# 125L - The Re-Scape



## 84Reasons (6 Sep 2019)

So I've had my tank going since the start of the year. I didn't know much about growing aquatics plants or aquascaping, so recently I've decieded to do a re-scape, this is the journal for that. 

The gear;

*Lights:* 2x 24w T5 bulbs w/reflectors
*Filter: *Fluval 206 at full rate
*Tank: *Hugo Kamishi Manzoku, 80cm x W35cm x H53cm
*CO2: *Pressurised CO2 at roughly 3bps, 2 hours to green at lights on
*Substrate: *2x 9L Tropica Aquarium Soil, 1x 3L Tropica Aquarium Soil Powder
*Fertiliser: *5ml TNC Complete Daily (may raise to 10ml)
*Flora: *Heteranthera Zosterifolia x1 (back left), Rotala Green x2 (back left/middle), Rotala Orange Juice x2 (back left/middle), Ludwigia Repens Rubin x1 (back middle), Rotala Vietnam H'ra x2 (midground), Taxiphyllum barbieri x1 (hardscape), Anubias Nana x1 (hardscape), Anubias Petite x2 (hardscape), Microsorum pteropus Trident x2 (hardscape), Microsorum Pteropus AKA Java Fern x1 (hardscape), Bucephalandra Biblis x1 (hardscape), Hygrophila pinnatifida x2 (hardscape), Staurogyne Repens x1 (foreground), Rotala Bonsai x1 (foreground), Cryptocoryne Wendtii Green x2(foreground), Cryptocoryne Lucens x1(foreground), Eleocharis acicularis Mini x3 (carpet), Micranthemum Monte Carlo x2 (carpet)
*Fauna: *1x Crowntail Betta, 16x Neon Tetra, 6x Threadfin Rainbows, 6x Rummynose Tetra, 6x Harlequin Rasboras, 3x Dwarf Catfish, 3x Albino Cherry Barbs, 9x Amano Shrimp, 3x Crystal Red Shrimp & 3 SAE's (may have to remove these they are getting big)

Here is what my tank is looking like at the moment:



 

Here is what I have at the moment as far as the hardscape goes:


 
I've got more redmoor on order, so will be using this to branch over the rocks I think, I still have some dragon stone left over so will add that if it's needed. 

Looking forward to updating this! Cheers, H.


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## 84Reasons (6 Sep 2019)

I have a solid black background on at the moment, its showing bubbles however, and so I think when I do the re-scape I'll remove it, not sure if I should put another one on, and also not sure how to remove the seaview glue on the back. Will have to see!


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## Paul Lane (6 Sep 2019)

This is nice, great positioning. Looking forward to seeing this come together. What rock and wood you using?


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## 84Reasons (6 Sep 2019)

Paul Lane said:


> This is nice, great positioning. Looking forward to seeing this come together. What rock and wood you using?



Thank you! Wood is Redmoor, and rocks are Dragon Stone. Both from AG. Saw the dragon stone a while back and knew when the time came for a re-scape I had to get it!


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## Paul Lane (6 Sep 2019)

I got a background on my new tank just to start with until the planting is all done. Just there to help the tank look full for now.


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## 84Reasons (6 Sep 2019)

Paul Lane said:


> I got a background on my new tank just to start with until the planting is all done. Just there to help the tank look full for now.


Mines already on  but it seems to be coming away, I'll either try to keep it on or just take it off, I think it'll look bad without it on but I can't be bothered to put another one on.


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## 84Reasons (9 Sep 2019)

Update.
Got my last pieces of wood the other day, put them together to form what I'd imagine is going to be the final product, may change on the day however.
Re-scape is planned for either this Friday (13th) or Saturday (14th), going to order the plants Thursday!  
Plant list is largely the same, removed the monte carlo and just going with the mini hairgrass as the carpet however, and took the anubias out and just kept the petite versions, I think I'll have enough hardscape plants without it, can always add more.


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## 84Reasons (11 Sep 2019)

Plants are ordered. Everything should be arriving Friday (13th), depending on when they come I could be doing the re-scape that day! 

Looking forward to it.


