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8.5G Bow-Front Nano Riparium Build!

14K views 26 replies 7 participants last post by  Teebo 
#1 · (Edited)
I have two of these brand new National Geographic cornerless bow-front tanks I have no use for but I love them so much so I am thinking about making a riparium with one...and possibly a paludarium with the other some day so they can be a side by side comparison between a riparium and a paludarium.



Obviously since this is a riparium I will not really have any landmass above the water, I bought a new Marineland Penguin 75 HOB bio-wheel filter for this project and I would like to have some sort of waterfall feature following it. I did an experiment with the inlet tube 1" below the water surface and I got a slow flow rate, I will try extending it straight down further so there is more water pressure on it. I also bought a casted cave for this (the only casted piece I will use in it) it has an opening on the right side as well. The identical tank I already dirted, graveled, and have began to cycle it for when I am ready to build off it.



Just to get an idea I used a glass as a raised rock pool, which would be nice if I can get a proper flow rate. I may have to put the entire HOB body inside the tank to be able to have the water level where I want it at around 60% which also means I will not be able to have a pool above the waters surface.



I did an experiment with a 3/4" ID hose clamped onto the intake tube, but it was not 100% air tight because the tube is so thin so it has to be under the waters surface to even keep the line primed. It sucks the water from the opposite side of the tank which is great but again the flow rate was slow, I think it would work fine if the water level was higher or the filter body was lower.



Seems ripariumsupply.com is out of or no longer selling planters so I have sourced to eBay and they are about $15ea shipped...now I just need to find out how to make some floating rafts for the fronts.
 
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#2 ·
The smallest of those racks (middle right) I get at my local grocery store for $3 each. Hope you "$15 each" means for the set of 3. Dollar stores are another place to find them cheap.
 
#5 · (Edited)
I checked 3 pharmacy's, Walmart and a few department stores, and 3 grocery stores. I found some! I'm glad I did not order those they would have been way too large, because I did find those too! The baskets ended up being at a grocery store and the cup was at Walmart, these were the two best I could find and they were $3 each!



The only holes in the cup are two slits at the bottom, it will work fine I think as is and the baskets look great for growing moss on the fronts.



I ended up having to lower the filter body into the tank it seems to be the only option, so I have to find something to put it on...I am thinking bricks or blocks of some sort.

 
#7 ·
Don't worry about the smaller basket's slits, I mostly use that one (only a few large plants in the longer basket) and everything grows fine in it, roots find their way out of the bottom (or the back by the suction cups).
 
#10 · (Edited)
I am trying to decide on what to use for hanger substrate, I see many people use hydroponics clay ball pellets, but what about Aquasoil?




As far as the hangers themselves go I am a bit confused about the trellis raft, its just used to help plants float along the surface and hide the hanger container and provide appearance of depth right?? I am also confused about that piece of screen I see in the rear of everyone's cups, is that only the prevent substrate from falling out of the suction mount holes??
 
#11 · (Edited)
Concerning planter substrate I thought about it more, and hydroponics clay will be much lighter which is important in a suction mounted planter.

I picked up a Tetra Whisper 10i with the new bio-guard its a little larger than I thought but its powerful enough to run above the water level (unsure how high) and its quiet! I tucked it behind the cave decor where the fish are less likely to reach the intake, I also put filter floss inside the base in front of the pump I was shocked to see no prefilter. I hope circulation is not affected by the decor but I can hide the filter with plants easily, and it gives me an area to hide a mini heater:



 
#12 · (Edited)
I was able to corner the filter a little more to angle it, I have hung the planters...I do not think I am going to submerge them completely. I just want the bottom row of holes submerged so I can spill some moss over them or something and save some space in the tank for submerged plants under the planters.



This is max water level and minimum will be above the top of the next rock tip to the left, the small planter will help hide the filter and I will use a large planter on the outside of the tank on the left (back of the filter) I will use it to grow Pothos and Wandering Jew which can both be stretchered to the right between the other plants along the back and the substrate does not require submerging.



