New tank - new to plants - advice please

Hi all,

so I've read through Zooms sticky on easy plants, and also done some research on the web regarding easy to grow plants. I've drawn up a shortlist of possibles for my tank. I would appreciate your thoughts on the matter.

My list is pretty much the common stuff:

Microsorum pteropus
Vesicularia dubyana
Taxiphyllum barbieri
Hygrophila polysperma
Anacharis elodia

Now it seems Taxiphyllum barbieri and Vesicularia dubyana are both referred to as 'Java Moss', yet are totally different plants. I found a reference stating that Vesicularia dubyana is actually 'Singapore moss'?

As I understand it, the species above are all suited to 'basic' tanks? By this I mean I have no fancy substrate (only medium sized silica), or CO2, or peat etc. Some grow on rocks, driftwood. Others float, can be 'planted' in the substrate.

I have a tank sized (LxWxH) 900 x 410 x 300, and will be putting in 2 x 25W Boyu lights (1 x white, 1x red).

Does this all sound OK? Any advice to prevent a possibly overseen disaster?

EDIT: I forgot to add...I have some Zebra Danios, Red-eyed Tetras, Tiger Barbs and a Red-finned shark that will be moved to this tank. Don't know what influence they will have on the plants.

 

@DesertConvert,Everything looks in order.Show some pics when you've got it set up.

 

The Tiger Barbs I had in the past went for fins and plants .. so if either of these start to go missing ... I would label the Tiger Barbs as suspect number 1.

What filtration circulation you planning on using? One of these days maybe a heater set to 18 - 20 degrees should do ok with all in the tank.

Later Ferdie

 

Thanks. I have a HOB filter (Atman HF-0600 - plenty strong circulation there I think), and heater set to 25 degrees (@f-fish: is this too warm??).

Will do!

 

Should be fine .. if you can stomach the electricity bill.

Pimp the HOB - put a big peace of filter sponge on the intake .

Later Ferdie

 

Hmmm...maybe my barbs have now started going for fins :-( Last night, at around feeding time, I noticed one of my Red-eyed Tetras had almost no fins left (from being perfectly fine in the morning) :-( This morning he's gone! Still have to ask my brother-in-law if he knows anything about it, but otherwise...do Zebra Danios, Tiger Barbs, Tetras or Red-finned sharks scavenge??

 

fish eat fish ..

hehe - image of brother-in-law with a line in the water doing some night fishing.

Later Ferdie

 

Any ideas where I can get the plants? Checked the LPS, but they didn't have any :-(

 

PM me your address / PO box .. I can drop some :

Microsorum pteropus
Vesicularia dubyana
Taxiphyllum barbieri

In the mail for you this morning if you like .. mostly cuttings but should get you going.


Later Ferdie

 

Guess that answers my question...

Well, I wouldn't put it past him, especially at 4 in the morning

 

most likely suspect in this case is the red-finned shark (rainbow shark??)

he would have nipped the tetra to death or near death, the other fish (especially the tiger barbs go for crippled or sick fish) would then finish the job and then most likely eaten the carcase.

tiger barbs and red-eye tetra's are known to get along very well. how many tiger barbs and how many red-eye tetra's do you have in the tank? it could be that there numbers were not large enough to spread the aggression of the red-finned shark.

people say you need 5 tiger barbs or 5 red-eye tetra's to complete the school and spread aggression.. i feel that one should not go with less than 8 or nine of either of these for a proper school and to control the agression.

i think your tank mates are compatible, its probably just that you dont have enough of each type of fish (besides the red-finned shark - you only ever keep one of those in a tank)

 

You learn something new every day...a Rainbow Shark it is. I only have 1 in the tank, and he's always been quite docile. More of a peace-maker when the Barbs get aggro with each other, than anything else. He gets territorial when the others get near his hideout, but he always just chases them away. These fish have been together for several months already without incident. I had 3 Tetras (quite a few years old already...fully grown I would say) and they just float around. Never aggressive.

4 Barbs - I know I need more, but my 16L tank can't handle more (I was in the process of acquiring more when my 32L tank encountered a stone fruit bowl hence the move to more cramped quarters. My 100L is almost ready).

4 Danios.

I will definitely increase the school sizes once the big tank is running.

 

What sponge do you use?

 

Any open cell sponge will work .. 20 ppi seems best 30 ppi clogs fast.

Later Ferdie