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Stus Rio 125 re-plant journal

anybody got any suggestions for getting silicon off the glass? Ive removed the old backing that was siliconed on but its letf circles of a thin layer that I cant get off with a razor blade as it just seems to smear it accross the glass. You can see it on the pics on page two
 
Try methylated spirit its what's used in the building trade to remove silicone sealer from windows / tiles etc.
 
Wd40 will leave a toxic residue when it reacts with the silicon, I'd give that one a miss.
 
thanks for the advice. i got the silicone off with some isopropanol alc and the razor.

ive taken some more pics with the wood in that ive got and im struggling to integrate them both into the tank so it looks as good as just the rocks. Ive also put in a black background as you can see the heating pipes behind without it in.
Excuse the pic quality as had to take them in daylight

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(I dont like the rock on the left on this so will move it)
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i want to put either HC or glosso along the front with Pogostemon helferi in front of the rocks along with some dwarf sag ive had off matt. Xmas moss and fissidens on the wood if it goes in, not sure on any stems for the background yet.
 
and so it begins ... Day 1

i finally got around to deciding on a hardscape layout after leaving it lit with no water for a week on the advice of Jim at TGM. This worked really well as i re-arranged a few times to something I was finally happy with. I met up with Dave Spencer the other night (great tank youve got there Dave :D ) and he kindly gave me some clippings and HC to try. Ive also had some plants from the For Sale section from James and Matt (dwarf sag in my other tank at the mo) and the rest of the plants from TGM (HC and Pogostemon helferi).

Planted and filling the tank.

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Closeup of some of the Schist, Helferi and HC. The redmoor has been wrapped with xmas moss and some fissidens.

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Final image (some stems from dave are going to fill in the dead spots to the left and right of the wood.) Its also not completely full here so the root will be a little deeper.

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I realised after looking at the final image that the 3 big rocks on the right that slope off look really uniform and not random. The good thing for me is that from the way you view the tank in the lounge you dont notice this. Form the couch its viewed from the right and they look fine and not regimented. also wehn walking into the room and looking down at the tank they again look randomly placed because of the different distances they are placed (if that makes sense!) Ill get some more pics up from the differnt viewing angles once it settles down. its also now running on 4 * 18W t8's but im on the lookout for a 4 * T5 luminaire.

Im using TPN+ and Jim has advised 8ml per day so was after some thought on this and when I should start dosing? Ive also got easy carbo and im using the recommended doses for the Rio 125. The Amazonia is new so will be doing 50% water changes a for the first week. No livestock yet but shrimps and harlequins to come later :D
 
saintly said:
is the rock from TGM? it looks like what ive bought from there. looks great!
yup its the same stuff, it has nice wavy lines through it that look great once its weathered in. Some is from TGM and the rest is from my old setup from Alisons Aquarium down the road.
 
a look back at day 1

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Heres an update of the tank at day 7 (today)

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And a picture of the viewing angle in the lounge. The spray bar is providing a good flow around the tank with the HC

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Updated List
Sera fil external 900lph filter
Sera internal co2 reactor (Medium ceramic diffuser in post)
Aquamagic drop checker - Lime green
Rio 125 with 18l of ADA Amazonia
2kg c02 FE with sera valve
Juwel 100w heater
3 * 18w T8 sera tubes & 1 * 36W T5 power compact

EI Dosing using:
TPN+ - 5ml every other day
Sera Florena - 5ml every other day
EasyCarbo - 5ml per day

Ive got some more fontala cuttings growing behind the root which should appear soon once they get some height. Im also after suggestions on how to hide more of the root. Any ideas what would be good to plant on it to make it less conspicuous?

Im beginning to become unsure of the rocks in the tank, one have I got too many and two are they put in too regulary so ive been thinking about moving one or two slightly. Ive not noticed much pearling yet even though ive got the co2 running 24 hrs and its going in at about 3-4 bps at the mo. Do new tanks take a while before they pearl?

Some shoaling fish and shrimp soon once ive got some more money and confirmed the amonia spike from the amazonia is no more.

Im open to any suggestions or comments so if you see anything thats crap then please do tell me! :D
 
You've done a really nice job there, well done. I would only say try moving the third rock in from the piece of wood so it points towards the front left top corner. Make it point more vertically than the one on the far left though.

I don't know if it will look any better, but I think it's worth trying!
 
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