# oddn0ise - 270L planted rebuild - IAPLC entry



## oddn0ise (24 Sep 2012)

Here's my previous tank before work commenced:


Tropical fish/plant layout June11 by oddnoise, on Flickr#

I’ve been keeping tropical fish for about 15 years now and over the last seven years I have focused on creating planted layouts but with a fair share of non plant friendly exotic fish. In 2005 I made the top 300 in the ADA Planted Tank Competition but ever since have lost ground and I'm now ranked well outside the top 1,100. 

My Eheim Pro 2 filter had developed a leak and it was time for a change - on August 24th 2012, I decided to gut my 270 litre tank.

After a visit to ADC in Central London, I came away with a wide array of ideas and made the decision to finally bin my 10 year old Pea Gravel , all 60 kilos of it, and start again from scratch.

I’ve made some mistakes and learnt many things along the way so hopefully this Journal will help others make the right moves.

The cost of the upgrade has been close to £1,500, I wanted a quality set-up and one that wouldn’t require daily attention so I’m sure things could have been done on a cheaper budget but I feel I have a safe, up-to-date, and easy to maintain set-up now.

Next year will see a move to a new Optiwhite tank but this is the last major upheaval to my 10 year old 270L tank that's built into a fireplace.

I'll update pictures along the way and start with a simple set-up list followed by a more detailed walk-through.

Here goes:
270 Litre tank with black background
Sera External Filter UV400 running Siporax, Eheim Lav, and Sera Peat
Lighting 2 x TMC Aqua Grow 1000 units contolled by TMC 8-channel controller
Carbo Plus carbon block soon to be replaced with JBL CO2 602 unit
Sera Heating cable
ADA Aqua Power Soil base with Amazonia on top
Tree roots held in place for the near future with rocks 
Plants are temporary until tank is fully matured, layout still to be decided upon
London Tap water mixed with Nutrafin Aqua Plus and initially run through Sera Peat
ADA and EasyLife fertilisers

And some videos are here too:
http://www.youtube.com/user/oddn0ise


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## oddn0ise (24 Sep 2012)

*Re: oddn0ise - 270L rebuild*

*Lighting* changed from several T8 tubes to one 42” T8 Freshwater tube and two TMC Aqua Grow 1000 Led units powered by the 8 channel programmer. The TMCs allows for smooth light fades and they both run from one plug socket. Apparently there is a ‘storm function’,  I haven’t tried it yet, but if combined with a major water change it says it could bring about spawning in certain fish. The units are quite costly and took a while to fit into the hood, I’m still not sure I’ve  understood the ‘ramp up’ times/levels precisely but in general they seem very good. The T8 tube adds a 5-hour boost and is there just in case the LEDs fail.

The *filter* was a major source of searching on the net, I had only ever owned Eheim external filters but after the leaks on the latest one, I felt like a change. On scouring the forums I could find examples of virtually every brand being a success as well as a failure, TetraTec and Eheim both faired well but I decided to go with my instinct and plumped for a Sera UV400. I purchased this online from Lapwater aquatics and they did a great job of sorting delivery within 24hours. The mistake I made here was to not check the size of the larger filter, it was considerably taller than my previous one and required some rebuilding of my undertank cupboard.
I must point out here that inside the box of hose attachments there was a large rubber seal, there was no mention of this seal at all in the instructions and I assumed this was a spare. Wrong, after getting the filter primed, using Siporax media together with my dirty Eheim Lav media, I turned the filter on only to have water shoot everywhere. I went through the build of the filter again and found the only place that the rubber seal could be used, and the filter sprang to life perfectly.

At the bottom of the tank I fitted an *under gravel heater*, I have always used these and again plumped for a Sera product, which at first seemed rather complex but is now ready to run. The cable was not that simple to fit and only came with 10 suction hooks and a cable of that size needs at least twice that amount.

The first layer of substrate was *ADA Power Soil*, enough to cover the heating cable completely, and then 5 bags of ADA Amazonia soil was gently poured in on top and smoothed out with an incline to the back. The substrate takes a little while to get used to, having only used pea gravel until now, the ADA soil is much lighter and moves easily and you really do have to siphon the water in gently. One of my best purchases so far has been a pair of long planting tweezers enabling me to plant swiftly and securely, and without disturbing the soil.

