Not sure where else to ask ....

[saltienewb]

This is my 13g. I do have a co2 injection, but everything in this tank can be grown without one (low tech) with MINIMAL maintenance.

Alternanthera? Very nice
Edit: I spy a gourami and some tetras.

 

[jabberwock]

I also suggest live plants, but would avoid Hornwort like it was the plague, because it is. Lots of dropped leaves and maintenance. I would recommend Amazon Sword. Teach them about ecosystems, the plants help to clean the water.

 

[jrmailo]

Alternanthera? Very nice
Edit: I spy a gourami and some tetras.

I do not remember the name sadly but I suspect that your are right. They had grew out of the water line and got everywhere (unintended effect of CO2 I guess). That said, I plucked some out and put them in my dimly lit co2-less system and they are still deep red and growing. Bullet proof in my book.

Edit: you're right alternanthera reineckii roseafolia.

 

[citymouse]

In my experience, (non-high tech) plants are easier to take care of than the fish. I tossed some plants in my dimly lit shrimp cull tank that I do not do maintenance on and they are doing quite all right 6 months in.

Remember, plants love dirty water. They use it as nutrients. Meaning she can get away with less frequent water change and potentially saving your fish in case of ammonia poisoning post-cycling.

Can you reccomend some easy to care for plants, that won't take over the tank? Do fish nibble at the plants?

 

[citymouse]

I also suggest live plants, but would avoid Hornwort like it was the plague, because it is. Lots of dropped leaves and maintenance. I would recommend Amazon Sword. Teach them about ecosystems, the plants help to clean the water.

Maybe I need to put some plants in MY freshwater tank! Can they be put in the sand? She has black sand, I have pool sand in mine. What about SW? Are plants a good option there too? I don't have corals, just live rock in the SW...I wouldn't mind easier maintenance, never really looked into plants...maybe in the sump? not sure I have room in there though.

 

[citymouse]

This is my 13g. I do have a co2 injection, but everything in this tank can be grown without one (low tech) with MINIMAL maintenance.

What are the red plants?

 

[citymouse]

Can you reccomend some easy to care for plants, that won't take over the tank? Do fish nibble at the plants?

I asked this and then realized there were a lot more comments about live plants!! lol

 

[saltienewb]

Moss(Java, flame, weeping, Christmas tree… and you would probably like pelia also known as coral moss)

Anubias- can be attached to hardscape, doesn’t like being buried

Cryptocornes- the one in the pic above on the right side with the broad leaves are a type of crypt. Eas

floaters- duck weed, salvinia minima, frog bit, red root floaters, also floating riccia is really cool with purple short roots.Think of a refugium but on top. Fast growing due to co2 availability, and sucks nitrates out for export. I grab two handfuls every time I change the water in my daughters tank and use as plant food in my garden.

if you want to change to planted substrate you could grab many other easy types like Val but the above list could be grown tomorrow with no modification to the tank as long as the light isn’t terrible.

Check out some aquarium coop videos on easy plants. Very simple stuff compared to reefing, but still satisfying.

 

[jrmailo]

What are the red plants?

The red plants are alternanthera reineckii roseafolia.

 

[Tired]

Very few true plants tolerate saltwater, and they're all fairly tricky to keep, unless you get lucky with mangroves. A seagrass tank, for example, requires a specific setup and a decent bit of dedication. However, macroalgaes (seaweeds) are not true plants, and there are plenty of easy varieties. Halimeda is nice-looking and hardy, and gracilarias tend to be easy to grow. Chaeto is probably the easiest, though maybe not the prettiest. Ulva is neat, but can rarely be invasive, and is chewed by all sorts of things. By and large, stay away from caulerpas, as they're great at being invasive.

 

[jrmailo]

Can you reccomend some easy to care for plants, that won't take over the tank? Do fish nibble at the plants?

Like what saltienewb suggest, I don’t think you can go wrong with any of them.

You don’t really have to worry about plants taking over your tank unless you are actively injecting co2 and fertilizer.

 

[MoshJosh]

I really dislike black sand, so I would personally replace that, but that might just be me. I really like the “cichlid sand”, I think Carib sea makes it.

as far as decorations go, if you aren’t wanting driftwood, there are some pretty nice “Cichlid stones“ available at LFS and online. Those mixed with some river rocks from Home Depot could make a pretty cool scape/set up for cichlids.

