gdcox76 Posted September 10, 2009 Report Share Posted September 10, 2009 As of this weekend I will have all the equipment etc. for my 135 gallon tank except the CO2 setup. Due to finances I'm probably going to need to wait until the end of October before I can make that investment. I would really like to attend the Calgary auction on Sept 27th and try to pick up a pile of plants, I figure financially speaking it would be in my best interest and theirs too! My planning thus far has all been on the assumption that I would be using CO2 right from startup. Is it dumb to set up the tank for the auction weekend and plant my plants and then add the C02 a month later. Am I setting myself up for trouble? What should I be considering? Thanks for any help Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
geleen Posted September 10, 2009 Report Share Posted September 10, 2009 As of this weekend I will have all the equipment etc. for my 135 gallon tank except the CO2 setup. Due to finances I'm probably going to need to wait until the end of October before I can make that investment. I would really like to attend the Calgary auction on Sept 27th and try to pick up a pile of plants, I figure financially speaking it would be in my best interest and theirs too! My planning thus far has all been on the assumption that I would be using CO2 right from startup. Is it dumb to set up the tank for the auction weekend and plant my plants and then add the C02 a month later. Am I setting myself up for trouble? What should I be considering?Thanks for any help As far as I know you can add the C02 later. You would need to cycle the tank first anyway.. get it cycling now and add the plants when you get them. Once cycled (give or take 5 weeks) you can add the co2 and then the fish or visa versa. J J Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
werner Posted September 10, 2009 Report Share Posted September 10, 2009 The plants can do without CO2 for a while. However they'd certainly get a better start if you can get it on there. Maybe throw a huge batch of DIY CO2 on there temporarily? If you can't, then don't overdo the light levels. Now... if you stuff a lot of plants in there, and get the CO2 going, and get everything growing well, you won't need to cycle the tank. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ruadh Posted September 10, 2009 Report Share Posted September 10, 2009 Wouldn't an other alternative be to keep the lighting and ferts at a low level till the co2 is in? My thinking being that if the lights are low, the plants won't need a great deal of gas. Rick Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
werner Posted September 10, 2009 Report Share Posted September 10, 2009 Wouldn't an other alternative be to keep the lighting and ferts at a low level till the co2 is in?My thinking being that if the lights are low, the plants won't need a great deal of gas. Absolutely. But then the plant selection becomes limited. A month might be too long for some high light species to survive. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gdcox76 Posted September 11, 2009 Author Report Share Posted September 11, 2009 Would using Excel for the month help at all or would that not be a significant benefit? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
werner Posted September 11, 2009 Report Share Posted September 11, 2009 Sure, that works too. But you're going to need an awful lot for a tank that size $$$. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gdcox76 Posted September 11, 2009 Author Report Share Posted September 11, 2009 Understandably I wouldn't want to keep it up for very long but I'm looking at 3-4 weeks 5 at the most. The regulator setup, drop checker, canister, and diffusion equipment are going to run me over $400. A 2 litre jug of excel is $50 so It's definitely not a long term solution but based on the dosing instructions 1 jug should last for my time frame and allow me the time to come up with the larger cash outlay. I just don't have any experience using excel so I wanted to know if it does indeed perform well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
werner Posted September 11, 2009 Report Share Posted September 11, 2009 There's some CO2 equipment listed here in the buy/sell. It's priced obo... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fishclubgirl Posted September 11, 2009 Report Share Posted September 11, 2009 If you're planning on growing any mosses,pelia, etc, Excel is rumoured to melt them. I've never tried it, as I do grow plenty of mosses and don't want to lose them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gdcox76 Posted September 12, 2009 Author Report Share Posted September 12, 2009 Well my list of "wanted" plants does not include any mosses. I may be deluding myself that I need as many as I have planned but I'm taking the "Plant heavily" advise and running with it. The floor space I have to work with is 72" X 18" that being said when I sat down with graph paper and started making a planting diagram I did find places for all of these, I actually had a few that didn't make the final cut and got bumped off the list. I have no idea whether I will find all or any of these at the auction but it's a list and a plan to aim for. The items with *stars I can get from TNT and a couple of them I think are actually the