I really want to hide a mini auto 78F heater right here behind the cave decor, I know they say to put your heater opposite from your filter but I think it will be fine. I will grow Helxine soleirolii in the filter to help hide it:



I am open to suggestions on a mini heater but I think I am going to just end up using a Tetra HT10, the tank is 8.5 gallons, it is 2/3 full which is around 6 gallons minus the displacement of everything in it...we are talking about maybe 4.5-5 gallons of water.
 
#13 ·
I've read some bad reviews on that heater brand. I'd recommend Hydro Theo adjustable heater. 50 watt for that size tank. I got one on amazon recently amusingly the 50 watt was priced cheaper than the 25watt .. whatever works for me!
 
#14 ·
Well I did some research into other mini heaters, including the Marineland Stealth series which has a recall on fires and exploding tubes. I have not had any problems with Tetra heaters so far but I will checkout the Hydro; it needs to be very small and compact and typically anything adjustable is not.
 
#15 · (Edited)
Here is an update, I started planting! I have 4 plants so far: Peace Lily, Sensitive Fern, Dwarf Palm, and a grass I took from a pond side about 4 months ago I think it is a form of Eleocharis?




The way I rooted them was I filled the basket to the water line THEN put the plant(s) in so that only the tips are in water that way they can adjust to having submerged roots with hopefully minimal shock wilting. I am curious how the clay balls will affect the water chemistry I did rinse them first but do they get smaller over time? Will they leech into the water and harm my fish or add clay to the water column? I have Osmocote Plus in the substrate of the tank under the gravel but I can not really use it in the planters...would you use Seachem Flourish to keep the planters healthy since they rely 100% on the water column? I am already planning on using Excel for Carbon substitute.



I ended up using a Tetra heater only because it was in my Betta tank (and I put that fish in this riparium) it is model HT10 but it seems to be running a lot and only maintains 76F so I need to bump the wattage up soon. It fits perfectly almost out of sight, and I plan on planting Baby Tears in the filter which should spill over and hide the wires/heater:



I will be growing some form of moss out of the front holes of the long baskets but this taller narrow one with the Peace lily has no frontal holes, I want to plant something else out of the top that will spill over the front and help hide the planter...something similar to Baby Tears. I ended up choosing the same long basket for my outer planter but it needs to be sealed up a bit for use with soil, I am using it for Pothos and Wandering Jew which will follow each other over the rear of the tank and I may plant a third plant in it at some point as well.
 
#16 ·
Looks promising so far!

Some of that osmocote that you put under the gravel will leach into the water column. The bigger the gravel the bigger that gaps between them and the more the water circulates which means more of the osmocote gets into the water. I would recommend waiting to see how the potted plants do for the first month or so.

They will need more ferts than the submerged plants in the long run, since they are exposed to more co2 in the air and are closer to the light source. I'm sure someone else would chime in on this.

Those expanded clay pellets will not shrink except through mechanical damage, think light-weight bricks as a similar substance :D
 
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#18 ·
Thanks Daisy Mae!

Yeah I have been hunting for another hanging tray for the outside with no luck so far in the right size. I would be manually watering it periodically using the tank water, Pothos & Wandering Jew wont need to be watered more than once a week I can do it during water changes or something.
 
#19 · (Edited)
I am back on it, I added some submerged plants. The Anubias I bought from the store, the water lily I pulled from a pond 6 months ago it is still a puzzle I pulled it from another tank. The Madagascar Lace plant I split from a plant in another tank since it had enough root, I am waiting for it to bounce back before I plant it in the substrate. I think that is where I want it in the back right corner so it grows out into the light because I am trying to keep the right side of my tank open especially the front corner and lace leaves will help with that:




I planted the Anubias in the substrate I am using a rock to weigh it down until it roots itself, I am not sure if the root flares are turning green because of photosynthesis or algae but I am leaning towards it turning green above the substrate like the rest of the plant. If you look closely you can see a Ghost Shrimp in front of the roots I added 3 of them for cleanup the Betta seems to be tolerating them:



All the way to the left side behind the rock cave where the filter & heater are I want to plant Jungle Val (the straight flat species not the spiraling twisted kind) that way it grows up and spills over the top of the rock hiding the hardware back there. If you look closely you can see another Ghost Shrimp on the rock, the only thing is I read Jungle Val melts if you use Seachem Excel which is kind of discouraging because this is an Excel tank and melting is a sign of Carbon deficiency...I am unsure if that is a myth or not?



