# step-by-step 29 gallon



## atc84

For anyone who is dying to see my newbie walstad... forge onward 

(I don't know how to add pictures directly into the post, so i'll just attach them...)

OK so i'm still in high school (righht? didn't see that coming) and self sustaining ecosystems came up, which brought me here, kinda. The funny thing about starting up this project is i've never had a real aquarium until now, lol. So I pretty much skipped that part and went into walstad's. I bought a 29 aquarium with a stand and extra's for 25$ from a friend. It came with a foot long pleco, it was pretty scary, haha. Anyways, that's my backstory. Oh, i live in southern california, so my ph is around 8 and the water is very hard.

Filter/Cover: The aquarium is one of those you buy at petco and it comes with everything you need, so it came with a cover. It came with a brand new filter, a HOB thats good for 20-50 gal. 

Lighting: The lighting was tricky. Theres only room for 1 bulb on the top, and the only way to get any wattage was to cfl retrofit it. (Picture 1) ahsupply.com, great website. The manager was really helpful. 

Substrate: The dirt is Earth-Gro topsoil. I got 2 bags and that worked out fine. I rinsed and dried i think 3-4 times. I thought i would only need 1 bag so only part of the substrate is mineralized xD. The sand is quikrete playsand mixed with some other coarse brown quikrete sand. I washed it A TON. HINT: I found that by hosing directly into it, the light stuff would come to the top and settle, so when you poured it out, you could scoop out some of the tiny grains.

Hardscape: The rocks are lava rocks i found in the wild in a giant pile. I stuck them all into a trash can and let them sit for a couple days, then took out 1 rock and did a bucket test for ph swings. It tested neutral, but idk if after a couple months it will leech metals... i then scrubbed them with hot water. I came up with the design by setting up the dimensions of my aquarium outside and "played" with the rocks to see what i could work out.

Plants: Honestly im just ganna go to a couple stores and see what they have. I have a couple in mind, java ferns, swords, crypts, anubias, hornwort, you've got the idea.

Fish:
4-5 micky mouse platies
4-5 cory cats
1-2 bolivian rams (or some other ram) OR 1 angelfish

Pictures:
1: My retrofit setup for my lighting
2: Washing the rocks
3: rocks without anything (put in before dirt because of anaerobic conditions
4: Dirted that tank up! (about 1 inch, maybe a little less)
5: Sandd! (I changed the hardscape on the left--not enough room for what i wanted to do. I'm going to change it a little again; michael suggested some things.)
Also because i washed it a lot, i filled the tank with 5 gallons of water, and from what i can tell, its much less cloudy than i thought it would be... It's basically not cloudy at all.

The point of this thread is for pro's to give their two cents, newbies to see what it'll kinda look like, suggestions, and it helps organize my brain to write it all out!

I'm planting later today, so i'll update it then...


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## Tattooedfool83

Good stuff man. Ill be following this.


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## Michael

Did you get a T5 HO retrofit?


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## atc84

@tattooedfool83 awesome, look forward to your opinions and questions 

@michael no it's a 55 watt cfl, and i got the strip light kit because my housing it plastic. i didnt know their was a T5 HO...

Oh yeah, just finished planting. The guy at the store sayed it would be better to wait a week before getting stem plants to get the ammonia out of the dirt, because otherwise it can kill the roots. therefore, i got a couple java ferns and anubias! I actually got a lot more than i thought i did... anyways, im liking the setup so far. 

The lights really brightens up the sand! it's not as bright as what you see, but i like the look. 

How long does it take for plants to root to the rock? the anubias in the front is held down with a rubber band because it was impossible to tie


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## Tattooedfool83

What about Val's? I'd plant as much as possible as soon as possible so u don't run into an issues from the light b


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## atc84

I decided I'd wait a couple days and see how it goes. I will be testing the water, and i also planted a java fern to see how that works out. what about the light?


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## Tattooedfool83

If you don't plant more then you will have an algae problem. Te plants have to have enough mass to out compete the algae.


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## atc84

you're probably right. I'll go back tomorrow and get some val and crypts and swords.


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## atc84

I added a ton of hornwort up above, which i think will help also though


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## Tattooedfool83

The hornwort is good as it floats and sucks up nitrates. But the more the better. Great job for your first tank!


