# +[ 55G Journal ]+ *DEC 03 2007 UPDATE* °56K!°



## toshi (May 4, 2006)

My original post is below. For those who just want to view my progress through photos, check the end of this post.

*ORIGINAL POST*
I had a try at my first planted tank about a year ago with DIY CO2. It turned out decent, but I let it get a bit overgrown and algae started to set in. Recently I tore it down and was deciding whether to try my first SW reef, bare-bottom Aro (have had a couple in the past), or have another go at a planted. In the end I decided I'd give the planted setup another go because of it's visual appeal (the SW reef is equally beautiful but costs a lot more).

Anyhow, here is how my first planted setup looked like :











I tore down the tank above and am starting anew. Began about a week ago but am still in the process of acquiring all the equipment and plants. Ordered a CO2 tank online and a regulator from Rex Grigg, both of which should hopefully get here next week. I have a basic idea of how I want the scape to look, but for now it looks a bit incomplete. For now, I added a couple plants in there since I had two SAE's from before (and two neons I had in my 2.5G mini planted, which I'm still working on as well.) and wanted to give them some plants to 'clean'.

Once I get the CO2 tank and regulator, I'll be going to my LFS to grab a diffuser, some fertilizer (still have KNO3, etc. left over from before), and as many plants as I can currently afford. For now, I'll just be adding the plants and see how well they grow before adding more fish. Here are some sneak peeks of the current incomplete setup.










*PHOTO SUMMARY (APR 2007-DEC 2007)*










*After HM trim :*










*Miscellaneous Aquarium Photos (DEC 03 2007)*


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## eklikewhoa (Aug 29, 2006)

Looking good!

Do you plan on adding plants to the second one?


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## toshi (May 4, 2006)

eklikewhoa said:


> Looking good!
> 
> Do you plan on adding plants to the second one?


Thanks! The tank in both photos are the same tank. I tore it down and started anew. I think I should have reworded it, sorry. Or did you mean something else?


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## eklikewhoa (Aug 29, 2006)

just asking if there was plans for other plants in for the second scape.


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## toshi (May 4, 2006)

eklikewhoa said:


> just asking if there was plans for other plants in for the second scape.


I have a general idea of the plants. Thinking of having a Blyxa Japonica lawn from the middle to left (sectioned blocked off by driftwood) with some crypts here and there as a semi border behind the Blyxa. A bush of stem plants towards the back. To the right, thinking of some hairgrass, riccia, moss balls, separated by a sand trail and some more random crypts and stem plants. :smile:


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## toshi (May 4, 2006)

*UPDATE* April 18 2007

Finished adding some sand for a little river effect. Also, the hairgrass I added started yellowing (probably adjusting from emmersed to submersed form) so I thinned it out and replanted/respositioned it slightly.



















I should be getting my CO2 tank in the next day or so, then the regulator next week. Waiting is a pain ...


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## ianmoede (Oct 1, 2004)

55 gallons are a dog to scape. But i think you've done well in going with a minimalist. I pretty much wanted to kick my own ass trying to create depth in mine. Your riverbed does the trick though, well done.


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## Lee (Feb 13, 2007)

Fantastic job! It looks sweet just how it is. It reminds me of a lake or ocean bottom how the gravel sweeps in. The driftwood and plants are placed elegantly. I don’t like the white sand though.


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## toshi (May 4, 2006)

*ianmoede*, thanks for the compliments. Still a long way to go, but hopefully it turns out nice.

*Lee*, thanks for the comments. The sand does stick out right now, probably due to the lack of surrounding plants. Once I get more plants in and they grow in, hopefully it won't stand out too much.


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## toshi (May 4, 2006)

*UPDATE* April 19 2007

Got my aluminum 10# CO2 cylinder today. Still have to wait for my regulator though which I'll hopefully get next week from Rex.










