# ADA Mini-M: Source



## CL

Ugly Genius said:


> Dee Eye Why See Oh Two x one for now, soon to be two


LMAO! :hihi: I can't wait to see it grow!


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## @[email protected]

idk, the tank looks dark...
its probably just the camera setting, since 28 watts is good lighting.


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## CL

Wait, that doesn't look like diy co2 to me


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## @[email protected]

the bottle is plastic, and probably has a sugar water and yeast mixture. just with some machinery added to make it like pressurized.


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## CL

@[email protected] said:


> the bottle is plastic, and probably has a sugar water and yeast mixture. just with some machinery added to make it like pressurized.


That's definitely an ADA advance co2 system


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## Ugly Genius

Hey, *@marko*. You're right. The tank is dark; much more than the twenty-eight watts would indicate. 
The reason is not the camera, though. (I can blame a lot of things on my crappy camera, but not that.)
It's two things. 
First, the light is a single 28W bulb. In my opinion, it's better to light a tank with two thirteen watt bulbs than a single twenty-eighter; the spread and proximity to the water can be more precisely placed. (It's why I'm in love with the Ott-light fixtures for nano tanks.)
Second, the driftwood on the left leans forward, casting a shadow over itself. This is unfortunate as much of the cool-looking Mini Pellia is growing on front of it.
That said, I'm hoping this less-than-what-it-should-be brightness will work to my advantage in terms of algae. Afterall, the plants I have in there are all low to medium light plants.
Oh, and there's a third reason. The water's still cloudy. It's better than on Friday, but it's still not crystal clear.

EDIT:
Here's the best I could do in terms of evening out the light spread with the Archaea.
I had to move the light fairly far right. I might get another lamp on there for photography purposes, but for the eleven hours this thing gets light, the Archaea will be it.









_As this light uses the same bulb as the ADA Solar Mini, I really don't think that the Solar Mini is worth it's price. 
While the fixture looks nice, the spread of the bulb does not in any way justify the two hundred plus dollar price tag._​
*cl*, caught that, did ya? Right after I posted, I decided to move the pressurized CO2 onto Source. Riven gets the dee eye why for now. (Hey, does anyone know if there's something to for the ADA CO2 system to split the line so as to pump CO2 into both tanks at the same time from the same canister? Lemme know if you do.)


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## @[email protected]

you could use a some kind of mini "Y" connector. but it would need 2 valves, since riven and source probably will need different amounts of CO2.


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## deleted_user_16

why dont you upgrade to a 5 lb tank with a dual needle valve? then you can run it to both at dif ammounts, and its cheaper than ADA and lasts longer.


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## fish_fasinated

this looks great UG, im starting to think low maintenance is the way to go. mind you i on't have many algae problems with my nano. just mainly on the flame moss. i'm going to be adding some orange bee shrimp to take care of that little issue.

you should see if you can get some different little shrimp for this tank. some thing not commonly kept.

also a 5lb cylinder would work, much better split then the ADA system. those little cylinders are just too small to handle two tanks for long.


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## dylanserbin

where did you get that light, i know you mentioned where but i cant find it. any help?


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## connordude27

thats a great looking tank i really like the rocks!

a weird question coming from someone knowing nothing about nanos..... what are all those pipes? i know the one on the far left is Co2 but what is that pipe running across the tank and the ones on the far right?


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## Kayen

Great start, the spire ... methinks it needs more ZING.


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## ktsgolfer

dylanserbin said:


> where did you get that light, i know you mentioned where but i cant find it. any help?


I think he said AFA for $60ish?



connordude27 said:


> thats a great looking tank i really like the rocks!
> 
> a weird question coming from someone knowing nothing about nanos..... what are all those pipes? i know the one on the far left is Co2 but what is that pipe running across the tank and the ones on the far right?


Pipe running across is spray bar from filter, and right side is the filter intake AFAIK.


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## 17882

How do you like the zoo med?


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## Ugly Genius

Thanks, *marko* and *fishman*. If I stay in this hobby long enough, I'll probably upgrade to a five pound container of CO2. I was seriously considering getting one prior to getting the ADA system, but my need for things pretty overruled that quite quickly.

Thanks, *fish*. Yeah, I really recommend a low-maintenance tank. Intricate, heavily-planted 'scapes are wonderful to look at but a pain to live with. I think we should all keep one or two of the high-maintenance ones just to prove that we can do it, but we also need a low-maintenance beauty that when you come home to her, she says, "Let's just chill, baby. You and me. Nothing fancy, nothing special. Just you and me." 
Yeah, we all need one of those.

*dylanserbin* and *connordude27*, *ktsgolfer* is correct. Aqua Forest Aquarium in SF for sixty, an outflow, and intake respectively.

You're right, *Viettxboii*; the spire does look a bit boring right now. But this is one of those things where you're going to have to trust me. I know this tank does not look like all that much right now, but I really do believe that when it fills in -- that is, _if_ it fills in -- the way I see it in my mind's eye, that it'll look alright. (But if you've followed my journal on Riven, you'll know that I am constantly tinkering with my tanks and one never knows where this thing'll end up. Heck, knowing me I might even have Christmas lights strung around the spire or some crazy somesuch.)

*pbfreakon*, I love the Zoo Med. Prefect flow for a five point five gallon. I highly recommend it.

I swapped the Archaea for the Ott-lites. Look...









_The raddest part of this photo is my MacBook basking in the glow of twenty-six watts of ten thousand k._​
Here's a closer full tank shot.








I moved the Anubias down a bit and tucked a bit of Mini Java Fern behind the spire.
I also added a RCS that I rescued from dying. (Long, sad, ultimately boring story.)

And that's that.


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## ZooTycoonMaster

Nice looking tank, UGroud: Will it turn out as beautiful as Riven?


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## Ugly Genius

ZooTycoonMaster said:


> Nice looking tank, UGroud: Will it turn out as beautiful as Riven?


Thanks, *Zoo*. Let's hope it doesn't turn out like Riven. Riven and I aren't seeing eye-to-eye right now. Let's call it a break. She and I are going to have a talk this weekend to see exactly where that relationship is going. I'm going to give her an ultimatum: the algae or me.


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## deleted_user_16

that heater looks slick, got it at AFA? the otolites somehow look nice on it. and the mini java fern, does it actually stay mini? i may have to get me some


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## Ugly Genius

Thanks, *fishman*. The heater is from way back when. I think my brother got it back when he was into keeping bettas. I _think_ he got it from the fish/flower shop on Clement. It's a cool little heater.
I'm liking the Ott-lites on this tank. I cannot stress this enough, Ott-lites are perfect for ADA Mini-Ss and Mini-Ms. Perfect. (Although they need to be raised one and a quarter inch on the Mini-M.)
Mini Java Fern will, assuming you bought a real Mini Java Fern, stay small. They get about four inches high. It's a good plant. One of my staples.


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## deleted_user_16

looks quite new, haha 

that java fern seems to be perfect for applying to driftwood then, doesnt get too big and compliments well.


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## fish_fasinated

lowering the anubias seems to have balanced things out a little more, rather then drawing the attention up its now spread out through out the whole tank.

and that DW reminds me of "pride rock" in the lion king, lol now you just need a picture of a shrimp sitting on the top over looking his kingdom


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## trigun808

i believe ada sells that "Y" connection and they use speed controllers to control the co2 flow. u could try that


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## hyphination

aww man u switched out your lights :icon_sad: nah i think those ott-lites look pretty cool plus you probably have a more even spread of light over your tank. btw where did you get those? this layout looks pretty cool!! im really digging the rocks and the DW. keep on doing what your doing :icon_smil


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## fish_fasinated

i have something very similar, i got mine from zellers, but i know walmart up here has em. being canadian its hard to compare who has what but its a good place to start no?


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## Ugly Genius

While I wait for my pizza delivery to arrive, here's a photo of Source looking pretty much like it did two days ago.








No real noticeable growth, but that was to be expected.

I moved the Mini Java Fern to the back. (It's not yet visible, but will eventually grow in the crux of the V in the driftwood.) 

*fishman*, yeah, the Mini Java Fern is a great plant.

*fish*, you're right about the Anubias. Even when I set it up, I knew it didn't belong there, but there was a nook perfect for a stem of Anubias and I could not resist putting it there. Eventually, it got on my nerves -- cool nook or not -- and I put it where I initially intended.
As for the DW -- which is actually two pieces I fit together -- is really cool. I love it. I'll try to get a Lion King photo. It'd be even cooler if the shrimp was carrying a fry in it's claws and all the other shrimp bowed down.

I'll check something like that out *trigun*.

*hyphination*, yeah, the lamp's unbalanced spread was irking me to no end. The Archaea is on Riven where it's doing just fine for the Mini-S's size. The Ott's I got from Home Depot for hella cheap. (Don't buy them at Amazon in the link -- they can be found for $34.00 or cheaper.) They have them at Frys here in the BA, but I don't know about Hawaii. I'm telling you, for a Mini-M or Mini-S, there is no better lighting. At 13W a piece, placeable where ever you want...perfect. 
And thanks! Sometimes I get the feeling that people aren't feeling this tank, but I'm going by what my gut tells me to do here and it's scary thinking maybe I'm making aesthetic mistakes that everyone sees but me. Your comment means a lot to me.

*asimkhatri*, thanks, man. I really appreciate that.

*fish*, in your last post were you talking about the lights? If so, *hyphination* if they have Walmarts in Hawaii, try there.

Pizza's still not here. I'm hungry.

Way off topic, _Gears of War 2_ comes out on Friday and I have four days off in a row. I don't think it's possible for my dork side to get any happier. (That's not _entirely_ true. If I suddenly got the Force or spider powers, that'd make me pretty happy, too.) 
[For you non-dorks out there, _Gears of War 2_ is a video game. It's pretty frickin' cool.] 

Sweet! My pizza's here.


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## Kayen

Ugly Genius said:


> You're right, *Viettxboii*; the spire does look a bit boring right now. But this is one of those things where you're going to have to trust me. I know this tank does not look like all that much right now, but I really do believe that when it fills in -- that is, _if_ it fills in -- the way I see it in my mind's eye, that it'll look alright. (But if you've followed my journal on Riven, you'll know that I am constantly tinkering with my tanks and one never knows where this thing'll end up. Heck, knowing me I might even have Christmas lights strung around the spire or some crazy somesuch.)


Got ya, anyways you tinker around with your tanks alot. 
Wish i did, i'm really lazy with my tanks, i barely even trim.
However i'm planning to reinvigorate both of my tanks soon, looking to you for some inspiration./


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## hyphination

yeah if i get one of the ADA mini's ill definitely pick those up.
you know to some people_(like me)_, its the comments that fuel you to keep on keeping on. lol. yea i know thats from Joe Dirt. anyways i get really sad whenever i hear that GoW2 is coming out. its an awesome game dont get me wrong but i probably wont have anytime to play it, even on my days off. and even if i do get it my grades will suffer big time. wth who am i kidding lets play some rank!!!


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## ktsgolfer

i honestly love this hardscape. im feeling the dhg filling in and everything will be awesome. keep us posted.


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## Ugly Genius

I hear ya about not trimming, *Viettxboii*. I HATE trimming tanks. It's for this very reason that I picked the plants I did for Source. 
Mini Pellia was chosen over Christmas Moss, my favorite moss, because it needs very little trimming; Anubias Nana "Petite" and Mini Java Fern actually look better the less you trim them; and Dwarf Hairgrass because it does not grow up like Glosso and HC.
I have a two and a half gallon tank that I'm thinking of scaping soonish. I personally love two point five gallon tanks. You can grow anything in them with thirteen watts, Excel, and a small filter. Great tanks.

Thanks, *hyphination*. I'll be picking up GoW2 tomorrow for sure. Maybe I'll see you, and some other of you, online sometime. I'm Ugly Genius or uglygenius, I forget.

Thanks, *ktsgolfer*. I really appreciate that. The Dwarf Hairgrass is throwing down roots pretty deep, so hopefully, it'll carpet soon.

Here are some random shots I just took.



































Manten stones look better when you crack them open, in my opinion. These are the same as the stones in Riven, but these have been cracked open. The pores make them look more interesting, I think.


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## fish_fasinated

those are some really nice rocks, i never got a good look at them before. very interesting texture to them


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## CL

That mini pellia is sweet


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## Karackle

this tank is looking great! I LOVE the DW! And a Lion King shot would be awesome! :hihi:
I agree with you on low maintenance tanks that you can just chill with being nice! I've thought about going highish-tech with my 5.5g just to see if I can make it look good....but that needs to wait til i have some more time and $$ :tongue:


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## Ugly Genius

Just a quick shot before we go out to dinner. 

Nothing new, but I _almost_ got the Lion King shot...but then he moved. Shrimp are some of the worst actors to work with.


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## Karackle

damn those shrimp! they never sit still for me either!


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## Ugly Genius

So as to not favor one of my children and not the other, here's a picture of Source looking exactly the same as the last picture.








Maybe the Hairgrass has grown a little, but not enough to throw a party over or anything. 
That said, I'm happy with how this tank came out. The low-maintenance aspect alone is wonderful. (I should state that with just two gallons more a Mini-M is much easier than a Mini-S tinkering-wise.)

Right now I've got three things I can do -- four, actually -- shower, go to the gym, start planting Riven, and play Gears of War 2. Right now the first and the last are the most appealing.


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## Ugly Genius

I'm posting this here for me for future reference so as to mark the rate of growth of the Hairgrass. Taken this morning.








There has been some growth, but mostly upwards. The blades on this variety of Hairgrass seem to max out at about an inch and a half. We'll see if they get any taller than that.


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## youareafever

your tank is lookin sweet.


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## Ugly Genius

Thank, *youareafever*. I appreciate that.

I added the Mini Erio from Riven to the back right. It fits in well, I think.

















Gives it more of a meadow look that I was going for.


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## fish_fasinated

looking good, glad to see your keeping up on the tradition of tons of pictures so you can actually watch the growth patterns lol


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## CL

It looks nice  Is the tank really that blue?


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## Ugly Genius

Hey, *cl*. Thanks!
Not really that blue. I looks like that only in the pictures. This new type Mini-M actually has a gold tint to it where the older ones had a green tint. (The new ones are supposed to have more clarity, but I notice no difference at all.) The lights are 10,000k, so that might account for some of it, but in person the tank has more of a arctic white to it.


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## @[email protected]

hold a peice of white paper next to it (so its under the tanks light) and then use that to set the cameras white balance.


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## youareafever

i like how the over all look is blue for some reason i prefer things in the higher kelvin range then say 6500.


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## Ugly Genius

*fish_fasinated* asked for this one.
You _know_ what I have to call this...









_The Tiger King!_​
The last thing you guys want to see is another photo of a Cherry Shrimp, so tell you what, I'll put it second to last.


















_An Orange Shrimp. While it looks yellowish here, it's actually quite vividly orange in person._​


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## fish_fasinated

haha yes i was waiting the picture! i might be getting some orange bee shrimp in the near future.


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## Dollface

Bettween the Cherry and the Orange shrimp, you've got the start of a rainbow right there.


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## ZooTycoonMaster

Oooh they can be housed with _any_ freshwater shrimp w/o risk of interbreeding...I saw some at my LFS, I should get some!:hihi:


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## Ugly Genius

Orange Bee Shrimp, *fish*? I don't think I've ever seen or heard of those. (Time warp.) I googled them just now. Apparently back in the day they were quite common, but not so much any more. Get some. They're cool-looking.

*Dollface*, yeah, while shrimp break my heart time after time, I keep coming back to them. I am resolved -- standing firm! -- to have no more than six shrimp in Source! Six shrimp and one Nerite. That's it! That's my rainbow. My two-color rainbow! Red and orange with tiger stripes. That's it. Except Justin of Ocean Aquarium here in the City is getting Blue Shrimp this weekend. So maybe eight shrimp. I am resolved -- standing firm! -- to have no more than eight shrimp in Source! My three-color rainbow!

Anyway, I just snapped some photos that are not interesting right now in that they look a lot like the photos taken yesterday, but once the tank fills in, these shots should become interesting. Because we'll be all, "Oh, _that's_ what it looked like before! It looks totally different now that he put the Master Chief action figure in it."









_I do believe that the Hairgrass is starting to spread._









_A different angle to keep you on your toes._









_And just when you get comfortable, I zoom in real close on the Mini Pellia and a weird white thing that's in the wood._









_A shot of the coolest, most borning plant to watch grow: Anubias Nana "Petite".
I really wish I didn't love this plant because it is so friggin' boring!
And I have never gotten any Anubias to flower._​
The shrimp in there are all doing well. And Guilty Spark, the Nerite of Riven, is also happy in there.


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## Dollface

My brain didnt click untill I read it a third time, Ocean aquarium is getting blue shrimp in? When?


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## Ugly Genius

I don't have a picture today (untrue; see below), but I just added some Whorled Pennywort to the back-left corner and in the front-right corner. Whorled Pennywort really matches this tank, I think.
For the past week, Whorled Pennywort would come to my mind of it's own accord, seemingly at random. This is odd because I'm not particularly fond of Whorled Pennywort and couldn't imagine why the idea of it would come to my thoughts.
Then all of a sudden while looking at Source, I knew that I had to put some in the tank. Subconsciously, I guess I was telling myself to put some in even though I don't love it.

Actually, this post is worthless without photos, so lemme snap some real quick.
BRB.

Okay, I'm back.


























It's just two stems at this point, but as I want this tank to grow slow, I want the plants to tell me their story and I'll make changes as I hear what they have to say.

Also, whenever I take closeups of Source, I fall in love with the texture of the Manten stone. It's really pretty.


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## deleted_user_16

you planning on getting any red in here or gonna keep it green?


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## Dollface

He's got RCS in there right? that counts as red. XD

That being said, I think it should stay a green tank, it offsets the dark DW nicely.
But what I think doesnt matter that much.


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## ZooTycoonMaster

fishman9809 said:


> you planning on getting any red in here or gonna keep it green?


I think a Red Wendtii would look good as a centerpiece:fish:


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## Ugly Genius

Dollface said:


> My brain didnt click untill I read it a third time, Ocean aquarium is getting blue shrimp in? When?


Sunday, Dollface.

Hey *fishman*, *Dollface*, and *Zoo*. As for red, I don't know. I'm siding with Dollface right now and letting the bright greens contrast with the dark wood, but anything's possible. Coincidentally, I was thinking that a small crypt, as Zoo suggested, would look great between the rocks in the front-right of the tank.
What I really want, however, is a white plant. Even a flower of an Anubias would be fine, but I really think that white, and possibly yellow, would look great in here.















Being impatient, I added more fully-grown Mini Java Fern behind the spire. The ultimate goal is to have the Mini Java Fern leaves exploding outwards from the spire so as to give the illusion that it's powering up like they do in Dragon Ball Z.

If you look at the spire, the shrimp have started to eat away the thread that fastened the Mini Pellia and Anubias Nana "Petite". It's unraveling sooner than I would have liked, and I'm hoping the Anubias had time to sink it's roots into the DW.


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## CL

Looks good UG. The hairgrass looks like it's growing


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## Ugly Genius

Hey, *cl*. Yeah, it's starting to fill in. Slowly but surely. Then again, we're not into planted tanks for the instant gratification, now are we?


















_Friggin' love this plant!_​


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## deleted_user_16

getting nicer and nicer, the mini pelia looks kinda like that lime green forest lichen u see all over at yosemite.


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## Ugly Genius

Yes! That's it _exactly_, *fish*! I was trying to put my finger on why I liked Mini Pellia and you nailed it. That's the look it conveys to me when you see it in nano tanks -- lichen growing on wet tree bark. I think it's so pretty out there in "real" nature, I wanted the same look in my tanks.

Now I can stop wondering what look I was going for with this stuff: lichen.

Props to fishman!


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## deleted_user_16

it looks very pretty, lemme guess, AFA? last time i checked it was like 8 bucks for a tiny piece


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## fish_fasinated

it looks great, and it does look like lichen! now i we could just order some in at work i could be greedy and steal the nicest piece lol.


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## Ugly Genius

The Mini Pellia was from AFA. Got it a while back so I don't remember what I paid for it, but it wasn't cheap. It was a 2" square for twelve bucks, maybe?
It was so worth it, though. I don't think you'll see a 'scape from me without that plant.

Speaking of AFA, (while still managing to be way off topic), I saw the goofiest fish there the other day. Hatchet Fish. Those things are a trip. They all stay in one position as a group looking in exactly the same direction. Motionless and staring. I kept looking over my shoulder in the direction they were looking thinking that I was missing something interesting behind me. (Just some Amanos in a tank behind me, if you were wondering.)
If I ever get a big tank (unlikely), I'd get those fish just to feel interesting. A shoal of fish staring at me with rapt attention as I told them about my day--Who _wouldn't_ like that?! 

Right now in this tank's life, I'm thinking that it needs something. I don't know what, but something. I'm not thinking color, it's something else. A piece that ties the whole thing together. You know the feeling? When a tank's close to being "done" but just shy of being that? Yeah, that's where I'm at with this one. It'll come to me.


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## deleted_user_16

i hear hatchets move a lot once accustomed to the new tank. also, they have any boraras spp. there? they were out last time i went.


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## Ugly Genius

Sucks about the Hatchets. Oh well, I can just get some fake fish and hang them from strings.

I don't know if they had any Boraras there. I'm the worst person to ask about fish. I could probably tell you the difference between a Neon Tetra and a Black Moor Goldfish, but you'd have to let me think about it for a couple of minutes before I answered.
This is to say, I might have looked at a whole tankful of Boraras and thought, "Wow, what nice Bettas they have here!"

Actually, I'm pretty bad with plant names, too.

The best question you could ask me is, "Did they have anything cool there?" 
To which I'd answer, "Yeah, a cool fish. And a cool plant." 
"What were they?" 
"Dunno. But they were cool. You should totally get some."


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## deleted_user_16

how about this, the tiny shrimp safe fish  thin, cyprinids YOU KNOW, lol, cmon, ur part asian, its in yo blood like me!!!


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## Ugly Genius

Oh, the micro ones! Um, I don't think I saw any -- and I did look --, but Justin's at Ocean's got some. At least he did last week. He had two species if I remember correctly. Actually, if you look here, he got some microrasboras nana. Dunno if that's the kind you're look for but the "micro" part sounds shrimp safe.


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## deleted_user_16

thanks ugly!!!


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## ZooTycoonMaster

Ugly Genius said:


> Oh, the micro ones! Um, I don't think I saw any -- and I did look --, but Justin's at Ocean's got some. At least he did last week. He had two species if I remember correctly. Actually, if you look here, he got some microrasboras nana. Dunno if that's the kind you're look for but the "micro" part sounds shrimp safe.


He has Boraras Micros and Boraras Merah:fish:Believe me I was just there Tuesday, and his tanks are AWESOME!!!


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## mizu-chan

Are you likign the Hair Grass? I heard it loves AS so I was thinking about trying it out. Looks like it's growing really well for you. As always this tank is amazing.


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## thief

Ahh yes Dwarf Hair Grass loves AS.. I have it in my 2.5g Iwagumi. 

Lol I hope that Needle Leaf plant(Is that it?) Will grow into a bunch of them. That would look beautiful!


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## Allen121

It needs duckweed.... lots and LOTS of duckweed. :hihi:

ok, maybe we skip the duckweed and put a precision placed lilly in there? You'll get some color as well as a nice white flower on top when it blooms! :thumbsup:

Just a thought...


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## Ugly Genius

Thanks, *mizu-chan*. Yeah, I am liking the Hairgrass. It's actually a very pretty plant, in my opinion. It's so soft and delicate. And the vibrant light green is a perfect contrast to a dark hardscape and a wonderful accent to a light hardscape. 
It's spreading pretty quickly, too. The tank's about nineteen days old at this point and the Hairgrass is sending out runners quite frequently now. The Aqua Soil is awesome for it.

*thief*, the plant in the back is a Mini Java Fern. It's my hope that it explodes back there, too. I have three rhizome behind the spire driftwood -- one tied to the mid section, and two to the left and right -- and it's my hope that they do bunch up. The funny thing about Java Ferns is that they start really slowly and then all of a sudden they explode. Seemingly overnight.

*Allen121*, I'm way ahead of you. I've already added some of that and some bladderwort. I also tucked some hair algae for a more mysterious vibe.
Just kidding.
What type of lily were you thinking of? Is there one small enough for a five point five gallon tank? That'd be cool if there were.

Hey, to those of you that read my Riven journal. Do you remember the name of that three-colored lily plant that I had? What was it? I totally forgot.

Nothing's changed in the tank. Got some dust algae on the glass, but that's about it. This weekend I'll probably scape it clean. I know there's a theory that letting it be for three weeks to live out it's life cycle will remedy the situation, but I'm not that patient. I like clean glass.


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## Ugly Genius

Less words, more pictures.


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## mizu-chan

Wonderful. Are you worried about some of the rocks at the front disappearing once the hair grass gets fully established?


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## Ugly Genius

Thanks, *mizu*! Yes and no. While I think it would be a shame that the texture of the rocks will be lost to the Hairgrass, in the same breath I think it will look much more natural if the grass just did what it does.
This Hairgrass is not a super-short variety as I was lead to believe, though. It's just your standard short variety. I'd say it's maxing out at about three inches in places. Maybe two point five.


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## Ugly Genius

_I'll let the dust algae run it's course for a while. See if it'll clear up on it's own._









_An Orange Shrimp in Hairgrass._​


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## ZooTycoonMaster

Looks nice!roud:

What filter is that? The ZooMed one?


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## gasteriaphile

*New Member here*

Just curious first of all as to what this is:
*Eheim Pimp #296 *​ 
Next I would ask Mark why you did not plant somethings to hide the CO2 provider and other equipment that I see in the tank or behind? From what I can tell, none of the plants once mature are going to be hiding same.​ 
Thanks, and remember just trying to learn, not be critical!
Breck​


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## ZooTycoonMaster

gasteriaphile said:


> Just curious first of all as to what this is:
> *Eheim Pimp #296 *​
> Next I would ask Mark why you did not plant somethings to hide the CO2 provider and other equipment that I see in the tank or behind? From what I can tell, none of the plants once mature are going to be hiding same.​
> Thanks, and remember just trying to learn, not be critical!
> Breck​


The Eheim Pimp # is an exclusive club that only members with Eheim's get to join:hihi: And they get numbers

This is an iwagumi tank (I think) and iwagumis don't usually have anything covering the equipment.


----------



## Tex Gal

You gotta love that mini pellia. I finally got a small bunch. I'm trying to scare up some more. It's a hard plant to track down! Hair grass is really filling in for you!


----------



## CL

The hg is growing great


----------



## Ugly Genius

ZooTycoonMaster said:


> Looks nice!roud:
> 
> What filter is that? The ZooMed one?


Hey, *Zoo*. Yeah, it's a Zoo Med. Really good filter for a nano.



gasteriaphile said:


> Next I would ask Mark why you did not plant somethings to hide the CO2 provider and other equipment that I see in the tank or behind? From what I can tell, none of the plants once mature are going to be hiding same.​


Hey, *gasteriaphile*. I'm not sure who the Mark is that you mentioned, but as for the unhidden equipment...that's easy to answer. I'm not a good enough 'scaper to create a nice layout that also hides all the equipment. For me it's either/or at this point. 
I'd like to get to the point where I could create a 'scape that looks exactly the way I want it to _and_ have the equipment less conspicuous, but I'm not good enough in this hobby to balance those two things. (More ideally, I'd like to have the companies make for us equipment that is less visually intrusive when in a tank.)



Tex Gal said:


> You gotta love that mini pellia. I finally got a small bunch. I'm trying to scare up some more. It's a hard plant to track down! Hair grass is really filling in for you!


Thanks, *Tex Gal*. You may find that once the Mini Pellia takes hold, about two months, it tends to grow pretty quickly. It likes lots of light and CO2. And when I say "lots of light" I man LOTS! Too much is almost enough.



clwatkins10 said:


> The hg is growing great


Thanks, *cl*. It's growing in quick now. The stuff's getting really tall, though. Irks me that what I thought was very short HG, might in fact be tall HG. Moral of the story: Don't believe what's written on glass.


----------



## fish_fasinated

as always, looking good! lol filling in so nicely!


----------



## @[email protected]

its a grass so you can trim it.


----------



## Ugly Genius

I've let this tank do it's thing. Beard algae's taken hold, but I love it. It's beautiful when it sways in the flow of the filter. The GDA is slowly dissolving. I'm hoping that the GDA goes away and the beard algae stays.









_The strings you see are actual strings -- not hair algae.
I wish I had used less string._​
Other than that, this tank has pretty much grown in exactly the way I envisioned it. The HG is a bit tall, but it's length (pun intended here) has grown on me.

-----
P.S. Yes, I did use the word "rad". And I'll use it again. I know that no one uses that word anymore, but it's a rad word and I'm going to keep using it.


----------



## Dollface

Even your algae looks awesome, man, I'm jealous. )': I've always kind of wondered if there were ways to induce specific kinds of algae (ie. the more cool looking ones) to grow in a tank. Green dust algae, that Beard algae, and Geen spot algae being some of them. I just love the look of it all. 
That would be a pretty awesome tank to have, and algae tank. 

I kinna went off on a tangent there didn't I? Oh well.

You should put a quick black background on there to see what it looks like, It would amplify the green-ness of it all like 10 times over.


----------



## mott

wow that algae looks cool! I agree that a black background would make the green pop.


----------



## fish_fasinated

haha thats a lot of algae! i thought i had alot!


----------



## brt_p

haha..it's nice!..
and also, cut a few HG to make a range-gradation-effect..
(honestly, ur HG doing pretty well there..i'm so jealous):thumbsup:


----------



## hyphination

the beard algae does look pretty cool. reminds me of being at the beach for some reason. anyways are you suppose to just let the dust algae do its thing? i clean mine off at the ending of every week.


----------



## Ugly Genius

Hey, *brt_p*. That's a pretty good idea to cut the HG shorter in the front. And don't be jealous of the HG. Get some Aqua Soil, decent light, and CO2 and it'll weed out of control in no time.

Hey, *hyph*. I've read that dust algae has a life cycle of three or so weeks. Once it's run this cycle it dies and goes away. I've never tested this myself as I'm too OCD with these tanks to allow algae to cover the glass for more than a week. I'm trying my darndest not to touch the glass this time around to see if it's indeed the case. Either way, scrape or don't scrape, the dust seems to go away after three weeks, that much I do know. I've never had dust algae for more than a month.


----------



## Karackle

wow, the tank is looking fantastic! I can't believe how quickly the HG filled in! And the beard algae does look really cool, as long as it stays on the rocks where it looks good, i hope it stays too!


----------



## pga7602

I've been following this tank for a while now and want to use a lot of the information in this thread as a reference. 

I want to order my Mini_M tomorrow and was curious to know if I needed to go with the amazonia soil or the powder. Do I get the 3 Liter or the 9 Liter if I want 100% ADA soil.

Thanks for the help.


----------



## Ugly Genius

Hey, *pga6602*. I'm glad this journal could be of help.
What I would do is get two three liter bags, one of the regular and one of the powder. While you could get by with just one bag of either, two bags will give you more substrate in which to create a steep slope with plenty of depth for plant roots.
In Source I used one and a quarter bags of the powder type.
The powder type looks _much_ better than the regular type in a nano, so if you're only going to get one bag, get the powder type.
If you get one of each, put a two-thirds depth of the regular on the bottom and the last one-third layer of powder on the top. (There is no need for Power Sand in my opinion.)

Good luck on your Mini-M. It's a great size tank. If you have any questions, let me know. I'll do my best to help.


----------



## pga7602

Ugly Genius said:


> Hey, *pga6602*. I'm glad this journal could be of help.
> What I would do is get two three liter bags, one of the regular and one of the powder. While you could get by with just one bag of either, two bags will give you more substrate in which to create a steep slope with plenty of depth for plant roots.
> In Source I used one and a quarter bags of the powder type.
> The powder type looks _much_ better than the regular type in a nano, so if you're only going to get one bag, get the powder type.
> If you get one of each, put a two-thirds depth of the regular on the bottom and the last one-third layer of powder on the top. (There is no need for Power Sand in my opinion.)
> 
> Good luck on your Mini-M. It's a great size tank. If you have any questions, let me know. I'll do my best to help.


I'm going with your suggestion on two bags. I'll PM you the link, once I start a tank link. Thanks again for you help.


----------



## Ugly Genius

Source is officially my fun tank. I have to do very little to this tank. An occasional trim of the high-growing Hair Grass, daily dosings of Brighty K and Green Brighty Step 1, an occasional water change, and that's pretty much it. This is what I wanted when setting this up. A pretty tank that needs very little work.








Today I added four Blue Berry Shrimp from Ocean Aquarium. Pretty shrimp, those. You can see one on the CO2 tubing on the left.

Now I just have to wait for all the string to dissolve. (Note to self: Less string next time!)


----------



## Dollface

It's so green! The hair grass looks great.
Is that another shrimp way in the back by what looks like the filter intake or am I just seeing things?


----------



## mizu-chan

Beautiful carpet. I'm jealous!


----------



## brt_p

urrgghhh..nicee..:thumbsup:


----------



## fish_fasinated

the tank looks :thumbsup::thumbsup::thumbsupmutant hand lol) UG, guess you decided against so much algae?looks like you cleaned up quite a bit.


----------



## Ugly Genius

Thanks, guys.

I'll be pulling up some HG and putting in Glosso from Riven Revolutions later this week. The tank needs kick. It's low-maintenance, but it lacks character.

*Fish*, yeah, I scraped the glass, but that's it. Most of it disappeared on it's own. I also raised up the lights a half inch. That seemed to help.


----------



## Ugly Genius

Algae's gone. (Did nothing.) Tank's in need of a trim and the UG needs to be planted, but slow and steady, this tank's coming along.


----------



## ZooTycoonMaster

*is getting more and more jealous of your tanks*:hihi: Especially when you buy all this stuff from Ocean Aquarium:tongue:

But there's supposed to be this good LFS down in San Jose that I plan to check out during Winter Break


----------



## CL

Nice patch of ug!


----------



## Ebichua

ZooTycoonMaster said:


> *is getting more and more jealous of your tanks*:hihi: Especially when you buy all this stuff from Ocean Aquarium:tongue:
> 
> But there's supposed to be this good LFS down in San Jose that I plan to check out during Winter Break


No freshwater section yet there, I was there three days ago. They're going to compete with ALL of the bay area fish stores apparently. Even AFA and ocean. I was talking to the owner and his goal is to pretty much close out all the local competition. Kind of scary really. I admire his determination but his goals... iffy. 

I <3 my ma and pops, even if their stores aren't exactly the greatest looking ones. 

I will say though, so far, this store is looking amazing. Their gallery is great to look at.
-----

Great looking UG by the way, where did you get it? The ones in AFA don't look too well... last time I checked was about 2 days ago.


----------



## ZooTycoonMaster

Ebichua said:


> No freshwater section yet there, I was there three days ago.


Wait what? Dangit

Maybe I'll go Brian's Fish World today:hihi:

Then the SF stores during the week


----------



## Ebichua

I thought brian's closed down?


----------



## fish_fasinated

Loving this tank more and more UG and your UG has filled in nicely indeed. keep up the good work.


----------



## thief

WOW UG this tank is awesome. It really looks like it is along a side of a stream deep within the wild.

Very inspiring. Ohh and I am currently designing a layout that will hold UG (plant) in it so if yours grows well I might give you a call to get a small clump of it.


----------



## Ugly Genius

Thanks, *fish* and *thief*.

Thief, regarding the UG: no problem. PM me once the weather's warmed up. fish, you, too if you need some UG or any other plant I have. You've been super cool in this journal so it's the least I can do.

Anyway, I just took some pretty photos. (By my rather lax standards.) I'm really liking that I'm only growing green in this tank. It gives it a cool look not seen too often in planted tanks.


























I really like the middle one because it has O2 bubbles on the Pennywort and the UG and HG blurred in the background.
The last one is cool because it looks great with the UG and HG mixed together.

There are a ton of shrimp babies in this tank right now. They're everywhere! Most are RCS, but still, I'm really happy that the shrimp are doing well in this tank.
I have RCS, Tiger, Blue Berry, and Orange shrimp in this tank. The RCS and Tigers have both bred in here.
There are also four Olive Nertites as evidenced by their eggs in the photos.
I'm going to get some Ottos soonish. I think three would be a good number.
Ever so slowly, UG's livestock-raising confidence is returning. ("Raising" here meaning "not killing".)


----------



## danakin

How can you tell you have baby shrimp? There's so many green places for them to hide


----------



## chadly

lookin good, Nice green color.


----------



## fish_fasinated

danakin said:


> How can you tell you have baby shrimp? There's so many green places for them to hide


its because he stares at his tanks when ever he is home,i think the only time he isn't snapping pictures os just plain staring is when he asleep or at work. lol, but of course who blames him with these FANTASTIC scapes. and *UG* i will certainly tank (lol) you up on that offer of UG, think it will look nice in the 20G once that project is underway.


----------



## Craigthor

Looking good...

Craig


----------



## Ugly Genius

Hey, *danakin*. Seriously. It _is_ hard to find them in all that grass. But, like fish said, I'm staring at this tank for what seems like hours. (I say "seems like hours" to protect me from the embarrassment of truthfully admitting that I _do_ stare at these tanks for hours.)

