Iwagumi 60p mountain slope

[AquaGuy601]

Beginner aquascaper here and I'm looking for any advice tips on starting my first scape. Here in Georgia we have a lot of sloped hills with this plant called kudzu with exposed rock and that's what I'm gaining some of my inspirations from. I have an idea of what I want but not on how to exactly achieve it, I've done tons of research and it's hard to focus only on the information that not just opinion. Looking through the forums there's a lot of talent and I hope to add value to this community, it's very inspiring. Any advice or tips on how to successfully accomplish this layout?

Tank
ADA 60p

Substrate
ADA Amazonia, lava rock rubble (in nylon)

Hardscape
Seiryu stone

Lighting
ADA Aquasky 601

Plants
HC or Glosso carpet, Java moss (rocks), HG (background)

Equipment
*Filter and CO2 have not been purchased yet

 

[alto]

Nice stones

Keep the lava tights slightly loose so that you can push your rocks into hollows, or easily adjust slope shape
(obviously use a sturdy Lycra tight rather than a delicate nylon)

If you establish the ground cover in a "dry start" this will help reduce soil sliding

Check your filter inflow/outflow dynamic as that water current can shift sand & soil quite dramatically (again good ground cover will protect against this)

No idea what HG is

For Java moss on rocks, I'd choose a slower & less vigorous growth moss - trimmings will tend to infiltrate the HC & furtively colonize

 

[AquaGuy601]

Thanks Alto! I appreciate those pointers that you mentioned. I'm sure past experiences have taught you well, I'll definitely incorporate them.

Maybe HG wasn't the correct abbreviation to use,I meant hair grass. Actually, any plant that resembles thin grass and grows tall will do. I don't know all the exact names yet

 

[Zeus.]

Eleocharis acicularis 'mini' may be a good choice that isn't too hard and works well with a DSM. I used it on my tank as a newbie and it's done really well.

Sent from Mountolympus via neural interface

 

[AquaGuy601]

Thanks Zeus, I just looked it up and that's exactly what Im looking for. In the 1st aquascaping video I've ever seen James Findley from TGM used it in his aquascape, automatically I was hooked. Through him I then found about Takashi Amano

 

[alto]

HG = Hair Grass makes sense, just my head was stuck on H Hemianthus or some other Latin plant name

E parvula would grow taller
Eleocharis sp (Tropica) is one of my favorites
Vallisneria nana should work as well but watch for invasion (thicker leaf than Eleocharis)

That last stone scape is amazing (I can never find decent rock selection locally - one needs a pallet rather than a box to sort through)

Just note that as you fill the tank with substrate & stone, water volume (& swimming space for fish) decreases dramatically, so make sure tank is cycled before adding livestock, or use media from (other) existing tanks when you flood so that you can add algae crew from the start (as done by ADA, Tropica etc) - very useful with HC as shrimp/snails etc will remove "melting" emerse culture leafs much more efficiently than human hands

If you use ADA soil rather than Tropica, there may be a reasonable amount - LOTS of ammonia released, the former is easy to manage with daily water change even in a small water volumed tank, the latter can lead to shrimp etc stress - if water is acidic pH 6 - 6.5, ammonia is less toxic re occurs predominantly as NH4 vs NH3
Likely plants will manage to utilize NH3 as it occurs (this is a naturally occurring equilibrium reaction)

 

[Zeus.]

Did a long DSM with mine ADA AS so to speed up the cycling when flooding I set the filter up working with a bin full of water and just added a bit of waste urea a few times a week to get the filter media cycled. Had clean up crew in tank about a week after flooding.

What TGM does is hard Scape the tank flood it then leaves the filter running with no lights for about 6 weeks then drains down to AS and then plant. Used that technique on daughter's tank and had fish in tank in a few days.

Sent from Mountolympus via neural interface

 

[AquaGuy601]

I'm making my purchases in stages so I have to utilize patience when setting everything up. Setting the filter to up to cycle waste water to get media cycled is something I'll definitely do as I dry start the HC, great idea Zeus!!

As far as filtration what canister filter would suffice? I plan on using inline co2 and heater

 

[Zeus.]

Never done a 60p so hard to recommend which to go for. I'm sure you have X10 rule for tank size to filter turnover.
I ditched the biomedia in my Fluval FX6 and stuck in about 4Kg of Biohome Ultimate.
Planning on using an inline atomiser and heater might be considering a DIY reactor to keep tank CO2 bubble free. Recently added an APS filter booster to mine with BIO Balls and tank bubble free, expect the pearling

Sent from Mountolympus via neural interface