# 60-P : 722 Long Road Crossing



## bsmith (Jan 8, 2007)

This tank will not have water in it until at least 4-1-2010, my dealership is changing locations due to Saturn going out of business and a 2 year old 4 million dollar facility not being used!!!. So unlike all of my other tanks where I purchase stuff and just throw it together I will have a bit of time to discuss and plan what I want to do. I am looking for as much advice or ideas as possible so let em rip. 

I currently have my Mini-M and wanted to upgrade. That tank will (after the move) be in my sales managers office as a low tech tank.

So here is the breakdown. I will highlight in a different color the items I have not bought and am still deciding on, these are the top choices or the couple im debating. 

Tank- ADA 60-P

Filter- Eheim 2215 or 2217

Light- Fishneedit 70w HQI Metal Halide

Substrate- ADA AS Ammazonia Regular/Powder

Plants- UNDECIDED

Fauna- CRS/CBS (might stay in the mini m) Some small fish...

I will have to check again when I go to the new office to snoop and choose my actual office location but I believe that there will be a spot I can keep the tank and equipment. If not I will just have to build one. Its not like I don't have enough time. 

I really want to get some manzanita and do a tree with fissidens. I think that would be gorgeous in the contemporary office. Other then that I have no ideas really/


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## niptek (Nov 9, 2008)

Get eheim 2217 =) With all the plants i have grown in my 60P im still lacking circulation. I'm thinking about adding a power head. Or I can just clean out my filter..

I had a fishneedit 70w MH but it was just too bright for me. My tank is in front of my bed so it was hard to sleep with turned on. 

If you need plants let me know, I have all kinds =)

gl with the build.

-Chunk


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## jmhart (Mar 14, 2008)

I think you'd be really happy with the 2215. Like I said in the other thread, I've got a 2217 on my 60-P with CRS, and for the shrimp to be happy, I have to keep it throttled down pretty far.


*subscribed*


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## bsmith (Jan 8, 2007)

Yeah you know the old saying its better to have too much... then not enough. I was contemplating using the code on the DRS website to get a XP3 but I just don't like the fact that I wont get the filter substrate with it. A 2217 is about $150 and I think that's fair for what you get. I also think that will do a great job as a reactor for the co2. How do you dissolve your carbon in the tank?

Im super stoked about the MH as this will be my first foray into the MH segment of lighting the planted tank. Ive had/have about every other method and think this is will not only give me the best look light spectrum wise but also keep with the contemporary style im going for. 



niptek said:


> Get eheim 2217 =) With all the plants i have grown in my 60P im still lacking circulation. I'm thinking about adding a power head. Or I can just clean out my filter..
> 
> I had a fishneedit 70w MH but it was just too bright for me. My tank is in front of my bed so it was hard to sleep with turned on.
> 
> ...


I hope it is an exciting build!



jmhart said:


> *subscribed*


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## jmhart (Mar 14, 2008)

I inject co2 in line before the 2217. Pictures in my thread.


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## chase127 (Jun 8, 2008)

I like the MH, i've been dying to do a MH 60cm but i just cant afford it  live my dreams for me?


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## garuf (May 30, 2007)

2217 gets my vote, you can never have too much flow. I'd suggest the new inline diffusers that have popped up on ebay recently. You'd be flying.


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## bsmith (Jan 8, 2007)

Here are pics of how im doing it right now on the 2 tanks I have running this way. 

37g w/xp1 that has an iwaki md-10L inline before the filter to chop up bubbles + increase flow. 

















Mini-M w/2213. Co2 is injected into intake pipe. 

















Both work great but I dont plan on using a pre-pump on the 60-P. 

Thanks for the ebay link. I believ thats where ill get it. 


jmhart said:


> I inject co2 in line before the 2217. Pictures in my thread.


You can attain your ADA + MH deams vicariously through this thread. :thumbsup:

BTW, fishneedit 70w'er is only $109 + shipping.



chase127 said:


> I like the MH, i've been dying to do a MH 60cm but i just cant afford it  live my dreams for me?


2217 is the way. If I could fine a pre-owned inline cal aqua diffuser I would probably jump on that to keep the gas out of the filter. Good idea. 



garuf said:


> 2217 gets my vote, you can never have too much flow. I'd suggest the new inline diffusers that have popped up on ebay recently. You'd be flying.


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## roybot73 (Dec 15, 2007)

+1 on the 2217 :thumbsup:


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## bsmith (Jan 8, 2007)

Well after much thought and research I think im going to have to pass on the HQI MH lighting option. It seemd that the spread will not be optimal at the height I need to keep the intensity where I need it to be for a 70w fixture and in order to get a good spread with a 150w fixture I would have to have the light so high it wold blind people in my office. Im sad but not too sad as I have talked with Jim at Catalina aquariums and he will be building me a specialized 24" 4x24w T5HO fixture with hanging brackets for this tank. I think I will stick with the same Geismann Aquaflora X2 and Midday X2 that I have in my 37g. I will say this though the cost of some 6700k GE starcoats is tempting. Does anyone have any experience with them?


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## ldk59 (Jan 30, 2009)

Mr Smith....

Any updates on this project? 

Larry


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## benon (Feb 18, 2010)

I love shots of tanks from above through the water. Wish there were more looking-inside tank shots. Give us a shot from the side too!


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## bsmith (Jan 8, 2007)

ldk59 said:


> Mr Smith....
> 
> Any updates on this project?
> 
> Larry


Funny you ask...



benon said:


> I love shots of tanks from above through the water. Wish there were more looking-inside tank shots. Give us a shot from the side too!


The pics that are in here are of my mini-m. Here are the first pics of my 60-p, it arrived yesterday!


















This is waht I first saw so I was a little scared.


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## Heartnet (Sep 13, 2009)

bsmith said:


>


Imagine my horror when I saw the USPS guy rolling my 60P in the box down the stairs. Luckily, the packaging inside was good. Where did you order yours?

+1 on the 2217

With a packed filter, I find that the flow from the 2217 is really reduced and barely sufficient for my 60P. And more is always better with filters.


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## bsmith (Jan 8, 2007)

I just made my mind up on the 2217. It is always better to have more imo. 

I ordered the 60-p from adg.


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## jmhart (Mar 14, 2008)

Heartnet said:


> +1 on the 2217
> 
> With a packed filter, I find that the flow from the 2217 is really reduced and barely sufficient for my 60P. And more is always better with filters.



I'm glad I got the 2217, but a 2215 would probably be plenty. I keep my 2217 throttled down about half way on my 60-P, but I keep CRS in there, so they dont' like a lot of flow


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## bsmith (Jan 8, 2007)

I have ordered the 2217 and should be getting it here in the next few days hopefully by mid week. I am also contemplating getting only a 2x34w t5ho and not a 4x24w th50 from Catalina. I have a 4x24 on my 37 that is almost twice as tall as this tank and grow anything I want pretty much with ease. Any feedback?


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## CL (Mar 13, 2008)

If you send catalina an email asking for a lower price on the 4 bulb T5HO, I'm sure you could get a reduction. That's what I did for my light.


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## bsmith (Jan 8, 2007)

I already talked to Jeff and since I already bought from them before he will give me a great deal. I just don't know if I need all that light, I always follow the shcool of thought that more is better but maybe 48w is already more.


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## CL (Mar 13, 2008)

bsmith said:


> I already talked to Jeff and since I already bought from them before he will give me a great deal. I just don't know if I need all that light, I always follow the shcool of thought that more is better but maybe 48w is already more.


Well in my 18 inch tall tank, 2x39 watts T5HO wasn't enough, so last night I tried to run three bulbs (a four bulb fixture), but the ballast won't work that way (2 ballasts running 2 bulbs each, both bulbs have to be in for a ballast to work), so I raised the light up a few inches and I am running 4 now. Hopefully it won't be too much to handle. I wasn't having any algae problems with running 2x39 watts, but my colorata wouldn't color up, so I'm seeing if more watts is what I need.


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## bsmith (Jan 8, 2007)

Yeah this guy is only 12" I think. Darn it now more contemplation!


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## CL (Mar 13, 2008)

bsmith said:


> Yeah this guy is only 12" I think. Darn it now more contemplation!


60P is 12" front to back, and like 16" tall, I think.


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## bsmith (Jan 8, 2007)

Just checked, 14" tall. I just can't decide, I would hate to be under lite. I guess I'll just have to get the 4x24 and run the second bank fir only a short time or just alternate banks daily or weekly.


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## garuf (May 30, 2007)

You should be able to grow anything at all with 2x24watts of t5. Keep your reflectors clean and your tubes and you'd be flying. 4x 24 would give you redundancy really. T5's really do give an awful ammount of light.


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## bsmith (Jan 8, 2007)

I couldn't decide on which fixture to order so I just ordered the 3x24w 24" fixture from Catalina with the hanging hooks installed. 

I also ordered some DW today from Jake (badcop) and should hopefully be getting that in the next couple of days. I have a hard scape planned in my head, now lets just see if I can bring it to reality.


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## bsmith (Jan 8, 2007)

Just got this in today. 


Now all I need is my light which should be here at the beginning of next week!

