# No competition for 1st quarter of 2010?



## ghostsword (5 Feb 2010)

Hi, 

Is there any plan for a competition for the 1st quarter of 2010?


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## Steve Smith (5 Feb 2010)

Haven't had a chance to think about it (much like how I'm supposed to be doing a newsletter).

How about this.  Everyone suggest some ideas for a comp, and I'll start a poll listing the most popular ideas and we'll go from there!


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## Jase (5 Feb 2010)

:idea: 

Wabi-Kusa


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## Gill (5 Feb 2010)

how about one where you are limited to the number of materials you can use. 

Or have a set list of hardscape and flora and see what can be made with it.


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## Garuf (5 Feb 2010)

I'm with Gill, that sounds a very good idea. 
CAll it something like the 5 plant-plalooza or something similar and see what comes out of it, it's bound to produce some unusual uses of plants.


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## TBRO (5 Feb 2010)

Naturally I'm with Jase on the WK idea   It's really quite challenging but not expensive


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## NeilW (5 Feb 2010)

WK would be awesome... how about anything emergent, terrestrial or even a small palludarium but within a set format (e.g a glass cube) or budget?  Obviously WK could be part of this.  

This could mean anything from Dan Crawford's 'Cressgumi';
http://ukaps.org/forum/viewtopic.php?f=49&t=7608&hilit=cressgumi
to Graeme Edwards 'Moss'gumi'
http://ukaps.org/forum/viewtopic.php?f=14&t=6161 
to something more like Tbro's excellent Wabi Kusa;
http://ukaps.org/forum/viewtopic.php?f=35&t=9358

Along a similar train of thought as the pico's it'll be a chance for something fun, cheap, and bit different


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## Garuf (5 Feb 2010)

The paladium idea I like, might spur me into finally producing the long planned wabi crab tank. 
the gumis are called bonkii I believe. Could be spelt wrong however.


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## NeilW (5 Feb 2010)

Garuf said:
			
		

> The paladium idea I like, might spur me into finally producing the long planned wabi crab tank.
> the gumis are called bonkii I believe. Could be spelt wrong however.



I think everyone's gotta have a 'secret project' plan along these lines and looking for a good excuse to do it!


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## Garuf (5 Feb 2010)

I did a mini cube many moons ago as a secret project I wish I'd taken pictures because it turned out brilliantly.

I always like the idea of using my cube to produce a wabi style paladium but it's finding the time to do the research on the plants. I don't like the solid backs that paladiums have, I always feels it cheapens the look .


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## NeilW (5 Feb 2010)

Garuf said:
			
		

> I don't like the solid backs that paladiums have, I always feels it cheapens the look .



You ever seen this bad boy;
http://www.aquariacentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=118697

have a scroll through and its an island stuck on with suckers.  No solid back!


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## TBRO (6 Feb 2010)

I really like the idea of wabi/emergent/paludarium type thing. You can get really creative for very little money. After all WK is just mud, plants and a pot. It should be petty free style but on a budget.


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## danmil3s (6 Feb 2010)

ive only been posting on here a couple of weeks and learnt so much i like the idea of a paludarium competition because im in to my frogs/ reptiles as well as fish and im sure id learn allot much from all of you. i might even have a go if my wire agrees to the budget


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## NeilW (6 Feb 2010)

TBRO said:
			
		

> I really like the idea of wabi/emergent/paludarium type thing. You can get really creative for very little money. After all WK is just mud, plants and a pot. It should be petty free style but on a budget.



Looks like this could be a plan 8)


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## rawr (7 Feb 2010)

I think the paladrium and set mount/tuype ideas are good ones. 

Also, how about a competition where you can only use hardscape and maybe even plants found from your local lake/park/wherever - just collected from nature. Or one where you give us an inspirational image and we have to recreate it in an aquarium? I dunno, food for thought.


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## Steve Smith (7 Feb 2010)

All great ideas so far!



			
				rawr said:
			
		

> Or one where you give us an inspirational image and we have to recreate it in an aquarium? I dunno, food for thought.



I particularly like that one


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## ghostsword (8 Feb 2010)

Gill said:
			
		

> how about one where you are limited to the number of materials you can use.
> 
> Or have a set list of hardscape and flora and see what can be made with it.



This has to be the best choice.. Given a shop list and no more no less than that, the only difference would be the tank and light. And obviously no fish on the list. 

I am also very fond of the idea of creating a paludarium, that would sort out the issue of CO2 and light. 

Even better, to cater for all is to give a list of plants that can be seen on both, and then allow people to choose if they want a paludarium or aquarium.

