# Foo's 40 Gallon Breeder: Champfleuri



## foofooree

8-5-09
Ok, here I go. I changed my mind. This 40 breeder is going to be a planted tank. I'm thinking wood- scape and a foreground of eleocharis 'belem', but before I get all excited about that stuff, I need to buy all of the equipment :icon_roll.

I'm only going to go with an eheim 2217, maybe even a 2215, but I will have a koralia 2 in there to help out on flow.

I'm going to drill the tank and do loc-line returns like Tom Barr did on his 180 gallon tank

I'm going to get a fancy Victor CO2 regulator from GLA! Standard 5 lb tank, maybe a 10 lb-er if I can get a good price on one.

Aquasoil amazonia I. A catalina t5ho 39Wx4 fixture with only 2 or 3 bulbs in, suspended over the tank (even though it's not rimless :icon_sad, and most likely a regular ceramic diffuser, maybe an in-line diffuser.

35-40 green neons, a trio of SAEs (maybe, I haven't made up my mind on if I want moss or not. Has anyone ever had a sae that didn't eat moss?), snowball shrimp, and amanos in there as well as some otos (maybe I'll have better luck with them this time) 
Possible plants include:
eleocharis 'belem;
rotala 'colorata'
anubias 'petite'
java fern'trident'
java fern 'needle leaf'
ludwigia guinea 'broadleaf'
bolbitis
maybe some hm or lawnmarsh pennywort.

Well, enough talk, here's the progress so far :flick:

































No, it will not stay in the corner like that 

Now I gotta find a way to sell this $50 bag of sand that I already have :icon_roll At least I wasn't farther in before I changed my mind lol.

So here's my potential budget


Tank
Stand
GLA CO2 Regulator
Manzanita
CO2 Cylinder
Aqua Soil Amazonia I (three 9L bags in addition to the 6L I have already) - $112.26 (I might do mineralized soil...)
Eheim 2217 - $150
CO2 diffuser ~ $30
Catalina T5HO - $250

Getting there!

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8-8-09
I was bored, so I figured that I'd test out how much the k4 would push in this tank, So I filled it up, and I noticed these








Bubbles between the two panes of glass in the silicone. I got this with my 20 gallon, but not to this degree. I'm thinking that it's because this tank is longer, and with no center brace, but I was freaked out that it was my stand. What do you guys think? I did a search on google, but couldn't really find much.

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8-14-09
Look what came in the mail from GLA today :biggrin:









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8-18-09


















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8-21-09
I got my wood from Tom Barr today! My CO2 cylinder should be here from GLA tomorrow!
Possible scape, from the top. 








Front








My tank is 18 inches from front to back








"substrate" level view








The only problem is that it's a bit tall for my 16" high tank :icon_neut: The bottom of the handles are where the waterline would be.









That's it for now!


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## dewalltheway

Looks like it is coming along just fine. I think the wood protruding from the water surface will add an extra effect to the tank. I love that piece of driftwood BTW.


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## foofooree

dewalltheway said:


> Looks like it is coming along just fine. I think the wood protruding from the water surface will add an extra effect to the tank. I love that piece of driftwood BTW.


Thanks! Everyone seems to think it's just one piece, but it's really four that I pieced together.
Oh, and I was going to say that you inspired the name of this tank, but I wasn't sure if you had an account over here 
I think that emergent driftwood would be cool too because it adds an extra dimension, but since the tank has a rim it kinda takes away from the emergent wood, because you lose the shape of the piece as a whole because the rim cuts off the top four inches. I may _have_ to upgrade the tank. Rimless tanks are just so nice once you get one, you don't ever want a tank with a rim again.


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## foofooree

Thanks, me too!


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## Minsc

foofooree said:


> Has anyone ever had a sae that didn't eat moss?)


Yes, I've had ones that were moss friendly, but not one that wouldn't jump out an uncovered tank.

Silicone looks fine to me:shrug:

Your equipment list is looking good, but the tank will look better if it contains something besides air....


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## foofooree

Minsc said:


> Yes, I've had ones that were moss friendly, but not one that wouldn't jump out an uncovered tank.
> 
> Silicone looks fine to me:shrug:
> 
> Your equipment list is looking good, but the tank will look better if it contains something besides air....


