# 60P IWAGUMI Mountain Scape



## Emyr (21 Oct 2013)

This is a long term developmental aquascape inspired by my love of the north Wales mountains and the Japanese Iwagumi style of aquascaping. I hope it may have the potential to be developed into a slightly more complex scape with some stems etc after some time.






I spent a good few hours at the Green Machine choosing the type of rock that I wanted to use and then creating a layout. This is what I decided on, However I may experiment with turning a few of the rocks in the other direction and fitting in with the rule of two thirds, instead of them all facing the same direction

















I will be running two 24w HO T5's on a photoperiod started off at 6 hours, this will then be increased weekly until I get up to 8/9. I'll also dose Liquid Carbon to help minimise algae. The tank will be started up with hardscape + substrate for 3 weeks with 50% water change twice a week, once a week after third week, introduce plants, livestock one month after that. The tank will have a 24 hour blackout period, once a week, and be filled with 3/4 RO water to 1/4 London tap water

In terms of livestock, I think that I am pretty much decided on green neon tetra, along with some CRS, Otto's and snails. Also considering Crystal rainbow tetra after seeing them in my LFS a few months ago, although they are very expensive, I may think about getting just a few of them when I know the tank is well established.






*Aquarium Specifications:*

*Aquarium: *ADA 60x30x30
*Lighting: *Custom lighting unit, 2 x 24w HO T5 6500K, 6 hours, upped to 8/9
*Filtration:* Rena XP4 external with a 200W Hydor inline heater
*CO2:* 2Kg pressurised FE, JBL regulator and solenoid, Inline diffuser.
*Fertilisation*: EI dosing (undecided on regime at the moment) + Liquid Carbon
*Hardscape:* Seiryu Stone (Mini Landscape Rock)
*Substrate: *ADA powersand special, 9L Aquasoil amazonia, 9L Aquasoil amazonia powder type.
*Plants: *Hemianthus callitrichoides X5 pots, Hairgrass X 2 pots (more plants to be added later)
*Livestock:* Green neon tetra, CRS, Otto's, Snails, Crystal rainbow tetra.

I am also currently building my own ADA style cabinet with lighting unit, pictures of that to follow...


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## LondonDragon (21 Oct 2013)

Nice hardscape, looks very promising  DIY cabinet too, bonus!


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## sa80mark (21 Oct 2013)

Very nice,  love the hardacape


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## Emyr (23 Oct 2013)

Thanks for the responses and compliments. 

The cabinet is coming along nicely! 





This was a little sketch model to look at dimensions, scale and how it would be pieced together, (I slimmed down the bar across the top of the doors). The ADA cabinets are a little low for my liking so decided to raise it up to 90cm in height rather than the ADA 70cm, other than that the dimensions are the same 60 x 30 width and depth. 
















So the main construction is now complete and I'm really pleased with it. £50 compared to £700 I can't complain! (The side cutout looks strange on the righthand side but thats just a shadow) Just a bit of finishing and painting to do now.


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## Samuran (23 Oct 2013)

Looks really good, really like your workshop too


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## Emyr (23 Oct 2013)

Thanks. Me to, Its one of my favourite places.


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## Samuran (23 Oct 2013)

Reminds me of something..... ohh yeah DT lessons


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## Deano3 (23 Oct 2013)

looks awesome mate the hardscape is great I really like it and the stand is coming along very nicely indeed

keep us posted
Dean


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## Emyr (25 Oct 2013)

Cabinet complete! 















After several days of filling, sanding, undercoating, painting on the top colour then adding the lighting unit fixings on, the cabinet is finished and I'm really pleased with it. Comes pretty close to an ADA wood cabinet I think, with my own touch on it. 

Just waiting for a few bits of equipment (FE, RO unit etc) to arrive now and will be ready to go. Will be experimenting with the rock formation this week while things arrive, then finalising it and getting fully up and running the week after.


