# New to Planted Tanks, Advice Please



## veggiegirl (Nov 20, 2012)

I would like to set up a planted tank in the future and wanted to learn all that I can before then. I only really want a tank that is simple to care for so no CO2 and I don't really want to use soil instead probably fine crushed quartz.

Can any plants survive these conditions apart from maybe Java Fern and Anubias? I am happy to fertilize them (are all aquarium fertilizers safe for bettas?) 

I will use LED lighting. Do you think Amazon Sword could survive? anything else? 

So basically my tank would have fine crushed quartz gravel as a substrate, LED Lighting and I am happy to fertillize them. Is it possible to have plants do well in these conditions? I really don;t care if they do not grow much as long as they are green and alive..........

Any advice would be great! Oh and the tank would be about 20 liters so reasonably small....


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## babystarz (Aug 3, 2012)

Root tabs for the amazon sword would be required, and some occasional nutrient dosing for the java fern and anubias would be advised as well because they extract nutrients from the water column. If it’s at all possible to convince you to use soil under the quartz, you will have so much less work on your hands with the plants! And you could have a greater variety too.


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## veggiegirl (Nov 20, 2012)

I am hesitant to use soil for a number of reasons.... I believe it would make vacuum siphoning very difficult and as I plan to has a single male betta in the tank keeping it clean in a high priority.

I have also heard that soils for aquariums can spread parasites and disease, also pretty sure I have heard that things like columnaris can survive in soil?

Also can using soil cause ammonia problems? there is so much I don't know........

I am completely happy to fertilize regularly if it means I don't need soil, my main concern is the health of the betta, will he be okay with ferts and can soil harm them?


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## itsme (Jun 4, 2013)

babystarz said:


> Root tabs for the amazon sword would be required, and some occasional nutrient dosing for the java fern and anubias would be advised as well because they extract nutrients from the water column. If it’s at all possible to convince you to use soil under the quartz, you will have so much less work on your hands with the plants! And you could have a greater variety too.


I agree, I started my 10 gallon NPT tank in May 2013 with 1 amazon sword and stem plants. I also used plants from my daughters pond. Organic potting soil with a cap of sand was all I used and I raised a baby betta in there which are more sensitive than a older betta and never do 100% water changes and now only top off when water gets low.I also have so many cuttings that I did a 2 1/2 g, 6g, 5 g and a 2 g with the plants. I forgot to add you will need MTS snails to aerate the soil or you can poke the soil in the begging to release bubbles. I used the handle of a wooden spoon.


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## Stone (Jan 6, 2013)

soil is safe as any other substrate, columnaris is in all fish tanks, it not like it teleports into a tank and finds a sick fish, it is usually a secondary infection. if you are really concerned about anything being alive in soil you can get a cheap foil baking pan and bake it at 350 for a few hours...


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## babystarz (Aug 3, 2012)

veggiegirl said:


> I am hesitant to use soil for a number of reasons.... I believe it would make vacuum siphoning very difficult and as I plan to has a single male betta in the tank keeping it clean in a high priority.
> 
> I have also heard that soils for aquariums can spread parasites and disease, also pretty sure I have heard that things like columnaris can survive in soil?
> 
> ...


The thing about NPT's is they are not at all like other types of aquariums. There is no need to vacuum siphon or clean obsessively, because detritus breaking down contributes to the nutrients absorbed by plants, and snails love it. A sterile environment is actually not good for fish. Frequent cleaning and water changes are required for other aquariums because there is no outlet for waste to go into, but in NPT's there are sinks for waste; and waste is a good thing, it keeps your eco-system almost closed so that you really only need to add water after the initial settling in period. The tank is otherwise capable of self-cleaning with little input from you. This is one of the reasons so many people opt for NPT's. The micro-organisms and beneficial bacteria in the tank create a much healthier environment for fish than your regular gravel-based aquarium. The reason soil is essential for these tanks is because it provides nutrients for over 5 years without needing additional help. The breakdown of waste in the soil is supposed to happen. Malaysian trumpet snails help mix the soil and keep it aerated, as mentioned, so that the nutrient quality remains consistent throughout the tank.

As for diseases, there is no risk as long as you're not using the upper layer of topsoil from your yard. This is where viruses and harmful bacteria and parasites can live. Below this, the soil does not support such harmful organisms. And soil you buy from a store is almost always heat-treated to kill anything very early on in the soil enrichment process. By the time it gets to you, as long as the bag is still sealed, there is very little risk of disease. Now, if you leave an open bag in your garage or backyard for a few years, you're back to the same issues as with the first layer of topsoil. 

The soil will not cause ammonia issues if properly capped with sand. The sand keeps the soil in place. Water changes should be done with a plate (set it down on the sand and pour the water directly onto it, this will avoid disturbing the sand cap and therefore will not release any soil from below).


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## veggiegirl (Nov 20, 2012)

Oh that is a good idea placing the plate in the tank to stop disturbance of the gravel. I was just cautious when it came to the subject of using soil because I have read in quite a few articles that soil substrates should be avoided when setting up your first planted tank...... 

Oh and if I did go with soil I would only ever use stuff sold especially for aquariums, I would be way to worried about soil contaminates from the back yard!

itsme your tank looks great! oh and babystarz so you have to replace the soil after 5 years?

Thanks for all the info guys


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## babystarz (Aug 3, 2012)

> oh and babystarz so you have to replace the soil after 5 years?


This is just a rule of thumb, it really depends on what soil and cap are used. But this is the time period when it's time to pay attention to whether the plants are starting to look like they may not be getting enough nutrients.


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## veggiegirl (Nov 20, 2012)

Oh okay, oh and another question I saw in a book that you can buy co2 tablets that you just replace when they are fully dissolved. Anyone use these?


