CryptKeeper54's Mr. Aqua 12 gallon long

[sayurasem]

sweet layout!

[MABJ]

Sweet work. Time to add a black or white background.

[bluestems]

Looks awesome! can't wait to see it grow in

I agree with Mark on adding a background. A black background will make that black box go away.

[Ach1Ll3sH33L]

Im a big fan of this stuff as a background, if you dont like it you can always peel it off, i agree with the black background to make the overflow less obtrusive. or relocate it to the far end of the tank.
http://www.lowes.com/pd_234077-74130...int&facetInfo=

You might look into trying to seal up the intake side of the wet/dry as best you can. this will keep the tank from degassing the c02. If you want to hide the c02 diffuser, stick it in front of the intake on your sump pump, this will pump all the micro bubbles into the tank still, and give them a lot more turbulence in the water to dissolve more efficiently.

The scape came out great btw!

[Green_Flash]

That looks great! I prefer the clear background look.

Is that a aqueon sump? Did you find that at a store?

[CryptKeeper54]

Originally Posted by sayurasem

sweet layout!

Originally Posted by MABJ

Sweet work. Time to add a black or white background.

Originally Posted by bluestems

Looks awesome! can't wait to see it grow in

I agree with Mark on adding a background. A black background will make that black box go away.

Originally Posted by Green_Flash

That looks great! I prefer the clear background look.

Is that a aqueon sump? Did you find that at a store?

Thanks for the compliments everyone and for checking out my tank. I'm Loving this tank.

I actually prefer no background but I will experiment with it later on when I practice photographing this tank.

It is the aqueon sump, model 1. Got it from amazon. I actually like looking at it and showing it off so I bought this instead of building my own. Pricey but cool and gives me the option to convert it to a refugium if I ever go reefing. I'm still working on quieting the overflow.

[CryptKeeper54]

Originally Posted by Ach1Ll3sH33L

Im a big fan of this stuff as a background, if you dont like it you can always peel it off, i agree with the black background to make the overflow less obtrusive. or relocate it to the far end of the tank.
http://www.lowes.com/pd_234077-74130...int&facetInfo=

You might look into trying to seal up the intake side of the wet/dry as best you can. this will keep the tank from degassing the c02. If you want to hide the c02 diffuser, stick it in front of the intake on your sump pump, this will pump all the micro bubbles into the tank still, and give them a lot more turbulence in the water to dissolve more efficiently.

The scape came out great btw!

Thanks. I'll check out my local lowes for that stuff. I was even thinking of frosted which I think they sell as well.

I'm not to worried about the co2. I got the two diffusers in tank, and a gla atomic inline diffuser as well. Plants pearling and looking good so far.

[Kai808]

Hey,

I like the equipment set up. But IMO, it looks like you might be running into the same issue about the scape that I have. The tank is so long that it's hard keep the left and rightside hardscape consistant while still complementing each other.

I really like the left hand side. Perfect wood, plants, and a good transition to the right using the stones in the back(The stones remind me of a Heiau). Then you get to the rightside... I'm just not feeling that driftwood. The angles are unnatural to me and I would find another piece or just take it out and move the leftside over to the right a little.

This is just my opinion but I hope it helps.

Kai

[CryptKeeper54]

Originally Posted by Kai808

Hey,

I like the equipment set up. But IMO, it looks like you might be running into the same issue about the scape that I have. The tank is so long that it's hard keep the left and rightside hardscape consistant while still complementing each other.

I really like the left hand side. Perfect wood, plants, and a good transition to the right using the stones in the back(The stones remind me of a Heiau). Then you get to the rightside... I'm just not feeling that driftwood. The angles are unnatural to me and I would find another piece or just take it out and move the leftside over to the right a little.

This is just my opinion but I hope it helps.

Kai

Staring at my tank this evening and was thinking the same thing. I'm a bit torn cause I like the look of the right sided branchwood pieces individually. It also doesnt help that the wood is a different color. I think I over bleached them and may rubbed off all the bark or something.

I still want to try and make the wood work tho, and I'm going to wait til my rear stem plants fill in before I make any huge adjustments. Details of plant layout to follow.

Thanks for the critique.

[CryptKeeper54]

Just phone pics. Wanted to see if I like a black background (temporary test using black construction paper). My fishes do.... me not so much only because the CO2 micro bubbles are SO MUCH more visible. The trade off is the sump overflow box is barely visible.

Dealing with hair algae like I was with my other tanks.

Added fishes: 5 otocinclus, 1 SAE, 15 ember tetras, 3 black phantom tetras, 1 rasboa maculata (lone survivor from old fluval edge tank). Might add more later on......

Trying to incorporate buces into aquascape little tricky for me right now.

[chou]

looks good. makes me want to get a 12g long

[amyhartofey]

This is an awesome tank! I love the length, would love to work with dimensions like that I agree about the two different colour woods being a problem - do you have an alternative?

[Kai808]

Looks better with the plants! I think that rock holding down the right tree was throwing me off. I can see the potential now with the close up pics. Great Job!

[Trail_Mix]

I love the look of the left side, but the right side still needs some work. I would try adding a Crypt or two to the mid-ground of the right side, and some Java Fern varieties towards the back and the right wall. Maybe stick to windelov, phillipine, and trident java ferns as they tend to grow lower, and your tank isn't that tall. That should give you a nice contrast and help you get that darker color you're looking for.

Personally, I love Buces; I think they're beautiful. They're also relatively easy to keep. But most of them are really small, and they're all such slow growers that I don't think you'll achieve much of a visual impact with them, even in a 12g. They definitely won't hurt, but also with all their color and leaf variation, they may not fit in aesthetically, you know? Also, if you are going to use them, they grow best attached to a lava rock, or at least some kind of stone. I noticed that it looks like you didn't tie them down, but maybe I'm mistaken. Either way, especially considering their price, it's probably just not worth it to use Buces for this scape. If you decide to take them out, you can always sell them, or better yet, grow them emersed. After all, you're going to be deconstructing several tanks so you'll have some space and lighting already, and pots and dirt are cheap.

Just my .02

[CryptKeeper54]

Thanks for the feedback everyone. I'm thinking of replacing the branchwod. Just hope I can find the right pieces. The color is throwing things off. I'l just use it for another tank.

Still waiting on my background plants to fill in so I won't make dramatic changes just yet. I do like the left side but I'm wondering if my stem plants will throw it off. And I do like the idea of adding darker green plants for a better contrast.