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Lame looking tank


Neffy

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So here it is ive had it for ages but only recently got a decent ammount of plants in it still looks very bare and has algae on the front glass T_T but other ppls tanks recently uploaded have inspired me to upload this and get some feedback I really need some advice to make it look better i think it looks so fail maybe im just impatient grow dammit !!!

Substrate i have is

Topsoil which was topped with eco complete but that was really fine and it just went to **** and sifted thru the soil so i got Aqua soil Amazonia 2 which is alot bigger chunks and put that on top and it sits there fine phew

plants (some may have died)

Bareroot Crypts

Osiris Sword

Vari - Lime Rush Bunch

Thin Val

normal Val

Pink Baby Tears (the only stem plant i have that doesnt just melt away i have some nice growth on the tips of these now !)

Pennywort

1 banana lilly this has 3 lilly pads up on the surface now :D

and some grass bunch that hasnt died yet (only one) and some random lfs plant thats leaves all melted but has regroth at the top

oh and anubias nana on the orange pot which is just there cause they love sitting in that pot.

lighting it came in the hood its 2 lights, on them it says

T5 13W 14000k

Stocked with bout 9 betta girls :D

the tree covers the filter intake which is inside it hehe

also on the way from some nice ebay packs i have

Ludwigia repens "It is the easiest red plants to grow in the aquarium, being able to grow in even lower light conditions." Is that true ? will it do ok with my tanks specs?

Bacopa

Rotala sp Colorata

Mayaca fluviatilis

Marble Queen Sword

Alternanthera

Cardamine lyrata

& Hemianthus micranthemum

Edited by Neffy
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Sounds like its going to be a real plant paradise when your other plants arrive!!!

Watch out for that rush plant - its not aquatic and eventually will die/rot .... best grown as a marginal pond plant.....

I love the marble queen sword - have a young one myself .... and with the other stem plants you will have a full tank for sure.... keep an eye on the mayaca - it grows about 10 metres a day!!! (well not that much but it grows a lot!) :)

Alternanthera is also not aquatic - it can be pruned to a little hedge in the garden and stems will readily grow roots in water but in time the leaves will rot off in a tank....

That 'tree root' over the filter intake is brilliant! looks like it belongs there....

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Change at least one bulb to a pink/red plant growth one.

How deep is that substrate?

I've tried to grow Mayaca, it just kept turning to slop in my tanks even though it always had super growth. <_< I don't think you have enough light for Cardamine nor HM but it can't hurt to try.

It will look a lot better once it's filled in. :)

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haha thanks fishbites ! ive already seen a few leaves fall off the rush plant how is it supposed to be grown, roots in water and leaves above ? I might set up some little pond thing then and grow it and the Alternanthera there instead where they wont die ! Thankyou for pointing that out for me :D yea when i saw the tree root in the shop i thought it was brilliant as well, the girls like to swim arround it too!

Thanks Yan ! Ill look into a new bulbs I def want the HM to do well it looked nice in the pictures :P and ill watch the mayaca >.> the substrate is about 2-3 cm thick because of having to layer more on top to keep the soil down i shouldn't of bothered and just gotten 2 bags of substrate to begin with instead of trying to save money only getting one.

I hope soooooooo

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Neffy

The tank looks great, those ladies are lucky little gals in their sorority tank.

As much as I love a heavily planted tank myself - I'm more of you're 'trial and error' kind of aquascaper... so on the technicallities of each plant I can't help you

(sounds like there's plenty of people here that can!)

but I do know a thing or two about design and layout...

http://www.blueaquarium.org/ You've probably already seen this site - but the reoccurring elements in the designs I personally like are: asymmetry / tension / negative space / density

Angled substrate (particularly from the back to the front) or as in this case higher on the left creates the illusion of depth

Also the balance of extremely thick foliage that works only because there is this quiet negative space on the right.

AAC-Contest-2009-Medium-4-Vladimir-Rasto

(Below)

This one is beautiful, the balance here is met by planting all the way to the top of the surface and exposing the floor of the tank...along with opening up a passage way that we can see right through - yes its in the middle, but there is tension in the placement of the driftwood making the left hand side look as though it's pushing into the right.

AAC-Contest-2009-Medium-7-Andrea-Ongaro1

And.. this is beautiful too...

AAC-Contest-2009-8-Luis-Carlos-Galarraga

I noticed that the tank ages are around 4 - 12 months old, so I'd love to have some regular updates of how this tank is evolving for you, and so we can see how it grows.

As with any design in a geometric shape (Tank) - the best way to break it up is create a line of sight (like the image above) the first time you look at it, your eye travels around the tank, not just in one place, because the driftwood points your eye in another direction.

So perhaps a strong piece of driftwood, placed at the back left (up high) and slanting toward the front right (something like that ) or more dense planting to one side?

I haven't had much luck with driftwood myself - some mysterious reoccurring white slime got me paranoid, so I donated the wood to a hermit crab tank!

I love what you've done with your tank, I know my betta gals wouldn't mind moving in at all!