Thanks *chadly*! (Bob Ross in your avatar! Loved that guy. When I'm planting my tanks, I feel a bit like him. _I'm going to put some happy little Glosso right here. Just a tad. Not too much. Just enough. I'm also going to give him a friend. Some happy little HC. Look at them. So happy. Happy little guys._)

*fish*, hey now...I _do_ shower. And I'm not certainly not looking at them when I'm in the shower. (Cause it's too far from the kitchen. I tried.) Or when I sneeze. I mean my eyes close when I sneeze for crying out loud. Surely I'm not looking at my tanks then.

Thanks, *Craig*!


----------



## fish_fasinated

lol well i covered the basics, but hey its all in the details!


----------



## Ugly Genius

My affections swing from tank to tank.
One day it'll be Riven Revolutions, the next Source. More often than not, Riven Revolutions is the apple of my eye.
But not today.
Today Source is doing everything right. It's growing, it's pearling; living and breathing.
Where Riven Revolutions has yet to mature, Source is almost there. It's one trim and one algae scrape away from being a full-grown adult tank ready for its close-up.

And even though it's not ready, here are some close-ups.









_Beneath a Starry Sky_









_Mini Pellia pearling + a shrimp (not dead!)._​
To change things up...









_Zooey and Franny, my little jerks._​


----------



## Dollface

That first picture is spectacular.


----------



## fish_fasinated

agreed, its an amazing shot! and your dogs are cute! why are they jerks?


----------



## Ugly Genius

Thanks, *Dollface* and *fish*. I like that photo, too.

Technically my dogs are not "jerks" -- they're the raddest dogs in the world -- but for some reason, I've always called Zoo "My Little Jerk". Dunno why. It just seemed to fit. Then when Franny came along, I just called them "My Little Jerks." It works for them in some way.
Although, technically, Franny can be an actual jerk from time to time, but she's often cute enough to get away with it. Don't tell her that, though; I don't want it going to her head. (Case in point, just prior to that above photo, she was in trouble for bringing in a pine cone and scattering it all around the house. That's her, "Aren't I cute, papa? How can you be mad at me?" face. And I wasn't. A pine cone's a pine cone and cute is cute.)


----------



## @[email protected]

i love the first pic. find a contest, and submit it. you WILL win.


----------



## rekles75

Man, UG, you always take great pics. They seem to tell a story and where they dont you always have some colorful commentary to go with it. 

OK enough jocking, Great tanks though.


----------



## Ugly Genius

Thanks, *@[email protected]* and *rekles*!

Just now I got some Mini Riccia. I don't know why and I don't know how I'll use it. I just wanted some.









_Mini Riccia is just like Riccia only smaller. It's probably even more of a pain to manage, too.
Consider this an impulse buy that probably should have been more throughly considered prior to purchase.
That said, it is pretty and once it starts pearling, it'll be a knockout._​
Oh, and here's the UG in Source. It's doing really, really well in here.









_Eventually, I hope to replace the HG with UG._​


----------



## CL

That UG is beautiful, and so is the mini riccia (which is easier to maintain than regular riccia actually) Is the UG planted, or is it just sitting there?


----------



## Ugly Genius

Thanks, *cl*. The UG is just sitting there. I have to remove the HG beneath it and I've been too lazy to do that. I'll get around to it soonish, but, yeah, for now it's just sitting there.

And that's good to know about the Mini Riccia. It's pretty so I'm glad I got it an all, but I was afraid I'd develop the love/hate relationship I have for it's bigger brother. If this is lower maintenance, I'm cool with that.


----------



## CL

does it really sink like they say it does?


----------



## Ugly Genius

Judging from the bits floating on the surface, no. People have said that it does? If so, maybe it takes some time to do so, but for now, nope, it doesn't.


----------



## Dollface

It seems like the only way to use riccia is riccia stones, or floating, and maybe a carpet if you really want to torture yourself. 

Sooooooooo much green.


----------



## deleted_user_16

dwarf riccia, japanese riccia, reg riccia, mini riccia, all the common kinds, do float, however 1 type does sink, it is called sinking riccia:

comparison, 1st is dwarf, then sinking, then japanese:


----------



## Craigthor

You Cali's get all the good stuff.... Looks like a nice clean patch.


----------



## ZooTycoonMaster

You bought the $15 square of mini riccia at AFA:icon_eek:

Lol Riccia is a great plant...although when it gets algae in it it's hard to take out


----------



## CL

fishman9809 said:


> dwarf riccia, japanese riccia, reg riccia, mini riccia, all the common kinds, do float, however 1 type does sink, it is called sinking riccia:
> 
> comparison, 1st is dwarf, then sinking, then japanese:


what is the difference in mini and dwarf riccia?


----------



## deleted_user_16

i think mini is regular riccia cultivated small and dwarf is found naturally, i think


----------



## Ugly Genius

*Dollface*, yeah, there is _no_ way I'd use this as a carpet. I don't even have the patience for HC, let alone Riccia, Mini Riccia, Dwarf Riccia, or any other Riccia. Quite honestly, I don't even know how I'll use it in Source. I just know that I want to use it in some way. I think more than anything, I wanted something to soak up the nutrients in the water column as I have mostly root-feeders and Mini Pellia, which doesn't drink all that many vitamins all that quick.

*fishman*, thanks for that pic. I see now that I also have sinking Riccia in one of my tanks. While it sinks and that's great, it's ugly. And not Ugly Genius ugly. Just ugly. Don't you think?

Thanks, *Craig*. Yeah, I'm super lucky to live here close to AFA. It's a blessing and a curse. My curse, you'll see, will be revealed in my reply to Zoo in just a second...

...yeah, *Zoo*, I paid fifteen bones for that. I know. I know. It's my curse to spend a lot of money on this hobby. (<-- That, Craig, is my curse.) But in my defense, I don't spend money on anything else. Ask my girl. I haven't bought new shoes in forever. No matter how much she begs me to get shoes without holes in them and are still their original color.
Truth be told, I just went there for some CO2 and possibly three Amanos for Riven Revolutions, but I got the Mini Riccia because. It's. My. Curse.
By the way, how did you like the place?

Hey, *fish* (or anyone else), how would one go about cultivating a new form of a plant? Mini or otherwise?


----------



## Craigthor

UG- Its OK. You can join the support group ADAnon. I just ordered another $500 worth of toys myself.... Only thing left to get is a shiny JET ES-600 filter. Too bad its 2.5" too tall so I may have to get the ADA stand as well Atleast if I was local I could spend the money I spend on shipping aswell 

If that ricca gets on your nerves LMK I'll take some off your hands...

Craig


----------



## ZooTycoonMaster

Ugly Genius said:


> ...yeah, *Zoo*, I paid fifteen bones for that. I know. I know. It's my curse to spend a lot of money on this hobby. (<-- That, Craig, is my curse.) But in my defense, I don't spend money on anything else. Ask my girl. I haven't bought new shoes in forever. No matter how much she begs me to get shoes without holes in them and are still their original color.
> Truth be told, I just went there for some CO2 and possibly three Amanos for Riven Revolutions, but I got the Mini Riccia because. It's. My. Curse.
> By the way, how did you like the place?


It was heaven







I was originally going to find their CO2-proof tubing, but then I got distracted by the plants and such


----------



## deleted_user_16

dunno if riccia flowers emersed, but if it does, cross pollination is the way. and apparently sinking riccia looks amazing mixed in with other plants, heres and example:










mixed with moss and dhg


----------



## Ugly Genius

*Craig*, sign me up.
And some Mini Riccia is yours once it grows some. Gimme a couple of weeks and I'll send you some. ROAK-style. I'll throw in some of the Rotala sp. 'Araguaia' you asked about in my other thread.

Isn't it, *Zoo*. The least interesting things in that store is the ADA stuff, in my opinion. It's the plants and the 'scapes and all the possibilities you see as you drool against the glass.

*fish*, it does look good like that. Maybe I should stop throwing the stuff out when I find it.


----------



## Craigthor

Thanks UG. Do you have to clean up after yourself after you drool on the tanks? Grab a bucket and towel as you come in and empty it out when you leave. Damn I need to talk the wife into a visit to San Fran. Sure she can find herself something to keep her occupied. Well time to sleep and then work.... 

Craig


----------



## Ugly Genius

It was inevitable. 








It had to happen.

It's a scary thing, uprooting a carpet plant. The resulting Aqua Soil dustiness (see above [Agh!]), the threat to livestock due to anaerobic bacteria released from below, the collapse of the tank's equilibrium, all of that (and more!) flashed through my mind as the artistic imperative to do away with the wonderful lameness that is Hairgrass (the long type) forced my hand to pluck it from the front half of the tank. (I kept it in the back.)

As I did, the action -- the pluck, pluck, pluck -- took on a rhythmic pattern not unlike a dance and the uncertainty and fear I had felt morphed into something else, something cathartic: a release of tension and an acceptance of doubt that, ironically, lead to certainty.

And I was certain that this tank needed Glosso.

Not UG. Not HC. Not Riccia (mini or otherwise). It needed Glosso. Good old Glosso. And so I'm starting to grow it in this tank. Slow and steady I will. But this tank's carpet will be Glosso.

Good old Glosso.

I'm certain of it.


----------



## CL

I'll take the ug off of your hands 
I want to use ug in my 30c


----------



## Ugly Genius

*cl*, I'll be using the UG in the near future for a tank I have in mind, but after I give Craig some, you're more than welcome to some. I don't know how much I'll have to give you, but what I can, I will.


----------



## CL

Ugly Genius said:


> *cl*, I'll be using the UG in the near future for a tank I have in mind, but after I give Craig some, you're more than welcome to some. I don't know how much I'll have to give you, but what I can, I will.


much appreciated


----------



## ZooTycoonMaster

*does my best to try and resist asking for UG*

Lol you don't know how tempting it is, but I'm getting some Marselia Minuta soon and I need to convice myself that it'll fill in just as good as UG:icon_roll

I can always rely on looking at your tanks (and detailed updates) after a stressful day at school


----------



## Dollface

That Mini-S you talked about way back perhaps?

The UG, riccia, and glosso in the front look so bright compared to the hairgrass.
I hope you let them grow together, I don't think the heavily manicured look would do to well for Source.


----------



## Craigthor

glosso huh. that Mini Ricca looks good there though  As does the UG. 

Thats o.k. though my UG is really starting to pearl nicely. Are you using the ADA Advanced CO2 System? Does it run 24/7 or can it be shut off? Getting another Mini M and Eheim 2211 soon  Really only want the 2211 so I may sell off the Mini M after abit.

Craig


----------



## Ugly Genius

Hey, *Zoo*. Thanks. I think shooting photos of and writing about my tanks is a stress release for me. 

I'm sure you'll do great with the MM. But didn't you already have that plant way back when?

*Dollface*, I'm thinking of a Mini-L.
Right before I read your post, I was thinking of having UG on the right and Glosso on the left. Just let them race to the center to see who wins. It might be neat. Kind of like how I mixed HC and Glosso in Riven when I first set it up.
Tell you what. I'll do it. You only live once, right? Never seen a mixed carpet of Glosso, UG, and HG.

Oh, that's right, *Craig* need the Mini Riccia. I got my plants mixed up. It might be a bit sooner then, *cl*


----------



## CL

Ugly Genius said:


> I'm thinking of a Mini-L.


Why not just get the 45P? It's the same length but you get more depth. Or are you just going for the mini trio set?


----------



## chase127

GET A 45P  

we can be buddies, because right now its me and me alone with a 45P


----------



## Ugly Genius

Yeah, I want the 45-P because it's a better footprint, but I'm a sucker for the Mini-S, -M, -L thing. A complete set. 
But, *chris127*, wasn't there one other dude with a 45-P? I thought I saw one not too long ago. (Love the avatar, by the way. I'm just now completing _Halo 3_ on Legendary. I finished on Normal and Heroic countless times, but never on Legendary. I have to start playing online again.)


----------



## Ugly Genius

*Craig*, I missed your question about the CO2. Yeah, it's the ADA Advanced CO2 System. I turn it on with the lights and turn it off when I turn them off. 
This weekend I bought the three pack so now I have all the "flavors". You know, they say these things have a fragrance, but I've yet to smell anything.


----------



## Dollface

Ugly Genius said:


> *Dollface*, I'm thinking of a Mini-L.
> Right before I read your post, I was thinking of having UG on the right and Glosso on the left. Just let them race to the center to see who wins. It might be neat. Kind of like how I mixed HC and Glosso in Riven when I first set it up.
> Tell you what. I'll do it. You only live once, right? Never seen a mixed carpet of Glosso, UG, and HG.


Mini-L, That's what I meant to say. I'm getting my Minis mixed up. There's just so many of them. )8

Awesome, I can't wait to see how it works for you. the plan for my goldfish tanks is to just toss as many plants in emersed and let them duke it out for forground supremecy.


----------



## Craigthor

Ugly Genius said:


> *Craig*, I missed your question about the CO2. Yeah, it's the ADA Advanced CO2 System. I turn it on with the lights and turn it off when I turn them off.
> This weekend I bought the three pack so now I have all the "flavors". You know, they say these things have a fragrance, but I've yet to smell anything.


Do you use the solenoid to shut if off or do it manually via a ball valve. Sorry for the questions but I may upgrade shortly from my paintball to the ada setup and its hard to find clear ada info I can read.

Craig


----------



## Ugly Genius

Hey. *Craig*. I use the valve. It's good this way in that I don't have to adjust the pressure every day. The valve shuts it off and starts it up with the exact same bps.
And don't worry about asking questions. I'm happy to be of help, so ask away.

*Dollface*, back when I first started this hobby, I got into it via Goldfish. I had a Ryukin named Sam. I got him for Zooey. (Zooey loves to watch fish.) Eventually, I started to read about the effects of plants on fish health, then I saw my first planted tank at Nippon Goldfish (R.I.P.) here in the City, and it was all downhill from there. I love Goldfish, I just wish they were more considerate of my carefully selected, planted, and nurtured plants. I recall thinking at the time that rather than try to breed different shaped Goldfish, someone should breed a planted tank-friendly Goldfish.


----------



## chase127

Ugly Genius said:


> Yeah, I want the 45-P because it's a better footprint, but I'm a sucker for the Mini-S, -M, -L thing. A complete set.
> But, *chris127*, wasn't there one other dude with a 45-P? I thought I saw one not too long ago. (Love the avatar, by the way. I'm just now completing _Halo 3_ on Legendary. I finished on Normal and Heroic countless times, but never on Legendary. I have to start playing online again.)


the only thread ive seen of a 45cm ADA was a Mini L, it was a great scape but i just love the depth of the 45P, its an inch more than a L. Legendary isnt that bad, just get a friend and run through it  its been a while since i played halo, ive been too tied up with COD4 and 5


----------



## Dollface

It all started for me with a couple of anacharis stems that actually grew. I was hooked. My first time in AFA pretty much cemented it.
(and Zooey is my kind of dog. I love watching fish, fish and birds.)

Plant friendly goldfish, if only, my 7" comet in perticular has decimated multiple anubias plants, java ferns, and I don't even want to think about the stems I've put in there. /shudder
I think if the 'well, leafy plants don't work, stems dont work, I guess i'm left with grass' approach doesn't work, I will indeed give up on a nice planted goldfish tank, and go the way of everyone else in this hobby, tetras.

I would say shrimp, but i'm going to do a shrimp tank anyway. (I love watching shrimp, they're so quirky. So I guess it's fish, birds, and shrimp.)


----------



## Ugly Genius

Water's a tad clearer than it was in the last picture. The cloudiness you now see is not the result of the pruning a few days back, but a perpetual bacterial bloom I've been having for the past two weeks. I'm not too worried about it, but it'd be nice if it would do it's thing and be on it's way. Cloudy water sucks.

I haven't really changed anything except to change the ugly wire mesh that the Mini Riccia was attached to with a Riccia stone. Looks much better.

This weekend, I'll plant the UG on the right and let the UG vs. Glosso race begin.

Oh, if you look at the rock to the right of the driftwood, you'll see an Oto! UG has a fish! Two, actually. Got 'em yesterday.

Anyway, in this photo, you can kind of see what's in my mind's eye. An explosion of HG in the back, a left-hand carpet of Glosso, a center accent of Mini Riccia, and a right-hand carpet of UG. (It'll be much lower that that absurdly huge bunch I now have. And this time, unlike how I planted it in Riven Revolutions, I'm sticking them in deep. Real deep.)


----------



## CL

Wow, I really like the HG! It's a winner for sure!


----------



## Kayen

Nice. 
Riccia stones are just flat black rocks right ?
I need something nice rocks for Riccia ... too much of the stuff around .
Tank is looking great.
Wish i had some hairgrass around here . ;(

Anyways for the race... i say i be the flag waver HAHA


----------



## Ugly Genius

Thanks, *cl*. I wasn't feeling the HG in the front before the "yank", but with it just in the back, I think it looks pretty good. Meaning, I actually _like_ that it's the tall type. It serves the additional benefit of eliminating the need for a background because I think in a few weeks the entire back of the tank will be obscured by it.

Thanks, *Viettxboii*. Yeah, Riccia stones are just flat black stones. I think anything flat, heavy, and non-toxic would be fine.
Are you serious? You don't have HG in Canada?









_Mini Pellia up close. Nuthin' looks better than MP up close._​


----------



## Kayen

Well Edmonton in general.
I can't go to the auctions for hte local fishclub which i heard is full of goodies, i just can't seem to locate any at the stores here.
Hell my HC was shipped to me from a another city.
But yeah Hairgrass of any kind would be a pleasant find for me . 
I'm stucking subbing in e tenellus for now which isn't bad.
Especially for when my 3 nano tanks come in ( all 3 are .. 14x12x10 .. two for friends one for me, see who comes up with best scape ..) 

But yes locating nice plants is somewhat of a pain here >_<.

You must have it pretty easy in San Francisco hey ?


----------



## brion0

Your tank looks very nice, clouded or not. I'm glad to see you have a fish. Ottos are cool, some times I think mine sit on a leaf an watch me laying on the couch.

I still havent started a 2.5 but I will some day. Have a betta an a otto in a 10 gal, as close as I am to nano. 

I realy like the algae on the rocks in your tanks, it looks so natural. 

Brion


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## Ugly Genius

Yeah, *Voettxboii*, it's pretty easy here in the City. I'm just hoping that all of my favorite LFSs here survive the economic crisis we're having. I'm doing my part by spending money there, but I'm just one guy.
So, people, if you have a job and money, spend some at your favorite LFS! They need you right now!

THanks, *brion0*! The Ottos are doing well, I'm happy to report. 

I also added four Crystal Reds yesterday. I've had phenomenally bad luck with Crystal Reds (and Bumble Bee and Bee and Gold Spot and Tiger and Amano and Cherry and Rainbow and Green), and it's time that I try them again in a tank bigger than the Mini-S. The larger water volume of a Mini-M is a bit easier for me to maintain.

Speaking of which, earlier this week I got my shrimp drunk. Before leaving for work, I turned on the CO2 and set it a bit higher than I usually do; usually I set it at one BPS, but on that day I set it at two BPS. 
When I got home the shrimp were buggin'. Dozens of fry were darting around, zigging and zagging like combat aircraft in a dogfight. Some of the RCS fry had red eyes. Red eyes! Like they were doing drugs that they shouldn't be doing. 
Initially, unaware of what I was seeing, I thought the shrimp to be playing. I then remembered that shrimp are perhaps _the_ most unplayful creatures on the face of the earth. Dudes are all business. From birth to death, all they do is work. (Unless they're getting it on, in which case they are mildly playful.)
I then noticed a bit more pearling going on that is usual.
So I tested my pH. It was below 6.0! Poor guys were probably stressed out of their minds by the super-saturation of CO2 and O2.
I've since turned the CO2 back to one bps and all's well.









_Two Ottos, a diffuser, Glosso, rocks, a snail, Anubias Nana "Petite", Mini Java Fern, and Hairgrass_​


----------



## Craigthor

Looks good. My only problem is I keep spending money at your LFS too:confused1:. Mine don't have anything good.

Oh yeah I'm ripping out my UG for a carpet of HC  After adding the HM to the tank I wanted a lower carpet. So you got me beat in the UG growing contest:icon_roll.

That tank is looking sweet though. I just added 11 CRS to my tank good luck with yours.

Craig


----------



## Ugly Genius

Thanks, *Craig*. Cool deal on the HC! It's a very cool carpet plant. I love seeing tanks with it.
As for the contest, in Riven Revolutions it's actually grown enough that in a week or two, I'll have to pluck and replant. It's pretty much covered the entire substrate.
In my experience, HC is harder to grow than UG. HC needs pretty good CO2, where UG can make it with Excel alone. My only gripe with HC is the constant trimming required to keep it carpeted. (Then again, what plant _doesn't_ require constant trimming in a medium to high light tank with CO2?)
And thanks for the luck in the CRS. I'll need it.


----------



## deleted_user_16

knowing you, i am betting you have gone to AFA in the past week. 

how is their new 120p iwagumi doing? the one with all glosso. I might go today, and i am happy!


----------



## Ugly Genius

*Fishman*! Actually, this week I _didn't_ go. I have this LFS near my house that I also like to support. They don't have great stuff, but I get an occasional CRS, filter supplies, and whatnot from them.
As for the 120P iwagumi...you know, the rockscape is flawless, but right now all they have is Glosso in it and I'm kind of unimpressed by it. Even my girl said as much. It's a pretty tank and better than anything I've ever done, but it's also quite derivative. Amano was doing such tanks back in the 80's.
I like the tanks that push the boundaries.
It's why I have a love/hate relationship with Oliver Knott. All at once I think his tanks are incredibly tacky yet wonderfully beautiful. Meaning that to me he's got terrible taste but unbelievable skill and vision. He's always pushing the boundaries.
Amano, too. He's always innovating. His changes are more subtle than Knott's, but he's never sitting still artistically.
Even here we have said people. I think it was Tex Gal who did something that really impressed me. She used Glosso (rather than moss) in tree branches. It was incredibly subtle, but innovative.
So, yeah, the tank looks good, but it's rather boring as it's more of the same.
If you go today, let me know what you think. The tank I'm talking about is the one inside the store, against the wall, to the left of the fish tanks. You'll know it by the fact that you want to steal the rocks from it.


----------



## deleted_user_16

incredible, ugly is fighting his AFA addiction!

i love the hardscape, it is amazing, but the glosso, last time i was there, was growing straight up. i have seen amanos tanks from the 90's, and i must say, ewwwwwww, blue backgrounds, lol

and do you mean oliver knott?


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## ZooTycoonMaster

Ugly Genius said:


> *Fishman*! Actually, this week I _didn't_ go. I have this LFS near my house that I also like to support. They don't have great stuff, but I get an occasional CRS, filter supplies, and whatnot from them.


Really? Is it Ocean Aquarium or something else?

And how much did the ADA CO2 set cost?


----------



## deleted_user_16

im assuming he got this:

http://www.adana-usa.com/index.php?main_page=afa_product_info&cPath=2_52&products_id=259

so, 110$


----------



## Ugly Genius

*fish*, last week the Glosso was still growing straight up. I don't know if this is by design or part of their grow-in process. I guess for me it's the fact that the hardscape is so perfect, I want more from their plants.
Yeah, blue backgrounds have got to go. Actually, I want to get to the point where my tanks don't need a background. (Not that I ever put mine up.)
An aquarium is not just seen one dimensionally when it sits in our homes. It's seen from all sides and as a complete unit, equipment and all. I think the tank and equipment should all be pleasant to look at. Meaning that all parts of the tank flow with one another and the tank as a whole looks beautiful. Kind of like how PCs used to be all ugly and corded and messy, and then Apple came along and made the computers something pretty that you don't try to hide.

*Zoo*, it called Aquatic Central. It's about four blocks from my house. It's not worth making a trip out here for, but for me it's good for an "emergency" run.
The ADA CO2'll set you back about two-fifty all said and done. Other systems are cheaper and last longer between canister swaps, but like I said to fish, ADA's look a lot better so I don't have to hide them.


----------



## deleted_user_16

so no fish are going in your tanks besides the otos, right? i think some boraras uropthalmoides would looks good in there! maybe you should try it!


----------



## Dollface

As of friday when I was there, the glosso was still growing up, but they may/may not have trimmed it since then. I got there crazy early in the morning (like, just after they opened) and I remember "This needs to be trimmed!" in the general direction of the tank. 

If you get any other fish, I think Microrasbora Nana would look amazing in there.
But really, I think Microrasbora Nana looks amazing anywhere, they totally blew my mind at Ocean Aquarium.


----------



## ch3fb0yrdee

Hey UG,
Is the Hairgrass in your tank regular hairgrass or is it dwarf hairgrass? It isnt Giant Hairgrass right?


----------



## Ugly Genius

*fish* and *Dollface*, if I do add fish, those are the type I'd use. For sure. That said, fish jump and I fill my tanks to the rim. I mean, the the very top to the point that if I dose a squirt of Green Brighty, sometimes the tank dribbles down the sides.
And I'm afraid I'd kill them.
I'm fine with plants, terrible with things that move.

*ch3fb0yrdee*, I have no clue what type of Hairgrass it is. It's quite tall. It's not done growing and already it's...lemme measure. Be right back. Seven inches. Maybe a half an inch more. It's very fine, so it's not like the Giant Hairgrass I've seen. It's as fine as Dwarf Hairgrass, just a lot taller. 
Frustratingly enough, it was sold to me as a very short version of Dwarf Hairgrass -- to grow no more than half an inch. Had this been the case, Source would look totally different than it does now.
But we deal the cards we're dealt and me rescaping is me making the best with what I've got.
It seems to be my fate. Things grow tall for me. Even my Microsword is not all that micro. In Riven Revolutions, my Microsword is about five inches tall!


----------



## ddtran46

Ugly Genius said:


> Water's a tad clearer than it was in the last picture. The cloudiness you now see is not the result of the pruning a few days back, but a perpetual bacterial bloom I've been having for the past two weeks. I'm not too worried about it, but it'd be nice if it would do it's thing and be on it's way. Cloudy water sucks.
> 
> I haven't really changed anything except to change the ugly wire mesh that the Mini Riccia was attached to with a Riccia stone. Looks much better.
> 
> This weekend, I'll plant the UG on the right and let the UG vs. Glosso race begin.
> 
> Oh, if you look at the rock to the right of the driftwood, you'll see an Oto! UG has a fish! Two, actually. Got 'em yesterday.
> 
> Anyway, in this photo, you can kind of see what's in my mind's eye. An explosion of HG in the back, a left-hand carpet of Glosso, a center accent of Mini Riccia, and a right-hand carpet of UG. (It'll be much lower that that absurdly huge bunch I now have. And this time, unlike how I planted it in Riven Revolutions, I'm sticking them in deep. Real deep.)


That plant to the right is UG? It looks really nice. Where did you get it?


----------



## deleted_user_16

hey ugly! went to AFA, get the boraras uropthalmoides (labeled as mosquito rasbora [mislabel]), they are still very tiny and healthy, and are too small to eat shrimp babies, so if you get them, they wont eat at beginning and likely wont in the future. i bought 5, about 20 left, they are going fast!


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## Ugly Genius

*ddtran46*, yeah, it's UG. I got it at AFA. Right now it's not planted, I'm letting it grow out so as to send some out and to use the rest for this tank and another.

*fish*, I'll probably be at AFA this weekend and maybe, just maybe, I'll get some fish.


----------



## Craigthor

Ugly Genius said:


> *ddtran46*, yeah, it's UG. I got it at AFA. Right now it's not planted, I'm letting it grow out so as to send some out and to use the rest for this tank and another.
> 
> *fish*, I'll probably be at AFA this weekend and maybe, just maybe, I'll get some fish.


UG- Switching out to the ADA Advance set for my CO2. If you go to AFA find me some sweet Seiryu would you. Steven says they won't take pictures and send them to me before I drop alot of cash on this stuff... Figured they would for what I've spent there the last couple of months. All kinds of ADA toys coming tomorrow and wednesday


----------



## bbaker

UG, as others have remarked, you make growing your eponymous plant look so easy! But... how...? It's more than a matter of soft water, good substrate, and good light. I've had some floating in my aquarium for a few months - the stuff grows like gangbusters until I try sticking it in the substrate. Then, pow! It's like all the little plugs are competing to see who can die the fastest. Jerks. I have plenty of light (~4 wpg) and good substrate (Amazonia powder), and the drop checker down there right next to the stuff is a nice green-yellow. But I'm getting exactly the opposite of your (beautiful!) results!

So, what's the trick? Are you sacrificing goats under a full moon? Are you hand-feeding it tiny protozoa?

Or... how are you planting it? I know that it comes from AFA embedded in a wire grid - are you letting it grow out in the grid atop of the substrate until it's acclimated and a good size, then removing it from the grid and planting? Or are you cutting up the grid and planting that?


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## Ugly Genius

*Craig*, no problem. I'll probably be going there either Friday or Saturday, possibly Sunday. If they have good Seiryu stone, I'll ask them to hold it for you.
This is for a Mini-M, right? I'm assuming you'll want a cool centerpiece, with at least two accent rocks and a bunch to fill in the spaces. Also, sometimes the Ryouh stone is nicer.
Here's what I'll do, I'll ask them to hold it for you and I take pictures of what I've found.

*bbaker*, it's so funny that you should mention UG and the ease at which it grows for me. Today at work I was browsing the forums -- don't tell -- and I was reading a couple of posts from people here that I really respect and know with absolute certainty to have considerable skill in this hobby who were having UG melt on them. I think one of them was MedRed and the other was...it was either Complexity or Tex Gal. Anyway, it got me to thinking that UG must be at least mildly difficult -- because those guys are rad at planted tanks. But what am I doing that others are not?
Case in point, your specs sound spot on. UG should be growing like a weed for you.
Here's what I know:
UG is not as CO2 hungry as HC. I'm growing quite successfully in a two point five gallon tank with no CO2, no ferts, an itsy-bitsy filter, SF's crazily hard water (9.0 pH), and twenty-eight watts @ 6,700k poured over Amazonia substrate.
When I plant it, I push it fairly deep into the substrate, but the next go around I'm going deeper as it looks better grown out when it's planted really deep.
And, yes, letting it acclimate in the mesh above the substrate does seem to help a lot.
Here's a theory I have, too. My tanks have no fish save a few Ottos. It could be that in other people's tanks, their fish are eating the bladders resulting in the UG starving to death or, at least, being deprived of one source of nutrition. After all, to a small fish, a bladder full of tiny microorganisms must seem delicious. Don't quote me on that (unless it proves to be true!), but it might be possible.
I guess what I'm trying to say is, I really don't know why it grows well for me. I treat it just like I do Glosso, HC, Hairgrass, and everything else. Lots of CO2, medium light, and Aqua Soil.
I just find it very odd that your HC grows well floating but not in the substrate. I think that might be a key to understanding why people have trouble.


----------



## Tex Gal

Ugly Genius - I think your UG is beautiful!! I have had trouble with that plant. I have found that it needs moderately high light for my tank. If I get tiny little runners and try to keep them planted it's like pulling teeth. They continually want to float up. It's nigh unto impossible to keep them planted and get a nice carpet. If I get a nice "plug" from someone (like you have there) and can plant it in nice small but meaningful clumps it will take off. I have to have enough plants in the clump before it will work. I never thought of a wire mesh until it grew out. Smart guy!!  I do have small pygmy rasboras in my tank but I've never seen them mess with it. I think we need to say that UG is the UG KING!roud:


----------



## bbaker

Well, I'll try one more time letting it acclimate in the aquarium for a couple of weeks before planting. The fact that it grows for me near the top of the aquarium would seem, as you say, to indicate that there's something about its position - presumably either light or CO2. But, grrr, I can get HC to go like there's no tomorrow under the same conditions! 

FWIW, there are no fish in the tank its busily dying in at the moment, and when it's grown floating for me there have been both ample fish and shrimps and bladders. And, to further confound things, I probably bought a batch from the same store on the same weekend (did you get it from the last 120p they had in there opposite the counter, where the squares were all crazy overgrown?). 

Thanks for the tips on planting! It seems to still be a fairly new plant, so getting first-hand accounts of a successful grower is much, much appreciated. All of the info I can find about it tends to fall into one of two camps: it grows like mad, or doesn't grow at all. Either way, there's precious little data given beyond soft water (according to some sources than 4 KdH is optimal, but I've also seen "at least 7 KdH"), medium light (or high light, or "not too much" or "it starts better at lower light until it settles in") and good substrate (which mocks me). 

Of course, maybe TexGal is onto something. If letting it sit in the aquarium for a time before planting doesn't work I'm going down to city hall and having Gavin legally change my name to Ulysses Grant. That's bound to work, although messy and complicated. (But, if it really is the goat sacrifice to the dark carnivorous god of utricularia, PM me and it will be our little secret).


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## sadistic-otaku

Wow, that hairgrass looks great! I like the overall "feel" of the tank. Very cool


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## Craigthor

bbaker said:


> Well, I'll try one more time letting it acclimate in the aquarium for a couple of weeks before planting. The fact that it grows for me near the top of the aquarium would seem, as you say, to indicate that there's something about its position - presumably either light or CO2. But, grrr, I can get HC to go like there's no tomorrow under the same conditions!
> 
> FWIW, there are no fish in the tank its busily dying in at the moment, and when it's grown floating for me there have been both ample fish and shrimps and bladders. And, to further confound things, I probably bought a batch from the same store on the same weekend (did you get it from the last 120p they had in there opposite the counter, where the squares were all crazy overgrown?).
> 
> Thanks for the tips on planting! It seems to still be a fairly new plant, so getting first-hand accounts of a successful grower is much, much appreciated. All of the info I can find about it tends to fall into one of two camps: it grows like mad, or doesn't grow at all. Either way, there's precious little data given beyond soft water (according to some sources than 4 KdH is optimal, but I've also seen "at least 7 KdH"), medium light (or high light, or "not too much" or "it starts better at lower light until it settles in") and good substrate (which mocks me).
> 
> Of course, maybe TexGal is onto something. If letting it sit in the aquarium for a time before planting doesn't work I'm going down to city hall and having Gavin legally change my name to Ulysses Grant. That's bound to work, although messy and complicated. (But, if it really is the goat sacrifice to the dark carnivorous god of utricularia, PM me and it will be our little secret).


One thing I've found is that UG can take 2-3 weeks to acclimate to a tank. And everytime it gets moved that starts over. Shipping is really ahrd on this plant if it is out of water and light for any amount of time. 

Craig


----------



## Ugly Genius

What does this look like to you?








Bacterial or algae?

While it looks to me like a bacterial bloom, it acts like an algae bloom in that it's relatively clear in the aye em, but cloudier in the pee em. (Those are AM and PM who aren't into my phonetic shenanigans.)

But it could be bacterial because I've been super generous with Stability and other cycle-type products. (My reason was that I was doing an Ugly Genius experiment to see if moderate over-dosing of said products would reduce the frequency of cleanings. My findings: Nope.)

Anyway, I started planting UG in the substrate. These were planted a couple of days ago. I'll finish up sometime this week.









_If you're going to plant UG, plant deeper than this. 
They were barely peeking out when I first planted them. It'll look better when it grows out.
That tidbit of wisdom was dispenced by gsmitchell in my other thread.
(That's me trying to give credit where credit is due.)
(And have you seen his UG?! It's friggin' off the hook!)_​
As you can see the Mini Riccia is doing well. You can also make out a bit of the Glosso that's starting to spread.

I want to state that my all-time favorite carpet plant is Glosso. Once you get the second generation grown in -- meaning, the layer that covers the first layer; smaller, lower, and greener -- no carpet plant, not UG, HC, MM, HG, nothing, compares to it. Some people are bored of it as it's been in the game for so long, but I think it's the Chuck Taylors of planted tanks: classic.

Anyway, I meant to reply to the above posters, but my dinner just arrived: crispy beef with hot szechuan sauce and fried rice. I'll follow up later. Totally hungry.


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## Dollface

Have you tried putting some of the water in a white bowl? If it's green It's probably algae.


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## Ugly Genius

Totally good idea, *Dollface*. Lemme check.


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## Ugly Genius

It's not green. It's a milky clear. It looks a bit like raw egg whites -- the clearish part.


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## ZooTycoonMaster

Woah that Riccia looks good! I was thinking about buying it, but then I thought "ehhhh do I have enough space???"


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## Ugly Genius

*Zoo*, if the plant will add to the 'scape, there's always space. That said, once mine grows out, you can have some.


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## ZooTycoonMaster

Oh no, I don't need to have any...I couldn't ask for that from you:icon_redf


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## Ugly Genius

Well, if you ever want some, just ask.


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## deleted_user_16

seems to me to be bacterial bloom, not algae. bacterial bloom always is annoying :/


----------



## Dollface

Weird that it's clearer in the morning but cloudy at night. maybe it's the lighting?
Hopefully it'll clear up soon. 

Man, I wish that the little hunks of hitchhiking riccia I got would grow. I was so sure they were growing the first week, but now the seem to be not doing anything.


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## luckydud13

If it were an algae bloom the water would be green not clear, algae is purely on the glass and objects but is impossible for algae to be in water.


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## Ugly Genius

Here's what I mean.

This is this morning at lights on.








It's cloudy, but not as bad as it is right before lights out.