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## Michael

See below.



atc84 said:


> @tattooedfool83 awesome, look forward to your opinions and questions
> 
> @michael no it's a 55 watt cfl, and i got the strip light kit because my housing it plastic. i didnt know their was a T5 HO...
> *There may not be one for your hood.*
> 
> Oh yeah, just finished planting. The guy at the store sayed it would be better to wait a week before getting stem plants to get the ammonia out of the dirt, because otherwise it can kill the roots. therefore, i got a couple java ferns and anubias! I actually got a lot more than i thought i did... anyways, im liking the setup so far.
> *The guy at the store is wrong, don't listen to anything he tells you. You need MANY more plants--10X the number you have now would barely be enough. Buy plenty of cheap fast-growing stem plants; those will take care of the ammonia. Stem plants can absorb ammonia directly from the water, which is exactly what you need to happen right now. If you don't like them you can always take them out later. The hornwort is good for this, but you need more. I am serious! Not planting heavily right from the start is one of the most common mistakes beginners make.*
> 
> The lights really brightens up the sand! it's not as bright as what you see, but i like the look.
> 
> How long does it take for plants to root to the rock? the anubias in the front is held down with a rubber band because it was impossible to tie
> *It will probably take a least a month, maybe more.*


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## atc84

haha thanks  im excited too see growth on the plants... but also hoping it all goes through smoothly. quick question; when planting stem plants, is it important to keep a certain part of the plant surfaced? (the rhizome i know is important for java ferns...)

EDIT: Another question: Under what conditions should i do a water change?


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## atc84

UPDATE:

forgot to post my test kit results...

DAY 1:
PH: 8.2
AMMONIA: .50 ppm
NITRITE: 0 ppm
NITRATE: 5.0 ppm

DAY 2:
AMMONIA: .75 ppm
NITRITE: 0 ppm
NITRATE: 5 ppm

Today is day 2, so here's a picture update of the tank 
I hope this is enough plants!

-Andrew


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## Michael

See below.



atc84 said:


> haha thanks  im excited too see growth on the plants... but also hoping it all goes through smoothly. quick question; when planting stem plants, is it important to keep a certain part of the plant surfaced? (the rhizome i know is important for java ferns...) *No, not really, just stick enough stem into the substrate so it doesn't float out.*
> 
> EDIT: Another question: Under what conditions should i do a water change?
> *If ammonia is detectable with a home kit, do a water change. There are other opinions if you are doing a fishless cycle, but that is a simple rule.
> 
> Sorry, this is a lot better, but you still need more plants!*


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## atc84

btw, the tank i have right now had previously been running for a couple months, so the filter already has the BB, which will help it cycle.

I am not adding fish until it is safe to do so 

aww man, i thought this would be plenty :O. 

would val be a good fast grower? i also heard pothos with it's roots in the tank is a good idea... looking for cheaper alternatives xD


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## Michael

Having an mature filter makes a huge difference. In that case, you could hold off on the water changes, but keep testing ammonia. If it rises instead of falls, do a water change.

Both plants are good. The pothos is especially helpful because it has the "aerial advantage", constant access to atmospheric CO2.

Sorry if you already mentioned it, but do you have Walstad's book? It is available in electronic format now. The first time I read it much of it went over my head, but it is the sort of reference I go back to many times.


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## atc84

Ok, I'll keep testing and do water changes whenever i need to.

I don't have it. I'll probably get the actual book so i can take it places, and im sure it would help me with my setup. Although it sounds complicated, it's probably not too different from the classes im taking next year...


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## atc84

Just did a water change, because my aquarium got to 1 ppm of ammonia. after the water change, it was still around 1 ppm. So i tested my tap and it has around 1ppm of ammonia in it... looks like i'll have to use prime for now. I decided just to leave the water as it is now to see if it will go down over the next couple days


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## arkansasboy

I like your rock. It really adds a natural look.


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## atc84

arkansasboy said:


> I like your rock. It really adds a natural look.


thanks, probably because it is from nature. 

I decided the environment is something like off the coast of hawaii, with lava rocks and a sandy approach.

Right now my filter has bio material, carbon, and a sponge (it's called filter floss right?). I heard carbon isn't good for plants, but you can use it in the beginning to clear your water. When should i remove the carbon or bio-material?


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## SBS

> When should i remove the carbon or bio-material?


Nice tank. I like the rock too, although in time you may find it's taking too much space that you'd like to plant  You can also try carpet plants like dwarf sagittaria or marsilea hirsulata, etc.

I am not sure why you want to remove the carbon or bio material? The carbon will work for just a short while and then it will become a simple bio media. It's actually quite good at being a bio media.
But at the moment your bio media has hardly any beneficial bacteria grown on it, so it does nothing yet. Establishing bacteria in the filter and substrate may take several weeks, 4-6, or even more. 
It's better to have it as extra water quality control for when you have fish in there and maybe your plants don't always flourish as you wish them to.
Diana says that such tanks can be done without a filter or any media in the filter and use them just for flow, but that's up to the person keeping the tank. Having a bio filter certainly will cause no harm, and can be a life saver one day. Just let it be.


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## atc84

yeah, the open space in the front is for a carpet. 

My filter had already been running for several months before this tank, so i don't need to worry too much about problems...

for some reason i thought carbon removed things the plant's needed... oh well, haha.


