# 125 Gallon



## Questin (Sep 30, 2007)

Hey there everyone! I am new to this board, and kind of a new person to the plant tank world. Even thou I have had my plant tank for years now, I have never given it much love. It just sits there and grows for me. So I wanted to share it here, and get some information on how to make things look better. Things being the fish, the plants, the way things are arranged. Any input is welcome, and I can try to answer questions, but I am not all that informed in this hobby.


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## Jessie (Apr 23, 2007)

Great to see someone else with a big tank! Those 125's can be hard to scape because there is SO much space that it can be difficult to create one flowing and coherent aquascape.

What I would consider doing is trimming the lotus a bit and moving it to either side a little more to be less dead-center. Also moving the tall stems on the right towards the background. I really like what you have going on over on the left -- Maybe add some foreground plants to tie it all together?

Mind sharing what specs you have? Equipment, stocking, etc?


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## BryceM (Nov 6, 2005)

Yep, I agree with Jessie. Big tanks are fabulous!!! Most 'scapes look best when there is careful attention paid to the background, midground, and foreground. You need to produce a nice sense of depth. This is especially true for larger tanks. For a good example of how to do this see Jordan Reece's August Tank of the Month in the Library.

There is a very tall stem plant almost at the front glass at the right side of your tank. That guy should go in a back corner allowing the ugly lower portions to hide behind something. You don't have much in the way of small foreground type plants either. A few would really improve the overall look of things. Most of your plants are slow-growers but they look healthy. Some of your smaller anubias could be moved up to form foreground or midground elements. From left to right the height of your plants goes: medium, tall, medium, tall, medium, tall. It's sort of redundant and is visually distracting.

The overgrown lotus is the most prominent feature of your tank (focal point) and sort of artificially divides the aquarium into two equal halves. It would be much better to put the focal point a bit left or right of center (research the golden ratio). The large java fern or the rockwork would make nice focal points, but not in their current locations.

Nice angels. If only they weren't veils they'd be perfect - but that's just my two bits. Wild-type phenotypes always look better IMO.


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## Questin (Sep 30, 2007)

The lights are Compact Fluorescent with 10,000k bulbs, and the filter is a Fluval FX5, then CO2. There is a tub wrapped around the heater then under the gravel to heat the roots.

The fish, well I think I have about 6 flying foxes, 20 Rummy nose, 3 Skunks botias, 2 gold algae eaters, 4 angles, and a few shrimp running around.

Moving that Arrowhead plant in the middle may be a pain, its been sitting there for a long time, but I will see how its runnings are first and go from there. All the Stem plants on the right, that should be easy, I forget the names, but that one is from the onion family, the corkscrew one, and then all the rest smell like mint when cut, and those are all easy to move.

For the foreground, I am thinking some baby tears.

hows that sound?


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## Questin (Sep 30, 2007)

I could move that java fern pretty easy, its all on a piece of wood, and I have lots of anubias that is actually a little too tight in areas, so moving that to help out with the foreground can be done.

But it looks like moving the arrowhead off center is the first thing I need to get done.

Before when I have moved a plant or two, the roots were near 3 foot long, so this could turn into a bit of a project! But I love the help with your ideas =) thank you.

I also have 8 rainbows in there I forgot to say earlier. Also, being in Colorado Springs, its hard to get some fish, I would of loved to get some wild angles, and maybe oneday that can happen.


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## BryceM (Nov 6, 2005)

Angelfish that breed true to natural coloration are pretty hard to find. Virtually everything in the retail market has been inbred and crossbred extensively. Angels Plus in New York sometimes has 1/2 wild Peruvian, 1/2 true-breeding silver crosses that I've been tempted to get before. Next time I set up an angel tank that's where I'll get my stock for sure.


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## Jessie (Apr 23, 2007)

I completely missed that you're in CO as well! I'm up in Denver.

I understand that the Lotus will be difficult to move. I recently moved my 125g and the spaghetti-mess of roots was unbelievable. However, you can always "scoot" them over. I will often push a plant at the base if I don't want to completely pull it out. Then just smooth out the substrate.