Weird, huh? I'm not pulling my hair out over it or anything. I'm sure it'll clear of it's own accord as the tank's parameters are pretty well in check. It's just curious is all.

It just sucks because I think I could get some really good pictures if the friggin' water would just clear. The Mini Pellia is doing great.


----------



## Phoenix-cry

Could be bacteria or fine particulate. If you want it clear *fast* you can get this stuff call...uh...I forget what it called, particle clear or something like that, it has a white bottle with a blue cap. I used it use it in my 75 and in a few hours with a good filter the water would be crystal. It makes fine particles clump together and so the filter can catch it.


----------



## Ugly Genius

Hey, *Phoenix-cry*. The product I know like that is Seachem's Clarity. I tried it to no avail. 
The more I watch the tank, the more convinced I am that it's some sort of non-green green water. I mean what else would get increasingly worse with the progression of the light cycle? (Unless it's some super smart bacteria that only like to come out during the day and like to party hard at about five o'clock.)
I just did a major water change, about one and a half gallons, and while the water is currently clear, I've no doubt the cloudiness will return.

That said, there are still cool things for me to see in this tank.








I realized last night that you _have_ to clean not only your pipes, but your hoses, too. Flow can get severely restricted by dirty filter hoses. My Zoo Med slowed to a trickle because of them. It wasn't until I shoved a pipe cleaner through the hoses that flow returned to normal. (I say this because I've seen a ton of journals with people with dirty hoses. Their glass in- and outflow pipes will be spotless, but their hoses will be Grime City. So clean them pipes, people!)

Other than that, nothing new. I'm playing _Fable II_ and loving it. And I'm almost caught up on _Battlestar Galactica_. (To answer the question you are now asking: yes, you _do_ smell dork. I also tend to fall asleep to the Dungeons & Dragons podcast. So there.)


----------



## ZooTycoonMaster

Wow nice CRS!

I wonder how one would clean their tubes if their pipe cleaner was shorter than their tubes/pipes


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## Ugly Genius

Okay, here's the tank right after lights on and after a one gallon water change. Right now it's as clear as I've seen it in weeks. It's not crystal clear, but that'll probably take some time.








I upped the number of CD jewel cases on which my Ott-lites sit from five to six. This puts the bulbs approximately ten inches from the substrate.

As I'm home today, I may spend some time planting the UG on the right. I also need to do something to "tone down" the vertical piece of driftwood. It's too _there_, you know?

A cool thing about Mini Pellia that I learned with this tank is that if you tie it in a section partially shaded, it will grow outwards towards the light. Look:








While this is not used to the best effect in Source, I think it can be done with spectacular results given the right 'scape.

And here's a shot from the side just because it's Friday and it's a nice day.


----------



## CL

Wow! That ug is *THICK*
the mini p looks awesome as well


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## Ugly Genius

It's from that bunch that I'll be sending you the UG. If you want or don't have any, I can drop a couple of tiny bits of Mini Pellia that I have laying in the HG in the back. It's not much, but give it a few months and it'll spread. And you'll probably get a few unintended bits of Mini Riccia as that stuff gets pretty much everywhere.


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## Craigthor

Mini Ricca getting every where nooooo.... That can't be


----------



## Ugly Genius

I know, right, *Craig*? Whowuddathunkit? 
The kinda lame thing about my Mini Riccia is that I think there's some regular Riccia mixed in. So it's hard to tell what's Mini and what's just newly-formed regular type.


----------



## chase127

youre minis never cease to amaze me! what eleocharis sp is that?


----------



## CL

Ugly Genius said:


> It's from that bunch that I'll be sending you the UG. If you want or don't have any, I can drop a couple of tiny bits of Mini Pellia that I have laying in the HG in the back. It's not much, but give it a few months and it'll spread. And you'll probably get a few unintended bits of Mini Riccia as that stuff gets pretty much everywhere.


That'd be great! The tall hg looks amazing back there! Man, and it was supposed to stay short? lol


----------



## Ugly Genius

Okay, after more water changes than is prudent, I _think_ -- knock on wood -- I've cleared up the cloudy water. I must have changed four gallons over the course of the day.









_Now that I can see into the tank, I see that I've got some gardening to do._









_Mini Pellia from above. There's a bit of UG growing in the MP. See it on the right between the blades of HG?_









_A shot like this would have been impossible before the water cleared._









_HG over UG_​


----------



## Craigthor

Now that looking good :thumbsup:


----------



## CL

Incredible!


----------



## Ugly Genius

Two quick questions about sending plants in the mail for those in-the-know:

1) Do you put carbon dioxide (i.e. exhale into the Zip-lock bag) or oxygen?
2) Would a larger or smaller box maintain a more stable temperature when the insulation material is newspaper?

Oh, and 3) In the Zip-lock bags, how saturated should the paper towel be? Dripping wet, or just damp?

Thanks!


----------



## deleted_user_16

1) jsut breath in for humidity and co2, i use a lot, but not too much to make the bag pop easy, jsut enough so it withstand some pressure and abuse

2)dunno on that, i usually ship in 7x7x6 boxes

3)i soak completely, wring out a bit, and then just put in bag, only so it produces occasional drips, its best, not wrapping the actual plant in paper towel is the best in my
experience, they go to emersed form for shipping. if you have in water, if the temp is too hiigh or cold, they will melt easy. emersed plants are generally hardier.+


----------



## Ugly Genius

Thanks, *fish*! UG, MP, MR, and HG will be going out. The MP, MR, and HG should travel fine, but I'm worried about the UG. I wish there was one of those glow sticks that kept ambient temp at a stable seventy-eight degrees and emitted light in 8,000k while producing an ideal balance of O2 and CO2. That'd be rad.


----------



## CL

Ugly Genius said:


> Thanks, *fish*! UG, MP, MR, and HG will be going out. The MP, MR, and HG should travel fine, but I'm worried about the UG. I wish there was one of those glow sticks that kept ambient temp at a stable seventy-eight degrees and emitted light in 8,000k while producing an ideal balance of O2 and CO2. That'd be rad.


haha, sure would be lol


----------



## Craigthor

UG for shipping if it is going to a colder state I use less water for shipping. Just enough so the paper towel is damp not wet. Also I never blow in the bag. I jst seal it up fairly flat and box it well. When it is warm out I like to use the VCR sized Priority boxes with abit of newspaper to keep it from tumbling around. For Colder shipping I like the larger 14x12x3 boxes as I cna add abit more insulation or even the square ones.

If it is too wet and going to a below freezing location the package can freeze solid and the plants get destroyed. I did receive some UG that was about 50% frozen thawed it out and it was fine.

Craig


----------



## Ugly Genius

Thanks for the tips, *Craig*.

It's in the hands of fate now. I sent off the package. Hopefully the UG will make it. It's a strong bunch so my fingers are crossed.

It's hard to believe it's cold elsewhere. It's beautiful here. Probably sixty-eight degrees. Motorcycle-riding weather! Females are dressing like it's summer and all's good in the world.

Can't beat that.


----------



## CL

Ugly Genius said:


> Thanks for the tips, *Craig*.
> 
> It's in the hands of fate now. I sent off the package. Hopefully the UG will make it. It's a strong bunch so my fingers are crossed.
> 
> It's hard to believe it's cold elsewhere. It's beautiful here. Probably sixty-eight degrees. Motorcycle-riding weather! Females are dressing like it's summer and all's good in the world.
> 
> Can't beat that.


Haha, man, I can't wait for spring. It was -3 the other morning when I went to school:frown:.


----------



## Ugly Genius

In some ways, having cloudy water is a good thing. Because when it clears, you feel wonderful. Like the relieving euphoria of getting over a cold.








The overall setup isn't pretty, but it all works.


----------



## Craigthor

Ooooh, Aaaaahhhhhh. That ricca is looking good. As is your UG bush:icon_redf

Wheres the fish? I finally found some for the Mini M. Some that will be too scale if they survive quarantine I can have them shipped to me woohoo...

Craig


----------



## CL

Yeah, it looks good. When are you gonna plant that UG, UG?


----------



## Ugly Genius

Thank, *Craig*. Aside from Ottos, I'm still not certain I'll be adding fish. As of right now, everything is quite well balanced. There is no visible algae save a bit on the rocks, and all the shrimp are doing great. (Knock on wood.) As it took quite a bit of patience, work, and luck to get this tank to this state, I'm reluctant to add to it lest I throw off the equilibrium.

Thanks, *cl*. Right now Source is in a transition period. I'm waiting for the Glosso to carpet more before I decide which direction to take. Meaning, I'm deciding between a mixed carpet of UG and Glosso or just Glosso. I'll also be moving the Mini Riccia to the left on the rock. Right now I just want things to settle before I start tweaking.

Some of you might remember the Nymphaea sp. "Four Color" from Riven. I planted some yesterday.



























_Once the Glosso grows out more, 
I'll decide if I'll plant the UG or go only Glosso._​


----------



## deleted_user_16

wont that quickly outgrow the tank?


----------



## Ugly Genius

Hey, *fish*. They do get big normally, but this particular one seems to stay pretty small for me. Dunno why that is.


















_There's some regular Riccia (and Bladderwort) mixed in.
Which sucks, but whatyagonnado? I still think it's really pretty._​


----------



## Ugly Genius

I need your help, but I can't give you much to work on. Just two photos.

Yesterday I noticed this thing in my tank. It's small, white, crawls, and looks a lot like a very large flee or tick. (Or a very small buffalo, believe it or not. [Or, if you remember from the _Phantom Menace_ that cow-like animal that Anakin was standing/riding on when he and Padamé were hiding out on Naboo? The one he fell off of and pretended to be hurt and she's all, "Oh, Anakin," and he starts laughing right before putting the moves on her? Yeah, like that thing he was riding on.])
Anyway, here's two rather poor photos of it.









_The blurry white thing in the center of the photo.
What is that?!_​
Here's a clearer shot, albeit from behind as the little guy is walking away.








The thing has got a tail like a shirmp, a hunched back, and is about the size of three grains of Amazonia Powder. Mofo's smart, too. I tried to suck him out with a hose and he got away.

Other than that, I moved the Mini Riccia to the left. I'll get around to planting the rest of the UG soonish. It needs to be done soon as by the end of the light cycle, it's so buoyant from the pearling that it breaks from the rocks to which I have it attached and floats to the surface.








Once that's done, I'll start trimming and planting to make the tank look like I want it to. I'll be cutting the HG in the center so as to have a clean V behind the driftwood; Christmas moss will grow up the rock on which the Mini Riccia is placed; and something will be done in the front right corner where the UG pillow is now placed (a UG carpet with something growing out of it -- a red crypt, perhaps).


----------



## chase127

i love this tank it looks so much bigger than a mini m! its great inspiration for me to work towards on mine


----------



## Craigthor

I'd asay a nematode of some sort. I heard AFA had some in the Mini Pellia it used to have so It may have hitch hiked with the mini ricca. Oh yeah got a qoute on the stand shipped. Its got a tiny ding in the front door so they offered me a decent discount.

Craig


----------



## Ugly Genius

Thanks, *Chris*. I really appreciate that. Not too long ago, someone voted "bad" on this thread. As it was the first vote, I noticed it. It hurt my feelings. I mean, it's not the best tank in the world, but I love working on it and I guess I'm of the frame of mind that we're here to support one another. So to hear nice things like what you said, makes all that bad stuff go away. Thanks!

*Craig*, right on! I have so much fun following your thread because it's one thread that grows plant-wise _and_ equipment-wise. I recall reading your first post when you were just thinking about going full-bore ADA and now look, you're one stand away from doing it. (The ES-600 is too much for a nano, right? If not, you have to get that, too!) (If we get a new stimulus package, I'm getting that!)
Oh, I went to AFA yesterday, but the stones they had were not all that great. Nothing I would say that you have to have. I'll be there next week and see if they've got any new ones
They had some good Ryouh stones, but not so many nice Seiryu stones.


----------



## Craigthor

Ugly Genius said:


> Thanks, *Chris*. I really appreciate that. Not too long ago, someone voted "bad" on this thread. As it was the first vote, I noticed it. It hurt my feelings. I mean, it's not the best tank in the world, but I love working on it and I guess I'm of the frame of mind that we're here to support one another. So to hear nice things like what you said, makes all that bad stuff go away. Thanks!
> 
> *Craig*, right on! I have so much fun following your thread because it's one thread that grows plant-wise _and_ equipment-wise. I recall reading your first post when you were just thinking about going full-bore ADA and now look, you're one stand away from doing it. (The ES-600 is too much for a nano, right? If not, you have to get that, too!) (If we get a new stimulus package, I'm getting that!)
> Oh, I went to AFA yesterday, but the stones they had were not all that great. Nothing I would say that you have to have. I'll be there next week and see if they've got any new ones
> They had some good Ryouh stones, but not so many nice Seiryu stones.


Thanks, keep your eyes out for a few nice stones for me. Yeah the stand will be coming depending on paychecks bt probably in a couple of weeks. I think the ES-600 is way overkill by really like the Eheim 2211 I found. Sending you a pm.

Craig


----------



## Ugly Genius

I'm super jealous of that 2211. I really wanted one way back when. Good find, you lucky bum. If anyone ever has a 2211 to sell, hit me up, whuddya?

Oh, off topic. I'm finally caught up on _Battlestar Galactica_. My Lord! That show is awesome! If you haven't seen it, watch it. iTunes has it as does XBox live. Or rent the DVDs. Just watch it. This is the last season and...I'm going to cry when it's over.


----------



## Craigthor

Ugly Genius said:


> I'm super jealous of that 2211. I really wanted one way back when. Good find, you lucky bum. If anyone ever has a 2211 to sell, hit me up, whuddya?
> 
> Oh, off topic. I'm finally caught up on _Battlestar Galactica_. My Lord! That show is awesome! If you haven't seen it, watch it. iTunes has it as does XBox live. Or rent the DVDs. Just watch it. This is the last season and...I'm going to cry when it's over.


And to make you really jealous I found the bottom square stand that wasn't available in the US. Thanks to Gabe we found a couple in Japan that I'm having shipped to him to reship to me.

Craig


----------



## malaybiswas

Nice tank. How is the ADA CO2 cylinder working out for you? I had tried it earlier but it used to run out so frequently, refill was getting expensive, so switched to paintball co2.


----------



## bsmith

Do you mean someone voted you a lower star rating?

If they actually rated your tank as "bad" there just haters.

Im a believer that if you have haters you must be doing something right!


----------



## Ugly Genius

That's the problem with you, *Craig*. You're always taking it to the next level. The 2211 was high enough but did you stop there? Nooooo. You had to get the some rare International Edition of some until-now unknown stand for it, too. That's just wrong. 
I'm just playing. Your tank's looking fabulous! Keep it up and keep us updated.

Thanks, *malaybiswas*. I like the ADA CO2 system. It costs more, but it's cute. And I'm a sucker for cute.

Thanks, *bsmith782*. That's cool for you to say that. I can't quite understand it myself, but people are how people are and there's no changing that, I guess.

I got some cool shots today.









_Mirror, mirror, on the wall..._









_The Narcissism of Mini Riccia._









_Mi amor, Mini Pellia._​


----------



## Craigthor

Looking good, does you girl friend make you wear a Cardigan? :icon_lol::icon_lol:

What camera are you using your shots are always the best.

Craig


----------



## chase127

that tank is just full of mini plants, huh?  i love em. wish i could get my hands on some! 

what sp of eleocharis is that?


----------



## Ugly Genius

Oh, my lord, no! She's lucky to get me out of jeans, *Craig*.
My camera is a really old Sony Cyber-shot. 2.0 mega pixels circa 2001. I'd love to get a new camera, but I keep spending my money on my tanks despite the fact that I've really grown to love taking photos of it.
Maybe one day I'll get a new camera.

Thanks, *chris*. I have no idea what kind of HG it is. It's really tall is all I know. Six or seven inches.


----------



## CL

Cyber shots are great cameras! I got a w-130 as a gift this fall and I love it!


----------



## Ugly Genius

Hey, *cl*. This camera has served me well for seven years, so I suppose I should stop calling it a bad camera.
I remember going to a sfbaaps meeting and people were busting out with these huge paparazzi cameras -- the kind with lenses the length of my arm -- and I got to thinking that I am decidedly low-tech on the camera side of things.


----------



## Phoenix-cry

That mini stuff is way cool!


----------



## Ugly Genius

Thanks, *Phoenix*! I'm addicted to mini plants. Although I've found that virtually any plant can be "mini" given that you don't mind cutting/trimming it once it gets too big.

I just placed my order for Cal Aqua Fluxus glass pipes. Never owned glass filter pipes so this is mildly exciting for me.


----------



## Craigthor

UG- You'll love the Cal Nano set. they are pretty looking.

Craig


----------



## PinoyBoy

nice tank, i think i read somewhere in your thread you have a "mini" java fern.
does it really stay "mini"? or its just misnamed?


----------



## Ugly Genius

Thank, *Craig*, yeah, I'm pretty jacked.

*PinoyBoy*, "mini" is a relative term. Right now the tallest of leaves is about five inches. This is the tallest I've ever seen it get. Usually, it maxes out at about three to four inches. 
A Mini Java Fern is technically known as Microsorium sp. 'Philippine'. My research shows that it can get as tall as eleven inches, but it hasn't done that for me, yet.









_Without the UG bush._​


----------



## PinoyBoy

thanks UG, if i only would have known they were the same. ive been looking for that answer. thanks. love the tank and reminds me of lion king in some sort of way. dunno why.


----------



## Ugly Genius

You're welcome, *PinoyBoy*. Glad I could help. You're not the first to mention the _Lion King_ thing. I've got a picture in here somewhere that shows a Tiger Shrimp doing a Lion King thing on the driftwood.

Anyway, I've got this very well-behaved algae that I'm starting to dig. It's pretty and stays in the crown of the vertical piece of driftwood.

















It's been there for a month or so and seems content to stay in that spot only. As long as it behaves, I won't try to eradicate it.


----------



## chase127

lol even your algae looks cool :flick:


----------



## CL

that algae looks so weird.


----------



## @[email protected]

just keep your nutrients in check. if anything goes wrong, that algea will be able to spread much sooner then it would if only the spores were there.


----------



## Ugly Genius

Thanks, guys!

*marko*, long time no see! And not to worry about the nutrients. This tank gets absolutely zero ferts and zero feedings. For a time I dosed K and micros, but decided that the plants really didn't need it. I believe this algae's fed from the filter and as long as I've kept up with cleaning the filter, the algae's stayed in check.


----------



## Ugly Genius

Don't be Ugly.
Do not spot treat algae on top of Mini Pellia with Excel.
Don't be Ugly.

I had some Mini Pellia in my Betta tank that I spot treated (indirectly!) with Excel. The Mini Pellia started to die the following day. This is what dead Mini Pellia looks like:








It's been moved into Source to see if I can bring it back to life to look like it should:








I have a lot of faith in this tank, despite two shrimp jumping last night. (Why, fellas?! Why?!) If any of my tanks can bring this back to life, Source can.


----------



## Ugly Genius

Good news and frustrating news.

The good news is that my Cal Aqua pipes arrived and they are very nice. Love 'em.









_This is just a photo op as will be explained below._​
The frustrating news is that they don't fit the Zoo Med's tubing. Meaning I can't set them up until I either get a coupler of some sorts (suggestions?) or get an Eheim.


----------



## Craigthor

UG do they fit at all? If not you could go to the home improvement center in the plumbing section get some nylon fittings that go from 3/8" to 1/2" you may have to get seperate pieces and put them together.

Craig


----------



## ZooTycoonMaster

Ugly Genius said:


> The frustrating news is that they don't fit the Zoo Med's tubing. Meaning I can't set them up until I either get a coupler of some sorts (suggestions?) or get an Eheim.


Yeah, get an Eheim 2213 and turn down the flow

Btw the pipes look nice! I wish I could afford some


----------



## Craigthor

They are a perfect fit for a 2213. The only thing I Like about the ADA Lilys is the slits are smaller and can't suck my shrimp into them. The Cal Ones were able to swallow shrimp.

Craig


----------



## Ugly Genius

Hey, *Craig*. I could heat the tubing and force it on, but I'm afraid of breaking the pipes. Anyone tried heating Zoo Med tubing and forcing them on the Cal Aqua pipes?

Anyway, here are some random photos I just shot. The tank's still doing well and as of late -- knock on wood -- no shrimp have died.









_Ott*o* on Gloss*o*. 
I know what you're about to ask. The plant on the right is Downoi._









_Orange Shrimp in UG._









_Cherry in Hairgrass._​


----------



## Craigthor

I don't think I would risk breaking them. If you do you could always get the ADA intake and return 10mm size.


----------



## Ugly Genius

Hey, *Zoo*. Question for you or anyone else who may know. How strong is the 2213's outflow? I'm of the school of thought that too much flow is almost enough. I mean, as long as it's not blowing substrate all around, I like as much flow as is possible. At full blast, would the 2213 be too much for a Mini-M? (To give you a point of reference, the Zoo Med is too weak for my tastes for Source. It's barely enough for Riven Impact.)


----------



## chase127

those pipes are sweeet!


----------



## Craigthor

Ugly Genius said:


> Hey, *Zoo*. Question for you or anyone else who may know. How strong is the 2213's outflow? I'm of the school of thought that too much flow is almost enough. I mean, as long as it's not blowing substrate all around, I like as much flow as is possible. At full blast, would the 2213 be too much for a Mini-M? (To give you a point of reference, the Zoo Med is too weak for my tastes for Source. It's barely enough for Riven Impact.)


I ran my 221 about 75%, full throttle was a touch much for my scape but it also wasn't established yet.

Craig


----------



## Ugly Genius

I'll look into that *Craig*. Thanks for the tip. (Although I have no idea what those things are yet.)

Aren't they cool, *chris*? I'm actually quite surprised by the quality of these pieces. If anyone is on the fence about getting Cal Aqua glassware, consider this me offering you a hand off the fence.


----------



## chase127

i have my 2213 at 70% ish on my 45p. its not blowing anything around but i know my cpds and betta dont appreciate maximum flow. you would probably have to cut it down to 40-50% maybe with lily pipes


----------



## Ugly Genius

Thanks. And Eheim's the way to go, right? I mean, there seems to be many more Ehiem pimps that any other pimp club.


----------



## CL

I love my eheims! All three of them!
But you might not be able to place it next to the tank like your current filter. The top of the eheim needs to be below the water level. Just a heads up because I know your tank is on the counter


----------



## Ugly Genius

That changes things, then, *cl*. It's not really possible to have it below the water level without drilling a hole in the counter. Isn't the Ecco 2232 shorter than a Mini-M? Would that work?


----------



## CL

Ugly Genius said:


> That changes things, then, *cl*. It's not really possible to have it below the water level without drilling a hole in the counter. Isn't the Ecco 2232 shorter than a Mini-M? Would that work?


It might be. If it is, it should work.


----------



## bbaker

I think a 2232 is going to be a few centimeters taller than your Mini-M, Ugly. But, you could make a pedestal for Source (unless you think that putting Source up on a pedestal, so to speak, would make Riven jealous). Alternately, you could put the filter in the sink, which is convenient for cleaning. Win-win.


----------



## thief

Cough cough.









No really I am sick right now! 

I think I may help on this situation. The filter is absolutely perfect for my mini M. The flow is perfect too! I think for your scape since it is a open scaping type, you would have to maybe reduce it a little! They work great with my lily pipes though. Ada outflow pipe and a eheim intake pipe. lol

I couldn't pass the deal, 20 bucks for an ADA pipe go figure! Also there only one thing that my brother doesn't like. It's been vibrating a lot since my last filter change! So it keeps him up a little longer every night!:hihi:

Anyways I sleep 4 ft from it so for quietness I think you can do the same!


----------



## Ugly Genius

*bbaker*, good one!

...*thief*, thanks for the photo. That pretty much cinched the deal w/r/t getting a 2232. It's great news that the filter can sit tankside and I don't have to demo my kitchen. (NOTE: w/r/t = with regards to. Why I didn't just write "with regards to" out in the first place rather than writing "w/r/t" with a because-no-one-uses-it requisite explanation [in which I used w/r/t thrice more] is beyond me.)

I got a new plant. No one at AFA knows what it is. They suspect it's a fern, but that's just speculation. They know that it's a very slow grower. Even in high light and CO2.


















_Leaf structure up close._​
Here's where I've put it. I like this plant because it's subtle and adds a more jungle vibe to Source.

















I suspect that this plant, which they tell me is rare in North America (and expensive, $18.00!), will be wildly popular in nanos due to it's small size and slow growth rate.

Anyone have a clue as to what it is?

Oh, I also got some Mini Microsword. It maxes out at about an inch high but otherwise looks just like normal Microsword. I'll be using that in Riven Impact. I'll post photos there once I plant it.


----------



## ZooTycoonMaster

It looks like some sort of Bolbitis but not quite Bolbitis Heudelotii...

EDIT: Did you get those CRS from AFA?


----------



## Craigthor

You and all the cool plants, I need to find a job in San Fran.


----------



## deleted_user_16

yea, its bolbitis, it gets huge. but very pretty.


----------



## CL

ZooTycoonMaster said:


> It looks like some sort of Bolbitis but not quite Bolbitis Heudelotii...
> 
> EDIT: Did you get those CRS from AFA?


That's what I was thinking but the leaves are more ornamental. 
Tank is beautiful UG!


----------



## Ugly Genius

*Zoo*, they are from a fish shop a few blocks from my house, Aquatic Central. They are relatively cheap there, four bucks, I think, albeit they are a lower grade than the ones sold at AFA. AFA's are fifteen to twenty bucks a pop. I'll spend a lot on plants, but not on shrimp.
Steve and George's mom mentioned that it's like a Bolbitis, but they were not sure, just that it grew even slower than the Bolbitis they have.

*Craig*, get a job here and you'll spend all you've got.

Hey, *fish*. Long time no see. As long at it takes a long time getting huge, that's fine with me.

Thanks, *cl*. Yeah, the leaves are what makes this plant pretty. The veins in particular.


----------



## Craigthor

UG- I already spend ALL I got. Atleast I wouldn't have to pay shipping. 

Craig


----------



## ZooTycoonMaster

Ugly Genius said:


> *Zoo*, they are from a fish shop a few blocks from my house, Aquatic Central. They are relatively cheap there, four bucks, I think, albeit they are a lower grade than the ones sold at AFA. AFA's are fifteen to twenty bucks a pop. I'll spend a lot on plants, but not on shrimp.
> Steve and George's mom mentioned that it's like a Bolbitis, but they were not sure, just that it grew even slower than the Bolbitis they have.


Damn, those are cheap CRS!!! I need to go there when I go up there again:hihi:

And the mom was the one who helped me out there!!! I remember her exact words, "wow you already have a planted tank? You seem so young"


----------



## Ugly Genius

If you want really cheap CRS and CBS, go to Sixth Avenue Aquarium on Clement. Three bucks a pop, I think. I can't in good conscience recommend that you buy fish from there for reasons you'll see when you go there or check out the reviews on Yelp, but I've never had any problem with their shrimp. And once in a while they have some moderately good plants.
Just be prepared to hear loud techno blasted from speakers mingled with the smell of incence and lots and lots of people doing terrible things to the poor fish. (The store's one of those places where the customer nets their own fish and you know how some kids can be.)

Yeah, the mom's cool. She knows her stuff, too.

I wish it wasn't lights out because I need your guys' opinion. I don't know if I should just take out the UG. It's growing great, but I can't help but think that Mini Microsword would look so much better.

Tell you what, I'll take photos tomorrow then we'll talk. How about that?









_Taken this morning. I moved the new plants slightly.
For the longest time the area in front of the driftwood was bothering me. Now it looks the way I wanted.
Funny how a plant I did not know existed when setting up this tank makes things start to fall into place._​


----------



## Ugly Genius

_Mini Microsword on the left and UG on the right._​
Right now I'm leaning towards using Glosso, UG, _and_ Mini Microsword.


----------



## Dollface

That mini microsword looks awesome. I would mix the the mini microsword and UG is possible, if not take out the UG entirely.


----------



## Ugly Genius

I know, *Dollface*. I'm quite inclined to do that -- take out the UG. I can't find it in my heart to rip out the UG, though. The stuff's doing so well. But beauty is worth fighting for and I think the Mini will look nice all alone. Especially as how UG needs to layer quite high to be beautiful.
I'll do a load of laundry and ponder my choice.


----------



## Ugly Genius

Okay, I took Dollface's nudge and uprooted all the UG and planted the Mini Microsword. I think it's going to look much better than UG.

Let's start from far away.








And now closer on the right.









_That's an Erio in the center for those about to ask._​
Now in the center next to it's right-side carpet neighbor Glosso.








And here's a shot of the prettiest shirmp I own, an Orange Shrimp. (Love this girl.)









_I also love the new plant on which she's eating. It's a perfect accent piece for the driftwood._​


----------



## ZooTycoonMaster

Woah where did you put all that wonderful UG?:icon_eek:


----------



## CL

ZooTycoonMaster said:


> Woah where did you put all that wonderful UG?:icon_eek:


I got some of it


----------



## Phoenix-cry

I love your tank! So well laid out!


----------



## Ugly Genius

Hey, *Zoo*. The UG's in a holding tank until I get an Do!Aqua wabi-kusa tank going. And, *Cl* got some of it, too.

Thanks, *Phoenix*!

I am hereby referring to my algae as *Jellybolt Algae*. It's rad.









_It looks like lightning bolts and feels like jelly._​
It sways gracefully in the current and is incredibly beautiful in person. To the point that if I could find a way to cultivate it, I could probably make some money selling it.

For months it's stayed where it is. Occasionally I have to trim it like I would Riccia, but that's about it. It stays right there on the top of the driftwood.


----------



## CL

Awesome algae (am I really saying that?) Looks like some kind of soft coral. You're doing a wabi-kusa? AWESOME!


----------



## Ugly Genius

This _is_ what it looks like, *CL*. Soft coral. 
Here's the conundrum, though. See, I think it thrives on the outflow of the filter. As I stated here and elsewhere, I'm considering getting an Eheim 2232 to go with my Cal Aqua glass pipes. (I know, spend a hundred dollars to use sixty-five.) As I'll be placing the pipes to the side of the tank, the algae may die as a result of not getting the flow to which they are accustomed. And that's my dilemma. Get good pipes and loose the pretty algae, or keep the pretty algae and keep the ugly pipes.
And I won't be doing a wabi-kusa per-se. It's more that I'll be using one of their wabi-kusa tanks to build a tank to look at on my kitchen table.

FYI to anyone who cares: UG does not need a nutrient-rich substrate in which to thrive. It's still growing in the Mini Pellia in which it got sucked into a couple of months back.









_It's even throwing out runners!_​


----------



## BradH

Ugly Genius said:


> Hey, *Zoo*. The UG's in a holding tank until I get an Do!Aqua wabi-kusa tank going. And, *Cl* got some of it, too.
> 
> Thanks, *Phoenix*!
> 
> I am hereby referring to my algae as *Jellybolt Algae*. It's rad.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> _It looks like lightning bolts and feels like jelly._​
> It sways gracefully in the current and is incredibly beautiful in person. To the point that if I could find a way to cultivate it, I could probably make some money selling it.
> 
> For months it's stayed where it is. Occasionally I have to trim it like I would Riccia, but that's about it. It stays right there on the top of the driftwood.


I'm about to do a Wabi-Kusa also. Only I will not be using an ADA or Do!Aqua tank, most likely. I would like to, but don't have the funds.

Your tank is looking great. 

Also, I love that algae you have growing. What is it?


----------



## Ugly Genius

Cool deal, *Brad*. Be sure to post a journal when you start your wabi-kusa. 
I have no idea what the algae is, but I'm calling it Jellybolt because I've never seen or heard of it before. And even if someone does know what it's really called, I'm still calling it Jellybolt because Jellybolt is fun to say and I like fun things to say. Jellybolt. See? Its fun to say. Sounds like jellybean, but with an abruptly different ending.

Okay, now I know that this morning's posts border on the "ooh-look-at-me! my-tank-is-so-healthy!" line of obnoxiousness, but bear with me -- I gotta post this photo. It's _the_ biggest pearling bubble I've ever seen.









_That's from Mini Pellia after four hours of light._​


----------



## BradH

I will post a journal. However it probably will not be that spectacular considering all the pictures I take with my digital camera of my 29 gallon look like crap. Also, I'm still trying to find a container for the wabi-kusa. I'm looking for something like the ada stuff that doesn't have the ada price. lol Probably something made for floating candles or flower arrangements or something like that.


----------



## CL

I love that mini pellia! I hope that the little sample I got will grow out to look like that!


----------



## Ugly Genius

*Brad*, that'll work. The more interesting the container, the better, usually.

*cl*, the bit I gave you came from right above the pearling bit you see in the above photo. You can actually see from where it broke.
To hyper-charge growth, put it in front of your CO2 and right under the lights.


----------



## deleted_user_16

hey ugly, what spectrum bulbs are you using?


----------



## Ugly Genius

Two thirteen watt bulbs at ten thousand k, *fish*.


----------



## Dollface

Hey, Did somebody mention wabi-kusa?

As a side note, there need to be more wabi-kusa tanks in this world o' aquascaping. They're kind of like hexs, everybody likes them but you just don't see them. Ever.
Eventually I plan to have two of my own, one ala Katamari, and one more in line with Steven chongs' scape.


----------



## Ugly Genius

Just to get everything out in the open, *Dollface*, it's BradH that's planning the wabi-kusa. (Any and all pressure should be directed solely at him. Sorry, *Brad*, didn't mean to throw you under the bus there, but when a girl's got "wabi-kusa" in her signature and then starts asking about one..there's only two ways out of it: you make one yourself or you show her someone who's making one.) 
I'm planning on a normal old planted tank with a Do!aqua wabi-kusa bowl/vase/box/whatever. I'm going this route so as to quench my thirst for a new tank without having to buy anything save the bowl/vase/box/whatever.


----------



## CL

Ugly Genius said:


> Just to get everything out in the open, *Dollface*, it's BradH that's planning the wabi-kusa. (Any and all pressure should be directed solely at him. Sorry, *Brad*, didn't mean to throw you under the bus there, but when a girl's got "wabi-kusa" in her signature and then starts asking about one..there's only two ways out of it: you make one yourself or you show her someone who's making one.)
> I'm planning on a normal old planted tank with a Do!aqua wabi-kusa bowl/vase/box/whatever. I'm going this route so as to quench my thirst for a new tank without having to buy anything save the bowl/vase/box/whatever.


So you're doing a normal aquascape in a wabi kusa tank? Awesome
I always wanted to do that.


----------



## Dollface

Well, see, the intention was to have a cute little headshot of the Prince under that first line, but I was to lazy to go and find a good one. But it still applies, re: Icon, and signature. 

I think you should go for the little cube things they have, you dont strike me as a vase kind of guy.


----------



## BradH

Hey UG I hope I'm not ruining your thread... if you want me to pm you I will. Just wanted to know where you can get the Do!Aqua tank for Wabi-Kusa? I can't find the Do!Aqua stuff in the US. The only thing I found was an interview where Amano said the stuff would cost less than ADA, so I might try to just buy that kind of tank. I've been out all day looking for a container and I can't find anything.


----------



## Dollface

AFA in San francisco carries the Do!Aqua stuff, but not on their website.


----------



## thief

lol I think there should be more wabikusi too. I plan to buy an ADA 60-F for wabi-kusi hopefully in the summer time! Only thing is that I never seen a journal on one and have no idea for plants other than Purple bamboo!


----------



## Ugly Genius




----------



## ZooTycoonMaster

Woah cool how much was the tank?


----------



## CL

Really cool! Are you going to use that light? Seems kinda dim.


----------



## Dollface

Awesome, Are you going to set up a new journal? And is that not the coolest wood ever? I got some of that for my 'Tree' scape for the trunk.


----------



## Ugly Genius

BradH said:


> Hey UG I hope I'm not ruining your thread... if you want me to pm you I will. Just wanted to know where you can get the Do!Aqua tank for Wabi-Kusa? I can't find the Do!Aqua stuff in the US. The only thing I found was an interview where Amano said the stuff would cost less than ADA, so I might try to just buy that kind of tank. I've been out all day looking for a container and I can't find anything.


*Brad*, don't worry about asking questions. It makes this thread a helluv a lot more interesting than me posting photos of large bubbles forming under my Mini Pellia. 
Dollface was right. AFA in SF carries the Do!aqua stuff. The containers (or do you call them tanks?) range in price from about ten dollars up to twenty-five. The one I got (*Zoo*, this is an answer to your question, was twenty-five. They range in size and shape. Mine is the largest cube at 20 centimeters per side. (20 centimeters equals a bit over eight inches.) Other shapes include round and bell-shaped. The bell-shaped one is the largest in terms of water volume. (Good luck getting a filter on it, though.)



thief said:


> lol I think there should be more wabikusi too. I plan to buy an ADA 60-F for wabi-kusi hopefully in the summer time! Only thing is that I never seen a journal on one and have no idea for plants other than Purple bamboo!


A 60-F'd be cool to see wabi-kusa. Get to it, *theif*!



clwatkins10 said:


> Really cool! Are you going to use that light? Seems kinda dim.









