# NA Island Journal



## danmullan (3 Dec 2012)

Hi all,

Welcome to my journal for my new high-tech planted tank. I've recently replaced my entire set-up with a tank, cabinet and lighting arm from Natural Aquario, who are based in Portugal. I actually ordered the tank way back in June but due to what feels like an endless list of issues I've been delayed in starting the tank until the weekend just gone.

I chose to order from NA because I liked their cabinets so much, and the lighting arm. It didn't actually take that long for my bits to be made and delivered. About 3-4 weeks if that? I chose a charcoal grey colour, it actually turned out a bit lighter than I thought but I'm really pleased.


Tank + Cabinet by Dan.Mullan, on Flickr

The tank is a 60w X 45d X 40h (cm) opti-white. The stand is 85cm tall, the lighting arm is attached to the sides of the cabinet and is over 200cm tall from the ground.

I'd decided to use 2x TMC Aquaray GroBeam 1000nd tiles for lighting, the biggest selling point for me was the total control over the light. I had my heart set on a light that could ramp up and down to simulate sunrise, midday and sunset. They seem to be hugely flexible and easy to use, I'll do a separate post and go into more depth when I have time.

Here's the Aquaray stuff before I suspended the lights.


Equipment by Dan.Mullan, on Flickr

By this point I had already decided on my hardscape, I wanted to use bogwood as I've not used it in a planted aquarium yet, and also I'd seen it used in James Findlay's *"Nature's Chaos"* scape. This scape by TGM is one of my favourite planted aquariums, it has also inspired me to try an island layout. Here's some of the hardscape I've used.


Hardscape - Bogwood by Dan.Mullan, on Flickr

I'd begun to plan hardscape and planting layouts, I had a pretty good idea of what I wanted the tank to look like and what plants I wanted to grow. I'll show you some of my scapes from when I was in the 'sandbox' stage when I update this tomorrow.

I'll be bringing this journal up to speed over the next week or so as I go along, I then hope to update as regularly as possible to show progress and growth, and no doubt a few problems I have along the way. I'll do certain posts about parts of the set-up that require a bit more going into as well such as the lighting I'm using. I hope you all find it interesting.

Thanks for looking.

Dan


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## nayr88 (3 Dec 2012)

Ahhhh that cabinet light arm and tank look the part, NA are gonna have great success I think, really too quality stuff. How much did they NA bits set you back if I be so ruddy bold!! Haha

Will defo be watching this one closely


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## Ady34 (3 Dec 2012)

Hi Dan, really looking forward to this journal. I love the na products and also love natures chaos at TGM, it's an awesome scape and a great source of inspiration. Love your choice of hardscape material and I'm impressed with your patience already, it must have seemed an eternity since June!
Cheerio,
Ady.


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## gmartins (3 Dec 2012)

Hi,

This is not justify the delay but to let you know that there has been an endless strike in Portugal from the people working on the transport system (don't know the proper word). So this may have had some impact on the delay...

Anyways, if looks like you have everything sorted and I can't wait to see it planted.

cheers

GM


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## Joecoral (3 Dec 2012)

Very nice, big fan of the NA stuff myself so will be keeping a close eye on this thread, hopefully going to order one for myself sometime in the new year   

What filter you going with?


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## pepedopolous (3 Dec 2012)

Nice setup! Seems to be a lot of us planning on buying NA aquariums and cabinets soon.  Hope they can cope with the demand! Really looking forward to reading more from this journal.

PS. Did you specify those dimensions as on the  NA website they're 65w X 40d X 45h. If so does this affect the cost much?


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## danmullan (3 Dec 2012)

nayr88 said:
			
		

> How much did they NA bits set you back if I be so ruddy bold!! Haha



Can't find the invoice now it was so long ago, was in the region of £400 inc shipping, really good value in my opinion.



			
				Ady34 said:
			
		

> Love your choice of hardscape material and I'm impressed with your patience already, it must have seemed an eternity since June



Cheers Ady, worst thing is I've had the tank in place but had to wait on other issues. Pretty much everything gone wrong so far. It's really bizarre to see the tank full of water and plants.



			
				gmartins said:
			
		

> This is not justify the delay but to let you know that there has been an endless strike in Portugal from the people working on the transport system (don't know the proper word). So this may have had some impact on the delay...



Unfortunately all the delays have been caused by problems with products I've bought. The tank and cabinet was delivered quite quickly but I had to have the cabinet replaced which delayed the whole process, and everything after seemed to go wrong too.



			
				pepedopolous said:
			
		

> Did you specify those dimensions as on the NA website they're 65w X 40d X 45h. If so does this affect the cost much?



I just sent them an e-mail with what I wanted, originally I was inquiring about a 90cm wide tank, they called me to discuss final sizes and prices but I ended up ordering a 60x45x40. When I decided I wanted a 60 wide I wanted a 60x45x45, but this needed 8mm glass. They said they could do a 60x45x40 in 6mm glass which made the tank a bit cheaper. 
They seem very confident in the quality of their products, they even compared themselves to ADA. In fact at one point the guy said their stuff was better than ADA but I've never had one so I can't compare.


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## danmullan (3 Dec 2012)

Here's a full list of kit for this tank:

*Tank* - 60w X 45d X 40h (cm)

*Stand* - 85cm tall (over 200cm with lighting arm)

*Lighting* - 2 x TMC GroBeam 1000ND tiles run through power controllers, suspended with cables so the distance from the water surface is easily adjustable.

*Filter* - Eheim pro 3 350 (spray bar along back wall)

*CO2* - JBL co2 kit, 500g refillable bottles with JBL reg and solenoid. Using a UP inline Atomizer (16-22mm)

*Substrate* - ADA Aquasoil Amazonia (I've ended up using about 2 and a half 9ltr bags)

*Hardscape* - Bogwood from TGM

I'll post my plants list soon.

Cheers
Dan


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## Antipofish (4 Dec 2012)

Hi,
Out of interest, why did you go for 2 x power controllers instead of 1 x 8way ?


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## LondonDragon (4 Dec 2012)

After seeing the NA cabinets at Aquatics Live I now want one myself!! haha good luck with the setup


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## danmullan (4 Dec 2012)

Antipofish said:
			
		

> Out of interest, why did you go for 2 x power controllers instead of 1 x 8way ?



