# 'Stumptown' 90cm ADA (Updates page 5 8-24-07)



## SPL-311 (Aug 7, 2006)

Let me preface this thread by saying this is my first fully planted tank set up from scratch, and boy is it a lot of work! In the past I’ve done quite a few South American Cichlid tanks that have progressed towards more heavily planted tanks, and now I want to try my hand at a dedicated aquatic garden.

The first step of the project was to assemble all the necessary hardware:
•	90cm x 45cm x 45cm ADA cube garden aquarium
•	Eheim 2224 canister filter
•	Cal Aqua Labs glass lily pipes
•	Hydor 200w in-line heater
•	150w HQI 10,000k Aquamedic Metal Halide pendant (e-ballast)
•	10lb Co2 tank w/smiths regulator & needle valve
•	Rinox 5000 Co2 diffuser
•	4x 9-liter bags of Aquasoil Amazonia
•	Driftwood collected from ponds in Eastern Minnesota
•	Plants scavenged from previous tanks

I built a stand for this tank using 1” 9-ply birch I reclaimed from some old laboratory cabinets. The stand required a lot of work and many hours of sanding, priming and painting to get an acceptable finish. In the end though I’m happy with my efforts, and the stand is exactly as I need it to be. Here is a shot of the base before assembly to give you an idea of how the wood was joined:









I used automotive body filler (bondo) to smooth the joints between the panels, and to fill any imperfections in the wood. Then I primed the entire stand with 3 coats of KILZ 2 primer/sealer, followed by heavy sanding:








3 coats of Duplicolor medium grey automotive paint and 2 coats of clear later and the finish is passable. At this point I fabricated the lighting stand using L-angle aluminum bar – it required quite some finesse to produce flush joints all around. The stand is designed is such a way that it will appear almost as solid box section tubing when viewing the tank:








After the tank stand dried I mounted the Co2 tank:








And power strip/lighting ballast:








Then called it a night. The planting would have to wait for Sunday.


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## SPL-311 (Aug 7, 2006)

After moving all the equipment into place in my apartment, I spent a good amount of time with a level and a pack of shims compensating for the slanted floors in my living room. Next I mocked up a hardscape arrangement:








And when I was happy there laid down the Aquasoil and made the final adjustments to my driftwood:
















At this point a little entertainment was necessary:








And I began the planting process. After marking out the approximate planting lines with BBQ skewers:








I finally started planting out the Glosso, but took quit some time. The dwarf sag and chain sword went more quickly:








Followed by the stem plants in the background. Sorry I don’t have many pictures of the planting process, but my hands were full! Anyhow, here is the final product on the first night of run in. The water is still a bit cloudy, but it should be crystal clear in a week or two.









































Thanks for looking, any suggestions, constructive criticism or comments are most welcome.


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## Steven_Chong (Sep 14, 2004)

Nice start dude. It's certainly an interesting lay out. Looking forward to its development.


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## Wasserpest (Jun 12, 2003)

Awesome, thanks for sharing the construction details. Tank came out lovely. Are you leaving the stand open?

I am always a little concerned with these open topped tanks... with kids around, this is kinda risky. Daddy - shrimpies looked hungry, I gave them some spaghetti... But it looks beautiful for sure.

Looking forward to some new pics once things have settled in a little.


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## Solstice (Jan 9, 2006)

Most excellent work! The stand came out beautifully. I really like the idea of using Bondo to smooth out the joints. I'll have to remember that one. Can't wait to see it fill in!


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## hOAGART (May 13, 2004)

Sad thing was I was more interested in the Technics & record after I saw that pic ..


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## |GTO| (Oct 9, 2006)

i really like your driftwood arrangement and your planning.

nice stand as well--youve put some nice work into this new gem   

im looking forward to progress as well. thanks for the post--even more inspiration for the future!! 

cheers,


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## SPL-311 (Aug 7, 2006)

OH! I forgot to mention the doors for the stand. They're still down in my garage, waiting for paint. I wanted to get the tank planted out this weekend while I had some spare time - the doors will go on later this week.



hOAGART said:


> Sad thing was I was more interested in the Technics & record after I saw that pic ..


hehehe, the turntable is new to me too. It's the SL-1350 (only made '75-'76) changer. Super convienent for me, you can stack up to 6 records and it will drop and play them consecutively. great fun.


