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If I had seen a photo of your tank alone and someone asked me if it could be done "no tech" I'd say impossible! I am amazed at what you have acheived! I have a glass fish bowl that I once used to try and make a wabi kusa....Im now wondering whether I should just put some soil, stones and a...

I think the Plitvice name fits, Beautiful Place and a Beautiful scape! Well Done Sent from my D6503 using Tapatalk

Fantastic scape Martin, love it! One question, the way I read the above is you were using the floating plants as an indicator for nutrient levels in the tank!? Can you elaborate on what you are looking for and why the floating plant is a good indicator? I've not heard of this before. Also is...

All looking nice and healthy! Re: The slow Eleocharis growth, my guess with this is, A) It spreads a lot faster when you constantly trim it short, it then puts its energy into growing outward instead of upward. B) I dont know about yours but mine doesnt seem to root all that deeply, if its the...

Do you have a drop checker?...im only going by what I can see from the picture but I wonder if there is enough CO2 to keep it healthy long term (Doesnt look bubbly enough in there considering you have CO2 being fed in). My scape had early issues with low CO2 and my plant health dropped off...

I've left my tank to its own devices for a few weeks. I've been a little forgetful with ferts etc but apart from a bit of brown algae on the glass is looking pretty good. I've done a water change now and decided to just leave it be for a while longer in terms of trimming. I think I've been a...

I've got the light running at 75% already lol My diffuser is from CO2 Art, it's pretty good. Its called a Bazooka Atomiser

Thanks ADA. I know it's not aquascape rule perfect but it looks good shimmering away in the living room. I'm not quite where I want to be yet, I was hoping for a lot more growth, it's all a little slow growing for my liking which has led to algae on leaves but that's the cost of my struggles...

Finally, Ive got round to doing an update with Photos. In the time its taken me Ive replaced a few of my background plants with Vallis because I was struggling to keep the old stems happy. Im just waiting for the vallis to take over and reach the surface. Ive added some Harlequins who have...

Thanks for reading, I didnt replace the MM with HC, I ended up rescaping completely but have used the MM in my new scape aswell but this time in a more suitable position. I have now stopped covering the tank during the day and things were ok for a while but guess what...black algae is back...

Can I ask where you got your ceiling hooks and whether they are just screwed into plaster or whether they screw into timbers inside the ceiling?

I will do, I'll dig my camera out and do a full update. Just had this pic handy for today

Little photo update. I have removed the Ceratophyllun echinatum because most of it went rotten and the rest broke off its own tops and grew new sprouts at unattractive angles. All the other plants are perfectly healthy. I've now added some different stems...again not labelled so I'll have to do...

Opinion....would you say I need a third rock facing forwards at the front?

So, after much difficulty I have stripped out my Banff Mountain Springs and started a new scape. The scape has had no real preparation other than deciding that it would be more of an island scape with the root wood in the middle. The rest I just made up as I went along after not finding my...

Nice! Another crystal clear setup with a twinstar! Im becoming very tempted. Where did you get the twinstar if you dont mind me asking?

Early on I had issues with killing fish. Since I lowered the co2 I havn't lost any. I'm stuck between a rock and hard place really! The drop checker looks blue here because I have only just changed the solution. But your right I probably am degassing too quickly.

Little update as I havn't been attentive lately! Things went a little downhill whilst I was on holiday for a week. I turned everything off which caused my plants to start showing signs of dying off. My Micranthemoides at the front recovered well but my E. Acicularis at the back is a little black...

Looks like you are quite right, breeding would require a sepate brackish tank so that I can separate the young from the adult. It would be such a shame not to breed them but the process of doing that sounds quite difficult.

Good News, aswell as berried Cherries I now have one massively berried Amano Shrimp! I had read that breeding Amanos can be difficult so im definitely pleased to see that I may have babies of both species on the way!

Well I didnt think there was much ambient light, but after months of relentless brown algae I had tried everything, including constantly increasing CO2. I started to get worried when it got to the point that my fish were on the verge of being gassed every night so I knew the problem had to be...

Success! Algae has been completely banished, CO2 has been massively reduced since I realised that ambient light was my problem and that covering the tank during the day has fixed my problems. The fish are now happier, the shrimp are now happier and breeding again, and Im certainly happier...

Today ive added 3 more Ottos (making it 5) and 5 Amano Shrimp which will hopefully keep my brown hair algae down. Im starting to notice that the brown hair algae looks minimal before bedtime but when I get up in the morning its taking over. What could this mean? Ive increased the time that the...

