# 37g Discus, planted, harscaped "Appalachian Allure"



## bsmith (Jan 8, 2007)

I am very excited about this layout. This tank has gone through a few different iterations but I believe this will be the final, most natural and ultimately the scape that I transfer to the large rimless aquarim that will centerpiece my collection when I am able do it. 

As I type I am in the midst of speaking with Rod Salyers who is the owner/operator/harbinger of hardscape for thedriftwoodstore.com. We have spoken about this scape on a few different occasions because both he and I are very particular about setting things up correctly from the start with the design goal, rock shape/size/texture/feel and ensuring that I (the customer) am going to get exactly the right rock/wood for the job. This includes verbal and photo sharing through our phones. I will post up some pics of this efforts below. Its quite refreshing in this day and age of "pay me then we can talk mentality"! Wonderful service and I suggest ANYONE who is thinking about hardscaping their tank give them a shot. 

The landscape from which the hardscape was born. 









Currently the tank has 3 discus and 4 or so Ottocinclus. The plants are Syngonanthus madiera, Ludwigia Pantanal, Echinodorus Aflame, Eriocaulon Austraila II and Polygonum Sao Paulo. 

The hardscape will entail North Fork Stones and Appalachian Root Wood which has a contorted shape due to the rocky terrain and a dark reddish brown color given from the high Iron content of the soils, neither of which I have ever seen implemented in a tank before. They were harvested in their entirety, legally and with all proper permits from the watersheds in the higher elevations of the Southern Appalachian mountains and from the streams/rivers of Eastern Tennessee with Rod's own hands. I wish I could have been there!

Everything should be arriving mid week but here are some shots he sent of a very nice mock up of the tank that were done with the dimensions I sent him.


A few sample pics of the materials/


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## problemman (Aug 19, 2005)

Looking forward to seeing this evolve


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## fishykid1 (Apr 5, 2010)

Just curious, why do you keep discus in a 37G tank... Are you using it as a grow out tank?


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## bsmith (Jan 8, 2007)

Why wouldnt I keep them in a 37g tank? I have kept them in here for years with multiple breeding pairs. If you keep the water filtered and provide quality parameters there is no problem. I'm also the guy keeping a large community of high grade CRS in a 5.5g tank too which some people say is not good either.


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## fishykid1 (Apr 5, 2010)

Just wondering, no biggie. That's crazy though, I've never heard of people keeping them in smaller tanks than like 55 gallons. But if it works it works, any pics **of the discus? I love them and angels.


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## bsmith (Jan 8, 2007)

I'll have pics up midweek when I get the stones and am able to scape. I'm thinking Wednesday evening since I'm off Thursday and will be able to devote the necessary time to do the deed.


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## bsmith (Jan 8, 2007)

Here are a few pics after I vacuumed the substrate and sloped it up in the rear right corner. I totally blanked about the DW floating so well see what happens later tonight. 

I LOVE the way the rocks look and I'm going to move the Aflame further to the right and mingle it up with the DW, when it sinks.


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## ADA (Dec 31, 2010)

Wow.. another excellent tank in your collection. So jealous. Haha


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## Solid (Jul 19, 2009)

Those rocks have tons of character! How many discus do you plan to keep in there (I see 3)? Also what kind of wicked red sword is that? Looks sweet!


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## bsmith (Jan 8, 2007)

ADA said:


> Wow.. another excellent tank in your collection. So jealous. Haha





Solid said:


> Those rocks have tons of character! How many discus do you plan to keep in there (I see 3)? Also what kind of wicked red sword is that? Looks sweet!


Thanks guys (funny that you two commented consecutively and both have Rams in your Avatar) the tank is coming along okay. I just haven't posted anything new because I had a crazy bout of GW and nothing spectacular has came out of it really. Sunday though, I tore a whole bunch of dead plants from the tank and rearranged where the Purple Bamboo and Polygonum Sao Paulo are. Actually I just looked and saw I hadn't posted pics since the very beginning when the DW wouldn't even stay submerged! Ill post some up tonight. 