2x power controllers was a slightly cheaper option.

Also I thought if ever I had 2 smaller tanks, I could use them separately, which is far more likely than me getting such a large tank that I'd need more than 2 tiles.


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## danmullan (4 Dec 2012)

Time for a little update.

Once the tank was in place, I was ready to buy the lighting. I had already decided on TMC's freshwater Aquaray LED lighting, despite the price which initially put me off. I'd decided that it was smarter to invest a little more money than I originally wanted to, and not have to buy again. Also the savings on leccy bills and tube replacements will more than make up for the price difference over the 5 year minimum life expectancy.

I knew I wanted to hang the units from the lighting arm, and thought this would be fairly straightforward with the suspension kit. However the TMC Aquaray 'MMS' (modular mounting system) kit was meant for ceilings, so it wasn't quite as straightforward as I'd thought. I knew that I would need to make some holes in my lighting arm to make it compatible with the cable kit, so I set to work. But drilling through stainless steel without a pillar-drill, was not as easy as I'd thought either. Eventually, a couple of days, a sore wrist and a few broken drill bits later:


Hanging rail by Dan.Mullan, on Flickr

This shows the 'lug' that holds the cable that would normally be screwed to the ceiling. It also shows how the top section of the light arm connects to the sides.

And here's the lights suspended for the first time.


Suspended by Dan.Mullan, on Flickr

The two tiles are connected together with a 490mm 'MMS' rail.

This suspension kit is really good so would recommend it to anyone with Aquarays and an open top tank. It's really easy to raise/lower the lights for maintenance or more light. I'll be doing a more in depth post about the lights with more pics soon. 

I'll be bringing this journal up to date over this weekend so expect scape pics, plants lists and a box of water.

Cheers
Dan


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## Ady34 (4 Dec 2012)

You tease.....
Looks great so far!


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## pepedopolous (4 Dec 2012)

Great work on the lights. I was wondering too about how to secure the cables to the light arm. In the photos by NA they seem to use a granny knot! Perhaps another way is to slide a steel ring over the arm and attach the cable to that?


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## alzak (5 Dec 2012)

Where did You get the frame for those lights ??


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## danmullan (6 Dec 2012)

Ady34 said:
			
		

> You tease.....
> Looks great so far!


 
 All will be revealed soon.



			
				pepedopolous said:
			
		

> Great work on the lights. I was wondering too about how to secure the cables to the light arm. In the photos by NA they seem to use a granny knot! Perhaps another way is to slide a steel ring over the arm and attach the cable to that?


 
I was looking for one of these to use:


This is the solution for rails, the loop would hold the lights to the rail... but I decided I would rather have them fixed than just resting on the cable.



			
				alzak said:
			
		

> Where did You get the frame for those lights ??


 
The frame is part of the cabinet, all ordered from *'Natural Aquario'* in Portugal.

Cheers, 
Dan


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## pepedopolous (6 Dec 2012)

> I was looking for one of these to use: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cLsxnCbowkk
> This is the solution for rails, the loop would hold the lights to the rail... but I decided I would rather have them fixed than just resting on the cable



Thanks! They look really classy. Did you find any place where you can buy them?

EDIT: Found them!


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## danmullan (8 Dec 2012)

Update time   

After the lights were mounted, I ordered some Aquasoil and a few more bits of bogwood from TGM. I had been planning layouts with the hardscape I already had and decided it wasn't enough to create the shape I wanted, trying to imagine how it would look a couple of months down the line when all the plants had grown in.

1st bag of aquasoil goes in, the first ADA product I've used.


Aquasoil by Dan.Mullan, on Flickr


Substrate by Dan.Mullan, on Flickr

I had 2x 9l bags, when I saw the size of the mound I wasn't sure I'd need both. But once the 2nd bag went in and I'd spread it around a bit it was fine. The bogwood goes in and I started to play around with different positions for my island.


Scape 1 by Dan.Mullan, on Flickr


Scape 3 by Dan.Mullan, on Flickr

I tried two islands but didn't like it.


Scape 2 by Dan.Mullan, on Flickr

After an hour or so, I'd decided on my final layout:


Final Hardcape Layout by Dan.Mullan, on Flickr

I'd pretty much decided on the plants I wanted to use, most of which happened to be part of the Tropica 1-2 Grow range. I'd read that although the plants are young and small, there is a greater quantity of plantlets which could lead to nice even growth and coverage? Thought I'd give them a bash.

I wanted Lilaeopsis Brasiliensis for the main carpet/foreground. Alternanthera Reineckii 'mini' and Pogostemon Erectus in the mid-ground between pieces of bog wood. Microsorum Pteropus (java fern) tied to the main piece of wood, maybe with some moss or HC growing on the top of the wood. Also with some Rotala sp. Green in the back ground.

Since the initial plant list I'd decided to have HC in the middle of the hill, coming down towards the front glass, and some Ammania Bonsai infront of the P.Erectus. I also scrapped the A.Reineckii as I'd read the TMC LED's tend to wash the reds out.

More tomorrow


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## Ian Holdich (8 Dec 2012)

Very nice Dan, I liked scape 2 personally, that had a lot of potential. However they re ll good.

Just be aware of the movement you're gonna get from the wood when you fill it, do you have any stone to keep it in position?


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## Antipofish (8 Dec 2012)

Funny how we all like different scapes. I liked #3   Its gonna be cracking either way


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## danmullan (10 Dec 2012)

Ian Holdich said:
			
		

> Very nice Dan, I liked scape 2 personally, that had a lot of potential. However they re ll good.
> 
> Just be aware of the movement you're gonna get from the wood when you fill it, do you have any stone to keep it in position?



Cheers mate, the scape I've chosen is still my favourite, thankfully. I was worried I'd look back on these pictures and wish I'd stuck with another layout. I'm really glad I made the right choice.

Also I soaked the wood in a bucket of water for quite a long time, I've made this mistake before with a tank that began as an emersed project. I'd used redmoor wood and forgot to soak before the final fill, tank was half full and the wood floated to the top, releasing loads of gunk from the substrate into the water and uprooting the plants.    No floaters this time though   



			
				Antipofish said:
			
		

> Funny how we all like different scapes. I liked #3   Its gonna be cracking either way



Everyone has their own tastes, I try to imagine each layout with plants and make a decision based on that. It was a fun process but almost didn't want to make a final decision.