Thanks for answering, minsc. I don't really mind silicone as much as I am bothered by the rim. I'm glad the my equipment list should work out well. I can't wait to set up the tank with water and plants


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## bratyboy2

go foo! its your birthday!!!


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## foofooree

bratyboy2 said:


> go foo! its your birthday!!!


:flame:


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## foofooree

48 rimless gallons of awesome
































Avec un penny.


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## foofooree

Avec un penny.


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## foofooree

No, those aren't bubbles in the silicone.








Cantaloupe sized portion of anubias petite to add to what I already have(that's a 1 gallon bag!):
















This isn't even half of it








Trying out some scapes


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## foofooree




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## foofooree

Here's more pictures of the new and improved, clearer, real water 
































Compared to 3 days ago before the carbon


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## bratyboy2

i really like the wood in this tank i cant wait to see it grow


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## Vadimshevchuk

DW is amazing! Great tank! +1 for upgrading. what did you do with the other tank?


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## foofooree

Thanks for the comments, guys! The other tank might soon be used for another project.
I should be recieving the light in the mail next week!


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## wearsbunnyslippers

i was confused there for a sec with the name change, had to double check, then saw the AKA...


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## foofooree

I made the light hanger today, and I just ordered the Aquasoil.
Things are rolling now!
the light hanger being tested:


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## bratyboy2

i want to do a light hanger on a tank. the only prob is my lights are not that intense lol maybe if i do MH


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## foofooree

Something about setting tanks up on snow days. I did it last year too. lol. Got the aquasoil on friday and I've been working on planting it and stuff since then. The substrate still isn't sloped entirely the way I want it (a little too high in th back left), but I'll fix that soon.
My emersed colorata finally got planted. I've been growing it emersed for like 5 or 6 months now (started from 3 stems)








I'm trying out lawnmarsh pennywort as my first foreground. I'll just change it if I don't like it. I also grew this stuff emersed for 5 or 6 months and it took over my 40 breeder. I didn't even use half of it in here








Not fully planted yet, but it will be soon. I still have a bunch of crypts and anubias petite to plant.


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## bratyboy2

oh yah one step closer to seeing it completely done!!!


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## R33 GTR

Hi Foos what light will you used in this aquariumn MH or t5ho if is MH will you going to used 2x70watts or 1 150watts i ask you this becaused i have a 90cm that i am going to used MH from fishneedit.com and i do not know hat to get jejejej


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## foofooree

I wound up using T5HO, but if I were to do MH, I would do 2x70W


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## R33 GTR

i have another question can i used 1 150watts 8000k MH from fishneedit.com and 2 36watts AHsupply with NA Lamp 36W PC fluorescent or the 2 70watts MH are better


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## foofooree

I think that would be good. The PCs would help with coverage, though, it would be a LOT of light.


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## foofooree

I figured you guys deserve an update 
I thought that the tank looked good tonight, so I took a few pictures to share with you guys


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## A.Dror

Very nice healthy tank..

Well done 


Dror.


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## PeterE

Nice tank! Your plants look great! Where did all that anubias go?







I agree with everybody else, that is some amazing driftwood. I like the big mounds of Blyxa japonica. What's your foreground now? I thought the lawnmarsh pennywort was cool, did that not work out for you?


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## foofooree

Thanks guys.


PeterE said:


> Nice tank! Your plants look great! Where did all that anubias go?
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> I agree with everybody else, that is some amazing driftwood. I like the big mounds of Blyxa japonica. What's your foreground now? I thought the lawnmarsh pennywort was cool, did that not work out for you?


The pennywort was fine, it just grew too fast, and I was always planning on having a foreground of eleocharis belem, which is what's in there now.


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## shark1505

I think I saw you sell the anubias on this site a little while ago right?


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## foofooree

shark1505 said:


> I think I saw you sell the anubias on this site a little while ago right?


Yes, I sold most of it.


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## wet

When the stems grow out just a little more from that last trim and mix with the Crypts this tank is going to be so money. That Anubias patch was sweet, man. Keeps looking better and better. Love those Blyxa pics in your FS thread.


