# Jello's new 125- Pic Heavy- Dealing with BGA =(



## jellopuddinpop (Dec 12, 2016)

Hi Everyone,

I recently joined this forum to get ideas, inspiration, and advice from the planted tank community while I plan out my next tank. This is really a great place to share ideas and information, and I’m happy to say that I’m pretty sure I have everything in place for my upgrade. I’ve been running a 90G high tech tank for a few months now to try to learn through experience what can’t be learned from reading, and I’m fairly confident that I know just enough to get myself into big trouble on my next tank =)

I’m in the process of moving, at which time I’ll be changing from my current 90G to my new 125G. My new house isn’t quite ready for the new tank, so in the meantime before I get into the new build, here’s a FTS of my current tank so this doesn’t just turn into a wall of text. 










On to the plans for my new tank!

Dimensions: 125 Gallon, 72” x 18” x 22”
Filtration: Fluval FX6
Lighting: SB Reef Freshwater Basic x 3
Background: Matte white static cling film
Substrate: Lava Rock base with Black Diamond cap
Hardscape: 130 lbs Dragonstone










Ferts: Starting with Osmocote+ Caps until tank stabilizes, then EI from NiloCG
Heating: 500W ISTA inline heater

CO2 Equipment:
10lb CGA320 CO2 tank
Regulator: DIY from @Joshism here on TPT. Equipped with Clippard solenoid and Swagelok metering valve










Bubble Counter: CalAqua Double Counter ER
Check Valves- Rhinox brass check valves (x2)
Reactor: DIY 3 stage Cerges Design










CO2 & Heater on separate loop from Canister










Eheim Compact+ 2000 pump
Jardli 17mm Lily Pipes

Fauna: (all of these fish are currently in my 90G)

Some notes: The Mollies and Guppies were from an attempt at breeding to sell to my LFS. I underestimated how many babies they would have and can’t sell any more, so for now, their incessant humping will result in live food for the others in the tank. Maybe that’s cruel, but it’s the best I can do. I’m also looking for suggestions to finish off the stock list for the 125G:

10x Madagascar Rainbowfish
8x Tiger barb (I know they are supposed “fin nippers”, but they spend their whole day chasing each other and have left everyone else alone)
10x Zebra Danio
1x Marble Angelfish (rescued from a 10G tank my friend had him in. He fights terribly with every Angel or school of Angels I’ve tried to house him with)
12x Oto Cats
4x Yellow Molly (1 male, 3 female)
4x Guppy (1 male, 3 female)
8x Zebra Nerite Snail

Looking for adult Amano Shrimp, but can’t seem to find them. Every time I add juveniles, the Angel eats them. I’m currently at three adults that proudly strut around the tank, but I’ve added probably 25 or so juveniles that ended up as snacks.

Flora:

I really love the look of Crimson Sky by James Findley, and would like to use that as my inspiration.










The things I like are the strong contrast between the A. Reineckii and DHG, the linear layout, and the covered rocks. There will be some large differences in my tank though: 1.) I don’t want any emersed growth, everything will be submerged. 2.) There will be a distinct path running through the rocks where the DHG will be. I’ve seen a ton of tanks with a sand path, but none with a grass path. 3.) I will have background plants. Here is the layout as I’ve planned it now (only reversed because of the Fluval input and output sides, and Crypts in the grey area)










Flora list:
Dwarf Hairgrass (Eleocharis Parvula)
Staurogyne Repens
Alternanthera Reineckii
Cryptocoryne Balansae
Bucephelandra (suggestions on sp?)
Weeping Moss for on top of the rocks

I will do my best to keep this updates with pictures of progress. The next job to be done is to finish putting together the CO2 loop, check for leaks, and put on the decorative film background. After that, I'll set up the filter and get the substrate going =)

I hope this can be enjoyable for everyone, and I'm certainly looking forward to any comments or criticism you may be able to give.

Till next time!


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## Pat24601 (Mar 4, 2017)

For some reason, I'm not seeing pics, but sounds like a great set up! Keep us posted as you get the new tank going!


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## Freemananana (Jan 2, 2015)

Pat24601 said:


> For some reason, I'm not seeing pics, but sounds like a great set up! Keep us posted as you get the new tank going!


Saaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaame.


I'm interested in the hardscape! Tiger barbs are jerks. At least mine were giant butts. I had some good success ordering adult amanos online, only a couple bucks a piece. But otos and nerite snails have been cleaning house for me in my tank.


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## jellopuddinpop (Dec 12, 2016)

That's weird. On my end, I see them fine. Can a mod check it out maybe? I uploaded the pics to an album and then linked the image URL, but if there's a different way to get a photo to the middle of a post, then let me know. When you drag the pic to the "upload photos here" block, they end up at the end of the message.

Sorry all, I have the technical expertise of a child. Actually, probably worse than that lol

Edit: I had the album set as private for some reason, so I changed it to public. Maybe that fixed it?


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## KayakJimW (Aug 12, 2016)

fixed! looks good jello


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## jellopuddinpop (Dec 12, 2016)

KayakJimW said:


> fixed! looks good jello


Thank you kindly Jim!

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## Freemananana (Jan 2, 2015)

The pump you have listed puts out just over 500 gph. Is it going to be submerged? I know you said you are going to use a FX6 as well. I would be worried about the flow through the heater. That's my largest concern really. You'll only be passing the tank water through it about twice a hour after head height and restrictions, if you are lucky.


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## Greggz (May 19, 2008)

The 90 looks great, and I imagine even more possibilities with the 125G. 

I like your plan, and look forward to seeing how things progress. Keep the updates, and most importantly, the pictures coming.


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## jellopuddinpop (Dec 12, 2016)

Freemananana said:


> The pump you have listed puts out just over 500 gph. Is it going to be submerged? I know you said you are going to use a FX6 as well. I would be worried about the flow through the heater. That's my largest concern really. You'll only be passing the tank water through it about twice a hour after head height and restrictions, if you are lucky.


The FX6 wil be for all filtration, and the Eheim pump is just to run the CO2 reactor and the heater. It will be run inline, not submerged (like this diagram).










There will be head loss due to various fittings and restrictions, but none from actual height. In a closed loop, the siphon action of water from the tank offsets the required pressure to return water to the tank. Also, all fittings are 3/4", not 5/8". I know an elbow is an elbow regardless of size, but I'm hoping that the larger fittings will help reduce head loss from fittings at least a little bit. Once it is all set up and running, I will test the actual gph and report back.


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## jellopuddinpop (Dec 12, 2016)

Some work was done today! The CO2 & Heater loop was installed and leak tested, the background film was installed, the filter was put into place, and the CO2 tank was purchased and put in place.

