# 15 gallon long (56k)



## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

I have had this tank up for a while (about three months), but I could never get a clear picture of the CPDs. Fast little buggers. :icon_roll Thanks to Karackle taking a tumble, :hihi: I learned some pointers and tweaked my camera. They are still not the best and the pictures are a little blurry after a huge water change, but hey, you can see fish!

I am trying to focus on keeping the fish less shy. I noticed after blocking off the back with a background and adding moss on the sides they come out and are even swimming up to me now. I really think they like to feel as snug as a bug in a rug. 

Here are the specifications:
[STRIKE]10 gallon Aqueon[/STRIKE] 15 gallon 
[STRIKE]Home Depot 27 watt light fixture compact lighting. [/strike] Coralife 65 pc watts
[strike]Glass top (to keep the cats away) [/strike]open top
[strike]Top Fin 10 gallon Hang on Back Filtration [/strike] Tom Rapids Mini Canister 
[strike]1 2 Liter Diy co2 with 1 3/4 liters of water, 1 cup of sugar and 1/4 teaspoon yeast changed every 10 days[/STRIKE] pressurized
Flourite, Sand (almost gone!) and Gravel Mix

Flora:
[STRIKE]Marselia sp. (thanks Reckles!)[/STRIKE]
Christmas Moss (thanks Reckles!)
Sunset Hygro
Peacock weed (not sure what it is)
Rotala Macranda Green
Rotala Colorata
Rotala Roundfolia
Rotala sp. 'butterfly'
Dwarf Hairgrass
Myrio Green
Ludwigia 


Fauna:
Celestial Pearl Danios
5 Female Guppy Fry
Yellow Shrimp
Pond Snails
Ramshorns
MTS

3/4 Shot of the tank









Party at the Hygro Club









Female eating a BBS









Males being handsome









I thought the female had a white spot on her head. :icon_eek: Turns out it was lint that got in the tank. Whew.....:redface:









Still need to work on the pictures, but here are a couple more anyway....


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## sunfire99 (Apr 8, 2009)

Nice fish!! What are those mosses attached to? I'd like to set up a tank for several of the smaller fish I like including CPDs. I'm afraid to use very small fish on my current project because of the Angels I will be adding.


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## suebe333 (Feb 17, 2009)

Nice tank


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

The moss is just in the corner with a 3/16 clear tubing jammed into the substrate in front of the moss to keep it the corner. I wanted the moss unattached so I could easily move it into another tank when they start spawning. However, the moss is attaching to the tubing. Haha. Thanks for the compliments you guys.


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## seds (Jan 30, 2009)

Is your "peacock weed" the single, bright green tall plant? That is a milfoil. I couldn't tell you the species but I would say it is probably not parrot's feather, that one has several leaves in each whorl. It looks like that one only has 3 in each? That is weird. If it does well and keeps growing fast you will be able to create a nice grove via cuttings. Have you had it for long?

You don't have to change DIY CO2 that often. Most people let it go for 3 weeks.


PS: nice fish though. I don't have a scape yet either...


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

Yes, that is the one. I just called it that because it has a peacock feather look to it and didn't know what it was. I am glad to finally have an identification. Thanks.  It definitely looks like a myriophyllum, possibly aquaticum? This one in the 10 gallon is a sad little stem. I found it last night growing under the moss when I was cleaning. I am liking your suggestion of spreading it out more. Here is the same plant in my high tech tank.


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## organic sideburns (Dec 22, 2005)

those are amazing fish sewing! i must get some some day. i like this tank, cute 10 gallon.


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## funkyfish (Mar 16, 2009)

I like your fishes  And the tank looks nice!


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

Thanks. They are really amusing fish.


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## sunfire99 (Apr 8, 2009)

Parrot's Feather.... I put some in my outdoor Koi pond several years ago (or at least what was labeld Parrot's Feather and I pull buckets of it each year. It's just strangling to everything. It even grew up the rocks at my waterfall, and into the stream that flows into the pond. Wish I could get rid of it. Wicked stuff!!! Maybe it acts differently submersed??? If so, I have plenty to stock many tanks worth.....


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## Axelrodi202 (Jul 29, 2008)

Nice CPD's. Any spawns yet?


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## Karackle (Dec 11, 2007)

Nice tank Sara! And good photos too! I think my CPDs are about the same color as yours, maybe a little more red, but they've gotten darker as they've gotten older too I think. It could be an artifact of different lighting and camera settings as well though. 

As for keeping them from being shy, how many do you have in there? Do you have room for a few more small fish? I find that mine are not shy at all, they're a little skittish, but they are always swimming all over the tank, I've seen them schooling with the white clouds and with the ember tetras. I think having other small, not shy fish in the tank must help because i know a lot of people say they are shy fish, but I haven't seen that at all.


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

sunfire99 said:


> Parrot's Feather.... I put some in my outdoor Koi pond several years ago (or at least what was labeld Parrot's Feather and I pull buckets of it each year. It's just strangling to everything. It even grew up the rocks at my waterfall, and into the stream that flows into the pond. Wish I could get rid of it. Wicked stuff!!! Maybe it acts differently submersed??? If so, I have plenty to stock many tanks worth.....


Haha. I was close with peacock. Do I get any points, lol! I like it so far, but after googling it, I am thinking I will feel like you shortly. It is wicked. Maybe even possessed. I will have to be careful when I trim it and not to ship any of it to illegal states, it is very invasive.



Axelrodi202 said:


> Nice CPD's. Any spawns yet?


I haven't seen any, but they are chasing each other in the typical spawning fashion. I think they are still too young.



Karackle said:


> Nice tank Sara! And good photos too! I think my CPDs are about the same color as yours, maybe a little more red, but they've gotten darker as they've gotten older too I think. It could be an artifact of different lighting and camera settings as well though.
> 
> As for keeping them from being shy, how many do you have in there? Do you have room for a few more small fish? I find that mine are not shy at all, they're a little skittish, but they are always swimming all over the tank, I've seen them schooling with the white clouds and with the ember tetras. I think having other small, not shy fish in the tank must help because i know a lot of people say they are shy fish, but I haven't seen that at all.


In person, they look even more orange. They are supposed to be captive bred, so I am wondering if this is the cause. Or like you said, the lighting and age. I actually have way too many. There are 18. I do a lot of water changes and feed sparingly. I have a 15 long cycling for them. I want to be careful in the move, though. I wonder if mine are shy due to being the only species? They do like to swim around in the open spaces, but are easily startled.


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## rrrrramos (Jan 24, 2008)

If you have a nice well planted tank full of nice hiding spots and the like, these fish will be nice and comfortable and spend a lot of time out in the open. If you have a lightly planted tank or a bare tank while they will be out in the open they will be nervous fish and hide behind whatever they can when startled. I have 6 of these in my tank and only one of them hasn't outgrown his shyness. The other 5, including 3 that were just introduced yesterday, spend almost all of their time in the open, and when they do get startled (tank shaking after I open drawer or the like), they are back out within seconds. These are by far my favorite fish and in my opinion some of the more interesting freshwater species. Plus you can't deny that they look amazing with all their colors on such a small fish.


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## Karackle (Dec 11, 2007)

Maybe with that many it helps them be less shy. Mine like to school in the open with the white clouds and sometimes the embers but are easily startled as well, i had to sit pretty still with the camera focused where they like to hang out to get those shots. I know there are a lot of people who call them shy in terms of them not coming out and about though, but I think those are smaller schools generally. Anyway, I'm just speculating :tongue: glad to hear they school in the open and have a larger home in the works! fun!


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

I was wondering if more plants would draw them out more. I am considering painting the sides of my new tank to see if that helps. They are such pretty fish. My only regret is they are not in my living room. I want to eventually move them into here, but my husband refuses to give up the tv for another fish tank. :hihi:


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## Karackle (Dec 11, 2007)

Hahahaha doesn't want to give up the tv! love it. Well where are they housed now? If not the living room, what about the bedroom? that's where i have most of my tanks and I love it


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

The fish are in the foyer. Probably not the best of places. I like the idea of putting them in the bedroom. That's a great idea. Oh, honey.......... :hihi:


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

A picture showing more awesome plants from Rich815. This will show the Hydrocotyle leucocephala 'large leaf', Crypt wentii (only three melting leaves, yeah!), Myriophyllum mattogrossense, and Lindernia sp. rotundafolia varigated. The rest of the plants went to George, which I'll update later.










Yes, the light is too bright, I am trying to get the celestials prepared to the new brightness in the 15 long they will be moving to shortly. And even though these are blurry, I just wanted to show how much the CPDs have come out of there "shells" since the addition of all the plants. They are actually coming up to the main glass and saying "hi" at feeding times! 














































Hope you liked my blurry pictures!


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## funkyfish (Mar 16, 2009)

I got some of the CPD and I am in love with them!!! For now I got only 7 but once my other tank is set up I will move my cherry barbs in there and get some more of these guys  They actually school with cherry barbs in my tank  
And how do you get such good pictures of them? I tried to take a nice picture but all I get is little blurs LOL


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## Karackle (Dec 11, 2007)

Wow looks good! I love the large leafed plant on the left, is that the Hydrocotyle leucocephala 'large leaf'? Might need to get some trimmings of that when it needs to be cut back! :hihi:

Fishies are looking good too, looks like they have some nice color and I am glad they are getting less shy!


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## o snap its eric (Jan 12, 2004)

CPD, are the a shoaling fish? What water column do they swim in?


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## mithrius (Apr 28, 2009)

they are SO cute!! those fish are awsome..
and your tank looks so awsome, they dont look shy at all! good job on the whole scaping, it looks really nice and obviously the fish like it as well  
i would like to get some of these... but that would mean another tank..
...dun dun dun!!!
ooh.. but i want some so bad...!


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

Karackle said:


> Wow looks good! I love the large leafed plant on the left, is that the Hydrocotyle leucocephala 'large leaf'? Might need to get some trimmings of that when it needs to be cut back! :hihi:
> 
> The plant on the right is the large leaf, yes. Consider it yours! It is growing fast. We will definitely have to trade hygro for hydro! :hihi: I crack myself up!
> 
> Fishies are looking good too, looks like they have some nice color and I am glad they are getting less shy!





o snap its eric said:


> CPD, are the a shoaling fish? What water column do they swim in?


I believe they are a shoaling fish more than a schooling fish. They are in moderately hard water and seem to like it cooler in temperatures. I also noticed they like the water level dropped so the filter trickles more.



mithrius said:


> they are SO cute!! those fish are awsome..
> and your tank looks so awsome, they dont look shy at all! good job on the whole scaping, it looks really nice and obviously the fish like it as well  i would like to get some of these... but that would mean another tank..
> ...dun dun dun!!!
> ooh.. but i want some so bad...!


I actually got a fish tank just for these fish, so I completely hear you! After all, how much does a ten gallon take up anyway?  Thanks for the encouragement. I really think it is the plants that have helped. I also noticed they love the brighter lights.


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## Karackle (Dec 11, 2007)

I would have to agree, they're more shoalers than schoolers, at least they are in my tank. It's so hard to tell in the closed system of a fish tank, but they certainly seem to act more like shoalers.

Interesting about the trickling filter, I hadn't noticed that myself, I'll have to keep an eye out for it (yes occasionally i am a bad tank mom and let my water get a little low before I get around to topping it off....you caught me! :tongue: :hihi

I've been there with the fish tank for a certain fish. See my livebearer breeding project :hihi: But I ended up with CPDs in a more unconventional way though, sort of by accident. I was in my LFS and there was 1 poor little lonely CPD in a tank alone with some much larger fish (well large as compared to a young CPD ) so i figured even if the only one of his kind, he'd be happier in a tank with my other nano-fish than where he was. Then of course, he needed friends....and now i have a nice shoal of 7 beauties! :biggrin: 

Woah....sorry to threadjack with my story! :redface:


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

My fifteen is finally cycled and the CPDs have been moved over to it. I put it in the bedroom, thanks for the tip, Kara! I will update with pictures soon, I just had to say how proud I was of myself to wait until the tank was fully cycled. 

Kara - I love the story you gave. By the way, you didn't threadjack my thread. Everyone should check out your amazing journals if they haven't already!


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## MissMTS (Oct 8, 2008)

Your CPD's are so pretty! I wish I could find some near me. Can't wait to see pics of the 15 long once you get around to it.


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

Thanks. I had to special order them. They cost a boatload! I just transferred the fish over last night, so I am waiting until they calm down for pictures. Perhaps tomorrow.


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## Karackle (Dec 11, 2007)

Awesome, can't wait to see the new set up! Maybe some of the plants I send will end up in that tank! And you are more than welcome for the tip on the location, i LOVE having tanks in my room! :biggrin:

Also, glad you didn't mind the threadjack :hihi:


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## Rion (Dec 29, 2006)

Very nice, I'm such a sucker for CPDs. How many males and females do you have, and have they tried breeding yet?


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

I am not sure of the male to female ratio for sure. I counted 7 males and 13 females I think. Yet, they are quick so I'll try to get a better count later. They aren't breeding yet as far as I know. I am not sure if they are old enough or if there is too little males.

Here's a couple quick pictures. They love crypts for some reason. I threw in a male and three female guppies and have noticied the CPDs do like to come out more. It is cool to see all twenty swimming out in the open now. I think the quiet bedroom helps due to the low traffic. 



















Cool guppy, I'll try to get a better picture later.


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## Rion (Dec 29, 2006)

All your CPDs in those pictures look to be of breeding age. Did you empty the 10 after you moved the fish? Cause you might end up finding baby fish in the 10...


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

Actually, there is a little bit of water left in the 10 gallon. Most of the water went into the the new tank. And some on plants.


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## Rion (Dec 29, 2006)

Hey there could still be some fry in there, they're pretty tiny. They'd most likely be around any objects they could find for cover. Heck you could grab a turkey baster and a clear glass and check for eggs. But if you haven't seen any males chasing females I wouldn't worry about it.


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

Right now, they are all kind of swimming together. No one seems to chase anyone. I'll go check to be sure, though.


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

*Follow the leader*

Yup, still just playing follow the leader with one another. Here are some more pictures (some blurry, sorry). :icon_redf


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## Rion (Dec 29, 2006)

I meant while they were in the 10 was there any chasing? If so there's a chance if not then I wouldn't worry about it. My gosh you have a lot of females! I only have 3 (4 if the baby turns out to be female) and 8 males. If you'd like I could try and help you with camera settings. Just PM me if you'd like, so I don't end up hijacking your thread with camera help.


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## hydrophyte (Mar 1, 2009)

they look really nice in that good-sized group. i have only seen them at the LFS with just a few in a tank all hiding in rear corners. this nice shoal is much better.


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

Rion said:


> I meant while they were in the 10 was there any chasing? If so there's a chance if not then I wouldn't worry about it. My gosh you have a lot of females! I only have 3 (4 if the baby turns out to be female) and 8 males. If you'd like I could try and help you with camera settings. Just PM me if you'd like, so I don't end up hijacking your thread with camera help.


No, in the ten, they kind of hovered in the corner until feeding time. Now they are out in front and center. I am not sure if it is the extra space, the quite room, or the guppies. I really am happy.

By the way, feel free to hijack, I could use the help and others might find it helpful to. Sending pm. 



hydrophyte said:


> they look really nice in that good-sized group. i have only seen them at the LFS with just a few in a tank all hiding in rear corners. this nice shoal is much better.


Thanks, I agree. I had just a few in the beginning, but it wasn't until I got a lot they started to hang out more. I hope I am not too overstocked. I have two filters on the tank right now and am feeding lightly.


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## Karackle (Dec 11, 2007)

Looking good! They look so happy! YAY!  Makes me want more! :hihi: 

What kind of guppy is that? he looks gorgeous! And i think your pictures look good, they're a little dark, but i assume that means you're not using a flash, and it's definitely harder to get non-blurry shots without a flash. I take about a million fish pictures for every one that i post (and even then they're usually a bit blurry :hihi though I am certainly no expert. Best thing I discovered on my camera was how to change the exposure time, i put it all the way down and get fewer blurs where there should be fish. Though honestly, i think your pictures look pretty good!  The other settings i make heavy use of are of course the macro setting for close-ups and the "dusk" setting. 

As for being overstocked, with 20 of these tiny buggers in a 15g, even with 4 guppies, i'd say definitely not overstocked. Especially since the tank is planted. These guys are so small they have a very minimal bioload. Just watch out for the guppies dropping fry, you might quickly _get_ overstocked....Perhaps just putting in a few males for this tank would be better so as not to risk over-stocking?


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

Thanks to Rion's great pm and links and Kara's falling over tips, I was able to take some better pictures.










Thanks for the great hygro sunset, Kara. It is _so pretty!_








































































In a separate tank with no journal, I have a berried female Cherry!


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## hydrophyte (Mar 1, 2009)

very nice. that tank is scaled well with those little fish.


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## CL (Mar 13, 2008)

Cool stuff. I love 15 longs. They have great dimensions


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

Thanks you guys.  I just found one dead fish.  The only one that didn't make it. I am so sad. They still aren't showing signs of breeding. I need to start feeding live foods again. 15 longs are fantastic, I think it is my favorite tank size.


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## Karackle (Dec 11, 2007)

I'm so glad to see you got the sunset hygro planted, it looks wonderful!  The whole tank looks great, YAY! 

Sorry to hear about the dead fish  Sometimes the stress of the move is too much, 1 isn't so bad, but it's never fun. 

I can't wait to see this tank grow in!


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

I think it was an untraceable ammonia spike or nitrites. I have a bit of staghorn algae but plenty of co2. I did a 20% water change and everyone else is looking great.


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## Karackle (Dec 11, 2007)

Glad to hear it! I hate it when that happens, but I'm glad to hear the tank has stabilized!


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

Yeah, especially when you pay a fortune for the little guys. Ouch.


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

Stupid guppies kept bullying my CPDs when the males tried to size each other up, so I moved them. Look what I found while changing the water! Fry!  I hope it is the danios, but it may actually be guppy fry. But still, it means I am doing something right!









And that is some of the beautiful sunset hygro Kara gave me! 










Sorry the pictures suck. I was too excited to remember how to set the camera.


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## hydrophyte (Mar 1, 2009)

that looks like a baby guppy. it really is deceptive how guppies seem like such small peaceful little fish. i heard about a study somebody did somewhere in Mexico that involved an endangered fish species. they found that male guppies--which are not native to anywhere in Mexico--in an introduced population were so intent on mating that they were persuing the females of the endangered native fish--even though there was no way that they could successfully mate with them--so much that the natives did not have enough extra energy to successfully carry their own broods to term.


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

Yeah, you are probably right about it being a guppy. Wishful thinking. I think I can give supporting evidence to the study you are talking about. Tonight, I saw four males after the same very gravid female. I felt so sorry for her, I moved her to the quarantine tank for a while with a couple other females.

I guess I am not the only insomniac here. :hihi:


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## hydrophyte (Mar 1, 2009)

sewingalot said:


> I guess I am not the only insomniac here. :hihi:


...and i have to get up at 06:00. :eek5: i better go try and turn in. i was tending plants and fish all day long and only got back to my computer errands at midnight.


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## da1001 (Jan 9, 2008)

You have a nice tank for some nice fish. I was going to go CPD in my tank at first too, but could not find them anywhere. Good job on getting some and making such a nice tank.


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## Karackle (Dec 11, 2007)

Heeheehee YAY FRY! I would guess they are guppies also! Male guppies are definitely relentless chasers, they'll chase other males if there isn't a female around. But they are so pretty!


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

hydrophyte said:


> ...and i have to get up at 06:00. :eek5: i better go try and turn in. i was tending plants and fish all day long and only got back to my computer errands at midnight.


Dang! How do you find time to eat? And I thought I was bad. Luckily, I am still off work until Tuesday so I was able to sleep in a bit. :hihi:



da1001 said:


> You have a nice tank for some nice fish. I was going to go CPD in my tank at first too, but could not find them anywhere. Good job on getting some and making such a nice tank.


Thanks! I actually had to special order mine. I spent around $170 for twenty-four of them. My husband looked like this for weeks: :angryfire He likes them now, though. He even bought me a new brine shrimp breeder stand. So now when he thinks of the money I spent, he's more like: .

I hate the substrate though. It is a mixture of everything from sand to gravel to a bit of flourite. An experiment gone ugly. :confused1:



Karackle said:


> Heeheehee YAY FRY! I would guess they are guppies also! Male guppies are definitely relentless chasers, they'll chase other males if there isn't a female around. But they are so pretty!


Yes, they are definitely guppy fry. Those males are relentless. It didn't hurt to imagine though....I am trying to encourage them to breed and they just started the ritual yesterday. 

And today I almost killed all of them.  Co2 is very dangerous if used without thinking. I turned up the co2 last night at the end of the lighting period. Today they were gasping. I lost one fish and another is questionable. :icon_cry:


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## Centromochlus (May 19, 2008)

Great looking tank! I'm jealous of your CPD's.. 24 of them?! Holy shiznits.. :hihi:

I don't know much about CPD's except that they were discovered in 2006.. hehe.


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

There is only 19 now. Four didn't make it through quarantine and one didn't survive the transfer to the 15 gallon. She was sickly from day one, I guess the move did her in. I have been battling a bunch of algae in this tank, mostly due to neglect of the plants over the health of the fish. I really wanted to grow as much green just to get the tank really going strong. My goal is to actually do a simple scape with a few choice stems. You know, something I probably can't do.  I am about ready to do a complete teardown, but I thought I would share the ugly with you.










This little guy has his work cut out for him.


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## Karackle (Dec 11, 2007)

Again with the absurd amount of lushness!!! Those plants grew FAST, i mean, I know I haven't been on here in a few weeks, but shoot! those were just tiny little inch long stems in the previous batch of photos!!! Unless I am confused and this new set of pictures is the 10g that the CPDs WERE in? 

Either way, algae or no, I love the simple but lush quality of this tank.


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## Axelrodi202 (Jul 29, 2008)

Did you get your CPDs at the store? Why not get them online? Its a lot cheaper! 

And yes, your nerite snail has his work cut out for him. You might want to add a few more.


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## Karackle (Dec 11, 2007)

Axelrodi202 said:


> Did you get your CPDs at the store? Why not get them online? Its a lot cheaper!


I actually got mine cheaper from the store, just thought I'd mention it :hihi:


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## ryan_p (Mar 18, 2009)

Wow you got a lot CPD's im jealous. I love this lil fishes one of LFS in my area had it but i hate the price. besides that, im worried about zebra danios and betta in my tank bullying this lil guys coz theyre very tiny. When i find my right mini tank maybe ill consider this with tiny boraras brigate and some shrimp together in a mini tank.


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

Ehh...algae. It's okay, I don't mind it much right now. I am more focused on the fish in this tank, and the co2 is very hard on them for some reason. I am going to get some more plants and lower the lights to compensate for a while longer.

I got them through a store, but I didn't mind the price because the guy was able to give me a great deal on the 15 and other fish supplies. I just now saw my first batch of fry! And not guppies. I cannot get a picture for the life of me. They are TINY. My goal is to get them breeding and share them with lots of people. I want to make them affordable to everyone.


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## skinz180189 (Jun 26, 2009)

sewingalot said:


> Ehh...algae. It's okay, I don't mind it much right now. I am more focused on the fish in this tank, and the co2 is very hard on them for some reason. I am going to get some more plants and lower the lights to compensate for a while longer.
> 
> I got them through a store, but I didn't mind the price because the guy was able to give me a great deal on the 15 and other fish supplies. I just now saw my first batch of fry! And not guppies. I cannot get a picture for the life of me. They are TINY. My goal is to get them breeding and share them with lots of people. I want to make them affordable to everyone.


Pictures of fry are really hard. My auto focus (Nikon D40) can't find them, so I have to manual focus and they are really nippy too. Plus I have fairly large fry (mollies), not surprised you are struggling to get pictures of them!


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## Karackle (Dec 11, 2007)

Wow Fry! That is so awesome!!! Congratulations!!! Let me know when you have some for sale, I'd love to increase the number in my school by a few! 

If they're happy enough to breed, I guess the CO2 isn't THAT hard on them! :hihi: which is a great sign! Congrats again! :biggrin:


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

Thanks! I'll definitely let you know when they are older and send you some. Be glad to.  I lost a few, but there are still a dozen or so. I'll try to get a picture soon, they just look like blurry dots even with a tripod and timer. Hehe.


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## Karackle (Dec 11, 2007)

That is so cool, I am glad they are doing well! Once I move I would love to try breeding them if I have the time and space, we NEED to up the captive bred population to save the species, and to bring the price down so everyone can enjoy them!  You'll have to let me know how you did it!


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## fastfreddie (Sep 10, 2008)

Where have I been during this tank's life? Totally missed this thread. 

CPD's are so cool! They look sort like tiny brook trout to me.


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

Kara, I used BBS, Spirulina Algae Flakes, Vitamin B complex and luck. Lots of luck.

You are right, they do look a lot like tiny brook trout. I have completely changed the looks of this tank but am too lazy to walk upstairs to take a picture right now.


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## fastfreddie (Sep 10, 2008)

Haha, take the camera upstairs when you go to bed.... back down when you wake up. Post while the coffee is brewing.


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## Karackle (Dec 11, 2007)

Luck seems to be the key! How are the babies doing? 

I can't wait to see the new look of the tank! I like Freddie's idea, although if you're like me it wouldn't work, I'm always running out the door 5 minutes late and brewing my coffee at work so i can sleep in an extra few minutes! :icon_lol: at least you have the excuse of having to go upstairs though, i live in an apartment and I'm often too lazy to walk to the next room to take pictures :tongue: :hihi:


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## flagator (Feb 3, 2009)

I have about 20 CPD's in my tank and you are right catching the right moment to take a pic is very challenging, they like to zip around. Some of mine have done the circle dance but nothing yet. Thanks for sharing your photo's.


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

I am having mixed blessings with this tank. The algae is going away since bumping up the co2 and the ottos were added. Also, I saw yellow baby shrimp last night. Yeah! However, the CPD fry did not respond well to the bumping up of the co2 and I cannot find the babies. Just when they were getting old enough for me to see better.  I am setting up a breeding tank to try to combat this issue. The CPDs were hiding in the back when I snapped these pictures. They are smart. :hihi:


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## legomaniac89 (Mar 16, 2008)

Fish always seem to pick photo day to be shy. Wonder why that is? :hihi:

Looks good! I like the Yellow Shrimp, one of these days I'll get some of my own.


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

legomaniac89 said:


> Fish always seem to pick photo day to be shy. Wonder why that is? :hihi:
> 
> Looks good! I like the Yellow Shrimp, one of these days I'll get some of my own.


Yellow Shrimp are awesome. I love them more than the Cherries. They are quite the characters. CPDs are clever. They were out everywhere and I went to get the camera and poof. Here are a few incognito. 



















Did a little rescaping. The tank is still a little cloudy from the uprooting.


















Top View









Algae is almost gone and the  _Ludwigia senegalensis_ and is rebounding nicely.









Look to the right of the downoi! A new baby.


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## hydrophyte (Mar 1, 2009)

sewingalot said:


>


this is a nice little tank--so refreshing to see such a simple display.


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## Karackle (Dec 11, 2007)

I love this tank, it's such a nice little CPD haven! I bet they love it too the clever little buggers!  :hihi:


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

Awww, shucks. Thanks you guys. I am still trying to get some decent pictures, but the lighting in our bedroom sucks. My husband is supposed to help me by putting up a better light this month. Perhaps then I can get a better picture of the shy guys.


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## VisionQuest28 (Apr 18, 2007)

I just found this thread...i LOVES ME SOME CPD's! lol I have 7 in my 37g community and they are my favorite fish in there by far. Mine arent the least bit shy anymore, i mean they do duck for cover quickly, but they are right back out just as fast. Last time i was in the tank doing a water change i had a couple nibbling at my arm hair. haha Any time i feed, especially with decapped bse, GP, or copepods they do this little dance that i soooo wish i could get on video. Like little dogs, they get their fins wagging back and forth really fast and just kind of do this shimmy...i love it, get a kick out of it every time.