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## SBS

> My filter had already been running for several months before this tank


Ah, sorry. I know one shouldn't presume
That's even better news then. Cycled filter helps a lot with the possible ammonia and outcompetes the algae for it along with the plants.
Good luck with the tank 



> for some reason i thought carbon removed things the plant's needed


I never heard of it carbon harming the plants in anyway, but carbon as a remover of some unwanted toxic substances or tannins only lasts for a limited amount of time, like a few days. If left in,it just gets populated with normal bio bacteria. Some people remove it because there's that myth going around that carbon would release back whatever it had collected in the first place, but many people like me have never removed it and I haven't experienced any "unexplained" problems. It certainly has more surface for bio bacteria than 99% of the dedicated media sold for filters.


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## atc84

Ok, ill leave my filter how it is then 

I cleaned my sponge a week before because it was slowing down the filter, and noticed the carbon had a lot of mulm in and around it. i would assume all the little rocks would have great surface area for bacteria...


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## Michael

Carbon will help at first, but you will want to remove it after a few weeks. The bio-media is permanent.


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## atc84

ok, so i discovered some white gooey bubbly-like stuff connecting to some of my rocks... is this bacteria breaking down my ammonia or something i definitely dont want?

Im concerned it's something to do with the rocks and I'll have to get rid of them...


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## dawntwister

atc84 said:


> ok, so i discovered some white gooey bubbly-like stuff connecting to some of my rocks... is this bacteria breaking down my ammonia or something i definitely dont want?
> 
> Im concerned it's something to do with the rocks and I'll have to get rid of them...


Sounds like a type of fungus that some get on wood. Fish love it. It is harmless.


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## atc84

dawntwister said:


> Sounds like a type of fungus that some get on wood. Fish love it. It is harmless.


What if there isn't any wood in the tank?

There's no fish in the tank yet  Should i remove it or what? I tried poking it and it kinda wisps away...


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## atc84

Tested my water today. 
ammonia 1
nitrite .25
nitrate 10

looks like it's starting to cycle...

starting to see growth in mainly my crypts anachris and a new sprout from my water sprite.


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## atc84

Quick update:

So I'm currently just waiting for the cycle to complete. A few things I'm dealing with:

-The fungus is appearing in more areas. Just ganna leave it be, because i honestly can't find out what it really is...
-Got some diatoms in my sand! hoorah... There is silica in the sand, so kinda saw that one coming.
- The hornwort shed basically most of the 2 bunches i got, but some of it finally adapted to my water and now it's much greener and fuller. In the meantime i set up a large fishnet so that my HOB filter would push the leaves into it. I was super happy when that worked out . However theres a ton of them still hanging around on the sand/around plants. Do I need to remove them or will they just decompose safely?
I did a small water change, because i wanted to stir up some of the leaves and try sucking up the fungus, and because my waterlevel dropped an inch in a couple days... thats a lot of evaporation 

Any comments or suggestions, would be MUCH appreciated


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## SBS

Hi atc84, you may try lowering the light amount for the time being in order not to let the brown diatoms bloom too much. Doing a few regular water changes at the start should help too. Eventually once the tank is well cycleed it will just stop appearing. More plants/floating plants can help with that.

As for the fungus, not sure what's causing yours since you've got no wood. My driftwood normally gets covered in it for 2 even 3 months if new but I never had a problem afterwards and the fish love eating it.


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## atc84

So after that post, i did a 20% water change, which i think helped with both the diatoms and fungus.

The diatoms wasn't originally very covered, it was mainly just 1 inch patches scattered in the front area where their weren't any plants. Now it's kinda just brown spots in the sand, which isn't very noticeable.

The fungus also has stopped spreading, and died out a bit. I believe the fungus is from the silica in the sand/water, and doing a small water change got rid of some of their nutrients. 

I added a pothos plant, which i think will help.

Do you mean lowering the wattage, or reducing the time? it would be much easier to reduce the time, but if i had to i can change the wiring in the light to make it 40 watts. 

thanks SBS,
-andrew


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## SBS

I mean lowering the wattage for a while but it seems too much trouble in your case. My lights are suspended so I just raised them up when needed. 
You can just lower the light duration then. Brown algae is very common at the start and as long as you don't let it go bad and cover the plants then all you need to do is wait it out. 

Pothos is great, I always wanted to get one but haven't been to the garden centre in a while. You can also control the light with floating plants, they really help at the start.


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## atc84

yeah, i suspect without my hornwort i woudlve had a bigger problem... Woke up today without any algae, and the tank looks nice and clean!


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## atc84

Update:
Ammonia is dropping, so my cycling is starting to come to an end!

I'm starting to think that the fungus isn't fungus, but snail eggs. I mean it kidna makes sense, but i cant see the actual eggs inside... In any case, woke up today to around 15 baby snails on the walls of my tank  I don't really mind them if they are on the ground, but i would prefer them not to be on the glass . I heard that rams will eat baby snails or eggs, is this true? I was thinking about getting some bolivian rams, and if they will eat the snails, then i would get them.

What about angels? would they eat snails?

I know about loaches, and will get a couple smaller ones if i need to.

Is there anything i should do in the meantime about the snails? 

Thanks.
-Andrew


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## SBS

What's wrong with having snails?


