# 125gal - major rescape, new pics 3/4/11



## Trallen44 (Dec 10, 2008)

Can't wait to see it set up!


----------



## cah925 (May 18, 2007)

You're not the only one. This gives me extra incentive to get the 40 breeders down so I can start working on this one.


----------



## CLASSIC (Feb 25, 2009)

Nice find! I wish i had room for a 125g, so many options. Good luck and congrats.


----------



## Tamelesstgr (Jan 11, 2008)

Are the 60' versions harder to come by? All the 125's I see are 72" long. I would like a 60" when I move this year.


----------



## cah925 (May 18, 2007)

I'm not real sure how common the 60" tanks are. All the 125 gal tanks at the LFS are 72". My lights are very intense so I like having the extra height rather than length.


----------



## organic sideburns (Dec 22, 2005)

wow nice tank size, what are ur plans for it? high tech? fish? the biggest ive gone is 55 and thats empty right now. i hope to set up a 125 when i get my own place or maybe wen i get a home.family.


----------



## lovingHDTV (Oct 15, 2008)

I sooo jealous. I've been eying several here on craigslist, but can't get the OK from the wife. They seem to be going for ~$500 for the whole setup. 

Good luck!


----------



## chase127 (Jun 8, 2008)

nicee man! this is gonna look great. whats the light gonna be?


----------



## CL (Mar 13, 2008)

Awesome!!!


----------



## cah925 (May 18, 2007)

I'm in the process of tearing down my 40 breeders and I combined all the fish into my 75 gal. It just seems a little crowded to me and I have a few more fish I want to buy, so instead of getting rid of a some fish I decided to buy a bigger tank. :icon_roll I plan on staying in the high tech arena with this tank. I'm going to transfer everything in the 75 gal over to this tank. I'll need a few more bags of Aquasoil, bigger filters and a larger light. For now, I plan on using the same filters and light from the 75 gal, but I'll start the upgrades as soon as I start working in May. I have a few powerheads that will help with the flow in the tank until the new filters arrive. I'm thinking of using 2 XP4's. For lights, I'm going with Catalina 60" Black Solar T5HO - 4 X 80W.

Here's the list of fish, the count may not be exact as they move too fast
dwarf precox rainbows x4
leopard danios x2
silver tip tetras x7
threadfin rainbows x5
white cloud minnows (fancy, regular, and gold) x10
banded kuhlii loaches x7
otos x10
snowball shrimp
whisker shrimp
assassin snails


----------



## organic sideburns (Dec 22, 2005)

the loaches, minnows, and threadfin rainbows are some of my fav. fish. cant wait to see the tank running!


----------



## cah925 (May 18, 2007)

So far I managed to get two of the four 40 breeders down today. I might get ambitious and get the other 2 down tonight as well. Once they are out of the way, I plan on painting the wall and hopefully next weekend I bring the tank in.


----------



## cah925 (May 18, 2007)

*Update:*

The 40 breeders have come down...
 

The wall has been painted (carpet cleaners are coming tomorrow :thumbsup...


The back of the tank is being painted...


Random shot of all my stuff on the back porch, soon to be sold or moved into storage (there's much more than this, trust me)


Extra Aquasoil is en route from Aqua Forest Aquarium (should arrive Monday), Ehiem 2062 and media was ordered tonight (should arrive by next weekend). I need to wait till mid May to order the light from Catalina, but I plan on using my existing light for now. I'll just plant the edges sparingly or with low light plants. Hopefully I can have this up and running in about 3 weeks. :bounce:


----------



## CL (Mar 13, 2008)

Yay! Progress!


----------



## CAM6467 (Feb 11, 2009)

very nice. there's nothing like setting up a new one!


----------



## cah925 (May 18, 2007)

clwatkins10 said:


> Yay! Progress!


Yea, but at a cost. I am exhausted. I want to keep going, but I'm glad I have to wait for deliveries before I can go any further. Besides, I have a couple exams next week and a project due. Work before play :frown:


----------



## H82LOS3 (Mar 5, 2009)

damn i cant wait till its done, keep us updated!!


----------



## TheCryptKeeper (Mar 9, 2008)

I can't wait to see this up and running with nice plants.. so that way I can buy them from you! lol

I personally would like to have a 125g 72" tank! I like the idea of looking at a wall and see more tank that way! also more room for my roselines to open up.


----------



## kyle3 (May 26, 2005)

can't wait to see it "grow-up" 
cheers-K


----------



## cah925 (May 18, 2007)

I plan on moving most of the plants from my 75 gal into this one. I noticed today that something is eating my Hygro bold and Hygro tigers. It's definately a snail, but I've never seen this kind of destruction on Hygro bold or tiger before. Hopefully the assassin snails will catch the culprit and "dispose" of it before I move all the plants.


----------



## cah925 (May 18, 2007)

Good news and bad news. My Aquasoil arrived today, but I made the mistake of ordering AS II instead of original. I was already planning on putting the new AS on the bottom capped with the cycled AS. I haven't found any threads discussing the current batches of AS II, so I'm not sure if I want to keep this batch and move forward with the tank or send it back for the original AS. Any thoughts/opinions?


----------



## organic sideburns (Dec 22, 2005)

well i dont no much about that soil, but i would go ahead and use it, im impatient tho.