Cheers

Dan


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## danmullan (10 Dec 2012)

Time for an update   

When I'd come up with the final layout, next was to make sure I had all the bits of kit I needed and get my plants. I had to wait a while for *Tankscape* to get more stock of the UP inline atomizer for my co2, which gave me a chance to sort other things like filling my co2 canisters. Once I had everything all I needed was my plants, and a free day to plant and fill the tank.

I ordered my plants from a few different websites as some had stock when others didn't. I ordered a mixture of Tropica potted plants and the 1-2 Grow range. Here's the plants list:

Lilaeopsis Brasiliensis - carpet/foreground at the sides
Hemianthus Callitrichoides (HC) - carpet/foreground in the centre
Amannia sp. Bonsai - foreground/midground between bits of hardscape
Pogostemon Erectus - midground between bits of hardscape
Lilaeopsis Mauritiana - background sides
Microsorum Pteropus 'narrow' - tied to the large bit of wood on the right
Rotala sp. Green - background behind the bits of wood at the back
Vesicularia Dubyana (christmas moss) tied to wood in the foreground


1-2 Grow! by Dan.Mullan, on Flickr

I bought 3 pots of 1-2 Grow L.Brasiliensis and 4 normal pots to see if there is any difference in growth/quality under the same conditions.

The 3 pots of Pogostemon were in pretty bad condition due to bad handling in transit.

There seemed to be a lot of moss in the 1-2 Grow pots compared to the normal portions from Tropica. Both of these were about 6x6cm, almost a full pot on each and are quite thick, didn't have to stretch them out at all really.


Xmas moss - left by Dan.Mullan, on Flickr


Xmas moss - right by Dan.Mullan, on Flickr

It seems that the quality of the 1-2 Grow pots can vary depending on age of the plant and the conditions it's kept in. I would use them again as it seems there is quite a lot of plant matter for the money, but I would prefer to buy them in a store to see them first if I bought any again.

Anyway, the planting went well. I filled the tank until the substrate was saturated with water and then began to plant. The hardest thing to plant was the 1-2 Grow L.Brasiliensis due to it's small size and I probably had too much water in the tank by this point due to misting the plants to stop them from drying out. Another thing I'd change is the substrate, I now see how it would be much easier to plant in the Powder form of the ADA substrate so I'd maybe use a bag or two of this on top.


Hardscape + Fern in by Dan.Mullan, on Flickr


HC + Moss in by Dan.Mullan, on Flickr

Finally:


Filled by Dan.Mullan, on Flickr

And then the next day, it looked like this:


Clear 1 by Dan.Mullan, on Flickr

And from the front:


Clear Front by Dan.Mullan, on Flickr

Thanks for looking   

Dan


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## Ian Holdich (10 Dec 2012)

Looks great dan and will look even better when grown in...you gonna get some sexy glassware?


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## danmullan (11 Dec 2012)

Ian Holdich said:
			
		

> Looks great dan and will look even better when grown in...you gonna get some sexy glassware?



Cheers mate. The growth so far has been good. HC has grown well and the Rotala has taken off as it usually does. The Amannia Bonsai is my favourite so far though.

Not too fussed about glassware at the moment. I'm sure I will be soon. I'm quite fond of the Eheim tubing,I'm sure I'll learn to hate the green.


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## Ady34 (11 Dec 2012)

Wow, i love this.
This has the potential to be really really good. I hope the plants continue to thrive as im looking forward to seeing this one matured   
The microsorum sp narrow has the potential to overpower the scape, but with regular pruning will offer the right balance.
The moss stumps/branches in the left and right foreground are a great addition and will contrast nicely with the hc carpet and L. Brasiliensis.
Great journal Dan, keep up with the updates   
Cheerio,
Ady.


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## Ian Holdich (11 Dec 2012)

Ps dan, don't be worried about that lime green moss...in the 1-2 grow ime it always comes back really green over the corse of a few weeks.


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## danmullan (13 Dec 2012)

Ady34 said:
			
		

> Wow, i love this.
> This has the potential to be really really good. I hope the plants continue to thrive as im looking forward to seeing this one matured
> The microsorum sp narrow has the potential to overpower the scape, but with regular pruning will offer the right balance.
> The moss stumps/branches in the left and right foreground are a great addition and will contrast nicely with the hc carpet and L. Brasiliensis.
> Great journal Dan, keep up with the updates



Thanks mate   

I hoped the narrow leaf Microsorum would be a bit smaller, I used the smallest part of the plant. When it's grown some new, smaller leaves in a few months I may take it out and cut it down, and just re-attach the section with smaller, new leaves.

I'm hoping to be able to keep the L.Brasiliensis carpet fairly low so the moss stands out. It's started to spread but the most notable growth has been the HC, A.Bonsai and Rotala. I've done well with green Rotala before, with high light and lots of co2 it can be a bit of a weed, but I just love the leaf shape. 

The Pogostemon has had to grow all new leaves due to the poor condition of the plant, looks okay now though and the retailer has sent me a new batch so I'll plant these at the weekend.



			
				Ian Holdich said:
			
		

> Ps dan, don't be worried about that lime green moss...in the 1-2 grow ime it always comes back really green over the corse of a few weeks.



Yeah it's funny that. I hadn't really noticed until the water had cleared the next day but after a few days with loads of co2 it returned to the darker green it should be.

I'll hopefully have time for an update tonight.

Cheers,
Dan


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## tim (13 Dec 2012)

Very nice setup will look superb grown in mate keep the pics coming


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## danmullan (13 Dec 2012)

Hi all,

today is day 10 for this tank   ... Here's an update from the end of week one.

So planting was successful and the tank didn't explode. Fortunately, unlike with some of my other planted tanks, I didn't come home to find all my HC had floated out of the substrate. Not a single plant, which was nice. 

Here's a better view of the substrate so you can see the plants a bit better.


Plants Layout - Day 5 by Dan.Mullan, on Flickr

I spent the first few days trying to get the amount of co2 right. As the tank was only filled and finished by the 3rd of December, there is no livestock. So I was not worried when I came home from work to what I thought was unclear water, but actually turned out to be a huge cloud of co2 mist. The drop checkers were a very light green even yellow colour. I adjusted this over the next couple of days, closing the needle valve slightly and also adjusting the working pressure on my reg until I felt I was injecting the right amount of co2.