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## Michael

You will get all sorts of reactions to any question about snails. Personally, I think they are very useful in Walstad tanks and enjoy the different species in my own tanks.


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## atc84

SBS said:


> What's wrong with having snails?


I thought they were bad for your tank, but i guess i thought wrong!

Just did some trimming on some browning leaves on the water sprite and the swords and crypts. Moved the java fern from the larger rock formation because the string wasnt holding them in place very well, and moved them behind a rock. Ganna pick up a large amazon sword for the back right corner, some vals for behind the large rock formation, and some foreground plants i'm still deciding on...

I have no idea how im going to put moss on my large rock formation, because of how large the rocks are and tying it down would be very troublesome... i tried it with java fern and it didnt work out...
-Andrew


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## SBS

Some people don't like snails. Unless you personally dislike the look of them, then leave them be. They are very good for the tank. They are at the low end of the chain and will process detritus and left over food faster, so the plants and good bacteria can use up the end product. Most species eat algae too. If you see an outbreak, then you are feeding too much or there's too much detritus of some sort in the tank and snails would be your indicator for that. Once that happens, if ever, decrease the food given to the tank, manually remove as many as you can daily for a while, and in a few weeks you'll hardly see any snails once the tank is back in balance. I've got several species of snails and I have only had snai outbreaks in fry tanks where I fed too much on purpose.

For attaching moss, you can use cyanoacrylate(superglue). It leaves white marks when drying so try not to put too much if you go that route. It bonds faster in water but if you want to avoid the white stuff, then you can leave it ouside until it attaches but takes longer and you may want to mist the moss. It's perfectly safe either way for fish. It was originally made to be used on human wounds.


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## atc84

wow, thanks for the advice on the moss! would never have thought of that...

Well im actually thanking the snails right now, because on the walls theres a tiny bit of algae, and i can see lines of no algae where they slid over it, haha. On one side of the tank, where i believe they hatched from, its basically algae free! score!

Today i got all 0 readings on my test kit, awesome! I will be getting some pineapple swordtails on monday.

-Andrew


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## atc84

Update:
It's been a couple days since i posted, so now it's time for a quick update.
My plants are doing good, i picked up a vallisneria on Monday along with 4 pineapple swordtails. I've been poking the substrate recently, because whenever i see my aquarium, theres bubbles popping out of the ground... Did i not compact the dirt enough?? It smells a little sometimes, which makes me a little worried, but im sure with so many stem plants it'll be fine.

I noticed my cfl light doesnt get the far corners of the tank... 

Theres a ton of fish poo on the sand in the front... :/ I guess fish poo when their nervous, but hopefully it wont look this messy later on!

ummm.... I'll be getting a school of cories after a week or so, then getting a single koi angelfish.

Any suggestions for fore-ground carpet plants for my setup? Thanks 

pic 1: Full view of aquarium
pic 2: all 4 swordtails
pic 3: close up of some water sprite growth
pic 4: side view- val leaf, 2 fishies, hornwort and roots of my pothos
pic 5: the largest snail i have. Can anyone identify it? it has black dots along its brownish shell...
-Andrew


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## Michael

It's hard to tell from the photo, but that looks like one of the spotted color mutants of ramshorn snail. They can be very pretty, and are not common. Where did you get it?

For foreground plants, I would suggest marselia, baby tears _Hemianthus glomeratus_, or dwarf sagittaria.


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## atc84

Yeah, i like the color it has. The only place it could come from are the plants i got from the store. hopefully it will breed and make more


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## atc84

Half the fun is taking pictures 

pic 1: Better picture of the snail
pic 2: more swordtail pictures


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## Michael

That's definitely a red leopard ramshorn snail--nice freebie!


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## atc84

Ok, so I kinda have a problem that i have no idea what to do about it.

A lot of my sand, basically all of it, besides whats ontop, has turned darkish blue. So i poked around my sand and bubbles are just comin everywhere, and it does smell like anerobic sometimes. I pushed down on the sand with my hand and it's really squishy, and bubbles cascade up. 

I assume the sand turned blue because of the dirt, even if my dirt and sand layers are 1 inch deep. What should i do now???


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## SBS

I can think of two things. You are using very fine sand that prevents oxygenation of the substrate or your flow is not reaching the bottom of the tank.
Do you mean blue as in blue-green algae/cyanobacteria? Or blue as in hydrogen sulfide pockets if it smells like rotten eggs?


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## atc84

I believe it's more blue then blue green, and it smells like rotten eggs. The sand is pretty small grain, its playsand mixed with another coarser sand, and it's an inch deep. it could be cyano, because of the silica in the sand. What should i do in either case??


