# First properly set up Planted Tank journal.



## soundtweakers (Oct 12, 2005)

*Day Two*

Today the fish and plants are going in, I didn't have any issue with the black sand clouding the water. I moved all the water in the 10 gallon where the fish and plants has been living along with the fish and plants into their new home and luckily no major issue whatsoever. 

Here is what they look like right after going into the new 20H.









A shot of them happy Sterbais purchased from a wonderful member of this forum.









Oh, forgot to mention in the specs that the lighting is the Coralife T5 24 inch.


----------



## soundtweakers (Oct 12, 2005)

*Day 5, which is today*

A buddy of mine gave me some trimmings from his tank, so I added the ferns and planted a few stems of sunset hygros. I'm sorta experimenting with the Sunset Hygros. I've planted some in my 55 Gallon high light DIY CO2 tank that's been cloudy, as well as this low light 20 gallon high w/out CO2. Want to see which one grows better.

I've got a question regarding the Fissidens, I've had them since 2007 but they never took off. There are growth, very slow growth, but they're never that beautiful bright lush thick looking like the pics people use to sell their plant in aquabids out of southeast asia. There are always new sprout coming out that's bright green for maybe a few days and then they just turn dull dark green/brownish, however they never died and rarely broken into little pieces all over the tank.

Here is today's pic after the new plants added.









BTW, I really dig the petrified wood, been looking for them forever, and never found them in NYC until a few month ago. I scored them from the worse regional chain pet shop in the northeast for 99c/lb, they probably didn't know what it was and priced it wrong. Me being lucky and affordable things are extreme rarities here in NYC.


----------



## soundtweakers (Oct 12, 2005)

some shots of the inhabitant.


----------



## soundtweakers (Oct 12, 2005)

*amazing sunset hygro growth*

okay, this is a low light tank with no ferts no CO2, even the substrate is brand new inert black sand. I planted a few tiny "stems" of them sunset hygros that was pretty much "stems only" 4 days ago and now they look like this.








I'm impressed with this plant now.


----------



## Kayen (Oct 14, 2007)

Someones been eating it ?


----------



## imeridian (Jan 19, 2007)

soundtweakers said:


> A shot of them happy Sterbais purchased from a wonderful member of this forum.


Those are my favorite fish! :drool:


----------



## soundtweakers (Oct 12, 2005)

Viettxboii said:


> Someones been eating it ?


no one's been eating it. It was just plain stems I refuse to throw away, and now they're plants. So real fast growing oens too.:thumbsup:


----------



## soundtweakers (Oct 12, 2005)

guess what showed up in the mail today!!







They're going to the 20H.


----------



## Pinto (Jan 23, 2009)

Nice tank. I love those cories!!!


----------



## soundtweakers (Oct 12, 2005)

*my first time using proper plant substrate*

since I already added those 3M black sand in. I decided to use Flourite black sand for this tank. I rinse them for about 3 hrs and realize one bag would be enough. I emptied the tank half way and removed a few plants(the ones tied to stones) out of the "will be buried" area, and I started to create the slope. Here is what it looks like.








Now that the new substrate is added I covered the intake tube with floss and sponge(I've destroyed a few power filters in the past due to sand). I refilled the tank with water that was removed earlier so I don't freak my fish out any more than I already did. And HOLY COW it's cloudy, I'm crossing my fingers for my fish, hopefully they're not gonna go belly up tomorrow. Here is what it looks like now.


----------



## soundtweakers (Oct 12, 2005)

Oh BTW, Seachem Flourite black sand is way more "gray" in color compare to the 3M black sand.


----------



## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

I am really digging this scape. Did you ever notice how the Y on the top piece of driftwood (to the right of the second filter) has a raised spot that kind of looks like a bird perching there? :> That Gold Ram is beeeeuuuuutiful! I am mega jealous over the Corydoras Sterbai. Score on the petrified wood! Congrats on the new set up.


----------



## soundtweakers (Oct 12, 2005)

sewingalot said:


> I am really digging this scape. Did you ever notice how the Y on the top piece of driftwood (to the right of the second filter) has a raised spot that kind of looks like a bird perching there? :> That Gold Ram is beeeeuuuuutiful! I am mega jealous over the Corydoras Sterbai. Score on the petrified wood! Congrats on the new set up.


thanks for the comments, friend.

if you didn't mention it I would've never notice the Y, now I'm going to stare at it and see if I see a bird perching as well. I had more gold rams arrived a few days ago from the same breeder, but unfortunately it was so cold the heat pack failed...talk about 100%DOA. I really scored on the Sterbais from a seller in this forum, great price and quality, these guys came in a leaked bag and they were near death, I had to skip acclimation and just dunk them into my QT. 

