55 gallon algeabane rig

This is only the second tank in my history. The first was a 29 gallon planted tank that didn't end well. I love plants and am a huge fan of aquascaping but in the end all my plants were murdered by black algae and my tank was overrun with midget ramshorn snails. I rage quit and gave all my gear away and swore off the hobby forever. Yea right...

My tragically doomed 29g at it's lovely peak



So.... I'm going to give it another go but this time it isn't about the bragging rights associated with a lovely planted tank. This time I want a tank I can actually enjoy without stressing out. So... no live plants only silk, hardscape baked to a cinder in the oven, aggressive anti-algae measures, having phosphates as low as possible with nothing added to the tank that isn't either brand new or sterilized. That's the goal anyway.

I didn't log the last tank but I'm going to give it a go just to see how things turn out. Any suggestions or insight is more than welcome as I'm really trying to take my time on this rig. Cheers!

Aquarium Masters 55g plus generic stand


Canopy Top


Aquatop CF300 MKII canister filter


2x25lbs aquarium gravel


Wishing me luck probably won't help but breaking my leg might.

Was quite lucky to find some sizable pieces of mopani wood to act as hardscape. In fact the pieces were so sizable that I couldn't boil them as I'd need a pot the size of a car boot. Soaking? Bathtub would be the only place and I'd like to have a place to shower for the next two weeks. So... my alternative? Yank the top rack from the dish washer, load it in and put it on pots and pans mode (no soap of course). I've put it through a few times and will be putting it through a few more. Not sure how well it will do for tannin bleed but at least it will be clean.

1L19 said:

Was quite lucky to find some sizable pieces of mopani wood to act as hardscape. In fact the pieces were so sizable that I couldn't boil them as I'd need a pot the size of a car boot. Soaking? Bathtub would be the only place and I'd like to have a place to shower for the next two weeks. So... my alternative? Yank the top rack from the dish washer, load it in and put it on pots and pans mode (no soap of course). I've put it through a few times and will be putting it through a few more. Not sure how well it will do for tannin bleed but at least it will be clean.

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thats some nice-looking wood!

connorlindeman said:

thats some nice-looking wood!

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Nice of you to say. I love that it's two color depending on the size. Thank you very much

1L19 said:

Nice of you to say. I love that it's two color depending on the size. Thank you very much

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yeah its really unique

So I've been shopping for a nice static cling background for my tank as I'm not thrilled about the white wall as far as aesthetics. I must have spent two hours browsing and comparing but in the end this is what you get:

Advertised


Actual


Instead I found a handy video showing a method to "paint" the back of the tank, not with paint, but using Plasti Dip.

So I'm going to give it a go today. Prepped the tank last night and we'll see..... if I don't break it getting it out to my deck.

Three coats, two passes per coat and it's looking pretty good! 3 hour dry and back on the tank stand.

Tank is up and trying to cycle... I need more patience for sure. I put in gravel, the mopani wood and today I put in the silk plants that I had. I've ordered two more of the medium and small size plus 7 more of the big one in the middle so I can cover the whole back of the tank. I'm using a Finnex Planted 24+ KLC light and I took a couple of snaps. First one is under full power and the second one is in night mode. The silk plants really look good and they sway in the current unlike plastic plants. Can't wait for the rest and really, really can't wait to finish cycling so I can add some fish!

Max light


Night mode

Looking pretty good at this point. Might shift this or that plant around but I'm pretty happy with it and the neon tetras seem to like it as well.

I think I like the black background more than all the back wall plants.

By the time of our next Tank of the Month contest, your tank should look great. May's TOTM will be for tanks sized at 31 gallons and larger. You should enter your tank.

Fishmanic said:

By the time of our next Tank of the Month contest, your tank should look great. May's TOTM will be for tanks sized at 31 gallons and larger. You should enter your tank.

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Very nice of you to say. By May the only thing that will probably change is the tank name from Algaebane to TankOfDeath as I keep loosing neons but I'm pretty happy with it as far as asthetics. Thank you sir.

Video is a bit crooked but tank is looking good and I haven't had a dead fish in five days.