# Ada 60F -go with the flow- nature aquarium



## CooKieS (18 Aug 2016)

Hi there,

New tank, new journal!

Specs:

ada 60f
Eheim ecco pro 130
Jbl u500 + do aqua music glass
Chihiros aquasky

Hardscape:

Spider wood
Black scale stone
Ada Gravel + la plata sand
Tropica soil+pouzzo

Plant list (soon): any suggestions welcome!

Eleocharis sp mini
Staurogyne Repense
Elatine Hydropiper
Fissidens fox
Riccardia
Microsorum sp trident
Anubia petite






Tank in situation:



Hardscape 13.09.2016 :





Cheers!
Thierry


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## gareth777 (18 Aug 2016)

cant wait to see this one develop  hardscape looks interesting for this height aquarium


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## Tim Harrison (18 Aug 2016)

Love these tanks...shallow with a capital "S". And liking the hardscape and the plant list


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## CooKieS (19 Aug 2016)

Thanks guys!

Scape in progress, still a lot of details to add but you get the idea


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## Alexander Belchenko (19 Aug 2016)

Will you add emersed plants?


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## alto (19 Aug 2016)

Fabulous photo!
looks like mist rising


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## Manisha (19 Aug 2016)

Really nice dimensions and hardscape


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## Tom (20 Aug 2016)

As already said, hardscape looks awesome for a low tank like this  good stuff!


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## CooKieS (20 Aug 2016)

Thanks! 

No emersed plants Alexander for this scape...maybe I will try this in the future, always loved the wabi kusa tank style.

The 'mist´ is just some filtration stuff to help standing rocks and sand to come.


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## Tim Harrison (20 Aug 2016)

Scape looks great in situ


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## Bolota (20 Aug 2016)

Could ypu be more specific about this filtration stuff?


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## Bolota (20 Aug 2016)

I think these shallow tanks are stuning. Dont know why people use them less than the others...  thinking of it most of the time  we look to the tanks from above. Are there any  cons i m not aware of?


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## Tim Harrison (20 Aug 2016)

Not IMO...It often helps to maintain a sense of scale by using appropriately sized hardscape and small fine leaved plants, and small fish like microrasbora.
Although, these ADA tanks are very shallow, only 18cm in height, so it may cost a few quid if you have to buy glassware etc to fit.


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## CooKieS (20 Aug 2016)

Sorry for my english, I'm french...

Filtration stuff=filter wadding.

When I started aquascaping 2 years ago, I always wanted 2 types of tank: iwagumi and a shallow Ada tank.

Iwagumi is done, let's go for the 60F!

Shallow tank means, as Tim said, small hardscape , plants and fishes. Less light. Less water but still with 60cm tank. much fun to come! 

As for the glassware, I have 2 Viv mini pipe, but I'll stay with eheim for the start for easier maintenance.

Still trying to DIY a led stand for my 45 cm chihiros


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## CooKieS (22 Aug 2016)

Hi,

Added ADA La plata sand and ADA aqua gravel S today...I need to work on the details now.


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## CooKieS (23 Aug 2016)

DIY led stand 50% done, next 50% is matte white painting.


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## AndreiD (23 Aug 2016)

Looks nice , but i think you will have flow problems in this setup , tank is small and too crowded , might help adding a skimmer/small pump on the opposite side of the intake /outtake, but that will not look good in the hardscape


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## CooKieS (23 Aug 2016)

Thanks, I was thinking of adding an eheim compact 300 in the back left of the tank, should be hidden by the hardscape. 

Got an eheim skim 350 but too big for this tank.. Haha


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## AndreiD (23 Aug 2016)

CooKieS said:


> Thanks, I was thinking of adding an eheim compact 300 in the back left of the tank, should be hidden by the hardscape.



good choice , using the same in 60 cm tank


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## Tim Harrison (23 Aug 2016)

Keeps getting better


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## CooKieS (26 Aug 2016)

Hello,

No forest anymore, let´s go for NA style! 


And after a little cutting of the Wood;


Any advice welcome!


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## Daveslaney (26 Aug 2016)

?.
Is the picture missing?Or am i missing the picture?


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## Alexander Belchenko (26 Aug 2016)

Now the picture is visible. Nice twist! Going out the box I think works better for such shallow tanks


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## Tim Harrison (26 Aug 2016)

Looks like you're having fun trying different ideas out...I love this stage during the creation of an aquascape, the possibilities are endless


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## CooKieS (26 Aug 2016)

Me too, so much fun...


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## Eduard18 (26 Aug 2016)

Hello ! I think the first version was better; the second version is unbalanced, the positioning of the wood suggests a triangular composition, so you should move the stones to the right, and make a slope descending to the left; and the the wood should be positioned so that only the small branches are upwards - in your layout you have a thick branch pointing upwards - it brings unbalance to the force


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## Bolota (26 Aug 2016)

I think that from the point of view of selecting the plants and what to do next this one is much more challanging. Good move!


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## tadabis (26 Aug 2016)

Very nice start! Keep going 4ward


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## CooKieS (27 Aug 2016)

Thanks for the comments!

I'm starting to work on a plant list, here's the current one;

Cryptocoryne lutea ´Hobbit´
Elatine hydropiper
Hydrocotyle tripartita japan
Riccardia
Fissidens
Spiky moss
Microsorum sp trident
Mini bucephalandra

I've worked on the path under the woods and I cropped the pic:



Cheers!


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## CooKieS (1 Sep 2016)

Hi there, no update on hardscape so I worked on the plant list, here's the final version:

Elatine hydropiper
Eleocharis sp mini
Hydrocotyle tripartita japan
Staurogyne repens 
Riccardia
Fissidens  
Microsorum sp trident
Anubia petite

Next step; hardscape détails and lightning stand painting. 

Cheers


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## CooKieS (4 Sep 2016)

Lazy sunday...


