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Low-tech riverbank

wijnands

wijnands

Member
Joined
28 Oct 2013
Messages
65
The PFK visitors are already familiar with this one but I like to show my work just like everyone else. It's a low tech affair and doesn't look nearly as stunning as some of the other tanks here but I like it.

The setup was inspired by some of Heiko Bleher's biotopes. When I set this up I was thinking of the edge of a stream that had flooded but since then it's been slowly turning into a bit of a jungle tank.
Hardware is a Juwel Rio 125 with stock lights and an Eheim 2211 filter

October 2012, days after it was set up:
8124181207_8252fe182f_z.jpg
My new aquarium by j_wijnands, on Flickr

2 weeks later with more plants:
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Juwel rio 125 biotope aquarium by j_wijnands, on Flickr

January 2013, just behind the right vallis you can see the javamoss slowly taking over the background
8358132435_5acb73b84a_z.jpg
DSC_6952 by j_wijnands, on Flickr

late march:
8606394069_33a3310900_z.jpg
DSC_8481 by j_wijnands, on Flickr

July. I added cyperus helferi to the back left and moved the nymphea which is just starting to grow.
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Full tank shot july by j_wijnands, on Flickr

In august I removed the front windelov because there was almost no light below it. The background is covered in a thick layer of moss almost everywhere now.
9566341352_375e49d4a4_z.jpg
DSC_0375 by j_wijnands, on Flickr

and two weeks ago:
10252542163_0e78f4b79c_z.jpg
DSC_0741 by j_wijnands, on Flickr
 
The tank is inhabited by half a dozen T. Espei, 15 green neons, 6 pygmy cories:

9070204746_840ba111f9_z.jpg
DSC_9547 by j_wijnands, on Flickr

6 marbled hatchets:

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Lined up hatchets by j_wijnands, on Flickr

1 male and 2 female ancistrus claro
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DSC_8735 by j_wijnands, on Flickr
who have had 2 litters now.
10159862626_2f9f45837d_z.jpg
DSC_0670 by j_wijnands, on Flickr

A single gold tetra who's 7 years old now.
8483379386_a642ddf57c_z.jpg
gold tetra by j_wijnands, on Flickr

and a large number of shrimp that may or may not be N. Heteropoda
8433852412_0fbbe55e7f_z.jpg
neocaridina heteropoda by j_wijnands, on Flickr
 
Here? With all the CO2 and EI experts? Well.. gosh... these things seem important to me.

  • Make a plan first
  • Fertilize well but don't go overboard if you have about 1.7 watts gallon like this tank.
  • Don't care too much about conventions and what other people do.

Currently I'm doing water changes with 60% RO water. Dose weekly 5ppm nitrate and 0.4 phosphate and 5ml profito. The root feeders have JBL7+13 and some rabbit droppings. There's a small piece of an old nail in there for extra iron. There's indeed Nymphaea zenkeri in there. Bought it on a whim and it's now doing rather well and growing enthusiastically.
 
Thanks Thomas! Yes, this was set up as a good place to live for fish first and something nice to look at second. For the first I must be doing something right since the ancistrus and the cories have spawned and the barbs regularely go trough the motions as well.
For the second.. well I leave that up to the viewer.
 
wijnands said:
Here? With all the CO2 and EI experts? Well.. gosh... these things seem important to me.

  • Make a plan first
  • Fertilize well but don't go overboard if you have about 1.7 watts gallon like this tank.
  • Don't care too much about conventions and what other people do.

Currently I'm doing water changes with 60% RO water. Dose weekly 5ppm nitrate and 0.4 phosphate and 5ml profito. The root feeders have JBL7+13 and some rabbit droppings. There's a small piece of an old nail in there for extra iron. There's indeed Nymphaea zenkeri in there. Bought it on a whim and it's now doing rather well and growing enthusiastically.
Click to expand...

Rabbit droppings and nails!!!!
I hadn't thought of either!!!!!
 
