# Once upon a time at the riverbank - Final update



## GreenNeedle (2 Mar 2009)

This is the start of the journal following me taking down 'Celestial Rapture'.

A quick recap of the Tech Specs:

125Ltr 80cm Fluval tank
Tetratec EX700 external Filter
Hydor ETH200 inline filter
Koralia1 circulation pump
Pressurised CO2 through glass diffuser
37W 5500K LED lighting 9 hours a day set to sunrise/sunset stagger.

Plants:
Philippine Java Fern
Needle Leaf Fern
Anubias Barteri v Nana
Cryptocoryne Undulata
Cryptocoryne Wilisii
Cryptocoryne Becketti
Cryptocoryne Wendtii Brown
Cryptocoryne Wendtii Green
Cryptocoryne Wendtii Tropica
Cryptocoryne Parva

Livestock:
6 x Corydoras Schultzei black (breeding group)
2 x Otocinclus Macrospilus
3 x Microrasbora Erythmicron
Cherry Shrimp
and 25 x Rasbora Espei tht are due tomorrow

Starting with the hardscape cleaned up from the previous setup:





Then we have the plants from the previous scape that I am taking into this scape:




And the substrate all tidied up:




First off I attached the Philippine Fern to it's 'mount' with.......




And then I attached the needles and Anubias to the main hardscape pieces.  Next step was to put the wood into the tank:




Finally for this post, I added the cobbles/pebbles around the base of the wood ready to fill up:




Can't show you pictures of the finished planted setup yet because I cannot see into the tank. lol.  I have a fluval3+ in there with carbon inside and filter wool to clear it up ASAP.  This is on top of a 50% change 10 hours after initial setup.

AC


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## YzemaN (2 Mar 2009)

*Re: Once upon a time at the riverbank 125Ltr*

Nice hardscape. With your fern growing skills this will look awesome. What about the left hand side. Is it going to be stems only?


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## GreenNeedle (2 Mar 2009)

*Re: Once upon a time at the riverbank 125Ltr*

I don't do stems   Several different varieties of Crypts will fill the rest of the scape out

AC


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## YzemaN (2 Mar 2009)

*Re: Once upon a time at the riverbank 125Ltr*

Cool. I love crypts. In fact the more I looked at your previous scape, the more I want to do a hardscape, ferns, crypts-only scape myself.


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## Tony Swinney (2 Mar 2009)

*Re: Once upon a time at the riverbank 125Ltr*

Looks great SC !

Do you attach everything to the wood with glue ?

Cheers

Tony


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## Superman (2 Mar 2009)

*Re: Once upon a time at the riverbank 125Ltr*

Looking good.
I could do with a tidy up on my scape soon as the crypts are getting a bit out of hand. At least I know how they grow now.


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## leetaylor (2 Mar 2009)

*Re: Once upon a time at the riverbank 125Ltr*

Thats quite a spread of plants you got there! is super glue OK to use in a tank?


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## Garuf (2 Mar 2009)

*Re: Once upon a time at the riverbank 125Ltr*

Very nice andy, I can't help but feel thereneeds to be something to link the left hand island to the right hand garden, otherwise very nice!


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## Thomas McMillan (2 Mar 2009)

*Re: Once upon a time at the riverbank 125Ltr*

Looks great, can't wait to see the pics of how it is now!


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## aaronnorth (2 Mar 2009)

*Re: Once upon a time at the riverbank 125Ltr*

that looks great.


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## GreenNeedle (2 Mar 2009)

*Re: Once upon a time at the riverbank 125Ltr*



			
				Tonser said:
			
		

> Do you attach everything to the wood with glue ?



Everything you see in that picture apart from a couple of Anubias is superglued.  Some of the Anubias I was able to 'stuff' in a gap in the rocks/wood.  Of all the pieces only 1 came off when the water went in so I had to resort to the hated cotton thread.  Yes superglue is safe in the fish tank. Let it go hard first though.  10-20 minutes is fine and you can spray the plants in this period as moisture is the bonding agent for Superglue.



> I can't help but feel thereneeds to be something to link the left hand island to the right hand garden


When you see it with all the Crypts in it may look better and less isolated.  I have left a little 'path' through between the 2 sections and there is a huge amount of Crypt on the left now.  Just has to learn to grow upward now instead of sideways as there is no fern above it blocking light 

Still quite cloudy now but the carbon is doing it's job.  I can see the back now. lol

AC


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## LondonDragon (2 Mar 2009)

*Re: Once upon a time at the riverbank 125Ltr*

Looking good  you going to keep this one slow growing plants only?


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## Mark Evans (2 Mar 2009)

*Re: Once upon a time at the riverbank 125Ltr*

thats class andy. real different. 

look forward to a clear full frontal shot!


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## GreenNeedle (2 Mar 2009)

*Re: Once upon a time at the riverbank 125Ltr*



> you going to keep this one slow growing plants only?


Yep I think I've settled after trialling all sorts of different types of plants on the traditional 'slow growers'.  I find it easier to control and they tend to grow together well rather than several different types all growing at different rates.



> look forward to a clear full frontal shot!


Should be clear enough tomorrow to take a pic with the new inhabitants   25 x Rasbora Espei due tomorrow to add to the  current stock which is quite low 

AC


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## TDI-line (3 Mar 2009)

*Re: Once upon a time at the riverbank 125Ltr*

Looks great Andy.


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## zig (3 Mar 2009)

*Re: Once upon a time at the riverbank 125Ltr*

Jungle is dead 8) 

Welcome to the dark side Andy (aquascaping)


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## GreenNeedle (3 Mar 2009)

*Re: Once upon a time at the riverbank 125Ltr*

Give it time to grow and then........Jungle lives again  

AC


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## GreenNeedle (4 Mar 2009)

*Re: Once upon a time at the riverbank 125Ltr*

A few shots of the finished article.  Far from clear still but you can at least see through it now. lol

The 25 Rasbora Espei are in there and look great but still to colour up fully.

Full frontal shot:




And a little closer in:




I'm pretty happy with it and can't wait for it to fill out 

AC


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## Mark Evans (4 Mar 2009)

*Re: Once upon a time at the riverbank 125Ltr*

brilliant mate, spot on. cant find fault at all   

imagine what it will end up looking like if it looks so good so soon


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## stephanie (4 Mar 2009)

*Re: Once upon a time at the riverbank 125Ltr*

I love it, its looking very good


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## Steve Smith (4 Mar 2009)

*Re: Once upon a time at the riverbank 125Ltr*

Beautiful mate   It's going to be a stunner!


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## Thomas McMillan (4 Mar 2009)

*Re: Once upon a time at the riverbank 125Ltr*

It looks great! I'm sure it'll look much better when grown in, though - can't wait.


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## Graeme Edwards (4 Mar 2009)

*Re: Once upon a time at the riverbank 125Ltr*

Looks rather nice...
This is typical of the style of aquascape that needs time to bloom. The only thing I will say, is that Anubius at the front may cause your problems getting to close to the glass and become distracting.
I like it though.

Cheers.


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## LondonDragon (4 Mar 2009)

*Re: Once upon a time at the riverbank 125Ltr*

Tank looks awsome after the rescape, good job  will keep an eye on it so see how it develops.
I am liking the sand front, maybe in my next scape, but then again I like carpets more haha


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## Garuf (4 Mar 2009)

*Re: Once upon a time at the riverbank 125Ltr*

Andrew Coley, Aquascaper. Very nice mate, very very nice.


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## aaronnorth (4 Mar 2009)

*Re: Once upon a time at the riverbank 125Ltr*

excellent


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## GreenNeedle (4 Mar 2009)

*Re: Once upon a time at the riverbank 125Ltr*



			
				Graeme Edwards said:
			
		

> The only thing I will say, is that Anubius at the front may cause your problems getting to close to the glass and become distracting.



It's funny you should say that.  When I first filled it up I was looking at the 2 large Anubias closest to the glass and thinking ' I wish I hadn't put those 2 there'.  Reason being because I had this very problem in the last scape with this same size Anubia and had to hack 10cm off the front of it after a couple of months. lol.  I actually moved them this afternoon so maybe it will be OK now.  Glad you like it Graeme.  Can't wait till the ferns grow up again.  I thought I'd spread them thinly this time to let the other plants get a head start before being overshadowed 

Thanks everybody for the other comments. lol.  Not sure that this makes me an aquascaper where previous attempts didn't.  I can see that it is more to many people's tastes than previous scapes though 

AC


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## Nelson (22 Mar 2009)

*Re: Once upon a time at the riverbank 125Ltr*

hi,
any updates    new pics
neil


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## GreenNeedle (1 Apr 2009)

*Re: Once upon a time at the riverbank 125Ltr*

At last I've found time for an update.  Been a little sidetracked over the past few weeks 

The Rasboras are still looking great after month in the tank.  Very hard to count them but I think (and I mean very rough think) that there are 21!!!  I expected a few losses though and 4 gone from 25 is not too bad.  Not seen any bodies.  that's one bane of having shrimp.  You never know if fish have died because unless they are big fish there is no carcass left within a few hours of the shrimp crowding over it.