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## SeanOB (4 Sep 2016)

I love it already  
not going to add the Hydrocotyle again?


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## CooKieS (5 Sep 2016)

SeanOB said:


> I love it already
> not going to add the Hydrocotyle again?



I love this plant but it´s quite invasive so  I'm still not sure about using it or not yet. 

Maybe just small patches


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## Tim Harrison (5 Sep 2016)

Nice planting plan. You could try some small Buces as well, like mini needle leaf. 
And I'd go for _Anubias nana_ 'Pangolino' instead of petite.


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## SeanOB (5 Sep 2016)

CooKieS said:


> I love this plant but it´s quite invasive so  I'm still not sure about using it or not yet.
> 
> Maybe just small patches



it is a crazy plant! I like that it grows without substrate, but you have good ideas for other epiphyte growth by the looks of it


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## Manisha (5 Sep 2016)

Tim Harrison said:


> Nice planting plan. You could try some small Buces as well, like mini needle leaf.
> And I'd go for _Anubias nana_ 'Pangolino' instead of petite.



Hi Tim I'd really like to try 'Pangolino' but worry it may be more delicate, how are you finding it? Do you just prefer the narrow leaf?

That's a really well planned list & diagram... it will look super all planted up CooKie!


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## CooKieS (5 Sep 2016)

Manisha said:


> Hi Tim I'd really like to try 'Pangolino' but worry it may be more delicate, how are you finding it? Do you just prefer the narrow leaf?
> 
> That's a really well planned list & diagram... it will look super all planted up CooKie!



Got some A.pangolino in my nano cube, it's very small in comparaison to A.petite, very compact growth too...I prefer mini bucephalandra or A.petite. Pangolino doesn't look like an anubia anymore. 

Tim: I will consider getting some mini buce for details later, thanks for the advice


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## Tim Harrison (5 Sep 2016)

Manisha said:


> Hi Tim I'd really like to try 'Pangolino' but worry it may be more delicate, how are you finding it? Do you just prefer the narrow leaf?


So far it's as robust as any other anubias. I chose it for its leaf size, although I do like it's leaf shape as well. I think in a small aquarium, small and fine leaved plants give a better sense of perspective.


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## Manisha (5 Sep 2016)

CooKieS said:


> Got some A.pangolino in my nano cube, it's very small in comparaison to A.petite, very compact growth too...I prefer mini bucephalandra or A.petite. Pangolino doesn't look like an anubia anymore.
> 
> Tim: I will consider getting some mini buce for details later, thanks for the advice





Tim Harrison said:


> So far it's as robust as any other anubias. I chose it for its leaf size, although I do like it's leaf shape as well. I think in a small aquarium, small and fine leaved plants give a better sense of perspective.



Thanks for your feedback - didn't want to waste money on a new rare plant if hard to keep & maintain  My apologies CooKie for derailing your journal!


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## CooKieS (13 Sep 2016)

Hi there, this one is ready for getting wet!


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## AnhBui (13 Sep 2016)

Count down 1 2 3 4 5


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## Alexander Belchenko (13 Sep 2016)

Let's there be rock (and water)!


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## Nuno M. (7 Oct 2016)

Nice hardscape man, just needs some aquatic weeds in there along with water


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## bloskas (7 Oct 2016)

me like dat! !


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## bloskas (7 Oct 2016)

me like dat! !


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## Manisha (9 Oct 2016)

How's  this going Cookie?


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## CooKieS (9 Oct 2016)

Hi there, I'm going in vacation to lisbon this week, so I'll plant this tank only next week.


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## CooKieS (13 Oct 2016)

Thanks Takashi Amano for inspiring us and creating such an awesome piece of  living art!


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## rodoselada (13 Oct 2016)

beauty scape, i really like the stones you can tell me where you got them


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## CooKieS (14 Oct 2016)

rodoselada said:


> beauty scape, i really like the stones you can tell me where you got them



Thanks! 

For the stones, mine come from here:
http://www.skaii-and-shrimps.fr/pierres/918-black-scale-stone.html
These are the same:
http://www.aquascape-boutique.fr/ep...R/?ObjectPath=/Shops/233807/Products/ROXX-029

Cheers


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## Rahms (15 Oct 2016)

tank looks great! Really like the shallow scapes, especially when there's _something_ sticking out of the top. Trying to avoid looking at the lisbon pics because I'm going soon, haha

Could we/I get more pics of your light stand? I've been trying to think of a DIY one and actually bought some of that copper pipe not too long ago.  Have you used a pipe bender? And is it solid? Also, final Q, how have you attached it to the cabinet? Just some u-shaped clips and then the end of the pipe rests on the floor?

Hope to see this planted soon!


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## BexHaystack (15 Oct 2016)

Yes, please can we have more details on the light stand? And how have you suspended the lamp? Fishing line? Or with http://www.qvsdirect.com/single-lighting-suspension-wire-kit-pack-of-2

Great looking tank btw 


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## zgmarkozg (16 Oct 2016)

Hardscape looks great! Updates?


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## CooKieS (16 Oct 2016)

Hi Guys,

As for the light stand, I've used a pipe bender at my work to bend it twice, and I've attached it to the cabinet with screwed clips (see pics) for pipes.

The Led is suspended with fishing line, because it's very light (chihiros aquasky 451 without the plexi support), and fishing line is unobtrusive to the eye.

Lastly, I've painted the copper pipe with some plastidip to avoid oxydation.




It seems solid but I wouln't suspend an HQI to this. 

I'll plant this next sunday.


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## Rahms (18 Oct 2016)

fair enough! i've just got a flimsy UP aqua fitting so should be good, think I might copy you (minus the dip- gonna keep an eye on the copper finish).

thanks.  Not long til sunday!


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## CooKieS (21 Oct 2016)

This one is FLOODED!


