[Damon]

I think you're on the same lines as myself. I don't believe you HAVE to put 3wpg over a tank. But a solid 2-2.5 wpg doesn't cost much more and laterite isn't expensive. My feelings are if you want a planted tank, spend the few wxtra dollars to make it easy on yourself. Many people wake up and decide "hey I want to add plants to my tank" and get discouraged when the plants fail. Even with low demand plants, they will do much better in a tank that was designed for higher level plants. For instance java fer grows slow. I get 2-3 new plantlets every 14 days in a 2.5 wpg DIY co2 eco-complete tank. I sell them and between my plant clippings, and baby cherry shrimp, the tank pays for itself and upgrades to others.