ADA- The purple sword plant is an Echinodorus Aflame or Purple Knight. Its the slowest growing sword EVER. I have had it for over a year and i have this plant and another so it split once for me on a whole year. Its temperamental at best and the leaves only survive for a few months so getting a thick full appearance is something I have not yet found to be possible since their super slow growth coupled with them getting ratty forces you to trim them. I just did it on Sunday and now I have like 3 small leaves again! 

As far the Discus, I actually gassed the smallest one (I would have a nice group of 5-6 of I didn't gas them or kill them with Excel) about 3-4 weeks ago trying to kill the GW. And for future reference upping co2 when you have GW will only make it even worse. I am now a firm believer that the only think that will kill it is a UV sterilizer unless you have a low tech tank with Anubis and Java fern and can afford a week long (or longer) complete black out. I would like to have a group of 5-6 but the local pickings are so crappy. If you look at any of the pics I have posted of them you can see that they are stunted, have big ole eyes and really just dont look that good. I actually try to take the ones in worst shape since I can usually get them for next to nothing and I nurse them back to good health. Please anyone who is a Discus Nazi, spare me the lecture about needing x amount of g per fish. I have bred discus in this very tank and am quite aware that I will never have show quality fish growing them out in a tank like this. As I stated, they arent even anywhere near that quality anyway and I just want them to look good any be happy. Which they will be in this tank (barring and co2 gassing and excel Od'ing) .


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## nonconductive (Jan 29, 2010)

nice setup... im with you i could care less about show quality or stunting. i actually would prefer them to stay small.


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## bsmith (Jan 8, 2007)

Yeah, most people (im talking 99%) have no idea what it entails to get smaller discus (2.5"-3.5") and try to get them to grow out to their full potential of 10" fish. Even if you had a 150g tank, that would make it even tougher because you would need to change 130g of the water 2x's a day and feed them 5-7x's a day. Then knowing only what they have read and other discus nazis postings think that if you have less than 10g per fish you are committing animal cruelty. It erks me to no end. 

And no Solid, I am not referring to you so please dont think I am.


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## nonconductive (Jan 29, 2010)

all that overfeeding and waterchanging is a waste IMO. done that and dont care to again. I change water once every month or so, feed once everyday or every other day. treat them like any other fish and they do fine.


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## bsmith (Jan 8, 2007)

nonconductive said:


> all that overfeeding and waterchanging is a waste IMO. done that and dont care to again. I change water once every month or so, feed once everyday or every other day. treat them like any other fish and they do fine.


Werd. :thumbsup:


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## daverock1337 (Jan 17, 2011)

nonconductive said:


> all that overfeeding and waterchanging is a waste IMO. done that and dont care to again. I change water once every month or so, feed once everyday or every other day. treat them like any other fish and they do fine.


i agree.

i change my water once a week and feed 1-2 times a day and my one discus is doing fine. he isn't very big, but i don't care to power grow them. seems unnatural to me. he is also starting to color up nicely.


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## ADA (Dec 31, 2010)

bsmith said:


> ADA- The purple sword plant is an Echinodorus Aflame or Purple Knight. Its the slowest growing sword EVER. I have had it for over a year and i have this plant and another so it split once for me on a whole year. Its temperamental at best and the leaves only survive for a few months so getting a thick full appearance is something I have not yet found to be possible since their super slow growth coupled with them getting ratty forces you to trim them. I just did it on Sunday and now I have like 3 small leaves again!


It's a nice plant looking though! That IS slow.. wow.

Totally dig what you're saying about the discus too. People love to lecture you on here.. I got bashed for my "overcrowded" tank.


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## bsmith (Jan 8, 2007)

I think the guidelines are solid but to be so strict about anything is no fun at all!


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## ADA (Dec 31, 2010)

bsmith said:


> I think the guidelines are solid but to be so strict about anything is no fun at all!


