The Celestial Swamp - A voyage through a flooded forest fringe (Shallow Riparium)

[hitmanx]

I'm really hoping that getting this RO/DI system up and running helps me control the water aspect of this system a little better... even if it doesn't improve anything, at least it will be far more convenient to make water rather than go buy it... i hook it up to the faucet and make water over night into a big reservoir and then add to the system as needed... this way I can also make sure I keep it topped up more regularly with out so much of a swing in water chemistry... sometimes I forgot to add top off water until 15 gallons evaporated especially in the dryer winter conditions... I swear I'm losing 3 gallons a day now

 

[mort]

My maidenhair took over as well. It grew to a couple of feet high and even wider. I trimmed it massively and moved it to the edge of the tank where it had room to flop over the side. It's now waiting for a new larger setup.

 

[Edvet]

helps me control the water aspect of this system a little better

I have a permanent connection from a few of my tanks to the sewer so i can leave a RO system running water into the tank. Sadly a little late for your tank but perhaps you can make an extra small overflow on your Bean system and connect an RO system too (https://www.ukaps.org/forum/threads/nano-overflow.51607/) Maybe just to the garden or crawlspace

 

[zozo]

what I need to do is add more lights directed on and angle to back and this should help the back plants growth...

Maybe not more lights but goosenecks on the excisting lights could solve this, so you can direct them where you need them the most. That's the thing with fixed lights and a non fixed dynamic growing tank, change it and later on change it again.
https://aliexpress.com/item/2pc-LED-table-lamp-holder-led-hose-gooseneck-Dia-10mm-metal-holder-400mm-600mm-head-screw/32331599267.html

With the excact same issue in mind for my tank setup i came up with a rod with several spot lights mounted to it.. They can twist and turn and slide in the dircetion its needed and give certain planted areas in the tank a higher intensity. In my case i have a lily next to a bunch of anubias. Now i can redirect light away from the anubias and bundle more to the lily. And each spot is seperately dimmable. But this can also be solved with spots in different wattage.

I have another setup in mind where i also plan to use these goosenecks. For the same purpose direct the light where i need it. Also handy after a rescaping..

 

[hitmanx]

I have a permanent connection from a few of my tanks to the sewer so i can leave a RO system running water into the tank.

So you have a constant supply of RO water running into your tank all the time?

Any idea what your water usage is in this case?

 

[hitmanx]

Maybe not more lights but goosenecks on the excisting lights could solve this, so you can direct them where you need them the most.

Each led light bulb is actually attached to a swivel socket that also can be angled too... but I'm sure this would lead to not enough light in the middle... I have more led bulbs and sockets so it wouldn't be hard to add more in the series...

I do want to point out I love this style of lighting... its very robust and variable... I couldn't imagine being pinned down to using t5s or radions etc especially with the ridiculous costs involved in pre made systems... at $12/bulb and like $20 in electrical parts and some elbow grease its easy to see that I can get great results (imho)...

I don't remember if I went over the details of my lighting setup or not... maybe it's time

 

[Edvet]

I can have it running RO only, or have the waste water going in the tank too, that way it's a constant waterchange. I am at app 100 lit/day, it's a 1500 + 350 l sump, so about 50% weekly if i use Ro and waste.

 

[zozo]

I couldn't imagine being pinned down to using t5s or radions etc especially with the ridiculous costs involved in pre made systems... at $12/bulb and like $20 in electrical parts and some elbow grease its easy to see that I can get great results (imho)...

I absolutely agree and we have so many alternatives to make use of the possibilities are limitless. For example a standard bar handle in brushed nickel 12mm you'll find on kiitchen doors..

Than look the laboratory stand cross clamp 12mm

Any lampfitting etc. in Europe has a standard M10x1 thread, than the sleeves to connect M10x1 thread rods used in lamp constrution are 12mm outside diameter.

The lab clamp fits the doorgrip, the sleeve fits in the Lab clamp, the spotlight fits into the sleeve it's all standard M10x1.. And before you know you have a twisting and turning and sliding spot light essambly you can not buy anywhere in the world. It sounds stuppid, seeing a light when looking at a kitchen doorgrip. But it works beter than any ready made light for sale..

I don't remember if I went over the details of my lighting setup or not... maybe it's time

Please do!? Im very curious..

