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Congratulations CRS Daddy

Cheers
TW

Nice Wings,

Babies are always good as the overall live span isn't all that long with these guys.

And I will not talk about the other stuff mentioned above then, just

Ingo

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Proud Member of the New Jersey Aquatic Gardeners Club

Does anyone have any idea how long the life span is with the CRS or the Amanos?

Also, with the lighting nap I am not getting nearly as much pearling as I used to. The riccia didn't hvae any one it last night. I think that this plant needs longer lighting periods.

55G Planted tank thread
19G Container Pond
[IMG]http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y118/Wingsdlc/Ric

From what I know, and that is not much, these mini-shrimp live for maybe 6 to 9 months. Amanos on the other hand between 1 and 2 years. The downside though is that Amanos will never have babies in your freshwater tank.

Ingo

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Proud Member of the New Jersey Aquatic Gardeners Club

The downside though is that Amanos will never have babies in your freshwater tank.

That is why I have been trying to talk one of my co-workers to breed them for me!

55G Planted tank thread
19G Container Pond
[IMG]http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y118/Wingsdlc/Ric

Well last week was a long week. I did not get to my water chages and did not get to dosing at all either. Here in a couple minutes I am going to do my water change. While doing so. Remove some hard scape to make room for some more riccia rocks. I am also going to try and find my self some stainless steel screen to use for a carpeting structure for the riccia.

The big news in plants for me is not in this tank but in my 55G. The plant originally came from the 40g though. This plant was the big crypt that used to take up a 1/4 of the tank on the left hand side of the tank. I came back from visiting family back home to find that I have crypt flowers. They are not the prettiest thing but are rather neat. Sorry I don't have a camera for actual proof but I found some pictures online to show you what they look like.

http://www.nationaalherbarium.nl/Cryptocoryne/Gallery/wen/wen.html

I actualy have two of them on side by side plants. Needless to say I am pretty geeked up!

Here is some info on the tank:
~Water changes everyother week there abouts.
~Try to dose excel everyother day.
~Try to dose flourish 2x a week.
~30W of light on a 55g = .55WPG (the bulbs are aqua-glo that are about 3 years old.)




55G Planted tank thread
19G Container Pond
[IMG]http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y118/Wingsdlc/Ric

Hi Wings

Congratulations on the crypt flower. Alos, I hope the exams are going ok for you.

Your riccia plan reminded me of this listing I saw during the week on ebay. He has an interesting system - but wouldn't it cause a lot of dead area under nearly a solid sheet of glass (if you do what he suggests & line up the glass). With wire screen, you could still gravel vac through the riccia & screen down to the gravel to some extent, but I don't like the thought of gravel underneath, almost completely sealed by the glass sheeting. http://cgi.ebay.com.au/RICCIA-8x12cm-on-glass_W0QQitemZ290054286747QQihZ019QQcategoryZ66794QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

Anyway, for the flower.

Cheers
TW

I did not get to my water chages and did not get to dosing at all either.

Well, did you at least reduce the lighting or feeding during that time? I am amazed what this tank allows you to do. You have about 300wpg () over it and nothing really bad happens. What is your secret?

Congrats on the flowers, I truely wish you will get a camera for Xmas so we can see something a little more frequent. I am just glad if I can keep my crypts alive.

Ingo

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Proud Member of the New Jersey Aquatic Gardeners Club

Well, did you at least reduce the lighting or feeding during that time? I am amazed what this tank allows you to do. You have about 300wpg () over it and nothing really bad happens. What is your secret?

Secret? Well first off, I have 130 watt (3.25WPG) on the tank. I still have the four bulb fixture on the tank but one of the ballest is junk so I can only run 2 bulbs. I am thinking of changing the junk one out for a 96W ballest and running the 96W bulb as the second light. This will probably happen over Christmas though. I still need to see if the ballest are the same size.

Speaking of lighting... Has any one ever thought of using halogen work lights for your tank? A customer at my store said thats what he is using and it works really well. The biggest question I have about them is the spectrum.

Something like this?
http://www.elights.com/worlig250wat.html

Back on track...
I think the biggest thing I have going for me right now is fish load.

7 Brillant Rasboras
10 Otos
9+ CRS
5? Amanos

I do a light feeding about every other day or so. Some times everyday other times less often.

TW,
Using glass is kind of a neat idea for riccia. The nice think about it is you can remove it easy for cleaning. The bad thing is that its all non natural shapes. I am going to be on the look out for some stainless steel screen because I can shape that more. To keep the ricca the site I found said to use fishing sinkers. I have plenty of those around.

Edit:
LF,
If you didn't move the crypts around so much I bet they would work better for you!

55G Planted tank thread
19G Container Pond
[IMG]http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y118/Wingsdlc/Ric

I doubt you can get a halogen light of proper spectrum for photosynthetic organisms. I bet he meant metal Halide lighting, some people say halogen when they mean metal halide. Actually with the proper ballast and bulb, you can make a relatively cheap halide pendant using the halogen casing, but that's a different story.

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Critical Fertilator: The Micromanager of Macronutrients

From my understanding he is using the work lights as is.

What is the difference between the halogen and MH light? They look almost the same but I haven't really looked at either one that closely.

Thanks for your help so far Matty?

55G Planted tank thread
19G Container Pond
[IMG]http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y118/Wingsdlc/Ric

Wings,
How are the baby CRS doing? What else is in the tank with them?

My Scapes

Tetra,

Every once in a while I see on in the the 40G. When I see them they look good. In this thank I have Otos and Brilliant Rasboras and Amanos.

I have a feeling that the rasboras might eat some of the baby CRS. I have caught them chasing after some of the larger ones a while back. Maybe I should feed them a little more.


In the 2G I have quite a few babies. They are about 1/2 the size of the ones I see in the 40G. The only thing is this tank is CRS and some small Rams horn snails. I think that most of these ones will make it. They also have less of a chace of being lost to the Gravel Vac.

55G Planted tank thread
19G Container Pond
[IMG]http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y118/Wingsdlc/Ric

Halogen lights are basically suped up incandescent filiment type lights. They put out a lot of light, but aren't efficient. I think something like 2 300w halogen lamps would equal 1 175W halide lamp for PAR(but would still be the wrong spectrum, lots of red and yellow?), and would be 10X hotter and obviously use more electricity. So with those 2 300W you end up with cooked fish and a hair algae problem.

Halides are much more efficient than halogens(but not as compared to say....T5HO), and put out less heat watt for watt(but are still hotter than say....T5HO), and come in reef and plant friendly spectrums like 6,500K, 10,000K, 14,000K, and 20,000K. They are probably more similar to fluorescent lighting as they contain no filiment, but instead pass electric current through a mix of gasses, like their namesake metal halides.