I'm going to go tomorrow and hopefully get all of the materials I need to build an ADA style stand for his bad boy. I'm also going to do the light hanging system as outlined by a few members but I believe I will use 2 bars for ease of bending. Shouldn't be too bad.


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## bsmith (Jan 8, 2007)

My Light is due in tomorrow and I received my wood from Jake at centerpiece aquatics a few days ago. Everything is looking like its going to work out beautifully. 

I have a call to make tomorrow to a granite supplier to see if I can maybe stop by their shop and see if I can grab some scraps for the tank. If I can I think this will not only be a beautiful scape but also a very original and fresh take on our hobby today.


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## VadimShevchuk (Sep 19, 2009)

cool journal. I think you made a good choice on the filter and lights. The 24x4 seems like alot of light.


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## ldk59 (Jan 30, 2009)

This is going to be very cool roud:

Any idea on flora/fauna yet?

Larry 

If all goes well, my 60P will be on 
it's way this week  I already have 
the Seiryu stone, substrate, light
(TEK 4 X 24) & GLA C02 :icon_mrgr


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## bsmith (Jan 8, 2007)

ldk59 said:


> This is going to be very cool roud:
> 
> Any idea on flora/fauna yet?
> 
> ...


Im going to have a foreground of Staurogyne sp. 'Tropica' and trithura sp. Pretty much the same plants I have in my mini m right now. I cant decide on fauna though. Fish would be nice but with the amounts of co2 ill be injecting and it not having a top I think ill have too many dried fish on the floor. I also dont know if ill put my crs in here for the same reasons as the fish not sounding too good.


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## bsmith (Jan 8, 2007)

The light came in the mail today and it looks phenomenal! Already has the hanging brackets in it and is ready to be mounted up. 

I spoke with the owner of a Granite fab shop and he told me that I could come by whenever I wanted to rummage through their scrap section. I'm really excited about this and hopefully I will be able to fine some unique pieces that will look amazing in the tank. I really have no idea what im looking for color shape or even what my design will be but I am open to suggestions.


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## bsmith (Jan 8, 2007)

When I ordered my AS I also ordered some power sand special. I have never used it but Jeff from ADG said that it was almost as important as the AS itself.


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## ldk59 (Jan 30, 2009)

I like the look of the S. 'Tropica', I have some of the S. 'Purple' in my mini-m and love the look of it, but it doesn't stay low like the 'Tropica' & 'Puerto vehlo' (sp?) varieties.

Did you end up with the three bulb fixture, or four? Your original plan got me thinking about hanging a MH over the 60P... I'm probably going to be using a chiller anyway so heat build up won't be an issue. Still undecided though. 

I'm looking forward to seeing what you come back from the granite shop with. Pretty cool of the owner to let you "rummage" for scraps


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## bsmith (Jan 8, 2007)

Took a few pics of the Wood scape choices today. What do you think and what would you do with the extras? I am trying to think of a way to secure all of it down. Like with silicon and some thin rock, maybe to small chunks of Granite I have soaking in the cooler in my garage?!?!/


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## bsmith (Jan 8, 2007)

I'm having trouble deciding on what way to diffuse co2 in this tank. Part of me says do it like I always have and just run it through the filter but another part of me wants to try something new and just use a diffuser in the tank. 

I think that injecting co2 directly into the tank does do something to the bacterial colonies that live in there but i'm not sure exactly what. It is a great way of dissolving co2 and keeping clutter out of the tank too.


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## bsmith (Jan 8, 2007)

I have everything set up aside from the light. I am going to use aluminum pipe and attach it to the top of some shelving next to the tank and suspend the light from there. I am going to paint the pipe black so it looks more finished. 

Problem is photobucket isn't allowing me to up load this last batch of pics, after I work that out they will be up.


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## rountreesj (Jun 12, 2007)

you know you want to build an ada stand. and lightbar, and go mh, and get all the glasswear, and get bororas, and do hc, and hairgrass, and willow moss, and weeping moss, and rotalla sp green narrow leaf, and some nile sand, and some carib sea reo grande gravel, and some aqua soil amizonia type II, and get 4 ottos....just sayin...i know you want to...


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## CL (Mar 13, 2008)

That's some nice driftwood. I can't wait to see the tank with plants in it


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## rountreesj (Jun 12, 2007)

^^^ no but on a serious note, i do inject co2 into my canister(s)(eheim 2213's) and have found it works the best for me. Some people swear by a reactor. It will work about the same i think. But i have noticed that if you run more than about 2bps, you may get some air pockets in the filter. IF you plan to run more co2, i'd suggest a pvc reactor.

to hold the manzanita down...well, from experience, i'd suggest not to screw it to anything as you may decide to reuse it later, and a piece of slate is tough to re-situate. probably the granite you planned to get will be heavy enough to hold it down. you can wedge it between a rock on each side. 

i'm jealous of anyone with ada products, so you are already one step ahead of me in my book. looking forward to the progress...


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## bsmith (Jan 8, 2007)

CL said:


> That's some nice driftwood. I can't wait to see the tank with plants in it


Me either, Still stewing on that one but as I stated earlier it will be a trithura forest!



rountreesj said:


> ^^^ no but on a serious note, i do inject co2 into my canister(s)(eheim 2213's) and have found it works the best for me. Some people swear by a reactor. It will work about the same i think. But i have noticed that if you run more than about 2bps, you may get some air pockets in the filter. IF you plan to run more co2, i'd suggest a pvc reactor.
> 
> to hold the manzanita down...well, from experience, i'd suggest not to screw it to anything as you may decide to reuse it later, and a piece of slate is tough to re-situate. probably the granite you planned to get will be heavy enough to hold it down. you can wedge it between a rock on each side.
> 
> i'm jealous of anyone with ada products, so you are already one step ahead of me in my book. looking forward to the progress...


I have just always done co2 into my canisters. With decent results every time. I will say though that I do believe filter efficiency is compromised some. I just am wanting to try something different. With all of the inline diffusers for little money I say why not try it. 

I have had the manzanita in for a day and it already sunk down to where it sits in the substrate nicely in a spot I like so one less thing to worry about. 

ADA tanks are great and I believe priced right. I just couldn't imagine paying $600+ for a stand for this tank. Sure It's one less thing I have to do but damn $600 my wife would shoot me. I think my stand is great and with out the help of my father in law would not have even been possible at all. Plus I can say I did it!


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## rountreesj (Jun 12, 2007)

so it has a stand? it's not going on that round table?


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## globali (May 29, 2010)

So far So good.


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## rountreesj (Jun 12, 2007)

oh, well if you can afford the inline stuff, heck yes!!!!! I do the filter co2 method simply to cut cost. i agree probably some efficiency is lost. i want to see some shots of this bad boy filled...


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## bsmith (Jan 8, 2007)

Allright now that my flash player is current I can use PB!


















































My favorite office to date, 2 of my favorite tanks in one location!


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## bsmith (Jan 8, 2007)

So I tried all day to figure out a way to get the metal wire im using to hang the fixture up. I went to Lowe's and as usual when im looking for something kind of oddball I can only find the absent minded employee. I bought metal zip ties bey they were not able to get small enough to tightly secure the wire. I then tried modifying them but that was a no go. Tomorrow im going to go to HD and see if I can get some better help. 

I will have the light up in less than 24 hours... hopefully!


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## Chrisinator (Jun 5, 2008)

Looks awesome!


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## nemosreef (Oct 19, 2007)

That driftwood is insane. I think once planted this is going to be very nice.


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## CL (Mar 13, 2008)

Are you looking for wire crimps like these?








http://www.spottydogtackle.com/contents/en-uk/d301.html


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## bsmith (Jan 8, 2007)

CL said:


> Are you looking for wire crimps like these?
> 
> 
> 
> ...


Those look awesome! I just don't think I could wait for them to get here. I wonder if a tru value or Ace would have something like that?


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## CL (Mar 13, 2008)

bsmith said:


> Those look awesome! I just don't think I could wait for them to get here. I wonder if a tru value or Ace would have something like that?


I would expect Lowes to have them.. if not it might be worth checking out Bass Pro Shops or Dicks or something similar in the fishing aisle.


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## bsmith (Jan 8, 2007)

I will maybe just have to take a pic. It's real hard trying to explain what you need for a fish tank to a 67 year old retired man with a hard hat on and leather work gloves like he is putting up a barbed wire fence to hold back cattle in Texas.


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## bsmith (Jan 8, 2007)

Also I purchased this for my diffuser. I will give a full review after receiving it and updating along the way. I'm pretty excited on this, Mowing out of the box for me.


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## CL (Mar 13, 2008)

Cool diffuser. I almost bought one myself a while back when there was that thread about it. 

Just ask for wire crimps. Radioshack.. I mean, The Shack might also be worth checking out.


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## rountreesj (Jun 12, 2007)

OOOH OOOOH OOOOH! use SNAP RINGS! 

you can get different sizes, to go around the conduit, and the two little holes work great, just run the cable through each hole and it hold tight, got them on mine for about a year or so, works like a charm!

and like $0.75 each......


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## bsmith (Jan 8, 2007)

Were they from a home improvement store and if so what section? I cant risk not being specific enough for them and also my boss was about to kill me yesterday I left so many times to get things for the tank!