It is dim, *cl*. So I don't know. I'm going to try as I've never grown plants with LEDs and it'll be good to embrace this "new technology" early.
I plan on low-light plants and only Excel as CO2, so I don't expect too much from this light. If it's not enough, I'll find a thirteen compact fluorescent fixture and use that or get another one of these and run two. 
From what I can see from this fixture, the thing with LEDs is not the intensity, but the spread. Light shoots straight down like a laser.



Dollface said:


> Awesome, Are you going to set up a new journal? And is that not the coolest wood ever? I got some of that for my 'Tree' scape for the trunk.


Thanks, *Dollface*. Dunno if I'll start a new journal. This tank's not going to be the fastest growing tank in the world. At eight inches cubed, it won't be the easiest to re-scape, either.

I'm still in the how-and-the-heck-can-I-fit-anything-in-here?! phase.








Plants planned are: Mini Java Fern, Bolbitis, Anubias Nana "Petite", Mini Microsword, Christmas Moss, and, possibly, MM.


----------



## ZooTycoonMaster

Ugly Genius said:


> AFA in SF carries the Do!aqua stuff. The containers (or do you call them tanks?) range in price from about ten dollars up to twenty-five. The one I got (*Zoo*, this is an answer to your question, was twenty-five. They range in size and shape. Mine is the largest cube at 20 centimeters per side. (20 centimeters equals a bit over eight inches.) Other shapes include round and bell-shaped. The bell-shaped one is the largest in terms of water volume. (Good luck getting a filter on it, though.


Wow that's a heckuva lot cheaper than ADA tanks:icon_eek:

Although the Do!Aqua ones don't look exactly as...nice


----------



## BradH

Ugly Genius said:


> *Brad*, don't worry about asking questions. It makes this thread a helluv a lot more interesting than me posting photos of large bubbles forming under my Mini Pellia.
> Dollface was right. AFA in SF carries the Do!aqua stuff. The containers (or do you call them tanks?) range in price from about ten dollars up to twenty-five. The one I got (*Zoo*, this is an answer to your question, was twenty-five. They range in size and shape. Mine is the largest cube at 20 centimeters per side. (20 centimeters equals a bit over eight inches.)


Thanks UG. I just didn't wanna take away from your thread in any way. By any chance do they have a catalog that you know of? I could pay someone to ship it to me. On another note... After looking at the Do!Aqua tank you posted, I have to ask you a question and then mention something else. 

How clear is the glass on that tank? I mean are there any imperfections or bubbles in the glass or anything? The reason I ask is that after looking at the picture, then reading the dimensions you gave, and after my shopping around yesterday..... this looks like the glass cubes I saw yesterday with a Do!Aqua sticker slapped on them. Surely they aren't doing that. Or are they? The only thing I can't tell by the picture it the clarity of the glass. The ones that I saw yesterday had a lot of imperfections in the glass, otherwise I would have bought one. 

And on another note. Does anyone know anything about the quality of these tanks? http://www.fishtankshop.com/index.asp?PageAction=VIEWCATS&Category=284


----------



## Craigthor

Brad. That link is a subsidary of Glass Cages. I would run as far as you can.

Glass cages make all of the Fishtankshop.com tanks, they are jsut as bad as the Glass cages on I've heard. I tried to contact them before I knew they were associated with glass cages and the responses were really poor. As in I got one response and tehy never got back to me again.

Craig


----------



## ZooTycoonMaster

Brad here's a link to an ADA shop: http://www.adgshop.com/
http://www.adana-usa.com/index.php?main_page=afa_product


----------



## Ugly Genius

*Brad*, there are bubbles and there are imperfections. Also, and what kept me from getting one for a long time was the distortion that the glass gives to the interior of the tank. This is to say, yes, you could get pretty much the same thing at other shops. As a matter of fact, there is a bonsai shop around the corner from AFA that sells similar containers for about nine bucks; albeit the ones the lady there has are smaller. (This one's two gallons, where hers were closer to one.)
However, and what changed my mind about the Do!aqua wabi-kusa was the fact that once you embrace the wabi-sabi concept in the Japanese sense of it all, that of transient, imperfect beauty, you say to yourself, "You know, the sticker _is_ pretty cool." 
That and the fact that I saw one they planted there a month or so ago and just knew that I'd end up getting one.
I haven't seen a Do!aqua catalogue.
Here's a photo of one of the bubbles in the glass.









_It's the white mark that looks like a Freshwater Limpet_​
Anyway, the final layout.








Now the planting begins.


----------



## BradH

Craigthor said:


> Brad. That link is a subsidary of Glass Cages. I would run as far as you can.
> 
> Glass cages make all of the Fishtankshop.com tanks, they are jsut as bad as the Glass cages on I've heard. I tried to contact them before I knew they were associated with glass cages and the responses were really poor. As in I got one response and tehy never got back to me again.
> 
> Craig


That's what I was afraid of. I live about 30 to 45 mins away from glasscages. It's just too bad they suck or I would be over there buying some stuff. All I have read is horrible reviews about them though. 



ZooTycoonMaster said:


> Brad here's a link to an ADA shop: http://www.adgshop.com/
> http://www.adana-usa.com/index.php?main_page=afa_product


Thanks for the links. 




Ugly Genius said:


> *Brad*, there are bubbles and there are imperfections. Also, and what kept me from getting one for a long time was the distortion that the glass gives to the interior of the tank. This is to say, yes, you could get pretty much the same thing at other shops. As a matter of fact, there is a bonsai shop around the corner from AFA that sells similar containers for about nine bucks; albeit the ones the lady there has are smaller. (This one's two gallons, where hers were closer to one.)
> However, and what changed my mind about the Do!aqua wabi-kusa was the fact that once you embrace the wabi-sabi concept in the Japanese sense of it all, that of transient, imperfect beauty, you say to yourself, "You know, the sticker _is_ pretty cool."
> That and the fact that I saw one they planted there a month or so ago and just knew that I'd end up getting one.
> I haven't seen a Do!aqua catalogue.
> Here's a photo of one of the bubbles in the glass.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> _It's the white mark that looks like a Freshwater Limpet_​
> Anyway, the final layout.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> Now the planting begins.


Interesting. It does look good with what you have done with it so far. Actually from the photos there doesn't seem to be the type of bubbles I was talking about in that glass. The ones I saw yesterday were pretty horrible. Your cube looks good from what I can tell.


----------



## Ugly Genius

Finished.








Plants are pretty simple. The carpet is Mini Microsword. The driftwood sweater is Christmas Moss. Singing backup are Anubias Nana "Petite", Mini Java Fern, and Bolbitis. That's it. All low-light and all low-maintenance. (Although I'm not too sure about Mini Microsword's light needs.)

I do know:
The LED light ain't gonna cut it. Ain't bright enough. I'll look for a ten to thirteen watt CF. I'd rather not go even as high as thirteen watts as I'm only dosing Excel as CO2 and this tank has one an a half gallons of water in it. (I counted.)

What I'll try to pick up is a 6,500k to 10,00k thirteen watt screw-in CF. That way the wasted light inherent in the corkscrew nature of said bulbs will land me at about ten watts, all said and done. I have this lamp that I bought on a whim and just so happens to be the same lamp they use on _Battlestar Galactica_. What more could you want, really?

I want to state that designing cubes are much harder than the standard rectangle tanks. People who have done nice 'scapes in cubes have my respect. Not only must one consider the font on view, but at least one other as well. Often times three sides.

I was only moderately successful in having three sides look equally nice.









_View from right._​
As the tank is in a different part of my kitchen, I can't snap good photos until the evening as the light shines in from a window to my back. Once it's darker, I'll try to take better photos.

I'm thinking of calling this tank Quasi-Wabi.

P.S. Those bubbles are O2 bubbles in the water and not in this glass for those wondering.


----------



## CL

LOL! Quasi-Wabi! HAHA


----------



## BradH

I like it! What inhabitants are going in?


----------



## Dollface

That moss is going to look fantastic once it grows in/up/out of the water


----------



## Ugly Genius

Just a cool picture I just took.








I'll be starting a journal for the new tank.


----------



## Kayen

Hmmm. 
Mandatory Sunday 3FF 733 355 please


----------



## CL

Viettxboii said:


> 3ff t33 355


ha! Took me a few seconds on this one


----------



## Ugly Genius

Someone has a mind like I do. Just a sec. BRB w/the Eph75.


----------



## Ugly Genius

_The requested 3FF 733 355_​
P.S. For those not as big of goobers as Viet, cl, and I, 3FF 755 355 is FTS (and FTS = Full Tank Shot); where 3 = E, 7 = T, 5 = S. If you didn't know that code (l337), it's a good sign. You don't hang out online too much.


----------



## CL

Wow, it really does look great!


----------



## Kayen

That hairgrass is taking over haha. But i like it though.

As a side note: as a guy who spends most his day on the computer, i'm surprised how i'm not flab yet, i've been eating mcdonalds like almost everyday for the month of january - time to stop LOL.
Sad but my life is gone x_x. pew pew goes the brain, eh UG?


----------



## CL

Viettxboii said:


> Sad but my life is gone x_x. pew pew goes the brain, eh UG?


Don't think of it like that...


----------



## Ugly Genius

Thanks, *cl*! I appreciate that. 
I'm really happy with Source. Right now it's my favorite tank. When it started, it wasn't much, but it's come together quite nicely. In person, it's a really healthy-looking tank.

You may not be able to notice it in the above photo, but I added some Bolbitis to behind the right-hand slanting piece of driftwood this morning. With that, the tank is pretty much finished. Now I just have to wait for the Microsword to fill in and then it's a maintenance-only tank.

But who am I kidding? I'm never finished tinkering.


----------



## CL

Yeah, this tank has turned out pretty successfully.


----------



## Ugly Genius

*Viet*, cl's right. We all have our vices. Ours happen to be what they are and that in no way makes us anything but who we are. And there is nothing wrong with being true to yourself. So if you happen to be a goober, be the best goober you can be! I got your back.


----------



## Dollface

1337 speak is so 2003 guys.


----------



## Ugly Genius

UR just jealous cause UR not as l33t as we.


----------



## Dollface

0MG 57FU N00B

lolol, really i just never had the patience to type all my sentances like that :S
I'm still a little ashamed I can understand it.


----------



## Kayen

Ugly Genius said:


> *Viet*, cl's right. We all have our vices. Ours happen to be what they are and that in no way makes us anything but who we are. And there is nothing wrong with being true to yourself. So if you happen to be a goober, be the best goober you can be! I got your back.


If only you two knew some of the stupid crap i doo.
Hey Dollface, you tell them HAHA


----------



## Ugly Genius

*Dollface*, your circa 2003-speak is kinda worse than all of ours. Who's the noob now?

*Kayen*, I didn't recognize you there for a second.

I removed the Mini Riccia as it was a PITA. I've replaced it with Christmas Moss. The overall look's more natural now. I liked the Riccia, I just didn't like trimming it.
I'll post a photo tomorrow when it's lights on.


----------



## Ugly Genius

A Haiku
_by Ugly Genius_

The 2232.
It's a friggin' hurricane!
Oh heck yeah baby!​


----------



## windfish

Ugly Genius said:


> A Haiku
> _by Ugly Genius_
> 
> The 2232.
> It's a friggin' hurricane!
> Oh heck yeah baby!​


I've got one on my S. :hihi:


----------



## CL

Check it:
Crepidomanes auriculatum 

http://cgi.ebay.com/Crepidomanes-au...photoQQcmdZViewItemQQ_trksidZp1742.m153.l1262


----------



## Ugly Genius

Thank you, *cl*! That is the plant. Assuming ebay can be trusted as a site for plant identification.
Probably, this plant is the "next big thing" as far as a fern can become the "next big thing".

For those just tuning in, we're talking about the identification of this plant.

Look what it looks like emersed:









_Not my photo._​


----------



## Ugly Genius

After a couple of days of playing with the positioning of the Cal Aqua pipes, the CO2 diffuser, and the Eheim 2232, I think I found the "sweet spot" with regards to their positioning. (As with everything I put in quotes [besides an actual quote], "sweet spot" should be taken with a grain of salt because [and why does "taken with a grain of salt" mean "to be taken lightly" or "with a bit of skepticism"? Is it because salt should be sprinkled lightly? That would make sense, I suppose, but not really. I mean, if you have to explain an idiom, you can't help but wonder if a better one exists for that of which you are speaking. What was I talking about--? Oh, yeah...], I haven't really observed the effects it all that diligently so take my "sweet spot" with a bit of mustard.)








The intake is placed in the front-left corner; the outflow is placed in the back-left facing right; and the diffuser is placed right below and in front of the outflow.
I've cranked the 2232 -- an awesome filter -- all the way up. What happens is a kind of whirlpool effect where the water is spun clockwise around the tank. As a result, the CO2 bubbles are set adrift in a counter-NASCAR directive loop around three sides of the tank before being swept up into the filter intake.
While I cannot state the amount of CO2 dissolved into the water column as I never, ever test my water, I can say that pearling occurs approximately one hour sooner than it did with the ZooMed. A good sign is how I'm taking it.

With all this flow, the shrimp and Ottos are a bit freaked out, but some are like me (adrenaline junkies) and love to race in the current.

Other than that, things are growing well. The Mini Microsword's starting to carpet pretty and the Glosso is filled in to the point that I'm going to have to start trimming it. The first generation Glosso leaves are always so big. I'm going to let them layer two deep so as to get the cool-looking smaller ones on top.


----------



## CL

Nice, I got my glass pipes yesterday and they are a lot smaller than I expected. Do you have the outflow all the way down or raised a little bit to get the vortex?


----------



## Ugly Genius

They are nice, huh, *cl*. 
I have mine all the way down. My priority was flow and CO2 distribution. So having them deeper makes more sense for me as they seem to move more water that way.
Besides, getting them and keeping them in the vorexable position is a b----.


----------



## CL

Ugly Genius said:


> They are nice, huh, *cl*.
> I have mine all the way down. My priority was flow and CO2 distribution. So having them deeper makes more sense for me as they seem to move more water that way.
> Besides, getting them and keeping them in the vorexable position is a b----.


The vortex isn't too hard to get for me, but I have a 2213 on mine so maybe more flow = stronger vortex?


----------



## ZooTycoonMaster

I tried making a whirlpool/vortex with my 2213, but I guess my tank is too big:hihi:


----------



## Ugly Genius

It's not necessarily about flow in my case. It's the tubing. The stuff bends at the weirdest of angles and so it pushes the pipes just off the (I'm going to use quotes again) "sweet spot". I need to find a way to straighten the hoses. Would heating the hoses help straighten them out?


----------



## CL

Ugly Genius said:


> It's not necessarily about flow in my case. It's the tubing. The stuff bends at the weirdest of angles and so it pushes the pipes just off the (I'm going to use quotes again) "sweet spot". I need to find a way to straighten the hoses. Would heating the hoses help straighten them out?


Yeah, If you heat and pull a little bit that should straighten them. An even more effective way would be to hang the hose with a weight on the end.


----------



## Craigthor

UG- Congrats! How do you like the new glass? I found with mine they had to be positioned next to each other otherwise I had a big dead spot. Took about 3 weeks of playing to find the really 'sweet spot'.

Craig


----------



## CL

ZooTycoonMaster said:


> I tried making a whirlpool/vortex with my 2213, but I guess my tank is too big:hihi:


No, you can make a vortex in any size tank, you just have to have the right outflow.


----------



## Ugly Genius

Thanks, *Craig*. I really like the glass. Mainly because I can't see it.
I don't have mine positioned right next to each other so there is a four inch dead spot, but at this point it's a necessary evil, I'm afraid. The only way to have the CO2 bubbles complete a circuit around the tank and into the filter is to have them positioned opposite each other on the left side of the tank.
I really wish someone would make a glass spray bar. Rather than have water flow from holes in a tube as is the case with the ZooMed, Eheim, et cetera, however, the water would pour from slits so as to be expelled in even sheets. Also, the bar would be connected to the filer in the center of the bar so as to ensure even distribution of water to the left and right. That'd be cool.


----------



## Craigthor

I actually found I get better CO2 Distribution with the Return in the front left corner and the Intake just behind it. The CO2 I place at the opposite side of the tank across from the return. I get super pearling and am running less than 1 BPS on this tank now. Fish, Shrimp and even plants are happy.

Just something to watch is the dead spot is prone to an algae outbreak. That is what started in mine when I had that kind of positioning.

Time to go upload a bunch of new picture for my thread.

Craig


----------



## CL

Ugly Genius said:


> I really wish someone would make a glass spray bar. Rather than have water flow from holes in a tube as is the case with the ZooMed, Eheim, et cetera, however, the water would pour from slits so as to be expelled in even sheets. Also, the bar would be connected to the filer in the center of the bar so as to ensure even distribution of water to the left and right. That'd be cool.


While it would be cool, it'd be hard to clean with the spraybar being fed by the center, but a regular sprayber with slits would be cool, or just have one long slit down the length of the whole spraybar.


----------



## deleted_user_16

u mean horizontal slits going from left to right? or up and down?


----------



## Ugly Genius

Horizontal, left to right.


----------



## deleted_user_16

ya that would be hard for anyone to do, unless you go to an acrylic place, they would probably use a laser. try going to TAP plastics and see if they do laser cutting, i know they have some milling places where they do that, but of course i dont know which, how much they charge, and whether they would bend it for you too, i think they only do cuts


----------



## Ugly Genius

fish, I'm asking you to take your lily pipe-making skills to the next level. Twelve and three-fourth inches long with a two millimeter slit down the middle. Also, inside the outflow tube, I want a small propeller (chrome in color) so as to be able to visually see the rate of flow through the tube vi-a-vis the rate of it's spin.

I'm just kidding.

But also I'm not. Make those and you will make money.


----------



## Craigthor

Ugly Genius said:


> fish, I'm asking you to take your lily pipe-making skills to the next level. Twelve and three-fourth inches long with a two millimeter slit down the middle. Also, inside the outflow tube, I want a small propeller (chrome in color) so as to be able to visually see the rate of flow through the tube vi-a-vis the rate of it's spin.
> 
> I'm just kidding.
> 
> But also I'm not. Make those and you will make money.


 
And while your whipping out hte magic We would like to include a 2" sphere with an internal diffuser like the Cal aqua ones. Prefer built in to the spray bar. Also need a slef cleaning slider built in while your at it :icon_cool


----------



## Ugly Genius

*Craig*, you and I think very much alike. So get to it, *fish*.

The heavy flow allows for a cool effect in that the long Hairgrass sways gracefully in it's current.


----------



## deleted_user_16

I bet I could do it, but not on 1/2", only 5/8", 1/2" is too small diameter


----------



## CL

Craigthor said:


> And while your whipping out hte magic We would like to include a 2" sphere with an internal diffuser like the Cal aqua ones.


I already asked him about it  UG, That HG is AWESOME!


----------



## garuf

What kind of hairgrass is that? lovely tank, even if the glosso and UG foreground isn't working for me.


----------



## Ugly Genius

Thanks, *cl* and *garuf*. I've no idea what type of Hairgrass it is. What it was sold to me as, Mini Hairgrass, and what it is are obviously different. It's tall and very fine, that's all I know. It's probably just a tall version of Dwarf Hairgrass.
As for the carpet, which is Glosso and Mini Microsword right now -- UG was pulled a couple of weeks back -- is in it's awkward phase. At least that's what I'm hoping.

Off topic, but I think I should mention that I don't fertilize this tank at all. Not even K.

















Granted, the majority of plants in here are substrate feeders getting their nutrients from the Aqua Soil, but the ferns, Anubias, moss, Riccia, and Mini Pellia all get their food from the water column. 
Not dosing has not had any ill-effects with plant growth and I haven't scraped the glass of this tank in months. The only visible algae this tank has is that Jellybolt algae in the crown of my driftwood.
It's a good feeling as this is the first time I've found a tank's balance point.


----------



## Northern_Wind

Wow. Your tank is stunning. I love it! 
I see you have shrimp in there. Any fish? 
They are so entertaining, I can see why you have a tank full of them.


----------



## Craigthor

UG those last couple of pics are amazing!

That Mini Sword looks like it is settling in nicely.

Northern Wind- UG doesn't have any fish but a couple of Ottos. We are trying to work him into a couple. Hint Hint- the Microrasbora Nana are perfect little Nano fish 

Craig


----------



## brt_p

it's Eleocharis Vivipara i think..the short one is Eleocharis Acicularis..


----------



## Northern_Wind

Craigthor said:


> UG those last couple of pics are amazing!
> 
> That Mini Sword looks like it is settling in nicely.
> 
> Northern Wind- UG doesn't have any fish but a couple of Ottos. We are trying to work him into a couple. Hint Hint- the Microrasbora Nana are perfect little Nano fish
> 
> Craig


Just a few tiny fish.... to attract attention and movement in the tank... 
But it is his decision.


----------



## Ugly Genius

Thanks, *Northern_Wind*! *Craig*'s right. Only three Ottos. I was _this_ close to getting some Microrasboras yesterday, but the idea of having fish I have to feed and potentially rediscovering this tank's balance point, put me off of the idea. Also, my tank is open top and filled to the absolute brim. Jumping is a constant threat.
As a matter of fact, a CRS jumped yesterday. I was sad until I picked him up. Still alive. Threw him back in and he's right as rain today.

*Craig*, PM me your address and next weekend, I'll send you some Mini Microsword. It's not much, and a lot of it's just root structure with tiny leave starting to form, but it's enough to get you started.

That's probably what it is, *brt_p*. Eleocharis Vivipara.

When it comes to plants and planted tanks, I feel like a musician who can't read music. (Like Jimi Hendrix, only less talented.) I have no idea what half the plants I grow are called; I just know how to grow them.
Case in point:
What's this:









_Lawn Marshpennywort?
You can also see the Mini Pellia that was dead from an Excel overdose coming back to life.
Never, ever does Excel on top of Mini Pellia. Even in the recommended amount._​
I have no idea what it is, but I knew the moment I saw it several months ago at AFA I knew it was very important to this 'scape. (Once it starts branching out, you'll see what I mean.)

Which brings me to a chart of motivational leanings:

Artistic |----------*|*----------| Scientific
/\
Ugly​
I'm decidedly more left-brained when it comes to planted tanks. I get virtually zero yayas off of the technical side of the hobby (water testing, tank parameters, root structure, looking for plant deficiencies, effects of nutrient dosings, the names of the plants) and almost all my yayas from the creative side of it. This is not to say that I ignore the technical aspects of the hobby; I _do_ pay attention to a lot of it. I just don't like it all that much.









_Try to tell me this fern is not cool as heck.
The newly-formed fronds on it unfurl just as they do on terrestrial ferns.
I've tried to get a photo of it, but it doesn't show._


----------



## Northern_Wind

Ugly Genius said:


> Thanks, *Northern_Wind*! *Craig*'s right. Only three Ottos. I was _this_ close to getting some Microrasboras yesterday, but the idea of having fish I have to feed and potentially rediscovering this tank's balance point, put me off of the idea. Also, my tank is open top and filled to the absolute brim. Jumping is a constant threat.
> As a matter of fact, a CRS jumped yesterday. I was sad until I picked him up. Still alive. Threw him back in and he's right as rain today.


Ah, I see, I wouldn't want to have an outbreak of algae or something because of feeding the fish, and the next day to have them all over the floor. :icon_eek: Shrimp are great for this tank then, and I wouldn't have fish. Im also glad the little shrimp made it, I bet he won't jump again. 



Ugly Genius said:


> I'm decidedly more left-brained when it comes to planted tanks. I get virtually zero yayas off of the technical side of the hobby (water testing, tank parameters, root structure, looking for plant deficiencies, effects of nutrient dosings, the names of the plants) and almost all my yayas from the creative side of it. This is not to say that I ignore the technical aspects of the hobby; I do pay attention to a lot of it. I just don't like it all that much.


Creativity is good in any art form!


----------



## Craigthor

UG- I agree. I used to be all about the technical side but am more to the artistic side now. Don't tell but I've never tested the water in my Mini M. Not once. Added S+ CRS after 3 weeks of using brand new ADA Amazonia and no deaths just added more of them a week ago. I never did a water chagne when setup till the Day before the shrimp came. Use straight RO water for changes with a small spoon of shrimp mineral powder from Gabezone. Do anywhere from 30-75% water changes a week depending on how it looks. Sometime 1 puimp sometimes 2 pumps of ferts. 

I gave up being all scientifical with this tank and it is growing better than anyone I've had in the past. I used to test everything multiple times a week. 

If anyone asked I couldn't even tell them what my PH, NO2, NO3 levels are, I don't even own test kits anymore. 

Thanks for the offer UG, I think you should let it grow out abit more. I don't have anywhere I can see it in my tank just yet and would hate to see it go to waste if the weather nose dives again.

On the Mini Pellia I dose Excel over it all the time. I dose my tank daily with Excel. Usually half a capful after water changes and less than a 1/4 capful every day inbetween. 

UG want to sell your Maten Stone? I know you said you didn't care for it but wouldn't mind playing with some. LMK.

Craig


----------



## garuf

The short one is parva, acicularis is the middle one vivipara is the huge one.


----------



## fish_fasinated

Ugly Genius said:


>


Oh dear god, I go away focused on my new salt water set up and miss ALOT!

*UG* the tank is looking BEAUTIFUL! It looks so good you have no idea! Guess I should be stopping by more often.


----------



## Ugly Genius

*garuf*, my stuff maxes out at about eight inches -- maybe a tad higher. It's very fine, though. As fine as a human hair.

*fish*, where ya been, bro? Worried about you there for a minute. And what's this traitorous talk about saltwater tanks? Them's fighting words around here, mister. (I'm just playing. But, seriously, what's with the saltwater tanks--? You gotta quit that sh--. Just kidding. But, seriously..)
And, thanks. The tank's coming along. I'm really happy with it right now.

A random aside:
I have _the_ radest Tiger Shrimp. It's got nothing to do with his color or his markings or anything like that. The dude is in love with chopsticks. I swear to you. Every time I've done some planting or pruning with chopsticks, this dude'll shoot from where ever he's at to my chopsticks to eat whatever it is that a shrimp would find delicious on a chopstick. Even as I'm moving the chopsticks about the tank -- sometimes rather abrupt and quickly -- he'll ride on them. Pretty rad, that dude.
Probably a bit loco, but loco's good, in my book.

EDIT:
*Craig*, read your post but failed to reply.
My Manten Stone ain't all that great. Most of the good pieces are in Source and what was left over is in my Betta tank. (I'll be rescaping that one this week. Probably tomorrow.) The stuff that's not in use is super small, stuff I use to tie moss, ferns, Anubias to. So even if I sent the stuff free of charge on my dime, I'd still feel guilty about giving it to you. It's that boring of stone.


----------



## fish_fasinated

lol got a great deal on a 14G biocube, just had to give the salt side a try. but no worries, the 2.5 is still going and is currently under reconstruction, including the addition of a BEAUTIFUL crwontail betta (excellent finage and colour like i havnet seen ion a LFS betta) and some new drift wood. even my 20 gallon is getting swapped soon, just as soon as my work gets the light fixture im after. and after i move out of the current place im doing a 90G geophagus altifrons, gold nugget pleco, royal pleco biotope sort of thing.

lol so much goin on its not funny! or is it? lol


----------



## Ugly Genius

Sounds like you have a lot of fun things in the works, *fish*. Keep us updated? Is this your first SW tank? I would not even know how to start one of those things.

Anyway, a Cherry Shrimp got caught in my intake this AM. Poor guy. He lived as I was able to pry him out, but then again and just now a Green Shrimp got caught. The flow's way too strong for the little guys to avoid sometimes. (Most of the time they hop out of the way before it's too late.)
Anyhow, seeing as how a the esthetic evil that is a pre-filter is out of the question, I've moved the intake to inside the Hairgrass (which acts as a pretty prefilter). Now, virtually all piping is invisible and hopefully doesn't suck so much for shrimp. (Get it--? Pun _totally_ intended there.)









_See? You can barely see the pipes._









_Here's the Green Shrimp that almost died by manner of suck._









_No reason for posting this one. 
Just to show the battle between Mini Microsword and Glosso._









_Lawn Marshpennywort, my new love. 
I want to do a carpet of this when I graduate to big tanks.
Can't you just see how rad a carpet of that would be?_​


----------



## fish_fasinated

Ugly Genius said:


> Sounds like you have a lot of fun things in the works, *fish*. Keep us updated? Is this your first SW tank? I would not even know how to start one of those things.


I'd suggest saltwater aquariums for dummies, great way to get started into some reaserch. the book explains everything you need to know including new and old technologies, keeps it simple but with out leaving things out. 

saltwater tanks really not as hard as they seem. basically if you can mix up a bucket of saltwater, monitor your tank conditions and keep up with regular maintenance, you will be fine. ph and research everything before you do it, research is key.

i think you should give it a try, it would be interesting to see what your artistic skills and eyes could do in a tank.

i will pm you my email address if you have any questions, ill do my best to answer.


----------



## boltp777

hey guys im all new to this but what is ug it looks awesome i want to get some for my tank? love this tank btw


----------



## Ugly Genius

Thanks, *fish*. Believe it or not, as of late I have been thinking of a SW tank. There are so many cool fish and shrimp! If I start one up, I'll be sure to check out that book and pick your brain.

*bolt*, thanks! UG is Utricularia Graminifolia. It's a cool carpet plant. I've taken it out of this tank, but I use it in a couple of my other tanks. Some people have terrible luck with it, others have it easy. I have it easy, knock on wood. In fact, I've been able to grow it floating in low light with no ferts as well as in Aqua Soil.
When it warm up, and you get some experience with other carpet plants, give me a PM and we'll work something out.

Everyone, a moment of silence for my Orange Shrimp. He jumped. Dunno why. He was a good shrimp. Very pretty. Nice to everyone he met. Great smile. Lit up a room when he came in.


----------



## Ugly Genius

Got some pretty good shots today.









_CRS and Tiger on Mini Pellia, et al._









The_ raddest fern. Ever!_









_From the right._









_From the left._​
Things are staying pretty much the same with this tank. 

I added some CBS that I found at a nearby LFS yesterday. They've since colored up and seem to be happy. (One you can see in the last of the above photos.) 
I've noticed that the quality of CRS and CBS is getting higher and higher for the four-dollars-each range. Where before an A and S grade CRS was ten bucks plus a pop, they are now closer to four. Pretty soon, I doubt will see the high prices we once saw for the S, SS, and SSS grade shrimp.
Hopefully, at least.


----------



## deleted_user_16

hey ugly, why not try some micron mesh bags as a intake prefilter, they are clearish and you can cut to size. then you can move the intake behind some plants/at the back of the tank.


----------



## chase127

amazing as always  fts??


----------



## Ugly Genius

Hey, *fish*. The intake's already in the back behind some plants; moved it yesterday or the day before. Right now the Hairgrass is working as a pretty effective prefilter as it covers the holes big enough for shrimp, but still allows water to pour through.


----------



## deleted_user_16

what will happen to the babies though? won't they still get sucked up?


----------



## Ugly Genius

Oh, you meant that, *fish*. I dunno. It _is_ possible they'll get sucked up. But the Hairgrass is pretty dense back there. I'll keep my eye on things and if it looks like too many babies are getting sucked up, I'll look into an actual pre-filter.

*chris*, thanks, man!

Here's the FTS.








As I'm looking at this photo, I'm thinking that in a future 'scape, I want to do a dark, half-dome-looking scape; the focal point in this tank is kind of morphing in that direction anyway.


----------



## CL

Nice! Is that some regular pellia in with the mp? Or did some of the mp morph into a larger form?


----------



## Ugly Genius

Thanks, *cl*. I believe it's regular Pellia that got stuck in with the mini stuff. I've been picking it out since I noticed it after tying everything down, but a bit underneath is very attached to living, so it keeps coming back.
I've never seen a piece of Mini Pellia morph into the larger form; if it shows up, it's been a result of having been tucked in with the mini stuff. Has it ever happened to you?


----------



## chase127

everything in this tank just fits. its an amazing scape my friend


----------



## CL

Yeah, the hg is awesome, 'member saying it was supposed to stay short?  And no, I have never had any mp morph


----------



## Craigthor

Looking good


----------



## Ugly Genius

Thanks, *chris*!

*cl*, I know! For a time the extreme height of the Hairgrass irked me. Now I see that it's better than had it been the short kind. (Although I really want the short variety this was supposed to be.)

Thanks, *Craig*!

Question for the Eheim Pimps, how often would you think I'd need to clean a 2232 on a Mini-M? 
I know the obvious answer: when it looks like it needs it. 
I was wondering if there is general rule-of-thumb for this filter. I don't feed this tank and do daily half-gallon water changes. The media's the stock subtrat and the white filter pads. The thing's rated for a thirty-five gallon and the Mini-M being around five point five, I'm wondering if I could go, say, six months between cleanings.


----------



## CL

I'd say six months could work, though the flow would really start to diminish. 3 months would be better.


----------



## Craigthor

I'd say every 3-4 months. Keep an eye on flow and let that be the sign once flow really starts to go down.

Craig


----------



## ZooTycoonMaster

Hey you got rid of your avatar

And that "new species" of algae is sooo cool


----------



## Ugly Genius

Thanks, *cl* and *Craig*. I'll do the three to four months, then. Even that's a heck of a lot better than the one month interval in which I'd have to clean the Zoo Med.

Hey, *Zoo*. Yeah, I can't upload my Gollum avatar because apparently animated .gifs are no longer allowed. Sucks 'cause I love that avatar. A friend made it for me -- the creepy moving eyes -- way back when and I love it.
The algae _is_ pretty cool, if I do say so myself. I was worried that it would die after I moved from the spray bar to the lily pipes as the current no longer blows directly on the driftwood, but my fears were unfounded. It's still going strong. I have no idea what it is, but it's getting even better looking as it ages.

Speaking of aging. I'm going to pick up some SuperBac Aquarium Cleaner this weekend to induce another bacterial bloom. I'm going to experiment with the idea of inducing periodic and regular bacterial blooms to see the effect it has on overall tank health. 
I'm looking at it as a kind of oil change for the nitrifying bacteria in Source.
I did it a while back and the results were amazing. The tank went from one that required frequent cleanings and scrubbings to a tank that requires zero algae scrapes and only water changes. (Of course, this could be the effect of the tank settling of it's own accord and have nothing to do with the SuperBac I ODed back then, but I've always been the type to try things for myself and move from what _I_ see and interpret. I will say that of all the bacterial additives on the market, I like SuperBac the best. It breaks down organic matter as well as all of the invisible stuff that I can only assume is happening at the microscopic level.)


----------



## chase127

YOU! have been recruited. Join the Mini M force roud:


----------



## Ugly Genius

This is just a test.
















I didn't get it perfect, but I think you can see where I'm going with this.


----------



## Craigthor

Do I see a diffuser being put under the intake?


----------



## CL

Hey, you're putting two pictures together as one


----------



## Ugly Genius

*Craig*, you know, while I have thought of doing that, I feel that once I save up some money, I'm going to go with the Cal Aqua Inline Diffuser. It's just too cool not to get. Don't you or didn't you have one? How is/was it?

You got it, *CL*! Why I'm going to try to do it that way instead of taking a photo at a higher resolution is beyond even me. The thing with me is that I always have to do things my way. Even if they're stupid.

I ODed SuperBac for the past couple of days. Nothing really happened. Didn't know what I expected, really. A bacterial bloom, perhaps. But Source just kept humming along. Perhaps the biological filter's just fine and doesn't need me messing with it.

One of my Orange Shrimp has a love affair with the filter. 
Every morning, the poor little guy's stuck on the intake. 
Every morning, I let him loose. 
It's like it's become a ritual for us.
He never seems to learn his lesson -- just keeps going back there. All the other shrimp know to stay away. 
Maybe he's "special". 
Maybe he needs my constant attention. 
Whatever it is, he loves the Cal Aqua's glass intake.
Can't say I blame him.
They're nice pipes.

Before I get to the pictures, lemme ask you guys a question.
Has anyone played _Street Fighter IV_? How is it?









_FYI: That cool new fern I got--? Shrimp like to eat it.
It's doing well and growing, but just keep that in mind if you have a densely populated shrimp tank and are keeping this plant._









_The Mini Microsword is starting to spread in earnest._









_A CBS in said Mini Microsword._









_Just a pretty picture._​


----------



## Craigthor

*UG*- I had the Inline Cal Aqua Diffuser. It was alright. I think I get better diffusion with the in tank diffuser though. Atleast everything pearls more. Also it is a bit bulky on the side of the tank IMO. If it was being used in say a 20g Long or something even a bit bigger it would look great on the side of the tank. I also feel it took away from teh tanks asthetics and over all feel. I guess I like the low profile and clean lines of the ADA more.

Craig


----------



## Craigthor

*UG*- How big is that fern anyways? is it rooted or rhizome? Looking for something to hang over the edge of my island to help shade the Anubias a bit. Also what was it called so I can see if AFA has more?

Craig


----------



## Ugly Genius

They call it "Special Fern". (It may or may not be called Crepidomanes auriculatum.) Ask for the "Special Fern" and they will know exactly what you're talking about.
It's got a rhizome. It's dense enough that it will stay put with even the tiniest of rocks, so don't worry about it looking out of place when tucked in your mound of plants. 
I'm pretty sure AFA has some. They got them tucked in different tanks around the store; presumably to see how it grows under different lighting conditions.

Thanks for the info on the Inline Diffuser. Guess I can take that money and spend it on a Mini-L.


