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My first serious Planted tank

oliverar

Member
Joined
5 Jun 2010
Messages
190
Location
Canterbury, UK
Hi every one, I doubt this post will be of much interest to anyone when compared with all the really amazing tanks I am against, but I am doing this in the hope that some people will read it and let me know if I am doing anything hideously wrong!! :D I am also seeing how cheaply I can do it so that I can help inspire people like I was before now to give it a go!

So let's start! I have a 1 foot cube tank which has been lying around for a long time, so I have cleaned that out and have just let the small super-fish aqua flow 100 (which came with the tank) run on its own for a few weeks to build up the bacteria.

I have just started setting it up now, and have added some baked earth from mole hill's which I read on this forum was a good substrate. I am still waiting for that to settle as I only added it this morning, but I will take pictures when it has settled!

I also have a 11watt aqua cube light which seems to light up the tank quite well!

I was also given some free ricca! I have sewn this to some netting and am trying to make a ricca back wall.
When this is finished I would like lots of plants, some shrimp, apple snails and some micro crab's, possibly a few small fish as well.

At the moment, I have got some apple snails and a freshwater swan mussel which is very interesting to watch, so it is not very exciting at the moment but I will post some pictures and let you know how it goes!

So at the moment I have paid £8 for the apple snails and £2 for the ricca postage, so my running total is £10 which is quite good post substrate, lighting, filter, apple snails and mussel!
 
I am having an issue with keeping the water clear, I am going with the Diana Walsted idea, but the soil she suggested has clouded up the tank, I tried letting it settle without the filter, it did for a bit, then reached its limit so I turned on the filter but it quickly became clogged up, so I cleaned it out continually but it didn't really make a difference, I have tried a full water change with the Oliver knott technique with the news paper, which helped but it is still too cloudy to see the back of the tank! I am going to try and get some filter floss and possibly a little activated carbon for my internal which should help, only problem is that it will be bad for the price!
 
Right, then I have got some pictures for you all!
This is with my first substrate:


This is after I had added in the potting compost, the ricca wall and the willow for the green water! :

I have also found someone very kind who is going to give me a small breeding group of crystal black shrimp for free, I just have to pay the postage ( they are low grade but still !!!!). I have added in a little black potting compost to help with the nutrient's. I decided against getting the carbon and the filter floss because I have done a few more water changes and lots of filtering and the problem is gone!
Although now I have a load of green water! But I am going to try the willow method! I have also had some problem's with corrosion on my apple snails shell's, which I am treating by feeding them lot's of blanched nettles which are high in calcium, so that should help!
I am happy with my water quality as I have had an outbreak of seed shrimp in my tank which are tiny little white speck's and they are only present in the highest quality water, so that must be a good thing! and they are quite cool, so I will leave them be!
 
Hey m8,
Flickr has always given me issues, sign up for PhotoBucket and after you upload them it gives you the links for forums like these, just double click to copy and paste away!
 
hmm i didnt know that about the nettles being high in calcium, my Apples pretty old now and his shell is pitted pretty badly might have to give that a go.
 
Yep, that is what I was recommended to do, but you have to boil them for a about 10 - 20 seconds to break down the cell wall's!
 
Right then, I have now got a fully working yeast co2 set up, which cost me nothing! I have also got a tank full of stem's, I am still after some more, but I was kindly donated enough to stop it looking bear for the moment!
 
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