# New Tank Confirmation



## Cneon (Sep 19, 2011)

Hello all,
I'm new to posting in the forums, but I've been stalking you all for the last few months gathering information and have been very happy with all the discussions I've found.

I've finally put together my first planted tank and was hoping you all could give me some input on the setup - to make sure I'm on the right path and all. The following is my set up from filtration to fish. This tank has been running for *Three Weeks.*

*Tank:*Standard 20 gallon (24" wide)

*Filter:*Fluval 205 (40 gallon rating, 185gph) - no activated carbon, just using the white bio tubes for cultures.

*Substrate:* API Root Tabs, 2.5" Eco-Complete, 1" Caribsea Floramax top

*Flora:* _E. Parvulus_ "Dwarf Hairgrass" (forground - going for a carpet), 
_Cryptocoryne wendtii_ "green" (midground) 
_alternanthera reineckii_ "cardinalis" (background)
some kind of Val (background)
Anacharis (background - planted mainly for the purpose of ammonia/nitrite absorbtion 
at start, considering pulling them)

*Lighting:* 2x24w T5 HO 5000k, resting ~4 inches above tank. Photoperiod of 8 hours (light and CO2 synced with timer)

*CO2:* Pressurized w/ regulator and diffused via airstone inside the hagan mini-elite mod method. Now, one of the main points for me is the rate of CO2. My bubble counter is going pretty strong (Hard to count, but I'd say about 4 or 5 bps. According to the CO2/Ph/Kh table I'm at somewhere around 55ppm of CO2, but fish are looking healthy and happy, so I feel comfortable. Even when I've added new fish, they've gone straight to their school and have no problems.)

*Water Quality:* Bad stuff: 0 and 0 ppm. Nitrates: 10 or 20ppm (I cannot differentiate between 
the two colors on the chart at all.
Ph: 6.8-7.0 with CO2 (again, hard to tell the difference between color chart)
Kh: 11 degrees - yes, 11 degrees
Temp: 78-79F

*Ferts:* Seachem dosing - including Flourish, Trace, Excel, Iron and Potassium. I have ordered nitrogen and phosphorus. _I dose for a 18 gallons due to substrate and rocks displacing the total volume of tank._ I just started dosing last week (at week 2.)

*Fauna:* Red Cherry Shrimp x4
Oto Cats x4
SAE x2
Neon Tetras x10

*Hardscape:* Iowa Bluff Sandstone

*Water Change:* 1 50% change per week

How's it all looking? I have very small amounts of algae on the rocks, but the cleanup crew keeps it in check.

The plants seem to be doing well. I've trimmed the Crypts and alternanthera once and replanted the tops of the alternan., leaving the mother plant to bush out.

The replanted tops have grown an insane amount of aerial roots (aquatic roots?) from their nodes and are growing well. The underside of the leaves are a nice deep pink/red. The topside are a rust color (the combination of green and red).

The Vals are the only plant that visibly pearls throughout the day.

The Dwarf Hairgrass is discouraging. I'm getting a couple of runners growing in the back of the tank, where the substrate is higher (closer to the light). In the front there is a little new growth, but the new growth isn't growing beneath the substrate, but on top of it. I've started an experiment - I've placed several single-triple stems of DHG in an area where I've placed ~.5 inches of fine substrate sand. I'm hoping the compact nature of the sand will discourage new growth from wandering above the surface. _How long until I begin to notice significant coverage with DHG?_

The photo below was taken 30 minutes after setup. There are no fish and I'm missing a couple of plants listed above. This is also before I started my small-bunch DHG in sand experiment. I'll post a follow-on later today when I get the opportunity.

_*Please let me know your thoughts on the set up, especially regarding CO2, Lighting, and Dwarf Hairgrass Carpeting. *_ Also, with the green crypts, what's the best way to prune to promote thickness - cut the big guys off close to the root or just hack it all down very short? Thanks in advance for all your help!

Regards,
Chad


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## Cneon (Sep 19, 2011)

Well, the top picture changed itself to a close-up of my crypts and I can't edit that post for some reason, so here are the tanks at 30 minutes and at 3 weeks. Also having fun with the white balance on my camera... (Bonus points if anyone can tell me what's up with the leaves in my Crypts before the post in the Crypt channel is replied to.)

@30 minutes:








@3 weeks:


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## Endler breeder (Sep 25, 2011)

wow cool tank


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## Cneon (Sep 19, 2011)

Thanks, Endler! Unfortunately, the links are going wonky again - every time I post a new photo somewhere on this website, it changes the photo in my first post. It's odd. 

I found out today that the tall grass in the background is Mondo grass, and not a true aquatic plant - any suggestions on a good plant that I can replace with it?


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## Cneon (Sep 19, 2011)

Just an update on the tank if anyone is looking at this. This is at 6 weeks, and I've taken the anacharis out and added some amazon swords in the back left and some big crypts in the back right for some height behind the big rock. Again, any thoughts or input is appreciated.