----------



## Craigthor

Ugly Genius said:


> They call it "Special Fern". (It may or may not be called Crepidomanes auriculatum.) Ask for the "Special Fern" and they will know exactly what you're talking about.
> It's got a rhizome. It's dense enough that it will stay put with even the tiniest of rocks, so don't worry about it looking out of place when tucked in your mound of plants.
> I'm pretty sure AFA has some. They got them tucked in different tanks around the store; presumably to see how it grows under different lighting conditions.
> 
> Thanks for the info on the Inline Diffuser. Guess I can take that money and spend it on a Mini-L.


Thanks, I just poped off an e-mail to steven about it. Thanks again.

Craig


----------



## Ugly Genius

*Em pee el*

In my Riven Impact thread, I mentioned the relative slow growth of Mini Pellia. Nowhere is this more apparent than in Source. It's taken four months of optimal conditions with no trimming to go from this:








to this:








As you can see, Mini Pellia is a terrifically slow grower. It's very much worth the patience required to grow it, however. 
For one, it's beautiful. Secondly, it's a very good indicator of your CO2 saturation. If you've got good light and CO2, it'll grow small and compact with tiny, tightly-formed fronds that throw out finely-textured shadows not unlike freshly trimmed Christmas Moss. In lower light and low CO2, it will grow longer and less-densely packed, but still very beautiful. Either way, it's a good plant to use as an indicator for how much CO2 is being absorbed by your plants. (I've observed that CO2 more than light affects the shape of the newly formed leaves; your experience may vary.)

This here is grown under just-almost too much CO2.








My point for this post is to have each of you demand this plant from your LFS, the people you trade with, the Swan N Shop, wherever. If you don't have this plant, let me tell you that you _want_ this plant. You _need_ this plant. This is _the_ plant that will complete your 'scape. The plant that will complete _you_.
The little bit I have to spare is reserved for someone who PMed me not too long ago, but the good thing about planted tanks is that they keep growing so when I grow more, I'll do my part to spread the MPL (Mini Pellia Love). So you do your part and demand Mini Pellia. Tell them Ugly Genius sent you.

_This message brought to you by MPL, a non-profit organization dedicated to bringing the love of Coral Moss to you and yours._


----------



## Craigthor

:hihi: I love this post. In my tank I can watch th growth over the last 40 days or so. It is a stunning plant to have on your arsenal list. 

I will probably have some to pass around end of April as I won't be touching my MP till after the April Show locally. I hope to get mine to bush out like yours *UG* before the show to get the texture I want.

*UG* You really should show some love to HC. I understand your past with it is so so but it forms such a beautifil carpet. I enjoy it more than UG the plant.

Now your Mini Microsword would create a stunning Nature Aquarium scape on its own. Someday when I think my creation is complete enough I will have to find some.

Also AFA has 3 portions of the Special Fern for me 

Craig


----------



## Kayen

Damn UG, you've gotten my addicted to Mini Pellia .
Shame i can't find any ;( .


----------



## Ugly Genius

_A RCS on Lawn Marshpennywort over a carpet of Mini Microsword._​
It's a rainy day. A perfect day to trim the tank. Except of the fact that I've no interest in doing that. Instead, I've been watching On Demand movies all afternoon.


----------



## CL

That mini micro. is growing in awesome! I love that pennywort too


----------



## Craigthor

I love that special Fern. Can't wait to get some for my tank.  So tropical looking.

Craig


----------



## ddtran46

Ugly Genius said:


> *Craig*, you know, while I have thought of doing that, I feel that once I save up some money, I'm going to go with the Cal Aqua Inline Diffuser. It's just too cool not to get. Don't you or didn't you have one? How is/was it?
> 
> You got it, *CL*! Why I'm going to try to do it that way instead of taking a photo at a higher resolution is beyond even me. The thing with me is that I always have to do things my way. Even if they're stupid.
> 
> I ODed SuperBac for the past couple of days. Nothing really happened. Didn't know what I expected, really. A bacterial bloom, perhaps. But Source just kept humming along. Perhaps the biological filter's just fine and doesn't need me messing with it.
> 
> One of my Orange Shrimp has a love affair with the filter.
> Every morning, the poor little guy's stuck on the intake.
> Every morning, I let him loose.
> It's like it's become a ritual for us.
> He never seems to learn his lesson -- just keeps going back there. All the other shrimp know to stay away.
> Maybe he's "special".
> Maybe he needs my constant attention.
> Whatever it is, he loves the Cal Aqua's glass intake.
> Can't say I blame him.
> They're nice pipes.
> 
> Before I get to the pictures, lemme ask you guys a question.
> *Has anyone played Street Fighter IV? How is it?*
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> _FYI: That cool new fern I got--? Shrimp like to eat it.
> It's doing well and growing, but just keep that in mind if you have a densely populated shrimp tank and are keeping this plant._
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> _The Mini Microsword is starting to spread in earnest._
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> _A CBS in said Mini Microsword._
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> _Just a pretty picture._​


It is just like any other Street Fighter game, It is fun at first but gets boring if you play by yourself. I got bored of mines after a couple of days. It is fun when you play with your friends or when you play live.


----------



## Craigthor

*UG* you couldn't sneak me a couple of pics of your special fern could you? Trying to decide where/ how I should plant them once mine arrive. 

Craig


----------



## 1slowtsx

Thats a nice tank you got there!


----------



## Ugly Genius

Thanks, *cl*. The Mini Microsword has spread quite a bit, but the pictures I took are misleading. Trick photography is what they call it, I think. There's still about forty percent of the substrate that they have yet to cover. 
The Lawn Marshpennywort is a really nice plant. It's a very specific plant in that it either fits into a 'scape or doesn't, but in here I'm liking it. Grows quick as heck, though. In Quasi-Sabi, a decidedly lower-tech tank than Source, it's threatening to cover the entire substrate. (To think the fellas at AFA told me that it was a _very, very_ slow grower.)

Thanks, *ddtran*. I got the game Friday. It's good, but mostly in a nostalgic way. Takes me back to my gaming roots and all that.

*Craig*, here are some photos of the fern.



























_In this photo you can see where the shrimp have been nibbling on the thin leaves.
EDIT: Actually, you can see it better in the first photo. Just to the right of the Christmas Moss, you can see eaten leaves._​
I suspect that this might be the one tank where I actually _don't_ have enough algae to feed my shrimp and, consequently, they have gone after the thinnest-leaved plant they could find. (Also the most expensive!)
Other than being salad, the plant's doing really well. It's throwing out new stems fairly regularly and pearls real nice after just a few hours of lights. I think you'll love this plant. The droopy, terrestrial-looking fronds'll look great in your 'scape.

Thanks, *1slowtsx*! I see you started your own Mini-M with a lot of the equipment I have or had on this tank. Great start!


----------



## Craigthor

UG you want some shrimp food lmk and I can toss some in the mail. 

Craig


----------



## Ugly Genius

Did a little of the trimming that I was too lazy to do on Sunday.








Trimming mostly consists of pulling up strands of Hairgrass. Glosso also has to be tended, but not as frequently.
Speaking of maintenance, I've found that it's easier to do smaller five minute trimmings rather than a larger more elaborate one.









_I don't give these much photo time, but they've been in here from the beginning._









_The Glosso's doing quite well in here.
I love the color._









_From above. You can see the Downoi and the Erio._









_Here you can see how much the Mini Microsword still has to fill in._​


----------



## rrrrramos

I really like the way this tank looks. Through all the stages it's been through. This tank and your other tank are compelling me to very seriously consider getting an ADA Mini-M! It even looks good with all the equiptment in there and everything. Overall, great tank, can't wait to see how all your tanks progress!


----------



## Outlawboss

Absolutely beautiful. I've had this one marked for a long time and it's been fun to watch it progress.


----------



## Ugly Genius

Thanks, *rrrrramos* and *Outawboss*!

[STRIKE]I probably should not say a damn thing right now as I'll jinx it like I always do, but I just noticed that one of my CRSs is berried.
Those who've kept up with all of my journals know that I've had a spectacular lack of success breeding CRS. I've had them berried before but they never hatch. Maybe things'll be different this time around. We'll see.[/STRIKE]

Actually, don't mind any of what I said above. I'm just going to jinx myself, I'm sure of it.


----------



## jaybugg13

UG, Have you been in AFA lately, is it well stocked? I am planning on making a trip there to stock the 60-p. My wife did a steller job with the hardscape so we thought we might as well get up there to get our plants. Even if they don't have much it'll still be a great expierence. Make sure the weather is solid on Monday!


----------



## Ugly Genius

*jay*, I haven't been to AFA in two weeks, believe it or not. Last time I was there they did have a good selection, though.
If this is your first time there, even if the plant stock is less-than stellar, you'll _still_ probably be blown away. AFA's worst days are exponentially better than most other fish stores' plants selection on their best days.
I'll do what I can to fix the weather. I've managed to make it warmer, but I'm still working on stopping the rain. Gimme a bit more time.
Actually, I'll probably be going this weekend, too. If I see a couple drooling at the tanks, I'll assume it's you. Have fun!


----------



## Allen121

The one thing I really wanna know is, have you gotten any feed back or come up with some info on just what in the heck kind of algae that stuff really is at the top of the wood??? The stuff just doesn't even look like any sort of algae I've ever seen or heard of!! Honestly, it looks more like a fungus.


----------



## Ugly Genius

You mean my Driftwood Afro Algae, *Allen121*?
I still I don't know.
I do know that it has once again changed shape. Where before it looked like lightning bolts, now it looks like a string of pearls up close. Look:








All I know is that it only grows on the top of the driftwood but it can grow on rocks as well. I'm therefore inclined to think it's not a fungus.
I really don't know what it is. It might be the "missing link". The plant form right in between algae and higher plant forms in the evolutionary sense of it all. I really don't know.
If anyone has any idea what it is, feel free to chime in.


----------



## Tex Gal

UG - I absolutely love the little clover plant that you have in there. What is it?

I think the plant on your log is some type of bladderwort. That's what the pearl things are. Does it feel a little slimy? The tank looks great! The new fern looks wonderful in there.


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## Ugly Genius

Hey, *Tex Gal*! The plant's called Lawn Marshpennywort. I really dig it. It's a very fast grower. It's perhaps _the_ fastest grower I have in on my plant pallet right now. It probably throws out a new leaf every one to two days.

Anyway, I've got this really weird shrimp. It's a RCS, but its half blue and half red. It's been like that for months.

Look:









_The top is red..._









_The bottom is blue._​
I guess that makes it a RBCBS. A Red Blue Cherry Blueberry Shrimp.
Or a Crunch Berry.
She's had a bunch of babies and they range in color from red to white. Actually, I've got quite a few white ones now.

I swapped the ADA Pollen Glass diffuser for a Do!aqua Music Glass 15. As the tubing does not have to be bent from the bottom up as it does in the Pollen Glass, I notice much smaller (and consequently and theoretically better) bubbles with the Music Glass 15.
This makes me happy as yesterday for the first time in months I had algae in this tank.
After scratching my head for fifteen minutes trying to deduce why I had algae all of a sudden, I noticed that the Pollen Diffuser was a bit clogged, i.e. bigger bubbles streaming from the ceramic disk. This resulted in lower CO2 absorption into the water column and a disruption of the tank's balace. 
After wrestling the tubing in between the glass and the solid mass of Hairgrass I have in the back, I decided to just use a Do!aqua one as it accepts the tubing from the top. Forget trying to bend tubing from the bottom while trying not to pinch it shut. 
(_The above passage probably makes no sense to you if you've never had a Pollen Glass diffuser with an intake at the bottom. So here's a picture:







It's just not a user friendly design; especially in a nano tank where space is limited.

This is much better as the tubing goes down into the diffuser:









That's a old photo from the original Riven.
Ah, the good old days! Remember then?)​_​
With CO2 back to the previous levels, I'm thinking the algae will stay away again. Like most good things in life, a planted tank is about balance.

Hey, that gives me an idea: my next tank will be called Libra. As in, balance. Remind me of that when I start a new tank, whuddya? (I've got the memory of a Neon Tetra.)


----------



## ZooTycoonMaster

How much was the Diffuser 15? $33 you said right?


----------



## Ugly Genius

Hey, *Zoo*. I think it's thirty-six for the 15. The ten's thirty-three. Totally worth it, though. These things are rad.

I'm going to do an experiment. As I stated yesterday, I got some green spot algae on my pipes. I deduced that this was due to a drop in CO2 levels. I'm going to see if the green spot algae on the pipes goes away now that CO2 levels are back to optimal levels.
What this really means:
Ugly is too lazy to clean his pipes and he's hoping they clean themselves.

Oh, a couple of you are getting plants from me, but due to reasons out of my control, I was not able to make it to the post office this weekend. I will, however, send the plants out this week. Sorry about that.

There are only three more episodes of _Battlestar Galactica_. What will I do once the series is over?!


----------



## ZooTycoonMaster

Green spot algae usually means low phosphates


----------



## Ugly Genius

_I removed a lot of the afro algae from the driftwood. 
I wanted to see the "fingers" on the DW for a bit. (Which are blocked, unfortunately, by the reflection of the setting sun.)_​
Things are back to normal in Source. The CO2 levels have all but eliminated the green spot algae that I had. The only bit remaining is in the U of the intake in the front of the tank. I'm going to see if that goes away of it's own accord rather than clean it just to see if a tank can correct itself if levels are brought back into check.

I've read all the algae guides and I'm not convinced that any of them is correct with regards to the cause and/or cure for any given type of algae. Very often, I've found that what they suggest as a cause goes against everything I see first-hand for myself in my tanks.
So rather than go off of someone else's anecdotal evidence, I go off of my own anecdotal evidence.
This ends up with me combating algae much more simplistically: I balance light and CO2. It's much easier that way.

Speaking of which, I found the sweet spot in Source with the new diffuser in that even the Hairgrass is sweating pretty profusely.








The Mini Microsword is finally starting to spread in earnest. Three more weeks and it'll cover the entire substrate.


----------



## thestranger66

Hey Ugly, What's the scientific name of your mini microsword?


----------



## Ugly Genius

I believe it's lilaeopsis novae mini, *stranger*.


----------



## chase127

i want some for the 45P 

your mini looks AMAZING.


----------



## thestranger66

I really like the species you have in your tank but I can't seem to find it anywhere online. I was planning to buy off of aquaspot world.com but they don't have that plant. Are there any other grasses that are similar that you would reccomend, or could I buy some off of you?


----------



## Ugly Genius

Thanks, *chris*!

*stranger*, eventually, I can give you some, but this stuff is a super-slow grower so it'll be at least a month before I even have a couple of runners to give you. Even under ideal conditions, it creeps.
Check in with me in a month or so and I _might_ (no promises) have some to send you.
Short of that, call up Aqua Forest Aquarium at (415) 929-8883 (call, don't email) first thing tomorrow morning and ask if they have any. (They know it as Mini Microsword. Tell them you want the rare very short kind, not the normal or tall stuff.) The reason I suggest this is because they had a tank full of it that they tore down. They might have some left over.

Speaking of which, a while back some of us were talking about AFA's new iwagumi that they had just set up and how the Glosso looked tall and ugly and all that. It's stunning now. A knock-out. The boys at AFA know how to plant. Do not doubt that.
The window tank doesn't look that great, but all the rest of the tanks look phenomenal. Saw them last week and I was super impressed.


----------



## thestranger66

Is there a difference between the plant that you have and this?: http://www.aquariumplants.com/Searc...sis+novae+&btnSearch=GO&PageAction=PRODSEARCH

Also, you should take some pictures of these tanks next time you go and next time I go to my ADA LFS I will take some pics of their display tanks.


----------



## Ugly Genius

Hey, *stranger*. That plant grows about three inches taller than the "mini" and has rounder leaves (blades?). It's a nice plant, though.
If you want the "mini", you're going to have to search for it as it's still rare in the hobby. Like I said, when I have some to give out, I will. I try to spread the wealth as much as I can. All I ask is that to those I give plants, pay it forward and ROAK it to someone else when you have some to spare. (Or be nice to a complete stranger just for the sake of being nice.)


----------



## CL

UG, where exactly _is_ the sweet spot for the diffuser? This tank looks awesome, it has improved SO much :thumbsup:


----------



## Ugly Genius

The sweet spot is done thusly, *cl*:

With this (or something comparable):
An Ehiem 2232 + the Cal Aqua Efflux F1 and Influx X1 + a Do!aqua Music Glass 10 + pressurized CO2 + a Mini-M

Do this:

The Efflux should be placed in the rear left corner facing right, blowing straight out across the tank at full bore. Water should be filled to the absolute brim of the Mini-M -- only the faintest of ripples should be seen at the water's surface.
The diffuser should be placed right in front and below the lily of the Efflux, almost close enough to touch the top lip of the diffuser with the bottom lip of the lily. (Basically you want the CO2 bubbles -- which must be _super_ small so clean your diffuser often -- to shoot straight sideways the moment they are pumped into the water column.)
The Influx should be placed in the front left corner of the tank. This allows for a full circulation of water and, if you're doing it right, the CO2 bubbles will make a three-quarter lap from the diffuser into the Influx in the front of the tank. The bubbles then enter the filter and are subsequently re-injected back into the tank.
CO2 should be set to one bubble per second if you have twenty-seven watts of light. Pump in more and you'll see your fauna act weird after six hours of light.
One might have good experience by placing the Influx right next to the Efflux in the back rear corner, but I can't as my Hairgrass chokes the Influx due to it's dense growth.

By doing it this way, I've eliminated all visible algae from this tank with no scrapings at all.


----------



## ZooTycoonMaster

Ugly Genius said:


> (Basically you want the CO2 bubbles -- which must be _super_ small so clean your diffuser often -- to shoot straight sideways the moment they are pumped into the water column.)


But if you place the diffuser lower, then it'll give the bubbles more time to diffuse in the water


----------



## Ugly Genius

That's true, *Zoo*. However, the goal of doing it this way is to keep the bubbles in the outflow and, consequently, in the water colum. And seeing as how the outflow is about an inch and a half wide, by minimizing the CO2 bubble spread by keeping it right under the outflow, all bubbles are picked up in the outflow and flushed across the tank. Have it lower, and some bubbles miss the outflow and float to the surface.

Think of the diffuser as a shotgun. At a distance, the shotgun pellets spread outwards the further from the barrel of the gun they travel. At close range, however, the pellets are still grouped compactly.

So I guess you can call this "shotgun diffusing."


----------



## Craigthor

Ugly Genius said:


> That's true, *Zoo*. However, the goal of doing it this way is to keep the bubbles in the outflow and, consequently, in the water colum. And seeing as how the outflow is about an inch and a half wide, by minimizing the CO2 bubble spread by keeping it right under the outflow, all bubbles are picked up in the outflow and flushed across the tank. Have it lower, and some bubbles miss the outflow and float to the surface.
> 
> Think of the diffuser as a shotgun. At a distance, the shotgun pellets spread outwards the further from the barrel of the gun they travel. At close range, however, the pellets are still grouped compactly.
> 
> So I guess you can call this "shotgun diffusing."


 
Also I found I get the same results with the Diffuser directly across the tank fomr the Outflow.

Craig


----------



## Ugly Genius

*Craig*, and that would be called "sharpshooting diffusing".


----------



## Ugly Genius

Or "diffuser sniping."

Yeah, I like that one better.


----------



## Craigthor

Ugly Genius said:


> Or "diffuser sniping."
> 
> Yeah, I like that one better.


Sounds good-

Hope your around Saturday. Delivery should be either before noon or before 3pm. I'll forward the info once its in the system.

Craig


----------



## Ugly Genius

I woke this morning anticipating a major trim of Source. Two coffee'd myself up, rolled up my sleeves and prepared for a couple of hours of trimming.

A couple of hours ended up being twenty minutes. I didn't have as much trimming to do as I thought I would. Or, more likely, I chickened out of doing the major trimming that this tank needs as it's so densely planted that pulling up one stem usually brings about four other plants along with it and the last thing I want is a tank full of floating plants.



































One thing I noticed this morning that there is a very long line of Glosso running all the way through the back of the tank. I had always thought it was contained to the front left corner. Life finds a way, I guess.


----------



## Craigthor

Looks good. How tall is your Mini Sword now? Also LMK when the plants arrive I tossed in a couple of extras. Rotala 'Macrandra' and Micranthemum Umbrosum also with the Lindernia

Craig


----------



## CL

Ugly Genius said:


>


Nice job becoming a supporting member 
What's up with your anubias in there. The leaves are all crinkley 
Oh, and what is that thing on the blyxa that looks like a string of pearls? The tank looks awesome!


----------



## Ugly Genius

The mini's about two inches at it's tallest. Which is odd, because it maxes at an inch in Riven and Quasi.

Whoa, *Craig*. Timely. Not two minutes after I read your post did the postman ring. Thanks for all the plants! They got here nice and healthy.
The Lindernia is going to look awesome in Source.
I'll send out the Rotala tomorrow. 

What was I talking about--? Oh, yeah, the Mini Microsword. Everything grows really, really tall in Source. I don't know why. In all of my other tanks, the stuff grows really short.


----------



## Ugly Genius

*cl*, thanks. I honestly didn't notice the crinkly leaves until you pointed it out. I've checked all my tanks, and all the Anubias' tend to have that look. Either it's a nutrient deficiency consistent in all my tanks or it's a characteristic of this particular plant. (All my Anubias come from the same parent plant.)

That's actually an Erio and those are Nerite eggs. The one drawback to having Nerites is that they leave their graffito in the form of those things everywhere.


----------



## Ugly Genius

And something I also didn't notice until you pointed it out, *cl*, the Erio _does_ look like Blyxa in that photo, huh? The texture's very similar. But, that is an Erio. It's supposed to be "mini" but in true Source fashion, it's growing big.


----------



## ZooTycoonMaster

Woah that E. Tennelus looks awesome! Almost like UG (the plant)


----------



## Ugly Genius

Thanks, *Zoo*. It's growing pretty nicely now. Truthfully, I like it a lot more than UG.


----------



## thief

Hey UG,

Thank you soooo much for the plants. I have great expectations with them. They came friday and they are planted too. I tied the MP to a rock and layed it on top of a branch in my Mini M. The Ug you sent was beautiful! I hope I 
get it to live in my 60-P as it looks the same as when it arrived like it's been trapped in packaging for days.

The tank is looking awesome. lol I had the same thing happen with my glosso in my Mini M. I pulled it all out and turned out to be over a foot long!!!


----------



## Ugly Genius

You're welcome, *thief*. I'm glad it got there okay and you're able to use it.


----------



## Ugly Genius

Sometimes I refrain from posting photos in my journals lest I look more like a loser than I actually am.
Then I'll go snap some pictures of my plants pearling and think, "Man, I've just _got_ to post these 'cause the pearling's off-the-friggin'-hook" and I realize that I'm actually an even bigger loser than I was afraid of looking like in the first place.









_But you gotta admit that if your ferns are sweating like they're in a sauna,
that's at least a little bit cool._









_And snapping a shot right as an O2 it about to be released is not loserish.
Right--? I mean, come on. That's pretty cool. Right--? Kinda--?_​


----------



## Francis Xavier

pearling is pretty sweet. I'd like to put some plants in my new scapes that pearl, my last setup in the 30L didn't really pearl all that much, was mostly stems and anubias though.


----------



## Craigthor

Francis Xavier said:


> pearling is pretty sweet. I'd like to put some plants in my new scapes that pearl, my last setup in the 30L didn't really pearl all that much, was mostly stems and anubias though.


 
Did I hear something about a Pearling competition? 


































































Oh my bad it was the Curling Competition... :icon_redf I'm done hijacking again.

Looks good UG.

Craig


----------



## Francis Xavier

oh great secrets of right light intervals and co2 distribution, I shall solve ye mysteries one day.


----------



## infopimp

Can I play the dorky pearling photos game too? The tiny bit of riccia I bought from AFA is going nuts in my ADA 45C... (DIY CO2)


----------



## Ugly Genius

*Craig*'s pearling is crazy! Good job, man.

*X*, you'll get pearling. Just add too much CO2, just enough light, heavy breathers and your little guys'll frost themselves to the point that it looks like you just took them out of the freezer. (And don't forget, pearling is not the end-all/be-all of planted tanks. It's just hella cool.)

*pimp*, those last two shots are beautiful. Is that Mini Riccia?


----------



## Ugly Genius

I don't think that any of you have been able to see the dark portion under the driftwood as my camera can't penetrate the shadows. So today I used an additional lamp to try to shine some light on that portion.








Actually, now that I look at it, it's still dark. Hmmm.

I guess my point is that there's nothing there anyway.


----------



## Ugly Genius

I'm trying to keep my love alive for this tank.








While I'm proud of it and all, at the same time, it's boring the crap outta me. 

It obviously needs a trim and that may help with the boredom aspect.

Speaking of which, UG is a very literally a weed in this tank. A little bit snuck in on my Mini Pellia when setting it up and I just spent fifteen minutes pulling out a handful of it from all around. It was growing in the MP and HG. Tons of it. I didn't even get it all out. I don't know what it is with this plant, but it grows like gangbusters for me.
Must be the initials.


----------



## CL

UG, this is one of your best tanks ever. well done


----------



## boltp777

beautiful tank one of my favorite minis the riccia pearling is so crazy looking! its like a professional photo that when i first got into planted tanks i use to see riccia pearling pictures but those are the best i have seen so far great job =)


----------



## Kayen

I wouldn't get bored of a tank like that ...
But then you have some amazing tanks, and mine are all poo, so that maybe why.
Keep it up UG. Go game it out or something, keep your mind from rotting.


----------



## ming30g

amazing riccia pearling! does riccia tend to pearl more than other plants?


----------



## Craigthor

whack it all back and see how it goes... Or do what I did and do 2 complete rescapes in a week.


----------



## Francis Xavier

I think my favorite thing about watching tanks evolve is seeing the reflection of their creators personality in them.


----------



## Ugly Genius

Thanks, *cl*.

Thanks, *bolt*! But those Riccia shots are from *infopimp*'s. (I took my Riccia out months ago.) I'm sure info says thank you, though.

Thanks, *kayen*. I think I should define my boredom so as to not seem unappreciative of this tank; I _do_ like it and think it's pretty. What bores me is that this tank is so densely planted, so thick with growth, that I cannot add or subtract to it without uprooting quite a bit of well-established plant systems. The rear of the tank is choked with HG, Mini Java Fern, Glosso, and Bolbitis. It's almost a solid wall of foliage. So I'm unable to really create in this tank now. It's a kid going off to college. I've done my part shaping it, now's it's on it's own. Sure, I pay for it's tuition and spending money (i.e. water changes), but the direction it now goes is it's own.
And I get my ya-yas off on the creative side of this hobby. To me it's an art.

*ming*, yes, Riccia pearls quite readily. I wouldn't say it pearls more than other plants, it's just that when it does, it's much prettier and more apparent.

*Craig*, yeah, on a non-workout day this week after work, I'll get elbow-deep in the trimming. I think that will help with my boredom. I'm already thinking of putting a Bronze Crypt where I removed the Special Fern. (And I have off this Wednesday -- I'm maxed out on vacation time (I know, good problem to have) -- so I might do it then.

*X*, so you're telling me that I'm overgrown and boring... [Insert a winking smiley here to show that I'm kidding; unless you're serious. In which case, insert the red smiley that's burning to indicate whatever it is that that smiley indicates. Profound anger? And then insert another winking smiley to show that I was kidding about the burning smiley as I understand what you were saying. Unless you _did_ mean that I'm overgrown and boring, in which case...aww forget it. The joke got old four smileys ago.]

I played with the ISO on my camera. Bumped it up to 400. Usually I use 100. This made the photos brighter, but as *cl* mentioned in another thread, it makes them a bit more grainy.
But that doesn't matter today as I wanted to show you that my Special Fern is recovering from the shrimp feast. New leaves are forming and the shrimp seem to be leaving it alone.









_Look in the center. That one's untouched.
The ones to it's left and right, however...see what my shrimp did to an eighteen dollar plant?!
They leave them alone in Quasi, though. Dunno why._









_She's preggers! If she successfully hatches these things, I'll be the happiest planted tanker ever.
FYI, that stuff she's eating is what the "Jelly Bolt Algae" looks like before it gets big._









_No reason. Just because a bubble's on the Lawn Marsh Pennywort. Love this plant. I really do._​


----------



## Ugly Genius

I've decided that I'm going to let the Glosso and Mini Microsword intermingle. I think it looks really good that way. Right now it's still a fifty/fifty split.








I'll keep the Glosso trimmed so as to allow the Mini Microsword to be the dominating carpet plant, but I feel that it will add character to the lawn to have both going.









_I think Microsword may just be one of_ the _most beautiful carpet plants.
Of course, it makes you work for it because it grows super slow._









_You can't really tell here, but the CBS is on a Narrow Leaf Java Fern.
I put it in last week so as to contrast in shape to the Mini Java Ferns that dominate this 'scape.
I'll be adding more Bolbitis as well._​


----------



## CL

that mini microsword growth is awesome!


----------



## ZooTycoonMaster

Ugly Genius said:


>


Is that an A-S grade CBS in the above-center?:icon_eek:

What's your water parameters in this tank?


----------



## Ugly Genius

Thanks, *cl*. It doesn't feel like it's great growth, but looking back over the older shots of it, I guess it has grown pretty well.

*Zoo*, nah, I doubt it. I think he's just photogenic. I got him for four bucks down the street. (I will say this that Aquatic Central on Ocean Avenue in San Francisco has the best shrimp selection in the city. More varieties than anywhere else. That's where I got that guy.)
And what are "wha, tur, pur, am, meaters"? (Just kidding. I haven't the slightest clue what my parameters are.)


----------



## Ugly Genius

I added some Rotala "Pearl" and Bolbitis that I bought today from AFA. The plants were meant for Quasi-Wabi, but as the thing's so small, I put the extras in here.


















_This specimine of Bolbitis is particularly healthy. It looks plastic up close. Love it._​


----------



## lookin_around

I have to say, Source seems like it is coming along nicely. Looks like you've got some crazy amounts of pearling going on in there. I guess my favorite part about it is just how healthy all the plants look. Whatever you are doing seems to be working quite well. Now I'm going to go give my Blyxa a menacing stare in hope that it will grow a little faster.


----------



## Ugly Genius

Thanks, *lookin*! Source is doing well and the plants are quite healthy. However, there is a bit of hair algae compliments of AFA. I loathe hair algae. Once it gets a foothold, it's a friggin' pain to get rid of. Besides that, though, the tank's doing fine. The plants are growing great and they pearl about two hours after lights on.








Speaking of plant growth. Growth is so much that I can no longer have my diffuser in the back. The Mini Java Ferns and Hairgrass were blocking a lot of the CO2 distribution. So I moved it to the front-right corner. I'll try this for a few days and see what I see. See--?








The Rotala "Pearl" is a really pretty plant upon which I'd like to center a future 'scape.









_I really like this photo.
(NOTE: When I say, "I like this photo," I don't mean it in a ooh-look-at-me! I-take-pretty-pictures kind-of-way.
I'm more surprised than anyone when a picture comes out nice.
Think of it more of me saying, "Holy crap! Can you believe I just made that shot?!" 
after making a hook shot from the far end of the court with my eyes closed.
During a windstorm. Drunk. And while being repeatedly punched in the face.)_​


----------



## garuf

Do you know what I'd do with this tank? Show off all the time. That and change the glosso out for more microsword. OR change all the glosso and microsword out for some hairgrass, cause let's face facts hairgrass is lovely and it'd suit this scape so much better, especially in sense of scale.
Not that I'm bitter because I only have one tank running and it's effectively a bucket...


----------



## Ugly Genius

Thanks, *garuf*. The mixed carpet bother me, too, from time to time. That said, somewhere along the line, this tank stopped being one that I used to express and hard- and plant-scape, and instead used to express my love for certain plants.
With the exception of the Downoi and the Erio, all plants in here are my absolute favorites.

But I can't really talk about that now. I'm still feeling melancholy. Torn. Confused. Sad. Relieved. And pensive. The last episode of _Battlestar Galactica_ was on last night. 
Overall, it was a good end to an incredible series, but there are things that left me unsatisfied. 
For me the _Star Wars_ movies proved to be a let-down with the inclusion of the first three episodes; the _Matrix_ trilogy was brilliant; and BG is somewhere in between. Closer to _The Matrix_ than SW, though.


----------



## CL

Wow, UG, it looks great! Don't worry about showing it off, you've earned it


----------



## Francis Xavier

That bolbitis reminds me of some algae I had once that enjoyed pearling and destroying pretty things. That particular kind of algae was like...well, Galactus. It even looked like the incarnation of Galactus from the second fantastic four movie.


----------



## Ugly Genius

Thanks, *cl*!

The Bolbitis, *X*, is super-cool looking up close. It must have been from one of AFA's display tanks as it's health is phenomenal. 

Since moving my diffuser to the front-right corner, things are going well. Looks like a blizzard in the tank with all the bubbles, though.


----------



## Craigthor

Looks great UG! I love the blizzard look.


----------



## Ugly Genius

Thanks, *Craig*. So far the diffuser in front has been working.

This tank's going to be trimmed this week sometime. I know I said that last week, but this week I mean it. Until then, things are going well. I'm still in love with Rotala "Pearl" and Bolbitis is the love of my life. I adore this plant. I cannot believe I went this long without one. In it's prime, it's unbeatable.









_I'm noticing that all of my FTSs are crooked._









_Rotala "Pearl", Pearl bubble, and CBS._









_A neat shot_









_Mini Pellia sweating and a bit of the hair algae I'm dealing with.
I've come to call excessive pearling "sweating". Because that's what it looks like to me.
There's pearling, which is rad, and then there's sweating which is hella rad._









_Bolbitis makes the tank look mysterious._​


----------



## Kayen

Every time i look at your tank i have the need *or* want to fill my car up with some *gas* ... or *m*aybe even attempt something half as n*ic*e. 
Oh yeah that's a ninja shrimp i didn't even see if for awhile. 
And you're doing all this with chopsticks.
You sir, should be a chef of epic proportions.


----------



## @[email protected]

the "rotala pearl" looks like a rotala mini type II to me. i have one and it looks just like that. 

tank looks great UG!
btw, i LOVE the mini pellia.


----------



## Ugly Genius

*Kayen*, very clever!

I'll look that plant up and compare it to what I have. And thanks, *@[email protected]*!

Source got color!



































Anyone know what this plant's called? I forgot. Something "Magenta".


----------



## ZooTycoonMaster

So I assume the filter return blows the CO2 bubbles around?


----------



## Ugly Genius

I'm not certain how many bubbles get spat back out, *Zoo*. The majority of the bubbles you see floating in the above photo are directly from the diffuser on the right of the tank. The flow's cranked way up on the 2232, so the current is quite strong in here.


----------



## CL

Wow, UG!
Oh, and can't you just use a still image of your avatar? I know, it's not the same, but IMO it's better than the typewriter


----------



## @[email protected]

rotala magenta?
aka rotala macrandra narrow leaf?
it has the right sturcture, but the coloration is off, it is more purple, where as it is usually bright red.


----------



## Ugly Genius

I'll check the tank next time I'm at AFA to see what the plant's name is, *marko*. I can't recall if it was a Rotala. I just remember the Magenta part.

I still haven't trimmed this tank, despite my firmest and most sincere desire to. I think it's because I really have no idea where to start. When a tank grows this dense, it's overwhelming. At the same time, if I want to keep this tank in health, I have to trim lest the density of plants choke the flow of water.

















Hair algae's still a problem in here, but I seem to have done away with it in Riven Impact, so I'm hoping the same goes on here.


----------



## J.T. in Tennessee

very cool!


----------



## Ugly Genius

Thanks, *J.T.*.

Okay, I trimmed it.












































It still needs detail work, but that takes hours, and I was mainly concerned with flow and light for tonight. Now the tank's got both back.


----------



## bsmith

What is the light you are using and where did you get it? Im tired of my single office lamp with a spiral pc in it.


----------



## Ugly Genius

Hey, *bsmith*. It's the OttLite Plant Growth Lamp. I got mine at Home Depot, but they've since stopped carrying them. Search around for this lamp or Ott's Task Lamp; they're the same thing.
These lamps are perfect for the Mini-S and Mini-M. I'd wager they're better than the ADA Solar in terms of evenness of light spread and maneuverability. Don't pay more than thirty. They can be found from time to time for twenty bones at fabric stores.


----------



## bsmith

Awesome. I think it looks perfect. Ill have to digg aroung and see what I get. Thanks.

I think 2 of these would really look nice. I just need to find them somewhere.


----------



## thief

OMG this tank has grown so much. I have mistaken it to be a 30g tank!!! So big! Wow! I love that reddish plant really goes well with your green background.


----------



## Outlawboss

thief said:


> OMG this tank has grown so much. I have mistaken it to be a 30g tank!!! So big! Wow! I love that reddish plant really goes well with your green background.


I'm with you Thief, that red plant is freakin' awesome. Is it some sort of ludwiga?


----------



## Ugly Genius

Thanks, *thief* and *Outlaw*.
I worked a bit of OT today, so tomorrow I'll be leaving early. If I have time I'll swing by AFA to get a name on that plant.
Here's a couple of closer shots I just took.


----------



## CL

It might be a hygro...?


----------



## mizu-chan

I wish I could live inside of your tank. It looks absolutely amazing UG. You have really brought a whole new beauty to smaller tanks.