I havent tried taking any pictures of the tank in awhile, but my last attempt at getting shots of them was totally unsuccessful. They just stay on the move! 

Anyway, nice tank shots and great fish...hope you have more babies soon!


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## ryan_p (Mar 18, 2009)

Hey hows your CPD's doing? Do CPD's just swim at the bottom/mid/ or top of the tank or they swim everywhere like zebra danios? I want it on my next tank with new baby cherry shrimps i have in my current tank.


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## VisionQuest28 (Apr 18, 2007)

ryan_p said:


> Hey hows your CPD's doing? Do CPD's just swim at the bottom/mid/ or top of the tank or they swim everywhere like zebra danios? I want it on my next tank with new baby cherry shrimps i have in my current tank.


I would say mine hang out more towards the middle/upper-middle zone, but they are really active and the cover some serious ground. I have zebras in the same tank...there is no comparison there though. The zebras know no boundaries! haha


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## funkyfish (Mar 16, 2009)

Any success on finding more fry sewingalot?
I'm trying to breed mine at the moment but not very succesful yet. I have 2 females and males in a breeding tank for about a week now with lots of random plants hopefully I will get some fry soon


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## ryan_p (Mar 18, 2009)

VisionQuest28 said:


> I would say mine hang out more towards the middle/upper-middle zone, but they are really active and the cover some serious ground. I have zebras in the same tank...there is no comparison there though. The zebras know no boundaries! haha


Thanks for the info.Yea adding a couple of zebra danios keeps the tank alive coz they swim everywhere in the tank. I got harlequin rasboras but theyre swimming on top of the tank most of the time (kinda boring IMO).


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

The fry are showing up and disappearing within a day or so. Mostly the males that aren't breeding follow and eat the eggs. I am almost finished cycling the breeding tank, and I think this is the best method. I am going to use spawning mops and remove the breeding trio after 24 hours and see if this helps.

My celestials hover near the bottom more than the top. Go figure.


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

Sad news - fungus! I moved all the CPDs into quarantine and began treatment with fungus clear. My tank was at Ammonia - 0, Nitrate - 0, and Nitrite 20. I have been doing 30% water changes and couldn't see what went wrong when I remembered. I introduced plants into the tank without disinfecting them. Never again will I be so careless! I did a stupid move and lost seven fish. I feel awful. The good news is the remaining CPDs are recovering nicely and there is no more patchy white skin. They are responding well to the treatment. Thankfully!

Now for the great news: FRY! And I got pictures, albeit blurry.
Coming out for fresh air:









Checking out his reflection:









Just being a fry loving the new arctic copepods (thanks VisionQuest!)









Where is she?









For size comparison, the baby shrimp on top is only 8 days old! Very blurry, I know. :icon_redf
(picture link was broken, sorry. )


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## funkyfish (Mar 16, 2009)

sewingalot said:


> Sad news - fungus! I moved all the CPDs into quarantine and began treatment with fungus clear. My tank was at Ammonia - 0, Nitrate - 0, and Nitrite 20. I have been doing 30% water changes and couldn't see what went wrong when I remembered. I introduced plants into the tank without disinfecting them. Never again will I be so careless! I did a stupid move and lost seven fish. I feel awful. The good news is the remaining CPDs are recovering nicely and there is no more patchy white skin. They are responding well to the treatment. Thankfully!


Awwww sorry to hear that! 
But congrats on the fry  

How long does it takes them to start swimming? I got a couple swimming and the rest are just there at the bottom, but they are alive. Also the ones that at the bottom look a bit different than the swimming ones, swimming ones are more clear the other are darker. And is the fry shrimp safe? I moved my breeding trio back to the tank and want to make breeding tank a cherry barbs tank. I hope CPD will breed again in the 10g but I'm kinda worried about RCS.... 

Sorry for all the questions, very excited about my fry, it is my first time ever having fish breed for me


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## hydrophyte (Mar 1, 2009)

Sorry to hear about your loss of fish. I have neglected to QT plants and fish more than once because I just didn't have the space or didn't want to expose new fish to the extra stress. Sometimes there is not trouble, but other times I have lost a few to the sresulting outbreak of whatever.

One way to look at it is natural selection is still working in your tank and now the left with the strongest individuals. And now you have new fry too!


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

funkyfish said:


> Awwww sorry to hear that!
> But congrats on the fry
> 
> How long does it takes them to start swimming? I got a couple swimming and the rest are just there at the bottom, but they are alive. Also the ones that at the bottom look a bit different than the swimming ones, swimming ones are more clear the other are darker. And is the fry shrimp safe? I moved my breeding trio back to the tank and want to make breeding tank a cherry barbs tank. I hope CPD will breed again in the 10g but I'm kinda worried about RCS....
> ...


About three days. Then they like to stick on the sides a lot as well for a few days. Once the yolk is ate up, the fry will be swimming. I wouldn't even start feeding until then. Remember a little goes a long way! I feed a tip of a toothpick of arctic shrimp twice a day. 

Mine are about five days old from what I can figure. I have the fry in a tank with yellow shrimp and snails they are not bothering them all all. In fact, the fry spooked a shrimp 20 times its size this morning. :icon_roll Congratulations are in order to you as well. Look like it's breeding season for us all!



hydrophyte said:


> Sorry to hear about your loss of fish. I have neglected to QT plants and fish more than once because I just didn't have the space or didn't want to expose new fish to the extra stress. Sometimes there is not trouble, but other times I have lost a few to the resulting outbreak of whatever.
> 
> One way to look at it is natural selection is still working in your tank and now the left with the strongest individuals. And now you have new fry too!


Hydrophyte, thanks for the new perspective. There are only two males left to the group, so I am a little apprehensive. However, they are eating well and today I saw them spawning again! I should have quarantined!


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## Coltonorr (Mar 12, 2008)

Sorry to hear about your CPD's:icon_cry:
But having fry is sweet!:thumbsup:


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

Luckily I didn't transfer any of the infected plants to other tanks or I would have had a real disaster on my hands. I am also glad no one has received clippings from me from this tank. Currently all the clippings are in a grow out tank for the local pet store (just rotalas).


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

Small update:


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## CL (Mar 13, 2008)

dat is baby feesh?


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

dat is CPD baby feesh.


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## Centromochlus (May 19, 2008)

> dat is baby feesh?





> dat is CPD baby feesh.



I lol'd.


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## Karackle (Dec 11, 2007)

Wow, you are having such great luck with the CPD fry! Makes me want to pull my CPDs out of my 30g once I move and set them up on their own!  

Have you had any grow up?


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

*Sewingalot's 15 gallon EI method - Being torn down shortly (56k)*

As everyone on here should know by now, I have failed miserably at the EI method several times. Wanting to see if I can finally get this right, I decided to use my 15 gallon farm tank as a guinea pig. Who wants to help me learn the EI method once and for all? 

Free sign for followers: :iamwithst
Fauna:
Pond snails, copepods, and other creepy crawlies that may appear.

Flora:
Bacopa sp. 'Araguaia'
Bacopa sp. 'Japan'
Crypt Parva
Didiplis Diandra
Downoi (Pogostemon Helferi)
Erio. Type II
Hemianthus Callitrichoides
Lindernia sp. ‘India’
Ludwigia Senegalensis
Rotala Rotundfolia
Rotala sp. ‘Colorata’
Rotala sp. 'Indica'
[strike]Alternanthera reineckii 'rosaefolia' (moving out) [/strike]
[strike]Ludwigia glandulosa (moving out) [/strike]
[strike]Nesaea triflora (or pedicellata - forgot which it is) [/strike]
[strike]Ranunculus inundatus[/strike]
[strike]Rotala macranda var narrow aka magenta[/strike]
[strike]Rotala macranda 'varigated'[/strike]

Other specifications:
15 gallon long (approxiamately 12x12x24 inches)
Substrate is a mixture of ADA powersand, florabase and turface w/diy root tablets
65 watt power compact coralife (I know, a lot of light, but this is all I have to work with)
DIY screen cover to diffuse some of the light since I can't raise it any further
Pressurized co2 with nano diffuser
Filters at the moment are only two mini hagen elites and tetra whisper hang on back (I was using a Tom's canister filters until I came home with a ton of water on the floor from a leak, too mad to reinstall it debating on whether or not to sell it)


Dosing (3 x's a week):
1/8 tsp KNO3
1/32 tsp KH2PO4
1/32 tsp traces


Questions!!
1. Do I need to use K2SO4? (When I've tried EI before, I've always used this at the same dosage as kh2po4)
2. Here are some figures from my annual water report. Do I need a GH booster?
Alkalinity, Total (ppm) 59
Hardness, Total (ppm) 124
pH (standard units) 7.3
Calcium (ppm) 25
Magnesium (ppm) 7
Nitrates (ppm) [strike]10[/strike] - actually it is .88 – I can’t read columns. 

Pictures at the moment (waiting out the GDA roud:


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## Centromochlus (May 19, 2008)

ooo fun! I also don't know much (or anything) about EI, so maybe i'll learn from this too.

Subscribed.


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## CL (Mar 13, 2008)

10 ppm nitrates from the tap? Should get some nice plant growth with that. Haha. Had I know I would be in Huntington right now I could have brought some of the excess plants I have atm from my tank I just rescaped for you to have for this tank haha. Just had some Stewarts though. Good stuff 
But anyway, I don't you'll need to use gH booster. I never have. It totally escapes me right now what exactly gH is (after two years of chem) but I would expect your kH to be moderate to high with all of the limestone around here, and I think you've got a decent amount of calcium in your water? Not sure.
I would recommend plenty of circulation and CO2 to Keep up with that light.


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## Hyzer (Mar 9, 2010)

I started my dosage per Wolf's sticky but then realized I was over-doing it. I ended up cutting amounts in half and changing a bit less water per week. He offers a good starting point. From there, you can figure out what works best for your tank.

I do not dose potassium sulfate or gh booster. I suppose it depends on your tap water conditions. Mine are: 
GH- 150 ppm, 
KH- 200 ppm, 
PH- 7.6

However, I am still not sure if my plants are as healthy as they could be. I know I dose enough potassium, but I'm not sure about my sulfur content. Keep in mind I am fairly new to the hobby. It will be good to hear from an expert.

I Will be looking forward to seeing how it works out for you.


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

CL, if you liked Stewarts, you should go to Jim's Steak and Spaghetti if you haven't been. Just take cash if you do since they don't except credit cards. The fireworks are starting. Go out and take a peek. :biggrin: I had to stay home with the dogs while my husband is at a party because the boxer goes bananas when they start. Right now, he's driving me insane.

Thanks for the tips, Hyzer. I'll keep this in mind as I dose. 

The water report is accurate, I guess? I wonder if adding the prime cancels out the nitrates from the tap?

Added the first round of fertilizers tonight after the water change just to get a head start. I must say adding this much phosphates is still making me apprehensive.  I have the lights set at six hours for now and will slowly raise the photo period if necessary. CO2 is cranked up, but I am not sure if there is enough. I put the drop checker in for a while and it turned from blue to bright yellow within two hours.

Below is a picture of the tank cleaned up. I pulled out the HOB intake filter to clean it since it was covered in GDA as well. I changed about 70% of the water since I scraped the sides and the GDA was falling off in slimy sheets. I had to cut a bunch of the stems at the bottoms due to the intial algae outbreak, so I would have taken you up on those extra stems. :hihi:


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## Lycosa (Oct 16, 2006)

> 1. Do I need to use K2SO4? (When I've tried EI before, I've always used this at the same dosage as kh2po4)
> 2. Here are some figures from my annual water report. Do I need a GH booster?


1. - If you see your plants (especially new leaves) yellowing at the edges, dead or yellow spots on older leaves, then you might need more K.. I never add it personally and have not seen a need in my plants to.

2. - 124ppm is equivalent to 6.94DKH and that is plenty adequate considering the baseline is (around) 3DKH before people generally ponder adding more.. that is IME.

I think the absolute key to success is using your light.. add the ferts, really make sure CO2 is plentiful, and keep your light as the limiting growth factor. I pull my lights up a little bit every day until my plants stop pearling and then drop it back an inch or two...and that is where I keep them.

I never 'really' got how much of a difference it makes until I started studying tanks that were highly successful in growth and yet looked so very algae free... With light driving and _limiting_ photosynthesis, algae are kept in check because the plants can just simply utilize the available light more efficiently than the algae. Once I figured out how to manage my lighting while paying attention to CO2, life got a lot easier. My 2cents.


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

So for now I am going to skip the GH booster and K2so4. Unfortunately, I cannot raise the light any further because of the placement of the tank, so I am trying the screening method Tom Barr suggested in several threads to reduce the lighting intensity.

I am a little worried about my rotala magenta.  It has been melting since I had a heater malfunction. I didn't catch it until I saw the plants reacting poorly and I don't think it wasn't established enough to resist the severe temperature swing.


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## plantbrain (Dec 15, 2003)

If you use a HOB filter... make sure the water does not drop and cause degassing due to evaporation.

I'd add more plant biomass from the start, basically as much as you can stuff in there. Most do not for economic reasons, but if someone with a RAOK or you can get some for peanuts, do so.

Pack the tank, this causes the cycling to occur much faster.

In the start, I do lots of water changes, mostly to remove anything and add lots of CO2, basically insurance against low CO2/any rot from the new planting. ADA also suggest this(2-3x a week for the first 1-2 months).
1 x 5 gal or even 10 gal each change is good.

Also not a bad idea anytime you use a rich sediment.
I suggest using that as well, DIY soil, ADA etc, worm castings, whatever you want to try, they all work reasonably well with a few minor trade offs between them.

Patience is all you need for a lot less light/CO2, vs lots of light/CO2.
Folks really do not have to wait much longer to have nice growth/etc, with lower light vs the higher light.

Over say 1 month, you might do 1-2 trims vs 3, but it's 4x easier overall.
Good trade off here. I sell plenty of plants at the 1.5-2w/gal range. More than I know what to do with, trimming and maintaining the scape is also much easier. I've had 3-4x the PAR, done that for years. Blah......never really got me to the goals I wanted. I'd go with a single 24w T5 or a pair of 15w FL's. 

65W is a lot on a shallow 15 gal tank.
Shorter time period ain't gonna help either.

Something easy to deal with, some work etc, but not excessive, if I take a few days off, a week etc, no biggie. Miss a water change, again, no biggie.

We also gain more experience and can spot when there's an impending issue coming up, and can react, as newbie, wow......we have little clue, we do not even know how to trim off algae etc from the leaves etc.

We do not know what to look, for, we do not know what good top notch growth looks like in our tanks, we know what growth looks like, maybe even decent, but not the top quality growth. Many think that type of growth is a myth, they will never get there. Only really good aquarist can do that, not the average Schmoe.

The average aquarist can do it. That light/CO2 balance explains 90% of the issues, nutrients only about 10%. Since few test light with a comparative method or in PAR, it's a huge knowledge gap for most. CO2 is bear. I have to keep my disc clean every 2 weeks with tilex for 10-15 min to keep the consistency up. The needle wheel mist method has proven itself in practical terms and has less aesthetics than most mist methods. Cheap, simple, very effective and does not change over time/require cleaning much.

Folks that cannot adjust the light or raise it up etc, can use screen, or shade cloth like substitutes. A few layers of aluminum screen does the trick for most, more layers= more light blockage.

This should give you a good start and places to work on and see what you think.

The Tom's canister's stink(you found out why the hard way), maybe a HOT Magnum or a Rena 1-2. I use a Rena 3 on an ADA 60p. I put a sponge on their intakes and then only need to clean the canister once every 2 months or so. I squeeze out the sponge at the water change. the diffuser goes at the other end of the tank in the flow/current.

Keep that little nano diffuser really good and clean!!!
Tilex, let it soak for 10-15 min, then rinse in dechlor water a few min and then return. You should see much finer micro bubbles after cleaning.

I'd like use a Rio 180 and then snip the impeller blades like this:


















Feed CO2 into intake side.

If you have a camera's f/stop, I think you can convert that into light PAR vai some cal, or lux to PAR relative(about 60 lux for each PAR unit).

so say the 65W gives off say 20,000 lux at the surface, if you screen it to 5000 lux, then this is much better, about 80-85 micromols PAR and around 40-50 at the bottom of the tank.


Regards, 
Tom Barr


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## Da Plant Man (Apr 7, 2010)

Looks good!


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

Thanks everyone.  I took Tom's advice and put the powerhead to work for me as a diffuser. I didn't get as technical as cutting the blades, I just stuck a disposable airstone attached to the co2 inside the hagen mini and let it fly. Micro bubbles are flying everywhere.

My husband's old camera had an fstop ability so this was a great suggestion from Tom Barr. :biggrin: I (actually he did all the work) was able to get the screening down to around 5000 lux and will see how everything goes.

Still battling algae on some of the plants, especially the hc, but the new growth is doing well. For now, I am ignoring the algae and continuing with the dosing and water changes twice a week. I figure every new setup will experience some sort of algae in the beginning stages, so I'm not too worried. It is mostly diatoms anyway. 

The pictures are blurry since I am still recovering from heat exhaustion. I'll take better pictures when I feel better.


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## plantbrain (Dec 15, 2003)

This is about 80 micromols of light, but likely at the top of the tank.
As the tank fills in with more plant biomass, roots grow well into the sediment, the tank should clear up.


Trimming and removing older algae covered growth will help.
With time, the good CO2 will prevent new algae growth and encourage new plant growth. Once you get to this point, it is easy to beat algae.

I think just some time and patience for the CO2 to work and for the plants to start growing well is the key.

Be careful when you adjust that cO2, do so slow and methodical, watch carefully after any adjustment and do only small changes. This way you can detect what small changes in the CO2 have on plants, and algae and fish.
This is very useful info indeed.

Since nutrients and light are not limiting factors, this means the changes with CO2 are the only dependent variable.

Regards, 
Tom Barr


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

Thanks, Tom, for the advice. Looks like the algae is doing much better on the HC, but I am having issues with GDA. Since there is still no fauna other than pond snails and copepods, I am feeling rather comfortable to raise the co2 until I find the right area. This tank looks a lot different from the pictures I am going to show you below, but I haven't taken any new ones in over a week. The new job is taking a large chunk out of my days. 


































However, this has been going on since I screened down the lighting:









Since I know that it's not fertilizer deficient, and the lighting is supposed to be enough, I looked at my co2 and upped it a notch. We'll see how it goes.


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## ZooTycoonMaster (Jan 2, 2008)

The plants look great!


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## Cardinal Tetra (Feb 26, 2006)

I think that tank would be great for boraras and shrimp!


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

My goal is to put in the yellow shrimp. Still having ammonia spikes, though.


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## Cardinal Tetra (Feb 26, 2006)

Florabase produces ammonia spikes 
I would have never guessed. Then again I have never checked. Whenever I have started off a tank with florabase I would always added livestock the next day (I stuff the tank with plants though).
Yellow shrimp are cool! I wish I had gotten those again instead of blue pearls (I had a yellow shrimp colony but wiped it out).


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

The florabase doesn't seem to be the problem, it's at least a year old now. I suspect it's the ammonia I am adding for a fishless cycle.  I don't like adding fish immediately even though many say it is unnecessary to cycle a planted tank. Actually, I think the cycle is almost finished, the ammonia is zero and the nitrites have started to spike. If I ever get the yellow shrimp colony started, I'll be glad to trade you some for plants or whatnot.


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## Da Plant Man (Apr 7, 2010)

So...um... I think you spend more time on here and with your aquariums than sewing...

Sure to be a great tank and I can't wait to see it progress!

Caton


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## Gatekeeper (Feb 20, 2007)

Your dosing ammonia? Were you dosing nitrate too? That would be overdoing nitrogen a bit. I am not 100% sure if the fishless cycle ammonia your adding (I never did a fishless cycle) is something the plants absorb, but you could be excess dosing N.

I guess the easiest way to do a planted tank with EI, don't overthink or overdue anything. Just add nutrients, do water changes. If you have problems, cut back on ferts slightly o raise up lighting a bit until biomass fills in.

I may have some Crypts for you if you like.


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

Caton said:


> So...um... I think you spend more time on here and with your aquariums than sewing...
> 
> Sure to be a great tank and I can't wait to see it progress!
> 
> Caton


I love to sew in the winter time, quilts are suffocating to make in the summer. Plus, I have a fish tank blocking my sewing machine at the moment. Maybe Kyle should change my name to sewingalittle? :red_mouth



Gatekeeper said:


> Your dosing ammonia? Were you dosing nitrate too? That would be overdoing nitrogen a bit. I am not 100% sure if the fishless cycle ammonia your adding (I never did a fishless cycle) is something the plants absorb, but you could be excess dosing N.
> 
> I guess the easiest way to do a planted tank with EI, don't overthink or overdue anything. Just add nutrients, do water changes. If you have problems, cut back on ferts slightly o raise up lighting a bit until biomass fills in.
> 
> I may have some Crypts for you if you like.


Oooh, crypts. If I do well with the ones I have right now, I definitely will want some off of you in the near future. Crypts and I have a poor history.

Yeah, I was overdosing and not even thinking about it. Duh. I didn't even think of this being an issue because I normally don't dose until I am finished cycling.  Do I feel stupid. Did a 75% water change and am stopping the ammonia dosing. I'll just follow the EI and not worry about the cycling. Surely, it should be cycled in a few more weeks for five or so little shrimplets, right?

I trimmed off all the melting parts I could without completely throwing out plants and took some pictures for reference. I threw away a bunch. I should have taken a before picture.... You can see the holes in the up close pictures of the plants I've been dealing with. You can also see the GDA creeping back in. Hopefully, this will be cured with the stopping of the ammonia. :icon_mrgr




























Why is this plant now growing six inches in height?


















New growth looks better already (IMO):









Found this plant while we were out of town yesterday - listed as crypt parva but is much larger than the ones given to me by lookingforroselines. I think it's emersed growth.









Rotala magenta is finally starting to respond in the tank. :


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## Da Plant Man (Apr 7, 2010)

Looking good!


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## Gatekeeper (Feb 20, 2007)

sewingalot said:


> Surely, it should be cycled in a few more weeks for five or so little shrimplets, right?


To be honest, my shrimp would already have been in the tank doing their thing. You should wait now since you were adding ammonia, but cycling for a few shrimps is not really worth it. They don't create enough waste to cause a problem with the cycle IMO.


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## VadimShevchuk (Sep 19, 2009)

> Why is this plant now growing six inches in height?
> This image has been resized. Click this bar to view the full image. The original image is sized 800x600 and weights 39KB.


 For me, this plant grows taller if its not getting enough light.


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## Gatekeeper (Feb 20, 2007)

sewingalot said:


> Found this plant while we were out of town yesterday - listed as crypt parva but is much larger than the ones given to me by lookingforroselines. I think it's emersed growth.


It most certainly is emersed growth.


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## Cardinal Tetra (Feb 26, 2006)

sewingalot said:


> The florabase doesn't seem to be the problem, it's at least a year old now. I suspect it's the ammonia I am adding for a fishless cycle.  I don't like adding fish immediately even though many say it is unnecessary to cycle a planted tank. Actually, I think the cycle is almost finished, the ammonia is zero and the nitrites have started to spike. If I ever get the yellow shrimp colony started, I'll be glad to trade you some for plants or whatnot.


Haha I would love to if I could ever remove all of my blue pearls. I only have 1 tank that shrimp can go in and it's full of tigers and blue pearls. It's too bad that many of the shrimp we keep hybridize so readily.


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

Gatekeeper said:


> To be honest, my shrimp would already have been in the tank doing their thing. You should wait now since you were adding ammonia, but cycling for a few shrimps is not really worth it. They don't create enough waste to cause a problem with the cycle IMO.


I am babying these shrimp since I was down to only three for the longest time and the population is finally established enough for me to move over to a co2 tank. The ammonia and nitrite is finally reading zero! However, there is a slight problem. One of our pipes upstairs corroded and leaked into our water supply, pantry and ceiling. Woke up after a water change to a tank full of dead snails. Took a copper reading and it is .25! Tested it out of the tap and it was the same. Downstairs, there was water on the floor. :icon_evil After $120 later and a big chunk of the ceiling missing in the kitchen, the pipe section has been replaced and the copper is no longer registering. The plumber said the corroding pipe was causing the copper to leach into the water supply. So, if I changed the water until it read zero again, will it be safe to add in the shrimp? So far, the pond snails I added are alive after three days.



VadimShevchuk said:


> For me, this plant grows taller if its not getting enough light.


How come everyone including Tom Barr said I had too much light, but this plant is not getting enough light? I don't get it. If it doesn't behave soon, I'm pitching the plant.



Gatekeeper said:


> It most certainly is emersed growth.


Yep, looks like it since it is melting quite rapidly. The new growth is pretty and small. Yay!



Cardinal Tetra said:


> Haha I would love to if I could ever remove all of my blue pearls. I only have 1 tank that shrimp can go in and it's full of tigers and blue pearls. It's too bad that many of the shrimp we keep hybridize so readily.


I know, right? I would LOVE to have a tank of red and yellow shrimp. Actually thought about making a tank with a glass dividing the middle section to get the effect sort of.

Still having issues with GDA! Grrrr. Upped the co2 a tad more. Also, adjusted the timer so it comes on an hour before lights to make sure it's saturated. Rotala macranda is having a difficult time getting established. I am not sure what is up with this plant. I'll get pictures up when there is something worth showing. May add a couple shrimp to see how it goes.


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

Trouble for me and my tank as I was saying. The screening is making a lot of the higher light plants melt at the bottoms, they were turning black and breaking away. Therefore, I took off the screening and the GDA got worse. Big surprise. :icon_roll So, I am compromising and putting on one screen while I find a place to move the tank that will allow me to install a way to raise the fixture.

Also, since the tank has been fully cycled and I quit adding ammonia, I added my purple/brown ramshorn and 12 yellow shrimp. Here are pictures of the destruction.


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## chad320 (Mar 7, 2010)

Wow, sewingalittle, looks like some patience will remedy your troubles. I think alot of people get caught up in tring to "fix" every little parameter or thing that happens to the point that plants dont get any stability long enough to adjust. Just an observation and certainly some advice I myself should use more often. Your tank looks nice tho. How many yellows are you going to put in?


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

I have plenty of patience, but I wish it would hurry up.... I am just putting in the 12 shrimp and will let them breed for a while. I want to find another source for them to add variety to the gene pool, though. These have been breeding for a few generations. 

I will add some otos next week when they finish their quarantine as well. I hope seven isn't too many for such a small tank. If it is, I'll move some into the 55 gallon. I am still dosing EI, and doing frequent water changes. Forgot to mention, the Ranunculus inundatus completely melted away. I'm kind of ticked off about this one, as I was just about to move it into my other tank. 

Good advice, you are giving.


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## chad320 (Mar 7, 2010)

LMK when you are ready to re-up your shrimps. I have a colony of yellows that i could get you for next to nothing. Ive never shipped shrimp before and would like a practice round before actually selling them to anyone. I need to get some Kordoon breather bags first tho.


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

*Re: Sewingalot's 15 gallon - EI Method?!?!? (56k)*

Will do! If all goes well, I'd love to get some in September when it cools down. Right now, the weather is way humid and too hot. 

Sent from my Ally using Tapatalk


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

A few changes have occurred. I bought a new bulb, this one is only 55 watts and I took off the screening all together. I have 55 watts of pc lighting over this 15 gallon tank! Talk about a person who doesn't like to listen to low lighting.... The stems just kept turning black and melting away. I lost almost all of my ludwigia repens, rotala macranda narrow and d. diandra as a result. With the new bulb, growth has been amazingly different. The reds are really peaking and I couldn't be happier. As far as algae goes, I do have a bit of GDA on the glass I wipe off during water changes. Also, I purchase a Marineland C160 canister filter. It is rated up to 30 gallons, but quite honestly, I couldn't see this being good above 20 gallons. It is perfect for the 15 gallons, but the intake and outflow tubing is a little on the ugly side. Especially with white screening to block the shrimp from certain doom. However, I do love the ease of setup on this filter and the tank is crystal clear. Also I found a baby CPD and stuck him in the tank! I'll try to get pictures of him/her later. Pond snail population has exploded and I am trying to bait them out daily. They are winning the battle. 