The plants are growing and there have been a few melted crypt leaves but overall not too much.  A few of the ferns and anubias leaves must've dried out a little too much whilst I was rescaping and they are gradually disintegrating but no algae whatsoever (as I am now accustomed to  )

Pics aren't great but did my best trying to get the right combination of ISO/White Balance and 'EV'?  Apologies to Jeremy for not cleaning the pipes 

So first here is a pic of the tank with the roomlight on so you can see what I see (not exactly the same colour as I see otherwise it would just look like a white space above a cabinet  ):





This is the tank taken from slightly below the tank level looking upward:




This one is taken with the camera level to the tank:




And this is taken from above at an angle:




Onto a couple of pics of the Rasboras.  I forgot to put the 'EV?' back up towards default  on these so they look a little dark  :







Thats it for now but I am reasonably happy.  Will update in about a month or so 

AC


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## TDI-line (1 Apr 2009)

*Re: Once upon a time at the riverbank 125Ltr*

Lovely tank SC, one of my favourites on here.


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## Thomas McMillan (1 Apr 2009)

*Re: Once upon a time at the riverbank 125Ltr*

I can see where this tank is going now, and I really like it! It looks so natural and fish choice is great. Are the Cories still in here? Still breeding?


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## Dan Crawford (1 Apr 2009)

*Re: Once upon a time at the riverbank 125Ltr*

Nice looking scape mate!

Don't let Jeremy see the state of that glassware


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## Steve Smith (1 Apr 2009)

*Re: Once upon a time at the riverbank 125Ltr*

Great mate!  Really inspiring me for my rio 180 when I finally get around to it (it's like one of those picture puzzles that you have to slide the pieces around with my tanks at the moment!)


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## Dave Spencer (1 Apr 2009)

*Re: Once upon a time at the riverbank 125Ltr*

Lovely textures Andy. I think you have captured the title of this thread perfectly. Someone is an aquascaper, whether they like it or not.  

Dave.


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## GreenNeedle (1 Apr 2009)

*Re: Once upon a time at the riverbank 125Ltr*



> Lovely tank SC, one of my favourites on here


A compliment for me to save and appreciate   Many thanks.



> I can see where this tank is going now, and I really like it! It looks so natural and fish choice is great. Are the Cories still in here? Still breeding?


Yep the corys are in there and breeding more prolifically (approx every 4-5 days)but I am still experimenting with the age to transfer them from net in the main tank into the nursery tank and as yet the only survivor is one of the first who is about 2 months old and nearly 2cm long   most interesting fish in the tank too 



> Don't let Jeremy see the state of that glassware


I may add one of these pics to the 'reader's tanks' section on PFK 



> Great mate! Really inspiring me for my rio 180 when I finally get around to it


Thanks for the compliments Steve



> Lovely textures Andy. I think you have captured the title of this thread perfectly. Someone is an aquascaper, whether they like it or not.


It is a first indeed.  I think maybe the reason it looks right is because I named it after I set it up and saw how it looked.  All the previous ones were named before setting up.  

I like being an aquascaper Dave.  Never said I wasn't.  My idea of Jungle isn't throw it in willy nilly and let it get overgrown.  It's more a case of not trimming everything to it's final mm of perfection to the human eye.  I put the hardscape in a way I want the plants to grow around or on and then just trim occasionally.

May be I don't like stems too much.  Look too 'fluffy' to me 

AC


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## Verminator (1 Apr 2009)

*Re: Once upon a time at the riverbank 125Ltr*

Wait am i reading this right from the first post. You used super glue to attach your ferns? Is this practical? If it is i know what i'll be doing from now on, can it also be used for Anubias species on wood   Its a pet hate of mine attaching them things, so if this is a way around it i'll love whoever came up with the idea in the first place!

Stunning tank. Certainly makes me want to overturn my Rio 180 and start over. Mines in a state of neglect at the moment, needs overhauling.


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## George Farmer (1 Apr 2009)

*Re: Once upon a time at the riverbank 125Ltr*

I'm impressed, Andy!  Well done.


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## JaM3z (1 Apr 2009)

*Re: Once upon a time at the riverbank 125Ltr*

Wow that looks awesome, i love harliquins also


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## LondonDragon (1 Apr 2009)

*Re: Once upon a time at the riverbank 125Ltr*

I like those latest photos, very good looking tank, very natural I like it, take some closer shots of the sides catching the gravel, would be nice to have a close of of the textures there, but its looking very good indeed 

Congrats


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## GreenNeedle (1 Apr 2009)

*Re: Once upon a time at the riverbank 125Ltr*

superglue is fine but don't cover the whole of the underside of the rhizome or you will 'seal' it.  I 'dab' the wet plant o the dry rock and that leaves a 'footprint' where it will touch the rock.  Then I put some glue on a few of those spots.

With wood I just put a line of glue and whatever touches it glues.  That means some hits and some misses which works fine.



> I'm impressed, Andy! Well done.


Many thanks George.  I would say that this is the first one that is in the 'favoured' style from the setup but I guess people's opinions may change once I let it fully grow 



> Wow that looks awesome, i love harliquins also


I love harlequins too.  These are Espei though 



> Take some closer shots of the sides catching the gravel


Will try but this is an 80cm tank in a 106cm wide alcove.  there is only a 13cm space between tank and wall at each end 

AC


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## Fred Dulley (1 Apr 2009)

*Re: Once upon a time at the riverbank 125Ltr*



			
				SuperColey1 said:
			
		

> > > Don't let Jeremy see the state of that glassware
> >
> >
> > I may add one of these pics to the 'reader's tanks' section on PFK




He may not mind if it's *61%* cleaned. (see the blog if you don't understand    )

Nice tank, Andy.


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## aaronnorth (1 Apr 2009)

*Re: Once upon a time at the riverbank 125Ltr*

very nice.

lol @ glassware


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## Mark Evans (1 Apr 2009)

*Re: Once upon a time at the riverbank 125Ltr*

i saw this on ASW this morning. really special scape Andy, nicely done mate....actually not nicely....brilliantly!


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## LondonDragon (1 Apr 2009)

*Re: Once upon a time at the riverbank 125Ltr*



			
				SuperColey1 said:
			
		

> Will try but this is an 80cm tank in a 106cm wide alcove.  there is only a 13cm space between tank and wall at each end


Not actually from the side, just a closer shot of the left hand side of the tank and the right hand side from the front 



			
				Fred Dulley said:
			
		

> He may not mind if it's *61%* cleaned. (see the blog if you don't understand    )


haha he might like this one though, colour is a little more like the plastic stuff


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## GreenNeedle (1 Apr 2009)

*Re: Once upon a time at the riverbank 125Ltr*



			
				LondonDragon said:
			
		

> SuperColey1 said:
> 
> 
> 
> ...



Will do Paulo.  The right hand side has changed because I took the photos and then set to work on some aggressive pruning of the Philippine.  Just cutting off the leaves that had suffered from the change and should grow back in decent time.

Also please note all glassware users....This 'dirty' inlet/outlet has brown dirt inside and not a hint of 'green' (algae) which puts them way ahead of garish Eheim parts and even or better than clear ones 



> really special scape Andy, nicely done mate....actually not nicely....brilliantly!


I actually put it on here before ASW but I know what you mean   Thanks for the compliments.

AC


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## GreenNeedle (3 Apr 2009)

*Re: Once upon a time at the riverbank 125Ltr*

Is this what you meant Paulo?  And just for Jeremy the 'non glass' hoses are also the same colour as the glass. 





And a couple of better pics of the Rasboras:







AC


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## George Farmer (3 Apr 2009)

*Re: Once upon a time at the riverbank 125Ltr*

Very nice, Andy.

You should be ashamed of the glassware though!     Algae or no algae...


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## GreenNeedle (3 Apr 2009)

*Re: Once upon a time at the riverbank 125Ltr*

George - I'm copying someone as usual   Dave Spencer gave me the idea 

On a more serious note I took the pictures bfeore thinking about cleaning.  That will happen tonight when I do this week's water change 

AC


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## Thomas McMillan (15 Apr 2009)

*Re: Once upon a time at the riverbank 125Ltr*

Any updates, Andy?


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## GreenNeedle (15 Apr 2009)

*Re: Once upon a time at the riverbank 125Ltr*

Not a lot changed really.  I will update in the next couple of weeks though, probably at the same time as I surprise everyone with something else 

Been concentrating on getting all the bits and bobs on the website.  Didn't realise I'd written so much and done so much on all the forums.  don't know where I found time to scape as well 

AC


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## Dave Spencer (16 Apr 2009)

*Re: Once upon a time at the riverbank 125Ltr*



			
				SuperColey1 said:
			
		

> Dave Spencer gave me the idea
> AC



Amateur! Mine are way more dirty.  

