First 20 gallons plants tank

[Hogie]

Hello all

Here is my first 20 gallons plants tank. Please let me know if there any thing I need to make it better. Thanks for all the advices.
Eheim 2211
Current USA -80 W
Co2 -1ppm ?
<a href="http://s868.photobucket.com/albums/a...=planttank.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i868.photobucket.com/albums/a.../planttank.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket"></a>

[Somefishguy]

Are you running DIY CO2? If so I think you have too much light on the tank.

[Hogie]

First 20 gallons plants tank

Why is too much light ? my co2 is not diy.

[kwc1974]

Hide the heater behind some of the stems
+1 on the CO2 question
how much light?
remove the planting tags

[kwc1974]

CO2 on a high light tank should be as high as the you can get it, shoot for around 30ppm. Or get a drop checker and go for green If CO2 is not raised to meet the demands of a high light tank then you will have algae problems

[Somefishguy]

ok I was asking becuase you had stated CO2 was at 1ppm... You need around 30ppm as stated above by kwc1974. you will also need to dose with ferts.

Looks very good though

[davemonkey]

Is that CO2 1 part per million (ppm) or 1 bubble per second (bps)? There's a HUGE difference.

[kwc1974]

Good questiond Dave; it is stated at 1ppm but I think you can get that without injecting.

[manifresh006]

Here you go Now everyone can see it better

And after you get the the CO2 right try not to mess with it tooo much since it can bring BBA algae problems

[Navarro]

More like 30 mg of co2 per liter.

[Hogie]

20 gallons

Sorry my bad, should be 1 bubble per second .

[Hogie]

20 gallons

Thanks manifesh,
How did you get the picture out from there ? Please advices,

[Hogie]

20 gallons

Sorry!! My bad, Shoulb be 1 bubble per second .

[kwc1974]

THe bubble per second rule does not work well as it does not take you water perameters into account. Your CO2 saturation is dependant on the hardness (or softness) of you water.

Here is a page that will help you out on this. you will need to be able to measure the ph and the Kh oh you water. these two numbers will help you determing how much CO2 is being saturated in the tank. http://www.csd.net/~cgadd/aqua/art_plant_co2chart.htm

if this seems like too much of a hassle (like I do:) ) get a drop checker. these can be found for as low as $10 on ebay (maybe even cheaper) and provide a static, color coded way to check your CO2 levels. The problem with the ebay ones is you take a chance with the seller, most are located overseas and have been tagged by the USDA for shipping plants without proper documentation. This is generally not a problem with hardware but it is another conversation, just don't be suprised if the shippment takes 3-4 weeks.

this page will show you some differant drop checkers and this guy is a good supplier here in the states. I have used him before so I can recommend him.

http://greenleafaquariums.com/co2-drop-checkers.html