# 90P Iwagumi rock garden



## arowanaman

this is my tank I plan to enter in the ADA contest for 2007 I have been preping it the best I can to make it look the best I can. This tank is a ADA 
90P I am using a coralife aqualight pro with one 150watt HQI using a 8,000k green bulb and 2 65 watt 6,700K pc bulbs and 2 moon lights. I also am using the new Eheim pro3e filter with the 17mm lilly pipes on it. This tank has been setup for almost 3 months.


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## HoustonFishFanatic

Thats a great looking set up dude ! Best of luck!!!!


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## figo

I like it very very much.

Could you tell us which plants did you used?


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## Jessie

Thank you for sharing this. This a very nice Iwagumi...lots to look at, not so typical. Awesome!


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## goalcreas

Hey, where is the AAPE banner in your SIG.

Looking real good Jordan, wish I could see it now in person.
You live just way too far south man.


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## arowanaman

Oh sorry I forgot I need to figure out how to get it on here Huh computers are not my bag baby



goalcreas said:


> Hey, where is the AAPE banner in your SIG.
> 
> Looking real good Jordan, wish I could see it now in person.
> You live just way too far south man.


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## goalcreas

go to the gallary on our forum and copy the link under the banner you want, then paste it into your sig in your profile here.
Best if you have both of the forums open in seperate windows.


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## arowanaman

I have a large collection of plants in this tank more than I should I'm sure here is a list to the best of my abilities of finding all the names----------


-Riccia Fluitans 3 types Giant american,normal asian,and small type asian
-Hemianthus callitrichoides
-Tonina Eriocaulon
-Blyxa Japonica
-Proserpinaca Pectinata
-Ludwingia arcuata
-Microsorium sp.
-Hemianthus Micranthemoides
-Hemianthus Umbrosum
-Monosolenium Tenerum
-Red rotala
-Fissidens moss


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## arowanaman

just seeing if my banner show's up


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## redstrat

awesome scape!!! I love it! It really looks a lot bigger than a 90P to me. good luck in the contest


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## Yoshi

That is a beautiful tank... good luck!


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## arowanaman

everyone thanks for the compliments I will post my other plant tank here soon to. it is a 10 gallon ADA tank fully scaped as well. or you can go and see them on the AAPE forum.


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## yeux

Great tank, well done!


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## ranmasatome

Sweet little tank you got there. Do you have any clearer pictures?


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## harsh

I like it a lot  Awesome work.


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## skincareaddicted

Your tank is really beauty. It is very detailed, yet very natural. I am very much liking the one green color scheme. Good luck!


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## Blue_Dolphinvn

I love your HC stream a lot, HC is not easy to grow healthy like in your tank!


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## Markl

WOW - I love it.


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## zig

Looks great, not sure the black background is doing it justice though, nice job.


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## howie

That is a beautiful tank.


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## ezeke1

Very unique and gorgeous setup! Best of luck to you


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## artemism3

Great layout!!


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## goalcreas

Oh Yeah Jordan, Welcome to APC


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## arowanaman

The HC in this tank is starting to get out of controle I did not know this stuff grew so thick in some places it is 3 inches thick and completly ingolfed some of the rocks I had placed in the scape


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## ezeke1

Your HCs are spectacular. I wish I could grow mine like that.


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## arowanaman

the trick is soft water good lighting, lots of CO2, and last but not least ADA Aqua soil. Jeff senske says he swears by it and I definatly do too.


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## jerome63770

Very beautiful tank and layout ! You're lucky to have this type of rocks, they're very very hard to find it here in France


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## manini

Awesome layout. Good luck!


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## arowanaman

they are a mountain rock. I found these rocks in Montana arround glacier park. You have lots of mountains like these in France. I bet if you wen to some High mountain lake you could find something like them.



jerome63770 said:


> Very beautiful tank and layout ! You're lucky to have this type of rocks, they're very very hard to find it here in France


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## arowanaman

Here are some pictures of some of the setup process. I like to do this with all my tanks so I can show how to setup a plant aquarium step by step.





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## Dave Spencer

I have been admiring this tank for a little while now, Arowanaman, and it is stunning and well worthy of the ADA competition. Best of luck!

As an aside, do you find your HC to be nitrate hungry?

Dave.


