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Hayden's ADA 45-f: The End

75K views 250 replies 53 participants last post by  Hayden 
#1 · (Edited)
Hello all,
I am beginning my new tank: an ADA 45-f. My idea on this build is to take my time. I saved up and bought high quality equipment, and I will take my time carefully assembling and scaping in order to truly appreciate it's beauty. It will sit in my room, so, because I am home-schooled, I can enjoy it all hours of the day:)
My scaping plans are fairly open at this point. I already ordered 10lbs of Seiryu stone from AFA, and I want a fairly "clean" looking scape, but I'll have to wait to see what the stones look like and such before I fill in details.
At this point, I own the Aquarium, stand, and lighting. I have ordered the filter, pipes, tubes, stones, and soil from AFA, and have purchased a GLA co2 system from a fellow TPT'er.

Here are the Specs for my soon to be setup:
Aquarium: ADA 45-f
Stand: Ikea Expedit
Lighting: Custom LED Fixture from RapidLED
Co2: GLA Atomic V2 nano
Dosing: EI (via DIY)
Substrate: ADA Aquasoil
Aquascape: Seiryu Stone
Flora: HC, Riccia Flutians, Eleocharis Parvula
Fauna: 12 Boraras Naevus, 6 Corydoras Habrosus, 2 Amanos

I will try my best in documenting the setup process, fingers crossed I can borrow a DSLR!
 
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#2 · (Edited)
Step One-Conceptualization
With my equipment coming Monday, I have some time to make abstract plans for my coming setup. My inspiration for this setup comes from (among other things) the beautiful Fall weather up here in Minnesota. I really wanna try some nice red stemmed Rotala species (still deciding on which one). I'm definitely using HC for the foreground, and most likely S. Repens for a midground/transition plant. The scape will be composed of Seiryu stones- I have left scaping Ideas essentially open so I can be free to scape when I receive my rocks. My overall themes are similar to those of Amano and others here: Simple, Natural, Clean, and Beautiful.
I took some preliminary photos of the empty tank and a couple other shots of my room.


Some shots of my stereo:)
(I need something other than just an empty tank!)

 
#4 ·
Hayden,

I'm looking forward to seeing your layout. I like the mat you've chosen for under the tank. That looks nice. As another owner of a bookshelf tank that actually sits on a bookshelf, you're likely to get a little water on and around the bookshelf, so if you have expensive or rare books below the tank, you might want to cover them or move them while doing water changes, trimmings after it has been flooded, etc.

Good luck with your project. I'm subscribed.
 
#5 ·
Thanks for the replies. As for rare books, your right. About $500 of rare books and records. Needless to say I was extremly careful doing water changes when I had my previous scape setup. Only one minor accident so far which didn't cause any damage. This time however, since I will be using a canister filter, I will make sure to take extra precaution. Thanks for the warning.
 
#17 ·
Looking great! Did the stone come in that white box?
Thanks! The stone came in the larger box. The glassware came in the white one.
Will you be raising your outflow pipe for more surface movement?
Yep. With hoses attached I should be able to.
That's awesome. Looks likeso much fun. Beautiful demensions
Thanks!
looking good i am wating for my 60-f to arrive so looking forward to it and will be watching ur scape, i need to know what size of lilly pipes etc i will require as some are huge, what size are your lilly pipes etc ?

thanks Dean
My lily pipes are the Do!Aqua Mp-1 Mini Outflow (10mm) and Mv-1 Mini Inflow (13mm). These are designed to fit on the Eheim 2211, if you are using a 2213 or something I believe you will need both to be 13mm.
http://www.plantedtank.net/forums/showthread.php?t=122232 -I would recommend looking to this thread for inspiration/information as well.
Thanks!
 
#19 ·
Step Three-Scaping​
This scape came to me relatively quickly, I was expecting it to take longer but I'm really happy with what I came up with so I'll stick with it. What do you guys think? Any suggestions?




Now I need to decide on plants. I'm going to be using HC as a foreground plant, but I am undecided as what to use as a background plant. I want something with compact growth so it doesn't overpower the stones, but ideally I'd get something with some color. So plants such as Rotala Colorata wouldn't be ideal because they would quickly grow over the stones, but something like S. Repens might get a bit boring. What do you guys think?
 
#22 ·
One idea I had for background plants was Riccia and Eleocharis Acicularis, using E. Acicularis in the extreme back kind of interweaved with Riccia.
Love the light, maybe you can show us how did you made it
Thanks! I should have photo documented it. It was pretty simple, with a basic knowledge of LED's and some soldering skill. Really the hardest part was deciding exactly what to get (PM me for details). It didn't cost more than $100.
Looks gorgeous.

The only thing I could recommend is moving the smaller stones to the front and the larger stones to the back. Otherwise, your expensive stones will be hidden.
Thanks! I may have to raise those smaller stones as my carpet grows, but I like the perspective they give to the tank.
 
#25 ·
I agree with this. A top layer of powder type (1/4 of your total substrate depth) is very aesthetically pleasing and aids plants with finer roots (like HC) in rooting and spreading.

I hope your tank turns out as well as you envisioned it and that you took a wealth of knowledge away from Khoa's setup that you used as inspiration. I'm looking forward to seeing this develop. The stones look great!
 
#26 ·
My GLA Co2 System arrived today!! Thanks Finzz!
I mean you have several smaller stones blocked from view by the larger stones. The small ones will be completely hidden once your plants grow in - even short ones.
Ok I understand, and I do anticipate that. Each stone is at least partially buried, allowing me the option of raising them as my carpet progresses, hopefully.
you should get some powdered aquasoil. it totally changes the whole aesthetic of a scape and makes everything look so much cleaner. it looks great so far though

*and IME it holds plants better
I agree with you, however it seems like a minuscule issue at this point, as I hope to be flooding as soon as I can get plants. Don't get me wrong I'm sure it makes a difference, but not one that would justify the money/time it would take.
I hope your tank turns out as well as you envisioned it and that you took a wealth of knowledge away from Khoa's setup that you used as inspiration. I'm looking forward to seeing this develop. The stones look great!
Thanks! Your tank is another I'm very familiar with:)
 
#27 ·
My GLA Co2 System arrived today!! Thanks Finzz!

Ok I understand, and I do anticipate that. Each stone is at least partially buried, allowing me the option of raising them as my carpet progresses, hopefully.

I agree with you, however it seems like a minuscule issue at this point, as I hope to be flooding as soon as I can get plants. Don't get me wrong I'm sure it makes a difference, but not one that would justify the money/time it would take.

Thanks! Your tank is another I'm very familiar with:)
I'm flattered! :) I still think you'd enjoy a top dressing (3L bag is fine for your tank) of powder type more than you think...it's well worth the investment. I have a 9L bag just for top dressing in my 20L and for setting up my Mini. Worth every penny!

As far as the red coloring, given that your tank is so short I would suggest using some H. tenellum 'micro'. I gets a very nice shade of red to it when provided with high light and will give the tank a little bit of height. Stems would just look weird in this tank imo since it's so shallow. You'd have to do good maintenance on them to keep them in form in such a short tank but it wouldn't provide the effect it would in a taller tank.
 
#28 ·
I just don't really see the point, once my carpet fills in I'll never see it. True it will look a bit better until then, but not enough to really justify it. Maybe on a future tank.
I think for plants I've basically chosen a background of a mixed Riccia and DHG carpet. I love the fact that I will be able to manipulate the Riccia's shape very precisely. Now my problem is I can't find anywhere to buy these plants! Any suggestions?
 
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