One of the main flaws in my setup is that for filtration, I am using a wet/dry. I've researched the wet/dry in a planted tank and the general consensus seems to be that it'll outgas the CO2 too much, requiring the CO2 input to be pumped up. During the course of my researching, I came across some information from Tom Barr who stated that the actual trickle area in the wet/dry is not the main source of CO2 outgassing, but rather the overflow. Decreasing the fall of water from the overflow will substantially decrease CO2 outgassing. And as for the trickle section, sealing the top area off (w/ tape, etc.) would create a large reactor where CO2 would degas, then be reabsorbed.

Sealing the trickle section would be easy, but I place a sponge filter inside and removing/reapplying the tape would become a hassle. So I've come up with a simple (and hopefully effective) design for the overflow which would decrease the distance of water falling and which would incorporate a sponge filter to trap larger debris.

Here is how the original overflow on my tank looks :










And here is the design I've come up with :










It might be a bit difficult to see the concept since I'm horrible at making graphics. I will be sticking a long piece of PVC pipe into the outlet of the overflow tank which will block off any water going directly into the wet/dry. This will cause the water to rise up until it reaches holes in the PVC which I will be drilling. This will significantly minimize the distance which the water overflows.

So what's with the cylindrical cap (which by the way won't be red)? Well, after thinking about it, I figure that some of the CO2 outgas from the trickle section may find it's way up to the PVC and out into the atmosphere. Thus, the cylindrical cap. This will be siliconed to the top of the PVC pipe and will extend down below the water line. This way, any CO2 which may reach this point will have nowhere to go, trapped inside the cylinder by the waterline. At this point, I can easily add a sponge filter at the top for quick filtering of any large debris.

Sure I could go out and purchase a canister but I'm broke now after buying my CO2 setup and I still have to purchase a diffuser and more plants. DIY is fun anyways 

If you see any flaws or have any advice/suggestions/comments, let me know. Thanks.

Toshi


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## eklikewhoa (Aug 29, 2006)

The standman pipe idea is good, keeps the waterfall to a minimum along with the gurgling noises.


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## esarkipato (Jul 19, 2005)

If you have a trickle, the gas exchange rate will be very high and the co2 will be wasted. Other than that I really like your tank, so dark and mysterious! I would bet the white sand will also get a little darker over time. What kind of sand did you use?


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## toshi (May 4, 2006)

esarkipato said:


> If you have a trickle, the gas exchange rate will be very high and the co2 will be wasted. Other than that I really like your tank, so dark and mysterious! I would bet the white sand will also get a little darker over time. What kind of sand did you use?


Thanks for the comment esarkipato. I used regular sand from a LFS which I purchased a while back.

My filtration _will_ have a trickle. And as I mentioned in my post :



> I came across some information from Tom Barr who stated that the actual trickle area in the wet/dry is not the main source of CO2 outgassing, but rather the overflow. Decreasing the fall of water from the overflow will substantially decrease CO2 outgassing. And as for the trickle section, sealing the top area off (w/ tape, etc.) would create a large reactor where CO2 would degas, then be reabsorbed.


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## toshi (May 4, 2006)

*UPDATE* April 21 2007

Couple of updates to the tank. I actually went to go buy some plants for my 2.5g nano; some Hemianthus callitrichoides and an unidentified stem plant. I only used a small portion of the HC on the 2.5g and had a lot leftover, so I decided to plant it on my 55g. Also had like two stem plants left over so I planted those just for the hell of it as well.




























Also picked up a CO2 diffuser, some Seachem fertilizer, and some PVC parts to create my redesigned overflow which I'll take photos of later as I start to modify it. Now all I'm waiting for is the regulator and I'll finish adding the plants, modify my overflow, and everything will be set ... for now


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## esarkipato (Jul 19, 2005)

Ah, right. Should have read more closely!

Looks great, the HC is gonna take over your river bed :hihi:


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## toshi (May 4, 2006)

esarkipato said:


> Ah, right. Should have read more closely!
> 
> Looks great, the HC is gonna take over your river bed :hihi:


I don't blame you, it was a lot to read :smile:

The HC probably will take over; I already see some growth. Hopefully I can keep trimming it. If not, I might just let it grow freely for a natural look :smile:


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## toshi (May 4, 2006)

*UPDATE* April 21 2007

As suggested by others, I narrowed the sand area down a bit. It did feel a bit cramped on the right side; this kind of opens it up a bit more for plants.