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## ringram (Jan 19, 2005)

Very clean, nice looking setup. Can't wait to see pictures when it matures. The tank is 3 feet, so is it a 50g? Looks nice. Did you get it from aqua forest by chance? Nice hardscape w/ the wood. I might even have added more. Keep us updated on the progress!
-Ryan


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## mr.sandman (Nov 7, 2006)

Love your woods it looks like a tree in a jungle


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## DiabloCanine (Aug 26, 2005)

Nice job......DC


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## TheOtherGeoff (Feb 11, 2003)

did you have to anchor or soak that wood before you used it that way? im really wanting to do that but affarid of having to soak some big ol logs.


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## fresh_lynny (Mar 9, 2006)

Really nice DIY job....I am cracking up at WP and spaghetti in the tank....lol
Anyway, It will be interesting to see it grow in. It certainly is beautiful.


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## guitardude9187 (Aug 22, 2006)

gorgeous tank! and the the driftwood looks awesome


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## Nightshop (May 12, 2006)

Wow, your equipment choice is awesome, not to mention a great layout! I love the drift wood and your plant choice!

Anything beneath the Aquasoil? Use any powersand?


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## Marc (Oct 13, 2004)

SPL-311 - you wouldnt happen to be a member of SFBAAPS would you?


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## gabeszone247 (Jul 8, 2006)

Now thats how an ADA tank should be used! For real great looking tank!


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## Subotaj (Oct 16, 2006)

Perfect! :thumbsup:


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## stuworrall (Oct 29, 2006)

superb tank, love that wood.


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## Aquamanx (Sep 28, 2006)

Ditto to all the other posts Bro! Great Job on the Tank & Stand! roud:


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## SPL-311 (Aug 7, 2006)

ringram said:


> The tank is 3 feet, so is it a 50g? Looks nice. Did you get it from aqua forest by chance?


Good eye, I did get the tank from Aquaforest actually. most of the plants came from there too. As for the wood, I yanked it out of a pond by my parents house in Minnesota and brought it on the plane back to S.F. with me (baggage screener: 'what's in this box sir?' me: "sticks." him: "what?" me: "sticks."). I had soaked them for about a week prior to use in another tank, but they probably would have been good to go right away after a good scrubbing.


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## SPL-311 (Aug 7, 2006)

Nightshop said:


> Anything beneath the Aquasoil? Use any powersand?


Just straight Aquasoil in this tank, no powersand. I used 3 and a half 9-liter bags of Aquasoil actually. I have the feeling things may be moved around in the tank after a while, and I've heard that's easier to do without using powersand. We'll see how it turns out I guess.



> SPL-311 - you wouldnt happen to be a member of SFBAAPS would you?


Actually Marc I just joined the website but haven't been to any meetings yet. I'm definately attending the next time you all get together. Sometime this month correct?


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## SPL-311 (Aug 7, 2006)

I also want to send a great big thanks out to this entire forum. I found you guys 6 months ago, and it didn't take long for me to realize planted aquaria are the way to go. This site really is a wealth of fantastic information, and this project wouldn't be half what it is without it. Thanks.


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## Wasserpest (Jun 12, 2003)

SPL-311 said:


> brought it on the plane back to S.F. with me (baggage screener: 'what's in this box sir?' me: "sticks." him: "what?" me: "sticks.").


That's pretty funny. Did he want to know what for? I always imagine having to explain someone all the white powders and syringes in my tank stand. Officer, it is for autodosing! Huh??



SPL-311 said:


> I also want to send a great big thanks out to this entire forum. I found you guys 6 months ago, and it didn't take long for me to realize planted aquaria are the way to go. This site really is a wealth of fantastic information, and this project wouldn't be half what it is without it. Thanks.


Now you are an important part of it! :thumbsup:


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## Finch_man (Mar 21, 2006)

Do you get fine bubble control from your needle valve? And I see you don't have a solenoid. Do you have to adjust your needle valve very other day?


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## ianiwane (Sep 7, 2004)

SPL-311 said:


> Actually Marc I just joined the website but haven't been to any meetings yet. I'm definately attending the next time you all get together. Sometime this month correct?


Next meeting is on the 17th of this month, check the sfbaaps site for more info. BTW, you tank sure does look nice.


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## timr (Mar 23, 2005)

Seems like a well thought out setup. I wish I could plan a tank setup like that. Love the MH light too, that's a dream of mine. Where did you get the e-ballast from? 
I like the wood. However, i see this type of "stump" layout with a bunch of low growing grasses in my mind. It will be interesting when it grows out.


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## SPL-311 (Aug 7, 2006)

Finch_man said:


> Do you get fine bubble control from your needle valve? And I see you don't have a solenoid. Do you have to adjust your needle valve very other day?