----------



## cah925 (May 18, 2007)

I decided to mix the 2 soils to get an even distribution of new and old, but the front where HC will grow is going to get the new soil only so fresh nutrients are available at the surface.
The filter arrived today 

Unfortunately, I can't do anything with the tank until Saturday. I have a Chem exam tonight and a presentation tomorrow. Hopefully I'll have some pics of major progress, maybe even planting, by the end of the weekend.


----------



## wkndracer (Mar 14, 2009)

Congrats on the tank! Ain't Craigslist great! 60x24x18 110g picking it up next week! Along with a 29g sump tank, trickle filter, pump, stand, light, heater, and a 55g cover and heater for $400.00 wife said O.K. I'm just dancing HAPPY. (for you too)


----------



## organic sideburns (Dec 22, 2005)

racer ur gettin 2 tanks?? not fair. my next 'big' tank will be atleast 100 gallons! i want a looong tank.


----------



## cah925 (May 18, 2007)

I spent all afternoon and most of the evening getting this tank up and running. The substrate is in and the planting is done. The fish are still in the 75 gal for now. I need to check the water params tomorrow to see if I have any ammonia leaching from the new AS. The main filter, an Eheim 2262, was installed today. I'm going to move one of my XP filters (with extremely beneficial bacteria) tomorrow. The XP will have the surface skimmer, inline heater, and inline CO2 diffusor.
Here's some pics from today. Everything is a little cloudy still from moving the old AS and mixing in some new AS. I'll try to get some better pics after it settles.


----------



## FSM (Jan 13, 2009)

2262 for a 125 gallon tank...seems excessive.

What kind of media did you fill it with?


----------



## cah925 (May 18, 2007)

I wanted to make sure I didn't get any dead zones. Even with two filters on my 75 gal, I still managed to get various algaes in the corners due to low water flow in those areas. So far, this filter exceeds expectations. I'm using Eheim EHFILAV and Eheim EHFISUBSTRAT for media in the filter.


----------



## chase127 (Jun 8, 2008)

that filters a beast  it looks good so far, i cant wait to see it dust free.


----------



## fastfreddie (Sep 10, 2008)

I really like the distribution of the wood. Good coverage of the whole tank! Stoked for you!

What are you doing with all of the equipment from the 40B's? Swap n shop? I need some lights and a filter!


----------



## cah925 (May 18, 2007)

Thanks for the comments everyone.



fastfreddie said:


> I really like the distribution of the wood. Good coverage of the whole tank! Stoked for you!
> 
> What are you doing with all of the equipment from the 40B's? Swap n shop? I need some lights and a filter!


I'm getting everything cleaned up and ready for sale. Sending you a pm.


----------



## cah925 (May 18, 2007)

I ran my diatom filter a couple days ago to clear up the dust. Finally had some time to get some new pics tonight.

FTS - I noticed today that several branches have misc moss, fissiden, or mini pellia left over from previous scapes. I didn't notice when I placed all the branches, so it turned out really random. Hopefully it won't look too strange as it all grows back.


Left - I only had one Hygro Kompact (front corner) survive from the 40B teardown. As it grows, I'll prune and replant to fill in that corner.


Middle


Right - Yes, the fissiden is mostly dead from an Excel overdose to kill BBA. The fissiden will grow back, it always does.


Shot from the side


Close up trying to show the slope I created for the HC


Now comes the hard part, patiently waiting for the plants to grow so I can trim and shape everything.


----------



## inkslinger (Dec 28, 2003)

I have a 110g tank 60x18x24 , I'm 5'4 and use a 5 step ladder to touch the bottom, I bought Nu-Clear 533,547 filter and a Blue Line 55 HD 1100gph pump, and 2 Loc-Line Modular Hose Y split for my returns and I also install 6 t5 54w in my canopy. Thinking of using a Mazzei for my CO2.

If you need any info on large tanks check out Toms Report lot of good info for tanks over 100g.

http://www.barrreport.com/


----------



## cah925 (May 18, 2007)

I have a 3 step ladder to get in the tank. I was using an inline ceramic diffusor on my 75 gal, but I wanted to try a needle wheel on this set up. So far, it works great.


----------



## Tex Gal (Mar 28, 2008)

I think you made a great choice in the 2262. I just stuck one on my 125g. My two XP3's died, tried to replace them with 2 2217's. They just weren't powerful enough. I have made a LONG spraybar for the 2262 and it's great. Wonderful movement. It's the right choice.


So glad you have your tank up and running. You're gonna love it!


----------



## cah925 (May 18, 2007)

The pump on the 2262 is fantastic. 900 gph moves some water across the tank. I can say with absolute certainty that there are no dead zones in this tank. I had some issues with flow in my 75 gal even with 2 filters and I wanted to make sure that didn't happen in this tank.


----------



## Green Leaf Aquariums (Feb 26, 2007)

Good choice in filters guys 


-Orlando


----------



## Tex Gal (Mar 28, 2008)

Orlando gives good advice!


----------



## legomaniac89 (Mar 16, 2008)

This is gonna look really nice when it fills in. I like the look of the driftwood you got going.


----------



## CL (Mar 13, 2008)

waaaaahhhh 
dang that's an extreme filter! The tank is great too


----------



## Green Leaf Aquariums (Feb 26, 2007)

2262 is a great out of the box filter  Bigger than some folks trash cans..

