# Giving my 58g another chance at life



## Odiferous (Dec 14, 2007)

I've a 58 gal tank that's been sitting empty for far too long. It's known for quite some time that it WILL grow up to be a thriving planted tank some day, and I'm finally going to try to help it along. I've been doing quite a bit of reading on methods and materials, and I think I'm starting to get a feel for the direction to move in, but I figured it'd be nice to get a second opinion or three.

Overall objective--Attractive, low maintenance, and cheap. No strict schedules for any sort of maintenance (daily ferts? I'd remember about once a week...then I'd start procrastinating). My previous experience and current research tells me I'm aiming for a sort of NPT. In my last move, I abandoned my planted 29 gal to my non-fishkeeper brother--it lasted for around a year with nothing added but too much food and top-off water, and nothing removed but clumps of out-of-control java moss.


I've been using a thick bed of sandblasting gravel as a substrate, but this seems easy to step up a notch with a new build. Right now I'm thinking the top soil / SMS Charcoal combination should help, and fits the "cheap" criteria nicely.
The filter on this tank is a huge HOB biowheel contraption that was fine for cichlids, but now it seems that I should be minimizing surface agitation. Also, it makes an awful racket whenever the tank isn't completely topped-off, which tends to happen too frequently. I'm thinking to simply leave it off in favor of a powerhead for circulation.
I have a couple extra 10's laying around (does anyone not?), and I've been toying with the idea of using one as a sump for the 58, mostly to alleviate the not-topped-off condition mentioned above. I rarely see any mention of sumps for FW tanks...I'm still kind of torn as to whether it's worth the expense of an overflow box and the effort to put it together.
Lighting is really my biggest concern right now--my only available lights are 3 single NO light hoods. One 30W bulb didn't cut it for plants in the past, and using multiple hoods made it a nightmare to get into the tank. I know I'll need to spend some money here, but I'd really like something adaptable--the tank will probably be sparsely planted for a while, so I can't go overkill on the lights, but I'd like to be able to plant densely eventually. And it would be nice to be able to convert to higher need plants without needing to completely change the hardware.


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## hoppycalif (Apr 7, 2005)

I think you are trying the old "have your cake and eat it too" approach! Seriously, you can't have both higher need plants and a no maintenance aquarium at the same time. What higher need plants need is high light intensity, which forces you to use pressurized CO2, because it is the light intensity that determines the growth rate for healthy plants. And, high light intensity means you get lots of algae the moment you relax your standards of maintenance.

There are two approaches that I know of that are low maintenance. One is the Walstad "el natural" style tank, which you can read up on in the forum dedicated to that here. Another is Tom Barr's non-CO2 method, which you can read up on at http://www.barrreport.com/articles/433-non-co2-methods.html. Both methods use relatively low light intensity and little or no fertilizing.


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## Odiferous (Dec 14, 2007)

No, I can deal with the lower light plants for now...I was just meaning, "if I have to buy a new light fixture now, for my lower light plants, it'd be nice if I didn't have to throw it away and buy _another_ new one if I ever change the entire tank design to higher need plants. Dunno if that's even feasible, and not really something I see coming anytime soon, anyway.


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## Odiferous (Dec 14, 2007)

I'm seeing many recommendations for the AH Supply kits, and I'm thinking that the 1x96W kit might fit the bill nicely. I don't see many specifications, though, on what the kit will fit into--the only photo on their site of a 96W is in a dual strip hood--will it fit in a single strip (Oceanic brand)?

The more I think about the sump, the more I think it's just increased surface area through which to lose CO2. If I'm not going to have a filter to hide, the only thing it'd do is hide the heater...I guess I can live with that in the tank.

So I think I'm just lacking the light, a bag of SMS, and some hardscape before I can get going. Wow, trying a new setup is a pain when your only LFS are Petco and Petsmart.


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## srogers7 (Dec 22, 2007)

Would a four foot long fixture fit over the top of your tank? (rest on center support and glass panes). If so an inexpensive utilitarian solution is a double bulb four foot fluor shop light. I've used them with my 55 gal for years. To be attractive you'd want to mount it in a wood box or at least spray it black. It will provide the high light you need inexpensively. It all depends on how much money you have to spend on your light source. They are also sturdier than traditional aquarium fixtures. See example at website below.

http://www.esplighting.com/fluorescent-shop-lights.html

Sue


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## Odiferous (Dec 14, 2007)

A shop light would be a little tough, as the tank's only 36" long. If I wanted to go with T12s, I have a couple of single strip hoods I could use, but from what I'm reading, 60W on a 58, especially being deeper than a 55, is a little low, even for an NPT setup.

The 96W kit seems like it would work, and I can add another later if I decide to go higher-tech with the tank. Anyone know where to find dimensional requirements on a hood to fit the AH Supply kits into? If it won't fit into a single I'm going to have to figure something else out.


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## hoppycalif (Apr 7, 2005)

From the AH Supply website, " Each one-bulb MIRO 4 reflector is 34.5 inches long by 4 inches wide by 2 inches high. The 96w bulb with the endcap on totals 34.5 inches, so these units are an excellent size for 3 ft. and 6 ft. long tanks." Measure how much room you have for this and compare to the size given.


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## Bert H (Mar 2, 2004)

Another vote for the AHS 96W kit. Over your 58, that will give you enough lighting for your goals, imo. As Hoppy said, keep the plants simple and easy and you'll be able to have a nicely planted low maint tank with plants such as Crypts, Anubias, Java ferns and some stemmies as well.


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## Odiferous (Dec 14, 2007)

No clue how I missed the dimensions on the site..right there, plain as day. Got the 96W kit on order now.

So I finally got the substrate and the wood into the tank and figured I'd go get some cheap plant stock to get things started, even if they weren't the most ideal. Petsmart has a pretty good selection of plants...as long as you don't want actual aquatic growers. Then you're screwed. Petco has one tank, under the very corner of a hanging strip light, where it seems all the plant bags get dumped out. It was such a tangled, wilted, withered mess that I couldn't even find a bunch of cabomba to buy.

So now I've got a 58 gallon box of water, and I guess I'm going to order some plants. Since I'm guessing most anything's available through the mail, I'm open to suggestions as to what would look good in here.


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