This is all I gotta say, should I give up now or back to the beginning an throwout all the old plants!

http://i855.photobucket.com/albums/a...AA7E52B03B.jpg

http://i855.photobucket.com/albums/a...AA81752CB4.jpg

Ike, that moss went south really quick! I feel bad since you got it from me. Where is the rest of the Rotala? I only see a couple of stems.

Can you tell us a little more about the tank? lights, temperature, substrate? Usually you can bring back moss from the brink as long as there is some green left but it takes time in a low tech tank. Try growing it in a jar near a sunny window for a while. Sometimes plants need a little time to recover when moved from one tank to another. They were used to high light and pressurized CO2 and will probably need some time to adapt to the new conditions.

Even if you decide to ditch the plants, keep at it! If it were easy, this forum probably wouldn't exist.

If I was given that tank I would pull the plants out and put into a white tub with some water and pick through to get off any dead stuff. I would drain the water out of the tank, vacuuming the surface to get crud off the surface. I would reserve some water to rinse out filter media. I would smooth the substrate surface and place my wood and/or rocks. Then pull out the wood and/or rocks, get out some dark colored cotton thread [yes I do have some antique all cotton thread in the house] lay the moss in a thin layer where I want it and wrap firmly. In the end I would like the wrappings to be about 1/4" apart. Then I would float the salvaged plants, wipe down the tank panes, put a layer of bubble wrap to soften the water flow in the tank and refill with warmed dechlorinated water very very slowly. I would put the cleaned up filter and heater back on the tank and plug in. I would go to my favorite LFS and buy several bunches of easy stems like wisteria and pennywort as well as another favorite, Crypt. wendtii. If there was Anubias nana or Java fern that looked clean I would love to pick that up as well. I hope this is a tank with a single T5HO or a double T8 or T5NO over it and I would get a bottle of Excel and the usual sort of planted tank nutrients as well. If the total flow in the tank seems inadequate I might pick up a small powerhead to improve water movement. At home I would plant the new and old plants and admire the cleaned up tank. I would check the light's timer and set it for ~6-10 hours for when I am in the room most. That week I would hunt down a couple gallon jugs, one for change water and one to siphon tank water into and establish a weekly routine.

I hate giving up on plants. I brought back pennywort from a single 3 node and leafless stem one time. Very satisfying!

Well said Kathy! You really have to put in the work for this hobby/obsession.

Just to add to your suggestions, I really recommend a planted tank substrate over potting soil. I know other people have used soil successfully, but I always found it messy and hard to plant in.

Begin.
I got miricle gro garden soil and capped that with oil dry (kitty litter) which is litter without the perfumes, ran the tank for a week with just the filter an the sponge in it with a packet that removes ammonia. I got plants and some moss it was all super green got it in the tank ran it for another week applying root tabs only about four and some liquid grow plant food dosed one time cuz it was only a week I also ran a co2 mix for 3 days. I have the lights on for about 10 hours a day cuz it's hooked in with my turtle tank I got one bulb 26watts 3200k stuck through a plexiglass top I made for the 5.5 gallon tank I also added activated carbon to the filter so it ran like this for a week I just did a water change and see all the moss is brown, but all the other plants are still green I don't think as green as I got them but still alive I guess anyway the cap I don't think was thick enough and I had way too many plants for this small tank so I did another the same setup with a thicker cap of oil dry and put some plants in there too and planted right away. In that tank I got a power head with a soda bottle cut and I put sponges in there from a couch I had thrown out inbetween the sponges I got a bag of carbon did a water change also today looks cool Ill post pics here as u can see in the pics the water in the 5.5 and the water in the 20gal deep tank and the pics of the 5.5 is the ones at the beginning of this post any help I guess would be cool.
5.5 before and after water change.
http://i855.photobucket.com/albums/a...ps917e0ef7.jpg
http://i855.photobucket.com/albums/a...AA7E52B03B.jpg
http://i855.photobucket.com/albums/a...AA7A12FCF4.jpg
With the light back on it (5.5 ) after the water change.
http://i855.photobucket.com/albums/a...BE6ADF8EE8.jpg

20gallon deep tank bootleg filter and started CO2 mix today.
http://i855.photobucket.com/albums/a...BE62FBF71D.jpg

Light system same as the 5.5 but two bulbs.
http://i855.photobucket.com/albums/a...BE680DC00A.jpg
http://i855.photobucket.com/albums/a...BE5C8BED6C.jpg

Wow finnaly an answer! All I can do but declorinate the water?? Also gonna have to either buy or build my light.

There's my tank GURU!!!!!! LOL

Thanks! K for setting in the right direction!