# 31x21x26, nano, ‘nature heart’



## CooKieS (9 May 2020)

Hi guys,

Have filled this little nano scape which was done in 10min for an instagram challenge, to host and breed some shrimps. 

tank is fireaqua optiwhite 17l
Soil is tropica powder with sand over it
Light is onf flat nano +
filter is aquael hob 
Pressurized co2 500gr to come

plants are all from my 60p;

Rotala h’ra
Rotala rotundifolia 
Myriophyllum guyana 
Pilo Moss
Java mass
Some Monte Carlo 
Hygrophila pinnatifida 
Anubia petite and pangolino

this is day 1:


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## Deano3 (9 May 2020)

Great little scape mate i am jealous  i would love a nano like this  bit may upgade main tank to 60p instead at some point.

Lovely plant selection and scape
Well done mate, what shrimp are going in ?

Dean

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## PARAGUAY (9 May 2020)

Great job


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## Sammy Islam (9 May 2020)

Nice! Love your style it's very unique!


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## CooKieS (12 May 2020)

Deano3 said:


> Great little scape mate i am jealous  i would love a nano like this  bit may upgade main tank to 60p instead at some point.
> 
> Lovely plant selection and scape
> Well done mate, what shrimp are going in ?
> ...



thanks mate, I don’t know yet about the shrimps species, regarding my tap water it will be easy species to maintain like neocaridina Yellow neon 



PARAGUAY said:


> Great job



thank you, nothing overcomplicated, just a small nano for my son. 



Sammy Islam said:


> Nice! Love your style it's very unique!



Thanks Sammy!


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## CooKieS (14 May 2020)

Pressurised co2 in place!


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## Deano3 (14 May 2020)

CooKieS said:


> Pressurised co2 in place!


Cool idea i like that  my co2 art os very very sensitive i barley touch the regulator adjuster and to many bps its very hard to get right o think i need one what is a good full turn to even add 1 bps eventually.

Looks great though mate

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## Fiske (14 May 2020)

Bringing aquascaping snobbery to new heights: Speyside Single Malt CO2, Sherry Cask Matured. 😁 Are you listening, ADA?!

J/K.
Lovely scape mate.


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## Roland (14 May 2020)

Great scape .Looks very nice to me mate


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## CooKieS (17 May 2020)

Thanks guys 





Growing good for now, I’ll add some riccardia, taiwan moss and probably hC Cuba or elatine hydropiper on the foreground next week.


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## CooKieS (17 May 2020)

Deano3 said:


> Cool idea i like that  my co2 art os very very sensitive i barley touch the regulator adjuster and to many bps its very hard to get right o think i need one what is a good full turn to even add 1 bps eventually.
> 
> Looks great though mate
> 
> Sent from my SM-G970F using Tapatalk



those China one are perfect and easy to adjust  




Fiske said:


> Bringing aquascaping snobbery to new heights: Speyside Single Malt CO2, Sherry Cask Matured. 😁 Are you listening, ADA?!
> 
> J/K.
> Lovely scape mate.


Thanks for the laugh 😆


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## Wookii (17 May 2020)

Great scape as always @CooKieS you have a great eye for this stuff! It’s hard to believe that’s a 17 litre tank, you’ve managed to make it look much larger in terms of scale.


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## CooKieS (17 May 2020)

Wookii said:


> Great scape as always @CooKieS you have a great eye for this stuff! It’s hard to believe that’s a 17 litre tank, you’ve managed to make it look much larger in terms of scale.



Thanks for you support mate, appreciate it! 

I’m looking to add details like small roots or branches later to improve it. 

Would you guys add some fishes in this small volume? It’s 31cm long, I was thinking about some borara?  Or is it definitively too small for fish? Thanks


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## Wookii (18 May 2020)

CooKieS said:


> Thanks for you support mate, appreciate it!
> 
> I’m looking to add details like small roots or branches later to improve it.
> 
> Would you guys add some fishes in this small volume? It’s 31cm long, I was thinking about some borara?  Or is it definitively too small for fish? Thanks



I’m not an expert by any means, but I tend to think even my 60 x 30 x 30 tank is a little small for fish. My shoal of Boraras Brigittae seem perfectly happy, but can easily lap the tank in a few seconds.