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## Bolota (22 Oct 2016)

YES!


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## Greenfinger2 (22 Oct 2016)

Hi CooKies, Wonderful Scape


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## CooKieS (22 Oct 2016)

Thanks my friend, front picture still to come, water has to become clearer at the end of the day, let's hope it grows fine.


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## Greenfinger2 (22 Oct 2016)

CooKieS said:


> Thanks my friend, front picture still to come, water has to become clearer at the end of the day, let's hope it grows fine.




 Looking forward to watching this one grow in. I am sure the plants will grow well


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## Jim.. (22 Oct 2016)

Loving your scape.  I'm trying to achieve something similar, certainly inspiring


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## SeanOB (24 Oct 2016)

also been itching to see this one planted, keep the pics coming!


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## CooKieS (24 Oct 2016)

Thanks guys 

Some small diatoms started to appear on the glass near the CO2 diffuser but otherwise, nothing to declare yet...wait and grow!

Started to dose daily 1ml easycarbo+1ml ada brighty K
Lights 6h30 per day , dimmed at 60%
No WC yet, will do a small one tomorrow

Cheers!


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## Greenfinger2 (24 Oct 2016)

Hi CooKies, Wonderful photos The last photo is a stunner


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## Manisha (26 Oct 2016)

Hi, I love this scape & your photos ☺ I wondered what the little plant is in the 2nd photo? I'm not good with id of plants!


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## CooKieS (26 Oct 2016)

Manisha said:


> Hi, I love this scape & your photos ☺ I wondered what the little plant is in the 2nd photo? I'm not good with id of plants!



Thanks Manisha, that little moss is riccardia chamedryfolia


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## CooKieS (26 Oct 2016)

Elatine Hydropiper, smallest carpeting plant, some melting but some new growth too 

Drop checker

Fissidens fontanus

Twinstar M3 that a friend lend me

The path to nowhere!


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## Manisha (27 Oct 2016)

CooKieS said:


> Thanks Manisha, that little moss is riccardia chamedryfolia



Thanks, it's really cute & can imagine it looking good in a nano too ☺


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## CooKieS (28 Oct 2016)

I hope it will survive, that´s not an easy moss 

Any advice for the population?

Can't choose beetween these;

-green neon tetra (simulans)
-mosquito rasbora (b.briggitae)
-ember tetra (h.amandae)

Thanks!


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## AnhBui (28 Oct 2016)

Depend on how you want them to pop out or blend. 

Pop out: ember tetra
Blend: neon


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## CooKieS (28 Oct 2016)

Well said, thanks for the advice! 

Any other opinion for stocking this ada 60F (60cm long but only 30 liters)?


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## Manisha (28 Oct 2016)

Or tetras that pop: http://www.seriouslyfish.com/species/microdevario-kubotai/ 
And rasboras that blend http://www.seriouslyfish.com/species/brevibora-dorsiocellata/  
Ultimately it's yourself keeping them, so it's hard to recommend, Jack Reilly has lovely gold tetras http://www.ukaps.org/forum/threads/45-cm-cube-iwagumi-my-first-tank.41954/page-3 and Alexander has stunning flame tetras http://www.ukaps.org/forum/threads/aqua-at-pet-shop-season-2-layout-6.38273/page-5 ... too many to choose from! ☺


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## CooKieS (29 Oct 2016)

As you said too many...gold and flame tetra grows too big for my tank, but I really love the kubotai!

Now I'm stuck beetween these two:

Ember tetra:
Pros : -awesome colors, right size, schoaling fish, not jumping
Cons: - very shy fish

Rasbora kubotai:
Pros : -nice colors, OK size, very active fish that love to swim, not shy at all
Cons: -likes to jump, green colour (already got very green plants in this tank)


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## Alexander Belchenko (29 Oct 2016)

I'd like to add to list dwarf pencil fish - nannostomus marginatus. Not shy at all, and don't think it will jump. Mostly liked upper part of the tank, but in shallow tank it does not matter.


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## CooKieS (29 Oct 2016)

Alexander Belchenko said:


> I'd like to add to list dwarf pencil fish - nannostomus marginatus. Not shy at all, and don't think it will jump. Mostly liked upper part of the tank, but in shallow tank it does not matter.



Nice fish, thanks! but my tank has no heater (20-21degrees celsius in Winter and 26-27degrees in summer), and a medium-strong flow...:/


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## jackychun218 (31 Oct 2016)

That is sweet headache that you have choosing the fish! Haha!

Anyway, for ember tetra, you can use some dither fish to make it less shy. After sometimes, it will be more bold and come out to show off. 


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## CooKieS (31 Oct 2016)

So, I went to an big LFS  and they had the biggest choice of nano fish I've Ever seen (sundadanio, galaxy, ember, simulans, kubotai, borara sp, ruby tetra, nannostommus etc etc...)!

They had fully grown adult simulans , gorgeous looking but definitly too
Big for my tank (up to 3,5cm!)

Loved the ruby tetra but seems to not school as I wanted too

I'm 90% sure I will end with the same population that in my ex iwagumi; 10-15 ember tetra with 5 kubotai (as dither fish)


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## tim (31 Oct 2016)

Still no full tank shot CooKieS  water can't still be cloudy


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## alto (31 Oct 2016)

CooKieS said:


> I'm 90% sure I will end with the same population that in my ex iwagumi



nonono  


 see below


CooKieS said:


> they had the biggest choice of nano fish I've Ever seen




live life dangerously & bring home a species you've not kept before 

_Sundadanio_ I think are especially lovely in a big glittering school - which variant?


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## Manisha (1 Nov 2016)

alto said:


> nonono
> 
> 
> see below
> ...



