The Planted Tank Forum banner

My ever-evolving tank (picture heavy)

32K views 279 replies 31 participants last post by  tomfromstlouis 
#1 · (Edited)
I am finally closer to creating just what I have been envisioning for my tank. :) (edit: The tank measures 48" x 17.75" x 24".) It's been in the works for a year! It started with a 30 gallon tank complete with dying plants and sick fish found on craigslist for $30. Of course at the time, I knew nothing about fish and had no idea they were not healthy.
Anyway, it has been quite the journey thus far, and I have learned that fish keeping is not as easy as 1-2-3. No, you can't just drop fish in the tank and throw in some food here and there, topping off the tank as the water evaporates. No, you don't just put all the fish that you liked at the fish store in the tank without running into huge complications because not all fish are compatible! No, you can't cheap out with desk lights or anything similar and expect to have living plants and there is not a species of fish you should buy to replace you cleaning your tank!

Anyway, I am the proud owner of some driftwood! YEAH! So, I have begun the process that will bring my vision to life! Here is what is happening:

I rinsed my dishwasher 4 times in a row then added the driftwood and on the highest setting, let it rinse in the dishwasher 4 times. It's been soaking in a tub since. No tannins! Just needs to sink. I've cleaned all my rocks collected locally this past summer and am now testing them to be sure they are aquarium safe. I have gotten my water chemistry stable, although it is noted the KH needs to be a little higher; working on that. I have posted in the WTB/RAOK thread a list of plants I need for my tank. I am still researching potential inhabitants to replace the Denison Barbs I have, which are currently 5" long. No rush there.

Tonight I added black Echo Complete to just under half of the tank and in 3-4 days I will be doing the same to the middle, then the other half. After that driftwood and rocks :)

Here's a couple pics.
Before:
Plant Water Light Pet supply Organism


After:
Water Plant Vertebrate Pet supply Fish supply


It is a looooong way from finished and the water is a bit cloudy from the 1/2 tank change. None of the plants and wood are in their place. It's just temporary until I get the substrate finished.

I am sooooo excited!

Update: 11/17/12 All the old substrate has been removed, some plants added as well as some Manzanita, rocks, and Mopani dw. Not finished, but close :)
 
See less See more
2
#3 ·
Those Roselines are going to need a larger tank at Least 4 ft I keep mine in a 72g and I plan on upgrading to 125g+ 6ft tank in the next year or so as they grow. I would recommend a school of a smaller fish like cardinal tetra,rummy nose tetra or harlequin rasboras. These fish seem to school the tightest you could easily keep 20 of them in your tank. The angels are going to outgrow the tank as well.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
#5 ·
Those Roselines are going to need a larger tank at Least 4 ft I keep mine in a 72g and I plan on upgrading to 125g+ 6ft tank in the next year or so as they grow. I would recommend a school of a smaller fish like cardinal tetra,rummy nose tetra or harlequin rasboras. These fish seem to school the tightest you could easily keep 20 of them in your tank. The angels are going to outgrow the tank as well.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Thank you for your recommendation :smile: The tank is 4 ft. The dimensions are 48" x 17.75" x 24", but I keep the water line at 21". The tank was sold to me as a 100 gallon, but of course, the tank is only good for between 77 and 80 gallons because of the length and width measurements, being that the height doesn't count for much.
I have been planning to exchange the Roselines for something else because I don't like them much. They are a nice looking fish, but not a good match for our home. As far as I know the tank could potentially have a school of 6 Angelfish without risk of being over stocked, but I do not want my tank "full". I prefer to keep it understocked so everyone has "happy swimming" room. I have been concidering Harlequins, but haven't made up my mind yet. Rummynose are soooo cute, but a no-go because my grown Angel snacks on them. He/She ate my last school nearly completely before I removed a few to take back to the LFS.

I am in no rush to stock the tank with anymore inhabitants until the rescape is complete. I plan to take the Roselines back to the LFS soon, if they will agree to give me credit instead of exchanging the fish for something else right away. I appreciate your suggestion about good schoolers.

Good luck with your 125 gallon! Your Roselines will love it since they will be able to swim further down the tank. What other fish do you keep with your Roselines? I have always thought Roselines look incredible in a tank with Rummynose and/or Odessa Barbs. Quite stunning display.

Thanks again! :)
 
#6 ·
Heres my wood. I am just thrilled to have it! The Angelfish and my sweet "Gwen" the Betta will loooove the wood. I made sure to find a piece tall enough to offer hieght for the Angels to swim through when they cruise the top section of the tank.
Brown Branch Wood Twig Art


I thought I'd add a couple more of "the crew" hanging out on the "new" side of the tank. They all seem to prefer this side to the old Ha Ha. So cute. Oh, and the floating plants have always been there, it just got a little denser after uprooting a few more. The cluster of floating plants will be planted when the hardscape is set in place. I hope to find some floating plants to replace them.
Water Plant Fish supply Pet supply Aquatic plant

Water Underwater Plant Organism Vegetation

Water Plant Vertebrate Light Natural environment
 
#8 ·
This is a good idea for changing out your substrate. I might have to try this. Are you testing your water parameters while you do this? I've heard that a large disturbance in the substrate of an established tank can cause an ammonia spike, or a mini-cycle... Just something to think about?
 
