# Transitioning Phase... (Unknown Weeks) Transitioning into a Journal



## Tankless (2 Feb 2020)

I managed to get myself a second hand Aquascaper 600 for a reasonable price. I'll need to shut down my current tank to replace it with the new tank. How do people usually transition the livestock? Can I leave them a plastic food container until the new tank cycles. I've got a spare eheim eco Pro external filter which I've started running to help speed up the cycling process when starting up the new tank.

The next few questions are related to the setup:

Lighting: Twinstar 600 SA is what I'm going to purchase (currently have chihiros A601 which will be used until I purchase the twinstar). Are there any alternatives that I should consider within the £250 price range like the Ada Aquasky 601?

Substrate: I am thinking of using Amazonia Light and Amazonia Light Powder. Has anyone use it before? It will transition with Ada la plata sand and the Ada gravel.

Filter: Ehiem Eco Pro 2032 which I will need to upgrade to something that has a higher flow output. Any recommendations?


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## howanic (2 Feb 2020)

If you can transfer the filter media from your old tank to your new filter, you won’t need to wait and could transfer your fish immediately. 

But if you want time to rescape and adjust things without fish, they’ll be fine in a bucket or plastic storage box with your filter and heater attached.


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## Simon Cole (2 Feb 2020)

I put my fish in a separate tank and wait two months. Never food containers or buckets. Never transitioned immediately. 
Keep posting about filter requirements. I am sure that somebody else will have this tank and can give you good advice - you can get some powerful currents in a 600. I could easily overspec.


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## Tankless (2 Feb 2020)

I have existing media, that I can transfer into the filter if needed. 

I couldn't find much information about the amazonia light through the forums. I will probably try Tropica Powder instead.


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## Simon Cole (3 Feb 2020)

Have you seen this page from the ADA website.


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## Tankless (3 Feb 2020)

Yes, I've had a look. I rang AG, after my conversation with Dave I decided to purchase Tropica Soil Powder and Ada Colorado Sand to contrast with the Dragon Stone that I have.

What's the best way to remove shrimp from the tank?


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## Sammy Islam (3 Feb 2020)

I would say the best way to get most of them would be to put a bottle or a net in there with a bit of shrimp food and wait an hour or however long it takes until a decent amount is in there then take them out and repeat. Then you got to break down the scape and remove everything to get the ones left over.


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## Tankless (3 Feb 2020)

I'll try that with the spare tropica pots I have in multiple areas. I've decided on the Oase Biomaster 250 or 350. Is the 350 worth the extra £30?


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## Simon Cole (4 Feb 2020)

Never tried either.
I tend to look for a filter of about 8 litres media capacity for a 100 litre tank, with adjustable flow control.
For £200 I would just buy an in line external heater (£30 ebay) and two Jebao 404s (£50 each) with two sets of lily pipes (£25 each). Would give 16 litres filter media and about 2400lph turnover.
That would still leave £20 to be spent down the pub
And you would still have one filter running in case the other failed. 
Even one AquaManta EFX 400 with flow controllers, lily pipes and an external heater would give me 8 litres capacity and a cracking weekend down the pub.
And even if I didn't go down the pub, I'm not sure that I would want one. But still worth asking other members.


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## howanic (4 Feb 2020)

Not sure if this will help you, but I have the Oase 350 on my Aquascaper 600 and wish I'd brought the 600. The 350 isn't bad though and I haven't switched the prefilter foam for the course one yet, so it should do the job comfortably. I can't say anything bad about it, the 350 is adequate, but just wish I'd paid a bit extra and had that bit more.


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## Wookii (4 Feb 2020)

Tankless said:


> Yes, I've had a look. I rang AG, after my conversation with Dave I decided to purchase Tropica Soil Powder and Ada Colorado Sand to contrast with the Dragon Stone that I have.
> 
> What's the best way to remove shrimp from the tank?



Bear in mind that new Tropica Soil Powder leaches a lot of ammonia in the first couple of weeks, so make sure you're measuring zeros for ammonia and nitrite in your new tank before you add your fish and shrimp back in.


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## Jayefc1 (4 Feb 2020)

Hi @Tankless it is my belief that the tropica soil will not leach ammonia any where near as much as the Ada soil so you should be fine to put the fish back in to a mature filter media tank with tropica soil it may not be ideal but should be fine (I've done it a couple of times) 

As for filter the 350 is well worth the extra £30 I have both oase 250 and 350 both really nice filters and perfect for the tank sizes 250 45p 350 60p if you do go for the oase remove all the foam apart from the bottom course one add 2 baskets of media (not the oase plastic rubbish) top basket with filter floss to polish works a treat l also have the cardon pre filter foams helps cause there course and again polishes the water 

As for the twinstar it is the best in its price range IMO the sa is more powerful than the ea so I'd always go for the sa a consideration is to go with the one with expandable legs because you can alway hang the light from the celing on a suspension kit very easy to be and not expensive but looks brilliant 

Cheers
J


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## Siege (4 Feb 2020)

Agree with Jay on the filter, the 250 won’t do the job on the 600 tank. The 350 is fine but the 600 is even better. 

Added bonus on the 600 is that you won’t have to change the prefilter sponges. With the 350 you would want to change to the course orange ones in time.

I prefer the standard S over the adjustable one wherever possible. There is a danger the A will wick water down the brackets if you are not careful. But yes the A model has the benefit that you can mod it to a hanging light.


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## Tankless (4 Feb 2020)

That gives me food for thought. I won't purchase the biomaster until the end of the month. 

With regards to the Twinstar standard fixing, can the fixings be removed at a later date to make them adjustable? I will place my order for the Twinstar from AG tomorrow.


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## Jayefc1 (4 Feb 2020)

No as the wire goes through the metal leg frame I belive 

J


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## Tankless (5 Feb 2020)

What's the height of the standard twinstar when it sits on the glass? Is it easy to conduct maintenance whilst it is fixed to the tank? 

Also, how noisy is the biomaster as an external filter? The tank is located in my bedroom.


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## howanic (6 Feb 2020)

I have the Twinstar E that I'm guessing is roughly the same sort of size and haven't had a problem with maintenance. I do sometimes slide it back out of the way a bit, but the 600 is so deep, it's not been a problem. Hopefully there'll be someone on here that has the A or S though that could help you out more on this. 

I was surprised at how quiet the biomaster is. Mine is the 350 and just has a very low hum. I'm sure if I stood it on some carpet or a mat though, it would be near enough inaudible with the cupboard door closed.


