# Jargonchipmunk's first "scape" pics 04/21



## jargonchipmunk (Dec 8, 2008)

So.... I've been looming over this forum for quite a while, posting this thought or that, and never showing any of my tanks. Reason? I'm kind of a perfectionist in some regards. Not something you want to be when dealing with live things, but oh well. :thumbsup:

I've been learning about the growth, fertilizing, etc of plants for a while now and this tank will be my first real step into attempting any sort of "scape." I don't expect to win any awards, but I do think that starting this journal will at the very least allow me to better document changes and become better at developing methods to deal with the problems.

Tank-to-be's specs (shopping list)

*Tank:*

75gallon AGA standard size
Standard prebuilt stand. (the real wood kind, no cardboard here)
Black trim, stand, etc.

*Lighting:*

4 x 54w T5HO fixture from Catalina w/ moonlights installed.

*Substrate:*

Mineralized soil substrate purchased from torpedobarb (thanks for doing all the work, man! :thumbsup:
Cap of 3M colorquartz

*Filtration:*

1 x Fluval 404
1 x Magnum 350

*Heating:*

Hydor 300w inline heater

*Co2:*

20lb tank
Milwaukee 957 dual guage Reg, solenoid, bubble counter, needle valve
Aqua-medic Inline Reactor 1000

*Ferts:*

I'll be doing the mineralized substrate, so from what I hear no ferts should be necessary for a while, but I do have my stock of KNO3, KH2PO4, KSO4, CSM+B, Chelated 10% Fe, CaCl2, etc etc etc to dose any deficiencies that might pop up. In all my previous tanks I dosed EI, so it'll be a big change to think about NOT dosing, but I'll only dose minimally and only when definite deficiencies are encountered.

*Hardscape/ aquascape "plan":*

I picked up a bunch of nice pieces of "zebra rock" from the rock yard near me for cheap, and I plan on lining that up in the tank to create a sort of "canyon" lined "river" of sorts. Hard to explain, but it'll leave me with an open foreground, and a winded river going through to the rear of the tank, with the rock lining the sides. This will help me keep a big difference in substrate depths from foreground to back, and keep the mineralized soil in the rear of the tank. 

I plan on using UG as a foreground, and this plant is at home with an inert substrate from what I hear, so I don't want mineralized soil in front of the tank. I might even use an acrylic strip behind the rocks to permanently seal out the soil from the foreground. My worry here is that I want to use Downoi in with the UG to break up the river a bit around some small accent rocks I want to use in the middle of the river. (sort of like water splashing up around rocks in the rapids) I don't know if Downoi will thrive in the inert substrate like UG will. Hopefully there will be enough nutrients that escape into the water column to help this plant along. Otherwise, I'll have to find a more "creative" way to allow this plant to grow there.

Behind the rock canyon will be thick "bushes" of different rotalas to show off their colors (if I can get them to color up) and stargrass in front of them if it looks good. (I LOVE stargrass lol so I hope it looks good there) In front of the stargrass, just where the background meets the rockwall, I might lay some weeping moss or something to break up the line between rock and plant background. (or maybe needle leaf java fern "mini" if there's such a thing)

These plans are definitely subject to change (except the hardscape and the UG foreground, as once I put the 3M colorquartz foreground in without the soil underneath, I'm kind of stuck picking a plant that doesn't like minerals in its soil, and that's about the only one I can think of lol.

*Other randomness:*

The Fluval 404 will be the main filtration for this tank, while the Magnum 350 will be used to run most of the inline things. (heater, UVS, Co2 reactor) I like the magnum because I can put in the Micron powder to clear up the tank and take pics, or have company and show off, and the stock tubing on the 350 is the same size as the heater, uvs and reactor's fittings. I have an SMS 122 controller, but I don't think I'll use it. I'll probably sell it instead lol. Last few tanks I haven't used it but a lot of people really like having a controller on their tanks. I'm not one of those people. Who knows I might change my mind just to show off... but I doubt it.

Tank will be open top. I ordered the suspension kit from Catalina to hang the lights.

The stand was "oak" when I got it and I can't stand oak finishes on tanks or stands, so I sanded it all down and painted it a nice semi-gloss black. I even went out and found some awesome cabinet door handles to install. I'll put pictures of those up as well later.

Thanks for reading. Stay tuned. (soil is still on its way so no fill yet, but soon!)


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## lizziotti (Mar 8, 2008)

jargonchipmunk said:


> *Hardscape/ aquascape "plan":*
> 
> I picked up a bunch of nice pieces of "zebra rock" from the rock yard near me for cheap, and I plan on lining that up in the tank to create a sort of "canyon" lined "river" of sorts. Hard to explain, but it'll leave me with an open foreground, and a winded river going through to the rear of the tank, with the rock lining the sides. This will help me keep a big difference in substrate depths from foreground to back, and keep the mineralized soil in the rear of the tank. (/quote)
> 
> This sounds very similar to what I'm planning to do to my tank on a smaller scale though I have a 37g, I'm also going to use mineralized soil from torpedobarb so I'm anxious to watch yours. Keep us updated with pics please!


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## jargonchipmunk (Dec 8, 2008)

I'll be posting preliminary pics of certain things (the lights I got, rocks, the stand and handles I picked out, random others) sometime this weekend. More pics will show up as I set up the hardscape once the mineralized soil shows up.


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## yikesjason (Jul 2, 2008)

Sounds like you have your tank more planned out than I have mine. I am sure your will be quite spectacular.


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## jargonchipmunk (Dec 8, 2008)

snapped some pics of the "unveiling" some people were interested in seeing Catalina's new fixtures.

Here are the boxes of the two fixtures as I found them when I got home. (if you look to the left, you can see the three buckets the 3M colorquartz came in)












Found some... damage to the packaging courtesy of Fed Ex and was getting so mad while I opened the package...












.....until I saw how the guys over at Catalina actually packaged the lights.

Screwed into their own snugly fitting wooden coffins!










And when I say snug... wow. So many screws making sure these puppies didn't move! I have one screwdriver in my apartment and it was taking FOREVER, so.... 

After a quick little trip to Walmart I got help.










Now I was ready to get into those boxes!

Opened them up and inside the nice wooden boxes was bubble wrap and foam to keep them still. Everything was immaculate, bulbs were fine, not a scratch on them, even after Fed Ex's treatments.










Here's a profile of the bulbs, you can see the moonlights installed down the center.










and... here's a view of the back side where you can see their new "grill" installed in the top for airflow to cool the fixture. From what I hear, this grill helps a lot.










