# Dave's TMC Signature Island



## Dave Pierce (31 Aug 2013)

Hi everyone,

 So pleased to have received my TMC signature this week from my LFS. It really is a top quality piece of kit & looks very smart. Today marks the beginning of a new aquascape, one that I'm not going to rush in to.

This will be my 2nd Journal, having previously posted on here with a 'on the cheap' kind of aquascape i.e. 2nd hand tank stand, clear seal £35 glass tank, 2nd hand co2 kit, low cost T5 lighting etc. This was a great learning process for me, I have learn't a lot from it & also from many members & posts on here, so a big thank you to UKAPS. 

The tank is a TMC Signature Optiwhite 60x45x30 with a black TMC cabinet to match. Like many have found, it's extremely good value for the quality of build & materials. The depth on these tanks are superb, looking forward to using all the room you get to aquascape.

I am going to be using a piece of wood from and old tank and some Baltic Rock. I'm going to experiment with the wood and rock layout before deciding on plant choice. But one thing I am keen on is not going overboard with the light, therefore I may simply use a 24W T5 tube. This will have a deciding factor upon the choice of plants. Some plants I am keen on using are Anubias Nana Bonsai, Java Fern and mosses attached to the wood; then a mixture of Crypts & Staurrogyne Repens around the rocks and foreground.

I have two filters ready to use, about 500LPH each, with two sets of lily pipes (one on order) along with more more glassware including a glass drop checker & a glass hang-on thermometer. 

I also have on order an in-line co2 diffuser, in order to keep equipment out of the tank. I plan to do the same with the heater.

I un-boxed the tank earlier so here are some pics:



TMC Sig1 by dpierce5, on Flickr



TMC Sig2 by dpierce5, on Flickr


TMC Sig3 by dpierce5, on Flickr


TMC Sig4 by dpierce5, on Flickr


TMC Sig5 by dpierce5, on Flickr


I'm about to order the substrate and rocks to hopefully receive these on Tuesday so I can have a play around with different layouts. So excited!

Cheers,
Dave


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## sa80mark (31 Aug 2013)

Very nice dave

Will keep an eye on this


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## DrRob (31 Aug 2013)

Nice piece of glass.


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## Deano3 (31 Aug 2013)

looking good, nice tank and stand looking forward to updates and seeing tank come together

Thanks Dean


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## Brian Murphy (31 Aug 2013)

Looks sweet .... good luck, I'm sure it will turn out great


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## George Farmer (1 Sep 2013)

Welcome to The Signature Club.


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## Dave Pierce (1 Sep 2013)

George Farmer said:


> Welcome to The Signature Club.


Thanks, I'm a proud owner of the Signature  

Took a shot of the lighting I'm using last night. Only one T5 bulb. I found it very hard to succeed with high lighting on my last scape so I'm going to stick with a medium level of lighting. 






In the long run I'm looking to have suspended lighting...hopefully a TMC tile. Must get saving £££


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## George Farmer (1 Sep 2013)

Dave Pierce said:


> Thanks, I'm a proud owner of the Signature


Well, the first rule of Signature Club is that you must talk about Signature Club as much as possible by creating a journal on UKAPS.  So you're in.  Congratulations.


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## Dave Pierce (1 Sep 2013)

George Farmer said:


> Well, the first rule of Signature Club is that you must talk about Signature Club as much as possible by creating a journal on UKAPS.  So you're in.  Congratulations.



Whoop I feel privileged! There aren't many in the club yet!?

I have just placed an order for plants, rocks and substrate. Here's the list:
Java Fern mini
Anubias bonsai
Staurogyne repens
Cryptocoryne wendtii brown
Cryptocoryne mixed
Spikey moss
Clinopodium brownei

May add some more plants at another stage, if I feel it needs a few more species.

Looking forward to doing the hard scape on Tuesday


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## Dave Pierce (3 Sep 2013)

Well after saying I was just going to do the hardscape today I actually got a bit carried away and did the whole thing including plants! My reasoning for this is my next day off work is in 9 days and I can't wait this long   I also had the whole day to myself (doesn't happen often!)

