# PFK Aquascaping Special



## George Farmer (21 Sep 2010)

One for those into planted tanks and aquascaping, perhaps.

http://www.practicalfishkeeping.co.uk/c ... p?sid=3227

They'll be a lot more planted tank and aquascaping stuff in future issues too...


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## andyh (21 Sep 2010)

Whoa! looks cool!  

Since when did my tank go up on the website? I didn't know I was online! I have to admit haven't visited PFK online for a while though!


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## nry (21 Sep 2010)

Might have to buy this one


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## ukco2guy (21 Sep 2010)

Excellent, i have just switched subscriptions from another magazine to PFK, talk about timing


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## andyh (21 Sep 2010)

28 pages of planted tank!! Everybody should buy Pfk this month to show support for the planted tank scene.
It may convince them it's worth doing it regularly !


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## ghostsword (22 Sep 2010)

andyh said:
			
		

> 28 pages of planted tank!! Everybody should buy Pfk this month to show support for the planted tank scene.
> It may convince them it's worth doing it regularly !



I am not sure how much PFK costs, but even if it is a Â£5, for 28 pages? I am sure that there are better tanks than those on the journal section of the UKAPS forum, and it costs nothing.

Why isn't there a UK planted tank magazine? I am sure that many shops would like to advertise on it.


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## andyh (22 Sep 2010)

ghostsword said:
			
		

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Pfk only costs Â£3.80  Get your wallet out!  

I think your missing my point, this could be the beginning of a regular planted tank section, there isn't a big enough following of Planted tanks in the Uk IMHO its all about getting this particular strain of the hobby some strong representation and advertising. I am sure that Graeme, George and Mark would all appreciate the support as i think that its these guys who have contributed to the articles. Hopefully they may of slipped in the words "UKAPS" and help it increase the number of members.

I have been to a number of planted tank demo days and the best one i went to had 30-40 people at it, if that was a marine day it would get hundreds. "Planted tanks" are still in there infancy and UKAPS represents a huge amount of the "early adopters" if a few more get interested, that will make a hell of a difference.   

In the words of Dan Crawford (i think) *"UKAPS Baby!"*


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## chilled84 (22 Sep 2010)

ghostsword said:
			
		

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## ghostsword (22 Sep 2010)

andy said:
			
		

> Pfk only costs Â£3.80 . Get your wallet out!



Point taken.. the price of a couple of coffees..


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## George Farmer (22 Sep 2010)

I've had a break writing for PFK for a few months but this issue will hopefully start off a more regular planted tank and aquascaping contribution from myself, at least.


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## Gill (22 Sep 2010)

Have not bought PFk for a while now, might just start getting it again. 
Saw Andy's Tank in the monthy Email and thought, I know that tank and then it clicked that it was Andy's. 
Hopefully now that MA have started to bring in more planted tank stuff and specialist nano fish, this side of the hobby will start taking off. 
Was dying to speak to Jeremy this morning, but did not want to disturb him during his PFK visit at MA Stapleton.


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## viktorlantos (22 Sep 2010)

can't wait to get it guys


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## sanj (23 Sep 2010)

Im glad Mark is getting some exposure on there.


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## Bobtastic (24 Sep 2010)

Is this out right now?! Or next month? Does anyone know the exact release date? 

I would love to get this, but my memory is poop... So I have a habit of missing things like this...


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## NeilW (24 Sep 2010)

The 29th of this month according to the current issue.


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## stevec (27 Sep 2010)

mine got delivered today very good


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## andyh (27 Sep 2010)

Congratulations chaps just got my copy and it's excellent!
Some great pics and articles!

Graeme, bless u! U look so excited at tropica!!


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## Bobtastic (28 Sep 2010)

Andy, is yours on a subscription? Or in other words... is it worth me making the trip to the shops?!


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## andyh (28 Sep 2010)

Bobtastic said:
			
		

> Andy, is yours on a subscription? Or in other words... is it worth me making the trip to the shops?!


yeah i am subscription, so wait a few days b4 going down to the shops


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## Lairewen (28 Sep 2010)

Can't wait to get mine, bet there are some really inspirational tanks - must get a subscription sorted. What's the offer this month?


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## ukco2guy (30 Sep 2010)

Singed up for mine a couple of weeks back, think it was 3 free issues with sub.

Cheers,


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## George Farmer (30 Sep 2010)

Lairewen said:
			
		

> What's the offer this month?


Probably the best they've had yet; a TMC AquaGro Microhabitat 8 pico aquarium.

http://www.practicalfishkeeping.co.uk/c ... p?sid=3238


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## Lisa_Perry75 (30 Sep 2010)

In the past there was the aquacube when you took out a years subscription. This one does look good, but you have to take out two years... Still tempting though!


