# SHOW-AND-TELL - COMMENTS/DISCUSSION - BCA members' Aquarium Setup



## jobber

MAIN SHOWROOM LINK: http://www.bcaquaria.com/forum/memb...a-members-aquarium-setup-showroom-main-36405/

Hope we can get as many participants to learn from each others' showcase setups. Been a bit quiet on BCA lately.


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## 2wheelsx2

Very nice idea. I'll post my tanks up later.


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## Reckon

I vote for sticky?


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## effox

It's been stickied. We'll keep it up as long as it's popular.

I love seeing everyone's set ups and detailed explanations, so keep them coming!


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## Reckon

Planted tank guys/ladies post your water parameters. It helps those of us who are learning


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## Sploosh

Now I have to do more research so my stock list doesn't include "mystery" 
Will post to the main thread once I've gotten the names of everything


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## jobber

Don't be shy to only post one of your tanks up. If you have multiple tanks, post them all up. If you can, try to do it within the same post. helps keep things organized.
I've been doing some researching on people's tanks and had to jump everywhere and go through all the posts to just extrapolate the info I need. 

Let's try to spread the word out and get as many active members to post. A simple form tank journal.


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## 77_Bus_Girl

Yes, I'm waiting for a *certain* someone to post all the specs on a *certain* 100+/- cube I'm in love with... 



jobber said:


> Don't be shy to only post one of your tanks up. If you have multiple tanks, post them all up. If you can, try to do it within the same post. helps keep things organized.
> I've been doing some researching on people's tanks and had to jump everywhere and go through all the posts to just extrapolate the info I need.
> 
> Let's try to spread the word out and get as many active members to post. A simple form tank journal.


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## jobber

Is there any other information you think should be included as part of the content list template?


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## Reckon

In my journal I give credit to members or sponsors who help me build the tank in the form of "special thanks"
not sure if its relevant but I add it so people know who to contact to get help regarding a product, tank design, special flora/fauna knowledge, etc.


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## jobber

Thanks a good idea. i'll add something in the main template above. Starting to see some posts.
Forum needs more compliments and gratitude; foster a vibrant and positive environment.


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## trout

jobber said:


> Is there any other information you think should be included as part of the content list template?


Great thread!

Maybe total estimated cost of the setup a an optional statistic.

Also any breeding success might be interesting to see. Maybe tap water params as well? Just rambling ideas here


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## jobber

trout said:


> Great thread!
> 
> Maybe total estimated cost of the setup a an optional statistic.
> 
> Also any breeding success might be interesting to see. Maybe tap water params as well? Just rambling ideas here


great feedback. will add those additional examples to the write up.


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## 77_Bus_Girl

Well, I know you mentioned it, but already we are seeing ones without a full tank shot. Full front or 3/4 is fine IMO, but videos and links to images are not as effective. I can see this thread being great for people to thumb through quickly looking at images, then when they find something they like, reading up more on it.
And yeah, if you have it, tap water parameters would be cool. 

Also, maybe an estimate on how much time a week you spend on it.


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## 2wheelsx2

77_Bus_Girl said:


> Yes, I'm waiting for a *certain* someone to post all the specs on a *certain* 100+/- cube I'm in love with...


The specs are on there now. 

Sorry Ming, I didn't read about putting everything one post. You want my 5 tanks all on one post? What if I have 17? 


jobber said:


> Is there any other information you think should be included as part of the content list template?


Controllers. You missed that one.


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## hp10BII

Great idea! Thanks for coming up with this idea. I have a tank that I'm replacing the substrate so it looks weird being bb when it's not supposed to be bb. Once the substrate's in place, I'll try to post on my tanks.

If there's a way to jump to a certain member's post with their tank specs, it would make referencing a particular tank more user friendly. If we have a lot of contributions, I can see pages of tank specs, but it may take awhile to find a certain member's post. Maybe the first post can have the user name listed in cronological order, and a list of their tanks if it's it's difficult/not possible to link to a specific member's tank specs.


