# ADA 60P & 5G Do!Aqua Mini-M (Dou)



## Dou

Hi everyone,

So I started with one tank last fall and during Christmas I really wanted another. I also had plants in a bowl and didn't like that anymore... so I ended up going to the store and getting a 5G Do!Aqua tank. This one is my favourite so.. I'm gonna keep a forum journal on it haha. Here are my main learning points so far (spare you the detailed details):
- Pygmy cories don't move much especially in small tanks (even if there's a lot of them - 13?). They were (and are still) always also hiding behind my big rock... so if you want to see your fish and shrimp, don't put a big rock right smack in the middle and give them space to go behind it lol.
- Otocats and Pygmy cories will ruin your carpeting... mine freaked out whenever they saw me and kicked up the aquasoil. I had enough of this and eventually fished about 9 pygmy cories out of there. They are hard to catch in a small tank. Basically I find kicked up HC every day after work and replant them.
- What goes in... is really hard to get back out... I moved things/knocked things over quite a bit. 
- Full dosage of what's recommended on fertilizers give me serious algae issues. Began dosing half of what's suggested and things are much better under control.
- My crystal red shrimp (CRS) at first didn't go for algae. After I added some red rili shrimp - they kinda showed them how to be a shrimp.
- HC did not melt, but does not grow very fast either. I ended up adding more easy to grow plants from my other tanks as I did not like how empty it began to look. 
- Creating mounds will not work unless you have substrate supports (you can see in my photos). It really leveled out after 4 months.
- Anubias Nana Petite (not sure if this is the right name for it) does not like to be directly under light. I removed a section of it as it was growing a lot of algae on top.

*Photos:*
Date: 20151225









Date: 20160309









Equipment:
- Hydor 50W Heater
- Aquaclear 20 w/ BioMax, Scouring Pads
- Do!Aqua Mini-M (5G)
- ADA Solar Mini-M Light & Fixture (27W) // Glorified Desk Lamp x)

Plants:
- Java Fern
- HC Cuba
- Anubias Nana Petites
- Echinodorus
- Hygrophila (2 Types.. Can't remember name exactly. One is pink if there's CO2 and the other is Siamenses (sp?))
- Anubias 
- Fissidens Moss
- Misc. plants from other tanks that I don't want to throw away (S. Repens, Ludwigia Brevips, Rotala Rotundifolia, Duckweed, Floating Something...)

Inhabitants:
- 4x Pygmy Cory
- 10+ CRS & 4+ Babies
- 6 Red Rili Shrimp
- 1x Otocat
- Ramshorn Snails

Other:
- Expensive Rock
- Tropica Aquarium Soil Substrate
- Tropica Premium Fertilizer 
- Aquavitro P Fertilizer
- Excel (0.5 mL/day)
- Indian Almond Leaves

Parameters:
- 7.2-7.4 pH
- 9-10 gH
- 2-3 kH

====

*ADA 60P*









*Brio35*


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## jagermelifter

looking good sir!


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## shaobo

Sweet nano tank!


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## Dou

Added photos of my other 2 tanks... I'm addicted what can I say x). All the green and nature in these tanks really make our little condo feel homey and peaceful.


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## battmanh

Nice tanks Dou!! What kind of sand is that in your 60P?


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## Dou

battmanh said:


> Nice tanks Dou!! What kind of sand is that in your 60P?


ADA Colorado - if you don't need a lot I can give you what I have left over for free =).


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## rwong2k10

looks great!


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## battmanh

Dou said:


> ADA Colorado - if you don't need a lot I can give you what I have left over for free =).


Thanks for always being so generous  I actually have a bag of the same sand but I haven't used it in a tank yet. I thought I didn't like it but now that I look at it in your tank I might actually use it for my next tank!


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## Dou

battmanh said:


> Thanks for always being so generous  I actually have a bag of the same sand but I haven't used it in a tank yet. I thought I didn't like it but now that I look at it in your tank I might actually use it for my next tank!


Haha my habrosus cories are chilling on it all the time. One of the reasons why I went with this sand is because it looks a bit more natural - which is what I wanted for the tank in general (hence my search for wild-type cherry shrimp... no luck so far, not until Pat gets back at least). Glad it was of some help!


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## Dou

I wanted to give this journal a little update - but my 5G is not looking so hot right now haha. There are some things I want to do before I take an updated picture... so in its place I have an updated photo of my 60P x). Still trying to solve some algae issues - increased flow, keeping CO2 constant now and hoping for the best.

Edit// Special thanks to Ray (rwong2k10) for all the help/tips!


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## Reckon

Love the growth!
Just a thought. Are you attached to the tall stem plants in the back? I think you can get great definition with the mossy wood that if you takeout the stem plants behind or use a couple clumps of medium height plants such as rotala bonsai or blyxa japonica.


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## Dou

Reckon said:


> Love the growth!
> Just a thought. Are you attached to the tall stem plants in the back? I think you can get great definition with the mossy wood that if you takeout the stem plants behind or use a couple clumps of medium height plants such as rotala bonsai or blyxa japonica.


Thanks for the suggestion - the only problem is that I didn't plan it super well and I don't have that much planting space - and I haven't seen something that I really liked in terms of a medium height plant. But now that you mention rotala bonsai maybe I should try it... I'm gonna picture it in my mind and think about it....


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## Dou

Updated shot of the 5G - my hygrofail polysperma did not do so well and I replaced it with some rocks. Brevips also did not do well and replaced with more hygro siamenses 53b. Increased my light hours and my Cuba seems to be doing better.










Also here's a .gif of the 60P... Edit// Forgot to thank rwong2k10 for the photography tips x)


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## rwong2k10

looks great! love this size of a tank!


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## Dou

No update on the 5G... but a couple updates on my 60P. I basically removed/trimmed off a ton of keisak (it grows wayyyy too crazy), pulled out some java moss, cut dead leaves and added in hair grass. Special thanks to wslam for the trimming advice and lending me his scissors (still haven't bought a pair...) and Reckon for helping me out with comments/hair grass. It's a little right heavy at the moment but I am excited for everything to grow out again.

Before the trim & plant










After the trim & plant


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## Dou

After some convincing and hand holding from my fish buddies (you know who you are...) - I re-scaped the right side of my 60p. It just felt like I was wasting a lot of space before. So I basically moved that piece of wood, moved the substrate behind it to the front and planted some rotala bonsai & monte carlo. I also removed a ton of keisak as it was just exploding out of control. Also finally bought some scissors so I gave it a trim too x). I know the title says Mini-M but its not in a showable state right now since I have CRS in there (don't want to mess with it too much just yet)... But soon.










I also started a 45P. Yes I'm addicted......


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## April

Very cool! 


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## Dou

April said:


> Very cool!
> 
> Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


Thanks April, all the fish I got from you are doing great in my 60P =)!


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## Dou

Another update on my 60P x)... This should really be titled my 60P instead lol. Rotala bonsai is not doing so great - I lost a lot of it but here's to hoping what's left grows a lot!










And a photo of my den =D


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## Reckon

Wow! What a great looking den!


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## Dou

Update on the 45P


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## Dou

Decided to rescape my 60P last night. More work is needed (additional small/branchy wood near the bottom for root-y effects, some more rocks, changing the plants) but I just wanted to highlight how often I've changed my mind. It was a lot of work but definitely worth it. I tried to move all my pygmy cories.... However one somehow evaded my detection and was schooling in my face lol ==. Only noticed him when I took the photo.


