Read the situation first
Tank size, planting level, livestock, experience. The same "best filter" changes when any of these change.
A field guide for planted tanks
The right gear
for your
exact
setup.
Gear guides for planted freshwater aquariums. Answer four questions and get a full setup — filter, heater, light, substrate, CO₂ — picked for your tank size, plants, and livestock.
4
questions, one setup
8
gear categories
3
long-form guides
The setup calculator picks
Fluval 107 · Eheim Jager 100W · Chihiros WRGB II
20-gal high-tech, community fish, intermediate
The approach
One pick, with reasons.
Every decision page names a winner for a specific situation — your tank size, your plants, your livestock — and explains who the alternatives are for. When the situation changes, the pick changes.
Pick one, with reasons
Every decision page names a winner and explains who the alternative is for. No padded "it depends."
Update when the hobby does
Picks carry a last-updated date. When community consensus shifts or a product is discontinued, so does our pick.
Start here
The long-form guides.
Three pillar pieces for when you want the whole picture, not just a single pick.
Complete guide
Starting a planted tank
Tank, filter, heater, light, substrate — the order they matter and the picks that won't bite you later.
Read the guideFor beginners
The low-tech planted tank
No CO₂. Modest light. The plants that actually thrive, and the ones to avoid.
Read the guideNano builds
Nano shrimp tank setup
How to build a 5–10 gallon shrimp tank that stays stable and keeps babies alive.
Read the guideThe fastest path
Four questions. One setup. Yours.
Tank size. Planting level. Livestock. Experience. We'll build the right gear list — with honest rationale for every pick.
Run the calculator