# Low tech Re-designed...



## ranmasatome (Aug 5, 2005)

Recently, re-did my entire low-tech tank and changed its outer shell from a nisso tank (now my outdoor tank!! ) to an ADA 60cm Clear which uses opti-white glass. Thought it'd be a nice thing to do for my mom. Shes been nagging at me to shift the tank to the second floor and do some kind of acceptable design on it, instead of the randomness that goes on in my head..haha.....so i re-designed it in the process, i think its a typical kinda scape but, its enjoyable and being low-tech...its heaven because maintenance is almost zilch

Just thought i'd very very very roughly shoot the tank as i just recently finished planting it.. so here it is.. about 5days old.

Inhabitants include : tiger shrimp, crystal red shrimp, Green lace Shrimp, Black shell shrimp, bee shrimp, some kind of Pseudotocinclus sp. from japan and some kind of cute characin from japan.










Shot very very very quickly, this photo is just to give a general idea about the tank. The DOF does give it some more depth, doesn't it??

So any comments?


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## Steven_Chong (Mar 17, 2005)

Get us a better photo  jk

Anyway, I don't think it's one of your more creative pieces (seems like an amano epiphyte + wood scape), but-- さすが -- it is very well balanced and laid out-- beautiful


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## houseofcards (Feb 16, 2005)

As Steve said it's not a great picture, but from what I could see I like the constrast of the greens and some of the positioning. Is that a piece of wood breaking the surface off center to the right? If yes, it looks a little out of place in terms of size to the other pieces. Again I can't see that well, but are those two ferns side by side in the back. What is the eventually intent with that?


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## eklikewhoa (Jul 24, 2006)

Looks pretty good from the picture.....about the shrimp are you not worried about crossbreeding?


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## ranmasatome (Aug 5, 2005)

Thanks for the comments guys..

Steven..
i agree...a better photo is needed. I'm just so swamped with japanese homework that during one of my breaks, i decided to take this photo..haha.. so no light setups or anything.. i'm going to try to prepare a faded background for this scape.. perhaps with blue on the top?? Or would blue on the bottom look better?? Anyway, a better photo for sure the next time and definitely no "take a break Shots"..
I think i had to do something more conventional for my mom...ultimately it is her that sees this tank all the time. I was thinking of doing some kind of wide open scape but judging from what she said about my "decisions" scape (why are you sticking wood into the sand and letting that stand??)... i decided against that...haha..

HoC..
Yeah.. that is a piece of wood breaking the surface.. but there is nothing i can do about it right now because it came as part of the wood..as in..it was one of the branches..so i don't know what i can do.. is it really that bothering?? hmmm... maybe a better picture??haha..
Oh..yeah.. no ferns in this tank.. except java fern "needle leaf"...which ones are you refering to? the one on the left or the one on the right?? both are tied onto the wood and left to grow out.. but i can't see any side by side..

eklikewhoa..
No.. not worried about shrimp breeding.. actually the only thing that could probably cross breed are the bees and the crystal reds..but i never put anything in there that is worth selling.. i mean all the grades are like "C" grade and stuff and i have no intent of selling those. They are just there to do the job.The other shrimps are fun to watch especially the green lace.. one hell of a trooper filter feeder and so colourful..


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## ranmasatome (Aug 5, 2005)

Decided to post a picture of the Green lace shrimp from India and the Pseudotocinclus sp. i bought from Japan.

Green lace..the living water filter..









Pseudotocinclus sp...moving glass cleaner..









Hope you enjoy them as much as i do watching them.


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## ranmasatome (Aug 5, 2005)

Hi guys.... 
Just took a shot today... still not satisfied with it because of the silly light streak on top and the fishes (Rasbora spilocera & Hyphessobrycon elachys..think they are too shy!!) all hiding!!! ergh!! I could have done something about it but it would have taken a long time so ended up not doing so because it was already 1am and i was tired...so just take it as a preview picture...
But i think there will probably be better shots especially when i have the help of a friend coming over to do another shoot soon...

anyway.. here's the tank about 1.5months after setup...
As usual for low tech tanks....
No water change
Almost Virtually no dosing at all
The most tiring thing is watching this tank grow because its so slow...i love it...haha..








Enjoy!!
Thoughts? comments??


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## Minsc (May 7, 2006)

Great tank! It's so nice to see a low tech with a nice scape. It always seems that scapers and low tech folks are in two seperate camps, it is always refreshing to see an exception to an arbitrary rule 

A couple comments: I think the tank will be stunning if you let the background grow in nice and thick, and the needle leaf on the left will be much nicer when it grows in some more. I do find the large bit of vertical driftwood distracting, maybe the background can be grown to envelope and hide it somewhat?

So, you are running no CO2 at all? What sort of lighting are you using? And what is the red ground cover, is it one of the new Hygros?

Thanks.
-Sean


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## ranmasatome (Aug 5, 2005)

Hi Sean,

Thanks for the comments. The needle leaf on the left is taking its time so i have to wait for a while b4 it goes to where i want it..haha.. similarly for the back of the tank and those C.balansae that i have to try to obscure that wood more...the "problem" with low tech tanks is that the growth is so slow...but i guess that applies both ways so whether its a problem or not really depends...

Yeah... this tank has no co2...
All i have hooked up is a 24watt Compact Flourscent which is on for 10hrs a day, Filter and a chiller as the water gets too hot here in this part of the world otherwise, thats it.
That red hygro you see on the foreground is Hygrophilia sp. Araguaia....not sure if its new in the US but its been here for about 2-3years, albeit a little bit rarer.