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## Questin (Sep 30, 2007)

Thats a good idea, I will try that out. I have about 8 inches of gravel in that thing, I almost need a shovel to move that plant over heh.

Where in Denver do you go for most of your tank needs?


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## Jessie (Apr 23, 2007)

Well at least you don't have too LITTLE substrate! I would always under-estimate the amount needed and make a big mess trying to add more later on.

I give my business to Premier Fish & Reef off Wadsworth and Hampden. They actually helped me tear down and move my tank to my new location. REALLY awesome shop. No feeders, no bettas in cups, no tankbusters, all specialty. Mostly reef specialty, but now they're getting more into planted and carrying the ADA line. They're incredibly kind and knowledgable and have a fantastic selection of fish. Definitely make a visit the next time you're in Denver! http://www.premierfishreef.com/


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## Questin (Sep 30, 2007)

Cool, I was just there this weekend with a few people from the reefclub I am in. I loved their display tank with the angles and Red Barbs. So its good to hear that is one of the places to go.


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## travis (Oct 5, 2004)

You've got some healthy plants growing in there Questin. When you say "baby tears" for the foreground do you mean _Hemianthus callitrichoides_ or _Micranthemum umbrosum_? HC would look great in my opinion.

I can second Jessie's mention of how many roots she had in her tank as I am one of the guys who helped her move it. Sometimes a complete overhaul is what a tank needs: her 125G is looking great now.

I'm the plant guy at Premier Fish and Reef and am slowly getting that display tank back into shape. It's about halfway there right now. We're also getting a good-sized shipment of ADA goods in about a week, so stop by and take a look if you get a chance.


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## Jessie (Apr 23, 2007)

Awesome! Good to see you on here Travis. I may come by to check out that plant shipment this week.


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## Questin (Sep 30, 2007)

I was thinking that HC would look pretty nice in there. I always called them Baby Tears, but now that I am getting more into my plant tank and finding out the lingo here, I now know you call it HC, and I would like to get that in there. BTW, you had an empty tank on the oppisate end of where that plant tank was showing off some silver boxes, and they said Plant Tank Phase 1 - 4 I think. What was that stuff?

I am glad to see a Colorado presents here on this forum!


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## travis (Oct 5, 2004)

I believe the empty tank you saw had some ADA products on display in it. The boxes were the Step series of fertilizers that ADA recommends for use with their substrate system: Steps 1, 2, and 3. I'm a big fan of ADA's substrates, but prefer to use plain old bulk dry ferts from www.gregwatson.com instead of paying the high prices of companies like ADA and Seachem.

And it is good to know that there are some serious Colorado planted tank keepers here on APC


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## Questin (Sep 30, 2007)

I am planing on being more serious now that I have all this information at my fingertips. Many of the tanks I have seen here are motivators to get what I have had for years up to the next level! As far as substrate goes, I am good, more then good, I have so much substrate in that tank I worry about how heavy it is.

BTW, I want the angels in your plant display tank! Those are sweet!


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## Questin (Sep 30, 2007)

I am well on my way to Colorado Springs 125 Version 2 (I could not say Colorado 125 because "someone" in Denver was here first =P so I will just claim Colorado Springs)

This whole tank rework is just that, work, and I had no idea what I was getting myself into. First thing I did was dig up the Anubias all over the place and try to get that organized. I have way more then I thought I did in this tank. They were starting to over grow each other and the roots were insane. Here is one Anubias with a plant battle scare!









After pulling up half the Anubias I had to stop and let the tank get clear, plus it was late, so I called it a night and let the fish relax =P

The next day I pulled up the rest of the Anubias and stared at the tank for a while trying to get an idea of how I was going to do all this. The end result of all that sitting and thinking was that I just need to get another tank! But that is not going to happen so I better move onto the next part. Little did I know what I was about to get myself into.

