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LF,

You are so hard on yourself. I don't know about where you are but here its over 70 and people are out side messing around. I am sure its nothing aganst you.

As for your lay out....I hate it! Just messing around! I think it looks pretty cool. What are the mushroom looking things?

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

Mushrooms, right. That was my attempt to draw a simplyfied plant that grows low from a central stem, like Blyxa .

Ingo

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Proud Member of the New Jersey Aquatic Gardeners Club

LF - first of all, we need a color key so we know which colors refer to what kinds of plants

Second, if I have one comment, it's that as of right now it looks pretty symmetrical in an unnatural way. Perhaps if one of the hills was rasied above the other and differed a little more in overall appearance it would help. You could still stick with your theme though, just in this case one general would have a significant higher ground advantage over the other

Also noticed you made the bottom in your drawing green - do you plan on having ground cover plants?

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Back in the saddle!

Ok NowherMan6 ,

Here is the color key:

Thin brown things = driftwood
Gray things are rocks
Lighter green and taller plants around wood are some half high growing plants, maybe Anubias or Crypts (more likely the latter)
Dark Green and short plants around the rocks on hills are maybe Nana Petites or Nana (or both)
Brownish mushrooms are Blyxa
Green dots in battlefield are maybe Isoetes, or Helferi, or narrow leaf sags
Green cover of whole field is hair grass.

I am not the best at PowerPoint free hand drawing and the left hill was supposed to be taller, this may be identified by the fact that I made the circle in the top view larger.

And - Nature very often is symmetrical as well. Look at a river dividing a field of flowers, two moutains separated by a valley.

And I hope you all know that the whole military layout was just some fun on my end (trying to create some interest), I am not planning to re-enact the battle of Waterloo in my tank .

Ingo

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Proud Member of the New Jersey Aquatic Gardeners Club

I like the layout and am excited to see what it would look like when it is down in the actual aquarium!!!

kj fishy-finn <*)))><
20 Gallon Album
5 Gallon Album

Will a single 96w be enough for Blyxa and Hair Grass?
- Will Hair Grass spread in Eco?
- Is 6,700 K the best to get or would there be a better range with the same growth results but more pleasing to the eye (I heard about a GE bulb in the 9000 range with great growth results) ?
- Is the 2026 Eheim overpowering?
- Will I find a Spray Bar and Intake kit for it, and if so, can it be that they are too long for my placement idea?
- Is my vision for the tank somewhat in sink with reality?
- am I estimating the plant sizes right for the real tank size (like, will a wood/anubias/rock/plant group actually fit in 18" of width while being on a hill) ?
- And last but not least: Am I ready for this?

-Hairgrass will most definitely spread in eco. It did in my tank, but got bba because of lack of light. If it doesnt' grow fast it could be a problem.
-I had the 110watt AGA 36in 9325k light. I didn't notice much difference in color. Hard to say will 96watts over 40 be enough. I do think the key to hairgrass is that it grows fast so stuff doesn't get stuck in it and develop bba.
-Why not get the ecco for have the price. Plenty of power for a 40g. I really like mine. Nowher has one too.
-It's definitely wide enough to make hills, especially if your using rocks
-Are you dealing with reality? Absolutely not

My Scapes

Why not get the ecco for have the price

Tetratech - give me a quick lesson. What is the Ecco (a filter I assume) ?

Kayla, thanks for the input

Ingo

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Proud Member of the New Jersey Aquatic Gardeners Club

Ehein ECCO series. Neat filters, I love mine. Wasnt too badly priced either.

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Back in the saddle!

LF,
Nowhere and I have the same filter The Ecco 2235 or 2236. Only difference 2236 comes with different media. These filters are rated up to about 80gallons. You could even go smaller 2232 or 2234. $70 to $90.

Ecco and Eco what a perfect combination. Best of all it's an Eheim

My Scapes

Thanks guys,

The Ecco that is rated for up to 80G (which I think would be proper) costs $90 and does not contain (to my knowledge) a spraybar and the new intake. These are extra and cost $20 a piece, means all together $130. Now, for only $30 more I could get the 2026. So, given that we currently discuss my underfiltered 125G in my log, would you think that the 2026 is overall the better deal for me?

Thanks again,

Ingo

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Proud Member of the New Jersey Aquatic Gardeners Club

The Ecco that is rated for up to 80G (which I think would be proper) costs $90 and does not contain (to my knowledge) a spraybar and the new intake

Well I don't know about the "new intake". What's the problem with the regular intake that comes with the Ecco.

Actually all you need is this spraybar for $6.

http://www.bigalsonline.com/catalog/product.xml?product_id=24997;category_id=2627;pcid1=1971;pcid2=

You could even by the 2234 which is rated up to 60g for $80. So your total is $86.