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## 84Reasons (14 Sep 2019)

So after a very long Friday (started the scape after work...) I'm done!
See below for the FTS upon flooding. I also have posted some progress photos below that of me actually doing the scape.
Really happy with it! Very hard work netting the fish in and out but got there in the end.
The Oase foam stuff was great in holding everything down however I found it really hard to work with, a small press and loads of it comes out! gets everywhere ... Once I got the big pieces down I stopped using it.
Only issue I may have in the future is the back left corner may be a dead spot for co2, not sure how I'll get it there ...


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## Jayefc1 (14 Sep 2019)

84Reasons said:


> The Oase foam stuff was great in holding everything down however I found it really hard to work with, a small press and loads of it comes out! gets everywhere


You do need to be careful with it but i found you do get used to using it and can predict how much will come out with each press it holds so firl and quickly
Cant see the pics by the way


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## 84Reasons (14 Sep 2019)

Jayefc1 said:


> You do need to be careful with it but i found you do get used to using it and can predict how much will come out with each press it holds so firl and quickly


It did work great and held everything down but it got to a stage where loads had came out the end and then it squires the tube off itself and then sealed over itself so I couldn't use it anymore ... Great stuff though!


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## Jayefc1 (14 Sep 2019)

I didnt have that problem but did keep cleaning the end with kitchen roll after every use to keep it clean i do agree it is best for the bigger peices of hardscape
Scape looks really good by the way if i was you id use a bit of gel super glue to stick some plants over the lil bits of foam you can see moss Anubias and duches are best for this


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## 84Reasons (14 Sep 2019)

Jayefc1 said:


> I didnt have that problem but did keep cleaning the end with kitchen roll after every use to keep it clean i do agree it is best for the bigger peices of hardscape
> Scape looks really good by the way if i was you id use a bit of gel super glue to stick some plants over the lil bits of foam you can see moss Anubias and duches are best for this


Yeah I tried that but to no avail haha ..

Thanks bro! I think I may have to, it's a good idea tbh. I tried putting a couple stones in front of one that helped but there still more! Might grab some moss.

I think I may buy some crypts in the future as the back left corner looks like a co2 dead spot and I reckon the plants will die so I'll bang the crpyts there .


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## Jayefc1 (14 Sep 2019)

I dont think it will be once it disolves into the water it shoukd be fine put your drop checker in that corner see what happens


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## 84Reasons (14 Sep 2019)

Jayefc1 said:


> I dont think it will be once it disolves into the water it shoukd be fine put your drop checker in that corner see what happens


Good idea, checking now, cheers mate


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## Jayefc1 (14 Sep 2019)

Maybe do it tomorrow when the co2 has been off over night and its blue again


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## 84Reasons (14 Sep 2019)

Jayefc1 said:


> Maybe do it tomorrow when the co2 has been off over night and its blue again


It's already blue mate I haddn't put it back in yet!


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## Jayefc1 (14 Sep 2019)

Oh ok lol no worries then


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## alto (14 Sep 2019)

Well done 

And so lucky to have Tropica Denmark 1-2-Grow plants (Tropica North America needs some lessons )



84Reasons said:


> Only issue I may have in the future is the back left corner may be a dead spot for co2,


I suggest splitting your intake/outtake so they are not adjacent (I know this is very much in vogue these days but it is not the most efficient for flow) - place the intake in that back corner and the outflow at front of tank on that side and see how it goes


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## 84Reasons (15 Sep 2019)

alto said:


> Well done
> 
> And so lucky to have Tropica Denmark 1-2-Grow plants (Tropica North America needs some lessons )
> 
> ...


Everything was ordered from aquarium gardens, really great guys and great plants! Been to see them when I set up my dad's tank but just ordered online this time.

I've put the drop checker there as Jayefc1 said, and happy to report it's coming up lime green as it does in the rest of the tank so looks like maybe I was wrong about it being a dead spot!

Although that sounds like a good idea, I don't think the intake would fit at that back left corner as I have the soil sloping up quite high, I think that's probably the only place it can't go!


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## 84Reasons (16 Sep 2019)

Day 2 update. Not much going on, still dealing with random deaths (another thread) but other than that the scape is going great. I haven't done a water change, planning on doing a big one today, was all scaped out after I did this Scape and then trimmed my dad's tank the day after!