Here's a view of the moonlights lit. The fixture is set on top of an unfilled tank so this is not what they'll look like. just testing them out.










and here is the moonlight dimmer box attached to the moonlight's cord. Very nice touch. 










The fixtures are VERY bright, using individual reflectors for each bulb, and having seperate switches and cords for each bank of light (three cords, two switches and a dimmer switch in all) They feel definitely sturdy enough, and I had them come with the hanging bracket pre-installed. Nifty little hole that "grabs" a hanging hook or you can press it down and pull the hook out if you don't want to hang the light and don't want to look at extra stuff on top all the time. I'm very impressed, and glad I went with this company.

Coming soon: The dirt and a hardscape lol


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## jargonchipmunk (Dec 8, 2008)

I did my first test fill last night. I wasn't really testing the tank so much as all of the inline stuff beneath it. I had the magnum 350 with the inline Co2 reactor, UV sterilizer, and inline heater that I screwed in place and filled 'er up and started the magnum. Had one tiny little leak at one of the hose barbs where I forgot the plumber's tape. Not to fret. I think I'm going to the hardware store to get a bunch of hose clamps just to make sure every fitting is tight.

Other than that one little mishap I was satisfied. Everything seems to be in good working order and ready for the plants once the soil gets here. I promise I'll get pics of the plumbing up sometime soon. Been running around a lot lately and haven't had too much time.

Someday, there might even be plants in it!


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## jargonchipmunk (Dec 8, 2008)

got my mineralized soil kits in yesterday from Torpedobarb. Looks great and can't wait to try them out. As of right now, everything is basically ready and just waiting on plants. I need to go pick up some hose clamps for some of the connections underneath the stand, and go buy a couple more timers for things and find a way to have all those fastened up off the ground under the stand, but other than those minor things, I'm rearing to go.

I'll probably do some hardscape layout testing this evening or tomorrow, and I'll make sure and take pics as I go, since I'll be laying out the mineralized soil and filling in around stones, using a 3M colorquartz cap, etc and I know there's been a lot of interest in how this soil should be used from some members on this forum.


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## chonhzilla (Apr 22, 2008)

keep us updated


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## jargonchipmunk (Dec 8, 2008)

I took some snapshots of equipment, and stuff as well as me fiddling with hardscape last night and photobucket was being a real pain, so I couldn't upload the majority of them.
here's one of the very few pictures from last night that I DID get uploaded. 











You can see behind the evil puppy of doom, and beside the cute one the rocks set out on the bed that Jamie was playing with trying to help me out with my hardscape. More on that later...


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## MrJG (Feb 21, 2007)

I think I totally blanked out for a few minutes, the dog hypnotized me.


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## jargonchipmunk (Dec 8, 2008)

...good... he's now begun his trek to world domination. I am already under his complete control. We don't even keep people food in the house anymore, it's all either kibbles... or bits.


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## ZooTycoonMaster (Jan 2, 2008)

Wow I think this'll turn out to be a nice tank!!!

And nice dog


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## TheCryptKeeper (Mar 9, 2008)

ok.. I am waiting


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## smoq (Feb 19, 2008)

I hope it's gonna end up beautiful I am subscribing to this one as I am starting thesame size tank very soon. How is your catalina light?


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## jargonchipmunk (Dec 8, 2008)

okay... I promised pics.

So... pics it is!


First off we'll start under the stand...

Mag 350










Co2 reactor










UV Sterilizer










There's also an inline 300W heater, and a Fluval 404 on the other side of the stand, and timers blah blah....

Okay. enough of the boring stuff.

Let's learn about dirt! lol


I ordered the mineralized soil kit and got it in recently, so I went to work on that. Torpedobarb (from theplantedtank.net) did all the work mineralizing this stuff for me. I'm just doing the final mix and pour.


Here's the raw mineralized soil. Hard to explain the texture of this stuff. Like grainy DUST. smaller than sand, but very heavy if that makes any sense at all.










Also a bag of powered potter's clay as a binding agent for the soil.










Poured the both into a bucket...










....and began mixing...










notice the mud glove? lol well here's a better look...










... it should end up being about like cake batter in texture, but believe me it does NOT taste like delicious chocolate cake in ANY WAY!










one taste of this stuff and you turn into....











sorry I had to...

enough silliness. more to come in the next post.

stay tuned!


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## jargonchipmunk (Dec 8, 2008)

Jamie was playing around in the rocks while I was mixing mud. she started with this pile o' stuff



















and Vinnie started hogging the camera again...










It got to about here before I decided it was time to experiment with it INSIDE the tank...











....more on THAT in the next post...


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## jargonchipmunk (Dec 8, 2008)

well you can't experiment with hardscape without properly laying down the foundation... in this case, we're using mineralized soil substrate, so we have to take a few special steps to make sure everything comes out nicely in the end.

First, we make a nifty ring of our cap substrate to hold the beast in...










Then we sprinkle the potash and dolomite powder down in the middle, leaving just a smidge of the tank bottom still showing. (thanks torpedobarb for sending very generous portions of all the ingredients. I certainly won't use all of the dolomite and potash for the two tanks I'm using his kits on)










As you can tell I forgot there was a tiny bit of water left in the tank when I started this process. No matter. here's after pouring my cake batter mud mixture into the center of the ring over the dolomite and potash...










I had to turn a fan on and let a bit of the water soak into the mud better and evaporate a bit before I started adding the cap, as I had a smidge too much water. Luckily, this isn't rocket science since this whole thing will be under water. I was afraid that too much water in the mineralized soil would lead to a cloudy mess when I was done... more on that situation later...

I added two 50lb bags of 3M colorquartz sand to top off the mud mixture with a nice slope up towards the back. (on top you can see the Catalina lights I'm using. I'll be suspending those soon, but haven't gotten the kit for that yet. I'd use a chain, but I wanted one of those where I could raise and lower it easily to do tank maintenance.)










wow. the tank now has DIRT in it! YAY!!!

more to come...


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## jargonchipmunk (Dec 8, 2008)

okay... now that I had dirt in the tank I could start messing around with rocks more and get that where I wanted it. Jamie and I messed with it for a while and finally came up with something I am very happy with.

down low...










up high...










From the side...










Down the "river"










happy...










so... I have dirt and rocks. woot! now i just have to wait on plants...


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## jargonchipmunk (Dec 8, 2008)

.....or do I?


BWAHAHAHA ok... I got a patch of UG and a very generous portion of Blyxa japonica in today. Very healthy plants, and well... couldn't help but go ahead and fill this puppy.. so... without further ado...