Now I'm patiently waiting for the cloud to settle, I miss the black sand, now it's gray dust everywhere...


----------



## soundtweakers (Oct 12, 2005)

guess who came out to play. 








the tank is not as cloudy today but still not as clear as before the flourite black sand was added.


----------



## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

Looks a lot clearer already. That sucks about the other gold rams. Are you thinking about getting more?


----------



## soundtweakers (Oct 12, 2005)

yea, fortunately the breeder I get them from is the type of breeder worth building a relation with. I'm waiting for warmer weather for the next shipment.


----------



## fshfanatic (Apr 20, 2006)

Nice tank. Love the Cories.


----------



## soundtweakers (Oct 12, 2005)

fshfanatic said:


> Nice tank. Love the Cories.


Yea, I'm starting to consider these my favorite breed of corydoras now.

Just a bit of update, the new substrate completely settled and now my tank is crystal clear once again. Although I still wish Seachem had made their Flourite Black Sand a little more blacker.


----------



## soundtweakers (Oct 12, 2005)

*bit of an update*

I realized I haven't posted any pics since the clearing of Flourite Black Sand. So here it is, notice how much lighter in color flourite black sand is compared to 3M color quartz. New Blyxas in the back were planted right before this picture was taken.









Those new blyxas came from an amazingly generous member on this forum, but unfortunately our tanks are very different in terms of water parameter. Here is what it looks like ONE day after planting









and Two days after it was completely melted.


----------



## soundtweakers (Oct 12, 2005)

took me a while to clean out the melted blyxas, replanted the sunset hygros on a new spot. Notice how much a few tiny clipping has grown?









And here is the whole tank shot. Notice the slope I made in the rear left started to move forward and almost completely cover up the stone where the java fern was attached to.









Also here is a newcomer, never had much luck with Amano shrimps, so I decide to give it another try.
















I think I need a tripod, a micro lens, a flash, maybe a shutter remote......so much to spend...so little budget..

Also, the Pfertz potassium nitrate has arrived, started half dosing this tank, thinking about adding a nano diffuser(DIY CO2) to this tank. Do you guys think it's necessary?


----------



## iantan05 (Aug 24, 2008)

yeah co2 won't hurt. Co2 does indeed boost the growth of plants together with ferts


----------



## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

Super melt! I am glad I wasn't you having to clean out that mess.  That sunset hygro is really taking off. I thought you had like not even a stem at first, no? It'll be awesome when it grows more with that driftwood.


----------



## soundtweakers (Oct 12, 2005)

sewingalot said:


> Super melt! I am glad I wasn't you having to clean out that mess.  That sunset hygro is really taking off. I thought you had like not even a stem at first, no? It'll be awesome when it grows more with that driftwood.


those sunset hygros do grow fast. Actually when I first got them I planted the whole thing in my 55 gallon. What was leftover was a few leaf less stems w/ a couple of nodes on each. The leftover went into this 20H. 

Them darn cories keeps on uprooting the hygros though, but I patiently replant them daily, perhaps when they grow bigger I can trim the bottom and plant them deeper.


----------



## soundtweakers (Oct 12, 2005)

little update:

The nano diffuser has arrived and I'm hoping to see some bubbles tomorrow. The Pfertz do seem to work, the fissidens has a couple of new sprouts, and the hygros are getting bigger....then again it might be in my head....


----------



## soundtweakers (Oct 12, 2005)

*frustrating morning*

So the day after I set up the nano diffuser, the yeast bottle started pumping and produced enough pressure to.....NOT releasing fine mist CO2 bubble out of the ceramic disc......instead the silicon tubing I was using slipped out of the diffuser. As I was trying to refit it the second time, the glass shattered in my hand. Frustrated and getting close to being late for work, I shoved the tube into my Aquaclear HOB filter and call it the day.

Does anybody have any experience with this nano diffuser? Any tricks to get the tubing deep enough so it won't slip without using excessive amount of force?

Thanks


----------



## soundtweakers (Oct 12, 2005)

*got algae.*

So I borrowed a tripod from work, it sure makes a world of difference. I don't have a special macro lens or anything, I just cropped the heck out of the photos. 





