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## arowanaman

I guess you could say so, I dose allot of brighty K special lights, and Step 2 in this tank which is full of nitrogen and phosphorous....... Postassium is a great suppliment to help keep it greener too. I noteced if you don't dose potassium it starts to yellow allitle. I also dose ECA into the tank allong with the step 2 to help bring out some of the reds in the tank. I am trying to get the Blyxa japonica, and the ludwigia acurata to turn bright red. the make a great contrast against the stunning green of the riccia and HC.[smilie=b:


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## nevada

Its a beautiful Tank! Its sure will win something from ADA. Good Luck! Hope ur effort will be paid for. How many rocks did you put in the tank?


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## arowanaman

I finally got the Photographer to take the pics of the tank and these are some of the pics I was able to get some sneak peaks for everyone to see.


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## nevada

Arowanaman,

I think the pictures are too dark, possible for the photographer to retake it? use external flash is better ...


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## arowanaman

The pictures were taken whith High powered external strobes the image just appears dark in this shot!


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## UG Dude!

Incredible tank!


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## howie

How long do you have the MH and the PC on for?


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## arowanaman

I run the MH for 8 hours a day and 10 hours a day with the PC's. and I dose 4-5 bubbles per second of co2 for 9 hours a day.


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## DonaldmBoyer

Hmm....how did I miss this one????

Very nice, arowanaman!!! And, I also agree that this is worthy of ADA entry!!! I love the lushness of the HC; it almost looks like green velvet! Nice job!


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## rich311k

Fabulous tank!!


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## ReefJones

Like I said before... Great job Buddy! The pics look even better blown up like you brought to the meeting!
Reef


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## Melbourne

Beautiful tank, do you have pics of the hardscape when it was setup?


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## arowanaman

I do I even have the whole setup process step by step saved in a archive I will try and get some pictures posted up here soon though I did remove some of the rocks in the final layout design from the original layout but mostly still the same as original. there are over 40 different rocks in the tank all like kinds though no variations in look or collor that was to keep it true.


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## jassar

Can you plz plz post a big pic? this tank is awsom.
Cheers!


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## arowanaman




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## arowanaman




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## arowanaman

I'm trying to figure out how to make the pictures larger than what photo bucket makes them appear. any advice greatly appreciated on how to make my pictures larger not much of a computer person


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## arowanaman

This is making my brain work overtime trying to resize images that are either way to big like 85mb each or 128KB too much of a range in size to work with.


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## arowanaman

I finally found the way to shrink large format digital TIFF files " I am not super computer savie". This is not the exact picture I sent to japan but this is one I considered. This is a none edited photo except for what it took me to transfer and resize.


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## arowanaman

you asked for a bigger picture so Here you go you will need to scan up and over to see the whole thing or you can try and resize it.


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## SJM

Very nice!! That's exactly the sort of thing that inspired me to tear down my saltwater and try my hand at planted. Yours reminds me of the west of Ireland.


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## DonaldmBoyer

I'm sorry, but how did this thread only get 3/5 stars! Magnificent job, Arrow!! (As usual) I'm very impressed! This doesn't seem to be a "typical" Iwagumi.....very rich in green color, and very algae free. Excellent photography skills too, by the way!! I wish you luck, man!


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## arowanaman

Thank you very much for the compliments. I put allot of time and money in this tank so now I just hope ADA likes it as much as you all.


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## ranmasatome

Wow... a clearer picture indeed!!hahaha...Thanks! 
i think the tank is awesome! great job.
Love the growth and the scape that you've managed to put out and just looking at it gives me a great feel, however, if i wanted to be fussy then i'd say it is, just that tad, over the prime. It would be better if more of the initial rock hardscape was visible when you took the final picture.
That initial hardscape was really good... i was really impressed so i can't help but feel that, covering it/letting the plants grow so much over it, lets the scape down a little.


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## arowanaman

I to was allitle disapointed on how much the HC took over the rocks in the tank before I got the chance to take the picture of the tank for the contest. Also the Bylxa japonica got allitle bigger than I anticipated.


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## ranmasatome

Well.. you must be doing something right to make the plants get so fat!!! haha
Thats one of the "problems" of a well run high tech tank.. the peak period is only that short little window....


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## ScottH.

This is definitely one of my favorites on the site. Maybe a little overgrown for the contest's sake, maybe not. Personally I enjoy the more bushy, wild look, that it gives off. Just looks more natural that way. Will you be maintaining this tank after the contests are over??? I hope so.


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## jazzlvr123

i think you have a chance for 07 that is a fantastic layout excellent job


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## arowanaman

I am keeping it up just pulled out most of the HC from the forfront so I can have a lower front. Also I removed allot of the Bylxa japonica from the front of the tank. But I am keeping the rock work the same for awhile because I really like how they are placed threwout.