Better? Worse?

The HC is already starting to grow, as well as one of the stem plants, which is peeking above the driftwood now. Couple more days until I finally get the CO2 running!


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## Betowess (Dec 9, 2004)

Really like the minimalist look. Is that Eco or AS? 
Going to be great when it fills in!


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## danepatrick (Jul 17, 2006)

defenately AS.


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## toshi (May 4, 2006)

danepatrick said:


> defenately AS.


Yep, top layer is AS. Bottom is black gravel + laterite from my old setup.


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## dufus (Nov 13, 2006)

Nice!
You know, AGA makes an accesory kit for their overflows that comes with a pipe setup just like that.
Good luck with the trickle/co2 problem.


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## toshi (May 4, 2006)

Thanks *dufus*. The parts only cost me $5 so I'll take a chance with my DIY - should work the same and just as well since I intend to add some filter at the top of it.


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## jebarj90 (Mar 11, 2007)

Not to hijack but how many bags of AS do you think i need in this type of 55 to have about as much as he does. The whole way through not with gravel on the bottom. Think 4 bags will do alright???


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## toshi (May 4, 2006)

jebarj90 said:


> Not to hijack but how many bags of AS do you think i need in this type of 55 to have about as much as he does. The whole way through not with gravel on the bottom. Think 4 bags will do alright???


Four bags sounds about right, maybe five depending on if you're doing a lot of sloping. That's why I kept my gravel+laterite mix in there cause it would cost a lot of money. To obtain my 1+" top layer I used only 1 bag with some left over.


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## toshi (May 4, 2006)

*UPDATE* April 22 2007

Finished up the overflow modification ($5) to reduce CO2 outgassing. There are holes in the PVC piping up top, behind the top cap so that water can flow down. Don't mind the overexposed tank (was necessary to show the overflow column.)










Also sealed up the trickle section with some tape. But after a while I noticed the top area gets wet and water seeps out a bit. So I'll probably redo it with some sealant to ensure nothing leaks (I assume if water leaks, then CO2 gas will as well.)

A shot of my Blyxa Japonica which don't seem to be growing much, but they're not dying so that's fine. Once I get the CO2, hopefully they'll take off (I'll be purchasing some more as well.)










And my HC which is growing nicely (taller). Hopefully they'll start spreading for a lawn effect when I get the CO2 going.




























And a shot of the full tank. I moved the Giant Hairgrass to form a line at the rear.










That's it for now. Hopefully my next update will be when I finally get my CO2 running! :smile:


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## dufus (Nov 13, 2006)

Sweeeeet!
IS the Hc getting enough light?
i've heard it does that with lower light.


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## toshi (May 4, 2006)

dufus said:


> Sweeeeet!
> IS the Hc getting enough light?
> i've heard it does that with lower light.


The tank has just under 2wpg (2x54w). I don't know if I want to bump up my light output just yet. If it doesn't start spreading after a while, then I might have to but I'll have to see how it turns out.


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## dufus (Nov 13, 2006)

That's probally why it is growing Up.


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## Lee (Feb 13, 2007)

nice growth. good work.


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## toshi (May 4, 2006)

*UPDATE* April 24 2007

Got in my regulator today and test fitted it 










I was planning on getting the CO2 tank filled up, but remembered that the place is closed today. So I'll have to wait another day. Also resealed my trickle section on the wet/dry and mounted the diffuser inside the tank. Almost there ...

Since I'm currently running just under 2wpg, I'm not sure if the HC will form a carpet. So I set up an extra fluorescent fixture I had for an additional 60w. It doesn't have reflectors or anything so I know I'm not getting all of the light into the tank, but it should be better than nothing. I don't really want to spend more money on an extra fixture; plus I want to keep it medium light. Hopefully it's good enough - only time will tell.


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## lwooters (Apr 24, 2007)

love love love the riverbed!!!


