# 300L pseudo-Dutch style Planted Tank



## jose_j (11 Jan 2014)

Hi, I have posted some of this information in the "New Members Introduction" section of the forum, but I would like to open here a thread for this tank. It is a 300 litres densely planted tank. The aquarium was set up 7 months ago. Fortunately I have never found any algae on it and the glasses are exactly like the first day, I have never had to clean them. Hope that good luck will go on, fingers crossed. 2 moths before setting it up I run the filter in my old and first planted tank (80L) and that was enough to get it ready for the 300L aquarium set up.

I really like Dutch style aquariums, but I know that mine is far from them. There are many "rules" in this style and I am not following them. But I like it as it is, so this is the most important thing, as I am not thinking in sending it to any contest, etc. It is a demanding tank in terms of pruning effort, and I am always rescaping it.

Here you have some data and a quick shot of it, hope you like it as well. It is very pleasant and relaxing to sit down in front of it and enjoy the view:



_Limnophila aromatica_


_Ludwigia repens_ "red" and their pots taken out of the aquarium for trimming


_Hydrocotyle vulgaris_ flower




_Sagittaria subulata_ flower




_Proserpinaca palustris_ pearling




_Ludwigia repens_ "red"




I recently have introduced _Alternanthera sessilis_





Volume: 300L
Length: 120 cm
Height: 60 cm
Deep: 40 cm

Light: 6 x 50W fluorescent T5s Philips 865 110cm
Photo-period: 4 tubes from 13:00 pm to 22:00 pm + 2 tubes from 17:00 pm to 20:00 pm

CO2: pressurized bottle + inline atomizer working only when lights are on

Filter: Canister. ICA TurboJet TJ3378 14W 1020 litres/hour pump.
Filtering media: filter wool, ceramic rings and sponges.

Heater: 300W heater set to 24ºC

Substrate: Oliver Knott Nature Soil black colour normal size (4.5 mm)

Water: 50% tap water + 50% RO water

Fertilizers:KNO3, KH2PO4, K2SO4, Fe-EDTA, Fertiberia Microplús.

Parameters:
NO3: 10 ppm
PO4: 1 ppm
Fe: 0.5 ppm
TDS: 310
KH: 6

Plant species:
_Alternanthera sessilis_
_ Anubias barteri nana_
_ Anubias barteri var "petite"_
_ Cryptocoryne wendtii brown_
_ Fissidens fontanus_
_ Hedyotis salzmannii_
_ Hydrocotyle sp. japan_
_ Hydrocotyle vulgaris_
_ Hygrophila difformis_
_ Hygrophila polysperma_
_ Hygrophila guianensis_
_ Lilaeopsis brasiliensis_
_ Limnophila aromatica_
_ Lindernia rotundifolia_
_ Lobelia cardinalis_
_ Ludwigia glandulosa_
_ Ludwigia repens red_
_ Microsorum pteropus mini_
_ Microsorum pteropus narrow_
_ Nymphaea lotus red_
_ Nymphoides sp. taiwan_
_ Proserpinaca palustris_
_ Riccia fluitans_
_ Sagittaria subulata_
_ Taxiphyllum barbieri_
_ Vesicularia ferriei_
_ Vesicularia montagnei_

Please, excuse my (bad) English.

Cheers,

Jose


----------



## Kyle Lambert (11 Jan 2014)

HOLY CRAP am i jealous of that. How did you achieve the carpeted background? What species is it aswell?


----------



## jose_j (11 Jan 2014)

Kyle Lambert said:


> HOLY CRAP am i jealous of that. How did you achieve the carpeted background? What species is it aswell?


Hi Kyle,

the background wall is 120x60cm. I did it using plastic net folded sandwich-like and introducing on it mosses. It is fixed to the back glass using several suction cups. At the beginning it was only made from _Fissidens fontanus_, but then I pinned some mosses and now they have over-competed the _Fissidens_, so you only can see mosses (Xmass, Java and Ferriei). Currently I also have pinned ferns, anubias, _Riccia fluitans_ and _Hydrocotyle sp_ japan.

This background is a paradise for the shrimps.

