# My Corner Tank - Venezia 190 - Jul 2007 to Jan 2012



## JohnC (9 Dec 2008)

Hi,

This is my first large tank and first real go at planted tanks of a higher techy nature. It has been running for a couple of years now to varying degrees of sucess. Basically i've learned everything i know from trying to make this work and i have been taking photos all the way. There are things i still want to improve in the tank and i'll go in after the picture swarm.   

Tank: Venezia 190 - 174L
Filter: Fluval 205 (with Purigen in one compartment)
Heating: 150w internal heater
Lighting: 2x24w arcadia EHO T5 plant bulbs with arcadia reflectors. 1x8w arcadia T5 fitted to the back corner access panel.
Substrate: Eco complete to various depths
CO2: JBL pressurised CO2 kit with ph controller and in tank diffuser





5th Jul 2007




21st Sep 2007




26th Oct 2007 - Added Eco




21st Nov 2007 - Added CO2




27th Nov 2007 - Learning about landscaping




16th Jan 2008 - Learning about cynobacteria   




25th Mar 2008 - Learning about erithromycin   




28th Apr 2008




19th May 2008




12th Jul 2008




13th Aug 2008




28th Sep 2008




8th Dec 2008

I'm trying to work out ways of improving the hardware for the tank. The one thing i'm currently obsessing about is flow rate. 

Unfortunatly the Fluval 205 filter supplied with the tank has an appauling flow rate but in discussion in the hardware forum ive discovered i can use the 405 in this tank.

Beyond that in line CO2 keeps screaming at me.

Next year for this tank i want to have a meadow of Blyxa Japonica with the redmoor wood coming out of it covered in nice moss. Open and simple.

Best Regards,

John








12th Jul 2008


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## samc (9 Dec 2008)

*Re: My Corner Tank - Venezia 190*

wow its progressed so much mine is progressing like yours too not at its best point tho i like your grass looking plant in the forground is tht japonica


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## JohnC (10 Dec 2008)

*Re: My Corner Tank - Venezia 190*



			
				samc said:
			
		

> wow its progressed so much mine is progressing like yours too not at its best point tho i like your grass looking plant in the forground is tht japonica



Hi,

Yup its blyxa japonica. It does ok in the tank and is the best thing i've discovered will grow carpetwise under my somewhat limited lighting. It does suffer quite badly every time i split it out though or do some major rescaping. In the most recent shot it has just stopped shedding all the lower leaves after the last big "expansion" and will start filling out and looking healthier again.

The moss has also just been retied as i am trying to expand the amount of weeping christmas moss in preference to the stock java moss, as frankly it is just better. I'm aiming to try some fissendens in this tank once i find a decent source for it. I have a bit more redmoor wood in the post that is especially for it.

Best Regards,

John


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## altaaffe (10 Dec 2008)

*Re: My Corner Tank - Venezia 190*

Great to see the tank progress over all that time and what a difference, I particularly like your Sept shot this year but look forward to seeing your future changes.


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## JohnC (10 Dec 2008)

*Re: My Corner Tank - Venezia 190*



			
				altaaffe said:
			
		

> Great to see the tank progress over all that time and what a difference, I particularly like your Sept shot this year but look forward to seeing your future changes.



here are some close ups from october 1st. I agree it probably was my favorite time for the tank, just now i've got the hardware upgrade in my head before i improve it a bit more.




















Lucifer 2 - RIP this month

Best Regards,

John


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## Goodygumdrops (10 Dec 2008)

*Re: My Corner Tank - Venezia 190*

13th Aug 2008,was flicking through and that picture just struck me,the way the colours and moss on the wood jumped out.


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## Mark Evans (10 Dec 2008)

*Re: My Corner Tank - Venezia 190*

that's a damn fine looking tank. there's some lovely rich colours in there. the lillies?...i reckon should of stayed, but all the same everything looks so healthy.

damn, i wish i could get my hands on some blyxa


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## jay (10 Dec 2008)

*Re: My Corner Tank - Venezia 190*



			
				saintly said:
			
		

> damn, i wish i could get my hands on some blyxa



Ditto.

Lovely tank, The crypts look so healthy, with thick waxy looking leaves.
Nice one!!


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## Nick16 (10 Dec 2008)

*Re: My Corner Tank - Venezia 190*

third to last photo? what is the bright red fish in the centre of the pic? looks amazing!!   lovely tank and nice to see how it has evolved and progressed.


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## JohnC (11 Dec 2008)

*Re: My Corner Tank - Venezia 190*



			
				Goodygumdrops said:
			
		

> 13th Aug 2008,was flicking through and that picture just struck me,the way the colours and moss on the wood jumped out.



thanks!



			
				saintly said:
			
		

> that's a damn fine looking tank. there's some lovely rich colours in there. the lillies?...i reckon should of stayed, but all the same everything looks so healthy.
> 
> damn, i wish i could get my hands on some blyxa



thanks again! i loved the red tiger lotus too but it is WAAAAAAAAAAAY tooo big for this tank. I actually had three plants in, they were fine before i worked out dosing, co2 and how to control cynobacteria but after they actually started to grow well they were a right PITA. As i've got poor lighting the coverage of the lotus was a massive hinderence to everything else in the tank below it. You can see from the pictures how lush the ground cover got once i took them out.

I was considering just having Blyxa and getting the lotus back with some wood. High impact.   

I got my Blyxa from greenline and over a long period just kept dividing it out again and again and again. Started with one bunch which had died back to almost nothing when i got it. Now its my favorite thing in the tank.



			
				jay said:
			
		

> Lovely tank, The crypts look so healthy, with thick waxy looking leaves.
> Nice one!!



Thanks, The crypts actually give me issues, the leaves are one of the main things that show up the failings in the tank hardware and my dosing. They get pinprick holes no matter how much potassium i add to the tank. I blame my bad flow for now... 




			
				Nick16 said:
			
		

> third to last photo? what is the bright red fish in the centre of the pic? looks amazing!! lovely tank and nice to see how it has evolved and progressed.



Thanks, I think you mean the cherry barbs. They rock. The bright red ones are the males, slightly browner are the females. Amazing fun fish to keep. They do little dance's, play hide and seek and their fav, chase the female. I have 2 males and 1 female.

Best Regards,

John


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## Steven E (12 Dec 2008)

*Re: My Corner Tank - Venezia 190*

Great post, your various incarnations have all been great, excellent recently.

Those cherry barbs look incredible, as did your apisto (RIP ), lovely colouring.


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## Joecoral (12 Dec 2008)

*Re: My Corner Tank - Venezia 190*

Wow, those cherry barbs are incredible! They've never gone that red when I've had them before


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## keymaker (12 Dec 2008)

*Re: My Corner Tank - Venezia 190*

Stunning plant health, John. You have my respect!

What happened between July and Aug. 2008? I can tell that you changed something because your plant growth sky-rocketed.


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## JohnC (12 Dec 2008)

*Re: My Corner Tank - Venezia 190*



			
				Joecoral said:
			
		

> Wow, those cherry barbs are incredible! They've never gone that red when I've had them before



Thanks!.

tbh they have always been this red, i think i was just lucky. Plus the arcadia bulbs do bring out the reds alot. I've had comments on the other forum i use that the red's in my pictures are almost too dominant. When i first picked my plants in a bit of a "what grows in this tank and what doesnt" game i did go for all the red ones i thought i could get away with, hence the lotus. Since then i've read alot of mr amano's text and am heading towards a less REEEEEEEEEEED feel to things, trying to use them more as the "flower" in the bed. I'll get the balance right in the end.



			
				keymaker said:
			
		

> Stunning plant health, John. You have my respect!
> 
> What happened between July and Aug. 2008? I can tell that you changed something because your plant growth sky-rocketed.



Tbh as with any picture you can't really see the flaw's in the plant growth. I need to improve things on the hardware side to be happy myself. There are issues with my dosing too i'm sure, that and the lack of proper high light. Remember this is 52w of high output T5 blubs on a 174L tank. Not great. 

