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Barb Island. its all over.

Re: Re: 90x45x75 optiwhite.Planted, FTS and light arm

great looking scape and the light arm looks really cool. does it collapse down when its shipped and any chance of some closer photos?

Re the tennelus it will be emerged so will be converting to immersed.
 
Re: Re: 90x45x75 optiwhite.Planted, FTS and light arm

easerthegeezer said:
Thanks stu, I'll try and get some better pics of the light arm tomorrow.
It comes in 3 pieces so the top bar and light can be lifted off.
Click to expand...

after seeing it friday night, i would say its a really smart bit of kit and worth the wait.... plus the tank is looking top notch bud (although it pains me to say it :) )
 
Re: 90x45x75 optiwhite. Light arm

Few pictures of the light arm for Stu. Arm is stainless steel, made in 3 pieces, the top arm can be lifted off with the light and slots back in with round steel rod. It comes pre drilled with 2 holes on each side to fix, first hole 3cm from bottom, next at 60cm , total stand height is 190cm. They do send 4 allen key bolts but as the holes lined up perfectly with the cabinet joists i just used 2" wood screws.
Only slight draw back is no hole for cables if you wanted to run them down through it.

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Hope that helps, i would recommend it.

As always with a new tank im a little nervous about everything so any opinions on the following would be greatly appreciated... especially from the masters :)

Im trying my hardest not to fiddle too much with the tank and let it find a level. I am still moving the diffusers around a little to find a good spot for them and have added a little koralia 900lph PH.

I have managed to get the drop checkers both lime green at lights on by starting the co2 2 hours before the lights and it doesnt get much more yellow after that. However, it also only goes back to darker green at night but then ive never had a DC go blue again?

2 x 24w T5's come on 1 hour before the Halide, halide and T5's on for 3 hours then just T5's again for 1 hour. Light is 60cm above tank for now. Does this seem ok or could varying light intensities through the period lead to issues while new.

I am water changing every 2 days after lights off, EI dosing minus MgSO4 as dont think i need it with my water. Dosing 5ml excel each day just for first few weeks, mainly as an algaecide.

I have almost no surface movement, just a very slow rotating. What is the best way to add surface movement at night for the comfort of the fauna once added? i dont want to lift the lilys every night as paranoid they will fall down and the tops break off emptying the tank onto the floor. Another 900lph PH?

With almost 3000lph (before media etc) i should have enough flow, with the lily pipes it is extremely gentle though. Bolbitus and Microsorum have almost no movement. I can see that there is soft flow through the middle as when i add the dry ferts i sprinkle them in a different place to see where they get swept. Also glosso and tennelus has swaying throughout foreground.
Saying that i have growth on the bolbitus and the trident....

So i guess my question is really whether or not having turnover is the same as having heavy visible flow if im happy i have no dead spots????

I will add a video soon so that flow can be seen for a clearer picture of the set up.

On the up side the Rotala pearls everyday, glosso has nice new shoots and tennelus is just showing signs today of growth.

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Thanks a lot folks, i really appreciate opinions, finding it difficult to relax about it all at the moment :lol:
 
Re: 90x45x75 optiwhite. Light arm

easerthegeezer said:
...Im trying my hardest not to fiddle too much with the tank and let it find a level. I am still moving the diffusers around a little to find a good spot for them and have added a little koralia 900lph PH.

I have managed to get the drop checkers both lime green at lights on by starting the co2 2 hours before the lights and it doesnt get much more yellow after that. However, it also only goes back to darker green at night but then ive never had a DC go blue again?
Click to expand...
Hi mate,
Fiddling is fine as long as you fiddle in the right direction and make good decisions. I wouldn't worry too much about the drophecker not turning blue, because if it does, then it's just that much more difficult to get the gas dissolved again in the morning and to get your lime green on schedule.

easerthegeezer said:
2 x 24w T5's come on 1 hour before the Halide, halide and T5's on for 3 hours then just T5's again for 1 hour. Light is 60cm above tank for now. Does this seem ok or could varying light intensities through the period lead to issues while new.
Click to expand...
Varying is only an issue if the variation causes excessive PAR values. The lamp seems to be high up there so the levels are probably OK. Its just very difficult to tell without a PAR meter. As long as you're getting decent growth rates and no algae then I reckon the lighting is fine.