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## rountreesj (Jun 12, 2007)

hahahahaha, um, they should be at home depot in hardware, if you can't find them ask an associate for assistance hahahah.

but if i remember correctly, they have grommets, picture hangers, picture hanger cable, etc. I'd get the snap-rings and maybe some cable, you may not have the right size and it is pretty inexpensive stuff, and it holds a good bit of weight. and plus if you go tooo thick it will retain its curve from being rolled up, the thin stuff should hold most light fixtures and the tension will straighten it out. i think the snap rings can be found in like the PERFECT size if you use 1/2" conduit for the light bar...not tight, but pretty close it can slide but doesn't have much gap at all.


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## bsmith (Jan 8, 2007)

Well im glad my brother in law works at HD and was standing outside when I pulled up. 

Were all hooked up! the only thing I need is my co2 but I wont switch that untill I get my new diffuser and that should only take a few more days. 

What do you think? I know I could use a few extensions but that will take place over the next few days. 


















































The bulbs are Catalina 6500k (1) and 10000 (2). I think im going to grab one or maybe both aquaflora's from my home and experiment with the different combos. I also have 2 6500k GE starcoats and 2 midday geismann bulbs aswell.


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## rountreesj (Jun 12, 2007)

looks good. Aluminum bar hanger right?


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## bsmith (Jan 8, 2007)

Yep, it was an aluminum bar from home depot. It was originally 8' long but I just found were they had the copper pipe cutters and cut it in half in the store. I took it home and painted it with some satin bbq black paint I had laying around the house. Not perfect but nothing I do is anyway so I can except that.


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## CL (Mar 13, 2008)

Nice job so far :thumbsup:
I see you found those wire crimps? Nothin' quite like a freshly set up tank


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## bsmith (Jan 8, 2007)

You dont think the light is too high up do you?


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## CL (Mar 13, 2008)

I think it's in a good place so that you aren't overwhelmed with trying to keep up with 130W over a 20 gallon. I used to have that and it was tough haha.


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## nemosreef (Oct 19, 2007)

Looking good. Can't wait to see some plants.


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## SearunSimpson (Jun 5, 2007)

Most fishing stores will carry those wire crimps, even fly-shops. 
We use wire leaders when tossing big streamers to pike and musky and use those crimps quite a bit.


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## bsmith (Jan 8, 2007)

CL said:


> I think it's in a good place so that you aren't overwhelmed with trying to keep up with 130W over a 20 gallon. I used to have that and it was tough haha.


Me too. Im going to try to restrain myself so I dont get a large outbeak of algae in the tanks infancy. 



nemosreef said:


> Looking good. Can't wait to see some plants.


Me either. By Friday I hope to have something in there. 



SearunSimpson said:


> Most fishing stores will carry those wire crimps, even fly-shops.
> We use wire leaders when tossing big streamers to pike and musky and use those crimps quite a bit.


Here is what I ended up getting from HD. 










I like the look and they seem sturdy. 

Thanks for the comments guy's.


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## bsmith (Jan 8, 2007)

Also, I just swapped out the CA 10k bulb for a geismann aquaflora and the CA 6500k for a geismann midday 6000k. Her is a comparo pic. I think it looks much more natural. 

Before...









After...


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## Craigthor (Sep 9, 2007)

Nice but uh where are the plants?


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## bsmith (Jan 8, 2007)

Craigthor said:


> Nice but uh where are the plants?


I just added a some today. Lud. cuba, limno wavy, didiplis, lindernia india and some rotala hra. 

Im going to be adding mt foreground in a few weeks or days, haven't decided. That (if you remember from the M) is TRITHURA sp. and TROPICA 049. I just don't want to risk killing wither of those because of the ammonia spice from the curing AS.


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## Dan the Man (Sep 8, 2009)

Hey man. I apologize if you had mentioned this before as I have not read through the thread but I would suggest some lilly pipes. Also, that peice of driftwood is absolutely stunning, I'm a little jealous. Where'd you get that piece?

-Dan


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## bsmith (Jan 8, 2007)

Dan the Man said:


> Hey man. I apologize if you had mentioned this before as I have not read through the thread but I would suggest some lilly pipes. Also, that peice of driftwood is absolutely stunning, I'm a little jealous. Where'd you get that piece?
> 
> -Dan


Thanks Dan. 

I thought about Lilly pipes and have had them on other tanks in the past and am not that big of a fan. I don't like how the flow is dispersed and I also don't like that maintenance aspect. Then you throw in cost and how clumsy I am and it just isn't a good idea. I actually like the Eheim pipes because of their functionality and ruggedness. Perhaps in the future I will get some but not anytime soon. 

I got the Wood from Bad cop (centerpiece aquatics) I believe. He always has nice pieces and found this one for me specifically when I told him what I wanted to do.


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## bsmith (Jan 8, 2007)

Oops forgot the pics.


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## bsmith (Jan 8, 2007)

Man I just got a response from the e-bay seller I bought my diffuser from telling me that it was shipped on the 11th but that orders to the US take from 2-5 weeks! I know that most of the time when I have ordered from Asian countries my stuff cam at the short end of the spectrum but i'm sure that since this is about the only thing i'm waiting for before it's totally operational that it will take forever. I sure hope not. 

Other then that i'm just waiting for the tank to cycle. I'm using API saltwater kits (because my co-worker has them for his tank). I'm not sure if they work exactly the same or if its accurate but i'm pretty much just looking for the presence of, the decrease of and finally the elimination of the ammonia cycle, accuracy isn't paramount. 

Also since the plants have all began growing nicely but with no color perhaps I should lower the light. I know i'm jumping the gun but whats new. 

Any comments or criticisms?


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## Reginald2 (Mar 10, 2009)

If you just need a CO2 diffuser, you could pick up a limewood diffuser. I am pretty sure the big box pet stores carry them w/ the saltwater stuff. They get black and you have to throw them out, but they would work great for a couple of weeks.

I'm pretty sure that all the saltwater stuff would be fine, except the PH. I think that's the only freshwater thing you will need.

It looks really good though. What are you planning for the foreground?


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## bsmith (Jan 8, 2007)

Reginald2 said:


> If you just need a CO2 diffuser, you could pick up a limewood diffuser. I am pretty sure the big box pet stores carry them w/ the saltwater stuff. They get black and you have to throw them out, but they would work great for a couple of weeks.
> 
> I'm pretty sure that all the saltwater stuff would be fine, except the PH. I think that's the only freshwater thing you will need.
> 
> It looks really good though. What are you planning for the foreground?


Thanks Reggie. I would probably just run a tube with the co2 into the intake in the interim. 

I am going to have staugouryn (sp?) tropica 049 around the front left of the DW with trithura sp. around that. It looks good in my mind. 
I would already have all of that in there but im afraid of the ammonia killing my trithura.


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## rountreesj (Jun 12, 2007)

i got an ebay rinox dealio i used in my old 20 gal very succesfully i can send you for 10 shipped. wrapped in cardboard etc, in a bubble envelope or a box whichev. pm me. better than nothin?


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## VadimShevchuk (Sep 19, 2009)

DW and tank looks good so far. Is the flow to much for the tank or no?


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## bsmith (Jan 8, 2007)

VadimShevchuk said:


> DW and tank looks good so far. Is the flow to much for the tank or no?


I dont think it could be any more perfect. Right now I have it turned down a tad but that is because the AS isnt fully soaked and the filter doesnt have any mulm or other biological crud to slow the flow. In a month or two I expect it to be throttled al the way open with perfect flow.

If I would have purchased a 2215 I personally would have been mad I didnt get the 2217 for $25 more dollars. 

I LOVE FILTRATION AND FLOW!!!!!!


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## A Hill (Jul 25, 2005)

Tank looks great, I'm concerned about the bar holding the light up though, it seems to be bending and I would hate to see the light slide right off the pole... 

I also want to echo the praise on the DW it is stunning.

-Andrew


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## 2wheelsx2 (Jan 27, 2006)

How did I miss this? Got linked here from the office tank thread. This looks like the beginning of an amazing project!


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## bsmith (Jan 8, 2007)

A Hill said:


> Tank looks great, I'm concerned about the bar holding the light up though, it seems to be bending and I would hate to see the light slide right off the pole...
> 
> I also want to echo the praise on the DW it is stunning.


Don't worry about it. In real life it is a very minimal bend. The tube is probably 1/16" and is quite stout. Next time your in Home Depot or Lowes check out the Aluminum Conduit. it comes in 8' sections. Once you put your hands on it you will have no doubt it will have no issues with a 4 lb fixture. 

You seem to have a good knowledge of aquatic fauna. What do you think would look good in here? I'm leaning towards 30 neons and some dwarf cories. The neons because of their ease of acquisition and cheapness and the cories because I love them. Really the neons are the only thing up for debate. 



2wheelsx2 said:


> How did I miss this? Got linked here from the office tank thread. This looks like the beginning of an amazing project!


Thanks friend. Its nice to see some excitement for this tank. I have put allot of time and effort into it with the stand building and planning. I think it will be pretty awesome when its done. I know its not origonal at all but that drift wood sure is amazing and I like to think that the stand adds to the the tank in more ways than just support and equipment concealment.