I had been soaking large amounts of old tree wood for several months but when finally placed in the tank was not happy with the look and made a sudden change to go with tree roots. I found two excellent pieces and made a few little adjustments and here I learnt that tree roots take approximately 4 weeks to sink so have had to weigh them down with rocks, and also the bits I had sawn off made an unsightly white web like mess when placed underwater.
The tank is full of mainly Crypts that I have successfully kept for many years but these are only temporarily placed until the tank is fully matured.

I returned my largest fishes to the shop, 2 beautiful Plecs and various loaches all went back safely. I then housed my collection of Corydoras, Neon Tetras and many Amano Shrimps in a large plastic tray for the maturation period. I lost one fish in this 2-2.5 week process and although some of the Neons were virtually colourless they have all come through the major move safely.


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## oddn0ise (24 Sep 2012)

*Re: oddn0ise - 270L rebuild*

OK picture time, some are very boring but show the whole story.

First up is just the organisation of all the new purchases and previous stuff


Area_preparation by oddnoise, on Flickr

Plastic tray home for the fish for 2-3 weeks


Fish_Temp_housing by oddnoise, on Flickr

Original T8 42" tube and new LEDs being fitted


Replacing_lights_with_LEDs by oddnoise, on Flickr

New Sera filter housing alongside JBL CO2 cylinder


New_Sera_filter_JBL_CO2 by oddnoise, on Flickr

New Sera Heating Cable - really tricky to fix in a _not quite clean tank _with only 10 suction cups included


Under_Gravel_heater by oddnoise, on Flickr

Day two - weighted down tree roots and a few plants


Day_2 by oddnoise, on Flickr

More to follow


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## John S (24 Sep 2012)

*Re: oddn0ise - 270L rebuild*

The original tank looks fantastic, looking forward to seeing this one.


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## nry (24 Sep 2012)

*Re: oddn0ise - 270L rebuild*

The first setup was lovely, I think I'd struggled to tear it down


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## oddn0ise (25 Sep 2012)

*Re: oddn0ise - 270L rebuild*

The tank was due a good sort out but was a lot of work to rebuild. The new tank is taking shape and will post some new pictures very soon.


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## oddn0ise (26 Sep 2012)

*Re: oddn0ise - 270L rebuild*


Day_8 by oddnoise, on Flickr

*Day 8*
Have been testing the water everyday and Ammonia levels have now dropped, I moved the Neons from the holding bay to the tank, probably a little early, but the regular 50% water changes are helping. I'm regularly dosing Microbe-Lift 'Special Blend' one of the smelliest substances I have ever come accross but the maturation process seems to be going OK so far. 

Have added more hardy plants, again all Crypts, and have kept lighting down to a small amount, and have also made a couple of trimmings to the tree roots.


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## foxfish (27 Sep 2012)

*Re: oddn0ise - 270L rebuild*

looks very promising but how big is you C02 bottle?


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## oddn0ise (27 Sep 2012)

*Re: oddn0ise - 270L rebuild*

At the moment I am running down my very old Carbo Plus carbon block. Very few people seem to have heard of this but I can't find them anymore and have decided to make the move to a CO2 cylinder so will be interesting to see if there is a big difference. Cheers.


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## oddn0ise (30 Sep 2012)

*Re: oddn0ise - 270L rebuild*

*Day 10*

OK, so far so good!

Have added some of my Neons and they seem happy enough, their colour is returning after having endured 2 weeks in a large plastic tub. Plants are coming round slowly but surely. Everything is rough for now until fully matured and then I'll start on a totally new layout in a few weeks time.


Day_10 by oddnoise, on Flickr

Have checked out the rocks mentioned by 'IanHo', thanks, and they look very nice and hope to place an order for them soon.


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## oddn0ise (6 Oct 2012)

*Re: oddn0ise - 270L rebuild*

*Day 25*


Day25 by oddnoise, on Flickr

Maturation process is complete, nitrite levels are zero and now just have a high Nitrate level to deal with.

The layout is only rough and I've chucked in as many plants as I have to help use up the nutrients.

