# Ventchur's 25g Cube - Planted Tank Journal



## Ventchur (Apr 29, 2018)

First ever journal in this hobby after having a number of tanks. I try my best to run a high tech setup and it will be fun to finally document a tank from start to finish. In this scape I'm using black lava rock, manzanita wood for hardscape, la plata sand and tropica soil for substrate. Livestock includes Ember tetra's, Harlequin rasbora's, Oto's, Amano shrimp, and Fire red shrimp. I'd appreciate any comments! 

25g Seapora Cube tank
Eheim 2213 filter
10lb Co2 setup
Eheim 350 skimmer
Chihiros 45cm RGB LED

Plants:
Monte Carlo
Rotala H'ra
Rotala Green
AR Mini
Dwarf Hairgrass
Staurogyne Repens
Hygrophila Pinnatifida
Bolbitus
Trident Java Fern
Mini Pelia
Anubias Petite
Various Bucephalandra

Scape #1 2018


Some things I learned from this scape
- I only have 18x18x18 to work with so large or long growing plants overpower and throw off sense of scale
- Especially had problems with the Needle leaf java fern growing too long, reaching the glass then growing upwards 
- Christmas & Pinna sort of created a canopy at the top of the tank and blocked too much light

Scape #2 2019
The tear down


Clean & ready to go


Wood & rocks in


Zips & substrate in


Day 1: 


Day 35:


Day 52:


Day 64:


Day 77:


Day 130:



Day 326:










Some thoughts after..
- First time using tissue culture plants, the quality and quantity is amazing
- Need to work on the right side as some eggcrate is still visible
- Might add more small rocks + christmas moss to fill in


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## Ventchur (Apr 29, 2018)

Day 7 FTS



Corner Angle



Side Angle



One week of growth on the TC Rotala Green, H'ra & AR Mini




-Somehow had a massive die off of the Fire red neo's, was scooping a couple out every morning. Fish and Amano's are perfectly normal..
-Been doing 50% water changes every 2/3 days
-Trying a different co2 diffuser and flow pattern by moving the lily pipes and skimmer position
-Bumped up the light one intensity setting higher


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## Hendy8888 (Mar 6, 2008)

I really liked your previous scape, can’t wait to see how this one grows in. Nice to see another Canadian too.


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## Jamo33 (Feb 18, 2014)

Gorgeous tank! Loved the last scape, super excited to see this one grow out aswell!


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## vijay_06 (Apr 11, 2017)

Your previous scape looks very nice. Great work in putting together a scape that suits the tank’s dimensions .

Looking forward to seeing how your new setup evolves.


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk


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## Ventchur (Apr 29, 2018)

Hendy8888 said:


> I really liked your previous scape, can’t wait to see how this one grows in. Nice to see another Canadian too.


Gtaaquaria crew eh



Jamo33 said:


> Gorgeous tank! Loved the last scape, super excited to see this one grow out aswell!





vijay_06 said:


> Your previous scape looks very nice. Great work in putting together a scape that suits the tank’s dimensions .
> 
> Looking forward to seeing how your new setup evolves.
> 
> ...


Thanks everyone, will keep this thread updated on the weekly. Grow plants grow..


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## Ventchur (Apr 29, 2018)

The tank at 19 days:



Everything is going well throughout the tank and I haven't had anymore shrimp deaths lately. All the stems got there first trim yesterday at around 2-4 inches to throw out double shoots and start creating the back bush. The H'ra is starting to show some yellow/pink colours and I replanted some trimmings to fill in any empty gaps. Now we wait..

I don't think I was getting the best co2 diffusion throughout the tank so I moved the diffuser to under the eheim filter inflow. Getting much better diffusion and seeing improved pearling which is a great sign. Don't know if this affects the filter in anyway but it does sort of burp every hour to let out excess gases. Anyway we'll see how it goes since its showing better results then blowing the bubbles around the tank. Really interested in setting up a co2 reactor of some sort in the future..





Hygrophila pinnatifida growing well + shrimp photobomb



Shoutout to some good looking nerite snails


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## Ventchur (Apr 29, 2018)

Full Tank Friday update:



Tank is now 35 days old and the plants continue to grow well. Starting to see some nice green dust algae on some of the rocks and wood, I personally like the look as it gives it a more mature feel. Replaced the trident java fern with christmas moss and took out most of the srepens because it's the one plant that doesn't grow quite right for me. Monte carlo is spreading, stems are getting some height.. Pinnatifida kind of exploded and it's also growing much larger leaves compared to when I used it in my previous scape. Guess it has more room to grow so it's taking full advantage.

Only problem i'm having is BBA starting to grow on most of the slow growers.. Going to be removing all affected leaves and double up on waterchanges for a couple weeks. Lily pipes need a clean this week too.

Will post more shots this weekend.


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## Ventchur (Apr 29, 2018)

So I broke my lily pipe inflow while cleaning today.. Thankfully it was at the tip where the inflow slits are so I attached a sponge and it still works for now. Co2 diffusion might even be better as no bubbles whatsoever get by and float to the top, all get pulled into the sponge+inflow. 



A couple buce flowers



Monte carlo starting to drape down the rocks



Anyone know what these lines are in the H'ra leaves?


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## Ken Keating1 (Nov 22, 2017)

The tank is coming along beautifully, keep the posts coming! I like the Hygrophila pinnatifida, nice looking plant.


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## Ventchur (Apr 29, 2018)

Ken Keating1 said:


> The tank is coming along beautifully, keep the posts coming! I like the Hygrophila pinnatifida, nice looking plant.


Thanks, definitely in my top 3 favourite plants. Would love to make some sort of pinnatifida lava rock mountain scape someday. 

Something like this:










Bump: Some critter shots:







Heavily cropped in just using a 50mm lens.


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## vijay_06 (Apr 11, 2017)

I love the side angle photo. It shows the depth nicely.

Does your wood and sand develop GDA coating over time? How do you go about keeping them as tidy as possible?

I am about to transition my high tech stem plants setup to a low maintenance setup with lava rock, spider wood and slow growing plants. Livestock too will be very similar to yours. 


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## Ventchur (Apr 29, 2018)

vijay_06 said:


> I love the side angle photo. It shows the depth nicely.
> 
> Does your wood and sand develop GDA coating over time? How do you go about keeping them as tidy as possible?
> 
> ...


Only algae i've seen so far is the usual biofilm on the glass, GDA on the rocks/sand and some BBA on older leaves/moss. 

When doing the weekly waterchange I try to waft out any detritus from the rocks/plants and stir the sand while siphoning everything bad out. I do 50%+ waterchanges and if you keep up with them you shouldn't have any big problems. You'll always have some small sort of algae in the end, it's all natural.


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## SouthernCichlids (Jan 20, 2013)

Nice work! The Buce flowers are awesome


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## tredford (Jun 29, 2018)

Ventchur said:


> Anyone know what these lines are in the H'ra leaves?



+1. I am also curious about this, as I have noticed a few of these on my H'ra. I assumed either damage due to fish, or maybe a nutrient def leading to increased fragility, as my tank is low tech and I don't measure all the micros, but your tank seems to be in top shape and still getting some. I'm interested to see if anyone else has experienced this or has any insight.


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## Ventchur (Apr 29, 2018)

Just got back from a week long trip..

Things have grown in a little more, and so has some algae. Did a minor trim removing decaying/bba leaves, a 50% waterchange and 2 days later did a 90% waterchange with a little h202 spray action. The bba had started to grow on some of the wood/rock surfaces and even on individual grains of sand. It's not too bad but i'll keep my eye on it.


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## AcidGambit (Aug 30, 2018)

This is phenomenal - I'm really jealous. I've been struggling with my cube tank.


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## Ventchur (Apr 29, 2018)

AcidGambit said:


> This is phenomenal - I'm really jealous. I've been struggling with my cube tank.


Thanks man, cube crew!


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## Ventchur (Apr 29, 2018)

tredford said:


> +1. I am also curious about this, as I have noticed a few of these on my H'ra. I assumed either damage due to fish, or maybe a nutrient def leading to increased fragility, as my tank is low tech and I don't measure all the micros, but your tank seems to be in top shape and still getting some. I'm interested to see if anyone else has experienced this or has any insight.


https://www.plantedtank.net/forums/...rs/1287949-lines-poor-quality-old-leaves.html

Been reading this thread and will be looking into adding Seachem Equilibrium to the mix.


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## Ventchur (Apr 29, 2018)

Stems are starting to look great after the trim last week. 



- Bought 7 more ember tetras to add to the shoal
- Bought 2 SAE's to help out with minor algae 



Some examples of the bba thats growing currently. I'm confident with the hydrogen peroxide/SAE combo i'll have it knocked back eventually. Already seeing slight improvements.


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## AcidGambit (Aug 30, 2018)

Ventchur said:


> Some examples of the bba thats growing currently. I'm confident with the hydrogen peroxide/SAE combo i'll have it knocked back eventually. Already seeing slight improvements.


Are you spot treating with hydrogen peroxide or doing a general treatment?


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## Ventchur (Apr 29, 2018)

AcidGambit said:


> Are you spot treating with hydrogen peroxide or doing a general treatment?


Just a spot treatment spray before a water change.


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## cl3537 (Jan 28, 2019)

Ventchur said:


> Just a spot treatment spray before a water change.


You have a beautiful tank and a talent for aquascaping and growing plants, you are inspiring me(maybe in the future) to tear down my 17g 'green' and start over.