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## 2wheelsx2 (Jan 27, 2006)

bsmith said:


> I know its not origonal at all but that drift wood sure is amazing and I like to think that the stand adds to the the tank in more ways than just support and equipment concealment.


Only the first of anything is original, so I wouldn't worry about that. I do agree that the stand really adds to it. This is one of the "sum of the parts" things. I'm getting a custom stand built by a fine furniture carpenter for my cube tank for this very reason. A nice stand just finishes off instead of making it look like a work in progress.


----------



## hydrophyte (Mar 1, 2009)

This is looking great so far. I like this view.



bsmith said:


>


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## bsmith (Jan 8, 2007)

2wheelsx2 said:


> Only the first of anything is original, so I wouldn't worry about that. I do agree that the stand really adds to it. This is one of the "sum of the parts" things. I'm getting a custom stand built by a fine furniture carpenter for my cube tank for this very reason. A nice stand just finishes off instead of making it look like a work in progress.


Wow I couldn't imagine what that would cost im sure it is ADA stand money +++. But I was tired of using old office furniture and hacking it up to fit my needs. Our new dealership is just way to nice to use something like that and there is no way I would shell out $599 for the ADA stand plus the shipping. 



hydrophyte said:


> This is looking great so far. I like this view.


Thanks. I'm going to be using Purple bamboo and Polygonum Sao Paulo and allow it to grow out of the water so in some really weak way its a skeet riparium! :tongue:


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## A Hill (Jul 25, 2005)

bsmith said:


> Don't worry about it. In real life it is a very minimal bend. The tube is probably 1/16" and is quite stout. Next time your in Home Depot or Lowes check out the Aluminum Conduit. it comes in 8' sections. Once you put your hands on it you will have no doubt it will have no issues with a 4 lb fixture.
> 
> You seem to have a good knowledge of aquatic fauna. What do you think would look good in here? I'm leaning towards 30 neons and some dwarf cories. The neons because of their ease of acquisition and cheapness and the cories because I love them. Really the neons are the only thing up for debate.


Good to know it is solid, I figured as much but seeing it bent down a little... I've played with the conduit bars before so I know how they are, I wasn't sure how heavy the light fixture is though.

I think I would keep it simple and stick to shrimp, you already have CRS so you might as well move them in, I would also look at adding a few of the filter shrimp "wood" shrimp are probably easiest to find. For some more movement I'd use some pigmy corries. If you didn't add CRS I'd add one of the neocaridina species and some CPDs. Another option is Scarlet Badis (dario dario) but I would hesitate to add them to a tank with shrimp that you don't want to potentially loose. Remember, small fish and fine plants keep a small scale and make it seem larger 

-Andrew


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## 2wheelsx2 (Jan 27, 2006)

bsmith said:


> Wow I couldn't imagine what that would cost im sure it is ADA stand money +++.


Nope, the carpenter is a personal friend. I can't justify ADA money either.


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## bsmith (Jan 8, 2007)

A Hill said:


> Good to know it is solid, I figured as much but seeing it bent down a little... I've played with the conduit bars before so I know how they are, I wasn't sure how heavy the light fixture is though.
> 
> I think I would keep it simple and stick to shrimp, you already have CRS so you might as well move them in, I would also look at adding a few of the filter shrimp "wood" shrimp are probably easiest to find. For some more movement I'd use some pigmy corries. If you didn't add CRS I'd add one of the neocaridina species and some CPDs. Another option is Scarlet Badis (dario dario) but I would hesitate to add them to a tank with shrimp that you don't want to potentially loose. Remember, small fish and fine plants keep a small scale and make it seem larger
> 
> -Andrew


I'm not doing shrimp. I really want to be able to crank up the gas in this one with the fixture I have. 



2wheelsx2 said:


> Nope, the carpenter is a personal friend. I can't justify ADA money either.


Thats great. Kinda like my father in law, he is a very good carpenter and quite anal when it comes to stuff like this. I would say all in all I have less then $150 in the stand. :smile:


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## bsmith (Jan 8, 2007)

Ammonia is still super high (thanks AS). So I broke down and got some Seachem Stability. It is great stuff and I have used it in all of my tanks. It has tons of nitrifying bacteria in it to hopefully help with the cycle. 

I am surprised though that with the light being on and no co2 that there is still no algae on the glass. I PM'd the sites t5 lighting guru and he told me that pretty much where I have the light is the optimum place for it to be. 

Also the plants seem to be having no ill affects associated with the Ammonia. Im just dying to drop in my foreground and get the co2 going. 

Also a sweet side note. The local place I get my co2 at (CeeKay) informed me when I was inquiring about cylinder upgrades (5# to a 10# and 2.5# to a 5#) that when I decide to upgrade my 2.5# to a 5# all I would need is to purchase the gas! So for $20 ill have a fresh new 5# for my P!


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## 2wheelsx2 (Jan 27, 2006)

bsmith said:


> Also a sweet side note. The local place I get my co2 at (CeeKay) informed me when I was inquiring about cylinder upgrades (5# to a 10# and 2.5# to a 5#) that when I decide to upgrade my 2.5# to a 5# all I would need is to purchase the gas! So for $20 ill have a fresh new 5# for my P!


So you just lease your tanks? That's a great deal.


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## bsmith (Jan 8, 2007)

A Hill said:


> Tank looks great, I'm concerned about the bar holding the light up though, it seems to be bending and I would hate to see the light slide right off the pole...
> 
> I also want to echo the praise on the DW it is stunning.
> 
> -Andrew





2wheelsx2 said:


> How did I miss this? Got linked here from the office tank thread. This looks like the beginning of an amazing project!





2wheelsx2 said:


> So you just lease your tanks? That's a great deal.


No, I purchased them from a yard sale. I got the 2.5# the 5# and a 20# for $30. I ended up selling the 20# and having the 2.5# and the 5# filled. I don't know if they are different but they give you a credit on the tank you trade in. Since they really don't use 2.5# tanks anymore and i'm a regular customer he said just but the gas in the new 5# tank and its mine. Now if I want to do from my 5# to a 10# it would be 80$ filled which IMO is not a bad deal either.


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## bsmith (Jan 8, 2007)

Did another test. Its weird. Ammonia is off the chart and Nitrate is super high too yet Nitrite is non existent. Im sure it has something to do with the normal cycle coning to an end but my AS is just starting to leach ammonia.


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## bsmith (Jan 8, 2007)

Still waiting for the AS to release all of its ammonia. It is strange though as I put some rams horns in at the beginning to help give the tanks some biological activity and they are all still alive. When I say there is still ammonia in the tank I mean the test tube like a dark blue color. I dont know if the kit is bad but if it doesnt seem to be improving even though I have used almost a full 500ml bottle of stability. If is doesnt look lower on Friday I may have to go purchase a new ammonia kit. 

The plants however look fantastic. There all growing to as if they were textbook perfect and my reds look good. 

Ill have some pics Friday.


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## CL (Mar 13, 2008)

Plants love ammonia. Algae does too, however . I wonder why it would still be leaching ammonia (or is it ammonium? NH4 is ammonium. NH3 is ammonia.. always have wondered about which one we are actually measuring) 
Snails are super hardy, too.


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## bsmith (Jan 8, 2007)

CL said:


> Plants love ammonia. Algae does too, however . I wonder why it would still be leaching ammonia (or is it ammonium? NH4 is ammonium. NH3 is ammonia.. always have wondered about which one we are actually measuring)
> Snails are super hardy, too.


The rams horns were good but the MTS died pretty quickly, maybe thats because the RH were acclimated and it was a gradual raise in ammonia but the MTS were just subjected to it at a high level out of nowhere. 

There is no algae whatsoever in the tank. The only thing i8m not digging is the DW mold. But that will go away on its own in due time.


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## bsmith (Jan 8, 2007)

Here is a vid of the test fish I have. I bought them hoping to speed up the ammonia cycle but I think my blood sugar was low at the time because really that doesn't make too much sense. Although I bought them expecting them to pass on I kinda like how active they are, Not much in the beauty department but they are quite active, and at 13 cents per if one jumps out, oh well!


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## Digsy (Mar 4, 2006)

Nice looking tank, although the video made me a little dizzy.  What kind of fish are they?


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## bsmith (Jan 8, 2007)

There feeder fish, rose comets or something like that.


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## bsmith (Jan 8, 2007)

I was at pet smart yesterday and started having fond memories of the guppies my father and I had when I was a child so I decided on getting a foursome (1m 3f) since I don't think I have ever seen an ADA tank with them or many other tanks these days with them. Also the plants are doing well and I just noticed a bit of GSA so things are starting to calm down. I also cant believe how great the plants look with no co2 supplementation. I worked out a trade with another member for a cal aqua inline diffuser so that should be here Monday. Hopefully I can get that running then as well.

Enjoy!


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## bsmith (Jan 8, 2007)

The new residents.


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## VadimShevchuk (Sep 19, 2009)

that driftwood is perfect for that tank! Are you planning on breeding guppys?


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## Chrisinator (Jun 5, 2008)

I've never really been a fan of guppies, but those are awesome!


