My new 4 liter [Archive]

rclover

24th May 2005, 11:35 PM

http://onfinite.com/libraries/467491/a1f.jpg
http://onfinite.com/libraries/467492/e81.jpg

6700k bulb(not sure how many watts yet. suggestions?)
15 cm cube
ADA powersand small
ADA amazonia
Filter unsure at this moment(deco filter?)
Some shrimp(too many to choose from to know for sure)
taiwan moss foreground only

What do you guys think? Black or white background?

simcb

25th May 2005, 01:15 AM

6700k bulb(not sure how many watts yet. suggestions?)
15 cm cube
ADA powersand small
ADA amazonia
Filter unsure at this moment(deco filter?)
Some shrimp(too many to choose from to know for sure)
taiwan moss foreground only

What do you guys think? Black or white background?

Hi,

Wow your ada soil is so thick and you are using power sand too?

IMO,you have too much ADA for your small tank. Ada release a little ammonia and you will be facing high nitrate problem later on that is if you have good filteration to break down those ammonia. If you are getting mainly moss and no co2 dont use to much ada soil. The moss dont take in much NH3 and NO3.

I am facing high nitrate problem with thick ADA in my moss only tank and i have to do frequent water change in order to reduce the NO3 levels. Hope you dont encounter the same problem as me in the future.

rclover

25th May 2005, 03:58 AM

ok I will keep that in mind, i have a small layer of power sand under I will take about 1 cm of Aquasoil out. So your saying that ada leeks into the water colum?

simcb

25th May 2005, 05:49 AM

ok I will keep that in mind, i have a small layer of power sand under I will take about 1 cm of Aquasoil out. So your saying that ada leeks into the water colum?

If you not going for rooted plants you dont need thick ada gravels. It depends what on you are planting. If you are doing heavily planted then its ok. My moss only tank has a slightly problem cause it isnt heavily planted yet.

Sorry forgot to ask are you planning a high maintance tank with co2? If yes ada is fine.

rclover

25th May 2005, 06:03 AM

low main. low light no co2. what do you suggest?

simcb

25th May 2005, 08:17 AM

low main. low light no co2. what do you suggest?

Try reducing ada soil thickness by a few inchs or cm you dont need so much unless you are planting deep. You will need more plants and I guess you dont need add fert at all.

BTW is it a 15cm by 15cm tank? I guess its too small to put anything in....its only around 1 Liter of water. I guess can only accomodate 1or 2 shrimps ? If you want to keep more shrimp you need 1ft at least.

rclover

25th May 2005, 03:25 PM

well the ada thickness is 1 inch in the front to 3 inch in the back. And it holds 3.5 liters, 6"x6" cube

kc_c

26th May 2005, 01:25 AM

Based on my calculation, you have less than 2 litres of water, if you were are not going to fill the tank to the rim.

This is a very delicate operation.

Take care. :)

kross

26th May 2005, 02:51 AM

Watch out for PH crash using thick ada on such a small tank.

rclover

27th May 2005, 03:33 AM

Ok, due to all the warnings I decided to forget ada and go sith some osio sand, what do you guys think now?

rclover

31st May 2005, 10:13 AM

Ok here's an update picture, I think it's better than before.
http://onfinite.com/libraries/474583/26f.jpg took out all the powersand, aqua soil only now.

retardo

1st Jun 2005, 06:26 AM

are you planning on adding any plants?

rclover

1st Jun 2005, 10:06 PM

taiwan moss, still need to buy the mesh.

silane

3rd Jun 2005, 09:07 AM

Ok here's an update picture, I think it's better than before.
http://onfinite.com/libraries/474583/26f.jpg took out all the powersand, aqua soil only now.

Nice depth, it has. I think you have to measure the PH very regularly, to make sure it does not goes too acidic.

rclover

3rd Jun 2005, 11:06 AM

I will measure the ph in the beginning of setup, What fish do you recommend? Not shrimps or bettas.

silane

3rd Jun 2005, 12:43 PM

Raboras should be nice, small fishes for nano tank. :)

rclover

3rd Jun 2005, 09:24 PM

How many fishes?

rclover

12th Jun 2005, 11:53 PM

http://onfinite.com/libraries/490279/be3.jpg dwarf riccia is in, I don't know about the rest.. maybe rotala in the back? I'm not sure.

retardo

13th Jun 2005, 02:30 AM

How many fishes?

I dont' think you should put in more than 5 rasboras, given the size (maybe even less than 5).

simcb

13th Jun 2005, 02:48 AM

As for fishes, i would like to recommend species of the genus Boraras. They are with an average size of 2cm, little bioload and small appetite good for low maintance tanks. Ya forgot to mention they display nice colors if the water is good.

