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There are some tricks: - bleach, fill tank with water+bleach for 24 hours. Will be like new! - let algae dry and then scrub. Easy, but will take 15 minutes to do it! - apply easycarbo (or similar) and clean in the next day. If needed, repeat procedure. - accept the beauty of algae and respect...

Back to level zero! Still need to clean silicon... Time to think the next one! cheers

Yes, is still running... full of algae, waiting for his last days... Sorry for the phone pic's... cheers

No worry, that's life! It's a good lesson.:clap: IMO: My purpose is not to violate the contest rules but just to participate, for me is just a hobby to have fun! (i don't paid much attention to contest rules):angelic: It's not fair for the ones that follow the rules. :writing: I believe it's a...

Another result: cheers!

About the design and built quality... Usually you get for what you paid! - Chihiros RGB is cheaper than Twinstar! - TS has better build quality. That why is very important to go at local dealer and put hands on both, test and make your conclusions! Cheers!

Hi Johny, PAR is just a way to compare different lights. You can work with high energy, low energy or something between... Depends on what you want, at what speed and cost... Take o look of amazing tanks here in UKAPS with low light, also with high light (but they tend to be more hard work)...

This time is a 7º place! Not bad! cheers!

Hi, long time passed since last post... (sorry) This is my ranking in IAPLC2018: Special thanks to: Vicente, Nuno Matos, Tozé Nunes, Luís Cardoso, for supporting and helping along the journey! One piece of wood, some rocks, DIY LED, no fancy stuff... With some work and dedication a nice score...

Here is a better picture of the 'Eheim filter' with my system. Nothing special, but very efective if you don't like the 'white look' of the gear and you're lazy as me (and like to clean reactor's, from never to never). I use Eheim Liberty, changed as a skimmer, to get leaves and floating...

Yes, no problem! Sorry for the bad phone quality pic's. This is how i'm using now, simpla as that! This was the previous version: I used a sand filter. You can drill an extra hole for the cable, or use a T in the one of the holes. Cheers

You can switch between TS nd Chihiro mesh with no problem. Last generation plates are more stable and last longer! I, ve used the reactor inline, it works but was one more stage to pipe work... Now i'm using inside a liberty filter, that i use as garbage colector ( with surface skimmer). Inside...

After a big cut... cheers! :cigar:

Be free to pass by, you're always welcome! Thanks! Not so happy with the lower part, parvula. Let's see how it goes. You're also welcome, bring some minis! The effect, of national beer, in a planted aquarium aquarium is a long time secret! ;) I could give some clues about red wine tannin's...

You're right, i'm very lazy person... Yes, i'm updating now. Algae gone long time ago, but always have in start up's.:bored: Here is the layout after a cut... And more stuff... Hope you love it, it's a very fun tank to maintain, cheers!

Is an inline reactor really better than an inline diffuser? Better is subjective... Inline reactors, like sera flora 500/1000, will give the best Co2 dilution, you can reach 100% dilution. But they are big and can make some noise, little but the noise is there! (I use this one in my big tank)...

If conditions are good, buce will flower many times! Normally is a good symptom of tank health. One of the origins, of the plant name, can be seen in the small detail in flower: it's a bull head with horns! look at these beautiful horns! Watch your flower and you'll see it, Cheers

Hi. i've seen top quality layout with all these fixtures, they are all good! My personal impression of each one: - Chihiros A Series Plus: very light very small nice build very cheap powerful with dimmer included stays very cool. Light colour a bit green for my taste, but that's subjective...

Thanks! I learned a lot in this forum! So, i keep sharing my try's and errors, maybe others will learn. Maintenance is the key, there's always some stuff to solve. UKAPS is very nice place to learn aquascaping! Thanks for the nice words!

Here is the update, usually i get algae in start in my tanks always... The wood must have lot's of organic waste, diatoms are also playing a bit here! Look at this fluffy thing!:lurking: This reactor needs a bath!:banhappy: Emersed leaves dying also helps algae. Some cleaning, water...

Kind off. there are some rules, if you want to follow... maybe for the pro's that's important. ( even there you easily see them breaking the rules) for me and mot of the hobby people the key is participate and have fun! Be free, break the rules!

