Yes! The iron myth makes makes me disappointed in people as a biochemist. I have vivid reds in my tank that everyone's always asking about, and it's really as simple as adding CO2 and strong lighting. One without the other will not result in vividly red plants. It also helps to have lights with pink tones in them to bring out the reds in the tank visually.
Hello from India. 🇮🇳 I have been following for quite a time now. You explain very well and because of you I am able to have beautiful scape now. Thanks for your explanation and amazing videos.
I liked Filipe Oliveira's tip on this, he said, the trick is to stall the growth rate of the red plants, because the longer they are under the light, the redder they become. So, don't let them grow fast :-)
@@hammad3180 Yes and no. You don't need co2 to get red but to get red you'll be blasting an insane amount of light into the tank. Without co2 that will become an algae mess very, very quickly
There is one key factor that is not mentioned on this video... Temperature, ideally when plants under highlight at cold temperature (26C and below) it produces more caratenoids (like it is sun burned). If your plant is on highlight but on warmer temperature, it will not turn red as its metabolism is faster and production of color pigments (carotenoids) are compensated by Chlorophyll.
Loved it! Brilliant, detailed and well explained, as always. Your channel is now my go-to for Aquascaping information. Thanks for doing so much research before every video!
New aquascaper here but I have to agree so far with my experience. Establishing a 75G to right now which is finally fully planted in my opinion. I don’t dose nitrogen and am running about 5ppm nitrate. AR mini reinicki has some really nice color and looks healthy. Excited to see what my rotala decided to look like in a month or two.
Wow .so amazing and much needed video. I recently start CO2 but I have no strong light . It's full of information video. Plants are so healthy and this scape is my top favourite one. Thanks for all motivation my legend. Goldy
I'll admit the first reason i subscribed is because i really like your voice xD also I'm trying to grow a few red plants in my tank and however I'm pretty reluctant to CO2 injection I'm still gonna take good notes of what you've got to say on the matter. Only watched three videos so far but i like the content and very interesting info in the comments section too
Thanks for the tips Mark! I’m getting a few rotala species for my new setup I may have to try limiting the nitrates if I’m not happy with the colors as they are
I had problems with reds in my pants while having undetectable nitrates. I started dosing a very low amount and this fixed the problem. It seems like a very low number isn't something you want either.
Super vidéo simple efficace et toujour aussi intéressant d'apprendre des nouvelles choses grâce à t'es vidéos. Et merci pour la traduction en français. Si ses possible de mettre la traduction sur toutes les vidéos que tu as faites car j'essaie de les visionner plusieurs fois mais j'ai du mal à comprendre. Je sais que je te demande beaucoup car ses du travail. Si ses pas possible ses pas grave. Encore une fois merci pour ton aide.
I was surprised how much the WRGB light makes the reds pop. I’m only growing crypts, and swords. I have the light set to 50 Red 40 Green and 50 blue and it looks really natural to me.
Great video. I want to add some color to my tank and it seems a little easier to do now seeing this example. If I’m successful 😅. Maybe I’ll post my results online!
Maravilha adorei a DICAS. Fiquei só na dúvida do nitrogênio. Porque uso fertilizantes porwrfert micronutriente em um só frasco.e o macronotriente tudo separado. Justamente está o nitrogênio dosses fracionada todos os dias. Obrigado pela atenção
Saying "not iron" is slightly deceiving. The plat needs some iron, an iron deficiency will result in physiological issues. However, you are correct that the key is not over saturating or not elevating iron beyond a normal range. Coloration variation most often is a reaction to changing light conditions. I really like your video, and think your tank speaks for itself. But, I want to make sure no one tries to deprive a plant iron; it's an essential micro nutrient (often called a secondary macro nutrient) The methodology your sharing fits well with professional agriculture/aquaculture. And ecological data supporting olgeotrophic conditions over the often promoted and misunderstood eutrophic conditions present in most hobby aquariums.
I like Chihiros too. I have a WRGB 2. I am wondering, what settings (e.g. %) you have on the RGB lights (full 100% or some percentage?). I would appreciate if you can share. It would be for my reference. Thanks.