Exactly!


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## bsmith (Jan 8, 2007)

I have a new reason to dislike this tank, it seems that either from scrubbing the glass to clean GDA or the GDA somehow etches the glass I now have a tank with frosted glass! It's so hazy looking. I thought at first it was from particulates swirling about but looking through the water from above reveals a crystal clear view to the substrate. I also don't like this 37g because of its awkward dimensions, 24"T x 30"W x 12"D. When I purchased it I thought it was the best thing ever since I was more about the fish and not so much plants and scaping so when I found I could go from my 29 to a 37 and use the same stand I jumped on it. I really want a 40 breeder that would be excellent. 

Anyway I just got some pretty cool plants. Eriocaulion parkeri, Lachnocaulon African Erio, Tonina "Narrow Leaf" and a mutated bi-color rotala butterfly. 

Here are some stunning cell pics. I will break out the proper camera in a bit.


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## ADA (Dec 31, 2010)

bsmith said:


> I have a new reason to dislike this tank, it seems that either from scrubbing the glass to clean GDA or the GDA somehow etches the glass I now have a tank with frosted glass! It's so hazy looking. I thought at first it was from particulates swirling about but looking through the water from above reveals a crystal clear view to the substrate. I also don't like this 37g because of its awkward dimensions, 24"T x 30"W x 12"D. When I purchased it I thought it was the best thing ever since I was more about the fish and not so much plants and scaping so when I found I could go from my 29 to a 37 and use the same stand I jumped on it. I really want a 40 breeder that would be excellent.
> 
> Anyway I just got some pretty cool plants. Eriocaulion parkeri, Lachnocaulon African Erio, Tonina "Narrow Leaf" and a mutated bi-color rotala butterfly.
> 
> Here are some stunning cell pics. I will break out the proper camera in a bit.


Where?? Where are the cell pics!!! Hehe. I wanna see.


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## bsmith (Jan 8, 2007)

I wrote the above post on my cell phone then decided to take the pics with my real camera and didnt feel like re typing everything. The pics are uploading to photobucket as I type so ill have them posted here in a few minutes.


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## ADA (Dec 31, 2010)

bsmith said:


> I wrote the above post on my cell phone then decided to take the pics with my real camera and didnt feel like re typing everything. The pics are uploading to photobucket as I type so ill have them posted here in a few minutes.


I'll be waiting.. That's a bummer about your tank! Can you buff the scratches out? There has to be a way to fix it. If not... new giant ADA tank?? hehe.. Sell some shrimp, you'll get your money in no time


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## bsmith (Jan 8, 2007)




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## F22 (Sep 21, 2008)

Hardscape is cool. Id love to see it grown in.

_-- Sent from my Palm Pre using Forums_


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## bsmith (Jan 8, 2007)




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## bsmith (Jan 8, 2007)

I was wondering why the internodes on my pantanal were getting so long. I only had one bank of lighting running! Here are a few pics of having both banks on two days later. Compare the brightness in the pantanal and how fast the butterfly morph has grown.


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## chad320 (Mar 7, 2010)

That pantanal is looking stellar!!! Love the plant picks for this tank! Alot of beauties in there


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

Love this picture: 









I think you need to take that sponge filter and send it to me for my bba tank. It's so pretty. 

By the way, with the rocks and the different colored plants, it reminds me of the fall mountains. Good job!

The difference in growth is outstanding.


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## bsmith (Jan 8, 2007)

chad320 said:


> That pantanal is looking stellar!!! Love the plant picks for this tank! Alot of beauties in there


And it's only going to get better. 

See this is how I work and from time to
Time what happens to me. I see an issue and go through everything and miss the big stuff because it's just too simple. I have no idea how long I had been running on only one bank of lighting. As soon as I saw that switch off I slapped myself in the face and stomped on my own foot! How stupid!

But now it's all good and the plants are looking very good IMO. 



sewingalot said:


> Love this picture:
> 
> 
> 
> ...


