# 55g rock and driftwood layout critique wanted



## jhays79 (Mar 28, 2012)

I'm still tweaking everything but so far this is the best I can come up with. I have more rocks to add but I'm looking for some opinions on what I have so far. Thanks!


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## Aplomado (Feb 20, 2013)

Looks good.


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## H2Ogal (Apr 27, 2010)

Nicely balanced ... room for plants in substrate or on branches ... nooks and crannies for the critters. I like it!


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## Skeetz (Jan 25, 2014)

looks great! i think you should add some java fern to the wood though. have you decided what fish you will be using?


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## jhays79 (Mar 28, 2012)

Thanks all! I've spent a lot o time messing with it, started to drive me nuts hehe! Fish are going to be firemouth cichlids that I've had for a year or so and some silver dollars. I've also got a sailfin pleco.


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## Aplomado (Feb 20, 2013)

Add add anubias the wood too!


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## jhays79 (Mar 28, 2012)

Aplomado said:


> Add add anubias the wood too!


I love Java Fern, but I have a love hate relationship with anubias. I'm never able to keep it from becoming an algae magnet. I've got two Red Melon Swords waiting to go in, a bunch of java fern, stargrass, rotalla, and some dwarf sag. Also got some crypts and ludwigia and hygro as well.


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## itsmesuraj (Feb 2, 2014)

Do you plan to have any carpet plants on the foreground?


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## jhays79 (Mar 28, 2012)

Dwarf Sag. This tank is mainly gonna be low to med tech


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## Solcielo lawrencia (Dec 30, 2013)

It looks very uncomfortable, unbalanced. The direction of the left side wood pieces are guiding the eye out of the tank. The right side wood further reinforces this suggestion by getting out of the way of the pointing.

Is that two pieces of wood on the left? The thick and the branchy? If so, place the branchy below the thick wood for structural support. Right side will need adjustment afterward.


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## du3ce (Jan 26, 2013)

Imo.that blue background.makes it not naturalistic


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## HybridHerp (May 24, 2012)

jhays79 said:


> Thanks all! I've spent a lot o time messing with it, started to drive me nuts hehe! Fish are going to be firemouth cichlids that I've had for a year or so and some silver dollars. I've also got a sailfin pleco.


no no no no no no no no no no no no no no NO

The fire mouth is 100% fine, the salfin will bulldoze everything as it gets larger (including your carefully planned scape) and will probably outgrow a 55 when it comes down to it. Silver dollars are the bane of all plant keeping, not even anubias will work with them (okay, thats not a 100% rule but mine ate anubias back when I had them).

If you want to do this with plants I'd avoid all but the fire mouth, but if you are just doing a hardscape only tank then go for it (but i'd still skip the pleco and opt for a smaller growing pleco)


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## jhays79 (Mar 28, 2012)

I'm sticking with the layout. Silver Dollars may go. I've had them nibble on my Java Fern but nothing major. Tank was a beater 55g given to me for free and it's in my fishroom, not a display tank so the blue background doesn't bother me. My display tank is a 46g bowfront in my living room.








I love the Sailfin, he's staying!


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## jhays79 (Mar 28, 2012)

I'm pretty sure I'm gonna take the silver dollars back to my LFS. I was never that big a fan of them to begin with. They're cool, but I like plants more, hehe. I also repainted the background black after scraping off the blue paint. Going to be firemouths, the pleco (i'll see how destructive it is) and maybe some cory cats for the bottom.


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## Guest (Apr 20, 2014)

It's your tank. As long as your happy with it. You can't please all the people all the time. Opinions are good as a guide but can be as numerous as people. The rule of thirds is helpful. For the record it looks great.


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## Stillwaterslondon (Apr 20, 2014)

Hey it's your tank, for your home, for your enjoyment. While other peoples opinions are helpful some things are a matter of taste. The thirds rule is a good guide. Looks great to me. 
L



Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## jhays79 (Mar 28, 2012)

Thanks man!


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## burr740 (Feb 19, 2014)

I have a single male firemouth in a 75 with some tiger and cherry barbs and 3 emerald cories. He's fine with the plants. Only thing if I had it to do over, would be buy some different cories. He was in the tank first, and was quite aggressive with the cories when I first put them in. So much so that I gave him a three week time out by himself in a 20 gallon. Since re-adding him he's doing a lot better. Still gets after one occasionally, but it's more of a get out of my space thing now. Before he would chase them relentlessly - with bad intentions.

Anyway, I said all that to say I think albinos would do better because they are much more of a contrast in looks to the firemouth. Pretty sure that what triggers his aggression.

Good luck with the tank. I really like the hardscape.


