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Subscribe180G Looking For Inspiration / Ideas For Modified Scape
Gone_Troppo
 
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Hi

After over a year of having pretty much the same scape we're shifting things around in our 180g.

The tank has previously looked like THIS ... a jungle of vals, which is a look that I was reasonbly happy with most of the time... it gave us a bit of a "sunken ship in a bed of seaweed" look.
What I wasn't quite so happy with at the time was the lack of variety in colour and texture.

As of last night most of the vals have either died or been removed as they were looking pretty sick and sad (combination of really low light and me being slack with the ferts I think). The tank looks like THIS NOW.

So... I've pretty much got a blank canvas with this one and I'm looking for ideas. The only thing that definitely must remain for the moment is the shipwreck in three pieces and the gravel substrate.

Dimensions of tank: 6 x 2 x 2 feet (180 gallons)

Current light level: Approx 1WPG - this may be increased over time, but I probably should work with what I have atm rather than count on something that may be months away

The current plant list:

  • Jungle val (the remainder of which are looking pretty sad);

  • Large red-stemmed mystery Anubias species on DW;

  • 2 x Apongeton Crispus (I'm liking these atm, but they are a bit pricey to completely fill the tank with);

  • Anubias nana;

  • 6 x Comapct Swords (Echinodorus parviflorus); and

  • some java moss (I've removed most of what was in there because it made such a mess)


The current inhabitants:
BGK, Peacock eels, Blue Acaras, Angelfish, Sparkling gourami, farlowella, platinum gourami, blue / opaline gourami, lemon tetras, serpae tetras, harlies, hillstream loach and sturisoma.

As I mentioned earlier in this post I'm looking for ideas... What would you do with the basics of what I already have in place? I look forward to hearing your ideas and being inspired.

G_T

Never be afraid to try something new. Remember that a lone amateur built the Ark. A large group of professionals built the Titanic.
Post InfoPosted 25-Nov-2007 15:26Profile PM Edit Report 
FRANK
 
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Hi Trop,
Wow, what a difference! You must be heartsick to have
lost all that val. You did not mention your water
chemistries. You might want to look at the GH/KH of the
water. Vals, along with more light (wpg) want Calcium in
the water so your GH/KH readings should be at least a
3 (50ppm) and preferably a little higher around a 4.

With tanks 2 foot or deeper, much of the lower, red
spectrum of light is absorbed. The bluer end of the
spectrum penetrates deeper. So you would want to shift
the "K" rating of your lights higher toward the
8800 and maybe even 10,000K rating. That along with
increasing the wpg to at least 2 wpg and perhaps 2.5
wpg would increase the light energy at the surface of
the substrate and give the plants the light energy that
they need for good growth. I would not go higher than
that (2.5wpg) without adding carbon in some form.
2 wpg would allow you to grow any of the low light plants,
and nearly all of the medium light plants, and even a few
of the high light plants.

Frank

-->>> The Confidence of Amateurs, is the Envy of Professionals <<<--
Post InfoPosted 25-Nov-2007 17:48Profile PM Edit Delete Report 
Gone_Troppo
 
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Thanks for the input Frank.

You have a point about the K rating of the tubes and depth of the tank. ATM I think there is 1 x 10 000K tube with the rest being around 6500K. I should probably look to progressively swap them out for higher K rated tubes.

Unfortunately upping the overall WPG by a significant amount is not a viable option atm with christmas approaching and all the expenses that go with that... but it's something I have been looking at for a while so it's definitely on the cards for the future.

G_T

Never be afraid to try something new. Remember that a lone amateur built the Ark. A large group of professionals built the Titanic.
Post InfoPosted 25-Nov-2007 18:21Profile PM Edit Delete Report 
fish patty
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I would scoot one of the pieces of the shipwreck closer to another piece, so they aren't so evenly distributed. I might even try creating a valley in there, or just a rise of substrate in one section of the tank & have a piece of ship hanging off of it, so it isn't such a straight line of ship parts.

Maybe some rocks could be put in the back of the tank, to look like a mountain range in the distance?

I would look on the net at sites of ship wrecks to see what they looked like & what kind of environment they were in. That should give you some ideas. I wish you luck!
Post InfoPosted 25-Nov-2007 18:50Profile PM Edit Delete Report 
brandeeno
 
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troppo, i agree with patty, make a hill or something and maybe get a good back round. you dont necessarily have to see the backround all arround the tank, but i gives a more natural look and allows for good distribution of color!

also look into gettinf som mor vals and some other varieties of anubias. if you put a some flat rocks arround you could plant a little moss on each to help with a forground.... also maybe try some dwarf swords in the fron of the tank and some larger swords towards the back. mix it up as in the wild there is not just one plat in plethora and a few random others.

hope this helps!!!!

\\\\\\\"an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of the cure\\\\\\\"
Post InfoPosted 25-Nov-2007 19:13Profile PM Edit Delete Report 
keithgh
 
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The only thing that definitely must remain for the moment is the shipwreck in three pieces and the gravel substrate.