ScottH. said:


> This is definitely one of my favorites on the site. Maybe a little overgrown for the contest's sake, maybe not. Personally I enjoy the more bushy, wild look, that it gives off. Just looks more natural that way. Will you be maintaining this tank after the contests are over??? I hope so.


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## strange_screams

Absolutly beautiful. I'm really impressed. The layout is very interesting and of course your plants look wonderful. I wish you had been able to send in pics for the ADA that wernt quite so overgrown.they are always very critical in that contest but i hope they have nothing bad to say about it. best of luck to you.


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## Fabac

it is really special tank!


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## arowanaman

Here is what the tank looks like now I am restarting the HC and I am only replanting it chunk by chunk.


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## arowanaman

I did some slight rescaping in this tank, I removed most all the stem plants except for some Ludwigia acurata and I customized the water softenizer to be on the outside of the tank so it was not in the tank anymore. http://
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## Left Coast DJ

Awesome green machine scape!


How's the Amano Softenizer working out? And how do you know when the resin is wearing out without causing any pH swings?

DJ


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## arowanaman

Left Coast DJ said:


> Awesome green machine scape!
> 
> How's the Amano Softenizer working out? And how do you know when the resin is wearing out without causing any pH swings?
> 
> DJ


The softenizer works great and the resins only obsorbe for 48 hours until you need to recharge them with salt overnight then you can put it back on the tank. I just keep enough resins to have a batch charging wile I am using another. there are no PH swings caused due to the softenizer.

Thank you for the compliments


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## Left Coast DJ

I'm about to set up a 120P with ADA. We have liquid rock water here in So Cali. So bringing down water hardness is an issue for us here too. But why are you using a Softenizer in addition to ADA soil? Doesn't the ADA soil bring it down to the 6.5-7 range on its own?

DJ


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## arowanaman

Aqua soil drops the pH but it does not soften the overall water hardness so that is the purpose of the softenizer.


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## arowanaman

I changed my background to a white background it is amazing how just changing the background makes such a huge difference on how the tank looks.http://
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## Left Coast DJ

arowanaman said:


> Aqua soil drops the pH but it does not soften the overall water hardness so that is the purpose of the softenizer.


Got it! Best of luck on your contest entry.

DJ


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## aquasox

The white background makes the scape look like a real place you might find in nature


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## arowanaman

Now I am into playing with my camera now and playing with taking different types of pictures here is some night shots and modified lighting backdrops.







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## arowanaman

Well here it is the picture I sent to ADA I don't see why I can't show it here.  completly un edited except for making the file size smaller all the lighting was controlled threw strobes and light barriers.


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## UG Dude!

Incredible tank!


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## gas

Hi, just one word for your tank : WAW
good job , very beautiful tank


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## arowanaman

Thank you I am ready to redo the rock scape in this tank here soon I think I want to try a rock gargen with a massive rock pile in the middle of the tank and little on the sides except for HC and some strands of Esturalis tenellus.


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## Leonard

How did you get your water clear so fast? In the other pictures the water have been quite dissy... and I have the same problem with one of my tanks...
Really beautiful anyway!


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## arowanaman

A wonderfull product from ADA called Green bacter this stuff is great for water clarity and dead plant matter in the tank.


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## rchaves

I like it


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## rich311k

Wow, amazing tank.


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## jazzlvr123

what temp do you keep your hc at? i have 800 watts a light going into a 180 gallon tanbk with co2 and pps and my hc keeps dieing any info?


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## arowanaman

my tank is 76 oF

HC likes to have soft water and cooler water and slightly acidic water my PH is around 6.8 and very very soft. One more thing HC does better if you burry it deeper in the gravel and don't mess with it if you move it or disturb it, it tends to stunt its growth or just die.


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## arowanaman

When I look on this forum I really like seeing the tanks when it shows the full front view of the tank and so I figured I would post some of my tank.


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## zQ.

What is your camera Jordan ? ? Very nice pics.


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## arowanaman

I have a canon Digital rebal SLR the last year version with 6.2 mpxl. I love this camera it is very easy to use, I just wish I could afford some real lenzes for it and a strobe kit ray:


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## zQ.

awww man,very nice pics for a Digital Rebel 300D.I got a 30D with a 17-50 lense from tamron but...........sigh,my pics is worse much than yours


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## jazzlvr123

thanks for the info your tank looks absolutely beautiful!!!!


