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Picked up 5 small sarasa comets today for the pond, I would get a picture but they went straight into the pile of hornwort and have only seen glimpses of them since, guess they like it. Plants are mostly growing, lily been the exception, that has barely moved but the others are growing, the...

The fountain is tilted slightly, could keep it like that and put the lily front right. There is a lot of hornwort with weights in the front left corner, waiting for it to take off.

Thank you again for the advice, gonna leave all the potted plants on the shelf until they are ready to move. And wow that's a big container for the albatross, hoping it's foilage will cover roughly half the pond once grown.

Thank you for the lily advice. It came in a 3ltr pot, I have it on the shelf for now in a corner. Is it ok for the leaf to be under the water while it grows? Or do I need to lift it so the leaf is always at the surface? The other plants I ordered have arrived too, although they too have a LOT...

So the water lily arrived, potted but not capped with a single leaf peaking out. Can I cap it with very fine gravel? I've capped with small stones I excavated for now. It's an Albatross lily.

That's the filter checked, in the pond and working, now to get the right attachment for the fountain...

We have power Due to the distance the filter wires travel (10m) I could fit the socket on the side of the house and the filter/uvc cables reach it from the pond. As I wasn't travelling far and not going along the floor I got a 2 gang ip66 socket extension that is plugged into the nearest...

It's dry, only 2 high with only 1 row below water level, I plan to stagger them as I'm working around it. Thx for the advice about the pump wire, got a blagdon 9000 for when the electrics are sorted, currently looking for a sparky.

What water lily should I get based on the 3ft depth? Thinking of popping one near the opposite corner to where the hornwort is.

Pond lined and filled, 25 bunches of hornwort and 20 bunches of elodea ordered. Gonna wait till April for rest of plants. Got some tidying up to do to make it look more pleasant.

Ok, I'm looking at plants now, I'm hoping to have most of the bottom covered in plants. Can anyone recommend any good plants? I'm ok for marginals on the shelf I'm just struggling to come up with idea's for the bottom.

Just about ready for underlay and liner. Measured at: L = 7 ft 3" W = 5ft 8" D = 3ft

Has anyone got an idea what sort of outlet etc I would need if it's only use is the filter and a lawnmower?

The pond has doubled in size, now measuring 6ft by 6ft, Im planning on using breeze blocks around the outer edge, probably 3 high with the liner going to the top of the second row giving me a depth of around 80cm. Question regarding liner and breeze blocks, what is the best way to anchor the...

Hey everyone! So Gex is still going strong, no problems, normal sleep patterns and feeding ok etc. I was considering trying to establish a Dubia roach colony in the same enclosure to help with the bio active, would this work/ is it possible?

Just wanted to share an update on this. After getting temps stable and getting suitable lighting and making sure the mesh at the top provided enough ventilation the vivarium was fully planted and we now have a leopard gecko named Gex. Had him a few weeks and he seems really settled. Feeding...

Got a few more plants to plant and I need to fit the t5 and a ceramic heater then it's dialling the temps in and watching for a bit, humidity on left is between 20 and 35 it varies slightly but no massive swings, the right is sitting between 35 and 45.

I'm inclined to agree with you, is the fitting suitable? I can get a second one for heat and use the other for uvb. On uvb is it right that I need between 2% and 5% uvb?

Yeah, I read that too about them and the warning that the seller knows they won't last long and to contact them for replacements. So many bulbs available it pickles my head a bit. The basking spot is planned to be right above a cave in the layout I'm considering, although I wasn't sure if to...

So more research done, Do I need a separate heat bulb and uvb bulb? The lighting is still throwing me off, no idea what wattage bulb I need I have seen some that seem ok but is uvb 3.0 ok? The bulb I've seen is a uva + uvb 3.0 basking/heat bulb that is 25 - 35c temp. these are what we are...

Thanks for all the input. Done alot more reading too. Plan is to put the drainage layer down with a mesh cover, then make the substrate mix using organic topsoil, sand and excavator clay, going to order some gobi stones and a nice piece of wood, a few hides and get that part done. Then I'm...