I knew if you stopped by you would see the BBA covered intake sock and get amped up. It's a continual battle in this tank. I let it get crazy then let it sit in a cup filled with a very strong mix of excel and water then replace. Really though the more bba the better it probably filters and makes it more natural looking too.


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## bsmith (Jan 8, 2007)

I have a ton of pics. I guess I thought everything was beautiful this evening. Ill post up more after I get done hooking up the Reef Keeper Light that I just received into the infrastructure of this tank. 

But here are a few.


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## ADA (Dec 31, 2010)

wow.. it's looking incredible.


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## bsmith (Jan 8, 2007)

ADA said:


> wow.. it's looking incredible.



Thanks friend. It's starting to look better. Also, I should have the snails tomorrow so I will for sure let you know and send some pics when they do. 

I got my RKL all hooked up. It was a pita getting the power strip mounted because I only had hex flat head screws. But it's done now and I can tell you that if you spent retail on one ($110-120) it's 100% worth it. The system has a feel that is easily 5x more substantial than the coralife timer centers ( which I blew through 2 and both had some weird timer power issue). I don't understand how to set the timers yet but that will be taken care of shortly hopefully.


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## bsmith (Jan 8, 2007)

Here are the remainder if the tank pics and I will follow up with the RKL.


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## ADA (Dec 31, 2010)

Hmm.. sounds good. I actually don't use a timer at all, which is probably REALLY bad..? I just turn it on when I get up in the morning and turn off at night. 

Are you gonna post pics of your new setup? I wanna see! 

Pretty excited about seeing the Nerites. The seller's pic looked really good. You can email them to me if you like? Thanks again!


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## bsmith (Jan 8, 2007)

ADA said:


> Hmm.. sounds good. I actually don't use a timer at all, which is probably REALLY bad..? I just turn it on when I get up in the morning and turn off at night.
> 
> Are you gonna post pics of your new setup? I wanna see!
> 
> Pretty excited about seeing the Nerites. The seller's pic looked really good. You can email them to me if you like? Thanks again!


You just got ninja'd brother!


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## bsmith (Jan 8, 2007)

Now to the other mess, the one under the tank. 

I was actually pretty proud of myself when I completed this dangerous looking jumble of wires around christmas. What was I smoking?>


















A little better...


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## bsmith (Jan 8, 2007)

At least I have all the old stuff out. Now just time for some organization. Maybe Sunday or tomorrow night.


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## bsmith (Jan 8, 2007)

So it's about 1:20 here and this is what I have to put away. Help me if my wife finds it tomorrow morning!


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## ADA (Dec 31, 2010)

lol!

You rawk.

That ninja thing is awesome. It looks like Karate Kid.

Get to work! you're gonna be in trouble. haha


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## Hyzer (Mar 9, 2010)

Looking good! I particularly like the color of the cluster on the right.

It must be nice to have all that height for stem plants.


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## bsmith (Jan 8, 2007)

Hyzer said:


> Looking good! I particularly like the color of the cluster on the right.
> 
> It must be nice to have all that height for stem plants.


This is the irony that I love so much. I am jealous of your floor space and you are intrigued by the height that I posses. It is a blessing and a curse. It is nice to be able to grow some height but unless you have a lot of light until the plants get a bit taller they can suffer from lack of light and become deformed and ugly. So its a balancing act.


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## Hyzer (Mar 9, 2010)

bsmith said:


> This is the irony that I love so much. I am jealous of your floor space and you are intrigued by the height that I posses. It is a blessing and a curse. It is nice to be able to grow some height but unless you have a lot of light until the plants get a bit taller they can suffer from lack of light and become deformed and ugly. So its a balancing act.


Definitely a grass is always greener type of deal. Putting ten inches of substrate in my 40 like a nub doesn't help anything either. My next tank will probably have both width and height, like a 75 or 90, but that is a whole 'nother beast.


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## mrchach (Sep 8, 2010)

where are the discus?


