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700l labour of love
- Thread starter KirstyF
- Start date
Planted_Box
Member
very nice wish i had the space.
KirstyF
Member
Let’s hope so 👍😊
Nah, I just like the colour. It’s kinda orangey red and I have a very old beaten up, orange Chesterfield style sofa, so it works for me.
Fish are SAE’s and Ottos (clean up) cardinal tetra and CPD’s ‘cos they’re pretty (CPD’s are proving to be fun little characters too) not completely decided on what else yet.
The trick is you buy a house to fit ur aquarium rather than an aquarium to fit your house!!😂
Bit of a family joke - I had very specific ‘must be able to fit a 7ft aquarium’ criteria when I bought the house 2yrs ago. (Nothing like getting your priorities right eh!! 👍)
Then I just had to save for a couple more years to buy the aquarium to go in it. 😂
KirstyF
Member
8 weeks, nearly! Early post as I’m away for a couple of days.
Alternanthera new leaves seem to be doing ok and I’ll continue to nip off the older damaged ones a little at a time I think.
Existing GSA is not showing signs of improvement although it’s only been 5 days since increasing Po4 to 8ppm.
Having had a really good nose around, the GSA does seem to be effecting old Althernanthera growth and Anubias pretty much exclusively and is worse where exposed to higher light. (Albeit only at 40/50%)
The Anubias in the image is far and away the worst, and in the brightest location, so I think I will find it a new shadier home, drop the light just a smidge on that side, keep nipping away at the Alternanthera, and we’ll see how the Po4 deals with the remaining spots I have here and there.
I believe a Po4 ‘bath’ can also help with stubborn areas so that’s in the toolkit, but will see how we get on for a couple of weeks first.
Good growth on the stems so I’ve topped and re-planted a few. Will let the bottoms branch/re-grow for now. The fish are happy playing in them and I’d rather keep the biomass, so I’ll wait til I’ve ‘doubled down’ a little more before pulling any out.
The tank is definitely filling out now (the pinnifitada is going bonkers) and I’m pretty happy with how the right 2/3rds is coming along.
The left is still a little ‘bare’. Need to get round to having another go at that Monte Carlo on some of the rocks (epiphyte) as well as some more moss on the lighter stones. I think this will help to bring it together better. The Vals will help once they get going too.
Loving the colour coming through on this little flamingo. 😊
The CPD’s are just a joy. Still virtually no shoaling behaviour but little groups darting about all over and fascinating to watch.
A few tank shots to finish off.
Alternanthera new leaves seem to be doing ok and I’ll continue to nip off the older damaged ones a little at a time I think.
Existing GSA is not showing signs of improvement although it’s only been 5 days since increasing Po4 to 8ppm.
Having had a really good nose around, the GSA does seem to be effecting old Althernanthera growth and Anubias pretty much exclusively and is worse where exposed to higher light. (Albeit only at 40/50%)
The Anubias in the image is far and away the worst, and in the brightest location, so I think I will find it a new shadier home, drop the light just a smidge on that side, keep nipping away at the Alternanthera, and we’ll see how the Po4 deals with the remaining spots I have here and there.
I believe a Po4 ‘bath’ can also help with stubborn areas so that’s in the toolkit, but will see how we get on for a couple of weeks first.
Good growth on the stems so I’ve topped and re-planted a few. Will let the bottoms branch/re-grow for now. The fish are happy playing in them and I’d rather keep the biomass, so I’ll wait til I’ve ‘doubled down’ a little more before pulling any out.
The tank is definitely filling out now (the pinnifitada is going bonkers) and I’m pretty happy with how the right 2/3rds is coming along.
The left is still a little ‘bare’. Need to get round to having another go at that Monte Carlo on some of the rocks (epiphyte) as well as some more moss on the lighter stones. I think this will help to bring it together better. The Vals will help once they get going too.
Loving the colour coming through on this little flamingo. 😊
The CPD’s are just a joy. Still virtually no shoaling behaviour but little groups darting about all over and fascinating to watch.
A few tank shots to finish off.
KirstyF
Member
10 weeks.
