[SpringHalo]

As a forgetful fellow, I thought I'd start a tank journal to remember things I did weeks before, and to track overall tank progress.
Feb 14, 2021

Plants:
AR Mini
AR Variegated
AR Ocipus (removed)
Erio Vietnam
Rotala Green
Rotala Colorata
Limnophilia Belem (removed)
Ludwigia Super Red
Ludwigia Brevipes (removed)
Bacopa Carolinina

New June 2020
Echinodorus schlueteri x E. barthii hybrid (Flame Sword)
Anubias barteri var nana "Petite"
Anubias barteri var "Coffeefolia"
Anubias barteri var. angustifolia (unconfirmed)
Cryptocoryne x. willisii

New Feb 2021
Lobelia Cardinalis
Rotala wallichii
Limnophilia Sessiliflora
Pogostemon Stellatus (unknown type)
Crypt Becketii


Substrate: BDBS

CO2: 1.4-1.6 pH drop, 35cc/min
20lb CO2 tank with Airgas Y12 dual stage regulator
"diyco2regulator" post-body kit
DIY reactor in sump

Filtration
40B sump (should've gone smaller width-wise)
1200 gph ModularMarine Overflow with beananimal setup
Sicce silent 2.0 (400-500gph actual) return pump
Dual 3/4" return bulkheads
3" 10PPI poret foam
3" 20PPI poret foam
Koralia nano 565 powerhead

Ferts
2/3 EI-dosing with 50% weekly water changes
12/7/2020 - DIY APT Complete

Element	Daily PPM Dose
K	2.4
NO3	0.9
PO4	0.42
Fe	0.06
CSM+B	0.06

Water (Straight off the tap)
8.0pH
9 dGH
7.2 dKH
50 PPM Ca++
10 PPM Mg++

Lighting
2X DIY LED fixtures with diffuser
Luxeon "Fresh Fish" 6500K CoB
Luxeon 3000k 90CRI CoB
Generic 50W Deep Red CoB
Generic 10W Red CoB
Generic 10W Royal Blue CoB
Blue and Royal blue stars

Currently 90PAR at substrate level
Sunrise at 7, sunset at 9, full PAR from noon to 6

Current goals:
Increase light for more growth
Get all plants to grow in thicker bushes
Stop grayish-fuzzy-algae growth through good cleanlieness and more biomass

Targeted goals:
Let AR species establish good root systems then mow them down
Let Ludwigia species branch out before replanting
Separate the two (or more?) rotala species and color them up

 

[Greggz]

Rainbows perhaps?

Yes!:wink2:

And nice start to a journal.

Looks like a lot going right, and look forward to seeing where things go from here.

Subscribed.

 

[Discusluv]

As a forgetful fellow, I thought I'd start a tank journal to remember things I did weeks before, and to track overall tank progress.

5/2/19:

Plants:
AR Mini
AR Variegated
AR Ocipus
Erio Vietnam
Rotala Green
Rotala Colorata
Limnophilia Belem
Ludwigia Red
Ludwigia Brevipes
Bacopa Carolinina

Substrate: BDBS

CO2: 1.4-1.6 pH drop, 35cc/min
20lb CO2 tank with Airgas Y12 dual stage regulator
"diyco2regulator" post-body kit
DIY reactor in sump

Filtration
40B sump (should've gone smaller width-wise)
1200 gph ModularMarine Overflow with beananimal setup
Sicce silent 2.0 (400-500gph actual) return pump
Dual 3/4" return bulkheads
3" 10PPI poret foam
3" 20PPI poret foam
Koralia nano 565 powerhead

Ferts
2/3 EI-dosing with 50% weekly water changes

Water (Straight off the tap)
8.0pH
9 dGH
7.2 dKH
50 PPM Ca++
10 PPM Mg++

Lighting
Temporary
DIY LED with 4x CXA1304 2700k and 5000k
StevesLEDs Heatsink, TC420 controller

Main Canopy
2X DIY LED with 60 degree lenses
Luxeon "Fresh Fish" 6500K CoB
Luxeon 3000k 90CRI CoB
Generic 50W Red CoB
Royal Blue + Cool Blue

Currently 60PAR at substrate level
Sunrise at 7, sunset at 9, full PAR from noon to 6

Current goals:
Increase light for more growth
Get all plants to grow in thicker bushes
Stop grayish-fuzzy-algae growth through good cleanlieness and more biomass

Targeted goals:
Let AR species establish good root systems then mow them down
Let Ludwigia species branch out before replanting
Separate the two (or more?) rotala species and color them up
Get some show fish aside from steve the glofish tetra. Rainbows perhaps?

