Brand new and wanting to do a planted tank

minorhero

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Hello folks!

I have a lot of experience with freshwater planted aquariums but for all intents and purposes, zero experience with saltwater. I was at the Baltimore Aquarium not too long ago and saw a display they had of seahorses in live seagrass. And that completely and totally captivated me. I have been thinking about it and decided that I wanted to replicate that kind of tank. I'm currently on the hunt for the tank itself (darn thing might end up being custom). But in the meantime I have a lot of questions that I would love some help answering.

I know a few things about my upcoming setup which might help in answering the questions. This will probably be a 37 to 45 gallon tank. I will be making a sump for it (likely out of a 20H aqueon). I will have a skimmer, and UV. I don't know what skimmer or uv but they will be nice ones. I will have an overflow with a bean animal setup (likely modular marine but this is not set in stone). I will have a deep sand bed for the plants. Oh and there will be plants. Probably manatee grass, potentially turtle grass as well and definitely red mangroves. I am debating whether to have any macro in the tank, currently leaning towards no. I will probably be running injected co2 and definitely fertilizers - leaning towards pps-pro method from freshwater but this is also not set in stone. And that's about it for the things I know... soo...

1) Are controllers particularly useful if you do not have corals? Reading and watching videos everyone says things like "you don't need a controller" but they say it in a way that sounds like they could be saying "you don't need to walk on your feet, you could just walk everywhere on your hands". BUT those people are also referring to reef tanks and this won't be a reef. I think the term is lagoon? I don't mind spending the money if they are needed, but as someone with decades of experience in freshwater I can't imagine having a controller just to track ammonia (but maybe that's more difficult to control in saltwater? I really don't know). Since I am doing plants and not corals, does a controller still make sense? I mean that in a 'if money was no object but hassle is something to be avoided' kind of way. I don't mind buying one if I will be glad I have it. But I don't want to go to the trouble of installing one if I turn around and never use it. Does this make sense?

2) Has anyone tried using k1 media (or similar) as a static bed for mechanical filtration? This is an idea I have been tossing around for years but I've never put a sump on a tank before. Now that I am going sump, I really want to try this. I know this kind of thing gets done for ponds but clearly, this tank aint no pond.

3) If the k1 media thing doesn't work out, are there other good options for mechanical filtration outside of filter socks? Or are filter socks just the best and I should expect to install some? I know lint rollers are increasingly common, but I think of those as polishing? Or are those the solution? Speaking of...

4) Do lint rollers smell? I mean they are taking fish poop en masse out of the water and storing it for some time, so do they stink? I don't mean, if I lean over and stick my nose 1" from the roller, I mean if I am sitting next to the tank (the tank will be in my office), will I notice a smell from the rollers?

5) Random awesome things... So it seems like every time I go looking for something I start searching on the big namebrand websites and I see what my options are. Then I find some random post and someone suggests a piece of kit from a little company I have never heard of before and it's so obviously better in every possible way. The modular marine overflow being one thing that leaps to mind. Any suggestions for things you think I will benefit from?

6) Is hard pvc pipes better then soft or vinyl? In freshwater vinyl tubing with barbed connectors is pretty common, and I see people using soft tubing in saltwater as well. But a lot of people are using hard pvc pipes. Is this just an aesthetic choice, or is there a structural reason for this choice?


I think that's it for right now but I'm sure I will remember more as soon as I post this thread ;P

And because pictures are nifty, here is a picture of my 30 gallon freshwater newt tank which will be right next to my seahorse tank. I'm currently building the stand now to match the newt tank stand. (ignore the clutter, the space is getting reworked for this new tank)

WsQXBYl.jpg


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Most "plants" are going to be macro algaes. Do not inject co2, do not use a skimmer. A UV is fine but might be useless A roller is fine if you want one. I am curious if anyone here has actually done a seagrass tank as that is extremely uncommon. A roller, filter socks, or filter pads are the best for mechanical filtration. The difference is that socks and pads need to be manually rinsed or replaced at least every few days. You don't need biomedia so long as the tank has rock (sand helps a lot too). Tubing type is a personal choice. I don't use hard tubing. except for what came with the tank's overflow. You may not need to dose nitrogen or phosphorus so wait to see if you need to or not, but a trace element additive would likely help.
 
