FishProfiles.com Message Forums

Yeah, I've got them set to go on for two hours, twice a day, so four hours a day all up. It seems to be working well so far, the hairgrass obviously likes it and not too much algae growth.

The only way to get rid of a temptation is to yield to it. - Oscar Wilde

JB,

What a nice tank

It took me a while to come across this thread, I don't know why, must have missed it

Anyway, most things have been said already so there is not too much for me to add. Well, maybe one or the other thing, and forgive me if it has been mentioned before and I didn't read the thread carefully enough:

- I agree, the barteri is too high for its size. As a matter of fact, I believe that eventually (but that will take time) it will be too big for the tank in general (see my 125G log for recent updates as I had to "trim" my barteri).
- Good idea to get more plants, one can never have enough of them.
- Now that your moss is growing nicely, have you thought about trimming it? Doesn't look to me like you would be able to remove the wood to do the job and trimming in the tank is truly messy and will end up with you having moss everywhere.
- I find you light setup very interesting. From what I see, there is only one plant in the tank that needs (or can use) this much light, the hair grass. All other plants would do very well with regular PCs. I have the same problem (if it is a problem) in my 40G where my Blyxa needs light but Anubias and Ferns don't.
- I am far from being an expert on fish, but I don't think the combination of Danios and Discus is a great idea. The hectic live style of Danios will stress the Discus too much, at least that is what I think.
- Also, keep in mind that planted tanks do better with less fish, I learned that the hard way when I had over 100 in my 125G (but most were small fish, Espei).

I think that does it for now, your tank for sure is very nice and has heaps of potential

Ingo

---

Proud Member of the New Jersey Aquatic Gardeners Club

Thanks for the post Ingo, I seem to have missed it until now!

So far I have had to trim the moss a couple of times and it's not been too difficult - I just get in with a pair of scissors and grab the bits that I cut off straight away to stop them floating around.

I too was a bit uncertain about the danios given the eventual plan for discus. They certainly are very active. I'm hoping that it will not be a problem due to the fact that I'll be buying locally-bred discus that are quite well-known for being far hardier and less skittish than most discus. But I will definitely be on the lookout for signs of stress when I do get them, and will move the danios to another tank if needed.

So now, the current situation with the tank...it's possible that the lighting situation has finally turned around to bite me, as I have a terrible outbreak of BGA. I'm devastated as it was this that killed my last planted tank and forced me to tear it down completely. Obviously I did something wrong then that I am still doing wrong now. Now to find out what it is. I'm guessing the halides could well be contributing, and I've decided to turn them off for a week and just use the T5s alone, to see if it makes any difference. I can't see there being a nutrient problem seeing as there are only 10-ish small fish in the tank, but then again I have no stem plants. I have tested for nitrates and they are pretty much at 0, as are ammonia and nitrites. Is it possible that the low nitrates are actually the cause though? I know phosphate is often a contributor and I'm going to buy a phosphate test kit tomorrow. If it does turn out to be too much phosphate, how do I combat it?

I've been using Flourish Excel but not very regularly I admit - I've become a bit slack. I dose about a capful every two weeks or so. I don't use any other fertilisers or additives.

The only plan I have to combat it is to lower the lighting as I mentioned above (I may even halve the number of hours the t5s are on as well, if it doesn't improve), and to maybe go and buy a bunch of elodea to float around on the surface for a while. I'm not sure what else to do, especially as I can't get any erythomicin - it's illegal in Australia without a vet prescription and to get that would cost a fortune.

I hate, hate, hate cyanobacteria!!!

The only way to get rid of a temptation is to yield to it. - Oscar Wilde

One quick question- Will you put anything tall on the sides? Maybe Java Fern?

><> ~=!Vote Today!=~ <><
-----> View My Dragons <-----

No, I was planning to keep all the height in the centre of the tank in a mound style. The idea is to eventually fill out the foreground and sides completely with the hair grass, to give the impression of trees and rocks rising up out of a grassy plain.

