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Pics of the 40G breeder.....

11K views 64 replies 25 participants last post by  Overfloater 
#1 ·
Here are a few pics of my 40G breeder I recently setup complete with DIY stand and lighting.



Specs:
40G breeder (36"x18"x16.5")
156watts of NO lighting via 3 double bulb shop lights :
3 Phillips Daylight Deluxe T-12 (48")
3 Sylvania Gro Lux T-12 (48")
Compressed CO2
50lbs Quikret Tube Sand
13lbs leftover *well processed* Flourite
Painted black background

As you can see the water is still cloudy. One possible reason for this is a bacterial bloom. Another plausible reason could be the Fluval 1+ I'm running for filtration. I haven't decided on the filter I am going to settle on for this tank.

Fauna consists of 10 Cherry Barbs, 4 Ottos, and an SAE. All transferred from my old 10G. I am considering adding a small schooling fish such as Cardinal Tetras.

I need more plants and the ones I have need to fill in. Finding plants around here is an excercise in futility. In a few weeks I may attempt mail order but until it warms up a bit I'll have to sit on what I have.

Plant placement is not final of course and suggestions are more than welcome.

BTW: One reason why the first picture doesn't seem as cloudy as the second is due to the fact that I shot the picture downward into the tank as opposed to upward as in the second picture.
 
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#2 ·
Thats a nice looking setup Bob.
I like the dimensions of the breeder tanks because of the front to back depth but they can be tuff with stem plants due to height. Lots of trimming is in order. They are great for a large patch of low growing foreground plants like your riccia. Is that a couple rows of glosso I see in the front ?

Your lighting is more then sufficient and you should get great growth out of the plants. Are you leaving the top open ? :D
I prefer having the tops open and as long as you keep the lights elevated and you have non-jumping fish it is fine to do and I think you get much more efficiency from the lighting without the ridiculous glass tops reflecting the light back.
This will be a nice tank to watch grow... :wink:
 
#4 ·
Thanks for the comments guys.

Buck: I'm not concerned with stem plant trimming at this time. Prior to this I was running a 10G high light/CO2 setup so I was trimming weekly. Only time will tell I suppose. Yes that is glosso you see in the front. The 10G was overrun as usual so I tore up the entire mat and replanted a few pieces. My usual routine every month! The top will be open so I can try to get some emersed growth and flowering. The lights are 4" (10cm) above the water. The tank will contain no jumping fish.
 
#8 ·
New pics....

March 12th



GW cleared up after a 95% WC the day before, leaving a residual cloudiness. No doubt it would return. Plant growth through the pea soup seemed strong despite the light being blocked somewhat by the GW. At this point I added a flocculant and two baskets of filter floss to the Fluval 204. Did a lot of reading and some suggested this had worked for them. In a few days I'll be going away for a week so I hope it doesn't get too bad while I'm gone. I also cut the photoperiod to 6 hours a day.

I was impressed by the plant growth through the GW. Especially, the Heteranthera on the right side which has spread out across the substrate instead of going up. I like the look but I was thinking of removing some from the back and letting it grow just shy of the front glass. I still haven't decided what to put in the right rear as I don't really like the Hygro Corymbosa.

Tomorrow I'll do some minor trimming and try to order the plants a little better. I have some wood soaking for the anubias but I don't know if I'll like the look of it in the tank, so I'm undecided on that. Also as per recommendations for GW outbreaks, I'll skip the WC. Any comments besides clear the water up? :lol:
 
#11 ·
New pics....



Looked pretty good when I came back from vacation. Though there were obvious deficiencies in the plants, the GW was gone. Did some minor trimming and replanting. Just waiting for the plants to grow.... :lol:

I'm still working on those pics of the stand for you... I haven't forgotten.

Edit: Stand pics....




Keep in mind this was my first wood working project. Also I have not finished the lower cabinet area yet. I will be hanging a curtain to cover the interior. The cabinet area is in shambles right now but will be cleaned up shortly, as soon as time permits. It turned out alright, but now that I have a design there are quite a few things I would change to improve the project.
 
#12 ·
New pictures....



Not coming along too badly for a 1.5 month old tank. Waiting for it to fill in some more. I am going for a triangular layout for the time being. Also the E. Stellata stunted up badly when I went on vacation from a lack of micros. So that's just where it is until I get some new growth which will then be trimmed and planted somewhere. And for some reason the glosso isn't growing too well, possibly because it's a fresh substrate. I am going to start working on removing some stem plants and replacing with more permanent fixtures. Comments welcome of course.
 
#17 ·
Synapse: I bought the tank at Petco. It was the only place around here that had the 40 breeder size.

Thanks for the comments guys. I'm impressed. I think it's coming along fairly well. It's even algae free, except for very little green spot algae on the glass. Of course there is always room for improvement. Any suggestions on the layout?
 
#19 ·
I used Accuclear. I got it at Petsmart. What happened was this:

I tried the accuclear with filter floss in my Fluval 204 - no effect.
Accuclear repeat application x 3 - very little change.
Ordered a HOT Magnum.
HOT magnum with micron filter - no change.
HOT magnum with micron and DE - very little change.
HOT magnum with micron and accuclear - amazing improvement in about 45 minutes, practically crystal clear. I watched the GW coagulate and gather into clumps which was then sucked out by the HOT. I left the filter going for 24 hours and it has been clear since. The micron was a nice healthy green color when I removed it.

I don't think the DE was really working well but it may have worked if I had left the filter on for more than 24 hours. The problem with the DE was that after I charged the micron cartridge all the DE would fall to the bottom of the canister when I moved it from the bucket to the tank. I would end up with a pile of DE on the bottom of the canister so who knows how much was actually stuck on the cartridge.

As far as the flocculant is concerned, the fish never really seemed to notice.
 
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