Hi everyone. I stripped down my roma 200 as things were really going south, rehomed my plec. Now im looking at converting the tank into a vivarium for a lizard, not sure yet which one. I was going to try my hand at just plants to start with and try to get that whole side of things right...

Could you provide a picture? Could help with answers as potential causes could be spotted.

Its ok, I have no fish in the barrel, no intention of adding any, I am digging a pond that will house fish, the barrel is purely a garden feature wildlife haven.

By feeding it through some casing and laying under the slabs on the patio, any external wire would be in casing. I cant see aslong as I take all precautions why this cant be done.

I get what you are saying completely, you can add rcd protection to that item by adding the option on the page, I would also completely box it in a watertight container, I would also make sure the wire is very well protected. Part of the reason I am looking to compromise is we live in a council...

Just wanted to picksome brains. Im considering this: Outdoor socket extension Would this be feasable providing I make sure I use a containment box for the sockets to protect them and protect the wire enough?

How would a 2500l pond cope with 4 goldfish/shabunkin and no pump/filter?obv will have floaters and a load of elodea, maybe a lotus and some marginals?

What about some form of generator that collects solar energy but you can charge manually from the mains when it's dry?

Yeah it's the new pond I'm digging I need to filter, going to house goldfish.

Anyone have any experience with portable power stations that are solar powered? I'm trying to come up with a way to filter the new pond without running electricity from the house. That's the barrel today going to go duckweed hunting at the weekend.

I have actually kept some of the plant closest to the fence, gonna be a while yet before I get around to finishing it, apparently we need to redecorate and re floor some rooms in the house first.

When you get the bug... Going to remove the plant at the back, dig down in steps 1ft at a time, going to be 4ft in the middle, 2 high breeze block wall around it. Plan is to house goldfish, or I might end up falling in and resting myself 😆

Nice and settled today. Thought I would share what I'm doing with ferts etc. I'm basically putting a tipple of tnc complete in each day, I have a small glass tank outside with some duckweed, a bit of frogbit and a few stems of elodea I'm using tnc Lite on to see if I get different results.

Yeah I'm impressed how well it's recovering. I learnt not to remove the dying bits as they give the new growth stability to grow out the water.

Plants finally arrived, took a trip to Eden garden center in dundonald and came back with a water lettuce. One of the plants were actually just seeds, will see what happens, I planted the marginals in small pebbles so they can pull nutrients from the water.

Just a follow up on this. All the plants have a new leaf shooting out above the water, so it looks like they may recover, I did contact the seller and got a refund this morning though as they are really bad quality, investing it in more duckweed.

Duck weed added. Kidney basket later today, rest of plants tomorrow. And weeding done.

Forgot to say in that last post, I ordered some duckweed, and I really need to clean around the path, those weeds...

I decided to empty the barrel and relocate it, now with sand some pebbles and a shelf.

Was sold as "European frog bit"

Right, I'm slightly annoyed they got shipped like that, it's like someone was fishing out the worst plants to throw and decided to sell em instead...

Hi some frogbit I ordered for my new half barrel pond arrived yesterday and tbh it looks really sad, looking for advice on how to rescue these plants. Roots are constantly floating forcing the leaves into the water and no matter how often I try to sit the leaves on the water they just capsize...

Ive added substrate, creating a higher section for marginals. Currently running a fluval u3 on it to clear it up a bit. Plants are coming Wednesday. Got some dutch rush, frog bit, erodea densa and 2 marginals I can't remember the name of. Also got a solar fountain/filter coming. No funny...

Fingers crossed I dodge that bullet...

Thanks for the insight, I could do the bottom as planned as have some bunch stems coming to plant and put the pots on top of the sand hidden by the planted stems?

Hi, it is a wooden barrel, looks charred on the inside, currently keeping it pumped full of water to let it swell. was honestly considering a layer of compost capped with sand for planting as I wasthinking pots in the bottom would be unsightly..