Finally EAPLC place for this one: 81 EAPLC | 49 CIPS | 152 IIAC | 383 IAPLC | ## AGA (no rank) Cheers

nice! New layout?

As Clive said, RAW is they way to go, if you want to take the most of your camera! Actually is funny to see that when you shoot raw the cheapest cameras perform very similar the €€€ ones... The extra space that you need for storage worth every terabyte! I try to be very simple in processing...

Not the perfect photo but: It seem's freeze (that's flash) but it wasn't! The corydora was swimming and fast! I shoot this one with YN560-III, manual mode. ISO 200 | speed 1/125 | ƒ/13.0 | MicroNikkor 60.0 mm

I also shot macro and FTS with aquarium light, but for best quality flash makes the difference. With flash light you 'can get', soft to hard light, low iso, different DOF, very low noise, and cleaner images (but you have to know how to use the gear). Working with the light that you got have some...

Hi Nigel, you can go for yongnuo, or any brand you like €€€€ These flash deliver the same output like, canon, nikon, etc. my advice, go for TTL. the Triggers are usefull for TTL with wireless, but be prepared, lots of batteries You can use a TTL cable also. Using flash in photography has a...

Many thanks Clive! I'll see if i can get the sensor profile for my camera. I'll see if i can get something with this. cheers Tiago

HI, In theory works, if you guess how much you put in each RGB channel. Camera light meters are accurate for this kind of reading. i also thought that you could use a (rgb light sensor) dslr camera to measure PAR, but... - Cameras read reflected light, PAR meters take direct readings. Make...

Thanks for your nice comment! I also buy stuff from local shop's, but for this one the nature fit's better. (in this case, was not a question of €€€) It's a very nice debate, collecting or not, hardscape from nature... As you can see the wood is from a non native tree, actually it's an...

Thanks tam and CooKieS! Yes! It's in 'Castelo do Bode', a very small stream called 'Cabrieira' (there are many similar small streams along the river till you reach 'Serra da Estrela'). Wonderful place to visit and paddle!

Here is the layout after fill, still a bit cloudy... Not sure about some plant's... Bucephalandra's (maybe) Crepidomanes cf. malabaricum (going out, i don't like the way it look inside the tank) Eleocharis sp. 'Pusilla' (maybe) Micranthemum 'Monte Carlo' (maybe, falling in the rocks) Vesicularia...

Lot's of work cutting and trying to put the wood in the right place. The wood sees good to me, but i know it's still to big... Like a Nuno said: what a nice 'cow scrag' ! (I don't know if the word exist in UK, in Portuguese is 'Cachaço de boi' and it's very funny. Image a big butcher with big...

Hi, even before dismantled my last setup the search for a new layout had already begun. You can see last setup, and the final shot to IAPLC, EAPLC, AGA and ISTA: https://www.ukaps.org/forum/threads/half-pixel-to-anamorphosis.43060/page-3#post-502569 All begun in June. I went to kayak with my...

Hi, i'm very lazy... so i use this in my tanks: - I never shipon direct to sewer, always to big box with 60 liters, is very easy to catch shrimps, snails, etc. (in the end i check the box!) - I use a small piece of hose in outflow, avoiding splashing water during low water level. - The tap...

Paulo, that rocks in the window are really cool! Maybe worth trying to use them, cheers

And here it is, the final shot: cheers

Maybe your best layout Nuno! Cheers:cigar:

HI, i had 3 classic's (2211, 2213 and 2215) all them pretty good, solid easy to maintain! Also still have one ecco 300 (second hand), and i must say i'm surprised with performance. (i use with external inline heather and inline Co2 reactor). The ecco300 is very powerful, don't lose much flow as...

- Yes, there is a way to measure light without a PAR meter (but it's not 100% accurate). You can use a LUX meter, with some caution. - The cameras (phones, slr's, etc) are very accurate measuring visible photons, for reflected light. The plants receive light from the top (direct light) unless...

Very nice ideia zozo, thanks! Next time i'll try that flexible sleeve. The shrink sleeve i use in all connections. Any idea for the plug's? It's very useful to have an easy plug to connect and disconnect the light form transformer (that's why i used the RJ45, very easy to plug for maintenance)...

