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Arks 125ltr learning curve now fully planted...

Re: My first real planted tank - juwel rio 125 - Ark

i was told last night that we are going on holiday in 2 weeks (2nd july) to america for ~3 weeks(26th july) so the tank is gonna be on hold until then as i dont want to set it up and leave it for 24 days incase something happens. it also gives me a reason to do a fishless cycle over the next month. so i can plant and add fish straight away.


Matt Holbrook-Bull said:
waiting for the damn thing to clear, and things not coming all at once!!
pain in the but the cloudiness however when the lights are off the water is crystal .. and things coming all at once is another pain you got co2 but you got no tweesers or ferts, you got your co2 canister but you got no reg..

aaronnorth said:
the wood should look good with lots of plants around it for a junglr type scape.
i have managed to source a cheap windelov fern for it and maybe some moss for the branches.

Ark said:
i just had a horrible thought, im buying 10 baby cherry shrimp off a friend next month he said by then they will be about 3/4inch big what happens if they get sucked in by the filter intake nozzle ? is there anything i can do to stop that happening maybe create a roll cage around the intake nozzle with some plastic mesh so they cant get sucked in? how have you guys solved this problem?
anyone got an answer for this question
 
Re: My first real planted tank - juwel rio 125 - Ark

Ark said:
Ark said:
i just had a horrible thought, im buying 10 baby cherry shrimp off a friend next month he said by then they will be about 3/4inch big what happens if they get sucked in by the filter intake nozzle ? is there anything i can do to stop that happening maybe create a roll cage around the intake nozzle with some plastic mesh so they cant get sucked in? how have you guys solved this problem?
anyone got an answer for this question

Not a great deal you can do without restricting the flow too much. Every time I clean out the filter I find a small colony of cherry shrimp in the bottom of my eheim. I just net them out and put them back in the tank. They always seem fine when I put them back and just carry on life as normal.

You can try and put some foam or similar around the intake but you'll probably find in no time it becomes clogged and really restricts flow. Maybe someone else has found an answer.

James
 
Re: My first real planted tank - juwel rio 125 - Ark

Matt Holbrook-Bull said:
Ive never had a problem with baby shrimp going up the spout, they stay away from danger areas intuitively which is handy. The biggest worry is getting eaten!
I usually find a few cherries inside the external filter when I go to clean it ;)
 
Re: My first real planted tank - juwel rio 125 - Ark

well i was thinking of creating a sort of rolll cage around the nozzle made from plastic mesh with really small squares around the intake nozze the plants and wood will hide the green mesh so it cant be seen ...

ive decided to go for fish from South America - im gonna overstock this tank i think the filter will easily handle it..

Definately - 4 x Golden Rams
A shoal of tetras - rummynose or Silvertips

Maybe - 2 Angel Fish if i find some nice silver and black striped ones.
a shoal of rainbow fish
Some Killifish


Ark - came home from school water is crystal even with lights on.
 
Re: My first real planted tank - juwel rio 125 - Ark

http://www.aquaessentials.co.uk/index.p ... th=180_278

Can't remember which one fits my Tetratec intake off the top of my head... I *think* it may be this one , though you may want to email Richard to check.

Of course, they restrict flow slightly, especially over time, but I find a weekly squeeze in old tank water keeps things running smooth 8)
 
Re: My first real planted tank - juwel rio 125 - Ark

bhi im buying 16 inches of java fern becuase i found it cheap and i hate seeing the tank empty, it will be ok whilst i am on holiday.. theres 6 bunches of it the tallest bunch being 10 inches high and when there all next to eachother its over 17 inches
 
Re: My first real planted tank - juwel rio 125 - Ark

LondonDragon said:
Matt Holbrook-Bull said:
Ive never had a problem with baby shrimp going up the spout, they stay away from danger areas intuitively which is handy. The biggest worry is getting eaten!
I usually find a few cherries inside the external filter when I go to clean it ;)

lol fair enough :)
 
Re: My first real planted tank - juwel rio 125 - Ark

Its been along time since this journal started. the tank has been fishless cycling since May and has been the same since mid July up until now at the end of August.
i haven't managed to do a lot due to going on Holiday, Getting my first part time job ive been quite busy.
However last Tuesday i went to surrey to stay with my cousin Ali for the week, he is quite the planted tank enthusiast aswell. he took me to some local lfs's. i thought they would be averagely stocked but the last one we went to was very suprising i cant remember the name but they had a very nice selection of plants good quality and cheap prices. he had a tank full of XL amazon swords and he had a few tanks of tropica plants. i spent quite alot of time looking at the tropical fish wondering what style set up to do. i went for harlequin rasboras becuase he had a nice selection they looked healthy and they had a special offer on them 7 for £5. i bought 14 but then i realised it would atleast a day before i got home and put them in the tank but the owner was quite friendly he filled the bag with oxygen and packed them in a polystyrene box for me and they are still %100 alive been in the tank for 48 hours now and theyre feeding well. i bought some plants also - 2x XL amazon swords and i bought an XL Echinodorus Rubra and a pot of crypt petchii (tropica) all for £12.