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## Blue_Dolphinvn

In Vietnam, we can not have the awesome HCs carpet like yours...our water is very hard with clo..
Good luck to you!


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## zQ.

nah,just because of the temperature.Our are 28* right ? Hey Jordan how is your Temp ?


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## arowanaman

My water temp. in this tank is 76 F most of the time.

you can get water softeners from a company called Aquarium Pharmisudicals they call them water softening pillows same exact stuff they use in the ADA softenizers. You recharge these "pillows" with rock salt. Plus they go into your filter.


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## arowanaman

Here are some pictures I took with my new camera (canon 5D)


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## gas

* I prefer the 1st picture.  
I really like the effect given by the M narrowon the right and the Arcuata is one of my favorite plant  
But It's the only red plant and just next to the path which really catch me eyes outside it.
Maybe keep the Arcuata less tall. :heh:


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## zQ.

Aww,5D is my dream Cam :heh: 
What is the lense ?


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## arowanaman

zQ. said:


> Aww,5D is my dream Cam :heh:
> What is the lense ?


I just have the 24-105mm lens I wish I had the 24-70mm instead, It seems to have less of a bowing affect in wide images. Next I plan to get a 50mm wide angle lens just for the aquarium photography


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## Chuppy

Great picture!


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## zQ.

> I just have the 24-105mm lens I wish I had the 24-70mm instead, It seems to have less of a bowing affect in wide images.


Yes,Fullframe-cam is often meet this trouble.


> Next I plan to get a 50mm wide angle lens just for the aquarium photography


Did you mean the 50mm f1.8 EF-S ? Aw,i'll choose the 17-85IS instead of it :heh: And im intending to buy one for my 30D.hope i can share with you some experiences.


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## C.ton

lots of contrast in the two picture


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## houseofcards

Nice pics. I've commented before that I really like this tank for it's uniqueness as well as it's beauty. Question for you, how often do you trim the HC and/or replant it?


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## puttyman70

arowanaman said:


> this is my tank I plan to enter in the ADA contest for 2007 I have been preping it the best I can to make it look the best I can. This tank is a ADA
> 90P I am using a coralife aqualight pro with one 150watt HQI using a 8,000k green bulb and 2 65 watt 6,700K pc bulbs and 2 moon lights. I also am using the new Eheim pro3e filter with the 17mm lilly pipes on it. This tank has been setup for almost 3 months.


I am a beginner so forgive me if this is a dumb question. Why such a large filter? I calculate it turns the tank over about 9 times an hour.

Beautiful tank. Thanks for all the pictures of the set up and epuipment. These nut and bolt pictures really help a newby.


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## arowanaman

zQ. said:


> Yes,Fullframe-cam is often meet this trouble.
> 
> Did you mean the 50mm f1.8 EF-S ? Aw,i'll choose the 17-85IS instead of it :heh: And im intending to buy one for my 30D.hope i can share with you some experiences.


I would greatly appreciate any lenses for my camera... I actually played with that 17-85mmlense and I liked it and it was also on my list great lense, only problem with that lens I found is it slightly blurs the center of the image and distorts the edges, but at the same time gives a great amount of depth in the image very 3 dimentional.


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## arowanaman

houseofcards said:


> Nice pics. I've commented before that I really like this tank for it's uniqueness as well as it's beauty. Question for you, how often do you trim the HC and/or replant it?


 well the tank has been setup for almost 6 months and I have replanted it once now.


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## arowanaman

puttyman70 said:


> I am a beginner so forgive me if this is a dumb question. Why such a large filter? I calculate it turns the tank over about 9 times an hour.
> 
> Beautiful tank. Thanks for all the pictures of the set up and epuipment. These nut and bolt pictures really help a newby.


The reason for the big filter is it helps keep the tank more stable. You can never have to big of a filter as long as you don't have too much current or surface tention in the tank. The more bacteria you can colonize the better especially in a planted tank.

Here are some pics of the filter system on the big fresh water tank at sea world in San Diego the filter capacity is over twice what the tank actually is.


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## puttyman70

Thanks. We have the huge Atlanta Aquariam here, I would love to get look behind the scenes there.


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## jciotti

This thread has been an enjoyable read. Hope to see more soon.


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## jdmstop

Hi, can you post some picture of your 10gallon setup and as well as the the equipment used for the 10gallon? Much appreciated!


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## Terra Incognita

^^ I love this thread now.


