# Back in the game with an ADA 45P



## ChemGuyEthan (Apr 13, 2014)

Wow, looks really nice! You made a great return to planted tanks!

And a word of advice with the HC: based on the color of your drop checker, I think you should up your CO2 levels. HC really likes high CO2. Maybe push it a little closer to yellow than blue.

Otherwise it's looking good!


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## locus (May 13, 2003)

Photo was taken earlier on in the day, it's more of a lime green later in the day, but I might try upping it a bit and see how it goes. I just don't want to kill my otos! Thanks for the advice


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## kimchilee (Mar 2, 2015)

that looks like blue green algae on the hc, especially on the right side?


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## locus (May 13, 2003)

kimchilee said:


> that looks like blue green algae on the hc, especially on the right side?


Nope, might just be the post processing on the photos, it's definitely not BGA.


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## locus (May 13, 2003)

Here's an update of how it looks just now. The HC is a bit lifted as yesterday I pulled out a bunch of hair grass that had grown into it.

I've battled every imaginable algae in this tank over the past couple of months, but things seem to be going okay now. Current photoperiod is 6 hours per day, which is working well.

Fauna - 10 x Ember Tetras
Ferts - ADA Brighty K, Brighty Special Lights, Brighty Step 3.

I had a couple of ottos, but one died and the other jumped out of the tank the other day during a power failure. I wonder if it was because the water got a bit cold?


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## ThatGuyWithTheFish (Apr 29, 2012)

This reminds me of many Amano aquascapes. Very well executed. I would trim the stems down in the middle to give it a straight horizon. Very happy looking plants too.


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## LRJ (Jul 31, 2014)

Looks great! I hope I can get my green Rotala to look like yours.


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## locus (May 13, 2003)

HC has carpeted quite nicely.

Ember Tetras are very shy.

Currently running this tank with zero algae eaters!


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## Squeaks5635 (May 2, 2015)

locus said:


> Ferts - ADA Brighty K, Brighty Special Lights, Brighty Step 3.


What is your dosing schedule for these ferts, and why did you progress to step 3 so quickly. I have the same size tank and am currently using these fertilizers except I am using step 1. Just wondering as it is not common to see people using these ferts. Thanks


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## MPdesign (May 17, 2015)

Quite perfect tank !


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## ChemGuyEthan (Apr 13, 2014)

Still looking great! Nice work!


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## locus (May 13, 2003)

Squeaks5635 said:


> What is your dosing schedule for these ferts, and why did you progress to step 3 so quickly. I have the same size tank and am currently using these fertilizers except I am using step 1. Just wondering as it is not common to see people using these ferts. Thanks


Oops, that's supposed to say step 2. Recently switched over from step 1 as I got to around the 3 month mark and the Rotala H'ra looked like it needed more iron.

Dosing schedule is pretty straightforward -every two days I do 2 squirts of Step 2, 2 squirts of Special Lights, 2 squirts of Brighty K. If I've just trimmed the stems then I'll use half the amount of step 2 and Special Lights for a week. When the stems get big then I'll add an extra squirt of each. No real science here, I just watch for algae and adjust :hihi:


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## Squeaks5635 (May 2, 2015)

Thanks for the information.

It looks like you have quite a bit more plant mass than I do, and I started out dosing the recommended amounts 2 pumps each day of the brighty K, special lights, and step 1. This seemed fine until around the third week when i started to lose some coloration in my S Repens. I thought this was originally a nitrogen deficiency and increased my dosing to combat the problem. I have and am now dosing 3 pumps K, 6 pumps special lights and 3 pumps step one every day. . . . . . .

I do not see any negative effects but have not seen the positives either. I am starting to think this is more along the lines of an iron deficiency and will most likely return my dosing back to the recommended after I add some additional Iron.

Not trying to clutter your journal with my information but wanted to give you some background and a different experience with the fertilizers since I am using them too and have the same size tank as you. 

The tank looks really healthy, good job.


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## ADAtank (Jul 26, 2011)

Really nice setup


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## locus (May 13, 2003)

Squeaks5635 said:


> Not trying to clutter your journal with my information but wanted to give you some background and a different experience with the fertilizers since I am using them too and have the same size tank as you.
> 
> The tank looks really healthy, good job.


Hey, no problem... what's the point in posting stuff if not to talk about it all?

Sounds like you're pumping a lot of nutrients into your tank. Have you had much in the way of algae?

I've thought about trying out ADA ECA to bring out the red in my Rotala H'ra, that might be worth giving a shot.


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## Squeaks5635 (May 2, 2015)

locus said:


> Sounds like you're pumping a lot of nutrients into your tank. Have you had much in the way of algae?
> 
> I've thought about trying out ADA ECA to bring out the red in my Rotala H'ra, that might be worth giving a shot.


I have not really had much I would say, but my tank is only 5 weeks old, and I have only recently started doing water changes once per week instead of more frequently. I did get a large diatom outbreak but not much green anything. I do have quite a few algae eating things in the tank though so they may be keeping it down. I also recently had a few tiny BBA spots on the wood but I scraped them off and they seem to be gone. I am starting to think that I needed so much extra nitrogen because i didn't really have any fish in the tank. Since adding the fish and keeping the special lights dose at 6 pumps it looks like things are starting to green back up. I was thinking about ECA but then looking around I figured I would probably just pick up some flourish Iron (cheaper) in case I didn't really need it. My AR mini seems to be plenty red but then again its the only one I have seen in person so its hard to say if it could be more red.

I was just surprised to see how little nutrients you were putting in compared to me and with this being my first time I do not have a lot of experience knowing what is the right thing to do. So thanks for sharing.


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## locus (May 13, 2003)

Pretty happy with how these turned out.

