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Trenton's ADA 60P Journal - Tank Planted

53K views 120 replies 33 participants last post by  R2D2 
#1 · (Edited)
Current FTS (August 24, 2012).

http://www.flickr.com/photos/60413606@N05/7857799118/http://www.flickr.com/people/60413606@N05/

Hey everyone,

This journal will be chronicling my iwagumi style ADA 60P and what I found out along the way. I have found out very quickly that there is no cut and dry method of doing things so bear with me as I try to make sense of it all.

My aim is to make my journal detailed so that others can get help from it if needed. I don't consider myself to know very much, but I am learning more every day.

I just really want to thank everyone on TPT for taking time out of their lives to post their own experiences, journals, replies, etc. Without these invaluable resources, I would be making a lot more mistakes than I am going to!

Current Setup - Rockwall Mountain Scape
Red denotes planned/unpurchased
Blue denotes in the mail!

Soil/Substrate:
- ADA Aqua Soil New Amazonia Normal (9+3 liters)
- ADA Aqua Soil New Amazonia Powder (3 liters)
- ADA Clear Super, Bacter 100, Tourmaline BC, Penac W and Penac P

http://www.flickr.com/photos/60413606@N05/7158189677/http://www.flickr.com/people/60413606@N05/

http://www.flickr.com/photos/60413606@N05/7343391924/http://www.flickr.com/people/60413606@N05/

Hardscape:
- Rocks collected at our cabin in B.C.
The rocks were scrubbed and disinfected with bleach water and tested for suitability with the API Nitrate #1 drops. No bubbles were present.


http://www.flickr.com/photos/60413606@N05/7158171553/ http://www.flickr.com/people/60413606@N05/

http://www.flickr.com/photos/60413606@N05/7158184067/http://www.flickr.com/people/60413606@N05/

Filtration/Flow:
- Eheim Classic 2215
- Media TBD
- Hydor 200w Heater
- Aquatic Magic 13mm Lily Pipes


http://www.flickr.com/photos/60413606@N05/7158207725/http://www.flickr.com/people/60413606@N05/

http://www.flickr.com/photos/60413606@N05/7343402510/http://www.flickr.com/people/60413606@N05/

CO2 Distribution:
- 5lb Aluminum Cylinder
- Go CYL-20 SS Regulator
- Clippard Mouse Solenoid
- Swagelok SS-SS2-A
- Assorted Swagelok Fittings and Check Valve
- Aquatic Magic Bubble Counter
- Aquatic Magic Rhinox 2000 Distributer
- Aquatic Magic Drop Checker


http://www.flickr.com/photos/60413606@N05/7343432916/http://www.flickr.com/people/60413606@N05/

Light:
- Aqua Medic Sunbeam 2x24W T5HO
- Giesemann Midday
- DIY Conduit Light Hanger


http://www.flickr.com/photos/60413606@N05/7158228491/http://www.flickr.com/people/60413606@N05/

Flora:
- Hemianthus Callitrichoides 'Cuba' (HC)
At this point as I am just trying to figure everything out so I will be sticking with one carpet plant. I will try more plants/mosses in the future though once I get the hang of everything. I would like to try out: mini micro sword, DHG, e. tenellus and various other mosses.

Fauna:
- 12 Rummy Nose Tetra
- 6 Panda Corydoras
- 4 Otocinclus Vittatus (Otos)
- 4 Amano Shrimp
- 2 Long fin GBR

Fertilizers:
- Pfertz NPK and Micros
- ADA ECA, Green Bacter, Green Gain and Phyton-Git

Misc.:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/60413606@N05/7158205871/http://www.flickr.com/people/60413606@N05/

So far it has been a big struggle to try to source everything that I need living in Calgary, AB. I have had to buy pretty much everything online from the USA or Vancouver, BC. This means a lot of shipping costs but the alternative is waiting for an order to come in at my LFS and pay double the price anyways so shipping is worth it.