@@MJAquascaping Great tips again thanks ! :) Just to understand you said it's better to have more Red and Blue but you put all of them (including Green) at 100% ? or you have the intensity at 100% and some specific parameters for Red/Green/Blue ? Thanks
@@MJAquascaping Thanks for the reply. Is the setting this way for all your tanks or is it just this one to get the vibrant red. I'm still intimidated with 100% setting. At the moment mine is set to R100%, G50%, B75% on 60P tank to fight BBA. About 2-3 months ago, I got BBA on the monte carlo, dwarf hair grass, bucep, and wood. Not sure if reducing light will help fight it or will it prevent the plants from growing, out competing the algae. I decided to run some water test, looks like nitrates is way overboard(very red on API test kit) and strangely does not go down even when not dosing nitrates and the regular weekly water change. But I think this is a topic best discussed in your BBA fighting guide video. :-)
@@christopheleclercq4931 In the recent Chihiros App, there is no Intensity setting in "Auto" mode. Only % setting for the RGB colors. I used to have R100%G65%B80%, the Hra and Rotala red and pinnatifida were vibrant red at least for me. But with BBA now, I'm trying to see if reducing the light % will help battle it better. Of course I need to fix the nitrate issue in this tank as well.
I'm getting a chihiros but....right now I got a wrgb and...a new led I got customarily made its called a rainbow elite... I got evey single color of the rainbow aka light spectrum... In the led.. I got 100 par at substrate my plants are glowing...
Hi, your video are really professionals, congratulations. About lumen for liter i have a question: i have a tank of 250 liter with a led light of 6500 lumen but the net liters are 200 so to make the calculation i have to use the gross liters 250 or the net liters 200? Thanks for your help. Danilo
Beautiful tank and excelent video. I have a big problem, my rotalas stems are rotting and i dont know why. My tank have about 6 month Old. Amazonia light, co2 and chihiro rgb 2 pro. Kh 3 gh 6 and ph 6.4. H2 aquarist fertilizer. It can be lower k level? Any recomendation? Nitrate and fosfate almost 0 on the water
Strong light has been the major game changer for me. I have started playing with a stronger spotlight effect, specifically for red plants (azolla mexicana convinced me to try), and general lighting for the rest of the tank. Side effect: 3 green unlabeled plants I bought on clearance from my lfs for my Walstad tank have pink growth (one plant) and vibrant new red growth (other two) that I didn't expect. Now, I need to identify the plants😅
I keep my light on 14 hours per day and I dont get algae. I do not inject co2 and i never add ferts. my tank is doing great. gonna try my first red plant.
So using the purple setting on my LED is best for plant growth? I will switch it on during the day and at night when I get home use the white light for a few hours
I have two fluval 3.0 above my 284 litter (75 gallon) tank and according to their specks that's about 7,000 lumens so I need to buy 2 more to make my plants red? I've also looked up Chihiros and I would need the A1201 Plus to fit my tank and put in 19,200 lumens. But I'm reading that number is lumen Flux not lumens which brings be back to I would need 4 of these lights also because they only put out 3,100 lumens. Very confusing.
Hard to answer - a lot depends on the height (substrate to water surface, and whether lights are suspended or directly mounted). I run approximately 18,000 lumens of light on a 250 litre tank. With relative success for some red plants, not all. I face challenges with hard water, the hard water is not itself a real problem, but hard water means it is sometimes a challenge to dissolve enough CO2 (buffering effect) to meet the demand high lighting creates. There are lots of quite economical LEDs available designed for non-aquatic use which will give you more than adequate lumens and spectrum: floodlights (just watch they are not too heavy in green light, as some cheaper 5/6000K units are, they look bright to the human eye), LED fluorescent replacement tubes and lights for hydroponic setups. Traditionally (and Walstad backs this up with research) a combination of warm and cool daylight worked well - so LEDs with say 3-4000K - most LEDs will give you approximately 100 lumens per watt. Good luck but do remember lots of light demands lots of CO2 and if you have a failing filter or forget a water change, Nitrate and Phosphate build-up will, with extra light, give you an algae bloom.
Hi MJ, Greetings from India! To begin with, thanks a lot for your super informative videos!! It makes things easy for beginners like me. More power to you 😊 I have a question regarding your suggestion of 50 lumens/litre. Let’s take an example of a tank size of 120x45x45cm. The total tank volume is about 240 litres. As per your calculation, it will require a strong light of 240x50= 12000 lumens of light, approximately. But a Chihiros WRGB-2 for 120cm is only 7700 lumens. So do we have to add 2 lights to have a stronger light to grow red plants? Please share your thoughts. Thank you!
