Whattya mean I have a problem with too many tanks? Might as well start another one up. (Let's just be glad I don't have an RO/DI filter at home or I wouldn't have a place to sleep!)
Equipment:
Mr. Aqua 12gal long (36") tank
36" Marineland Dual Bright LED fixture
Eheim Ecco 2232/Easy 35
Hydor Koralia Nano 240 (Not yet necessary)
Hydor ETH 200w in-line heater (Not yet in use)
Scape goodies:
Azoo Plant Grower Bed - Black
Lots of lace rock
C. parva
Marsilea minuta
Mosses
S. repens
Bacopa australis
[STRIKE]Hydrocotyle[/STRIKE]
Anubias nana
Anubias nana 'petite'
[STRIKE]Anubias barteri[/STRIKE]
Some other larger Anubias (Congensis, I think)
Livestock:
Painted Fire Reds
[STRIKE]Green Baubalti[/STRIKE]
[STRIKE]Otos[/STRIKE]
Small Horned Nerites
Ramshorns
[STRIKE]Maybe Black Tigers if Gordon gets them in for cheap? I have really great tap water for them, which should make everyone woah envious (HA!)...
[/STRIKE]
SSS+ Crystal Black Shrimp
Let's share a few pictures…
The arrival:
All the packing peanuts, the box it shipped in and all the bubble wrap used to get it here:
See my suitcases in the mix? Had to put off setting this tank up for several weeks because of travel.
Fresh out of its packaging, half way across the room from the stand it'll soon call home:
From the other side, with the dog scheming behind:
Testing out the 36" LED fixture:
It's rather bright for such a low tank, so it'll likely need to be suspended.
Bought two ZooMed light stands that extend to 39" in height. Am using a Dremel to cut out space on the back of the shelving unit. They'll be weighted down with these baskets, just from behind (was testing in the photo):
Using small black chain to hang the fixture from the hooks of the stands so it's more easily adjustable. Thinking there will be a nice amount of light without the need for CO2 if I suspend it 6-7 inches from the top of the tank, as ADA has done with his 12gal long.
To achieve the best flow possible, am crafting a 30"-32" spray bar out of Lee's rigid tubing - once I figure out how to cap the end of the tube, that is. Also using the tubing to create an intake pipe covered with a stainless steel shrimp strainer. Koralia Nano will be placed in one of the front corners to help with flow. Am aware of concerns about it making shrimp soup but many shrimpers use those powerheads without any problems - shrimp even camp out in the stream and near the intake without many problems.
While I could easily add a needle valve to my nearby 10lb cylinder, I want to keep this tank fairly low-tech with limited fert dosing - maybe half EI.
One of the many PFRs that will soon call this tank home:
Now for the rock. Since I can't really get my hands on any of the fancy stuff from ADA/ADG without spending another arm or leg, am gonna have to use what I have on-hand. Have tons of "Lace" stuff, like this:
Also have these pieces of Lace Rock in established tanks (that I'm shutting down to use as emersed rigs) that I can use:
An ample supply to create a semi-decent scape.
Have these large pieces of "Bone" Rock (and some in established tanks, as well) but I'm not such a fan of it for this setup. Not porous enough to grow as large of a bacteria farm for shrimp as Lace Rock:
Thought about ordering Manzanita from Tom Barr but not entirely sure I want to go the wood route.
Here's the problem: plants. What the heck should I use? Don't want it to look too janky. It's already going to be hit-or-miss with both red and green shrimp in the same tank.
20L plant growth setup containing DHG, S. repens, C. Parva, Anubias:
A 5.5gal with some other plants:
Should I create a few mountain groups of rock in the tank and plant Anubias around the base? Marsilea minuta in a few areas? Bacopa australis as a background plant because it gets bushy? Maybe a bit of moss behind a few of the rocks? Hoo boy, I have no idea what I'm going to do yet but am super-excited.
Just want to keep it simple and lush with several open areas in the front to observe the hordes of shrimp.
Your feedback is appreciated.
