[deathwalkr]

Originally Posted by W.A.G.7

This is my first attempt at a planted freshwater aquarium. This is the Chinese aquarium - 20 gallon, 75L capacity. Right now I have placed a single Betta in it.

Good luck with the tank. Just a quick thought, the power filter will not be appreciated by the Betta

[W.A.G.7]

Originally Posted by Maverick Avi

Just one dwarf sagg and Anubias doesn't seem enough for this tank. You can easily do with 6 to 10 plantlets for sagg and few more fast growing stems like elodea, hornwort, hygrophila difformis etc. These would help you battle any initial troubles with algae and also make the tank a lot more lush. Also helps to hide the heater and filter.

Yes, looks bare. I will mostly introduce more plants into the setup. I initially planned to let this setup continue till the end of December and then only add the neon tetras, let's see how it works out.

Originally Posted by deathwalkr

Good luck with the tank. Just a quick thought, the power filter will not be appreciated by the Betta

He doesn't like it. As soon as it is switched on, he will go underneath the two plants at the back and will stay there till it's switched off. The filter was a left over from my previous attempt, so I just used it as is. I can remove it. He appreciates the air stone so it shouldn't be a problem.


The shopkeeper advised me to change 40% of water once a month. My earlier attempt with goldfish was a disaster. They were literally poop machines and needed frequent water changes. This guys seems to be a bit decent in that sense.

[W.A.G.7]

Originally Posted by W.A.G.7

Yes, looks bare. I will mostly introduce more plants into the setup. I initially planned to let this setup continue till the end of December and then only add the neon tetras, let's see how it works out.

I added some more plants to the tank. Now looks better. Hopefully they will grow in the next 1-2 months. I plan to introduce the tetras sometime in Jan or Feb next year. Does this setup look okay, or do I need to correct any other parameters?

[Maverick Avi]

Originally Posted by W.A.G.7

I added some more plants to the tank. Now looks better. Hopefully they will grow in the next 1-2 months. I plan to introduce the tetras sometime in Jan or Feb next year. Does this setup look okay, or do I need to correct any other parameters?

Attachment 2688300

Looks great!! The hygrophila difformis on the right foreground is very prolific plant and will reach the top in no time. You can look at placing it at the back near the heater. That will hide the heater and filter once the plant fills in. Moss can be tricky to grow. It likes good flow and cooler water temperature. So you might want to adjust the thermostat accordingly. Rest it's now a game of watch and learn. Each plant will respond differently to water parameters and you'll get to know which ones work best given your conditions. You can then propagate them by cutting off the tops and replanting. Enjoy the journey!!

[W.A.G.7]

This is how the tank looks today. The plants are growing well, and the Betta seems to be quite at home in the entire tank. I plan to add another tank mate for the Betta sometime in mid-January. Till then, I will let the tank settle down even further. I read online that neon/cardinal/ember tetras, corydoras catfish, loaches or some snails are the safest mates. The shopkeeper advised me to avoid cherry shrimp as the Betta would eat them. I don't want the snails, and there are limited options with this guy swimming around in the tank. What are my best choices here? I need guidance; now that the tank is shaping up well!

The overall tank


The Betta swimming inside


He's quite friendly, but I am sure that it won't be the case with someone else inside the tank...!

[RSimonS]

Had placed a relatively big order on their web site, it took 11 days for the item to be delivered in parts. Many of the fish died in transit and there is no proper response from them for messaged shared on WhatsApp or calls.

Would suggest to be caesious if you are buying from them. The issue I faced could also be because of the delays from Delhivery on delivering the package, but it does not stop Best4Pets from having a proper conversation on the details. Whole experience ended up being huge waste of money, time and energy.

[yosbert]

Originally Posted by RSimonS

Would suggest to be caesious if you are buying from them. The issue I faced could also be because of the delays from Delhivery on delivering the package, but it does not stop Best4Pets from having a proper conversation on the details. Whole experience ended up being huge waste of money, time and energy.

