Hi all,
Yesterday was the day. The old tank was ripped down and a new 'scape was started. Its been very slow work as I don't have a place to relocate the fish to so I left them in situ and tried to be as careful as I could not to spook them too much. Its been a challenge to come up with a new layout as during the adding of additional sand and netted cat litter causes a significant clouding of the water meaning a loss of visibility.
I'll be recycling most of the plants I had in the previous 'scape but am looking to add some smaller leafed plants that sit will in the mid-ground. Photo's will be coming tonight/tomorrow but in the meantime here's the tank details:
I've learnt quite a lot over the last 6 months despite being in the hobby for many years. The key things are:
- The effect of hard water on chelated micro nutrient uptake.
- The importance of giving the gravel/sand a good clean with a gravel vac. For me this was key in reducing the prevalence of small amounts of diatoms on old leafs and hardscape.
- The Up in-line atomiser has far superior performance to normal in-tank diffusers.
Tank: 180L Juwel Rio. Sanded and painted high gloss grey.
Lighting: 4 x TMC Aquabeam 600 LED light strips with Aquaray Controllers running at 40% for 8 hours per day.
Filtration/Flow: Eheim Pro e3 450 (Rated @ 1800LPH) with Purigen bag and Eheim installation sets on the inlet/outlet. DIY spray bar outlet.
CO2: Pressurised 5KG FE with Up in-line CO2 atomiser.
Livestock: Angelfish, Indian Barn, Black Neon Tetras
Hardscape: Landscape Rock
Plants: C. Wendtii Green, C. Wendtii Brown, Narrow Leaf Java Fern, Alternanthera sp Rosanevig, C. Helferi, Blyxa Japonica, Micranthemum Monte Carlo
Fertilisation: EI macros. EI micros with Easy Life Ferro suppliement. I'm likely to change this to a branded fert for comparison.
Yesterday was the day. The old tank was ripped down and a new 'scape was started. Its been very slow work as I don't have a place to relocate the fish to so I left them in situ and tried to be as careful as I could not to spook them too much. Its been a challenge to come up with a new layout as during the adding of additional sand and netted cat litter causes a significant clouding of the water meaning a loss of visibility.
I'll be recycling most of the plants I had in the previous 'scape but am looking to add some smaller leafed plants that sit will in the mid-ground. Photo's will be coming tonight/tomorrow but in the meantime here's the tank details:
I've learnt quite a lot over the last 6 months despite being in the hobby for many years. The key things are:
- The effect of hard water on chelated micro nutrient uptake.
- The importance of giving the gravel/sand a good clean with a gravel vac. For me this was key in reducing the prevalence of small amounts of diatoms on old leafs and hardscape.
- The Up in-line atomiser has far superior performance to normal in-tank diffusers.
Tank: 180L Juwel Rio. Sanded and painted high gloss grey.
Lighting: 4 x TMC Aquabeam 600 LED light strips with Aquaray Controllers running at 40% for 8 hours per day.
Filtration/Flow: Eheim Pro e3 450 (Rated @ 1800LPH) with Purigen bag and Eheim installation sets on the inlet/outlet. DIY spray bar outlet.
CO2: Pressurised 5KG FE with Up in-line CO2 atomiser.
Livestock: Angelfish, Indian Barn, Black Neon Tetras
Hardscape: Landscape Rock
Plants: C. Wendtii Green, C. Wendtii Brown, Narrow Leaf Java Fern, Alternanthera sp Rosanevig, C. Helferi, Blyxa Japonica, Micranthemum Monte Carlo
Fertilisation: EI macros. EI micros with Easy Life Ferro suppliement. I'm likely to change this to a branded fert for comparison.