Here are my timings:

-co2 comes on at 14:00.
-Lights come on at 16:00, and slowly ramp up to 100% over 2.5 hours.
-Lights are at 100% output for 1.5 hours.
-Lights ramp down to 0% over 2.5 hours.
-co2 off at 21:00
-Lights off at 22:00

I've set it to start late in the day so the lights are on when I'm home from work. I haven't felt the need to change the timings since I filled the tank, this seems to work and I've focused more on getting co2 right.

These pictures from day 5 (after water change) show the mist before I lowered the working pressure.


HC - Day 5 by Dan.Mullan, on Flickr


Green Rotala - Day 5 by Dan.Mullan, on Flickr

The flow from the filter is excellent, I can see the flow of the water carrying co2 to all parts of the tank so this is one major factor that I haven't had to worry about so far. Also I think the flow/co2 distribution is helped by the way the substrate is banked up towards the back. 

The UP inline atomizer seems great as well.It's amazing how small the co2 bubbles are compared to the glass diffusers I used to have.It's working well with my working pressure set to 2.2-2.4 bar.

The first 5 days showed some quite good growth, not in term of size/height but mainly in the health of the plants. Gaining colour and growing new leaves. Even though I didn't use any ferts for the first 5 days the plants would all be pearling like mad by the middle of the photoperiod.

I also did my first water change on day 5 (sat 8th)


Day 5 - W/C by Dan.Mullan, on Flickr

I removed about 1/3rd of the water, cleaned the glass and filled back up with tap water and de-chlorinated. The tiles are easy to move up and down the cables to allow room for maintenance whilst lighting the tank so I can see what I'm doing. The wires are held behind the lighting arm with adjustable metal brackets.

I also started dosing dry ferts after the w/c which I'll go into in my next update. 

My favourite plant so far,


Amannia sp. 'Bonsai' - Day 5 by Dan.Mullan, on Flickr

The quality of Tropica plants from TGM.


H. Callitrichoides - Day 5 by Dan.Mullan, on Flickr

Thanks for looking    Comments welcomed as always.
Dan


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## Ady34 (14 Dec 2012)

Looks great Dan, and the spread from the hc is noticable. It seems to be going horizontal too which is a bonus!
As you said the moss has darkened nicely and everything is looking tickety boo   
A. sp. bonsai is a lovely plant....another i cant grow   
One question though.....why red cotton?   
Cheerio,
Ady,


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## hydrophyte (14 Dec 2012)

Nice start!


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## danmullan (14 Dec 2012)

Ady34 said:
			
		

> Looks great Dan, and the spread from the hc is noticable. It seems to be going horizontal too which is a bonus!
> As you said the moss has darkened nicely and everything is looking tickety boo
> A. sp. bonsai is a lovely plant....another i cant grow
> One question though.....why red cotton?



The HC is sending out runners all over the place, each clump has almost doubled in size, on 2 weeks old. So I'm really happy so far.

As for the red cotton, I thought it was brown. Colourblind moment, reds and browns look quite similar to me. Thought it was quite funny actually when the girlfriend pointed it out. Oh well. Hopefully it will be covered with moss soon.



			
				hydrophyte said:
			
		

> Nice start!



Thanks mate


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## jojouk (16 Dec 2012)

Looking good


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## danmullan (22 Dec 2012)

Hi all,

Just a quick update for now, I'll be taking some more shots today.

These shots are from the end of week 1.

The Rotala is doing well, definitely the fastest grower in the tank as expected. The stems were around 5cm tall when planted.


Rotala - Day 7 by Dan.Mullan, on Flickr

The A.Bonsai is doing well too, it seems to be growing new leaves closely together but not gaining much height. Lucky for me, more leaves, less trimming.


Amannia sp. Bonsai - Day 7 by Dan.Mullan, on Flickr

HC seems fine so far, spreading quite quickly and still a nice green.


HC - Day 7 by Dan.Mullan, on Flickr

The P.Erectus that I'd mentioned before, not doing great so far due to the condition of the plant when put in. However it seems to be recovering slowly and not melting. The L.Brasiliensis is growing well, again, not particularly fast but seems healthy.


L.Brasiliensis - Day 7 by Dan.Mullan, on Flickr

More later.

Cheers


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## Arana (22 Dec 2012)

Looking great, i'm sure it's going to be a stunner once it's grown in


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## danmullan (22 Dec 2012)

Arana said:


> Looking great, i'm sure it's going to be a stunner once it's grown in


 
Thanks mate, I really hope so.

I really want to get this journal up to date, it's just finding the time to do it  I'll be doing another update tomorrow night though.

Cheers

Dan


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## danmullan (23 Dec 2012)

Here's a couple of cool shots taken on day 10.


HC creeping - Day 10 by Dan.Mullan, on Flickr


Lilaeopsis Brasiliensis runner - Day 10 by Dan.Mullan, on Flickr

Both my carpet plants seem to be growing nicely, the spread from the HC is much more noticable though.
A couple of full tank shots. Note the amount of evaporation, this was taken just before a w/c so a weeks worth of water lost to evap. Also notice the film I now have on the surface, I put this down to plant decay. Leaves unsightly water lines on the glass after water has evaporated. Still happy over all though 


FTS angle - Day 10 by Dan.Mullan, on Flickr


FTS - Day 10 by Dan.Mullan, on Flickr

More later,

Cheers


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## Mark Evans (23 Dec 2012)

This looks fabulous, and in time, will look top notch.

You're still in the honey moon period for a new tank. That time when everything grows rampantly in the first week or so.

Just be aware of when diatoms start. I'd think about getting ottos and shrimp in the setup now. Nothing else.

I know LED's don't throw out light like a MH does, but you could still reduce light intensity for the first month. You don't need 100% of the light just yet.

Keep up the great work, and you'll have a good competition entry.


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## danmullan (23 Dec 2012)

Lots of posts this weekend. Trying to get the journal up to date.

I began dosing dry ferts at the end of week 1. Using ei method. Here's my dosing regime.