Interesting question, I have the same thought when I see this kind of calculation regarding lumens/litre or watts/litre, the first thing that comes to mind is does this calculation refers to the volume of water or the tank in itself. Because if we take the calculation that refers to the volume of the total volume of the tank, then it means we need a lot of power and lights just to fully supply the needs of the tank by itself. Whereas, if we consider the calculations with water then it makes much more sense to me. For example with a 120cm tank that has 240 litres of water, we can subtract the total volume of water with substrates volume and other hardscapes, i.e say we want to build a dutch style scape with a deep substrate, a 15cm deep substrate (overkill maybe?), this will reduce the water volume by 81 litres. And when applying the lumens/watt per litre, suddenly it seems more reasonable (240-81=159, therefore requiring 7950 lumens). Enough for a single Chihiros WRGB-2 120. And also by that logic, plants growing would replace the water volume over time although not a lot. But of course, these are just my personal thought which means I can be totally wrong.
@@nurulhadimuslehmohdsuhaimi4 hi, I really can’t understand these calculations if lumens. From the time I’ve asked this question to know, I’ve had 2 tanks 120cm and 50cm. And scales them 3x in the past year. 120cm runs on 2x vivids and the 50cm on a small Neo Helios light, which by these calculations is barely sufficient. But hey, they worked! And I’m more than happy. 😊
Very interesting video. I have a doubt, my substrate is not nutritious, it is black herd( MANADO ). For a Dutch type aquarium like mine, what nitrates and what phosphates would you recommend me to have? My screen is a Twinstar light ii rgb 600 EA. Thank you !
So I understand this video is based on optimizing red colors. Are all your lights run at 100%? I’m running the Fluval 3.0 with 4250lm. / 283ltr tank equals about 15lm/ltr. Is this at least enough for general plant growth, I only have it 70% cause of algae growth, but it’s a newly established tank and am working on reducing chem injection to balance things out. Also a ton of fish!
@@MJAquascaping that dry start moss trick is amazing!!!! My grandfather used to put moss and buttermilk in the blender, for stone paths he built. After a year of gentle irrigation/ spray misting, the paths would look ancient. I never thought of trying that in an aquarium.
Brother... Very nice and informative video.. thanks a lot... I have Chihiros WRGB pro II 60 cm.. 100L tank... Can you please help me with colour settings? Red %, Green %, Blue %, & White %?
Hello there, very informative video. For your 70 liter scapers tank how much was your light intensity at the setup of the tank and do you keep it at 100% currently?
Hello MJ...I just start this hobby...can i ask...is it enough for me to use only 13W of light for my cube tank 1ftx1ftx1ft? Or should i add one more of these light to enhance the light for growing a healthy plants
@@iambabynicejoe5675 if it's white then yes! You can, 13w is good, just keep the red plants directly under the light, give it co2, diy, co2 is just as good as regular co2, start off with a 6 hour photo period. If you have any other questions ask me
@@judethomas3224 it's an RGB light, it have 60 pcs led bulb which consist of (39W/7R/7G/7B)...I hv also using CO2 diy and have some red plants like Rotala, Ludwigia, Limnophila & AR mini... Thanks a lot for your help...really appreciate that
@@iambabynicejoe5675 oh wow perfect, you will see very good reds! Since it's a 1 foot tank i recommend you use apt 0 it's perfect! And plants if you can put rotala blood red sg var, it will look stunning!
I saw you have celestial pearl danios in that tank, ive been thinking about getting some for my 10 gallon, what other species would you say they get along well with ?
You didn't mention CO²... You probably aren't familiar with the light i use however, MY FLUVAL PLANT 3.0 LED is set as such: Pink: 72% Blue: 30% Cold White: 55% Pure White:65% Warm White: 45% And I'm dosing CO² AT 1.5 BPS. I Rarely dose with Iron (Seachem) Your recommendations would be greatly appreciated!
Can somebody please give me some suggestions on strong aquarium lights? I can't find any good relatively budget options that grow these hard to grow plants
I've grown a lot of really red plants under Fluval 3.0 light with A LOT of nitrate. (over 50ppm), they were crazy red and nice. Also no co2. There's more than one way to skin the cat.
I own the same lights (2 Fluvals on my Rio 125) but I'm afraid to raise the blue color Leds above 10% as it is said that they cause algae issues.. Almost all my Leds are about 60% but the Blues remain very low. Should i raise them you think? I understand they must be lower than the Reds but in what percentage should i go to? Thank you!
