# new 15g



## Aaron (Feb 12, 2004)

comments, critiques please.


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## gsander (Dec 18, 2004)

*Lookin good*

Aaron,

I think you have done an outstanding job on your tank. It looks super. What type of fish, shrimp do you plan on keeping.


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## turtlehead (Nov 27, 2004)

excellent, excellent, excellent, love the island look to it. I think you should plant some plants before where the rightest rock is.


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## avolcoma (Jan 2, 2005)

WOW!! That is a great tank. I like the layout alot.


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## Jdinh04 (Oct 7, 2004)

Wow that looks great, is that hairgrass in the back?


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## MatPat (Mar 22, 2004)

Very nice indeed! 

If you want to try some Blyxa japonica in that scape I would be more than willing to trade you some for one or two of those Downoi


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## antreasgr (Nov 28, 2004)

very nice tank!what type of rocks are u using??


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## locus (Dec 7, 2004)

Lookin' good - what plants do you have in there?

I'm not too fond of the blue background, I reckon this is one of those tanks that would look great with a blown-out white background... or basic black would be a winner.

The spray bar is bugging me as its messing with that main rock, I just wanna reach in the tank and move it! 

Nice rocks.


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## Bavarian3 (Oct 21, 2004)

very nice, love the way you used the rocks


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## Aaron (Feb 12, 2004)

Thanks guys, the rocks are collected locally, so I guess they are volanic of some sort. 
I'm planning to stock the tank with a group of small lampeyes. (either poropanchax myersi or Lacustricola kassenjiensis) They don't really school, but they are constantly courting which should look nice in open layout. 
There is Blyxa Japonica in this tank and I was actually thinking of swapping it for something else. I think I need to be a bit more creative in my plant selection as Blyxa is a no-brainer in a tank like this. Can't take too many "easy outs"  any suggestions to what I can use in the blyxa's spot?
The blue background will go. I want to try to shoot the tank with orange or yellow, maybe tomorrow.


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## commandantp (Jan 16, 2005)

What are the other plants in this tank?

It looks very nice


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## RedBaron (May 16, 2004)

This is relay unusual layout. I like it a lot. 
Could you tell me what plant grows in the left background corner?


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## freshreef (May 14, 2004)

beautiful...


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## Aaron (Feb 12, 2004)

Blyxa japonica (back left corner)
Eleocharis acicularis
Java Moss
Pogostemon helferi (Downoi)
Ranunculus papulentus
Mini riccia
Eriocaulon setaceum
Riccardia sp.


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## dwhite645 (Jan 9, 2005)

Awesome looking tank. It really does look like an island. What are the small star shaped plants with the ridges on the sides of the leaves? I've seen them for sale before, but don't know what they are.


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## Piscesgirl (Feb 25, 2004)

I really like that tank -- a very creative aquascape!


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## FazTeAoMar (Jan 2, 2005)

Hello, i like your layout. Very interesting though I would place only one or two species of plants. Some moss on the rocks and some eleocharis between them. Something more natural and balanced. Don´t know if a white background is the most acceptable for that layout because the rocks and substract are two bright to cause contrast. It is a matter of trying.


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## MatPat (Mar 22, 2004)

Well darn, there goes my chance of trading some Blyxa for some Downoi 

I didn't realize that was Blyxa in the left rear corner. It looks much bigger than Blyxa, but I'm used to seeing it in a 75g, not a 15. You have done a beautiful job of making the tank seem much bigger than it is.

I would probably try to carry the E. acicularis into the left rear, but this too may be a "no brainer". Maybe one of the Eriocaulon sp. would work. 'Mato Grosso' or 'Australia' may work, but they might be too rounded for the look of the tank. The E. 'Goias' or 'Kimberly' may not be as rounded as the the first two.

I didn't notice the E. sateceum in there until you mentioned it. Very subtle.


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## turtlehead (Nov 27, 2004)

Try a white background, I think it would look better.


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## Roy Deki (Apr 7, 2004)

Aaron said:


> Thanks guys, the rocks are collected locally, so I guess they are volanic of some sort.
> I'm planning to stock the tank with a group of small lampeyes. (either poropanchax myersi or Lacustricola kassenjiensis) They don't really school, but they are constantly courting which should look nice in open layout.
> There is Blyxa Japonica in this tank and I was actually thinking of swapping it for something else. I think I need to be a bit more creative in my plant selection as Blyxa is a no-brainer in a tank like this. Can't take too many "easy outs"  any suggestions to what I can use in the blyxa's spot?
> The blue background will go. I want to try to shoot the tank with orange or yellow, maybe tomorrow.


