# 10g



## erijnal (Apr 5, 2006)

Gonna go read some, but I just remembered I took pictures of my ten gallon tank last night.

Anyway, here is a picture of it with the flash on.










It's pretty messy right now, but I sort of like the unkempt look of it. I'll explain what my current visual goals are as a caption to the next picture, which is exactly the same, except taken at a higher angle so you can see a little more depth.










Alright, so this picture is neon green, but since you've already seen what the real colors look like with the first picture, it shouldn't be too big of a deal. Anyway, from left to right on the foreground. Anubias barteri var. 'nana/petite' (a really small nana or a sort of big petite) with a bunch of Anubias barteri var. 'petite' in front of it. I wanted to try to create a parent and children look with the grouping, and I like how it turned out. From the middle to right, the foreground is dominated by HC. The two Eriocaulon sp are surrounded by pads of Hydrocotyle verticillata, and I like how the combination of the three plants turned out. My original intention was to have a full HC foreground with a couple pads of the verticillata sticking out to "break" the look.

Onto midground. A dense grouping of blyxa japonica was placed to contrast with the anubias in front. Also, to add a bit of nonexact symmetry, I'm using a grouping of E. tennelus 'micro' on the right side. The blyxa is starting to show a reddish hue, and if everything goes well, the tennelus will also exhibit a nice copper glow.

Now the background. This is where the most change is going to take place. Presently, though, on the back left, there are some rhizomes of crypt lucens growing. Hopefully that will thrive and grow high, and complement the mix of rotalas dominating the middle background of the tank, which is comprised of 'Colorata', 'Green', 'Pink', and 'Nanjenshean'. The bacopa colorata is growing in between the blyxa and the rotalas, but I'll either be moving it somewhere else or getting rid of it. Directly to the right of the rotalas are some small stems of what I believe to be P. stellatus 'Broad Leaf'. There is also a random stem of Limnophila aromatica growing next to it, and sooner or later I'll have to decide which plant to use in that spot. Next is a bunch of Rotala sp. 'Vietnam', and next to that are a few stems of Rotala sp. 'Green'. My hope is to have Cryptocoryne lucens, then Rotala sp. 'Colorata', Unknown plant for the mess of rotalas in the middle, P. stellatus 'Broad Leaf' or L. aromatica, then Rotala sp. 'Vietnam', and then Rotala sp. 'Green', going from left to right, as my background.

It's going to take time to get the tank where I want it to be, but I don't mind. Also, I want to take some time to thank Darrell for providing 95% of the plants in the tank.

Fauna includes Boraras brigittae (the picture doesn't do them justice), Otocinclus macrospilus (I think), Corydoras habrosus, and three species of snails.


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## eklikewhoa (Jul 24, 2006)

that anubias nana petite looks cool! i think im gonna get me some.


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## erijnal (Apr 5, 2006)

Update (sorry, don't have any photo editing software on my laptop, couldn't resize the images so they're huge)

With flash










Without flash










Ramshorn snail hanging out










E. tenellus, Ludwigia brevipes, Rotala sp. 'Green'










Side shot










Rotala sp. 'Green'










This tank is doing awesome at college, and I've gotten my RA interested in setting up a 5.5 gallon tank. Others on the floor will knock on the door and ask to see the tank or bring a friend of theirs to check it out. Glad I took it up with me wahoo


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## aquariageek (May 27, 2006)

erijnal said:


> This tank is doing awesome at college, and I've gotten my RA interested in setting up a 5.5 gallon tank. Others on the floor will knock on the door and ask to see the tank or bring a friend of theirs to check it out. Glad I took it up with me wahoo


 My roomates just say im obssesed with fish and im that crazy guy that fertilizes and injects co2 into his aquaria.

What is your CO2 setup?


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## turbomkt (Mar 31, 2004)

James,
Looking good. It's also nice that APC now resizes things for us (but that doesn't help download speed ).


