OP
OP
smithyithy
Fish Fanatic
Wow, it's been ages since I last posted!
The tank has just been running as it is for months now.. I've been so busy with work, motorbikes and tattoos that it's pretty much taken a back seat
However! My mom's been bugging me for ages to pull my finger out and do something with the tank, and as we've just bought her her own 23L tropical tank and all the stuff to go with (minus fish), I've got the urge to sort mine out alongside setting hers up
So, my 3 Tetra are in that 10L tank I borrowed, which I filled half with current tank water, and half with fresh water.. My big tank has gone to crap to be honest.. The plants are rubbish, but I salvaged a couple from the front with their roots, and sank them in the new tank, just so they've got something to swim around. I'm using the light from my big tank, as I've got the lid open and the lights still on timer, and the small tank is on a stool in front of it, so it's using its light.
The tough part was heating it! I had no choice for now but to use the big heater tube from my main tank.. It's a bit of a squeeze, but I've turned the thermostat down on it and my digital and glass thermometers are reading a safe 23-ish degrees.
I've removed all the decor, washed and dried it and stored it for now.. Threw the plants away (they'd had it). The bogwood is still in there, not sure what to do with that in all honesty.. The remaining 2/3's of the tanks water and the substrate will be out soon so I can give the whole tank a proper deep clean.
Now, before I start planning the actual scape, I need to make some modifications to the tank.
I would so love a braceless, open-top tank with Optiwhite, but they're money that I just can't spend right now.
So my idea is to remove the front flap with the 2 strip lights mounted in it, then the back flap that covers the filter. I'm thinking of removing the filter system that came with the tank completely (it only rests in the plastic lid) which consists of the big box of media in the middle, the pump box, the big plastic tube that runs down one side and the ugly black triangle at the other end that pumps it back out.
Rip all that out, put it aside and leave the top of the tank half open. The I'm gonna look for one of the lamps that can be clamped onto the tank and sit about 12-18" above the actual tank, pretty simple.
The filter however might be a bit harder.. Again, I'd love all-glass stuff as it looks amazing, but cost is an issue. Either way I don't want some big black box on top of the tank with ugly plastic tubes running in and out of the tank, so I'm gonna hunt around for external filter systems that are as invisible as possible (any suggestions more than welcome guys!). Same with the heater, I don't really fancy the 12" tube stuck to the inside of the glass, unless I can hide it.
Lastly, I'll be running CO² sp that needs to go somewhere too.
Suffice to say I've got my work cut out for me! But I'm gonna go at it full speed so I'll keep this thread updated as much as I can with any progress
Chris.
The tank has just been running as it is for months now.. I've been so busy with work, motorbikes and tattoos that it's pretty much taken a back seat
However! My mom's been bugging me for ages to pull my finger out and do something with the tank, and as we've just bought her her own 23L tropical tank and all the stuff to go with (minus fish), I've got the urge to sort mine out alongside setting hers up
So, my 3 Tetra are in that 10L tank I borrowed, which I filled half with current tank water, and half with fresh water.. My big tank has gone to crap to be honest.. The plants are rubbish, but I salvaged a couple from the front with their roots, and sank them in the new tank, just so they've got something to swim around. I'm using the light from my big tank, as I've got the lid open and the lights still on timer, and the small tank is on a stool in front of it, so it's using its light.
The tough part was heating it! I had no choice for now but to use the big heater tube from my main tank.. It's a bit of a squeeze, but I've turned the thermostat down on it and my digital and glass thermometers are reading a safe 23-ish degrees.
I've removed all the decor, washed and dried it and stored it for now.. Threw the plants away (they'd had it). The bogwood is still in there, not sure what to do with that in all honesty.. The remaining 2/3's of the tanks water and the substrate will be out soon so I can give the whole tank a proper deep clean.
Now, before I start planning the actual scape, I need to make some modifications to the tank.
I would so love a braceless, open-top tank with Optiwhite, but they're money that I just can't spend right now.
So my idea is to remove the front flap with the 2 strip lights mounted in it, then the back flap that covers the filter. I'm thinking of removing the filter system that came with the tank completely (it only rests in the plastic lid) which consists of the big box of media in the middle, the pump box, the big plastic tube that runs down one side and the ugly black triangle at the other end that pumps it back out.
Rip all that out, put it aside and leave the top of the tank half open. The I'm gonna look for one of the lamps that can be clamped onto the tank and sit about 12-18" above the actual tank, pretty simple.
The filter however might be a bit harder.. Again, I'd love all-glass stuff as it looks amazing, but cost is an issue. Either way I don't want some big black box on top of the tank with ugly plastic tubes running in and out of the tank, so I'm gonna hunt around for external filter systems that are as invisible as possible (any suggestions more than welcome guys!). Same with the heater, I don't really fancy the 12" tube stuck to the inside of the glass, unless I can hide it.
Lastly, I'll be running CO² sp that needs to go somewhere too.
Suffice to say I've got my work cut out for me! But I'm gonna go at it full speed so I'll keep this thread updated as much as I can with any progress
Chris.
/www.flickr.com/photos/89634697@N07/8468067725/]