Not sure if your lfs has any, get 3-6 fishes depending on how crowded your tank is. Its hard to estimate a for small tank. I am keeping 2 them in in my 2 feet shrimp tanks to keep the rotifers and other wiggles in check.

Here are some link to a few of my favourites:
Boraras brigittae
http://www.fishbase.org/Summary/Spe...sname=brigittae
Boraras maculatus
http://www.fishbase.org/Summary/Spe...sname=maculatus
Boraras merah
http://www.fishbase.org/Summary/Spe...eciesname=merah

rclover

13th Jun 2005, 03:21 AM

They are so rare in america though.

retardo

13th Jun 2005, 08:08 AM

Is there an LFS in your area with a owner that is into rare species? Around here, the SF Bay Area, we have a few shops with owners that go out of their way to try and get you what you ask for. I got my Bororas Maculatas from Albany Aquarium (which, btw, does occasionally ship livestock and plants, if you ask). Look them up (http://www.albanyaquarium.com).

rclover

13th Jun 2005, 02:32 PM

I mean, I can get them but big hassle...

GunmetalBlue

14th Jun 2005, 07:24 PM

Hi Rclover, just a quick comment to say, you sure have a great eye for arrangement. Your yet unfinished tank already looks good to me! Looking forward to seeing the finished product.

May I ask if those are found rocks or something you get at the LFS? Thanks.

-GB

rclover

14th Jun 2005, 09:08 PM

I got it at a lfs, do you live in southern california?

GunmetalBlue

15th Jun 2005, 06:15 AM

Yup, you too? So someplace like Tongs perhaps? I notice they have a lot of stuff...

rclover

15th Jun 2005, 11:16 AM

I got the rocks in a little pet shop in arcadia city

rclover

19th Jun 2005, 10:10 AM

http://onfinite.com/libraries/498340/52d.jpg
ok, here it is as of now, and I took this picture to compare relative size.

ArcheNova

19th Jun 2005, 01:07 PM

Looks great meanwhile! Very nice tank!

rclover

21st Jun 2005, 04:16 AM

http://onfinite.com/libraries/500430/d8e.jpg
http://onfinite.com/libraries/500431/9ce.jpg
I must say, ADA aquasoil really does work, the HC is taking off in a tank without co2 or powersand, nice.

Walter

21st Jun 2005, 06:54 AM

Nice landscape :D Looks like an inselberg.. :D I always loved natural looking tanks haha.. And your cherries are pretty large too, bred already? :)

rclover

21st Jun 2005, 02:02 PM

those cherries are actually about 1 cm. I plan on swapping them out for bee shrimps next week.

GunmetalBlue

21st Jun 2005, 07:08 PM

Wow! It's like magic, I still don't know how you pull this off, and so seemingly easy. Looks great, Rclover! I'm very tempted to try my hand at it, but am worried about controlling water conditions and temperature (don't want to accidently kill any shrimp). So are you foregoing filtration and running the tank exactly as it looks in the picture? What will routine maintenance be in terms of how often and how much water change, etc.?

BTW, found a LFS that has a bunch of rocks similar to yours, they sell it by the pound. :)

-GB

rclover

21st Jun 2005, 09:36 PM

What lfs did you find them at? I only do top offs and add a little of excel each time.

GunmetalBlue

22nd Jun 2005, 08:44 PM

Saw the selection of rocks at a small store called "Strictly Fish." It's just off the 605 freeway in the Lakewood/Long Beach area. Next time I'm at Ikea, I'll have to look for a square glass vase. Thanks for the step-by-step with pics, was really helpful. :)

-GB

rclover

23rd Jun 2005, 01:29 AM

Ok, there will still be more pics soon.

rclover

28th Jun 2005, 11:15 PM

http://onfinite.com/libraries/510356/a2b.jpg
Thanks, here's an update.

Observations:
In a small tank like this with only fauna co2, the leaves of plants are smaller(thinner).
Shrimps in an unregulated temperature environment tend to be less active.
The only algae I have is greenspot.
Dosing excel and flourish every sunday and wednesday.
Top offs every sunday.
Plants are doing great in aquasoil only.
Riccia is growing great even though it is not a rooted plant. Doubled in size.
Rotala sp. vietnam is doing great with some pink even though is is not planted.

simcb

29th Jun 2005, 01:42 AM

According to my own observation, shrimps tend to be less active when there is high level of NO3. Maybe u should test for it and tell us how many mg/per liter is your tank parameters. I am curious.

