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Superman's Replant - 180l - Crypt's Causeway

Thanks for the positive comments.

Recently, I've trimmed the fern down to replant the new shoots as it was getting rather messy (although looked good from a distance!). My co2 bottle ran out over the weekend and collected a new one last night for £20 so the lights have been off for a few days whilst there's been no co2.

I would eventually like to add some more suitable wood pieces but that will be a while, maybe when I need to cut back on the fern again.
 
I'm getting a bit bored with this tank now tbh. There's slowly an increase in BBA. I think the tank is too much like a jungle now and could do with a replant, whilst I'm also thinking of replacing it with an optiwhite as I'm no longer a fan of the bow front style, but that's an expensive option. I'm not sure, I prefer the smaller side of things now as you can change them without too much of a fuss, whereas this is going to be a costly job. But swapping it for another tank could take some time to get one made up.

I'd love to change it into something that you can actually see the fish, hairgrass, clumps of crytps. cyperus helferi (growing properly) and a nice fern. Something simple and plain, I've got the bug to do more interesting tanks and don't think it says anything about the style of planted tanks I'm now in.

The LFS has agreed to take my pencilfish and harlequins from me when I get shrimps for my nano.

So thinking time....
 
Superman said:
cyperus helferi (growing properly)

plenty of absolutely everything for c helferi. i had it lovely in the miracle mire.

it's a shame your board of it, i really liked this tank.
 
I've been properly thinking this evening about this.

I might start from scratch but using the same tank, going for a nature style setup only housing Ottos and CPDs. I could use the crypts I have now to create a few rosettes around some wood which would have the left overs from my java fern. Then around the sides hairgrass and parva mixed together.

I could sell the left over plants to pay for the rescape. You should see some of my crypts, they're so tall they're touching the surface!

I think I'll try Oliver Knotts nature soil in the rescape, I would use Aqua Soil but ther ammonia leeching would be too much of a problem unless I put my fish into my 60 ltr. I'll move from using a spray bar to using a lilly pipe too.

Just need to find the hardscape, is there a magical place that Mark, Graeme, George, Dan et al get theirs?!

Thinking cap on...
 
Quick photo...

20090406002-1.jpg
 
Crypt parva is painfully slow growing. I swear mine looks the same today as it did 2 years ago :wideyed:

Certainly interested to see how a possible rescape goes trying Oliver Knotts substrate. Tempted to try it myself.
 
So, today a few plants have been removed from the tank and i've seen the beauty in the clumps of crypts that I have. I'm going to have to think long and hard about what to do next.

My thoughts...

I'm certainly going to change the substrate, so that'll mean to remove everything.
I've used the Tropica Planted Substrate before and thinking of doing that with some ADA sand and graded gravel. I'd go for AS but as it leeches ammonia I don't think that'd be a good idea to have fish in straight away, I could put the fish in a 60ltr for a while but I'd need to cycle that. I might want to go for the Nature Soil as that's showing same qualities but without the ammonia, but I'm not sure I want a black substrate as I plan on leaving some showing (or do I?!). The black substrate would give a good contrast with the plants.

I'm not wanting to plant 100% before as I've always planted right upto the glass which I've found that it squashes plants most of the time.

I might go for a Java Fern focus mound with a few crypts around to support it and a hairgrass foreground as I find it's taking a really good hold in there at the minute without too much fuss (amazed!).

Not sure about stems, do I need stems?! I'm not sure (already said that!), I've always found that my stems dont like being 100% in the flow from the spray bar. I might move to some lilly pipes to try for a bit.

But the main theme for the rescape is...
- I don't want a jungle type like it got to, mainly because flow was an issue
- I want to get some spawning areas for my CPDs
- something new and fresh (aka a change).
- it needs to be a mound setup due to the bow front nature.

As you can read from the above, I'm not 100% on anything, I just need to be looking round for inspiration.
 
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