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259L bookcase rebirth
- Thread starter greenink
- Start date
Eleocharis is filling in a treat!
MARKCOUSINS
Member
It's hard sometimes even when you know it's the right thing to do to just get stuck in and give the plants a severe trim but just wait and see the dense growth.Good job cheers mark
flygja
Member
Looking good. I can't imagine just going a single water change per month on my tanks, even though I am trying to make it low maintenance and all.
About to trim the stems back once more. This low light thing really does mean stuff grows slowly - but more healthy than ever before. The trick of blasting the anubias with a syringe of EasyCarbo at water change has also cleaned that up a lot from BBA.
Stauro in particular is recovering from my complete neglect. Here's a quick video (best in high res).
Patience... patience...
Stauro in particular is recovering from my complete neglect. Here's a quick video (best in high res).
Patience... patience...
Though the low light was working well, got a bit frustrated that the tank was overall much darker in the room when it was on. So have switched to high intensity, short burst to see whether I can get the same effect.
For about a year have been running CO2 9.30-6.30 and 2/4*T5s 12-11. Am now switching to CO2 1.30-8.00 and 4*T5s 4-10.30, so 6.5 hours of both.
Have also changed the direction of the outlets and CO2 flow, which seems to be working much better. Was pointing directly forwards, now both outlets point to each side wall, and bounce off these down to the substrate, before going back. So effectively have two mini circles of flow, and seems to get much better distribution.
For about a year have been running CO2 9.30-6.30 and 2/4*T5s 12-11. Am now switching to CO2 1.30-8.00 and 4*T5s 4-10.30, so 6.5 hours of both.
Have also changed the direction of the outlets and CO2 flow, which seems to be working much better. Was pointing directly forwards, now both outlets point to each side wall, and bounce off these down to the substrate, before going back. So effectively have two mini circles of flow, and seems to get much better distribution.
Quick full tank shot here, right after second big trim of all rotala stems (they're trimmed down to about 3 inches behind the hairgrass):
And comparison shot a month ago:
Really noticeable how much the BBA has cleared up (see the far right rock in particular).
And comparison shot a month ago:
Really noticeable how much the BBA has cleared up (see the far right rock in particular).
SO annoying. Have just realised I've been exporting RAW images to JPG at 90% image quality practically for ever on all my posts... 
Have been wondering why my shots looked so much better on screen in Aperture than in this journal. Here's the same two pictures as above, but with image export at 100%.
And a close up of the stauro
Really wish there was some easy way to auto-replace all my previous images! But I guess should just be glad I've noticed, and can get future ones looking better from now. Grrr.
Have been wondering why my shots looked so much better on screen in Aperture than in this journal. Here's the same two pictures as above, but with image export at 100%.And a close up of the stauro
Really wish there was some easy way to auto-replace all my previous images! But I guess should just be glad I've noticed, and can get future ones looking better from now. Grrr.
Tank is looking great, images this small don't make a huge difference 
but the sharper they are the better
but the sharper they are the better 
Not sure how much I can answer! My recent experience has been that precision dosing is a waste of time (I just bung in a load when I feel like it), high CO2, good surface movement, high plant mass, ruthless trimming down as low as you dare, and much less light than you want seems to work.
Have noticed today that most of my Amanos seem to have gone. But have so many cherry shrimp now doesn't really matter: they're completely self sustaining.
And just 'cos it's such nice fish, here's a sort of close up of the mini puffer in this tank.
Lovely photo Mike.And just 'cos it's such nice fish, here's a sort of close up of the mini puffer in this tank.
Have been experimenting with the camera (Canon EOS 600D, f1.4 50mm Lens) to try and get the photos right. Have started a proper thread on this somewhere else, asking people about their flash set ups. But in the meantime, here's the best I can do with just tank lighting (4*T5s).
Luminaire lowered to about 3 cm from the surface, completely blacked out room, and a bit of white plastic in there to start with to set up an accurate custom white balance. Here are the shots straight off the camera - so this is actually how it looks.
f2.8, 1/80, ISO 200
f5.6, 1/80, ISO 400 - bit moodier, but suffering from the fact my luminaire is 15cm shorter than the tank at either end, so light really drops off in the corners.
Which do people prefer? Comments on photography really helpful.
(Eagle eyed will notice have tweaked positions of main rocks to give it more depth and tension - when the rotala grows back up behind all this, think will start to come together...)