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## bsmith (Jan 8, 2007)

VadimShevchuk said:


> that driftwood is perfect for that tank! Are you planning on breeding guppys?


Im sure they will make some offspring but I have no plans you never know though. 



Chrisinator said:


> I've never really been a fan of guppies, but those are awesome!


Thank you. :icon_smil


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## deleted_user_16 (Jan 20, 2008)

lookin good bsmith. keep it up


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## ZooTycoonMaster (Jan 2, 2008)

Those are some very healthy plants! Good luck with the tank


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## bsmith (Jan 8, 2007)

fishman9809 said:


> lookin good bsmith. keep it up





ZooTycoonMaster said:


> Those are some very healthy plants! Good luck with the tank


Thanks guys. 

I thiink everyone will be excited to know that I finished planting the rest of the tropica 049 and all of the trithuria from my mini m into the tank about an hour ago. There were about 6-7 bushes of the trithuria and after breaking them up I had 70 plants. :help: After I got done putting them all in their place I couldn't believe how awesome it looked in there. I will have some before and afters tomorrow. Not to mention a major update in my mini m thread. It is now officially low tech.


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## bsmith (Jan 8, 2007)

So here are the pics with my trithuria in there and the rest of my 049. The scape is still not quite finished but i'm still waiting for the AS to release all of its ammonia and figure out what stems I want to make the background. I'm always open to suggestions.


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## bsmith (Jan 8, 2007)

Another short vid of the tank...


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## jmhart (Mar 14, 2008)

Looking good!


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## 2wheelsx2 (Jan 27, 2006)

I really like the filled to the top with emergent plants/branches look. So cool.


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## bsmith (Jan 8, 2007)

Well I think that i have finally finished with the hard scape. I got some nice black river stones from a member and am really digging how it looks. Now just waiting for all the plants to fluff up and fill in then I think im good. Also got some Neons from the store and am loving them with the Rasboras.


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## bsmith (Jan 8, 2007)

Here we go. I really digg the school of neons allot more then I thought I would. I guess I thought since I already had cardinals at home I was downgrading but this certainly is not the case. They dont shoal as tight as the cards but oh well. Dont mind the dying BBA, co2 fluctuations while I was off for my daughters birth are a bit#@! But Excel is awesome for killing it. 

Enjoy!


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## 2wheelsx2 (Jan 27, 2006)

I'm liking the black basalt.roud:


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## bsmith (Jan 8, 2007)

I have 2 other rocks that I may put on the left side of the tank but real estate for my plants is already limited in this tank so im not sure what I will do.


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## bsk (Aug 18, 2010)

sweet setup! I wish they would let me keep a tank this large in my office. I'm F&I at a toyota dealership and I'll I could manage was a Mini M.


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## bsmith (Jan 8, 2007)

bsk said:


> sweet setup! I wish they would let me keep a tank this large in my office. I'm F&I at a toyota dealership and I'll I could manage was a Mini M.


My finance manager has a 60g SW cube in his office. I started a sickness in the dealership!


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## deleted_user_6 (Jun 19, 2010)

Those rocks look familiar


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## bsmith (Jan 8, 2007)

Yes they were a great addition to the tank. Thank you!


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## chilled_fire (Jun 4, 2010)

loved the drift wood looks like its made for that tank


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## forddna (Sep 12, 2007)

Did I see Crypt Parva in there a couple pages back, but not now?


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## bsmith (Jan 8, 2007)

forddna said:


> Did I see Crypt Parva in there a couple pages back, but not now?


Nope no parva. I have some in my mini-m here at the office but I prefer the trithuiria as the foreground occupant. I'm going to take out the kleiner bar and replace it with e.aflame (e.purple knight) since it is just such a vibrant purple and is a smaller echinodorous.

Edit: actually that was parva. IO put it in this tank for a few days until I had a chance to swap out all the trithuria that was in the M. Good eye!


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## forddna (Sep 12, 2007)

Well I was looking at all your tank journals, shopping for plants. I've been wanting some parva.


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## bsmith (Jan 8, 2007)

forddna said:


> Well I was looking at all your tank journals, shopping for plants. I've been wanting some parva.


I still have it in my mini-m.


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## forddna (Sep 12, 2007)

That's funny. I missed it in that one. Do you have any to spare?


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## bsmith (Jan 8, 2007)

forddna said:


> That's funny. I missed it in that one. Do you have any to spare?


Depends on how many you are wanting. But I have a few I can let go. 

So here is an update, that I will be updating tomorrow. Im going to be replacing the kleiner bar sword with an e.aflame or aka e.purple knight. It should look awesome in here. There are also a few other small changes but nothing radical. Check out the lotus, I have never seen one that hugs the substrate like this. Maybe its because of the light intensity?


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## bsmith (Jan 8, 2007)

Changes a few things over the past few weeks. Took out the kleiner bar in favor of the more compact/colorful/strange e.aflame, put some purple bamboo and a sprig of polygonum sao paulo in the tank and also one stem of ludwigia pantanal just for kicks. Moved some rotala mini type that I had thrown in a co-workers Betta bowl 6 months ago into the tank to see if I could resurrect it. I also purchsed some Amano shrimp and Corydora Habrosus from a retailer/moderator over at AC. 

Now to the pics. 

























































Habrosus and sao paulo

















Amano









E.Aflame


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## malaybiswas (Nov 2, 2008)

beautiful!


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## chris.rivera3 (Apr 15, 2008)

any videos?? and is your 2217 fully open? or did you close the quick disconnects a little bit?


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## bsmith (Jan 8, 2007)

The disconnects are open about 75%. The videos take along tome to up load.


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## chris.rivera3 (Apr 15, 2008)

bsmith said:


> The disconnects are open about 75%. The videos take along tome to up load.


both inflow and outflow 75%?? or only the outflow is 75%?


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## bsmith (Jan 8, 2007)

Nope just the outflow. You do not want to restrict the water coming in the filter it could cause it to burn up,.


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## chris.rivera3 (Apr 15, 2008)

bsmith said:


> Nope just the outflow. You do not want to restrict the water coming in the filter it could cause it to burn up,.


thanks for that info!


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## bsmith (Jan 8, 2007)

I just took the habrosus' out of this tank and put them into the mini-m. they really did not react to the high co2 well at all


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## speedie408 (Jan 15, 2009)

Nice n clean. I like it!


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## bsmith (Jan 8, 2007)

I need to take some fresh shots. I changed a few things yesterday and today.


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## slicebo123 (Jan 4, 2010)

whats the light situation on this tank? I'm about to get a 60 cm tank as well. I'm having trouble deciding on what light to use.

ps

i love this tank. if only i could keep a tank in my cubifice (cubicle/office).


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## bsmith (Jan 8, 2007)

slicebo123 said:


> whats the light situation on this tank? I'm about to get a 60 cm tank as well. I'm having trouble deciding on what light to use.
> 
> ps
> 
> i love this tank. if only i could keep a tank in my cubifice (cubicle/office).


I have a 3x24w solar t5 from catalinaaquariumc.com. Jim, who owns or works at the business built it for me and there us two switches. One for one bulb the other for the remaining two. I have it suspended with wire to an aluminum tube I attatched to the top of the cabinets in the office. It's hanging roughly 30" from the substrateband IMO it's about perfect. My lighting period is only 6 hours though so if you got a 2x24w fixture and hung it in at the same distance you might be able to get away with a 8-9 hour photoperiod. The bulbs I'm using are A giesmann aquaflora (pink) on the single bank and a giesmann midday with a Catalina 6500k on the dual. Gives a good appearance.


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## bsmith (Jan 8, 2007)




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## chase127 (Jun 8, 2008)

I'm loving it roud: 

And nice putter


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## Hobbes1911 (Mar 2, 2009)

any updates? The tank looks very very nice. I'm going to use it as a model if you don't mind.


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## .Mko. (Sep 23, 2010)

Solid Hardscape =) love it. Looking really clean there


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## chrisnif (Aug 20, 2010)

Awesome tank, I've never gone rimless because I'm always nervous having the water that close to the top, I've had a 5 gallon with trim that I managed to overflow every time I put my hand in


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## ritblak (Jan 22, 2011)

I think you'll be really happy with the 2215. As I in the other thread, I have my 221760 - P and the Catholic relief and happiness for the shrimp, I want to keep it kills far.


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## bsmith (Jan 8, 2007)

I cant believe i havent updated this journal in soooo long. When the lights come on (~2:00pm CST) ill take some shots. Its pretty bare IMO since I just pulled some stuff out and arranged other plants in a way that pleases me more, 



chase127 said:


> I'm loving it roud:
> 
> And nice putter


Thanks. Me too!



Hobbes1911 said:


> any updates? The tank looks very very nice. I'm going to use it as a model if you don't mind.


Thanks, no I dont mind at all. If everyone got cross when someone made a tank like theirs then we would have a really pissed off forum. :icon_surp



.Mko. said:


> Solid Hardscape =) love it. Looking really clean there


Thanks, its getting better and better every change IMO. 




chrisnif said:


> Awesome tank, I've never gone rimless because I'm always nervous having the water that close to the top, I've had a 5 gallon with trim that I managed to overflow every time I put my hand in


Just get one you'll figure out the ins and outs in no time. Nothing is as classic and beautiful to show off a scape (hard or planted) as a rimless tanks is. 



ritblak said:


> I think you'll be really happy with the 2215. As I in the other thread, I have my 221760 - P and the Catholic relief and happiness for the shrimp, I want to keep it kills far.