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## George Farmer (2 Nov 2013)

I'm watching this beauty! You have a great eye for a naturalistic rock layout. 

I'm interested in your  planned weekly 24hr blackout. Can you tell us more? Is it your own idea/theory?

Looking forward to following your progress.


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## Martin in Holland (2 Nov 2013)

this already looks great...great rock layout...great tank ...and an even greater cabinet. This can only go to an awesome level from now when all comes together.


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## aliclarke86 (2 Nov 2013)

Is your suspension kit made from wardrobe rails? It looks very nice 

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## Emyr (3 Nov 2013)

George Farmer said:


> I'm watching this beauty! You have a great eye for a naturalistic rock layout.


 
Thanks George, that means a lot. I have found your journals (Scree Evolution in particular) really useful in my development as a aquascaper for gaining an understanding of particular details and techniques, I think they are such good educational tools. Hopefully this journal can be just as informative.



George Farmer said:


> I'm interested in your planned weekly 24hr blackout. Can you tell us more? Is it your own idea/theory?


 
This is a theory I devised a couple of years ago, after I did a blackout on a tank to combat an outbreak of BGA. It killed off the BGA perfectly and many of the plants looks stimulated. I then tried it a week or so later to observe the effects on the plants when there was no obvious algae present. Again the plants seemed to look quite perky and almost refreshed. I see it as a way to almost reset the tank once a week. When I was up at the Green Machine last summer I was talking to James about it and it turns out that he had started turning the lights off over the weekend and had experienced similar results. As far as I know he still does it. I certainly don't think it can do any harm, so thought I'd give it a go on this tank and observe the long term effects.



Martin in China said:


> This can only go to an awesome level from now when all comes together.


 
Thank you, I hope so.



aliclarke86 said:


> Is your suspension kit made from wardrobe rails? It looks very nice


 
Nope, these are plumbing fixings. Chrome bar, clamps and 90° joints, really simple to rig up. A lot of wardrobe rails are chrome bars but are normally much thicker, this bar is a great thickness, thin enough to look aesthetically pleasing but thick and strong enough for taking weight, as it turns out it was the smallest one they had.


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## ghostsword (3 Nov 2013)

Great rock work, good choice.. and lovely cabinet.. would you make cabinets to order?  

Following this post, looking forward to see it coming to life.


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## steveno (3 Nov 2013)

Lovely looking hardscape layout, Syeriyu Stones that load must have cost a arm and leg, when I first visited TGM I walked away with a quite few KG’s worth of Syeriyu Stones and also a big hole in my wallet...LOL.

To save a bit of money I also built my own stand using 18mm MDF purchased from B&Q, not having access to a workshop, I had them cut up MDF to size, and then put it together at home; I added a few timber supports internally as wasn’t sure the MDF would be stone enough. Me and mate tested it by standing on it, must have looked like couple of clowns to my neighbours.

Interest idea regarding the weekly blackout, I previously done a few blackouts and was always surprised that the plant seem too perked up, but never thought to incorporate into my weekly maintenance routine, ingenious!

How do you intending to blackout your tank, will you make a cover of sort, when I done mine I’ve just use some black bin liner taped together, but given as you will be doing yours regularly I assume you want something a little easier to deal with?

Looking forward to following your progress.


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## Emyr (4 Nov 2013)

ghostsword said:


> would you make cabinets to order?


 
Thanks Luis. I'm afraid I don't really have time to make cabinets to order, not with so many other projects going on. This was a bit of a one off as I don't normally make cabinets. I believe there are one or two people on the forum who do make them to order though.



steveno said:


> Syeriyu Stones that load must have cost a arm and leg


 
I think they came to about £60 altogether, not bad at all considering how nice they are and that I was able to hand pick and create the arrangement before buying them. To me, this is an essential part in creating a pre planned aquascape, although there is something to be said for ordering rock and using a 'ready steady cook' approach. I was actually originally planning on using manten rock but that is unbelievably expensive so decided against it. I will use it in the future though. 



steveno said:


> How do you intending to blackout your tank, will you make a cover of sort, when I done mine I’ve just use some black bin liner taped together, but given as you will be doing yours regularly I assume you want something a little easier to deal with?