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## foofooree

wet said:


> When the stems grow out just a little more from that last trim and mix with the Crypts this tank is going to be so money. That Anubias patch was sweet, man. Keeps looking better and better. Love those Blyxa pics in your FS thread.


Yeah, I trimmed them really short so that I could get more of the new red growth. It looks kinda flat in that last picture.


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## n4y28r

it must takes a lot of time to build the stand. super nice driftwood.


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## foofooree

n4y28r said:


> it must takes a lot of time to build the stand. super nice driftwood.


The stand took several hours. I forget how many haha.
I got the DW from Tom Barr. He picked out great pieces for me.


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## virgo888

Nice tank.


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## foofooree

Water change day. I also cleaned the filter. Boy did it need it haha.
















Still trying to figure out that r. colorata..
I'm going to make some iron fert spikes to place in the substrate under the colorata and wallichi. Hopefully that will help things color up. I also ordered some chelated iron that I will dose to the water column.
I also added a k nano to the tank the other day, so I have a total of 1140 GPH in this tank. I added it because there were a couple of spots where water wasn't moving like I wanted it. Hopefully I have enough turnover in there now 

Oh, and if a mod gets the chance, could one of you guys change the thread title to "Foo's Rimless 48 Gallon Manzy Scape"?
Please and thank you


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## tomasu

tank looks awesome. how much aquasoil did you use for your tank? im looking into getting some for my 29 gallon tank. and did you put it in with water in your tank already?


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## foofooree

tomasu said:


> tank looks awesome. how much aquasoil did you use for your tank? im looking into getting some for my 29 gallon tank. and did you put it in with water in your tank already?


Thanks, I used about 34 liters. I did put it in the tank with water already in it (no idea why I did, though. Talk about a pain)


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## tomasu

foofooree said:


> Thanks, I used about 34 liters. I did put it in the tank with water already in it (no idea why I did, though. Talk about a pain)


awesome.. thanks a lot. im trying to figure out how much substrate i need for my tank.


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## foofooree

Got my stones from ADG today. Super nice rocks. Jeff did a great job picking out a nice assortment for me  This driftwood will live on in my 40 gallon breeder- it's originally planned home.

















The only thing that bothers me is the far left. Can't quite get that rock to fill in the space right. It looked good without a rock there, but the balance wasn't right. Any suggestions?


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## foofooree

Much better, IMO
















Hard to believe it's only 38 pounds


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## arowanaman

I agree it does look much better with the rock arangement you have now over the tree look. I am more partial to rock scapes than wood scapes.


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## foofooree

Thanks, arowanaman


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## Shrimp

This is awesome! Any updates?


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## foofooree

Sure thing
This guy was kept in here for a day because I found him outside my window. Figured I'd let him walk around in here for a while before letting him back outside


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## Jeffww

What are those plants in the second and third picture? They look familiar but i can't remember the names.


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## foofooree

hydrocotyle sibthorpioides and staurogyne 'repens'


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## jocky

Really nice dry start. I if I saw this earlier, I'd recommend you to just start another tank and keep the previous one.


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## foofooree

Thanks


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## Viwwo

Wow, talk about, growing in fast! 
cant wait to see it under water. 
One thing, the formations look like octopus! (is there a plural... octopuses, octopusie,..... octopi... mmm pie)


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## theblondskeleton

Wow, probably the best emersed scape I have ever seen! I love the staurogyne mixed with the hydrocotyle. Absolutely gorgeous, unconventional, and inspirational! 

IMO you should throw in some giant hairgrass in the back. Or not  Either way, it looks awesome.


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## foofooree

Thanks guys. I have some tall hairgrass that I did have growing in this tank (not vivipara), but I took it out because I didn't want to have to worry about it invading the 'belem'
I'm wondering why everybody thinks this scape is so unconventional haha. It doesn't look that un-ordinary to me.


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## f1ea

foofooree said:


> I'm wondering why everybody thinks this scape is so unconventional haha. It doesn't look that un-ordinary to me.


Maybe because it doesn't have the 'mandatory' HC and Cardinal/neon tetras?? 

I love this tank. Great plant selection, and the placement and use is a little bit different than what everybody does on Iwagumis.... so definitely something fresh and nice to see.

Really good quality stuff!


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