*Finished CO2 loop*


































*Installed FX6 filter* (inlet and output nozzles are on the wrong hoses in photos, but it's been fixed)










*CO2 tank put in place w/ Regulator*










Here are the full tank shots of the tank itself and the stand with open doors. Next up is installing the lights, routing the CO2 tubing, getting everything on timers, and getting ready for substrate.


















Till next time!


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## BettaBettas (Aug 21, 2016)

That was quick!


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## jellopuddinpop (Dec 12, 2016)

BettaBettas said:


> That was quick!


I was a busy bee today lol.

I have a habit of doing this to myself, but it's going to be a little time before it's fully up and functional. The tank is set up in my new house, which is being remodeled at the moment. The worst part is that the remodel is going in three phases... Right now I'm working on the upstairs bedrooms and bathrooms, then I can move in. After that is the main living space (including floors, this is important), and finally turning half my basement into an office (again, including floors).

Basically, I'm setting the tank up in the basement for now, then the flooring gets completed in the living room and I move the tank up there, then the flooring is complete in the office and it comes back to it's final resting place. My wife refuses to let me finish the basement before the 1970's shag rug comes out of the living room, so I'm fairly screwed lol. This stupid tank is going to get set up 3 times before I'm done!


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## Joshism (Nov 26, 2015)

Glad that I was a part of this journey. I'm excited to see how everything turns out.


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## Nigel95 (Mar 5, 2017)

Some good preparation man! Good luck with the tank


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## jellopuddinpop (Dec 12, 2016)

Nigel95 said:


> Some good preparation man! Good luck with the tank


Thank you!

I'm doing my best to be set up correctly before "making the plunge". Something as simple as adding Eheim quick connects on the hoses to make cleaning the lily pipes easier goes a long way when it comes to routine maintenance. I really don't want to be in a position where I'm trying to make changes to a fully functioning tank.

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## dru (Mar 9, 2013)

Will be following along. Moving my 20 gallon was a major event, I couldn't imaging moving a 125 three times! Good luck


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## jellopuddinpop (Dec 12, 2016)

Tell me about it lol. I'm not thrilled about it at all, but it is what it is. It's going to be in place for now for at least a year, so this will give me a chance to rescape if I don't like it.

Having to move it a lot is the reason I'm sticking with cheap substrate. I can just use new when moving vs trying to reuse substrate with mulm build up without just leaving it in the tank.

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## jellopuddinpop (Dec 12, 2016)

Yay! Lights are in and installed. I just need to rethink the wiring situation because the power cords weren't as long as I would have hoped. I think I'm going to put another 5 ft power strip under the tank to accommodate the 6 power cables. I didn't do any unboxing or product photos directly, so apologies for that.

The first thing that I needed to do was build a bracket to support the lights, so I didn't need to have supports in the middle. I picked up some aluminum angle iron, cut it to length, drilled the bolt holes, chamfered the ends, burred all holes and cuts, fit it together, disassembled, painted, and put it over the tank. It didn't go to plan =(










The next try was to repeat all of this with steel. All that's left is to take it all apart and paint it. Success!










Here are some pics with the ambient lights off, in order of: Blue channel only, Red channel only, and both channels:


























The next step is to start work on the substrate.

Till next time!


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## Greggz (May 19, 2008)

Nice work on the mounting of the lights. Looks like the project is coming together as planned.

Looking forward to seeing it filled and planted.


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## reddhawkk (Dec 28, 2011)

Awesome build so far! Not sure I would want to move it three times but why not! I'm looking forward to seeing how it turns out.


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## jellopuddinpop (Dec 12, 2016)

I have a quick update for today. I spent the day yesterday cleaning my blasting sand, and got both the lava rock and sand in the tank, and got it all graded. I'll be playing with the hardscape throughout the week, and should be able to get that finished next weekend.
















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## jellopuddinpop (Dec 12, 2016)

I ended up taking the day off of work to start work on the hardscape. I've placed a majority of the rocks in places that seem to make sense, but to me it looks a bit too busy. I don't have a ton of experience with a large tank like this, so I'm probably going to mull it over for a long time. On the one hand, I want to fill the space. I feel like once plants cover a lot of it up, it won't look as busy. On the other hand, I think that simpler can be better, and this isn't simple.

I can't link back to the photo of my planting plan from here, but that could help give a bit of insight towards the grand plan. 

Let me know what you think!












































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## BettaBettas (Aug 21, 2016)

looks very good! like very very good lol, I'd say remove that one stone in the pure center back of the tank, its to abstract from the others.


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## PEdwards (Oct 31, 2016)

Keep in mind that rocks shrink when they get wet. They won't seem as big and overpowering once water and plants are in there. The little guys are going to get totally lost and are taking up valuable real estate. Unless you're going to cover them with some sort of epiphyte to use in the midground I'd just take them out completely.

As far as the hardscape goes, take out the two large straight pieces on the far right as well as the one sticking up in the middle and move the left hand trio back a bit. The left side has a good round feel and the right has a very angular feel. Try balancing them out. The group of rocks directly to the right of "the finger" in the middle have a nice rounded slope to them and should work well with the left hand trio. 

Take out all of the other rocks and see how it feels. When you think you have something you think is good, step back as far as you can, squint, and try to feel the essence of the hardscape; kinda like trying to see the 3D pattern in those posters years ago. When it comes to iwagumi in this style, less is more.

I know what it's like to have to fight the temptation to use everything you've got. I do the same thing with wood.

Cheers,
Phil


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## jellopuddinpop (Dec 12, 2016)

PEdwards said:


> Keep in mind that rocks shrink when they get wet. They won't seem as big and overpowering once water and plants are in there. The little guys are going to get totally lost and are taking up valuable real estate. Unless you're going to cover them with some sort of epiphyte to use in the midground I'd just take them out completely.


That's sorta the plan. I'm planning on a lot of Buce in and around the front of the rocks, so I entirely expect that the rubble will get consumed. Any rubble that doesn't get covered by Buce should get consumed by DWG, but I assume some will show through, even if discretely. 



PEdwards said:


> As far as the hardscape goes, take out the two large straight pieces on the far right as well as the one sticking up in the middle and move the left hand trio back a bit. The left side has a good round feel and the right has a very angular feel. Try balancing them out. The group of rocks directly to the right of "the finger" in the middle have a nice rounded slope to them and should work well with the left hand trio.


I'll give it a try taking out the large rocks on the right and the one in the center. I'm worried that end of the tank will feel kinda boring, but it may work better that way. I do have a few more rocks that are more rounded, so maybe I'll try replacing the angular ones with rounded ones first to see how it feels.



