Journal 75P - Journey Into High Tech

[Mr. Silly Goose]

I think after seeing yours, I'm going to try to diy one for my 90p, looks great with your setup!

I believe @Naturescapes_Rocco had DIYd one at some point. Or was going to and ended up buying one instead? :jasonborne meme:

 

[Mr. Silly Goose]

I've been struggling with a lot of melting of my Monte Carlo and Baby Tears over the past ~2 weeks and the rest of my plants not really looking that great (to my untrained eyes). I chalked it up to possibly being too aggressive with the Python when I figured out I could get a lot of schmutz out of them. I ended up removing a bunch (I'll need to grab a new full tank shot) due to rot/melt and the remaining isn't looking too hot. The only thing I could think of was something with the auto doser. I refilled the bottles some time last month, but didn't bother recalibrating thinking I only had to do it once. Today I realized my Macros read 228.4ml in the Chihiros app and had about 270ml in the bottle, so a pretty decent difference. Unsure if this is the cause, but I recalibrated both Micros and Macros.



The sand at the front of the tank is now pretty much mixed with aquasoil. I'm all ears for suggestions, but I imagine I need to remove it all the front sand area and try to sift the aquasoil out and put it back in the tank.

I've also found that the Tunze ATO isn't really functional in this tank. Due to the lid, the float is lower than my ideal water height and with the lid, there's not a huge amount of evaporation. I'd guess maybe 1 gallon a week evaporation per week and it doesn't appear to be reaching the float to trigger the ATO. Not sure when/if I'll venture down the path of trying a 3d printed solution to anchor it somewhere where there's space for the cord and can lift it high enough to trigger.

On a fun note, I counted 6 baby Killifish today and I think there's 5 that have randomly hatched in my Guppy tank from a plant transfer many weeks ago. They all appear female from what I can tell and I've read that the environment can play a role in that, but I find it surprising. Here's one showing colors on the fins already!

 

[Mr. Silly Goose]

I've now spotted this unidentified fry twice and finally got a picture. I'm thinking that maybe it's a corydora. All of the killi fry have been lighter in color, so I'm hoping this one survives and doesn't become a snack.

 

[SmartAlec13]

For removing aquasoil from the sand, most aquasoil can be affected by magnets. I have a telescoping magnet stick that I use to get the few pieces out. If its a massive amount, it probably would be easier to just empty & sift through like you suggested

 

[Mr. Silly Goose]

I could use some help/guidance as I'm experiencing some pretty significant plant melt/loss. I plan to do a pretty significant clean up during my sons nap today and probably carry over tomorrow afternoon as well.

I've lost pretty much all of my dwarf baby tears and HC is on it's way out. I'm seeing what looks like a lot of melted leaves across various plants as well. I'm starting to think maybe my contosoil isn't providing as much nutrients any more and need to increase my Macros & Micros based on @Burr740's post in another thread.

I haven't really tested the water since I completed dark start and honestly just wing things. Tests this morning show: 5.8Ph, 0 Ammonia, 0 Nitrite, a very red amount of Nitrates. I bought a Hannah Nitrate checker, so I'll have to follow Rocco's instructions on how to use it, but that'll likely be later this weekend. This is still pre my weekly water change (normally Saturdays).

Weekly, I do about a 50% WC with RO and remineralize with SPT Sky to about 7 GH.

My auto doser is set to dose 8.4 ml of Macros on Mon / Wed / Fri, and 8.4ml of Micros Tue / Thurs / Sat / Sun. I manually dose 8.4ml of Macros after the water change. I'm using Burr's Micros and Macros exclusively.

Thanks for help!

Pics:

Full tank shot (bamboo shrimp's molt coming out today ). There's GDA with some hair algae(?) on the glass.


Dark green around the perimeter that makes me think it's not normal?


AR Mini with wrinkled leaves and lots of algae on leaves. I'll do a heavy trimming today.



More AR mini with HC all melted (back left corner when looking from the front)


HC on the driftwood that seems to be on it's way out


Regular AR that looks to have melting lower leaves


Pink Flamingo from JayP. Old growth mostly melted and new growth seems okay to me. Has been in the tank for roughly 5 weeks.