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## CooKieS (16 Sep 2019)

I like it, simple and effective with a lot of plants, Hope your fishes will get better, did you know that New tropica soil Can Leach ammonia?


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## 84Reasons (16 Sep 2019)

CooKieS said:


> I like it, simple and effective with a lot of plants, Hope your fishes will get better, did you know that New tropica soil Can Leach ammonia?


Thank you! I actually ended up not planting some of the crypts I bought, and also had to make the carpet smaller than I wanted, because I bought too many plants ... I was so worried of not having enough and ended up with the opposite! 
I hadn't heard this actually, my fish have been affected by a lot of things recently as stated in my other thread (neon tetra disease and with it some secondary diseases) so I just assumed it was this continuing. I do 3x 30% water changes weekly anyway, do you think it's worth upping this to combat the soil ammonia leech?


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## 84Reasons (16 Sep 2019)

Quick dof close up


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## CooKieS (17 Sep 2019)

84Reasons said:


> Thank you! I actually ended up not planting some of the crypts I bought, and also had to make the carpet smaller than I wanted, because I bought too many plants ... I was so worried of not having enough and ended up with the opposite!
> I hadn't heard this actually, my fish have been affected by a lot of things recently as stated in my other thread (neon tetra disease and with it some secondary diseases) so I just assumed it was this continuing. I do 3x 30% water changes weekly anyway, do you think it's worth upping this to combat the soil ammonia leech?



Yes it's Worth upping it if the deaths continue...my advice would be to never put any fish in a tank that has new soil in it (I mean nutrient rich soil like tropica, Amazonia etc) even when using an old cycled filter.

Because those kind of soil release a lot of nutrients, nitrates, phosphates and ammonia when new.


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## 84Reasons (17 Sep 2019)

CooKieS said:


> Yes it's Worth upping it if the deaths continue...my advice would be to never put any fish in a tank that has new soil in it (I mean nutrient rich soil like tropica, Amazonia etc) even when using an old cycled filter.
> 
> Because those kind of soil release a lot of nutrients, nitrates, phosphates and ammonia when new.


Good to know. Obviously this was a re Scape so I had to put the fish back in  
But either way nothing has continued so far, fingers crossed and will up water changes if I see another.


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## 84Reasons (18 Sep 2019)

Tried to get a FTS yesterday evening on day 4. I think I need to somehow get the camera to export the RAW file as it exported it (using a built in wifi-app function) as a JPEG so up close the quality is much worse than when it was on my camera. Still looks okay I think:


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## CooKieS (18 Sep 2019)

Looks great, in one week you Can already trim the rotala in the back, it will encourage New bushy immerged grow form.


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## 84Reasons (18 Sep 2019)

CooKieS said:


> Looks great, in one week you Can already trim the rotala in the back, it will encourage New bushy immerged grow form.


Yeah it came out of the pot quote large already, I'm wary to trim it so early however as most places say to wait for 3 or so weeks before the first trim. I don't think the orange juice is quite ready yet so might look weird


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## 84Reasons (18 Sep 2019)

New growth looks a little pale? Or me just being paranoid? Reckon iron deficiency?


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## CooKieS (18 Sep 2019)

Don't worry, couldn't be Iron deficiency with New soil 

Looks healthy to me


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## 84Reasons (18 Sep 2019)

CooKieS said:


> Don't worry, couldn't be Iron deficiency with New soil
> 
> Looks healthy to me


Haha didn't think of that!
No worries cheers mate!


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## 84Reasons (19 Sep 2019)

Added the moss. I forgot how annoying it is to add with the glue especially when it's already full! Growing in well!


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## 84Reasons (20 Sep 2019)

1 week. Does it look like I should trim the rotala already? Conscious of giving it enough time root properly which is holding me back.