Same with me, have Fluval plant 3 on a high tank, no CO2 and the reddest plants aren’t even growing in aqua soil, their roots may have made into the bagged aqua soil but I’m not sure. My nitrates are really high and I’m struggling to bring them down (they are sitting between 40 and 80, probably close to 60)
I get deficiency when I increase light intensity, if everything else are good (co2, flow, filter, temperature), does it mean I have to does more? Or perhaps make the substrate richer?
can i grow red plants using led floodlight? i am using 2 led floodlight 30w 6500k 3000lumens each, in my 20g long, as of now i've been using it for about 10days or so, but i haven't reached the vibrant red coloration of my plant. should i change my light? i have co2 injection aswell and a good flow. if anyone can give suggestions, i would appreciate it, thanks.
Except from the aquasoil I have all these. My plants are super red BUT leaves gets black and die. I don't know what to do and about to quit red plants. I have a 450L tank so would cost a lesser fortune to swap out the substrate.....
There has been not one time where I order red plants from eBay and have not arrived healthy. They get delivered wilted and week and by the time I plant them in my aquarium they are almost dead. I have up on those plants. Not easy to take care of them.
The first point is the fundament of the health grow of the plants. 70 lumen needs the most difficult plants 🤔 Did plants can become to much lumen? Have a nice Day and stay safe ☺️
te moi mj tu m’es tes chichiros à fait j’ai 2-series chichiros à Leeds rgb not adjustable than the intensity I put them to 90 percent I’m no longer algae 👍👋🇫🇷 I’m trying to send you a photo of my bin thanks ahead - 👋
Great, yet another myth in the aquarium hobby: You have to have extra iron to make plants get redder. But yeah, I've found that mostly bright light does the trick. Interesting about commentary about nitrogen though; I never would have thought that would be an issue.
Yes! The iron myth makes makes me disappointed in people as a biochemist. I have vivid reds in my tank that everyone's always asking about, and it's really as simple as adding CO2 and strong lighting. One without the other will not result in vividly red plants. It also helps to have lights with pink tones in them to bring out the reds in the tank visually.
yes. co2 is a must for some red plants. for example ludwigia grandulosa.
@@stardust9072 It is for literally every plant.
Hello from India. 🇮🇳
I have been following for quite a time now. You explain very well and because of you I am able to have beautiful scape now.
Thanks for your explanation and amazing videos.
Nice..
I'm happy you like the videos!
I liked Filipe Oliveira's tip on this, he said, the trick is to stall the growth rate of the red plants, because the longer they are under the light, the redder they become. So, don't let them grow fast :-)
🤔now I want to try adding some color to my tank!
So no co2 needed?
@@hammad3180 Yes and no. You don't need co2 to get red but to get red you'll be blasting an insane amount of light into the tank. Without co2 that will become an algae mess very, very quickly
Paso a paso este canal se está convirtiendo en un referente para el diseño acuático.
There is one key factor that is not mentioned on this video...
Temperature, ideally when plants under highlight at cold temperature (26C and below) it produces more caratenoids (like it is sun burned).
If your plant is on highlight but on warmer temperature, it will not turn red as its metabolism is faster and production of color pigments (carotenoids) are compensated by Chlorophyll.
Gonna try this
thank you, love your work and tips ❤️
Loved it! Brilliant, detailed and well explained, as always. Your channel is now my go-to for Aquascaping information. Thanks for doing so much research before every video!
Hey finally RED PLANTS .... Thanks
New aquascaper here but I have to agree so far with my experience. Establishing a 75G to right now which is finally fully planted in my opinion. I don’t dose nitrogen and am running about 5ppm nitrate. AR mini reinicki has some really nice color and looks healthy. Excited to see what my rotala decided to look like in a month or two.
Wow .so amazing and much needed video. I recently start CO2 but I have no strong light . It's full of information video. Plants are so healthy and this scape is my top favourite one. Thanks for all motivation my legend. Goldy
Thanks for the video on red plants
Thanks for the tips & info.👍
Any time!
I'll admit the first reason i subscribed is because i really like your voice xD also I'm trying to grow a few red plants in my tank and however I'm pretty reluctant to CO2 injection I'm still gonna take good notes of what you've got to say on the matter. Only watched three videos so far but i like the content and very interesting info in the comments section too
Best UA-camr because he is a teacher !!!👍❤️❤️
Harika bilgeler için çok teşekkür ederim 🙏
Thanks for the tips Mark! I’m getting a few rotala species for my new setup I may have to try limiting the nitrates if I’m not happy with the colors as they are
Thank you so much for putting this together.. Really helpful
You're very welcome!
