New Planted Tank ............. 3 Days In

[Malfie]

Hi there guys.I have found this site so helpful with my hobby that I thought I would write a new tank journal in the hope of helping others and for you guys to help me with any problem that may happen along the way.
I have been keeping tropical freshwater fish for about three years now and my new set up is the result of a really bad blue/green algae(bacteria) problem I had that I just couldn't shift.I decided to throw in the towel and after finding new homes for my fish I just left the tank to just sit there and to inspire me with future plans.
Together with my previous experience and the information gathered on this site I realised that if I wanted a planted tank I would either have to go the expensive pressurized CO2 route - leaving my old lights in situ or the addition of another light and use of DIY CO2.I chose the latter.
My tank is Juwel Rekord 120 and I have added a 18W T8 to the hood which now gives me 48W of light.
Over the past two weeks or so I have added the above light,soaked my wood with boiling water with added bleach,scrubbed the tank,washed a bucketful of gravel,bought substrate and ordered some plants from PlantsAlive.

The plants were delivered on Tuesday,but I was unable to start the tank until Thursday evening so I unpacked them and placed them in a bucket of dechlorinated water and added a heater.
These two days seemed to pass by so slowly as I must admit I was so excited to begin my new setup
Before I began I took this photo,put on some Bach flute sonatas and tried to get my creative juices flowing ..............

 

[Malfie]

Hi there guys.I have found this site so helpful with my hobby that I thought I would write a new tank journal in the hope of helping others and for you guys to help me with any problem that may happen along the way.
I have been keeping tropical freshwater fish for about three years now and my new set up is the result of a really bad blue/green algae(bacteria) problem I had that I just couldn't shift.I decided to throw in the towel and after finding new homes for my fish I just left the tank to just sit there and to inspire me with future plans.
Together with my previous experience and the information gathered on this site I realised that if I wanted a planted tank I would either have to go the expensive pressurized CO2 route - leaving my old lights in situ or the addition of another light and use of DIY CO2.I chose the latter.
My tank is Juwel Rekord 120 and I have added a 18W T8 to the hood which now gives me 48W of light.
Over the past two weeks or so I have added the above light,soaked my wood with boiling water with added bleach,scrubbed the tank,washed a bucketful of gravel,bought substrate and ordered some plants from PlantsAlive.

The plants were delivered on Tuesday,but I was unable to start the tank until Thursday evening so I unpacked them and placed them in a bucket of dechlorinated water and added a heater.
These two days seemed to pass by so slowly as I must admit I was so excited to begin my new setup
Before I began I took this photo,put on some Bach flute sonatas and tried to get my creative juices flowing ..............

 

[Malfie]

Oh guys........... what have I done ?

I have spent the last couple of hours writing the above and taking photos etc,but I can only manage to post a small amount of my new topic.

What am I doing wrong ?I tried to edit the text and add the rest,but eventhough it did appear in the edit window,but then it disappeared.I just can't manage to cut and paste my whole topic.
Please help,anyone,before I chuck the bloody PC out of the window.

Cheers.

malfie

 

[Malfie]

Hi again.
Hope this works this time...............

The first thing I did was to add my substrate.In this case it was an inch or so of John Innes No 3 potting compost.I have used this before in my first tank and the plants grew amazingly well and I really didn't want to use an expensive aqua-substrate.I may have early algae problem,but with a fishless cycle planned I have read that my tank will get much worse before it gets better.
Next was a layer of washed 5mm gravel,which I used to add slight changes in level (as I find it much more pleasing to the eye than a really flat pancake layer.I grew up in Lincolnshire,so that probably explains my love of anything with contours.
The next stage was to position my pieces of wood and my Trex skull ! This took a we while as I just couldn't agree on placement,but in the end I was happy and I could now start the planting.