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## SBS

Do you have a picture for better ID?
Both cyano and hydrogen sulfide can be a problem when there isn't enough flow/oxygen reaching the substrate. Cyano is also associated with low nitrates(or lack of flow distributing them to certain parts of the tank), and also high organics(which rapidly de-oxygenate the substrate and if not replaced, goes bad). So improving the flow around the tank and for the time being having good surface movement is best.
I normally don't like mixing two sizes of sand because the smaller particles fill up the gaps and it's as bad as using just very fine sand. On another hand, very fine sand can be a problem in NPT tanks because of lack of circulation/oxygen reaching the substrate but I haven't tried so I can't tell how bad the effect is. I used sand but it isn't fine at all.
You can try improving the tank first with extra flow/extra surface movement to prevent "dead" areas where either cyano or hydrogen sulfide will accumulate. You can also use plants with bigger root systems like crypts and swords which will act as a network of oxygen transport in the substrate.
You can try malaysian trumpet snails to help cleaning up the build up of organics which will reduce the generation of hydrogen sulfide if that's the case, but that's additionally to having better flow.

Cyano can also be killed with a black out for a few days as it's light sensitive. Then improve the conditions to prevent it re-appearing, if cyano is your problem of course.


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## atc84

Ok, thanks for the info. I have a HOB as my filter, which doesnt agitate the substrate surface. I have another HOB filter, but i don't know where i'll put it on my tank, but i think it would be better if a got a aquaclear powerhead 30. 

Doesn't cyano only grow on the surface not under the sand??

I am about to get a swordplant, and i have some crypts and vals and swords, but arent very established yet.

I will try to get my hands on some MTS.

I believe its hydrogen sulfide, so as long as i poke the substrate once and a while and dont uncover the dead sand, it won't harm my fish?


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## SBS

> Doesn't cyano only grow on the surface not under the sand??


 Yes, kind of like a slimy web but can also grow on stones coating them in a blue-ish kind of algae.



> I believe its hydrogen sulfide, so as long as i poke the substrate once and a while and dont uncover the dead sand, it won't harm my fish?


I am not sure. I actually never experienced that with the two soil tanks. From what I've read, the toxic level is considered the one we humans can smell because apparently our senses are very sensitive to it. I guess poking the substrate for now will prevent bigger pockets from accumulating. I am not sure how or whether that will affect the inhabitants. Hopefully as the tank matures and the plants spread some roots it will get better. In anaerobic conditions, organics and sulfur(abundantly present in water) produce hydrogen sulfide. 
Since one can't never eliminate organics and sulfur from a tank, then preventing anaerobic conditions is the only approach. So you need to make sure the tank is well oxygenated and flow is reaching all areas. HOBs are not good at that because they just splash water on top but are hardly good enough to push it with more velocity so it reaches the substrate. They are good at oxygenating the water that reaches them though. Whatever way you decide to get extra flow, make sure the flow from the multiple devices doesn't counteract with each other. They've got to blow in the same direction at least.



> I am about to get a swordplant, and i have some crypts and vals and swords, but arent very established yet.


Crypts are slow growers and some echinodorus species too. My vallis also grew slow enough but I've got amazon swords and they rapidly exploded in the soil tank.


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## atc84

Thanks SBS, I'll let you know what i decide to do and if it works... 

It's definitely not cyano since its under the sand. 

Will the affected sand change color at all or will it stay blue???


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## dawntwister

atc84 said:


> I believe it's more blue then blue green, and it smells like rotten eggs.


That is Hydrogen sulphide( H2S). Build up of detritus in dead spots can cause pockets of of hydrogen sulfide, which causes the egg odor. All substrates are anaerobic including gravel. Plants deal with this by forcing small amounts of oxygen through the roots. This allows for aerobic types of good guy bacteria to grow around the roots. The roots aerate the soil underneath.

I would get some Hygrophila difformis. I grows like a weed.


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## SBS

What dawntwister says is probably true to an extent. However, the surface layer of any substrate should not be anaerobic because it has access to oxygenated water from the flow that penetrates to an extent. Trumpet snails can reduce the amount of unprocessed organics in the substrate, thus reducing the possible hydrogen sulphide creation too. And plants should take care of the bottom substrate layers.
Whatever the issue in your tank is it all seems related, first the slime, now the hydrogen sulfide, next could be algae after algae. Also, plants can start melting their bottom leaves/stem, carpet plants won't grow well either in such conditions. I recently read they can excrete a hormone ethylene which can cause them to grow upwards and leggy if not enough flow is reaching them to dissipate the hormone. 
So you need to explore all options that can eliminate headaches. At least I would. It's a learning curve. I've never seen my substrate going blue and I've got sand in 5 tanks, including play sand in one of them and two of them are soil tanks.


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## atc84

I guess we can never underestimate the power of water flow...

Based on what you have said, i need more oxygen in the lower region of my water column and in the substrate. Without this, plants will fail, may or may not kill my fish, and destroy my substrate. Great. D:

The aquaclear 30 powerhead is looking pretty good right now. It'll circulate the water so that the higher oxygen water on top will reach the bottom. 

is there anything better that will create more flow?