The only way to get rid of a temptation is to yield to it. - Oscar Wilde

JB, cyanobacteria is not really a light problem, but a serious nutrient imbalance. You were right on with thinking that you need some NO3 and PO4 in there. You should be able to get these in aus, KNO3 is sold as stump remover generally, and I think you can get KH2PO4 as fleet enema. I know here greenlight stump remover is supposed to be pure KNO3 and I guess flee enema is a name brand and that's also used in fish tanks no problem. Not sure what the equivalent would be in Aus though, sorry. You can also go to a hydroponics store and should be able to access those nutrients as well.

---

Critical Fertilator: The Micromanager of Macronutrients

Hi,
Fleet Enemas are another source for Phosphate.
Use only the GREEN labeled Fleets. The others have
additional "stuff" not necessary for the tank.

Just about any stump remover can be used, I use GRANT's
just be sure that it is only stump remover.
Like ammonia, with stuff to make it smell pretty,
some stump removers have additives (accelerators)
in them to increase the rate at which it works, and
they can be toxic to the tank.

Frank


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

Arrr,

Now it took me quite a while to find the thread again, sorry about that.

I am for sure with the previous posters, in particular Matty. Even more so, I attribute your BGA to the lack of Nitrate.

From my experience (little) and what I have heard, BGA has two main reasons to appear: lack of current (dead spots) and lack of N.

Now, if you add N then you will also have to add P (phosphates) and K (potassium). And then of course micro nutrients to balance it all out.

Hope this didn't come too late,

Ingo

---

Proud Member of the New Jersey Aquatic Gardeners Club

Thanks for that Ingo, and matty and Frank. Admittedly I haven't done much about this since my last post, as life has kind of gotten in the way. The BGA is very much still there but on a good note it doesn't seem to be spreading any further, it's as though it's sort of just been arrested at the stage it's at. And it's left my anubias plants alone completely, which are all flourishing.

Ideally I'd like to be able to use products and ferts made for aquariums, just due to the difficulty of both tracking other things down as well as figuring out dosages etc. Are there any standard ferts I can use that will give the tank what it needs (nitrate, maybe phoshate?). I know stocking more heavily will increase nitrates, but I'm reluctant to do so in case any of the fish eat the BGA and die from it (as I suspect my oto did, it's been MIA for some time).

The only way to get rid of a temptation is to yield to it. - Oscar Wilde

Just a quick update on my BGA situation: strangely, it seems to have sorted itself out without any help from me. It just disappeared, almost everywhere. Still a little in the java moss and sometimes appears on the grass, and I'm a little nervous thinking it could go crazy again at any time. My theory is that because I've been keeping water changes down to about once a month, the nitrates have been building to a point where there is much greater balance in the tank than there was before with my ten little fish in a big 80 gallon.

I went out today and bought ten Endler's livebearers. Very beautiful little fish they are. Will post a pic of the tank tomorrow, though not much has changed - moss quite lush though, a lot of new anubias leaves, and two more small anubias (although they are a. barteri, so will get too big for the plans I have, LFS is going to try to get some a. nana in for me).

I am a little worried that my fish choices for this tank so far have probably not been the best for the overall discus plan. There are some great locally-bred discus available which are unusually hardy and tolerant, but I'm prepared to rehouse the danios and Endlers if they don't work out in the end. Next fish purchase will probably be some bleeding heart tetras. I hope I can get the tank to a point very soon where I'm confident enough to get the discus, as time is ticking away this year and I'll only have 5 months or so to enjoy the complete tank before selling it and moving to the UK. Maybe it's kind of silly to even go for the discus in light of this, but I've been planning this tank for so long it's kind of hard to give up on the idea!

The only way to get rid of a temptation is to yield to it. - Oscar Wilde

just beginning,

If I read your BGA assumptions right then I assume you are on the wrong track. BGA does not come from excess Nitrates, it comes from a lack of it (or current lack). If you have Nitrates in abundance then you more likely than not would see hair and/or staghorn algae.

Endlers and Discus - I doubt it as Endlers are just about the right size for a snack, . I actually have not heard about Discus and their predatory trades in a tank in specific, but given that they eat beef heart I would assume that an Endler snack is very likely.

Hm, only 5 months max for the tank, that is quite short. I guess you will have to carefully evaluate if the investment would be worth it, also from a maintenance perspective (as in "no time for water change because of move preparations" ).