Having read many of the Journals here I now would have raised the temperature more, early on, as this seems to be a way to help speed up the maturation process and I would have done a few less major water changes too as again this would seem to have helped._ Learning new things all the time!_

I'm almost at present day now with the pictures and am just about to start the big planting process so will update things very soon.


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## Iain Sutherland (6 Oct 2012)

*Re: oddn0ise - 270L planted rebuild*

dont worry about the nitrate levels unless you have sensitive fish,   plants will be grateful. 
Looking good.


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## oddn0ise (7 Oct 2012)

*Re: oddn0ise - 270L planted rebuild*

Agree with you on the Nitrate levels, I have been reading a lot about the balance between Nitrate and Phosphate and there seems to be a ratio between the two that doesn't allow the growth of algae. 16:1 is shown in the Redfield Ratio so I plan to dose Phospate to get this balance between the two.

If anyone is interested this is a good read...
http://www.xs4all.nl/~buddendo/aquarium ... ld_eng.htm


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## oddn0ise (7 Oct 2012)

*Re: oddn0ise - 270L planted rebuild*

OK tank is stable, maturation process is complete and was advised that I'd see an outbreak of algae at this point but so far so good. I do think the ADA Phyton Git product is a good help here and also the UV light in the Sera Filter.

Have just stripped the tank again of the loose layed plants and have placed a special order with the Aquatic Design Centre in London, who have been very helpful with plant/general tank advice.

The plants ordered are:

Echinodorus Tenellus x 12
Staurogyne Repens x 12

Anubias Barterii large x 1
Anubias Barterii medium x 3
Anubias Barterii small x 3
Pogostemon Erectus x 3
Ludwigia Glandulosa x 3
Cardamine Lyrata x 4
Bolbitis Heudelotti x 3

Taxiphyllum Barbieri x 5


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## Ian Holdich (7 Oct 2012)

*Re: oddn0ise - 270L planted rebuild*

try not to believe the redfields ratio to much...it was based on the marine side of things, so not entirely true for a freshwater planted system. IME N03 at this early stage isn't a bad thing (or at any stage TBH). Just keep up with the maintenance at the beginning, and water changes. Hard work at the beginning will pave the way for an easier tank in the future.


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## oddn0ise (7 Oct 2012)

*Re: oddn0ise - 270L planted rebuild*

Yep working hard on water changes and keeing things nice and clean. The Redfield Ratio came from an EasyLife leaflet talking about the 'golden triangle' and keeping a good balance of Light - Macro nutrients - Micro nutrients.

Is this not the way forward?


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## oddn0ise (7 Oct 2012)

*Re: oddn0ise - 270L planted rebuild*

Plants arrived on Friday and I've had 48 hours of heavy planting.

First up it was attaching the moss to the tree roots, not a particularly easy process. Then I focused on the Anubias and Bolbetis again being attached to the wood.

Then there was a few hours of preparing and planting the foreground plants, first I planted the Staurogyne then the Tenellus, then several of my original Crypts, followed by the Pogostemon and Cardamine. The only plant I didn't get from my list was the Ludwigia Glandulosa as it was missed off the order so will see if I really need this or not over the next few days.

I'm really pleased with how things have come together, my only concern is the layout feels 50/50 in composition so I'm looking at ways to visually shift things a little off centre.

A couple of early shots for your comments...

Cut and trimmed Tenellus ready for planting and one of my most favoured purchases... giant tweezers which I was convinced I didn't need but have been a revelation.

Tenellus_trimmed by oddnoise, on Flickr

Day 0. Stripped out tank ready for planting. Just tree roots and mini landscape rock.

oddn0ise_day_0 by oddnoise, on Flickr

Day 1. First round of planting with several plants still in pots to check for position

oddn0ise_day_1 by oddnoise, on Flickr

Day 2. Pretty chuffed with how things have gone, still lots to do but will let things settle for a couple of days

oddn0ise_day_2 by oddnoise, on Flickr


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## Ady34 (8 Oct 2012)

*Re: oddn0ise - 270L planted rebuild*

Looking good   
Like the way youve put the stauro in the centre with the tenellus either side, will draw the eye nicely into the open space with the colour and height differences of the plants. Personally i dont think it looks too symmetrical, the more dominant wood forms to the left draw the eye to give the illusion more towards the 'golden ratio'...i wouldnt worry. 
I also see youve trimmed your tenellus from the off.....ill be interested to see how this works out as i planted mine without trimming as id read that its best to leave it for a few weeks to settle first, so this may help clear that up.
Moss and rhyzome plant tying is a pita, i feel your pain!!... and tweezers are a must for the planted tank enthusiast, fingers are just too damn fat   
Will be watching progress with interest.
Cheerio,
Ady.