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## PetMania (Mar 28, 2013)

This is a very interesting thread.

Can anyone point me to a thread that explains _everything_ about NPTs? Thanks!


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## RowdyBetta (Feb 1, 2013)

http://www.bettafish.com/showthread.php?t=114575 ^.^


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## veggiegirl (Nov 20, 2012)

Thanks for posting that thread rowdybetta looks very interesting. I do have another queston though. I consistently see planted tanks with driftwood in them that are crystal clear. How do you stop the tannin leaking into the water and sending the water tea coloured? I would like some mopani driftwood when I set up my planted tank. I like it that driftwood (like IAL) softens the water (our water is quite hard and damages my bettas fins) but how do I keep the tank crystal clear. It seems that at times no matter how much the wood is boiled or soaked it just keeps leaking.


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## RiceFish (Feb 9, 2013)

keep boiling the wood eventually all the tannins will drain out


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## babystarz (Aug 3, 2012)

veggiegirl said:


> Oh okay, oh and another question I saw in a book that you can buy co2 tablets that you just replace when they are fully dissolved. Anyone use these?


I don't use CO2 at all so I can't tell you much about specifics, but I the people I know who do inject CO2 are not fans of these tablets because they can dissolve too quickly in some circumstances. It's sort of like messing with your pH; the initial results will be good, but then a crash can happen later that really messes up the balance of your tank. That said, there are some really easy ways to create your own CO2 injection system, with videos on Youtube showing how to do it step-by-step. Maybe look into those before you decide which method of CO2 is right for you.


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## babystarz (Aug 3, 2012)

PetMania said:


> This is a very interesting thread.
> 
> Can anyone point me to a thread that explains _everything_ about NPTs? Thanks!


The top sticky in this forum, by OldFishLady is a great starting point! Plantedtank.net is a forum dedicated to this topic and I've found it very helpful too.


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## sliderdkp (Aug 8, 2013)

I used Fluval plant dirt covered with natural gravel for my 5 gal Fluval betta tank. Have added live plants. Things are going well now for several weeks.


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## veggiegirl (Nov 20, 2012)

Oh well I wasn't really wanting to get into using the co2 just had read about the tablets and thought it would be useful to get opinions on them just incase somewhere down the track I was thinking of giving them a go.

The thread on NPT is great but I am still hesitant about using soil I really just wanted fine gravel and fertilize the plants and I was wondering whether anyone had tried this and been successful. 

The plants I am thinking of getting are

Anubias
Java Fern
Java Moss
Freshwater Seaweed
Milfoil or ambulia (whichever is more suitable but I like the fine ferny leaves)
Amazon Sword

thats as far as I've got so far.... do you think I will have trouble with any of these and also I am open to suggestions but want to keep it simple being I'm not using co2 and probably not soil..... I will fertilizing however often needed with root tablets for the amazon sword and liquid ferts for the others.

For these plants what lighting should I provide? I was thinking moderate 2 watts per gallon being I want the milfoil/ambulia, Amazon sword and freshwater seaweed what do you think?


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## twolovers101 (Sep 17, 2012)

You can use other things as substrate, I've used eco-complete with success with a couple of my tanks without soil, though my plants have done better with soil than without imo. 

Sand also would be a good substrate, I'm not very fond of gravel anymore lol, I like the natural look too much xD

For lighting, just make sure that your bulbs are 6500K 
I used a 13 W in my first 5 gal with success, and now I have 2 13W 6500k in my new one, and so far so good


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## veggiegirl (Nov 20, 2012)

I was planning on using crushed quartz maybe 1-2mm and probably black. I too like the natural look.....


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## twolovers101 (Sep 17, 2012)

It can work  many have succeeded with gravel and other gravel like substrates so soil isn't a must


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## veggiegirl (Nov 20, 2012)

That is so good to know  I would just LOVE a beautiful natural looking tank with live plants but without having to worry about using soil. Natural looking tanks are just so calming and tranquil for me nothing beats them. I have wanted one for sooooo long so it will be exciting setting up my first tank with live plants.

Do you just buy the light for your plants from an aquarium shop? Will it say if they are 6500k? (sorry for sounding so naive but what is k? I just thought they were measured in watts)


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## twolovers101 (Sep 17, 2012)

Don't buy lights at an aquarium store, they jack up the prices lol I get mine from lowes/homedepot/walmart 

You have to look really close on the packaging sometimes, but it'll usually say what kelvin rating it is. The cfls I'm using now came in a bright blue and green package that are "daylight" on the back of the package it has a Lighting Facts section (kind of like the nutrition facts on food products lol) that has all the details, Kelvin, watts, lumens etc. cost me all of 6 bucks for 2 of them 

Edit* Kelvins are the temperature of the light, cool lights (anything above 5000k basically) are blue tinged, warm lights (usually 2500-4000) are more yellow in color, it has to do with the wavelength of the light (physics yay!) anyway, plants do best with the 6500k range which is blue  
I think it has something to do with how the plants actually absorb the light and how chlorophyll works (not too good with biology xD)


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## veggiegirl (Nov 20, 2012)

oh wow that is really interesting to know twolovers101! thank you for that info. Gee that was so cheap for your lights! the cheapest ones available in the pet stores here are like $32 and they are these tiny tiny little LED lights that would be lucky to provide enough light for a gallon tank! I'll definately shop around then LOL.


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## twolovers101 (Sep 17, 2012)

oh right, you're from australia, xD totally didn't think about that, just check your local hardware store then but it should still tell you on the packaging what it is, and if it isn't on the package, it may be printed on the bulb itself  good luck!


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## veggiegirl (Nov 20, 2012)

Yep i am in Australia  I think I know a good shop which should be reasonable.... thank you for all the info


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