SAT- about 40-50% water change, then 1/4 tsp of KNO3, and 3/32 tsp of KH2PO4
SUN- 3/32 tsp TNC trace
MON- 1/4 tsp of KNO3, and 3/32 tsp of KH2PO4
TUE- 3/32 tsp TNC trace
WED- 1/4 tsp of KNO3, and 3/32 tsp of KH2PO4
THU- Rest
FRI- Rest.

My area has quite hard water so no need for GH boosting chemicals. Plants pearl like mad on Saturday and Sunday probably due to bonus elements in my tap water, which suggests that I could be dosing more during the week to get better growth? I was a bit nervous about dosing dry ferts but after reading the articles on here I feel comfortable doing it. Using the search function in the fertilising section was really helpful too. The search feature is really useful.

Anyway, here's a shot of how the HC was after the 2nd week.


HC growth - Week 2 by Dan.Mullan, on Flickr


_****And finally, some shots that were only taken yesterday.****_


The Rotala needed a trim, the stems were only about an inch from the surface. I just trim between leaf nodes and replant. Hopefully in a couple of months it'll be thick enough to get some nice shaping going on.


Rotala sp. Green - Day 19 by Dan.Mullan, on Flickr

A nice view from the side. Shame the lighting arm and wires get in the way.


Right side - Day 19 by Dan.Mullan, on Flickr

My hill of HC.


HC - Day 19 by Dan.Mullan, on Flickr

Pretty much up to date now. Comments and critiques always welcomed  Thanks for looking.


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## danmullan (26 Dec 2012)

Mark Evans said:


> This looks fabulous, and in time, will look top notch.
> 
> You're still in the honey moon period for a new tank. That time when everything grows rampantly in the first week or so.
> 
> ...


 
Thanks Mark, the growth rates have definitely slowed for certain plants, but picked up for others.

I'll be adding some live stock at the weekend, just a clean up crew of ottos and shrimp for now.

No sign of diatoms yet, but I have noticed a bit of hair algae, on the hardscape towards the front, and amongst the HC. I've assumed that this is due to a high level of organic matter in the water, such as plants decaying. This is probably the cause of the bio film on the water surface. I'll post some pics.


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## danmullan (26 Dec 2012)

It had to happen eventually:


Hair algae - 1 by Dan.Mullan, on Flickr


Hair algae - 2 by Dan.Mullan, on Flickr

I have raised the lights so they are about 2ft away from the water surface. I have also reduced the intensity to 75% output. So they go 0%-75%-0% over 6 hours.

When I add shrimps and ottos at the weekend, I may get a couple of small SAEs too.

Not sure if this is a result of too much nitrate, I'll get some excel at the weekend so I can use a pipette to spot treat the affected areas. Although I'm a bit concerned that with excel as well, I may tip the co2 concentration over the limit safe for livestock. Should I lower my co2 injection rate to accommodate for the addition of some liquid carbon, or just not get livestock for another week or so?

Cheers


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## Ady34 (26 Dec 2012)

danmullan said:


> I'll get some excel at the weekend so I can use a pipette to spot treat the affected areas. Although I'm a bit concerned that with excel as well, I may tip the co2 concentration over the limit safe for livestock. Should I lower my co2 injection rate to accommodate for the addition of some liquid carbon, or just not get livestock for another week or so?
> 
> Cheers


Hi mate, you wont tip the c02 over the limit regards livestock as liquid and injected are different carbon sources. The gas is most dangerous as its easier to overdose, but you can safely add liquid carbon at the recommended dosages alongside, even double recommended (some go three times recommended, although i wouldnt personally). They effectively are both carbon sources but can be treated independantly of one another regards dosing. Liquid is used as a boost and has algaecide effects as a bonus 
As for livestock, id get a cuc in there asap.
Good luck.
Cheerio,
Ady.


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## Stu Worrall (26 Dec 2012)

Cracking design and its coming along fab!  Nice to see wood being used like stones for a change.


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## Eboeagles (27 Dec 2012)

Agree with Stu. I really enjoyed reading through your journal too. Looking forward to see how this one progresses


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## sanj (27 Dec 2012)

Nice tank set up indeed. I wish I had seen this earlier.


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## danmullan (27 Dec 2012)

Ady34 said:


> Hi mate, you wont tip the c02 over the limit regards livestock as liquid and injected are different carbon sources. The gas is most dangerous as its easier to overdose, but you can safely add liquid carbon at the recommended dosages alongside, even double recommended (some go three times recommended, although i wouldnt personally). They effectively are both carbon sources but can be treated independantly of one another regards dosing. Liquid is used as a boost and has algaecide effects as a bonus
> As for livestock, id get a cuc in there asap.
> Good luck.
> Cheerio,
> Ady.


 
Ah, well that's convenient. I've never used excel before. As for livestock I'll be getting some tomorrow hopefully. Otherwise I'll do it next weekend.




stuworrall said:


> Cracking design and its coming along fab! Nice to see wood being used like stones for a change.


 


Eboeagles said:


> Agree with Stu. I really enjoyed reading through your journal too. Looking forward to see how this one progresses


 


sanj said:


> Nice tank set up indeed. I wish I had seen this earlier.


 
Thanks for your comments guys, I'm glad people are enjoying my journal.

Cheers,

Dan


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## andyh (27 Dec 2012)

looking great... Final layout looks the best!

Just to second Ian's comment you will get movement in the substrate, it will flatten. You need to get something in their to stop it moving. Some people use plastic strips in the gravel or rocks etc.


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## danmullan (27 Dec 2012)

andyh said:


> looking great... Final layout looks the best!
> 
> Just to second Ian's comment you will get movement in the substrate, it will flatten. You need to get something in their to stop it moving. Some people use plastic strips in the gravel or rocks etc.


 
Thanks Andy.

I've used corrugated plastic from TGM, it's visible in some of the pics of the A. Bonsai. Thanks for the heads up anyway. I can't think of anything worse than waking up to find the island is gone


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## danmullan (27 Dec 2012)

Hi guys, thought I'd take some time to upload some growth shots from the first few weeks (all the pictures are showing the same plant/area of plants). Tank was filled on 03/12/12, so almost 4 weeks old.