AR’s are definitely doing better.
3 weeks now of Po4 at 8ppm. GSA is not increasing and nothing showing on new leaves. All old affected leaves now pinched off.
The Anubias now has a shadier spot and I’ve left the GSA affected leaves in place as I was curious as to whether it would clear. As you can see below….not so far….but it’s not spreading to the clean leaves either so just keeping an eye on it at the moment.
Still have some on rocks….
…..but not unhappy with how this looks, so don’t really mind if it stays, as long as plants remain clear. Will keep up with the extra Po4 and monitor this too for a while I think.
Done a bit more topping and re-planting of my central stems and removed a few that were previously topped. Left the giant hygrophila difformis as both myself and the fish are quite enjoying it. Not sure it looks entirely appropriate but it makes me smile so hey ho! It’s kinda like having a big old redwood back there!!
Added some leaf litter today. Pre-soaked for 24hrs but still needed a bit of holding down with (rather unsightly) pebbles. Hoping the fishies will enjoy these little piles though. Might add some more next week.
Note to self- Co2 tank on red though not fully empty - 5 weeks use. (replaced as I’m away for next 3 days)
Also added some new fishies last week. 😊
Finally decided on glowlight danios for my 3rd larger group. Beautiful, active, really fun to watch and they interact readily with my other groups. Like the CPD’s they hang out and dance in little gangs when they choose but are otherwise spread far and wide…..and nigh on impossible to photograph! 😂
Also decided on Peacock Gudgeon for my ‘centrepiece’ fish. Went round and round regarding dwarf cichlids but ultimately decided against for now. Maybe another time, another tank!
So 8 Gudgeons in. Taking a little longer to settle but starting to hang out at the tank front and show a bit of curiosity about what’s going on in the room.
Having to do a bit of target feeding with frozen but they are already starting to come up with the others at dinner time so that bodes well. 😊
Able to photograph these….albeit badly! 🙄
Other than that, things are growing and ticking along nicely. Feel like I’m getting on top of the GSA issue, so maybe some new plantings in the next week or two.
Oh, and I finally put the lid on. 😂
AR’s are definitely doing better.
3 weeks now of Po4 at 8ppm. GSA is not increasing and nothing showing on new leaves. All old affected leaves now pinched off.
The Anubias now has a shadier spot and I’ve left the GSA affected leaves in place as I was curious as to whether it would clear. As you can see below….not so far….but it’s not spreading to the clean leaves either so just keeping an eye on it at the moment.
Still have some on rocks….
…..but not unhappy with how this looks, so don’t really mind if it stays, as long as plants remain clear. Will keep up with the extra Po4 and monitor this too for a while I think.
Done a bit more topping and re-planting of my central stems and removed a few that were previously topped. Left the giant hygrophila difformis as both myself and the fish are quite enjoying it. Not sure it looks entirely appropriate but it makes me smile so hey ho! It’s kinda like having a big old redwood back there!!
Added some leaf litter today. Pre-soaked for 24hrs but still needed a bit of holding down with (rather unsightly) pebbles. Hoping the fishies will enjoy these little piles though. Might add some more next week.
Note to self- Co2 tank on red though not fully empty - 5 weeks use. (replaced as I’m away for next 3 days)
Also added some new fishies last week. 😊
Finally decided on glowlight danios for my 3rd larger group. Beautiful, active, really fun to watch and they interact readily with my other groups. Like the CPD’s they hang out and dance in little gangs when they choose but are otherwise spread far and wide…..and nigh on impossible to photograph! 😂
Also decided on Peacock Gudgeon for my ‘centrepiece’ fish. Went round and round regarding dwarf cichlids but ultimately decided against for now. Maybe another time, another tank!
So 8 Gudgeons in. Taking a little longer to settle but starting to hang out at the tank front and show a bit of curiosity about what’s going on in the room.
Having to do a bit of target feeding with frozen but they are already starting to come up with the others at dinner time so that bodes well. 😊
Able to photograph these….albeit badly! 🙄
Other than that, things are growing and ticking along nicely. Feel like I’m getting on top of the GSA issue, so maybe some new plantings in the next week or two.