Strangely enough, one of my lily pipes has a slight flaw in the glass that attrats a tiny amount of BGA from time to time. Fortunately, it is easily accessible for cleaning as soon as it appears. Amazing to think that the distrubance in the flow caused by a tiny imperfection could cause BGA in an outlet pipe.

Dave.


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## GreenNeedle (16 Apr 2009)

*Re: Once upon a time at the riverbank 125Ltr*

Dave - Should've got plastic.  It's perfect ya know 

AC


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## Thomas McMillan (16 Apr 2009)

*Re: Once upon a time at the riverbank 125Ltr*

I'm looking forward to this surprise that I keep hearing about!


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## LondonDragon (16 Apr 2009)

*Re: Once upon a time at the riverbank 125Ltr*



			
				SuperColey1 said:
			
		

> Is this what you meant Paulo?  And just for Jeremy the 'non glass' hoses are also the same colour as the glass.


Nope, not sideways, still from the front of the tank, just some zoom ins on the right and left hand side


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## GreenNeedle (6 May 2009)

*Re: Once upon a time at the riverbank 125Ltr*

This journal has gone a little quiet over the last month.  I had some fungus/rot problems with the black Corys which I have been dealing with and today they spawned at record levels   You can see some tail damage in these pictures but the spawn (They haven't spawned since the end of March!!!) says they are over the problem:











In a week or 2 I will update once I sort the tank out a bit.  One inhabitant yet to be ID's is eating Anubias and Ferns!!! I am guess the Rasbora 'hoover' Espei because they will eat anything!!!

AC


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## GreenNeedle (28 May 2009)

*Re: Once upon a time at the riverbank 125Ltr*

After a month or more of struggling with my Corys illnesses I can finally show some pictures of clear water again 

The Corys have had a couple of weeks of a Formaldehyde mix and followed by a week of PimaFake and Melafake and after 2 x 50% water changes today I deiced to take pictures while the water was clear 

Here are the Rasboras during the water change:




The growth of the actual tank has been unaffected and is coming on strong.  Much more vibrant than the earlier days which I wasnt keen on:







Here are a couple of shots with the lights as they would be between 11pm and 11-30pm with just the last 2 series on (14.7W / <0.5WPG)







AC


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## rawr (28 May 2009)

*Re: Once upon a time at the riverbank 125Ltr*

I still absoloutely love this tank! It has to be one, if not the most favourite of mine of all time. 

Glad to see you got the Cories sorted too.


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## Steve Smith (28 May 2009)

*Re: Once upon a time at the riverbank 125Ltr*

Love all the anubias mate   Great looking tank (and nice clean glassware too   )


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## GreenNeedle (28 May 2009)

*Re: Once upon a time at the riverbank 125Ltr*

Cheers for the compliments Thomas 



> and nice clean glassware too



I didn't touch it. honest. it cleaned itself .........or....or.......its always like that....mmmm

AC


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## fish.com1 (29 May 2009)

*Re: Once upon a time at the riverbank 125Ltr*

Loving it Andy


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## aaronnorth (31 May 2009)

*Re: Once upon a time at the riverbank 125Ltr*

very nice, Andy. shame there is such a small group of Jungle lover's on here


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## johnny70 (31 May 2009)

*Re: Once upon a time at the riverbank 125Ltr*

Love it, fantastic jungle


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## GreenNeedle (31 May 2009)

*Re: Once upon a time at the riverbank 125Ltr*



> shame there is such a small group of Jungle lover's on here



Thats OK.  Gives me a niche to corner 

It looks awesome now with crystal clear water   Will see if my camera can show it tonight 

AC


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## altaaffe (31 May 2009)

*Re: Once upon a time at the riverbank 125Ltr*

 

Can't believe I managed to miss this one, must admit I've only been skimming the site for the last couple of months.

Tank's looking great and those corys look fantastic.

I've just tried supergluing for the first time - what a difference it makes, eh ?


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## aaronnorth (31 May 2009)

*Re: Once upon a time at the riverbank 125Ltr*



			
				SuperColey1 said:
			
		

> > shame there is such a small group of Jungle lover's on here
> 
> 
> 
> ...



lol


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## GreenNeedle (13 Jun 2009)

*Re: Once upon a time at the riverbank 125Ltr*

After the Cory sicknesses I stopped dosing Melafake last week and then after a 70% water change on Wednesday the water clarity has returned to 'air like' 

After putting the 25 Espei in (February) and having a few jumpers in the first few weeks the number has been stable at 18 for the last 2 months  I'm pretty happy with that as I wondered how long it would be before they were all gone during the first month or so

A bit of growth to see but as per usual my camera/skills aren't up to the task. lol


















AC


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## Mark Evans (13 Jun 2009)

*Re: Once upon a time at the riverbank 125Ltr*



			
				SuperColey1 said:
			
		

> A bit of growth to see but as per usual my camera/skills aren't up to the task. lol



just give me a shout mate.


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## rawr (13 Jun 2009)

*Re: Once upon a time at the riverbank 125Ltr*

As usual, I love it!  The Espeis really are the best choice of fish for this aquascape.


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## GreenNeedle (13 Jun 2009)

*Re: Once upon a time at the riverbank 125Ltr*

Will do Mark - Just waiting for the right hand rear corner to grow upward and the left hand side to fill up a bit more 

AC


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## GreenNeedle (15 Jul 2009)

*Re: Once upon a time at the riverbank 125Ltr*

Not much of an update really.  Things coming along slowly and all fish still in tact.

Thought I'd post up this picture.  Just a boring Oto, not very interesting but there ya go 





AC


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## TDI-line (15 Jul 2009)

*Re: Once upon a time at the riverbank 125Ltr*

Great pics SC, growth looks lovely.


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## Mark Evans (15 Jul 2009)

*Re: Once upon a time at the riverbank 125Ltr*

so when will you want some high res images of this little babay andy?.....

it's certainly coming along


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## GreenNeedle (15 Jul 2009)

*Re: Once upon a time at the riverbank 125Ltr*

The filling out is taking longer than expected Mark.  Growth is good but I planted a few surprises which are taking their time and cannot be seen at the moment 

They should be more than visible when they fill in. 

My main bone of contention is the centre rear to rear right corner where the flow of the Koralia may be limiting the height a little   We shall see but keep your eyes peeled for any unexpected plants over the next couple of months.  No more will be added but a few unmentioned throughout the journal will appear from 'nowhere' ...........eventually 

I'll give you a buzz when I think its hit the right spot and hopefully there should be many more little 'uns by then.

AC


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## lljdma06 (17 Jul 2009)

*Re: Once upon a time at the riverbank 125Ltr*



			
				SuperColey1 said:
			
		

> Growth is good but I planted a few surprises which are taking their time and cannot be seen at the moment
> 
> They should be more than visible when they fill in.
> 
> ...


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## flygja (17 Jul 2009)

*Re: Once upon a time at the riverbank 125Ltr*

After seeing your tank, I feel like replacing my Rotalas for ferns or crypts for a jungly background. I really like that look.


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## GreenNeedle (17 Jul 2009)

*Re: Once upon a time at the riverbank 125Ltr*

Another convert. thats what I like to hear 

AC


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## GreenNeedle (10 Aug 2009)

*Re: Once upon a time at the riverbank 125Ltr*

A quick update this month.

The Crypts are starting to grow well now.  They don't look much bigger in the picture below but I can see there are more leaves.  Mostly the larger Willisii and Undulata in the centre rear.  The Undulata on the left is also bigger too.

The Fern in the right rear corner is not growing as fast as I expected it to and the little 'surprises' are still not visible yet 

The Rasboras are great.  I've been breeding Mosquito larvae in a bucket at the end of my garden and harvesting them weekly.  The Rasboras go mental over them and go an intense almost red colour.  I think they put their 'hunting' jackets on 

This month will be a tester.  I go to Portugal for 17 days on the 18th.  TAP there and BA back this time.  No more budget airlines    After 4 years of misery with  :silent:jet and  :silent:baby I've decided they're not worth the hassle and they would've actually cost more too.   

While I am away the CO2 will be off,  no ferts will be added and the lights will be reduced to 2 series (0.44WPG.)  shouldn't be a problem as this is a yearly occurrence.  I am considering a condensation tray while I am away though as this tank loses a fair amount of water over a week.  probably in the region of 6-8 litres!!!  If I don't have something to remedy this I will come back to a tank that is about 2 inches lower than it normally is (below the lily pipe.)  Not a problem to the fish or most of the plants but may mean the higher attached ferns and the tips of the rigid large fern would dry out.

Sorry about the dark pictures.  I was playing about with ISO and EV and messed up here. lol













AC


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## aaronnorth (10 Aug 2009)

*Re: Once upon a time at the riverbank 125Ltr*

beautiful tank


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## rawr (10 Aug 2009)

*Re: Once upon a time at the riverbank 125Ltr*

As always, looking great! That's interesting about the larvae - how are they harvested? 