Here you have a photo of the initial phase just to illustrate what I'm telling you.





and here is another shot from other aquarium where you can see how the plastic net is folded and attached





Just let me know if you need more informatation, I will be pleased in replying you.

Cheers,

Jose


----------



## Gilles (11 Jan 2014)

Cool idea Jose!


----------



## Kyle Lambert (11 Jan 2014)

wow, cracking idea. What sort of netting is it? does it have to be a certain size to be safe for fish? last thing i would want is for any fish to get caught up in the net. 

I have real difficulty in keeping moss for some reason. Ive got some java on my bogwood but its literally 1 small strand of the stuff!


----------



## Kyle Lambert (11 Jan 2014)

wow, cracking idea. What sort of netting is it? does it have to be a certain size to be safe for fish? last thing i would want is for any fish to get caught up in the net. 

I have real difficulty in keeping moss for some reason. Ive got some java on my bogwood but its literally 1 small strand of the stuff!


----------



## jose_j (11 Jan 2014)

Kyle Lambert said:


> wow, cracking idea. What sort of netting is it? does it have to be a certain size to be safe for fish? last thing i would want is for any fish to get caught up in the net.
> 
> I have real difficulty in keeping moss for some reason. Ive got some java on my bogwood but its literally 1 small strand of the stuff!


Hi Kyle,

the net is made from plastic, here in Spain is very easy to find at any hardware store, I imagine that it should be also easy to get for you there. The one I use has a nodal distance of 5 mm, and never noticed any problem regarding fishes or shrimps trapped in the net.

I forgot to say that cable ties are very useful in order to get the net folded and also to attach the suction cups. Fishing line can also be used for this purpose but cable ties are easier to handle and they will remain fasten forever.

Cheers,

Jose


----------



## three-fingers (12 Jan 2014)

That's an impressive moss wall! Love the tank, great flower pics too, its always rewarding your plants in bloom.

Is there a reason the _Ludwigia_ is in pots? Seems to like it in there anyway!


----------



## martinmjr62 (12 Jan 2014)

Jose,wow that is a lovely healthy looking tank
love the moss wall, fantastic idea

Cheers
Martin


----------



## harryH (12 Jan 2014)

Hi Jose, your English is excellent by the way.
Brilliant set up, growing plants the way most of us dream of! 
Hope you can continue to post pictures of this every now and again, it is the kind of thing that inspires.
Harry


----------



## Alastair (12 Jan 2014)

Stunning display....


----------



## Sacha (12 Jan 2014)

This is a beautiful tank. 

You have some great pearling- especially with the Limnophila. I'm guessing you run your co2 pretty high. Do you have a spray bar? If so I can't see it.


----------



## Sacha (12 Jan 2014)

My mistake, I see it now


----------



## jose_j (12 Jan 2014)

three-fingers said:


> That's an impressive moss wall! Love the tank, great flower pics too, its always rewarding your plants in bloom.
> 
> Is there a reason the _Ludwigia_ is in pots? Seems to like it in there anyway!


Hi three-fingers, thank you very much for your kind comments. They are hidden in the set up, but there are 7 pots in the aquarium. I use them to get the plants at the rear in a higher position. In the next picture you can see some of them:





They are common flower pots made from mud. In the bottom of each I add some volcanic gravel and then fill them with nutritive substrate. I have used HELP shrimp substrate, its working fine also for plants.

I like the method because you can easily move the pots from one place to another in the aquarium, and also you can elevate them or take them out for trimming.

Hope you also like the method.

Cheers,

Jose


----------



## jose_j (12 Jan 2014)

Sacha said:


> This is a beautiful tank.
> 
> You have some great pearling- especially with the Limnophila. I'm guessing you run your co2 pretty high. Do you have a spray bar? If so I can't see it.


Hi Sacha,

CO2 is working when lights are on. I'm using a pressurized bottle (one of these that are used for beer in the pubs and restaurants) and an inline atomizer that split the gas into very tiny bubbles. I think that it is a nice system as you save money in CO2. The bad side is that the water looks a little bit misty, loosing the attractiveness of a fully transparent water.

