[Scout5039]

So, my wife and I have been wanting a planted aquarium with a few colorful fish for awhile now. My awesome wife recently came home from a yard sale with this:



We think it is very interesting, and want to use it for a planted tank. The best I can figure, it`s about ten gallons(the rectangle portion is roughly eight gallons and it would be around thirteen gallons if it were a full circle).

I`m a little stumped on this being our first attempt at aquatic plants. The small surface area of the bottom of the tank has me wondering about how to arrange everything.

My basic plan is:
Low tech
Some Substrate(not sure what yet)
Sponge filter
Driftwood or Cool Rock centerpiece
Light(preferably LED)
Medium to heavy planting
5-6 Male guppies
2 Otto cats
Some shrimp

Any advice, suggestions, or ideas are welcome. I have the tank, and fauna figured out. Everything else is up in the air!
Thanks,
Jakehttp://www.plantedtank.net//www.pinterest.com/pin/create/extension/

 

[GrampsGrunge]

That tank could almost be a collectors item, you don't see bow sided tanks everyday, and especially in small glass tanks that are an unusual configuration. It's definitely really cool. What exactly is in the hood portion? It looks like a combination of light hood and filtration system.

This reminds me of when my wife and I used to hit our neighborhood Good-Will for old aquariums and equipment. They had a slightly faded 55 gallon TrueVue there once. That sold quick. I digress....

You'ld make better use of the limited interior with a small HOB filter like an AquaClear 20. Sponge filters tend to eat a bit of interior volume. You can always put a small sponge pre-filter on the intake tube. I'd also use a good 3" deep layer of gravel/sand to bring the 'scaped surface up and increase it's area. You're making a good call on the driftwood, with it's bowed sides it would look nice with a wood 'scape that wouldn't normally fit the gravel's surface area.

 

[Scout5039]

I can't find any information on the tank itself, and I've never seen one before. It was $15 with everything in it, so we're happy

The hood once upon a time had a fluorescent fixture in it, but that is broken now. Plus it has a 250 volt plug on it? No idea on the built in filter, but it's possible. The hood does have what look like vents for small cooling fans on the top.

I was thinking about a hob filter too, may have to do that with the sponge prefilter. Maybe I can find one with adjustable flow. I hadn't really accounted for the increase in surface area of the bottom after the substrate was added, thanks.

I'm still up in the air about substrate, there is a dizzying amount of info out there! And I haven't even considered which plants yet....

 

[randym]

Probably want to get rid of the hood altogether. Maybe put a clip on LED light on it instead.

 

[Scout5039]

Ditching the hood is still a definite possibility. I kinda like the look with it since the blue plastic base is non-removable. I can mount an LED light inside the hood if I can find one that gets a good spread of light that close without being too much for a non-CO2 tank. I probably won't be using fertilizers either. May change on that, not totally 100% one way or another.

-Jake

 

[Hilde]

Seems it would be easier to just plants than don't need substrate, like anubias, ferns, and moss.

If you got a Betta or killifish you wouldn't need a filter.

 

[kinzo]

That tank is screaming for a betta!

 

[GrampsGrunge]

Ditching the hood is still a definite possibility. I kinda like the look with it since the blue plastic base is non-removable. I can mount an LED light inside the hood if I can find one that gets a good spread of light that close without being too much for a non-CO2 tank. I probably won't be using fertilizers either. May change on that, not totally 100% one way or another.

-Jake

Possibility that you might be able to squeeze in a A15 or A19 size LED household bulb in 5000K "daylight" color. 40 watt equivalent bulb would give good lighting in a small tank with a reflector above it. Keep the vents in it open.

Meridian 25W Equivalent Daylight (5000K) A15 Non-Dimmable LED Replacement Light Bulb-13182 - The Home Depot

40W Equivalent Daylight A19 Dimmable LED Light Bulb with 4-Flow Filament Design-BA19-04550OMB-12DE26-3_1 - The Home Depot

 

[Scout5039]

My wife said no to a betta. Unless we find one too pretty to pass up, but she really wants smaller colorful fish. I have a voucher for a bunch of free fish at Petland, so that kinda dictates where I`m getting fish for the foreseeable future.

I do like the idea of non-substrate depended plants.

Gramps,
That could possibly be made to fit in the hood. Will those bulbs work on regular clamp on lights(like work light fixtures intended to be moveable)? Might be a good alternative if I made a plexiglass hood to slow evaporation.

Thanks for the input guys!

 

[Betta132]

I'd suggest microrasboras like chilis, phoenixes, mosquitos, etc. Very tiny, very colorful.
Maybe consider endlers instead of guppies? They're a bit smaller, so you can have more and more variety. They're also a bit safer with shrimp due to their size.
I wouldn't suggest otos, they need to be in shoals and prefer more space than that. Amano shrimp will clean algae and don't need that much space.

 

[shhh]

What a neat looking tank!

 

[GrampsGrunge]

Gramps,
That could possibly be made to fit in the hood. Will those bulbs work on regular clamp on lights(like work light fixtures intended to be moveable)? Might be a good alternative if I made a plexiglass hood to slow evaporation.

Thanks for the input guys!

That's exactly the lanp fixture what I'm using for my 20 Std tank. With 2 X TCP 60 watt equivalent, 5000K bulbs in 8.5 clamp-on work reflectors. At 1600 lumens total, it's actually a bit on the strong side for my chosen plants.

There will be some light loss/reflection with a plexiglass cover. I take my covers off during the light's on times, cover my tanks at night to keep the house humidity down.

You probably could get away with the A15 size 25 watt equivalent in the stock hood with low light plants. But I'd fab up a simple reflector for it. The 40 watt one would do nicely in a worklight reflector.

 

[Scout5039]

I intend to look into the "nano" fish and see which I like. I know I don't want something that requires live food.

Do you think that the 40w would be enough with a cover, or should I consider a 60w? The tank is approximately 15" from the top lip to the bottom, so about 12" with substrate. I would really like a cover as our house has enough humidity problems even before three fish tanks....

 

[GrampsGrunge]

Not much experience with nano fish, the smallest I've kept have been Pygmy Corydoras and Sparkling Gouramis.

The 40 watt equivalents should be plenty, but all of those are A19 size, which I doubt will fit your neat old hood, which was probably made for those antique style, tubular incandescent 25 watt bulbs. They will fit the worklights though, they work great. I think the 60 watt would a bit overkill for a 10 gallon, but you could raise them and grow some small houseplants in the immediate vicinity of the lamp's cone of light.

 

[kinzo]

Endler's then, just like guppies but smaller. I personally like red cherry barbs bc of their deep red color...or the long-tailed variety if you want to get fancy...

 

[Scout5039]

Gramps:
Are you talking two light bulbs, or one? I was thinking of trying to use one 60w in a worklight type fixture with a plexiglass cover. The top opening of the tank is only 14"x9.5". The old hood has the remants of a 250 volt fixture for a 13" flourescent bulb. The hood is about 2.75" tall.

Kinzo:
I'll see what they have, but for now I'm limiting myself to the free fish I can get from my local petland. The catch is that they have to be in stock. Down the road, once it's been up and running smoothly for awhile, I'll probably go to the local guy in Athens. He's about an hour from me, but he's great and will get me whatever I want.

-Jake