# accordztech 55 gallon rescape update



## accordztech (Dec 6, 2004)

I guess with all the threads I have been making, I might as well start a tank journal. 

*Tank size:* 60 gallon 4'x12.5''x24
*Substrate:* Top soil (not MTS) with green sand, kelp meal, bone meal topped off with Silica sand.
*Co2:* Pressurized 10 LB with GLA "choice" regulator roud w/inline reactor
*Filter:* [STRIKE] Rena xp3[/STRIKE] Eheim 2217 + 2213
*Heater*: In-line hydror 200watt heater
*Lighting:* Catalina aquarium 3x54 T5HO. 2x6500k 1x10,000k 
*Co2 Distribution* inline DIY reactor
*other* coralife 9x uv sterilizer plummed into the 2213 
*Ferts*: EI method-kh2po4, kno3 on one day csb+b on another day, everyday But water change day. Water change day, gh booster.

Plan: Planted tank with a grassy scape. 

Fish: Im planning to do a nice school of rummy nose tetras of at least 25 and a nice school of corydora peppers. Also for a cleanup crew I want a few ottos and possibly some CRS.

This is my first big tank, I usually kept small tanks and had a 12gallon JBJ that I got planted but its just to small to have a really nice scape, and I like fish swimming around.

*current stock* 
8 Rummy Nose Tetras
6 Glow Light Danios
3 Big nerite zebra snails
1 Otto
3 Loaches (botia?)
3 SAE
10 Peperd corydoras
3 Panda corydoras










More updates towards the end of the thread


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## Centromochlus (May 19, 2008)

Sounds like a great setup! How bout' some pics?


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## !shadow! (Jan 25, 2010)

AzFishKid said:


> Sounds like a great setup! How bout' some pics?


 
i'm with ^^ anyways, what type of set-up where you planning on making by the way?


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## accordztech (Dec 6, 2004)

LOL you caught me in the middle of making my thread lol...NO PICS FOR YOU

This is my DIY inline reactor. I purchased the reactor from HEINEKEN357 but he had 3/4 fittings and I had 5/8 I also had spare 3/4 tubing and 5/8 tubing. I had to a little bit of searching but I got the adapters to work. I also integrated my inline heater into this setup. Ill put the clamps on when I purchased them even though its a super tight fit.


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## Centromochlus (May 19, 2008)

^ Nice DIY.


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## !shadow! (Jan 25, 2010)

AzFishKid said:


> ^ Nice DIY.


 
^^ keeps beating me to the posts  *points gun to your head* GIVE US MORE PICS!


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## accordztech (Dec 6, 2004)

Wow in my other tank I used to run my co2 into the power head. almost immediatly after i put my reactor for this new tank on the old one (to make sure it was ok) it started peraling immediatly. I never got my plants to peral in that tank.

I found a little issue with the silicone in my 55 gallon today. It doesnt leak, but it seems that the silicone on the bottom wasnt complete.


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## accordztech (Dec 6, 2004)

ok update! :thumbsup:

I been struggling finding a better tank, every tank I got had a big silicone seal problem until today.

I picked up a 60gallon today that was only 2 inches higher than my old one, looked beutiful and very nicely built. Got store credit for the other one, so that company is the company im going to buy all my fish from (125 bucks worth!)

I took the day to fix my stand and cut my YOGA mat. I didnt like how the tank was smaller than the stand. It was made for a 60gallon long which I didnt want to pay 250 for (paid 109 for the 60gallon tall). So i bought a sheet of MDF that was damaged. I got the 4x8 sheet for 18 bucks and didnt have to worry about the damaged part because I had enough wood. I raised the tank 1.5'' so that the top of the tank sits flush with the whole stand. IMO it looks much better and BIGGER

OK for you guys who just likes pictures here you go! :redface:

Here is my top soil im using that I got from a nursury








...as you can see almost no ingredients, this is what im looking for

Here is my substrate ferts! Greensand, bonemeal (not shown), kelp meal, and soil. Going to top it off with silica sand from home depot (not shown)









here is the yoga mat I got from SportsChallet. Perfect size and I cut it with a razor blade, very pliable, and black!

















and pictures of the Mat.
















...should curl out in a day or so

















I got so much done today, hopefully tonight Im going to order my utricula graminfolia. My wallet is a little empty though :frown:


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## OverStocked (May 26, 2007)

Why so many 90 degree bends in the reactor. That will seriously reduce the flow of your pump/filter.


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## accordztech (Dec 6, 2004)

over_stocked said:


> Why so many 90 degree bends in the reactor. That will seriously reduce the flow of your pump/filter.


there is only 2 bends, thats how I bought it. It doesnt really kill the flow that much.


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## Craigthor (Sep 9, 2007)

Hope that MDF is sealed up well as if it gets wet it will probably start to soften. Also it looks scary sitting on the stand like that, the 2 ridges on either side of hte tank.

