Started my planted tank..... Minus good light

[jwh0818]

Also, where can I get fertilized soil cheap

[Totenkampf]

the leaves that the plant grew while it was growing out of water at the nursery (the round ones that are dying) are going to die no matter what you do as long as you are growing the plant underwater. it will grow new leaves that are specialized for being underwater. all swords do it. it wont be a problem and it will look better than ever.

[Totenkampf]

cheap aquatic soil isnt cheap lol. i just added some to a aquarium that i set up over ten years ago to refertilize it. i used flourite from petsmart at 20 bucks a bag and swords like it but its very dirty. i rinsed some and then added clarifier but it was about 12 hours before i could resume planting due to the visibility. if you rinse it too well then you are washing away all the good stuff. i also added ecocomplete and it didnt cloud the water much at all but i dont know how well plants like it on its own. i only use it because i like the way it looks and i think soils should be a combination of different types of products.

[TexSun]

I've seen people use regular potting soil. Like miracle gro organic or something. Google it.

[Totenkampf]

he would need to break down his tank and put it under the rocks to keep the phospates out of the water column according to what i have read. personally i would never, ever attempt this. have you tried this TexSun?

[TexSun]

No I haven't tried it, I want to though. I've seen it on TPT forum. I use ADA Aquasoil if I can.

[jwh0818]

Great info. The potting soil is bad. It takes a while to break down all the bad things in it. Another question.
Im getting a 4 bulb fixture, what kind of bulbs should I get with it? Like the kelvin

[Totenkampf]

the soil that is often used has very low on nutrition, like from a long fallow field. the phosphorus in regular potting soil would be insane. i tried aqautic soil from a hydroponic store (looked like clay dirt, very sandy) capped by river sand and while i got no algae bloom i did get anaerobic pockets after it compacted which released toxic gas. your soil is something you dont wanna skimp on, imo.

i like to use a couple in the 6500-6700k range for as a general daylight bulb along with one or two 6000k (aka plant grow or roseate) for plant growth. occasionally i will use a 10000k range if the 6000k have too much red in them and i dont like the way the plants look. the slight blue in the 10000k seems to mellow the red a bit for an overall pure white.

[jwh0818]

So how about 2=6700k and 2=6500k? With a timer for the 2 6500k to be on 4 hours longer?

[davemonkey]

So how about 2=6700k and 2=6500k? With a timer for the 2 6500k to be on 4 hours longer?

That sounds fine. Keep in mind that more light = higher metabolism (higher need for nutrients for the plants). The plants you are keeping will do fine in very low light...but will thrive in higher light...IF you feed them enough to keep up with the higher metabolism they will have in the higher light. Food source for plants can be from supplemental fertilizers (N, P, K, micros), or from fish food/waste, etc...

My swords have always performed their best with root fertilizers (root tabs by API or Seachem's "Flourish"). Same thing for Cryptocorynes and Anubias.

[Totenkampf]

+1 to daves post, i have always used a combination of those two tabs as well. i briefly experimented with miraclegrow tree stakes but they break down too fast and so you cant control the phosphates. i also stage my fixtures with a timer so that they increase in intensity. just remember that the watts / gallon and watts / galllon / day rules are just starting points. watch your plants and dont be afraid to adjust in small increments but only adjust one parameter at a time. also keep in mind that co2 is a nutrient so it doesnt make sense to dose all the macro and micros without adding more co2 to a high light setup

[jwh0818]

Okay, I just got a light. I was wondering if its possible to take everything out of the light and mount it in a canopy?

Sent from my HTC_Amaze_4G using Tapatalk

[eklikewhoa]

Would not harm anything

[Totenkampf]

i am deciding about that myself right now. i bought a wavepoint 6 x 54w fixture and want to mount it under a canopy. i have used quite a few canopy retrofit kits in the past and they always mount the ballast remotely so you can keep that heat out from under the canopy. also the metal case of the fixture that i am using acts like a heatsink. i laid a towel across it the other day while i was working on the tank and forgot about it. the heat tripped the overload protection and shut the ballasts off until it cooled. you may want to consider the heat and think about fans, but you could try it first since you can always add fans. lastly, the end fittings on my retrofit kits have always been watertight. the fittings inside my fixture are not and dont need to be since the fixture itself is watertight. even if you use glass tops, the moisture will eventually corrode the contacts in the end fittings. i have decided to take the top off of my canopy so its just more of a surround but i will still have to modify it so that there is room for the legs on my fixture to land between the canopy and the aquarium. i will borrow a router and make a notch i think.