PEdwards said:


> Take out all of the other rocks and see how it feels. When you think you have something you think is good, step back as far as you can, squint, and try to feel the essence of the hardscape; kinda like trying to see the 3D pattern in those posters years ago. When it comes to iwagumi in this style, less is more.


This is great advice. I'll give it a try.


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## PEdwards (Oct 31, 2016)

Good luck! It's a process, for sure. If you've got the time, keep at it until it's just right for your taste.


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## AquaLady86 (Jun 2, 2013)

The RODI line is connected to the tank?

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## jellopuddinpop (Dec 12, 2016)

AquaLady86 said:


> The RODI line is connected to the tank?
> 
> Sent from my SM-N900T using Tapatalk


Nope, no RODI water in this tank.


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## jellopuddinpop (Dec 12, 2016)

I changed out a few of the more angular rocks for some softer ones. I definitely like the new look better than the old!






























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## d33pVI (Oct 28, 2015)

I might suggest keeping the rocks further away from the front pane to maintain a distinct foreground. It feels like the hardscape is crowded towards the front of the tank which eliminates the sense of depth. Also, go taller in a few areas.


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## jellopuddinpop (Dec 12, 2016)

OK, so I'm pretty happy with the hardscape now. I added some more sand around all of the hardscape to give it a softer feel, as well as removed all of the rubble around the hardscape as someone had recommended. Here is the final shot. Next up is to add water and start cycling. It will probably be a good, long while before there are any more updates.
























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## Immortal1 (Feb 18, 2015)

Hardscape is looking good!


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## PEdwards (Oct 31, 2016)

That's a lot better than before


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## Tomatoandegg (Nov 8, 2016)

*Jello's new 125- Pic Heavy- 2 Month Update- Flowering Buce!*

I think the right third needs a really tall peak.


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## jellopuddinpop (Dec 12, 2016)

Hi everyone! So the tank is flooded and the cycle started, but now that I'm actually trying to locate the plants I wanna buy, I'm having some problems. If at all possible, I would like to stick to tissue cultured and all from the same supplier (I know, that's a lot to ask). I really like the thought of aquaforestaquarium.com because they have some great reviews, but they seem to be out of stock on a lot of things. Here is the species list:

DHG (Belem if possible)
S. Repens
A. Reineckii 
Crypt Balensae 
Weeping moss (I know, no TC for this)

By the way, this is in the US. 

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## jellopuddinpop (Dec 12, 2016)

Here is the final stock list for the tank. I'll need to pick up a few more tiger barbs, the SAE, the Panda Cory's, and the Amano Shrimp. I was considering American Flag Fish (Jordanella floridae) in place of the SAE, mostly because of fears of getting the wrong SAE and just having another mouth to feed, but I also read that the Flag Fish is known to munch on delicate plants like hairgrass. For now I'll stick to the SAE and hope for the best.

Does anyone know a reputable seller that is known to stock True Siamese Algae Eaters?


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## Willcooper (May 31, 2015)

Cycle get finished? Get some plants? 


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## jellopuddinpop (Dec 12, 2016)

Still cycling. Taking for freakin ever too.

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## KWaters (May 1, 2017)

There are some Seachem products that might help you cycle faster. Stability is the main one I'm thinking of.

If you still need S. Repens there are one or two Amazon sellers stocking tissue cultures of it. I got one a week ago and it was in good shape.


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## Willcooper (May 31, 2015)

jellopuddinpop said:


> Still cycling. Taking for freakin ever too.
> 
> Sent from my SM-G920V using Tapatalk




Did you seed it from the 90? Should be able to get cycled within a couple weeks that way. 

I just read the website slick for the lights. Those look really cool. Seems like you can really dial things in to your preference. 


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## jellopuddinpop (Dec 12, 2016)

Willcooper said:


> Did you seed it from the 90? Should be able to get cycled within a couple weeks that way.
> 
> I just read the website slick for the lights. Those look really cool. Seems like you can really dial things in to your preference.
> 
> ...


That's my big problem. The 90 is infested with mini Ramshorn snails. I can't seed the new one without introducing snails.

As far as starter cultures, I started with Seachem Stability, then tried Tetra Safestart+, and just recently Bio-spira. I'm easily clearing 2ppm ammonia in 12+ hours or so, but the nitrite keeps going off the chart. I'll do a water change to bring it down, and it will climb back up.

I'm getting some nitrates, but it just doesn't seem to want to fully clear the nitrites in 24 hours.

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## PharmDawgRx (May 13, 2017)

*Jello's new 125- Pic Heavy- 2 Month Update- Flowering Buce!*

I love your progress so far! Post some pics of it filled with water soon. I can't wait to see it evolve. I'm in the process of starting a tank very similar to your, but I'm a good bit behind as well. It's exciting!


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## Joshism (Nov 26, 2015)

I'd plant first, and then use large bubble wrap for flooding. Corys will remove your carpet, unless they're small, like Pygmy Corys.


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## jellopuddinpop (Dec 12, 2016)

Joshism said:


> I'd plant first, and then use large bubble wrap for flooding. Corys will remove your carpet, unless they're small, like Pygmy Corys.


The tank is flooded and cycling right now. From here on out, here is the plan (hopefully):

1.) Tank finishes cycling, 90% water change and give it a day to rest
2.) Start fiddling with the CO2 to get a ph drop of 1 in 1 hour (still dosing daily ammonia)
3.) drain water to just above the substrate, put in root tabs, plant entire tank
4.) give it a week or so to root, then move my amano shrimp, SAE's, and oto cats. Hopefully I wont have any algae, and I wont have to feed them lol. I'll pay attention and feed as necessary.
5.) week by week, move 1 species at a time over from my 90g
6.) Once all the fish have been moved, break down 90g tank, with a massive RAOK of all my existing plants (minus a couple I just received in a different RAOK)
7.) Once all the plants and water parameters are completely stable, pick up the new Cory cats. I'm hoping things will be rooted enough that they wont be able to rip the carpet plants out.


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## Willcooper (May 31, 2015)

*Jello's new 125- Pic Heavy !Hardscape is done!*

I would skip the root tabs myself. Assuming you're planning on dosing nutrients, those nutrients will pass into the substrate and you can keep better control of your levels in case plant deficiency/toxicities develop. 


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## jellopuddinpop (Dec 12, 2016)

Willcooper said:


> I would skip the root tabs myself. Assuming you're planning on dosing nutrients, those nutrients will pass into the substrate and you can keep better control of your levels in case plant deficiency/toxicities develop.
> 
> 
> Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


My thoughts were to try my best to feed the plants while limiting the nutrients in the water column. I was hoping to prevent any new tank syndrome. Do you think this will just make things worse? Both Tropica and ADA recommend very lean dosing for the first month while plants are transitioning to submerged growth. All the plants in the tank are going to be tissue cultured with the exception of the Buce.