Craig


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## accordztech (Dec 6, 2004)

Craigthor said:


> Hope that MDF is sealed up well as if it gets wet it will probably start to soften. Also it looks scary sitting on the stand like that, the 2 ridges on either side of hte tank.
> 
> Craig


You really think so? I would think the yoga mat would cover it. This is a picture of the MDF under the yoga mat. Its 2 3/4'' pieces on top of eachother. As you can see the tank was smaller, gives it a cleaner appearance. But I am open to suggestions


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## accordztech (Dec 6, 2004)

Craigthor said:


> Also it looks scary sitting on the stand like that, the 2 ridges on either side of hte tank.
> 
> Craig


...and whats scary if I may ask?


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## OverStocked (May 26, 2007)

Since the mdf is really only filler, and not a structural element, it should be ok. MDF is useless, in applications that it can get wet. Sealing it is almost impossible. If it gets wet(and it will...) it will swell, and rot, and become really nasty.


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## Craigthor (Sep 9, 2007)

Is the tank being supported by the MDF or the tank stand itself? Also what is under the MDF is it solid or open? Hate to see the MDF get wet and tank move or crack. I prefer Ply or solid wood for that reason

Craig


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## accordztech (Dec 6, 2004)

Craigthor said:


> Is the tank being supported by the MDF or the tank stand itself? Also what is under the MDF is it solid or open? Hate to see the MDF get wet and tank move or crack. I prefer Ply or solid wood for that reason
> 
> Craig


I see where your going. No the stand is under the MDF Its a solid piece of somewood. Its just I used the mdf to bring the tank up to another level. Under the mdf I think is some type of particleboard painted or whatever these fish tanks stands are made out of, but it is painted. 

------- <-- Yoga mat
===== <-- 2 x 3/4 mdf
***** <--stand


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## Craigthor (Sep 9, 2007)

O.k. as long as it is solid under the MDF it should be fine.

Craig


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## accordztech (Dec 6, 2004)

Craigthor said:


> O.k. as long as it is solid under the MDF it should be fine.
> 
> Craig


You made me sit and look at my tank for a while! lol. I put a "protective membrane" between the yoga mat and the MDF. plastic wrap lol JUST INCASE. :biggrin:

Yeah MDF supporting the whole tank doesnt sound nice. 

I just put on the vinyl "black" background. I didnt realize it was a little transparent! It looks good though and I had to apply it like window tint.


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## accordztech (Dec 6, 2004)

I got a question...

I put a level across my tank and its fairly level, but its off just a little from left to right. Its fairly close though. I took a measuring tape and measured the stand. The sides are the same at about 32.25'' but the the middle is just BARLEY lower than that, maybe 32.20.

Since I got the yoga mat on there I should be ok right, the yoga mat should take up the irregularities in the stand? BTW the tank is filled half way right now.


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## accordztech (Dec 6, 2004)

actually I just filled it up all the way. One right side is slightly lower than the other side. I Remember the stand sat in the same spot for a month, then a day ago I moved it to the left. So maybe the carpet hasn't settled and that's why that area is a bit higher?

***update:***

I got off the phone with the tank maker "aquarium masters" and they admired the fact that I used a yoga mat to help support the tank. They said it can be the carpet but they said get the stand to somewhere level and make sure its a level stand.

I did a little work, and me and my friend used a level (longasslevel) and a tape measure to figure out what was not level. We found that the upper trim of the tank isn't level. But the tank was still off level. I then put my 50lb bag of sand and my bag of soil on one side under the tank and now the stand sits level. So I am going to leave it there for a few days to make the carpet compress itself with the weight of the tank. If I have to shim I can shim in between the MDF and the stand, instead of shimming the stand itself. But id rather not shim if its the carpet, it will just make me re-shim later because the carpet shifted.

My Utricularia Graminfolia doesnt come in till Friday of next week. So that gives me time. I purchased it from http://www.carnivorousplantnursery.com/ but man after shipping it was like 80 bucks for 5 plants at 12 bucks a piece+a heat pack

I also bought a python today! 42 bucks at petsmart. BEST FREAKEN MONEY I EVER SPENT! I was actually bored cause I wasn't carrying a 5 gallon bucket back and forth! I cant believe I went this long and didn't have one. I almost cried =).


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## accordztech (Dec 6, 2004)

HERE WE GO! :red_mouth

Got the tank pretty level, didnt use any shims. Just let my 50 pound bag of sand sit under the stand to flatten out the carpet.








it was like this









drying the aquarium after its been filled for over a week









artillery









outer edge of sand. Spent an hour cleaning it









sprinkle of all the ferts, I hope I didnt put to much. I put in about 4 CD's thick of each









I decided to screen my soil. There was A LOT of wood. I read that if I remove the majority of these then it would help later. Took some time, but my arms are now 'toned'
wood compared to the actual soil








This is how much wood chips I got out to fill the layer in my tank 1''









And here is the layer in the tank 1''. I will cap it off with the sand of course, Im thinking 1 inch sand in the front and 1.5 in the rear maybe stretch it a bit more.