I spent the morning arranging the wood and baltic rocks, I had a nice piece of redmoor from an old tank with established java fern mini and spikey moss on. This was always going to be the centre piece and the rocks were worked under and around the centre piece. I've gone for an 'island' look and I intend to keep pruning the plants so that they never reach the front and sides of the glass. This will make glass cleaning very easy from all angles. The thing I like about this layout is it looks good from the front and the sides, which I think is important as the tank it situated in the middle of the room.

I planted more java fern behind the centre piece and superglued the anubias bonsai onto the different rocks. Cryptocroyne Nevilli was planted inbetween rocks and Cryptocoryne Wendtii Brown was plants at the back and sides.

Staurogyne Repens was planted in the foreground. I am going to prune these by 2/3 tomrrow and replant the cuttings to encourage growth and get more low coverage. A small amount of hair grass was planted in small clumps inbetween rocks also.

Lastly Clinopodium brownei was planted at the back, you will see the tall stems poking out from behind. This plant was also taken from another tank.

I am using a inline co2 diffuser which I couldn't recommend more, fantastic for keeping away the mist of co2 bubbles and keeps equipment out of the tank.

I currently only have one filter running at the moment with lily pipes. My other filter is ready to go, I'm just bleaching my other set of lily pipes as they are filthy!

The pictures were taken about an hour after setup so it's still a bit cloudy and bubbles on the glass and glassware.


TMC Sig7 by dpierce5, on Flickr


TMC Sig8 by dpierce5, on Flickr

Please let me know what you think, I am happy with how it's turned out but no doubt there will be some tweaking along the way.

Just to re-cap, lighting is 1x24W T5 (6 hours for first two weeks) , co2 injected using inline diffuser, and will be dosing EI dry salts.  So I can get an idea of when people start dosing ferts, how long does everyone normally wait until they start dosing? 1 week? or perhaps 2 weeks? 

I will get some close ups and more shots throughout the week when things clear up a bit. I only have an iphone, so sorry but picture quality isn't great, but it has to be said...pretty good for a phone.

Thanks for looking!


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## George Farmer (3 Sep 2013)

Looking good, Dave. 

Most of us will dose from day one.

My biggest tip is to 50%+ water change every for the first week. Then every other day for week 2. Then every 3 days for week 3. And so on until one 50% water change per week. Try to water change well before lights on, or after lights off.

I look forward to following your progress.


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## sa80mark (3 Sep 2013)

It looks fantastic im really growing to like these island scapes, the mix of leave shapes and shades of green makes it look much older than it is, also the scale is brilliant if you dont look at the equipment you would never guess its only 60cm, looks much bigger, 

I can see why your happy with it im sure many many people would be 

Mark


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## Gary Nelson (3 Sep 2013)

It looks really nice mate, you must have gone some to get it all done in a day....! I look forward to seeing a few more pics as it grows in - well done


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## Dave Pierce (3 Sep 2013)

George Farmer said:


> My biggest tip is to 50%+ water change every for the first week. Then every other day for week 2. Then every 3 days for week 3. And so on until one 50% water change per week. Try to water change well before lights on, or after lights off.


 
Thanks for the advise George, will make sure I follow it and will start dosing straight away.




sa80mark said:


> It looks fantastic im really growing to like these island scapes, the mix of leave shapes and shades of green makes it look much older than it is, also the scale is brilliant if you dont look at the equipment you would never guess its only 60cm, looks much bigger,


 
Thank you sa80mark, yes I was pleased with the scale. Just got to maintain the shape, and I don't want the rocks eventually being completely covered, so I anticipate lots of regular pruning!




Gary Nelson said:


> It looks really nice mate, you must have gone some to get it all done in a day....! I look forward to seeing a few more pics as it grows in - well done


 

Thanks Gary, Yep it took almost 9 hours! A full days work, but I enjoyed it!


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## Ian Holdich (3 Sep 2013)

Well done dave! This'll take on a whole different look once those plants settle in.


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## Dave Pierce (3 Sep 2013)

Ian Holdich said:


> Well done dave! This'll take on a whole different look once those plants settle in.


 
Cheers Ian, all came together quite nicely. I have a vision of what I want it to eventually look like so I hope it turns into what I want.


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## Dave Pierce (5 Sep 2013)

I have a few pictures now the tanks cleared up and the bubbles on the glass have gone.