-O


----------



## CL (Mar 13, 2008)

Orlando said:


> Bigger than some folks trash cans..
> 
> -O


I demand pictures.
Please.


----------



## Green Leaf Aquariums (Feb 26, 2007)

Its a little bigger than a 5G bucket 

But yes, pictures of the guts of this tank would be fun huh?


----------



## jelisoner (Mar 27, 2008)

now you guys have me convinced to change my 2 2217s and 2215 for a 2262 ....time to find the best price 

then sell the 3 filters use the media from them ...buy more media ...hmmm ...wifes going to kill me


----------



## cah925 (May 18, 2007)

You wanted it, you got it. Here's a pic of the filter-


and another with a standard bathroom trash can next to it-


----------



## cah925 (May 18, 2007)

Just realized I never listed the flora in this tank.
Alternanthera reineckii
Ammania sp. Bonsai
Blyxa japonica
Cabomba sp. ‘silver leaf’
Crinum calamistratum
Cryptocoryne spiralis
Cryptocoryne wendtii 'Green Gecko'
Echinodorus Angustifolia ‘Vesuvius’
Fissidens fontanus
Flame moss
Hemianthus callitrichoides
Hygrophila sp. ‘Guinea’
Lamiceae Sp
Limnophila aromatica
Limnophila aromatica hippuroides
Limnophila sp. 'Mini'
Lindernia sp. India
Ludwigia guinea
Ludwigia inclinata var. verticillata 'Cuba'
Ludwigia repens x arcuata
Microsorum pteropus
Mini Monosolenium tenerum
Pogostemon erectum
Pogostemon helferi
Rotala sp. ‘Pink’
Staurogyne sp. 'Low Grow'
Xmas moss


----------



## Tamelesstgr (Jan 11, 2008)

Dayum, that's a big filter :eek5: :thumbsup:


----------



## jelisoner (Mar 27, 2008)

god that makes me want one even more


----------



## CL (Mar 13, 2008)

and another with a standard bathroom trash can next to it-
[/QUOTE]

Just for you, Orlando 

Gotta love it!


----------



## chase127 (Jun 8, 2008)

:drool: dayum


----------



## jelisoner (Mar 27, 2008)

yay found one at kens fish for 399 so time to price match at big als and get 5% off time to make the wife believe i "need" it


----------



## Tex Gal (Mar 28, 2008)

I had 2 2217's on my 125g and they just couldn't cut it. I changed to the 2262 and things are working great. Love the water flow. Fish are loving it. My husband thought I had bought an engine for the space shuttle - it was so big! It's pretty huge. One good thing is that you can back flush it with the extra valve it has on the bottom. That's good. I need to do something about the huge 1 inch intake tube. It hardly fits under my tank light. I need a smaller U turn at the top of the tank. I could use more tubing too. I ordered the 16/22 spray bar and added onto it. It works great.

Catherine I can see the flow in your tank from your plants! You go girl!!


----------



## Trallen44 (Dec 10, 2008)

This is looking great! I can't wait till it fills in!!


----------



## jelisoner (Mar 27, 2008)

i have 3 2217's now and a hydor 600 gph the flows finaly good but it clutters the tank so bad 2262 is what i "need" lol


----------



## speedie408 (Jan 15, 2009)

Awesome! Can't wait to see it filled in.


----------



## cah925 (May 18, 2007)

I'm glad that I got the 2262 even more now after reading some of these other comments. I hooked up an XP2 for surface skimming, inline heater and CO2 diffusion with a GenX 1500 needle wheel pump. I put the spray bar for the XP2 under the 2262 spray bar so all the water moves in the same direction. I pointed the XP2 spraybar at an angle down to the bottom to help spread the CO2 mist around better.

Plants have started putting out roots, so they should start growing taller soon. HC is already beginning to grow and spread. I'm keeping the lighting a little lower to avoid algae issues while the plants establish themselves. I have both sets of bulbs running for 3.5 hrs (1 set morning, 1 in the afternoon) with a 1 hr noon burst overlay with all 4 bulbs for a total of 6 hours. CO2 comes on 1/2 hr before lights on and off 1/2 hr before lights out. 

The fish seem to love the extra swimming space :fish:


----------



## cah925 (May 18, 2007)

*Kuhlii hiding spot*

I have been trying to figure out where all my kuhlii loaches hide since there are no "caves" to speak of in this tank. Today I figured it out. They hide in the crevices of the large wood root.

Here's the piece I'm referring to


And here is one of the loaches peeking out


----------



## cah925 (May 18, 2007)

Quick update

FTS


Left


Middle


Right


Moss and Fissiden is starting to show signs of life


Some plants are having melting issues like my L. aromatica, not sure if it's adjusting to the new tank and AS or it may be a lighting issue or low CO2


Light has been fairly low up to this point. I have only been running 2 bulbs with a short noon burst. I've turned up the light so both bulbs run together for about 4 hours and each set by itself runs for about 1.5 hrs.
The CO2 does not even register on the drop checker I put in. I have tomorrow off so I may play with the gas and see if I can fine tune it a bit.

