# 90 Gallon Heavily Planted Rainbowfish Tank



## sanj (Jan 11, 2004)

Aww... I was looking forward to seeing a lush tank with the best fish in the hobby swimming in it. 

Heavily planted and rainbowfish...we have similar tastes on that score.


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## EntoCraig (Jun 7, 2010)

What kind of rainbows??? My current fave are Pseudomugil Furcata.


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## acropora1981 (May 30, 2010)

EntoCraig said:


> What kind of rainbows??? My current fave are Pseudomugil Furcata.


I'm currently quarantining 2 red irians, 2 trifasciatias, 6 bosemani's and 12 dwarf neons. More shots to come once I finish everything I have to do today...like groceries.


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## skbensin (Sep 4, 2009)

The suspense is killing me!


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## acropora1981 (May 30, 2010)

ok ok here we go with some more shots.

Prep tank back for black spray paint:









Clean glass with vinegar/water before spray painting:









Spray Painted:










Move tank to desired location, and add many many bags of fluorite:










Aquascape that 'som bitch










Install 4 x 54W T5 fixture into pine canopy:



















Light 'er up










Test functionality of swing up hood:











Thats it for now!!! More next week. I have HC growing emerged in the tank right now, so I'll get some shots of that and then some shots of adding the fish etc...


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## acropora1981 (May 30, 2010)

*FISHES! ...in quaranteen.*

Here are the future residents... being fattened up in an old 72 bowfront someone gave me a few years back. My many years in the aquarium game have NOT taught me how to take good photos!!!


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## Chaos_Being (May 18, 2010)

Nice! I'm looking forwards to keeping some Rainbowfish too...I should have my journal started pretty soon as well.


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## acropora1981 (May 30, 2010)

Tank is being flooded tomorrow and rainbowfish being added.... its going to be a long day getting the canister setup, CO2, ph controller, etc etc... Will post pics when done, though it will likely just be cloudy lol


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## MissMTS (Oct 8, 2008)

Good luck  I can't wait to see how it turns out.


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## acropora1981 (May 30, 2010)

*New pics!!!*

Well, it took longer than I expected...but...here it is! These were taken today, two weeks after flooding the tank.



















So far the only problem I'm having is that the moss I added was already not in good shape, and it just doesn't seem to be getting any better. The HC is really growing nicely, and the stem plants in the back are also taking off. I've managed to get the CO2 right where it needs to be, so the algae is starting to slow down.


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## VincentK (Dec 16, 2009)

All that HC is looking good in there and those are neat rocks.


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## EntoCraig (Jun 7, 2010)

NICE! this is going to be epic when it fills in a bit more!


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## acropora1981 (May 30, 2010)

yeah it needs about... 4 more weeks? I think that sounds about right...


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## EntoCraig (Jun 7, 2010)

Something like that 

Well done


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## rockwood (Jun 19, 2010)

What kind of rainbows do you have in there? I see the boesemani's but what are the two bigger ones to the right and the two in the center with the stripes (all in the first picture).


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## acropora1981 (May 30, 2010)

EntoCraig said:


> Something like that
> 
> Well done


Thankyou! :icon_smil


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## acropora1981 (May 30, 2010)

rockwood said:


> What kind of rainbows do you have in there? I see the boesemani's but what are the two bigger ones to the right and the two in the center with the stripes (all in the first picture).


The larger rainbows are Melanotaenia trifasciata (stripes) ie. trifasciata rainbows. And the larger reddish ones are Glossolepis incisus - Red Irian rainbows.


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## chris.rivera3 (Apr 15, 2008)

what type of wood and substrate is that?


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## acropora1981 (May 30, 2010)

chris.rivera3 said:


> what type of wood and substrate is that?


Wood is from right here

Substrate is Seachem Fluorite.

oh, also for those wondering; the rock is Jasper Granite.


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## acropora1981 (May 30, 2010)

*Update; algae lol*

Oooook,

Well the plants are growing in quite nicely; HC has almost completely covered the bottom in most areas of the tank and limno looks awesome around the rock formation.