 
The room that my tank is in has a blackout blind on the window, so I am planning on just leaving the blind down and not having any lights on for 24 hours.


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## Aquamaniac Fishtanks (6 Nov 2013)

I love that rockscape. Looks very natural.
Your DIY cabinet is also impressive, professional quality.
Too bad you are not taking orders. A talent like yours can go a long way to help fund future projects.
I have to go to the greenmachine, I got my rocks from them and the rockscape looks good but I had to work with what the sent me.
Yours was customized an tuned to create an unique hardscape.
I am on day 2 of a 3 day blackout. Will keep a close look at my plants to see how much they like it.

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## steveno (6 Nov 2013)

Hello Emyr,



Emyr said:


> I think they came to about £60 altogether, not bad at all considering how nice they are and that I was able to hand pick and create the arrangement before buying them. To me, this is an essential part in creating a pre planned aquascape, although there is something to be said for ordering rock and using a 'ready steady cook' approach. I was actually originally planning on using manten rock but that is unbelievably expensive so decided against it. I will use it in the future though.


 

I think Aqua Essentials sell Manten Rock quite cheaply (£3 per kg), but they sell them as Baltic rock so not sure if it really the same same. but as you are ordering online your never sure what you going to end up.



Emyr said:


> The room that my tank is in has a blackout blind on the window, so I am planning on just leaving the blind down and not having any lights on for 24 hours.


 
One of the benefits of having tank in bedroom, unfortunate the misses was dead set against me having any tanks in the bed room so my tanks are in the living room which is quite a bright space.

Any update on tank?


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## Emyr (7 Nov 2013)

Everything has now arrived, so we are ready to go.

I put a 9L bag of aquasoil into the tank to experiment with the rock arrangement and substrate heights/levels (This has since been removed ready for a full substrate system to go in), here are few examples. Through trying these different layouts and combinations I'v pretty much decided (after leaving it in situ for a few days to make sure I'm happy with it) that I love the original layout that I came up with so will be sticking with that. Feel free to comment on which your favourite is and why.























This is the final arrangement...





Currently producing the RO water ready to fill her up! Most likely to be Monday, as I'm away at the weekend.


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## Nathaniel Whiteside (7 Nov 2013)

Nice one Emyr, looking forward to seeing your planting layout. The one You've chosen is definitely the best.


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## Alexander Belchenko (8 Nov 2013)

The last hardscape is superb, so good impression about real mountains. I'd start with small carpet plants or mosses and do a classic iwagumi. But I'm sure you already have something about it in your plans. Will wait for shot after planting, that should be interesting.


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## Aquamaniac Fishtanks (8 Nov 2013)

Alexander Belchenko said:


> The last hardscape is superb, so good impression about real mountains. I'd start with small carpet plants or mosses and do a classic iwagumi. But I'm sure you already have something about it in your plans. Will wait for shot after planting, that should be interesting.



Agreed. The last one is by far the best, and the one that resembles more the layout in the pics from greenmachine.

Also agreed on the carpets or mosses. It will give the moutain a bigger sense of size and scale.

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## steveno (9 Nov 2013)

Hello,

I agree with everybody, you def. gone with the best scape... 

Looking forward to see this planted.


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## Emyr (30 Nov 2013)

Apologies for the delayed update. 

Here she is being filled very slowly with a 5mm tube 






Filled (this was 3 weeks ago, 2 weeks substrate leaching time with just the substrate and rocks in there, filter and heater on, no lighting. I did about around 6 50-80% water changes over the 2 weeks, adding 5 drops of ADA green bacter per day to speed up the filter maturation period. 





