Hi Ray
My tank measurements are 24" long, 12" high x 12" wide I have the water level right near the top of the tank.
The water perameters are ph maintained at about 8 to 8.2, amonia 0, nitrite 0, nitrate 5 - 10 (my TAP WATER is 60+) The nitrate has been controlled to 5 - 10 in the tank by changing the filter media and adding more plants. water changes twice a week at 10%. Tank capacity 70 litres. Fish seem to be doing well since help from Dawn in reducing numbers and sorting out water changes.
I try and do deep gravel cleans all the time, up until about 8 weeks ago I used to take the plants out of the tank in turn and clean under and around. I have stopped doing this but due to the small size of the tank it is difficult to clean the gravel without disturbing plants.
You are right about the Cabomba and Mynophyllum, have tried many varieties and did not survive, but I did keep them bunched as they came.
I have been trying on the internet to identify some of the plants doing well but need more time, cannot find them. The main plants that were doing well were small leaves that grew so long that they were making a canopy at the top of the tank almost sticking out of the water towards the light - three different varieties but the same type of plant, showing roots all down the stems. On these plants the stems seem to have rotted and the plants have gradually died. The other thing that might not help is tipping in the new water - this might be damaging the stems... I also have two shrimps, could they be eating the stems, or the guppy.
I dont think I am overfeeding but maybe I should try and cut this down. I have added a bit of plant food to the new water I am adding but only about 5 mls each time as I am frightened of loosing more fish.
With regard to the lighting, is it a case of buying a better tube or whole lighting fitting, which I am quite prepared to do - can you recommend?
Thank you
Sue
--- In tropicalfishclub@yahoogroups.com, "sevenspringss" <sevenspringss@...> wrote:
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> As with any aquarium problem, it always helps us to know your water parameters, and additionally whenever possible, your maintenance regimen. Many plants do best within a certain pH range, or within a certain hardness range. Most will fail when enough excess food is allowed to accumulate in the substrate to the point where putrefaction starts in, creating black gravel and noxious gases between the roots when insufficient gravel vacuuming is performed -- when overfeeding.
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> Getting to the gist of this problem though, it would certainly help us if we knew what types of plants you bought, as some do well in low light, some require medium lighting and yet others need even stronger lighting. Even the least demanding low-light plants require a minimum of at least 1 Watt per gallon, preferably even 1.5 Watts per gallon or slightly better. Medium light plants need a minimum of about 2 Watts per gallon and up to around 3 Watts per gallon. The 15 Watt lighting you're using on your 70 Liter (18.5 U.S. Gallon) tank is barely giving the minimum requirement even for low-light plants, when giving 0.81 Watts per gallon.
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> As most of your plants were doing well at the start back in February, I suspect a good part of their success may have been due to receiving increasing ambient lighting in the room as Spring and Summer progressed, or even indirect (or some direct) sunlight with a window exposure. As the days are now getting shorter again, they are no longer receiving this added benefit, while even the ambient lighting is decreasing.
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> I have to assume that the fine leaved plants you mentioned as not doing well for you, not even for a week, were most probably one of the bunch plants such as Cabomba, Myriophyllum or Ambulia, etc. which, while allowing to be planted as a close-knit group for best effect, should never be planted as a tied bunch as they come from the store. Instead, while the stems may be planted in proximity to each other, the individual stems of these bunch plants should always be planted separately about 3/4" -- 1" apart to allow the lighting to reach the bottom inner-most stems of the bunch. Without the plants getting enough light at their base, the stems very quickly lose their leaves, as the bottom portions die out and rot.
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> As your broad leaf plants did well, I could assume they may have been a species of Anubias, as they're a low-light-requiring plant. Still, they do need more light than what you're giving them. You don't give any dimension of your tank, and even the one most important dimension of height would also help us towards diagnosing your problem, as a tall tank requires even greater wattage in lighting illumination, since the most beneficial light rays are absorbed by deeper water. Ray
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> --- In tropicalfishclub@yahoogroups.com, "suemfrancis" <peterelectrician@> wrote:
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> > Help needed - In my 70 litre tank set up in February I had, up until now, been quite successful with my plants. I very quickly learned that any plant with very fine leaves didnt last a week, but I was having a lot of success with broader leafed plants and three different varieties that grew so much they made a canopy over the top of the tank (sorry dont know species but quite small leaves giving out root like strands from the stem.
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> > For a quite a few weeks now the plants have been dying - I now have lost all the plants that reached the top of the tank, just shedding leaves. Some new ones I bought last week are just shedding leaves and there will be nothing left in a few days. A quite densly planted tank now looks quite bear.
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> > I increased the light from 6 hours a day to 8 hours to no avail.
> > There does seem to be a slight 'cotton wool' matter around some.
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> > I do have a guppy and 2 shrimps but I dont think that the degree the plants are going is down to them.
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> > The tank has a Sunglo 46cm 15W T8 lamp.
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> > Any help would be much appreciated
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> > Sue Francis
> > Coulsdon, Surrey, England
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