I had problems with reds in my pants while having undetectable nitrates. I started dosing a very low amount and this fixed the problem. It seems like a very low number isn't something you want either.
Super vidéo simple efficace et toujour aussi intéressant d'apprendre des nouvelles choses grâce à t'es vidéos. Et merci pour la traduction en français. Si ses possible de mettre la traduction sur toutes les vidéos que tu as faites car j'essaie de les visionner plusieurs fois mais j'ai du mal à comprendre. Je sais que je te demande beaucoup car ses du travail. Si ses pas possible ses pas grave. Encore une fois merci pour ton aide.
love your videos so much, keep up the great work!
Thank you! Will do!
@@MJAquascaping so excited for the room tour!
You're just really really great, hope you get millions of subscribers asap! Keep safe & Thanks for the contents 👌
Thank you so much 😀
C'est vraiment magnifiques 😍
I was surprised how much the WRGB light makes the reds pop. I’m only growing crypts, and swords. I have the light set to 50 Red 40 Green and 50 blue and it looks really natural to me.
Great video. I want to add some color to my tank and it seems a little easier to do now seeing this example. If I’m successful 😅. Maybe I’ll post my results online!
Yo tengo una Week Aqua P600 Pro y me va muy bien con mis plantas.
Stunning tanks!😍😍😍
Maravilha adorei a DICAS. Fiquei só na dúvida do nitrogênio. Porque uso fertilizantes porwrfert micronutriente em um só frasco.e o macronotriente tudo separado. Justamente está o nitrogênio dosses fracionada todos os dias. Obrigado pela atenção
Your red plants are really super. Can we make DIY RGB chihiros copy ?
Very informative video. Would apply these tips in my tank.
Nice information 👍
Saying "not iron" is slightly deceiving.
The plat needs some iron, an iron deficiency will result in physiological issues.
However, you are correct that the key is not over saturating or not elevating iron beyond a normal range. Coloration variation most often is a reaction to changing light conditions.
I really like your video, and think your tank speaks for itself. But, I want to make sure no one tries to deprive a plant iron; it's an essential micro nutrient (often called a secondary macro nutrient)
The methodology your sharing fits well with professional agriculture/aquaculture. And ecological data supporting olgeotrophic conditions over the often promoted and misunderstood eutrophic conditions present in most hobby aquariums.
Yes. Nothing to do with iron.
حلقه جميله مفيدة شكرا لك
Hi your videos are very useful thanks
And... Are you using APT FERTILIZER how is it fertilizer if you are using please tell me how is it?
I like it a lot 👍
I like Chihiros too. I have a WRGB 2. I am wondering, what settings (e.g. %) you have on the RGB lights (full 100% or some percentage?). I would appreciate if you can share. It would be for my reference. Thanks.
Everything on 100%
@@MJAquascaping Great tips again thanks ! :)
Just to understand you said it's better to have more Red and Blue but you put all of them (including Green) at 100% ? or you have the intensity at 100% and some specific parameters for Red/Green/Blue ?
Thanks
@@christopheleclercq4931 he means it's better to have WRGB LED light than classic white light, for ex Chihiros WRGB colors better than the A series.
@@MJAquascaping Thanks for the reply. Is the setting this way for all your tanks or is it just this one to get the vibrant red. I'm still intimidated with 100% setting. At the moment mine is set to R100%, G50%, B75% on 60P tank to fight BBA. About 2-3 months ago, I got BBA on the monte carlo, dwarf hair grass, bucep, and wood. Not sure if reducing light will help fight it or will it prevent the plants from growing, out competing the algae.
I decided to run some water test, looks like nitrates is way overboard(very red on API test kit) and strangely does not go down even when not dosing nitrates and the regular weekly water change. But I think this is a topic best discussed in your BBA fighting guide video. :-)
@@christopheleclercq4931 In the recent Chihiros App, there is no Intensity setting in "Auto" mode. Only % setting for the RGB colors.
I used to have R100%G65%B80%, the Hra and Rotala red and pinnatifida were vibrant red at least for me. But with BBA now, I'm trying to see if reducing the light % will help battle it better. Of course I need to fix the nitrate issue in this tank as well.
I'm getting a chihiros but....right now I got a wrgb and...a new led I got customarily made its called a rainbow elite...
I got evey single color of the rainbow aka light spectrum... In the led..
I got 100 par at substrate my plants are glowing...
Lovely video as usual. What settings do you have your chihiros wrgb2 on?