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## Opare (Sep 9, 2015)

*Jello's new 125- Pic Heavy !Hardscape is done!*

Putting roots tabs would not really equal lean dosing as it will leech stuff but you can't control it at all. You might as well dose the water column, but lean and ramp up if the plants need it. I don't think it will make things too much worse but it can complicate things if you have issues and it's far more customizable to dose purely through the water column. Most plants, including the ones many call 'root feeders' will be completely fine through purely water column dosing.
To avoid problems early focus on removing any growth that looks bad or dead, it will just foul the water and regular water changes to remove waste organics is also helpful. Having healthy plants (and not dying ones) is one of the main keys to a healthy tank, although that's kind of a no brainer. Plants in bad health are algae magnets, and are really not worth trying to revive in a new tank. Once your tank is mature, sure, but if anything looks quite far gone, cut your losses with it. Something I learnt the hard way.

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## jellopuddinpop (Dec 12, 2016)

Opare said:


> Putting roots tabs would not really equal lean dosing as it will leech stuff but you can't control it at all. You might as well dose the water column, but lean and ramp up if the plants need it. I don't think it will make things too much worse but it can complicate things if you have issues and it's far more customizable to dose purely through the water column. Most plants, including the ones many call 'root feeders' will be completely fine through purely water column dosing.
> To avoid problems early focus on removing any growth that looks bad or dead, it will just foul the water and regular water changes to remove waste organics is also helpful. Having healthy plants (and not dying ones) is one of the main keys to a healthy tank, although that's kind of a no brainer. Plants in bad health are algae magnets, and are really not worth trying to revive in a new tank. Once your tank is mature, sure, but if anything looks quite far gone, cut your losses with it. Something I learnt the hard way.
> 
> Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


I'll definitely consider it. I've been using the micro and macro mixes from @nilocg, and haven't quite taken the plunge of dry dosing individual ferts. I wonder if @plantbrain is still around. I would be curious to hear his thoughts.

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## Opare (Sep 9, 2015)

I think Tom is on a new account on here which is just Tom Barr. You can just dose lower amounts of the premixed stuff, like some arbirtray fraction like 1/2 or something of EI.
I think another thing to consider is that ADA in particular advocate for quite lean dosing because Aquasoil is so rich, especially at the start when it's leaching ammonia and stuff. I'm sure Tropica's soil is reasonably nutrient loaded I would assume too.
You may need to up your dosing than what those two recommend since your substrate is inert.


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## jellopuddinpop (Dec 12, 2016)

Opare said:


> I think Tom is on a new account on here which is just Tom Barr. You can just dose lower amounts of the premixed stuff, like some arbirtray fraction like 1/2 or something of EI.
> I think another thing to consider is that ADA in particular advocate for quite lean dosing because Aquasoil is so rich, especially at the start when it's leaching ammonia and stuff. I'm sure Tropica's soil is reasonably nutrient loaded I would assume too.
> You may need to up your dosing than what those two recommend since your substrate is inert.
> 
> ...


That's a good point about the rich substrates, I never considered that. Hmmm... Thank you for giving me something to think about!

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## Opare (Sep 9, 2015)

*Jello's new 125- Pic Heavy !Hardscape is done!*

No worries, I think a lot of people forget that a lot of ADA techinques are suited to have the whole ADA set in completion more or less. Although Aquasoil is a big part of the whole ADA proccess. If I could do my tank again I probably would've followed similar dosing to what ADA does with their line of fertilisers (although not exactly, because they don't dose PO4 for some reason). It wouldn't be exactly the same but I would try and mimic levels that are around the same, because Aquasoil is really some strong stuff TBH. I dosed quite heavy at the start and had a huge bunch of DHG which was in a bad way to begin with, so don't think larding on the extra nutrients helped. After I replanted with healthier stuff though everything was fine, my regime is reasonably light as well anyway. In hardscape heavy tanks with low plant mass I think lighter regimes are definitely worth considering over heavier stuff, Dennis Wong talked about this in his video.


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## Willcooper (May 31, 2015)

Watch this. This is Dennis Wong. He talks about his dosing in comparison to ei and ada and he talks about how he doses a new tank @ 4:20 https://youtu.be/WxZI8akyxbg


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## jellopuddinpop (Dec 12, 2016)

Thanks for the link. Great info!

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## awesometim1 (Oct 31, 2013)

The tiger barbs will nip like crazy, especially the long finned fish like angelfish, guppies, and mollies. A word of caution. I've experienced them before and they're better off in a tank of their own. They're cool little fish that are stunning when in a school, but not so cool when they start biting other fish in the tank. 


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## jellopuddinpop (Dec 12, 2016)

awesometim1 said:


> The tiger barbs will nip like crazy, especially the long finned fish like angelfish, guppies, and mollies. A word of caution. I've experienced them before and they're better off in a tank of their own. They're cool little fish that are stunning when in a school, but not so cool when they start biting other fish in the tank.
> 
> 
> Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


I've heard the same, but got a tip once that in a large enough school, they'll ignore tankmates. I've had 6 for a while now with the angel and the guppies, and they never harass any other fish. It's definitely something I'll keep my eyes out for though.

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## Joshism (Nov 26, 2015)

I had some tiger barbs with my red belly piranha, and they did fine. The piranha ignored them.


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## jellopuddinpop (Dec 12, 2016)

Quick update with a photo. Tank is still cycling. I have plenty of Nitrate, and it's been rising daily so I know it's not stalled, but it's been at least a week now and the nitrite eating dudes just can't seem to catch up to the nitrites being produced. This is before a major water change, and I didn't does ammonia to try to let them catch up. I'll have to dose again tomorrow to make sure it doesn't stall.









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## jellopuddinpop (Dec 12, 2016)

So, the tank is finally cycled and I have plants on order. I’ve purchased:

Large Buce Brownie Purple clumps x2
TC Eleocharis Acicularis x5
TC Staurogyne Repens x5
TC Alternanthera Reineckii Mini x3
Cryptocoryne Crisatula ‘Balansae’ pot x9

The planting day is scheduled for next Friday, and I’m getting pretty stoked!


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## Opare (Sep 9, 2015)

Exciting times !


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## jellopuddinpop (Dec 12, 2016)

Lot and lots (and lots!) of Buce.



























































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## SKYE.__.HIGH (Mar 18, 2017)

*Jello's new 125- Pic Heavy- Plants are on the way!*

Some notes: The Mollies and Guppies were from an attempt at breeding to sell to my LFS. I underestimated how many babies they would have and can’t sell any more, so for now, their incessant humping will result in live food for the others in the tank. Maybe that’s cruel, but it’s the best I can do.