I wanna see what this surprise is too.


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## zig (10 Aug 2009)

*Re: Once upon a time at the riverbank 125Ltr*

Nice


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## Stu Worrall (10 Aug 2009)

*Re: Once upon a time at the riverbank 125Ltr*

looking really good. harlequins behaved for the photograph too!


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## GreenNeedle (10 Aug 2009)

*Re: Once upon a time at the riverbank 125Ltr*

All you need to do for Mosquito Larvae is put some water in a bucket.  Add some grass cuttings which will help you get some green water.  Leave it in the garden, The sunnier the spot the better

A couple of weeks later, Take the grass cuttings off the top and put in another bucket.  Then pour the 2 week old bucket into the one you just put the grass cuttings into through a fishnet.

Get a small tub of dechlor water and empty the contents of the net into it.

Repeat every 2 weeks.

No problems with mosquito larvae in the tank turning into mosquitos because they need stagnant green water.  Our circulation stops them surviving but they wriggle well and the fish love it 

AC


----------



## GreenNeedle (13 Aug 2009)

*Re: Once upon a time at the riverbank 125Ltr*

This post is entitled 'what a difference a day makes 

I have been quite outspoken in the past r.e. black backgrounds and how clear /light backgrounds looked much better but when seeing Mark's (Saintly) latest photos I noticed that it looked amazing.  To me the light was the thing that added the extra to it.  From the pictures his lights looked to be giving the same appearance to the plants as mine so I thought I would try it out.  Tell me what you think (Sorry I didn't wait for the fish to behave and the CO2 is still going and is half an hour after water change to boot  )

No photoshop and no changes made.  These are straight from the camera with EV @ -1.0, white balance on daylight fluorescent, no flash and timer on 2 seconds.  After that I've just used MSPaint to put the black border on 






Just to show you how I did the background to test.  The black is a hairdressers 'poncho' that came with the clippers I use to do my 'crew cut'  then it is pegged to the top of the tank and the wood lent against it to stop light shining through it.  Finally teatowels are hung over the front to block the light from messing about with the camera 











AC


----------



## rawr (13 Aug 2009)

*Re: Once upon a time at the riverbank 125Ltr*

Wow, when I saw it I thought you had done a rescape or something! 

It's made a great difference and I think you should keep it. 

My tank has a black background and I never really notice it any more but I would be lost without it.


----------



## Garuf (13 Aug 2009)

*Re: Once upon a time at the riverbank 125Ltr*

Never liked black backgrounds and still don't  If you like it keep it but it's not for me. I always feel they suck the life out of a scape.


----------



## aaronnorth (13 Aug 2009)

*Re: Once upon a time at the riverbank 125Ltr*

great job


----------



## french tony (13 Aug 2009)

*Re: Once upon a time at the riverbank 125Ltr*

I love this tank. It's one of my favourite I have to say. Great effort. The lighting rig Looks great too. I'd love to have the whole right to left through the day effect.

Excellent job!


----------



## GreenNeedle (20 Sep 2009)

*Re: Once upon a time at the riverbank 125Ltr*

Its been a long time since I updated this as I have been suffering a huge lack of motivation to do anything at all.  Not just with the tank but with most things in general.  This is a 'backdated' update so to speak with pictures from 16th August.

You may notice the improvement in my photography   Thats because Mark (Saintly) came round and took some shots for me  and they look superb.  These are prior to me going on holiday.





















AC


----------



## Mark Evans (20 Sep 2009)

*Re: Once upon a time at the riverbank 125Ltr*

next time andy, we'll have some targets to hit, and spend a bit more time on it....and get some fish that play ball   

quality scape my friend


----------



## viktorlantos (20 Sep 2009)

*Re: Once upon a time at the riverbank 125Ltr*

wow. really nice tank mate! this looks awesome.   
Mark, the photos are brilliant. Too bad that i am so far, would need your help too


----------



## aaronnorth (20 Sep 2009)

*Re: Once upon a time at the riverbank 125Ltr*

excellent scape, adding a surface ripple changes the picture too


----------



## rawr (20 Sep 2009)

*Re: Once upon a time at the riverbank 125Ltr*

It's maturing great! Really does look like a jungly river bank.

I want.


----------



## hydrophyte (22 Sep 2009)

*Re: Once upon a time at the riverbank 125Ltr*

That is wonderful. It has grown in so nicely. Somehow it looks more like something that you might actually see out in nature, rather than a planted garden.


----------



## George Farmer (22 Sep 2009)

*Re: Once upon a time at the riverbank 125Ltr*

Congrats, Andy (and Mark)!  

The 'scape has been done justice by the photography and the overall result is excellent.


----------



## Dan Crawford (22 Sep 2009)

*Re: Once upon a time at the riverbank 125Ltr*

That looks awesome Andy! Well impressive, i bet your chuffed with it


----------



## Superman (22 Sep 2009)

*Re: Once upon a time at the riverbank 125Ltr*

Well done Andy, truly amazing. Loving the fern.


----------



## GreenNeedle (22 Sep 2009)

*Re: Once upon a time at the riverbank 125Ltr*



> next time andy, we'll have some targets to hit, and spend a bit more time on it....and get some fish that play ball
> 
> quality scape my friend


Cheers matey.  This one will be around for a long time hopefully.  I have to thank you again for the photos.  They do look great.


			
				Dan Crawford said:
			
		

> That looks awesome Andy! Well impressive, i bet your chuffed with it


Indeed I am.  Hence why I decided to keep it and therefore have sold the pressurised.  No need for CO2 to maintain it as the much slower growth is more desirable now 


> wow. really nice tank mate! this looks awesome.





> That is wonderful. It has grown in so nicely. Somehow it looks more like something that you might actually see out in nature, rather than a planted garden.





> Congrats, Andy (and Mark)!
> The 'scape has been done justice by the photography and the overall result is excellent.





> excellent scape, adding a surface ripple changes the picture too





> It's maturing great! Really does look like a jungly river bank.
> I want.





> Well done Andy, truly amazing. Loving the fern.


Thanks for the compliments guys.

AC


----------



## aaronnorth (22 Sep 2009)

*Re: Once upon a time at the riverbank 125Ltr*

have you reduced the lighting then? or was it pretty low to begin with?


----------



## GreenNeedle (22 Sep 2009)

*Re: Once upon a time at the riverbank 125Ltr*



			
				aaronnorth said:
			
		

> have you reduced the lighting then? or was it pretty low to begin with?



I have reduced it in terms of lengthening the increments of the stagger.  In other words the full 5 series are now only on for the central hour and there is only 1 series for the first and last hour.

Used to be 4 hours with the full 5 series and 1 series for the first and last half hour.

So the total lighting is the same but less light overall through the photoperiod.

AC


----------



## aaronnorth (23 Sep 2009)

*Re: Once upon a time at the riverbank 125Ltr*

thanks, i have been thinking about switching to T8s and going no CO2 aswell. not as if i need it


----------



## GreenNeedle (24 Apr 2010)

*Re: Once upon a time at the riverbank 125Ltr*

16th September 2009

Following my return from holiday the scape was looking pretty good considering it had been under 0.4WPG with no dosing and no CO2 for 17 days. As the CO2 bottle I was currently using was nearly empty I made a decision that this tank will be moving to a non CO2 slow growing method. Therefore I sold my pressurised CO2 kit.



13th December 2009

2 months on from switching the setup over to the non CO2 route things are still going great. This scape is now over a year old. On the fish front the Otto kept playing 'chicken' with the filter intake and after several rescues I think it had had too much and disappeared. The young cory fry has been doing great and is almost as large as the male adult. The rasbora count is now at 15 although one seems to have a growth on its side.

Other news is that I built another cabinet for the tank. This was due to a total revamp of the lounge and therefore a change of decor. The new cabinet is stand alone rather than being supported by walls and then veneered to match a tall display unit I built.


















I will try and get this right up to date as soon as I can 

AC


----------



## flygja (25 Apr 2010)

*Re: Once upon a time at the riverbank 125Ltr*

This is definitely my favourite low-maintenance scape ever!


----------



## rawr (25 Apr 2010)

*Re: Once upon a time at the riverbank 125Ltr*

Great to see you back  I've missed this aquascape and of course it's looking good as ever.


----------



## GreenNeedle (5 May 2010)

*Re: Once upon a time at the riverbank 125Ltr*

This aquascape is now 14 months old. It has not had CO2 injection or water changes for 8 months yet the water quality is still fine. It rarely has any ferts added, maybe 4 or 5 times in that period have I added anything. The only maintenance I do now is a monthly filter/pipe clean and daily feeding.

This is what I wanted. This is what most people would like. All my time is free to sit and watch.

