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Crazydaz's Square 200G RIPARIUM Stikes back-The End Teaser shots of new set up 7-24

253K views 848 replies 191 participants last post by  leequan 
#1 · (Edited)
Just finished up with the move from old rental property to new home. Life sure has been hectic lately!

So, the Journal starts over, and as much as I hated to tear down the tank from this:


and this:


To THIS:


and this:


.....but it had to be done. To re-set and try to go with the same aesthetic would have been uncreative and boorish. Everything was sold or given away. Many thanks to Tlyons01 who spent a "fun" afternoon tearing the tank down with me. It only took about 7 hours. :D

Prior to that, the outside of the stand/pedestal was removed. It was made of 2x4's: very solid construction, but the outside was made of pressboard. A terrible choice, in retrospect, for obvious reasons. It had been warped and bubbled, and was a total eyesore. So, I stripped it down and threw it out.

Here are a few pics of the new pedestal:




That is red oak stained with walnut with iron hinges and knobs. We're going for more of a "rustic" old-fashioned look for the sitting room, and I thought that this would look nice. Eventually, the pendant above the tank will be redone either in black, or it will be done to match the pedestal. Probably happen in January. In the new design, I added side doors in order to make accessing the equipment in the back easier to do. It has been triple coated in poly on all sides to ensure water resistance, and almost "water proofing."

The day following the drain and dis-assembly, we moved the tank, lighting, and new pedestal to the new house. This was all done within two hours, which was faster than I had anticipated. The move went flawlessly, and I was ready to re-start the scape. So....

IN went custom made Manzanita branches that came from hydrophyte, plain kitty litter (about 30lbs), and that was topped by MTS made by DogFish. The Manzy branches are semi-poseable that will allow me to move the "joints" as needed in order to access equipment with relative ease, or to alter the hardscape as desired. You will notice screws in some of the future pictures; these are the "joints" I refer to....just a simple screw and nut assembly. Hydrophyte did do a marvelous job cutting the ends of the branches into simple fittings through which the screw passes through and is held on the other side by the nut.

DogFish sent six large Flat Rate boxes of MTS to me months ago, and makes about a two inch layer in my tank. Wonderful stuff!:





Sprinkled on the potash, pressed it into the MTS, and then topped that with some of my old tank's substrate. Added the Seriyu stone and the old stone from CraigThor's tank, and now this is how it looked:





Three rock "peninsulas" are featured in this set up for bucephelandra, anubia, and java fern species; the substrate will feature mostly crypts.

More pictures tomorrow!!
 
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#351 ·
Thanks Sarah! I like the sleek, "finished" look of it. And, they work well. I will have to keep my eye on it and see how everything responds. I don't want to burn anything, but it is also a little bit higher than my last lights were too. We'll see what happens.

Yes, BrayN, you would know!! Thanks for stopping by and helping! I hope that you use the old light well for it's parts.

NC--It is! I would rather have too much than not enough. Plus, there's an industrial aesthetic to the fixture, and you should know how much I like Industrial! :D
 
#355 ·
Thank you Gentlemen (Marko, Obakemono, and Antbug)!!

Obakemono---Just like Anthony said, they are TEK's. TEK "Elite" 8's. I got them during the half-off sale. Stayed up most of the night to get 'em back on Black Friday. Totally. Worth. It! lol!! So much nicer looking than the big, white, bulky-looking pendant I had up. It completes the room. All I need now are to replace to curtain rods with a darker wood to match the book cases, throw some books and some manzy branches up on a few shelves, and that room will be finished. One room down......11 to go (right!.....). ;)
 
#358 ·
:hihi: LOL!! Thanks Nick! You can't miss a wavelength of the spectrum if you have a fixture and bulbs that give you all of them! Ha!! I gotta keep that Buce "variegated" variegated!

Thanks Devin! They are really sleek and look much better in person! Great lines!
 
#360 ·
:hihi: LOL!! Thanks Nick! You can't miss a wavelength of the spectrum if you have a fixture and bulbs that give you all of them! Ha!! I gotta keep that Buce "variegated" variegated!
give us a pic of this variegated buce.
 
#359 ·
I haven't been one here for awhile but I always have to check up on your tank and it looks beautiful as usual. What type are the red bulbs. Are they the UVL red sun?
 
#362 · (Edited)
Ua hua! I know....haven't seen you around for a little bit. Thanks for dropping by! :D Yes, those are UVL Red Suns. From what I read online here and elsewhere, they are supposed to be a little annoying to look at. And though they are a bit "eye-catching," I don't find them to be a distraction. Yet.

Marko and Mr. Kookm--OK, I'll try to get a picture posted tonight!

UPDATE: So far, so good with the new lights. I'm starting to see tints of red in some leaves....new growth on other plants, and no noticeable issues yet regarding algae or anything like that. I keep my water column pretty lean on the nutrient load regarding ferts and food, so I wouldn't expect algae issues. That said, I'll feel a lot better once a few weeks have passed and things are still looking fine.

Took some new pics yesterday and the day before with the new lighting. Feel free to comment or ask questions!

Click to enlarge!!









