[NcRoW14]

Ok folks, so it's taken a few months of planning & preparation with a few hurdles along the way, but I've finally got my very first planted tank up and running!!!

Hurdle #1: De-rim Fail on a 5gallon!

I still have the tank. I'm planning on cutting it down and making a very shallow reef tank out of it.

Hurdle #2: Baby Emmitt came along!!

Okay so he wasn't a surprise, but I WAS hoping to have the tank up and running before he got here. I just didn't work fast enough!


Hurdle #3: Me, myself, & I. Really I was my own biggest hurdle. Every time I decided on the substrate I wanted, I read something else and changed my mind. Every time I decided on plants, I'd read and change my mind. At one point I almost decided to buy a 90 bowfront from a friend and just start big. (Glad my wife decided against that one for me lol.).

Well anyway, the final solutions are as follows:

Substrate:
Miracle Grow organic potting soil base (rinsed thoroughly & floaters skimmed out)
Quikrete Playsand cap

Plants:
Rotala Wallichii
Rotala Indica
Limnophila Hippuroides
Blyxa Auberti
Hermianthus Callitrichoides

 

[golfer_d]

well congrats on the baby....that's a bit more rewarding I would think!

 

[oliver77]

that's a super cute baby!

sorry about that derim mishap.

where is pic of the up and running tank?

 

[NcRoW14]

Pictures!!!

So finally without further hesitation here are some progress pics!!

Getting cloudy!

Dust is settling!

Nearly there. Getting Seaman (my betta) ready and acclimated for his new home :bounce:

 

[NcRoW14]

Betta is In!

Seaman exploring his new home!!

Critiques, comments & suggestions welcome!!! However, one more post to follow. Got home last night and saw something pretty upsetting!!:frown:

 

[NcRoW14]

Bad News

So I don't think my light is strong enough for the Indica at this point. They are melting and I'm not sure what to do about it!!!

Here is my light.... Check out this thread for more pictures of it... http://www.plantedtank.net/forums/showthread.php?t=191895

and here are the best shots I could get of the "melting plants". Any suggestions?????

Look in the back left. That's my rotala indica wilting away.

A little closer shot.

 

[GMYukonon24s]

Congrats on your baby.

 

[NcRoW14]

Thanks Golfer, and yes, I'd say slightly more rewarding !!

Thanks Yukon!!

 

[jimmytruong87]

your led light release a lot of heat

 

[NcRoW14]

Jimmy,

Virtually no heat from the LED. That's the driving force for many people (particularly in the marine aquaria world). LED or light emitting diodes are generally adhered to an aluminum heat sink. basically it's an aluminum block with "fins" or slots cut into it. the surface area of the aluminum absorbs the head emitted from the LED and transfers it behind the fixture instead of like all other light sources directly toward the water's surface...

 

[NcRoW14]

Anyone have suggestions for the melting Indica's?? I hate to lose them already....

 

[jimmytruong87]

If it is not about heat, then it should be ph of water. You just set up it, so it will not be normal around 6.8-7.0. You need to wait in few weeks. new leaf will come out soon

 

[NcRoW14]

Thanks Jimmy. So don't pull out the plants right? Should I trim it down some or just let it go?

I'll check the water chemistry tonight and post back with results...

 

[STS_1OO]

I'll add the following:

1. Plants often melt after being introduced into a new tank. They'll grow back assuming all other factors are good

2. Check the LED Par sticky to see if your light is listed there and figure out what PAR level's you're getting. But it does look as if you don't have enough lighting (from a casual point of view).

3. Those LEDs look very blue to me but im on a crappy computer so I can't say for sure.

4. Add root tabs. In a nano with low-to-medium light plants, all you should need are root tabs and proper lighting for rooted plants. Some column ferts wouldn't hurt.

5. Most importantly, congrats on the cute baby!

 

[jimmytruong87]

You also keep turn on filter in 3-7 days, water will be normal soon , use root tabs. You must not trim it

 

[NcRoW14]

Ok so I started some liquid ferts & within a 2 days I have some new growth on the Wallachii & the indica! (BTW I was incorrect in an earlier post. the melting plant is the Limnophila Hippuroides no the indica). I lost some baby tears, but others seem to be doing well. The blyxa seems to be holding steady. No melting, but no signs of growth yet. I'll have to get some updated photos hopefully one night this week. The Limnophila seems to have all but died at this point. I'll try to get a few good photos of it and maybe someone can tell me if I should just pull them out. The betta seems to be one happy camper. he mostly hangs out around the heater. he actually lays against it most of the time, that is unless i put my finger in the water. He rubs on me like a cat and lets me pet him for a while before I feed him. He's pretty awesome. He's also been known to jump out of the water and catch a mosquito in mid air. Happened three times. The third time I almost got it on video. I stopped the video too early because i thought the thing flew away. I'll have to find it and upload.

Side note, will a dead plant have any effect on my water chemistry the way a dead fish would. What I mean is should I be worried about an ammonia spike or something like that that could hurt my Betta?

 

[NcRoW14]

Finally got some time to take pics & get them up here. So here we go.

How do I get rid of it????

Should I get rid of it or let it go for a while????

Finally, NEW GROWTH

 

[NcRoW14]

The green slimy hair-like algae is much worse than it looks in the pictures. not sure what to do about it. the other picture is not looking to get rid of the Betta lol. It's wondering if I should pull out the plants that look like they died or is there still hope for them?

Thanks all!!!!!

 

[NcRoW14]

Bump.. Can anyone help me out on this? How do I get rid of this algae? Should I remove the "melted" plants?

Thanks!