# Comments/suggestions for my 40 breeder cichlid tank



## im2smart4u (Dec 7, 2010)

It looked too empty to me, even with the massive piece of driftwood. So, I took it out. I had collected a lot of rocks from a stream that runs through my grandparents farm in northern Arkansas this summer. So, I switched from wood to rocks, at least temporarily, to try it out. After a couple of hours or arranging, I am finally somewhat happy with it.

Please give feedback on which you prefer. And, if you have any suggestions or comments, please leave them. They will be appreciated.

Below is a pic of how it looks now. The first pic is with the lighting towards the back, where it usually is. The second pic I moved the light towards the front, so you can see the rocks better.


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## GMYukonon24s (May 3, 2009)

I like the driftwood piece you have. What if you did both driftwood and rock?


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## im2smart4u (Dec 7, 2010)

I thought of that. I really like that piece of driftwood, too, but without any plants that tank just seemed to bare with just the wood. The wood is so large, though, that it wouldn't fit in there with the rocks. It comes within a couple of inches of the glass in every direction, front, back, left, right, and top. I think it is really a tad TOO big for this tank. If I am happy with the current setup, I may use this piece of wood when I set up the bigger tank that I have in storage in the garage. It is 48x24x16, as opposed to this tank's 36x18x16, so it should fit a bit better.


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## greenman857 (Feb 25, 2012)

What about cutting off some of the left hand branches, maybe right down to the trunk that would allow you to shift the whole thing to the left, giving a nice open area on the right?
Just and idea...


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## tomfromstlouis (Apr 2, 2012)

GMYukonon24s said:


> I like the driftwood piece you have. What if you did both driftwood and rock?


+1

I wonder how it would look if the rocks were built up on one side so the wood could be inverted (top of stump at water level) and the branchy roots shooting down and across. Just a thought.


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## lochaber (Jan 23, 2012)

Just wanted to add that that is a great looking piece of wood. I thought the tank looked pretty good with it in there.

Does the Fulu eat (or even just damage) things like Java fern and Anubias? Because if you could get some plants in there with that wood, it would be amazing.


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## VAtanks (Feb 1, 2013)

That piece of driftwood is beautiful, but heres an idea buld up some rocks trim the one side of the wood down the left side and silicone it to the top of the rocked are.


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## im2smart4u (Dec 7, 2010)

tomfromstlouis said:


> +1
> 
> I wonder how it would look if the rocks were built up on one side so the wood could be inverted (top of stump at water level) and the branchy roots shooting down and across. Just a thought.



I think I will try this tomorrow. The stump will not fit with the rock the way I had it, but it will upside down. I will have to remove some of the rocks on the right side and rearrange, but it will be possible. I will be sure to take pictures after I do it, so that I can get opinions from people.


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## im2smart4u (Dec 7, 2010)

lochaber said:


> Just wanted to add that that is a great looking piece of wood. I thought the tank looked pretty good with it in there.
> 
> Does the Fulu eat (or even just damage) things like Java fern and Anubias? Because if you could get some plants in there with that wood, it would be amazing.



I don't know if the Fulu eats the plants or just rips them up, but they do it to all plants. There are Anubias in there now that look pretty horrible with all their leaves torn. I am seriously considering trying to trade the 4 Christmas Fulus to the LFS for some store credit (maybe plants). They look almost identical to the 3 "Blue Fire Fins", but I had the Fire Fins in a fully planted tank for over a year with no problems (other than a little bit of gravel rearranging).


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## im2smart4u (Dec 7, 2010)

Well, I followed some of the suggestions here and put the wood back in the tank. I took out some of the rock on the right side, moved the rest around a bit, and put the wood in upside down to make it look like a stump. The wood barely fits, so there really isn't any adjusting it. 

I took some pics, but between my crappy cell phone camera and the light from the window, they didn't turn out well. Below is the best of them. I will try to remember to take more tonight when there is no glare.


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## goodeye--sniper (Apr 2, 2012)

Using both look great! Just fill in some more space with some plants and you are good to go!


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## thebuddha (Jul 16, 2012)

that looks awesome,

i think its a great scape, and it fills the tank nicely since you cant use plants to do so


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## lochaber (Jan 23, 2012)

Looks great.

As much as I liked the first pic, I think it looks even better inverted.

great find on that wood


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## jester56 (Oct 28, 2012)

Looks quite nice! Excellent layout with the combination!


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## im2smart4u (Dec 7, 2010)

Okay, well I traded in the Christmas Fulu at the lfs. (I got a couple of pieces of zebra rock for my new 12 inch cube and a giant sprouted red tiger lotus bulb, or actually 2 bulbs stuck together.) Anyways, now that the fish that ate/tore up my plants are gone, I am looking to add a few more plants to this tank. I still have to be careful in what and where I plant, because the fish I have now won't mess with the plants directly, but they do like to occasionally rearrange the substrate. 

