# 55G NPT "Scape" from Newcastle,Australia.



## Bardus71 (Sep 29, 2011)

*55 Gallon NPT 'Scape' from Newcastle, Australia.*

Hi all, here is a quick build of my 4' NPT "Scape". As a newby, I didnt know if anything like this had been done before and rushed in to give it a whirl. Seems to be doing well so far. Enjoy.

Ideas:


Floor Plan:


Styro Contours:


Inert Gravel in Styro Steps:


Soil & Sand Substrate:


Capped Substrate:


Groundcovers in:


Stems:


*Cost:*
$100 4' Tank, stand, hood, light, filter, heater (From eBay)
$ 15 Soil & Potting Mix (From Bunnings)
$ 20 Black Gravel 2-4mm (From LFS)
$ 10 Sand (From Bunnings)
$150 Plants (From Forum sponsors, forum members & LFS)
$ 60 API Master Testing Kit (From LFS)
$ 15  Water Ager/Dechlorinator (From LFS)
*$370 TOTAL* For The Basics

*Substrate*
Approx 9L 50/50 Potting mix & Naked Farmer brand Soil Activator
Approx 4L sand. Sand is fine Play Sand from Bunnings, has proven to be a little too fine I think. 
Approx 4L gravel.
I have created a "River Bed" through the centre of the scape with no soil underneath also.

*Lighting*
3x36W T8 = 2.2W/G, photoperiod 15+hrs/day on a timer

*Plants*
Groundcovers:
Marsilea hirsuita
Lilaeopsis spp.
Staurogyne tropica

Mid Ground:
Blyxa japonica
Pogostemon stellatus

Side & Back grounds:
Hygrophila polysperma
Hygrophila polysperma 'sunset'
Filigree milfoil 
Rotala wallichi
Ludwigia repens
'Scarlet' Ludwigia
Ludwigia glandulosa

*Stock*
Blackworms
Various Snails
RCS
2 Corys
8 Glass Catfish 
5 small Angelfish
2 Otocinclus Catfish
(to come)
12 Rummy Nose Tetras
12 Kuhli Loaches
10 more Otos
12 Pygmy Corys


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## Michael (Jul 20, 2010)

Nice looking design, please keep us updated as it grows in.

I did something similar to your styrofoam with ceramic tile instead. The tile doesn't float, but I'll bet the stryofoam was easier to work with.

By the way, welcome to APC!

--Michael


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## jerilovesfrogs (Nov 29, 2010)

looks nice so far =]


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## Bardus71 (Sep 29, 2011)

*Re: 55G NPT "Scape" from Newcastle, Australia.*

Update: I decided to add an Eheim 2215 so that I could increase the stock in my tank, not the NPT ideal, but suits my plans. Here is a recent pic or 2.


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## Michael (Jul 20, 2010)

The maturing tank looks great! It has a little of a Dutch design to my eye.

How did the styrofoam topography work out? Did the slopes hold their shape the way you wanted them to?


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## frroK (May 9, 2011)

Incredible. I was actually thinking about styrofoam for depth when I saw in in the craft store. I wasn't sure if it was safe for aquarium use. I guess so! Great work.


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## Bardus71 (Sep 29, 2011)

Thanks Michael. The front right corner is obvious in its topograph & contour, but I think the effect is lost on the left rear mound. I had a few notions I was trying to entertain with it that Im not sure were so successful. The first was to create a flow for the eye to follow from the front of the tank down through the "river bed", which I am semi pleased with. The other I wanted to achieve was a sense of depth & scale that didnt end up being effective. I am still a newby & scale is a first grade lesson, I am just getting the basics right in Kindergarden. The other thing I was trying to achieve was a Walstad inpsired NPT, but have ended up with a hefty filter & medium lighting which werent in my original ideal. I seem to be riding this wave and giving myself room for exploration to find what works & what appeals.


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## Michael (Jul 20, 2010)

One tip for establishing greater depth is to use coarse textured plants in front, and fine textured plants in back. This is called forced textural perspective. Your task is made more difficult by the long, narrow shape of the standard 55--it is just hard to work with.

I've found that the river bed effect is harder to achieve than it looks, LOL.

Plants do tend to cover up subtle topography, except if the plants are very short and very uniform in height. A lot of what we see in award-winning tanks that we think is topography is actually created by the mass and smooth uniform height of the plants. The substrate may be close to flat.

Plants also cover up stone and wood, so those elements often need to be exaggerated so that they are not obscured by maturing plants.