One thing that really bugs me is my Conchu blue tetras keep jumping out of the tank. I bought about 10-12 of these fish from Inverts Factory a few months ago and I only have 2-3 left. I guess these fish are not suitable for an open top.


----------



## CL (Mar 13, 2008)

The plants are starting to grow in!


----------



## Green Leaf Aquariums (Feb 26, 2007)

clwatkins10 said:


> The plants are starting to grow in!


:thumbsup:

I have some of these (30-40) in an open top with no problems.


-Orlando


----------



## hydrophyte (Mar 1, 2009)

this is going to look amazing as it starts to fill in.

i really like to stare into big tanks with many different plants--the visual effect is similar in ways to a large, well-done reef tank. 

subscribed.


----------



## Green Leaf Aquariums (Feb 26, 2007)

Update?


----------



## cah925 (May 18, 2007)

Camera batteries are dead so pics will have to wait. 
Plants are doing well, algae is doing better. :icon_sad: I'm battling several kinds of algae, BBA, Green dust, and what looks like cyano. I get plenty of flow around the plants and I've been slowly increasing my CO2. The tank is currently engulfed in the CO2 microbubbles when the gas kicks on. My otos were actually darting to the surface for air at dinner time, so I cut the CO2 back just a hair. I'll have to watch it tomorrow and recheck the fish. I'm also going to cut back on the amount of food the fish get and see if that helps any. I feel like a noob again trying to get the tank adjusted just right.


----------



## cah925 (May 18, 2007)

Finally got some pics tonight.

FTS


Left


Middle


Right


I put in 5 of these pots for the Apisto pair + loaches, shrimp, or whatever decides to use them. Unfortunately the male Apisto died during QT along with one of my peacock gudgeons. I'm waiting for the LFS to get more Apistos as I wasn't real impressed with the remaining males.


I should have a new light for this tank in the next couple weeks. Hopefully it will help with the plants on the ends as they haven't been doing as well as I hoped they would.


----------



## CL (Mar 13, 2008)

Wow that moss looks so fresh  What kind of light are you getting?


----------



## cah925 (May 18, 2007)

I'm getting a larger Catalina fixture. I'm currently using a 48" Solar 4x54W T5HO and I'm upgrading to the same fixture, just 60".

I almost killed the moss when i set this tank up. The wood was engulfed in BBA so I treated it directly with Excel while the wood was out of water. Most of the Fissiden died along with several small fern plantlets. Quite a bit of the moss came under heavy fire from the Excel and I wasn't sure it would survive, but it did and it looks better than ever.


----------



## snoz0r (Jun 6, 2008)

Im jealous. Looks great, wish i had a diatom filter or something to clear my tank of the AS dust. Its driving me nuts.


----------



## Tex Gal (Mar 28, 2008)

Looking good. I don't see any algae. You must be doing something right. Looks like it cleared up quite well.


----------



## funkyfish (Mar 16, 2009)

Looking good  
Love the plants


----------



## cah925 (May 18, 2007)

I got a little camera happy tonight and took a few pics. Enjoy.

















  

 

My Limno 'Mini' jungle


My Peacock Gudgeons
 

Whisker Shrimp


Dwarf precox rainbow


----------



## legomaniac89 (Mar 16, 2008)

Wow that red plant really stands out from the rest. The tank's looking good, and it looks like the foreground is filling in nicely.


----------



## cah925 (May 18, 2007)

The HC is starting to spread, but it is a slow process to fill it in. Could I trim it to produce additional side shoots similar to stem plants?


----------



## Green Leaf Aquariums (Feb 26, 2007)

Have you tried maybe loading you pics on Photobucket or the like?Mainly the full tank shot! Don't get me wrong, the pictures look great! But would be much better detail if hosted on Photobucket type sites. We could get a Larger clearer pic

-O


----------



## cah925 (May 18, 2007)

Thanks for the tip, I edited the FTS shots above.


----------



## Green Leaf Aquariums (Feb 26, 2007)

How do you like the needle wheel pump? Looks like your plants love it


----------



## cah925 (May 18, 2007)

The needle wheel pump is great. It took some work to fine tune the amount of gas needed for the tank and plants, but I think I finally got.


----------



## mountaindew (Dec 10, 2008)

Cool looking, wood and plant elements just pop out!
md


----------



## malaybiswas (Nov 2, 2008)

nice tank


----------



## blair (Feb 8, 2009)

Looks great! Those plants look super healthy :thumbsup:. It will be jaw-dropping when the carpet fills in.

Did you get your new light to help the ones on the sides? Which fixture did you go with? Oh, and thanks for the bacter 100; I am anxiously awaiting its arrival


----------



## cah925 (May 18, 2007)

mountaindew said:


> Cool looking, wood and plant elements just pop out!
> md





malaybiswas said:


> nice tank


Thanks for the comments.



blair said:


> Looks great! Those plants look super healthy :thumbsup:. It will be jaw-dropping when the carpet fills in.
> 
> Did you get your new light to help the ones on the sides? Which fixture did you go with? Oh, and thanks for the bacter 100; I am anxiously awaiting its arrival


No, the new light has to be put on hold a little longer. The plants on the edges are surviving just not thriving. Some of the stems are very leggy with just leaves on the top layer. I'll probably pull them out, cut the long stem off and replant once I finally get the new light.