I would recommend considering driftwood, as it can very easily transform a tank. Most of my local fish stores sell aquarium safe driftwood for reasonable prices. You could probably find a single piece big enough to span most of the tank. Mix in some rock work and you’re good to go.

Here was my version of a cheap and easy aquascape, think I used Home Depot rocks, petsmart sand, and a piece of Manzanita from manzanitadriftwood.com

Also, I apologize if I’m telling you things you already know, or things already said in this thread, I didn’t make it through reading all the posts Haha

 

[jrmailo]

Very few true plants tolerate saltwater, and they're all fairly tricky to keep, unless you get lucky with mangroves. A seagrass tank, for example, requires a specific setup and a decent bit of dedication. However, macroalgaes (seaweeds) are not true plants, and there are plenty of easy varieties. Halimeda is nice-looking and hardy, and gracilarias tend to be easy to grow. Chaeto is probably the easiest, though maybe not the prettiest. Ulva is neat, but can rarely be invasive, and is chewed by all sorts of things. By and large, stay away from caulerpas, as they're great at being invasive.

I second this. There are a lot of very neat looking macroalgae with some looking even nicer than coral imo.

Maybe I need to put some plants in MY freshwater tank! Can they be put in the sand? She has black sand, I have pool sand in mine. What about SW? Are plants a good option there too? I don't have corals, just live rock in the SW...I wouldn't mind easier maintenance, never really looked into plants...maybe in the sump? not sure I have room in there though.

You can certainly keep macroalgae in your DT as long as you do not have hungry herbivores lurking around (ie tangs and some inverts)

I keep my dragon tongue macroalgae and mangrove tree in sump. However It’s only surviving but not thriving due to me keeping low nutrients for SPS coral.

 

[jabberwock]

Maybe I need to put some plants in MY freshwater tank! Can they be put in the sand? She has black sand, I have pool sand in mine. What about SW? Are plants a good option there too? I don't have corals, just live rock in the SW...I wouldn't mind easier maintenance, never really looked into plants...maybe in the sump? not sure I have room in there though.

Strictly talking fresh water here, I used to use small zip ties to anchor the plant root system to a rock and then bury the base in the sand/gravel just to anchor it. Lots of freshwater plants do not depend on the substrate for nourishment. They pick up nutrients from the water and photosynthesize from the lighting. You will need a set of aqua scaping utensils, scissors, tweezers etc. to groom your plants. Trim off dead parts, downsize, scape.

 

[citymouse]

I really dislike black sand, so I would personally replace that, but that might just be me. I really like the “cichlid sand”, I think Carib sea makes it.

as far as decorations go, if you aren’t wanting driftwood, there are some pretty nice “Cichlid stones“ available at LFS and online. Those mixed with some river rocks from Home Depot could make a pretty cool scape/set up for cichlids.

I would recommend considering driftwood, as it can very easily transform a tank. Most of my local fish stores sell aquarium safe driftwood for reasonable prices. You could probably find a single piece big enough to span most of the tank. Mix in some rock work and you’re good to go.

Here was my version of a cheap and easy aquascape, think I used Home Depot rocks, petsmart sand, and a piece of Manzanita from manzanitadriftwood.com

Also, I apologize if I’m telling you things you already know, or things already said in this thread, I didn’t make it through reading all the posts Haha

She loves the black sand, so that's staying. She doesn't want cichlids, she has some smaller fish in mind, all I know is she wants a cory cat...there's a list somewhere that she decided on with her dad. I keep seeing more comments I missed too! lol Lots of good info here!

 

[citymouse]

Strictly talking fresh water here, I used to use small zip ties to anchor the plant root system to a rock and then bury the base in the sand/gravel just to anchor it. Lots of freshwater plants do not depend on the substrate for nourishment. They pick up nutrients from the water and photosynthesize from the lighting. You will need a set of aqua scaping utensils, scissors, tweezers etc. to groom your plants. Trim off dead parts, downsize, scape.

