Dragon Forest II (Arowana Planted) Setup

[limz_777]

It'll be nice to have arowana comm tank, but I can't afford a tank big enough... or that many arowanas.

maybe better choice would to be invest in one quality red but price still on a high side for super red

[vinz]

...

- SAE not eaten by arowana? or it have specific size in order not to be eaten?
- How about horn snail or malayan trumpet snail (which eat planaria)?
- How about liquid carbon? it's save for arowana (such as Azoo Carbon Liquid or anything like that)?
- How about lighting for tanning color of aro scales? (I using low light plant type)

...

Any fish you put in, be prepared for them to get eaten any time. SAEs are fast, agile and constantly moving and hiding, so the Arowana won't usually bother.

I personally wouldn't risk putting in any snail with spiky or conical shell.

My planaria infestation disappeared quickly after I introduced Tiger barbs into the tank.

I am going to guess any liquid Carbon is essential the same chemical used in Seachem Excel. So that's out. If you want to use it, then I strongly recommended avoiding over dose.

I'm not familiar with the effects of light levels on tanning.


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[Riva Pugar Hanangun]

Many many thank's before for my friends at here,,
You're really help me & give me more knowledge..

now I has inspiration and starting setup for my arowana tank tommorow..

many thank's again guys...

[yappeyap]

Looking forward the magnificent tank.
Let me know if you need any plants, I might just have it
Jia you : )

[vinz]

Cool! Looking for Narrow leaf Java fern, Staurogyne repens or Elatine triandra (Ah Pek Plant), and Hygrophila corymbosa. Also C. wendtii, but that should be easy to get.

My planned scape is currently being hampered by un-availability of plants... but have to admit I have only asked one shop so far. Not rushing as I'm still gathering/getting the equipment, etc.

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[leonard6july]

Big tank need big plants.

[vinz]

Had a hard time finding the lights I want. 6 Feet T5 sets are hard to find. Those I can find don't have individual reflectors. Was aiming for the Giesemann RazorT5 Lightbar, but they have stopped production... the stupid thing was that Giesemann's official site and the shops here still have it in their websites or online shops... resulting in me wasting time trying to order the sets. Looked at various other light sets, but they don't come with stands.

Looked at fairly well known local brand, but the sets were not optimal for the limited height in my tank hood. The lengths also made it tricky to fit their 3ft sets end to end in my hood.

Did more searching for T5 light bars, then finally found iQuatics AquaLumi T5 Controllers in UK. Ordered online and they arrived within 4 days! Basically nicely designed ballasts with water resistant connectors and T5 end caps. There are sets that controlled between 2 to 6 tubes.

The iQuatics T5 Controllers for 4x39W T5HOs. I order two sets, but the photo shows only one set and only 2 pairs of the T5 end caps. For better photos of the set, click the iQuatics link above.


The only set back is that the sets are designed for retro-fitting existing tank hoods and do not come with casing or rack for the tubes. But the end caps are designed to be mounted with T5/T8 clips and the clips are provided. All I need to do is fabricate a light rack.

Managed to track down an aluminium shop that retails aluminium extrusions (AKA aluminium profiles). Aluminium extrusions are aluminium bars with grooves for attaching brackets and other equipment. However, the aluminium are 5m long and the shop will only cut it down to a minimum length of 1.2m and no shorter. I need way shorter lengths. Tried to cut them myself with a hack saw, but it was too tedious and very difficult to get a straight cut. Asked around and fortunately, a self professed "Lobang King" friend managed to get me access to a table saw FOC!

The aluminium cut to size and other parts. Decided to make 4 sets of 2 x 39W T5HO racks.


One of the built racks:



Close ups:




Next I need to track down the T5HO tubes and reflectors.

[AQMS]

Sweet!!!!
and the numbers keep climbing .....

[leonard6july]

Waiting to see the reflectors mounted and rack placed on top of the tank.

[limz_777]

fresh and marine should have the reflectors , do you intend to tan your red ?

[vinz]

Got my reflectors from Nature Aquarium. The online shops didn't have details on width and height... needed to make sure they would fit.

The red has no choice but to tan... its a planted tank. ;-)

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[limz_777]

not sure if normal t5ho bulb has uva/uvb , there are specialty uv bulb for arowana being sold now , another point is a wrong method to point out , many hobbyist tend to hang their tan lights sideway outside the tank , uvb ray have problem penetrating through glass some say it doesnt even go through

[wingwa77]

Thanks for sharing camping patiently for updates

[percy]

wow! looking forward to this tank!


