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First attempt at a ada aquascape, what do you guys think

3K views 21 replies 13 participants last post by  Thorinale 
#1 ·
I know it is nothing special, but I really like how it looks. This is my first attempt at an ada style aquascape, nothing special just something I wanted to try. Would love to hear what you guys think

Tank
5.5 gallon 16"x 8" x 10"

Equipment
18"-24" marineland strip light
Aquaclear20
Tetra HT10 submersible heater

Substrate
Lapis lustre blasting sand

Hardscape
ADA yamaya stone
ADA spiderwood

Flora
Anubias nana
Java Fern

Fauna
Male betta splendens
 

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#5 · (Edited)
This is more tips/critiques on betta keeping than on the scape-imo lovely scape but not necessarily the best for bettas.

Bettas prefer more shade/a better way to hide from the light, they can't close/squint their eyes to get away from the 'sun' (light) so the use of floating plants or a more densely planted tanks with more shaded hiding spots would be better for the betta.

Did you sand the driftwood before adding it? if not you may need to as beta fins are very delicate and any tiny snags against the wood will result in ripped fins.

You're likely to see a lot of glass surfing (beta chasing its reflection-thinking its an invading male betta) with that layout, unless you're fortunately enough to have a non aggressive/defensive betta. If you do see a lot of glass surfing consider planting around the side and back walls of the tank so he can't see himself or making DIY inserts with acrylic sheets spray painted with krylon fusion (aquarium safe) pushed against the glass to remove the reflections. I did the inserts for my most aggressive male, fixed his glass surfing instantly. If you want more info on this I'll copy-paste over my DIY post on it.

Also please consider making a pre-filter 'sock' to slip over the intake of your HOB. If the bettas fins get sucked into it (which they will if he gets anywhere near it) they can get ripped up as he tries to break free. A foam 'sock' will prevent this. Again I can post my DIY info on a home make 'sock' for the the intake if you'd like. As a side tangent to this if you notice he gets blown/pushed around if he swims by the HOB outflow see if you can adjust the filter to a lower flow rate, if you can't or 'low' still pushes him around you may also consider putting a sheet of foam over the outflow to break up the current and make it gentle for the betta-long finned bettas can't deal with a lot of flow.
 
#10 ·
Wow, that's some great constructive criticism. /sarcasm

Anyway, IMO, I like the hardscape, but the anubias seems to hide too much of it. I would try to find some anubias petite to fill in the gaps between the rocks and wood, and then move the front anubias to a more midground level. Otherwise, I like what you've done! This betta is probably way happier than the bettas left at the store.
 
#13 ·
Thanks guys, I really wanted to nana petite, but there's only one store around here that carries it and it is quite pricy for a small pot. Would removing that anubias in the front open it up more/show more of the wood? I kind of felt like I had too much plants on the hardscape.

Also I was looking into floating plants. I like frogbit because it's not small and cumbersome like duckweed, but the roots get so long. I will look into floaters tho. I'll probably make something to prevent them from getting caught in the filter outflow, or put some foam to reduce the flow.
 
#16 ·
Duckweed is especially hard to get rid of if you have other floaters. That plant is good at hiding. Honestly though, if you simply scoop the majority out every time you do a water change it isn't to bad and can be kept under control rather easily. I just got sick of it always sticking to my arms and clogging my filter...

Sent from my SM-G386T using Tapatalk
 
#21 ·
I like it! Nice, healthy plants with a minimal "island" type scape. Low maintenance too, given the plant selection.

If you haven't decided on duckweed for certain... go with Salvinia minima (water spangles). Very attractive, smaller but not as smaller as regular duckweed, and roots are 1/2" at the longest. You can get it here in the forum or on Amazon for pretty cheap.
 
#22 ·
I think the tank looks extraordinary! Nicely done!

I've never heard of the Lapis blasting sand so I looked it up. I LOVE the look of it. Seem much more natural than the black or solid off-white colors you see from pool filter sand, blasting sand etc. What size do you use? It looks like the list the #3 and #2 1/2 as blasting sand but its really hard to get a feel for the size from the comparison images. Those sizes look like pretty large grains.

Bump: Oh, and I think Dwarf Water Lettuce is a great betta floater. It's smaller than frogbit and doesn't block the light as much from your plants. It propogates quickly, but is WAY bigger than duckweed so its easier to clean out when it gets to be too much, and also doesnt clog filters. It can get some pretty long roots when its healthy, about 2-3". So if you dont like the look of floater roots then maybe it isnt for you. I love it and my betta seems to enjoy it as well. He usually makes his bubble nest in it. One of these I'll have to get him a girlfriend. :)
 
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