HC is such a beautiful little plant, especially the perfectly round Tropica 1-2-grow portions. 





Commence planting... 





Planted.





I have altered the rocks slightly, as they were no where near to matching my original formation. At first, I rather weakly accepted that they will never be exactly the same, but then decided to have another go, to get them as close as possible. I compared photos to see exactly where changes were needed, still tweaking a bit, nearly there now. The HC seems to be settling in nicely already, the shoots looking a little more perky and full in colour. There is also some HG to be added in certain places between the rocks, this will add some height and soften the rocks a little. 





I will take some proper photos with the SLR and tripod when I have a few hours and have settle on the rock formation. Regular updates on changes and growth will follow from there. So far so good! All feedback and opinion is more than welcome.


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## darren636 (30 Nov 2013)

Crystal rainbows?  Incredibly rare


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## parotet (30 Nov 2013)

Nice custom lighting unit. Can you give us more details about it please? I am interested in doing something similar...


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## greenink (30 Nov 2013)

This looks absolutely great. Love the attention to detail and patience!


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## Emyr (1 Dec 2013)

darren636 said:


> Crystal rainbows? Incredibly rare


 
They are indeed. Although my LFS (Aquatic Design Centre) has had them in before and have told me that they could get them in again. As soon as I saw them I fell for them, quite a magical looking little fish. They are expensive though, as you would expect with a rare fish.



parotet said:


> Nice custom lighting unit. Can you give us more details about it please? I am interested in doing something similar...


 
Thanks. You should definitely go for it, you can knock one up pretty quickly. It is effectively just a 12mm (apart from the ends which are 7) open MDF box, glued and pinned together. Then filled, sanded and painted, pretty such the same as the cabinet. Inside, Its an Arcadia lighting ballast unit with reflectors, combined with X2 24W, 6500K T5's. At some point I may invest in an LED lighting unit, I think they are definitely worth considering as there are a few very attractive options now, if you're willing to spend a bit of cash. Here's a photo of the inside...







mikeappleby said:


> This looks absolutely great. Love the attention to detail and patience!


 
Thanks Mike. I think they are two major attributes that lead to a successful and sustainable aquascape.


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## darren636 (1 Dec 2013)

The only time I saw crystals , they were 9£ each.  Definitely a breeding project, same goes for tetra tucano


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## parotet (2 Dec 2013)

Wow, nice and looks easy. I will build one definitely. Thank you for the picture.
Is the ballast unit very heavy?


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## parotet (2 Dec 2013)

Just one more thing... what's the difference between the Arcadia electronic ballast and the electronic ballasts you can see for example on eBay (you know, the long ones)?. Is it just the matter it is waterproof and comes fully assembled? Or is it because it is a special ballast for T5HO tubes?


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## James D (2 Dec 2013)

Nice one Emyr, looking really good mate.


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## Emyr (2 Dec 2013)

darren636 said:


> The only time I saw crystals , they were 9£ each. Definitely a breeding project, same goes for tetra tucano


 
£5 in my LFS. I would be very interested to see a breeding project with them, the same goes for tucano tetra, both stunning fish and two of my favourites. Personally I'm not really into breeding fish so would just be buying a few for their beauty in this scape.



parotet said:


> Wow, nice and looks easy. I will build one definitely. Thank you for the picture. Is the ballast unit very heavy?


 
No problem. Its easy to an extent! All depends on what standard of finish you want, there is always a danger it can end up looking like a real bodge job if you get it a bit out here and there. I have access to a professional workshop, which enables me to use certain techniques, such as mitring the edges so get a smooth and seamless join all the way round.
The ballast is not particularly heavy no. With regards to the Arcadia lighting ballast, you would need to contact them for information like that as I'm not entirely sure. I bought it quite a while back.


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## flygja (3 Dec 2013)

I bet this is one of the cleanest executions in UKAPS. Good job mate! Everything has a bespoke master tradesman feel to it.


