# 75g Native Stream Tank w/DIY Foam Rock Wall and Faux Roots



## Chasmodes (Oct 31, 2016)

*Creating the DIY Foam Rock Wall*

I started out by creating a frame to which I would glue in small sections of pink styrofoam hobby board that I'd carve and glue in one at a time. At first, I started creating one section, but as I went along, I worked on the other two sections as well. Three sections wall were ultimately needed in order to be able to install the final product.

Frame of the right side section (ultimately, I removed the right panel):









Initially, the frame was held in place using Gorilla Tape and wooden cooking skewers. The skewers worked out great for temporarily holding the carved foam rock layers in place is I worked on subsequent layers.









This pic shows a few layers carved and glued, for the right and middle sections. Each board was attached to the board underneath using Gorilla Glue and secured using plastic popsicle sticks that were glued into place, connecting the upper layer to the ones below it. I had to trim the popsicle sticks, usually, half of one was about the right size. They were easy to cut. You can see the picture of a rock wall that I used for inspiration and as a reference to guide me.









Here's how I worked, from the bottom layers building up, and one section carved next to the other to get a good fit and a look that I wanted. The idea for the joints between the sections was to not make them straight lines, but to simulate fissures as you'd see in a real cliff.









I used a cement block (created as DIY rock and not used in a tank that I had laying around), as a weight to hold glued layers together. This was a pretty heavy cement rock, and it left a texture that I found really cool. So, I used this cement rock to duplicate that texture on each layer. I found other ways to add detail and will show you in future pics:









Here you can see the popsicle sticks that I used. They easily fit into the holds that I punched with the wood skewers. I also used a drill bit sometimes. The Gorilla Glue really bonded to the foam boards and popsicle sticks nicely, making them impossible to separate:









Bump: As I worked up each layer, you can see how I had to angle the popsicle sticks to achieve maximum contact for bonding. I used loose foam boards to support the structure as I carved and glued each layer:









I used a generous amount of glue spread on each layer, using foam scraps to spread it around. I needed weight to add on top of the glued layer to keep the foam from expanding. Gorilla glue does that. A thin layer is all you need:









Obviously, I didn't want can impressions in the top layers of the foam as I went, so, I stacked the cans on rocks, which kept up a natural looking texture on each foam board:









Pushing the concrete and rocks into the foam for texture gave me an idea. I'm an avid fossil collector, so, I thought that perhaps I could simulate fossil rock layers by pressing in shells and other objects into the foam. This shell simulates a bivalve or brachiopod fossil:









I also used coral, springs, and threaded nuts to simulate other fossils by pressing them into the foam boards after I finished carving them:









Here, you can see the resulting detail of some of the faux fossils. Springs bent and pressed into the foam created faux crinoid stem fossils. If you look closely, you can see the effect of the coral and shells pressed into the board as well, creating a faux fossil hash plate:


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## Chasmodes (Oct 31, 2016)

I kept up the process as the work completed from right to left, and bottom to top. Every now and then, I'd fit all three structures into the tank to make sure that they were a good, tight fit:









Comparing my work to my inspiration picture, not perfect, but, similar:









Then, it occurred to me that all this would float, and if not a solid structure throughout, could break up. So, I stuffed the gaps with river rock that I bought at a local chain hardware, and used spray foam to secure them in place. This also helped to secure the carved rock layers to the foam frame that would be later glued to the tank:









Spray foam is messy, so it's wise to use latex or rubber gloves when working with it. After a while, it expands, so I carved the excess away as much as possible. I also punched holes in it to allow the insides to cure properly:









The right and middle sections are shown here carved to make a nice fit and look:









Here, the right and middle sections are mostly done and carved, loosely fitted into the tank:









Here are all three sections fitted into the tank. The third section wasn't complete yet, as I had to build my filter intake:









Bump: At this point, I was curious about gluing it all to the glass. What product would work best to keep this monster wall from tearing away and floating to the top? My concerns with silicone were that, when I tried using it to glue foam boards together, it easily separated. So, I wondered about using Gorilla Glue against the glass vs. silicone. Here, I tested foam boards with silicone vs. Gorilla Glue glued to the glass. Gorilla Glue separated, and the silicone held firmly in place. I had my answer:









I thought this was cool, as I experimented with using a wire brush on the foam. I scraped and hammered the brush to the foam, and produced this test piece. I later incorporated these techniques into the final structure:









Here are a few pictures showing the stand pipe and intake designed to hide my canister filter intake tube. I wanted it accessible and easy to clean. I drilled holes into the large PVC cap, that is not glued in place and is removable. You can also see my initial spray bar design. I will be using a different design, to be constructed soon and shown to you later:

























The last carving part of the project was to hide the stand pipe. I painted the piping black, and started building the foam structure around it:


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## Chasmodes (Oct 31, 2016)

I created a carved foam layer that is removable, so I can access the PVC intake pipe for cleaning and maintenance. I wanted to completely hide the pipe and still be able to get to it, and have it functional:

























The third left section is almost done here, hiding the stand pipe:









I had to find a way to secure this piece so it didn't float away and also didn't wiggle in the current. So, I inserted two nylon bushings into a piece of foam, and glued it to the base below the removable section:









On the bottom of the removable carved rock section, I also glued a couple more bushings in place, then carved out the inside to create room for the base in the above pic to fit:









Then, all I do to secure it all in place is to insert one of those plastic popsicle sticks through all four bushings!


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## Chasmodes (Oct 31, 2016)

When gluing and carving, sometimes things didn't fit flush to the glass, so I had to make some adjustments, to give a nice connection from foam to glass with silicone. Here, on one section, I used Gorilla Glue to add a piece of egg crate, and then carved away the excess:









I also used Gorilla Glue to fill in gaps at the bottom so each structure was flush to the bottom of the tank:









This pic shows all three sections fitted into place into the tank. You can see the joints between the three sections and my attempt to make them look like real cracks in a rock wall. I was pretty happy with it:


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## Chasmodes (Oct 31, 2016)

Once I was done carving and fitting each section, it was time to paint. I painted the entire structure with Drylok to cover all surfaces to hide the pink foam. I used Drylok because it's a water tight sealer, and many in the hobby have used it successfully on their DIY foam backgrounds:

















I really slapped it on good to get it to seep into every nook, crannie, and hole. Surface tension will prevent the paint from getting into tiny holes, so I had to use the brush to really dab the paint into every nook and cranny:









After that, I mixed Drylok with charcoal color cement dye and applied with a brush a very dark coat. I did this to give the structure depth:

















Then, I used sponges to dab on various shades of color to bring out details and highlighting. This is the first light color applied to the entire thing:









one thing that is great about using Drylok vs. cement mix to cover foam is that it really allows carved details (like my fossil simulations) to show through. They really showed up well as light shades of paint were dabbed with the sponge over the structure. You can see this throughout the painting.