Currently I am waiting a couple of packages. The 60P among other things has finally been in stock, so it is being shipped right now from AFA! I will have to wait till the end of July though to plant and fill as I am on holidays for about 2 weeks.

I can't wait to share my experiences with you all. Thanks for checking out my journal!

-T
 
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#40 ·
Thank you!

I'm not quite sure yet how high I am going to hang the light. Seeing as how it is by the couch, there is already light leaking from the side a lot so I don't want to raise it up to much. We are only home in the evening though so I can probably the cut the lighting period down to just when we are home, that way I don't have to raise the light too much.
 
#44 ·
As I was scrolling down, I had to do a double take! :D LOL!! I saw that you got your hardscape in a few days ago, but I was shocked when I saw the tank "planted".....I thought to myself "Holy CRAP that's nice!" and saw that you Photoshopped that in.

If you get your HC to grow like that, I think that will be pretty nice looking! I don't think that you need to add anything else....keep it simple! Therein lies the beauty of Iwagumi, right?
 
#46 ·
This made me laugh when I read it! I wish it was at that point already.

I think I have to keep it simple at this point anyways. Better do something simple and right, then complicated and screw up royally. Sure it would be "easy" for me to plant 10 different things but I have no idea how they grow at this point.
 
#49 ·
Thanks, I dunno about the neighborhood though…

I have to admit, when I saw the first pick of your hardscape it was cool but not my favorite. But from 3 angles, that is crazy stuff. Love it.

I personally think just HC is a bit boring, only because the rocks are smooth. I think a bit of Hydrocotyle of some type, maybe a bit of belem, or some other foreground that isn't round leaved would add just the right amount of character. I wouldn't say that HC alone wouldn't do it but just adding some extra "roughness" will do your scape and rock texture well, IMO.
This is the thing that I have been thinking about as well. If I start to change the one rock, it may upset the whole balance seeing as how it has to be viewed from three sides. Right now I think I have laid it out in such a way as not being too much of an eye sore from each side while still maintaining some dramatic/unstable lines to draw the eyes across.

I am beginning to think that just HC may be boring as well. Once I did that photoshoped version, I thought maybe I should add something else. I was thinking I might add some taller plants between the rocks to make it look more like a natural outcropping of rocks. My LFS brought in some new plants and they have some DHG and micro sword that looked pretty nice as well as some other small taller plants that could suit those taller areas. I kind of wanted to go for a natural look, would it be best to put dividers between the HC and DHG if I put that in? DHG will take over my tank otherwise won’t it?
 
#48 ·
I have to admit, when I saw the first pick of your hardscape it was cool but not my favorite. But from 3 angles, that is crazy stuff. Love it.

I personally think just HC is a bit boring, only because the rocks are smooth. I think a bit of Hydrocotyle of some type, maybe a bit of belem, or some other foreground that isn't round leaved would add just the right amount of character. I wouldn't say that HC alone wouldn't do it but just adding some extra "roughness" will do your scape and rock texture well, IMO.
 
#50 ·
Sorry, I didn't mean to say that I didn't like the hardscape, I just am saying it becomes way more impressive after you realize that it's supposed to have 3 angles.

I haven't done DHG as HC but DHG grows really fast for me. To be honest, I haven't used it in a scape for that reason. I put some in my 20 long to try it out and it doubled in size every 2-3 days. Most people think that if you are using it with something else, a divider is a must.
 
#51 ·
I knew what you were saying, I was just trying to explain myself and the thought process behind the way a laid it out to be viewed from three sides. I probably would have done it differently if it was to only be viewed from the front.

Yeah, I’m kind of sketched to use DHG for that very reason as well. Maybe I will try some micro sword between the rocks or something, we will see.


On another note, my LFS now has cultured HC in stock. It’s so tempting to buy some and plant right now… how long can it go without human intervention?? *Sigh* I still need to wait though cause I still don’t have everything for the regulator yet.

Also, I picked up an ADA thermometer yesterday as well as some Hikari Mini Algae Wafers, Hikari Tropical Sinking Wafers and New Life Spectrum Small Fish Formula. I will pick up some frozen foods later on to feed as well (Haven’t decided which ones yet though).