ones in the high light/ Need CO2 area so I can leave those out till after I have the CO2 set up. There are a few more that I can get from April's aquarium as well. Alternanthera reineckii 'rosaefolia **Anubia barteri nana Cardamine Lyrata Ceratophyllum demersum Echinodorus tenellus **Hemianthus callitrichoides Hemianthus micranthemoides Limnophila sessiliflora Lobelia cardinalis OR **Hygrophilia corymbosa Ludwigia grandulosa Ludwigia inclinata 'Cuba‘ Ludwigia repens **Lysimachia nummularia 'Aurea‘ Myriophyllum mattogrossense Nymphaea zenkeri **Prosperpinaca palustris **Rotala wallichii Vallisneria (type to be determined) I'm not completely new to a planted tank it has been a couple years but I have done the whole low light/ NO CO2 before with Vals and crypts etc. I actually want to start up another low tech tank with livebears as well, but I need to get a 90 gallon to move the cichlids into first, but one project at a time! I've been biding my time for about 20 years to give the pressurized CO2 and high light a go, when I got the 135g tank I decided it was time to jump in with both feet. Now I'm like a little kid waiting to open birthday presents, I want to do it all right now! I've curbed my enthusiasm enough to get the planning all figured out but now I don't think I can plan any more. It's time to start doing it. There is this little thing called a pay cheque tho and it doesn't get bigger just cause I wish it! All I can do is try and stretch it as far as possible. Which is why I would like to attend the auction AND why I have to wait for the CO2. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jewels Posted September 12, 2009 Report Share Posted September 12, 2009 Thats a Christmas list if I ever seen one !! :smokey: Do not be afraid to initially fill it with whatever comes conveniently or inexpensively. Always plenty of time to find the rare gems. I have never seen a ugly healthy aquarium plant. They grow on ya' ( worst pun ever ) I noticed your Aquarium is equal in length to your list, , , Just out of morbid curiosity , how are you going about illuminating this tub ? No, wait, bathtubs are only about five feet !! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jvision Posted September 12, 2009 Report Share Posted September 12, 2009 Your list looks... full! Most of those plants will do fine with Excel - Vals will melt if you overdose, IME. If you notice that all of those stem plants are growing well w/in the first week or so, your tank will be 'cycled' (ie. the plants will be able to absorb any/all fish waiste). FYI, you will soon tire of so many stem plants - with high light, CO2 and ferts, you'll be trimming a few of those spp. twice a week!! :w00t: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gdcox76 Posted September 12, 2009 Author Report Share Posted September 12, 2009 (edited) I have thought about the fact that trimming all the stems may be labor intensive I'm prepared to give the grooming routine a try. As mentioned I can always pull them out and find replacements but thru all my browsing these are the ones that have intrigued me. I have a Catalina T5HO light fixture 72" long with 4 - 60" 80 watt bulbs staggered to cover the length so the outside 6" on both ends of the tank technically will have less light. I'm going to suspend the fixture over the tank however so my hope is it really won't effect the growth very much. The lights are on 2 separate cords with 2 bulbs assigned to each. Edited September 12, 2009 by gdcox76 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
werner Posted September 12, 2009 Report Share Posted September 12, 2009 If you're planning on growing any mosses,pelia, etc, Excel is rumoured to melt them. I've never tried it, as I do grow plenty of mosses and don't want to lose them. The plants that are most affected by Excel are liverworts (riccia, pelia, etc.) and true aquatic plants- ie. ones that do not have an emergent form (vals, elodea,etc.) Mosses should be fine at normal dosages as long as you don't squirt the Excel directly on them. I may be deluding myself that I need as many as I have planned but I'm taking the "Plant heavily" advise and running with it. I think it's more esthetically pleasing to have larger numbers of fewer types of plants. One of this and two of that doesn't look as natural as a big stand of one species. Of course you will need some solitary specimen plants too. It's also nice to mix different leaf shapes and colors. Some species may not be suited to your particular tank conditions; get a good plant ID book and research before you buy. For example, on your list you have Cardamine lyrata and Lysimachia nummularia 'Aurea‘. Both have fairly similar leaf shapes. C. lyrata prefers cooler temperatures and will develop smaller leaves and longer internodes in a warm aquarium. The Lysmachia also does better in cooler temperatures. Of course, you can try them out, but you may be better off with another round-leafed plant. Maybe Hydrocotyle leucocephala? It's one of those weeds of a plant that will need pruning all the time, but it's got an unique shape which contrasts well with other plants (and good for hiding fry.) Are you a CAS member? I can hook you up with some good plant books at Monday's meeting. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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