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## Reckon

Dou said:


> Decided to rescape my 60P last night. More work is needed (additional small/branchy wood near the bottom for root-y effects, some more rocks, changing the plants) but I just wanted to highlight how often I've changed my mind. It was a lot of work but definitely worth it. I tried to move all my pygmy cories.... However one somehow evaded my detection and was schooling in my face lol ==. Only noticed him when I took the photo.


Funny, how scapes just keep getting better every time you change it up. Looking great!! I like the central hardscape set up over what you had before. Looks much cleaner. Still not sure about the front right side...


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## Dou

Reckon said:


> Funny, how scapes just keep getting better every time you change it up. Looking great!! I like the central hardscape set up over what you had before. Looks much cleaner. Still not sure about the front right side...


Thank you! Your tips/advice has been spot on so if you have any more suggestions please let me know =). Right side - I'm working on it haha... that piece needs to grow in and I think it will match much more. I intend to maintain/trim that one so it's a bit thinner than the rest so it should contrast well too. I think if I can also find the right pieces of small branches to fit underneath my larger pieces of spiderwood, it will give the bottom a much fuller, "root"-ier and natural look which will help.


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## Dou

Remove/added plants, added slopes and swapped out the green neons for threadfin rainbows. If anyone is wondering where I get most of my plants/fish - it would be from April's =). Special thanks to her for always bringing in so many nano fish and plants!


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## MDT

Looking great! Whats that stem plant in the back left corner?


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## April

They look happy. Hope this colour is
More
Pleasing! 8 green neons were sold
To their new home
Today. 


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## Reckon

I like the bushiness of the new plants. Hopefully they stay nice and compact for you...


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## wslam

My favourite photo/scape so far! Nice job!


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## Dou

Update on the 45P - the koke stones didn't look quite right - a bit too dull. So I took a toothbrush and diluted bleach water to it - and I think it went back to its original form. Also ended up spending 3 more hours than I intended to rescape since I pulled out a lot of my carpet.










Also quick update on my 60P - moss starting to grow in... will need about 2 more months I think for it to become what I want it to be. Also @MDT - the ? plant is called "Eichhornia Diversifolia". It grows super fast...










And also my 30W in a kallax cubbie... this might've been not the greatest idea to have tanks in a small enclosed space. It's really hard to work in there... so I stuck with something simple. There's no CO2, so I'm crossing my fingers that it does not die but carpets super slow...


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## Dou

Update on the 60P... Replaced the stem plants on the right side with Lilaeopsis & added in some more stones on the right to add contrast/remove some of the negative space from the glass. The moss on the right is starting to grow in =)!


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## Dou

At last.. an update on my MiniM. I did a complete overhaul... The goal was to mimic the natural setting of wild bee shrimp in Taiwan/China. I saw that a lot of habitats they were found in basically consisted of still water with lots of leaves/foliage on the bottom. The rocks also gave off more of a warm feeling. Once my ammonia spike from the Amazonia is over, I'm looking to add wild crystal black shrimp or low-grade CBS.

- Removed the Ryuoh stone before that was messing with my pH
- Removed Tropica soil (buffers to 7.2 pH) 
- Sold off plants that were not being used
- Added Sado Akadama stone
- Added Amazonia (buffer pH to 6-6.6 zone)
- Added in Bolbitis, Larger Buces
- Added cut up Indian Almond Leaves, Dried bamboo leaves found at the local park
- Planted what's left of my glossostigma that was dying.


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## Dou

Another update on the 60P. Added in some red plants (myriophyllum tuberculatum) on the left, removed the old diversifolia, removed the monte carlo carpet on the right, added in more stones.










And an update on the 45P. Moved the sparrow rasbora into this tank, added RCS. This used to be the badis badis home... but he was preventing any cleaning action from occurring so he has since been moved. He's on the FS section - if you want him please let me know!


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## Dou

Just received my wild crystal black shrimp today from SKA =). Really happy with how they look - they blend into the environment quite well which gives me the feeling that they really belong in here haha. They are really doing some heavy duty cleaning and they especially like the bolbitis and the prefilter. When I was taking the photo only one of them was out in the open. I also have a fan running to make sure water is kept around 24 degrees.


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## Dou

Update on the 60P - I just didn't quite like the look of a brown/red plant in this tank... so I ended up removing the M. Tuberculatum. I think it was clashing with the sand, it wasn't working and I just shouldn't be adding red plants for the sake of adding red plants. After removing it, I wanted to add more levels to the scape - so I added bolbitis to the right... Also I'm in love with the plant and there was a sale at April's haha. I think I'm finally satisfied with what's in there & going to keep things as is for now + let things grow in a bit more. I will be taking it down in September so hopefully things fill in in time.










And another photo of the wild CBS. Finally got my GF to show me how to switch camera lens and after many tries I got a clear photo... My hands are not steady at all haha.


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## April

Looks great! But why take it down in September?


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## Dou

April said:


> Looks great! But why take it down in September?
> 
> Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


There is a contest I want to enter where the cutoff date is in September so I was planning to grow it until then. I also want to try another idea - need to get more experience haha. I'll be back at your shop hunting for stuff for my ideas...

Photo Updates:

60P
- Moved some of my bolbitis around, it was dying off a bit but now its recovering!
- Rearranged some pieces of wood to add a more "root"-y feeling, looking for more...
- Tied some mini pellia to pebbles to see if I can grow some small bushes in the sand










Mini-M
- Non CO2 tank + all slow growing plants so there isn't too much growth
- What little glossostigma I planted pretty much all died off =[
- Found a berried wild crystal black shrimp!










45P
- It will be taken down... soon... just not happy with Koke stones.


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## battmanh

Nice use of ADA Aquasoil. Hopefully your journal helps educate forum members.


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## Dou

battmanh said:


> Nice use of ADA Aquasoil. Hopefully your journal helps educate forum members.


Thank you, one day when I have more time I will definitely try to do aquascapes with "dirt" and see how that goes.

Onto my main update - I redid the 60P bottom right section. I received comments that it would better flow if sand was followed through all across the bottom - so I spent about 4 hours (2 of which was me regretting what I did) redoing it. This really was my first aquascape/tank with CO2 and whatnot, so a lot of this time was spent testing and just going with what looked "nice". Even though it looks "nice" I'm finding that it doesn't look super natural. I also did a trim... It looks more "polished" now but I think I liked how it was before. I think once it grows in and looks more wild I'll be more happy with it - 4 weeks left to go before it goes down! Hopefully it grows enough in time.


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## SeaHorse_Fanatic

Your tanks look very beautiful and healthy. Good job.


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## Jcmalouie

really like the scape. looks great.


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## Dou

Update on the MiniM - Berried wild CBS detected and they seem much happier! Counted 9 in total so only 1 loss during the acclimization process.


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## H5N1

Amazing tank arrangements! You should be very proud of yourself


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## Dou

H5N1 said:


> Amazing tank arrangements! You should be very proud of yourself


Thank you! I am in the process of redoing 6 of the tanks x). Hope to post more photos soon.

Best,
Dou


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## Sean's Ponds

Do you do manual water top offs each day? I'd think you get a lot of evaporation. I have a Fluval Chi and I am topping up at least three times a day just to keep the water parameters stable.

Cheers,
Sean


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## Dou

Sean's Ponds said:


> Do you do manual water top offs each day? I'd think you get a lot of evaporation. I have a Fluval Chi and I am topping up at least three times a day just to keep the water parameters stable.
> 
> Cheers,
> Sean


Yeah my MiniM I have to put back like 750mL of water each day... I think it will be fine once the weather cools down (and I can remove the fan blowing on it).