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## Jayefc1 (6 Feb 2020)

I have the 600s I do the same as @howanic and slide it back on my 60p and dont have any issues doing maintenance and also have the 600 ea but its hung si befo bo issue there again I agree with @howanic mine are pretty quiet in the cupboard 

Cheers 
J


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## Onoma1 (6 Feb 2020)

I would go for an Aquael Ultramax. Silent and powerful with a pre filter at a decent price. You can pack media in and still have a fantastic flow. Buy from a LFS not online and you will be fine for technical support. I tried a Oaise filter and despite the hype its performance was awful.


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## Tankless (6 Feb 2020)

Onoma1 said:


> I would go for an Aquael Ultramax. Silent and powerful with a pre filter at a decent price. You can pack media in and still have a fantastic flow. Buy from a LFS not online and you will be fine for technical support. I tried a Oaise filter and despite the hype its performance was awful.



Does the ultramax incorporate the heater like oase biomaster?


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## Onoma1 (6 Feb 2020)

Tankless said:


> Does the ultramax incorporate the heater like oase biomaster?



Nope, I have gone for a external hydor - which has worked well so far. The trade off of a silent powerful filter seemed worth it.

TBH I really don't know what the hype is about Oase Biomaster or why it seems to be seen as the 'gold standard'.

I think there is a spreadsheet that was shared on the forum about the different filters and their capabilities which may be helpful. I will take a look later, however, if anyone reading this has it to hand....


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## Tankless (6 Feb 2020)

Onoma1 said:


> Nope, I have gone for a external hydor - which has worked well so far. The trade off of a silent powerful filter seemed worth it.
> 
> TBH I really don't know what the hype is about Oase Biomaster or why it seems to be seen as the 'gold standard'.
> 
> I think there is a spreadsheet that was shared on the forum about the different filters and their capabilities which may be helpful. I will take a look later, however, if anyone reading this has it to hand....



For the aquascaper 600, would you recommend the ultramax 1000 or 1500?


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## Siege (6 Feb 2020)

The Aquael filter that broke straight a way upon delivery.

just putting it out there.........!


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## Onoma1 (6 Feb 2020)

Siege said:


> The Aquael filter that broke straight a way upon delivery.
> 
> just putting it out there.........!



Mine broke after just under a year. Replaced by Aquael free of charge...sent by courier. Bit of a faff sorting it because it originally came from a Polish online site - hence my comment about buying from your LFS. The second from Charterhouse is running fine.

I couldn't find the spreadsheet on comparative performance but this thread sums up some if the pros and cons:
https://www.ukaps.org/forum/threads/filter-for-120p-poll.56778/#post-553097

 One of the nice things about them is that you can reduce the flow. I would go for a larger capacity filter and just reduce the flow to a comfortable level.


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## Simon Cole (6 Feb 2020)

Onoma1 said:


> larger capacity filter and just reduce the flow to a comfortable level.



That is exactly what I feel you need too. Maximum capacity and adjustable flow. @Onoma1 has given some really good advice.
Specs for the Ultramax 1500 are:
Container capacity [L] 1.9
number of containers [pcs] 4
So basically you get 7.6 litres, although the bucket is stated a bit larger (13.5lt), it includes powerhead and voids.
It's a bit smaller than the Jebao 404 but looks very tempting.


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## Tankless (6 Feb 2020)

Thank you, I'll have a look through that forum link. The ultramax does look good. Are there any heaters which are good and transparent that can be used within the tank? I'm not sure if I'd go for an inline heater. The reviews aren't great for most of them.


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## Simon Cole (6 Feb 2020)

Can you get to 22 degrees without a heater?


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## Tankless (6 Feb 2020)

I'll check tonight as it's supposed to be - 1°C tonight in London. We don't usually get nights colder than that. I'll report back in the morning.


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## Tankless (7 Feb 2020)

Without a heater, the water temperature is 12°c. Any recommendations?


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## Iain Sutherland (7 Feb 2020)

Choose a filter based on reliability, flow volume and noise not filter media capacity.   Most planted tanks are quite happy running with over half empty trays...  recommendations for anything that are based on how quickly they fix a problem says a lot about the quality of the product in the first place.

Oase is a good choice including a heater.
JBL cristalprofi are bullet proof and almost silent.
External heaters are 50/50... I've had several hydors, most have lasted over 5 years without issue... however many people come home and find cooked tanks.  Definitely dont buy anything but hydor externals, the reliability is even worse.


Sent from my SM-G950F using Tapatalk


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## Jayefc1 (7 Feb 2020)

Personally iwouldgofor the oase I have a JBL too I find the in line heater a PITA when it comes to learning it and with tubing


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## Sammy Islam (7 Feb 2020)

I have an oase biomaster 600 and recommend it highly. It's pretty much silent, obviously theres a slight hum but thats to be expected. It's a lot quieter than my fluval 306 without any weird noises. My tank sits in my office so i'm always next to it, and so far it's been running perfectly, i'm really happy with it. The flow is strong using a lily pipe. 

I'm using the course prefilter sponges and have also drilled extra holes in the prefilter pipe. I have a blue sponge in the bottom tray and then an empty tray going to be used for old media to help seed the filter, then the next two trays are 1/2 - 3/4 full of seachem matrix, next tray is purigen and carbon and the top tray is the orange fine filter foam pad. I've been cleaning the prefilter weekly, literally takes 3 mins which is amazing! The build quality is also very good, it feels solid, the handle is heavy duty and the filter is actually very heavy when filled up.


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## Jayefc1 (7 Feb 2020)

How to set up your filter


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## Iain Sutherland (7 Feb 2020)

Jayefc1 said:


> Personally iwouldgofor the oase I have a JBL too I find the in line heater a PITA when it comes to learning it and with tubing


What...Clean it??   reckon that the reason they cook tanks...!

Sent from my SM-G950F using Tapatalk


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## Jayefc1 (7 Feb 2020)

Haha agreed


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## Tankless (7 Feb 2020)

The Oase Biomaster 600/350 (depending on budget) goes back to the top of the list. My Twinstar 600SA arrived today. I will set it up tonight. The manzanita piece arrive with a gift. Any chance that I can get this to grow? It looks very dry.


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## Siege (7 Feb 2020)

It is a dried terrestrial type moss so will just go brown and drop off under water I’m afraid!


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## Tankless (7 Feb 2020)

Has anyone had the problem of the Twinstar 600SA not fitting onto the aquascaper 600. It seems a little too large. The clips are very tight and has marked the top edge of the glass as it tried to get it to fit. .


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## Tankless (7 Feb 2020)

I've added pictures for reference.


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## howanic (7 Feb 2020)

Try to remove as much of that little ‘gift’ on your manzanita as you can before you add it to your tank. As siege said it goes brown and falls off. I didn’t remove it from mine, and it turned really sludgy and is a bit of a pita to get out without it breaking up and getting everywhere.