Cheers,

Jose


----------



## jose_j (12 Jan 2014)

martinmjr62 said:


> Jose,wow that is a lovely healthy looking tank
> love the moss wall, fantastic idea
> 
> Cheers
> Martin


Hi Martin,

I'm glad to see that you like it. As you have seen it is really easy to made and the result is very beautiful and a paradise for shrimps and young fishes.

Thanks for your comments.

Jose


----------



## Sacha (12 Jan 2014)

Yep, I have the exact same system Jose. 

I use a fire extinguisher, with an inline Up "atomic" diffuser and a spray bar. I get very small bubbles as you describe. I agree it is a shame that you lose the look of completely clear water.


----------



## jose_j (12 Jan 2014)

harryH said:


> Hi Jose, your English is excellent by the way.
> Brilliant set up, growing plants the way most of us dream of!
> Hope you can continue to post pictures of this every now and again, it is the kind of thing that inspires.
> Harry


Hi Harry,

thank you for your positive feedback, your comments also inspire me as much as a beautiful aquarium picture.

Cheers,

Jose


----------



## kirk (12 Jan 2014)

Hi to be honest if it wasn't for the Fish I would think it was a tank At all. It looks like something professional gardeners do at Chelsea. Its wonderfully mate poverty to look at. Cheers Kirk.


----------



## Yo-han (12 Jan 2014)

Except for the fact that I don't think _Alternanthera sessilis _is going to survive for long submersed, this is one of the best Dutch tanks I've seen outside the Netherlands. Everything looks healthy and it only needs to be arranged a little different and maybe some more space between species and it will do quite well in the Dutch competition!


----------



## jose_j (12 Jan 2014)

Thanks Johan, I agree with you, the plants should be arranged in a better way, this is something I would like to do in the future. Regarding competitions, I think that this is not my cup of tea. Enjoying the tank at home is by far the best prize one can win.

Regards,

Jose


----------



## tmiravent (12 Jan 2014)

hi,
really cool!
Very flexible and well tought.
The green wall is 5 stars.
I,ve also and inline atomizer but can't see the bubles coming out.
What model do you use?
keep the good work.


----------



## jose_j (13 Jan 2014)

tmiravent said:


> hi,
> really cool!
> Very flexible and well tought.
> The green wall is 5 stars.
> ...


Hi tmiravent,

the model is:

UP aqua Inline CO2 Atomizer 16/22mm

and when working at 2bars pressure you can easily see the bubble cloud.

thanks for your comments

Cheers,

Jose


----------



## tmiravent (13 Jan 2014)

Very compact that model.
I use this one, much bigger.
Professional Aquarium Products in details Max Mix CO2 Reactor (Medium) - ISTA
I belive my reactor loses more flow power.
cheers


----------



## Sacha (13 Jan 2014)

I also use the UP Aqua inline diffuser, and I don't particularly like the bubbles being visible!


----------



## Deano3 (14 Jan 2014)

wow stunning tank jose extremely well thought out and done all the plants have amazing colours

Dean


----------



## jose_j (20 Jan 2014)

Hello,

just a quick photo reporting the "emersed garden" that grows on top of the moss wall. I find it beautiful and wanted to share with you. Length is 120 cm, but is not easy to appreciate the scale in the picture. 

Cheers,

Jose


----------



## harryH (20 Jan 2014)

Lovely!! It looks like a well kept English Garden (not with native plants of course). Love the idea of the clay pots, most people would just try to hide these but you have made a lovely feature of them.


----------



## parotet (20 Jan 2014)

Emersed jungle! Are both Hydrocotyle?


----------



## kirk (20 Jan 2014)

I meant loverly to look at not poverty. And this is my first language your doing a better job.


----------



## jose_j (20 Jan 2014)

kirk said:


> I meant loverly to look at not poverty. And this is my first language your doing a better job.


Hi Kirk,

you don't have to worry at all. I asked some native English speakers about your sentence and all of them agreed that it probably was just a typing mistake. Thank you very much for your kind comments.

Cheers,

Jose


----------



## tmiravent (20 Jan 2014)

Amazing!
How the hell did you made that? 
Do you want to share more pictures?


----------



## jose_j (20 Jan 2014)

tmiravent said:


> Amazing!
> 
> How the hell did you made that?
> 
> Do you want to share more pictures?