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minorhero

minorhero

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Most "plants" are going to be macro algaes. Do not inject co2, do not use a skimmer. A UV is fine but might be useless A roller is fine if you want one. I am curious if anyone here has actually done a seagrass tank as that is extremely uncommon. A roller, filter socks, or filter pads are the best for mechanical filtration. The difference is that socks and pads need to be manually rinsed or replaced at least every few days. You don't need biomedia so long as the tank has rock (sand helps a lot too). Tubing type is a personal choice. I don't use hard tubing. except for what came with the tank's overflow. You may not need to dose nitrogen or phosphorus so wait to see if you need to or not, but a trace element additive would likely help.

Thank you for the reply! I was going with a skimmer due to the seahorses. It seemed a common setup for them since they are really messy eaters and prone to bacterial infections (this latter is why I was going with the uv). The co2 is for the plants. There are not many articles on planted saltwater tanks (not referring to macro here but true plants) but the few I found indicated that injected co2 was very helpful not only for the plants but also for stabilizing parameters in the tank, apparently if the plants do not get co2 they can mess with the ph. Not sure about the chemistry there but that's what at least one article mentioned. Whether I need the nitrogen or phosphorus or other macro fertilizers will probably depend on how much plant mass I can get going in the tank. Initially this would be very closely monitored until I could find the balance. This is why I was thinking of going pps-pro which is a lean dosing method. Or such was my idea. I'll definitely take your thoughts into consideration and hold off on regular dosing until I see regular growth.
 

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Thank you for the reply! I was going with a skimmer due to the seahorses. It seemed a common setup for them since they are really messy eaters and prone to bacterial infections (this latter is why I was going with the uv). The co2 is for the plants. There are not many articles on planted saltwater tanks (not referring to macro here but true plants) but the few I found indicated that injected co2 was very helpful not only for the plants but also for stabilizing parameters in the tank, apparently if the plants do not get co2 they can mess with the ph. Not sure about the chemistry there but that's what at least one article mentioned. Whether I need the nitrogen or phosphorus or other macro fertilizers will probably depend on how much plant mass I can get going in the tank. Initially this would be very closely monitored until I could find the balance. This is why I was thinking of going pps-pro which is a lean dosing method. Or such was my idea. I'll definitely take your thoughts into consideration and hold off on regular dosing until I see regular growth.

The reason I mentioned no skimmer is that a filter roller, skimmer, and macroalgae (though I see now you are actually wanting true plants so this is less so) are going to make the water too low in nitrate and phosphate. However, I would also say this depends on the seahorse species.

Also, I would see what the pH of the tank is on average before adding CO2. Many people struggle with low pH, which is why I would be cautious.
 

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First, that is a beautiful planted tank--thanks for sharing the photo. I have experience with freshwater planted tanks incorporating CO2 injection and have experience with reef tanks (including some with decorative macroalgae), but I have never tried to do what you are trying to do. I'm not sure how many really have tried this and I hope you find some helpful replies here. I have a Neptune Apex on my current reef tank as a controller. I never had any real control systems on any of my freshwater planted tanks. I doubt you need a controller for what you're trying to do, but I expect it could be helpful.

Having redundant control strategies for temperature control is probably worthwhile for freshwater or saltwater tanks (and you may already have experience with controllers for this and there are pretty low cost options for this).

For my reef tank, I appreciate having the ability to continuously measure pH and integrate pH measurements into Kalkwasser dosing. There are natural swings in pH between day/night and having a sense for this has helped me understand how to optimize Kalkwasser dosing and running a refugium.