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## nayr88 (5 Dec 2013)

Good progress, really like catching the beginning of a journal like this. Good quality photos nice bit of kit and a  fair bit of talent I can tell already.
Might want to fix some plexiglas or similar over that light, I'm not going to throw the regs book at you here or anything don't  worry haha


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## Emyr (5 Dec 2013)

nayr88 said:


> Might want to fix some plexiglas or similar over that light, I'm not going to throw the regs book at you here or anything don't  worry haha



Thanks! There shouldn't be any need for plexiglass or plastic in the lighting unit, the whole inside is waterproof and I've had a similar setup on tanks before without any problems, hopefully this will be no different. Regs book?


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## Rich Jackson (5 Dec 2013)

Crystal rainbows?? Anyone got Latin name so I can look them up?   Very nice set-up btw.


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## darren636 (5 Dec 2013)

Rich Jackson said:


> Crystal rainbows?? Anyone got Latin name so I can look them up? Very nice set-up btw.


 otherwise known as the humingbird tetra, trichilocharax ornatus


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## dw1305 (5 Dec 2013)

Hi all,


Emyr said:


> £5 in my LFS. I would be very interested to see a breeding project with them, the same goes for tucano tetra, both stunning fish and two of my favourites. Personally I'm not really into breeding fish so would just be buying a few for their beauty in this scape.


 I just don't think they are suitable for the tank really. I haven't kept them, but I would think that putting them in an iwagumi would be extremely stressful for them, and that they are unlikely to show their natural colours or behaviour.

_ Trochilocharax ornatus <http://www.seriouslyfish.com/species/search/Trochilocharax+ornatus>_ is a black water fish (like _Tucanoichthys_ _tucano <  Tucanoichthys tucano — Seriously Fish>_) and should really go in tannin stained, very soft water with leaf litter and subdued light.

 If you did want to keep them in a planted tank with clearer water, the conditions that suit _Poecilocharax_ etc <Joe's tank | UK Aquatic Plant Society> should do for them as well.

cheers Darrel


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## nayr88 (7 Dec 2013)

Regs book sorry 
Just a book that states all requirements by law blah blah blah haha.
Was just an idea I don't think I saw that you mentioned the guts are Arcadia so will be rated for being close to water anyway  just me being a geek haha


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## Emyr (9 Dec 2013)

dw1305 said:


> Hi all,
> I just don't think they are suitable for the tank really. I haven't kept them, but I would think that putting them in an iwagumi would be extremely stressful for them, and that they are unlikely to show their natural colours or behaviour.
> 
> _ Trochilocharax ornatus <http://www.seriouslyfish.com/species/search/Trochilocharax+ornatus>_ is a black water fish (like _Tucanoichthys_ _tucano < Tucanoichthys tucano — Seriously Fish>_) and should really go in tannin stained, very soft water with leaf litter and subdued light.
> ...


 
You could argue that a lot of species aren't ideally suited to many of the setups and layouts that people use them in. The ideal setup for a black neon tetra (Hyphessobrycon herbertaxelrodi) is a biotope, but a huge number of them live happily in minimal high tech planted tanks. If our hobby consisted of just replicating the exact conditions that these fish live in in the wild, I think we would be rather limiting ourselves. Especially seeing as a lot of the smaller species (Ones more suited to smaller tanks or Iwugami style layouts) come from low light, blackwater or biotope environments. When I last saw Crystal rainbow tetra in my LFS, they were in an minimal, open water, high tech layout and they appeared to be perfectly happy and incredibly vibrant in colour. They were in that tank for a good 3 months+ (due to the high price). I think that you would undoubtedly notice if they weren't happy after that period of time. The species will behave differently in each tank they are used in, If you were breeding them then of course they would need to be in more of a backwater setup. However, I don't intend to breed them at the moment. I am also using green neon tetra as my main fish in this tank, technically they are also blackwater fish.