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## accordztech (Dec 6, 2004)

do you guys think that 2 inches of sand is to much?

In the front of the tank the sand thickness is around an inch. but I sloped it and in the back it became 2inches above the top soil. I will be planting UG which is a crazy rooting plant and im wondering if that would aid against harmfull build up...I will probably poke it so it doesnt build up from time to time.

LOL with this setup I used the whole 50lb bag of sand.


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## benon (Feb 18, 2010)

*2 inches?*

2 inches in the back? I'd say no.

I have a 20 gallon tall with 2 inches in the front, and more than 3 inches built up gradually towards the back. So far I've had no problems.


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## accordztech (Dec 6, 2004)

actually ill clarify a bit

if we take the total amount including the soil the front is 3 inches (1 inch of soil, 2 inch of sand) and the back is 4 inches (3 inches of sand with 1 inch of soil).

what type of plants are you growing? and what substrate do you have


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## benon (Feb 18, 2010)

*plants*

Plants :

carpet :

dwarf hairgrass
dwarf four-leaves
dwarf tears
microsword
java moss (tied to rocks and branches)
crypt parva


background :

dwarf hairgrass
red cabomba (?)
belem
pink bacopa (?)

fauna :

6 amano shrimp
1 algae shark

Not sure about the two plants in question, but my substrate is amazonia 1. I dose excel every 2-3 water changes. CO2 is provided by two simple yeast reactors hooked up to some airstones. Lighting is about 8 hours a day, 40 watts on a 20 gallon.

I plan to mix in different types of moss with my java moss to give some nice variety and texture.




So far my belems are doing alright.

My crypt parva did a little melting, but what remains feels really solid and seems to be turning around.

Carpet plants are thriving.


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## accordztech (Dec 6, 2004)

ok I messed with it, now the front has 1'' of sand, and the rear has 2'' of sand.

should be ok now. my plants should be comming in today or tomorrow.

with the dsm method, should I fill it with treated tap water or water from my other aquarium


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## jargonchipmunk (Dec 8, 2008)

water from another aquarium is always good, no matter what the "method" The nutrients and bacteria in tank water are very beneficial to the plants and sediment. "dry start" isn't really "dry" after all, it's just not filled.


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## accordztech (Dec 6, 2004)

damn Just recieved my plants, Carnivorous plant nursery send the aquatic forms of UG and not the terrestrial like I wanted. 

It was alot of cash for not alot of plants.


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## accordztech (Dec 6, 2004)

what you guys think?

here is my utricularia 









thats expensive. 48 bucks :confused1:


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## Craigthor (Sep 9, 2007)

should have waited and got some off the forum....


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## problemman (Aug 19, 2005)

dude!!! that was a waste of money in my opinion. u should have waited!!! im sorry for your loss. nice tank BTW


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## accordztech (Dec 6, 2004)

...yeah no one had none =/


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## problemman (Aug 19, 2005)

really? wow...i saw HC!!! lol maybe go that route?


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## accordztech (Dec 6, 2004)

lol we all make stupid mistakes. I was going to go HC but I didnt like the look. 

I waited for a month lol. Now the question is, if i should dry start these or just fill up the tank


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## problemman (Aug 19, 2005)

if they are aquatic u can try dry start but i would tell you to plant them and fill it up.


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## pianofish (Jan 31, 2010)

Dude that bites, did you try posting a wtb in the SNS for the UG?


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## accordztech (Dec 6, 2004)

pianofish said:


> Dude that bites, did you try posting a wtb in the SNS for the UG?


yeah I did....for a month lol.

Oh well, name a date and time that you guys made a stupid decision costing some cash :redface: haha guilty here.


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## problemman (Aug 19, 2005)

bout 2 weeks ago i bought some hc clippings and tried dry start and they all melted. 20 bucks plus shipping. bout more and they did the same...another 20 plus shipping. screw hc


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## accordztech (Dec 6, 2004)

problemman said:


> bout 2 weeks ago i bought some hc clippings and tried dry start and they all melted. 20 bucks plus shipping. bout more and they did the same...another 20 plus shipping. screw hc


LOL. 

well I cant believe that I had that much blyxa in my 12 gallon









and thats not all of it. I have the co2 cranked right now to. The plants are peraling.


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## HEINEKEN357 (Feb 10, 2006)

Isn't pearling sweet  Btw why do you have the Rena Quick-Disconnect in the tank? hehe


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## accordztech (Dec 6, 2004)

HEINEKEN357 said:


> Isn't pearling sweet  Btw why do you have the Rena Quick-Disconnect in the tank? hehe


LOL i was trying to hold down the driftwood. I had it sunk 2 weeks ago. but drained the tank to prepare it for DSM, but it didnt happen. so they dried and now I have to soak it again.