On the fish front there are now 14 Rasbora Espei and 2 black corys. since the last update in December the juvenile cory fry which was at the time already as large as the male but a definate female in shape disappeared. Also during this period one of the rasboras had a 'cystlike' growth on its abdomen and succumbed after a month or so. Other than this there have been no worries.

During the past 5 months the corys have spawned twice. The first time no eggs hatched but the second time approx 12 fry appeared. They are in the nursery tank 'Castaway'

The new cabinet is finished and looks great.

The LED unit is now 16 months old and has had no problems at all. Nothing needed repairing, nothing blown, no issues at all.





















The tank looks dark in these last 2 because I reduced the EV to show the light.











AC


----------



## bigmatt (5 May 2010)

*Re: Once upon a time at the riverbank 125Ltr*

Very nice!  Did youcustom build the lights AND the housing?  I'm thinking about a custom build light set with halogens and was wondering how to go about it
Cheers
Matt


----------



## George Farmer (5 May 2010)

*Re: Once upon a time at the riverbank 125Ltr*

Brilliant low-maint set-up, Andy!  Looks wonderful and great bonus that you hardly have to touch it.

Is there any need for the additional circulation from the powerhead in such a low-energy set-up?

And nice you see on UKAPS again...


----------



## GreenNeedle (5 May 2010)

*Re: Once upon a time at the riverbank 125Ltr*



> Did youcustom build the lights AND the housing



I Custom built the housing, the lights and the cabinet.  They're LED not halogen   Not a fan of Halogen lights really.  Kitchen lighting that needs bulbs changing far too often put me off those for life 



			
				George Farmer said:
			
		

> Is there any need for the additional circulation from the powerhead in such a low-energy set-up?



Thanks for the compliment George.  Personally I think whether it is slow speed low maintenance or high speed 'high maintenance' the nutrient and CO2 still needs pushing around the same.

After all proportionally the amounts may be the same.  High light fast growth we add CO2 and nutrient.  Low light slow growth we don't.  It is only low power consumption so I just leave it in there.  I may remove or move it at some point though as the Philippine Java Fern below it has never really taken off like it did prior to being sat under it.  I don't know whether it is as simple as having a little more shade or if the Koralia is starving that corner.  Something to try out with a simple test of:

If I leave the Koralia there but not turned on does the plant start to grow.
If I remove the Koralia altogether does it start to grow 

Another reason for it is that I find that since I went the non CO2 and non fert route that my filter clogs pretty quickly (5.6x) and so needs cleaning monthly rather than 3 monthly as I did before and therefore there isn't too much circulation a week after cleaning.

We shall see as your point is something I have been pondering over the last week or 2 

AC


----------



## GreenNeedle (13 Aug 2010)

*Re: Once upon a time at the riverbank 125Ltr*

WOW just noticed I haven't updated this for 3 whole months 

17 MONTHS IN NOW AND STILL COUNTING. 10 MONTHS SINCE LAST WATER CHANGE.

A few changes since then so I will be taking some pictures in the next week and doing a proper update BUT for now:

I mentioned that I had 12 Cory fry that hatched and that was about April 20th or so.  They were left in 'Castaway' until they were about a month old so about 1cm long and filled out.

10 survived to the month stage.  These were then transferred into this tank at the end of May and since then they have been growing rapidly   Good job because just before this the adult male looked like he had a cataract.  He died shortly after so no adult male!!!  I'm not too bothered about blood lines etc.  These aren't going to be sold.  If I do decide to breed and sell I shall get some more and mix 'em up.

To date I know 1 juvy from the 10 has died.  Was the runt and less than a third  the size of the others.  Just noticed this morning a mountain of shrimp at the front and a tap on the glass revealed their 'swag'.  I assume the other 9 are fine but as with all my scapes you can't see these things.  I counted 8 the other day but there are far too many hiding places and unviewable areas. lol

I have also spotted the espei spawning but as yet haven't seen eggs.  Apparently they do the same as Corys in laying eggs on leaves but unlike the Corys who spread eggs everywhere, rasboras lay their eggs only under large broader leaves as they are affected by light.  the leaf protects them.  When they do this they look like they are flicking except as a pair.  This is what caught my attention.  I rushed to the tank thinking there may be a problem due to their 'flicking'  Would be cool if I can get these breeding too as there is no bloodline problem with them.

Now I must give George some credit r.e. the post above on circulation.    He mentioned about the need for the Koralia and whilst I had also been thinking about removing I needed the nudge.  I did it the next day and still no algae   We shall see what happens as I have redone the Java fern that was sat below it and guess what?  I was surprised to see that the surprise I spoke about (a year or more ago) is still in there although smaller than it was when I put it there.  I won't keep you in suspenders any longer as it will probably never ever be seen   I planted some Vallis right in the rear corner behind the Java.  It was mixed with some Crypts I bought at the time and I thought I'd put them in and see if it looked any good once grown.  Unfortunately it was about 3 inches tall then and only 1 inch now but its still there and looks healthy.

Something I will whisper as I have always laughed and joked about the EOC (Eheim owners club) and how defensive they are over their beloved brand.  Hmmmmmmmmm---   :text-imnewhere: I joined them.

I got sick of the Tetratec.  It was noisy even with its second impeller in (was 3 years old when I ditched it) It was hard to clean, clogged quickly, flow slowed considerably due to clogging quickly, looked ugly, was big and made a vibration through my cabinet from its hard rubber feet.

Of course I thought that it was normal until I got an Eheim pro II 2224 inc media for Â£75 delivered and brand new.  When I hooked that up I knew all of the above was not normal and so for all the berating of the EOC  :text-imsorry: You were all correct and I most definately was in the wrong.

I must also add that as I have no concerns r.e. cycling etc I just washed the new media, put it in and started up the filter.  No swapping of media.   I didn't see any problems in the tank.  No bacterial blooms, no flicking, no gasping.

Why did I go for the 2224?  Not for the price or I would've gotten a classic.  It was because it was the same flow rating of 700lph as the Tetratec and also because it was the same diameter hose so I wouldn't have to change Lily pipes.

I love it.  This really is virtually silent and with it's soft rubber feet the vibration through the cabinet is gone. I can only hear the filter working if I put my head close to it but move away or close the cabinet door and nothing.

plus points:
The powerhead comes off with no force.  Just unclip and take off.  The Tetratec was a brute force effort to take off and put on.
Has never leaked whereas the Tetratec could take a few attempts at replacing the powerhead before it didn't leak.
Flow is better when cleaned and stays better until I want to clean.
Looks better and is smaller.
The powerhead and hose connection assembly is much easier to disconnect. clean and the clip around the hose rather than the scew on 'compressors' are much better.

minus points:
hoses are rubbish.  Made of too soft rubber.  I put them on and instant kinks.  Put the Tetra ones back on and they are fine.
The media is top draw at doing its job but means I have to clean it seperately rather than throw the lot from the filter into the bucket.  those little balls and little hopps in the same bucket means I am there for 30 minutes seperating so I clean them seperately instead.lol

Why is not having a prime button not a minus?  Because on the Tetratec the prime button was as stiff as **** and even when you got it pushed down you felt water come out from it.  Always hurt my shoulder muscles trying to contort myself into a position to get enough force.  So the prime button was pretty pointless for me   Easier to connect the Eheim up, suck the lily for a second and then walk away.

Oh and the LED MkII has now got proper luminaire hanging equipment.  No more chains.

Piccies soon and Long live Jungle.  Whoever said it was dead (on page 2 or 3 or......). lol  You shall see.

AC


----------



## George Farmer (13 Aug 2010)

*Re: Once upon a time at the riverbank May 2010 Update*

Nice write up, Andy.

I look forward to the pics!


----------



## NeilW (13 Aug 2010)

*Re: Once upon a time at the riverbank May 2010 Update*

Sounds like the tank is going from strength to strength!   

You must be really doing something right for all those fish wanting to spawn.  Maybe this is one of the benefits of a low-tech scape in that it emulates the 'natural' world better without the stresses of CO2 and lack of hiding spaces.  

I love this tank; all the aesthetics of Amano but without all the donkey work with water changes and such.



			
				SuperColey1 said:
			
		

> I can only hear the filter working if I put my head close to it but move away or close the cabinet door and nothing.



I find this with my Eheim too I love it   Its a bit scary though because I always think I forgot to turn the filter back on though  

So in conclusion lovely looking tank, great work!   

Cheers,
Neil


----------



## cheesy feet (26 Aug 2010)

*Re: Once upon a time at the riverbank May 2010 Update*

Great journal, really love this tank...I love the jungley look  
It's awesome how you've effectively got a little ecosystem running perfectly.