The difference in the plants between july and august can pretty much be put down to the removal of the lotus. It really did a good job of shading out over a third of the tank to some degree. In the corner tank the position of the main lights is a real hinderence. There are dark spots at each of the front corners and the back corner. I've fixed the back corner recently by mounting the extra 8w bulb in the lid as i aim to make my mossy meadow.

Best regards,

John


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## Themuleous (14 Dec 2008)

*Re: My Corner Tank - Venezia 190*

This tank has see a lot of scapes!  Looks great I have to say.  Lots of great colour and texture variation.

Sam


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## JohnC (7 Jan 2009)

*Re: My Corner Tank - Venezia 190*



			
				Themuleous said:
			
		

> This tank has see a lot of scapes!  Looks great I have to say.  Lots of great colour and texture variation.
> 
> Sam



Hi,

oddly enough my plan seems to head towards less colour and variation, more impact. 

some updates...

(god i mess about with this tank alot)




What you see from my tv seat




2nd Jan 2009 - Full tank




2nd Jan 2009 - Left side view - Note the weeping christmas moss and java moss on the nearest branch.

I'm slowing getting rid of all the java moss in the tank and expanding out my weeping moss as it is FAR better looking.




6th Jan 2009 - Messing around with a mound.

I'm still not happy (will i ever be) with the current mound layout. I'm going to leave it a while to let the moss take hold again and grow out, see how that looks and then potentially reduce the wood area.

The picture i have in my head is a nice tree high up and offset to one side of the back corner surrounded by a grassy plain. The moss cascading from it's arms as it sits timelessly ageing as the fish youthfully dance around it.

Ah well, i can but dream.

I'm actually pondering over another shoal of fish for this tank to compliment the rummies. I know since i am heading towards a more minimal layout the logic says that i should just have a larger shoal of rummienose but i'm into my fish too. Currently my thinking is lemon tetra, or something that is going to swim mid to top level and shoal a bit at least. That and potentially adding a threat fish to make them shoal a bit more. My fishmonger is suggesting potentially a red tailed shark (i think that's its name) for this, but im not sure, dunno if i like them.

Fish suggestions greatly received.

Oh and feel free to comment/rip the current layout. I know there is much wrong with it. But it is just a transitional  scape. Advice and pictures for comparable scapes and good plants to what i am roughly aiming for are always warmly appreciated, i love looking at other peoples tanks.

Best regards,

John


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## beeky (8 Jan 2009)

*Re: My Corner Tank - Venezia 190*

Sorry to say, but I preferred it on the 2nd Jan! A bit like a jungle clearing, surrounding a little meadow in the middle.

I love red tail black sharks, they're very handsome. The ones in the shop always look a bit grubby, but after a while the black goes really black (not a grey) and the tail is scarlet. Only problem is that they're a bit schizophrenic. Can be quite calm slowly swimming round and then spend the next 2 minutes chasing another fish fell pelt round the tank.

My current fave fish is the glowlight danio, (B. choprai?). Swims in a nice tight shoal most of the time and always on the move, although maybe a bit busy if you're after something a bit more relaxing.


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## hellohefalump (8 Jan 2009)

*Re: My Corner Tank - Venezia 190*

This tank is amazing!  Lovely healthy looking fish too!


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## Mark Evans (8 Jan 2009)

*Re: My Corner Tank - Venezia 190*

pretty damn sexy  8)


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## JohnC (8 Jan 2009)

*Re: My Corner Tank - Venezia 190*



			
				beeky said:
			
		

> Sorry to say, but I preferred it on the 2nd Jan! A bit like a jungle clearing, surrounding a little meadow in the middle.
> 
> I love red tail black sharks, they're very handsome. The ones in the shop always look a bit grubby, but after a while the black goes really black (not a grey) and the tail is scarlet. Only problem is that they're a bit schizophrenic. Can be quite calm slowly swimming round and then spend the next 2 minutes chasing another fish fell pelt round the tank.
> 
> My current fave fish is the glowlight danio, (B. choprai?). Swims in a nice tight shoal most of the time and always on the move, although maybe a bit busy if you're after something a bit more relaxing.



Nice tip on the glowlight danio, never looked at them before, they are pretty funky.

Still not sold on the shark thou. It just looks a little too unnatural in colouring for my liking.

I'm having a current muse on the lemon tetra inital idea... maybe it would be better to get something similar in shape to the rummienose so that the overall shoal will look uniform. this slightly more in tune with the minimal layout = simple shoal theory.

pondering goes on.

Is there a medium light plant similar to Blyxa that is much bigger? thinking of complimenting the meadow with more longer grasses at the back and a bit at the sides. axe the large crypts.

John


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## Vase (10 Jan 2009)

*Re: My Corner Tank - Venezia 190*

Looks awesome!

How about a nice shoal of Emperor Tetras?


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## TDI-line (20 Jan 2009)

*Re: My Corner Tank - Venezia 190*

Looks great John, and excellent photography.

Cool Blyxa too.


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## JohnC (21 Jan 2009)

*Re: My Corner Tank - Venezia 190*



			
				TDI-line said:
			
		

> Looks great John, and excellent photography.
> 
> Cool Blyxa too.



dunno about the photography, the curved from makes it a bit nippy taking anything in focus.

Blyxa is the new ricca dont you know.  

All the cool kids are into it.


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## Dan Crawford (21 Jan 2009)

*Re: My Corner Tank - Venezia 190*

Thats a stunning tank pal, I bet your way chuffed with it?!


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## LondonDragon (21 Jan 2009)

*Re: My Corner Tank - Venezia 190*

Tanks looks great, its also great how the corner tanks reflect the sides and makes the tank look even larger than what it actually is. keep up the good work.


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## JohnC (22 Jan 2009)

*Re: My Corner Tank - Venezia 190*



			
				Dan Crawford said:
			
		

> Thats a stunning tank pal, I bet your way chuffed with it?!



many thanks, i'm getting happier with things, but frankly i am still unhappy with it on many levels. I have only been doing this a couple of years so i am learning all the time. The main reason i joined here was to hang about with like minded individuals to perfect my designs and skills.

I bought the amano books last year so i think my perceptions of a "good" layout are somewhat raised from the norm.   



			
				LondonDragon said:
			
		

> Tanks looks great, its also great how the corner tanks reflect the sides and makes the tank look even larger than what it actually is. keep up the good work.



Yeah that is kinda cool, but i do notice alot of the best photo's in here are done with white backgrounds. I don't think this tank would work with that. The other main flaw in these corner tanks is the darker spots. There is a definate column of light down the central area that relates to the T5 mounting. The back and both from corners are noticably darker. In turn the sweet spot for stuff needing higher light in right in the middle third of the tank.

Now bearing in mind that i am only using 56w EHOT5 with relfectors its amazing half the stuff i've grown over the last couple of years has survived, never mind prospered. 

-----------

Current update - just got my fluval 405 to get better flow, getting hydor 300 soon and Ed in on the DIY reactor plan for me. Oh and i've bought some "Big" Blyxa to go with my sea of "Little" Blyxa to see how that goes, currently recovering from transport. Still waiting on the weeping moss growing out on the branches. If anyone has some for sale pls PM me. It would speed things up a bit.

Best Regards,

John


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## JohnC (11 Feb 2009)

*Re: My Corner Tank - Venezia 190*

Hi,

Another week another change, this one is actually towards the "settled" end game i want to leave to mature for as long as possible.




11th Feb 2009

I've messed about with the photo post production a bit this time. Bit less brightness, more contrast. I really need to work out how to use my camera properly.

i had some issues with my ballast this last few weeks so got the replacement today so my Blyxa has suffered a touch. I've basically ripped out a ton of plants and minimised what i have left.

You can't quite see the hydrocotyle "mushrooms" around the base of the "tree" as they are small just now. The Big Blyxa was in a bad shape after coming through the post and is only recovering slowly. I'm not sure if I want to keep it as it is a little larger and slightly different form then i had imagined. I am going to order in a couple of bunches of Lilaeopsis Macloviana to give that a shot.