I think the regulator is actually off a welding tank or something - my father gave it to me and it seems to be working just fine. no solenoid, but 24/7 co2 injection doesn't seem to hurt my fish at all so I'm pretty happy with it so far. The needle valve does provide a good measure of control, and I hope to get a bubble counter for christams to keep better track of the flow. probably a Rhinox unit, and maybe a 2000 diffuser disk instead of the 5000.


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## Finch_man (Mar 21, 2006)

Give me a PM when you want to get rid of your 5000. I have the same co2 setup but not runing so I don't know yet.


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## eklikewhoa (Aug 29, 2006)

Very nice set up!


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## Nightshop (May 12, 2006)

Indeed, powersand is a PITA when your uprooting some real rooty plants, having to push down the large white granels back to the bottum of the substrate bed, but hey, apparently it's very beneficial to the over-all aquarium, plus those folks at aquaforest sure know how to sell a product


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## SPL-311 (Aug 7, 2006)

timr said:


> Love the MH light too, that's a dream of mine. Where did you get the e-ballast from?


The e-ballast came with the Aquamedic 150w HQI metal halide system. The catalog (dr. Fosters & Smith) listed a magnetic ballast, but the unit shipped with an electronic one instead. Lucky me! I'd recommend the system to anyone looking for a good low cost system - they're on sale for $215 right now.

So I'm having some cryp melt in the tank right now. The leaves on the dwarf Sag also appear to be thinning down a bit too - is there a way to compensate for this in my dosing? Or is it just a standard new tank symptom and I just have to wait it out? Aside from the cryps, everything else seems fine - the stem plants are even putting out some new leaves!


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## jeffboyarrdee (Aug 25, 2004)

water change alot! like 2 or 3 times a week, for a couple weeks
that should help with the melting, and dont mess with the crpts rizomes or hte roots, they will shoot up new leaves, just wait it out.


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## ianmoede (Oct 1, 2004)

Just a small layout suggestion. The stump in the front left of the tank looks very abrupt, almost unnatural. I think that if it was dressed up in some way (moss, anubias, fern) that it wouldn't look quite so stark. Merely a suggestion, I love the rest of it though. Keep up the documentation!


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## SPL-311 (Aug 7, 2006)

ianmoede said:


> Just a small layout suggestion. The stump in the front left of the tank looks very abrupt, almost unnatural. I think that if it was dressed up in some way (moss, anubias, fern) that it wouldn't look quite so stark. Merely a suggestion, I love the rest of it though. Keep up the documentation!


I've actually had this same suggestion from a few sources, so I removed that piece of driftwood last night. I was a little sad to do it, that was probably my favorite piece in the tank, but the old design rule 'the first thing that catches your eye is the first thing you should remove' applied here. I think the aquascape is much more balanced now.

















My cryptocorines have almost all completely melted away by now. I'm not sure what to do about this problem - I've been changing 30% of the tank's water daily without any result.


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## fresh_lynny (Mar 9, 2006)

have you moved them around? I know when I disturb mine, they go through a temporary meltdown, but if I leave them alone, they comeback...


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## trfjason (Aug 10, 2006)

I just replace the substrate in my 31G and had to take out the crypt during that change, and plant it back in, it has been 2 weeks and no meltdown. 

To prevent meltdown, you should try to cut most of the roots when you move it.


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## Y0uH0 (Dec 19, 2005)

I'd say try to leave it alone as much as you can. Everytime i move mine or even cut away the damaged leaves,the whole plants just melts away. I found that the best way is just to leave the plant to survive on it's own..Let everything go the natural way=)


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## timr (Mar 23, 2005)

Y0uH0 said:


> I'd say try to leave it alone as much as you can. Everytime i move mine or even cut away the damaged leaves,the whole plants just melts away. I found that the best way is just to leave the plant to survive on it's own..Let everything go the natural way=)


This is also my suggestion. Plus.....Are you doing ferts yet? In my experience I've noticed that trace helps keep crypts and sags healthy.


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## oblongshrimp (Jul 26, 2006)

That MH light that you have....do you get good coverage with it? I was thinking of getting a tank that size but I have read that MH's only cover about 2x2 foot space. Also did you build the hanging part of it?


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## SPL-311 (Aug 7, 2006)

I'm doing a full set of EI ferts, and I trimmed the roots of the cryps down pretty short before I replanted them. Oh well, they're completely melted away now, I guess I just have to wait for them to resprout.



oblongshrimp said:


> That MH light that you have....do you get good coverage with it? I was thinking of getting a tank that size but I have read that MH's only cover about 2x2 foot space. Also did you build the hanging part of it?


I've found the light coverage to be just fine with a single 150w MH over a 3' x 1.5' tank. I did build the light stand myself, and the MH bulb is positioned 12" above the water surface.


