# Tank of the Month November 2008: Ruben Caro



## AaronT

*Introduction and Background*



My name is Ruben Car. I am 31 years old and I'm from Granada (a beautiful city of the southeast of Spain). 
I started in this beautiful hobby in 1995. I remember walking along the corridor of a commercial center when I saw a few tanks full of guppys (Poecilia reticulata) with incredible forms and colors.
I discovered the aquatic plants since about some years ago. In this time I've grown a lot of plants with different ranges of light and fertilization systems. I just wanted to see how to grow healthy and beautiful plants. My tanks were messy and were not aesthetic, but they were full of healthy plants and dozens and dozens of small platys (Xyphophorus maculatus).
I discovered a new world when "Internet arrived to my home." The Nature Aquarium Concept and Amano were a great reference for me. I like the simplicity of forms, cleanliness and naturalness and I try to translate these things in my aquariums.

*About the Layout*






"Lands Of Sarawak" is my new aquarium. This is the first aquarium in my new home. 
Since the beginning, I wanted a simple aquarium, easy to maintain because the I will leave my home for six months the next February (I will go to the National Police Academy) and my girlfriend will have to maintain it (fertilize, change water, prune&#8230;..). 
The answer, was to create an iwagumi style aquarium, simple (the more possible), without rules and without headaches (if you look at this tank, I think that there is no focal point for example), with a little variety of plants but well selected. An open foreground, also, would be ideal to create a large swimming space for small fishes.

*Tank Specifications *

*Tank:* glass thickness 6mm. 65x35x40 cm (91 liters) / 25"x14"x16" (23 Gal).
*Lighting:* DIY with 4x24w T5 (Phillips Activive 8000ºK) / 9 hours per day.
*CO2:* pressurized with ADA Pollen Glass Large 20 (2 b/s)
*Substrate:* Penac W and P, Bacter 100, Clear Super, Tourmaline BC, Power Sand S, Amazonia II.
*Filtration:* Eheim 2324 (foam, Bio Rio, NA carbon)

*Plants and Fauna*

*Flora:* Vesicularia sp, Eleocharis acicularis, Eleocharis vivipara and Blyxa japonica





*Fauna:* Otocinclus affinis, Hyphessobrycon amandae, Neocaridina heteropoda red and yellow.









*Maintenance*



40% water change with full dose of Brighty K (4ml) + ½ dose of Step1 (2ml), Green Bacter and Green Gain.
For the rest of week: Brighty K daily (1ml) and Step1 (1ml) 3x week.
When I do filter maintenance (change wool of filter or wash filter media) I add to the water column a "concoction of bacteria boosting mix" (1 spoon of Penac W + ½ spoon of Bacter 100).

*Technique*

The technique in this tank is easy. The aquarium is trimmed when Eleocharis become to be anarchic (the aquarium is a real chaos in this stage). Blyxa japonica and moss (Vesicularia sp.) grows more slowly than Eleocharis. Eleocharis is trimmed like a "haircut".

*Final Words*

Thank you to Aaron and the all community of APC for choosing this aquarium as Tank Of The Month of November. It has been for me a big pleasure to share all my pics and words with you.


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## NeonFlux

Wonderful tank, Ruben. I am inspired to create a tank like yours one day. The Nature aquarium.


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