Would floating plants help? Something like Duck Weed?

Its still annoying that it looks like I have no fish, surprisingly there are 20 cardinals, 2 ottos and shrimp in there! Hiding all day wasnt what I had in mind!

I decided to do a three day blackout. And my to my surprise, the tank now looks good as new. Im starting to think that CO2 during my photoperiod is not the problem. I think Ambient light may be my problem during the day time. I have a light living room with yellow blinds and although light...

Thanks for your reply What intensity and time is your light please? I was thinking about doing exactly that with my spray bar. I'll give it a go. Do you not have any surface agitation then? Sent from my XT890 using Tapatalk

Video Journal Type Update... Because I couldnt be bothered to type a list of all the reasons I hate my tank Ignore the Glass Diffuser in the top right, its currently being used as a basket for some abandoned shrimp eggs! And I mean Glass outlet not Inlet, and also the tank is 45 wide not...

I'm considering planting something else but I'm worried about it not staying put if I plant whilst the tank is full Sent from my XT890 using Tapatalk

The hair grass is doing well Its just this damn micranthemoides stuff...which I have recently find out isn't HC as I originally assumed. Might let the hair grass encroach forward and then start binning the micranthemoides Sent from my XT890 using Tapatalk

I have been rotating an bleaching. Im thinking the reason the holes have opened up is when my old reg was a bit unstable and sometimes blasted high flows through it when I tried to make an adjustment. Just when I thought things couldnt get much worse, I smashed my glass inlet this morning...

New regulator is now installed which is enabling me to control the CO2 better but my diffusers have started letting bigger bubbles out which means even if I turn the CO2 up im not getting any more benefit because most of it is shooting to the surface and being lost to atmosphere. Is there a...

Ok I'll knock it right down and see how it goes. My new reg has arrived today so hopefully I can control the co2 a little better.

40%. The plants in the centre are fine but the shady area in the front left suffers. Sent from my XT890 using Tapatalk

What you can't see is 10 females all hiding under the main rock...which they don't usually do. Ive decided to crank the lighting down to 35% which Im guessing will kill off the corners of the tank which are already struggling, but if it gets of the brown algae CO2 issues then im all for it. I...

7 Weeks and my tank has officially broken me, Im well and truly fed up! The plants at the front are clearly unhealthy (CO2 related im told) but as you can see the CO2 is belting out and the Drop Checker is yellow, My shrimp are routed to the spot and are clearly unhappy. The only way I can get...

They did when I had it on Rocks but these browning BC leaves are old and don't Seem to be touched Sent from my XT890 using Tapatalk

I have three already :(

Update, everything is carpeting fairly well, however recently the HC has gone back to looking a little sad, I may have to trim it right back. Not sure of the cause. The corners of the tank have HC suffering with low light by the look of it. But still having brown algae means I don't particularly...

Yellow after an hour with 3bps! I truly do not understand why I have the same bubble counter but running at uncountable bubbles yet it's still dark green on the checker hours into my photoperiod. I must have poor distribution in mine (although with 1200lph I shouldn't have) Lovely Tank George...

Genius! Thanks Pedro!

Pedro, what have you used as the background? Is it just window film?

Any Suggestions for Adding a bit of height at the back? Im not sure the E Acicularis is going to do the trick, it seems to grow in a bit of a messy nest type way instead of tall.

Thats a ridiculously tight carpet with very small leaves!! My HC looks nothing like that! And if I trimmed mine constantly it would look bare! Very Nice growth! Perhaps I need to be trim heavily (Once mine has rooted well)

1 Month Now, the reduction of light down to 40% and the Oto's have made a huge difference. The Brown algae has almost gone and the HC is looking far more healthy. Everything is growing a lot quicker than it was too so I presume its all rooting. Ive had to remove my Hydor Heater and send it...

Today I have trimmed the HC back a bit and tried to remove as much unhealthy stuff as possible. Ive reduced the lighting down to 40%, dosed some extra PO4, increased the surface agitation and kept the CO2 as high as possible. Ive added three Oto's this evening. The tank isnt looking so bad, Id...

.....and I feel like I've cocked up! :D Well we live and learn I guess lol

Holy Crap! So you've got your light all the way up there and have it on 60%? Ive just realised why I have Brown Algae Issues - Mine has been 80%, 15cm above the water :eek: Also, your bubble count, what sort of bubble counter is it? I see you have 1bps, Im using a glass bubble counter and im...

Ian, what intensity have you had your tile running at?.....when you first started up and what you ended up with?

