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i have a 10 gal tank i've had since easter and i dont really know what to do with it, its a community tank with a rock, a no fishing sign, and some bacopas, i dont have a whole lot of money to spend on this tank but i would like some ideas on making it look a little better, im planing on getting rid of the rainbow gravel soon btw.

my tank



its me sk8freak20...i need to get premie so i can change my name back

I would just go with more plants to fill it out a little more, and even another rock. Which you can just get outside somewhere, but rinse and then boil it before putting it in the tank. Then get some nice schooling fish , like tetras,barbs, or danios.

I hate to say it but the only things to keep in that tank would be the fish and a the plants.

To start off with buy a decent darkish natural looking 1mm-3mm substrate, one good piece of DW to stand tall, several small round flat rocks and at least one rock with more height than width & place the other rocks around them, all natural colourings.

Get as many plants as you can start of with low ground cover type at the front some clumping plants in groups of three and plenty of rooting stem plants along the side and the back.

Being short of $$ request these bits and pieces as presents this will take time but dont hurry it will all turn out very well over a period of time.

You can contact me any time if you would like more assistance

Keith

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if getting some cheep plants I would suggest building up the back (maybe the back left corner) this will leave open swiming places while also giving a jungle to explore.

There are many options...how about a small plant pot as a cave? or maybe a tube for the fish to swim in one end & out the other (small off cut of drainpipe maybe?). How about. Do you have an air stone? a little one costs (here) about 50p, the same again for airline & a cheep pump for £5.99 should do the trick, the fish love to swim in the bubbles & it looks nice too. If you have some time on your hands you could make a moss wall for the back of your tank.

Good luck - but HAVE FUN !

You can change the substarte & add more Plants & Rocks. Make sure that you boil the Rocks & rinse the substrate before using it.



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Your plants are still held tightly clumped together, which IME will result in the lower portion of the stems rotting away. I would plant each stem seperately.

Looks like your water is still pretty cloudy. Bacteria still getting established in the filters no doubt - either that or you've got an alage bloom.

I would return the tetra or add more. A single tetra is not desireable - best to keep an absolute minimum of 5 as they are schooling fish.

Beauty is in the eye of the beholder. If you love the neon gravel and man made decor, enjoy! Personally, I think a more natural substrate will usually show off the fishs' colours to greater advantage - placing the focus on the fish and not the decor.

About the rocks, I would just like to add Do a vinager test on your rock. You do this by scraping the rock then putting a small amount of vinager on the scratch if it fizzes, I recommed not using it. If it does not fizz toss it in As well stay away from rocks with a shimmers in it or metal looking colors in it.

As for the accuall aquascaping, You know the gravel has to go Like was said more natural. As for yor decos, You said you don't want to spend much money so keep everything you got you can trade it out later, most peoples tanks don't look fab right away. BUT what you could do is go to a Dollar store of some kind and look at there fake silk and plastic plants but please look for metal inside the plastic ones, and don't use those. For the silk plants put them in a saltwater mix for a while, it prevents the dye from running. For the plastic wash them very good, even in 1 part bleach and 10 parts water in a bucket. Then rinse rinse rinse, then toss em in.


THEN

Look around for some driftwood in your area that will fit in a 10 gallon take it home boil it for 10 to 15 mins watching it does not get soft take it out and soak in a bucket until the water is somewhat clean and your wood can float (or almost float, you can figure out a way to hold it down with gravel or string and so on..)

Then when you have what you need place the taller plants at the back if you can hide filter and heater, then put middle plants in the middle and so on.

You could also get a terra cotta pot from wal mart or something, wash wash wash it. Don't buy the ones that are by pestisides or chemicals.

You could also buy a set of suction cups from and lfs from 2 to 6 bucks and attach some plants to that and stick them on the upper part of the tank to make floating plants that stay still.


If you have any other questions, I will be willing to help.
I love aquascaping now, so much fun.

Hope I helped in at least one area


Now that I'm done sounding like a dork....

Your the first person I seen on here that it is easy to tell the like skatin so I had to say HI!!!!!!!

Skate or die
Angel Eel

Last edited by angeleel at 12-Jul-2005 17:13

I'd actually keep the no fishing sign .
I think it'd make a great accent to a themed tank that would work well with driftwood and rocks. All my rocks and driftwood I've collected on my own (or with help from coworkers in some cases ) and whats cheaper than free .

Possibly an arch of rocks and wood starting @the front lefth hand side reaching towards the center back then coming forward to the right front side to form a cove of rock and wood with the no fishing sign on one side or the other. The cove could start out shallow on the corners and build up to 2-3 inches in height in the center back which would help give the tank some depth. Then the plants that you do have currently can be placed in the back corners. And if you wish the substrate switch.

^_^

Babelfish attached this image:

Love the pic Babel, thats what I was thinking of, just with your green plants all along the back.

Great pic should have thought of that lol.....

Angel Eel

Can we tell who'd rather attempt to draw than actually do what she's supposed to be doing @work .

Of course if you can find a little wooden pier or something that'd just make the tank! And the best thing is like with all aquascapes you'll be able to convert it. As you start getting more plants and get a firmer hold on what you want your tank to look like you can let the back fill in, then work on the foreground without the tank ending up looking like it's only half done :%).

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