[emoji23]🤣 LMAO[emoji23]🤣[emoji28][emoji106]


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## forrestcook (Jan 25, 2008)

SKYE.__.HIGH said:


> Some notes: The Mollies and Guppies were from an attempt at breeding to sell to my LFS. I underestimated how many babies they would have and can’t sell any more, so for now, their incessant humping will result in live food for the others in the tank. Maybe that’s cruel, but it’s the best I can do.
> 
> [emoji23]🤣 LMAO[emoji23]🤣[emoji28][emoji106]




Eh - no more cruel than what happens in nature. Your bigger fish will love it. 


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## jellopuddinpop (Dec 12, 2016)

Woohoo! The new plants came in today in excellent shape. Many thanks to @SubstrateSource for all of their assistance. They were super helpful with the ordering process, even getting their hands on plants they don't normally carry in order to help me out.









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## jellopuddinpop (Dec 12, 2016)

Ok, so I took a half day at work to plant the tank, and managed to get it all done in 8 hours. Most of the plants were in excellent shape, with the exception of a couple of melted crypt leaves (which is to be expected). I can't wait for this to fill in; Right now none of the red is visible at all. This is going to be completely different once the A. Reineckii fills! Enjoy!


































































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## forrestcook (Jan 25, 2008)

What was your plant bill at the end of the day?


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## jellopuddinpop (Dec 12, 2016)

forrestcook said:


> What was your plant bill at the end of the day?
> 
> 
> Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Pro


Total was about $180, but $60 of it was the Buce.


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## jellopuddinpop (Dec 12, 2016)

Here's a 1 week update:

The tank is currently getting 1/3 EI micros with supplementary P and K, along with 2ppm ammonia every other day to keep my bb going. CO2 is 25ppm when the lights turn on, and peak at 30 by lights off. Right now, lights are on for 6 hours with the red channel at 40% and the blue channel at 20%.

KH = 8.5
GH = 10
PH (w/o CO2) = 7.9
PH (w/ CO2) = 6.8
Temp = 75 deg f

Overall, I haven't seen any signs of algae with the exception of traces on the lily pipes. The only concern I have is that I'm still getting some surface scum, either from the tank cycling or from the BDBS. I've been shop-vac'ing it off, and it seems to be getting a little better. There is a ton of surface agitation, so I'm hoping it will go away on its own. This sounds strange, but I was hoping for a little bit of algae so I could shut down my other tank and move everyone in. As it stands, there is no algae for my otos, nerites, amanos, and SAEs. I was hoping to avoid feeding veggies if possible, but I'll be shutting down my 90 next weekend, one way or another. 

The S. Repens is showing strong growth, with only very slight yellowing and no melting from the transition.

The DHG is seemingly exactly the same as when planted. No new growth to note, but no melting or deficiency noted.

A. Reineckii is showing some promise. The new growth is coming in more red, despite very conservative dosing and reduced lighting.

The Buce is growing some new leaves that are still green unfortunately. I was hoping the higher lighting would bring out their coloration, but nothing yet.

The C. Balansae is going through a pretty rough melt, but is sending out new leaves regularly. The old growth melting isn't worrying at all, I was expecting it.





































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## Greggz (May 19, 2008)

jellopuddinpop said:


> The C. Balansae is going through a pretty rough melt, but is sending out new leaves regularly. The old growth melting isn't worrying at all, I was expecting it.


Once it gets going, that Balansae can get huge. I had some awhile ago, but it grew so tall it started folding over at the surface. Will be interesting to see how it works out for you.

And things are looking great. Keep the updates coming.


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## jellopuddinpop (Dec 12, 2016)

Greggz said:


> Once it gets going, that Balansae can get huge. I had some awhile ago, but it grew so tall it started folding over at the surface. Will be interesting to see how it works out for you.
> 
> And things are looking great. Keep the updates coming.


I'm actually hoping for that to be honest. I might not like it once I see it in person, but I'll cross that bridge when I get there [emoji12] 

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## jellopuddinpop (Dec 12, 2016)

Sad times today 😣. My 90g, the tank I used to learn on, just got it's final hack job. Trimmed everything down to the substrate in prep for taking all the fauna out this weekend.

I had planned on doing a RAOK, but the plants were just not in good enough shape to offer them up. I haven't done any real maintenance in weeks, and everything got lanky with crappy looking bottom leaves. I figured it would just be a disappointment to anyone who happened to "win" lol.

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## jellopuddinpop (Dec 12, 2016)

Hi everyone, this was a big weekend for me, having shut down my 90g and moved all of the livestock over to my new tank. I was able to donate the mollys to a friend who wants to breed them (muahahaha), and I lost 2 very old guppies during the move. Everyone else is doing great, though they have all lost their color from the stress of moving. They all transitioned well though, and are eating well. 

On a surprise note, I had added about 20 amano shrimp to the tank that I thought were getting picked off by a hungry angelfish, but when I removed all of the hardscape, I found there are still around 11 that were alive and well. They also made the transition well, and with no real caves for them to dive into, I'll be able to keep better track of them.

On the plant front, I've got some very strong and healthy growth from the S. Repens, A. Reineckii, and C. Balansae, while the DHG is starting to show some new runners, and there are new leaves coming in on all of the Buce. So far, there is little to no algae to speak of, so I'm going to knock on wood that keeps up.













































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## jellopuddinpop (Dec 12, 2016)

I have a small but significant update for today. I was really tired of looking at the light cables behind the tank, so I managed to find 10 ft, right angle computer power cords that matched the specs of the lights. This allowed me to reroute the cables to hide them much better. It may be a small improvement, but it made a big difference visually.









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## jellopuddinpop (Dec 12, 2016)

Does anyone know of a short growing moss I could stick on the tops of my rocks? I would love to get something that has the look of terrestrial moss (short & compact), but will still show the shape and character in the rock. It would also need to be able to tolerate direct, high lighting. The only thing I’ve found that is close is Mini Pellia, but that stuff is both super expensive and hard to find. I’m just trying to get a little bit of an aged look to the tank.


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## Dman911 (Nov 24, 2016)

I have never used it but Phoenix moss comes to mind. 

Dan


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## The Dude1 (Jun 17, 2016)

jellopuddinpop; no10312161 said:


> Does anyone know of a short growing moss I could stick on the tops of my rocks? I would love to get something that has the look of terrestrial moss (short & compact), but will still show the shape and character in the rock. It would also need to be able to tolerate direct, high lighting. The only thing I’ve found that is close is Mini Pellia, but that stuff is both super expensive and hard to find. I’m just trying to get a little bit of an aged look to the tank.