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## foxfish (8 Oct 2012)

*Re: oddn0ise - 270L planted rebuild*

Nice planting - good luck....


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## oddn0ise (8 Oct 2012)

*Re: oddn0ise - 270L planted rebuild*

Cheers Foxfish, I'm pleased with how well the planting has gone, some are still in pots at the back so more work to do but will let things settle for a couple of days.

And thanks Ady,
The Staurogyne is like a river weaving through the Tenellus hopefully this will fill out nicely. Have had Stauro before but i went well early on and then died off. But I'm running peat in the filter which is keeping the water a little softer. I spent a lot of time trimming the Tenellus so hopefully it works out... we'll see I'll post some pictures soon.

Tweezers have been one of my best investments, thought they were a bit of a gimick but they have worked wonders.
I'll update soon.


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## Ady34 (8 Oct 2012)

*Re: oddn0ise - 270L planted rebuild*

Ha, tell me about it, stauro is a bogey plant for me.
I'll look forward to progress reports.


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## oddn0ise (9 Oct 2012)

*Re: oddn0ise - 270L planted rebuild*

Need the Stauro to spread outwards rather than up so plenty to keep an eye.

will update later this week to show how all the plants are settling in.


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## oddn0ise (9 Oct 2012)

*Re: oddn0ise - 270L planted rebuild*

Lost 5 shrimps today.
levels are all in shape but I'm concerned I put them in a little too early.

I have no movement on the top of the water and wonder whether I should revert back to the spray bar I used to use rather than the flashy glass head I bought...?


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## oddn0ise (20 Oct 2012)

*Re: oddn0ise - 270L planted rebuild*

Planted tank day 7

OK only a week into things but plants and fish all seem pretty settled.
Algae starting to appear on the wood nearer the filter outlet but have boosted the Amano shrimp population and things are under control.

Thanks to 'mlgt' for swapping his mosses for my crypts and also recommending a new, to me anyway, planted tank specialist within the M25 http://www.livingwatersonline.co.uk/ I plan to check it out in the next couple of weeks.

Here's the latest tank progress


oddn0ise_day_7 by oddnoise, on Flickr


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## tim (20 Oct 2012)

*Re: oddn0ise - 270L planted rebuild*

Very nice scape will look superb when mature mate


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## oddn0ise (20 Oct 2012)

*Re: oddn0ise - 270L planted rebuild*

Cheers, yes early days but shoukld come together nicely. I'll keep you posted.

I see you're SW London, like me, do you rate any local Aquatic shops?


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## tim (20 Oct 2012)

*Re: oddn0ise - 270L planted rebuild*

I use my local maidenhead aquatics fairly approachable with trying to get hold of plants and livestock for me it's there osterley branch highly rate aquatic design centre on great Portland street and I really should get round to going to living waters Croydon there is wholesale tropicals bethnal green I think has a good reputation for livestock where do you normally use mate


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## Brian Murphy (20 Oct 2012)

*Re: oddn0ise - 270L planted rebuild*

Looking good


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## oddn0ise (21 Oct 2012)

*Re: oddn0ise - 270L planted rebuild*



			
				tim said:
			
		

> I use my local maidenhead aquatics fairly approachable with trying to get hold of plants and livestock for me it's there osterley branch highly rate aquatic design centre on great Portland street and I really should get round to going to living waters Croydon there is wholesale tropicals bethnal green I think has a good reputation for livestock where do you normally use mate



I'm a regular Aquatic Design Centre customer as I work fairly near there and Greg is a good brain on planted tanks.

Have had Living Waters recommeded highly, but haven't got there just yet and will one day get out to Mile End to try Wholesale Tropicals. 

Cheers Tim!


