Hydor 350 Professional canister filter ~ 240 – 280 gal/h
Hydor 300W inline heater
Inkbird temperature controller
Finnex Planted + 24/7 light
120 lbs Eco-Complete
Driftwood and rocks
API Test Kits – PH, Nitrite, Nitrate, KH, GH
Dosing
Seachem Excel Flourish - planning on starting light (~1/4 dosage)
Initial Setup – 12/4/2016
Sprinked some Oscomote Plus lightly on tank bottom. Added eco-complete, approximately 2 gallons of treated water to keep from drying out and laid out driftwood/rocks. Large piece of driftwood still floated like a bobber, even after 4 weeks submerged in water and one boiling water bath. Using rocks (lots of them) to keep it weighted down. Received a good squeeze from filters at LFS and added to the tank. Will start dosing Seachem Flourish Excel tomorrow morning. Planning on keeping temperature at 76 F. Planning on lights initially from 10 AM – 4 PM at about 80% white/red custom setting.
Planted the following
Java Moss
Red Wendtii – front right, cutting on front left
Java Fern
Anubias Nana
Hygrophila Corymbosa (Kompakt) – mid left and mid right
Hygrophila difformis (Wisteria) – front left
Nymphaea Zenkeri (Red Tiger Lotus) – back right
Bacopa monnieri (Moneywort) - background
Test results about 45 minutes after filling and running filter
PH: 8.0 – 8.2
Ammonia: 0.25
Nitrite: 0.25
Nitrate: 0
KH: took 9 drops, ~160 ppm
GH – Unsure how to measure. Should I wait until it goes bright orange and then count drops to green?
Questions
Should I be adding Ammonia (pure) to the tank to keep the level up to aid in the cycle or just let the tank run?
I wasn't planning on adding any ferts other than the Excel for a couple weeks. I did order the DIY EI liquid fertilizer from NilocG.
I realize that some of the plants are probably not ideal in the long term (monywort), but we wanted ones that were quick growing and would suck up the nutrients when getting started. Any problems with this?
Any criticism, constructive or otherwise is definitely welcome. Great way to learn.
All of the plants are doing really well, with one exception. The moneywort is growing like a weed and will reach the surface today. I'm sure I will be giving it away or throwing it away if this continues. The crypt has not started melting yet and the anubias has some new growth. The moss hasn't floated away yet. The tiger lotus is in a spot with too much water flow so it is not doing well and I'll probably pull it today. It probably was not a good plant for this setup in the long run any way so we are fine with that.
The PH is still somewhere between 8.0 and 8.2. The ammonia is sitting steady at 1.5 - 2.0 ppm. Haven't seen it drop yet but it has only been a couple of days. I'm dosing one capful of Excel each morning and the lights are running for 6 hours each day.
Guess it is time for the 1 week update. Everything appears to be moving along smoothly. Ammonia is at 0 now. I added enough yesterday to get it up to 1.5 ppm and it was back at 0 again this morning. Nitrites are still around though. Nitrates are high as well.
Ammonia - 0
Nitrite - 2.0 ppm
Nitrates 40 ppm
KH - 140 ppm
GH - 360 ppm (That is using API test kit. SD water analysis states it should be 251-323 ppm)
I have not done a water change yet (no need as far as I'm aware). Only addition has been 1 cap full of Excel each morning. I do have some new plants coming this week so there will probably be some rearranging and not sure if I want to keep the crypt (Red Wendtii). We will also probably remove some of the moneywort to make room for some diversity of stems. Everything appears to be doing really well, no real die off of any type. I was expecting some melting in the first several days but that has not happened either. Hopefully we can start adding fish in the next week or so if the Nitrites go down to 0. The moneywort is definitely a quick grower. The wisteria has new growth as well. Here are some pictures after one week.
Hi there, looks like a good start! Here's some suggestions you might want to consider:
1. I like the layout the driftwood and the rocks. The space underneath the driftwood allows you to put lots of slow growing stuff like the anubias nanas and java ferns.
2. The scape is looking pretty sparse because there is not enough plants. So rather than spreading the fast growing money worts and hygrophillas throughout, why not consider bunching them towards the left side of the tank and leaving your right side looking spacious. You can consider planting a simple plant like the Amazon Sword (or any variants of it) on the right side such that it takes centre stage later.
3. The Tiger Lotus is also a good candidate on the right. Alternatively, it can be right smack in the middle with java ferns behind it to create a contrast.
4. I am a big fan of the red wendtii. The red wendtii could be shifted to the left front.. so that it will be a contrast against the green hygrophillas and money wort.
5. There is a nana on the left side of the driftwood near the water surface. Do watch out for it... as green spot algae will grow on it when it is under strong lights.
