# 90cm river bank scape (conquered HC)pic heavy



## Rabb.D (28 Oct 2011)

FTS from beginning in descending order  

midground dynamics(anubias nana petite mini) 11th April 2012 - FTS





final emersed start 1st January 2012




first emersed start 4 December 2011




final hardscape 5th November 2011




      ____________________________________________________________________________________________

hello,

my first journal in ukaps, going to take a very very long time till i start planting, no money, but my father insisted on buying me a 3 foot tank, even when i told him i've given up the hobby, my previous tank was a 2 foot tank(ADA cube 60-p), a failed endeavour which was expected because of my usual self am prone to giving up half way, the tank was actually quite good on the way to filling with corals but again money issues and when the algae started coming, i didn't sit it through...  

if your wondering why i dont just have two tanks(salt and fresh)... the most obvious problem would be finding a bank loan, then its the small house got no space..





straight to my current attempt again at a planted tank here is my tank with some driftwood




and here it is after some meddling and filling 




Soo... after some research i'll list out my plans and whatnot, 

equipment
2x39 watt t5ho daylight.. i'm usually used to high light say 3 watts per gallon, but after some advice and reading wanted to go ahead with lower lighting which hopefully will decrease the chances of algae coming, light at 1.6 watt per gallon
co2 tank 2.3 kg using selonoid
AS amazonia 2 normal
eheim 2217 
chiller because of hot and humid country/place

when it come to dosing i plan on trying out EI method with seachem, hve already calculated the dosage will post it here again for the sake of it, i used this coverter http://www.fishfriend.com/fertfriend.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Nitrate 20-30 ppm per week 8ppm per dose - 21ml
Phosphates 3ppm per week 1ppm per dose - 40ml
potassium 30ppm per week 8ppm per dose - 36ml
iron 0.5ppm per week 0.17ppm per dose - 3ml

unlike most nature aquarium scaping is not meant to mimick landscape or garden but more like an underwater river or the edge of a river bank, but still having some garden look to it with dwarf hairgrass...

for plants, i was thinking HC but i have never had any success with it previously, very very newbie, also i like the look of dwarf hairgrass trimmed and growing packed tightly together as a foreground, some moss on the wood, then some other plants not to sure what... but will figure out when the time comes.. broke... to much month at the end of money.. kind of problem, I hope some of you understand.

like most people i think i would be doing water changes every other day at early weeeeeee!!! in the morning and then dose at the same time so if i'm busy during the day at least i'll either be back doing the routine or sleeping and have forgotten about it, the water changes will be done every other day during the initial month or weeks ill just have to see.

for fish i would like green neon tetra, i like to blue look... looks nice...

finally i want to warn that this tank is gonna progress really really slowly, so dont get excited for this tank, if that even happens, going back to school(uni if ur curious) next year, might take more than 5 months before i get planting...


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## Gill (28 Oct 2011)

*Re: 90x45x45 driftwood scape*

I really like the placement of the roots on the left side, very nice.


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## ghostsword (28 Oct 2011)

*Re: 90x45x45 driftwood scape*

The roots on the left side are really good, but on the right are slightly distracting.


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## Rabb.D (28 Oct 2011)

*Re: 90x45x45 driftwood scape*

haha thanks for looking, actually i was a little worried the wood on the left side would be a little overwhelming, but my dad likes the wood on the right he says its like an oak tree so i feel obligated to keep it there, and i guess...    i will.. but still maybe i could add fake branches to it  and make it more appealing.


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## Piece-of-fish (28 Oct 2011)

*Re: 90x45x45 driftwood scape*

I like it on both sides actually, something new at least   
Might turn up a good one in some time. Good luck and dont give up this time.


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## Rabb.D (29 Oct 2011)

*Re: 90x45x45 driftwood scape*

hello,

thanks peice-of-fish, yea i think i wont be giving up especially since it was also a commitment on my fathers part as he bought me the tank, not to mentions he likes staring at the tank too, but he doesnt get overly involved with the setting up, but i do ask his opinion... 

i just wanted to post a little more comprehensive plan for plant selection and planting, and add some pictures that i draw inspiration from... and also some ideas on fish selection (fish geek)  

foreground - for the foreground i was inspired by this photo 



Riccia fluitans dwarf - dwarf riccia
Eleocharis acicularis - dwarf hairgrass/or HC
if i'm using HC might mix it up with hydrocotyle sibthorpioides - lawn marsh pennywort
fissidens fontanus would also be used in the foreground grown on medium size rocks to add some dimension to the foreground

driftwood - some patches here and there not too much
mini fissidens /or fissidens fontanus
maybe some thicker moss like taiwan moss or Vesicularia Sp - creeping moss to conceal the stumps
this is where i drew inspiration from for my driftwood, looks amazing...