Current thinking is the "tree" needs something, so i'm also going to order in some Bolbitis Heudelotii (african water fern) to stick in the middle of the structure. Although i'm not sure how it will develop, with it being a new plant for me. But hey, new plants are as exciting as a new scape in my mind.

Now i'm just waiting on my DIY reactor before i can fit that and the hydor 300 i have to get all the kit from the back corner out of the tank.

Comments and criticism greatly welcome,

Best Regards,

John


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## JohnC (11 Feb 2009)

*Re: My Corner Tank - Venezia 190*

Oh and i went for cardinals btw.


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## ar3 (13 Mar 2009)

*Re: My Corner Tank - Venezia 190*

Tank looks brill ,  excellent use of plants with wood, very well scaped and  in time will only get better.


Good job       

Phil


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## Steve Smith (13 Mar 2009)

*Re: My Corner Tank - Venezia 190*

That looks excellent!  Loving the island setup


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## Themuleous (13 Mar 2009)

*Re: My Corner Tank - Venezia 190*

I agree, thats a beautiful tank.

Sam


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## George Farmer (13 Mar 2009)

*Re: My Corner Tank - Venezia 190*

Very nice.  

The composition suits the triangular tank really well.


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## JohnC (23 Mar 2009)

*Re: My Corner Tank - Venezia 190*



			
				George Farmer said:
			
		

> Very nice.
> 
> The composition suits the triangular tank really well.



Thanks, 

Means alot.

I'm liking the island look alot but am having thoughts about switching the "tree" plants, the water fern isnt liking something, maybe the light, and i don't think will last. I had read it was difficult. Also the "big" blyxa is too big and i'm open to suggestions on what to replace it with as the larger grass.

I'll post some updated pics tomorrow, the weeping moss is really starting to shape up in the way i wanted.

Wabi Sabi

is all i can currently think about design wise.   

Best Regards,

John


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## JohnC (23 Mar 2009)

*Re: My Corner Tank - Venezia 190*



			
				ar3 said:
			
		

> Tank looks brill ,  excellent use of plants with wood, very well scaped and  in time will only get better.
> 
> 
> Good job
> ...


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## JohnC (17 Apr 2009)

*Re: My Corner Tank - Venezia 190*

Hi,

Quick update.




16th April 2008 - Full Tank




16th April 2008




16th April 2008

----------------------
So i added some Bolbitis heudelotii to the "tree" which i liked but isnt doing so well in my tank, i knew it was quite difficult so am happy to write it off and pick something else. Fern suggestions appreciated.

Beyond that i am removing the Blyxa aubertii as it is too big when fully grown and it spoils the grassy plains look. Looking for something else, a bit smaller that spreads by runners to replace it with, suggestions also appreciated.

LOVING the weeping moss the fuller it gets. 

Changes ahead, swapping the plants mentioned above. Add the DIY reactor ed is making. Potentially switching to TPN+ or a DIY version as it is rocking my world on my nanos at how easy it is and the results. I'm also musing about adding more light in the form of an aquabeam strip mounted in the middle of my existing light array, since the tank is quite deep i think the spread should be fine (can anyone comment on this).

Oh and some rainbow shrimp have snuck in from one of my nanos as tiny shrimplets and survived and are multiplying under the cover of the grass. I think i have a potential population problem in the works for 6 months time.   

Questions and comments always welcome.

Best Regards,
John


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## glenn (17 Apr 2009)

*Re: My Corner Tank - Venezia 190*

great tank! the mosses look so full on the wood-i think you have acheived the tree scape you were looking for and "The moss cascading from it's arms as it sits timelessly ageing"-yeah you nailed that one!


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## johnny70 (17 Apr 2009)

*Re: My Corner Tank - Venezia 190*

Stunning tank, very very nice, great choice of Rummies in there too, set it off great IMO

JOHNNY


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## Nelson (17 Apr 2009)

*Re: My Corner Tank - Venezia 190*

oh wow..i'm so jealous  ..that looks great.
neil


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## samc (17 Apr 2009)

*Re: My Corner Tank - Venezia 190*

looks great. your tank has come on a long way and it seems you've learnt alot  
nice one


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## JohnC (17 Apr 2009)

*Re: My Corner Tank - Venezia 190*



			
				samc said:
			
		

> looks great. your tank has come on a long way and it seems you've learnt alot
> nice one



cheers,

it looks better without the big blyxa too.


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## LondonDragon (17 Apr 2009)

*Re: My Corner Tank - Venezia 190*

Tank looks amazing, I like the effect of the moss on the wood, very like tree tops, great effect and nice carpet


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## aaronnorth (1 May 2009)

*Re: My Corner Tank - Venezia 190*

lovely tank


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## JohnC (3 Jul 2009)

*Re: My Corner Tank - Venezia 190*

Hi,

Took a few photos I'd thought I'd share. Nothing much has changed in with the set-up as I'm waiting on the CO2 reactor before switching stuff around and fitting new external hardware.

The Bolbitis heudelotii is finally working, it took all the "extra large" leaves to go bad, black and algae infested for me to noticed a compact new growth matt underneath which i am very happy with as i understand this can be a difficult plant.

Oh, and I think I've mentioned here that I removed the old CO2 probe PH monitor finally and just went to CO2 during the light cycle. And the result was bloody amazing. Wish I had done it last year. 

Down side was that I ran out of CO2 last week and am just waiting on the refill arriving. (2 weeks without CO2!!   )
Thankfully easycarbo seems to have kept everything happy'ish. I'm going to rant more about CO2 in my dennerle thread in a moment.

Anyway, 

Piccys





1st July 2009 - Room shot with a Biorb i'm refitting for a friend (god i hate them).




1st July 2009




1st July 2009 




1st July 2009 




1st July 2009 - With my new Apistogramma agassizii male.




1st July 2009 


The hardscape is a little too easy to knock around I'm finding. It can actually be rearranged at will into various angles of the branches or a kind of "fallen mound" version, which I'm becoming more fond of.   

Future scapes will have better anchored me thinks.

Enjoy,

John


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## samc (3 Jul 2009)

*Re: My Corner Tank - Venezia 190*

awsome tank! 
looking really green


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## chump54 (3 Jul 2009)

*Re: My Corner Tank - Venezia 190*

lovely looking tank, spot on layout for a corner and great colours. I suspect corner tanks are tri-cky


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## George Farmer (3 Jul 2009)

*Re: My Corner Tank - Venezia 190*

Nice corner tank!  One of the best I've seen.


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## Stu Worrall (3 Jul 2009)

*Re: My Corner Tank - Venezia 190*

looking really grown in now. the central wood looks really good


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## Steve Smith (4 Jul 2009)

*Re: My Corner Tank - Venezia 190*

That's awesome!  Would love to see a closeup full tank shot mate   That Blyxa meadow is amazing!


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## lljdma06 (5 Jul 2009)

*Re: My Corner Tank - Venezia 190*

The tank is amazing!  I really like the center wood with the moss.  

I've kept bolbitis before.  Do you have it under a current?


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## Mark Evans (5 Jul 2009)

*Re: My Corner Tank - Venezia 190*

ermmm....i'm not sure what to say! brilliant? amazing? stunning?....that's a delightful tank now.

you could really play on the side walls of the tank when photographing it.

if you look at the last image you've taken,you can see the reflections right?....get a bit closer and you'll give the impression that it's even bigger than it is.

i'm not sure if it's deliberate by amano, but he does a similar thing. he also has plants that can only be viewed in the reflection! from my observations....full on you cant see them! now thats clever.

ace tank! my friend. like George says, the best corner tank i've seen too!

boy, i want to see more scapes from you


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## JohnC (5 Jul 2009)

*Re: My Corner Tank - Venezia 190*



			
				samc said:
			
		

> awsome tank!
> looking really green



Thanks, although looking back on earlier scapes in this tank i'm starting to miss the reds, but alas it would spoil the chilled nature of this look.



			
				chump54 said:
			
		

> lovely looking tank, spot on layout for a corner and great colours. I suspect corner tanks are tri-cky



Cheers!. Yeah, the corner tank is actually a bitch. I kinda wish id opted for something more conventional. Other then having to retro fit almost everything over time to bring it up to spec there are alot of issues with light distribution and the internal outflows from the filter which limits what i can do with it effectively. It has taken alot of experimentation to work out what to grow where in the past.