#10 ·
Yes :smile:, I am keeping track of the parameters and all is good! That's great! I have read the same thing myself about the mini-cycle/amonia spike, so I am being careful, taking it slow and breaking it up into three parts. I am due for a PWC tomorrow and will wait to do the next step until the day before the next PWC, so rather than 3 days, I've just decided (since reading your post ;) ) to wait for 6 days before I do the next section; simply because I don't need to rush it risking hurting my fish.
Breaking it into parts, I think it's important to be careful not to disturb the substrate on the other side of the tank, if that makes sense; wordings a little off. I also chose to keep the rocks and wood that had already been in the tank inside and so I just relocated it inside the tank.
 
#13 ·
I just one a raok of 10 baby Bn plecos I could send you one or two for the cost of shipping once they arrive if you like.

They may have to sit in quarantine for a week or two it may be stressfull to unpack and ship back out right away.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Oh wow! Congratulations! 10 BN! Thats awesome. Thanks a million for your offer! Extremely kind of you! I would loooove to have them :) But, first, I am still unsure about the spikes. Have you ever had trouble with them getting caught in nets? Also, the weather just turned and its 38 degrees, windy, snowy and the planes haven't been shipping the last week.
I trully appreciate your generousity. Thank you sooooooooo much. :):)
 
#14 ·
I've never had one get coughs but I always pull whatever ornament(dw,rock etc) out of the tank and hold a Rubbermaid full of water for them to drop into(which they will once out of the water) and that way no worries about them getting fought in nets. I could throw some heat packs in for small extra charge(I will have to pick some up not sure what they cost)



Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
#15 ·
You can also talk to acro he had 60 to give away in the raok and only 20 were claimed i think. He knows a lot more about bn's than I do and would probably give you some if you ask. The only downside is he doesn't take PayPal I had to send a money order for shipping.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
#16 ·
Okay, thanks. I will contact Acro and see what he's done. The plastic container is a good idea for when we are re-homing it in a few years and need to take all the water out of the tank ;)

The heat packs could work. I am going to talk to a friend of mine who has shipments of fish come into town and see what he does to ensure live fish arrivals. I'll get back to you on that tomorrow.

Thanks again :)
 
#17 ·
This tank reminds me of mine with your random selection of fish ha ha
 
#18 · (Edited)
:) What fish do you have? I know my tank is all over the place isn't it! River fish with fish that thrive in an Amazon Biotope; but it was by accident. The Betta was free off craigslist. The large Angelfish was a "rescue" sort-to-speak and then the little Angelfish was a "gift" for the big one Ha Ha because I thought s/he was lonely. The Denison Barbs were planned and were in the tank before the Angels moved in. I wanted to have the Denisons with Kuhli loaches, rummynose and Odessa Barbs, but after I got the Angels, I have changed my mind about having a high-speed tank because I realize I enjoy the relaxed, easy going ways of the Betta and Angels. So! There you have it HaHaHaHa!
 
#19 ·
Same fish with the exception of the loaches you have. They are from when i 1st started the hobby and went for "they look neat" attitude.
 
#20 ·
Ah okay. When we first got our tank a year ago, it was pre-stocked with single tetra specimens, common pleco, mollies, goldfish and platys. Then my husband added what he "liked" from the LFS. A zebra talipia, 2 Firemouth Ciclids and 2 Kuhli Loaches. I started researching and did a major fish swap! After that, my husband hates fish. He thinks it's stupid that I care if the fish are comatible and said qoute: "Survival of the fittest". Yeah, sure that's how it is in nature. The fish we had in our tank would never see each other in nature!
Anyway...What fish do you have now?
 
#23 ·
Hi Seth. :) I contacted Acro like you recommended. Nice guy! I am not worried about catching a BN anymore thanks to the two of you. Acro removes an object the BN is inside of, covering one end so it doesn't get out. I have a pre-meditated plan :hihi: I will use a cylinder of some sort with a cap on one side for feeding so the BN is comfortable with it, then if the BN needs caught, it'll already go inside with ease when s/he goes inside cover one end and lift! Walla! BN caught with no torn fins. Sounds easy enough. Thank you for removing that fear! I can stop worrying and have BN!!! Yeah!!!
 
#24 ·
Update: I did a 24% PWC last night. Since adding the Eo-Complete Planted Substrate, (and removing the natural gravel) my pH rose 1 degree. It has held steady since even through the water change. This tells me regardless of how spotlessly clean I try to keep my tank, I had some build-up in the gravel. I am meticulous about gravel cleaning, but obviously not getting it all! Curious to see if the pH raises another degree when the other half is done. It is reading at 6.6 now.