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## Streetwise (May 24, 2019)

It reminds me a bit of a Red Rocks on Lake Champlain:

http://www.southburlingtonvt.gov/document_center/RecsParks/RedRocks.ManagementStudy.pdf


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## Chasmodes (Oct 31, 2016)

After that, I sponged on different colors to create a layered effect:

















The painted wall fitted into the tank:









After painting, it was time for installation. I began by tracing with a sharpie where to apply the silicone to the tank wall. The idea was to apply the silicone, and then push each section into place:

















I also applied silicone to each section:









All three sections installed. You can see the thick beads of silicone on this left side view:









Because the structure fit so tightly, I had to push the middle and right structure in at the same time. In doing so, I smeared some silicone on the side and bottom glass. I eventually cleaned off the right side glass using a razor blade:









Next was the roots to simulate the overhang. I started out bending PVC and CPVC pipe with a heat gun, then zip tying them together:









I zip tied rope to the pipes to add bulk and a softer form to the structure:









I also used wire inside air tubing for the smaller branches of the root:









After that, I zip tied some rope to form a knot in the root, and then attached a piece of foam board that I used the wire brush on to simulate a split in the root:









The next steps in the root creation were to add black spray foam to add more bulk and form:


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## Chasmodes (Oct 31, 2016)

Next was to carve the spray foam to improve the root like form:









Then, to complete the form, I applied plaster strips to give more bulk and form:









I wasn't happy with how the knot turned out, so I attached more rope and a bit more spray foam, carved and sanded the foam, then applied more plaster cloth:









The fake roots fitted into the tank:









The next step was to apply the grout mixed with acrylic additive:









The roots were almost done. The next step was to paint them with Drylok mixed with cement dye to get them to a realistic color:

















Another layer of Drylok and dye sponged on:









After several layers and colors of Drylok sponged onto the roots, I finally achieved the color that I wanted:









Fitted into the tank:

























Bump: The final steps on the roots and wall were to apply the Polygem 1319 clear coat epoxy to seal everything in and protect the structures. I was worried about doing tank maintance or moving rocks around and potentially damaging the rock wall or roots. I was worried that the extra shiny look would show up in the tank. 

















As you can see in the pics above, the reflections cause the structures to look unrealistic out of the water. However, I read that when water is added, the shiny appearance disappears. The clear coat really does firm things up though. And, many museums and public aquariums use this product, so, it's effective and safe. I really wanted to protect my work.

This past weekend, I collected a five gallon bucket full of gravel for the tank from a local creek near my house. I'm pleased with the overall color of the gravel. It took me hours to sift and wash the gravel to get most of the silt out of it. Here's a tip though, before carrying it very far, it's better to divide it up into to half filled buckets...much easier to carry:









A month ago, while on a fishing trip, I collected a five gallon bucket full of river rocks from my local river. I wanted rocks to look a certain color and have shapes that relate to the wall as much as possible, and still be river worn. This past weekend, I laid them out on a table:









I was ready to aquascape and fill the tank at this point.


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## Chasmodes (Oct 31, 2016)

On Monday, I added gravel and set the rocks into place, and then filled the tank with water. I set up the circulation pump and it ran fine. The water was really cloudy, as the canister filter wasn't ready. I set up my Fluval Plant 3.0 light and downloaded the app, and set it up, and previewed it. I'm really happy with the light fixture. 

This really was the first major test though, to see if the rock wall would stay put and not float, and also to test the roots to see if they floated or not. The rock wall, after three days, is still looking good. However, the roots float just enough to block my spray bar output. So, my next step is to secure the top of the roots in a way so I can still remove them and reinstall them easily. The solution is to attach the top back corner of the roots to the stand pipe via drilling holes in each, and using zip ties that can be easily replaced when do maintenance. They will be out of sight too. The bottom of the roots was fine, as it stayed down, it was just the top of the roots that floated a little bit away from the wall.

So, this weekend, I'll drain the tank, remove the sand and rocks, affix the roots, add the sand and rocks, scape it, fill the tank, set up the equipment and canister filter, and hopefully, I'll have a nice picture to share. After that, it's on to tank cycling, and then collecting fish and the stargrass for the tank. Yay!

Oh, and the clear coat shiny finish? When I added water, you couldn't see the clear coat at all. It worked perfectly.

Before I go, here's the stocking list:

Fish: darters, minnows, dace, and shiners, maybe a sculpin. My feature fish will be the rainbow darter (Etheostoma caeruleum) and either satinfin shiners (Cyprinella analostana) or spotfin shiners (Cyprinella spiloptera). I also hope to add fantail darters, greenside darters, silverjaw minnows, rosyface shiners, rosy side dace, and some other species that I may catch.

I also will collect snails often as the darters like to eat them. 

Thanks for reading. I'll post updates soon. I can't wait to collect fish for this tank.

Bump:


Streetwise said:


> It reminds me a bit of a Red Rocks on Lake Champlain:
> 
> http://www.southburlingtonvt.gov/document_center/RecsParks/RedRocks.ManagementStudy.pdf


Thank you Streetwise. That's a really cool rock formation!

Also, I forgot to include this in my previous posts. If y'all are wondering how I actually carved each foam board, here's a video that shows my techniques:


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## minorhero (Mar 28, 2019)

Great fun! You have already put a ton of work into this tank and the fish still haven't made an appearance.  

I am planning a very similar tank in the near future, though not based on a stream technically. I am going to be going a bit industrial and planning my tank around a drainage ditch. The back wall will look like a cement wall with sewer pipes in it that will actually be my return and intakes. I am also planning my tank to be a full native tank with everything in it from North America though not necessarily from my local area.

It sounds like you plan to catch most/all of your fish yourself. I have already caught (and released, not ready to keep them yet) blacknose dace and rosyside dace but I haven't found out how / good location to catch darters. Any tips for darter catching / good locations? 

I have been using inaturalist app to find places where fish might be found and also just looking generally when I go to parks. 

I am in Ellicott City, where at in Maryland are you?


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## Chasmodes (Oct 31, 2016)

Thank you minorhero! I live between Hyattstown, Clarksburg and Boyds. Your tank plan sounds really cool!

For catching darters and minnows, I'd love to use hand held dip nets, but, unfortunately, you aren't allowed to use them for the species that I'm after, including darters. Maryland has some funny laws regarding that, but it's to protect species that are endangered and/or gamefish, so, I understand. The best way to catch them legally is to use a seine and kick them into the net. Two people working it makes it much easier, but, here's a video showing how to collect fish using a small seine with one person: 




Here is the law for using seines in nontidal waters:
(5) Seines in nontidal waters:

(a) Shall have mesh no greater than 1/4 inch;

(b) May not exceed 6 feet in width and 4 feet in height;

(c) Shall only be used to catch minnows and other bait fish;

(d) May not be used within 50 yards of the base of any dam or the mouth of any river or tributary; and

(e) Shall only be emptied from shore.

Let me know if you are interested in getting a seine like this and I can find the manufacturer that I got mine from. I can't remember off the top of my head.

