Planted 30L Biorb

[Ryefish]

I have a 30L Bi-Orb that i have just spent all day planting up (and TOTALLY enjoyed it!). It is my first ever attempt at planting, and took hours before i got it to look just right. I spent a lot of time trying to figure out where the right place to put the Bogwood would be.
My fishless cycle has been kind of stuck, so depending on tomorrow's testings (day 34), i may be going out to pick up two Rasbora's to finish off as a planted, fish-in cycle.

There are some pictures to follow. I am rinsing out some more gravel tomorrow because i feel that a little bit more could help. I also need to find a stone/rock to attach the Java Fern to, it's currently just sat on top of the gravel. I'm not sure what type of stone i am supposed to get though? I also have a tonne of moss just stuffed behind the Bogwood, no idea what to do with it lol.
I am picking up another air pump tomorrow, so that the pump and light don't share the same plug (as they do with a bi-orb) so i can buy a timer for the light.

I bought a bottle of API Leaf Zone (it was either that or tabs). Now i know nothing about fertilizing plants in a tank, so is this stuff ok to use? It says dose 5ml's for a 38L tank once a week - is the dosing correct? I plan on adding shrimps and a snail in the future and have read that a lot of ferts aren't ok to use with them, so is this ok to use?

The pics (water looks yellow but i think its just the light)

tried to get a view of the top to show where everything is planted

The plants i know in there are:
Java Fern
Java Moss
Anubias Nana - ETA: the Nana on the Bogwood looks messy, as i wasn't sure how much of the original mass of roots i could cut off before i killed it, so i just played it safe

The stemmed plant looks rather like a Crypt, but i'm not sure. I also have no idea what the little grass is!

Any advice/information is greatly appreciated.
Thanks

 

[lljdma06]

Hi Ryefish!

Very nice that you've planted up the biorb. I'll tell you, by looking at the lighting and the way the tanks is setup, that I think crypts, java fern, java moss, and anubias are going to be your best growing bets.

Leafzone just doses trace. You might have enough with regard to lighting and bioload to not have to deal with dosing macros.

Start off with a shorter photo period, between 4-6 hours.

IMO, harlequin rasboras are too active for a 30l tank. Notice I didn't say too big, they're not technically, they're just really active swimmers and I like them to have some space. I'm also a stickler for proportions, especially in Planted tanks. I wonder if you can get any boraras? They would look smart in your biorb. They are much smaller rasboras. The pygmy corydoras would be cute too.

llj

 

[Ryefish]

Thanks for the reply

Harlequins were rather a large rasbora for me, so i decided to go with the smaller Galaxy Rasbora. I don't think they are technically a Boraras, but they are really small.

What is the difference between dosing just 'trace' and 'micros'?

Sorting out the light time today

 

[BethK]

Just wanted to say what a fab tank set up you got there

 

[lljdma06]

Thanks for the reply

Harlequins were rather a large rasbora for me, so i decided to go with the smaller Galaxy Rasbora. I don't think they are technically a Boraras, but they are really small.

What is the difference between dosing just 'trace' and 'micros'?

Sorting out the light time today

Galaxy rasboras were going to be my second choice if you couldn't find Boraras species.

Trace elements are micro nutrients. Macro nutrients are Nitrate, Phosphorus, and Potassium.

llj

 

[ian]

looks good. You have done a good job at scaping the Biorb, its not an easy tank to scape (i know from experience). It'll be good to see it growing up. Why not start a journal or get this one moved into the journal section so it doesn't get lost.

 

[Ryefish]

Thanks for the replies Could i get this shifted over to the Journal section please? I didn't even think about it when i made the post/

Yes, the BiOrb is not the easiest tank to scape. Luckily i have it in the corner of a room, so i could try and build up at the back. The hardest was trying to figure out where to put the Bogwood. I originally had it laid on top of the filter box and tied the Anubias down, but the back of the tank looked really bare and patchy. For some reason, tying the Anubias didn't take as long the second time round

I don't know if the plants will survive, but i will do my best. I spent forever researching low light and hardy plants that would hopefully survive.

I am still hunting for a stone for the Java fern. I found two snails and i think they have been chomping on my beloved Anubias. Ive fished them out, and they are going to be fish food for my pond goldfish. I want to get an Apple Snail, so i can't really use anything to get rid of the snail except for fishing them out every time i see one.

Spent hours this morning carry out water changes to get the nitrItes (reading this AM was 0.50) and NitrAtes (reading was around 40) down to a tolerable level for the two Galaxy Rasbora i picked up

some bag pics for you:

 

[Dan-CR4]

thats looking real good. nicely done.

 

[Ryefish]

Is the 'Seachem Plant Pack: Fundamentals' worth buying?
The bottles are 100ml, but because my tank is so small they would last quite a long time (unless there is some sort of expiry date on them??)

Any honest opinions on if it would be beneficial to the plants in my tank considering i have no CO2 and low lighting etc.
Are there any problems that it could cause with regards to tank life (fish and inverts)?

 

[DAlmond123]

I use it. It lasts even 5-6 months for me and I have a 65 gallon tank.

 

[lljdma06]

Thanks for the replies Could i get this shifted over to the Journal section please? I didn't even think about it when i made the post/

Done deal.

llj

 

[Biulu]

Is the 'Seachem Plant Pack: Fundamentals' worth buying?
The bottles are 100ml, but because my tank is so small they would last quite a long time (unless there is some sort of expiry date on them??)

Any honest opinions on if it would be beneficial to the plants in my tank considering i have no CO2 and low lighting etc.
Are there any problems that it could cause with regards to tank life (fish and inverts)?

I use them too and they are ace! But as I have quite a large bioload, I mainly use the potassium.

 

[Ryefish]

I have put in an order
Im thinking i need to keep hold of the 1ml needless syringes i have from the vets as the dosing is going to be very small

 

[ian]

if ya in England, nip into boots an they'll sell you a syringe for 25p.

BTW the fish are looking good.

 

[Ryefish]

will i get any wierd looks asking for a syringe?? LOL (i live in north east england )
the one from the vets i used to dose ammonia so i dont think it would be a good idea using it again. It would be good if i could get one for each bottle of this stuff thats coming in the post.

My heater decided to almost cook my fish today at 28C (80F) i turned the heater down quite a bit and its around 26C, which i still feel is quite warm and would like lowering by about 2degree's.

The fish are getting braver well, the lighter one (known as 'she' lol her colouring is lighter and her fins are slightly different, not sure if it will change yet), is exploring more and the brighter one is still hiding a bit. My idiot of a friend came over to look at the fish, and because they were hiding proceeded to begin turning my tank round and round trying to get a good look at them I didn't realise at first because i was trying to configure the timer for the light. I wonder if she would have tried to turn it round if it was a rectangular tank?!


The Java Fern have some dodgy algae growing on it (somebody else posted about them today so i am reading up about it). It came in on the plants, and i'm hoping the water parameters behave so i don't have to start changing water. I suppose its a feast for the shrimp and the snail when i get them (?)