			
				George Farmer said:
			
		

> Nice corner tank!  One of the best I've seen.



Thanks, again, that means alot coming from a person of your experience.



			
				stuworrall said:
			
		

> looking really grown in now. the central wood looks really good



Cheers, yeah the central "tree" is looking just how i wanted it growth wise, still, doing this again i would have chosen different bits of redmoor. The current pieces look a bit un-natural in their positioning for my liking. I have actually changed it over as i will discuss in a sec.



			
				SteveUK said:
			
		

> That's awesome!  Would love to see a closeup full tank shot mate   That Blyxa meadow is amazing



Yeah, i would have done a full tank shot but i ran out of time the other day and frankly things are going a little down hill since i'm still waiting on the CO2.



			
				lljdma06 said:
			
		

> The tank is amazing!  I really like the center wood with the moss.
> 
> I've kept bolbitis before.  Do you have it under a current?



Cheers. The Bolbitis is slightly under a current as the outflows from the filter go directly over it and the intake is just behind them. But i would say, not directly.



			
				saintly said:
			
		

> ermmm....i'm not sure what to say! brilliant? amazing? stunning?....that's a delightful tank now.
> 
> you could really play on the side walls of the tank when photographing it.
> 
> ...



Again, this means a lot coming from such a respected and skilled member. I am just learning my camera techniques, I've actually got an outstanding question on photography hints in the photos section of this forum (hint hint) so i can improve with the kit I have.

----------

Now unfortunately I've had a touch of a tragedy with this tank in the last 48 hours. Since I ran out of CO2 I've been adding Easycarbo to this tank, usually around 7 ml a day. But I came in from the shops yesterday to find all the fish near the surface, immediately slammed the lights on and discovered total death carnage. Lost over 15 large shrimp (amanos, red nose) and 50+ rainbow shrimp, two rummienose didn't make it as well. 

Panic water change later the fish seemed to be all right but to check for bodies i had to basically go through the entire of the Blyxa meadow and somewhat destroyed its "lush" look. It actually exposed the lack of CO2 on the growth as there was alot of hidden die-off. Thank fully the new CO2 tank should arrived tomorrow and it should all get better very quickly. 

Since I was replanting anyway I have used the opportunity to do a slight switch around of the main branches for another shape.

I was thinking i must have just accidentally OD'ed on the easycarbo in the main tank until this morning when i looked at my 20L and discovered 6 dead cherries and all the rest at the surface gasping. I does a 1ml syringe on that tank. Now unless i was totally brain dead yesterday morning and dosed both tanks twice i'm starting to think the "end of the 500ml" bottle easycarbo i have is bad. Is there a case to be thinking that overtime moisture could have evaporated from the bottle and made the last portion highly concentrated?

Funny story thou.

I use a lame horoscope app thingy on my facebook page. I don't believe in horoscopes at all I just had it for comedy reading. Yesterdays horoscope for me -


> Saturday, July 4
> Gemini Horoscope
> John,
> Your spiritual gifts are starting to show, and you may discover that you have a healing gift that can bring comfort to others. You may be studying, learning, or even teaching others new ways to heal themselves through spiritual or holistic techniques.



My healing gift seems to be a gift of death.  8) 

Best Regards,

John


----------



## JohnC (8 Jul 2009)

*Re: My Corner Tank - Venezia 190*

God i'm so excited about the latest tweak to this scape.   

I've had to stop myself taking a photo to show you all until everything "healths up" a bit as I have CO2 again and I'm waiting on a tripod for my camera.

But I have a name finally.

The new and somewhat final version of this scape is called -

The Dark Place

Best Regards,
John


----------



## JohnC (15 Jul 2009)

*Re: My Corner Tank - Venezia 190*

Hi,

New tripod and advice on photos with a tweak to the layout means i just have to spam more piccys of what i consider the finished version of this scape.

The Dark Place

Named due to the large black hole in the base of the tree that the monsters whom are never quite seen lurk to trap the unsuspecting passer-by.  8) 




12th July 2009




12th July 2009




12th July 2009




12th July 2009




12th July 2009




12th July 2009

-----------------------------------

Pondering over resurrecting the large bits of driftwood for a new scape in a couple of months which will probably be after a house move. So might be posting some pics of wood in the future for general layout discussion. 

Best Regards,

John


----------



## SKP1995 (15 Jul 2009)

*Re: My Corner Tank - Venezia 190*

Not usually into corner tanks myself, but I can honestly say that looks awesome, well done dude!


----------



## JohnC (15 Jul 2009)

*Re: My Corner Tank - Venezia 190*



			
				Piemonster said:
			
		

> Not usually into corner tanks myself, but I can honestly say that looks awesome, well done dude!



thanks!

(nice to see another edinburgh face btw)


----------



## TDI-line (15 Jul 2009)

*Re: My Corner Tank - Venezia 190*

Looks great John, excellent growth and great pics, and lovely moss too.  

One of the best tanks i've seen, corner or not. 8)


----------



## chump54 (15 Jul 2009)

*Re: My Corner Tank - Venezia 190*

great name.

I've found that both my previous attempts at scaping haven't had much variation in terms of light and dark, just one overall, light tone. I like the shade below the moss too.

 I think the blyxa gives a great sense of scale


----------



## JohnC (16 Jul 2009)

*Re: My Corner Tank - Venezia 190*



			
				TDI-line said:
			
		

> Looks great John, excellent growth and great pics, and lovely moss too.



thanks,

I've been working on my camera settings and post production a bit.

Aaronnorth has the next model up of my camera and suggested aperture priority (f/3.5), ISO200/ 400 and getting a tripod.

I think it has worked pretty damn well. Especially the tripod, which only cost Â£14 from amazon.

Should have bought it ages ago. Tis amazing what a difference knowing how to use your camera makes. Next i want to nail taking photos without having the fish blurring. Which i assume is shutter speed.....

Best Regards,
John


----------



## JohnC (16 Jul 2009)

*Re: My Corner Tank - Venezia 190*



			
				chump54 said:
			
		

> great name.
> 
> I've found that both my previous attempts at scaping haven't had much variation in terms of light and dark, just one overall, light tone. I like the shade below the moss too.
> 
> I think the blyxa gives a great sense of scale




The current monster living in the "Dark Place" is the angry female Apisto Cacatuoides whom refused to be caught and relocated to a friends tank where there is a male for her to get it on with. Instead she just claims the entire cave and is in constant turf wars with the newer, younger male Agazzi.

I'll get her on the next rescape. Oh yeah....  8) 

Best Regards,
John


----------



## Steve Smith (16 Jul 2009)

*Re: My Corner Tank - Venezia 190*

Really nice John!  Your blyxa is growing like mine, much more "grass" like than I've seen in other's tanks.  The leaves are a lighter green and curl a little compared to how I've seen it elsewhere 

Are you in a hard water area?  I think my PH is around the high 7's.  Not sure on my GH.


----------



## aaronnorth (16 Jul 2009)

*Re: My Corner Tank - Venezia 190*

wow, i didnt realise it was you that had the camera model below mine, i thought you had an SLR looking at those pics on page 5  
good job on the photography & scape.
Aaron


----------



## flygja (16 Jul 2009)

*Re: My Corner Tank - Venezia 190*

I'm astounded by the growth you're getting with just 54W of lighting. I have almost triple the amount in my 160L and it doesn't seem to grow as well as yours. Even in the earlier pics, the redness of your red plants is mind-boggling. Makes me wonder whats wrong with mine...