Can't screw too much, have to be gentle. The led's that i used here are T8 tub led's. I had to break the glass to strip and hack the bulb [Attention! this is very dangerous, must use eye protection, and strong gloves. The glass is thin and sharp, expect small glass parts] Is not IP65. The...

Nice evolution! Waiting for your Nature Aquarium! Targeting 'aquascaping contests' also pushes a bit you skill's, you're ready for the next level! Cheers

This time a top 50! Not bad! Cheers! :cigar:

Paulo, that 'issue' is discussed many topics here in UKAPS and other foruns. Search engine should delivery lot's of answers. My advice is take a reading in Diana Walstad book (Ecology of the Planted Aquarium). It covers nutrient relations, fertilization, etc. I try to be on the relax side, i...

The tank of the crazy rotalas... :wacky: Very nice!

what a nice group of rotalas, color and leaf shape! Maybe you could give us a close up, easy to compare since you have them side by side! cheers :clap:

Thanks! If you watch page1, in first images you see 2 rocks behind the wood. these 2 lava rocks are huge, they got from the bottom to that top point. In this layout didn't use any glue. Lot's of lava rock and patience. The rock work was easy, the wood work took many hours. If you cut the wood...

In 2015 i got a 785, now a took 383. It's fun! For me, the goal of hobby is that, enjoying and having fun with friends. Always trying to learn and improve, cheers

383, cheers!

This was a nice journey! Some mistakes and learned a lot. Thanks for following this anamorphosis! cheers!

It's not my shop! It's a very nice shop, Rui and Sónia (Miguel Reis also) run Aqueden shop to perfection. Me and Nuno made this test because we love the hobby and we are curiosos about everything. The aquascaping shop's have lot's of patience to deal with us, we all love the hobby. Cheers Tiago

Sorry for cell pic's: Cheers

agree, you should put the reactor in outlet. at 0:35 seconds you can seachem tidal 55 with PH probe, fertilizer tube and the whjte cabe o the twinstar reactor. I use this filter as mechanical filter and to put all ugly stuff inside. The reactor and probe stay clean without maintenance, very...

hi, i have some eheim heaters. and one was 'working, like that! changed it in the store. can happen, cheers

Hello, no problem, i had a great time with Nuno Matos doing this to share with everybody! If i remember correctly this light unit was hang at 30 cm (according to ADA specifications for a 60p tank). That's why 40 and 50 cm where took inside water, out of the axis of light. The test in this light...

Par data for 30cm (outside water with non reflections, black and dark place): 1 driver - 55 PAR 2 driver - 100 PAR (the one that i'm using now) 4 driver - 185 PAR With one driver the light is enough for a normal tank, there is almost no heat. With two drivers it heat's very few, the one that...

Hi, i love doing light for my tanks, here is my last DIY. Hope you like it! The fixture from above, you can see it's all aluminium, 4 pieces of double U shape with chihiros leg's (you can buy for around 9/10€). The light emiters, 4 x10W LED, and a acrylic protection for security. Detail...

Thanks! No, the B. Shishita was in the first layout (first image of topic). Thanks!

Just for fun... cheers!

My deformed also! Doesn't affect the quality or direction of light, but it's not nice... The plastic (diffuser) doesn't seem to be very quality, or not thought for the heat...

water!:)

Hi, i tested my inline electrolise device ( inside a sand filter) , imo, works like a charm. The difficult part is to pass the power cable, some glue... Now I'm using a hang filter for skimmer and the reactor is inside! Easy to maintain, no ugly stuff iniside the tank! cheers

Ugly layout! Really don't like this one! I'll go there and pickup the tank... just for helping, you don't need to live with that strange glass near! cheers!

Thanks! That's one more to the list. cheers

As discussed many times (here and in other forums) PAR is a pretty good way to see how much light plants get. Color is important to plants but very 'low influence' when comparing to the amount of photons. Barr and others say this many times! RGB fixtures and the 'state of the art' in these days...

The A plus, i didn't test, but the others yes! (compare with ADA aquasky) Check here: https://www.ukaps.org/forum/threads/ada-wasmas-zetlight-twinstar-chihiros-led-par-data-the-power-of-light.43178/ cheers

Hi, i also have one RGB60! My small review, (bad) things that could be better: - heats to much for my taste (in full power), - less power than Serie A, i'm using a extra 'spot' for rotalas - difuser, could be better! - Twinstar RGB looks brighter to eye, and heats less (have to check...

