# Brandis Edge (Flamingo)



## Ian Holdich (27 Sep 2013)

New journal time!

Something a little different than the last few scapes.

Tank, TMC 60x45x30
Lights, 1x TMC 1500 ultima
Filter, Ehiem 2073
Substrate, Nutrasoil, Tropica Substrate and Unipac Samoa
C02 @ 1bps via an atomiser inline
Hardscape, Dragon Stone and bogwood root
Plants, HC, Willow moss, Ricardia, Crinum, mini hairgrass, E, Parvula, Cladafora, C Parva, Amania bonsai.

pics to follow in 10 mins!


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## George Farmer (27 Sep 2013)

YES, Ian!!


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## Ian Holdich (27 Sep 2013)

Cheers George!


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## sa80mark (27 Sep 2013)

Nice  very different from your last scape, stunning root aswell


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## Lindy (27 Sep 2013)

Lovely, just like that!


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## Ian Holdich (27 Sep 2013)

sa80mark said:


> Nice  very different from your last scape, stunning root aswell




Thanks Mark, the root is in 2 pieces, and joined together. With the cladafora on the joins. 


One more thing, I'm not using RO water in this scape as the water meter doesn't like it. Going to see is there's much difference...


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## Ian Holdich (27 Sep 2013)

ldcgroomer said:


> Lovely, just like that!




Thank you lindy! Just waiting for the water to clear...


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## DrRob (27 Sep 2013)

No water meter -> way forward. Although sadly you can't go back.

I do use a lot of rainwater for stuff around the house though, so I'm not destroying the planet too badly, and the RO waste goes on the garden.

I look forward to seeing this one develop, I like the overall structure but grown in will be the making of this one.


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## Lindy (27 Sep 2013)

Will the Crinum not get too big?


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## Gary Nelson (27 Sep 2013)

Very nice Ian, the wood root is stunning! And I like how you have joined the two together, I would not of noticed at all - I'm looking forward to seeing more pics now.... Have you moved your tank to the other side of your room?


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## Ian Holdich (27 Sep 2013)

DrRob said:


> No water meter -> way forward. Although sadly you can't go back.
> 
> I do use a lot of rainwater for stuff around the house though, so I'm not destroying the planet too badly, and the RO waste goes on the garden.
> 
> I look forward to seeing this one develop, I like the overall structure but grown in will be the making of this one.



It really wasn't cost effective for me, I was getting it from the lfs, but with petrol it wasn't much cheaper than making my own. That's not to say ill never go back to using it, as the fish choice is better with RO.



ldcgroomer said:


> Will the Crinum not get too big?



That's the idea, I want it to run along the water surface just behind the stump. It should look ok. 



Gary Nelson said:


> Very nice Ian, the wood root is stunning! And I like how you have joined the two together, I would not of noticed at all - I'm looking forward to seeing more pics now.... Have you moved your tank to the other side of your room?




Thank you Gary, I did think about screwing the wood together, but decided against it in the end and joined it with cladafora. 

And yes, we've had a new carpet fitted and 'she' wanted back in its original position. I'll get some in situ pics in a day or so.


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## Dave Pierce (27 Sep 2013)

Your on to a winner there mate! Love the plant choice & the root is so cool 

Was excited when I first saw you we're doing a new scape...always know it's going to be one to watch! You can see a lot of thought has gone into the layout.

Good luck, sure it will turn out great Ian.


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## DrRob (27 Sep 2013)

Ian Holdich said:


> It really wasn't cost effective for me, I was getting it from the lfs, but with petrol it wasn't much cheaper than making my own. That's not to say ill never go back to using it, as the fish choice is better with RO.


 
I like the control that RO gives me, and have a box full of random salts to show for it.




Ian Holdich said:


> That's the idea, I want it to run along the water surface just behind the stump. It should look ok.


 

I did look at the top of the stump and think that it needed something to break the surface with it, that was where my comment about growing in was aimed at.


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## tim (28 Sep 2013)

Good to see your tank with hardscape in it again, another top scape in progress Ian.


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## Alastair (28 Sep 2013)

Looks like its going to be another fantastic scape mate. I love how quick you seem to throw up a scape ian. 
That would and marimo looks fantastic mate cant wait to see this grow in. 

Ps that's why the mrs was getting stuck into the tank was it, because she wanted it moving .... I knew there was a catch lol


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## TOO (28 Sep 2013)

Very nice. My only worry would be the right corner, which tends to get hidden and a little dark behind the root and the lily pipe. But perhaps this will be addressed by the Crinum getting taller.

Thomas


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## Ian Holdich (28 Sep 2013)

Dave Pierce said:


> Your on to a winner there mate! Love the plant choice & the root is so cool
> 
> Was excited when I first saw you we're doing a new scape...always know it's going to be one to watch! You can see a lot of thought has gone into the layout.
> 
> Good luck, sure it will turn out great Ian.




Thank you Dave, hopefully the HC with take in the new soil, I'm always a little wary about HC in aquasoils. 



tim said:


> Good to see your tank with hardscape in it again, another top scape in progress Ian.




Thank you Tim, I love hardscape! Lol



Alastair said:


> Looks like its going to be another fantastic scape mate. I love how quick you seem to throw up a scape ian.
> That would and marimo looks fantastic mate cant wait to see this grow in.
> 
> Ps that's why the mrs was getting stuck into the tank was it, because she wanted it moving .... I knew there was a catch lol




Cheers Al, a lot of prep and thinking went into this one. I had to use Marimo after using it at the tank for tropica. It brings a new angle to a bit of wood. 

And yes, you're right about the mrs! Lol



TOO said:


> Very nice. My only worry would be the right corner, which tends to get hidden and a little dark behind the root and the lily pipe. But perhaps this will be addressed by the Crinum getting taller.
> 
> Thomas




Thank you Thomas, hopefully the Crinum will spread out in the darker area, and sort the darker area.