The tank has 2 1bulb T8 lights, so only low light plants will survive. Any suggestions? I was thinking maybe jungle vals across the back, and maybe a few sword plants. I have 2 smaller swords that I could steal back from my 25 gallon (they were originally in here, but the fulus almost killed them, so I moved them to my other tank where they bounced back fairly well). I would love to have some kind of moss that I could attach to the driftwood in a few places that would droop down (kind of like spanish moss in a tree), but I don't know if it would be possible in this set up.

Pics below are how it looks right now. I messed up the rocks trying to catch those stupid Christmas Fulus... I ended up having to take out the wood and most of the rocks to get them. When I put the rocks back in, I left one out, and I am not as happy with it as I was. I need to rearrange again tomorrow. Also, I know I still need a background. I am trying to decide on the color. I either plan on doing black or gray.


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## mrlucky923 (Feb 17, 2013)

Really nice tank!! What kind of wood is that? I have a piece that looks very similar in my tank..


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## im2smart4u (Dec 7, 2010)

mrlucky923 said:


> Really nice tank!! What kind of wood is that? I have a piece that looks very similar in my tank..


I have no idea what kind of wood it is. I got it from my lfs where it was unlabeled. All I know is that it looks neat, but it won't sink. It isn't as dense as the wood in my 25 gallon tank. This wood was under water for 2 months and never did stop floating. It was actually held down by the glass top previously. Upside down, how it is now, it doesn't float as bad. It is being held down now by the rocks around it.


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## im2smart4u (Dec 7, 2010)

Well, I rearranged the rocks a bit today. I like it better than before, but I am still not completely satisfied. I also moved the sword plants from the 25 gallon. I only had 2 swords, but one of them had way more leaves, and it split in two when I pulled it out. I went ahead and planted both pieces, so I hope they do okay. All 3 swords are in the front, 2 near the left and one on the right. I also moved around all the anubias, again. I

still need to pick up some vals to go along the back. Which val would you recommend? Jungle? Americana? The tank is a 40 breeder, so it is only 16 inches deep. I want one that at least reaches the surface, but I don't want it getting TOO big.


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## im2smart4u (Dec 7, 2010)

Anybody on here have any vals for a good price? My local lfs doesn't have many vals right now, and I would need several to plant along the back wall...

Also, opinions on what other plants I should try are welcome. Remember that they need to have good roots, since my fish sometimes like to move around the substrate. I can place small rocks to help some, but it doesn't always help.


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## im2smart4u (Dec 7, 2010)

Well, the tank has been rearranged again. There was just too much stuff in there before, with very little open space. I decided I wanted to open up the middle so I would have more room to plant. I removed the rocks that were in the middle and rearranged a few of the others. I planted a couple of little amazon swords and a few chain swords (planted along the rock at the left of the opening), both of which I got from a RAOK from longgonedaddy. I planted 2 of the 7 plantlets from the red lily bulbs in my 25 gallon. I also added a few more anubias plants and a plant I can't remember the name of (in the back left corner, looks like a val but isn't) that I got from a local fish club auction last week.

As always, comments and suggestions are always welcome. Below is a current pic of the tank, and a close up of the open area. Excuse the dirty glass and bad cell pic...


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## im2smart4u (Dec 7, 2010)

Well, I am going to have to move some of the little rocks around the base of the plants. Two of the plants are already uprooted and floating around. I am actually surprised that it was only two.

Does anyone have any comments or suggestions on my new scape? Or, do you like one of the older ones better? If so, please explain why.


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## AirstoND (Jun 17, 2011)

Have you considered a riparium setup if plants and substrate keep getting dug up?


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## im2smart4u (Dec 7, 2010)

AirstoND said:


> Have you considered a riparium setup if plants and substrate keep getting dug up?


I have, but this tank isn't a good shape for that. Being a 40 breeder, it isn't very deep, and with my roommates' 3 cats, an open top tank is out of the question. If not for them, I would probably remove the glass tops, lower the water level a couple of inches, and grow plants out of the top using riparium planters and planting on the driftwood.

But, since the cats aren't going anywhere, I have to make do with the current setup. They have actually left most of the plants alone this time, except for a few in there favorite hang out spots. I guess I am either going to have to work around their favorite spots, and leave them bare, or find some more rocks to help hold the plants down. All I have right now are huge stones and tiny thumb size chunks. The thumb size pieces are not quite big and heavy enough to keep the plants in place when the fish don't like it.


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