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## SPL-311 (Aug 7, 2006)

I finished up the doors this weekend, here's a photo of the finished product:









I also made a neat little tool holder for inside the right door. I plan to make a tray to keep my ferts for the left door. Anyone know where I can get ADA style pump bottles without shelling out the $20 each for actual ADA ferts?


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## Finch_man (Mar 21, 2006)

Look Great!! Could you tell me how you built your stand?


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## SPL-311 (Aug 7, 2006)

Sure!

It's basically an open fronted box made out of 1" plywood. The trim piece above the doors is bolted to the front of the box, and the doors are mounted onto 120 degree flush mount hinges. Then I used bondo to fill the joint gaps, then 3 coats of primer, sanding, color paint, sanding, and finally clear coat. I guess I'm not very good at explaining the structure in words, but basically I just copied an ADA stand. If you'd like to build one I could take measurements and draw up a set of plans.


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## timr (Mar 23, 2005)

I don't know what the ADA bottles look like, but there is a beauty supply store here that sells all kinds of travel bottles. Basically empty bottles that you can put shampoo and whatever in when you travel so you don't have to buy travel size everything. btw, nice job on the stand!


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## starccc (Mar 31, 2006)

Your painting is awesome! I try to paint my diy 46g bow front canopy now. I can never make the painting smooth and even...


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## scolley (Apr 4, 2004)

That looks like an outstanding start! And thanks for the full tank and stand photos. When you see them together, in the room like that, it really looks awesome. IMO you've put together something that (if all goes well - fingers crossed!) will look outstanding in your room.

I can't wait to see progress. Great job!


PS - I'm glad you lost that front left stump too. Good decision.


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## AnneRiceBowl (May 18, 2006)

timr said:


> I don't know what the ADA bottles look like, but there is a beauty supply store here that sells all kinds of travel bottles. Basically empty bottles that you can put shampoo and whatever in when you travel so you don't have to buy travel size everything. btw, nice job on the stand!


I found some at the grocery store, and each one is a different color for color coding. :icon_mrgr


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## sNApple (Nov 6, 2005)

nice tweezers


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## Marc (Oct 13, 2004)

I really like the scape...works really well.....the only thing i would personally change would be the piece of wood that's in the middle.....my eyes cant help but focus on it.


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## Kookaburra (Sep 16, 2006)

SPL-311 said:


> •	150w HQI 10,000k Aquamedic Metal Halide pendant (e-ballast)


10.000°K ? It's not too much for Planted Tanks ?


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## fresh_lynny (Mar 9, 2006)

I have 10,000 HQI in mine. No problem.


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## SPL-311 (Aug 7, 2006)

thanks for all the positive comments guys. 

I have another concern I'd like to get some ideas about - the glosso appears to be growing vertically instead of carpeting the substrate. I've had this same growth pattern out of glosso before when the light intensity isn't high enough, but I can't believe a 150w metal halide is insufficient to grow glosso in an 18" high tank. Should I lower the light closer to the water surface? It's at 12" now. maybe I'll just get rid of the glosso and go with HC instead.


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## attack11 (May 5, 2006)

i had my mh 4" off the top of water. what kind of bulb are you using? the frequency spikes might be geared to marine instead of plants. a good 8000k or 10000k bulb should be more than enough if the water is clear.


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## SPL-311 (Aug 7, 2006)

The bulb is a 10,000k but I'm not sure if it is focused for marine or freshwater - I thought all bulbs of the same rating were basically the same?

4" height huh? Maybe I'll knock that light down a bit tonight and see if that helps some. Thanks


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## Guillermo (Dec 19, 2005)

Wow, nice tank and DIY stand, can'r wait to see its progress, congrats bud.


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## attack11 (May 5, 2006)

SPL-311 said:


> The bulb is a 10,000k but I'm not sure if it is focused for marine or freshwater - I thought all bulbs of the same rating were basically the same?


that's not always the case. a hamilton 10000k bulb has very little in the 600nm range. i had amazing success with wgnlite 8000k bulbs; the pearling was unreal compared to my coralife 10000k bulb.


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## SPL-311 (Aug 7, 2006)

Hi all,

Haven't updated for a while and thought I'd post a few pics to let you know how it's going. I went through what seemed like every kind of algae at the beginning of January - green water, bga, bba, green dust algae, staghorn, hair algae... Finally figured out I was dosing too much. So I cut back the ferts to practically zero and things have stabilized a bit. I did end up replacing the glosso with HC, but had to pull out the left half because of excessive algae infection. It's growing back now, and should be filled in within a month or 2. On to the pics:


































my helper:


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## typically (Dec 29, 2006)

the tank looks awesome! but i think i like the stand more haha. did you use a sprayer to paint it? it's as glossy as a new car!


