# My 16" Planted Journal



## Jervis (Feb 22, 2008)

Hi guys

Found this 12" glass tank lying around in my storeroom... let's make really good use of it... shall we? :mrgreen:

I have got some leftover gravel from my previous setup too.

Decided to use 2 types of gravel for this layout. Dennerle Black Quartz Gravel and Gex Ornamental Gravel. My first time using Mr. Amano's style of laying sandbed 










That pail of water is from my other tank for bacteria transfer.


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## Jervis (Feb 22, 2008)

Sitting quite nicely on my office work desk 










Will source for appropriate lighting tomorrow. Emm... I think the brown gravel is a little too coarse


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## Jervis (Feb 22, 2008)

Let's take a look at the heart of the tank... my first time using a hang-on filter actually 










Consuming just 5W... very quiet indeed!










Besides the filter pad, I added some Eheim Substrate Pro ceramic balls (biological filter) and a bag of activated carbon (temporary)


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## Jervis (Feb 22, 2008)

Saw some really nice plants growing on lava rock... decided to use solely lava rock for this setup


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## Jervis (Feb 22, 2008)

An aquarist in my local forum ID this plant as Utricularia graminifolia (the carnivorous foreground plant) Link










Oh dear... I better add some common shrimps in there fast... need fries to feed this plant


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## Jervis (Feb 22, 2008)

Some HC for loose planting...










Some Japanese Hairgrass to outline the 'path'


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## Jervis (Feb 22, 2008)

Here's the "more-or-less-final" layout 










Still looking for something suitable for the left back corner...

It's always a nice feeling to see your tank gets filled up... using 3-stage DI water for better nutrients control later.


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## apistaeasy (Jul 16, 2004)

Jervis said:


>


What is this plant? Do you have experience with this plant?


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## Jervis (Feb 22, 2008)

apistaeasy said:


> What is this plant? Do you have experience with this plant?


I believe it is Hemianthus callitrichoides (aka HC)... pretty common carpet plant... I do have a few pots in my other tank


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## apistaeasy (Jul 16, 2004)

Jervis said:


> I believe it is Hemianthus callitrichoides (aka HC)... pretty common carpet plant... I do have a few pots in my other tank


hmmm, sorry. Something about the way it looks in the picture is throwing me off...maybe emersed growth?

I was kinda thinking it might have been some type of  Plagiomnium


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## Jervis (Feb 22, 2008)

apistaeasy said:


> hmmm, sorry. Something about the way it looks in the picture is throwing me off...maybe emersed growth?
> 
> I was kinda thinking it might have been some type of  Plagiomnium


I guess you are right with the Plagiomnium affine ID... no wonder it comes with a piece of rock. Thanks!


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## Jeff.:P:. (Nov 20, 2007)

Looks great. I love these types of nanos. Once everything grows in it should looks excellent. Maybe some small leafed stems in the back left corner around the filter intake? Other than that it looks great, congrats.


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## Jervis (Feb 22, 2008)

Jeff.:P:. said:


> Looks great. I love these types of nanos. Once everything grows in it should looks excellent. Maybe some small leafed stems in the back left corner around the filter intake? Other than that it looks great, congrats.


Thanks Jeff for the kind compliments... will source for a suitable plant for that corner


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## Jervis (Feb 22, 2008)

Here's my work place... the water was still very cloudy yesterday


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## Jervis (Feb 22, 2008)

This is the first time I perform water change using a plastic cup  Nano tank is fun to maintain :-D










First water change this morning... 40% using DI water.


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## Jervis (Feb 22, 2008)

Experimenting with some light fixtures...

LED table lamp... too dark  although I like the crispness very much!










LED + PL table lamps... not too bad but messy looking 










Will look for a more suitable fixture tomorrow.


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## Jeff.:P:. (Nov 20, 2007)

Looks great!, I really like the contrast of the green plants and red rocks, something new. Very pleasing to the eye


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## Jervis (Feb 22, 2008)

Jeff.:P:. said:


> Looks great!, I really like the contrast of the green plants and red rocks, something new. Very pleasing to the eye


Yupe... the effect was totally unexpected  But I have no idea how well these lava rocks will score in the Nature Scale.










Pix taken under my yellowish PL desk lamp


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## patrick76 (May 21, 2007)

Love how this looks i need something like this for my office. I wouldn't get anything done messing with it and looking at it.


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## Jervis (Feb 22, 2008)

Disaster struck this morning :help::help::help:










Can't find the leak point as I can't remove the plastic skirting surrounding the tank base 

:laser:

3 hours later ](*,)


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## patrick76 (May 21, 2007)

Sorry to hear about it. Did you get the skirt off where you can look at it??


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## Jervis (Feb 22, 2008)

patrick76 said:


> Sorry to hear about it. Did you get the skirt off where you can look at it??


