Rumble's First Planted (12G Long)

[RumbleFish]

Hi all - I've been reefing the majority of my aquarium career, but have been impressed with planted tanks for a while. I'm currently in school and decided a small planted tank would satisfy my tank craving and be a new challenge for me.
I decided to go with a Mr Aqua 12 due to the unique footprint. Right now the tank is bare essentials as I try to figure out what I want to keep.

My tap pH is around 7.6 and moderately hard. I'm hoping for a lush/nature tank with minimal maintenance.

SPECS:
Mr Aqua 12G Long
~25 lbs Caribsea Eco Complete Black Substrate
Eheim 2215

All suggestions are welcome, I know the set up looks pretty bad now but I'm slowly working on it in between exams .

[GMYukonon24s]

Welcome to the forum

[MsNemoShrimp]

Welcome and Congrats! It looks like its off to a great start. Excellent filtration. Feel free to drop by our club page to look/ask about any ideas

[RumbleFish]

Thanks Guys! My heater arrived today and I ordered a 36" Marineland Double Bright (following in the steps of Somewhatshocked).

As for what I plan to stock, I want a simple/low maintenance Amazonian tank. I study environmental science so I love the idea of doing a specific region.

I was thinking of just some cardinals, cories, and ottos. I would like to keep a pair of rams if possible, or do you guys think 12 gallons is too small?

Lastly, what would you guys suggest to soften water? I was thinking something like peat pellets (and I wouldn't mind the tint).

Any and all advice appreciated, I'm still a little salty from reef keeping!

[rocksmom]

A 12 long AND a boston terrier? I think we're tank soulmates. Except I have, ahem, two of each.

As far as softening the water you can mix tap and RO, use all RO and remineralize it, or you can do peat. Here's a thread where they made a peat filter: http://www.plantedtank.net/forums/sh...d.php?t=175620

You could also just use a substrate that buffers the water. ADA aquasoil, Azoo plant grower, and Up Aqua soil are a few options.

ETA: You could also just use your tap as is. I don't know about the cardinals, but I have cories, otos, and other soft water fish that are fine and healthy in my tap which sounds very similar to yours. It reads 7.4 or 7.6 depending on which API test I use and has a gh of 12.

[KenRC51]

Cardinal tetra will do fine with tap. I used to have them in my discus tank and it was in tap water.

[RumbleFish]

Originally Posted by rocksmom

A 12 long AND a boston terrier? I think we're tank soulmates. Except I have, ahem, two of each.

As far as softening the water you can mix tap and RO, use all RO and remineralize it, or you can do peat. Here's a thread where they made a peat filter: http://www.plantedtank.net/forums/sh...d.php?t=175620

You could also just use a substrate that buffers the water. ADA aquasoil, Azoo plant grower, and Up Aqua soil are a few options.

ETA: You could also just use your tap as is. I don't know about the cardinals, but I have cories, otos, and other soft water fish that are fine and healthy in my tap which sounds very similar to yours. It reads 7.4 or 7.6 depending on which API test I use and has a gh of 12.

I can't even imagine two Bostons! This little guy keeps me busy enough. Thanks for the link, that was the basic plan I was going to try to follow. Seems to be the easiest for a busy schedule.

Anybody have any thoughts on the rams?

[Jedi_Pizza]

Welcome

I agree, great start. Good choice of tank, I wish we could get them over here in the UK -If they are here, I can't find them anywhere!

Good luck with it, looking good so far

[RumbleFish]

So here's an update:

I couldn't resist and bought a pair of German Rams. As for plants, all I have is a microsword and some Anachris. I'm most likely going to end up purchasing the rest of my plants online. They're are NO decent stores with plants around and I want to keep it a Amazonian tank.

Next I'd like to add some Manzanita. I'm not too thrilled with the aquascaping, but there isn't much I can do with what I have locally.

As always, advice/opinions appreciated!

[somewhatshocked]

Unless you're running CO2 and dosing ferts, you're going to need to raise your fixture quite a bit in order to avoid algae issues.

Have you considered checking the For Sale section here on TPT for great manzanita and other hardscape materials? It's also a great place to get plants.

[RumbleFish]

I'll have to check the For Sale section out.

How high did you end up raising your lights? I want low maintenance and don't want CO2 for now.

And what do you recommend for dosing? I have some Flourish.

[somewhatshocked]

Dosing may or may not be necessary depending upon the plants you keep, the amount of light you have and whether or not you use CO2.

Since you said you don't want to use CO2, dosing heavily won't be necessary. You also said you want low maintenance, which means you'll need to raise the light. That means the amount of fertilizer necessary will be dependent upon the plants you choose. If they're basic root feeders? You can use something as simple as root tabs and be just fine.

As far as raising the fixture, there are countless ways. Mine is raised with the help of some chain and two stands. Feel free to check out my 12gal journal for details. There are several other people here on the forum using the same fixture on the same tank, so be sure to check out their journals for details, as well.

[RumbleFish]

I've seen your journal, even subscribed to it. Just wondering how high above the tank we're taking. I'm guessing something around 6"?