As far as locations to catch any species in Maryland, this is a great site: https://geodata.md.gov/streamhealth/


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## minorhero (Mar 28, 2019)

Chasmodes said:


> Thank you minorhero! I live between Hyattstown, Clarksburg and Boyds. Your tank plan sounds really cool!
> 
> For catching darters and minnows, I'd love to use hand held dip nets, but, unfortunately, you aren't allowed to use them for the species that I'm after, including darters. Maryland has some funny laws regarding that, but it's to protect species that are endangered and/or gamefish, so, I understand. The best way to catch them legally is to use a seine and kick them into the net. Two people working it makes it much easier, but, here's a video showing how to collect fish using a small seine with one person: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VCVaXSXWNlY
> 
> ...


That is a great site! Like all government websites its horrible to navigate but the information in it seems really well put together. I have been jealous of other state's having better information on their local fish species but this is actually pretty good!

I am definitely interested in getting a seine. I was under the impression dip nets were legal but I see from looking into the comar a bit more thoroughly that I was just confusing other sections of the code.

I have had success using minnow traps for well minnows. This is allowed so long as you keep it within 100 feet of you when on public land. The trick I found was to bait them with chunks of hot dog. When I used bread the darn bread floated which allowed the fish to eat it from outside the trap. Hot dog sinks so they have to poke around till they find the hole.


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## Chasmodes (Oct 31, 2016)

There is some ambiguity on the code though. Does it include hand held aquarium type nets? What does "a long handle" mean? That's in the Comar definition of a dip net. My thought though, is better to be safe than sorry.

Good info on the traps. I never tried hot dogs. I guess I probably thought that I'd eat them on the way to the creek and all that would be left would be bread! :laugh2:

By the way, regarding the streamhealth link of the map. If you click on any of the dots on the colored coded stream, you'll see a link titled, "more". If you click on that, you will get the species that they collected during their electroshock sampling sessions. They usually mention the year. Some of the dots don't have fish collections, same with the triangles, but most of the dots do have them. Also, if you click on any of the fish links in the results, it takes you to that species page, where you can see a range map in the state.


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## minorhero (Mar 28, 2019)

Chasmodes said:


> By the way, regarding the streamhealth link of the map. If you click on any of the dots on the colored coded stream, you'll see a link titled, "more". If you click on that, you will get the species that they collected during their electroshock sampling sessions. They usually mention the year. Some of the dots don't have fish collections, same with the triangles, but most of the dots do have them. Also, if you click on any of the fish links in the results, it takes you to that species page, where you can see a range map in the state.


I noticed that as well. Took a bit to figure out because if you click on the dot... but not 'enough' on the dot. It just highlights a section of the stream the dot is on and tells you essentially nothing. Le sigh, government websites.... 

Anyway it tells me a LOT about species spread. I for instance had no idea that american eels are basically everywhere. I would be tempted to try and find one and keep one but I have read too much about how terrible they are in the aquarium ;P


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## Ken Keating1 (Nov 22, 2017)

Wow, great start to your journal, thanks for providing detailed info on how you put this together. Looking forward to seeing how this all works out, it should be good!


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## JJ09 (Sep 11, 2014)

That is a very cool background wall you've built. My husband has a mineral and fossil collection, we have a few crinoid pieces (some self-collected) your use of the spring looks fairly realistic! Looks like a lot of work to build that- can't wait to see fish in it. Does look like it takes up a fair bit of space in your tank? I'm a bit surprised you made it so thick! I didn't know drylock was safe for use in tanks- I've used it on exterior retaining wall for my garden, never thought it could coat something in a fish tank.


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## Blue Ridge Reef (Feb 10, 2008)

That looks fantastic and so much better than the one I did years back (I believe a thread on that exists, but all the photos no longer are hosted). I went much thinner, and eventually ran into floating (and break off) problems. I did mine on the actual aquarium back and it didn't adhere like I'd expected. One day, the whole thing had come loose and was trying to float to the surface. The aquarium frame is the only thing that kept it from just being on the surface. Turned into a big mess that required a full breakdown to scrape the foam off. But I think you may have avoided that possibility by simply using SO much material. 

I always wanted to try it again, so subscribing to this thread. Look forward to seeing your progression.


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## Chasmodes (Oct 31, 2016)

minorhero, I was worried that the site wasn't that user friendly, because of the problems that you detailed, and wanted to make sure that you were able to get what you needed. I'm glad that you figured it out though, because the sight has been very useful for me. I really love that you can find more recent samplings, at certain creeks. Of course, their limited to the amount of manpower available and funding resources, but, still interesting. The funny thing is that they revamped the site not long ago, and prior to that, you didn't have to be so precise with the dot, and clicking out side of the dot got you nothing. If you ever get a chance, the Glen Echo Park Aquarium, public with a small fee, is worth a visit. If you can time it to meet the aquarist there, he can give you tips on how they keep their eels. They've kept several of them. When collecting for my oyster reef tank in the Bay, I sometimes catch small ones. They have to be 9" after a certain time though to be legal unless you have a scientific permit, I think, but don't quote me on that. 

Thank you very much Ken and JJ. One day I'll post a lessons learned type thing after it's been in my tank for a while. It is very thick. I wanted realism in the rock, and I think that if I had to do it all over again, I could cut it back a couple inches in thickness. I'd never made a background or worked with styrofoam before, so when I was building it, I didn't know what to expect. The tank is 75g, but after water displacement, is probably more like a 55g now, LOL. But, that's OK with me because it will always house small minnows, dace, shiners and darters.

Thank you Blue Ridge Reef. I will always worry about this background coming loose. I think it will be OK, but, the fear will always be in the back of my mind.


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## Chasmodes (Oct 31, 2016)

This past weekend, between fishing trips, I made some progress on the 75g stream tank. First, I drained the tank, took out the rocks, scooped out the gravel and cleaned out the silt. When I put the gravel in the first time, even though I sifted it for a couple hours while running a hose through it, it still had a bunch of silt in it. 

When everything settled, the silt created a layer of scum that covered everything, including the roots and wall. It actually looked like what you'd see in a real creek. But, I cleaned it off with my hand and a sponge and cleaned the glass as best I could. Some of the silt made it's way into the crevices of the rock wall and root. It actually looks pretty realistic, so I may or may not try and clean them out. I'll wait until I fill the tank again.

I took the gravel and divided it up into two buckets, and decided to clean half at a time. It took me three hours to clean the first half, and it's not perfect, but much, much better. I think that I'll divide the other half in half again, and clean each of those 1/4 amounts one at a time. Maybe it will go faster.

Once I had everything out of the tank and finished cleaning the scum, I put the roots back in, measured where to anchor them, and zip tied them to the stand pipe (picture below). It's really secure now, won't budge, and certainly won't float again. The stand pipe is wedged in there tight to the tank and secure in the wall. I'm really happy how it turned out. There is plenty of room for my standpipe and over the roots current. 