Please mind the water. Keep in mind... There are bubbles all over from filling (I wiped them off the front and side glass for the pictures, but the plants look funny because of them) also....I am using mineralized substrate, and 3M colorquartz that I neglected to rinse AT ALL. yeah I know. bad stuff. Anyway... 









HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA CRYSTAL CLEAR! I always take my time filling a tank for the first time. I think this is what most people have issue with when griping about cloudy substrates.











right side....










Left side...










UG...











the "river"











sorry about the blurriness and washed out colors. Our camera sucks. Especiall for taking pics of a filled tank. My next BIG purchase will be a nicer camera. I'd hate for this tank to turn out well and not be able to document it. 

Okay folks... that's it for now... I do have more plants on their way at the moment, so I should be able to plant those sometime next week or so...

Thanks for watching, and for those with 56k modems... I'm sorry lol


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## Coral Keeper (Sep 14, 2007)

Its looking good!!:thumbsup::thumbsup:


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## jargonchipmunk (Dec 8, 2008)

I have a question that I'm actually asking myself, but I think maybe getting some outside opinions would be helpful...

Behind all the Blyxa will be a lot of stems. I have Rotala mini 1 and 2, Lud. Glandulosa, and Ammania sp. Bonsai on the way. I'll add more or change depending on how things go from there.

My questions is about the rocks. I was thinking of adding some Anubias Coffeefolia or something to them to break up the striking appearance a bit. I still want to see the striped rocks but break up the bold appearance a bit, and the UG won't do this on its own.


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## TheCryptKeeper (Mar 9, 2008)

I think that it looks great! I am actually jealous of the hardscape. as for the mud mix.. mine was a little watery too.. don't worry about that. remember to not dose anything. it does take weeks for the plants to adjust and settle in. once that happens you will experience nice healthy growth. I want to see it totally filled in with plants.

I wanted to go with color quartz sand too.. but I couldn't find it locally. was going to cost alot to get.


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## nadavnl (Jan 31, 2009)

nice job ! :thumbsup:

and u have a funny dog :hihi::hihi:


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## jargonchipmunk (Dec 8, 2008)

Torpedobarb said:


> I wanted to go with color quartz sand too.. but I couldn't find it locally. was going to cost alot to get.


yeah I would have done SMS but I saw that thread about the 3M stuff for $22 a bag shipped so I jumped on that. The timing is rarely ever there for me to get good deals but it was this time. I'm very happy with the stuff so far. Very easy to plant in and holds slopes and roots equally well.


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## TheCryptKeeper (Mar 9, 2008)

wow.. 22 shipped? can you give me a link to that? it would have been about 130.00 when I checked into it for my tank.. dammit. I would consider a tear down and substrate replacement.


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## Tameyourself (Oct 16, 2008)

Is that an italian greyhound?? Those are my favorite!


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## jargonchipmunk (Dec 8, 2008)

torpedo. from what I heard they ran out. They were only offering it at that price because it wasn't one of their normal stock items. I'll try and find the number and PM it to you so you can call them and maybe you'll get lucky.

Tame- yup. His name is Vinnie. He's a huge attention hog.


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## TheCryptKeeper (Mar 9, 2008)

appreciate it!


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## jargonchipmunk (Dec 8, 2008)

well I'm in the middle of my first roadbump ALREADY with this tank lol

When I set the tank up, I had the inline heater calibrated to heat the tank to 76. I stuck a seperate thermometer in the tank to double check the next day and the temp was somewhere in the 90's!!! AAARG. I got under the stand to look, and apparently I had rubbed against the temp dial while setting stuff up and spun it to 95... No fish were in the tank to kill, but 95* temperatures certainly did a number on the plants.

My Blyxa Japonica looks like it is simply melting away, and the UG is following suit. The UG seems to be staying a bit greener, so hopefully it'll pull through. I'm hoping the root stock on the Blyxa was far enough under the substrate so that it'll come back as well, but I've lost most of the MASS of the nice big plants I ordered and will have to grow them back out like I ordered sprouts or something. :-( Oh well. Live and learn I guess. I got tracking on the rest of the stems for the tank yesterday so those should be in sometime midweek and I'll get all those planted and take some more pics.


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## yikesjason (Jul 2, 2008)

That is too bad about the plants. The Blyxa looked really good in there. I am sure it will come back soon.


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## yikesjason (Jul 2, 2008)

I wonder how many Solar T5s Catalina has sold because of the good reviews they are getting on these forums.


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## jargonchipmunk (Dec 8, 2008)

well it's official. I've run my head into this substrate's "test your patience" wall lol. All of the blyxa looks dead. The UG is following suit. I don't mean a little limp or a few leaves falling off. I mean limp stems, and nearly transparent leaves. I do still see a few thick white roots hanging out of the bottoms of the stems of Blyxa which is why I'm not yanking out all of the plants yet. I'll leave them in there for as long as I can hold out to see if they adjust and start regrowing. 

If it was the 95deg temp spike I accidentally put them through, I'm fine with that. However they came from a discus tank with constant upper 80s temps so I'm not sure if that could be it... time will tell.

I'll take some pics of the carnage this evening when I get home along with some pics of the new plants that the tracking number says should be in my mailbox right now.


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## jargonchipmunk (Dec 8, 2008)

okay. little update time. snapped some new pics and whatnot.

Blyxa was officially dead when I got home. Pulled it all (took some pics first to "show off" my skills with the inline heater lol UG is too, but I've left it for now just to keep up hope that it might poke a tiny little green shoot through the substrate lol

Got everything planted and I'm seeing a ltitle growth already with the new stems so that's good. No meltie this time. I went ahead and bought a pack of seachem root tabs to help the plabts get a little headstart at sending roots down into the mineralized substrate. Maybe that's the key. Thanks Torpedobarb for the tip.

First things first... the carnage.

Dead blyxas all over the place!











and dead UG too!










now... that's in the past lol. on to the new.

Rotala mini type 1 (there is a TON of this in there, although I didn't get a good picture that would show exactly how many stems are present)










Rotala mini type 2 (very cool plant up close)










Ludwigia Glandulosa (this thing is WOW red)










Ammania sp. Bonsai there's more than it looks once again.










Left side of the tank...










Right side... (c'mon stems... GROW!!! lol)











Full tank shot (looks so empty lol) 











above tank angled shot type thing. (I already have hundreds of stems in there and I have room for so many more!  











that's it for the new plants for now. I should be adding more stems soon when I can find the stuff I want.

A couple randoms to leave off with...