Aaron, I don't know if you have entered aquascaping contest before, but before you change anything in that tank. I would remove the equipment and take some quality photos and save them for an upcoming contest. IMHO that is a very well balanced aquascape my friend. I has a very tranquil feeling about it. Personally i would'nt change a thing. Well done!!!!


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## chubasco (Jan 16, 2005)

Tank looks great! Looks kind of like Gilligan's Island. Maybe you could put
a miniature USS Minnow on the pebble beach...just kiddin' :smile: 

You mentioned lampeyes...I hope to be getting some eggs of P. myersi
Kinkole (Hummingbird lampeye) in a few weeks. They'd be an excellent 
candidate for the tank.

Bill


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## fishfry (Apr 15, 2004)

I love the mountainous look to your tank, I don't personally like the gravel showing in the front though. Was it hard to get the gravel around the rocks to stay in a mound?


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## Mack (Jun 25, 2004)

Your tank looks great. The layout looks very fresh for me . Good job.


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## trenac (Jul 16, 2004)

Wow!... Very, Very nice.


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## Aaron (Feb 12, 2004)

...fishfry: I love the mountainous look to your tank, I don't personally like the gravel showing in the front though. Was it hard to get the gravel around the rocks to stay in a mound? 

I'm not very partial to open foregrounds either, but I thought I'd give it a try. I did put some white sand in the front, but it seems it all filtered thru the gravel and is now at the bottom of the substrate!
It wasn't very difficult making the mound, I think using a lot of smaller rocks inbetween the larger ones helps alot in keeping the gravel where it's supposed to be.


...wruyle: You mentioned lampeyes...I hope to be getting some eggs of P. myersi
Kinkole (Hummingbird lampeye) in a few weeks. They'd be an excellent 
candidate for the tank.

My fish do not have a location attached. They were from Toyin at Rehoboth Aquatics, his second shipment of myersi. The cool thing about these is that some males are completely gold- no black on the fins at all! Kinkole has nicer dorsals though. I'm torn though, as I do not have that many fish and would need to use a good part of my wildgroup to make a nice shoal of them in this tank. Now that it seems their egg production is up, I don't really want to upset them. 



......Roy Deki Quote:
Aaron, I don't know if you have entered aquascaping contest before, but before you change anything in that tank. I would remove the equipment and take some quality photos and save them for an upcoming contest. 

I haven't, but my dog did! Yes, I'll be removing the equipment when I take an "official" picture. This tank has only been up for a week and there is quite a bit of growing and tweaking to do. I will probably be swapping out the Blyxa this weekend with something. I am going to try to get this one ready for the ADA.


....turtlehead: Try a white background, I think it would look better. 

I tried it, looked like ass. I'll be trying other colors this weekend. The problem is that the tank is real close to the wall so I cant get good distance with the paper, which makes it difficult to play with the light and bokeh.
Yesterday 04:44 PM 

....MatPat: Well darn, there goes my chance of trading some Blyxa for some Downoi 

You should have contacted me a couple of weeks ago when I had it listed!!! I didn't have Blyxa then. check back in a month.

....I would probably try to carry the E. acicularis into the left rear, but this too may be a "no brainer". Maybe one of the Eriocaulon sp. would work. 'Mato Grosso' or 'Australia' may work, but they might be too rounded for the look of the tank. The E. 'Goias' or 'Kimberly' may not be as rounded as the the first two.

Yeah, Eriocaulon sps. I'll trade some Downoi for those!!! When I was in Japan a year ago, "Mato Grosso" and "Kimberly" were going for 300-500 bucks! I'm a little chronic with rare stuff, but not $3-500 chronic!



....FazTeAoMar: Hello, i like your layout. Very interesting though I would place only one or two species of plants. Some moss on the rocks and some eleocharis between them. Something more natural and balanced. 

The tank started that way, but I really wanted to take it further. There 
is alot of diversity in systems where rocks and weeds congregate and was going for that type of feel. That and I have SEVERE collectoritis and I get anxiety attacks when a tank of mine only has two sps. in it!  


....dwhite645: Awesome looking tank. It really does look like an island. What are the small star shaped plants with the ridges on the sides of the leaves? I've seen them for sale before, but don't know what they are. 

Pogostemon helferi (aka Downoi)


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