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Should i bite the bullet and purchase a Build my Led

3K views 24 replies 16 participants last post by  TexasCichlid 
#1 · (Edited)
Hi, after a couple of years of having a 10g small community tank, and 5g betta tank, ive decided to go the planted route for 29g tank (could of gotten bigger but i dont want to leave to big of a tank at home for my parent to watch while i transfer off to a college next year)

So some background info on my tank:

Standard 29g tank 30''
Finnex Ray 2
Basic Aquatek Regulator
GLA Atomic+ diffuser
Penguin 200 (soon to be switching to my eheim 2217 when im not lazy to cycle it in)
drop checker
5lb co2 cylinder
eco complete 2 bags
The usual ferts (iron, potassium, phosphorus, root tabs)

Plants and Inverts
Pond Snails ? :(
Anacharis narrow Leaf
Vallisneria Spiralis
Microsword
Crypt Undulata
Java Fern
Hygrophila corymbosa (the things it grows on its stems are the worse lol)
Dwarf Lily (all green some red dots)
Nesaea Red (half of it is red half of it is green)

Since this is my first planted tank and i didnt even know low-med-high light plants were (BUT, Now i do!) I didnt do tooo much research on my lighting, so i just ended up with the finnex ray 2, its a good light all of my plants have exploded in size especially my dwarf lilys they are so big now, except my nesaea, turning green mostly. But over the course of the 4 weeks of looking at my tank, ive decided to rescape my tank after my cycle is complete to add HC, red rubin swords, mermaid weed, and maybe some red root floaters.

Now the question is do i bite the bullet and throw my wallet at buildmyled
and the last question is Design it Yourself, or stick with prebuilt ones.

Thanks, and most likely i will try and sell my finnex ray 2 on craigslist, or find somebody to buy it! so at least if i buy a buildmyled it wouldnt be too bad
(i am dumb and forgot to dip my plants when i first got them, now i have pond snails :/, is there something i can do to get rid of them, ive tried salt shakers with lettuce, and smashing them on the glass)
 
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#4 ·
Ill be getting a buildmyled unit, I think its the best priced one out there. You can choose what spectrum you want plus it puts out more PAR than most around its range. Ill be getting a 48" and I was told that at the substrate, in a filled tank, the par will be 150. Which is beyond high light. So if you want buildmyled, depending on the fixture size, you are looking at high light. IF thats the case, you WILL need pressurized co2 and EI/nutrient dosing.
 
#19 ·
Hi, after a couple of years of having a 10g small community tank, and 5g betta tank, ive decided to go the planted route for 29g tank (could of gotten bigger but i dont want to leave to big of a tank at home for my parent to watch while i transfer off to a college next year)
You say you're moving off to college next year and plan on leaving the 29g behind? If you get a buildmyled light and create a high tech (high maintenance) setup for your parent, you'll miss all the enjoyment and/or chaos.

Personally, I would hold off on the 29g upgrades and work with your 10g and 5g (whichever you bring to college). As a recent college graduate, the stuff I want to buy after college far exceeds the stuff I wanted to buy before it.
 
#20 ·
my parents know how to deal with tanks, if they can handle 200g sw tank from years ago, they can handle a planted, they are the ones who got me into planted tanks in the first place, plus i live in Southern CA all the colleges are like 1-2 hours away from me its not hard.
 
#22 ·
I like my build my led a lot. I have a 36 inch fixture. I'm keeping algae in check with the dimmer. Timer goes on and lights are at 50% at 8am. On my lunch break, I come home and I crank it to 100%. Then around 5pm I reduce it to 50% again and lights out at 7 pm.
 
#24 ·
They give 3 years of warranty in the U.S., this is very good for led fixtures.

I am wondering that they may be relatively easy to repair or modify after the warranty period is expired.

Someone here told me they also ship to Canada.

Michel.
 
#25 ·
I'm going to be a debbie downer and suggest not spending more money on an aquarium that you won't even be able to enjoy while you are in college next year. I can't imagine that the typical tank babysitter will be as diligent as you are hoping for fertilization and tank maintenance, and forcing the maintenance onto them shows pretty poor decision making skills in my opinion.

Why not sell off what you have and use the funds to build a nice cube that you can take to college with you?
 
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