I added the 2nd filter and lily pipes last night. I have one set of lily pipes at the rear and another at the front, both pointing in the same direction. Hopefully having to sets will get a more even flow over the entire depth of the tank, and I will get some flow in front and behind of the island.

I'm already getting a slight film on the surface, I put this down to co2. Drop checker is at green but I have upped my co2 to achieve a lime green colour. I imagine the film will clear up soon enough like it did in my last set-up.

I have transferred a few fish from a smaller setup, as I have taken that one down. Just 4 Tetras and some Amano shrimp (the best dam algae eaters around!). More tetras will be introduced in about 3 weeks when I decided which ones.




TMC Sig9 by dpierce5, on Flickr


TMC Sig10 by dpierce5, on Flickr


TMC Sig11 by dpierce5, on Flickr

I will update again in a week or so.

Currently performing 50% water changes each day, as advised 

Thanks for looking.


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## Ben Hooper (5 Sep 2013)

That looks awesome!


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## Dave Pierce (12 Sep 2013)

One week in and things seem to be going to plan. No traces of algae yet. Plants seem to be happy & pearling in the evenings.

Still doing 50% water changes every day but going to start doing them every 2 days starting tomorrow.

I've been messing around with extra lighting to take better pictures with my iPhone. The first shot is the one I'm happy with and the 2nd shows the lighting I used to get the shot. The EnviroGro light is one I used for my propagators.

The photo has been edited only slightly with PS express iPhone app, a quality free app for your phone! Basically it's been sharpened jsut a tad, too much and it starts to look too sharp to believe! To be honest I think this is the best quality picture I'm going to get from an Iphone, until I can afford a proper camera. This will do for now though 


TMC SIG12 by dpierce5, on Flickr



TMC Sig13 by dpierce5, on Flickr
 
Let's see what the next month of progress brings!

Thanks for looking.


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## Ady34 (12 Sep 2013)

Looks great Dave, the microsorum looks like its been there forever!


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## Dave Pierce (13 Sep 2013)

Ady34 said:


> Looks great Dave, the microsorum looks like its been there forever!


 
I actually grew that in a propagator before hand, an emersed set-up up with the lights on for 16 hours a day and lots of nutrients.. Started as a tiny plant and over two months grew into what looks like a mother plant.


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## George Farmer (13 Sep 2013)

Looking good, Dave. 

Glad you're enjoying the PS Express app.


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## Dave Pierce (13 Sep 2013)

George Farmer said:


> Glad you're enjoying the PS Express app.


 
Yeah picked that up when you mentioned it in your Hillside journal. so Thanks. About as good as I'm going to get with an iPhone


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## Brian Murphy (13 Sep 2013)

Dave Pierce said:


> Yeah picked that up when you mentioned it in your Hillside journal. so Thanks. About as good as I'm going to get with an iPhone


 
As soon as I get my iphone back from the repair shop I think I will be purchasing the app, sounds the biz


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## Dave Pierce (16 Sep 2013)

Few updates:

Some slight crypt melting, so chopped away the affected leaves. Mainly happening with the Becketii and Wendtii species. Not going to worry about this and new leaves already emerging.
No signs of algae yet (2 weeks in). 6 hours of light and the fact that its a low light set-up means for the first time I'm algae free so far.
I'm on to water changes every 2 days now, I change around 25-30% at a time.
Oily film on surface is clearing up slowly, still there but sometimes drop some kitchen roll over up to scrape it up. Hopefully it will completely clear soon.
Drop checker is a solid green & dosing everyday EI salts, macro and micro on alternate days (as I've been doing water changes every other day). Also dosing TNC Carbon everyday.
 
Has anyone got any tips on how to clean the white deposit left on the glass near the rim of the tank at the waters edge? I have pretty hard water so I'm always left with a white rim round the top of the glass. I brush it often but doesn't keep it away completely.


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## vauxhallmark (16 Sep 2013)

Razor blade it off, or use vinegar on a kitchen towel. Both when the water is low during a water change.


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## Dave Pierce (16 Sep 2013)

vauxhallmark said:


> Razor blade it off, or use vinegar on a kitchen towel. Both when the water is low during a water change.


