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carlsj2012's 75 Gallon, The Comeback (56k warning?)

12K views 93 replies 19 participants last post by  carlsj2012 
#1 ·
Hi everyone!

Not only am I new to this forum, I am also new to planted aquariums! Back in November 2018, I decided to embark on a frustrating journey to own a planted tank which ended in disappointment. However, this early journey has not deterred me from trying again! In March I did a tank "reset" to try and get things right, and maybe even learn a thing or two about something. Before I get to where the tank is at now, I wanted to give an overview of my first attempt, with the sole purpose of identifying all the mistakes I made, resulting in an imminent failure. I also encourage you all to identify things I have missed. So here we go!

Tank Dimensions: 48"W * 21"H * 18"D
Filter: Aqueon 400 Canister Filter
Lighting: Current USA Satellite Plus PRO
Heater: Aqueon 300W submersible
Substrate: Blend of Tropica aquarium soil and Seachem Flourite
CO2: 10# cylinder with in-line Dual Venturi DIY external reactor
Other: Ehiem Skimmer (Added in March 2019)

November 7, 2018: Day one. There is nothing more exciting than flooding your aquarium and planting! I believed I had everything I needed, as the soil was already enriched, and the LFS guy told me I shouldn't need to add any ferts for at least a year. HA! Anyway, things were looking very nice. And it didn't take long for things to take off.
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November 29, 2018: Things are growing quickly, but still looking healthy! I decided to add 12 Cardinal Tetras to add some more colour to the tank. Water tests indicating a pH of 6.4 and still no nitrate.
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December 12, 2018: Oh boy....Things have really grown, but it's not so nice anymore. There's a thick, persistent layer of oil/slime on the surface of my water. I don't understand! The parameters show zero across the board! Things should be pristine in there! As you can see, I also added more fauna, 12 Emperor Tetras, just because....got to have fish, right?!
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February 28, 2019: It's just before this point that I realized, I've really messed up. I start scouring the web for solutions and root causes. Over the course of the month, two cardinal and one emperor have died, and I simply cannot keep up with the BGA that is now rampant in my tank. This image is 3 days after cleaning. I decide here to start from scratch. I take inventory of what fauna remain and am surprised to find a emperor fry. Apparently the sole survivor of it's kin. Bonus fish! Also, I've added more! Four blue angelfish.
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March 1, 2019: All the flora (with the exception of HC) is removed thrown in the garbage. Driftwood and rocks are scrubbed with a toothbrush under tap water, and the aquarium glass is scrubbed. Soil and HC are aggressively vacuumed and an 80% water change is performed (fauna are still in the tank). After a refill, I set up the surface skimmer I just picked up and allow the filter to do it's thing before cleaning it four hours later. Activated carbon is replaced. 10 mls of Excel are also added and CO2 shut down. Lights reduced to 50%

March 2, 2019: Performed a 50% water change and cleaned skimmer filter (already filthy). Added new flora (to be described below). Re-scaped

March 4, 2019: Added some more flora. EI fertilizers have arrived in the mail, performed another 50% water change.
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So here we are.
Current Flora:
Alternantera Rosanervig
Didiplis Diandra
Anubias Nana
Java Fern
HC
Limnophila Sessiliflora

Current Fauna:
Blue Angelfish (4)
Emperor Tetras (12)
Cardinal Tetras (10)
Silver Flying Fox (1)
Bristlenose Pleco (1)

I realize today is March 7th, but I will save the Fresh start for another journal entry. So what did I do wrong?

Here is MY list:
-I was in a hurry.
-I didn't have ferts. The plants outgrew what little nutrient was in the soil.
-I didn't have good CO2 control. Between the iffy on-off times and the surface slime, things were all over the map.
-I thought more light meant better results. Cue algae.
-I thought my canister filter could go longer between cleans.
-General upkeep was lacking. By simply not trimming the plants adequately, circulation was affected, making it easier for algae to take over.
-I didn't understand the water parameters. And when the going got tough, I basically threw in the towel and stopped testing. I was running blind.
-Did I mention I was in a hurry? I wanted that gorgeous tank yesterday. This takes time.