I also appreciate the relative salt concentration that the Apex provides as I sometimes see this swing if more liquid is ejected by my protein skimmer over time (which causes my salinity to drop since that extra volume is replaced with freshwater by my auto top off). If you don't have experience using an auto top off unit with your freshwater tank (I didn't), then an auto topoff system is definitely something you will probably want in terms of control to maintain salt concentration as water evaporates (again this doesn't need to be as complex or expensive as an Apex type controller).

Beyond these aspects, I expect a more complex control system comes down to your personal interest in being able to remotely monitor parameters in your system and/or make things like water changes or any other potential dosing more fully automated and integrated. I like gadgets, I find it fun to program, and I like being able to remotely monitor aspects of the tank which is why I enjoy having an Apex, but I definitely don't think you need it.

Hopefully some folks with experience raising seahorses and maybe sea grasses chime in. I also don't have a great sense for the goals and potential challenges of managing pH in a system like the one you envision particularly if you do need to inject CO2 to encourage plant growth. Good luck!
 
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minorhero

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The reason I mentioned no skimmer is that a filter roller, skimmer, and macroalgae (though I see now you are actually wanting true plants so this is less so) are going to make the water too low in nitrate and phosphate. However, I would also say this depends on the seahorse species.

Also, I would see what the pH of the tank is on average before adding CO2. Many people struggle with low pH, which is why I would be cautious.
I guess I'm not used to nitrate coming primarily from poop, it took me a while to figure out why a filter roller would remove nitrate. ;P If I dose my fertilizer I will be able to control how much nitrate is in the system and the liquid fertilizer won't get removed from the water supply through filter floss/roller.

This new tank will be a lot about exploring balance. One article I read about seagrass is that they typically take around 250 ppfd to grow well. If this were a freshwater tank that would a LOT of light, and if I was putting that much in the water I would want to be blasting co2. But since most people growing plants in old threads I've found aren't using any co2 at all, so I am planning to go really light on co2. Like 1 bubble every 3 or 4 seconds (which is my typical dosage level in freshwater for a tank this size, though I admittedly have much lower light levels). In freshwater this is not enough to noticeably drop ph past 1 or 2 tenths of a point. I suspect this would be less in saltwater but... well I'll let you know ;P

For seahorses I plan to go with a pair of erectus. I will definitely be running this tank for a while before adding seahorses. First for just obvious cycling reasons, but then also to grow out my plant mass. I'll add snails and probably a cleaner shrimp first, live with them for a bit to make sure I got the swing of things, then down the line add seahorses.

First, that is a beautiful planted tank--thanks for sharing the photo. I have experience with freshwater planted tanks incorporating CO2 injection and have experience with reef tanks (including some with decorative macroalgae), but I have never tried to do what you are trying to do. I'm not sure how many really have tried this and I hope you find some helpful replies here. I have a Neptune Apex on my current reef tank as a controller. I never had any real control systems on any of my freshwater planted tanks. I doubt you need a controller for what you're trying to do, but I expect it could be helpful.

Having redundant control strategies for temperature control is probably worthwhile for freshwater or saltwater tanks (and you may already have experience with controllers for this and there are pretty low cost options for this).

For my reef tank, I appreciate having the ability to continuously measure pH and integrate pH measurements into Kalkwasser dosing. There are natural swings in pH between day/night and having a sense for this has helped me understand how to optimize Kalkwasser dosing and running a refugium.

I also appreciate the relative salt concentration that the Apex provides as I sometimes see this swing if more liquid is ejected by my protein skimmer over time (which causes my salinity to drop since that extra volume is replaced with freshwater by my auto top off). If you don't have experience using an auto top off unit with your freshwater tank (I didn't), then an auto topoff system is definitely something you will probably want in terms of control to maintain salt concentration as water evaporates (again this doesn't need to be as complex or expensive as an Apex type controller).

Beyond these aspects, I expect a more complex control system comes down to your personal interest in being able to remotely monitor parameters in your system and/or make things like water changes or any other potential dosing more fully automated and integrated. I like gadgets, I find it fun to program, and I like being able to remotely monitor aspects of the tank which is why I enjoy having an Apex, but I definitely don't think you need it.