Also free choice would be what ferts would people use, as long as they are listed all would be allowed.


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## Steve Smith (15 Feb 2010)

ghostsword said:
			
		

> Gill said:
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I think that's a given mate   We're all about what ever works for the individual!


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## Gill (15 Feb 2010)

rawr said:
			
		

> I think the paladrium and set mount/tuype ideas are good ones.
> 
> Also, how about a competition where you can only use hardscape and maybe even plants found from your local lake/park/wherever - just collected from nature. Or one where you give us an inspirational image and we have to recreate it in an aquarium? I dunno, food for thought.




I Like the idea of this, we have a pretty boggy garden, so have a good choice and a canal ans streams/brook just down the road.


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## ghostsword (15 Feb 2010)

Gill said:
			
		

> rawr said:
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Wow, couldn't get better than this.

So how big would the tank would allowed to be? Or could we say that nothing bigger than 10L should be allowed? And a budget of Â£30? 

The rules would be:
- budget of Â£30
- 10L water
- emmergent or swampy 
- cold of tropical, after all there are a lot of plants in the UK that could survive on room temp
- the tank would be evaluated on use of natural materials, ease of setup and aesthetics


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## mr. luke (19 Feb 2010)

I have a spare tank thats begging for a paladarium set up 
i like the idea of a paladarium, planted entirely with uk natives  and uk 'native' hardscape.


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## ghostsword (19 Feb 2010)

mr. luke said:
			
		

> I have a spare tank thats begging for a paladarium set up
> i like the idea of a paladarium, planted entirely with uk natives  and uk 'native' hardscape.



Yes, this would be great.. UK native, or close to native with cold water plants..


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## danmil3s (19 Feb 2010)

i like the above could almost be done for free


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## mr. luke (22 Feb 2010)

If i did it i would do it for under Â£5 easily including cost of the tank (Â£4 including heater, filter, tank, light and a plastic skull from a boot sale, and Â£1 for superglue)


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## Mowze (15 Mar 2010)

British native sounds like a great idea! Im deffo in but it might make it a lot easier if you hold on till the pond season, a lot of plants both wild and in stores arent quite ready yet!


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## ghostsword (15 Mar 2010)

True.. that will be easier..


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## rad89 (16 Mar 2010)

The rules would be:
- budget of Â£30
- *10L water*
- emmergent or swampy 
- cold of tropical, after all there are a lot of plants in the UK that could survive on room temp
- the tank would be evaluated on use of natural materials, ease of setup and aesthetics[/quote]

So what would the tank size be? No bigger than 25 litres?


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## ghostsword (16 Mar 2010)

rad89 said:
			
		

> The rules would be:
> - budget of Â£30
> - *10L water*
> - emmergent or swampy
> ...



Yep, that would be perfect.. no more than Â£30 and only 10L of water allowed in.


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## rad89 (17 Mar 2010)

So, when do you think we could get this going by? 1st Quarter is nearly over !


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## Steve Smith (17 Mar 2010)

Good point.  I'm a little busy at work at the moment, and we need to get the last comp done and dusted (need to sort out prizes etc).  Can you guys sum up what you think the comp should be this time around?  I believe I've seen mention of a Â£30 limit UK specific riparium comp?  I think it's a great idea, though I think you might struggle with purely UK species.  That might just be me though


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## NeilW (17 Mar 2010)

I think I would struggle too theres no streams near me and I don't fancy waders!


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## Jase (17 Mar 2010)

I must say, I'd prefer to be able to buy plants rather than gather them...


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## ghostsword (17 Mar 2010)

SteveUK said:
			
		

> Good point.  I'm a little busy at work at the moment, and we need to get the last comp done and dusted (need to sort out prizes etc).  Can you guys sum up what you think the comp should be this time around?  I believe I've seen mention of a Â£30 limit UK specific riparium comp?  I think it's a great idea, though I think you might struggle with purely UK species.  That might just be me though



Ok, I would say that the rules would be:

- Â£30 spending money
- 10L of water
- 3 plants only, whatever one wants
- Needs to have some plants above water.

We could start it in April 1st, and run it for a month or two. Just three pictures uploaded to competition journal, with two weeks space between them, so 6 weeks minimum running.

This should allow enough time to end current comp.

Alternatively, to make it harder and more fun, moderators would post a list of plants to use, and we would choose a maximum of three plants on the list.


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## rad89 (17 Mar 2010)

ghostsword said:
			
		

> Ok, I would say that the rules would be:
> 
> - Â£30 spending money
> - 10L of water
> ...



Sounds great to me.
However, maybe three plants and one moss? Just a thought.