I propagated each of the alternanthera reineckii once by cutting off the tops and replanting them. Any advice on how to get them to grow taller? I'm definitely happy with the thickness, but I'd like them to be at about half the height of the tank (a couple more inches at least.)

I'm most happy with the trio of crypts on the left-hand side, though. I'd like to see what it will look like once the baby amazon sword grows in and adds another layer behind those crypts. I think it looks kind of barren right now.


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## Silvering (Jun 10, 2011)

I think it will look very nice once it grows in some more! (Not an expert aquascaper's opinion by any means.) I have a hard time waiting for things to fill in, myself.


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## Tikulila (Feb 18, 2011)

so for the crypts, they "melt"(you will see this alot)

i just got a new kind, for example, and itll just melt, (but mine didnt melt somewhy)

lust leave it, they will grow back.

tip: buy big crypts, from my experience they return to their glory faster.


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## Michael (Jul 20, 2010)

Looks good for 6 weeks! What kind of substrate are you using? (Sorry if I missed that in an earlier post.)

--Michael


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## Cneon (Sep 19, 2011)

The substrate was kind of a mess. I started with about 2.5" of eco-complete. I didn't have enough to create the slope so I bought some of the caribsea super naturals black tahitian sand. I only bought one bag, though, and that wasn't enough either, so I capped it off with Caribsea Floramax. Then I pushed a whole mess of fert tabs in there for good measure.

Looking back on it, I wish I would have thought of putting some paving stones down under the slopes to help save on the substrate.

I found some baby tears at a LFS today and I replaced the smaller stone to the left of the biggest stone with a BT-covered rock - just to break up some of the monotony in the foreground a bit. Still hoping that DHG grows in better.


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## Tikulila (Feb 18, 2011)

so im the only one who uses only sea sand...


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## Cneon (Sep 19, 2011)

It's not sea sand in the sense that it's sand from the sea (i.e., substrate for marine aquariums) - it's just the really fine, powder type sand. I used it to cap the substrate on my second planted tank (which is mistakenly pictured in my first post.) 

If it was only the Carib Sea sand for substrate, I would think that it would be too thick and heavy on plant roots - maybe crush the roots? That's just a "gut feeling" I have, which has no basis in research or science. 

How does it work out for you, Tikuliala?


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## Cneon (Sep 19, 2011)

So here it is at 10 weeks. I had a fierce battle with algae. It's mostly under control now, but I do still have green spot algae on the glass and some of the leaves. I've been trimming off the leaves with algae and cleaning the glass every day. I've increased my phosphate dosing, as well, to try to curb the outbreaks. Nothing else has really changed, except for the fact that I've added a new crypt next to the big rock (no idea what kind it is.) You can kind of see the small patch of HC I have growing under it. I've also moved some rocks out of the tank to let the plants bush out more naturally.

The swords behind the crypts on the right are coming in kind of weird. I was hoping for wider leaves. I might have to push them back against the glass as much as possible to get them from growing into the crypts.

Anyway, hope you enjoy, thanks for looking.


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## ProjectCode858 (Nov 29, 2011)

It looks very nice! I am impressed.


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## Tex Gal (Nov 1, 2007)

Your rocks are fast disappearing. Have you thought of clumping/piling them up more? The swords will be too big for your tank. The plants are looking nice. I think you will need some midground plants. Most of your plants are background and foreground plants. You have a good general idea. Great job with your algae battle.


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## singolz (Oct 27, 2011)

Cneon said:


> So here it is at 10 weeks. I had a fierce battle with algae. It's mostly under control now, but I do still have green spot algae on the glass and some of the leaves. I've been trimming off the leaves with algae and cleaning the glass every day. I've increased my phosphate dosing, as well, to try to curb the outbreaks. Nothing else has really changed, except for the fact that I've added a new crypt next to the big rock (no idea what kind it is.) You can kind of see the small patch of HC I have growing under it. I've also moved some rocks out of the tank to let the plants bush out more naturally.
> 
> The swords behind the crypts on the right are coming in kind of weird. I was hoping for wider leaves. I might have to push them back against the glass as much as possible to get them from growing into the crypts.
> 
> Anyway, hope you enjoy, thanks for looking.


hard to believe this is a first planted tank. looks like you've done your homework and have a nack for scaping. very nice tank, keep the pics coming.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## Cneon (Sep 19, 2011)

Thanks everyone! 

@Singolz: I did do my homework - I stalked everyone on APC for a couple of months and stole all the information I could find before taking the plunge ... with the exception of how big some plants grow. I did not expect this from my crypts. 

@Tex Gal: Goes with my last comment, those swords are going to be way too big very soon. I have a 45g tall, which will make for a nice home for them, I hope. As far as the rocks go, yes, they're disappearing, even my main rock is being overwhelmed. I think pulling the rocks in the "field" and stacking them would make for a good change. And yes, I do need some midground plants, but I thought the crypts would stay low. I pulled the A. Reneckii and replanted the clean tops for some midground work (they bore the bulk of the algae in my tank - sacrifices).

I'll post a pic tomorrow - things have gotten a little bigger and bushier.


