• You are viewing the forum as a Guest, please login (you can use your Facebook, Twitter, Google or Microsoft account to login) or register using this link: Log in or Sign Up

Critique my hardscape Nano scape advice

Monkfish

Member
Joined
8 Mar 2019
Messages
204
Location
Basingstoke
Hi all,
I’m setting up a little 5gallon tank on my desk and looking for inspiration and advice. Dimensions are 43cm wide x 22cm high x 26cm deep.
I had a couple bits of wood lying around so would like use those in the scape (excuse the eggcup holding up the left hand piece :) ), but am undecided on what type of stone or even if I use stone at all. Maybe just some small stone scalpings around the base of the wood to make the wood appear bigger.
Plants wise I was thinking some moss on the wood, needle leaf java at the back of the right hand wood and then small Anubias and Buce scattered around. Do you think it would need a few stems in there too? If so what type? it is going to be a non-co2 setup.
Any advice would be greatly appreciated. I have a 45cm cube that I am never 100% happy with so wanted to get this nano right!

IMG_6746.jpg
IMG_6747.jpg
IMG_6749.jpg
 
Hey there!

Those are some great wood pieces!
Keep in mind flow of the branches and consider modifying branches that don’t or placing the wood slightly different.

A few questions:
what sort of scape are you going for in terms of theme? Forest, river bank, jungle etc.? This will set the tone for how you want to scape.
I like to scape the from the ground up, and will run through the following;
1. Sandy section or path or none at all
2. Rocks which can be used to outline planting beds or help in transitions for creating different levels or stability to the base of your wood.
Knowing what you want to stock the tank with may also influence your decision as some fish prefer more hiding than others.
Think about the equipment (filtration and heating etc..)I often like to place my equipment where I think it needs to go so I am sure to leave the appropriate room or grading to ensure proper flow and adequate space.

are you thinking moss at the base of the wood? Near the water’s surface? Or throughout?

Hope that helps and not make it any harder lol

Good luck,I’ll be keeping an eye out for updates!
 
Hi @christinecrites

Thank you for the reply.

I can't make my mind up about what style, and I think that's where I went wrong with my main tank as it has ended up being a mashup and looks messy haha.
I really like the look of this with the dragon stone, aqua soil and sand combo, but would obviously need to scale it right down

As for what livestock to go with I have been looking at either a group of chilli rasbora, a pair or scarlet basis (if I can get a male and female and also get a little live food farm going) or a pea puffer. I know they are all very different, and this will determine the scape greatly. I am leaning toward the chilli's as they are easily available. I also have some crydoras habrosus in m main tank which would look great in the nano, but think it might be bit too small for them.

I am waiting for my lily pipes to arrive and will be using an Eden 501 for filtration so have to be patient and wait for those to arrive!

As for moss I was thinking toward the top of the wood and some out on the limbs of the thinner wood if that makes sense and use the nooks and crannies for some Buce and Anubias.
 
Great inspiration and I think you could definitely execute something like it on a nano scale. I have two nano tanks a 5gallon and 3 gallon and my inspiration has always come from much bigger tanks.

While you are waiting on equipment you can try laying you space out to get your scale tuned in using items around the house. I have used paper towel and cut it to the size I wanted my little corner sand section and used a dish towel folded to created substrate level and see how much it elevates my wood pieces, or wrapped it around my wood pieces to see how it changes the look if I poured substrate over it. I’ve used whatever rocks I have had lying around just to get an idea of the sizes I might need.

Dragon stone is great because you can break it down as you need it and it doesn’t change the water PH. I would highly recommend soaking it with your wood in advance and giving it a thorough rinse.

I love the idea of Moss at the top! Buce and Anubias in the nooks and crannies will look sharp. You may want to tie some Buce or Anubias to some smaller pieces of dragon stone and place them in between the ‘roots’/base of your wood.

I think you are off to an excellent start! And I vote for Chili 🌶 Rasboras! They are one of my all time favs!
 
Back
Top