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## Gill (30 Sep 2010)

George Farmer said:
			
		

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Well that is me Sold, Have wanted one of these tanks for a while. And Would be perfect for making a large scale Barren.
Last time it was the superfish tanks, which were excellent quality.


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## sanj (30 Sep 2010)

George Farmer said:
			
		

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I thought that was a competition, a chance to win one of 5 TMC AquaGro Micorhabitat tanks and not a free gift if you subscribe. That is what I am reading in the latest magazine, the subscription offer is for 3 magazies free. Perhaps there are more options when you look on to the actual subscription website. Its a b*gger because i only subscribed again last month...


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## Gill (30 Sep 2010)

sanj said:
			
		

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My Confirmation says I will be Getting the tank and to expect with 24 Days. Hopefully this year, there will not be so many problems in recieving the tank. And that the packaging will be better and no smashed tanks. Although it was nice of the company to send out free replacement tanks and advised that you could keep all the supplies that came with the smashed tank.


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## Luketendo (30 Sep 2010)

George Farmer said:
			
		

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Clicking the link says Â£92.45, so I assume instead of paying quarterly you pay the whole outlay at once? Still I might well I have invest in this.

Also does anyone know much about the tank for example the dimensions, information seems a bit scarce, of course coming from TMC it should be pretty good and the lack of information is probably because you can't really get them yet.


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## George Farmer (30 Sep 2010)

Nice little tanks these.  Shame I couldn't blag one after I set it up (Matt Clarke took it, fully 'scaped, as a 'leaving present' for himself!)



			
				Luketendo said:
			
		

> Also does anyone know much about the tank for example the dimensions, information seems a bit scarce, of course coming from TMC it should be pretty good and the lack of information is probably because you can't really get them yet.


I measured the tank, so I could get an approx. volume.  There was no literature at all with it, as I assume this was a pre-production model.

It was around 15cm width, 20cm tall, and 25cm front to back (inc. filter chamber). 

You can get a better idea of size and spec in the video at the bottom of my article -

http://www.practicalfishkeeping.co.uk/c ... p?sid=3239


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## Lairewen (30 Sep 2010)

Just saw the offer last night on PFK. Wow. MiL owes me one years subscription, but finding another Â£45... eep.


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## Bobtastic (30 Sep 2010)

Do you have to pay the full amount upfront? It seems a lot of money... I would love the tank, but I've never read PFK b4 so don't really know whether it would be worth it...


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## ghostsword (30 Sep 2010)

Bobtastic said:
			
		

> Do you have to pay the full amount upfront? It seems a lot of money... I would love the tank, but I've never read PFK b4 so don't really know whether it would be worth it...



I got one of these tanks..

http://www.practicalfishkeeping.co.uk/c ... p?sid=2705

It costs Â£60 with a light and filter. I find pfk a bit boring, so I would not bother with a subscription, but others might like it.

Go to WHSmith and have a look, you will be able to see if it is for you.


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## George Farmer (30 Sep 2010)

ghostsword said:
			
		

> I find pfk a bit boring, so I would not bother with a subscription,


PFK maybe a bit boring for some, especially if your main areas of interest are planted tanks and aquascaping.

However, this latest issue begins a change. With Matt Clarke no longer at the helm, you may expect less fish biology/science etc. and perhaps more planted tank and aquascaping stuff.... 

If you're into planted tanks, then this latest issue is for you.  There's about 8 planted tank or aquascaping related features, the most there's been in any one issue since I can remember.


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## Bobtastic (30 Sep 2010)

I want to get this issue and I have plans to get it but I get the impression that this is not a typical issue. And by the time I've decided I'm interested the offer will have expired... Such is the way of things!


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## ghostsword (1 Oct 2010)

George Farmer said:
			
		

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 I am getting this one, as there are reasons enough to get it, but a subscription? nah.. unless there is a planted tank magazine, most of the good stuff is online, or if I learn japanese..


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## sanj (1 Oct 2010)

oops wrong thread.


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## Billypete (1 Oct 2010)

Have just spoken to Bauer - Â£92.45 has to be paid in one go in advance fo 26 issues but if you already subscibe to another magazine with them you can subscribe for 1 year / 13 issues for Â£24.70 - no free tank but saving you almost enough to buy the tank rrp if you wanted !! 
pete.


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## Garuf (1 Oct 2010)

The way your hinting George, it sounds like you're the new editor...


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## George Farmer (1 Oct 2010)

Garuf said:
			
		

> The way your hinting George, it sounds like you're the new editor...


No thanks!

I've seen the amount of work and stress that's involved!

Send me to a warzone anytime.


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## stevec (1 Oct 2010)

Im sure PFK would welcome articles from planted tank enthusiasts


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## George Farmer (2 Oct 2010)

stevec said:
			
		

> Im sure PFK would welcome articles from planted tank enthusiasts


Very true.  Several UKAPS members have already had work published in PFK, and they're always open to new contributors.