background - 
some hairgrass here and there just to make it look nice
maybe stem plants like Rotala sp goias maybe not

my plan is to keep it simple, i don't really think stem plants would go well with this scape, but maybe i'm wrong would just have to try it out

for fish selection i'm quite certain i'll be going with schooling fish like tetras, i like the look of green neon tetras but not too sure if they have them here, i am also quite fond of cichlids, would like to go with a cichlid pair, can't decide on the species yet, as i'm not sure what is available. this time i might finally be able to put in more than 5 tetras for a change less stress on the fish as its a bigger tank which is a good thing for me too  

planning to buy two more packets of 9 liter amazonia II normal sized grains this coming monday, took some extra cash allocated for my laptop...   then i might have to mess with the scaping and post some pictures

this list is what i would like to go with but, it all depends on what is available in the LFS... so we'll see how it turns out...


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## Rabb.D (29 Oct 2011)

*Re: 90x45x45 driftwood scape*

this is my infantile sketch layout design




the gray outline are the rocks with moss and some without, the long strands are hairgrass at the back, some fissidens and moss on the wood, and maybe dwarf hairgrass in the foreground


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## Alastair (30 Oct 2011)

*Re: 90x45x45 driftwood scape*

Tanks looking great so far mate. I Can see why you drew inspiration from that pic on your screen.


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## Rabb.D (31 Oct 2011)

*Re: 90x45x45 driftwood scape*



			
				Alastair said:
			
		

> Tanks looking great so far mate. I Can see why you drew inspiration from that pic on your screen.



thanks Alastair, i just bought two more packs of 9 l amazonia soil, and its already in the tank, now i'm wondering whether the soil will dry up and turn to crumble if i leave it there in a few months...Any advice? 

my brother brought the DSLR to work will post a pic when he comes back


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## Rabb.D (31 Oct 2011)

*Re: 90x45x45 driftwood scape*

here is an update with the soil in place and some rocks, although i don't think i will be using those yellow rocks in the final scape, i'm starting to like how they look, in the end i might trade them with ryu stones instead, any opinions would be great... and also does anyone reckon the soil will dry up if left too long..? the rocks might stand out a little too much but i'm giving them a margin for dwarf hairgrass growth later on




thanks


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## Rabb.D (3 Nov 2011)

*Re: 90x45x45 driftwood scape*

just posting an update of the hardscape, bought 10kg of ryu rocks place them all over the place




my plan is some of the rocks gonna be covered with fissidens, so it will be part of the foreground, and some will be bare,
i also just cut back some soil in the foreground but havnt took any pictures, just to make the roots a little more prominent which i think is the real attraction.


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## Rabb.D (6 Nov 2011)

*Re: 90x45x45 under the river scape*

a little update on the progress of getting this hobby going

 i finally found a source of dry ferts from aquariumfertiliser.com, but found myself cursing  when i realized that i essentially bought slightly less amounts of dry ferts 453g-500g at a slightly higher price, for the same products in comparison to the bargain offered by Aquarium Plant Food UK... 

 so the issue with this hobby now, is whether first and foremost the Malaysian Customs will confiscate the chemicals from coming in, although they don't seem to be opinionated of the idea of importing the chemicals, they did direct me to the Department of Environment, which is another good thing, since if my common sense is right, i gather ferts don't essentially pollute the environment... so its a big relief... but not until i get my reply... so its just a matter of time


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## Rabb.D (28 Nov 2011)

*Re: 90x45x45 under the river scape*

a little update 

ferts came through fine a few weeks back 




and heres the final hardscape




suprisingly i'll be planting today, will be going back to the LFS in half an hour or so then will start immersed planting with HC, then might take some pics and update the journal again... when its fully planted... then it will be misting, morning and evening until its grown in...

any suggestions on what plants i should use, i'm still a little bare, when it comes to which plants work best...


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## gillo45 (1 Dec 2011)

*Re: 90x45x45 under the river scape*

Great work, it will be interesting with the plants keep it up Rabb


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## mitchelllawson (2 Dec 2011)

*Re: 90x45x45 under the river scape*

Any updates?