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## Sean's Ponds

I ordered a couple small float valves from China that I am looking forward to arriving. I plan to make a HOB auto top off gravity fed system for my Sulawesi tank. I need to find some acrylic so I can make the HOB and the gravity fed reservoir. I have the science down, just need the parts to make the system. 
Cant wait for the day when I can rely on just filling a reservoir every few days rather than constant daily top ups.

Cheers,
Sean


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## Dou

Sean's Ponds said:


> I ordered a couple small float valves from China that I am looking forward to arriving. I plan to make a HOB auto top off gravity fed system for my Sulawesi tank. I need to find some acrylic so I can make the HOB and the gravity fed reservoir. I have the science down, just need the parts to make the system.
> Cant wait for the day when I can rely on just filling a reservoir every few days rather than constant daily top ups.
> 
> Cheers,
> Sean


Please document/share if you have some time! That sounds like an amazing idea...


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## Sean's Ponds

I most certainly will. I know there are systems out there already but they are super expensive. A DIY unit doesn't have to look pretty to be functional.

Cheers,
Sean


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## Dou

Final photo - tank has already begun the process of being taken down and moved to the other side of the den. Overall it's been a great learning experience and I can't wait to re-scape this tank as well as start on the others.


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## DR1V3N

You've got a very unique and beautiful style to your nature aquariums, Dou! It's been fun watching the progression / re-scape / flora & fauna decisions in these 2 tanks.

How is the progress with your Brio 35? I just recently picked one up from AW and plan to keep it low tech, that's why I'm wondering.


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## Dou

DR1V3N said:


> You've got a very unique and beautiful style to your nature aquariums, Dou! It's been fun watching the progression / re-scape / flora & fauna decisions in these 2 tanks.
> 
> How is the progress with your Brio 35? I just recently picked one up from AW and plan to keep it low tech, that's why I'm wondering.


Thank you! I really appreciate the kind words as I put in a lot of hours/effort into making something pleasing to the eyes.

I actually re-did my brio... I'm redoing everything haha. Yes! I think low-tech is a good choice but I am actually going with pressurized CO2 this time around (as it's in the living room so it's gotta be beautiful). The right side I gave up on growing herbs and whatnot, it just didn't work very well (maybe I just suck at it...). And ended up filling it with substrate to do an iwagumi-type scape. Essentially I am trying to do a water to land seamless transition - I will take a photo once I plant it!


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## DR1V3N

Dou said:


> Thank you! I really appreciate the kind words as I put in a lot of hours/effort into making something pleasing to the eyes.
> 
> I actually re-did my brio... I'm redoing everything haha. Yes! I think low-tech is a good choice but I am actually going with pressurized CO2 this time around (as it's in the living room so it's gotta be beautiful). The right side I gave up on growing herbs and whatnot, it just didn't work very well (maybe I just suck at it...). And ended up filling it with substrate to do an iwagumi-type scape. Essentially I am trying to do a water to land seamless transition - I will take a photo once I plant it!


Hahaha! Well as we learn, so we should test, right? Redoing and watching the grow out is the funnest part . The right side is perfect for wabi kusa style immersed growing! Off the top of my head, I think the only challenge is to get the substrate height right to match the flow and humidity of your room. If it's too wet, algae can still form in the substrate bed. Shouldn't be a big problem, overall it's a nice simple gravity flow through design. You could totally use AS or even a good cation exchange substrate like eco complete to get the nutrients soaking through. Oh and I don't like that they gave 2 pink floral bulbs in the stock package. Doesn't show off the colors on the right side at all. I wonder if you plan to change the bulbs to get better growth? In my mind HC and glosso immersed grown would look gorgeous there with other stem plants. Hope you post pictures every now and then on the progress.

I assembled the brio today right beside the window in my living room because it was the only spot for it to be a display tank. I live in a condo on the 20th floor so i really want to try running on mostly solar with a short LED on period. So scared of a GDA/GSA outbreak but hopefully it will be fine now that daylight is shortening :/ Just gonna pack it with a lot of fast growing stuff and keep the ferts stable. Gonna start with some perennial flowering plants on the right side. Will do a journal once it's up and running. Maybe not, if I fail LOL!

I'm surprised the Brio isn't more popular here especially since they're Montreal-based. I really wanted the brio 250 but there's no release date yet for it. The 35 was a huge hit in Japan when I visited recently. The price turns off a lot of folks, I guess. For the same price you could get a much bigger setup or even a full ADA package (without the stand). It's such a nice tank for plant-heads, though. I don't think it will be long before Fluval or ADA come out with their own version of a plug and play aquaponics product.

Good luck! Keep up the great work! I'm subscribed to you .

Aaron


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## Dou

DR1V3N said:


> Hahaha! Well as we learn, so we should test, right? Redoing and watching the grow out is the funnest part . The right side is perfect for wabi kusa style immersed growing! Off the top of my head, I think the only challenge is to get the substrate height right to match the flow and humidity of your room. If it's too wet, algae can still form in the substrate bed. Shouldn't be a big problem, overall it's a nice simple gravity flow through design. You could totally use AS or even a good cation exchange substrate like eco complete to get the nutrients soaking through. Oh and I don't like that they gave 2 pink floral bulbs in the stock package. Doesn't show off the colors on the right side at all. I wonder if you plan to change the bulbs to get better growth? In my mind HC and glosso immersed grown would look gorgeous there with other stem plants. Hope you post pictures every now and then on the progress.


That's actually what I did! I added in amazonia to the right with some foam to block it from clogging up the holes where the water funnels back down. I am planning to do DHG mini both on the inside and the outside. Outside already has DHG and Acmella Repens from Reckon. Actually, I just replaced the 2 pink floral bulbs yesterday. I got a package of 10x 6500k 6W GU12 lights - if you want to replace yours just let me know! I will post pictures once I plant it... but am waiting for plants in come in at Aprils. I also am needing to go get a CO2 tank hydrotested and refilled too... but the only place that I find convenient to go to is ACME but they are only open during my working hours............ So I gotta figure it out haha.



DR1V3N said:


> I assembled the brio today right beside the window in my living room because it was the only spot for it to be a display tank. I live in a condo on the 20th floor so i really want to try running on mostly solar with a short LED on period. So scared of a GDA/GSA outbreak but hopefully it will be fine now that daylight is shortening :/ Just gonna pack it with a lot of fast growing stuff and keep the ferts stable. Gonna start with some perennial flowering plants on the right side. Will do a journal once it's up and running. Maybe not, if I fail LOL!


Ah... in the summer time you gotta be careful. Mine is in the living room too and it gets all the ambient light from the sun and caused a huge algae problem for me =[... which caused me pain and suffering and I decided to start over again because of all the problems I had. I tried to do some flowers on the right side as well but I was worried about the potting soil or whatnot circulating dirt around. Am I just being paranoid or is it okay? Do a journal! It would be cool to see what your vision for it is!



DR1V3N said:


> I'm surprised the Brio isn't more popular here especially since they're Montreal-based. I really wanted the brio 250 but there's no release date yet for it. The 35 was a huge hit in Japan when I visited recently. The price turns off a lot of folks, I guess. For the same price you could get a much bigger setup or even a full ADA package (without the stand). It's such a nice tank for plant-heads, though. I don't think it will be long before Fluval or ADA come out with their own version of a plug and play aquaponics product.


Canada/America is always a little behind on everything so I'm not surprised haha. The 250 does look amazing! But since I only have so much space in a Condo... and the rules are <30G anyway =(. I think one of the biggest issues is the aquarium itself - it's not easy to scape. The vertical nature of it requires either some very simplistic aquascaping or some integrated idea that takes both sides into account. At times I regret buying it to be honest, but it was my first tank and I'm determined to make it awesome now.