At my LFS they had shrimp are marked as “Algae Eating Shrimp” are they the same as Amanos? They looked the same to me but I don’t know if there are similar breeds or something.

-T
 
#52 ·
Updated scape. Quote taken from my hardscape critique thread.

Here is the update. More back to the original one I made. (Don't mind the tape, I just used it as a quick reference for the golden ratio points that I wanted to use.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/60413606@N05/7498092474/ t

http://www.flickr.com/photos/60413606@N05/7498086420/ http://www.flickr.com/people/60413606@N05/

http://www.flickr.com/photos/60413606@N05/7498083516/http://www.flickr.com/people/60413606@N05/
-T
 
#56 · (Edited)
Okay so you referred me to here, but I wanted to know how you tested those rocks - vinegar is not a strong enough acid to tell if they are inert, and im %99 positive that kind of rock is not inert as I have seen it in the field many times and tested it in hopes that I could use it, but it always foams to the HCL test!

edit: I see I am completely blind.. well thats awesome that you found inert stones!
 
#59 ·
Trenton, I used to cut smallholes in the HC carpet once it was fully grown, but before it started to grow vertically thick. Doing so promotes horizontal growth; the appearance one is trying for is a mini-swiss cheese like pattern that keeps the HC growing horizontally while maintaining the appropriate height. It's time consuming work though, but the results are worth it. Glosso is one that doesn't float up off the substrate, but E. Hydropiper is another that (while rare) doesn't float either - its root system is very deep unlike the much shallower rooting HC. I think that Stauro, Anubias, Moss maybe even some Hygrofilia Compacta would all be good options for the spaces between the rocks. And you're welcome - I'm happy to help! ;)
 
#60 · (Edited)
Got back from my vacation and have been pretty busy since. Got the tank planted and regulator built too! Bear with me, this may be a long post...

Got all the pieces to build the regulator. Since the needle valve had Swagelok fitting I decided to go with all Swagelok pieces.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/60413606@N05/7658467080/ http://www.flickr.com/people/60413606@N05/
Here are all the pieces layer out (Opposite side of actual output).

http://www.flickr.com/photos/60413606@N05/7658459490/ http://www.flickr.com/people/60413606@N05/
Put together!

http://www.flickr.com/photos/60413606@N05/7658452086/ http://www.flickr.com/people/60413606@N05/

Here are the plants I bought. I didn't want to wait to get any shipped, so I didn't get exactly what I wanted, but pretty much. The HC pots came with some other plants that I used as well. We will see how they grow in.

Hemianthus Callitrichoides 'Cuba'
Lilaoepsis Brasiliensis
Juncus Repens (The lady accidentally gave me this one instead of another pot of Lilaoepsis)
Cyperus Helferi (?? There was no label at the store)
Ammania sp. 'Bonsai' (Also known as Rotala Indica)
Crytpcoryne Becketti 'Petchii'
Echinodorus 'Red Flame'

http://www.flickr.com/photos/60413606@N05/7658380278/ http://www.flickr.com/people/60413606@N05/
I found it pretty difficult to plant the stuff in the ADA Aqua Soil. I also wrecked a lot of my slopes, but i figured that may happen. I will fix it once the plants start to take root. I thought that I had everything well in the soil, but after I filled, a bunch of them came up. I used crumpled up paper to fill, finally finished everything at 1am in the morning tuesday. At this point, I didn't have CO2 tank filled yet, so I used Excel for the first two days.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/60413606@N05/7658445534/ http://www.flickr.com/people/60413606@N05/

http://www.flickr.com/photos/60413606@N05/7658437410/ http://www.flickr.com/people/60413606@N05/
The morning after, no more bunches came up, yay!