Fissidens??


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## geektom (Dec 17, 2012)

What a great journal! Thanks for sharing your journey with us!

What brand light are you using? Are those 3 fixtures, or 6?


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## Immortal1 (Feb 18, 2015)

jellopuddinpop said:


> I have a small but significant update for today. I was really tired of looking at the light cables behind the tank, so I managed to find 10 ft, right angle computer power cords that matched the specs of the lights. This allowed me to reroute the cables to hide them much better. It may be a small improvement, but it made a big difference visually.
> 
> 
> 
> ...


Definitely a much cleaner look! Had to really pay attention to figure out where the cords actually went down - good job!


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## jellopuddinpop (Dec 12, 2016)

geektom said:


> What a great journal! Thanks for sharing your journey with us!
> 
> What brand light are you using? Are those 3 fixtures, or 6?


These are the freshwater plant fixtures from SBREEFLIGHT.com. It is 3 fixtures, customized to remove the legs from the center (each light should have legs on both sides, but it would look terrible)

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## jellopuddinpop (Dec 12, 2016)

Immortal1 said:


> Definitely a much cleaner look! Had to really pay attention to figure out where the cords actually went down - good job!


Thanks Immortal! I just noticed that so much has changed since my last post. I'm going to have to update this journal tomorrow.

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## geektom (Dec 17, 2012)

jellopuddinpop said:


> These are the freshwater plant fixtures from SBREEFLIGHT.com. It is 3 fixtures, customized to remove the legs from the center (each light should have legs on both sides, but it would look terrible)
> 
> Sent from my SM-G920V using Tapatalk


Would you mind posting some additional close-up pictures of the lights and how you mounted them? I am trying to decide how to light a 150g that is 60" x 30". Thanks!


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## jellopuddinpop (Dec 12, 2016)

Sure thing. I'll put some up tomorrow.

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## jellopuddinpop (Dec 12, 2016)

So, here is my 1 month update. I decided to do a little more aesthetic upgrade and added an RGB strip to back-light the tank. I think it adds another level of "pop" visually, and I can change it up whenever I'm feeling bored =)


























For the plant list, and how they're doing:

The DHG is coming in very well, with little to no algae to speak of. Another few weeks and I'll give it a close shave, which should complete the fill in.










The S. Repens has had its first major trim, and has really filled in nicely. One it bounces back from the trim, I expect this to be the star of the tank. There is some green algae here.










The A. Reineckii is slow going, and hasn't colored up as much as I would like. I'm hoping once it crests the valleys between the rocks and gets some more nutrients that it will color up










The C. Balansae is sending new shoots almost daily, and is filling in as planned. There is some GSA on the older leaves, but it's not over the top and I'm not worried just yet.










The most concerning plant to me right now is all of the Buce. It's yellowing pretty bad, and has GSA throughout. These are still all emersed growth leaves, so I'm not panicking yet.










Overall, there is some algae growing on the glass and the hardscape, but I'm leaving it both for my livestock and because it helps add some age to the tank. Everything is still settling, so for now it's just going to stay as-is. I'm still running 6 hours of light, and probably will be for the foreseeable future. I've been increasing the EI dose weekly, and am almost at the full dose.










Bump:


geektom said:


> Would you mind posting some additional close-up pictures of the lights and how you mounted them? I am trying to decide how to light a 150g that is 60" x 30". Thanks!


I probably couldn't explain it any better than the video 



 I did have to buy longer power cords to hide them better, as you can see if you read through the journal. I bought these and they worked great.

For some close-ups...


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## ChrisX (May 28, 2017)

Can you show the rgb strips? Did you use the standard party light rolls?


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## jellopuddinpop (Dec 12, 2016)

I can snap a photo later today. Basically, I just used 1/2" quarter-round moulding with this light strip from Home Depot.

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## jellopuddinpop (Dec 12, 2016)

Here you go! Link to the light is in the last post.
















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## jellopuddinpop (Dec 12, 2016)

Here's a quick update after 2 months. 

FTS:









A lot has happened over the last few months. I added in 12 Panda Corys, and they're settling in well. I had 1 loss while acclimating, and none since. After they were in and all doing well, I mysteriously started losing fish, with no symptoms. It started with my old Angelfish, and progressed to wipe out all of my Rainbowfish. The only thing I can think of is that there wasn't enough Oxygen for the fish load, because of a protein film on the surface. I changed the flow of the filter to increase surface agitation, added Purigen to the filter, and haven't had any death since.

On the plant front, there is still some GSA, but it's not spreading and is only affecting old leaves right now. I'm hoping I've finally struck a balance, and it will work itself out.

The S. Repens is very thick, and is taking the brunt of the GSA at the moment









The DHG just underwent a pretty hard trim, and should completely fill in this area as it grows.









The A. Reineckii is finally starting to redden up, and I'm excited to see this continue.









Finally, the Buce decided it was really happy, and has sent up a bunch of flowers. While they're really beautiful, someone in my tank finds them delicious, and they don't seem to last fore more than a couple of hours. The leaves are also starting to color up, which is really amazing to see in person.

















All in all, things are coming along nicely. I'm still working on completely eliminating the protein film, and will be adding all new livestock once I'm comfortable that they won't all die.

Edit:
One more pic from after lights out. The camera doesn't pick up the color well, but this is a nice aqua blue.









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## The Dude1 (Jun 17, 2016)

Tank looks great! I seem to have trouble with Buces everytime I move them. It's weird... they just stop growing and get some algae and sometimes fall apart. In the next several weeks I'm going to get a couple clumps and finally set them for good. They were one of the few plants that did well in my African cichlid tank with NO CO2 and crushed coral substrate... then someone ate them. I'm still trying to get them back... but they are so beautiful when they get comfortable. 
I'm still struggling with algae. Maybe I will cut my photoperiod down to something closer to yours.


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## jellopuddinpop (Dec 12, 2016)

I still have some GSA, but I'm attributing it to the tank only being 2 months old. Before you cut your lighting down, just keep in mind that I'm running very intense lighting and thus the reasoning for only 6 hours / day. I'm faily sure that if I bumped it up to 8 hours, algae would explode. I'm only going to bump it up in intensity or duration once there are no signs of algae at all.

As far as the Buce goes, to be honest I'm not super impressed. They're starting to color up a little, and they're flowering, but they're not really growing at all. I've been getting new leaves, but no growth of the rhizome and no spreading. I know this is a slow grower, so that's the only reason it hasn't been pulled out for something else!


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## The Dude1 (Jun 17, 2016)

You mentioned losing numerous fish. Have chosen replacements?


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## jellopuddinpop (Dec 12, 2016)

The Dude1 said:


> You mentioned losing numerous fish. Have chosen replacements?