easerthegeezer said:
I am water changing every 2 days after lights off, EI dosing minus MgSO4 as dont think i need it with my water. Dosing 5ml excel each day just for first few weeks, mainly as an algaecide.
Click to expand...
I prefer to think about the Excel dosing as an aid to you CO2. That's a much healthier mindset.

easerthegeezer said:
I have almost no surface movement, just a very slow rotating. What is the best way to add surface movement at night for the comfort of the fauna once added? i dont want to lift the lilys every night as paranoid they will fall down and the tops break off emptying the tank onto the floor. Another 900lph PH?
Click to expand...
If fauna are not stressed I'd leave it alone.Have a look at the fish in the early morning about the time when the gas goes on. That is the worst time of the day for them because Oxygen is low and CO2 is coming on, so this is the worst combination. If they are OK at that time of the day then it's not necessary to take any further action. This makes life less complicated.


easerthegeezer said:
...So i guess my question is really whether or not having turnover is the same as having heavy visible flow if im happy i have no dead spots????

I will add a video soon so that flow can be seen for a clearer picture of the set up.

On the up side the Rotala pearls everyday, glosso has nice new shoots and tennelus is just showing signs today of growth.
Click to expand...
A good rule of thum is if the pearling starts about an hour into the photoperiod. It's really difficult to say without seeing. If there is strong enough flow then you ought to have eliminated any potential deadspots unless you have opposing outlets or something crazy like that.

I think you can relax and enjoy your work. You have the flexibility of turning of a light or two if things startt to go pear shaped, and the fact that you are getting growth ought to be reassuring. Your doing all the right things such as water changes, good flow rates and you're not using Photon Torpedos or Klingon Death Rays....So I reckon you're OK. :clap:

Cheers,
 
Re: Re: 90x45x75 optiwhite.Light arm and flow questions..

Thanks for that Clive, I can sleep a little easier having shared what i thought could be potential issues.
The main concern i had/have is the flow as it is opposite to what i was doing in my last tank... i learnt from that, that blasting flow around isnt always a great idea... BBA soon followed.
I am hoping to bring the light down a bit but not for a good many weeks, mainly as the light spill is terrible in the lounge with it so high (and its a cheaper unit, rubbish reflector). That and we all love a photon torpedo or two :)

Would love to buy a par meter :crazy: and a PH pen as i'd like to track the PH swing over the course of a day to really see what is going on. Unnessessary i know, but pretty cool ;) and would eliminate a lot of guess work.
 
Re: Re: 90x45x75 optiwhite.Light arm and flow questions..

Some of the trident and windelov ferns have a few black spots/leaf tips which arrived as such, i guess from cold or poor co2 in storage before shipping.
Should i remove these leaves for the plants greater good or leave them?
I doubt they will recover from it...
Have i just answered my own question....
 
Re: Re: 90x45x75 optiwhite.Light arm and flow questions..

plants can re absorb chemicals from their damaged leaves. but on the other hand melting leaves can be a magnet for algae.
 
Re: Re: 90x45x75 optiwhite.Light arm and flow questions..

Yep, remove all damaged leaves and the plant will grow new ones. This is part of the cleanliness strategy...

Cheers,
 
Re: Re: 90x45x75 optiwhite.Light arm and flow questions..

Thanks guys, i am pretty ruthless with my trimming and cleaning but wasnt to sure with the java's if they recover from 'burn spots'. Scissors out tomorrow then.

Also adding 25 amanos tomorrow to start building up the CUC as the amanos and RCS from my nano seem more than happy.
PH/GH/KH have all stablised which was a shock, was expecting a week or two of fluctuations from akadama. (i dont use the results from testing as such just the variances ;) )
 
Re: Re: 90x45x75 optiwhite.Light arm and flow questions..

Its the same theory as chopping hairgrass off down low... stimulates new growth which is better adapted to submerged growth for plants which are originally grown emersed I guess :) All the plants I have removed leaves from have done well so far :)
 
Re: Re: 90x45x75 optiwhite.Light arm and flow questions..

It's a little different Chris, as java ferns aren't grown emersed, the leaves tend to wither unless in 100% humidity.
Which I found out trying to grow emersed microsorum (epic fail!)
Damaged leaves will consume nutrients from the plant to try and repair itself which is better used for new growth which as you say is stimulated once removed. Damaged leaves will often also be the first to attract algae IME.
I have no experience with broad leaf javas though so always better to ask the experts :)
 
Re: 90x45x75 optiwhite. stocking suggestions

Its that time, looking to start stocking and cant make a decision.
Current stock:
Loads of amano shrimp
RCS
CRS

CPD's and ottos will go in on Monday.