If you are based in Bangalore, it's better to go to their establishment and pick up the fishes directly. The quality of fishes and variety they have is in general better than other fish stores. But I believe they struggle with the shipping part quite frequently.
I prefer subjecting myself to the pain of going to their store than subject the fishes to the pain of transit . That is what I have done for my last few purchases from there.

[deathwalkr]

Originally Posted by RSimonS

The issue I faced could also be because of the delays from Delhivery on delivering the package.

I don't usually buy fishes online, but my limited experience was:

1) Found a guy selling wild caught local fishes from Kolkotta. He sent it by Air. The minute it landed here, I kept getting frantic calls from the Air India Warehouse asking me to come and quickly collect it. It was mentioned "Live Fishes" on the box. All were fine.

2) Bought african cichlids from a farm in Thoothukudi, TN. Sent it by train and had to go pick it up from the station here. Again all well.

It's sad that because of courier delays fishes had to pay the price :(

[RSimonS]

Originally Posted by yosbert

If you are based in Bangalore, it's better to go to their establishment and pick up the fishes directly.

Originally Posted by deathwalkr

I don't usually buy fishes online, but my limited experience was:
(

There are no good shops at least around 15-20 kms radios of where I stay, hence was kind of forced to ordering online.

Lack of proper updates and response over the support option is the biggest issue.

[SideSwipe]

Hi Folks,
Thanks each and every one of you who have contributed to this thread for inspiring me to get started with this new journey. I have been a pet person ever since my young ages living alongside 3 dogs – Seaser 1, Seaser 2 (Indie Mix) & Whisky (Scottish Terrier) over 3 decades but sadly after whisky passing away, there was always a void I couldn’t fill. I had plans to get a new pup, but my dad was dead against the idea, primarily on account of the pain the loss of whisky gave and also due to space constraints at my old home. Recently moved to my new flat in 2023 which checked all the boxes but ironically association rules stated no pets allowed and so I didn’t pursue my idea of getting another pet again.

I casually came across few aquarium setups and was a little intrigued and me being me, searched in Tbhp if there are some articles. Good lord, I found a jackpot of 85 pages worth of live experiences. Went through all of them and that’s when an idea started to take shape in my mind. If the photos in this forum was not enough, I started watching aquarium setups from various YouTube channels and I was wowed by the intricacies of each one of them. Sounded challenging and I started to question myself if I could do it. I didn’t have the answer at first and hence I took it very lightly. But this idea in my mind was extremely invasive and it didn’t let me sleep peacefully for the next few weeks. That was when I asked myself what would satisfy that thirst of my mind – answer was simple yet complicated – “A decent planted Setup”.

Below is the Aspiration. [Thanks to stock image]



Now that I have the question and the answer, I started laying plans of what I needed to do to make it a success. I was in no hurry like any kid would do and hence I did fair research of my own and came up with a plan of action over a course of 5 weeks.

Request the experts here to guide me with my plan by tweaking it as appropriate to help me yield a good outcome:

Step 1: Driftwood Selection & Seasoning [Week 1]

I always wanted setup to be “Dragon wood aquarium” or an aquarium based out of driftwood. I also understood the pain of using the driftwood in the initial setup [brown fungus and tannins] and importance of seasoning the wood before setting up the aquarium. I tried to purchase driftwood online but there were 2 problems buying online – firstly, they are way too expensive and secondly, they do not post the actual picture of the driftwood I would receive as a product. They always quote weight, size, and reference images. Luckily, I stay in Chennai and Kolathur is the hub of Tamil Nadu for aquariums and fishes. Last Sunday, my daughter and myself paid a visit to the market for the first time and understood why there was so much hype around this place. This place is a heaven for Fish Hobbyist for sure. I window shopped for more than 2 hours, gained a lot of street knowledge but my focus was only on the driftwoods. There were hardly few shops which stocked up driftwood and none of them were to my preference.. I needed something solid, dramatic and could also potentially serve as a habitat. Finally found 2 pieces in 2 different shops that could serve my needs. Happily, got them and came home and let them dry in the sun during the day.