I'm going to get 5 more SAE (to make 6 total) and 10 Denison (Red-Line Torpedo Barbs)


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## Nlewis (Dec 1, 2015)

Increase your po4 dosing and the GSA should go away.


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## frenziedpace (Dec 17, 2016)

Sorry if I missed it.
What's the settings on your lights?


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## jellopuddinpop (Dec 12, 2016)

frenziedpace said:


> Sorry if I missed it.
> What's the settings on your lights?


Red Channel= 30%
Blue Channel=10%


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## frenziedpace (Dec 17, 2016)

jellopuddinpop said:


> Red Channel= 30%
> Blue Channel=10%


Thanks
I'm going to get a couple of those for a future tank.


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## SKYE.__.HIGH (Mar 18, 2017)

Any updates on this beast?


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## jellopuddinpop (Dec 12, 2016)

SKYE.__.HIGH said:


> Any updates on this beast?
> 
> 
> Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


Yeah, I suppose it's been a while since I've updated, but honestly not much has changed. The tank looks great from 10 feet away, but up close I'm still dealing with dust algae and most recently, BGA. I've pretty much narrowed the BGA down to poor circulation, because the O2 levels and Nitrates are right on track. I'm spot treating for now, and will be getting two Vortech MP10s when my budget allows. Here's a full tank shot that looks just fine, and then the horrors of close up shots.

P.S. Ignore the blue tarp behind the tank. That is stapled to the rafters over the tank to stop schmeg from falling into the tank during home renovations upstairs.






































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## SKYE.__.HIGH (Mar 18, 2017)

Still looking nice, algae can be fixed


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## SKYE.__.HIGH (Mar 18, 2017)

Any new progress? Love to see some pictures


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## jellopuddinpop (Dec 12, 2016)

I'm going to be doing a 5 day blackout here very shortly. I don't have the funds right now for Vortech power heads, and I'm getting really tired of daily spot treatments of H2O2. I'm hoping a blackout will give me a little breather until I'm able to solve the BGA problem the right way.

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## JTDillon (Mar 11, 2017)

WOW!! So you have Red Channel on 30% and Blue on 10%? ? ? 

Why does it look so bright?! I just turned mine down to that level and it looks soooo dim! I have 2 16" over my 75 via DIY aluminum bar. Also, your color looks much better than mine does. I think my lights may be funky, I also have dark edges with mine as well while yours seems to be nice and bright all the way around  ..


UGH...I am pretty frustrated and defeated with my SB Reef Lights at this point. IDK what to do or why I seem to be having these issues. However, I am extremely impressed with how yours turned out ! I am starting to miss my T5 fixture...

I also have a FX6 on my 75 gallon, the flow seems to be a tad bit weak on mine. I remember the flow being crazy at first. 6 months later, the flow is hardly strong enough for the tank. Changing the pads every 2 months or so. So.. yeah. Your tank is one of those ones where I envy it and wish mine could look like it. Even with your minimal algae I'm jealous. Keep up the great work! Its been fun to read!

Mind sharing how you designed/ built/ bought your CO2 Reactor?


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## jellopuddinpop (Dec 12, 2016)

JTDillon said:


> WOW!! So you have Red Channel on 30% and Blue on 10%? ? ?
> 
> Why does it look so bright?! I just turned mine down to that level and it looks soooo dim! I have 2 16" over my 75 via DIY aluminum bar. Also, your color looks much better than mine does. I think my lights may be funky, I also have dark edges with mine as well while yours seems to be nice and bright all the way around  ..
> 
> ...


As far as the light looking dim, I’m not sure what to tell you. One thing I do know is that the scale around the knobs is just a sticker, and I found mine to be off by quite a bit. Before I had plants in, I turned all of the knobs all the way to full, and moved the sticker so that the knob lined up with 100%. I was then able to dial in the amount of light I wanted much better. I provided some feedback to SB about this and suggested some sort of tactile feedback, like a click every 10% or so, but didn’t receive any response. 

For the FX6, are you using the white filter pads they provide? If so, you’ll need to change those every couple of weeks or so if you want to maintain your flow rate. I don’t use the white ones at all for that reason, and use the blue pads instead. Maybe if my water were cleaner it wouldn’t be an issue, but I couldn’t deal with changing the floss ever couple of weeks.

For the reactor, I used a three stage whole home water filter housing like this one here. There is a lot of literature about building a Cerges reactor so I won’t go into that here, but there are two different ways to run them, and each have their own problems with running a lot of gas.

The first way runs the reactor the way the filter housing intended, with water flowing in via the center of the cap, and out via the outside. When you attach a downpipe to the center, the bubbles tumble in the downpipe and break up. If you have a lot of gas, sometimes the bubbles won’t break down all of the way, and bubbles will escape into the aquarium. These are often really small, and are called microbubbles.

The other way has the water flowing in via the side of the cap, and out via the downpipe. Bubble can very rarely make it down to the bottom of the pipe, so microbubbles are less of a problem. However, the other issue is that gas can build up in the reactor itself, causing them to be noisy, and causing CO2 to continue to diffuse into the water for a long time after it’s been shut off. 

What I did was combine the two ways of running a reactor. In the first two chambers, the water flows down through the downpipe and leaves through the side of the cap. This does allow some micro bubbles to escape the first chamber, and less to escape the second chamber. When the water enters the third chamber, it enters via the side of the cap. The micro bubbles would have to get pushed down to the bottom of the chamber in order to leave to the tank. I don’t have an issue with gas building up, because a majority of it has been diffused in the first two chambers.

I hope this made sense.


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## JTDillon (Mar 11, 2017)

jellopuddinpop said:


> As far as the light looking dim, I’m not sure what to tell you. One thing I do know is that the scale around the knobs is just a sticker, and I found mine to be off by quite a bit. Before I had plants in, I turned all of the knobs all the way to full, and moved the sticker so that the knob lined up with 100%. I was then able to dial in the amount of light I wanted much better. I provided some feedback to SB about this and suggested some sort of tactile feedback, like a click every 10% or so, but didn’t receive any response.
> 
> For the FX6, are you using the white filter pads they provide? If so, you’ll need to change those every couple of weeks or so if you want to maintain your flow rate. I don’t use the white ones at all for that reason, and use the blue pads instead. Maybe if my water were cleaner it wouldn’t be an issue, but I couldn’t deal with changing the floss ever couple of weeks.
> 
> ...


Ahh yes I see. I knew the knobs weren't all the same. Mine were all "off" when I had them at 0 and 100. Still appears to be rather dim though... and the dark edges... I don't know why I would get dark edges. When did you buy your units? I'm thinking mine may be funky at this point....

