155g Planted Elephantnose Display

[FF_Member146894]

I've finally gotten around to starting a thread on this project that I first imagined over half a year ago. I've been thinking about stocking, placement, size, and, a few months after I first had the idea, I settled for this - a 150-gallon elephantnose display!
man's got a good budget for this one - $4000 USD.
I ordered the tank about 6 weeks ago, I expect it to come in anytime now! oh, and by the way, this isn't going to be a low-tech tank by any means, so, for anyone who wants to suggest, the sky's the limit, I suppose.

My plan, is this:
The tank itself is 48 long, 30 wide, and 25 high in inches. I much prefer a tank that is wider than it is tall.
It's freshly built, since I really, really don't like buying old, used things off craigslist (?).
I reckon that this will be enough to house a group of 4 elephantnoses for years, and worst-case scenario, for life.

I can use some 4-foot Fluval 3.0 lights, an FX6 filter, and an Eheim heater that I've got here.

Guaranteed stocking (going in the tank):

Fish:
Elephantnose fish - 4
All other fish are up for debate

Plants:
Not decided on any particular plants, up for debate. Keep in mind that I plan this aquarium to be heavily planted. Carpeting plants would be nice.

Hardscape (driftwood, rocks, etc):
Not decided, up for debate, too. This isn't going to be a biotope, but I can take inspiration from some natural environments.
loose congo/african biotope

Equipment:
CO2 system, powerhead, anything else that I'm going to need and don't want to list right now.

And a lot of invertebrates, probably, if my puffer doesn't kill them

So, I think this is enough for now, and to wrap things up I want to say that suggestions are welcome and encouraged since I'm not really sure about stocking and scaping yet. See you guys in a week or two when the tank comes in. I hope it can fit through our hallway. you know what, nevermind, how am I going to lift it...

 

[PheonixKingZ]

Sounds like this tank is going to be decked out! I'll grab my popcorn for this one.

 

[Dajuyu]

What type of lighting that you decided to use ?

 

[FF_Member146894]

@Dajuyu a bit late, but, fluval 3.0 plant LED

i didn't plan for this to become a biotope but my LFS had a schoudenti puffer for $200 USD and i couldn't pass that up.

i think it'd be more fitting, now that i have him, to turn this into a congo river biotope-ish thing. nevermind the other puffer, i'll keep him in a separate tank

also the tank's here

(and has been for some time)
if i didn't have a room, i could and would live in this cabinet.
after removing the trim, the cabinet was literally about a 1/2 inch bigger than the door frame but with some finesse, it eventually fit through.

i'll update this again after i install some more equipment and get hardscape.
you know, i've had tanks of similar size before, and they all appear huge when you first see them, but once you get them in their place you seem to think of them as smaller than they truly are each day.
at least they do to me...


(I'm editing this five seconds later to mention that i forgot to say that i have some universal rocks backgrounds - i think they look nice)

 

[Fishmanic]

After you get this all set up , methinks you should enter it in our August Tank of the Month contest which will feature tanks size at 31 gallons and larger.

 

[Dajuyu]

@Dajuyu a bit late, but, fluval 3.0 plant LED

i didn't plan for this to become a biotope but my LFS had a schoudenti puffer for $200 USD and i couldn't pass that up.

View attachment 137612View attachment 137613
i think it'd be more fitting, now that i have him, to turn this into a congo river biotope-ish thing. nevermind the other puffer, i'll keep him in a separate tank

also the tank's here

View attachment 137614
(and has been for some time)
if i didn't have a room, i could and would live in this cabinet.
after removing the trim, the cabinet was literally about a 1/2 inch bigger than the door frame but with some finesse, it eventually fit through.

i'll update this again after i install some more equipment and get hardscape.
you know, i've had tanks of similar size before, and they all appear huge when you first see them, but once you get them in their place you seem to think of them as smaller than they truly are each day.
at least they do to me...


(I'm editing this five seconds later to mention that i forgot to say that i have some universal rocks backgrounds - i think they look nice)

Sounds like new projects coming up .

 

[Wills]

Wow wow wow wow wow!!! What a tank!

Great choice on the Schoudenti and in a tank this size you could always get him some buddies in the future (but I know they are expensive!). Love the idea of a Congo biotope too - for Biotopes I love this site and found a couple of good examples http://biotope-aquarium.info/aquari...ngo-river-democratic-republic-of-congo-240-l/ http://biotope-aquarium.info/aquari...blic-of-congo-lower-congo-river-region-400-l/ http://biotope-aquarium.info/aquariums/congo-river-basin-west-africa-180-l/

That last one is crazy over stocked but great source of ideas for species and plants In terms of planting from whats in those tanks too I'd love to see Bolbitis and Crinum in here!

Wills

 

[Uberhoust]

Looks like it will be a beautiful setup. I have mostly tall tanks but if I was to do it again I would get wider tanks, like you have done. Good luck.

 

[FF_Member146894]

i like this piece of driftwood so much that i'm making a new post about it

it's just the right height
i can't emphasize enough on how perfect it is as a centerpiece

 

[Wills]

i like this piece of driftwood so much that i'm making a new post about it

View attachment 137661
it's just the right height
i can't emphasize enough on how perfect it is as a centerpiece

Wow! That is super nice - going to be tricky to sink though....

 

[FF_Member146894]

ok
i'm not going to lie, it looks terrible right now.

i used mostly flourite black sand and some fluval stratum on the top. it looks weird, but i'm going to grow a carpet over it anyway so i don't suppose it really matters.
second problem - the background - i had to cut a second piece and put it over top of the first one and you can sort of see a little line where i did that. i need some tall plants to cover that up.
i'm going to keep moving stuff around except the big stump-looking piece of driftwood - it's probably going to stay where it is.
mayyybe grey stone wasn't the best choice for this
i'll figure it out

 

[Elephant nose 4]

This looks amazing! I'm following along

 

[Wills]

I think the thing thats throwing it is the grey rock, you have the sandy type rocky background and the light wood but if you got a rock like Dragon Stone it might work better in combination with the background? I'd be tempted to build the depth up at the back of the tank too but in a tank this deep not sure how effective (or practical that would be). What about bringing the two smaller pieces of wood to the front right corner and have them stood up breaking the surface?

In terms of the carpet, could you not do with a bit of regular sand in there too for the elephants to dig in?

Wills

 

[FF_Member146894]

ok, bulk reef supply bought marine depot some time ago (i have no idea when, but i know it's recent), and i'm just now finding out about this.
they've got everything at around half off right now and i bought $900-1000 USD worth of stuff for $400. that's some slick savings.
for anyone that didn't know, you're missing out.

i also got a lot more driftwood, so it's a lot less bare. i'm not really worried about the rock's color anymore either since it's going to be covered anyway. i'm going to put emphasis on the wood instead.
still not done moving stuff around, so i'm not going to post a picture yet. i might even add more substrate towards the back.

In terms of the carpet, could you not do with a bit of regular sand in there too for the elephants to dig in?

the carpet isn't going to cover every square inch of the tank, there are definitely going to be some areas without it, probably the back and under driftwood - i thought that part was obvious. i don't believe that elephantnoses really "dig," though, i think a better word would be "sifting." their "noses" would be too sensitive to really "dig," from what i can tell. at least i hope so, because if they do, they'll uproot all of the plants...

 

[Elephant nose 4]

They shouldn't up root your plants hopefully! Mine are in a planted tank without any problems.