Starting a 10 gallon

[cuog]

Ok so I'm going to be setting up my old 10 gallon aquarium again. I'm planning to start off relatively simple. I'm looking at having a betta fish a school of neon tetras, some tiny shrimp(probably ghosts) and an algae eater of some sort(I know not a pleco in so small a tank).

Planned materials:
10 gallon glass tank(Have)
Light, what wattage/type? More about this lower about plants I'm looking at.
Bio Wheel 100 filter
Heater(I don't remember what wattage, or if mine is still good, assuming its not what wattage should I get for this sized tank?)
Test kit(any prefered types/brands welcome)
thermometer(any prefered types/brands welcome)
I personally like the look of bubbles from air stones so I will probably end up getting a small one of those unless there's a reason it would be detrimental to my setup.

One thing I'm lost on is substrate. I'd like to have some real plants instead of plastic, so what should I be looking for in a plant friendly substrate, and how much?

After cycling, would it be better to add plants or fish first? Or does it not matter? My preference would be to add the plants, but I am unsure if that would be a bad move.

As far as plants, I'm looking at water wisteria and Limnophila Aquatica. Although the second I'm not sure of how difficult it would be to take care of but I like the look. I saw mention of it needing CO2, but I don't think I'll have the funds to maintain a CO2 system(I haven't looked into it yet, but if its cheap enough it could be a possibility).

Is there anything that I've missed or need to research more? Thank you for the help with my million questions.

[Lab_Rat]

As far as plant substrate I like fluorite. It worked very well in my planted tank. Be aware, it is not very bottom dweller friendly so I would not use it if you think you want cories. I don't have experience with eco-complete but it would be a better option if you plan on getting a soft bellied bottom dweller. One bag of either will be more than enough.

For lighting, many people with planted tanks use power compact (PC) or t-5 fixtures. They are pretty expensive but are quite beneficial for planted tanks. I'm not sure how many watts per gallon you're going for, a low light tank would be under about 2 wpg. Anything higher than that you'll need co2 which you can make yourself (search for diy co2).

For test kits, API makes a very nice one that a lot of people like. For heaters, I like the visi-therm stealth. The 25W should be good for a 10g tank. It's what I have in all of my tanks and keeps the temp very steady.

Since you want to do plants I would not add an airstone as that would decrease the co2 your plants will need. I just use the stick on the tank thermometers though I'm sure someone else can recommend something fancier.

I also dosed with trace minerals, excel (since I didn't do co2), nitrogen, phosphorous, and potassium. If you don't use fluorite or laterite you will likely need to dose iron as well.

You probably want to do a silent cycle if you plan on planting pretty heavily. Here is a link to an article on the silent cycle: [Only Registered Users Can See Links.]

Your stocking plan sounds very nice and very appropriate for a tank this size. As far as an algae eater, once your tank matures a couple of amano shrimp would be nice (though the betta may try to eat them, mine always left them alone). Otos would be another option.

It's great you're asking questions, feel free to ask more if you don't understand something! thumbs2:

[fishymommy]

I've never had personal experience with this so I can't be 100% sure but I would be nervous to put a betta with your shrimp unless you are planning on heavily planting the tank for tons of hidy spots. Other than that, it sounds like an awesome plan!! Good luck!!

[DrNic]

Sounds like a cool plan, although I have to agree that it's maybe not the best idea to put the shrimp in with a betta.

Also, be careful when putting the betta in with neons. Watch them carefully. I had a few neons attack my neon school.

[cuog]

Thanks for the link on silent cycling that looks like it will help a lot, and I certainly prefer to replicate nature as best I can for the chemistry.

Also looking at lighting I feel like I may have found a cheaper way to light my tank(did I mention I'm trying to start out on a budget). Using a hood designed for incandescents and mini compact flourescents I could get 2 watts per gallon, which according to what reading i've done seems to be good? links: [Only Registered Users Can See Links.] [Only Registered Users Can See Links.]

Would this be acceptable? And what color depth is best for plant life? I prefer more blue color, but I won't go for it if it will be detrimental.

For substrate, am I supposed to have gravel on top of it, or is that it on the bottom of the tank? I'm not too sure about this system. I had always used just plain old aquarium gravel on the bottom.

[Lab_Rat]

I think that set up should work, often the reflector part of the light strips are more important than the bulbs themselves from what I understand. Maybe post in the plant or lighting forum before purchasing.

I do know the best light spectrum for plant growth is the 6700K to 10000K range. The blues would not be the best bet.

For the substrate, you can just use the fluorite alone, no need for gravel. Same with ecocomplete. If you want aquarium gravel for some reason you can put down a layer of laterite and then put the gravel over top. I just do fluorite by itself, it looks quite nice.

[cuog]

Thanks for the info on the lights and substrate, I will be checking the color temp as I look at lights and see if I can find a suitable level that I like the look and my plants will like as well.

[cuog]

Ok I got out back and looked through what I still have left. I'm unsure of the condition of my heater, and I don't know the wattage. It's a little less than a foot long, made by top fin. Problem is that the heating element is rattling around inside the glass a little which worries me. There's also an old Whisper 20 filter out there. I'd assume the filter element is no good anymore. What's the opinion on the Whisper unit as opposed to the bio-wheel? Do you guys think the heater will still be good or should I budget for a better replacement?

[Lab_Rat]

The Whisper filter should be fine, I think the bio-wheel is a bit of a gimmick. You will need to buy new filter media for it (the cartridge type things). If you can afford it I would go with a new heater, you don't want it to malfunction and fry your fish. Plus, I don't think rattling is a good sign.

[cuog]

I can afford a new heater, but seeing as I just got a ticket today, my budget has shrunk quite a bit:doh:

So I think I'm all set plan wise, just getting pushed back another payday.

I'll be getting a heater, eco-complete, the light setup described earlier with the colormax lights, filter cartridges, test kit, thermometer, and probably some other odds and ends if I see anything useful I forgot.(like a net) Hopefully I'll be able to get started cycling in the next month or so.