My arm was to lazy to get out the rena piece lol. Its an extra one I had, I had another rena in the backyard somewhere but cant find the sucker


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## accordztech (Dec 6, 2004)

So my rena decided to be temper-mental. I had to much tension on the quick disconnect and it decided to leak everywhere. Luckily I was working on the stand and caught it. I just redid the plumbing and didn't know it would affect it that much.

I got fed up with that feature so went out and bought an eheim 2217. Since I had all my plumbing done for my Rena, I didn't realize that the eheim is a different size. I was all happy when I had my plumbing done. I cleaned my room to, when the Rena decided to spill blah lets just say it was a long night 

I had to make a new reactor instead of waiting for people. Ill post pics tomorrow of it. LOL I chopped up Heineken reactor that he sold to me, hopefully your not mad, but I did manage to use some of the clear 2'' pipe to my benifit =)

:icon_mrgr

Im probably going to sell the Rena xp3 just because we have a bad history. Ill probably include new bio rings all 6 pads and the tubing. Ill post it in the forsale section soon. So that I can buy another eheim as a secondary filter for my tank =).

:icon_ques
Whats the deal with this filter material from eheim? they dont use much filter pads but they use this ball like crap that is supposed to filter out the stuff in the water? 

do you guys think Ill have an issue with the eheim with running my inline heater on the inlet port of the canister filter? I looked inside the heater and the diameter is maybe 1/4 bigger than the tubing. I dont see it really affecting flow much at all. What do you guys think?


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## Craigthor (Sep 9, 2007)

Eheims use Substrat Pro which is a great Bio Filter. I use strictly Eheims myself and Hydor Inline heaters. I would highly suggest not running that heater on the intake. It will shorten the life of the heater as it will be prone to picking up all the crap your filter sucks in.


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## accordztech (Dec 6, 2004)

oh I forgot about the crud darn.

What eheim do you use and which hydror do you use? I have the eheim and the hydror 200w with 5/16 barbs. But the tubing from the eheim wont fit it....


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## Craigthor (Sep 9, 2007)

accordztech said:


> oh I forgot about the crud darn.
> 
> What eheim do you use and which hydror do you use? I have the eheim and the hydror 200w with 5/16 barbs. But the tubing from the eheim wont fit it....


pair of 2213s with 1/2" 200 watt Hydor. Put some water on the stove to boil and dip the ends of your tubing in it for 30 seconds or so and you should be able to slide it on, also helps to have a pair of needle nose pliers to grab the tubing with.


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## accordztech (Dec 6, 2004)

lol Ill probably buy the 1/2 and sell my hydor with my rena. That tubing is way to small to be stretched IMo lol.

check this out...temporary. I actually had both of these bought them by accident. it turns my 1/2'' to 5/16'' 


















sorry Heineken


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## accordztech (Dec 6, 2004)

ok I finally got this canister filter primed, I made a mess. I did the suck the exhaust side technique.

First off this is a very quiet filter, I thought it shut off after it finished purging! The rena was quiet but it hummed and you can hear it, kinda like my computer. I like it so far. 

Maybe someone can explain the flow through the filter. I put my ceramic rings from my rena into the eheim on the bottom. Then blue pad, then all those cornpuff looking material, and then white pad. 

wish the tubing wasnt green, thats ugly.

Does the flow go from the bottom to the top? or what....im confused.


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## HEINEKEN357 (Feb 10, 2006)

WHAT did you do to that REACTOR lol you know all you had to do was unscrew the barbs and put 1/2 ones on right  know idea why you would cut it hehe. Anyway on the classic eheim the intake is on the top and the bottom connection is the outflow.


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## accordztech (Dec 6, 2004)

actually the bottom is the exhaust and the top is the intake.

lol dude i tried to take those barbs off but man it was on so tight that I thought you glued it on! shoot. lmao


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## HEINEKEN357 (Feb 10, 2006)

accordztech said:


> actually the bottom is the exhaust and the top is the intake.


:thumbsup: What I said.



accordztech said:


> lol dude i tried to take those barbs off but man it was on so tight that I thought you glued it on! shoot. lmao


 I used a vice to put them on roud: tights a good thing so it doesn't leak hehe how the new one look?


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## accordztech (Dec 6, 2004)

shoot, i mean the exaust is on top, and the intake is on the bottom.


















The top tubing loop is actually my purge valve. When there is air on top (in theroy) I just pop one of those and if I have to pour water on the lower purge valve, and air will purge through the top....In theroy.

LOL you can see that I still used some of your clear plastic, so I can see the bubble rate. I also used a straight barb for the top to eliminate some flow issues, but I had to use a 90 degree at the bottom.


