Llj's 8g Nano Nightmare!

He he me. I thought I was going to be strong and hold out, but it's my B-day tomorrow, and I thought I'd treat myself to a new, well not so new tank.

I set up the 8g nano again. It still has 3.00 WPG, which I really don't think means much in this tank. Plants that require high light never did well in it, so I want to treat it like my 20g and 36g. I've reduced the photo-period to 8 hours and I'll see if that works. I've also reduced the amount of CO2 and will probably only dose with Flourish. The substrate is the same, gravel with laterite, and I need to put root tabs tomorrow. It's stocked with leftover plants from both tanks. No fish plans yet. I'd like a giant betta, but I doubt I'll get one. A few male guppies might be an alright substitute. I can get those. Or a small rasbora. No cherry barbs.

I have to apologize for the scape. It's not very pretty and it needs more fast-growers. Plants aren't easy to come by over in Miami. But it'll be easy for me to get into everything.







I need some advice. Should I treat this tank like a lower light tank? I hear you throw WPG rules out the window when the tanks are this small and I don't want to have the greenwater and algae nightmare I had last time. This tank as an EI tank was a disaster. I don't think I have enough light. Had more than enough CO2, more than enough ferts.

Thanks for the help in advance,

llj

looks great ,i would say it looks larger then 8 gallons .Good start, can't help with the light I'm afraid. Have you tried Flourish Excell for Algae. Happy Birthday!!!!!

fishkiller_nomore said:

You just can't stay away from the nano, can ya?

!!!!!!!!

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Nope, can't.

I've used Seachem's nitrogen to spot treat BBA, and I've heard of excell to combat algae. How do you use it, Silverlady?

llj

Well off the top of my head,i think the dose is 1 cap full per 10 gallons as a first dose, then 1 cap per 50 gallons everyday or other day ,which ever suits you.
When i started using it i just used 1 cap full every other day and it had no effect, then i actually read the instructions and put the whole dose in and it seems to be working. I had all sorts of different Algae, and thank goodness it is gradually going.

isnt that excel thing just another source of carbon? if your already running co2 in your tank i dunno if thats gunna help much as you can just crank up your current co2 if necessary, correct me if im wrong some one as ive never actually used the product.

It was only a matter of time Llj, I knew you'd not be able to resits setting it up again, esp with it sat in your house looking and taunting you! As for how to treat it, that depends on how much time you have, I guess being so small doing EI wouldn't be a prob as 50% water changes etc would be a hassle, but EI tanks def take longer, so if you've got the extra time go for EI as there are many more possibilities that low light. Although I guess if you only want to keep east stuff EI would be a waste anyway.

Oh and HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!!!!!! Woooooooohooooooooo

Sam

PS - nice pic in your sig, show of the red hey?

Themuleous said:

It was only a matter of time Llj, I knew you'd not be able to resits setting it up again, esp with it sat in your house looking and taunting you! As for how to treat it, that depends on how much time you have, I guess being so small doing EI wouldn't be a prob as 50% water changes etc would be a hassle, but EI tanks def take longer, so if you've got the extra time go for EI as there are many more possibilities that low light. Although I guess if you only want to keep east stuff EI would be a waste anyway.

Oh and HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!!!!!! Woooooooohooooooooo

Sam

PS - nice pic in your sig, show of the red hey?

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You know me, Sam, have to show off the red! Big 30 today! Thanks for the Smilies.

I don't know now, in lieu of Moody's link, not so sure EI is the best thing for this tank. For now, I've stocked it with hardies and I'll see where that takes me. I'll see how it goes. If it works, then that'll help the nanoers out there. If it don't, then it's no big, just take it apart and start again. You can model the fancy high-tech and I'll model the ghetto version.

llj

EDIT: Added a lot more plants today. Mostly crypts and fast stem plants. The layout is alright. I hope the crypts do well. But it was always hardy stem plants and slower growers that did well in this tank.

Yeh seen how it goes, its a lot easier to go from low to high light than the other way around. Looks like a promising start

Sam

Themuleous said:

Yeh seen how it goes, its a lot easier to go from low to high light than the other way around. Looks like a promising start

Sam

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Thanks Sam, you always have something nice to say. This tank is bothering me a little right now. I'm starting to notice the symptoms that were a problem in the tank's first incarnation (green water). The bacopa was starting to decay as is the zosterfolia. I'm actually encouraging emergent growth and duckweed right now to consume nutrients. I started a new thread asking questions about nano lighting and hopefully that will help.

llj

Just a small update. I removed the Zosterfolia and was able to save a few stems. It'll do much better in my 36g. The bacopa was also moved and has perked up. I added egeria densa and a java fern. The HM actually looks pretty good, so I may be able to keep it. Some crypt leaves are melting, but that's due to the pH change from an 8.00 Petsmart tank to a 6.6pH, CO2 injected tank with ferilisers. They freak out, but then come back bigger and better.