SOMEONE IDENTIFY THIS FISH! I got it when I bought some amano shrimp a while back and it was an itsy bitsy little fry hiding in the bag. Now it's about 1.5" or so. 











also... these are the door handles I installed on the tank stand. I thought they were fitting for this tank. 











thanks for reading folks.. as always comments and critiques are welcome and appreciated.


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## ZooTycoonMaster (Jan 2, 2008)

Just wondering did you get all those plants from kotoleoncat?


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## Characins (Feb 4, 2008)

The fish looks like a little female feeder guppy. Should fit right in with the rest of the community fish.

The tank's looking good!


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## Pinto (Jan 23, 2009)

WOw, nice tank, looking to see the final result.
Those rocks looks COOL!


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## jargonchipmunk (Dec 8, 2008)

ZOO--- why yes... yes I did  he sent very nice plants all healthy. And even bigger portions than the huge portions I ordered from him.

Characins--- thanks, and yeah that is my suspicion as well. I'm just letting her stay in this tank to cycle it. Don't know if I'll let her stay. Currently, she's the only fish in the tank. I'll get my armada of amano shrimp soon enough and the rummynose as well.

Pinto--- thanks. The rocks are called Zebra rock, from my local rock yard. Not sure where they originate from, but I like the looks of them. I'll like them better once the lawn fills in to "soften" them up a bit. (when I feel safe enough with the tank to order more UG)


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## timme278 (Jan 1, 2009)

wow... im subscribing 

looks like a female guppy/endler

cant wait for more


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## jargonchipmunk (Dec 8, 2008)

I had a buddy from my local fish club over yesterday to trade off some random fert stuff, and he bought me a few tops of L. Aromatica. I've been wanting to try this plant for a while, so I hope I can get them to grow right.

The Lud. Glandulosa has new growth on it which I'm relieved about. The colors of the new growth are reverting back to a lighter red/green on the new leaves. I'm not really all that worried about dialing in the colors right now as I am about getting everything to grow right, and hopefully avoid algae wars. 

Also have some Rot. Macrandra 'green' on the way. I plan on adding the red version as soon as I am comfortable that the tank is settled in a bit and will support this picky plant.

The Rot. mini "1" has had a bit of die off. (make that a lot) but the rest of the stems show new growth so I'm still hopeful. The type 2 is doing a lot better with new leaf buds popping out every day. The Ammania Bonsai also seems to be doing well.

I'll post some pics soon. I took them last night but was distracted by the continuing saga of "heroes"  Jamie and I are watching it from the first episode on through on Netflix "watch it instantly". Just finished season one last night. LOVE IT! 

Waffle! HOO HOO!


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## jargonchipmunk (Dec 8, 2008)

I would say... "please critique my tank" but the FTS's don't look like anything is even IN there yet! lol hopefully I can get these stems growing upwards so maybe people can see something close to what I "envisioned" for my first aquascape.


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## macclellan (Dec 22, 2006)

Nice build. Forgot the background tho...  I've got the same AGA tank and stand and the older Catalina (no 'grill' or moonlights), BTW. I just use a Rena XP1 and a powerhead tho...pretty minimal hardware comparatively.

Okay, I see what plants you already have...so I won't send any of those.

Sure would be nice to have some R. sp 'mini type II' someday...winkwinknudgenudge.


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## jargonchipmunk (Dec 8, 2008)

If I can get the thing to grow you'll be first on the list 

It's all about the full circle with me. Pass it forward sort of thing. 

;-)
about the background. I've been still deciding on what to do. I'm not going to paint it. I've done that on tanks before and I don't like the fact that I can't change it.
I hear people talking about foam board, and I looked for that at the hobby lobby, but they don't carry anything 48" long. I was thinking of doing something where I left it open slightly on the bottom and installed a strip light in the gap to get that "sunrise" effect down the little river once the plants are all grown in.

We'll see, once I can find something suitable in the right size.


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## jargonchipmunk (Dec 8, 2008)

small update.

Got a couple new plants in


Limnophilia Aromatica










Rotala Macrandra sp. 'green'
This looks pretty ragged. I just planted this. Hopefully there are enough stems that didn't break in shipment that I'll have a lot to work with when it perks up.










new picture of the right side with new plants










Obligatory full tank shot










above the rim










also added a few amano shrimp from another setup










that's all for now.


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## redfalconf35 (Feb 24, 2008)

Can't wait to see it grow in!


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## jargonchipmunk (Dec 8, 2008)

this might sound childish, or NOOBish, but I made myself a weekly tank checklist to force myself to keep up with some of the more mundane things in this tank that I have, in past, neglected. Also, it has places where I write down any undesireables, (algaes, abnormal plant growth etc) and another place where I write down planned changes (lighting Co2, ferts, etc) and write down which undesireable these changes are meant to overcome. Hopefully, it'll help me look back and realise what has been working for me, and what was done for naught if I run into the same problem twice in teh same tank.

Like I said, maybe you pros can live without, and maybe I could too, but I'm hoping it'll help me avoid a lot of the mistakes I made in past tanks.


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## redfalconf35 (Feb 24, 2008)

I think just the opposite... This is just the type of planning that most of us lack and then pay dearly for in the form of unhealthy tanks. I'm interested in seeing this list and seeing how the tank progresses along with that list!


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## jargonchipmunk (Dec 8, 2008)

well I can't actually up load the checklist. It's 45K in word and there's a 19K upload limit for this filetype, but here's a link to it.

http://www.kcfishclub.org/images/fbfiles/files/Planted_Tank_Weekly_Checklist.doc


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## jargonchipmunk (Dec 8, 2008)

I've been ever so slowly upping my Co2 every few days since I filled this tank trying to test my limits. The little mystery guppy has been fine every day until yesterday. I had upped the bubble rate a smidge more the day before. The DC was pretty yellow and I noticed him doing a little gasping every once in a while. I though maybe he was just looking for food, but when I fed him he didn't pay attention, so I figure... that's my cap! I turned the Co2 back down to what it was before I had upped it that last time and the DC backed down ever so slightly to a green-yellow for the rest of the evening.

Hopefully, I can avoid a few algae issues with this saturation. I like this reactor. I could never seem to get this saturation with diffusion methods. I know others have, but I was just doing something wrong apparently. The reactor is kind of "me" proof.


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## fastfreddie (Sep 10, 2008)

MrJG said:


> I think I totally blanked out for a few minutes, the dog hypnotized me.


:hihi: :hihi: :hihi: :hihi: That dog looks like trouble!

Cool scape JargonChipmunk. Hope these plants hold up!


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## jargonchipmunk (Dec 8, 2008)

well on that note, I just got back from gazing into the abyss once more and noticed the first signs of pearling in there on the Rotala green and L aromatica, so things are headed in a good direction. 

now where's that wood I was supposed to knock on before I made the comment about not seeing any algae yet?