If I want to do maintenance to clean out the stand pipe, I need to remove the roots. The zip tie is easy, just cut, take the roots out, clean the standpipe, put everything back together and in, and then use another zip tie. Easy peazy.

After that, I put the mostly clean gravel into the tank, then snapped a pic. Under water, the glare from the epoxy completely disappears. This is the first pic with the new light fixture:









Next steps this weekend (hopefully, I can get them all done)
-wash the rest of the gravel and put in the tank
-redo the rockscape
-fill the tank and reset the circulation pump
-redo my spray bar for the canister filter
-set up and test the canister filter

The only thing else after that is to buy a glass top, cycle the tank, and then catch some fish for the tank.


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## Chasmodes (Oct 31, 2016)

I was able to pretty much finish the stream tank. I finished washing the gravel as best that I could, added it to the tank along with the river rocks that I collected, and rockscaped the tank. I'm not certain that I'll keep it this way. More than likely, I'll remove some of the river rocks. I kinda got carried away LOL. I also purchased a glass top that didn't fit correctly. But, it worked out, because I was able to trim the plastic pieces that come with it to make up the difference and give it a good fit. All I need to do with that is cut a couple of the corners to make room for the canister filter stand pipe intake tube and the spray bar. Oh, yeah, and I finished the spray bar. Once I get the glass cut, then I'll set up and run the canister filter. This should bring the river effect into full swing, adding current across the top of the roots and across the tank. The roots are cinched down tight and are doing their job well, hiding the powerhead. 

Next up, cycle the tank, then collect and add fish.

Below are a few pics.

Front View:









Front Left Side:









Front Right Side:









Front View Sunset:









Here's a video:


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## NotCousteau (Sep 25, 2014)

Awesome! What do you plan to keep in it? I had a darter tank for a few years.


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## Chasmodes (Oct 31, 2016)

NotCousteau said:


> Awesome! What do you plan to keep in it? I had a darter tank for a few years.


Thank you so much! My plan is to stock it with rainbow, fantail, greenside and tessellated darters, along with various minnows, dace and shiners. Of those, I'd love to add satinfin shiners, rosyface shiners, rosyside dace, and silverjaw minnows. But, I may add more depending on what I catch. For example, just about every stream around me has blacknose and longnose dace.

Sculpins are out as they'll eat darters. I am on the fence about adding a small sunnie. Maybe if I catch a long ear... But, I won't add one right away.

As far as plants go, I want to get some river stargrass. I read that it does well in aquaria, is easy to maintain, and is a nice looking plant.


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## NotCousteau (Sep 25, 2014)

Cool. All of those fish sound great. I kept dace and shiners with my darters, and I loved them all. Good luck.


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## minorhero (Mar 28, 2019)

Chasmodes said:


> Thank you so much! My plan is to stock it with rainbow, fantail, greenside and tessellated darters, along with various minnows, dace and shiners. Of those, I'd love to add satinfin shiners, rosyface shiners, rosyside dace, and silverjaw minnows. But, I may add more depending on what I catch. For example, just about every stream around me has blacknose and longnose dace.
> 
> Sculpins are out as they'll eat darters. I am on the fence about adding a small sunnie. Maybe if I catch a long ear... But, I won't add one right away.
> 
> As far as plants go, I want to get some river stargrass. I read that it does well in aquaria, is easy to maintain, and is a nice looking plant.


From my readings over at the NANFA forum (I am assuming you are familiar?? if not check them out immediately, they are right up your alley) you definitely do not want to add a longear sunfish to this tank, not unless you want it to eat everything else. In the sunfish family you should stick with something like banded sunfish, bluespotted, or black banded sunfish.


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## Chasmodes (Oct 31, 2016)

minorhero said:


> From my readings over at the NANFA forum (I am assuming you are familiar?? if not check them out immediately, they are right up your alley) you definitely do not want to add a longear sunfish to this tank, not unless you want it to eat everything else. In the sunfish family you should stick with something like banded sunfish, bluespotted, or black banded sunfish.


True. If I add a long ear sunfish, then I'll move the darters and smaller minnows to a different tank. Honestly, I don't see that happening. When I had a similar set up years ago (without the foam scaping), I kept various dace, minnows and shiners along with some fantail and tessellated darters and loved the tank. The bully of the tank at that time was a creek chub that eventually went into my neighbor's tank. It ate a couple of my darters and I was not happy.


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## Chasmodes (Oct 31, 2016)

The stream tank is completely done, ready for fish. Here's a video below. I still need to cycle it, but not a problem. I installed the canister filter and spray bar, and it is working just as planned, shooting current over top of the roots and across the top of the tank. The powerhead is hidden behind the roots and shoots current through the roots. There is an eddy effect, which is what I'm going for, so I'm happy with that. I also pulled a lot of the river rocks out, keeping my favorites, and I added a couple pieces of shale that I collected from a fossil site along a tributary of my river. I layered the rocks so that it appears that some sluff off of the wall (as Andy and Matt suggested) and will add a couple more soon. I have to dig them out of my fossil collection, LOL. I also have a preview of my sunrise to sunset feature of my light. 






Bump: The stream tank is completely done, ready for fish. Here's a video below. I still need to cycle it, but not a problem. I installed the canister filter and spray bar, and it is working just as planned, shooting current over top of the roots and across the top of the tank. The powerhead is hidden behind the roots and shoots current through the roots. There is an eddy effect, which is what I'm going for, so I'm happy with that. I also pulled a lot of the river rocks out, keeping my favorites, and I added a couple pieces of shale that I collected from a fossil site along a tributary of my river. I layered the rocks so that it appears that some sluff off of the wall (as Andy and Matt suggested) and will add a couple more soon. I have to dig them out of my fossil collection, LOL. I also have a preview of my sunrise to sunset feature of my light.


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## Chasmodes (Oct 31, 2016)

Well, no aquarium project is completely finished until it supports life, and in this case, fish. I had a little time late on Sunday to get out to a creek that is only 15 minutes from my house to catch a few fish. My goal was to collect a few minnows of any time, and if lucky, a couple darters. So, I gathered up my hip boots, a bucket, and my net, and headed to the creek.

After about a quarter mile hike, I got to the spot that I wanted to collect. I had about an hour or so before the lost of daylight. I walked the creek bank for a bit and didn't see any fish at all. Either the fish weren't there, or the cold weather had them all hiding. I wasn't sure if perhaps they migrated out of the creek and into the river or were still there.

I climbed into the creek and tried kicking up leaves and, sure enough, the first fish showed up in the net, a small eastern black nosed dace (_Rhinichthys atratulus_). It was tiny, and I didn't want tiny fragile fish in a new tank. So, I kept disturbing leaves and eventually, found more larger fish of the same species. I kept five of them for the tank. I moved from pool to pool disturbing rocks and leaves with my feet, but, no darters. 