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## 2wheelsx2

77_Bus_Girl said:


> If there's a way to jump to a certain member's post with their tank specs, it would make referencing a particular tank more user friendly. If we have a lot of contributions, I can see pages of tank specs, but it may take awhile to find a certain member's post. Maybe the first post can have the user name listed in cronological order, and a list of their tanks if it's it's difficult/not possible to link to a specific member's tank specs.


There is. But someone has to take the time to go and manually put a link in the first post with the links to each tank.


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## jobber

2wheelsx2 said:


> The specs are on there now.
> Sorry Ming, I didn't read about putting everything one post. You want my 5 tanks all on one post? What if I have 17?
> Controllers. You missed that one.


Done. Controllers/monitors added. Have MTS does pose some problems, but I guess it's better to post their main showcase tank first....you should be able to fit up to 13 tanks in one post (as the max. pics is 13). We can always tidy up the thread later on with the help with mods cutting and pasting the subsequent tank posts all into the first one.



hp10BII said:


> Great idea! Thanks for coming up with this idea. I have a tank that I'm replacing the substrate so it looks weird being bb when it's not supposed to be bb. Once the substrate's in place, I'll try to post on my tanks.
> 
> If there's a way to jump to a certain member's post with their tank specs, it would make referencing a particular tank more user friendly. If we have a lot of contributions, I can see pages of tank specs, but it may take awhile to find a certain member's post. Maybe the first post can have the user name listed in cronological order, and a list of their tanks if it's it's difficult/not possible to link to a specific member's tank specs.


That will be done in all due time. I'm already certain this thread will require some maintenance from now and then to clean it up and organize it. All in due time. Let's just try to get as many members on board and contributing.

I've just made some updates to the template so do check back from time to time.

Added: "Tank influences/inspirations"


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## jobber

BTW. Just got a question about salties. By all means, add your salty tank to the list. It's a show and tell, freshwater doesn't discriminate against salties.


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## discuspaul

Gary, that was good of you to post details and pics of two of your tanks already. Always enjoy seeing your tanks, and I'm sure many others do too ! Great inspiration for others wanting to do something similar. 
This will no doubt be a good show & tell Sticky thread that members can refer to from time to time, to give them some fresh ideas for their own set-up and layout.


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## jobber

Nice to see a few more posts. Nice internals by mdwflyer and a beautiful vibrant discus planted tank by crimper. 
As always 2wheelsx2's very influential tanks 

Lemon tetras seem to be quite popular amongst the posted tanks. Outnumbering cardinals.


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## crimper

Thanks for initiating this jobber. Seeing those awesome tanks sometimes inspires other hobbyist to get back to the hobby. 

Seing 2Wheels2x wild discus tank made my jaw dropped again on those wilds. His tank and Bonsai Dave's are my fave Wild Discus tanks. Thanks for sharing guys...


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## 2wheelsx2

It's nice to be able to share with other serious enthusiasts what we are doing with our tanks. I think everyone can get ideas and gain knowledge and what works and what doesn't by looking at how many people use what equipment.


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## jobber

Well, sharing just makes the hobby experience that much more enjoyable as you gain different perspectives, styles, and tank management styles. Saves every hobbyist time trying to figure things out on their own. For the sponsors and suppliers, helps promote their products as well. It's a gain gain for everyone. I've learnt so much by seeing other hobbyist's setups. Let's see how many show and tell posts we get. Not saying that all aquascapes will end up utilitarian, but it does save googling around. I'm sure people outside of BCA will see this thread and entice them to join. 

Reckon: That is a serious planted jungle! Beautiful tank.


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## Sploosh

Just posted to the main thread - instead of updating my tank journal 
Thanks for starting this up, checking different forums posts of other peoples set-ups is what helped me along in the beginning , and gave me bigger ideas 
Will be updating it when it's light out again 
zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz

I also added "Air Supply" to my equipment list


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## mdwflyer

What a great idea, condensed info sharing for everyone! This would have same me a lot of headaches on the setup and first 6 months of my big tank.


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## charles

One suggestion, how about spliting this thread into 2 threads:

one if photo and information only. And sticky this one. Remove all the threads that has questions, comments, etc on and keep this thread clean.
the other one will be a copy and paste of the thread that you want to ask question or comments on.