Everything on 100% 😊
Hi, your video are really professionals, congratulations. About lumen for liter i have a question: i have a tank of 250 liter with a led light of 6500 lumen but the net liters are 200 so to make the calculation i have to use the gross liters 250 or the net liters 200? Thanks for your help. Danilo
Yeah use the gross liters 😊
Thanks a lot, do you have some suggestions for advanced plants for a thank of 250 liters of 100x50x50? If yes thanks so much
Beautiful tank and excelent video. I have a big problem, my rotalas stems are rotting and i dont know why. My tank have about 6 month Old. Amazonia light, co2 and chihiro rgb 2 pro. Kh 3 gh 6 and ph 6.4. H2 aquarist fertilizer. It can be lower k level? Any recomendation? Nitrate and fosfate almost 0 on the water
Companies like chihiros should start a line for big tanks. I like the lighting but I need several of them for any of my tanks.
Wow, 120cm is not enough for you? 😲
I always admire people that can afford for a beautiful massive tanks!
I have 2 a series 45 cm leds. Each at 3780 lumens but only white leds. Will it make plants red?
Yep 👍
Any tips on how to get the red root floaters really red like yours?
Strong light and low nitrates!
@@MJAquascaping Will the Chihiros C2 RGB be enough for a small tank? Referring to floaters only.
Strong light has been the major game changer for me. I have started playing with a stronger spotlight effect, specifically for red plants (azolla mexicana convinced me to try), and general lighting for the rest of the tank.
Side effect: 3 green unlabeled plants I bought on clearance from my lfs for my Walstad tank have pink growth (one plant) and vibrant new red growth (other two) that I didn't expect.
Now, I need to identify the plants😅
I keep my light on 14 hours per day and I dont get algae. I do not inject co2 and i never add ferts. my tank is doing great. gonna try my first red plant.
5:57 what kind of plant is the green one that is emersed on the surface?
So using the purple setting on my LED is best for plant growth? I will switch it on during the day and at night when I get home use the white light for a few hours
Chihiros vivid 2 mini is good light for red plant? For my 60×45×45 tank i go with chihiros vivid mini?
Hello nice video . Btw i have been using chihiros wrgb slim 2. Can you please tell me the best rgb settings?
Tnx for the video! Quick question, what’s the grass like plant on the very right of the second last shot?
pogostemon quadrofolius
I have two fluval 3.0 above my 284 litter (75 gallon) tank and according to their specks that's about 7,000 lumens so I need to buy 2 more to make my plants red? I've also looked up Chihiros and I would need the A1201 Plus to fit my tank and put in 19,200 lumens. But I'm reading that number is lumen Flux not lumens which brings be back to I would need 4 of these lights also because they only put out 3,100 lumens. Very confusing.
Hard to answer - a lot depends on the height (substrate to water surface, and whether lights are suspended or directly mounted). I run approximately 18,000 lumens of light on a 250 litre tank. With relative success for some red plants, not all. I face challenges with hard water, the hard water is not itself a real problem, but hard water means it is sometimes a challenge to dissolve enough CO2 (buffering effect) to meet the demand high lighting creates. There are lots of quite economical LEDs available designed for non-aquatic use which will give you more than adequate lumens and spectrum: floodlights (just watch they are not too heavy in green light, as some cheaper 5/6000K units are, they look bright to the human eye), LED fluorescent replacement tubes and lights for hydroponic setups. Traditionally (and Walstad backs this up with research) a combination of warm and cool daylight worked well - so LEDs with say 3-4000K - most LEDs will give you approximately 100 lumens per watt. Good luck but do remember lots of light demands lots of CO2 and if you have a failing filter or forget a water change, Nitrate and Phosphate build-up will, with extra light, give you an algae bloom.
How long the photo period should be for these plants to turn red? Thanks
Hi MJ,
Greetings from India! To begin with, thanks a lot for your super informative videos!! It makes things easy for beginners like me. More power to you 😊
I have a question regarding your suggestion of 50 lumens/litre. Let’s take an example of a tank size of 120x45x45cm. The total tank volume is about 240 litres. As per your calculation, it will require a strong light of 240x50= 12000 lumens of light, approximately. But a Chihiros WRGB-2 for 120cm is only 7700 lumens. So do we have to add 2 lights to have a stronger light to grow red plants?
Please share your thoughts. Thank you!
Interesting question, I have the same thought when I see this kind of calculation regarding lumens/litre or watts/litre, the first thing that comes to mind is does this calculation refers to the volume of water or the tank in itself.