I'd agree, in that variety in fish is definately an advantage to MTS  though too much choice can be overwhelming 

Danionella is also another diminutive species translucida or dracula & although Norman's Lampeye are too jumpy for your tank maybe clown or rocket killifish may be better as less jumpy? Another forum member Mark Evans used clowns  (& also has lovely Ricca!) ☺


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## CooKieS (1 Nov 2016)

tim said:


> Still no full tank shot CooKieS  water can't still be cloudy



Not cloudy but too soon...in situ picture 



Day 11: no algae, slow medium grow, only 2 WC of 10liters each...easy tank for now, hope it continues this way


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## tim (1 Nov 2016)

Lovely setup mate


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## AnhBui (4 Nov 2016)

CooKieS said:


> So, I went to an big LFS  and they had the biggest choice of nano fish I've Ever seen (sundadanio, galaxy, ember, simulans, kubotai, borara sp, ruby tetra, nannostommus etc etc...)!
> 
> They had fully grown adult simulans , gorgeous looking but definitly too
> Big for my tank (up to 3,5cm!)
> ...



Looks like I missed some interesting post. I think killifish is not a bad choice


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## jackychun218 (4 Nov 2016)

I have put 11 Espei Rasboras in my tank. I think it is a good choice for yours, too. 

They are small, schooling together, peaceful fish and outstanding with lampchop shape on orange body. 

They also like to play with flow! 


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## CooKieS (4 Nov 2016)

Clown killifish and Rasbora Espei are Beautiful fishes but they both love too jump...

A friend of mine had a bunch of 8 espei,   Half of them have already dried on the floor in less than 3 months.


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## AnhBui (4 Nov 2016)

Any chance that you can get this fish, aplocheilichthys norman (Norman’s lamp eye)? They are beautiful, small and schooling




 

I visited one local shop this summer and saw these fishes. Definitely they are not jumping


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## CooKieS (4 Nov 2016)

AnhBui said:


> Any chance that you can get this fish, aplocheilichthys norman (Norman’s lamp eye)? They are beautiful, small and schooling
> 
> 
> 
> ...



Love them, thanks man, I can get any nano fish on my LFS , I've seen them too...will add them to my list;

Si here I am;

Ember tetra
Kubotai
Simulans 
Lamp eye


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## Alexander Belchenko (4 Nov 2016)

I read quitem the contrary about lamp eyes from the girl who bred them. They were perfect jumpers in her tank.

Have you considered Vietnamese white clouds? They should be small but I don't know about their jumping habits.


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## CooKieS (4 Nov 2016)

I'm liking these guys too, especially because they like cold water and good flow! But I heard they are jumpers too?

I'll ask my LFS, thanks for the suggestion, Added them to my wishlist.


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## Alexander Belchenko (4 Nov 2016)

Oh it seems your quest for perfect fish becomes only harder - too much choice is hard!


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## alto (4 Nov 2016)

I suspect that many of the reports of "jumping" vs "non-jumping" are situational  ...
eg, I've rarely had any "jumpers" despite keeping fish that others report as "lost most due to jumping"
I rarely feed any floating foods - mostly frozen or pre-soaked dry foods - I think this important as I notice how much the fish (floating flake fed) at my friend's shop jump
 (the friend part is only relevant in that I often help out so see more of the livestock there  )

To start, as this is a shallow tank, I'd add a glass top (ADA price seems reasonable at lfs but any temporary top would do) for the first weeks, then remove it during times when I'm at home, & expanding this to "always"
 - noted the projecting wood, so use some sort of very fine stiff netting so that fish can't get "stuck"

Floating plant cover I think also reduces jumping.
Lowering the water level a few cm's below tank edge will also help 
Add enough #'s to the fish shoal so that they feel secure
Don't add so much CO2 that fish are "jumping" to (hopefully) better waters 

OK 'nuff "free advice"


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## CooKieS (5 Nov 2016)

Thanks for the free advice 

Elatine hydropiper:


Staurogyne Repens:


Fissidens fontanus:


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## CooKieS (6 Nov 2016)

Day 14 update


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## AnhBui (10 Nov 2016)

Ah, i forgot the boraras, a tiny  species 


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## CooKieS (11 Nov 2016)

Day 21 update:











Everything is going fine, no algae but normal fungus on the Wood, slow growth rate...thinking of starting dosing micros soon, and add some fishes because it is cycled since 5 days. 

Cheers


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## CooKieS (14 Nov 2016)

Hi there,

Couldn't resist when I've seen these ember tetra on sale for only 1€/pcs at my LFS...added 10 of them with the 6 I've had waiting in the nano cube...so a total happy schoal of 16 ember tetra are now swimming in the 60F! 






Tomorrow I'll do the third 10liters WC and start dosing micros.
Cheers!


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## CooKieS (16 Nov 2016)

Hi there,

Some small unknown fissidens sp moss is growing along with my riccardia, a friend told me it could be some terrestrial moss that was on tropica's factory?

Here's a pic:

Otherwise, despite being 16, the ember tetra are shy as hell, as they were in my iwagumi before I added some kubotai...

Went to my LFS today and discovered they had 10 awesome tetra tucano in stock, price is very high but I fell in love with them!


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## Alexander Belchenko (16 Nov 2016)

Never saw tetra tucano in flesh but on pictures they are lovely tiny fish. Afaik they are wild caught so that might explain high price.


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## CooKieS (16 Nov 2016)

Alexander Belchenko said:


> Never saw tetra tucano in flesh but on pictures they are lovely tiny fish. Afaik they are wild caught so that might explain high price.



Yes, I ask the seller and they're wild caught and rare, however he feed them with micro pellets and they're not picky eaters at all, that's an good thing

They were on my wishlist but I forgot them until I saw these live today...they're really awesome, really tiny (1,5-2cm max), blue eyed, black mat stripe and light red tail, lovely!

Thinking of buying 5 as dither fishes for my ember tetra.


