# Headwater - Method's 75 G Paludarium (HMF + canister + RFUG)



## Method (Feb 13, 2011)

First off: I must acknowledge and thank many planted tankers on this forum who have either inspired me or served as inspirations for my current project. My stand is directly inspired from Hydrophyte's 'raw industrial style' http://www.plantedtank.net/forums/showthread.php?t=85748 . I also received several good ideas from people who posted on that thread. 

Ok, here's where we are so far:


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## Method (Feb 13, 2011)

Current build:

Tank- Deep Blue 75 G. Since I will only be filling the tank between 30% and 40%, I _may_ attempt a derimming.

Stand- 'Raw Industrial Style' 
Yes, there is a DVR and a PS3 under the tank :icon_eek:! You may also notice a sheet of acrylic in front of the right side. Toddlers like to push buttons...

Lights- 3 Par38 9X2 W LEDs with 120 degree optics. The lights are shaded by DIY shades made from Blanda Blank bowls from Ikea drilled with a 1.5" hole saw. The cords are Hemma, also from Ikea. I ran the cords through 0.5" EMT conduits which I bent and attached to the rear of the stand. The lights are both adjustable in height and dimmable.


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## Method (Feb 13, 2011)

The plan:

This will be a paludarium. It will have a false bottom set 6" above the tank bottom. 

Filtration: Multistage. The false bottom will support a Hamburger Mattenfilter (HMF) as per an earlier post of mine http://www.plantedtank.net/forums/showthread.php?t=536346 . A SunSun 404B will power the HMF and return the water via a reverse-flow undergravel filter (RFUG). 

Substrate: Not set on this yet, but I'll probably go with the coal slag from my deceased 55 gallon.

Scape: I really like the shape of the riparium at the bottom of this page http://www.aqua-rebell.com/aquascaping/andreas-ruppert-aquascaping.html . I will do something similar to this using polystyrene pads and drylok as rocks. It will almost certainly have a waterfall. 

Inspiration: A pool in a headwater stream

Plants: TBD, but including crypts, lilaeopsis mauritiana, and dwarf sag underwater, and orchids, tillandsia, mosses, and ferns above water. 

Fauna: Probably pygmy corys, my farlowella, otos, and possibly shrimp. If I don't do shrimp I may go for something to add some flash, such as cardinals, emerald eye rasboras, or pencil fish.


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## The Trigger (May 9, 2012)

Should be an awesome setup! Keep the updates coming!


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## Spiffyfish (Jan 30, 2014)

Looks promising, I really like how the lights came out.


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## thelub (Jan 4, 2013)

Those lights are genious. I might have to steal that idea. I'm eagerly waiting progress reports


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## howze01 (Dec 4, 2012)

Any chance of humidity issues with the tank that close to the TV?


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## Method (Feb 13, 2011)

howze01 said:


> Any chance of humidity issues with the tank that close to the TV?


I hope not. We'll find out!


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## Method (Feb 13, 2011)

thelub said:


> Those lights are genious. I might have to steal that idea. I'm eagerly waiting progress reports


Thank you. As with almost everything else I plan to do, the lights weren't all my idea. I just combined a few ideas I'd seen others use.

This is a quick mock-up of what I plan to do for the false bottom and HMF.


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## Method (Feb 13, 2011)

Haven't had as much time to work on this in the last couple weeks. I have made some progress in the last few days though! Here's a teaser


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## Cyanider (Mar 1, 2013)

Very cool tank idea - can't wait to see how it pans out! I LOVE all of the DIY you have going on here.. I wish I didn't live in an apartment so I could attempt to build my own stand. Can't wait to see the updates on this tank. Subscribed. 

Curious, where will the equipment for the tank go? Or will having the HMF avoid having a cabinet full of equipment? 

Also, hello fellow Marylander!


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## Method (Feb 13, 2011)

The waterfall pump, heater, and canister input and outflow will be hidden behind the mattenfilter. The reverse-flow undergravel filter will be... under the gravel. The canister itself fits nicely into the left hand side of the stand. 

So far everything is going according to plan. I'm currently carving the polystyrene rocks in preparation for painting and planting. 

I _should_ be able to start the dry-start process within a week or two.


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## Method (Feb 13, 2011)

Finally gotten some more work done! Here is the bottom, assembled from egg crate, PVC, and zip ties. A retaining wall made from corner guard will hold the sponge mattenfilter against the PVC uprights.