As said on PFK Wijnands, always a pleasure to see your tank and pictures (top photography skillz to boot) :D

Envy of many an aquarist :)
 
Is the background home made or an off the shelf bought one?
Lovely tank superb pictures, your fish look so healthy.
All the best from Bill. :D
 
I'd love to debate that bit Darrel.

From what I understand the iron we love to have forms best in a low oxygen environment and about 2 inches down in the sand it's pretty low oxygen. Add to that the fact that it was common practice in early Dutch style aquariums before iron supplements were common and I'd say there is something to it.

However, I could be wrong in which I'd really appreciate if someone could point out my mistake to me.
 
Hi all,
wijnands said:
From what I understand the iron we love to have forms best in a low oxygen environment and about 2 inches down in the sand it's pretty low oxygen.
Click to expand...
That is true, the lower sediments often have negative REDOX values (-200mv), and the Fe ions can be in the reduced ferrous state (Fe++) for uptake (although converted to Fe+++ in the plant cell), and because of this plants can enhance both reduction and acidification of the substrate and this increases both root ferric-reducing capacity and uptake of ferrous iron. A fuller description is here at the ever reliable "Skeptical Aquarist" <Iron transformations | The Skeptical Aquarist>.

In alkaline or oxygenated substrates this is all irrelevant, as any ferrous or ferric iron ions will be re-precipitated as insoluble phosphates or hydroxides as soon as they are formed, unless they are chelated by the DOC. Plant roots are leaky structure and because of the requirement for oxygen for cell respiration the immediate rhizosphere is usually oxygenated. An interesting point is that plants that naturally grow in acid, anoxic sediments go to great lengths to oxidise and precipitate the iron in the rhizosphere, as iron toxicity is much more of a problem than iron uptake.

The real problem with the rusty nail is really "how is the reduced iron going to reach the plant?", as soon as any Fe ions come into contact with a non-reducing environment they will be precipitated as insoluble compounds. If you substituted "a rusty nail" for some very widely spread iron source in the substrate such as iron filings, (or staples?) then root uptake becomes a more viable option.

cheers Darrel
 
Hmmm..

So to get the best benefits I'd need pieces of iron near the iron hungry plants? Oh, and what's DOC in this context?
 
Lovely looking biotope. Do the ancistrus behave themselves with all those plants? Always loved plecs, but avoid them like the plague in my planted tanks!
 
Hi all,
wijnands said:
So to get the best benefits I'd need pieces of iron near the iron hungry plants?
Click to expand...
Yes, Tom (Plantbrain) may be able to give you more information about how mobile the iron is within the sediment, but something like a thin layer of iron fillings in the de-oxygenated zone of the substrate should provide some available iron to the plant roots.

Adding chelated iron to the water column is much easier (all plants will take nutrients in through their leaves), in the case of FeEDTA (or FeEDPA, FeDTPA etc.) the Fe is very tightly bound, but the bond is unstable in light and photo-degradation provides Fe+++ ions. The calculations for preparing a 0.5ppm Fe solution from FeEDTA are here: <Adding Additional Iron - Advice Please. | UK Aquatic Plant Society>

Personally I'm not convinced that "iron hungry plants" really exist, and in any soft water aquarium I would be very surprised if iron deficiency is a problem. Nearly all iron related chlorosis in plants is caused by problems with the availability and uptake of iron, rather than a deficiency in the actual amount. Have a look at this thread for some more details <Is this iron deficiency? if not, what? | UK Aquatic Plant Society>.

There are figures in Diana Walstad's "Ecology of the Planted Aquarium" for soil based substrates, where she finds that soils contain huge reserves of iron, but most of this is unavailable.
wijnands said:
and what's DOC in this context?
Click to expand...
DOC is Dissolved Organic Carbon which acts as a chelantor, and again I'll refer you to the "Skeptical Aquarist" for more details: <Dissolved organic substances | The Skeptical Aquarist> & <Humic substances | The Skeptical Aquarist>.

cheers Darrel
 
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