peat moss don't make water brownish eh?

frankzane,
light is about 1 liter water for 1W of light. 18W X 2 is not enought for a 2ft, but ask u mentioned before you will only keeping low-tech plants. so it maybe enought.

why 2 ft tank no space hang fan ah?

Fan does not need to be the 4" type mah.....
you could option for those commercial type of fans for aquarium use... like Mr.Cool 200... or simply DIY a 2" fan... but you'll need some sort of adapter...

for those who know me, i still don't know who are you guys... LOL... sorry...

those who ask about lights....

well, 18watts x 2pcs is definitely not enough...
another thing about light is that.... its not about how many lights you have...

you can have 10pcs of 18watts FL light which sums up to 180watts..
but a 150watts Metal Halide is way better than 10pcs FL light...

why??? 10pcs of FL light might be very bright to our eyes...
but its the intensity that counts... you need light which is powerful enough to penetrate deep inside the water column... not just about brightness...

In most cases, after you attach the lighting system for a 2' tank you end up with about 2 inches of space at the back of the tank for your fan. Unless you get light casings with feet/legs which you can prop the lights up with.

For anyone getting new lighting systems for your tank, get those with legs; so there's enough space between the light casing and the surface of the water.

The fan should be tilted at 30-40° angle from the surface of the water, not placed perpendicular to the water surface. Why? You may ask, simple common sense, if you have the light directly above the fan you'll only be ventilating the water surface with hot air from the lights.

A dual fan is sufficient for a 2' tank because even if you hook up a quadruple fan unit, you'll still only achieve a maximum of 25°C if your ambient/room temperature is 30°C.

hmmm.... i don't know if this works, but maybe those who want to lower the pH can have a small bag of soil inside the canister filter....
i think this works too.... else, pure co2... but i would use soil...

I;m not a SIfu la... i'm just a-still-learning-noob...

This post has been edited by ggMing: Feb 21 2008, 02:12 PM

oh just get smaller bag of soil n put in filter huh.. good idea too..

LOL sure u canot remember who is who lah.. u too famous liao so everyone know u. when you making the iwagumi in sls before they open i am there lah... see you scaping the tank and also telling alot stories LOL...

cos i see most ppl still with budget, who feel soil is pricy sure they go for DIY co2. and DIY CO2 maxi only can tahan till 2ft tank ( plants also only so so). so i am thinking what is the best way for them to lower down the ph without spend much. as you mention a small bag of soil is good idea too... will it be difference if the small bag of soil put in the filter or in the tank?

i dont think there is a diff... but IMHO, its best for water to pass thru the soil constantly... as if you out it in a tank, there would be dead spots...
well, again, thats IMHO....

woohoo.... lets hook up at LYN-Planted Tank teh tarik session...

ohh true, understand.

lol this thread normaly is death LOL... not much people around but now i guess we will able to learn more from you. hope this thread will be more active.

say about MH, last week i saw a single MH in sls. which can clip on the tank.. drool....wish i can have it. but worries algea will be more happy then me..

learn from me... cannot la... i don;t know much about planted tanks... but i will try my best to help...
ehehehe..... later when i'm free, i'll post more pics...

hahahha ggMing no need shy shy lah hehhehe... better someone lead us tot he right direction, if not we bang the wall spend alot unnecessary money oh..



This post has been edited by nezumitaro: Feb 22 2008, 09:24 AM

wanna ask, what plant is this? is it type of najas? by the way. sorry canot see very clear in the photo, some of the leaf turning brownish red, not sure its dying? or its strong like effect them?

[quote=ggMing,Feb 21 2008, 02:06 PM]Fan does not need to be the 4" type mah.....
you could option for those commercial type of fans for aquarium use... like Mr.Cool 200... or simply DIY a 2" fan... but you'll need some sort of adapter...

for those who know me, i still don't know who are you guys... LOL... sorry...

those who ask about lights....

well, 18watts x 2pcs is definitely not enough...
another thing about light is that.... its not about how many lights you have...

you can have 10pcs of 18watts FL light which sums up to 180watts..
but a 150watts Metal Halide is way better than 10pcs FL light...

why??? 10pcs of FL light might be very bright to our eyes...
but its the intensity that counts... you need light which is powerful enough to penetrate deep inside the water column... not just about brightness...

[/quote]

Can you pls recommend places where I can get a wide selection of lights (and also other accessories)?

Thanks!

---

Added on February 22, 2008, 10:55 am
frankzane,
light is about 1 liter water for 1W of light. 18W X 2 is not enought for a 2ft, but ask u mentioned before you will only keeping low-tech plants. so it maybe enought.

Would like to go into high-tech plant if possible...

why 2 ft tank no space hang fan ah?

[/quote]
my tank a bit weird one, got two glass plane at the front and rear attaching to 3 sides.

