# 75 gal and never done planted aquarium



## lilladydi44 (Sep 19, 2014)

Hello ev1, I'm new to planted tanks. I was given a 75 gal tank and stand. I was going to do a saltwater tank, but after researching what was needed. I found I could not afford it. So I have decided on a planted tank and don't know all I need to get started. I really need like step 1, 2, and 3. What I need to purchase first and so on. Blank canvas please help me. I understand that I can use the organic miracle grow as the substrate, but after that I'm lost. Thanks in advance for your forth coming advice.


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## Michael (Jul 20, 2010)

Welcome to APC!

Everyone here will agree that I am terribly biased, but I think the Walstad method is the easiest introduction to planted aquaria. There are some very good descriptions in the sticky thread in the El Natural forum.

Miracle Grow Organic Choice is a soil that is commonly used, but it definitely has its problems. If you do decide to use it, please save yourself some problems and prepare it first. The sticky "Suitable Soils for the Walstad Method" has very good descriptions of this. If you have access to some generic bagged topsoil without manure or fertilizers, that is a better alternative. Usually the cheapest brand from a big box store will be the best.

So pick out your soil and start preparing it--that can take some time. The next things you need to think about are lighting and filtration. Most 75 gallon tanks are about 21" tall, and a lighting fixture with one or two T5 HO tubes would give plenty of light for a beginner's tank. There are also a few good LED fixtures on the market now, but they remain a little pricey.

For filtration, you can use a hang-on-back filter or a canister filter. Many people set up Walstad tanks without filtration, but a filter is great insurance against beginner mistakes. You want to circulate the total volume of the tank 5 to 10 times per hour. So if you are doing this with a filter alone, you need one that circulates 400 to 800 gph. That is a lot! For a 75 gallon, most people will start with a filter at the low end of that range, then add a power head if more circulation is needed.

That should get you off to a start. You can always ask more questions as they come up. Good luck!


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## TankAaron (Aug 8, 2014)

My suggestion would be to first try to figure out your budget. Then look at what you'll need to buy. Then you can choose the plants depending on which will grow well under the limitations set by your equipment.

Hang-on-Back (HoB), and cannister filters are awesome. When it comes to filtration, go for quality, not for price. The least expensive filters will not be the best quality. For HoB, I have tried AquaClear, and for cannister, I've tried Eheim. I love them both.

If you can spend a little extra, I would suggest going with a cannister filter. The amount of media you can put in them is unbeatable. For quickly removing floating matter, and cloudiness, HoBs can do a great job. I had one of each in one tank, previously. I loved the combination, but was not needed.

The most expensive part will probably be the lights. Usable light for the plants is within the 5000 Kelvin, to 10,000 Kelvin range. Everyone has their opinions on which is best, and which looks better. Some stores have displays with bulbs of different Kelvin ratings so you can see what the colors will look like under each.

Do not use the watts per gallon (wpg) measure. It no longer fits, if it ever did. Tropica.com has a chart for what low, medium, and high lights are in lumens. This is not the best method, but it is the easiest, and gives you a better idea of what you actually have, than wpg. The more exact measures would be Par, and Pur, however you would need additional equipment to measure light, which can be expensive, or a friend that has the equipment, and is willing to help you out.

Once you have those two picked out, then you can start choosing plants. Once you have plants chosen, you can start choosing substrate, and compatible tank mates. Lightly planted tanks require a bit less maintenance, and heavily planted tanks help with parameter stability.


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## lilladydi44 (Sep 19, 2014)

Thank you so much for your response. I was just given 2 power heads. Marine land maxi-jet 1200. I know the next thing I need to get it the light. I don't know what what budget to set. I'm just figuring what ever the cost to get it started is it. I just need to know what is the best to get and fool proof. I need a set up for dummies. lol


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## lilladydi44 (Sep 19, 2014)

Thank you for your response. If I go to like home depot or Lowes to get the dirt, for a generic dirt. which one would be the best to ask for or is there a easier way to start a planted tank, with price not being a problem. I just don't want to fail.