http://www.flickr.com/photos/60413606@N05/7658429110/http://www.flickr.com/people/60413606@N05/
After the first water change. I will be trimming that Ammania down once it roots. At this point, everything wants to float still so I don't want to touch anything. I tried replanting some HC and another bunch comes up, so I will leave it.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/60413606@N05/7658422544/ http://www.flickr.com/people/60413606@N05/
In-situ.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/60413606@N05/7658406474/ http://www.flickr.com/people/60413606@N05/
After second water change. Got the CO2 in too! My diffuser is not working very well though. There are only bubbles coming out in one area and they are large... anybody have any ideas? Could I have wrecked by putting too much flow of CO2 through it?:icon_redf

http://www.flickr.com/photos/60413606@N05/7658399182/ http://www.flickr.com/people/60413606@N05/

http://www.flickr.com/photos/60413606@N05/7658384652/ http://www.flickr.com/people/60413606@N05/

I installed the supplied ADA check valve inline before the bubble counter. This morning there was water in the line up till that point. Is this normal? Is there a leak in my system? I think I will leak check it tonight to make sure there are none.

And one last thing, I am having trouble keeping the bubbles at a constant rate. I had to turn my regulator outlet pressure to less than 10 psi and then the needle valve doesn't seem to change the flow. Is this normal, or does it take a while for the change to take affect once I turn the needle valve?

I think I may have seen some type of algae yesterday. It looked like hair algae. Will take picture of it if there is some of it tonight.

Till next update,
-T
 
#61 · (Edited)
Uh Oh

I hate to say it, but I suspect that something's wrong with your pressure and you probably have a leak somewhere. What are all those pieces with the regulator? I think that's your problem - you have so many different parts that each one is a place for a leak and failure. The fact that water is filling your airline tubing suggests that you don't have enough static pressure to keep the water out, which says "I'm leaking" to me. Another symptom of insufficient pressure is the fact that the diffusor is only putting out bubbles from one area, and the bubbles themselves are large. They won't be microbubbles unless you have an atomizer type diffusor. Perhaps others can suggest some alternate theories? By my count you have no less than 5 screw points with teflon that could be leaking all at the same time at different speeds. Since this is your first tank, I would have donated to buy you a new Milwaukee (I've used more than one of these over the past decade and they've never failed me yet) had I known you were going to build your own, lol! Definitely leak test everything and keep us posted.

Also I'm sure that I don't have to tell you (as you've already learned) don't touch the HC until its started to spread really well. It will just keep floating up on its own. Keep up the water changes while checking the ammonia and no ferts (except maybe a little K) for a least a week. Those are my suggestions, others can elaborate on their strategies... Hope this helps!
 
#64 ·
I hate to say it, but I suspect that something's wrong with your pressure and you probably have a leak somewhere. What are all those pieces with the regulator? I think that's your problem - you have so many different parts that each one is a place for a leak and failure. The fact that water is filling your airline tubing suggests that you don't have enough static pressure to keep the water out, which says "I'm leaking" to me. Another symptom of insufficient pressure is the fact that the diffusor is only putting out bubbles from one area, and the bubbles themselves are large. They won't be microbubbles unless you have an atomizer type diffusor. Perhaps others can suggest some alternate theories? By my count you have no less than 5 screw points with teflon that could be leaking all at the same time at different speeds. Since this is your first tank, I would have donated to buy you a new Milwaukee (I've used more than one of these over the past decade and they've never failed me yet) had I known you were going to build your own, lol! Definitely leak test everything and keep us posted.

Also I'm sure that I don't have to tell you (as you've already learned) don't touch the HC until its started to spread really well. It will just keep floating up on its own. Keep up the water changes while checking the ammonia and no ferts (except maybe a little K) for a least a week. Those are my suggestions, others can elaborate on their strategies... Hope this helps!
I think something was the matter with the bubble counter and diffuser. I did the soap test and I did not find any leaks. I will keep on eye on the CO2 system though until it starts to act more consistent. There were some hairline fractures at the corner of my diffuser, so I bought a cheap Fluval one. When I was trying to switch it out to see if there could be a change I broke it, but the bubbles are much better with the Fluval one. I will wait a bit to buy an ADA one.

