80 Gallon Journal

[Wonderboy]

In terms of carpetting plants, I reckon your tank is big enough for you to experiment with different types in various areas. Then you could decide on the most successful plant and allow it to take over.

Your layout is fairly similar to one I am turning over in my head, but I plan to use more wood in mine. Is your hardscape finished?

I suspect this is going to be very impressive when it matures. Good luck!

When it comes to experimenting with plants, that is what my 20 gallon is for. I would rather enjoy keeping the 80 a display with select species rather than splotches of different species. IMO I am done with the hardscape.

The riccia and glosso can be done no problem, in fact together they look great. The rocks that are on the bottom part could be covered in riccia with just a simple hairnet.

I know it can be done no problem, and I will be adding riccia, but not randomly on the rocks in the glosso - think of it this way: if the rocks out in the glosso could grow riccia on them, then so should all the rocks in the tank if it were a natural environment (not that riccia grows on rocks even). I enjoy having those rocks in the glosso visible, as it balances the picture a bit with the large rock cliff on the left. Maybe lining the rock cliff at the bottom with riccia would be a more reasonable approach for my taste.

That tank is going to be something when it's mature. If it were me, I'd stick a few weeds on the other side until things settle down, but that's just me. Despite the mature filter, it's still a new tank and prone to new tank things.

That's a great shot of the blue tetras, mine never pose.

I agree with Dave, you have such a large tank, that you can really play with your foreground and have a few different species. I'd personally love to see HC or HM spilling over rocks and such, that would look super pretty.

It is a sweet system, I can't wait to see it when it's mature.

I also don't like the puffer idea. I think a better idea for you and snail control is perhaps a smaller botia. You'll be able to have a nice group 10 or more of them. I would also evenly distribute the school fish a bit more. Add more white clouds, but also add more pygmy cories. These tiny catfish look most striking in large numbers and they do swim about all tank levels, so they are fun to watch. Do you have a heater in this tank? The white clouds and the pygmy corys would appreciate a lower temperature, between 72 and 74. I keep my blue tetras at 74, so they won't mind the dip. In fact, the only fish that might not like the lower temp is the gouramis, and possibly the killie and the shrimp, but they should be able to tolerate 74. That temp will certainly benefit your other fish.

llj

Things settle down? Right now that back corner is packed with an unbelievable amount of fast growers - mostly rotala and anacharis, so, unless I start seeing algae problems or something, I don't think I'll add much more. Everything seems to be holding up just fine, Most of the plants are pearling, and there's not a spec of algae yet. I know that it can sneek up on you, so, I ordered a TON of anacharis and keep those at my lfs (work) just in case. I do want something to spill over the rocks, and I decided to try it with the M. Micranthemum:

But I don't even know if this stuff grows sideways... I might yank it and go out and find some HC if you think that it WILL spill over the rocks. I won't be getting puffers - this is for sure - and for botias, I actually already have ordered 8 golden zebra botias (they've been my favorite loach for a while now). I added ten more white clouds (not gold) - so now I have ten white clouds and five gold whit clouds. I will add ten more pygmaeus cories when my other LFS gets them in. Yes, I have a heater in my tank (well, not in, outside of the tank). It's a Hydor 300-watt, in-line filter outlet heater (probably my favorite heater ever). I keep my tank at 76; is the extra 2 degrees REALLY necessary? If it is, I guess I can drop it down a bit...

Thanks for all your opinions and suggestions, and I do consider all them greatly - please, keep 'em coming!!

~ Wonderboy!

 

[Wonderboy]

Alrighty then, I decided to organize a little, so here's a bit of DIY:

I built this out of a couple wooden plate holders from Fry's:

I threw this under the stand:

So I could do this:

Top Drawer: Tools
Middle Drawer: Misc., plant tabs, lead weights, plant IDs.... etc.
Bottom Drawer: Dry ferts for EI

And the whole deal looks a little something like this:

I know, I know... I forgot to put my last flourish (phosphorus) bottle in the picture...Sorry!

Actually - I dose EI with dry ferts (bottom drawer!) rather than Flourish (which is for my 20 and 2.5 gallon), but I figured it would look very presentable under this tank - not to mention that before, they were just lying around because they didn't fit under my 20's stand very well. Basically, the flourishs didn't have a home, so I made them one.

~ Wonderboy!

 

[Themuleous]

Haha that's quality! Ingenious idea with the plate holders. The cabinet under my 20G is a right mess!

Sam

 

[nightlite]

what a good idea... now I will have to build myself one...

 

[spankone]

you must be O C D to be that organised im suprised to dont make your fish swim in lines one behind the other lol, looks very nice cant wait till i move so i can get stuck into somthing bigger like that

 

[dingweding]

Now i think, the tank need 2 or 3 main fish, like big beautiful veitail angel or discus


the following link is my favorite angel, imagine you just got some adults of them , mmm, i think i would rarther sit infront the tank a whole nite


http/www.angelsplus.com/Koi.htm

 

[Wonderboy]

Now i think, the tank need 2 or 3 main fish, like big beautiful veitail angel or discus

Actually - I will give that some thought! A few discus isn't a bad idea... Is there another large "centerpiece" fish that would work in this setup?

~ Wonderboy!

 

[The Amazonian]

Congrats, thats an awesome set-up!!!


The Amazonian

 

[Wonderboy]

OK! There hasn't been too much noticable, but the plants are pearling and I can notice a difference in person, but anyways here it is:

And here's the Jungle:

And this is the glosso (which has definetly been growing horizontally quite well):

~ Wonderboy!

 

[George Farmer]

Nice work. If a job's worth doing......

 

[Wonderboy]

I replanted the "jungle", because I did not like how some plants were beginning to get covered by larger ones. I will post pictures of the new "jungle" soon. Also, I am beginning to get a hair algae problem, so I think I may have an excess amount of phosphorus - hence me ordering a test kit for this hopefully tomorrow.

Here's the tank a couple days ago:

Today:
Okay - hair algae everywhere!!

So I got some of these to help a little:

Also:
12 amano shrimp
8 American flag fish

Is there anything else I can do to help fend off the algae?

~Wonderboy!

 

[Themuleous]

Hows the egeria being held there? The amano shrimp and flag fish should help lots, I would get flag fish if I could find them, supposed to be one of very few things that will eat BBA.

Whats your fert and water change regime like? Algae is bound to happen in new tanks.

Sam

 

[Wonderboy]

Hows the egeria being held there? The amano shrimp and flag fish should help lots, I would get flag fish if I could find them, supposed to be one of very few things that will eat BBA.

Whats your fert and water change regime like? Algae is bound to happen in new tanks.

Sam

It's held by airline tubing and suction cups.

I have E.I. ferts standing by, but I don't dose anything yet, as I am still waiting for several test kits to arrive. I change 20 % weekly. When I begin E.I. - that will up to 50 %.

~ Wonderboy!

 

[Themuleous]

Right IC, are you running full light?

Sam

 

[Wonderboy]

Right IC, are you running full light?

Sam

Nope - down to 5 hrs.