Laterite Q's - new setup

To: Aquatic-Plants at actwin_com
Subject: Laterite Q's - new setup
From: misiak at sequent_uncfsu.edu
Date: Tue, 20 Feb 1996 21:31:26 -0500 (EST)
In-Reply-To: <199602210129.UAA10789 at looney_actwin.com>

Hi
	I currently have 2 55's, both pretty heavily planted.  One has
gravel with Dupla laterite, the other sand/peat.  Both have 80W of light
and no CO2.  The plant growth is not great but fish are my primary concern
(angels in one, discus in the other).  (I experimented with DIY but gave
up due to unpredictable large ph swings).  I will be moving in about 2
months and would like to get some help on setting these tanks up.  I also
plan to get 2 more 55's.  If all I will have is about 80W/tank and no CO2
(until I can afford the real thing), do I need laterite?  If so, is there
a big difference in performance of Dupla ($25 for 500 grams) vs brand ? at
Pet Warehouse for ~$7 for 1 pound?  Also, what plants would you all
recommend for these tanks with no CO2 and the above light? (ph 6.5-7.0,
GH, KH around 3, temp 78F (angels) 84F (discus).  currently I have few
species of hygro, val, and echinodorus (sp?) all doing relatively well.
TIA, Tom