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100 Gal Planted

Joined
5 Mar 2008
Messages
3
Hi Guys im new to this forum and heard you guys were big on the plant front, so decided to see if you can help me :oops: :p

Im currently in the process of getting a 100 Gallon, and after alot of mind confusing thoughts, Ive decided to go planted instead of mbuna tank.

Ok I just wanted to know what plants im going to need :p, what C02 Injector am i Going to need and how much is this going to cost me, including substrate ect.

I know I am asking alot and i apologize for that, but if anyone would help it would be great, cheers.
 
Hello and welcome.

Have a look through the site for CO2 systems and substrate threads.

Planting is a personal choice, some people prefer crypts and ferns with low light, while others like a carpet of glosso with high light.

Also worth looking at AE for some cool gear too.;)

http://www.aquaessentials.co.uk/
 
Hi, err..The Plant Man With Rams, welcome to the forum. We're thrilled that you chose a planted tank because the mbuna are so obnoxious. Much better to have a nice green work of art than a tank full of quarrelsome fish. :p

The bad news is that a 100G tank, properly done demands a substantial investment but there are some compromises that can save you money.

Plants - Telling you what plants you need would be like telling you what Rams you need, or what color shirt you need, or even what brand of beer you need to drink. The field is wide open and you have a gamut of choices. Look around the forum and get some ideas of what plants you would like to have. Of course, some plants are easier than others, so if I had to say which ones you "need" I'd have to say you "need" to start with some of the easier ones until you get a handle on how to grow them. I always like to point people towards the Tropica website http://www.tropica.com/default.asp

This is a good reference for determining the relative ease of a plant, it's demands and what it looks like, more or less.

Substrate - Plants can be grown successfully with high powered substrates such as the ones sold here: http://www.aquaessentials.co.uk/index.p ... 69989a1fa1
You can see that the most expensive substrate (ADA Aquasoil) sells for almost £30 for a 9 liter sack and for your tank you'd "need" maybe 10 sacks. On the other hand you could go to the nearest playground and nick an equal amount of sand from the play box for free and be about as successful. Somewhere in the middle of these two extremes is a compromise of lower cost substrates. The visual aspect is as important so choose the colors and textures that you like. You can also mix and match without penalty.

CO2 - This page shows a couple of regulators and solenoids http://www.aquaessentials.co.uk/index.p ... th=194_251
They are fairly expensive but you can also buy a complete unit from Malaysia from ebay sellers such as this: http://cgi.ebay.com/CO2-Regulator-Elect ... m153.l1262

You will also need diffusers. Both of the shops I gave the link for sell diffusers. High brow-> http://www.aquaessentials.co.uk/index.p ... th=196_197 http://www.aquaessentials.co.uk/index.p ... ts_id=1694

Low brow - > http://stores.ebay.com/AquaticMagic_CO2 ... idZ1QQtZkm

You then have to figure out where you will get your CO2 cylinder and re-fills.

I assume you already have a canopy and appropriate lighting?
I also assume you have sufficient filtration, somewhere on the order of 1000 Gallons per hour turnover rating? If not you'll "need" to add more filtration. Two Fluval FX5 would do nicely on that tank for example. Biomedia to fill them as well.

Chew on these figures for a while and we'll answer whatever additional questions you have.

Cheers,
 
And of course if you do have Rams (I have Bolivians) Don't go crazy with the wattage. 2WPG is more than enough.

Also if you get loads of foreground plants they will eventually cover any spwaning rocks that you provide for the rams so make sure you leave a space somewhere for your spawning rock and hollows.

Welcome to UKAPS.

Andy (The other man with Rams. lol)
 
Welcome to UKaps, I hope ceg hasn't scared you off with all that info :) , well you did ask! We are all learning about the hobby, a lot of these guys really do know their stuff and this forum will help you with any queries you have. Good luck with your tank and I hope you've got deep pockets 'cos setting up and stocking 100 G is gonna get pricey! :wideyed:
 
Ty

Thanks For all that info, alot to take in lol.

My rams are in my 16 Gal atm :p Just couldnt think of another name....

Yeah I know itll probally cost quite a bit but I wanna take it slowly, dont want to rush things. im going to take a look around this forum and look at different types of plants ect for my aquarium, Many thanks for the info and links..Hope to see your around :p

I think Filtration is going to be a fluval 404 and FX5 if you think i really ned two FX5 ill probally go for them then..

Would it be cheaper setting up marine lol?:
 
Hi,
In my opinion you can never have enough filtration. If you already have the 404 then sure, just add an FX5 but if you have the choice then I would go the extra mile and get two FX5's. Flow is king, and filter capacity is crown prince. Filter media is also important and I like to suggest the high surface area capacity offered by the Eheim effimech and effisubstrat.pro. I do believe though that the Fluval equivalents to these are less expensive.

Marine tanks are more expensive and the tasks are more laborious...

Also, as required reading, I'm certain you will find these threads useful:

http://ukaps.org/forum/viewtopic.php?t=467
http://ukaps.org/forum/viewtopic.php?t=266
http://ukaps.org/forum/viewtopic.php?t=236
http://ukaps.org/forum/viewtopic.php?t=555
http://ukaps.org/forum/viewtopic.php?t=905

Cheers,
 
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