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## erijnal (Apr 5, 2006)

aquariageek, I've just got a DIY setup going on right now. In the second to last photo you can see the gatorade bottle on the far side of the tank lol. My roommates actually like the tank and sometimes I'll catch them sitting in front of the tank and staring. It's nice to see

By the way, one cool way to get smaller bubbles is to take the glass diffuser out, let it dry for a couple hours, and put it back in. The bubbles you'll get will be miniscule! Not sure why, but maybe some algae that reside in the pores die and results in more available pores


Mike, thanks! Your tenellus is showing that nice bronze look yayy. I really like the combo of the brigittae, otocinclus, and the habrosus, so thanks for piquing my interest in the boraras. The resizing makes the edges look really ugly lol. Anyway, I just sized the images down with Paint, so now it looks a little better and if anyone wants a better view without the rough edges, the image won't dominate their screennn


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## turbomkt (Mar 31, 2004)

James,
If you're using Paint to resize, I really recommend hitting GIMP - The GNU Image Manipulation Program.

Also...look into student pricing on programs through your university or web sites like Academic Software, Academic Discount : Academic Superstore : Academic Software savings for students, teachers, & schools.


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## Stargazer53 (Oct 12, 2006)

The tank looks great thus far. Very green.....I almost felt like I was in the Amazon looking at the tank. I would love to see how everything turns out when the plants grow out a tad bit more.


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## erijnal (Apr 5, 2006)

Thanks Stargazer, I'm actually planning on taking another picture in about a month when the HC fills out and the stem plants are 3/4ths of the way to the top of the tank, so I'll definitely post it here as another update.

As for non-green stuff, I'm hoping the combinaton of Rotala sp. 'Colorata' and Pogostemon stellatus 'Broad Leaf' will provide a red and purple-yellow, respectively, and the Limnophila aromatica a nice yellow or red. Also, the Ludwigia brevipes looks like it might be a yellow or red from the looks of the tips, so we'll see what happens there. But yeah I'm hoping it's not going to be too green haha.


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## erijnal (Apr 5, 2006)

Update

Full view










Left side view










Right side view










Did a re-scape, and it's starting to come together. The Blyxa japonica on the left side is stunting a little bit, so if I can get that to stop, I can't wait to see what a bushy Blyxa border looks like. I might take out the Blyxa and put in dwarf hairgrass instead. I'll consider the look "complete" when the Ludwigia brevipes gets near the top and the Rotala sp. 'Colorata' and 'Pink' at the far right of the tank peeks over the top of the Ludwigia and provides a red and yellow accent. Oh yeah, a new piece of driftwood too

I tried doing a semi-imitation of how Amano places his diffusers, except I'm using a spraybar. The pump on the far right of the tank provides enough current to keep the bubbles in the water for a good amount of time though, so it's all good.


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## Steven_Chong (Mar 17, 2005)

I would try to devise a more visually complex and stronger hardscape/mid-ground design. Right now, I feel like I'm looking at a background of stems, a lawn, and a stick in the middle. The midground is the foundation of the lay-out. If it hasn't been given good attention, one cannot create a sense of depth or visual interest. The L. aromatica is probably too big for this sized tank also.

I like that the anubias has been given a large space. Are you planning to let it fill in an area that big? If so, I think that would be a good decision as that plant in particular looks best in large thick groups.


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## erijnal (Apr 5, 2006)

Took a couple pictures of my tank today. I really like where it's at right now. The only thing that I feel is unfinished about this is that I'd like to add a piece of hardscape somewhere, and that my Eleocharis parvulus and Hemianthus callitrichoides isn't grown in thickly yet. Would like to thank Greg for the Rotala sp. 'Green', and William for the hairgrass!

Front view









View from the right









From the right. I feel that the Ludwigia brevipes gives a really warm feeling to my tank









Macro shot of my Ludwigia brevipes









Hemianthus callitrichoides, Blyxa japonica, and Eleocharis parvulus in the back. Because of the sloping, the HC appears to be thicker than it actually is. Also, it seems to have at least doubled in density over spring break. I had my lights on 4 hours a day during that period along with two EI dosings by a friend, compared to the 8 hour photoperiod and 3-4 EI dosings I normally have and perform.