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## Method (Feb 13, 2011)

Here is the first layer of Black Diamond blasting sand with the RFUG filter return manifold over it. I intentionally designed the filter return to sit over a layer of blasting grit and substrate so I wouldn't sandblast the bottom of my tank. I'm pretty sure that's why my geriatric 55 gallon failed so spectacularly. You'll notice that the RFUG manifold gets fed from a pipe on the left side.


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## Method (Feb 13, 2011)

Here's the working side of the RFUG. All the pieces of PVC were just dry-fitted together. I've been told that should be sufficient for such a low-pressure application. Some of the pieces were scavenged from my last RFUG (hence the different colors).


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## Method (Feb 13, 2011)

Here are the two sections of the Hamburger Mattenfilter being prepped for moss growing. I did the general recipe of a big handful of moss blended with a cup of buttermilk and some molasses. Paints on pretty easily! These were done with a mixture of Christmas and java moss.


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## Method (Feb 13, 2011)

Here is the HMF installed. Sorry about the crappy light and the iphone pics.


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## Method (Feb 13, 2011)

Plenty of room for equipment behind the HMF! The pump that will power the waterfall is on an egg crate platform to keep it gunk free.


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## Method (Feb 13, 2011)

The rocks are installed! They aren't quite as accurate as I was hoping but it's my first foam rock scape. The 'rock' sits directly on the PVC uprights and the HMF but is otherwise unattached. The rock itself, like the HMF, is actually two pieces so that I can take it out for cleaning as needed.


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## Method (Feb 13, 2011)

Probably the last pic for a while as this grows in. The upper part of the rock is painted with a terrestrial moss smoothie, the lower with riccia. The three levels each have their own shallow pool. The highest one is planted with Lilaeopsis mauritiana, Hygrophila angustifolia, and creeping jenny. The middle level pool has Alternanthera reineckii, broad-leaved ludwigia, dwarf sag, and creeping jenny. The lowest level pool has Rotala colorata, Lobelia cardinalis (dwarf), one Crypt spiralis, glosso, and creeping jenny. In the middle right is a Phalaenopsis orchid. In the middle left is a Dendrobium orchid. The bottom right is an Amazon sword (currently submerged form). The far left and right are Tillandsia. The water level will eventually go to *almost* the top of the HMF.


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## Method (Feb 13, 2011)

It'll probably take a good while to grow in. In the mean time I'll keep it humid with some plastic wrap and play around with rocks and driftwood.


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## JoshBA (Aug 21, 2013)

Excellent start! I've never seen a paludarium built this way, so I'm very anxious to see how this tank progresses. I've seen the 'blended moss' method used in dart frog vivariums, but does it work equally well with regular aquarium mosses?

Any ideas for semi-aquatic animals?


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## lauraleellbp (Feb 3, 2008)

Excellent! I look forward to watching this one grow in, for sure. :icon_smil


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## jhays79 (Mar 28, 2012)

This is awesome! Looking forward to more updates!


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## SomeCanuck (Mar 25, 2012)

Great looking project! Can't wait to see it grow out.


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## Method (Feb 13, 2011)

JoshBA said:


> Excellent start! I've never seen a paludarium built this way, so I'm very anxious to see how this tank progresses. I've seen the 'blended moss' method used in dart frog vivariums, but does it work equally well with regular aquarium mosses?
> 
> Any ideas for semi-aquatic animals?


No terrestrial or semi-aquatic animals planned. 

I bought a bunch of water/humidity-loving terrarium plants and put them on the hardscape. The moss never seemed to grow, but the mold did. It seems that I collected a acrocarpous moss instead of a pleurocarpous species, and they don't do as well. I have gone ahead and flooded the tank. The triple filter seems to work pretty well, as does the waterfall pump. Pictures to follow as soon as the water clears.


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## johnson18 (Apr 29, 2011)

This is a cool looking build! I can't wait to see what it looks like once everything has filled in!


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## Method (Feb 13, 2011)

Finally got the water in and got the tank partially planted. I added some Java and Christmass moss to the part of the hardscape that stays wet. Hopefully they'll attach.

All the submersed plants either came from my quarantine tank or from generous RAOKs from tpt.net. It looks like a case of collectoritis but isn't. I just needed some plant biomass!

