[Plantkrazy]

Hi I am new here and I never had a planted tank. I am going to have a 300 gall. in a couple of month and I want it to be planted with some fish in there. I have fish for it already. But what kind of light do I need I am looking to get low and high plants. What kind of filter would be best for the plants. I heard that Salvania natans help filtration. How big of a filter should I use? Is uv light the blue ones I have two 48 inch ones like that that I bought with a used 125 gal. should I get any other lighting. Also witch is better for plants sand or gravel. I also heard that mixing the two is better. Please help me.

P.S. This site is the best planted site I ever seen!!

 

[lauraleellbp]

Welcome to TPT!

Wow, a 300gal tank is going to be quite a build! I strongly recommend that you look through the Photo Journal forum and read up on how others have put together their large tanks. Many people use sumps on tanks this large, but there are other closed-loop systems available as well. Ocean Clears would be something to consider.

Personally, I'd go for a low light setup. A tank this large is going to require lots of weekly maintenance if you go high tech, as 300 gallons of plants is a LOT of plants to trim each week! Getting good CO2 distribution through the tank is going to be a challenge as well, if you go high light.

I think the blue bulbs you're talking about are probably actinic bulbs, which are for saltwater tanks. You'd have better results growing plants under bulbs that are in the 5000-10,000 kelvin range.

Salvinia is a great nutrient hog plant, but I personally found it to be a pain b/c it would always get pushed under water and clog my filter intakes.

Substrate choice is a huge can of worms- check out our substrate forum for more info and debates over "glorified dirt" than you ever imagined possible LOL Personally, I went with a Flourite and ColorQuartz combo in my own 90gal and am very happy with that.

 

[Plantkrazy]

Really it is I think ima go to the lfs and try to figure out what it is. Can I put shrimp in with my fish I know my angel have eaten my ghost shrimp. But I never had any other kinds of shrimp. As for triming I am fine with. I have alot of free time. When I am not cleaning my breeder tanks or my koi tank/pond. The tank is 3.5 feet wide 4 feet high and 4 feet deep. So that why I want both high and low. The low will be more towards the front and the high more in the back of the tank. I am also going to put one or two piece of driftwood in there is that okay?

 

[lauraleellbp]

Oh- you mean tall and short plants, not necessarily "high light" versus "low light" plants- my misunderstanding. :icon_smil

That's a very deep tank. Properly lighting that tank is going to be a bit of a challenge. Too much light and you'll end up with an algae farm instead of a planted tank...

Yes, driftwood is often used in planted tanks.

You might try adult (2"+) Amano shrimp if you've got small Angels. Small shrimp are most likely to end up as snacks, though.

 

[topfrog007]

Welcome to TPT!

Wow your tank is 48" high? I have no experience with that tall of a tank, but I'm guessing you will need metal halides to properly light a tank of that size.

 

[Plantkrazy]

I am also talking about High and low light but the shorter ones will be in front and taller more in back.