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## TankAaron (Aug 8, 2014)

I do not know anything about the Walstad method. If that is what you choose, follow Michael's recommendation. I believe many of the members have at least one tank set up this way.

For me, I do not follow a specific method. Before setting up my first aquarium, I read a LOT about them, and I picked the things I thought I'd like more; favoring things that I believed would make it easier for me in the long run. And in most cases, what I chose was ideal for me.

I decided to go with brands that were trusted, and specialized in aquarium items, as much as I could. I also tried to stay away from unknown brands, and brands that had either bad, or mixed reviews.

Again, when it comes to matters of opinion, you will get at least eleven opinions out of every ten people you ask.

For me, I went with, and have stuck with the following:

Substrate: Flourite

There is no cooking, baking, mineralizing, or general, and overall fuzzing over the preparation of it. Just rinse, if you feel like it, and put in your tank. If you don't feel like rinsing it, the water will just be cloudy until a few hours after you turn your filter on.

Filter: AquaClear, or Eheim.

Currently I only have one tank, with an AquaClear HoB. If I had the money, I would have gotten a canister filter; I favor Eheim.

Filter media: Matrix.

I love Seachem, but I can't always afford their products. Matrix is an awesome bio media. You certainly do not have to use something so specialized. You can use ceramic, clay, bioballs, mesh, a sponge... many alternatives. Specialized media, like Matrix, gives you the greatest amount of surface area for the all-important bacteria that do the actual filtration.

If you want to have an easier time with nitrates, and have the money to spend, you can use De-Nitrate, also from Seachem, along with the bio media.

If you want to have clearer water, Purigen is an awesome product. It is not very expensive, and is the most cost effective in the long-run, since you can regenerate it. Plus it will not harm inverts, like charcoal can. Purigen is a chemical filtration media. This will not do any biological filtration, so do not use this alone. It's a type of media called water polisher.

Ferts:

Any fert method you choose will end up having the same basic regimen; you'll dose something daily, or almost daily. The main difference is the amount of preparation needed, at the beginning, and how long "the beginning" will last.

Of the methods *I know of*, the Estimative Index Dosing (EI, sometimes EID) will require the most work; requiring regular testing of parameters, until you get it just right for your aquarium. Each tank, or system if you have more than one aquarium connected to the same water, and filtration system, is different.

PPS Classic, and PPS-Pro are the next easiest methods. PPS classic requires some testing, but less than EI. PPS-Pro requires no testing; it's basically a eyeballing method. Do your plants look good? Keep it up! Are your plants showing deficiencies? Increase doses. Are you getting algae? Decrease doses. I'm currently using this method.

The most inexpensive ferts will be your dry ferts. You'd have to buy a digital scale that measures at least to within (+/-) 1 gram. They're under $20 at Walmart.

The least inexpensive ferts are premixed, liquid ferts, aka Seachem's Flourish line.

You can use dry ferts with any of the methods you choose. The only work they require is measuring, and mixing every time you run out, which could end up being over a year. I mixed half a liter bottles, and I'm set for a year.

You can also use Flourish, instead of dry ferts, with EI, or either PPS, if you choose. Otherwise, buy the Flourish line, follow instructions, and you're all set. No mixing needed, and testing is optional.

For lights, you will want the advice of someone other than me. I have only ever used CFLs. Many people say they waste a lot of light. It is true. But for the plants I've had, they've done a great job for me, and they're easy to find in this small town of mine. Because I do not have money to spend, I use lumens as a measure of how much light I have.

Oh, specifics about EI, PPS, and PPS-Pro can be found in the Fertilizers section of this forum.


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## pandragon (Jul 10, 2014)

If you don't want all the hassle of high tech stuff TankAaron said go to the el naturel section of this thread and look at wastad method. So far it is easiest and makes more sense to me. And I used a red bag of earth Gro from Home Depot or Walmart. It worked well and was less 'hot' than miracle grow. Good luck!


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