My Tiger Lotus has been center stage for a long time now, and it grew like a wild plant should, completely disorganized! I was not sure how to start, but I slowly dug into the dirt and pulled out the plant from where I saw it growing. Little tiger here, little tiger there, and then something I was not really expecting, a little seed! Ahh ok, so that is how these plants reproduce, ok cool . . . oh wait, there's another one, hmm there is one more . . .

The 2 bulbs I had put in this tank years ago (around 2003 now that I researched it a bit) have had a little party and invited all their bulb friends. Before I knew what had happened, they were all drunk and making a mess of things under the surface! I have now pulled out 15 bulbs/seeds and I had not even gotten into the main party area! Well I needed to gain control and I had them all line up so I could take names!

















Now that is one rough bunch of kids, I had to watch myself around these fools! I asked them one by one what had happened and where the rest of them were. It didn't take long for one of the smaller ones to crack under the pressure and it pointed out where the real party was!










It was all too much for me to handle, and from what I could see, there were some heavy hitters in that pile, at least 3 big daddys that I was going to have to take out, but I was just not ready for them. I had to call in the night crew to watch things over while I went back to HQ and planned out an attack! It was a crazy mess when I left tonight, but I will be back to crack heads!


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## Jessie (Apr 23, 2007)

Haha! What a trip. Drunken Lotus. My lotus's (lotuses? Loti?) are definitely the unruly frat boys in my tank as well.

What are your plans for the "redo?"


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## Questin (Sep 30, 2007)

Hmm lets see if I can explain the plan. I will go left to right.

Thick bladed onion plant that will flow over the top of the java fern that has completely covered the wood that is in there.

Around the front of both of those I will have the Anubias come from the very left, up agaist the glass the bend around to the back of the tank after it passed the java wood. This area will be all anubias from almost the front of the glass to the back, but slowly fade away from the front. I will try to make it slope down as it goes to the right as well.

The area that is left infront of the Anubias will be the HC, I want to make it look like a river of them going from the front of the glass to the back.

The other side is a bit umm unknown, I do know the Tiger Lotus party will be back there somewhere along with the bacopa. I just have no idea how I am going to make that look smooth now that I have learned how to control the lotus better. I will try to draw something out. . . tic toc tic toc (thats me in photoshop)










I really dont know how I am going to do the right side thou


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## Questin (Sep 30, 2007)

of course I have already changed my mind about the Tigers. maybe have them all along the back of the tank from the java to the right side.










Yeah, I am thinking way too hard about this. Time to go


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## JinxXx0085 (Jul 2, 2005)

Dang!! You've got a great set up! I can't wait to see what the makeover looks like. How do you like having 10K?

I have two 6500K 65 watts powercompact over my 55G. My 55g needs a makeover, I want to aquascape it better somehow. Maybe better choices of plants? I'll be sure to watch this thread


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## Questin (Sep 30, 2007)

Ok, I kinda did what I had planned, but plans and tanks mix like water and oil. The java and Anubias are all where I said in the first plan as well as the onion plant with the thicker blades. But then I stuffed all the bacopa in there as well near the back.

I tossed some java in the other peice of wood, and moved it and we have the entire right side of the tank set aside for the party plants, Mr Tiger Tiger burning bright.










Here are all the bulbs on the right side; there are around 20 of them.









It will be nice and clear tomorrow, but for now I will just have to live with the tank smog. Next step is getting a hold of a lot of HC to make my river of green! Then the wait begins, along with lots of pics of growth.

The 10,000k lights I have are nice, but I am thinking about the differnt things I could do with T5s now. I could really make that tank look green with those, but after having these for 3 years or so, they have rocked, and the plants have been happy.

We are getting a nice little Colorado crowd here, love seeing that!

They only thing I would want changed in the tank as far as plants go, is I would of liked to have the Red Lotus in there, but these green with red spots are pretty nice, I hope most those bulbs shoot out some growth.

The fish are all hanging out in the new open area, and I am starting to like how that all looks over there. I am going to have to really think about the right side, it looks really good being that open.