Submersed Flora:
hygrophila difformis - wisteria
hygrophila angustifolia 
hygrophila polysperma - sunset hygro
cryptocoryne wendtii 
cryptocoryne spiralis 
sagittaria subulata - dwarf sag
Echinodorus amazonicus - Amazon sword
Microsorum pteropus - Java fern
Anubias barteri var. nana - dwarf anubias
Anubias heterophylla
Ludwigia repens - broad leaf Ludwigia
Rotala colorata
Rotala rotundifolia
Bacopa caroliniana

Fauna: none yet, save for a few guinea pig snails. Contemplating One-lined pencilfish, pygmy corys, or Emerald-eye Rasboras. Farley, my Farlowella will be included. Once the plants grow in heavily I might add RCS.

Please excuse the crappy iPhone pic


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## Strouty (May 10, 2014)

That looks very nice. I joined the forum to learn more about paludariums.


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## husonfirst (Sep 12, 2009)

Looking good so far.


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## Lucubration (Jun 20, 2013)

Looks great. I really like your idea to use the lower "background" as your filter.


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## Method (Feb 13, 2011)

Lucubration said:


> Looks great. I really like your idea to use the lower "background" as your filter.


Thanks!

It's going really well so far. After about a week the cycle is *almost* complete. It was speedy, but I'm not sure if the brief duration was due to the large filtration capacity, the plants, or the mulm from the quarantine tank. Probably all of the above The tank can clear 5 ppm ammonia, and the attendant nitrites, in just over 24 hours. I should be able to start stocking soon!


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## Method (Feb 13, 2011)

Yep, cycle complete. You guys think pygmy corys and one-lined pencil fish would leave RCS alone enough for a breeding colony?


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## burr740 (Feb 19, 2014)

Really fantastic looking build so far. I have a 20L in a perfect place Im really wanting to do something like a mini version of this, sans maybe the triple filter deal. Very much looking forward to watching it progress. Thanks for sharing.


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## Method (Feb 13, 2011)

burr740 said:


> Really fantastic looking build so far. I have a 20L in a perfect place Im really wanting to do something like a mini version of this, sans maybe the triple filter deal. Very much looking forward to watching it progress. Thanks for sharing.


Thanks for the kudos! If you do the whole carved polystyrene thing, I'd suggest making a DIY foam cutter. Terribly easy. 

My next steps are stocking with fish/shrimp and borrowing a decent camera from my buddy.


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## Tihsho (Oct 10, 2007)

Everything looks amazing so far, but I'd definitely look into adding a bunch more Crypts to add a more natural feel to the current layout. A nice section of a Crypt jungle with your Anubias and Java Ferns on the wood... Maybe I'm just planning my version of this


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## Method (Feb 13, 2011)

And we have shrimp!


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## Method (Feb 13, 2011)

Archerofthemoon said:


> Everything looks amazing so far, but I'd definitely look into adding a bunch more Crypts to add a more natural feel to the current layout. A nice section of a Crypt jungle with your Anubias and Java Ferns on the wood... Maybe I'm just planning my version of this


I thought this was a good suggestion, and in line with what I'd planned. I replaced most of the stems with crypts (wendtii and spiralis). 

Just finished stocking: 18 pygmy corys, 12 emerald eyed rasboras, 10 otos, and a farlowella. Also 25 nicely colored RCS, courtesy of dasob85! 

One further thought. This tank has been set up for just over a month and I've had ZERO algae. None of the usual GDA, GSA, BBA, new tank syndrome stuff. My lights are probably somewhere on the high end of low or the low end of medium. I say this because my Telanthera, Hygro angustifolia, and Rotala colorata are all doing great. I don't know if this has more to do with the filtration or the low light.

Hopefully I'll get access to a DSLR soon and take some real pics.


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## Tihsho (Oct 10, 2007)

Just take some cell pics jeeze. I want to see where you put the plants you got from me went!


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## 180g (May 20, 2014)

archerofthemoon said:


> just take some cell pics jeeze. I want to see where you put the plants you got from me went!


+9000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000001


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## vanish (Apr 21, 2014)

We need an update! (with pics)


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## Method (Feb 13, 2011)

Ok, more iphone pics. I learned how to adjust the exposure a little. 

Full tank shot


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## Method (Feb 13, 2011)

Left side


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## Method (Feb 13, 2011)

Right side


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## Method (Feb 13, 2011)

Left ledge


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## Method (Feb 13, 2011)

Right ledge


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## Method (Feb 13, 2011)

Set up for late night viewing! :smile:


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## 180g (May 20, 2014)

awesome! I have never been a fan of half aquatic and half terrestrial tanks but this one is cool! great job


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## Method (Feb 13, 2011)

Two and a half months in and still haven't had any algae. Currently working on DIY planters to add some bigger emergent plants to the background. The tank is swarming with baby RCS and pygmy corys. 