 
Hi tmiravent,

actually I have done nothing, plants just started growing by themselves over the moss wall. It is really beautiful but I have to be trimming them quite often. Here is a (low quality, sorry) picture of what I have to remove every month. The big leaved one is _Hydrocotyle vulgaris_, it started throwing shots outside down the tank and finally trimmed it when the branches reached 180cm long. It was trying to invade the living room


----------



## tmiravent (20 Jan 2014)

Very cool and fast growing!
What lights do you have for the outside plants? (the same?)
Do you keep the air with dense humidity?
My anúbias tend to dry bit...
cheers


----------



## Yo-han (20 Jan 2014)

tmiravent said:


> Very cool and fast growing!
> What lights do you have for the outside plants? (the same?)
> Do you keep the air with dense humidity?
> My anúbias tend to dry bit...
> cheers


 

Anubias needs high humidity, most Hydrocotyles can handle quite low humidity, our room humidity is usually enough.


----------



## jose_j (20 Jan 2014)

parotet said:


> Emersed jungle! Are both Hydrocotyle?


Hi Jordi,

yes, both are _Hydrocotyle_. The bigger one is _H._ _vulgaris_, and the most abundant is what some people name _H. sp_ "japan", but I suspect that is not the right name. In the photo you can see also some _Elaeocharis vivipara_ shots and some portions of _Riccia fluitans_. _H. vulgaris_ surprised us with some flowers a few weeks ago:





Cheers,

Jose


----------



## jose_j (20 Jan 2014)

tmiravent said:


> Very cool and fast growing!
> What lights do you have for the outside plants? (the same?)
> Do you keep the air with dense humidity?
> My anúbias tend to dry bit...
> cheers


Hi tmiravent,

yes, the light are the same for the emersed part of the tank. I couldn't say that there is dense humidity over the tank, as I have two PC fans working non-stop, and I never see condensation drops even at night. I agree with I fully agree with Yo-han when he says that Anubias need high humidity. Terrarium people usually install a water nebulisation (aerosol) system that sprays water at a given time interval, perhaps this could be useful for you.

Cheers,

Jose


----------



## Yo-han (20 Jan 2014)

jose_j said:


> Hi Jordi,
> 
> yes, both are _Hydrocotyle_. The bigger one is _H._ _vulgaris_, and the most abundant is what some people name _H. sp_ "japan", but I suspect that is not the right name. In the photo you can see also some _Elaeocharis vivipara_ shots and some portions of _Riccia fluitans_. _H. vulgaris_ surprised us with some flowers a few weeks ago:
> 
> ...


 

I already suspected that it was not H. vulgaris, but with this flower I know it's definitely H. leucocephala instead of vulgaris.The sp. 'Japan' is H. tripartita


----------



## flygja (21 Jan 2014)

Beautiful tank! I've been trying to achieve the same effect for a few months now without success. I also have L.repens and P.palustris, but they're all green in colour in my setup


----------



## jose_j (21 Jan 2014)

Yo-han said:


> I already suspected that it was not H. vulgaris, but with this flower I know it's definitely H. leucocephala instead of vulgaris.The sp. 'Japan' is H. tripartita


 Hi Yo-han,

thank you very much for your taxonomic help. You are right, it is _Hydrocotyle leucocephala_, I have read that _H. vulgaris_ stems usually grow completely horizontal with only the leaf stems growing vertical, while _H. leucocephala_ stems grow vertically, exactly as mine does.

Regarding _Hydrocotyle sp. "Japan"_, I also agree with you, it is _H. tripartita_. Tropica web states that is actually a variant of _H. tripartita_.

I also would like to ask you if you suspect that there are more taxonomic mistakes in my planted tank.