Hopefully some folks with experience raising seahorses and maybe sea grasses chime in. I also don't have a great sense for the goals and potential challenges of managing pH in a system like the one you envision particularly if you do need to inject CO2 to encourage plant growth. Good luck!

Thank you for the reply! I had not considered salinity issues being caused by the skimmer. I can also see being able to watch ph swings throughout the day useful, especially in the short run when the tank is new and I am learning about how the plants interact with the rest of the parameters.

I am noob enough to saltwater I needed to google 'Kalkwasser' to understand what you were saying. I can see having that kind of fidelity as an automatic function being quite nice.

Looks like I needs me a controller as well ;P
 

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Are those tank sizes tall?

If you are planning on mangroves I would go with a long/shallow tank. Once that mangrove gets established...it will become a shade tree. The best mangrove tanks I've seen that would also have macros/submerged plants have the tree on one side with a sand flat on the other side.
 

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Sea grass tank with horses would be interesting. Don't see a reason they wouldn't have the same requirements as freshwater plants. If the horses don't provide the necessary carbon then the grass will likely strip it from available alkalinity. Could use that to monitor if additional CO2 must be added. I'm guess it would.

Seems plausible the grass would act as the only required filter with pumps to create flow although not sure how much makes horses uncomfortable.

Grass should consume ammonium, nitrites, nitrates and phosphates just like it's freshwater counterparts. Perhaps before adding horses just add saltwater Sailfin mollies to test the tank. Plus you might want to set them up in their own tank and have babies to feed the horses.
 
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minorhero

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Are those tank sizes tall?

If you are planning on mangroves I would go with a long/shallow tank. Once that mangrove gets established...it will become a shade tree. The best mangrove tanks I've seen that would also have macros/submerged plants have the tree on one side with a sand flat on the other side.
Ideal tank size for me would be 24x18x24h. This would need to be a custom tank. I found 2 potential people near me that might be able to make it. One is pricing it out now, another hasn't responded so we shall see. SC Aquariums has a tank that is 24x18x20h. The SC tank has a built in overflow I would need to remove and plug the holes in the bottom so its doubly not great, but it is close to the correct size. I am trying to get similar dimensions to my newt tank which will be right next to the seahorse tank but going taller then the 18" of the newt tank. My reading thus far has indicated that seahorses appreciate vertical space more then horizontal.

The mangroves are going to be trimmed to stay well mannered, or such is my plan. I'm going to stick them in the corner and (if all goes according to my design) grow the roots very long above the substrate for more hitching spots for seahorses.
Sea grass tank with horses would be interesting. Don't see a reason they wouldn't have the same requirements as freshwater plants. If the horses don't provide the necessary carbon then the grass will likely strip it from available alkalinity. Could use that to monitor if additional CO2 must be added. I'm guess it would.

Seems plausible the grass would act as the only required filter with pumps to create flow although not sure how much makes horses uncomfortable.

Grass should consume ammonium, nitrites, nitrates and phosphates just like it's freshwater counterparts. Perhaps before adding horses just add saltwater Sailfin mollies to test the tank. Plus you might want to set them up in their own tank and have babies to feed the horses.
Right now I'm planning to add some snails and a cleaner shrimp before the seahorses. I'll consider adding mollies as well by way of a test. If I can get enough plant mass going then whatever poop or leftover food the seahorses bring to the party shouldn't even be a drop in the bucket compared to the nitrates I will actually need in the tank.

The old way of thinking is that seahorses need very little flow, but apparently new ways of keeping them have developed and now relatively normal flow is considered optimal so long as you can provide enough hitching posts as they are called.
 

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Make sure to start a build thread! I'm sure we'd all love to see your progress with this. :)

Caulerpa often grows amidst beds of turtle grass. If you're thinking of adding some, I'd go for blade caulerpa, which is easy to garden, and avoid grape caulerpa at all costs.

Sea grasses may have radically different nutritional requirements than macroalgae. According to this article, they're mineral vacuums, and you may well have to dose (or, at the very least, keep an eye on water parameters). That's generally not true for most forms of aquarium macroalgae, with the exception of halimeda.