Anddddd.... a photo of the re-scaped 60P. I re-used as much as I could and added in Sirion Buce that I've been hoarding due to a sale but haven't found a good use for. I find Buce really difficult to integrate into tanks especially since they are so colourful, it almost feels like most of them belong in a single buce-species only tank with stones that will help the shine. Anyway, half of it died and the other half I put into the tank... Sirion is pretty much a brighter pale green if that makes any sense - which works for me. I'm crossing my fingers that they flourish - they don't have to grow but just praying they don't die. The tank got rid of the ammonia spike way faster than expected! 0.25 reading the next day, WC, 0 ammonia today and a WC, and in the choco gouramis went =D. Unfortunately my holding tank for them had a hob filter which did not allow me to cover all of the openings, and one female jumped before she could join her new home (so sad =(...) I think I spooked it when I turned on the lights and I had to jump on a work call so I didn't inspect (like I normally would have). I actually got a new Finnex 24/7+ light fixture, but can't use it because the piece of wood is hitting it when I put it on the tank... will have to fabricate something. Anyway, I think the choco gouramis are quite happy as they've been staking their spots and exploring, swimming under/over and between everything!


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## aprilsaquarium

Plants are ordered! Except one was not on the list. 


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## Jcmalouie

oh wow, love the new scape! very jungle-like.


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## Dou

Just a fun photo of the progress of the last aquascape! Always great to look back and think about what you've learned/what you can get better with!


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## Gaia

Gorgeous! You've got great talent!

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## Dou

Gaia said:


> Gorgeous! You've got great talent!
> 
> Sent from my SM-G900W8 using Tapatalk


Thanks! Below are some photos of the new inhabitants =). Missing some shrimp... but it will come... eventually haha.


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## Gaia

Very cool looking! Are they shrimplette safe? 

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## Dou

Gaia said:


> Very cool looking! Are they shrimplette safe?
> 
> Sent from my SM-G900W8 using Tapatalk


The adult shrimp are safe, but any babies I wouldn't count on it... Although there are a lot of hiding places. The choco gouramis are like silent assassins when they eat haha. I'm sure they spend time swimming around hunting too.


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## Gaia

Dou said:


> The adult shrimp are safe, but any babies I wouldn't count on it... Although there are a lot of hiding places. The choco gouramis are like silent assassins when they eat haha. I'm sure they spend time swimming around hunting too.


Thanks for the heads up. Well I guess my shrimp tank will just be a shrimp tank lol

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## Dou

Just a photo update of my 90cm tank... planted. I was going to add updated Brio photos but it ended up blurry cause of my shaky hands without tripod. I'll try again tomorrow.


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## Dou

And an updated photo of the Brio35 as mentioned before... Finally added CO2 (got everything done at ACME in Burnaby, excellent service might I mention).


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## charlie1

Great job, one can see the passion for this hobby.
Thanks for sharing, i find threads like these both inspirational & educational.
Regards


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## funkycat

Sorry if i missed this somewhere, what lighting did you use on your ADA 60P??


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## Dou

lexingtonsteel said:


> Sorry if i missed this somewhere, what lighting did you use on your ADA 60P??


I'm using the Chihiros Light! Great results for what you pay for.

Andddd here's an updated photo of my 90cm tank (added marsilea hisuta, some plants melted and others rebounded and are growing strong, replanted lots of rotala rotundifolia). I wanted to post a couple more updates but I'm quite busy/in the process of building out my custom open-ish concept stand so that I can fit ALL of my aquariums neatly and nicely without barriers to use and whatnot. Then will have to move all my tanks on top of it... Hoping I dont knock anything over in my scapes.


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## Dou

So I haven't been updating this journal much because I was busy creating a custom stand. I reached out to gklaw amongst several other people - and eventually my handyman agreed to teach me about woodworking/carpentry (while I did most of the work, he would charge me for the time he spent actually working). A new level of respect gained for cabinet makers/carpenters - this was not easy stuff. The frame is complete and just need to add in supports, holes for tubes, etc. basically the finishing touches. I will finally almost be able to fit and work on all my nano tanks comfortably!


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## Dou

Anddd it's complete and in! Can't wait for the new tank to come in x)


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## stan6595

I have to say you make all the tanks so unique by itself.

It was also breath taking when I saw it in person.

Thank you for let me and my wife to visit your "Tank Studio" and thanks for your java moss and professional advice.


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## aprilsaquarium

Dou is a great aquascaper with great passion!


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## Dou

Thanks Stan and April, it's more like my side of the den but tank studio sounds pretty good haha. Anyone who is interested is welcome to come over and I'll share whatever knowledge I have gained with the grateful sacrifices of my melted plants and deceased fish =)


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## Dou

Lots of photo updates...

90CM Thoughts: The Finnex 24/7+ can indeed grow a carpet - but the LED dispersion/cone isn't that great. My judgement comes from the fact that my rotala rotundifolia started skewing/growing towards the center. The monte carlo at the very front of the tank is also not carpeting as well as the center areas and areas closer to the light. My solution is to order another light so that I can have a better spread (in hindsight, this is probably why you would want a stronger light if going high-tech). Also noticed that a brown algae outbreak occurred when I added in too much equilibrium at one time - note to self - don't do that again. Another observation was that ramshorn snails do not like to be in acidic water - I had a huge die off which created a mini ammonia spike which also lead to algae growth. Since posting this photo, I have since trimmed all of the r. rotundifolia and have about 100 stems which I will be posting for free on local forums. In terms of the aquascape - I am feeling the right side is a bit too open - I may try adding sagittaria subulata to take up space while leaving it a bit "open". I have yet to add marsilea quadrifolia which is also coming soon as well.










My only female vallantis (hoping April's can get some more in so she doesnt have to be stuck with 7 males lol)










Male vallantis










Some shrimp photos x)


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## Gaia

Gorgeous! 

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## Dou

And finally... an updated photo of the 60P after another rescape.

Thoughts: It looks really messy right now - and to be honest I'm not that happy with it... but I'm more happy with it than I was before. This is with some plants freshly planted (no chance for any new growth). The prior scape was a bit too close to the front wall of the tank and I just didn't feel like it looked quite right. I have a feeling it will look a lot better once everything grows in (especially the top right area, and looking at it again - I think I need to open up the right middle where the wood kind of intersects) - it's kind of like when you have a really bad haircut but after a few months it looks good again - type of feeling haha. Things will be moved around for sure until I'm completely happy.

**Edit// Adjusted photo for overexposure... It looks so different on all computers...


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## Dou

Finally able to set up my 45P that's been shut down for quite some time as I built my custom stand. I've gotten a lot of new plants that I've never worked with before and testing some new theories about low-tech carpeting and plant growth (this means no CO2, no liquid carbon) - just the use of lights and nutrients. The idea is that I have excessive light which will be blocked/used up by the bolbitis in the areas that I don't want it to (while providing plenty for areas which do need it) and adding adequate fertilizers (while limiting algae to the minimum possible). It will be interesting to see how everything grows in - what melts, what doesn't - and if I can actually get a lush DHG carpet without CO2. Once cycled, I'm planning to stock with tangerine tiger shrimp and some sort of peaceful fish that won't eat the babies x).


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## battmanh

Looks very healthy, keep it up Dou!

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## The Guy

beautiful aquascaping job on your tanks, are you self taught?


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## Dou

The Guy said:


> beautiful aquascaping job on your tanks, are you self taught?