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Critical Fertilator: The Micromanager of Macronutrients

Matty,

Thanks for all the input on lights. I guess I will rule out the halogens. Right now I think I will try he 96W ballast in the fixture as my second light. Maybe someday I will try MH as I think it would be fun.



55G Planted tank thread
19G Container Pond
[IMG]http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y118/Wingsdlc/Ric

http://s4.photobucket.com/albums/y118/Wingsdlc/?action=view&current=idea-1.jpg

Ok so this isn't a real picture but it kind of shows you what I have going on.

Today I plan on adding Riccia rocks to the right side of the tank and wrapping the Rotala I. around the Crypt S.

Also I forgot that the forground is starting to very very slowly fill in with the 4-LC. It is mainly on the left side. If the bosses make a plant order sometime soon I will by trying my luck with glosso on the right side of the tank to see what I like better.

55G Planted tank thread
19G Container Pond
[IMG]http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y118/Wingsdlc/Ric

Never got to my water change yesterday. It might happen tonight. I don't think I have too much to do...

LAST WEEK OF THE SEMESTER!!!!!!/:'

55G Planted tank thread
19G Container Pond
[IMG]http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y118/Wingsdlc/Ric

the forground is starting to very very slowly fill in with the 4-LC

So, how does it look? Do you like it? How dense is it? How tall?

Ingo

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Proud Member of the New Jersey Aquatic Gardeners Club

So, how does it look? Do you like it? How dense is it? How tall?

It still looks a little patchy. As I said... it is growing very very slow so its not real thick yet. The new growth does look pretty nice as it is single leaf and maybe 1/2 inch tall.

I think I want to try my hand at glosso though.... Maybe I will run with both for a bit....Also thinking about hair grass.....

This is a tank from a simi-local guy I know that is growing the 4-CL.
http://www.plantedtank.net/forums/photo-album/23176-esarkipatos-29g-setup-56k-warning-3.html

What do you think of the layout? (my tank...)

55G Planted tank thread
19G Container Pond
[IMG]http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y118/Wingsdlc/Ric

I think I want to try my hand at glosso though.... Maybe I will run with both for a bit....Also thinking about hair grass.....

That is going to become a 3-way battle, with the winner by starvation being the Glosso, no doubt. Once it takes off there will a huge effort required on your end to keep it in check.

This is a tank from a simi-local guy I know that is growing the 4-CL.

The tank with the BBA on the 4-LC?

What do you think of the layout? (my tank...)

For me, that is hard to tell. I cannot even express my toughts when envisioning how I would like something to look, so I totally suck at looking at a drawing and imagine how this will look "for real". Sorry

Ingo

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Proud Member of the New Jersey Aquatic Gardeners Club

For me, that is hard to tell. I cannot even express my toughts when envisioning how I would like something to look, so I totally suck at looking at a drawing and imagine how this will look "for real". Sorry

Ahh its alright... My semester is over next Tuesday. Maybe I can steal a camera sometime soon... I have been wanting to show the tank off for a while now......

The tank with the BBA on the 4-LC?

Thats the one... he is having some problems but as with most of us he has a lot going on..... BTW how is your tank doing with the BBA?

That is going to become a 3-way battle, with the winner by starvation being the Glosso, no doubt. Once it takes off there will a huge effort required on your end to keep it in check.

Yeah I was figuring I might have a little more time to work on the tank next semester.... At least I hope I will... Is it really that hard to control?

55G Planted tank thread
19G Container Pond
[IMG]http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y118/Wingsdlc/Ric

Wings<-----
Quote from LF~

? I am amazed what this tank allows you to do

Yeah I just found some nasty stuff in my tank last night!

Bright green, Fuzzy, on the back of the glass in a circle 2x the size of a CD. I have a good hand full of shrimp in the tank but I don't know if they can get to it being the filter out put is right about there.

My game plan is to swab up some Excel in my scruby pad and srub it off.

What do you think?



55G Planted tank thread
19G Container Pond
[IMG]http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y118/Wingsdlc/Ric

Sounds like a plan to me.

I would first try to take the python (or such), a credit card (expired preferred), and scrape it off while sucking out the water at the same time, like a vacuum cleaner.

Ingo

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Proud Member of the New Jersey Aquatic Gardeners Club

Very interesting idea to take care of it but you are a day too late. I took my scruby pad and swabed up some excel in it. Then went to town on the nasty area of the glass. I am hoping the contact with the excel will kill the stuff off.

55G Planted tank thread
19G Container Pond
[IMG]http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y118/Wingsdlc/Ric

Good luck Wings. I was under the impression that Excel was most effective against BBA, not the fluffy green business...

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Back in the saddle!

Oh, it will kill it NowherMan6,

If I have a collection of green fluff in the upper parts of my tank (like on tall wood, power head, spraybar) then I put a few drops of Excel on them and within days the stuff is dead. It is the high intensity that kills it.

Ingo

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Proud Member of the New Jersey Aquatic Gardeners Club

That's interesting. How does it work in high-flow areas? Wouldn't high flow wash the Excel off it before it has time to work its magic, so to speak?

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Back in the saddle!

I know Amanos aren't known to eat BBA, but I had a bunch of tufts on my monkey skull in my 12g and the amanos took care of it. Either the pickings were slim and they ate it to survive or they simply dislodged it with their feet and it ended up in the water column.



My Scapes

Wouldn't high flow wash the Excel off it before it has time to work its magic, so to speak?

Exactly, that is the reason why I can do this only in higher up areas that are exposed to air during the water change, guess I should have mentioned that part .

Once the water level is low enough, I add Excel with a dropper to the invested areas.

I know Amanos aren't known to eat BBA

There is a recent picture in my 40G log showing an Amano just marching over a bushel of BBA, and not taking even one bite

Ingo

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Proud Member of the New Jersey Aquatic Gardeners Club

There is a recent picture in my 40G log showing an Amano just marching over a bushel of BBA, and not taking even one bite

Well maybe he saw a different type of algae he liked better

My Scapes

There is a recent picture in my 40G log showing an Amano just marching over a bushel of BBA, and not taking even one bite

They do the same in my 4G. They sure do seem to love New Life Spectrum, though

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Back in the saddle!

Wow this is the most action I have gotten here in a while!

Shrimp ~ They always seem to be busy eatting something so that makes me happy! Sometimes though I wish they would eat the stuff I bought them to eat!

Excel ~ I think that the stuff would work better if it could stay there for a while but we will see what happens. Right now it has only been a couple of days and the Green fuzzy's do not seems to be coming back....... Time will tell.



55G Planted tank thread
19G Container Pond
[IMG]http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y118/Wingsdlc/Ric

I wish they would eat the stuff I bought them to eat!

You buy them food ? Like what? Seaweed?

Wow this is the most action I have gotten ... in a while!

Ingo

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Proud Member of the New Jersey Aquatic Gardeners Club

Wow this is the most action I have gotten here in a while!