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## jargonchipmunk (Dec 8, 2008)

well I had decided I was going to use injected Co2 along with a moderate Excel doage in this tank to help the plants out as well as attempt to stave off algae in the process.

I dosed 10ml excel after today's water change and holy crap, the whole tank started pearling like mad 30 minutes into the photoperiod and didn't stop until lights out! In an attempt to be scientific, I'll attribute part of that to the water change adding a lot of O2 to the water to speed up the saturation levels and increase pearling, but I'll watch the tank tomorrow to see if the excel causes this to continue. I ordered a 2L bottle of Excel online and it should be here tomorrow, so if combining these two carbon sources continues to help the plants this much, I think I'll plan on doing this to the 125 as well.

Should be interesting to see what happens.

The new Rotala Macrandra 'green' was planted very recently and is already perking right up and has started shooting out new leaf buds, so I'm very happy with its progress. I planted a small stand of stargrass as well today. I'll try and make sure and get pics of all of this tomorrow. Had company this evening and didn't get a chance.


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## jargonchipmunk (Dec 8, 2008)

my girlfriend Jamie is a woman after my own heart. roud:

She got me a wire suspension kit for my lights for my birthday. yay! 

I'll snap some pics when I get the lights hung... along with a couple other surprises:wink:


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## jargonchipmunk (Dec 8, 2008)

okay.... I found a wooden clipboard in my desk to knock on before I typed this....

This tank has now been filled and lit for exactly 3 weeks with zero algae so far.

:thumbsup:


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## CLASSIC (Feb 25, 2009)

Love the tank man, sand is awesome, rocks too. I love how the rock scape hides the new plants, it will be so cool once they all kick into gear and come haulin over those mini mountains you got in there! Kinda keeps it suspenseful having to wait for the plants to surpass those. Anyhow i am so jealous, and congrats bud. TY for sharing.


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## Homer_Simpson (May 10, 2007)

Definitely great setup. Great job!!! It will be interesting to see how the tank progresses. Thanks for journaling this and sharing your progress. I will be doing the same but on a much smaller scale with a twist. I believe the more people journal their setups and share the experience the more we can all learn about how well mineralized topsoil works and what if any problems arise.


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## jargonchipmunk (Dec 8, 2008)

well so far my experience has mirrored other people's in one out of the two general thoughts about this substrate.

1: after two weeks (in general) the algae battles start. It's almost a given that algae starts to creep in after a couple weeks and is a real struggle to hold at bay. Once it finally subsides, most people say it stays gone pretty well.

I haven't seen any algae *yet*. I know it's only a matter of time and I'm not holding any notions that I'll be any different in this regard. However, if I DON'T have the normal algae struggles, I have three theories as to why not (things I did differently than I've seen in other people's setups) I'll share those theories after a couple months if I happen to escape the normal struggles.

2: Plants don't grow well for the first month or two. (or at least grow stunted and discolored)

This part I am seeing. The nutrients upon tank setup are mainly locked away under the inert cap, and until the plant roots get down there and get used to feeding primarily from the root, growth will be stunted regardless of other parameters. I see good growth on the L. Aromatica, but it is almost white. I assume this to be a lack of micros or something. Hopefully this will correct itself eventually. Otherwise, I'll have to do a little test to see what dosing a small amount of trace mix will do to the tank.


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## jargonchipmunk (Dec 8, 2008)

okay more little updates.

I got back from some b-day dinner at Jamie's mother's house and decided to snap some pics of the tank. Things haven't exactly "taken off" with this tank yet, but I am seeing some improvement in some of the plants. I'm excited to see what'll happen when all those roots finally reach down there into the mineralized soil bed at the bottom.

Up first some wonderfully pearling Rotala mini type 2.










next... one of the clumps of UG I added a few days ago. I decided to give this plant a second go now that things in this tank seem to be stable.










Here's some new growth on the Rotala green. This pic is actually meant to show the nutrient deficiency the plant is showing and not the pearling 










Another shot of nutrient deficiency. It doesn't look as bad in this pic as it is.










here's a better view if the Limnophila Aromatica and it's "white" colors showing a micro deficient plant. I'm sure the color issues will be resolved when the plant gets used to root feeding.










a pic showing one of my new additions... DOWNOI  oh yeah and it's pearling already for me. yay!










another pic that was actually meant to show the amano shrimp, but also shows a nice fat bubble on the downoi.










up high shot with the fancy angle and whatnot. I love having the lights suspended and being able to look down into the tank like this whenever I want. Doing maintenance is so much easier now too!










...and last but not least the full tank shot.










that's all for now folks!


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## wkndracer (Mar 14, 2009)

Absolutely awesome patience and planning on your part! Please keep up with the posts AND your weekly check list I can't believe you'll go wrong with a start like this again,,, Absolutely awesome start! This is the first thread I have chosen to subscribe to please keep us all updated as it grows in.


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## danakin (Jun 8, 2007)

I like it. Reminds me of an Alaskan forest of sorts!


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## cah925 (May 18, 2007)

I really like the zebra rocks, but I have found that algae really shows on these vs darker or black rocks. You may be able to fight it off and with enough plant mass keep it away.
I'm looking forward to seeing progress on your tank as it matures.


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## jargonchipmunk (Dec 8, 2008)

actually, I like the fact that the algae is covering those rocks. It's the only algae in the tank and I didn't like how "striking" the rocks were when I first put them in the tank anyway. It helps them blend a little.

thanks for the comments everyone. Hopefully this thing starts growing up a smidge faster once these plants get used to root feeding.


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## scotie aquatic (Nov 23, 2007)

hey jargon! im scott I just met you sat. at the auction, funny how I seen your screen name and thought that sounds familar,lol. nice to see your tank looking pretty good so far! I was the guy with the hat and beard from wichita.


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## jargonchipmunk (Dec 8, 2008)

oh hey! hope you two had a good time at the auction. You seemed to be picking up a fair amount of goods. I'm anxious to see what you do with that metaframe cube tank you picked up.


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## scotie aquatic (Nov 23, 2007)

jargonchipmunk said:


> oh hey! hope you two had a good time at the auction. You seemed to be picking up a fair amount of goods. I'm anxious to see what you do with that metaframe cube tank you picked up.


funny you ask, I just finished pulling all the scratched glass this morning, im replacing it with starfire and then doing a lil plant tank I havnt decided exactlly what to do asfar as scape and plants but I promise to start a build thread here soon i already have pics of me polishing up the frame and pulling panels before work to day im stoping in at the glass place to have the new panels cut. 
ps. we had a great time!


