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Superfish Scaper Tanks

dw1305 said:
Hi all,

I've not had exactly this design of HOB, but could you <"not use the internal cartridge?">. I'm a HOB fan and if I go back to having a suitable tank I'll start using my Eheim Liberty HOB again.
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Yes, I think that'd be doable, though I'd need to modify the cartridge as otherwise the water would bypass the media towards the bottom.

Yes, I was looking a a corner hmf. I kind of like the keep everything in the tank approach. It'd also allow a more secure lid! Envrobee is just down the road from me.
 
Maurits said:
Within the SuperFish range, you can buy a timer with a sunset/ down feature however I am using an inline dimmable timer bought online.

O am not using the supplied hang-on filter, purely as this tank is in our living room and I didn't like the looks. I am using a 100 litre per hour external filter, guess the brand. Co2 is provided from 10 am till 7 pm using the New Colombo Co2 unit, if you got access to it why not using it 🙂.
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@Maurits, thank you for the information, appreciate it. Thanks for the link to the youtube video it's really well done, exactly what i was waiting for. Also, could you perhaps let me know which dimmer you've purchased?

Referring to the co2 unit, is this the metal cilinder with the 'bio co2'? I've seen it pop up but it felt kind of expensive, i've seen almost (if not) exactly the same ones on certain chinese ecommerce sites but for a lot less. Are you happy with it?
 
@PM_ME_YOUR_NEONS Within the Superfish range you can buy an inline timer with a sunset and sunrise setting ( 10 minutes ), If you want to have a longer sunset and sundown period you need to look online, there are a few options., with reference to the Co2 unit, you're correct. Please bear in mind that you buy a complete unit including all needed accessories, a glass diffuser, bubble counter, a fine-tune regulate and last but not least a Solinoid valve as well. Long term this unit is a cheaper option as the with one pack of ingredients you can easily do anything between four and six months. And personally, this is a much safer to use the unit, If you need to refill the ingredients you have around 5 to 10 minutes before pressure builds up, all other Co2 units I know is instant pressure and I have never felt comfortable using them.
 
@Maurits, thank you for the reply and info. Concerning the co2 unit, yes that makes sense actually. I Guess it's priced reasonably then. I assume you mean the bio co2 lasts 4-6months with the 3 packets that come in the refill? I'm contemplating buying this for a next nano tank but i think i will get another 'regular' pressurized system since i can buy it for less, around 130 euros including 500gr bottle, diffusor & bubble counter, regulator & solenoid valve. Only problem for me is getting the bottles refilled, bit of a drive.
 
Ive had the scaper 90 for around a month now. Strange they sell it with a HOB filter and such an intense light.
Does anybody know where I can find something to reduce the intensity?
All ive found online are the initial dimmers that last up to 10 mins before full intensity. I'm beginning to think my algae issues may be down to the strength of the lighting rather than any nutritional deficiencies or waste build up.20210121_195323.jpg
 
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jameson_uk said:
Just noticed these tanks (45/60/90 cm) pop up and wondered if anyone has seen these in the flesh?
Seem reasonable value and comes with an LED light, HOB, foam underlay, background foil and some Columbo ferts / carbon (the 45cm seems to be ~ £110).
They are apparently made of "Crystal Clear" glass 🤔 Not sure if this is just glass you can see through :angelic: or whether this is actually good low iron stuff.
The LED has a D energy rating which seems a bit odd but it does give a PAR rating.
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Hi Guys, Natquascape here, I have just joined UKAPS! (known about UKAPS for a while since 2012ish). I have the Superfish 45 and 90L aquariums. I have just set up the 90L with lights and CO2 with plants that I am storing at the moment. I will be scaping these tanks using colombo soils, ferts, CO2 and superfish gear to see how these projects pan out. So far I am really impressed. Superfish do sell timers that can ramp up and down the light intensity. I have yet to plug them into the light but will do soon as part of a YouTube review and comparison to my existing in-line light timers/controllable dimmers. So far I like the performance of the gear and the HOB filter, I just don't like the look of the HOB but for now, I want to see if I can achieve good plant growth using the colombo/superfish products. The 90L will be getting an external filter (review for YouTube channel to come). I have all the way ADA tanks too that are also on my channel with co2 pro series CO2 and OASE biomaster thermo filter. I like ADA but I really do want more people to get into nature aquariums without having to break the bank. For me...an entire ADA tank, gear, ferts and stand is just way too expensive. Maybe when I retire I will get a huge 180cm ADA aquarium 😀. I have just taken a picture (on my phone) of my 90L superfish aquarium with the co2 setup. I have a colombo refillable co2 system that comes with everything you need, so far I am impressed (I was unsure about how this would work out as I have only used disposable/refillable pressurised bottles). If you want to see a comparison of the ADA 45P vs Superfish 45 then I have done a review on my channel if it helps. The superfish 45 is crystal clear glass (not optiwhite as I stated in the video; needs editing again). I think for the price its a really good aquarium and so far I am happy with it. I also have a Hugo Kimishi tank with black silicone that I have scaped (whhhhaaaaaatttttt! haha). I actually like it and personally, the Hugo Kimishi scape with black silicone!!! yeah...I actually don't mind it (thought I would but I am surprised that I don't mind the black silicone). However, if I was to choose a preference, than I prefer clear minimal silicone. The superfish aquascape aquarium looks to be a good option without breaking the bank. Check put the pic of the 90L.20210202_105425.jpg
 
