Very impressive, I love the DW and its not even in place yet lol! The slate does seem to work in that tank, I think it will have plenty of swimming room for larger mid-water fish or lots of smaller mid-water fish 
I'm going to set it back up again
- Thread starter THE V
- Start date
imo either move the filter you have in the center or a better option would be to put a H.O.T. filter on the other side of the tank. you are going to have a huge "dead" zone on the right hand side of the tank though if you keep it the way it is.
^ Or add on the Mag 350 in the garage, or purchase a new C-360 to match the one on it now, or pick up some powerheads to get the water moving. On a tank this size "dead" zones are almost unavoidable. Where they are and what I need to minimize them will depend upon the final 'scape and the needs the stocking. They will also change as the plants fill in.
The end goal of this tank is to minimize the time involved in maintenance. I travel way too much for work both domestic and international. I'm looking for monthly water changes and quarterly filter cleanings. My wife will feed the fish and toss in some measured fertilizer but that's about it when I'm away.
From my experience low tech planted tanks with a low level of stocking is the best way to acheive the coveted minimal work tank. Of course the large size of the tank naturally makes it less work. It just takes time and patience to really get them going. It will probably take me 6 months or more to really get this tank established how I want.
The end goal of this tank is to minimize the time involved in maintenance. I travel way too much for work both domestic and international. I'm looking for monthly water changes and quarterly filter cleanings. My wife will feed the fish and toss in some measured fertilizer but that's about it when I'm away.
From my experience low tech planted tanks with a low level of stocking is the best way to acheive the coveted minimal work tank. Of course the large size of the tank naturally makes it less work. It just takes time and patience to really get them going. It will probably take me 6 months or more to really get this tank established how I want.
looks good, V. looking forward to progress.
different bloom. planted tanks go through algae blooms, silent cycles, etc.. un-planted, un-cycled tanks that aren't receiving special care, w/c's, etc. go through bacterial blooms.
Planted tanks can also go through bacterial blooms. Generally a tank will start with a bacterial bloom but you can also get subsequent blooms of parmecium, algae, and rotifers as the microscopic environment balances out. If you've got fish in the tank a few water changes can help keep it from getting too bad.
When I tossed in the log I got a lovely bloom throughout the tank. I also got a nice film across the top of the water and an unpleasent smell from the tank. It took a few days to clear out and it still has a bit of a smell (activated carbon is keeping it down). The plants are growing well and helping it out as well. If I wanted to I could tank a sample into the lab at work and plate it out to see what the causal organism is. I've got a lot of things to do and watching paramecium and rotifers zip around are not on the schedule. Besides I haven't worked in the lab in eight years so they' would probably kick me out. I also don't have any fish in the tank so ehhh... I'll change the water before I add in the fish.
I figure when I toss the first fish from the QT tank I'll dump in some filter crud for good measure. That won't be for another two weeks. I won't be surprised if I get a little bloom then as well.
When I tossed in the log I got a lovely bloom throughout the tank. I also got a nice film across the top of the water and an unpleasent smell from the tank. It took a few days to clear out and it still has a bit of a smell (activated carbon is keeping it down). The plants are growing well and helping it out as well. If I wanted to I could tank a sample into the lab at work and plate it out to see what the causal organism is. I've got a lot of things to do and watching paramecium and rotifers zip around are not on the schedule. Besides I haven't worked in the lab in eight years so they' would probably kick me out. I also don't have any fish in the tank so ehhh... I'll change the water before I add in the fish.
I figure when I toss the first fish from the QT tank I'll dump in some filter crud for good measure. That won't be for another two weeks. I won't be surprised if I get a little bloom then as well.
Well got a good reminder of why I have the QT tanks.
Yep the tank with the roseline sharks has ich.
It's all dosed up with some Malachite green and the silicone is getting another dye job in that tank.
Yep the tank with the roseline sharks has ich.
It's all dosed up with some Malachite green and the silicone is getting another dye job in that tank.
Well QT'ing and business travel don't mix that well. I lost 5 fish this week when I took off and went to Michigan for a conference. Couldn't ask my wife to more than dump some meds in the tank and feed them. It looks like she got the ich but I'm off to Florida on Monday again.
I forgot what a pain it can be to get a big tank set up sometimes. It's been like 8 years since the last time I did anything like this.
The positive news is the crypts and swords are doing good in the 125. The Cryptocoryne tropica is doing amazingly well. Probably 4 new leaves in 4 days.
My driftwood is about 1/2 submerged now. It's kind of hanging in the middle of the tank. Pretty awkward looking but it's making progress.
I don't know if I'm going to be able to get any fish into the tank for the next month or so.
I forgot what a pain it can be to get a big tank set up sometimes. It's been like 8 years since the last time I did anything like this.
The positive news is the crypts and swords are doing good in the 125. The Cryptocoryne tropica is doing amazingly well. Probably 4 new leaves in 4 days.
My driftwood is about 1/2 submerged now. It's kind of hanging in the middle of the tank. Pretty awkward looking but it's making progress.
I don't know if I'm going to be able to get any fish into the tank for the next month or so.
Are you planning on tough plants? Plecos generally tend to nibble and uproot delicate stems. Bushy/bristle nose may be better than a common pleco, but I wouldn't exactly call them plant safe.
How about a barb tank? Gold barbs, black ruby barbs, rosy barbs and tiger barbs
I agree...Barb tanks are great!! There are so many different types, colours, temperments, that's there's never a dull moment! These fish are sooo active and the colours of some of these guys are just gorgeous!
