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Old 06-08-2006, 08:41 AM   #1
CaysE
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Default 20 gallon planted tropical tank.

Hi Everyone! This journal is going to chronicle my leap from a second-hand to a complete planted and stocked 20 gallon tropical aquarium. Some quick back-story: I was given this tank by my aunt about 2 years ago. It had old coated stones that were starting to flake apart as the substrate, a few fake plants and decorations, a nice small piece of real driftwood, two angels, a clown loach, and a catfish. I had no idea how to take care of this tank, and just tried to maintain it for the first year (with not much luck). An algae bloom occured, the catfish died, one of the angels went blind and couldn't eat anymore, and I started to see this as an interesting challenge to overcome. I started to learn about water tests and conditions, different fish and the foods they like, why water changes and gravel cleanings are important, etc etc etc. Eventually though, the other angel went through a bit too much and I was down to just the clown loach, who surprisingly always seemed very healthy. I did some research and it turns out the water conditions along with his hiding place under the driftwood gave him the most optimum conditions. I also learned he was close to being too large for the tank, so I decided to start all over and give the loach to my LFS. He will be missed! Here's a couple quick shots before I gave him away:





You'll notice there's a lot of algae in there, and to be honest, that's a whole lot less than what used to be in there before I actually got interested.

So now Day 1 (actually yesterday 6/7) I finally drained the tank and started rinsing the Flourite (I have 2 bags of it, which should be enough for a 2-inch bed). I will be cleaning out the tank after work today and putting in the Flourite bed, filling it up, and getting it cycling soon I hope. I've been tempted too many times to start picking out plants, but I want to do this right. I've never started a tank from scratch before, so any tips would help!

A couple questions: Should I run the filter when I first set up the tank or do I have to let it sit for a day or two? Also, I have a Master Test Kit, but should i get the tests for GH and KH as well?
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Old 06-14-2006, 04:22 PM   #2
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Day 7:

Back on day 2, I emptied and cleaned out the tank (just water and a tank scrubber), laid down a bag and a half of Flourite, and filled it up. It was a muddy, cloudy mess. So over the last 7 days I've been running the filter with polyfill and changing it every day, cleaning the gravel bed with a siphon every other day, and doing a 50% water change every time I clean the gravel. It is still coming up cloudy whenever I clean, so I think another week and I will be ready to put in the proper filters and get the ball rolling.

My loach is now for sale at the LFS for $40! Holy crap I should've tried to sell him myself. LOL
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20gal tall! The display tank.
Flourite substrate, Nutrafin CO2 system, Aquaclear 50, 55W 6.5k bulb @ 10hrs, 65W 10k bulb @ 2hrs, 100W Visi-Therm
4 furcata rainbows (and 8 fry!), 1 albino longfin bristlenose pleco, 6 crystal red shrimp, ramshorn & physa snails
5gal hex! Mini planted tank
Eclipse Hex5 with Eco-Complete substrate, 25W heater, 1 male crowntail betta, some ramshorn and physa snails.

Last edited by CaysE; 06-14-2006 at 04:24 PM.
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Old 07-19-2006, 04:27 PM   #3
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Day 42

It's been over a month since my last update, but progress is good. The water was becoming clear after a week of my last post, but I put in an old piece of driftwood and ended up with a fungal bloom. I didn't know what was wrong at first because the water became cloudy and brown as if it was from the substrate. I waited a week or two and eventually ended up with some kind of white hairy fungus all over the driftwood. I said F it, took it out, and threw it away. I siphoned the substrate until the tank was practically empty, wiped down the inside glass and refilled. The tank was clear within hours, and I couldn't have been happier! The next day I swapped out the polyfill for the real filter media, did a 50% water change, and prepped the lights.

The next day I went up to Absolutely Fish and picked out some plants to start with. I don't remember the names exactly, but most are "Teardrop something" which are green, and I got two bunches of "Broad Leaf something" which are red/green. I'll post pictures when I can and maybe someone can tell me.

I also recently learned that there is a fish store a lot closer to my house. I went in to check out the driftwood and found an absolutely stunning piece. Again, pictures when I can.