Anubias petite that's always had some form of algae on them looking pretty spotty

 

[Burr740]

Wow thats bad, like...nothing is happy! Lol. Dont mean to laugh, its not as bad as it seems. Theres just something off or missing and, being that its so dramatic, shouldnt be too hard to figure out. Couple quick thoughts, Im sure I havent absorbed all the details

It shouldnt matter what the contrasoil is doing. If youre dosing my macros and micros at the suggested amounts you dont need it to do anything in particular

Are you cloning my recipe DIY or using pre-mixed packs you got from me? This is what Id expect things to look like if a macro was left completely out of the mix, or Fe. But if your solution is brown its got Fe

Your dosing schedule sounds fine

Hows the co2? Is it steady from one day to the next, achieving a solid 1.0+ drop in ph? This isnt some small co2 discrepancy, any chance it stopped 3 weeks ago and you havent noticed?

Dont worry Mr SG, this tank functions just like every other tank. Its nothing that cant be figured out...

 

[Mr. Silly Goose]

Wow thats bad, like...nothing is happy! Lol. Dont mean to laugh, its not as bad as it seems. Theres just something off or missing and, being that its so dramatic, shouldnt be too hard to figure out. Couple quick thoughts, Im sure I havent absorbed all the details

It shouldnt matter what the contrasoil is doing. If youre dosing my macros and micros at the suggested amounts you dont need it to do anything in particular

Are you cloning my recipe DIY or using pre-mixed packs you got from me? This is what Id expect things to look like if a macro was left completely out of the mix, or Fe. But if your solution is brown its got Fe

Your dosing schedule sounds fine

Hows the co2? Is it steady from one day to the next, achieving a solid 1.0+ drop in ph? This isnt some small co2 discrepancy, any chance it stopped 3 weeks ago and you havent noticed?

Dont worry Mr SG, this tank functions just like every other tank. Its nothing that cant be figured out...

Using your premixed packs. All of the current macros + micros are from the same batch I began with. I just mixed a new batch last weekend, but I haven't refilled my auto dosers yet.

I've been struggling with a lot of melting of my Monte Carlo and Baby Tears over the past ~2 weeks and the rest of my plants not really looking that great (to my untrained eyes). I chalked it up to possibly being too aggressive with the Python when I figured out I could get a lot of schmutz out of them. I ended up removing a bunch (I'll need to grab a new full tank shot) due to rot/melt and the remaining isn't looking too hot. The only thing I could think of was something with the auto doser. I refilled the bottles some time last month, but didn't bother recalibrating thinking I only had to do it once. Today I realized my Macros read 228.4ml in the Chihiros app and had about 270ml in the bottle, so a pretty decent difference. Unsure if this is the cause, but I recalibrated both Micros and Macros.

I did notice Micros were off last weekend, so I suspect (hoping) maybe the damage was already done and the recalibration will get things back on track there.

co2 I suspect could fluctuate. I'm using a Co2 Art regulator and notice that if I bump it slightly, bubbles can change. Tank pressure seems fine overall. It's 10lbs and the same one I've been using since I started the tank in February. I have a Dwyer I plan to use with my 120p, but I could in theory set it up on this tank until I get the other up and running.

I have a Hanna Ph pen, so I'll keep an eye on ph over the next couple of days to see what's happening. I don't normally check tbh. I also have the Hanna co2 test kit I can revisit. Maybe along with installing the Dwyer.

---

I did go pretty extreme today. Pulled the AR in the back right so I can top them and clean them up and replant tomorrow. I was running out of time today. I'll also pull the full Rotala bunch tomorrow and replant as Dennis & Rocco have discussed (topping, trimming leaves, planting the tops), which I haven't done just because I felt the baby Killi were all hiding out in there. It's time. The center of the mass looked unhealthy as I lowered the water, so I wouldn't be surprised if there's stem damage there. MC on the driftwood felt like it was soft/spongy, so I just opted to remove it all.

 

[JayP]

You already mentioned this, but my first suspect would be the doser. If it's the Chihiros, it can have hiccups due to power glitches or other things. When you recalibrate it, double check all your settings including your daily schedule, dosing time, amount, and that the schedule is active. I just had to do surgery on a Chihiros doser today on the new tank I'm setting up, which involved dismantling the pumps, massaging the tubes, and putting it back together. Wouldn't prime at all, but now it's back to working fine. Technology is helpful but can also be irritating.

