# Newbie question: Carpet plants and water change?



## UnderseaGal (Mar 4, 2014)

I have a 6g with some java fern and one other unidentified plant (and fish and a shrimp).
I'm newish to fish keeping and brand new to real plants.

I'd like to enhance the look of my tank and have been considering carpet plants.
But when I do a water change, I like to poke my gravel around to suck up poo, and I'm not sure how you're supposed to do this if you have carpet plants?
Wouldn't I always be disrupting them?

Thanks for insights on this!


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## Reckon (Jul 25, 2012)

Carpet plants usually require CO2 supplementation to, well, carpet. Otherwise, they don't grow very well. With carpet plants you don't really do much substrate vacuuming. Most people just leave the poo to fertilize the plants.


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## UnderseaGal (Mar 4, 2014)

Hi Reckon,

Thanks for the info - makes sense.
Also, thanks to your input, I'm ruling out carpet plants. 
No CO2 for this girl.

Thanks again for clearing that up!


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## Fish rookie (May 21, 2012)

You may be able to grow pygmy chainsword without CO2.
Just fert root tab and some reasonable amount of light will work, but it will take some time to carpet.
Once you do that you do no vacuum, just hover over the plants.
I found a picture of one of my old tanks for you to see what these plants look like. But this tank had Co2. The foreground carpet were a mix of pygmy chain sword and dwaft hairgrass.
I have tried to grow these without Co2 with great success as well.


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## Bobsidd (Dec 28, 2012)

Some mosses can 'carpet', so don't be so quick to rule carpets out if you like the look. I have some xmas moss starting to carpet in my 10 gallon PFR tank and it looks pretty cool. No CO2, no vacuuming, lowish light. I could take a photo if you like so you can get an idea of what it might look like in your tank.

Cheers,
Rob


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## Fish rookie (May 21, 2012)

yes, moss will make your shrimp very happy, too.
Just be careful that your moss do not float all over the tank as it can get into your filter and even clog it.
You can get some mesh or rocks and tie the moss to them securely. Placing them all over the ground you will have a carpet. You can remove or move this carpet around as you wish. But the drawback is the moss may make a mess in your tank if they are not securely tied down.
I found an old picture of a tank I used to have long time ago. Most of the carpet are just java moss tied to some pebbles. The sand is just pool filter sand. Most plants are tied to the driftwood and some rocks. No co2. No bright fancy lights. I did not even have a heater in this tank but the plants were fine The only plants rooted in the sand were the B.Japonica.


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## UnderseaGal (Mar 4, 2014)

Fish rookie and Bobsidd, thanks so much for your input on this.
Moss sounds potentially messy and in my beginner hands messy gets magnified, but I'll investigate the other options.

Thanks again! 
I owe it to all of you that my fish are still alive and one day when my tank looks amazing I'll owe that to all of you as well.


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## UnderseaGal (Mar 4, 2014)

PS Holy smokes Fish rookie that tank with the 3 big fish (discus?) and the neon tetras looks amazing! You're quite the aquascaper...


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## Fish rookie (May 21, 2012)

Thanks but honestly those plants were very easy to grow. You can do it, too.
Those 3 were my first discus. At the time, I had no idea what I was doing (...and still don't know much now LOL) and they died within a week. Co2 injection in a planted tank was just not a good way to raise juvies discus for a beginner. LOL. 
On the other hand, thanks to this experience I had the pleasure to meet Rick and he was very kind in taking his time to teach me the proper way to grow out discus. 
Discus is so much fun I am obsessed--a bit like how you are obsessed with your new tank I suppose--I just want to learn everything I can about them.
If you ever want to get some discus I would highly recommend to contact Rick, his stock are very healthy and his customer service is absolutely outstanding.
In case you do not know, Rick is a sponsor here and his company is called Canadian Aqua Farm.


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## UnderseaGal (Mar 4, 2014)

That's good to know, thanks.
Discus are probably my favorite fish when it comes to looks - they are so beautiful!
But I'm aware of my limited experience in fish keeping so I don't plan on trying that anytime soon. To be honest I just wouldn't have the space at the moment.
Besides, I have my heart set on a pea puffer tank next... 
But first I have to figure out how to get my ammonia to zero! Pea puffers in my current tank would all be dead by now. haha
I'll do a water change today.


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## Fish rookie (May 21, 2012)

What are you using as water conditioner?
What are your readings?
If you are using prime some test kit may give you a false reading of ammonia.
It also just occurred to me that do you have a place in your filter for the bacteria to grow, such as a compartment for ceramic, or a sponge or something like that? I am not familiar with the filter that comes with your tank.
It is fine if you do not, but it may take longer. Your bacteria will still grow on any surfaces they can attach to; but if you have a sponge or something like that it will help to establish a colony much faster.

P.S. There is a member here with the user name Bien who is really an artist with aqua scraping. I have seen his tanks in person and they look even better in real. I have not seen him post too much lately but if you do a search you can see pictures of his awesome tanks. rwong is also a great artist with his plants, he has an on going thread about his beautiful tank.


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## UnderseaGal (Mar 4, 2014)

My water conditioner is called Aqua Plus and it's by Nutrafin.
My latest readings are as follows:
Ammonia: 0.5 
Nitrities: 0
Nitrates: just barely registers - estimating 5ish
pH: 6.6-7
GH: 30
KH: 60-80

In my tank system I believe the bacteria grow on the "biowheel", which is a porous wheel thingy that you never change.

I was aware of rwong's beautiful tanks, but thanks for the tip about looking up bien's work - fantastic stuff.

I'm going to do a water change tonight and check again tomorrow.

My ammonia kit is quite old (maybe 4 years?), maybe that's a factor. 