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## 2wheelsx2

That's already done. This is the comment thread and not stickied. The other is the photo and info thread and is stickied.


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## 77_Bus_Girl

Maybe the title is too long? the comments one could be changed to "SHOW-AND-TELL: COMMENTS for BCA members' setup" or something like that - as adding the 'comments' part at the end gets truncated, so the only way you can tell the difference is by noticing the sticky part or clicking it to see the whole title.


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## charles

yikes, i am too slow... blame on the food for the CNY


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## jobber

Sploosh said:


> Just posted to the main thread -........I also added "Air Supply" to my equipment list


Updated and included "Air pump/oxygen supply". Great suggestion. Fine tuning.



mdwflyer said:


> What a great idea, condensed info sharing for everyone! This would have same me a lot of headaches on the setup and first 6 months of my big tank.


That's what I was going through this past week, not just on this forum, but throughout the web. It's definitely helping me out already. Plus brings this forum community closer.



77_Bus_Girl said:


> Maybe the title is too long? the comments one could be changed to "SHOW-AND-TELL: COMMENTS for BCA members' setup" or something like that - as adding the 'comments' part at the end gets truncated, so the only way you can tell the difference is by noticing the sticky part or clicking it to see the whole title.


Done and revised heading titles to make it a bit more easier to identify.


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## discuspaul

monkE -
Your second incarnation is/was a stupendous looking set-up !!!


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## monkE

discuspaul said:


> monkE -
> Your second incarnation is/was a stupendous looking set-up !!!


thanks a lot paul!


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## monkE

great idea for both these threads ming!


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## jobber

monkE said:


> great idea for both these threads ming!


Great looking post. I know you have a saltie going on....waiting for that to be updated


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## monkE

jobber said:


> Great looking post. I know you have a saltie going on....waiting for that to be updated


just got back from IPU *wink* couple new firefish are acclimating as we speak


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## jobber

Updated w/: "Type of food you feed your fish:"



monkE said:


> just got back from IPU *wink* couple new firefish are acclimating as we speak


Very nice!


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## jobber

Nicely done Oscar (adobecat)


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## kacairns

should probably have KH under parameters. I added it to my post and notice sploosh and adobe did as well.


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## AdobeOtoCat

Thanks . Stupendous idea by the way! Going to post my freshwater soon (in the same post) and the fat and juicy cardinals you gave me.

Sent from my SGH-I727R using Tapatalk 2


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## jobber

kacairns said:


> should probably have KH under parameters. I added it to my post and notice sploosh and adobe did as well.


Done. KH added.



AdobeOtoCat said:


> Thanks . Stupendous idea by the way! Going to post my freshwater soon (in the same post) and the fat and juicy cardinals you gave me.
> 
> Sent from my SGH-I727R using Tapatalk 2


Haha. I don't give free fish to people 
Those were very big and plump cardinals. Came from a good supplier..no names.


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## jobber

Nicely done Mike. Doesn't look like a 20 gallon. Tank looks much bigger. 
Thanks for sharing with us all your beautiful setup.


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## jobber

Updated template with "tank (gallons)"

The first monster fish tank posting. Thanks mike for sharing you tank with is.

Sent from my mobile phone


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## m_class2g

lots of great tanks. im itching to start a small salt tank after seeing so many nice ones on this forum!!!


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## monkE

Thanks for posting that Mike! amazing tank, that sump looks like quite the undertaking to clean


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## m_class2g

monkE said:


> Thanks for posting that Mike! amazing tank, that sump looks like quite the undertaking to clean


Actually very easy to clean! I rinse the top sponge on top of the bacteria house media once every 2 weeks. Every 3 months I alternate and rinse out japanese mat from compartment 1 and sponges from compartment 3. Thats basically it! The K1 media is self cleaning and bacteria house shouldnt be cleaned as i was told. All I basically do is my weekly 40% water change.


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## monkE

m_class2g said:


> Actually very easy to clean! I rinse the top sponge on top of the bacteria house media once every 2 weeks. Every 3 months I alternate and rinse out japanese mat from compartment 1 and sponges from compartment 3. Thats basically it! The K1 media is self cleaning and bacteria house shouldnt be cleaned as i was told. All I basically do is my weekly 40% water change.


nice! i guess i'm just so used to a bunch of plecos eating a bunch of driftwood cause my filter gets so much worse and it's half the tank!