In my own aquaria, I also tend to have medium light and high flow and biofiltration. I think of these as enhancements of the Walstad technique that permit greater flexibility, without creating greater maintenance. I do not fertilize the water column or use CO2.

Please keep us up-dated!


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## kshafer (Jan 23, 2011)

How are the RCS doing in there with the Angelfish?


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## Bardus71 (Sep 29, 2011)

kshafer said:


> How are the RCS doing in there with the Angelfish?


A bit like Jonah and the whale mate. When I started, I only put in 12 RCS, and there was more hardscape to hide in. A short few months later there is easily 100, & the Angelfish pick them off easily. As a result, the Angelfish are extremely healthy looking. Their coat has a glisten to the scales and they look amazing. I also feed them flake, frozen bloodworm, brine shrimp, daphnia & cyclops. They do pretty well, just waiting on them pairing up so I can breed them.


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## kshafer (Jan 23, 2011)

Bardus71 said:


> A bit like Jonah and the whale mate. When I started, I only put in 12 RCS, and there was more hardscape to hide in. A short few months later there is easily 100, & the Angelfish pick them off easily. As a result, the Angelfish are extremely healthy looking. Their coat has a glisten to the scales and they look amazing. I also feed them flake, frozen bloodworm, brine shrimp, daphnia & cyclops. They do pretty well, just waiting on them pairing up so I can breed them.


Do you think you will be able to maintain a RCS population or will the Angelfish totally eliminate them? I am setting up a new 125 gallon planted tank next year and was planning on starting with RCS and some livebearers, then add some small Angelfish after the populations had grown. I wouldn't mind if one RCS got picked off every now and then but if the population will get eliminated fairly quickly I might want to go with tankmates that are too large to be eaten.


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## Bardus71 (Sep 29, 2011)

kshafer said:


> Do you think you will be able to maintain a RCS population or will the Angelfish totally eliminate them? I am setting up a new 125 gallon planted tank next year and was planning on starting with RCS and some livebearers, then add some small Angelfish after the populations had grown. I wouldn't mind if one RCS got picked off every now and then but if the population will get eliminated fairly quickly I might want to go with tankmates that are too large to be eaten.


No problem. I have 5 hungry adolescent Angels in there, & the cherrys are still multiplying.


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## frroK (May 9, 2011)

Want to bring this thread back. I had a few questions about the styrofoam you used. Did u add the inert gravel on top to weigh down the styrofoam? I want to use it but I'm very worried about it floating up through the substrate.


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## Bardus71 (Sep 29, 2011)

frroK said:


> Want to bring this thread back. I had a few questions about the styrofoam you used. Did u add the inert gravel on top to weigh down the styrofoam? I want to use it but I'm very worried about it floating up through the substrate.


Good question, cause the consequences would be disastrous. The styrofoam was glued together and to the base of the aquarium glass with aquarium-safe silicon. The gravel was to keep the dirt away from the corners of the 'steps' in the styrofoam to save it from possibly going anaerobic.


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## frroK (May 9, 2011)

Bardus71 said:


> Good question, cause the consequences would be disastrous. The styrofoam was glued together and to the base of the aquarium glass with aquarium-safe silicon. The gravel was to keep the dirt away from the corners of the 'steps' in the styrofoam to save it from possibly going anaerobic.


Great! Thank you for this info. I did some research and glued the styrofoam to the glass as well. I'm glad this was validated by your update. Here is the first step in my construction. I will post a thread on this tank soon. Taking my time in planning this scape. It's a very very beautiful tank in itself and I want to make sure I do it some justice. ADA MINI-M(apologies for the finger)


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## Bardus71 (Sep 29, 2011)

I look forward to seeing a low tech set up in such high tech glassware. Will be gorgeous I'm sure. Do your research, learn from others efforts and expect mistakes and setbacks as part of the learning process. Mostly, start a thread so we can follow it and give advice & feedback where needed too ;-)


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## Bardus71 (Sep 29, 2011)

Here is a bit of a timeline for this tank as it has changed with trims, scaping & rescaping......

Please note, the last shot is after the red lotus had 15 surface leaves trimmed, & it is growing in 1" of plain sand as opposed to a deep fertile substrate as recommended. Its nutrients must all be coming in through the water column.


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## Bardus71 (Sep 29, 2011)

Here is the latest incarnation of the 55G. Gone a bit more minimalist this time. Enjoy.


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## Seattle_Aquarist (Mar 7, 2008)

Hi Bardus71,

Nice job!


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## Big-Ken (Apr 30, 2012)

Looks good I like the less is more look


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## mariannep (Mar 18, 2012)

Looks lovely!!


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