Just switched over to live plants

Hello all, like the title says, I just made the switch over to live plant tanks, and of course starting out, I don't expect to be the best at aquascaping right out the game but I would like your personal opinion on my 4 tanks.

Picture 1:
fluval Ebi 3 gallon
Lighting: aqueous clip on led plant aquarium version
Heater: fluval p25 watt
Sponge filter
Filter: fluval nano internal with sponge filter, bio filter, and chemi pure green added
Home to: ghost shrimp, Amano shrimp, and cherry shrimp, 1 nitrite snail, 1 octinculus
Substrate: fluval stratum

Picture 2:
Fluval flex 15
Lighting, stock lighting
Heater: fluval 50 watt
Filter: fluval 207 w/ chemi pure green, ceramic rings, purigen, and foam pads
Home to: green tiger barbs, albino tiger barbs, and regular Barbs, 1 octonculus, 1 nitrite, and ghost shrimp
Substrate: fluval stratum

Picture 3:
55 gallon tank
Eheim heaters x 2
Filter: fluval fx6 with sponge, ceramic rings, purigen, phosguard, fluval carbon, fluval zeo carb
Home to: cardinal tetra, neon tetras, bristlenose pleco, fancy guppies, green Cory's, doja loaches, nitrite snails
Substrate: pool sand with seachem flourish root tabs

Picture 4
Fluval spec v
Lighting: aquasky
Heater: fluval p25 25w.
Filter: intank chamber 1 with filter floss, biofoam, chemipure green, purigen,
Substrate, fine black sand, with root tabs, Home to breeding fish

 

Your tanks look great! Live plants are always awesome. Your shrimp and fish will thank you!

 

Your tanks look great! Live plants are always awesome. Your shrimp and fish will thank you!

Ty it's my first time

 

These tanks look really good and you’re off to the right start. Your fishroom must be a relaxing place.

My only areas of critique: a 15 gallon doesn’t provide enough space for tiger barbs long term, and otocinclus have far better chances of survival in several month old setups with a developed colony of microfauna (aufwuchs). That’s it really, though.

Pool filter sand is a good substrate for planting because it doesn’t compact. Maybe one day, the 55 will see live plants being added.

All you really need is a fine gravel or a fine aerated sand and root feeders can be planted successfully.

Is that an anubias I see on the wood in the fourth photo? If so, well done for avoiding the common mistake of planting it in the substrate.

 

Your 55 isn't what I'd call a planted tank, but all your tanks look good. They also look like they've all just been planted. I'd be curious to see how they progress.

On a side note, your java fern in tank #2 is best planted with its rhizome out of the substrate. I can't tell from the photo, but it looks like the rhizome may be buried.

 

I really like tank #4, but I would make sure the amazon swords have some root tabs underneath the sand, they are heavy rootfeeders and they will fill in your tank completely once they grow. I have 2 in my 10g tank and they arefilled to the brim with amazon swords. Also I would pull the tiger lotus out a bit to make the bulb a bit exposed.

 

Theyre looking great! When they've grown more, please post again, I'd love to see how the plants grow
If I may offer a suggestion for tank 3, you can attach some anubia nana and flame moss to the ship decor ^^ though I don't know if any of the fish there are keen on eating plants? So take it with a grain of salt lol

 

These tanks look really good and you’re off to the right start. Your fishroom must be a relaxing place.

My only areas of critique: a 15 gallon doesn’t provide enough space for tiger barbs long term, and otocinclus have far better chances of survival in several month old setups with a developed colony of microfauna (aufwuchs). That’s it really, though.

Pool filter sand is a good substrate for planting because it doesn’t compact. Maybe one day, the 55 will see live plants being added.

All you really need is a fine gravel or a fine aerated sand and root feeders can be planted successfully.

Is that an anubias I see on the wood in the fourth photo? If so, well done for avoiding the common mistake of planting it in the substrate.

the reason for the tiger barbs is cause I love their species and if they grow to about 2 inches full grown, I have 5 of them in the tank which would still give me about 5 gallons left of space so its not overstocked.