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## Tankless (7 Feb 2020)

I'll remove it tomorrow. I tried getting tightening the parts of the Twinstar but I couldn't get both the brackets to sit flush at the same. This then led to the poor decision of not adding weights to the manzanita whilst flooding the tank. The wood came apart and the plants went flying


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## Jayefc1 (7 Feb 2020)

Oh mate I feel your pain it's happened to us all the floating wood 
The twin star should just sit on your 600 dont see why it wouldn't there is some give in the legs isnt there


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## Simon Cole (8 Feb 2020)

Bad luck. The importance of filter capacity is easy to overlook.

Bacteria in the filter are deriving their energy from simple sugars, complex hydrocarbons, saccharides, lipids, org-acids etc. When you trim plants and when they decay these molecules enter the water and have to be fully consumed by the filter. It's a bit like when you cut a plant and bubbles come out for the next few days. Well a cocktail of different compounds including many plant growth hormones are released into the water and become available to algae. And here is the big difference.
Whereas we know that the nitrogen cycle is controlled by smaller filters - this is also a bit like saying transforming the species of nitrogen is enough to stop algae. Algae will use any form of nitrogen and this is why it occurs in tanks without ammonia. Check out what Tom Barr thinks on this subject. His view is that it is all about balance. Perhaps. But the most important thing to bacteria and algae will always be sugar (carbon) availability. They are in direct competition.

The reason people use bigger filter capacity is to remove the more complex hydrocarbon load. You still need to get rid of ammonia - but this is not the point of a bigger filter. You need to knock out plant growth hormones and all that carbon-rich food that algae love, and this will not happen without enough bacteria. In fact there are many highly desirable filter bacteria (other than nitrifying bacteria) that take quite a while to digest certain hydrocarbons.

The reason the industry pushes nitrogen treatment as the primary role of filtration is historic. Modern scientists look at biochemical interactions holistically and not in isolation. In wastewater treatment, the emphasis therefore is on lowering COD and you often find large filter beds because it is not as simple as just removing ammonia. This is the way people should now be thinking. All companies find it cheaper to sell something small. I cannot think of anything more boring than doing my phD on filtration and algae, but eventually somebody else will, and we will see a revolution in thinking as big as when EI first came out. Just think about how much things have changed in the last 20 years.

Filter capacity = essential.  Flow control = essential.


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## Iain Sutherland (8 Feb 2020)

I'm no scientist and all the above may be true, however i feel it misses an important point.... that being over whelming evidence from planted tanks the world over that filter media capacity isn't particularly defining in a tanks success.

Id hazard a guess that if the above was true it is offset with the large water changes planted tanks undergo...? 

If filter capacity was important then surely tanks like the one below i plagerised from AG who's only filter is and eheim skim which is a 2cm piece of sponge should fail ??
https://www.instagram.com/p/B8J0pM9AfBO/?igshid=1axbd7xo1y44f




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## Tim Harrison (8 Feb 2020)

The main reason for a large filter in a planted tank is flow output, 10 x tank capacity per hour is the standard. Planted tanks don't really require a lot of filtration like a traditional fish only tank, cause the plants do much of it themselves. Plants are key to water quality for other reasons as well...

Macrophytes can change the physicochemical environment of sediments through ROL (Radial Oxygen Loss) and the secretion of organic chemicals which in turn will increase the abundance and diversity of microbial communities and the removal of N.

Whilst sediment microbial communities are important for the removal of N, the interaction between plant communities and microbial assemblages in the form of biofilms on roots, leaves and stems also plays a crucial role in N removal and therefore water quality.


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## zozo (8 Feb 2020)

Tankless said:


> Any chance that I can get this to grow? It looks very dry.



It looks more like a type of <Lichen>.  And that ain't really a moss, but a symbiosis of Fungus, algae and bacteria. There is a sp. we all know as Reindeer Moss. It used to classify as a moss genus in English it is Lichen but in my native language, all of it is still called Crusted Moss. But it isn't moss. 

Some do grow aquatic, so you never know. It might change in grow form if it does. I once found a very nice looking one in a very wet place and to me, it also looked like an interesting nice looking leave moss, but posting pictures of it for ID at a local bryophyte forum it was identified as a lichen growing in a wet place. But there was no definitive ID given on th sp.


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## Tankless (8 Feb 2020)

I contacted AG with regards to the Twinstar who will send on my images to the manufacturer. Hopefully it's just the wrong set of brackets. After 48 hours, the Tropica Powder soil (I used around 11 to 12 litres) leached 0.5 mg/l of Ammonia. The tank is not connected to my filter which is with the fish in the box.

The lichen is somewhere in the tank, I think it fell off whilst I had to fix the wood from yesterday's disaster. I've held it down with my biological filter bags. The fine tuning will be done in a months time to after the manzanita had sunk. Flooding attempt two to begin shortly.


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## Iain Sutherland (8 Feb 2020)

Manzy sinks pretty quick so you shouldn't have to wait long.. 

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## Tankless (8 Feb 2020)

I had one piece of spiderwood within the tank which was used within the previous tank. Found a bit of old bba on it. So I took it out to boil it. Parts of the had also gone quite soft. This is how the tank currently looks with just the gnarled manzanita. Note: There is no filter at the moment hence the cloudy water.


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## Tankless (8 Feb 2020)

Tank occupants are back in. It took an hour a half to catch them all. I will add in some rainbow babaulti and tiger shrimp to join the current population. 

I've decided on the Oase Biomaster 600. On this forum, most people use glass/acrylic lily pipes. I've also seen steel pipes with a skimmer. Which works best and why?


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## Tankless (9 Feb 2020)

What equipment does everyone use for general maintenance? I used to use a blade to clean the glass. I've seen a few videos on YouTube of the Dennerle cleanator being used during maintenance. There's also a green pipe which transfers the water back from the bucket to the tank. Does anyone what that is? I currently use the bucket and jug method which isn't efficient.


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## dw1305 (9 Feb 2020)

Hi all, 





Tankless said:


> I currently use the bucket and jug method which isn't efficient.


I just syphon the water out through a bit of 12/16 tubing. Years ago I bought one of those syphons, with a  bulb you pump to get the water flowing, but they always break and it just so much easier to just have a quick suck on the tubing to get the water flowing. If you have a reasonably long length of tubing you are unlikely to drink much tank water.  

cheers Darrel


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## Jayefc1 (9 Feb 2020)

Buy a cheap pond pump
Do as @dw1305 does  to a bucket the get a garden hose on the pond pump and pump  to sink of garden
Fill put buck  in sink tun water with pond pump and hose pump straight back to tank using a sieve to disperse water gently


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## Tankless (9 Feb 2020)

Could I use my current Eheim ecco pro in the same way as the pond pump? The filter will be a spare after I've bought the new filter at the end of the month.