Thank you very much again for your help


----------



## jose_j (21 Jan 2014)

flygja said:


> Beautiful tank! I've been trying to achieve the same effect for a few months now without success. I also have L.repens and P.palustris, but they're all green in colour in my setup


Hi flygja, thank you for your comments. I don't know exactly why these plants turn red, surely other members do. But I can give you some info from my experience. When planting stems from the same plant in two different tanks that follow the same dosing approach, one working with SMD cool white LEDs (20 lumens/litre) and other with T5 Philips 865 fluorescent tubes (1wat/litre) i notice that they grow green in the former and reddish in the latter. Also in the latter I can observe that the closer to the water surface (and also to the light source) the more pigmented the leaves are. Perhaps light quality or quantity can have an effect on the colour pattern, but this is not a true experiment at all (indeed, it has nothing to see with an experiment, light sources are not comparable, tanks are different, etc, etc,..., it is just an observation) so please take my comment just as a suggestion. I also try to keep iron at 0.2ppm, but I don't really know if this is affecting colour. Surely there are many factors involved, including genetics, and I'm sure that the experts in the forum can help us in understanding what is happening in our tanks.


----------



## parotet (21 Jan 2014)

I am not on my computer (don't know how to include a link) but if you check my journal (#2) you will see some pictures of emerged Hydrocotyle vulgare, not a very common species but it can be found in some Eastern Spain wetlands. When submersed it becomes very leggy and not very beautiful as the leaves try to reach the surface growing very fast, but when emersed they look very similar to other Hydrocotyle species, such as leucocephala, maybe a bit more compact.


----------



## flygja (22 Jan 2014)

Jose, thanks a lot. I have been thinking about changing back to T5s for testing and have bought some items for DIY. So time to get a move on!


----------



## jose_j (22 Jan 2014)

flygja said:


> Jose, thanks a lot. I have been thinking about changing back to T5s for testing and have bought some items for DIY. So time to get a move on!


 
Hi flygia,

T5s are great, I'm sure your plants will be fine with them. I'm using this model with very good results. Try to install enough fluorescent lamps to get 1 wat /litre proximately. What I do is to program them to star at different times, so you get an effect somehow similar to the daylight cycle in nature, with maximum light burst at noon when all fluorescent lamps are on. Doing so you will also save some money in your electricity bill 

Cheers,

Jose


----------



## jose_j (2 Feb 2014)

Hi,

not many things to report, just a couple of shots to keep the thread alive. The pictures are from before and after trimming quickly some of the plant groups. Sorry for the ugly bottle in the upper right corner, I'm growing there some _Xiphophorus maculatus_ juveniles in order to increase the fish stock in the tank. Well fed fishes are excellent urea producers, so they will help me in dosing this fertilizer.

Plants are in very good shape, and fortunately algae have never been seen in the tank (fingers crossed!!)

Hope you like the tank, it is very far from being perfect but at least it is beautiful (to me).

All the best,

Jose


----------



## parotet (2 Feb 2014)

Incredible Jose! I love this Dutch jungle!


----------



## harryH (2 Feb 2014)

Very, very, very, pleasing on the eye. I love it!


----------



## tmiravent (2 Feb 2014)

Amazing!
You cut every week?
I had _Xiphophorus maculatus some years ago. I doubt you really need the bottle with so many plants, in few months you'll get thousands of them!_
_Very beautiful, keep the good green work,_
_tiago_


----------



## jose_j (3 Feb 2014)

Thank you guys, I'm glad to know that you also like it.

Yes, I cut every week, otherwise the plants would fill the tank.

Tiago you are right, many of them will survive hidden in the plants and there is no need to use the bottle. I do it because the first weeks I'm feeding them with baby brine shrimp, so they will grow better. My little kid really likes them, so he is helping me hatching the brine shrimps and feeding the young _Xiphophorus maculatus_, is a great experience for him and a nice opportunity for learning new things.

Thank you very much again for your kind comments

Cheers,

Jose


----------



## LondonDragon (3 Feb 2014)

Hola Jose, great dutch tank  I miss my Rio! need to start a new tank at some stage and go back to dutch/jungle mix!!


----------



## jose_j (4 Feb 2014)

Thanks Paulo, I'm really looking forward to see that Dutch- jungle set up! Keep us informed! 

Cheers

Enviado desde mi ST25i usando Tapatalk 2


----------



## jose_j (23 Feb 2014)

Hi,

just some picts updating the tank.

Not many things to report, everything is going fine. I'm planning to rescape the aquarium by reducing the number of species and creating the famous Dutch streets in order to get the classical Dutch style look. I find it a challenge but at the same time it could be a funny experience.