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## bsmith (Jan 8, 2007)

They are predator discus, they have good camo.


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## kokomon (May 23, 2011)

Love the Fish


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## bsmith (Jan 8, 2007)

Thanks, I really want some more Discus and Cardinals but you wouldn't believe the prices of the Cards here in STL and also the prices that some of the stores try to charge for some of the most sub par discus you have ever seen. If I see one that I like and think has potential the is either going to end one of two ways. I'm going to get the fish for what I feel its really worth or I end up telling the owner/clerk at that specific time go (expletive) off and why that would be a great benefit to the hobby in out area! 

Depending on how much energy I have after packing up a large quantity of some Kens food I may just have to slightly re scape and snap some pics. I finally got rid of yet another batch of GW. 

On a side note, does anyone else have any experience with UV sterilizers and if the way you have them plugged in reverses the on/off switch that controls the UV light? I had never seen this before but this time I plugged it in not thinking anything of it and put the UV ballast to the 0 position which I thought was the universal sign for ON. Well after about a week of the GW not thinning one bit (IN past times it was completely gone in about 3-4 days from a green pea soup like appearance) so I thought that this Chinese made sterilizer that I had traded for (and that has worked wonderfully for 2 or so years) may have finally bit the bucket. SO I went to the cabinet to check things out (see if I actually DID plug it in) and after seeing that I certainly had plugged it in and that the switch was in the 0 position I flipped the power plug and it turned on!

Is this weird, a little strange or completely normal and I had just been very lucky with plugging aquarium equipment in the right way for the past 20 years?


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## Centromochlus (May 19, 2008)

Beautiful L. 'pantanal'!


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## bsmith (Jan 8, 2007)

AzFishKid said:


> Beautiful L. 'pantanal'!


If only I could get my Hyptis looking as good. I think if things dont look better tomorrow (did a WC and didn't dose today) im going to have to move a few stems to this tank where everything grows like it been maintained by Willy Wanka and his Oompa Loompas. :bounce:


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## bsmith (Jan 8, 2007)

Here are some crappy photos I just took. I trimmed the tank and am awaiting it to grow out. 

Enjoy!


















One of my all time favorites, Polygonum Sao Paulo. 

































Ludwiagia Palustris x Glandulosa. A rarer stem that produces a uncanny bright red top when in high light and is very happy. These were not close to the top and you can see the difference in coloration in comparison to the stems that were lower before the trim. 









My Echinodorus Aflame/Purple Knight

















Finally the fish!


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## fishboy199413 (Jan 20, 2010)

Hey if I was to set up a 38 gallon 36"X18"X12.5" and was wondering if I could set up the tank with discus and a few other fish as long as I have goo filteration? What do you think? Also I would make sure to keep the water clean and probaly fedd them once every day or every other if needed. Thanks


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## bsmith (Jan 8, 2007)

How many gallons is that?


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## fishboy199413 (Jan 20, 2010)

38 US Gallons


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## bsmith (Jan 8, 2007)

Yeah, thats the same tank I have. You could have 5 discus in there that are from 3"-5" as long as you keep the water clean.


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## fishboy199413 (Jan 20, 2010)

Could I have tankmates? Also what if I kept 2-3 discus and would that be temporary? Thank you for answering :icon_smil

P.S. If you have any tips could you give me advice?


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## bsmith (Jan 8, 2007)

You could keep 2-3 but one of them may get bullied and eventually die. Thats why 4-5 is recommended to evenly distribute the aggression, if any at all. 

Rummynose, cardinal and neon tetras are a good match with discus because they come from the same region in nature and can handle the high temps and softer water discus appreciate.


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## Emerica88 (Oct 16, 2009)

What is the bright green plant on the left?


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## bsmith (Jan 8, 2007)

It is Staurogyne Tropica 049. Which I am actually selling in the link below. 

http://www.plantedtank.net/forums/s...specials/139676-staurogyne-tropica-049-a.html


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## bsmith (Jan 8, 2007)

Some fresh shots. I moved the Echomodorus Aflame to a more prominent spot up front and center and also moved the macandra and a bit of the pantanal.