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## Jayefc1 (20 Sep 2019)

Personally id let it settle a while longer how it looks now wont be the end result so does it really matter if it is left to even reach the top and then have bigger healthier steams to replant 
Cheers 
Jay


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## 84Reasons (20 Sep 2019)

Jayefc1 said:


> Personally id let it settle a while longer how it looks now wont be the end result so does it really matter if it is left to even reach the top and then have bigger healthier steams to replant
> Cheers
> Jay


That's true. Not sure how I would go about the first trim either though as I'm told to do a massive trim back and then the bushyness starts really low down, replanting the stems in this case would look weird as they'd all be different heights


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## alto (20 Sep 2019)

84Reasons said:


> replanting the stems in this case would look weird as they'd all be different heights


Just trim/plant so they’re similar 

If you watch Filipe Oliveira plant stems, he places them quite deep so that the above soil stem height is quite low 

When conditions are good (soil, CO2, light) most stem plants are very forgiving 

You can play with the trimming ... trim some now, some later, replant tops etc


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## 84Reasons (20 Sep 2019)

alto said:


> Just trim/plant so they’re similar
> 
> If you watch Filipe Oliveira plant stems, he places them quite deep so that the above soil stem height is quite low
> 
> ...



That's a good idea actually, I'll just make them the same height as you said either with trimming or planting deeper.
Only thing I'm worried about leaving it now is that some of the stems have grown horizontally and then from that horizontal shoot more stems have grown vertically, when I trim this I may have to play about with it a bit.


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## Jayefc1 (21 Sep 2019)

Yeah the taller stems just cut the b[toms off to make a similar lenth trim below the sight line so you get two shoote from the first stem 
Cheers
Jay


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## 84Reasons (21 Sep 2019)

Jayefc1 said:


> Yeah the taller stems just cut the b[toms off to make a similar lenth trim below the sight line so you get two shoote from the first stem
> Cheers
> Jay


Yeah I think that's what I'll do


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## 84Reasons (22 Sep 2019)

Another trimming question, this below is about a week of growth on the carpet, I planted it quite densely and in bigger clumps as I over estimated the amount I'd need, reckon it needs a trim to convince it to grown horizontally more or should I let it grow in?


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## Jayefc1 (22 Sep 2019)

Let it grow in is it hair grass


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## 84Reasons (22 Sep 2019)

Jayefc1 said:


> Let it grow in is it hair grass


Mini hair grass


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## Jayefc1 (22 Sep 2019)

Yeah i always find it dont respond to well to.being trimmed for a few weeks mine always turned a funny yelloish colour and stopped growing after i trimmed it too soon


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## 84Reasons (22 Sep 2019)

Jayefc1 said:


> Yeah i always find it dont respond to well to.being trimmed for a few weeks mine always turned a funny yelloish colour and stopped growing after i trimmed it too soon


Yeah I thought so, just worried as some of them seem to be growing quite high but I'd imagine it'll start looking how I want it a few weeks after the first trim, after its had time to grow in. Cheers Jay


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## 84Reasons (25 Sep 2019)

Asking the age old question again, should I trim it? I feel like it's getting a bit while now and could  itdo with tbh. At least the rotala!


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## 84Reasons (25 Sep 2019)




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## CooKieS (25 Sep 2019)

Trim the stems and replant the tops.


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## 84Reasons (25 Sep 2019)

CooKieS said:


> Trim the stems and replant the tops.


After only 13 days???


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## Jayefc1 (25 Sep 2019)

It really is your choice they have had good growth and you want to so go fot it either way it wont hurt them just trim the larger cut stems to the sam size as the stems you leave in and replant i think you will be happy with the end results


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## 84Reasons (25 Sep 2019)

Jayefc1 said:


> It really is your choice they have had good growth and you want to so go fot it either way it wont hurt them just trim the larger cut stems to the sam size as the stems you leave in and replant i think you will be happy with the end results


Hmm okay that sounds like a good idea, just worried as I put a lot of effort into this scape want to make sure it turns out perfect!


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## alto (25 Sep 2019)

Given the 53cm tank height, make sure you’ve got High Output T5 (HOT5) and the best reflectors - you may find that some plants do better in your tank than others, eg, Rotala Vietnam H’ra seems to bolt less in lower light than does Rotala rotundifolia (which is likely the fastest growing Rotala so a good start up plant)
The H’ra is also slower growing, it may take a few weeks to establish, then you’ll see faster growth

Felipe Oliveira plays with water column fertilizers to slow his stem plant growth (he discusses this in his home tank video, also mentions a little in the recent AG workshop video) so you might look at this method

What is your H zosterfolia doing?