See, this is where i think it would become more than she would keep up with, the utensils...although it would give her something to be responsible for, maybe it would help her. But she tends to get stuck and unable to do things even if she wants to...it's hard to explain, anxiety/ ocd related I think...She has a chronic health condition too, some days are harder for her to do things. She keeps asking to get her fishtank cleaned up and running again..it's been sitting for a little while, just a tank full of water! A project for me mostly...once the fish are in there, the rest is up to her...I have too many tanks of my own to keep up with. lol

 

[jrmailo]

See, this is where i think it would become more than she would keep up with, the utensils...although it would give her something to be responsible for, maybe it would help her. But she tends to get stuck and unable to do things even if she wants to...it's hard to explain, anxiety/ ocd related I think...She has a chronic health condition too, some days are harder for her to do things. She keeps asking to get her fishtank cleaned up and running again..it's been sitting for a little while, just a tank full of water! A project for me mostly...once the fish are in there, the rest is up to her...I have too many tanks of my own to keep up with. lol

Just like our saltwater hobby, there are different level for hobbyists and how “fancy” they want their tank to look.

What jabberwock mentioned is geared more toward moderately serious planted aquarium hobbyist that wants their aqua scape looking the best all the time.

Your daughter being a novice, probably doesn’t need to put in the same amount of effort as the “pros” to maintain something that she herself can be happy with.

 

[Chrisv.]

She loves the black sand, so that's staying. She doesn't want cichlids, she has some smaller fish in mind, all I know is she wants a cory cat...there's a list somewhere that she decided on with her dad. I keep seeing more comments I missed too! lol Lots of good info here!

They do sell black planted tank substrate: https://www.petco.com/shop/en/petcostore/product/eco-complete-planted-black-aquarium-substrate

 

[Waters]

I am actually a fan of black sand if used correctly......a little fake greenery and the right hardscape makes everything stand out.

You can make it as hard or easy as you want....one of the benefits of freshwater tanks. You can also go slightly planted with just one or two species for a dramatic effect......

Or finally, got all out high tech like I did with this tank....which ended up being more work than my reef tanks lol.

 

[Tired]

See, this is where i think it would become more than she would keep up with, the utensils...although it would give her something to be responsible for, maybe it would help her. But she tends to get stuck and unable to do things even if she wants to...it's hard to explain, anxiety/ ocd related I think...

Sounds like executive dysfunction. I am not a doctor of any sort, but "stuck and unable to do a thing" is pretty much exactly how executive dysfunction tends to work. It's a nasty thing to have, gets in the way of all sorts of things. Executive function is our ability to start on and switch between tasks, and in some people, the part of the brain that handles that doesn't work properly.

As someone who has it, my best advice is to try doing the absolute smallest possible step towards the thing. It's much easier to get yourself to just stand up for a second than it is to get yourself to start on a big project, but once you're standing, some of the inertia is gone and it's easier to move into doing a thing. It also helps to realize that there is actually something wrong; it's not a lack of desire to do the thing, it's a physical problem with doing the thing. It's a problem that can be worked on with practice and sometimes proper treatment of whatever's encouraging it, but there is something wrong, no matter how much it outwardly looks like nothing's in the way.

Anxiety, OCD, and any other neurodivergences (like autism) can really hook into it and make things worse, too. The more stress there is around a task, the harder it is to start on it. Figuring out and treating anything that goes along with it can help a lot, and that's become much easier in the last few years, since so many therapists do online/virtual appointments now. It does require finding a good therapist, but if y'all have already dealt with chronic illness, you're probably familiar with the 'find a doctor who fits' dance.

Also, automate everything you can. Auto-feeder, easy plants like java moss to absorb nutrients, stock the tank lightly so it needs only infrequent water changes. If you don't mind having the tank a bit of a jungle, easy plants need very minimal pruning. They just need to have some of 'em pulled out once or twice a year.

Corydoras catfish are wonderful. They do need to be kept in a shoal, so you need at least 6. I recommend smaller species, like julii cories, so they don't contribute much bioload. She might also like to look into oil catfish, which are one of the few non-corydoras catfish that can be trusted not to eat tankmates. They're delightfully wiggly, midwater-swimming fish, and they eat like tiny soft piranhas when you add food.