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## CeeJay (3 Dec 2011)

*Re: 90x45x45 under the river scape*

Hi mitchelllawson

This is a good start. Can't wait to see it planted.
Might I add that you can do yourself a favour and put all your 'clear' fertilisers (KNO3, KH2PO4 and MgSO4) into one bottle. Just keep the Trace away from the Phosphate, then you'll only have 2 bottles to mess with


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## Rabb.D (4 Dec 2011)

*Re: 90x45x45 under the river scape*

thanks a lot gillo,

its great to have you interested in my tank... 

so i had a disaster yesterday.... after all the self-promises i made to not fill up the tank and do emmersed with HC, i was still a little too tempted to try and fill it up which i did, which is just half the disaster, the other half being i used newspaper to disperse the water from the hose, without realizing that i was using a jet hose and guess what happened? 

.... the newspaper got shredded by the jet from the hose and I had newspaper all over the place floating in the tank... it was really really frustrating, so i emptied the tank again and this time learned my lesson and started with emmersed hc planting again

here's some bad quality pics before the battery on the DSLR went out... will take some proper pics when the battery is fully charged... unfortunately i was not in the right state of mind to take pics of the disaster, i couldn't trust myself to handle the camera in the mood i was in.haha, the tanks looks a little smaller though




Hey Ceejay,

 putting all the clear fertz in one bottle is a really good idea never thought that could be done... but if i do that... what happens to my dosing, i really wouldn't know how much to dose... any advice or thoughts on that? or maybe a link? 

although when it comes to the plant selection... at the moment it obviously looks a little bare, so my plan is to add some lawn marsh pennyworts, fissidens on the rock and driftwood and and christmass moss on the stumps at the top left, and some Staurogyne repens... since its probably going to be completely green, i was thinking of adding some really nice red cherry shrimp to add some contrast for my own viewing pleasure


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## Themuleous (4 Dec 2011)

*Re: 90x45x45 under the river scape*

Love the hardscape! 

Sam


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## Callum (4 Dec 2011)

*Re: 90x45x45 under the river scape*

Awesome tank so far!
How long did the ferts take to arrive?

Callum


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## Rabb.D (4 Dec 2011)

*Re: 90x45x45 under the river scape*



			
				Themuleous said:
			
		

> Love the hardscape!
> 
> Sam



thanks a lot, i was trying very hard to make it look good, not just in person, but also in a pic, i guess that's the best i could produce, its quite satisfying to look at what i would consider the most decent hardscape i've made so far, previously was much worse, i think there's a pic somewhere in the Mac forum of my first 2 foot low tech(thought was high tech) planted tank, this time i had to take pics with my DSLR every time i made an adjustment to the scape cause i couldn't really judge, then i finally settled on this one. it was back breaking but as usual fun  



			
				Callum said:
			
		

> Awesome tank so far!
> How long did the ferts take to arrive?
> 
> Callum



thanks Callum, if i remember correctly it took exactly 11 days to reach my mail box, really fast, considering... my father thought it was going to take a month... he didnt tell me till it reached the mail box...   felt like months though... but two days back the same place where i bought the HC i just found out that they actually sold dry fertz, so i didnt really need to order... maybe just those the LFS doesn't have available.

Edit: actually i forgot to add there's an update,

i just went to the LFS about 3 hours ago and bought some lawn marsh pennywort and Staurogyne repens and added them to the tank, should look less plain when they grow in.

my only concern is that i've read that the lawn marsh pennywort grows like a weed, so i'm a little afraid it will overtake the HC before it has time to grown in... but i guess its nothing a little maintenance can't handle


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## Callum (4 Dec 2011)

*Re: 90x45x45 under the river scape*

Thanks! I'll probably make a pre-Christmas order of dry ferts


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## Rabb.D (4 Dec 2011)

*Re: 90x45x45 under the river scape*



			
				Callum said:
			
		

> Thanks! I'll probably make a pre-Christmas order of dry ferts



thats great   if this is your first time using dry fertz like me... these links should help a lot
http://blog.fluidsensoronline.com/calcu ... ive-index/
http://calc.petalphile.com/


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## Callum (4 Dec 2011)

*Re: 90x45x45 under the river scape*

Yeah, it's my first time with dry ferts. Those sites are really helpful... Thanks a lot!