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## 84Reasons (26 Sep 2019)

alto said:


> Given the 53cm tank height, make sure you’ve got High Output T5 (HOT5) and the best reflectors - you may find that some plants do better in your tank than others, eg, Rotala Vietnam H’ra seems to bolt less in lower light than does Rotala rotundifolia (which is likely the fastest growing Rotala so a good start up plant)
> The H’ra is also slower growing, it may take a few weeks to establish, then you’ll see faster growth
> 
> Felipe Oliveira plays with water column fertilizers to slow his stem plant growth (he discusses this in his home tank video, also mentions a little in the recent AG workshop video) so you might look at this method
> ...


I've got the best T5s I can get in my fixture, 24W, and I've had reflectors in from the start too. Are these that you are mentioning any better than this?
Yeah I've noticed my hra is quite slow growing, it seems to be thinning its leaves quite well though. How does he do this? I'm definitely not overdosing them.
Yeah it's doing great actually, would have to get a picture for you later but it's doing well and has strong growth, doesn't quite match the rotala but still!


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## CooKieS (26 Sep 2019)

84Reasons said:


> After only 13 days???



Of course, better doing it now to avoid shadow zone on the base of the plants.

Don't worry plants recover quickly, just do the WC right After the trimming to avoid Big release of sugar from trimmed plants than Can lead to minor algae issues.


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## 84Reasons (26 Sep 2019)

CooKieS said:


> Of course, better doing it now to avoid shadow zone on the base of the plants.
> 
> Don't worry plants recover quickly, just do the WC right After the trimming to avoid Big release of sugar from trimmed plants than Can lead to minor algae issues.



Good plan. Think I'll do this tonight with my 2nd of my 3 weekly water changes. Be nice to know it's gonna come back with bushy growth!


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## 84Reasons (26 Sep 2019)

Big trim today!
Little update with some photos
Pre trim




Post trim


 

Everything seems to be doing great. In hindsight I reckon I could have gone a little lower with the trim but this is only the first one! H zosterfolia looks great but at the same time has a little bit of melt here and there. Looks better than it did before know with more dense planting, hopefully look better in the future. 
Couple more random photos


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## 84Reasons (26 Sep 2019)

Also the carpet in the left corner isn't doing great either ...


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## 84Reasons (1 Oct 2019)

Bit of an update.
Roatala h'ra seems to be struggling, I think because of my light, I just need it to get a little bit bigger then hopefully give it a trim it'll recover from! Hopefully you can see it in this photo.


 

Other than that strong growth everywhere, hoping to give the mini hairgrass a trim this weekend!


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## 84Reasons (1 Oct 2019)

That photo was actually rubbish for seeing the height on the rotala. Should be able to see from this photo how little it's grown, also how much taller it is closer to the light ....


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## CooKieS (1 Oct 2019)

Hi, I wouldn't trim mini hairgrass for now, it still needs to spreads and get better color, it doesn't like trimming, looks Bad when trimmed and sometimes hard to recover. Just wait until the carpet is full. 

Stems looks OK to me


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## 84Reasons (1 Oct 2019)

CooKieS said:


> Hi, I wouldn't trim mini hairgrass for now, it still needs to spreads and get better color, it doesn't like trimming, looks Bad when trimmed and sometimes hard to recover. Just wait until the carpet is full.
> 
> Stems looks OK to me


Oh okay will leave it longer then!
The stems look fine to me too, however I just think they're growing very slowly for stems ... 
Especially compared to the other rotala I have, green + orange juice.


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## 84Reasons (4 Oct 2019)

Quick update -






Have to get a new co2 cannister today, bit behind with water changes but will do a big one today!


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## Deano3 (4 Oct 2019)

84Reasons said:


> Quick update -
> 
> 
> 
> ...