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## arowanaman

jdmstop said:


> Hi, can you post some picture of your 10gallon setup and as well as the the equipment used for the 10gallon? Much appreciated!


HMM I don't have any more pics of the lighting harness I made. I no longer have that tank I sold it.But I will post more pics of it for you with angles of the lighting hardware. under the post of the tank AKA 45P.


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## arowanaman

Here are some play shots of night time moon lights, just getting to know my camera and playing with its capabilties


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## arowanaman

Here are some closeups and other shots of this tank. Bare with me I am taking the last few pics of the tank before I tear it down to change it.







and finally here are some further away shots of the tank.


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## arowanaman

I installed a LED strip light behind this tank and when the moon light comes on at night the LED strip comes on also. This makes the fish stand out even at night.


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## pasd

I'm in awe of your tank, it's truly an inspiration. I'm looking forward to its rescape.


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## rbittman

Been lurking and watching this scape for some time and I love it. Can I ask how it did in the contest? Since I really like it, I think it should have rated highly. So, the total time it was up was less than 1 year, is that right? Have you redone it completely now? Just curious as to the evolution of the tank.


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## arowanaman

Here is a well filling in shot of the 90P after its face lift from original look.


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## gotcheaprice

Great tank!
I love the old scape, and the new scape looks awesome too!
Now I need to find me some rocks to make myself one


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## Tex Gal

arowanaman said:


> [URL


What is this plant?


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## arowanaman

Tex Gal said:


> What is this plant?


It goes by the name Pellia endiviifolia and the other type I have in this tank is called Monosolenium tenerum which is a riccia shapped looking form. Rhonda wilson from our AAPE forum has an article this month in the TFH magazine about this plant. you should check it out issusue#623 pgs. 48-9


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## hedson_25

it looks nicer every time i see it, honestly i printed a pic and pasted on my office 
i have an aquarium same size and i want some style smooth like this...


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## Tex Gal

arowanaman said:


> It goes by the name Pellia endiviifolia and the other type I have in this tank is called Monosolenium tenerum which is a riccia shapped looking form. Rhonda wilson from our AAPE forum has an article this month in the TFH magazine about this plant. you should check it out issusue#623 pgs. 48-9


I was reading on another sight that the Monosolenium tenerum was a weed that was very hard to get rid of and would take over. Do you find that? Is it hard to control?


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## JACK SOBRAL

This Iwagumi jumps in the eyes! 
Indeed, an aquarium to compete in competitions such as AGA and ADA. Beautiful tank and I am happy to see an assembly as step by step, very rare today. 
You can spend the chemical parameters of the water and routine fertilization? 

That hug 
JACK


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## arowanaman

Tex Gal said:


> I was reading on another sight that the Monosolenium tenerum was a weed that was very hard to get rid of and would take over. Do you find that? Is it hard to control?


To the contrary I have some difficulty getting large amounts of it to survive. It does great and spreads then for no reason it melts away to almost nothing then it comes back strong and takes over, on and on and on it goes with this cycle  but it is one of my favorite plants to play with now though. I'm sure if you gave it perfect conditions it would potentially take over an area pritty fast but it is easy to remove and keep gone from a area if need be unlike riccia with you can never get rid of every last peice.

One problem with the monosolenium is it is very fragile and is easily damaged so you may get fustrated with it always breaking apart in the tank, but at least it naturally sinks to the bottom while riccia loves to float. The trick is to handle it as little as possible and not to move it once you place it in the tank.


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## arowanaman

I just got a fixed 50mm lens for my new canon 5d and I was just playing and taking some aquarium shots with it and thought I would post some of them to share.


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## DonaldmBoyer

Wild, dude! Nice tank. Pics are a bit "washed out" but I can see enough......

What is your tank size again? I'm too lazy to back through the thread and find it


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## arowanaman

Yeah the transfer to the forum is pritty sucky. maybe next time I will try and save it in a higher resolution. 

The tank is a ADA 90P which is 3 feet long, 18" tall, and 18" wide. The tank is approximently 48 gallons.


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## DonaldmBoyer

WOW!! It's only 18" wide? Nice job, Arowanaman, with creating the "depth" perception!! I was going to say that it was more of a cube aquarium! Looks great!


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## arowanaman

OK I had to try again and these pictures are allitle larger, plus I took them using a tripod this time and some light controle.


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## Gilles

That brown-ish thing in the left back corner of your tank, is that some sort of artemia feeding unit? Can you give some details about that one?