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## ghostsword (11 Oct 2010)

I have had a look at this month edition of PFK, to check the 28 pages of planted tanks information. It is a very good introduction to keeping planted tanks, but I am sure that the novice to the hobby will be scared by the price of putting a tank together, especially on these lean times. 

Also, the pages only appeal to really novices, or people that do not know about UKAPS, but it is a good start. 

Pitty there isn't a magazine like aquajournal in english, that would be worth a subscription, even at Â£5 per magazine.

Obviously I didn't buy the pfk, 10 minutes glance at WHSmiths was more than enough.


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## andyh (11 Oct 2010)

lewis, your a tough man to impress! you did forget to metion the readers tanks, which was our very own Mark Evans aka Saintly. Great interview and tank!


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## ghostsword (11 Oct 2010)

andyh said:
			
		

> lewis, your a tough man to impress! you did forget to metion the readers tanks, which was our very own Mark Evans aka Saintly. Great interview and tank!



I did see them..  but I recognised them from UKAPS.  A reader has not to be on UKAPS to make good use of the magazine. 

For example, the picture of Graeme, looking at the Tropica plants. The pics on his thread are much, way much, better than that. 

So maybe UKAPS is too good,  , but after seeing some of those tanks here, better interviews here, and after looking at the Amano Natural Aquarium books, hell, even after visiting TGM, do you expect someone to be impressed with those 28 pages? LOL

What I am looking for now is the exibition to be held in London on the 4th of November, that will be impressive for sure.


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## Ian Holdich (11 Oct 2010)

just finished reading this months PFK, i thought the planting section was well written. Very well put across as well. Well done George. I do agree with Luis regarding having a UK based mag, that the whole of UKAPS cound contibute to, it wouldn't even need to be monthly, quaterly would be OK.


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## Luketendo (11 Oct 2010)

Also got the magazine today, was pretty good but my main focus was looking at useful stuff for the TMC nano. Although the little section of tweezers and scissors certainly helped!


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## stevec (12 Oct 2010)

ianho said:
			
		

> just finished reading this months PFK, i thought the planting section was well written. Very well put across as well. Well done George. I do agree with Luis regarding having a UK based mag, that the whole of UKAPS cound contibute to, it wouldn't even need to be monthly, quaterly would be OK.



if the whole of ukaps would contribute to pfk surely it would become the uk planted magazine that you all require


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## Aeropars (12 Oct 2010)

Having subscribed for about 2 years I've just cancelled my subscription to this. I found that it all got a bit stale and lacked anything to grab my attention.

One feature I think you should implement is something along the lines of 'Pimp my Tank'.

ONly experienced plant keepers can set up from scratch and keep an algae free tack while getting good plant growth so I'd like to see a feature that addresses common problems in tanks that are not perfect from the inset. 

I'm the perfect example of being in the game for over 4 years but have still not hit what I am looking for in terms of plant growth. I struggle to get some plants growing.

It seems theres 'something' wrong with my setup, be it equipment, technique or something else, but to have someone come and 'fix me up' would no doubt help me along immensly. As would lots of other readers.

The thing I found frustrating on my introduction to planted tanks was that theres no inbetween. Your either planted or your not. Theres no inbetween as such. When you first buy a tank your never into the planted type so you spend your cash on inferiour stuff for the planted tank and then as you get into it you realise you need to change hell of a lot. There doesnt seem to be anything directed at the people who may be in a transition state or cannot afford everything that might be needed.

Just my 2p's woth on how a new feature like that might freshen things up a little.


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## ghostsword (13 Oct 2010)

stevec said:
			
		

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Even TGM newsletters have much more information than the PFK Magazine.  I am not sure how much it costs to setup a magazine, but maybe UKAPS, and some of the site sponsors, could setup some sort of e-zine, with paid subscription, or paid downloads and DRM, to cover for the expenses. If it worked well, then they could get it printed on hard copy, even if it was direct subscription first, or stocked at the sponsor shops and purchased online.

I have been keeping tanks since I was 11 years old, and had plants before, vallis, h. disformis and amazons, but only after seeing UKAPS, and reading the post was I pointed on the right direction and started to actually "keep plants", and I am still learning. My plants do not die, and I do not have issues with algae, cannot aquascape to save my life, but I got healthy plants. 

Now about hardware, it is true that unless you know what you are doing and are pointed on the right direction, one will buy a lot of crap to start with, but this again where UKAPS and the posts help out a lot. 

It would be great if all the information that there is on the site was also on printed paper and in WHSmith, so that other people had access to the good information and experience the beauty of a planted tank.


