# Mikes' Aquarium



## Akulakat (Jul 16, 2011)

Ok. I can take it. I'm looking forward to comments / help. doesn't mean I will follow any of it. More fish next weekend.

Current setup. 75G w Fluval 305. Mixed gravel and substrate. I'm willing to make some changes or additions to better it. I have a batch of low light plants coming in Wednesday and if I'm going to be changing, I'd like to do it before.










Lighting is 1w 40 bulb that came with tank
Lowes light with 2 65000K 32 w bulbs









I will keep a running history at the below link
http://www.bigmikeskites.com/fish/fish.html


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## fishyjoe24 (May 18, 2010)

i'd add some driftwood, and root tabs in the gravel. looks like you have nearly 2 watts per a gallon you should be able to do vals,sags,fern, and anubias..


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## Akulakat (Jul 16, 2011)

ok...whats a root tab?

Also, I have some driftwood, but the bottom is very smooth and when i put it in the water, it has like a goopy film that comes off. The other side is pretty nice. If I could use that, I really like the looks. Whats with the goopy stuff?


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## Michael (Jul 20, 2010)

A root tab is a little fertilizer pellet made to be inserted in the gravel near a plant. You can get ones especially made for aquarium use.

Your driftwood may need to be soaked or power washed. Even then, wood often develops a slimy coating when it is submerged. This is usually a harmless bacterial film that goes away by itself.

OK, the design. First, find some examples of tanks that you really like. Post the photos here, and we can help you get as close as possible given the equipment that you have.

Right now your substrate is very uneven, like it was just dumped in the tank. Hills and valleys are fine, but they need to be done in a way that contributes to the look that you want to achieve.

Above all, have fun!


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## Akulakat (Jul 16, 2011)

I have a batch of plants coming in tomorrow. I ordered these before I found out about you guys and they were not refundable. So I will see how they fit with what I got from y'all. 

Pictures when the smoke clears.


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## niko (Jan 28, 2004)

Yeah, start with leveling the substrate. There are 2 best ways to use a credit card and that is one of them. (The other one is to scrub algae off the glass.)

It is best if you make a slope. Meaning less substrate toward the front and more on the back. But having in mind that you have a lot of gravel maybe you can just leave it flat because the thick side may develop bad anaerobic situation (smells like rotten eggs and kills fish, plants, everything).

It would be best if your lights are closer to the front glass. Because when the non-refundable plants start to grow they will turn toward the light. And if it happens to be toward the front glass it all looks very nice.

Consider getting 2 Ikea timers ($5 for both, grounded too). One for each light you have. That way you can blast the plants with all the light you have for a few hours somewhere in the middle of the day. Before and after - lower light (the original light strip). Such light periodization goes a long way against the algae.

And algae you will most likely have if you start dumping fertilizers in the water. That is the main method by which we all run our planted tanks. It is not right but it makes for gorgeous looking tanks. Except when algae strikes we don't have good answers how to handle them. So at least be ready to play with the light because it really helps against the algae.

There is more - filtration, flow, water change schedule. When time comes we'll talk about all that. For now - do not rush to add fertilizers in your water. See what the non-refundable plants will say about your tank first.

--Nikolay


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## Akulakat (Jul 16, 2011)

The water has finally cycled. Fish come today. I took some advices.


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## niko (Jan 28, 2004)

Allright Mike!

So you have everything in the tank now. The adventure has begun the second you turned the lights on. All sorts of things are happening already but you don't see them. If you don't act "right" we will end up discussing issues.

So:

1. How many hours a day you run the lights?

2. Do you run all lights all the time?

3. What media do you have in your filter?

4. How often do you do water changes?

5. How much water do you change every time?

6. What product do you use as a dechlorinator?

7. Do you use or plant to use CO2?


These 5 questions will give us a good idea what to advise you. Keep in mind that the first 4-8 weeks of any planted tank development are the most important. You must do things right. That is what we are going to do.

-Nikolay


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## Akulakat (Jul 16, 2011)

niko said:


> Allright Mike!
> 
> So you have everything in the tank now. The adventure has begun the second you turned the lights on. All sorts of things are happening already but you don't see them. If you don't act "right" we will end up discussing issues.
> 
> ...


1. Lights Come on at 6 am...go off at 10 pm. on a timer. I can adjust that no problem...let me know

2. answered with 1

3. fluval 305 has foam, some charcoal bags, and cylindrical tube looking thingys.

4. I've done 1 water change..about ready to do another...so every 2 weeks.

5. 5-10 gallons

6. Prime

7. Seacham Excel for CO2. also some trace minerals....also Seacham.

Plants are labeled as 'low light' plants.


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## Gumbie (Apr 18, 2011)

I really like how your tank is coming along. It has a nice natural look to it, not edgy or contrived. (No insult intended to fans of underwater forests, mountains or tire tracks.)

I hope you’re keeping a log of everything going on in the tank (good and bad) including names of the plants, fish, shrimp, snails (I love my Nerite snails) and who you got them from, lighting, ferts, water test readings.