In my limited experience, scrape/scratch off BBA off hardscape works best, I've seen George Farmer use a steel brush in tank but I like using an algae scraper or just my nails. Physical removal > Chemical Removal. 

If its just a little on plants I give up and just remove the plant I can't stand seeing it. Also good idea once you scrape to vacuum/WC right after you don't want BBA pieces/spores resettling somewherelse but if its just little clumps I try to just scrape them off with my nails.


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## Ventchur (Apr 29, 2018)

cl3537 said:


> You have a beautiful tank and a talent for aquascaping and growing plants, you are inspiring me(maybe in the future) to tear down my 17g 'green' and start over.
> 
> In my limited experience, scrape/scratch off BBA off hardscape works best, I've seen George Farmer use a steel brush in tank but I like using an algae scraper or just my nails. Physical removal > Chemical Removal.
> 
> If its just a little on plants I give up and just remove the plant I can't stand seeing it. Also good idea once you scrape to vacuum/WC right after you don't want BBA pieces/spores resettling somewherelse but if its just little clumps I try to just scrape them off with my nails.


Do it! A 17g isn't too bad in terms of rescaping plus its nice to see a freshly planted tank fill in again. 

I'll try out the scraping method next waterchange, i've got a spare toothbrush I can use. The H202 method is a tried and true though, give it a try. As long as you don't overdose, a couple sprays leave the algae turning red and it either disintegrates or gets eaten. When I was testing it the only problem I encountered was it melting small new leaves on the buce and melting the mini pelia when directly applied.

For example, 

I took out this clump of buce on a rock and gave it a spray on two occasions and soon after it looks like this









After a few days and its almost completely knocked back


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## cl3537 (Jan 28, 2019)

Ventchur said:


> Do it! A 17g isn't too bad in terms of rescaping plus its nice to see a freshly planted tank fill in again.


I agree with you before I do I want to grow out some plants to put in the new scape. But I definitely will, I want a lower maintenance scape for next time. Everything I have in my tank is annoyingly high maintenance so I have learned from that mistake. Stems cannot be just trimmed back at the top or they branch and look ugly,(Rotalas, Pogostemon Erectus). MC needs to be trimmed biweekly I need to learn to cut it much lower and just accept it might be yellow for a week or two after. 

Growing plants is no problem but aquascaping is a learned skill combined with a talent for it which you have.


> I'll try out the scraping method next waterchange, i've got a spare toothbrush I can use.


Sometimes a toothbrush isn't enough, you might need a steel brush,it will get off a lot of green algae but BBA is stubborn.



> The H202 method is a tried and true though, give it a try.


Well I most only get it on dead things like my wood or stems in poor health, overall I have had so little I could scrape it off. Agreed if I had large epiphytes I'd have to consider using H2O2 it as replacing a Buce would be costly.


> As long as you don't overdose, a couple sprays leave the algae turning red


The coolest way I learned from George Farmer, lower the water below the plant or hardscape with BBA area and paint with H2O2 using a paint brush let it sit 10 minutes and then you can refill, WCs help as well. Probably the safest way to save the plant from damage if done carefully.


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## Ventchur (Apr 29, 2018)

cl3537 said:


> The coolest way I learned from George Farmer, lower the water below the plant or hardscape with BBA area and paint with H2O2 using a paint brush let it sit 10 minutes and then you can refill, WCs help as well. Probably the safest way to save the plant from damage if done carefully.


George Farmer is a legend, love his content.


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## Sandman6983 (Jan 21, 2016)

Great looking tank! Are those Harlequin Rasboras? They look a lot more golden than I'm used to seeing them.


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## cl3537 (Jan 28, 2019)

Sandman6983 said:


> Great looking tank! Are those Harlequin Rasboras? They look a lot more golden than I'm used to seeing them.


They look like very well fed Espei Rasboras.


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## Ventchur (Apr 29, 2018)

Sandman6983 said:


> Great looking tank! Are those Harlequin Rasboras? They look a lot more golden than I'm used to seeing them.





cl3537 said:


> They look like very well fed Espei Rasboras.


Espei Rasboras correct, in the picture they look golden but in person they're orange. There was actually only two of them in there with the ember tetras and unfortunately one jumped recently. RIP


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## DanG (Apr 25, 2006)

Beautiful tank! Subscribing.


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## Ventchur (Apr 29, 2018)

2 month update:

- Recently upgraded my regulator and purchased a Co2Art Pro series model

In the past I bought 2 atomizer diffusers which require a higher psi to function (30+). Funny thing is I didn't know that at the time of purchase and could never use them as my old regulator only went up to 16 psi. It's also my first time using a regulator that has a solenoid. My old one didn't have one so I just ran co2 24/7, never really had any problems but you could hear the co2 diffuser at night when everything else was quiet. The solenoid also helps me preserve the co2 big time as it currently only runs 9ish hours vs 24 hours.

- Finally getting some colour to show from the Rotala H'ra
- Moved a bunch of the buce/anubias from the front rock to the shaded rock 
- I've seen a few CPD fry throughout the tank and have a couple berried shrimp
- BBA is showing up less
- Updated the first post of this journal to include all the FTS progress shots


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## ScrubbyDick (Mar 31, 2016)

Are you feeding anything that the CPD fry can eat?


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## Ventchur (Apr 29, 2018)

ScrubbyDick said:


> Are you feeding anything that the CPD fry can eat?
> 
> 
> Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Pro


Naw, no way to find them and feed. They're tiny and there's so much plant coverage to hide in, once they come out of cover they end up being fish food pretty quickly.


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## Jamo33 (Feb 18, 2014)

Beautiful. I wish I could get my tank growing this well and looking this clean!


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## Ventchur (Apr 29, 2018)

Jamo33 said:


> Beautiful. I wish I could get my tank growing this well and looking this clean!


When you first start it's a lot of trial and error to find the correct balance in your tank for growth. Everybody's tank is different so something that works for Joe & John might not work for you. For example, one of the easiest plants to grow in the hobby is staurogyne repens.. It grows in high/low light co2/no co2 yet in my current setup it is one of the only plants i've tried that will not grow right. Even with the abundant amount of information online everyone is going to struggle with something. 

For a clean tank you need that balance and maintenance maintenance maintenance.

Looking at your tank I would say focus on water changes/consistent high co2/correct light levels. Also, when starting a fresh scape a couple pointers to avoid algae early on are:

- Large water changes every day for the first week, every second day for the second week, every third day for the third week. You don't have to follow this to a tee but keep up with them early on. This is harder for larger tanks but for nano's it ain't so bad. Once your plants get established(new growth & new roots) you can change the water one or two times a week. You want to do this because in the beginning all those water changes will help remove excess nutrients that your transitioning plants aren't fully utilizing yet.

- Find a light that has the ability to increase/decrease intensity. At the very beginning of your tank, start with a lower intensity and every week boost it by one. For example, my tank is running a Chihiros RGB light that has 10 intensity levels on it's dimmer. The first week I had it at 6, second week 7, third week 8 and so on. Even starting with a lower duration at that start, say 6 hours and every week bump it 15 minutes till you're at 7/8 hours total.


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## ScrubbyDick (Mar 31, 2016)

I just noticed your MC growing across your sand. You better trim that because it will root there. And it’s no fun trying to trim MC that’s rooted in sand.


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## Ventchur (Apr 29, 2018)

ScrubbyDick said:


> I just noticed your MC growing across your sand. You better trim that because it will root there. And it’s no fun trying to trim MC that’s rooted in sand.


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## Jamo33 (Feb 18, 2014)

Reply skills 10/10


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## TheUnseenHand (May 14, 2017)

Every nice tank needs a nice map on the wall next to it! Beautiful tank!

My tank game isn't as strong, but my map game is solid. My map:


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## Ventchur (Apr 29, 2018)

TheUnseenHand said:


> Every nice tank needs a nice map on the wall next to it! Beautiful tank!
> 
> My tank game isn't as strong, but my map game is solid.


Map crew!

Tank game not strong? I've read your journal sir..

You vs the guy she tells you not to worry about


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## TheUnseenHand (May 14, 2017)

Ventchur said:


> Map crew!
> 
> Tank game not strong? I've read your journal sir..
> 
> You vs the guy she tells you not to worry about


Haha! It's all about results, right? You got me on results at the moment.


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## Ventchur (Apr 29, 2018)

Buddy gave me a freebie crown of Downoi to try. First time ever growing it, let's see how it does.



Mini Pelia is such a cool moss(technically not a moss but a liverwort)





Plus some Amano shrimp snaps


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## Ventchur (Apr 29, 2018)

Rotala finally grew to the water surface.. 

Time for a big trim tomorrow, planning on cutting all of the rotala to the ground and just replanting the tops. Not too happy with how the rotala green turned out. I think that it got shadowed a bit by the h'ra and was stunted after multiple trimmings. Going to change it up and put the h'ra in front and green in back. Come to the conclusion that this light is not strong enough to turn the h'ra to a dark red. I thought it would as it got closer to the surface but it's stubborn and is still yellow/orange/pink/red. Might add my other chihiros led light and use it as a 2-3 hour burst of high light as it's the plus version and has a way higher output. Just don't want any more algae on my anubias leaves.. 

SAE's seem to be knocking out the bba except for on grains of sand or on the driftwood/mini pelia at water level. It's funny because I moved some mini pelia with bba from there to lower on the front rock and they ate that right up. Also added a couple stems of blyxa to try out a midground plant between the hairgrass and rotala. 

Any way to get better image quality to show on the forum?