What other fish do you have besides Glow-fish and the Black Skirted tetras?

 

[SpringHalo]

What other fish do you have besides Glow-fish and the Black Skirted tetras?

Currently just zebra danios. I had 2 ultem and 2 black angels for a year and a half, but they passed a few months back. I think it was due to overfeeding, but still not sure of the ultimate reason. I've been holding off on getting new fish since. I also had a discus stint where a friend was buying a corner 90 for a reef, and it came with 5 adult discus he graciously donated to me. They lasted about a year but did not mix well with any other fish, and were very slow and picky eaters even when I got a separate 75 gal just for them, and eventually dwindled away. A few weeks ago I was coerced into buying a cute little panda garra, but I'm still hesitant to get new centerpiece fish due to the poor experience with the others.

In plant related news, I picked up some S. repens with the garra, moved the giant grove of bacopa into a footprint half the size, and had a generally large trim. I'm going to experiment increasing the lights so the substrate PAR (now 45-50) is the same as the old mid-high tank PAR (70-90), because I was seeing much more color and branching from the stemming plants once they got to higher light. I'm worried there is still not enough plant mass to take advantage of this, but hey, it's an experiment!

EDIT: Increased light to 80PAR at substrate, figured out the plant I took from my 28g cube to fill in the void was Ludwigia Glandulosa. It's damned hardy and has such an amazing shade of maroon, I'll see how it works as a mid-ground plant.

 

[SpringHalo]

Changed my lights back to the full canopy version, now with 60 degree lenses on all LEDs/CoBs. I think it really adds contrast due to starker shadows. PAR is now 80 at front substrate level and 60 at rear. Going from 120 degree non-lensed to 60 roughly doubled PAR while using the same power. The black plasti-dip back really sucks up the light in the back though.

Took out the immense rotala green bush, and compartmentalized it. I hope it doesn't get too messy, and I think now that the density is where I want it, I'll be less hesitant to mow it down a couple times a week. I also noticed now I have almost zero depth and very neat, equal sized groves for all the stem plants in the back. Once I get things really dense, I'm sure I'll explore different layouts. The vals I unceremoniously shoved into the back corner have been growing, but not sending out new shoots, so far the experiment is a success.

 

[SpringHalo]

Pre-trim picture this week. Steady progress on both Ludwigia species. Getting closer to the magical can't-see-the-tank-background moment for some of the groves. I really need to replace the AR Ocipus or re-purpose it as a mid-ground plant. Any time it gets to significant length the lower leaves turn sickly green, though the top leaves are a great shade of orange.

Staghorn algae seems to be receding after a couple twice-weekly waterchanges and thorough gravel vacs. Unfortunately it's been replaced with a bit of cyanobacteria creeping on the substrate and up the tank edges, which is likely a direct response to having higher light and not a ton of cover in the front substrate. The erios and S. repens are starting to take off, so hopefully I can propagate them for more coverage soon.

I went to the LFS yesterday and they have 6 juvenile Boesemani rainbows for $15 each, 3 males and 3 females. Having zero show-fish aside from the panda garra and steve the glowfish is really bugging me, so I might just jump on the chance.

 

[Grobbins48]

Looking very nice! I'll be following this one along!

Rainbows are great BTW....

 

[SpringHalo]

Big changes this month! Ordered some new fish from Jim's Rainbowfish, but that required removing all of the Zebra danios and Black Skirt tetras. It was next to impossible to remove them with the plants in, so a re-scape was in order! You don't realize how much plant mass is in the tank until it's in a huge pile on a tray.

Thus started my adventures with rainbowfish. Species list is as follows:
3 pair of Melanotaenia Boesemani Rosario La Corte
3 pair of Melanotaenia Trifasciata Goyder River
4 unsexed Melanotaenia lacustris turquoise

On recommendation from @Greggz, I went with a semi-local breeder from Illinois. He had all of the fish that I wanted, and they're already showing some spectacular color despite being juveniles. After ordering 1-day express USPS and them not showing up on the delivery day, I had to wait another 24 grueling hours hoping they'd be okay. On a rainy Thursday they showed up and all was well! 16 fish bagged in pairs in a pro-grade insulated box, all hungry and rearing to go. Very satisfied with the experience.

In terms of plants (that's why we're here, right?), the small pot of S. Repens went from one or two stems to nearly 20, so it warranted its own carpet-space. The Ludwigia sp. red had also grown from 2 stems into a healthy bush, so I put it near the Bacopa caroliniana for contrast as the "focal point" of the tank. I planted everything in more random shaped groves with both contrasting and complementing colors in mind. Once the rotala fills in further I'm thinking it will look more balanced.

