# Bite the bullet



## Kezzab (20 Jan 2019)

After 2 years it was time for a change. So Stig of the Sump (https://www.ukaps.org/forum/threads/stig-of-the-sump.48558/) is no more.

Fish have been moved to the sump. Plants either floating in sump or for sale.

Spec has changed a little.

Tank: Signature 900

Filter: sump

Light: aquaone plantglo

Co2: yes

Circulation: CP1

Hardscape: Locally collected limestone (from an old wall). Possibly Heather too.

Substrate: TBC. Probably a bit of John innes no3, some tropica soil and cosmetic sand.

Planting: not sure yet. Will use some old plants, anubias, java fern, some crypts maybe.

Here's where we are so far.


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## Tucker90 (20 Jan 2019)

Interested in this one! I’m currently soaking a shed load of heather, 

Most of it was fired last year, but some was still green, so I stuck it in a friends kiln for 3/4 hours! 

Dry as a bone! 


I haven’t stripped all the bark off, I’ve just scrubbed at it with a brush! Quite like the different colours! Just hope it doesn’t do anything to the water?! 

Have you used it before? 

Just wondering about the limestone, will it not change the water hardness and up the PH? 


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## Dadofthree (20 Jan 2019)

Limestone will harden you're water and raise the ph i used this in my malawi tank and it kept the ph around 8.5


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## Kezzab (20 Jan 2019)

Hi,

Not used Heather before. It's been sat in the back garden most of the year, I'm just going to put it in as is. There's very little bark so I think the bioload from it will be quite low.

In terms of the stone, I'm informed by @dw1305 that because it's 'old' limestone it should not have too great an effect. My water is very soft and I'll be doing weekly water changes. I'll suck it and see. 

K


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## dw1305 (20 Jan 2019)

Hi all,





Dadofthree said:


> Limestone will harden you're water and raise the ph


Yes it will leach some calcium carbonate and raise pH, dGH and dKH.





Kezzab said:


> because it's 'old' limestone it should not have too great an effect.


<"Carboniferous age"> (~350,000,000) years BP.

All really old limestones are hard, and won't effect water composition very much, if they weren't so hard they wouldn't have lasted as long. Have a look at <"Ingleborough....">, the glacial erratic photo shows how much limestone has dissolved in rain-water during the last 12,000 years. This is the same limestone outcrop, just further east.

An easy way to look at the effect on water chemistry (of soft water or RO) is to look at conductivity, if the <"level doesn't raise very much"> in a week then you haven't added many ions.

A granite cobble won't change the conductivity at all and a lump of cuttle bone will change it a lot.

cheers Darrel


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## Kezzab (20 Jan 2019)

Thanks Darrel, I may get a TDS pen just to monitor that. K


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## Kezzab (21 Jan 2019)

Eek! Hardscape done (I think!), substrate added.

Now comes the tricky bit...


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## Marc Davis (24 Jan 2019)

You've made the right decision. The hardscape is great. Has an epic feel to it. Whenever you think its time to change the scape....its always time to change the scape. Everythime i have done that (we are probably at over 30 times and ive only been fish keeping for 1.5 years lol), the next scape has always been better. 

Continual improvement and that is definitely happening here.


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## Kezzab (24 Jan 2019)

30 times in a year and half????  I wouldn't have the energy!


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## CooKieS (24 Jan 2019)

I like the Wood and the rock work, what kind of Wood is that?

Cheers


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## mort (24 Jan 2019)

I'll admit I thought you were mental for taking down such nice aquascape but that is going to be stonking when you get it planted.


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## Kezzab (24 Jan 2019)

CooKieS said:


> I like the Wood and the rock work, what kind of Wood is that?



Hi, it's heather. Collected locally, just dead broken bits.



mort said:


> I thought you were mental


I've thought the same! But nothing ventured, nothing gained. Fingers crossed it looks ok planted and doesn't 'go bad'. I've resused a fair amount of the old plants so hopefully a smooth transition...
K


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## akwarium (24 Jan 2019)

really good hardscape, love it!