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## BryceM (Nov 6, 2005)

The left side is looking very nice. I think this will be a huge improvement in the overall layout. One thing you might consider when you bring back the lotus is to keep it trimmed down so that the leaves don't get into the top 1/2 of the aquarium. They usually look better like that IMO, but it does require frequent trimming. It seems that once the plant "figures out" where the surface is it sends everything up there at maximum growth speed.

I would get the bacopa to the back of the aquarium, even if it means putting the lotus in front of it. It just doesn't look good at all in the foreground.

How much light do you have exactly? HC is a bit on the demanding side when it comes to light levels.


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## Questin (Sep 30, 2007)

The bacopa has now found the back of the tank, I never did enjoy how it was before, it looks much better back there. With the lotus, I do plan to trim it all that I can, but I might let one bulb go to the top in the back of the group. I would like to see it flower again.

I have two 110 watt power compact light strips, each with two 10,000k bulbs. It's starting to sound like those are not going to cut it for HC. What do you think I should have for a 125 gallons?


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## BryceM (Nov 6, 2005)

That might be enough light. Go ahead and try it. If nothing else I'd say good, consistent quantities of CO2 will help out the HC more than anything. Big tanks can often get by on "less" light (when measured by wpg) than smaller ones.


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## Questin (Sep 30, 2007)

I did a couple of small changes and I am done for a while! Except pruning and planting some HC, here is the tank overall.










The left side is all filled in as you can see. I don't think much more will be going in there.









The middle is awaiting a large amount of HC to be planted that I need to go buy. Besides that, it is good to go, and that wood is looking pretty nice with the Java Fern.









The party side is sleeping in this morning, only one lotus about an inch tall has come out to play. This side is the hangout for the fish, and they are making it hard to see our little Tiger sticking out.









Let me know what you think of this layout, but keep in mind the Tiger Lotus on the right side will fill in that entire area. I plan to let it slope up from the front.


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## Angie (Dec 4, 2005)

I think it looked perfect before you changed it. Healty and untouched is my fave. lol That is nice but not very "real" looking. More like a painting then a slice of the wild outdoors.


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## Questin (Sep 30, 2007)

hehe yeah, I understand that. But I was having a bit of a problem trying to grow any ground cover with the way I was allowing the lotus to control all the light in the middle. When things have time to fill in, we can get wild again =P


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## Questin (Sep 30, 2007)

The Tiger Lotus are starting to grow! Out of the 20 or so bulbs that I have replanted, around 15 of them are starting to shoot out some plants.


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## Questin (Sep 30, 2007)

New Plants, and new CO2 setup.

The first new plant is a nana

















Then I got some Glosso

















And I put in my ADA CO2 Beetle Counter along with this

























And I got a little RedSea CO2 drop checker, so I am trying to dial in all my CO2 now

Here is an overall with all the ugly CO2 gone from the middle of the tank.


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## Questin (Sep 30, 2007)

Getting close to what I want for the tank, so time for an update.

Starting with a full tank pic









A side view









My vals on the far left









The javafern next to those vals









The bacopa coming in after the javafern









The Angels hanging out infround of the bacopa









Groups of fish in the middle









A closer look at the glosso carpet









Mr Golden Algae Eater looking at my glosso carpet









My cuba









On the far right side of the tank are all the tiger lotus









Otto on a tiger









Just a nice tiger









Mr Snail hanging out under the tigers









My HC that started from a single 2 inch long stem









I went to war with some BBA I had after the huge rework on the tank and it is now under control, a bottle of excel, and a new CO2 setup :heh:

I have some cuba growing between my wall of Anubias and ball of javafern. Its not going to stay there I dont think, I just wanted to grow some extra for trading and that was a good place for it. You can look down into this trench to see it, kinda cool how that is working out, cant want to see what it will look like when it gets taller.

I have some reds in there but they are doing a slow grow on me, but with the BBA now gone, I can get my ferts under control.

The excel war went very well for me, but it took out most of the Cabomba. There is still a lot in there, but it looks like I had it in fat camp and looks bad now. The tips are getting full again thou, so its about to make a comeback like LL Cool J!