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## CooKieS (17 Nov 2016)

Rare moss addition today;

Fissidens Bryoides


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## CooKieS (18 Nov 2016)

Cheers


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## CooKieS (25 Nov 2016)

Weekend update, SLOW growing.


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## dw1305 (25 Nov 2016)

Hi all,





CooKieS said:


> Fissidens Bryoides


Looks like you have <"_Plagiomnium affine"> _as well. I'm not sure either moss likes it too wet.

cheers Darrel


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## Manisha (27 Nov 2016)

I can see why you decided to settle on embers finally - their colouration is really vibrant & you've captured them really well - really top class photography!


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## CooKieS (1 Dec 2016)

Hi,

Rare fish addition; parotocinclus sp. 'peru' , hope it survives!


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## dw1305 (1 Dec 2016)

Hi all,





CooKieS said:


> parotocinclus sp. 'peru'


Now that is a <"very unusual fish">. 
I think it maybe the fish sold as _<"Parotocinclus_ sp. 3">.

Have a look at these threads on PlanetCatfish <"_Parotocinclus_ sp. (3)">, <_Parotocinclus_ sp. Nanay Eanea> & <"Feeding_ Nannoptoma_ sp. Peru">.

cheers Darrel


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## CooKieS (1 Dec 2016)

dw1305 said:


> Hi all,Now that is a <"very unusual fish">.
> I think it maybe the fish sold as _<"Parotocinclus_ sp. 3">.
> 
> Have a look at these threads on PlanetCatfish <"_Parotocinclus_ sp. (3)">, <_Parotocinclus_ sp. Nanay Eanea> & <"Feeding_ Nannoptoma_ sp. Peru">.
> ...



 You're the man, thank you!


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## CooKieS (6 Dec 2016)

Hi, small video update, feeding frenzy!


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## Greenfinger2 (7 Dec 2016)

Hi CooKieS, Stunning Scape love the fish too


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## BBogdan (8 Dec 2016)

I love this one , it looks so wild ! 
Good job so far .


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## CooKieS (9 Dec 2016)

Thanks guys, appreciate it.

However I'll need your help, my staurogyne repens aren't growing, why? CO2 is ok, lights 7h/day, dosing Npk daily since 2 weeks and micros 1x week...all the others plants are growing OK...any advice is welcome as I never had this plant before.


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## CooKieS (10 Dec 2016)

Hi there, started to dose micros + macros daily, added some light power and co2, we'll see if S.Repens grow better!

Last fish addition before overstocking this 60F, a trio of sparkling gouramis, very smart and interesting fishes. 











Cheers


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## jackychun218 (12 Dec 2016)

Staurogyne repens does not need lots of light as per my experience. If it is not melting, it might be adapting to the environment and will grow better soon. I also notice it is slow grown plant, so it takes up nutrients slower than the other plant. 

Cheers!


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## Manisha (14 Dec 2016)

CooKieS said:


> Hi there, started to dose micros + macros daily, added some light power and co2, we'll see if S.Repens grow better!
> 
> Last fish addition before overstocking this 60F, a trio of sparkling gouramis, very smart and interesting fishes.
> 
> ...



They are so cute!


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## CooKieS (26 Dec 2016)

Hi there and merry Xmas!





Lost my rare paratocinclus peru and one sparkling gourami jumped out of the tank.

I'm still struggling with the staurogyne repens...still no growth, tried to increase light and CO2 but hasn't done anything.
Now I'm dosing tropica premium (micros) and K (brighty K) daily...we'll see...

Other plants are OK, roots of the smallest carpet plant, elatine hydropiper, are Impressive:








Cheers!


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## dw1305 (28 Dec 2016)

Hi all,





CooKieS said:


> Lost my rare paratocinclus peru


Sorry to hear that, I think they are exceptionally difficult to keep initialy.





CooKieS said:


> and one sparkling gourami jumped out of the tank.


 They are quite feisty, when I had them I had to try and sex them, because the males fought otherwise, with the loser trying to escape, often out of the top of tank.

cheers Darrel


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## CooKieS (1 Jan 2017)

Again, thanks for the tip dw1305. 

Got some clado algae on my microsorum trident rhizome, how to get rid of it?
It's not bad looking and it' s growing slowly so I remove it manually when I do the water change...anyway, any advice is welcome!


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## tim (2 Jan 2017)

Looking great CooKies, you can spot dose the clado with diluted liquid carbon during water change along with manual removal this should see it off.


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## CooKieS (3 Jan 2017)

Thanks Tim;

3 months shot;





Cheers


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## CooKieS (6 Jan 2017)

Hi there,

Christmas gift for my 60F:

The new chihiros led RGB 60cm! 




Colors are awesome!

Cheers
Thierry


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## Alexander Belchenko (6 Jan 2017)

Wow! The red is ruby.


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## CooKieS (8 Jan 2017)

Alexander Belchenko said:


> Wow! The red is ruby.



Yes, can't believe that colors are so brillant with this new Chihiros RGB led, I will make a review with some more pics soon.


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## CooKieS (9 Jan 2017)

Severe déficiency on my s.repens 




Is that CO2 defficiency (slow to no growth, younger leaves are very small, older are yellow white)? 

Thanks


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## jackychun218 (10 Jan 2017)

Hi CooKieS,

Looks like your S.repens has a stunning growth. If you doubt about CO2 deficiency, you might bring the drop checker lower to the place that S.repens are there. CO2 should be well distributed to all the corners of the tank. If it is low, then bring up CO2 level gradually. Dose some Seachem Trace/Flourish if you have not done so, too. 

You might bring some S.repens in your tank and try to plant emersed, once it grow stronger, then harvest and put back to the tank. Propagate it with normal garden soil is fine, then cover the top with ClingWrap to keep the environment moist at all time. Spray water 1-2 times a day. And you can keep outdoor if has sunlight (no need to be direct sunlight). 

My S.repens in emersed form in the photo. 