The Anubis Is planted into the wood, while its roots is growing underneath it.

Your 55 isn't what I'd call a planted tank, but all your tanks look good. They also look like they've all just been planted. I'd be curious to see how they progress.

On a side note, your java fern in tank #2 is best planted with its rhizome out of the substrate. I can't tell from the photo, but it looks like the rhizome may be buried.

the 55 isn't fully planted because I still run media filter that contain chemical filter in it such as phosguard, carbon, zero carb, etc. What I did however was place a small batch of dwarf tears on the bottom with a root tab under these conditions and so far its held up and is growing to my surprise. I've had no melt back with it or leaf rot so maybe im just lucky.

as for the java fern the rhizome is planted a little bit under the surface substrate. is there a reason why it shouldn't be?

I really like tank #4, but I would make sure the amazon swords have some root tabs underneath the sand, they are heavy rootfeeders and they will fill in your tank completely once they grow. I have 2 in my 10g tank and they arefilled to the brim with amazon swords. Also I would pull the tiger lotus out a bit to make the bulb a bit exposed.

all the plants in the 55 gallon are fake except for the dwarf tears which I put in just to experiment with the chemical filter media I am running from my tank but I did also stick a root tab in the sand next to it as well

Theyre looking great! When they've grown more, please post again, I'd love to see how the plants grow
If I may offer a suggestion for tank 3, you can attach some anubia nana and flame moss to the ship decor ^^ though I don't know if any of the fish there are keen on eating plants? So take it with a grain of salt lol

the 55 will be my next project as you can see there is a lot of space then I would also have to switch out my filtration media, and buy enough plants, you get the idea lol but I do have a theme for it when I begin that project

 

...as for the java fern the rhizome is planted a little bit under the surface substrate. is there a reason why it shouldn't be?

Yes. The rhizome could rot. It's best to make sure the rhizome is on top of the substrate with only the roots going into the substrate. Also, with java fern, you can just attach it to hardscape if you like.

 

Hello all, like the title says, I just made the switch over to live plant tanks, and of course starting out, I don't expect to be the best at aquascaping right out the game but I would like your personal opinion on my 4 tanks.

Picture 1:
fluval Ebi 3 gallon
Lighting: aqueous clip on led plant aquarium version
Heater: fluval p25 watt
Sponge filter
Filter: fluval nano internal with sponge filter, bio filter, and chemi pure green added
Home to: ghost shrimp, Amano shrimp, and cherry shrimp, 1 nitrite snail, 1 octinculus
Substrate: fluval stratum

Picture 2:
Fluval flex 15
Lighting, stock lighting
Heater: fluval 50 watt
Filter: fluval 207 w/ chemi pure green, ceramic rings, purigen, and foam pads
Home to: green tiger barbs, albino tiger barbs, and regular Barbs, 1 octonculus, 1 nitrite, and ghost shrimp
Substrate: fluval stratum

Picture 3:
55 gallon tank
Eheim heaters x 2
Filter: fluval fx6 with sponge, ceramic rings, purigen, phosguard, fluval carbon, fluval zeo carb
Home to: cardinal tetra, neon tetras, bristlenose pleco, fancy guppies, green Cory's, doja loaches, nitrite snails
Substrate: pool sand with seachem flourish root tabs

Picture 4
Fluval spec v
Lighting: aquasky
Heater: fluval p25 25w.
Filter: intank chamber 1 with filter floss, biofoam, chemipure green, purigen,
Substrate, fine black sand, with root tabs, Home to breeding fish

You need to remove the chemi pure green, purigen, phsoguard, carbon, zeo carb, and all the chemical filtrations. They remove nutrients that your plants will use.

 

You need to remove the chemi pure green, purigen, phsoguard, carbon, zeo carb, and all the chemical filtrations. They remove nutrients that your plants will use.

chemipure green has been proven to work well with plants and perigean also works as well. why would I remove either/or?

 

Assuming purigen works as advertised....then it removes ammonia which is food for plants. You can still grow plants with them but the plants will have less food