Hi all,
As usual long time reader first time posting. I’ve always wanted a nano planted shrimp tank with HC, but past experience with fish tanks of small volumes have put me off trying something new for a while. Until I came upon this forum and saw Sam’s nano journal and was truly inspired. Then I saw George farmer’s 3G nano beauty. I was hooked.
My first attempt failed miserably. After 2 weeks 2 pots of HC melted and floated all over the place due to the rockwool not anchoring into the substrate. Hair algae everywhere. I created an algae heaven instead. So I’ll just post about my second attempt.
I went down to the “Gold Fish Street” in Hong Kong and purchased my 8.5L tank (just the right size for a piece of blank wall in my tiny HK apartment), together with the necessary equipment. Got one pot of HC and one bunch of Juncus repens, a couple pieces of driftwood. Anubias nana 'petite' cut from a larger plant rhizome that was from fish tank.
Day 1
These are the specs.
Tank: 8.5 Litres
Dimensions: 12”x10”x8”
Filtration: Aquaclear HOB, standard floss and sponge, at half-flow
Lighting: 11W, no idea what colour temp, siesta photoperiod 7h on – 5h off – 7h on – 5h off (8am to 3pm, then 8pm to 3am)
CO2: DIY, no idea about the bps, ceramic diffuser, drop checker at greenish-yellow.
Substrate: One thin layer of stone gravel from old fish tank, topped with 3L of ADA AS Amazonia II Powder-type
Fertilisation: Everyday 1ml ADA Bright K, 1ml Excel, 1ml Kent Botanica Grow. 1 drop ADA Green Gain everytime I replant plantlets.
Water chemistry: Yet to get a kit. Dechrolinate before filling.
Temperature: Stable at 27 degrees Celsius
Maintenance: 50% water change every night,
Fish: 3 neon tetras ATM.
Plants: HC, dwarf HG, Anubias nana petite, Java Moss, Juncus repens
After day 4, decided to redo the layout to add more layers and sense of depth. Added some clay-like rocks (what you guys call dragon rocks), hairgrass, and moved the juncos repens to the right side of the tank. Added 3 neon tetras from my fish tank, theoretically to insert some N and P into the water column. Bad move? Minimal feeding, they might help with the planaria that is found sometimes on the tank glass.
HC plantlets were replanted separately one by one using the planting tool and a bamboo skewer. With the planting tool, gently gripped 1cm plantlets perpendicular to the length of the plant, and push it all the way in. When I push it in, the plantlet will straighten itself out and the leaves would be facing upwards. Then I gently let go of the plantlet and pull the tip of the tool away whilst its tip is still in the substrate, wiggling around so that the substrate would fill into the space I created around the plantlet. One plantlet done. Bamboo skewer used to nudge and expose over-planted plantlets from underneath the powder soil. After planting I dose 1ml of ADA Green Gain. Not taking any chances here with my first failed attempt. Took about an hour.
After water 3 days of daily water changes and daily dosing of ferts (as per the spec list above), TINY TINY plantlets of HC are pushing out of the soil, so its growing steadily albeit rather slowly.
Here’s the picture of the tank at Day 7.
Sorry for the 2MP pictures. Will get better quality pictures next time.
Just floated a bunch of stem plants on side of the tank with a zip tie to soak up any excess nutrients in the water column last night. Don’t really want to plant these in as any uprooting in this small patch of substrate would ruin the lines of the layout.
Right now I have the white cottony growth associated with DIY CO2, so will do a CO2 separator in the weekend. I thought it was hair algae, but this stuff attaches itself to the tank glass which isn’t characteristic of hair algae, and it’s white. I just scrap it off the glass and OD Excel and it seems to work for a day then come back again the next day. Anyways the CO2 separator should work.
Other than that, no algae, just cottony stuff and other stray dying HC leaves among the hairgrass, which I just brush away with an old toothbrush. Juncus repens leaves at yellowing and curling up at the top. Clear water, no visible algae and slow growing plants. I'm happy with the HC's health after a week. Just hope the hairgrass will established itself before I give it a good trim.
So that’s the 1st week so far.
From day 8 to 21 will perform 50% water change (I think daily might be too stressful for the juncus repens, as the top half of the leaves which are exposed from the 50% water change are yellowing and curling up) every 2-3 days and dose ferts as usual daily. 1 drop Green Gain every time I replant HC plantlets. On day 21 will release one oto to combat the algae that’s bound to come sooner of later, and when algae is more manageable will release 5 shrimps.
Meanwhile, any advice and guidance on how to ensure that this tank becomes what we all want: perfection in a glass box? Am I doing anything wrong here, or rather am I not doing enough?
Lastly, thanks Sam and George, and all the other people who contributed all the information in their journals. Wouldn’t have taken the first step without seeing what you guys did.
Cheers all!