Problem: Green beard algae. A LOT of green beard algae lol.

So I've been trying to figure out what is causing it. CO2 is at 30 ppm according to my drop checker, nutrients are in check. I took a really hard look at the tank today. After about 2 hours of really wracking my brain I noticed that a part of the tank was speaking to me. It was the part of the tank that is the hardest to see; the back. The back 2" of aquarium have great plant growth, and almost zero green beard algae. The back also happens to get about half as much light as the rest of the tank, because the light is mounted towards the front of the aquarium.. Checked other shadowed/dimmer areas and they all show same thing, good strong plant growth (HC) and no beard algae. So today I took my lighting from 4 x 54W T5 to 2 x 54W T5. Likely I will at some point fire the other two back up, but I may try to make the reflector less efficient (with strips of electrical tape) so that I can run 4 lights and get better coverage. 

Will update with pics in 2 weeks.


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## lauraleellbp (Feb 3, 2008)

Unless you've added some high light stems since your last pic, I doubt you need 4x54. All the plants I see should do fine under just 108 watts. That's what I run over my own 90gal (though I don't run CO2 on my tank, either...).


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## macclellan (Dec 22, 2006)

Nice tank, but where are the acros?


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## acropora1981 (May 30, 2010)

lauraleellbp said:


> Unless you've added some high light stems since your last pic, I doubt you need 4x54. All the plants I see should do fine under just 108 watts. That's what I run over my own 90gal (though I don't run CO2 on my tank, either...).


I also think it will be just fine; or at least it will solve the algae issue for now.



macclellan said:


> Nice tank, but where are the acros?


lol they're in my 28g jbj nano-cube here

You can see all of my work here

I kept the same name because I've had this user name since like 1999 on various forums; keeps me consistent.


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## acropora1981 (May 30, 2010)

I was just cleaning my apartment, and found this from a few months ago - its a concept sketch for the aquascape and plant layout...I stayed pretty true to it!










vs.


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## Hyzer (Mar 9, 2010)

Looks like a great start. I love rainbows and can't wait until I have a tank large enough for them.

Lets see some pics of the fish.


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## jmhart (Mar 14, 2008)

Looking good.

Now, let's see what's under the hood.


*I meant that as a car reference, but then it occurred to me that it is also a fish reference, which you already showed us....so, how about opening up the cabinet?


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## acropora1981 (May 30, 2010)

jmhart said:


> Looking good.
> 
> Now, let's see what's under the hood.
> 
> ...


I guess I could take a shot of whats in the cabinet; but its pretty straightforward.

There's an auto dosing system for macro nutrients consisting of a day timer, a powerhead, a bucket and a ball valve. Then there is a battery backup airpump, B11 model. There is a 10 lb CO2 canister with regs n solenoid, an eheim pro 3 canister, a standard inline CO2 reactor, pH controller and a hydor inline heater (300W)....nothing really out of the ordinary yes? I'll take a shot of it for you though.

Oh, and I use those little LED touch lights that you can get at the hardware store for 5 bucks to light the inside of the stand for doing stuff in the stand. 

As for fish pics... I'm a terrible fish photographer. I just don't ever get a good shot.


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## vtkid (Jan 5, 2009)

very clean looking setup, and awesome light hood how much did that set you back?


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## acropora1981 (May 30, 2010)

vtkid said:


> very clean looking setup, and awesome light hood how much did that set you back?


The hood (the wood part) was maybe $100-$200; not sure as it was bundled with the stand. The light fixture (bulbless) was $224.95, then about $15 per bulb... Canadian that is.

you can find the light fixture here its a sunlight supply; they make good quality fixtures.

ALSO; added a male Goyder River trifasciata today to go with my two presumably female trifasciata's. They had a whole tank of gorgeous Goyder river rainbows at LFS today marked as Yellow Axelrodi rainbows(wrong). Pointed it out to the manager and he was like 'I thought thats what they were! The supplier insisted they were axelrodi's.' We had a good 'you're a %$#ing nerd' kind of laugh about it.