Thank you! I am generally self-taught but I have asked questions and have gotten advice from a ton of bunch of different people (Karen @ April's Aquarium, Joseph @ Miyabi Aqua, various people online, friends on forums - MDT, Reckon, Battmanh, wslam, imtrippedup, etc. to name a few). Also, Google is amazing but you gotta take everything with a grain of salt. I've also gained a lot of experience by failing a bunch of times and killing a lot of plants and fish.. but their sacrifice was not in vain!


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## Dou

Update on the 90CM tank:
- Added an extra finnex 24/7+, immediately noticed the rotata growing evenly and colouring up
- Trying to devise some sort of hanging structure (so that I can suspend lights ~4 inches form the surface, which I predict to be the right balance for my plants to grow well/colour up while not having too much GSA), you can sort of see it in the beginning stages now
- Carpet slowly filling out the front - added some lilaeopsis maruitana as well in certain areas. Everything is bound for a good trimming soon.
- Still working on my photo taking skills... haha. Noticed that the colours from all my progress photos always change as I try to match what I actually see...


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## Olive

Thanks for sharing your beautiful tank journals. I've enjoyed reading through them, and learning along the way.


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## Dou

Olive said:


> Thanks for sharing your beautiful tank journals. I've enjoyed reading through them, and learning along the way.


My pleasure - it was my intention to share what I know to help others. A thriving planted tank community means a lot more stuff eventually being available to everyone =).


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## Dou

Rescaped the 45P a bit - I wasn't very happy with my first attempt but I think I'm slowly getting it to where I want it to be. I think my hard work to add a stone to the left side has been completely smothered by the plants... Some plant re-arrangement may be in order after I sit on this a bit more. I had a lot of plant melt too - but everything appears to be rebounding quite well! It's just a matter of time now (and lots of patience, especially without the use of liquid or pressurized CO2). It's also ready for shrimp - planning to keep Golden Bees, Black King Kongs and Blue Bolts =).


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## Dou

So I was on a roll yesterday and decided to carry my momentum to today. Spent 3 more hours and finally am satisfied with it. 5 tries to get it to where it's at now (2 undocumented) - so pretty much the lesson is don't be afraid to make changes and get your hands wet!


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## Dou

Custom 75W x 36H x 40D (28G/108L) - Last and final large tank until I save up enough to move to a larger place or... work on someone else's tank =). Feedback is always welcome - and things are bound to move a bit as always.


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## liquid_krystale

Nice! What is the dark substrate you're using?


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## Dou

liquid_krystale said:


> Nice! What is the dark substrate you're using?


Power Sand - S with lava stones stacked on top + Amazonia Normal Type + Powder on top =).


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## Dou

90CM Update: Plants growing in, trimmed rotala/trying to maintain it another way, added 30 ember tetras from April's and testing new dosing regime & lighting setting (as my skimmer is building up way too fast and onset of GDA/GSA), hung the light fixtures DIY style with metal strapping and rope =).


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## Mark Brown

Sweet merciful crap. After reading through your tank journal here i think i am ready to say that i am leaving my wife and family because boy oh boy i am in love with those gorgeous aquascapes you have created! That 90CM photo you just added would say to me that you have mastered this craft and it makes me glad to know i have found a community of people much better at this than i am. That has to be the best way to learn IMO, surround yourself with people smarter than you and then soak it all in. Looking forward to see what you have in store for all that wood in your custom!


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## Dou

Mark Brown said:


> Sweet merciful crap. After reading through your tank journal here i think i am ready to say that i am leaving my wife and family because boy oh boy i am in love with those gorgeous aquascapes you have created! That 90CM photo you just added would say to me that you have mastered this craft and it makes me glad to know i have found a community of people much better at this than i am. That has to be the best way to learn IMO, surround yourself with people smarter than you and then soak it all in. Looking forward to see what you have in store for all that wood in your custom!


Thanks for the kind words Mark! I am far from being a master but if you love what you do you tend to find ways to keep on improving and have the will to change =). Ive only been at this hobby for a short time so I have much to learn (especially working with larger tanks and keeping fish). Hope to see you start up a journal too and watch your progress as well!

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## _noob

Great journal!


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## Dou

Thanks Mark x).

Brio35 Update: Friends have asked me how I'm liking the setup - so far, it's only okay - I still find the vertical specs difficult to work with while maintaining it's original look (while trying to stop the side effects of additional ambient light from the living room). I have managed to control most of the algae, and it's slowly filling in! I did not dose for quite some time and kind of let the algae run its course (then manually removed everything) - which seemed to do the trick. The right side I played with again, and the wabi-kusa style is slowly filling out (REAL slow). No close-up photos yet and I find the wabi-kusa side growth to be oddly slow (perhaps not strong enough light?).

I also removed one of the original lights on the left side and replaced with a weaker one. It was too strong and causing way too many algae issues. There is an original white bulb on each side along with a weaker bulb to pair. But I may have to buy another original bulb to go onto the wabikusa side to give it a kickstart.


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## Mark Brown

you know, if that tank is getting you down I'll take it off your hands 

Perfection is a hard state to achieve seeing as there is no definition of it and it only exists in one's own mind. If you were to ask me, not that anyone did, but you should be rather proud of that setup me thinks. I sure would be. However seeing all your tanks I know they look that way thanks to a tireless effort so best of luck!


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## Dou

Mark Brown said:


> you know, if that tank is getting you down I'll take it off your hands
> 
> Perfection is a hard state to achieve seeing as there is no definition of it and it only exists in one's own mind. If you were to ask me, not that anyone did, but you should be rather proud of that setup me thinks. I sure would be. However seeing all your tanks I know they look that way thanks to a tireless effort so best of luck!


Thanks Mark... and I did think about selling it at one time, but would never get close to what I paid for it back haha. I will give it a few more months before taking it down again or redoing the right side. I'm thinking I need to block some of the holes where the water drains so that it can flood higher. My biggest hurdle is trying to increase the height of the right side or to make it look more "lush" and "full". But if I push everything higher, I need to figure out a way to always have water flowing through everything so that everything stays moist/humid (whatever I add or plant on top). I might try to increase the light power before doing anything - or perhaps duration.


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## Mark Brown

one more quick thing I can't help but add is that I love that hanging on the walls are framed pictures of aquascapes. That made my day


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## SeaHorse_Fanatic

Dou, I've honestly never seen a set up like your Brio35. Extremely cool. Look forward to seeing more updates in the future on all your very well thought out aquascapes.

Anthony


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## Dou

Do!Aqua Cube Update: Everything is growing in, falling over and it's looking like how I imagined it to be! It's pretty easy to maintain (20-30% WC once a week, top offs as necessary and 2-3 pumps of fertilizer each time). Only issue is that although my CRS/CBS are breeding, my baby survival rate isn't high like my wild CBS tank (growing past 3-4mm). Perhaps the tank just needs more time to establish... or maybe I need to feed more baby food. Hopefully the new babies that just hatched make it to adolescent stage...


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## Mark Brown

looks so good! Someday I hope to achieve something I'm that proud of.


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## Dou

*ADA 60P & 5G Do!Aqua Mini-M (Dou)*



Mark Brown said:


> looks so good! Someday I hope to achieve something I'm that proud of.


Thanks hah =). I'm sure you will, you just have to keep working at it.. Looking back to when I first started about 1.5 years ago there is a huge difference (look at my first 60p attempt lol) - it really is all about practice!


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## Cammyle

Gorgeous tanks Duo  ...fighting the temptation haha

First fish tank in Aug 2016.. fast forward 7 months ... I now have 5 tanks lol..


