Journal First Aquascape

[techman81]

Accidently posted this update to my Farm Tank journal. Copying it here to have it straight for future reference

Put the new RO storage tank and plumbing through it's first real world test today and WOW! I wish I had done this from the start instead of spending time and money on my DIY water change cart.

I used my Sicce Ultra Zero to pull water out and dump in a Brute trash can mounted on a Brute dolly, then filled the tank back up with the hose I have running to a shut-off valve I installed in the laundry closet. Faster, more efficient, and less mess than any water change before.

Also took what I learned from Dennis Wong's postings/teachings and uprooted a bunch of Rotala Orange Juice after trimming, replanted the cuttings, and added some fresh root tabs.

 

[techman81]

Well, I keep talking about it but I'm finally following through. The tank is about 9 months old and it's time for the big reset. Not planning to do anything to the layout, but the planting needs to be freshened up and a few changes made. Pulling out as much of the Java moss as I can and letting the Phoenix moss take over the driftwood. Will probably pull out some of that as well and let it start anew. pulling out about half the background stems and replacing with fresh cuttings. Doing a little cleanup on the AR Mini and S. Repens and as you can see below, I've pulled out the carpet of Monte Carlo and Dwarf Hairgrass and will replace with all new Dwarf Hairgrass. I've decided to leave out the Monte Carlo because, while the mix looks good early on with nice contrast, as it matures, it just turns into a bit of a mess. That combined with Java moss choking it out and me trimming it too much, left it looking not so great compared to 4 or 5 months ago. I'll let the new hairgrass grow a little taller. As part of the new plantings, I'll freshen up the substrate with some new aquasoil and APT Jazz. I'm also going to swap out the lily pipes with Stainless Steel and finally install the Yugang reactor in place of the vertical reactor. It hurts to show the current photo, but it's all part of the process, as painful as it is. Tank was still rather cloudy after pulling out the carpet and doing a 70% water change.

BEFORE (a few months ago)



AFTER (It looks like a bomb went off )

 

[techman81]

Still looking rough but, aquasoil reseeded with fresh APT Feast plus some APT Jazz, over 50% of stem plants pulled and replaced with new cuttings including a couple new plants, Some AR Mini and S. Repens pulled and replaced with new cuttings, new dwarf hairgrass planted. Left a few original healthy stems that I need to trim still. As can be seen, most moss has been pulled (will probably pull more) it will be left on its own to grow back, assuming the Phoenix moss will take over. After this reset, will let it do its thing for quite awhile and then create something entirely new.

 

[techman81]

Update day.
Scape is making good progress returning to it's former glory. Hair grass is sending out runners. Phoenix moss is already well along filling in where Java moss was, although, I'll never be fully rid of the Java, but what was left behind will be easier to control. Fresh AR mini and S. Repens are establishing roots. Newly planted background stems are already getting near the surface. The Rotalas grow freakin fast, including the newly added Rotala Macrandra 'Kochi' from @Burr740 .

 

[DutchMuch]

Oh wow, that is beautiful! What a fantastic update. I love the extensive variety of colors.

 

[Sb1415]

I have not tried moss yet, why did you choose phoenix moss over Java moss ?

 

[techman81]

I have not tried moss yet, why did you choose phoenix moss over Java moss ?

The original layout of the tank had both because I liked the contrast. The issue I've found with the java is that under the lighting, co2, and dosing conditions that I need for other plants, the java grows too quickly. That wouldn't be an issue if it floated after trimmimg but of course, it doesn't. It then gets down into the carpeting plants and begins to choke them out. The phoenix moss does this as well, but not nearly as bad because it doesn't need trimmed as much and even when it does, it's easy to just pull a little out. What is left floating around the tank tends to catch on driftwood and start growing there. In fact, the phoenix was already starting to cover the java in some places on the driftwood. I also just like the look of the phoenix moss more. If you're using the java moss in a tank without carpeting plants, it won't be as bad because you can more easily remove trimmings from the substrate. In the future, I'll probably avoid or limit using moss in any scape I have carpeting plants in.

 

[techman81]

Way behind on projects today but just said the heck with it and took a few minutes to take an updated pic of the WB 3620. Wouldn't it be nice if all plants grew at the same rate so they'd stay in sync for trimming? The background stems were trimmed last week, well, most of them. The Pogostemon Erectus is due (yeah, I know its name has changed, but I like Erectus ). The AR Mini isn't so mini and while the dwarf hairgrass is doing OK, it's not spreading as quickly as I would like. The Phoenix moss is taking over where the Java moss was as I hoped, but it's also harboring hair algae that I keep pulling out. Just another reason to avoid moss. Not sure how much longer this scape will last, but probably not through the winter. I'm considering moving this tank to the basement once remodeling is complete and put a slightly smaller tank in its spot.

 

[Naturescapes_Rocco]

Looks awesome! And very healthy.
What a comeback from your Sept post.

 

[techman81]

Playing with the new lenses today.

 

[Phish Tank]

What new lenses did you get? Nice looking pics?

 

[techman81]

What new lenses did you get? Nice looking pics?

The above pictures were taken with a Canon RF 28-70mm f/2.8 IS STM and 100mm f/2.8 L Macro IS USM. I also just got an RF 16mm f/2.8 STM that I'll be trying out in the coming days. Camera is a Canon R8. I've still got a lot of learning to do with the equipment though.

 

[techman81]

I finally got around to doing an equipment reset on my showpiece tank. The main update is finally getting the DIY Yugang reactor installed. Along with it, is all new gray silicone tubing and glass lily pipes. This is the third time I've swapped out lily pipes and I really hope to finally stick with this. I opted to wrap the intake pipe in a DIY SS mesh filter guard similar to this but using clear heat shrink tubing. I like it much better than the SS filter guards on Amazon. I'll post more detail on the filter guard soon.

While I was at it, I also got the weekly water change and a minor trim taken care of, as well as a full top-to-bottom filter cleaning which was well overdue. The tank is now a year old since dark start was initiated and while I was thinking I might tear it down in the next few months for a new scape, I'm now thinking I may keep it going for a while longer.

WB 3620 12_14_25.webp

• techman81
• Sunday at 5:02 PM

Waterbox 3620 1 year anniversary

WB 3620 Equipment Reset Small.webp

• techman81
• Sunday at 5:03 PM

Equipment reset with new DIY Yugang Reactor

 

[TRyan]

Wow! Love the scape and layout! Looks great.

 

[techman81]

Wow! Love the scape and layout! Looks great.

Thanks!

 

[Jeff Miotke]

This is great! Keep up the great work.