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calling all aquascapers inspiration needed :)

alan_uk

Member
Joined
27 Jun 2010
Messages
240
hello everyone

after getting my teeth in to the whole aquascaping game ive now decided to go bigger

now i intended to keep a small tank due to the fact of not wanting a lot of hassle without experiance but i just cant seem to get the stupid tall aquaone tank right how i would like it

now i do have a 5'x2'x2' which i was going to use and then thought about a malawi tank but decided last night to sell it to a friend who has been wanting it forever for his oscars so £200 later away it went

today i ordered a custom tank for a unit i have at home and this will be my final resting place lol i intend on now buying all the correct equipment and using this tank for my scape and having it exactly how i would like, the dimesions of the tank are 900mm long x 500mm high x 550mm deep front to back :)

it is exactly what i wanted something not too long that would take up a lot of space and need masses of equipment but something that had good depth to it so there was lots of room for hardscape and planting

so this is what i would like to know and i really could do with help here

i would like the tank to be set up with a kind of jungle style what i always liked kind of like this 1 done by london dragon
as i really love the look of it and the plants used
pict0302c.jpg


my problem is i want to use aqua soil thats 100% but i dont know which 1 would be best and want the right 1 from the start so that i dont have the hassle of having to change things again

i also have no idea how you manage to get the side piled up how it is in the tank above but it looks really good so would like info and help on what to use for that

also what is the wood in this scape and were can i get some and some pretty easy growing jungle style plants and a nice carpeting plant for it

i have ordered tropica plant nutrition plus , easycarbo and would like to know if i need anything else :)

and while im here im after a filter which will do the job perfectly as it wont have a filter at all and heater i have a 300watt 1 will that be sufficient ??

lastly i plan on running 3 day lights on there and a blue moon bulb for night time
what would be the best 3 bulbs i could use and what name wattage would be best ??

lastly i want to use a co2 fire extinguisher for co2 what would i need besides the extinguisher and air line , diffuser as i have no idea so if anyone can advise on whats needed and links to were i can buy exactly what i need inc the extinguisher :)

thanks for any help as i really do need it

alan :)
 
For all your Co2 information have a read through the Co2 section on this forum. It is full of all the information you could ever need .

Simon
 
alan_uk said:
today i ordered a custom tank for a unit i have at home and this will be my final resting place lol i intend on now buying all the correct equipment and using this tank for my scape and having it exactly how i would like, the dimesions of the tank are 900mm long x 500mm high x 550mm deep front to back :)
Nice dimenstions, the depth in the tank gives you a lot of room to manoeuvre ;) mine only has 36cm.

alan_uk said:
i would like the tank to be set up with a kind of jungle style what i always liked kind of like this 1 done by london dragon as i really love the look of it and the plants used
Glad you liked the tank ;) jungles all the way ;)

alan_uk said:
my problem is i want to use aqua soil thats 100% but i dont know which 1 would be best and want the right 1 from the start so that i dont have the hassle of having to change things again
For better success and great margin for error an fertile substrate is recommended, but as you would have seen from my journal its not always a necessity as long your dosing regime and CO2 are up to scratch. There are plenty of choices available, have a look under viewforum.php?f=17 for more information.

alan_uk said:
i also have no idea how you manage to get the side piled up how it is in the tank above but it looks really good so would like info and help on what to use for that
My gravel is flat from front to back and from side to side, only about 4-6cm deep. I used a combination of wood and plants to create the effect, by attaching ferns to the wood and placing anubias in-between you get that effect, also there are a couple of rocks under the mosses.

alan_uk said:
also what is the wood in this scape and were can i get some and some pretty easy growing jungle style plants and a nice carpeting plant for it
I am using Manzanita wood, which you can purchased from Plantedbox.com, just send them a message, that's where I got mine from.

alan_uk said:
i have ordered tropica plant nutrition plus , easycarbo and would like to know if i need anything else :)
This is fine, but will cost you a fortune in the long run, you should look into dosing EI (dry salts) and using Pressurised CO2.

alan_uk said:
and while im here im after a filter which will do the job perfectly as it wont have a filter at all and heater i have a 300watt 1 will that be sufficient ??
Heater is fine, you should look for a filter with 1500lph or over and then add some pumps to the tank for extra flow all around.

alan_uk said:
lastly i plan on running 3 day lights on there and a blue moon bulb for night time
what would be the best 3 bulbs i could use and what name wattage would be best ??
Lighting depends a lot what you trying to achieve, I run 6x24w over my tank, but that is way over kill, I could easily get away with 4x24w or even 3x24w. Rule of thumb is about 2w per gallon for high-tech, EI and pressurised CO2.

alan_uk said:
lastly i want to use a co2 fire extinguisher for co2 what would i need besides the extinguisher and air line , diffuser as i have no idea so if anyone can advise on whats needed and links to were i can buy exactly what i need inc the extinguisher :)
You will need a regulator, solenoid valve (some regs have this built-in), CO2 tubing (not air line), Diffuser (either glass, or best an in-line Atomizer, the UP Atomizers are very good), non-return valve (to prevent water from the tank entering the regulator and damaging it), Drop Checker (to measure CO2 levels in the water) and if you like a bubble counter (optional).
 
wow cheers buddy :)

i love your last setup it looks perfect

i have a bubble counter a drop checker and a glass diffuser at min will look at 1 of them atomisers as i like how small the bubbles came out on your tank

also im deffinatly going substrate on this 1 was thinking amazonia 2 will that be good as a single substrate

i was thinking running 3 t5 24 watt tubes but am unsure of the gallonage of the tank tbh i wont know until it arrives and i fill it up

also will give plantedbox.com a try for the wood cheers :)

i didnt realise however i would need a 1500lph filter lol this may be a small setback as that is around £200 new iirc not certian like

also i have 2 3000lph korilia's i think there called :) will this be ample

thank you for your help

alan

p.s si its literallhy a case of building up the side then attaching wood in were you can then fill up the gaps with plants

also anyone want some java fern as i have way too much lol only 1 i will be keeping is my big established narrow leaf lump :)
 
I did my corner the other way, placed large ferns near the glass back and left, some crypts after that, a pile of anubias that I was growing for 5 years, then a couple of rocks to keep it in place. I got the wood at a later date and just stuck it into the mountain, I can easily remove it to trim the ferns and mosses on it lol modular scaping ;)

Look for a JBL e1500, get one second hand, that's how I got mine!

Whatever you do, don't get Amazonia II (2) you will regret it big time, it breaks so easy that after a year your tank will turn to mud, check my shrimp journal in the sig for an example ;) standard Amazonia should be fine.
 
cool cheers for that mate :)

i will give the mountain a go :)

and ill forget the amazonia 2 lol and go for amazonia

tbh i would like to build it in the tank i have now but just cant see how i could as i did want the big tank for mabunba tank but i just cant work out how i could do it as its 2 foot high 2 foot 2" long and 15" front to back and its stocked and if i was to change to amazonia now wouldnt it kill everything ?
 
Yeah Amazonia releases ammonia to start with so if you have a high stock of fish I would not recommend it.
You would be safer using Oliver Knott Naturesoil or Colombo's Flora-Base (which is almost the same as Naturesoil, but not as light and its cheaper). There are alternatives you can look into, these are just all in one solutions.
 
yea i was looking at them 2 are they safe to add with the fish in there and shrimp?
 
alan_uk said:
yea i was looking at them 2 are they safe to add with the fish in there and shrimp?
They have no ammonia spikes so as long your filter is mature then I don't see a problem.
 
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