Ive planted those up and theyre looking good.

Ive got until November to get this tank sorted so ive mad a plan

ive ordered -
Dennerle Comfort Line Co2 Compact pressrized co2 kit - £60 - should arrive on Wednesday
and some more plants - Heterentha zosterfolia
- Hygrophilya polysperma - just to battle algae will replace eventually
- echinodorus tropica
- echinodorud tennelus
- cryptocoryne undulata
the plants are from a trusted seller in Germany as they are cheap and good quality.

im currently using standard T8 juwel tubes giving me 1.3wpg
thing of upgrading to 2x 24w T5 bulbs giving me 1.75wpg
what do you guys think?

will psot pics after water has cleared up a bit more

Ark
 
Re: My first real planted tank - juwel rio 125 - Ark

the lighting upgrade will cost either
- £80 - £90 for an 80cm luminaire off ebay
- or unless i buy an 80cm arcadia(£60-70) i bar or juwel t5 high light bar(£50-60)

the light will have to be changed before christmas as they will have became 1 year old

here is a pic of the tank as it stands
DSC01799.jpg


this is the plan of what it should look like when the new plants arrive
Tankplan30thaugust08.jpg



critism kindly welcomed
 
Re: My first real planted tank - juwel rio 125 - Ark

Ark said:
- £80 - £90 for an 80cm luminaire off ebay
I paid £46+15 postage for my 4x24w T5 from ebay ;) you just have to keep checking all the auctions and not the buy it nows ;)
 
Re: My first real planted tank - juwel rio 125 - Ark

LondonDragon said:
Ark said:
- £80 - £90 for an 80cm luminaire off ebay
I paid £46+15 postage for my 4x24w T5 from ebay ;) you just have to keep checking all the auctions and not the buy it nows ;)

did you buy it from Germany - EQJ trading

i was looking at them they do nice 2x24watt or 3x24watt 80cm luminaires
but i was put off buy the £20 postage and also i have heard mixed reviews about their design and build quality
 
Re: My first real planted tank - juwel rio 125 - Ark

Ark said:
did you buy it from Germany - EQJ trading
i was looking at them they do nice 2x24watt or 3x24watt 80cm luminaires
but i was put off buy the £20 postage and also i have heard mixed reviews about their design and build quality
Yes I purchased from them, I have had a couple of ballasts fail though, but I emailed them and they shipped me a new one which I replaced myself and got everything working again. Depends what you want really, if you want quality buy an Arcadia luminaire, but that is going to cost you close to £200.

Dan had a very good one for sale: http://ukaps.org/forum/viewtopic.php?f=23&t=2519 he might still have it! ;)
 
Re: My first real planted tank - juwel rio 125 - Ark

Ark said:
the light will have to be changed before christmas as they will have became 1 year old

Nothing wrong with one year old lights :D
 
Re: My first real planted tank - juwel rio 125 - Ark

i cant go over £60 - £70
my paypal account is playin up and doest accept bank transfers so i can put money in and take it out
so ebay is a limited option unless i cash on collect

i was reading an old post in the lighting section by Supercoley i seen him review some lighting options for a tank the same size as mine - after taking in his opinions i looked at realux ho t5 (available at AE)
they do 29 inch ones complete with reflectors - 30w
i can get one daylight and one plant gro - http://www.aquaessentials.co.uk/index.p ... cts_id=489
they are £34 each so i can get lights and reflectors sorted for under £70 - i emailed rich at AE and he said that lights should last at least a year if they are used for an average of 8 -10 hours a day
and in a years time i will have to replace the lighting but it will give me the option of upgrading or downgrading my lighting
i wont order until december so i still have time to find a bargain..

i wont recieve my co2 atleast until the 11th of September because paypal are being annoying so ill carry on dosing easycarbo until then..

once i get the co2 sorted illl get 5 oto cats and maybe 20 more harlequins and get rid of the 3 serpae tetras

Ark
 
Re: My first real planted tank - juwel rio 125 - Ark

a1Matt said:
Ark said:
the light will have to be changed before christmas as they will have became 1 year old

Nothing wrong with one year old lights :D

they lose intensity and ive read they should be replaced every year and i want to try my hand at higher light more difficult plants so a lighting upgrade is in order
 
Re: My first real planted tank - juwel rio 125 - Ark

Ark said:
a1Matt said:
Ark said:
the light will have to be changed before christmas as they will have became 1 year old

Nothing wrong with one year old lights :D

they lose intensity and ive read they should be replaced every year and i want to try my hand at higher light more difficult plants so a lighting upgrade is in order

I've read that too... I'm just going by my own experience\observations and IMHO it varies from tube to tube. Lots of tubes lose a good chunk of their brightness within the first couple of months, then stay level, then drop off again towards the end of their life. Interpet Triton\Triplus seem to stay bright right to the end. I think I have spent too long over the years looking at the tubes and not the tank itself :rolleyes: :)

The upgrade will be great, I remember upping my lights from 25, then to 50, then to 75W (over 160L), the extra 'freedom' to grow more is great :D
 
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