So, I decided to start turning over larger rocks with my hand. So, I rolled up my shirt sleeves and began to work. I turned over the rocks, used my other hand to scare anything underneath into my net, which leaned precariously against my leg. After a few rocks, finally, a beautiful male rainbow darter (_Etheostoma caeruleum_)showed up in my net! 

I was so pumped, what a beautiful fish. I should have taken a picture then, but, my phone was in my jacket on the creek bank a few pools back. It was very dark, and his orange/red fins were stunning. I kept turning over rocks looking for a female companion for him.

After a few more rocks turned over, another darter showed up in the net. At first, I thought it was a female, but, on closer inspection, it was a different species. It was a fantail darter (_Etheostoma flabellare_). I tried for a while more, working down each pool with no more success on darters. I caught a sculpin, but released it, along with several more blacknose dace. Since daylight was ending, I called it quits, happy with what I caught. Not just happy, elated!

I took the fish home, stuck an airstone in the bucket and let it alone for about four hours, so the water temps would warm to room temperature in my basement, about 64 degrees. The creek was quite cold, so it took a while. I tested a few parameters of the creek water and they were very similar to those of my tank. After that, I netted the fish out of my bucket and released them into my tank. 

Within an hour, the dace and fantail darters were exploring the tank. The rainbow darter hid and sulked for a long time, perhaps more than two hours before coming out to explore. I fed a few flakes to the dace, and they ate. I didn't expect the darters to eat the flakes, so, I tossed in some blackworms. The fantail darter ate some immediately, as did the dace. The rainbow darter had no interest in food yet.

Last night, I came home from a fishing trip and rushed downstairs to observe my new fish. All of the fish were happy, doing what they do. The darters explore every nook and cranny in the tank, hunting for food. I fed them flakes again first, thinking the dace would get full and not eat the worms. I learned that they are never full.

I dropped in some blackworm with a turkey baster, target feeding near the darters to make sure that they got at least one worm to eat, and that worked. Both darters ate them with gusto. Success! The fish are feeding already, and seem happy in their new environment. I marveled at the personality of both darters, and the brilliant coloration of the male, not yet in breeding colors, but still amazing that fish like that live so close to me.

I put together a video of the clips from the last two days, showing the tank with fish. I hope you enjoy it!


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## minorhero (Mar 28, 2019)

Nice find on that rainbow darter! I definitely want one of those guys at some point though I also like snails a lot so ... maybe not anytime soon.

I also went collecting this past weekend. I was on a mission to find mountain redbelly dace and did, after much work, get 1 of the little fellows. He is currently swimming around with my blacknose dace in my quarantine tank. I agree with your assessment that dace are always hungry, even when spooked from being caught in a net for the first time they will happily chow down on whatever is in front of them. 

I also caught 3 juvenile sculpin this past weekend and kept all 3. They are pretty nifty looking though long term I doubt I will hold onto them all. Same for some northern hogsucker I caught and misidentified till I got home ;P


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## Chasmodes (Oct 31, 2016)

minorhero said:


> Nice find on that rainbow darter! I definitely want one of those guys at some point though I also like snails a lot so ... maybe not anytime soon.
> 
> I also went collecting this past weekend. I was on a mission to find mountain redbelly dace and did, after much work, get 1 of the little fellows. He is currently swimming around with my blacknose dace in my quarantine tank. I agree with your assessment that dace are always hungry, even when spooked from being caught in a net for the first time they will happily chow down on whatever is in front of them.
> 
> I also caught 3 juvenile sculpin this past weekend and kept all 3. They are pretty nifty looking though long term I doubt I will hold onto them all. Same for some northern hogsucker I caught and misidentified till I got home ;P


Very cool! I want satinfin or spotfin shiners for my tank. Those are next on my list, along with more darters. I may try and collect some plants next weekend if I go fish collecting. The problem might be that the rivers are too cold and the plants could be dying off.


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## Chasmodes (Oct 31, 2016)

I wound up collecting more fish from a local stream about 40 minutes from my house for my FW stream tank this past weekend. This small stream has been one of my favorite smallmouth bass fishing spots over the years. It has a wide diversity of fish species, as much as any stream in the Western part of Maryland. 









There are a couple species that I still want, but, for the most part, it's fully stocked now. I also found a beautiful red rock that I just had to put into the tank. I'm trying to find at least one rock to add to the tank from each fish collecting site. This tank is a Potomac River biotope tank, minus major predators. 

The species below are currently in this tank:

*Darters:* 
Rainbow Darter (Etheostoma caeruleum)
Fantail Darter (Etheostoma flabellare)
Greenside Darter (Etheostoma blennioides)

*Minnows, Shiners and Dace: *
Eastern Blacknosed Dace (Rhinichthys atratulus)
Spottail Shiner (Notropis hudsonius))
Silverjaw Minnow (Notropis buccatus)
Longnose Dace (Rhinichthys cataractae)
River Chub (Nocomis micropogon)

Here's a short video of the tank and the new critters:


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## andieg3 (Sep 4, 2019)

Fantastic job! Super cool tank and following the construction of your custom-made habitat was fun.


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## Chasmodes (Oct 31, 2016)

Thank you so much andieg3!!!

Here's a video of the new fish in the tank, now that they're acclimated. They're all so bold, not afraid of me when I clean the tank. They even try to eat the hairs on my arm when I clean algae off of the glass. In this video, I feed them blackworms using a turkey baster. I fed the minnows and dace flakes first, so they wouldn't pig out on the worms. Some of the fish are starting to color up more as well. I had 24 minutes of video clips at first, so I had to trim off 14 minutes of it to keep it from being too long. It was tough cutting out some of the scenes for me. Heck, I stayed up way too late last night watching these fish as it was. I'm so addicted to this tank. I hope you enjoy this video as much as I did making it.


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## andieg3 (Sep 4, 2019)

All of the fish look so brave and healthy! I especially like the darters. I'd be addicted to watching that activity also, no doubt. Makes me want to set up my own little native stream tank!


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## Chasmodes (Oct 31, 2016)

Thank you andieg3! I'm so addicted to watching this tank that I'm not getting enough sleep every night! So, I keep shooting videos and sharing them 

Here's a video update from last night. The fish are a bit aggressive and excited, because I fed them a bunch of blackworms right before filming. They settled down quite a bit toward the end of the video. Also, I added a few new fish, some shiners and one more longnose dace. The new fish ate food less than one hour after I introduced them to the tank. Now, they seem to fit right in. I hope y'all like the video.


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## ChrisX (May 28, 2017)

They probably don't realize they aren't in the wild! Nice job.


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## Chasmodes (Oct 31, 2016)

Thank you Chris!


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## TheUnseenHand (May 14, 2017)

This is an awesome tank. Takes me back to my days as a field biologist with the PA Fish and Boat Commission.


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## Chasmodes (Oct 31, 2016)

TheUnseenHand said:


> This is an awesome tank. Takes me back to my days as a field biologist with the PA Fish and Boat Commission.