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## oddn0ise (21 Oct 2012)

*Re: oddn0ise - 270L planted rebuild*



			
				Murf said:
			
		

> Looking good



Thanks a lot Murf!

Here's the up to date tank as of this evening, now 2 weeks into aquasacpe. Feels a little two dimensional to me now... will see how it all takes shape


oddn0ise_Day_14 by oddnoise, on Flickr


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## oddn0ise (30 Oct 2012)

*Re: oddn0ise - 270L planted rebuild - update*

On a special trip to Living Waters in Croydon today, have heard a lot about this shop so will give it a good check out.

On the tank front, black algae is forming on the thinnest tree roots, and will try the method of painting Pyton Git onto it this week and see what happens.

Tenellus is growing very well, I'm losing leaves from the Anubias plants so wary of that, and the Cardamine is growing strongly if a little ragged, any tips here on how to trim this plant would be appreciated.


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## mlgt (30 Oct 2012)

Enjoy your visit and say hello to Darren for me 

R


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## oddn0ise (30 Oct 2012)

That was an interesting little find... felt like a trip back in time inside the shop, but plenty of good planted tanks, stacks of moss and knowledgable staff. Thanks for the recommendation Rick.


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## oddn0ise (3 Nov 2012)

*Re: oddn0ise - 270L planted rebuild*



			
				Ady34 said:
			
		

> Ha, tell me about it, stauro is a bogey plant for me.
> I'll look forward to progress reports.



Looks like the Stauro is starting to struggle, some of the leaves are thinning out and not sure what to do to get it back on track.

Whereas the Tenellus is going very well, the trimming at the start seems to be paying off as the growth is very strong now.

will post some pics soon.


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## oddn0ise (26 Jan 2013)

All the plants have settled nicely and I haven't lost anything. Staurogene is now back on track and the Tenellus is rapidly multiplying. I have a good handful of cuttings if anyone is interested? (Just PM). The big change is I've finally upgraded to a Compressed CO2 unit and have said goodbye to my aging Carbo Plus carbon block. Decided on a JBL m602 unit and it's now running smoothly but I can't say the instructions were particularly easy to get to grips with.

I had been sent loads of special AquaVitro plant products, as an entrant in the UKAPS Aquatic Live Aquascaping competition, and so far the products seem very good. I'm now dosing Nitrogen (Synthesis) and Phosphorous (Activate), Iron (Propel) and a mix of micronutrients (Envy) once a week as well as small amounts of the ADA Green Brighty Step 1 and Brighty K. I have a little Black Algae but it's under control, predominently on the wood and Anubias leaves and plan to use some ADA Phyton Git on these to cut it back.

Both Cherry shrimps and Amano shrimps are doing there bit on the Algae too.

Have purchased some really nice Corydoras from Wholesale Tropicals in Bethnal Green, London and they are all settled in nicely too.

*Here's the latest picture oddn0ise day 85*

oddn0ise_tank_day85 by oddnoise, on Flickr


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## Arana (26 Jan 2013)

wow that is growing in a treat, well done


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## oddn0ise (27 Jan 2013)

Thanks Mark, yes things are all settling in nicely.
I've just put a new video live too on You Tube if you want to have a browse round the tank.


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## Arana (27 Jan 2013)

Great video mate, well done


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## Ady34 (27 Jan 2013)

Hi,
Looking great!
Is the video shot with the lighting representative of full light intensity or ramped down? Just trying to gauge how much lighting you use as it looks subdued in the video and some of your photos. If so its a great example of how co2, ferts and distribution grows plants as your stems are looking lush all the way down.
Really nice scape.
Cheerio,
Ady.


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## tim (27 Jan 2013)

Nice vid, tanks looking really healthy, hard to believe you have only just switched to pressurised co2 everything I've read about those carbon blocks has been fairly negative so your tank really is an all round good job !


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## oddn0ise (27 Jan 2013)

_


tim said:



			hard to believe you have only just switched to pressurised co2 everything I've read about those carbon blocks has been fairly negative
		
Click to expand...

_ 
Thanks Tim, glad you liked the video. Inside the tank things are really healthy and all the plants are growing well, I bought the Carbon block gadget about 8 years ago, it's been easy to use and no fuss to change, but as you say nobody seems to have anything good to say about them. So I decided on the JBL and after a fairly lengthy set-up everything is now running smoothly, but I'm not looking forward to the FE refills as this sounds a bit of a phaff. Anyone know how heavy a big FE cylinder is, could I take it home on the tube?