Here is my plan for seasoning the woods: [Please note – Store bought driftwood are safe to use but they are not seasoned and hence they tend to float instead in the tank]

 Day 1 to Day 5: Soak them in water with handful of rock salt and change water daily.
 Day 6: Boil water and cook the wood for 2 hours and let the wood stay in the same water for another 24 hours.
 Day 7: Dry the wood in the sun and remove the barks.
 Day 8 to Day 13: Soak them in water with handful of rock salt and change water every 2 days.
 Day 14: Boil water and cook the wood for 2 hours and let the wood stay in the water for another 24 hours.
 Day 15: Dry the wood in the sun and smoothen it using sandpaper. Give one final rinse and the driftwood is now sterilized and will happily sink to the bottom.

Tannins released after 1 day of soaking in water.


Playing with the positioning



Step 2: Finalizing the Tank, Accessories and Plants [Week 1 & 2]

Tank: This was the easiest part of all. I wanted a curved glass setup of decent thickness with cabinet as I don’t have a stand or a place to keep it. So Imported tank was the way to go. Whilst there are numerous unnamed or cheap products in the market, BOYU & CAY [Camry Aquatics USA inc.] where the 2 renowned and premium names that had good quality and reviews. Of the entire market in Kolathur, there was only one dealer who had stocked up CAY tanks and we finalised 2.5-foot setup with cabinets for storing filters and accessories. Not bought it yet as that was for the D-Day.


Filters: Though the tank has an inbuilt top filter, I learnt that a good filtration setup is a key for a clean tank and since my tank has a top cover, it would be difficult for me to add a hang on back filter and hence I was left with only 2 more options. Sump Filter of Cannister Filter setup. Since I could fit in the cannister in the cabin, it was the way to go forward and after looking up various reviews narrowed down Sun Sun and Fluval & Shiruba. Finally have shortlisted Sun Sun H303A mainly because of cost and availability of product and its replacement parts.

Plants: Me being a beginner, wanted to start with plants that are Easy to grow, Low Co2 & moderately light consuming. I also learnt a couple of things such as – Planting as many plants as possible [1plant for 1 square inch of tank base is the norm] is needed for 3 reasons:
1. Nutrients will be loaded & abundant in the beginning of the setup due to fresh soil and nutrients and hence having as many plants as possible will help balance the water PH, Micro & Macro Nutrient values and thus preventing / reducing Algae growth.
2. Not all the plants will thrive in our water, temperature and lighting condition and thus by planting many varieties, we will get an idea of which plant variety would work for us.
3. Having as many plants as possible will help cycle the tank to build a thriving ecosystem at the earliest.

Hence, I have shortlisted the below plants to be kept in the tank.

 Hemianthus Micranthemoides (25 nos)– Foreground


 Micranthemum "Monte Carlo" (5” * 4” mat)– Foreground


 Hydrocotyle Sibthorpioides (5” * 4” mat)– Foreground


 Sagittaria sp. Dwarf (25 nos)– Foreground


 Cryptocoryne Wendtii (4 nos)– Mid Ground


 Vesicularia Dubyana (Java Moss) (5” * 5” mat)– Driftwood


 Microsorum Pteropus "Java" - Driftwood


 Myriophyllum Aquaticum (10 nos)- Background


 Hygrophila Balsamica (4 nos)- Background


 Rotala var. 'Blood Red' (2 nos)- Background


 Ludwigia Palustris (10 nos)- Background


Kolathur does have a few aquatic plants shop but I couldn’t find people in those shops who can educate me on the plants and also we have to grab whatever is available on that particular day and hence our choice becomes very limited. Hence, I resorted to online shops where I can educate myself on each of the plants and at the same time pick what I need. Maybe once I am well versed in the plants and I know exactly what to look for, I would find myself buying from a physical shop. I have added the above items in my “Aquabynature” website cart and will place the order couple of days before I purchase my tank so as to ensure plants arrive just in time before the tank setup. Also please note, cost of plants in online shops are relatively too costly compared with the offline shops but that is the prize we are paying for the convenience.

