ADa 60p NON CO2/no excel either for 046 Zebra plecos

39776 Views 163 Replies 59 Participants Last post by plantbrain, Oct 3, 2012

plantbrain

Discussion Starter · Oct 18, 2009 (Edited)

5

I just got water in this long awaited tank.

Unlike most ADA tanks, at least every one I've ever seen except a few marine tanks, this is the only one of a non CO2 that I've seen to date.
I'm sure they exist, but no one seems to take pics of them either

It shall be planted, but not quite what you expect.
Mostly from the top, hence the wood and branches up high, and above the water. I want to see the Zebras, and that will not happen in a fully planted tank.

I also am focused much more on the fish here, they are worth far more than the tank, so high O2, low nutrients/lots of water changes, all floating/aerial leaf plants. I chose white dolomite as it adds some KH/GH to the water, the water where I'm at does not have much of either, and with lots of water changes, will make little difference.

The white sand is about 4-5mm and good enough to not let detritus build up on top, with shade, it will provide a relatively bright view of the fish. I chose a Rena XP3 and a set of 17mm lily pipes, heater is a hydor in line, light is a 4x 24W tek, likely will only use 2 bulbs however.

Stand was from jnaz, John from Long Beach, excellent work, will get more from him later.

While plants are more utilitarian, they are still a central theme and part of the design overall. With no CO2, things are much easier to deal with, good high flow canister filter, easy to do water changes(2 minutes for 1/3-1/2, since it's next to bathroom, includes drain and fill).

This is what it looks like today(6-17-2011):

Regards,
Tom Barr

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legomaniac89

· #2 · Oct 18, 2009

Wow, I really like where this is going. Zebras are some of my favorite fish, but I'll just have to enjoy them precariously through this tank. They're a bit out of my price range

Are you maybe going to try something like a Philodendron or Pothos growing along the top branches? That would help bring some welcome shade into the tank, I guess.

sewingalot

· #3 · Oct 18, 2009

That stand is amazing. I wish I lived near jnaz now.

bigstick120

· #4 · Oct 18, 2009

Looks like you took some inspiration from Senske

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oldpunk78

· #5 · Oct 18, 2009

plantbrain said:
It shall be planted, but not quite what you expect.
Mostly from the top, hence the wood and branches up high, and above the water. I want to see the Zebras, and that will not happen in a fully planted tank.

at $300.00 a pop, i'd want to see the fish too!!!

i think those are the tallest light bars i've ever seen. i suppose they need to be pretty tall though. who would have thought to use a 4x24w tek fixture over a low tech tank. nice work! can't wait to see it with fish and plants.

plantbrain

Discussion Starter · #6 · Oct 18, 2009

bigstick120 said:
Looks like you took some inspiration from Senske

No, there's no plants in there.
The wood chosen looks better for the overall display, in other words, it's not done. The tank above, is.

The rational for the light bars being 6.5 ft is due to the added ability to reduce the light intensity. They also place the lighting much farther away from the statement, which is the tank/contents.

Less distracting........

I am going to work some plants onto the wood, this will act as a garden above and at the interface, a bit like a paludarium.

Also, all my other lights are the same height, consistant.
I'll slowly work to all T5's as well.

I'll likely only use 2x 24w, no need for emergents and higher light.
Also, since they are emergents, the light needs to be another 20' higher.

Makes a nice look in the entry way when you walk in and come home at night.

Regards,
Tom Barr

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Moe

· #7 · Oct 18, 2009

Looking good! How many zebra's are you going to put in there?

bigstick120

· #8 · Oct 18, 2009

plantbrain said:
No, there's no plants in there.

Regards,
Tom Barr

OH, so they dont look similar to you? I didnt say copied, I said inspiration.
You should have been to aquafest, zebras for 150-125 real nice looking fish

hydrophyte

· #9 · Oct 18, 2009

THis is gonna be really cool. It already looks great.

I really like the idea of an artistically-rendered setup that showcases a cool fish--you don't see that very often. I can't wait the see that big gang of plecos in there.

plantbrain

Discussion Starter · #10 · Oct 19, 2009

Moe said:
Looking good! How many zebra's are you going to put in there?

Have 8, I've kept them from fry 1/2" or less, they are now a tad over inch.

I'll add another 2-3 for genetic diversity.

Regards,
Tom Barr

plantbrain

Discussion Starter · #11 · Oct 19, 2009

bigstick120 said:
OH, so they dont look similar to you? I didnt say copied, I said inspiration.
You should have been to aquafest, zebras for 150-125 real nice looking fish

Having never seen it till you posted it, I cannot say "inspiration" either

No, I do not think they look similar, .....the wood comes from the top, rather from below(like a flooded forest vs some branches that fell into the water along the side of stream).

Both have their own different aesthetics.
This guy did a good job with the from above aesthetic:
http://ukaps.org/forum/viewtopic.php?f=35&t=8030

My inspiration actually comes from being underwater and looking at ecosystems. The other stuff, much more Amano and and general FOLKS keeping ADA style tanks(stands, light bars, lily pipes etc).

I have plants planned for this and the concept is specific.
Mostly tiny and pinninate leaf plants floating on top, providing shade and cover for the fish, white grain sand to lighten up and accent fish/clean look, the wood is there to capture the floating island, much like a snag does in a river.

The wood also provides the caves while allowing me to view the fish, so it serves a very different role in several aspects. It ties several elements together and provides habitat for several trophic levels.