You could maybe add 8 of them to that tank - their biological load is probably minuscule - but it’s whether you think they really have the space to live comfortably and behave naturally.


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## CooKieS (18 May 2020)

Wookii said:


> I’m not an expert by any means, but I tend to think even my 60 x 30 x 30 tank is a little small for fish. My shoal of Boraras Brigittae seem perfectly happy, but can easily lap the tank in a few seconds.
> 
> You could maybe add 8 of them to that tank - their biological load is probably minuscule - but it’s whether you think they really have the space to live comfortably and behave naturally.



you’re right, I will probably put one male betta or an shrimp colony instead, that tank is too small. It´s like those guys from Ada who puts 10 nano fishes in a 8 liters pond tank, that’s not my vision of fish keeping


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## CooKieS (19 May 2020)

One week in, added some roots for details.

in the next days I’ll add some marsilea crenata on the foreground.

running easy for now,hope it will continue this way


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## si walker (19 May 2020)

Thanks for sharing! Really great.

Is that a Pat Mini Filter i see tucked away in there?
Simon


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## Ray (19 May 2020)

Loving this, its beautiful. I have exactly the same tank but low tech for a Betta, but this makes me feel like I ought to make more effort!


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## CooKieS (19 May 2020)

si walker said:


> Thanks for sharing! Really great.
> 
> Is that a Pat Mini Filter i see tucked away in there?
> Simon



thanks Simon, glad you like it. 

you’re right, the aquael HoB was to noisy for me so I’ve replaced it with my trusty aquael pat mini. 




Ray said:


> Loving this, its beautiful. I have exactly the same tank but low tech for a Betta, but this makes me feel like I ought to make more effort!



feel free to get inspired, nano tank like those are so easy to Rescape and maintain, glad I planted this one as it wasn’t planned first.


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## si walker (19 May 2020)

I was wondering which floating plant you are using?
Don't think it is on your list? I will need to get one and some look really small and others a bit too big. 

Oh and do you use the original filter foam that came with the filter? I have just got mine and its really coarse. 
I know that some people upgrade the size of the foam but if the tank is small then this is difficult.

Thank you for your time!
Simon.


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## CooKieS (19 May 2020)

si walker said:


> I was wondering which floating plant you are using?
> Don't think it is on your list? I will need to get one and some look really small and others a bit too big.
> 
> Oh and do you use the original filter foam that came with the filter? I have just got mine and its really coarse.
> ...



It’s salvinia Natans, perfect floaters for nano to me. 

I’ve removed the foam and cut just an small batch of it and I’ve stuck this batch of foam inside the intake to avoid sucking too much dirt, snails in it. Do you know what I mean?


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## si walker (20 May 2020)

CooKieS said:


> It’s salvinia Natans, perfect floaters for nano to me.
> 
> I’ve removed the foam and cut just an small batch of it and I’ve stuck this batch of foam inside the intake to avoid sucking too much dirt, snails in it. Do you know what I mean?


Kind of... So you have very little foam on the filter now? Your using it more for circulation than filtration??
Thanks for the reply!


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## CooKieS (20 May 2020)

si walker said:


> Kind of... So you have very little foam on the filter now? Your using it more for circulation than filtration??
> Thanks for the reply!



yes, that’s it for now. I will try to find some smaller foam to adapt later.


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## CooKieS (25 May 2020)

New critters


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## Deano3 (25 May 2020)

Stunners 

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## CooKieS (27 May 2020)

Deano3 said:


> Stunners
> 
> Sent from my SM-G970F using Tapatalk



Thanks mate, hope to breed them. 

2 weeks update, added some marsilea crenata and eleocharis mini from my 60p and some twigs.


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## Deano3 (27 May 2020)

I think my next scape may have them for a change of maybe the bright blue ones plenty of time to decide, see if yours breed by then 

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## Ray (27 May 2020)

Is that surface scum?