Phot doesnt seem to work mate

Sent from my SM-G970F using Tapatalk


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## 84Reasons (4 Oct 2019)

Deano3 said:


> Phot doesnt seem to work mate
> 
> Sent from my SM-G970F using Tapatalk



it seems posting Flickr links doesn't work ...


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## Deano3 (4 Oct 2019)

84Reasons said:


> it seems posting Flickr links doesn't work ...
> 
> View attachment 128084


Looks very healthy indeed, how much you doing and what if you dont mind me asking ?

Thanks dean

Sent from my SM-G970F using Tapatalk


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## Deano3 (4 Oct 2019)

Its fine i seen kn 1st post  tank coming on great keep the updates coming.

Dean

Sent from my SM-G970F using Tapatalk


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## 84Reasons (4 Oct 2019)

Deano3 said:


> Its fine i seen kn 1st post  tank coming on great keep the updates coming.
> 
> Dean
> 
> Sent from my SM-G970F using Tapatalk


Thank you!


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## 84Reasons (10 Oct 2019)

Update post!
Tank growing in well, might give the rotala h'ra a trim this weekend as I think it could do with the boost.
Carpet almost grown in now probably another week then a trim! 
My H zosterfolia is being strange, it doesn't seem to branch off into two stems when trimmed, and is dying off at the lower parts, might give this a heavy trim and hope it comes back stronger!
On another note one of my amano shrimp is pregnant! Sad they won't survive and it kind of creeps me out but cool anyway!


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## 84Reasons (13 Oct 2019)

Trim update!
Carpet looking great, definitely going to trim next week to a short amount think it'll start covering properly.


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## 84Reasons (13 Oct 2019)




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## 84Reasons (30 Oct 2019)

Sorry haven't been active

Quick update - carpet is doing badly, at what stage do I remove it? Constantly uprooting these days after I trimmed it... 

H zosterfolia looks disgusting, may get rid of this and replace with rotala green or something similar.

Trying to get my rotala h Ra red but I don't think I have strong enough lights ... :I


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## CooKieS (30 Oct 2019)

What king of scissors are you using to trim?

What kind.of ferts?

Plants need low no3 levels to get red


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## 84Reasons (30 Oct 2019)

CooKieS said:


> What king of scissors are you using to trim?
> 
> What kind.of ferts?
> 
> Plants need low no3 levels to get red


Tropica wave or something,

TNC complete 10ml a day


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## Siege (30 Oct 2019)

A couple of thoughts -

Looking at the thermometer, it looks warm. 22-23 would be much better for gas exchange, fish will be fine at that also.

You have quite a build up on the water surface. Perhaps look at getting some glassware with a built in skim head to clear it.


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## 84Reasons (30 Oct 2019)

Siege said:


> A couple of thoughts -
> 
> Looking at the thermometer, it looks warm. 22-23 would be much better for gas exchange, fish will be fine at that also.
> 
> You have quite a build up on the water surface. Perhaps look at getting some glassware with a built in skim head to clear it.


That's a good idea I think I've heard this somewhere else.

With a skimmer or something similar I heard it can reduce the amount of co2 in the tank, is this a good idea?

I'm going back to doing the dosing TNC recommends rather than an ei style dosing, is this a good idea? Means around 15ml a week rather than 10ml a day.

Cheers


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## Siege (31 Oct 2019)

No the skim won’t reduce the co2, instead just add more oxygen to the filter, fish and tank which is good.

You don’t want that film on the surface. It prevents gas exchange which is bad.

You are heavily planted and using co2 so I’d suggest dosing 5ml per 50L daily of tnc Complete. Big weekly water changes.

Check out these videos on co2, they are very good


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## 84Reasons (31 Oct 2019)

Siege said:


> No the skim won’t reduce the co2, instead just add more oxygen to the filter, fish and tank which is good.
> 
> You don’t want that film on the surface. It prevents gas exchange which is bad.
> 
> ...




These are very interesting videos thank you!

Okay that's around what I was dosing before, I've heard that keeping a lean dose would be better for red plants, hence me dosing less, do you think this is a good idea? I'm having trouble making my h'ra red, the only other thing I can think is that it's just my lighting isn't strong enough.


