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Office nano

hotweldfire

hotweldfire

Member
Joined
23 Mar 2011
Messages
971
Location
South London
Got this 30x20x20 off Ryan some time ago (don't know where he got it, maybe he can tell us). Was meant to go on my office desk. My health and safety were asked if it was OK (mistake to ask them) and they said no. Firstly, water, electricity, no no. Secondly, we have a strict no pets policy they said.

Well, I'm still in the same job but only 1 day a week. The other 4 days a week is at a new place and they have the most sane health and safety officer I've ever met. The kind of bloke who says, yeah, you can shift your own desk across the room, no worries. Isn't going to say no because he's scared I'll do my back in then sue the company.

Obviously I'm planning to keep shrimp in there. Might stick some chili rasboras in too, don't know yet. Is a really tiny tank though, only 12 litres. Have had a mini bag of siporax sat in the eheim on my main tank for a month now. It's gone into an aqua 100 hob. Got a 40 light led that used to have on my other nano, that'll be the light for this tank. Also got a tiny heater from a far east ebay seller.

Set it up tonight in an hour. Keeping it very simple. Just lava rock, hairgrass, a bit of H. triparita and mini xmas moss. Wanted to use acicularis but couldn't find any so parvula instead. Apologies as ever for the crap photos. Phone camera but with my skills the DSLR probably wouldn't have been any better. Inspired by a couple of Wen's scapes. Following some of Dincho's advice on shrimp tank setup.

This is the basic scape. Layers of lava rock to create a little cliff with a couple of tongues running off it:

6888186311_4f29dd38e9.jpg
Office setup 2 by hotweldfire, on Flickr

First layer - mosura old sea mud powder (shrimp voodoo juice #1)

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Mud powder in by hotweldfire, on Flickr

Dividers (cut from document wallet)

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Dividers in by hotweldfire, on Flickr

Substrate in. ADA AS Amazonia (new kind) at the back, mix of unipac gravel and play sand at the front and sides

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1st layer substrate in by hotweldfire, on Flickr

Mosura BT-9 in (shrimp voodoo juice #2)

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BT-9 in by hotweldfire, on Flickr

Rest of substrate - capping the amazonia with sand

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Rest of substrate in by hotweldfire, on Flickr

Lava rock

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Hardscape in by hotweldfire, on Flickr

Hairgrass

6888200103_36e1ac7297.jpg
Parvula in by hotweldfire, on Flickr

Moss and hydrocotyle

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Mini xmas moss and triparita in by hotweldfire, on Flickr

And running

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Done 1 by hotweldfire, on Flickr

Also some frogbit in there. Going to lift that front tongue of rock tomorrow to stop it disappearing into the sand. Am also going to have to adjust the position of the filter because there's no flow right now - just churning around in the back right corner. Going to blast it with gas and ferts initially then ease back and go low tech eventually.

Naturally it looks better in the flesh. Could I get advice on how soon I should hack back the hairgrass to encourage growth?
 
Hi Hotweldfire,
Looks like a great little set up, simple but effective.
With regards the hairgrass, its parvula you said, so as with both types (parvula and acicularis), best to cut back hard immediately. Also worth noting from my experience with parvula, the level at which you cut it back is the level its new growth will maintain, ie unlike acicularis which just grows and grows and forever needs pruning, its new growth will stay true to the original cut height, so taper it if you want higher levels at some points in the scape.
Shrimps will look cool in there, i really like the lava rock sand combo and the moss will work well on the rough surface!
Cheerio,
Ady.
 
Hi darth

I tend to tie mine but if you got individual rock you could use hair nets get these in most colours i just got some granny gray ones to match my rocks just place the moss on the rock then place your hair net over it the moss will grow throw the net nicely and disappear
 
Thanks all. Will hack back shortly. Moss was attached in cavalier fashion with superglue. Not that superglue is cavalier, I always use it, but I usually cut the moss up smaller. Had to do this in an hour so went it in in huge great clumps.

Sent from my MB860 using Tapatalk
 
Very nice! I'm loving your rock work.

Thats about the 3rd scape I've seen recently using lava rock - initially I wasnt a fan but its winning me over with scapes like this, especially as you can just rub the moss on it and just let it grow.
 
Looks great that mate, i have a simular setup at work also 🙂 Could do with some of that Lava Rock though it looks nice 🙂 any spare? 😛
 
Trimmed the hairgrass on Monday. Thursday already new green shoots coming up (lighter longer ones you can see most clearly at the back). Impressed by how fast it grows back. Will have to trim again in a week or so:

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Office grass 23/2 by hotweldfire, on Flickr

H. triparita looks happy too

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Office hydro 23/2 by hotweldfire, on Flickr

Less chuffed with this nano reg.

6929500775_f4c3ce65df.jpg
Arghh by hotweldfire, on Flickr

Used it to set up my first nano and found that over a 24 hour period the co2 level would drop off dramatically. Realised that the hose was getting caught in the back of my P@H light fitting so assumed it was down to me being an idiot.