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## jargonchipmunk (Dec 8, 2008)

pics of the bloodfins:

I like these guys they school fairly tightly. Moreso when anything in the room moves, but they're always chugging that tetra train around the tank. Very fun to watch.




























there you are.

the 75 has FISH in it, are you happy? lol


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## cah925 (May 18, 2007)

Very nice fish. I noticed with my soil tanks that everything slowed down at first and then took off again later. Be patient and you will be rewarded.


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## jargonchipmunk (Dec 8, 2008)

just a little side note. all plants in this tank were purchased from other hobbyists on this and other forums, and a little from local hobbyists in my club. Someday, when things get going well, I'll do a little credits like in a movie.

Downoi #1 ............Joe Average
Downoi #2 ............Tina Normal
Seedy looking UG ....Guy Smiles

...and so on lol


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## jargonchipmunk (Dec 8, 2008)

well I officially have all the plants I wanted in this tank. Just planted a bunch of Rotala Macrandra this weekend. Looks like crap. lol Does macrandra not ship well or something? I'm hopeful that the stems will grow out okay and I can replant tops, or hope for sideshoots when I trim, but all the leaves on the stems that came in will be unusable, as I'm sure they'll melt off soon.

Anyway, I'm officially starting the timer. 6 weeks to let the plants get good roots going before I trim anything. (except the stargrass, I've ALREADY had to trim that stuff. grows like mad)

oh, I also thought I would like the greenish -brown color the algae was giving the rocks, but turns out I didn't lol, so I hired some mercenaries. Stuck 5 oto's in the tank yesterday and it's almost gone already! Hungry little buggers.


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## jargonchipmunk (Dec 8, 2008)

small picture update.

added rotala macrandra. shipped very poorly. hopefully it'll grow out fast so I can replace all the old growth soon.

full tank shot...










angled...


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## Lorenmws (Jul 27, 2008)

Booo! Just Kidding. It looks great, Just wanted to give you crap on a different forum! :thumbsup:


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## jargonchipmunk (Dec 8, 2008)

now the crap is following me around!


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## TheCryptKeeper (Mar 9, 2008)

the bloodfins look great! I had some a while back..


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## helgymatt (Dec 7, 2007)

Where are the bloodfins in the last pics? If they are anything like mine were they would hide whenever I came near the tank. It was very frustrating and I was wondering if maybe yours do the same.


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## jargonchipmunk (Dec 8, 2008)

they do indeed. They come out once I sit for a few minutes, but they are VERY shy. I find that when the tank lights are off and only ambient lighting is in the tank (on the weekends when I'm home before my tank lights come on) they are a lot more brave. Apparently, they don't like the intense lighting (at least mine don't) They'll always come on out for food though. Even if I'm sitting right there. I'm putting a small school of rummynoses in the tank (12) next week so maybe the two fish will even each other out and act as dither fish for each other. We'll see.

*I should also add that I created the perfect hiding spots behind those big rocks for the entire school of fish to hide in all at once  so part of it is my fault lol. When the plants grow out more, I'm hopeful that they'll feel safer and come out more.


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## smoq (Feb 19, 2008)

jargonchipmunk said:


> torpedo. from what I heard they ran out. They were only offering it at that price because it wasn't one of their normal stock items. I'll try and find the number and PM it to you so you can call them and maybe you'll get lucky.
> 
> Tame- yup. His name is Vinnie. He's a huge attention hog.


It is Matrix man I am trying to set-up an exact tank as you, 75g. I also ordered a catalina light, and also caught that deal on Colorquartz. And I am planning to do it mineralized soil way...


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## jargonchipmunk (Dec 8, 2008)

nice. so far mine is turning out somewhere near where I wanted it. Good luck with your setup. Link me your journal if you decide to do one.


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## smoq (Feb 19, 2008)

jargonchipmunk said:


> nice. so far mine is turning out somewhere near where I wanted it. Good luck with your setup. Link me your journal if you decide to do one.


 I hope I'll have time to do a journal, but I will definitely do a journal of my DIY stand if people help me correct my English. Good luck with your tank and keep us updated.


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## jargonchipmunk (Dec 8, 2008)

from what I'm reading, it looks like you could help a few of the born and bred Americans I know with THEIR english


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## jargonchipmunk (Dec 8, 2008)

I should take some pics soon. I really want to wait to trim this tank until 5 weeks after all plants were in. (was my original goal) but I don't think I'll be able to. Whether it be from my lack of patience, or the fact that two of the rotala species are growing too fast for that time frame, I need to trim soon.

grr.... decisions decisions.


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## CL (Mar 13, 2008)

Dang, this tank is really shaping up!


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## jargonchipmunk (Dec 8, 2008)

why thank you watkins. I haven't posted pics in a bit I guess. I'll try and snap some soon.


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## jargonchipmunk (Dec 8, 2008)

alrighty. been a bit since I put up some pics of this, so here they are. Things are going well with this tank. I still have yet to see a single strand of any algae I might consider a nuisance. A bit of GDA on the rocks, that I think simply serves to soften their appearance and give the oto's a snack, but that's about it lol. The UG is still growing steadily. It doesn't look quite as green in these pics as it normally does because I just gave it a clipping to encourage more outwards shoots. Anyways... enjoy.

First off, I was telling Torpedobarb I'd put up a shot of the L. Aromatica in my tank, so here is that. 










Here is a snap of the Downoi cluster in the middle. I love this plant. It's been no trouble to grow and propegate for me, and hasn't been an algae magnet like I thought it would be.










A pic of the left side with the L. Glandulosa towering above. (it started out a couple inches worth in the front of the tank lol. It, and the L. Aromatica grow slower than the others so I keep them tall and let the other plants fill in around them.










aaaand the full tank shot










and that nifty above angled shot I seem to like so much.











and there you have it! I'm loving the mineralized substrate method so far. And I think I'm having a blast with my first attempt at an actual "aquascape"

thanks for looking! :thumbsup:


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## TheCryptKeeper (Mar 9, 2008)

damn.. that looks great. better than mine ever looked! 

where is everyone getting this "mineralized soil" they keep talking about? :hihi:

do you still have any of the rotala macrandra? I have been looking for that for awhile now.