Luminaire lowered to about 3 cm from the surface, completely blacked out room, and a bit of white plastic in there to start with to set up an accurate custom white balance. Here are the shots straight off the camera - so this is actually how it looks
.f2.8, 1/80, ISO 200
f5.6, 1/80, ISO 400 - bit moodier, but suffering from the fact my luminaire is 15cm shorter than the tank at either end, so light really drops off in the corners.
Which do people prefer? Comments on photography really helpful.
(Eagle eyed will notice have tweaked positions of main rocks to give it more depth and tension - when the rotala grows back up behind all this, think will start to come together...)
Some minor adjustments. Bottom right corner I've never been happy with:
But the Anubias has now grown enough to split. So made that into three portions by cutting the rhizome, removed the moss stones from the foreground (just hasn't been happy here), banked up the substrate and put in a couple of plastic dividers to keep it steeper.
Then portioned up a whole load of Lilaeopsis brasiliensis in individual plantlets. According to various people's experience here, flourishes in similar conditions to the Anubias, so am hopeful. Have to say a spare length of PVC plastic is just the job for holding them above the tank.
And planted up. The little rocks are to hold the Anubias down until it takes root.
Am hoping for something a bit Mark Evans for the foreground (aim high, why not?)
But the Anubias has now grown enough to split. So made that into three portions by cutting the rhizome, removed the moss stones from the foreground (just hasn't been happy here), banked up the substrate and put in a couple of plastic dividers to keep it steeper.
Then portioned up a whole load of Lilaeopsis brasiliensis in individual plantlets. According to various people's experience here, flourishes in similar conditions to the Anubias, so am hopeful. Have to say a spare length of PVC plastic is just the job for holding them above the tank.
And planted up. The little rocks are to hold the Anubias down until it takes root.
Am hoping for something a bit Mark Evans for the foreground (aim high, why not?)
Also popped in a tiny pot of Pogostemon stellata at the back, which I've never been able to grow.
But in general, this tank is now looking healthier than ever before, so hopes are up. Here's the stauro and blyxa, for example. No melting, no algae. The stauro is basically recovering from a harsh trim followed by a period of serious neglect, CO2 running out for a week before I noticed and too-high light, but am growing enough to have a proper carpet again in a month or so.
And satisfyingly, this rock on the far right has had no regrowth of algae at all since I nuked it with Easycarbo a month ago. Now just to get the others as clean.
Put this run of minor success down to:
- getting CO2 absolutely stable (and lime green);
- reducing photo period to 6.5 hours - my big change that I'm doing from now on forever;
- nuking the BBA that had got a hold in places by spot dosing with a syringe of Easycarbo with the pumps off (only just done on the Anubias rock today, as it seems to seriously kill moss, and there was lots beneath it before);
- and limiting water changes to lights off, as have learned doing this with lights on is a massive boost for BBA and CO2 instability, even if it does lead to instant pearling and look lovely
This forum such a massive help. Would have taken me about 30 years to figure this stuff out on my own. Nearly at the point where I can grow plants properly and then concentrate on my 'scaping....
But in general, this tank is now looking healthier than ever before, so hopes are up. Here's the stauro and blyxa, for example. No melting, no algae. The stauro is basically recovering from a harsh trim followed by a period of serious neglect, CO2 running out for a week
before I noticed and too-high light, but am growing enough to have a proper carpet again in a month or so.And satisfyingly, this rock on the far right has had no regrowth of algae at all since I nuked it with Easycarbo a month ago. Now just to get the others as clean.
Put this run of minor success down to:
- getting CO2 absolutely stable (and lime green);
- reducing photo period to 6.5 hours - my big change that I'm doing from now on forever;
- nuking the BBA that had got a hold in places by spot dosing with a syringe of Easycarbo with the pumps off (only just done on the Anubias rock today, as it seems to seriously kill moss, and there was lots beneath it before);
- and limiting water changes to lights off, as have learned doing this with lights on is a massive boost for BBA and CO2 instability, even if it does lead to instant pearling and look lovely
This forum such a massive help. Would have taken me about 30 years to figure this stuff out on my own. Nearly at the point where I can grow plants properly and then concentrate on my 'scaping....
Mike these is a cool picture!!!! Love it mate! They are so inquisitive !And just 'cos it's such nice fish, here's a sort of close up of the mini puffer in this tank.