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## turbowagon (Dec 30, 2005)

looks great! I love the Rotala and ludwigia bushes in the back, and the huge HC foreground... post up some more pics when it fills in!


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## PasD (Sep 2, 2006)

Wow, thanks for the updated pictures they're beautiful. What are you keeping in your tank?


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## D.gilly (Sep 25, 2005)

Do you have a link to the Dr. F and S lighting you got ?


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## btmarquis (Feb 15, 2007)

Awesome tank and stand! I am getting ideas for my first planted tank and I plan on building my own stand. That stand really is nice. I did notice that there is only a small support on the front of the side of the stand. Do you think that it safely holds the 500 or so pounds that is on top of it? I know it is 1" thick wood, but 500 pounds is a lot. I have a 55 gallon tank that was given to me but no stand. I was planning on making a metal frame and building a wooden cabinet around it, but If I can get away with a solid enough wooden structure I would much rather do that. Well anyway, nice pics!


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## SPL-311 (Aug 7, 2006)

Haha, I didn't use a sprayer (wish I had one) - primed it with Kilz2 and finished it with a lot of automotive spraypaint and a clearcoat. just like car repair!

Here's the link to the light I'm using, I think it's a screaing deal:
Reef Aquarium Lighting: Ocean Light HQI Metal Halide Pendant Lights

Fauna in the tank is a small school of Pristella tetras, some amano shrimp, a bristlenose and that's about it. The stand holds plenty of weight without any worry - I took measurements and copied the idea from directly from the ADA stands.


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## Overfloater (Jan 12, 2004)

SPL. I am considering this light as well. Everywhere I see lists the ballast as magnetic but you received an electronic ballast. The price is great but the tank is in my living room and I don't want to be stuck with a noisy ballast. I will probably have to call DR. F&S and see what they have to say about the ballast.

Excellent journal BTW.


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## SPL-311 (Aug 7, 2006)

Okay, first update since the end of May. How time flies. 

I've removed all the stem plants because they were becoming too leggy and growing way to fast for my taste - I was having to trim every other week. So the Blyxa and hairgrass have been spread over the entire tank, and I really like the way it turned out. Really simple and natural. I'm not even dosing anymore, and the tank is so well balanced I get rapid growth with no algae at all. Grand.

I think I may update my fish situation soon. Perhaps replace the Pristellas with a school of Ember Tetras and a pair of apistogramas. What do you all think?


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## jeffboyarrdee (Aug 25, 2004)

indeed very natural looking. im always a fan of blyxa and hairgrass


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## cookingnerd607 (Jun 8, 2004)

If youre still looking for those bottles, try usplastics.

I like your stand work - speaking about people being curious of the syringes, and all the weird stuff we use in our hobby, I actually had an officer at my apartment last year due to the constant "bright" light from my windows. He felt like an idiot.


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## Overfloater (Jan 12, 2004)

Very nice. I'm a big fan of thick, clean hairgrass. I think you could really benefit from a UV sterilizer; it would make the tank really pop.


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## PasD (Sep 2, 2006)

Embers, just by the way the way they stay together, will look very good in this tank. You could probably find some healthy ones at Albany aquarium.


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## ikuzo (Jul 11, 2006)

cookingnerd607 said:


> speaking about people being curious of the syringes, and all the weird stuff we use in our hobby, I actually had an officer at my apartment last year due to the constant "bright" light from my windows. He felt like an idiot.


lol sounds like a bad cop tv series. seriously i have the same problems with my house guests. looking at the syringe, DIY CO2 bottles, and other stuffs, they think i'm a freak.

one question, hairgrass looks taller at the back... is the substrate forms a slope or you just use different kind of hairgrass?


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## relaxing (May 10, 2006)

The hairgrass is just beautiful... makes me want to cry!


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## unirdna (Jan 22, 2004)

Boy, that hairgrass seems to love the AS. I'm moving towards putting a pair of cichlids in my tank, too. Need something to remind the tetras to school .

Nice update roud:.


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## SPL-311 (Aug 7, 2006)

ikuzo said:


> one question, hairgrass looks taller at the back... is the substrate forms a slope or you just use different kind of hairgrass?


There is a slope to the substrate, but most of the form to the hairgrass is from trimming. It will actually grow taller than my blyxa if I let it go so I need to give it a haircut every once in a while.

Somehow a strand of riccia came in with one of my plants and I've got a nice ball growing on the top of a stump. I really like the fluffy green look - maybe I'll try a layout with that next...


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