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## EdTheEdge

Great thread! Beautiful tank!!!

That softenizer is intriguing. Where might one find more information on it?


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## MonopolyBag

Although I am new here, I know this much, nice set up! But you need some better picks if this is being entered into a contest. Pics that clearly show how good this one is.


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## arowanaman

Gilles said:


> That brown-ish thing in the left back corner of your tank, is that some sort of artemia feeding unit? Can you give some details about that one?


It is a water softening Ionizer. It removes the calcium and other hard metals from the water. But it could problebly second as a Feeder


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## arowanaman

EdTheEdge said:


> Great thread! Beautiful tank!!!
> 
> That softenizer is intriguing. Where might one find more information on it?


Go to Aquaforestaquarium.com and they sell them and have some information on them as well. ADG can order them for you as well. I got mine from a Ebay store for a fraction of the price but it did not come with the resin or any of the hose connectors. but still allot cheaper this one cost me something like $40. and the ADA one is close to $200.


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## arowanaman

Every time I try and upload pics they look like crap! I am giving it another try I took some more and shot them directly into my computer so I can use my computer monitor instead of the 2" screen on the back of the camera to determine how good the picture really looks. blabla::blabla::blabla:

so third times a charm right









This is a closer up shot so you can see some of whats going on in the front area.









and finally a shot without any CO2 or filter stuff:









You will probebly need to click on the tab above each picture to see a closer up shot sorry but I am still kind of ignorant to uploading properly.


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## puttyman70

This tank in all its incarnations is definely amazing.

Way back there you said the light was an aqualight pro. What length fixture? It looks like it is a little shorter than the tank.

Thanks


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## arowanaman

It infact is a Aqua light pro and it is 24" long and the tank is 3 feet long. I hung the light 10" above the tank so it has little to no heat exchange in the tanks water, and it gives it plenty of light dispurtion.



puttyman70 said:


> This tank in all its incarnations is definely amazing.
> 
> Way back there you said the light was an aqualight pro. What length fixture? It looks like it is a little shorter than the tank.
> 
> Thanks


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## reefcrawler

I like the first setup much better, IMO, it balance the whole scaping but leave proper space in between, it's relax but more contrast, it's really an interesting arrangement with good balance.

I don't mean the second one is not good, but just like the first one much better personally.

thunmb up!


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## arowanaman

I recently purchased some Microctenopoma anasorgii fish in hopes to breed them and I took some pictures of them, and decided to take some pics of the tank how it looks now from some other angles enjoy. 











































































Growth has been prime ever scence I have been dosing heavily on CO2 and Pfertz very happy with the results.


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## Carlos1583

Amazing...how did you get such a dense foreground? I am trying to get a dense carpet as well but I need some more time. I hope to learn from your setup one day


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## arowanaman

Carlos1583 said:


> Amazing...how did you get such a dense foreground? I am trying to get a dense carpet as well but I need some more time. I hope to learn from your setup one day


First off thanks for the compliments on my tank Next the trick to a very lush carpet in a planted tank is ADA Aqua soil. Some people say they get similar results with Ecco complete but I never had any where near the same results as I do with the Aqua soil.

First layer I use Tourmaline BC, clear super, and some bacter 100. Then I put down a layer of power san special aproxamatly 1/2 inches thick, then a bed of Aqua soil "normal" about a inch thick then another sprinkle of bacter 100, and clear super, and again another bed of normal Aqua soil about a inch thick, and for the final layer I put the Aqua soil "powder" in a half inch thick be on the top. This is what I found to be the ultimate carpet plant substrate. Especially for HC. It is also really good to dose live bacteria during every water change, I prefer the ADA "green Bacter" for it is a very well ballanced group of bacteria. The reasoning in doseing bacteria is it eats all the dead debree out of the substrate letting it breath better and privent decay of the soil layers.

Plus I dose heavily with the Pfertz fertilizer line 10-20 pumps of each daily in this 48 gallon tank. Also I suppliment green gain and ECA periodically as well. ECA to compliment the reds allitle more, and the Green gain for when I freshly groom the tank to help pramote the new growth.


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## zig

arowanaman you have a very distinctive aquascaping style, if this tank was posted up without me knowing who's work it was I could guess it was yours. I don't think I could say that about many aquascapers. You get a very unique wild look to your scapes that I really like, great work. 