After learning quite a bit about the golden rules and how to get a 'scape nicely proportioned (see this thread for lots of examples), did a bit of analysis on this tank. It just isn't right: it doesn't work in terms of 1/3s or diagonals or focus points or anything really.
Have never been happy with it, but analysing it quite strictly in terms of the golden ratio me this helped pinpoint why:
1) Each section of the 1/3s grid should be distinctive and almost make sense on it's own, but work as a whole. That's just not true of this tank. Plant groups overlap too much.
2) Two opposite corners of the central square should be the main focus points for the tank. One should be in the foreground and one back. In this tank the focus points are too far apart, too similar in level, and two similar in terms of depth (they're both at the back of the tank).
3) The tank should lead the eye across three main diagonals. This tank isn't terrible for that, but the bottom right stone cuts across this quite badly (it would be better 'flipped' horizontally), the top right stone doesn't accentuate the diagonal (it should be slightly to the left), and something in the bottom left corner to highlight the top right/bottom left diagonal would have been better.
4) The way the tank draws the eye (red lines below) should give a bit of 'tension' to the grid and the diagonals, and make overall sense. In this tank the main 'eye drawing lines' are too similar and lack an overall shape.
Of course once I'd realised this couldn't live with it any more!
So did a pretty major rescape this weekend using bits and pieces I had lying around. Bit of bubble wrap on the bottom of the major rocks should protect the tank.
And because I wanted to see what happens if you make it easy to stick the golden rules went slightly over the top and taped the tank. You can see how much substrate has slipped over time to the front of the tank, so have consciously designed something that has more 'layers' in it and uses the hardscape more intelligently to hold substrate back.
To be fair, it's pretty hard to stick to these rules even vaguely if you can't see anything in the tank, so don't feel too bad about the OCD tape as was 'scaping the in the dark. (I don't have anywhere to move out the livestock and don't fancy catching millions of shrimp).
Found it really helpful. Have got something I'm now quite pleased with - not perfect but for the first time has real potential. Looks quite 'hardscape heavy' at this point, but is the first time I've done a hardscape while thinking quite hard about which plants will go where to accent different points and think will be able to soften it. All the fish/shrimp seem to have survived, partly thanks to massive water changes just after...
Have never been happy with it, but analysing it quite strictly in terms of the golden ratio me this helped pinpoint why:
1) Each section of the 1/3s grid should be distinctive and almost make sense on it's own, but work as a whole. That's just not true of this tank. Plant groups overlap too much.
2) Two opposite corners of the central square should be the main focus points for the tank. One should be in the foreground and one back. In this tank the focus points are too far apart, too similar in level, and two similar in terms of depth (they're both at the back of the tank).
3) The tank should lead the eye across three main diagonals. This tank isn't terrible for that, but the bottom right stone cuts across this quite badly (it would be better 'flipped' horizontally), the top right stone doesn't accentuate the diagonal (it should be slightly to the left), and something in the bottom left corner to highlight the top right/bottom left diagonal would have been better.
4) The way the tank draws the eye (red lines below) should give a bit of 'tension' to the grid and the diagonals, and make overall sense. In this tank the main 'eye drawing lines' are too similar and lack an overall shape.
Of course once I'd realised this couldn't live with it any more!
So did a pretty major rescape this weekend using bits and pieces I had lying around. Bit of bubble wrap on the bottom of the major rocks should protect the tank.
And because I wanted to see what happens if you make it easy to stick the golden rules went slightly over the top and taped the tank. You can see how much substrate has slipped over time to the front of the tank, so have consciously designed something that has more 'layers' in it and uses the hardscape more intelligently to hold substrate back.
To be fair, it's pretty hard to stick to these rules even vaguely if you can't see anything in the tank, so don't feel too bad about the OCD tape as was 'scaping the in the dark. (I don't have anywhere to move out the livestock and don't fancy catching millions of shrimp).
Found it really helpful. Have got something I'm now quite pleased with - not perfect but for the first time has real potential. Looks quite 'hardscape heavy' at this point, but is the first time I've done a hardscape while thinking quite hard about which plants will go where to accent different points and think will be able to soften it. All the fish/shrimp seem to have survived, partly thanks to massive water changes just after...
Ian Holdich
Member
Looking forward to the pics mike!
Great update, Mike. Thanks for sharing all of your valuable lessons and I'm looking forward to seeing the results of your golden rules implementation.