I have been happy with the 2217 for about 8 months now. I'm at about 70% throttle and have cleaned it once mainly to put a bag of purigen in it! That was last Saturday and it was barely even dirty. Ill be I could easily go a year between cleanings but then id get nervous.


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## ADA (Dec 31, 2010)

This tank is soo nice. It could be my favorite tank on the forums. It's such a beautiful piece of wood, and amazing plants, but the real beauty of it is your design. It looks so simple and effortless, everything flows very nicely. Well done. I'd love to set a tank up just like this, sadly I don't think I have your design skills, at least not yet. I'm working on it!


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## silentoak (Mar 27, 2011)

Holy cow this one looks nice! Excellent!!


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## ADA (Dec 31, 2010)

bsmith said:


> Depends on how many you are wanting. But I have a few I can let go.
> 
> So here is an update, that I will be updating tomorrow. Im going to be replacing the kleiner bar sword with an e.aflame or aka e.purple knight. It should look awesome in here. There are also a few other small changes but nothing radical. Check out the lotus, I have never seen one that hugs the substrate like this. Maybe its because of the light intensity?


I have that exact same plant.. Mine does that too. I think it is the bright light, like you said. I have about 11wpg, any more light, and it's going to start burrowing UNDER the substrate.. hehe.

So, where did you get all of your (trithuria?) Australia Blood Sp. plants from? I would love to try again with those.. so depressing when mine melted.


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## bsmith (Jan 8, 2007)

I received my very first Trithuria In December of 2008 at the cost of $40 for a single plant that I now sell for $15! This was from a legendary Erio/soft water plant aficionado name Reasheed, his screen name was Mrkookm. He really brought these types of plants into the lime light, propagated and made quite a few of them available before it was "cool" to do so, or perhaps he made it cool. 

Like I said when we were talking on the phone. I would happily include a couple with your order whenever you would like to get some CRS.


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## bsmith (Jan 8, 2007)

So finally had time to snap some crappy pics and post them up. A lot has changed since last time. No more Tropica 039, Colorata, Lotus, Pantanal, moved the Dwarf Spiralis and a some others, hacked back the Aflame and gave up on the maccandra morph. I just added Hyptis Lorentziana which I hope I can get to color up and show that tantalizing purple.All in all this is the most complete/best looking thus far IMO. 

Here we go.


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## ADA (Dec 31, 2010)

bsmith said:


> I received my very first Trithuria In December of 2008 at the cost of $40 for a single plant that I now sell for $15! This was from a legendary Erio/soft water plant aficionado name Reasheed, his screen name was Mrkookm. He really brought these types of plants into the lime light, propagated and made quite a few of them available before it was "cool" to do so, or perhaps he made it cool.
> 
> Like I said when we were talking on the phone. I would happily include a couple with your order whenever you would like to get some CRS.


Awesome! Thanks. That would be amazing.. I'm not ready to order from you just yet. Still waiting for my tank to stabilize.. That brown algae is everywhere.


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## ADA (Dec 31, 2010)

omg.. just looked at the pics. 

This is, hands down, my favorite tank (that I've seen) on the forums, as of now. 

Soooo pretty.. I'm pretty speechless.. Those Erios are so nice!! And, even google searching, I've never seen a trithuria that looks that good.

U have the magic, my friend. (crappy pics???? haha.. those pics are really good too)


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## Bree (Dec 17, 2010)

Well you only have like...The best office ever!! Nice growth and super looking tank!!!


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## HolyAngel (Oct 18, 2010)

is that 'mato grasso' you got there in pics 4,5,& 6? I've been on the lookout for some and haven't been able to find any..

Anyways, this tank looks awesome man, loving the hardscape/dw


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## hydrophyte (Mar 1, 2009)

bsmith said:


>


Really nice setup.


----------



## bsmith (Jan 8, 2007)

HolyAngel said:


> is that 'mato grasso' you got there in pics 4,5,& 6? I've been on the lookout for some and haven't been able to find any..
> 
> Anyways, this tank looks awesome man, loving the hardscape/dw





hydrophyte said:


> Really nice setup.


Rhanks, I know it occupies more of my time to keep it looking good then my managers would like! But gotta have it in fighting condition since my office is pretty much off the center of the showroom. 

No matto grasso. They are both Aussie II's that were from two different sources. So they are in different conditions. You know theses Erios don't do anything fast but die. 

I do have a trade lined up for a matto as soon as my ban ba wa splits.


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## do00ber (Dec 17, 2010)

Unbelievable tank, I'm getting a rimless for sure omg


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## Uptown193 (Apr 25, 2011)

Great setup. Seem like your read my mind from how your tank, stand and light looks. Would you happen to have a build thread for your stand? I would love to custom build one myself.


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## bsmith (Jan 8, 2007)

do00ber said:


> Unbelievable tank, I'm getting a rimless for sure omg





Uptown193 said:


> Great setup. Seem like your read my mind from how your tank, stand and light looks. Would you happen to have a build thread for your stand? I would love to custom build one myself.


Thank you very much! 

I dont have a build thread for the stand but I used an article Jason Baliban wrote and also employed the help of my father in law which is an experienced wood craftsman and had the tools necessary to pull it off. 

So here are some updated pics. Let me first start off by telling everyone to NEVER GET COMPLACENT WITH YOUR CO2 LEVELS. I assumed because some of my plants were doing okay and by my drop checkers being green that co2 was adequate. Well I was dead wrong. Over the course of time we get used to just about ANY change that is gradual enough. I thought that my lime green drop checker was the way it always looked.... till I cleaned my inline diffuser!!! Now it is where it needs to be which is a hue of mountain dew. 

Here is a thread that shows the damage that ensued because I was an idiot and knew that my Co2 wasn't to blame, it just had to be a nutrient imbalance. Of course it turned out that it was, the most important nutrient Co2. 

http://www.plantedtank.net/forums/fertilizers-water-parameters/139139-n-internode-length.html

So I had to cut a lot of dieing plant matter/algae infested matter out of the tank and this is what I currently have. :hihi:


























































































I also "hard locked" my post body for my co2 system. I love it!


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## bsmith (Jan 8, 2007)

Some fresh pics from today showing my new addition, variegated white anubis!


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## shrimpnmoss (Apr 8, 2011)

nice new anubia ....will the leaves stay 1/2 white or eventually turn all white?


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## bsmith (Jan 8, 2007)

shrimpnmoss said:


> nice new anubia ....will the leaves stay 1/2 white or eventually turn all white?


I'm not 100% sure. This is my first foray with this exact sp. I also have what was called 'marbled' Anubis but that is a yellow color and there is much less variegation that us also more like little spots/streaks compared to the patterning on this one. I have also read in the past that Anubis will show different colorations depending on the environment it's in. We will just have to wait for some fresh growthand see what sprouts.


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## 150EH (Dec 6, 2004)

Looks good, your light support is bending a little, could you extend it straight across to the wall for added support, just like a closet pole.

Your office and tanks are so neat that the bend in the pole is the first thing you notice and it's a distraction.

I'm not trying to be brutal, just honest. If it helps any "my tank looks like $hit and I know it" If you could find something small to attach to the drywall and support that floating end it would look awesome.


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## ADA (Dec 31, 2010)

Love the anubias. Beautiful Erios too.. <3 this tank.


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## 2in10 (Feb 8, 2011)

Gorgeous tank


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## xJaypex (Jul 4, 2009)

Tanks looking super!

Those erios sure take their sweet time growing dont they?


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## bsmith (Jan 8, 2007)

150EH said:


> Looks good, your light support is bending a little, could you extend it straight across to the wall for added support, just like a closet pole.
> 
> Your office and tanks are so neat that the bend in the pole is the first thing you notice and it's a distraction.
> 
> I'm not trying to be brutal, just honest. If it helps any "my tank looks like $hit and I know it" If you could find something small to attach to the drywall and support that floating end it would look awesome.


Its not a problem. I'm sure that I could get/Make some sort of bracket that would allow me to extend the pole all the way across. Ill see what I can find. 



ADA said:


> Love the anubias. Beautiful Erios too.. <3 this tank.





2in10 said:


> Gorgeous tank


Thank you.


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## bsmith (Jan 8, 2007)

xJaypex said:


> Tanks looking super!
> 
> Those erios sure take their sweet time growing dont they?


They sure do! 

I wonder how much quicker they grow emmersed?


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## xJaypex (Jul 4, 2009)

You should give it a try. I havent been able to tell a difference myself.


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## bsmith (Jan 8, 2007)

xJaypex said:


> You should give it a try. I havent been able to tell a difference myself.


I really dont have any interest in an emmersed setup. I have plenty of house plants (umbrella tree, euphorbia trigonus cacti, various spider plants, a few aloe plants and some others) that keep me busy on the terrestrial side of things.