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## Ventchur (Apr 29, 2018)

Tank after trimming/replanting tops of all the rotala(first time replanting tops). Somehow the rotala h'ra is looking more red after and the rotala green is showing some pink/orange coloured tips. Strange since they're way further from the light.. Tissue cultures just maturing more? 







Side view of the tank including some Ar mini, christmas moss and nerite snail eggs.


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## Ventchur (Apr 29, 2018)

Water change day. 

These algae scrapers with a razor insert and long handle I found are the best thing to clean my tanks glass. Especially in tight areas, the lower portion of the tank and around the sand/substrate line. 










Some post water change bubbly pics







Shrimp & SAE in the AR Mini


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## Ventchur (Apr 29, 2018)

Day 1 vs Day 92



Not the greatest quality but it's awesome to see big growth from the mini pelia and other slow growers. The explosion of pinnatifida and monte carlo is so satisfying to watch.. All the stems have had multiple trims throughout the tanks life by now and are not at peak height/shape currently.


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## Yaboihunt (Mar 27, 2019)

Love it!


YaBoiHunt


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## Ventchur (Apr 29, 2018)

ScrubbyDick said:


> I just noticed your MC growing across your sand. You better trim that because it will root there. And it’s no fun trying to trim MC that’s rooted in sand.


From this



to this 



Just cut vertically outlining the rock and the whole section growing in the sand can be uprooted/lifted out easily. 20 seconds and done.


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## AcidGambit (Aug 30, 2018)

Do you have any regrets with your current light? If you were to start over today, would you still go with the Chihiros RGB 45cm? I ask because I think that I am going to start over and move up from a 16 gallon cube to a 25 gallon cube.


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## Ventchur (Apr 29, 2018)

AcidGambit said:


> Do you have any regrets with your current light? If you were to start over today, would you still go with the Chihiros RGB 45cm? I ask because I think that I am going to start over and move up from a 16 gallon cube to a 25 gallon cube.


Love the light. 

Cheapish, looks sleek, not crazy high output although the colour spectrum is incredible. I only wish I had two so I could get perfect coverage and intensity throughout the entire tank. Recently been using the RGB and the A-Series Plus in combo to try and turn the H'ra more red, but no signs yet..


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## Ventchur (Apr 29, 2018)

This is why i'll never put a lid over my tanks, top down is such a sweet perspective.


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## Ventchur (Apr 29, 2018)

4.5 month update:

Had a wonderful time moving this tank downstairs to have the carpets redone and then move it back afterwards.. Thankfully I was able to drain the water down to a couple inches and just pick it up. Lost a couple shrimp and fish but it went smoother then expected. Also was able to upgrade my filter from the Eheim 2213 to the 2215 for more flow. 

Current inhabits include: 

4 CPD's
2 SAE's
2 Ember tetras
Amano/Cherry shrimp
1 Nerite snail 

Tank is kind of on autopilot and doesn't require much attention. Just a trim here and there, some feeding and water changes. Thinking about a rescape in a month or two and getting a new school of nano fish.


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## Ventchur (Apr 29, 2018)

Downoi growth


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## ipkiss (Aug 9, 2011)

I'm so pissed. I lost some tissue culture downois to some pest snails. Granted it was a big melt but as I had real small growth slowly coming out from one last successful stalk, and making headway, it got completely wiped out in one day by a hungry pest snail. 

Will appreciate through your pics for now. Yours is just beautiful and the way you blend things is most inspiring. I'll slowly get there one day, maybe. 

Probably have to buy immersed the next time I try again. Hoping it was just that random snail and not all of them have a taste for it.


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## Ventchur (Apr 29, 2018)

ipkiss said:


> I'm so pissed. I lost some tissue culture downois to some pest snails. Granted it was a big melt but as I had real small growth slowly coming out from one last successful stalk, and making headway, it got completely wiped out in one day by a hungry pest snail.
> 
> Will appreciate through your pics for now. Yours is just beautiful and the way you blend things is most inspiring. I'll slowly get there one day, maybe.
> 
> Probably have to buy immersed the next time I try again. Hoping it was just that random snail and not all of them have a taste for it.


Thats unfortunate, do you have the same kind of snails you see in my mini pelia or different?


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## Starwarsfan (Aug 12, 2018)

this is looking great. very nice job.


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## ipkiss (Aug 9, 2011)

@;


Ventchur said:


> Thats unfortunate, do you have the same kind of snails you see in my mini pelia or different?


What snails? I see no snails in your pristine tank!!


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## PLT (Jun 2, 2019)

That's an amazing tank!


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## Ventchur (Apr 29, 2018)

Starwarsfan said:


> this is looking great. very nice job.





PLT said:


> That's an amazing tank!


Thanks guys!


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## Ventchur (Apr 29, 2018)

ipkiss said:


> @;
> 
> What snails? I see no snails in your pristine tank!!


Super super tiny but there's probably 150 of these guys throughout the tank.


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## ipkiss (Aug 9, 2011)

Naw. Yours are cool looking. Mine are just those boring standard pest/pond snails. And bigger. And hungrier.


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## Jamo33 (Feb 18, 2014)

Ughhh. The excellence of this tank makes me want to scrap my tank entirely.
Well done mate, love it


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## Phil Edwards (Jul 18, 2003)

This is the most beautiful nano I've seen in quite a while. Thanks for the detailed journal as well, it was an enjoyable read.


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## Ventchur (Apr 29, 2018)

Celestial Pearl Danio photoshoot

Definitely one of my favourite nano fish. Most people say they're shy and skittish but my group of 4 are very active and are usually up near the front of the tank. Once they fully mature the pattern and colours on these are hard to beat.


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## Streetwise (May 24, 2019)

Good job and nice photos! I think they are my favorite tiny fish ever.

Cheers

PS, I have a few of them, and I love how they mix and match between schooling with the bigger (small) fish, hanging together, or just wandering off alone.


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## Ventchur (Apr 29, 2018)

Streetwise said:


> Good job and nice photos! I think they are my favorite tiny fish ever.
> 
> Cheers
> 
> PS, I have a few of them, and I love how they mix and match between schooling with the bigger (small) fish, hanging together, or just wandering off alone.


Thanks and yes I would highly recommend them to anyone. Would be interesting to see a tank full of 25-50..


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## 25cube2019 (Jan 21, 2019)

Ventchur said:


> Celestial Pearl Danio photoshoot
> 
> Definitely one of my favourite nano fish. Most people say they're shy and skittish but my group of 4 are very active and are usually up near the front of the tank. Once they fully mature the pattern and colours on these are hard to beat.


How long have you have the Danio? I want to get some but most of the description said that they are newly born and not mature so just ugly brown


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## Discusluv (Dec 24, 2017)

Ventchur said:


> Thanks and yes I would highly recommend them to anyone. Would be interesting to see a tank full of 25-50..


 Beautiful tank.
Curious- what happened to all the other fish you had?


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## Ventchur (Apr 29, 2018)

25cube2019 said:


> How long have you have the Danio? I want to get some but most of the description said that they are newly born and not mature so just ugly brown


Maybe around a year? 



Discusluv said:


> Beautiful tank.
> Curious- what happened to all the other fish you had?


Casualties over the months due to jumpers/getting caught in the eheim skimmer/filter intake.. It's a little sad finding fish and shrimp dead via jumping but I love the rimless/no cover look too much.


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## Quint (Mar 24, 2019)

Real nice tank. I like those Danios as well. Ur spot on with how they act. Mine mingle with the ember tetras and are more out going for sure. Lost 3 of 5, not sure why. Picked up 6 more hoping they do ok. They look healthy but so did the others I lost.


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## Ventchur (Apr 29, 2018)

Morning reflections with the plants hitting the surface


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## Jamo33 (Feb 18, 2014)

Just realised after reading through this again, that map was Australia. I'm only excited because I am Australian.
Sorry, unrelated to tanks.

Nice photos there mate, tank is looking amazing. So damn clean!


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## Ventchur (Apr 29, 2018)

Jamo33 said:


> Just realised after reading through this again, that map was Australia. I'm only excited because I am Australian.
> Sorry, unrelated to tanks.
> 
> Nice photos there mate, tank is looking amazing. So damn clean!


Thanks man! Vegemite crew.


----------



## Jamo33 (Feb 18, 2014)

Ventchur said:


> Thanks man! Vegemite crew.


The Yeasty spread of the gods!


----------



## Phil Edwards (Jul 18, 2003)

Have you ever tried using Vegemite as a base for DIY CO2?


----------



## Ventchur (Apr 29, 2018)

Phil Edwards said:


> Have you ever tried using Vegemite as a base for DIY CO2?


Never got into DIY Co2 lol, but butter/vegemite/avocado on toast is where it's at.


----------



## Ventchur (Apr 29, 2018)

Found some incredible nature scape inspiration the other weekend at the cottage. Happy fathers day ya'll.


----------



## Ventchur (Apr 29, 2018)

FTS Friday


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## 25cube2019 (Jan 21, 2019)

Nice photos, what is your dosing procedure? I looked but might have missed


----------



## Ventchur (Apr 29, 2018)

25cube2019 said:


> Nice photos, what is your dosing procedure? I looked but might have missed


Tropica Specialized Fertilizer 3 times a week. Easy and simple.


----------



## Ventchur (Apr 29, 2018)

7th month update:

The scape is doing great but has gone through some minor changes.. 

