60x45x45 equipment choices

[andyh]

Not yet, no, I'm still waiting for the tank to arrive once I have it I'll play with an empty tank and experiment. The filter is pretty huge at 1500lph but I dunno, I like that they're black, it's just tidier than ehiem green but I'm more than open to experiement if I think the results are superior. I had concidered the Do aqua jet pipe but read lots of bad things with them breaking with no warming at all with having no sucker.

The 1500lph should help! The black is nice that's what made me purchase it. I have kept it in the spares box and when i get chance i may see if i can make it work. I suspect that 1500lp should work better as i was trying only 700lph. Let me know how you get on!

 

[Garuf]

Shall do mate, like I say if I'm really impressed I'm going to get a glass clone. I really like its form already so we'll see. I'm really over doing the flow, hitting 20+ turnover as a way of getting really good distribution, something that will be more important as I plan on doing a pretty dense wood scape in their that will deflect and diffuse flow.

I'll be using the equivilent of 150w + of Halide but using LED after the initial low light phase so flow is something that will be increasingly important as the light levels sneak up as co2 distribution will be paramount to success. Having the benefit of two massive filter capacities will be helpful too. My only real concern regarding flow will be getting it spaced right and the filters being set up "innert" as in not pre cycled which might be a real issue.

 

[NA-Fan]

Hello, Laura.
Strictly speaking, no, two filters aren't really needed but because I'll be using very high levels of light more flow is needed to distribute nutrients/co2 and it helps to safe guard against possible dead spots. One filter with a 1200lph capacity would meet the 10x an hour base rate which would be sufficient if using lower levels of light because co2 demand will be much less. Flow could be increased by using additional pumps such as the koralias but I find them one of the ugliest thing you could put in a planted tank, up there with plastic divers or concrete castles. Another thing to consider is that glassware regarless of maker has the ability to destroy the flow rates a filter produces because the inlets are too small and too few, inline co2 diffusion like I'll be using and an inline heater add further stress which reduce flow.
Really it's a trade of thing, more light means more flow and faster growth but more balance issues, lower light means lower flow, slower growth but more stability, something that will be a massive boon early in the start up stages or as a beginner.

Regarding the glass wear I'm only going to be using one set initially choosing to use the JBL kit with a jet mouth which looks very good, this is something of an experiment as if it'd good I'll be replacing it with a custom made glass version from my unis science labs. You're right that it may make the tank look cluttered but I think for the choice of planting I'll be taking it shouldn't matter too much as it will be dense enough to hide the most part of them.

Unfortunately I was homeless over the summer and my last few scapes never reached maturity, firstly succumbing to damage during transit to leeds then once I had them reestablished and thriving falling victim to a family dispute which left me sans abode and having to tear them down and moth ball all the equipment till somewhere to live was found, not being particularly interested in photography because of my poor ability to take photos meant that photos are few and far between. My cube has been my best/favourite tank, my last 60cm my favourite scape but neither had a photo taken to show their final state. I'll search my threads and try and find some pictures.

Hi Garuf

Thanks for the full reply! It all makes sense.

Why are you using very high lighting out of interest? Do you like a challenge?!

Sorry to hear that you were homeless. That couldn't have been fun...

 

[Garuf]

S'okay, being homeless in the summer and having friends make the ordeal easier.

I'm using V. high light yes, pretty much for the challenge but also because it makes stems much much denser and it's easier to get crawling plants to spread across the substrate rather than upward into the water column.
High light also creates plant forms that are difficult/impossible to achieve through the use of lower light levels,the super dense rotalla pillows that are so characteristic of ADA and CAU scapes can only really be achieved with high light.
Hairgrass will be a key part of my scape and it is a plant that again is much more compact under intense light. A lot of that comes down to trimming but I've known it to stay shorter as a result of higher light, ideally I'd like A. parvula but cost is a major factor so I'll use accicularis and just get tips from Saintly on keeping it nice and low.
Ferns too I've found are easier to keep tidy with higher light but I don't know if this is simply because the plants are concentrating in extending the rhizome rather than producing baby plants which are often a sign of poor health.
So yeah, it's a challenge thing but also it's a plant health, aesthetic thing. I don't mind treading a knife edge if it means I get just what I envision from my plants. 😛