HC:

H. Callitrichoides - Day 5 by Dan.Mullan, on Flickr

HC - Day 7 by Dan.Mullan, on Flickr

HC spread - Day 19 by Dan.Mullan, on Flickr


Plants Layout - Day 5 by Dan.Mullan, on Flickr

High angle - Day 10 by Dan.Mullan, on Flickr

HC view - Day 19 by Dan.Mullan, on Flickr

Amannia sp. Bonsai:

Amannia sp. 'Bonsai' - Day 5 by Dan.Mullan, on Flickr

Amannia sp. Bonsai - Day 7 by Dan.Mullan, on Flickr

P.Erectus: (note a few extra small plants were added in week 2)

Pogostemon Erectus - Day 10 by Dan.Mullan, on Flickr

Pogostemon Erectus - Day 20 by Dan.Mullan, on Flickr

And the full set-up:

Clear Front by Dan.Mullan, on Flickr

FTS - Day 20 by Dan.Mullan, on Flickr

Thanks for looking.


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## tim (27 Dec 2012)

groowing in really nicely mate good job


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## danmullan (4 Jan 2013)

Hi all,

The tank is now 1 month old 

The weekend before the new year I added some shrimp to the tank. 3 x Amano and 6 x sakura CRS. They've already seen off the hair algae, I didn't even have to get my easycarbo out.


RCS 1 by Dan.Mullan, on Flickr

RCS 2 by Dan.Mullan, on Flickr


FTS - 1 month by Dan.Mullan, on Flickr

The plants are still growing well, however I'm starting to see signs of diatoms. Cleaned the glass today and did a 30% water change, I'll do the same tomorrow as well. Hopefully I won't have too many issues.

I've reduced the photoperiod to 5 hours (from 6) and I've reduce the co2 by an hour too as I was finding my drop checkers to be on the yellow side during the the middle of the photoperiod. I have increased the flow in the tank as well (as much as the filter will allow) Otherwise, I've not really had that much experience in fighting diatoms off. In a previous tank I found that HC can suffer due to leaves being covered in small amounts of algae, and therefore not growing to full size. The plant then tries to grow new leaves but these suffer the same fate, resulting in poor growth and colour, and eventually a dead plant. So I really don't want that to happen again.

Some tips would be useful in case the problem starts to get worse.

Cheers


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## tim (4 Jan 2013)

looking nice dan ottos love diatoms if you plan to add them i find if you lightly rub your fingers over the plants as you syphon on water change that will also help


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## Iain Sutherland (4 Jan 2013)

looking great dan, for the diatoms just increase water changes, general maintenance and if possible amano shrimp numbers it will pass without too much issue (reducing light intensity will always help more than  shortening the period).  I wouldnt worry too much about the DC going more yellow towards the end of the photo period as long as the fauna are happy, DC's are just a guide.
Its a great looking layout, cant help but feel the microsorum is a bit out of place... personally i think it would balance more if you removed it and added some moss to the wood with some more stems behind.. maybe something with a pinkish hue, but thats just me.
Lovely looking tank though with nice healthy growth, you should be very pleased.


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## Dorian (5 Jan 2013)

Really nice.


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## martinmjr62 (5 Jan 2013)

Filling out nicely mate 


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## danmullan (11 Jan 2013)

Dorian said:


> Really nice.


 


martinmjr62 said:


> Filling out nicely mate


 
Thanks guys


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## danmullan (11 Jan 2013)

Unfortunately, I've been away from the tank for a week. Someone else has been dosing ferts for me but I haven't been able to sort the diatom issue. Most plants seem okay, the rotala needs a good trim, as does the fern.

The plants that have been affected most are the HC carpet and the A.Bonsai. The bonsai has some diatoms on the lower leaves, and the new leaves are looking a bit on the pale side. But the HC is now quite brown. It's far from lost, but I'll need to sort it this week.

Here's the plan. I'll be adding more shrimps today, probably a mix of amano's and sakura cherries to increase the numbers I already have. 30% water change today (done) and same tomorrow along with trimming the rotala and java fern*. I have 3 days off this week, mon, tues and weds. So more water changes on these days. I may up the co2 as well.

* One question I have is should I trim the HC? The new leaves are getting smaller and they seem to stop at a certain size (due to the algae preventing further growth) so should I be trimming it? I've syphoned as much as I can during w/c's but it seems to make little or no difference.

Thanks

Dan


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## George Farmer (13 Jan 2013)

Lovely set-up and 'scape, Dan! 

Any particular reason you're using green plastic inlets and outlets rather than glassware. For me it kinda spoils the otherwise lovely equipment you have. Please forgive me if you like the green plastic though! lol


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## danmullan (14 Jan 2013)

George Farmer said:


> Lovely set-up and 'scape, Dan!
> 
> Any particular reason you're using green plastic inlets and outlets rather than glassware. For me it kinda spoils the otherwise lovely equipment you have. Please forgive me if you like the green plastic though! lol


 
Thanks George,

The main reason I used the Eheim pipework and still have it, is mainly down to flow. I just wanted to make sure that the flow was as good and even as possible, I figured a spray bar at the back is the best method.

My plan is to use these pipes to make things simpler while I'm learning about how I can grow plants well in this set-up. When the tank is more mature, I'll focus on the aesthetic side of things. I have tested, with several drop checkers, how well the co2 is distributed around the tank. It seems that the spray bar is doing a pretty good job as co2 seemed fairly even in most areas of the tank.

But this hasn't stopped me looking. I'll be getting a set of 'Cal Aqua' pipes when I get rid of the green stuff.


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## danmullan (14 Jan 2013)

easerthegeezer said:


> looking great dan, for the diatoms just increase water changes, general maintenance and if possible amano shrimp numbers it will pass without too much issue (reducing light intensity will always help more than shortening the period). I wouldnt worry too much about the DC going more yellow towards the end of the photo period as long as the fauna are happy, DC's are just a guide.
> Its a great looking layout, cant help but feel the microsorum is a bit out of place... personally i think it would balance more if you removed it and added some moss to the wood with some more stems behind.. maybe something with a pinkish hue, but thats just me.
> Lovely looking tank though with nice healthy growth, you should be very pleased.


 
Thanks Iain, I've got a few days off this week so I'm doing some daily maintenance including 30-40% water changes. I have also decreased the lights intensity a bit and added more shrimps.

I do agree that the Microsorum does look a bit out of place, I've now trimmed the large leaves off and it looks much better. It would be difficult to change it as I can't really remove the bogwood to tie moss around it. Hopefully when the P.Erectus has grown taller in front of it, it will look more natural.