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## Rabb.D (17 Dec 2011)

*Re: 90x45x45 under the river scape*

hello, little update

the scape is starting to come together as i add more plants, i've added some starougyne and christmas moss unintentionally coinciding with the christmass season   here's a pic





i'm still doing emersed hopefully not to anybody's dissapointment, as the scape grows in i'll be adding some fissidens fontanus and some small species of ferns to add that tropical jungle feeling i'm looking for


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## Rabb.D (18 Dec 2011)

*Re: 90x45x45 under the river scape*

hello, a little update

heres a front tank shot




i added a java fern which i am unsure yet of the variation, trying to get help identifying, i also added two smaller ferns also i dont know the species.

so far now i have 5 flora species

lawn marsh pennywort
Java fern?
small fern
christmass moss
and staurogyne repens

i'm quite happy with my progress so far, the java ferns reinforces that tropical look i was looking for, and might  serve as a cichlid hiding place and maybe some green neon tetra... the HC and slope on top is growing much better then the ones in the foreground which is puzzling me.. they seem to like dryer spot. or I suspect its closer to the light... i also plan on upgrading my lighting to 3 t5ho tubes of 3x39 watt.. thats about it


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## Rabb.D (19 Dec 2011)

*Re: 90x45x45 under the river scape*

hello, update time

i succumb to the temptation and flooded my tank, here's my tank on its better looking side




any thoughts and opinions on my progress thus far? would really like some available input to jack me up or down

also i'm starting to get the hand of scaping with plants rather than hardscaping alone... finally able to decide with much better clarity on which plants to add and which go where... so there's still alot of improvements to be made

for now this is my source of happiness


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## Rabb.D (7 Jan 2012)

*Re: 90x45x45 under the river scape (still emersed)*

helo, just some new year update

 i added three new plants since my last update, mini fissidens, cyrptocoryne wendtit(any help ID'ying would be great) and African Water Fern(bolbitis Heudelotii) here are some pics

this is the mini fissidens on the rocks and driftwood










this is the bolbitis which died a few days ago




this is the crypt which i think is either brown or red, i was actually looking for the red variation




and this is the FTS




the only reason its not filled yet i because i'm waiting for my toe to heal before i have to do the water change labor, had an ingrown toe nail removed... in the end i might still wait for the HC to grow in before i fill... either that or i'll definitely fill it up when i get my 150 metal halide to replace my current T5ho fixture


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## Piece-of-fish (7 Jan 2012)

*Re: 90x45x45 under the river scape (still emersed)*

Looking beautiful. There is not much point to wait to be honest. Also be aware you will have to hang MH at least 60-80cm high at the beginning. Just 80w T5 would be enough for you at the beginning and maybe even all time. Less is more 
I am a fan of this hardscape.
Java fern looks like standard type.


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## Rabb.D (7 Jan 2012)

*Re: 90x45x45 under the river scape (still emersed)*



			
				Piece-of-fish said:
			
		

> Looking beautiful. There is not much point to wait to be honest. Also be aware you will have to hang MH at least 60-80cm high at the beginning. Just 80w T5 would be enough for you at the beginning and maybe even all time. Less is more
> I am a fan of this hardscape.
> Java fern looks like standard type.



thanks a lot, i am aware that it has to be hung high  , i was thinking maybe 20 inches or 50cm, actually come to think of it the real reason i want metal halide is because i've never had one before, so i'm really really itching to try one out, 

about the java fern.. your right, initially i thought it was the narrow leaf version but i was mistaken.., oh well...


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## Alastair (7 Jan 2012)

*90x45x45 under the river scape (still emersed)*

I run halides on my tank, just make sure your really on top of co2, flow and ferts and youll need to increase your co2 also or you'll have an algae bath in no time 


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk


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## Rabb.D (8 Jan 2012)

*Re: 90x45x45 under the river scape (still emersed)*

hey Alastair thanks for the advice... now i'm having reservations on getting metal halides... it did occur to me previously that i might get an algae bloom... but i'm really itching to get one... i dont really want to ruin my first decent attempt at high tech aquascape(or at least what i think of it), i think ill go with the metal halide on the next scape  

still a newbie when it comes to handling algae... especially with my limited budget in case something goes wrong


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## GHNelson (8 Jan 2012)

*Re: 90x45x45 under the river scape (still emersed)*

Hi Rabb
I like your scape...I think you could do with removing some of the wood on the left it looks a tad congested too me.
Doing that will open up the aquarium more and improve your flow.
hoggie


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## Rabb.D (8 Jan 2012)

