ADA Aquasoil setup Journal 4 ft tank (56K warning)

[Skyfish]

This is my first ever journal and I wanted to post it in your forum.

Before:



Been living in the United Arab Emirates for about 9 years now and have been into planted tanks for 2.5 years. I have had this tank for about 2 years and never really had an aquascape that I liked, used basic inert gravel, with root tabs. I started reading about ADA Aquasoil for a year now and finally decided to jump on the bandwagon. So I ordered the following out of Hong Kong, through my office there:

1/ 6 bags of 9L Amazonia aqua soil
2/ 1 bag of 6L Powersand Special M
3/ Tourmaline BC
4/ Penac W and Penac P
5/ Brighty K 2 bottles
6/ ECA, Green Gain, Green Bectar
7/ Step 1 one bottle
8/ Stainless steel mesh (not used)
9/ Resun CL-450 chiller

Made a fresh new Rex Grigg Inline reactor 24 inches, 1.5 inch diameter, previous one was only 18 inches. Ordered plants locally and the mosses from Singapore from Aquaspot World, a friend brought it in for me, (Ben at Aquaspot is an amazing person, brilliant service ). Bought a new Eheim ProII 2026 to add to the new setup. Specs are as follows:

- Tank 122cm x 50cm depth x 55cm height 10mm glass
- DIY light hood
- DIY tank cabinet
- DIT inline Co2 reactor
- Lights HOFL Zoomed 8,500K x 2, Arcadia 9500 x 2, Nerva 6,000K x 4 (288 watts)
- Eheim Pro II filters 2028 and 2026
- Media Substrat pro, Effi Mech 2028 / Substrat, Mech for 2026
- Sera Carbon for initial one week (Eheim carbon was not available)
- Vecton 25W UV
- Resun Chiller
- Pressurized Co2 with home made bubble counter
- Milwaukee Co2 controller/solenoid

- Manzanita driftwood ordered from the US. Soaked in water for 6 weeks. Also Malaysian driftwood from LFS, soaked for 8 weeks.

- AH Supply 96W x 3 CF lightkit on order from the US, arriving end August.

Plants used:

From Singapore-

Bolbitis heudelotii
Hemianthus micranthemoides (Pearl Grass)
Monosolenium tenerum (Pelia)
Taxiphyllum alternans (Taiwan Moss)
Vesicularia ferriei (Weeping Moss)
Fontinalis antipyretica (Willow Moss)

From LFS:

Ludwigia arcuata
Limnophila aromatica
Microsorium pteropus 'Narrow Leaf' Java Fern
Rotala macrandra
Blyxa Japonica
Eustralis Stellata
Hemianthus Callitrichoides

From old setup:
Micranthemum umbrosum (Baby Tears)
Cyperus Helferi
Water Sprite
Wysteria
Christmas Moss
Java Moss

Took me about a week to get my soil/chiller and about 3 weeks to get the plants in. My problem was to use the mesh or not over the PS, and as advised by many I decided against it. So on Tuesday the 11th I went home and started on the tank at 2pm. I tore down the entire setup, cleaned the tank and began the new setup.

Added 20 spoons of Tourmaline BC on the glass, 12 spoons of Penac P (imagine this, I forgot the Penac W at the office!!! ) about half a mug of mulm/dirt from the old setup, then 3L only of PS over it, and finally 5 9L bags of aquasoil, 3 inches in the front and 5 in the back. Took me an hour to decide the placement of the driftwood. Added enough water to soak the soil. I started with the moss on the wood, took an hour and a half. Planted the back with stems etc. Then the foreground with HC. Finally topped off the water, VERY SLOWLY, I had minimal coudiness, and gone by morning. I finally finished at 4am!! Wednesday morning. Let me tell you it is a pain to redo a tank. My back broke, needless to say my wallet. I added 15 Ml of Brighty K. Could not start the chiller as the plug was not fitting, they sent me an American plug, and I never saw it! The water temp was 34C when I added water. By the time I got the chiller going (24 hours later, some of the moss had burnt ) Now my water is a cool 25C. I'm sure the moss will grow back.

I got the Penac W from the office and added dry to the water, most dissolved but some fell on the drift wood and I have white stains now, maybe it will dissolve eventually, some fell on the leaves and they look dusty.