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## Ian Holdich (28 Sep 2013)

clear water picture time!


image by Ian Holdich, on Flickr

Cladafora on wood

image by Ian Holdich, on Flickr

willow moss

image by Ian Holdich, on Flickr



image by Ian Holdich, on Flickr


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## Ian Holdich (1 Oct 2013)

Got some fish today, I decided on these as they don't mind harder water, and I thought they'd suit the scape well.


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## LondonDragon (1 Oct 2013)

Tank is looking awesome Ian and love those threadfins  excellent choice of fish


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## Deano3 (1 Oct 2013)

beautiful fish ian and lovely scape what fish are they if you don't mind love the colour of them

Dean


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## Deano3 (1 Oct 2013)

don't matter Paulo just answered


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## TOO (1 Oct 2013)

This is a stunning fish, especially when the males flare. They have real tiny mouths, so if you want to give them a treat newly hatched brine shrimp is the thing to do.

Thomas


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## Alastair (1 Oct 2013)

TOO said:


> This is a stunning fish, especially when the males flare. They have real tiny mouths, so if you want to give them a treat newly hatched brine shrimp is the thing to do.
> 
> Thomas



Or banana worms . easier to culture and reproduce by the hundreds daily. 

I think youve picked the right fish for this scape mate. I really like threadfins.


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## TOO (1 Oct 2013)

What is the story behind the title of the scape (I couldn't see this explained anywhere)? Being a non-native I hope this is not a stupid question.

Thomas


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## Ian Holdich (1 Oct 2013)

Cheers guys, I actually got the idea after looking through the vids and saw them in Paulo's old tank.



TOO said:


> What is the story behind the title of the scape (I couldn't see this explained anywhere)? Being a non-native I hope this is not a stupid question.
> 
> Thomas



It's named after this guy
Dietrich Brandis - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
A little bit ironic.


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## TOO (1 Oct 2013)

Interesting, thanks, definitely expanded my knowledge.

But why "ironic"? And why "edge"?

Thomas


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## Alastair (1 Oct 2013)

Tropical forestry.....id say ians referring to his scape being part of a forest edge. Looks like that anyway given the tree stump with greenery leading down to a sandy shore


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## Ian Holdich (2 Oct 2013)

TOO said:


> Interesting, thanks, definitely expanded my knowledge.
> 
> But why "ironic"? And why "edge"?
> 
> Thomas



Yes, alstair is correct, Brandis is known as the god father of chopping trees down. The edge refers to the sand steadily leading up to a tree stump. Maybe on a beach or maybe deforestation. I don't normally get so deep! Lol
The ironic bit is, most of us are big fans of nature, and like what nature offers us. Most of us don't like the extensive deforestation happening in most parts where our fish we keep originate from.


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## TOO (2 Oct 2013)

Thanks for the explanation. You had to dig deep there . But I like the idea of a tank with a bit of philosophy behind it. The tank, luckily, does not make me think of deforestation. There is a difference between chopping down trees for economic gain (deforestation) and aesthetic/botanical purposes (Brandis). 

Thomas


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## Samjpikey (2 Oct 2013)

This looks so good  is that a resin trunk or real ?? 



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## Ian Holdich (2 Oct 2013)

There is it's a pity the governments around the world followed Brandis way of thinking.

Check this video...illegal gold mining in Peru.


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## Ian Holdich (2 Oct 2013)

Samjpikey said:


> This looks so good  is that a resin trunk or real ??
> 
> 
> 
> Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk - now Free



Thanks Sam! 

It's real wood, made up of 2 bits
These bits...



 
A bit of sawing was involved as well.


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## Samjpikey (2 Oct 2013)

That's good stuff  , was it screwed or glued together ?? 
I'm doing a 50x25x25 soon so I'm on the look
Out for ideas  , 
Have you got other tanks running at the moment or just this ?? 
Cheers 


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## Ian Holdich (2 Oct 2013)

Samjpikey said:


> That's good stuff  , was it screwed or glued together ??
> I'm doing a 50x25x25 soon so I'm on the look
> Out for ideas  ,
> Have you got other tanks running at the moment or just this ??
> ...



Cheers Sam, these are just held together with cladafora, and dug into the substrate, so there's no moment. 

And yes this is the only tank I have going at the moment.


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## Ian Holdich (2 Oct 2013)

Daily maintainence...both the kids are picked off to school, so I took the opportunity to get some pics. I'm still doing 50% water changes, in the morning before lights come on. 


The gear 

image by Ian Holdich, on Flickr


50% removed

image by Ian Holdich, on Flickr


And probs the best glassware I have every bought! Finally managed to get a 17mm nano inlet. Very very good quality...from Aquairum plant food uk 

image by Ian Holdich, on Flickr



Also a bit of HC floated when I was doing my maintenance, I was that stressed I had to do some one arm press ups, to get the endorphins going....


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## Gary Nelson (2 Oct 2013)

I like it.... time for a work out as well! you make this look all too easy mate


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## Ian Holdich (2 Oct 2013)

I think there's a market for exercise and aquascaping ; ) 


Thank you Gary, I actually enjoy these first few weeks of nurchering a tank.


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## Greenfinger2 (2 Oct 2013)

Hi Ian,What a little stunner Of a Scape


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## Alastair (2 Oct 2013)

Ha ha nice side plank shot there ian. Build that core up mate he he

. Tanks looking fantastic as always


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## LondonDragon (2 Oct 2013)

Show off!! I wanna see just one finger not full hand!


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## Gary Nelson (2 Oct 2013)

LondonDragon said:


> Show off!! I wanna see just one finger not full hand!