The Tigers Den is doing great, I am training them to stay down now, they were always jumping up on me. Bad kitty!

I also have some slow growing grass that is shooting out runners and is getting a very cool redish tip to its leaves. I don't know what it is, a LFS gave it to me cause all of what they had were melting away.

Thats about it this time around, I am getting close to chaning the CO2 setup all around again because its such a long tank, I want something different without a pump. But thats the next war.


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## kakkoii (Jan 18, 2008)

awesome scape you laid it out perfectly!!!!


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## travis (Oct 5, 2004)

That looks very nice. Beautiful, healthy plants and a great aquascape. I like the hedge of Anubias (is that coffeefolia?) and the dense Glosso foreground. Your Java fern looks fantastic in the pic and you've done a great job training the lotus to stay low. 

Correct me if I'm wrong, but I think the plant you have labeled as HC is actually HM - Hemianthus micranthemoides. It looks good in any case.

I like the L. "Cuba", also. It does seem a bit out of place to me, too. If you let the main stems get thick you can top it and shape it into a nice bush with lots of buds. I've been playing with it a bit myself and am surprised at how resilient it is to pruning once it gets good stems and root development. Yours looks very healthy and bright.

Great work man. Your tank is really looking good


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## Questin (Sep 30, 2007)

Yeah, that is HM, I keep calling it HC hehe. The Cuba has been moved around a bit and I am now just getting it to fill in, it needs a trim and then there will be a nice bush of that stuff, and the side shoots it is starting to make are really coming out.


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## Fiki (Apr 16, 2006)

Huge, healthy and beautiful tank. One word, great job!


Regards,


Filip


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## DonaldmBoyer (Aug 18, 2005)

Beautiful tank!!!! Lovely anubias, for sure!!! Are the lotuses sending up any floating leaves yet? Their flowers are awesome!


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## orlando (Feb 14, 2007)

What an amazing transformation. Well done.


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## Tex Gal (Nov 1, 2007)

Questin said:


> But it looks like moving the arrowhead off center is the first thing I need to get done.Before when I have moved a plant or two, the roots were near 3 foot long, so this could turn into a bit of a project! But I love the help with your ideas =) thank you.


You can trim the roots up some. The root trim will make the plant send out new root shoots. Trying to replant all those roots usually ends up with lots of the sticking out anyway. Just stick a new root tab under there and it will take off again. If you also trim the long leaves off it will send new leaves up that will stay short for a while. I keep mine short and the new leaves come out short. When it starts to send up new long leaves again I just trim them down again.


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## Questin (Sep 30, 2007)

I have been trimming the lotus a lot, so no floaters have been sent out yet. I am going to let some of the back ones get to the top and keep the rest nice and short. I have never had them flower before, but I have seen one sent out a flower stem. I was not doing a very good job with the tank back then so it never got a change to make it. Hopefully this time it will be different. And by the looks of things, its a very different tank now, one I am loving.

Thanks for all the positive comments =) this community has made this tank what it is, without it, I would of never gotten it to look this good


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## Jessie (Apr 23, 2007)

I am seething in jealousy at that Glosso carpet. What a FANTASTIC transformation your tank has made!!! It's gorgeous, your hard work has paid off!!


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## Questin (Sep 30, 2007)

heh Jessie, you will get your carpet someday =)


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## Questin (Sep 30, 2007)

Just a small update, things are going very well with the tank, I have a small fight with some green spot algae it looks like then almost everything is in line.

Full tank view









Trimmed up cuba









The Tigers Den









and one of the tigers is out and about it looks like









Just cant keep all the tigers in place can ya? You will see in the full tank view that there is another tiger just left of center that has found its way out of the den too.


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## Questin (Sep 30, 2007)

Oh and I forgot about my hidden trench I made for the Ludwigia inclinata var. verticillata 'Cuba'.

hidden behind the hedge of Anubias and in frount of the afro of javafern I dug hideout for the proud Ludwigia inclinata var. verticillata 'Cuba' to have meetings on how they can keep the tigers in line!



















