Suggestions for setting up a new aquarium

[rbrostoff]

I finally bought a tank. It is an "Allglass" 36 gal bowfront. I also bought a new model of the MarineLand Canister: CC220. It just is coming out on the market. It seems to be a good alternative to the expensive Eheim. This one is designed for a 30-50 gal setup. Separate compartments for the filter media, includes bio. Is very quiet. I'm setting up the tank tomorrow (Saturday). I'm going to use the "fishless" cycling method. I will be using live plants and "live" media on the bottom of the tank. Fish will determined in a couple of weeks, after cycling.

[f1oored]

There are so many fish to choose from I can't even begin to make suggestions. However, any tank 40 gallons or over, I would use a canister filter. If you go under 40 you should be able to get away with the HOB filters, aqua clear and the biowheels are my favs. I would also go with glass for that size range. It's going to be scratch proof and it's not really large enough to warrent the light weight of acrylic. I'm sure someone will be around soon to talk about plants. I'm not much of a plant guy myself. If you want to start looking at different fish and compatiblities you can check here...
[Only Registered Users Can See Links.]
It's a nice site with pictures and a lot of info (you can thank Hobbs for that one).

[jeffs99dime]

how ya doin? for a 45 gallon i would recommend two good submersible heaters (visitherm steaths), two cannister filters (eheim) for planted tank. you also probably will want some type of c02 system for the plants. and you definitely want a very good lighting system that generates 2-3 watts per gallon or more. a very good system for that is the (coralife aqualight). your possibilities for fish stock are pretty endless. now let me ask you a question:
what type of fish are you looking to keep? africans, south americans, etc?
i also highly recommend downloading the free e-book at the sidebar menu in this forum- this is especially useful.--jeff

** these are only my recommendations in ( )

[rbrostoff]

Thanks for the tips. I especiallly like Emer's site.

[Lady Hobbs]

Welcome. Canisters are the way to go if you can afford one. I can't so use two bio-wheels which gives me cystral clear water. Bio-wheels.

Please go the fishless cycling method. It will save you so much work and fish a lot of stress. When the cycle is done, it's done and in go the fish.

[jeffs99dime]

Welcome. Canisters are the way to go if you can afford one. I can't so use two bio-wheels which gives me cystral clear water. Bio-wheels.

Please go the fishless cycling method. It will save you so much work and fish a lot of stress. When the cycle is done, it's done and in go the fish.

good catch hobbs. i knew i left something out of my post. (fishless cycling) lol:thumb:

[Severus]

As everyone said, the possibilities for fish are endless, if you are gonna do a planted tank i would have a CO2 system and start out with some hardy plants like java fern, java moss, amazon sword, etc. Just read up on everything before you start your tank and figure out how it will all work together. Good luck

[turbomkt]

OK...check out my post here ([Only Registered Users Can See Links.]).

And remember...if it's truly a planted tank, the cycle doesn't exist. :)

[rbrostoff]

Thanks for the info. I particularly like your attachment about plants.

[Glasstapper]

welcome! You know, if I could start my 45 gallon all over, I would go this route:

heavily planted all with low light plants at about 1 or 2 watts per gallon (so no CO2 is required) with lots of java moss, java fern, corkscrew val, and anubias. Your plants will be very slow growing, though without the CO2. I also really like the "grass" or "lawn" like plants to carpet the bottom, so maybe some dwarf sag. would be grow nicely as long as there weren't any plants above blocking the light.

For filtration, I would prefer to go with two HOB filters, but set them at about medium flow so the water isn't like a whirlpool with intense current. A nice even low to medium current.

Aeration would be cool with just a couple of strategically placed small airstones. Tons of aeration will saturation your water with oxygen and rob all the CO2. Your fish will like the oxygen, your plants won't. A nice medium aeration with the HOB filters and a couple of airstones would work well.

For lighting, nothing fancy. For 45 gallons, I would want some nice floral lights equaling to about 80 to 90 watts total.

For decorations, I would prefer all natural. Driftwood, rocks, lots of little hiding places created with slate and java moss growing on a few rocks.

For fish, I think smaller fish would be ideal. For bottom feeders, I would go with a nice school of corydoras. The albinos would be really pretty and stand out if you did a lawn type of bottom. for middle swimmers, a school of some kind of tetras. Maybe two schools. The neons and diamonds are really pretty against a green background. For the top level, you could go with guppies. They're very interesting to watch and you can mix and match all the different colors because they don't care. They all get along with each other.

well, there's one example for you if you wanted to use it as a guideline. :D

(oh hey- and someone please correct me if I have any contradicting info here)

[jeffs99dime]

very thorough, detailed, post. that was awesome glasstapper!

[Drumachine09]

I have a plant questione for you plant gurus out there. I was browsing throught the fish stuff at walmart and they have apongonten (sp?) bulbs. Would these be good plants to have in a 29 gallon tank?

[jeffs99dime]

if you are referring to their hardiness. those plants are very hardy. i would shy away from buying them at walmart however. can you get them at a reputable lfs (local fish store?) places like walmart, petsmart, petco etc., generally lack the knowledge and ability to care for plants and fish. just a tip.

**also, when you plant apongonten bulbs, plant them about 1/3 of the way into the substrate.

[Drumachine09]

these are pre packaged bulbs by a third party, and are not (to the best of my knowledge) affiliated in any way. should is still get them some plce else?

[jeffs99dime]

if they're not affiliated then i say go for it. is the source reliable?

[Drumachine09]

I believe it is the company that makes all of their tank bundles,but ill have to double check.

[turbomkt]

A friend got me a couple of packages of those bulbs. To get them to grow you let them float in the tank until you see life, then plant partly into the substrate like Jeff mentioned. If it's the same package, they have a garantee on every bulb.

These are probably fine for about any tank bigger than 10g.

[jman]

welcome to the forum!

[rbrostoff]

OK, I bit the bullet. I just purchased a 36 gal bowfront "All Glass" aquarium. I am setting it up now, getting ready for "fishless cycling". I bought a brand new mode of MarineLand canister that is just now being introduced on the market. It is not part of the "Magnum" series. It appears to be very similar to Eheim. I'll let you know how I like it.

[jeffs99dime]

OK, I bit the bullet. I just purchased a 36 gal bowfront "All Glass" aquarium. I am setting it up now, getting ready for "fishless cycling". I bought a brand new mode of MarineLand canister that is just now being introduced on the market. It is not part of the "Magnum" series. It appears to be very similar to Eheim. I'll let you know how I like it.

take some pics of the tank when you get it all set!

[Abbeys_Mom]

Welcome to the forum :)