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## HolyAngel (Oct 18, 2010)

bsmith said:


> Thanks, I really want some more Discus and Cardinals but you wouldn't believe the prices of the Cards here in STL and also the prices that some of the stores try to charge for some of the most sub par discus you have ever seen. If I see one that I like and think has potential the is either going to end one of two ways. I'm going to get the fish for what I feel its really worth or I end up telling the owner/clerk at that specific time go (expletive) off and why that would be a great benefit to the hobby in out area!
> 
> Depending on how much energy I have after packing up a large quantity of some Kens food I may just have to slightly re scape and snap some pics. I finally got rid of yet another batch of GW.
> 
> ...


 
Ah yeah, I only know this because I work on computers for a living, but it's binary, 0 = off, 1 or |= on for any electronics that have the switch 

Nice tank as usual btw!


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## bsmith (Jan 8, 2007)

HolyAngel said:


> Ah yeah, I only know this because I work on computers for a living, but it's binary, 0 = off, 1 or |= on for any electronics that have the switch
> 
> Nice tank as usual btw!


Thank you friend. 

UPDATE----------

I just re-hardscaped with some wood I received from Mr.Barr and IMO it's quite the sick layout. Really natural with a very stream like flow across the whole back of the tank. Hopefully I will be able to post some pics tonight.


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## hydrophyte (Mar 1, 2009)

This looks lovel. You have selected some very nice plants. How long do you think you will be able to keep the discus in there?


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## 2in10 (Feb 8, 2011)

The June pics are sweet, really want to see the new hardscape.


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## bsmith (Jan 8, 2007)

hydrophyte said:


> This looks lovel. You have selected some very nice plants. How long do you think you will be able to keep the discus in there?


I like the plants too. I try my hardest to keep collectoritis at bay. 

The discus will be in there indefinitely or until I get my 120-p. You see these Discus were (what I like to call) rescued from a LFS where they are kept in half a##ed conditions and are practically on there last leg when I pick them up. Which is for practically nothing since the ppl who work there can at least tell when a fish is about to expire. 



2in10 said:


> The June pics are sweet, really want to see the new hardscape.


I am currently uploading them to photobucket. They will be posted in the next 15-21 minutes.


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## hydrophyte (Mar 1, 2009)

Nice work rescuing that fish!


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## bsmith (Jan 8, 2007)

hydrophyte said:


> Nice work rescuing that fish!


I feel that 4-5 discus can be kept in a ~40g tank as long as water changes are done diligently (I do 50% wc's weekly with RO) and they are fed properly. They will not get dinnerplate sized but they were already so stunted from how they were kept at the FS that wouldn't be possible in a bare bottomed tank with 4x WC daily andmultiple feedings anyway. 

I have a soft spot for sick fish.


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## bsmith (Jan 8, 2007)

Here are pics I took pre-rehardscape.


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## bsmith (Jan 8, 2007)

Post-rehardscape!!!


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

Tank is looking great with the new scaping! How is everything going for you in good ole' Appalachia?  I love that new rescue discus you have in there, I never saw one that cute before. 

How is the tank doing in general?


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## bsmith (Jan 8, 2007)

sewingalot said:


> Tank is looking great with the new scaping! How is everything going for you in good ole' Appalachia?  I love that new rescue discus you have in there, I never saw one that cute before.
> 
> How is the tank doing in general?


Everything is excellent. The water is a bit cloudy but that could be from OD'ing the Erythro in the form of a bacteria bloom.

I posted a couple of new pics of some algae that has popped up since I treated in the "can we get to the bottom" thread. Check them out.


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## bsmith (Jan 8, 2007)

Got some fresh shots of this beautiful algae free tank with crystal clear water!!! 