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## rwong2k10

Looks great Dou!

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## Dou

Cammyle said:


> Gorgeous tanks Duo  ...fighting the temptation haha
> 
> First fish tank in Aug 2016.. fast forward 7 months ... I now have 5 tanks lol..


If you dont have a large tank already... you're going to get hit with LTS (large tank syndrome) hahha.



rwong2k10 said:


> Looks great Dou!
> 
> Sent from my SM-N920W8 using Tapatalk


Thanks Ray - taking notes whenever we speak


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## Dou

Biweekly maintenance before lights and CO2 came on - 50% WC and trimmed where necessary. Main learning point so far: better to trim a bit everyday than to trim all in one go (destroyed my left side carpet...). Also trying to figure out how to get a nice beautiful rotala bush (just freshly trimmed it, and replanted some stems). I also had GDA issues which have been toned back after I started dosing every day. Started dosing Nitrogen (which I haven't been for a long time due to my perception that it causes BBA, which MIGHT not be true haha) to test whether this is why my rotala isn't growing crazy.


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## charlie1

Amazing job!!!!!!!!
Thanks for sharing


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## Mark Brown

Absolutely amazing work my good man!
keep it up.


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## Dou

75CM Beginning: The feeling and idea that I'm trying to create is that of the edge of a forest and the emergence of an open clearing. It's been freshly planted - with lots of plants originally grown emersed (so I'm expecting some melt... but hopefully not too much). There are also some background plants that you can't see - in a few months hopefully they grow up and fill out to give more of a "covered" feel. Of course... I am bound to change my mind a bit and move things around (along with adding or removing plants), typical me x).


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## Dou

75CM Adjustments - 4 hours later... I think I'm happy for now, may tweak a couple things here and there but I feel that it looks much more natural. I was hesitant to go all in but with a little nudge, I ended up snapping a lot of branches (thanks to a friend for providing feedback)... There's also actually a bunch of crypt balansae planted in the very far back - which I am envisioning to fill the top section and take up space/provide more cover. Still looking for the elusive ferns.


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## rwong2k10

Wow amazing 

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## Dou

45P Update:
- Added Taiwan Bee Shrimps. I noticed as I was acclimating them they started to scurry like they were trying to escape, I tested the water and there was 0.25ppm ammonia - so I put them into a net and placed them into my Do!Aqua cube to hold. Its parameters were set for CRS/CBS so I wasn't too worried.
- I'm not sure where the ammonia came from, as my bucket of aged water also had some readings... but my paranoia in making sure they were okay helped me introduce them successfully. After doing a full 90% WC + remineralization + 8 hours later, ammonia levels were 0 and in they went to their new home. Hard to count but I don't think I had too many casualties.
- I also added an AC20 to the tank. The Eheim 150 that's currently running with it was also running for 3 months or so, so seeing the ammonia was a bit shocking. I read that using prime can also affect this reading, for now I am just being extra careful
- My foreground plants aren't doing as well as I thought they would, so I am now considering what I should do. I'm thinking that I may add more sand and add anubias petites up front. I am hesitant to make too many changes as I want to make sure its new inhabitants are as happy as can be.


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## Mark Brown

....your "not doing so well" plants look healthier than my "growing great" plants. Hats off to you Dou! You do amazing work. Kudos on saving your shrimp too.


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## Dou

Mark Brown said:


> ....your "not doing so well" plants look healthier than my "growing great" plants. Hats off to you Dou! You do amazing work. Kudos on saving your shrimp too.


Haha thanks Mark - a lot of the foreground plants aren't doing well. From what I read from others who have had success doing low-tech carpets, they had to have a LOT of nutrients. This is not something ideal that I want to do for my tank as it contains shrimp that are a bit more sensitive.

Also... I was fortunate enough to get budget at my workplace to maintain a tank for my coworkers =)! Here it is after a couple months, everything still growing in and at a good pace as it's low-tech, no CO2. Supplemented with a lot of my own materials.


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## Mark Brown

You might just have to come work at my work!!

Problem with that i suppose is I work in a cargo van all day and I'm not too sure that's conductive to the gorgeous aquascapes you do but hey, I'm willing to try if you are.

Looks great as always! Hope your co-workers appreciate it.


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## Dou

Mark Brown said:


> You might just have to come work at my work!!
> 
> Problem with that i suppose is I work in a cargo van all day and I'm not too sure that's conductive to the gorgeous aquascapes you do but hey, I'm willing to try if you are.
> 
> Looks great as always! Hope your co-workers appreciate it.


Haha yes they do love it - I've certainly changed their perception/minds about what aquariums are!

And a 75CM Update:
- I re-adjusted things again. It just didn't look balanced. I moved the wood to the back to open up the space (as I was feeling a bit cramped). I also re-balanced a lot of it (was feeling way too in my face) along with snapping even more pieces (cried harder with each snap)
- I also went on a nature trail with my spouse and dog (inspired by Tom Barr), found quite a few interesting plants and have inserted them into the tank to see if they could grow/adapt to being immersed in slightly warmer water. I forgot my SD card for my camera so I was unable to snap photos =(. No idea what their names are.
- It is tempting to take it apart and try again (as I get better with each try) but I have a feeling I am just being impatient. Although it may look sparse now, if I let it grow out to what my mind envisions, it may turn out to be exactly what I want it to be. 
- I switched to a 35mm lens, which seems to have made a huge difference in photo quality. I didn't even use a tripod and it is much clearer than my kit lens (and with less photoshop)... meaning that I am now slowly saving for the Nikkor 16-22mm. Thanks again for the guidance Ray Wong.


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## Dou

90CM Update:
- After posting to another FB group, friends chimed in about BBA. My initial thoughts about BBA being caused by excessive Nitrogen was totally debunked. I actually went overboard and went beyond EI dosing - and found that all my algae was dying before my eyes. There were rocks literally half covered with algae and half sparkling clean - was really surprised. No photos here... which I probably should've taken (sorry!)
- I went further and I actually upped my CO2 as well, to the point where I killed off my amano shrimp (so sad... found them all white in the corner). My TDS also spiked to 450 with my dosing - so I think the death was a combination of those two factors.
- I tested a bit more, and noticed that even after upping CO2 there was not a super huge difference in growth - meaning what I had was enough. After adding my replacement amanos, I noticed them hiding near the inflow (point of lowest CO2 concentration most likely). Something was wrong, so I decided to turn on my CO2 only to the point where my drop checker turned green (and it would shut off after that, basically 2 hours less of CO2). My amanos are definitely happier and my plants are still growing well after it was shut off. 
- I had an issue with blue green algae (BGA, Cyanobacteria) as well and it was starting to creep above the substrate level into the carpet. After doing some googling, I decided that I would go with hydrogen peroxide as a last resort and would instead opt for a blackout period. 
- The blackout period lasted about 50 hours, and by the end of it, a lot of the BGA died off. I also noticed an interesting change in my amanos; they started turning blue! I think BGA was caused by excessive nutrients. I have sinced moved onto the Thrive+ fertilizer line (with pumps instead of mass dosing individual nutrients) and noticed that the tank is doing very well. 
- The other interesting thing I noticed during the blackout period was that the plants were THRIVING! I decided that I would drop my light period by an hour. This resulted in less algae but also similar growth.
- Intuitively thinking, in the wild plants are only exposed to max light exposure for 2-3 hours most likely, and the rest of the time they are in the shade or exposed slowly. Ideally, we would have a ramp up and down period. When I take this tank down, I think I will test with the 24/7+ mode for both lights and see how the growth is like along with algae levels.
- I trimmed a bit aggressively again, and a lot of my carpet died on my left side. I'm thinking that I should try to keep it at a 1-2cm height rather than 0.5-1cm height, there seems to be a lot of dead leaves when I get too carried away =/. Same thing happened to the right front as well =(...
- Speaking of trimming, I also trimmed my rotala colorata a bit every day and it seems like it's starting to become a decent bush. Maintaining stem plants this way is quite manageable.