Oh, and I finally put the lid on. 😂
Attachments
KirstyF
Member
12 Weeks.
3 weeks in for the new fishies. Had some horrible losses with the glowlight danios. Following some input from forum folks, established that they were jumping (down the back of the tank of course, where I couldn’t see them, but a search with a flashlight told the tale) 🙁 Have now netted off all possible exit points and have today replaced the losses and increased the group size so hopefully this will help them settle. Kind offer from @Wookii of some additional floaters will give some extra cover too when they arrive. 😊
Also added 15 gorgeous gold cloud mountain minnows, and will likely increase that group size in a couple of weeks. I think the schools will all benefit and feel more secure with more fish in tank.
Po4 increase has been in for 5 weeks now.
GSA on the Anubias that was moved to a shady spot has all but disappeared. 👍
Still a little GSA on Anubias in other slightly brighter locations but only on older leaves. Will leave this as is. With the extra floaters I can develop a few more shady spots and or/move some things around depending on how that works out.
I slowed the flow down slightly for a couple of weeks to help the peacock gudgeons settle and noticed some very slight fuzziness on the edges of a few foreground leaves which I think may be connected. (Barely noticeable so nothing I can identify yet) The peacocks are doing great and flow has been back to normal for a week now so monitoring to see if the ‘fuzzy’ disappears or turns into something I can photograph for comment.
Added some Rotala Rotundifolia and some Monte Carlo (as an epiphyte) last week.
The RR original leaves are looking a little sad but new tips are growing. Will be interesting to watch this transform into submersed state and experiment a little with light impact on colour.
The Monte Carlo is still looking ok. a week in, which is better than the last lot did so 🤞.
Also added moss to some of the paler foreground rocks as they were too stark, and have a scapers pad of fissidens that still needs a home 🤔
The Ottos haven’t shown masses of interest in the new leaves that have been added but in fairness they don’t seem to show much interest in anything that’s added. Their little tummies are still podgy though so I’m guessing they must be getting most of what they need from the tank. The CPD’s however seem to like having a little ferret about in them now and then, so someone’s enjoying them at least. 😊
Note for reference - Full filter clean completed this week.
3 weeks in for the new fishies. Had some horrible losses with the glowlight danios. Following some input from forum folks, established that they were jumping (down the back of the tank of course, where I couldn’t see them, but a search with a flashlight told the tale) 🙁 Have now netted off all possible exit points and have today replaced the losses and increased the group size so hopefully this will help them settle. Kind offer from @Wookii of some additional floaters will give some extra cover too when they arrive. 😊
Also added 15 gorgeous gold cloud mountain minnows, and will likely increase that group size in a couple of weeks. I think the schools will all benefit and feel more secure with more fish in tank.
Po4 increase has been in for 5 weeks now.
GSA on the Anubias that was moved to a shady spot has all but disappeared. 👍
Still a little GSA on Anubias in other slightly brighter locations but only on older leaves. Will leave this as is. With the extra floaters I can develop a few more shady spots and or/move some things around depending on how that works out.
I slowed the flow down slightly for a couple of weeks to help the peacock gudgeons settle and noticed some very slight fuzziness on the edges of a few foreground leaves which I think may be connected. (Barely noticeable so nothing I can identify yet) The peacocks are doing great and flow has been back to normal for a week now so monitoring to see if the ‘fuzzy’ disappears or turns into something I can photograph for comment.
Added some Rotala Rotundifolia and some Monte Carlo (as an epiphyte) last week.
The RR original leaves are looking a little sad but new tips are growing. Will be interesting to watch this transform into submersed state and experiment a little with light impact on colour.
The Monte Carlo is still looking ok. a week in, which is better than the last lot did so 🤞.
Also added moss to some of the paler foreground rocks as they were too stark, and have a scapers pad of fissidens that still needs a home 🤔
The Ottos haven’t shown masses of interest in the new leaves that have been added but in fairness they don’t seem to show much interest in anything that’s added. Their little tummies are still podgy though so I’m guessing they must be getting most of what they need from the tank. The CPD’s however seem to like having a little ferret about in them now and then, so someone’s enjoying them at least. 😊
Note for reference - Full filter clean completed this week.