*Re: 90x45x45 under the river scape (still emersed)*

hey hogan, thanks for your interest,

initially there seemed to be quite a bit of mixed feelings and comments on the driftwood scape, some said the one on the right was distracting some said on the left... so i figured i'd just got with both and stick with the scape :idea:  actually i do agree it looks packed and jumbled up but i'm hoping(with my lack of experience and whatnot) that the christmass moss will compensate for it.... i'll try and get a pic up with some of the driftwood removed  

when it comes to flow, i feared the same initially, but when i filled the tank a few weeks back the flow with the nano powerhead and the lily pipe with my 2217, seemed to make really good circles clockwise so i figured the driftwood doesn't disrupt the flow as much as i feared... just to give you an idea about slightly less than half(based on looking) of the co2 bubbles makes two rounds around the tank surpisingly


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## GHNelson (8 Jan 2012)

*Re: 90x45x45 under the river scape (still emersed)*

Hi Rabb
Its all trial and error at this game there's no set rules.....I would like to see more of the rock at the back though.
Carry on scaping....see how it goes, you will tinker with scape trust me  
Watch your lighting duration and intensity.....it will only give you head aches if its too much/high.
Cheers
hoggie


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## Rabb.D (10 Jan 2012)

*Re: 90x45x45 under the river scape (flooded)*

hello, a little update

finally flooded the tank, doesn't look as good as i felt it did without water... i also seemed to have found a better method of taking FTS's, it seems its better to take fts from a distance than to get everything close up, seems to be better to zoom in than to fit the tank in the frame, at least thats what it felt like

hes a fts pic




now the only thing to do is to wait for it to fill in and grow nicely than it'll be easier to judge what new plants need planting and what scaping needs improving... feel like going in the january intake just to pass by time 

funny its, when life is a fish tank and Uni a way to pass time


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## Rabb.D (12 Jan 2012)

*Re: 90x45x45 under the river scape (flooded) pic heavy*

hello, a little update

did a water change, water cleared up a bit and i added three more plant species, 

1-Anubias barteri var nana petite
2-java windelov fern
3-bolbitis heudelotii

heres a FTS clearer pic, i tried getting the colors accurate, but the HC still looks paler in the pic


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## Rabb.D (21 Jan 2012)

*Re: 90x45x45 under the river scape (flooded) pic heavy*

hello a little update,

i'm having the new tank syndrome>brown algae attack, so added a battalion of oto's to cleanup and clear the debris and algae, not too sure if oto's were the right choice.. heres some pics





another pic of oto's in the tank




although there's no progress on the HC growth but still decided to go ahead with the obligatory FTS... i also added another batch of HC for RM 10... the pic is a little yellow and brown cause of the algae


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## Mark Evans (21 Jan 2012)

*Re: 90x45x45 under the river scape (brown algae attack)pic h*

This is a great scape' full of potential.

Or algae issues are a case of too much light with insufficient CO2 distribution. 

I'd suggest to lower light intensity.


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## Rabb.D (21 Jan 2012)

*Re: 90x45x45 under the river scape (brown algae attack)pic h*



			
				Mark Evans said:
			
		

> This is a great scape' full of potential.
> 
> Or algae issues are a case of too much light with insufficient CO2 distribution.
> 
> I'd suggest to lower light intensity.



wow that coming from you is fantastic!.. now im officially @#$%^& happy.. made my day!!!... (or maybe my year)haha

on the light.. its funny cause i'm using 39x2 which is what most people on here recommended i also measured my par using the formula found on barrreport and if i'm not mistaken on the soil is around 90+/- i think... which is considered to be moderate to high light... but not to sure how accurate that is considering all the variables... so should i raise the fixture? its about 15cm from water surface... and also co2 is through reactor... which is another strange thing... shouldn't that be more efficient? unless of course its not.. since its actually really cheap heres a pic and also the drop checker seems to be the right color.. slightly light green?





Edit: and i've seen your videos.. they're really beautiful i subscribed a while back... hehe


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## Mark Evans (21 Jan 2012)

*Re: 90x45x45 under the river scape (brown algae attack)pic h*



			
				Rabb.D said:
			
		

> so should i raise the fixture?



Indeed mate. It's how i have all of my lights these days. 

Switching 1 light off would half your lighting and 'spread' would be average at best. 

Raising the light, decreases intensity, but gives you better spread. So, yes, raise it if you can   

On a new tank, we have issues like diatoms, and even with decent co2 distribution, we still can get these minor start up problems. 