Hi, my gf ordered a larger than expected half barrel and my brain decided what a great little pond that would make, I can tell just looking it holds more water than my roma 200. So im guessing I can just clean it, plant it and fill it? Ive never had a pond before though. Questions I have...

The Angel does chill down there on a night, but the red eye mess about in there during lights on.

Yes, the birds have been picking it off the roof and dropping it down, I was surprised how well it was growing in that small puddle.

Anyone know?

Hi everyone. A few pics today, everything just plodding along now, fish and shrimp all ok, added 4 Otto although still no signs of algae which has surprised me, something is definitely taking chunks out of the hygro leafs though.

No photo today, haven't had time. Everything apart from the moss is growing ok but I have noticed some mechanical damage on the hygro leafs. Has anyone got an idea what could be causing it? Mainly ends of the leaf look to have been removed by force.

You need to be real consistent with the CO2, I tried using a soda stream system a while back and I was sometimes left without a bottle for a couple of days at a time and BBA basically took over. Tank looks really nice btw.

It's the odd Parva and Petchii, the stems seem to be rooted ok now.

4 weeks on: Growth has slowed down slightly, the balansae still not looking good and lost a serpae tetra that to be honest did not look the best when I put it in the tank. The plec is uprooting the occasional plant but not too many, just the odd one floating in the morning.

FTS After a water change today: I have now moved my vampire plec into the tank too, by the time he gets too big I will probably buy a bigger tank.

So far the serpae have kept away from the angel, infact wherever the angel goes the other fish scarper to a safe distance, gonna keep an eye on them, I don't think returning is an option.

Yeah the angel is a real character, constantly sitting at the front glass looking for attention. Yeah I have learnt with this tank and that filter that thing struggle to grow on the same side as the filter, probably a flow issue but I want to just use what I have. The shrimp are actually...

I ended up getting 6 red eye tetra and 6 serpae tetra, got to say I like the red eye tetra, very nice fish. Now I'm thinking could I add 6 emperor too?

They have lived together for over a year and never had a problem.

3 weeks on: Plants all growing well now apart from the moss which is turning yellow, brown. Also, tank is now stocked with 6 red eye tetra, 6 serpae tetra, 6 Amano shrimp and an angelfish.

I was looking at Emperor Tetra but the smaller size gave me doubts, They do look cool.

Hi, can anyone suggest a medium sized tetra that can live with an angelfish, tank size is 200L

2 weeks on: Now on a water change every other day, photo period now 8 hours. Plants all looking healthy apart from the balansae which has started melting on the top half of the leaves.

Doing a water change today and noticed I could see right through the filter, I didn't did I? I did, I forgot the filter media 😑

One week on: The melt is slowing down, new growth appearing on everything except the Parva. At least 2 snails have hitch hiked with the plants too.

Forgot to add I have thrown tnc root capsules under the substrate around the plants too.

Hi everyone, hope everyone is doing well. So 3 days ago I restarted my Roma 200 from scratch, clean filter, new substrate and new plants. I had to strip the tank down a month ago due to our ceiling needing to be dropped l, the tank wasn't looking great, a bit of neglect on my part. Now I'm...

Yes it will be temporary, I have 2 weeks to get it ready before work starts, currently juggling water from main tank to this tank during WC, then after the work I will have to set the main tank up again.

I think one may of been. I just read to shine a light source at the top ofvthe water and they should try getting to the light if they are shrimp and indeed they did start floating towards my phone torch. Maybe I never noticed in my main tank as the angelfish probably scoops them up.

Just added one to OP.

Hi, I just set up a holding tank as I need to drain and move my main tank due to repair work, I used substrate, some water and a few plants from my main tank but now the holding tank has floating white things that are certainly alive as I have seen them making erratic movements. The only thing...

Hi, the depth of the actual water is about 20 cm, I've got an old external sitting around too but the tank is in my daughters room and there is nowhere to hide an external there :( Hoping to start getting some shrimp in the next week to hoover up the diatoms.

Update time.

Hi everyone, where is everyone buying shrimp from these days?