The HC carpet is growing very slowly and the fish keep picking out any pieces that aren't rooted real good so I'm constantly finding pieces floating around. I may trim and replant to help the carpet fill in faster.


----------



## hydrophyte (Mar 1, 2009)

nice! it's growing in well and your horticultural skills are evident with such healthy plants.

those full tank shots look much better. i have done well using Flickr.com too.

what is that tall crypt in the background with the wavy leaves? is that _lutea_?


----------



## cah925 (May 18, 2007)

Thanks for the kind words. It took a lot of trial and error to figure out how to balance everything. The tall crypt in the back is Crypt spiralis. I've had these plants for over a year and they are one of my favorites for the background.


----------



## monkeyruler90 (Apr 13, 2008)

hey man, the tank looks GREAT!!! how are things going?


----------



## hydrophyte (Mar 1, 2009)

any updates for this one?


----------



## cah925 (May 18, 2007)

Wow, didn't realize I haven't updated this one in a while. School has been extremely busy this summer.

FTS









Left Front









Right Front









Left Side









Right Side









I desperately need a new light for this tank. The sides just aren't doing well with the 48" light. Just a few more weeks and I can order the Catalina 60" fixture for this tank. I also want to get some new wood. The little pieces I'm using are being hidden by the plants. I want to get a few large pieces that will stand out against the plant mass.


----------



## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

Very beautiful! I like the left side the best.


----------



## hydrophyte (Mar 1, 2009)

holy smokes that looks great! :bounce:

is there quite a bit of flow there at the top? this looks like a real nice fish selection. and your plants look so happy too. must be a great display in person.


----------



## cah925 (May 18, 2007)

sewingalot said:


> Very beautiful! I like the left side the best.


I agree, the left is my favorite. My only complaint is not having enough light for the edges. Both sides are not growing as well as they could with the proper amount of light. Hopefully after I get the new light, the sides will begin to grow more full and lush.



hydrophyte said:


> holy smokes that looks great! :bounce:


Thanks!


----------



## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

Is that Limnophila aromatica hippuroides on the left side? It is amazingly striking. Good luck with the new lights. I'll be even more green eyed.


----------



## chase127 (Jun 8, 2008)

veryyyy nice  its looking great


----------



## cah925 (May 18, 2007)

hydrophyte said:


> is there quite a bit of flow there at the top? this looks like a real nice fish selection. and your plants look so happy too. must be a great display in person.


Yes, the Ehiem creates a lot of flow at the top. You can see the plants in the back all leaning toward the right due to the flow. The fish absolutely love it and most stay near the top to swim in the return from the filter.



sewingalot said:


> Is that Limnophila aromatica hippuroides on the left side? It is amazingly striking. Good luck with the new lights. I'll be even more green eyed.


Good eye. It is a beautiful plant, certainly one of my favs.



chase127 said:


> veryyyy nice  its looking great


Thanks! I feel it still needs a little work, but overall I'm happy with it.


----------



## kali (May 8, 2009)

your tank looking hot ..!!!


----------



## monkeyruler90 (Apr 13, 2008)

hows the tank doing man?


----------



## cah925 (May 18, 2007)

It's doing pretty good plant wise. I'm in a constant battle with some slimy brown stringy algae. I've cut my moss all the way back to the wood to remove as much algae as possible. The algae always comes back with the moss. I've tried to cut back on ferts, but then some of my crypts start to melt. I raised the light a little bit yesterday to see if that would help. I have occasional BBA too, but I give it a squirt of H2O2 during each water change and it helps a lot. I've been super swamped with school this semester and haven't had a chance to update. BTW, don't ever take 4 lectures and 4 labs in one semester. It's brutal!
I'll try and get some fresh pics up tomorrow afternoon.


----------



## vtkid (Jan 5, 2009)

your tank is looking really killer, but that algae doesnt sound to good. good luck with that, the stuff is never fun.


----------



## khanzer22 (Jan 14, 2008)

Beautiful planted tank you have... We're waiting for the pic update!


----------



## Phil Edwards (Jul 18, 2003)

That's looking nice! How are you finding maintenance to be on that big Eheim?

Regards,
Phil


----------



## cah925 (May 18, 2007)

Phil Edwards said:


> That's looking nice! How are you finding maintenance to be on that big Eheim?
> 
> Regards,
> Phil


I'm sorry I missed this post. I have yet to do any major maintenance on the Eheim. It's been running smooth since the day I set it up. I hooked up my drain hose to the outlet on the bottom and drained about 1/2 the water in the filter a few months ago. The water was relatively clean coming out so I didn't bother opening it up. I'm not using any filter pads in the filter, only Eheim EHFILAV and Eheim EHFISUBSTRAT. This stuff keeps the water crystal clear all the time.


----------



## cah925 (May 18, 2007)

Past due update-
Here's a pic from 10/30/09. This scape was inspired by something I saw on the internet. It didn't turn out quite the way I expected and I decided to rescape this week.









Here's a pic of the Blyxa field the kuhliis call home. It also apparently doubled as a breeding ground.









Here's a pic of the baby kuhlii I found (in case you missed the other thread).


