SandstoneSturgeon
Member
- Joined
- 31 Mar 2015
- Messages
- 69
Two years ago I decided to piece together a 55 gal (262ish Liters) showtank. I bought it as a dollar for gallon sale. I have no idea what that translates to in your currencey but those tanks are normally $175-$200 so I took advantage of the opportunity to get one for $55. I figured I'd look for the rest on discount over the years, which I have done. I put simple gravel in t, stuck some Water Wisteria in the gravel and put java ferns on a decorative fake "log" from the pet store. After filling it up and cycling it for six weeks I thought it looked pretty good.
No Co2, No ferts,
Filstar XP500 GPH Canister Filter
Tank is Aqueon 121cm long, 30cm wide, 48cm tall
I think everyone can figure out what happened after just a few weeks. BBA and Cyano spread like wildfire and pretty soon every surface was covered in it. I scoured UKAPS reading all kinds of articles about light, Co2 and algae. I had done everything wrong!!! (I didn't dare post anything about it cause....well Clive and Darrel scare the daylights out of me). Co2 and EI were intimidating cause I didn't want to make anything worse. It seemed like a better option to try and turn it into a low tech tank rather than a high tech. First thing I HAD to do was stop worrying about having enough light. I did a %90 water change and a 72hr blackout. I put three layers of trash white trash sacks over the lid to bring the light down till I could figure out what to do. After that I got some CaribbSea complete to add to the gravel and rescaped the entire tank. I had lost the swords but the water wisteria and java ferns seemed ok, but I still had a problem with getting Co2 into the tank and too much light intensity. I added Sphagnum Moss to the filter, along with dead clipped from the garden. Not really sure what other way to get Co2 into my "sort of" low tech tank. For the lighting I started experimenting with hydroponics/aquaponics and have got Cardinal Creeper vines to grow out the top. I had to create some containers to hold the seeds in the top so I could get the aerial advantage of the plants. I know throwing a bunch of floaters in would have been better, but these seeds seemed like the cheapest way to go and I was hoping to get some flowers out of the top. After a little while, I got this....
Growing out of little plastic cups with small holes cut out. They sat just under the water.
Big ol root mass growing out of cup.
Do the plants all look healthy?
Full view. Led sits at top of the black canopy.
So what kind of ferts are best for this kind of setup? Dry salts and EI should still be best, right? Siesta period seems useless to raise co2 so what other ways are available? It sounds like a DIY fire extinguisher is best for this.
No Co2, No ferts,
Filstar XP500 GPH Canister Filter
Tank is Aqueon 121cm long, 30cm wide, 48cm tall
I think everyone can figure out what happened after just a few weeks. BBA and Cyano spread like wildfire and pretty soon every surface was covered in it. I scoured UKAPS reading all kinds of articles about light, Co2 and algae. I had done everything wrong!!! (I didn't dare post anything about it cause....well Clive and Darrel scare the daylights out of me). Co2 and EI were intimidating cause I didn't want to make anything worse. It seemed like a better option to try and turn it into a low tech tank rather than a high tech. First thing I HAD to do was stop worrying about having enough light. I did a %90 water change and a 72hr blackout. I put three layers of trash white trash sacks over the lid to bring the light down till I could figure out what to do. After that I got some CaribbSea complete to add to the gravel and rescaped the entire tank. I had lost the swords but the water wisteria and java ferns seemed ok, but I still had a problem with getting Co2 into the tank and too much light intensity. I added Sphagnum Moss to the filter, along with dead clipped from the garden. Not really sure what other way to get Co2 into my "sort of" low tech tank. For the lighting I started experimenting with hydroponics/aquaponics and have got Cardinal Creeper vines to grow out the top. I had to create some containers to hold the seeds in the top so I could get the aerial advantage of the plants. I know throwing a bunch of floaters in would have been better, but these seeds seemed like the cheapest way to go and I was hoping to get some flowers out of the top. After a little while, I got this....
Growing out of little plastic cups with small holes cut out. They sat just under the water.
Big ol root mass growing out of cup.
Do the plants all look healthy?
Full view. Led sits at top of the black canopy.
So what kind of ferts are best for this kind of setup? Dry salts and EI should still be best, right? Siesta period seems useless to raise co2 so what other ways are available? It sounds like a DIY fire extinguisher is best for this.