Are you going to source your grasses locally? I haven't been able to find any in Canada, and that's one of the reasons I don't have any in my tank at all.
 
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minorhero

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Make sure to start a build thread! I'm sure we'd all love to see your progress with this. :)

Caulerpa often grows amidst beds of turtle grass. If you're thinking of adding some, I'd go for blade caulerpa, which is easy to garden, and avoid grape caulerpa at all costs.

Sea grasses may have radically different nutritional requirements than macroalgae. According to this article, they're mineral vacuums, and you may well have to dose (or, at the very least, keep an eye on water parameters). That's generally not true for most forms of aquarium macroalgae, with the exception of halimeda.

Are you going to source your grasses locally? I haven't been able to find any in Canada, and that's one of the reasons I don't have any in my tank at all.

Thank you! I am definitely planning to do a build thread at some point. Will probably wait till I have the actual tank in, or at least ordered. Right now I am just building the stand and re-arranging the room.

I need to watch more videos of seahorses in their natural environment. I would like to replicate parts of that as much as possible. To that end I might have a small amount of macro algae in the tank. Originally I was considering red grape just because it aesthetically is quite striking and I could see that bright red color offsetting the green grasses quite well, but .. well macro algae seems to ding me quite hard for some reason. Sort of my uncanny valley of plants instinct ;P

One of the things that got me thinking about this tank was when I was in Ocean City, Maryland on vacation. One day we were there the tides were bringing in quite a few sea grasses with roots intact and washing it up on the beach. At the time I was seriously considering collecting it but I was on vacation and had zero means of taking care of it. I'd love to be able to get my hands on grasses that way, but likely I will be ordering it online. I have no idea where you could get them in Canada but there appears to be a couple of places to buy them online. One I found so far is https://aquaticusplants.com/

I doubt they ship internationally but that's just my gut response so maybe you will be in luck. Otherwise I have found that local hobbyists found through facebook have a shocking variety of rare things if you can get the right connections. This is how I found my newts when no pet store even had the option for having them in stock. Good luck!
 

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For macroalgae, I’ve had pretty good luck with reefcleaners and their site has some nice pictures of different types of macroalgaes. Some will likely require regular addition of calcium (e.g., halimeda variants) which might be a complexity you don’t want/need although you might need to develop a dosing schedule for fertilizers anyways related to the sea grasses (so maybe not a big deal). You’ll find more information about macroalgae on forums here related to refugium design and operation (remote tanks that are usually used to remove phosphate and nitrate from a system), but there are a few folks who have done display tanks with macroalgaes. If you decide to go more of a mixed coral tank route, you might find photosynthetic gorgonians pretty interesting and they tend to also be relatively easier to grow given ample light and water movement. I don’t know if seahorses like to hitch onto gorgonians but it would seem like gorgonian structure would provide lots of attachment points.
 
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For macroalgae, I’ve had pretty good luck with reefcleaners and their site has some nice pictures of different types of macroalgaes. Some will likely require regular addition of calcium (e.g., halimeda variants) which might be a complexity you don’t want/need although you might need to develop a dosing schedule for fertilizers anyways related to the sea grasses (so maybe not a big deal). You’ll find more information about macroalgae on forums here related to refugium design and operation (remote tanks that are usually used to remove phosphate and nitrate from a system), but there are a few folks who have done display tanks with macroalgaes. If you decide to go more of a mixed coral tank route, you might find photosynthetic gorgonians pretty interesting and they tend to also be relatively easier to grow given ample light and water movement. I don’t know if seahorses like to hitch onto gorgonians but it would seem like gorgonian structure would provide lots of attachment points.

Stinging corals are a big no for seahorses sadly. I didn't know what a gorgonian was but a google search said they sting? If I have any macro in the tank it won't be much. I want the grass to be the main attraction as far as the scape itself is concerned. I might at some point add a red macro that is relatively well mannered just to provide some contrast, but I would try my best to keep it small.
 