The Ottos are good move. Get as many as you can. Also add Amano shrimp at some point. 

increase 50% water changes to maybe 3 x weekly. 



			
				Rabb.D said:
			
		

> i've seen your videos.. they're really beautiful i subscribed a while back... hehe



Thanks for subbing. really appreciated


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## Rabb.D (21 Jan 2012)

*Re: 90x45x45 under the river scape (brown algae attack)pic h*

i have another question, will Amano shrimp uproot my HC in this stage? i think amano shrimps will solve the algae problems now, just wondering if they'll uproot the HC...


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## Mark Evans (21 Jan 2012)

*Re: 90x45x45 under the river scape (brown algae attack)pic h*



			
				Rabb.D said:
			
		

> will Amano shrimp uproot my HC in this stage? i



Everything is possible, but I'd say that it'd be OK. The 'for' far out way the 'against'   8)


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## Rabb.D (21 Jan 2012)

*Re: 90x45x45 under the river scape (brown algae attack)pic h*

that makes sense... i guess its part of the learning curve... i'll give it a shot


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## Rabb.D (24 Jan 2012)

*Re: 90x45x45 under the river scape (brown algae gone)pic hea*

just a little update before i forget.... added the battalion of oto's on the 21st of January, and guess what the brown algae are all almost gone, just a little but here and there... woohoo.. what a relief  now i'm concerned on how to feed the oto's, i'm not a buddhist  ... but i still don't like seeing the oto's die, so for any other newbies like me having new tank syndrome or brown algae bloom, oto's do a great job of cleaning up the tank especially if you're worried of introducing amano shrimps in case there's delicate plants like HC... they'll clean it up in days... 

 i'm guessing there's probably other issues that contributed to the eradication of the brown algae like raising the light fixture, which should have helped a lot... now i need tips on feeding the oto's boiled vegetables seems like the most common answer... and giving back the fish to the LFS will be just as good as flushing it down the drain  so its not an option


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## Rabb.D (15 Feb 2012)

*Re: 90x45x45 under the river scape (pennywort)pic heavy*

hello, just a little update

it's been quite a while since i updated, mostly because i was hoping i would be able to get a lawn of HC before i made another post... unfortunately, i've given HC a rest for now... mainly because i could not find a more efficient way to diffuse Co2, and with the chiller gone and a fan for replacement... the Co2 now is battling with O2 diffused from the surface by the fan.. so its quite hard to supply enough co2 for HC to grow unless.. i up the bps to over 10bps which makes the tank full of bubbles and really ugly, even though now i'm using ISTA's inline diffuser it's still difficult... so now i opted to using lawy marsh pennywort as my foreground, and also my background, though it hasn't grown in yet...

i decided to give the HC a break as i was also getting a little too frustrated... so I decided to go for something easier and give it another try when i find a more efficient way to diffuse Co2, i didn't want the HC demotivating me... also added some fish namely harlequin rasbora, one of my favorite namely because it comes from this region, and some green neon tetra, because i wanted to add a more subtle color to the green... on another note the fan is keeping the temperature at a quite constant 27.5-27.8 peaking at 27.8 unless i make a water change and the afternoon heat piles up on the temperature... here are some pics

edit: on second thoughts i'm getting lime green on the dropchecker, which i think is indication of sufficient Co2, so will try HC again... the Ista inline diffuser seems to be working

green neon tetra's





Harlequin Rasbora's




here is the Ista Fan... for a single fan and a tank this size its very powerful




here's the temperature about half an hour ago




and here's the obligatory FTS


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## Rabb.D (2 Mar 2012)

*Re: 90x45x45 under the river scape (pennywort)pic heavy*

added 2 mini bolbitis... melting a little.. but still quite hopeful it will grow a little picture update...




another pic from my favourite viewing angle where i usually sit and stare when i have the time...  




 my only plans for the tank now is to add 3 more mini bolbitis at the stump area... to cover that ugly spot.. not too sure if it'll grow yet since my current mini bolbitis has signs of melting... and it's quite costly.. then it's just waiting for the plants to grown in... and see where are the areas where i can make improvements... and play around with the scape and make it look decent... after all has grown in... i have plans later to add a pair of dwarf cichlids... maybe red in colour like the popular agassizi.. just to add some personality to the tank... since this tank is my only tank... i'd rather make this tank last as long as i can... and learn as much as possible aquascaping wise and in the horticulture side... right now i'm thinking maybe another year.... or maybe a year and a half... then maybe the inevitable rescape


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## Rabb.D (2 Mar 2012)

*Re: 90x45x45 under the river scape (pennywort)pic heavy*

now i'm using the ista inline diffuser... taiwan made.. seems to work


ork well cost about 58.80 

in action




so far so good, but only at lower bubble counts.. right now i have it at 3-4 bps... but any higher the bubbles will come out into the tank... strangely this inline diffuser is also meant to be placed before the canister filter... a little unsure if the Co2 will degrade the filter... but its in the instructions..