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## Craigthor (Sep 9, 2007)

Water needs to come in the top and out the bottom for this reactor to work properly...


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## accordztech (Dec 6, 2004)

Craigthor said:


> Water needs to come in the top and out the bottom for this reactor to work properly...


and thats the way its going =)


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## accordztech (Dec 6, 2004)

I did a few tests on the water, ph is 6.5 gh is 3, ammonia isnt to be found of course.

all cories from the old tank are in, as well as mr yoyo loach and my ottos. They sat there for a second, and one started diggin in the sand, all the other cories (literally) turned to him and everyone at once started digging like crazy. LOL their heads were completly in the sand. They never had sand substrate before, always flourite. 

But I have to re-organize my Eheim filter, I put the bio media on the bottom where it should be substrate media =/


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## accordztech (Dec 6, 2004)

...Im wondering why is my tank still hazy. *knock on wood* but im surprised I havent gotten any algae. I been running all 3 54 watt t5ho lights for 8 hours a day and co2 to get my drop checker light green. 

I dont want algae but I must be doing something right, my plants arent melting either thankfully.


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## accordztech (Dec 6, 2004)

ricca time! 









my tank is still cloudy, why...I just did a 20% water change to


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## accordztech (Dec 6, 2004)

So here is my new reactor setup and my new heater (different sized barbs). 

I did it like this because I like how clean it is, Less things to go wrong and less stuff in the way in my stand. The top of the reactor if you look has a white 1/2'' barb. Under that is a threaded fitting with a half inch "t" type fitting. I used 2 of those. The purpose of those was to purge air from the reactor. It worked very very good. But I wish the holes were smaller because if you purge to long alot of water comes out lol. I then just put a piece of tubing from one to the other to create a closed loop. 

I mounted both the heater and the reactor on a piece of wood, that I spray painted black. I wanted it to look clean, but also if water spirts somewhere then I want to be able to wipe it easy.

The wood sits on 2x13'' pieces that is secured to the stands main support. Very secure.

I made room so that later I can easilly put a UV filter.










here it is mounted under the stand


















Oh for kicks, here is my GF lazy dogs. 









Im also packing up yikesjason's rena and this is me testing it before it leaves to him. It had a CRAPLOAD OF FLOW! I dont know if you guys recalled but i had an issue with flow, and this ran with no filters...So I had to many filters and to much bio media on it lol!








:thumbsup:


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## !shadow! (Jan 25, 2010)

i'm thinking about running a similar type of substrate on my rimless 48g except i'm planning on using caribsea rio grande followed by amazonia ll caped with nile sand i'll take pictures in a bit and you can check it out on my journal and let me know what you think.


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## accordztech (Dec 6, 2004)

Well an update:

I added a few fish after selling a crapload of ricca to the LFS

5 rummy nose tetras
4 ottos (one of mine got chewed up by the power head..bought a filter for that)
2 Siamese algae eaters (supposedly the true ones even though they havent touched any algae)
2 yoyo loaches (who still dont eat snails lol)

I also added some purgen because of my cloudy water from day 1. It actually is helping finally. Fish are never ending, they all play together, the SAE's think they are rummys but will school with the Ottos because I guess they look exactly the same.

Im going to wait to add more fish, probably just rummies. I have 5 more cories from my other tank comming in, they are still very small but growing up fast.

So in total I have:
5 rummy nose tetras
7 ottos
2 sae
2 yoyo
I think 9 corydoras


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## HEINEKEN357 (Feb 10, 2006)

Hows the growth got any updates?


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## !shadow! (Jan 25, 2010)

Funny l was going to ask for an update earlier looks like you read my mind.


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## HEINEKEN357 (Feb 10, 2006)

that's what I do, how's are 48g coming I been waiting for a update with it filled hehe.


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## !shadow! (Jan 25, 2010)

pm me l rather not hi-jack his thread


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## accordztech (Dec 6, 2004)

HEINEKEN357 said:


> Hows the growth got any updates?


growth increased, and my bba went away.

But at the moment im still not happy with the scape. I may re-scape this whole thing.


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## accordztech (Dec 6, 2004)

Did a small re-scape and put all my wood on one side. Also earlier this month I added purigen and it helped, but my tank is still cloudy...even before my re-scape. Does anyone know why it still is cloudy?


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## HEINEKEN357 (Feb 10, 2006)

What are you dosing?


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## accordztech (Dec 6, 2004)

kno3, kh2po4, csm+b EI method.

algae is pretty much gone in my tank, I also raised the lighting and put 3 timers on (2 for lights and one for co2)


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## HEINEKEN357 (Feb 10, 2006)

Are you dosing iron?


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## accordztech (Dec 6, 2004)

nope, should I? 

I havent seen any evidence of needing to dose iron. My plants grow great. I have iron in the substrate though.

what will iron help?