I would make a comment about married life here but I've been zapped by the mods before so I don't want to incur any further wrath


Let us know how the excel treatment goes.

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Back in the saddle!

You buy them food ? Like what? Seaweed?

NO NO NO I bought the shrimp to eat not stuff for them to eat!

I would make a comment about married life here but I've been zapped by the mods before so I don't want to incur any further wrath

Why do you guys have to be that way?

So far the excel seems to be doing well. Time will tell.

Ready for the pictures?



55G Planted tank thread
19G Container Pond
[IMG]http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y118/Wingsdlc/Ric

Flower One
Flower Two
If you look close you can see two flowers. Both of which are pretty young. There are actualy 3 of them. That makes a total of 5 so far.


Rasboras on the left One
[link=Another pic of the rasboras on the left]http://s4.photobucket.com/albums/y118/Wingsdlc/40%20gallon%20part%20XVI/?action=view&current=Rasboras-2.jpg [/link]

From these picture I would like to point out the Rotala W. that is not doing very hot. I am probably going to pull it out soon.

Rasboras in the center
See the colors?

Finally two full tanks shots.
Normal shot
With a side light

All questions, comments and LF style stuff are welcome.

55G Planted tank thread
19G Container Pond
[IMG]http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y118/Wingsdlc/Ric

That's lookin' real nice there wings. I like the low growth look you have going on. I wouldn't mind some more hardscape though. Overall, it looks very nice

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Critical Fertilator: The Micromanager of Macronutrients

Thanks for the comments Matty.

I like the low growth look you have going on.

Unlike like the last photo I showed
Even worse...

I wouldn't mind some more hardscape though

I have been thinking of redoing the DW as we have some pretty nice stuff at work but right now I can see spending that much on this tank.

I have also thought of geting some wood from http://manzanita.com/ The stuff looks kind of neat. Maybe Nowher can help me out with this one?

Anyothere sugestions? Things to clean up? Plants to try?

55G Planted tank thread
19G Container Pond
[IMG]http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y118/Wingsdlc/Ric

Wings,
I think you have a nice foreground/midground thing going. Good constrast. I think the riccia works well. What are you going to do for background plants?

My Scapes

Thanks for stopping in!

What are you going to do for background plants

Right now I kind of want to keep the overall hight down across the tank but I am still on the look out for a couple of nice plants for the back.

Maybe this plant

Any ideas for plants?

One thing I want to do is wrap the Rotala around the back side of the crypts but I need to make sure the stuff is going to grow for me. Right now all my plants have seemed to stall out a bit on growing.

55G Planted tank thread
19G Container Pond
[IMG]http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y118/Wingsdlc/Ric

eBay, type in "Malaysian driftwood" or "african driftwood"

this place http://stores.ebay.com/RockArtSource_W0QQcolZ4QQdirZ1QQfsubZ0QQftidZ2QQpZ2QQtZkm

has a lot of nice pieces right now. Shipping may be a little expensive, but if you like them and can't find them locally, it's worth it.

As for the plant you linked, egeria species are sensitive to excel.

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Back in the saddle!

Thanks for the link Nowher. I will do some looking around later today. There is some nice DW at work right now but I am not sure I really want to do a make over like that right now. I am always looking for some posible new stuff though.

As for the plant you linked, egeria species are sensitive to excel.

Thanks for the warning. I am pretty easy on the excel most of the time but it is always good to know.

55G Planted tank thread
19G Container Pond
[IMG]http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y118/Wingsdlc/Ric

No problem. Also note that manzita wood is a big PITA to get water logged. Most people who use it leave it soaking for weeks or months at a time. Not fun, especially when there are lots of other options out there.

As for the background plants, i think the plant you linked to would be better suited as a bushy mid ground plant rather than background. If grown too tall it'll look lanky. Have you considered some of the taller crypt species, such as balansae, or maybe c. helferi? Both work better IMO when there are mid ground plants in front of them, but the tall leaves definitely add height.

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Back in the saddle!

Wings,
I agree with Nowher on the Egeria. I think it will be a big pain and not look tight.

Don't be afraid to use rock as well. Go with a rock style that constrasts with the substrate and use a full big pieces and push them against the substrate from front to mid to create levels and interest. Then build tight groups of plants around them. Put a dark background on the thank. It will pick up the subtle differences in the plants better.

My Scapes

Nowher ~
I was kind of thinking of putting the Egeria behind/around the right hand side of the larger riccia rock on the left. More of a miground plant.

c. helferi meaning ~ this?
I think that the crypt in the back next to the Rotala in the center of the tank is balansae.

Tetra ~

Put a dark background on the thank

The background in the picture is a dark blue. I happen to have some reflections from the stairs in the back of the tank. (Sorry about that!)It kind of makes the background look much lighter than it is. Right now I have the background off because it feel off again and I took advantage of this to clean the back of the glass. Haven't put it back on yet because I am lazy but I also kind of like the openness of it. When I put it back up I will try the black background again.

Go with a rock style that constrasts with the substrate

Black be ok?

use a full big pieces and push them against the substrate from front to mid to create levels and interest

Want to show me what you are talking about here? Feel free to draw on my picutres...


The nice thing about my tank right now is that most of it is easy to move around.

Here is what I am thinking of for the Egeria on the left side of the tank. The pink line is where I would like the Rotala to grow to and the red line is where I would like the sunset hygro. Right now the hygro is hard to see because I have it trimmed pretty low.
http://s4.photobucket.com/albums/y118/Wingsdlc/40%20gallon%20part%20XVI/?action=view&current=Mod2.jpg

Edit: where did LF go? No pictures in his logs yet....

55G Planted tank thread
19G Container Pond
[IMG]http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y118/Wingsdlc/Ric

Well I just got a call from one of my co-workers saying that be got our plant order in.

If the stuff that I picked out for myself got ordered and came in I will be trying some new plants.

Glosso
Dwarf Hair grass
Pearl Grass

There may have been something else too.....

55G Planted tank thread
19G Container Pond
[IMG]http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y118/Wingsdlc/Ric

Well just a quick little update. I brought home some plants on Saturday after work. Everything on the list above came home with me. Narrow Leaf Ludwigia was the other plant I wanted to try but it came in as Broad Leaf.

The pearl grass was some really nice stuff and got planted along the back side of the center group of riccia.

The hairgrass is in a patch in front of the right wisteria group and the glosso went in front of that. I am guessing the glosso was grow emersed because it was bright green and about 3 inches tall. Last night it was pearling though. I guess time will tell how well it works out. I just wanted to try something new.

Being that there as been some muttering of phosphates around here I figured I would test mine today before the water change.

I dose 3.24ppm 3X a week. When I tested today I got around 1pmm.

My NitrAtes were almost bottemed out today though. Could this be why some of my plants are not growing as well as they used to?

55G Planted tank thread
19G Container Pond
[IMG]http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y118/Wingsdlc/Ric

Well I have been talking to myself for a few days now but I guess I will keep at it.