They are just now starting to make their way out!


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## puttyman70 (Aug 7, 2007)

Wow! What a huge improvement. Looks great.

What's the yellow fish that keeps taking center stage? (In the shot of the glosso.) 

Sweet!


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## Tex Gal (Nov 1, 2007)

You really have done a marvelous job. I love your new tank set up. It's really pretty. :mrgreen: I can't imagine 15-20 tiger lotus! I struggle with 2 or 3 and I have the same size tank. They just get so BIG!


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## Questin (Sep 30, 2007)

The yellow dude is a golden algae eater, yeah he is a camera hog isnt he puttyman hehe

I know what you mean Tex Gal, but I have seen what a real huge mess of things they can make so that keeps me in line with keeping them in line heh. It looks like a mess now, but the rummys are finding their way under all the Tigers now, and I am enjoying that, so I will let them get a bit taller I think and see if I can make a solid roof for them =)


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## mountaindew (Jul 22, 2007)

very nice!
its like i have scene this tank before


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## Questin (Sep 30, 2007)

hehe, it may be the internet, but its a small world moutaindew, glad to see you over here as well =)

You are going to love my Ricordia and Zoanthid tank when I post pics on the reef club, that tank is really coming along. Any day now


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## Cavan Allen (Jul 22, 2004)

I like it. It's certainly a big improvement over the original tank.

Do you ever have problems with the Congo tetras eating _Anubias_ shoots? They're a spectacular fish but I had to get rid of mine. I hope I haven't jinxed you....

I think the tank might benefit from a bit more micros. What are your dosing?

That looks like a _Crinum thaianum_ on the left end. It arises from a bulb, right?


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## Questin (Sep 30, 2007)

Hey there Cavan, thanks =)

As the Congos go, I have never seen them even bother the Anubias, but I have a ton of it, I would never miss a few shoots. I really love this fish, it has made the tank feel like a slice of the wild because they hang out in the middle.

My dosing has not yet gotten to a point where I am good. I plan to start a consistant dosing scedule soon, I just need to sit down and do that.

And yes, that is Crinum thaianum, grows pretty well, and when I allow it, gets very long and takes over the surface.


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## mountaindew (Jul 22, 2007)

Questin said:


> hehe, it may be the internet, but its a small world moutaindew, glad to see you over here as well =)
> 
> You are going to love my Ricordia and Zoanthid tank when I post pics on the reef club, that tank is really coming along. Any day now


Looking forward to it!


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## BryceM (Nov 6, 2005)

Cavan Allen said:


> Do you ever have problems with the Congo tetras eating _Anubias_ shoots? They're a spectacular fish but I had to get rid of mine. I hope I haven't jinxed you....


Really? !! ?

I keep congos with Anubias barteri, nana, coffeefolia, and petite - never had a bit of problem. Hmmm. I hope you haven't jinxed me too!!


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## Jessie (Apr 23, 2007)

Looking AWESOME!


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## theislandisreal (Feb 3, 2008)

Your tank looks AMAZING!!! SOOOOO COOL! I too live in Colorado, in Buena Vista, actually, which is about two hours west of Co. Spgs. I have a 125 Gallon aquarium as well and I am just starting to get into the planted aquarium scene, so I have a couple of questions.

First, how much CO2 do you use? I am really confused on CO2: how much, what kind of system, etc...

Second, where do you buy your plants? I noticed earlier that you mentioned Premier Fish and Reef (I love that place), but I don't recall them selling plants. I did however notice the beautiful planted aquarium close to the door with the large angelfish.

Third, what kind of bulbs do you use? If this has already been asked, please excuse my ignorance.

Your tank looks GREAT! I would appreciate any suggestions because my aquarium is basically a blank canvas at this point and I am really excited to start developing it.

Thanks!!


