fern, dwarf grass, and I'm going to try a smaller variety of lily's and have lily pads floating on top to take advantage of the open top.

 

I hope so! I'm looking foward to it.