[natebuchholz]

Hey all, happy to be back in this hobby!
With everything being so hectic, I needed something that will be a relaxing presence in my life.
I will keep this journal up to date full of new posts/pictures documenting my journey.
Feel free to extend any advice or questions you have. Please Enjoy!


Tank: ADA Cube Garden 45-P Aquarium (Ultra High Clarity Glass) w/ ADA Garden Mat
Lighting: Chihiros RGB II with "Acrylic" fixed leg design
Heater: Archaea Mini Aquarium Heater (50W) Ultra Slim; Finnex Heater Controller
Filter: Ultum Nature Systems DELTA 60 Aquarium Canister Filter w/ Coarse Sponge, Purigen, and Bio Balls; Stainless Jet Outlet and Surface Skimmer Inflow
CO2: GLA MINI-DS Aquarium CO2 Regulator (Dual Stage) for Paintball Tanks; Milwaukee MC122 PH Controller; 24oz Paintball Tank; Qanvee CO2 Inline Atomizer
Substrate: Tropica Aquarium Soil - Powder Granule - 6L
Flora: Rotala Hra (Back Left), Limnophila Aromatica (Back Right), Ludwigia Natans Super Red (Center), Hemianthus Micranthemoides 'Pearl Weed' (Front/Mid Right), Hydrocotyle Tripartita 'Japan' (Front Left)
Fauna: (TBD) - Boraras brigittae, Ramshorn Snails, Nerite Snails, Crystal Red Shrimp?
Parameters:

PH w/o CO2: 7.0
PH w/ CO2: 6.3
GH: 6 dGH
KH: 3 dGH
TDS: 220 (after WC)
Temp: 72 Deg. F
Ammonia: 0ppm
Nitrite: 0ppm
Nitrate: 20 - 30ppm
Photo Period: 4 hours
PAR at Substrate: 60
PAR at Surface: 75
RGB Ratio: 48:32:16





Jan 8th 2021



Dec 27th 2020



Dec 16th 2020



Dec 3rd 2020



Nov 10th 2020



Nov 4th 2020


Reduced the intensity of the light; GSA creeping in. Hopefully I can find a balance.



Oct 31st 2020




Oct 25th 2020 - Post Trim



Oct 25th 2020 - Pre trim


Oct 20th 2020

Moved the Ludwigia Repens to the back left of the tank and added Hemianthus Micranthemoidesin its place.
Awaiting the arrival of stainless lily pipes and a PH controller.




Oct 13th 2020



Oct 6th 2020

Good growth, DHG is melting back with some diatoms.


Oct 4th 2020

Plants adjusting well, half dose of micros, very little sign of algae.
50% water changes every other day for the first week.
Ludwigia Repens sending down roots from nodes.

 

[Charrr89]

Looks nice... but only 3 of your pictures actually show :/


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[Hujeta]

Hardscape looks great! What room is this tank placed in, looks a bit like a kitchen counter but not quite?

 

[natebuchholz]

Looks nice... but only 3 of your pictures actually show :/


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Hmm, I only have three photos in the post...
It looks correct for me in desktop but, looks odd in mobile? I will look into those problems! Thanks for the kind words.

Bump:

Hardscape looks great! What room is this tank placed in, looks a bit like a kitchen counter but not quite?

Thank you! You are right, it is in my kitchen. The attached photo might give more context.




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[andrewss]

Nice work, will look great! Nice kitchen too haha

 

[natebuchholz]

Nice work, will look great! Nice kitchen too haha

Thank you Andrew! We just remodeled the kitchen, had a little leftover in the budget for this new project :grin2:

 

[Hujeta]

Thank you! You are right, it is in my kitchen. The attached photo might give more context.


View attachment 897763

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Ah, so my spider senses weren't too far off then :wink: Cool, nice with the updated pictures. I do the same with mixing soil and sand and it's a pain to keep them separated, especially when re-planting.

 

[natebuchholz]

Ah, so my spider senses weren't too far off then :wink: Cool, nice with the updated pictures. I do the same with mixing soil and sand and it's a pain to keep them separated, especially when re-planting.