I'm still learning, but I think I'm way better off than I was four months ago. Let's make this a great comeback story, okay?

carlsj2012
 
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#60 ·
IME, any eggs that turn white didn't get fertilized (not uncommon for a first spawning) or have fungus or are otherwise unviable. The parents will pluck those off & eat them so the fungus doesn't spread to the viable ones.

And plecos are notorious for eating eggs at night while everybody's asleep. No wonder the parents are nervous.....

Good luck!
 
#63 ·
Hey carlsj2012 - just found and read the thread. Really enjoyed and will be following along. Keep up the posts.

There doesn’t seem to be so many largish medium light tanks on this board and your struggle finding time (with a young family) to calibrate CO2 really resonated.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
CO2 and high lighting can be done with low tech plants to not have a massive amount of plant growth requiring frequent trimmings. I probably only need to play with my plants about once a month or so.
 
#65 ·
Finally got around to the tank maintenance last night, Phfew! This was about 12 days since the last clean I did. All things considered, I think it wasn't too bad. You can see the GDA that accumulated on the glass is pretty light:




And here is the BBA on the driftwood. I hit it again with H2O2 before starting the WC.


Burn baby, burn!


And here we are after WC is complete, all bubbly!


All in all the tank seems to be doing okay. The inhabitants are good. As always the Limnophila Sessiliflora is growing like a weed, and the Java fern is doing well. The Didiplis Diandra is not struggling, but it is going VERY slowly. I don't think it will ever color up with my current set up though.

Dwarf Hair Grass is not doing great. I've trimmed it down to try to get it to propagate, but the color of the roots tells me this may be very difficult. The Pogostemon Helferi has complete stalled out and started melting away. Last WC I pulled it up, trimmed what was left and tried replanting it. Not sure how well it will recover. And the Alternantera Rosanervig, while the new growth is looking better, by the time it develops the older leaves are completely peppered in black and holes so it's hard to get it to look great.

I've been reflecting long and hard about what I want out of my tank and determined that with my current set up, I'm not sure I can get it. So I began scouring across TPT Journals to find someone who had a similar taste to mine, and I found it in @ange062 journal. I started taking notes on his current set up and was pleased to see he had a nice set of LED's for half the price of the ones on my original "wish list". So, the list has changed to reflect these new wants.

Here is the new wish list:
-AI Prime HD Freshwater LED's x2
-Eheim Classic 2215 (not sure if I also want to change out my Aqueon 400, since parts are not readily available locally...probably though)
-Lily pipes (for that clean look)
-Inline Heater (again, for the clean look)
-Inline UV sterilizer
-CO2 diffuser (to help clean up the inside cabinet)


The goal is to slowly gather all these parts up, and perhaps re-scape the whole system once I'm ready. I may get the filter first since I already suspect I have flow issues. Originally I thought of getting a power head, but I feel like I already have enough hardware in the tank.
 
#66 ·
Finally got around to the tank maintenance last night, Phfew! This was about 12 days since the last clean I did. All things considered, I think it wasn't too bad. You can see the GDA that accumulated on the glass is pretty light:









And here is the BBA on the driftwood. I hit it again with H2O2 before starting the WC.





Burn baby, burn!





And here we are after WC is complete, all bubbly!





All in all the tank seems to be doing okay. The inhabitants are good. As always the Limnophila Sessiliflora is growing like a weed, and the Java fern is doing well. The Didiplis Diandra is not struggling, but it is going VERY slowly. I don't think it will ever color up with my current set up though.



Dwarf Hair Grass is not doing great. I've trimmed it down to try to get it to propagate, but the color of the roots tells me this may be very difficult. The Pogostemon Helferi has complete stalled out and started melting away. Last WC I pulled it up, trimmed what was left and tried replanting it. Not sure how well it will recover. And the Alternantera Rosanervig, while the new growth is looking better, by the time it develops the older leaves are completely peppered in black and holes so it's hard to get it to look great.