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## jargonchipmunk (Dec 8, 2008)

yeah I'm thinking about taking it out. It grows fine I guess but I havent been able to get it to color up like it should be and it's the slowest rotala to bounce back from trimmings. I'm giving it a couple more trims to prove itself lol. same with the rotala mini type 1. the type 2 is great, but type one still hasn't taken off. not even enough to need a trim yet. It's not dying and it's color is good, just reeeeeeal slow lol. I'm loving the Aromatica, and I'm kinda soso on the Lud. Glandulosa but it's a nice color and grows slow enough to not have to trim very often at all, so I think I'll keep it.

I'll be honest, I'm still not all that up with how to "trim" aromatica. I really don't feel like just topping it, as that will basically make it sort of reset its growth patterns each time. I've heard some people pinch the tops and just let it grow back out like other stems. I might experiment with it this way next week.

How is your reset going with the color quartz Torpedo?


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## TheCryptKeeper (Mar 9, 2008)

I haven't got the sand yet.. but I am hoping on picking it up this weekend and starting on it next week.

the way I was told to trim Limmo A was to clip the tops and replant them. the bottoms will grow out new tops. this way you do not disturb the roots and it will regenerate tops quicker. this method works great with my P stellatus broadleaf. once I trim it down the bottom will grow out 3 new stems from the clipping area and it makes it look more bushy like.

my Limno A did fine at first too. insanely reddish purple all the way through. but then nada. that plant can be sketchy from what I understand. you can walk into the room and look at it wrong and... well.... there ya go.

btw.. my wife's name is Jaime too.


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## TheCryptKeeper (Mar 9, 2008)

check out my limno on page 37 of my journal. growing fine there.


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## trigun808 (May 18, 2008)

beautiful tank  one of my favs


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## Coltonorr (Mar 12, 2008)

Jargon,
Your tank looks great! I am slightly jealous that you have a very nice hardscape. I decided to throw a lots of plants in my tank and sort the scape out later. 
I was also wondering what your current plant list is?
I was also wondering how you L. glandulosa is fairing...Mine is awesome on the tops but some of my bottom leaves are dying off...are you experiencing the same problem?
I increased my burst and since then I have noticed a definite change.
Very nice! I am following this closely


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## jargonchipmunk (Dec 8, 2008)

my glandulosa is doing fine. If I remember, I'll snap a pic from the back corner where you can see leaves all the way down. I get a few leaves every now and then floating from that plant, but its the same with every plant I guess. The bottoms are a bit more sparse than the tops, but that's the same with every stem. The bottoms do go greenish moreso than the top, but you can't SEE them anyway, so I guess I'm not all that worried about it. I'm even more surprised about the L. Aromatica. The bottom of the cluster of that plant is so congested with old growth nearly no light can reach in there and yet all the leaves are still full and vibrant, and new shoots actually creep their way through it to find the light.

current plant list?

Lud. Glandulosa
L. Aromatica
Rotala Colorata
Rotala Macrandra
Rotala 'green'
Rotala mini "type 2"
Rotala mini "type 1"
Ludwigia Arcuata
Het. Zosterifolia "stargrass"
Ammani sp. 'bonsai'
Utricularia Graminifolia "UG"
Downoi

I like Rotalas, can you tell? lol


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## Gatekeeper (Feb 20, 2007)

Excellent journal. Tank is very very well done (and in a short period of time might I add!!) and I got a chuckle out of it too. You get a........


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## jargonchipmunk (Dec 8, 2008)

*gmccreedy* WOOT! so if I'm real good can I get milk and cookies after nappy time?


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## TheCryptKeeper (Mar 9, 2008)

A bottle of jergens next to the bed giggity giggity! roud: :hihi:


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## jargonchipmunk (Dec 8, 2008)

this whole stinkin' journal and you notice the lotion? lol At least your mind is in the right place. :thumbsup:

*edit* Jamie just pointed out that you completely missed the gnome to the left of the.... erm..... hand lotion. :icon_redf


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## TheCryptKeeper (Mar 9, 2008)

that is weird too... my wife Jaime has a bunch of gnomes too! 


lol... "hand lotion" that is where it starts. lmao


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## wkndracer (Mar 14, 2009)

It's *really* grown in nice roud: Thanks for keeping up with the posts.
Yours was the one that helped me decide to contact Ken and do my next tank with MS. Nice, nice, nice (I'll never have your patience though setting it up) Awesome tank.


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## jargonchipmunk (Dec 8, 2008)

odd that today I'd decide to finally get back on the forum for the first time in forever, and today, you'd decide to comment on my tank. Especially to say that I've been keeping up with posts lol. I just COMPLETELY redid the scape in this tank. I was almost sad to see the old scape go, but since I don't want several different tanks, I gotta switch it up now and again to experiment with different ways of doing things.

I'll try and get some pics of what's going on in there soon when things start growing out a bit.

oh and *wkndracer *, thanks so much! I really am (or was at the beginning of this tank) a completel novice to actually trying to "scape" something. I had grown lots of plants, but trying to carve a vision out of them was certainly a first for me. I'm certainly glad my attempts didn't drive someone AWAY from this method haha.


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## TheCryptKeeper (Mar 9, 2008)

you didn't have to tear out the topsoil did you? that would suck. looking foward to seeing some pictures!


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## hydrophyte (Mar 1, 2009)

hey here is this tank again. i really liked this one a lot. it would be great to see updated pictures.


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## talontsiawd (Oct 19, 2008)

Tank looks excellent. I am so jealous you got where you are first try. I am on my 8th or so now and trying to do something similar.


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## speedie408 (Jan 15, 2009)

You're tank is making me really reconsider going all ADA AS. Looks like the mineralized soil is growing your plants very well. It's gonna look sick once it fills in. Nice job!


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## wkndracer (Mar 14, 2009)

LMAO! The journal through the set up and plants establishing along with the issues you went through were well documented the way you posted through April. At that point the tank looked solid with stable direction and basically at the autopilot stage.

Based on your response and the following posts you'll have to be more active and bring us all up to speed again on the changes :smile:

Looking foward to it.


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## jargonchipmunk (Dec 8, 2008)

> you didn't have to tear out the topsoil did you? that would suck. looking foward to seeing some pictures!


nah. Mineralised soil is still there. I pulled every single plant up by the roots, save some of the ones with MASSIVE roots systems. (everything had pretty large roots, but some were out of control lol) The ones with too large a root system, I clipped at the substrate with scissors and let it be. Did a water change, siphoning near the substrate on the whole tank and replanted the next day. Not even as much hassle (and nowhere near as much muck) as when I replanted a tank with flourite red.



> You're tank is making me really reconsider going all ADA AS. Looks like the mineralized soil is growing your plants very well. It's gonna look sick once it fills in. Nice job!