Because if we take the calculation that refers to the volume of the total volume of the tank, then it means we need a lot of power and lights just to fully supply the needs of the tank by itself.
Whereas, if we consider the calculations with water then it makes much more sense to me. For example with a 120cm tank that has 240 litres of water, we can subtract the total volume of water with substrates volume and other hardscapes, i.e say we want to build a dutch style scape with a deep substrate, a 15cm deep substrate (overkill maybe?), this will reduce the water volume by 81 litres. And when applying the lumens/watt per litre, suddenly it seems more reasonable (240-81=159, therefore requiring 7950 lumens). Enough for a single Chihiros WRGB-2 120.
And also by that logic, plants growing would replace the water volume over time although not a lot.
But of course, these are just my personal thought which means I can be totally wrong.
@@nurulhadimuslehmohdsuhaimi4 hi,
I really can’t understand these calculations if lumens. From the time I’ve asked this question to know, I’ve had 2 tanks 120cm and 50cm. And scales them 3x in the past year. 120cm runs on 2x vivids and the 50cm on a small Neo Helios light, which by these calculations is barely sufficient. But hey, they worked! And I’m more than happy. 😊
Very interesting video. I have a doubt, my substrate is not nutritious, it is black herd( MANADO ). For a Dutch type aquarium like mine, what nitrates and what phosphates would you recommend me to have? My screen is a Twinstar light ii rgb 600 EA. Thank you !
So I understand this video is based on optimizing red colors. Are all your lights run at 100%? I’m running the Fluval 3.0 with 4250lm. / 283ltr tank equals about 15lm/ltr. Is this at least enough for general plant growth, I only have it 70% cause of algae growth, but it’s a newly established tank and am working on reducing chem injection to balance things out. Also a ton of fish!
Is Fluval Stratum soil good to use?
Firs-
Okay maybe not but oh well aye 😎
Nice, when is the part 2 of te aquascape coming out?
Probably in the end of August! I'm doing something special which takes some time
@@MJAquascaping that dry start moss trick is amazing!!!!
My grandfather used to put moss and buttermilk in the blender, for stone paths he built. After a year of gentle irrigation/ spray misting, the paths would look ancient.
I never thought of trying that in an aquarium.
Hi MJ !
Thank you for this guide, you tell us to put more Red/Blue but can you tell us your RGB % please ? :)
Brother... Very nice and informative video.. thanks a lot... I have Chihiros WRGB pro II 60 cm.. 100L tank... Can you please help me with colour settings? Red %, Green %, Blue %, & White %?
Any chance you can make a series on just using gravel substrate no co2 and just using liquid fertilisers?
Min 3:30 which is that moss big one?
Strong light will produce more algea ???
Can we try nitrate limitations with dennerle scapers soil?
If the red plant has grown green under a dim light, if i add a high light will those leaves turn red or does it only happen to the new growth?
Earthlings: Eat your greens 🥬💚
Kepler-452b: Eat your reds 🍎❤️
Hello there, very informative video. For your 70 liter scapers tank how much was your light intensity at the setup of the tank and do you keep it at 100% currently?
In the early stages I started with 60% intensity. Now it's on 100%
Hello MJ...I just start this hobby...can i ask...is it enough for me to use only 13W of light for my cube tank 1ftx1ftx1ft? Or should i add one more of these light to enhance the light for growing a healthy plants
Its more than enough! Are you talking about the neo Helios light
@@judethomas3224 No it's just a cheap local light
@@iambabynicejoe5675 if it's white then yes! You can, 13w is good, just keep the red plants directly under the light, give it co2, diy, co2 is just as good as regular co2, start off with a 6 hour photo period. If you have any other questions ask me
@@judethomas3224 it's an RGB light, it have 60 pcs led bulb which consist of (39W/7R/7G/7B)...I hv also using CO2 diy and have some red plants like Rotala, Ludwigia, Limnophila & AR mini... Thanks a lot for your help...really appreciate that
@@iambabynicejoe5675 oh wow perfect, you will see very good reds! Since it's a 1 foot tank i recommend you use apt 0 it's perfect! And plants if you can put rotala blood red sg var, it will look stunning!
I saw you have celestial pearl danios in that tank, ive been thinking about getting some for my 10 gallon, what other species would you say they get along well with ?
So if I have 100% white light
How much % should red and blue be?
You didn't mention CO²...
You probably aren't familiar with the light i use however,
MY FLUVAL PLANT 3.0 LED is set as such:
Pink: 72%
Blue: 30%
Cold White: 55%
Pure White:65%
Warm White: 45%
And I'm dosing CO² AT 1.5 BPS.