It was torture last night refraining from changing out more substrate! I am anxious to get the substrate finished. But, have another week ahead of me before it's done. Time sure creeps by when your waiting LOL!:rolleyes:
 
#26 · (Edited)
I put together in order, old pics to show the changes the tank has undergone. I couldn't find the pics from the original tank when we first brought it home after finding it on craigslist. The first 9 pictures show the 30 gallon tank and the last 5 are of the "100 gallon" I bought off craigslist. (I found out shortly after bringing it home is was infact not 100 gallons! Grrrrrrr.)
Water Botany Green Light Nature

When we first got the tank, I immediately started adding plants but most of them died. I didn't give up, but got fake plants to add "planted appeal" while I slowly added more live plants. I hated the plastic plants and was thrilled when I finally found some plants that could survive my beginner ways. As soon as I felt I had enough plants to keep my fish secure feeling, I removed all the plastic buggers!
:) Hope you enjoyed looking at my ever-evolving tank collage! :icon_mrgr

Below are a few pics of the process from 30 gallon to 100 gallon. It was stressful and I moved as fast as possible to ensure all my fish would be okay. It worked out beautifully with no problems at all!
Plant Photograph Green Nature Botany
 
#30 ·
Wow looks like you've been busy over the past year!


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Yeah Ha Ha Ha! I love being in my tank. I absolutely love scaping and wish I had more tanks to scape. Once this one is complete witht he dw, rocks and plants, I plan to leave it alone except for maintenance.
 
#31 · (Edited)
Well, I managed to leave things be until it was time to change out more substrate. What a hard task HaHa! Last night I removed more natural gravel and added more Eco-Complete Planted Substrate. I really love the look of this stuff, and the Mylasian Trumpet snails are crazy for it! They seem to be all "packing their bags" and moving from the "gravel side of town" to "re-modeled side of town" LOL! The fish like the new side better too. Weird...but cool cuz I like it too! Now that we are all in aggreement ;)

Anyway, the water is showing no change, yet. pH is still holding at 6.6 :) Have to wait and see. I thought it would since the pH raised 1 degree when I added the ECP-substrate a week ago. No biggie either way.

Here's a picture!
Water Plant Green Fish supply Pet supply
 
#34 · (Edited)
Goodie, Goodie, Goodie! Plants. Are. Enroute! PWC today. ;)

I am very excited about what's to come! I had to make a change concerning my XL canister filter (never used) because when I set it up yesterday, even though it fits in my stand, the design of the stand will make maintenance a huge pain in the keester and I am aiming for "smooth, enjoyable times" with my tank. Not equipment battles LOL! Also, the 3 bags of substrate will not be enough. So, I ordered 3 more bags of Eco-Complete and 2 Medium Canisters. Should be here around the same day as the plants!!!

Depending on the order on which things arrive, I may have to modify the current plan of action. We'll see.

Here's what I'm hoping for; Eco-Complete order arrives. Remove the fish and get aggressive with the substrate finishing it in time for the plants to arrive! Add the hardscape and hopefully the plants will arrive same day or following day. I have sketched up a couple prospective scapes to assist in aligning everything. Since I do already have fish, I want to get my scape right the first time. A minor adjustment here and there is fine. I just hope I can do this and be happy with the layout!
 
#36 ·
Thank you very much :) The Koi angel is such a sweet heart. S/he is about 8 years old. S/he lived in a building where my husband works in a crammed, mix n' match community, 55 gallon, unplanted, bare tank for all those years with a single Red Rainbowfish and a constant supply of Koi fish, common goldfish, random tetras, Rainbow Shark, common plecos, corydoras (these fish would always die and be replaced over the years) and a few other species! Then the tank broke, and now S/he lives in my tank with an angel buddy, betta and schooling fish. Much better :)
 
#38 ·
good luck with the tank! looks good so far and your planning seems to be stellar! Not easy getting ahold of plants up here in AK. I have some rotala indica and various others that I can easily send you if you need some more. There are a few of us up here with planted tanks, we gotta stick together.
 
#39 ·
Hello fellow Alaskan! ;) Thank you for your offer. Very nice of you. My package hasn't arrived yet. I am hopeful when it does arrive nothing will have frozen being that the temps have dropped to the 20's. It has been interesting trying to get plants over the past year. We are so limited on what is sold at the LFS and then there is Petco. Blah. Their plants are stuffed in little tubes and look like they are decaying. It's too bad.

There are a lot of fabulous people here at TPT. I have found some to be above and beyond kind! What a great bunch of people. I am glad to be a part of this group.
 
#41 ·
I love Koi Angels....Yours look big and healthy!
Your plans for your tank sound good, I can't want to see it flourish!
Take your time and lots of contemplation... Remember, you're doing the aquascaping to what you like, because, you'll be the looking at it most :)
Thank you Matt :) I have been working on this tank plan for a year+ already. It will be weird when it's finished and I don't have anything left to move around. I will have to learn how to just sit back and enjoy it HaHa! That will be the real challenge :icon_roll

I got the Koi from a tank that had busted and s/he needed a home asap. Just found out from another member that it's dorsal fin is bent due to cramped living situations over a long period of time. They are so right! This poor Angel spent 8 years in an extremely crowded 55 gallon with uncompatible fish.

S/he looks really good now and it's fins are healed (no more tears) and has filled out a lot. Used to be very thin. I love this Angel. So sweet.
 
This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.
Top