1000ND No havn't tried, does a blackout need to be literally zero light or is ambient Ok? I'm guessing co2 and ferts also not required within that time? Sent from my XT890 using Tapatalk

Regarding the Brown Algae problems, Im now starting to worry as its showing no sign of letting up and is now starting to really effect older HC leaves. Im guessing I will have to reduce my lighting even further. Its currently running at 70%. Ive put it down to 50% as a trial, does that sound ok...

Im struggling with that, in normal submerged use, the lily causes a slight wave/ripple (im not sure if thats enough to oxygenate the water) or if I have it sat a millimeter below the surface or anywhere higher than that it gurgles loudly because it creates a loud bath type vortex which is surely...

Jesus that was close! I put my CO2 up very slightly earlier on, the plants responded nicely....but after the lights went out the indicator turned yellow (because its reaction is delayed by 1-2 hours I believe??) and I had two fish laying lifeless on the substrate, Ive done an emergency water...

This is what worries me about the CO2 and my new £60.00 of stock that I could easily kill... Mine is generally the middle one when lights go on and the second last one before lights off. Ive upped the CO2 again tonight a little, its over 3bps now and the fish seem ok. The colour is verging...

It tends to take a while to go lime green, I have the CO2 coming on an hour and a half before lights and yet its still dark green when lights come on. After a few hours its a better green

Day 23 - Hairgrass looking good still and now starting to grow, but HC not looking great, a lot of leggy stalks and brown algaed leaves

First time ive seen this Journal for some reason! Firstly, Im massively impressed with the job on the custom black cabinet. Im not usually a fan of black furniture but yours is incredible! The tank looks every bit as nice as the cabinet. Really natural healthy scape! Hats off to you Sir!

30 Red Cherries and 15 Cardinal Tetras in and appear to be settling in very happily. The Shrimp are a lot smaller than I expected, 1 died over night despite my very careful acclimatisation. 15 Cardinal Tetras have gone in this morning

Really, I've never heard that suggested before, I always thought people kept plants trimmed to 1-2cm to encourage sideway growth over height. Unfortunately I did a big trim just hours before getting this post! I'll stop trimming and see how it goes.

Anyone know if Seiryu Stone constantly excreting white rock dust is normal? I seem to constantly have to brush it off! Scape is now 3 weeks - Brown algae continuing, also getting very very small amounts of 2cm black slimey hair type algae on some of the hairgrass. HC not looking quite as...

How is this one looking now Nath?

My guess was territory....fish in first who establish their little pecking order and then suddenly in come shrimp to bust up their party ;) Sent from my XT890 using Tapatalk

Really!! When did you introduce the fish in relation to the shrimp? I'm sure many other people here have mixed cardinals with shrimp.....slightly worrying to hear that!

Going back to the brown algae / diatoms conversation above, the reason I upped my lighting originally was because of a comment made here... Brown Diatom Algae It says brown algae does well in low light. Following everyones advice above I have now ramped it back down to 74%, but this...

Thankyou Hate to break this to you but mine doesn't whine at all :D

I considered Espei when I saw them advertised as Harlequin Tetra but when I googled them under the tetra name I started doubting whether they were the same thing as rasbora. If they jump I'll avoid, had issues losing jumping white cloud mountain minnows before.

How on earth would you sell it fully set up?, I moved my tank two inches and my main focal stone fell over :D Sent from my XT890 using Tapatalk

I'm impressed, to get a setup looking a good as that having done a lot of DIY and second hand buying, its inspirational! I guess its so easy to just go and spend a fortune on all new stuff these days. Well done, will keep an eye on your progress Sent from my XT890 using Tapatalk

I was likely going to go with Cardinal Tetras. I like Harlequins but think they may get a little big. Sent from my XT890 using Tapatalk

Ideally Id like both Amano and Cherry, but I saw the size difference in the shop and ive heard about Amano being quite aggressive with food and also causing Cherry Shrimp not to breed…Due to my empty bank account having set up the aquarium I was hoping to get around 10-15 and watch them breed. I...

Mine has seemed ok at around 79%, not sure if that's just because its new? I had considered getting 1-2 Amanos, and 10-15 Cherries to sort the rocks out. I may leave out the Amano though because I want breeding cherries and no fights over food. Will Cherries clear algae in the same way?

So I'm safe for shrimp at this stage? I was leaving it a month to cycle fully, at the moment its 18 days with filter starter bacteria used within the first week.