Hehe even the snaps are getting better


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## arowanaman

zig said:


> arowanaman you have a very distinctive aquascaping style, if this tank was posted up without me knowing who's work it was I could guess it was yours. I don't think I could say that about many aquascapers. You get a very unique wild look to your scapes that I really like, great work.
> 
> Hehe even the snaps are getting better


 Thanks for the compliments I give up on trying to get the pictures look better for the posts.......for now!

I try to make my tanks look a lillte bit different than the norm, I am glad I am distiguished enough to have my own definable look.


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## arowanaman

This is what the tank looks like after a month from grow out!


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## redstrat

WOW!! now that is impressive. I really like your scape!! the plants are so full and robust


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## UG Dude!

looks brilliant... Very well done...


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## arowanaman

Redstrat, and UG thank you very much, this is my controlled chaos.


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## arowanaman

Under going construction with changes in plants, and the addition of Drift wood to warm up the look of the tank.

I added a few clumps of Dwarf Riccia in the front now and added some taller grasses to grow up in the background. Plus I am playing with Fissidens moss in different areas of the tank to add a Mossey look to the scape.

Critiques welcome 


















This is how it looked before I added the wood.


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## Amsterdam

Realy nice

My Fissidens are allways an algea magnet, while the rest is whitout.
Any idea how to prefent this?


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## harsh

Amazing. I wish more people will post pics that size. the first pic is my wallpaper now.


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## Jervis

Wow... your tank is a living transformer  Any reason for keeping your soil base so thick? Especially the 2nd scape. Thanks.


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## arowanaman

Amsterdam said:


> Realy nice
> 
> My Fissidens are allways an algea magnet, while the rest is whitout.
> Any idea how to prefent this?


I do best with it if I have several Amano shrimp in the tank and be very cautious how much Macro/ Iron I add into the tank.


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## arowanaman

Jervis said:


> Wow... your tank is a living transformer  Any reason for keeping your soil base so thick? Especially the 2nd scape. Thanks.


The substrate got that thick from when everytime I replanted the HC and sprinkled some Amazonia powder over it to help keep it down, finally it just got to thick and you can see in my more recent posts the substrate is thinner again.


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## arowanaman

Here is a more close up shot of what it looks like as of now.


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## Jervis

Nice latest shot... I have a suggestion. Why not move your light fixture more towards the front to illuminate more of the rock texture? Currently too much of your tank is under deep shadow


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## arowanaman

Jervis said:


> Nice latest shot... I have a suggestion. Why not move your light fixture more towards the front to illuminate more of the rock texture? Currently too much of your tank is under deep shadow


LOL I wish I could I am hanging my light from the ceiling and it would be a major undertaking to move it now. I guess I will just need to use my flash externally in the top front to iluminate it.


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## slowhand35

Wow, Outstanding tank


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## Leonard

This tank is really awesome!! Great work man!


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## thief

OMG this tank is down right beautiful. O_O

I must say this is on my top 5 favorites. 

Thanks for the inspiration.


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## arowanaman

Thank you all very much I take great pride in my plant tanks, I am glad to see others appreciate it also.


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## kakkoii

It is amazing!


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## arowanaman

Here are some shots I took using a flash in the front to lighten up the shadows.
















and a close up of the Dwarf Riccia mixed with the HC


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## kakkoii

Wow... ...


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## arowanaman

I have been collecting plant species and not worring about aqua scaping this tank at this point until I decide what I really want to do with the look and what plants I want to use. In the mean time here is what I got to show.


















tobucket.com/albums/i277/jmanred1/stemplantgrowout.jpg[/IMG]



















These pictures are like a month old but strangly it does not look to much different now then it does in these pictures just a little fuller in the front with the HC and dworf riccia.


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## juss

So cool


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## wyeto

What is the plant that has gone immeresed and is growing out of the tank looks great and happy whatever it is!


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## arowanaman

wyeto said:


> What is the plant that has gone immeresed and is growing out of the tank looks great and happy whatever it is!


I am not really sure but I think it could be Polygonium Hydropiperiodes. Scince these pictures this stuff is like a tree comming out of the top of my tank looks sweet.


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## wyeto

Thats awesome I love Polygonums let me know if you are thinking of doing a trim I would be happy to take some from you!


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## arowanaman

I got my camera out agian and took some pictures of the tank and thought I should post them so you all can see :biggrin:

full front shot









shadow shots with my flash 

























natural light shots

































































I was playing with different shutter speeds to make more of a flowing effect and I also did some faster shutter shots to capture the fishes motion.


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## fishman9809

amazing riccia stones man!!!