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Gorgonians are great...as along as you get a photosynthetic species. I personally recommend Grube's gorgonian, which could be hit by a bomb and still thrive. They're relatively quick growers and should provide many perches for seahorses.
 

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This is a very interesting idea! I would be very wary with CO2 injection, saltwater fish are sensitive to PH drops & swings and if, by chance, you bumped up the dosage on accident it could poison your fish and would kill your inverts pretty fast. I'm not sure about the sustainability of seagrass in such a small tank, I've never seen it done but it seems that they are mineral guzzlers and would require a lot of frequent dosing to keep them happy. However, a true seagrass biotope would be a sight to behold!

I think, depending on how fast the seagrass takes up minerals, a controller could be beneficial. The biggest issue is the price: $700 is a lot to pay if you're only using it to dose! Whatever the case may be, I would recommend frequent water tests for Kh, Ca and Mg to see just how much, if any, the grass is sucking up.

A possibility for the mangrove would be to sprout it & grow it to a small size in the tank, then move it to a pot (small plants like saltwater, big plants like brackish/fresh). Let it grow some new roots, then drape the new stilt roots inside the tank, over the edge. That way, you could grow the tree off the side of the tank where it wouldn't block any light, and the roots would still be going in the tank. I've never seen this done, but I bet you could do it.
Good luck with the project! I know a source for both H. erectus and turtlegrass, as well as many other inverts & macroalgaes from the same area. I've been satisfied with my purchases from the in the past, so hopefully they can help you out!
 
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Gorgonians are great...as along as you get a photosynthetic species. I personally recommend Grube's gorgonian, which could be hit by a bomb and still thrive. They're relatively quick growers and should provide many perches for seahorses.

The biggest barrier to any coral is that nothing I'm doing so far requires ro water so I was planning to just use tap water. If I go with coral, my understanding is that I will need to buy an ro system and switch over. My tap water is using the Baltimore water system and its surface water from reservoirs so its not rock stable either. Seasonally it changes from 7 to 8.2 ph. I can switch over to RO but... well not super excited to do it ;P

This is a very interesting idea! I would be very wary with CO2 injection, saltwater fish are sensitive to PH drops & swings and if, by chance, you bumped up the dosage on accident it could poison your fish and would kill your inverts pretty fast. I'm not sure about the sustainability of seagrass in such a small tank, I've never seen it done but it seems that they are mineral guzzlers and would require a lot of frequent dosing to keep them happy. However, a true seagrass biotope would be a sight to behold!

I think, depending on how fast the seagrass takes up minerals, a controller could be beneficial. The biggest issue is the price: $700 is a lot to pay if you're only using it to dose! Whatever the case may be, I would recommend frequent water tests for Kh, Ca and Mg to see just how much, if any, the grass is sucking up.

A possibility for the mangrove would be to sprout it & grow it to a small size in the tank, then move it to a pot (small plants like saltwater, big plants like brackish/fresh). Let it grow some new roots, then drape the new stilt roots inside the tank, over the edge. That way, you could grow the tree off the side of the tank where it wouldn't block any light, and the roots would still be going in the tank. I've never seen this done, but I bet you could do it.
Good luck with the project! I know a source for both H. erectus and turtlegrass, as well as many other inverts & macroalgaes from the same area. I've been satisfied with my purchases from the in the past, so hopefully they can help you out!

The accepted practice with freshwater is to blast the co2 to the limit of fish survival. I don't really subscribe to this practice. I prefer to run just a little co2, typically I run my tanks 1/20th of the normal amount of co2. This means even in relatively low buffered ph tanks there is little to no ph drop.

For my freshwater tanks I dose ferts every day on a schedule. People way smarter then me have figured out the amount of ferts plants use and in what proportions. I will be using a pps-pro method which doses small amounts of macros and micro fertilizer every day. It's just about watching the plants to see if they need more or less ferts without really needing to adjust the individual values inside the fert package. Basically my plan is to run this tank identically to my freshwater tanks, just with salt thrown in and some monitors to make sure values don't go crazy. Will this work????? No idea. And near as I can tell, no one has run a planted saltwater tank quite like this either. Or at least none of my searches has turned up anyone running modern aquarium fertilizer in a tank. I have seen a few threads that mentioned dosing N and P but it was unclear if they were following any kind of system for it or if they were dosing micros.