It turns out the Twinstar was a bad batch. I will be getting it replaced with the standard within the week. I'll keep the photoperiod for 4 hours to reduce the algae risk.


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## dw1305 (10 Feb 2020)

Hi all, 





Tankless said:


> I'll keep the photoperiod for 4 hours to reduce the algae risk.


I think four hours is too short a photoperiod, I wouldn't go under six hours, and I would prefer at least eight.

One issue with a really short period is that you would have twenty hours when the plants weren't producing any oxygen. In terms of nitrification you can never have too much oxygen, and I would have real worries until the plants are growing more strongly.

Can I ask how long have you had your Bristlenose for? Is he a new acquisition?

cheers Darrel


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## Tankless (10 Feb 2020)

Alright, I will increase the photoperiod to 5 hours. That's what I initially had when transitioning. I do not have a dimmer for the Twinstar. When the new one is sent over to me, I would have to run it at 100% intensity until the dimmer arrives. 

I've had the bristlenose for less than a month. Looks quite thin in the image.


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## dw1305 (10 Feb 2020)

Hi all,





Tankless said:


> Looks quite thin in the image.


That would be my thought. You could try feeding them sweet potato etc.

cheers Darrel


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## Tankless (10 Feb 2020)

How long would I leave the sweet potato in the tank for?


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## dw1305 (10 Feb 2020)

Hi all, 





Tankless said:


> How long would I leave the sweet potato in the tank for?


Just cut a slice, put it in the tank in the evening (you can stick a stainless steel teaspoon/fork/skewer/screw etc into it), and hopefully by the next morning your _Ancistrus_ will have found it. 

Sweet potato is really good for fattening fish up, but pretty much any vegetable will do. 

Have a look at <"PC: Feeding Plecos, part 1.....">. 

cheers Darrel


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## Tankless (11 Feb 2020)

I have decided to purchase the Aquael Ultramax due to its quietness. I'm interested in the 1000 and the 1500 litres per hour turnover. I couldn't find what the minimum flow is on the Ultramax 1500 just in case the max is too powerful for my tank. Does anyone have a rough idea of what the range of filtration speed is usually on filters?

I will try the vegetables from this weekend. I'll use a fork to weigh it down.


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## Tankless (12 Feb 2020)

I've ordered the ultramax 1500, I will operate it at its lowest setting if it is too powerful. I've uploaded three types out of inlet and outlet pipes. The first being made of acrylic, second is made of glass and the third is stainless steel with a surface skimmer. Any advice on which type to go for? Are there any other types that you would recommend?


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## Onoma1 (13 Feb 2020)

I found that with a higher flow pump the surface skimmer bobs up and down and doesn't settle. Others have got this to work, however, I gave up!

Equally, if you want to have a colony of shrimp you will need a shrimp guard or use a coarse foam over the intake.

I have gone for a separate Ehime skimmer and used the 'shepherd's crook' plastic pipe that comes with the pump with a shrimp guard. It probably works out at a similar price to a glass intake.

Btw I noticed you are looking for shrimp. I can highly recommend @Steve Buce. The shrimp he sells are superb.


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## Simon Cole (13 Feb 2020)

I use these glass ones from ebay. They usually ship from china and cost about £8 including postage. Excellent quality and very durable. I find the larger diameter intake helps flow rates and never blocks.


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## Tankless (13 Feb 2020)

Do the shrimp get pulled from lily pipe skimmer intake or the pipe intake? The inlet for the steel pipes are like the image below.


 

I currently have cherry shrimp but I need to add more as the same colony has been interbreeding for nearly 2 and a half years. I've ordered 10 Green Babaulti Shrimp which will be arriving tomorrow.

Simon, do you have the same shrimp issue as mentioned Onoma1 with the inlet pipe that you have?


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## Simon Cole (13 Feb 2020)

I've just checked my glass lily pipes and the gaps are equal for both the bulbous type and the regular. I don't have the steel ones. I don't check for baby shrimp in the filter because there are so many. But I never see them around the inlet. I think they prefer to stay lower in the tank.


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## Tankless (13 Feb 2020)

I've ordered the steel set with adjustable inlet and outlet position. I feel that whilst the glass would look better, I would find it difficult to maintain and could potentially break it. Acrylic would be ideal however there was only one set available on Ebay.


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## Tankless (13 Feb 2020)

My filter arrived. Its nearly double the size of the eheim. It's also much quiter, I couldn't tell that it was on. The supplied accessories aren't the best but will be useable until the steel pipes arrive. It was supplied with a silver packet (I assumed it would the bacteria stuff) which I pressed and white stuff came out. I have no idea what it was but I don't think it was supposed to go in the sponges. The 16/22mm pipes keep moving the filter outlet accessories position. They are very rigid, what's the best way to keep them in position?

Image of the filter for size reference:


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## Onoma1 (13 Feb 2020)

I made the same mistake with the silver packet!


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## Tankless (13 Feb 2020)

Onoma1 said:


> I made the same mistake with the silver packet!



Did you find out what it was? Felt very similar to petroleum jelly.


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## Onoma1 (13 Feb 2020)

Silicone grease....


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## Tankless (14 Feb 2020)

I wasted a maintenance item that I would need within the next year - _-

If only they labelled what it was within the manual.


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## Tankless (14 Feb 2020)

The green babaulti arrived this morning. They are currently acclimatising. My Twinstar 600S should be delivered today as well.


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## Tankless (14 Feb 2020)

Twinstar the second arrived and I seem to have another problem with it (or I'm being stupid). The light fits on the tank this time which great however the power adapter I received doesn't fit into the pin of the light. I also didn't receive the black adapter (2 pin to 3 pin) that came with the first one.


 





I've tried to force it on but that's as far as it went.


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## Tankless (14 Feb 2020)

It turns out that the old power pack was provided by Twinstar. The new power pack should be sent over on Tuesday. I hope I'll have no further issues. 

I've taken a few one week in images with the colder chihiros A601. I feel that I need another piece of medium sized gnarled manzanita to fill the gap on the right hand side. I added in small pieces of dragon stone for further detail.


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## Tankless (16 Feb 2020)

The Green Babaulti change colour and blend in with their surroundings. 

 



I also purchased what was labelled as kitty tetra. It looks more like hyphessobrycon elachys. One of the ten that I bought lost an eye either during transport/acclimisation. Hopefully it will survive.