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## VadimShevchuk (Sep 19, 2009)

acropora1981 said:


> The hood (the wood part) was maybe $100-$200; not sure as it was bundled with the stand. The light fixture (bulbless) was $224.95, then about $15 per bulb... Canadian that is.
> 
> you can find the light fixture here its a sunlight supply; they make good quality fixtures.
> 
> ALSO; added a male Goyder River trifasciata today to go with my two presumably female trifasciata's. They had a whole tank of gorgeous Goyder river rainbows at LFS today marked as Yellow Axelrodi rainbows(wrong). Pointed it out to the manager and he was like 'I thought thats what they were! The supplier insisted they were axelrodi's.' We had a good 'you're a %$#ing nerd' kind of laugh about it.


Your lfs owner sounds awsome!:hihi: My only lfs keeps rainbows in a showcase tank with cichlids lol.


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## acropora1981 (May 30, 2010)

VadimShevchuk said:


> Your lfs owner sounds awsome!:hihi: My only lfs keeps rainbows in a showcase tank with cichlids lol.


A surprisingly large number of people actually do that successfully; it works quite well with less agressive africans like lamps, julie's and shell dwellers....but it is a bit unrealistic lol...then again, I have synodontis cats and dwarf bushynose plecos in my rainbowfish tank, and that isn't exactly realistic either lol


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## VadimShevchuk (Sep 19, 2009)

acropora1981 said:


> A surprisingly large number of people actually do that successfully; it works quite well with less agressive africans like lamps, julie's and shell dwellers....but it is a bit unrealistic lol...then again, I have synodontis cats and dwarf bushynose plecos in my rainbowfish tank, and that isn't exactly realistic either lol


My lfs keeps them with midas cichlids and some africans as well. Trust me, i wish i didnt live in the middle of no where.


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## acropora1981 (May 30, 2010)

bah i keep forgetting to take a pic! This tank looks bomb now!


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## Chaos_Being (May 18, 2010)

Yeah, lets see a new pic!


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## acropora1981 (May 30, 2010)

ok!



















So, the tank was just water changed and scrubbed here, so its slightly foggy. It is at the tail end of a pretty ugly algae bloom (it took me a few weeks to get it right), but its going away more and more every week. Anyway, I think it looks good, but these are definately not flattering pics!


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## MissMTS (Oct 8, 2008)

Wow, this tank looks so different from the last time I looked at this thread. I really like the way it has all grown in. Nice job


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## acropora1981 (May 30, 2010)

thanks


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## VadimShevchuk (Sep 19, 2009)

I really like the look of black silicone on tanks. Everything looks good.


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## acropora1981 (May 30, 2010)

here is a fun comparison:


















Something like 8 weeks in between


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## odie (Dec 29, 2009)

Looks good!!
Do you have a list of plants?


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## acropora1981 (May 30, 2010)

odie said:


> Looks good!!
> Do you have a list of plants?


Thanks!

List...

L. aromatica is back left, carpet is H. cuba (dwarf baby tears), spiky foreground plants are B. japonica and the leafy plant back right is M. pteropus (java fern).


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## VadimShevchuk (Sep 19, 2009)

wow, the comparison speaks for it s self. Looks awesome! Are you gonna add any more plants?


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## acropora1981 (May 30, 2010)

VadimShevchuk said:


> wow, the comparison speaks for it s self. Looks awesome! Are you gonna add any more plants?


Not for right now but I may replace L. aromatica with something that grows slower and is leafier and less spikey.


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## ridewake210 (Jan 12, 2007)

How many bags of Fluorite did you end up using?


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## acropora1981 (May 30, 2010)

I think about 7? Possibly 8. 7-8.


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## acropora1981 (May 30, 2010)

Update:

Ok, so I don't have new pics, but here's whats been happening:

The plant mass got to such a point as to use up all available CO2, causing the plants to grow a bit deformed, and some of the HC to die off/peel away. I've cranked up the CO2 so that the plants are able to photosynthesize again, and things are returning to normal, I'll post updated pics in 2 weeks when it looks good again.