----------



## cah925 (May 18, 2007)

Because this tank is so tall, I decided to use Blyxa as my foreground grass in this latest rescape. I already had the new scape in mind before I found the baby kuhlii and I started working on it this week. The front half the tank is Blyxa with some Crypt wendtii randomly placed. The back half is swords and a few stems. I still have to add the C helferi, ferns, anubias and a few other stems, but here is the initial planting. I also purchased some more tetras -rummynose, diamond, emperor, and cardinals to add to the black neons and green fire tetras I already had.


----------



## oldpunk78 (Nov 1, 2008)

that lawn is going to look sweet! can't wait to see it filled in!


----------



## skewlboy (Jul 23, 2006)

wish I knew your tank was so tall, would have sent yo some polygonum sp for it..


----------



## cah925 (May 18, 2007)

skewlboy said:


> wish I knew your tank was so tall, would have sent yo some polygonum sp for it..


I appreciate the offer, but I'm trying to use as few stems as possible to keep the maintenance down. As of right now, there are only 3 species of stems in the tank and they are all slow growers. Your stems will make 5 total species of stems. I may rearrange some of the stems once the brevipes and arcuata get here.


----------



## speedie408 (Jan 15, 2009)

Lookin good man. Can't wait to see it filled in yet once again.


----------



## jmhart (Mar 14, 2008)

Excellent, and good score with the kuhli.


----------



## cah925 (May 18, 2007)

Quick update-
I changed out the wood in the middle for a piece that stuck out above the Blyxa and put some Fissiden on it. I added the C helferi in the back along with some L brevipes and L arcuata that arrived today from skewlboy. Super big thanks to skewlboy for some amazingly red stems. The clay pots holding my Erios are just temporary. They will be coming out next month. I also increased my slope on the sides to create more of a trench in the middle.









Here's a pic of some of the fish. The tetras pictured are diamond, black neon, rummynose and in the upper corner you can see the tail of a green fire tetra.


----------



## skewlboy (Jul 23, 2006)

where is the red


----------



## cah925 (May 18, 2007)

skewlboy said:


> where is the red


Currently, the "red" is hidden by the hardscape in the FTS. Here's a couple more pics from different angles showing your wonderful plants.


----------



## cah925 (May 18, 2007)

Update time-
I didn't think this tank had changed much, but after looking back at the original pics there is noticeable change.
The Blyxa has been growing crazy fast and filling in much faster than I anticipated. The swords are finally acclimating to submerged life, especially the ones on the left. I added my last 2 C helferi to the right side behind the swords for some contrast. This was not part of the original design and happened by accident. I dropped them in that spot using some plant weights just before my Xmas vacation to keep them alive. When I came back, I thought it looked good so I went ahead and planted them. The stem plants in the back have been slow to grow. They grew about 2" and I went ahead and trimmed them to promote branching for a bushier look. Now you can't see them again because the Blyxa is in the way. One day, eventually, I'll have the look I want back there.
The Eriocaulens (in the pots) will be coming out in the near future for a school project.

FTS


----------



## lilsoccakid74 (Jul 13, 2008)

wow, really like your tank. I think it would look stunning with a black background!


----------



## idontknow (May 9, 2008)

Great looking tank. Dont see to many of the 60" 125 gallons. Loved your eel tank as well I was just peeking at that. Do you have an updated count for all your fish or did you lose track?


----------



## cah925 (May 18, 2007)

lilsoccakid74 said:


> wow, really like your tank. I think it would look stunning with a black background!


Thanks. The background was originally going to be black. I had some left over paint that is black on my wall, but dried this gray color on the back of the tank. Oh well.



idontknow said:


> Great looking tank. Dont see to many of the 60" 125 gallons. Loved your eel tank as well I was just peeking at that. Do you have an updated count for all your fish or did you lose track?


Here is my best guess-
12 diamond tetras
12 rummynose tetras
8 black neon tetras
3 green fire tetras
2 cardinal tetras
7 kuhlii loaches
8 otos


----------



## adrianng1996 (Dec 1, 2009)

I REALLY REALLY REALLY! recommend getting a big school of cardinals! it would look so great! i can see it now, a huge school of cardinals schooling around the tank....what a sight man


----------



## fshfanatic (Apr 20, 2006)

Nice work, it's looking great. I have the 2260 and I absolutely love it.. Great choice.


----------



## cah925 (May 18, 2007)

I was cleaning up in the conservatory at school today and found 2 very little pieces of Tillandsia that separated from the mother plant and fell off the bench. Being the opportunist that I am, I brought these 2 little specimens home with me. Since they rely on humidity for water, I thought they would grow perfectly over my open top tank. I put a few pieces of wood on top of my tank and placed the plants in a little nook.









From a distance you can barely see them.




































I'll probably have to rework the wood and plant placement as they grow bigger, but I like the way it looks for now.


----------



## cah925 (May 18, 2007)

Here are some recent tank photos. The sword on the left is growing much faster than the others. Crypts are getting tall and growing above the "grass". I would like to see them fill out a little and get bushy. The Blyxa foreground is thick and seems to be self pruning itself. I pull a couple small floating plantlets out each week. I imagine it may be a lighting issue since I'm only using 2 bulbs on this tank to help with algae.



























I picked up some HY511 tetras and just recently added them to the main tank after QT. They definitely need a large tank to move around in. Some of the larger ones were picking on the smaller ones in my 10 gal QT.


