18 Gallon Re-scape Project

[April_ht]

After multiple threads asking for advice and tons of research, this is my 18 Gallon (70 litre) river-inspired aquascape:

Stocking:
10 Golden White Cloud Mountain Minnows
3 Bronze Corydoras (on the search for an extra 1-2)
Soon to be shrimp? Maybe cherry red or red-nosed?
2 Freshwater Mussels (temporary)

Plants:
Water Wisteria
Flame Moss
Staurogyne Repens
Thin Vallisneria
Giant Duckweed

Temp: 22 Celsius(unheated in Summer)
pH: 7.2

More updates soon to come.

 

[Fishfinder1973]

Looks great with the fresh water mussels,nice touch.

 

[Sgooosh]

cool how do you keep mussels

 

[DoubleDutch]

Get a bit more Corys for your South Amarasian river tank. Looks good !

 

[StandbySetting]

Nice looking setup! Word of warning on the mussels, they won't last five minutes in your pristine looking water, these guys need green water filled with algae as they are filter feeders. Supplemental feeding rarely works in home aquaria, I know you have said they are temporarily there but if one of these guys dies the ammonia spike usually created by a dead mussel could wipe out your entire tank. By the time you realise it is dead it is usually too late to do anything about it.

 

[April_ht]

Thanks for the warning, I'll move them asap. Also thank you all for the compliments! @Sgooosh as StandbySetting said, they require algae-filled waters and algae wafers will not often suffice, but they also do best in running/flowing water to stimulate the flow of a river.

 

[Fishmanic]

Nice beginning.
As the plants fill in, it should look even better.
Our April Tank of the Month contest will feature tanks sized at 17 to 30 US gallons. You might consider entering your tank.

 

[itiwhetu]

Great looking tank. Get some Cardamine and float it. When the White Clouds spawn the fry will swim on the surface out of harm's way.

 

[April_ht]

Made the decision to switch from cold water to tropical as I really wasn't feeling it and felt very limited, plan to keep Ember Tetras, some type of Corydoras and a pair of Honey Gouramis. Here it is after a rescape:

The floating driftwood is temporary until it sinks.
Any suggestions for tall plants to fill behind the hardscape and hide the filter intake? And short foreground plants to fill in gaps between the driftwood and create almost a carpet, but still go with the Hairgrass? I do also plan to add floating plants, likely frogbit, red root floater or salvinia. Dosed with Flourish weekly (I will admit, I've been slacking with that lately which is probably causing the slowed growth) and using Aquasoil under the sand. I'll post an update in a week or two when the plants and fish arrive and are settled.

 

[Sgooosh]

Made the decision to switch from cold water to tropical as I really wasn't feeling it and felt very limited, plan to keep Ember Tetras, some type of Corydoras and a pair of Honey Gouramis. Here it is after a rescape:

The floating driftwood is temporary until it sinks.
Any suggestions for tall plants to fill behind the hardscape and hide the filter intake? And short foreground plants to fill in gaps between the driftwood and create almost a carpet, but still go with the Hairgrass? I do also plan to add floating plants, likely frogbit, red root floater or salvinia. Dosed with Flourish weekly (I will admit, I've been slacking with that lately which is probably causing the slowed growth) and using Aquasoil under the sand. I'll post an update in a week or two when the plants and fish arrive and are settled.

i recommend smaller corydoras, that way you can fit a lot without overstocking
Jungle Vals
parva crypts, micro sword, hydrocoytle tripartita