I don't know if I'd go THAT far. I love the mineralised soil, but there are certain things ADA AS is better for. It is probably the 3M Colorquartz's fault, but UG (while it grew like a WEED) wouldn't stay down to save its life. The shrimp kept pulling it up daily no matter how thick the carpet got. The root system just wasn't enough to stay rooted in the sand.



> At that point the tank looked solid with stable direction and basically at the autopilot stage.


you're about spot on with the autopilot statement. I kept it about what it is in those pics (a little more filled in I guess) for a while, then I had a TEENCY bit of bba on the UG/downoi when I /shame GASSED my fish lol. So I ran the tank at half lights for a month. When I was done getting rid of all the BBA, I turned the lights back to full, and POW the thing outgrew my maintenance schedule every week lol. It still looked nice, I just wanted something different. That's about all the "up to speed" I have I guess. A tiny but of BBA, it went away, and things went back to normal. I was dosing the tank daily for a while, but it didn't really help any growth or colors, so I went back to not dosing and it's still going strong.


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## finfan (Jun 16, 2008)

i just saw this post, very nice tank


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## Tex Gal (Mar 28, 2008)

Your tank was gorgeous! Can't wait to see your new scape...


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## monkeyruler90 (Apr 13, 2008)

wow, i love this tank. i like the use of zebra rock with that river idea going on. it looks great. and the plants look great! this is really making me upgrade to a 75!


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## jargonchipmunk (Dec 8, 2008)

The next scape is now planned. Seems to take me forever to make changes these days. We're in the process of buying a new house, I've got the bearded dragon enclosure project going on, there's work, etc etc etc. I have time enough to maintain and trim this tank, but the extra time spent planning a new scape seems to have eluded me until now. I have a bunch of Manzanita on the way, and (contrary to popular opinion) I think I'm going to incorporate a bit of the zebra rock, a bunch of the manzanita, into a double "mound" type layout with a much lower-trimmed plant base. I ditched the UG (just too patchy for my likings) and I've been propegating my downoi for the past couple months to try and do a full on Downoi foreground in the new scape.

Should be interesting at the very least lol.

*oh and thank you all for your comments. Hopefully I can take a step up with the next scape instead of down


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## hydrophyte (Mar 1, 2009)

That sounds like a great concept. I'll be interested to hear more and see it as you put it together. I am working on a new 56 and also considering a combination of zebra stone and manzanita because I liked the look of that rock in your last aquascape so much.


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## jargonchipmunk (Dec 8, 2008)

okay. last night I did the big reset on this tank. It looks funky right now because the driftwood still wants to float. It's still stuck down where I put it, but it's all at a horrible upwards angle until it sinks enough to lay back down where I originally set it when empty. It's Manzanita so it shouldn't take too long.

This will be the first time I've ever done a scape with only THREE plants lol. My favorite three, but still!

Plants:

Downoi (will be the entire foreground unless I catch a bug and plant some HC)
Blyxa Jap. (who can have a tank without this stuff anymore? lol)
L. Aromatica (no clue why, but this is definitely in my top three. love this stuff)
*EDIT* I forgot I have a few sprigs of L. Glandulosa in the tank to see how it'll look as well, so 4 plants technically)
Hardscape.

Manzanita 
Zebra Rock

Fauna.

Fauna? lol
So far it's 5 Otos and 1 lonely Snowball shrimp. 
I'm not adding any more fish until I move in late October.

I'll get some pics of the current awkwardness of the tank up soon and I hope I can get some scaping advices or critiques from the masses here. I'm no pro, but I like for it to look nice. 

Thanks for looking. and look back later, I'll have pics I promise lol.


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## jinsei888 (Apr 20, 2009)

looks great! You're lucky those bloodfin don't do the out-of-water suicide jump like all of mine did.

Any updated pics with the moonlight on? I'd love to see what the evening scape looks like!


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## jazzlvr123 (Jul 16, 2007)

good scape, pruning etc! way to go


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## jargonchipmunk (Dec 8, 2008)

ok... I'm being lazy with this tank since I'm about to move in a month anyway, so I'm kind of just letting things grow out and whatever, but I did do the rescape I mentioned, so here is the one teaser shot I've got for ya.

enjoy.


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## Tex Gal (Mar 28, 2008)

This is very similar to KimCadmus's tank.
http://www.aquaticplantcentral.com/?p=vB61949


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## jargonchipmunk (Dec 8, 2008)

Tex Gal said:


> This is very similar to KimCadmus's tank.
> http://www.aquaticplantcentral.com/?p=vB61949


 
haha wow. I followed your link and checked the tank you're talking about. It really is fairly similar to that tank! It's odd how many millions of combinations we can put together in these tanks, and yet you realise how finite the number actually is when you stumble on two tanks that aren't the "norm" iwagumi or anything, but are pretty close in "style" and plant choice. Is she using HM or something in the forground? I can't see it all that well. That one pic of mine was taken from below obviously, and the whole tank isn't in there, but it'll have an entire Downoi foreground when I'm done. I'm definitely well on my way. This stuff grows like a weed for me.

I was messing around with some stuff apparently and broke some of the downoi leaves... Result? Yup. I found two different ones like this. A single leaf broken off and shoved into the mineralized soil (well, into the 3M sand on top of it) had sprouted roots and were taking off on their own. I think I might just experiment with this method of propegation with this plant and see if it'll have me my Downoi carpet that much faster.










The tank is just a collection of my favorite three plants. There are a few sprigs of Lud. Glandulosa in there growing out, but aside from that, it's just Downoi, Blyxa J., and Lim. Aromatica. When I move, I'll probably add flame moss to the wood, and some nana petite to the rocks. Oh.... and maybe some fish haha.


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## j66213b (Jun 12, 2008)

neet! i haven't seen that in my tank thats cool.... im about to mow down my downoi i think im too impatient about trimming them. but i counted 40 stems lol but all 1/2 your size.. yours are bigger and prettier.. cant wait to see it after the move!


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## jargonchipmunk (Dec 8, 2008)

I mowed all mine down last week. my downoi carpet will be complete next trim :-D


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## malaybiswas (Nov 2, 2008)

Your dog is a bigger hit than your tank. You need to post some more tank pics to shift focus 

The tank is gorgeous.


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## jargonchipmunk (Dec 8, 2008)

thanks lol the tank is dead. I'm selling off all the plants for my move. I hate it but the tank'll have to be dry for a couple months while we deal with the basement.


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## rickztahone (Jul 20, 2009)

apparantely finding the color quartz grade T is a lot more difficult than i though. OP, which grade did you have, S or T?


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## Bree (Dec 17, 2010)

You sure have some nice growth, and the scape is fantastic!


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