 
Thanks vauxhallmark, will give the vinegar a go on my next water change


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## Dave Pierce (17 Sep 2013)

@vauxhallmark
Just tried the vinegar, worked a treat! Dipped a toothbrush in some balsamic vinegar and the white stuff rubbed straight off.


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## Dave Pierce (20 Sep 2013)

Half way through tonight's tank maintenance, cleaning glass, trimmed a few leaves and hoovered between plants...


TMC Sig14 by dpierce5, on Flickr

The better half is out babysitting tonight...must do something to keep me amused! 

Excuse the ugly heater...waiting for the external to arrive in the post.


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## Dave Pierce (23 Sep 2013)

Quick video 3 weeks in. Still looks very new, needs lots more time to grow in.

View in HD for best quality. Taken with iPhone 5.


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## Ian Holdich (23 Sep 2013)

Looking good Dave! Really well done mate!


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## Dave Pierce (23 Sep 2013)

Ian Holdich said:


> Looking good Dave! Really well done mate!


 
Cheers Ian 

P.s. the reason why the drop checker is blue in the video is because I just changed the liquid before shooting the vid


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## Samjpikey (24 Sep 2013)

Really nice looking scape you have here , the more I see these 'island' type scapes , the more I want to just tear down mine and re start . 
Is that optiwhite glass for the tank ? 

Cheers 


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk - now Free


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## Dave Pierce (24 Sep 2013)

Samjpikey said:


> Really nice looking scape you have here , the more I see these 'island' type scapes , the more I want to just tear down mine and re start .
> Is that optiwhite glass for the tank ?
> 
> Cheers
> ...



Thanks a lot! Yep optiwhite glass, I love it. The TMC signature aquariums are superb value and made to a very high standard.


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## Samjpikey (24 Sep 2013)

I would like to go optiwhite , I work for a glazing firm and can get it at cost , if I'm brave enough I think I'm going to build one  :/ maybe . 
Looks awesome though not seeing the green/black edge of the glass ! 

I will definitely be watching this to see how it all grows in . 
Cheers 


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk - now Free


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## TOO (24 Sep 2013)

It looks very nice. Perhaps a few more branches coming out of the island would look good and create added dynamic.

Thomas


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## Dave Pierce (24 Sep 2013)

Samjpikey said:


> I would like to go optiwhite , I work for a glazing firm and can get it at cost , if I'm brave enough I think I'm going to build one :/ maybe . Looks awesome though not seeing the green/black edge of the glass !


 
Optiwhite is definitely the way to go  I also love the depth of the TMC aquariums.




TOO said:


> It looks very nice. Perhaps a few more branches coming out of the island would look good and create added dynamic.


 
I thought this also, might look into it, but don't want to destroy what's already there.

Hoping the crypts will grow some more at the back and side.

Thanks for your comments


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## TOO (24 Sep 2013)

I see what you mean. Only thing is that if the crypt is allowed to grow higher and wider it risks erasing the angle on the island slope. I think the main island has some great angles as it is now, so plants need to be controlled to keep this. I hope it makes sense .

Thomas


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## Dave Pierce (24 Sep 2013)

Yeah I see where you coming from TOO. I think some regular pruning will help keep its shape, will keep an eye on this.

Cheers for your input


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## Dave Pierce (26 Sep 2013)

I introduced some Ember Tetras today. Just 10 of them + 4 Lemon Tetras from a smaller tank that's no longer running. I have seen them in a few aquascapes on UKAPS, they're  nice looking fish.

This video was taken about 2 hours after they were introduced...best to watch in HD for better viewing as it's only an Iphone video. Let me know what you think


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## Dave Pierce (26 Sep 2013)

And a full tank shot with the fish in:


TMC Sig15 by dpierce5, on Flickr


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## Gary Nelson (26 Sep 2013)

It's looking great Dave and filling in very nicely, a picture of health


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## Greenfinger2 (27 Sep 2013)

Hi Dave, Fantastic Island Scape The planting is Superb Nice pics to


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## Ady34 (27 Sep 2013)

Lovely jubbly


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## Deano3 (27 Sep 2013)

looks fantastic

Dean


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## Alastair (27 Sep 2013)