Feel free to comment!
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20gal tall! The display tank.
Flourite substrate, Nutrafin CO2 system, Aquaclear 50, 55W 6.5k bulb @ 10hrs, 65W 10k bulb @ 2hrs, 100W Visi-Therm
4 furcata rainbows (and 8 fry!), 1 albino longfin bristlenose pleco, 6 crystal red shrimp, ramshorn & physa snails
5gal hex! Mini planted tank
Eclipse Hex5 with Eco-Complete substrate, 25W heater, 1 male crowntail betta, some ramshorn and physa snails.

Last edited by CaysE; 07-19-2006 at 04:30 PM.
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Old 07-20-2006, 07:47 AM   #4
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Hey, just a tip, before you put your driftwood in the tank try soaking it in a bucket for about a week. do water changes when the water gets really brown. Also if your worried about algae try investing in phosphate test kits. Make sure youre phosphates arent too high (along with your nitrate) because high amounts of the combo causes algae.

Good luck with the tank
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Old 07-20-2006, 09:50 AM   #5
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Yeah I'm soaking that new piece now. I don't know what happened with the previous one because it was in my tank before I tore it down for this buildup.

[edit] Here's a pic of how it looks now. Anyone know the names of these two plants?

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20gal tall! The display tank.
Flourite substrate, Nutrafin CO2 system, Aquaclear 50, 55W 6.5k bulb @ 10hrs, 65W 10k bulb @ 2hrs, 100W Visi-Therm
4 furcata rainbows (and 8 fry!), 1 albino longfin bristlenose pleco, 6 crystal red shrimp, ramshorn & physa snails
5gal hex! Mini planted tank
Eclipse Hex5 with Eco-Complete substrate, 25W heater, 1 male crowntail betta, some ramshorn and physa snails.

Last edited by CaysE; 07-20-2006 at 10:33 PM.
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Old 07-23-2006, 08:42 AM   #6
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I'm not sure what it is called, but the plant with red and green leaves can be found in local swamps and stuff. I found a whole bunch at the Great Swamp in Morris County. Also, Abslutely fish is a very very expensive place to buy stuff. Try the Pet Shanty on rt. 22. They have a more extensive freshwater collection and they are cheaper. Something about Absolutely rubs me the wrong way. Every time i walk in there someone is getting screamed at by one of their marine biologists.
Also, i've heard some good things about this new place called The Fish Tank. I think it is also off rt. 46, i'm gonna go check it out as soon as i can.
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Old 07-23-2006, 10:21 AM   #7
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Looks like rotala (possibly needle leaf) on the left and ludwigia repens on the right.
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Old 07-23-2006, 11:24 AM   #8
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Hey thanks for the tips Xerxes, I'll be sure to check those places out. Yeah Simpte, I went back to see what those plants were labelled as and came back with teardrop rotala and narrow red ludwigia. Are these the same as the ones you said just different names?

Here's a quick update:
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20gal tall! The display tank.
Flourite substrate, Nutrafin CO2 system, Aquaclear 50, 55W 6.5k bulb @ 10hrs, 65W 10k bulb @ 2hrs, 100W Visi-Therm
4 furcata rainbows (and 8 fry!), 1 albino longfin bristlenose pleco, 6 crystal red shrimp, ramshorn & physa snails
5gal hex! Mini planted tank
Eclipse Hex5 with Eco-Complete substrate, 25W heater, 1 male crowntail betta, some ramshorn and physa snails.
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Old 07-23-2006, 11:56 AM   #9
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Funny thing about common names in plants. THey are not very accurate. Teardop rotala isn't a species in its own but more another common name someone came up with. Your Rotala is possible rotundifolia. It could be a narrow leafed variety or just stunted. Hard to tell from the pic. Your Ludwigia is repens.
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Old 07-23-2006, 01:41 PM   #10
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You should be aware that with anything other than low lighting, your dwarf lily is going to soon outgrow your tank. They get quite large in higher light.
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Old 07-23-2006, 01:56 PM   #11
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How large? I know I've seen some big lilys before (a foot high at least with some enormous leaves), but I'd imagine a dwarf species wouldn't get to be as big as those.
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20gal tall! The display tank.
Flourite substrate, Nutrafin CO2 system, Aquaclear 50, 55W 6.5k bulb @ 10hrs, 65W 10k bulb @ 2hrs, 100W Visi-Therm
4 furcata rainbows (and 8 fry!), 1 albino longfin bristlenose pleco, 6 crystal red shrimp, ramshorn & physa snails
5gal hex! Mini planted tank
Eclipse Hex5 with Eco-Complete substrate, 25W heater, 1 male crowntail betta, some ramshorn and physa snails.
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Old 07-23-2006, 02:08 PM   #12
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One would think, but one would be incorrect. I thought the same thing until I started doing some research. And when I had mine in a tank with high light and CO2 injection, they shot skyhigh. Literally within a day, one leave sprouted and the stem got so long it stuck out the top of my 10g tank!