----------



## Ugly Genius

YES! 
Dudes! 
Finally!
I found my first ever -- ever! -- CRS fry!
As some of you may know, I've been spectacularly unlucky with CRS. Keeping them alive has been a challenge, let alone breeding the suckers.
Well I did my daily check on the preggers CRS and preggers CBS in Source and the CRS no longer had her eggs. (It seemed like she was preggers forever.) I then used an LED flashlight to try to see if they had hatched. After about five minutes of searching, I found one. It's super small -- too small to photograph -- but I did see it.
Because this came after a lot of effort, heartbreak, and perseverance, this feels really, really good.
I now have to try to raise these to adults, but I'm basking in this glow of this accomplishment for now.
Holla back at your boy!


----------



## ZooTycoonMaster

I know how you feel. I've found 2 before...but I think they all died


----------



## Outlawboss

Nicely done! I've never tried to raise CRS (until now), but I remember my first time with RCS and it felt SO good to see the little guys grow up and make babies of their own. Way to go dude!


----------



## Ugly Genius

Thanks, *Zoo* and *Outlaw*. Yeah, I'm pretty jacked about all that.

Okay, they are Rotala "Magenta". At least that what the writing on the tank at AFA says. These were grown under fairly hight light, hence the deeper red.

AFA just got some cool Do! aqua cubes. They're twenty-five centimeters per side and rather than the curved edges like Quasi-Wabi, these are straight. Basically, it's a cube. Quite nice.


----------



## legomaniac89

That's the nicest looking Magenta I've ever seen, and wicked pearling too!



Ugly Genius said:


> AFA just got some cool Do! aqua cubes. They're twenty-five centimeters per side and rather than the curved edges like Quasi-Wabi, these are straight. Basically, it's a cube. Quite nice.


Soooo...you gonna pick one up? What's one more nano?


----------



## Dollface

The red totally makes the tank pop, man. Usually when people try and cram so much stuff into such a tiny tank, it just looks cluttered, but Source is a pretty spectacular exception to the rule.


----------



## Ugly Genius

Thanks, *lego*. It is growing quite pretty. I can't take credit, though. They came from AFA that way.
I can take credit for the pearling to the extent that it is _I_, Ugly Genius, who turns the lights and CO2 on every morning!

I was very close to getting one of those new cubes, lego. 
As I reached for it, however, I saw a Mini-L sitting on the floor. 
The Mini-Ls have been calling to me for a long time now. Me owning one is fait accompli at this point, I think. Probably this weekend I'll pick one up with some substrate. 
I'll then spend the following few paychecks picking up the odds and ends for it. Hardscape, filter, lights, plants, and fish. 
It's name is already chosen: ADA Mini-L: Inevitability. 
This will be my most autobiographical tank to date. (I'm just playing. I thought it would be a funny thing to say. It is.)

Thanks, *Dollface*. There are seventeen to twenty species of plants in here. I think if you go back to page one of this thing, my idea what to have less than a handful in a simple, low-maintenance tank. What did you learn about Ugly tonight? His page one intentions don't amount to anything.


----------



## ZooTycoonMaster

ugly genius said:


> afa just got some cool do! Aqua cubes. They're twenty-five centimeters per side and rather than the curved edges like quasi-wabi, these are straight. Basically, it's a cube. Quite nice.


Aaah so tempting. But I have no space to put it


----------



## Ugly Genius

So much talk about plants and shrimp and tanks and _Battlestar Galactica_, I haven't shown what matters most.









_Zooey_

&









_Franny._​
We just got back from a long walk and they are _finally_ tired. Now I can play video games without playing fetch at the same time.


----------



## Ugly Genius

This post means more to me than it probably does to you, but I finally got a photo (albeit a bad one) of a CRS fry.

As it's a bit difficult to make out the little guy amidst all the plants, I've added subtly-placed visual aids to the photo in order to help you identify the little guy.









_Yay me!_​


----------



## ZooTycoonMaster

Lucky...but you have no fish in the tank:redface:

What's that place called that you said had the cheapest CRS?


----------



## Outlawboss

<--- is thankful for the visual aids. Way to go dude!


----------



## bsmith

Check this out. I just bought them!


----------



## CL

bsmith782 said:


> Check this out. I just bought them!


those look slick! :thumbsup:


----------



## Ugly Genius

*bsmith*, those lights are nice! I saw them in your journal and they look really cool as you have them.

I can't believe I haven't posted in here in over a week! Source is due for a trim tomorrow, so I'll post photos then. Right now, it looks pretty much the same, only very overgrown and hair algae's still there.
I haven't been able to locate any baby CRS so they either died or are playing a very long, involved game of hide and seek and I'm "it".


----------



## trigun808

i always love to look at your tanks and read your comments! 
entertaining and yea awesome
keep it up!


----------



## Ugly Genius

Thanks, *tri*.

Today I started to trim Source and got to the point where I was f--- it, I'm just going to rescape; it's easier. It seemed impossible to whip the tank back into shape. Growth in the back is off-the-charts crazy. It's _thick_ back there. A solid wall of Hairgrass and Java Fern. It's to the point that it's blocking the flow of a 2232!
I also pulled of a handful of Mini Pellia (a handful of Mini Pellia is a lot of Mini Pellia) from the driftwood and right now, only the dead stuff at the surface of the wood remains. There's enough green to have it grow back, but seeing it like that made my heart break.
During this period of being overwhelmed by it all, I calmed myself and said, "Dude, don't try to fix the tank in one day. Break this job down into manageable tasks and do as many of them as you can with the time and enrgy that you have."
So I did. I just focused on one square inch by one square inch. Soon the impulse to rip the tank apart was replaced with confidence that it can be brought back.
I trimmed a quarter of the tank today.









_This is the only part I could trim today.
Even still, it took about half an hour to do just that much.
Tons of detail work are required with a tank like Source._​
I've still got three-quarters of the tank to go.









_The left-hand quarter is going to be a b---- to trim.
Solid plant mass back there._​


----------



## Francis Xavier

Haha, that reminds me of when I looked at my HM patch in the corner. Holy crap those plants that are blocked by hardscape seem to explode. Those roots stretch to next year and are in such a dense mat I'm not sure how the shrimp and oto's crawl in between it.


----------



## fish_fasinated

I'm speachless, its just so good!


----------



## boltp777

You are the mini master!


----------



## Ugly Genius

Thanks, *fish* and *bolt*. I appreciate that.

Source still isn't trimmed.
I'd blame it on laziness and be done with the excuses right there, but, quite frankly, I'm not really a lazy person when it comes to planted tanks.
I'd chalk it up to being overwhelmed, but it's not that either.

I think it's N and K.

You see, there's an algae problem in Source. Been there for a while. Hair algae, mostly.
Now, I don't subscribe to the idea that: _x_ nutrient deficiency = _y_ algae type.
I'm more of: any imbalance = any given algae. 
I don't believe that it can be narrowed down with much more accuracy than that.
But that's just me.

So, with hair algae on everything and some disintegrating leaves on the Rotala "Magenta", I've gotten it in my head that this tank need N and/or P. So this weekend I'll start dosing N and P.

Anyway, here's Source untrimmed and with a bit of hair algae.









_It's a lot uglier up close.
Too vain to show you that, though._​


----------



## CL

Holy cow (that seems to be my phrase lately lol)
Those plants are *thick*


----------



## Ugly Genius

You have no idea, *cl*. You know when you hear about people having huge credit card debt and they say, "I don't know how it happened. We just kept using our cards and soon we were up to our necks in debt."
It's like that.
Only with plant growth.


----------



## legomaniac89

Nice analogy UG 

You might want to invest in a nice set of hedge clippers to take care of those plants. I don't think your normal scissors are gonna cut it (no pun intended). 

Still, even in overgrowth, Source looks awesome


----------



## Ugly Genius

Thanks, *lego*!

Yesterday I started dosing ADA's Brighty Special Lights. Special Lights contains Nitrogen, Phosphorous and Potassium. (I like it because it's blue!) I'm hoping this will help bring the tank back into balance. I figure that once I get the hair algae under control, I might be more inclined to trim the tank in earnest.


----------



## Craigthor

*UG* You still using the ADA Advanced system? I have something you might like to use...

Brighty Lights is good stuff. I also dose Brighty K in my tank also. After a heavy trim/ replant I dose Brighty Shade instead for a couple of days as to not over do the NPK levels.

Also dose Flourish Iron as the HC seems to love the stuff.

Craig


----------



## thief

Hmm I have a questions about how to use the Brightly K series.

I have nearly every kind of bottle of Brightly K ( Brightly K, BnK Shade, Bnk Lights, BnK Step 1, BnK step 2, and BnK step 3. I got them all for free but I have never used them yet. Since you two know what they are I guess it is safe to ask how to incorporate them into my 60-P and Mini M's. 

UG I've been at the stage your at. Remember this:










Went to this:










lol I had huge Staghorn, Hair and spot algae problems!


----------



## Craigthor

Here is the bit I know:

Step 1- Traces small amounts of Mircos Usually used for the first 3 months or so

Step 2- Lager amounts of above used after the initial 3 or so months up to I think 9-12 months

Step 3- Even more plus I think Iron and stuff the substrate may be slightly depleted on. 9-12 months and on.

Brighty K- Extra Potassium

Brighty Shade- Low levels of NPK

Brighty Lights- High Levels of NPK

Multi-Bottom all around substrate fertilizer

Iron Bottom extra dose of Iron for the substrate

Thats what I got for ya... You can semd them to me if you don't want to use them though...


----------



## Craigthor

Oh yeah the Special Lights, Shade and K are used when you aren't having huge algae outbreaks is when they are recommended. Also the first 3-4 weeks after initial Aqua Soil use you don't need anything but Step 1 a couple times a week as the substrate is leaching alot out.

Craig


----------



## nickcamp12345

absolutely amazing. 0_o


----------



## CL

Dang, was there any room for water in there? haha  It's unbelievable how much those plants grew. :thumbsup:


----------



## Ugly Genius

It's time. Today, starting soon_ish_, Source will be torn down.
The new hardscape materials and AS are on my counter ready for their placement. I've already begun the painstaking task for removing shrimp after shrimp and transporting them to Riven Impact and Quasi-Wabi.

Source's new layout will be something all together different.

First off, I'm starting it emersed. I don't plan on filling the tank for a full two months. The carpet will be Mini Microsword.

Secondly, the hardscape will be, quite literally, a pile of Yamaya stones with a piece of wood sticking out of it. The stones are small -- the average size about two inches across.
I don't want a hardscape that is permanent. I want the ability to change it for reasons of maintenance and aesthetics as the situation dictates. Having a pile of stones allows for this. Even the driftwood will be removable.

The third difference with the new 'scape is that I will not be sloping the substrate. I've found that the illusion of a sloped substrate is only apparent in the first two months of a tank's life. Once the plants grow in thick, the illusion is severely reduced, but the pain in the buttedness of keeping it sloped still remains. (It's my belief that in a few years, most of us will no longer be sloping our substrate.)

The fourth difference is that I will be choosing plants that can adapt to low and high light. I want this tank to be able to speed and slow growth depending on my life schedule.

I'm still deciding on the plants to use besides Mini Microsword and Mini Pellia. I'm considering the use of Dwarf Hairgrass between the cracks of the Yamaya stones, but this is as far as I've gotten.

Source was a good tank and in it's prime, it was my favorite, but it said what it had to say and now it's time to take a chance and say something new.


----------



## CL

I am looking forward to seeing the new scape


----------



## Ugly Genius

Thanks, *cl*. Source is now dead. I just removed all the shrimp, plants, hardscape, and water. Amazonia Power feels delicious when you put your hand in it after the tank's been drained. Like a mud bath or something.


----------



## Kayen

All i can say is nooooooooooooo!
Hopefully you'll be able to recaptivate the magic of Source.
Hmm look forward to your next scape, and i'll agree with you on the mudbath part, my setup is emeresed growing plants till i can find my hands on ADA aquasoil ( can't get any up here =/ , at this point and time, tried contracting supplier - no reply ).
Also in response ot the shipping plants up here - that = no.


----------



## Craigthor

Awaiting pics.... Can't wait to see what you can do with the Mini Microsword. I would love t ofind a large chunk of it to play with. I've got ideas for my next scape already just need to finish the plans out and track down the goods.

Craig


----------



## Francis Xavier

I'm totally with you on the rescape. I find that when you make a good layout it lasts til a little bit after you trump it with a new layout/tank and then it's time to do the tank justice and set the bar up higher than before.


----------



## Ugly Genius

I had an idea way back when to have driftwood hang _into_ the tank; much like the roots and branches of trees on riverbanks do.








I'm going to attach the driftwood to the metal hooks that come with ADA tanks. This will make the piece removable for maintenance.

I'm still playing around with the rocks, but since this thing is going to be emersed, I may just plant the entire substrate now and pull the Mini Microsword out in the areas I'll be adding rocks. (Another plus for not sloping the substrate! Hardscape can be added easily even after the carpet's grown in.)


----------



## ClPat

Well, it's too bad for source, but ít's better not to look back too much. Instead let's acknowledge the fact that a new masterpiece is in a making (ie. long hours spent in front of my own tank saying: "why can't you be like that?" lol)
I really hope we'll have more pics by tonight, I'll be waiting


----------



## Craigthor

smokin' idea UG! Just remember shrimp are likely to climb out of the tnak that way also if you put them back in. Wish I was at AFA I want some new scaping stones to play with.

Craig


----------



## Ugly Genius

Thanks, *Pat*.

Good point about the shrimp, *Craig*. Another option is for me to use fishing line to hang the driftwood. I'll see as the project progresses.

This is a rough facsimile of what I'll be starting with. I'm leaving the tank wide open this time around so as to leave room to change and grow as the tank matures. In the past, I tried too hard to have my hardscape say what the entire aquascape (hardscape + plants + fauna) could say better as a unified whole.

The wood looks a lot to me like a flying elephant.


























The left open area will be all Mini Microsword. In the rocky area, I will either fill in the gaps with small stones covered with Mini Pellia, stems of some sort, or a combination thereof.
I've yet do decide what, if anything, to attach to the driftwood.


----------



## ddtran46

It does look like a flying elephant!! lol


----------



## CL

What a unique idea! That is so creative! Very very cool! lol. This has tons and tons of potential! I really like it 
Oh, and just a note, if you are just going with short plants, I would at least do a _little_ bit of slope to give it more depth. It really does help


----------



## oldpunk78

wow, this is pretty cool. tell me that you didn't have the idea until you found that particular piece of drift wood(...cause it's the perfect piece for it, lol). i am looking forward to seeing this in couple of months.


----------



## Dollface

Don't even bother with a hardscape! go dutch! Doo iittt! you know you want to!


----------



## ClPat

Nice start, should be original, and originality is what sets a tank apart from others. Yours have always been outstanding, but this should be a novelty!


----------



## @[email protected]

those are some really nice (and original) ideas, ug. :thumbsup:


----------



## Ugly Genius

ddtran46 said:


> It does look like a flying elephant!! lol


Don't it, *ddtran*? I actually love that it looks like an elephant. I'll probably be attaching a Flame Moss to it, but I'm going to try to do it in a way that does not diminish the elephantishishness of it.



clwatkins10 said:


> What a unique idea! That is so creative! Very very cool! lol. This has tons and tons of potential! I really like it
> Oh, and just a note, if you are just going with short plants, I would at least do a _little_ bit of slope to give it more depth. It really does help


Thanks, *cl*. You're right about the slope, but since this tank's built for tinkering, I think it's best to keep it flat.



oldpunk78 said:


> wow, this is pretty cool. tell me that you didn't have the idea until you found that particular piece of drift wood(...cause it's the perfect piece for it, lol). i am looking forward to seeing this in couple of months.


Hey, *oldpunk*. Actually, I had this idea quite a while back. I envisioned a curved piece of dw, though; one that could be mounted next to the tank and would bend into it. This would give the entire tank a presence, kind-of-thing. This pice was originally going to be a treescape, but the piece didn't look right that way. This 'scape came sort of by frustration and from remembrance.



Dollface said:


> Don't even bother with a hardscape! go dutch! Doo iittt! you know you want to!


Dutch next time. Promise.



ClPat said:


> Nice start, should be original, and originality is what sets a tank apart from others. Yours have always been outstanding, but this should be a novelty!


Thanks, *Pat*!



@[email protected] said:


> those are some really nice (and original) ideas, ug. :thumbsup:


Thanks, *@[email protected]*!

Whimsical. That's the best way to describe what I'm going for in this 'scape. An elephant jumping a rock. 
Since I'm doing this dry start, I'll have plenty of time to add accent rocks to the right of the main rock later. For now, however, I like using only one rock. It highlights the driftwood technique that I'm calling "swooping". When a piece of driftwood is angled into from outside the tank, that's a swoop.








I'm torn. I know in my heart of hearts that HC will look best in this 'scape, but I really want another carpet of Mini Microsword.
Sucks when what you want and what you need are two totally different things.


----------



## ZooTycoonMaster

You should put some moss on the "body" of the elephant to make it appear more...plump like a real one


----------



## Francis Xavier

ADA Mini-M: Source Dumbo


----------



## Ugly Genius

Finished the painstaking process of planting blade after blade of Mini Microsword.

Before I go too far down, dry starting a tank is simply saturating the substrate and covering it with Saran Wrap, right? I just have to periodically mist the substrate, but nothing else, correct? Lemme know.

Anyway, here's the photos.

Oh, funny thing, I just noticed that the rock looks like a dog. So I'll have an elephant jumping over a dog!



























_The Dog_


----------



## Francis Xavier

yeah, you just keep everything moist UG. Most of the problems that come about during the process is a result of one section of the tank being higher than another, so the high section dries out / drains to the lower section, so you mist the top and more water keeps building up that needs siphoning. But since your substrate is level you shouldn't have this problem.


----------



## @[email protected]

you can get some really cheap hygrometers in petco. you may want to get one and put it on the rock (so you dont have to stick it on), and just use that to keep the humidity above 90% so your plants do really good.


----------



## oldpunk78

i see a dog and a bunny (i saw the rabbit 1st though).

how tall does the mini microsword get?


----------



## Ugly Genius

Thanks, *X*. That makes me feel like maybe this will work for me.
I think what I fear is simply that the Mini Microsword will die. I suck at growing things out of water. This is a huge leap of faith for me as Mini Microsword is expensive, rare, and the best of the stuff that I had.
On the plus side, I realized last night that going dry start allows me to crank up the lights without worrying about algae. I'm tipping three OttLites onto this tank -- as of yet unrenamed -- for a total of thirty-nine watts.

Thanks, *@[email protected]*. I look for one of those the next time I'm in a pet store. You've got quite a bit of experience with terrariums, don't you? Lemme ask you, or anyone else, something. The Mini Microsword was grown submersed. Should I expect it's blades to die as it changes over to emersed form? 

Hey, *oldpunk*. It averages about an inch, inch and a half, maybe. However, I've seen it grow to as high as two inches, though. If it's got no competition for light, it tends to stay low; it grows high when there are stems around. (I think it has a height complex.)
And now that you mention the rabbit, I do see it. Where the dog is looking at the camera, the rabbit is looking off to the right. Like those chocolate Easter rabbits Granny used to give me. Hey, why doesn't she give me those anymore?


----------



## legomaniac89

ADA Mini-M: Fido

Lol it took me a minute of squinting but the dog jumped out at me. If it's like most other plants, the Microsword will probably lose its leaves and grow new emersed leaves as it converts over. But I have zero experience with the Mini Microsword, so this is just a total guess for me.


----------



## Ugly Genius

Thanks, *lego*. Guess we'll all learn with this process. How about ADA Mini-M: The Elephant jumps the Dog?

I've decided that in addition to the Mini Microsword and Mini Pellia, I'll use the Special Fern. I've got it growing in a non-shrimp tank and it looks phenomenal unchewed on. I'll use this tank as a showcase for the awesomeness that is Special Fern unchewed. (Maybe that'll be the name of this tank: ADA Mini-M: Unchewed.)
This means:
No shrimp this time around.
I know. I know.
I assure you: it is me. It is Ugly saying that he will have a tank with no shrimp.

Maybe.


----------



## Ugly Genius

Dry start method is boring. I'll tell you that much right now. The benefits of it -- no algae, no water changes, a fishless cycle, et cetera -- are also what make it so mind-numbingly dull. To make matters worse, you can't even see into the tank on account of the condensation.

Look:







It's not too unlike sitting in your car as you wait for it to warm up on a cold winter morning while parked in front of a field of grass with a big rock that looks like a dog/bunny staring at you.
And your radio's broken.

Despite this, I'm glad I'm at least trying the dry start method. I've read that folks in Asia have been doing the dry start method for years. I wonder what other tricks they're hiding from us?

I added a couple of blades of the Japanese Dwarf Hairgrass as well. I like the way that Hairgrass looks with Microsword.

Pretty soon I'm going to plant the driftwood and start growing it out in another tank. I'll show you guys some close-up photos of the diftwood soon. It's got some cool features -- a nook and a hole -- that only people on a planted tank forum would appreciate.


----------



## bsmith

So when you do eventually fill it up will there be an ammonia party going on in there?


----------



## Ugly Genius

I don't know, *smith*. People say that the beneficial bacteria will be in sufficient numbers from the rave party going on right now in the saturated Aqua Soil. I'll find out when I fill it in six to eight more weeks. (Seems like forever.)


----------



## Francis Xavier

No, the aquasoil will leech ammonia into the water present and that will be enough for a cycle to present itself. After a sufficient amount of time you can just fill it up and add fish, etc to it just fine. I used this method on my Mini S with no ill effect.


----------



## ldk59

UG, I agree with you on the "Boring" comment. 

I planted HC in my Mini-M last weekend and now it's
just *yawn* sitting there... 

According to Mr. Barr if we are patient and wait about
5-6 weeks before flooding there will be no cycle ect.
to deal with...

Question is... Can we wait? 

Sure we can...

Can't we?

....

Larry


----------



## ClPat

Hang in there, just think of how cool it'll be when you fill it up!!! BTW shouldn't that slow microsword grow faster emerse. I'm probably gonna be hating my tanks...


----------



## FrostyNYC

A few things in response to several things you said during the last two months or so:

1. hair algae: I added 3 SAE to my tank the other day to combat some nasty hair algae that got into my flame moss and some BB algae that was growing on my needle-leaf java fern. (Both plants came with algae already on them... lovely). Anywho, the SAE wiped out the algae within days. I wish I could keep an SAE in a jar somewhere to whip out whenever my tank needs a little cleanup, and then put it back in the jar in the closet or wherever until I need it again.

2. Battlestar Galactica is amazing. I just finished watching the first season on DVD. I heard it gets worse as it goes on, though. 

3. Your tank is beautiful. Well, was. Emersed growth is frustrating. I truly dig that rock you have in your tank, but the driftwood thing is kind of strange. I suppose doing something that no one has really done before is part of the art of this hobby. Whatever happens, I'm sure it'll be great. And btw, Im glad you went with the mini microsword. Are you using the same substrate as before, or did you add fresh AS?


----------



## Ugly Genius

Francis Xavier said:


> No, the aquasoil will leech ammonia into the water present and that will be enough for a cycle to present itself. After a sufficient amount of time you can just fill it up and add fish, etc to it just fine. I used this method on my Mini S with no ill effect.


Thanks, *X*. That's good to know.



ldk59 said:


> UG, I agree with you on the "Boring" comment.
> 
> I planted HC in my Mini-M last weekend and now it's
> just *yawn* sitting there...
> 
> According to Mr. Barr if we are patient and wait about
> 5-6 weeks before flooding there will be no cycle ect.
> to deal with...
> 
> Question is... Can we wait?
> 
> Sure we can...
> 
> Can't we?
> 
> ....
> 
> Larry


I'll hold my end of the line if you do, *Larry*. DSSG. Dry Start Support Group.



ClPat said:


> Hang in there, just think of how cool it'll be when you fill it up!!! BTW shouldn't that slow microsword grow faster emerse. Everythings gonna be fine, and I'm gonna be hating my tanks...


Hey, *Pat*. I don't know if it'll grow any faster this way. I heard that growth is comparable both ways, but we'll see.



FrostyNYC said:


> A few things in response to several things you said during the last two months or so:
> 
> 1. hair algae: I added 3 SAE to my tank the other day to combat some nasty hair algae that got into my flame moss and some BB algae that was growing on my needle-leaf java fern. (Both plants came with algae already on them... lovely). Anywho, the SAE wiped out the algae within days. I wish I could keep an SAE in a jar somewhere to whip out whenever my tank needs a little cleanup, and then put it back in the jar in the closet or wherever until I need it again.
> 
> 2. Battlestar Galactica is amazing. I just finished watching the first season on DVD. I heard it gets worse as it goes on, though.
> 
> 3. Your tank is beautiful. Well, was. Emersed growth is frustrating. I truly dig that rock you have in your tank, but the driftwood thing is kind of strange. I suppose doing something that no one has really done before is part of the art of this hobby. Whatever happens, I'm sure it'll be great. And btw, Im glad you went with the mini microsword. Are you using the same substrate as before, or did you add fresh AS?


If I had a bigger holding tank, I'd get an SAE in a second, *Frosty*. I too wish that I could use it only when needed and put it away in a jar when I was done. They should have rent-a-fish.
_Battlestar Galactica_ is a great series. The end of the second season when Adama does something with the Galactica and the Vipers and the FTL drive is _the_ best spaceship fight scene ever. EVER! I almost cried. I don't want to say anything about the other seasons, but watch them. They are very good. The new series, _Caprica_, kinda sucks though. At least the pilot did.
I'm using new Aqua Soil in this incarnation. I'm glad I went the Mini Microsword route, too. I saw an Amano iwagumi that he did with just Mini Microsword and it is beautiful. (This isn't a good photo, but on the last page of this .pdf, they show the tank. For those with the _Nature Aquarium Book, 2008 Concepts ad Products_, it's "Nature Aquarium Gallery 7".)


----------



## blair

_I feel your pain_. I've been dry-starting a 40 gallon for 2.5 weeks. I finally gave up and filled it. Not because this method wasn't working well (it sure was!) but because I have a time frame for a good deal on some superb livestock I don't want to pass me by. I need to get it filled and tested ASAP and have maybe 1 week to get my parameters safe to justify the order.

The condensation does suck, but hang in there. Your level substrate will really make this work well. Mine was sloped considerably and I was spraying and siphoning about three times daily; quite annoying! :/


----------



## Ugly Genius

You made it two and a half weeks, *blair*. That's pretty good. And a good deal on livestock is a good deal on livestock.

Just a while ago I noticed new growth on some of the clumps of Mini Microsword. Cool because, one, this means it's not dying, and, two, it's growing.
There is a certain peace of mind that comes from the DSM. The temptation to prematurely stock the tank with shrimp and fish is not there as there is no water. (I learned fairly early on that fish and shrimp do not fair well out of water.) 
Also, the ability to crank up the lights and not worry at all about algae is a HUGE plus. I would never pour forty watts on a Mini-M filled with water no matter how much CO2 I was pumping in, but here I can do it with nary a worry. The fact that I don't have to worry about algae at all for the six week emersed period is also super cool.
I like the idea, too, that the cycle is being jump started beneath the substrate line.
It these things that I'm hoping will keep me motivated to make it five and a half more weeks without filling this thing.


----------



## Kayen

You can do it UG!
I'm at 2 months now ?
Going on 3?
If you count the 2.5g - 5 going on 6 .
Also planning to rescape my tank soon so wait another month.

You can put up with it ;p.


----------



## Ugly Genius

I'm going to try my best, *kayen*. If you see me starting to slip, I give all of you full permission to hold an U.G.I.D.S.I. (pronounced ugly duzey): Ugly Genius Dry-Start Intervention.

Question, I've read that it's not good to dose CO2 into a dry-start tank as it can asphyxiate the bacteria cycling, but would it be harmful to place a small bowl (two inch diameter) of sugar, yeast, and baking soda on top of the rock and let it pump a small amount of CO2 into the tank that way? Would it even be benefitial?


----------



## ClPat

I guess trying couldn't hurt. The worst that could happen is that the tank doesn't cycle right away, but you'd have a well-established carpet, that's gotta beat a newly planted non-cycled tank, right? Besides, why would the bacteria die? The death by CO2 would occur if there was no O2, but the plants will produce some. And a 2 inch container isn't much, For all we know, plant breathing at night could produce more than that.
Edit: I just remembered some fully closed ecosystems I did for a school project, one with added CO2 , one without and within three weeks, the results of adding CO2 were phenomenal. We also had a "pool" in the ecosystem with guppies in, no cycling problems. So all that boring experience-sharing just to say I'd give it a try


----------



## joonho

I dont recommend the small bowl of yeast and sugar. I tried that before; i guess it evaporated. Everything got covered in nasty goo so i had to restart it. lol


----------



## 691175002

The reason why you might not want to add CO2 to the dry tank is because it is heavier than air and will displace all the other gasses.

I would not recommend it even if you were willing to kill the bacteria; plants need oxygen for cellular respiration and the atmosphere has far more CO2 than water. There is a reason why greenhouses etc don't inject CO2. It just doesn't help when you are not submerged.

Now, if you wanted to play them some classical music or hardcore metal...


----------



## Ugly Genius

Thanks for the input, *Pat*, *joon*, and *69*. I ended up not going the CO2 route. My reason was because the rock couldn't support the container without tipping over. Your advice just cemented the fact that I shouldn't do it.

As there's nothing to do but literally watch the grass grow in Source, I set up a bowl to keep me occupied.

















Just some Parva and HM. Low light stuff that grows slow. Lit by an LED, no filter, no heater, and water changes must be done with a syringe. Seriously. A syringe.


----------



## Ugly Genius

Nine days into my dry-start. Mini Microsword does grow quicker emersed. This is a relative term because submersed it grows super-_duper_ slow and even "slow" is faster than "super-duper" slow. But it is faster and there are no algae problems to speak of so I should count my blessings. (Unlike Elements which is pissing me off big time! Four types of algae in there.)









_I don't know if it helps, but I've been periodically dosing K onto the substrate._









_The B.A.D.: The Bowl Attention Diverson_​


----------



## bsmith

I like the bowl. Do you have the Ott plant bulbs in your fixtures?


----------



## Ugly Genius

Thanks, *smith*. I think there might be one plant bulb in one of the fixtures, the rest are 10,000k. Lemme check. Yeah, there's one plant bulb, and two 10,000k bulbs.

The tank was set up on May tenth. It's now May twenty-second. That's...lemme do the math...twelve days.

On day one...








On day twelve...








Day one...








Day twelve...








There are about four blades that are dying, but so far the die-off has been minimal. New growth started after about a week. I'd estimate that I might have to wait the full two months before I can fill the tank with a reasonably well-established carpet of Mini Microsword.








I'm really digging dry-start now. Seriously. Sure it's boring, but there are zero worries. No algae. No fauna. No problems. No need to fuss over CO2 levels and light can be poured with reckless abandon. It really is a good way to start a tank.
For those on the fence about whether or not to try dry-start, consider me one of the people beckoning from the dry-start side of it. It _is_ greener here.
If you're like me, you're worried that you're the one person whose carpet will dry out and die.
Unnecessary.
Keep the tank covered with Saran Wrap and drop occasional handfuls of water and you'll be fine.

Yesterday, I got the driftwood started. I tied Taiwan Moss to it and am letting it simmer in my shrimp tank. I've had limited success with keeping any type of moss attached to wood/rock, so if it's not holding after three weeks, I'll Crazy Glue Mini Pellia to the driftwood.

And that's that.


----------



## Alastair

Ugly Genius said:


>


Tunze magnets..

I wouldn't be surprised if you couldn't cantilever that whole branch off one or two of the Tunze powerhead magnets if you embedded them in the end of the branch. And it would still be removable for maintenance.


----------



## Ugly Genius

I'll check those out, *Alastair*. Thanks for the tip.
Right now the wood is held in place with two rubber bands for friction placed on two fulcrum branches and an OttLite as a counterweight.


----------



## ClPat

So Ugly, how are things going? Hope it's filling in nicely


----------



## Ugly Genius

Things are coming along, *Pat*. Thanks for asking. I've decided to eventually Crazy Glue Mini Pellia to the top of the rock. I'll do that right before I fill the tank, though; another month and a half away.
As this tank takes shape in my mind's eye, I see that at the substrate level, it's an iwagumi. However, rather than three or more odd-numbered stones, I will have only one. 
Additionally, I plan to have Taiwan Moss, Staurogyne, and Special Fern (wabi-kusa) growing on the driftwood suspended from above. Ideally, I'd like the Special Fern to breach the water's surface and grow there, but that's quite difficult to do with an open top so close to the lights.

I started dosing Green Brighty Step 1 and Green Bacter, in addition to Brighty K every other day. Seems to be helping.


----------



## CL

Hey UG, you might want to lower that water level just a little bit. IME it helps


----------



## Ugly Genius

I've been trying to do that by leaving it open for a bit *cl*, but I chicken out when I start to see the blades dry off.
What's the harm in having the substrate saturated to the point that it is in this tank? (That is not a rhetorical/sarcastic question; I really _do_ want to know as I've read that pools of water in an emersed setup can be harmful but never learned why. Do you know?)


----------



## Kayen

If you leave little pockets of water, BGA can form, and that isn't fun.
Hasn't happened to me personally.
I left my saran wrap open by accident, and my anubias looks pretty out of it right now, but it's starting to bounce back.
Just keep the wraps over the tank and keep it up with the misting, no problems should happen.


----------



## CL

Get some airline tubing and siphon the water off. Don't leave that tank uncovered for too long


----------



## Ugly Genius

Thanks, guys. I took some of the water out, but I can't take much more out with airline tubing without swallowing a bit of Aqua Soil. I'll just keep the wrap off every now and again to allow some of the condensation to evaporate.
Looking at the carpet up close while draining the water, I noticed that the Microsword is really starting to throw out new blades. Exciting stuff in a watching-the-grass-grow kind-of-way.


----------



## Ugly Genius

The three photos were taken at twelve hour intervals. I took them to monitor the rate of growth of Mini Microsword.

The blade observed can be seen in the center of the reflection of the camera lens on the glass beneath the substrate. 

(A courtesy: Tell you what...I'll add an arrow to point it out.)









_May 24th, 21:00_









_May 25th, 09:00_









_May 25th, 21:00_​
As you can see, growth is happening, albeit very slowly.

As you can also see, this photo shoot was a phenomenal waste of time.


----------



## fish_fasinated

interesting new scape. should be nice.


----------



## Karackle

I love the flying elephant and the whole idea of a branch hanging into the water instead of coming out of it. Very cool. That piece of wood was made to hang into that tank, look how well it rests there!  

Can't wait to see this progress, in the mean time, nice little bowl setup you have there!


----------



## quicktap

Looking great, UG.

You're making it very difficult for me to resist the impulse to pick up another ADA tank; I've got a mini-M and 30-C in my cart at Aqua-Forest right now.

-qt


----------



## Ugly Genius

Thanks, *fish*!

Thanks, *Karackle*! Yeah, I'm excited to see how the wood turns out. It's either be really great, or really not great. Nothing ventured, nothing gained, though, right?

So...? Did you, *qt*?

During a Saran Wrap change, I placed the driftwood in it's position and snapped a photo.








I found some kick-ass rocks at the bonsai store in Japantown today. These were eight bucks! For all of them!

















I think I'll get a Do!aqua Mini-M and do a permanently emersed setup.


----------



## legomaniac89

Ugly Genius said:


> I think I'll get a Do!aqua Mini-M and do a permanently emersed setup.


Welcome to the dark side. You gonna do a journal for that too? I'd love to see an emersed setup with that hardscape.


----------



## Ugly Genius

Hey, *lego*. Yeah, I'll probably start a journal. I was _this_ close to getting a Do!aqua tank today, but I wasn't sure if the Mini-S sized one or the Mini-M sized one would match the rocks. Mini-M, for sure.
I'm running out of room for tanks, but I don't watch all that much TV and it _is_ sitting on an awfully large cabinet...


----------



## CL

I so wish we had bonsai stores around here. They always have good rocks.
That will be an awesome set-up


----------



## quicktap

UG, I bought Ott lites, filter... now I need to figure out where the tank is going.

Then, I'll have to somehow summon the patience to try the emersed start.

-qt


----------



## Ugly Genius

Like quitting smoking, the first week is the worst, *qt*. Emersed gets easier as it dawns on you that you haven't done a single WC, used up any CO2, and have no algae. (If you put stickers of fish and shrimp on the glass, it even looks filled. Win/win, if you ask me!)


----------



## Ugly Genius

Oops. *cl*, missed your post. Sorry. You know, I always go into that store, but I never thought to check their rocks. The lady also has some cool gravel from Japan that I might try.
To think, it's only a block away from AFA. And, I saw one of the guys who works at AFA there with his girl on his day off. Said he was checking to see if they had any cool stuff.


----------



## CL

Sorry to get off topics, but do you keep bonsai?


----------



## Ugly Genius

I go off topic all the time. So go off topic as you like, *cl*.
I don't keep bonsai. 
I had one back in college, but it died. 
I had one in the office but it died.
I love looking at them, though. I think they're beautiful.

And, to further accentuate my earlier point, watch this.
The Wolverine demo was pretty good. I might pick that game up.
See--? I go off topic like it's going out of style. It's what make conversations fun.