I ended up removing all the stems so maintenance would be easier on me as the summer gets super busy. In replace of the stems I split all my blyxa plants and created a super blyxa field, might look cool once filled in fully? I ripped out all of the thick overgrown monte carlo and planted some small plugs which are beginning to fill in a small area on the left. The bolbitus has been producing larger leaves/rhizome and was overshadowing the monte carlo/everything else below it so things had to move around. Now the only thing under it is mini pelia/anubias/buce. I love the bolbitus but unfortunately my tank is too small for its mature leaf size, constant trimming and it's leaves are still hitting the glass so it could be replaced sometime soon. Other then that, everything is growing pretty smoothly and the tank has no problems.


----------



## Ventchur (Apr 29, 2018)

Quick snaps from this morning..

Mini pelia vs Pelia



Anubias breaking through the moss



Amano action


----------



## Jamo33 (Feb 18, 2014)

That's it. I quit. I will never reach this level of plant health and design, why bother?

Very nice mate...envious is an understatement.


----------



## Ventchur (Apr 29, 2018)

Jamo33 said:


> That's it. I quit. I will never reach this level of plant health and design, why bother?
> 
> Very nice mate...envious is an understatement.


Much appreciated <3


----------



## Discusluv (Dec 24, 2017)

Jamo33 said:


> That's it. I quit. I will never reach this level of plant health and design, why bother?
> 
> Very nice mate...envious is an understatement.


Lol! Me neither. Its BBA and algae of many colors in all my tanks. (pouty face).


----------



## Ventchur (Apr 29, 2018)

Discusluv said:


> Lol! Me neither. Its BBA and algae of many colors in all my tanks. (pouty face).


BBA and snail eggs. Almost impossible to avoid..


----------



## somewhatshocked (Aug 8, 2011)

Really, really love this tank and all of its contrasts. But my favorite is the way the mini pelia makes those buces subtly stand out.


----------



## Asteroid (Jul 26, 2018)

Don't know how I missed this one. Great setup, pics. You got some skills!


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## Ventchur (Apr 29, 2018)

somewhatshocked said:


> Really, really love this tank and all of its contrasts. But my favorite is the way the mini pelia makes those buces subtly stand out.





Asteroid said:


> Don't know how I missed this one. Great setup, pics. You got some skills!


Thanks fella's!


----------



## Ventchur (Apr 29, 2018)

PSA to anyone still using manual timers..










Wifi smart plugs are the way to go. I've been using the Meross branded plugs from amazon for 3 months so far and only have positive things to say. I currently have these setup to control my light, co2, skimmer and even other lights around my room. 

- Easy to connect/setup timing schedules
- Turning things on and off with one button press from your phone anywhere 
- Compact size only taking up one socket space
- No problems with time changes/power outages


----------



## FishStew (Oct 19, 2019)

Looks great. Love the design and plants look amazing and super healthy. What lighting system is that buddy?


----------



## chicken.nublet (Mar 29, 2018)

Your tank looks absolutely stunning Ventchur! Wish I had seen this earlier. Pity about the stems but it looks incredible nonetheless. Any current full tank shots showing how the blyxa has grown in?


----------



## Ventchur (Apr 29, 2018)

FishStew said:


> Looks great. Love the design and plants look amazing and super healthy. What lighting system is that buddy?


Thank you, lighting is a Chihiros 45cm RGB LED.



chicken.nublet said:


> Your tank looks absolutely stunning Ventchur! Wish I had seen this earlier. Pity about the stems but it looks incredible nonetheless. Any current full tank shots showing how the blyxa has grown in?


Just picked up some stems today to mix it up again, stay tuned!


----------



## Ventchur (Apr 29, 2018)

9 month update:

Things are mostly good, all plants growing as expected except the blyxa/downoi. The blyxa is definitely sending out more offshoots and becoming thicker but not growing taller as I was hoping for unfortunately. The downoi is just stunted and barely growing, maybe it was planted in a bad location, no idea. A month ago I ended up getting rid of my SAE since he was attacking and eating the cherry shrimp on a regular basis. As that happened BBA started to pop up in places and it's currently a little pain in the ass. Haven't done much to counteract but trim off infected leaves/waterchange/clean filter. I had a suspicion it could have been the co2 so it was fine tuned today as well as adding a new SAE to tackle the problem. Might use some H202 spray if it gets worse but hope not..

Added a Dwarf lotus in the back corner for some variety and pop in colour. Hoping it sends out some taller leaves soon.. 




























Added 19 Emerald Dwarf Rasbora. A very pretty nano fish, very similar to CPD but even more shy/skittish. They have a cool tiger stripe pattern on their sides with a black dot on the tail fin.


----------



## chicken.nublet (Mar 29, 2018)

Ventchur said:


> 9 month update:
> 
> Things are mostly good, all plants growing as expected except the blyxa/downoi. The blyxa is definitely sending out more offshoots and becoming thicker but not growing taller as I was hoping for unfortunately. The downoi is just stunted and barely growing, maybe it was planted in a bad location, no idea. A month ago I ended up getting rid of my SAE since he was attacking and eating the cherry shrimp on a regular basis. As that happened BBA started to pop up in places and it's currently a little pain in the ass. Haven't done much to counteract but trim off infected leaves/waterchange/clean filter. I had a suspicion it could have been the co2 so it was fine tuned today as well as adding a new SAE to tackle the problem. Might use some H202 spray if it gets worse but hope not..
> 
> ...


I love that moss. It's pellia right? Wonder if I could get it to grow like that without CO2 and in warmer water, I've heard that aquatic mosses do better in cooler waters. I don't have a heater for my tank since it's hot year round here but some of the hobbyists here actually get chillers to keep their tanks cool. 

And absolutely gorgeous fish! I almost never see the for sale in the shops here. The ones I do see available don't look very healthy at all :C


----------



## Streetwise (May 24, 2019)

So nice.


----------



## Asteroid (Jul 26, 2018)

chicken.nublet said:


> ...
> And absolutely gorgeous fish! I almost never see the for sale in the shops here. The ones I do see available don't look very healthy at all :C


Someone has those for sale on ebay at pretty reasonable pricing. I was just looking at those earlier today.


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## chicken.nublet (Mar 29, 2018)

Asteroid said:


> Someone has those for sale on ebay at pretty reasonable pricing. I was just looking at those earlier today.


Thanks but I don't have a tank for them and the seller is probably in a different country anyway hahaha...


----------



## Ventchur (Apr 29, 2018)

chicken.nublet said:


> I love that moss. It's pellia right? Wonder if I could get it to grow like that without CO2 and in warmer water, I've heard that aquatic mosses do better in cooler waters. I don't have a heater for my tank since it's hot year round here but some of the hobbyists here actually get chillers to keep their tanks cool.
> 
> And absolutely gorgeous fish! I almost never see the for sale in the shops here. The ones I do see available don't look very healthy at all :C


I've got christmas moss, mini pelia and regular pelia. I know for sure they don't need co2 but not sure on temperature requirements. Currently my tank is running at 21c with no heater.

Yeah, first time i've ever seen them for sale at one of my LFS. Picked up a dozen and then a week later another 7..


----------



## Ventchur (Apr 29, 2018)

BBA vs H2O2





Also Pinnatifida is not very fond of H2O2..(looks cool though)


----------



## AcidGambit (Aug 30, 2018)

Ventchur said:


> BBA vs H2O2
> 
> 
> 
> ...


How did you apply the H2O2?


----------



## Jamo33 (Feb 18, 2014)

Similarly struggling with BBA in my tank. Buce just seems to collect the stuff. 
Have you found the root cause?


----------



## Ventchur (Apr 29, 2018)

Jamo33 said:


> Similarly struggling with BBA in my tank. Buce just seems to collect the stuff.
> Have you found the root cause?


It seems to be one of those things no one has truly figured out, lots of good guesses/online debate but nothing definitive.


----------



## Ventchur (Apr 29, 2018)

The mini pelia takeover.. Coming very close to the front glass now.



The tank is almost 11 months old and i'm really itching to rescape. Currently just looking for the right hardscape materials which isn't so easy up here in Canada. Not the greatest selection to choose from and it's almost impossible to find larger black lava rock pieces.

Recently I removed the bolbitus and red tiger lotus as they were both getting too big for this cube. Now it's just trident java fern on that middle driftwood and in the back I have blyxa plus three other stem types. Pretty sure that it's Myriophyllum 'Guyana' in the corner, the orange/yellow is Ludwigia Arcuata but i'm not sure about the last one towards the right. 



Some CPD love


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## vvDO (Oct 18, 2010)

Ventchur said:


> i'm not sure about the last one towards the right.



If I had to guess, it looks like rotala nanjenshan




Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## Ventchur (Apr 29, 2018)

vvDO said:


> If I had to guess, it looks like rotala nanjenshan
> 
> Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


That's it, thanks!


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## MadRiverPat (May 3, 2013)

Great looking tank! Always loved the 25 cubes and have been considering one more recently. Struggled to get mini pelia that bushy in the past but thinking about giving it another shot. Any advice? Wondering if it was my dosing regiment and/or amount of light because i typically keep co2 flowing pretty high.


----------



## Ventchur (Apr 29, 2018)

MadRiverPat said:


> Great looking tank! Always loved the 25 cubes and have been considering one more recently. Struggled to get mini pelia that bushy in the past but thinking about giving it another shot. Any advice? Wondering if it was my dosing regiment and/or amount of light because i typically keep co2 flowing pretty high.


The key to the mini pelia bush is mainly patience as it is a very slow grower. 6-8 months.