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## toshi (May 4, 2006)

*UPDATE* April 25 2007

Finally got my CO2 set up! It was easier than I thought it would be  For now, I'm starting it at just about 1bps since that seems to be the general area where you should start from. *When should I test the water (KH & PH) to measure my CO2 levels?*

Also got another batch of plants into the tank. Once my wallet recovers, I'll be adding another type of stem plant to the back and some crypts as well as some reddish plants for the right rear corner (any recommendations?)

Here are a couple of updated photos :





































Now I need to figure out what to do for my fert dosing. I have a general idea but any recommendations would be appreciated. Tank specs are 55g w/ approximately 168w (but realistically, probably 130-140w), ADA AS. Ferts I have on hand are KNO3, KH2PO4, Seachem Equilibrium, Seachem Iron, Seachem Flourish.

Thanks for looking!


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## toshi (May 4, 2006)

*UPDATE* April 30 2007

Just a small update; the plants seem to doing okay for now. Getting some algae on the glass here and there, but nothing too serious. Anyway, a couple photos:










The HC is growing, some vertically, some slanting horizontally. The leaves are getting pretty large, so I'm wondering if this is even HC. The LFS I bought this from didn't have any names for the plants, but it looked like HC so I assumed it was. I'll be letting it grow out, and if it gets any taller, I'll start trimming.

Overhead shot of the HC :










An hour or so after the lights turn on, some of the HC starts pearling and begins giving off a stream of air bubbles, so I assume the CO2 level is good for now.










Along with the HC, some of the Blyxa leaves pearl as well. They don't really seem to be growing much though. On the other hand, the Java Fern I have in there pearls a lot under the leaves.










The Rotala seem to be growing slowly but steadily in the background. I'll be letting them reach the surface before I trim and replant for thicker foliage.










Still re-working the right side of the tank. Hopefully I'll get another batch of plants soon since the right side is pretty bare at the moment.


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## Betowess (Dec 9, 2004)

It looks like Pearl weed (HM), unfortunately. Tank looks great!


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## toshi (May 4, 2006)

Thanks for the information *Betowess*! Doing a quick search on HM, it looks like it indeed is HM instead of HC. Fortunately, I think it still looks nice and it seems like it can still be used as a foreground plant. A lot of sources says it needs high light and can be difficult to grow but I'm only at just about 2wpg and a majority of the plants are slanting and growing extremely well. I'll start trimming growth over 1.5"-2.0" and see if I can form a carpet with it.


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## dufus (Nov 13, 2006)

I've heard pearlweed can be one of the easier fore's to grow, maybe no?
Anyway, it's the larger cousin to HC.


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## Nightshop (May 12, 2006)

Be careful. That HM will consume your tank with the AS your growing it in. Keep it in check!

Nice tank.


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## toshi (May 4, 2006)

Some updates; changed up the hardscape a bit here and there. Trimmed up some plants and re-planted, mainly the Rotala. Added a bit more Blyxa to fill in the middle area and added some Fissiden to the driftwood on the left. Deciding whether to go with the same Rotala on the right side or add another type of stem plant -- I can't really decide which one to go for with all the choices at my LFS. Also, tore down my 2.5 shrimp tank and added some Dwarf Sag from it to the middle rear of this tank, along w/ the four Amano shrimp I had in the 2.5g. Anyway, the photos ... (note, the right side of the tank is a bit dark in the photos since I was repositioning my lights when taking these photos.)

*Left Side of the tank*









*Right Side of the tank, still needs work*









*HM Foreground*









*Fissiden on driftwood*









*The Blyxa wasn't really growing in the beginning, but now they're turning nice and green and becoming bushier*









*Full Tank Shot #1*









*Full Tank Shot #2*









For now, I have about 108w + 60w (not sure if I'm getting all the output from this). About 4bps. Weekly 50% water change. For fertilizers, I'm dosing twice weekly - 1/2tsp KNO3, 5ml Seachem Flourish, 5ml Seachem Iron, and pinch of KH2PO4 (which I started dosing recently due to some GSA). Also, about 1tsp of Seachem Flourish after the water change. I'm getting steady growth and hardly any algae, just a bit of GSA which I mentioned (but hasn't shown up after dosing KH2PO4, and a little bit of brown algae on the glass.