Hope your S.repens can thrive back again! 


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## AnhBui (11 Jan 2017)

You might want to check lighting again. I think it needs more lights


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## dw1305 (11 Jan 2017)

Hi all, 





AnhBui said:


> You might want to check lighting again. I think it needs more lights


It might be light, but my suspicion is that it is magnesium (Mg) deficiency, mainly because I think you can see interveinal chlorosis on the new leaves.  

I'd try some "Epsom salts" (MgSO4.7H20), and if that doesn't help, maybe some KNO3. Magnesium, nitrogen (N) and potassium (K) are all mobile within the plant, so if any of them are deficient you should get a really quick greening response.

cheers Darrel


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## CooKieS (11 Jan 2017)

Thanks all,

I think dw1305 is right...

Light is 3000lumens for 18cm height tank, more than enough. Also my elatine hydropiper, which is a high light plant, is growing nicely.

I'm now diffusing CO2 24/24 but only 0,5bps, so my drop checker is always light green (was on 7/24 before, so blueish drop checker at the beginning of lightning period)

I've also upped my daily dosing regime, including 0,4ml of aquarebell eisen (iron+micros...mg,ça etc)

Let's see what happens! 

Sparkling gourami shot:


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## SeanOB (12 Jan 2017)

starting to fill in nicely Cookies! keep those great detailed pics coming


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## CooKieS (18 Jan 2017)

Thanks, yours looks nice too 

Added some micro bucephalandras today to add details;


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## CooKieS (22 Jan 2017)

Cheers


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## CooKieS (29 Jan 2017)

4 months update, still a lot of work to do in the background, I'll add some Hemianthus Micranthemoides in the back right of the tank to replace S.Repens.

Cheers


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## CooKieS (6 Feb 2017)

Hi there,

Added some Hemianthus Micranthemoides since 2 days, I'm already loving this plant.

In situ evening pic;





Cheers
Thierry


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## Shane Puthuparambil (6 Feb 2017)

Beautiful! What fish species is that?


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## CooKieS (6 Feb 2017)

Thanks 

Fishes are Ember Tetra (hyphessobrycon amandae)


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## Daveslaney (6 Feb 2017)

The sense of scale is amazing,if it wasnt for the filter pipes you would think it was a much larger tank.


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## CooKieS (6 Feb 2017)

Daveslaney said:


> The sense of scale is amazing,if it wasnt for the filter pipes you would think it was a much larger tank.



Thanks Dave, glad to hear that because it was one if my main goal for that shallow tank. 

Hand pic;


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## CooKieS (10 Feb 2017)

Hi there,

Added some Amano Shrimp to help cleaning moss and hardscape, they're young but already at work;





Regards,
Thierry


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## Doubu (12 Feb 2017)

I agree with the others - great sense of scale indeed O_O.


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## CooKieS (12 Feb 2017)

Thanks guys!

I like to do my weekly maintenance on sunday, and you? 

Here's some pics;


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## Daveslaney (12 Feb 2017)

Great photos.
Is that Pellia moss?
The plants seem to be doing well under the RGB light.


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## CooKieS (12 Feb 2017)

Thank you, moss on the rocks is riccardia chamedryfolia.

Rgb seems ok but I got some staghorn


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## BexHaystack (12 Feb 2017)

How are you finding the Sparkling Gouramis? How many do you have? I got 3 a week ago and they are very naughty ...chasing the Celestial Danios and I haven't seen many Cherry shrimp since I added them...

Very interesting to watch though!

Sent from my ONEPLUS A3003 using Tapatalk


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## dw1305 (12 Feb 2017)

Hi all, 





BexHaystack said:


> I haven't seen many Cherry shrimp since I added them..


They really like <"Cherry shrimps">. 

cheers Darrel


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## CooKieS (12 Feb 2017)

BexHaystack said:


> How are you finding the Sparkling Gouramis? How many do you have? I got 3 a week ago and they are very naughty ...chasing the Celestial Danios and I haven't seen many Cherry shrimp since I added them...
> 
> Very interesting to watch though!
> 
> Sent from my ONEPLUS A3003 using Tapatalk



They were 3, two of them were very agressiv and unfortunately one jumped out of the tank (maybe two males?)

Now that they're only two(male/female), no problem.

They are very peaceful with ember tetra and amano shrimps too...they are just eating some small snails...I hope they'll stay calm. As DW1305 said, they love to eat small coloured shrimps like red cherry.


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## zgmarkozg (13 Feb 2017)

great tank and photos. loved the ember tetra, I ordered 40 pcs for my tank.


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## CooKieS (18 Feb 2017)

Thanks!

My riccardia is getting Brown, is it burned by ferts?

I've upped NPK daily dosing to avoid staghorn and since that my riccardia is getting Brown...I'm not using liquid carbon since 3 weeks.

Here's a picit's getting worse)






Thanks, cheers


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## dw1305 (19 Feb 2017)

Hi all,





CooKieS said:


> My riccardia is getting Brown, is it burned by ferts?


That looks like fertiliser burn, do you dose dry salts?

cheers Darrel


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## CooKieS (19 Feb 2017)

dw1305 said:


> Hi all,That looks like fertiliser burn, do you dose dry salts?
> 
> cheers Darrel



Hi Darrel, I dose aquarebell liquid fertiliser this way;

3ml aquarebell estimative index / day
0,5 ml aquarebell eisen / day
50% waterchange with tap water per week.

Since this problem I'm now trying this;

2ml aquarebell estimative index/ day.
4ml aquarebell eisen after weekly waterchange.

Hope I'll found balance between good growth and not burning mini pellia! Any advice is welcome.


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## CooKieS (23 Feb 2017)

Corner view...

Sorry for the dirty glass!


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## Michal550 (24 Feb 2017)

Looks great! How is the plant growth with the new lights?