125-150$ for 046's are good prices for decent sized fish.
Nice fish, but few seem to have nice colonies and nice displays together that are designed around them. They are not well suited for large tanks, a 60p is about the largest I'd keep them in.

Regards,
Tom Barr

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plantbrain

Discussion Starter · #12 · Oct 19, 2009

hydrophyte said:
THis is gonna be really cool. It already looks great.

I really like the idea of an artistically-rendered setup that showcases a cool fish--you don't see that very often. I can't wait the see that big gang of plecos in there.

My other tanks also incorporate my love of the plecos.
I have 11 lepoard frogs in the Brass tetra tank, I chose very old bald cypress, then made natural looking caves for each of them.

I've had to redo my 180, damn plecos keep attacking HC, cannot grow it no matter what, they maul it.

All is not lost, I added a large pleco cave in the rear.
Am experimenting with several different foreground plants.
Downoi works very well, Blyxa, but it's too tall for a foreground really.
Dwarf hygros, Stauryogone etc round leaf is very nice, Tennellus is fine if you get it going well prior to adding them. Anubias petite works well and looks good contrasted against Blyxa.

HC/Gloss/Utric/E triandra all have met painful deaths no matter how hard. Without the fish, they do well and grow in, as soon as I add them back, the mauling begins.

Riccia/moss got mauled.

Most of my tanks are fish based, not plant based.

Catfish, followed by behavior are king.

For the ADA 60p, I want to keep with the smaller tank theme and use the HC to tie the Narrow leaf emergent water sprite into a mat, with Anubias petite and perhaps a few other species. I'll just spray them rather than add ferts to the water column(fertigation). Nutrients will be kept to a min in the water, high O2, current etc, but still many benefits from plants and nice look when you walk into the house.

By using small leaves/dainty fronds, it makes the eye focus closer and look into the small scene.

Zebras are not large fish, mine are total piggies, so they will get good size in a year or so. I feed mostly a stick based fed and then frozen brine and baby live brine.

Thinking about cherry shrimp but they tend not to eat them, and the shrimp might go after the Zebra fry. CRS also, this tank would make an excellent system for them.

Too bad I like these fish a lot more than any invert.

Regards,
Tom Barr

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Church

· #13 · Oct 19, 2009

I think it's safe to say that if anything, Senske would take inspiration from Tom. Tom you are the master, and I can't wait to see this in its full glory!

Subscribed.

plantbrain

Discussion Starter · #14 · Oct 19, 2009

Church said:
I think it's safe to say that if anything, Senske would take inspiration from Tom. Tom you are the master, and I can't wait to see this in its full glory!

Subscribed.

Has this place become Fox News?
It's not about who got what from who, or who is the master etc, never was.
That is asking for an imagined, created conflict that was never there to begin with :wink:

Jeff has been around a long time and does awesome work.
Jeff's work speaks for itself.

An older tank that I had some of the idea from which I did:

But the general idea was I wanted a non CO2 tank, at least one for old time's sake. I can still use plants, but do not need to restrict their CO2 either.

It is not really a Paludarium either. The aquarium is full of water.
No dry "land", the wood snags, floating islands etc, are not land.
They move with the water level seasonally.

Much more Biological inspiration, ecology and habitat.
Which is something Amano suggest folks look to for their inspiration.
I think Jeff would agree to that as well.
Why follow when you can find your own path?

Is that not the point?:icon_idea

Regards,
Tom Barr

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HoustonFishFanatic

· #15 · Oct 19, 2009

bigstick120 said:
Looks like you took some inspiration from Senske

Not a Senske/ ADG tank or scape. This tank was at Houston Aquarium Warehouse owned by Daniel.

Church

· #16 · Oct 19, 2009

Like it or not, Tom, many people think of you as a master. That's the price you pay for being so damn good at what you do.

I can't wait to see some zebra plecos!

On a related note, I just wanted to say thanks for those distance shots, so that we can see all the other tanks scattered around your house.

Ashok

· #17 · Oct 19, 2009

Looking forward to seeing this tank progress.

dantra

· #18 · Oct 19, 2009

Church said:
Like it or not, Tom, many people think of you as a master. That's the price you pay for being so damn good at what you do.

Tom, I believe Church as well as many others just know that you bring and introduced critical thinking to the hobby in a widespread fashion. You ask why , when, how, correlation, causation ask about the science, statistical data so on and so forth. Not to mention you are very generous with your time and help anyone at any given time.

Jeff holds his own and and is a giant in his own right however Tom you are very analytical and outspoken. By the way, that's a good thing.

Dude it's a compliment... whether you like it or not, you're stuck with it! :wink:

Dan

Phil Edwards

· #19 · Oct 19, 2009

Heya Tom,

How about some more inspiration?

http://www.planetcatfish.com/shanes...+<em>Hypancistrus+zebra</em>The+Perfectionist

http://www.planetcatfish.com/shanes...for+<em>Hypancistrus+zebra</em>The+Rest+of+Us

This guy does some amazing things with stone.

I like the floating mat-snag concept as well; it's the way to go with fish display aquaria. I'm looking forward to seeing this setup completed.

Regards,
Phil

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jazzlvr123

· #20 · Oct 19, 2009

so why did you decide on the 60p rather than your original idea for the 60 cube? after you put all that time into adding holes into that cypress. Just curious, Regards Kyle

edit
found my answer: "Nice fish, but few seem to have nice colonies and nice displays together that are designed around them. They are not well suited for large tanks, a 60p is about the largest I'd keep them in."

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