First pic is from February and the second is in December.


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## Ventchur (Apr 29, 2018)

Tank is now 1 year and 2 weeks old. Last pics of the tank, rescape coming soon..


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## Ventchur (Apr 29, 2018)

New layout using just lava rock and tropica soil.. 

Decided to pop my iwagumi scape cherry. The scape to me isn't really impressive but I worked with what I had and the hardscape selection around here is slacking. A nice minimal layout where for the first time ever I didn't use any wood. I could've added a lot more detail work with smaller lava rocks and what not but I really want that space for plants. Also, upgraded my lighting to the AI Prime Freshwater. I've wanted one of these for years and I can't wait to get things rolling.. 

Going to the LFS tomorrow to pick up those tissue cultures, yeah buddy.


----------



## AquaAurora (Jul 10, 2013)

Ventchur said:


> New layout using just lava rock and tropica soil..
> 
> Decided to pop my iwagumi scape cherry. The scape to me isn't really impressive but I worked with what I had and the hardscape selection around here is slacking. A nice minimal layout where for the first time ever I didn't use any wood. I could've added a lot more detail work with smaller lava rocks and what not but I really want that space for plants. Also, upgraded my lighting to the AI Prime Freshwater. I've wanted one of these for years and I can't wait to get things rolling..
> 
> Going to the LFS tomorrow to pick up those tissue cultures, yeah buddy.


Where did all that lovely mini pelia?! 
I tried it once but it came with hair algae from the seller which just took over and smothered it so I gave up after a few months :c


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## Ventchur (Apr 29, 2018)

AquaAurora said:


> Where did all that lovely mini pelia?!
> I tried it once but it came with hair algae from the seller which just took over and smothered it so I gave up after a few months :c


All sold to people locally, excited to try out some new plants this scape.


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## vvDO (Oct 18, 2010)

Ventchur said:


> New layout using just lava rock and tropica soil..
> 
> 
> 
> ...




Can’t wait to see what you come up with next!


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## Ventchur (Apr 29, 2018)

Planted on Feb. 20, 2020

Plants used:

- Downoi
- Anubias Petite
- Pinnatifida
- Mini Buce 
- Littorella Uniflora
- Hygrophila Araguaia
- Pogostemon Erectus

All plants we're tropica tissue culture's excluding the epiphytes & pogo. Using littorella as my carpeting plant, I don't know if it's new/rare or what but i've never really seen it around the forum or used in any scapes recently. Cool looking thick grassy plant, interested to see how it does. Still have to add 2 pots of weeping moss and i'll be set. 

The lava rock definitely has a more reddish tint while underwater which is meh but should look better once aged a little more+moss.

What school of nano fish to add.....?


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## AcidGambit (Aug 30, 2018)

I'm really liking my Pseudomugil gertrudae so far. They explore separately during the day, but school tight near the water line at dawn and dusk.


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## Ventchur (Apr 29, 2018)

AcidGambit said:


> I'm really liking my Pseudomugil gertrudae so far. They explore separately during the day, but school tight near the water line at dawn and dusk.


Those are some damn good looking fish.. How many?


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## AcidGambit (Aug 30, 2018)

Ventchur said:


> Those are some damn good looking fish.. How many?


I have 18 in my tank.


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## Ventchur (Apr 29, 2018)

AcidGambit said:


> I have 18 in my tank.


Definitely will be on the lookout for those the next time I go shopping, thanks mate.


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## Grobbins48 (Oct 16, 2017)

After what you accomplished with the last scape I am excited to see where you take this one!


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## cubecrew (Feb 15, 2020)

Awesome! Super stoked to see how this turns out, could always use some more cube crew inspiration. #cubecrew


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## Ventchur (Apr 29, 2018)

Grobbins48 said:


> After what you accomplished with the last scape I am excited to see where you take this one!





cubecrew said:


> Awesome! Super stoked to see how this turns out, could always use some more cube crew inspiration. #cubecrew
> 
> 
> Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


Let's gooooo, thanks fella's.


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## Ventchur (Apr 29, 2018)

Shrimp frenzy + CPD's and the new fish, Emerald Eye Rasbora's.


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## Ventchur (Apr 29, 2018)

2.5 weeks in..

All stock is now in which includes:

- 14 Emerald Eye Rasbora
- 3 Celestial Pearl Danio
- 1 Otto
- 2 Amano Shrimp
- 50 Fire Red Shrimp

Decided against adding nerite snails as I don't want any white eggs on my rocks.

Added weeping moss/mini pelia to the rocks. Most of the anubias petite melted away but other than that all plants are looking good. No algae/diatoms as of yet..







Closeup of the carpeting plant Littorella Uniflora. Similar look/length to dwarf hairgrass but has a thicker/tubular stalk and sort of reminds me of a succulent. Waiting for it to take off..


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## PurdueGK (May 16, 2015)

Love this tank! It looks way bigger than 25 gallons! Perfect shrimp tank! 
I can’t wait to watch it grow in!


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## Ventchur (Apr 29, 2018)

PurdueGK said:


> Love this tank! It looks way bigger than 25 gallons! Perfect shrimp tank!
> I can’t wait to watch it grow in!


You and me both, thanks man!


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## cubecrew (Feb 15, 2020)

Yes, cube crew all-star in the house. I am so looking forward to seeing the carpet fill in, never even heard of that species. 


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## P.Isley (Feb 18, 2020)

Love the Pogostemon here. It’s filling in nicely and your tank looks great 👍🏼


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## Ventchur (Apr 29, 2018)

cubecrew said:


> Yes, cube crew all-star in the house. I am so looking forward to seeing the carpet fill in, never even heard of that species.
> 
> Yeah I was planning to use glosso but none we're in stock. Saw this and gave it a quick google, not much info but was a cool looking carpeting plant.
> 
> Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk





P.Isley said:


> Love the Pogostemon here. It’s filling in nicely and your tank looks great 👍🏼


Struggled with it in the past but so far so good! Thanks!


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## Ventchur (Apr 29, 2018)

AI Prime from above


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## Hendy8888 (Mar 6, 2008)

Looks great! Can't wait to see the Littorella fill in. From my experience it will take a while and won't be super dense but will still look awesome, such a unique plant. BBA likes it, it can handle hydrogen peroxide very well, it's the most buoyant plant I have grown, it's fairly brittle and don't trim it. Instead remove the entire bad leaf.


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## Ventchur (Apr 29, 2018)

Hendy8888 said:


> Looks great! Can't wait to see the Littorella fill in. From my experience it will take a while and won't be super dense but will still look awesome, such a unique plant. BBA likes it, it can handle hydrogen peroxide very well, it's the most buoyant plant I have grown, it's fairly brittle and don't trim it. Instead remove the entire bad leaf.


Slow and steady...

Man... You can't see anything from a normal distance but when I got in super close to the leaves I could see some tiny bits of maybe staghorn and one speck of bba. Thanks for the tip. The other day I actually went looking for some h2o2 but everything was out of stock thanks to corona. If anything I can switch out the carpet for glosso pretty easily which was the original plan.


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## andrewss (Oct 17, 2012)

Very elegant looking tank! Will only get better as it fills in a bit 😍


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## Ventchur (Apr 29, 2018)

My Mini Complete Tank 

Such a cool desktop AIO aquarium, stats are:

• Main Tank Volume = 780ml
• Sump Filter Volume = 680ml

Just rocking a minimal scape with sand, some buce and a few cherry shrimp.


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## Ventchur (Apr 29, 2018)

5 weeks since planting..

Definitely seeing some nice algae growing on the rocks now, especially the top one. Probably just going to leave it to achieve a more natural appearance. Also seeing some tiny spots of bba pop up, it's either on the littorella uniflora or on the lava rock in high flow areas. Nothing some h2o2 can't fix..

Recently moss was trimmed, h2o2 treatment and water change. Things to do next include trimming the hygrophila araguaia and maybe pogostemon. 

Very happy with the downoi growth, it's really starting to fill in and beginning to multiply. Trying to see if it will grow in the rockwork near the top of the tank, just stuck it in a crack with no soil. Only thing i'm not happy with is my pinnatifida, seems to be growing slower and more green than it was in the past. Must be the light intensity.. At the bottom I included what my AI prime settings are but will be raising it slowly to see if I get a change.


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## Asteroid (Jul 26, 2018)

Looks good! Your scapes are very well thought out. 

Just curious, now does the Prime light compare to the previous chihiros rgb?


----------



## Ventchur (Apr 29, 2018)

Asteroid said:


> Looks good! Your scapes are very well thought out.
> 
> Just curious, now does the Prime light compare to the previous chihiros rgb?


The prime is an awesome light but comes with a hefty price tag when compared, although the aesthetic, controllability, app and all its features blow the chihiros out of the water. A single prime is perfect for a cube tank as I didn't get full coverage with one chihiros light. One of my favourite benefits of a pendant light like the prime is having the top of the tank sooo open. Free of the led strip/cables on the rim which makes maintenance a breeze and gives you a beautiful unobstructed view of the tank. Still not 100% happy with the colour settings I have for the prime but will continue tweaking..

But I still have the chihiros lights so I should compare and take photos..


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## Tejas Kadam (Jun 19, 2018)

i really like tour tank so much clean and clear


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## Tejas Kadam (Jun 19, 2018)

I am going to buy tropica specialised and will be starting new nano tank soon you are my inspiration


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## Asteroid (Jul 26, 2018)

@Ventchur 

Thanks for the light info. I'm considering it for a 24" tank (its states 24" x 24" coverage.) It does look great on your cube. I definitely want something app friendly and very customizable. 