In hopes fixing my mistakes with this tank and to help others who may be stuck in the same situation I am in, I started this thread.

http/www.fishforums.net/index.php?showtopic=163000

With George Farmer's guidance and using data from his nano thread as a rough example, I determined that I do not have enough light in this tank for it to be considered a high-light, or even a medium-light tank. I have like 1.27lumens/square inch. Based on the numbers I reached in that thread, my tank is probably more of a medium-low or even a low-light tank. Perhaps when I first set it up in July and started EI and heavy CO2 injection, that was perhaps not the best thing to do. So what do I do with this tank now? I don't really want to upgrade the lighting, especially since it doesn't concern me that my plant choices are limited. Should I run CO2, or should I stop altogether and only dose Seachem Flourish, trust my laterite and root tabs, and stock up on fish? Or should I run a weak DIY mix? I don't think this tank is a candidate for EI anymore.

I may take a picture tomorrow and post. At first, I wanted a betta, but I think I may consider some small shoaling species to build up the bioload if that is the course I take.

Thanks for reading. As always, if you feel the need to comment, please feel free.

llj

The tank actually looks halfway decent today. This afternoon I took a few full-tank shots and then I took some close-ups this evening and was pleasently surprised. For the first time in quite a while, I saw pearling. My 20g and 36g do not pearl, so I wasn't expecting anything from the 8g. It could still all go to pot tomorrow, but here are some pictures for now.

Full tank shot. Water is clear for now.


Pearling Rotala, these two shots are similar to what happened to my 10g in IL and it's the same old plant.


Close-up of pearling.


Top view of blushing rotala leaf.


Barring anything other issues, the tank should be ready for fish next week. Of course, something will go wrong. But I'll keep my fingers crossed.

llj

The tank looks stunning! i give it a 9 out of 10! it would look good with some microsword or some kind of capecting

Good work on the pearling! I didnt think you'd have enough light for that but glad to see you have, something very satisfying about seeing your plant pearly hey?

Scape looks really nice too the HM certainly looks nice ang green and lush. BTW looks like you are running two HOB filters on the tank?

Sam

"DiscusLova Posted Yesterday, 08:47 PM
The tank looks stunning! i give it a 9 out of 10! it would look good with some microsword or some kind of capecting ..."

Thank you for your complement. I'm glad you like the tank. DiscusLova, I don't have enough light for carpeting plants, with the probably exception of moss over slate, but that covers too much of the substrate. I did try glosso in that tank once and it did carpet well, but it was a rather tall carpet. Thanks for the 9 out of 10!

Themuleous said:

Good work on the pearling! I didnt think you'd have enough light for that but glad to see you have, something very satisfying about seeing your plant pearly hey?

Scape looks really nice too the HM certainly looks nice ang green and lush. BTW looks like you are running two HOB filters on the tank?

Sam

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Yeah, I thought it was odd that I'd get pearling. I tested this morning (before the light turned on) for pH and kh an did Chuck's calculation at his website. The pH was between 6.4 and 6.6 (the colors are hard to distinguish for those incremements, it was between the colors). The kh was a solid 3. So I have CO2 between 22-35ppm, which isn't all that bad for the lower level of light. I don't think I'll kill any fish at least.

Yes, there are two HOB filters, one Finnex filter and an Aquaclear 20 or something like that. Unless the filter is really big, like in my 36g, I tend to run two filters, I get better water circulation. I never had to do that in IL, but the water is softer over there and for some reason two HOB just work better in FL. I wouldn't say I'm over-filtered. My tanks are not high-tech so the benefits of added circulation (No dead spots for algae or bacteria to grow) outway the disadvantage of wasting a little CO2. Obviously based on my levels, I'm not wasting that much.

llj

By the time Saturday, the 21st came, the water was cloudy again!!! Somebody told me that I may be outgassing my CO2. The plants were just not consuming the amount of CO2 I was putting in for the amount of light I had, resulting in cloudy water. Newish theory, but I'm willing to try new things. That's how you learn. So I tried something. I removed my CO2. I started dosing CO2 with just Seachem Excel; like 1.5ml. The water is still crystal clear, and it would have been cloudy by now when I injected CO2 like I do in my other tanks. I'll see how this pans out. If it's not cloudy after a week or so, this is the option for my tank, and I'll be super happy. The pH is higher, 7.2, but the plants are fine, and it's actually perfect for the little dwarf platies I've been eyeing. I'll keep tabs on this to see how things develop, but it looks promising. If it doesn't work, I'll try not dosing at all.

llj