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## CooKieS (24 Feb 2017)

Michal550 said:


> Looks great! How is the plant growth with the new lights?



Thank you, It's growing fine, some green hair algae because lightning intensity is very high for this shallow tank, I now use the dimmer. RGB colors rendition is awesome!

Here's an quick video from this evening ...feeding time 



Cheers,
Thierry


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## MatusG (25 Feb 2017)

Really nice tank buddy  can you share some more videos with the light? I have also ember tetras and thinking to buy this rgb just to make them pop out in the tank. Thx and good luck with the tank.


Odoslané z môjho iPad cez Tapatalk


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## CooKieS (28 Feb 2017)

MatusG said:


> Really nice tank buddy  can you share some more videos with the light? I have also ember tetras and thinking to buy this rgb just to make them pop out in the tank. Thx and good luck with the tank.
> 
> 
> Odoslané z môjho iPad cez Tapatalk



Thanks, sure, here is another video from today, enjoy;



RGB led really enhance plants and fishes Colors.


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## MatusG (28 Feb 2017)

Thank you  really nice. Are your ember tetras also crazy shy? 


Odoslané z môjho iPad cez Tapatalk


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## CooKieS (1 Mar 2017)

MatusG said:


> Thank you  really nice. Are your ember tetras also crazy shy?
> 
> 
> Odoslané z môjho iPad cez Tapatalk



You're welcome.

Yes they're shy, but give them some places to hide and a lot of friends (even other small species dither fish, like boraras, danios or kubotai), and they'll become braver and braver.


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## Robert H. Tavera (4 Mar 2017)

I really like the proportions of this tank! It's tiny but looks huge. Well done. Lovely fish too! 


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## CooKieS (18 Mar 2017)

Thanks guys!

Maintenance Time:











I'm getting some hair/thread algae on my mosses, what is best, dimm the light? Or raise it up?

I've already increased my CO2 

Thanks!
Cheers
Thierry


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## CooKieS (26 Mar 2017)

Hi there,

New friends, neocaridina davidi 'blue dream'











Regards,
Thierry


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## Bolota (27 Mar 2017)

is that color real or did you overdose something weird


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## CooKieS (27 Mar 2017)

Bolota said:


> is that color real or did you overdose something weird



Haha, I'm dosing blue curaçao liquor every two days...


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## CooKieS (27 Mar 2017)

BTW, tank is slowly getting ready for IAPLC;






Cheers


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## CooKieS (2 Apr 2017)

6 months evolution!





Cheers


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## CooKieS (16 Apr 2017)

Hi,

Bad news; hair algae invasion!

I'm trying a 3 days black-out for the first time, Wish me good luck. 














Cheers
Thierry


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## xperiavt (17 Apr 2017)

CooKieS said:


> BTW, tank is slowly getting ready for IAPLC;
> 
> 
> 
> ...


bro, what led you use for plant ?
i like Dutch style , can give me some advice about lighting ?


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## CooKieS (17 Apr 2017)

xperiavt said:


> bro, what led you use for plant ?
> i like Dutch style , can give me some advice about lighting ?



I use chihiros series led, they are all great value for the money (A series, rgb...) and come with an useful dimmer.

Advice?  Powerful  lightning= more CO2 and ferts ...dutch style


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## xperiavt (17 Apr 2017)

Thanks for reply.
You use A series or RGB series ? and it have useful ? 
My tank : 60 x 35 x 35cm, ADA soil, have CO2 and i use Odyssea lighting, 1 piece with 2 x 24w T5HO
Tank have more tree with red color.
But seem not good, trees isn't beautiful 
I dont know what is problems, my tank is new, 15days old.
I have plant, or buy more Odyssea or switch to use led light.
But not have experience here


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## CooKieS (22 Apr 2017)

Hi, you should open a new thread so we can help!

Otherwise, black-out worked Great!


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## Shinobi (22 Apr 2017)

Hey Cookies.

Tank is looking stellar!
Can only imagine how much of a challenge an "F" tank must be regarding having the light source so close to the vegetation, whilst still preventing algae. Have been struggling with close-to-surface Fissidens myself.
Really love how the layout create a sense of scale and the contrast in colors are so well balanced. Jelous to say the least


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## CooKieS (27 Apr 2017)

Thanks man! 

These shallow tank are quite hard to balance, as you said, but it´s worth the pain...I learned a lot from this one, as it is only my second aquascape.

Next one will be a 60P or 60H!


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## CooKieS (9 May 2017)

Who's in?


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## Dominik_K (9 May 2017)

Hi,

i don't know if I should love or hate you for this great piece of inspiration  You simply threw over my current plans with this awesome layout. I like everything about it and have to think about my further plans again  Greak work of yours!

How did your ember tetras develop that great color? Mine are the most awesome ones i ever saw life, but compared to yours, they are just transparent.


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## CooKieS (13 May 2017)

Photo finish; done. 

Rescape to come soon.


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## Doubu (14 May 2017)

Looking forward to seeing the final photo!


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## CooKieS (14 May 2017)

Dominik_K said:


> Hi,
> 
> i don't know if I should love or hate you for this great piece of inspiration  You simply threw over my current plans with this awesome layout. I like everything about it and have to think about my further plans again  Greak work of yours!
> 
> How did your ember tetras develop that great color? Mine are the most awesome ones i ever saw life, but compared to yours, they are just transparent.




Well thank you, shallow tanks are cool to scape and maintain but hard to balance, can't wait to see yours 

My ember tetras were already this red when I bought them in my LFS 2 years ago...I fed them with jbl nanobel, nothing special.

You have to pick the best coloured one directly at your lfs because they won't get more colored in your tank as other fishes do.