And that's it! It's done. Thanks for following this journal. cheers, :cigar:

Thanks for the comments and likes! A few more details... cheers!

I don't expect much more from this... time to start thinking next one! Meanwhile enjoy this scape while it last!, cheers, :cigar:

Not very lucky, too much stuff not right for factory defect... That is a design problem, not tested before selling! My RGB also heats more than A-serie's. 1 Month...:bored: The dimmer is very simple (and cheap), sometimes it doesn't work. Not good, but can happen... You can get electronic...

wonderful tank and video! That shimmering is beautiful! cheers

No, the difference is the water and glass effect in light behavior. The standard acrylic support of chihiros measures 6,5 cm, the water level was 2 cm below the top of the tank. The sensor was placed at 10 cm to led (like all measures) 1,5 cm below the water line. Remember that light power...

No problem: 1. There are two readings with Chihiros, the first was made outside in open space, no reflections. (the worst scenario) 100% full power 2. Thanks for pointing this typing error (copy paste...), already corrected. Both were tested at 100% power. Sorry for the confusing legend...

Don't know for sure but i presume that is very similar. Using the same LED's and density of led's in the fixture values will be around that (theoretically) The manual dimmer has 7 positions, in the middle (position 4) you'll have half o f the PAR. The test's that we made with Chihiros (A model...

Not yet, i'm trying to convincing him... Nice question! the answer is no! The led's and design should be the same, so expect similar PAR values. As you can see from Twinstar and Zethlight length variations, the PAR is very similar. Longer fixtures tend to gain little more PAR with distance...

Hi, Chihiros Serie A is more powerfull than RGB version. A-plus series didn't tested yet, more led's and upgraded model of led's. Maybe less consumption maybe more power (maybe both), i expect at least better distribution with just one fixture. You should expect around the same PAR level for...

Added some info about Chihiros RGB (60cm) take a look: https://www.ukaps.org/forum/threads/par-for-ada-was-mas-zetlight-twinstar-rgb-the-power-of-light.43178/ cheers

This is my older son tank with Chihiros on top: For reference, i took this image side by side with my big tank (7 x 6000ºK + 3 x 4000ºK LED) As you can easely see it's much more cold! (Sorry about phone pictures), Cheers

Hi, this time is Chihiros RGB Watts were measured with a power meter, as you can see is not very accurate... I would say the light is about 40W (not 50W as claimed). The color is very nice, well balanced, but slightly more power to the blues. Diffuser is not well fitted and deforms to wave...

Thanks!

Need to cut more... cheers!

Thanks! Cut, cut, cut! That's the secret. I put hand's inside water 2 times/week at least... I try to cut the rotalas when they reach the top. This was today cut... Special thanks to Tobias Coring! cheers

Thanks! It's time to make one more cut... cheers

Hi, i've tested lot's of cameras and lenses, never worked for long with a leica (but tested their gear!) From Leica you'll always get the best, paying the price. From my experience with camera brands (nikon, canon, sony, etc) all brand's make very good cameras. For lenses, usually you get what...

More small adjustments... cheers

I'm not convinced about the colour of the top wood, maybe too 'burned'... still some work with the lights and plants! (almost there) Her some details... cheers!

It's amazing to watch that tank in live! :snaphappy:

https://www.ukaps.org/forum/threads/par-for-ada-was-mas-zetlight-twinstar-rgb-the-power-of-light.43178/

amazing tank!

And FTS, cheers, :cigar:

Tanks Tim! Some detail pictures, some buces... (finally getting colours)...

Fancy fish! nice, :thumbup:

Hi, as promised me and Nuno took more readings... WAS-MAS ADA ADA RGB Special thanks to Rui and Sónia for time and patience! cheers

Update, making plant changes and adjustments... cheers!

Just be aware of light power... Typical PI curve [image from: http://www2.geog.ucl.ac.uk/~plewis/geogg124/modelling.html] Examples with marine/reef: [image from: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/PI_curve] You can see, reefs need a lot of light! The fun start's at 80PAR Fresh water, fast...