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## m_class2g

monkE said:


> nice! i guess i'm just so used to a bunch of plecos eating a bunch of driftwood cause my filter gets so much worse and it's half the tank!


yup plecs are messy!!! i had an albino plec in my old tank that made more waste than cleaning algae lol


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## jobber

Indeed a very nice tank. Crystal clear water and great collection.


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## Reckon

Pamela! Your tanks are so clean! Great style!


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## Pamela

Reckon said:


> Pamela! Your tanks are so clean! Great style!


Thank you ...that's why I put pics of my nano tanks, the bigger ones are a lot messier


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## Sploosh

Suggestion;
I know the list is quite long already....
How about adding water test kits/equipment used? 
I know I'm curious as to what some people use to test their water on Co2 planted tanks


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## jobber

Sure. I'll just include it in the suggestion area of other info.
Wish more people can put their setups on the showroom. only 18 posts.


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## 2wheelsx2

People will. It takes time. I only got 3 of my setups on there.


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## jobber

I haven't even put my new one on


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## Sploosh

I'm working on getting good photos together before I post all my tanks


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## jobber

Looking forward to your posts.

Sent from my mobile phone


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## trout

jobber said:


> Sure. I'll just include it in the suggestion area of other info.
> Wish more people can put their setups on the showroom. only 18 posts.


Ive been wanting to post up my setups, just dont have any recent fts pics, just some that are a few weeks-months old.....but they're nicer anyways :bigsmile:. i also like the idea of posting version 1 and 2....

btw everyone thats posted so far, beautiful tanks!

really liking Pamelas nano tanks those are great, look much larger than what they are! well done!


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## 2wheelsx2

trout said:


> Ive been wanting to post up my setups, just dont have any recent fts pics, just some that are a few weeks-months old.....but they're nicer anyways :bigsmile:.


Just post up the older photos and replace with newer ones when you have them. Since this thread is on-going, all photos will eventually be "old" photos.


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## trout

posted mine with old pics and minus a photo of the 55g....will get one tonight

jobber, whats your take on posting version one and two of the same tank?


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## Reckon

Hey Trout what foreground plant is that in your 13g? Looks like HC but it's not listed?

Edit: nm, misread the post. Love the carpet


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## jobber

Thanks for the contributions from the planted tank crew on this forum. A lot of very nice scaped tanks and certainly, upkeep. 

Sent from my mobile phone


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## Reckon

How about tank name? Seems that especially the planted tanks out there all have names to their 'art piece.'

I'm naming my old 22gal: "Knowledge Inside"


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## Reckon

Blurry that is ridiculous growth and color from just using excel. I'm very very envious! I'm thinking Wallichi must prefer low no3 or something because it's not liking my heavily dosed tank. I do know it likes excel, everytime I dose they perk up.


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## blurry

I'm just doing what works best for me and it seems to work well


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## jobber

Those are some impressive planted tanks! Hopefully more posts in the near future by others. Love to see other people's scapes and collections.


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## Sploosh

Added my old 5 gallon tank (recently sold to a site member).
Working on photos for the others...


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## trout

Reckon said:


> Hey Trout what foreground plant is that in your 13g? Looks like HC but it's not listed?
> 
> Edit: nm, misread the post. Love the carpet


yep HC, thanks i really kinda miss it, and dont at the same time if that makes sense lol

************

finally added a pic of my 55g. updated the 75p with a current pic, what a difference......

lets see some more tanks posted! this is an amazing thread


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## jobber

blurry, you got some serious plant growth going on in that tank. More planted tanks....
I see people really enjoying their garden inside the house. 

Trout, those are some very nice jungle val growth in your last picture. Do much trimmings on them?


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## trout

not as much as i should....usually when theres hardly any light reaching the bottom. pretty much a no tech tank and the vals just thrive, started all that with a single plant.


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## Reckon

It's a crime that no one has posted since March. Share your planted tanks! I've sold plants to some of you enthusiasts, I know you are out there  BUMP!