Good luck as the tank grows out.


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## Discusluv (Dec 24, 2017)

You are so talented in aquascape design. A cut-above.


----------



## Ventchur (Apr 29, 2018)

Tejas Kadam said:


> I am going to buy tropica specialised and will be starting new nano tank soon you are my inspiration





Discusluv said:


> You are so talented in aquascape design. A cut-above.


Wow, thank you!


----------



## chicken.nublet (Mar 29, 2018)

Pretty sad to see the old scape go but the new scape already looks amazing!

Just curious but how is that 1 otocinclus doing? I've always heard that they should be kept in groups but I am considering getting just 1 for my own cube for a bit of algae control.


----------



## Ventchur (Apr 29, 2018)

chicken.nublet said:


> Pretty sad to see the old scape go but the new scape already looks amazing!
> 
> Just curious but how is that 1 otocinclus doing? I've always heard that they should be kept in groups but I am considering getting just 1 for my own cube for a bit of algae control.


Yeah the old scape was definitely better but I wanted to try new things out and switch it up. After a while you just want to scape something, and there in lies the problem with one tank.

Think i've had him for 2ish years and no problems so far.


----------



## monkeyruler90 (Apr 13, 2008)

good call on not adding nerites to this set up, they'd lay eggs on the rocks in my experience


----------



## Ventchur (Apr 29, 2018)

Celestial Pearl Danio aka the best looking nano fish in the hobby macro attempts with a 50mm


----------



## Grobbins48 (Oct 16, 2017)

Ventchur said:


> Celestial Pearl Danio macro attempts with a 50mm


Really great shots, especially that first one. The background makes it really pop!


----------



## Asteroid (Jul 26, 2018)

Those are really nice. I could tell by the nice bokeh effect you used a really wide aperture.


----------



## Ventchur (Apr 29, 2018)

Asteroid said:


> Those are really nice. I could tell by the nice bokeh effect you used a really wide aperture.


2.8 baby!


----------



## Asteroid (Jul 26, 2018)

Ventchur said:


> 2.8 baby!


Oh yeah!

That is a beautiful fish to do a nice macro on. And considering it's size and behavior not easy.


----------



## Ventchur (Apr 29, 2018)

Quarantine update:

Man, littorella sure does grow slow..





Some detail shots


----------



## chicken.nublet (Mar 29, 2018)

Ventchur said:


> Yeah the old scape was definitely better but I wanted to try new things out and switch it up. After a while you just want to scape something, and there in lies the problem with one tank.
> 
> Think i've had him for 2ish years and no problems so far.


Sounds like somebody needs to get another tank.


----------



## Ventchur (Apr 29, 2018)

chicken.nublet said:


> Sounds like somebody needs to get another tank.


Don't have much room but I would love one of these for my desktop.


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## Ventchur (Apr 29, 2018)

Some fauna snaps..





More pics:


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## Asteroid (Jul 26, 2018)

Nice pics, really like the 2nd one with the bubbles in the background.


----------



## Ventchur (Apr 29, 2018)

Asteroid said:


> Nice pics, really like the 2nd one with the bubbles in the background.


Thanks man. 

Yeah, even after turning off the filter the bubbles from cut stems/pearling is insane. Produces a nice effect with the bokeh that's for sure!


----------



## andrewss (Oct 17, 2012)

Loving your macro shots!! Makes me really want to get a camera that can do it 👌


----------



## Ventchur (Apr 29, 2018)

andrewss said:


> Loving your macro shots!! Makes me really want to get a camera that can do it 👌


----------



## Ventchur (Apr 29, 2018)

7 week update

Cleaned the front glass panel to take some pics with the iPhone for a change. Pogostemon will need a trim soon.. or should I just replant the tops? Debating on whether to try and pull up the whole plant with roots intact or just cut near bottom of the stem and leave all the roots in soil. I can see the root system from the side and it is pretty intense. 

Filter hasn't been cleaned since setup and all glass+lily pipes will need a clean.


----------



## monkeyruler90 (Apr 13, 2008)

I always just trim the tops and let them plant regrow from the bottom, I think it gives it a more dense look since more tops come out

Love the color of the pogo contrasting with everything else!


----------



## Ventchur (Apr 29, 2018)

Side view of the tank (waiting for purigen to arrive before I clean filter+lily pipes)



Side shoots of the Litorella out in the open




Current AI Prime settings


----------



## andrewss (Oct 17, 2012)

I just tried purigen for the first time in my canister about a week ago, absolutely love it! The lily pipes are looking good but yeah need a nice brushing huh!


----------



## Ventchur (Apr 29, 2018)

andrewss said:


> I just tried purigen for the first time in my canister about a week ago, absolutely love it! The lily pipes are looking good but yeah need a nice brushing huh!


Awesome, will also be my first time trying it. Really interested if I can notice a difference in my water clarity but after hearing about it for so long and multiple professionals swearing by it I had to try it.

Also got some other products that we're getting hyped up by Jeff Senske and Luis Navarro, both aquascaping experts. 

• Seachem Pristine
• Flourish Advance

Conversation about the two products starts at 15 min but the whole talk contains an abundance of knowledge, enjoy.


----------



## Hendy8888 (Mar 6, 2008)

Thanks for that link! Really good talk for anyone interested. Have to say I cringed at 48:35 and made me realize again why they even made the video. Just have to keep in mind they both have a relationship to certain brands. At least you can still tell what products they truly believe in.


----------



## Asteroid (Jul 26, 2018)

Hendy8888 said:


> Thanks for that link! Really good talk for anyone interested. Have to say *I cringed at 48:35 and made me realize again why they even made the video. Just have to keep in mind they both have a relationship to certain brands. *At least you can still tell what products they truly believe in.


Yes definitely cringe-worthy. And yes both of those guys have a horse in the race. Not to say they aren't good products, but I think they need acting lessons if they're going to do this more often.


----------



## andrewss (Oct 17, 2012)

At this point it seems like anyone posting content to social media has 'a horse in the race' haha


----------



## Asteroid (Jul 26, 2018)

That’s many times true. I was just referring to independent reviews. One of those guys sells seachem and the other one works for them. So the product might be good but I would only take what they say so far.


----------



## Ventchur (Apr 29, 2018)

Hendy8888 said:


> Thanks for that link! Really good talk for anyone interested. Have to say I cringed at 48:35 and made me realize again why they even made the video. Just have to keep in mind they both have a relationship to certain brands. At least you can still tell what products they truly believe in.





Asteroid said:


> Yes definitely cringe-worthy. And yes both of those guys have a horse in the race. Not to say they aren't good products, but I think they need acting lessons if they're going to do this more often.


LOL I was playing the audio in the background but the video is x2 as funny. 

I'm still skeptical but I will post something if I see anything positive comes out of these products.


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## Hendy8888 (Mar 6, 2008)

A lot of what they are doing is taking measures to maximize the ability of the plants to grow easier. 

- low KH
- low temp
- reduce organics
- constant maintenance (cleaning)
- medium to strong light for a short period
- removing any poor leaves
- proper flow
- oxygen/co2

I use purigen in a reactor and change it monthly (recharge). Don't need to but it's a buffer to run in the background. I also want very clear water and it is part of my system to ensure that.

Matrix isn't the absolute best bio media but it's hard to beat for the price, really don't need anything better.

The new bacteria's and enzymes intrigue me but probably since I haven't used them. I wish the science was explained by the companies that produce these products but that might very well defeat the purpose.


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## andrewss (Oct 17, 2012)

Well I think the hormone one sounds very much not so relevant for me but because I've developed a serious online shopping problem during these quarantine times I ordered a bottle of pristine haha! Let's see what this "magic" water does or what I placebo imagine it will do lol


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## Ventchur (Apr 29, 2018)

andrewss said:


> Well I think the hormone one sounds very much not so relevant for me but because I've developed a serious online shopping problem during these quarantine times I ordered a bottle of pristine haha! Let's see what this "magic" water does or what I placebo imagine it will do lol


The amount of online shops with 40-60% off sales and free shipping is very dangerous..


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## andrewss (Oct 17, 2012)

Oh, I know! lol


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## Asteroid (Jul 26, 2018)

Ventchur said:


> The amount of online shops with 40-60% off sales and free shipping is very dangerous..


Oh, do tell, I'm looking for a new 24" light and so far, bupkis!


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## PurdueGK (May 16, 2015)

Really love this setup! Cubes are tough to aquascape imho.


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## Ventchur (Apr 29, 2018)

The scape at 8 weeks, pretty much at its peak before some new plants arrive and some things get switched out and around. 









Plants that are on their way..


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## andrewss (Oct 17, 2012)

why do your full tank shots look so professional? Really nice shots! Interested to see how it looks after the changes!


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## Chizpa305 (Feb 13, 2011)

Nice looking cube. What is the thing right under the filter intake? Is that a CO2 diffuser?


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## Ventchur (Apr 29, 2018)

Asteroid said:


> Oh, do tell, I'm looking for a new 24" light and so far, bupkis!


Mainly clothing/shoe/outdoor retailers sorry..



PurdueGK said:


> Really love this setup! Cubes are tough to aquascape imho.


Thanks, yeah that does seem to be the consensus.. Someone's got to do it!



andrewss said:


> why do your full tank shots look so professional? Really nice shots! Interested to see how it looks after the changes!