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## !shadow! (Jan 25, 2010)

l think the reason it's still cloudy is because you still got sand particles floating in the water  happened to me with my nile sand when l filled it up for the first time and l accidentally happened to stir it a bit.


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## accordztech (Dec 6, 2004)

well when I let it sit for a whole week it still is cloudy. and its been a while since I first started it up.

If i stuur the sand it will cloud a bit but after a hour it settles down, but still hazy. Its annoying. I also rinsed this sand before, I have also used sand like this before in other tanks and even those were clear.


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## mcintosh (Aug 12, 2009)

Have you checked your ammonia levels? Could be that some ammonia is leaching from the topsoil you added in your lower level. Not sure if you mineralized it first or not.


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## accordztech (Dec 6, 2004)

So an update. The cloudiness went away after a while and putting in another fine filter in my canister filter. Been doing the EI dosing with 50% waterchanges. This is a picture of letting it go and not caring about scaping.










This one is a side view of my recent fix









and front view. Im getting rid of the circulation pump on the right side and the water pump on the left this friday.









I think now I have:
blyxa japonica
giant hair grass
3 loaches
4 panda cories
9 peperd cories
8 rummy nose tetras
1 otto
5 algae eaters


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## accordztech (Dec 6, 2004)

no comments? =/


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## tuffgong (Apr 13, 2010)

I really like the hardscape and the giant hair grass in the back right corner. It's really green and thick! Nice job.


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## accordztech (Dec 6, 2004)

Here is a new picture of the crap on the left side removed relocated under the tank with my new 2213










Here is my filtration setup. The 2217 (inside filter under my shirt) is going through the co2 reactor and the heater then to the tank. The 2213 goes to the UV sterilizer then to the tank. All is consealed on the side so its out of the way.


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## accordztech (Dec 6, 2004)

8 days of growth and color change from the initial scape with a trim on the GHG


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## SleepyOwl (Sep 23, 2007)

Nice! It looks like the beach


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## boon (Mar 29, 2006)

looks good. maybe some more driftwood on the right side(tank left side).


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## accordztech (Dec 6, 2004)

This is a small video I took of my tank. Dont mind me breathing, I had a cold. As you can see my loaches are a little agressive. These arent all my bottom dwellers, the other guys were somewhere else.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m3_XNpgdAv8&feature=player_profilepage


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## Overfloater (Jan 12, 2004)

Nice tank and videos. Unfortunately, I didn't see any SAE in your video though.


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## accordztech (Dec 6, 2004)

lol what do you mean, there are 3 of them and they all got their camera time =)


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## Overfloater (Jan 12, 2004)

What I mean is, those are not SAE.


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## accordztech (Dec 6, 2004)

no way, they eat algae and bba....and look like these http://www.plantedtank.net/forums/myfish/35-Saimese_Algae_Eater_Crossocheilus_siamensis.html

...if not lecture me lol


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## Overfloater (Jan 12, 2004)

Yours look nothing like those. On the SAE, the fins are clear and the black stripe extends through the tail. Yours have yellow fins and no stripe.


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## accordztech (Dec 6, 2004)

You knowing noticed in the past 3 weekstheir fins did turn yellowish but they still eat algae....but I did a little homework and these are not saiamese algae eaters. I'm not happy about that. I have noticed now since they have gotten older that they chase eachother rather violently and sometimes do that to other fish if they are in the way

My loaches to are getting a bit agressive as you can see in the video. I like them cause they eat little snails. But its getting annoying g


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## Overfloater (Jan 12, 2004)

Finding true SAE is not an easy task. The flying fox is much more common in stores. I have only found the SAE in a few shops myself. I have not had much luck with them as they are skittish and frequent victims of open tanks...


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## accordztech (Dec 6, 2004)

Darn. I will probably give them away. They have gotten aggressive latley


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## accordztech (Dec 6, 2004)

I was bored and messing with my camera phone


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## accordztech (Dec 6, 2004)

I have a question. I stopped dosing for 2 weeks and didnt do any water changes. My bba that I have here and there was almost none. Maybe 3 or 4 spores compared to at least 25 spores when I dosed. 

All I did was just have the co2. Howcome?


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

Nothing for them to eat. Algae needs food, just like plants.


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## accordztech (Dec 6, 2004)

So ignore all the debris. I did a rescape. Im not sure what I want to do with the blyxa, but I got rid of the grass.

I always hated the middle theamed tank. I thought they look to porportional. But with this piece of manzanita I got from tom barr locally I decided this was the best look, and its growing on me. I stuck 2 of the old mazanitas there to, but not to sure if having 2 types is a good idea.

I did this in about an hour because I was bored. So its not perfect. Opinions please!