 

[hitmanx]

I added a super red bristlenose pleco last week... he's having fun hanging out with the ottos and eating stuff...

I also added some sagitaria sublata spread throughout the front area... we shall see how it fairs with the diatom algae issue...

 

[mort]

I saw super reds on a website for sale and the picture was far redder/orange. Do you know if they colour up with maturity, if there are different grades or if yours is an accurate example.

 

[hitmanx]

Please do!? Im very curious..

One of these days I will...

For now the Maiden hair fern is taking over again... and I've spread the hygrophila polysperma everywhere... it's kind of turning into a monoculture...

I really do think the homemade RO water is changing things for the better as far as the long hair diatom algae... it's growing much slower... certainly it's much better than driving and carting around big jugs of water. A very good purchase indeed!

My nitrates are starting to creep up to 40+ ppm... it's definitely time to clean out the filter and add the eheim compact 5000 pump...

Also I really need to get rid of the alternifolia in the back... it's drying out to much and looks like blahblahblahblah... I just don't know what to replace it with...

 

[hitmanx]

I saw super reds on a website for sale and the picture was far redder/orange. Do you know if they colour up with maturity, if there are different grades or if yours is an accurate example.

The pleco is getting more orange as time passes...

You can't see it from the front shots but there's a lot of spathiphillum behind the Maiden hair fern and syngonium...

They are healthy but they aren't growing big enough... I'm thinking of adding a 'golden glow' variety of spathiphillum to the very back to add contrast... I really miss having the emersed hygrophila angustifolia spread around to add interest and contrast to the larger plants... I still have some aphids kicking around on the new syngonium leaves...

 

[zgmarkozg]

this is amazing!

 

[hitmanx]

A picture showcasing the colour of the bristle nose pleco (Ancistrus sp. 'super red'), and the various algae in the front...

 

[hitmanx]

I want to start adding a shrimp colony to this tank... I've had amano shrimp last quite awhile in this tank but then disappear (ive seen one crawling 10feet away on the carpet) and cherries have not been successful... in the past I've had a successful rcs colony in another tank but when I started water changes with tap water and using seachem equilibrium they all slowly died off...

I use equilibrium as part of my ferts each week but I have decided to use remineralized RO water for any water changes and take tap water completely out of the equation.

Does anybody have any experience with the different kinds of Salty Shrimp brand salts? I've read many good things so I am going to use salty shrimp products but I need to decide between the Shrimp Mineral gh/kh or the Aquarium Mineral gh/kh... What's the difference? They don't list the ingredients...

I plan to keep rcs and amano shrimp in this tank...

 

[hitmanx]

I just don't understand why shrimp don't work in this tank...

I drip acclimated a dozen wild cherry shrimp and an amano yesterday and they have dropped like flies... my gh is at 10 and my kh is at 3... my tds is a little high at 375ppm and I have been doing more water changes lately... the fish are happy and healthy... Maybe it's the 2 koralia power heads chewing them up?

Frustrating indeed...

I purchased the salty shrimp mineral gh/kh so I'm going to remineralize RO water for changes... Maybe I'm lacking calcium and other traces...

Update:

I may have overreacted... I actually only saw one dead shrimp and assumed the worst... one of the wild cherries was swimming around this afternoon and it look fine... either the others are hiding or dead somewhere in the background... 60% of this tank is in the shadows and behind drift wood so anything could be happening back there... I have to move planters to see it...

Holy crap these wild cherrys are hard to see! They went from a clear colour to mottled brown and are extremely camoflauged but I have found 2 so far... I still cannot find the amano shrimp...

 

[hitmanx]

Its a far cry from the original 60-70 fish i had a year ago... i spent a small fortune yesterday on better quality stock (hopefully) of cpds and emerald rasboras... a dozen young ones each... unfortunately 2 of the cpds have died in the quarantine tank... not sure why

I am also trying the cpd bucket breeding again, but this time only 1 male and 2 females and only one night at a time per bucket...