Looking forward to the next pictures,

Ingo

---

Proud Member of the New Jersey Aquatic Gardeners Club

You did read me wrong . Or I wrote it wrong! What I did mean is that i believe my BGA was caused by low nitrates, as I had only 10 very small fish in an 80 gallon tank, and I think it may be clearing up as I have not performed any water changes for around a month, therefore nitrates have finally begun to build up.

Took a new pic tonight:



Yes, you may be right about reevaluating. Perhaps I should put off the discus dream until I return from my travels in a few years' time, and fill this tank with all the beautiful rainbowfish I seem to keep falling in love with. Realistically I'm not sure if I have the time for discus maintenance for the rest of the year, as I am planning my October wedding as well as the o/s move.

The only way to get rid of a temptation is to yield to it. - Oscar Wilde

just beginning,

looking very nice and well maintained, all seems to be in order. I don't know if I read you wrong or whatever happened there, but it seems like we are in sink what may have been your BGA issue and most importantly that is going away now

Your tank seems a little yellowish. Now this could be from the light, the picture, or the wood still leaching tannins into the tank. Is it the latter?

You may be wise to hold off with increasing your tank tasks while having loads of other things going on in your life (congratulations on the upcoming wedding, btw). Rainbows are very nice fish and sure will keep you happy for a while. But keep in mind that the purists will tell you that mixing various species of Rainbows will cause interbreeding. But I assume you are not into fry-raising anyway, as that would take some of your time (and maybe another tank) as well.

Nice update, do you have a shot from the other side as well?

Ingo

---

Proud Member of the New Jersey Aquatic Gardeners Club

just beginning Hi, great looking tank . Glad to hear your algae problems have cleared up .
Rainbows can be great fun to watch as they like running around the tank .
Congrats on the upcoming wedding .

Love to see more photo's as the tank grows in

Garry

Your tank seems a little yellowish. Now this could be from the light, the picture, or the wood still leaching tannins into the tank. Is it the latter?

All of the above, I think . It is definitely yellower in the picture than in real life, but there are certainly enough tannins to give a fairly constant tea-stain look to the water. I always like it because it makes plants appear greener and fish seem more vibrant.

But keep in mind that the purists will tell you that mixing various species of Rainbows will cause interbreeding. But I assume you are not into fry-raising anyway, as that would take some of your time (and maybe another tank) as well.

True, I'm not much of a fry-raiser at this stage. That will come years later when I know we have our feet a bit more firmly planted for a while (and a larger home). But I'll keep this in mind. There are plenty of fish out there up for consideration, especially if I give away the discus plan.

No pics from the other side as yet, but I'll take one ASAP. I must admit I do pay more attention to the living room side as it is the one we sit and stare at the most.

The only way to get rid of a temptation is to yield to it. - Oscar Wilde

just beginning,

Given that one of your challenges with this tank is the fact that it is almost a walk-around setup, except for one side (I have a 40G with the walk-around concept), I insist to see the other side .

Given that your overall plant mass is rather low, I assume that the other side will be as nice as this one is. Once the plant mass would increase by a bit (not that you have a plan for that, but just in general) this concept becomes harder to maintain as you basically loose the sides.

Ingo

---

Proud Member of the New Jersey Aquatic Gardeners Club

As requested Ingo, here is the kitchen side of the tank!



I do think this looks a little like the 'back' side because of the larger anubias being close to the glass here and showing a lot of roots. There is also very little hairgrass here at the moment. But the moss is pretty nice and even on both sides I think.

Added 6 Congo tetras today. It's nice to have some slightly larger fish in there finally!

BTW, just because I have them, here are some pics of the tank in its surroundings.





The only way to get rid of a temptation is to yield to it. - Oscar Wilde

Yup,

That side looks pretty nice as well

I have no problems with roots, I used to but I changed my mind when I saw someones tank who had some group of Nana Petites planted on a branch higher up in the tank and the roots looked rather attractive. Also, when I added water lettuce to my tank I came to admire the tangling roots of the floating plants.

Nice,

Ingo

---

Proud Member of the New Jersey Aquatic Gardeners Club

Well I'm jealous of your kitchen divider and dining area. It looks real lovely. I could imagine a nice dinner with great conversation. The tank looks real good. All I can say is more plants more plants .

---

Critical Fertilator: The Micromanager of Macronutrients