Accessories

Here is the list of products that I have ordered based on my understanding of what I would need. [Looking back now, I feel certain items are an overkill nevertheless I have ordered it and they are on the way]


 Qpets® 7 in 1 Aquarium Aquascaping Tools Kits


 VAYINATO Plastic, 2 In 1 Mutifunction Floating And Sinking Aquarium Fish And Shrimp Food Feeder


 Sobo Floating Magnetic Glass Cleaner With Scraper Magnetic Brush Cleaner For Aquarium Fish Tank


 Boyu BY-28 Siphon Gravel Cleaner with Valve Control, 1 Piece


 ADA Super 4 Pour 100


 Easy-Life Easy Start 250ml


 VAYINATO® Instant Elephant Glue for Aqua scaping


 Scape Brothers Evolve Macro (200ml) & Micro (200ml) Fertilizer for Planted Aquariums


 Aqua Soil – ADA 9 lil bag (will be procuring it offline along with the tank)


 Sun Sun H303A Canister Filter (will be procuring it offline along with the tank)


Step 3: Setup Day (most awaited day) [Week 3]

 Planning to visit Kolathur a day earlier to get the tank, filter and the aqua soil and hopefully assuming all the other products including the plants have arrived.
 Give a dry cleaning to the interiors of the tank
 Pour ADA Super 4 Pour 100 (substrate additive - containing Bacter 100, Clear Super and Tourmaline BC) directly on the tank floor.
 Fill the base of the tank with Aqua soil in a slope gradient – thickness in the front 1.5 inch gradually increasing to 4 inches in the rear of the tank.
 Assemble the Canister filter to figure out the placement of the inlet and the exit valves.
 Position the Driftwood and secure both the pieces with elephant glue and soil mixture. Hopefully driftwood is properly seasoned and should properly sink as I am not going to use any rocks to anchor it to the bottom.
 Wet the soil and start planting starting with the foreground carpet plants and gradually moving to the rear to plant the background plants. Aqua scaping tool kit should come handy here.
 Use the Siphon and place a bubble wrap cover in the tank to slowly fill the water all 150 litres of it.
 Add 10ml of Easy-Life Easy Start that should help with Quickly purifying and stabilizing the water when cycling a new freshwater.
 Turn on the lights, sit back enjoy the outcome of the hard work and call it a day.


Step 4: Dry Cycling the Tank. [Week 3 & 4]

 As per the advice, planning to run the setup for 2 weeks before the wood, water and plants starts to coexist creating a liveable habitat for the occupants.
 50% water change every 2 days for the first week.
 50% water change every 3 days for the second week.
 Use 10ml of Easy-Life Easy Start after every water change.
 Scape Brothers Evolve Macro (5ml) & Micro (10ml) every 2 days.
 6 hours of lights turned on every day. Planning to use a smart plug to schedule the lights every day.
 Running both the filters 24/7.

Step 5: Introducing the Occupants. [Week 5]

 So far, I have not done too much research about the fishes.
 Acquired knowledge say we can safely grow 1 (1 inch) fish for every 4 litres of water in the tank. Thus, for a 150-litre tank of mine, I can safely accommodate 35 fishes.
 Am leaning towards neon tetras, guppies, and platies to start with as they are claimed to be hardy fishes and yet cute.
 May be a few bloody Mary red and yellow shrimps to balance the eco system.

6 Month Plan
 Upscale to bigger fishes
 Introduce Co2 diffuser to the ecosystem to grow complex plants.
 Upgrade the lights to a more professional setup.

Queries:

1. CAY comes with a 15w white light which am sure will just meet the needs. With the top cover in my aquarium, how do I install the decently powered RGB lights? I want to retain the top cover for aesthetics and protection but still want the high-end setup. Has anyone done that jugaad?
2. Will water hardness affect the setup. Water in my place has a TDS of 550 to 600. Will this be ok or should I resort to can water?
3. Co2 Tablets – Do they work? I am getting mixed responses.
4. Running canister filters 24/7 is advisable or can we give some breaks in-between?
5. Best Filter medias?