 

I don't think you need to tempt Ian to show just one finger


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## LondonDragon (2 Oct 2013)

Gary Nelson said:


> I don't think you need to tempt Ian to show just one finger


I can see that escalating quickly  lol


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## GreenNeedle (3 Oct 2013)

Lol, Paulo.

Great choice of fish Ian. I've always liked threadfins although I've never had them. One day


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## George Farmer (3 Oct 2013)

Lol at Ian's side plank! 

Scape is looking sweet mate. Looking forward to seeing it develop. 

Super fish choice too.


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## Ian Holdich (5 Oct 2013)

Thanks for the comments guys, and I promise there will be no more mid water change press ups...

I'm getting a little melt on the HC, I've had this before with new aquasoil, hopefully it'll recover ok.


Also, George sent me some crs, I didn't realise how high grade they would be, really really good quality and they've settled in great!


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## Samjpikey (5 Oct 2013)

Those shrimp look really nice . I'm looking for something similar or my shrimp tank  


Sent from my mobile telecommunications device


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## flygja (6 Oct 2013)

Beautiful scape mate. You really make things look easy. I like how the LEDs cast a bit of a shadow on the right side of the trunk. Makes it look very 3D. Perfectly complemented by the bright sandy shore.


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## Ian Holdich (6 Oct 2013)

Samjpikey said:


> Those shrimp look really nice . I'm looking for something similar or my shrimp tank
> 
> 
> Sent from my mobile telecommunications device



They're really nice, the kids love em as well.



flygja said:


> Beautiful scape mate. You really make things look easy. I like how the LEDs cast a bit of a shadow on the right side of the trunk. Makes it look very 3D. Perfectly complemented by the bright sandy shore.




Cheers for that flygja! I just hope the HC recoveres from this melt! Lol


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## Yo-han (6 Oct 2013)

Lovely as always! Only minor thing that feels a bit unnatural are the stones dividing the sand and soil. But the moss and algae on the trunk looks superb!


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## LondonDragon (6 Oct 2013)

Yo-han said:


> Only minor thing that feels a bit unnatural are the stones dividing the sand and soil.


With some mini hair grass or mosses/fissidens around those stones it could work out great.


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## Ben C (6 Oct 2013)

Ian - couple of quick questions if you'll let me. Do you find the 2073 gives you a high enough turnover when its full of media? I believe its 1050lph empty, so just shy of 13x capacity and I'm not sure what it drops down to when full. I'm hoping to buy a Signature in the new year (same dimensions) and am looking into filters at the moment but I'll only get one shot at picking the right one..  its this or the 2075..

Also, the mounting bracket for the ultima tile - was that an additional purpose or is that the "versatile mounting bracket" a few places advertise that comes with the tile? Amazing to read that the lamps are guaranteed for 50,000hrs. Based on a photoperiod of 7 hrs per day, that's just shy of 20 years! 

Many thanks - love reading through your journals - most inspiring.

Ben


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## Ian Holdich (7 Oct 2013)

Yo-han said:


> Lovely as always! Only minor thing that feels a bit unnatural are the stones dividing the sand and soil. But the moss and algae on the trunk looks superb!




Thanks for the comment Yo-Han, hopefully, when the hairgrass grows in and the HC takes off properly the stones will be less obvious. I might end up putting some moss on some slate and strategically place them in between the rocks.  



LondonDragon said:


> With some mini hair grass or mosses/fissidens around those stones it could work out great.



Cheers Paulo, I was thinking the same. Lol

Ps, I got the idea for the thread fins from one of your previous videos I found on Vimeo. 




Ben C said:


> Ian - couple of quick questions if you'll let me. Do you find the 2073 gives you a high enough turnover when its full of media? I believe its 1050lph empty, so just shy of 13x capacity and I'm not sure what it drops down to when full. I'm hoping to buy a Signature in the new year (same dimensions) and am looking into filters at the moment but I'll only get one shot at picking the right one..  its this or the 2075..
> 
> Also, the mounting bracket for the ultima tile - was that an additional purpose or is that the "versatile mounting bracket" a few places advertise that comes with the tile? Amazing to read that the lamps are guaranteed for 50,000hrs. Based on a photoperiod of 7 hrs per day, that's just shy of 20 years!
> 
> ...



Thank you Ben, this is a good question....the 2073 was perfect when I had the lily pipes facing the front of the tank in the first couple of scapes in the signiture. With the melt I'm experiencing at the moment, and the lily pipes now at the side of the tank, I'm not sure the 2073 is actually powerful enough for the dimensions of the tank. I've added a power head for the time being to get the distribution better. If you've got the money, then go for the 2075. Yon can turn the flow down if it's too much. My other theory with the HC is that it doesn't like new soil, and the ammonia. It's funny how it grows perfectly for me in inert substrates. 

The mounting brackets are sold separate to the tiles. The actual brackets are about £20 and the rail that fits the bracket are about a tenner. The tile costs the most, and that was about £150. Then there's the controller if you want one, I picked this up second hand. 

Hope this helps.


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## Ben C (7 Oct 2013)

Thanks Ian - I was afraid you might say that! Pricey, this hobby, innit?!
I think it would have to be the 2075 - nothing worse than having hopes of a dream aquascape dashed by a poor purchase.. 
Thanks for taking the time to reply - it is much appreciated.


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## LondonDragon (7 Oct 2013)

Ian Holdich said:


> Cheers Paulo, I was thinking the same. Lol Ps, I got the idea for the thread fins from one of your previous videos I found on Vimeo.


Good choice mate, they are lovely fish  and they suit the scape perfectly.


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## Ian Holdich (12 Oct 2013)

It's been 2 weeks since set up, and I've just been doing some video. There some extra light over the tank for the vids. The HC seems to have bounced back well. The mini hairgrass is starting to spread and get its colour back. Things seem to be on track at present.


image by Ian Holdich, on Flickr


image by Ian Holdich, on Flickr


image by Ian Holdich, on Flickr


image by Ian Holdich, on Flickr


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## Mark Evans (12 Oct 2013)

Looking great Ian. I hope the HC hangs in there for ya!