I just wanted to proclaim how happy I am that I finally figured out how to use the manual focus on my camera. It is an absolute necessity when taking close ups/macro shots in a tank. Also I know that there are a few similar angle shots but the first ones are with the filter pump/koralia/UVS on then I turned it off. I had never done this in the past and I see the wonderful benefit to it now. 

Enjoy!


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## Chrisinator (Jun 5, 2008)

Beautiful!


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## bsmith (Jan 8, 2007)

Chrisinator said:


> Beautiful!


Thanks but its not so beautiful anymore. After a series of co2 issues and going on a small trip I lost my Pantanal and the other plants took a big hit. Everything is on the mend now and I acquired some Pantanal (thanks Chris!) and am growing it out in my 60-p at work. 

I also got a really nice Lagenandra meeboldii 'pink' from Chad320 as I am thinking that the pink undersides of this plant will accent the purple leaves of my E.Aflame very nicely. I trimmed all but two leaves and another that is in the process of growing in. The rhizome also split when I was cleaning it up so its planted as well and hopefully doesn't die and starts to grow. 

Im also trying to think if another mid/background plant would look good on the right side along with the Pantanal whenever I can bring some home to put in this tank? Im open to suggestions.


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## supaoopa (Oct 25, 2004)

Looks beautiful. Would love to switch out my 29 for a 37.


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## aXio (May 29, 2011)

How long do u plan on keeping your discus in that tank? Your fish look very stunted.


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## NStarr (Jun 3, 2011)

bsmith said:


> I feel that 4-5 discus can be kept in a ~40g tank as long as water changes are done diligently (I do 50% wc's weekly with RO) and they are fed properly. They will not get dinnerplate sized but they were already so stunted from how they were kept at the FS that wouldn't be possible in a bare bottomed tank with 4x WC daily andmultiple feedings anyway.
> 
> I have a soft spot for sick fish.


I strongly disagree with that.


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## aXio (May 29, 2011)

NStarr said:


> I strongly disagree with that.


As do I


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## bsmith (Jan 8, 2007)

That's understandable but I have done it for years with no problems. As I stated, regardless if they were in a 120 they still wouldn't get plate sized since I am not about to start doing daily WC's which are required with the multiple feedings growth like that would require.


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## bsmith (Jan 8, 2007)

supaoopa said:


> Looks beautiful. Would love to switch out my 29 for a 37.


Thats what I did. You gain 4"in height so if you do make sure your lighting is adequate as a 24" tall tank is pretty tough to light the substrate.


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## 150EH (Dec 6, 2004)

Your tank looks really nice and I love the rocks, I gotta go back to post one and see where you got them.

I just read an article this morning on gas prices and the MO. as the 2nd least expensive state to live in, this explains all these nice tank and the middle of the night install while Momma is sleeping, nice.


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## bsmith (Jan 8, 2007)

150EH said:


> Your tank looks really nice and I love the rocks, I gotta go back to post one and see where you got them.
> 
> I just read an article this morning on gas prices and the MO. as the 2nd least expensive state to live in, this explains all these nice tank and the middle of the night install while Momma is sleeping, nice.


I got them from thedriftwoodstore.com :hihi:


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## bsmith (Jan 8, 2007)

Took some fresh pics. I added a sweet new plant for a centerpiece, Lagenandra Meeboldi 'pink'. Its like a mix of an anubis and a crypt. When I got it there were some leaves that were a bit desheveld so I trimmed all but two and thinking that since it has a rhizome like an anubis I could maybe cut it with a razor to help promote new rhizome growths at the cuts. I cut too deeply in one spot and cut about 2.5" off. So I just planted it next to the main plant hoping that it will be okay and its actually growing something out of it so I think it'll be just fine. It grows very quickly. I have only had it about two weeks and its already about done sending out its second leaf. I hope that it gets even more deep pink but the pale pink is nice enough as it is. 


















































































































Cut rhizome growth


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## Plant keeper (Jan 27, 2011)

bsmith said:


> I feel that 4-5 discus can be kept in a ~40g tank as long as water changes are done diligently (I do 50% wc's weekly with RO) and they are fed properly. They will not get dinnerplate sized but they were already so stunted from how they were kept at the FS that wouldn't be possible in a bare bottomed tank with 4x WC daily andmultiple feedings anyway.
> 
> I have a soft spot for sick fish.