When you get things figured out and it looks like plants are happy again, let me know and I can send you a nice mat of HC for the cost of shipping. I have several mats of it happily floating around my farm tank right now.

 

[Mr. Silly Goose]

You already mentioned this, but my first suspect would be the doser. If it's the Chihiros, it can have hiccups due to power glitches or other things. When you recalibrate it, double check all your settings including your daily schedule, dosing time, amount, and that the schedule is active. I just had to do surgery on a Chihiros doser today on the new tank I'm setting up, which involved dismantling the pumps, massaging the tubes, and putting it back together. Wouldn't prime at all, but now it's back to working fine. Technology is helpful but can also be irritating.

When you get things figured out and it looks like plants are happy again, let me know and I can send you a nice mat of HC for the cost of shipping. I have several mats of it happily floating around my farm tank right now.

I didn't realize they were that finicky. I'll incorporate more verification/double checking of the doser, fluid levels, etc during each water change. I have a 4 head doser, so I could in theory fill the other 2 with micros & marcos and use those to see if there's any difference. I know that everything in the aquarium has like a 2+ week lag time before I see any results from the change. They did both recalibrate well last weekend, so I don't suspect something needs to be disassembled.

Thanks for the HC offer! I'll see how things stabilize over the next couple of weeks. I do have some large mats of plants I pulled out and tossed into my guppy tank, so I could use parts of those in the meantime. I also might just different plants. We'll see!

 

[Koan]

I'll incorporate more verification/double checking of the doser, fluid levels, etc during each water change

Another thought, what if you unplug the doser for 4-6 weeks and just manually dose until the plants are thriving? Then fuss with calibrating at that time?

 

[Mr. Silly Goose]

Another thought, what if you unplug the doser for 4-6 weeks and just manually dose until the plants are thriving? Then fuss with calibrating at that time?

It does seem calibrated now. It honestly seemed calibrated until I topped up the bottles and didn't recalibrate. Seeing that everyone seems to agree it's likely something with the micros & macros, I might give in and manually dose.

 

[Mr. Silly Goose]

Final pictures from this weekend. Tried to leave in more rotala, but it came out as a bunch and I didn't want to deal with it. Some baby fish came out. Hopefully they survive without much cover. I think we've counted upwards of 10 killi at various stages of growth.

On the agenda for the next water change is scooping out all of the sand and separating the aquasoil. I found that I have some mesh media bags that are large enough to let the sand out, so that'll be "fun". I think the aqua soil in the front right was originally under the driftwood (like a large mound) that's slowly spilled forward. I'll need to reassess my rock barrier once I get in there.

PH readings from my Hanna pen seem to start at about 6.2 and drop to about 5.6 in the middle of the day. I think I'm still under dosing co2, so I I'm going to start fine tuning it. I never really did, just said lots of bubbles, good to go!

 

[Mr. Silly Goose]

Just checked on ferts and see the Chihiros app amount and bottle amount are more than 10ml off. I'm going to start manually dosing tomorrow.

 

[Mr. Silly Goose]

I still haven't gotten around to sifting the substrate and separating out the sand from the aquasoil. Hopefully I can get around to that next weekend as I think it'll help the overall appearance.

I made a late night impulsive plant order from Plant Factory after a thread was made on Scapecrunch about Echinodorus Rainbow. I miss understood their buy 3, get 1 free sale, so I ordered a few plants in 3s thinking I was getting 1 free

Unsure where the majority of the Anubias is going as I think I'll ultimately want it in my 120p that I need to set up. Most are planted in a way that I can easily relocate them.

Added:
• Echinodorus Rainbow
• Bacopa Salzmannii
• Nymphaea Stellata / Rubra (Dwarf Water Lily) (Planted in glass containers for now)
• Juncus Repens
• Anubias Nana
• Red Tiger Lotus (Planted in glass containers for now)
• Anubias Minima Variegated
• Anubias Pinto

The Echinodorus Rainbow arrived a bit more beat up than I was expecting. I probably should have trimmed the worst leaves, but I wasn't entirely sure if it would do more harm than good.