Last night I picked up a 96W Coralife ballest from work to replace the bad 130W Current ballest from the Current light. The ballest were the exact same size so it was a great fit.

The only issue is that the 3' 96W bulb is being held by the two middle bulb holders (only an inch or two a part) so it can be centered. It is just a little wiggly. As long as I don't move it around too much I can't see it being a problem.

The game plan for lighting is to run the 96W for 10 hours and the 130W for about 2-3 in the afternoon.

For a bulb I was thinking of using a SunPaq Dual Daylight 6700°K/10000°K or a Coralife 6,700K bulb.

Right now the 130W is 10,000K. I am looking to kind of balance it out a little. The 6,700K is a bit green/yellow for me while the 10,000 is a little too white/blue.

Any thoughts or sugestions?

55G Planted tank thread
19G Container Pond
[IMG]http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y118/Wingsdlc/Ric

if only ADA made those wonderful 8000K bulbs in anything larger than 36W! It would make things a lot easier for us, trying to find a nice medium between 6700 and 10000K...

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Back in the saddle!

haha yeah...

All glass makes a 55W 8,000K

55G Planted tank thread
19G Container Pond
[IMG]http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y118/Wingsdlc/Ric

Yeah, there are a few ~8000K bulbs floating around, but they are all supposedly crud compared to the ADA versions, giving off an ugly color cast. If you look at photos of his tanks, i think that's why they photograph so well without that green cast.

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Back in the saddle!

So there is a reason the ADA stuff is so



55G Planted tank thread
19G Container Pond
[IMG]http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y118/Wingsdlc/Ric

Well I was gone for about four days for Christmas to come home and find all my tanks looking good.

I had an explosion of duckweed and Sunset while I was gone. Water changes are going to be coming a couple of days late but all should be fine. Wednesday might be my new day anyways.

Also I will soon be getting TFH to my door. It was a gift from the inlaws. (they are nice people!)

Hope everyone had a happy holiday!


55G Planted tank thread
19G Container Pond
[IMG]http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y118/Wingsdlc/Ric

Also I will soon be getting TFH to my door. It was a gift from the inlaws. (they are nice people!)

That's a nice thoughtful gift for them to give you

BTW, I tried looking at your photobucket photos (via your signature link), but it asks me to login or register, which if I did, I assume wouldn't show me your pictures, but any of my own?

Am I doing something wrong?

Cheers
TW

BTW, I tried looking at your photobucket photos (via your signature link), but it asks me to login or register, which if I did, I assume wouldn't show me your pictures, but any of my own?

Am I doing something wrong?

No it's not your fault. Photobucket has changed their site I guess and it now defults to the home page. I have tried to fix it but it hasn't seemed to work yet. I will check again here in a bit.

If you want to see my pictures do a search for wingsdlc.

55G Planted tank thread
19G Container Pond
[IMG]http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y118/Wingsdlc/Ric

Photo bucket link works now.

Thanks for leting me know!


55G Planted tank thread
19G Container Pond
[IMG]http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y118/Wingsdlc/Ric

Wings,

I checked out the photobucket pictures. The tank is looking good. Are you still struggling with the lack of growth? You mentioned running out on N have you upped the ferts?


Rick
See all my pictures at Google Web Albums

I haven't changed anything with my dosing.

I did a Nitrate test before the water change on Monday and it showed 10-20 ppm. I think thats doing pretty good.

The thing I don't get though is that the Sunset Hygro has been turning pink. This would mean the Nitrates are getting low or they are changing color due to the second light?

Most of the plants in the tank seem to be growing pretty well. The only plant that that isn't doing well is thet Wisteria on the far left side away from filter intake and output. It hasn't grown in quite some time.

Any ideas?

I am also starting to get some BBA on some of the slower growers like the Java Fern and Anubias. Another algae issue is the pop up of some really dark hair algea.

I just cleaned my Canister out before the water change hoping that, that might help along with a heavy dose of excel.

Any thoughts on this one too?

55G Planted tank thread
19G Container Pond
[IMG]http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y118/Wingsdlc/Ric

Well its been a while since I have updated things.

I haven't change anything with the ferts.

I did up the CO2 and move the out flow of the filter down a bit to try and blow the CO2 bubbles to the far end of the tank.

The wisteria still isn't doing any thing and I am thinking that it might have to go.

I have noticed that the 4-CL has reaslly started to take off. It is almost starting to become invasive as it is growing through my riccia rocks!

The glosso is finally sending out its first sets of runners as is the hair grass. Right now the glosso looks much like Theresa_M 's 2.5G. I am guessing that is was grown emersed.

I picked up a new plant I picked up last week, purple cabomba. At first I really didn't like how it looked but it has really grown on me.

At this weeks water change I am going to turn off the flilter for a bit and do an Excel or Hydrogen Peroxide treatment. I still need to do a bit of research on the later though.

55G Planted tank thread
19G Container Pond
[IMG]http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y118/Wingsdlc/Ric

Being that things got ice around here I don't have school today!

My game plan is to remove as much of the BBA as I can this afternoon. Tomorrow night I will do my water change and hit what I can't remove with excel. I am also thinking of getting some SAE's. We got a bunch of them at work the other day. So far they look good.

Edit: Looky what I gots!

55G Planted tank thread
19G Container Pond
[IMG]http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y118/Wingsdlc/Ric

The wisteria still isn't doing any thing and I am thinking that it might have to go.

Wings,

I wonder if the gravel has anything to do with it. I have two tanks with wisteria and the ADA tank it grows like crazy and the pea gravel it just kind hangs on to life but doesn't grow. Maybe it is a root feeder and likes a nutrient substrate.

Good luck with you BBA battle.


Rick
See all my pictures at Google Web Albums

I wonder if the gravel has anything to do with it.

The thing is I used to have wisteria growing out of my ears! See photo
It still grows well on the far right side of the tank, which happens to be the side where the filter in and out is along with the CO2. My guess is that it has something to do with flow and maybe lack of CO2 getting to that side of the tank. None the less its is quite weird!

Good luck with you BBA battle.

Thanks! The trim job went well this afternoon. On the down side I found quite a bit more BBA than I thought I had in the tank but I think I got a good amount of it out.

Tomorrow I am going to do a major water change, kill the filter for a few minutes, and spot treat the areas that were extra nasty with Excel. I might pick up some SAE's too. I am not sure if I will or not yet though.

On the upside I found that the Anubias Nana in the tank is getting huge and I have quite a few young Cherry Red shrimp in the tank. Some of which are quite red for as young as they are. Why aren't they eating the BBA and Hair algae????

55G Planted tank thread
19G Container Pond
[IMG]http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y118/Wingsdlc/Ric

Wow things have been really dead around here! LF hasn't even stopped into FP for about 20 days and tetra tech looks but doesn't post anything!