After you might not want to chat to me.

Why the three wrecks? At the moment as soon as I look at the tank the first thing I see is the middle wreck, then the other two. After that I see three tanks each divided by a ship wreck. They just look too big for that tank. If you "Must" have them try to re arrange them so that at two are at the LH end and the third at the opposite end.
I would take them out and try different locations/and positioning on a base plan. Try to make it look like they have been there for a long time and not just sitting on the substrate. Plenty of small plants around will also help, Even Java moss growing over the wrecks will help.

I would also increase the substrate to at least 3 ins and try to get more of a valley shape rather than the rolling hills which will flatten out any way.

You might be able to have one or two of the wrecks act as retaining walls for the natural looking shape of the substrate.

Have a look in [link=My Profile] http://www.fishprofiles.com/forums/member.aspx?id=1935[/link] for my tank info

Look here for my
Betta 11Gal Desktop & Placidity 5ft Community Tank Photos

Keith :

Near enough is not good enough, therefore good enough is not near enough, and only your best will do.
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Post InfoPosted 26-Nov-2007 05:28Profile PM Edit Delete Report 
Gone_Troppo
 
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Thank you all for the suggestions so far.

Please don't be afraid to make suggestions, even if you think I won't like them. There is no such thing as a bad sugestion and I'm not easily offended so let me know exactly what you think. The whole idea of this thread was to get a heap of ideas and suggestions together and pick out bits and pieces and try a few things out.

I can't guarantee that I will follow through on all of the suggestions but I do appreciate them. They are all helping to inspire me to create "something" with this tank (although I'm still not certain exactly what that "something" will be).

Keep the suggestions coming... I want to hear them all

G_T

Never be afraid to try something new. Remember that a lone amateur built the Ark. A large group of professionals built the Titanic.
Post InfoPosted 26-Nov-2007 06:58Profile PM Edit Delete Report 
Countryfish
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Troppo , Hi . If I were you I'd get a half a dozen Java Ferns ( big ones ) and plant them around the Ships . I agree with Pattys idea of moving one of the ships to one side and creating a valley .I'd also get a couple of piece's of driftwood to create the valley and tie some of the Annubias to them or even buy the driftwood with some of the bigger Annubias already attached.

Anyway just a couple of thoughts . Can't wait to see what you decide .

Garry
Post InfoPosted 27-Nov-2007 12:08Profile PM Edit Delete Report 
Gone_Troppo
 
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Well, seems the general concensus is that the first thing I should do is move the pieces of ship around a bit and make them less "even" and create a bit more of a varied / sculptured base.

So... I've just gotten back from the landscapers yard with 80kg (around 175 lbs) more gravel so that I have something to work with.

I've got lots of gravel washing in store for my afternoon so I'll update again later.

G_T

Never be afraid to try something new. Remember that a lone amateur built the Ark. A large group of professionals built the Titanic.
Post InfoPosted 01-Dec-2007 07:01Profile PM Edit Delete Report 
Gone_Troppo
 
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Alright... Things have started moving on this project - 80kg of gravel washed and added to the tank.

Here's the tank as of a few minutes ago

The gravel still needs to be pushed to the back quite a bit(there was a pair of acaras guarding newly hatched fry when I was moving things around). I'll continue playing around with placement of the ship and plants.

Keep the comments and suggestions coming.

G_T

Never be afraid to try something new. Remember that a lone amateur built the Ark. A large group of professionals built the Titanic.
Post InfoPosted 01-Dec-2007 15:45Profile PM Edit Delete Report 
fish patty
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Troppo......great start!

As of right now, I have only one picture in my mind as to what I would do with that tank if it was mine. I will describe the scene & then leave it at that.

I would have one valley coming from the left back, catty corner to the right front. Not necessarily exactly, as it could start from the center back & go to the right front, but you get my general idea. I would have the substrate higher on the right hand side of the valley. The ship comes down & hits the valley.....the nose hits on the left side of the valley & stays there. The ship breaks in the middle, leaving the middle section in the valley & the left end on top of the left rise.

Just an idea.
Post InfoPosted 01-Dec-2007 17:13Profile PM Edit Delete Report 
brandeeno
 
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looks amazing!!!!!!!!!!!

great difference isn't it...


can't wait to see it with some more plants!!!!!!!!!!

\\\\\\\"an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of the cure\\\\\\\"
Post InfoPosted 01-Dec-2007 18:56Profile PM Edit Delete Report 
FRANK
 
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EditedEdited by FRANK
Hi Trop,
I think you may be setting yourself up for some problems.
Generally speaking the normal way to set up a tank is to
have the substrate flat, or sloping from the back to the
front. This way the tank currents will transport the
detritus to the front of the tank where it can easily be
siphoned off during a water change. With today's siphons
such as the Python, that is not quite as important as it
used to be as the siphon head can now be shoved into the
gravel and the gravel cleaned more completely than by just
passing the end of the hose across the surface in the front
of the tank.