I've been reflecting long and hard about what I want out of my tank and determined that with my current set up, I'm not sure I can get it. So I began scouring across TPT Journals to find someone who had a similar taste to mine, and I found it in @ange062 journal. I started taking notes on his current set up and was pleased to see he had a nice set of LED's for half the price of the ones on my original "wish list". So, the list has changed to reflect these new wants.



Here is the new wish list:

-AI Prime HD Freshwater LED's x2

-Eheim Classic 2215 (not sure if I also want to change out my Aqueon 400, since parts are not readily available locally...probably though)

-Lily pipes (for that clean look)

-Inline Heater (again, for the clean look)

-Inline UV sterilizer

-CO2 diffuser (to help clean up the inside cabinet)





The goal is to slowly gather all these parts up, and perhaps re-scape the whole system once I'm ready. I may get the filter first since I already suspect I have flow issues. Originally I thought of getting a power head, but I feel like I already have enough hardware in the tank.
Sweet!! Let me know if you need advice on anything, always happy to help! :)

Sent from my Pixel 2 using Tapatalk
 
#69 ·
My CalAqua pipes would probably have enough clearance to fit over a rim, I can get some measurements for you if you want.
We'll, my CO2 tank seems to have dumped itself. Sigh...I'm about to have a headache.
Yikes!!! Lose any fish? What kind of regulator are you using?

Sent from my Pixel 2 using Tapatalk
 
#70 ·
Fortunately, no fish were lost. Seems to happen every time the tank gets low. It's more of a headache getting the bottle refilled when I'm working, so I end up getting some algae issues. I'm using the Milwaukee single stage regulator...I think it's the MA957? I've read dual stage is the way to go in preventing this, anyone able to confirm?

Thanks for the offer @ange062, I'll try to get you some measurements. There's definitely no rush at the moment, plus it really is just for cosmetic purposes. If they don't fit, it isn't the end of the world. Just means I need to invest in a rimless tank :p

Today I tried to pick up some new plants and moss from my LFS, but they didn't carry anything I wanted. Maybe next week.
 
#71 ·
Did some maintenance last night. Almost went 3 weeks without touching anything, and once again I was surprised by how well things were going, all things considered. No before pictures, but here is a FTS:



You'll notice I pulled out all the DHG and Alternantera Rosanervig. I was getting tired of trying to force it to grow, and I didn't like looking at it struggling. My train of thought was if I don't like looking at it, it's gone. The tank is a little empty, but I've got an order placed with The Wet Leaf for 3 new plants: Bacopa compact, Anubias barteri var. nana 'large', and Taxiphyllum Taiwan moss. They only ship on Mondays, so I should receive it next week.

The Limnofila Sessiliflora is doing REALLY well at the moment. I usually have to top it every week because the older growth starts looking a little gross, but the long period between maintenance has really allowed it to thrive. Runners have come up and thickened up the whole pack. I still had to remove SOME ugly stuff, but for the most part I just trimmed and left everything rooted. Check it out:



I'm very excited for the new plants to come it. I think they will really add viewing pleasure to an already much improved tank.

 
#72 ·
Big day today! New plants came in from TheWetLeaf! So I decided to do a heavy and deep vacuum before planting. I figured since I seem to have quite a bit of detrius build up over the course of a week, I'd give the plants time to root themselves before getting in heavy with the vacuum again. The water was a little hazy after everything was done, but I'm not too worried about it. I'm pretty sure I messed up the fine balance by aggressively digging into the substrate with a vacuum. Should clear up in a few days. New plants I got were Anubias Barteri var. Nana 'large', Taxiphyllum Taiwan Moss, and Bacopa compact. I really like the look of the Anubias, the other two will need some more time to mature. All told, the cleaning and planting took 2.5 hours. Here are some pics:

Before:


Middle:


After:


Bacopa, I'd like to keep it shorter, but I'll give it time to settle in before trimming and propagating:


Moss, first real attempt at tying anything down. Didn't quite spread as much as I had hoped, but I'm sure it will grow:


And the Anubias:
 
#74 ·
Did a water change on the 26th. Nothing too exciting to report. As I expected, the water cleared up from the initial overhaul prior to adding the new flora. The angels seem to be leaving the bacopa alone now. Guess they really hated that one stem in particular. It's basically a bare twig now, but at least they're leaving the rest alone! Trimmed back the sessiliflora as usual. It really seems to be thriving, I love how it looks! The Java fern is doing well, but I'm seeing quite a bit of black discoloration on some of the older leaves. I didn't have time to deal with it this water change, but I will probably remove these leaves next time around.