Cheers,

Jose


----------



## Phil Edwards (23 Feb 2014)

That's looking really nice Jose!  Do you plan on reducing the species even more or are you going to leave it as-is?


----------



## jose_j (23 Feb 2014)

Phil Edwards said:


> That's looking really nice Jose!  Do you plan on reducing the species even more or are you going to leave it as-is?


Thank you very much for your positive feed back Phil. 

Yes I would like to reduce even more the number of plant species. The "Dutch style guidelines" say that no more than one plant species for every 10cm of tank length. That one is 120cm so I will try to leave only 12 species. To leave a gap between the plant groups is also recommended, now I find it a little bit crowded (but beautiful!).

Thanks again,

Jose


----------



## Alexander Belchenko (23 Feb 2014)

Your proserpinaca is very nice. What's the name of dark red/violet plant on the left side, last photo?

I was under impression that in dutch style you should put one species per 10*10 cm area, I read something like that in the Aquarium Design book by Christel Kasselmann. Maybe I'm wrong.


----------



## jose_j (23 Feb 2014)

Alexander Belchenko said:


> Your proserpinaca is very nice. What's the name of dark red/violet plant on the left side, last photo?
> 
> I was under impression that in dutch style you should put one species per 10*10 cm area, I read something like that in the Aquarium Design book by Christel Kasselmann. Maybe I'm wrong.



Thanks for your comments Alexander. 

The plant you are talking about is _Ludwigia glandulosa_ from Tropica. 

Regarding the number of species in the Dutch style tanks, I thought that the rule is one plant species per 10cm aquarium lenght, I haven't read Kasselman's book (and I really would like). There are some Dutch UKAPS members with a lot of experience in this aquascaping style, hopefully they will give us the right answer.

All the best,

Jose


----------



## Dan Wiggett (23 Feb 2014)

Really nice looking tank, one of the best 'Dutch' style tanks i've seen!!! Even if it's not a proper 'Dutch'


----------



## LondonDragon (23 Feb 2014)

This one reminds me of my jungle with moss wall and all, love it, masterpiece


----------



## Robert H. Tavera (24 Feb 2014)

Realy nice tank.. I see that you have a lot of platy fish, it's true that they eat black algae or any kind of algae? I'm thinking in adding a few of them because I can't find sae anywhere !


----------



## Alexander Belchenko (24 Feb 2014)

Jose, well, your tank doesnot look overcrowded right now for me, but I tend to agree that sometimes less is more! You don't have to read that book, you're already good at plants and design, imo. Don't think I try to insist on some numbers, that was just "thinking aloud" moment. Looking forward for new Dutch beaty from you.

Sent via Tapatalk


----------



## parotet (24 Feb 2014)

Dutch or not it looks incredible Jose... A healthy jungle of aquatic plants, what most of us would like to have!


----------



## Phil Edwards (24 Feb 2014)

Jose,

I agree, it's very beautiful but a little crowded.  I had that same issue with my first attempt at Dutch design back in 2009 and am fighting the urge to keep too many species in my current 60 gallon tank.  Perhaps taking out some that are just a couple stems and are intergrowing with other species will do the trick?  I've been having trouble keeping space between plant groups in my 120 cm tank too.  Some species just grow too fast and too lushly to keep separated from their neighbors.  Yet another technique to improve on.


----------



## jose_j (24 Feb 2014)

Robert H. Tavera said:


> Realy nice tank.. I see that you have a lot of platy fish, it's true that they eat black algae or any kind of algae? I'm thinking in adding a few of them because I can't find sae anywhere !



Hi Robert,

I love platies, and my favourite is the "Sunset" variety you can see in the pictures. To date I have been very lucky and I have never seen algae in the tank, perhaps it is because the platies are eating them  Well, people say they do. I can say that they like veggies a lot, I feed them everyday with a lot of blanched spinaches together with some frozen food (daphnia, red and black mosquito larvae, tubifex, artemia, etc). I can say that they are happy in the tank, and when you have a lot of well fed fishes they dose Urea to the water, making bacteria, plants and myself also happy 

sae are great, but if you can get some _Otocinclus_.