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## accordztech (Dec 6, 2004)

I wanted to change it a bit, it seems it was a little plain. So I incorporated the blyxa japonica in the bunch. I also cut up some of the malaysian driftwood and made it come out all over the place. I think this will make it look like a good stump with some decaying branches. It also helps blend in the 2 differnt kinds of woods to make it look like one unit.

I also took out some of the bigger rocks. Im diggin it, now my loaches can hide...however my cories have no where to chill now. Im wondering if I should put some wood on the corners of the tank or something. 

excuse the mess.


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## accordztech (Dec 6, 2004)

Opinions?


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## SkyGrl (Jan 7, 2010)

i like it, i think you need something on the wood maybe.. flame moss? other then that i like the layout. its unique! 

Amy


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## accordztech (Dec 6, 2004)

SkyGrl said:


> i like it, i think you need something on the wood maybe.. flame moss? other then that i like the layout. its unique!
> 
> Amy


Thanks for the feedback. In my opinion i personally don't like covering up the wood. Its like your consealing the beauty of the knarled wood with lively green plants. But that's just me. Also cause IM lazy to tie things lol


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## Bree (Dec 17, 2010)

The tank is looking awesome!!


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## nonconductive (Jan 29, 2010)

nice looking tank.


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## accordztech (Dec 6, 2004)

Muahaha, cheap alternative for my 3 tanks =).


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## SkyGrl (Jan 7, 2010)

stellar!!!

Amy


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## accordztech (Dec 6, 2004)

I want some opinions. IM thinking of moving my wood over to "the focal point" off to the left corner of the tank. Then after the styro plant i will put some rocks and then the rest of the tank cover it in glosso. What do you think?


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## komodoking (Aug 3, 2011)

I like the Tank, Looks very good


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## demonr6 (Mar 14, 2011)

Updates?


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## accordztech (Dec 6, 2004)

demonr6 said:


> Updates?


Ask and you shall recieve.

I finally got the diatoms off of my plants, then they went on my glass. So I left it there for a month to see if it will go away, nope. Just turned brown.




























So just today I decided to do a rescape. Im still trying to impliment some glosso in the design.










What you think?


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## SkyGrl (Jan 7, 2010)

not a super huge fan of the stones surrounding the plantson the left side.. but it could just be the placement of them. other then that look good! so many great things can be done with a single piece of driftwood...  your rummys are looking good, i miss my little buggers. 

Amy


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## nonconductive (Jan 29, 2010)

wow all that algae!

new look is nice but prefer the old one. maybe that will change after it fills out a bit.


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## accordztech (Dec 6, 2004)

SkyGrl said:


> not a super huge fan of the stones surrounding the plantson the left side.. but it could just be the placement of them. other then that look good! so many great things can be done with a single piece of driftwood...  your rummys are looking good, i miss my little buggers.
> 
> Amy


Im not a fan as well. But I had it sitting around. I like that they cover up the bottom stems of my staru plant. Maybe it will grow on me. I do have to play with the placment of them. 



nonconductive said:


> wow all that algae!
> 
> new look is nice but prefer the old one. maybe that will change after it fills out a bit.


I let all that algae sit for at least 2 months lol. I liked the old one, but it was to "concentrated" and "focused" and it annoyed me. So maybe this will work a bit.

I was thinking of getting glosso to grow within the rocks, or somewhere else in the tank. I have a bunch of that to.

Here is a better picture of it cleaned up over night. Ignore the crap on the right, I have no idea what to do with that. Also my intake pipes moved when I was moving my korolla, have to fix that today.


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## accordztech (Dec 6, 2004)

Decided to do something about the scape. So I got bored and did a little tuning. Still some debris floating around from the rescape. I tried to take out some of the rocks on the left side, they were kinda overpowering my little creation. 





































Look at all the extra plants I have in my spare tank from the rescape. Dont know what to do with them










a huge wad of this moss


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## 2in10 (Feb 8, 2011)

The rescape looks good, I like the rocks scattered in the sand, Like the two island set up.


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## doncityz (May 17, 2011)

Honestly I liked this one better.


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## accordztech (Dec 6, 2004)

I got tired of my green spray bars. Since I had a 2213, and a 2217 I had a spray bar on the back of the tank. But since the co2 only came out of the 2217 all the plants grew towards the right side. 

So I went to taps plastic and got some 1/2'' acrylic tubing. Came in 6ft lenghts and I cut it in half (one for each eheim). Then In the 2217 I drilled smaller holes than the factory and spread it out over the rod. I made sure not to have many more holes than the factory bar to make sure there is enough pressure.

Then I did the same to the 2213 rod. But I drilled less holes (maybe 6 holes) and had a few of those holes point up towards the surface of the water for a ripple on top of the water.

2213 outlet is on the top...2217 outlet is on the bottom. 










It turned out great. Now I have even flow throughout the tank, even co2 distribution without the aid of a korilla and a additional power head (and the clutter). I havent painted it and im a little lazy to do it to lol.