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## Betowess (Dec 9, 2004)

Thats looking really nice now! I like that you pulled the hairgrass. Fissidens is one of my absolute favs too.


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## toshi (May 4, 2006)

Betowess said:


> Thats looking really nice now! I like that you pulled the hairgrass. Fissidens is one of my absolute favs too.


Thanks Betowess! The giant hairgrass wasn't really doing too well; it's still there, in the back right corner. I might just get rid of it altogether though - seems hard to grow. I always loved the look of fissidens when I first saw it, so when I saw it at my LFS, I snatched it up to give it a try


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## derick2724 (Mar 20, 2007)

hey toshi, don't mind if i ask wat is the name of your foreground plants? and where did you buy those i'm also looking for some of those too. Thanks


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## toshi (May 4, 2006)

derick2724 said:


> hey toshi, don't mind if i ask wat is the name of your foreground plants? and where did you buy those i'm also looking for some of those too. Thanks


Do you mean this one?










It's HM, Hemianthus micranthemoides. I got it at one of my LFS. I don't think it's that difficult to find.


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## toshi (May 4, 2006)

Just another quick progress photo - only some slight differences.

Here's what it looked like 10 days ago :










And a photo from tonight :










As you can see from the photos, the HM is really starting to grow a thick foreground. I have to trim at least once a week or it won't look as clean; but it's not too difficult so I don't mind for now. The Blyxa is still growing nice and lush. The Rotala indica are growing taller and I've trimmed some of the taller ones and planted extras to the right side of the tank. I think I still have to trim a couple more times to get the nice bushy effect. Also, the Fissidens is growing steadily, now covering most of the fishing line.

On the second photo, right below the neon tetra, the leftover HM (still in the pot) is growing fast as well - don't know if I should keep it or not. Right behind it, I have some Rotala green recently added. You can also see the streams of air bubbles that my HM produce which should indicate good CO2. However, I'm still getting some brown algae and some GSA started showing up again (despite phosphate dosing). I upped the CO2 a bit and lowered the photo light period. Hopefully it'll help a bit.

I'm still not sure if I should add some more Blyxa or Crypts / Narrow Leaf Java Fern in front of the driftwood on the far right. I need to add something though since it lacks a certain feeling of depth on that side. I just decided to set up another 29G (possibly for some CRS) so I might end up spending more money on that 

Thanks for looking.

Toshi


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## ringram (Jan 19, 2005)

Very nice. That HM can get out of control quickly - you are warned. If you want confirmation, my 90g journal shows it on one of the last pages, in it's full fury. Those mats got up to about 4-5" tall, but it *was* still a foreground. Aquasoil makes it happy, as I had fluorite before and it never grew like that. 
Most of your wood will be covered once your blyxa grows in, but that may still look cool.
That neon looks lonely. lol


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## toshi (May 4, 2006)

ringram said:


> Very nice. That HM can get out of control quickly - you are warned. If you want confirmation, my 90g journal shows it on one of the last pages, in it's full fury. Those mats got up to about 4-5" tall, but it *was* still a foreground. Aquasoil makes it happy, as I had fluorite before and it never grew like that.
> Most of your wood will be covered once your blyxa grows in, but that may still look cool.
> That neon looks lonely. lol


I know what you mean about the HM. I was warned by another poster earlier in the thread about it growing out of control, especially w/ the AS  I have to do frequent trimming to keep it at the height I want.

When I first got the Blyxa, I didn't think it would grow that high. But looking at other tanks like yours, I realized it gets to a decent height. Hopefully it won't cover the tip of the driftwood too much. I could also raise the driftwood up a bit later on if needed.

LOL, there's actually 2 neons in there; survivors from my first planted tank setup, along with 2 SAE's and 4 Amano Shrimp. I'm still waiting for everything to fill in nicely before adding more fish.