Just in case you are interested this is my DIY platy feeding cage. Using something like this spinaches will not spread into the tank and fishes, shrimps and snails can pick them as they like.









Cheers,

Jose


----------



## jose_j (24 Feb 2014)

Phil Edwards said:


> Jose,
> 
> I agree, it's very beautiful but a little crowded.  I had that same issue with my first attempt at Dutch design back in 2009 and am fighting the urge to keep too many species in my current 60 gallon tank.  Perhaps taking out some that are just a couple stems and are intergrowing with other species will do the trick?  I've been having trouble keeping space between plant groups in my 120 cm tank too.  Some species just grow too fast and too lushly to keep separated from their neighbors.  Yet another technique to improve on.



I agree with you Phil, is not that easy to keep the gap between plant groups. This is one of the trickiest parts of the Dutch style, you have to plan everything like a gardener  But it is an attractive challenge as well. I think that a nice strategy would be to start with few plant species, increasing their number as you feel that the set up is not crowded and under control. 

I still have many things to learn ...

Cheers


----------



## Robert H. Tavera (25 Feb 2014)

I already have ottos, and they are really nice, they almost keep my tank algae free but they don't eat black algae and sometimes I need to take it out manually.

You're so lucky, not algae.... that tank is a true paradise, nice plants, nice fish ! 

Really ingeniously cage, I use to feed my discus with homemade food, but I ended changing the discus for a nice school of bleeding heart tetras and some glowlights... and this ones only eat flakes.... poor of them, eating the same thing everyday, of every week, of every month.... lol


----------



## FerdinandPorsche (25 Feb 2014)

jose_j said:


> Hi Sacha,
> 
> CO2 is working when lights are on. I'm using a pressurized bottle (one of these that are used for beer in the pubs and restaurants) and an inline atomizer that split the gas into very tiny bubbles. I think that it is a nice system as you save money in CO2. The bad side is that the water looks a little bit misty, loosing the attractiveness of a fully transparent water.
> 
> ...



Hi Jose, may I ask how do you define misty? Reason being is that I am also using an inline diffuser, Intense brand, but the bubbles that come out are quite big and not 'misty'.  What is the bubble per second you are applying?

I have uploaded a youtube on my tank.


----------



## jose_j (25 Feb 2014)

Robert H. Tavera said:


> I already have ottos, and they are really nice, they almost keep my tank algae free but they don't eat black algae and sometimes I need to take it out manually.
> 
> You're so lucky, not algae.... that tank is a true paradise, nice plants, nice fish !
> 
> Really ingeniously cage, I use to feed my discus with homemade food, but I ended changing the discus for a nice school of bleeding heart tetras and some glowlights... and this ones only eat flakes.... poor of them, eating the same thing everyday, of every week, of every month.... lol



Thanks Robert for your kind comments. I have four glowlight tetras in this tank and they also love frozen food, particularly frozen daphnia. Perhaps you could try to do the same with yours. Your are right, having only flakes as food should be horrible 

All the best,

Jose


----------



## jose_j (25 Feb 2014)

FerdinandPorsche said:


> Hi Jose, may I ask how do you define misty? Reason being is that I am also using an inline diffuser, Intense brand, but the bubbles that come out are quite big and not 'misty'.  What is the bubble per second you are applying?
> 
> I have uploaded a youtube on my tank.




Hi Ferdinand! I cannot access your youtube video, I'm getting "this video is private" message. 

The bubbles coming out from my inline diffuser are really tiny, they travel together with the water current through the tank creating the famous mist. Mine is working at 2 bars pressure, but I don't have info regarding the bubbles per second. I try to minimize the number of devices in the CO2 tubing system in order to reduce the possibility of suffering gas leaks, sorry!

Will try to access your video later.

Cheers,

Jose


----------



## FerdinandPorsche (25 Feb 2014)

jose_j said:


> Hi Ferdinand! I cannot access your youtube video, I'm getting "this video is private" message.
> 
> The bubbles coming out from my inline diffuser are really tiny, they travel together with the water current through the tank creating the famous mist. Mine is working at 2 bars pressure, but I don't have info regarding the bubbles per second. I try to minimize the number of devices in the CO2 tubing system in order to reduce the possibility of suffering gas leaks, sorry!
> 
> ...



