Some of you may have saw a bit of a sneak preview of this in my 60P journal. I don't know if it's truly Iwagumi or not but I am going to call it that. I did a dry start about 4 months ago. I was going to wait until after Christmas but after way too many days in a row working, and only one day off, I got a bit stir crazy. I have stolen the CO2 system from my 60P which has not been in use for awhile. Don't expect updates there for awhile, I may have hit the total tear down point but we will see.
Some notes, for good or for bad.
I don't think I will ever use an inline diffuser again. I was wondering what was up with my 60P and though CO2 levels looked good according to the drop checker, I had a big leak. I thought I fixed it when I set it up on this but not the case. These things may be cool for a year or so but I think I am under the false impression that aquarium stuff lasts. Much do, I love my Eheims, I love my Zoo Med 501, I love my ADA 60P, but even my AquaClear's fail, my heaters fail, etc. With inline, failure is not easy. I am glad I am not going inline here as it's going to be close to impossible to find leaks, especially CO2 leaks, until they are obvious. I am happy to drop back down to 10 PSI as well, never had an issue with leaks until my atomizer.
My 60P has been unheated and this will be too. I will just have to see what I can stock. Ideally, I want Green Neon Tetra's, I saw them at member OVT's house and feel in love. They are very much rare out here, he got them from someone who ordered them by mistake, I may try to go through the same person if my temps are hot enough, likely not. I know I can do RCS, something I want, I can also selectively breed guppies, though it won't fit the style. Red Cloud Minnows are an attractive option, given the circumstances as well. Tank will likely be at 73-75 degrees. I will have to see where it's really going to be, my last home recording studio was called the "Sweatshop" for a reason, it may be higher without a heater. I do have more than central heat upping the temperature, I do need double pain windows for extra heat I don't want haha.
Though high tech, I am trying to keep it simple. I am now officially over almost all inline stuff. As said, my diffuser had issues, my Hydro failed but I never returned it under warranty, my UV is still kicking but the bulbs don't last. This is a simple in and out situation. I still will dose ferts but I need the bottles as I don't want a bunch of bags of powder around my equipment.
Current makes a great light. I am happy to have this on my tank. I have had a weird relationship with lighting, I buy cheap stuff and it works OK but I need two. I buy a great light and it's too much for me to handle. For this tank, it seems to be doing the trick and I can dim it so I don't have a lot of excuses. I hope to buy an E-Series for my 60P as well, then put this CO2 system back on that, buy a paint ball or something small for this.
My Eheim Ecco 2234 seems sufficient if not overkill. My actual tank volume is about 8 gallons or so, assuming my gallon pitcher is really one gallon but it does flow to the other side. This filter may be too powerful for a standard 10, full throttle but fits really nice in this situation, so far. Not a big surprise as I had it on a 20 long, but that is great news as I love this filter.
Lastly, I keep saying I need to buy a new camera. That has changed with the new iPhone, I can finally use a camera phone with decent results in my personal life. Photography was a hobby but once we jumped to DSLR's and the like, I just couldn't put the cash up. My phone works and I don't plan on buying a camera purely for this purpose.
To do list (yes, I use my journals for myself as well)
-Buy glass diffuser (should have stored it better than, oops, I didn't know that was there)
-Buy fert bottles
-Buy new Eheim quick disconnect (or steal one from the fish keepers I know haha).
Specs:
Mr. Aqua 12 Long
Eheim 2234
Current Sat +
Flourite/Flourite Sand/Petco Sand
Cal Aqua Drop Checker
CO2 Diffuser to be determined, using a cigarette filter right now
Plants:
Hemianthus callitrichoides 'Cuba'
-Note, I will keep it pretty simple for now but may add some DHG Belem (I bought today) later. I am on the fence about adding DHG to the back. I may add some R. colorata as a background instead. This will likely start as Iwagumi but change into something with some color.
Here are some pics from my other journal:
And...Filled today
Some notes, for good or for bad.
I don't think I will ever use an inline diffuser again. I was wondering what was up with my 60P and though CO2 levels looked good according to the drop checker, I had a big leak. I thought I fixed it when I set it up on this but not the case. These things may be cool for a year or so but I think I am under the false impression that aquarium stuff lasts. Much do, I love my Eheims, I love my Zoo Med 501, I love my ADA 60P, but even my AquaClear's fail, my heaters fail, etc. With inline, failure is not easy. I am glad I am not going inline here as it's going to be close to impossible to find leaks, especially CO2 leaks, until they are obvious. I am happy to drop back down to 10 PSI as well, never had an issue with leaks until my atomizer.
My 60P has been unheated and this will be too. I will just have to see what I can stock. Ideally, I want Green Neon Tetra's, I saw them at member OVT's house and feel in love. They are very much rare out here, he got them from someone who ordered them by mistake, I may try to go through the same person if my temps are hot enough, likely not. I know I can do RCS, something I want, I can also selectively breed guppies, though it won't fit the style. Red Cloud Minnows are an attractive option, given the circumstances as well. Tank will likely be at 73-75 degrees. I will have to see where it's really going to be, my last home recording studio was called the "Sweatshop" for a reason, it may be higher without a heater. I do have more than central heat upping the temperature, I do need double pain windows for extra heat I don't want haha.
Though high tech, I am trying to keep it simple. I am now officially over almost all inline stuff. As said, my diffuser had issues, my Hydro failed but I never returned it under warranty, my UV is still kicking but the bulbs don't last. This is a simple in and out situation. I still will dose ferts but I need the bottles as I don't want a bunch of bags of powder around my equipment.
Current makes a great light. I am happy to have this on my tank. I have had a weird relationship with lighting, I buy cheap stuff and it works OK but I need two. I buy a great light and it's too much for me to handle. For this tank, it seems to be doing the trick and I can dim it so I don't have a lot of excuses. I hope to buy an E-Series for my 60P as well, then put this CO2 system back on that, buy a paint ball or something small for this.
My Eheim Ecco 2234 seems sufficient if not overkill. My actual tank volume is about 8 gallons or so, assuming my gallon pitcher is really one gallon but it does flow to the other side. This filter may be too powerful for a standard 10, full throttle but fits really nice in this situation, so far. Not a big surprise as I had it on a 20 long, but that is great news as I love this filter.
Lastly, I keep saying I need to buy a new camera. That has changed with the new iPhone, I can finally use a camera phone with decent results in my personal life. Photography was a hobby but once we jumped to DSLR's and the like, I just couldn't put the cash up. My phone works and I don't plan on buying a camera purely for this purpose.
To do list (yes, I use my journals for myself as well)
-Buy glass diffuser (should have stored it better than, oops, I didn't know that was there)
-Buy fert bottles
-Buy new Eheim quick disconnect (or steal one from the fish keepers I know haha).
Specs:
Mr. Aqua 12 Long
Eheim 2234
Current Sat +
Flourite/Flourite Sand/Petco Sand
Cal Aqua Drop Checker
CO2 Diffuser to be determined, using a cigarette filter right now
Plants:
Hemianthus callitrichoides 'Cuba'
-Note, I will keep it pretty simple for now but may add some DHG Belem (I bought today) later. I am on the fence about adding DHG to the back. I may add some R. colorata as a background instead. This will likely start as Iwagumi but change into something with some color.
Here are some pics from my other journal:
And...Filled today