----------



## cah925 (May 18, 2007)

Just wanted to share some pics of a flower bud from my Echinodorus Uruguayensis. I just noticed this monster of a bud growing yesterday. This first pic was taken real fast and didn't turn out very well, but you can see the height difference.









Tonight, I find the bud just barely touching the water surface. 6" of growth in 24 hours!









close up


----------



## fhqwhgads (Jan 18, 2005)

that is such a cool flower, nice tank :icon_smil


----------



## cah925 (May 18, 2007)

Just got back from my summer internship last week and had a chance to get some updated pics of the tank. I put in some rootmedic tabs in late April, just before I left. I had a friend take care of the tank while I was gone, but he didn't pull any plants-just left it to evolve on its own. Here's my jungle.



























The crypt on the right side nearly rivals the sword behind it in height.


----------



## plantedpufferfreak (Feb 2, 2010)

Wow thats some impressive growth!


----------



## malaybiswas (Nov 2, 2008)

Prune time :icon_smil


----------



## hydrophyte (Mar 1, 2009)

Those are some happy plants in there. Do you know what kind of crypt this is?



cah925 said:


>


----------



## cah925 (May 18, 2007)

I think the one in the right front corner is a Crypt beckettii. It grew to enormous size and sent out many runners after I put a Rootmedic root tab under it.


----------



## Tex Gal (Mar 28, 2008)

Just went through your entire thread. It's so neat to see the changes all at once! What a metamorphosis! 

I'm surprised that's C. becketti. Looks more like C. wendtii bronze to me. I have C. becketti and it doesn't look like that. Tank is looking great!


----------



## cah925 (May 18, 2007)

Well...I'm not entirely sure on that id. I have wendtii 'red/bronze', wendtii 'green', wendtii 'green gecko', undulata and beckettii in this tank. I'll take some closer pics later tonight and we can all debate the correct names. I would love to get it right so I can sell a few of these and make some room in this tank.


----------



## cah925 (May 18, 2007)

*Major rescape*

I wasn't very happy with the clean up and rescape I did after the summer, so I decided to tear down and redo the entire tank. The first thing I did was to change the background from a light gray to black. Next I went with a much larger hardscape and changed the foreground to sand. I put a couple PVC tubes behind the rocks to serve as caves. Here's a couple quick pics before the water went in the tank.


















I'm going to use Congo tetras and Rummynose tetras as the main fish. My current rummys form a tight group and usually hang out in the front near the bottom, so I think the open sandy area will be perfect for them. I'm also seriously considering some Redline torpedo barbs once the tank gets established. The caves are in just in case I decide to get one or two pairs of Apistos.


----------



## cah925 (May 18, 2007)

Here's a few pics after I filled the tank and put in a couple plants. All those MTS survived in nearly dry AS while it was in buckets for over a week.

Left side shot









Left side









Right Side









FTS









I'm not real happy with the wood at this point and may move it around or replace it once I get plants next week.
My next project is to redo the spraybars, DIY style. Currently, it sprays from right to left and blows my plants over. I'm going to make a spraybar from PVC that will run across the back of the tank and blow forward. Since I have 2 filters on this tank, I'm also going to put one across the back near the substrate that blows straight up with the CO2 gas. The top spraybar will distribute it through the tank. In theory, it should give the gas extra time to dissolve in the water before being blown around. Not sure if it will work, but I'm going to give it a try.


----------



## Craig (Nov 26, 2007)

Well as broken up as I am over you tearing out all those nice plants in the original tank, this new scape looks cool! :biggrin:


----------



## oldpunk78 (Nov 1, 2008)

*Re: 125gal - major rescape, new hardscape 09/11/10*

I really like this new hardscape. Can't wait to see it planted and filled in. 
Sent from my HTC Aria using Tapatalk


----------



## whitepapagold (Aug 19, 2010)

Nice!

Black is the way to go...

I have no idea why people do colors... It always competes with the contents... And looks soooo fake! Some of the nicests scapes have that hideous plastic blue background...:icon_frow (And it doesn't ever look like sky or water as intended- it looks like plastic- its reflective property cant be removed)

Clear is nice and natural but black...

The black will make things pop!

I like the stepping! The low front will look great filled in with plants!


----------



## cah925 (May 18, 2007)

I'm only putting very small plants in the front sandy area, that way the rocks can remain a large part of the hardscape. In my 75 gal, the rocks are nearly obscured from view by all the plants. So far, I have the single Crypt wendtii 'green gecko' (one of my favs) and about 5 stems of B japonica. I also have this very little plant that Orlando gave me many months ago but was never used until now. For reference, that piece of rock in front of the plant is about 1/2" long.









Here's a few pics of the current inhabitants.


----------



## albirdy (Jul 16, 2008)

man i LOVE the overgrowth of page 8. I wish I got some of those crypts  yum. 
how many root tabs did ya use per square area?


----------



## daewoo59 (Aug 2, 2010)

*Lighting*

Dear Mr

What lighting u are thinking to add for ur 125 gl tank.and how many watts u are going to add.Pls reply me.







cah925 said:


> I have been contemplating upgrading my current 75 gal tank to a 125 gal. I found a great deal on Craigslist and decided to go for it. So here is a sneak peak at my new pride and joy. Tank size is 60"x18.5"x26"
> 
> 
> It's currently on my back porch while I clean it up and prep it for use. I can't move it in the house until I find time to take down my 40 breeders also.