The tank finally hit it's peak and over a course of a few weeks it went from algae city like this:



















To this (forgive the dirty glass, I decided to take pictures before the water change):










The HC shows the biggest improvement












































































































It appears the EI method works even with high light scenarios, we'll see how the tank sustains in the long run. So far, so good. This has me thinking more and more about the 55 gallon. It's got to be organic build up that's causing algae issues.


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## mistergreen (Dec 9, 2006)

probably the organic build up. I'm thinking it's the same for me. If you want a planted tank, have few fauna or do lots of water changes.

Nice plants!


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

I took some pictures this morning because I can't sleep and don't know when I am supposed to hear from a boss on whether or not I have a job to go back to. Did I mention I am broke? The lights just came on a little before this, so some of the plants are tired still.














































I think the snails are enjoying this plant way too much.









However, the new growth is great since the algae slowed down.


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## plantbrain (Dec 15, 2003)

I think the big weed H zost, is causing some issues for the other plants, it's sucking out most of the CO2 from the looks of things.

Try keeping it more trimmed back and lower, top the tips/shoots that get taller.

Why might a plant that's 4" away from the lights........vs say................16" away from the lights be able to outcompete another plant for CO2???

Light drives CO2 demand, so the H zost will nab all the CO2...leaving little for the others...............HC, downoi are not particularly good competitors for CO2.
They will grow........but not thrive as well.......if the CO2 is really cranked, then all can do well, but there's a trade off there.........Some gardening will help more than adding more CO2, but the issue is still rooted with CO2. 
Water changes, cleaning, etc.........can help certainly.

But you might not be motivated:icon_mad:
I'm not many times myself.

But...........I do know which plants respond well to CO2 and I am aware of how plants compete for limited resources, whether it is light, CO2..........not just nutrients alone. Light and CO2 are trickier.

Regards, 
Tom Barr


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

I thought this was Erio. Type II, is it actually H zost? If so, I've been ripped off. (snickering). I'll find out soon enough since I am expecting a package of H. Zost next week. 

Anyway, I am shipping off half of this on Tuesday, so it should alleviate some of the co2 demand. I did notice the co2 was dark blue when I put 5dkh (instead of the regular 4dkh) in my drop checker, so I upped it a bit and will reevaluate in a day or so. I am adjusting SLOWLY to take care of my precious yellow shrimp. 

I'll update in a week or so. _EI works on this tank_; I am doing 30% water changes twice a week and there is a very light bioload. Now to get rid of some of these snails.....


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## plantbrain (Dec 15, 2003)

Snail removal is tough.

I'd suggest slow methodical patient careful CO2 adjustment.
This is a skill in and of itself and a good one to have.

I just assumed it was stargrass, sort of looks and behaves like it, so....

Shrimps tend to be fairly tolerant of CO2 IME.


Regards, 
Tom Barr


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

*Re: Sewingalot's 15 gallon - EI Method?!?!? (56k)*

I normally don't mind snails, but these guys can quickly multiple when there is no competition and plenty of almond leaves to snack on. I am trying the bait method, but it is time consuming and they seem to breed faster than I gather them.

Co2 is still a mystery to me. I normally like to keep low levels but I am willing to experiment for the sake of healthy plants in a tank with such a low number of inhabitants. Eventually, I wabt to add some ottos, but for now I am sticking with shrimp and snails.

This plant does look similar to stargrass, just maybe more lime green. I wonder if these are actually related species. 
The more you trim it, the more it likes to crawl on the substrate. Either way, I'm happy with the plant over all.

So far, the EI Method is working quite nicely. I'll save my experiments for the other tanks. 

Sent from my Ally using Tapatalk


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

I took out 90% of the Erio on your suggestion to trim it back, so I am providing an updated picture. I am pretty sure I could have left more, but I was thinking this would be a nice chance for the other plants to get established, especially the downoi that I recently added. I was moving it over and found new baby sprouts!!!! 

The HC is really taking off. I didn't plant it stem by stem. I was too lazy and planted it in clumps (look at the post on 7/3/10 to see the difference). It's actually growing on top of itself in places. I'm excited about this tank.


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

I must confess, I am intrigued on how well Tom Barr's EI method works. I took the screening off completely, cranked up the co2 to a lime green (making sure shrimp are okay) and I change the water twice a week instead of once at 25% each time. I do this type of water change because I currently have a small fry in the tank and am babying it. Maybe I need to eat some crow??? :biggrin:

Rotala rotundfolia









Downoi (Pogostemon helferi) - New growth is amazing already!









Bacopa sp. 'japan'









Crypt Parva (the new submerged growth is so tiny and doing quite well) Does anyone else have the growth come in initial a pale green like this? Within a couple days, it turns the lovely darker green, but I am worried somehting may be wrong.









Erio. Type 2 (apparently, the snails will eat this plant. First time I've ever witnessed pond snails to eat a plant even without algae....)









Rotala sp 'Indica' (true Indica)









Ludwigia Senegalensis









Lindernia sp. India


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## Centromochlus (May 19, 2008)

I may have to steal some plants from you later.  You have a lot of the ones on my WTB list!

Looks great- nice close ups!


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

You, too? I've had a couple people pm me already. :hihi: Yeah, just let me know what you are wanting and I'll let you know when I am ready to get rid of some extras.


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

I don't know why my pictures have a yellow tint to them. Or is it my computer? I don't know. Anyway, it's not like this in person, I promise. Here is an update:

One week ago:









Yesterday:




































Riccia is popping up out of no where:








































































Artsy picture:









If I screen back the lighting, I get diatoms on the side of the glass and some of the plants suffer (black stems). If I leave the screening off, GDA shows up (or something that is green, spotty and easy to wipe off). So for now, I am leaving off the screening and dealing with the GDA that needs occasionally cleaned off. 

CO2 levels are now so high the plants pearl within a half an hour of lights turning on and the drop checker turns yellow an hour before lights go out. So far, the fauna aren't balking, so it seems like it's okay for now.

So am I algae free? Not completely. Is it the lights? Probably. Do I care? No. Speaking of the EI method, it does work. But it is borrrrrrrrring to me. No thinking, no speculating, nothing. You just add this amount 3 xs a week, do a water change and trim, trim, trim.

I hate to admit it, but it's the testing, tinkering and manipulating nutrients that excites me in this hobby. The rest is a bonus. I think the EI method is an great method for those who like to take the guess work out of the hobby and just grow plants at a fast-paced rate. Personally, I am tired of it. Therefore, I am turning this into an experimental tank after I ship off some of the HC tomorrow. That, or I am tearing it down. I haven't decided yet.


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## problemman (Aug 19, 2005)

Update time sara


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

I'll get an update tonight after work. Algae city. :hihi: Was still doing EI for the experiment sake of it until I went to mom's for the week. Speaking of work, I am going to be late if I don't get off here!


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## problemman (Aug 19, 2005)

Lol


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

I was exhausted yesterday, so I delayed the picture taking. Sorry. I had a hair algae explosion while at my mom's. Plus, the plants got no nutrients except diy root tabs and injected co2. This is a problem because the downoi and bacopa sp 'japan' are having deficiency issues. They are very fragile right now and moving one, all the lower leaves fell off the downoi. You'll see it below with two shrimp. Since coming back and adding nutrients, the hair algae is actually turning white in places and the downoi seems to be rebounding quickly. The largest plants are holding strong. Enough talking, here are pictures. I am doing EI for a while again now that I am home to see if this improves things.

Full tank shot









Rotala rotundfolia sp









Rotala macranda and rotundfolia









HC and flame moss that keeps cropping up even though I moved it to another tank entirely:









The riccia that never floats (what's up with this?):









Lack of macros see the white leaves?:









The downoi that fell apart. 









Ludwigia senegalensis (lost color):









And the stunted growth:









Baby shrimp and algae on riccia:









Snails ate some of the leaves that were damaged:









Bacopa sp japan hurting:









Up close picture of the algae that is covering the plants:









From a distance the algae doesn't look half bad, right? :hihi:


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## problemman (Aug 19, 2005)

Don't look half bad


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

If you could see it in person, you'd see the algae in the last picture over EVERYTHING. It's pretty atrocious. Luckily, I am so bad at picture taking, it doesn't show up much.


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## problemman (Aug 19, 2005)

Lol well in about two weeks tips your should have it back to normal


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## Da Plant Man (Apr 7, 2010)

I am really liking the 15g footprint, just seeing what people can do. I like what you have done. I just derimmed my 15g and I think that I am going to do a dry start on it with HC and transfer everything over from my 10g. Great tank, thank you for the inspiration. I hope you don't mind me copying :tongue:


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

Feel free to copy, algae and all! Caton, you're too funny.  The 15 gallon is my favorite tank size, hands down. If I could have nothing but time on my hands, I'd buy a dozen.


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## problemman (Aug 19, 2005)

Dozen? Oh jeez that would be to many threads for me to follow!


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

I have a difficult time keeping up with two journals, so you're safe. Even with subscriptions, I keep getting lost on my favorite tanks as well.


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## Da Plant Man (Apr 7, 2010)

I might be doing a sulawesi tank, but I want fish. I will post a thread somewhere else about some fish in with the really expensive shrimp that are tiny.


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

I wouldn't put anything other than otos with expensive shrimp. I've even seen fry eat baby shrimp.


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## problemman (Aug 19, 2005)

Oh thank you!


sewingalot said:


> I have a difficult time keeping up with two journals, so you're safe. Even with subscriptions, I keep getting lost on my favorite tanks as well.


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## Cardinal Tetra (Feb 26, 2006)

The riccia that never floats is riccia in the truly submersed form! It is a dark green as opposed to the bright green of the floating stuff. It randomly transforms into that form for me sometimes. Real neat stuff if you can get a large clump and prevent it from transforming back into the floating form. BTW I really envy your Downoi haha. Your UG and Ranalisma will be on their way in the morning!


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## problemman (Aug 19, 2005)

sara ill take some flame moss when its all over and done too lol maybe some other stuff from the 55 too lol as always i cover shipping and ill even give you some extra cash. or i can donate it to TPT forum up to you?


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## Tex Gal (Mar 28, 2008)

Sewingalot you will get it back up to par in no time. You have some difficult species in there. I just came back from being gone 3 weeks and my tank is a mess. I have bba in my main tank really bad. I have a few spots in another tank. My mini pellia in my shrimp tank melted some. It's always a challenge when you travel.


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## LICfish (Oct 9, 2010)

Algae is AWFUL. But if you didn't mention that you had algae, I wouldn't be able to tell at all. Love your plant collection


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## mrchach (Sep 8, 2010)

dont let those pond snails get hungry... they eat your plants


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## Centromochlus (May 19, 2008)

Really, really nice Sara. I especially like the L. senegalensis and A. 'bonsai' (i think that's what it is?).


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## Cardinal Tetra (Feb 26, 2006)

Is your algae dead yet?


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

You know, I don't know really. I'll have to check out the tank. I'll update in a day or so.


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## Cardinal Tetra (Feb 26, 2006)

Yes I want to see! I'm deprived of my fish tank for 2 weeks starting yesterday. I just hope my plants stunt and not completely melt. My shrimp should be ok scavenging but I'm not sure about my vnese white clouds that I just got in...


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

The lights are already off for the day on that tank. I didn't even have a chance to look at it. I'll get a picture in the morning before work (I actually get to sleep in tomorrow for an hour!) and get the pictures up in the evening.


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

Oh, boy. You asked, so here it is. The rotala is literally growing in white as are most of the newer leaves of all the plants. I have not been dosing micros at all to combat algae (which has almost all but disappeared). I am really disappointed with CSM+B in general.

My riccia doesn't float and I am puzzled by this. I cleaned up the tank, kept a few of the good stems and am in the process of mixing up some ferts in a bottle so that I can dose easier in the morning before work.

On the plus side, UG, HC and Downoi are all doing well, and the yellow shrimp are doing fantastic! Thanks, Chad for the gene pool. 

FTS before pulling out the worst plants:









Now:


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## problemman (Aug 19, 2005)

That downoi looks great! And I so want thr yellow shrimp!


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## SkyGrl (Jan 7, 2010)

looking better  a good culling is needed sometimes. 

Amy

tanks for the update


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## Da Plant Man (Apr 7, 2010)

Looks good! I just got a prawn in my fifteen gallon to cycle it, so you should see a thread pop up in a month.


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## jnaz (Apr 12, 2009)

The downoi is looking great.


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## rickztahone (Jul 20, 2009)

you have got me very interested in getting downoi for my tank! it's looking great!


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

I must say my two favorite plants are definitely Downoi and Blyxa Japonica. Both are really easy once they go through the adjustment phase.

Downoi is very forgiving if you give it good root ferts. I make my own and it is the only reason I think it didn't die with all the neglect I've been giving the tank.

Looking forward to the tank, Caton. They are great tanks.

I pulled out all the bacopa sp 'araguaia' and moved it to the 55. Did a little switcheroo with some of the plants to make a prettier to me scape. I think some of the plants I had in here were just not compatible with a smaller setup. Also moved some of the struggling plants to another tank to baby them back to health. We'll see how it goes.


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## Hyzer (Mar 9, 2010)

Looking great. I need to get some downoi now as well:wink:


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## OverStocked (May 26, 2007)

Have you considered dosing CSMB plus Iron GLuconate and DTPA iron? In a 4:1:1 ratio. 

Or, since I know you like cheap, look into the DIY Tropica using CSMB. You wouldn't have to spend much more to have all the ingredients. Orlando can hook you up and ebay has everything you need too. 

As a whole I think it looks great.


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## Cardinal Tetra (Feb 26, 2006)

Yay for dead algae! Your plants will all recover once you've got the ferts going again. I said it before and I'll say it again...I really envy your downoi! Even when I can get mine to grow, it never grows as compact as yours. I've had downoi plants get over 10 inches tall. Do you have any fish in there?


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

Just yellow shrimp at this point. I could share the secret of the compact downoi. High light! LOL. Algae to follow.  I am still finding bits of hair algae, but I need to start dosing before I loose everything.


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

over_stocked said:


> Have you considered dosing CSMB plus Iron GLuconate and DTPA iron? In a 4:1:1 ratio.
> 
> Or, since I know you like cheap, look into the DIY Tropica using CSMB. You wouldn't have to spend much more to have all the ingredients. Orlando can hook you up and ebay has everything you need too.
> 
> As a whole I think it looks great.


Thought about it, but I am currently eye balling miller's micro plex to see if I see a difference.


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## OverStocked (May 26, 2007)

I would snag up that deal you commented on in the SnS! Super cheap to give it a try. 

Your Downoi looks amazing... I want...


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## R33 GTR (Mar 13, 2009)

Me tooo want some downoi jejejeje you aquarium looks great i am too looking to set up a 15gal to grow rare plants i have alredy a 55watts 8000k PC all i need is the reflector and the ADA but for now i have my 20L to try dry fertz what tips can you tell from your expiriance


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

over_stocked said:


> I would snag up that deal you commented on in the SnS! Super cheap to give it a try.
> 
> Your Downoi looks amazing... I want...


Done. Jeff's going to be annoyed with my questions in the upcoming days. :tongue: If it were warmer and you didn't mind hair algae remains, I'd share with you.



R33 GTR said:


> Me tooo want some downoi jejejeje you aquarium looks great i am too looking to set up a 15gal to grow rare plants i have alredy a 55watts 8000k PC all i need is the reflector and the ADA but for now i have my 20L to try dry fertz what tips can you tell from your expiriance


My dream is to have this tank half full of downoi. Maybe if I'd start dosing again. My tips are to expect bumps in the road, don't be discouraged by algae and find what method works best for you. 

Oh, and never give up. Other than that, co2, co2, co2.  Ferts seconds, lights last.


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## OoglyBoogly (Oct 19, 2010)

What an interesting vein pattern on the Ludwigia Senegalensis... reminds me of my friends newborn's skin... it's all crazy looking similar to that... No she doesn't have any nutrient deficiencies and is perfectly healthy. Although she once farted and it sounded like an adult man blowing a gasket... I told my buddy to ask the doctor about that one after catching my breath. I got that one on video!


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## Cardinal Tetra (Feb 26, 2006)

Ohh I forgot to mention. Your weird sinking riccia is the true submersed form of riccia! It sometimes switches randomly from one form to the other. I once had a rather large mat of it and one day parts of it started to turn bright green and after a few weeks it floated back up :/


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## fishykid1 (Apr 5, 2010)

OoglyBoogly said:


> What an interesting vein pattern on the Ludwigia Senegalensis... reminds me of my friends newborn's skin... it's all crazy looking similar to that... No she doesn't have any nutrient deficiencies and is perfectly healthy. Although she once farted and it sounded like an adult man blowing a gasket... I told my buddy to ask the doctor about that one after catching my breath. I got that one on video!




lol... this made me laugh.


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## problemman (Aug 19, 2005)

Oogly is something else with his stories!


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

LOL, Oogly. You do have a way with words. ;0

Here is a picture of my diy root fertilizers. I pulled up some downoi earlier and found roots growing through one. It makes a cloudy mess when uprooted like that, but it settles quickly. 











Cardinal Tetra said:


> Ohh I forgot to mention. Your weird sinking riccia is the true submersed form of riccia! It sometimes switches randomly from one form to the other. I once had a rather large mat of it and one day parts of it started to turn bright green and after a few weeks it floated back up :/


Here is a picture of a clump of it, I tossed in another tank recently. It actually grew into a few pieces of substrate. I hate it. I am always trying to eradicate it, but it shows back up in a few days.










And here is it in the tank:









Full tank shot. It is starting to shape up a bit. Still has a long way to go. I just started dosing again to see what happens. (Haha! You can see my wedding rings on the table if you look for them.)










I am having a little problem with the long stringy algae, still. I don't have it everywhere as it was, but it is still around. See right side:



















Even the lindernia sp india is feeling the effects of no water column ferts now.









Rotala macranda









Poor rotala rotundfolia (still pretty, just not vibrant)


















New runner on the UG (Thanks Cardinal Tetra!!!!)









Isn't this cool?









Can I cut this down?









Downoi









Downoi (with stupid riccia)









Color morph? I fished the little guy out with a few others and gave them a new home to see if his color comes in:


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## R33 GTR (Mar 13, 2009)

those are really yellow one jejejejej nice UG pic


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## Hilde (May 19, 2008)

I think just dosing CSM+B would be enough. I am not a fan for EI dosing for each tank is has different needs. This theory I came to after someone telling me that he had 3 tanks side beside each other, which were treated the same, and one had BBA problems.


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## plantbrain (Dec 15, 2003)

Kill the Riccia now, it'll be tough to get rid of it later.
Much worse than algae(which you can get rid of rather easily by comparison).

The sinking(stinking more like) riccia actually grows so fast it crushed the air chamber inside as it grows, so instead of floating, it now sinks.
This tissue is called aerenchyma. It is what makes the plants stand up in water instead of flopping over. In macro algae, these are call pnematophores.

If you reduce the light or shade the Riccia, it will revert back.

Regards, 
Tom Barr


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

Stinking riccia is about right. I wish I could kill the plant. I tried h2o2, shooting it with excel and pulling it out one by one. The stupid crap keeps coming back and it gets tangled in the downoi of all plants!

I am going back to a modified EI method as of yesterday, so I am curious to see how the plants will react to the increased ferts. If I could quit tampering, things would be easier. I am only going to change 25% of the water and dose a little lighter to compensate if necessary. I just don't like the 50% water changes for my shrimp tank. It makes me way too nervous.

Thanks for the suggestion, Hilde, but I don't think it is a great idea to completely stop doing NPK through the water. You see how the plants are looking right now. The poor erio type 2 is nothing but three little stems due to my neglect of fertilizing.


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## Hilde (May 19, 2008)

sewingalot said:


> Here is a picture of a clump of it, I tossed in another tank recently. It actually grew into a few pieces of substrate. I hate it. I am always trying to eradicate it, but it shows back up in a few days.


Oh I thought you were just going to start dosing the EI method. What are you dosing now? If already stated that sorry but this is a long thread for these old eyes to read through and I suppose to be job hunting. 

I am thinking of something like 1Tbs of CSMB and 1Tbs of Chemi-pure elite in addition to what you are doing would help. Chemi-Pure Elite adds ferric oxide to the original Chemi-Pure formula to also remove phosphates and silicates. Chemi-pure remove heavy metals, copper, phenol, ammonia, and other nitrogenous waste. Helps keep pH at a consistently safe range and your water sparkling clear.


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

Why would I want to add Chemi-Pure Elite if it gets rid of phosphates? I do like to limit my phosphates to control growth on some of my tanks, but eliminating it would do more harm than good, wouldn't it? I think some phosphates are important.

Up until yesterday, I had quit dosing water ferts due to time constraints. Since I am now with a lot of unexpected free time, I went back to the EI method, except I am still not planing on changing more than 25% of the water. Since we have copper pipes, I get nervous with larger water changes in my shrimp tanks. You know, just in case the pipe leeches undetectable copper.


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## problemman (Aug 19, 2005)

I have copper pipes and nothing had gone wrong with my tanks.....and you know I got tanks


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

You are probably 100% right. But, you know me. A doctor once described me as 'nervous as a cat on a hot tin roof.' There is a lot of truth to that statement. :hihi:


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## problemman (Aug 19, 2005)

i have never heard that statement in my life and i even asked the hubby and he raised his eyebrow at me lol


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

LOL, it's a common statement in these parts.


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## problemman (Aug 19, 2005)

i guess. so when you coming back to akron ohio? i wanna meet you in person!


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

Probably in the summer sometime with the old man. Then again, it really depends on the financial situation. He wants to go to amish country, though. You'd love the accent.


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## problemman (Aug 19, 2005)

Lol summer time hurry!


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## Hilde (May 19, 2008)

sewingalot said:


> Why would I want to add Chemi-Pure Elite if it gets rid of phosphates? I went back to the EI method, except I am still not planing on changing more than 25% of the water. Since we have copper pipes.


Too much phosphate interferes with the metabolism of vital iron and disrupts the photosynthesis process. In cities where houses have iron pipes the city treats the water with phosphates to prevent leaching. Now since I see you were adding phosphates I don't think the Chemi-pure is needed. I am thinking dosing with KNO3, CSM+B and trace elements would work better. fischman - Remember, living things are hard to control, you can't stick 2 identical families in 2 identical homes and expect them to stay the same for long. Even Tom Barr says to tweak the EI dosing.

What is the ph, gh, kh of tank water?


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

That makes since. I have copper pipes, so it might not be an issue for me. However, the phosphates are usually around 1 -2 ppm out of the tap so I don't add too much for long. I usually back off on this first. However, I am trying to reset the tank, so I am going full EI until I see what needs adjusting.

Ph is 6.5, Gh 7 (120's ppm), kH is rather low at 3 and temperature is 76.


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## Hilde (May 19, 2008)

sewingalot said:


> I am trying to reset the tank, so I am going full EI until I see what needs adjusting.


Trace is CSM+B? If so, I think you need more of it.


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

Yes, trace is Csm+b. And I agree that I need more. We'll see what happens.


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## .Mko. (Sep 23, 2010)

haha awesome tank! 
I hate riccia with a vengance as well the only way i killed it was when i shut off my nano.. but a piece was stuck in my anubias and now in my current 10 there;s like a single piece that randomly pops up everyday... gah


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## Da Plant Man (Apr 7, 2010)

Start dosing excel...I managed to kill my ricca within 2 weeks.


So, since I am moving soon, I couldn't set-up my 15g into a real aquarium, but I was able to start growing a bunch of hygro, mexican oak leaf, and some other stems in it emersed. I hope to try and get some more petco riparium plants in it also.


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## Ethics (Aug 23, 2009)

Great journal sewingalot, just read from the start, and the tank has come quite a long way. Hopefully you can get rid of that ricca soon so we can see some more FTSs.

Like everybody else you've made me want a downoi or 2 for my tank 

Keep up the great work,
Mario


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## Jaggedfury (Sep 11, 2010)

Lookin' good. I am following...:iamwithst


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## Hyzer (Mar 9, 2010)

That is an awesome collection of plants.


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

Downoi took a hit from adding Bentonite/montmorillonite clay a while back. I changed out a large part the water and it seems to be recovering. I am moving a lot of plants out of the tank to give the Downoi room to grow while it recovers. Here's some pictures for those interested:
































































Since dosing EI again, I am getting this algae (aren't the snail tracks, cute):









Accidentally gave away all my panatal, or so I had thought (a few sprigs popped up!): 



























Erio is finally coming back, too!









Not sure how often or how much longer I am going to keep updating the journals. I am feeling quite down lately, and quite honestly wonder if anyone really cares about my posts in general, lol.


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## SkyGrl (Jan 7, 2010)

i always look for your posts! you have something intresting to say and are super smart and i love reading your posts. i know im only one person who doesnt really post alot. but i sure like reading yours. you make me giggle sometimes and you get to threads ahead of me and say things i may have said. 

btw the pearling looks awesome! please dont stop posting.  

come spring when there is less snow i know i wont be so down... winter sucks! 

your avid reader,
Amy


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## Solid (Jul 19, 2009)

Sounds like you need some waffles that will keep you posting!


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## Amazonfish (Oct 20, 2009)

Aww, don't feel down! I think a lot of people read journals and really enjoy them, but just are too lazy to post. Like me... 

Although, I know how you feel. I stopped updating my journals because no one ever commented!

But anyway, your tank looks great! I love the mix of colors you have.I have that same algae that you have. I can't figure out how to get rid of it though. It blankets the glass over a period of a couple weeks, and I always end up having to scrape it off. Let me know if you can figure out how to get rid of it!


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## Da Plant Man (Apr 7, 2010)

Keep the pictures coming! This is one of my favorite tanks!


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## HolyAngel (Oct 18, 2010)

Agreed! Your tank, plants, and posts are all awesome and I love reading the updates, keep it up


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## problemman (Aug 19, 2005)

Sara if you stop posting who are me and kara going to talk to?

Like others said just because you post and 20 comments dont come in don't mean that others are not reading it and running off ti there tank to use your experiment.


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## !shadow! (Jan 25, 2010)

l've never seen a carpet of Downoi but l would think it would look really nice in this tank if you happen to get it to spread more. l think the combination next to hc is very nice and natural looking as well.


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

You all are too sweet, and my heart is filled with all kinds of fuzzy thoughts now. 

Perhaps I am not wording myself correctly? It's not the comments I need to keep posting, I just often wonder if anyone cares about my posts or are they just random diatribe? Just feeling a little low lately.


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## chad320 (Mar 7, 2010)

Sara, dont be down. You are hilarious and add alot to this forum. I love your tanks and always look at your journals. Heres an update on my yellow shrimp....47 boys and 3 girls. Haha, maybe the temp experiment is true?? Lol, I switched it to 73* and have alot more babies and hopefully some girls. How are yours doing???


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## rockwood (Jun 19, 2010)

Don't get down, Sara. If no one cared about your posts, you wouldn't have 8 pages of comments on your 15g and SIXTY NINE pages of comments on the "Suga Shack". 

It's fairly obvious, even to me who is fairly new, that you're one of the most active members with solid advice. You didn't get that way for nothing. Enjoy your tanks, make it the way you want it, experiment and tell us all about it.

Chin up, I know well how you're feeling, even if I don't know the reason/cause behind it. I've been there and I have scars to prove it. And if you need to chat just in general, send me or any of your buddies on here a PM. We've got your back.


