I found out fairly quickly that waiting for a tank to cycle gives plenty of time to read, learn, and dream. So as I've been drifting through the posts here, I've been staring at my own aquarium dreaming up some changes. Of course, some of these changes are out of the range of my pocket book right now...times are tough, and if I could just find a job, I could feed my addiction lol

Anyways...heres what I have going right now. 29 gallon tank, neon pink/black gravel, various mismatched ornaments, and several ugly plastic plants. Included in those ornaments are spongebob, sandy, patrick, and the pineapple under the sea. oh joy.

Pic:


yea, it's bad.

The plan? makeover! Might take me a while, but hopefully will be a fun winter project, and since i *LOVE* finding deals and freebies, will also feed my addiction for that.

What I want it to be:
1. natural looking--no neon pink gravel, no pineapple under the sea.
I want to find my own rocks to build some caves out of, I want to go ISO my own driftwood...and see what else I can get creative with to save some money here.

2. Planted.
Problem here is, I've been told that the lighting that my aquarium has currently won't grow anything, and unless someone can tell me where to look, it looks like to get a different lighting set up i'm looking at 90+ bucks. Not doable right now.

When the time comes that I either get different lighting cheap somewhere or save up some money to get one, I want to see if I can find someone around me to "donate" some clippings of plants so that I can get a feel for it without dumping money into it and failing. I kill houseplants, seriously. The good thing...I don't have to remember to water the aquarium plants!

3. different substrate.

I actually was very gung-ho about doing a dirted tank with a pool filter sand on top. That was, until i realized I have improper lighting for plants, and it became a moot point. So for now, maybe just the sand.


Anything I'm forgettin to make a nice looking tank?

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"Being ignorant is not so much a Shame, as being unwilling to learn".-- Benjamin Franklin

Sounds like a plan to me!What exactly is your light?Just the one that came with the tank?I got a nova extreme T5HO,for my 29 gallon.It was,lemme think.About 80?Anyhoo I know thats steep,but look on ebay as well.What types of plants do you want to keep?If looks dont bother you you can do like I did before I got this light.Get a glass canopy,about 20 bucks.You will need it anyhow with a light upgrade.Then look for another cheap strip light,like what ya have.I actually found two for ten gallons,at thrift shops.I placed those with the one that came with the tank.That brought me up to about medium lighting.

What about the background?Are you leaving the one you have or?I painted mine black,and it shows off the green pretty nicely.Spraypaint,lol.

Oh and yeah I cant keep houseplants either.I forget to water them ironically.But for clippings,I will have some chain sword and wisteria in a few weeks.if you can pay shipping it would help,Im broke.Itll be six bux,so if you want them in a few weeks just let me know.

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http://bountifulbettas.blogspot.com/

"Come to the dark side....we have cookies...and filters/heaters/and water changes!"

The bulb that's in the hood right now says it's "all glass aquarium rapid start 17w" what does it mean? I dunno, I'm a noob lol

I'll definately let you know if I'm ready for plants in a couple weeks. And i'm keeping my eyes open on craigslist and local classifieds for lights too, who knows maybe I'll get lucky!

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"Being ignorant is not so much a Shame, as being unwilling to learn".-- Benjamin Franklin

oh, the background. It's one of those tacky poster type deals right now. I have no idea what to do with it, but it will change. Actually my dad is helping me out by building me a stand, and the plan is to put it in this rather large doorway between my livingroom and my kid's toyroom, so I may go backgroundless so it can be viewed from either room

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"Being ignorant is not so much a Shame, as being unwilling to learn".-- Benjamin Franklin

For lighting.... I couldn't grow plants with the light that came with my tank, so I got a light specifically for plants that was the same length as the original one, so it would fit in the lighting fixture.

I had a basic 15Watt in my 20g and a basic 20Watt in my 36g. I just upgraded them to a "Life Glo" 15Watt for the 20g and a "Life Glo" 20Watt for the 36g. They are just T8 bulbs... nothing fancy, but are specifically for aquatic plants. Just make sure they are for growing aquatic plants and are the same length. (Granted, my tanks are low light tanks, so I have to have low light plants.... but my tank pics are up in my album.... I don't think I'm doing too bad for low light plants!) ;) Each bulb was 20 bucks or less, and I only need 1 per tank. No new light hoods or anything like that.