No I can't remove the plastic skirting... anyway I was too busy running around looking for a solution this afternoon


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## oregon aqua (Jan 30, 2008)

that sucks!! that setup looked great.:mrgreen:i wish i could come up with a good setup like what you had started:mrgreen: 

i am using 16x6x8 tank in my office its fun. kinda hard to work tho i always wanna play and watch the tank

i also sprang a leak on mine but at the top so i just cant fill it all the way.

on a side note i got my tank really cheap i think it was $12 at lfs it was a betta tank with glass dividers that had gotten broken


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## Jervis (Feb 22, 2008)

oregon aqua said:


> that sucks!! that setup looked great.:mrgreen:i wish i could come up with a good setup like what you had started:mrgreen:
> 
> i am using 16x6x8 tank in my office its fun. kinda hard to work tho i always wanna play and watch the tank
> 
> ...


Well... we get what we paid for :mrgreen::mrgreen::mrgreen:


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## Jervis (Feb 22, 2008)

Here's my replacement tank... a 1ft cube bought yesterday for SGD15 ($10.70)... now what lesson have I learned in buying cheap fish tanks


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## Jervis (Feb 22, 2008)

The dividers are there to enable me to create a curve 'stream'... using fine dark soil and fine white decorative sand.


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## Jervis (Feb 22, 2008)

1 full day of hardwork 

1.00pm - The background looks empty!










4.00pm


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## ongtw (Mar 2, 2008)

hey jervis,

i am trying to grow HC as well. My tank is a much smaller tank. Do you think planting HC with excel and flourish works?


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## Jervis (Feb 22, 2008)

ongtw said:


> hey jervis,
> 
> i am trying to grow HC as well. My tank is a much smaller tank. Do you think planting HC with excel and flourish works?


Unfortunately I do not have enough experience to offer you any meaningful answer... sorry.


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## ongtw (Mar 2, 2008)

Hi jervis,

in that case i suppose you're using a canister co2 injection unit? where did you buy it from and how much? i've been wanting to get one for my own.


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## ongtw (Mar 2, 2008)

sorry just in case you're wondering. i'm from singapore too.


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## oregon aqua (Jan 30, 2008)

new tank setup looks great!!

as for growing out HC here is a great idea.

http://www.barrreport.com/articles/3361-new-methoid-make-nice-rug-hc-before-you-add-water.html

its from Tom Barr and i cant wait to try it out for my self.


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## oregon aqua (Jan 30, 2008)

quick question what is the thickness of the glass on your new tank?
i've given up trying to find one and i'm gonna have a local glass shop make one


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## Jervis (Feb 22, 2008)

ongtw said:


> Hi jervis,
> 
> in that case i suppose you're using a canister co2 injection unit? where did you buy it from and how much? i've been wanting to get one for my own.


Here's some specs:

CO2 Tank: Generic Aluminium 4.6L
Regulator: Dennerle
Solenoid: Dennerle
CO2 Diffuser: "Generic" Glass Diffuser (ADA Beetle look-alike) 

I got them from different sources actually... you can try Aquamarin or Petmart.

A look at my CO2 factory... I am injecting 7 hours of CO2 daily (1bps) using a "generic" glass CO2 diffuser (can't find the original one).










Can I have the ID of that reddish plant?

But seems like I have to increase the amount of bubbles... the CO2 monitor shows a pH of around 6.8 to 7.0 










But I'm quite surprised by the little CPU fan... the temperature manage to dip to a low 22ºC... room temperature 25ºC (air-conditioned)


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## ongtw (Mar 2, 2008)

Jervis,

thanks for the information. When using CO2 injection, where do you go for refills once the tank is empty? do you keep purchasing new tanks?

sorry for the questions.. hehe i'm a newbie


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## ongtw (Mar 2, 2008)

btw i really love your tank!


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## Jervis (Feb 22, 2008)

ongtw said:


> Jervis,
> 
> thanks for the information. When using CO2 injection, where do you go for refills once the tank is empty? do you keep purchasing new tanks?
> 
> sorry for the questions.. hehe i'm a newbie


You can send the CO2 tank to any LFS... the standard rate is SGD15 per refill... regardless of size... usually take 3 to 5 days.


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## ongtw (Mar 2, 2008)

sorry for my ignorance. What does LFS stands for and where can i find it in singapore? btw any new pics for your tank? its lovely. .


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## Jervis (Feb 22, 2008)

ongtw said:


> sorry for my ignorance. What does LFS stands for and where can i find it in singapore? btw any new pics for your tank? its lovely. .


Local Fish Shop


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## Jervis (Feb 22, 2008)

My Yamato Shrimp... HC is beginning to look stress... will continue to change water to stabilize the system


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## ongtw (Mar 2, 2008)

jervis,

where did you purchase the HC in singapore? i've been to a couple of shops and i can't find any.


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## Jervis (Feb 22, 2008)

ongtw said:


> jervis,
> 
> where did you purchase the HC in singapore? i've been to a couple of shops and i can't find any.


Colourful at Balestier


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## ongtw (Mar 2, 2008)

can you pass me the address? can't wait to get my hands on them to try it with excel...

sigh.. i'm almost conviced i can't get the carpet plants to work without injecting co2 into the tank....


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