Toshi


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## Gerald the Mouse (Jun 19, 2006)

Wow, looking great so far! If you have some leftover HM, I'll be glad to take some in a few weeks when I start my own 55g.


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## toshi (May 4, 2006)

Gerald the Mouse said:


> Wow, looking great so far! If you have some leftover HM, I'll be glad to take some in a few weeks when I start my own 55g.


When I trim, they're mostly little plantlets like in the photo below of when I first planted them (the leaves are larger though). 










If you don't mind individually planting them like that, let me know and I'll save some of the trimmings for you.

Toshi


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## Gerald the Mouse (Jun 19, 2006)

I don't need them tomorrow or something, but when I am interested in getting some in the next month or so, I'll send you a PM.


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## styxx (Jul 2, 2003)

Toshi, it is looking good. But here's my $0.02 worth. I love the giant hair grass and I use it in my tank. The difference in growth from the 1st pic to the 2nd is obvious. I'd recommend covering the entire back wall with it and in about a month it will be totally awesome. BTW, if cost is a concern for you, with the growth that you seem to achieve in a month, divide it in half and it will spread runners for you and fill in. Just a suggestion, keep up the good work, that HM is a wild one!


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## toshi (May 4, 2006)

*styxx1*, a bit late in response, but the giant hairgrass didn't fare well and I took it out.

It's been a while since an update. About a week or two ago, my water suddenly began to get cloudy. Doing a bit of research, it seems I had green water. So as suggested, I tried a blackout for about 4-5 days. I then did a 50-60% water change which helped a lot and the water was clear for a couple days. It still gets a bit cloudy, but not as much as before. Also, shortened lighting period to 7 hours as opposed to 8. The past 2 weeks I haven't done my weekly dosing - would that affect the GW? No other algae is present.

Buying a UV would be my last resort. I'm going to try another 50% water change and a 3-4 day blackout again this week and see if it goes away. Anyways, here's a recent photo of how the tank looks.


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## Casty (Sep 28, 2006)

Very nice, the HM foreground looks good! Lot of depth to this tank as well, good job.


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## toshi (May 4, 2006)

Thanks *Casty*. I'm pretty happy with how the foreground is turning out. Just have to work on thickening up the Rotalas in the rear corners.


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## jaidexl (Sep 18, 2006)

Looks great! I was also afraid we were looking at HM when it first started growing, still a great looking plant with a bit of tlc, I'm amazed at how thick you have it growing in th AS. I'm a little sad to see the sand bed is gone, I really liked the placement of it in the first few pics, probably was a real pain to keep clean, eh?

What was your experience with blacking out the tank as far as plant growth? I have some serious GW to tend to but I'm worried about killing plants.


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## octopus44 (Apr 23, 2007)

Wow! I really love your tank. I think I actually like it better with the sand river covered. It was a little too shocking to me.


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## fishscale (May 29, 2007)

So, did you snip your HM into little plantlets instead of planting the whole stem under the substrate? I want to do a HM foreground soon, and that's a very nice one you've got there. I always though you wanted to plant the stem so that it would grow horizontally instead of towards the light.


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## toshi (May 4, 2006)

Sorry for the late replies, haven't been checking this thread as of late.

Still have the GW. Did a 50% water change yesterday and it's looking pretty clear for now. But I think it'll get cloudy/green in another day or two. Still didn't get a chance to do a blackout after a WC though (first time I did a blackout w/o a WC). I'll try it next week if the GW comes back, which I'm sure it will.



jaidexl said:


> Looks great! I was also afraid we were looking at HM when it first started growing, still a great looking plant with a bit of tlc, I'm amazed at how thick you have it growing in th AS. I'm a little sad to see the sand bed is gone, I really liked the placement of it in the first few pics, probably was a real pain to keep clean, eh?
> 
> What was your experience with blacking out the tank as far as plant growth? I have some serious GW to tend to but I'm worried about killing plants.


The sand bed was definitely a pain to keep clean.