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## aliclarke86 (12 Oct 2013)

I do too. My hc is in the same sort of position I have a bit of lush new growth sprouting out though. I did rescue mine from a tank I stopped I ejecting co2 on about 2 months prior though 

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## Gary Nelson (12 Oct 2013)

It's filling out nicely mate, can't help but notice on the last pic with a glance those rocks look like autumn leaves around the tree (really nice) when the plants spread over the soil and fill out it's going to look fab!


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## Ian Holdich (12 Oct 2013)

Mark Evans said:


> Looking great Ian. I hope the HC hangs in there for ya!



Cheers Mark, it looks like it's going to pull through. I have trimmed the tall parts of it today. 



aliclarke86 said:


> I do too. My hc is in the same sort of position I have a bit of lush new growth sprouting out though. I did rescue mine from a tank I stopped I ejecting co2 on about 2 months prior though
> 
> Sent from my GT-I9505 using Tapatalk 4




Thanks Ali, As said, it looks like it's stopped melting now. I always get warey with HC! Lol



Gary Nelson said:


> It's filling out nicely mate, can't help but notice on the last pic with a glance those rocks look like autumn leaves around the tree (really nice) when the plants spread over the soil and fill out it's going to look fab!




Thank you Gary, that's a nice comment, very much appreciated. It looks like I'm going have to have some patience with this one.


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## Alastair (12 Oct 2013)

Your patience will pay off mate this is a stunning set up as it is now, the balance between the stump, the substrate the rocks etc is perfect and Garys comment about the rocks looking like leaves was spot on. 
Every bit of it compliments it very well and the plant choice is perfect. 
This will be a belter again mate.


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## Orlando (12 Oct 2013)

Beautiful tank, the clado work is something I would love to give a go at.


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## tim (13 Oct 2013)

Looking the business Ian, super crisp and clean, really like that crinum in the background


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## Ian Holdich (13 Oct 2013)

Alastair said:


> Your patience will pay off mate this is a stunning set up as it is now, the balance between the stump, the substrate the rocks etc is perfect and Garys comment about the rocks looking like leaves was spot on.
> Every bit of it compliments it very well and the plant choice is perfect.
> This will be a belter again mate.




Thanks Al, much appreciated mate.



Orlando said:


> Beautiful tank, the clado work is something I would love to give a go at.



Thank you Orlando and nice to see you on ukaps. We used the clada on the large tanks we did at pets at home. It gives a very instant effect. It's a nice plant/algae to work with.



tim said:


> Looking the business Ian, super crisp and clean, really like that crinum in the background



Thanks Tim, I can't wait for the Crinum to get massive.


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## Ian Holdich (13 Oct 2013)

The willow moss is starting to creep out of the top and sit on top of the wood. 


image by Ian Holdich, on Flickr

And I have added six neons today, just to give it a bit more colour, you can't beat cardinals or neons IMO!


image by Ian Holdich, on Flickr


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## Dave Pierce (13 Oct 2013)

Nice pictures Ian 

Moss is really attractive out of water, hopefully it will be a nice mini aerial feature.


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## Ian Holdich (13 Oct 2013)

Dave Pierce said:


> Nice pictures Ian
> 
> Moss is really attractive out of water, hopefully it will be a nice mini aerial feature.



Thanks Dave, it's funny how the moss always takes advantage of being near the top and finds its c02 this way. This proves how opportunistic aquatic plants are.


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## Ian Holdich (18 Oct 2013)

Weekly update...

The HC is bouncing back well now and growing steady, no the fastest I've ever had it grow though. The only thing I can think of with the HC is the ammonia leech from the new soil. Who knows...


image by Ian Holdich, on Flickr


The hairgrass is also starting to spread, again really slowly, on reflection I wonder whether, the last tank grew in so fast, I'm expecting it from this scape. 

image by Ian Holdich, on Flickr

Here's a Farmer esq pic, I cought my youngest watching the fish earlier and the neons seem to take interest in him. 

image by Ian Holdich, on Flickr


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## Alastair (18 Oct 2013)

Love this mate. Hard to decide which of yours is my fave now out of this and your one previous to the dutch garden  
This is edging forward. 
That moss looks fantastic on the tree now.  Looking forward to trying that myself.  

Your shot of the shrimp is another one of the 'looks like there's no water in it' shot. Really nice. Hope this is a bit of a longer term scape. Would be interesting to see how it looks then.


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## Curvball (18 Oct 2013)

Can't wait to see this all grown out, looking so good already.


Posted from the comfort of my iPhone...


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## Dave Pierce (18 Oct 2013)

Looking great pal. The angle shot looks brilliant. 

Hopefully HC will move up a gear  soon


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## aliclarke86 (18 Oct 2013)

Beautiful pictures mate and it looks really lovely. I hope people think the same about my latest but I doubt it. I don't put enough thought into my layouts. Just get over excited about a new one and start chucking plants in 

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## Ian Holdich (18 Oct 2013)

Alastair said:


> Love this mate. Hard to decide which of yours is my fave now out of this and your one previous to the dutch garden
> This is edging forward.
> That moss looks fantastic on the tree now.  Looking forward to trying that myself.
> 
> Your shot of the shrimp is another one of the 'looks like there's no water in it' shot. Really nice. Hope this is a bit of a longer term scape. Would be interesting to see how it looks then.



Hi Al, thank you for the comment, yes, I reckon I might keep this one for a few months, see how it goes. I was thinking (whilst walking the dog) about eventually doing an evolution of some sort on it in the end.



Curvball said:


> Can't wait to see this all grown out, looking so good already.
> 
> 
> Posted from the comfort of my iPhone...