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## Kezzab (24 Jan 2019)

Thanks, hope the planting measures up!


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## Kezzab (24 Jan 2019)

I've planted it up tonight. Thanks to @buttons and @Ryan Thang To for the moss and rotala, frankly huge mass of plants.

Not really used rotala before in a big way. Having just planted I've realised I probably should have trimmed the stems shorter so the grew in more in shape and didn't shadow so much. I may also have planted too densely?

Should I trim now, or give it a couple.of weeks for them to establish and root first?

Plants in are:
Anubias nana petite
Java fern narrow
E. Tenellum
Various crypt
H. Tripartita
Fissidens fontanus
Weeping moss
And there's marsilea hirsuta and some lileopsis to come.

Advice welcome.


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## Kalum (24 Jan 2019)

Loved the root sections of your hardscape but now they're all hidden with the planting


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## DutchMuch (24 Jan 2019)

wow that looks awesome


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## Kezzab (25 Jan 2019)

Kalum said:


> Loved the root sections of your hardscape but now they're all hidden with the planting


Mmm, I removed the main pieces because it didn't work with the tenellum, but I'm thinking it's the tenellum that's wrong now...


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## akwarium (25 Jan 2019)

Kezzab said:


> Mmm, I removed the main pieces because it didn't work with the tenellum, but I'm thinking it's the tenellum that's wrong now...


 I agree. I love the amount of detail in your hardscape while you still preserve clear lines. the tenellum looks to big I guess...


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## Kezzab (25 Jan 2019)

It'll be work in progress for a while I think. The java fern is kind of too big as well, but I had lots of it and I'm a skinflint!

What do you reckon would be better than  the tenellum?
K


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## akwarium (25 Jan 2019)

maybe hydrocotyle tripartita, or hemainthus callitrichoides?  fissidens and riccardia would also look really nice in this tank I think.
Work in progress is the best, wen the scape is done and can't be improved it slowly becomes boring..

did I mention that I really like your hardscape?


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## Kezzab (25 Jan 2019)

Good suggestions. Thought about this too. https://tropica.com/en/plants/plantdetails/Hydrocotyleverticillata(039)/4457


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## Marc Davis (26 Jan 2019)

Kezzab said:


> I've planted it up tonight. Thanks to @buttons and @Ryan Thang To for the moss and rotala, frankly huge mass of plants.
> 
> Not really used rotala before in a big way. Having just planted I've realised I probably should have trimmed the stems shorter so the grew in more in shape and didn't shadow so much. I may also have planted too densely?
> 
> ...


Like it. 

Im thinking that you should get about 3 pots of java fern and wrap it to tons of rocks and pack out the mid ground. Java fern grows tight when tied down compact in my experience. Then flood the foreground with dwarf hair grass (use fert tabs of no substrate under the sand).

Then as the background towers up and becomes compact, the foreground and mid will flow nicely into it.


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## Kezzab (26 Jan 2019)

You might be right, not a hair grass fan though. But might try for same effect with the lileopsis and marsilea. I'd like to get some trident fern for some variety of shape. 

K


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## Kezzab (28 Jan 2019)

Three days in from planting... Issues:

- rotala seems to be ok ish, can see new growth but also some melt of leaves, but no stem melt so far which is a good sign.
- the colorata has lost some of the bright red colour, but I expected that.
- Colombo flora base is terrible to plant into underwater!
- fish still in sump, extracting them will be a task in itself.
- Have upped c02 a wee bit.
- not 100% sure I've got the plant choices right, but I'll let it grow and see how it looks.


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## Kezzab (30 Jan 2019)

Mmm, spoke to soon about the rotala... salvaged some tops that seemed ok, but 90% has had to be ditched.

I've also chosen to cap the soil. The gravel is a bit bright, but in time I'm planning on it being covered by plant mass. The soil was just a joke to plant into.

I've also added some wood back in that I'd removed in the initial planting.