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## BigTom (2 Mar 2012)

*Re: 90x45x45 under the river scape (pennywort)pic heavy*

Hydroctyle seems to be spreading well, will look great when it all fills in.


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## Rabb.D (2 Mar 2012)

*Re: 90x45x45 under the river scape (pennywort)pic heavy*



			
				BigTom said:
			
		

> Hydroctyle seems to be spreading well, will look great when it all fills in.



thanks a lot.. i'm quite happy with the progress of this tank... tried taking as much as possible into consideration... did few months reading before i jumped... no algae.. except some bba and a diatom bloom... so quite successful for my standards scape wise and horticulture wise except when failing with HC


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## Rabb.D (2 Mar 2012)

*Re: 90x45x45 under the river scape (pennywort)pic heavy*

just wondering... why are the pictures blurred at above 100kb?


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## Rabb.D (19 Mar 2012)

*Re: 90x45x45 under the river scape (mostly full)pic heavy*

helo a little update... the pennywort is almost filled in now, except for the right side, some pics






another angle





progress has been good so far, this tank being the easiest to maintain compared to previous halfhearted attempts... considering the lack of algae except the bba(which is now dying) and besides the HC failure, plants were easy to grow and maintain, i personally attribute this to good research a lot on here and homework for i think 2 months during the collecting and saving phase and also.... obviously down to the choices of easy growing plant... this is the first serious attempt and first succesful attempt(at least up until this point...) in the hobby... also can't forget the permitting father and the much indifferent siblings in the small house... lol

scape wise there's still things i want to do... so obviously very much due to the limiting budget and the idea of a having a longer sustaining high tech planted tank, at the moment i'll be giving it till the end of the year to see what other improvements i can make with the scape... also plan on adding a yellow and pink/red spectrum 39 watt t5ho tube

was actually thinking of adding some HC on the top left of the driftwood to having a hanging and veiling effect on the left side...

also added some new goods to the setup namely an up aqua inline atomizer which works great besides the leaks from the co2 tubes due to the high pressure required to work the atomizer some pics...






just bought this check valve with secure scew nuts to prevent burst and leaks from my previous brass check valve, tied up to make sure the connection of the co2 tube to the regulator is straight, to prevent leaks


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## faizal (20 Mar 2012)

*Re: 90x45x45 under the river scape (mostly full)pic heavy*

That is a very nice looking tank   . IMHO i think it's better if you should use the black colored co2 tubing,...I think JBL has one. It's a lot better at preventing leaks as compared to the regular silicon tubing,...especially when one's using the UP aqua.

Congratulations


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## Rabb.D (20 Mar 2012)

*Re: 90x45x45 under the river scape (mostly full)pic heavy*



			
				faizal said:
			
		

> That is a very nice looking tank   . IMHO i think it's better if you should use the black colored co2 tubing,...I think JBL has one. It's a lot better at preventing leaks as compared to the regular silicon tubing,...especially when one's using the UP aqua.
> 
> Congratulations



thanks for the kind words  also thanks for the contact... will check out black tubing, i've seen it before, just never really considered it to be any different, until now... but the co2 tubing i'm using now seems to work great its not the softer rubbery type but the harder plastic kind of tube and the up aqua works great...

on the tank... its not actually finished yet... there still so many things i can do, just takes some free time to stare at it and come up with something... on another note it would be great to see your own tank for a change... when do you plan on making a journal?


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## faizal (20 Mar 2012)

*Re: 90x45x45 under the river scape (mostly full)pic heavy*

 I am the biggest failure to hit UKAPS. But thank you so much for asking. 
My tank's picture is neatly tucked away in the low tech forum. It is NOTHING like what you've got going there.  



			
				Rabb.D said:
			
		

> on the tank... its not actually finished yet... there still so many things i can do, just take some free time to stare at it and come up with something...



Okay    ,...but your aquascaping skills are so much better than what I've come up with in the past.   .


