Rhy's First Planted Tank Ever :)

[Rhykiru]

no problem xP

you know whats my next problem, the outtake of the xp3. I use the spray bar and yesterday after like 6 hours, the water curved down the front glass and swept away all the sand, slowly but steady. I saw glass lol. I evened out the sand and this morning, its like that again. I dont want to adjust the spray bar too much because when i point it upwards, it creates a lot of surface agitation which i think outgasses c02 D:

I wish i had riccie or java moss to put on the front

p.s. i wont be back for another 9 hours *mumble >.>*
so if you reply, im sorry if i can answer lol

 

[jimbooo]

hasn't the XP3 got an adjustable flow? if so just turn it down a bit or have you tried that.

 

[nry]

If you're going to up the lighting and keep using the Nutrafin CO2 kit then you need way way way more plants at least initially to reduce the likelihood of an algae outbreak and you might want to consider using two bottles and a T-join to feed the Nutrafin ladder - I am guessing you have read the pinned article on how to make the DIY mix for this kit? Much cheaper and using two bottles, changing one bottle mix every 3-4 days, keeps CO2 levels much more stable.

With vallis, java fern and tiger lotus you won't need lots of light, though I appreciate the need to spread the light more evenly across the whole width of the tank.

 

[Rhykiru]

hm, im thinking of maybe getting wisteria and riccia/java moss to cover the front side of the tank.

doh, i never thought of adjusting the flow for the xp3, i even have it hooked up

another bottle for c02? Do you mean i should buy another of those canisters or use the canister i have now with a DIY bottle one? Also, how often should i change the c02 in the canister if i use it by itself? I still have two more packets that they gave with the thing.

yeah nry, the lighting is fine but the only thing is the light doesnt reach every corner. I had to throw away pretty much the whole plant in the back right corner because no light was there D:

 

[nry]

You can just add another DIY bottle - the sachets with the Nutrafin kits are generally considered a bit rubbish with very mixed results on CO2 output. The pinned thread on this forum has a simple mix (sugar and yeast) which works much better and is much cheaper. Change each bottle weekly but on different schedules, e.g. change bottle1 on Wednesdays and bottle2 on Sundays, this keeps CO2 output pretty stable.

 

[Rhykiru]

oh ok, thanks

anyways, my dad built me a light hood thingie while i was away this morning
It has two 24'' 20 watt bulbs and i can really see a difference.
The only problem is its kinda bulky, im waiting for him to get back home to ask him some questions about modifying it a bit lol.

Also, are neon tetras and corys good jumpers? Because i dont have a hood but if i needed, i will get one. Corys im unsure about because i think they sometimes dash to the top for air and that might make them go up and over...

Im going to michaels right now to buy a spray paint for to paint the light black so it matches now :3

 

[Rhykiru]

*UPDATE*

omg... i just like typed this all then i accidentally pressed back......................................... its gonna be shorter now lol

ok so retyping, i just reaaranged everything yesterday, new rocks, moved the wood up etc..

Tank shot (with new light)

New area:

I have a problem with the spray bar, i finally got it to not move the sand on the front of the tank by adjusting it and aiming it higher, but now there is more surface aggitation which i think can outgas c02. So, i dont want to make the flow any smaller since i have probably cut it 1/3-1/2 its power. From the pics, does it look like a lot of surface aggitation or is it ok?

fishless cycle
Its going faster than i expected. Yesterday, i tested it and i saw no ammonia or nitrite so i added 160 drops of ammonia and then somehow it got to 5 ppm But then today, i just tested it and there is barely any ammonia left (less than .25 ppm) and the nitrite is at 1. I will keep doing this until saturday when i hopefully will be able to go buy my stock and stock it fully. Current stock is 5 corys and 15 neons o.o

 

[Rhykiru]

edit: gah, im getting hit with diatoms ><

real edit: i thought i pressed the edit button >.> sorry <.<

 

[Themuleous]

Ottos love diatoms

Sam

 

[Rhykiru]

oh ok. I dont know if i will need them though, it "seems" like its going away

anyways, my tank is so messed up right now lol. I moved the wood around, got some river stones. Hopefully i will be able to get some java moss.
The tiger lotus is growing HUGE and fast in this tank.

Also, i have a question about fertalizing, i dont really want to get into dry dosing and ei stuff (i cant always remember with school stuff etc), so is it ok if i just use the Seachem flourish line? I have a bottle of Excel already that i got for 4 dollars but should i also dose the iron one and the supplement thingie one?

ill update with pics either tomorrow or saturday.

 

[Themuleous]

Yeh diatoms usually go away once the tank matures.

If the lighting isn't to high and the plants you add aren't too demanding yes just using flourish should work well

Sam

 

[Rhykiru]

omg, this is so wierd. My cycle is like re-cycling. on thursday i added about 100 drops of ammonia *or around there* and yesterday, the ammonia reading was around 5... Nitrite is 0 but i wouldnt be suprised if the reason for that was because the ammonia wasnt being processed at all and so the nitrite bacteria died too...

This happened around the time i started dosing excel. Just curious, when you buy excel, when you open it, is there a seal or something on the top? When i bought mine, I justed opened the cap and used it, no opening or anything

update with pics soon when i can find my camera cord...

 

[Rhykiru]

Update:

as said in the above post, im so mad with the fishless cycle ><

heres the pics:

so i got my moss (java)

this is what i put it on

this is what is left over (went to fry tank and betta tank)

this is the vallisneria now... i have to prune so much although one plant has sent out two runners already.

this is the anubias a got, on the thing it says its a barteri. 5 dollars for something that big? i think thats good

semi tank shot with the anubias and tiger lotus.

also, i adjusted the spray so now it sprays at the top left part of the tank to the right.

hm, i dont have a pic of the moss carpet lol. I will try to find the camera now.
anyways, now i have problem with the outake is that the front right section of the tank, the sand is being blown everywhere.

UGH, again, i dont know why my fishless cycle is so wierd, any thoughts?

 

[Rhykiru]

well, i was gonna wait for someone to reply before updating but no ones going to so....

Ok, i just totally redid the aquascape. I got it to something i like better, except the right part of the tank which you will see. I want to a add a piece of slate with java moss on top and make a cave but i cant find any flat rocks.

so heres the pics.

full tank shot

did i ever show you the hood my dad built and how i can open it like so xD

left side

middle

right side

also, the fishless cycle is doing better... I have no idea what happened. Im thinking of making another bottle for the c02 but i dont know how i can even test it in the first place.

Still dont know what stocking i should get either...
any suggestions? I want some corys as before and probably neons. I wish my lfs's has some cockatoo dwarf cichlids ><

 

[Themuleous]

Looks good

Sam