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20g Heavily Planted http://www.aquariumforum.com/gallery...00&ppuser=8981
36g Bow Front Heavily Planted http://www.aquariumforum.com/gallery...00&ppuser=8981

Ah HAH! So it is possible. I PMd Majerah1 last night asking pretty much the same thing. Low light is what I'm looking for, nothing too demanding. I have two little kids, and even if I wanted to, I cant play in the tank all the time. I'll definately look into those, Thanks a billion Holly!

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"Being ignorant is not so much a Shame, as being unwilling to learn".-- Benjamin Franklin

well I made the switch to sand today. I was planning on doing organic potting soil in the very bottom but i couldnt find it anywhere. Wrong season I suppose. So I went with just play sand, I put it in, and put a good bit of the old gravel in a nylon so I wouldnt lose the bacteria. RIght now the tank looks like butt til the sand settles. I'm running my regular filter plus 2 smaller ones meant for 5 gallon tanks in hopes of getting some of the murk out. It's not terrible but it's rough lookin right now, so i'll post pictures later on when it clears up some. Any idea how long that can take?

After I got the play sand i went to the lfs to get plants, she had none, she doesnt carry any, EVER. boo. Not even a bulb. So right now, still no live plants :(

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"Being ignorant is not so much a Shame, as being unwilling to learn".-- Benjamin Franklin

Cleared up quite well in a few hours, still not perfect but it's getting there!

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"Being ignorant is not so much a Shame, as being unwilling to learn".-- Benjamin Franklin

tank looks good Summer

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What happens if you get scared half to death, twice?

Thanks anything was better than the original mess I had going on lol

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"Being ignorant is not so much a Shame, as being unwilling to learn".-- Benjamin Franklin

lol deffently a great improvement you can still do plants, just add ferts and do root tabs

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What happens if you get scared half to death, twice?

Yea I'm definately plannin on plants. I need to learn some more about them and what kinds will work best. I have a different light bulb picked out that I'm going to get soon that will help with the growth.

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"Being ignorant is not so much a Shame, as being unwilling to learn".-- Benjamin Franklin

thats cool, what light are you looking at

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What happens if you get scared half to death, twice?

Amazon.com: Life-Glo Ii Fluorescent Bulb T5, 24-Watt, 24-Inch: Pet Supplies

I don't have the funds to do much more than that right now sadly

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"Being ignorant is not so much a Shame, as being unwilling to learn".-- Benjamin Franklin

that will do the job for you

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What happens if you get scared half to death, twice?

Yea i think it'll be fine to start. I'm totally addicted and I can see this being an ongoing project for me, which is good. The lack of money will make this a drawn out project so I wont get bored with it haha

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"Being ignorant is not so much a Shame, as being unwilling to learn".-- Benjamin Franklin

Just finished testing the water. Ammonia 0, Nitrite 0, nitrate 5ppm.

Now I'm pondering if this is just because I switched the gravel out for the sand or if my cycle really is finished. I have gravel in a nylon seeding the bacteria, so I suppose I'll check again tomorow and see if anything changes.

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"Being ignorant is not so much a Shame, as being unwilling to learn".-- Benjamin Franklin

Wow, that was a simple change, but it made a huge difference! Keep going! :D
And aquariums are so addicting, even though I've got a full tank, I can't stop! XD

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Lead me not to temptation...I can make it there myself just fine, thank you

That sand bed is very deep, you will need to stir it or you will have problems with dead spots. Personally i would remove some, even if you plant it it doesnt need to be that deep

That pink and blue tetra are dyed fish, please do not support by buying anymore of them, it is a cruel and inhumane thing.

Tank does look 100% better with the sand though!!

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1x350L Goldfish, 1x 286L Planted, 1x190L Cherry shrimp, 1x140L Feeders, 1x130L Planted, 1x119L Peppermint BN breeding colony

Get some malaysian trumpet snails to help with this, they burrow through the substrate and loosen it up. You don't need too many to start with though, they're livebearing snails (they don't eat plants though, yay!) I started with 3 in my 1.5 gallon, and now I have more than I can count (I also can't actually see them too often either). They do act as a cleanup crew as well, but still not an excuse to overfeed. They look cool too, so get them if you can find them!

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Lead me not to temptation...I can make it there myself just fine, thank you