I 100% disagreewith this.....


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## 150EH (Dec 6, 2004)

The new plant look nice, real nice and the tan k look sparkling clean. What is growing on the driftwood, was it just a natural occurance or did you attach something to it??


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## Kooka (Feb 27, 2007)

Beauty tank you got there bsmith! Love the lime green staurogyne "forest". And as for my 2 cents in the "discus debate", in my very humble opinion, 3 discus should be fine in your tank, as long as you change around 50% of your water every week religiously and maintain an efficient filtration system (as you have been doing so far). You wont be "stunting" them per say, but they will never be able to reach there full potential in size, and they might become increasingly aggressive when they get older (they do like to have private space just like us). :hihi:

The discus pros on here do like to lecture people on proper discus care, but they mean well. Sometimes you just have to bear with them Also, if you ever have any extra staurogyne and you're ok with shipping to Canada, let me know.


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

LOL, every time I look at this, I see yet another comment about the discus. 

Bsmith! The algae is gone and the tank is SPARKLING! Everything is looking fantastic. Have you had anymore trouble with the dreaded Green Paint Algae? Doesn't appear to be the case.


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## nonconductive (Jan 29, 2010)

sewingalot said:


> LOL, every time I look at this, I see yet another comment about the discus.


yea i have to bite my tongue everytime.


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## Kooka (Feb 27, 2007)

nonconductive said:


> yea i have to bite my tongue everytime.


Don't bite your tongue, it hurts...


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## bsmith (Jan 8, 2007)

Kooka said:


> Beauty tank you got there bsmith! Love the lime green staurogyne "forest". And as for my 2 cents in the "discus debate", in my very humble opinion, 3 discus should be fine in your tank, as long as you change around 50% of your water every week religiously and maintain an efficient filtration system (as you have been doing so far). You wont be "stunting" them per say, but they will never be able to reach there full potential in size, and they might become increasingly aggressive when they get older (they do like to have private space just like us). :hihi:
> 
> The discus pros on here do like to lecture people on proper discus care, but they mean well. Sometimes you just have to bear with them Also, if you ever have any extra staurogyne and you're ok with shipping to Canada, let me know.


Thanks the s.Tropica 049 is one of my favorite foreground plants because it grows much slower then any other ones I have kept and also it seems to me able to keep BBA off of it again, unlike most other fore plants I have used in the past. 

As far as the Discus thing. I clearly stated that they will never be dinner plate sized fish and be anything close to a ribbon winner. What I did also say was that with good WC schedule they will live just fine and be happy. Again, faced with the alternative to what they were faced with in the FS I got them from this is like the garden of Eden!

Its just not correct for people to say that they cannot live happy healthy lives in a tank this size. I have been doing it for years!  (I know you did not say that Kooka so im just agreeing with you). 



sewingalot said:


> LOL, every time I look at this, I see yet another comment about the discus.
> 
> Bsmith! The algae is gone and the tank is SPARKLING! Everything is looking fantastic. Have you had anymore trouble with the dreaded Green Paint Algae? Doesn't appear to be the case.


Nope, there is no algae at all other then the normal stuff that is unavoidable in a tank with a bright of lighting as I( have. Thanks to you!!! 



nonconductive said:


> yea i have to bite my tongue every time.


I have no problem with free speech and personal expression in my threads. Come on down!



Kooka said:


> Don't bite your tongue, it hurts...


Yeah, tell me about it. Not my tongue per se but last Thurs I believe I bit the Eff out of the right side corner of my mouth (where my top/bottom lip meet) with my K9s and actually herd it being cut! Then yesterday I did the exact same thing in the exact same spot! Sucks hard!


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