----------



## aaronnorth (16 Jul 2009)

*Re: My Corner Tank - Venezia 190*



			
				flygja said:
			
		

> I'm astounded by the growth you're getting with just 54W of lighting. I have almost triple the amount in my 160L and it doesn't seem to grow as well as yours. Even in the earlier pics, the redness of your red plants is mind-boggling. Makes me wonder whats wrong with mine...



perhaps you have to much lighting and CO2 & nutrients are limiting growth....


----------



## JohnC (16 Jul 2009)

*Re: My Corner Tank - Venezia 190*

Hi,

I'm currently trying to milk the most out of my lights. 

2 x 24 w EHO T5 (an't they all EHO?) and an extra small bulb on the back. I use the Arcadia plant bulbs and they bring out the reds and greens ALOT. If not too much. I need to replace them in the next few weeks as they are over 9 months old now and have been musing over getting some Dennerle tubes (6500k) for their uber long life claim. 

But these do cost over Â£20 a bulb and I am somewhat sceptical at their claims. I was reading through the lighting part of this forum and I think it was James who was pointing out some cheap daylight bulbs at around 6500K which look to be a very funky alternative. I'm eager to see what the change to the photos will be without the overly heavy leaning on the greens and reds.

I also use Arcadia reflectors on both 24w bulbs to get more out of them. I also spent alot of time working out what actually grew well then just did alot of it.  

HC for example didn't work.  

I would love to try one of those LED racks instead of the back 8w bulb. A 12w LED thingy should be like adding another 24w t5 allowing me a greater range of plants to play with. I'm just not sure how it will look with the LED light streaming down in a central rear column. Does it cause much reflections in the water?

aaronnorth - cheers again for the tips   

Best Regards,
John


----------



## JohnC (16 Jul 2009)

*Re: My Corner Tank - Venezia 190*



			
				SteveUK said:
			
		

> Really nice John!  Your blyxa is growing like mine, much more "grass" like than I've seen in other's tanks.  The leaves are a lighter green and curl a little compared to how I've seen it elsewhere
> 
> Are you in a hard water area?  I think my PH is around the high 7's.  Not sure on my GH.



Soft water to be honest. Very soft. PH will be around 6 potentially, maybe lower now. I don't test anymore. GH is about 3 if i remember right.

The Blyxa isnt even at its best just now, it was deprived of CO2 for a few weeks and is just starting to bush out again. 

Best Regards,
John


----------



## flygja (17 Jul 2009)

*Re: My Corner Tank - Venezia 190*



			
				aaronnorth said:
			
		

> perhaps you have to much lighting and CO2 & nutrients are limiting growth....



I don't wanna hijack this wonderful journal, so I'll probably start up another thread sometimes later


----------



## JohnC (17 Jul 2009)

*Re: My Corner Tank - Venezia 190*



			
				flygja said:
			
		

> aaronnorth said:
> 
> 
> 
> ...



hijack away, i'm all about the hijacking...  8)


----------



## lljdma06 (3 Aug 2009)

*Re: My Corner Tank - Venezia 190*

Hi,

I thought I'd check up on how your Bolbitis is doing?  You mentioned you had indirect current.  Mine was swaying like nobody's business.  It was a huge weed in my tank.  

Also, I do see you have a lot of moss.    I should move to Scotland.


----------



## mattyc (4 Aug 2009)

*Re: My Corner Tank - Venezia 190*

This is a verry beautiful tank i like it!!!    

Matt


----------



## andyh (17 Sep 2009)

*Re: My Corner Tank - Venezia 190*

:text-coolphotos: Just read this thread from start to finish and its great, to the point that you are making me think about corner tanks! Its a truley stunning setup!

Have you any up to date pics of this tank, are you still running it?


----------



## Gill (17 Sep 2009)

*Re: My Corner Tank - Venezia 190*

OMG, that is amazing Scaping.
Really Enjoyed the evolution of the scape


----------



## JohnC (21 Sep 2009)

*Re: My Corner Tank - Venezia 190*



			
				lljdma06 said:
			
		

> Hi,
> 
> I thought I'd check up on how your Bolbitis is doing?  You mentioned you had indirect current.  Mine was swaying like nobody's business.  It was a huge weed in my tank.
> 
> Also, I do see you have a lot of moss.    I should move to Scotland.



Bolbitis is going crazy, really happy with it. The moss has also been doing amazing, bulked up really well, so much that I've actually removed a vast amount last week just to keep the flow going around the rest of the plants!

Edinburgh Tap water is some of the best in the UK, it seems to work for plants too!



			
				mattyc said:
			
		

> This is a verry beautiful tank i like it!!!
> 
> Matt



Thank you very much   



			
				andyh said:
			
		

> :text-coolphotos: Just read this thread from start to finish and its great, to the point that you are making me think about corner tanks! Its a truley stunning setup!
> 
> Have you any up to date pics of this tank, are you still running it?



Thanks! My photos are coming along alot since i was bothered enough to read my camera manual and get some pointers from these forums.

The tank is still running, nothing much changed other then vast growth. As mentioned above the moss has been reduced in the last week so i'm waiting for a bit for it to green up and grow out before posting another few pics. But i've got one "shaky cam" shot i did a minute ago i'll post in a moment.



			
				Gill said:
			
		

> OMG, that is amazing Scaping.
> Really Enjoyed the evolution of the scape



Always learning. I really enjoy sharing my experiences with people here too, and seeing other peoples scapes is very inspirational.





A little shot of the twilight phase of the tank, both in lights and in age as I am moving in a month and a bit.

Best Regards,
John


----------



## JohnC (26 Oct 2009)

*Re: My Corner Tank - Venezia 190*

Hi,

Busy renovating my new house just now so not much has changed but time is running out on planning the new scape for after i shift this tank across town (dreading that day).

One more photo before I do some final shots before the tear down. 





I also did a spot of photo research for ideas which you can view here....

http://ukaps.org/forum/viewtopic.php?f=14&t=8413

I'll be posting questions in regard to kit and substrate upgrades on other parts of the forums which i'll link into this journal in the next few days.

Best Regards,
John


----------



## JohnC (3 Nov 2009)

*Re: My Corner Tank - Venezia 190*

hiya,

can anyone recommend some gravel types that would look good with this sand/wood combination on aqua essentails gravel list?

http://www.aquaessentials.co.uk/index.php?main_page=index&cPath=414_102_223





John


----------



## Mark Evans (3 Nov 2009)

*Re: My Corner Tank - Venezia 190*

http://www.aquaessentials.co.uk/index.p ... ts_id=1582

http://www.aquaessentials.co.uk/index.p ... ts_id=1580


----------



## JohnC (3 Nov 2009)

*Re: My Corner Tank - Venezia 190*



			
				saintly said:
			
		

> http://www.aquaessentials.co.uk/index.php?main_page=product_info&products_id=1582
> 
> http://www.aquaessentials.co.uk/index.p ... ts_id=1580



Thanks saintly, was getting hung up on looking at the unipac stuff. Waiting on a reply from AE about the sold out status of the fine stuff.

Next question,

I want to get rid of the two outflows from the external filter in the tank. I'm thinking of getting a large size lily, would this one be ok for the 16/18mm ehiem tubing i'm going to replace the fluval 405 stuff with? It says 17mm. Other recommendations closer to home happily looked at.

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Glass-17mm-Li...QQptZUK_Pet_Supplies_Fish?hash=item5633a559be

John


----------



## Mark Evans (3 Nov 2009)

*Re: My Corner Tank - Venezia 190*

i wouldn't like to say yes or no on this one John. my guess is, it would ok. if it does not fit, there must be a way to adapt. 

puch come to shove, you could sell it on.


