Plants in my fish tank

I have read that it is a good idea to put live plats in my fish tank. Is it true that live plants create a more healthy environment by providing oxygen and other helpful additions? I tried using live plants once before but I had problems keeping them planted beneath the gravel of our tank. Do you have any suggestions on how to keep this from happening. What are the best plants to use in a gold fish tank? Also, I had problems with a green slime developing in my tank. I tried moving the tank away from the window--thinking maybe the sun may be causing the plants to pollenate. But, this didn't help at all. Is there a product I can use to keep this from happening again?

Thanks, I really appreciate all of your help.

Hello!

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	Is it true that live plants create a more healthy environment by providing oxygen and other helpful additions?

Yes plants help to aerate to tank simply because they omit oxygen which your fish needs to breathe.

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	What are the best plants to use in a gold fish tank?"

Goldfish are coldwater fish and aquatic plants are for tropical aquariums so it can be difficult to suit both living conditions. Also, goldfish tend to feed along the bottom of tanks which means they can easily uproot plants and disturb there growth. However, there are some plants that are suitable for goldfish tanks which can stand a cooler temperature and have heavy roots. Two popular plants for goldfish are "Echinodorus" and "Elodea (anacharis)". Anacharis can be planted or can be left to float.

Its important to remember that Goldfish are mainly herbivores and they need fresh food such as plants, peas, oranges, curcumber etc and should be fed flakes every so often to maintain a balanced diet.

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	I tried using live plants once before but I had problems keeping them planted beneath the gravel of our tank. Do you have any suggestions on how to keep this from happening.

Plants can easily be grounded with gravel supplements such as granules / plates which can be found in the shop on my signature. Just search for 'gravel supplements'.

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	Also, I had problems with a green slime developing in my tank.

Algae growth is perfectly normal in a healthy tank but sometimes it can take over and become dangerous or simply ugly! The 3 main elements that promote algae growth is light, nutrients and tap water. How often do you put the lights on for and for how long? How often do you do water changes? How often do you fish your fish? Alternatively, you can look at products that reduce algae or possibly think about an algae eater fish but the best solution is to look at what is causing it first.

Hope this has helped in some way.. let me know how it all goes!

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2 Female Bettas
2 Bala Sharks

you should look at getting some fish that will eat algae.

Here's a good site for getting plants .... http://www.java-plants.com

There are a few things you can do to help eliminate algae. One, there are many fine products you can buy that will help to kill the algae. You can also use a special sponge on a stick to simple wipe the algae off of the inside of your tank. There is a certain type of fish, I don't know the proper name but I call them sucker fish, these love to eat the algae off of the inside of a tank. You see them in pet shops and they usually are stuck to the side of the tank sucking off waste. These fish will also suck the waste off of artifical plants and decorations. Some people think that these fish are ugly. If you are one of these people you may wish to consider using snails. Snails do the same thing as the fish-they eat the algae and waste. You can buy white snails which are much preittier than the black ones. One problem with snails is that they multiply rapidly.

Theres 2 reasons to consider if your thinking about an AE:

1) Goldfish live in cold conditions while algae eaters are tropical and need to kept in warm water. Although in saying that, goldfish can live in slightly warmer water too.

2) Goldfish are VERY messy and need to be kept in a large tank! (Never a bowl). They need at LEAST 10 gallons and more as they grow bigger.. What size is your tank? If its not big enough for 1 goldfish, I wouldn't add in any other fish.

3) Algae eaters and goldfish are both bottom feeders which is ok but AE such as plecos and sharks, tend to be very territoral and agressive towards other fish. Since they are both bottom feeders, there might be some fighting from the AE.

As you know, bettas are well known to nip and sometimes bully other fish for being prettier than them lol If another fish has bright coloured fins, they get jealous and fight.. not always with their own kind. When I got my ruby shark I was surprised to see the shark act more agressive than my bettas.. needless to say, sharky is boss now!

Im not suggesting you don't get an AE, its just that there are things to take into considersation but it can be done Smile

So, what size is your tank?

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2 Female Bettas
2 Bala Sharks

The size of your tank will really determine which type of AE you should buy, if any.

Chinese algae eaters, which are the most common, and I suspect these are the "suckermouths" that were referred to earlier, should be avoided unless your tank is > 150g. They grow to around 12" long.

An excellent AE is the SAE (siamese algae eater, also known as siamese flying fox) which is a much better AE than the false SAE, common flying fox.

Plecs are not the best AEs. Most varieties grow very large and they are only really good algae eaters when young.

Snails are excellent algae eaters, as are most shrimp (namely amano shrimp) and these will work in much smaller tanks then any of the others mentioned.

Nemo, what size is your tank then? Very Happy

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2 Female Bettas
2 Bala Sharks

Yeah Nemo, what size is your tank? I have a tropical fish tank and I use live plants in it. But just a few in one corner. You do have to be careful because plants can be easily uprooted. I had one get stuck in my aquariums power filter one time. Now I use the potted plants. They cost a bit more but it's worth it. And I only use one larger plant or two smaller plants, but no more than that. You should add something to your tank to help keep down the algae. Fish fur and feathers has chemicles for that. If you have a gold fish tank--then I would use snails. Just get one or two of them if you are afraid of the snails multiplying too fast.

Thanks for your help guys. Wow! When I decided to start a fish tank I thought that I was only getting a hobby. I had no idea that I would be making so many new friends. My tank is a 20 gallon one. I have three small feeder fish and one beta. I decided not to go with the live plant because it took up too much room. I didn't add any alge eaters yet. I'm going to wait and see how the tank does first. I didn't want to buy a big tank yet untill I know for sure how I'm doing. I went with feeder fish so I wouldn't spend much moeny, in case they die, or something.

I have that same problem, too. I just let my plants float at the top and they seem greener than ever.

Hello everyone!!
Although I don't have any idea of whatever you are asking. But yes interested in knowing this, as I have an aquarium in my house. So, If Live plants are helpful, then I ll also keep them in my fish tank.
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I have a 72 gallon fish tank and I need to know appx. how much it will weigh after I fill it with water because the stand I have for it only holds 95 pounds and the tank weighs almost 30 with nothing in it Im afraid my stand is going to give once I get the water in it
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Too many plant nibblers on your list, I would not plant this tank. There are people who have success with plants and mbuna, but I dont like the nibbled look and it has never worked for me.

I base plant selection on the type of fish Im keeping. I usually go for plastic just because its easier. With "eartheating fish" I dont bother with plants at all. Although there are some fairly realistic looking plastic plants out there, I like the look of real plants better. I would only deal with live plants if the inhabitants of the tank were angels, smaller characins etc. but thats just a personal preference. Even then, I would go with only hardy, common and easy to keep plants like anacharis. Aquascaping of any kind is always an appearance vs. maintainence vs. type of fish kept in the tank thing with me.

I find this to be very strange but funny at the same time the world becomes better and better every day for someone to link a human and a plants together was a very pleasant thought. Why not go with this ideal if plants help us out in numerous ways why not help the pant as I mean that is the reason people get plants to show off so if you?re going to show it off let it assist you in its look by reminding of the various thing it need.