Day 17!
After scrutinising the tank for 2 days yesterday and some research on moss, shrimps, otos and snails, I decided to do a little redecoration. So I went out and got the following:
1) new mini glass diffuser. Old one was just too big a scale for the nano tank.
2) a patch of VERY OVERPRICED mini taiwan moss (3" x 3"). I think this is the right scale for the nano tank.
4) moss string. These things are more expensive than fish!
3) 3 otos
4) 10 cherry shrimps
5) 5 striped nerite snails (space alien snails as they call it here because of the protrusions on their shells that look like antenna on a space helmet.) These don't grow larger than hald an inch. Once again right size for the nano tank.
So of course I was very excited when I got home last night and started the entire process of acclimating the new residents by the drip method because of the sensitivity of the otos and shrimps. This was done using tank water I siphoned out (50% change after 5 days) from the tank. That in process I started with the rescaping.
I first took out the driftwood and push the substrate as far back up the rear of the tank as possible (some has fallen forward naturally). Then I placed some rocks at the location where the base of the driftwood would be. These act as a sort of terrace to prevent more soil from falling forward, as well as to stabilise the driftwood when it goes back in. Then, remembering what aaron said about the two rocks on the left, I move the middle rock beside them to create sort of a continuity in the rear landscape, and and angled the rock on the right a little out. These should create sort of a "fanned out" imaginary line when the dritfwood is placed back in. I think its something about odd numbers being better than even ones.
Then I relocated some of the hairgrass (which are getting longer everyday!) so they don't entangle each other. They seem to be in such a messy tangle that I'm not sure if that is the way they should be. The past 2 weeks I've been combing detritus from them. Hopefully they'll "untangle" themselves when they grow more.
I then trimmed off all the dead leaves of the juncus repens. I noticed some new leaves sprouting from the crowns so things are looking up.
Then I combed the substrate in the foreground so they are back level in the front. Very particular about this part. I want a straight line from the front elevation. In doing so I uprooted some of the HC and saw that healthy root growth has occured. I replanted all these.
That done, I proceeded to tie the mini taiwan moss to the driftwood. I imagined it being a fallen willow tree with the moss on the top parts of the driftwood and hanging down. SO first I removed very carefully the moss from its mesh, and broke them up in inch x inch patches. Then slowly laid them on the dirtwood while it was wet to get an idea of how the final result would look. After I was happy with the outlook, I tied them onto the dritwood with the moss strong. Amazing stuff. Strong like a fishing line but as thin as human hair.
When that was done, I placed the driftwood back into the tank to make sure there was no floating moss patches. Then I placed the driftwood back into position, sat back and admired the final scape. Done!
All that took about 4 hours.
So with that done, I went to check on the new residents. In the container, the otos were swimming around, the shrimp was feasting on a piece of jave moss that came with the bag, and the snails were... doing what snails do.
I filled the tank up slowly with conditioned tap water, attached the new diffuser, and turned on the filter. All was good.
Then I put in 3 drops of ADA Green Gain, 3ml of ADA Brighty K, 1ml of Excel, 1 ml of Kent Botanica Grow. I let the tank run like that for another hour. No chances with such sensitive new residents.
While it was doing that, I checked the filter media for any debris and finally realised that the filter floss catridge also contained some carbon! I immediated performed open chest surgery on it with a penknife and took out all the carbon. Then I put it back in the HOB filter, and placed another piece of filter floss in front of it for mechanical filtration before it hits the existing floss that should be working as the biological filter.
Soon the CO2 was streaming out of the new diffuser. Much better smaller bubbles and much easier to push all over the tank from the outflow of the HOB.
Then, the final moment. Slowly I scooped the otos and shrimp out and released them into their new home. Dropped the snails in too.
Immediately there was a scurry of activity. Otos starting sucking glass, going crazy to adn fro the corners of the tank. Shrimp were jumping from one rock to another and finally found the drftiwood and proceeding to eat immediately. The snails just... did that snails did. The tetras seem rather happy with their new mates, checking out the snails and the shrimp.
By then it was 4am. I went to bed.
Next morning went to work and went through the day and came home both excited and worried to see how the tank was doing.
To my slight surprise (as I'm used to expecting tragedy everytime I try something new) everything was a dream.
The shrimps were everywhere, foraging the moss covered driftwood, the rocks, gravel, new HC growth, even in between the dwarf hairgrass. No more combing through them to get rid of the detritus! Amazing little creatures! An two creatures have already molted their shells among the hairgrass! Left them there for their calcium intake.
The otos were a flurry of hyperactivity. One bigger one was more demure, choosing to reside at the back of the tank and slowly working on the algal growth in the rear glass which I never bothered to clean. The two smaller ones were everywhere and seem to be sucking a little glass then swimming then sucking. They have uprooted some of the HC on the front corners of the tank with their constant flicking of their tail fins when they go up and down the glass. I used a bamboo skewer to relevel the substrate and replanted these HC.
The striped nerites were all over the tank doing...what snails do. They look so fiendishly pretty with their yellow and black stripes.
The water was clean, the glass was clean, the HC is flourishing, the juncus repens is growing new shoots, the dwarf hairgrass is still a tangled mess albeit cleaner. Need to sort that part out. Water surface was full of tiny CO2 bubbles. Just hope the otos hang on for the next month. Boiled a piece of zucchini and placed it in the tank. Should be fine if they eat it by tomorrow. I'm worried they might just drop dead from overexertion by the way they are moving inside the tank. Is this normal? and long stringy poo from them as well. Good or bad?
Some pics for Day 17.
Tank complete. Before changing the 4dkh solution in the drop checker.
What I came home to!
Messy long tangle of dwarf hairgrass.
New glass diffuser.
Any tips for dwarf hairgrass, and explaining the behaviour of the otos?
Did a 20% water change just now to ensure that the water quality is top notch. Temp is a constant 29 degrees Celsius must be the extra light. I made some 4dkh solution using the instructions from the other website. 2 drops of reagent turned it a dark blue. Woohoo! It works. Placed the drop checker back into the tank. After 2 hours, drop checker a bluish green. Might have been the 4dkh solution as I used kitchen equipment on the amounts. But happy overall.
Standby for the next update!