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## discuspaul

Nice to see this thread revived a bit.

Here's a 'mickey mouse' link to a small tank I tried out, using pressurized C02, with many thanks to Nicole for her superb specimens of Anubias - which grew forever and are still doing it - forgive me if you folks have seen the tank before:

Anubias Photos by discuspaul | Photobucket

One of my favorite planted tanks is a discus grow-out tank that I started a few years ago with (Forrest) Red Snake Skin juvies that I got from April. I eventually sold a bunch & rehomed some of them to my daughter's tank - a couple of which are now about 8" -
Sorry, no FTS:

3RedSnakeSkins Photos by discuspaul | Photobucket


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## Nicole

Did you always have that small tank running Paul? I remember it being a much larger tank with lots of discus in it?
Glad to see you're keeping the anubias well.


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## discuspaul

Yes, Nicole - I started that small tank about 2 or more years ago - then I got some Anubias from you - and they're still going strong today. I've split them up many times - sold a few, and gave quite a few away. I still have 5 plants in that tank, with each one having 6 -8 or more leaves - best results I've ever had with Anubias - the C02 sure keeps them producing well.
And yes, I'm still a discus buff - I still have a 75 gal discus tank on the go too.


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## Reckon

Keep up the posts my friends! It's very motivating to see your set ups!


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## jobber

Thanks for the bump reckon.

Sent from my LT30a using Tapatalk


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## jobber

Nice tank and pics deepred.

Sent from my LT30a using Tapatalk


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## Reckon

Bump! Got my next show-and-tell up, first for the month of March contest!!

Ps. Jobbler update your S.A. tank pic  I'm looking forward to seeing your most current setup.


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## nigerian prince

i entered as well, and im glad its a random winner haha


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## FishFreaks

they look great. post some close ups......rick and mello are both mentors to me in excellent discus keeping...GO CAF


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## UnderseaGal

nigerian prince said:


> i entered as well, and im glad its a random winner haha


I was thinking the same thing!


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## Fish rookie

That is why I entered my ugly bare discus tank , hahaha.


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## nigerian prince

Fish rookie said:


> That is why I entered my ugly bare discus tank , hahaha.


and you've got like a 40% chance of winning if all stays as is


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## rwong2k10

very nice tanks, nice to see everyone's setups in one thread, crimper and bigfry's setups are very clean


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## jobber

one more day bump for the March contest....


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## Reckon

Randylahey, wicked plant list!


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## randylahey

Thank you reckon! I wonder where I got like 95% from I can't bring myself to let go of anything, I've got collectoritis so bad. Thank baby jesus that I have a fairly large footprint. It's pretty much a pokemon theme, " gotta catch 'em all!"

Sent from Petguide.com Free App


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## Reckon

randylahey said:


> Thank you reckon! I wonder where I got like 95% from I can't bring myself to let go of anything, I've got collectoritis so bad. Thank baby jesus that I have a fairly large footprint. It's pretty much a pokemon theme, " gotta catch 'em all!"
> 
> Sent from Petguide.com Free App


I've still got a bit of collectoritis but I've tried adding hardscape so I'm forced to give up some plants. Looks like you are going for a true dutch layout. I have no doubt you will be able to handle several species


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## Reckon

Hey Bobsidd,
that's a nice slope on the right side of your class tank. Do you do anything special to keep it up? Mine seems to erode downwards over time. I haven't tried to add any blocks to keep it up though.


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## Bobsidd

Reckon said:


> Hey Bobsidd,
> that's a nice slope on the right side of your class tank. Do you do anything special to keep it up? Mine seems to erode downwards over time. I haven't tried to add any blocks to keep it up though.


Hey Lawson,

It's all back filled in behind a pretty knotty, branchy piece of wood. That, plus plant roots, is holding it in place. There is not a lot of flow down that end of the tank either (the slope on the left hand side, by the filter, is no where near as severe), which also helps with keeping it in place.

Cheers,
Rob


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## Rockman

Well, that's all of mine (snuck in under the wire). I like this contest; lots of good tanks coming out of the woodwork. I'll have to steal some of your ideas.


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