Here you can see the discoloration/diatoms(?) on the Java:


The glorious Sessiliflora from above:
 
#76 ·
I have an update, and I'm curious to hear if anyone has had this issue before. Today I noticed several leaves from the Anubias were floating on the surface. In earlier versions on my tank, I have had an Anubias Nana plant pretty much die off, and I attributed this to poor planting conditions (it had been tucked between two rocks and I thought maybe I squished it). This time however, I tied it onto a rock. The leaves all appeared to be in really good shape, but the stems seemed "squishy". Here are some photos of the leaves lost and of the plant:




I did a little digging on the interwebs and came across a series of posts on various forums discussing an "Anubias Disease" that appears to be in-curable. Someone linked to this article and I found it interesting, but without answers. The article in question is about half-way down:

Bulletin of Russian Anubias Forum

So I'm curious if anyone has experienced something similar, and if they managed to resolve it. Many thanks.
 
#77 ·
Once again, a pretty routine update. Life and work have been crazy, and as a result I didn't get to look much at the tank. Apart from removing the rotting Anubias I haven't had much time to even enjoy looking at the tank. I am repeatedly amazed at how well the tank does with the lack of maintenance. This first couple of images is after 17 days of no care/maintenance:







Here we are post WC:



Pretty much did the works: Trimmed back the Sessiliflora and thinned out the Java Fern, scrubbed the glass and hardware, cleaned the filter. I then dosed KNO3, KH2PO4, and K2SO4 to reach my low light EI targets. Hopefully I can see where I'm at in 7 days, but I guess it isn't the end of the world if I don't get around to it :p
 
#78 ·
Haven't updated in a while, mostly due to not having any news to report. Water change days have been few and far in between, but I seem to have found a nice balance that keeps the algae in check. Since the last update I've gotten rid of the plants in the far right corner (I can't remember their name) since they weren't really thriving with my current set-up. As always the Sessiliflora and Java are doing well. Here are some pics:









In other news, I've heard that Santa is going to be very generous to my hobby this year. Fingers crossed! An overhaul may come due in 2020!
 
#79 ·
As expected, Santa delivered!



CO2 diffuser: The plan was to get rid of my reactor, as there is no way for me to clean it, and I don't want to keep building new ones. I can't begin to imagine what the inside of my current one looks like!

New Filter: Because, why not?

Lights: AI Prime. These ARE the "Reef" model, but I believe I can make them work. This also allows room for future upgrades into the world of reef tanks.

I still need to figure out the logistics of the upgrade. I intend to do a "fresh start". The first thing I need to figure out (and no doubt the most challenging) is how to re-home the current inhabitants. I don't have a suitable second home for them, and I intend to start with only plants to figure out the new balance of the tank. I'll start on Kijiji and work my way out to LFS. Not sure if my LFS has a re-homing program or not.

Once that's done, tank and current equipment will be stripped and cleaned as best as humanly possible, substrate and driftwood will most likely go to trash, and current flora will be analyzed for re-use or tossed.

I also need to source a new supplier for CO2. My local guy seems to have vanished from the face of the earth. Oh well.....

2020 should provide with some exciting challenges for my hobby!
 
#80 ·
As expected, Santa delivered!



CO2 diffuser: The plan was to get rid of my reactor, as there is no way for me to clean it, and I don't want to keep building new ones. I can't begin to imagine what the inside of my current one looks like!
I went looking back through your thread to see what you have for a reactor and found the photobucket photos are no longer showing as well as I couldn't find anything of the reactor besides it being mentioned. Is it just a flow through reactor, or do you have media in it? I mean an reactor should be be the upgrade from a diffuser vs the other way around. I've never thought about cleaning my reactor, but it's also a 4" wide open pipe LOL. However as I have my UV light right before the reactor, I do wonder if that kills anything that comes into the reactor to keep it clean.
 