Anyway I see where your going if the price difference isn't much, but you could buy the wife something nice with the difference. Mother's Day is Sunday

My Scapes

Thanks again tetratech,

Yeah - the spraybar you display is inexpensive (don't want to say cheap as I don't if it is), but it is green . I need a hidden one (more or less) like in my big tank. Do you remember NowherMan6's green intake ?

I think I will find some spare money for the wife as well, although I summed up the estimated cost for this tank and it sure is not cheap .

Thanks again,

Ingo

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Proud Member of the New Jersey Aquatic Gardeners Club

Yeah - the spraybar you display is inexpensive (don't want to say cheap as I don't if it is), but it is green

Oh so your going to be one of my MIB (Men In Black) Boys.
Yes the eco comes with a green return tube or it did. I modified mine with an intake tube from a marineland filter that is black. That "cheap" spraybar is the one I've been using on my 72g It works great as I angle it down 45 degrees. Because the spray bar is at the water's surface on the side of my tank it really goes unnoticed so I didn't feel the need to get a black one.

My Scapes

Do you remember NowherMan6's green intake ?

I'll have you know that this green intake pipe is no longer green - it is a lovely shade of brown that blends in nicely with my background

And by the way: I know you ordered your tank and everything, but I did get a price quote on that ADA 42 gallon tank I mentioned earlier either in this thread or the other you started. The tank is 200, plus about 80 for shipping to New Jersey - so 280 for the whole shabang. If you were just going to use filters and other equipment that you already had it might be worth it, but that's a lot of extra cost when you factor in the other equipment, I would guess about 180 dollars extra (the 40 breeder costs about 100, right?) Just FYI... but damn it's such a beautiful tank

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Back in the saddle!

The tank is 200, plus about 80 for shipping to New Jersey

Plus stand (which is most likely not any standard stand as the footprint would have to be about 30x18) and some kind of glass cover (for the cat and kids) that has to be custom affixed on a rimless tank. And it has to be custom ordered by Jeff (not a stock item), and it is not the high clarity version (that they don't even offer, I would assume that tank then would be easily $450 or more).

Otherwise, no doubt a beautiful tank

Ingo

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Proud Member of the New Jersey Aquatic Gardeners Club

Well, i think you could work around the stand, i don't see why the tank couldn't be placed on a 40BR stand. Same width, just center it length wise. But you're right, you have special needs with covers etc. Forgot about that. I don't think not having the high clarity version is all that important, it's still a beautiful piece of equipment as it is.

Ah well, a man can dream, can't he?

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Back in the saddle!

LF,

I forgot to tell you I saw your Apistos V. II at a high-end store on the east end.

I must admit I was very tempted to buy them, but I restrained myself. I would have no intention of breeding them right now and because they are small (smaller than I thought) I felt I wouldn't see much of them in my tank which is so bottom heavy with wisteria. I don't see my Rams as much as I used to.



My Scapes

at a high-end store on the east end

On the East End of what? Long Island?

I saw some on the East Side of Manhattan yesterday, but I think the female was actually not a viejita II (or mine isn't). Half the price than what I paid for them

Mine are in the open as soon as I approach the tank, always looking for some food that I may provide. In particular the small female is not shy and swims through the crowd of Rainbows and Pearls. On the other hand, their stalking approach of getting food worries me a little. They seem to hover below the flake (or anything) for about 1 second and then attach that piece (I guess in the wild this would be live insects). Now in that one second either the rainbows have eaten it or the current carried it away

Ingo

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Proud Member of the New Jersey Aquatic Gardeners Club

saw some on the East Side of Manhattan yesterday, but I think the female was actually not a viejita II (or mine isn't).

Long Guy-Lend of course. The one's I saw male and female looked just like yours and they were labeled Viejita II although your's were nicer.

I know what you mean about feeding. When I feed the 23 cardinals, pencils attack everything within seconds and the rams come out of hiding and it's all gone. I end up putting some food in a net and going down to where they are and bascially dumping it in their face. I could just feed more, but dead set against it (food + waste = algae)

My Scapes

tetratech,

I have not seen a pair of Apsitos in a store that looked as nice as it could have. Mine were almost completely gray when I got them.

Back to the thread itself: Too late to argue filters and such now, I ordered the stuff, including the 2026, eco complete, and a single 96w light.

From now on you only will have to deal with me not being happy about this hardware and telling you guys "why didn't you tell me to get something else".

Thanks for all the help provided in finalizing my hardware list

Ingo

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Proud Member of the New Jersey Aquatic Gardeners Club

Curious, how did your decide to go with the single 96watt?