Yes!! I do use the white pads!!! Youre referring to the round white pads right?
How do you have your media baskets set up?


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## jellopuddinpop (Dec 12, 2016)

Yup, the round white pads, called polishing pads I believe...

So, the way water flows through this filter is a little funky. The water flows down that pipe inside, up through the outer ring, down through the center, and out to the tank. So in that order, I have the coarse white rectangular pads around the outside, then from the top down, I have coarse black pad, "Bio" sponge (the one that looks like egg tray), ceramic bio media, blue filter sponge, Purigen, and final blue sponge.

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## jellopuddinpop (Dec 12, 2016)

JTDillon said:


> Still appears to be rather dim though... and the dark edges... I don't know why I would get dark edges. When did you buy your units? I'm thinking mine may be funky at this point....


How high do you have them mounted? If you can raise them up, you should be able to get rid of the dark edges.


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## Bananableps (Nov 6, 2013)

What a lovely, unique look. I like that your tank is mostly defined by the shape of the plants rather than the hardscape.

Too bad about the BGA. Have you tried erythromycin? The two times I've had BGA problems, I just dosed a little fish medicine and it never came back. I know that's not the classy thing to do: we're supposed to treat the underlying problem rather than the symptom. But those two episodes were in different tanks, years ago, so it seems to be a complete solution at least in some cases.


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## jellopuddinpop (Dec 12, 2016)

Thanks Banana. I've seen so many tanks where the focal point is a big piece of hardscape, or a white sand path, but I've never seem one with a grass slope as the focal point. All in all I really love it, but it's been very frustrating lately trying to solve one problem after another. I get so jealous of the people who run their tanks for years without any algae problems at all.

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## Immortal1 (Feb 18, 2015)

I guess one of the chuckles for me regarding "running their tanks for years without any algae problems at all" is that they probably DO have algae in their tanks - it just does not show up in their pics. I know for a fact that I have a little BGA in the substraight along the front glass, BBA on a few various hard surfaces and some GSA here and there. Does any show up in the pictures? no. buts its there!

Anyway, the erythromycin treatment has worked very well for me when I "had" to battle the BGA. Hope it works for you as well.

Question for you - how do you like your lights? Was doing various research on the SBReef FW lights - was impressed by a few things and less than impressed by other things. Currently I am running a 48-60" Satellite Plus and a 48-60" Satellite Plus Pro on my 75g tank. MY best guess is my PAR levels are between Med and High with the lights full blast. I also run them 9 hours per day. Been considering adding more light, just not sure what to go with.


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## jellopuddinpop (Dec 12, 2016)

Immortal1 said:


> Question for you - how do you like your lights? Was doing various research on the SBReef FW lights - was impressed by a few things and less than impressed by other things. Currently I am running a 48-60" Satellite Plus and a 48-60" Satellite Plus Pro on my 75g tank. MY best guess is my PAR levels are between Med and High with the lights full blast. I also run them 9 hours per day. Been considering adding more light, just not sure what to go with.


I'm not an expert about color spectrum by any means, so I can't contribute much to that effect. I can comment on my overall opinion though.

Pros: 

Far more power than I could ever realistically need. These suckers are BRIGHT.

Ability to lean toward the red side or the blue side without losing intensity is nice. I've actually been considering ramping up the blue channel for a while, then switching to the red channel to make the red plants really pop.

They're very cheap for what you get. You really can't get pendant lights for the price point that you get these.

Cons:
The power cords are way too short. You'll need to buy power cords if you want to route them along the legs to hide them.

No timers on the basic model.

The basic model uses stickers for light intensity, and there is no tactile feedback on the knobs at all. This makes it really hard to gauge where each channel actually is. (I think the higher models allow remote dimming, so that probably solves it.)


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## JTDillon (Mar 11, 2017)

jellopuddinpop said:


> Yup, the round white pads, called polishing pads I believe...
> 
> So, the way water flows through this filter is a little funky. The water flows down that pipe inside, up through the outer ring, down through the center, and out to the tank. So in that order, I have the coarse white rectangular pads around the outside, then from the top down, I have coarse black pad, "Bio" sponge (the one that looks like egg tray), ceramic bio media, blue filter sponge, Purigen, and final blue sponge.
> 
> Sent from my SM-G920V using Tapatalk




The bacteria media should be the very last thing the water touches before it leaves the filter right? 

I have the light mounted as high as the legs allow ( BOY are they flimsy!! ) . So IDK... any update on your tank? did you do the blackout?
thank you for your feedback and help BTW, and thank you for the awesome journal!!!


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## jellopuddinpop (Dec 12, 2016)

JTDillon said:


> The bacteria media should be the very last thing the water touches before it leaves the filter right?
> 
> I have the light mounted as high as the legs allow ( BOY are they flimsy!! ) . So IDK... any update on your tank? did you do the blackout?
> thank you for your feedback and help BTW, and thank you for the awesome journal!!!


I've always had mine with the bio filtration before the chemical filtration (Purigen) and final polish. I'm sure it doesn't make a huge difference, but I know that you want your coarse media to be before bio media to prevent it from getting clogged up by mulm.

I didn't end up doing the blackout because I tried something else first. I got some Ultralife Bluegreen Slime Remover to try first, because it had a ton of excellent reviews on Amazon. I'm never a fan of any "Magic Bullet", but this stuff was just that. It cleared up the BGA in a week, and now my tank is spotless. I'll post some photos tomorrow, along with a product review.


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## jellopuddinpop (Dec 12, 2016)

So, a friend of mine was over today, and asked "what's that shoot coming up the front glass?" My first thought, was a root from the Buce, but upon second look...










It's a freakin runner from the Crypt Balansae, exactly 18 inches away, across the other side of the tank. If this is what I can expect from this plant, they we're going to have to resort to drastic measures!! You can see the little bugger at the bottom of this pic.


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## vvDO (Oct 18, 2010)

I pulled all of my balanese and spiralis... roots were ridiculous and started spreading everywhere, leaves growing to almost 2ft tall


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## The Dude1 (Jun 17, 2016)

I'm sure eventually it could do that, but that's a huge root network and would take some real time. I've had my Balansae growing in the same spot with good light, C02, and ferts for at least 7- 8 months and it has yet to send out a single runner. If you don't like it rip it out and you probably won't have another for a good while. All crypts will eventually do it. I've got Lucens, Parva, and becketti mixed around in the foreground mid ground of my top 75 and whenever a new shoot pops up it takes a while for me to figure out what it is and if it will stay in that spot. Not a bad problem to have.


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## SKYE.__.HIGH (Mar 18, 2017)

Where’s the updates, this beauty needs some credit!


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