KirstyF
Member
Ur a star. 😊
£5.00 forum donation. Done 👍
This is my favourite tank on here right now.
KirstyF
Member
14 Weeks.
I’ve managed to keep my hands out of the tank for the last two weeks (other than a bit of cleaning and WC’s) and the new group of glowlight danio seem to have settled in well with the ‘old’ group. They also all hang out quite a bit with the new Gold Cloud Mountain Minnows so I think adding them at the same time was probably a good call.
The tank however had got a bit wild so had a good going over yesterday, with some plant moves, trimming and whatnot. The GLD’s were a bit zippy but kept under close obs for a couple of hrs….and no escape attempts. 👍
Main changes are the pinnatifida, which had been going great guns, but suddenly decided they wanted to drop most of their lower leaves and start melting 😡 Co2 levels have been stable, no deficiency signs on any other plants and floating salvinia is looking great so I’m discounting ferts as an issue, but I wonder if things got a little congested resulting in poor flow and also lost a lot of the light to the lower leaves….so drastic measures….start again!! I’ve pulled all of the old plants out and re-attached a number of plantlets back to the same position, so will be interesting to see if these now take off and whether it again reaches a ‘critical mass’ at some point in the future. Maybe a bit more trimming is in order this time around.😊
I think this is the ‘husbandry by trial and error’ approach. 😂
I’ve also split and spread out my floating hydrocotyle (which seems to be thriving) to a couple of new spots, and thinned out the hygrophila difformis behind the central log on the right. Popped a few hygrophila polysperma cuttings in and also some AR stems, from the shady far right hand side of the tank, to see how they do there with a bit more light. They are currently growing but not thriving in the shady spot, with long internodes and not much colour so think they may do better in that locale, assuming they forgive me for moving them of course. 🤞
Left most of the ‘giant Difformis tree’ to the left of the log so the fishes still get that cover that they like but would ultimately like to try some other stems back there.
The new floaters from @Wookii are settling and providing some extra cover on the more exposed surface on the left of the tank. Developed a bit of yellowing on some leaves but seeing nice new green leaves sprouting. I also got this little one as an added extra, which I am quite pleased about. I’ve made an executive decision that she is identifying as a girl and called her Gloria 😊
The Monte Carlo is showing some melt but also seeing some teeny bright new leaves so 🤞
The RR are starting to show some more submersed growth. They got a little crowded out by some manic tripartita, which has now had a good trim so will see how they go on.
Also, finally figured out the food that Otto’s will go bonkers for….2 day old courgette slime. 🤢 Having forgotten to remove at the usual 24hr point, it was mostly mush, at which point, the otto’s couldn’t get enough of it. They are eating the nice expensive Repashy now but not with quite so much enthusiasm. Kids and junk food huh! 🙄
I’ve also added 22 Vietnamese Mountain Minnows. Fell in love and couldn’t resist them. They are beautiful and currently looking pretty happy cruising their new space 😍….I’m also totally blaming @Wookii for telling me I could have more fish in my tank. 😉😂
I Still feel like the tank needs a fair bit of tweaking to get to where my head wants it to be aesthetically, but it’s getting there. Clearly I need to get a couple of plant hunting trips under my belt…..well that’s my excuse and I’m sticking to it. 😇
I’ve managed to keep my hands out of the tank for the last two weeks (other than a bit of cleaning and WC’s) and the new group of glowlight danio seem to have settled in well with the ‘old’ group. They also all hang out quite a bit with the new Gold Cloud Mountain Minnows so I think adding them at the same time was probably a good call.