I really like the idea of moving the red wendtii to the left side of the tank, especially since I'm planning on planting the new stems on the right side. There should also be a decent contrast with the wisteria on the right as we spread it out (going to keep it low).
We removed the red tiger lotus, there was way too much water movement on the right side and it did not do well (tangled leaves/stems). It probably would've been too much for our tank regardless.
I will definitely keep an eye on the anubias, especially since since we have several more coming. Unfortunately there are some rocks holding the driftwood down in the middle as it still floats like a cork, even after 6 weeks in water.
I think I just didn't like the location of it. However, moving it to the left side is a great idea and we will try that when we receive the new plants.
Looks like you're off to a nice start! I agree with one of the others that the driftwood looks too centered but depending on how you plant around it this can be adjusted. I love the looks of Tiger Lotus, it might be an ideal plant to put just behind the piece of wood so that as it grows it pops up over the wood. Definitely looking forward to seeing it with the next batch of plants added!
Thanks Johnson18. Unfortunately the red tiger lotus is not going to be part of this setup, too much water flow. I should have a new picture with new plants in a couple days once we figure it all out. I'm not expecting the Ludwigia peruensis 'Diamond' to do that well initially since it was grown immersed.
I think the layout will look at bit better (less centered) once we can remove the rocks sitting on the wood, but that may be a while based on how buoyant it still is. We played around with the layout for a long time before settling on this one. Here is is "dry" when we were trying a bunch of different options.
Anubias nangi (tied to a rock for now, not really sure what we want to do with it)
myriophyllum red stem (back left)
Ludwigia peruensis 'Diamond' (back/mid left and some on the back/mid right)
I also did some rescaping based on the suggestions on this thread (thanks again). I moved the moneywort from the back left over to the back right. I think this gives a nice contrast with the red wendtii and hopefully the ludwigia does well although I'm not counting on it. I also moved the hygrophila corymbosa (kompact) from the shade in the driftwood towards the front. It was not receiving enough light there and was suffering. I'm hoping this change helps. It will also help break up the wisteria from the crenata. The cameroon moss was a huge pain in the ass and I have the superglue all over my hands to prove it. However, I really like the way it looks and I hope it does well. Here are some more pictures. I will be doing a water change and filter cleaning this weekend.
The tank finished the fish-less cycle several days ago. All of the plants continue to seem happy. I performed a 50% water change last Sunday (brute trash can on wheels, a pond pump and some PVC "builds" made this really simple). I also changed the Planted + lights to 24/7 mode (6 AM - 10 PM) at that time. The other change I made was a very small dose (5 ml) of Nilocg DIY liquid macros on Monday and 5 ml of micros on Tuesday. This is the recommended dosage for an EI regiment in a 20 gallon tank several times a week. I figured this would be a good place to start once a week on a 60 gallon tank.
There are two other changes. Last night we decided to add a few animals to the tank. We wanted them to be hardy while adding visual interest to the tank. Hardy was a must since the tank just finished cycling and we will be away on a vacation after the new year. So we now have 4 male guppies and 3 nerite (1 zebra, 2 tomato) snails in the tank.
The other addition is the appearance and growth of brown diatoms. They are not terrible yet but have definitely been spreading at a notable rate. I just changed the lighting back to 80% white/red running 10 AM - 4 PM to help control this. I'm not worried yet as I've read that this is pretty common in new tanks.
Good timing @ArchimedesTheDog. I was planning on making an update in the next day or two but you gave me the nudge I needed. I would say things have been more negative than positive lately. I've been battling brown diatoms. It seemed like they went from 0 to 60 in the blink of an eye. One day there was a light dusting in a few spots, the next they were covering everything. Today I removed a bunch of rocks and scrubbed them down outside the tank. I also removed all of the moneywort, rubbed off the diatoms from every leaf, did some trimming and replanted them. I also used my fingers to rub down the plants that could not be removed. Finally I removed the Hygrophila Corymbosa and took a look at that as well. I thought it was diatoms but I think it is something else covering it. Many of the roots were rotting and some of the leaves were blackening (see picture below). I removed all the effected leaves and roots, then replanted it. Also, the Anubias nana has been losing some healthy looking leaves. It is glued to the back side of the driftwood so I may remove it to see what is going on with the roots and rhizome. The tank looks much better now but we'll see how long it lasts.
I did lose one guppy two days (12/22/2016) after adding them to the tank. They looked a bit "bloated" and the other three guppies seemed absolutely fine.
On 12/30/2016 we added 4 Corydoras Sterbai. They are all doing great as far as I can tell, swimming & eating. Then one day ago (1/3/2017) another guppy passed away. It was slowly swimming along the bottom of the tank the day before and at times swimming vertically (tail down / head up). All the other fish seem fine still and there are no visible signs of any problems. The corys and guppies are interacting fine so I'm a bit stumped. The ammonia and nitrites have continued to read 0. The nitrates are around 5 ppm after a water change and 20 ppm right beforehand. I did add some API Melafix to the tank this afternoon as a precaution.
