20g Long. Small space,Big ideas!

[Naisi]

Long story short, moved in with my girlfriend. And the only tank I'm setting up in our/her house till we find something bigger in the future is my 20 long. The 40 breeder I have is in storage for a bit.

Tank Spec

20 gallon long
Current T5HO fixture
Fluval 105 filter, with a DIY spraybar.
DIY C02
Fluval heater
Substrate, Flourite black sand, with a bit of regular flourite dark mixed in.

I'll be setting this tank up for my new love...Celestial pearl danios and one of my favorites, Red crystal shrimp. I'm really pumped about this setup, I've been cruzing forums, looking at other peoples tanks online, watching videos and getting some really great ideas.

For the hardscape I'll be using some nice stone from my old 40 breeder setup and a really cool piece of wood I picked up from my LFS the other day.

Plant list and pics to come...stay tuned

[GMYukonon24s]

Can't wait for pics. I have a question Red crystal shrimp? Do you mean Red cherry shrimp or Crystal Red Shrimp? I'm guessing Red cherry shrimp. That's what I have and are great little multipliers lol. Them danios are nice fish.

[mizu-chan]

This sounds like a great tank to be set up. I love pearl danios. I'm excited to see some updated pics soon! (:

[Whitey]

This is my very first post on TPT so forgive me if i mess something up

Firstly, Talking from experience make sure any wood in tank with Red Crystals / Red Bee shrimp has been well matured. If possible, get an old large pan and bring to the boil with Wood in to draw any resins and Tannins from the wood. And Keep repeating till water boils and doesn't change colour.

To cut a long story short, I didnt the first time I set up and lost every single RCS to a 'jelly like' Substance covering their bodies. Which I believed to be from the wood I added.

What 'Stones' are you referring to? Will they not increase GH, unless an inert like Lava Rock for example? I think this may affect breeding behavior unless GH was kept a close eye on?

[Naisi]

Sorry, Crystal red shrimp. I've had and bred them before in my 40 breeder. The rocks I found in a local forest a few years ago and have had them in a couple setups with no problems, housing both fish and shrimp. The wood I picked up was boiled for about 8 hours adding new water when it would evaporate down a bit.

I have some plants it the tank right now, and its super clear. The lights don't turn on till after I leave for work this afternoon, so I'll snap a few picks when I get home tonight.

Just a quick edit with my plant list so far

Amazon Frogbit
Cryptocoryne Parva
Cryptocoryne Wendtii (Green Gecko)
Anubias Petite
Java Fern
Ludwigia Repens
Rotala Macrandra
Another Rotala I'll need an I'd on.

Stay tuned, pics on the way!!

[Naisi]

So the tanks been running for a few days now, most of the plants I wanted are in. The DIY C02 has just been set up.

Some setup pics and how it sits now.
http://www.plantedtank.net/forums/at...1&d=1330706426

http://www.plantedtank.net/forums/at...1&d=1330706426

My Co2 in the wood box on my desk

http://www.plantedtank.net/forums/at...1&d=1330706537

Just a few shots of my tank, couple weeks for everything to start growing in a bit.
http://www.plantedtank.net/forums/at...1&d=1330706656
http://www.plantedtank.net/forums/at...1&d=1330706713
http://www.plantedtank.net/forums/at...1&d=1330706780
http://www.plantedtank.net/forums/at...1&d=1330706831
http://www.plantedtank.net/forums/at...1&d=1330706871
http://www.plantedtank.net/forums/at...1&d=1330706914

Once the plants fill in a bit, I'll take some more shots. Can someone tell me what the swords called? Enjoy!

[Naisi]

Well, Saturday's the day. I'll being doing my final test's on my water and if everything is holding I'll be picking up some fish or shrimp. Depends on what my LFS has. I plan on starting with 6 of either CPD's or crystal red shrimp, then add more in a couple weeks.

My final stock list will be 10-12 CPD's and some crystal red's, along with a few oto's for clean up crew.

I'll be looking into some more crypt wendtii for the foreground and some smaller leaved java ferns for the wood, narrow leaf. Sure can fit a lot of plants in such a small space. I'm really looking forward to my plants growing in and start defining what I've been looking to achieve.

On a side note, my cat likes to drink from my tank. I got one of those glass covers to prevent this. Any tips from cat lovers to keep them away from your tanks or if this would in any way harm my cat or taint the water in any way.

[Naisi]

Well, some great news for my 20 long...Due to the size, I went with 12 Celestial pearl danios right off the bat. The tanks been running now for a few months with only a substrate change. All my test results were 0 and 20 ppm on the nitrates, not to bad at all. I'll try and get some shots when the lights come.

While at the not so local fish store, 95km from my home. They had pigmy corys, 80% of my tank is black flourite sand with some regular flourite in the back corner. My question is, whould that be an issue with them? Or would I be ok to add about 6 in a couple weeks when I pick up some shrimp for this tank. I've read that they stay mid to bottom of the tank and are not shy, may act like a dither fish for my CPD's.

My plants are showing great signs of growth and are looking nice and healthy.
Would a DIY c02 pose any issues with a lack of 02 over night? I dont have a lot of surface movement to help with most of the c02 staying in the tank and not gassing off.
I have a small air pump, do you think it would be best to have on during lights out just to be safe or would I be fine as is?

Thanks for looking, any feedback or suggestions would be great.