Agree with all the above comments dave. Very healthy and colourful

Sent from my GT-I9505 using Tapatalk 2


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## Dave Pierce (27 Sep 2013)

Greenfinger2 said:


> Hi Dave, Fantastic Island Scape The planting is Superb Nice pics to


 
Thanks Grenfinger2 , the island scape is very easy to maintain as you can get in and around the front, back and sides very easily. Flow also appears to be good throughout the island scape. I like the fact the plants aren't growing very quick, again it adds to easy maintenance, and because I'm injecting co2, the plants are growing with good health. In previous scapes I have used more lighting but I quickly learnt it is harder to grow healthy plants under high light, so at the moment I prefer this amount of light.



Ady34 said:


> Lovely jubbly


 


Deano3 said:


> looks fantastic


 


Alastair said:


> Agree with all the above comments dave. Very healthy and colourful


 
Thanks for all your kind words, I am happy so far but lets hope the easy maintenance continues


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## Ian Holdich (27 Sep 2013)

Love the embers in there mate, they really suit the scape. Looking good Dave!


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## Dave Pierce (27 Sep 2013)

Ian Holdich said:


> Love the embers in there mate, they really suit the scape. Looking good Dave!


 
Thanks Ian. I'm happy with them too, I think the fact that their red add's an extra element to the tank, and because their the only red thing in the tank they really stand out. Planning on adding another 6-10 in about 3 weeks. Can't rush these things!


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## George Farmer (27 Sep 2013)

Looking really good, Dave. 

If I had to point out any area for improvement it would be the relatively large texture of the Staurogyne in the foreground.  Because it's a really bright green, and quite uniform in comparison to the other plants, it makes it look a little distracting - to me, anyway.  

The plants behind it look great - a really nice blend of colours and textures with the variety of crypts, Anubias, and fern.

I think a lot of the Staurogyne leaves look like they're still in emersed form, so will get slightly smaller, and maybe darker, so it won't be so noticeable.

Have you consider adding another finer textured foreground plant in front or even amongst the Staurogyne to soften it a little - or are you happy with it?  If so I'll shut up right now. 

Regardless, it's a lovely example of an island composition the the plant health is testament to its owner's skill.


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## Dave Pierce (27 Sep 2013)

Cheers George, I really appreciate your comments and area's for improvement. The great thing about this forum is getting other people's view points and seeing things from someone else's eyes in order to improve the scape.




George Farmer said:


> If I had to point out any area for improvement it would be the relatively large texture of the Staurogyne in the foreground. Because it's a really bright green, and quite uniform in comparison to the other plants, it makes it look a little distracting - to me, anyway. The plants behind it look great - a really nice blend of colours and textures with the variety of crypts, Anubias, and fern. I think a lot of the Staurogyne leaves look like they're still in emersed form, so will get slightly smaller, and maybe darker, so it won't be so noticeable.


 
I have always thought the Staurogyne looked rather large. When I received the pots the leaves we're quite big, so yes I'm hoping the leaves will be smaller in it's submersed form. The new leaves that have sprouted already certainly look smaller than the old leaves. Will be giving the Staurogyne a harsh prune in about 7 days. It might be a case of keeping on top of the pruning to keep it low and dense. But again depends on the leaf size to achieve the desired effect. Hopefully they will be small 




George Farmer said:


> Have you consider adding another finer textured foreground plant in front or even amongst the Staurogyne to soften it a little - or are you happy with it? If so I'll shut up right now.


 
Please don't shut up, the more you guys speak the better my scape will be! I haven't considered it yet, but now you mention it, do you think some hair grass amongst the Staurogyne would look better?




George Farmer said:


> Regardless, it's a lovely example of an island composition the the plant health is testament to its owner's skill.


 
Thanks for the compliment, it's nice to hear


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## George Farmer (27 Sep 2013)

Dave Pierce said:


> do you think some hair grass between the Staurogyne would look better?


Now you're talking. 

I'm a big fan of mixing lots of textures sometimes.  Here's an example from a shallow scape I did a couple of years ago.  There's Staurogyne, hairgrass, glosso, Hydrocotyle...


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## Dave Pierce (27 Sep 2013)

Wow wee....that's a complex picture & mix of plants. Very effective.