Do you notice the black hair algae(is that what they are?) on the wood and the stone, it's also covering all over my fissidens. 

It kinda sucks that my other tank finally cleared up, and this tank is starting to grow black hair.


----------



## imeridian (Jan 19, 2007)

Your photos look great!

The algae on the driftwood kind of looks like BBA (black beard algae) to me.


----------



## soundtweakers (Oct 12, 2005)

imeridian said:


> Your photos look great!
> 
> The algae on the driftwood kind of looks like BBA (black beard algae) to me.


 Thanks, and here we go again "war on algae".


----------



## houstonhobby (Dec 12, 2008)

Your tank is beautiful and your pictures are great, but the war on algae may go better if you get a bigger volume of plant material going. I always find Jungle Val to be my saving grace. It grows fast, in every conceivable condition. You can always rip it out later if you don't like the look.


----------



## imeridian (Jan 19, 2007)

I agree, larger plant mass would definitely be helpful. Right now this is basically a fish tank with plants, whereas usually one wants a plant tank with fish to be most successful.


----------



## soundtweakers (Oct 12, 2005)

*some update with pics, advice needed!!*

thank you guys for the advice. Here is a shot of the whole tank. There are six stems of sunset hygros behind the "congo fern?" on the rear left side. I'm waiting for them to grow taller but they are more interested on growing larger leaves than going upwards. I do have some type of Vals. (the seller calls it Val. Natans), they are very thin and grows very slow in my other tank. I could add some to this tank, but where would you guys recommend as a good place for them? 










I took some E. Tenellus from my other tank, and planted them around the petrified wood pieces. I've got plenty more tenellus runners, do you guys think I should plant them more compact rather than leaving spaces between each plants?










On this picture you can see the fissidens are trying to sprout new plants, but some how they get attack by algae faster than they grow, I've had the fissidens for two years and they never thrive or die out. Is there a technique of soaking the fissidens in some kind of diluted chemical to kill off algae while not harmful to the moss?










I'm trying to do a bare substrate zone in the front center, sort of a sandbox playground for these guys to hang out. They really like their "chill" spot.









So that's it for now. I will add more plant mass to the plants currently in the tank already(E. tenellus, sunset hygros, maybe vals. natan). I also have huge amount of java moss sitting in my QT that I could always throw them in to add a massive amount of plants. But the java moss would suck up all the nutrient and block the lights to the rest of the plants in the tank. I'm going to call the java moss as a last resort.

thanks


----------



## soundtweakers (Oct 12, 2005)

BTW, I do have a few "true" siamese algae eaters in my other tank. What do you guys think?

Billy


----------



## soundtweakers (Oct 12, 2005)

probably a dumb question, would you detect a higher than normal Nitrate level after dosing potassium nitrate? I just got a reading of 20ppm in this tank, is it something I should freak out for?

BTW, one almost 3 inches SAE has been added to this tank, let's see how well it performs.


----------



## mpodolan (Mar 27, 2007)

Well, unless I misunderstood the question, you added nitrate, so one would expect the nitrate level to increase. 20ppm is fine. No need to worry


----------



## soundtweakers (Oct 12, 2005)

mpodolan said:


> Well, unless I misunderstood the question, you added nitrate, so one would expect the nitrate level to increase. 20ppm is fine. No need to worry


you didn't misunderstand anything, friend. 

I just realized how dumb my question really is.....:icon_redf......oops


----------



## mpodolan (Mar 27, 2007)

Don't worry about it. This stuff can be confusing at first. If you don't ask, it's harder to learn:thumbsup:


----------



## soundtweakers (Oct 12, 2005)

aha, SAE really works, the BBA on the petrified wood are gone. I hope it decide to start working on the manzanita.

Should I starve this tank for a couple of days?


----------



## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

That java looks a lot like Microsorium pteropus v. ‘'Windelov'. Those cories look amazing.


----------



## soundtweakers (Oct 12, 2005)

thanks, Sara. this picture is for you..










Oh, that gold ram got dropsy and died last night. I removed the fish and did a 25%WC to the tank. This morning one of the amano's died, I'll be taking advantage of Petco's 15 day return policy on dead livestock. I'm in the process of talking to the breeder right now, possibly getting the regular strain blue rams instead of gold. 

The Sterbais are doing great(with my fingers tightly crossed)...