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## Calavera (Dec 3, 2006)

Really nice!
Did you just use planting soil topped with gravel? How big is really a 60cm ADA tank? 
This is an insperation to all us low-tech people. I recently (today) rescaped my 540l low-tech, mby I'll post some pics 
Could you mby post some pics of your shrimp please?


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## DonaldmBoyer (Aug 18, 2005)

Looking excellent, Ran!!! Very lush growth; top-notch scape!! How much time do you spend on it per week?


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## Jessie (Apr 23, 2007)

This is absolutely gorgeous! I love the clean feel and texture contrasts!


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## ranmasatome (Aug 5, 2005)

Thanks Calavera,
This tank has ADA amazonia soil on the base and thats it...i think it this soil really helps when you're doing a low tech tank.
This tank i shipped from Japan on my own and was the version that uses the opti-white glass... of course, there is no difference when viewed on its own.. but put a regular tank next to it and oh my... thats what sold me..haha.. its dimensions are 60cm x 36cm x 30cm.
I'll try to post pics of the shrimp..but they aren't anything that is really high grade because i'm basically just using them for general cleaning of the tank...however.. if its shrimp pics you want..then i dont mind taking some.
I'm looking forward to seeing your pics!! on such a big tank... woooo...

hi Donald,
Thanks for the comments... how much time i spend on it... hmmm.... in one entire week?? about 30mins? i only feed my fish every other day and sometimes i muck when i'm free i muck around on it.. other than that.. i built this tank to be basically self sufficient.... 
Reason being that i travel so much... i knew i had to have something that could be self sufficient for a long time. When i go on trips overseas.. this tank sometimes stays unmaintained for about 3months.. even the fish aint fed... but surprisingly.. everything is good and well... occacionally though.. i'll call back and ask my brother to feed the fish... thats about it. Thats why i am thinking that in the future..i probably wont be setting up any high tech tanks anymore, unless i want to try some demanding plant or need a scape to grow fast for a competition or soemthing like that.

Jessie.. Thanks for the kind comments...i appreciate it. Now i'm going to check out some of your tanks in the threads..heehee..
wait..... post some tanks


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## Jessie (Apr 23, 2007)

ok, ok, I created a thread.
It's NOTHING compared to your tank and the others on here though.
http://www.aquaticplantcentral.com/forumapc/aquascaping/40857-jessies-125g.html


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## ranmasatome (Aug 5, 2005)

Well..Took a better pic last night...this is going to be the final pic for a while until i can get my hands to change it again..
I can't seem to capture the shrimps Calavera....
The back ground was flat..i just can't seem to get the light to stop reflecting off the water and causing that crumple like effect... oh well.. it looks like clouds to me...so i used it.









Fauna : Hyphessobrycon elachys, Rasbora spilocera, Pseudotocinclus sp., Otocinclus cocama, caridina sp.

Plants : Anubias nana "gold", Anubias nana "mini", Fissidens fontanus, Vesicularia montagnei, Taxiphyllum sp., Cryptocoryne sp., Microsorium sp., Hygrophila sp. "araguia", Ludwigia arcuata, Glossostingma elatinoides, Eleocharis parvula, Eleocharis sp., Vallisneria nana.

Title : Hayaku! Kitsune no yomeiri e iku (translated means : Hurry to the foxes wedding. A quick read up on japanese folk lore on what a foxes wedding means woudl help understand why i named it this.)


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## UG Dude! (Apr 12, 2007)

I love this tank!


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## mlawson (Apr 21, 2007)

Brilliant tank, it doesn't look low-tech but just brilliant.


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## ranmasatome (Aug 5, 2005)

UG dude, thanks for the comments.

mlawson, thanks for the comments too.
Yup...the point when i realised what can be grown in a low tech tank, was the point i decided that i would probably never go back to high tech unless there was some specific reason as already mentioned above. Slow growth noted, but at the same time, the prime stage can be enjoyed for so much longer, and algae grows mush slower as well..so i have time to realise its coming and deal with it before it literally covers everything.

Anyway, i decided to just put on what specifically "Kitsune no yomeiri" (fox's wedding) means for those not accustomed to Japanese folklore... a direct quote from http://www.onmarkproductions.com/html/oinari.shtml should explain it well...
"Kitsune no Yomeiri
When it rains while sun shines, people says "Kitsune no Yomeiri," which means Kitsune's Wedding. It is said that if you look carefully, you can see the wedding procession of Kitsune's bride in the distance."
Basically.. its a sunshower.. oh.. and kitsune is fox in japanese...of course..haha..


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## LindaC (Nov 7, 2005)

What a lovely tank you have, keep up the good work, your doing an excellent job. Your plants look very healthy and I'm sure your fish are very happy too!


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## patrick76 (May 21, 2007)

Tank looks great!!!


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## rich311k (Jun 24, 2006)

That is a really lovely tank!


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## Blue_Dolphinvn (Nov 12, 2006)

Be careful with the brush algae on the driftwood, It will spread very fast in your tank, please reduce lighting & water change 30% everyday (that is my experiences)


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## ranmasatome (Aug 5, 2005)

LindaC : Thank you

Patrick76 : Thank you for the comments too.

rich311k : Thanks for the comments as well.

Blue Dolphinvn : 
What Brush algae are you talking about? 
i don't see any...perhaps you may have mistaken my fissidens fontatus for BBA...
As you can see, this is a low-tech tank..so algae grows really slowly for me.. in the early stages, i took care of any algae before they can get any foot hold on this tank..and so recently.. i haven't been doing any algae maintenance because there just hasn't been any big breaks...
The tank is starting to stabalise out now.
Also, my lighting is already below 2WPG....and because its low-tech, water changing everyday definitely not preffered or advised for me.... did you mistake this for a high-tech tank?? 
If so.. then i am really happy because i acheived what i set out to do!! Thanks.


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