Well I think I'm going to have to order a couple pots of Hairgrass 

Have you got a Journal for this scape?

What's the brown plant, not the crypt, the one with thin sharp leaves? One thing I also think my scape could use is a couple of brown plants in the centre mix.


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## George Farmer (27 Sep 2013)

No UKAPS journal, but - Aquascaping with a shallow aquarium | Features | Practical Fishkeeping

The brown plant is Hygrophila araguaia. Would work nicely in your layout.


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## Dave Pierce (27 Sep 2013)

Thanks will have a good read through that. Quality looking scape & pics.

Does the Hygrophila araguaia require much light & co2 to keep it's colour? Upon a quick Google search I see it can also be green. I have a 24W T5 and co2 injection, it's fairly low spec.

Where would you put this plant in my tank?


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## Dave Pierce (6 Oct 2013)

Had a harsh prune to the Staurogyne Repens about 4 days ago. New shoots grown back already, and the leaves are getting smaller  If you compare this picture to my last one, it's looking a bit more balanced and in proportion.

I had an idea today of completely surrounding the island with S Repens and 'mini' hairgrass. Just wondering what everyone's thought on this?
I think it would still retain it's island look, it would just be surrounded by s repends and hairgrass instead of substrate 

Not sure yet, but just an idea I had today whilst I was cleaning/pruning.

Hogan53 is sending me some mini hairgrass this week which I'm going to plant amongst the s repens in the foreground as suggested by George. Hopefully this will create a more integrated and natural look 

One last thing to update on is some slight brown algae appearing on the rocks and some parts of the anubias. I have increased co2 as a result. Lighting is still 6 hours per day, and I intend to keep it like this for some time.

Here's a picture taken earlier today:

TMC Sig16 by dpierce5, on Flickr

Cheers,
Dave


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## LondonDragon (9 Oct 2013)

Tank is coming a long nicely Dave  well done


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## TOO (10 Oct 2013)

Dave Pierce said:


> I had an idea today of completely surrounding the island with S Repens and 'mini' hairgrass. Just wondering what everyone's thought on this? I think it would still retain it's island look, it would just be surrounded by s repends and hairgrass instead of substrate


 
Could work, definitely, if kept very low. On the other hand, the contrast between green and dark substrate would be lost. Not easy...

Thomas


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## Dave Pierce (10 Oct 2013)

LondonDragon said:


> Tank is coming a long nicely Dave well done


 
Cheers Paulo 




TOO said:


> Could work, definitely, if kept very low. On the other hand, the contrast between green and dark substrate would be lost. Not easy...


 
I might give it a go in a few of weeks. I get bored easily and want to change things! I will work towards a 'final shot' of the island scape (when I borrow my friends SLR in a few weeks).

Then I might start changing things


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## TOO (10 Oct 2013)

[quote="I might give it a go in a few of weeks. I get bored easily and want to change things! I will work towards a 'final shot' of the island scape (when I borrow my friends SLR in a few weeks).

Then I might start changing things [/quote]

The greatest danger to the great scape: boredom. You work hard to achieve your vision and then when you do you start thinking about how to change it. I speak from experience. More or less ruined my last scape by adding new plants all the time until it looked weird and overloaded. I try to stay disciplined this time. In your case, though, your new idea might actually be an improvement. The post-vision stage is also a phase for tweaking and perfecting. Look forward to see what you decide.

Thomas


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## Stormy (11 Oct 2013)

Hi Dave, when i look at your tank photo, it keeps giving me an illusion that you were shooting the photo from a low angle, but in fact you were not.
then i realized, perhaps it is due to your soil level, it is rather flat. When you have a flat substrate level like that, you lose some depth in your layout and your photo will look like shooting from an angle from below.

why not reduce the front level of your substrate say 2-3cm and add higher level at the back? this way the perspective of your tank may look better.
just my personal opinion. your tank is already quite nice as it is.


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## Dave Pierce (11 Oct 2013)

Hi stormy, thanks for you thoughts. You make a very good point! I do have some spare substrate I could use for this to bank it up towards the back a little. 

I will consider doing this next week hopefully  

Thanks for sharing your ideas. Will post some pics when I've done it .