Anubias barteri var. 'Petite'. I feel like the clustering of these plants is the focal point of the entire scape. If I didn't have them, then I definitely would feel the necessity of driftwood or rocks.


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## turtlehead (Nov 27, 2004)

Good growth James, wanna send me some hc ?


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## carb850 (Mar 7, 2007)

That looks great. I'm just starting my own 10G and I hope it turns out half as nice as yours.


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## Ownager2004 (Apr 18, 2006)

I really like the progression of this tank. I think it looks great. What light fixture are you using?


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## Haeun (Oct 19, 2006)

> This tank is doing awesome at college, and I've gotten my RA interested in setting up a 5.5 gallon tank. Others on the floor will knock on the door and ask to see the tank or bring a friend of theirs to check it out. Glad I took it up with me wahoo





> My roomates just say im obssesed with fish and im that crazy guy that fertilizes and injects co2 into his aquaria.


 Same here. People come into our dorm room all the time to check out our fish tanks. I have a 29 gallon angelfish tank, a 10 gallon betta growout tank, 5 gallon hex CRS tank, 5 gallon spawn tank, and a million and one 1 gallon jars of betta juvies (yes, all that in our dorm room ). At one point, my roommate calculated that we have over 80 gallons of water in our room. Hahahaha...
Sometimes, I feel like I'm the crazy fish lady, but no one ever says anything like that and everyone like my tanks.  I've also spread the betta disease around too, actually. >


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## erijnal (Apr 5, 2006)

lol sorry John, I still have to wait for my HC to grow in a little thicker. As a side note, I believe I started with about a 2.5"x2.5" patch of HC for the current carpet I have. The picture you see is about two weeks after planting.

thanks carb! It actually took me 6-8 months to finally get a scape that I really liked, so if you happen to not start out the way you want, don't be discouraged. I just started a new dosing regimen, MWF, with a pinch and smidgen of KNO3, as close to 3/4ths of a smidgen of KH2PO4, and another 3/4ths of a smidgen of CSM+B. I add about 15 drops of Kent Freshwater supplement, Tues/Thurs, for extra potassium and iron. Not sure if that'll help you out, but just saying

Ownager, appreciate the comment =]. I'm using a Catalina Aquarium light fixture with a 6500K bulb. I believe it's 40 watts.

lol Haeun that's nuts. UCLA only let's us keep 10 gallons max in the dorms, but I'm sure if I wanted to, I could definitely get away with 15 or 20 gallons. Betta juvies... yikes, taking care of a spawning must be hardcore


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## turtlehead (Nov 27, 2004)

UCR is 5g only, so don't complain, too bad I live in an apartment now and anything goes hahaha


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## xfile80303 (Mar 29, 2007)

Very nice! I have a 10g and we are struggling with filtration options for it (everything we've tried so far is fairly noisy). It looks like you have some kind of external filter. Mind sharing what your setup is?

Cheers,

Levi


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## erijnal (Apr 5, 2006)

thanks =]

I'm using a Zoomed 501 Turtle Canister filter. I dunno though.. It doesn't give too much water circulation, or at least as much as I would want. My boraras brigittae love it though, because they seem to display the best colors with a low flow.

If you want something quiet and provides great filtration, I'd think about getting the smallest model of the Ecco Eheim


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## erijnal (Apr 5, 2006)

Another update. I just redid my layout, so nothing's grown in yet. I can't wait to take pictures a month or two from now and compare the plant mass!

My previous layout didn't give my Corydoras habrosus much substrate to play around in, so I wanted to try a new look, while giving my cories more play room. This is my first time sloping the substrate as much as I did, and I like how its turned out. I may want to add a stem plant on the far right corner of the tank, and I'm leaning toward Bacopa sp. Pantanal. I've never named any of my layouts, but I almost want to call this one Pride Rock because of the look the driftwood gives.