Crypt leaves:


Crypt nurii:


Metallic Red Patch:


Starting to get some nice moss growth on some of the manzanita branches:


Noticing some nicer colors on the tillandsia species just down to the center left:


Front of the tank, left side.....incredibly, this is with ONLY four bulbs running:


Left side of the tank...again only four bulbs running;


Front of the tank, center:


Nice shot of some of the plant species....there are many species in this one shot...buce's, crypts, lileopsis, sagittaria, persicaria, ludwigia, alternanthera, staurogyne, anubias:


Front of the tank, right side:


Top of the tank....at "dusk"...




Closer look at a branch....the original vine grew a new shoot, which is what is in the picture on the moss, and the old vine died....odd:


Thanks for looking!
 
#364 · (Edited)
Thanks Toksyn! As you can see, I have plenty! ;)

Here is the Buce "variegated" that I got from Xue a few months ago:

Side view doesn't reveal too much of the variegation, but you can sure tell that it likes where it is. I'm hoping that the new lighting will perk it up a bit more:


From the top, you can see more of the variegation on some of the leaves:
 
#371 ·
Devin--Yes, the bulbs have perked things up very nicely, and I'm really enjoying this set up in a new way now! It's almost like having my last set up with the high intensity lighting. I'm getting my Ludwigia grandulosa x palustris to blush and start turning red. I'll try to grab a pic of it soon. Pretty cool!

Like I said on a different thread, I alternate between being curious to try submitting this tank to a magazine, and then feeling a little embarrassed about it. I like the compliments, but I'm not very good at accepting them. I'm a little better than I used to be, but still not great. I'm not even sure where I would even start....This isn't an ADA tank, and that's about the only magazine that I know. You were recently published, Devin, if I remember correctly......I read that article, and I think that I still have it on my iPad still....

I would appreciate the guidance! :D

And...."YES"!! That Spanish Moss grows quickly! I just usually wrap some of the hanging parts around the branch it's on a few times. I may have to start trimming it. Some of it dangles down into the water as well, which looks neat.

NC!! I love the fog....especially now! After manually watering the plants every day, the new lights do add some additional radiant heat, increasing the evaporation rate, so by the end of the day it just looks like a thick haze hanging over the top of the tank, and a thick fog on top of the water. You can watch the convection happen as the fog comes out, gets a little warm, and starts rising up towards the lighting. NEAT!! ;)

Thanks Bob!! I'm loving the effect, and the new colors! New leaves on most of my buce's are turning red or coppery colored. I am also getting better colors now in some of my Tillandsia species, and one just started throwing out a bloom. Curiously, I have yet to see ANY of my orchids bloom, but that's alright. I started fertilizing a bit more, so that should help (eventually) produce some blooms. You know that I'll be snapping pictures as soon as I get any new flowers on anything!

NWA--I have to admit that I found myself thinking that too, this past weekend. :D I couldn't get it out of my head for a solid day. Now, it'll be in my head again. lol! Thanks man!! Hope that you are doing well!!
 
#376 ·
Devin--Yes, the bulbs have perked things up very nicely, and I'm really enjoying this set up in a new way now! It's almost like having my last set up with the high intensity lighting. I'm getting my Ludwigia grandulosa x palustris to blush and start turning red. I'll try to grab a pic of it soon. Pretty cool!

Like I said on a different thread, I alternate between being curious to try submitting this tank to a magazine, and then feeling a little embarrassed about it. I like the compliments, but I'm not very good at accepting them. I'm a little better than I used to be, but still not great. I'm not even sure where I would even start....This isn't an ADA tank, and that's about the only magazine that I know. You were recently published, Devin, if I remember correctly......I read that article, and I think that I still have it on my iPad still....

I would appreciate the guidance! :D

And...."YES"!! That Spanish Moss grows quickly! I just usually wrap some of the hanging parts around the branch it's on a few times. I may have to start trimming it. Some of it dangles down into the water as well, which looks neat.

NC!! I love the fog....especially now! After manually watering the plants every day, the new lights do add some additional radiant heat, increasing the evaporation rate, so by the end of the day it just looks like a thick haze hanging over the top of the tank, and a thick fog on top of the water. You can watch the convection happen as the fog comes out, gets a little warm, and starts rising up towards the lighting. NEAT!! ;)

Thanks Bob!! I'm loving the effect, and the new colors! New leaves on most of my buce's are turning red or coppery colored. I am also getting better colors now in some of my Tillandsia species, and one just started throwing out a bloom. Curiously, I have yet to see ANY of my orchids bloom, but that's alright. I started fertilizing a bit more, so that should help (eventually) produce some blooms. You know that I'll be snapping pictures as soon as I get any new flowers on anything!

NWA--I have to admit that I found myself thinking that too, this past weekend. :D I couldn't get it out of my head for a solid day. Now, it'll be in my head again. lol! Thanks man!! Hope that you are doing well!!

my orchids flower the most when lighting is reduced.. just FYI
but there are many species out there. this isn't a true statement for all variants i wouldn't think
 
#372 ·
Re: Crazydaz's Square 200G RIPARIUM Strikes Back! NEW PICS 2/6/13!!

Well you should think that, you have done an amazing job!!

Things are good here, have nightmares due to dead space 3, upcoming shoulder surgery, and just waiting for tax returns so i can start building my tank!!!!

Sent from my SCH-I535 using Tapatalk 2
 
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