Here is just a little quick update on my tank.

I found out that you should not let riccia grow over about four inches above the rock its on or it will start to break off.

The Excel treatments have seemed to kill off most of the BBA in the tank. I did two heave treatments last week and this week the BBA turned light grey/white and was easy to pull off.

The 4-LC has been just exploding in the tank. I likes to crawl though my riccia stones and pop out leaves. Most of the leaves are single at this point but a few are coming out as 2's or 3's. Some of the singles are about 1/2 an inch wide. I am not so sure I really like the looks of this plant right now but I will give it more time to fill in.

Hair grass is starting to spread.

Half the glosso has rotted on me but I have a could of runners. Maybe it will be enough to take off for me.

The Purple Cabomba is getting orange tops which looks pretty but doesn't quite fit with the rest of the tank.

Some day I might get you all some picturs... well if there is anyone left to look at them!

55G Planted tank thread
19G Container Pond
[IMG]http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y118/Wingsdlc/Ric

You aren't kidding about it being dead around here. I hope Ingo is doing OK and Tetra really should pop in and let us know how things are going (Hint Hint )

Anyway, Things sound like they are going well. I'd love to see how that 4LC is spreading. So post some pictures already!

Rick
See all my pictures at Google Web Albums

Looking forward to pics, Wings.

Nice to hear the Excel treatment has worked for you with the BBA. In my 4G is was a disaster, and I'm going to have to tear down and start again with that one. It melted the Blyxa. I'm going to post an update to that log soon just so you can all see how bad it is, maybe it'll add some life to the forum

Anyway, would like to see some pics, if you get the time

---

Back in the saddle!

PICTURES!!!

http://s4.photobucket.com/albums/y118/Wingsdlc/40%20gallon%20part%20XVII/?action=view&current=A.jpg
http://s4.photobucket.com/albums/y118/Wingsdlc/40%20gallon%20part%20XVII/?action=view&current=L.jpg
http://s4.photobucket.com/albums/y118/Wingsdlc/40%20gallon%20part%20XVII/?action=view&current=Full.jpg

Many more to come later! Let me know what you think!

55G Planted tank thread
19G Container Pond
[IMG]http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y118/Wingsdlc/Ric

The tank is looking very good, Wings. I appears that all is filling in nicely.

Are you planning on allowing the glosso to fill in the area to the right of the tank?

Jim

---

Water, taken in moderation, cannot hurt anybody. -- Mark Twain

The front plant is actualy 4-Leaf Cover. I do have on runner of glosso mixed in there but the 4LC is over running it. It is running though the wisteria on the right and up the back wall of the tank!

I think I am going to pull the Wisteria and let it fill in the right side of the tank.

here is a picture from the last photoshoot to show growth

55G Planted tank thread
19G Container Pond
[IMG]http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y118/Wingsdlc/Ric

I admit I haven't been reading this thread. I just watch for the pics..

But I noticed & like the odd looking plant in the middle, off centered to the left. Looks like an octopus.

Lookin' real nice there wings

I really like the aponogeton or crypt...I'm not sure which, I should've taken more time to look at it.


I have to say the bacopa looks a little out of place though.

---

Critical Fertilator: The Micromanager of Macronutrients

Looking very nice Wings

Hey, how is the maintenance on the tank? Seems like you have a few plants in there that would require rather frequent trimming.

Overall, it is very very green, maybe adding a little more red/brown would create some variety. Even a brown Wendtii would do.

On the good end, all looks healthy and lush, keep it up,

Ingo

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Proud Member of the New Jersey Aquatic Gardeners Club

Wings,

Looking much better Wings and the pics are much better as well. I think you really need some strategically placed hardscape unless you want to go Dutch

My Scapes

I really like the aponogeton or crypt...I'm not sure which, I should've taken more time to look at it

Its a crypt, not sure what kind but its a crypt. The plant has really grown on me.

Hey, how is the maintenance on the tank? Seems like you have a few plants in there that would require rather frequent trimming.

The riccia is probably the worst one in the tank. If you don't trim it gets way too tall and starts to die on the under side. At the last trim time I think I had some that was about 5 inches thick. The pearl grass is pretty easy but the 4-LC is starting to be a pain in the butt! It has made it throght the left group of wisteria and is now crawling up and across the back of the tank glass.

I might pull the wisteria on the left anyways and let it fill in with 4-LC.

Looking much better Wings and the pics are much better as well

Thanks! Things are starting to fall into place a bit. It was my first time using this camera too. I have quite a few pictures to share when I get to cropping them and such.

The hard scape would probaly stick out more if it wasn't covered in Java moss.....I only put it on a couple of the sticks.... the rest planted itself!

Thanks all for stopping in!

55G Planted tank thread
19G Container Pond
[IMG]http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y118/Wingsdlc/Ric

The hard scape would probaly stick out more if it wasn't covered in Java moss

That's pretty much the reason why I removed the mosses from all my tanks. As one is inclined to attach it to the hardscape one will have to remove the pieces when a trimming is in order to avoid having moss all over the tank.

Ingo

---

Proud Member of the New Jersey Aquatic Gardeners Club

Hi Wings

It's looking really nice and it's good to see you with pictures again. Do you have a new camera now?

I agree with LF about the moss - too hard to trim if you attach it to larger or hard to remove hardscape. Is your riccia attached to something small enough to remove for trimming - if not, how do you manage it without making a mess in the tank.

Anyway, I don't have any advice to offer, other than to comment it looks very nice & healthy in there. Good job.

Cheers
TW

I brought home the classroom cammera from my student teaching so I could fix up so kid pictures. I figgured while I had it I should get some shots of my tank.

Overall, it is very very green, maybe adding a little more red/brown would create some variety. Even a brown Wendtii would do.

I used to have a brown wendtii but the thing got out of hand! There are actually quite a few different colors in the tank but the pictures don't show it off too well. If you look at the Anubias picture you can see the pink from the Sunset hygro.




55G Planted tank thread
19G Container Pond
[IMG]http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y118/Wingsdlc/Ric

Here are a few more pictures. Let me know what you think. They are from the same photoshoot.

All questions and comments are more than welcome!

Matty shot from the left
From the lower right
Riccia bubbles! This happens pretty much everyday
Female Cherry Red

Thanks for looking!!

55G Planted tank thread
19G Container Pond
[IMG]http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y118/Wingsdlc/Ric

I guess I could give you guys a little update on the tank while I am at it. Sorry I don't have pictures to show it.

~ Removed most of the Java Fern on the right. The thing was huge!
~ Removed much of the Java Moss from the DW.
~ Removed the Wisteria from the left and right side of the tank. (The right side I am going to let fill in with hair grass and the left side with 4-LC.)

I think thats it. This caused a large mess in the tank! I need to clean my filter sometime this weekend!