What does flow have to do with more algae?

speaking of algae, i noticed hair algae forming on only the upper regions of the tank, namely the vals and swords. I don't understand why it's only up closer to the top. Is it from the cfl light?


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## SBS

> What does flow have to do with more algae?


The flow distrubutes the co2, o2 and nutritients around the tank(even a low tech), prevents high organic build up in certain areas where algae can thrive and hydrogen sulphide can form. Debris and fish waste that falls is kind of cleared up by flow swinging the leaves and that can also cause plants to not function properly. 
I don't know why, but any tank low tech or high tech does better with good flow in my opinion. You don't have to have high surface agitation when having a planted tank because oxygen is produced by the plants mainly but flow for some reason really helps. One doesn't really need swamp conditions in a fish tank.



> speaking of algae, i noticed hair algae forming on only the upper regions of the tank, namely the vals and swords. I don't understand why it's only up closer to the top. Is it from the cfl light?


Possibly too much light for the amount of CO2 produced by the soil or the co2 isn't distributed properly. I'd reduce the light intensity somehow for now. More light-more co2 required. If the balance is wrong, plant structure/functioning gets damaged and algae takes over.


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## atc84

I think that even if my light is only 55 watts, The kit came with really good reflectors and cfl is pretty strong light. If the algae doesnt go away after getting the powerhead, then i'll do that.

What do you use to achieve proper flow in your tanks?


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## SBS

It depends. There are different ways. I think spraybars along the entire back pointed towards the front works best.
The idea is that the flow from different filters doesn't counteract with each other if in a multiple filter setup. For one filter only , if you position the filter outlet and inlet on the same side of the tank, the flow will travel towards the opposite glass, then once it reaches it, it will slide down to the bottom, then travel towards the bottom back to the outlet and inlet, creating a circular flow. That's about how they work but with a spraybar is even better.
If there is no spraybar and the outlet is on the side, then it's better if it's on the front side rather than the back because the flow will have the least obstructions since we always keep the front free for viewing purposes. Of course it must be pointed towards the opposite side and strong enough to push water towards the that oppoisite glass.


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## SBS

> The kit came with really good reflectors and cfl is pretty strong light.


Removing the reflectors for now will help. Do you have floating plants as they are beneficial too in that and other matters?


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## atc84

SBS said:


> Removing the reflectors for now will help. Do you have floating plants as they are beneficial too in that and other matters?


I don't think it's a good idea to remove the reflectors. it gets pretty hot in there, might mess up the plastic housing.

I have some hornwort, but most of it got destroyed when i moved it into my tank because it had to adjust to the water.

I lowered the water level so that the HOB would get a better current. The plants on the ground level are noticeably moving. I also found some extensions for the intake so now itll grab water farther down. Also cleaned the sponge, it was slowing down the filtration.

I don't really understand how spraybars generally work. Apparently you're supposed to use a canister filter with it, but i dont have the budget to get a canister. I've heard of people who are able to do it with a powerhead. Would this be viable? and how do you attach spraybars to a powerhead?


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## SBS

> I don't think it's a good idea to remove the reflectors. it gets pretty hot in there, might mess up the plastic housing.


The reason I mentioned it is because that will reduce the light amount over your tank and prevent algae for now. If that causes your lights to melt the plastic above I'd be weary using that light unit altogether 



> I don't really understand how spraybars generally work. Apparently you're supposed to use a canister filter with it, but i dont have the budget to get a canister. I've heard of people who are able to do it with a powerhead. Would this be viable? and how do you attach spraybars to a powerhead?


This depends on the design of the powerhead. You'd need one with an output that can fit a certain size/diameter spraybar I guess.
And yes, it's easy attaching a spraybar to a canister because the outlet is just a certain size of hose to which you can attach any type of outlet as long as you find the relevent sizes. Some internal filters can be modified too but not a HOB I suppose.


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## atc84

yeah, if i removed the reflectors it would be less than half the light... But i feel like the light isn't creating a problem, besides a little algae.

I'll be getting the powerhead soon, aquaclear 20 or 30 i believe, and if I can attach a spraybar i will.

Do you know if the sand will change it's color back to white after it gets oxygenated?


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## SBS

> Do you know if the sand will change it's color back to white after it gets oxygenated?


 I don't know really. I'd presume if you siphon it a bit it will once the production of whatever is discolouring it stops.


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## atc84

Quick update! 

So far, no fish deaths, no problems at all really. I havn't done a water change in a couple weeks, with my readings hanging around 0,0,20. 

I got a powerhead 20, and once i have some free time i will do a DIY spraybar attachment. I ordered 25 MTS for free off someone, and will get them sometime this week. I will also be picking up 5 julli cories this week also.

Im trying to get the right balance in my automatic feeder. Im putting in sinking shrimp pellets for the cories and dried bloodworms for the rest. I figured they get enough algae nutrition just from pecking around the plants and rocks.