For those interested - shot on a Nikon D750 with a Sigma 35mm ART lens, lit with a single Elinchrom D-lite 4 flash head and Elinchrom Rotalux 70cm deep octa soft box from directly above.

Processed in Lightroom using the VSCO Fuji Velvia 50 preset to make the colours pop.


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## mot (Sep 17, 2011)

Great job with the photos and thanks for sharing how you did them.


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## Dantrasy (Sep 9, 2013)

hi mate, was this entered into iaplc? .... i think it would have done well. 

the scape is very ada gallery (the one in Japan) and the actual photo has that ada feel to it.


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## locus (May 13, 2003)

Dantrasy said:


> hi mate, was this entered into iaplc? .... i think it would have done well.
> 
> the scape is very ada gallery (the one in Japan) and the actual photo has that ada feel to it.


Missed the deadline sadly! Maybe next year.

I did my best to emulate the ADA look with the photography, this thread has a version I did a little more work on and also explains how the photo was taken - http://www.plantedtank.net/forums/showthread.php?t=906170

I've torn this aquascape down since the photo was taken and will be re-scaping in the next week or so. Also setting up a second tank - an ADA Mini-M. When they are both grown in and ready to photograph I might take some pics of the lighting setup and post a thread explaining how to achieve the look if anyone is interested.


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## Dantrasy (Sep 9, 2013)

just need the hairdryer next time haha

my mini m come together in the end, but it missed the iaplc deadline too. i've heard some results from friends, WA did very very well. 

i wonder if Amano will get #1 with the 40m Lisbon exhibit? I hope so.


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## locus (May 13, 2003)

Dantrasy said:


> just need the hairdryer next time haha
> 
> my mini m come together in the end, but it missed the iaplc deadline too. i've heard some results from friends, WA did very very well.
> 
> i wonder if Amano will get #1 with the 40m Lisbon exhibit? I hope so.


I'm curious how to get the rippled water surface without spooking the fish though... they like to hide when I'm right up near the tank and messing around with stuff. Maybe I need more fish so they feel safer.

Your Mini-M looks nice! Are you in WA too?


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## Dantrasy (Sep 9, 2013)

i hold the dyer back a fair way, just to get a gentle ripple. 

yes, I'm in WA, in Baldivis. I guess you're getting all your stuff for aquarium gallery perth? mind me asking, are you on AL? 

the nano seiryu scape was decommissioned months ago. i haven't posted pics of the new scape (except for the pic in my signature)


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## whitepapagold (Aug 19, 2010)

Nice shots!

The all ADA equipment really does look slick. Its like Apple- costs more but has a cohesive contemporary quality thats hard to match.

And in this case, the scape does the cost justice!


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## locus (May 13, 2003)

Yes, Aquarium Gallery and a few bits and pieces from online. What's AL?


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## Dantrasy (Sep 9, 2013)

AL= aquariumlife.com.au


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## Mumford (Nov 12, 2012)

Did you post a thread with your new scape anywhere? Really liked this one!


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## locus (May 13, 2003)

Here's how this tank is currently looking:




























Hardscape is Yamaya Stone.

Plants are Rotala sp 'green', Rotala h'ra, Ludwigia arcuata, Hydrotoyle tripartita 'mini Japan', Hemianthus callitrichoides.

Fauna is 5 x sparkling gourami, 10 x pygmy cory, 10 x darwin algae shrimp.


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## vision (Sep 29, 2015)

just catching up with this, both scapes are great! great work and photography.


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## UrosBGD (Nov 14, 2014)

locus said:


> Here's how this tank is currently looking:
> 
> 
> 
> ...






I seeee Oto on the glass ☺😎 

Sent from mTalk


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## locus (May 13, 2003)

UrosBGD said:


> I seeee Oto on the glass ☺😎
> 
> Sent from mTalk


Oh yeah, forgot to mention that little guy :grin2:


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## doylecolmdoyle (Sep 22, 2015)

Is this tank still going? I plan on getting a 45p soon and growing similar stems for the first time, love the dense look you have created. Dont suppose you have any photos of when you first planted? I am wonder how much Rotala I will need to start with. I am from WA too... good to see lots of Perth people into Aquascaping!


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## klibs (May 1, 2014)

doylecolmdoyle said:


> Is this tank still going? I plan on getting a 45p soon and growing similar stems for the first time, love the dense look you have created. Dont suppose you have any photos of when you first planted? I am wonder how much Rotala I will need to start with. I am from WA too... good to see lots of Perth people into Aquascaping!


Start with as much as you're willing to buy... More is better and will take less time to get you results. Rotala under good conditions will grow quickly. The key to getting it bushy like that (IMO) is to constantly propagate it at the start. Trim tops once you have enough growth and replant. Once you have good coverage then start to aggressively trim it so it grows dense. Be careful not to hack off all the healthy tops at once or else overall plant health will suffer.

You also have to stay on top of making sure any plants that are dying are removed from the bunch. Often times some plants will 'take over' and fare much better than others. This can cause issues if you don't stay on top of it.

Over time you will figure out what works best and how to manipulate it to form nice bushes like that. More of an art than a science I would say...

Dennis has great videos on how to trim effectively:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hSngM7OVpPc


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## doylecolmdoyle (Sep 22, 2015)

klibs said:


> Dennis has great videos on how to trim effectively:
> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hSngM7OVpPc


thanks for the info, great video very helpful, thanks


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## BettaBettas (Aug 21, 2016)

stunning tank! what ferts did you say you use again? and on what schedual do you use them?
Right now im doing a low tech tank, no ferts with plants that have medium growth rates, the tank of which this is in (low tech tank) has actually been growing pretty fast  maybe not as fast as it would grow like my other tank with ferts and Co2 but its impressive really  
love your scape btw unique and professional looking #GetHiredByADA


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