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## CooKieS (28 May 2020)

Deano3 said:


> I think my next scape may have them for a change of maybe the bright blue ones plenty of time to decide, see if yours breed by then //emoji.tapatalk-cdn.com/emoji16.png
> 
> Sent from my SM-G970F using Tapatalk



those


Ray said:


> Is that surface scum?



yes, running co2 24/24 and tank is not mature yet, it normally goes away within weeks


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## Deano3 (28 May 2020)

I am struggling with surface scum any recomendations? And what dk you mean those , what shrimp you mean 

Thanks dean

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## CooKieS (28 May 2020)

Deano3 said:


> I am struggling with surface scum any recomendations? And what dk you mean those , what shrimp you mean
> 
> Thanks dean
> 
> Sent from my SM-G970F using Tapatalk



do you use lily pipe? If yes, just put it near the surface. Or use powerful filter that will create some vortex over the lily. If that doesn’t work you can buy some  inlet with integrated skimmer (the stainless steel ones works nicely). Using some floaters would help too.

I’ve find that in my tank it goes by itself after some weeks, once the tank And the bacterial population  is balanced. 

My blue velvet shrimp are neocaridina that are easy to bred and maintain, those Santa crs are caridina and not as easy, hope I’ll get good results as I’m using tap water (which is not so bad in my small town).


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## Ray (28 May 2020)

Deano3 said:


> I am struggling with surface scum any recomendations?



Me too in my low tech Betta tank which is why I zeroed in on it. Weeks 3 to 5 it was awful, then I trimmed any leaves on my crypts from prior to planting, lifted the spray bar above the surface and added some floaters. It broke up and cleared.


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## CooKieS (2 Jun 2020)

Well, after fast 1 month of use, I use to think the color rendition of the onf nano isn’t that good, everything seems yellowish and even if my tank is small, it isn’t powerful enough to have red rotala h’ra.😕

thinking of replacing for the new chihiros c series ASAP!


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## CooKieS (5 Jun 2020)

Small update;

Stems has been trimmed and I’ve replanted the tops.

Added small patches of riccardia too.

Dosing 1ml of liquid carbon and 1ml of apt complete daily. Co2 is on 1bubble every 3s , 24/24.
I like how easy this one goes for now 





cheers


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## kishan313 (5 Jun 2020)

Lovely looking aquarium - could you tell me which brand of c02 regulator you are using (and rough costs please?) 


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## CooKieS (14 Jun 2020)

kishan313 said:


> Lovely looking aquarium - could you tell me which brand of c02 regulator you are using (and rough costs please?)
> 
> 
> Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk



thanks , those are Chinese one, brand aquario, from my lfs, about 50 bucks, very simple but very effective and easy to setup


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## CooKieS (15 Jun 2020)

Growing slowly but steady


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## Chris PP (15 Jun 2020)

Might be a stupid question but how do you stop the surface plants from congregating ? I was wondering if the flow on the surface moved them ? Thanks Chris


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## Deano3 (15 Jun 2020)

Stunning nano my favorite at the minute , i imagine they will congregate when filter running.

Dean

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## CooKieS (15 Jun 2020)

Chris PP said:


> Might be a stupid question but how do you stop the surface plants from congregating ? I was wondering if the flow on the surface moved them ? Thanks Chris



here’s the answer;







Deano3 said:


> Stunning nano my favorite at the minute , i imagine they will congregate when filter running.
> 
> Dean
> 
> Sent from my SM-G970F using Tapatalk



thanks mate, glad you like it.


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## Chris PP (15 Jun 2020)

CooKieS said:


> here’s the answer;
> 
> 
> 
> ...



That’s really kind of you to send me the link. Definitely one for my list of plants.


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## LondonDragon (16 Jun 2020)

CooKieS said:


> Growing slowly but steady


Lovely little nano 👏 Featured on the UKAPS Facebook Page!


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## CooKieS (16 Jun 2020)

LondonDragon said:


> Lovely little nano 👏 Featured on the UKAPS Facebook Page!



appreciate that, thanks for your support!


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## CooKieS (23 Jun 2020)

will the wifey notice it?


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## si walker (23 Jun 2020)

Nah, your good?

Don't neglect that Nano!
Si


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## Geoffrey Rea (23 Jun 2020)

CooKieS said:


>



Now this is news... What size tank @CooKieS ?