So this is how it looks like now:

Front View:



Angle view:



From left glass: (to show the stems)



From right glass:



Eheim 2028 (UV hooked to this):



Eheim 2026 (Reactor/Chiller hooked to this):



Inline Co2 reactor:



Resun CL450 chiller:



Light Hood:



I stopped using the controller for the co2, but left the probe inside to monitor the PH, Starting Ph was 6.2 straight away (tap 7.1), Kh was 0.9. After adding Brighty K Ph was 6.4. By evening it had dropped to 5.9. Last night I added Bicarbonate of Soda and brought the Kh to 2.3 and saw slight pearling at full blow lights.

This morning I tested as follows:

Amonia: 6.5ppm
Nitrite: 0 ppm
No3: Over 60ppm
PO4: 1.5ppm
KH: 2.3 (Lamotte kit)

I think I will add some fast growing plants but not root it, just leave it floating to soak up the ammonia etc. CO2 looks good so far. The wood has leached a bit so water in not 100% clear, slightly yellow, but a few large water changes will help. I have never seen my tank this clean, there are no particles flying around, these Eheim filters are remarkable. Once the water is crystal clear, it will look nice.

Lighting as follows:

72 watts 12 noon - 10pm (8,500Kx 2)
148 watts 12:30pm to 9pm (8,500K x2 + 6,000K x 1 + 9,500K x 1)
288 watts 2pm to 8pm (Full blow)
(Back to 148w and 72w)

My first water change will be tomorrow morning.

I am not adding any ferts for now, so used to EI and not testing that this seems odd to me. But there is enough Nitrate and Phosphate in there now and Traces come from Tourmaline BC. I’ll keep updating as the tank matures. Will add Amano shrimps and Ottos in a few weeks, fish 2 week of august. Cycling should not take that long as I have old filter media and also added mulm, and adding Stability.

Please feel free to comment and advise. Sorry this got so long but I wanted to document everything.

Cheers!

[valice]

Very nice placement of the driftwood... Looking forward to the tank maturing... With the HC covering your foreground... Going to be a mount shaped scape?

Are the plants on the left, Eustralis stellata? They might throw your current shape of your scape off when they grow if you intending it to be in a mount shape...

[richietay]

Guess you have spent a fortune for the equipment and Flora (shipment of plants and wood from oversea). after reading the journal of your setup, you are certainly well-equiped. Setup still young but would say got potential, hope you able to keep us update of the progress.

[Skyfish]

Thank you Valice. Yes that is Eustralis Stellata but I plan on triming them in a slope later, but once the tank matures, I will see how things look and rearrange a little. I don't think I have enough HC now, but I saved a pot and am farming it emersed.

Rich, the main cost was the air freight of the soil and chiller, doubled my cost. I'm hope it will be worth it later. The plants from singapore were carried by hand by a friend, so no shipping cost, the wood also by hand through another friend. The wood only cost me about US$27.00. I got the Eheim filters and UV again by air from the UK, along with a friends order. But over all I'm broke now. Need to start working hard again

[kemp]

lots of potential on this tank!

[eddyq]

Interesting journal, you lived in UAE, ordered equipments and plants from East to West like it your backyard. You certainly know your stuff. The Milwaukee guage sound expensive yet bubble counter diy cheap bottle.

And the driftwoods soaked in water for 8 weeks I don't think I have the patience. You got to love this tank.

[Aquaspot World]

The tank is looking good. Be sure to keep your journal updated. The setup will look even better once the plants start filling in. However, it looks like you have too little Cyperus helferi to begin with.

What is the main fish going to be?

And thanks for the compliment! We really look forward to working with you again.

[brianclaw]

Looks good, but the driftwoods are too close to the glass. If you want to leave a bare foreground, you're going to have to move those woods back. Right now it seems a little too cramped. There is no sense of depth.

[Skyfish]

Thank you. Besides the critters and Ottos, I will have Tetras, Cardinals and Rummynose etc.

I'll play around with the wood a little, this is not the final postion anyway.

The Blyxa has started to melt and the moss that burnt, look stunted. I did 50% water change today and added Brighty K and Green Bectar. PH dropped to 5.7 right after WC and now after 6 hours it's back up to 6.0. KH at 1. I increased CO2 but no response from the plants today. I guess once the roots are establised they will start photo. But I do see growth in the Rotala, stellata and umbrosum. I have floated 2 big bunches of Wysteria just to suck up the amonia.

Some sort of brown algae has started on the wood, velvety hair tuft and easily comes off when rubbed.

I'll update more later.

[saary]

Nice setup skyfish. any updated pictures?

[Thinthin]

Nice detailed journal and setup, do share with us on it's progess.