That's all for now,
Cheers!

 

[Greggz]

Good to see Jim was able to help you.

Tank is looking great, and those Bows will only get better and better.

I am liking this tank more and more. Nice work!

 

[SpringHalo]

Tank update:
Summer is in full swing and I only have time to do weekly water changes (takes about 20-30 minutes with my setup), so things are getting out of control and spewing roots out everywhere.

Took some big bundles of plant stems to my LFS and they paid a few bucks of credit. I bought 3 Panda Garra and they're an excellent addition to the tank. The rainbows are top feeders so they ignore any food that sinks to the bottom, which works out perfectly.

Cheers

 

[Greggz]

Wow full jungle mode already!

Looking great.

Better keep the scissors sharp!:grin2:

 

[ChrisX]

As a forgetful fellow, I thought I'd start a tank journal to remember things I did weeks before, and to track overall tank progress.

5/12/19:

5/2/19:

Plants:
AR Mini
AR Variegated
AR Ocipus
Erio Vietnam
Rotala Green
Rotala Colorata
Limnophilia Belem
Ludwigia Red
Ludwigia Brevipes
Bacopa Carolinina

Substrate: BDBS

CO2: 1.4-1.6 pH drop, 35cc/min
20lb CO2 tank with Airgas Y12 dual stage regulator
"diyco2regulator" post-body kit
DIY reactor in sump

Filtration
40B sump (should've gone smaller width-wise)
1200 gph ModularMarine Overflow with beananimal setup
Sicce silent 2.0 (400-500gph actual) return pump
Dual 3/4" return bulkheads
3" 10PPI poret foam
3" 20PPI poret foam
Koralia nano 565 powerhead

Ferts
2/3 EI-dosing with 50% weekly water changes

Water (Straight off the tap)
8.0pH
9 dGH
7.2 dKH
50 PPM Ca++
10 PPM Mg++

Lighting
Temporary
DIY LED with 4x CXA1304 2700k and 5000k
StevesLEDs Heatsink, TC420 controller

Main Canopy
2X DIY LED with 60 degree lenses
Luxeon "Fresh Fish" 6500K CoB
Luxeon 3000k 90CRI CoB
Generic 50W Red CoB
Royal Blue + Cool Blue

Currently 60PAR at substrate level
Sunrise at 7, sunset at 9, full PAR from noon to 6

Current goals:
Increase light for more growth
Get all plants to grow in thicker bushes
Stop grayish-fuzzy-algae growth through good cleanlieness and more biomass

Targeted goals:
Let AR species establish good root systems then mow them down
Let Ludwigia species branch out before replanting
Separate the two (or more?) rotala species and color them up
Get some show fish aside from steve the glofish tetra. Rainbows perhaps?

Looking great!

The full canopy and temporary lighting look very similar. Having built both, do you see any clear advantages to one or the other?

 

[Duboisi]

Nice growth!

 

[SpringHalo]

Looking great!

The full canopy and temporary lighting look very similar. Having built both, do you see any clear advantages to one or the other?

Thanks! The main benefit of the full canopy lighting for me is that I get proper spread from my two COB arrays. I have 80 degree lenses on them and it takes about 12 inches for them to spread out to the tank width. The canopy is also white and reflective, so all light makes it into the tank. A fully enclosed canopy also means there isn't any light leakage into the surrounding room, making the tank visually pop more. I think the black tank bezels are unappealing, so the canopy allows me to make an overhang that hides the plastic.

FTS 9/8/19

Bonus shot of the gaara mocking my lack of glass cleaning despite there being a magfloat already in the tank!

 

[SpringHalo]

It's been quite a long time since posting last, but I've reasonably kept up maintenance on the tank. Typical water change intervals are 2-4 weeks during the summer, and weekly in the winter. The rainbows have been thriving, though the female Trifasciata haven't grown very much. I bought two more panda garra to make a fleet of 5. The latest winter initiative was to increase lighting and change out fertilizer dosing to something more lean than EI. I chose a DIY APT Complete mixture using CSM+B and DPTA iron at 0.06PPM Fe. So far it doesn't look like anything is stunting, though growth has slowed significantly compared to the huge amount of nitrates from EI. I also increased the light from 50PAR to 100PAR over 45 days, so that may have helped with making plants less leggy.

Here's a before and after from the latest re-scape and plant addition:

I'm not sure how well the new gallery embed works, but I'll give it a shot and post a few FTS from the past couple years:

❮ ❯

 

[Greggz]

Tank is looking great, nice job!

Plants look nice and healthy and good looking Bows too!

Well done.