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## Steve Smith (17 Mar 2010)

I'm trying to figure out where I've seen the following tanks for sale cheap.  I think it was somewhere like Shirley Aquatics, or something like that:





http://tetra-fish.com/sites/tetrafish/c ... 76&cid=889

Might be perfect but I suspect they'd be difficult to get hold of  :?


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## rad89 (17 Mar 2010)

I already Have my tank planned if this goes ahead; hense the Clearseal question


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## Mowze (18 Mar 2010)

10L of water doesnt leave you with much room for any fish or inverts especially if your going emergent...

 Could you use an > 10L tank with just 10L of water in it? The only Spare tank that cost less than Â£30 I have going (it was actually free) which would be PERFECT for either of the proposed comps (Wabi Kusa or Native riparium) holds 18L But I guess if 8L of that was land then it would still count as 10L right?


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## Steve Smith (18 Mar 2010)

I like the look of the Clearseal 12x8x8 tanks.  They're about 12 litres...


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## rad89 (18 Mar 2010)

Mowze said:
			
		

> 10L of water doesnt leave you with much room for any fish or inverts especially if your going emergent...
> 
> Could you use an > 10L tank with just 10L of water in it? The only Spare tank that cost less than Â£30 I have going (it was actually free) which would be PERFECT for either of the proposed comps (Wabi Kusa or Native riparium) holds 18L But I guess if 8L of that was land then it would still count as 10L right?



The idea I think everyone was going for was to have any tank size you want (within reason) but it can only have 10 litres of water in it as a maximum.... It would also promote many different ideas as we wouldn't be forced to a set tank size 

Again, just a thought!


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## Mowze (18 Mar 2010)

So in theory you could go for a 200L tank full of emmersed pond plants but as long as it had a 10L puddle in the middle it would be all good? I like that idea!   

 I really like the idea of emmersed native low budget but as I said not everybody has access to the plants in the wild and with pond season not really being in full swing and daylight hours relatively short it may be a little difficult to pull off yet especially if there is a time limit we have to work to.


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## ghostsword (18 Mar 2010)

Yep, this is comp that not only tasks your planted skills but how you use your imagination as well.

A 10L puddle would get you on the comp, even if you had a 6 foot tank. 

And if judges lists 10 to 20 plants, and we choose just 3 species, then it just makes it that little better, and harder to implement.


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## ghostsword (18 Mar 2010)

SteveUK said:
			
		

> I like the look of the Clearseal 12x8x8 tanks.  They're about 12 litres...



For this sort of thing a clearseal tank would be perfect. 

I got a old Evo Terra sitting on the garden, good enough for this sort of setup. I also have a AquaOne 320, 32 Litters with 11W light, it may be a better option, just need to decide and see how 10L look on them.

Got the Evo for Â£20, and the Aquaone from my brother for Â£15, so leaving me with Â£10 minimum to play, more than enough I think.

So, should we look at a start for the 1st of April? Can a new topic be created on the competitions area?


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## Gill (18 Mar 2010)

SteveUK said:
			
		

> I'm trying to figure out where I've seen the following tanks for sale cheap.  I think it was somewhere like Shirley Aquatics, or something like that:
> 
> 
> 
> ...




They sell these down the road in the range but Fish R Fun branded for under Â£20

Also if it is decided for A Riparium/Paludarium type scape, I have Planty of Emersed Terrestrail Moss Growing outside just for this type of use.


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## rad89 (18 Mar 2010)

Mowze said:
			
		

> So in theory you could go for a 200L tank full of emmersed pond plants but as long as it had a 10L puddle in the middle it would be all good? I like that idea!
> 
> I really like the idea of emmersed native low budget but as I said not everybody has access to the plants in the wild and with pond season not really being in full swing and daylight hours relatively short it may be a little difficult to pull off yet especially if there is a time limit we have to work to.



You could indeed, but unless you have access to lots of wild plants that are included in the judges list filling it for less than Â£30 would be rather difficult


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## Mowze (25 Mar 2010)

Any word on the competition? Im itchin for an excuse to set up another tank!


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## bigmatt (28 Mar 2010)

I really like a lot of these ideas.  My favourite would be for the judging panel to create an "inspiration board" of pictures (with no limit - could be tanks, landscape schemes, colour schemes - whatever they think will push the entrants creativity) and the judging be based around the tank best represneting one part of the inspiration board.  I also like the idea of limiting cost for the competition entries, but would the judging panel be open to having an "unrestricted" section (with or without prizes)?  It'd be really helpful for me as a newbie to have my ideas judged ina competitiove environment, and i'd enter just to get the feedback!
Can't wait!
Matt


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