Thank you so much! I have no regrets about my career, but, that would have been a fascinating job! PA has a ton of diversity in their streams.


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## Chasmodes (Oct 31, 2016)

Time for an update. I finally added plants to my US native stream tank, thereby making my tank build a legitimate thread for this site...albeit nothing along the nature of some of the incredible tank builds that I see on this site. So, from that standpoint, my tank pales in comparison to the tanks on this site as being "planted". More on the plants below.

As you might suspect with a new tank, I had an algae invasion, or outbreak, or whatever it's called. It wasn't unexpected, especially given the high bioload. About two weeks ago, I also cleaned the algae off of the wall, roots and rocks, in addition to a large water change that I'll mention again below. I also cleaned the canister filter, being careful as to not hurt the biological filtering ability of the system. As you can see, it's back. 

To combat the algae, I'll be performing another large water change this weekend, complete with more physical removal of the algae. I also planted Vallisneria americana to try and out compete the algae for nutrients. I think that will help, assuming the plants take to the tank. The lighting is adequate (Fluval planted light), along with plenty of nutrients with the heavy bioload, which should help the plants grow and thrive. 

I lost a few fish since I stocked the tank, mostly some of the smaller blunt nosed minnows, although one hung in there and is growing. All of the adult fish, except for one black nosed dace, are doing fine. I had to battle ich, and that was the main reason for the fish deaths (4 total fish died). I treated them for three weeks with aquarium salt by raising the SG to 1.003. The ich seems gone and hasn't returned since I stopped treatment by making a 90% water change. The fish still scratch occasionally. I may try a treatment of Prazipro, thinking that they might have flukes that survived the salt treatment, or some sort of other unseen parasite. This leads me to a question...do fish still scratch at times when they are parasite free? Are they really ever parasite free?

Now for some pics followed by another video...

Full tank shot:









Left side, showing the faux roots and current sources (spray bar top left, and circulation pump located behind the roots):









Right side, showing the newly planted Vallisneria americana:









And, finally, a video showing everything and showcasing the fish:


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## minorhero (Mar 28, 2019)

Chasmodes said:


> Time for an update. I finally added plants to my US native stream tank, thereby making my tank build a legitimate thread for this site...albeit nothing along the nature of some of the incredible tank builds that I see on this site. So, from that standpoint, my tank pales in comparison to the tanks on this site as being "planted". More on the plants below.
> 
> As you might suspect with a new tank, I had an algae invasion, or outbreak, or whatever it's called. It wasn't unexpected, especially given the high bioload. About two weeks ago, I also cleaned the algae off of the wall, roots and rocks, in addition to a large water change that I'll mention again below. I also cleaned the canister filter, being careful as to not hurt the biological filtering ability of the system. As you can see, it's back.
> 
> ...


Itching fish is called "flashing". It can be a territorial display but if you see it a lot its probably something thats not good. You should try medications like ich-x and/or api general cure.


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## Chasmodes (Oct 31, 2016)

Thank you minorhero!


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## andieg3 (Sep 4, 2019)

Happy to see another update! Such an inspiration, I'm seriously considering doing something similar with my 55g when my goldfish grow out to pond size. 

Also, I love the site below for all things aquarium. There is so much info provided it's been a true (fish) life saver. I've literally spent HOURS on this site - I knew nothing about aquariums when we inherited a 55g with livestock when we bought our house. 

American Aquarium Products (AAP) | Aquatic & Pond Supplies
Aquarium Ich Disease | Ichthyophthirius Multifilis & Cryptocaryon
Aquarium Medications Part 3 | Parasite & Chemical treatments - this has parasite information

Again, great job!!!


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## Chasmodes (Oct 31, 2016)

Thank you so much andief3! Also, thank you for the links. I will definitely check them out.


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## Chasmodes (Oct 31, 2016)

Well, it's almost a month since my last update. I purchased a few more Vallisneria plants and, for now, have them in the foreground. I will probably move them as they grow. I have a few pics and a video to share. I really love watching this tank, the movement, the fish...I go down to feed them and intend to watch for 15 minutes, and wind up staying an hour or more. 

Full Tank Shot:









Left Side:









Right Side:









My latest video. I hope y'all like it.


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## Crsswift70 (Feb 15, 2020)

This is an amazing thread. Thanks for posting your build!


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## minorhero (Mar 28, 2019)

The tank looks to be doing awesome! 

Question for you about darters, I've heard they eat snails, has that been your experience as well?


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## Chasmodes (Oct 31, 2016)

minorhero said:


> The tank looks to be doing awesome!
> 
> Question for you about darters, I've heard they eat snails, has that been your experience as well?


Thank you so much! I haven't added snails to the tank yet. I collected during the winter, and the snails were all hibernating when the water temps were in the upper 30s. We tried to collect some but didn't have any luck. That said, I've seen videos with rainbow and greenside darters attacking, killing, and eating snails. So, I'm pretty sure mine would do the same. 

My plan was to try and add snails for algae control and have another food source. But, a couple things concern me. One, snails are a gateway to parasite infections. Two, snails could get inside my canister filter and be a pain to clean. I guess it wouldn't be a problem if I wasn't so dang lazy LOL.

Bump:


Crsswift70 said:


> This is an amazing thread. Thanks for posting your build!


Thank you so much Crsswift70!


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## silasvirus82 (Aug 12, 2019)

Very nice DIY project. I love seeing stuff like this.


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## Hujeta (Jan 26, 2020)

Great to follow all the work you put in! Really like how the tank looks now that it's more mature. From watching the videos on my tiny phone screen the algae gives a nice aged feeling, perhaps it's not as great addition in reality?


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## Chasmodes (Oct 31, 2016)

Thank you so much silasvirus82 and Hujeta. 

Hujeta, I'm hoping that the plants overtake the algae. Much of the dark algae died off, and I cleaned off the root structure, but now green algae has taken that space. I also now have a dark hair algae growing on my plants, which looks pretty cool in a way, but I'd rather see just the plants. I don't mind a more natural look with some algae. I just don't want it to dominate the plants.

I created another video update and discussed some problems that I've had recently, and how I dealt with them. Basically, I had a bunch of fish die off. I was able to stop it but not after I lost a bunch of my favorite fish. The video explains everything. It was weird because prior to the die off, all of the fish seemed happy and healthy. It happened so fast, and lasted a week before I finally figured out the solution. I pulled some of the river rocks out of the tank, more for ease of maintenance, but I actually like the look better. The fish that survived are doing great though!


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## fishguy1978 (Mar 20, 2020)

Dude, there is somebody on Monster Fish Keepers that has a tank just like yours. Weird, huh. LOL. I really enjoyed reading about your setup especially the foam rock wall.


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## Chasmodes (Oct 31, 2016)

Plagiarism!!!! LOL thank you fishguy1978!