Thank you mate! Slowly does it with this one.



Dave Pierce said:


> Looking great pal. The angle shot looks brilliant.
> 
> Hopefully HC will move up a gear  soon



Cheers Dave, as long as the HC is now settled, I'm sure it'll start to go...hopefully lol



aliclarke86 said:


> Beautiful pictures mate and it looks really lovely. I hope people think the same about my latest but I doubt it. I don't put enough thought into my layouts. Just get over excited about a new one and start chucking plants in
> 
> Sent from my GT-I9505 using Tapatalk



Thanks Ali, your scape is good mate, it's always the best way to start IMO, it's the best way to learn ime, just chucking the plants in and learning to grow plants, then the artistic bit can follow.


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## LondonDragon (20 Oct 2013)

Ian Holdich said:


> The HC is bouncing back well now and growing steady, no the fastest I've ever had it grow though.


Setup my Mini M 3 weeks ago just for a quick test of the lighting and getting used to 27w of light over a little tank and the HC also struggled for the first two weeks and now growing nicely again! Did exactly the same as yours!


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## Ian Holdich (24 Oct 2013)

Added this little fella a few days ago, makes a nice addition to the tank. 


image by Ian Holdich, on Flickr



image by Ian Holdich, on Flickr


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## aliclarke86 (24 Oct 2013)

Isn't it a bit warm for him? I kept my hill stream loaches in cold water tank. Very high flow.

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## Ian Holdich (24 Oct 2013)

The tank is running at 24 degree, these don't mind that temp. There plenty of flow in there also.


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## aliclarke86 (24 Oct 2013)

Fair play. I do love them. Gave up that tank when I moved house much to my disappointment.

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## TOO (24 Oct 2013)

Lovely. Do you find the threadfins to be rather bottom oriented? It looks like that on the pics. Would look great too a small school of fish in the big bright area.

Thomas


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## sa80mark (24 Oct 2013)

Really really nice fish ive been toying with the ide of doing a biotope for them  and what a great picture of your kid looking into the tank

Mark


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## Gary Nelson (24 Oct 2013)

Mines as happy as Larry at 24 degrees..... Had him over a year now, a great little character too


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## Ian Holdich (24 Oct 2013)

TOO said:


> Lovely. Do you find the threadfins to be rather bottom oriented? It looks like that on the pics. Would look great too a small school of fish in the big bright area.
> 
> Thomas



Hi Thomas, yes I have found the thread fins very 'bottom orientated' (titter), they are almost washed out by the sand. I have added a small school of neon to add a bit of colour. 



sa80mark said:


> Really really nice fish ive been toying with the ide of doing a biotope for them  and what a great picture of your kid looking into the tank
> 
> Mark



Thanks Mark. They are neat little fish and quite active...these are sewellia lineolata, they stay really small also, which suites this scape.


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## Ian Holdich (24 Oct 2013)

Gary Nelson said:


> Mines as happy as Larry at 24 degrees..... Had him over a year now, a great little character too



Cheers Gary, was gonna pm about em a few days back, but have been working all hours. Are your the same species?


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## Gary Nelson (25 Oct 2013)

Ian Holdich said:


> Cheers Gary, was gonna pm about em a few days back, but have been working all hours. Are your the same species?


Yes mate, mine goes mad for the mini algae wafers and it seems he has a favourite place in the tank, which is on a piece rock next to the anubias.... Quite funny that at maintance time he will return there and remain there till all done, must be his safe place  they are great little fish mate


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## Ian Holdich (2 Nov 2013)

Weekly update time!

One month in, and things are doing ok, I have a little gda on the rocks, it actually looks quite good though! The Clada is attracting every kind of crud you can think of, it's needing hoovering every few days. 
I'm doing a 50% water change every three or four days, the dosing is tropica specialised and premium one every other day. 


image by Ian Holdich, on Flickr



image by Ian Holdich, on Flickr

And the tropica fontanalis 

image by Ian Holdich, on Flickr


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## Tim Harrison (2 Nov 2013)

Very clean and uncluttered and starting to fill out nicely...gona look great when it matures.


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## Alastair (2 Nov 2013)

That fontanalis looks beautiful mate. Did you just glue it?? I was thinking of getting some myself

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## George Farmer (2 Nov 2013)

Looking good mate.

Have you noticed any difference in terms of plant growth and algae now you're using tap instead of RO?


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## Ian Holdich (2 Nov 2013)

Troi said:


> Very clean and uncluttered and starting to fill out nicely...gona look great when it matures.




Cheers Troi, I want it to look a little more cluttered tbh. I'm looking forward to the hairgrass taking off. 



Alastair said:


> That fontanalis looks beautiful mate. Did you just glue it?? I was thinking of getting some myself
> 
> Sent from my GT-I9505 using Tapatalk




Thanks mate, if you can hang on a few weeks, I'll send you some.


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## Ian Holdich (2 Nov 2013)

George Farmer said:


> Looking good mate.
> 
> Have you noticed any difference in terms of plant growth and algae now you're using tap instead of RO?




Hey mate, the main differences I have found with hard tap water vs Ro is...

Plants need A LOT more c02 than normal Ro
Plant don't pearl as much with hard water
More gda in the tank than with RO
Snails get bigger with hard tap water
The lily pipes need cleaning more often with tap water
Purigen doesn't last as long with tap water
It's taken a lot longer for plants to 'take' with tap water


I won't be using tap water again, I'll be going back to Ro on the next scape.


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## stu_ (2 Nov 2013)

Sounds like you're a bit frustrated with the growth rate, dude.
That fontanalis looks ace though.


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## Ian Holdich (2 Nov 2013)

stu_ said:


> Sounds like you're a bit frustrated with the growth rate, dude.
> That fontanalis looks ace though.