My Scapes

I trusted your advice

This way I have someone to blame when it doesn't work out

No really, the advice you guys gave was to use one light, and overall I got the feeling that this will be right. Arguments for it:

- almost 2.5wpg over a shallow tank should be enough
- two would have given me almost 5wpg, scary aspect
- I can still add a single regular T8 or so to it, if I need more light.


And I just placed an order for the regulator as well, guess which one I am getting?

Ingo

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Proud Member of the New Jersey Aquatic Gardeners Club

This way I have someone to blame when it doesn't work out

No problem

And I just placed an order for the regulator as well, guess which one I am getting?

Let's see, you had some problems with adjusting the top gun if I remember correctly, so I'm gonna say "kAZOO"



My Scapes

No,

This One is their own new version, I thought I give it a shot. I actually called them this afternoon and discussed the advantages of that one over the Top Gun. For one thing, it has a 3 year warranty. The other good thing is the top notch needle valve. I warned them that I will post about it if it sucks

Ingo

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Proud Member of the New Jersey Aquatic Gardeners Club

Well,

I also had the pleasure of talking to Jeff Senske last night

I called him for my free driftwood consultation and he was very helpful. I tried to explain to him the invisioned layout as best as I can (without the military stuff ). For one thing, he suggested to have one piece of wood lying on the slope of the hill and it did sound right.

He is going to create a group of wood for me, then e-mails me which pieces to order. He thinks for that tank size it should be somewhere around $150. I actually think it is a good deal, given that they all sink right away, fill the whole tan with one type, and are hand picked by Bensaf's favorite

Ingo

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Proud Member of the New Jersey Aquatic Gardeners Club

I also had the pleasure of talking to Jeff Senske last night

So your bringing in the professionals.
You know if we ever have a aquaticscaping contest here are FP your's would have to go in the professionally-aided category.

What do you mean he emailed you with what to order? You mean from a particular retailer?

My Scapes

tetra,

you can call Jeff for a driftwood consultation. you tell him what you want, talk it over with him, and he emails you pics of the pieces he thinks will work. he has these pieces imported from Japan, it's some of the same kind amano uses. not TOO expensive either. it's a great idea, and very helpful.

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Back in the saddle!

Oh man,

Tetratech is sooo far behind
Very soon we will call his way of doing things "The Old Style"

So this morning I realized that I forgot to order the legs for the light unit . If I cannot get them locally then this will be the most expensive legs ever as I would have to pay shipping just for this $7 order. Somehow I had the feeling that something was missing in my order. That's what happens when your shopping list contains light and legs on the same line (for real, I created a list) and you check it off once you put the light in the basket.

Ingo

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Proud Member of the New Jersey Aquatic Gardeners Club

you can call Jeff for a driftwood consultation.

If someone wants to help my locate good DW pieces that's fine, but the only DW consultation I'll get from a Jeff is when I hold several pieces of DW up in the mirror. To each their own of course, but I get alot of satisfaction out of doing it myself and getting opinions and reactons from my friends here at FP.

Very soon we will call his way of doing things "The Old Style"

Jersey Boy

My Scapes

Well, there for sure is nothing wrong with figuring out yourself what driftwood is right for you. There are a few reasons why I did select to do it the way I did:

1) Lack of experience - I am sure you remember my struggle to figure out what piece of wood would be right for my tank, and without NowherMan6 I probably would still not have any (and maybe no algae either)
2) Lack of local options on branchy driftwood - I have never ever seen a nice branchy piece of driftwood in the area
3) Competitive pricing - Given that I most likely would have to order a nice selection of wood online no-matter-what, Jeff's pieces run about the same than whatever you see somewhere else
4) Quality assurance - I can be sure that the pieces are tank ready and have not been found by some amateur in the Hudson River (or some other dirty polluted water). I know they sink right away and that they are clean.
5) When buying wood that you cannot see it is always hard to imagine how it will look and work in your tank. Are the dimensions right? Do I have enough or too much? Having a trusted (and I trust Jeff Senske) expert picking out what may work best is helping a lot in that process.

As you can see, I did not make a list entry for "buying stuff from a famous person" as I don't think this would be a good move. I find it cool that I am talking to the great Jeff (besides our famous Jeff), but in itself this would not make me buy anything from anybody.

I guess that explains my motivation,

Ingo

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Proud Member of the New Jersey Aquatic Gardeners Club

LF,

So you are going to post the pictures of the DW right?

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

Wings,

Once when I have it I will for sure, as part of the new log or in a separate thread.

I told Jeff that he won't need to send me a picture as I have faith in him picking the right items. In any case, a picture where some branches are displayed all lined up cannot mimic how it would look on the envisioned hills.

Ingo

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Proud Member of the New Jersey Aquatic Gardeners Club

LF,

Yes very true! Can't wait to see them!

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