----------



## dw1305 (27 Aug 2010)

*Re: Once upon a time at the riverbank May 2010 Update*

Hi all,
I'd never read this thread before. Congratulations both very interesting and inspirational.
cheers Darrel


----------



## GreenNeedle (28 Aug 2010)

*Re: Once upon a time at the riverbank May 2010 Update*

Will get these photos done in the next few days.  Casio camera stopped working.  Sold it as faulty for Â£23.50+shipping on ebay and then bought a Fujifilm for Â£23 inc shipping.  50p profit. lol

The Fuji camera is only 7mp compared to the Casio 10mp but I was never that happy with the Casio and this one has good reviews (should say had due to its age. lol)

Now just waiting for a card adaptor because XD cards don't fit into any of the slots on my PC 

Takes everything else except for XD it seems without adaptors. lol

So a few days waiting for the adaptor then a couple of days getting used to how this fuji works and how to get something reasonable out of it and away we go. lol

Thanks for the compliment Darryl.

I've been doing some serious work on both scapes.  Mainly trimming the needles right back to open up the view to the wood, show the sand foreground and also to give a little more room for the Java Fern to grow into in the right rear.  I'm also trying to sort out the transition from the front to rear on the left hand side and centre.  It was not going the way I wanted really in that it went from low (Crypt Parva/Anubias etc.  Straight to the larger Crypts.  BasIcally the midground was just a view through stems.

I want them both ready for IAPLC next year   Thats right, I am going to enter a 3 year old non CO2 setup into IAPLC. lol  These photos will be the last full shots until May or so next year.

AC


----------



## hydrophyte (29 Aug 2010)

*Re: Once upon a time at the riverbank May 2010 Update*

I remember this setup from some time ago. You have had it going for a while. I look forward to seeing a photo update.


----------



## Mark Evans (29 Aug 2010)

*Re: Once upon a time at the riverbank May 2010 Update*

need a hand Andy, with images? gimmee a shout. I reckon we could improve on the last images ten fold.


----------



## GreenNeedle (29 Aug 2010)

*Re: Once upon a time at the riverbank May 2010 Update*

Mark

If this camera shows what I am seeing you are going to be pestering me more than last time 

Ianho came round today and I took the black background away to show him what it looked like then.  It hasn't gone back 

Looks fantastic.  Just got to wait for plants to fill in a little now. Did a little rearranging.

I'll try and do some basic pics with the webcam.  I am eager to show it   The Espeis are looking incredible.  and 10 month old water looking as if I am using purigen and fresh water 

AC


----------



## Mark Evans (29 Aug 2010)

*Re: Once upon a time at the riverbank May 2010 Update*

Just let me know when mate   

what's your preference on background?


----------



## GreenNeedle (29 Aug 2010)

*Re: Once upon a time at the riverbank May 2010 Update*

You shall see soon.  I'm trying to edit a video 

AC


----------



## Ian Holdich (29 Aug 2010)

*Re: Once upon a time at the riverbank May 2010 Update*

i saw this scape today in reality, after getting some Needle fern and java moss from AC (top quality stuff BTW). Its an awesome looking scape, even though Andy kept saying he'd thinned it out, it still looked very natural and very asteticly pleasing. Nice one AC!


----------



## GreenNeedle (30 Aug 2010)

*Re: Once upon a time at the riverbank May 2010 Update*

Ianho (a member on here) came round today and I thought I would share with you what he saw.

So I made a video.  Unfortunately I used my webcom as I am waiting on a card reader for my phone but it gives and idea albeit with not great clarity 

Hope you enjoy and yes the scape has had a bit of 'surgery' this week and been thinned out incredibly.

I will say one thing though.  Not being negative but this is the only forum that I can't embed the video!!!  Looks much better than a link.  Maybe something for the future.



Regards
AC


----------



## Garuf (30 Aug 2010)

*Re: Once upon a time at the riverbank May 2010 Update*

Looks great Andy, shame it's not in full hd, it's as pretty as any of the reefs that get the HD treatment. 

Are we calling the 2 x 12w experiment a failure by the way?


----------



## GreenNeedle (30 Aug 2010)

*Re: Once upon a time at the riverbank May 2010 Update*

Not a failure.  I just couldn't use the 2 x 12V as a 24V.  Something happening there with the circuitry 

Inonclusive I would say. Needs trialling on a 24V setup but I can't see a problem.  7 through 1 controller on 24V will get closer to max than the 4 through 1 controller on the 12V.

Try 6 that will defo work, then try 7 and see what the difference is.  I would bet each will be slightly less bright however overall you will have a little more (If you know what I mean  ) + 7 LEDs = better spacing than 6 (slightly)

You may notice that my 1.125WPG in that video is actually 10" above water line and 23" above substrate.  It is still too bright for the camera. lol

The video was limited to 640x480 due to the web camera.  The camer I will use next time can do much better  I think.  And I will convert it to MP4 and use something different to windows movie maker which seems to insist on .wmv

AC


----------



## Mark Evans (30 Aug 2010)

*Re: Once upon a time at the riverbank AUGUST VIDEO UPDATE*

wait until you get a 5dmk in front of it....I hope it's a clean tank Mr C 

the camera isn't flattering any way shape or form


----------



## GreenNeedle (30 Aug 2010)

*Re: Once upon a time at the riverbank AUGUST VIDEO UPDATE*

Lol @ ebay cheap camera bargains.  I think the firmware on this camera is a little duff.  Plug into USB and the computer doesn't do anything.  No 'Found new hardware' and then cannot install etc.  Just nothing.  Installed transfer protocol and USB driver from fujifilm site and tried several mini USB cables but there ya go. lol

So here is the silly thing.  I plug it into the TV and then take pictures of the pictures on the TV with the camera phone. lol.

Should've just used the cameraphone in the first place.

First 3 pics from cameraphone taking pictures of photos from the camera on the TV:














The next 4 from the camera phone directly.  These are a little yellower than reality!!!:



















AC


----------



## GreenNeedle (30 Aug 2010)

*Re: Once upon a time at the riverbank AUGUST VIDEO UPDATE*

Sorry to keep posting. lol

I am going to rip out the whole left to centre background and midground tonight.  All the Crypts.  Then I am going to size them and replant accordingly.  Just looks a mess at the mo.

_'Take out established 18 month Crypt roots'_ you say _'Gonna be a big mess'_  You say?

Watch and learn.  These will be pulled up half an inch to an inch.  curved scissors cut the roots.  Leave the roots behind.  The sand will hold the Tropica down.

Done it a fair few times before.

However with a major disturbance of a 3 year old substrate I shall be doing a fair few water changes over the next couple of days and open the windows cos it's gonna stink. lol.  Good job its nice and warm at the mo.

So I won't be able to say _'I haven't done a waterchange for 10 months'_ anymore.  It will be I've only done 1 water change in 10 months now. lol (I count all these water changes as one because it is purely to remove any nasties I am releasing from the substrate)

We are also talking circa 50 Crypt+ in that area 

Will post up pics when done and water clear (if this card reader arrives and if the camera is any good)

Regards
AC


----------



## Lisa_Perry75 (31 Aug 2010)

*Re: Once upon a time at the riverbank 125Ltr*

Loving this tank, looks really lush and takes low-tech to a whole new level! 



			
				SuperColey1 said:
			
		

> Of course I thought that it was normal until I got an Eheim pro II 2224 inc media for Â£75 delivered and brand new.  When I hooked that up I knew all of the above was not normal and so for all the berating of the EOC  :text-imsorry: You were all correct and I most definately was in the wrong.


Just wondered where you got the Eheim so cheap from?!


----------



## GreenNeedle (31 Aug 2010)

*Re: Once upon a time at the riverbank AUGUST VIDEO UPDATE*

Bought it here FREE DELIVERY  and arrived 3 days later to boot.

http://www.theaquariumshop.co.uk/shoppi ... ings_id=39

AC


----------



## GreenNeedle (31 Aug 2010)

*Re: Once upon a time at the riverbank AUGUST VIDEO UPDATE*

August mega update - part 1

A mega update this month. Unfortunately due to my camera breaking and my new camera using xD cards I am still waiting for an adaptor so the pictures here have been taken on a Samsung camera phone.

However whilst messing about getting used to it's 'quirks' I took lots of pictures and I liked quite a few of them. Therefore this.update will be split into 3 parts. This is part 1 and will focus on some major changes I have made to the aquascape.

I have felt for a while that I needed to sort out the midground in the centre and left of the aquascape. Due to the Crypts growing where they wanted to over the last 18 months It had become a little unbalanced and after the foreground was just a mass of stems. I also thinned out the needle fern to let some light down to these areas. Finally two of the anubias have been 'shortened' and the cuttings moved elsewhere.

So no messing about. Out came all the Crypts from this rear corner. 124 in all. I would estimate this to be circa Â£300 worth of plants.

Once they were out of the tank I laid them out in sizes and then started to replant from the rear left corner with the largest to the midground with the smaller ones.

This was immediately followed by a 50% water change to dilute anything that came out of the 3 year old substrate from this major disturbance. This is the first water change in nearly a year. The process can be seen below.


















