# Vase pico



## Oqsy (Jul 3, 2004)

I only have 2 cherries left of a few hundred a few months back. Out of frustration, I decided to separate them from their old conditions, give them all new substrate, hardscape, water, plant life, etc in hopes to save the last two from whatever has wiped out my others. It appears that my last two are males... so ends the line. Anyway, as a result, I have a new pico that consists of a vase (9" tall x 4.5" diamater at widest point), extra black sand (colorquartz), a little driftwood chunk (about 5-6" tall), my locally collected moss, a ramshorn snail (baby), the 2 bachelor cherries, and a few dark gray (they look bright white in the pic) pebbles. Lighting is a desk lamp with a 19w CFL spiral. I plan on upgrading this to a small cube as soon as I can find one, as my wife wants her favorite vase back, and the glare off the curved sides of the vase make it really hard to see in unless you press your face against it (pics demonstrate this to some degree, but I put the lamp into strange positions to make at least some of the interior visible). Anyway, I've got the nano/pico bug.

Oqsy


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## vwboy53 (Mar 31, 2005)

That's quite a nice pico. Once it grows in a bit, it would look fantastic. The way the vase is shaped could present some nice design possibilites, however it's a shame you will change it.
Just a thought, why don't you get some female cherries to try to continue the line?

"let go of my purse!, I don't know you!" - Bobby Hill


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## Oqsy (Jul 3, 2004)

well, as i mentioned above... it's my wife's favorite vase, and I think she wants it back soon (roses are blooming like mad) that's her passion, a 30'x30' rose garden that's really looking spectacular, so in some areas my aquatic plant obsession and her rose obsession overlap a bit. Also mentioned above, the shape of the glass makes it REALLY hard to see in with the light on, and even harder with the light off . One inward curve and one outward curve = light bouncing every way except down into the vase. Another thing I don't like is that my piece of driftwood has lots of nice curves and gnarls at the top, but you can't see them because of the inward slope of the glass... there's also another species of moss attached to the upper portion of the driftwood that's almost invisible because of refraction. I do really like the size and shape, and think that the magnification provided by the curved glass is really nice considering the scale of the inhabitants. perhaps if I had a smaller light source (several high output white leds, perhaps?) the glare wouldn't be such an issue. As for getting some female cherries, it's in the cards someday, but I don't know if it will happen before these guys get too old for parenthood.

Oqsy

"Man, I tell you what, man, that dang ol' pigeon's freakin' out." -Boomhauer


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## vwboy53 (Mar 31, 2005)

I think the LED lighting sounds like a great idea, I was planning something similar myself for a 1g pico. I now have to devise a way of making an array of led's which allow the ease of changing burnt out leds without a soldering iron, and be able to withstand some heat.

vwboy53

"This arrangement afforded me many oppurtunities for difficulty" - Coco


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## mekros (Oct 9, 2004)

> I now have to devise a way of making an array of led's which allow the ease of changing burnt out leds without a soldering iron, and be able to withstand some heat.
> 
> How much current are you planning to pump into the LEDs? They shouldn't burn out if you have them setup correctly (well not for a few thousand hours). One thing you can do is go to the local electronics stores and get some wire wrap pins, solder the legs on the pins down to your board, and you can plug/unplug LEDs as you wish... just remember the polarity of the LEDs.
> 
> Mek


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## vwboy53 (Mar 31, 2005)

After buying 20 LED's on ebay, I saw a interesting picture which was accompaning my item, 








I think I may do something similar to this, but with the led wires shortened. roud: 

The problem with many high intensity LED's is that they heat up to 85 Degrees Celcius, (about 185 Fahrenheit). This can pose some problems. However, it can also be an advantage, that is, It may heat up the water. But to what extent???
As you said, it is totally dependent on voltage. I probably will stick to 12V DC and use the resistors that come with my LEDs. But it depends on what adapter I find around the house :wink:
I think that LED's are a brilliant device for lighting, and it would be interesting to see the results when used in aquarium applications.


