Fish Dork's 80g - Ancient Relic? Aug 28, 2011

[fish dork]

This is my first planted tank. The tank is 80 gal and was started in June 07

Substrate: peat/sand covered with black gravel. Kitty litter (pure clay) added in balls later for iron content

Filtration: Marineland Pengiun HOB, carbon removed, cheap filter floss and pot scrubbers as media

CO2: 10lb pressurized, added in April 08, previous CO2 was DIY yeast method

Lights: 4 X 55 T5HO on 12 hours/day 2 X 6500, 2 X 10000, brand cheap... one ballast has since been replaced, now runs under the tank.

Plants: Rotala Macrandra, Rotala rotundifolia, Hygro. Polysperma, Hygro. Corymbosa, Java Fern Wind. and Java Fern. ??, Val. Americana, Java Moss

Fish: Rummy Nose Tetra, Cardinal, Assorted Rainbows, Tiger Barb, Black Skirt tetra, danios

Tank pics from June 07






From August 07



From November 07



From Jan 08





And these are from earlier in May, before a trim was done









And here's some after the tank was trimmed, same month

[Green Leaf Aquariums]

Awesome jungle

[fish dork]

thanks orlando, this thing is a first attempt and it's killing me to not tear it down. But there is a little fish dork coming in the next couple of months, so no time for that at present. I really was trying to get the hang of plant growing and algae control with this setup. Now with trimming every week just to keep light going in, I think I've got that! Next I want to get the hang of trimming and shaping the plants, then eventually I will set this tank up with a nature scape... and get rid of the decorations altogether.

[Green Leaf Aquariums]

Sounds like your on the right track..Well executed.

[@marko@]

your progress is really great. the tank looks good. i have no doubt you will be shaping perfectly round bushes, something that is still far beyond many of us (me for example).

[CobraGuppy]

nice tank.

What is the green plant on the left side of the tank?

I also love how you added decor but made it blend in and look natural with the tank

[froghair]

fish, those are Fantastic! I'm getting my CO2 setup this week from Orlando and if I can do half as well as you I'll be tickled. Grreat tank!!

[crudnugget]

Great lookin tank! With that lighting, I would add some sort of reddish colored plant to add some color, but aside from that I wouldn't change a thing.

[fish dork]

Originally Posted by CobraGuppy

nice tank.

What is the green plant on the left side of the tank?

I also love how you added decor but made it blend in and look natural with the tank

The left side has bacopa monieri (baby tears) in the very front corner, and the prominent plant is hyrgo. polysperma, with val. americana behind it.

[fish dork]

Originally Posted by crudnugget

Great lookin tank! With that lighting, I would add some sort of reddish colored plant to add some color, but aside from that I wouldn't change a thing.

Believe it or not there is rotala macrandra in there, but it blends in with the brown wall behind the tank. Also it's not as red as it could be, I think it may be that the nitrate levels are too high. It has started to redden since I added iron to the base of the plants with kitty litter clay balls. Sometime soon I plan to add a black background to this tank, then maybe the contrast will show the red better.

There is also a red tiger lotus in there, but the bulb went dormant (and I can't get it back for some reason) and the remaining plant won't do anything but fire up lily pads.

[octopus44]

What a change from the begining! Great looking tank. My only complaint is the pottery.

[fish dork]

Originally Posted by octopus44

What a change from the begining! Great looking tank. My only complaint is the pottery.

I agree... this tank will be going more along a natural line. I'm thinking DW and no more fake stuff. Currently it's in the planning mode.

[fish dork]

I've added a black background and done some trimming. I'm working on making the macrandra and rotundifolia more bush-like, so it hasn't grown back fully in the very back of the tank. But, here are some current pics.







And here's the macrandra, after some touch up



And... the DW is currently soaking! ....

[kittytango]

I'd also like to see some red plants in your tank, but it does look good

[fish dork]

Here's some more recent pics... the back plants are starting to show nicely. These were taken after the most recent trim was done. These shots may be a little dark as I have had another ballast go just recently and have not had time to rewire the spare I have.