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## 84Reasons (31 Oct 2019)

I've got a skimmer in place and running at 22 degrees now so will see if that helps. Gonna re run my ph drop check as I'd imagine I can turn the co2 up!


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## Kalum (31 Oct 2019)

I'd say stick with full dosing until you have everything growing well, if you start lean dosing while things aren't growing as you want you'll just compound the issue and not know what's causing it

Chasing reds can cause other problems (just like ramping up the lights too much to get a carpet to grow and then getting algae)

Find your sweet spot with all working well then if you still want to chase the reds, you have a healthy tank that you can notice how the plants react to alternate fert dosing and scale back on nitrogen/nitrates


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## 84Reasons (31 Oct 2019)

Kalum said:


> I'd say stick with full dosing until you have everything growing well, if you start lean dosing while things aren't growing as you want you'll just compound the issue and not know what's causing it
> 
> Chasing reds can cause other problems (just like ramping up the lights too much to get a carpet to grow and then getting algae)
> 
> Find your sweet spot with all working well then if you still want to chase the reds, you have a healthy tank that you can notice how the plants react to alternate fert dosing and scale back on nitrogen/nitrates


Yeah I think you might be right. Think it might be too late for the hairgrass now anyway, it's uprooting every two seconds ...


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## Siege (31 Oct 2019)

84Reasons said:


> I've got a skimmer in place and running at 22 degrees now so will see if that helps. Gonna re run my ph drop check as I'd imagine I can turn the co2 up!



What’s is the skim and where have you placed it?


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## 84Reasons (31 Oct 2019)

Siege said:


> What’s is the skim and where have you placed it?


Ehiem skim 350, it's not in the best place at the moment, I have it opposite the filter outflow but slightly further down the tank depth wise so it's not fighting it. I can't move it to next to the outflow yet as the lead isn't long enough, so will have to work something out tomorrow.


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## 84Reasons (31 Oct 2019)

84Reasons said:


> Ehiem skim 350, it's not in the best place at the moment, I have it opposite the filter outflow but slightly further down the tank depth wise so it's not fighting it. I can't move it to next to the outflow yet as the lead isn't long enough, so will have to work something out tomorrow.


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## Siege (31 Oct 2019)

Cool.

Makes sure it’s not blasting the stems.

Look at changing to a a full glassware set - skim and lily outflow set, the outflow should give you a nice surface ripple.
They’ll look nice also


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## Siege (31 Oct 2019)

Ps. Just seen your picture.

If you can move it to left hand back corner pointing towards the inlet. Much less stem damage!

But yes, long term glass ware will be better!


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## 84Reasons (31 Oct 2019)

Siege said:


> Ps. Just seen your picture.
> 
> If you can move it to left hand back corner pointing towards the inlet. Much less stem damage!
> 
> But yes, long term glass ware will be better!


Then it's fighting against the outlet/inlet and the co2 isn't dispersed as well? Unless that doesn't really matter?

Yeah definitely thought about it a lot, I'd need the conversation too, I just I haven't really got the money atm


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## Siege (31 Oct 2019)

Should still be good. 

Whatever, you should be aiming for circular flow.

Leaving the skim there will kill your stems with that much direct flow blasting at them.


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## 84Reasons (31 Oct 2019)

Siege said:


> Should still be good.
> 
> Whatever, you should be aiming for circular flow.
> 
> Leaving the skim there will kill your stems with that much direct flow blasting at them.


Oh, I realise what you mean now, yes good idea.


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## 84Reasons (2 Nov 2019)

Quick update, skimmer is working well, surface looks great. The carpet is annoying me, I think it's dying as it's uprooting every second. Anyone think it's worth holding on or just get rid of it?


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## LondonDragon (3 Nov 2019)

84Reasons said:


> The carpet is annoying me, I think it's dying as it's uprooting every second. Anyone think it's worth holding on or just get rid of it?


Just trim is back completely leaving just half a cm and let it grow back!


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## 84Reasons (4 Nov 2019)

LondonDragon said:


> Just trim is back completely leaving just half a cm and let it grow back!