- Ness

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oh my gosh that website is crack for my eyes! its so hard to tell how they started or what mine will look like grown in T_T I really like this one the top one you posted is also really really pretty.

I think ive got some serious studying to do feeling alot more inspired now :bighug: I havent even considered design elements like youve highlighted! lots of thinking to do i will keep you posted for sure :D

I find the price of driftwood to be rather disgusting at any lfs i vist especially when they have so much of it in stock its like well no ones paying that so why are you keeping the price so high.

yan i can def increase the depth of my substrate a bit ive still got half a bag of the amazonia 2 but i think ill wait a little bit and plan out my tank better! i found some stem plants i bury them and they just rot from the burried section up not growing roots :( any solution/suggestions for that?

Edited by Neffy
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Go to the beach.. I picked up a small piece of driftwood while on holidays last year, wanted this FABULOUS piece, but it was too big to carry for the rest of the day. :(

I washed it, soaked it for a couple weeks, rinsed it again... then more soaking in another bucket. I didn't think of boiling, but that could help too. Yeah, driftwood is pretty pricey in any LFS. :((

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I tend to snip the bottom of the stems before planting them. If they're already got roots, rip about 3/4 of it off before planting. Encourages new growth. I'll also pluck off any damaged or browning leaves.

"I find the price of driftwood to be rather disgusting at any lfs i vist especially when they have so much of it in stock its like well no ones paying that so why are you keeping the price so high."

Because it does go, eventually. :P Mind you I haven't been to many LFS so I don't know how much the average price is, just what we sell it at.

You probably already know this but keep the substrate up the back deeper. Better for your stem plants and gives off an increased sense of depth to the tank (supposedly.. I just use the deeper gravel for better root systems).

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Thanks yan ! i used the rest of the substrate up last night filling in the back a bit more theres not much of a slope but its something hehe Yea i guess it would sell "eventually" .. :P

Major setback, i thought it would be nice to attach some xmas moss to the stump! as i was removing it i heard swishing from some water traped inside and stupidly i turned it upside down to see where the holes where, leaking the most foul smelling filth all into my tank it was so FOUL. I retired the stump to proping up one of my cherry tomatoe plantlings outside in the garden >:( the filter is pretty strong and cleared the water up in a little while.. my poor babies tho :( i also found one girl severly beaten up but i suspect she got traped in the stump and the intake was too strong for her she died later in the night. Theres plenty of ways for them to get out so i dont know why that happened but i think ill be better safe then sorry and not use it anymore.

Now the tank lacks its one focus point i was gonna base my whole scheme arround it since i saw lots of really nice stump looking designs on that website, I dug arround looking for driftwood i have nothing of a size big enough but i found some jagged looking rocks i brought for the purpose of aquascaping and completely forgot about haha i got them for like 2 dollars but only have 3. I attached the xmas moss to them and tried arranging them at the front which was working well.

I also got my order of plants yesterday everything was really healthy except the HM which was 3/4 brown up the whole stems hopefully the tops have enough for me to salvage i might just keep it in my little shrimp tank untill i get a healthy ammount then put some into this main tank. I started planting everything but it got so late and i really wanted to go to bed so by the end i was just shoving plants in anywhere :P

It looks stupid wont be a photo untill i replant everything again

I found this http://www.blueaquarium.org/2010/01/aga-aquascaping-contest-2009extra-large-tank/ the third picture down is amazing !!! as a fantasy fanatic i love depictions of floating islands and its so beautifully done in that tank!

Edited by Neffy
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Sorry about your girls Neffy. :byebye:

Lovely tank! I love the island too.. it reminds me of those turtle tanks with the island you can buy, but with plants covering it, and filled all the way.

I adore that first place island! Wow, the blue fish look amazing with the chosen plants. :drool:

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Hey Neffy,

Sorry to hear about loosing the little lady... but we can consider the loss of the plastic stump a "design oppertunity "

(any major f-ups in design industry are considered blessings in disguise, otherwise you'd be tearing your hair out every 5 mins)

I've got an external filter, but the intake / outlet are real eyesores, so I have managed to mask them in the past with strategic planting and driftwoods.

Oh - that reminds me, have a look at Joan's tank that she's setting up at the moment, she explained that you can use Oak tree cuttings as driftwood!

(yet to find out what treatment she uses to ensure they're safe to use)

I was thinking about you last night and remembered this tank I'd seen a little while ago, it's very sweet.

forest-fish-1.jpg

But with the image you just suggested, along with the 'free oak option' (time to get out the hack-saw)

...perhaps you could create something with more vertical forest looking design - which you can see is hiding the heater on the LHS

You could get creative with visual obstructions in front of the filter (so long as it has flow, obviously)

Vietnamrainingaquascape.jpg

Oh dear, I get as excited about the design of aqu-ascaping as I do about new fish, this fishy pursuit has stepped firmly out of "hobby" into obsession.

Despite the recent 'design opportunities' I can't wait to see where you go with it next.

-Ness

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P.S.