----------



## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

I've named them Fred and Ethel, lol! Thanks for the picture! Sorry to hear about the Ram and Amano. That was a beautiful fish. Petco has a 15 return policy? Wow. That's amazing.


----------



## ZooTycoonMaster (Jan 2, 2008)

Aaaaw the Cories are so cute:icon_redf


----------



## soundtweakers (Oct 12, 2005)

sewingalot said:


> I've named them Fred and Ethel, lol! Thanks for the picture! Sorry to hear about the Ram and Amano. That was a beautiful fish. Petco has a 15 return policy? Wow. That's amazing.


Hey I like the names you pick!! I'm kind of tired of naming my pets Leroy & Jackson.

I don't know what's with the gold rams??? I started with 2 pairs+1 extra female Nov. last year. They were shipped/packed perfectly from a reputable breeder where we share the same water source, they pretty much had the "text book" coloration of gold rams fresh out of the box, didn't even look like they were shipped. Within 2 weeks the 2 pairs developed pop eye and perished, and now the last female died from dropsy.


----------



## soundtweakers (Oct 12, 2005)

ZooTycoonMaster said:


> Aaaaw the Cories are so cute:icon_redf


 They are, aren't they? I originally got the Sterbais because they're suppose to like the warm water of a discus tank, and they were going to be discus tank mates. Now that they're settle down here, I think this tank will be all theirs. I really like them too and can't wait for the plant to start filling up.


----------



## soundtweakers (Oct 12, 2005)

*SAE the hero!!*



soundtweakers said:


> aha, SAE really works, the BBA on the petrified wood are gone. I hope it decide to start working on the manzanita.
> 
> Should I starve this tank for a couple of days?


 All I can say is "HOLY COW"!!! Okay okay, I thought SAEs eats hair algae, and given the amount of BBA in my 55 gallon, I totally did not give them(I have 3) enough credit for what they do.

I placed this one SAE in this tank 4 days ago, and BBA are completely gone on the stones as well as the mazanita, trust me it was getting bad. Now that the only BBA left is the ones attached to the fissidens, I'm going to allow this little guy chow them down and see how long will it take. Oh BTW, SAE's likes to eat moss.


----------



## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

How did you even find a SAE? Everywhere I look, they have the fake ones. That sucks about the gold rams. Maybe they just were prone to illness for some reason? Are you still going for the blue rams next time?


----------



## soundtweakers (Oct 12, 2005)

sewingalot said:


> How did you even find a SAE? Everywhere I look, they have the fake ones. That sucks about the gold rams. Maybe they just were prone to illness for some reason? Are you still going for the blue rams next time?


I get them from a LFS in Chinatown, for as long as I remember they are always buy 2 get 1 free on their fish. Probably the reason why I always get trios or multiple of 3 from them. I just went yesterday and they have a whole tankful of true SAEs juvies.

I emailed the breeder last Friday and waiting for his reply right now. I think I'm going to go for the blue rams if he still has them.

Billy


----------



## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

Blue rams are very pretty. I'll miss your gold ram but I look forward to the new fish. Oh the joys of living in the Big Apple! I can't even find true aquatics past most and amazon swords in this area most of the time. I am really liking the scape more and more.


----------



## soundtweakers (Oct 12, 2005)

*little bit of update with new pics*

SAE are truly impressive! I've always kept them in my tanks and this is the first time I truly witness what they are capable of. I was about to get into panic mode with the BBA in this tank since BBA had once completely destroyed my 55 gallon tank. But within a few days, one single SAE had cleaned up all of the visible BBA on the stone and driftwood!! so "shame on you Mr. BN pleco", and "nice try, amano shrimps".

Here is my sad attempt to add more plant mass into this tank, just a few more E. Tenellus runners. But I think they'll look pretty cool once they fill in.









Also, the few stems of sunset hygros hiding on the back corner are growing well, although not as fast as I've read in forums. I believe they have established rooting since they haven't been uprooted by the Sterbais. I'm hoping they grow a bit taller so they can serve as some kind of background plants.









Kind of a front shot of the whole tank, I had to return the borrowed tripod and I can't physically fit my head behind the camera. So until I buy myself a decent camera tripod, this is the best I can do. sorry for the weird angle shot. BTW, do you notice the branch near the top that was covered in BBA, now completely clean without any scrubbing. I love it!!









Also, not pictured are a few vals. natan runners from my other tank on the other rear corner.