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## Rabb.D (21 Mar 2012)

*Re: 90x45x45 under the river scape (mostly full)pic heavy*



			
				faizal said:
			
		

> Okay    ,...but your aquascaping skills are so much better than what I've come up with in the past.   .



actually i think the only reason everything went so well was because i had nothing else to do...   maybe you're too busy? :idea:


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## faizal (22 Mar 2012)

*Re: 90x45x45 under the river scape (mostly full)pic heavy*



			
				Rabb.D said:
			
		

> faizal said:
> 
> 
> 
> > ...... maybe you're too busy? :idea:



Actually to be quite frank,.... I couldn't come up with anything    . Anyways I am looking forward to copy someone else in the near future.    Still looking for the woods & hardscapes


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## Rabb.D (30 Mar 2012)

*Re: 90cm river bank scape (foreground experiment)pic heavy*

was not too happy with the foreground, the pennywort being strandy and all... so decided to give it a good trim and push the weeds into the ground, but since the roots are still too much of a focul point when looking at the scape from the front i decided to add something that would detract the visuals from the roots and move it higher up the scape, namely in this case 3 pieces of driftwood, placed in the foreground...





was considering to tie Christmas moss on the driftwood, but it might have the opposite effect of what i was looking for,  and instead make the driftwood just blend into the foreground, the driftwood on the right is still floating, the reason for the stone...

other considerations i might add is Blyxa japonica and saggitaria subulata, to reinforce that more tropical and less manicured look, without it being a jungle...


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## Rabb.D (11 Apr 2012)

*Re: 90cm river bank scape (foreground experiment)pic heavy*

so a little update... added some anubias nana petite mini in the midground... here are some pics... just to give a better transition from foreground, midground and to the back... eeh getting somewhat philosophical now.. hehehe

















although i'm still can't figure out where to put, Blyxa japonica and saggitaria subulata in the mid ground... still looking for a good spot... will take a few days of staring at the tank which i haven't done lately... but will go about doing when i have time... fun stuff, fun stuff...


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## Antipofish (11 Apr 2012)

*Re: 90cm river bank scape (foreground experiment)pic heavy*

Super pics.  Would love to see the enlargements of them and really get inside that tank.  Its a cracking scape.


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## Rabb.D (11 Apr 2012)

*Re: 90cm river bank scape (foreground experiment)pic heavy*



			
				Antipofish said:
			
		

> Super pics.  Would love to see the enlargements of them and really get inside that tank.  Its a cracking scape.



oh wow thanks a lot... will definitely get some good close ups... haven't even tried that part of photography yet will give it a shot   hehe


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## Ady34 (11 Apr 2012)

*Re: 90cm river bank scape (foreground experiment)pic heavy*

Hi there,
this scape is really coming into its own now as things are filling in, especially the hydrocotle around the substrate branches. Anubias looks great and i think the blyxa would look good just to the right of the left hand java fern, between the branch and the rear hydrocotle, slightly left of centre (not as far along as the anubias branch). Saggitaria subulata, maybe at the far left to add a transition to the upright branch? 
Im a fan of the in situ shots as they give a great impression of how the tank feels.
Looking good.   
Cheerio,
Ady.


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## Rabb.D (15 May 2012)

as the title says i've finally figured out what it takes go grow hc, namely flow, and nutrient distribution, while light is largely a flexible variable here are some pics of some of the hc that grew wild on its own and is now planted in the foreground






so finally figured it out i think this is an important milestone for me, with sure signs that i'm improving on a personal pace, though my studies and whatnot has kept me busy, i think after a month of assignments, i think i'm rediscovering this hobby...lol... 

my plans for this tank, is to stay with this scape till i exhaust all my ideas, or the soil turns muddy, and also to get a cheap 150 watt metal halide, which i know is a little bright but lucky for me...   i have a really tall light stand, and also the bluish tint of the ADA bulb really fascinates me, looks impressive would really like to get a hand on one of those bulbs... when... i have the cash...

the success of the hc growing is largely due to the 3 power heads i have position in 3 corners of the tank, which is really efficient at distributing nutrient and circulating the water, and the growth is also due the up aqua atomizer i have position before the filter which is really efficient at diffusing the co2, and also i try to dose some seachem excel which makes the plants just that much more green and lush looking...


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## Antipofish (15 May 2012)

Everything sure is looking healthy in there.  Congrats on the HC.  You have more patience than me !!


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