I like the idea of making the mangrove a potted plant at some point. I did not know they changed from saltwater to fresh as they aged. I was basically thinking of treating the mangroves like they were bonsai and just trimming them to keep them constantly small enough that they wouldn't affect the light to the grasses while still remaining healthy. Or again, such is my plan ;P I'll keep an eye on them and if I see signs they are not doing well in the saltwater I will transfer them out.

Thank you for the link! I will definitely keep them in mind for the plants. I am 99.9% sure I will be buying my seahorses from Seahorse Savvy They have captive bred seahorses already eating frozen mysis and they are also on the Eastern Shore of Maryland which means I probably will not have to get my seahorses shipped, just pick them up.

In other news, I am zeroing in on getting the tank itself built. Its definitely looking like it will be a custom job. I have one quote which is acceptable and just waiting on someone to give me another quote to decide if I go with the first guy or not.
 
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fish farmer

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The biggest barrier to any coral is that nothing I'm doing so far requires ro water so I was planning to just use tap water. If I go with coral, my understanding is that I will need to buy an ro system and switch over. My tap water is using the Baltimore water system and its surface water from reservoirs so its not rock stable either. Seasonally it changes from 7 to 8.2 ph. I can switch over to RO but... well not super excited to do it ;P



The accepted practice with freshwater is to blast the co2 to the limit of fish survival. I don't really subscribe to this practice. I prefer to run just a little co2, typically I run my tanks 1/20th of the normal amount of co2. This means even in relatively low buffered ph tanks there is little to no ph drop.

For my freshwater tanks I dose ferts every day on a schedule. People way smarter then me have figured out the amount of ferts plants use and in what proportions. I will be using a pps-pro method which doses small amounts of macros and micro fertilizer every day. It's just about watching the plants to see if they need more or less ferts without really needing to adjust the individual values inside the fert package. Basically my plan is to run this tank identically to my freshwater tanks, just with salt thrown in and some monitors to make sure values don't go crazy. Will this work????? No idea. And near as I can tell, no one has run a planted saltwater tank quite like this either. Or at least none of my searches has turned up anyone running modern aquarium fertilizer in a tank. I have seen a few threads that mentioned dosing N and P but it was unclear if they were following any kind of system for it or if they were dosing micros.

I like the idea of making the mangrove a potted plant at some point. I did not know they changed from saltwater to fresh as they aged. I was basically thinking of treating the mangroves like they were bonsai and just trimming them to keep them constantly small enough that they wouldn't affect the light to the grasses while still remaining healthy. Or again, such is my plan ;P I'll keep an eye on them and if I see signs they are not doing well in the saltwater I will transfer them out.

Thank you for the link! I will definitely keep them in mind for the plants. I am 99.9% sure I will be buying my seahorses from Seahorse Savvy They have captive bred seahorses already eating frozen mysis and they are also on the Eastern Shore of Maryland which means I probably will not have to get my seahorses shipped, just pick them up.

In other news, I am zeroing in on getting the tank itself built. Its definitely looking like it will be a custom job. I have one quote which is acceptable and just waiting on someone to give me another quote to decide if I go with the first guy or not.
I've heard mangroves grow faster in fresh water than in salt.

They will respond fairly well to bonsai techniques. I trimmed and wired several mangroves that I attempted to keep trained in a terrarium setting.

If I was to bonsai a mangrove today I would think about what space the tree might take over in 5 years. I always see in pictures and have experienced mangroves popping out of it's shoot and bolting up to the light while it is putting out it's first two leaves. So now you have a mangrove that could be a foot or more without much growth, branches, etc. to train back. This is where if I did it all over again, the tree would have it's own light source that would follow the growth of the tree, independent of the light for the aquarium.
 
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