Cheers Stu, there's not a lot of algae, just a bit on the rocks and wood. Just more than I have had with RO water. There isn't also a lot of fast growers in there like in previous scapes.


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## Ian Holdich (6 Nov 2013)

Here's a quick vid, done on the ipad, as I'm having trouble uploading from my pc. Please view in 720p or it'll look like you viewing something from the 80s 



And here's a pic of the stump that inspired this scape


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## tim (6 Nov 2013)

Jeez mate that's bloody awful  just kidding Ian you've captured your inspiration extremely well. Lovely scape, very crisp clean and healthy. Love the hill stream loach he looks very happy grazing on the dragonstone in the vid.


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## aliclarke86 (6 Nov 2013)

Hc really filled in nice now mate. Looking superb!

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## Alexander Belchenko (6 Nov 2013)

That fontinalis is really big thing! IIUC that's Plant Details Fontinalis antipyretica 'Willow', right?

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## Ian Holdich (7 Nov 2013)

tim said:


> Jeez mate that's bloody awful  just kidding Ian you've captured your inspiration extremely well. Lovely scape, very crisp clean and healthy. Love the hill stream loach he looks very happy grazing on the dragonstone in the vid.



Thank you Tim, things are ticking along nicely now after the slow melting start. The loach is ace, they look more like mini stingrays.



aliclarke86 said:


> Hc really filled in nice now mate. Looking superb!
> 
> Sent from my GT-I9505 using Tapatalk



Thanks Ali, it's still got a long way to go. I was thinking the other day of taking the scape further a few months down the line. Adding more plants at the back.




Alexander Belchenko said:


> That fontinalis is really big thing! IIUC that's Plant Details Fontinalis antipyretica 'Willow', right?
> 
> Sent via Tapatalk



Hi Alex, yes this is tropica willow moss, and it's the biggest moss I have used. It's very pretty though and the pics on the tropica site don't do it any justice.


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## Alexander Belchenko (7 Nov 2013)

About your inspiration picture: looking at it the first time I really thought it's a picture from a tank: cladofora around stump, hair grass, and anubias (in bottom left corner). Incredible shot!


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## Gary Nelson (7 Nov 2013)

Very nice video mate and the tank is looking fantastic now its filling out more.  It looks spotless too, what maintenance are you doing over a week?


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## Ian Holdich (7 Nov 2013)

Alexander Belchenko said:


> About your inspiration picture: looking at it the first time I really thought it's a picture from a tank: cladofora around stump, hair grass, and anubias (in bottom left corner). Incredible shot!




Thank you Alex! I see this stump every morning whilst walking the dog. It's incredible what nature can achieve. 



Gary Nelson said:


> Very nice video mate and the tank is looking fantastic now its filling out more.  It looks spotless too, what maintenance are you doing over a week?



Cheers Gary, maintenance is as follows, 2-3, 50% water changes a week. It's still dosed alternate days with tropica specialised and premium. I have yet to clean the filter, but might do it on Friday. It gets a little extra iron as well.


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## Alastair (7 Nov 2013)

Beautiful ian. Your source of inspiration is almost mirror like. Id be digging that huge stump up ha ha. 
I love the loach too flapping it's fins. Hope you keep it for all your future scapes

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## Ian Holdich (7 Nov 2013)

Alastair said:


> Beautiful ian. Your source of inspiration is almost mirror like. Id be digging that huge stump up ha ha.
> I love the loach too flapping it's fins. Hope you keep it for all your future scapes
> 
> Sent from my GT-I9505 using Tapatalk 2




Thanks Al, i wish I could get some better video of it, my pc is playing up like a good un! I will be keeping the loach I reckon, they are great characters and always out and about. He seems to be thriving as well. You'll have to get a couple for your scape!


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## Ian Holdich (7 Nov 2013)

Just caught my Tiger hillstream loaches doing what I think might be spawning...I may be wrong, but it doesn't look aggressive enough, to be anything else. See what you think?

Again, please view in 720p or it'll look like an episode of 'some mothers do have em'


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## Tim Harrison (7 Nov 2013)

Not sure whether it's just me but I think your vid is private...


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## sa80mark (7 Nov 2013)

Yep I cant view it either


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## Aron_Dip (7 Nov 2013)

Me too 

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## Ian Holdich (7 Nov 2013)

Try it now guys, I have just changed the settings.


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## sa80mark (7 Nov 2013)

Certainly looks like a spawing dance to me, fingers crossed


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## Aron_Dip (7 Nov 2013)

It's working fine now pal.. nice little fish 

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## Alastair (7 Nov 2013)

Cool hope they do get jiggy mate. Theyre gorgeous loach and you swayed me into getting a few for the lake once its cycled. 
Congrats mate

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## Plunket (7 Nov 2013)

Awesome fish Ian, love 'em!  Used to have a couple but never saw them doin' dat ting  Got me thinking about having some again....


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## Yo-han (7 Nov 2013)

I don't want to disappoint you, but my males do the same. When Sewellias spawn, they interlock fins. It looked like they were trying that at the beginning of the video but most of the time it looked more like a gentle hierarchy battle.


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## Ian Holdich (8 Nov 2013)

Cheers guys, thanks Johan, they weren't aggressive, so I can put up with some dominance. They are male and female though, they've been id on a loach site. There mouths are different, apparently this is how you sex them.


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## harryH (10 Nov 2013)

Hi Ian,
what a great thread this is. Thanks for all the info which is so helpful to people like myself.
It appears you're main gripe with tap water is that it is far more 'labour intensive', would you agree?
Got to say having seen what can be achieved by this method only serves to spur me on and give it my best shot Just one question, you say the Purigen doesn't last as long in hard water, how often do you have regenerate it?


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## Curvball (10 Nov 2013)

Ian Holdich said:


> Hey mate, the main differences I have found with hard tap water vs Ro is...
> 
> Plants need A LOT more c02 than normal Ro
> Plant don't pearl as much with hard water
> ...