----------



## ClPat

I see the tank's growing well, great. Go for the permanently emerse do!aqua tank! I'm starting a nano terrarium using the principles of aquascaping and I'd love to see how you do yours (read: I'd love to steal your ideas!-AhAh jk)


----------



## Ugly Genius

Thanks, *Pat*.
Speaking of which...












































This is just a mock up. The actual hardscape may differ. 
I'll be doing this one slow. 
I'm starting with UG grown emersed for two months. After two months I'll decide if I want to go permanently so, or fill it.

Ignore that flower thing in the back. I have no idea what that is.


----------



## legomaniac89

Suh-weet! I love that rock scape you got going. The entire time I was scrolling through the pictures, I was thinking "what the heck is that flower in the back?" Now I see :hihi:


----------



## ZooTycoonMaster

Ugly Genius said:


> Thanks, *Pat*.
> Speaking of which...
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> ​


Holy crap...I swear I thought that was a giant worm:hihi:

See...the "mouth opening" is the dark spot on the bottom, and the lines on top look like squinty eyes


----------



## CL

You did it! Hopefully the cement at the bottom won't make the water really hard. I think that if you soak it in vineagar for a while, the lime in the cement will dissolve, and your water should be fine. Maybe keeping the tank emersed for a while will do the trick as well. Man those rocks are sweet!


----------



## ddtran46

wow. Love the rock scape!!


----------



## CL

ddtran46 said:


> wow. Love the rock scape!!


Yeah, "instant scape!" :thumbsup:
doesn't get much better than that


----------



## Kayen

That is a wicked rockscape.
Though keeping that emersed won't be quite as easy because of the slope.


----------



## CL

Maybe you can get your ug to flower!


----------



## JadeIceGreen

Hey UG,

I spent my entire yesterday reading through all 41 pages and it was a great read. Good scape with superb writing really made my day. 

Looking forward to all your future journals! 
Now I am off to read your Mini S, Mini L (I love that hardscape) and Do!Aqua journals..

And for those who are ADA lovers have not gotten the 2009 catalog yet, get it, it awesome. Get the Do!Aqua one as well! If you spend more than 1000 yen at ADA Online Store, you get another 2009 catalog free. I have my third one on the way as I type. =)


----------



## Craigthor

Looking good UG how are you holding up with the emersed game?


----------



## Ugly Genius

Thanks, *Jade*. That means a lot.
I saw the new catalog. It _is_ really good. Tons of good and useful information. Stuff like the bps for a given tank size, substrate depth, and all that great stuff. AFA's yet to get them in, though.

Hey, *Craig*. Emersed rocks! It's easy and growth is quick. No water changes, no CO2. It _is_ as good as people say.

Here's a shot from May 23rd:








Here's one taken just now:








For Mini Microsword, that growth is phenomenal. It took me months to get that kind of growth in Source submersed. Emersed did that in ten days!
I've still got about five weeks to go, and I think it'll be well on it's way towards being fully carpeted by the time I fill the tank.
Another plus of the dry-start method is the anticipation you get from knowing that you'll eventually fill the tank. In a way, it's like a rescape without the rescape.

I can't snap a good picture, but there are two Special Ferns growing emersed in the shade of the rock. I will eventually tie them to the driftwood and/or attach them to the rock along with some Mini Pellia.


----------



## CL

Wow! Great growth! That mini microsword is awesome


----------



## ldk59

UG, that growth is phenomenal... wish mine would follow suit.
(maybe I'll show it a pic of yours) :icon_lol: 

In fact, I was so disenchanted with my HC growth that I added
Echinodorus tenellus micro red to the mix.

Ok, enough hijacking from the old guy.... 

Source continues to impress :thumbsup:

Larry


----------



## Ugly Genius

Thanks, *cl*!

*ldk59*, HC's a tricky plant; have no doubt about that. In many ways, it's the worst plant to start with. Glosso is much easier. HC, you see, plays on our insecurities. Due to the fact that it often times takes a bit -- sometimes quite a bit -- of time to acclimate to a tank, we start to fret that we've done something wrong, or aren't doing enough, or the tank's balance is out of whack. 
In Riven Impact, it took _forever_ to start spreading, but if you look at that tank's photos now, you'll see that it threatens to overwhelm the Glosso, DHG, and even the Mini Pellia.
Also, one must take into consideration -- pardon the intentional-because-it's-apt pun -- source of the plant in question. This Mini Microsword came from Source where it was given ideal light, CO2, and nutrients. It was from this environment that it went emersed within a couple of hours. Meaning, it probably had energy reserves to call upon during the transition period.
If you or anyone is planting a plant that was shipped to them, it probably does not have the same inertia that this Mini Microsword had.
Just you watch my Do!aqua Mini-M journal. I'll wager that the growth of UG -- a very fast growing plant by most accounts -- will be considerably slower than the slow-growing Mini Microsword here as the UG came from a tank with terrible conditions.
What I'm trying to say is, it happens to all of us.
It just means we have high standards.
And are impatient.
Probably more of the latter.


----------



## KentCurtis

About to order my mini M in the coming weeks and was wondering if you could shed some light on your dosing UG? I scoured through but couldn't find if you mentioned it. Im dosing dry ferts mixed into a solution in a milk jug for my 20g at the moment, but was interested to see how you scaled it down into dosing the mini m? Thanks! PS - that HC in my tank is looking up!


----------



## Ugly Genius

*Kent*, before you even think about dosing ferts into the water column, make certain you have a nutrient rich substrate like Amazonia. It gives you a _huge_ margin of error in dosing the WC. In a tank like the Mini-M, this benefit is magnified as the water volume is significantly less than, say, your twenty gallon where the nutrients can be proportionately diluted.
That said, I usually dose only K for the first three weeks in the form of a pump and a half of Brighty K daily.
After three weeks, I start with the micros in the form of a pump and a half of Green Brighty Step 1 daily.
After about two months, if I have a lot of fast-growers in the tank like I did in Source, I'll dose nitrate and phosphate in the form of a pump and a half of Green Brighty Special Lights.
After three months, I pretty much eye ball it as all the rules written on the internet do not apply to my tanks' plant mass and they must rely on me to guess what they need, how much, and how often.
I know you were probably hoping for ppm levels and such, but I don't test my water all that much. I dose by watching plant growth and algae.
The most important thing you can do is get a good substrate. You can get away with dosing below the optimum levels for quite a while. This will give you time to learn a Mini-M's balance.
Good choice, by the way. Of all of my tanks, the Mini-M size is my favorite.
And good job on the HC! I knew you could do it. Don't give up!


----------



## KentCurtis

Thanks! My 20g's substrate is Eco-Complete just because I could get it locally. I look forward to using Amazonia and trying it out. I am thinking I am going to stay away from the ADA liquid ferts for the moment, just because of the initial setup cost. Ill see what the fert calc and I can come up with as far as the dry ferts I already have goes. Thanks again


----------



## Ugly Genius

Here are more comparison shots. The first taken the day of setup, the second just now.


----------



## JadeIceGreen

That is easily the best emersed growth I have seen.. Better than Tom Barr's I dare say. Looking forward to an awesome m. microsword carpet!


----------



## thestranger66

I have that stuff in my tank now. Once it gets a solid root base it really does a nice job in creatig a nice carpet throughout the tank. 

UG, a few weeks ago i tried trimming my java moss (i think it is java moss), and i found that all of the sprigs did not float to the top, but instead slowly sank towards the bottom in between my mini microsword carpet. Now because they have such a simple vascular system, they are growing well but in between my microsword making a mess! Do you have any tips on how to trim mosses? 

Thanks, Thestranger66


----------



## Ugly Genius

Thanks, *Jade*! Growth's been a lot quicker than I expected, I'll say that much.

*stranger*, when I trim moss, I do so very slowly as it is, as you're seeing, an opportunistic grower. I just cut one sprig at a time and hold it with my other hand when doing so. Mosses and Mini Pellia don't do well with the mowing that we do with HC and Glosso as they tend to sink, hide, and then explode.
This is the reason I've chosen to put Taiwan Moss on the driftwood on this tank. When it comes time to trimming it, I can simply remove the wood from the rim of the tank and trim it outside. (Hear that--? That was the sound of me patting myself on my own back.)
An aside:
I was trying to remember your tanks, *stranger*, so I clicked on your sig links and realized that my Elements tank looks remarkably similar to a mock-up I did for you in your thread. Even the DW looks similar!


----------



## thestranger66

Alright, i guess i am going to have to start trimming my moss like that... 

I should post some new pictures of the tank though for you to see, it has really grown in quite a bit.


----------



## JadeIceGreen

I don't know why I didn't read your post earlier about your fert regime, most informative for all Mini M users as with information like that, we can compare and learn from each other.

For my Iwagumi Mini M that is completely covered by glosso, dwarf hairgrass & vivipara, I daily dose 4ml brightly K, 5ml step 2, 2ml seachem excel with a twice weekly dose of 2ml seachem iron. (can't afford ECA at the moment, heh)

I don't know why but everytime I dose brightly lights, I get algae even in small amounts. With the above dosage, I get zero algae.

Any other ADA fert users have any thoughts on this?


----------



## Ugly Genius

Time goes by quickly and slowly.
Twenty-seven days into the emersed growth.
Meaning, thirty-three more days to go until I fill this tank.
My main focus is to have the substrate ninety to ninety-five percent covered prior to filling it; so it could be longer or shorter depending on how things are going.
The way things are looking, it should be right around thirty-three days. Maybe a week over. I very much doubt it'll be less than thirty-three days, though. 
I suppose I could speed things up by pouring another OttLite onto the tank, but oddly enough, I'm content to wait this one out even if it takes longer. (There's a gentle satisfaction from growing things emersed. I'd imagine it's the way grandparents feel. All the love for the grandkids [metaphorically, the plants] with none of the stress [metaphorically, the algae, water changes, CO2, dosing, et cetera] of raising them. You just shower them with kisses [metaphorically, water spritzes laced with ferts] and watch them grow.)



























_The Special Ferns are just a contingency plant.
In the event I feel a plant scape of Mini Microsword, Taiwan Moss, and Mini Pellia is too dull,
I'll find a place to put the ferns.
It's also an experiment in growing them emersed._








Yesterday I ordered a Eheim 2213 that I'll be using on this tank. The 2232 that I previously used on Source will be used on UGgumi. (2232's, I've found, have gentler flow than 2213's.)

So far, based on feeling, this may prove to be my favorite tank. 
It'll be simple, but artistically, it's the one that I feel best reflects (justly or not) my recently-found confidence and subsequent intentional breaking of the standard aquascaping rules and venturing off on my own.
While I'm not doing anything earth-shattering here, I'm impressed with myself in that when I laid down the bones for this tank, I did not think for one moment that I should not do this or that as it's not in line with the current dictates of layout composition.
Just do me a favor, if you see me start to 'scape with figurines of Dora the Explorer or G.I. Joe action figures, reel me back in, whuddya?


----------



## legomaniac89

Ugly Genius said:


> Just do me a favor, if you see me start to 'scape with figurines of Dora the Explorer or G.I. Joe action figures, reel me back in, whuddya?


I don't know...a Vietnamese jungle-themed tank with G.I. Joes hiding in the plants would be pretty sweet.

Source's lookin good. That Mini Microsword grows so much faster out of water than in. By the way, out of total curiosity, what's the Latin name of the Mini Microsword. Is it a _Lilaeopsis_?


----------



## Ugly Genius

*lego*, when you put it that way, it _does_ sound cool.
Mini Microsword is Lilaeopsis nova 'mini'. It does grow _a lot_ quicker out of water. It's a no-brainer to grow it this way initially. It took over twice as long to grow this much submersed.

Zoo's not thirsty. He loves fish tanks. He'd be there for hours if I didn't nag him to go out and get a job.









_I don't have the heart to tell him that there are no fish in there._​


----------



## Tex Gal

LOVE that px of Zoo. He's so cute. Wonder what his little brain is thinking?


----------



## Ugly Genius

Thanks, *Tex*. Who knows what the little guy's thinking. Whatever it is, he loves thinking it. 
Sometimes, I set up tanks for him on the floor. He then will stare down into the tank watching the fish swim about. He never goes after them, just looks. And after a _long_ time staring down his nose at the tank, you'll see a small drop of nose stuff drip from his nostril and into the tank creating a ripple across the water's surface. It's the most disgusting and cute thing I've ever seen. 
Zoo Nose Ferts® "What your fish _really_ need."


----------



## JadeIceGreen

Ugly Genius said:


> t's the most disgusting and cute thing I've ever seen. Zoo Nose Ferts® "What your fish _really_ need."


:icon_eek: LOL.. 

That is really great growth UG! Looking forward to the day when the tank is filled. :thumbsup:


----------



## Ugly Genius

Thanks, *Jade*!

My posts as of late must be boring the crap out of a lot of you; I'm not posting boring photo after boring photo just to do so.
I use my journals for reference for myself, too. Later on, these photos will help me gauge growth in this tank and, possibly, future tanks.
So don't think I'm posting photos of what looks exactly like the photos posted two days ago just to spite you. I'm doing it for plant nerdom.


----------



## Ugly Genius

2213 got here today. Love these filters!
I'm thinking of jump-starting the biological filter in this as I wait the final month before filling the tank.
I'm thinking of adding some ammonia and a bottle of Tetra Safestart and let it simmer for a few weeks.
Is this advisable? Or is it unnecessary. Or is there a better way? (I'd like to refrain from seeding this filter with bacteria from one of my other tanks as I'd like to see how well this dry-start method worked without possible contamination from another, pardon the pun, source.)


----------



## Francis Xavier

It should be unnecessary (due to the biological filter basis growing in your substrate now, and the plant density upon filling up, ammonia shouldn't be a problem for any species you could responsibly put in a Mini-M). However should you do so (I assume you'd use a bucket or something for the filter to cycle through and not just let the water sit inside the filter, that'd be bad, anaerobic bacteria, and stagnant water, etc), make sure to use unscented ammonia. It needs to be pure ammonia diluted with water and nothing else, so on the back label it should only have whatever percentage of ammonia listed and no other little additives.


----------



## Ugly Genius

Thanks, *X*. You know, you're right. It's largely unnecessary so I'll probably just forgo the filter seeding and let the bacteria that's already living in the substrate do it's thing. There's a time when you can micromanage too much, and that would have been such an instance.

Inspired -- and more than a little intimidated -- by 691175002's wonderful DIY thread, the hyper-competitive side of me felt compelled to kick up the DIYness of this thread by showing you a DIY project I've been working on for several months now.
Rather than focusing on something so unimportant as lighting, glass pipes, or some such irrelevancies, I've chosen to focus on a planted tank's most important piece of equipment: tubing.
In particular, curled tubing.
Curled tubing plagues all of our tanks. The main problem with it is that it's not straight.
This sucks.
When it's manufactured, by in this case Eheim, it's immediately rolled so as to be easily stored and transported.
This convenience then becomes the bane of our existence; followed only by algae outbreaks as the worst thing in a planted tank. 
How many planted tankers have left the hobby because of curled tubing--?
Trillions, probably.
After a countless number of prototypes and four patents, I've devised the cure-all to curled tubing.









_This took four months to develop.
Worth every moment of that.
And don't be hating because of my fresh rocking horse and log
from eight Christmases ago that never got put away._​
A five pound weight, a chopstick, and a rubber band. How's _that_ for DIY?
Yeah, I thought so.


----------



## Francis Xavier

UG, I'm totally thinking of when I move to make one of the Iwagumi tanks viewable from both front and back.


----------



## JadeIceGreen

You totally cured curved hoses for good!! We really need to get you a patent for that. 
:biggrin:

On another note, that carpet is looking very very good.
roud:


----------



## ddtran46

Ugly Genius said:


> Thanks, *X*. You know, you're right. It's largely unnecessary so I'll probably just forgo the filter seeding and let the bacteria that's already living in the substrate do it's thing. There's a time when you can micromanage too much, and that would have been such an instance.
> 
> Inspired -- and more than a little intimidated -- by 691175002's wonderful DIY thread, the hyper-competitive side of me felt compelled to kick up the DIYness of this thread by showing you a DIY project I've been working on for several months now.
> Rather than focusing on something so unimportant as lighting, glass pipes, or some such irrelevancies, I've chosen to focus on a planted tank's most important piece of equipment: tubing.
> In particular, curled tubing.
> Curled tubing plagues all of our tanks. The main problem with it is that it's not straight.
> This sucks.
> When it's manufactured, by in this case Eheim, it's immediately rolled so as to be easily stored and transported.
> This convenience then becomes the bane of our existence; followed only by algae outbreaks as the worst thing in a planted tank.
> How many planted tankers have left the hobby because of curled tubing--?
> Trillions, probably.
> After a countless number of prototypes and four patents, I've devised the cure-all to curled tubing.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> _This took four months to develop.
> Worth every moment of that.
> And don't be hating because of my fresh rocking horse and log
> from eight Christmases ago that never got put away._​
> A five pound weight, a chopstick, and a rubber band. How's _that_ for DIY?
> Yeah, I thought so.


Hahahaha..This got me cracking up.


----------



## Ugly Genius

*X*, that's a good challenge. I 'scaped Elements to be viewable from four sides. With limited success. The front and sides look good, but the back was quite difficult as the DW is not as pretty from the back and all of my tubing and pipes are back there.

*Jade*, I fixed that tubing good, didn't I?

Thanks, *ddtran*!

I've noticed that the left-hand side of the tank with twenty-six watts of light directly above it is about fifteen percent fuller than the right-hand side which is covered by thirteen watts of light directly above, proving what we all know: higher light speeds plant growth.

With twenty-six more days remaining in my self-assigned two month dry-start, I'm wondering if perhaps I should take a bit longer before I fill the tank. While growth has been great, I do know that Mini Microsword grows very, very slowly submersed, so I might as well take advantage of the optimal CO2 to light conditions inherent in the dry-start method and get it to spread as much as possible before filling it in.

I should note that I've done my dry-start a bit differently than is detailed elsewhere. Where most accounts specify simply saturating the soil to just below the substrate surface, I chose to have water to approximately one millimeter _above_ the substrate. The perceived-benefit to this method has been that there has been no die-off of old submersed growth and all new growth has been, to my untrained eye, submersed as well.
I've had no BGA or fungus by doing it this way. There is a algae on the glass in the millimeter space between the substrate and the water's surface, but this is something I use as a tool to gauge the readiness of the bio-filter. Once it's gone, which it slowly is, I will know that the bio-filter's ready to take on a full tank of water.


----------



## JadeIceGreen

I'll say go ahead and extend this dry-start period. A little more patience at this point in time is going to pay back big time when you fill up a tank full of Mini Microswords. 

There has been a question that I've been wanting to ask...
What has been stopping you from plunging into the 60-P which is scaper's paradise? (according to the great Amano himself as that tank is the most pleasing to the eye and closest in dimensions to the golden ratio) I've found myself yearning for one but the cost of properly setting one up is far greater compared to a Mini M, especially when I've just started working after a 6 month retrenchment.

Have you ever thought of getting a 60-P?


----------



## Ugly Genius

An esoteric question:

For the driftwood that I'll be hanging into the tank, should I use Taiwan Moss or Weeping Moss?

Or is my old stand-by, Mini Pellia, the way to go?

I can't decide.

Let me know your opinions.

*Jade*, I have not considered a 60-P mainly due to initial cost. However, if in a year I'm still in the planted tank game, I would consider doing away with the Mini-S and Mini-L and getting a 60-P.
Right now a 60-P with all the other tanks I have, would be too much work. Already, maintenance is starting to feel like a chore.


----------



## Kayen

Weeping have it hang over, like willow trees.


----------



## Ugly Genius

Thanks, *Kayen*. That was my first idea. My question then is, how well does Weeping Moss hang?
I've seen photos where it droops downwards, but not spectacularly so. Does anyone have any experience with Weeping Moss that they could share.

Off topic, here's my carpet as of just now.









_It's coming along._​


----------



## JadeIceGreen

I love that carpet! Just got to wait for it to thicken up now and there is no stopping it from doing that.

I would say go with MP, moss will require constant trimming as they do grow pretty fast in a high light, CO2 environment. 

Thanks for your opinion about the 60-P. I am tight on cash at the moment so its either I get a Mini M or save up for much longer and get a 60-P, I am still undecided at the moment.


----------



## Outlawboss

I like the whispy/willowy idea that weeping moss offers but like yourself, UG, I have never had experience with it personally. Plus, like JadeIceGreen said, it would grow very quickly in a high light/C02 environment.

If you're willing to do the trims, why not try something new and play with weeping moss. If not, I'd say MP. You can't go wrong with that.


----------



## JadeIceGreen

Can you get fissiden fontanus? Its awesome and will fit what you are looking for.


----------



## CL

crazy awesome, UG!


----------



## Ugly Genius

*Jade* and *Outlaw*, I'm moving away from the moss idea as mosses tend to look nicer in bigger tanks where the additional space can better showcase their beauty without dwarfing the tank.
I love Jade's idea of Fissidens. I have some growing in Elements, so here's what I'll do: the topmost portion will be Mini Pellia; the other, Fissidens. Mini Pellia I _know_ I'll love, so in the event the Fissidens does not work out, I can remove it and let the Mini Pellia have the whole piece.
Color and texture-wise, Mini Pellia matches the best.
Actually, in a stream-of-consciousness outburst, maybe I should just MP the DW. (Only PTers could make sense of "MP the DW." Where "MP" is used as a verb and not a noun.) Might as well have a tank with my two (possibly three) loves: Mini Microsword and Mini Pellia (and Special Fern, possibly).

*cl*, thanks!

The fill date is twenty-three days away. Kinda excited.


----------



## JadeIceGreen

Awwww... do give fissiden a try, just one small branch?
It will surprise you at how nice it looks when it thickens up!


----------



## Ugly Genius

I definitely will, *Jade*.

During a misting session, I put the DW in place to get a feel for what the tank will look like when it's filled.









_FTS._









_Angled._









_Lamp's eye view._









_Because I so love the hook of the DW, I will leave the
"trunk" section bare of plant growth._​


----------



## ClPat

Hi! Waiting to see how your aquascape will turn out is so painful...I don't know how you do it.
The carpet's growing nicely, I can't wait to see the driftwood dresses with moss and mini-pellia.


----------



## Craigthor

*UG* Looking good, I think I may be in for a rescape as I want to go slower gorwing as my tank time is much reduced. Thinking Glosso carpet, Anubias Petite, Mini Pellia. Then again I may jsut do a huge trim on my tank and see how it grows back. HM is looking prety sad though.

Craig


----------



## blair

Amazing! That elephant really is looking good over the dog; great placement. It reminds of some sort of Dr. Suess creation. Oh, and the carpet is stunning... very neat, dark, and clean. Can't wait to see it take the plunge!


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## Ugly Genius

Thanks, *Pat*, *Craig*, and *blair*!

Fifteen days to go until Fill Day.


















_Almost there!_​


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## CL

Wow, That sure is an awesome carpet!


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## blair

Is Mini Microsword anything like the Dwarf variety (aside from size :hihi? I seem to collect debris on my Dwarf Microsword despite pretty good flow... Any special measures you are taking to avoid that tendency or does this variety tend to escape that fate?


----------



## giraffe

No way I could wait to fill it up. Not nearly patient enough.


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## ClPat

Amazing micro sword. So in the end, do you find emerse growth faster than submersed growth? So Fill day is approaching, great!


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## Ugly Genius

*blair*, I have limited experience with other varieties of Microsword, so I can't say if this one is less prone to detritus than others.

After a couple of weeks, *giraffe*, waiting gets easy. You've got no shortage of CO2, you can pour on tons of light to hyper-charge growth, and no algae. At this point, I'm actually dreading the day I fill this tank.

*Pat*, growth is _a lot_ faster emersed. About three times as fast. As of this writing, the substrate of the whole of this tank is about seventy to seventy-five percent filled-in. This is in a little under two months. It took twice as long to grow half as much submersed in the same tank. It's quite remarkable, really. To top it off, it's growing in no more than an inch high.

Nothing new going on. A little less than two weeks away from Fill Day. Excited and scared.
One thing I did realize is that I did something really clever in setting this tank up. By not having stems, not having a slope, and having a removable piece of driftwood, I have made this the easiest tank in which to battle algae. If the worst happens and I get a bad algae outbreak, all I have to do to eradicate it is drain the tank and let it go emersed for a while. There will be no harm done to the hardscape or any other plants. The driftwood can be moved to Elements during that period and I know from my experience so far, that Mini Microsword will take to emersed growth from submersed growth is no die-off.
I may have created the easiest tank to maintain.

Of course now I've just jinxed myself.


----------



## Ugly Genius

I'm eight days out from Fill Day.

I've decided to keep the tank really simple; Mini Pellia on the driftwood, Mini Microsword on the ground. A more-with-less kind-of-thing.


























Starting tomorrow, I'll be cutting back the light from thirty-nine watts to twenty-six -- the light level I'll be using once the tank is filled. I will also stop dosing all ferts in preparation for the fill.

I can't say why, but over the past few weeks, I had a gentle falling out of love with planted tanks. I'd chalk it up to the boredom inherent in the dry-start method, but Elements, Riven Impact, and Quasi-Wabi -- all very much wet -- did nothing for me either.
The fascination they once held simply was not there.
Maybe it was the good weather that saw me outside more often. Maybe it was a case of burnout. Who knows.
In any event, I still do love planted tanks, and I feel the love trickling back as I think about filling Source, so that's good.


----------



## JadeIceGreen

Ugly Genius said:


> I can't say why, but over the past few weeks, I had a gentle falling out of love with planted tanks. I'd chalk it up to the boredom inherent in the dry-start method, but Elements, Riven Impact, and Quasi-Wabi -- all very much wet -- did nothing for me either.
> The fascination they once held simply was not there.
> Maybe it was the good weather that saw me outside more often. Maybe it was a case of burnout. Who knows.
> In any event, I still do love planted tanks, and I feel the love trickling back as I think about filling Source, so that's good.


I think it will happen to anyone who is in any hobby. After a while, things start to seem not as exciting anymore or less interesting. I observed that it tends to hit those with MTS harder.

The only solution that I can think of is to cut down on your tanks and just focus on one. It will mean much less work and effort to still have a splendid aquascape. It will also be much easier on yourself as it will look more like a hobby rather than work with just one tank.

I know you are nowhere near this stage, but you may be at the first step. If it gets worse, just cut back and enjoy the hobby with the least work possible. And then when the rush and passion returns, feel free to turn your entire living room into an ADA gallery! heh..


----------



## Ugly Genius

_Filled it._​


----------



## oldpunk78

full tank shot! the suspense is killing me.


----------



## -kenny-

werd


----------



## Outlawboss

Fan. Tas. Tic.


----------



## Ugly Genius

Sorry for the tease there, *punk*. I had some last minute planting to do on the upper portion of the DW prior to snapping a FTS.

Here she is.









_I may add to the upper portion of the DW as time passes.
For now, I'm going to get a feel for the three plants on it as it's the first time I've worked with them._

















There are eight species of plants in here, believe it or not. Mini Microsword, Japanese Hairgrass, Special Fern, Mini Christmas Moss, Fissidens Geppii, Junermannia Pseudocyclop, Mini Pellia, and Staurgoyne.

Stats remain as they were before. Twenty-six watts via two OttLites, ADA's CO2, and a Eheim -- which is new to this build -- 2213. (Love it. Mini-M + 2213 = Perfect.)

The overall theme I was going for was whimsical and simple. Strong primary green and brown with a dash of grey -- akin to a picture a child would draw in elementary school.
Where all my other tanks were inspired by nature, Amano, and all of your guys' tanks, this one was inspired by two children that live down the street and draw pictures with colored chalk on the sidewalk in front of their house.

This is the graffito of a child, I guess you'd say.

EDIT: I should add that these two children who draw neat pictures in chalk on the sidewalk should _not_ be confused with the children that live two doors down from them. 
Those kids get on my nerves. 
They light firecrackers until twelve o'clock at night, scaring the crap out of Franny, and rob me of sleep. (Zooey's going deaf, so he doesn't care.) When he could hear, though, it scared him, too. Still, it's the principle of it all. 
Firecrackers after ten on July 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 5th, and 6th is rude.

(Did I sound old just there?)


----------



## speedie408

Didn't go thru your entire thread but currently your tank looks like a lush lawn you'd find at a golf course. I like it! The hardscape is quite unusual with the hanging dw but it def works for you.


----------



## Francis Xavier

I've gotta say, I didn't think I'd like it. It's got a stone that by itself looked kind of lonely and had no supporting stones to bring it out, and hanging driftwood from the rim of the tank didn't seem like it would work.

I told myself I'd reserve judgment until it was filled in, and well, what else can I say? I like it.


----------



## @[email protected]

the carpet suits the tank very well.
and i like the rocks, but i have to say that im not too sure about the flying elephant. i know i should think of it as a root, but it just looks too much like dumbo.


----------



## Ugly Genius

Thanks, *Speedie*, *X*, and *@[email protected]*.
Initially, when I first filled it half way, I loved it. The water magnified the grass and made it a brighter hue. Considered myself brilliant.
Then I filled it all the way and stuck the driftwood in and I hated it. Experimentation at the expense of aesthetics, I though. Considered myself an idiot.

Now, after about an hour of having it up, I really like it. I think it may become one of my favs.


----------



## legomaniac89

Ugly Genius said:


> EDIT: I should add that these two children who draw neat pictures in chalk on the sidewalk should _not_ be confused with the children that live two doors down from them.
> Those kids get on my nerves.
> They light firecrackers until twelve o'clock at night, scaring the crap out of Franny, and rob me of sleep. (Zooey's going deaf, so he doesn't care.) When he could hear, though, it scared him, too. Still, it's the principle of it all.
> Firecrackers after ten on July 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 5th, and 6th is rude.
> 
> (Did I sound old just there?)


I feel your pain. My neighbors were shooting off fireworks until 3:30am on the 4th.

And that tank looks awesome. If you added a low rock behind the main one, it would almost look like a dog laying in the grass. How weird would that be? :icon_mrgr


----------



## Outlawboss

Wow, after the FTS I am even more impressed. I'm in love with the DDW (Dumbo-driftwood). It's so awkward looking and thus in my mind, awesome. I don't know what it is that attracts me to it so much. Maybe just because it's different, but yea great job dude it's really cool.

Hey, just out of curiosity where did you find the special fern? I'm assuming that's the common name and a google search is coming up relatively empty (except for your own posts hah!).


----------



## JadeIceGreen

I totally agree that a 2213 with a Mini M = perfecto. And the 2213 comes with a filter basket!

Very nice bubbling lawn..


----------



## Ugly Genius

I still see the dog even without a low rock behind the main one, *lego*. Kind of uncanny, ain't it? When I picked out the rock and the wood, I didn't see an animal in either.

Thanks, *Outlaw*.
The Special Fern is really called Crepidomanes auriculatum. (I've told myself repeatedly to stop calling it Special Fern, but I can't friggin' pronounce it's real name.) I got it at AFA. They have tons and theirs are quite big now -- about six to seven inches. Mine max out at about four inches. They seem to grow faster in low light as mine thrive in shade and don't do as well in direct light. In the absence of the delicious kinds of algae shrimp will eat them -- you'd have to ask a shrimp what kinds of algae are delicious. I'm assuming from personal experience that the ugly algae that plague my tanks from time to time are not the delicious kind.
My idea is to have the right of the main rock all Special Fern. I mean, Crepidomanes auriculatum.

Thanks, *Jade*!

I'd like to call to your attention the Fissidens Geppi.









_Fissidens Geppi_​
It's a Fissidens from Japan, China, and other parts of Asia. It grows on riverbanks and unlike US Fissidens, the frond structure is noticeably stiffer. Not too unlike a terrestrial fern's fronds in terms of stiffness and shape.
Right now it's giving the driftwood a tropical vibe I'm not entirely cool with, but I think when it thickens up, it will go from a tropical to foresty feel.
That's the hope, anyway.

This brings to mind something completely unrelated. I was at AFA the other day talking with the guys. One of them says, "Yeah, I'll have to go home and research this plant to see what it's needs are." The comment was not unlike the ones made by people when they're picking out fish. Only with us plant guys, we actually care about the plants' well-being and would not dream of putting them in a tank that could hurt them.
Heck, sometimes we'll err on the side of the plants' health over our fish.

_You_ know what I mean...

CO2 too much, anyone?

Hmmmm--?


----------



## Tex Gal

I'm loving the Fissidens Geppi & Crepidomanes auriculatum. I may just have to give AFA a call. Last time I ordered from them I spent $70. Oh to have them in my neck of the woods. (Probably would be spending more so it wouldn't be a good idea!)

I'm tearing down my infested 10g shrimp tank. Gonna bleach everything and redo. Had that horrid almost impossible to get rid of Spirogyra algae. I sick of fighting with it. I'm changing the substrate and everything. I wanna do something a little different. Much simpler. I'd like to use these two plants... We'll see....


----------



## Outlawboss

Thanks UG, I'll have to give AF a call and see if I can get my hands on some. I was considering putting it in my soon to be second nano (shrimp farm), but maybe I'll think twice and put it somewhere else now that I know the shrimp consider it a tasty treat. That is a ridiculously hard to pronounce name by the way. A fly on the wall probably got a good laugh at me just trying to sound it out.


----------



## Ugly Genius

The algae's bad, but I need you to look past that. It'll clear in about a three weeks.1








Yesterday, after thinking about this piece of wood for weeks -- weeks! -- I got a fresh (as in "cool" not "newly dead") piece that I was planning to use at a future time.2 When I got home, on a whim, I dropped it in Source and liked what I saw. I tied some Fissidens Nobilis to it and I'm going to let it stay there. I really like the criss-crossing root effect the new piece affords.

While it's hard to tell with all the algae on the elephant piece, I added Weeping Moss. I'm trying to get a swamp-vibe with the hanging strands. Only time will tell if this can be achieved; I've never used Weeping Moss in an aquascape before.

To the right of the dog rock, I added Pearlgrass. I'm going to let it grow out dense and bushy and manicure it so as to fit the contour of the area to the right there.









_The new wood hangs over the side and sits there quite perfectly.
Almost as if it were meant to be._​
__________
1. Never, ever dose anything during dry-start if you are using AS. There's no point and you will get algae when you fill the tank. K's okay, but do not dose micros or nitrate or anything. Just let it grow the old-fashioned way.

2. You know you're lame when you actually think about a piece of driftwood for weeks. Actually, let's not call it lame. Let's call it focused.


----------



## oldpunk78

i like how it looks with the new piece if wood in there. seems like it adds more dimension. 

looking at this scape, you really have two different themes going. for me, it's like i'm seeing an underwater root structure floating above a grassy meadow. (strong underwater and above water perspectives)


----------



## Ugly Genius

Thanks, *punk*. You're absolutely right about the two themes. Especially now as the tank is going from the initial concept -- the bones laid down when I started this thing -- to something that's still unfolding in my mind. (Meaning, even _I_ don't know exactly where it will end up.)

Initially, this tank was to be a proof-of-concept for the driftwood "swoop" -- evidence of how, quite literally, to think outside the box.

The entire hardscape and plantscape -- a simple, low-growing lawn, a focusable number of plant varieties, and a single, simple-yet-interesting stone -- were tailored around the elephant piece to showcase the idea.

Yesterday, however, I decided that I wanted to take this tank beyond a proof-of-concept and make it a bonefide aquascape.

That said, it's fairly likely that this tank will not fall neatly into any given theme. It will probably be something altogether different.

I don't want to be different simply for the sake of being different, however. I will still try to maintain a sense of aesthetic balance and flow so as to take a viewer's mind off the fact that it does not seem to fit into a theme and looks cool in and of itself. 

Time will tell, of course.

It is a really fun tank to work on, though.


----------



## legomaniac89

That's some gnarly algae you got there . I really like the new piece of wood, it draws your eyes to the left side and balances out the scape a lot more. And if that Weeping Moss does what it's supposed to do, it's gonna look friggin' awesome draping off the flying elephant.


----------



## Reginald2

Is it me, or does that driftwood spill out of the tank and off the counter?


----------



## Ugly Genius

Thanks, *lego*. Yeah, the algae's real bad. Believe it or not, it was worse a few days ago. Not too worried about it, though. Slowly it's clearing up and I know how to fine-tune a Mini-M's parameters with relative ease.

Speaking of which...
It's weird, but I have two thirteen watt OttLites on Source, for a total of twenty-six watts.
I have one Archaea twenty-seven watt lamp on Riven Tanglewood. 
Source, though one watt less, seems much brighter and must have pressurized CO2 to stay balanced; Riven Tanglewood only needs one or two DIYs. (Riven Tanglewood is also approximately one and a half gallons smaller to boot.)
Is it possible that the light intensity of a given wattage differs according to the number of fixtures used to gain said wattage?
Seems like it to me, anyway.