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## Chasmodes (Oct 31, 2016)

I think that I'm starting to turn the corner in my battle against algae in my tank. Steps that I am taking include:

-decreasing the photoperiod to three hours with only one hour at peak intensity
weekly 25% water changes

-I purchased more plants

-physical removal of algae off the plants

-Keeping all glass surfaces clean.

Overall, the algae coverage is decreasing, although still thick where the brightest light seems to shine. 

Here's a video update from last night:


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## Chasmodes (Oct 31, 2016)

I shot this video of my stream tank with a slightly different angle. I'm really pleased how it looks, especially showing the current and surface agitation, giving the tank a pretty good representation of what a small stream shoreline eddy might be like... I hope y'all like it.


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## Chasmodes (Oct 31, 2016)

I thought that I'd shoot some pics from different angles of the stream tank and share them with you. Sometimes, I like sitting on the floor to view this tank. I seem to get more up and close to the fish. Also, when viewing from the floor, this angle allows you to really see the flow and current in this tank, how similar it is to a shoreline stream eddy.

Left side looking through the roots...not a lot of room to see the other side of the tank. But, it's interesting when fish peek through the roots to see what you're doing.









This one is from the left side looking toward the other end of the tank:









Same angle, but focused on the tank center where the fish like to hang out the most:









Middle, looking back at the left side to the roots:









Looking back from the right front of the tank toward the roots on the left side:









And finally, a view from the right side through the Valisneria to the roots:


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## Chasmodes (Oct 31, 2016)

I increased the photoperiod to mimic actual daylight hours outside (as far as the number of hours), although actual sunrise and sunset are not in sync with my photoperiod. The goal was to improve plant growth and reverse the Valisneria downward trend. That worked, as I started getting a lot of new growth and expansion of the grass bed, but it also created a green filamentous algae bloom.

I wound up just pruning it, pulling it off of the rocks, roots and plants, and finally, it started dying back. And, I'm getting help from a new addition, as you'll see in the new video linked below. I added four new fish, each a different species, and I'm happy with the additions. All of them went through 2 weeks of QT in salt along with a preventive Prazipro treatment for flukes. Hopefully, that got rid of any nasty hitchhikers.


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## Chasmodes (Oct 31, 2016)

And there's nothing more fun than feeding time (US Native Stream Tank):


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## billb (May 29, 2009)

Cool Video - loved the musical score!


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## Chasmodes (Oct 31, 2016)

Thank you Bill!


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## DanG (Apr 25, 2006)

Streetwise said:


> It reminds me a bit of a Red Rocks on Lake Champlain:
> 
> http://www.southburlingtonvt.gov/document_center/RecsParks/RedRocks.ManagementStudy.pdf


 Streetwise, I don't know if you are still on this thread. I just found it and am reading through it all. Amazing! You know I did a painting of Red Rocks that is in the public art piece I dd in the front of Healty Living Martket on Dorset Street in South Burlington. I actually did two versions of the painting (the larger was converted to glass for the public art). You can see this all on my website: dangottsegen.com


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## DanG (Apr 25, 2006)

What an awesome thread and tank! Love it. Just amazing.


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## Streetwise (May 24, 2019)

Awesome! Let me catch up on this thread. I don't often see locals on the forums.

Cheers


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## [email protected] (Jul 19, 2020)

nice thread!


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## Chasmodes (Oct 31, 2016)

Thank you Dan, Streetwise, and Frankie!


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## Chasmodes (Oct 31, 2016)

I went fish collecting a couple weeks ago, and the fish that I collected went into QT for 2 weeks. I treated them with salt for the full period, and during the last 3 days, one dose of Prazipro. All of the minnows, shiners and dace collected survived QT OK and were added to the display tank yesterday. 

I also collected 4 tessellated darters. One jumped out of the tank, one disappeared and I couldn't find it, and one died early on. The last one died the day before he was slated to go into the display tank, and was eating and apparently happy up until then. So, I'm bummed about that. I added 4 satinfin shiners, 3 blacknosed dace, and a bunch of bluntnose minnows to the tank. I also fished a local small stream for smallmouth bass on Sunday, and brought home some plants and snails. I collected wild Valisneria and water stargrass, and added those to my tank. I "cleaned" the plants with a mild hydrogen peroxide/water bath for 20 minutes. The snails just went into the tank,so I hope that I didn't introduce any villainous hitchhikers with them.

I found 2 species of snail, one very common one that looks like a pond snail. It seemed like if you looked at one section of chunk rock, you'd see over a hundred of those snails. The last time that I added snails like those, the darters in my tank hunted down and ate every single snail. This time, they seem to be ignoring the snails altogether. I also added a bunch of ramshorn snails. Maybe the darters will leave those alone because they are a bigger snail. 

I got the snails to help with algae control and maybe as an additional food source for the darters. My stoneroller has done a nice job of keeping the tank pretty tidy, and he's getting big. I know he eats a lot of algae because I see him grazing often, and he poops out algae all the time. And, the plants that I had in there took off and I think that has had a huge influence.

I have a green sunfish in the tank as well, but his days are numbered in my tank. He's growing quickly, and seems to be starting to take interest in the minnows, and not in a kind way. It's almost a feeding response. In the past, since I got him, he merely chased fish away from his staked territory. Now, he has that evil eye toward the smaller minnows, dace and shiners. I will donate him to the local aquarium or give him away.

Anyway, below is my video tank update. Enjoy.


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## novato (Aug 22, 2019)

Beauty of a biotope example.


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## Chasmodes (Oct 31, 2016)

Thank you Navato!


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## Chasmodes (Oct 31, 2016)

Sorry, I haven't been on the forum in a while. A lot has happened with my tank. I posted a few notes about the status of the tank in the video and a list of the fish in my tank now. I will post a few things here as well as the direction of this tank that I'm heading toward.

My plants died back but are not dead. I see new growth on them. Maybe because my water temperature is in the mid 50's? Last week it was as low as 52. Yesterday, it was 55. The tank is in my basement where I don't have heat. I know that in the fall in the river, most of the weeds die off and then come back the following spring. I don't know if this is happening in my tank as well, or if I stink at keeping plants alive, could be the latter. The problem with that is that when pieces of the plants float around the tank, they clog my filter intake.

The biggest thing that you'll note is the lack of the roots. I pulled them out so I could get to the filter intake to clean it out. The fish love the roots. The river chub loved to hide in there, and the other fish swam through them often, and the darters perched on them as well. But, visually, they grew old on me. They take up way too much space in the tank, making maintenance difficult. 

I also wanted to see more of the faux rock wall. So, I pulled them out permanently, at least as they looked before. I sawed them into two pieces, thinking that I'll keep one half on the left side, and one on the right, to provide cover. I also cut out the middle section. I didn't like it anyway, as the short branch looked like ET's hand. I need to trim back some of the roots at the base to get them to fit into the tank better, where I can easily remove them for maintenance and also have them not take up so much room. Then, I have to seal them to keep water out. They were never completely water tight anyway. If the trimming doesn't work or it becomes too cumbersome to fix, I may scrap them and create a couple smaller versions.

