New set up: Comments and feedback welcome

[alvinchan80]

Updates:

Currently tank is already in its cycle for approx 12days.. Added in ammonia solution to hasten the cycle. Based on advises from Bro Nav & eviltrain, i think the tank should be almost ready except must be careful of sudden spike in Ammonia, Nitrite or Nitrate.



New tank & old tank side by side... (Old tank going to be set for migration of shrimps soon...)


Latest updates:

[blue33]

looking good

[Avant-Garde]

bro alvin, can ask where you put your netted volcano rocks?

[alvinchan80]

looking good

Thanks shifu blue...
Any recommendation on plants that I can plant behind the left rock? Tall leafy plants or stem plants?
My left foreground will be planted with HC..

Will be doing a 80% water change to reduce the ammonia, nitrite & nitrate later..

[alvinchan80]

bro alvin, can ask where you put your netted volcano rocks?

The netted volcanic rocks are underneath the left slope.. There are 2 bags of volcanic rocks there to create that height.. Could have been higher but that will make my left rock protruding from the water surface..

[Avant-Garde]

ahh.. i see. perfect place to hide it and create a slope. correct me if i'm wrong, volcanic rocks reduces nitrate and houses bacteria? what kind of filter are you using?

[alvinchan80]

ahh.. i see. perfect place to hide it and create a slope. correct me if i'm wrong, volcanic rocks reduces nitrate and houses bacteria? what kind of filter are you using?

I think volcanic rocks house bacteria.. Reduce nitrate or not, I don't know.. Haha.. I having high ammonia, nitrite & nitrate now due to fishless cycle by adding ammonia solution...
It does hide the volcanic rocks nicely but what I experience are tiny volcanic chips that made my soil has a tint of red when I am doing aquascaping.. It won't be shown until I added water den I was in a shock seeing all those red patches.. Lol

I am using Eheim 2026 currently with crimson bee ball, Eheim mech, Eheim substrate pro & Biohomme plus in it as media..

[blue33]

I'm wondering how much space you have behind the left rocks?

Thanks shifu blue...
Any recommendation on plants that I can plant behind the left rock? Tall leafy plants or stem plants?
My left foreground will be planted with HC..

Will be doing a 80% water change to reduce the ammonia, nitrite & nitrate later..

[blue33]

i think you scape too much until the volcanic rocks mix with the soil. Can see the volcanic chips lying around.

[alvinchan80]

I'm wondering how much space you have behind the left rocks?

Shifu, got about 4cm x 8cm space behind the rocks.. Approximate...

i think you scape too much until the volcanic rocks mix with the soil. Can see the volcanic chips lying around.

Ya.. I messing with the scape too much when I digging and playing with the positions of the rocks.. Sad... That's why YOU see so many chips around.. Sian...

[blue33]

4cm is too little to do most planting as i mentioned earlier.

[alvinchan80]

4cm is too little to do most planting as i mentioned earlier.

Oh.. Can't plant a little bit?
So should I just leave it blank at the back with just HC?

[Navanod]

Hi bro, blue33 is right.
I'm having issues with having the HC grip the soil properly in places where there's only a narrow strip of soil to plant, mostly on the sides (since I had been warned bout leaving more space at the back)...
The HC just kept floating up at the edges and had to be "reburied"

[alvinchan80]

Can someone tell me if I have planted the HC correctly? Its my first time planting HC.. its really tough...

Currently my 4x24w lights will be on from 9am - 7pm.. CO2 will be 'blasting' at 4-5bps from 8am - 8pm..

[Navanod]

Welcome to the backbreaking HC planting club bro! Hahaha!
Think you're doing well but can space out the clumps more, otherwise, will end up with very fat patches with empty patches in-between. The fat patches will stop spreading once its too thick and if you don't trim (another backbreaking task!!), they'll uproot and float away!

Tonight I'll post the trimming tools on my thread, hahahah!!

[Navanod]

Oh! And whats that I spy behind the rocks???

[alvinchan80]

Welcome to the backbreaking HC planting club bro! Hahaha!
Think you're doing well but can space out the clumps more, otherwise, will end up with very fat patches with empty patches in-between. The fat patches will stop spreading once its too thick and if you don't trim (another backbreaking task!!), they'll uproot and float away!

Tonight I'll post the trimming tools on my thread, hahahah!!

bro, means that i break up the clumps more then leave more space planting? its a f%@$#(*& hard process to plant them... they keep floating up and i have tons of leaves floating on the top of the water now... but i m on ignore mode now... just let them float.. hahaha... anyway, i am alright to just put some soil on top of the HC to hold it down right? (darn.. reminded of the planting process...)

Oh! And whats that I spy behind the rocks???

cannot escape your eyes... i asked you if what i should be planting at the back... and i uprooted some fast growing stem plants from my old tank into the new tank...

Problem now will be that the water is not cold... and with a 9am - 7pm lighting switched on on a 4x24W T5 12k lightset, i think the water will be super warm by the time i back home in the evening...

[Navanod]

Wahaha!!! If you think the floating bits are bad now, wait till your first trimming session.
I'm still fishing tiny bits of HC and hairgrass out of my tank after a week. On oblivious mode now...hoping the bits will rot and sink, and the shrimps will eat them up...

Plant HC in checkered pattern in clumps of about 1-2cm for best results...but too much work...I just random plant small clumps until I ran out of HC.
You need a very fine planting forcep for HC, otherwise, when you try to pull the tip out after pushing in the HC into the soil, the HC will float out together with your forcep tip. HAHAHA!

What plant is that from your old tank? Seen it before but never tried it.

[alvinchan80]

Wahaha!!! If you think the floating bits are bad now, wait till your first trimming session.
I'm still fishing tiny bits of HC and hairgrass out of my tank after a week. On oblivious mode now...hoping the bits will rot and sink, and the shrimps will eat them up...

Plant HC in checkered pattern in clumps of about 1-2cm for best results...but too much work...I just random plant small clumps until I ran out of HC.
You need a very fine planting forcep for HC, otherwise, when you try to pull the tip out after pushing in the HC into the soil, the HC will float out together with your forcep tip. HAHAHA!

What plant is that from your old tank? Seen it before but never tried it.

i think i go back home today to take out those big clumps and replant them smaller clamps and in checkered spacing.... (i cant find planting techniques for HC online!)
dont remind me of the forceps.. i experienced that until i plunge my hands into the tank and plant them with 2 hands! one to hold down the HC, another to spread soil around & on top of it....

i really dont know what plant is that... its really nice but i m actually deciding if i want that lily pad kind of plants instead of the one you spotted.. but decided on that.... or maybe i should change to the lily pad plant to provide some shade... *dilemma again*

[Navanod]

Wahaha~!!! 2 hands? I can imagine...hahaha~!!!

You mean the Red Tiger Lily?
HC does not like shades, just caution you first