As usual long time reader first time posting. I’ve always wanted a nano planted shrimp tank with HC, but past experience with fish tanks of small volumes have put me off trying something new for a while. Until I came upon this forum and saw Sam’s nano journal and was truly inspired. Then I saw George farmer’s 3G nano beauty. I was hooked.
My first attempt failed miserably. After 2 weeks 2 pots of HC melted and floated all over the place due to the rockwool not anchoring into the substrate. Hair algae everywhere. I created an algae heaven instead. So I’ll just post about my second attempt.
I went down to the “Gold Fish Street” in Hong Kong and purchased my 8.5L tank (just the right size for a piece of blank wall in my tiny HK apartment), together with the necessary equipment. Got one pot of HC and one bunch of Juncus repens, a couple pieces of driftwood. Anubias nana 'petite' cut from a larger plant rhizome that was from fish tank.
Day 1
These are the specs.
Tank: 8.5 Litres
Dimensions: 12”x10”x8”
Filtration: Aquaclear HOB, standard floss and sponge, at half-flow
Lighting: 11W, no idea what colour temp, siesta photoperiod 7h on – 5h off – 7h on – 5h off (8am to 3pm, then 8pm to 3am)
CO2: DIY, no idea about the bps, ceramic diffuser, drop checker at greenish-yellow.
Substrate: One thin layer of stone gravel from old fish tank, topped with 3L of ADA AS Amazonia II Powder-type
Fertilisation: Everyday 1ml ADA Bright K, 1ml Excel, 1ml Kent Botanica Grow. 1 drop ADA Green Gain everytime I replant plantlets.
Water chemistry: Yet to get a kit. Dechrolinate before filling.
Temperature: Stable at 27 degrees Celsius
Maintenance: 50% water change every night,
Fish: 3 neon tetras ATM.
Plants: HC, dwarf HG, Anubias nana petite, Java Moss, Juncus repens
After day 4, decided to redo the layout to add more layers and sense of depth. Added some clay-like rocks (what you guys call dragon rocks), hairgrass, and moved the juncos repens to the right side of the tank. Added 3 neon tetras from my fish tank, theoretically to insert some N and P into the water column. Bad move? Minimal feeding, they might help with the planaria that is found sometimes on the tank glass.
HC plantlets were replanted separately one by one using the planting tool and a bamboo skewer. With the planting tool, gently gripped 1cm plantlets perpendicular to the length of the plant, and push it all the way in. When I push it in, the plantlet will straighten itself out and the leaves would be facing upwards. Then I gently let go of the plantlet and pull the tip of the tool away whilst its tip is still in the substrate, wiggling around so that the substrate would fill into the space I created around the plantlet. One plantlet done. Bamboo skewer used to nudge and expose over-planted plantlets from underneath the powder soil. After planting I dose 1ml of ADA Green Gain. Not taking any chances here with my first failed attempt. Took about an hour.
After water 3 days of daily water changes and daily dosing of ferts (as per the spec list above), TINY TINY plantlets of HC are pushing out of the soil, so its growing steadily albeit rather slowly.
Here’s the picture of the tank at Day 7.
Sorry for the 2MP pictures. Will get better quality pictures next time.
Just floated a bunch of stem plants on side of the tank with a zip tie to soak up any excess nutrients in the water column last night. Don’t really want to plant these in as any uprooting in this small patch of substrate would ruin the lines of the layout.
Right now I have the white cottony growth associated with DIY CO2, so will do a CO2 separator in the weekend. I thought it was hair algae, but this stuff attaches itself to the tank glass which isn’t characteristic of hair algae, and it’s white. I just scrap it off the glass and OD Excel and it seems to work for a day then come back again the next day. Anyways the CO2 separator should work.
Other than that, no algae, just cottony stuff and other stray dying HC leaves among the hairgrass, which I just brush away with an old toothbrush. Juncus repens leaves at yellowing and curling up at the top. Clear water, no visible algae and slow growing plants. I'm happy with the HC's health after a week. Just hope the hairgrass will established itself before I give it a good trim.
So that’s the 1st week so far.
From day 8 to 21 will perform 50% water change (I think daily might be too stressful for the juncus repens, as the top half of the leaves which are exposed from the 50% water change are yellowing and curling up) every 2-3 days and dose ferts as usual daily. 1 drop Green Gain every time I replant HC plantlets. On day 21 will release one oto to combat the algae that’s bound to come sooner of later, and when algae is more manageable will release 5 shrimps.
Meanwhile, any advice and guidance on how to ensure that this tank becomes what we all want: perfection in a glass box? Am I doing anything wrong here, or rather am I not doing enough?
Lastly, thanks Sam and George, and all the other people who contributed all the information in their journals. Wouldn’t have taken the first step without seeing what you guys did.
Cheers all!
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