The tank however had got a bit wild so had a good going over yesterday, with some plant moves, trimming and whatnot. The GLD’s were a bit zippy but kept under close obs for a couple of hrs….and no escape attempts. 👍
Main changes are the pinnatifida, which had been going great guns, but suddenly decided they wanted to drop most of their lower leaves and start melting 😡 Co2 levels have been stable, no deficiency signs on any other plants and floating salvinia is looking great so I’m discounting ferts as an issue, but I wonder if things got a little congested resulting in poor flow and also lost a lot of the light to the lower leaves….so drastic measures….start again!! I’ve pulled all of the old plants out and re-attached a number of plantlets back to the same position, so will be interesting to see if these now take off and whether it again reaches a ‘critical mass’ at some point in the future. Maybe a bit more trimming is in order this time around.😊
I think this is the ‘husbandry by trial and error’ approach. 😂
I’ve also split and spread out my floating hydrocotyle (which seems to be thriving) to a couple of new spots, and thinned out the hygrophila difformis behind the central log on the right. Popped a few hygrophila polysperma cuttings in and also some AR stems, from the shady far right hand side of the tank, to see how they do there with a bit more light. They are currently growing but not thriving in the shady spot, with long internodes and not much colour so think they may do better in that locale, assuming they forgive me for moving them of course. 🤞
Left most of the ‘giant Difformis tree’ to the left of the log so the fishes still get that cover that they like but would ultimately like to try some other stems back there.
The new floaters from @Wookii are settling and providing some extra cover on the more exposed surface on the left of the tank. Developed a bit of yellowing on some leaves but seeing nice new green leaves sprouting. I also got this little one as an added extra, which I am quite pleased about. I’ve made an executive decision that she is identifying as a girl and called her Gloria 😊
The Monte Carlo is showing some melt but also seeing some teeny bright new leaves so 🤞
The RR are starting to show some more submersed growth. They got a little crowded out by some manic tripartita, which has now had a good trim so will see how they go on.
Also, finally figured out the food that Otto’s will go bonkers for….2 day old courgette slime. 🤢 Having forgotten to remove at the usual 24hr point, it was mostly mush, at which point, the otto’s couldn’t get enough of it. They are eating the nice expensive Repashy now but not with quite so much enthusiasm. Kids and junk food huh! 🙄
I’ve also added 22 Vietnamese Mountain Minnows. Fell in love and couldn’t resist them. They are beautiful and currently looking pretty happy cruising their new space 😍….I’m also totally blaming @Wookii for telling me I could have more fish in my tank. 😉😂
I Still feel like the tank needs a fair bit of tweaking to get to where my head wants it to be aesthetically, but it’s getting there. Clearly I need to get a couple of plant hunting trips under my belt…..well that’s my excuse and I’m sticking to it. 😇
Attachments
SpencerBurge
New Member
My counting wasn't too bad then! If you have need of some Water Lettuce as a good floating plant I have plenty. It stops my Sparkling Gourami from jumping out.
Very nice to see the tank in detail, you've showed me a few photos and it's really nice to see it develop over the months as a journal.
How is the Oase filter doing?
Very nice to see the tank in detail, you've showed me a few photos and it's really nice to see it develop over the months as a journal.
How is the Oase filter doing?
KirstyF
Member
Hi There Spencer.
Yep, it was close. 😂
Just for everybody else’s benefit. This is the lovely chap who I bought my 20 (22 😉) VMM’s from yesterday (and my previous CPD’s)…….and he got me a discount too. Superstar! 😊
I’ve found the filters to be great. I get a very occasional light purge that you can hear but other than that nothing more than a quiet hum, and the pre-filter is just a dream, makes maintenance so much easier. Probably not the strongest flow but I have fairly long pipe runs to make access easier, which probably slow things down a little. With my gyres it’s less of an issue for me. I would recommend them for sure.
Nice to see you here and looking forward to your first journal. Marine or planted!!??……now there’s a question. 😉
Oh and…. good luck with the new job! 👍
Yep, it was close. 😂
Just for everybody else’s benefit. This is the lovely chap who I bought my 20 (22 😉) VMM’s from yesterday (and my previous CPD’s)…….and he got me a discount too. Superstar! 😊
I’ve found the filters to be great. I get a very occasional light purge that you can hear but other than that nothing more than a quiet hum, and the pre-filter is just a dream, makes maintenance so much easier. Probably not the strongest flow but I have fairly long pipe runs to make access easier, which probably slow things down a little. With my gyres it’s less of an issue for me. I would recommend them for sure.