I want to cover the emerging rock tip with moss, I think it would grow well there along with adding another aspect to the tank. There is enough room to the right of the heater to hang a fogger off a suction cup under the water surface which would certainly help with the moss right there and I would run it on a timer for like 15min every other hour or something. I am going to go for a walk this afternoon and collect different mosses growing on rocks, blend them up into a smoothie and paint them on...hoping with a variety of moss species one is certain to take and whatever doesn't will act as food for whatever does take.



I have something growing on the side edges of my filter, they kind of look like fish eggs but they have a rainbow color to them like oil...is this just a buildup of some sort of element? I thought about using a Turkey baster and sucking it up, its also against the green plastic. I began using Seachem Excel in this tank not sure if that is the factor:



I rearranged this planter thinning out the Dwarf Palm, the Sensitive Ferns are starting to open. I added Rush which is a tubular grass I pulled from a pond (between palm & fern), I also added Bur-reed which was pulled from a pond (center front).




This is my prized plant starting to bud; Marsh St. John's Wort I have failed about 10 times to grow this plant I do not know if they are extremely vulnerable to dormancy or what but I finally got it I had to use a large root everything else seems to die. This has been dormant for about 1-2 months now I thought it was dead, every time I transplant one it dies immediately but the tiny flowers are so beautiful and intricate! You see them around pond edges and growing from cracks in rocks so you would think it is hearty, I pull them from the pond myself:



This is another plant I pulled from the pond that I have had little success with until now, I have not been able to identify it but the roots are very dense almost like a bulb or rhizome you need to crack a chunk off to propagate and then it dies off for a while. The second photo shows the foliage, it is a very slow grower!

 
#20 · (Edited)
I was collecting mosses when I came across a dwarf fern I forgot about, they are kind of hard to find and only grow horizontally on rocks in acidic damp areas...usually the rhizome is growing in moss. I think it is a Christmas Fern but the leaf shape does not appear to have the stocking toe and the entire leaf is connected to the stem not just the center like a typical Christmas Fern.



I found 3 types of moss today, one is very shaggy and tall I will not be using it, the other is tighter growth (the small clump) and then I have a flat horizontal species that grows with a clean underside on rock it looks like green ice crystals and I think is the easiest to grow it reminds me of Java Moss but I do not think this is an aquatic species:





I used pieces of the shorter finer moss in a small planter, if you look I laid a pine needle base under the moss to make it more acidic without changing water chemistry since moss does not grow roots anyway. I will have to mist it manually and I want to fertilize it, I am thinking about keeping a separate misting bottle for the mosses with pine needles and Osmocote in it I know the water should be acidic I want to keep it lush green.



I cheated on the rock decor; instead of painting on a moss smoothie I wrapped it with flat moss using a piece of fishing line. Before I did that I used a nice groove to attach one of the rock ferns, the rhizome extends across the entire length of the top and I also tied in pine needles as you see in the wild photo it had them collecting in the moss it was growing out of. I am not sure how long this will last being a terrestrial moss but the tips extend below the water surface to act like a wick:




UPDATE: After further research turns out pine needles although are acidic DO NOT lower the pH of substrate or water, so I will need another way of lowering the pH of my misting bottle. Also ferns and mosses do not like Seachem Excel/Carbon so I am going to have to be careful, just going off my research. Regarding my Excel dosing in this tank I use it daily to avoid any swings, I dose my tank as 5 gallons; I figure it holds 8.5 gallons and I have it about 2/3 - 3/4 full so that is 5.6 - 6.4 gallons then I round down the displacement to 5 gallons.
 
#21 · (Edited)
So this moss cap was good for a week but if you look closely it is starting to develop white mold so it has to go, the tips in the water kept the entire top moist without the need for any misting which I think is the downfall with terrestrial moss it needs to dry out a bit. I am not sure what kind of moss I need for this I am thinking willow moss, java moss, or possibly riccia?




I decided to also cap the planter I filled with moss, and it seems to be doing better up there since it stays dryer.



This is where the fungus/mold started from, and where gnats seems to live (I am working on a trap) is there a way to control this white fungus/mold?