----------



## JohnC (3 Nov 2009)

*Re: My Corner Tank - Venezia 190*



			
				saintly said:
			
		

> i wouldn't like to say yes or no on this one John. my guess is, it would ok. if it does not fit, there must be a way to adapt.
> 
> puch come to shove, you could sell it on.



sod it i'll take a punt, see how it goes. 

the fine grained river gravel is out of stock probably for good says AE. Shame as i think that would have done nicely over the sand as a grade to the larger stuff.

could possibly use the slightly larger red mix stuff...

http://www.aquaessentials.co.uk/index.php?main_page=product_info&products_id=1578

but i'm not sure how it will look against the whity/yellow sand. too much of a jump?

i'll check my LFS in the next couple of days when i pick up some fish transport boxes to see what they have in or can get in.

my latest plan is to tear this tank down and leave it un setup for a few weeks while i decorate around it. i don't want to have to try and move it while it is re filled up. it will also give me time to get the bits and pieces i need in and not rush any hardscaping. The fish will be given away or have to survive in a spare 70 L i have kicking about in another flat.

Going to try some crypts again and some other rosette plants i've been avoiding for a while. with some decent snuffle room for some corries that i've so neglected over the years of blyxa carpeting.

John


----------



## JohnC (2 Dec 2009)

*Re: My Corner Tank - Venezia 190*

hi,

i need a external reactor soonish and Ed's project seems to be on hold for a while. 

Is this the correct aquamas reactor for a fluval 405 size pipe? (i'll be replacing the ribbed hose with ehiem syphon tubing).

http://www.aquamas.de/products/CO2-...eaktor-fuer-Aquarien-bis-etwa-1000-Liter.html

Best Regards,
John


----------



## JohnC (7 Dec 2009)

*Re: My Corner Tank - Venezia 190*

hi,

aquamas seem to have a broken site, i cant get the order in and they have yet to reply to a single email, feels a little like they have gone bust.

so the search goes on....

found this for Â£15.

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Aquarium-Co2-...emQQptZLH_DefaultDomain_0?hash=item25574383ef

Don't know anything about atomizers thou, seems very cheap for what i want....

hmm,

John


----------



## JohnC (14 Apr 2010)

*Re: My Corner Tank - Venezia 190*



			
				hijac said:
			
		

> hi,
> 
> aquamas seem to have a broken site, i cant get the order in and they have yet to reply to a single email, feels a little like they have gone bust.
> 
> ...



Hiya,

Just a quick update on the Atomizer, going to take it off. Even set very low it constantly filled the tank with microbubbles reducing the clarity of the water and generally looking poo. Going to shift back to a diffuser until Ed gets time for the DIY reactor.

New scape has been going now for a few months proper after a rushed start to be ready for Christmas day lunch background. It's not ready for photos just yet as i'm still working out my dosing and everything needs a good growth spurt to finally take shape (not helped by my CO2 needing refilled).

Best Regards,
John


----------



## chump54 (14 Apr 2010)

*Re: My Corner Tank - Venezia 190*

do you know what, I took my atomiser off for the same reason. I just couldn't get it low enough, it seems like it needed a lot of pressure to get going then it would spew(?) out a lot of micro bubbles. All or nothing. I'm using a diffuser too but haven't got it up high enough yet. I did get good growth with it though.

look forward to your the pictures.

Chris


----------



## sanj (15 Apr 2010)

*Re: My Corner Tank - Venezia 190*

I love seeing the progression of this tank over the last few years. Funny I too remember the days before starting EI and having dreaded cyanobacteria and researching and finding about Erythromycin. The only relatively smaller algae issue I get now is GSA.


----------



## JohnC (18 Aug 2010)

*Re: My Corner Tank - Venezia 190*

Hi,

Just wanted to show you my new scape. I'm going for that natural dirty water look. Hope you like it.





 

More seriously, i'm scratching my head on this one. I think it is white cloudy water, indicating a bacteria bloom. It came on about a month ago after I added a CO2 reactor that had very tightly compacted netting/floss in the chamber to help break up the CO2 bubbles. It reduced the flow ALOT so i switched it out for some Bio balls. I've also added an extra nano pump in the tank to further improve flow to compensate for the slight reduction from the filter. Overall circulation is on paper over 2000L/h on a 170 odd litre tank.

I can get it better so I can see the back of the tank ish, with a 50% water change. But it starts clouding again the next day and by the end of a week will be like this.



Ideas anyone?

Thanks in advance,
John


----------



## Krishs Bettas (18 Aug 2010)

*Re: My Corner Tank - Venezia 190*

It looks more like green water   Large water changes could help. Look at james algae guid there is aalot of tips there.


----------



## nry (18 Aug 2010)

*Re: My Corner Tank - Venezia 190*

I agree, looks very like greenwater to me, gave up trying to clear it with water changes etc. and instead dropped in a UV filter, about Â£20 from eBay.  Cleared it in a week and it's never  been back since.


----------



## JohnC (19 Aug 2010)

*Re: My Corner Tank - Venezia 190*



			
				nry said:
			
		

> I agree, looks very like greenwater to me, gave up trying to clear it with water changes etc. and instead dropped in a UV filter, about Â£20 from eBay.  Cleared it in a week and it's never  been back since.



I've ordered a Â£20 UV from ebay so we can see if that sorts it.


----------



## JohnC (7 Jan 2011)

*Re: My Corner Tank - Venezia 190*

Hiya,

Been eons since I last updated this properly as I've been busy DIYing for almost a year now to finish this flat. Good thing is i'm almost done and can start paying more attention to my tanks again.

Although at this moment it is late and it is my girlfriend whom is demanding attention. So i will post this and type more tomorrow.




Jan 11th 2010

Best Regards,
John


----------



## Tom (7 Jan 2011)

*Re: My Corner Tank - Venezia 190*

Not your everyday scape, really quite unique  I like it  I'd like to see more of that Hydrocotyle in places too


----------



## JohnC (7 Jan 2011)

*Re: My Corner Tank - Venezia 190 - Jul 2007 to Jan 2011*



			
				Tom said:
			
		

> Not your everyday scape, really quite unique  I like it  I'd like to see more of that Hydrocotyle in places too



Cheers, it's not really a deliberate scape thou.   

Since I was busy as hell renovating this house i quickly setup the tank during xmas eve preparations last year (2009, the tank was at the end of the dinner table). Since it was extremely cloudy the planting was entirely guesswork and my planning was somewhat rushed. It did look ace when the lights came on though, which was pleasantly surprising.

Then over time various issues had led to a slow change in plants and eventually removal of 2/3 of the hardscape due to constant BBA (ill come to that later).

When i moved house I decided to address some of the issues i had with the corner tank, which in turn created more in different ways.

I took out the internal outflow stalk and put in a lily with a larger 405 filter.  I added the hydor external heater and a co2 reactor. Basically taking out as much of the kit from in the tank as possible.

The xmas 2009 planting was alot of different swords and crypts and other plants i'd never tried. For hardscape there used to be three "stumps" around the tank, in the photo above there is only one left. 

A year ago a made a classic mistake with the substrate in my xmas eve rush, i was aiming to have oliver knott soil in three plant heavy areas around the stump bases. then to save money use sand and gravel for the paths that were going between them. but the ratios of each were completely wrong. over time the gravel sunk to the bottom, in other areas the oliver knott was too close to the surface and constantly floating around or in other areas not enough to give good root based ferts to the crypts and swords. just rushed bad planning then being too busy to fix it.

The changes to the hardware initially rocked and I was very happy, things grew well. But after a while i was having persistent BBA on the wood. I upped the CO2 made sure the ferts were good. Nothing helped. Then looking at the flow noticed how badly the extra kit on the outflow of the 405 was reducing the turnover, added an extra koralia and after a green water outbreak added a little internal UV filter for more flow. 

Over time the plants were growing well but i was taking out the swords as each one got INSANELY bigger then any of the suppliers descriptions. The Echinodorus x "Rainers Kitty" was AMAZING but had me taking 14 inch leaves back to the shop to show to the suppler that this was NOT a fore to midground plant. God bless EI for showing LFS owners what plants should look like when properly grown.  8) 

The BBA issue still wasn't clearing up even with constant cleaning and liquid CO2 additional and without that extra 30 minutes a day spare i decided to take out the two smaller front stumps and concentrate on the back one.

