I’ve had it going for about 8 months now. Originally it was going to be only CRS, but unfortunately my KH was repeatedly on the rise. After testing my rocks, my water, etc I came to the conclusion that it’s due to the pea gravel I used in filter bags to prop up the rocks.
So though the CRS population has dwindled, there is still life. I got some RCS instead, which seem to be doing well, as well as 3 Amanos and 12 Pygmy Cory catfish.
Just wanted to share my aquascape :) I am happy to answer questions - I did a good amount of research but keep in mind this is my first tank.
Edit: please ignore the ugly fresh trim on the Rotala, and the horrible background!
13 Comments
SoulKaribou@lemmy.ml · 6 pts · 1y
Wow, well done! I have few questions:
How many years in the hobby/attempts did it take you to reach that point ?
Any major tip you would give ?
Did you plant everything in one go or in batches ?
I guess you water change/ maintenance every week ?
smartalec13@lemmy.world · 2 pts · 1y
Thank you :)
This is my first tank! What you’re seeing is a lot of research and $$$. I spent like 3 months googling, watching videos, browsing aquarium & planted tank subreddits etc. The channel that helped me the most was Green Aqua.
I would recommend lots of plants, and a good filter. Also there are small adjustments that can be made to really “elevate” a tank, like sloping low in front to high in back.
I planted it all in 1 batch to start, then slowly I’ve gotten more plants just to try here or there. Sometimes they don’t work out.
Yep weekly maintenance is a 30% water change, clean both pre filter sponges. Scrape walls occasionally and clean tubes occasionally. Every other week I am trimming something. Fertilizer is Easy Green twice a week.
Thank you :)
nunya@lemmy.world · 4 pts · 1y
What kind of substrate did you go with? Would you change it if doing it over?
smartalec13@lemmy.world · 4 pts · 1y
I used almost two full bags of Eco Complete (lava gravel wet with bacteria filled water) and a small bag of UNS Contrasoil just in the planted areas.
And yes I would make changes lol. I would have used maybe only 1 bag of eco complete - it was helpful to have the early bacteria but as you can see I filled it too high lol.
I also would have used more soil. It’s much easier to plant in compared to the eco complete.
Canadian_Cabinet@lemmy.ca · 3 pts · 1y
Looking good! How many gallons/liters?
smartalec13@lemmy.world · 2 pts · 1y
60 liters, so about 16 gallons. And thank you :)
Though I guess it technically holds less because I filled up the substrate a little too high lol
yemyams@lemmy.world · 2 pts · 1y
My 8 month old tank is also pygmy cories, CRS, and had some red cherries too, what are the odds?
smartalec13@lemmy.world · 2 pts · 1y
Are you me? Am I you? Are we us?
Wahots@pawb.social · 1 pts · 1y
What is that beautiful red plant you have in there? :)
Edit: Did you also make a boom for your RRFs? xD
smartalec13@lemmy.world · 3 pts · 1y
The pinkish red in the back is Red Amania. The smaller red here and there is Ludwigia Super Red.
And yeah lol bought it off Etsy. I don’t want them covering the entire thing because most of my plants need more light
Wahots@pawb.social · 2 pts · 1y
Thank you! And that is cute :)
cybervseas@lemmy.world · 1 pts · 1y
I love the lawn! This looks like it must have been hundreds of dollars, maybe $1000? to put together.
Where did you source your plants and hardscape components from?
smartalec13@lemmy.world · 2 pts · 1y
Thank you!
Your guess is a bit lower but close. All together it’s roughly $1600, including all the extra stuff like tools, towels, etc. Probably could have saved on some portions but I wanted to go all out and make it look pretty.
My plants and hardscape all came from a LFS (shoutout to Rivershore Aquariums in southern MPLS area MN) except for the Monte Carlo carpet, which were tissue culture cups from BucePlant.
I had a wider variety of plants at first but some did not survive my tanks conditions, especially in the first month or two where I was still figuring things out.