Another tank...help me set it up!

[lilmissruffcountry]

K..thanks to armthehomeless...I really do mean THANKS!!!! I have a stand for my spare 55....I am taking down the 29 in the house an replacing it with the 55...hubby said no more tanks in the house, said nothing about uping the size....I WIN! Anyway...here begins the story: I have plants in the 29, an want to move some of them to the 55, I will need more however. I have java fern, some regular vals, pygmy chain sword, java moss, an some najas. I need to set up the lighting of the tank so my low light plants will not fry, an so I can get some better plants that need the higher light. Keep in mind I DO NOT want to have to have co2. So for a 55gal how many WPG? What other plants can I get...who has them? Help in aquascaping a 55...never done a "show" tank, would like this to be one. As far as the occuponts, I have 12 fancy mixed guppies, one clown loach, one kuhlii loach, albino lf an reg fin bn pairs, an cherry shrimp in the 29.. I want to move everyone in the 29 to the 55...plus add a few others, like maybe some population control for the guppies....that wouldn't tear up the plants, or just move the guppies all together an make it a tetra/? tank.
I need some opinions, an some suggestions. WPG? Plants? Fish? Aquascaping a "show" tank? Filtraton is via bio wheel, an airstone currently in the tank.Thanks guys, an gals, I know you won't let me down

[cichlidchic]

german rams might help with your crowd control on guppies. i'm not too familiar with them, but they are a touch aggressive. they also seem to LOVE plants, and not as a snack.

[Complexity]

I need to set up the lighting of the tank so my low light plants will not fry

Don't worry about this. "Low light" plants area able to take bright lighting. They're called low light plants because they are able to survive in low lighting whereas many other plants would die. A more appropriate name would be "low to high light" plants, as opposed to "med to high" or "high to high" light plants. Also, there will be plenty of places to put low light plants in the shade of the high light ones. So frying plants with too much light isn't something you need to worry about.

Keep in mind I DO NOT want to have to have co2. So for a 55gal how many WPG?

Depends on a lot of things, such as the type of fixture, but for a general figure, I'd suggest no more than 2.5wpg. If you get much higher, you're going to need CO2. If you get T5HOs, then look for around 2wpg even.

What you could do is get a 4 bulb fixture and just run 2 of the bulbs. This will give you much more control over the lighting and allow an easy upgrade path if you do decide to get CO2 later without having to go to the expense of yet another light fixture.

What other plants can I get...who has them?

First to come to mind are crypts. Great plants for the setup you're describing. There's a lot of other plants, but since I do have bright light and CO2, I can't offer much in the way of personal experience. If you don't get as much info as you need on here, hop over to plantedtank.net. You lose the joy of being local, but you gain the advantage of getting help from people dedicated to planted tanks.

As far as where to get the plants, trading with others is by far the best. I'll have some plants available soon (have vals now). I'm sure if you posted a WTB thread, others will have plants to offer. Otherwise, you can ship them in from others from all over. I get a lot of my plants from people on plantedtank.net and aquaticplantcentral.com.

As far as the occuponts, I have 12 fancy mixed guppies, one clown loach, one kuhlii loach, albino lf an reg fin bn pairs, an cherry shrimp in the 29.. I want to move everyone in the 29 to the 55...plus add a few others, like maybe some population control for the guppies....that wouldn't tear up the plants, or just move the guppies all together an make it a tetra/? tank.

Another method of population control for guppies is to keep only male guppies.

All of the fish you have will do well in a planted tank, except perhaps the clown loach. It might want to dig the substrate too much, but since each fish has its own personality, you'll have to just wait and see how it behaves.

Stay away from most cichlids other than the smaller ones. They love to push the substrate too much; plus, planted tanks aren't like their native habitat.

Generally speaking, most peaceful/community fish will do well. You aren't restricted to just tetras and the like. If you find a fish you'd like to add, but aren't sure if it would work in a planted tank, run a google search or post a question asking about that specific fish.

Filtraton is via bio wheel, an airstone currently in the tank.

I recommend looking into getting a canister down the road. Bio-wheels are gimmicks that look and sound good, but they really don't contribute to the total number of good bacteria anywhere near what you'd get with a canister. The airstone is not needed.

You mentioned "show" tank a couple of times in your post which gives me the impression you're wanting a lot of plants and decor, not just a plant here and there. With that in mind, I strongly recommend getting more filtration than you would normally get for a 55g tank. For example, on my 75g planted tank, I have 2 canisters: an Eheim Pro II 2128 and a Rena XP4. Not only do you need more filtration because of the extra debris from the plants, but you cannot (and should not) deeply vacuum the substrate; plus, it takes more power to move the water around in a tank filled with plants (obstacles).

I suggest picking up a Rena XP3 when you can get one, and then consider a second XP3 down the road. You can probably do okay with an XP3 and XP2 combo. On the lower end, you might do okay with two XP2s. Look for people selling used ones to get a good price.

When you first start out, keep your lighting low and gradually increase it (give 1-2 weeks before each incremental increase). When you begin seeing algae, lower the lights back to their previous setting. Identify the algae for treatment options. Once you kill that round of algae, hold the lighting steady without any increases to see if the tank can stabilize at that light intensity and photo period. If so, then you're set. If not, then whatever isn't going well can be identified and addressed.

Oh, something I almost didn't think of. You didn't mention substrate. I strongly recommend getting a substrate specifically for plants instead of using gravel or sand. It's worth the money, and you don't want to have to change out your substrate 6 months down the road.

[lilmissruffcountry]

K so got the plant stuff figured out. Now what about fishes for the tank...? Ideas?

[Zulaab]

If I ever again got a small tank and got it setup to make a run at it, I am thinking without a doubt I would love to go get myself a pair of Nanochromis parilus. Setup a breeding cave again and see them breed again. This is a Congo river small cichild with great looks and not one you see often. Else the other I would look at is one of the many kinds of Apistogramma families of fish out there.. They are beautiful and graceful fish. Small cichlids can be so rewarding to look at.

[Somefishguy]

Perhaps some angels or gouramis or a mix a both and a school of something else