Good reasons to go with RO - kind answers all my questions about, thanks.


Posted from the comfort of my iPhone...


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## Ian Holdich (10 Nov 2013)

harryH said:


> Hi Ian,
> what a great thread this is. Thanks for all the info which is so helpful to people like myself.
> It appears you're main gripe with tap water is that it is far more 'labour intensive', would you agree?
> Got to say having seen what can be achieved by this method only serves to spur me on and give it my best shot Just one question, you say the Purigen doesn't last as long in hard water, how often do you have regenerate it?



Thank you Harry, I would say that the beginning of the tank was more labour intensive, you have to be on top of daily water changes with harder water. Only in the last week have I started doing 2-3 water changes a week. It's doing really well now. I use 250g of purigen and it lasts 3 months or so in hard water before it needs recharging. In RO I didn't need to recharge it as it remained a white colour. 

Heres a couple new pics. Here's a nice Crypt Flamingo, it looks nice in the scape, just adds that little bit more colour.


image by Ian Holdich, on Flickr

And a side shot of the scape


image by Ian Holdich, on Flickr


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## harryH (10 Nov 2013)

It's stunning Ian, I love the little Crypt as it just gives a focal point among the HC. Looks like I'll need to buy more Purigen as I only bought 100ml. thanks for your help.
Harry


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## darren636 (10 Nov 2013)

Lovely detailing , as normal - that crypt has got to go though!


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## Alastair (10 Nov 2013)

Love that crypt ian. Gives a lovely contrast

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## George Farmer (10 Nov 2013)

Love the in-situ shot mate. Growing in nicely too.

The flamingo crypt AKA marmite crypt... Love it, or hate it.


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## Ian Holdich (10 Nov 2013)

harryH said:


> It's stunning Ian, I love the little Crypt as it just gives a focal point among the HC. Looks like I'll need to buy more Purigen as I only bought 100ml. thanks for your help.
> Harry



Thank you Harry, and no problem, that's what were all here for, if we can make the hobby grow, then alls good. 



darren636 said:


> Lovely detailing , as normal - that crypt has got to go though!



Thank you Darren, good to see you around. Hahaha, I love the crypt, I think it might be my new fave plant! 



Alastair said:


> Love that crypt ian. Gives a lovely contrast
> 
> Sent from my GT-I9505 using Tapatalk 2



Thanks Al, I always appreciate your comments. 



George Farmer said:


> Love the in-situ shot mate. Growing in nicely too.
> 
> The flamingo crypt AKA marmite crypt... Love it, or hate it.




Cheers George, I know you love that crypt mate, I could tell when I phoned you the other night. The conversation went...

"Guess what George?"
"What?"
"I got a Crypt flamingo!"
"Mmmmmmmm" *quietness ensued 
Lol


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## darren636 (10 Nov 2013)

Ian, you are a bad man!


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## Ben C (23 Nov 2013)

Ian - just thought I'd let you know I just bought the 2075 based on your advice earlier in the conversation. Found on Amazon brand new for £179.99. Just waiting for it to arrive now..!
This is anticipation of a Signature sometime in the new year.
Any updates on Brandis Edge?

Thanks again for your advice


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## Ian Holdich (23 Nov 2013)

Ben C said:


> Ian - just thought I'd let you know I just bought the 2075 based on your advice earlier in the conversation. Found on Amazon brand new for £179.99. Just waiting for it to arrive now..!
> This is anticipation of a Signature sometime in the new year.
> Any updates on Brandis Edge?
> 
> Thanks again for your advice



Nice one Ben, you have taps that can slow the flow on the ehiem, but once it settles you might want it full blast anyway. Good choice though.

Here's a couple of upto date pics, iPhone quality though.


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## Gary Nelson (23 Nov 2013)

Superb mate! It's really filled out now.  Do you ever have any trouble with the smaller shrimps on the filter inlet? I have been pondering on adding a few, but on my last scape I used to get the odd one stuck on the inlet pipe


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## richard powell (23 Nov 2013)

This is beautiful, I cannot explain how much I would love this tank. You must be very proud mate


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## Ben C (23 Nov 2013)

Look at that HC! That's the dream, isn't it?! 
If you can just get this front right corner to fill in, this would be spectacular. I'd be tempted to do the whole thing in HC and have the acicularis poking through here and there. Great tank - its come on a treat! 
(Thanks for posting the updates!)


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## Dave Pierce (23 Nov 2013)

Quality stuff Ian! 

Been away for a while just caught up.

Loving the way your plants are growing around that truck...looking sweet!


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## Ian Holdich (24 Nov 2013)

Gary Nelson said:


> Superb mate! It's really filled out now.  Do you ever have any trouble with the smaller shrimps on the filter inlet? I have been pondering on adding a few, but on my last scape I used to get the odd one stuck on the inlet pipe



Thanks Garry, I haven't had any problems, that said, I haven't cleaned the filter yet, so there's bound to be a couple in there. I've always found, adding 10-20 cherry swill soon multiply within a couple of weeks, so you loose count of how many you have. 



richard powell said:


> This is beautiful, I cannot explain how much I would love this tank. You must be very proud mate



Thank you for the kind comment Richard! 



Ben C said:


> Look at that HC! That's the dream, isn't it?!
> If you can just get this front right corner to fill in, this would be spectacular. I'd be tempted to do the whole thing in HC and have the acicularis poking through here and there. Great tank - its come on a treat!
> (Thanks for posting the updates!)



Thanks Ben, I purposefully didn't add any HC in that corner due to lack of flow in that area, however, it is creeping forward over there, there is mini hairgrass, which has taken an age to start to spread. 