Hi everyone. So a few months ago we bought a terrarium kit for a musk turtle but after a few months we realised he needed a lot more space so we re homed him and stripped the tank. So I decided to make a shallow freshwater setup, using a fluval u3 for filtration, a flex mini led light, jbl...

Sorry but I only just saw this reply :( yes still using standard led that came with the tank, still using the u4 too. The tank is a bit bare plant wise now though as I re-did it to house a pleco, now has a few crypts and nothing else. The light did fine though as a low tech as you can see from...

Hi. I have a tank free that is 60 x 40cm with a water level about 25cm deep. What low tech plants would you suggest for it, would prefer a little bit of emergent growth etc, flow is quite high as am using an internal fluval u4 sideways.

Fair play to Roman abromavic too, whatever anyone thinks of him it's a good thing he's doing with the Chelsea fc hotel too.

I don't suppose any knows any plants that will grow semi submerged and won't get eaten by a turtle in the future?

Popped some in, can only improve water quality quicker and looks nice, gives a nice swampy feel.

I am more worried if it could be poisonous to them, do not have the turtles yet so it would have a while to grow and to help cycle the tank.

As title ^^ Is it safe to use salvinia natans with musk turtles?

Will get a turtle still but prob only one and not until the thing is cycled/ready for life, dumped some substrate from my main tank in so far to help, looking at the other equipment that came with it seems ok, heater keeps it a constant 25 and it came with a basking light. The tank is actually...

I have been reading the exact same thing, thankfully we have no turtles yet despite the guy trying to sell us 2 there and then, quite shocking really for a normally trustworthy retailer.

Ref the terrarium, they should be ashamed giving people the terrible filter that comes with these kits, ordered a u3 for now. The bristlenoses are settling well though in my main tank, they are the common spotted ones.

Got 5 as like you said due to age was impossible to tell. We got a terrarium kit too :S Once I make sure its sorted will be getting 2 musk turtles, could any of the bristlenoses that turn out to be male be homed in there once it is ready for life?

What is the best way tell when they are juvenile?

What about bristlenoses, how many of them could I keep? If anyone could answer because I am thinking of going to maidenheads later today.

Well the cave is quite long, the whole ceiling of the cave is made from redmoor wood, there is a small gap at the back of the cave but could easily block that with a small piece of rock if need be, the entrance is facing the exact point that the current bounces off the front bottom corner and...

So, I have all the hardscape sorted and have made a very nice cave made from landscape rock and redmoor wood. I was looking over the pleco's suggested and have ruled out the zebra plec, mainly due to the temp requirements compared to the fish I currently have. I am toying with the idea of...

Just to add to my last post, they are great characters too, always come to the glass when I go near the tank, one even let me brush its fins with my hand.

Angelfish look great in that tank btw, I have a pair that look great in it. @alto told me the tanks height suits the angelfish and he was not wrong. I think they would actually look a little better in your tank imo the layout would suit them more.

Ok so this tank has been stripped down to the substrate as I move to a new adventure. All the livestock are ok, doing good. I am planning on getting a pleco and decided to go all out to make the tank suitable for one (or maybe a few depending which one I choose). Currently eradicating any BBA...

It really varies from fish to fish with Betta's, some are great community fish, some just want space and to be left alone, mine was fine with the neons though, just the neons never really displayed schooling behaviour because of the low numbers.

you could try harlequin rasboras, they are more of a shoaling fish than a schooling fish. A possible alternative to a betta is a pair of pearl gourami, very good community fish and tend to stay around the top level of the tank much like a betta.

I think that is a roma 600 if I am correct, I had one, I also had neon tetra's and a betta in it and I agree with Kalum, I saw very little schooling behaviour from the neon's and they just sort of plodded about. Having a betta really limits future options too, most shrimp are a no go (Yes this...

Will do, will not be for a month or 2 yet anyway, stripped the tank down to just the substrate today and did a big water change, gonna do another water change tomorrow and clean the glass etc, then another on wednesday and clean the filter out then go hardscape shopping and order the floaters.

Thanks for those links Edvet.