A DSLR will get you much better looking shots. I use a Canon 6D on a tripod, turn off all lights in room, black out window and bump my AI Prime to max brightness.


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## Asteroid (Jul 26, 2018)

Ventchur said:


> Mainly clothing/shoe/outdoor retailers sorry..


You tease :crying:


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## Ventchur (Apr 29, 2018)

Chizpa305 said:


> Nice looking cube. What is the thing right under the filter intake? Is that a CO2 diffuser?


Yeah, I put my diffuser under my filter intake which diffuses the co2 quite well and keeps my water pretty bubble free.


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## Chizpa305 (Feb 13, 2011)

Ventchur said:


> Yeah, I put my diffuser under my filter intake which diffuses the co2 quite well and keeps my water pretty bubble free.


Nice trick, so your filter is also a reactor of sorts then. Clever


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## cubecrew (Feb 15, 2020)

Neat! I've considered trying this but worried it might introduce filter pump life issues with the introduction of gas and subsequent pressure loss there. Have you noticed any problems?


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## Ventchur (Apr 29, 2018)

Air plants above the tank attached to the prime mount. Superglued onto some sponge then onto an old nano magnetic glass cleaner, easy to detach and soak. Inspired by @Hendy8888


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## Ventchur (Apr 29, 2018)

First iteration of this scape. 

2/23/20 - 4/21/20










New plants came in last Sunday and some major renovations ensued. Updates coming soon..


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## cubecrew (Feb 15, 2020)

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## Chizpa305 (Feb 13, 2011)

Cool transition


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## Ventchur (Apr 29, 2018)

Minor renovations include:

• Removed Litorella carpet and replaced with Glossostigma
• Pulled up all Hygrophilia and replaced half with Ranunculus papulentus, replanted the tops of the other half
• Pulled up all Pogostemon and replaced half with Rotala colorata, replanted the tops of the other half
• Trimmed mosses & pinntatifida


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## Ben Belton (Dec 12, 2008)

Your tank is over the top. I've never seen anyone plant Glosso so meticulously, and I've watched Amano in-person plant Glosso. :grin2:
Just planted and not grown in that looks better than mine. I can grow plants, I just don't have the design skills. I'm working on it.
Love the Pogo helferi. I've never gotten it to like me, but it might in my current set up. I have some I tissue cultured. I need to pull it out of flask.


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## Asteroid (Jul 26, 2018)

The Glosso should be a nice change and will give good contrast. That's the best way to plant it. I've planted HC one stem at a time and it always came in great. The Papulentus is the same as Inundatus right. That's a nice plant. I always had a problem keeping it short. It's very invasive, but easy to cut back. 

Still digesting plant growing out of inanimate object (light stand)


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## Ventchur (Apr 29, 2018)

Ben Belton said:


> Your tank is over the top. I've never seen anyone plant Glosso so meticulously, and I've watched Amano in-person plant Glosso. :grin2:
> Just planted and not grown in that looks better than mine. I can grow plants, I just don't have the design skills. I'm working on it.
> Love the Pogo helferi. I've never gotten it to like me, but it might in my current set up. I have some I tissue cultured. I need to pull it out of flask.


I think it pays off greatly planting your carpet meticulously from the start if possible as @Asteroid concurs. Also, I paid for one day shipping of the tissue cultures but they ended up coming almost a week later. Glosso looked the worse out of the bunch and didn't leave me with a lot of plant mass.

Yeah, I agree with you about the helferi.. So satisfying to see it grown in dense bushes. Just need to find out what's the best course of action for maintaining, trimming or replanting tops?



Asteroid said:


> The Glosso should be a nice change and will give good contrast. That's the best way to plant it. I've planted HC one stem at a time and it always came in great. The Papulentus is the same as Inundatus right. That's a nice plant. I always had a problem keeping it short. It's very invasive, but easy to cut back.
> 
> Still digesting plant growing out of inanimate object (light stand)


"The river buttercup from Australia, Ranunculus inundatus, is also sold with the label Ranunculus papulentus". Interested to see how it grows, I just love the leaf shape.


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## Chizpa305 (Feb 13, 2011)

Beautiful tank, very delicate and detailed. This is something I like about nano tanks, that you can really focus in the tiniest of details and make the scape look compact and complex in a very tiny space. I like the changes a lot, especially the carpet changes, I think in such a small tank like this a very short carpet like glosso, would look a lot better.


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## Ventchur (Apr 29, 2018)

Chizpa305 said:


> Beautiful tank, very delicate and detailed. This is something I like about nano tanks, that you can really focus in the tiniest of details and make the scape look compact and complex in a very tiny space. I like the changes a lot, especially the carpet changes, I think in such a small tank like this a very short carpet like glosso, would look a lot better.


Yeah the glosso is a big hit I think, really improves the scape. I've always wanted to try it ever since seeing it in ADA picture books and online but never got around to it till now.


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## Asteroid (Jul 26, 2018)

Man that's an old book. I think it was pre-aqua soil and people actually scaped with riccia. I have the same one. LOL


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## andrewss (Oct 17, 2012)

Ohhh nice changes there, cant wait to see it grow into itself a bit over the next couple weeks! You have patience for planting apparently!


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## Grobbins48 (Oct 16, 2017)

Tank is looking fantastic! So crisp and clean with such healthy plants. Well done this time around!


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## Ventchur (Apr 29, 2018)

Asteroid said:


> Man that's an old book. I think it was pre-aqua soil and people actually scaped with riccia. I have the same one. LOL


I remember scaping with riccia once.. It's crazy how not a single soul uses it anymore, rip riccia.



andrewss said:


> Ohhh nice changes there, cant wait to see it grow into itself a bit over the next couple weeks! You have patience for planting apparently!


Glosso update coming soon, the patience does pay off for a quick way to fully and evenly carpet an area.



Grobbins48 said:


> Tank is looking fantastic! So crisp and clean with such healthy plants. Well done this time around!


Thanks man!


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## Ben Belton (Dec 12, 2008)

Ventchur said:


> I remember scaping with riccia once.. It's crazy how not a single soul uses it anymore, rip riccia.



It's awesome, but it was such a nightmare to keep trimmed. It's fun as an accent plant still, but I wouldn't use it in a whole tank. I can't even keep the little one I have maintained.


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## Ventchur (Apr 29, 2018)

15 days growth on the tissue culture glosso, lightning fast compared to the litorella.







Green is my favourite colour..

I may not have much crazy colouration going on in this tank but the different shades of green and the different leaf sizes/textures are very appealing to me.


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## andrewss (Oct 17, 2012)

Beautiful green tones 😄


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## P.Isley (Feb 18, 2020)

love the texture!


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## sbank (Jul 13, 2019)

Might be the nicest smaller scape I've seen. Great work! Now I have of reading to do here!


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## Ventchur (Apr 29, 2018)

So I finally got around to doing my lighting experiment..

The contenders include:

AI Prime Freshwater


Chihiros A-Series Plus 45cm + Chihiros RGB 45cm


Chihiros RGB 45cm


Chihiros A-Series Plus 45cm


I tried my best to have all the photo settings the same and adjusted for different levels of brightness. Sorry for window reflections..

The prime destroys them all in coverage, controllability, functionality, power, looks, etc. but it is a much more expensive piece of equipment. Colour-wise, the prime is still king, the two fixture combination comes close, the a series plus comes last although I do very much like the tones that the RGB brings out. What do you guys think?


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## andrewss (Oct 17, 2012)

The Prime and Chihiros RGB are my fav! Though honestly from those pictures I feel like I was kinda splittin hairs, the tank looks really good regardless of which light haha!


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## cubecrew (Feb 15, 2020)

Honestly I really can't tell enough difference to decide based on the light produced. 

I will say I really dig the cleanliness of just the center mount. 


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## Asteroid (Jul 26, 2018)

Having had/have many epiphyte style tanks I can really appreciate the shades of green. I mean the green from the pogo to the moss are worlds apart. I guess if you ever wanted a "splash" of color other than the fish you could always try to color up the pinnatifida, but that would probably require you going pretty lean on no3.

As far as lighting, I like the crispness of the AI as opposed to the warmer look of the Chir RGB (I think from the photo), for form I like the minimal look of the AI. For a cube it's perfect.


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## Ventchur (Apr 29, 2018)

Teaser for the next project, coming soon..


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## cubecrew (Feb 15, 2020)

Super rad macro shots. What do you shoot with?


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## chicken.nublet (Mar 29, 2018)

Ventchur said:


> Teaser for the next project, coming soon..


Looking forward to this one!


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## Ventchur (Apr 29, 2018)

cubecrew said:


> Super rad macro shots. What do you shoot with?


I shoot with a Canon 6D and the lens was a 50mm. All I own lens wise is a 50mm and a 17-40mm, mainly for travel/landscape but it's still effective for aquarium photography. The crop tool is your best friend in this case..


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## zmartin (May 1, 2018)

Ventchur said:


> I shoot with a Canon 6D and the lens was a 50mm. All I own lens wise is a 50mm and a 17-40mm, mainly for travel/landscape but it's still effective for aquarium photography. The crop tool is your best friend in this case..



“The lens was a 50ml” that explains the quality of those photos. They are striking photos. A great tease for what is to come.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## Ventchur (Apr 29, 2018)

Scape is just over 3 months old..

It's been around 1 month since planting the glosso/rotala colorata/ranunculus tissue cultures. Everything is filling in and we're pretty much at full glosso coverage. The plan tonight includes cleaning glass, water change, doing a large trim of everything and ripping out the Araguaia to be replaced with two varieties of erio to try out for the first time. I have a tissue culture cup of Eriocaulon King Crimson and one Eriocaulon Cinereum from a fellow hobbyist.