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## sparkyweasel (16 Feb 2020)

Tankless said:


> One of the ten that I bought lost an eye either during transport/acclimisation. Hopefully it will survive.


The lost eye shouldn't trouble the fish too much in itself. The biggest danger is that the wound might get infected, but you can minimise the risk by keeping good water quality. Watch out for any fungus or similar so you can treat it as soon as it appears, but it probably won't happen.


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## Tankless (19 Feb 2020)

The fish with the missing eye passed on yesterday. It was fight to remove the carcass from the tank as the amanos would snatch it out of the net and take it with them. Twinstar 600S the second is finally working and on the tank.

I'm also having noise issues with the Ultramax 1500 which will most likely be returned (I should have listen to Ian) for either a new one or a refund. If they do refund my money then I will need to look for a new filter. I'm currently looking at the following :
1. Eheim Classic 600 - I've read it's reliable and quite
2. Eheim Professional 4+ 350/600 - I've read its quite. User feedback would be appreciated
3. Eheim Professionel 4+ 350T - I've found a used filter for a decent price which puts it in this list.
4. Fluval 407 - I've read that the ribbed hoses are rubbish.

Are there any brands which state the flow of the filter with the media full?


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## Tankless (22 Feb 2020)

The Ultramax sorted itself out. There's no more noise after running it for a week. I noticed some scratches on the glass of the tank. I'm not sure if it was caused by myself or the previous owner. I've only wiped the glass once and that was with Dennerle cleanator and a razor blade (most likely the blade or the previous owner). I will now only use my hands/cleanator 

I added a few more plants into the tank. The tanks is now two weeks old. All that's left is for my steel pipes to arrive and the transitioning phase will be over.

Update images..


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## Tankless (24 Feb 2020)

After reading Sammy Islam's posts on GBR, I went and got myself one. I'm not sure if it's a male or female. The GBR is very timid and has no interest in the shrimp as of yet.


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## Sammy Islam (24 Feb 2020)

Nice, that's a male! Feed him up and see if his belly fills out. I hope i can find some decent ones soon! Went to a shop earlier and the rams they had were very small and skinny with damaged fins.


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## Tankless (24 Feb 2020)

I saw the rams the week before and they had quite a few. They only had three, one didn't look too good and the other one was too fat for my liking. 

What do you tend to feed GBRs? I watched the YouTube link from the other thread with the breeders and they use the Tetra granules. I was thinking of purchasing the Tetra Prima granules for the GBR. I tried feeding it today with the flakes that I use but that didn't work. It also didn't go after my Bristlenoses Algae Wafers which evey inhabitant in the tank fights for.


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## Sammy Islam (24 Feb 2020)

My ram eats everything and is trained to eat from the top half of the tank first but then goes to the bottom to feed. Very aggressive when feeding with pentazona barbs around, great to watch them being herded . I feed them the prima granules, tetra crisp range (algae, energy, colour), fluval bugbites, hikari shrimp and algae wafers and frozen food.


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## Tankless (25 Feb 2020)

I'll train the ram to eat from the top half. It needs to start eating before it gets hungry and begins snacking on my shrimp one day. 

My Twinstar dimmer should finally arrive later this week. Currently my lighting period is 5 hours at 100% intensity. I plan to keep this as plant growth has been nice and slow with very minimal signs of algae. I would like to extend my lighting period at an intensity that will have minimal effect on plant growth. It could be called a viewing period, any suggestions of what the intensity would be to achieve this? For those that haven't read the previous pages, the light is a Twinstar S.


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## alto (26 Feb 2020)

Tankless said:


> It needs to start eating before


This in combination with the shyness you mention, makes me wonder if it is stressed - you might call the shop and see what they feed

Try some frozen bloodworm or brine shrimp - if your ram doesn’t come out and eat, I’d consider treating the fish (was it active and out front at the shop?)

What is tank temp?
Other livestock?


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## Tankless (26 Feb 2020)

alto said:


> (was it active and out front at the shop?)
> 
> What is tank temp?
> Other livestock?



The fish was active in the shop. Tank temp is 24 Celsius. Other tank mates include 1 bristlenose pleco, 6 ember tetras, 2 rummynose tetras, 1 cardinal tetra and 11 'kitty tetra' plus a load of shrimp. I managed to feed the ram today, he was interested in the Tetra min flakes but was waiting for it to drop to the bottom. By that time the tetras ate everything. The ram the leftovers of the algae wafers and was sifting through the sand. I presume I need a type of food that falls to the bottom. The ram has white poo with a hint of green (it's not long and stringy, might be the lack of food as I do not feed my fish every day). The Tetra prime food will arrive on Friday. I purchased the Dennerle complete flakes which was rejected by all my inhabitants. 

My stainless steel inlet and outlet pipes arrived. The quality was good. The inlet pipe is a bit thicker than I wanted it to be and I also cut the filter pipe short so I can't make it higher.


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## alto (26 Feb 2020)

The ram looks fine in this photo

I’d feed some frozen brine shrimp, bloodworms to make sure he’s getting enough suitable food - that should clear up any digestive issues (the green tint sounds as if he’s getting too much plant matter and not enough protein) - & hopefully he’ll grow more bold


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## Tankless (27 Feb 2020)

What signs do I generally have to watch out for with rams as they're prone to parasites? 

Also, are there any plants that give a vine like effect on wood? I was thinking of gluing some monte carlo onto the manzanita for it to drape down.


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## alto (27 Feb 2020)

Watch for 
- reduced activity, 
- increased shyness (though I’ve had some ram groups gradually become more reclusive, preferring to play least in sight amongst the plants and hardscape - but they still feed quite excitedly and are active and still playing their “ram games” throughout the tank if I sit back quietly, just immediately disappearing as I approach the tank etc), 
- “stringy pooh” (this is often triggered by stress and poor water quality, especially when accompanied by lower water temperature), 
- altered breathing (one can get very focused on this ), 
- hanging near the surface is a bad sign with rams as they are a bottom oriented species (sifting through substrate, inspecting any carpet plant areas etc ), 
- consistent pale colors indicates stress (more difficult to judge in the colour morphs as they lack body markings etc),
- clamped fins (again this is a stress signal, but may also be an indication of external parasites)

CO2? 
MC grown as an epiphyte is more sensitive to water column fertilizers (including CO2)
H tripartite is relatively more forgiving when grown as an epiphyte 
Various mosses have more/less upright growth


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## Tankless (29 Feb 2020)

It is slightly difficult to feed the ram as the tetras and the shrimp eat/run off with everything before the ram gets there.