In fauna news.
I went to Ocean Aquarium today to look at Justin's stuff. I really, really wish I liked fish, because he has a ton of cool ones.
I was hoping he had more exotic shrimp, but all he had were RCS, CRS, Rainbow, and Tigers. 
I picked up seven Tigers to put in Source. 
While common, Tigers are probably my favorite to-look-at shrimp. I like them more than CRS, even. I think it's because they look cool _by nature_. I mean, that's how they look in the wild and no one bred them to look that way.
Oh, have you ever seen wild-caught Tigers? They are friggin' huge! Almost as big as Amanos. It's a trip. I'm used to seeing the small, CRS-sized Tigers, but a few months ago, Justin had the big ones and they are ginormous.
The Tigers I got have orange tails and heads and, Justin tells me, come from China. I can't really see the difference between these and the ones I got from Albany Aquarium way back when.
And I think one's going to die. He's sitting in the corner of the tank moping and probably writing his last will and testament or a goodbye letter to his love back in China.
Poor guy.
I drip acclimated them and the tank _is_ cycled...

That's pretty much it.

Oh, why is it so hard to find the fine filter pad for the Ehiem 2213 in stores? All they have are the Ecco ones. I have to order all my pads online. Sucks. I think I'll just start cutting my own from those sheet thingys.


----------



## Ugly Genius

*Reg*, it does. I'm trying to find a small glass container in which to place the base of the driftwood and plant that, too. That'd be cool.


----------



## hyphination

Pretty sweet foreground! I have the same algae on my tank glass. should I just let it do its own thing?


----------



## Ugly Genius

Thanks, *hyph*.
It's totally up to you. Either way, wipe or no wipe, in about three weeks it will go away on it's own. 
I tend to wipe my glass as it bugs me to see a tank's glass covered in algae. 
For yesterday's photos, I just got lazy.


----------



## Ugly Genius

Word of advice.
Just because you dry-started a tank does not necessarily mean that it's ready for livestock.
There is a chance that the bio-filter still needs time to grow.
I know.
I killed four Tiger Shrimp over the past week because of it.
I've since moved the remaining three Tiger Shrimp to Quasi-Wabi, where they all seem very happy and healthy.

On a less-death-related note:
I did something that I think is really, really clever with this tank. It's not actually clever enough to justify me saying that it's "really, really clever" and now that I've said it -- in addition to the fact that I won't post a picture of it until it starts to grow out -- it's going to make the big reveal more of a ho hum moment than something really, really clever.
Anyway...
I will say that I repurposed a plant that all us nano folks know to be the weeping plant on the elephant driftwood. ("Repurposed" is not really the right word here. It's more of a reinterpretation of how this plant can be used as the manner I'm using it is the exact opposite of how it is usually used.)
If it works the way I think it will, you're going to think it's somewhere between really, really clever and ho hum.

Can you guess what I did?


----------



## legomaniac89

You're making my head hurt . 

What did you do? Make a Weeping Moss carpet?


----------



## Ugly Genius

Good try, *lego*. But nope.
Here's a clue.
What plant does virtually every nanoscaper use at least once?
Here's another:
This plant is usually not, if ever, planted on driftwood.


----------



## thief

Ok well I am thinking it is UG, HC, or MG?:hihi:


----------



## CL

Ugly Genius said:


> *Reg*, it does. I'm trying to find a small glass container in which to place the base of the driftwood and plant that, too. That'd be cool.


That would be cool!

Are you going to plant some hc on the wood? I've grown it on wood and rocks before and it looks freakin sweet!


----------



## Ugly Genius

*theif* and *cl* got it. HC has been placed in a hole in the driftwood. I'm pretty sure it will weep downwards as I've seen HC do that before. I think it'll look pretty cool; like a Weeping Willow.


----------



## Outlawboss

I'm going with really really clever. Considering my current love affair with HC, I may end up trying that at some point. Call me copy cat.


----------



## hiya

did u ever find what the "jellybolt" stuff was.


----------



## Ugly Genius

Thanks, *Outlaw*.

Hiya, *hiya*. I never did find out what that stuff was. I had it briefly in Elements, but it went away after a time. It's a shame, really. It's a very pretty algae.

Speaking of algae. I figured out why this tank got hit so hard.
Old bulbs.
You see, for a few days after I planted the HC on the driftwood, I noticed no pearling from it whatsoever; or anything else for that matter. 
This was considered odd at the time, but I chalked it up to water parameters. (I chalk up everything I don't understand in this hobby to water parameters. It's easier that way; less personal responsibility to actually learn something.) The relatively fewer stones in this tank may have changed the GH or kH values from what I was used to or some such waternerdishness.
I figured that it had to be something crazy complicated because (one) I'm too awesome to be beaten by anything not crazy complicated (and usually with poison darts that shoot out of it's molars and/or a high degree of proficiency with nunchucks) and (two) the HC is literally three and a half inches from the bulb in a tank with about as much carbonation as a friggin' can of Coke. If HC should ever be pearling, it would be right there.
But it wasn't.
So I got out from my hiding place behind water parameters and thought about it.
Thinking completed, I swapped out the bulbs for new ones and viola, today the HC is pearling.
Tank's still got algae up the ya-ya, but at least I now know why.

The moral of this story:
There is no better feeling than freshly-laundered bed sheets.


----------



## malaybiswas

Ugly Genius said:


> *theif* and *cl* got it. HC has been placed in a hole in the driftwood. I'm pretty sure it will weep downwards as I've seen HC do that before. I think it'll look pretty cool; like a Weeping Willow.


Yes it does thrive even without substrate. I got frustrated with slow growth of my HC and just left them floating and they formed a nice cover carpet like riccia. Same with glosso and marsilea which are also shooting arial leaves while the roots hang in plain water. Never knew they can grow well that way. Not sure about the creeping/weeping part but if it works as you are expecting that would be a cool idea to try out.


----------



## Ugly Genius

Thanks, *malaybiswas*.

I am now hanging a rock from the side of a the tank.
Yes, a rock.


















_I'll grow a moss on this._​
I know this could probably be filed under "Gone Too Far", but I started this thing and I'm going to ride it out 'til the end.


----------



## Tex Gal

I've seen HC used at the tops of rocks to weep like a waterfall. The affect is really neat. 

You're too funny!


----------



## Ugly Genius

Thanks, *Tex*.

I can imagine what you see. 
I imagine that to many of you, while cool, something about this tank doesn't sit right. Just one rock on the substrate and two branches and a rock hanging from the rim. It must seem a bit...

...odd.

I know because sometimes I think the same thing.

But:
Today, in the first of a two-day blackout, the algae is clearing in earnest and the tank is starting to show what I wanted it to show when I laid down the bones all these months ago. 
The Mini Christmas Moss is spreading; the Fissidens Nobilis is doing what it does better than any other Fissidens; the HC is spreading and showing signs that it will indeed weep; the Weeping Moss, while not weeping, is pretty as all heck; the Pottias -- which I added yesterday -- looks rad as heck on the back branch; the Flame Moss is accenting nicer than I had hoped; the Fontinalis Hypnoids...actually, I'm not sure about that one; the Mini Microsword is beautiful; the Mini Pellia is Mini Pellia and Mini Pellia is awesome; the Special Ferns are doing what they do better than any other fern out there; the Staurogyne is wonderful (Downoi's more beautiful cousin); and the Babytears are finally starting to thicken up.

I'm starting to see this tank come together and I'm thinking that while it will be odd, it will be oddly beautiful.

Pictures as soon as the blackout's over and I get new batteries for my camera. (You'd think by now I'd buy rechargeable batteries for my camera.)


----------



## cintamas

Oddly beautiful or beautifully odd? Does it matter really? 

Your scapes always remind me that in nature, what you'll find is the result of branches falling into rivers, rocks being pushed along a bed by currents, floods, droughts, all of which create what we think to be "natural." Our instincts when putting pieces of wood, sand, and rocks together tell us to arrange them in a way that seems "natural." Doesn't that then mean whatever we end up with occurred "naturally?" Whether symetrical or asymetrical, even or uneven, bright or dark; natural is always our end result. I love that your tanks remind me of this. You have helped me to stop over-thinking things and to really step back and watch what happens "naturally."

Thank you.

BTW, I'm excited for the lights to come back on, "naturally." Sorry, I couldn't resist one more.


----------



## Ugly Genius

Hey, thanks, *cint*. I really needed a pick-me-up like that right now.

Because:

I was showing this tank to someone who knows nothing about planted tanks. Immediately, she started ripping into it. I mean, tearing it to shreds. "The focal point is wrong;" "Too much texture on the ground;" "Something's missing." And so on. In the end, I was left with the impression that the tank had no artistic merit what-so-ever in her mind.

Fairly quickly I started regretting pretty-darned strongly ever showing her the tank. 

While I do agree with all the criticisms she gave, that's kind of the point of this tank: to intentionally break the rules and still have it come out looking cool. 

The tearing-into felt a bit like an attack on my artistic sensibilities. That by doing what I had done -- broken the rules -- I had somehow failed in my attempt to make something pretty.

This gets me.

I don't believe that art should be regulated by rules. Leave that to the academics who study the stuff. Artists should be motivated more by impulse, emotion, practice, and execution. And I believe they should be allowed to break any and all rules they see fit.

Anyway, it kinda irked me. Not terribly so, but it did irk me.

So, thanks, *cint* (and all the rest of you here). I'm glad you see what I'm trying to show.









_The details are slowly starting to emerge from beneath melting algae.
Plants pictured (counter-clockwise from the HC): HC, Fontinalis hypnoides, Pottias, and Weeping Moss._​


----------



## bsmith

Hey man dont get down on your self. I believe one of Einstein's grade school teachers told his parents that he was feable minded. You cant always be everything to everybody and I (knowing absolutely nothing about art) couldnt agree with your beliefs in it anymore.


----------



## Francis Xavier

I know how you feel UG. I'd even put that up there with impressing people who know nothing about planted tanks with your aquascapes are among the biggest challenges of the aquascaping hobby. In fact I agree with you so much on that note that I've been contemplating continuing my Iwagumi article with the opening sentence "okay, now forget everything you've learned, it's pretty much irrelevent, but needed background knowledge, now you're in the 'anything goes' category, good luck!"

I see this tank a lot like I'm looking at my new shou stone aquascape in the Mini S, something that really isn't going to capture hearts or prove it's worth until it's grown in and people go "oh yeah! that's cool!!" when they'd say "that's all wrong because XYZ" while bare of plants, and I'd probably say the same thing looking at it.

Though honestly, if you wanted to impress someone I'd have shown them Quasi-Wabi or riverrun 

Edit - I guess what these experiences goes to show is that there are aquascapes where right out the door they wow you and their challenge is maintaining the wow, and others where out the door they are tenuous at best, and down the road is when they surprise you and go wow, whose challenge is seeing their potential when the bare bones are down.


----------



## Ugly Genius

Thanks, *bsmith*.

Thanks, *X*. Truth be told, she wasn't impressed all that much with Quasi, riverrun, Elements, or Riven Tanglewood. 
Screw 'em. I do what I do; can't help but do what I do; so if they don't like what I do, get out the way, 'cause I can't stop even if I wanted to.

Today I'll do a whole lot less talking.









_The blackout is working. There's still a lot of hair algae, but it's dying back. (Knock on driftwood.)_









_I ♥ Pottias
4 eva!_









_Mini Christmas Moss is starting to do it's thing.
This stuff's rad. It's very small and very cute._









_The Pearlgrass is going to make this tank. Just you watch._









_This intersection will be the tank's focal point.
All plants will serve this point._​


----------



## ZooTycoonMaster

Is that UG or microsword?


----------



## 17882

Ugly Genius said:


> Artists should be motivated more by impulse, emotion, practice, and execution. And I believe they should be allowed to break any and all rules they see fit.


Something to consider...

Suggesting that art should not be limited by rules is the same as limiting art by rules. Not allowing rules is a rule in itself. 

Art is subjective; it means something different to everyone. Strict rules or no rules, it's all art. Fundamentally the same, but very different. 


Basically what I'm saying is accept her opinion as her own, and do what you like.


----------



## Francis Xavier

it's microsword ZTM.


----------



## Ugly Genius

That's Mini Microsword with some Japanese Hairgrass, *Zoo*.

I see where you're coming from, *pb*. 
I should clarify that I'm not in any way against the rules. Many of the tanks I've done have conformed to 1.61803399, for example. I respect the rules and find them very helpful when setting up a hardscape.
My point is that one should not be _forced_ to operate within those rules. One should take liberties to break whatever rule he or she sees fit to achieve the ends that he or she envisions.
Learn the rules and use them to help you, but one should not be afraid to bend or break them. 
So, sure, not having a rule is a rule, but that's exactly the point. With no rules, the fact that you can follow the rules is inherent and implied in the "no rule" concept. No rules means you can have rules.
If you choose to.
Feel me?


----------



## macclellan

Ugly Genius said:


> I know this could probably be filed under "Gone Too Far", but I started this thing and I'm going to ride it out 'til the end.


Ya think? GL with that one! 

I like some of your tanks, but this one... I just don't 'get.' At all.


----------



## CL

This one is definitely a groundbreaker! Have you ever read "My Name is Asher Lev"? It's an easy read, I had to read it last year, and this tank reminds me of that book.


----------



## Ugly Genius

Hey, *Mac*. That's totally cool. 
For the record, I don't think you're "not getting it." That would imply that in some way, you and I are not operating on the same level. I'm certain that is not the case. You just don't like this tank and I feel you.
With all of the comments I got this week about this tank, believe me, I've done some artistic soul searching to see if I fell off the rails somewhere back there and wandered _way_ off the reservation.
(Don't answer that.)
However, when I look into this tank, I _feel_ something. Something's there. You know? That little voice in the back of your head that whispers to you that something's there. (Or maybe that voice means I'm crazy.)
It'll be a challenge to get it to come out, and I'd be foolish to expect everyone to like it when it does, but I'm going to play this one out. I think it'll be cool.

Thanks, *cl*. Appreciate that. 
I never read that book. I read _The Chosen_ by the same author way back when for summer required reading in high school, but the one you mentioned sounds really interesting. I'll check it out. Thanks for the tip!

I added a Nerite to this tank today. He escaped from Elements and was holed up in his shell outside the tank for I-don't-know how long. He's out of his shell now and hopefully he likes it here better.









_Look. He already made a friend!_​


----------



## Ugly Genius




----------



## CL

I like it! It compliments the rock really well.


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## Craigthor

Nice UG. I got a few Nerites coming in for my tank early next week. Maybe an Assasin Snail to take care of my tiny pond snail population.

Craig


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## legomaniac89

Sweeeeet. I just got a couple stems of that stuff from ZTM, and I really like it.


----------



## ddtran46

clwatkins10 said:


> I like it! It compliments the rock really well.


+1. 
Your plants look really healthy:icon_evil lol


----------



## legomaniac89

UG, I miss you!


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## Ugly Genius

The algae in Source is still pretty bad. Growth is slow. This + that leads me to believe that I've got to start paying attention to dosing now that I'm getting back into this game.

That said, I like how the tank's coming along.


----------



## CL

It's great to see updates, man! What happened to that cool rock?


----------



## Ugly Genius

Thanks, *cl*. You should have seen the rock before I trimmed just now; it was almost completely obscured by Mini Microsword and Pearlgrass.

I added some plants since I last posted here, but I can't recall what they were. Purple Bamboo's one. The other is, I think, Mini Rose Moss.


----------



## CL

Oh, I was talking about the rock that hung on the glass.


----------



## ZooTycoonMaster

I love the rock formation in the back! It reminds me of a cave


----------



## Ugly Genius

Have you ever fallen in love with a person who's bad for you? Someone you shouldn't love because they have some bad qualities and they simply do not make your life any better by being in it. 
Maybe they don't respect you the way you deserve. Or they drink too much. Maybe they cheat on you. Whatever it happens to be, this person is no good and you would be better off leaving them.
However, knowing this fact -- and to you it _is_ irrefutable and without question -- you just can't let them go. 
Because:
You love them.
We could go into the reasons why you love this person that you shouldn't, but why bother? In the end it always comes down to the same thing: even if you know why, it doesn't change the fact that you do.

It's like that with this tank.

Source is bad for me. She's got perpetual hair algae. Her growth is frustratingly slow. She kills all but the hardiest of shrimp. And, I will finally admit, aesthetically, she's a mess. Yes, I will admit that right here and now, Source is ugly.








Her balance is all off. The DW "swoop" of which I was initially so proud is gimmicky and ostentatious. The colors are boringly monochromatic and the textures of the plants clash. The overall effect of all of Source's flaws is that something's off.

But when I lean on my forearms on the kitchen counter and my breath presses against her 4 mm. glass, her beautiful details revealing themselves to me, I know that I love her.

I know, irrefutably and without question, that she will one day be the tank I know she can be.



































So maybe sometimes love is just invested faith. Faith that may or may not pay off in the end. 
Sometimes love -- no matter the kind -- is not about you. Sometimes it's about that which you love; about making something besides yourself better.
Maybe of all the people in the whole of time and space, only you can love with the specificity required to bring those details to a beautiful and complete whole and that's the purpose of it all.

Or maybe you're just a sucker for punishment.

Hard to say.


----------



## Ugly Genius

Oddly, by reducing the bps to one from two I have increased the amount of pearling in Source.
My thinking is that by reducing the pressure through the diffuser, the CO2 is is expelled slower and can spends more time in the WC as it's not being shot to the top like a bullet.
Just me thinking out loud, though.









_Added Narrow Leaf Java Fern and Bolbitis to the back of the tank._​


----------



## hyphination

I love your mini microsword FG! how long do you leave your ott-lites on for? and does this plant stay low even in shaded areas?


----------



## dawnstrider

I have been reading through the threads for quite a while in this forum and i must say that yours are by far my favourites *Mr.Genius*! The way you create your 'scapes and comment on them is really inspirational. 

I hope you keep it up!

Greetings from Turkey :red_mouth 

*mumbles something about the lack of ADA products in his country*


----------



## Ugly Genius

Hey, *hyph*. The lights stay on about eleven hours. Ideally, I'd do less, but I don't keep any of my tank on a timer so they get turned on by hand about thirty minutes after I wake and go off about half an hour after I get home from work.
Here's the thing with Mini Microsword. In high and low light tanks, it stays pretty low, but it can, on occasion, get as tall as two inches. In the shaded areas of high light tanks, however, it can get really tall -- as tall as four inches.









_You can kinda-sorta make out the taller MS to the right of the rock._​
Yesterday, I was feeling nostalgic for the days when I first learned about this hobby. Back then, ADA stuff was not available in the US, HC was just a rumored cool new carpet plant, and CRS, believe it or not, were a lot cheaper than they are now. This was six years ago.
Back then, _the_ store for me to go to was Nippon Goldfish Company on Geary. They closed in August 2005. Not shortly thereafter, AFA opened on Fillmore, but by that time, I was out of the planted tank game and I never stepped foot into AFA until right before page one of the Riven journal some four years later.
Nippon Goldfish Company was a cool store. A two-story wood building a few blocks up from the also-now-gone Coronet theater where George Lucas is said to have loved to watch movies. (It's also the theater where those dudes waited in tents for forever to see _The Phantom Menace_. Suckers!)
Back then, I saw my first planted tank. So beautiful. I remember details flying at me with rat-a-tat-tat rapidity. _It's so green! A lawn in a fishtank?! Bubbles on the plants! Are those shrimp?_ Talk about ADD. I had trouble pinpointing exactly what it was about this planted tank that so fascinated me.
Thinking back, that which struck me most was the water. It was crystal clear. 
As a matter of fact, today still, I am not content with a tank I've built if the water is not crystal clear. I don't care how solid the layout is; I don't care how good the plant growth is; I don't even mind algae all that much so long as the water is crystal clear. In my mind, _the_ most important aspect of a planted tank is crystal clear water. To me, it's indicative of a system that is balanced. It means I've tuned the various aspects -- light, filtration, ferts, fauna, and flora -- ideally.
In any event, I brought up my nostalgia because yesterday, feeling as such, I bought a bag of my first planted tank substrate, Flora Base.








It's my intention to use this in a new tank that I'll start building today. I can do one of several things. I can build a twenty-five cm. cube; a 45-F; or I can rebuild Elements. Right now, I'm leaning towards rebuilding Elements as I want to correct the mistakes made when initially setting it up. (Also, it's got really bad clado, and there is no beating that algae with blackouts, CO2, or what-have you.)

I'd dry-start Elements with an as-of-yet undetermined carpet. Glosso maybe. Rocks only, I'm thinking. But I'm just thinking out loud. I'll stop by AFA later and see what strikes me. If a new tank is in the cards, I'll do that. If I find a hardscape piece that fits Elements, I'll go that route.

EDIT: Thanks, *dawn*, I appreciate that. And don't worry about the lack of ADA stuff in Turkey. Like I said earlier, six years ago ADA stuff wasn't available here, either. This hobby's starting to take off. Given time, I think even the non-plant geeks will know about it.


----------



## corporate p

how funny. Nippon gold fish was the store that go me hooked on this hobby too. are you referring to the planted tank about 20 to 30 gallons on the second floor counter?


----------



## Ugly Genius

Hey, *p*. That's probably the one. Nathan, a cool guy who worked there, set up that tank. It was a Truvu tank, that much I remember. It had a Glosso carpet that pearled like nuts. I really wish I could see that tank again. It'd be neat to measure against what it looks like in memory versus what it actually looked like.

I got a Do!aqua Cube Glass 25 and some driftwood from AFA today.








This is just the bones, but as the driftwood fits in the tank in only so many facings, the final hardscape's not going to look too much different.
I'm probably going to do a Glosso carpet, but I'm not ruling out MM, either. I'm open to suggestions, of course.
Light's going to range from thirteen watts up to eighteen. I'll decide that once I figure out my carpet plant.

Anyway, here's the start of yet another.

Oh, I don't know what kind of wood this is.


----------



## prototyp3

What are the dimensions of that new cube? The wood looks very similar in shape to the redmoor wood they have overseas. Have you tested to see if it sinks without a soaking? That piece is definitely centerpiece potential!


----------



## FloridaFishGuy

How would that micro minisword do in 1.75WPG and no Co2 but with dosing?


----------



## demosthenes

hey UG, what ever happened to the Crepidomanes auriculatum? that stuff was the coolest! maybe its still in there, and i'm just not seeing it, but i hope it didnt die or anything.


----------



## Ugly Genius

Coming soon.


----------



## ddtran46

New tank already?


----------



## hyphination

Cant wait to see the new tank!!!

I think I'm going to try the dry start method for my tank too but I just want to make sure I understand It correctly. I just have to keep the soil wet and mist the tank once in a while to keep it from drying out. And I have to cover the top with saran wrap to keep the moisture in and I leave lights on for 12hrs a day?


----------



## Skrimpy

UG,

Every time you start a new scape, are you reusing the AS, or do you just start new.


----------



## danepatrick

Tease!!! :icon_frow


----------



## hyphination

Are you mini microsword and DHG playing nicely and sharing the substrate? or is the japanese HG out competing and choking your mini microsword? I know the DHG is a pretty fast grower thats why.


----------



## Ugly Genius

Hey, *hyph*. Because I planted the MS to HG in a 100:1 ratio, the MS is not being overrun by the HG. I think I planted maybe four blades of HG at the start. Perhaps in a year's time, the HG will reign supreme, but right now the MS has about ninety-seven percent of the substrate.


----------



## Church

Pardon my ignorance, but is _mini_ micro sword a species of its own, or is it just a variety of the regular brasiliensis, or?

This is one beautiful ugly tank, UG!


----------



## Randy Lau

Ugly Genius said:


> I really needed a pick-me-up like that right now.
> 
> Because:
> 
> I was showing this tank to someone who knows nothing about planted tanks. Immediately, she started ripping into it. I mean, tearing it to shreds. "The focal point is wrong;" "Too much texture on the ground;" "Something's missing." And so on. In the end, I was left with the impression that the tank had no artistic merit what-so-ever in her mind.
> 
> Fairly quickly I started regretting pretty-darned strongly ever showing her the tank.


UG I don't mean to re-open any healed wounds but as I was reading this it _immediately_ reminded me of when I showed my girlfriend my 20gal long "iwagumi" tank. The tank got ripped a new one when in _my _eyes it was beautiful. 

The nice comments from members really provided that needed pick me up. UG you got the eye and talent to create some pretty unique and fantastic layouts. Maybe a few plant-nerds and myself could see it in person someday  . (We're in the same city!)

Randy


----------



## CL

If this is a big(ger) tank, I'm going to cry with joy! lol


----------



## Ugly Genius

I'll be the first to admit that I've got some questionable choices in my iPod; Nelly's "Country Grammar", anyone?
But I've also got a few gems.
While getting ready to re-tweak Source, this song shuffled on. As I viewed what I saw as an utter failure of a hardscape, the Five Stair Steps let me know that _ooh-oo child, things'll be brighter. Some day, yeah, we'll put it together and we'll get it all done..._
And who am I to argue with that kind of optimism--?
So:
I removed the "swoop" driftwood pieces -- an idea that is good in the mind, terrible in water -- and will begin the process of fixing this tank. Making it pretty.

Here's what I've got to work with.









_I've got my work cut out for me._​
The only rule I have for the re-tweak is that I will not remove the carpet. 









_I love this carpet._​
All other plants are negotiable.









_These are negotiable._​
First to go will probably be the Four Color Lotus, but I'm still letting the plant and hardscape fully form in my mind before doing any removal of plants.

Bringing this tank even close to aethetically-pleasing is going to take a lot of skill as I've painted myself into a rather cramped corner with the flat substrate, one rock, and limited amount of space with which to work given that I want minimal carpet disturbance. (I might as well add a rule that I can only use plants that start with a Z and have fewer than two syllables.)
But I think it's doable. I've got to see it as a blank canvas; now I have to imagine what to paint.


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## Outlawboss

You can do eeet.


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## Ugly Genius




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## Mr. Fisher

my GF and I both link your tank. in fact, it looks natural.


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## Ugly Genius

Thanks, *Fisher*!
I'm not sure what I'm going to do with the driftwood. I may "tree" it, or I may keep it bare. Given that I've stubbornly refused to disturb the carpet, the hardscape options available to me are limited. That said, I really like this piece of driftwood. It looks like a giant squid creeping up on my rock dog.
I think what I may do is plant heavily with stems and ferns behind the driftwood. The overall effect will be very reminiscent of what Source looked like back in it's prime.








Instead of a tall Hairgrass, however, I would use a stem plant. A crapload of Rotala "Pearl" would look rad.


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## Mr. Fisher

Yeah, I don't blame you for thinking very carefully about messing with that ground cover/scape...looks like the stuff at AFA (mini-microsword variety)...

awesomeness...roud:


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## Dollface

You'll probably want to take that driftwood out and age it more actually, that red stuff is manzanita bark, which means it was probably harvested live which is reeaalllyyy bad. For manzanita to be suitable for aquarium use it should be dead and well weathered, with no red bark on it at all. Uncured wood is a lot more likely to rot, and it should be left out to be dry until the bark peels off on its own.


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## Ugly Genius

*Dollface*, thanks for the head's up regarding the not-dead-enough manzanita. As you see in the below photos, I didn't take out the wood, but this is not to say that I don't believe you. I do. It's just that I started tinkering with plants around it, started digging on the new shape Source was taking, and threw caution to the wind. This may end up being an I-warned-that-idiot-about-that moment when the rotting wood wrecks this tank, but you can understand, right?


























I've started to flesh out the left side of the tank behind the driftwood. Bolbitis, Narrow Leaf Java Fern, and Special Fern are all attached to the wood. This was done primarily to allow for easy tank trimming and glass cleanings as the DW can be removed to make room.
I'm going to try for an explosion of ferns on the left-hand side, cupped by the shape of the DW and ending at the vertical-most branch. Pearl Weed will be the primary plant on the right-hand side.
I'm keeping the Four-Color Lotus where it is simply because I'm reluctant to move it and have it melt on me again.

I feel I've found my groove with this hardscape. Meaning, I now know where I want to take this tank and I think I'll be happy with how it looks when it gets there. (This is saying a lot because as recent as this weekend, I had no clue as to where I could take this 'scape.)


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## Ugly Genius

EDIT: Here's the same leaf after a day of pearling. The above photo was taken after about four hours of light. The bottom was taken right before lights off after about ten hours of light.









_After all this time in the game, I still love pearling._​


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## Cichlid Junkie

That' great looking tank you have there UG. Love the wood.


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## Ugly Genius

Thanks, *Junkie*! I'm really liking the wood, too. It was, I'm now seeing, a very lucky find. (I almost didn't pick it up as I thought it too small to be of any use.)

Well, after a little more than a month, my Xbox is back at home. It took longer than usual as I took a couple of weeks to send it in. It's now back and I can get back to nightly gaming sessions. I want to finish up _Assassin's Creed II_ and a couple of other games before I buy anything else. There are some good games on the horizon.

But you're not on the Planted Tank forums to hear about Xboxes, so let me make this post planted tank_ish_.

I was worried that I'd have an algae outbreak with the removal of the "swoop" driftwood and the attached, not-insignificant plant mass. So far, knock on DW, this has not happened.








Despite the cleanliness of everything else on this tank, the lily pipe is filthy and this irks my girlfriend to no end.









_For some reason, dirty lily pipes don't bother me.
As long as the rest of the tank is clean, I'm cool with sludge on 'em._​
I think the DW's gonna look fresh once the Narrowleaf Java Fern, Special Fern, and Bolbitis grow in.

















I'm pretty much finished with planting, so from here on out I'm going to let Source grow out and let it do what it does.


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## rrrrramos

A) This is still a great scape. 

B) If you keep your pipes that dirty I'm going to start calling you CL, not UG.

C) Main reason I am posting. I'm going to assume that's a Music Glass 15D you have on there. What do you think of it, especially on this size tank? I've got a generic nano-diffuser on my tank now and want something more fitting to the tank (ADA/Do!aqua), that will be as, if not more effective, as the run-of-the-mill ones.


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## CL

Haha, I laughed at B.


I still think that rock is super awesome. This is going to be another great one, UG.


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## Reginald2

I like that third shot especially. That rock is pretty great too. It is like stonehenge's little brother's son.


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## Ugly Genius

Thanks, *rrrrramos*. The fifteen is a perfect size for a Mini-M. The ten is too small and anything bigger is a waste. I'd recommend it.

*CL*, I guess rrrrrramos is right, I can't bust your chops about dirty intake pipes until I clean mine.

Thanks, *Reg*!



































Do not underestimate the position of your filter outflow in relation to your CO2 diffuser. If my intake is off by only a few degrees left or right, I don't get nearly the amount of pearling I do when it's spot on. It takes some trial and error to find the "sweet spot", but it's worth the effort. This morning, found this spot, and by lights out, it looked like a diamond factory exploded in Source. The above photos were taken this morning, however, so the cool diamond effect is not there. I've got to run to Walgreens right now to get batteries for the camera and my wireless mouse as they both ran out about an hour ago. (Trackpads suck!)


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## bsmith

Its funny you said that. I just ordered a 60-P and am contemplating getting a Do aqua Music Glass or keeping the same setup I have in my mini m and use the canister as my co2 reactor. 



Ugly Genius said:


> Do not underestimate the position of your filter outflow in relation to your CO2 diffuser. If my intake is off by only a few degrees left or right, I don't get nearly the amount of pearling I do when it's spot on. It takes some trial and error to find the "sweet spot", but it's worth the effort. This morning, found this spot, and by lights out, it looked like a diamond factory exploded in Source. The above photos were taken this morning, however, so the cool diamond effect is not there. I've got to run to Walgreens right now to get batteries for the camera and my wireless mouse as they both ran out about an hour ago. (Trackpads suck!)


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## Ugly Genius

Hey, *smith*. 60-P, huh? I'm so jealous. I'd love to 'scape one of those. Let us know which route you take: diffuser or inline.

Anyway, I wanted to share two things with you guys. One, I wanted to show you some of the pearling on the Four-Color Lotus.


























Ever since removing the "swoop" driftwood, allowing the lotus to recieve direct light, it's growth has been explosive. In two weeks it's thrown up four new leaves. Prior to this, it would grow one every three weeks or so.

But more important than that.

I cleaned my pipe!









_Holla back atcha boy!_​


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## JennaH

yay for the clean pipe  the color on the lotus is gorgeous- when it's not covered in bubbles!


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## ZooTycoonMaster

Nice clean pipes!

Does this tank evaporate much water without a cover?


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## Francis Xavier

Just a forewarning: that lotus will get HUGE with a viral root structure that will, no exaggeration, bring up almost the entirety of the substrate with it should you ever pull it out!

As a side note, glad the pipes are clean and the tank is progressing.


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## Ugly Genius

Thanks, *Jenna*!

Thanks, *Zoo*. I've never measured, but I'd say it loses about a quarter of a gallon every four or five days.

Thanks, *X*. I tend to cut off the leaves that grow too big. I don't reckon I'll ever remove it prior to a rescape, but thanks for the head's up. I'd hate to start pulling it up and wreck this carpet that's taken so long to grow.

I forgot to mention, I also cleaned my diffuser.








Until recently, I had forgotten that I put Mini Pellia on top of the rock during the dry-start. It's now starting to spread. I think it's going to look great on top on the rock when it grows out.









_The Nerite you see in the ten o'clock position is my little soldier.
He's been through hella tanks with me.
Love that little guy.
The Mini Pellia's the green spot in the middle._​


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## Ugly Genius

Give me two more months with this tank. 
I really believe that all the pieces are starting to come together. 
I just need two more months. 
The Babytears have to grow in thick behind the rock, the Narrowleaf Java Fern and Bolbitis need to bulk up, and the Mini Microsword needs to stay where it's at. Two more months.


























Ever get hungry all of a sudden for 7-11 nachos and nothing else? I do.


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## dj2005

Wow, you cleaned your pipes!

I may have missed this, but how did you attach the mini pellia? Hopefully, one day, the price for that plant goes down a bit so I can finally afford it.


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## Aqua'd

dj2005 said:


> Hopefully, one day, the price for that plant goes down a bit so I can finally afford it.


Or someone has a breakthrough in Mini Pellia growing technology and strategy, so they have to give away extras for free!


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## Ugly Genius

The Mini Pellia was planted, *dj*, during this tank's dry-start. I simply laid a piece on the rock when the tank was empty, kept it semi moist for three months, and it took off after I filled the tank. In person, it looks really, really cool the way it's growing flat on the rock's top. I'd say that the MP in this build is the prettiest I've ever been able to grow MP. (Unfortunately, due to the limited color-correction options available to me with my ghetto camera, I cannot get a good shot of it.)

Source is doing well. I'm pretty happy with it.








The right-hand side of the tank is growing in exactly as I intended. It's delicately lush, full, and lightly-green. The left is, in true fern fashion, growing slow as hell. I'm reluctant to add more ferns to jump-start the look I'm going for as I want to maintain a balance of right and left plant masses and if I add more ferns, it would throw off the balance once everything grows in. So, I'm forced to wait for the ferns.









_The Slow Pokes & Co._​
I've got about four RCSs in here. I think they're all females, though, 'cause none are having babies.








I want only a single thread of red on the right-hand side. It all hinges on this guy growing in strong and bright. Come on little guy!








Other than that, things are going well here. Weather's turned nice and that means the CBR will be ridden frequently and fast. _Lost_ is back in full swing and that's awesome. _Mass Effect 2_ is off the charts good. And _Final Fantasy XIII_ is right around the corner.
It's a very, very good time to be Ugly Genius.


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## CL

I love that moss in the second picture. What is it?
The plants behind the rock are looking great. I'm kinda getting a feel for what you're going for here


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## Ugly Genius

Thanks, *CL*! Tank's still got about three months to go before it gets to where I want it, but the parts are all there; they just need to grow in.
That's Fissidens Nobilis. It's a super-fresh plant. Very versatile in nanos. There's also some Mini Pellia growing on the rock on the right under the shrimp.


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## Craigthor

Ugly Genius said:


> Thanks, *CL*! Tank's still got about three months to go before it gets to where I want it, but the parts are all there; they just need to grow in.
> That's Fissidens Nobilis. It's a super-fresh plant. Very versatile in nanos. There's also some Mini Pellia growing on the rock on the right under the shrimp.


Looking good *UG* my new tank is set to arrive at the shop tomorrow morning but I'll have to wait till he opens to go pick it up.... New I couldn't stay away forever. :icon_twis

Craig


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## fish_fasinated

dude, wicked scape. totally different then your usual. love it!


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## hyphination

hey UG i finally filled my mini-m the other day but im unsure on a few things. how long do I need to keep the CO2 levels high? how long does the MM take to convert to the submersed form? should I trim the emersed growth right away? and should I start dosing ferts since the roots have already been established?


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## fish_fasinated

UG that looks amazing! I love it!


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## zeldar

Any updates on this tank? 

I think this is my new favorite of yours. The right side of this scape is truly great. Is that normal HM you have in here? The leaves look longer than most the HM i see. Also, what plant is that single red stem? It is really neat in that sea of green!


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## Luichenwai

hows that zoomed canister filter holding up?
Im debating on getting the Aquaclear 20 or a canister filter... not sure yet for my Mini-M.. My nano filter isnt really cutting it.


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## ClPat

Ok, I've always liked your scapes a lot, but there's something about this tank that bothers me: the fact that one side is all wood, and the other is all stone. Kinda like an asymetrical symetry...It doesn't look too natural to me. But apart from that, the tanks looks, in true UG fashion, great! I think the stems look awesome, very light and airy indeed. As for the Nymphea, it looks stunning. Source has gotta be the first tank I really like without liking the hardscape so much.
All this, of course, coming from someone with a lot less experience in aquascaping.


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