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## Scotty16 (Mar 13, 2014)

I wouldn't add cories with the sailfin because I had a sailfin with my cories and I beat the crud out of them since I love cories I took him back to the pet store I didnt like him anyways. Sailfish plecos are very territorial, but every fish is different though.


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## Solcielo lawrencia (Dec 30, 2013)

I fail to see how you actually wanted a critique.


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## jhays79 (Mar 28, 2012)

Solcielo lawrencia said:


> I fail to see how you actually wanted a critique.


That's great. Is it because I didn't take your particular critique to heart and now you've taken issue with that? If I didn't want to take any advice I wouldn't have changed the background to black, getting rid of the blue, and I wouldn't have decided to ditch the silver dollars. If this doesn't satisfy you I'm not going to lose any sleep over it.


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## Solcielo lawrencia (Dec 30, 2013)

It's always better to spend lots of time and effort thinking about the arrangement of the hardscape. The problems will become obvious to you over time but are not obvious on the first impression. This is why so many replies are it "looks great" because even though the look, they aren't spending the effort to see. You're the one who has to look at it everyday, not anyone else.


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## jhays79 (Mar 28, 2012)

Where would you put the branchy piece of wood? Under the thicker one? I can see what you're saying that it is drawing the eye out of the tank. I've considered taking the branchy piece out all together to save it for another tank, but it would still leave me with that thick piece pointing the same direction and still drawing the eye out.


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## Raymond S. (Dec 29, 2012)

Try to picture it with the small piece removed and Fissidens growing a few inches from the end of the large log. At the three and six inch points there are two knots. Like between them. That would focus the eye on other than the point of the log.
It also would depend on other decorations that you might add. Specifically, what I meant was you wouldn't have that draw you eye out of the tank if some type of
floating plant were on top of the branchy piece with the roots dropping down through
the branches sort of being held in place by them. Frog bit gets tall when mature
and has roots about 12" long. That might not look bad "stuck" in that branch.
You could just throw away the offspring so it wouldn't cut light in a large aria.
That would provide shade for an Anubias nana right where that short limb comes
out on the big log right under the branchy one. Or some other Anubia that would like shade to keep algae off the leaves. Or a Bronz Crypt...either are popular but often get put out in the direct ligh and get algae due to lack of shade and their slow growing leaves. Best leave you alone with that. It enough of my daydreaming/w your tank.


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## jhays79 (Mar 28, 2012)

So are you referring the branchy piece as the small piece and taking it out together? I like the idea of floaters hanging they're roots down. I love that look. I usually put water lettuce in my koi pond but I'm not sure if its too early in the season for the landscape place to stock that plant yet. I have some frog bit in my other tanks I could put in for sure.


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## Steve002 (Feb 7, 2014)

I like your arrangement and wouldn't change it much at all.


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## Solcielo lawrencia (Dec 30, 2013)

About the large straight branch, if I had such a large piece of wood, it would definitely not stick out like an erection. It would be placed against the side of the aquarium wall or corner. This way, part of it is in front and leads to the back, like a sunken log, and helps create visual depth. Moss tied to the wood would make it look aged. If this works, then figure out what to do with the smaller branches. You might not need it and can save it for another tank.


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## jhays79 (Mar 28, 2012)

I think where you and me differ is how critique is given. Saying it's sticking up like an "erection" is snide and condescending. You see how Raymond S. (and pretty much everyone else who has posted in this thread) made his post without being a rude twit as opposed to your posts? You're advice would be much more welcome and taken to heart without the attitude. Then again you just joined here less than six months ago so maybe you'll learn...


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## Solcielo lawrencia (Dec 30, 2013)

I actually thought it was funny, neither snide nor condescending. I'm not here to make anyone feel good, but to provide feedback even if it's not what's expected. Thus, it's better to be direct about it. But you gotta admit, it does look phallic especially with that round stone supporting it.


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## jhays79 (Mar 28, 2012)

Whatever bro.


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## Raymond S. (Dec 29, 2012)

jhays79 said:


> So are you referring the branchy piece as the small piece and taking it out together? I like the idea of floaters hanging they're roots down. I love that look. I usually put water lettuce in my koi pond but I'm not sure if its too early in the season for the landscape place to stock that plant yet. I have some frog bit in my other tanks I could put in for sure.


No, the idea/w the Fissidens was if you removed the small branch. The Frog bit Idea was/w it in there.


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## Solcielo lawrencia (Dec 30, 2013)

I'm seriously not trying to insult you or anything like that but just telling you what it looks like. I didn't want to say what I thought when I first saw the arrangement of the wood and I still haven't completely mentioned all of it because you'll probably not like what I thought of the wood on the right side, but it's related to the previous comment.


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## jhays79 (Mar 28, 2012)

Your opinion to me is about as worrisome as a cloudy day.


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