Im really struggling to decide on a schooling fish.... im sure there are dozens i have never seen. Whats your favorate?

Further down the line I would like a few larger non agressers to contrast the schools that wont eat all the shrimp (i know ill lose fry but can drip feed adults from my nano).
I did see 3 gouramis that were labelled as gold gouramis that i fell in love with, however they were totally different to the rest of the golds. They were more brown with darker 'camo' stripes along their backs with gold flashes, LFS said they would just be from a different breeder, of course went back to take them the next day and 2 had gone :thumbdown:
Does this sound right or maybe a different fish??

So im sure there are fish out there that i either have seen in LFS and ruled out due to being dull in shop and others i dont know about.....

Choosing fish is tricky!

Appologies for no update pics, i have some but still on the camera...
 
Re: Re: 90x45x75 optiwhite. stocking suggestions?

hey alastair, how did the move go mate? hope the tank made the journey ok.....

embers are pretty fish but in my strange and disfunctional head they look like baby goldfish :crazy:

Ive been considering dwarf neon rainbows (too big?), platinum tetra (cant find), blue tetra (cant find), harlequins... the more i look the more my head pops!

Maybe is should stop thinking about it and just wait until i see some fish i like!
 
Re: Re: 90x45x75 optiwhite. stocking suggestions?

Not too bad mate, move was hectic and tank went across fine but was sold after 5 days as I was taken into hospital the day after I moved and following this I've had to take a back seat for the time being :( 
The buyer got an absolute bargain. 

Baby goldfish ha ha. Depends if you've seen them in their true colour. Mine went a really deep orange/red. Plus they didn't give up shoaling when they were comfortable in their surroundings like my rummies did.
Smaller fish also give the illusion of a bigger tank too. 
Dwarf neons are nice too, and harlequins are a definite 
 
Re: Re: 90x45x75 optiwhite. stocking suggestions?

Im really sorry to hear that fella, i hope you are on the mend now. Was the buyer from ukaps? Well i hope its not too long before you get back in saddle, think there were plenty of people looking forward to journal no.2 from you. On the up side it gives you plenty of time to plan and save up the ££ for a nice optiwhite ;)

This is the problem i guess, there are so few fish i have actually seen in a home set up that im sure there are some gems out there ive disregarded in the LFS.

I would really love there to be a fish and plant library on UKAPS, like on a far inferior US forum :lol: Guess it would be a lot of work to set up...?
 
Re: Re: 90x45x75 optiwhite. stocking suggestions?

What about Rasbora Espei or Hengli? Like Harlequins but both have a brilliant flash of orange. Espei are often labelled as copper Harlequins and Hengli are often called lamb chop's. You often see them mixed together in LFS tanks. I think a big shoal of either would look great against the green and they are slightly smaller than the Harley's so would help with keeping the depth of the tank.

Andy
 
Re: Re: 90x45x75 optiwhite. stocking suggestions?

easerthegeezer said:
Im really sorry to hear that fella, i hope you are on the mend now. Was the buyer from ukaps? Well i hope its not too long before you get back in saddle, think there were plenty of people looking forward to journal no.2 from you. On the up side it gives you plenty of time to plan and save up the ££ for a nice optiwhite ;)

This is the problem i guess, there are so few fish i have actually seen in a home set up that im sure there are some gems out there ive disregarded in the LFS.

I would really love there to be a fish and plant library on UKAPS, like on a far inferior US forum :lol: Guess it would be a lot of work to set up...?
Click to expand...

Getting there slowly I hope mate. I guess with the fish, just take your time and wait until you see something that shouts out to you. You've been really patient with your set up so far a few more weeks shouldn't hurt
 
Re: Re: 90x45x75 optiwhite. stocking suggestions?

Did my first trim today as the rotala had hit the surface and the glosso needed it.
Tennelus is very slow now to come back, it totally melted then looked to come on strong but has slowed again.

No sign of diatoms yet so im happy about that, fingers crossed.
Not happy with the stem choice though, need to think a bit harder on that.
Just going through the process of slowly getting rid of the older bolbitus and microsorum leaves and new ones are coming through.
Everything except the stems seems to be nice and slow at the moment which i like.
Took some pics a few days back with nice reflection etc :oops: will do some full tank shots tomorrow night.

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edit* just realised quite how out of focus this pic is :oops:
 
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