I am injecting co2 at a low rate to keep plant growth at a manageable rate.  How large are the leaves of the Hydrocotyle Tripartite? 

The tank is now 3 weeks old. I ran out of co2 and didn't realise until a day and half later. Algae has been minimal. I will remove the Eco Pro next week as the Ultramax will have been running for three weeks.


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## Tankless (6 Mar 2020)

4 weeks in now and I noticed bba on my S.Repens, Cryptocoryne (on two leaves). I also noticed Green spot like algae on some of my dragon stone which I quite like. The plants that were affected were the existing plants which went from Co2 in the old tank, to a box with no co2 and then into the current tank. The bba was also only on the damaged leaves of older growth. I trimmed most of the S.Repens.

I believe I made one too many changes for a set up which had not yet reached 4 Weeks. The following occurred within the past 10 days:
1. Co2 ran out for 1.5 days
2. Co2 bubble rate reduced from 3 to 4 bps to 1 to 2 bps as the drop checker was constantly lime green. The fish are now more active although the drop checker no longer reaches lime green but plant growth is still good.
3. Filter outlet flow direction changed from hanging on RHS to LHS. The existing area where the outlet was placed was a dead spot and detritus kept gathering. This has removed the problem however I've had to reduce the outlet flow from 3/4 to 2/3s of the speed setting as the fish would find it difficult to sleep (if they sleep) due to the additional flow created from the more even distribution
4. Feeding nearly every day and a larger quantities to ensure that the GBR receives enough food (Tetras eat everything)
5. Reducing amount of water changes from 4/3 30 to 35% changes a week to 3, 20% changes.

Update pictures below, need to conduct a water change today plus trim the rotala to increase plant mass at the back. I've ordered Hydrocotyle Japan and Hygrophila Pinntafida to add to the tank. I've removed the existing eheim filter today as the ultramax has been running for 3 and a half weeks.


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## Sammy Islam (6 Mar 2020)

Now that i have a male and female ram, also 6 gouramis means means i had to adapt the way that i feed them without the tetras eating everything. What i do is:
one day feed them one of the variety of the tetra crisps. I put them in a egg cup and add a tiny bit of water so they sink straight away. I turn off my filter/pumps for feeding so food doesn't fly everywhere and i make sure crisps fall into my designated feeding area (beach area) before turning on the filter/pumps.

That way the tetras get some on the way down and theres enough for my rams and gouramis. The tetras still scavenge from the substrate so they will eat more than enough regardless.

The next day (after crisps) i'll feed some sort of pellets, like the hikari shimp pellets or algae wafers so they sink to my feeding area for my rams and gouramis. The tetras will eat bits floating about from the other fish and don't seem to be that interested in the pellet itself.

I keep repeating this cycle apart from when i add frozen food or veg like peas.

Seems like the best way to make sure my rams and gouramis are well fed.


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## Tankless (6 Mar 2020)

I will try this with the spare tropica pots that I have. I'll put a hole in the bottom to make sure it sinks. The other problem I have is that any food that hits the floor is usually taken by the shrimp who run off it with it.

Which part of the tank do the honey gourami occupy?


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## Sammy Islam (7 Mar 2020)

Tankless said:


> I will try this with the spare tropica pots that I have. I'll put a hole in the bottom to make sure it sinks. The other problem I have is that any food that hits the floor is usually taken by the shrimp who run off it with it.
> 
> Which part of the tank do the honey gourami occupy?



What do you mean about tropica cup? Basically what i mean is:
1) turn off filters and pumps
2) get a tropica pot and put a bit of food in there (flakes, pellets, crisps)
3) put a tiny bit of tank water into the tropica pot and let it soak in the water for like 30 secs
4) tip the food into the tank (not the pot) in the area you want to feed the rams
5) make sure some hits the bottom "feeding area" then turn filter and pumps back on.

That's the way i do it, but ensures rams and gouramis get a fair chance, because tetras will still go feed at the substrate regardless. I would say my way of feeding by rotating the type of food is to technically feed the tetras a full meal every other day, while making sure my rams and gouramis get a full meal every day.

The gouramis in general actually chill out more in the middle and lower parts of my tank because they like to sift through the sand looking for food. They do swim in all areas of the tank but maybe not as much at the top as theres less plant cover and the flow probably has a lot to do with it. But they do sleep/rest near the top parts of the tank, but to be fair each has a different sleeping spot at lights off.

The "goldens" seem to hang about the more in the darker denser areas where as the "red robins" seem to just love swimming about the front and in the beach area and are a lot less shy.


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## Jayefc1 (7 Mar 2020)

Wow mate that is a lot of change in a immature tank I'd be a little scared if I was you to be honest the amount if water changed is worrying for a start 20% 3 times a week ? By now you should be at 1 water change of about 50/60% or more to reset the whole tank weekly

Fluctuating co2 levels is one of the main courses of alge unsettling the balance of the tank allowing alge spores to grow faster why have you dropped half the amount of co2 going in if the drop checker was lime green that is exactly what you want running out for a day or 2 isnt so much of an issue depriving the plants of it through photosynthesis is a major issue and the plants will not stay health for long your increasing.your plant.mass with the 2 new plants your adding and with new  growth but reducing one of the 3 main sources of energy

What are your lights on now

4 weeks in and you have bba on a new tank can you imagine how it will be in 8 weeks if you dont  get the balance right that should have been tweaked and sorted by the first 2 weeks

You really need to be patient and stop.changing things
Of course this is all just my opinion


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## alto (7 Mar 2020)

I suggest transferring the Eheim bio media to the new filter - with low bioload in the tank, it’s possible that population of the new filter media will be slower than expected

If you want to use the Eheim on another tank, there will still be sufficient bacteria in the mechanical media (sponge etc) to “seed” the new tank

I’d also wait for more robust growth before trimming the Rotala

To add some fast growing plants you might just place some pots in the front sand area - as shown in this new Tropica video


(I know I’m a shameless promoter of Tropica and GF et al  )

If you watch the previous week video, you can see how much the L sessiliflora has grown


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## Tankless (7 Mar 2020)

To respond to the replies in chronological order:

1. @Sammy Islam Thanks for clarifying. I tried your method today and it worked. The GBR now joins every other fish and shrimp in attempting to my Bristlenoses algae wafer.