I just noticed that some background plants are actually a more foreground plant. When i got it it had long stems, and then afterwards it has tons of shorter 5 inch stems, kinda like dwarf sag. I think thats what it is actually. Any opinions on moving plants?

Oh, and i got an angelfish, which i named Oreo. It supposedly a koi angelfish, but its more black than anything, does anybody know if its a koi or something else?

my hornwort is covering a lot of the top, but its leaves are much more leggy than when i bought it. Probably because the plant i got was in a high Co2 light setup. My anachris mother plant isn't growing, but it set out runners everywhere, so now i have 3 times the anachris i had before. It's much greener than the mother plant, but less leaves. My jungle val is growing about an inch per day it seems also.

Any suggestions, questions, comments are welcome!


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## atc84

So my vals are getting a little bit of this hairyish algae on it. i can't manually remove it, and i know why algae is on my tank. Im just wondering, how long until my plants really take off, and when will my tank be balanced? I don't have crazy light for a walstad, but i think the effectiveness of the reflectors threw me off, which caused algae. Is there a way to know if theres a difference between imbalance, and excess light/nutrients?


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## dawntwister

atc84 said:


> So my vals are getting a little bit of this hairyish algae on it. Is there a way to know if theres a difference between imbalance, and excess light/nutrients?


It all interwines. I have found having a 3hr siesta period in the light period helps balance the nutrients. For during the siesta period Co2 builds up, according to Diana Walsted. Somthing like 3hrs on/ 3hrs off/ 3hrs on should help.


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## atc84

thanks dawntwister. I will set my timer up for something like that. I have a HOB, does the disturbing of the water surface take out Co2?


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## Skizhx

dawntwister said:


> It all interwines. I have found having a 3hr siesta period in the light period helps balance the nutrients. For during the siesta period Co2 builds up, according to Diana Walsted. Somthing like 3hrs on/ 3hrs off/ 3hrs on should help.


This was from Peter Hiscock's Encyclopedia of Aquarium Plants. I don't think Walstad ever mentions the 'Siesta' in her book.

What she does mention though is that CO2 builds up during the night (or whenever the plants aren't photosynthesizing to use it). Of course if you're running a filter or anything that's disturbing the surface (which seems to be more popular than actually following her advice), the CO2 isn't going to build up.

The actual reasoning behind the Siesta period is that algae takes longer to begin photosynthesizing once exposed to light than plants do. The idea being this helps the plants outcompete the algae by giving them a boost ahead of the algae.

This technique, in my opinion, is flawed, and as far as I can tell makes some fairly silly assumptions.


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## Karl M

Whether it works or not I don't know but Diana Walstad does mention the siesta period in her book.

"I use light timers to automatically schedule a 5-4-5 Siesta Regimen. Lights on for 5 hr in the morning, turned of for 4 hr and turned on for 5 hr." 

"Moreover, a siesta allows CO2 regeneration. With continuous light, plant photosynthesis depletes most of the CO2 by late morning. This means that during the afternoon, plants are competing for an ever dwindling supply of CO2. Algae, which is more adept than plants in taking up CO2, gains an afternoon advantage over plants."

"It (siesta period) provides light when plants have enough CO2 so they can actually use the light. Finally, it reduces algae's 'afternoon advantage' over plants."

This is all found near the end of chapter 11. I believe it is on pg 178 and following. I have the kindle version and am not sure of the page numbers. She goes into more detail about why the siesta is a good thing with at least one chart.


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## atc84

another reason i need to read her book. TBH, im not running a "legit" walstad. i using her ideas and principles when it comes to plants, substrate, lighting, etc. some of the details i skipped out on...

So your saying it's pointless to have a "siesta" if my HOB is just oxygenating the water anyways? i also have a powerfilter that bubbles a bit.


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## Karl M

There is so much that seems to be unknown when it comes to water circulation/aeration and CO2. Surface agitation does cause CO2 lose but it also distributes the available CO2 and other nutrients to the plants. Diana Walstad sums it up well in a recent post here.



dwalstad said:


> I am glad I saw your letter! All of my tanks have some means of water circulation. I use an air stone with gentle bubbling in the small 2-5 gal tanks. Larger tanks (50-55 gal) all have internal filters.
> 
> I would not have a large tank like a 75 gal without a filter or at least a water pump to circulate water. Moderate water movement brings nutrients to plants and keeps the water safely oxygenated. For years, I leaned towards less water movement to prevent CO2 loss. However, oxygenated water speeds up the bacterial metabolism that *produces* CO2 in an NPT. Therefore, water movement may actually increase CO2 production. How about that!
> 
> Water circulation is especially important in a newly set up tank. Otherwise, you have a huge mass of fresh organic matter (the soil underlayer) consuming all oxygen in the water. (Plants have not started growing and oxygenating the water.) This scenario threatens not only fish but plants. The new soil becomes so anaerobic that it may kill plant roots.
> 
> While I have always emphasized plants as water purifiers and advised against excessive filtration, gentle water movement is a good thing. For a large 75 gal containing an organic soil layer like Miracle Gro, I would consider it essential.
> 
> Attached is picture on the day I set up my 50 gal back in 2008. It shows the internal filter I used to circulate water. This tank in 2013 is going strong. (I posted recent picture of it on my Facebook page.)