I also enclosed my intakes with a since piece of 1.5'' acrylic. Drilled a bunch of big holes in it and put my sponge filter on it, safe for my shrimps (when I get them).


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## accordztech (Dec 6, 2004)

I decided to rescape and put the stuff back in the middle. Got some new wood and some cherries. Got rid of the rummy nose, loach, and flying fox's. Now I have just a few more ottos, a few cories. Cories like being able to eat in peace haha.

The moss is just on the rock and used to hold down the wood.









I think I have to sell some java fern, this is one big clump. For the mean time I just shoved it behind the wood, but it looks to overpowering.









Shrimp time :thumbsup:









I may chop off the lower bark burrow on the wood to bring the wood down a little bit. We will see how I feel in the morning.


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## boon (Mar 29, 2006)

I'll take that java fern off your hands. I was looking for some too. Too bad you didn't bring it to the meeting.


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## accordztech (Dec 6, 2004)

boon said:


> I'll take that java fern off your hands. I was looking for some too. Too bad you didn't bring it to the meeting.


hehe I didnt want to give away such a nice piece lol, I would want a little something for it haha.


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## !shadow! (Jan 25, 2010)

accordztech said:


> I think I have to sell some java fern, this is one big clump. For the mean time I just shoved it behind the wood, but it looks to overpowering.


I think it serves as a great focal point but that's just my .02


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## accordztech (Dec 6, 2004)

boon said:


> I'll take that java fern off your hands. I was looking for some too. Too bad you didn't bring it to the meeting.


Give me a day or 2 and ill see what I can use and what I don't need. If you had any midground plants or Capet plants I would like to know. Anubias petite I was thinking in the trunk areas.



!shadow! said:


> I think it serves as a great focal point but that's just my .02


I truely agree with you. But when I put it all in it overtook the wood lol. So I'm going to strategicly place them and try and make it look porportional.


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## !shadow! (Jan 25, 2010)

You can always attach it to the burls if the manzanita has any or at the very back,center to make it appear that the branches are growing from somewhere deep inside the java fern.


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## accordztech (Dec 6, 2004)

!shadow! said:


> You can always attach it to the burls if the manzanita has any or at the very back,center to make it appear that the branches are growing from somewhere deep inside the java fern.


HAH I havent even got around to that yet. Ill hopefully have time tomorrow to do so.

But I HATE DIATOMS! Got my light on low and co2 turned down. Waiting a few days and going to go higher and higher till the stupid diatoms goes away. Its so annoying. I think I need maybe 300 more shrimp to clean it up lol


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## accordztech (Dec 6, 2004)

So can anyone name this corydora?









Updated pics of my tank, Sorry its blurry but it was also dirty looking. Ill get better pics soon. I found a way to make the javafern look better and not just THROWN in there. I left out quite a bit (sitting on the right hand side temporary) and made it look much nicer. Also you cant see, but I seeded the ground with some glosso from my other tank. I will probably move the Blyxa back into the wood and find a more attractive way to have my sponge filters in.










I been lazy to take out my power heads also lol.


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## Grifter (Aug 23, 2011)

Nice tank , corys look like Julii ( well they look the same as mine :icon_lol: fun little critters to watch )


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## !shadow! (Jan 25, 2010)

dude you did exactly what I had in mind and came out great on this pic









A bit more blyxa around the bottom would add a nice touch or even some hairgrass pieces here and there would add a nice touch.


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## accordztech (Dec 6, 2004)

Tank cleared up, and I bought 4 more ottos and 2 spotted nerite snails. So now I have 10 ottos and 4 nerites. Its like a circus watching them lol. My RCS are finally comming out to play. But I try to watch this tank for a hour a day to see if there are still strays of my wild shrimp. There are a few, have to catch them boogers in the act =).

Amanos from my nano are in as well. One jumped out of my net and I had to catch him under my bed...what an idiot.



















Im trying to decide here, maybe you guys can help me out.

I was thinking of putting glosso in the foreground (light green) and some starugene sp 49 in the background (dark green). What do you think??


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## accordztech (Dec 6, 2004)

Cherry eating. 









Not sure if im liking the blyxa back there.


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## plantbrain (Dec 15, 2003)

Looks good, does not look like a 55 Gal tank.


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## accordztech (Dec 6, 2004)

plantbrain said:


> Looks good, does not look like a 55 Gal tank.


Thanks Tom. You know I said the same exact thing when I went to exotic yesterday. I looked at their 55g tanks, and I was like...damn mine is much bigger (haha thats what she said :hihi. I actually went home and had to re-measure my tank to make sure it was a 55g LOL.


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## Lowe (Nov 11, 2011)

I'm sure you know this already but ...that is one AWESOME center piece!


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## JEden8 (Jan 5, 2011)

Love it! Doesn't even look like a 55 gallon.


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