Jake
P.S. Should I line the back of the tank with black vinyl? Light blue? No background?
Equipment:
Mr. Aqua 12gal long (36") tank
36" Marineland Dual Bright LED fixture
Eheim Ecco 2232/Easy 35
Hydor Koralia Nano 240 (Not yet necessary)
Hydor ETH 200w in-line heater (Not yet in use)
Scape goodies:
Azoo Plant Grower Bed - Black
Lots of lace rock
C. parva
Marsilea minuta
Mosses
S. repens
Bacopa australis
[STRIKE]Hydrocotyle[/STRIKE]
Anubias nana
Anubias nana 'petite'
[STRIKE]Anubias barteri[/STRIKE]
Some other larger Anubias (Congensis, I think)
Livestock:
Painted Fire Reds
[STRIKE]Green Baubalti[/STRIKE]
[STRIKE]Otos[/STRIKE]
Small Horned Nerites
Ramshorns
[STRIKE]Maybe Black Tigers if Gordon gets them in for cheap? I have really great tap water for them, which should make everyone woah envious (HA!)...
[/STRIKE]
SSS+ Crystal Black Shrimp
Let's share a few pictures…
The arrival:
All the packing peanuts, the box it shipped in and all the bubble wrap used to get it here:
See my suitcases in the mix? Had to put off setting this tank up for several weeks because of travel.
Fresh out of its packaging, half way across the room from the stand it'll soon call home:
From the other side, with the dog scheming behind:
Testing out the 36" LED fixture:
It's rather bright for such a low tank, so it'll likely need to be suspended.
Bought two ZooMed light stands that extend to 39" in height. Am using a Dremel to cut out space on the back of the shelving unit. They'll be weighted down with these baskets, just from behind (was testing in the photo):
Using small black chain to hang the fixture from the hooks of the stands so it's more easily adjustable. Thinking there will be a nice amount of light without the need for CO2 if I suspend it 6-7 inches from the top of the tank, as ADA has done with his 12gal long.
To achieve the best flow possible, am crafting a 30"-32" spray bar out of Lee's rigid tubing - once I figure out how to cap the end of the tube, that is. Also using the tubing to create an intake pipe covered with a stainless steel shrimp strainer. Koralia Nano will be placed in one of the front corners to help with flow. Am aware of concerns about it making shrimp soup but many shrimpers use those powerheads without any problems - shrimp even camp out in the stream and near the intake without many problems.
While I could easily add a needle valve to my nearby 10lb cylinder, I want to keep this tank fairly low-tech with limited fert dosing - maybe half EI.
One of the many PFRs that will soon call this tank home:
Now for the rock. Since I can't really get my hands on any of the fancy stuff from ADA/ADG without spending another arm or leg, am gonna have to use what I have on-hand. Have tons of "Lace" stuff, like this:
Also have these pieces of Lace Rock in established tanks (that I'm shutting down to use as emersed rigs) that I can use:
An ample supply to create a semi-decent scape.
Have these large pieces of "Bone" Rock (and some in established tanks, as well) but I'm not such a fan of it for this setup. Not porous enough to grow as large of a bacteria farm for shrimp as Lace Rock:
Thought about ordering Manzanita from Tom Barr but not entirely sure I want to go the wood route.
Here's the problem: plants. What the heck should I use? Don't want it to look too janky. It's already going to be hit-or-miss with both red and green shrimp in the same tank.
20L plant growth setup containing DHG, S. repens, C. Parva, Anubias:
A 5.5gal with some other plants:
Should I create a few mountain groups of rock in the tank and plant Anubias around the base? Marsilea minuta in a few areas? Bacopa australis as a background plant because it gets bushy? Maybe a bit of moss behind a few of the rocks? Hoo boy, I have no idea what I'm going to do yet but am super-excited.
Just want to keep it simple and lush with several open areas in the front to observe the hordes of shrimp.
Your feedback is appreciated.
Jake
P.S. Should I line the back of the tank with black vinyl? Light blue? No background?