Latest Shouts In The Shoutbox - Edit Your Setting - View Shoutbox

I have been toying with the idea of hanging plants over my tank, possibly leaving some of the lids open.
My tank......

Any ideas, of course I'll have re-do the lighting or end up with cooked plants.
They could hang off the scaffold pole or be fixed to the wall, in baskets/pots of course.

This post has been edited by tenby2 on Jul 15 2010, 05:00 PM

I had an Ivy that I had growing inside the tank and the main part was above the tank and the roots in the tank it was really nice looking, I'll see if I can find a picture of it.

Nice looking tank, tenby!


Are you trying to cover up / disguise those lights, or just fill in the space over the tank? I can picture some plants placed on top of your tank, but anything also hanging from the light pole might appear too cluttered looking . . .


You'd still need room to do maintenance, so anything you put up or hang up would have to be moved every time you did.


All best,
Joe

Tenby,

I also had another thought . . .

If you are looking to help to "fill in" the space above your tank, how about removing some of the lids above your tank, and planting some plants that would grow upwards and out of the water towards your lights?

Off the top of my head, I can't recall the names of the plant species that would do this, but I know that there are some. When I had my Planted Tank, I only kept easy-to-grow fully aquatic plants . . .

After some discussion with curviceps in the SB, he thought that your cichlids might uproot such plants.

But I think it would be possible to plant them in containers and then submerge them in the gravel.

HTH


All best, and impressed by your system,
Joe

Thanks for your suggestions and yes Mick is right my fish will uproot the plants. I did try onion plants once thinking they'd be quite heavy, wrong no trouble for the bocourti.
The pole and lights can be removed completly, but I'd rather not but will of course reposition the fittings probably removing the halides.
I was thinking of some kind of hanging plant system and with some lids open, there are ten of them, the water evaporation will help the plants. I realise I'd lose water but to refill is easy and I don't have a water meter.

This post has been edited by tenby2 on Jul 16 2010, 05:46 PM

OK, Tenby .. . . .

If you removed some of those metal halide lamps, you could indeed add a few hanging baskets of "Iron Plant" (Pothos) , or "Grape Ivy", or "Wandering Jew" over your tank . . . but why? . . . .


Once again . . . . WHY do you want to do this???


Sorry to be so dense, mate . . . .


All best, and interested,
Joe

Why a Joe, really 'cos I think it'd look good and why not

me I would just do it and see what happens if it is not what you want or it does not work out the way you want it to then go back to the way it was...too simple.....

Ratty has a good point!

OK


I was just confused because if you remove the lighting, plants won't grow very well, etc. The area directly above the tank would probably be a bit more humid if you remove some of the lids, but would any of the fish jump out?



All best,
Joe

I seem to remember a topic way back about this but cant find it just now although I am sure PFK did a feature about something similar in the past. The plants formed a part of the filtration of the tank they were above, very interesting. Might be worth a search of their site?

Not sure the plants would help the filtration if they're outside the tank, so to speak!
But as you say Ratty has a point, I'll never know unless I try.
Regarding lighting, I am an electrician, lighting not a worry.
I have time off work in August watch this space!

IIRC it was because water was pumped up into the trays they lived in. It all sounded a bit off the wall but looked great

of course if the roots are in the water they will draw from the water what they need and perhaps draw some unwanted stuff out too......

really, I personally do not like working with electricity so I have a few jobs if you are bored with what you are doing....lol.....

Is that an intvatation Ratty?

it is if you are ever in my area my door is open to visits and members.........just bring your tools....lol....