jameson_uk said:
Just noticed these tanks (45/60/90 cm) pop up and wondered if anyone has seen these in the flesh?
Seem reasonable value and comes with an LED light, HOB, foam underlay, background foil and some Columbo ferts / carbon (the 45cm seems to be ~ £110).
They are apparently made of "Crystal Clear" glass 🤔 Not sure if this is just glass you can see through :angelic: or whether this is actually good low iron stuff.
The LED has a D energy rating which seems a bit odd but it does give a PAR rating.
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Hi @jameson_uk I have done a comparison on my YouTube channel (search Natquascape) of the superfish 45 vs the ADA45P (out of the box) which includes a comparison of the transparency/clarity of the glass. I hope that the comparison/review helps
 
I had one of theirs tanks, the Superfish Home 60 one. It was a second hand 15 gallon tank, good one, good glass but ugly design and few scratches (but it was a second hand tank so). It had a built in dimmer and you could change to blue lights only as well 🙂
 
Big G said:
Thanks Oreo.

Interesting (to me)that photo-inhibition from even multi-walled polycarbonate isn’t as bad as I might have imagined.

An adjustable output light source would more than compensate for those losses at a given tank balance.

The specs on the supllied lighting unit put the output in PAR in the hundreds. I can’t ever imagine needing more than 50% of that, even in a high energy set up and much less in low- medium energy. (Based on my limited experience of plant growth from a roughly 60 PAR light source )The dimmer module is going to be an important purchase or some fairly opaque cover material. Baking paper anyone?😳

Can anyone confirm if these dimmer units come in at preset dimming levels when used in combination with a timer?

Somewhere down the line HDR will find its way into intelligent tank lighting and then it gets very interesting.

All the best

Bg
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What sort of routine would you recommend lighting wise? I've found it difficult to balance my tank with the light provided. Co2 injection and EI are still resulting in algae with this light. Ive tried moving it to the back where the fast growing stem plants are but i'm still getting algae growth at the front of my tank on my christmas moss in particular and now my hydrocotyle tripartita
 
I bought the s2 Pro dimmer to go with this light. It works. Can programme 8 different time settings to programme sunrise sunset. From 0 to 100 of your light intensity. Haven't had to use it in anger yet as waiting in plant delivery for tank :/ But have tried it out. Find them in amazon and YouTube. Then you can dim your light.
 
Kimbubbley said:
I bought the s2 Pro dimmer to go with this light. It works. Can programme 8 different time settings to programme sunrise sunset. From 0 to 100 of your light intensity. Haven't had to use it in anger yet as waiting in plant delivery for tank :/ But have tried it out. Find them in amazon and YouTube. Then you can dim your light.
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I've got one too. I think it's a must with this light to be honest, it's so intense it needs some sort of regulation during the photoperiod. I'm not sure if my lighting programme is correct but i've got it ramping up from 4pm (lights on, drop checker hitting green) to 7pm from 60% to 100% till one hour after co2 period ends. Lights go off at 100%. I'm not sure if I should ramp down?
 