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## travis (Oct 5, 2004)

It's almost spooky how many of us Colorado planted tank people have 125G tanks. Must have something to do with the altitude


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## Questin (Sep 30, 2007)

Hehe, well 125 gallons rocks, you can do so much with it =) time to make the 125 colorado club! We have Jess, Travis, theislandisreal and myself eh? = ) (funny, all 4 of use just posted in a row)

I got my fav plants from Premier Fish and Reef, infact it was from travis himself, he was kind enough to trim his personal tank and bring it in. That place has a lot of plants you will find at least 3 tanks full of plants that are getting CO2 there.

My first order of plants came from online. I had a friend that was in the bussiness, so he hooked me up and ordered me a ton of stuff, but over the years I just did not find all that much to get from LSF. This place has a great trade system, and when the weather gets warmer, it would be worth asking around here.

CO2 is pretty simple, just get a bottle of it and let it drip into the tank. There really is not certain kind of CO2 to get, I get mine from a microbrew. You might see different kinds of CO2 out there, but the difference is the smell that can be added to them. CO2 is all the same thou. I would not go looking too hard for the CO2 that has smell added to it, our tanks are too big for the bottles that are out there. I am going thru a lot of different setups with CO2, but right now I have it going thru a Aquamedic 1000. To be honest I hate it, I can not stand having another pump for this AM1000 just because it doesnt fit onto my filter (fluval fx5). So I am going to get an ADA diffuser and use this AM1000 on a filter that it fits in another tank.

My lights are power compacts, 1.8 watts a gallon. I have two 110watt all-glass light units, 36 inch long each. They are the 10,000K bulbs but that is a bit high and I will be changing to something more plant friendly later.

Oh and welcome to the party theislandisreal. Ask all you need, we will answer.


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## curt_914 (Sep 28, 2007)

Yea Travis it can be.... Though mine wont be comming for a couple more years, lol.... 

Curt


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## mountaindew (Jul 22, 2007)

travis said:


> It's almost spooky how many of us Colorado planted tank people have 125G tanks. Must have something to do with the altitude


hey questin, great that you keep your thread alive!

no 125g here "sometimes i wish" but i do have a couple planted 55's.
i use 55g mostly cuz one person can tank down,clean and or move the tanks! 
kind of nice for planted tanks because i like them best when they are 6 to 18 months old, after that they start looking bland to me so anymore i just take em down, rebuild and re-scape!

always enjoy reading and pics from fellow colorado tankers


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## Questin (Sep 30, 2007)

I am really close to setting up my 65 now that I took the reef out of it. its going to be a lot different then this, I am thinking types of plants, a moss on some logs, and lots of tetras and shrimp, I cant wait to get started with all the ideas I have for that one, but this one will still be updated even thou its pretty close to how I want it now. guaiac_boy is the only non-coloradoian in this page so far hehe.


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## theislandisreal (Feb 3, 2008)

> CO2 is pretty simple, just get a bottle of it and let it drip into the tank. There really is not certain kind of CO2 to get, I get mine from a microbrew. You might see different kinds of CO2 out there, but the difference is the smell that can be added to them. CO2 is all the same thou. I would not go looking too hard for the CO2 that has smell added to it, our tanks are too big for the bottles that are out there. I am going thru a lot of different setups with CO2, but right now I have it going thru a Aquamedic 1000. To be honest I hate it, I can not stand having another pump for this AM1000 just because it doesnt fit onto my filter (fluval fx5). So I am going to get an ADA diffuser and use this AM1000 on a filter that it fits in another tank.


Wow! You guys certainly are prompt! I love it! Questin, I read your answer to my CO2 question and I have to be honest...I barely understood any of it! :???: Could you explain it in "layman's" terms! Forgive me, but as I said, I'm new to all of this.

Thanks!


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## mountaindew (Jul 22, 2007)

questin,
i also have a am1000 diffuser, “in the box”, those things are big imho. 
they work fine with magnum 350 filters run off a "t" in the return line.
am1000's are very efficient and can save on bottled c02, that said i bet they would work on a 500 gal or bigger aquarium so for me they are just to big. I like to just run co2 into intake line of filter system making it the diffuser. This is very simple plumbing wise and it works !