Sarah - on finding driftwood on the beach, have a good look through here and online for treatments of 'found' woods on the beach - I've always understood they're best boiled, submerged in fresh water for weeks, and then boiled and boiled and boiled. (:

The same goes for rocks found at the beach (It's a bit naughty, you aren't supposed to remove things from the beach)

I used to have a swag full of beautiful rocks accumulated over the years that I never used to do much to, beyond a little scrub and dump into my 4 ft Ruykin tank...

thankfully my fish were tolerant of my novice antics and there weren't any casualties.

I have a feeling my imported betta might be a little more opinionated....

Rocks need a good scrub (obviously) and then a good boiling for a few hours.... even then use with caution- rocks are porous and sponges for toxins.

Having said all that - I'm a big over-sized pebble fan instead of gravel (makes it easier to clean up) and replicates the bottom of creeks and freshwater spaces Betta might have found in Thailand.... my bare-bottom tanks are testimony to my focus on the inhabitants not the interior design (and current laziness) :P

I think my spawning tank is the most planted tank in the house!

-Ness

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haha love it! "design opportunities" XD

I do love that tree but i don't have enough moss maybe in time :D

my Bfs parents generally have huge stacks of cut up branches and sticks (not so much the pretty driftwood look) ive raided before (they have a fireplace) but ive always ignored the larger trunk like pieces im going to go and raid it this weekend to see if i can find anything =D They arnt oak trees tho. I remember getting a branch once that had lots of smaller sticks branching off it looked really nice i gave it to my partner to hold while I looked for more only to turn around to find him breaking off the "stabby bits" he was banished to the house.

I think i will end up with something like the last photo hopefully! but with less awesome, less rocks and more sword plants i really love the Marble Queen Sword i ended up recieving 2 of them lovely thick leaves :D

Thanks so much im glad i made this thread so many good ideas !

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Can anyone confirm this statement for me im shopping for new lights

all 24W T5 will be 2ft, all 39W T5 will be 3ft, all 54W T5 will be 4ft and all 80W T5 will be 5ft

I think my fitting is 2ft they are pretty small, but i will have to check so that means i can only get 2x 24w lights and should get one thats red is this a good example of that kind link (not necesarily to get from there but as a guide)

Edited by Neffy
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I think that's true. But also be aware that 2 tubes for 2 ft tank is only 48 watts. Considering a 2 ft tank has about 60 L of water; that's barely 1 watts per litre. It's considered low - medium lighting.... I got the three tube for my 3 ft tank and it's only considered as medium lighting....

I remember someone gave me the advice of buying a light to the max that I can afford... I toke the advice and now I'm beginning to see the wisdom in that.

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aquas soil, any version, has a HUGE fertilizer/ammonia content; so it takes a while for a tank to cycle once you use it. the soil leeches like crazy! and it can quickly lose its structure, turning into an amorphous mess, so take care in how often you rescape your tank!

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Thanks for tip re soil i didnt know, hopefully ill only need to rescape once more then let it be.

I went foraging on the weekend in my Bf parents backyard and at bunnings i got lots of cool looking Gum tree branches they are currently soaking in water im trying to pull all the bark off as well i dont want that in my tank its pretty easy to do if the bark is really damp. All this rain made some peices heaps easy to strip others are still soaking to get the rest off.

I also got a heap of rocks so its looking promising :D

Because i cant do much with the main tank i re scapped my little shrimp tank it has cherry shrimp and 2 rasbora brigatte in it i used to have 10 but i went on holiday and they didnt like that :(

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You can use Gum Tree branches as driftwood? GREAT, we have a huge one in our backyard, and because of the heat it has dropped heaps of bark and sticks. Maybe a branch if I'm lucky. :D

Like your tank, the Java Moss ball looks like a mini-tree. ♥ Such a natural cluster of leaves and plants.

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Neffy,

It' looks fantastic! what a great starting point for all these plants to grow, I'm useless at the science of aquascaping - so I'm living vicariously through this thread.

Is that pennywort up the back on the RHS?

I had some that grew prolifically in front of my window... I had to keep throwing it to the goldfish outside.

Great 'composition' can't wait to see it all grown up with some fish in it!

I have a few HM's that'd love to move in!

-Ness

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Thanks Ness! this tank is def working for me better then the other one haha

on the right i have a few plants they are mostly things that have not done well elsewhere and these are the scraps haha

Right up the back is Cardamine then some small pink baby tears and pennywort all over the sand there are a few tall branches of pennywort sticking about tho oh and a few small strands of thin Val

I also have 3 other plants i cant remember but they where all melting away and almost dead they seem to have stopped dying but they are all very small i hope they perk up and grow.

I also have a lucky bamboo planted in the tank it doesnt show in the photo tho but ive had it about 4years now its pretty big

Edited by Neffy
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Hey Neffy

I have heard some things about using gum trees as driftwood. I heard that it contains some kind of chemical that does not affect immediately but overtime will kill your fish... I've read it a few times. However I have also heard someone used them for years without ill effect, I have heard thing opinion not as much as the other one though.

I really recommend either buying it from a reliable source or using hard wood such as oak (luckily I have a neighbour who has a large oak tree, I'll on their contact list when they prune their tree... hopefully soon).

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