Any suggestions on what other plants I should try? Maybe tie some fissidens on the manzanitas?


----------



## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

I love this windelov! By the way, where are you? Missing you on the forum.


----------



## soundtweakers (Oct 12, 2005)

> I love this windelov! By the way, where are you? Missing you on the forum.


:icon_smil Still here, I've been busy with new work assignment, and there hasn't been much progress on my tanks other besides a little growth. 

Thanks for stopping by Sara!!


----------



## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

Glad to see you around. Busy on work, huh? Which job, lol.  What about the 55? The last picture I saw was amazing!


----------



## Tex Gal (Mar 28, 2008)

Your DW is incredible. With some added stems and a few other plants this tank will rock!


----------



## soundtweakers (Oct 12, 2005)

this is my new job









in this building









I thought I "escaped" from Time Square, guess I was wrong.


----------



## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

Impressive! Looks like you are stuck in Time Square. Awesome equipment, looks very high tech. New job? Congratulations!


----------



## FrostyNYC (Nov 5, 2007)

Great journal. Nice progression.

Any regrets replacing the inert black sand with Flourite black sand? I see you mentioned its a lot more grey in color.


----------



## soundtweakers (Oct 12, 2005)

FrostyNYC said:


> Great journal. Nice progression.
> 
> Any regrets replacing the inert black sand with Flourite black sand? I see you mentioned its a lot more grey in color.


no regrets, it just took me a while to get use to the gray. I can't really say it's a wonderful plant grower substrate since my other tank w/ plain aquarium pebbles provide the same growth rates on the same plant compare to the flourite black sand.

would I do it again? probably not, would've saved me 50 bucks and I would've stick with the fert tabs and black sand combo.

btw, those floater you gave me are awesome. Thanks again


----------



## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

Glad to see you around. How is the new job coming along? Any updates on this or your 55? That is interesting what you said about the flourite sand. I wonder if that is why I see no difference between my 55 (flourite) and the 20 gallons (turface) when it comes to growth as well.


----------



## soundtweakers (Oct 12, 2005)

hello Sara, thanks for dropping by. How are you!!

not much to update on both tanks, growth has been steady but slow. It's fine by me since everything seems "balanced".

I'll try to take a few photos tonight if I get some time.


----------



## FrostyNYC (Nov 5, 2007)

Glad you liked the floaters. You really did (and still do!) need more plant mass.

Reading your journal, you're making me reconsider switching to Flourite Black Sand and going with Aquasoil instead. The only reason I was trying to avoid Aquasoil was that I have about 75 endlers and no where to put them while the AS cycles. Oyyyy.


----------



## soundtweakers (Oct 12, 2005)

the flourite black sand isn't that "gray". It's gray comparing it to the 3M black sand as well as the painted background and the black frame of the tank and tank stand.

I'll post pictures when I get a chance, the plants did grew a bit.


----------



## soundtweakers (Oct 12, 2005)

almost one year overdue update...










Nothing much changed for almost a year other than small amount of growth on some of the really slow growing plants in this tank. Current inhabitants includes 7 amano shrimps and one pretty fat bristlenose pleco, and a bunch of tiny snails that hitchhiked into this tank undetected. I'm going to try some Jell-O DIY CO2 in this tank in a couple of days, and maybe add some CRS in it. What do you guys think?


----------



## soundtweakers (Oct 12, 2005)

soundtweakers said:


> Here is my sad attempt to add more plant mass into this tank, just a few more E. Tenellus runners. But I think they'll look pretty cool once they fill in.
> 
> 
> 
> ...


mmm...E. Tenellus runners did run but didn't become carpet like as I envisioned.....maybe a little CO2 and more lights?

Sunset Hygros got pink, and got rotted(or maybe eaten) before it even starts to look good.

Val. natan is completely gone from my 55gallon(so much for my overpaid aquabid purchase), but a tiny runner I threw in this tank a year ago is growing healthy and steadily/slowly in this tank.


----------



## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

Adding co2 will definitely help growth. I can't remember the lighting on this tank, how much do you have at the moment?


----------



## soundtweakers (Oct 12, 2005)

only got about 28 watts in this tank, probably less now that the bulbs are almost a year old. I removed all but one fish (bristlenose pleco) in this tank, and added a few more amano shrimps(got 7 big ones right now), planning on turning it into a shrimp tank, guess we'll see. The hair algae on the wood never went away again, but at least they're not spreading.


----------

