Fluval Roma 200, Jungle Scape

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Livewire88

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Hey everyone,

I have just purchased a 200L (Fluval Roma 200 & TT EX700 External filter) tank & filter which I will be setting up early next week, I will be going through a full fishless cycle to make sure the water quality is correct before adding any fish. It will be a Community aquarium and I would also like to have plants in the aquarium. I will be updating this thread (inc photos) often to document everything I do, and hopefully I can get advice to help me set up a healthy aquarium full of happy fish :good:

My first questions are as follows;

1, Will sand be good to use in ther tank or will this be a pain when cleaning, or am I better off using gravel?
2, Should the tank be fully cycled before adding plants? or can I add plants before water cycle complete?
3, Should I use all the media which is included with the TT EX700 Filter?
4, Will I need an airstone to help aerate the water?
5, Is it best to have the heater across the middle of tank or would it be OK at either end?
6, Whats the best place to buy internal 3D backgrounds? I dont realy want a boaring background stuck on back of tank!

Sorry for all the questions, but I want to get everything right without having to waste to much money in the process. And as always any help or advise is much appreciated :good:

Dan
 
1, Will sand be good to use in ther tank or will this be a pain when cleaning, or am I better off using gravel?
2, Should the tank be fully cycled before adding plants? or can I add plants before water cycle complete?
3, Should I use all the media which is included with the TT EX700 Filter?
4, Will I need an airstone to help aerate the water?
5, Is it best to have the heater across the middle of tank or would it be OK at either end?
6, Whats the best place to buy internal 3D backgrounds? I dont realy want a boaring background stuck on back of tank!

sand is easy to clean, nothing goes below the surface and if you got decent circulation, nothing stays on the surface
ideally, yes, cycle 1st
yes, appart from the carbon inside the bags
no, the filter will do that, use the spray bar to help move the surface of the water
however you like, circulation will move the water around
ebay probably, no idea, i dont like them, take up too much space and look manky after 6 months ;p
 
hi

i am lso going through set up and my first cycle. i chose sand because I want corydorus as they like that the most so i guess you need to decide first what bottom dwellers you want. some like gravel some like corys prefer sand. i dont find it much of a pain to clean TBH. also i have my heaters ( i am setting up 2 tanks) diagonally across the end panels which seem to work well and out of the way for the over all effect. good 3D backgrounds are Juwel Rock backgrounds which you glue to the inside of the tanks with aquatic silicone and are 3D in effect. i dont like the laminated paper ones either but i bought 3mm acrylic plastic sheet in black,you can get in any colour and placed on the back so it gives a solid background without the problems of air pockets etc.
 
Hey everyone,

I have just purchased a 200L (Fluval Roma 200 & TT EX700 External filter) tank & filter which I will be setting up early next week, I will be going through a full fishless cycle to make sure the water quality is correct before adding any fish. It will be a Community aquarium and I would also like to have plants in the aquarium. I will be updating this thread (inc photos) often to document everything I do, and hopefully I can get advice to help me set up a healthy aquarium full of happy fish :good:

My first questions are as follows;

1, Will sand be good to use in ther tank or will this be a pain when cleaning, or am I better off using gravel?sand is just as easy to keep clean
2, Should the tank be fully cycled before adding plants? or can I add plants before water cycle complete?If your doing a fishless cycle then the plants come after.
3, Should I use all the media which is included with the TT EX700 Filter?yup apart form any carbon, just replace it with filter wool or ceramic
4, Will I need an airstone to help aerate the water? the filter should be powerful enough to create enough surface movement
5, Is it best to have the heater across the middle of tank or would it be OK at either end?either, make sure you put it on a 45 angle. Try to put the heater in front of the filter out pipe to blow the heat around.
6, Whats the best place to buy internal 3D backgrounds? I dont realy want a boaring background stuck on back of tank!ebay.

Sorry for all the questions, but I want to get everything right without having to waste to much money in the process. And as always any help or advise is much appreciated :good:

Dan
 
Hey everyone,

I have just purchased a 200L (Fluval Roma 200 & TT EX700 External filter) tank & filter which I will be setting up early next week, I will be going through a full fishless cycle to make sure the water quality is correct before adding any fish. It will be a Community aquarium and I would also like to have plants in the aquarium. I will be updating this thread (inc photos) often to document everything I do, and hopefully I can get advice to help me set up a healthy aquarium full of happy fish :good:

My first questions are as follows;

1, Will sand be good to use in ther tank or will this be a pain when cleaning, or am I better off using gravel? Sand every time
2, Should the tank be fully cycled before adding plants? or can I add plants before water cycle complete? Add them in the last week so they dont absorb ammonia
3, Should I use all the media which is included with the TT EX700 Filter? yep
4, Will I need an airstone to help aerate the water? Not at all TT700 is more then enough
5, Is it best to have the heater across the middle of tank or would it be OK at either end? Ends are ok but can create cold spots
6, Whats the best place to buy internal 3D backgrounds? I dont realy want a boaring background stuck on back of tank! pass dont like 3D makes the tank too small and can store food/poo behined if not dont correctlySorry for all the questions, but I want to get everything right without having to waste to much money in the process. And as always any help or advise is much appreciated :good:

Dan
 
Hey

Thanks everyone for all the advice given so far :good:

I have decided to use sand for the base of the tank, would it be OK to have a section of gravel in the middle of the tank to help break the sand up sand up a little, I was thinking of using a shallow tray of some kind so that the gravel does not mix with the sand to much?