I have some more plants coming in the next day or two and I'll continue to monitor the fish and readings. I have been dosing Excel (1 cap) every other day. I'll do a better update in the next week or two once I have a better idea of where everything stands. Here is a picture of three of the four new tank mates. I'm planning on adding another two once I'm sure all is OK in the tank with the fish.
Thanks. For whatever reason all of my photos (even in the original post) are no longer displaying. They were all uploaded in this site via Resources / Upload Images. Even when I go there all my pictures are not displaying.
I received another order of plants from @Bartohog. If you ever need plants and they are selling what you are looking for I would highly recommend them. I'm still fighting the brown diatoms and I feel like it is a losing battle. I've read conflicting information: turn off the lights for a couple of days, increase the lighting intensity, let it run its course. I'm keeping my fingers crossed that it will run its course. I may have to get some more Nerites (currently have 4) and/or some other livestock help.
I just finished adding the following to the tank.
Staurogyne repens
Helanthium tenellum red (Pygmy chain sword)
Marsilea crenata (this one took a lot of patience as I ordered a lot of this one)
The corys were extremely curious about everything and I will not be surprised if they have caused some floaters by tomorrow morning. Nothing else has changed. Here are some updated pictures (I apologize for the quality, just using a cell phone).
Perservere with the diatoms! Plants looking healthy though, especially the P. palustris. You could probably put some more Crypts in the shaded areas under the wood.
Another thing make sure you don't dose Full EI with your fertilisers that would be major overkill, since this tank is low-tech. Stick to what you are doing with EI for a 20 gallon, once a week thing and you should be fine.
Alternatively you could use dosing calculators to find out what the dosing would be for the EI low-tech version or like PPS-Pro.
Also your Corys probably want more of their kin with them, I would say get at least 6 more, but you probably have space for more. They are so cute when swimming together as a big group!
Thanks Opare, I'm not panicking...yet. The crypt in the front right is going really well and I believe I can separate some of the growths. I just need to figure out how to do that. I currently have the lights on at ~ 80% for 6 hours a day. I have no clue if that will help or hurt the diatom situation, or make no difference at all.
I did make a trip to the LFS yesterday. I picked up 2 more Sterbai Corydoras (6 in total now) and one more Nerite (5 in total now). I also got approximately 17 baby cherry red shrimp. They were about a 1/4" in length (at best) and it was all they had. I did get them for a great price so I figured it was a good way to see how they will do in the tank. I placed sponge over the filter intake to keep them from a journey they are not expecting.
The diatoms will eventually go away as you established the plants. You just need to maintain good water conditions.
You may have to pay attention to the light setting as you do not have CO2. However I think there is no requirement to change it until you have a better idea how your plants are coming along.
Tank is coming along! Early days pass soon enough, and then you'll be wondering what to do with extra plants, like moneywort, that grows inches per week in my tank. More bulk/less light is better through this early stage, esp. w/o CO2.
Thanks @Tanks!, always appreciate feedback (positive and negative are both welcome). I think I'm starting to see a slow down with the diatoms but it is hard to tell since I'm being diligent about cleaning the plants each day as well. There have been a few additions to the tank since my last post:
6 stems of Rotala rotundifolia
2 additional Corydoras Sterbai
5 Amano shrimp
~23 red cherry shrimp
I do not have any good pictures of the tank right now but I'll try to some this evening...although it doesn't really look much different. The rotala was placed just to the left of the myriophyllum (which is doing great and I've already cut/planted new stems). We are down to one guppy who seems perfectly happy and thinks they are a cory. The other guppy exhibited the exact same signs as the other two we lost (slowly swimming along the bottom of the tank the day before and at times swimming vertically, not eating, looking way too thin).
The new batch of cherry shrimp were purchased from a person locally (craigslist) for $1 a piece and were added yesterday after a 50% water change. They are much more active/social than the original ones I added. I was only see the original ones if I shine a light in the tank after dark.
I'm going to post this in the shrimp sub-forum. However, I noticed several shrimp shells on the substrate this morning. Do you typically see these after molting or is this a sign of deceased shrimp?
Here are some updated pictures of the tank. The brown diatoms are still hanging around but do not seem to be spreading as quickly. The Staurogyne repens and Marsilea crenata (added about 2 weeks ago) both seem to be struggling a bit. There is browning, a few holes in the lower leaves. I'm not sure if it is a deficiency of some sort or just because they are new to the tank. Everything else appears to be doing really well: plants, fish and shrimp.
The driftwood still easily floats if the rocks weighing it down are removed. Looks like that will be another test of patience. Here are some pictures.
Shrimp shells are the leftover from the molting unless you see white flesh in them.
Looking good!
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