# Mr. Aqua 11.4G Riparium - Take 2



## PaulG (Oct 10, 2010)

Yes! Always love your tanks, this should be great :smile:


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## hydrophyte (Mar 1, 2009)

PaulG said:


> Yes! Always love your tanks, this should be great :smile:


Thanks so much Paul. What kinds of aquarium projects do you have going right now?

I need to ponder plant choice for this little setup some more. I might opt for the baby panda bamboo again, or I might opt for this other interesting grass, _Pleioblastus fortunei_.










Baby panda bamboo (_P. crinitum_) is a grass, but it is not a true bamboo. _P. fortunei_ is a true bamboo, and a grass as well of course.


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## hydrophyte (Mar 1, 2009)

Here's the foliage on the baby panda bamboo. I actually have both the all-green species _P. crinitum_ and the white-variegated "variegatum".


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## hydrophyte (Mar 1, 2009)

Here's an old picture of that planting from a couple of years ago. The riparium foliage is dominated by _Pilea grandifolia_, the _Pogonatherum crinitum_ and a single _Laguncularia racemosa_ white mangrove tree.


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## hydrophyte (Mar 1, 2009)

The wall is now officially purple. 

I can start setting this thing up today.


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## hydrophyte (Mar 1, 2009)

Here's the tank in place...










This plant, _Lysimachia congestiflora_ 'Outback Sunset', is one that I only tested out recently as a riparium plant. I like it a lot and I intend to use it in here.


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## sayurasem (Jun 17, 2011)

Nice!


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## hydrophyte (Mar 1, 2009)

Here it is with water. I am filling this tank to only about 2 1/2" from the top. This improves the proportions for the whole riparium layout--making the water portion a bit more broad and shallow--and it also might help to keep fish inside this rimless tank.


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## hydrophyte (Mar 1, 2009)

Here it is with the new planting. I am trying to get as much color as I can from this layout. The plants look a bit disheveled, but they will perk up with a week or two to start growing in.


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## hydrophyte (Mar 1, 2009)

Here's this planting again with plants ID'd.

Again, the planting looks pretty crummy right now, but it will perk up as the plants start to grow in. 











A._ Ruellia brittoniana_ 'Katie'
B. _Musa acuminata_ 'Super Dwarf Cavendish'
C. _Oplismenus hirtellus_ 'Variegatus'
D. _Pilea_ 'Moon Valley
E. _Lysimachia congestiflora_ 'Outback Sunset'
F. _Pilea grandifolia_
G. _Pleioblastus fortunei_ "Dwarf Whitestripe"
H. _Alternanthera dentata_ 'Little Ruby'
I. _Marsilea quadrifolia_


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## sumer (Feb 6, 2010)

A gorgeous riparium in making.
Sub'd. Eager to see what you do about the underwater flora and fauna.

Something off topic- I always want to keep PDFs. But could never understand how to make an enclosure for them. Can you give me the link to some thread or article where I can get to know that.


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## hydrophyte (Mar 1, 2009)

sumer said:


> A gorgeous riparium in making.
> Sub'd. Eager to see what you do about the underwater flora and fauna.
> 
> Something off topic- I always want to keep PDFs. But could never understand how to make an enclosure for them. Can you give me the link to some thread or article where I can get to know that.


Thanks! For the underwater planting I intend to use two or three easy low tech crypts. I am pondering a small group of fancy platies with colors to mirror the riparium plants.

For information and advice about dart frogs I recommend joining dendroboard.com.


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## hydrophyte (Mar 1, 2009)

I added substrate, a dark grey gravel, last night. 

I'm going shopping this afternoon and I might purchase some fish.


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## hydrophyte (Mar 1, 2009)

Today I found the perfect fish for this setup!...

Gold White Cloud Mountain Minnow

Green Lantern Platy

I think that I will add maybe a half-dozen of the gold white cloud mountain minnows with maybe three of the green lantern platies. I did not purchase the fish yet because I plan to return tomorrow after researching some of the other species that they had in the store. 

I think these fish will look good with the riparium plants that I have in there.


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## sumer (Feb 6, 2010)

Mountail minnows willl surely look awesome. but mixing MM woth green lantern platy !!
Maybe in practical they'll look good. Waiting for some pictures


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## hydrophyte (Mar 1, 2009)

I hope to go get the fish tomorrow and I'll post pictures as soon as I can.

The gold white cloud mountain minnows have almost the same color as that _Lysimachia_ plant.


