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Bedside Aquarium

I'd love some feedback if anyone has any? In the mean time here's a picture of my pogostemon erectus I've been growing emersed and it's first flower!

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I've been researching plants for this tank, and I'm thinking cryptocorynes, java fern, moss, anubais, bucephalandra, helanthium tenellum, hairgrass, and stuff like that. I'd like to use some of the p.erectus if it'll survive without CO2? And I really like the look of bolbitis, but again not sure if it would survive. Anything similar that's easier?
 
Well I managed to get a Dennerle nano corner filter from my LFS after looking online it seemed like a small and quiet choice. Also a plus it's shrimp safe as I would like some. I put the filter and heater in where I plan to have dense plants to hide them. I did notice though that I didn't think I'd left enough decent planting space at the back of the hardscape. I have since pulled it forward, trying not to change much but it happened haha. I think I count brush sand around these rocks and fiddle forever and never be satisfied 🙄 ah well.

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After
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Did you check the minimum water level on the heater? The top looks a bit tight. Depending on your stocking and house temperature you might be able to do away without the heater. Shrimp are quite happy at room temp, for example. Or you can get nano sized heaters.

You'll fiddle again once you get to planting and still won't be happy till they grow in and it finally comes together 🙂
 
tam said:
Did you check the minimum water level on the heater? The top looks a bit tight. Depending on your stocking and house temperature you might be able to do away without the heater. Shrimp are quite happy at room temp, for example. Or you can get nano sized heaters.

You'll fiddle again once you get to planting and still won't be happy till they grow in and it finally comes together 🙂
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The minimum water level is the silver strip just above where the temperatures are, so it is tight but 'ok'. I might look into getting a nano heater. Any recommendations? I wish I had gone down the custom route now seeing as equipment is getting replaced anyway :banghead: I don't want to take the heater out entirely as I'd like some fish as well including corydoras habrosus and maybe boraras brigittae. 20C is the lowest they'd be happy, and while my bedroom is normally that or over, it's not stable because I just put the heating on as and when I fancy it haha.

I suppose you're right about not being happy until the plants fill in!
 
I think Aquael or Dennerle do a small black one. Keep the spare bits, never know when they might come in useful.

I have habrosus - they are very cute little guys. Both of those would be fine with cherry shrimp.
 
Miss-Pepper said:
Well I had a complete change of heart about the filter! I started building up the substrate and it became clear the inlet was going to be too low down 😱 I tried moving it to the right...but then the plugs didn't reach to the sockets soooo I have just removed it! I think I will get a small nano corner filter, or similar, just to add flow to the aquarium and instead rely more on the plant's ability to filter the water.

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I've played around with my piece of spider wood and dragon stones every which way haha (I have more stones if needed) but if anyone has any recommendations to improve it please go ahead! I've sloped it up so much so I can see more of the back from low down but it has taken up quite a lot of room! I want quite a thick 'jungley' planting on the left and thinning out to the right and front so some of the rocks might get hidden anyway. Thanks for any help guys!

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It looks nice and I like the positioning of the wood. I would recommend to move the entire hardscape closer to the front, I think there is to much space in front of the hardscape and to little behind it.
 
akwarium said:
It looks nice and I like the positioning of the wood. I would recommend to move the entire hardscape closer to the front, I think there is to much space in front of the hardscape and to little behind it.
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Thanks for your feedback akwarium, further forward still as I have done it a little?
 
Miss-Pepper said:
The minimum water level is the silver strip just above where the temperatures are, so it is tight but 'ok'. I might look into getting a nano heater. Any recommendations? I wish I had gone down the custom route now seeing as equipment is getting replaced anyway :banghead: I don't want to take the heater out entirely as I'd like some fish as well including corydoras habrosus and maybe boraras brigittae. 20C is the lowest they'd be happy, and while my bedroom is normally that or over, it's not stable because I just put the heating on as and when I fancy it haha.
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Turn the heater horizontal down near the substrate; you probably won't even see it once your planted up. 😉
 
Andrew Butler said:
Turn the heater horizontal down near the substrate; you probably won't even see it once your planted up. 😉
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I couldn't quite get it to fit horizontally as the wood was in the way, but following advice I think I'm going to pull the whole hardscape forward again and do exactly that! It's been a number of years since I've had pygmy corydoras but they won't burn themselves on the heater if they're able to rest on it will they? Worth getting a guard?
 
That’s why I decided to remove the heater altogether and use a external filter, but I would use a guard after seeing the effects of heater burns on my Ottos 🙁


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
Andrew Butler said:
would you put your hand on a radiator if it was too hot?
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I'd like to think I have a slight intellectual advantage over a fish 😛 but I get your point. I've seen some nasty heater burns on discus but maybe that's due to how high the heater is running. I've put it horizontally and high enough off the substrate that they couldn't sit underneath it and get stuck etc and can barely see it now thank you.
 
Well the shop I went to today didn't have much, I went with one pot of in-vitro AquaFleur elocharis parvula and one pot of helanthium tenellum. I was surprised at how much hair grass I got! Possibly too much as I did want some visible sand haha. But the h.tenellum I possibly could have done with two pots, we'll see how well it fills in. I already had the java moss but just plopped about half a pot on the wood. I don't want too much as I want to add java fern and anubias to that wood as well. No background plants as of yet, I'm waiting to order some online. I think I'll try a DSM method just as a fun experiment.

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I finally got my order of plants from Watermarque, it got sent to the post office for a few days but surprisingly everything was just fine! I used two pots of cryptocoryne wendtii green and brown mixed, two pots of balansae, and half a pot of lucens as I was running out of planting room haha. I got two bucephalandra 'godzilla' and used a pot of anubias nana bonsai but I thought 'bonsai' would be smaller? Did I get sent something else? Then I just chucked in a few cuts from my emersed cultures. It is pretty packed in there from my eyes, I hope everything has room to grow and flourish!

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Using a scrap of bubble wrap to keep some of the humidity in but the moss is drying out quite frequently, so I'm spraying it a lot and getting some lovely wood mould 😡

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Did you soak the wood first? It might float when you finally flood it if not (speaking from experience!)
 
ralfred said:
Did you soak the wood first? It might float when you finally flood it if not (speaking from experience!)
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I've not soaked it no, I'll be doing a dry start for a few weeks and was hoping it would absorb some moisture haha but probably wishful thinking. I think I'll have to use a rock to keep it down to start without crushing anything!
 
Well not much to report in terms of plant growth yet. A few crypt leaves have melted off, as expected, but most of the plants remain as I put them! At least nothing has flat out died though, and the moss is starting to come back especially under the shade of the bucephalandra and anubias.

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My little timer arrived today as well, good and bad news! It fits in one end but the plug end doesn't fit back onto the timer pin :arghh: @Michael Cosgrove could you suggest a way to make this work still?

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