This post has been edited by frankzane: Feb 22 2008, 10:55 AM

just wanna ask something...hopefully its in the right section.

i heard from a friend that putting ceramic rings into the gravel will help to naturally "process" the waste from fish. Does this have any truth in it?

well, it does not need to be ceramic ring... it could be anything... but best, something with pores

let me try and explain it to you...

process waste can be ammonia, nitrite or nitrate...

well, ammonia and nitrite can be processed with aerobic ( with oxygen ) beneficial bacteria
and nitrate can be processed with anaerobic (without oxygen) beneficial bacteria...

since this is a PLANTED TANK thread... i assume you are talking about aerobic beneficial bacteria..

what your friend say is true.. (well, again, i support his statement)
in fact, bacteria stick to any surface they can find... glass, air hose, rocks, sand, soil...
BUT WHY CERAMIC RINGS OR SOMETHING WITH PORES???
its because the above mentioned can store more bacterias... (i hope you get what i mean)

in a planted tank, the idea of having additional/ more beneficial bacteria below gravel is mainly for processing ammonia...
you see, stems and roots will decompose beneath the gravel, which leads to creating more ammonia...
waste from fish and other critters will also slip underneath the gravel in time... thus creating more ammonia..

but in this case, your gravel need space for water to flow thru to bring oxygen to the aerobic bacterias...

example of anaerobic conditions are...
you are using fine sand... very fine sand...
you did not siphon your gravel in ages, thus resulting your gravel to be more compact...
(yes, this does happen..)

conclusion, what your friend say is right... but whether you need it or not, its another matter altogether...
i've never done this before... because i control my bioload...
the best way is to do water change every week, and do gravel vacumm...

P/S : i've never done this before, but thru my understanding in this hobby, it does create a better environment for your plants, but if its not necessary, why go thru all the troubles...

DO NOT QUOTE ME ON THIS, ABOVE GIVEN ADVISE AND COMMENTS IS BASED IMHO.
HOPE IT HELPS... PEACE.

---

Added on February 23, 2008, 1:46 ami think it is rotala nanjen/nanjing...
but if you are saying that it is turning brown/reddish, my guess would be rotala sp. Vietnam

This post has been edited by ggMing: Feb 23 2008, 01:46 AM

thanx for the info....very informative

Ming, sorry i guess my pic too messy it confuse you. the rotala is an other photo. these plants u quote is an other difference one. i get 2 plants there...
am in rush later i post both plants up ya...

thanks!

Nezu: IMHO, if either the Rotala sp Vietnam or Najan turns reddish most likely its due to the amount of light its absorbing. This may not even occur in another tank with the same water & light parameters. Its what some of us call 'am kong'/luck I guess. Some of my plants don't even have documented red shoots but somehow I sometimes get them turning red once its near the surface. (Mind you, my water surface is 1 cm under my lights). Reason: my tank is vertically challenged not enough height.

sorry geediver, i mean the photo is not rotala sp vietnam or najan. the photos are some type of najas i guess, not the rotala. Ming get confuse cause i show him other photos before

this is the one Ming mentioned


sorry for confusing guys

my new hairgrass pot.



This post has been edited by nezumitaro: Feb 26 2008, 02:39 PM

geediver, nezu & ggMing:

thanks for all the advice. i've already set my tank up. its doing pretty well. i went for the pennywise-pound-foolish (no offence taken ) path. was thinking that if i didn't like it in the end, i could use the stuff i have to keep fish instead. i just want a basic tank for now. i'll go full upgrade if i decide i'll stick with this longer and have spare cash to blow.

this is what i have now:

Hardware:
Hagen HOB filter
Bio-rings
18W PL light <- given to me, beggars can't be choosers.
CO2 diffuser
DIY CO2 (which is driving me crazy!)
2ft. tank <-given

Hardscape:
Huge tree-trunk of a driftwood <- given to me, but i'll split it soon
Lava rock

Plants:
Tenellus
Java Fern
Anubias
Cabomba
Mayaca
Anacharis <- this is a MONSTER of a plant! grows very fast!!!
Flaming moss (? because i'm still not sure)

Fish:
Guppies
Tetras

Substrate:
Holland sand
JBL base fert

Soon to come (for now):
Thermometer
Fan
A nicer, thinner driftwood
Java moss
Windelov Fern
Otos
Shrimps <- much later when my tank is fully stable

It is very rewarding to see my tank doing well. But i know if i buy better lights, it'll do better.

I've heard about SLS's workshops, hope to attend the next one soon. I think i'll learn a lot more.

once again, thanks for all the advice and tips.

no problem at all...
and for diffuser, if not mistaken, those glass once can't be used as it needs a lot of pressure to force the bubble thru.... well, IMHO..