Thanks, Yardvaark. That is a good system for when you're home, and is merited if you have a big plant investment (whether in big plants or lots of small ones). And what a coincidence - I've actually been looking for something just like that to help catch someone stealing my newspaper quite regularly, but had only seen the more expensive version I've linked below. Maybe this one has a longer range, but with a 20' front yard, I don't need it :-) Currently I have a webcam set up which works for images but not for intercepting, should I wish to do so. Anyway, I have no quibble with the merit of the plant information in what you propose. But tied to addresses... shouldn't happen. It may, but it shouldn't. There are so many downsides. Imagine you buy a house with a huge whatever that is revered all over the world, and you want to remove it to do something else. The Occupy movement might come to your front yard! Drtygrl... there's an idea for my new screen name... "silver_lining" I've hated the one I have ever since Garden Web eliminated capital letters and it looks like I've put a #1 after my name, necessitating the correction of a signature :-) Someday I'll change it but the longer I stick with this one, the harder it gets! Karin L Here is a link that might be useful: a more expensive version

Here are some pics of my planted tanks....some have been posted on here before. This bottom pic is plastic plants and just one of those plastic picture backs taped to the back of the aquarium. I know you are sorting out the good info from the bad...but I really can't express enough that a quarantine tank is VERY IMPORTANT......it regardless of where you purchase your fish.....some fish diseases don't show up for a long time......such as 4 to 6 weeks.....Even if all the fish in the store look healthy....you don't know what they were exposed to before they were put into the store tanks. Sometimes just the stress of shipping causes illnesses to show up. Having managed fishrooms for two pet stores and having my own fishroom.....I have seen this. One time I purchased some huge georgeous swordtails....put them into a quarantine tank for less than a month...all looked healthy......so I didn't wait the 6 weeks or two months.....I added them........I lost the whole tank of fish. The store where I purchased them...was a very reliable fish store that always had healthy looking fish...they were not a pet store! He lost them all too. There was no guarantees in this store...so I had to take the loss........won't mention how many $$ I lost with this mistake.....and I did know better too. The tank had to be taken all apart and disinfected and recycled before new fish could be added.... I would never go without quarantining any fish before adding to a community now......and I quarantine for 6 weeks or more......its a safety precausion...that works. Again, its one of those decisions that you have to make for yourself. The size of the tank....is really up to you....what you want to maintain and the size of space you have. Any of the Innes books, or Axelrod books are good to read. You mentioned an Atlas.....is it the Axelrod atlas? There is also the Baensch Aquarium Atlas.....there are soooo many books out there.....again its difficult to just name one or two that might help. Are you anywhere near an aquarium club? Some clubs also offer long distance membership and usually there is a bi-monthly newsletter where members write about there experiences with plants and fish. Also there are mags such as Tropical Fish Hobbyist, Aquarium Fish Magazine and Freshwater and Marine Aquarium Magazine...there are probably others as well. Hope this helps and doesn't add to the confusion! Sierra

Sounds to me like you want to go high tech if you are are talking about CO2 injection, and really once you get beyond the initial cost of everything you need, it is not that expensive to keep up with. With the lighting you have now (about one watt per gallon) there is a limit of the amount of plants you can grow. Mabey some swords, java ferns and moss. But if you are looking for stem plants and groundcovers like the fancy tanks you are talking about then you may need about 3 watts or more per gallon of water. So for a thirty gallon tank you probably need at least 90 watts of good plant lights. I have a 96 watt Coralife (GOOD Brand!!) strip light on mine, and I think I paid $115 for it. Now keep in mind that the quality of these lights reduces over time, and after about 6 months you will probably need to replace the bulbs. The bulbs are not as expensive as the cost of the "whole" light. Good light is way more important than CO2, but when you get into the bright light, your plants will be trying to grow, and won't be able to with out decent amount of Co2, and fertilizers. As far as your filter, you will probably need a different one, and no airstones or bubble curtains either! They defeat the purpose of CO2 injection. Canister filters are the best, or internal ones. As far as the hood, if you can take the one off that is on there, you could get one of the flat glass ones, and they are not very expensive. I think I paid $20 for one for my 40 gallon. Then set you light on top of it! EASY! Other than that It sounds like you have the other stuff you need. Like I said the initial cost of getting what you need (especially the lights!) is high but keeping up with it isn't that expensive. In the end better quality equipment tends to be more efficient, and lasts longer. For the Co2 you will need a regulator, probably a 5 lb cylinder bottle, carbon dioxide resistant tubing, check valve, bubble counter diffuser. I get my cylinder filled at the local oxygen supply place for about $15 and it lasts about 5 months. If you look on ebay sometimes they have good deals on all this stuff you need. I don't think you need a new setup, just some modifications, thats all. If you decide to go through with it im sure you will be happy with the results. Sometimes your plants grow so fast, that you can divide them and take your extras to the Local fish store and trade them for fish food, or a store credit. Plus you'll have happy plants and fish! Good luck! -Jessica

We did it!!! After reading all of your suggestions about security, coding and plug-ins, etc., I realized that I was in way over my head technically! I emailed Nephew and offered to pay him to fix and finish this for me. He was so sweet and told me that he'd be more than happy to do it, and no way was he wanting any payment for it. He's such a busy guy, with his job, new house and a great wife. As I mentioned earlier, he was so sweet to help me start this back in December, and I've been trying to finish it up on my own ever since then. But WordPress had me so confused! Anyhoo, I told him what you all suggested and he fixed everything for me! And when he went back in yesterday to make the changes, he said that he was really impressed with what I'd done with the blog and that it looked fantastic. I am so relieved and happy that he likes it, as he does this for a living, working for some tech company in Denver. He told me that he's had to go in and fix or help companies and individuals start up their own websites and blogs and mine is the nicest he's ever seen. And so, many thanks for helping me with this. I am very, very grateful. Our clinic's blog website is now ready for our patients and I can breathe again! Lynn