The plants I received from PlantsAlive were of a really good quality and I certainly would use them again.I only found one plant that was a little yellow ( a Crypt),but after 24 hours in a box in subzero temperatures I think I would be a little off-colour.One thing I must say about this company is that I find ordering a little odd.You can either order plants as a bunch,5 stems or as a potted plant.I found it difficult to chose,so I ordered some of each.Turns out to be a bit hit-and-miss as a bunch can have as many stems as the 5 stem option and a potted plant can have as many as three plants(in a bunch,placed in a pot!)
I also bought a few extra plants from a nearby garden centre,Pets at Home and marimo moss balls from an online seller on Ebay.
The day before I went online and wrote down(on the delivery invoice) probable heights of the plants that would help me placing in the tank.

I started at the front of the tank,just pushing the plants into the soil.I used plants weights on most - until I ran out and then used pebbles to anchor them instead.Many had extensive root systems and I made the choice to cut them of with scissors to about 2cm.This made them easier to plant and it will also promote root development.I didn't add any root tabs or such-like as I would hope that the soil has enough food in it to last for a few weeks.
My next job was to attach my Java ferns to my wood.This was so tricky and took several attemtps to secure the plants using cotton and lots of patience.
My last planty type thing to do was to attach my Java moss to a stone.I can't remember where I read it,but I used a hair net and it worked a treat.I just stretched it over the moss and twisted the stone 'round several times and placed the stone on the gravel in a place I had left for it.

My CO2 ladder was then put in place-just above the gravel' layer and after a brief sit down to admire the journey so far I began to fill with dechlorinated water.My tank was so well planted that I couldn't use a saucer to pour the water onto,but instead I used my palm ! It took a while and many bucketfulls,but at this point I was so pleased that I had taken the time to wash the gravel as there was hardly any cloudiness in the water.I checked that the heater was turned to the right setting and then turned on the filter and flicked the light switch.Yay,I was so pleased with my effort that I celebrated with a glass of wine.

The problems then started ..................

1) I couldn't get the temp to get above 20C as the weather has been so cold and the heater is far to feeble.I solved this by buying another heater - temp is now about 25C.
2) The second light I added stopped working.I changed the starter and it still didn't work.I will go back to Pets At Home in the morning (been at work all weekend) and hopefully get it sorted - but I don't have my receipt any longer so it could be fun.
3) Plants starting to look a little sickly.Crypts melting, etc.I have found out that this can/often happens with a new tank.I just have to be patient.

This is the result.I took them today (about 72 hours in)I know that the TRex skull is going to get a few comments,but I really love dinos and when I saw it I just had to buy it.

Anyway,I haven't taken any readings yet but I shall do in the morning(after my Pets At Home visit) as I want to start my fishless cycle ASAP.I haven't used this method before,but it seems the best way to cycle.

Plants used are as follows
2X Cryptocoryne balansae
2X Cryptocoryne nevellii
2X Crypt. lingua
1X Crypt. beckettii
1X Crypt pondererfolia
1X Crypt. cordata
1X Hygrophila salicifolia
2X Hyg. corymbosa
1X Echinodorus cordifolius radican
1X Tonina fluviatilas
1X Ceratopteris thalictroides
2X Java fern
1X Java fern Windelov
1X Anubia barteri var. nana
Java moss
5X moss balls

Thank you for taking an interest.
Malfie

p.s. Forgot to add that I also painted the back of the tank with black emulsion.I found it hard to get hold of a small tub,but the guy in B&Q said that he could mix up a pot for me which only cost £2.50.I also gave it two coats of varnish to finish it off.

 

[paul_219]

Nice tank. Like the bonie thing in the tank .

 

[Malfie]

Thank you,Paul.

I managed to get my light sorted out at the very helpful Pets At Home,but I'm now enjoying watching the plants sort themselves out so much that I'm afraid to start the cycling as I have read that this will play havoc with the algae

Would it be wise for me to wait until my Crypts stop melting and start growing strongly or should I go ahead with the ammonia ?
I just don't want to end up looking at a green slimy tank over the Christmas period.

Any opinions would be great.

Malfie