Fauna:

5 Celestichthys margaritatus (Celestial Pearl 'Danio')
6 Celestichthys choprae (Glowlight 'Danio')
6 Celestichthys erythromycin (Emerald dwarf rasboras)
12 Brachydanio tinwini (Gold ring 'Danio')
3 Poecilia wingei x 'Tiger' (Tiger endler)
1 Ancistrus sp. 'Super red
1 otociclus cocama
1 otociclus affinis

Flora:

Above

Spathiphyllum 'petite' (Peace lily)
Syngonium podophyllum 'Butterfly'
Cyperus alternifolius 'Gracilis'
Aglaonema sp. (Chinese evergreen)
Chamaedorea cataractarum (Cat palm)
Monstera deliciosa (Swiss cheese plant)
Ficus pumila (Creeping fig)
Anthurium sp. 'Red'
Pilea mollis 'Moonvalley'

Below

Limnobium laevigatum (Amazon frogit)
Hygrophila Polysperma
Cryptocoryne retrospiralis
Cryptocoryne lutea
Cryptocoryne willisii x
Helanthium tenellum
Helanthium tenellum 'Green'
Sagitaria sublata

 

[hitmanx]

As beautiful as this maifen hair fern is in person, it just doesnt come through in pictures... its massive and it's taking over...

Between that and the Syngoniums, my vision isn't being fulfilled as far as the riparium is concerned... They are just getting too big! I was hoping the spathiphillums in the back would be bigger... I need more light back there!

Time for a trim... hopefully I didn't cut off too much...

It's a little better now but now the Syngoniums on the left look to big and the middle looks empty now... the top leaves are almost the size of the Taro I had last year! I have no experience trimming Syngonium... speaking of taro, I can't wait till spring so I can get my hands on some of those for the background planter... the cat palms have barely grown one or two leaves in 2 years so they wont work back there...

Despite the slow growth, the Spathiphillum and Anthurium have been putting out constant flowers...

The maiden hair fern is beautiful by itself but the fine texture and overpowering size is very distracting... it ruins the composition...

 

[mort]

I've got 8 yellow cherry shrimp in a 15 litre heavily planted nano and I find it impossible to see any half the time. It seems because they are a snack in nature they have evolved a strong hiding instinct. If they are anything like my cherry shrimp colony in my bigger tank they will breed and breed before suddenly growing braver in the future. It's also common for shrimp to take a few weeks to settle and with the change in water chemistry they normally shed overnight, so will be somewhere safe hardening up.

My maidenhair really took over and I trimmed off the weaker growth. Unfortunately this made the new growth grow faster in the brighter light where it has shaded the other parts and ruined the shape. I'll be moving soon and I'm going to split it up to try and grow up newer smaller plants.
If your looking for a nice background plant I have what I believe is calathea rufibarba https://www.houseofplants.co.uk/plants/calathea-rufibarba_velvet-calathea_25740.html which has done really well for me in a lower light situation mixed in with the spathiphillum.

 

[hitmanx]

I've got 8 yellow cherry shrimp in a 15 litre heavily planted nano and I find it impossible to see any half the time. It seems because they are a snack in nature they have evolved a strong hiding instinct. If they are anything like my cherry shrimp colony in my bigger tank they will breed and breed before suddenly growing braver in the future. It's also common for shrimp to take a few weeks to settle and with the change in water chemistry they normally shed overnight, so will be somewhere safe hardening up.

My maidenhair really took over and I trimmed off the weaker growth. Unfortunately this made the new growth grow faster in the brighter light where it has shaded the other parts and ruined the shape. I'll be moving soon and I'm going to split it up to try and grow up newer smaller plants.
If your looking for a nice background plant I have what I believe is calathea rufibarba https://www.houseofplants.co.uk/plants/calathea-rufibarba_velvet-calathea_25740.html which has done really well for me in a lower light situation mixed in with the spathiphillum.

Yeah with all the fish swimming around I could see why the shrimp might be hiding... hopefully they survive... I found a local source of red cherry shrimp for $0.65/ea so I'd like to throw in about 100 of them... I don't want them all to die. That's why I am testing with these first... I am switching the parameters over to remineralized RO water in my smaller riparium and I'm am going to start a breeding colony in there too. I loved breeding them a few years back...

The good thing about the maiden hair fern is that you can kind of fluff it up like a pillow and change the shape of the plant to make it more round... I wouldn't dare split up the rhizome in fear of it dieing like many of my previous attempts... I am thinking of moving it to another piece of drift wood, but it's root system is perfectly situated and I fear it will die...

I would love a calathea rufibarba and ive been looking for one for over a year... i cant find any here in canada... i think it would be a perfect addition in the background.