55G Planted tank thread
19G Container Pond
[IMG]http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y118/Wingsdlc/Ric

OOOOOOUUUU! A bright red shrimp!

And I don't even like shrimp!

I would be afraid of mashing shrimp if I had them, when I cleaned the tank & moved stuff around............ but not with those in there! Those show up real good!

I like the look of the tank....expecially when viewed from the matty angle . Nice looking cherry shrimp too, I might be getting my hands on a few of those in trade for some H. micranthemoides.

I also like the new frequency of picture posting....though I'm not one to talk anymore. Nothing good to show you guys.

---

Critical Fertilator: The Micromanager of Macronutrients

Err Matt?

How about an update on :

http://www.fishprofiles.com/files/threads/31414.1.htm?173#

Frank


-->>> The Confidence of Amateurs, is the Envy of Professionals <<<--

My fav shot is the one for the left & that cherry shrimp is very nice looking.

Cheers
TW

Wings,

Nice looking tank and in particular the best shots that you ever shared with us. You really got to get your own good camera, you have talent

I like the Matty Angle the best as well, and of course a close-up of Riccia bubbling is always a winner

Ingo

---

Proud Member of the New Jersey Aquatic Gardeners Club

Nice looking tank and in particular the best shots that you ever shared with us. You really got to get your own good camera, you have talent

I like the Matty Angle the best as well, and of course a close-up of Riccia bubbling is always a winner

Wow LF! Thanks a ton! I think that the next big buy is going to be a cammera. The wife would like one too but right now it isn't a great idea to spend the cash.



55G Planted tank thread
19G Container Pond
[IMG]http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y118/Wingsdlc/Ric

Err Matt?

How about an update on :

http://www.fishprofiles.com/files/threads/31414.1.htm?173#

I think I can do that Frank, I should get it up in a few.

---

Critical Fertilator: The Micromanager of Macronutrients

Well nothing too new to report. I have sold some trimming from the tank in the local fish club's auction and also on another web site. With the extra cash coming in from the tank I have some Blyxa japonica coming in a day or two. I also want to get my hands on some Pogostemon helferi.

All for now. I might try and get my hands on a camera this week while I have some time to play.

55G Planted tank thread
19G Container Pond
[IMG]http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y118/Wingsdlc/Ric

I might try and get my hands on a camera this week while I have some time to play.

Always a good idea, pictures say so much more than words, in particular as your photography skills improve and your camera gets better

Ingo

---

Proud Member of the New Jersey Aquatic Gardeners Club

I really need to buy a camara one of these days. Maybe I will have to hunt for one of those too!

55G Planted tank thread
19G Container Pond
[IMG]http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y118/Wingsdlc/Ric

Well I still don't have my own camera yet but I got my hands on one the other day. So here are some picture!

Full tank
From the right
Center
Blyxa, seems to be doing well so far.
Cherry shirmp 1
Cherry shrimp 2
Bacopa growing out of the tank
Java fern shot my wife took with her film camera, using slide film.

Let me know what you think. A couple of the shots are not the greatest but I thought they were kind of neat. All Coments are more than welcome!

55G Planted tank thread
19G Container Pond
[IMG]http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y118/Wingsdlc/Ric

Bump! Come and see my new pictures!!!!!!!!

55G Planted tank thread
19G Container Pond
[IMG]http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y118/Wingsdlc/Ric

Hey, nice shots...especially your wife's . I don't know how I missed them, sorry. Man I love that ginormous crypt. I think it's a little hard on the overall scape, but it's an incredible specimen. I think the only thing your tank needs is something that that pulls the left and right together to make it look cohesive. Your 4leaf could easily do thatif it ran across the front, or if you expanded your blyxa to the right side as well. But I'm not much of a scaper, I'm sure someone else has better ideas.

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Critical Fertilator: The Micromanager of Macronutrients

Hey, nice shots...especially your wife's . I don't know how I missed them, sorry. Man I love that ginormous crypt. I think it's a little hard on the overall scape, but it's an incredible specimen. I think the only thing your tank needs is something that that pulls the left and right together to make it look cohesive. Your 4leaf could easily do thatif it ran across the front, or if you expanded your blyxa to the right side as well. But I'm not much of a scaper, I'm sure someone else has better ideas.

Thanks for the complements and comments. You are thinking just about what I am thinking.

Plans:
~Remove hair grass on the right.
~Remove the vals on the right?
~Add Blyxa to the back right.
~Spread the pearl grass to the right.
~Spread the 4-LC to the right.

I don't know if I will have time for all of this but that's what my thoughts are.

Thanks for stopping in Matty!

55G Planted tank thread
19G Container Pond
[IMG]http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y118/Wingsdlc/Ric

Now I know why I didn't see the new pictures earlier, the entry was from the time when I was on vacation. Sorry Wings!

Anyway, some comments:

- The style looks a somewhat like an in-betweener of Amano and Dutch styles.
- The plants look very healthy, in particular your Blyxa is doing so much better than mine.
- What is the reason for the hole in the left area front?
- How much maintenance has to be done on the 4-LC?
- Issues with shading from the really tall plants?
- lastly, last entry is from 4/23 - did you do the things you proposed in that entry?

Ingo

---

Proud Member of the New Jersey Aquatic Gardeners Club

- The style looks a somewhat like an in-betweener of Amano and Dutch styles.

Have you seen the http://www.plantedtank.net/forums/photo-album/34228-dutch-east-passage-newadg75gal-open-top.html?highlight=East+DutchDutch East tank? I think that's my all time favorite tank.

- The plants look very healthy, in particular your Blyxa is doing so much better than mine.

So far it seems like it's doing well. It has started to put out branches and a couple have floated off. Also it is changing colors too. Turning reddish brown on the tops.

- What is the reason for the hole in the left area front?

I sold a big patch of it to someone on another forum that I play around on.

- How much maintenance has to be done on the 4-LC?

As this plant becomes thicker it starts to throw out larger leaves. To give it a cleaner look I should go through and trim those off. Another issue is that this plant grows everywhere! I had it growing up the back side of the tank!

- Issues with shading from the really tall plants?

Not that I see.

- lastly, last entry is from 4/23 - did you do the things you proposed in that entry?

~Remove hair grass on the right.
I have removed most of it but I am not 100% ready to remove it from the tank as it is growing well in there and I might want it for the 1.5G if things go bad...
~Remove the vals on the right?
The vals are starting to get kind of thick. I am not sure if I want to get rid of them or not. How do you think they look?
~Add Blyxa to the back right.
I have a couple of stems over there but I am on the look out for some more.
~Spread the pearl grass to the right.
I moved the two riccia rocks on the right over and around the far peice of DW. Then I placed some PG around it much like the center of the tank.
~Spread the 4-LC to the right.
I might do this next week. I am a little lazy. Plus I have been fishing every day this week!

Thanks so much for stopping in LF! Wish I could post more pictures more often but still no camera. Who knows when that's going to change!