Sorry that I just keep quoting Diana but I am a big fan and probably wouldn't have gotten back into the hobby without her.


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## atc84

wow, that was really helpful. I have really anaerobic sand, so i have pretty heavy filtration to keep nutrients spread around. I havn't seen any negative growth on plants, so i think the anaerobic sand isn't too bad.

Once my sand if fixed, could i remove my HOB and just keep my powerhead? the powerhead is kinda weak for my tank, and it doesnt have and media. I can get a media attachment for some mechanical and bio filtering, but anyways, does it really matter?


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## atc84

would Seachem Flourish Excel help my ammania gracillis have a more red color, and generally improve plant growth? considering getting a bottle, if i dont then i would have a completely chemical/fert free tank.


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## atc84

Update:

So my tank is running smoothly, i got my MTS, extra powerhead, my sand itn't blue anymore, and i think 1 of my fish have birth but i cant find any fry, and another is looking pretty square. I stopped testing my water a couple weeks ago because i didn't think i wasn't going to have any ammonia. i wiped down my tank from algae, and it seems like it stopped coming back.  

theres only 1 thing i dont know about. On the side of my tank i can see my dirt layer, and i noticed the dirt has pink liquidy looking stuff in it. Is this an affect of the anaerobic tank, and should i do anything about it?

Thanks.


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## atc84

I just figured out why my substrate is smelly.

Ok so when i got my hornwort at first it melted badly, and all the leaves got everywhere. I tried cleaning it up the best i could. I believe this is the culprit to my problems because all this decaying matter is trapped underneath my sand. 

My sand is looking better, but still bubbles a ton when i put pressure on it with my hand. some stem plants are melting, but most have good roots. 

Theirs still this pink slimy stuff on the side of my tank in the dirt layer, and now its literally hot pink. I've searched everywhere online and nobody has had this. idk if it has to do with my dirt or the anaerobicness, i'm just not going to do anything unless somebody has an answer.

Oh, and im starting to see some green slimy under in my sand area hanging around the air bubbles.


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## Tattooedfool83

Are you poking the substrate with a chop stick or something similar to release the trapped gas? I've had good luck doing that and the dirt settles better to.
Have a picture of the pink stuff?


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## atc84

idk why my water looks super green in this pic, dont mind that 

seems like my dirt has risen up, because im pretty sure i flattened it out almost an inch under that...


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## Karl M

Pink generally indicates the presence of bacteria in significant concentrations. I know that aerobic bacteria are often pink but I have no idea if anaerobic bacteria can be the same color.


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## atc84

thanks Karl,
could it be the significant bacteria that eats organic material making it anaerobic? I'm not very informed about the science behind this, im just guessing. 

In any case, im just going to leave it alone-that's what nature would do


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## atc84

Update: 
Recent pic
cleaned up the tank today, removed HOB then going to set up a powerhead spraybar and add a school of cories.

(little blurry, camera phone...)


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## atc84

Update:
Changed up the filtration. aquaclear powerhead 20 DIY spraybar and sponge filtration (thanks SBS).

Changed layout a bit, took out a rock, excited for more growth.

Later: Going to add a school of fancy guppies and trim the ludwigia and add more vals. My ludwigia is getting pretty tall, proably near its max height, and it's looking pretty sloopy. When i bought it it had red leaves, then later they were green, then brownish. Im going to move it around to get more direct light, but anyways does anyone know how to get better color and shape by trimming??

also caught my val pearling


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## atc84

Favorite coloration of one of my fancies.


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## tonnakpil

Ludwigia's looking nice. The tank looks healthy as well. Cheers


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## atc84

This thread deserves an update:
So not much has changed, still running a small powerhead as filtration, 55 watts of light, on for a total of about 10-11 hours. My dwarf sag finally took off, added some ludwigia and a tiny braz. pennywort that has taken off to the top, the rest you can see by comparison to several months ago.

Current stocking:
1 angelfish
3 gold dusted mollies 
7 guppies

I've been doing monthly-ish water changes, with maybe 1 top off inbetween. I've been running an automatic feeder for a while, too lazy to take it down lol.

I can't describe how well this dirted tank has worked out. the plants are happy with some BBA grazing around, the fish appear to enjoy the aquarium. The only problem is the abundance of MTS, or at least the shells.

Its been almost exactly a year since i started this tank, along with it being my first. I've learned a lot, shared my experiences with others, and hope others will see this thread as inspiration to begin a walstad tank. Of course, some pictures.





























Thank you to all who have helped me, I'm hoping ill get some guppy babies soon, which will be fun to watch them grow up.

Thank you especially Diana Walstad, for creating a whole new hobby for everybody to enjoy.

-Andrew


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