Anyway, I hope you enjoy the video. My favorite part is the duels between the feisty male satinfin shiner and the river chub.


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## NotThePainter (Dec 17, 2020)

I've really enjoyed this thread, thank you!


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## Chasmodes (Oct 31, 2016)

Sorry for not being around lately. My plants from last year died off this summer. I've since collected and obtained more replanted them, and now they're growing like gangbusters.

The species on the left side of the tank is water stargrass (Heteranthera dubia) that I collected locally. There's also a little in the center of the tank. To the right side and in the middle is
Valisneria americana. Val grows wild in our rivers but these came from a buddy's tank. I also collected some curly-leaf pondweed (Potamogeton crispus), which is surviving but not taking off like the other two species. The stargrass was almost brown when I collected it, and it's really greened up a lot. Here's a video, and I hope you enjoy it.


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## Chasmodes (Oct 31, 2016)

Another video update of the river tank. I moved some stargrass around and it did a couple things, one positive and one negative. First, it opened up some space in the center of the tank so the fish had more room, positive. Second, I lost that river flow effect on the stargrass, negative. I guess the powerhead that I have isn't quite strong enough to keep that stargrass flowing horizontally. I also discuss some of the history of the tank for those that are first discovering it on YT.


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## Chasmodes (Oct 31, 2016)

My satinfin shiners seem to spawn daily and provide constant action, more prevalent, however, during the low light conditions or morning and evening. This video shows the action along with the darters in wait, lurking for their chance of a a nice fish egg snack. Enjoy!


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## Chasmodes (Oct 31, 2016)

It's been a couple months since my last update. After I went and returned from a vacation, my tank was overrun with cyanobacteria and other algae. My stonerollers were fat and happy though, but, the tank was ugly, so I broke it down for the most part and gave it a major cleaning. The canister filter was clogged and barely putting out any current, so I had to do something. Man, that blackbeard algae is tough to scrub off. It has little holdfasts that are tough. I tried several brushes until I found one that worked to remove it from the rocks, even after I gave the rocks a hydrogen peroxide bath for a couple days. I also soaked my plants in a hydrogen peroxide solution and that seemed to kill off all of the cyano and algae, and was able to rinse almost all of it off. Anyway, I explain more in detail in the video. Also, check out my fancy fish room updates.


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## Chasmodes (Oct 31, 2016)

I have another video update showing more of my fish room and the beginnings of the reality of my new and improved much larger oyster reef tank project. I made a couple minor scaping changes in the tank, for the better, one that I mention in the video. Can you see the other changes? Maybe the "Eye Spy" approach will generate some conversation. I'll reveal the answer in my next video update. I always loved when I was a kid, going to the Doctor's Office and reading the kids magazine, "Highlights", especially the picture find page. I guess this can be a fish tank version of that. I hope you like the video.

Plants update: The water temperatures in my tank are now below 60 degrees as I have no heat in the downstairs of my house. I don't use a heater in the tank. I want a seasonal cycling of the tank. The negative aspect of this is, in my tank, like in our local rivers, there are plant die offs. The dying plant material can clog my filter intake, so, I moved the plants away from that area so I can access that intake easier. My plants are either doing OK or hanging in there. Right now, the Valisneria americana is still doing OK but not spreading. The Heterdantia dubia is starting to die back but hanging in there. My hope is that, when the weather warms, the plants come back like they do in the river. I don't really know how that works. If the stargrass doesn't come back, then, I'll simply collect more.


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## minorhero (Mar 28, 2019)

Chasmodes said:


> I have another video update showing more of my fish room and the beginnings of the reality of my new and improved much larger oyster reef tank project. I made a couple minor scaping changes in the tank, for the better, one that I mention in the video. Can you see the other changes? Maybe the "Eye Spy" approach will generate some conversation. I'll reveal the answer in my next video update. I always loved when I was a kid, going to the Doctor's Office and reading the kids magazine, "Highlights", especially the picture find page. I guess this can be a fish tank version of that. I hope you like the video.
> 
> Plants update: The water temperatures in my tank are now below 60 degrees as I have no heat in the downstairs of my house. I don't use a heater in the tank. I want a seasonal cycling of the tank. The negative aspect of this is, in my tank, like in our local rivers, there are plant die offs. The dying plant material can clog my filter intake, so, I moved the plants away from that area so I can access that intake easier. My plants are either doing OK or hanging in there. Right now, the Valisneria americana is still doing OK but not spreading. The Heterdantia dubia is starting to die back but hanging in there. My hope is that, when the weather warms, the plants come back like they do in the river. I don't really know how that works. If the stargrass doesn't come back, then, I'll simply collect more.


My newt tank is mid 60s year round (in winter its on the lower end of the 60s). I definitely notice slower growth there then my other warmer tanks. Some plants like my lace bulbs are real struggles I have found. You are getting cold enough I wonder if you are going to see breeding behavior out of some of these fish. 

If your oyster reef going to have actual oysters? I assume this will be a brackish tank?


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## Chasmodes (Oct 31, 2016)

minorhero said:


> My newt tank is mid 60s year round (in winter its on the lower end of the 60s). I definitely notice slower growth there then my other warmer tanks. Some plants like my lace bulbs are real struggles I have found. You are getting cold enough I wonder if you are going to see breeding behavior out of some of these fish.
> 
> If your oyster reef going to have actual oysters? I assume this will be a brackish tank?


Thanks Minorhero.

I hope to see some more breeding behavior. I've found fry before, and had satinfin shiners laying eggs this past fall. I think when it start to warm again, like mid 60's, everything will color up and the action will begin 

As far as the oyster reef tank, yes, will be brackish. The reef is built out of oyster shells that I collected from restaurants and in the wild. I matched them up and glued them, then glued them into "cultches" that will make up the reef. I posted videos of a 20g version in my YT channel, but this tank will be much bigger. I can't wait. It will have a live oyster or two and any other inverts that I can get that won't harm fish. Oysters are tough to keep alive. I've been able to keep them alive for about a year feeding them coral foods, but it's still not enough that they need. I've also kept mussels and anemones alive for long periods of time. Grass shrimp also live a long time, but, they tend to eventually either fall prey to the blennies or skilletfish, or jump out of the tank. It's a brackish tank, for sure. I keep my 20g at 1.019 SG, but I've collected fish in as low as 1.009. 

OK, the big reveal of the secret aquascaping change (it's really a minor thing, nothing to get excited about, but, it does give the tank a tiny bit more character, is revealed in this video:


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## Chasmodes (Oct 31, 2016)

Here is the latest tank update. I ramble a bit but there is some good footage and info about our local species. One of my favorite fish died, one that was from when I set the tank up 4 years ago, a greenside darter that was almost 5" long. One thing to note about my plants in the tank is that my water stargrass made it through the winter die off period and is coming back strong. I have wild collected Valisneria in there too that is turning into a jungle. I hope you all enjoy the video.


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