Check out some pics: http://aqualandpetsplus.com/Plant,%20Dwarf%20Lily.htm
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Colomesus asellus x1
Tetraodon travancoricus x1
Tetraodon biocellatus x2
Tetraodon nigroviridis x1
Tetraodon baileyi x2
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Tetraodon palembangensis x1

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Old 07-23-2006, 06:12 PM   #13
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I guess we'll see what happens. Maybe I'll give it some shade so it doesn't overgrow.

In other news, I got my first snail!
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20gal tall! The display tank.
Flourite substrate, Nutrafin CO2 system, Aquaclear 50, 55W 6.5k bulb @ 10hrs, 65W 10k bulb @ 2hrs, 100W Visi-Therm
4 furcata rainbows (and 8 fry!), 1 albino longfin bristlenose pleco, 6 crystal red shrimp, ramshorn & physa snails
5gal hex! Mini planted tank
Eclipse Hex5 with Eco-Complete substrate, 25W heater, 1 male crowntail betta, some ramshorn and physa snails.
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Old 07-23-2006, 06:17 PM   #14
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Yeah, I've moved mine back into a low light tank. They are growing very nicely though. Be warned, the leaves become detached very easily, but they'll grow more.

Snails are good, imo, but then I raise puffers and can never keep enough snails.
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Tetraodon travancoricus x1
Tetraodon biocellatus x2
Tetraodon nigroviridis x1
Tetraodon baileyi x2
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Old 07-23-2006, 07:25 PM   #15
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If you prune the leaves to the desired length, the plant will soon stop growing to the top. It will start growing to the level you keep pruning it at. The same thing happens with Tiger Lotus.
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Old 07-23-2006, 08:15 PM   #16
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I have a Tiger lotus and that's exactly what I do to keep it short...cut off the leaves that reach the surface (well, all the tall ones). Now it hasn't produced another leave that goes to the surface in a few weeks.

The rotala and ludwigia may have been grown emersed. Thats what mine looked like when I first got each type....but now they look slightly different after being grown submerged.

I love the little moss cave...very cute!
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Old 07-23-2006, 08:40 PM   #17
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Not sure I understand what you mean. Cut the stems below the leaves and other leaves that sprout won't grow any taller than the cut one?

Here's what mine look like now that I've moved them into a lower light tank and removed the really long stemmed leaf:
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Tetraodon travancoricus x1
Tetraodon biocellatus x2
Tetraodon nigroviridis x1
Tetraodon baileyi x2
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Tetraodon palembangensis x1

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Old 07-24-2006, 07:48 AM   #18
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I mean cut the stems on the ones that are really tall. Just take the whole stem off. Sorry...I said leaves, but I meant stems.
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Old 07-24-2006, 07:52 AM   #19
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Is that dwarf sag or Blyxa Japonica in the foreground? Blyxa requires co2 to thrive.
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Old 07-24-2006, 10:51 AM   #20
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I don't know anymore. =(

I do have CO2 though. You can see it in the back right.
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20gal tall! The display tank.
Flourite substrate, Nutrafin CO2 system, Aquaclear 50, 55W 6.5k bulb @ 10hrs, 65W 10k bulb @ 2hrs, 100W Visi-Therm
4 furcata rainbows (and 8 fry!), 1 albino longfin bristlenose pleco, 6 crystal red shrimp, ramshorn & physa snails
5gal hex! Mini planted tank
Eclipse Hex5 with Eco-Complete substrate, 25W heater, 1 male crowntail betta, some ramshorn and physa snails.
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