#83 ·
I've managed to sell the fish, and even the plants. Thanks for the recommendation @Discusluv!



In the next week I'll be draining the tank and scrubbing everything down. Currently I'm struggling with planning my filtration. The Aqueon canister filter I have been using should be adequate at 400 GPH, however I have found it lacking with the spray bar, and if I use a straight pipe outlet, it blasts everything around. I also have the new Eheim 350 from Christmas, which I would like to implement into my new setup. In a recent thread, I saw this reply and thought it might be worth a shot. This should work, right? Two 200 GPH corner nozzles from the Aqueon, with a spray bar in the back from the Eheim (164 GPH)?

https://www.plantedtank.net/forums/9-equipment/1303061-flow-surface-agitation-2.html#post11300689

As far as layout goes, I've really been liking the look of Dutch-Hybrids. Don't think I'll use any driftwood this time, but maybe some rocks/small hills.

Looking forward to this new set-up. Looking at an empty tank isn't great...

Should I start a new journal for this new scape!?!?!?
 
#85 ·
OK! The tank has been emptied and all equipment wiped down. @chayos00 I even managed to cut open the reactor, and I was quite surprised at it's condition!

Now things are at a stand-still. Just looking around for good deals on substrate and plants. I will probably go with Tropica Aquasoil, but I had a question: I noticed it comes in pellet and powder form. Is this basically just for ease of planting, or is there some other benefit/drawback to powder? I recall reading in one of my Journal Subscriptions that they blended both pellet and powder, but I don't remember the reasoning...

Other thing I've been contemplating is a black background. I think it would really add some depth to the tank while hiding the cables and tubing. Thoughts?







New lights mounted too!
 
#86 ·
OK! The tank has been emptied and all equipment wiped down. @chayos00 I even managed to cut open the reactor, and I was quite surprised at it's condition!



Now things are at a stand-still. Just looking around for good deals on substrate and plants. I will probably go with Tropica Aquasoil, but I had a question: I noticed it comes in pellet and powder form. Is this basically just for ease of planting, or is there some other benefit/drawback to powder? I recall reading in one of my Journal Subscriptions that they blended both pellet and powder, but I don't remember the reasoning...



Other thing I've been contemplating is a black background. I think it would really add some depth to the tank while hiding the cables and tubing. Thoughts?















New lights mounted too!

Wow that thing is clean inside the tubing!! That's good to know! I've seen they blend the soil too, but no clue as to the reasoning.

Sent from my Pixel XL using Tapatalk
 
#87 ·
Things are at a stand-still for now. I'm having a tough time finding aquarium soil. LFS seem to only carry Seachem Flourite Black (and in small quantities at that). The Wet Leaf in Calgary stocks ADA Amazonia (currently out of stock) and also Tropica Aquarium Soil. Seeing as they are listed at the same price, I figured I should hold out until ADA is back in stock as they are often touted as the best in our hobby. Then again, according to Dennis, ADA is much more difficult to start with and Tropica has proven to be more stable at the beginning.

I guess this is just "paralysis by analysis" and hope someone can provide me with some feedback on the matter regarding their own experiences?
 
#88 · (Edited)
Things are at a stand-still for now. I'm having a tough time finding aquarium soil. LFS seem to only carry Seachem Flourite Black (and in small quantities at that). The Wet Leaf in Calgary stocks ADA Amazonia (currently out of stock) and also Tropica Aquarium Soil.
You could try ska shrimp nature and aquariums on facebook in Calagry. I think they carry both ada and tropica and sometime make trips to Edmoton. I purchase my tropica soil from them for my recent startup.

Good luck with the new setup.
 
#92 ·
Hope it works well! Just watch for that initial ammonia release! LOL But I'm sure just plants will be fine with it. Good luck!

I think part of my decision to not go with ADA was for a 72" x 18" foot print tank with 2-3" of soil would be a stupid amount for me to spend! LOL
 
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