Roughyed's 13 Gallon

[jakeroberts]

i was just wondering y u had the water in ur tank so low

 

[lljdma06]

i was just wondering y u had the water in ur tank so low

I was going to ask that question myself. The lower the water level, the more opportunity light has to bounce all around and not penetrate downwards, which is where your plants need it to be. You can make your lights work better for you by filling up the tank if you can. Egeria is sometimes funny, a great weed, but it really prefers cooler temperatures. This tank is small and heated, which only compounds heating and temperature fluctuations, it may be quite warm in there for Egeria. It did best for me in my outdoor fountain in Winter (I live in Miami, FL), where the water temperature was at about 65 degrees F or so. It did alright for me in my indoor tanks, but especially when I removed the heat. It also did better for me in a non-CO2 environment. Otherwise, I really like the shape of this little tank, and the scape has some potential.

llj

 

[roughyed]

I was keeping the water low because my plants were turning up on different days (the joys on online purchasing!) and it seemed easier to plant things with a lower water level. Its now full!

The internal filter was pretty much the best I could get on my budget (£15 for an eheim is a bargain in my eyes), its bigger that what I had but I at least know it will do the job! As with everything its a compromise, and to be honest its not that big!

(and the substrate was eco-complete which shouldn't be washed if what I'm lead to beleive is correct?)

 

[roughyed]

Forgot to add a pic!

Tank is now a home to 5 x Neon Tetras and 5 x Algae Shrimp.

Was thinking of adding some corys (pygmaeus?) and 3 more tetras.

 

[Dave Spencer]

Looks good. I reckon smaller tanks such as this are tailor made for smaller leafed plants like Hemianthus micranthemoides, Micranthemum umbrosum, Rotala sp `Nanjenshan` etc...

P.S. Nice to have a fellow native of Bedfordshire in the planted community.

Dave.

 

[roughyed]

It looks like it down to 4 Neons already.....

 

[lljdma06]

It looks like it down to 4 Neons already.....

Sorry to hear, but perhaps you added them too soon. The tank is less than a month old, despite it being planted. Could also be just a bad batch. Neons can be twitchy. I'd wait a little on the pygmies, they tend to like a mature tank, at least that has been my experience with them.

llj

 

[roughyed]

Just a quick update...

I suffered a bad bacterial bloom a few day after adding 9 Neons and 5 Amano shrimp. It was so bad it stripped the tank of oxygen, leaving the fish gasping on the surface and the shrimp sitting on top of the thermometer above the water level.

To counteract it I did water changes (at 3am when I spotted it!!!), turned off the CO2, lifted the internal filter water spout above the water and turn on its 'bubbling' action. The tank cleared up in a day or so.

I slowly lost all but one neons and 2 of the shrimp over the next few days.

Before the bloom I had ordered some cherry shrimp, they arrived yesterday. Unfortunately 4 were dead (out of 8). The new 4 look bright and are active, so hopefully they will be OK.

So all in all not a good week! Its my first tank so I'm not happy! On the good note the shrimp (4 cherry and 3 amano) are making short work of some brown algae that was forming on the heater suction cups and on the crypt.

Now do I get more neons? Or leave this one guy on his own? He's outlived the rest by a few days now!

 

[roughyed]

A quick update -

The plants are all now growing well. Got a little brown algae/diotoms?

Added 2 Guppys and 3 cherry shrimp 2 weeks ago (bringing it to 2 guppies, 7 cherry shrimp, 3 Amano shrimp). 1 Guppy died last week (I think its a tank of death to fish!!!) however the shrimp look great, the cherries in particular are bright red.

And today I spotted baby shrimp!

So I'm using the theory I was unlucky with the guppy as if there was a problem with the tank they'd go first?

 

[Biulu]

The fact that you are seeing baby shrimp is a good sign I think! I like the set-up of your tank too. How are your plants coming along? Are they slowly filling up?

 

[nry]

I've often wondered about the smaller crypts which I think you have to the front-left of your tank? They seem to stay very small (my LFS has some in a tank which have been there for ages), no more than ~5-6cm in height. Nice little plants.

Do you monitor your CO2 levels? You may want to consider moving the diffuser much lower down in the water as this gives the bubbles a longer water contact time hence increasing the efficiency.

The tank was not really 'heavily' planted in the early days, this could explain the problems you had with the fish etc as it is likely you had a reasonable ammonia and nitrIte peak which the plants were not able to deal with very well due to their low numbers. Hopefully things have settled now!

 

[roughyed]

From the beginning of August -

To now -

The Dwarf sag is sending out lots of runners. The crypt is growing nicely. And the moss is settling in nicely. Added the red plant 2 weeks ago...not sure what it is! But it adds a nice different colour.

I have just got 2 more tanks! (More tank syndrome!) A 4 footer for £10 of eBay and 24"x12"x17" from my sis for free (got a fluval 2plus filter and hagen elite heater so is a decent tank! Just need lighting really).

 

[roughyed]

I've often wondered about the smaller crypts which I think you have to the front-left of your tank? They seem to stay very small (my LFS has some in a tank which have been there for ages), no more than ~5-6cm in height. Nice little plants.

Do you monitor your CO2 levels? You may want to consider moving the diffuser much lower down in the water as this gives the bubbles a longer water contact time hence increasing the efficiency.

The tank was not really 'heavily' planted in the early days, this could explain the problems you had with the fish etc as it is likely you had a reasonable ammonia and nitrIte peak which the plants were not able to deal with very well due to their low numbers. Hopefully things have settled now!

I check the CO2 once a week or so. I'm looking to get a permanent glass checker soon.

The main problem with the 'bloom' was that it didn't kill everything! If it had, I could of started again with a fishless cycle. I now have to be careful when I add the fish, hence the 2 (now 1 guppies!!)

The crypt is staying low but is growing outwards. It looks good, and is probably more manageable than the Dwarf Sag.

 

[Themuleous]

Looks excellent, the flash of red works well to If you could fill/bush the plants out a bit you could have a nice dutch style there

Sam

 

[roughyed]

Looks excellent, the flash of red works well to If you could fill/bush the plants out a bit you could have a nice dutch style there

Sam

What exactly is a dutch style? When in comparison to a Amano style?