55G Planted tank thread
19G Container Pond
[IMG]http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y118/Wingsdlc/Ric

The vals are starting to get kind of thick. I am not sure if I want to get rid of them or not. How do you think they look?

They look ok, but I find that group (and the Bacopa group) a little out of place as they compete with, rather than compliment, the center group. Makes sense?

Ingo

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Proud Member of the New Jersey Aquatic Gardeners Club

They look ok, but I find that group (and the Bacopa group) a little out of place as they compete with, rather than compliment, the center group. Makes sense?

Yeah, I am with you.

So for an overall look you think I should go with a tall center with shorter outer areas?

55G Planted tank thread
19G Container Pond
[IMG]http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y118/Wingsdlc/Ric

So for an overall look you think I should go with a tall center with shorter outer areas?

Nah, the center is tall enough, and the outer ones are fine as well.

You could place your left and right competing groups closer to the center to form a union with that group, if shading may not be an issue (but it could).

Ingo

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Proud Member of the New Jersey Aquatic Gardeners Club

You could place your left and right competing groups closer to the center to form a union with that group, if shading may not be an issue (but it could).

You mean move the Vals and Bacopa in more?

With the shading factor. I think the only reason I don't have any issues with this is that I am running 5 1/2 WPG for a few hours a day.

55G Planted tank thread
19G Container Pond
[IMG]http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y118/Wingsdlc/Ric

You mean move the Vals and Bacopa in more?

Yes, so that there is one tall group rather than 3. Makes sense?

Ingo

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Proud Member of the New Jersey Aquatic Gardeners Club

Yeah that makes sence.

What do you think about moving the Bacopa and Vals into the far back corners?

55G Planted tank thread
19G Container Pond
[IMG]http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y118/Wingsdlc/Ric

Two tall groups in the corners would be nice - if there isn't another in the center. But if you have 3 tall groups I think it will be distracting. I'd choose to put the crypt in one corner and the bacopa and vals in another. We have too many center group dominated tanks I've decided (thanks to me copying LF).

EDIT: spelling

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Critical Fertilator: The Micromanager of Macronutrients

We have too many center group dominated tanks I've decided (thanks to me copying LF).

Lets see it!!!

If I do anything the Vals and Bacopa are out. I like my Crypt right where its at.

55G Planted tank thread
19G Container Pond
[IMG]http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y118/Wingsdlc/Ric

I think Matty has not yet seen that the 125G does not have a center anymore

Or does it?

Ingo

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Proud Member of the New Jersey Aquatic Gardeners Club

I forgot all about that! I should be home free in Matty's world then.

55G Planted tank thread
19G Container Pond
[IMG]http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y118/Wingsdlc/Ric

<--------Oblivious

Don't let me stop you from going with the island look....I'm just commenting on recent trends.

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Critical Fertilator: The Micromanager of Macronutrients

Just a quick update on the tank.

I have started to move some Blyxa over to the right hand side. I am still going to need some more. For this I will have to either buy some or wait for it to grow out.

I am having issues with the Blyxa too. FLOATERS!!! So far I haven't been breaking the stems but the stinking things need some roots!

Coming in the mail today or tomorrow is a couple stems of Downoi. I am not sure how I am going to work them into my set up but I look forward to growing them.

Thats all folks!



55G Planted tank thread
19G Container Pond
[IMG]http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y118/Wingsdlc/Ric

Arrr,

I am very keen on Downoi, I was considering to purchase some. Now I cannot have it as you got it already

On the other hand - the fact that tetratech is the tamer of Wisteria didn't stop me from having it in his style in 3 tanks

About the Blyxa: It was suggested to me to place one of these plant weights (lead, but not really) upright in the lower part of the plant, just to hold it down to the groud long enough until the plant develops sufficient roots. Of course I didn't do that as I had over 30 stems in there.

Ingo

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Proud Member of the New Jersey Aquatic Gardeners Club

Arrr,

Who is that? I go by Wings or Doug thanks!

I am very keen on Downoi, I was considering to purchase some. Now I cannot have it as you got it already

On the other hand - the fact that tetratech is the tamer of Wisteria didn't stop me from having it in his style in 3 tanks

Funny story about the Downoi. It seems the guy I bought it from took my shipping address from my paypal account instead of the one I gave him. The plants ended up at my parents house on Thurs. or Fri. When I called my mom last night for Mothers Day she told me I had a package. Therefore the plants sat in the box for a few days. I had her open the box up to see if it was my plants. All checked out to be fine but I need to figure out when I can get up there and get my plants....

The Downoi are now sitting in a glass of fish tank water in a south window. Think they will be ok?

About the Blyxa: It was suggested to me to place one of these plant weights (lead, but not really) upright in the lower part of the plant, just to hold it down to the groud long enough until the plant develops sufficient roots. Of course I didn't do that as I had over 30 stems in there.

Being I work at a LFS. I can get my hands on enough weights to sink a small ship. If I keep having problems I might try your method. Thanks for the info!

EDIT: Is it just my computer or does the forum have spell check now like word?

55G Planted tank thread
19G Container Pond
[IMG]http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y118/Wingsdlc/Ric

Wings, with "Arrr" I meant to express that I am jealous

I have no idea if the downoi will be fine at the window, maybe a shadier place would be better, ?

Whera ist thet spl sheck?

Ingo

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Proud Member of the New Jersey Aquatic Gardeners Club

Wings, with "Arrr" I meant to express that I am jealous

I know, I was just kidding.

I have no idea if the downoi will be fine at the window, maybe a shadier place would be better, ?

It is not a direct light window.

Whera ist thet spl sheck?

Must just be me as I can see it doesn't work with your computer. All your words have red lines under them.

55G Planted tank thread
19G Container Pond
[IMG]http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y118/Wingsdlc/Ric

Wings,

Nah - no red lines here. I wonder what fancy setup you are having over there. What browser do you use, IE7, Firefox?

Ingo

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Proud Member of the New Jersey Aquatic Gardeners Club

Firefox. I just did a bunch of updates so it might have came with that. Pretty nice to have the spell check here. Though it doesn't work in the other forum I use.

55G Planted tank thread
19G Container Pond
[IMG]http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y118/Wingsdlc/Ric

Wings , Hi , love the tank . Just starting out and have been reading Ingo's logs .Love your contributions and am just starting on you log now . Will probably bother you with some dumb questions , hope you don't mind
Garry

Countryfish,

First of all, welcome to the site. It should be a great help to you. I know it has been to me through the process of learning how to do this planted tank stuff. As your wife has already pointed out to you. It is a very addicting hobby.

Feel free to ask any questions you like. Most of us don't mind a little thread hijacking. Frank will always let you know if you cross the line so don't worry too much about it!

You can also make you of Private Messages to let us know you have a thread with a question if you don't get any responders.