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## dw1305 (9 Dec 2013)

Hi all,

I'll "_nail my colours to the post"_ straight away, and say that

I won't use CO2 whilst it has the chance of asphyxiating your fish.
I only keep heavily planted tanks.
I've killed a large number of fish since the 1970's by ill treating them in various ways, in my defence mainly via ignorance.
It is your choice and I know that a lot of people will disagree me, but





Emyr said:


> You could argue that a lot of species aren't ideally suited to many of the setups and layouts that people use them in.


 I would, personally I try to only keep fish in conditions that I think they will be happy enough to live out their natural lives, and hopefully reproduce. 





Emyr said:


> The ideal setup for a black neon tetra (Hyphessobrycon herbertaxelrodi) is a biotope, but a huge number of them live happily in minimal high tech planted tanks.


 I've kept Black Neons for a number of generations in a heavily planted tank, and they aren't naturally a shoaling fish at all, and show a whole range of interesting interactions in a weedy environment. 





Emyr said:


> If our hobby consisted of just replicating the exact conditions that these fish live in in the wild, I think we would be rather limiting ourselves. Especially seeing as a lot of the smaller species (Ones more suited to smaller tanks or Iwugami style layouts) come from low light, blackwater or biotope environments.


 I can't think of any small fish fish that are really suited to a really bare Iwagumi lay-out.





Emyr said:


> When I last saw Crystal rainbow tetra in my LFS, they were in an minimal, open water, high tech layout and they appeared to be perfectly happy and incredibly vibrant in colour. They were in that tank for a good 3 months+ (due to the high price). I think that you would undoubtedly notice if they weren't happy after that period of time. The species will behave differently in each tank they are used in, If you were breeding them then of course they would need to be in more of a backwater setup. However, I don't intend to breed them at the moment. I am also using green neon tetra as my main fish in this tank, technically they are also blackwater fish.


 I wouldn't keep a rare fish, or any wild collected fish, if I didn't have some hope of breeding them. Unsurprisingly I don't think Green Neon Tetra are suitable either for an Iwagumi. 

cheers Darrel


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## GreenGrow (13 Dec 2013)

Hi Darrel,
Whilst I appreciate that these situations may not be the "perfect" conditions for a particular type of fish, there is obviously a much wider degree of conditions that the fish are quite happily able to live with. Obviously in an ideal world there would be no CO2 in the water, plenty of dark/shaded areas for fish to hide in to minimise stress, and no nitrates or any other chemicals in the water. However I'm sure that professional aquascape/fish retailers (such as the green machine) are more than aware of the "high tech" setups which these fish are placed into. It's probably a good indicator when these shops are using these sorts of fish in their display tanks which nearly always are place into high tech setups. Knowing emyr I'm sure that he has quizzed the staff at these shops thoroughly to make sure that  these fish will be healthy and happy in his set up. 
As it is much the case in this hobby, there are many different approaches that can be taken, and could it be a possibility that because of your bad luck with keeping some fish alive that you've accredited primarily to the very fundamental parts which allow aquascaping to function in the way that we know it today?

Food for thought...


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## GreenGrow (13 Dec 2013)

Hi Darrel,
Whilst I appreciate that these situations may not be the "perfect" conditions for a particular type of fish, there is obviously a much wider degree of conditions that the fish are quite happily able to live with. Obviously in an ideal world there would be no CO2 in the water, plenty of dark/shaded areas for fish to hide in to minimise stress, and no nitrates or any other chemicals in the water. However I'm sure that professional aquascape/fish retailers (such as the green machine) are more than aware of the "high tech" setups which these fish are placed into. It's probably a good indicator when these shops are using these sorts of fish in their display tanks which nearly always are place into high tech setups. Knowing emyr I'm sure that he has quizzed the staff at these shops thoroughly to make sure that  these fish will be healthy and happy in his set up. 
As it is much the case in this hobby, there are many different approaches that can be taken, and could it be a possibility that because of your bad luck with keeping some fish alive that you've accredited primarily to the very fundamental parts which allow aquascaping to function in the way that we know it today?