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## bubbless (Nov 19, 2006)

Looking very nice so far. =)


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## hydrophyte (Mar 1, 2009)

bubbless said:


> Looking very nice so far. =)


Thanks. I'll try to post more pictures today. Last night I added hardscape and it turned out pretty good.


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## hydrophyte (Mar 1, 2009)

I got the fish today!


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## jpalimpsest (Dec 7, 2012)

Looking forward to photos


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## hydrophyte (Mar 1, 2009)

Here's the tank with the new fish. You can see that the gold white cloud mountain minnows look really nice with the other colors.


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## UDGags (Sep 13, 2009)

I absolutely love the purple background with the green contrast of the plants. Awesome job!


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## hydrophyte (Mar 1, 2009)

UDGags said:


> I absolutely love the purple background with the green contrast of the plants. Awesome job!


Thanks. Yep I think the purple background was a good choice for this planting.


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## crazydaz (Mar 18, 2007)

Yeah Devin, you've outdone yourself. This is incredibly colorful, and should look even better over time. The fish are a wonderful addition!

One question.....what stone did you use?


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## hydrophyte (Mar 1, 2009)

crazydaz said:


> Yeah Devin, you've outdone yourself. This is incredibly colorful, and should look even better over time. The fish are a wonderful addition!
> 
> One question.....what some did you use?


Thanks very much. Yes I hope that it will shape up as the plants grow in some more.

That stone is old highly-weathered bricks that I found in the river. It would otherwise be very colorful and gawdy to use in a layout, but I think that it works well with this combination of fish and plants.

Here is another angle shot...










And here's a better view of the riparium foliage...


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## sumer (Feb 6, 2010)

Wonderful  Minnows are looking awesome. 
Can you name this dimpled leaf plant !


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## hydrophyte (Mar 1, 2009)

sumer said:


> Wonderful  Minnows are looking awesome.
> Can you name this dimpled leaf plant !


That plant is _Pilea grandifolia._


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## hydrophyte (Mar 1, 2009)

The riparium plants are starting to perk up some more and grow.










I added a few _Cryptocoryne wendtii_ 'Green' to the udnerwater area.


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## steven p (Jun 22, 2012)

it looks awesome, the bright plants and deep backgrounds make the tank look as if it kinda goes on indefinitely.. like, when you look into the side panel of a large tank and get that other perspective kinda thing going on..


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## hydrophyte (Mar 1, 2009)

steven p said:


> it looks awesome, the bright plants and deep backgrounds make the tank look as if it kinda goes on indefinitely.. like, when you look into the side panel of a large tank and get that other perspective kinda thing going on..


Thanks! I think that the color combination is working out pretty well. Now I just need to grow those riparium plants up taller.


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## izabella87 (Apr 21, 2012)

Such a nice tank !


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## hydrophyte (Mar 1, 2009)

izabella87 said:


> Such a nice tank !


Thank you!


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## hydrophyte (Mar 1, 2009)

I think that I figured out a pretty good lighting solution for this setup. It is difficult to find a fixture to light up the 18" width of this tank.

This is a pair of trouble lamp reflectors that I put together with a dual-socket ceiling fixture. It attached real secure to the metal shelf bracket with the threaded knob at the top of the socket assembly.

I will install two 16w 6500K daylight CFL bulbs and this should provide a real nice light for growing these plants. I also intend to cut the hooks at the top of each reflector off because they will just catch on my shirt sleeve. I just need to go to the hardware store to get a couple more items and then I can put this together and hang it up.


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## Chyrol (Jan 18, 2012)

Nice job on the lights! Goes to show that a little creativity/diy can go a long ways.


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## Ruchit (Dec 27, 2012)

I am loving the color of the tank. It surely will brighten up the mood upon seeing it.


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## hydrophyte (Mar 1, 2009)

Chyrol said:


> Nice job on the lights! Goes to show that a little creativity/diy can go a long ways.





Ruchit said:


> I am loving the color of the tank. It surely will brighten up the mood upon seeing it.


Hey thanks! I hope to have pictures of the light installed later tonight.


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## flc (Sep 10, 2012)

How do you hang the plants on the back of the tank, and what kind of pots and soil are you using? I have a similar Mr. Aqua tank set up and was wondering if the thin glass would hold up to the lateral stress from the weight of the pots.


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## hydrophyte (Mar 1, 2009)

flc said:


> How do you hang the plants on the back of the tank, and what kind of pots and soil are you using? I have a similar Mr. Aqua tank set up and was wondering if the thin glass would hold up to the lateral stress from the weight of the pots.


The gravel substrate, planters trellis rafts and some of the plants are all Riparium Supply brand.