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## problemman (Aug 19, 2005)

rockwood said:


> Don't get down, Sara. If no one cared about your posts, you wouldn't have 8 pages of comments on your 15g and SIXTY NINE pages of comments on the "Suga Shack".
> 
> It's fairly obvious, even to me who is fairly new, that you're one of the most active members with solid advice. You didn't get that way for nothing. Enjoy your tanks, make it the way you want it, experiment and tell us all about it.
> 
> Chin up, I know well how you're feeling, even if I don't know the reason/cause behind it. I've been there and I have scars to prove it. And if you need to chat just in general, send me or any of your buddies on here a PM. We've got your back.


Can I get a amen!?


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## Da Plant Man (Apr 7, 2010)

Amen.


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## Indignation (Mar 9, 2008)

sewingalot said:


> Not sure how often or how much longer I am going to keep updating the journals. I am feeling quite down lately, and quite honestly wonder if anyone really cares about my posts in general, lol.


My 2 cents, because I know you're dying to hear it. 

Your thread, and the others like it on here are some of my favorite type of journals. Reading the super-successful, no algae, contest winning tank journals is neat, don't get me wrong. But my tanks don't look like theirs. My tanks start out ugly, with bad hardscapes, scraggly stems, and algae outbreaks. 
Reading your journal from the beginning, it's awesome to see how _nice_ your tank ended up. It's inspiring when faced with a tank full of GDA and sad plants to find a picture of what it could look like in 6 months. So, from someone who doesn't post in a lot of journals, but definitely appreciates them - Please don't stop. 

Plus, i really need to know what's in those root tabs!


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## problemman (Aug 19, 2005)

Indignation said:


> My 2 cents, because I know you're dying to hear it.
> 
> Your thread, and the others like it on here are some of my favorite type of journals. Reading the super-successful, no algae, contest winning tank journals is neat, don't get me wrong. But my tanks don't look like theirs. My tanks start out ugly, with bad hardscapes, scraggly stems, and algae outbreaks.
> Reading your journal from the beginning, it's awesome to see how _nice_ your tank ended up. It's inspiring when faced with a tank full of GDA and sad plants to find a picture of what it could look like in 6 months. So, from someone who doesn't post in a lot of journals, but definitely appreciates them - Please don't stop.
> ...


Can I get another amen!?

And she uses osmocote plus....its a wonder food lol


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

problemman said:


> Can I get another amen!?
> 
> And she uses osmocote plus....its a wonder food lol


Actually, I don't use those any more, I'm too cheap for even osmocote. roud: 

Indignation, this is just for you, so don't let out the secret. Everyone else, close your eyes. :icon_bigg

1 pound of love for your plants
1 & 1/2 tsp phosphates
3 tsp potassium nitrates
1/2 tsp of potassium sulfate as an after thought
1 tsp of magnessium sulfate
1/8 cup of micros

1/4 cup of red clay (extra iron).

Put down something like wax paper, freezer paper or even newspaper. If you have a significant other, do this away from them so they don't catch you using the rolling pin and making a mess. 

Break the clay into 3 pieces, folding micros in one piece, and macros in the other. Add a tiny bit of water to the nutrients and make a toothpaste consistency if you are having trouble. Roll out all three pieces to roughly the same size, use the piece of clay that you didn't mix up with nutrients as the outside piece. Tear off a small piece and roll it in the shape of a pencil, but a little thicker. Cut at intervals of 1/8 to 1/2 inch. Up to you really. Let dry a good week for optimal results (i.e. doesn't disintegrate in the water immediately). The clay lightens as it drys out. That's how I knew it was ready.

Just be prepared. I'd pull up plants and find roots growing through them a few months later. :icon_mrgr

Chad, you may have something with the temperature. I back mine down to 75 and I have a good number of both sexes now.


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## chad320 (Mar 7, 2010)

Hey Sara, Thanks for the recipe, I mean err... ughh...Hey I think im going to try making some clay with ferts in it pellets. Have you ever done this? Lol, I didnt look, I promise  

And FWIW with no pun intended, theres definately something fishy being temp related. Now I know if I ever need a bizillion male and no females.


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## Indignation (Mar 9, 2008)

Haha! Thanks, that's absolutely brilliant! Where do you get the clay?
And I got a laugh out of thinking about my wife finding me rolling out clay and fertilizer with her maple french rolling pin. 

Also, Chad totally looked.


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

Michael's. It's near the beads. Look for the natural clay, not the synthetic stuff they make now. I bought 5 pounds for 10$. Chad, lol. You weren't supposed to peek. :hihi:


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## Centromochlus (May 19, 2008)

We love you Sara!


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## Da Plant Man (Apr 7, 2010)

AzFishKid said:


> We love you Sara!


Ditto.


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## problemman (Aug 19, 2005)

treas?


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

So here are the pictures for the diy root tabs:























































If this starts happening and you can't get the clay to act clay like, add some water to the ferts to make a toothpaste consistency. Just a little bit of water goes a long way!









And this is why you do it when the significant other is away :hihi: (this is an expensive table cover, he'd be griping til next winter)









Too sticky? Add in some of the extra clay set aside until you get back to this:









Roll into sections like this









The size of them will determine the amount of nutrients in each one. Let air dry for at least 2 days. The longer they dry, the more time you'll have to work with them under water









I use one every few months a few inches away from the plant, give the roots something to grow toward. In a 15 gallon tank, I use three spaced out. Your water may get cloudy if you uproot one, but it settles quickly because of clay's natural tendencies.

So that is my secret to the downoi growth without water column dosing. Custom the mix to suit your needs, observe the plants and see what happens. Start out with just one under a plant in the whole tank and see if you notice an improvement. Test, test, test. Don't be afraid to experiment. Question the experts, is what I say. No one tank is alike and they all need different things. But most of all, they need our love, flaws and all. No since in loving just the pretty, it makes a shallow life. :biggrin:


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## bnbfishin (Dec 23, 2010)

Nice recipe  I'm going to jot this down for future reference. Thanks!


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## Indignation (Mar 9, 2008)

Thanks for the visual how-to, I'm excited to try this out. I'm personally moving away from EI to more root-based ferts, and I like this concept. I've tried the osmocote DIY capsules with good results. But I like being able to personally adjust the ratios, and this will allow adding more iron. 

One question, is there any harm in doing a large batch? As in, letting them dry all the way out and then adding them later?


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## Solid (Jul 19, 2009)

Where's the love?


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## Betta Maniac (Dec 3, 2010)

This is super cool. I haven't tried root tabs yet, but I'm sure I will at some point . . .


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## Cardinal Tetra (Feb 26, 2006)

Woah nice. I see you've managed to become quite the successful UG farmer and I love your pretty pearling riccia stuck in your downoi  I need to try to get my tank to be less cluttered like yours. I always feel sad when I have to chop my plants so I let them grow across the surface...
I might have something new for you soon. Something starting with an E...


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## chad320 (Mar 7, 2010)

OK I looked this time  Nice visual aide. Thank you, I cant wait do do this myself. No more poking osmocote back into the substrate!


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## problemman (Aug 19, 2005)

Holy crap sara! Do this us something we will be doing when I come down in the spring right? Lol


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## Centromochlus (May 19, 2008)

Wow, cool idea Sara! Definitely a different approach to root tabs. 

Thanks for sharing your secret recipe/the pics.


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

Thanks everyone! I love sharing if it can help others. 



Indignation said:


> Thanks for the visual how-to, I'm excited to try this out. I'm personally moving away from EI to more root-based ferts, and I like this concept. I've tried the osmocote DIY capsules with good results. But I like being able to personally adjust the ratios, and this will allow adding more iron.
> 
> One question, is there any harm in doing a large batch? As in, letting them dry all the way out and then adding them later?


I just finished a batch of a 75 and shipped them all off except a few. The last ones I kept for a year and they still worked as well as day one. Just make sure they fully dry before putting them up, and you'll be fine. I store them in ziplock baggies with everything else.

Really what I like about this is you can customize it for anything you want. I've done quite a few variations.



Solid said:


> Where's the love?


It's in the middle of the clay balls. You can't see it. :icon_mrgr



Cardinal Tetra said:


> Woah nice. I see you've managed to become quite the successful UG farmer and I love your pretty pearling riccia stuck in your downoi  I need to try to get my tank to be less cluttered like yours. I always feel sad when I have to chop my plants so I let them grow across the surface...
> I might have something new for you soon. Something starting with an E...


Amazing how quickly UG is growing this time. I've killed it before this, so you must be my lucky charm. roud: I feel the same way about the stems. I just moved out all the lindernia, and 7/8's of the rotalas to make some room for the downoi, ug and erio 2 to recover. Yeah, something new to try? :biggrin: I can't wait.



chad320 said:


> OK I looked this time  Nice visual aide. Thank you, I cant wait do do this myself. No more poking osmocote back into the substrate!


Funny you mentioned that, Chad. That is exactly why I started looking for an alternative.

Wait, are you making a field trip, Brad? Does anyone else find it amusing that Chad and Brad posted in succession? They must know I love rhyming.


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## problemman (Aug 19, 2005)

Lol didn't notice and yep I am how bout may? Only coming down for a weekend lol we can make these and then I will bring you more plants lol btw I'm going to send a package to you in a week but I will let you know when I do


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## chad320 (Mar 7, 2010)

Way back in March, when I was a noob,
I bought some plants from Brad (cool dude).
My first purchase, I thought they were nice. 
I turned around and bought them twice.
He got me started, give him the thanks.
Unfortunately we have the same plants in our tanks.

Hi Brad!!!


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## problemman (Aug 19, 2005)

Lol hi chad! Thanks! I try to send good plants and portions


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

I love it! I am a poetry nut, but I personally love to write prose. That was too cool. Brad, I have a nice blanket in the dog kennel for you ready. Fleas possible. Just to warn you, my dogs are also cuddle brats.


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## problemman (Aug 19, 2005)

I'll bring a blanket! Lol


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## SkyGrl (Jan 7, 2010)

@sewingalot lol @ your avatar  i have a nice culture of bba also.. all over my HOB.. and my anubis.. i think that they look like afro clown wigs... but somehow more natural. i think its how they move in the water... *swish swish* bahahahaha

Amy


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

LOL! Amy, the avatar is the handiwork of mistergreen. Have you seen his avatar yet? He put bba on the leaf. :biggrin: I like the algae as long as it doesn't get too bad, I find it natural. It's only when it starts to attach to the front silicone that I get annoyed.


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## SkyGrl (Jan 7, 2010)

LOL mine has never got on the silicone.. you must have a mutant species!!! :hihi:

i went looking for a post by mistergreen... and when i saw it, OH MAN! that is hilarious!!!!:biggrin::biggrin::biggrin::hihi: BBA for EVERYONE!!:icon_wink

Amy


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## problemman (Aug 19, 2005)

Are you out of your mind!? Lol I don't want anymore bba


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## SkyGrl (Jan 7, 2010)

lol i thought we could just spread the BBA love.... lol 

Amy


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## swift (Dec 29, 2010)

Sewingalot, I am a total beginner just learning about ferts, CO2, etc, and your threads are most helpful and inspiring. Keep up the good work!

Your root tab protocol looks messy, fun, and something I would like to try! Where do you get the dry fertilizers?


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## chad320 (Mar 7, 2010)

GLA or aquariumfertilizer.com. Rootmedic and pferts have nice premixed solutions.


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## SleepyOwl (Sep 23, 2007)

Thanks for the root tab directions. I will have to try that!


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

swift said:


> Sewingalot, I am a total beginner just learning about ferts, CO2, etc, and your threads are most helpful and inspiring. Keep up the good work!
> 
> Your root tab protocol looks messy, fun, and something I would like to try! Where do you get the dry fertilizers?


Think back to making mud pies. Much fun! Same principal. I've bought fertlizer from laaquaria, gla, and aquariumfertilizer. All are the same stuff, some just carry it a little cheaper. Also, you can get fertilizers locally sometimes.

I'm going to take a week or so off from the forums starting tomorrow and get the house cleaned up, doing some much needed sewing and go visit some family/friends. Time to push myself into action a bit. I'll miss you all. :redface:


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## problemman (Aug 19, 2005)

I'm still going to bug you on facebook lol


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## Clare12345 (Dec 20, 2008)

sewingalot said:


>


Beautiful!


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## swift (Dec 29, 2010)

Thank you!


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

swift said:


> Thank you!


Anytime, swift! Feel free to send me a pm or post here if you have any questions on it. This tank has changed quite a bit. I've taken out almost all the stems and just have a few that I am babying until they get long enough to send to a fellow TPTer. I let the phosphates run out for a while to get some pictures of deficiencies for the fun of it. Since then, I've shoved in 1/2 dozen root clay tabs and dose EI and a started dosing a little extra K. Not sure if I want to keep up the EI dosing or not, though. I'm so lazy and hate changing water every week. The downoi is loving the extra attention. You'd be amazed at how many people have pmed me for downoi. For the record, I'll put some up in the S&S if I ever want to get rid of any. Except for those I've already promised some to, that is. The UG is starting to take over one side of the tank. I am trying to find out how hard it would be to grow some emersed so I take out a large portion of it for a later project. I found a small portion growing in my 55. I didn't even put any in there on purpose, but I think it hitched a ride with the stems. I don't have any pictures, but if you all want some, I'll get them up soon.


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## Rion (Dec 29, 2006)

That downoi is looking great, and a really nice "how to" on the root tabs it hadn't occurred to me on using clay as a binding agent for ferts on top of being ferts itself. I'll have to try that next time I need root tabs. Looks like that the _rotala macrandra_ is doing well, it's redder than any I've ever killed.


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

Thanks, Rion. What do you think of the pictures since I first started taking them? You really, really helped me out a lot with picture taking - Thank you! I am still not great, but at least they are not longer as yellow. I'm pretty happy with it. :thumbsup: The clay wasn't my idea. It was a guy 'Riiz' from another forum. I just tweak the recipe to suit my own needs, desires in plant growth.

Wow. I am surprised at how low I've been feeling lately. I feel better than I did, but this is getting to be annoying. Thanks to all of you for picking me up a few weeks back. You'll never know how much this meant to me.


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## Rion (Dec 29, 2006)

The pictures are looking wonderful! I've definitely seen you get better and better since you asked for some advice. In fact, your FTS looks better than mine now.


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## plantbrain (Dec 15, 2003)

What do you think about more downoi and get rid of the HC weed?
UG is another one that sells well.

The Xmas Moss makes a nice contrast also. I use small twigs wrapped in Xmas moss to make little borders around the various groups of plants.
Moss attracts detritus/mulm, so they need fluffed good every so often and trimmed back.

This way it will look good and you get some benefit $$ for the weeds you take care of/farm. This will motivate many folks to keep up on trimmingroud:

Then we get them to scape hopefully, and all is well in the planted aquarium.
The Evil Plan I say.


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## swissian (Aug 30, 2010)

sewigalot, the tank looks beautiful. The clay ferts seem to be working out very well for you. I am actually going to try and make some soon for my tank. Are you making root tabs with a higher iron for the rotala macrandra or do they get that red with just your high light and the iron from the clay?


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## Betta Maniac (Dec 3, 2010)

plantbrain said:


> The Evil Plan I say.


I like this Evil Plan.


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

Actually, Tom, that's sort of my plant with the downoi. I've started clearing out the tank to make some room. I'm really happy overall with the photography skills I've developed since talking to you, Rion. I'm having a little issue with the white balance washing things out, but overall, it's pretty accurate to the actual tank. Swissian, I think it's a combination. 

I don't think the lighting hurts, but I've found if you let your rotala macranda get too low in phosphates, it'll grow in orangish. I really think rotalas appreciate a rich substrate. When I pulled the rotala out, the roots were amazing. This picture is over exposed, but you get the idea:




















UG and Ranalisma rostrata









True rotala indica:


















Hide and seek in the HC:









Rotala 'butterfly'


















The new UG is free of GSA. You can see the GSA on the older pieces from a previous experiment. :hihi: 









Rotala rotundfolia ?









The boys playing:









GDA started appearing again. My elite mini filter is in the trash. Darn thing shocked the bejebbers out of me when I stuck my hand in for maintenance. Luckily, this tank is hooked up to a great surge protector. Poor shrimpers had a bit of an electric current in there. I found a chipped glass diffuser in a box of aquarium stuff and stuck it in there for now. It's kind of tacky standing out like a sore thumb, but it does the job. Can't really move it since I am using the flow of the filter to kick around the bubbles. Perhaps I'll just remove it for pictures. I'm going to move a few downoi to another tank to see what happens. I'm a little nervous about the move. Anyway, this is going to be the only update on this tank for a while. I'm not sure pictures of downoi, ug and hc are that different from week to week. It really takes a while to appreciate the difference. Plus, I am about to rip out the GSA ug and place it in my tank of algae, so only the healthy, newer portions will be remaining. Things will be bare for a while. 

Now that Laura is officially a moderator, I'm taking a short breather. Whew. It's been busy with all the new faces lately. I'm tired of reading posts, lol. Who knows - I might actually do some sewing. :hihi:


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## problemman (Aug 19, 2005)

You crack me up sara! I guess my mac is low in phosphates then cuz its kinda orange...


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

I'm glad I amuse someone.  It never hurts to try and up the phosphates. However, a word of warning! I don't know what I am talking about, so proceed at your own risk. :hihi:


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## problemman (Aug 19, 2005)

Just tested my nitrates and they are 40ppm.... I'm thinning this tank dow of fish. And I don't even feed that much!


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

Hahahahaha. I'll believe it when I see it, Brad. :biggrin:


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## Da Plant Man (Apr 7, 2010)

Pst, sewingalot, if you decide to move (wait...are you moving? For some reason I heard about you moving...), I hear Kauai is a really nice place 


Wonderful tank! I love it.


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## problemman (Aug 19, 2005)

What are you wanting to see? The test tube?


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

The fish being reduced in your tanks, not the test results, lol!

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## problemman (Aug 19, 2005)

I actually got rid of the 4 mollies, 2 swordtails, and 5 bettas


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## Rion (Dec 29, 2006)

Ah white balance, I usually just fix that in photoshop, sometime exposure as well. GIMP is a freeware program where you could do the same thing, maybe I should make a tutorial for that for the forum.


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## problemman (Aug 19, 2005)

Rion said:


> Ah white balance, I usually just fix that in photoshop, sometime exposure as well. GIMP is a freeware program where you could do the same thing, maybe I should make a tutorial for that for the forum.


That would be great if you could!


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## Sharkfood (May 2, 2010)

> I'm glad I amuse someone.  It never hurts to try and up the phosphates. However, a word of warning! I don't know what I am talking about, so proceed at your own risk


I just choked on my Dr. Pepper, ejecting a small amount through my nose and onto my keyboard.

I've heard from several sources that higher phosphate levels promote shorter internode length, and can help make the plant look bushier. I don't know whether I 100% believe it or not, but it's something worth thinking about.


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## Karackle (Dec 11, 2007)

Sara, how have I never seen this journal?! 

I'll have to spend some time catching up, but I like the idea you have for the direction of this tank, I can't wait to see the new scape!  Downoi is a really cool plant, I love crinkly it is :biggrin:


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

Rion said:


> Ah white balance, I usually just fix that in photoshop, sometime exposure as well. GIMP is a freeware program where you could do the same thing, maybe I should make a tutorial for that for the forum.


Yes, that would be excellent Rion! I actually downloaded and uninstalled the gimp in the same week. I was so lost. Now, I use Irfan View for basics like cropping and resizing. I'd like to be able to put on pretty borders like Speedie, but every time I tried, I would erase the picture. :icon_smil



Sharkfood said:


> I just choked on my Dr. Pepper, ejecting a small amount through my nose and onto my keyboard.
> 
> I've heard from several sources that higher phosphate levels promote shorter internode length, and can help make the plant look bushier. I don't know whether I 100% believe it or not, but it's something worth thinking about.


Hahaha, glad to have provided the comic relief for the evening. :redface: I don't know about excessive phosphates much, except I seem to have trouble with algae when it gets too high for me in the water column.. Probably some sort of imbalance with the lighting? I can tell you that lack of phosphates does this to the rotalas in this tank:













Karackle said:


> Sara, how have I never seen this journal?!
> 
> I'll have to spend some time catching up, but I like the idea you have for the direction of this tank, I can't wait to see the new scape!  Downoi is a really cool plant, I love crinkly it is :biggrin:


Because you are busy and my journal has been hiding from you. :flick: I love my downoi. I'll cry if I loose it again. I keep trying to convince myself to move some over to another tank, but it scares me.


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## problemman (Aug 19, 2005)

I'm finding with that fert scheduale we put together I'm getting more compact growth and increase red.

Phosphates high
Nitrates low


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

Great! I am glad the ferts are working for you. Any pictures of the plants? How are the other plants responding for you?

I am about to go back to my old method of fertilization. I am getting so much GDA on the glass and I am getting irritated about it. I'll take a picture of the glass in a few days. Although I like the crazy growth with EI, the bloody green glass is getting on my last bit of nerves I have left. Probably because of a light imbalance, but I'm tired of it. I upped the co2 and it only stops it for a while. I'm going to give it another few weeks of the do nothing approach and if that doesn't fix it, I'm done with EI for this tank. Maybe I need to change more water than I am doing?


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## .Mko. (Sep 23, 2010)

I may now be interested in grabbing a 15 gallon because of this thread and skygurl's thread.. hmm. looking great sewing! =)


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## Karackle (Dec 11, 2007)

Hahahaha well stop hiding it from me then! :hihi: 

It looks to me like you have a lot.....is it so touchy that if you moved some to another tank, the ones that you left in this tank might get unhappy and die off?


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## plantbrain (Dec 15, 2003)

problemman said:


> I'm finding with that fert scheduale we put together I'm getting more compact growth and increase red.
> 
> Phosphates high
> Nitrates low


One could say the same about CO2 as well.

Example of a red plant with high nutrients all the way around:

3 very different tanks but all nice red coloration.

In each case, the ferts are high and they also high in the sediments as well as the water column.

If you reduce and limit a nutrients, obviously, the CO2 stress is removed.
*It is only when you can vary all the ferts without noting any differences can one be certain that they have non limiting conditions for both CO2 and nutrients.* If you get differences, then you have more work to do before you can say much and rule out CO2 as a factor. 

Many do not want to fiddle with it, they do not care, all they care about are their own results. But then they also do not get to say or conclude why they got them either..

Therein lies the problem, some like to conclude far more than the results and observations allow them to really say. I'm ignorant about everything till I can confirm it. Folks need to be careful here. 

All you have to do is ask around if anyone has grown these plants nicely in rich ferts to disprove the hypothesis, even if you cannot do it for whatever reason, it does not imply anything, maybe we are just over lookign something or have a brown thumb.

But if Bob in GA can grow them well without low NO3, or low PO4(both can limit the CO2 demand), then it raises serious questions as to the validity of the hypothesis, and must be rejected.

We then test something else to see if that is able to be falsified etc etc etc.


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

I'll say this and nothing more. I simply did the calculations for Brad based on the ppm _he _wanted to dose based on his research and it's working for him.


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## plantbrain (Dec 15, 2003)

sewingalot said:


> I'll say this and nothing more. I simply did the calculations for Brad based on the ppm _he _wanted to dose based on his research and it's working for him.


Yea, but that does not demonstrate any causal relationship, all it does... is say there's some correlation. Nothing more.

You can also do this same thing using low PO4 and high NO3.
Many did and that was the entire principle around PMDD 16 years. Folks limited PO4 so strongly that it effected CO2. So when they limited PO4, they found like BBA correlation.So they assumed that excess PO4 = algae, not that there was any CO2 relationship involved. But all you need to show is a a case where there is plenty of PO4 and good growth and algae free. Then you know it cannot be due to PO4.

CO2 bedevils many folks. We all know this and see folks gassing their fish weekly on this forum, junky equipment, poor use, not enough flow, not enough O2 for the fish, DIY, poor testing/measurements etc.
If CO2 is mastered, folks rarely have any issues and then nutrient issues go away, even at VERY high light.


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

I don't understand your point, Tom. I never said any of these things, all I did was do a little bit of adding based on the target ppm Brad wanted. I do think I am qualified enough to do calculations given my masters in accounting.... 

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## Betta Maniac (Dec 3, 2010)

plantbrain said:


> CO2 bedevils many folks. We all know this and see folks gassing their fish weekly on this forum, junky equipment, poor use, not enough flow, not enough O2 for the fish, DIY, poor testing/measurements etc.
> If CO2 is mastered, folks rarely have any issues and then nutrient issues go away, even at VERY high light.


Which is why I find myself afraid of it . . . that said, I'm going to try it. I'm just trying to figure out exactly what I need for a small paintball set-up.


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

.Mko. said:


> I may now be interested in grabbing a 15 gallon because of this thread and skygurl's thread.. hmm. looking great sewing! =)





Karackle said:


> Hahahaha well stop hiding it from me then! :hihi:
> 
> It looks to me like you have a lot.....is it so touchy that if you moved some to another tank, the ones that you left in this tank might get unhappy and die off?


Oops, sorry that I didn't see these two posts yesterday! Mko, the 15 gallon is my favorite tank. The dimensions are so lovely. You just reminded me I haven't checked in on skygirl's progress! I'm going over there next.

Hey Kara, downoi is actually a pretty tough plant. I'm just a little cautious, kind of like you treat a new car. *cough* :biggrin:


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## slicebo123 (Jan 4, 2010)

* light
6H2O + 6CO2 ----------> C6H12O6+ 6O2

*All Tom was pointing out is that CO2 and light are the biggest determinants in nutrient uptake.

Gives plants enough CO2 and light, they'll suck up the nutrients in the soil/water column. 

There are some really interesting articles on the effects of nutrient limitation on plant growth if any of y'all are interested.

Man i wish i had studied botany.


Edit: Light goes over the arrow. I can't get it to move!


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

I understood what Tom said. Nothing wrong in clarifying myself for those that read the journal.  In fact, the conversation that took place other than a comment on the progress by Brad was done through private messaging, so there is a valid reason for the misunderstanding. If read out of context, it can sound a little confusing.

I took quite of few plant biology classes, and if you ever get a chance, they are quite informative. Actually, I have a embroidery of a plant cell that I did for an assignment.

Anyway, back on topic of this tank. I am either going to tear it down or make it into a lower tech tank once I give those I promised downoi plants. I'm running out of money and time to keep up this many tanks. I don't know how I had the energy for 12 tanks not too long ago....


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## Karackle (Dec 11, 2007)

Woah, I never realized you had 12 tanks up not so long ago!!! What the total now? :hihi:

I think low tech is a great option IF you want to keep the tank up and running, if you want to pare down, you've got some other gorgeous tanks going so you could try moving some Downoi to one of those and break it down for the time being. 

Also, for the record, I just thought I'd mention that I personally thought it was pretty clear that this:


> I'm finding with that fert scheduale we put together I'm getting more compact growth and increase red.
> 
> Phosphates high
> Nitrates low


was a specific reference to Brad's own tank and _only_ his tank and what was bringing out the colors and kind of growth that he was wanting in _his_ tank, not a global statement concluding that his method would work in every tank.


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## SkyGrl (Jan 7, 2010)

awe the 15 is coming down. if you need more time for yourself i can totally understand! and if you were not happy with the tank.. you can always set it up at a later date. im actually kinda scared to start co2 and i prefer low tech.. for me low tech = low mait.  that works for me. i have enough huge tank that i cant see doing high tech right now. i would stress to much. 

this hobby if to relax not stress, and with 12 tanks (holy BTW!) i can see why you wanna shut one down. ill still follow you around TPT. (stalker) 

Amy


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## Karackle (Dec 11, 2007)

SkyGrl said:


> this hobby if to relax not stress, and with 12 tanks (holy BTW!) i can see why you wanna shut one down.


Such an excellent point! I fully agree!!!



SkyGrl said:


> ill still follow you around TPT. (stalker)


HAHAHAHAHA i love this (and I second it :hihi


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

You gals are funny. :hihi: I no longer have 12. I actually gave away all but seven of my tanks recently. One is not filled collecting dust and the other two are only 2.5 gallons and have HC and UG growing in like an inch of water. I had to pull out a bunch of these two plants and I was too sad to just throw them away. So they got a nice little home with a small lamp turned on when I remember.  Do fish bowls full of emersed plants count? Cause if so, I am in trouble......