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## Dominik_K (15 May 2017)

CooKieS said:


> Well thank you, shallow tanks are cool to scape and maintain but hard to balance, can't wait to see yours



You missunderstood me there. I will do an 80 x 40 x 40 tank soon, not a really shallow one. But the concept of your tank is a bit different from anything else in that category I have seen so far and this leads to a lot of inspiration for me 

My LFS sadly did not have really red ones, but I had quiet some success giving them a bit of their color. Feeding them with daphnia and some color food once a week seems to help a bit.


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## CooKieS (15 May 2017)

Ahhh ok (Forget my english, I'm french ), awesome dimensions too, maybe my next one will be an ada 60H (60X40x40) or even 80x40x40...not too big, not too small, great depth..lot of possibilities. 

Thanks for your comment, if my tank can give others some inspiration, I'm honored

My LFS was feeding them with daphnia too, I bet it helped


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## CooKieS (22 May 2017)

Doubu said:


> Looking forward to seeing the final photo!



Teasing...





Microsorum sp trident is going crazy...3 months évolution:





And finally, my inspiration for the next scape in this 60F;





Regards,
Thierry


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## CooKieS (29 May 2017)

Hi,

Well, I decided to keep this one running till I move into my new house this Winter...here's some pics;















Treated hair thread algae with twinstar/big filter cleaning/algexit, good résults. (Black out worked but just for one week)

Cheers


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## LocustDemon (29 May 2017)

CooKieS said:


> Hi,
> 
> Well, I decided to keep this one running till I move into my new house this Winter...here's some pics;
> 
> ...


Looking great! So do the twinstars actually work then or just a gimmick? 
Matt. 

Sent from my SM-G935F using Tapatalk


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## CooKieS (1 Jun 2017)

LocustDemon said:


> Looking great! So do the twinstars actually work then or just a gimmick?
> Matt.
> 
> Sent from my SM-G935F using Tapatalk



Well, IMO, twinstar help for starting tanks with low plant mass (like iwagumi style tank), but doesn't help much once established.

In my tank, filter cleaning and regular WC helped and algexit worked nicely (no more thread algae in 3 weeks).


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## Nigel95 (2 Jun 2017)

Great tank man. Talent!


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## CooKieS (4 Jun 2017)

Thanks man!

Evening pics, this tank seems finally balanced.


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## CooKieS (9 Jun 2017)

Well, still need some practice, but I already love my new macro Lens 

Cheers


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## Daveslaney (9 Jun 2017)

Great tank.
Great photos.


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## Shinobi (9 Jun 2017)

Stunning! Livestock really compliments the layout and coloration


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## CooKieS (2 Jul 2017)

Thanks man 

Feeding frenzy;














And June Update;


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## doylecolmdoyle (2 Jul 2017)

Looks good, what are the embers feeding on?


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## CooKieS (2 Jul 2017)

Thanks, they're feeding on JBL novofect!

Originally bought this food for my otocinclus, but all my fishes and shrimps seems to love it, even the picky ones (like those ember tetra or my ex boraras...)


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## CooKieS (9 Aug 2017)

This is a joke...enough said, this was my last aquascape, next one will be a nano reef.


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## Shinobi (9 Aug 2017)

CooKieS said:


> This is a joke...enough said, this was my last aquascape, next one will be a nano reef.




I take it you are not satisfied with the results?
Too bad - the scape is VERY nice but the competition is insane, I hope you will continue and use it as a motivation for next years IAPLC.
Personally seing some of your competitors even around the 800's - I would be proud if that ranking and scape


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## Nigel95 (9 Aug 2017)

Nice macro lens and beautifull end photo!

Never give up.. you will learn every scape!


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## rebel (9 Aug 2017)

Congrats. Love that scape. Don't take the rank personally. I think the computer probably randomly chooses the ranks after 100.


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## doylecolmdoyle (10 Aug 2017)

Agree with the above comments, dont worry about the rank just be happy with your own scape, its great! Seems all high ranking tanks where much the same style, tones of vine style wood crammed with as many plants as possible.

Question why does the photo display two scapes "Rock N Roll" and "Go with the Flow" both the same rank? or is the rock n roll tank from another year? Both your tanks? Both with the same rank, whats the odds!


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## Alexander Belchenko (10 Aug 2017)

I like your work, I think it's really good result.


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## CooKieS (10 Aug 2017)

Here's the Odd thing (as doyle said): exact same rank last year (rock´n roll was the title of my iwagumi) and this year...computer judges?

Well, I get bored of planted tank and contest anyway so...end of the game, thanks for your kind words, support and help guys, this forum is awesome (Wish  there were one as good in France)!

Cheers


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## Alexander Belchenko (10 Aug 2017)

Just coincidence IMO. Anyway, good luck in new area!


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## ir0nma1den (10 Aug 2017)

Great tank man, How do you like the Chihiros light? Is the color rendition good?


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## CooKieS (11 Aug 2017)

ir0nma1den said:


> Great tank man, How do you like the Chihiros light? Is the color rendition good?



Well, Couldn't complain for the price...about 60$ on eBay china, good stuff


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## Dominik_K (11 Aug 2017)

I really like your tank. Maybe you can give us a quick update about your reef tanks once in a while? It's an area I am interessted a bit and I would love to see your experiences on that one =)


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## Konrad Michalski (11 Aug 2017)

IAPLC is a joke so you either accept what they do or don't take a part in the competition. To be classified higher you need certain name, come from certain country and be lucky like in the lottery. I have already seen a few tanks classified higher and some of them were of really poor quality. I also followed the previous years entries and sometimes you just can't describe why this or that work was classified so high. Unfortunately we can't argue with the judges and they will always do what they want. 


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## CooKieS (18 Aug 2017)

End pic of this tank and end of this expensive/time consuming/frustrating hobby...for now. 








Cheers


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## Nigel95 (18 Aug 2017)

CooKieS said:


> End pic of this tank and end of this expensive/time consuming/frustrating hobby...for now.
> 
> 
> 
> ...


 


Hope to see you back one day.


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