Regards
AC


----------



## GreenNeedle (31 Aug 2010)

*Re: Once upon a time at the riverbank AUGUST MEGA UPDATE*

August mega update  - part 2

Part 2 will focus on the livestock within the tank. With the tank thinned out somewhat I can now count the fish properly. I found 3 dried out Rasboras behind the tank. They must have been there a fair while. This tallies with my count of 12.

Of the 10 Cory fry that I put in the tank the runt of the 'litter' died last month. These are a bit harder to count as they are black and also some tend to 'rest' in dark areas whilst others are buzzing around the tank and then swap places. I managed to count 7 of them but 1 is in a poor state with tatty finnage. I don't think this one will survive. The large mother is still there and looking as majestic as always. She really is a stunning fish and pretty big to boot.

The cherry shrimp colony continues to dominate this tank. There is no way of counting these as there are quite literally hundreds. I give some away but each month there are 50+ in my filter alone when I go to clean it. I don't have the heart to let them go into the sink so they go back into the tank. 

The MTS are a little more under control. The shrimp see to that. The shrimp are so quick to anything edible that the MTS tend not to find enough food and therefore their colony stays at a noticeable but manageable level.






























Regards
AC


----------



## GreenNeedle (31 Aug 2010)

*Re: Once upon a time at the riverbank AUGUST MEGA UPDATE*

August mega update - part 3

Part 3 is the outcome of today's endeavours.

The aquascape is looking quite bare at this point but even with no CO2 or ferts these plants grow fast. They may be considered as slow growers by most people but I can assure you that when you know how to grow them they grow fast and pretty thick too.

The Crypts are still looking a little messy but the leaves and stems are a little contorted from their previous positions. I expect them to adjust to face the light and therefore should tidy themselves up.

There is a noticeable space in the centre midground but this should be blocked from view by the needle ferns once they grow back in.











So as the sun sets on a particularly busy day the inhabitants of 'Once upon a time at the riverbank' can look forward to some peace at last.











The mega update completed I wish you goodnight (for now)










Regards
AC


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## NeilW (31 Aug 2010)

*Re: Once upon a time at the riverbank AUGUST MEGA UPDATE*

My gosh that is a lot of shrimp and crypts!   

Loving this picture;


			
				SuperColey1 said:
			
		

>



Lovely stuff


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## aaronnorth (1 Sep 2010)

*Re: Once upon a time at the riverbank AUGUST MEGA UPDATE*

love the sunset lighting, looking great as always.


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## yoda (1 Sep 2010)

*Re: Once upon a time at the riverbank AUGUST MEGA UPDATE*

amazing thread & tank, im totally inspired to try something alone these lines as crypts & java ferns are my favorite plants, but i wouldnt know where to begin to create this. thought it was gonna go pear shaped when you decided against co2 & ferts but it worked fine for you & just goes to show that a masterpiece doesn't need all the high tech gear (or water changes for that matter).

this truly is a piece of living art & you deserve massive respect.

JUNGLE LIVES!!!!!!!


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## GreenNeedle (1 Sep 2010)

*Re: Once upon a time at the riverbank AUGUST MEGA UPDATE*

Not to blow one's own trumpet but it isn't so much the 'method' alone that kept the scape alive.

Its backed up by a great setup:
Lights are adpatable to suit needs
Heavy root plants keep O pumping into the substrate
Very good substrate laid out initially
And of course experience plays a large part in that I have been using these particular types of plants now for a few years with almost no others.  Over that time I've grown to know what I need to do (or don't) and not panic at certain changes with them etc.

Basically I hit upon a good balance a few years ago and have managed to maintain that balance through the transfer from full on hi tec to low tec.

Many thanks for the compliments guys.  I do like this scape myself which is why I decided to 'keep it' by slowing the whole thing down (nearly a year ago.)

Hopefully you and I will be seeing the same thing (or better if I can sort out that centre midground) this time next year.

Regards
AC


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## Mark Evans (2 Sep 2010)

*Re: Once upon a time at the riverbank AUGUST MEGA UPDATE*

i've found that the only low tech tank I did, was the easiest thing i've ever done. The hardest bit was topping it up.

even with some plants that apparently love the high light, co2 and ferts program.

I just don't do 'slow' though.


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## Tom (2 Sep 2010)

*Re: Once upon a time at the riverbank AUGUST MEGA UPDATE*

Yeah I had a low tech tank I did for the parents for around 3 years with just soil, sand and standard Juwel T5 (the old T8 before that) lighting. Never dosed anything - tried DIY CO2 and TPN at first, but after a couple of weeks the CO2 ran out, didn't bother. Just did water changes and pulled out the masses of Sword and Crypt leaves that outgrew the tank. Wasn't particularly slow growing, especially with the T5s. Never had algae problems in this tank. Had the exact same setup I did for a local school, and you know what school kids are like with tank maintenance. After some initial algae problems and a plant wipeout due to overfeeding, it is now going strong with no additions. 

Tom


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## GreenNeedle (9 Oct 2010)

*Re: Once upon a time at the riverbank - September DIY pic Fr*

After a full year of this tank following a no CO2, no fert and no water change routine I decided to return to CO2. This time a DIY yeast setup which failed miserably in the early days of my planted setups. However I want to see if I can have success this time with the knowledge I have gained over the past few years.  I am using the Boyu inline diffuser.

The aquascape was pruned a month ago and with it still being non CO2 over the last month it hasn't grown that much. Hopefully with a succesful yeast setup it will now burst into life.

The Corys are growing well and now 5 months old. As far as I can tell 8 of the fry have survived to this stage which is a nice size alongside the one adult in this tank.































continues..................


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## GreenNeedle (9 Oct 2010)

*Re: Once upon a time at the riverbank - September DIY pic Fr*

........continued

I am aiming now for this tank to be ready for competition early next year. Therefore I can show the full setup at the moment but soon I will not be updating with full tank shots for a while.

With this in mind I still have the same problem area, in the left to centre midground, that I have had since the start of this aquascape (19 months ago.)

To sort this area out and with very limited budget I decided to make my own 'redmoor' branches' to fit in this gap. I can then use my favourite needle fern to make the transition from the smaller Crypts to the larger ones at the rear.

Using the woodworking skills I have gained from other projects I selected some of the offcuts from a guitar neck. This is kiln dried American rock maple.

Out came a set of rasps, A plasterboard saw and sandpaper.


























































AC


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## Mark Evans (9 Oct 2010)

*Re: Once upon a time at the riverbank - September DIY pic Fr*

The tank's looking sweet mate. You'Ve got too much time on your hands if your making branches   they look good though....stop whittling!...  get it?


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## Ian Holdich (9 Oct 2010)

*Re: Once upon a time at the riverbank - September DIY pic Fr*

loving the wood Andy!


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## NeilW (9 Oct 2010)

*Re: Once upon a time at the riverbank - September DIY pic Fr*

Looks real nice mate   

We're missing a 'yeast CO2 tutorial' in the CO2 section so it would be great for someone like you who has tried applying it on a larger scale tank to do a write up maybe.  

Couple of questions for you - 
Do you alternate your two bottles?  What sort of 'mix' did you go for, and how can it be controlled for a consistent output to not gas the fish or not be enough for the plants?

Cheers,
Neil


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## Gill (9 Oct 2010)

*Re: Once upon a time at the riverbank - September DIY pic Fr*

Looks amazing, and will be a winner for sure 

Very Cool peices of Whittling there, Gives me ideas though


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## GreenNeedle (9 Oct 2010)

*Re: Once upon a time at the riverbank - September DIY pic Fr*



			
				NeilW said:
			
		

> We're missing a 'yeast CO2 tutorial' in the CO2 section so it would be great for someone like you who has tried applying it on a larger scale tank to do a write up maybe.
> 
> Couple of questions for you -
> Do you alternate your two bottles?  What sort of 'mix' did you go for, and how can it be controlled for a consistent output to not gas the fish or not be enough for the plants?




I didn't think many would be interested in Yeast CO2 on here these days. lol
http://www.fishforums.net/index.php?/to ... o2-method/

Thanks for all the comments guys.  I enjoyed making the wood.  Its in the tank now with attachments.  You'll have to wait for that update.

AC


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## NeilW (9 Oct 2010)

*Re: Once upon a time at the riverbank - September DIY pic Fr*



			
				SuperColey1 said:
			
		

> I didn't think many would be interested in Yeast CO2 on here these days. lol


Bookmarked that link, just the job thanks  

TBH pressurised CO2 for me (and a few others I'm sure) is a big step if your not used to working with pressurised gas canisters.  I've never welded, fired a fire extinguisher, refilled gas at a bar or changed a paintball cylinder in my life so the nearest I get is a bit of deodorant    I would like to be confident I could get on with something like that without dumping all the gas in one go, freezing my hands off or rocket propelling objects across the house and sadly theres no sort of 'in between' measure without getting a full on pressurised setup.  Yeast CO2 looks like it could be a cheap alternative at trying to grow more demanding species.