You added some cherries instead of fish? Anyway hope you succeed in breeding those shrimps and keep us update on the progress of your nano tank.

rclover

29th Jun 2005, 02:33 AM

My plan at first was to add some boraras but they are hard to find or expensive around here so I didn't, then I got some free cherries in the so I just added them in the tank because I didnt have any room anywhere else. I alos planned to add CRS but I couldnt get them on time so I ordered bee shrimps which I will pick up tomorrow morning so the cherries will be moved out soon and bee shrimp will be in.

John

rclover

9th Jul 2005, 11:00 PM

http://onfinite.com/libraries/526711/3f2.jpg
http://onfinite.com/libraries/526710/ed2.jpg http://onfinite.com/libraries/526712/953.jpg
Here's a little something, still waiting on that Ranalisma Rostrata to come in, the hc has been growing nicely, and the Riccia has grown 5x it's original size. Pretty happy with this tank.

rclover

16th Jul 2005, 10:20 PM

http://onfinite.com/libraries/538419/f79.jpg
Here's the lastest, I don't know if you guys can see the Ranalisma rostrata I just planted this week, got a few stems and they are doing great in the ada aquasoil. Now is just pruning and waiting for stuff to fill in. Meanwile I'm practicing my photography skills.

amber2461

17th Jul 2005, 07:31 AM

What fishes are those? They sure are purdy.

rclover

7th Aug 2005, 11:17 PM

http://i11.photobucket.com/albums/a161/jzhang1013/3l87.jpg
Took out all the tetras. Had a sudden outburst of ostracods, but that is not fixed(I hope). all the plants are suddenly growing fast as if I added co2 but the only I add is excel 1-2x a week. Now I have to wait for grow out and trim. 2 out of 3 cherries are pregnate, the ratio is 2 males to 3 females.

Walter

10th Aug 2005, 12:16 PM

So how many shrimps are in there? :D The plants are growing nicely, I don't think you need to trim, looks nice. :D

rclover

10th Aug 2005, 04:25 PM

The riccia bushes are pretty big and the rocks has hole so some are in there.

rclover

19th Aug 2005, 12:05 AM

http://i11.photobucket.com/albums/a161/jzhang1013/3l818.jpg
Here it is after a week of me on vacation, no deaths. I don't see any shrimplets though... the plants grew like weeds, hc grows so fast even without co2, very big difference, the Ranalisma rostrata, turns out to be too short for this tank, the riccia just totally covers it, I might try some e. tenellus micro now. Now just a trim and a few more fix up this tank will be ready for a contest photo.

rclover

21st Aug 2005, 10:23 PM

http://i11.photobucket.com/albums/a161/jzhang1013/3l821.jpg
http://i11.photobucket.com/albums/a161/jzhang1013/3l821_2.jpg
Contest material? Almost...

retardo

22nd Aug 2005, 05:45 AM

Contest material? Almost...

The nano tank looks good, but IMO, it would look better with more plants than just HC and riccia.

Walter

22nd Aug 2005, 11:08 AM

I think it is quite nice already. Maybe a few tall plants at the foreground? :)

rclover

22nd Aug 2005, 04:51 PM

It does have Ranalisma rostrata

retardo

23rd Aug 2005, 01:39 AM

It does have ramalisa

Where?! :huh: Am I totally blind? Is it a slow grower? I've never heard of this plant.

rclover

23rd Aug 2005, 04:07 AM

That plant is a fast grower, it only grows to be around 1.5 inch tall so the riccia is covering it, I will replace it with e tenellus micro when the time comes to tank contest photos or when i decide to rip it out and use it on another tank.

rclover

9th Sep 2005, 02:24 AM

http://i11.photobucket.com/albums/a161/jzhang1013/3l98.jpg
Second batch of cherries sighted.

dom

9th Sep 2005, 02:35 AM

wow..that is beautiful. I hate riccia....coz shrimp will unroot them and floating all the time. Have you consider to replace the riccia with mosses?

rclover

9th Sep 2005, 02:47 AM

I have had several instances where the shrimp have rooted a little riccia, no much so that isn't a big problem, if it does happen I will try some java moss to hold the riccia together.

rclover

18th Sep 2005, 10:02 PM

http://i11.photobucket.com/albums/a161/jzhang1013/3l918.jpg
More eggs. The HC has been finally cut, I was hesitating whether or not to cut such an expensive plant, in the end it turned out alright, now I have enough for my 2.5g. What does everyone think?

simcb

19th Sep 2005, 01:37 AM

rclover

19th Sep 2005, 02:54 AM

Excel is the co2 source, never had algae in this tank, thanks to the riccia.

simcb

20th Sep 2005, 01:23 AM

Excel is the co2 source, never had algae in this tank, thanks to the riccia.

I see i guess u have a low bioload too. I used to nuke excel but i stopped because i notice its not so friendly for Bee type shrimps. They will go crazy for a while when excel is added.