The plants should be fine. My first blackout lasted about a week, and my plants were growing during that period. They weren't as green, but didn't turn yellow at all. YMMV though.



fishscale said:


> So, did you snip your HM into little plantlets instead of planting the whole stem under the substrate? I want to do a HM foreground soon, and that's a very nice one you've got there. I always though you wanted to plant the stem so that it would grow horizontally instead of towards the light.


I planted them just like people tend to plant Glosso, single strands planted a couple centimeters apart. The HM will grow up about 1-2 inches and should start to grow horizontally. I just kept trimming ones that got too high and it eventually started to get nice and thick.


--


Just another quick photo for reference. The middle looks cloudier than it should be since I forgot to clean the front of the tank.


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## styxx (Jul 2, 2003)

wow, that is looking great!


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## toshi (May 4, 2006)

Thanks *styxx1*!


The green water seems to have gone away for now. After the water change, I decided to stop using one of my lights, thus making it 108w total instead of approximately 168w. No other extreme breakouts of algae so I'm happy. The HM is getting thicker and taller, so I have to frequently trim to keep it in check. All my Rotalas have hit the water surface - might do a trim to try and fill in some gaps and to make them bushier. The middle rear looks a bit empty so I might try something there and move the Dwarf Sag towards the middle right.

I'll try to get some photos on the next update


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## Got Fish? (Apr 25, 2007)

you tank is definatly one of a kind, i especially like the whole sand idea, it really gives it that natural look =P


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## toshi (May 4, 2006)

It's been 5 months since my last update. Been busy with my personal life so I haven't had the time and will to work on the tank. I let it get pretty overgrown but just did a large trim on it the other day. I rearranged some plants here and there but nothing too major. I'm kind of letting it grow on it's own for a somewhat natural look, especially the Dwarf Sag which made it's way from the back center to the front right corner.

Fauna-wise it's still pretty empty - just my single neon (which has survived all this time), a SAE, an Oto, and 4 Amano Shrimp (I assume they're all still alive but it's hard to see all 4 at the same time with all the plants). When I'm more financially stable, I'm thinking of picking up a nice school of Cardinals and maybe a Discus or two; we'll see.

Anyway, here is my most recent photo taken today.


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## toshi (May 4, 2006)

After the major Rotala trim yesterday, I felt like trimming down the overgrowing HM. So below is another tank shot, just for reference.










And several miscellaneous shots of the aquarium.


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## ikuzo (Jul 11, 2006)

toshi i like the all green look, keep it that way. i can't believe that a field of blyxa can be that good. is it just me or your blyxa is shorter than what i've seen before?

oh and the plant with blades growing long randomly, is it sagittaria subulata?


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## Tdon1md (Jun 3, 2007)

Dude, your tank looks awesome! It's hard to believe you created that much depth in a 55G. GREAT JOB!!!!!
________
PRILOSEC CLASSACTION


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## toshi (May 4, 2006)

ikuzo said:


> toshi i like the all green look, keep it that way. i can't believe that a field of blyxa can be that good. is it just me or your blyxa is shorter than what i've seen before?
> 
> oh and the plant with blades growing long randomly, is it sagittaria subulata?


Thanks ikuzo.

Yeah, my Blyxa was taller before, but it was growing so much that it started to get too high in height for my liking. I ended up taking it all out and replanting it all for the full grassy field effect  Before the trim, I let the rotala get overgrown and ended up cutting out a lot of light to the Blyxa. So it hasn't been growing as fast lately. But now that I trimmed everything down, it'll probably start growing fast again, at which point, I might replant them on the right side to accompany the Dwarf Sag.

And the plant with blades growing randomly is indeed Sagittaria subulata as far as I know.


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## toshi (May 4, 2006)

Tdon1md said:


> Dude, your tank looks awesome! It's hard to believe you created that much depth in a 55G. GREAT JOB!!!!!


Thanks so much Todd. Before I started this tank, I knew 55G's weren't ideal for planted tanks, but since it's all I had I just went ahead and gave it a shot. I'm pretty pleased on how it's turning out


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