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## Cneon (Sep 19, 2011)

As promised, a photo at 12 weeks - added some moss-covered branches creeping out of the crypts, a big rock in back middle (as stem plants growing behind it right now) and picked some of the smaller rocks up (I don't like the small rocks at all.) Hoping the crypts are reaching terminal mass.

Hope you like it.


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## ProjectCode858 (Nov 29, 2011)

Cneon,

What stones did you use and did you notice if it shifts your pH or GH/KH?


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## Cneon (Sep 19, 2011)

@ Project: It's sandstone from some bluffs near where I live. I just ran a very scientific test to see if they affected my water chemistry.

Tap Kh: 5 degrees
Tank Kh: 6 degrees

Tap Gh: 11 degrees
Tank Gh: 15 degrees

So it looks like they may have altered my water parameters a little bit - or it could be something else or a combination of a lot of things. Take the results as you will.

(At one point I put some peat in my filter to lower the hardness a little bit, but things went south real fast in my tank - plants going yellow, holes, the filter itself started spewing out nastiness that was growing both in the intake and outflow. I took it all out and everything bounced back and the sludge from the filter hasn't returned.)

I don't know if it altered my Ph at all. I have pressurized CO2 and keep it steady at around 6.8.


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## invinci (Dec 10, 2011)

wow..great looking tank..
your plants might overtake the tank from your fish ..haha..
very good healthy growth in plants..
you have done pretty damn good job with your aquascaping...


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## Zapins (Jul 28, 2004)

I like your tank. It reminds me of Asian garden design.


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## Cneon (Sep 19, 2011)

Thank you for the kind words, Zapins and Invinci!

I'm not sure about the Asian garden design - it looks like there is some kind of premeditated maintenance scheme there - they're probably not flying by the seat of their pants, adding and changing things as they go along .

Finally got around to bringing home my portable flash from my studio, so I can lower the ISO and increase the shutter speed in my shots. Took this detailed shot, which I enjoy.

*Can anyone identify the crypt in the lower right corner, in front of the rock? My LFS doesn't label well, it just said "Potted Crypt" when I bought it.*










While I'm at it, here's a full tanks shot - no big changes, just different lighting and white balance. It's kind of frustrating, as I am a professional photographer - aquarium lighting and photography is an entirely different beast, it would seem.


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## Zapins (Jul 28, 2004)

Tell me about it! It really is tough to get a decently lit shot. The water reflects light strangely and the glass can sometimes distort shots. Can you tell us more about the setup, settings and equipment you used?


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## Cneon (Sep 19, 2011)

It's easier to show the setup I'm using (Please note that this is in "neutral mode" - none of the flashes fired for this shot, the only light is the backlight and the modeling light on the main flash):










I'm shooting with a Nikon D300s, mounted on a tripod. Sitting on the camera is a speedlight SB-800.

The main flash is a powerlight 1250 DR (500 watt seconds on flash), with a 7.5" metal reflector (I opted not to use an umbrella for the shot, as I wanted some strong lighting directly on the "field of grass" in my tank.) This flash is controlled via cable to my camera.

The last flash is a speedlight SB-900, and it's sitting in the Speedotron diffuser. It's slaved to trigger when it senses a flash. The diffuser gives me a nice, strong, even amount of lighting throughout the tank (except the areas right underneath the crypts. That's what the SB-800 is for. I angle the 800 at 60 degrees with a bounce card on to hit the front of the tank - the flash is on manual 1/1 (full power)).

And, lastly, I've taken the lighting from the top of the tank and placed it behind the tank. I had frosted the back of my tank with spraypaint and it gives a nice, soft diffusion and offers some good backlighting. Unfortunately, it's not strong enough to knock out the shadows you see in the previous images. I'll get it all worked out soon enough.

All of this allows me to shoot at: 
1/250
f 11
ISO 200

Previously, I was shooting at:
1/100
f 5
ISO 1600

I shoot everything in Raw format and spend a bit of time in Photoshop CS5 tweaking the levels, white balance, contrast, etc. etc.

Probably not your run-of-the-mill light setup for a typical aquarium keeper, but I have some extra pieces in my studio that I can use to play 
around with.

</geekmode>


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## Tex Gal (Nov 1, 2007)

Looking nice. Love seeing your stones!


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## Cneon (Sep 19, 2011)

Been a while, and my tank was growing out of control at 4 months, so I decided to do a massive trim and small rescape. Below is a quick snapshot of my tank. I've posted my initial planting for comparison.



















I had no idea Crypts got this big, so I pulled them and trimed them back by half - I selected the leaves by choosing the ones covered in BBA and Staghorn algae first, then the older leaves second. (I'm assuming there was so much algae growth because they were so close to the surface and the light. I completely stopped dosing any fertilizers over the last 3 weeks, hoping it would curb algae growth.)

Here is a snapshot of ONE of my 4 crypt plants in the tank.









Being so big, I put 2 crypts in the background (a third went as a background plant in my 45 gallon tall).










Now I need some good midground/foreground plants to put in front of the crypts. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated!


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