Oh and here are the specs for my LEDS:

Reverse Voltage (VR) - 5V 
Reverse Current ( at VR=5V) =10uA
Operating Temperature -40C ~ 85C
Storage Temperature -40C ~ 100C
Lead Soldering Temperature 260C for 5 seconds (Max)
Power Dissipation 4.5 mW
Emitted Color White
Chromaticity Coordinates (20mA) X : 0.32Y : 0.31
Lens Appearance Water Clear
Absolute max Rating Pd : 120 mW
IF : 20 mA Peak IF : 120 mA
Electro-optical Date (20mA)
VF : 3.2V (Max 3.4V)IV : 14,000 mcd (13,000 mcd Min, 15,000mcd Max)
Viewing Angle 15 +- 5
Life (normal usage) 80,000 - 100,000 hours


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## Oqsy (Jul 3, 2004)

very nice led selection. I got my new container yesterday, and when I got home, both cherries were dead... something happened to that whole batch that I can't explain. Anyway, new pics. I plan on filling to the very top and moving the lamp up a bit so the water doesn't overheat. I've been trying to come up with a way to either create current or filter the water. The top is about 5"x5", so suggestions are welcome. just snapped two more pictures with some more plants added and the water topped off. I plan on moving the java fern plantlet at the first water change to somewhere a little less conspicuous, but its fine for today.

Oqsy


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## vwboy53 (Mar 31, 2005)

This vase is also very nice. Looks great already.
Sorry to hear about the shrimp. On a side note, I bought my first shrimp today, I think it is a native australian species.
About the current problem, air pump? (shudder) or what about a windscreen washer pump that just circulates the water. Pump would be external and you would have hoses coming out of vase, spoiling the effect.
That may be a problem.


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## mekros (Oct 9, 2004)

> As you said, it is totally dependent on voltage. I probably will stick to 12V DC and use the resistors that come with my LEDs. But it depends on what adapter I find around the house [UNQUOTE]
> 
> 12VDC source for a forward voltage of 3.2, it means alot of power is going to be used up in the resistor unless you run a few LEDs in series. They are nice LEDs though, I keep planning but don't get around to building my LED array.
> 
> ...


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## vwboy53 (Mar 31, 2005)

I plan to have 6 arrays x 3 led each, or 10 arrays x2 led each. Check out this wizard I found on the net. You just input some parameters and it calculates a wiring diagram. it is at :http://led.linear1.org/led.wiz
Well I delved into more led research, and found out that voltage is not so much an issue. 
I have a 10.88v dc supply which I will use but it says I have an amperage of 150mA and I don't think it is enough.

Problem is that here in Aus, I can't find those luxon leds for sale! 
I got 5mm ones. These were cheap anyway on ebay.
The heatsink idea is fantastic, Oqsy why don't you try something like that?

For me, I already bought the supplies, and I will stick to a circuit board as those bread boards like in the pic are too large, and the lifespan of 10 years for leds makes it very hassel free. Who knows, in ten years I may post a thread on this forum about my led project.  

Oh and thanks mekros for the shrimp name. I think that's it! roud:


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## mekros (Oct 9, 2004)

I'm in Aus, and have three (was four) that's why I know the names of the shrimp  I'm yet to get my nano up and planted.

You can find the luxeons online and in stores at:
Dick Smith
Jaycar
Oatley Eletronics
RS Components

Besides from lack of motivation to take my idea and build it, I haven't got a workshop set to tinker around, maybe in a few weeks after I move into my new house =)

Mek


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## vwboy53 (Mar 31, 2005)

Dick smith doesn't have them, I just found Jaycar does :icon_redf but they are really expensive!!! $10.95 is the cheapest. Well its too late now for me, but lesson learned.

I didn't realise we have a few species of shrimp here. My usual Local Fish Stores dont stock them (strictly aquariums), and by chance one (revesby aquariums) had 1 last tiny little one. Maybe now I can pester the stores to stock them.

oops ... straying off topic, sorry!


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## Oqsy (Jul 3, 2004)

haha, that's fine with me... i think its funny that my vase thread has turned into the australian shrimp / led thread. more interesting and useful to more people than anything i've got to offer  hopefully i'll learn something I can apply to my setup, so by all means, don't "stay on topic" at the expense of suggestions for small setups.

Oqsy


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## vwboy53 (Mar 31, 2005)

Any progress on your pico?