Also, I've added 5 more rainbows, Melanotaenia australis, too the mix, in order to compensate for the loss of 6 of the dwarfs - they seemed to not do very well in with the bigger fish, particularily the females? 

Anyway, a few minor setbacks, easily fixed


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## acropora1981 (May 30, 2010)

Another update (this is such a learning process!). Tank is running low on micro, compounding the problem above. I belelive part of the problem is the limno's fast growth sucking up all the micronutrients. HC is still not fairing well, but I beleive that it should bounce back because I've dramatically increased the micro dosage, and things are looking better again.

Can someone recommend some slower growing background/tall plants for this tank? The Limno grows like a weed...maybe like 6-8 inches per week! I need something that grows more like 2 inches per week.


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## ThatPlantedAquariumGuy (Mar 2, 2010)

After seeing your post on my thread, I figured I'd stumble on over to see some of your tanks. This tank, is just beautiful. I love, love, love the hardscape. Keep up the great work


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## acropora1981 (May 30, 2010)

new FTS.... keep in mind; this tank is almost completely automated, and only gets about 2 hrs of work every month....


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## Cuchulainn (Nov 2, 2010)

Sweet tank!Great mix of Rainbows. They mostly all males?


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## jcgd (Feb 18, 2004)

Careful with the Boesemanis. They are aggressive little buggers. You can make it work but sometimes they can cause a lot of problems.

Nice tank though. Lovin' the foreground. I'm in the process of stocking my 90 with rainbows. So far I have three pairs of Chilatherina fasciata "Faowi Village" and three pairs of Melanotaenia Praecox " Pagai" F1'. The Praecox are from Gary Lange and the Faowis are from a local breeder who got his stock from Gary. 

I've just recently developed a love for rainbows. They are simply stunning.


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## acropora1981 (May 30, 2010)

Cuchulainn said:


> Sweet tank!Great mix of Rainbows. They mostly all males?



Thanks!

I'm not entirely sure about sexes... The Bosemani's certainly seem to be mostly males(maybe all), as they are very VERY yellow/orange...more so every month. I beleive that the Glossolepis (red irians) are 1M 1F, but not too sure. The Trifasciatas seem to be 2F 1M. Not sure on the Australis (splendida), but I tend to think they are all male due to the great coloration emerging on them. There were some dwarf neons, but that population has been reduced to 2 males and 1 female dwarf neon.


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## acropora1981 (May 30, 2010)

justincgdick said:


> Careful with the Boesemanis. They are aggressive little buggers. You can make it work but sometimes they can cause a lot of problems.
> 
> Nice tank though. Lovin' the foreground. I'm in the process of stocking my 90 with rainbows. So far I have three pairs of Chilatherina fasciata "Faowi Village" and three pairs of Melanotaenia Praecox " Pagai" F1'. The Praecox are from Gary Lange and the Faowis are from a local breeder who got his stock from Gary.
> 
> I've just recently developed a love for rainbows. They are simply stunning.


I've not noticed much aggression from them in the 8 months or so they've been in the tank. It is possible however that they are responsible for the dismal survival rate of the dwarf neons. There are no ripped fins or other injuries to the other species/among the bosemani's...

Good luck on your rainbow tank - rainbows are awesome. If I didn't love my F1 Rio Otapa Swordtails in my 72 bow as much, I'd have rainbows there too... melanotaenia maccullochi is my current fav


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## acropora1981 (May 30, 2010)

just realized that all the other pics from this thread have vanished... damn you 4shared... I'll see if I can fix that when I get home...


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## Chaos_Being (May 18, 2010)

Wow, that last pic of your tank is seriously lush...good job roud:

As far as Bosemani agression, I think that is what did in three of mine (I started with 6.) I have one dominant male that kept singling one out and pestering it into a corner...which would result in its death a few days later. It doesn't help that I had ended up with only one female out of that bunch. The three I have left, while technically are in too small of a group to be happy, all have been doing well for months. Sure, there is plenty of chasing, but no damage is done.


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