Then I saw it spread to the base of a dwarf palm, it was gone today I stopped misting up there a day or two ago:



I planted the pond lily in the side of a hanging planter to see what it does, I just can not get those to stretch in any tank I am thinking they need more iron or something I am not sure yet...with it at the surface though it may grow it is just an experiment like the terrestrial moss.



I split the lace plant in two and planted one half where I want it in this tank and the other half in another tank, it will help the line of sight when viewing the tank since it is against the glass on the side it is viewed from.



I bought some Baby Tears online, made a slit at the top of my filter bag since I do not use carbon and planted them in it. I hope they grow out to hide the filter and all wires, it is in the process of bouncing back from being pancaked in the mail:



The light I am using is a 10W LED floodlight I bought 3-5 years ago so it is first generation LED lighting, which they always seemed to use lower rated power supply's and they were still sold at the bulb rating. I figured I needed at least 2x the lighting so I ordered a 20W but its 10x the brightness! It was only $18 shipped, but I can not use it the thing blinded my Betta when it came up for air it freaked out...at least they are using equal rated power supply's for the bulb rating. I am going to order a 10W and I bet you it will be much brighter than my current 10W plus the housing will throw a narrower light window since it is smaller.



I had a hard time still with finding a solid external planter large enough, so I went with one of these which has only 2 bottom slits and side holes I need to seal. I am cutting 1-2" off one side so it will go flat against the wall and will not hang out further than the front of the tank I want that corner visible:
 
#22 · (Edited)
So I have good and bad news regarding the moss, it has been almost 2 months since my last update! The moss on top of the planters had to go, however I rode out the white mold on the capped emerging rock and the mold went away after I trimmed it a bit under the water line. I added a new emerging plant in the rear it is I believe a Hawaiian Anthurium...I also started playing with plants on my left side outer hanger.



I cut one side off as planned so it will go flat against the wall and bring the front in past the front glass line of the tank. Undecided what I will plant here I am using pots inside the hanger, however the hanger is not complete I still need to seal the side and back against the wall so I can fill it with dirt I already have the pieces cut. I decided to have a Dracaena up front so the leaves can be minimally cut on the wall side and overhang the front giving it a similar dimension to the large grass that overhangs the right side of the tank, I have no room for the Spider plant so I will likely let that roll in the back THEN in-between the two I will have my Wandering Jew & Pothos rooted...I hope it does not get root bound too quickly with those 4:



The Baby Tears has bounced back from shipping and I have trimmed it down several times but it does not get enough light to thicken up, I do drop a few drops of Excel & Flourish back there to help them out...I really think it is a light issues because they are 4x denser in a better lit tank I have and the goal here is to hide the filter:



This is what I went with for lighting; I did order those new 10W LED floodlights and they are brighter than the first generation LEDs so anyway I wanted them fully suspended no stands I found shelf brackets for $1 each and cut them. I will grow vines up the power cords and possibly Orchids up there around/above the lights:



As you see I have a full surface load of Amazon Frogbit in the first photo of this post, I only started with 6-8 plants and after seeing what a full surface cover did to my submerged plants I had to begin removing some regularly. It was choking out too much light for the lower plants and causing my Betta to blow massive daily bubble nests I know he was having a blast but it was too much for what I want here not to mention it caused an oil slick. I built a floating planted island with 2 quarks and some fishing line, it has an un-identified thick blade grass plant in the center from my local pond/bog I possibly think it is Bur-reed but I will cover it with moss too:



Here is the right corner the Madagascar Lace has really exploded then as the Frogbit took over it stopped and began growing brown algae on the leaves which you would think shade would control not help thrive? I have used Moneywort in clusters along the back as a stiff background plant but it does not seem to grow!



Another plant I have in clusters along the back is something from my local pond/bog I am not 100% sure on the ID but I think it is along the lines of Parrots Feather or Coontail, it will hit the surface and drape over like a Val would:



I also have added a Dwarf Echinodorus Parviforus (mini sword) it is hard to see but I also have a few Moneywort plants behind it:
 
#23 · (Edited)
Its been another month, lots has changed. I have my external side planter temporarily removed as I am modifying it. I finally have my Frogbit where I want it, I now remove baby shooters to keep the mother plants large and lush. I moved the Anubias so it holds the Frogbit above the rock cave away from my submerged plants that need light. The last 2 weeks I have been having issues with my Frogbit though it grows dwarf foliage that is bleached, I never have ANY nitrates and I believe I am out of balance; my bio-load is not heavy enough for my plant load.