Nice to see you here and looking forward to your first journal. Marine or planted!!??……now there’s a question. 😉
Oh and…. good luck with the new job! 👍
KirstyF
Member
Thanks Spencer, appreciate it. I’m good for now but I’ll let you know if that changes. 😊
Karmicnull
Member
I love the way you've used your space to have different dioramas as you move from one end to the other - it's like having several tanks in one. Feeling envious!
SpencerBurge
New Member
Thank-you! We only recently started to stock the Oase externals alongside the fluval range and honestly the build quality on the 600 was great.
I had been warned about the heat output not being enough to disperse fully throughout the tank, but I'm not sure how reliable that information was. A colleague said he cichlid tank clogged the pre filter sponges that came with the filter but he has since switched to a coarse sponge. But he had a tank of large cichlids which I think may be an edge case.
I shall miss the shop, the guys were great as were a lot of the customers. But I need those weekends off!
So what's next for this tank? You've got some great stock in there and the scape is excellent. Certainly large enough for a group of chocolate gourami (if you can find some good ones).
I had been warned about the heat output not being enough to disperse fully throughout the tank, but I'm not sure how reliable that information was. A colleague said he cichlid tank clogged the pre filter sponges that came with the filter but he has since switched to a coarse sponge. But he had a tank of large cichlids which I think may be an edge case.
I shall miss the shop, the guys were great as were a lot of the customers. But I need those weekends off!
So what's next for this tank? You've got some great stock in there and the scape is excellent. Certainly large enough for a group of chocolate gourami (if you can find some good ones).
KirstyF
Member
Thank you @Karmicnull 😊
As I work away often, I’m limited to just the one tank so I wanted to create a place that would make me want to keep coming back to wander through it.
I’m glad you like it.😊
As I work away often, I’m limited to just the one tank so I wanted to create a place that would make me want to keep coming back to wander through it.
I’m glad you like it.😊
KirstyF
Member
I’ve certainly had no issues with temps and have found them to be both accurate and stable, although in fairness, the tank is in a heated room so the heaters aren’t working too hard.
I think quite a few people opt for coarser sponge (mostly to increase flow) but I’ve never really had an issue with the standard sponges. I do clean the pre-filters every week however and they always need it.
Well, I threw in a bunch of fast growers in that mid section for biomass when I started so that’s the area I’d like to work on next. Will probably swap most of it out once I find the ‘right’ plants.
As for fishies, I do like chocolate (and sparkling and honey) gourami but my flow might be more than they would be happy with.
I’ll probably let all my recent additions settle in for a while and then…..🤔
Karmicnull
Member
Do you have a designated fish feeder for when you're away? I can't work out whether the opportunity to overfeed increases or diminishes as the tank gets bigger!
KirstyF
Member
My old folks live in part of my house so, yes, built in tank sitters. Mum is well ‘trained’ and doses my pre-mixed ferts as well as feeding the fish daily. I give her a list of what to feed each day and update quantities as fish numbers increase etc.
I think it can be either! With a lot of mouths to feed, the worry is that everybody gets a share so it needs to be enough but it’s easy to add too much, just to make sure. (Definitely did this when my peacocks first arrived as they started out a bit shy)
I feed however, almost exclusively in the water column, so smaller frozen foods or micro granules etc and I break down larger grains, like bug bites for example (and anything else I might feed) so that even the smallest fish can eat them. I then feed with the pumps running. The vast majority will remain suspended and swirling around all over so everybody gets some, and I watch them eat to make sure that’s working out. They get a couple of mins back to clear water, twice per day…done!
Knowing that everybody is getting to the food gives more confidence to feed more sparingly I think.
I feed a couple of wafers or courgette or Repashy 3xpw, nominally for the SAE’s and otto’s, who mostly ignore it or eat it at night when I’m not looking, but they have round tummies so I’m guessing they’re ok.
A bigger tank may at least be more forgiving of overfeeding I guess but lots of different types of fish with different feeding habits/needs, now that would be a tougher nut to crack!!