----------



## cah925 (May 18, 2007)

@albirdy - I can't remember exactly, but I think I placed one near every major plant from the original scape. Each sword got one and most crypts got one also. If the crypts were close, I only put one in the middle.

@daewoo59 - I'm using a Catalina Solar T5HO 4x80W


----------



## calvert (Apr 29, 2010)

what type of bulbs are in your fixture?


----------



## cah925 (May 18, 2007)

I have 2 6500K and 2 10000K. I use the 10000K for a noon burst.


----------



## calvert (Apr 29, 2010)

appreciate it. one more question... curious to what your lighting period/hours are? i.e. 6500k's on for 8 hours then the 10kk's on for a 2 hour noon burst


----------



## cah925 (May 18, 2007)

I use the 6500K for 6.5 hrs and the 10000K I think is set for 2 hrs. Anything more than that and I end up with BBA on my ferns and C helferi. I have some SAE's and other algae eaters that I will be adding soon. If they can get the algae under control, then I may consider increasing my photoperiod.


----------



## calvert (Apr 29, 2010)

great. thanks.


----------



## R33 GTR (Mar 13, 2009)

Hi CAH925 ANY UPDATES OF THIS AQUARIUM


----------



## cah925 (May 18, 2007)

After I tore down the other scape, I just randomly threw in a bunch of stems. A few months later, I could see how they looked as they grew taller. I went ahead and tore most of the plants out again to rearrange for a better looking scape. Everything is still growing to fill in once again, but here is where we are today. I'm having a hell of a time keeping the AS off the front beach area. The kuhliis kick some out every time they squirm through the rock creases. This last scape, I put some Blyxa in key places to hold back the AS and hopefully keep my beach looking clean.

FTS



























These Hygro 'kompact' are looking real good right now with some red tips.


----------



## problemman (Aug 19, 2005)

Is that blyxa or cypress our calls on the right?


----------



## R33 GTR (Mar 13, 2009)

looks good


----------



## cah925 (May 18, 2007)

The tall grassy looking plant on the right is Cyperus helferi. I probably have 3-5 plants in that spot. There is a piece of Blyxa japonica shoved in between the rock and the glass to hold back some of the AS on the right also.


----------



## problemman (Aug 19, 2005)

i see!


----------



## hydrophyte (Mar 1, 2009)

I had some of that Hygro. 'Kompakt' going and it is a cool plant. I have thought it would be a fun centerpiece in a nano setup. 

Your fish are looking great.


----------



## cah925 (May 18, 2007)

The fish are a lot of fun. They follow you back and forth across the tank hoping for a tasty morsel to drop in. The Congos will jump out of the water to get worms that I dangle above them.


----------



## simplefin (Oct 6, 2010)

Wow, just read the whole thread! love all the different scapes you have done. this last one really strikes a chord in me... but i was wondering about the AS that spilled over your wall. Did it spill over because of replanting/ fish activity, or did you add some to the sand yourself?

I would love to eventually do an all sand front, especially for cories. what are your thoughts on the sand now that you have had it?


----------



## cah925 (May 18, 2007)

The rocks left some rather large cracks that the kuhliis love to swim through. As they kick their way through, the AS gets knocked around and eventually spills forward. The AS on the beach was not intentional and I clean it up the best I can every couple months when it gets real bad. Looking back, I wish I would have put some kind of plastic guard behind the rocks to hold the AS from spilling over.
I'm still happy with the sand front and haven't had any problems with it. I add root tabs around the plants in front to make sure they get nutrients. It's nice to see the bottom dwellers swim around in the front where I can see them. The only problems I have heard about with sand is anaerobic pockets of gas that can build up to toxic levels. As I clean the front, I dig into the sand with a net and sift the AS out. The sand falls back into place and the AS gets redistributed in the back again. I'm pretty sure this is keeping my sand "healthy". I also have hundreds of MTS that dig around constantly.


----------



## cah925 (May 18, 2007)

Update Time - I had a pretty bad outbreak of BBA that I just couldn't seem to get under control so I was hesitant to put up pics for a while. I OD'd with Excel and was able to kill all the BBA and now have a tank worthy of showing off again. Unfortunately, I lost a few Congos in the process.

Here's a FTS









Left side - The ferns in the corner shade the lower section so it's hard to see the Staurogyne repens 049. I plan on trimming that back this weekend.









Right Side - My 'Green Gecko' also took a hit from the excel and is only about half what it used to be.


















Close up of the left side


----------



## problemman (Aug 19, 2005)

Looking real nice there!


----------



## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

I should totally remember to stop looking at your tanks. I just feel so sad about my own afterword.... Looks fantastic!


----------



## cah925 (May 18, 2007)

sewingalot said:


> I should totally remember to stop looking at your tanks.


lol, we have such odd compliments in this hobby.  Thanks for the replies.


----------



## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

cah925 said:


> lol, we have such odd compliments in this hobby.  Thanks for the replies.


Haha, you are totally right about that one.


----------



## flwrbed (Apr 20, 2005)

i have a green gecko and i dose excell sometimes heavy. what level do i have to worry about. i have not noticed any effect yet. its one of my favorite plants, i dont want to hurt it.


----------