I decided to add Nerite snails, but have been having a really hard time keeping them alive. After a long troubleshooting process the only thing the community has come up with is an O2 deficiency, after trying Nerites twice I decided to try a Mystery Pearl snail. It is at the surface siphoning oxygen frequently, but its doing much better than the Nerite batches I have tried. So I added an air pump and diffuser with glass hardware.




I have it hidden in the back utilities corner with the filter, heater, and now an ultrasonic fogger as well! All you can see is the glass tube looping over the rim, I run the air pump 24/7 right now until I solve this problem and I do not inject CO2 gas so I am not worried about off-gassing with an air pump. The baby tears have not been doing so great I do not think they get enough light back here, I also stuffed some java moss in the filter but I think I will be planting something else in the filter soon instead.




I added some Java Moss to my floating cork island, and replaced the center plant with Purple Waffle/Dragons Tongue. I also planted some in one of the rear planters:




Another addition is an Arrow Head plant in the planter I have my Peace Lily in:



You can not see them because they mostly hide during the day, but I swapped out my Ghost shrimp for 5 Amano shrimp. The background plants are filling in and I think I am done adding background plants for now. Since my last update I have added Petite Anubias on the rock cave mingled among the normal Anubias, as well as Jungle Val behind both sides of the rock cave but I will not let it spread to the right side of the tank where my other background plants are. On the right side I have added Crypt-Beckettii, and Elodea-Egeria Densa


 
#25 · (Edited)
The mold went away on its own for some reason, I would have hated to add a fan, an eyesore imo.

This will be the last update of this tank in my possession, I am giving this tank to a friend and I will update it from their home. I am doubling the tank size from 8.5 to 15.8 gallons (tank on right). The only thing I am keeping is the hanging planters with my non-aquatic plants. The new larger riparium will have external canister filtration, with an in-line heater, CO2 reactor, UV sterilizer, less stem plants with more grasses and carpeting plants. I will stock it with shrimps and micro-fish, the Betta will be moved to a new tank I built for him: http://www.plantedtank.net/forums/2...37-marineland-contour-5g-dirted-low-tech.html



I cut the hanging planter baskets down to the height of the water surface, then used some aquarium sealer to attach hard drive magnets to the inside of the basket. On the outside I have another hard drive magnet with soft material glued to it so the glass does not get scratched.





I have added all sorts of plants; Ivy, Prayer Plant, unidentified plant that looks like corn, dwarf Croton, skinny fern (compared to Boston Fern on right), Pothos, and Baby Tears.





Over in the corner I have added more plants; Wandering Jew, Oxalis, and something close to Fittonia



I added some driftwood, a Banana plant, and Ludwigia. This tank will also be stocked with micro-fish and shrimps after the Betta is rehomed.
 
#26 · (Edited)
Just an update on how the upgrade went to a 15.8 gallon tank, I will not get into plant changes right now. I updated the two 10W lights I was using to the new and improved model, same 10W and equal if not slightly higher lumen output. I just wanted you to see them side by side before I finishing the lighting, the footprint is 1/3 what it was! I need to clean the mount and wiring up, as well as add more lighting.




The substrate needs to be removed, then replaced with Aquasoil. It will generally be open with baby tears up front and hairgrass in the back, large rocks with java moss. Keeping it simple with Anubias in the rear since it will be very low light under the planters.



Everything is in-line/external mainly for appearance but some of it is actually more functional down here. Water comes down into a cheap SunSun 603B canister, inside I have sponges>floss>purigen, then I upgraded the pump to an Eco-396 which feeds into a small house water filter (1/2" in/out) converted into a CO2 reactor which is plumbed to a UV sterilizer. After that there is a water change valve which also works as a syphon primer for my vac, then a Hydor 200W in-line heater before returning to the tank...has great flow too. The only thing I will probably change is making a bridge between the reactor and water change valve to allow more exposure to the UV light. The blue bucket is a top off reservoir for my Hydor ATO.
 
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