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## Ray (23 Jun 2020)

Geoffrey Rea said:


> Now this is news... What size tank @CooKieS ?


The 25cm Fire Aqua cube has 5mm glass.  So I _think_ the other tank must be 12mm but could even be 15mm!  My guess is it's a 120cm!?


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## Geoffrey Rea (23 Jun 2020)

Ray said:


> The 25cm Fire Aqua cube has 5mm glass. So I _think_ the other tank must be 12mm but could even be 15mm! My guess is it's a 120cm!?



Love the detective work @Ray we will solve this teaser!!

Hoping for a 120cm. He’s deceptively cut off the rest of the tank right of the shot for mystery... Question is can that additional 3mm thickness be gauged from this single photo? 🕵️‍♂️

From the height it almost looks like a 90cm. But either way it’s fresh from the smear marks we can see against the ONF light... @CooKieS would never leave smear marks on a photo unless it was an impromptu shot due to over excitement...

The unusual blue tint on the background that grades out points to custom so we could all be wrong and it’s a custom size!

The plot thickens.....


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## Deano3 (23 Jun 2020)

Great detective work guys  i am hoping for another 90cm on the forum but what ever it is i am looking forward to it.

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## CooKieS (24 Jun 2020)

si walker said:


> Nah, your good?
> 
> Don't neglect that Nano!
> Si



don’t worry, nano is too easy to care, no place for neglect on this one. 



Ray said:


> The 25cm Fire Aqua cube has 5mm glass.  So I _think_ the other tank must be 12mm but could even be 15mm!  My guess is it's a 120cm!?


 
If only , the silicon work isn’t Ada level (this tank was made by an local artisan) so glass looks thicker than it really is (8mm).




Geoffrey Rea said:


> Love the detective work @Ray we will solve this teaser!!
> 
> Hoping for a 120cm. He’s deceptively cut off the rest of the tank right of the shot for mystery... Question is can that additional 3mm thickness be gauged from this single photo? 🕵️‍♂️
> 
> ...



so who’s Sherlock and who’s Holmes @Geoffrey Rea and @Ray?

Good point about the custom size, unfortunately it’s way smaller than you guys though! That gradient foil is actually the Ada light screen one....cutted to dimensions.


Deano3 said:


> Great detective work guys  i am hoping for another 90cm on the forum but what ever it is i am looking forward to it.
> 
> Sent from my SM-G970F using Tapatalk



hey @Deano3, little smaller than a 90p. Can’t wait to see yours too


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## Ray (24 Jun 2020)

CooKieS said:


> so who’s Sherlock and who’s Holmes @Geoffrey Rea and @Ray?


So long as it's the Guy Richie movie version I'm happy to be either!


CooKieS said:


> If only , the silicon work isn’t Ada level (this tank was made by an local artisan) so glass looks thicker than it really is (8mm).


Damn - I would never have guessed!  I was unsure about the thickness but was 100% sure it was 45x45x?? and you've included at least 75cm of length so 80x45x45?

Chapeau for supporting a local craftsman & looking forward to further updates.  Also while I have your attention please can we see the nano from other angles?  Having exactly the same tank with just some crypts, staurogyne and anubias is a source of constant chagrin for me...


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## Deano3 (24 Jun 2020)

I am sure you mentiomed a 80cm in other thread so should be great mate  



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## CooKieS (24 Jun 2020)

Ray said:


> So long as it's the Guy Richie movie version I'm happy to be either!
> 
> Damn - I would never have guessed!  I was unsure about the thickness but was 100% sure it was 45x45x?? and you've included at least 75cm of length so 80x45x45?
> 
> Chapeau for supporting a local craftsman & looking forward to further updates.  Also while I have your attention please can we see the nano from other angles?  Having exactly the same tank with just some crypts, staurogyne and anubias is a source of constant chagrin for me...



Of course Ritchie’s movie, wasn’t thinking about Lucy Liu! 

tank is 80x40x40cm.

for other pics of my nano, I invite you to check my IG account here;
https://www.instagram.com/my_aquascaping_diaries/





Deano3 said:


> I am sure you mentiomed a 80cm in other thread so should be great mate
> 
> 
> 
> Sent from my SM-G970F using Tapatalk



Yes , big improvement over the 60p for me, already got a LOT of hardscape ideas,  still needs some equipment (new filter, pipes, hoses) and then I’ll start searching for hardscape.