Hi Jose, please try again as I have removed the privacy setting.

I totally understand your concern on the leakage. Thankfully I have no leakages so far. I saw at the local fish shop, their same model & brand diffuser are incredible so I suspect mine could be faulty.


----------



## jose_j (25 Feb 2014)

FerdinandPorsche said:


> Hi Jose, please try again as I have removed the privacy setting.
> 
> I totally understand your concern on the leakage. Thankfully I have no leakages so far. I saw at the local fish shop, their same model & brand diffuser are incredible so I suspect mine could be faulty.



Hi Ferdinand, I like your tank, congratulations. You are right, the bubbles are too big, but this happens to me when I feed the diffuser with more CO2 than the right flow. Try to adjust this, perhaps what is not working properly is your needle valve. Also try to soak the diffuser in water+bleach and then rinse properly. If after cleaning it and setting an optimal CO2 flow rate it still producing big bubbles I would conclude that it is faulty. Another test would be to set another one from a friend keeping your CO2 flow rate and test if this is the problem. 

Perhaps I'm not helping you too much ...

good luck!!

Jose


----------



## FerdinandPorsche (25 Feb 2014)

Thanks Jose. I will try to get it bleached and see if it is clogged or I was unlucky to get a faulty unit. I guess getting this fixed could save me lots of co2 efficiency.


----------



## jose_j (22 Apr 2014)

Hi,

just some pictures to keep the journal alive. The tank is very healthy and growing fine. I'm re-escaping it in order to participate in AGA 2014 contest under the new Dutch category. I have to say that I'm working hard on it, but enjoying a lot at the same time.

Sorry for low quality images.

Cheers,

Jose


----------



## Alastair (22 Apr 2014)

The fissedens wall is beautiful.


----------



## jose_j (22 Apr 2014)

Alastair said:


> The fissedens wall is beautiful.


Thank you Alastair, I agree with you. Shrimps also like it a lot.


----------



## parotet (22 Apr 2014)

Looking forward for a picture of the tank... Good luck Jose!


----------



## jose_j (12 May 2014)

Hi,

just a quick photo of the Sagittaria subulata in bloom





Cheers,

Jose


----------



## jose_j (23 Aug 2014)

Hi,

just to share with you a close up of the _Bacopa caroliniana_ group





and some from the invertebrates inhabiting the tank





































hope you like them

cheers

Jose


----------



## parotet (23 Aug 2014)

Nice to hear from you again José. Excellent pictures and awesome healthy plants. Looking forward to seeing again a full tank shot.

Jordi


----------



## jose_j (8 Nov 2014)

Hi!

as I told you I have been working on the tank trying to fit the Dutch style rules. The result has been really good, and the tank has been awarded with the first place in the 2014 AGA Aquascaping Contest (Dutch Category). 

Here you have the link to the entry

http://showcase.aquatic-gardeners.org/2014/show394.html

Thanks to all of you for your comments in this thread, I much appreciate them as they have been an important source of motivation.

Hope you like the tank, of course it can be improved, and this is my aim for the next edition.

Cheers,

Jose


----------



## Jason King (9 Nov 2014)

This is amazing Jose. Well done on the superb results


----------



## parotet (9 Nov 2014)

Absolutely amazing Jose, congratulations!!! To be honest the tank looks much better now. Plant groups are very defined as well as focal points... And as usual plants look very healthy.

Un abrazo!
Jordi


----------



## tmiravent (9 Nov 2014)

hi,
very nice work
l love the tank and color plants
congrats,
cheers


----------



## Alexander Belchenko (9 Nov 2014)

Congrats! I was unsure that's your tank when saw it at AGA site, but it still reminded your first version. That's very good example to promote dutch style.


----------



## jose_j (9 Nov 2014)

Thank you very much to all of you for your kind comments, I much appreciate them.

Jose


----------



## Robert H. Tavera (12 Nov 2014)

congrats, well done, really beautiful !! so pure, so peaceful, nice !


----------



## Phil Edwards (20 Nov 2014)

Congratulations!  I had the privilege of being on the pre-screening crew and was very happy to see your tank in the group.  Well done!!


----------