Cheers
Dave


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## Mark Evans (12 Oct 2013)

Boredom within our scapes is what leads us to improve our next layout. It's a good lesson.

This is good layout, but to echo George, a mixture of plants could improve the foreground. Even 'break' it up, with an additional 'clump' of something different altogether. A small crypt sp. just to stop the linear appearance.

I'm not dissing this by any means mate. It's very good indeed, but mixing plants, especially in the foreground can be a wonderful thing.

here's a couple of random foregrounds I did a while ago. Even shaping the same plant can add interest. Just trimming the Staurogyne at different heights can work.


foreground1 by saintly's pics, on Flickr


crop by saintly's pics, on Flickr


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## Dave Pierce (12 Oct 2013)

Thanks mark I really appreciate your input. Some very inspirational pictures 

I have just received & planted some mini hair grass from Hogan53 amongst the SR, I will get some pictures soon. Hopefully once it's integrated together the foreground will look better.

I agree about the linear approach I have somehow taken on, must be the way my mind works! However it's not so natural so I will try and put a small crypt in there as well to break up the linear feel. Hopefully this and the mini hair grass will be an improvement 

Thanks for everyone's opinions, the more the better!


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## Dave Pierce (12 Oct 2013)

After taking the advise of a few UKAPS members, I decided to have a play....

I received some mini hairgrass yesterday, which I have planted in and around the Staurogyne. I've planted it in small clumps so it does look a bit like each one has been placed there by something other than nature, but I am hoping once it grows in and it mingles with the SP it will look more natural.

I have also worked in a couple of Wendtii brown crypts, one in the centre and one to the right in the foreground. I like the one in the centre as it adds a new colour to the mass of green. Once this grows I hope it will become more of a feature. The one to the right in the foreground is there to add a bit of 'randomness' and also adds a different colour.

I really enjoyed the 'tweeking', whether it's for the better of worse I don't mind, I still enjoyed perfecting the scape 
The great thing about this tank is that it's low enough down that I can just sit on my stool in front of the tank with my arm bent over the glass using my planting tools to maintain it. 

I will be borrowing an SLR camera this week, been dying to take some pictures with anything other than my iPhone!

Here's how it stand today:

TMC Sig17 by dpierce5, on Flickr


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## tim (12 Oct 2013)

Looks good Dave, really nice scape, once the hairgrass takes off it should soften the effect of the staurogyne, very clean looking scape mate


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## Ian Holdich (13 Oct 2013)

I love it mate, really nicely done. It looks really clean and well looked after. You've used the texture brilliantly IMO. This take some skill! 

If you don't mind, I'm going to share this on the ukaps Facebook page for the world to see.


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## Gary Nelson (13 Oct 2013)

Ian Holdich said:


> I love it mate, really nicely done. It looks really clean and well looked after. You've used the texture brilliantly IMO. This take some skill!
> 
> If you don't mind, I'm going to share this on the ukaps Facebook page for the world to see.


Nice one Dave.... Your global now!


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## Dave Pierce (13 Oct 2013)

Thanks Ian & Tim!

Yeah of course you can Ian, I'm privileged! 

I feel it's going to take another 8 weeks or so for everything to grow in and mix together naturally. I only have 6.5 hours of light a day so things grow slowly, but I don't mind as long as everything grows healthy.


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## Dave Pierce (24 Oct 2013)

Quick update...

Not much to report, still waiting for the hairgrass and Staurogyne to mingle together.

I have been getting small amount of brown algae appear on rocks and old leave's. So I've purchased a light suspension kit which is arriving in the next couple of days. Hopefully raising the light will help sort this.

I have taken a few close up of some plants....

Java Fern, Crypt and Moss near surface.

Java2 by dpierce5, on Flickr


Grass, crypts, staurogyne and anubias mixing together amongst the rocks.

Java by dpierce5, on Flickr

Anubias with 4-5 new leaves sprouting all of a sudden, you can see small brown algae on the rocks and slight bits on the anubias in this shot.

Anubias by dpierce5, on Flickr


Need to clean rocks and raise the light!

Will update when I get the light suspension kit.

Cheers
Dave


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## stu_ (24 Oct 2013)

NIce pics Dave.Any Amano's in there ?