Happy days.


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## Kezzab (2 Feb 2019)

I think it's fully planted now. I just need to wait and cross my fingers.


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## Kezzab (3 Feb 2019)

Recovered the fish from the sump and took a wee video.


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## Kezzab (10 Mar 2019)

As a birthday treat I got some new fish. 20 very small ember tetras and 3 peppered corys to keep me 1 existing survivor company.

Tetras are about 1cm. Anyone got top tips for making sure they get enough food with bigger faster fish around?


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## akwarium (10 Mar 2019)

Congratz,

Nice little fish, crushing or chopping food in smaller pieces gives them more change since there are more pieces of food, and makes it easier for them to eat.


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## Kalum (10 Mar 2019)

Wow great colours on the embers, definitely on my future must have list


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## Jayefc1 (11 Mar 2019)

Where did you get your embers from very nice colouring


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## Kezzab (11 Mar 2019)

Hi - MA in Carlisle.

K


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## Kezzab (13 Mar 2019)

I am about 6 weeks in now. Generally going ok. All plants growing to varying degrees and appear healthy. I've trimmed the stems to the ground and replanted once already.

A little bit of green hair algae in a couple of spots, and the inevitable BGA that affects all my tanks. But only a wee bit.

I'm adding about 6ml of TNC Complete daily via the water auto top up system. Co2 has been upped a bit and the drop checker came out the cupboard. Not sure how long my 600grm bottle will last, we will see.

Not 100% happy with the scape, I feel it's a bit caught between two stools and perhaps should have had more of a minimalist iwagumi planting style. Dunno.

Anyway, progress pics.


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## CooKieS (13 Mar 2019)

If bga means cyanobacteria then blue slim remover from ultralife is the best solution I've found yet. 

Scape looks nice, plantation could be improved;

That petit microsorum fern is blocking the focal point, you could easily remove the left one and put it in the left side of the tank.

Then move an little bit that left stone on the middle 'path' to the left because it blocks the view too.

All that sand on the front doesn't look natural, you could easily siphon it and replace it with soil, just on the left and on the right of the tank. Plant the soil with an mix of eleocharis and MC for example. Keep that middle part with sand and add some Gravel for smooth transition.

Tank has a very good potential, love the stones and the roots, good flow, don't worry, with some easy changes and grows it will only look better and better, keep up! Iwagumi are nice but gets boring very quickly.


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## Kezzab (14 Mar 2019)

@CooKieS Thanks I appreciate you taking the time.

I think you've nailed the things I'm not happy with. Good to get some external perspective. I'll do some messing about and see where I get too.

K


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## Kezzab (17 Mar 2019)

So I took the advice about the stone and it looks loads better I think.

I haven't changed the substrate, it's more faff than I have time for just now and once the carpet grows in it'll be less noticeable.


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## CooKieS (18 Mar 2019)

Well done, my eyes are now directly on that main stone, and then on that little branchy path, that's a nice focal point.

Keep up


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## Kezzab (18 Mar 2019)

Unfortunately I appear to be losing the small ember tetras. I have seen bodies in the first sump chamber, I'm assuming they been sucked through and then perished, rather than vice versa. All other stock seems fine. I've covered the inlet with a net to try and stop the carnage.

Also is it possible the tiny ones could be being eaten by the butterfly cichlids?
K


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## TBRO (18 Mar 2019)

Scape definitely more balanced now. That was good advice. 

I think small fish are vulnerable at night to getting sucked into inlets. Eheim skimmers are bad for it. Not sure about the cichlids but I’ve had chocolate gourami eat similar sized fish! 




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## Kezzab (25 May 2019)

This hasnt really been working for me on a number of fronts. So... rererererescaaaaaaaaape!


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## Filip Krupa (25 May 2019)

Kezzab said:


> This hasnt really been working for me on a number of fronts. So... rererererescaaaaaaaaape!



Haha
Part of the fun

Looking forward to seeing the result!

Fil


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