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[BFG]

Vinz , the pictures are not showing......

[vinz]

Thanks. Fixed.

[welly]

Really looking forward to this tank

[vinz]

The new tank is using a sump for filtration. When I filled the tank to check for leaks and also test the return pump, etc, I discover the gurgling from the sump stand pipe was way too loud! Did some research and found a few solutions:

1. Bean Animal's Silent & Fail-Safe Aquarium Overflow System
2. Maggie Muffler
3. Durso Standpipe
4. Stockman Standpipe
5. Hofer Gurgle Buster

Except for the Maggie Muffler, all require DIY.

The Bean Animal's System requires extensive modifications and was simply not feasible in terms of space, location, and work/tools required.

The Maggie Muffler is a commercial product that is fairly affordable and easy to install, but I could not find any mention of any shops selling this in Singapore nor any online seller that ships to Singapore. The original manufacturer did not respond to my emails.

The Durso Standpipe is easy to make, but I do not have enough space inside my overflow box.

The Stockman Standpipe is a little harder to make then the Durso, but doable.

The Hofer Gurgle Buster (HGB) is a variation of the Stockman. The instructions are pretty much the same. The main difference being the way the air pipe is installed and utilised.

In the end, I settled for the HGB as it is the most feasible for the space I have and the internet seems to suggest that it is quieter than the Stockman. Finally completed my slightly modified version this weekend. I have not tested how well it works as I do not want to waste 600 litres of water. will update on that in a few weeks time - planting is planned for the 13/14 Sep weekend.




Parts bought from Hai Cheong Plastics Pte. Ltd. Just walk through to the office at the back and tell the office workers you want to buy some parts. Friendly and I did not encounter any "your order is too small" attitude. Some of the older worker uncles in front may be a little grouchy though.

Hai Cheong Plastics Pte Ltd
11 Kallang Pl
#01-11

[Shadow]

Soo long already where is the front tank photo?

[vinz]

Finally, the tank is planted, filled and running! Spent whole of Saturday from about 9am all the way to 1am Sunday to layout the wood, prepare, tie and plant the plants, set up the filter media and tweak the sump system to reduce noise, balance pump and drain rate. Exhausting!

Photos:






Plants:

• Java fern 'narrow'
• Bolbitis heudolotii
• Staurogyne repens
• Cryptocoryne wendtii 'Green'
• Hygrophila corymbosa "angustifolia"
• Nymphaea lotus (Red tiger lotus)
• Ranunculus papulentus (added 18 Oct 2014)
• Anubias (added 18 Oct 2014)

Fishes:

• 20 x Siamese Algae Eater (SAE)
• 3 x L183 Starlight Bristlenose Pleco
• 8 x Zebra Nerite Snails (all dead)

The first two plants are big concerns, as they come from a chilled tank and known to be hard to grow (at least for me). They were provided from a forumer who is tearing down tank and sold me his matured plants. Planning to add small Anubias and other plants in the future once I can see how the main plants turn out and fill the space.

Substrate:

• ADA Power Sand
• ADA Aquasoil Amazonia

Fertilization

• Ferka Aquatilizer - 6ml per day
• Flourish Excel - 5ml on alternate days (1/3 recommended dose)
• Flourish Equilibrium - 12.5ml per water change

Lighting:

• 2x iQuatics T5 Controllers for 4x39W T5HOs
• 8x39W T5HO on 12 hour cycle: 4 for 4 hours, 8 for 4 hours then 4 for 4 hours.

CO2: (Updated 21 Oct 2014)
Cylinder with solenoid fed direct to pump intake with an atomizer. May need to tweak the CO2 set up as it is feeding lots of micro bubbles into the tank, yet drop checker is showing "low" CO2. Will observe the plants and adjust accordingly. Converted to custom made external CO2 reactor a few weeks before update. CO2 drop checker now showing "good" CO2. Supplementing with Flourish Excel at 1/3 dose from Oct 18.

Filtration:
External over flow sump with DIY Hofer Gurgle Buster and Sicce Syncra 5.0 pump.

The "before" photos:




The Hofer Gurgle Buster works like a dream: there is no discernible noise from the drain pipe. The Sicce Syncra 5.0 is super-silent. With the cabinet door close, it can't be heard. Now only a slight bubbling sound from the bottom of the drain pipe where it empties into the sump. Already found solutions for it. Will update once I rig that up.