I also like to take a picture of my tanks once a week. It seems to give me a different view of them and assures me that the plants actually are growing. Your Hygrophila pinnatifada looks happy. Looking forward to seeing your fauna selection.


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## niko (Jan 28, 2004)

1. Lights Come on at 6 am...go off at 10 pm. on a timer. I can adjust that no problem...let me know

The norm is 8-11 hours. You have 16. Reduce this to 10 hours for now.



2. answered with 1
...


3. fluval 305 has foam, some charcoal bags, and cylindrical tube looking thingys.

This filter is severely undersized for your tank. It is good for up to a 30 gallon planted tank but nothing over it.

It will work but if anything goes bad it will be the first thing to upgrade.
For now make sure that the charcoal is not older than 2 weeks. Replace it every 2 weeks. 
And keep in mind that because your substrate is not rich in nutrients by using charcoal you are depriving the plants from the little nutrients that are in the tap water. I'm telling you this so you understand how despite good intentions and effort one can be counterproductive.

I suggest using the charcoal anyway because what it removes to some extent is organics. They are one of the main reason for algae. We can discuss later how to supplement your plants by placing fertilizer tabs under their roots. But let's see how they do first.

The "cylindrical tube looking thingys" are hopefully biological media. Did they come with the filter? Can you show a picture of them. I hate to think you got sold the cylinders which distribute the water flow and are not biomedia. They look very similar.


4. I've done 1 water change..about ready to do another...so every 2 weeks.

You need to start doing 10% water changes every 2-3 days. Period.
Or you can get a plastic pitcher and every day scoop 4-5 pitchers of water and replace it. It will take you about 4 minutes per day. That's really the best way but you need to be consistent.


5. 5-10 gallons

This is a good amount of water to change if you changed it once or twice a week.


6. Prime

Perfect. 
Just keep in mind that the water company adds more or less chemicals to the tap water depending on the weather. Hotter weather - they dump more, news of flooding in the water collection areas - they add more (because trash gets incorporated in the water during floods). I'm telling you this so you know - the tap water is not a guaranteed constant day in day out. When the weather is hot - add a little extra Prime.


7. Seacham Excel for CO2. also some trace minerals....also Seacham.

Stop the Excel and trace. 


The Excel will not help with the CO2. That was the original intention of Seachem but it does not work that way really. We all use Excel to poison algae, that's all there is to our collective fascination with Excel. It is a chemical used to kill barnicles that grow in ships. If you overdo it some plants slow down their growth. For now you do not need it.

The trace elements are probably needed by the plants. But first we have to see what they tell us. Let's see how they do with more frequent water changes (they introduce nutrients in tiny amounts).


I'd also suggest you move the outflow/inflow pipes of your filter to the side of the tank. So the outflow shoots along the front glass. And the inflow is right by it. This will greatly help with the flow. Your filter has a very weak pump and that will help. What will also help a little is to trash the standard grey plastic "gooseneck" piece that is at the end of your outflow. It has too many unnecessary curves. Replace it with just a simple L-shaped piece of pipe.

And keep us updated on what you changed so we don't lose track.


--Nikolay


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## Akulakat (Jul 16, 2011)

niko said:


> 1. Lights Come on at 6 am...go off at 10 pm. on a timer. I can adjust that no problem...let me know
> 
> The norm is 8-11 hours. You have 16. Reduce this to 10 hours for now.
> 
> ...


1) Changing to 11a - 9p
2) ---
3) I'm pretty mad about this one. LFS Dallas North told me this is what I wanted for this tank. They are supposed to be the experts. I would have gone with bigger had I known. I think they have steered me wrong one or two times on different things. This is really not a good way to run a business. Everything in there came with the filter. BTW, this filter is a pain in the butt if you lose power....it does not start back up. I had to crank the little prime thing over an hour the other day and it still didn't work. the only thing that worked was to dump the water out of the filter, then connect it back and let the siphon flow and plugging in halfway through the cycle. I got no money for an upgrade...again...I'm not happy about this.
4) My trees in the yard need water anyway...good place for it.
5) -----
6) finally something right.
7) These were recommmended for plants not by LFS, but from freshwateraquariumplants.com I surely hope they know what they are doing. Can't hurt to see what happens when i stop.

I like my grey gooseneck.


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## fishyjoe24 (May 18, 2010)

hobbyist knows best .... niko is right, i took his advice and it has help, i have a eheim rated for a 66 put it on a 60g tank and had problems. but i cut it half and put it on a 29g and it was perfect.

i think canisters don't get rated right. we never think about returning head volume pressure from the pump and how it loses pressure the higher it has to return.

I like DNA, but I'm not sure if you got the right stuff you needed.. and as nikolay said i would do bigger more frequent water changes....


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## Tex Guy (Nov 23, 2008)

Niko is an elder of the tribe here and surely knows way more than me about this stuff. But I think it's safe to point out that there are divergent opinions about most every aspect of planted tanks. I point this out specifically about the use of Excel. In my home we use it as Niko describes. But I know that there are others among our group that use it successfully as a carbon source.


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## Akulakat (Jul 16, 2011)

I completely redid the scene. I used the black diamond topped with black gravel for substrate. I also added CO2 to the tank.


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