There is no danger of the planterd exerting pressure on the glass. They don't weigh much and they weigh even less underwater.

The Mr. Aqua 11.4G is a real nice size and shape for this kind of setup. I like it with the water level lowered to a few inches below the top rim. This improves the proportions and it will also help to prevent fish from jumping out.


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## laqu (Oct 17, 2012)

love it!

purple wall is great!

your hired! i pay in complements!


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## hydrophyte (Mar 1, 2009)

laqu said:


> love it!
> 
> purple wall is great!
> 
> your hired! i pay in complements!


Hey thanks!

Here it is with the new light fixture. The riparium planting will look good if those bamboo plants can reach up another 5" or so.


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## hydrophyte (Mar 1, 2009)

Here are a couple more views.


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## fusiongt (Nov 7, 2011)

Love it! Would like to see more inside of the tank to see how it's done (though the artsy dark photos are great as well). I do thin that gigantic heater could go because there's many smaller ones now like this little guy http://www.adana-usa.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=72_91&products_id=687


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## hydrophyte (Mar 1, 2009)

fusiongt said:


> Love it! Would like to see more inside of the tank to see how it's done (though the artsy dark photos are great as well). I do thin that gigantic heater could go because there's many smaller ones now like this little guy http://www.adana-usa.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=72_91&products_id=687


Thanks. These were just some quick snapshots. I will plan to do more careful photography later on as this stuff grows in.

Ripariums are easy to put together. There isn't much to it.

This Jager 50W heater is fine for me. I don't mind it at all.

Cheers!


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## hydrophyte (Mar 1, 2009)

Here's one last shot from the other night.










I hope that the _Pleioblastus_ bamboo will start growing up taller. I mgiht have to think about replacing it with something else if it doesn't. The fish are still looking happy enough. One of the platies is dropping fry.


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## crazydaz (Mar 18, 2007)

> Ripariums are easy to put together. There isn't much to it.


^+1. Oh, not to mention, pretty cheap and nearly maintenance-free. Small price to pay to gain the additional "Wow" and "Pop" to a tank.


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## hydrophyte (Mar 1, 2009)

The _Pleioblastus_ bamboo are growing pretty well, but there aren't getting any taller. I think that I need to consider replacing them with something that will grow a bit taller. It would be great to have a grassy plant about 10" tall in a couple of planters.


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## crazydaz (Mar 18, 2007)

Hmmm.....strawberries and cream, maybe?? That would look superb in there, Devin!


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## hydrophyte (Mar 1, 2009)

crazydaz said:


> Hmmm.....strawberries and cream, maybe?? That would look superb in there, Devin!


Yeah 'Strawberries & Cream' was one idea that I had in mind.


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## bitFUUL (May 14, 2010)

The bamboo is looking great! Nice setup hydro.


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## hydrophyte (Mar 1, 2009)

bitFUUL said:


> The bamboo is looking great! Nice setup hydro.


Hey thanks!

Yeah that bamboo is a neat little plant, but it sure is slow. I have a couple of collector bamboos as potted houseplants and one would think that they would be easy to grow and real fast like any other grass, but they are more complicated than that. Bamboos seem to have to build up a lot of energy in their root systems before they can spread and grow very much.

Here's the foliage of that nice full potted plant that I bought.


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## hydrophyte (Mar 1, 2009)

Since the _Pleioblastus_ bamboo isn't getting any taller I decided to try out some other plants as grassy background. Here I added a couple of planters with _Cyperus_ umbrella sedge. The tops of the _Cyperus_ are obscured by the lighting here, but you can get the general idea. The layout might look pretty good with this plant if I can get it to grow in more full and if I raise the lights up another 8" or so.


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## ophiophagus (Mar 5, 2012)

Looking great I really like this rip


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## hydrophyte (Mar 1, 2009)

ophiophagus said:


> Looking great I really like this rip


Thanks. I just need to shuffle the plants around a bit more and then I will have this setup looking good.


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## hydrophyte (Mar 1, 2009)

I have a little review on the way for some of the new plants that I am testing out in this setup. Here's the link to that thread...

http://www.plantedtank.net/forums/showthread.php?t=209154&highlight=


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## hydrophyte (Mar 1, 2009)

I switched up the planting a good deal! Here's a quick picture from last night...


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## hydrophyte (Mar 1, 2009)

This is just a quick snapshot to show the whole deal with the new plant arrangement.

The green lanterns have been having babies. Now I cound four new little fry in there.