A little revelation came to me the other day about why I am getting this bad BBA these specific bits of drift wood, as it is also bad on another large piece of the same batch i lent to a friend for his tank.

These bits of wood are pieces i bought with my first set-ups and for a couple of years were left uncovered in the shed after coming out of my first corner scape. In my rush to set-up that Xmas eve I did not scrub the wood to remove any of the slight surface rot that had occurred in all those years in the shed. During maintenance in the last few months there is a soft layer on these pieces what comes off with your nail. Once removed the area's beneath (not rotten) were much less likely to get BBA, especially since i sorted the flow issues.

Oh the benefit of hindsight!!!! *ALWAYS SCRUB YOUR WOOD*.  8) 

Overall, things are looking quite pleasant in the tank. A planned scape no, a nice thing to come out of a near disaster, yes. The photos never really do corner tanks justice. They are viewed from 90 degrees worth of angles so the straight on shot is never the whole story. Probably why they are so damn hard to scape.

I am however in the processing of winding this tank down permanently. My aim is to transfer all the fish and many of the plants to my first "proper" shaped tank!!! I have a Rio 180 that i have been gathering bits for waiting to go. I am so looking forward to working with something that you all consider the norm!!!!

Although i have enjoyed my "journey" (to coin an xfactorism) in corner tanks, it has taught me a massive amount, i will be glad to see the back of it for the following reasons.


*1. The majority of planted tank rules/guides/advice is based on normal shaped tanks*
Be it calculating how much light you have, how deep your substrate is, how many fish you should stock, nothing for corner tanks for novices is a documented as it is for normal shaped tanks. Making it more difficult to learn.

*2. The variety of scapes you can do is very limited. *
Because of the dimensions you have a very odd/small floor space to work with. Limits to how and where you can put hardscape.

*3. Flow is a nightmare. *
Well it was for me, especially when you start adding in tall hardscape. Spraybars would have helped, but that curved front makes it all more difficult/complicated to eliminate deadspots.

*4. Harder to clean and maintain.*
I don't know if it is just the height of the tank i have but the extra width and corner aspect meant that reaching parts of the tank involved standing on a chair and leaning right in. Especially the back and corners. Looking at the Rio 180 which is the same amount of water, can can happily reach all parts for planting and cleaning, even when it is mounted on a much higher base.

*5. The fish don't like it.*
Probably the most important of them all. I am convinced my fish don't like the front curved pane of glass. In all the years i've had this tank other then the mosquito rasbora (who are just nuts brave) no fish want to be near the centre front of the glass. They are all exceedingly skittish when I compare them to friends fish or fish in shops. Any movement in the room or slightest vibration everyone hides. Most turn nocturnal over time and spend most of their time around the back corner hidden. Think about it, the fish at the front, facing out, has a massively distorted view and probably cannot see anything clearly 90 degrees each side of it through the glass. Thereby is in constant threat warning mode, why chill out there, when the back of the tank is much calmer and has less crazy flow.

SO anyone considering a corner tank as their first big tank, like I did, i advise you *not* too. 5 years of learning later, i now think i know ALOT about planted tanks. But I think i would have had an easier time of it with a rectangular one.   

Good bye Venezia 190   

Hello Rio 180.

Thank you all for reading,
I'll be back shortly in another journal.

Best Regards,
John




7th Jan 2011 





My favourite period of this tank.


----------



## JohnC (19 Mar 2011)

*Re: My Corner Tank - Venezia 190 - Jul 2007 to Jan 2011*

Hiya,

Still not managed to rip this tank down yet but the Rio is almost ready....

Took a few more photos and tried a white background for the first time.. I actually prefer it! Looks lovely in real life. What do you guys think?




19th March 2011 - Black Background




19th March 2011 - White Background




19th March 2011 - Side View




19th March 2011 - Side View




19th March 2011 - Detail

Best Regards,
John


----------



## Antoni (19 Mar 2011)

*Re: My Corner Tank - Venezia 190 - Jul 2007 to Mar 2011*

Lovely tank, but I like it more without the white background, maybe blue or black will look better IMO!

If the crypts on the left were to be parallel to the front glass in line with the blyxa, would be better, I think! Love the hydrocotile and the carpet!

Regards


----------



## Mark Evans (19 Mar 2011)

*Re: My Corner Tank - Venezia 190 - Jul 2007 to Mar 2011*

I'm all for the white. A stronger shade of white or rear of tank illumination would help. 

It's an incredible tank mate. A great layout.


----------



## Ian Holdich (19 Mar 2011)

*Re: My Corner Tank - Venezia 190 - Jul 2007 to Mar 2011*

looks excellent!

There's not many corner tank keepers on here, i think you should keep the corner tank!lol


----------



## LondonDragon (19 Mar 2011)

*Re: My Corner Tank - Venezia 190 - Jul 2007 to Mar 2011*

Not easy to scape a corner tank and this one looks excellent  congrats and keep it going


----------



## JohnC (20 Mar 2011)

*Re: My Corner Tank - Venezia 190 - Jul 2007 to Mar 2011*

Hi everyone,



			
				Antoni Dimitrov said:
			
		

> Lovely tank, but I like it more without the white background, maybe blue or black will look better IMO!
> 
> If the crypts on the left were to be parallel to the front glass in line with the blyxa, would be better, I think! Love the hydrocotile and the carpet!
> 
> Regards



I think i am so bias to the white as it is very new to me after all these years with black backdrops the tank looks entirely different with white. Light bounces around such different ways. They do say thou, jungle tanks (which this leans towards) should be black backdrops, simple layouts - white....

Re: layout -   As I mention in the previous big rant, there is not much thought to layout in this, it is and evolved mess from a year of neglect. The planning went out the window as I started to remove 2/3 of the hardscape. There was a medium size stump in that area you mention a few months ago...

Once the carpet surrounded the base of the hydrocotyle it grew much better, before it was struggling to stay healthy. I'm amazed by how well the HC grows with the innert sand substrate at the front of the tank. Thumbs up for EI dosing.  8) 



			
				Mark Evans said:
			
		

> I'm all for the white. A stronger shade of white or rear of tank illumination would help.
> 
> It's an incredible tank mate. A great layout.



Cheers, although i'm still holding my hands up and saying the layout is accidental.  8) 

Your right about the stronger shade of white, i grabbed some really low grade whiteboard paper that was kicking about. It could be much whiter. I have spare lights kicking about for rear of tank illumination so will give that a shot when I have a moment. I'm very interested about how different the photos come out with the white. 

My camera skills and equipment are still lacking, hopefully will have an DSLR in a couple of months. Currently still using the old fujifilm s5600 with tripod. But i've forgotten what settings i used for tank shots a year and a bit ago that I really liked. It's very adjustable for a base level bridge camera, the quality just falls off in lower light. Which i have to try and get back in photoshop.

Links for good camera setup tips for tank shots greatly accepted.



			
				ianho said:
			
		

> looks excellent!
> 
> There's not many corner tank keepers on here, i think you should keep the corner tank!lol



Thanks!

RE: Corner tanks - yup, for good reasons, as i mentioned on the last page, I wish i'd never bought it. I'm on a mission to get rid of it. I'll run both for a couple of months then it gets the axe.



			
				LondonDragon said:
			
		

> Not easy to scape a corner tank and this one looks excellent  congrats and keep it going



Cheers mate. I'm happy that I can grow plants well. Which is what this forum is really about ....  We obsess a lot about layouts and scapes but really, a well grown out, healthy set of plants does the work for you most of the time.   