Food for thought...


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## James O (13 Dec 2013)

You can't replicate 'perfect' conditions for any fish unless you own a river in a warm country - in which case who needs a tank?

Fish learn there are no predators or danger fairly quickly as can be seen by the fact that they come to the surface right where we stand (loom menacingly) for feeding.  Keep quiet equilibrium in their lives and provide them with some elements of their natural home and they 'should' be fine.  They must have coping mechanisms as I understand many fish live longer in tanks than in their natural environment. When some plonker bangs the glass they freak - a natural reaction to having their quiet little world disturbed.  They soon go back relaxed playfulness when they see me clouting said plonker round the ear to explain how the fish feel!  There wouldn't be so many varieties/adaptations of fish if they didn't adapt to the varied situations in which they live in the wild.

That being said I try to provide shade and planted cover for them.

To each his own


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## dw1305 (13 Dec 2013)

Hi all, 





James O said:


> To each his own


 Agreed, and I realise that we are all going to differ in our motivation and intentions, but we all have a duty of care to the animals we look after.

I'd actually make a particular distinction for "blackwater" fish, they really are different from fish from less extreme water conditions.

cheers Darrel


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## Emyr (13 Dec 2013)

dw1305 said:


> we all have a duty of care to the animals we look after.


 
Absolutely! May I add that all of the points made were taken into consideration, researched and discussed long before they were mentioned on this blog. Thanks for the input anyway though people.

Here is a quick video I took the other day of some Green Neons in a 30L at the Aquatic Design Centre, these are the fish I'm going to get in within the next month or so. Hopefully they will compliment the scape well, while also being happy in their environment. 



Here's a tank update, 2 weeks since planting...






The HC carpet is starting to fill in nicely. I'v been running just a 6 hour photoperiod for the first two weeks, dosing 3ml of easycarbo daily and 3ml of Tropica macro and micro ferts on alternate days. I have now upped the photoperiod to 7 hours a day. No livestock added yet and more importantly, no algae! (touch wood)





Moody, low exposure, 'twilight' shot.






Another shot of the HC starting to carpet, sending out runners. Growth should now be increased with the extra hour of light.

I will be adding some Eleocharis Parvula around the rocks within the next few days, to soften them a little.


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## Emyr (10 Jan 2014)

A long overdue update! 

Below is the tank just before Christmas. All growing very nicely. 6 hour photoperiod. Hairgrass added between the rocks. 













Here is a photo I took yesterday. Full carpet. I have had a tiny outbreak of cyanobacteria (BGA) in two places, which I have cut out and upped my dosing regime slightly. Other than that it is running very smoothly. The only livestock in there at the moment are 6 Otto's. I will be adding a shoal of green neons this evening. 









Black Otto





Thanks.


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## aliclarke86 (10 Jan 2014)

Looks fantastic. Top job mate. I hope the fish enjoy the new home 

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## Ady34 (10 Jan 2014)

Looks lovely and has filled in a treat 
Must be nice to wake up to a nice mountain view every morning....priceless 
Cheerio,


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## Sacha (10 Jan 2014)

Beautiful!


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## parotet (10 Jan 2014)

very beautiful!


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## Phlash (10 Jan 2014)

That's lovely.


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## James O (10 Jan 2014)

Very handsome!  Be sure to post some pics of the green neons.....they should look fab with this mountainous scape!!


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## darren636 (10 Jan 2014)

Black Otto = blotto!


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## Yoda-BB (27 Jan 2014)

Nice !!!


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## ivydree (27 Jan 2014)

Nice one! Really like the feel of it. It's appeasing yet strong... Dunno if I'm clear...