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## Questin (Sep 30, 2007)

Yeah, it is too big. Currently I have the AM1000 hanging on the back of this tank. So this is my setup with it.

I have a pH controller (around $100) that is set at 6.7, so when the pH gets above that, it turns on the CO2 solenoid (around $100). This is the device that it connected to the CO2 bottle. When that is turned on it starts to let out CO2, and most people on here measure this by bubbles per second (bps) so they have a bubble counter ($20 to $200).

The AM1000 (around $80) is pretty large and helps the CO2 going thru it dissolved into the water. There are many different ways for CO2 to become dissolved into the water, the AM1000 is just one of them. You can do a glass defusser by ADA, or a propeller device, or a do it yourself (DIY) device, and I am sure I missed a few, but the overall idea is to get those larger bps into tiny bubbles so that they mix with the water and the plants feed off it. But with the AM1000 you need something to push water thru it, I have a pump just for that. The best thing to do is put it inline with your filters output, that way the AM1000 is under the tank and out of site. So all the water that goes thru the filter goes thru the AM1000 and back into the tank with CO2 in it now.


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## Questin (Sep 30, 2007)

Well, I just could not take it anymore, the AM1000 was too ugly and the pump hooked up to it was too loud. Problem solved today when a package from Green Leaf Aquariums came in!

http://www.aquaticplantcentral.com/forumapc/green-leaf-aquariums/

So first let me show you why I hated my AM1000 setup

It looked like this inside the tank









It looked like this outside the tank









And this thing was loud









but then I got all this!









look at this diffuser

















and check out this dual manifold!

















Double bubble!

















And this is it installed and working









I had other pics but I did a terrible job and showing this off, so more later about that when the lights are back on. Gotta let the fish sleep =P


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## travis (Oct 5, 2004)

That is very nice! I really hate having equipment in/on the tank, too. Huge improvement man. You've now got more spiral bubble counters and diffusers than anyone I've ever known


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## orlando (Feb 14, 2007)

It looks great! I cant wait to see the tank grow out. Im subscribed


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## Questin (Sep 30, 2007)

Man what a huge difference! This tank is so quite that you cant even tell there is anything running it. The fish make more noise the this tank does now!

"Tanks" for great product orlando =) I am sure my fish are happy about the neighborhood being so calm now a days =) I swear I hear the plants growing!


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## Questin (Sep 30, 2007)

To trim or not to trim, that is the question!

I wanted to see what my Ludwigia inclinata var. verticillata 'Cuba' would do if I left it alone for a while. Bad idea, I think I am about to have a mutiny on my hands, led by them. In fact, they have already started the mutiny and are now towering over everything in the tank.









Here is my little "test" area where I put them to see if they would grow.









Not only have they grown in the test area, but little dudes are popping up under them !









They are the keepers of the light, and do not wish to share!









But the fish love the cover they provide









I love it! Tigers shmighers, give me Ludwigia inclinata var. verticillata 'Cuba'. I think I will call them Luds. Ya big Luds!


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## orlando (Feb 14, 2007)

They look HUGE! Your tank looks very healthy.


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## Jessie (Apr 23, 2007)

Oh my gosh! Your tank is BEAUTIFUL! It's coming together so nicely!!!


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## BryceM (Nov 6, 2005)

It's clearly the congos that make the 'scape!

Looking good.


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## Questin (Sep 30, 2007)

Congos rock and they always hang out together. Its like my little gang. 10 males


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## Tex Gal (Nov 1, 2007)

Gorgeous Questin! I guess you have answered your ? - to trim or not to trim! You're fish are gonna be bummed when you trim! 

BTW about the AM1000 - I use it. I have it underneath my tank, out of site. I have it plummed in-line after my XP3 so I have no noise. It works great. Just wanted to mention it so that you could use it on another tank maybe. What I like about it is that you get total absorption of the CO2 - no bubbles in your tank at all. Also I have didn't have to add anything going into my tank since it's plummed in-line.


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