I've got a feeling that will kill it, I think it's dying from the roots upwards, it's hard to tell. I might try that anyway. Thanks


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## 84Reasons (5 Nov 2019)

Can anyone tell me what this is ? Attached. It seems to be on a couple other plants. Originally thought it was just that specific plant dying and I don't have the right conditions for it, I was planning on getting rid of it, however now I'm seeing it on my rotala green, although not as bad, any ideas?


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## 84Reasons (20 Nov 2019)

Quick update

Mini hair grass was dying so I was going to take it all out, last minute however I decided to cut some very short and plant a small patch very densely, with no hopes of it working.

Everything else looking great.

Want to add some mosquito rasboras but I can't find anywhere that sells them!


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## 84Reasons (4 Jan 2020)

So question - I've just checked and my water in the tank is at 496ppm. Does this maybe explain issues of growing some of the plants? Is there a way to remedy this, or do I need to just get RO water?

I've heard 120ppm is the best.


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## 84Reasons (4 Jan 2020)

84Reasons said:


> So question - I've just checked and my water in the tank is at 496ppm. Does this maybe explain issues of growing some of the plants? Is there a way to remedy this, or do I need to just get RO water?
> 
> I've heard 120ppm is the best.


This is with a TDS meter I forgot to mention


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## Anthony81 (16 Feb 2020)

Just found this journal and just want to say you have a very beautiful tank. I've not long started my first 120l tank and hope it turns out just as nice as this.
Very well done to you


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## 84Reasons (16 Feb 2020)

Anthony81 said:


> Just found this journal and just want to say you have a very beautiful tank. I've not long started my first 120l tank and hope it turns out just as nice as this.
> Very well done to you


Thanks Anthony. It's gone down hill since my last photo but I appreciate the comment!


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## Anthony81 (16 Feb 2020)

84Reasons said:


> Thanks Anthony. It's gone down hill since my last photo but I appreciate the comment!



Oh that is a shame and I'm sorry to hear that.
I've only had my tank for a little over two months and have loved it and hated it. 
I hope you manage to turn things around and get to see some updates soon.
May I please ask you a question.
You was dosing TNC complete daily and injecting Co2 but at what amount was you adding. I have a 120l tank and also use TNC complete but I'm not sure how much I should be adding daily.


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## 84Reasons (16 Feb 2020)

Anthony81 said:


> Oh that is a shame and I'm sorry to hear that.
> I've only had my tank for a little over two months and have loved it and hated it.
> I hope you manage to turn things around and get to see some updates soon.
> May I please ask you a question.
> You was dosing TNC complete daily and injecting Co2 but at what amount was you adding. I have a 120l tank and also use TNC complete but I'm not sure how much I should be adding daily.


Thank you. I was adding around 5ml a day of the TNC complete, however I have been on the tropical fertiliser for now. The TNC complete worked well for me though! I'm no expert however!


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## Anthony81 (16 Feb 2020)

84Reasons said:


> Thank you. I was adding around 5ml a day of the TNC complete, however I have been on the tropical fertiliser for now. The TNC complete worked well for me though! I'm no expert I appreciate that and any info on what worked for others with a similar size tank is better info then non at all


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## Tankless (16 Feb 2020)

How's the growth been with the Tropica ferts?


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## dw1305 (16 Feb 2020)

Hi all,





84Reasons said:


> So question - I've just checked and my water in the tank is at 496ppm. Does this maybe explain issues of growing some of the plants? Is there a way to remedy this, or do I need to just get RO water?
> 
> I've heard 120ppm is the best.


The ppm TDS value is a measure of the salts in solution and if you have hard water most of those ions will be Ca++ & HCO3- ions from dissolved limestone.

A lot of people will have similar water and successful tanks. There isn’t any easy way to remove hardness, which is why some people use RO.

If you don’t use RO (or rain-water) you can look at rise in TDS and just change enough water to keep it within a datum range.

Cheers Darrel


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## dw1305 (17 Feb 2020)

Hi all, 





dw1305 said:


> A lot of people will have similar water and successful tanks.


I'll link a few threads in. This Jordi @parotet <"talking about his water">.  These are @akwascape's <"low tech hard water tanks"> and this is @Zeus. <"Olympus is calling...">. 

cheers Darrel


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