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## hydrophyte (Mar 1, 2009)

I got a quick picture tonight. I shuffled the plants ar


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## crazydaz (Mar 18, 2007)

Nice and jungle-ly, Devin!  Wish I could see more of that Sunset....ever consider making planters that have a velcro tab on the back so you could connect to planters front to back? You could have a nice tall background plant in the back, and a smaller growing foreground plant, like the Sunset, that could grow in front of the taller species. I know that the trellis raft was constructed for this reason, but as you've pointed out to me, some of these guys will not grow suspended in the trellis raft...some need to be planted in the planter.

It would be nice to have that Sunset in the front adding a little color off to the "right of center" area.


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## hydrophyte (Mar 1, 2009)

crazydaz said:


> Nice and jungle-ly, Devin!  Wish I could see more of that Sunset....ever consider making planters that have a velcro tab on the back so you could connect to planters front to back? You could have a nice tall background plant in the back, and a smaller growing foreground plant, like the Sunset, that could grow in front of the taller species. I know that the trellis raft was constructed for this reason, but as you've pointed out to me, some of these guys will not grow suspended in the trellis raft...some need to be planted in the planter.
> 
> It would be nice to have that Sunset in the front adding a little color off to the "right of center" area.


I think that that would be too much weight for the suction cups to hold. It would also be a lot of plastic junk very conspicuous and hard to cover with foliage. The planter + trellis raft combination really does work very well. It really does. 

I got some quick video last night. It is exceptionally grainy. I was going to edit a longer version with music, but the quality is very low...


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## hydrophyte (Mar 1, 2009)

I got a few new quick pictures. I'm still looking for the best way to get a good FTS.



















I love these white clouds.


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## hydrophyte (Mar 1, 2009)

New and better video tonight!


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## rocksmom (Mar 6, 2012)

*Waiting for video* 

I'm actually really excited about this thread, it looks great. I'm planning on setting up something similar soon, but I have decided on the 11g or 17g. I'll be sending you a pm for one of your riparium sets once I get the tank.


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## hydrophyte (Mar 1, 2009)

rocksmom said:


> *Waiting for video*
> 
> I'm actually really excited about this thread, it looks great. I'm planning on setting up something similar soon, but I have decided on the 11g or 17g. I'll be sending you a pm for one of your riparium sets once I get the tank.


Sorry, I spent a whole hour shooting video, but then when I opened it up on my computer I found that it was very poor quality. I need to experiment some more with the video camera settings. I will try again this weekend when I have more time.

Are you looking at Mr. Aqua tanks? The 11.4 and the 17.4 are both real nice sizes/shapes for riparium setups.


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## hydrophyte (Mar 1, 2009)

Here's another quick photo update.


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## crazydaz (Mar 18, 2007)

Beautiful, Devin! Nearly perfect!


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## hydrophyte (Mar 1, 2009)

Thanks Don I'm trying to get this setup into better shape for some more serious picture-taking.


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## rocksmom (Mar 6, 2012)

hydrophyte said:


> Sorry, I spent a whole hour shooting video, but then when I opened it up on my computer I found that it was very poor quality. I need to experiment some more with the video camera settings. I will try again this weekend when I have more time.
> 
> Are you looking at Mr. Aqua tanks? The 11.4 and the 17.4 are both real nice sizes/shapes for riparium setups.


I'll be looking forward to it!

And yes, I meant the Mr Aqua tanks. I keep going back and forth between the two sizes. It will probably come down to whichever one the store has in stock when I go to get it.


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## hydrophyte (Mar 1, 2009)

I like the 11.4. I lowered the water level a bit to improve the visual proportions and also to help keep fish inside. It is a bit more difficult to illuminate a tank of this size because there aren't many fixtures with that 18" width. I think that a pair of PAR30 LEDs would be good for the the 11.4.


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## Green_Flash (Apr 15, 2012)

Those white clouds are stunning!


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## hydrophyte (Mar 1, 2009)

The gold white clouds look really good with the bricks that I have in there.


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## hydrophyte (Mar 1, 2009)

Here's another quick tank photo...


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## hydrophyte (Mar 1, 2009)

I'm replanting this one too. I screwed up buy not getting better pictures of it while it was grown-in nice. Now it is overgrown and it needs to be redone. I think I will use a combination of plants similar to what I had in there previously.


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## hydrophyte (Mar 1, 2009)

This thread hasn't been updated in a long time.

I got the tank replanted with baby panda bamboo and _Pilea grandifolia_. Here's a shot of the riparium plants. The full-tank shot will look better when these plants have grown up a bit taller.


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## lamiskool (Jul 1, 2011)

love this tank! Really like how that red plant pops!


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