Its a shame you don't see more shops with planted display tanks (and I mean well planted, not just a few pots with terracotta rings thrown in) ;) This tank sure does look like it'd draw me to walk in!

17 Days in, After a fairly painless few weeks Im starting to get brown algae on the rocks which is slowly getting worse day by day. I know this is fairly normal with new setups. Not sure what more I can do apart from keep brushing it off and doing 40% Daily Water Changes? I didnt expect to still...

Stu, considering we have the same setup near enough, I'm a little miffed that you're getting more results with what appears to be a lot less CO2 lol How annoying! Lovely Scape, I'm keeping an eye on this one :) Sent from my XT890 using Tapatalk

I did like number 1 but now you have it planted I'm really interested to see how this one progresses, will look great! Go careful with the sloping on dry start, the back may dry out if the humidity isn't good enough (it's happened to me) I'll follow this thread, looking good Sent from my...

I have a glass bubble counter, the bubbles appear fairly large. I'll have a play, thanks Sent from my XT890 using Tapatalk

Hmm, that's annoying, because it's running at a good 2bps which should be ok for 80 litres shouldn't it? It does take a good 2-3 hours to go from a dark green to light green, I also have tended to do water changes in mid photoperiod which can't help. Does my inlet/outlet, diffuser positioning...

I will be replacing the plastic with a new piece but need to drain the tank so I can move it give me working room. They're a pain! If that fails I'll give your sellotape a go. Sent from my XT890 using Tapatalk

Update, Tank has been running 13 Days and growth seems to be glacial! HC growing upwards and not outwards despite trimming down. And Hairgrass again has done absolutly nothing. A majority of the HC increase has been painstakingly replanting cuttings. Seems to be the only way to thicken the...

Fish suggestions for this tank anyone?? I need some inspiration. I really like Glolight Rasboras but Im thinking it may need more of an injection of colour from perhaps some Cardinal Tetras :rolleyes: With shrimp I'll get some Cherries.

Jon, Just read your journal front to back, interesting stuff! Really nice healthy looking scape. Is this still going or have you rescaped? Sent from my XT890 using Tapatalk

Had I seen this before hand this is what I'd have used. At least that would keep the shrimp out! Sent from my XT890 using Tapatalk

Ok seem to have controlled the hair algae growth by knocking an hour off of the photoperiod. Its now 5 full hours, and two hours on top of that which are ramp up and ramp down. I also realised I dosed a little bit too much Iron on one of the early days (which apparently can cause hair algae...

Just a beautiful place, a source of Inspiration ;)

Sorry my bad...Ive edited my post, I forgot the tank spec :)

Hi All, Im Finally here! Ready start my first journal of what should be my first ever respectable effort at an Aquascape. I made my decision of which tank to buy after seeing Ed Gercog’s tank at Aquatics Live. I swiftly went with a TMC Signature 60x45x30. With Lighting I took Inspiration...

Keep us updated, would love to see how it gets on. Looks great! Love the sloping!

Good to know, if your 1500 gives a good spread I may end up just getting the TMC brackets and one 1500 instead of worrying about making a rail and getting two 1000’s which is what I initially planned Thanks Richard

Hi Nath, Cabinet looks great, if I had the woodwork skills Id do the same! Well done. The whole evolution of your tank from the beginning of this journal up to now is pretty much all the ideas ive considered myself whilst planning mine, Ive been reading here for months in preparation. What...

Ah right, they are quite well priced! So where do you position them? you would disturb the scape if you put them underneath wouldnt you??

When I say 1/2 rocks in front of the rock on the right I dont mean large space consuming rocks, even a couple of centimeters high would do it, Just to fill the empty space slightly. Once the plants are in I dont think this will distract any attention from your shrimp and fish. Regarding the dry...

I am in a very similar position to you in that I have been here browsing for quite a while and asking questions. I am about to be begin a very similar setup to yours. I am by no means an expert but I like your scape so far. Personally I think it may need one or two small rocks in front of the...

Re: Vito's first planted tank - Juwel Rio 125 (NEW PICS July I was probably going to go down the Extinguisher route with a 2kg bottle most likely, Do you know what size yours was? 4-5 Months sounds pretty good! Did Maidenhead fill your extinguisher aswell or did you go elsewhere?

Re: Vito's first planted tank - Juwel Rio 125 (NEW PICS July Superb Journal Vito, I am planning my first serious planted tank in my Rio125 and have found your journal very helpful. Its great to see a Rio Success story now and then! Well done! With your cO2, can I ask where you got your...