tims 20g clearseal tank :)

well ive been wanting to do a new tank for a mission now and heres the tread to show my experiences ive gained allong the way...

its 24"x12"x15" (LxDxH)

my lighting unit (will be here in the next few days) is a hagen glo t5ho thingy magigy, in other words 2x24wat t5ho

i think i want to use an internal filter as i already have one and to show that you dont need an external to make a lush planted tank, altho youll probly prove me wrong oh and im 16 so spending £70 on an external and then £30 on lilly pipes is a bit over the top

im probably going for crystal shrimp and endlers, maybe some otos depending how alge growing goes....

now picture time, sorry for some being blury.


camping mat instead of polestirine (how ever thats spelt)


£40 sand


state of my bath after washing 2 bags of this stuff


aquascaping tool of choise


the driftwood, tapemeasure to show size


the finnished product


and my awful drawing of planting plan...


red - flame moss, if i can ever find any
green - hc cuba
yellow - Blyxa japonica and something else if anyone has ideas, they will be much appriciated

thanks next picture update will most likely be tomorow when my lighting unit arrives
critism is great and helpful
tim

 

Hi & welcome.
nice journal. I think the wood positioning is perfect.
The main reason people dont use internal flters is because we try to get as much equipment as possible out of the tank, and also because of a higher media capacity.

Post a thread in Buy/sell/swap section, someone should have some flame moss, if all else fails try ebay, aquatic magic (our sponsors) usually stock it.
My suggestion for the back corner would be a taller plant such as vallis nana or cryptocoryne balansae. Then have the blyxa surrounding the base of the wood to create a smoother transition down towards the HC.

Can you list some other specs such as lighting, filtration, powerheads, fert & CO2 techniques etc etc.

Thanks

 

i also think you have done a great job positioning the wood but agree with aaron that you might need something behind the blyxa or even leave the blyxa where it is and put something like e parvula or p hefreli (spelling) around the base of the wood

 

Or you could even place some small rocks around the base of the wood, and plant around them to provide extra interest.

 

im sure it will look ace! i have pm'd you about some flame moss

 

wow, wasnt expecting so many replys.... thus this is my new favourite forum

well, i tried the filter in the tank to see how it looks and its going, never geting filled up with water in that tank EVER!!! (hears cheers of joy)

so ill probs end up buyign tetra tec 700 and buying lilly pipes, whats that? i hear everyone laughing after me being so against buying them a few hours ago

i dont realy have many other details, as i havent brought them yet (im 16 & earn £80 a week so slowly buying things for this tank)

this is the lighting unit i got http://www.ukpetsupplies.com/Details.as ... rentId=181

thanks people
tim

 

Get yourself the ex1200 if you can I run one on my 54l and love it.

 

are you going for pressurized CO2? Because with that lighting you will defintaley need it. if not, one 24w T5 will be plenty.

 

Even with 24watts you'd want pressurised? I do anyway. I only dose excel as a supplement during start up though, not as a co2 replacement so I can't be sure, it can be done though but I'd think co2 is cheaper.

 

id love to have pressureised (spelling) co2, its just the cos of setting it up, i saw the fire exstingusher thread on here, and then read the discalmer which made me a bit worrid

also money is an issue and i deffinatly dont want diy co2, as it would probably explode

if i did go for pressurised co2, would i need to keep it on all the time or only turn on like an hour before turning lights on?

thankyou

 

It comes on and goes off automatically if you have a solinoid on a timer, look on ebay I picked up a second hand one for £50 with everything and I seem to remember my German reg being about this much brand new.

 

the disclaimer is just for Sam's sake really, it is only as dangerous as the person using it! Treat it with respect and it shall return the favour.

The most dangerous part is attaching the reg, however, if you keep the saftey pin in and dont press the handle then there is nothing to be worried about.
most people use a solenoid so that they can turn it off at night, then turn it on 2hrs before lights on, turn it off 2hrs before lights off.
You use a drop checker to measure the levels.
viewtopic.php?f=34&t=467

 

update time

my lighting unit arrived 9am this morning, mum dragged me out of bed at 8:30, several hours before i intended on getting up but oh well

packaged realy well


couldnt beleave how small the light bulbs are




sorry about the strongbow can, i literaly just put it on my unit thing last nite after party on the beach lol


thankyou
cristism welcom as usual

 

small update:

went to my lfs the other day and got some hc cuba, only one pot because it was the only pot that looked half alive btw im still looking for some if anyone has any i can buy from them

do you think i should leave the tank open or buy some glass to slid accross? i want best of both realy were my fish wont jump & have an open tank for looks and flowers :?

thanks
tim

 

That's a nice bit of redmoor you've got there.

i would keep the tank open-topped unless you think it will be a big issue. leave a sufficient gap at the top of the tank and jumping souldn't be an issue unless you want to stock fish such as Killifish or Harchetfish which are prolific jumpers.

 

well i got my hc cuba in the post today & flame moss

planted, well my planting is awful so its like placed on top of sand but im sure it will be fine

i think 4 more weeks without water & ill be good to go


my redmoor wood has mold , i think itsa from it being so humid in their cos the cling film keeping the moisture in, scrubs it off before i fill up or leave it?

thanks

i would photo update but isnt much to see

 

scrub it off before you fill it up. Do you realise redmoor floats? it will take a couple of weeks to sink, so as soon as you fill it up it will float and make a mess of all your current work, as Tonser found out

You could secure it with a large rock/ brick or something heavy.
thanks.

 

good luck mate

 

ohh ill scrub away

and yeh im going to put a rock or something like that ontop to hold it down

 

what time is it? update timeeee

well..... bad bits first, my moss was infected with some random bugs, not a happy bunny.... so the moss on wood will have to wait

good news, hc if fine and ive filled up, yay

internal filer.... i hear screams... well i have it and its sat under my bed for 6 months, so might as well use it, if the balaxia doesnt cover it ill buy external, if it does its staying

so heres the picture...


and the ruler is my inventive way to stop the wood floating

so tell me what you think thanks