I Rarely dose with Iron (Seachem)
Your recommendations would be greatly appreciated!
Can somebody please give me some suggestions on strong aquarium lights? I can't find any good relatively budget options that grow these hard to grow plants
I've grown a lot of really red plants under Fluval 3.0 light with A LOT of nitrate. (over 50ppm), they were crazy red and nice. Also no co2.
There's more than one way to skin the cat.
Totally agree with you!
I own the same lights (2 Fluvals on my Rio 125) but I'm afraid to raise the blue color Leds above 10% as it is said that they cause algae issues..
Almost all my Leds are about 60% but the Blues remain very low.
Should i raise them you think? I understand they must be lower than the Reds but in what percentage should i go to?
Thank you!
@@makis206 you paid for the lamp, use it at 100% . If you have algae issues, then shorten the period, not the intensity.
@@makis206 agreed
Same with me, have Fluval plant 3 on a high tank, no CO2 and the reddest plants aren’t even growing in aqua soil, their roots may have made into the bagged aqua soil but I’m not sure. My nitrates are really high and I’m struggling to bring them down (they are sitting between 40 and 80, probably close to 60)
I get deficiency when I increase light intensity, if everything else are good (co2, flow, filter, temperature), does it mean I have to does more? Or perhaps make the substrate richer?
Strong light and co2 for red plant NOT iron
No wonder my red plants never grew. I dosed them like a maniac to try and keep them healthy 😂
Somehow only my green plants grew
can i grow red plants using led floodlight? i am using 2 led floodlight 30w 6500k 3000lumens each, in my 20g long, as of now i've been using it for about 10days or so, but i haven't reached the vibrant red coloration of my plant. should i change my light? i have co2 injection aswell and a good flow. if anyone can give suggestions, i would appreciate it, thanks.
Except from the aquasoil I have all these. My plants are super red BUT leaves gets black and die. I don't know what to do and about to quit red plants. I have a 450L tank so would cost a lesser fortune to swap out the substrate.....
Super
CHIHIROS WRGB-2 or TWINSTAR SA1200 III ??? Which one is Better for 4ft Tank ??
Chihiros WRGB2
@@MJAquascaping Thank you ,But may I know the Reason & Difference Btwn Them.
There has been not one time where I order red plants from eBay and have not arrived healthy. They get delivered wilted and week and by the time I plant them in my aquarium they are almost dead. I have up on those plants. Not easy to take care of them.
Even with 0ppm Nitrates, my rotala H'ra isn't turning red. Any tips?
does R= 85% G= 50% and B= 80% works with this? I'm setting my lights to be like that.
hi can you still grow red plants if you use liquid co2
no
The first point is the fundament of the health grow of the plants.
70 lumen needs the most difficult plants 🤔
Did plants can become to much lumen?
Have a nice Day and stay safe ☺️
Lol and im here sosing iron every other day. Im going to try and lower the white light and see what happens.
So The Way i being stingy of my fert make it red and less Algea.... hmm hmm
Aah got it... I have to basically sell my soul
I don’t have co2 🤷 😢✌️🇨🇦
i really surprised when i see ur RED ROOTS FLUITANS became super red... i tried many ways but still brownie
I've just known all in one without nitrate fertilizer exist 😆
👍❤️👋🇫🇷
te moi mj tu m’es tes chichiros à fait j’ai 2-series chichiros à Leeds rgb not adjustable than the intensity I put them to 90 percent I’m no longer algae 👍👋🇫🇷 I’m trying to send you a photo of my bin thanks ahead - 👋
A verdade é , quem não tem dinheiro para pagar cilindro de CO2, se contente com plantas somente de fácil cultivo e verdes no seu aquario plantado
How lucky we are that algae doesn’t grow in CO2 rich water. Imagine it did
That's a lot of physics, chemistry and biology..
Well newsflash, life on earth is complex!
Natans is the easiest plant to make red
Great, yet another myth in the aquarium hobby: You have to have extra iron to make plants get redder. But yeah, I've found that mostly bright light does the trick. Interesting about commentary about nitrogen though; I never would have thought that would be an issue.
You are wrong mate rotala wallichii needs No3 or it'll die
But low nitrates + strong light = cyano.
pretty sure you're just using red nail polish on those
😂
Co2🤣 duh
Or you can get a plastic red plant 🤷♂️🤣
Plastic plants 👎🏻
Lol