Thanks for stopping in. Someday I might even take a few picture of the tank again.... if I can ever get my hands on a camera!


55G Planted tank thread
19G Container Pond
[IMG]http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y118/Wingsdlc/Ric

Thanks Wings , look forward to many interesting discussions .
Garry

Well I sort of got my hands on the Downoi. It's at my house floating in my tank but I am in Asheville, NC for a couple of days. Maybe I will get a job....

Too bad I am here tell you about my plants that I haven't seen yet instead of spending time with my wife of one year (today! ). Don't worry we spent some time together yesterday before I had to leave.



55G Planted tank thread
19G Container Pond
[IMG]http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y118/Wingsdlc/Ric

Too bad I am here tell you about my plants that I haven't seen yet instead of spending time with my wife of one year (today! ).

Congrats on the aniversary hope you will be getting home soon for both the wife and the plants
Garry

Congratulations on the one year Wings, I hope you had a fine evening together.

Thanks for the good wishes Dr. and Garry. We did have a nice night together. I am finally back home from NC. Being on the road and away from my wife for 4 days wasn't overly exciting. I did though, ended up making a couple of good contacts and getting a interview. We will see where this leads me.

My tanks seem to be doing well. All the fish seem to be swimming and healthy. They were getting a little hungry but I fixed that problem this morning.

Water changes are a couple days overdue but I will fix that also later today.

The only a couple of problems with the 40G.
1. Blyxa floaters!! I might have to try LF's weight idea.
2. I can only find one very small Downoi plant. I hope my fish didn't think they were food and scarf them down! I am sure they will come up when I start my water changes a bit later. I hope!





55G Planted tank thread
19G Container Pond
[IMG]http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y118/Wingsdlc/Ric

Wow it has been a long time since I have updated this thing!

The tanks life is coming to an end in the next couple of weeks. I just found out last Thursday that I got my first teaching job in North Carolina.

The game plan for my tanks is to set up my 55G as a low tech planted tank and a high tech 20 long.

Pictures will be coming so you can see how the tank looks now.

55G Planted tank thread
19G Container Pond
[IMG]http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y118/Wingsdlc/Ric

So what is going to happen with this tank then as you mention only the 55 and a 20?

BTW, a 20 Long high tech is quite a challenge. I would have to say that you should go for a Iwagubawuba () as any other scape will cause you to spend major maintenance time with the limited height of 12".

Ingo

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Proud Member of the New Jersey Aquatic Gardeners Club

Well right now I have 6 tanks and a moss filled vase set up(40G long, 2-55G, 29G, and 1.5G). Being it is such a long move and we are not sure how much space we will have (I already take up a large part of our house we are in now) I have chosen to cut back the number of tanks.

~40G will probably come with and get stored or go to my parents house.

~One 55G will come with (the nice one). The other will probably go out to the curb where I found it. I will post pictures to explain later.

~29G might end up being my classroom tank.

~1.5 will come with but I am not sure what I will do with it.

Pictures will come in the next couple of days. I want to clean things up a bit before I do a nice photo shoot.

Also I had some issues last night.

Here is a picture to give you an idea.
http://s4.photobucket.com/albums/y118/Wingsdlc/?action=view&current=PH.jpg
With a PH that low I am guessing I had CO up to about 400ppm. I lost at least a couple of shrimp and no fish that I know of. I really don't know what happened...

55G Planted tank thread
19G Container Pond
[IMG]http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y118/Wingsdlc/Ric

I lost at least a couple of shrimp and no fish that I know of. I really don't know what happened...

Sorry to hear that, could it be that your bottle goes on empty and blew out the rest? I think that was what happened in my 40G a while back.

Ingo

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Proud Member of the New Jersey Aquatic Gardeners Club

Here is what the Regulator looked like
The lost Amano
Here is what I did

55G Planted tank thread
19G Container Pond
[IMG]http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y118/Wingsdlc/Ric

Looks clearly like a blowout to me, your high pressure gauge is all empty.

Ingo

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Proud Member of the New Jersey Aquatic Gardeners Club

Hi,
The regulators are a two stage. They depend on
there being gas in cylinder to offset the spring and
diaphram in the regulator case. When the gas ran out in
the cylinder, there was no opposing pressure and the
gas quickly exited through the output line and into the
tank. Had you been there to observe it it would have looked
like an airstone running full blast till the last of the
gas was exhausted.

That huge blast of CO2 drops the pH like a rock, and the
fish wind up at the surface gasping and in great distress.

I check my cylinder, looking at the high pressure side at
least once a week. At two bubbles per second injection,
I know that I can pretty much not worry about it till the
5th or 6th month of operation on that cylinder (5 pounds).
Once the gage starts to drop, I generally have about
2-3 weeks before the tank is completely empty.

I never let my cylinders go completely empty. I always keep
a pound or two (positive pressure) in the tank.
This prevents internal corrosion of the tank.

Frank


-->>> The Confidence of Amateurs, is the Envy of Professionals <<<--

Well when I got home last night. The CO2 was coming out pretty quick but not really much more than normal. I did clean the GD out a week or two ago. Could that have caused the extra CO2. Or could it have been that my needle vale could have moved some how?

Thanks for the info Frank.

My cylinders have been running out much quicker than 5-6 months. I wonder if something is wrong with it. I know I have been running it higher but it has been 3-4 months at most since I refilled it. I don't know...

55G Planted tank thread
19G Container Pond
[IMG]http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y118/Wingsdlc/Ric

Well being that all my tanks are coming down in the next couple of weeks here are some pictures of things you have not seen yet.

1.5G with Hair Grass grown with Sun light. This tank was doing pretty well until it got really hot. I had a little bit of a melt down and lost the Cherry Shrimp I had in there. The plants were also doing better at that point too.

[link=29G that is basically a plant grow out tank. I was also going to try and breed BN plecos in there.] http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y118/Wingsdlc/29G.jpg[/link] Most of the plants in this tank are things that I wanted to keep around but not use in the 40G.

55G: this tank houses my Convicts. I have had the male for about 5 years.

Shot of the 40G. This is of the center of the tank.

Of the right side

55G Planted tank thread
19G Container Pond
[IMG]http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y118/Wingsdlc/Ric

So is the 1.5g a Natural Nano Iwagumi

The 55 looks like an earthquake struck a highway and it eventually got submerged and the convicts took over.
Wings, don't take this the wrong way, but I'm into scaped tanks and this one really isn't so I can't really comment much.

The 40g looks great, nice growth, but I expect nothing less from the Co2 extremist.

My Scapes

Wings , Congrats on the new job , hope you like North Carolina sounds like a very historical preety place to us Aussies .
Love the shots of the 40g , thats some jungle you've got going there .

Good luck with the move , hope it all goes well .

When do you start? How far away is it ? Is it a big town ?
So many questions ,
I'm sure its an exciting time for you and the wife .

Again good luck mate .

Garry