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## danmullan (14 Jan 2013)

Just a small update.

I've hacked back the Rotala and re-used the healthier stems to increase the density of the stems at the back. So in a month or so I can begin to shape the 'bush'. I've also trimmed the larger leaves off the Microsorum as it looked too big for the scape.

I've upped the water changes and number of shrimp in the tank, I've also reduced lighting intensity. Hopefully these changes will see off the diatoms and save my HC carpet. I have given the HC a trim in the areas that were badly affected by diatoms to allow for new growth. Here's how it's looking now:


FTS - Day 42 by Dan.Mullan, on Flickr

One thing that I find slightly annoying, the light spill from the lights only illuminates half the wall behind the tank. I'll have to get some additional lighting for when I'm ready to take the final shots of the tank.

Cheers for looking


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## Ady34 (14 Jan 2013)

Hi Dan,
a. bonsai has grown in really well, looks great!
I think the reduction in lighting intensity, increased water changes and more shrimp will see the diatoms off 
Cheerio,
Ady.


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## LondonDragon (14 Jan 2013)

Ady34 said:


> a. bonsai has grown in really well, looks great!


Agreed, tried that in my tank and it didn't do too well, was under a lot of shade that might have been the problem, tank is coming along nicely  well done.


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## maps (14 Jan 2013)

Loving the tank its coming along great.


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## danmullan (16 Jan 2013)

Ady34 said:


> a. bonsai has grown in really well, looks great!





LondonDragon said:


> Agreed, tried that in my tank and it didn't do too well, was under a lot of shade that might have been the problem, tank is coming along nicely  well done.


 
Thanks guys  I think that I've been pretty lucky with the Bonsai to be honest. I do think that the 1-2 Grow! plants are really good for a tank like this, due to the small size of the plant when new, it grows fairly quickly and very compact in this set-up. I've never used it before and it's one of my favourite stem plants.

In other news, the diatoms haven't got any worse. I'm going to trim an area of Lilaeopsis today pre w/c to see if that improves growth. The diatoms are still visible on the HC, as a result of the algae it has lost it's bright green colour it once had. It's now a yellow-ish green. Hopefully I've beaten the diatoms this week with daily maintenance and w/c's and things will look better at the weekend.


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## hensintheshed (20 Jan 2013)

Hi Dan, I haven't been active on the forum for a year or so after packing up my old tank. After seeing you're journal I was so impressed I have ordered myself a new tank and stand from NA


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## danmullan (20 Jan 2013)

hensintheshed said:


> Hi Dan, I haven't been active on the forum for a year or so after packing up my old tank. After seeing you're journal I was so impressed I have ordered myself a new tank and stand from NA


 
Thanks mate  pleased to hear you've liked it so far. Glad to hear you like the NA stuff. I wish I'd ordered some glassware from them when I ordered my stuff, such good value.

It's funny that when I found Natural Aquario, I thought not many people knew about them but apparently they're quite well known over here. The quality is really good, I actually had to get a replacement cabinet but they were really good. Just pm me if you want to know anything. Don't forget to journal.


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## danmullan (28 Jan 2013)

Hi all,

Just thought I'd update quickly. Things are moving pretty slowly at the moment, which is not necessarily a bad thing. After my week trying to fight off the diatoms not much changed really. I hadn't really noticed any difference in the amount of algae in the affected areas like the HC carpet. So I knew I had to make some changes if I was going to get rid of it. 

I started by decreasing the light intensity and upping the CO2, but continued dosing my dry powders. Unfortunately the CO2 ran out while I was away from the tank for about 2-3 days so the diatoms were worse when I got back. After a trip to fill my canisters, I did a huge water change, cleaned the filter and removed about half of the media to improve flow. I've stopped dosing ferts as well for the time being to see if I can kick the diatoms with co2 and easycarbo.

This is how things are running at the moment:

CO2:   3pm-9pm
Lights: 5pm-10pm @ 10% intensity
5ml easy carbo every day
No dry ferts

I'll update at the weekend with pics


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## tim (28 Jan 2013)

hi dan, sorry to ask but won't cutting ferts lead to worse plant health i'm no expert but ferts don't cause algae but poor plant health will, your doing the right thing with decreased lighting more co2 water changes etc, but personally i'd carry on feeding my plants.hope things take a turn for the better mate


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## Iain Sutherland (28 Jan 2013)

Stopping your ferts will only weaken your plants dan which will make the diatoms worse.  Now you have increased co2 the demand for other nutrients will also be higher.


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## danmullan (2 Feb 2013)

tim said:


> hi dan, sorry to ask but won't cutting ferts lead to worse plant health i'm no expert but ferts don't cause algae but poor plant health will, your doing the right thing with decreased lighting more co2 water changes etc, but personally i'd carry on feeding my plants.hope things take a turn for the better mate


 


easerthegeezer said:


> Stopping your ferts will only weaken your plants dan which will make the diatoms worse. Now you have increased co2 the demand for other nutrients will also be higher.


 
Thanks guys, I decided not to cut ferts in the end, hopefully this helped. Don't know what I was thinking really.


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## danmullan (2 Feb 2013)

Update time, pretty much 2 months in now.

Here's a few shots of the tank and plants: (Poor pictures, just quick snaps)


Front Right - 2 months by Dan.Mullan, on Flickr


HC - 2 Months by Dan.Mullan, on Flickr


Plants - 2 Months by Dan.Mullan, on Flickr


Left side - 2 Months by Dan.Mullan, on Flickr
I feel a bit lost at this point. The diatoms seem to be mainly gone, the HC carpet still has some in areas.

I think the last month of playing with the amount of lighting and co2 has affected the health of the plants, I came home to a nasty bio-film thursday. The rotala hasn't really grown much since its last trim (2 weeks ago?) and the new leaves from the A.Bonsai are a bit 'crinkly' like a crisp. Generally, growth is very slow. But this is what I expected during and after the fight against diatoms.

I could do with some advice as to what to do now.

My knowledge and instincts tell me to slowly increase the lighting, with high co2 + flow, and perhaps increase dry ferts whilst dosing 4-5ml of easy carbo every day. I do a W/C of about 40% every weekend.

