more set up questions...

[fishmomma]

So I'm starting to plan what equiptment to use for my tank and would love to here some thoughts and suggestions on what to change or add.

Here's what I have- 55 gallon tank. 4 feet long, 13" deep, and 21" tall.

The plan so far-
Aquaclear 70 HOB filter
2 hydro pro lV sponge filters
2 air stones 12 inches or so
Hydor circulation pump at one end for water flow

Eheim Jager heater- Should I have one or two of these? if 2 how many watts each??

This will be a planted tank. no plastic

Will be home to a pair(hopefully) of L128s - Blue Phantoms and some tank mates...maybe 20 or so neons or something like that..not sure yet

Any suggestions are appreciated!

 

[fishmomma]

Anyone??:dk:

 

[Stan]

I'd think twice about L128s in a planted tank, mine is a plant:cry: shredder!

 

[Lornek8]

Typically when you get into larger tanks, people like using 2 heaters for a couple of reasons: 1) If one were to fail, you'd have more time to resolve the problem before it gets critical. 2) By spacing the heaters in the tank, you'd get more uniform heating in the tank. Typical recommendation is about 5 watts/gallon (I think & depends on ambient room temperature, been a long time since I used a heater), using 2 heaters you size each a bit larger than half the requirement.

I can't remember what your lights are like but that could be an issue with a planted tank. 55 gallons are pretty tall. You might have to get additional lights to sucessfully grow plants and/or be very careful with your plant selection.

 

[fishmomma]

Thanks for the replys.

My tank is about 21" tall and I have a 40 watt 48" GE "eco lux" fluorescent bulb.
I'm going to start with some easy plants like amazon swords and java fern.

 

[Lornek8]

Thanks for the replys.

My tank is about 21" tall and I have a 40 watt 48" GE "eco lux" fluorescent bulb.
I'm going to start with some easy plants like amazon swords and java fern.

Probably not be enough light for swords. An estimate for minimum successful plant growing is about 2watts/gallon. For a 55gallon you'd be looking at 110 watts or about 3 tubes. Here's a good article that might help: http://www.rexgrigg.com/mlt.html

 

[bigbird]

so far some good advice for you. I personally am not a fan of sponge filters. I tried these before, but they were for me a horror to remove and squeeze clean. I do always prefer cannister filters, as they are easy to clean and you do not disturb the tank so to speak. Remember the L128 do like to knibble on
greenary. I also agree on having 2 heaters. I have in each tank, this just in case of a failure to one of them. cheers jk :thumbup:

 

[fishmomma]

So as far as the L128 and plants...Can I not have ANY plants in the tank with them? Will it harm them to nibble on the plants? or is it just a matter of aesthetics and they're going to mess them up? I'm not planning on having a ton of plants...lots of driftwood and rock caves too.:dk:

 

[Lornek8]

Plecs & plants can be a bit of a hit-and-miss type thing. Some plecs love to eat plants others don't, even within the same species and tank. It may be related to diet but it also may not. Plecs can destroy plants by their actions. Swords & similar broad, soft leaved plants are especially vulnerable. It isn't so much that they are eating the plant but rather they graze the leaves for algae, detritus or whatever & the rasping action damages the leaf surface. For me, swords have been especially vulnerable in the past though I haven't kept swords with plecs in the recent past so garnished with additional information & expereince there could be ways to keep it from happening.

Plants such as java ferns don't seem to be bother much. The additional benefit is that they can tolerate lower light levels.

 

[fishmomma]

Lornek8, thanks for the info...any other suggestions for plants that might work well??

 

[Lornek8]

Small leaved plants seem too do okay as there is no surface area to graze so plecs tend to leave them alone, so long as they aren't disloged they should be okay. Howver, based on your light levels you're a bit limited to what plants might work. I'd think java ferns, mosses & anubias would be the best choices.

 

[fishmomma]

Sounds good. I'm looking into upgrading my wattage

 

[Stan]

I agree with Lornk8, I've never seen any fish eat java fern. Anubis should be ok too, both are low light requirement plants so perhaps you could get by with one more bulb as opposed to two if you went with only the two types of plant.

 

[Stan]

Double post sorry.

 

[zeebo]

hi, fishmomma,
yeah, i can get away with anubis and java if attached to wood or rock , otherwise , it ends up floating in the am ! L128' tend to do this. As for rock, they love smooth rocks to lay on and slate to hang upside down on. The only time I see my L128's in a cave is when it's vacuum day... but they all have their own personalities, so you will see . good luck.

Georgie

 

[beencees]

Alot of good advice given here fishmomma.
If you're going to upgrade your lights then probably look at T5HO fluros. They will more than do the trick.

 

[zeebo]

also, just a thought , but if you purchase very small L128's, they probably won't touch the plants till they get bigger. Also , even small L128'a need much oxyen, so I have always kept my water level down a few inches, even when they were in the q-tank, and just wee guys. the HOB's will be an advantage with the lower water level. keep us informed how things are going !

Georgie

 

[fishmomma]

Zeebo-Yes I was planning on getting a couple of little guys. I think watching them grow up is half the fun

about the q tank...what size would you recommend for 2 baby plecs?

 

[Lornek8]

Up to about a couple inches you could go 10-20 gallons.