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## problemman (Aug 19, 2005)

You're in trouble lol


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

problemman said:


> You're in trouble lol


I so skeered I'm shaking, lol. You guys are going to miss me over the next week or so. You'll have to find someone else for your posse to fill in my spot temporarily. :wink:


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## problemman (Aug 19, 2005)

Yah right.... We got you on facebook! Btw I need arcuata!


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## Karackle (Dec 11, 2007)

We could never replace you, we'll just have to mope....buuut......why are we losing you for a week again?


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## problemman (Aug 19, 2005)

I wondered the same thing


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

Some issues that need taken care of in the real world. I'll be without internet most of the next week or so. I'll try and sneak some TPT on my phone, but it might not be possible.  See you all soon. I've decided to turn this tank into a substrate only fertilized tank. The EI method is nice for some people, but I don't like it. Sorry guys. Look for random updating in the future.


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## SkyGrl (Jan 7, 2010)

see you soon sewing!  we will miss your posts!! 

Amy


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## JamesHockey (Nov 10, 2010)

Wait im pretty sure that planted tanks are the only real world there is.....


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## problemman (Aug 19, 2005)

james7139 said:


> Wait im pretty sure that planted tanks are the only real world there is.....


Duh!

So sara,
Will facebook be an option on your phone?


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

Haha, cute on the planted tank comment. You made me smile.

Thanks guys! You still have me today and possibly tomorrow. After that, I am not sure when I'll have time. Plus, I am going back in time where technology doesn't exist. I spent the first seven or more years of my life not even having watched television. Out of respect for my family members, I am not going to force my lifestyle on them. Even if it means shutting down the virtual life for the time being. That's how I became so good at sewing. :tongue:

You know what? Some days I think my life was better without all the technology. I don't mind when people perceive that I am an idiot, since I know the truth about my intelligence. However, when being patronized for expressing oneself, I sometimes wonder if it's worth putting up with it at all. Great friends like you keep me going. :biggrin:


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

Here are the last pictures I took before ending the EI method as a few people have been pming/emailing me to go ahead and post. I was quite hesitant for several reasons. The main one being that I am tired of the constant scraping of the glass with GDA type algae. The other reason was I didn't want to sound like I was saying the method doesn't work, because I am not trying to imply that. The only thing I will conclude is that it does not work for me.

Is it because I am a failure? Very possible, maybe even likely. But I am tired of worrying about it. Isn't this hobby supposed to bring you joy and not headaches? Personally, I don't care to try this method ever again. I've tried it before and it seems to work in the short run. But somewhere along the way, I somehow screw it up. It always ends the same way for me. A disaster. I'm starting to think I am secretly sabotaging myself to find a reason to take yet another tank low tech. 

On the plus side, I've collected some of the algae in a cup to take over to my brother's microscope. He's going to let me borrow it to determine what this nightmare that's been growing really is. I have a feeling it'll be algae. :icon_idea






























I figured if I can get this with just a few roottabs that were a little on the old side:










Maybe since I put in a few fresh "Sara's Super Special Snack-bites" I'll get something in between the algae glass and almost lovely. Until then, have a great one!

(P.S., I found my old 15 gallon journal and decided to combine the two for my own convenience. I figured it would be neat to see this tank go from all sorts of methods throughout the years, especially since I am turning another page in the journal of 15 gallons of spectacular plants. Aren't you glad I'll be MIA for a while? LOL)


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## Karackle (Dec 11, 2007)

wow the tank definitely looked beautiful in my opinion before the EI method too, your homemade root tabs are amazing (do wonders in my tanks) so I'm not surprised it looked so nice without EI! 

The purpose of a hobby is definitely to bring pleasure, not headaches, hence, it's a hobby not a job :hihi: so if you think you'd be happier with a low tech tank, I say go for it! :biggrin: Do whatever you think you should to make it enjoyable again! We all have to find the best fertilizing methods for our own tanks. It's wonderful that folks out there have come up with a few methods (such as EI) that work for them and that they want to share those methods with the rest of us to try out or at least use as a jumping off point, but the fact is, no 2 tanks are the same so what works for some (in any form) might not work in any form for others. But those are the things we each have to discover for ourselves and our own tanks. roud:


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## problemman (Aug 19, 2005)

Must say the root tabs are great. Going to need to do then in mine.


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

Robbed my 20 gallon of the eheim filter. I didn't care for the 7 up look in the tank and GDA was getting really, really bad. It is now receding, just like in my prior experiments, co2 does indeed smack this stuff silly. Like I said in the 55 gallon thread (so forgive the redundancy), I am finished with my deficiency experiments since I am heading out later this afternoon to spend time with my brother. While away, my husband will be dosing EI method part duex. :hihi: Yeah, I know. I said I was giving up on EI and I failed miserably. Well, now that I am more knowledgeable on how nutrients interact with plant health, I want to give it another go. When it comes to wanting to learn, never question my tenacity. After getting over my aggravation from dealing with issues on the home front, I am more calm and focused to devote the energy toward my tank. Perhaps the third time will be a charm. :icon_ques

Here is the battlefield! 










Let us take time to remember our fallen plants:
Erio type 2 - turned crispy black and melted.
Ludwigia senegalensis - became curled, blackish, and then lost all red. The stems became mush.
Bacopa 'japan' - leaves fell off from the bottom up and then the stem went down

What's left in the tank:
HC
UG
Downoi
Bacopa sp 'Araguaia'
Rotala sp 'butterfly'
Rotala indica
Crypt parva
R. rostrata
%^&@# Riccia

For detailed pictures of my plant torture, stay tuned to the deficiency thread. I'll be updated soon.

Thankfully, gracious members like Cardinal Tetra and problemman are sending me in some new recruits. I'm going to even send some of my wounded troopers to CT in order to resuscitate and to provide a better home life.

And for a happy picture of my yellows enjoying a much deserved treat for putting up with my antics.


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## problemman (Aug 19, 2005)

I take it should send them when you get back then?


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

Whenever you feel like it, Brad. I'm at your mercy. My brother only lives 5 minutes or so from me. :biggrin:


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## problemman (Aug 19, 2005)

Message me when you get back. By then I should have a nice surprise for you in the box if the snow shows down


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## Karackle (Dec 11, 2007)

sewingalot said:


> When it comes to wanting to learn, never question my tenacity. After getting over my aggravation from dealing with issues on the home front, I am more calm and focused to devote the energy toward my tank. Perhaps the third time will be a charm.


Glad to hear this!!! :biggrin: and you are definitely tenacious about learning! Love it! :hihi: roud:

I think I fixed this link for you: 









*edit* yay! the picture worked! PRETTY SHRIMPIES!!!!


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

Thanks, Brad.

Kara, you kind of talked me into trying again. By the way, much appreciation for fixing the photo. I was just seeing if anyone was paying attention.....:hihi:

Here's a picture to prove it wasn't the nutrients causing the mysterious GDA. 









The water parameters for phosphates and nitrates, respectively:


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## Karackle (Dec 11, 2007)

I talked you into it? :icon_lol: hahaha I wasn't trying to talk you into anything that I can recall....I don't even fertilize! :hihi: 

You're welcome on the picture, I knew you were just testing us, so I had to show you that I WAS paying attention :hihi: 

Looks like your nitrAtes are pretty normal, not too high, certainly not 0, but I've never tested phosphates so I don't know that that color means :hihi:


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## Hilde (May 19, 2008)

sewingalot said:


>


What ferts are you dosing in this tank? I am thinking Seachem flourish is needed.


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

Karackle said:


> I talked you into it? :icon_lol: hahaha I wasn't trying to talk you into anything that I can recall....I don't even fertilize! :hihi:
> 
> You're welcome on the picture, I knew you were just testing us, so I had to show you that I WAS paying attention :hihi:
> 
> Looks like your nitrAtes are pretty normal, not too high, certainly not 0, but I've never tested phosphates so I don't know that that color means :hihi:


Kara, I give you an A for the test of picture fixing.  Basically, you talked me into not giving up just by encouraging me to not take it so seriously when I failed. After having some time off to take care of family matters, I realized I was frustrated with life and not my tanks. I have/had too much on my plate to keep up with everything. No wonder this was a disaster. Anyway, I've decided to get rid of one tank and maybe another. We'll see how it goes.

Got some great plants from Cardinal Tetra! I'm hoping some do well for me, especially erio 3. It's beautiful! Here is some of them listed, but there was more I am forgetting. I'll get pictures up soon as I send off some plants Saturday. I need to make room. 

callitriche terrestris
rotala macranda 'japan red'
nehamandra alternifolia 
rotala mexicana araguaia
hydrothrix gerdeneri
rotala sp singapore
rotala sp nanjenshan
rotala sp gia lai
rotala sp thailand
eriocaulaceae type iii

Hilde - I wasn't fertilizing on purpose. It was an experiment. I'm dosing ferts again, though. :icon_cool


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## cervantesmx (Feb 16, 2011)

Keep us posted !


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## Karackle (Dec 11, 2007)

:biggrin: WOOHOO! an A! (if only it counted toward my GPA :hihi 

Also, in that case, I'm glad I could help! And more importantly, I'm glad you're enjoying the hobby again, it's not worth it if it's stressful, hobbies are supposed to help you destress when it's life that gets stressful aren't they? :hihi:

Can't wait to see how it progresses!


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

I'll get pictures up hopefully today or tomorrow. Nothing much to look at, but there are some nice plants! Kara - You're too awesome. 

Update on sleep: I've now been up 46ish hours with a 1/2 hour nap. Someone :help: I am going to try and lay down for an hour or so before I have to leave for the day.


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## SkyGrl (Jan 7, 2010)

what always works for me.. put on a boring documentry.. something about paper or garbage and BAM your snoozing. maybe you need a long relaxing massage... even a foot massage puts me to sleep. ok so maybe i fall asleep at the drop of a hat in the middle of the day, as soon as its bed time tho i toss and turn. something about my couch. 

Sara if you want a vaca come up to Canada... its bloody cold but it takes your mind off sleeping... lol


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## Karackle (Dec 11, 2007)

SkyGrl said:


> what always works for me.. put on a boring documentry.. something about paper or garbage and BAM your snoozing.


This is an excellent idea. Or you can do what my aunt does, along the same lines, but she puts on a golf tournament, also super boring (unless you love golf i guess). 

Or you can come visit me in NJ, it's not very exciting where I live, but you can nap while i'm at school :hihi: Or you can come on the weekend and i'll drag you to NYC and then to the aquarium that's an hour and a half away and tire you out :hihi:


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## problemman (Aug 19, 2005)

Kara we were just taking last night about how the three of us should get together for a weekend. It would be a riot!


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## Karackle (Dec 11, 2007)

Hahaha that would definitely be HILARIOUS! I bet we'd have tons of fun!


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## problemman (Aug 19, 2005)

I bet!


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

SkyGrl said:


> Sara if you want a vaca come up to Canada... its bloody cold but it takes your mind off sleeping... lol


I'd love to live in the cold. I'm not a heat type person. I think it's the bugs. :wink:

I got some new plants in from Cardinal Tetra and Problemman. You can't see them well because of the dusting of algae, but they are in there, I promise. Here is the tank in all it's beauty:




































































































At least the shrimp are happy:









Talked to Tom about my disaster zone. He assured me that it just takes more time to put back together a tank after destroying it with nutrient deprivation. He gave me a bunch of scientific articles to read. It took three attempts to understand one of them. So, for now, I am ignoring the algae outbreak and continuing to dust, clean and feed. The green/brown paint algae is starting to slow down - finally. 

I just like to show the good, the bad and the ugly. Why hide the bad pictures? Truthfully, seeing pictures just like these kept me going as a newbie more than the glorious well manicured pictures. I figured if they could turn that around, there was hope still. :icon_idea

Still dosing EI on this tank. Co2 is good, lighting is bright, but I'll probably never learn my lesson on light. :icon_twis So I figure I am in for a long recovery phase.


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## problemman (Aug 19, 2005)

Now that's some algae! You need some oto cats sara!


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

I actually bought six otos from a new to me LFS a few weeks back for this tank. They didn't make it through the week.

I need to find someone to clean my algae for me. It really has been neglected lately. Still, I am totally not going to. I'm enjoying the snail art too much. I wonder if you can rent a person that will come to your house and remove algae for you? What's really sad is I have one of those magnet scrapers.....


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## problemman (Aug 19, 2005)

Now that's lazy! And I know someone that can clean algae real well. Word of mouth reference ;-)


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

I'm lazy and proud of it. I just need more snails, that's all. roud: You are just jealous cause you don't have a tank as beautiful as this:


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## problemman (Aug 19, 2005)

Living piece of art! Lol


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

Thank you, thank you. The snails will now take a bow. :biggrin:


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## problemman (Aug 19, 2005)

And topple over and fall to the gravel lol


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

Haha, my snails are super snails. They know how to use air bubbles to float. It must be from all the energy they get cleaning algae.


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## problemman (Aug 19, 2005)

I have never got to witness something like that


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

Really? It must be in the West Virginian mountain air.


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## problemman (Aug 19, 2005)

Lmao


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

Wait....are we seriously having a conversation in two threads? I need  Do you ever wonder what the people who actually sleep think of us insomniacs that have meaningless posts in our journals due to lack of rest? Yeah, I'm thinking that deep, lmao!


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## Cardinal Tetra (Feb 26, 2006)

Well at least the algae is on your glass and not on your plants


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

You'd totally know, too. I am glad you got the downoi and other plants. Hopefully with your magical tank, they'll look even better.


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

More snail art! You can totally see the little tongue imprints.










The algae is starting to go away. I'm going to miss my paintings. But perhaps you'll get to actually see the plants soon.


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

I love/hate insomnia. Going on my 39th hour without sleep. If things don't change soon, I am going to bash my head into a wall until I fall into a deep unconscious sleep. And as much as I want to sleep, I am off for another fun filled day of responsibility. So for those who know my dark secrets, the ones that make me cringe behind a fake smile, the ones that make me want to give up, the ones that make me hate myself, the ones that keep me up at night; here is my current state of mind. For those that don't this is an awesome video to watch when you are lacking sleep. Actually, it is an awesome song - period.

What does all this have to do with planted tanks? 
Snails. 

There is something comforting know that I am not the only creature awake in the house in the early hours. More art featuring sleepy snail. The algae is turning brown and the green is fading away more each day. I am kind of sad to see it go. It's fun to see the random drawings and trying to decipher an image or emotion from them. Yeah, I am that strange...


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## SkyGrl (Jan 7, 2010)

39 hours. yikes. are you hitting zombie mode?? snail art is so cute.. i love getting real close and watching their little rasps move over the algea! 

have you tried alternative methods.. naturopathic medicine, acupuncture, ect. here in red deer we have a really good one! i told you, come for a visit. ill cook for you and everything.  spring is coming so it wont be so bloody cold here. 

Amy


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

More past the zombie the mode and now into not functioning well mode. Hopefully, I get back to trying to sleep in another hour or so.

I would totally love to come up to Canada! I've never been. We'll have to make some plans.  

I've tried a few methods, but not acupuncture. Going on the 45th hour in just a few more minutes. I can't wait until I can crawl into bed and actually sleep. Knowing my luck, I'll just lay there again. Anyone wanna call me with a bedtime story? :hihi: 

Oooo - Name is getting called! See ya!


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## SkyGrl (Jan 7, 2010)

your welcome anytime! we have an extra kingsize bed we only have around for guests.  plus Kyle is gone for 10 days and is only back for 3 so i need the company!!!

Amy


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## Karackle (Dec 11, 2007)

Sara, I hope you get (got) some sleep!!! 

Though I do admit that I love the snail art :hihi: especially the one you posted yesterday! :biggrin: I too enjoy watching them up close sometimes and watching their little mouths do their thing  

But you need some sleep, so crawl into bed once you're done with your responsibilities / obligations for the day, or go visit Amy, sounds like she'll take good care of you


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## Rion (Dec 29, 2006)

Insomnia sucks, I suffer from it frequently as well. Heck it's 3AM and I probably won't sleep for another 2-3 hours minimum. The multiple day insomnia sucks. I wouldn't recommend the head bashing thing, concussions are not good I've had a few and I wouldn't recommend them.

Also, I forgot that I used to watch music videos on MTV...now it's all reality tv and "That 70s Show" for some reason.


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

Good Morning!!!!!

Rion, I am hooked on listening to music in the middle of the night. Not only have I got to find some of my favorites and revisit them, but I've been really finding a lot of cool music thanks to a friend that supplies me with links. I bookmark them and listen to them. I am glad to see you are active on the forum again! We've (I've) missed you.

Speaking of concussions, my brother got one walking into a tree branch. Literally. :biggrin: He'll never live that down.

Amy, you may see me at your doorstep shortly after the morning I had. Finally, around six, I was able to fall asleep. Anyway, I apparently slept with my beloved friend, the stinkbug.  I woke up after a just a short while feeling my back being tickled. So apparently, he wasn't just content to sleep with me, but wanted to snuggle. :help:

Needless to say, I ran screaming out of the room, and promptly took a shower. I am still freaking out over this one. The bloody bug was still sitting on my bed when I came back from the shower. He was like: "Turn off that light, you are disturbing my rest." I tossed a shirt on him and set a book by him to read. I am now sitting here, with approximately 4 hours total sleep in the past 2 1/2 days and wondering when winter is coming back. 

So, that is why there is no snail art today. This tank is in the bedroom with the bug and I ain't about to go back there without backup. _If _I am brave enough, I'll take a picture of the little guy to share with you all.

So, MR. Stink'stole my bed'bug, here is my song for you: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nLVErs85g10&feature=related

Figures. The one time I fall into a restful slumber. Oh well. Time to get up any way...

Onto tank news - algae is still there. roud: That is all.


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## lauraleellbp (Feb 3, 2008)

OMG Sara I'm dying!!

I do feel really bad you were woken up by the crazy thing, but OMG is it hysterical!!


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

Just to show that I am not making this up, I called my backup (Kafka and Wishbone), put on stomping boots (just in case) and slowly creeped into the room to dispose of the critter. Snapped a couple pictures for you. I am starting to wonder if this is the same stinker, so therefore, I am sending him packing long distance. Expect a present soon, Laura. :hihi:










Harmless, maybe. But on a creepy factor, this is topping the charts. You know, when I was younger, I remember playing with the green stink bugs. 

But alas! After shipping the box off to you, I was able to get some more snail art!

This guy has an assistant:


















Cardinal - the erio is growing!!!!!!!!!









Nonconductive - the snail drew you a picture (kind of looks like you, don't you think?):









Now please excuse me while I go throw up from that experience.


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## JamesHockey (Nov 10, 2010)

I thinks it's totally worth it to send it



Sent from my iPod touch using Tapatalk


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## problemman (Aug 19, 2005)

Sara I take it my advice did the trick?


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

JamesHockey said:


> I thinks it's totally worth it to send it
> 
> 
> 
> Sent from my iPod touch using Tapatalk


I am even sending it priority so it gets to her still fresh. :icon_twis



problemman said:


> Sara I take it my advice did the trick?


Brad, until the bug interrupted my nice sleep, it worked well. 

I still think we need someone to translate my accent for you. You poor feller.


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## problemman (Aug 19, 2005)

Let me get my crap figured out first in the 75 and see where I'm at with the next tank  and it worked for me too lol


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

Of course, of course. Take your time on straightening out the tank. I plan on sending you back the plants you sent me. :flick: Seriously though, I was thinking you'd like to try out Erio 2 once I have it growing for me again. Just give it a few more weeks and it should really start responding especially now that the algae is going away and the co2 was tweaked.

Glad it worked for you, too...but aren't you a pro by now with tank ferts? 

How is the EI method working out for you so far? You should really double check my math with that sticky to make sure it's correct after not having sleep for so many hours. LOL


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## problemman (Aug 19, 2005)

I'm not a pro lol you learn something new everyday

I think your math was dead on. We will see after a week


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

I feel like......wrong. Seriously struggling with this.

I want to go to sleep, but every time I close my eyes, I see stinkbugs behind my eyelids.  Figures, I finally feel like I can sleep and I can't sleep, lol. Oh well. I am totally supposed to be somewhere in like 10 minutes, but I'm not feeling like going anywhere. After another death this week (this was the son of the man that was dating my mother-in-law that just died recently), I am honestly not up to it. I know this is extremely selfish, but between the illnesses of my mom, my grandma, my brother, my great-aunt, my uncle and my second cousin, I am starting to get worn down. 

And all I want to do at this point is to get well enough to go back to work. I feel bad that I am thinking of myself when there is so much going on right now.


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## lauraleellbp (Feb 3, 2008)

ROFLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLL @ that package!!

*note to self- don't open any packages from Sara*


On a serious note, though-

Sara, there's nothing even vaguely "selfish" about grieving. Our culture doesn't have many traditions and rituals to help someone grieve like exist in many other cultures, so unfortunately you mostly have to feel your own way through grief. You take all the time you need, and do whatever you need to do for yourself. As long as it's not harming yourself or anyone else, there's no "right" or "wrong" way to grieve. Some people throw parties, some write poetry, some wear all black and withdraw from others for quiet time, others throw themselves into maximizing the relationships they still have... you just ride the emotional rollercoaster as it comes, and find what works for you.

On the insomnia front- IMO it's time to talk to your doctor if you haven't already. I get bouts from time to time, but you're REALLY suffering right now.


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

Hehehe. I am going to put a pseudonym on the package now that you are not planning to open any from me. I'll put Kara's name on it. 

Thanks for the kind words, Laura. Grief is something I am unfortunately, quite familiar with. I've been loosing people since I was a wee tot. It's just strange how different I am reacting this time around. It's the insomnia that is making it difficult to deal with it all. Speaking of doctors, I finally gave up and went yesterday for a check up I've been putting off. Actually, I am about to go back in a few for a small issue that came up. Perhaps it'll help with the some of the issues I've been having.

I do have good news. My sister-in-law (I guess I should start saying ex) and her father were not hurt in the earthquake/tsunami in Japan! I feel terrible for those that have been effected and hope the best for them.

Well, I really need to stop putting this off and leave for the glorious fun-filled trip I am about to partake on.


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## Karackle (Dec 11, 2007)

Oh WHAT?! now Laura Lee won't accept packages from me either! :hihi: I'm dying laughing over that package though!

But on a serious note, I hope your doctor has some good insight and can at least help you with the insomnia because being well rested certainly makes dealing with all of the other $*!# life throws at us easier to deal with. And I think Laura Lee's advice is good and true, it is certainly not selfish to deal with grief in any way that works for you, as long as it isn't hurting you or others, but if you require some time to yourself to grieve in order to then go out and deal with everything else, then you need to take that time. I'm so sorry there has been so much upheaval in your life recently and that you personal illness doesn't make any of it easier to deal with, but again, do what works for you, and if you need to, knock yourself out with some ambien so you can get some SLEEP! SLEEP is what you really need my dear!


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## lauraleellbp (Feb 3, 2008)

I think someone needs to rock Sara to sleep.

I can mail you lots of rocks.


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## Cardinal Tetra (Feb 26, 2006)

So did you find out whether your water was "hard" or not? I.E. is the Erio type 3 dead yet? hehe
Oh yeah I think I may have more things for you too.


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## Karackle (Dec 11, 2007)

lauraleellbp said:


> I think someone needs to rock Sara to sleep.
> 
> I can mail you lots of rocks.


HAHAHAHAHAHA brilliant!!! Let's all send her rocks :hihi: 

Maybe Sara finally fell asleep though, she's been awful quiet since this afternoon. Here's hopin'!


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## chad320 (Mar 7, 2010)

Rawk Awn Sara, We alls thankin bout ya right nauw


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

Cardinal, it is thriving, so I think I am good to go! (Won't know for sure until the algae disappears, though.)

I <3 you all! I did get some sleep, not enough, but some. I am looking forward to those rocks. :flick: They'll look good in my algae tank.

This forum community is great to be putting up with me right now. I know I have not been the most pleasant and probably down right annoying to you all at times, but please know it means a lot to me.

I am not going into details right now as not all is known yet, (and this is likely all I'll say about it on the forums) but the doctor has gotten some answers with the latest blood work. She gave my mom a couple pills to give me for sleep until I go back on Monday to find out more, so you all might not see me 24/7 (don't all cheer at once, lol) like you have been.

Okay, I am going to stop posting before I start crying, LOL.


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

Here you go. Spent a long part of the afternoon sneaking past the flood-walls they had to put up for the first time since 97 in order to play in the river. 


















Since it's flooding outside, the bugs are finding solace indoors. This guy decided to relax in our guest pool:



















Snail art is becoming all the rage, the poor artists cannot relax or work without having groupies following them:


















This one is for sale in the gift shop:









CT! Here is the erio:









Paintings are getting sold quick, the gallery is getting empty and you are starting to see more plants than algae:








































































Brad, my glosso is laying down and I didn't even know it:


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## problemman (Aug 19, 2005)

What is the other ivy plant in the glosso picture?


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## Centromochlus (May 19, 2008)

WTB that hydrothrix and downoi. 

I'm super jealous of your rotala butterfly... how do you keep it looking like that?!


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## Cardinal Tetra (Feb 26, 2006)

Oh so you do have Hydrothrix gardneri after all. Mine decided to fall over dead one day last week  Oh well it just frees up more space for other plants. Must keep collecting!

Very mysterious, hiding everything with a film of algae and keeping us in suspense


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

problemman said:


> What is the other ivy plant in the glosso picture?


I don't know to be honest, ask Cardinal Tetra, I got it from him.



AzFishKid said:


> WTB that hydrothrix and downoi.
> 
> I'm super jealous of your rotala butterfly... how do you keep it looking like that?!


You can't have any! :flick: Seriously, if you want some, I'll put you on my list of people I am trading/RAOKing downoi with (However, you'll have to pay $55555). I'm actually shipping some off on Monday.

LOL, ask Cardinal about the rotala, it's from him. :hihi: (I don't think it does well in taller tanks, it looks like crap in my 55, I finally pitched it out of there.)



Cardinal Tetra said:


> Oh so you do have Hydrothrix gardneri after all. Mine decided to fall over dead one day last week  Oh well it just frees up more space for other plants. Must keep collecting!


Oh, no! If you want more, let me know. If it survives, I'll share with you. We are incurable, aren't we? 



> Very mysterious, hiding everything with a film of algae and keeping us in suspense


Thank you! It is part of my evil plan to have others embrace algae with me.


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## Centromochlus (May 19, 2008)

sewingalot said:


> You can't have any! :flick: Seriously, if you want some, I'll put you on my list of people I am trading/RAOKing downoi with (However, you'll have to pay $55555). I'm actually shipping some off on Monday.
> 
> LOL, ask Cardinal about the rotala, it's from him. :hihi: (I don't think it does well in taller tanks, it looks like crap in my 55, I finally pitched it out of there.)


Put me on the list for some downoi and hydrothrix. I'd love to buy lots of both from you whenever they're ready to be trimmed.

But make sure CT gets some hydrothrix back first before you send me some. roud:


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

Will do. How much are you wanting so I know how much to let grow out?


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## Centromochlus (May 19, 2008)

sewingalot said:


> Will do. How much are you wanting so I know how much to let grow out?


Sending PM. roud:


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## problemman (Aug 19, 2005)

Put me on a list for more downoi lol and the red bacopa!


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## Cardinal Tetra (Feb 26, 2006)

The little ivy plant next to the glosso is a Hydrocotyle spp. It's super hardy and doesn't even have to be planted! I wrap it around my tall stems and let it grow that way and I've grown it floating near the surface into mats which look like clouds! Everyone in the states is calling it Hydrocotyle subthorpioides but it isn't and there is a lot of debate out there as to what it actually is. I give it to people as Hydrocotyle sibthorpioides so w/e. 

