# First attempt at more than just growing foliage



## El Exorcisto (Aug 10, 2006)

I've gotten fairly good at making most things grow, quite well. I'm taking my first stab at actually aquascaping with a 10 gallon AGA. I spent the afternoon stripping the trim rings and cleaning up the silicone. I slopped a coat of light blue latex on the backdrop, then I plopped in a half dozen generous handfuls of Organic Choice and topped it off with some "multi-purpose" sand I picked up at Lowes. I'm used to using dark substrate, primarily Black Diamond. I figured with a rimless 10 gallon, keeping with the "make it look bigger" theme I should go lighter. Play sand is boring, so I went with this, a much coarser, more natural looking substrate.










I plopped in an old piece of driftwood I had laying around and weighed it down with some pieces of shale. In a few days I'll see if the wood has saturated yet.



















I'm leaving it at this stage for at least a week, maybe two. I have the stock on order from some very generous members. Once it shows up I'll decide what goes in here and what gets grown out in my 55. I am thinking a background of rotala "green," rotala macrandra "green," and a splash of rotala "colorata." Some blyxa japonica slong the sides of the stump, and a spotty foreground of echinodorus tenellus.

Specs on the finished tank will be:

10 Gallon AGA, stripped rims
Whisper 5-15 HOB
100w Mercury Vapor pendant
Homebrew CO2 run through Whisper
No dosing required with current substrate


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## Tex Gal (Nov 1, 2007)

It looks big already. Great thinking!


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## bratyboy2 (Feb 5, 2008)

bottom photos are gone


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## El Exorcisto (Aug 10, 2006)

I scrapped the driftwood, and my original LED pendant plans. I have new LEDs in the mail. I was planning on usin bio-CO2, but I bellied up and bought a new tank and regulator for my 55 so I can use my paintball system on this 10 gallon. It's difficult going back to yeast generators after using a tank, regulator, and valve to get just the right amount. Here are the pics after initial planting:



















Current Tank Specs:
AGA 10 gallon, rimless
27 watt CF Spiral (temporary)
Whisper 5-15 Power Filter
Red Sea Paintball Regulator on 20oz tank
Miracle-Gro Organic Choice, topped with Sankrete Multi-Purpose Sand

Plants:
Marsilea Minuta
Blyxa Japonica
Hygrophila Polysperma "Sunset"
Rotala Rotundifolia
Limnophila sp. "Mini"

I'm planning on a school of 10 white cloud mountain minnows for some movement.


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## bratyboy2 (Feb 5, 2008)

i would add more of the same rock. the one just looks odd to me


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## dougrm3 (Nov 7, 2009)

Cool looking rock. I like the dense planting on the right side. I tend to be more old school with a center or accent plant. Looks great without the trim!


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## El Exorcisto (Aug 10, 2006)

bratyboy, if I could find another jagged piece of it I would definitely put more in. Unfortunately every other piece of it I have seen has been a rounded cobble. Once the plants grow in it should look a little less stark with a sloping pile of vegetation swallowing it.


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## bratyboy2 (Feb 5, 2008)

lol


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## Tausendblatt (Sep 16, 2009)

El Exorcisto said:


> bratyboy, if I could find another jagged piece of it I would definitely put more in. Unfortunately every other piece of it I have seen has been a rounded cobble. Once the plants grow in it should look a little less stark with a sloping pile of vegetation swallowing it.


I can see it now!

With the foreground filled in, that would look really cool!


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## El Exorcisto (Aug 10, 2006)

I scrapped the sand... Ended up having bits of limestone in it, which was becoming problematic. I was having a problem with how low contrast it made everything, too, so I'm glad it is gone. The Lesco in Syracuse has SMS Charcoal, but they never seem to pick up their phone. So I stopped by Autozone, low and behold, their Thrifty-Zorb is SMS Charcoal. SO I gutted the tank, resubstrated, and rearranged. Here is the result:










Same plants as before, I just added some e. tenellus to the right foreground. I'm still using 2 25 watt CFs in clamp fixtures, my LED drivers are in the mail finally. This substrate is really, really nice to work with. Now I know what all the fuss is about and I think I'm yet another SMS convert.


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## El Exorcisto (Aug 10, 2006)

I finally got my LED strip put together with drivers, and I think I like it. It's not as bright as I had hoped, but the LEDs are being underdriven a bit. I put in a few more tenellus' and my two blood vomits along with a couple stems of hygrophila difformis. The marsilea is putting up new growth as are all the stems. I forgot how annoying diatoms are at startup... ugh...

Now there are a dozen white clouds and three otocinclus to help mop up some of the diatoms. Without further adieu...









4 Cree and 4 Luxeon III 3 watt LEDs driven at 750mA.


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