Hi everybody,

[Stevemate]

I’ve trawled the forums over the last couple of years as my tank and slight obsession with it has developed, now I’ve taken the plunge and joined up hoping I might have just enough knowledge to share.
I was bought a gift of a fluval edge (aquascapers nightmare) about 3.5 years ago. After I started setting it up and deciding some live plants might be nice. This sent me on an internet rabbit hole of research about nitrogen cycles plants and livestock and I loved all of it.
Still have my fluval Edge for now although it’s now running an oase filtosmart 100 external filter as the HOB just caused flow problems in the deep tank.
I also have co2 injection with an inline diffuser (although I don’t push it much with easy plants.)
And recently upgraded my lighting to a kessil a80 (splashed out but it fits in the hood without hacking the top off the tank.)
After my initial excitement I now stick to slower growing plants crypts, anubias and Buce as I don’t always have lots of maintenance time in the summer and stem plants are hassle for maintenance through the hole in the top.
Current livestock of shrimps, Green neons and Ember Tetras.
Hope to be able to contribute.
Steve.



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[bazz]

Welcome and

I now stick to slower growing plants crypts, anubias and Buce

join the club.
Cheers!

 

[Guest]

Welcome Steve 🙂
Tank looks great.

 

[The grumpy one]

Welcome

 

[sparkyweasel]

Welcome! 🙂

 

[Rhelton Luiz De Carvalho]

Wow! I like your tank! How much time it takes to clean it?

 

[Stevemate]

Thanks,
I don’t spend much time cleaning now. An hour max if I clean the filter too. When it was stem plants and hydrocotyle Japan it was too time consuming. I learned that overfiltering with plenty of flow was the way, and with slower growing plants doesn’t matter if I only get time to change a bucketful of water for a couple of weeks.
I’ve got a glass scraper I cut the handle off so i can get in. Also the tall piece of bog wood can be removed if I want it out the way.
Just added some Crypt Usteriana that is hopefully going to hide most of the heater if it grows tall enough.


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[MikeLowndes]

Welcome. Your tank is pretty similar to mine. +1 overfiltering and flow. I deliberately have some fast growing stems though to remove nitrates as I have 26 nano sub-tropical fish in there. My tank is a Dennerle with an easy to remove glass top. My heater is also the same model but hidden behind my bogwood.

 

[dw1305]

Hi all,

I deliberately have some fast growing stems though to remove nitrates

That was one of the reasons for keeping a "floater" in the tanks - <"What is the “Duckweed Index” all about?">.

I originally chose a floating plant so that it had access to atmospheric CO2 <"Global Monitoring Laboratory - Carbon Cycle Greenhouse Gases">, this is Diana Walstad's <"aerial advantage">.

When it was stem plants and hydrocotyle Japan it was too time consuming

That is why I only have <"Ceratopteris thalictroides and Ceratophyllum demersum"> in the "stem" role now as sub-surface floaters. You can thin them really quickly and easily.

and with slower growing plants doesn’t matter if I only get time to change a bucketful of water for a couple of weeks.

It is really useful if you can't maintain the <"tank regularly">.

cheers Darrel

 

[Stevemate]

Thanks for those links Darrel, some interesting links to have a read through.
I do have a few stems of Limnophila in the corner I had just trimmed them hard to clean the glass in the photo I posted. There is also some duckweed that was added accidentally added at some point, I cleaned my filter impeller recently and I don’t think it is enjoying the surface agitation now!
Going to drop my filter outlet a bit deeper and try some frogbit as suggested. I like the idea of using it as a nutrient deficiency indicator, makes sense you would be able to see any problems much quicker with a plant that has access to atmosphere.
Thanks
Steve


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[dw1305]

Hi all,

There is also some duckweed that was added accidentally added at some point

I think we've probably <"all been there">.

I like the idea of using it as a nutrient deficiency indicator, makes sense you would be able to see any problems much quicker with a plant that has access to atmosphere.

That is the one. The other advantage Amazon Frogbit (Limnobium (Hydrocharis) laevigatum) has is that it has very little structural tissue, meaning that it can respond fairly quickly to changes in nutrient level. You can see the cell structure below, a polystyrene like spongy aerenchyma float with a layer of photosynthetic tissue tacked across the top.



A disadvantage is the gas exchange occurs on the <"adaxial (upper) leaf surface"> so you don't get any direct oxygenation effect (via photosynthesis) on the water column in the way that you would with a fully submerged plant.

cheers Darrel

 

[richardcunliffe]

Good effort sticking out the Fluval Edge. I thought I was the only person stubborn enough, though I am currently rescaping it to give away to a friend as a Betta tank. I'll come back with some photos. You really went for the tech upgrades! I just added another small LED that fits just in front of the factory light and fixes inside the lid. I tried CO2 with an in tank diffuser for a while, but the main issue is for sure flow and dead spots. Like you, I was wanting to get the tech outside the tank but when I found a bargain filtosmart 100 it tragically came with an entire 60 shallow set up that I couldn't turn down 😬

 

[richardcunliffe]

@Stevemate, Sorry, took a while. Here it was a couple of months in. My first scape, I was pretty pleased. A lot happened after that, of course the sand path didn't last, and I regretted having very fine sand so deep at the front. You live and learn. It's good to look back on it though; the pogostemon erectus did amazingly at the start and I'm currently finding it just not growing as readily for me.

 

[Stevemate]

Thanks for the pic, interesting to see what people have managed with a fluval edge. The hardscape looks great. These tanks cry out for something tall in the middle but then that blocks your cleaning access!!Keep thinking about tearing mine down and re scaling after 4 years but this would inevitably lead to me buying another tank for the livestock while I do! Keep eyeing up the super fish scaper tanks, look really good value and fancy a go at an open top. I used Tropica aqua soil powder which now will obviously have no nutrients left in it so I keep topping up with root tabs but it’s never the same as that first year. The small grain aqua soil worked great for Pygmy corys and the keep it disturbed enough to stop detritus building. My Crypt Usteriana I added 3 months ago melted and hasn’t been seen since, it might re appear but not hopeful. Added some Hygrophilia Pinnatifida this morning as I like the way it looks, kind of like saplings but looking at the forums on here it either thrives or dies. Should have just got some rotala h’ra but I’ll see how it goes.


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