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## Redshrimp2709

Hey Dou, 

Beautiful pics and aquariums! I'm however wondering why you keep the pH and gH pretty high considering our municipal water is soft and set at neutral (likely artificially). This seems like a small trivial detail as many plants and fish can adapt. Do you see better results in plant growth in harder, slightly alkaline water?

Best, 

Drew


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## Dou

Redshrimp2709 said:


> Hey Dou,
> 
> Beautiful pics and aquariums! I'm however wondering why you keep the pH and gH pretty high considering our municipal water is soft and set at neutral (likely artificially). This seems like a small trivial detail as many plants and fish can adapt. Do you see better results in plant growth in harder, slightly alkaline water?
> 
> Best,
> 
> Drew


Hey Andrew, I use equilibrium for my larger tanks and salty shrimp gH+ on my shrimp tanks. I don't really track gH, kH, pH, but rather TDS. I keep all my tanks around 150-200 TDS (which I believe is around 7-11 gH)... and that's that. I am thinking that maybe I should pay more attention though cause I do notice issues. I can't tell if I see better plant growth or not... because I am very haphazard about how I do things LOL. Trial by fire, not the best method, but so far... no major losses or issues.


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## Redshrimp2709

Hey Dou, that's cool. I was more curious more than anything else and I'm not aware of any adverse side effects of having harder water in general with more TDS, and a higher pH. It only stuck out for me for the following reasons: Our tap water has no TDS, and therefore with CO2 injection, the water naturally acidifies. This soft and slightly acidic water is excellent for most aquatic plants typically used in nature aquariums, as they come from soft, acidic waters of southeast Asia, or the Amazon. 

You did answer my question though. Of course for shrimp, you need some hardness in the water, and generally, with the exception of crystal bees, many species appreciate neutral to slightly alkaline water with higher TDS. I use a tiny bit of Equilibrium too, for the sake of my cherries


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## Dou

One of many updates coming... I'm still alive and in my own type of hyperbolic time chamber! My first IAPLC entry is coming up and I just wanted to share a collage of some of my 75cm attempts. Where my 90cm was like a plant growing exploration experience, this tank feels like it was a hardscape explorative adventure. A couple more changes have since been made, but it is interesting to look back and see what I started with and where I am ending up. Would really love to share the most up to date photo - but am wanting to keep it a surprise! Of course - here are my main learning points:
- Levels: Using all levels of the tank really separates a tank that I like from one that I REALLY like
- Planes/Focus: Depth is only really beneficial if you have a focal point to begin with. You shouldn't even focus on depth until you settle the main visual components of your tank. 
- Hardscape: If it's not going to be visible, it doesn't need to be perfect. 
- Details: Literally, less is really more. After hours and hours spent deliberating in my mind, I removed lots of small "details" and ended up liking it way more than previously. It's more important to get the idea right than to try and make up for it with things like super small twigs or small pebbles, etc.
- Photos: What looks good in person doesn't necessarily translate to a nice photo, so it's helpful to take photos along the way to see how your scape is looking so far
- Water control: Putting towels down when making changes is a really good way to keep things tidy & clean... lol


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## Mark Brown

Dou Buddy, You are a wizard!!

That last picture on the bottom right is so rich, i want to live there. I have zero advice for you because well, you are better than i am, but i sure can offer my appreciation!


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## Dou

A lot has changed on the tank at work - with the most obvious being the removal of a large portion of moss on the spider wood branches. This was primarily due to a mishap - a 12 day long 24/7 light period type. I should've taken a photo of what happened, but was really discouraged and did not even want to document it. After 3-4 weeks of manual algae removal (including affected plants) & re-balancing - it's finally clean and balanced again! Some learning points for those interested:
- Brown diatom/slime can be directly attributed to too much light + nutrients. I always had a feeling it was because of this and finally got to (involuntarily) prove/test it.
- Hygro Pinnitifida can grow without being planted... but died off completely once there was too much light. It was actually doing super well =(...
- Regardless of how often people say that they don't do water changes, I found that more frequent water changes definitely make a huge difference in tank cleanliness. In other words, keep up with your water changes!
- My experience with rasbora has always lead me to think they are extremely shy, however in this tank they are ALWAYS swarming the top when someone comes close by (presumably for food). Fish that get used to the shadows don't freak out so much and seem to enjoy a human presence.


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## Dou

Updated photo of my 60P now in the living room - still working on how to make this look more natural. This is a tank that I am expecting to run for at least 2 years. I definitely want to add shrimp, but not sure what type yet... Anyone have suggestions on a colour that would complement and look natural in this tank? Either Jade Green or Wild Type Neocaridina I am thinking.

Special thanks to Pat @ CanadianAquatics for custom ordering me an ADA AquaSky 60cm light!


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## Jousters

Loving that peice of wood Dou.The tank looks great.


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## Reckon

The fish look very happy to be in there!


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## Dou

I can finally share this! Rank 142 out of 2056 in this year's ADA IAPLC contest. Thank you Reckon, MDT, Battmanh, wslam, funkycat, imtrippedup and everyone who has taken time to give me feedback along the way.


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## Mark Brown

first in my book brother


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## liquid_krystale

Dou said:


>


This is just phenomenal!


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## _noob

Have you decided on what type of shrimp for the tank?


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## wslam

Congrats! That's a great result. Amazing journey so far



Dou said:


> I can finally share this! Rank 142 out of 2056 in this year's ADA IAPLC contest. Thank you Reckon, MDT, Battmanh, wslam, funkycat, imtrippedup and everyone who has taken time to give me feedback along the way.


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## Dou

Thanks Wai. Some photo updates below of my tanks..

60P - No CO2 and working out quite well!









45P - Helped my friend set up his tank and teaching him at the same time.









MiniM - Still deciding what to add in.


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## CRS Fan

Hello Dou.

How do you keep algae from going nuts in the Mini M with the Aquasky fixture? What is your photoperiod, dosing regime, CO2 injection method? What are you currently using for filtration? I have the same fixture and tank but fear insane algal blooms using it.

Best regards,

Stuart


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## Dou

All of these tanks you see have no CO2... The main reason being is that I have a lot of tanks and its too hard to maintain if every one of them grows too fast. I dose maybe once every 2-3 weeks, my light period is 5-6 hours (varies on each tank). The main types of algae issues I face are the type that grow on the glass wall (that I scrape)... My nano tanks I use AC20s. Also, I always have ramshorn snails.

I think the key concept is to add as many plants as aesthetically possible. In every tank, I try to block a ton of light from penetrating into the tank with plants (especially with bolbitis). With a low light period, they won't grow as fast either - meaning less ferts and also less room for algae as well (since the plants are competing for the limited light). Pair that with CO2... and you basically have an algae-free tank. My 60P all I do is water change once a week and glass scrape every 2-3 weeks, nothing else and I have no issues - and it has an AquaSky + ambient light from the living room. However... I am doing this with easy to grow/maintain plants (the idea of blocking light from penetrating while remaining aesthetically pleasing). If you have stem plants, you'll want to have the same idea (maximize green) but make sure every plant gets some light or else you'll get melting.