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## arowanaman

Thank you I have been cultivating this dwarf riccia for some time now. I love the stuff because it grows dramatically slower than normal riccia and does not constantly fight to get to the surface of your tank. Only problem is that Amano shrimp love the tast of dworf riccia. I am experimenting with mixing HC, UG, and dworf riccia as a forgound to give a natural looking look cant wait to see what happens.



fishman9809 said:


> amazing riccia stones man!!!


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## arowanaman

wyeto said:


> Thats awesome I love Polygonums let me know if you are thinking of doing a trim I would be happy to take some from you!


I just noticed you live in Santa cruz I lived there for six months and then I had to surrender or else :icon_hang just to expensive and I could not have any aquariums do to limited spaces to live. Infact I lived in a shed in the back of a run down house on Dufor and bay. on the west side. I moved up there for Mountain bikeing and a change. now I live back in tucson and live like a king in comparison.

I am heading up to S.C. in early september for my best friends wedding and maybe I can bring some Polygunum up with me and meet you at the pet shop.


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## arowanaman

not sure the exact name of the polygunum but it is the red form I know the initials for it are S.P. and it is the more sought after form.


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## St3v3

Jordan, I love the downoi stuck in the middle of the riccia. This scape is really coming together well.


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## missewell

If I could sneak into your house and take your tank I would. It is amazing. I love your design and the rocks. I am looking to get some rocks but, I don't know where to start (I know sounds weird, look on the ground-HA HA). Please let me know where you get rocks for your scape


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## arowanaman

missewell said:


> If I could sneak into your house and take your tank I would. It is amazing. I love your design and the rocks. I am looking to get some rocks but, I don't know where to start (I know sounds weird, look on the ground-HA HA). Please let me know where you get rocks for your scape


LOL please do not take my tank:whip: I do allot of traveling and I tend to keep my eyes open where ever I go and collect rocks. I do get allot of weird looks from my friends:noidea: A really good place to look is in mountain streams, or on lake shores. The rocks I am using in this tank I found at the top of a mountain here in Arizona at about 8,000ft. I have a hard time buying rocks when there are rocks every where for free.


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## fishman9809

you downoi is soooooo healthy, what is your secret


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## wyeto

arowanaman said:


> I just noticed you live in Santa cruz I lived there for six months and then I had to surrender or else :icon_hang just to expensive and I could not have any aquariums do to limited spaces to live. Infact I lived in a shed in the back of a run down house on Dufor and bay. on the west side. I moved up there for Mountain bikeing and a change. now I live back in tucson and live like a king in comparison.
> 
> I am heading up to S.C. in early september for my best friends wedding and maybe I can bring some Polygunum up with me and meet you at the pet shop.


Sorry havent checked up on this in a while what a small world! It is really expensive here in santa cruz but its worth it to me because I am always in the ocean and I dont pay to live here(Im 14). Give me a pm when you are coming up and I would love to meet you and get some plants!
BTW I love your tank very original the stones make the scape!


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## arowanaman

fishman9809 said:


> you downoi is soooooo healthy, what is your secret


I use Ionized water that just removes the calcium and hard metals from the water. Plus I use all of the ADA substrate additives as well as Amazonia type one soils powder as well as the normal. the lighting is the ADA HQI "green" 150 watt bulb running for 10 hours a day CO2 is running at 4 bubbles per second using the tower 20 and a beetle 30 diffuser.

I am sure it seems like I am a ADA sucker but no question about it, his substrates and lighting is the best on the market that I have ever used for growing aquatic plants.


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## arowanaman

wyeto said:


> Sorry havent checked up on this in a while what a small world! It is really expensive here in santa cruz but its worth it to me because I am always in the ocean and I dont pay to live here(Im 14). Give me a pm when you are coming up and I would love to meet you and get some plants!
> BTW I love your tank very original the stones make the scape!


Sweet I will see if I will have enough time to get to meet you and get you some plants then. for I am going to be the best man in my best friends wedding and I will only be there for 4 days september 4-8th. artyman:


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## arowanaman

St3v3 said:


> Jordan, I love the downoi stuck in the middle of the riccia. This scape is really coming together well.


Hey man it is good to see you here.


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## wyeto

arowanaman said:


> Sweet I will see if I will have enough time to get to meet you and get you some plants then. for I am going to be the best man in my best friends wedding and I will only be there for 4 days september 4-8th. artyman:


If you dont have enough time dont worry about it you can always just slip them in the mail and we can figure out the payment before or after.


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