With regards to my ferts, I currently dose:
- 1x 1/4 teaspoon of KNO3 + 3x 1/32 teaspoon of KH2PO4
- 3x 1/32 teaspoon of TNC trace... on alternate days with 2 rest days before W/C day.

My question is, with the amount of plant mass should I be dosing more than I am? (The bio film indicates plant decay therefore they're not happy about something)
Also should I just have 1 rest day?

I'd really appreciate any advice, and thanks for looking  I know nothing good ever happens quickly in a planted tank.


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## Ian Holdich (2 Feb 2013)

Don't worry to much about biofilm, dan, there's a million and one reasons for this, so don't think it's just the plant health. 

Since using purigen (touch wood) I haven't had a problem with diatoms, for me this helps big time. Have you thought about adding some to your filter? 

Also, I would up the water changes to maybe two 40% for the time being. I would continue dosing what you're dosing tbh.


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## Iain Sutherland (2 Feb 2013)

As Ian has said your dosing is right so no need to increase unless you have soft water then adding MGSO4 would be worthwhile trying.
Adding light is never a solution, upping tank maintenance, filter cleans and co2 if the fauna allow is the path...

Biofilm is a ball ache, upping water changes help a lot. Ive been fighting it for 8 months and still not eradicated it entirely, though it is only visible a day or 2 before water change day now.


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## B7fec (2 Feb 2013)

Hi Dan, The scape looks great a really nice layout. A good read from the start..... as for the film, is it thick or thin? If it's thin then some simple surface movement at night will see it disappear easily. As Iain says upping W/C is also a great help but if you also move the spray bar so that the water is breaking the surface and creating good agitation the film will disappear. Lower the spray bar back during the day so you do not gas off the Co2.


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## jack-rythm (3 Feb 2013)

I actually really like the scape mate, very well balanced and calm. I would maybe suggest moving the cluster of tall stem plants on the right hand side to the back of the tank behind the rock? it seems to be covering up the beautiful rock? other than that, Im really liking it for sure 



Ian Holdich said:


> Since using purigen (touch wood) I haven't had a problem with diatoms, for me this helps big time. Have you thought about adding some to your filter?


How much would you suggest for a 27l tank buddy?


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## Ian Holdich (3 Feb 2013)

jack-rythm said:


> I actually really like the scape mate, very well balanced and calm. I would maybe suggest moving the cluster of tall stem plants on the right hand side to the back of the tank behind the rock? it seems to be covering up the beautiful rock? other than that, Im really liking it for sure
> 
> 
> How much would you suggest for a 27l tank buddy?



I went off of viktors suggestion and doubled the suggested amount by seachem. In the 60cm I'm using 350mls, which is way to much. If you're using an external on the 27ltr then a 100ml pouch will be more than sufficient.


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## danmullan (3 Feb 2013)

Thanks for your comments guys.

I will start doing large W/C's on friday and sat.

I'll order some Purigen, it seems that only packs of 100ml are bagged. Would I need to buy a filter bag if I want to use more than that? Say around 250-300ml?



Ian Holdich said:


> I went off of viktors suggestion and doubled the suggested amount by seachem. In the 60cm I'm using 350mls, which is way to much. If you're using an external on the 27ltr then a 100ml pouch will be more than sufficient.


 
Are there any disadvantages to using more than the recommended amount other than loss of flow?

Cheers


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## dagzz (3 Feb 2013)

looking good mate enjoyed the read


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## Ian Holdich (3 Feb 2013)

danmullan said:


> Thanks for your comments guys.
> 
> I will start doing large W/C's on friday and sat.
> 
> ...


Flow is pretty good with purigen as its round and small. I use a TMC bag, but I do find that purigen can get though the little holes. I hear a pair of tights work though. Make sure they're opaque though, so colour doesn't run from them. The more the better ime. Tis a god send.


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## danmullan (14 Feb 2013)

Things aren't going so well unfortunately...

Plant growth and general health isn't great, probably due to a lack of CO2 and stable conditions. My UP atomiser has developed a leak (well hopefully it's the atomiser and not my reg) so now I have no CO2 and I won't be able to get any more for a week or so. I normally wouldn't be too worried as I'd just change the lighting and other things accordingly. But as plant health is not good I'm not sure about how they'll recover, if at all...

I'm now trying to decide if I should take this tank down, which will give me the time to ensure that everything will be ready for the next set-up. Also it will mean I won't be wasting money on CO2 that may just end up leaking away... I'll see if a guy at my LFS can help me test my reg and atomiser for leaks as I'm out of gas.

I knew the first 4 weeks went far too well.


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## tim (14 Feb 2013)

ah mate sorry to hear it's not going so well co2 is a bitch  if you have liquid carbon i've managed to keep plants ticking over with liquid carbon and knocking a couple of hours off my lights when i've been without co2 hope you get it sirted mate i like this scape


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## Nice (14 Feb 2013)

Ok, i will try to help you.

Nice setup by the way.

You have decided to use ADA substrate, instead of NA, however this won’t make a big difference cause ADA and NA are both one of the best in the world, so you should have follow this instructions:
NATURAL AQUARIO |   New Setup, what i do now?

You have failed to put enough Caridina Multidentata and Crossocheilus Siamensis.

This substrates have large nutrients that will run free on water column on first days. You need to reduce them by water changes, even though diatoms most likely will appear. You know Amano can have own many Caridina Multidentata, he just go fishing on nearby river , for us we need to spend big $$$, but only they can save you.

They can save you because they will get rid of algae covering the plants and will allow the plants to get light again. Many people decide to turn off the light, and you can do it as well. Plants are more complex than algae, so algae can die more easy than plants do.

So you have only two options for a fast success, put some Caridina Multidentata and Crossocheilus Siamensis, or turn off the light. Put Caridina Multidentata and Crossocheilus Siamensis is a more lasting solution, cause once you turn on light again algae can appear.

If you have time, then as time goes by the nitrifying bacteria is growing on your tank, they will get a point where they will remove organics and aquarium will be a success.

And a learned lesson:
42. Since NH4 nor NO2 aren’t present, let’s introduce some algae eaters. Don’t be lazy on this particular task. Early introduction of algae eaters can be crucial to avoid algae. ( from NATURAL AQUARIO |   New Setup, what i do now?)

Only MY OWN OPINION (just to help)


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