 

[Mr. Silly Goose]

I think this tank is now feeling chaotic without any thought to the scape. I did this to myself! I ordered Tiger Crypts from Joe "Tiger King" on reddit aquaswap and also ordered a ton of Anubias (for the future 120p) that I couldn't get much into this tank. Both arrived Friday and ultimately I was just trying to find a place to plant as much as I could.

I also started to separate the aquasoil from the sand and realized it's likely a losing battle. I don't have anything to really prevent the aquasoil from passing between the rocks, so it felt like every scoop I took from the front was just more aquasoil than sand. Any recommendations here would be welcome! I'm currently debating between trying to get the sand set back up or trying to remove as much sand as possible and filling in with aquasoil so I can plant that area.

I'm beginning to get more confident in removing any non-healthy leaves on plants. I recalled seeing Dennis post pictures of early signs of leaves that would get algae [article] and I started observing my tank for those signs. Now if only I could spot them all while I'm in the tank doing maintenance and not after I've cleaned everything up.

 

[Mr. Silly Goose]

On this weeks update:

• Manually dosing Burr's Micros and Macros every other day seems to have the tank back on to recovery and no plants look like they're melting. All appear to be growing new leaves, but some of the AR mini & regular seem to be growing new wavy leaves and get algae pretty early on.
• A surprising amount of algae (GDA?) on all of the plant factory plants. I'm unsure if that's because I soaked them in Alum for too long (12h) or something is off in the aquarium.
• The water lily and tiger lotus are taking off. It's really wild to look every day and feel like the plants got bigger.
• I planted more of the anubius that arrived last week and still have more. I stuffed a lot into places that have the rhizome in the soil, so I'm curious to see what happens. I don't have anywhere else to plant them right now.
• I have noticed 1 hillstream loach has been lingering at the top of the tank often this week. I was initially concerned that it was maybe oxygen related, but even after refilling the tank, it was still at the top.
• I'm considering getting some kuhli loach as a clean up crew since shrimps become a snack for the killifish. (RIP to the last, I think, surviving snowflake shrimp that got eaten this week)
• Heavily trimmed the swords. The leaves seem super algae prone once they get big.

Overall, I'm still enjoying the tank. There's at least 20 baby killi females, so this tank is turning into a sorority! A few of the babies are almost the size of the blue eyes rainbows!

 

[Naturescapes_Rocco]

Things are looking good! What species of killifish?

 

[Mr. Silly Goose]

Things are looking good! What species of killifish?

Aphyosemion bivittatum 'Funge'. I currently have 2 males and 1 female (and a ton of babies)

 

[Mr. Silly Goose]

I finally finished setting up an automated RO Brute with a pump in the laundry room, so now I can just bring a python hose out instead of wheeling the barrel out. Next challenge is figuring out how to keep the hose tidy and water free between uses since it's 100 feet

I also made a quick fill attachment from mostly spare Oase parts that I didn't use. Someone on this forum also mentioned a water flow meter, which is part of this attachment. No more estimating how much remineralizer to use! Since the spray bar isn't locked into place, I twist it to face the glass so the water isn't very disruptive. You can also use less extensions to make it shorter for a smaller tank.








The tank is chugging along. Lots of algae growth, so I'm going to try to get my hands on some panda garra's. I wish I could have shrimp in here, but they just become really expensive snacks. What I need to do is set up a tank to breed them so I can keep this tank supplied, right? (/s). I might add another bamboo shrimp or two, they're so cool and my son loves them.



The Nymphaea Stellata / Rubra (Dwarf Water Lily) & Red Tiger Lotus growth is wild. Every day they are visibly larger. The lily photo below is maybe 24 hours apart. Every time I looked at the tank, the lily was getting taller. It reached the surface by the end of the day. I see another bulb has one as well, so it might be time I start trimming them. If I recall correctly, some people trim them to prevent the lily. I'd love to see if it flowers, but I'm not sure it even does that.




Overrun by anubias and tiger lily. Glad I put the tiger lily in glass cups. I'll probably relocate them soon.


My poor pink flamingo that I'm not having success with.

 

[Koan]

My poor pink flamingo that I'm not having success with.

In my - limited - experience, crypts really like some KH, and APT SKY does not have any

I have had pink flamingo stay healthy even with modest light, with strong micro fertilization and a KH of at least 3°

Maybe consider some potassium carbonate?