I am not going to touch the HC again till it is rooted better.

Thanks for the help!
-T

Thanks!

Push the hc down and bury it by dumping soil directly on top till it stays down. It'll come back through. You should also sprinkle AS powder of the hc to fill in all the gaps and bring the soil almost level with the hc. It'll help keep it down.
Good idea, I should have done that when I planted it. I think it would be complicated to add more soil now that the tank is filled, wouldn't it?

-T
 
#69 ·
Come on now, your tank isn't that bad... I have seen much worse, plus, if I even attempted a reef tank, I'm sure I would be saying the same thing.

I just planted it too, so we will see in a couple of weeks how it looks. Things could go downhill very fast if I mess it up.

Now that is flooded. All you can do is trim and replant.
I have already to trim the ammania, and the HC is getting kinda scraggly. I'm gonna have to trim that soon, but I don't want to uproot it.

It's looking great, Trenton. I really like how you document so much with photography, like your water parameter tests. That is really helpful for new people coming into the hobby. Sorry about your diffuser, man. I tried to find a Fluval until my diffuser arrived, but everyone around here is sold out. I ended up having to use a piece of bamboo, but I'll be durned if it didn't work quite well.

I'm looking forward to seeing it grow in.
Thanks Salty! Some people may think that my pictures are excessive, but for myself, I find journals boring if there are no photos. Plus I love taking pictures! All my glassware is Aquatic Magic from ebay so I wasn't expecting high quality. I will wait until I find some ADA glassware used and then use the cheap stuff as backup.

I saw some wooden diffusers at my LFS, but I decided not to get them because on the package it said they needed to be replaced quite often (like 3 weeks) when their functionality starts to go down.

Hope you can find a nice diffuser... your tank is too nice to have an ugly fluval one!

-T
 
#68 ·
It's looking great, Trenton. I really like how you document so much with photography, like your water parameter tests. That is really helpful for new people coming into the hobby. Sorry about your diffuser, man. I tried to find a Fluval until my diffuser arrived, but everyone around here is sold out. I ended up having to use a piece of bamboo, but I'll be durned if it didn't work quite well.

I'm looking forward to seeing it grow in.
 
#70 ·
No picture today, sorry.

The tank has a weird film on the top though. I guess it's not really a film, it's a layer of what appears to be more viscous water that kinda traps the small CO2 bubbles. Is this a protein layer or something? What is this caused by, too much fertilizers?

I bought new drop checker solution yesterday because the ebay stuff stayed a weird brown/green colour. After I used the new solution, within an hour it was completely yellow, hence I turned the CO2 down considerably. I'm trying to keep it on the lighter end of green.

Would a high CO2 rate like I had cause plants to not bee as healthy? The ammonia doesn't seem like it is doing the greatest with the bottom leaves melting and the top leaves looking pale. An ideas?

Till next time,
-T
 
#74 ·
I agree with SaltyNC, the film is just a protein layer. A little surface agitation will make quick work of it. And you could have a very high CO2 and it wouldn't (by itself) harm the plants, though the reduced PH might burn some if the CO2 is high enough (to say nothing of suffocating any life in that aquarium). Now where are those pics!? lol
Yeah, I figured it was a protein layer. I have been raising the outlet pipe at night sometimes to remove it and it seems to be working. Whenever I do a water change, I just place some paper towel on top of the water t remove the skim.

I actually had very high CO2. The 4dkh solution I got with the drop checker from asia malaysia or wherever was... crap. So I bought some new fluval solution a while back and it turned instantly yellow within about 1/2 an hour so... I reduced my CO2.

Also, I found my CO2 leak before I left before the weekend because I was scared it was going to runout by the time we got back :eek5: It was at the connection between the CGA320 fitting and the reg. Since fixing that more than a week ago, my needle has barely dropped. I'm pretty thankful about that, cause I would have had to fill it every couple of weeks it the problem hadn't have been resolved.

Thanks for the help guys.

-T
 
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