Well to begin with, I moved from my beloved city (NYC) to Petersburg Virginia! I left my wonderful job with the FDNY to be with my family and basically have a better life more suited for me (slower paced and less expensive homes lol). So I had to break down this tank and start new. I'm glad I did because I realized a few mistakes I had been making and then learned from them. I feel better about the tank and how things are turning out for me. I learned patience and research are very integral in this hobby. I noticed making a habit of the good things aren't as hard I thought they were. I even have a "journal" or Record book of all the ferts, water changes and parameters for the week! I'm usually not that organized lol. I have a small room in the back of the house to keep all my things including the tank. I cant seem to find my CF card which had the original photos of the beginning of this tank ( I did mention I am not very organized right?) so we're going to have to jump right into this one.
So here she is:
Moving day
The new home. Yes, that's a window but its only view is of the dining room lol.
Some better shots of how it is now. It's actually gotten a lot more clearer.
All in all, the tank is doing fine. I had a bacterial bloom that lasted about 2 weeks maybe less. I just kept up with my normal routine with it.
Plants list:
Blyxa J.
Giant HairGrass
Purple Bamboo
Rotala Macandra
HC (I'm going to be ordering a lot from a member here, who I keep forgetting to email back, Sorry!)
Equipment and Ferts:
Giesemann AquaFlora x2 and Midday Sun x2 T5HO x8 hours.
Co2 via GLA 10 lb double manifold into 2 Inline Atomic Diffusers.
Two Eheim 2217s with full media and 100ml of Purigen in each.
ADA Aquasoil 2 with PowerSand Special.
RootMedic Root Tabs in the rear of the tank.
Dosing RootMedics Macro/Mirco solution.
Micro 12 pumps on Sun-Tues-Thurs-Sat. Macro is Mon-Wed-Fri-Sun.
Current inhabitants of the tank are a few dozen Pond Snails and about 50-100 Ramshorn Snails.
I still have a GH of 8-9 and KH of 2-3. I'm thinking if I can acclimate CRS/CBS or RCS very carefully I might be able to start a colony, but I don't know if that water might be hard enough to cause molting problems. I'll try anyway.
I need to get the HC ordered so I can get that carpet going. I was thinking about holding off on shrimp till the HC can get a good grip. ODing with Co2 should help this process.
I don't like the GHG. I would like to get E. Vivipara back there instead. This is just way too stiff! Blyxa is growing very very well. Purple Bamboo not so well. R. Macandra is doing ok.
Hope you enjoy and stick with me on this 2nd or 3rd journey lol.
So here she is:
Moving day
The new home. Yes, that's a window but its only view is of the dining room lol.
Some better shots of how it is now. It's actually gotten a lot more clearer.
All in all, the tank is doing fine. I had a bacterial bloom that lasted about 2 weeks maybe less. I just kept up with my normal routine with it.
Plants list:
Blyxa J.
Giant HairGrass
Purple Bamboo
Rotala Macandra
HC (I'm going to be ordering a lot from a member here, who I keep forgetting to email back, Sorry!)
Equipment and Ferts:
Giesemann AquaFlora x2 and Midday Sun x2 T5HO x8 hours.
Co2 via GLA 10 lb double manifold into 2 Inline Atomic Diffusers.
Two Eheim 2217s with full media and 100ml of Purigen in each.
ADA Aquasoil 2 with PowerSand Special.
RootMedic Root Tabs in the rear of the tank.
Dosing RootMedics Macro/Mirco solution.
Micro 12 pumps on Sun-Tues-Thurs-Sat. Macro is Mon-Wed-Fri-Sun.
Current inhabitants of the tank are a few dozen Pond Snails and about 50-100 Ramshorn Snails.
I still have a GH of 8-9 and KH of 2-3. I'm thinking if I can acclimate CRS/CBS or RCS very carefully I might be able to start a colony, but I don't know if that water might be hard enough to cause molting problems. I'll try anyway.
I need to get the HC ordered so I can get that carpet going. I was thinking about holding off on shrimp till the HC can get a good grip. ODing with Co2 should help this process.
I don't like the GHG. I would like to get E. Vivipara back there instead. This is just way too stiff! Blyxa is growing very very well. Purple Bamboo not so well. R. Macandra is doing ok.
Hope you enjoy and stick with me on this 2nd or 3rd journey lol.