Doing the same thing on this tank and there is definitely no obstruction. Have to keep turning it up every day to maintain the bubble rate. You get what you pay for I guess. Happily won't be running co2 on this tiny tank for very long, just for start up.
 
Really? No one?

Well the reason I ask is that I tested parameters on Friday and there was no detectable ammonia or nitrite. That means cycle in 2 weeks.

Two caveats, the amazonia only constitutes about a third of the substrate and it's capped with sand/gravel. Secondly, the filter media (small bag of siporax mini) was sat in the eheim running off my main filter for two months.

Even so, that seems very fast to me. One other thing and probably the explanation. I put a small bag of purigen in the filter too, so that it gets the flow after the siporax. My thinking was that it would pick up the excess organic waste and therefore reduce any algae blooms. I haven't had any algae in this tank so far apart from a wee bit of hair. This is surprising given that the mini xmas moss came from my main tank and had quite a bit of hair algae on it there.

But, I worry I haven't provided the filter bacteria with enough waste. Here's a pic of the purigen. Hopefully you'll be able to see from it that it's pretty brown after only a couple of weeks.

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Dirty purigen by hotweldfire, on Flickr

Don't want to start chucking livestock in there prematurely. Did that with my last nano with pretty disastrous consequences. So any advice on how I know whether it's ready? Maybe remove the purigen and see if I get a spike?
 
if it aint there, it aint there!
Maybe do one more test just to make sure.
Have you been water changing regularly also?
if all is well with a retest.... happy days, keep the purigen in there and get some shrimp in!
Ady.
 
Thanks mate. Apologies for the photos, hard to get decent shots because the room gets a lot of light so lots of reflections.

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2012-2-18_17.17.17 by hotweldfire, on Flickr

From the side:
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2012-2-18_17.29.15 by hotweldfire, on Flickr

Hairgrass got trimmed back hard again a couple of weeks ago and this time is struggling to come back, especially at the front.

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2012-2-18_17.18.53 by hotweldfire, on Flickr

Assume this is because I'm reducing the co2 and the flow too which would explain better growth nearest the diffuser (ignore the DC, just changed it so more co2 than that in the tank). Wanted to get some fauna in here soon but am now thinking I might hold off for a bit and crank the co2 back up to get that hairgrass grown in a bit. Dunno, am flip flopping on that.

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2012-2-18_17.19.21 by hotweldfire, on Flickr
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2012-2-18_17.21.34 by hotweldfire, on Flickr

Hydro on the other hand is doing well, as is the mini xmas moss.

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2012-2-18_17.21.25 by hotweldfire, on Flickr

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2012-2-18_17.22.20 by hotweldfire, on Flickr

Have moved the frogbit on top of the moss as was getting a wee bit of hair algae so wanted to limit light to it. Am getting slightly worried about the light. Tank is only on a 5 and a half hour photoperiod but it gets a lot of ambient (although no direct) light during the day. Am concerned what will happen when I cut out the co2.

Anyway on the right of that pic growing emersed on top of the rock is Plagiomnium, I think trichomanes (thanks George :thumbup: ). I've not glued or tied it down, just plopped it on top of the rock. Some of it got a bit crispy but the rest is growing back nicely. Have tried to grow this stuff submerged before but always melts on me.

Also have some weirdness going on in with the hardness in this tank. Will post on that another time though.

BTW I also attempting and failing to get a wabi going in the office.

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Eurghhh by hotweldfire, on Flickr

Killed effectively so far are

Ludwigia palustris red
Hygrophila corymbosa 'Siamensis 053B' (is what it said on the 1-2-grow pack :geek: )
Hygrophila polysperma 'Rosanervig'
Hygrophila pinnatifida
HC (although that appears to be making a comeback)

The hydro (sib) is the only thing flourishing but that has been growing emersed on a windowsill for months (and would grow in a bloody desert I reckon). The other thing growing is some Plagiomnium.

The palustris went in first, melted badly then started to recover. I then added the hygros and got massive mould which totally destroyed the palustris (and then the hygros and most of the HC). I am now paying attention to Andras' advice and have put down a layer of java moss to inhibit the mould.

http://ukaps.org/forum/viewtopic.php?f= ... 8&start=10

Problem is I'm not here at weekend (not when I can help it anyway 🙄 ) so can't spray then. Both times I've come back in on a Monday and found melt or mould (depending on whether I left the bowl open or covered).

If anyone's got some cuttings from established emersed stems I'd be very appreciative. If you can part with cuttings from three different stems (including at least one Ludwigia) I'd be up for swapping for one of the little (2x2cm) mini xmas moss meshes I've got growing in the tank.

I have some Bacopa australis growing in a jar at home so might try that in here.
 
hotweldfire said:
Am wary of easycarbo and the like. I do use it occasionally as an algaecide in my main tank but don't like handling the stuff. Too many burns.
Click to expand...

really? i know its not nice stuff but ive never experience any side effects and im not careful with it at all :jawdrop
 
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