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## Aeropars (13 Oct 2010)

Luis,

The problem is that until you are into fish keeping your not likely to be into planted tanks. Therefore you buy inferiour equipment beforehand and ent up needing to replace a lot of it. If PFK could give articles on that transition people would learn more in my eyes. After all i think we all learn quicker for our own, or others mistakes.


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## ghostsword (13 Oct 2010)

Aeropars said:
			
		

> Luis,
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> The problem is that until you are into fish keeping your not likely to be into planted tanks. Therefore you buy inferiour equipment beforehand and ent up needing to replace a lot of it. If PFK could give articles on that transition people would learn more in my eyes. After all i think we all learn quicker for our own, or others mistakes.




I would see planted tanks as reefs. Would people go first for salt water fish and then for reefs, or would they go straight to reefs? And reefs are much more expensive than keeping a planted tank.

I believe that the issue is lack of information, and looking again at the PFK magazine I think that it did a good job about it, to start having people looking at keeping a planted tank.

If there was a magazine about planted tanks, like there are gardening magazines, people would be able to start straight away with it.


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## George Farmer (14 Oct 2010)

I know quite a few people that have jumped straight into hi-tech planted and reef.

However, the majority do start of with basic aquaria and slowly build up.  Two main reasons; budget and realising what they actually want from the hobby.

PFK will be featuring a lot more planted tank and aquascaping articles in the future.  Jeremy Gay is the new editor, and aquascaping is a passion of his...

Regarding a planted tank dedicated magazine; this subject has been brought up before.  It's a good idea but it's not feasible as a monthly publication, unless it's limited to 10-20 pages or so.  Otherwise the lifespan before it became too repetitive would be too short.

I like the idea of an article about how to convert a 'regular' aquarium into a fully planted.  Thanks.


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## ghostsword (14 Oct 2010)

George Farmer said:
			
		

> Regarding a planted tank dedicated magazine; this subject has been brought up before.  It's a good idea but it's not feasible as a monthly publication, unless it's limited to 10-20 pages or so.  Otherwise the lifespan before it became too repetitive would be too short.



I got the 5 or 6 ADA Aquajournal magazines, the ones in English and they are far from boring. Actually they may even be magical, everytime I read them it seems that the articles get better and better.


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## Aeropars (14 Oct 2010)

George Farmer said:
			
		

> I know quite a few people that have jumped straight into hi-tech planted and reef.
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> I like the idea of an article about how to convert a 'regular' aquarium into a fully planted.  Thanks.



Glad you liked it but if you use the 'pimp my tank' idea can you do mine first as founder of the idea?!


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## NeilW (14 Oct 2010)

ghostsword said:
			
		

> I got the 5 or 6 ADA Aquajournal magazines, the ones in English and they are far from boring. Actually they may even be magical, everytime I read them it seems that the articles get better and better.



I'm not knocking PFK as it is a good magazine at trying to cater for so many different expectations but for me the appeal of any ADA publication lays in its graphic design.  On the whole PFK has good content and photography but IMO the layouts are awkward and blocky with no clear underlying grid (sorry if thats offensive to anyone, I don't mean to be saying anything too controversial as I have little experience in editorial design).  On balance however I can appreciate PFK do have a lot of awkward content to fit in with advertising and actual quantity of stuff that ADA don't have to shoehorn in. ADA can pick and choose what they want to include as AquaJournals actually function as another piece of marketing for them- they are the advertisers themselves so don't need to give away valuable space.  I would like to say I do frequently buy PFK, but its because of the content and not because I can rub my hands in a 'design nerdy' way and think 'thats a lovely piece of type setting'.   

The 'magic' of ADA is created from good clean layouts, clear overall art direction and stunning photography.  Maybe 'planted tank people' are more in tune with visuals as thats probably one of the reasons they picked planted tanks in the first place?  

I would say we are the Mercedes car buyer after sophistication, clean lines AND content, whilst others in the fishy world are maybe the Toyota buyer who are purely after utility and content on its own.  Just speculation but I would say that if PFK had a clearer art direction and layout then any content could be made appealing to the planted tank bunch and so actual number of pages of planted tank stuff would be less hotly discussed.  We all take an interest in nature so I'm sure some obscure article on marine biology or fish exploring would be more palatable if presented in a similar clean visual language what were used to the planted tank world.  Maybe its the nature of what we do but generally content designed for the planted tank market has good art direction and design; take a look at Tropica's new website, TGM's art direction and generally all of ADA's marketing and branding

Of course I would welcome more pages given to planted tank content BUT I buy PFK knowing it is intended as a general fish keeping magazine not just Practical Plant Keeping.

The content submitted by any UKAPS member to PFK I've seen (whether photographs or writing) has been top quality and the 'Aquascaping Guide' in the current issue was excellent  

Keep up the good work guys!

(PS - I hope this doesn't across as coming over as completely destroying PFK as I do like it and buy it, honest!  )


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