2. @Jayefc1 I agree and I will learn from this mistake when setting up in future tanks. I cleaned the co2 diffuser today as it started making a hissing nose last night to ensure the diffusion is as it should be. Increased Co2 to 2bps and changed the drop checker solution. I had to blow into the solution for 5 minutes to get it to become dark green just to see if its working as it should. I also increased the flow nearly back to what it was. My plan for the next week is to reduce the water changes to two 30% weekly changes for a couple of weeks. There won't be further changes as I plan to monitor the tank. Its still only affecting a very small localised area and is currently visible on three or four old leaves. I probably will remove the S. Repens if it continues to be affected as the growth is too thick and congested. I have cryptocoryne Balansae, Rotala H'ra and Java Fern right next to it and they have had no issues although I purchased these plants when I set the tank up 4 weeks ago where as the S.Repens went through the transition and only the older decaying growth is affected. Lighting period is 5 hours at 100% intensity. I did order a dimmer which was supposed to arrive 3 weeks ago. I use TMC complete 4 times a week at 3.5ml per dose. I'm not at home for 7 days hence why I only dose 4 times a week. 

@alto I sadly do not have the space for another tank. I plan to use the eheim as vacuum for the weekly maintenance or to just assist with water changes. I want to avoid purchasing any further plants as I'd only end up throwing them away. I could probably try potting the rotala and placing it on the sand when the trim does take place.


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## Tankless (8 Mar 2020)

Hydrocotyle and the Pinnatifida have been added to the tank. I also took a picture of the bba (might be staghorn algae). I could only visibly see it on two leaves which is good. Both leaves were decaying and look like old growth (possibly emerged). I gave the Rotala Yaoi Yai a trim as some stems were quite high. I've left the H'ra to grow in for another week before a trim. In the last image, I used an old piece of spiderwood which has a very rough texture (it was boiled) consisting of black dots. Anyone know what it is?

Pictures below


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## Tankless (13 Mar 2020)

I've decided to continue the Transitioning Phase within the Journal section. The beginning can be found within this thread
https://www.ukaps.org/forum/threads...oning-into-a-journal.59748/page-5#post-589495. 

The tanks is a Co2 injected Aquascaper 600 consisting of the following:
Lights: Twinstar 600 S
Ferts: Tnc Complete
Hardscape: Dragon Stone, Manzanita Wood and two pieces of Spiderwood
Substrate: Tropica Powder Soil and Ada Colorado Sand
Plants: Rotala H'Ra
Rotala Yaoi Yai
Rotala Bonsai
Rotal Macrandra (deceased) 
Vallisneria Nana
Cryptocoryne Balansea
Cryptocoryne Wendtii 
Cryptocoryne Beckiti
Cryptocoryne Parva (deceased)
S. Repens 
Marsilea Hirsuta 
Flame Moss
Taiwan Moss
Java Fern Petite
Java Fern (Unknown) 
Hydrocotyle Tripartita Japan 
Hygrophila Pinnatifida 
Bucephalandra Serimbu Brown 
Bucephalandra Mini Needle Leaf
Anubius Nana
Anubius Coffee something 
Filter: Aquael Ultramax 1500 

Images of week 1


 

Images of Week 5 (latest) 


 

 

 

 

 


During the past week, I had a red cherry shrimp and a kitty tetra jump out and die. I also found a big spider dead on top of the Twinstar. I've reduced my water changes to twice a week now (Friday and Sunday after the co2 goes off). Last week I introduced Hydrocotyle Tripartita Japan and Hygrophila Pinnatifida which my Bristlenose Pleco decided to remove from the Manzanita. My current lighting period is 5 hours (100% intensity). The dimmer I purchased has finally arrived after 5 weeks. I am planning to reduce the lighting intensity to 90% for reasons mentioned below. I also plan to add a 15 minute ramp up time to the 90% intensity and then a 15 minute ramp down time. I will implement this tomorrow. Any suggestions on what I could grow on top of the sand? 

I also previously had algae issues with Staghorn Algae/bba and Green spot algae which I thought arose from making too many changes. The Staghorn/Bba has now been removed by increasing the output rate on my filter which is presume led to a better spread of Co2 and nutrients. Although, the green spot algae persists. Something is out of balance and it might be that my light intensity is too high or should I wait it out? The last image shows my algae problems.


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## Jayefc1 (13 Mar 2020)

If you ask a mod they can move the whole thread for you mate maybe 

@Tim Harrison he did mine for me


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## Jayefc1 (13 Mar 2020)

Tankless said:


> Something is out of balance and it might be that my light intensity is too high or should I wait it out? The last image shows my algae problems.


I think it is your light but now you have the dimmer I'd drop it to 80% for 5.5hrs with the 15 min ramp up/down to make it to 6 hrs although I have my ramp down to 10 from 50 then have it set at 10% for an extra hour so I can just enjoy the tank in the evening before bed


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## Tankless (14 Mar 2020)

Tim Harrison said:


> Be happy to if that's what you'd like me to do


 
Yeah that would be great. Is there any way that I can combine the two? 

@Jayefc1 I'll decrease the intensity today to 80% and add a ramp up and down period. Do the plants photosynthesis at a light intensity of 10%? I'd like to see your tank at that intensity if you have a picture to share.

I've also started getting diatoms on the glass which will probably pass as the tank matures.


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## Jayefc1 (14 Mar 2020)

Tankless said:


> Do the plants photosynthesis at a light intensity of 10%


No all there work is done by the time it goes down just means you can view it for a little longer and its quiet a nice ambience to il take a pic tonight for you


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## Tankless (14 Mar 2020)

Jayefc1 said:


> No all there work is done by the time it goes down just means you can view it for a little longer and its quiet a nice ambience to il take a pic tonight for you



Alright, thank you. I'll have to wait a few days to set up the dimmer as I'll need an 5.5 to 2.1 adapter.


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## Jayefc1 (15 Mar 2020)

Light on 10% pic like you asked for


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## Tankless (15 Mar 2020)

The evening viewing period looks great. I've currently got the co2 on from 12:30 to 7:30 and lights are on from 4pm until 9pm.

I will change it to the following:
Ramp up to 80%: 3pm until 3:30pm
At 80%: 3:30pm until 8:30pm
Ramp down to 10%: 8:30 to 8:45pm
At 10%: 8:45 to 9 and then lights off. I'll extend the period at 10% as the tank matures and balances out.

What do people do when the time goes forward? If I set everything back by an hour then will it have an impact on the plants?


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## Jayefc1 (15 Mar 2020)

The plants dont.know what time of day it is they just want there light lol


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## Tankless (20 Mar 2020)

7 weeks in now. I've removed one of the older pieces of wood as it had weird growth on it. I've implemented the dimmer today. I'll probably increase the amount of ferts and co2 being injected as the plant mass has increased The Rotala H'ra seems to grown horizontally across the floor rather than vertically which isn't ideal.