Am currently in week 2 and planning to update the progress throughout my journey here. Wish me all the luck folks and please guide / advise me if my acquired knowledge is realistic. Thanks in advance for your support.

[Maverick Avi]

Originally Posted by SideSwipe

Queries:

1. CAY comes with a 15w white light which am sure will just meet the needs. With the top cover in my aquarium, how do I install the decently powered RGB lights? I want to retain the top cover for aesthetics and protection but still want the high-end setup. Has anyone done that jugaad?
2. Will water hardness affect the setup. Water in my place has a TDS of 550 to 600. Will this be ok or should I resort to can water?
3. Co2 Tablets – Do they work? I am getting mixed responses.
4. Running canister filters 24/7 is advisable or can we give some breaks in-between?
5. Best Filter medias?

Am currently in week 2 and planning to update the progress throughout my journey here. Wish me all the luck folks and please guide / advise me if my acquired knowledge is realistic. Thanks in advance for your support.

First of all welcome to this engrossing hobby which in my case ended up with MTS(multiple tank syndrome)!! You have done lot of research, and also bought in stuff which could have been avoided . I will only try to point out a few areas that you can keep in mind and also answer your questions. Rest am sure you will experience and learn each day once you actually start the tank.

1.You can start with your 15 watt light setup and upgrade later if you feel the need or find a decent enough fix to replace it keeping your cover intact.
2. Water hardness and PH does affect the type of plants you will be able to grow successfully. More than TDS, whats important is what are the salts that are constituting to that TDS. I started with RO water earlier but it was such a hassle to do regular water changes with it that I started using my well water and chose plants that were doing well in it. If you want to continue with this hobby long term then find options that are easy to adhere to in long run.
3. CO2 tablets are hogwash. To be avoided 100%. If you can, invest in a pressurized CO2. Plant growth is substantially better with it but so will be the need for increased fertilizers and better brighter light.
4. If you have fish in your tank running filters 24x7 is a must. Occasional stopping during power cut or water changes is fine. Anything more than 6 to 7 hours can result in ammonia spikes if fish load is high. Since you have already invested a lot in this hobby a water test kit should not hurt.
5. Lot of debate on which is best filter media. I have used X-pores(pumice), sponge, rings and branded media from Seachem. Found them equally good if the tank is cycled. Personally, have been using pot scrubbers in my largest tank with Sunsun 303A canister and its proving to be the most efficient in terms of cost and performance as the media does not clog easily leading to lesser maintenance. Do note that Sunsun canisters are prone to leaks if you open it up frequently for cleaning. Hence its advisable to use media that will not clog your filter and try not to clean your filter more than once in 4 months. The 3 white filters that come with it should be avoided as they will clog up each month.

I would also recommend that you anchor your driftwood using stones. The last thing you want to see is waking up to a brown tank with all your plants floating and driftwood swimming on top. Its the worst sight for any new hobbyist.

For online plants I use Finsnflora. The best out there in terms of quality and quantity. Bunnycart is also good but rather costly.

Really looking forward to your future updates. You have chosen a good mix of plants. Would be interesting to see how they perform in your tank. Good luck!!

[SideSwipe]

Originally Posted by Maverick Avi

First of all welcome to this engrossing hobby which in my case ended up with MTS(multiple tank syndrome)!! You have done lot of research, and also bought in stuff which could have been avoided . I will only try to point out a few areas that you can keep in mind and also answer your questions. Rest am sure you will experience and learn each day once you actually start the tank.