@Maurits thanks for your details on the Scaper 90 🙂 please could you tell me if these are the same light and co2 settings you put in your tank when you very first set it up? I am waiting on plants for my tank. And it's my first attempt with plants, or co2 or lily pipes or lighting schedules or canister filters even! Keeping fish is the easy bit, lol. In your experience could you rate the light in terms of suitability for easy medium or high light plants? I have asked other places, but generally the answer is peeps couldn't possibly say, as there's no details of the depth or matter PAR was measured through. And mostly 'oh no dear, that's not a twinstar'! 😀 ideally I'm looking for some basic start up settings to narrow down my variables. So I don't overcook everything within the first week. VTM KimIMG_20210130_175133334.jpg
 
Afternoon Ukaps. Let me show you an update on my plants in the Superfish Scaper 90.

Firstly Rotala Macrandra, a plant I never had any success within my 44 years of plant and fish keeping, but finally here she s, what a beautiful addition to the plant hobby
20210221_110606058_iOS.jpg

The second picture, I was on the lookout for Limnophilla Heterophylla Giganthea, When I was visiting Aquafleur in the Netherlands two weeks ago ( disclaimer, essential work ! , travelling is allowed ) they gave me some stems from a Limnophilla variety from Australia, not the real Gigantheo but very close

20210211_180221445_iOS.jpg

Third picture, I took this picture this morning, tank is now around 8 weeks old and what an amazing growth and plant health

20210221_110508132_iOS.jpg

I answer too some questions, I am currently using a dimmer which I bought online, the light comes on at 7 am with a 10 % setting, this ramps up to 100 % at 4 pm. from 8 pm till 10.30 pm the light ramps down from 100 % back to 0%. I am using the new Colombo Bio Co2 reactor, around 2 bubbles per second from 8 am till 4 pm. I am still finding the right setting as the plants are pearling way too much. ( Don't tell anybody, but SuperFish will launch soon a new controller which can do the same 🙂 )

Substrate, Colombo Nutribase as the first layer, second layer Colombo Flora base course, top layer, Colombo Flora base fine ( holds the plants better )

Plant food, think it's not a surprise, once every 2 weeks 4 squirts of Colombo flora grow and in the other week 4 squirts of Colombo flora Grow Pro.

Water changes, I use only rainwater, every other day I do a 10 % water change.

Lastly, to give you all an idea, this was the tank 8 weeks ago. ( 16th December 2020 )

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Dear ukaps people. I just ordered a Superfish Scaper 60. After being out of the hobby for a couple of years I couldn`t resist after seeing this tank and for that price. I should have known better that costs will add up soon because of all the extra nice things we need (want) 🙂

Anyway my question is this. Reading this topic I understand the light supplied with the tank is quite powerful. Now that can be a good thing and a not so good thing of course. The type of tank I`m after is a Dutch style aquarium, you know, no hardscape and lots of plants. I also have a diy co2 system with a solenoid so I can turn off the co2 when I want. Is the light provided with the tank too much? Will it trigger algae? I also ordered the s2 pro dimmer but since it comes from China and the tank will arrive monday I was wondering if it is smart to wait for the dimmer or just start with the light on full blast and not wait for the dimmer? If you say it is ok to start without the dimmer, what would be a safe place to start with? 5 hours of light? If you say wait for the dimmer, what would be a good percentage power output for the light to start out with, 75%?
I`m starting the tank with lots of plants and will be feeding the plants with the EI method.

Would love to hear your advice. Thank you and greetings from the Netherlands.

Tom
 
I have just set my superfish Scaper 60 up.
IMG_20210310_192338452.jpg
You can see a thread for this in the journals called Learning Curve! I also have the S2 Pro dimmer. For the first week the lights have been set to 50% on the dimmer while the plants settle and root. The photo period is 6 hours. And either side is a 15min ramp up and ramp down from 0 to 50%. So 6.5hrs total. There is no algae yet. I have been changing as much of the water as I can get out, every day for first week to dilute any organics in the water. And adding Seachem Prime , Stability, and Excel at 1ml to 50ltrs. I will do this massive water change for a month as per journal New decade new Decadence 🙂 I think believe the advice there after is to increase the lights by 10% approx weekly as the plant mass grows to utilise the extra light. And monitor the tank. I hope this helps!
 
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