d2mini's 4g Planted Betta Tank

[d2mini]

Thanks, Green!

I must say this is stressing me out! lol
I did a water change today, about 75% and I had plants floating. Those little things need to take hold soon!
The good news is the tank looks pretty clear.
And I added a ball valve to the output to cut down on the flow.

Pic from Day 2...

[vvDO]

Keep lowering that ammonia, better the plants float than melt. What are planning for CO2 and ferts?

[d2mini]

Right now I'm dosing Seachem Flourish Excel.
Any suggestions for fertilizer?
Ammonia is at zero.

[vvDO]

I'm currently using rootmedic, can't comment on how it's working for me yet since I just started my 20L, however once I run out I will probably go with dry ferts(way cheaper and more control). I have and still use excel in my nano's with flourish comprehensive and have had no major problems except when I have to neglect W/C's due to work or just being away.

[orchidman]

Learning to do water changes without uprooting plants is a skill that will come in handy! You'll get the hang of it!

[l8nite]

The best thing for water changes is a ziplock freezer bag with a tiny bit of air inside. Float it on top of the water and aim your water change water on top of it.

[orchidman]

I usually just use my hand to pour on to. Or, in my tank that's similar to this, I just pour the water into the filter compartment and it doesn't disrupt the substrate or plants.

[chubky]

I've siphoned water from a bucket with some spare airline tubing I have laying around into one of my tanks. It's a lot slower but it doesn't stir up the substrate or uproot anything either. You can have more tubes siphoning from the bucket too if you want. It's something that's worked for me, but it really does take patience

[d2mini]

Thanks for the tips!
Mainly i was slowly pouring onto the big rock but towards the end i got a little impatient. lol

[Green_Flash]

What I usually do is a magnet cleaner like for algae and a plastic container, put one side of the magnet on the outside glass, the other on the inside of the container and viola, it holds it in the desired location to fill water easily. You can adjust the height etc as it fills too. It allows you to pour pretty fast as water is dispersed upward.

I've done drip water changes as well, but that is very very slow like 5 or more hours, usually I would place the bucket higher than tank, tie a knot and clip the tubing to tank and bucket, usually for sensitive organisms.

[d2mini]

Changed another 75% or so tonite and nothing floated.
Everything still looks about the same (a good thing).

Lights are running for about 12 hrs. Is that too much? (LED lighting system 3.8W. Triple Panel LED bands with 135PAR@6" of light output. Pic earlier in this thread.)

[l8nite]

12 hours is a lot - if you start getting algae problems, start cutting the photoperiod down

[d2mini]

I can cut it down now. It's at 12 for no other reason than having no clue what the lighting period should be for this size tank, this type/amount of light, and a new tank/plants. Should I go down as far as 8 maybe?

[somewhatshocked]

Honestly, I'd go down to six hours unless you plan to start using CO2 instead of Excel. Algae farm in the making. Any way you could use fiberglass window screen material to filter the light? That could also help a bit if you add a few layers.

Have a feeling it's going to be great once you get everything balanced.

[d2mini]

Thanks, I'll make the switch.
I'm so used to the really intense lighting needed to grow coral.
I want to make sure the plants get what they need, but I definitely don't want algae!