No submerged plants have died; I was sure the Telanthera wouldn't have enough light, but it's looking pretty good. Its growth is SLOW. I've had to repeatedly trim the Ludwigia on the right side. The Amazon sword is also growing slowly, probably due to the low light. Hopefully it'll find the water's surface and send up emergent leaves and flower spikes. I don't mind if it takes over the whole right side of the tank. Dwarf sag is putting out runners, all the hygros are growing well, and the java ferns are multiplying. Pogostemon and Staurogyne aren't doing much, but my Farlowella seems to keep bumping into and uprooting them.

The flow in this tank is so spread out by the RFUG and HMF that I can't actually see any movement of plants. I measured the flow rate at the HMF with some food dye and it takes it about 30 seconds to transit the foam. I still have the canister, which claims 530 gph but I'm guessing it's half that, and the intermittent waterfall pump, which should draw about 90gph. So the flow rate is fairly massive but the current is almost nonexistent. So far the foam sheets that make up the HMF are still crystal clear and unclogged. The overhanging rock has protected them from BBA but also shades the foam too much to grow an algae wall. Oh well.

Emersed plants are doing well. My Anubias heterophylla and nana are growing well with their rhizomes below water and their leaves above. Java/Christmass moss is starting to cover pretty large portions of the rockwork and has to be trimmed in spots. I moved the trimmings to the diagonal log to catch spray from the waterfall. All the orchids have put out new leaves and nice green roots. The bromeliad and Tillandsia have both put out several pups and I've replanted the former. The Hemianthus and Hydrocotyle are absolute beasts growing emersed and being periodically flooded; they've both needed fairly major trims. As soon as I can get these planters finished I'm adding a Cyperus papyrus, a maidenhair fern, and an Alocasia. I'll probably replant the Louisiana and Japanese irises into the new planters; they seem to be doing a little better after an initial struggle but still aren't as healthy as I'd like. 

I've eradicated a small duckweed infestation; now I need to turn my attention to getting rid of the pond and ramshorn snails. They eat cory eggs, but the MTS don't. I could probably vacuum up some of the empty snail shells that the assassins have left behind. 

So far so good!


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## maddmaxx (Aug 11, 2013)

Great to see another Paludarium


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## Method (Feb 13, 2011)

Just got back from a 5 day Florida vacation. Accidentally left my lights on the whole time. Still no algae! :smile:


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## CannaBrain (Oct 3, 2008)

Hmm, I've missed this one! I'm always checkin the viv/palu section!

Looks good!


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## Tihsho (Oct 10, 2007)

Any updates on this?


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## Method (Feb 13, 2011)

I'll clean it up a little and take some pics. The emersed portion is a jungle and the underwater portion is a little dark...


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## Method (Feb 13, 2011)

*Long-overdue update (sort of)*

When I bring home some brighter lights from school I'll take a FTS. I just replanted all of my remaining plants after donating most of them to http://www.plantedtank.net/forums/12-tank-journals/961338-methods-classroom.html. Somehow this has evolved into an 'all-rosette' tank underwater (actually doing something @Tihsho recommended some time ago) and a more-or-less all-stem above ground portion. 

Here's a pic for you: 










So two plant ID questions: What kind of crypt is sending up the spathe? I'm guessing it's a C. wendtii green. Second question- what is the variegated stem between the crypt and the Ludwigia peruensis? I think it's either a Rotala indica, an R. colorata, or maybe a Ludwigia repens. I know I could grow a stem out underwater to find out, but I'm lazy! :grin2:

FTS to follow when I get better lighting and when my Phalaenopsis orchid opens it's first blooms (the currently growing flower spike is about 4" long).


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## Method (Feb 13, 2011)

Last pic was this summer before it was taken down to turn into a dart frog vivarium. It was a good run! The orchids grew their roots down into the water and each bloomed several times. 










This was after a major die-off of most of my sagittaria subulata for unknown reasons. I always suspected that something I put into the background kept leaching into the water. It could be something more simple of course.


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## Maryland Guppy (Dec 6, 2014)

@Method is still with us! :grin2:


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## Method (Feb 13, 2011)

Maryland Guppy said:


> @Method is still with us! :grin2:


Yes indeed my friend! I've been spending most of my time over on the dart frog board. 

I need to start a journal for my classroom aquaponics tanks. Not extremely aesthetically pleasing, but I love having homegrown tomatoes in February :grin2:


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