Best Regards,
John


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## TopCat75 (22 Mar 2011)

*Re: My Corner Tank - Venezia 190 - Jul 2007 to Mar 2011*

I have to say that your different scapes are some of the finest I've seen and are truly an inspiration to any fish keeper keeping a planted aquarium   I too have a corner unit aquarium albeit not quite as fantastic as yours  but i was wondering what Co2 equipment you have and  what kind of dosage are you using ie. bps? I've recently purchased a JBL Proflora 602 but am unsure as to how much i should be putting in, different forums give you different specs and now I've been told that the CO2 tester that comes with it can quite often give you a false reading of not having enough in there!!!! Obviously judging by the tank you are doing something right and was wondering if you can help in this matter, many thanks and keep up the good work


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## JohnC (23 Mar 2011)

*Re: My Corner Tank - Venezia 190 - Jul 2007 to Mar 2011*



			
				TopCat75 said:
			
		

> I have to say that your different scapes are some of the finest I've seen and are truly an inspiration to any fish keeper keeping a planted aquarium   I too have a corner unit aquarium albeit not quite as fantastic as yours  but i was wondering what Co2 equipment you have and  what kind of dosage are you using ie. bps? I've recently purchased a JBL Proflora 602 but am unsure as to how much i should be putting in, different forums give you different specs and now I've been told that the CO2 tester that comes with it can quite often give you a false reading of not having enough in there!!!! Obviously judging by the tank you are doing something right and was wondering if you can help in this matter, many thanks and keep up the good work



what a lovely compliment. thank you. 

Re: CO2. 

I've tried most things over time in this tank CO2 related. I think i went 

Ladder
Diffuser
Atomiser
Reactor 

On the delivery end. Overall setup is a £50 reducer/valve i got from some online retailer on a FE and a german made CO2 reactor that is similar to the aqua media ones but with bigger hose fixtures to take the 16/22 mm tubing on the 405 filter i have. This reactor was a bitch to find as Aquamas had gone out of business as far as I could tell and I had to do a lot of searching while actively translating the websites from German.

I have a very similar JBL kit to yours although i'm currently not using the reducer/valve as it is elsewhere. I would presume you can use fire extinguishers instead of the JBL cannisters as they are MUCH cheaper to refill if you don't have a local JBL refill enabled local fish shop. You can find very good instructions on using fire extinguishers else where on these forums. The JBL fine adjustment valve was way better then the one on my current reducer.

As for the amount you should put in it entirely depends on your tank setup. Size, absorption, plant mass, water movement, fish stocking levels, light, diffusion method etc... Many variables which are different on every tank. Me giving you the bps value on my tank might be way too much or way too little for your setup.

Don't dispair about CO2 though. It is undoubtedly one of the hardest things to get right in a fish tank, and one of the most dangerous for the occupants to get wrong.

Check the tutorial and CO2 sections on this forum for the correct information on the subject. I trust the many experts here to give you the best, and most up to date information and explanations of what you should aim for.

A must is to invest in a *good drop checker and some KH4 solution*. Then my personal opinion would be ditch that CO2 ladder you have with the JBL kit as they don't work well enough for a heavily planted tank and get a nice *glass diffuser bubble counter combo.* Then start low, slowly over days building up the amount of bubbles until you have a nice steady lime green.

Currently I run my CO2 from and hour before lights on to an hour before lights out. This saves on CO2 and your plants don't need it during the night, they actually give it off. But you can also run it at a lower rate 24 hours a day. People do both with great success. I only switched to running it when the lights are on in the last year.... 

The most important thing about adding CO2 is *WATCH YOUR FISH*. If they are all gasping for air at the surface act immediately to reduce the CO2 in the water. A emergency water change has saved my tank on a number of occasions when I have been a little too "trigger" happy on the CO2. Any change you make to the CO2, leave it a long while before judging if you have done enough, *adjusting up a little too little is better then a little too much*. 

Hope that helps a little, there are many people here who can explain things better then me. I spent 2 years reading before I even got my first planted tank. I know how daunting all the different sources and "experts" information can be. You have, however, found something I never had in those early years.....

UKAPS      8) 

Best Regards,
John


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## TopCat75 (4 Apr 2011)

*Re: My Corner Tank - Venezia 190 - Jul 2007 to Mar 2011*

Thank you John for your advice, alas i fear my biggest problem in the planted aquarium world is patience as i expect an underwater paradise almost immediately and yet i know this is not possible!! I shall endeavor to take my time and be patient nonetheless lol Thanks again for the advice, keep up the good work


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## Alastair (29 Sep 2011)

*Re: My Corner Tank - Venezia 190 - Jul 2007 to Mar 2011*

Just finished reading this from start to finish. Amazing tank mate. Hats off to you for doing so well with a corner tank. I loved the august 08 pic too with just plants. Tons of colour. Might pinch a few ideas from it for when mine gets stripped down and rescaped :0)


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## JohnC (30 Sep 2011)

*Re: My Corner Tank - Venezia 190 - Jul 2007 to Mar 2011*



			
				Alastair said:
			
		

> Just finished reading this from start to finish. Amazing tank mate. Hats off to you for doing so well with a corner tank. I loved the august 08 pic too with just plants. Tons of colour. Might pinch a few ideas from it for when mine gets stripped down and rescaped :0)



 Cheers!

Since i've been so slack in making up the new "normal" shaped tank the corner is still going. I'll post some photos in a couple of weeks once the HC has filled in a bit. In my opinion its the best versions yet! i'm quite chuffed with myself.

edit - it's amazing looking back on these photos I see the differences in my own tank with different conditions. Take for example the crypts in that Aug 08 tank. This was a period where i was stumbling around getting dosing sorted and CO2 but the crypts are the best they had ever been. 

This a combination of that time using the eco complete substrate and root tabs and not moving them. In the later tanks i've nailed EI and the CO2 distribution but i'd messed up the substrate by only having small areas of Oliver Knott stuff with mostly inert sands and no root tabs. So the crypts (heavy root feeders) have never done as well. 

Journals like this just reinforce all the things i've learned over the last few years.


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## Alastair (30 Sep 2011)

*Re: My Corner Tank - Venezia 190 - Jul 2007 to Mar 2011*

Look forward to it if it's your best yet ha ha.


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## REDSTEVEO (16 Dec 2011)

*Re: My Corner Tank - Venezia 190 - Jul 2007 to Mar 2011*



			
				JohnC said:
			
		

> Hi,
> 
> This is my first large tank and first real go at planted tanks of a higher techy nature. It has been running for a couple of years now to varying degrees of sucess. Basically i've learned everything i know from trying to make this work and i have been taking photos all the way. There are things i still want to improve in the tank and i'll go in after the picture swarm.
> 
> ...




Hi John, just a quick question about your use of Erythromycin? Where did you buy your Erythromycin from and what was the dosage used. Was it in liquid or tablet form?

Cheers,

All the best for Christmas and an Algae free New Year!!  

Steve


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## JohnC (16 Dec 2011)

*Re: My Corner Tank - Venezia 190 - Jul 2007 to Mar 2011*

Hi Steve,

A couple of attempts to get it past customs from ebay and amazon. It was tablets that i crushed to use.

Although i'd not recommend it any more in any way due to the environmental issues of putting anti-biotics into the environment needlessly & the issues associated with growing immunities to these things in people and viruses.

Increased Nitrate dosing, black out, more flow/pumps, easy carbo spot dosing is what I would do now.

Best regards,
John


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## JohnC (20 Jan 2012)

Hiya,

Time is almost called on the corner, now I have my 180 up, planted and settling in. I just realised I did not post the more recent shots that I took while discussing best techniques on the photography section.
http://www.ukaps.org/forum/viewtopic.php?f=14&t=19003
------------------------

Two shots illustrate specific issues I have with taking good photo's of it.

The first taken with the  50 mm f/1.8 II





Second taken with the wide angle setting of the 18-55mm 





---------------------

The layout was entirely done as a holding pattern for me setting up the other tank, it just happened to last almost a year! The stems I was growing out for a friend but actually got me back into stems in general. They are gone now and have been replaced with Rotala sp which I'll hopefully prune for a final shot in a month or so once they fill out a bit.

So looking forward to the end of this tank. Even though it has given me so much learning and enjoyment.

Best Regards,
John


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## sanj (20 Jan 2012)

John,

such a progression there, you really did that tank justice in the last couple of photos. Very nice indeed.


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## malawistu (20 Jan 2012)

very nice tank really nice well done


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