@Sara and Philip. All my Hydrothrix is dead. The shrimp are happily eating it though and I planted the seeds I found on the dead stems so we'll see what happens. It's ok if the seeds don't grow either. That plant was too much of a weed so I don't really need any right now but keep it around for future generations! :hihi:

@Philip. I've got lots of Rotala macranda 'Butterfly'. Like I said, just tell me when you want some and it's yours. Mine is growing across the water's surface right now and is sending out lots of sideshoots.


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

I will start growing some plants for you two. We'll see how the hydrothrix does for me. That little ivy plant is adorable. I'll just call it that 'ivy looking one.' :hihi:

You know what guys? I am seriously thinking about closing down all of my tanks and selling everything off and moving on. I'm so tired lately. I keep thinking I'll feel better soon and then I have a really bad day like today and I wonder what's the point in this hobby.


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## problemman (Aug 19, 2005)

You will be fine.just another day


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## Karackle (Dec 11, 2007)

Well my dear, I certainly hope you don't decide to get rid of ALL of your tanks, especially because I KNOW that you enjoy watching your fish swim around and find it relaxing, and I know that because we've discussed it because it's one of my favorite things to do too (i believe i mentioned the story about how I used to sometimes walk home for lunch and I'd sit and watch my fish tank while eating lunch and how weird my roommate thought I was when she came home for lunch one day and caught me staring at my fish tank.....she's not a fish person, she didn't understand :tongue But I digress. If you need to downsize though in order to make time for yourself to get better, then you should do that. And you know that I mean that because it's the same advice we both gave Brad not so long ago  

ALSO - umm...the piece of snail art you posted with the "now for sale in the gift shop" title is legitimately SO COOL! it's like a spiral and you can see the double rasp marks....i might have to steal that and use it as my background.....i mean purchase it from the gift shop :hihi:


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

You are such a great pal, Kara. You are right, I'd miss staring into my tanks. Anyway, I am probably suffering from too little sleep and not thinking coherently again. That's A-Okay, though. I keep myself entertained that way.  Anyway, you are in luck. That particular piece of snail art is on sale - it's 100% off the original price.

Oh, yeah - the river is still rising. Here is another picture, this area is usually free of water, those trees in the water are about 30 feet tall:










Hauntingly beautiful, don't you think?


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## Karackle (Dec 11, 2007)

Holy crap that's a lot of water! Is it causing your house to flood? It's definitely sort of beautiful. Oh I also meant to tell you your neighborhood is GORGEOUS! Did you take that picture in black and white or at dusk (or dawn)?

WOOHOO! I love 100% off the original price of snail art :hihi:

OH and why were you up at 4am?! GET SOME SLEEP! :biggrin:


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

You will be happy to know that I got nearly six hours of sleep! Here is a video to celebrate my current outlook. One thing I don't miss from the 80's? Big gigantic bows. :hihi: No more cranky Sara. (And her world sighs a collective breath....)

Kara, this picture was taken in the middle of the afternoon. The turbidity in the water is making it so dark, it's muddy black. The background is the Ohio hills and everything is kind of muted from the water colors.

Although we get water quite frequently in our basement, the floodwall gates were put up and we are good to go! It's the bugs that are driving me bonkers. They are coming in to dry out and thanks to that gutter leak, we still have nice little nooks and crannies for them to find a way through. One room down, though.

The sleep also reminded me I was working on something for someone in my family. Don't remember what it is or who it's for. Time to ask around, lol:









Oh, and such sad news. The snail art was so popular, the joint practically sold out on opening night....and I  through the whole event. 
Pictures are from a cell, so forgive the quality. They kept the good camera at the security gate. Now that I can see in the tank....I am not liking the blue background. Time to put the black poster board back on. Also, I am noticing a bit of stunting, so I nudged the co2 up a smidgen. And that stupid riccia is back. It's been hiding in the downoi again. :icon_conf Great news, though! I have a berried shrimp again. Finally after a long hiatus they are breeding again!!!!!










There are some remaining canvases, but the focus is now onto the plants:


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## Karackle (Dec 11, 2007)

HAHAHAHAHA WOW THOSE OUTFITS! But I'm so glad that's how you woke up feeling today! (key word being woke up because that means you SLEPT! YAY!!!! :bounce 

LOL I hate it when I find part of a random project lying around and can't remember not only who it is for but also what the heck it is! :hihi: Looks like you were knitting a rope? Ok that makes not a lot of sense so maybe it's one of those things that blocks the wind from coming under a door? (i have no idea how big it is though, so maybe that makes no sense either :hihi: but I tried )

ANYWAY 

Glad to hear the focus is on the plants now! They look like they are recovering quite well, I see lots of nice pearling there so that's good! Sorry your nemesis riccia is back though, that jerk! :angryfire :hihi:


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## Da Plant Man (Apr 7, 2010)

I should come over and stick my hand in your tank, it would = instant death to the riccia.


Tank is looking...better....I can't wait until all the algae is gone!

(Maybe you should embrace the riccia, try to grow it. Then it will die.)


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## nonconductive (Jan 29, 2010)

i see a blank canvas on the rear glass.


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

I know, right? Those outfits are horrid. I found the pattern for the yarn project. Apparently, it is a tote of sorts for my mother. That is one of the handles apparently. Good thing I found out before asking her. LOL I'm actually going to take some time to work on finishing it. I usually start to crochet when I start spending time with family. Brings back warm and fuzzy memories of my great-grandma and great-aunt. :icon_mrgr

Here's a picture of my great-grandma and grandma. I can't find one of my aunt, but it's not like this is important to you all, lol. The place in the background is my grandparents place. They have like 27 acres of hillside and I used to spend a lot of time exploring the woods. So, yes, I am actually a hillbilly...but I am from Ohio :

*pictures removed*



Caton said:


> I should come over and stick my hand in your tank, it would = instant death to the riccia.
> 
> 
> Tank is looking...better....I can't wait until all the algae is gone!
> ...


Good idea, Caton. I'll buy you Taco Bell and waffles if you accomplish this feat. 



nonconductive said:


> i see a blank canvas on the rear glass.


Way to burst my bubble, there kiddo. LMAO! Yeah, I noticed that. Why do you think I am putting back on the black background? It doesn't show up. Instant algae remover. :icon_mrgr


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## Karackle (Dec 11, 2007)

hahahaha or it's a handle for a tote bag......i was close :hihi: 

that land behind your grandma looks GORGEOUS!!! love it! 

And isn'ti it wonderful how a black background makes algae disappear? it's like magic :icon_lol:


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

You know what, Kara? I am as bad as you. I keep forgetting to put up that background. LOL. To over compensate for someone who's username will remain nameless *cough* and HIS lack of pictures - here are some bad ones of my tank's status. The snails are doing a fine job. I added in a bunch more ramshorns and they are chewing through the algae in record time. But, you can still see some in the pictures, so I am curious how long it will take. 
and incase anyone is wanting to know why I haven't moved those super glue containers....I glued them to the table by accident. :hihi:










(look, this picture is even too red, and I'll still post it - )









I removed a lot of the stems over to the 55. The rotala butterfly is finally coming back after the torture, but I am sick of it, and parting ways. I'll be sending this to a fellow member to love (I wonder what the shrimp are talking about on that sponge?)




























This is cool. One of the leaves on the bacopa became mutated









Downoi is cheering up from the additional fertilizing and co2


















And this is the havoc that ensues when I FINALLY get to sleep (a long time -I slept like 13 hours! ). Dogs on furniture, cats opening the cabinet door and knocking over the food container so it opened (there was quite a bit of food left in there)....but today is Kafka's 10th birthday (and Wishbone the stray's designated 10 - 13th) and I am more coherent than I have been in over three months!:


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## lauraleellbp (Feb 3, 2008)

sewingalot said:


> and incase anyone is wanting to know why I haven't moved those super glue containers....I glued them to the table by accident. :hihi:


Good thing you weren't glueing in your sleep, huh?!!

(how do you spell glue-ing? Gluing? I'm having one of those *nothing looks right* moments...)


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## Karackle (Dec 11, 2007)

Glad to hear you are well rested and coherent! YAY! :biggrin: 

HAPPY BIRTHDAY PUPPIES!!! Don't you just love when the animals cause mischief? my Leo likes to get into bathroom trash cans and tear the stuffing out of toys and beds and throw it everywhere. Sometimes he likes to eat socks too. 

Tank is looking good!!! YAY for snails!!! and snail art. I notices some snail art in my 10g yesterday, i'll post the pictures at some point :hihi:


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

Oh wow! I thought I was the only one that thought words didn't look right some days. However, I am really bad at spelling, so it's really all the time I think that.

Laura, join me in the fun.  http://www.plantedtank.net/forums/tank-journals-photo-album/102602-125g-mud-tank-9.html#post1328656

I can't believe I slept that long!


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## Karackle (Dec 11, 2007)

lauraleellbp said:


> (how do you spell glue-ing? Gluing? I'm having one of those *nothing looks right* moments...)


that's an excellent question....neither option DOES look right does it? but i think it's gluing


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

Hahaha, I love how we are talking about glue and not the actual planted tank. :hihi: And the fact I don't care and am just enjoying the conversation! No wonder my post count is ridiculous. Intelligence does not equal post count for Sara!


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## lauraleellbp (Feb 3, 2008)

In elementary school I once forgot how to spell "of."

Ever tried to look up "of" in a dictionary when you can't remember whether or not it starts with a "u"?


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

LOL, that sounds like the time I couldn't find the word "mise." I was in the eighth grade typing a paper and couldn't find the word in the dictionary. I was heartbroken to find out it wasn't really a word and I was just my hick accent. Lol. It's "might as"


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## Karackle (Dec 11, 2007)

yeah, somehow I forgot how to spell "the" once. Awesome. :hihi:


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

That's a good one, Kara. I finally made myself go upstairs and clean up the filter. I am not very happy after pouring half a canister full of fish water on me. Yeah.....it was that adventurous. 

Probably an excellent thing I went up there, though. A lot of the poor shrimp were at the top of the tank upside down looking for air:










So, I turned off the co2 and stuck in an air stone while I cleaned the filter. After the filter clean up and a partial water change, the shrimp started swimming around again.



















And finally settled down to a happy crawl again. 



























So I've made the decision to abandon the EI method again. It's just not worth it to me on this tank or the other one. I've tried, but I just don't like the hit or miss with the co2, pushing it up to the point they gasp and gather at the water's surface cannot be healthy. And quite honestly, the shrimp are more important to me. Even though the plants are improving since the starvation method, I just don't care anymore. I'm tearing out a bunch of the plants for a RAOK (if you can call beaten up plants that), and I am going back to my original plans with this tank. 

Still have some snail art, but nothing like it was. I actually think the tank looked better behind a glass of algae at this point. Failure is not fun. And I am just sitting here wondering why I keep torturing myself. It's not like I am trying to win a contest or anything. So why does it really matter?


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## lauraleellbp (Feb 3, 2008)

sewingalot said:


> And I am just sitting here wondering why I keep torturing myself. It's not like I am trying to win a contest or anything. So why does it really matter?


I thought you were having fun? :fish:


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## msjinkzd (May 12, 2007)

> Still have some snail art, but nothing like it was. I actually think the tank looked better behind a glass of algae at this point. Failure is not fun. And I am just sitting here wondering why I keep torturing myself. It's not like I am trying to win a contest or anything. So why does it really matter?


This is my mantra with shrimp keeping and tanks in general. If its not fun and a success, who wants to do it??

You should do what makes you smile when you look at it 
Beautiful shrimp!


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

lauraleellbp said:


> I thought you were having fun? :fish:


I always have fun when I am trying to break my tanks, but not when I am putting them back together and it isn't working so well. I know it is a patience issue, but I am running out of it. Plus, I am not going to be spending a lot of time at home next week and won't be able to keep up with the status quo of dosing, water changes, checking this, moving that.



msjinkzd said:


> This is my mantra with shrimp keeping and tanks in general. If its not fun and a success, who wants to do it??
> 
> You should do what makes you smile when you look at it
> Beautiful shrimp!


Thanks, they are my babies.  I don't know why yellow shrimp aren't like super special to everyone? Much prettier than a lot of the shrimp out there.

My problem comes from trying to fit in the status quo. I don't know why I don't just admit I suck when it comes to the EI method because I am just not that dedicated and move on. 

It did motivate me to go stomp on the block of dirt outside so that I can refill it with some water and clean off the debris. There are some leaves in there from the over wintering......:icon_redf This MTS is going to be truly natural by the time I get around to it.


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## lauraleellbp (Feb 3, 2008)

LOL Sounds like my MTS making method... I left it outside totally untouched during the rainy season.

Then waited till the dry season baked all the algae that grew in it.

Oops.


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

Ha! We could call it the NPT/MTS hybrid method. I am thinking I would have been better off getting dirt from the river... I'm just about ready to throw it in the tank and forget about it. I _did _manage to pour water in the dirt a little bit ago. This is such hard work, LMAO! My mailman keeps teasing me about the bucket o' dirt.


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## Karackle (Dec 11, 2007)

If you are torturing yourself then it's not worth it, if you're having fun experimenting, that's one thing, but if you're miserable when it goes "wrong" or is putting stress on the animals which in turn stresses you, it's definitely not worth it. I've said it before but I'll say it again (and again and again if you make me :hihi hobbies are not supposed to ADD stress to your life, that's the antithesis of their purpose. So do what makes it fun for you. If a less-than-contest-worthy-tank that has lots of happy, healthy shrimp is what makes you happy, leave it at that roud:

anyway, i'm loving both of your MTS methods ladies (Laura Lee and Sara)!!! hahahahaha Brilliant. Also, DOES anyone use "found dirt" ever? I'm wondering if you couldn't just grab dirt from the creek, maybe let it dry out to kill off any algae / critters and then use that, I bet it's SUPER nutrient rich, no? I may just not be thinking through all the potential problems, but, i figured I'd mention it  

Also, those yellow shrimp really are awesome, why don't more people have them I wonder? Do they breed for you or are they notoriously tricky to breed in captivity or something? Maybe the stand out less against plants than RCS so they're not as popular for that reason? I don't know. But they're totally cool!


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## nonconductive (Jan 29, 2010)

Phil Edwards on APC used sterilized pond sediment with good results. I believe i've read other threads where found soil was used with good results.




Karackle said:


> If you are torturing yourself then it's not worth it, if you're having fun experimenting, that's one thing, but if you're miserable when it goes "wrong" or is putting stress on the animals which in turn stresses you, it's definitely not worth it. I've said it before but I'll say it again (and again and again if you make me :hihi hobbies are not supposed to ADD stress to your life, that's the antithesis of their purpose. So do what makes it fun for you. If a less-than-contest-worthy-tank that has lots of happy, healthy shrimp is what makes you happy, leave it at that roud:
> 
> anyway, i'm loving both of your MTS methods ladies (Laura Lee and Sara)!!! hahahahaha Brilliant. Also, DOES anyone use "found dirt" ever? I'm wondering if you couldn't just grab dirt from the creek, maybe let it dry out to kill off any algae / critters and then use that, I bet it's SUPER nutrient rich, no? I may just not be thinking through all the potential problems, but, i figured I'd mention it
> 
> Also, those yellow shrimp really are awesome, why don't more people have them I wonder? Do they breed for you or are they notoriously tricky to breed in captivity or something? Maybe the stand out less against plants than RCS so they're not as popular for that reason? I don't know. But they're totally cool!


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

I have used creek soil in outdoor planters with good success, but not in a tank. I don't know why I didn't do this. I am *supposed* to be doing dishes so we can turn off the leaky faucet and I am *supposed* to be watching the series finale of Big Love with the dear man (which I've never been happier to see a series end in my life, this is just sooooo boring.) So don't tell the husband that my hair isn't let down for the beauty of it...I'm hiding the earphones.

Kara - I personally think the yellow shrimp look better with plants, more natural. I like the reds but I am always thinking of Christmas trees when I see them hanging out on moss. When it came to chosing which to keep it was a no brainer for me. The yellows are difficult to breed, but they do go through periods of dormancy more frequently. I just got berried shrimp after many, many weeks of nothing. 

NonC - I think you should set up a tank with creek soil. It's only a step away from what you are doing, no?


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## nonconductive (Jan 29, 2010)

that would mean i would have to go get wet.... the ponds in my neighborhood get filled with plants (before they are killed by chemicals). i might try digging some muck up next time i go down there to pick a few.


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

Didn't you say you were tough? Roll up them thar pants and hop in! You are lucky you get plants in your ponds. I have yet to see a pond in years with anything but algae.


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## nonconductive (Jan 29, 2010)

sewingalot said:


> Didn't you say you were tough? Roll up them thar pants and hop in! You are lucky you get plants in your ponds. I have yet to see a pond in years with anything but algae.


i didnt mean huckleberry finn tough.


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

I'd rather deal with pond water than a kidney stone any day. Do you need me to go fishing out some dirt for you? I totally will.


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## Karackle (Dec 11, 2007)

heeheehee she would totally get some creek soil for you too! :hihi:

I'm a little confused, the yellow shrimp ARE difficult to breed? Or they are NOT really, but they go dormant more often? Either way, they're very pretty, and I do know what you mean about the XMas tree thing with the RCS :tongue:


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

I totally would. I'd fetch you up a whole poke (this means sack for you city punks) full. Yall know it's true. Specially since it's officially Spring today and I wouldn't be freezing wading in the deep end.

It's okay, Kara. I confuse myself.  They aren't really difficult to breed.....just add water and wait (remember that saying?). The just seem to go dormant more often, for longer periods and also tend to have smaller batches. That's just my experience with them.


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## Karackle (Dec 11, 2007)

hahaha ok, that's what I thought you meant, but I wanted to double check. Hmm....I might have to make you send me some!  Then it would REALLY look XMas in my tanks though, I'd have yellow and red decorations :hihi:


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

Except the yellow and red make plain babies.  I'll send you some, but they will crossbreed. Just an FYI.


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## Karackle (Dec 11, 2007)

oh do they? and the color is blah? hmmm....well I'm hoping to get the go ahead to start up a fish tank in my office area at the lab once I have my permanent desk (5 of my "boss's" students are graduating this year). So maybe I'll get some from you then  I don't personally mind so much if they crossbreed, but if it's going to make for boring colors I suppose I'd rather keep them separate....maybe. LOL


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## msjinkzd (May 12, 2007)

you should get green babaulti if you really want it to look like xmas!


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## Karackle (Dec 11, 2007)

hahahaha I actually don't necessarily want it to look like christmas, I was just saying that it probably would with both colors in there :tongue: but I did look those guys up and they're pretty cool! *edit* just looked up some more pictures and it looks like some of them are blue? or maybe it's just that some are mislabeled. But the lil blue guys are awesome too. I would totally love a tank "sprinkled" with all of the different colors! :hihi:

I'm thinking I'll wait to procure yellows until I have a tank I can keep them in on their own and then I can put a few in either the 30 or the 10 and leave the other one with only RCS. That way I maintain each color morph but can also see what happens when I mix them :hihi:


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

Kara, just let me know, I'll ship you some.

But not for awhile especially after the day I've had!!!! I'll highlight the interesting parts of shrimp catching.

Looking for brine shrimp net, I hit my head on the cabinet door and start bleeding. Yeah, I hit it that hard. Find the net and start putting shrimp in a bag. First bag successful. Whew. Second bag, not so well. I somehow in trying to catch a shrimp that comes flying out of my net onto the floor (I kept this girl and named her _Darwin Award_) my net lands on my propped up light and it slams behind the fish tank, and starts buzzing, crackling and catches fire! @%$#! Luckily, I had enough common sense to flip the power and unplug it before messing with the fixture because I grabbed it where it was still smoking, slowly burning (ouch!) and took it outside until it stopped smoldering. 
And I am so busy waving the fixture, I don't see it coming. My first hornet attack of the summer (I had one fly down my shirt and that was _not _fun) Apparently, there is a nest of them in the umbrella stand:









Turns out, the bulb must have busted, catching on fire. Surprisingly, the fixture isn't physical different in appearance, but the electrical parts are shot (tried new bulbs):









So I finished fishing out the shrimp the best I could with a flashlight that needs new batteries and finally said I give up and packaged up what I had and went to the post office. And then I have to stand for the next 15 minutes explaining to the guy that I have shipped fish before, no they aren't poisonous, no they aren't illegal, yes I can ship them, I shipped out some a few weeks back to the guy standing next to you. Still not convinced, I have to pull up the PO website on my phone and show him. So he finally asks are they goldfish? You can ship goldfish. Aren't goldfish - fish??? This goes on until the other guy gets finished with the lady buying stamps and comes over and tells the guy to relax, takes the box and winks at me. I feel sorry for that guy. I only had to stand there 1/4 of an hour, where he's a coworker. 

If these shrimp don't survive the trip, I'll break down and cry. LMAO!


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## SkyGrl (Jan 7, 2010)

WHAT A DAY! lol now its time to scour the SnS forums for new light... those darn postal workers, well the neebs at least. *shudder* i hate hornets! evil little stingers... stab stab! 

good job on the save! that shrimp will live forever!

Amy


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

Amy, that's just 1/10th of my day. I won't even bother to tell you the rest as it is just....sad. LMAO! I am about to go crawl into bed and forget this day ever happened. I found the other light fixture, I may use it but I was banking on selling it. We'll see. I think you started it by breaking that expensive coralife bulb. I just didn't want you to feel alone. 

That shrimp is literally sitting in an inch of water that I haven't moved out of the tank yet. I need to find some batteries for the flash light to find the ones that were sneaky enough to hide this morning. So far I've counted about seven babies and Darwin.


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## Karackle (Dec 11, 2007)

Oh Sara! That sure sounds like quite a day! I'm sorry to hear about the light fixture since you were hoping to sell the other one! BUMMER! You know, for an algae tank, if you have a desk lamp somewhere you could just throw a CFL in it and that should be MORE than enough light for your algae, I would imagine. Heck, I bet you could even put an algae tank next to a window with the blinds open! If BBA is growing in ambient light, sunlight or desk lamp light should be plenty right? And then you can still sell off the light fixture if you need to roud:


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## SkyGrl (Jan 7, 2010)

oh man your day sounds AWESOME! thanks for joining me in the lightless world.. soon we will all be blind to the disuse of our eyes. to bad the algea wont survive. we can have a small funeral for it.... 

start a pico tank for Darwin! cute cute!!

Amy


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

That's a good idea about the nano tank for Darwin. I have a little critter keeper that I could use. I'll set it up with the water that is left over in the 10 gallon and move over some of the gravel. Should work. 

Day could have been worse. I made it through, so all is well. And I can see again, so as I wait on the plumber (don't ask what else I did yesterday before I left the house, lol), I snapped some pictures of stuff for you all.

Amy, this is a few pictures of the shrimp eating that food I sent you yesterday, by the way. The first one shows the one berried shrimp, but the juvenile females are getting their first saddles and darkening with each molt! Yay for me.









Want more intense yellowish shrimp? Mess with the camera hue. :hihi:









More accurate of a color, but a little pale:









Snacking on snail canvas (did I mention the algae has returned? I can't win.)


















Algae!









I named this wnkdracer (I'll give you two guesses as to why...)









These are for Cardinal Tetra (isn't this not supposed to branch? LOL)


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## SkyGrl (Jan 7, 2010)

lol awe your shrimps are so cute!!! messing with camera hue is the best! i love it.. i need a more sophisticated camera i have grown out of mine in 2 years. i need something more advanced. grrr technology! always improving! 

i cant wait to see how my shrimp react! im so excited!

Amy


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## Karackle (Dec 11, 2007)

awesome shrimp pics! They are super cute! I like the one with the racing stripe  

a nano tank for Darwin could be fun too, yay for critter keepers :biggrin:


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## Cardinal Tetra (Feb 26, 2006)

sewingalot said:


> These are for Cardinal Tetra (isn't this not supposed to branch? LOL)


Wow you're the survivor. Naps are always a good idea. I like to pretend that all my school work will go away and then I wake up and it's still sitting on my desk. I can dream can't I?

The erio only divides at the crown and then the separate crowns grow independently. If you cut it and leave the base then the base won't do squat and just die. That's what I meant. 

I'm glad to see the hydrocotyle is doing well for you. Mine is getting eaten by something...


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## Karackle (Dec 11, 2007)

i'm loving the clovery / viney plant by the way! is that the hydrocotyle?


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## Cardinal Tetra (Feb 26, 2006)

Karackle said:


> i'm loving the clovery / viney plant by the way! is that the hydrocotyle?


Yup. It doesn't even have to be planted! It can be wrapped around plants, left to float around, w/e. It just forms mats/blankets wherever and sends out sprigs to conquer new territory. Too bad mine is getting ravaged by shrimp (most probable).


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

Found another stink bug floating in the water. There is that Eisen bacteria stuff on top of the water. It's coming out of the tap ever since it started raining. I think the iron rocks are leeching again into the water as I can actually taste metal from the tap.

Amy, it's only a cheap point and shoot camera. I just take like a bazillion pictures to find one or two that is presentable. That yellow setting is supposed to be specifically for aquariums, lol. I don't think it works.

Let me know what they think. The first day they ignored it, but by the morning, it was covered with shrimp and snails.

I found the critter keeper but I can't catch Darwin. She's that smart. Speaking of the yellow sports shrimp, I don't often see the racing stripe, it must be springtime cheering them up.

Haha, I always used to try to get my accounting homework done by staring at it. Never worked, either. 

Thankfully that is what you meant, cause I was afraid at first I was killing it and the erio was splitting off in attempt to survive. Yay!

CT, if you want some hydrocotyle back, let me know and I'll send half of it to you. It's overrunning the UG right now.


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## Karackle (Dec 11, 2007)

what is with all the stink bugs all of a sudden?! 

and maybe you should stop drinking the tap water if it tastes like metal......or at least get like a super brita filter


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

Springtime = bugs in WV. :hihi:

So far, the switch from EI back to my own method (dose as needed, load the substrate with root tabs) is going very well.

Wanna see how nasty the water gets after a rain? (And if you pour a cup of water and let it sit, you get the same film in just a few moments. It's something to do with the metals in the water, probably iron) And I've been drinking this stuff! :help:










Poke it and it goes away (for a few seconds)









And quickly comes back (yuck)









I've got some pictures just to cheer Mr. Betta Freckles (and you, Kara) up. I threw in some food for the shrimp just to get a couple decent pictures for you. I should have turned off the co2, but I forgot.








































































Hide and seek:


















And non-c, if you are reading this.....this little girl is asking for pictures. How can you deny an old dog new pics?:


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## nonconductive (Jan 29, 2010)

You must have put her up to it. (nice pics btw)


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

She's talking about your tank all by herself. I promise. :biggrin: Actually, she was in trouble in that picture and she was trying to give me that sweet face to get out of it (which totally worked, by the way, I'm a pushover). I had just finished making the bed and she was rooting in the covers. Rat terriers are funny dogs. She likes to be completely covered up. She's not supposed to be on the bed, and especially not after I just made it. Luckily it's wash day, so I won't have to explain the white dog hairs to the husband. :hihi:

Hey, want a bottle of my water? Free sickness with every sip.


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## nonconductive (Jan 29, 2010)

you really should stop drinking that nasty water.


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## Karackle (Dec 11, 2007)

YAY FOR SHRIMPY PICS!!! I love them! They're so cute! They definitely cheered us both right up! :hihi:

And I am seriously getting jealous of your camera now. I think I might have to save up for a new one and get the model number from you because your macro shots are awesome. I guess the cheaper option would be to make sure i'm using the right macro settings first :tongue:



nonconductive said:


> you really should stop drinking that nasty water.


also, i'm gonna have to go ahead and agree on that one! YIKES! Whatever water you have switched your dogs to, I suggest you switch your water and your husband's water to it too. At least get a brita!


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

nonconductive said:


> you really should stop drinking that nasty water.


It's quite tasty once you get past the sea monkey exoskeletons floating in it. :icon_cool I was with my Grandma at her chemo treatment today and it was amazing the strength people show when fighting cancer. I posted back in June of last year about the c8 chemo that was released in Meigs County. There was a guy sitting near grandma that was getting chemo treatments nearly every week since 2006 because he drank the water supply. He didn't even know he was drinking filth until they contacted the citizens effected and told them to come in for testing. :icon_conf The funny thing is how pleasant he was. If I were getting chemo for going on four years, I don't think I'd be so pleasant. 