This is my first time experiencing this! Do you have any advice? I think I am at the point where I need to keep my big mitts out of the tank for a while for the plants to grow in. After everything roots well, I will probably take a tweezer and move the aquasoil back into place during a water change?

 

[Hujeta]

This is my first time experiencing this! Do you have any advice? I think I am at the point where I need to keep my big mitts out of the tank for a while for the plants to grow in. After everything roots well, I will probably take a tweezer and move the aquasoil back into place during a water change?

Once everything is planted you can use a tweezer or a fish net to get rid of the soil particles and it should be fairly clean after that. Be careful with waterchange and filters stirring it up though. I tried to build natural barrier with wood and pebbles to keep it in check, much harder for an Iwagumi scape but perhaps something to consider.

From my log, you can see the soil in the most left part of the image, then I use sand at the front just like you do.

 

[natebuchholz]

Beautiful photo! Thanks for your insight, i will be sure to try that!

 

[Charrr89]

Looks nice... but only 3 of your pictures actually show :/


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Theres a few “broken image” icons

But your scape is coming together so pretty


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[monkeyruler90]

Very nice tank, it'll definitely add some color to the kitchen!

 

[KayakJimW]

Your tank (and kitchen) looks awesome! I like your plant choices. When things fill in, the scale will be amazing. Looking forward to seeing the Chili's too, when the time comes

 

[natebuchholz]

Hey everyone,
Drastic changes to this scape!
I couldn't fight off my algae problems long enough for my Blyxa or my UG to take off.
Hopefully, I have learned my lesson on this dutch inspired scape. Replaced all the old substrate with brand new and gave the tank a good cleaning.
Starting with a short photo period of 6 hours and cranking the CO2 (1.5 drop in PH when lights turn on). I am optimistic the large plant mass will help me hold off the algae and see some good results.
Wish me luck!

 

[natebuchholz]

See above for an update on the progress over the weekend. Probably silly to update so frequently but, things change quickly at the start and I find it helpful to document.
Enjoy!

 

[natebuchholz]

New update:
Added 5 Nerite snails to help keep the algae in check. Continued fight with diatoms, I believe....
Trimmed back the DHG to reduce the amount of decaying organics in the water from its transition.

Enjoy!

 

[monkeyruler90]

Nice, are you going to cover the top or lower the water volume? I've had nerites just walk out of the tank

 

[natebuchholz]

Good advice! I will need to lower the water volume to deter any escapes... Hopefully, I can bribe them to stay with the amount of algae currently in the tank.

 

[natebuchholz]

Update:

-Time for the first trim on the Hra. I was able to trim many of the stems at the base, leaving rooted, off shoots and replanting the tops.
I am hoping to do a trim like this each weekend moving forward to get rid of the shaded/old growth on each species of stems.
It seems logical to rotate the trimmings as to not throw the system out of balance and encourage algae.

-Green dust algae still a problem but not appearing as quickly; diatoms only on old growth.

-Thinking about adding Ramshorn snails to control the amount of organics in the tank; afraid my Nerites have not done well with the amount of CO2 I was running.

-The pearl weed is melting badly but, I am seeing some new growth so hopefully it bounces back.

-I added a PH controller. Hopefully, this will give me more control/consistency with my CO2 levels.

-Waiting for the arrival of the stainless outflow and skimmer inlet; I want to reduce the clutter in the tank.

Thanks for watching!

 

[natebuchholz]

Hoping to get some input....

Having trouble getting rid of the algae at the lower portions of my plants. (see most recent picture on the first post).
Can anyone let me know what type of algae I am looking at and how I might fight it?

I think I am dealing with a combination of green spot, diatoms, or hair algae?
Below are the steps I am taking to resolve the problem.

50% water changes every other day.
Vacuuming the substrate to remove access organics.
Reduced light intensity to 40 PAR was over 70 PAR
Dosing Macros and Micros to EI levels.
Added Nerite and Ramshorn Snails.
Keeping canister filter and skimmer clean. Skimmer is cleaned weekly and canister every other.

Would love some input...