CRS Fan said:


> Hello Dou.
> 
> How do you keep algae from going nuts in the Mini M with the Aquasky fixture? What is your photoperiod, dosing regime, CO2 injection method? What are you currently using for filtration? I have the same fixture and tank but fear insane algal blooms using it.
> 
> Best regards,
> 
> Stuart
> 
> Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## Dou

Also.. you might notice some BBA in my 60P from that photo. That was from a test with no water changes for a month. Basically, weekly water changes are key to keeping that down (and removing whatever organics you can visibly see). Solution was to spot dose excel and let everything else do its thing.


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## CRS Fan

Dou said:


> Also.. you might notice some BBA in my 60P from that photo. That was from a test with no water changes for a month. Basically, weekly water changes are key to keeping that down (and removing whatever organics you can visibly see). Solution was to spot dose excel and let everything else do its thing.


BBA has been the bane of my existence..... and it just seems to ebb and flow (but mostly flow).

Thanks again!

Stuart

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## Dou

CRS Fan said:


> BBA has been the bane of my existence..... and it just seems to ebb and flow (but mostly flow).
> 
> Thanks again!
> 
> Stuart
> 
> Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


I am pretty sure I know how to get rid of BBA or at least control it to a very minimal amount. My workplace tank was riddled with this issue... and it got SO bad. It covered everything. My solution was to to do water changes ever 3 days of about 50% - taking special care to suck out as much organics as possible (3-4 weeks). I made sure to add equilibrium back in to about 150-175 TDS, no other ferts. Plants were fine and eventually I saw sheets of BBA in the sand just kinda falling off the leaves. Afterwards, I spot dosed excel (everywhere I could see leftover BBA) with the filter off and it completed destroyed the rest - while maintaining my water changes. I also asked co-worker to reduce feeding to once every 2-3 days (she was overfeeding for sure). The tank is now clean and thriving again with no immediate signs of BBA appearing again. I really should be taking photos of how ugly it looked... but was too discouraged to document and show it at the time lol.

So key points: water change and remove as much organic/detritus as possible, maintain gH of 5-7, spot dose excel.


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## rwong2k10

Dou said:


> I am pretty sure I know how to get rid of BBA or at least control it to a very minimal amount. My workplace tank was riddled with this issue... and it got SO bad. It covered everything. My solution was to to do water changes ever 3 days of about 50% - taking special care to suck out as much organics as possible (3-4 weeks). I made sure to add equilibrium back in to about 150-175 TDS, no other ferts. Plants were fine and eventually I saw sheets of BBA in the sand just kinda falling off the leaves. Afterwards, I spot dosed excel (everywhere I could see leftover BBA) with the filter off and it completed destroyed the rest - while maintaining my water changes. I also asked co-worker to reduce feeding to once every 2-3 days (she was overfeeding for sure). The tank is now clean and thriving again with no immediate signs of BBA appearing again. I really should be taking photos of how ugly it looked... but was too discouraged to document and show it at the time lol.
> 
> So key points: water change and remove as much organic/detritus as possible, maintain gH of 5-7, spot dose excel.


Lets see some photos

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## Dou

rwong2k10 said:


> Lets see some photos
> 
> Sent from my SM-G930W8 using Tapatalk


Here you go


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## rwong2k10

Dou said:


> Here you go


Wow amazing

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## Dou

Living Room 60P Update:
- Tangerine tigers are flourishing! I added some aura blue tigers as well and they are still alive. Hopefully they will throw some mixed green-ish coloured babies in a few months. 
- I have some big fat otocats in here - just like the ones I saw at Sumida aquarium =D! This is by far my most successful tank. 
- Water changes once a week (30% or so)
- Algae present on the glass walls here and there that I scrape off. I noticed that in areas where I neglect (less effort to suck up detritus) more algae forms. Suggestion: always try to suck up as much detritus as possible during water changes. 
- Photo taken with a Pixel 2 phone. Holy smokes does it take nice shots with minimal effort!


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## VElderton

Amazing work Dou ... as usual solid information and great pictures. One day setting up some no-CO planted tanks I know who to call :bigsmile:


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## Dou

VElderton said:


> Amazing work Dou ... as usual solid information and great pictures. One day setting up some no-CO planted tanks I know who to call :bigsmile:


Thanks Victor. I think next year I'll be in North Van quite often for some hikes and would love to come visit your fish haven if you have time =). Text you then!


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## VElderton

Looking forward to it ... best of the season Dou. 


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## rwong2k10

Dou said:


> Living Room 60P Update:
> - Tangerine tigers are flourishing! I added some aura blue tigers as well and they are still alive. Hopefully they will throw some mixed green-ish coloured babies in a few months.
> - I have some big fat otocats in here - just like the ones I saw at Sumida aquarium =D! This is by far my most successful tank.
> - Water changes once a week (30% or so)
> - Algae present on the glass walls here and there that I scrape off. I noticed that in areas where I neglect (less effort to suck up detritus) more algae forms. Suggestion: always try to suck up as much detritus as possible during water changes.
> - Photo taken with a Pixel 2 phone. Holy smokes does it take nice shots with minimal effort!


Beautiful. Can you tell me more about your tangerine tigers adventure from obtaining them to breeding to water parameters to feeding. Thx in advance 

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## Dou

rwong2k10 said:


> Beautiful. Can you tell me more about your tangerine tigers adventure from obtaining them to breeding to water parameters to feeding. Thx in advance
> 
> Sent from my SM-G930W8 using Tapatalk


To be honest I don't really check the parameters of this tank. I only use equilibrium and make sure TDS isnt above 200. An established filter is the most important aspect of shrimpkeeping - I feel like if you have that your shrimp can adapt to your water parameters in most conditions.


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## Dou

From daylight to LED lighting.


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## Dou

Highlight of my 2017 in a .GIF


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## Dou

Two things I want to accomplish this year - making videos to share and getting on that IAPLC projector! Approaching this with a newcomer's mindset - that means trying over and over again until I get better and better. Step 1: Create video & add music... Next step: Create video, add music & add voice over. Oh right, the video - my taiwan bee colony has rebounded (have over 40 again + new tiny babies)! Life is great again haha (shrimpers definitely know how I feel here).

Figuring out how to add my video now... Done!


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## Dou

It's been a long time - but I'm still around! I have some quick updates for those who are curious about how I'm doing.

- I placed #110 this year for IAPLC 2018 (ADA's aquascaping contest) - and I'm going to be on their projector! This was a goal of mine I set 2 years ago - next goal is to place within the top 100.
- I moved! Instead of a den, I get a whole entire garage to myself  - parking the car outside. You never know where life will take you, but if you keep trying you'll get to where you want to be.
- I will be starting a small operation/nature aquarium gallery (private appointments only) from my garage and will be carrying some ADA items (basically only things I use in my tanks) and other aquascaping supplies. If you're in the Surrey area, let me know . I'll be updating my Facebook page and website when I'm ready.
- Special thanks to jagermelifter and Baron. They helped me move so much and provided moral support when I needed it.

And of course, some preview photos


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## tredford8

Looks awesome! I'll have to make the trip out there from Abbotsford to check it out once it's all set up.


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## Dou

It's been a long time (what feels like at least) but lots of things have changed again. My website is updated and going to leave some photos here =)

My IAPLC 2018 tank.










I also decided to share the entire process of a competition tank from beginning to end. You can follow my facebook page for more frequent updates - but here are two photos to share!










And flooded... wood leaking tannins. Upgraded to an ADA 120P.


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## Dou

And have another updated earlier than expected. Initial planting!


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## JeanetteNash

Wow! Just awesome and I really like these colorful shots, thanks.


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