Dave Pierce said:


> Quality stuff Ian!
> 
> Been away for a while just caught up.
> 
> Loving the way your plants are growing around that truck...looking sweet!




Thank you Dave, I've not posted many pics of this scape, as there hasn't been much to report on tbh, it pretty much looks the same to me as when I set it up! Lol


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## Antoni (24 Nov 2013)

Coming along very nicely, my friend! Very textured  and detailed. We all want the plants to grow faster, but... patience is a virtue


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## Ian Holdich (24 Nov 2013)

Captions please



 


*no shrimp we're hurt in the making of this photo


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## OllieNZ (24 Nov 2013)

The secret behind the effectiveness of the Skim 350 is finally discovered.....


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## Ben C (24 Nov 2013)

Darwin's theory of Natural Selection states that 
stupid animals filter themselves out... 

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## Ian Holdich (24 Nov 2013)

Good un lads! He's my prize shrimp as well!


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## Ben C (25 Nov 2013)

Ian Holdich said:


> Thanks Ben, I purposefully didn't add any HC in that corner due to lack of flow in that area, however, it is creeping forward over there, there is mini hairgrass, which has taken an age to start to spread.


 
Yes, I assumed that was the reason. Interesting how you can almost see the flow in the tank.
I have a horizontal column of BBA running through mine at the moment, hence the upgrade to the 2075.
Would be great if you could adjust the flow to get that the HC to fill in that corner as well - would look like a tree in beautifully maintained parkland or something!

Could you not move the inlet to the front right corner, so its 'pulling' the water in over the top of that hairgrass? Would that help?


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## TOO (25 Nov 2013)

Ian Holdich said:


> Hey mate, the main differences I have found with hard tap water vs Ro is...
> 
> 
> 
> ...


 
These are interesting observations. I know many dismiss the importance of RO vs. tap, but this clearly goes in the opposite direction. Personally, I would prefer to use RO, but I am also realistic enough to know that if I had to produce about 60 liters of RO a week I would not get my water changes done as much as I would like to. The water waste is also a bit scary. For a low tech I would not hesitate.

Thomas


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## tim (25 Nov 2013)

Scapes looking superb mate really filling in nicely !


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## Alastair (25 Nov 2013)

Ian Holdich said:


> Captions please
> 
> 
> 
> ...




"Im on the crapper"


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## tim (25 Nov 2013)

Ian Holdich said:


> Captions please
> 
> 
> 
> ...


Does this skimmer make my a** look big


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## Edvet (25 Nov 2013)

"working at the car wash..................tada tada tadaa"


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## Deano3 (25 Nov 2013)

love the shrimp   looking great ian growing in nicely and great HC carpet, I am looking into buying a eheim skimmer 350 but only have a 18cm high tank would try hiding it when grown in but read you review and seems you are extremely happy with it as most people I have asked, a slightly smaller one would work great for me but think this is the smallest ?  but think I will purchase one of these it will add plenty of extra flow in my Nano aswel , anyway coming along great and looking forward to seeing future updates

Thanks dean


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## Monk d'Wally de Honk (28 Nov 2013)

Ian Holdich said:


> Captions please
> 
> 
> 
> ...




The new Eheim Jayne Mansfield.


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## harryH (28 Nov 2013)

Ian Holdich said:


> Captions please
> 
> 
> 
> ...


 
Cuckoo!!Cuckoo!!Cuckoo.....


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## Ady34 (8 Dec 2013)

Ian Holdich said:


> Captions please
> 
> 
> 
> ...


In response to Ian's question "what's your favourite piece of aquarium equipment?", shrimp replied, im a sucker for the eheim skimmer!


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## Aron_Dip (8 Dec 2013)

"Sent back in time to clean and protect.... My name ..... Roboshrimp!"

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## darren636 (9 Dec 2013)

Ian, are you using a tmc colour tile or the natural daylight?	Do you think the greens look good under the light?  Cheers.


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## Daniel (10 Dec 2013)

Aron_Dip said:


> "Sent back in time to clean and protect.... My name ..... Roboshrimp!"


 

Haha! The aquascaping blockbuster of the year!


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## Ian Holdich (10 Dec 2013)

darren636 said:


> Ian, are you using a tmc colour tile or the natural daylight?	Do you think the greens look good under the light?  Cheers.




Hey mate, it's the daylight tile, and yes the greens look good. IMO they are better than the old tiles, these seem to be a lot cleaner and more white that the last ones...even though they're rated at the same kelvin.


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## Daniel (10 Dec 2013)

Are you running the tile at 100%, do you find that the single tile is adequate over your tank?


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## aliclarke86 (10 Dec 2013)

A single tile from that high is more than adequate. I have had to cut mine down to 50% with the same tank specs as I am clearly not as skilled as Ian here 

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## Daniel (10 Dec 2013)

They seem to be pretty powerful from what most people are saying, I was thinking to have 4 over a 150x50x50 tank but maybe 3 would suffice?


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## darren636 (10 Dec 2013)

aliclarke86 said:


> A single tile from that high is more than adequate. I have had to cut mine down to 50% with the same tank specs as I am clearly not as skilled as Ian here
> 
> Sent from my GT-I9505 using Tapatalk


 not many of us are!  I aspire to ianho


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## Daniel (10 Dec 2013)

darren636 said:


> not many of us are! I aspire to ianho


Agreed.


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## Ian Holdich (10 Dec 2013)

Aaawww cheers lads, you all make my heart melt....; )

I must get a couple of pics uploaded.

And yes the tile runs at 100%, it always has! I cants stand the high pitched hum it lets off when ramping.


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## Ian Holdich (10 Dec 2013)

As it stands tonight



 



 

Nearly rescape time!


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## Brian Murphy (10 Dec 2013)

Ian Holdich said:


> Captions please
> 
> 
> 
> ...


 
'I'll never make it as a Hermit Crab'


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