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## bsmith (Jan 8, 2007)

UPDATE- I sure am glad I brought my TDS meter in to work with me today and a fresh bucket of RO water. I had been wondering why some of my plants were looking kind of rough over the past couple weeks. I just attributed it to the Cyano issue and treatment. So I dipped the probe in the water and the reading was ~520! >??? When I do WC's I use either RO from home or Walgreen's brand water which is RO filtered. I have no idea where all this hardness came from?


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## bsmith (Jan 8, 2007)

Thanks to Craigthor it looks like I will be getting a 70w MH light, which exactly is a JBJ Viper K-2 70w MH! From the very beginning of this tank I had wanted to try a MH light. So it looks like that will hopefully be coming to reality here shortly!

Keep you posted.


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## bsmith (Jan 8, 2007)

Got some pics of a new addition I received a few days ago, Rotala Sunset. I cant wait for this beauty to settle in because I think with its red leaves and green stem it will offer a great contrast in the fore/mid ground.


























































Variegated anubis white

























Rotala Sunset


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## tharsis (Oct 9, 2009)

That Anubias is really cool! I have never seen a variegated version, pretty sweet.


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## bsmith (Jan 8, 2007)

tharsis said:


> That Anubias is really cool! I have never seen a variegated version, pretty sweet.


I had a piece of variegated awhile ago but it was only slightly variegated and it was yellow not white. This is a really cool mutation IMO. :thumbsup:


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## 2in10 (Feb 8, 2011)

Beautiful tank, love the plants


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## malaybiswas (Nov 2, 2008)

Sunset is promising. Looking forward for it's submersed transformation.


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## sidefunk (Apr 22, 2010)

variegated!? Never heard of such a thing in underwater plants, cool.


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## bsmith (Jan 8, 2007)

2in10 said:


> Beautiful tank, love the plants


Thank you. I try to keep plants that compliment each other and not get a tank full of collectoritis. 



malaybiswas said:


> Sunset is promising. Looking forward for it's submersed transformation.


It was grown submersed. It just looks bad because of shipping stress. 



sidefunk said:


> variegated!? Never heard of such a thing in underwater plants, cool.


Yep, I really like this var. Its very unusual. I cant wait for it to grow out more and see what it throws out for leaves.


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## bsmith (Jan 8, 2007)

I checked TDS today and it was ~120ppm, right where I want it! Hopefully everything (the hyptis really) will be more happy than it was and start to look like it should. 

UPDATE--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

GOT MY MH IN TODAY!!!

I have it hooked up but im not sure if it is focused correct. Its not as bright as I would have thought. Check it out!!!


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## oldpunk78 (Nov 1, 2008)

How are digging the shimmer?


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## bsmith (Jan 8, 2007)

I think it looks fantastic.


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## Centromochlus (May 19, 2008)

You should totally send me a piece of that variegated anubias.


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## bsmith (Jan 8, 2007)

To anyone with MH experience... Does it look like I have the light in a good position?

I can see some pearling in the undersides of all the plants. So if that is any good indication I think that its at a good spot. 

Here is a crappy video I took. I just took another one of just the tank that I will post up as soon as it uploads to Vimeo. 

http://vimeo.com/28867534


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## bsmith (Jan 8, 2007)

Here is the video I took of just the shimmer. I turned off the overhead lights in my office to hopefully give a better perspective of how sweet this looks!

NVM, I dont thing the video uploaded correctly. Ill be back in a bit...


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## bsmith (Jan 8, 2007)

Here is a link to the one I thought uploaded improperly. I have another that im currently uploading. 

http://www.vimeo.com/28869835


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## bsmith (Jan 8, 2007)

Here is the new one!!!

http://vimeo.com/28870427


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## zchauvin (Apr 16, 2011)

Can't see vids from phone but if they're pearling its in right spot  suppose its 8-10" above water?

Sent from my PC36100 using Tapatalk


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## bsmith (Jan 8, 2007)

Before I left work today I was adjusting the timer to compensate for this new light. I caused the light to turn off then when I tried to turn it back on it wouldn't. So I threw in the other bulb that Craig provided and it fired right up. It actually seems a bit brighter too!!!


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## Craigthor (Sep 9, 2007)

Nice shimmer effect.


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## bsmith (Jan 8, 2007)

On Monday I came in and my co2 bottle was empty which sucks because I just filled it last week. So I took the bottle off and noticed my connection from the tank tothe regulator was not feeling like it should. After closer inspection it seems that not one but two of the outer portions of the perma seals that come on every cylinder that comes from CeeKay (where I get my bottle exchanged at) had lodged themselves into the female portion of the connection. I tried to pull out what I could but after a few minutes I decided it would just be safe to replace the while fitting. So I went back up to CeeKay hoping they would have them and it turned out that they did! Got back to work with the frosty bottle and my new fitting and hooked it all up. 

Here are some pics of my equipment.


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## Craigthor (Sep 9, 2007)

great that you can run and have a quick fix, around here I would probably jsut have to order it online and wait.

Craig


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## 2wheelsx2 (Jan 27, 2006)

CO2 leaks are sooo annoying. Until I finally got a proper setup, I always though the CO2 should only last 3 months (on a 20 lb). I have now been running that tank for about 14 months and counting. Glad you were able to sort it out so quickly.


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## bsmith (Jan 8, 2007)

Craigthor said:


> great that you can run and have a quick fix, around here I would probably jsut have to order it online and wait.
> 
> Craig


Yeah it's nice to be in the suburbs of a moderately large metropolitan area where there are multiple places that provide gasses for welders. 



2wheelsx2 said:


> CO2 leaks are sooo annoying. Until I finally got a proper setup, I always though the CO2 should only last 3 months (on a 20 lb). I have now been running that tank for about 14 months and counting. Glad you were able to sort it out so quickly.


It's nice to have a proper rig, that's for sure!


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## bsmith (Jan 8, 2007)

Here are some new pics. I hung the light with some SS wire I hung my t5ho from. It looks much better IMO. 


















































































Can you say Gas it up!!!???
http://s147.photobucket.com/albums/r288/bsmith782/60-p/?action=view&current=60-p9-14-11017.jpg


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## 2in10 (Feb 8, 2011)

Beautiful scape, looks like this will awesome grown in.


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## bsmith (Jan 8, 2007)

Yeah I can't wait. The MH is already making a very definitive difference in the growth and sppearence in some of the stems that are in there. They are actually growing much more compact in a way that they are mimicking the natural growth you would see in their respective habitats. My rotala sunset and ludwigia red look so fantastic! 

I'm actualy going to be out if town to Chicago with my wife to celebrate our 5th wedding anniversary till Sunday evening and will be back at work, which is where the tank is and am very much looking forward to the growth that will take place while I'm gone and seeing it when I return. 

I'm actually going to bring my personal camera to work on Monday to capture what I come back to.


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## malaybiswas (Nov 2, 2008)

Congrats on your wedding anniversary.

MH does make a difference, doesn't it? Which bulb did you get?

Sent from my DROIDX using Tapatalk


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## oldbonehead (Jul 18, 2011)

Congrats on the anniversary.

Your tank is going to grow and fill in nicely. Keep us updated.


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## bsmith (Jan 8, 2007)

oldbonehead said:


> Congrats on the anniversary.
> 
> Your tank is going to grow and fill in nicely. Keep us updated.


Thank you very much. We had a great time!

So just a word from the stupid... Make sure that you have co2 when leaving for 4-5 days after installing a new MH fixture. Its not too terrible but I spent a few hours yesterday pulling algae from the plants that were hit the worst. Dont know when it ran out but what looks like happened was that when I replaced my CGA-320 fitting and nipple last Wednesday, I didnt tighten the nipple that goes into the regulator enough so the gas leaked out. 

Stupid me, never, ever rush hooking up your co2 system and ALWAYS test it with soapy water when you are done. 

Anyway here are some pics of the aftermath.


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## bsmith (Jan 8, 2007)

Well now that I have thankfully had the co2 running for a week or so without any leaks (all my fault) things are starting to look nice (IMO). 

Here are some pics of the tank with some pics of a couple of new/er additions. 










































I LOVE Polygonum Sao Paulo!









Eriocaulon Australia I just received from Deciede!









This Rotala Sunset is fast becoming a favorite stem. the coloration is gorgeous! If I could only let it get tall and not trim it for propagation!!!


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## Craigthor (Sep 9, 2007)

How's the MH unit working for you? Did you ever change bulbs out or jsut running the MasterColour?

Craig


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## 2in10 (Feb 8, 2011)

Looking great


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## bsmith (Jan 8, 2007)

Craigthor said:


> How's the MH unit working for you? Did you ever change bulbs out or jsut running the MasterColour?
> 
> I LOVE the MH!!!
> 
> Craig


I really cant tell you how much I enjoy it. The reds in the plants are showing so much better and the shimmer, ohhh the shimmer! 

Im still running the mastercolour. I think I might get a 10000k and a 8000k whenever I do purchase new bulbs unless I find something else that peaks my interest or unless I can find some of those German bulbs you were talking about. 

Actually I have a friend through the planted tank sights that lives in the Netherlands that I might ask if he has access to any good 75w MH bulbs...



