So
@Randolphkeys,
@The Oi , and
@Cratylus ...
I'm thinking of doing a plan planted tank and the wife finally gave the ok.
Tank is probably going to be a rimless 12"X12"X12" cube, ~7.5 gal.
Substrate- ADA Amazonia Powder. (Looks like I have to do a few water changes over a couple weeks before adding anything to the tank due to the excessive ammonia it gives off)
Light- Finnex planted+
No CO2. So pretty low tech.
Really undecided on a filter. Reading, cannisters are the best, but this is probably going on a desk/ night stand/ something I can't hide filters below. It would just be sitting there next to the tank. Internal seems ok but takes up room in a small tank. HOB could work on such a small tank, but apparently that pulls CO2 out of the tank and I'm not pumping any in. Any concern over the additional reduction of CO2? Thoughts?
@The Oi is correct in that I would recommend going with a larger tank, especially if you are just now venturing into the hobby. You are better off going larger because larger tanks are more stable and thus more forgiving if you slack a bit with your maintenance and water change schedule. Nano tanks require that you be extremely disciplined. For people just getting into the hobby I usually don't recommend anything less than a 40 gallon tank.
If you are determined to proceed with your 7.5 gallon cube then here are some things to keep in mind...
- with a tank that small your selection (and number) of fish will be quite limited. You're going to be limited to tiny fish like small tetras (such as neons, glowlights, embers), rasboras (chili, phoenix), or pencilfish. You could also do an ornamental shrimp tank.
- I can't stress this enough: you have to be disciplined and have a stringent, regular, and frequent maintenance and water change schedule and you must hold to it religiously. In that small of a tank, even the slightest mishap or gap in your regimen will be magnified because of how small you tank will be. It can literally be the difference between a successful aquarium and having an entire tank melt down.
- ADA Amazonia powder is essentially over-hyped, over-priced compost. It contains nothing you can't get in a cheap bag of Miracle Grow garden soil. There's nothing wrong with the product... if you like boutique substrate.
- I'm assuming you're trying to emulate the aquascaping method popularized by Takashi Amano. While those kinds of tanks
can be maintained long-term (with some serious effort), please understand that the look you are going for was really created for competitions where the tank will be up and running for at most one week. Not to sound repetitive, but the larger the tank the more likely you are to succeed long-term... especially with this kind of setup.
- With the amount of organics you are introducing with that substrate into such a small space, you are going to have difficulty fighting algae and maintaining healthy plant growth if you are planning on forgoing additional fertilization (either root tablets or water column additives) and CO2 injection. If your substrate surface PAR approaches the mid-teens there is a fine balance that must be achieved between light, ferts, and CO2. If that balance is not achieved, your tank will be in trouble. As an FYI, at 22 inches the 12-inch Finnex Planted + light has a PAR reading of 60. Now keep in mind that the distance between your light and your substrate will be half that distance. You're talking about PAR levels most likely over 100. You are in for some serious challenges.
- If you're wanting to go "low tech" as you mentioned, if it were me I would forego the ADA Aqua Soil in favor of a small-grained inert substrate like CaribSea Peace River or CaribSea Rio Grande, both of which have granule sizes in the 3mm to 4mm range. I would keep low-light plants like Anubias, Cryptocorynes, Java Ferns, and any of the various Fissidens mosses. And I would definitely choose a different light source with less intensity.
- With respect to filtration, any surface agitation will increase oxygenation and conversely decrease CO2 saturation. If you're injecting CO2, you want to avoid any filters which cause disturbance of the water's surface. That pretty much limits you to a small canister filter. Now, if you're going to go low tech with low light plants, CO2 saturation isn't as much of a concern because you can dose bio-available carbon in the form of Seachem Flourish Excel. Since it's dosed as a liquid and not a gas, surface agitation will have little effect on reducing its availability for your plants. If that's the course you decide to take, I would recommend a HOT power filter. I'm partial to the AquaClear brand, but there are several good manufacturers of this kind of filtration.
OK, that should give you enough to consider for a while. Let me know what you decide and keep us posted as to how your tank progresses.