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## Deano3 (24 Jun 2020)

CooKieS said:


> Of course Ritchie’s movie, wasn’t thinking about Lucy Liu!
> 
> tank is 80x40x40cm.
> 
> ...


Sounds great mate, i have had a 60p in past but used to my 45p now and everytime i go to horizon i see the 60p and it looks huge 

Looking forward to seeing your hRscale ideas sure will be great. Keep us up to date with progress and i did the same just slowly purchasing everything as no rush.

Still need a few bits but we decided to put house up for sale so would rather wait till move but hopefully not be too long wosh i waited before buying the tank haha.

I may put the delivery date back or get delivered my parents garage.
On the plus side be better to have a larger house maybe larger tank one day 

Dean

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## CooKieS (27 Jun 2020)

Enjoying life in this little water world;


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## CooKieS (3 Jul 2020)

After trimming and maintenance ;





Sometimes I wonder why I’m not doing just nano as they are so easy in comparison to bigger tanks


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## si walker (3 Jul 2020)

Did you change the filter on this or stick with the small internal? Not that I was zooming in on the inspiration?


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## CooKieS (3 Jul 2020)

si walker said:


> Did you change the filter on this or stick with the small internal? Not that I was zooming in on the inspiration?



it’s still the little pat mini internal filter from Aquael, running flawless, juste cleaning the foam once every 3-4 weeks.


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## Nigel95 (3 Jul 2020)

CooKieS said:


> After trimming and maintenance ;
> 
> 
> 
> ...



Somethings are much easier indeed water changes, less trimming. But a nano tank can also be a PITA to hardscape and very limiting in plant selection and hardscape that you can use IMO! 

Nice tank congrats


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## CooKieS (17 Jul 2020)

Nigel95 said:


> Somethings are much easier indeed water changes, less trimming. But a nano tank can also be a PITA to hardscape and very limiting in plant selection and hardscape that you can use IMO!
> 
> Nice tank congrats



sure mate, it’s better to use small plants and livestock  tanks for your support


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## Geoffrey Rea (17 Jul 2020)

Is that a piece of polished pyrite giving the reflection in that photo @CooKieS ?

Either way very inventive scene mate and beautiful photography, love it 😍


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## Shinobi (17 Jul 2020)

Looks stunning mate!


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## CooKieS (30 Jul 2020)

Geoffrey Rea said:


> Is that a piece of polished pyrite giving the reflection in that photo @CooKieS ?
> 
> Either way very inventive scene mate and beautiful photography, love it 😍



It's an white led panel fixed on the back of the tank. Thanks mate, glad you like it. 


Shinobi said:


> Looks stunning mate!



Thanks mate


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## Tim Harrison (30 Jul 2020)

Looks stunning


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## CooKieS (31 Jul 2020)

Tim Harrison said:


> Looks stunning


Thanks Tim

This little nano is now ‘low tech’ as I’m not using co2 anymore since 3 weeks...reduced the light to 60% and the ferts too to help transition.

As you can see it was begging for an good trim!

The betta is hosted temporarily in it because I sold my 60p.

cheers guys,
here 2 shots of today’s trimming session;


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## Deano3 (31 Jul 2020)

Looks great mate i am wanting to turn my tank into no co2 so i can get it ready for new tank,i have reduced my lights so i guess need to start reducing co2 slowly and my ferts ? 

Thanks and will be much easier as a low tech mate i can sometimes see why people go this route as sometimes hard to find time etc. Also it will give u more time for the 80cm 

Dean

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## CooKieS (31 Jul 2020)

Yes just turn the co2 off, ferts only weekly and not daily (if necessary), lights 60 to 50% less power and WC only every 8-10 days should be enough.

actually will be using my co2 kit on the 45p, once it’s mature I’ll will put the betta in the 45cm too and probably sold this one as 2 tanks is more than enough for me. And the 80cm should be started in September.


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## CooKieS (11 Aug 2020)

I love it low tech too


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## Graham1426 (31 Aug 2020)

Beautiful scape, love it


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