Plants used in this layout are Hemianthus callitrichoides, Anubias barteri var. 'Petite', Blyxa japonica, and Elatine trianda. I'd like to utilize the Taiwan moss floating in the tank sometime in the future, but I don't think it'd look good on the wood, so we'll see. Fish are the same as the last time.

I did a color balance with these pictures, so the plants don't look as bright green as in previous pictures, but this is what the plants really do look like.

Edit: That weird rectangle in the middle of the tank is the result of de-speckling the picture lol. Didn't know how to get rid of it so I just left it in


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## turbomkt (Mar 31, 2004)

Looks good. If you had swapped things around you could call it "Pride Rock"


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## erijnal (Apr 5, 2006)

This is college tank 2007-2008, woo!

Now using ADA Aquasoil, thanks to John Pirrone. Also upgraded to pressurized paintball CO2. If you're curious about how to set up a pressurized paintball rig, check this thread. I finally added pictures of the actual set-up.

Flora: Bacopa sp. 'Pantanal', Limnophila sp. 'Mini', Anubias barteri var. 'Petite', Hemianthus callitrichoides, Hemianthus micranthemoides, Blyxa japonica, Hygrophila sp. 'Porto Velho'

Fauna: Celestichthys margaritatus (Celestial Pearl Danios), Caridina cf. cantonensis 'Tiger' (Tiger shrimp)





































This is more of a progress shot than anything else. I'm waiting for the Hygrophila sp. 'Porto Velho' as well as the HC to fill in, so once those two have gotten to where I like them, I'll post another update. Only other comment I'd like to make at this point is I tried to create a "street" effect with the positioning of the Anubias barteri var. 'Petite's.

Thanks for looking!


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## aquariageek (May 27, 2006)

Thought I would bump this. :bump:

I'd like to see some updated pics... it is awful fun having a tank at college...


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## erijnal (Apr 5, 2006)

Thanks for the bump =]

As for updates, I can't supply any right now because it's winter break and I'm at home. I left the tank in the dorms (after making sure the power would stay on thanks to an overstaying suitemate!), but the layout itself is pretty much the same, except for the addition of Potamogeton gayi. The HC is all filled in, I moved the Bacopa way to the far right/back, and moved some of the Petites around too.

I'm soaking some great pieces of branchy driftwood right now, though, and I'm hoping to add them to the tank once I get back.

Oh yeah, and I have a large number of Tiger shrimp now! They're too cool =D


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## aquariageek (May 27, 2006)

Our RA got chewed out for not ratting us out for having a 30 Gallon in our room. They found it over break during inspections last year. 

I think her argument of how she let it slide because I keep our apartment obsessively clean worked because they never made us take it out.

Hope your tank is well when you get back, I always had luck leaving mine. I miss school... enjoy it while you can!!


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## hedson_25 (Sep 20, 2005)

can't stop changing? me either!


keep working...


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## erijnal (Apr 5, 2006)

Update! The pictures are kind of small/blurry so I'll replace them with some bigger pictures as soon as I can!




























Flora
Limnophila sp. 'Mini'
Hemianthus micranthemoides
Blyxa japonica
Potamogeton gayi
Anubias barteri var. 'Petite'
Hemianthus callitrichoides
Cryptocoryne parva
Cryptocoryne willisii
Hygrophila sp. 'Porto Velho'
Rotala sp. 'Mini'
Pogostemon helferi
Bacopa sp. 'Pantanal'
Echinodorus sp. 'Vesuvius

Fauna
Nannostomus espei
Otocinclus sp.
Caridina cf. cantonensis 'Tiger'


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## bratyboy2 (Feb 5, 2008)

tank looks great!!! how is that paintball co2 working for you?


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## Tex Gal (Nov 1, 2007)

This thread is like the quick change artist. So many different looks in one tank. It sure looks like your enjoying yourself. I've enjoyed all the different scapes! Thanks


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