The JBL CO2 unit has been running for about 2 weeks now so will post an update once it's really bedded in.
cheers


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## oddn0ise (27 Jan 2013)

Arana said:


> Great video mate, well done


 
Cheers Mark. I thought the video quality could have been better, I'm really struggling with the Lumix camera and have read a few comments that they struggle in low light.
Glad you liked it though.


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## oddn0ise (28 Jan 2013)

Ady34 said:


> Hi,
> Looking great!
> Is the video shot with the lighting representative of full light intensity or ramped down? Just trying to gauge how much lighting you use as it looks subdued in the video and some of your photos. If so its a great example of how co2, ferts and distribution grows plants as your stems are looking lush all the way down.


 
Cheers Ady, yes most of the shots and videos are shot late in the evening when the lights are ramping down and I can black the room out. I have been cutting the max level of light down as I prefer the tank in lower lights. I have the 2 Aquarays on long ramp ups and downs and the max level is now 80%, I add a T5 light for two hours in the late afternoon. You're right the plants seem lush all the way down and the Staurogene is now looking it's best after a poor start. Have got a fair amount of black algae but it doesn't look out of place on the wood and it keeps the shrimps and Otocinclus busy.


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## Ady34 (28 Jan 2013)

oddn0ise said:


> Cheers Mark. I thought the video quality could have been better, I'm really struggling with the Lumix camera and have read a few comments that they struggle in low light.
> Glad you liked it though.


My Panasonic is terrible indoors 
Amazing outside though with plenty of light around!


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## Ian Holdich (28 Jan 2013)

Good to see you posting again mate! 

The tank is coming along nicely, looks very healty and the crypts look great , I love seeing mature crypts they add so much to a scape.


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## dagzz (28 Jan 2013)

looking good mate


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## martinmjr62 (28 Jan 2013)

That's a lovely looking tank ;thumbup:


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## oddn0ise (28 Jan 2013)

Ian Holdich said:


> _Good to see you posting again mate! _
> 
> _The tank is coming along nicely, looks very healthy and the crypts look great , I love seeing mature crypts they add so much to a scape._




Cheers Ian, the Crypts are in good shape, I've planted about 30 in all and some must be nearly 10 years old. You're right they do add a nice feel.
How are your tanks coming on?


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## oddn0ise (28 Jan 2013)

dagzz said:


> looking good mate


 
Cheers Dagzz.and cheers Martin! There's a video if you're interested


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## oddn0ise (1 Feb 2013)

Almost 4 months into the rebuild now and the new CO2 is running smoothly, I think I've got the right amount, and the plants are responding.
Just looking into the purchasing of cylinders and then need to find a local supplier. ADC in London say they will refill but not sure I want to lug them home on the tube.

Latest pictures below taken mid-way through ramp down of the lights. Have cut the peak light level down from 100% to 80% as this has a nicer effect.



oddn0ise_Day88_close_up2 by oddnoise, on Flickr


oddn0ise_planted_tank_Day88 by oddnoise, on Flickr


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## oddn0ise (23 Feb 2013)

Here the latest tank update. I'm just over a month with my first JBL CO2 unit running and things are setting down nicely, I added six assassin snails and they seem to be doing their job well. Have added some new Anubias as the original ones had attracted too much black algae, the Tennelus is growing really well and the Staurogene 'river' is filling out nicely. Taxiphyllum is spreading well on the wood, I just have to keep it trimmed back, and now it's just general maintenance.


oddn0ise_day135 by oddnoise, on Flickr


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## oddn0ise (3 Jun 2013)

Weeks of preparation and on the last night before IAPLC and I got in very late from work had to turn all the tank lights on at 2am and take the final shot. Not sure it was my best performance, will post a picture later.


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## oddn0ise (22 Jun 2013)

*IAPLC entry*. 2am shot. Not my best photo but let's see if I can stop my year on year slide from inside the top 300 in 2003 to just in the top 1,200 in 2011.


oddn0ise_IAPLC_2013 by oddnoise, on Flickr


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