The Planted Tank Forum banner

Jmcdaniel's 40B Tank Build

8K views 59 replies 10 participants last post by  Jmcdaniel0 
#1 ·
I thought I would start a journal for my 1st ever planted tank!

The equipment Ill be using:

40B bought from petco a few years ago and never used.
Stand bought from Petco
Marineland Emperor 400 Pro Series Filter
Beamswork DA 6500K LED Aquarium Light

I want to keep this tank low tech and non C02 using if possible. Also, I will be shooting for a Amazonian tank.





Those are Stock photos.... I will be updating the thread as it progresses with many pics!
 
See less See more
2
#2 ·
OK so I finally got it put together and set up. She is looking good. My wife wanted the bubble wall in the back. Im not sold on it. My second Light fuxture is on its way, UPS decided to play smash the box on one of the lights. Other than that she is set up and ready to go. Ill be ordering some plants from a very generous member here on the forums shortly and I have already Ordered drift wood, leaves, and a few other things to start the scaping process.



 
#4 ·
I'm not a fan of HOB filters due to the splashing noise. My wife got fed up with it quickly when it was in our living room. With that said, your equipment is looking good. The bubble wall isn't a bad idea. Surface agitation in a low tech planted tank is fine. It helps replenish CO2 from the atmosphere in some cases, nothing super official. But I used a bubble wall on my 75g with zero issues. How many rows of lights do those LEDs have? If it is three, then two would be great for a low tech and you'll have a really even spread.



Your tank is only 18" tall, subtract a couple for the sand and you're likely at 20 par at the substrate. Plenty for low light plants and you won't have algae issues.
 
#8 ·
Well I decided I wasnt going to wait for the leaves to settle before I posted some pics. Ill update later on when my wood and leaves decide to sink and stay on the bottom. I also got my second light installed. Now as soon as my plant pack arrives, ill have a good start on a tank. I also have some more drift wood on order, I am hoping they will get here soon.
Here is the tank as it sets now.





 
#11 ·
Alrighty!

My plant pack came in today. Thanks @Soup12 I left some wholes intentionally so I can put in some spider wood I have coming in. Cant wait for it to get here. I am also looking at some stuff from Tannin Aquatics, the wife is actually OK with me doing this tank, because even though the stuff is still expensive, it is a fraction of what I would pay for Salt Water fish and coral.

Here are some pics of the stank after planting. Keep in mind I know nothing about the plants, so I took a guess as to what plants went where. Also, I have no idea what any of them are. So if anyone can give me a list of names that would be great!



 
#13 ·
I went eco complete on the substrate. I have some cholla wood in there, I have some larger snake wood pieces coming in, and I have Catappa leaves in there. I am ordering a bunch of pods and stuff from tannin aquatics. Right now, I have not seen a large amount of tannins come out, but that will change before too long.
 
#16 ·
#17 ·
Well My tank gained a new inhabitant this evening. My 3yr old knocked over my daughters betta tank, and it sploded. So now I have My daughters Blue Betta, In my Amazon Biotope tank... I guess you could call him an Asian tourist. I will be finding him a new home here in a few days, after the stress of being knocked off the edge of the world has eased a bit.
 
#21 ·
It was easy to put together, and when you tighten it all up, it is very sturdy, and has no movement what so ever. And it fits my 40B perfectly. For the price and what you get, I have no complaints.

Bump: Just placed my order with Tannin Aquatics. They are a top notch company from what I can tell. Also, they offer a 15% military discount, if any of my fellow vets order from there. I paid a few minutes ago and the owner called and said he had shipped it just now. Hard to beat that kind of service. I am excited now because my tank is finally going to start making the change over to blackwater.
 
#19 ·
I have the same exact stand but for my 29gal and it works great. Relatively inexpensive, has held up for 2 years and going strong, no rock motion. However, if your husband/wife is picky like mine you may want to consider wrapping it in MFG or wood to make it prettier. (My husband doesnt come into the home office much so mine is still in its original-unaltered state).

OH! And you can add shelves really easily by cutting 2x4's or something similiar to fit in the gaps below the tank.
 
#26 ·
;9975986 said:
Yea I can totally see me ordering some more stuff from there. Im just trying to not go overboard all at once.
It's easy to do! Scott put together one of his "enigma" packs for my first order, with a couple things I picked out myself. Then it's been two or three orders since! I know I sound like a real fanboy, but Tannin has been able to provide me with the stuff that I have dreamed about for years.
 
#27 ·
I get where you coming from. In todays world companies dont have customer service. They provide a service, and if it isnt what you want they could care less. Tannin could charge far more than they do for their products. I mean look at the rest of the companies that are in the aquarium supply business. They have a product that I simply could not get otherwise. They could charge a premium, but in my opinion, their pricing is more than fair. Add to it a business owner that actually cares for their customer, and you have a winner in my book. According to my tracking, I should have my stuff on Saturday. Not bad for the cheap shipping.
 
#28 ·
ok so my tannin stuff came in yesterday and I am just now getting around to finishing getting it all in the tank. A major rescape is coming when I get the rest of my wood in. As far as the stuff I got in from Tannin Aquatics. Wow! I ordered on of the variety packs, and man it came slap full of neat stuff. I will be ordering from them again.

 
#32 ·
There is a few in there already. I havent had the chance to get out and find many. I have all sorts of trees in the back yard, only one oak though.


I can already see the difference in the water color. Now as soon as my Wood I ordered gets here I can rescape the tank, and my black water Amazon biotope will finally begin to take shape.
 
#36 ·
Well I got some new plants in today. I got in three Amazon Swords and One Dwarf Water Lily. I know it isnt exactly Amazonian, but I thought it would be cool. Once the rest of my wood arrives Ill be redoing the aquascape. It is kind of all over the place right now.

 
#53 ·
Picked up 10 more Cardinals and 5 more Serpae Tetras which bring my tank to 20 Cardinals and 10 Serpae Tetras. Im still debating on what else I am putting in the Tank. I am leaning heavily to a pair of Apistos, but im just not certain yet. The wife wants a few pairs of fancy guppies. Otherwise, I am going to keep working on the aquascape.

I am on the hunt for some ramshorn snails as well. If anyone knows someone that would like to part with a few, let me know. THe prices I am finding them for in the interwebs seems kinda crazy to me, but I could be wrong.
 
#58 ·
Those are seriously nice fish. See this is my first venture into fresh water. I know all about saltwater species, and what is compatible with who and all that, but fresh water is a whole new area for me.

Here are a few of the fish I have in my other tanks.









 
#59 ·
Quick update on the tank, the Lily Bulb I planted in the substrate has sprouted and growing nicely. I was worried it wouldnt do anything but it is growing like mad. This isnt the best picture of it, but I am not a photographer. It is the reddish one next to the leaf.




Here is the Asian Tourist I spoke about earlier.



A few random shots:



 
This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.
Top