With all the slopes you will have several dead spots where
the detritus will collect. Couple that with active fish
including catfish, and the detritus will become buried as
the fish move the gravel around. That buried detritus will
rot and cause problems. Additionally, over time the hills
and valleys will tend to even out thus trapping and burying
the detritus.

You might consider burying pieces of the shipwreck in the
gravel so only parts of the pieces stick out. You could
slope from back to front and shove the wreck along the
glass bottom into the gravel and partially bury the pieces
that way.

Frank


-->>> The Confidence of Amateurs, is the Envy of Professionals <<<--
Post InfoPosted 01-Dec-2007 21:40Profile PM Edit Delete Report 
keithgh
 
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I also lightened up the photo for you.

GT That is a huge change referring to Franks reply yes you might have a slight problem with those slopes but they will settle them selves down considerably.
I would not put tall plants any where near the front of those ships as it will look out of proportion. I would try to get some small rocks up against the ships and as much ground cover plants as you can get. I would put plenty of Val at the back to help create an illusion of depth (front to back) Also consider some plant to hide the filter LH corner.
Painting the back black would look out of place I would go for a dark blue for a more visual effect, if you want to be real game paint the sides as well. I did this in the Betta tank and it makes a huge difference.

Have a look in [link=My Profile] http://www.fishprofiles.com/forums/member.aspx?id=1935[/link] for my tank info

Look here for my
Betta 11Gal Desktop & Placidity 5ft Community Tank Photos

Keith

Attached Image:


Near enough is not good enough, therefore good enough is not near enough, and only your best will do.
I VOTE DO YOU if not WHY NOT?
VOTE NOW VOTE NOW
Post InfoPosted 02-Dec-2007 02:48Profile PM Edit Delete Report 
nicklfire
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Haha.. 180 gallon planted, that's going to be a monster
try ada books for some good inspiration.. your goin to need some large filler plants for a tank of that size
Post InfoPosted 06-Dec-2007 18:25Profile PM Edit Delete Report 
Gone_Troppo
 
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It's been a while, but I finally got to doing a little more with the tank this afternoon - it's still a long way from finished though.

Todays changes saw the addition of some more plants (a couple of bunches of val, a bunch of wisteria and some bacopa). I also decided to try a dark background and am using a black garbage bag taped to the back of the tank for now to see how it looks.

A result of the planting was the levelling of some of the giant gravel mounds that were created in there with the addition of the gravel a couple of weeks ago as I tried to fill the ditch that had been left at the back of the tank.

So... as of this evening the tank looks like THIS.

Still on the agenda is:

  • Upgrading the lighting... either more WPG or higher K rated tubes (or both); and

  • More plants. I'm thinking atm that I would like to fill the area between the stern of the ship (on the right hand side) and the mid-section with some medium sized crypts and then the foreground with some smaller crypts or swords similar in height to the compact swords that are already there.

As always, I'm open to any comments and suggestions

G_T

Never be afraid to try something new. Remember that a lone amateur built the Ark. A large group of professionals built the Titanic.
Post InfoPosted 16-Dec-2007 16:11Profile PM Edit Delete Report 
brandeeno
 
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looking good... the back round has some rippling, but some tape could fix that and also i like to look, but maybe a lighter grey color for the back round will lighten up the scere...

wait and see how the new lighting adjust the scene before redoing the backround... also look into some brightly colored plants too... that could help with the dark look...

\\\\\\\"an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of the cure\\\\\\\"
Post InfoPosted 16-Dec-2007 19:40Profile PM Edit Delete Report 
fish patty
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The rear end of that ship, at that angle, looks odd to me, especially sitting so close to the corner, up against the side glass. It looks like an arm chair sitting in the corner, to me. I would tilt it at another angle & move it just slightly away from the side glass, so there won't be a reflection of it. But if that plant in front of it grows up enough it might hide that. Any chance of a bigger pic next time?
Post InfoPosted 21-Dec-2007 19:03Profile PM Edit Delete Report 
Gone_Troppo
 
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Discussions in chat have reminded me of this thread so I thought I'd better update with how the tank is going.

I still haven't upgraded the lighting, but I have made considerable progress in increasing the plant mass in the tank. I have a terrible habit of picking plants up both at the LFS and the garden centre without too much thought to my final plan, so although there was a bit of a planting plan in mind initially it hasn't really been followed too well. Overall though, I'm fairly happy with the lush look of the tank ATM; and the fish seem to be much happier now too.

So here are the pics....

This is what we started with way back in November: Blank Canvas

The tank currently looks like this:
Tank Right
Tank Left

I'll try to get a full tank shot at some point over the weekend.

G_T

Never be afraid to try something new. Remember that a lone amateur built the Ark. A large group of professionals built the Titanic.
Post InfoPosted 06-Mar-2008 18:30Profile PM Edit Delete Report 
DeletedPosted 06-Mar-2008 18:30
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