1.You can start with your 15 watt light setup and upgrade later if you feel the need or find a decent enough fix to replace it keeping your cover intact.
2. Water hardness and PH does affect the type of plants you will be able to grow successfully. More than TDS, whats important is what are the salts that are constituting to that TDS. I started with RO water earlier but it was such a hassle to do regular water changes with it that I started using my well water and chose plants that were doing well in it. If you want to continue with this hobby long term then find options that are easy to adhere to in long run.
3. CO2 tablets are hogwash. To be avoided 100%. If you can, invest in a pressurized CO2. Plant growth is substantially better with it but so will be the need for increased fertilizers and better brighter light.
4. If you have fish in your tank running filters 24x7 is a must. Occasional stopping during power cut or water changes is fine. Anything more than 6 to 7 hours can result in ammonia spikes if fish load is high. Since you have already invested a lot in this hobby a water test kit should not hurt.
5. Lot of debate on which is best filter media. I have used X-pores(pumice), sponge, rings and branded media from Seachem. Found them equally good if the tank is cycled. Personally, have been using pot scrubbers in my largest tank with Sunsun 303A canister and its proving to be the most efficient in terms of cost and performance as the media does not clog easily leading to lesser maintenance. Do note that Sunsun canisters are prone to leaks if you open it up frequently for cleaning. Hence its advisable to use media that will not clog your filter and try not to clean your filter more than once in 4 months. The 3 white filters that come with it should be avoided as they will clog up each month.

I would also recommend that you anchor your driftwood using stones. The last thing you want to see is waking up to a brown tank with all your plants floating and driftwood swimming on top. Its the worst sight for any new hobbyist.

For online plants I use Finsnflora. The best out there in terms of quality and quantity. Bunnycart is also good but rather costly.

Really looking forward to your future updates. You have chosen a good mix of plants. Would be interesting to see how they perform in your tank. Good luck!!

Thanks a ton Maverick for your kind words. Very motivating indeed. As disclaimed earlier, few purchases were of course impulsive in nature which i realized later but hopefully will not make such mistakes again.

1. Wise words definitely will start with the stock lights but later when need arises, I am thinking of holding the light fixture inside the tank using suction cups instead of over the tank. But i am not able to find one person who has done such jugaad. Guess I will have to play around and figure that out.

2. Definitely agree with you and I should think of long term. We do not have RO water in our house and we rely on packaged can water for drinking and cooking. Ground water is definitely hard and all our bathroom fixtures are looking so bad already. Water is currently my biggest concern. I have no other choice to use the packaged can water for now. I know in the initial few weeks, it is going to cost me a lot but once the tank settles, I should resort to 50% change every week and that should translate to 2 water Can cost.

3. Co2 Tablets - Rubbish: Well noted. For the first 2 months let me stick to non co2 setup and depending on the need, let me see if i can switch over to the DIY Co2 setup.

4. Noted on the running the filter 24/7. Water test is something I overlooked since I was assuming Can water being used should be safe. Nevertheless, I got a Ph tester kit along with the aqua scaping accessory Kit. Guess it is better to go for proper test kit. Can you suggest any product that you recommend?

5. I was already eyeing on the X-Pores. Let me see if I can get the pot scrubbers in the offline stores in Kolathur.

6. Noted on anchoring the driftwood. Let me decide after the seasoning process is completed after 2 week. I checked out the wood yesterday and it is already sinking.

Thanks for taking time to advise me. I will definitely post the progress updates as and when i cross each milestones. Looking forward for all your support.

[Maverick Avi]

Originally Posted by SideSwipe

2. Definitely agree with you and I should think of long term. We do not have RO water in our house and we rely on packaged can water for drinking and cooking. Ground water is definitely hard and all our bathroom fixtures are looking so bad already. Water is currently my biggest concern. I have no other choice to use the packaged can water for now. I know in the initial few weeks, it is going to cost me a lot but once the tank settles, I should resort to 50% change every week and that should translate to 2 water Can cost.

Don't stress too much on water. With 500 TDS too plants will grow well provided you choose wisely. Hygrophila Difformis, Cryptocoryne, Ambulia, Hygrophila Corymbosa, Hornwort, Elodea, Guppy grass, Pearlweed are able to do well in hard water. If you choose these you will be rewarded in your first attempt itself!!