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## Jayefc1 (20 Mar 2020)

Looking good @Tankless


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## Tankless (24 Mar 2020)

I plan to conduct a major trim this Friday when I hit the 8 weeks marks. I've found that the growth on the Rotala bonsai and the H'ra to be very slow in comparison to the yao yai which has been trimmed twice. Even the cryptocoryne balansae has grown more in height than the bonsai and H'ra. The worst grower has been vallisneria nana which is no more than 2 inches long. Picture heavy update inbound which also shows the meager growth from the rotala.
Does anyone know what the moss on the left of the Taiwan moss is? It came from my old tank, I thought it was flame moss but it turned out to be something else. Could it be java or christmas? Those were the other two moss types that I had. Do I trim pinnatifida like any other stem plant. The growth has been quite good. One of the few Tropica plants that I've had which has had no melt when transitioning within the tank.


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## Jayefc1 (24 Mar 2020)

Tankless said:


> growth on the Rotala bonsai and the H'ra to be very sl


I find these quiet slow to.get going and need a longer time to settle especially if there 1_2 grow pots 


Tankless said:


> Do I trim pinnatifida like any other stem plant


I just pinch the tips out on the pinnatifida and nip off older leaves depends how you want it to grow 


Tankless said:


> Does anyone know what the moss


I think its java moss looks quiet stringy to me


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## Tankless (24 Mar 2020)

Jayefc1 said:


> I find these quiet slow to.get going and need a longer time to settle especially if there 1_2 grow pots
> 
> I just pinch the tips out on the pinnatifida and nip off older leaves depends how you want it to grow
> 
> I think its java moss looks quiet stringy to me



That's good to know, hopefully once they're settled in they'll grow faster. I'd like the pinnatifida to grow outwards to try and cover more of the manzanita if possible. If it is java moss, then it's the slowest growing out of the taiwan and flame moss that I currently have.


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## Tankless (31 Mar 2020)

My week 8 update has come a few days late now that I can upload images again.

I've removed 90% of the S. Repens in the tank as I was finding very difficult to access the lower leaves. The growth was horizontal across the substrate rather than vertical. The lower leaves were affected by gsa and a I found a small amount of Staughorne which I first identified in week 2/3 with it then dissappearing. I've ordered Blyxa Japonica to replace the vallisneria nana which doesn't grow due the excel and lilaeopsis mauritiana to replace the S.Repens. Ideally I would have liked lilaeopsis brasiliensis which has flatter and thicker leaves. I conducted a big trim of the Yao Yai and left the H'ra and bonsai to grow for another a week or two.

Hydrocotyle Tripartita Japan has finally started draping downwards after just growing busier at the surface of the water for a weeks. 

I've included some of the inhabitants within the weekly images:


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## Tankless (14 Apr 2020)

Week 10 update. I have been a little neglectful with the maintenance of the tank. The plants are in need of a major trim. I swapped my sodastream canister to a fire extinguisher but I haven't managed to achieve the same drop in the drop checker as previously. I've also reduced the lighting level to 60% as I prefer the lower lighting levels. The images below were taken at unknown percentage as the light ramps up in intensity.


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## Tankless (17 Nov 2020)

In the past 7 months, the home required emergency building works which needed the tank moved. The only space available was in front of the all glass doors to the garden. I had to do a quick rescape which had no planning involved. The position it was moved to was less than ideal due to the amount of sunlight. This led to all sorts of algae problems and eventually I gave up on the tank. Now as we enter the winter months, I've had the desire to work on the tank as the green string algae and the staghorn seemed to disappear. The BBA has started to decline and I'm slowly getting rid of the green algae on the glass. I just need to buy curtains for the tank in the summer 

I lost a lot of my plant mass, with mainly the stem plants, the java ferns, moss and anubias surviving. Picture was taken just before things became really bad after the emergency rescape. 



For those of you who have managed to bring a tank back to its former glory or are currently in the process of doing this, please can you share any advice that I could implement.


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## Wolf6 (17 Nov 2020)

Life is what happens while you're busy making plans is what my grandma always used to say (or at least a Dutch version of it). Hope you got the building works out of the way now! From the times I've let my tank 'go' so to speak it usually meant I didnt refill CO2, didnt give ferts and didnt cut back plants. All I kept doing was weekly 50% water changes and feeding 2x per week (normal regime). Algea would eventually recede by themselves as the tank became more and more of a jungle, but more demanding plants would die or were in a bad way by this time. Basically all I had to do was replant with some healthy new plants and add some floaters, remove surplus plants that did enjoy neglect (java ferns, anubias, bolbitis, crypts etc), set my lighting scedule to 'starting up' (meaning back to 6 hours and lower intensity) and start the CO2 again (building up over a day or 2-3 to find the sweet spot) and start dosing ferts again regularly together with resuming normal maintenance. I didnt do anything 'special', just picked up where I left off and it went fine. Cant tell you if thats the recipe for succes or just a fluke, but thats what I did.


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## Tankless (18 Nov 2020)

I took out some of the hardscape yesterday to boil them in order to remove any bba remnants. Notices that the thinner pieces of the manzanita were breaking off. Is this normal? 

I have some bba on the java fern roots but not on the leaves which is strange. Would it best to cut the roots or to dip the whole plant in bleach as I've read on the forum? 

I still have two species of shrimp out of the 4 I had originally. My amanos and my tangerine tiger shrimp are still alive. The cherry shrimp and the green babaulti died after the move.


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## Tankless (23 Nov 2021)

Wolf6 said:


> Life is what happens while you're busy making plans is what my grandma always used to say (or at least a Dutch version of it). Hope you got the building works out of the way now! From the times I've let my tank 'go' so to speak it usually meant I didnt refill CO2, didnt give ferts and didnt cut back plants. All I kept doing was weekly 50% water changes and feeding 2x per week (normal regime). Algea would eventually recede by themselves as the tank became more and more of a jungle, but more demanding plants would die or were in a bad way by this time. Basically all I had to do was replant with some healthy new plants and add some floaters, remove surplus plants that did enjoy neglect (java ferns, anubias, bolbitis, crypts etc), set my lighting scedule to 'starting up' (meaning back to 6 hours and lower intensity) and start the CO2 again (building up over a day or 2-3 to find the sweet spot) and start dosing ferts again regularly together with resuming normal maintenance. I didnt do anything 'special', just picked up where I left off and it went fine. Cant tell you if thats the recipe for succes or just a fluke, but thats what I did.



I ended up letting my tank go for 12 months lol. Fish were happy but plants weren't, with only the fittest surviving. My moss and cryptocoryne took over everything. Now that I have more time again, a rescape will be due towards the end of December. Going to use the next few weeks to get everything ready. It's been great to see how some of the other journals have matured as I hadn't logged on for a year.


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