Ok guys,
I've decided to do a full rebuild; I really wasn't happy with the first one. I think I rushed it in my excitement to get an aquarium again...
To start with I drained the tank water and siphoned the gravel (not the plant substrate) into a large bucket to keep the bacteria alive until I can fill the tank again. Then I moved the plant substrate to one side of the tank and let it drain of water, before removing that water and scooping up the mud ready for it's next use. There was a little bit of gravel in the mud, but I don't mind.
Going with a "Make the best from what you have" mentality, I decided to go a bit further with removing the plastic from the tank. I chopped and sawed away until the plastic was just under the side glass of the aquarium, which will be further hidden when I add a black band to the bottom of the tank using electrical tape. Turns out the whole plastic base is held on with double sided tape at each end! That being the case, I applied some silicone better binding the base to the aquarium. I have no idea if it's aquarium safe, but none of this silicone is going inside the tank, and will have cured for days before I get to add water again.
I also took this opportunity to spray the back of the tank black with a none-toxic acrylic paint (Games Workshop to be precise) and again left that to cure for a few hours, as well as adding the black band electrical tape to the bottom.
At my LFS I found the following rocks. One of them looks like a cliff / plateau I though'd look good.
To bed these in with gravel to provide some height, but not use the plant mud. Hopefully it will slightly avoid going anaerobic too. This was the best layout I could come up with. Pretty much every stone I got has a "show" side and a "no" side. I decided to add gaps between the stones for planting. BTW this gravel was some spare dry gravel I had from the original aquascape, and thus not seeded with bacteria yet.
Next I added the mud back in an even layer on top of that gravel, and as the base layer where there is glass. The mud follows the contours of the gravel and glass underneath.
The black background looks great, perfectly even. To protect it, I've added the original vinyl backing back on top to prevent it scratching when I add the filter and accessories. You can't see it, so I'm happy.
It's still a little wet, but I don't mind. The gravel that will go over this mud layer is still with the filter in the bucket, and for the next few days I'll add one or two drops of food to keep the bacteria going.
I've ordered an Eden external filter / heater combo (one less thing in the tank!) and some TMC rail and stand kit for my AquaRay light. I've also ordered:
Micranthemum MonteCarlo
http://www.pro-shrimp.co.uk/in-vitr...in-vitro-dennerle-plant-it-4001615300383.html
Alternanthera Reineckii Mini
http://www.pro-shrimp.co.uk/in-vitr...kii-mini-dennerle-plant-it-4001615300550.html
I haven't used these type of plant kits yet, as last time I was asquascaping they didn't exist! I got three pots of the MonteCarlo and 2 of the Reineckii, with mind to spit the MonteCarlo into as many pieces I can to start up the carpet.
Next update will be after planting, re-gravelling and external filter setup!