2in10 said:


> Looking great


Thank you, I have to agree!


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## Craigthor (Sep 9, 2007)

I believe Geismann has a nice 70 watt MH that would work for plants but last I heard it's not available here due to no demand for it. If you have connections across the ocean they can probably find it and send it this way.

Criag


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## bsmith (Jan 8, 2007)

Craigthor said:


> I believe Geismann has a nice 70 watt MH that would work for plants but last I heard it's not available here due to no demand for it. If you have connections across the ocean they can probably find it and send it this way.
> 
> Criag


Nice, ill ask Giles what he can get his hands on if anything.


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## bsmith (Jan 8, 2007)

Here is an occurrence I have been watching for awhile now. The Eriocaulon Parkeri sent this growth up a month or so ago and now its actually growing a nice baby plant on the end of it. I actually removed this (cut as close to the plant as I could) from the plant it was growing from and its still going great. 

I have seen people with these and heard that if it was not removed the plant would actually die. So that's why I removed it. The plant it came from and this growth are both doing very well.

Now the pics.


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## Uptown193 (Apr 25, 2011)

bsmith said:


>


Oh really, Those are nice Erios. I am jealous.

Wow, your light is a lot higher up than mine. I just look at it now for the first time. So you don't get any algae with it so high up? Damn I need to raise my light when I get home. I just did not want all the light to spread out on my living room floor. I might need to build a light shield now.


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## 150EH (Dec 6, 2004)

That's really cool the way the plant did that, you would think it is a good way for it to multiply, if the stem dies and the plant falls away from the mother plant.

I've seen people not being able to find Geismann bulbs in the 70 watt plus there are less options but at 150 watts and up there seems to be no problem.

Look'n good!!!


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## bsmith (Jan 8, 2007)

Uptown193 said:


> Oh really, Those are nice Erios. I am jealous.
> 
> Wow, your light is a lot higher up than mine. I just look at it now for the first time. So you don't get any algae with it so high up? Damn I need to raise my light when I get home. I just did not want all the light to spread out on my living room floor. I might need to build a light shield now.


Thanks!

When I had my 3x24w t5ho fixture I certainly DID get algae if my co2 levels got low. This could be attributed to a few different circumstances. Like me not checking the tank and it running out without noticing for a couple of days. This was really bad. Having 72w of t5ho light coming form a fixture with a quality reflector (even ~26" from the substrate) with no co2 produces BBA quicker then you can say sonofab#$^@! Or my CalAqua inline diffuser getting dirty from algae and putting out bigger bubbles from the diffuser disk (this makes a HUGE difference in co2 levels) since the bubbles aren't super tiny like they are when its nice and clean A LOT of the co2 just floats to the surface and escapes. When the bubbles are tiny they have much more "dwell time" (amount of time the bubble has floating around the tank allowing it to dissolve into the water) and a much higher % of the gas actually gets diffused into the water. Lastly, going on vacation/taking a few days off/jut not paying attention to it and allowing the water level to drop and allow the spray bar to churn up the water effectively causing the co2 to "off gas"' into the atmosphere. 

I think that the height I had my t5ho was about perfect. Not too much light spilled into my office, I didn't have too much algae as long as I stayed on top of the above circumstances, and the plants grew very nicely and gave what I felt were good colors. 

Like I said about your situation, if you aren't having issues then don't mess with it. Take that with a grain of salt though as it is ALWAYS wise to be as proactive as possible with algae because its a PITA to manage once you already have a raging outbreak on your hands. 

Now that I have a Metal Halide light on the tank which are much more powerful compared to other lighting methods I really need to keep an eye on everything. I absolutely love the MH because the plants are just loving it (I actually had a feeling that the bulbs in my t5 fixture were past their useful life span), the color rendition is great and you just can beat that shimmer!!!




150EH said:


> That's really cool the way the plant did that, you would think it is a good way for it to multiply, if the stem dies and the plant falls away from the mother plant.
> 
> I've seen people not being able to find Geismann bulbs in the 70 watt plus there are less options but at 150 watts and up there seems to be no problem.
> 
> Look'n good!!!


It is a really neat way of propagation for sure. You have to love mother nature! But having heard that when one experienced this plant obelisk that meant the plant that produced it was about to die kind of sucks. It does make sense because the erio parkeri that this came from was on its last leg from the BGA/GDA battle I had been fighting and also because of many co2 SNAFU's in recent months. I am assuming the parkeri knew that impending death was upon it so it threw up the growth. Then I snipped it off and stuck it in the substrate, I guess I got lucky and it survived though the bottom of the growth is looking pretty ragged. But, I have also seen/read about people that have completely healthy looking plants that did this too, maybe they had just reached the end of their natural life cycle. With these plants I think I remember that they threw up multiple growths though. I don't think I have ever once read that the plant that put out these growths ever did end up dying ever though. Maybe the members just didn't want to post that up because they thought it would make people sad... 

I'm lost with the bulb comment. I know I was talking about different bulb options, maybe im just not comprehending what you are trying to convey?


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## BoxxerBoyDrew (Oct 16, 2005)

Hey BSmith,

Great Tank! Love the drift wood, and the setup has really changed from the beginning too! Looks as if the MH is really getting your plants to grow! The Shimmer is really cool too, but how is the heat from the smaller wattage MH fixtures compared to a 150-175w? I have a Hamilton 175w MH Pendant I have had for a LONG, LONG Time, and the main reason I don't use it is because it gets TOO DARN HOT!!! I used to have it setup over a reef, and later on a Planted Aquarium, and it would raise the Temp in the Den a good 3-4*! And I am talking a good size Den too! So it just sits in the Closet now gathering dust!

Also on page 4 you mentioned you:"I also "hard locked" my post body for my co2 system. I love it!"

What do Ya mean by that?

Thanks for the info, and keep up the GREAT WORK on the tank!!!
Drew


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## 150EH (Dec 6, 2004)

Take a look at this photo, I'm not sure it's the same cultivar but these have multiply stems and the mother plants are dead, almost. Also look at the Downoi, am I loosing it or are those on stalks as well.










Here's a link to the thread bye-bye-erios

I was trying to say that the 70 watt bulb are hard to come by, retailers don't carry many of the lower wattage bulbs.


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## bsmith (Jan 8, 2007)

BoxxerBoyDrew said:


> Hey BSmith,
> 
> Great Tank! Love the drift wood, and the setup has really changed from the beginning too! Looks as if the MH is really getting your plants to grow! The Shimmer is really cool too, but how is the heat from the smaller wattage MH fixtures compared to a 150-175w? I have a Hamilton 175w MH Pendant I have had for a LONG, LONG Time, and the main reason I don't use it is because it gets TOO DARN HOT!!! I used to have it setup over a reef, and later on a Planted Aquarium, and it would raise the Temp in the Den a good 3-4*! And I am talking a good size Den too! So it just sits in the Closet now gathering dust!
> 
> ...


Thank you, this tank has gone through quite a few changes but that is just the way I do it. I cant keep my hands out of them for more than a week as I am constantly trying to improve upon what I have already accomplished. 

This MH really doesn't put off much heat at all. The actual fixture (where the bulb is housed) gets pretty darn hot during operation but I cant really say that it effects the ambient temp in my office one bit. 

"Hard Locked" is a term that I made up when referring to the fact that I have all metal connections from my co2 regulator to the needle valve. I used to have tubing and other unsightly connections but after talking with a member here, he hooked me up with all of the connections/fittings to "hard lock" my rig! I'm much happier with it now as it just looks finished IMO. 



150EH said:


> Take a look at this photo, I'm not sure it's the same cultivar but these have multiply stems and the mother plants are dead, almost. Also look at the Downoi, am I loosing it or are those on stalks as well.
> 
> 
> 
> ...


It's tough (for me at least) to ID some Erios from pics but I would say that those are either Cinereum or Australlia type II. The mother plants look pretty ragged so you may have just found the first proof that I have seen that they actually do die off after sending out these growths. I'm not that familiar with Downoi but I do know that some plants can adapt to their conditions by doing things like that. If I had to guess, those plants felt like they weren't getting enough light so they decided to take matters into their own stems!!!


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## 150EH (Dec 6, 2004)

They could be little plastic palm trees from a drink!!! I thought you might be interested, he did mention they were a Austrailian type, so your spot on mate.


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## bsmith (Jan 8, 2007)

150EH said:


> They could be little plastic palm trees from a drink!!! I thought you might be interested, he did mention they were a Austrailian type, so your spot on mate.


They sure do! 

Are those a friend of yours'?


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## 150EH (Dec 6, 2004)

No not at all, just a thread I stumbled onto and some of the most unique plants I've ever seen, there is a link above in the text.


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## bsmith (Jan 8, 2007)

I'm 100% convinced that fertilizing inadiquicies have caused the plants in this tank to languish. Monday I will be performing a very large WC and will begin dosing straight dry EI micros and macros. I have a very good feeling within weeks everything in this tank will be scrumtrilescent!


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## HolyAngel (Oct 18, 2010)

Just remember not to dose kno3 while your nitrates are still up there! But extra potassium... And thanks a bunch btw bro


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## Bserve (Nov 4, 2012)

Did this tank come down?


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