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## LondonDragon (27 Oct 2010)

*Re: Once upon a time at the riverbank - September DIY pic Fr*

DIY wood!! now that's a new one, looking good, for a nano making your own pieces is awesome


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## Toulouse (8 Nov 2010)

*Re: Once upon a time at the riverbank - September DIY pic Fr*

Super looking tank.  Very natural.  Any updates?


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## GreenNeedle (17 Feb 2011)

*Re: Once upon a time at the riverbank - September DIY pic Fr*

Lack of motivation and a general lack of interest has meant I've not been updating journals on forums nor my website since October.  However I was still taking a few pictures and am now in the process of catching up so here we go with the backdated updates. May take a few days to catch up lol.  


*9th October 2010*

With the new 'tree' ready for the tank I first tried it at a few angles to see what would look best and then attached some needle ferns to the lower branch, some anubias to the base and tied some moss around the upper branch. Finally it was put into position.

At this time I had just bought a new camera which is supposedly not as good as the last one. You'll have to forgive the amount of pictures below. I was testing out different settings on the camera. I finally settled on auto though. This camera unlike the previous one seems to get everything right anyway so no point messing about really.

The first picture of the central area was a mistake as I forgot to turn the flash off however i like the picture. It looks quite spooky so I kept it.

Another change is that I am testing out DIY yeast for an article I am writing. Not to see if it works because it does but to see if I can get it to work and remain stable as the problem with DIY setups is that they peak and trough in their output and therefore algae like BBA and staghorn is often a problem.

On the fish front there are 11 rasboras left and all seemingly healthy. I think they are starting to get to the age where they die of old age as every now and again one develops a growth and a month or so later dies.

The young Corys are dong well and are nearly full size now. There are 8 Corys in the tank including one of the originals.

The shrimp are doing far too well and I am selling off 200 or so a month at the moment with seemingly no effect on the colony. It will grow over the window as I won't be selling any while the weather is cold.

Finally I bought a tiny thermometer which is dwarfed by the old one. I also like the blue colour rather than the red of the old one. Quite a cool items and only £4 delivered.































Regards
AC


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## BigTom (17 Feb 2011)

*Re: Once upon a time at the riverbank - September DIY pic Fr*

Always enjoy updates on this tank.

I notice a pretty major discrepancy between your 2 thermometers - I have one very similar to the one on the left (99p!) which I also suspect is a bit on the low side.


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## GreenNeedle (17 Feb 2011)

*Re: Once upon a time at the riverbank - September DIY pic Fr*

The one on the right is correct.  the one on the left has only just gone into the tank at this point hence closer to ambient. lol.  It was being used as a fridge thermometer for a day or so previous to being put in the tank to show comparison. he, he

AC


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## GreenNeedle (17 Feb 2011)

*7th February 2011*

The DIY yeast setup was removed just after christmas and I returned to the non CO2/non water change method.

The Crypts on the left have grown enormously since the last update and several trimmings of anubias have been needed as the gap down the centre was closing up completely.

This scape is nearing its end now. The Rasboras are getting old and are down to 8. They keep getting tumour-like growths in between body and tail and then succumbing after a month or so.

However with a new scape in mind things are looking up and in preparation I bought 8 platinum tetras (Hemigrammus vorderwinkleri) to see how they looked and acted. Needless to say they are beautiful and look great in contrast to the green behind them but with the Rasboras in the tank I can't see how they act as they just follow the Rasboras around. Pretty sure they are what I will go with though so I will probably rehome the rasboras and increase the platinum shoal to 20-30. The Corys will stay, no chance of them being removed. 

So next week I intend to take some photos and enter this scape into the ASE contest. Its not as I want it as the rear right corner is still not matching the left even after 2 years but I am eager to move on





Regards
AC


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## GreenNeedle (17 Feb 2011)

Tonight I took the photos for the ASE contest. Took a couple of attempts as I am not used to doing competition photos. First I set the camera up wrong. So I had to pull all the pipes out and the thermometer.

Then when I had taken the photos with the right settings I noticed the light cable was still at the back. Out came the pipes and the thermometer.

Finally I took the photos. The first 2 below are not the ones I entered but from the same shoot. Not allowed to show you the actual one. You'll see what I mean about the right rear section of the tank. The third picture is the 'working' picture.













Regards
AC


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## George Farmer (17 Feb 2011)

Very nice, Andy.  Thanks for sharing.

All the best with the contest.  If they mark for sustainability then this will score very well!

I'm not sure I would have placed the wood so centrally, but the overall balance is good.  Lots of textures and shades of green.  My sort of 'scape.


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## GreenNeedle (17 Feb 2011)

many thanks for the compliemts George.

I know what you mean r.e. the wood.  Its because all the plants cover up most of it.  Actually goes from bottom right corner towards the centre.  Something to remember when planning the new one. lol

Not expecting much from the contest really.  Just thought I may as well enter it for free before breaking it down (already started   )

AC

AC


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## GreenNeedle (18 Feb 2011)

With the photoshoot now done and the new scape already planned for an April start I started to take some parts of this scape down. Not all, just the plants and redmoor that I won't be using.

So out came the redmoor with the Needle Ferns and anubias attached to it. You can see the pictures of this below with my watch next to it to gauge size. Then the needle fern was removed and split up into 25 portions. I kept 5 for the next scape and glued them to some of the cobbles along with the anubias from this scape to keep them in shape and then bagged up the remaining 20 portions. 

You can see them pre-bagging below. These are all sold. Last time I sold a load I had messages galore from Eastern Europe wanting some but I had to tell them they were all sold. Therefore I decided to list them on ASW to give them first chance this time. Needless to say they were sold pretty quickly.

The Redmoor is on a radiator drying pending listing it on ebay. I need full price for these because I have to buy new hardscape.

Next to come out will be the Cryptocoryne Retrospiralis which is a monster plant (60cm or so) and is pretty hard to come by here in the UK.  Those will be listed on UKaps over the next few days.

I'll post up some pictures of the temporary 'messy' appearance in the next few days too.

The rasboras although 2-3 years old will be free to a good home if anyone wants to collect them. Send me a message if you are interested.

















I hope you enjoyed reading through this journal. I love(d) this scape and its a pity to break it down as it could've lasted for a lot longer than 2 years, however I am eager to try something different in terms of layout and so it has to go.


The new scape will be entitled 'Rio Bonito' and is scheduled to start at the beginning of April.

Regards
AC


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## GreenNeedle (19 Feb 2011)

One little thing I am going to do while the tank is in limbo for 2 months (all theplants temporary in the tank awaiting April) is to try something with the Philipine fern.

Its been one of the largest disappointments within this scape.  Was huge in the previous 2 yet didn't take off at all in this one.  I have been reading through my previous 2 setups and noticed that I superglued this fern in this scape where in the previous 2 I stapled it.

So I'm gonna remove it from it's hardscape, add some more plantlets from my nursery and staple them.  Then it has 2 months to see if there is a difference.

All the other plants (anubias and needles) haven't had a problem with superglue but something has turned the philippine from being an invasive monster into a wimpering hideaway plant.  We shall see.

Progress of course will be slow as there is no CO2 at the moment.

AC


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## GreenNeedle (20 Feb 2011)

As promised as a final photo entry here are a couple of pics of how things look while I get the next scape ready.  2 months of this aargh.

Saying that these pics are already out of date as I have pulled the Spiralis out of the rear left. lol.  plus with all the disturbance the Corys started sticking eggs to everything else that was left so there is now a little net hung on the side of the tank with circa 150 eggs in it 










Regards
AC


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## Mark Webb (21 Feb 2011)

Nice thread Andy, the tank is looking great. LED lighting unit is very impressive.


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## LondonDragon (21 Feb 2011)

Good to see you back in action  got anything planned for the next scape? I am currently rescaping my old 125l as well.


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## GreenNeedle (21 Feb 2011)

I have it all planned. lol

Sourcing things over the next few weeks and currently buying bits for pressurised. (sold mine off 18 months ago)

NEW scape will include Fissidens and possibly Bolbitus and although still Crypts/Anubias/Ferns and stil a bit jungly will ne closer to the 'fashionable' than previous scapes have been.

Do you like the new scape title Paulo?  'Rio Bonito'.  Sort of gives the game away. lol  

AC


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## LondonDragon (22 Feb 2011)

SuperColey1 said:
			
		

> Do you like the new scape title Paulo?  'Rio Bonito'.  Sort of gives the game away. lol


Haha it does a little  lets wait and see how "Bonito" it will actually be


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## GreenNeedle (22 Feb 2011)

'muito' hopefully. lol


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## John Starkey (23 Feb 2011)

Hi Andy,it's been a real pleasure following this journal,smashing long term scape (which is my thing),good luck with the new one can't wait to see what you do,

John


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