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## Oqsy (Jul 3, 2004)

none at present.. waiting for payday  
i'm weighing my options... could get an azoo palm / red sea nano HOB, but boy wouldn't that blow the beauty... been trying to come up with a "mini lilly pipe" idea to use with an external pump and clear airline for running up the back of the vase to the lilly pipes. I suppose I'll have to find someone that blows glass (in this area, aka makes bongs) and see if they can blow me a couple of pipes that would fit clear airline or similar small clear tubing. i can hear it now... "dude, you doing hydroponics? i got some stuff you should put under those lights..." 

Anyway, anyone with leads on tiny lilly pipes, let me know 

Oqsy

"littering and? littering and? littering and? littering and? littering and... smoking the reefer"


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## vwboy53 (Mar 31, 2005)

:icon_bigg hehehe dude ... like ... woooaaa ...
the small HOB filters would really spoil it as you said. How does the lilly pipe idea work?
And have you tried looking in a few tobacconist stores. They sell that stuff for "tobacco" ...


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## Oqsy (Jul 3, 2004)

http://www.plantedtank.net/forums/showthread.php?t=8618&highlight=lillie+pipe


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## vwboy53 (Mar 31, 2005)

ohhhh that's what it is. Thanks


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## Oqsy (Jul 3, 2004)

this thread, and this pico have new life. I bought a Red Sea "Deco Art" Nano Filter from Petco, and it fits just fine (i thought even that might be a bit too wide). So I lost the totally clean look, but all I really notice is the filter intake, and I guess that can be tucked behind some plants. Now the question is, what to put it in for fauna. I'm thinking the flora will include something from this list:

marselia
xmas moss
r. indica
micranthemoides

fauna i'm considering (but don't have locally):

endlers
cherry shrimp
crystal red shrimp
other small shrimp
those teeny rasboras

fauna i could easily acquire:

mosquito fish (can net some from a local stream)
bumblebee goby
wild guppy
betta splendens

suggestions?

Oqsy


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## vwboy53 (Mar 31, 2005)

Can you post some Pictures, pictures, pictures!
Oh and the r. indica are great for small nanos, I got some and there not demanding at all.


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## Oqsy (Jul 3, 2004)

here are pictures... got a new phone with a built-in 1.4 megapixel camera that trumps my old vivicam10, so all new pics will be courtesy of my phone 

Oqsy


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## Oqsy (Jul 3, 2004)

oh, marselia will be planted deeper at next water change... my hand and the tweezers were spilling water out of the top at the time.

Oqsy


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## Oqsy (Jul 3, 2004)

well, i went ahead and added 2 bumblebee gobies as an experiment (i've *mildly* salted the tank in hopes that it's to their liking) I've read conflicting reports of preferences from freshwater to full saltwater, or somewhere in between, so I'm hoping that I can get by with this arrangement (breeding apparently occurs in acid freshwater). I hope that the pinch of salt doesn't do too much harm to the marselia and r. indica... if it does, then I'll swap them out for some narrow java fern and java moss, maybe a baby water sprite or some other brackish *tolerant* plant. they sem happy so far, playing in filter outflow and nibbling on the little white worms crawling on the glass. If this was a poor purchase and they don't take well to the setup, I'll pass them on to someone with a dedicated brackish setup. (i only know of one person in this city of 60,000 that has a brackish tank). Pictures to follow.

Oqsy


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## vwboy53 (Mar 31, 2005)

That does look very nice. The new vase looks great, particularly with the rock in the middle.
As for the Rotala Indica, I think it should withstand the salt. This is one hardy plant!

I cant wait to see the next set of pics.


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## Ackar (Aug 22, 2004)

That picture reminds me of the blender nano someone posted about a while back.


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## Oqsy (Jul 3, 2004)

*new macro of female cherry*

ok, down to two cherries (of 7), a male and a female, who I'm calling "noah" and "whatever noah's wife's name was". just trimmed the excessive najas growth back, recovered the dw in moss, and tucked a baby crypt wendtii in the corner. Anyway, here's a "macro" shot of my female "whatever noah's wife's name was" right after the replanting / water change. She's very curious about the snail on the glass in front of her... never seen them pay any attention to them before.

Oqsy


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