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## Ventchur (Apr 29, 2018)

Back right corner update:


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## Hendy8888 (Mar 6, 2008)

Curious did you get the King Crimson from ABC plants? I killed mine pretty good after a flush of growth, I'll be following their progress. Tank looks great, I like the change to glosso too.


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## Ventchur (Apr 29, 2018)

Hendy8888 said:


> Curious did you get the King Crimson from ABC plants? I killed mine pretty good after a flush of growth, I'll be following their progress. Tank looks great, I like the change to glosso too.


Yeah, a store in Toronto named Tails and Scales got a shipment of ABC plants in and it was $12.99/cup, so why not.. My only regret is not splitting them up more but we'll see how they do.


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## Ventchur (Apr 29, 2018)

June update:





- Dosing ThriveS fertilizer to switch things up
- Recently replaced most of the weeping moss with mini pelia as it was getting huge and shading other plants beneath.
- Downoi is in serious need of a major trim/replanting, getting way too tall now and hiding hardscape.
- Erio doing okay it seems..

- Livestock now includes: 
- 4 Emerald eye rasboras
- 3 Celestial pearl danios
- Lots of fire red cherries and one amano

Will be picking up a school of Pseudomugil gertrudae sometime this month.


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## andrewss (Oct 17, 2012)

Tank looks stunning!

Pseudomugil gertrudae huh! Nice, gonna have to probably use live foods for a bit then huh?


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## chicken.nublet (Mar 29, 2018)

Ventchur said:


> June update:
> 
> 
> 
> ...


The downoi look awesome! I have some in my tiny cube. If they grow nearly as big as yours I will probably have to replace them with something else =(


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## Ventchur (Apr 29, 2018)

andrewss said:


> Tank looks stunning!
> 
> Pseudomugil gertrudae huh! Nice, gonna have to probably use live foods for a bit then huh?


Dry food mostly, throw some live in every now and again.



chicken.nublet said:


> The downoi look awesome! I have some in my tiny cube. If they grow nearly as big as yours I will probably have to replace them with something else =(


Thanks, you can keep it smaller with trimming but i've been letting mine grow out for months.


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## Asteroid (Jul 26, 2018)

Looking good. The glosso really filled in quick. First time I have Pogo E. growing that thing can really move. It grows so quick, I also have mini pellia, that thing just sits there, the growth is so slooow.


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## Ventchur (Apr 29, 2018)

The big quarantine trim

- Experimenting with hacking down the glosso to substrate level, hopefully it comes back
- Scattered Erio crimson towards the front for more co2/flow/light
- Removed Pogostemon erectus and back corner is now completely Rotala colorata
- Replanted all Downoi tops
- Moved Pinnatifida to the back and replaced with Downoi 

DOOA Terra update



Really loving this setup, the back wall is now planted with weeping moss and the water is running.. I picked up some great looking driftwood and I have some Anubias golden petite/Anubias nana variegated floating. Still a lot of work to do and plants to acquire..


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## Ventchur (Apr 29, 2018)

A little over a month since the last post and massive trim. Since then i've added a nice little group of Pseudomugil gertrudae which are amazing and I really wish I had more but the LFS sold out unfortunately. Wondering if I could add a equally sized group of Pseudomugil furcatus to the mix? Anyways, I still need to get some good pics of these guys and their unique finnage. 

I finally replaced my broken lily pipe intake+sponge/outtake with a new Chihiros set and am now running an inline co2 diffuser. Two things I like about the upgrade include the Chihiros lily pipes being a bit smaller than my old VIV ones(better for nano tanks like mine) and having two suction cups to attach to the glass instead of one. 

Plant wise, everything survived the huge trim and is doing great except for the Ranunculus papulentus. Trimmed the Downoi again but left the area in the back to grow taller. Added one tc pot of Staurogyne repens to the mix. Rotala doing great, erio's doing okay and the glosso needs a light trim..


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## Ventchur (Apr 29, 2018)

Fall update..

A little overgrown from a bit of summer/fall neglect. Looking to rescape once again when things slow down a bit and I can spend more time around the tank. 







In other news a bunch of bba popped up when I switched my co2 setup to an inline diffuser so i'm excited to start from a clean slate with new hardscape/no algae. As you can see my lily pipes have not been cleaned in forever since I don't have a pipe brush small enough to clean them yet..


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## sally.myers (Oct 5, 2020)

Thank you for sharing, your tank looks amazing!!


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## monkeyruler90 (Apr 13, 2008)

good update. 

yeah, the plants have grown a lot. how do you like the inline diffuser?does it make smaller bubbles than the in tank diffuser? 

Also, I hate/love my lily pipes. Some stoner taught me a trick though. for smaller diameter ones like this one, if you fill the intake with kosher salt and a bit of rubbing alcohol and then shake the pipes the insides will be super cleaned out without using pipe cleaners. Less risk of cracking the glass


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## Ventchur (Apr 29, 2018)

Couldn't resist taking some photos when I saw the light hitting my tank this morning.






Have made some changes from the last update..

I ripped out all of the stems in the rear corner and replaced them with mostly Downoi and some Staurogyne repens/Ranunculus. This helps give more emphasis to the main rock and generates better circular flow around the tank. Added S repens, Downoi and Pinnatifida to top of the main rock which gives the scape more verticality and creates a flower bouquet effect. Other new additions include a tiger lotus to the middle(no new growth yet) and for the first time ever, finally trying the infamous HC cuba to the right. 

+2 nerites and some more Pseudomugil gertrudae are on the way.


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## Asteroid (Jul 26, 2018)

monkeyruler90 said:


> ...
> Also, I hate/love my lily pipes. Some stoner taught me a trick though. for smaller diameter ones like this one, if you fill the intake with kosher salt and a bit of rubbing alcohol and then shake the pipes the insides will be super cleaned out without using pipe cleaners. Less risk of cracking the glass


I'll have to try that. Is there a specific reason it has to be kosher salt, lol.

Bump:


Ventchur said:


> Couldn't resist taking some photos when I saw the light hitting my tank this morning.


Love those natural light shots. Little warning on the nerites, they like to explore beyond the aquarium.


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## Ventchur (Apr 29, 2018)

Asteroid said:


> Little warning on the nerites, they like to explore beyond the aquarium.


Yeah i've seen them go just above the waterline and back down a couple times already. Although they surprised me and cleaned my eheim surface skimmer to where it looks brand new.


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## andrewss (Oct 17, 2012)

The tank looked pretty cool a bit overgrown as well but those newer natural light photos it is looking very prim  good stuff! Nerites are really nice, I found the eggs to be annoying though so I dont have any in my newer tanks.


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## Ventchur (Apr 29, 2018)

Here's some better pics for you @andrewss

All taken with iPhone 12 mini 





& a pic with both setups in view


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## andrewss (Oct 17, 2012)

Very nice  oh and the lily pipes are lookin better 

Quite the well done looking home office I presume!


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## Ventchur (Apr 29, 2018)

Pogostemon Helferi spotlight


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## mourip (Mar 15, 2020)

Ventchur said:


> Here's some better pics for you


I noticed that in earlier photos you have a foam filter on your canister intake, I assume to save small shrimp from the Cuisinart. Did you take it off due to flow restriction or just for aesthetics?

I regularly pull a dozen or so small cherries out of my Oase prefilter. They are not harmed but it does take time to separate them from the goo before reentry to the tank.


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## Ventchur (Apr 29, 2018)

mourip said:


> I noticed that in earlier photos you have a foam filter on your canister intake, I assume to save small shrimp from the Cuisinart. Did you take it off due to flow restriction or just for aesthetics?
> 
> I regularly pull a dozen or so small cherries out of my Oase prefilter. They are not harmed but it does take time to separate them from the goo before reentry to the tank.


I ended up breaking the filter intake tip which forced me to stick a sponge on. Now that I have new pipes and no sponge I find shrimp stuck in the slits and in the filter every once in a while as well. 

I would look into trying to find one of these for your intake:


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## andrewss (Oct 17, 2012)

Ventchur said:


> Pogostemon Helferi spotlight


Looks awesome


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## Ventchur (Apr 29, 2018)

Tank update:


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## Ventchur (Apr 29, 2018)

DOOA Terra 30 update



New leaves on some variegated anubias


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## Ventchur (Apr 29, 2018)

2021 update:









Rescape soon and possibly upgrading to a larger cube, 33g maybe. For hardscape i've recently acquired a massive malaysian driftwood stump and a bunch of black lava rock, so now to start playing around and make something.


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## Asteroid (Jul 26, 2018)

Ventchur said:


> Rescape soon and possibly upgrading to a larger cube, 33g maybe. For hardscape i've recently acquired a massive malaysian driftwood stump and a bunch of black lava rock, so now to start playing around and make something.


That definitely looks like a finished project, nice job! Really nice and lush and love the muted contrast with the lily and H. pinna. I'm sure you'll come up with something great for the rescape.


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## Ventchur (Apr 29, 2018)

Tank upgrade and new stuff happening here:

Ventchur's 35g Cube


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## Chizpa305 (Feb 13, 2011)

Absolutely beautiful tank!!! I love the way you use midground plants as background plants. I might do something like this in my nano so that hopefully I don't need to cut the background stems every 3 hours. That red plant, what is it? It makes a very impactful accent. 10/10


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