Re: Setting up a planted discus tank

["Bill Wichers" <billw at waveform_net>]

> 1)     Size of tank: probably a tank from 55 to 75 gallons. What are the
> best dimensions of the tank? 

Get the biggest tank you can both afford and physically fit in the space you 
have available. Standard sizes range up to about 180 gallons. I personally 
wouldn't want a tank deeper than about 24" or so due to the difficulty of 
servicing deeper tanks. 

> 2)     CO2 system: what kind of system should I consider...brand, etc

Most CO2 systems are assembled from parts bought at various places. Decent 
needle valve and regulator, maybe a solenoid valve if you use a controller. 
Tanks are standard -- get one from a gas supply house. 

> 3)     Undergravel heater system: is Dupla the way to go here?

You can save a lot of money with a DIY cable setup, or go with dupla cables. 
I would build a power supply even for the dupla cables though since the 
supply is simple and will save you a lot of money over the duplamat 
transformer. 

> 4)     Substrate: what's a better substrate to go with? Laterite or
> Flourite?

Laterite is not a substrate by itself -- it is an additive for other gravel 
substrates. Flourite is considered to be the ultimate substrate for a 
planted tank, and has been in my own expierience. 

> 5)     Lighting: Is the compact florescent lighting the best solution? Metal
> Halide? Mercury Vapor?

Stay away from Mercury Vapor (MV) lighting, it does not have a full enough 
color spectrum (too blue). Metal Halide (MH) lighting is good for an 
open-top tank. Compact Flourescent (CF) lighting is probably going to be 
best for an enclosed hood. If you do a DIY setup costs will be comparable 
between the two. 

> 6)     Filtering: what kind of filter should I consider? Eheim canister?
> Wet/ Dry? Etc...

Canisters are something of the standard for larger tanks with wet/drys used 
where a sump is used or where high fish loads need to be supported. 

> 7)     Electronic controllers for pH, temp, oxygen, etc: are these devices
> worth getting? 

Probably worth it for pH, and maybe temp too if you get one of the new 
heaters that uses a digital controller and are priced in the ~$50 range. All 
the rest of the controllers aren't really necassary for a freshwater setup. 

I'll leave the discus-specific questions to others since I haven't run a 
discus tank. 

 -Bill 

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