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## Dave Pierce (24 Oct 2013)

Only 4. Need some more shrimp!


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## George Farmer (24 Oct 2013)

Nice moves.


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## Iain Sutherland (25 Oct 2013)

Looking good dave, think the HC is a good addition to the Stauro as others have said, softens the lines.
4 or 5 Otos will also be beneficial to keeping the rocks and plants clean, failing that a soft toothbrush at WC will clean them right back up.


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## Dave Pierce (25 Oct 2013)

Cheers Iain, will consider some otos  

Looking to add some CRS as well, maybe 10.


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## Iain Sutherland (25 Oct 2013)

sorry meant HG.  CRS would look great in there Dave.


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## aliclarke86 (26 Oct 2013)

CRS look good everywhere  

Sent from my GT-I9505 using Tapatalk


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## Dave Pierce (29 Oct 2013)

Well the suspension kit isn't the most elegant thing I have ever seen! But it was only £25 and it does the trick 

I raised the light by quite a bit so let's see if the brown algae disappears! If not within a week I will raise it further and possibly increase the co2 a notch. Still running just one 24W bulb.



TMC 18 by dpierce5, on Flickr


TMC21 by dpierce5, on Flickr


TMC19 by dpierce5, on Flickr


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## Gary Nelson (29 Oct 2013)

Looking good Dave, just do what I did and hang the light from the ceiling - mine was up all of 45 minutes... Then the mrs came home... To be honest I got of lightly as I thought I might be joining my light and also be hanging from the ceiling!

I decided to design and have an aluminium bracket made for my lights (NA style) to fit the 600mm width of the TMC, I'll post some pics up when I get it if you like.


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## Wallace (29 Oct 2013)

Looking good Dave. 

What have you used to hang the light from the rail?


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## Dave Pierce (29 Oct 2013)

Gary Nelson said:


> I decided to design and have an aluminium bracket made for my lights (NA style) to fit the 600mm width of the TMC, I'll post some pics up when I get it if you like.


Cheers Gary yeah some pics would be nice 




Wallace said:


> What have you used to hang the light from the rail?


I used the suspension wires that came with the kit. They didn't fit onto the light so I had to do a bit of DIY to fit them. But essentially it was an all in one light suspension kit that fits most lights, but not all unless you fancy a bit of DIY/improvisation!


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## Dave Pierce (23 Nov 2013)

Long time no speak....been veeery busy with work lately.

However, managed to borrow a mates Cannon 600D 

Some very amature photo shots coming up  will be practising more over the coming weeks (if I have time!)

Here we go:

Canon Shot1 by dpierce5, on Flickr


Canon Shot2 by dpierce5, on Flickr


Canon Play1 by dpierce5, on Flickr


Canon Play2 by dpierce5, on Flickr

Hopefully my skills will improve in the future!


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## Dave Pierce (4 Dec 2013)

Small update,

The light is fully raised as high as my light suspension will go. I am going for an experiment and connected a 2nd t5 (2 in total now) and ramped up the co2. I have never managed to completely eradicate the brown algae yet, therefore I am ramping up the co2 as much as it will go without hurting fish in an effort to minimize the diatoms.

I'm aslo going to increase my water changes to 3 times per week, I was only doing one 60% change per week before.

In the new year, when things are less busy, I am going to re-scape. Not sure what I want to do yet, however I do quite fancy getting some more rocks and making these more of a feature. As this was a rather low-tech slow growing system, I quite fancy trying a high-light, fast growing scape.

I also quite fancy testing Tropica's or TMC's nutrient substrate under the gravel, just to see how well this affects PH, growth, roots and plant health.

I am definitely going to suspend the light from the ceiling next time!

Lot's of thinking to do 

Anyway, here are some snaps I took this evening:


TMC22 by dpierce5, on Flickr


TMC25 by dpierce5, on Flickr


TMC26 by dpierce5, on Flickr


TMC23 by dpierce5, on Flickr


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## Lindy (5 Dec 2013)

I feel as an island scape this would have looked nicer without such a high carpet, or no carpet at all.


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## LondonDragon (13 Feb 2014)

Update time


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## tim (3 Jun 2014)

This still running Dave or you on to the next one ??


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