Karackle said:


> YAY FOR SHRIMPY PICS!!! I love them! They're so cute! They definitely cheered us both right up! :hihi:
> 
> And I am seriously getting jealous of your camera now. I think I might have to save up for a new one and get the model number from you because your macro shots are awesome. I guess the cheaper option would be to make sure i'm using the right macro settings first :tongue:
> 
> ...


Kara, just say the word and I'll send you a link. It's a canon something or another. The dogs are the most important. Plus, I am not positive the water is poison yet. Stupid, no? But the old man doesn't drink the water unless it's filtered so, he's good. Me? I love to drink water like it's going out of style. I did pick up a brita, though. I figured some filtering is better than no filtering. I should take a picture of the part that strains the water. It's orange. :eek5:


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## Karackle (Dec 11, 2007)

well a Brita is certainly better than nothing!


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

The dogs are still drinking the good stuff. Bottled spring water. :hihi: Kara, speaking of dogs, Kafka is getting really possessive of me lately. If we go out on a walk and I have the lead and if someone approaches me that makes me nervous, he literally gets angry and over protective. Earl takes the lead and he's a good boy, loves everyone. He almost bit Earl the other day when he tried to get him to leave me for bedtime. He's very intuitive. He picks up on my emotions. On the plus side, at least I know my good old boy could protect me and that comforts me in an odd way.

Do your '_kids_' do stuff like that?


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

Haha, this tank is a mess right now. I took out a bunch of plants to send off to a couple fellow members and all that is left is a few random stems left and 2/3 of the downoi is gone. A few of the stems are leaving as well, but I realized after snaping this picture that the Erio 2 and 3 are being blown over by the filter now that many of the plants are gone. So I moved the plants around a bit, but the water because much too cloudy to show the new layout. Spent 1/2 hour picking out the bloody sinking riccia this morning. Also, not fertilizing except through the substrate. I'm just too lazy to do other wise and I've noticed the downoi roots are appreciating the root ferts. I literally had roots that was 5 inches or more. I'm going to turn this into a glosso, erio and ug tank I think. I am tired of the other stems in this tank.


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## Cardinal Tetra (Feb 26, 2006)

Lol I was wondering why some of the plants looked like they were falling over. They seem to like it though since the Erio has developed 2 crowns!


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

You'll be glad to know they are back to standing proud and tall. Cardinal, I am scared to trim that erio! I remember it took me three months to get the courage to cut downoi for the first time.


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## Cardinal Tetra (Feb 26, 2006)

Just trim where the 2 stems separate and plant them separately and then toss the stump. They stems look long enough for a trim.


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

Thanks, CT. I've done that and just left the stump in there to see what happens for the fun of it. I'll take it out before it fouls the water, though. I love this plant! Thanks for sending it to me. I hope the plants I shared make it safe and sound and do well for those guys. I'm like you, I'm spreading my precious babies around so that in case of a tank crash, I also know who's door to knock on. :hihi: Speaking of a tank crash.......wait until you see my 55 gallon post later on. *Grumble*


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## SkyGrl (Jan 7, 2010)

oh no..... poor 55.


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## Karackle (Dec 11, 2007)

Are you planning to keep the downoi too? Is it just that you want to cut back to only 3 kinds of stems? or 3 kinds of plants? because 3 kinds of plants, I don't think that would last very long :hihi:

I'm excited to see the new layout though!


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

Hey Kara, I forgot all about this journal, lol. Yeah, keeping the downoi (and apparently UG and Riccia are both devil plants - you can't get rid of them). Have slowly been moving plants out, but quite honestly, this tank gets neglected for the sake of the shrimp. They are all berried (mostly) and I am letting them enjoy life without so much co2/fertlizers.

By the way, let me know when you want some shrimp (as long as it's not super hot that is). Pictures! Yeah, I need to top off, but who has the energy?...not me. LOL










Can you find the baby shrimper?


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

Since I took a picture for a trade, here you guys go. 









I need to fix the tank up a bit, but to be honest, I am lucky to remember to feed the shrimp every few days. Took out almost all the hydrocotyle for Kara (found a tiny piece snared in the bacopa). The tank is really deficient in phosphates, not even reading on the scale so I threw in a pinch of ferts while I was up there. After I send off some more plants, I plan to actually sit down and scape the tank. I need to untangle the riccia, UG, Ranalisma rostrata and HC from one another and replant. Mg seems to be showing a little bit of progress for the GDA problem. It is not growing, so we shall see.


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

Ugly updates are important, too. 



















Now that I have a drop checker back in after breaking my last one and I am getting rid of plants soon (the mass on the right side half planted/half floating), I plan to clean things up in the coming week. 

But be prepared as I'm going to cry if this tank doesn't look nice by the end of the year. lol.


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## Karackle (Dec 11, 2007)

Not sure how I missed the last update, but now I've read both! roud:

You know you didn't have to send me ALL of the hydrocotyle :hihi: unless you were just trying to get it out of the tank  I bet the one little piece you missed turned into that mass of plants on the right side of the tank now though :hihi: I'm kidding really because I can't tell what plants are floating there, but it wouldn't surprise me if I was right :tongue: 

as for getting this tank looking top notch by the end of the year, I think the density of healthy looking growth on the left side of the tank bodes very well for that plan! And I know it's not scaped because it's mostly floating, but the amount of growth on the right side indicates good things IMO as well! :biggrin: 

Can't wait to see what you do with it once it's not housing floating plants to be shipped off to parts unknown! roud:


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## Cardinal Tetra (Feb 26, 2006)

Oh wow what nice Riccia you've got there:hihi: Looks like it grew back pretty fast :/

I was wondering what happened to this tank. I guess I missed the updates too ooops.

How is your tub project coming along? I hope Earl lets you have the pond.


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

Stupid Riccia won't go away.  I just spent a good hour digging out more of it. We'll see what happens. Oh, and I have the go ahead with the bucket project! I agreed to buy mosquito netting and cover the top though until the fish start breeding well so our neighbors won't hate us. :hihi: He has agreed to let me setup the 20 gallon blue tub and if I can 'prove' that the mosquitoes aren't engulfing us by the summer we can set up a real pond next year. 

Kara, what I didn't send you, I put in the 55. And I just shipped most of that off. It grows super fast. 

One of the erio type 3 stems didn't look great, so I decided to part ways with it since it was becoming a hair algae magnet. I also discovered my nemsis the hair algae was back. No problem, I just turned off the filter, gathered up the algae carefully and placed it gently in the algae tank.  It's a nice touch in there. I look at algae in a new light. Instead of cursing it, I try to figure out how to collect it without harm to add to the algae scape. It's kind of interesting to me to hunt and peck.

The rotala macranda will be moved out and eventually so will the inclinata when it grows back in. Sadly, I lost all of my erio type 2 to the shrimp and lack of care. I'm just glad that I shared it with so many people rather than hoarding it to myself, or I'd be really sad. Downoi is taking over the tank. I need to find a way to create a barrier in order to grow the UG foreground properly. Hydrox....ersomething or another (what is that stem called CT?) is growing well and so is the new ammania from Philip. HC is still hanging in there, but not as pretty as it once was. Perhaps with the co2 being watched more, the tank will once again look lovely.

However, the shrimp are looking great and breeding happily. So, overall, I am thrilled with the tank as it is healthy!

Oh, and this tank clouds up worse than the dirt tank when uprooting. I am going to do some more work on it, but here is the progress. Sorry for the cloudy water. I'll get better pictures soon.


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## jkan0228 (Feb 6, 2011)

How is that small Canister filter coming along? I have an empty 11.4g and I'm trying to figure out what kind of filter I should use. Canister preferably.


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## Cardinal Tetra (Feb 26, 2006)

Yeahhhh mosquitoes have been having a party around my tub. I went outside and found over 20 egg clusters deposited across the surface (they're oblong shaped black blobs). My parents are really starting to hate it. Most of the fish are still inside because we're experiencing a weird "cold" front. The endlers are doing well outside though despite the cooler weather.

The blue pearls will only breed more with all that fresh algae roud: Did you find anymore 3 eyed beauties?

I hate you for being to grow such beautiful downoi! Mine just sits there for a while and then declines and then finally gets finished off by the hungry shrimp :/ They also finished off the last of my erio type 2 as well...


The feathery stem is Hydrothrix gardneri. Good to see it surviving in the trade. Mine randomly fell over dead one day after growing across the surface and branching like crazy. It just turned into a pile of mush that the shrimp ate up


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## Karackle (Dec 11, 2007)

not the reek-ah! grrrrrr :angryfire:

And yes, the hydrocotyle DOES grow fast, that's true. Especially in the 10g, woah! I love it. Glad you kept some


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

jkan0228 said:


> How is that small Canister filter coming along? I have an empty 11.4g and I'm trying to figure out what kind of filter I should use. Canister preferably.


I ended up going with the Marineland C160. I don't know if I ever mentioned that? Anyway, I absolutely love it. Perfect flow and it's nice. Only negative is the cheap filling of the intake strainer. But I covered it in fish net anyway.



Cardinal Tetra said:


> Yeahhhh mosquitoes have been having a party around my tub. I went outside and found over 20 egg clusters deposited across the surface (they're oblong shaped black blobs). My parents are really starting to hate it. Most of the fish are still inside because we're experiencing a weird "cold" front. The endlers are doing well outside though despite the cooler weather.
> 
> The blue pearls will only breed more with all that fresh algae roud: Did you find anymore 3 eyed beauties?
> 
> ...


No more three eyed beauties, just mamma. I am going to leave them indoors except a few of them I plan to send outside. I am going to re-set it up this week sometime. It's outside right now, but the floaters died on me. I may have forgot to take them out of the baggie and cooked them. So, I am going to start over with the decorating and then I'll get some shots up soon.

Oh no! I finally got another stem to grow from it. It took a long time to acclimate to my deprived plant lifestyle. If you want some back, I'll be glad to ship you some in cooler weather. Same with the downoi. But I killed my erio type 2. Sigh.



Karackle said:


> not the reek-ah! grrrrrr :angryfire:
> 
> And yes, the hydrocotyle DOES grow fast, that's true. Especially in the 10g, woah! I love it. Glad you kept some


I forget who told be that it could possibly be pellia and not riccia. But what ever it is, I hate it. Stinking sinking riccia works for me.

I kept a few nodes of it. I am trimming it to only keep a bit for now, but my plan is to put it outside.

Tank is still cloudy. LOL, I think I stirred up a bacteria bloom and I need to clean out the filter, it's been months and months.









Random pictures


















As you can see, the snail art canvases are back on the walls. I rarely fertilize this tank. Poor tank is phosphate deficient. I need to desperate get to work on this guy. :tongue:


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## jkan0228 (Feb 6, 2011)

sewingalot said:


> I ended up going with the Marineland C160. I don't know if I ever mentioned that? Anyway, I absolutely love it. Perfect flow and it's nice. Only negative is the cheap filling of the intake strainer. But I covered it in fish net anyway.


So what would you recommend for a 11.4g?


----------



## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

It really depends on your fish that you plan on having. I loved my sponge filters for my shrimp only tank, but if I put poopy fish in there, I'd go with a nice aquaclear hang on back or even the marineland. My tank is only a few gallons more. But I got a killer deal on it, seriously like $50 shipped new. I hated the Tom Mini filter. It was leaky, clogged fast and was over all junk.


----------



## jkan0228 (Feb 6, 2011)

haha ok, well I'll be housing CRS and RCS so I know the sponge filter is a pretty good choice but I think it just looks damn ugly in the tank  
Would an eheim 2213 or 2211 work?

Sorry for getting off topic


----------



## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

Absolutely, they would work great. Just put something on the intake to keep the shrimpers from getting sucked in. However, I will tell you I am constantly pulling shrimp from my filter when I do change it. Yeah, sponge filters aren't the prettiest or easiest to hide. However, I did wrap one of mine with peacock moss and I must say it looked pretty sweet. You really couldn't see the sponge but just the clear tubing.

I've heard many people swear by the zoo-med 501 canister. 

Haven't you learned by now that off topic in any of my threads is A-okay with me?


----------



## jkan0228 (Feb 6, 2011)

Haha
no wonder your threads are so long! 
I'll be starting this tank in mid august so it'll be a long time before anything happens and I'll probably change my mind several times...


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

Yeah, 98% of the threads I start is filled with pointless commentary with about 2% useful information. What can I say? I have no life at the moment. 

I say research each filter and give it some thought. See what your needs will be, how often you want to change the media, how difficult is it to clean, etc.


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## lauraleellbp (Feb 3, 2008)

Your threads are wonderful, Sara, they make me laugh 8x a day. :icon_smil


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

At least someone finds me amusing, miss Laura. I'm sitting here trying all of my lamest of jokes and the husband is ignoring me.  I even called him a bad name and he said "That's nice, dear."  I even tried the three-legged chicken joke. Nothing. Sigh.

Oh, since I am on this thread, it's amazing ludgwigia inclinata isn't more popular. It is a beautiful stem. It's the pink one in the third picture. Have you ever had it?


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## lauraleellbp (Feb 3, 2008)

I don't think so, Ludwigias hate me.


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## jkan0228 (Feb 6, 2011)

It looks like a wonderful plants(based on my google search )
I've seen it to be quite expensive in the SnS though. Teens always got limited $$ :tongue:


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## jkan0228 (Feb 6, 2011)

lauraleellbp said:


> I don't think so, Ludwigias hate me.


Speaking of Ludwigias, has anyone ever gotten Ludwigia Glandulosa to grow somewhat fast? lol


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

You've got to try this plant out you guys! It's wonderful. If I get it going, I'll be up for trades in the cooler months. I also accept compliments and shipping costs covered if I'm in a good mood.


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## jkan0228 (Feb 6, 2011)

Well based on your ability to fill a thread 98% of useless info, it sounds like your in a good mood 98% of the time. :tongue:


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

jkan0228 said:


> Speaking of Ludwigias, has anyone ever gotten Ludwigia Glandulosa to grow somewhat fast? lol


Probably Tom Barr. He could probably grow plastic plants. It grows for me, but it's green. :confused1:


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## jkan0228 (Feb 6, 2011)

Haha, it grows for me too, red, but as slow as an anubias....


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## TwoStrokeKing (Mar 24, 2011)

Looking Better!


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## Karackle (Dec 11, 2007)

sewingalot said:


> Yeah, sponge filters aren't the prettiest or easiest to hide. However, I did wrap one of mine with peacock moss and I must say it looked pretty sweet. You really couldn't see the sponge but just the clear tubing.


I think I remember you posting a picture of this and it did look really cool! I also remember seeing a DIY somewhere that used like a sponge wall in the corner with a pump or airstone behind it to filter, but then they grew moss on the sponge wall part. So it was like a filtering moss wall. Pretty cool. I'll see if I can find that for your JKan as a possible option. 



sewingalot said:


> I've heard many people swear by the zoo-med 501 canister.


JKan - I was looking into this for my 10g and I heard mixed things. The general consensus seemed to be that even though it's rated up to something like 30g, it's not really enough for anything over a 5g because of limited space for filter media, BUT that was assuming you had fish in the tank, it could be perfect for a shrimp only tank. But use the search function here to look it up because I can't remember what folks said about the flow.



sewingalot said:


> I say research each filter and give it some thought. See what your needs will be, how often you want to change the media, how difficult is it to clean, etc.


I think this is excellent advice



lauraleellbp said:


> Your threads are wonderful, Sara, they make me laugh 8x a day. :icon_smil


I could not agree with this more! Althought between this and NonConductive's threads, I think it's more like 20x a day that I bust out laughing from you guys!!! :hihi:

Ok I think that covers the quotes I wanted to respond to :hihi: 

I also wanted to say that I'm excited to see this grow in, and that pink plants is GORGEOUS! I wish I could grow stems. Now that I have lots of fish in the 30g, I might see if I can grow Sunset Hygro in there again at some point (since there is some growing slowly but surely in Ian's tank) and if that does well, I might be begging a trade for a few other easy ones to try :hihi: 

Crap there was something else I wanted to say too.....what was it.....OH! i know. (i had to scroll back through :hihi If you hate reek-ah so much, why are you keeping it? Do you have a pond that you want to toss it in (did I miss that?)? Or are you going to see how grows emersed?


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## Cardinal Tetra (Feb 26, 2006)

You seem to be able to grow the plants that die in my hands. I can't grow Ludwigia inclinata either!

I'd love to try those plants again once the weather becomes more conducive to plant shipping. I'm afraid to buy/send plants right now... and I'm expecting some fish on Wednesday with temps in the 90's :O


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

Karackle said:


> Crap there was something else I wanted to say too.....what was it.....OH! i know. (i had to scroll back through :hihi If you hate reek-ah so much, why are you keeping it? Do you have a pond that you want to toss it in (did I miss that?)? Or are you going to see how grows emersed?


If I nuked this tank, I still think the _explicative_ riccia would survive. I try so hard to get rid of it every week. 

Roger on that ludgwigia, over.

CT - I don't know how you manage to grow some of your plants I can't keep alive. LOL. Yeah, we will definitely have to trade in the cooler months.


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## Karackle (Dec 11, 2007)

AAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA I'm dumb. You were joking. Silly me. You did not intentionally keep any in there.
:iamwithst


----------



## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

jkan0228 said:


> Well based on your ability to fill a thread 98% of useless info, it sounds like your in a good mood 98% of the time. :tongue:


Hahaha, more like 2% of the time. :biggrin:



Karackle said:


> AAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA I'm dumb. You were joking. Silly me. You did not intentionally keep any in there.
> :iamwithst


Haha, Kara. You are in good company. FWIW, the husband says I have the worst since of humor ever. No one knows when I am joking and when I am serious. roud:


----------



## Karackle (Dec 11, 2007)

sometimes it's hard to tell when reading because there is no tone of voice too, LOL but I KNOW how much you hate the reek-ah, I should have known! :icon_lol:


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## jkan0228 (Feb 6, 2011)

sewingalot said:


> Haha, Kara. You are in good company. FWIW, the husband says I have the worst since of humor ever. No one knows when I am joking and when I am serious. roud:


For jokes over text, I'd say your pretty good :biggrin:


----------



## jkan0228 (Feb 6, 2011)

Karackle said:


> I also wanted to say that I'm excited to see this grow in, and that pink plants is GORGEOUS! I wish I could grow stems. Now that I have lots of fish in the 30g, I might see if I can grow Sunset Hygro in there again at some point (since there is some growing slowly but surely in Ian's tank) and if that does well, I might be begging a trade for a few other easy ones to try :hihi:


Not getting Sunset Hygro to grow is some accomplishment I must say. If you need any east stems, I got like a ton... literally


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## Karackle (Dec 11, 2007)

jkan0228 said:


> Not getting Sunset Hygro to grow is some accomplishment I must say. If you need any east stems, I got like a ton... literally


Thanks for the offer! I'm not in the market at the moment, but if that changes, I'll probably take you up on that! roud: 

Also, it's weird because I used to have TONS of sunset hygro growing in my tank, but then I moved, and it started hating life, so did all stems. I had put a few stems of it in my boyfriend's 60g though, and those _are_ managing to make it they grow SLOWLY and aren't pink except at the tippy tops, but they're definitely alive despite his even-lower-light-than-mine-if-you-can-believe-that tank! :hihi: So I'll use those as guinea pigs if I choose to try stems again


----------



## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

Karackle said:


> sometimes it's hard to tell when reading because there is no tone of voice too, LOL but I KNOW how much you hate the reek-ah, I should have known! :icon_lol:


Trust me, I'm just as bad in person. I'm told frequently I shouldn't tell jokes or sing. :icon_bigg I'm the type of person that likes to just say off the wall things and make them sound completely believable. Unfortunately, they sound too true most of the time and the other person is lost while I'm secretly grinning. LOL



jkan0228 said:


> For jokes over text, I'd say your pretty good :biggrin:


You're just sucking up to get ahold of some of that inclinata, aren't you? It's totally working. :icon_wink



jkan0228 said:


> Not getting Sunset Hygro to grow is some accomplishment I must say. If you need any east stems, I got like a ton... literally


I right there with you. I just killed off a bunch of hygro. I am starting to think it appreciates harder water.



Karackle said:


> Thanks for the offer! I'm not in the market at the moment, but if that changes, I'll probably take you up on that! roud:
> 
> Also, it's weird because I used to have TONS of sunset hygro growing in my tank, but then I moved, and it started hating life, so did all stems. I had put a few stems of it in my boyfriend's 60g though, and those _are_ managing to make it they grow SLOWLY and aren't pink except at the tippy tops, but they're definitely alive despite his even-lower-light-than-mine-if-you-can-believe-that tank! :hihi: So I'll use those as guinea pigs if I choose to try stems again


Hahahaha, did some special and gorgeous person send you too many plants? Tippy tops! Love it! lOL.


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## jkan0228 (Feb 6, 2011)

sewingalot said:


> You're just sucking up to get ahold of some of that inclinata, aren't you? It's totally working. :icon_wink


Haha, just trying to have some fun on the forum but if you...you know...wanna send me some....that'd be....just ya know....pure awesomeness for me.... :biggrin::biggrin::biggrin::biggrin::biggrin: :biggrin::biggrin:


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

You tell me your secret to having red glandulosa, and you may just have a deal.  However, I am done shipping west of the Mississippi until the cooler months, like September. If you still want it and it's still alive by then, remind me and we'll work out a trade.

Fun is good. Makes it easier to learn in my experience. People get so serious with this hobby, lol.


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## Karackle (Dec 11, 2007)

sewingalot said:


> Trust me, I'm just as bad in person. I'm told frequently I shouldn't tell jokes or sing. :icon_bigg I'm the type of person that likes to just say off the wall things and make them sound completely believable. Unfortunately, they sound too true most of the time and the other person is lost while I'm secretly grinning. LOL


hahahaha i do this a lot too actually, a lot of times when i'm being sarcastic, people think i'm serious, and they think i'm being sarcastic when i'm being serious. can't win. LOL



sewingalot said:


> Hahahaha, did some special and gorgeous person send you too many plants? Tippy tops! Love it! lOL.


Heeheehee never! not too many! you sent me just as many as i needed to fill in my tanks!!! :biggrin: tippy tops. i liked that too.


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## jkan0228 (Feb 6, 2011)

sewingalot said:


> You tell me your secret to having red glandulosa, and you may just have a deal.  However, I am done shipping west of the Mississippi until the cooler months, like September. If you still want it and it's still alive by then, remind me and we'll work out a trade.
> 
> Fun is good. Makes it easier to learn in my experience. People get so serious with this hobby, lol.


Lol, its actually pretty shaded right now and I just noticed lots of it is green... hahaha 
I'll have to move it sometime and it'll probably grow redder and faster.

I'll be gone until the mid of august so I'll have to remember to remind you to make a lil trade :tongue:


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

Well my friends, this tank is getting torn down shortly. I was surprised by my family as I was given the money to order a 33 Long! It will replace this tank and possibly the 10. It will be set up as a dirt tank and low tech with the addition of co2. I bet you all are just sad to see this algae tank gone. I'll miss this tank, but the 33L is the same height and depth, but twice the length. Great thing is the fact I have plenty of dirt, the lights, filter co2 and turface to use. So the only extra expense will be a stand. However, the wood used for the 15 gallon will be utilized, so I believe this will work out very well. I will either start a new journal or just stick that one with the 55 as keeping up with two journals is just a headache anymore. We'll see. 

I'm really excited as the yellows are fast producing but there is not a lot of room in this tank any longer. Even with all the ones I've given away.


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## shrimpnmoss (Apr 8, 2011)

yay...bigger and bigger we go!!!


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## Rion (Dec 29, 2006)

33 longs have awesome dimensions. If your neighbors are worried about mosquitoes from a pond honestly add flow to the pond by a waterfall and/or an aerator, keep algae mats from forming, keep plenty of hungry fish, and trim plats when they reach the surface, and if all else fails add Bacillus thuringiensis israelensis donuts to kill the larvae.

New tank also means you might get rid of the riccia once and for all too! I don't know how you can keep up with all the journals you do, I can barely update my own.


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

That would be fabulous to get rid of that pest. Unfortunately, it grows in the downoi, so we shall see what happens. So far, I am see less and less mosquitoes. I think the pond is finally working. Hungry guppies/endlers = happy summer days.

Honestly, I don't even feel like keeping up the journals anymore. I'll stay with the 55, but I think I am done with the others. I may update every once and a while, but it's too time consuming.

Oh, since I am on the subject, we took the drive to this LFS and they had a lot of plants. The guy doesn't fertilize this one tank, and other than the smaller growth of plants, it really is a nice tank. Not much algae to speak of and the fish and shrimp are incredibly healthy. I was really impressed. He doesn't even have co2. Just eco complete. I'm thinking I may try to mimic this a bit in the 33. I am so tired of the rigorous fertilizer routine.


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## Rion (Dec 29, 2006)

I just drop in root tabs in the soil, and dose flourish and excel every once in awhile.


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

That's pretty close to how I am dosing the 55. I'm thinking of trying crypts again. I'm really thinking of something like crypts or heavy root feeders. I'm so wanting this to be a relaxed style planted tank.


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## Rion (Dec 29, 2006)

I'm terrible at remembering to restart the DIY CO2.


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## Karackle (Dec 11, 2007)

Hey Sara, that's so cool you're getting a 33g!!! I really can't wait to see what you do with it :biggrin: And you know me, I'm all for the low tech method, so I say go for it!!! Or at least go for the low maintenance route  

You know that if you want to try crypts you're not going to be able to dig around in tank once they're planted if you don't want them to melt right? :hihi:


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

I finally got in my 33L. Despite the fact I put half down, they forgot to order it. We called twice before they finally placed the order. Then over a week late, it comes in finally and there is a huge scratch on one of the rims and I am not thrilled. They offered no compensation whatsoever. Grumble. Between that and other issues, I'm not spending another dime there. Oh, well.

Other than the iron bacteria, BGA and diatoms, there are no issues. I kind of neglected this tank and haven't even topped off. So this concludes the 15 gallon unless I get the urge to set it up in the future. I plan to keep this tank solely on the fact it cost a bunch of money to order years ago and it is one of my favorite tanks.

Here is the last picture of this tank:


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## SkyGrl (Jan 7, 2010)

*WWWWWWAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHH*

Amy


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

Psst. Amy....I'll tell you a secret. My plan is to go at the end of the summer: "Oh, no!" Where do I put all my endler/guppies for the winter for next year??????" :hihi: 

Just for you, I'll share some experimental pictures of my 15 gallon with you to cheer you up. I had a GDA on my glass (as you know as Snail Art) for a long time. I put it under a microscope and discovered it was many things, but mostly, diatoms, Gallionella ferruginea (iron bacteria) and BGA! So I bought some erythromycin and tested out my theory.

So before:































































After treatment:































































No shrimp were harmed in the process of 200 mg of erythromycin 5 days in a row. However, BGA and iron bacteria were harmed mucho. I can provide microscopic pictures if requested.


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## SkyGrl (Jan 7, 2010)

so cool! good i want many updates so i can look and long for plants such as yours  

<3

Amy


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## Cardinal Tetra (Feb 26, 2006)

Oh wow! Huge improvement! Maybe I should try some erythromycin. I have this weird fuzzy brown gunk that grows around my powerheads, and inside my filter. The shrimp love to eat it when it gets dislodged but it's so ugly and clogs up everything.


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## gnod (Mar 24, 2011)

^those dark spots on ur glass... those are signs of bga?


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

SkyGrl said:


> so cool! good i want many updates so i can look and long for plants such as yours
> 
> <3
> 
> Amy


Well, miss Amy. Considering I have no place to set up the 33 gallon for quite a while, you'll get to see this tank for a while now. I should change the title. :hihi:



Cardinal Tetra said:


> Oh wow! Huge improvement! Maybe I should try some erythromycin. I have this weird fuzzy brown gunk that grows around my powerheads, and inside my filter. The shrimp love to eat it when it gets dislodged but it's so ugly and clogs up everything.