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## Lee Sweeting (27 Jan 2014)

Looks great, emyr. 


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## CarlosSainz (27 Jan 2014)

Lovely tank. In black out day you do fertilisation and carbo? 

Enviado do meu GT-N7105 através de Tapatalk


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## Vito (27 Jan 2014)

Great carpet!


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## LondonDragon (28 Jan 2014)

Great success on the UKAPS Facebook page:






Congrats


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## nduli (29 Jan 2014)

Emyr said:


> Currently producing the RO water ready to fill her up! Most likely to be Monday, as I'm away at the weekend.


 
emyr - lookiing at your solution for RO. seems really simple, do you mind me asking what the system is? thinking of using RO on main tank and not just nano tank and don't want hassle of lugging 5/6 canisters about so thinking home method might work for me.


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## simon86 (31 Jan 2014)

really liking the diy light and stand


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## parotet (31 Jan 2014)

Great job done with co2 and nutrients, my tank has also 60 liters,  my lights are exactly the same but I keep them at 35 cm above the water level... only now I realize that this is a lot of light! Well done!


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## Emyr (31 Jan 2014)

Thanks for all the feedback and compliments everyone. 



Ady34 said:


> Must be nice to wake up to a nice mountain view every morning....priceless


 
Unfortunately the only days that I wake up and see it properly on is on Saturday and Sunday if I have a lie in because the lights don't come on until 10am. Its at the end of the day when I can appreciate it. 



CarlosSainz said:


> Lovely tank. In black out day you do fertilisation and carbo?
> 
> Enviado do meu GT-N7105 através de Tapatalk


 

No, blackout day is on Sunday which is also the rest day. No lighting and no liquid carbon. I do a 25-50% water change at the end of the day. Then it all starts up again on Monday. 



LondonDragon said:


> Great success on the UKAPS Facebook page:
> 
> View attachment 561
> 
> Congrats


 
Yes, thanks! I was pretty chuffed to log on and see this, very exciting bit of exposure. There are some stunning tanks posted on the Facebook page and I'm honoured that mine is there alongside them. 



nduli said:


> emyr - lookiing at your solution for RO. seems really simple, do you mind me asking what the system is? thinking of using RO on main tank and not just nano tank and don't want hassle of lugging 5/6 canisters about so thinking home method might work for me.


 

I'v had quite a few private messages regarding the custom RO unit tap connector. For me an RO unit is an essential piece of kit and I would recommend one to any serious aquascaper. It allows you to control every perimeter which is great. In terms of the tap connector Its just a serious of hose fixings from a hardware shop. you've got a push on and screw rubber clamp that goes on the end of the tap, that goes into a female piece which is connected to a small length of garden hose which goes into another female piece turned the other way round. There are two pieces on the end which came with the RO unit - the hose adapter and the piece that screws onto the adapter that the small unit hose pushes into. You just need to go into a hardware store with the tap that you want to use in mind and the RO unit connector and have a play with some connectors. It did take me a while to figure this one out after first of all experimenting with the bath tap. Hope that helps. 



parotet said:


> Great job done with co2 and nutrients, my tank has also 60 liters, my lights are exactly the same but I keep them at 35 cm above the water level... only now I realize that this is a lot of light! Well done!


 

Thanks. I see it as a standard to high amount of light for this sized tank, 48 watts in a 60 litre isn't excessive. Its all about getting the balance right from the start and not fiddling to much, small adjustments accordingly. With this lighting unit it really has to be nice and low to complete the overall look of the cabinet, tank and light unit. If it was higher I think it would look a bit odd so I had to get it right. I wanted the tank to look like it was almost slotted into part of the cabinet, both units being painted the same colour.


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## roonmu (13 Feb 2014)

so beautiful, thank for sharing!


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## KrishP (13 Feb 2014)

The tank looks great!
Are you going to have fish in this scape?
What is the name of the RO unit you got?


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