and so it begins...

[F1.mike]

Morning all, I've just joined the forum and thought I'd share the start of my journey into aquascaping my 150L tank as it stands so far.
I originally purchased a fluval spec 5 (19l) with the intention of housing a Betta fish on my home office desk, I started doing a bit of googling into 'planted betta tanks' - needless to say, I ended up going down the usual google/youtube rabbit hole where I came across George Farmers youtube channel and went on to spend a fair few hours watching some of his set up videos. I subscribed to George's channel and over the next few weeks watched more and more videos.

This led me to buying a bigger tank and so I decided to buy the biggest tank I could fit into the space I have available in my home office, which is also home to a 'coats & jackets' wardrobe, so it needed to be at most 80cm wide to fit the gap. Off I went to my local maidenhead and bought a new tank, came home and started setting it up when I realised I didn't like the look of the internal filter and heater, so I ordered a few upgrades and now I'm not sure if I've chose the correct lightening? My equipment list so far:

150L tank, L x W x H: 78x37x57cm (including lid)
Filter: Oase BioMaster Thermo 350
Light 1: Fluval Aquasky 2.0 21w
Light 2: SuperFish LED 18w (8625 Lux / 93,96 Par / 8730 Kelvin - came with the tank)
Substrate: Seachem flourite black - 21kg
Hardscape: Mountain Rock / Manzanita Wood (I think?)

Plant list (waiting on delivery to arrive)
Tropica Micranthemum Monte Carlo 1-2-Grow
Tropica Staurogyne repens 1-2-Grow
Tropica Marsilea hirsuta 1-2-Grow
Tropica Lilaeopsis Brasiliensis 1-2-Grow
Tropica Helanthium Quadricostatus 1-2-Grow
Tropica Heteranthera Zosterifolia 1-2-Grow
Tropica Anubias barteri caladiifolia
Tropica Hygrophila Siamensis 53B
Tropica 6 Mix Echinodorus Plants

I never did buy the Betta, I ended up with 4 x Black Phantom Tetras which are currently living in the Spec 5 until this tank is complete, will buy a few more of these once everything has settled.

My hardscape:



I have a sheet of cut to size black acrylic for the background, this is in the post also.

I'm considering CO2 but just wanted some input on this, and whether the lighting I have is good enough to make use of the CO2 injection or whether it'd be a waste?

Any comments/critiques/recommendations etc would be appreciated, I'd rather address issues at this stage than end up having to redo once complete.

 

[Luciën]

Hi a lot of people walked the same pad.. Wanting a small tank ending up with a bigger one and then getting mts.

Co2 is not a must but if you do want lush plant growth it needs co2.. No matter your lighting plants will always benefit from it.

Good luck planting your tank your hardscape looks good. Ooh mind your wood will float if you don't fix it.

Greetz, Luciën.

 

[F1.mike]

Hi Luciën, I have fixed the wood to the rocks, I used a few filter tips with superglue and then also a bit of aquarium silicone and it seems to be holding quite well, will find out for sure when the water goes in lol.

I didn't realise that about CO2, I assumed it was light dependent. I'll order the kit and get that set up ready as well then.

Part of my plant order has just arrived, the Anubias hasn't travelled well...

 

[Mr.Shenanagins]

That looks like azalea or red moor root. It will definitely float up if you haven’t pre soaked it so you need to glue it down or weigh it down. Also, that wood is going to get covered in a bacterial fungus that will look awful for quite a bit, but will die off. Snails and shrimp help with its exit much faster.

 

[F1.mike]

That looks like azalea or red moor root. It will definitely float up if you haven’t pre soaked it so you need to glue it down or weigh it down. Also, that wood is going to get covered in a bacterial fungus that will look awful for quite a bit, but will die off. Snails and shrimp help with its exit much faster.

Ah yes it is Redmoor Root, I couldn't remember what the crate said that I picked it from but that's just reminded me. It is attached to the rock so hopefully it'll stay in place 🤞