Ooooo! Before you kill it, send some of it in a bag to me to look at and I'll post pictures so you know what it is. It does seem to do a number on diatoms, but they grow so fast, it doesn't take long for them to recover. The BGA is gone and so is the iron bacteria (until next water change, lol).


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## Cardinal Tetra (Feb 26, 2006)

sewingalot said:


> Ooooo! Before you kill it, send some of it in a bag to me to look at and I'll post pictures so you know what it is. It does seem to do a number on diatoms, but they grow so fast, it doesn't take long for them to recover. The BGA is gone and so is the iron bacteria (until next water change, lol).


I'll send you some tomorrow along with the plants. Just don't let it get near your tanks in case it tries to invade your filter!


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## gnod (Mar 24, 2011)

ok.. i'll be more specific: 










what are those darkspots on the glass?


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## nonconductive (Jan 29, 2010)

diatoms?

jealous of your downoi


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

gnod said:


> ^those dark spots on ur glass... those are signs of bga?





gnod said:


> ok.. i'll be more specific:
> 
> 
> 
> ...


I was gathering pictures, sorry.  It's a combination of critters, mainly, BGA, iron bacteria, protozoa and a gathering of diatoms:






























Cardinal Tetra said:


> I'll send you some tomorrow along with the plants. Just don't let it get near your tanks in case it tries to invade your filter!


Yay! Can't wait for the little buggers. I'll post pictures for you if you like. :biggrin:


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## gnod (Mar 24, 2011)

omg ... how do i get rid of those!!! 
i have those now in my shrimp tank... are they shrimp safe.. -_-


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

nonconductive said:


> diatoms?
> 
> jealous of your downoi


Partially, yes.  (See above post, ninja'd me. LOL) Also, mi downoi es su downoi. Finding it adores oxygen rich water. Let me know and I'll send you more when it cools down with the shrimpers.


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

gnod said:


> omg ... how do i get rid of those!!!
> i have those now in my shrimp tank... are they shrimp safe.. -_-


All but BGA is perfectly harmless. And only some BGA are bad, most freshwater varieties are nothing to worry about. Just make sure you have plenty of oxygen and you'll be fine. Remember, bacteria feed diatoms and other algaes, algaes feed shrimp. Fed shrimp are happy. Truly, if you have the diatoms on your glass, you don't have a thing to worry about. Free food! Just unsightly.


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## gnod (Mar 24, 2011)

^thank ya, much appreciated. it is unsightly tho.. hehe


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## Karackle (Dec 11, 2007)

WOW!!! I can't believe the difference the antibiotic made! That's unbelieveable!!! Good thing to know, I guess we could all benefit from microscopes (or your research anyway) for getting rid of algae where we don't want it! Cool before and after pics, the difference is amazing. 

So do we get to keep seeing updates until the 33g has a place to live? :biggrin:


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

Your welcome, gnod. If you saw your drinking water under a microscope, you'd probably be grossed out. I haven't braved it up enough to look at ours. I already got a nice report given to me without pictures to elaborate. 

Yeah, if you want updates. It'll be a while for the tank to be set up. And this one is staying put until then. I really think the diatoms will repair its colony in no time, though. I am only hoping the BGA and iron stays at bay.


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

Almost a week later and things are still good!

No iron bacteria!









Overexposed, but cute!









Just the right amount of co2 at the end of the day:









Plants recovering nicely:









FTS, ignore the floating UG. I was pulling some for a project outdoors.


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## Karackle (Dec 11, 2007)

looks nice and healthy and algae / bacteria free! Love it! Looks like you're set up to have some nice healthy plants to get your 33g started! :biggrin: 

Love the shrimp and snail picture too, definitely cute! And a cool looking snail to boot!


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

Still free of BGA!






















































This tank is almost completely nutrient free water column wise. Just a small dose once a week or so if I think about it. Co2 is minimal, less than 1bps and only a little bit of green algae and diatoms on the glass (minimal), easy to swipe off, but I don't bother.

And yet, my plants are growing better than ever. Only difference was using EM. It looks so great, I am in the process of trying to convince the husband to letting me keep this one up. 

Edit: Forgot some pictures









Turned off the filter to see what they were up to (dinner got stuck on the return):


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## SkyGrl (Jan 7, 2010)

lol so cute! this taank is looking its best right now! i say we take a vote on it and inform earl that he has been out voted LMAO!!!

Amy


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## nonconductive (Jan 29, 2010)

woah. the lurker de-lurked.


yea no kidding, earl is out voted. just use it to grow your fabulous downoi!


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## kangared (Apr 7, 2011)

Aw, don't take it down, it looks like a happy tank. I'm jealous of your microscope too.


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## HolyAngel (Oct 18, 2010)

I would definitely keep this one up! It looks great!! Really makes me want to setup my 15 gallon asap lol


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

SkyGrl said:


> lol so cute! this taank is looking its best right now! i say we take a vote on it and inform earl that he has been out voted LMAO!!!
> 
> Amy


I know, right? By the law of the dogmatics, this tank shouldn't exist. The co2 is really low, the lights are bright and the nutrients are lean. Go figure. 



nonconductive said:


> woah. the lurker de-lurked.
> 
> 
> yea no kidding, earl is out voted. just use it to grow your fabulous downoi!


You just want more downoi. And Amy loves my 15 gallons. I'm just wondering if she'll ever give pictures of hers in return?



kangared said:


> Aw, don't take it down, it looks like a happy tank. I'm jealous of your microscope too.


Haha, that microscope is apparently causing some friction. Mad scientist Sara is not welcomed everywhere. But thanks! :biggrin:

Great news! The husband said I can keep it if I want to. _I may have promised to not complain about the pile of junk he leaves on the couch in return (this is a huge sacrifice)._

But I showed him all your comments and he was like: well......okay. :icon_mrgr I love this guy! So thanks for helping keep the tank you all. <3


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## orchidman (Dec 15, 2010)

how did i miss this??!!!???? is this where all you some ladies have been hiding??

look at all those downoi!


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## SkyGrl (Jan 7, 2010)

huzzah!! this is going to be awesome! poopy that you have to put up with couch mess and not ever complain!!! *face palm* i dont think i could do it!!! lmao

ill get pics up soon. im so damn busy lately it seems!!! gawd need more time in the day!

Amy


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## nonconductive (Jan 29, 2010)

sewingalot said:


> You just want more downoi. And Amy loves my 15 gallons. I'm just wondering if she'll ever give pictures of hers in return?
> 
> 
> 
> Haha, that microscope is apparently causing some friction. Mad scientist Sara is not welcomed everywhere. But thanks! :biggrin:


maybe:biggrin:

and welcome to the children of Cain, Lilith.

yay earl!


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## orchidman (Dec 15, 2010)

i heard that downoi was tricky. is it? not for you obviously


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

orchidman said:


> how did i miss this??!!!???? is this where all you some ladies have been hiding??
> 
> look at all those downoi!


Because no one likes this journal, it's boring since I've got everything growing well. 



SkyGrl said:


> huzzah!! this is going to be awesome! poopy that you have to put up with couch mess and not ever complain!!! *face palm* i dont think i could do it!!! lmao
> 
> ill get pics up soon. im so damn busy lately it seems!!! gawd need more time in the day!
> 
> Amy


Haha, I'm looking at it and at Earl and he just gave me a wink and a nod about the couch pile. LOL.

I'm the antithesis of busy.



nonconductive said:


> maybe:biggrin:
> 
> and welcome to the children of Cain, Lilith.
> 
> yay earl!


Lilith sounds about right. roud: Earl's a cool dude.....the name, well it grows on you. :icon_mrgr



orchidman said:


> i heard that downoi was tricky. is it? not for you obviously


Actually, these are plastic plants. I was told I have a brown thumb by 'higher authority' so what you are looking at is a mirage of downoi. :hihi:

Downoi is finicky to get adjusted to your tank, but once it settles in, it does very well. My biggest issue was having a tank mate that ate it all. Then it took me forever to find it again after that. It's my favorite plant, for sure. Right up there with blyxa.


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## orchidman (Dec 15, 2010)

who is earl, dare i ask!

ROFL plastic plants... even if you were just joking, you just lost your team 2 letters! you are now "me ladies"


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

Earl's my dear husband, the love of my life, the meow in my cat, the check in my book. Any questions? :hihi:

Me ladies? That sounds caveman like.


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## orchidman (Dec 15, 2010)

right... tell hi i said hi  sounds cool 

thats what happens when you lose so many letters!


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

I don't even think I'll have a name by Friday. So sad. Earl says hey.


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## orchidman (Dec 15, 2010)

if you even make it to friday! or you could differ to our team, and youll get yourself your very own pair of pink panties


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

Hahahahahahahaha. Every smart remark I come up with in reply are just way above your age level and this forum's policy. So you win this round. :hihi:


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## orchidman (Dec 15, 2010)

sewingalot said:


> Hahahahahahahaha. Every smart remark I come up with in reply are just way above your age level and this forum's policy. So you win this round. :hihi:


yeah... i see where your going with this. dont bring earl into it though. but i win, because of forum policy and since your a mod you shouldnt break it. plus i can tell my mommy what you said!


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## kangared (Apr 7, 2011)

Yay, the tank stays! I'm a bit late in the celebration though, you guys update fast! :eek5:


> Haha, that microscope is apparently causing some friction. Mad scientist Sara is not welcomed everywhere. But thanks!


Really? Well, I probably shouldn't ask. I'll be mum. But microscopic things are cool! Vorticella are my favorites.


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## nonconductive (Jan 29, 2010)

sewingalot said:


> Earl's my dear husband, the love of my life, the meow in my cat, the check in my book. Any questions? :hihi:
> 
> Me ladies? That sounds caveman like.


 
you woman
me man


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## orchidman (Dec 15, 2010)

lol. me bob


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## Da Plant Man (Apr 7, 2010)

-sigh- Sara, why must you make my 15g look like crap? And I thought the no substrate looked good  Your making me want to add sand and lots of downoi.

Great [strike]Scott[/strike] Tank!


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## orchidman (Dec 15, 2010)

lol! 

you should get a lot of downoi it looks good


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

orchidman said:


> yeah... i see where your going with this. dont bring earl into it though. but i win, because of forum policy and since your a mod you shouldnt break it. plus i can tell my mommy what you said!


Haha! You are wise beyond your years, young grasshopper. Side note, I always threaten to tell my Mommy when Earl misbehaves. It works cause he is a little scared of her. :icon_mrgr



kangared said:


> Yay, the tank stays! I'm a bit late in the celebration though, you guys update fast! :eek5:
> 
> Really? Well, I probably shouldn't ask. I'll be mum. But microscopic things are cool! Vorticella are my favorites.


I'm always late to parties myself. Vorticella are awesome, little tornados! I've been trying to find one since I started my new hobby, but I've yet to see one. I need to learn more about them. Don't you love learning new hobbies?

Can you guess my favorite?









Haha, as far as not asking, very smart. I was having a woe as me moment. I guess I need to find a new home for my latest passion.



nonconductive said:


> you woman
> me man


Actually, I'm not a woman. I'm_ an awesome lady._ :icon_mrgr



orchidman said:


> lol. me bob


correction.....Mini Rachel Boberette.



Da Plant Man said:


> -sigh- Sara, why must you make my 15g look like crap? And I thought the no substrate looked good  Your making me want to add sand and lots of downoi.
> 
> Great [strike]Scott[/strike] Tank!


Caton - your tanks always look good. I like your latest idea. Do you want me to take a few up close and personal shots of the bad parts just to make you feel better? I would totally do that for you. 

And you just got like seriously too cool for the Back to the Future reference. A FAVORITE movie growing up.



orchidman said:


> lol!
> 
> you should get a lot of downoi it looks good


Downoi with a side of downoi?


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## orchidman (Dec 15, 2010)

sewingalot said:


> Haha! You are wise beyond your years, young grasshopper. *is that good or bad??
> * Side note, I always threaten to tell my Mommy when Earl misbehaves. It works cause he is a little scared of her. :icon_mrgr
> 
> *lol! roud: good tactics.*
> ...


sara! where have you been?? you have to go to my journal and zach's journal! we both added pics, just for you! so you really need to go check them out! or else we will be severely hurt!


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

Bob, I've been feeling under the weather for more than a few weeks. Must be the summertime blues. :hihi:


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## orchidman (Dec 15, 2010)

Not sre if thats legit or sarcasm. but you still need to look at my pics! i posted them just for you. they should make you feel better.


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## zachary908 (Feb 12, 2011)

Agreed!


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## orchidman (Dec 15, 2010)

and zach's sexy cory pichers


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

orchidman said:


> Not sre if thats legit or sarcasm. but you still need to look at my pics! i posted them just for you. they should make you feel better.


I'm rarely sarcastic. Facetious, most definitely. 



zachary908 said:


> Agreed!





orchidman said:


> and zach's sexy cory pichers


Haha, I'll go look. I'm trying to catch up on all your journals. And it looks like Zach is a new frenemy?


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## orchidman (Dec 15, 2010)

sewingalot said:


> I'm rarely sarcastic. Facetious, most definitely.
> 
> 
> 
> ...


facetious. my mom uses that word <3

yes he is! good job! and defie has no journals. you need to smack that chicka!


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

I like your mom already.


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## orchidman (Dec 15, 2010)

sewingalot said:


> I like your mom already.


me too! i think you'd like her. roud: i love my mommy <3

yeah, thats right! im cool enough to say that! anyone who says that is cool


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## kangared (Apr 7, 2011)

> I'm always late to parties myself. Vorticella are awesome, little tornados! I've been trying to find one since I started my new hobby, but I've yet to see one. I need to learn more about them. Don't you love learning new hobbies?
> 
> Can you guess my favorite?


Those look like diatoms, you algae lover! lol They do have some very pretty geometry going on. I don't know too much about all this stuff either but it is fun to learn a little about a lot. I used to go searching for moss and fungi to take pictures of and make arty mushroom prints with the spores (very geeky I know). 

I love my mommy too lol


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

orchidman said:


> me too! i think you'd like her. roud: i love my mommy <3
> 
> yeah, thats right! im cool enough to say that! anyone who says that is cool


I am 30 and still call my mom "Mommie." Does that count? LOL. And my brother still makes fun of me for doing it. So yes, I love my Mommie! :hihi:



kangared said:


> Those look like diatoms, you algae lover! lol They do have some very pretty geometry going on. I don't know too much about all this stuff either but it is fun to learn a little about a lot. I used to go searching for moss and fungi to take pictures of and make arty mushroom prints with the spores (very geeky I know).
> 
> I love my mommy too lol


Haha, Forensic Files got me obsessed with diatoms. I'm amazed at how they have solved murder mysteries by identifying them to be from a particular lake on the bottom of a shoe and things as such.

I'm starting to think we are all a little geeky, just different topics brings out each of our inner-nerdiness. For my husband, it's hockey. My mom, genealogy, my brother woodworking, all of us, plants and such. 

Cool on the mushroom prints! Did you keep any? Wanna hear really dorky? I have a plant cell embroidered that I did for my college botany class. :icon_mrgr


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## MissCoryCat (Jul 5, 2011)

I originally wanted CPD's really bad but couldn't find any nearby. I ended up with 5 white cloud minnows in my 10 gallon (and first planted tank ^_^) and love them. They both school (which I enjoy watching) and also get curious and will go hang out individually with my albino cory cats (I have 3) or brave the tunnel made by two pieces of mopani driftwood.

I don't know if personality wise the minnows are similar to the danios, but mine were shy for about a week and schooled together only. Had them for almost three weeks now and they are incredibly less shy, so maybe just give them some more time and they'll warm up more to you as well as the tank.


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## wheezo (May 19, 2009)

Nice tank and shrimps  The downoi is actually growing very well for you. I can't say the same about mine. They were doing well until I went on that 2 week vacation lol. Now... I'm fighting off algae haha.


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

MissCoryCat said:


> I originally wanted CPD's really bad but couldn't find any nearby. I ended up with 5 white cloud minnows in my 10 gallon (and first planted tank ^_^) and love them. They both school (which I enjoy watching) and also get curious and will go hang out individually with my albino cory cats (I have 3) or brave the tunnel made by two pieces of mopani driftwood.
> 
> I don't know if personality wise the minnows are similar to the danios, but mine were shy for about a week and schooled together only. Had them for almost three weeks now and they are incredibly less shy, so maybe just give them some more time and they'll warm up more to you as well as the tank.


Great tips, thank you! Unfortunately, the CPDs were all very, very sick from the day I bought them. They had fish TB and the ones that didn't die from the disease were put down as the showed advanced symptoms. I have a feeling the minnows and cpds are probably the same temperament, so if I ever get them again, I'll keep this in mind.



wheezo said:


> Nice tank and shrimps  The downoi is actually growing very well for you. I can't say the same about mine. They were doing well until I went on that 2 week vacation lol. Now... I'm fighting off algae haha.


Oh, that sucks! Just tear off the bad leaves and let the plant bounce back. That's why I like my method of fertilization compared to the more rigorous chores. I can walk away from this tank for weeks and it will still be chugging along without much more than diatoms, which I consider free food. :wink:


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## kangared (Apr 7, 2011)

> Haha, Forensic Files got me obsessed with diatoms. I'm amazed at how they have solved murder mysteries by identifying them to be from a particular lake on the bottom of a shoe and things as such.
> 
> I'm starting to think we are all a little geeky, just different topics brings out each of our inner-nerdiness. For my husband, it's hockey. My mom, genealogy, my brother woodworking, all of us, plants and such.
> 
> Cool on the mushroom prints! Did you keep any? Wanna hear really dorky? I have a plant cell embroidered that I did for my college botany class.


Lol to the forensic shows. I've seen them do that too and I'm always like really? There's one algae that grows exclusively in the Hudson river? Hmm....

Embroidering cells, now that is geeky lol. I kid. I agree, we all have our own personal obsessions that we geek out on. Nothing to be ashamed of. And sadly, I don't have any shroom prints to show. I didn't use any fixative so the spores got all smeared around. Ah well....how is the 15g doing?


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## orchidman (Dec 15, 2010)

sewingalot said:


> Great tips, thank you! Unfortunately, the CPDs were all very, very sick from the day I bought them. They had fish TB and the ones that didn't die from the disease were put down as the showed advanced symptoms. I have a feeling the minnows and cpds are probably the same temperament, so if I ever get them again, I'll keep this in mind.
> 
> 
> 
> Oh, that sucks! Just tear off the bad leaves and let the plant bounce back. That's why I like my method of fertilization compared to the more rigorous chores. I can walk away from this tank for weeks and it will still be chugging along without much more than diatoms, which I consider free food. :wink:


What's your feet method?


You can call me Bob


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## Karackle (Dec 11, 2007)

well i'm WAY late to the party (hopefully I won't be judged too harshly as I was away for a week) but YAY!!!! YOU'RE KEEPING THE TANK!!! WOOHOOO!!!!! (though _bummer_ that it's at the expense of not being able to complain about the random couch pile-o-things! :hihi I'm glad to hear it though because it would have been a bit sad to have to take it down now that's finally so stable and growing so well.

So does this mean you'll keep the shrimpies in here and go another direction with the 30g then?


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

Yup, kangared, that's me embroidering cells while watching forensic files. I'm quite the catch. :icon_mrgr

15 gallon - lol! Remember how I said we all neglect tanks from time to time? I let the water drop and the co2 was pretty much non existent and same with ferts, so....I meant personally!

This is what happens (CT, don't look!)
First the plants turn white, like copy paper white, then the shrimp go nom, nom, nom. And then you end up with this:



























On the plus side, iron bacteria is still MIA!


















And other than those three plants, the tank is looking good. (Notice my diatom playground in the corner? That's my hint to do a filter cleaning, lol):












orchidman said:


> What's your feet method?
> 
> 
> You can call me Bob


Well, I walk around barefoot a lot and it toughens the soul.



Karackle said:


> well i'm WAY late to the party (hopefully I won't be judged too harshly as I was away for a week) but YAY!!!! YOU'RE KEEPING THE TANK!!! WOOHOOO!!!!! (though _bummer_ that it's at the expense of not being able to complain about the random couch pile-o-things! :hihi I'm glad to hear it though because it would have been a bit sad to have to take it down now that's finally so stable and growing so well.
> 
> So does this mean you'll keep the shrimpies in here and go another direction with the 30g then?


Well the random pile (he swears it's not) was stuck in a box, and I am sitting on the side of the couch that's been covered for nearly six months. :hihi: (Gave my mom my recliner because she needs it more than I do.) So the husband relinquished his _desk_, but is piling on the floor. LOL. Baby steps with my mini-hoarder. roud:

I honestly don't know what direction to take. I am thinking, I need another light, lower, like a strip light for this tank and to turn it into a moss/crypt only tank, or leave it as is and have the other tank be a NPT tank. Or make the other tank co2, decisions are overwhelming me! I am thinking this: Keep the co2 on the 15 gallon as it is easier to maintain/clean. Setup the 33L as an NPT and make it Karatech, so that I don't have to worry so much about water changes. And put half the shrimp into both homes. Opinions?


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## Karackle (Dec 11, 2007)

KARATECH! HAHAHAHA NICE ONE! 

I like the idea of putting shrimples in both, why the heck not right? You already have them! I think since you already have the CO2 set up on this tank AND you have another large CO2 tank, maybe making the 33L lower tech (no CO2) is not a bad plan. I think that's sounding like a good idea. It could maybe also make a nice (GASP) stem-less tank?!

Hahaha Sara you forgot you would also be looking at the microscope during commercial breaks! :biggrin: I LOVE the visual!  I <3 you! (yeah p.s. i'm wicked nerdy too....I am UBER jealous of your microscope roud

HOLY MOLY YOU CAN SIT ON THE COUCH!!!! I can't even believe it! that's a double victory for you!!! :hihi:


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## orchidman (Dec 15, 2010)

me too! barefoot is the way to go..
whats your fert method?


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## wheezo (May 19, 2009)

> Oh, that sucks! Just tear off the bad leaves and let the plant bounce back. That's why I like my method of fertilization compared to the more rigorous chores. I can walk away from this tank for weeks and it will still be chugging along without much more than diatoms, which I consider free food.


The plants didn't have much leaves and they were all pretty small/new since it was recently set up before vacation. I got some type of algae covering all my aquasoil but I got rid of the green water and a few otos tend to help me with the glass and some leaves.  Now.. just the soil the work on.

My tanks are super high light and there seemed to be a leak in the co2 also so it wasn't getting enough co2, thus algae. -.- With high light, it doesn't give me much margin of error to play with lol.


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## peyton (Apr 17, 2007)

I really like this tank Sara! That downoi lawn is gorgeous.



wheezo said:


> My tanks are super high light and there seemed to be a leak in the co2 also so it wasn't getting enough co2, thus algae. -.- With high light, it doesn't give me much margin of error to play with lol.


 I know what you mean. I have a 29g with 2 55w CF bulbs with AH reflectors. One little slip-up with the fert schedule in that tank means green water for me. I like the fact I can grow anything in it but I don't know what I'm going to do when I go on a vacation (if I ever get to) and it sits neglected for several days.


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## Cardinal Tetra (Feb 26, 2006)

LOL the shrimp eating the plants happens to me all the time too and I keep the CO2 and ferts (well not as much these days) up. At least the downoi is liking it that way. Mine is hanging on and showing some signs of growth. The important thing is that the shrimp haven't decided to eat it yet.


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## zachary908 (Feb 12, 2011)

Pretty downoi! Hopefully mine will look that good one day. Well... I suppose I'll have to get my gold nugget pleco to quit ripping it up first....


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

Karackle said:


> KARATECH! HAHAHAHA NICE ONE!
> 
> I like the idea of putting shrimples in both, why the heck not right? You already have them! I think since you already have the CO2 set up on this tank AND you have another large CO2 tank, maybe making the 33L lower tech (no CO2) is not a bad plan. I think that's sounding like a good idea. It could maybe also make a nice (GASP) stem-less tank?!


Seriously thinking about a non stemmed tank, aka Karatech. I went to the petstores today for inspiration and I'm just about narrowing down on how to set it up. (By the way, nixed the undergravel filter when I saw the price.) EEK! Only, there is not a stand, so this will be a LONG term project. I'm going to need to find a place for my guppy mutts, so that's going to be challenging.

Oh, and I set up a new 10 gallon and took down the 'algae' tank. I *sniff* killed all my algae with my experiments but the cladophora I've been cultivating and Francine (although she is also cultivating clado). Ahem: WILL WORK FOR ALGAE!

Every last bit of BBA was MIA and the tank looked sad, so I set up a new tank and named it "Urban Decay." Oh, wait. You know this already, Kara. Hehe. Moving on....



> HOLY MOLY YOU CAN SIT ON THE COUCH!!!! I can't even believe it! that's a double victory for you!!! :hihi:


I know, right? Tonight I sit down next to the hubby and was like "I'm going to cuddle." and the jerk decided to get up and play with the dogs. :icon_mrgr



> Hahaha Sara you forgot you would also be looking at the microscope during commercial breaks! :biggrin: I LOVE the visual!  I <3 you! (yeah p.s. i'm wicked nerdy too....I am UBER jealous of your microscope roud


LOL, so funny I snorted laughing.



orchidman said:


> me too! barefoot is the way to go..
> whats your fert method?


Ha! I was wondering why you were asking about my feet.  My fertilization is observe and respond. I add only when the plants start to show gentle signs of hunger (purplish coloring, pin holes in bottom leaves, paling of the new growth). For the most part, I have a bunch of ferts in the soil (homemade root tabs), light on co2 and heavy on oxygen.



wheezo said:


> The plants didn't have much leaves and they were all pretty small/new since it was recently set up before vacation. I got some type of algae covering all my aquasoil but I got rid of the green water and a few otos tend to help me with the glass and some leaves.  Now.. just the soil the work on.
> 
> My tanks are super high light and there seemed to be a leak in the co2 also so it wasn't getting enough co2, thus algae. -.- With high light, it doesn't give me much margin of error to play with lol.


Poor wheezo. I feel for you, but you need to stop pampering your plants so much. That way you could go on 2 week vacation to see your girlfriend and not come home to a mess. 



peyton said:


> I really like this tank Sara! That downoi lawn is gorgeous.
> 
> 
> 
> I know what you mean. I have a 29g with 2 55w CF bulbs with AH reflectors. One little slip-up with the fert schedule in that tank means green water for me. I like the fact I can grow anything in it but I don't know what I'm going to do when I go on a vacation (if I ever get to) and it sits neglected for several days.


Thanks, peyton. (Neglect, does the tank good.) Stop luxury dumping on your tanks and problem solved. :hihi: 



Cardinal Tetra said:


> LOL the shrimp eating the plants happens to me all the time too and I keep the CO2 and ferts (well not as much these days) up. At least the downoi is liking it that way. Mine is hanging on and showing some signs of growth. The important thing is that the shrimp haven't decided to eat it yet.


These blasted shrimp ate almost all the last Erio 3 you gave me, that's why I tried putting some in emersed setup (100% aquatic, by the way, lol). The plants looked excellent, and I didn't feed the shrimp for over a week and this is the thanks I get in combo with the neglect in general. So sad, I'm going to have to move it over to another tank if there is any left tomorrow.



zachary908 said:


> Pretty downoi! Hopefully mine will look that good one day. Well... I suppose I'll have to get my gold nugget pleco to quit ripping it up first....


It will if you can train your dragon.....err pleco. :hihi:

CT - glad to see the downoi is growing for you!!!



AND FOR MY SANITY:

I have decided to combine all of my journals into one; the "suga shack" (named by fastfreddie ) found at this link: http://www.plantedtank.net/forums/t.../76359-suga-shack-back-55-gallon-15-a-56.html All further discussions, comments, etc can be made there. I'm closing this one down and redirecting those that want to follow.


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