Mighty Cave - ADA 60P

[Mikeba]

Hi everyone,

So it's time for a new scape. Broke down my previous one and the aquarium is looking too empty for my liking

The setup:

Tank:
ADA 60P (60x30x36cm)

Light:
ADA Aquasky 601

Filter:
1x JBL 901e greenline

Other Equipment:
Inline atomic CO2 diffusor
Chihiros Doctor
Lily Pipes (outflow)(inflows)
Eheim skimmer

Hardscape:
Seiryu stones

Substrate:
ADA Aquasoil Amazónia
ADA La plata sand
ADA La plata sand (big)

Ferts:
EI Daily

Plants:
Not sure yet.

Photos:





Think I will move this over to the 60P tomorrow and maybe tweak some more in there. I'll post more pictures soon, promise. 😀

Hope you like it!

 

[Eduard18]

Looks promising, so ominous 😎 but I think you should build a bigger entrance, you know, plants full grown could " steal the scene "

 

[imak]

It must be hard to replicate that inside the aquarium... Great hardscape

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[Mikeba]

@Eduard18 Thanks! It does have a grimmy atmosphere does it 😀 Good point about the cave. Although the foreground will stay sand, so I'm hoping it will not give a problem.

@imak I have build/rebuild this scape a few time already, so placing the stones like this again shouldn't be a problem. Biggest problem will be working in an actual box and not having the freedom you have in an open sandbox 😕

 

[swackett]

Looks impressive, can't wait to see it planted.

 

[Mikeba]

Thanks @swackett !

Update:





Still alot of work to do, but we are getting there More pics will follow in the coming days.

Some of my concerns for the moment are:

• planting space in the back (I wish I had a 45cm depth aquarium 🙁)
• if I should create the second "island" in the right corner or not (scape feels a lot more "squished" inside the aquarium)
• what plants to use

All ideas are welcome 🙂

 

[Eduard18]

Are you sure that the construction is solid ? 😉 I'm a bit concerned about the stones at the base- left in an oblique position and right, partially on the glass ;
Secondly, the name of the scape is " Mighty Cave" , cave is rocks, so plants come second , to emphasize the hardscape; IMHO : mosses - dark green, like weeping moss and/or fissidens fontanus - in the back of the cave red Myriophyllum or Proserpinaca or H.pinnatifida and on the right side Eleocharis or Crypto parva if you use red Myriophyllum behind the cave, or Pogostemon erectus if you use Proserpinaca or HP for the cave
Your choice pioneer 🙂

 

[Mikeba]

@Eduard18 Yep, the construction is rock solid, no worries. 🙂

Great tips on planting! A little bit out of my comfort zone (was thinking about using good old Rotala behind the cave), but I like the fine structure your plants have, would be great for an enhanced sense of scale.

I was actually thinking about Riccardia between the rocks, but I have my worries about it ... never used it and it's described as a difficult moss.
Eleocharis & Crypto parva are on my list. And I was thinking about Monte Carlo for the right foreground.

 

[Eduard18]

Well , riccardia does need a lot of light and CO2, that's for sure , but it's not that difficult; I'm using it in my "Tint the World" nano, on top of the root, near the water surface to be sure that it's getting the maximum amount of light and it's growing; in your cas, with ADA lights I guess it would work on the right size of the cave, near the center of the tank, 3rd or 4th layer of rocks, or both
As a carpeting plant I think Marsilea hirsuta , with its wilder appearance and the fact it doesn't form a compact carpet, will complement better the "spirit" of the tank , but it's your tank, your choice

 

[Mikeba]

Currently waiting for the ADA Aquasoil and sand; should be delivered tomorrow.

In the meantime I made a little sketch with the possible plant selection.



The dark green on the rocks is Riccardia.

Any thoughts/suggestions/ideas?

 

[doylecolmdoyle]

Looks good, squeezing stems into the back will be a challenge unless you cover the rocks with soil and plant on top?

 

[Mikeba]

@doylecolmdoyle Thanks! I'm afraid the planting space will not be high enough if I would do that, which will result in too much trimming. I hope the space will suffice and I can always use some Hygrophila in the spaces that are too compact due to stones.

 

[Mikeba]

Update:

Today the Aquasoil and La Plata sand arrived so I could finally add the substrate to the aquarium.

The result:

 

[Dominik_K]

Hi,

this is really looking good! My congratulations for this well made hardscape. One little thing to think about: How about some Minilandscape gravel on the sand? Just a tiny bit to smooth out the transition? I think that would make the tank even more natural.

And one question for my education: Is that styrofoam still underneath the sand and soil or did you remove it?

 

[Mikeba]

@Dominik_K Thank you for the kind words! Good idea about the gravel, I'll better start smashing some stones 😀

The styrofoam is still there, I only removed it in the front sand area.

 

[CooKieS]

Nice one, it looks like another ukaps member has done months ago (can't remember his name unfortunately 🙁)

About the plantation; to get an better scale you better choose small stems and carpeting plants; I would replace monte carlo with elatine hydropiper or hc cuba and pogostemon with HM for example 😉

 

[CooKieS]

Nice one, it looks like another ukaps member has done months ago (can't remember his name unfortunately 🙁)

About the plantation; to get an better scale you better choose small stems and carpeting plants; I would replace monte carlo with elatine hydropiper or hc cuba and pogostemon with HM for example 😉

 

[Mikeba]

@CooKieS You mean @The_Iceman ? Because he was a big inspiration for starting this scape. 🙂

I'm going to look into the plants you mention, thanks for the suggestion!

 

[doylecolmdoyle]

Looks great, I like the use of the la plata big one the sand area, looks like you have more room at the back than what it appeared in earlier photos, should be ok for some stems back there, can wait to see this planted

 

[CooKieS]

@CooKieS You mean @The_Iceman ? Because he was a big inspiration for starting this scape. 🙂

I'm going to look into the plants you mention, thanks for the suggestion!

Exactly! His tank was awesome 🙂

You're welcome