I would put plants in the sanded area so they have the best base to grow from, so I have a few more questions;

1, When I clean the sand will I need to remove the plants, so that I can clean every bit of sand? or what fish could I buy that clean the bottom of tank inc turning the sand over to help with any crap that gets trapped below the sand?

2, Will it be ok to have a section of gravel (about 25%) the base of tank, as well as having sand (about 75%), will this be of any benifit?

3, With plants in the tank will I have to feed the plants? and how is this done? and will the plants grow with the lighting included with my new tank?

Regards
Dan :good:
 
Your filter should do the job of cleaning and if you get corys they will turn your sand over.

The only bad thing about mixing is if you do get corys the stones will get buried bit by bit... But should look alright.

Depends what plants you have but you should buy some fert to feed your plants and if you have spare cash you can build your own CO2 set up for £75
 
Hello everyone,

I have decided on a planted tank using ferts (non C02) and would like to use either black sand or black gravel as a substrate, I have been reading up a lot in the plant section and have chosen not to go down the C02 route at the moment, but hopefully will when the time and funds allow.

The lighting that will be used is; Fluval GLO lighting unit, One Power-Glo Fluorescent Aquarium Tube 30W 91.44cm (36in) T8, One Aqua-Glo Fluorescent Aquarium Tube 30W 91.44cm (36in) T8, Will this lighting be sufficient to maintain plants? and again this lighting may be upgraded if/when funds allow.[/b]

Stocking wise I have a few ideals of what I would like in the tank, 2 Electric Blue Rams, 2/3 Corys, 10 Neon Tetras, and I all ready have 6 Guppys so they will be going into the 200L once cycled. I am not sure if these fish will mix ok but hopefully someone can give me some advice? Will I be able to add more fish than this to a 200L?

Plant wise I want a lot in the tank, so bearing in mind I will be using a EX700 External filter am I going to need a power head to help with the circulation?

Sorry I have not added pictures as yet but once I have the 200L tank set up I will add plenty :good:

Regards
Dan
 
Small update,

I have bought a piece of bog wood which is now soaking in the bath, it is quite a large piece but I can trim it down if need be. Also have some good news as I have been offered a 4ft tank with stand for free from my sister so I may have a second tank to set up :hyper:

Here are few pictures of the bog wood; it has a great cave for fish to shelter or hide in.

P1000383.jpg

P1000385.jpg

P1000386.jpg


Also still looking for some advice on the questions above?
 
you should aim for about 10 corys, and for the guppies try keep a 1m to 3f ratio.

as for the filter you should aim for about a 10x your aquarium turn over. so about 2000 lph.

But saying that my 180 is being filtered buy my 405 which is 1300 lph and quiet a lot of plants and the water is clear =]



Not to sure on lights Im afraid
 
Small update,

Tank is now set up and filled with water and gravel, the piece of bogwood I had was a bit to large for my liking so I have exchanged it for a smaller piece wich is now soaking in the bath.

I have to wait till Monday till I can go and collect a bottle of ammonia from my local Boots store (had to order it in), so I cant start the my fishless cycle till then :crazy:

Hydor inline Heater is doing it's stuff and I am happy I dont have to have an internal heater on show, also the airstone is only temporary and will be removed once the tank is cycled, (just in to help with the aireation) and the water temp is set at 30 oC to help the bacteria thrive.

P1000398.jpg

P1000399.jpg

P1000401.jpg


Comments or advice welcome :good:
 
Small tip, add some fish flake food to the tank (just a pinch) it will start the process off and is how old school fish keepers used to do fishless cycle before adding ammonia :good:
 
Hey all,

I am looking forward to collecting my ammonium tomorrow so that I can start my fishless cycle :good:

Please can someone advise me if I will need to buy a power head? the outlet on the EX700 keeps the water moving on the surface of the water on the right side of tank but the left side is almost still, I would like to keep the equipment in tank to a minimum but if I am going to need a power head so be it.
 
Not for cycling you won't.

Also the water may look still but there will be some small movement towards the outlet.

I suppose you won't really know if you need a powerhead until you decide on the fish and if they can cope with currents.
 

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