Sir Shrimpsalot is eating his old self and it's disgusting! haha


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## effox (Apr 21, 2010)

Your test kit is likely expired. I'd check those out as your readings may be off as a result.


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## UnderseaGal (Mar 4, 2014)

Thanks for the tip, effox. I'll get a new kit this weekend.
Only my ammonia kit is old, though - for the rest I'm using brand new test kits.

Thanks again!


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## Fish rookie (May 21, 2012)

That sounds great. I think your tank is cycled to very closed to it. 4 years sounds very old but I honestly do not know the expiry date for this chemical solution in general.
Keep in mind because ammonia reduction is not instant you may register a slight reading from time to time. 
Your kH is quite high, are you using some alkaline buffer of sort?
Most important thing is just observe your fish...
If they are gasping on the surface for air, swimming funny, darting around with no apparent reason, flushing (rubbing their bodies against something), then I would suggest to check the water and possibly change some water. But if they look bright and lively, chances are everything is good.
I like it that you are taking great care of your fish and spending so much time to make sure they are getting the best care.
I started off on this forum the same way, too, and many people have offered me their help very generously.
Hope you find this community helpful and nice to "hang out."
Take care.


UnderseaGal said:


> My water conditioner is called Aqua Plus and it's by Nutrafin.
> My latest readings are as follows:
> Ammonia: 0.5
> Nitrities: 0
> ...


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## UnderseaGal (Mar 4, 2014)

Thanks for all the feedback, Fish rookie. I'm not using a buffer.
The fish do seem fine. They do stress out after a water change, though. When I first got them they hung out and swam all together in a little group and that was great to watch. Now they spread out more - each seems to like a different spot in the tank, and they are definitely more chill, so it's not as exciting to watch. But the shrimp keeps me entertained. 

Everyone I've encountered on this forum is generous with their time and advice, friendly, and welcoming. It's been a tremendous help with getting started and I'm very grateful!


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## jbyoung00008 (May 16, 2011)

Lots of good info on this thread 

You might be mistaken with your Kh/GH readings. Drop the "zeros" KH 6-8 , GH 3. If that's the case those reading are fairly good and within parameters. Gh could be a smidge higher 

I know the bio wheel is a good filter but IMO you can make it a little better by adding a small pack of bio media. The wheel does grow bacteria but there are 2 types you can grow. 1 grows fully submerged (bio balls), the other grows with oxygen( bio wheel). Add the bio balls and now you have the ultimate filter  Aquaclear sells small bags of bio media that would probably fit in that filter. Just a suggestion. Sometimes the bio wheel stop turning so its nice to have backup bacteria growing else where in the filter

PS Your un identified plant is a Bacopa species  Its a stem plant so you can cut one of the stems and re plant it. It will grow roots and split where you cut it. Its easily turned into a bush


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## UnderseaGal (Mar 4, 2014)

Thank you so much for all this info, jbyoung00008! Makes sense re: dropping the zeros. I'll double check the units on my kit when I get home.
I'll also take a look for bio balls during my next visit to the LFS.

And thank you so much for identifying that plant! So cool that I can make new plants with it.  Exciting!


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## jbyoung00008 (May 16, 2011)

UnderseaGal said:


> Thank you so much for all this info, jbyoung00008! Makes sense re: dropping the zeros. I'll double check the units on my kit when I get home.
> I'll also take a look for bio balls during my next visit to the LFS.
> 
> And thank you so much for identifying that plant! So cool that I can make new plants with it.  Exciting!


You are welcome. Its just my opinion. Bio media is the heart of an aquarium. Once you understand bio media and how to take care of it. Having a nice fish tank will come rather quickly. You don't need to add more bio media but if the option is there I don't see why not. The new fluval HOb canisters now grow both types of bacteria so this isn't something new.

Live plants are fun. There are many types of stem plants that you can cut and plant.

Learn all the basics and keep asking questions on here. Your tank will be beautiful in no time 

Here is the little bag of media I am talking about. They retail for under $5. 








GH: 30
KH: 60-80 this can be right if you are testing in PPM( parts per million) but most of the test Ive seen are in dGH and dKH. Meaning each drop counts for 1dGh/Kh. Now some tester also don't want you to count the first drop. Very confusing :s

heres a link to read http://freshaquarium.about.com/od/watercare/a/Water_Hardness_Levels.htm


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## UnderseaGal (Mar 4, 2014)

I will be so stoked if my tank is beautiful one day. 
My GH and KH values are in ppm.

Thanks for all the info!


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## jimmyjam (Jan 11, 2011)

Im going ot second that comment, you def need great bio filtration to break down that ammonia. Do you have any pics of the tank?



jbyoung00008 said:


> You are welcome. Its just my opinion. Bio media is the heart of an aquarium. Once you understand bio media and how to take care of it. Having a nice fish tank will come rather quickly. You don't need to add more bio media but if the option is there I don't see why not. The new fluval HOb canisters now grow both types of bacteria so this isn't something new.
> 
> Live plants are fun. There are many types of stem plants that you can cut and plant.
> 
> ...


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## UnderseaGal (Mar 4, 2014)

Hi again,

The good news is that I did a water test today and ammonia is at 0! 
Even so, I will definitely get some of the bio media balls jbyoung00008 recommended. I hope to go to my LFS tomorrow to get a rock, as well (recommendation I received in a previous thread).

Here is my tank! Please keep in mind I'm new at this. 








Thanks again for all the information and the suggestions!


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## UnderseaGal (Mar 4, 2014)

Oh, and I just wanted to add that while my tank was in storage the top part of the front of the tank got scratched up (I think?) so where the light hits it makes it look cloudy.


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