# Vicenza 260 Limited Edition



## crazy72

Yay! A new tank!

As some of you know, it all started here: http://www.bcaquaria.com/forum/equipment-talk-section-14/fluval-vicenza-260-limited-edition-22189/

The tank isn't up and running yet, but soon. And I thought I'd start a journal now to document the early days.

First step, done this week: painted the back (black). That's what I've done with all my tanks in recent years, and it's still what I like best. So I'm sticking with it. Finished today.

Before, w/o and w/ stand light:



















After, w/o and w/ stand light:



















More to come. Thanks for looking.


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## jobber

Beautiful new tank. Looking forward, patiently, to the flooding, stocking, planting, ....


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## Luke78

Looking good Franck, gonna second what Ming said earlier.But taking your time to gather all the pieces you need and brainstorm a few layout ideas is alright too.Adding up the costs on paper helped me as well,and made my decision to stay on budget a huge plus.So easy to go spending all your money and then have empty pockets after which isnt a good feeling either.Keep updating looking forward to this!


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## crazy72

Thanks guys. Yes, there's the money aspect for sure, but also I actually like to take my time thinking about possible options, for both fauna/flora and scape. To me it's definitely part of the fun. And in this particular case, I really needed the time because I've been flip-flopping quite a bit recently between a couple of options. In fact I'm sure that I'll flip-flop again.


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## zhasan

Wao, the beginning of another amazing tank! Looking forward to see how it goes!!


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## crazy72

Thanks Zee.

And by the way, I realise now that I should clarify something I wrote in my previous post above: no, Shelley, neither option that I've been contemplating for this tank involves wild discus!


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## big_bubba_B

nice looking tak lol thought at first was 260g lol had to llok it up wild discus will sure look nice in there


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## crazy72

big_bubba_B said:


> nice looking tak lol thought at first was 260g lol had to llok it up wild discus will sure look nice in there


Ha ha yeah this is confusing isn't it. It's 260 Liters. About 68G.


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## crazy72

Went to pick up some slate from Northwest landscaping last Saturday. A big thank you to Gary for meeting me there and checking that it was tank safe.

And made a trip to J&L tonight...


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## 2wheelsx2

I know this is old news because of the roll back, but I missed it somehow. I gotta get me some of those Hamilton strips. Dang, I didn't know you were looking for a 425, I might have one or two lying around.


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## crazy72

2wheelsx2 said:


> I know this is old news because of the roll back, but I missed it somehow. I gotta get me some of those Hamilton strips. Dang, I didn't know you were looking for a 425, I might have one or two lying around.


Well, keep them lying around please . I might want to use 2 if I can't get the flow to do what I want with the one.

Yes I absolutely love the Hamilton strips. I have them on my 48G and there was no way I was going to use something different on this one. The only problem with them: they ain't cheap.


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## 2wheelsx2

I want a night moonlight setup for my plecos to give them a transition....just need a small one. Yeah, they aren't cheap, but they are inconspicuous, which I really like.


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## crazy72

Yes. I went with 2 x whites for the new tank because I'll use the stand light as a transition at night, but I have a blue strip (as well as 2 whites) on the 48G and I love it as a moonlight.


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## Arcteryx

I'd like to see a pic of these Hamilton strips in action... have any to post?


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## jobber

New toys....I can feel the excitement building.


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## crazy72

Arcteryx said:


> I'd like to see a pic of these Hamilton strips in action... have any to post?


Have a look in my Vicenza 180 journal (link in my signature). I think there are a couple of pics in there.

You're also welcome to come and see them in person here. Or go to J&L and ask them to turn them on for you. That's what I did before I bought them the first time.


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## crazy72

jobber604 said:


> New toys....I can feel the excitement building.


Yup. New toys, excitement growing, and wallet shrinking. The usual cycle.


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## 2wheelsx2

Test scape pics?  I wanna see the rocks you picked.


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## jobber

Me too! Stack 'em and shoot 'em 
But it is 11pm now...


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## crazy72

Ha ha patience, patience. 

They are stacked actually. Soaking with some wood in my bathtub. You don't want to see that.


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## 2wheelsx2

You using them to weigh down the wood? Or your own little swimming mini-scape? BTW, I enjoy looking for rocks with people, so hit me up any time. Rock geek that I am...and now that I have a home office, I'm more available than usual.


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## crazy72

2wheelsx2 said:


> You using them to weigh down the wood? Or your own little swimming mini-scape? BTW, I enjoy looking for rocks with people, so hit me up any time. Rock geek that I am...and now that I have a home office, I'm more available than usual.


I'm using them to scrub my feet when I take a bath.


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## 2wheelsx2

crazy72 said:


> I'm using them to scrub my feet when I take a bath.


That's pumice, Franck. Getting your rocks mixed up.


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## Luke78

So true, 'all good things to those whom wait' ! Dont worry gentleman/women theres gonna be a few teaser pics coming up shortly! Hope the wife or kids dont mind skipping a day , shower or bath wise



crazy72 said:


> Ha ha patience, patience.
> 
> They are stacked actually. Soaking with some wood in my bathtub. You don't want to see that.


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## crazy72

Luke78 said:


> So true, 'all good things to those whom wait' ! Dont worry gentleman/women theres gonna be a few teaser pics coming up shortly! Hope the wife or kids dont mind skipping a day , shower or bath wise


Luckily we have 2 full bathrooms. Otherwise I'd be looking for a place to stay I'm afraid. With a free bathtub, if possible.


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## Luke78

:lol: too funny, i remember leaving all the wood and rocks/stones soaking in my bathtub as well when i setup my 100G a few months back.Forgot who came over, but they were thrown off by all this stuff in there and asked me what was going on, and when was the last time i actually showered? Anyways, you soaking those stumps as well? have they oozed that funny white stuff yet? i remember thinking it was all done with and a week later in the aqaurium all my catfish were going crazy eating this stuff up



crazy72 said:


> Luckily we have 2 full bathrooms. Otherwise I'd be looking for a place to stay I'm afraid. With a free bathtub, if possible.


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## crazy72

Luke78 said:


> :lol: too funny, i remember leaving all the wood and rocks/stones soaking in my bathtub as well when i setup my 100G a few months back.Forgot who came over, but they were thrown off by all this stuff in there and asked me what was going on, and when was the last time i actually showered? Anyways, you soaking those stumps as well? have they oozed that funny white stuff yet? i remember thinking it was all done with and a week later in the aqaurium all my catfish were going crazy eating this stuff up


Yup. We are a pretty sad bunch indeed. 

Yes, the stump has started to produce some white stuff. I'll give it a good scrub before I put it in, but I expect that won't be the end of it. And I won't have a pleco to take care of it. We'll see what happens.


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## Diztrbd1

Niceeeee set up Franck! Dunno how I missed this , but really looking forward to seeing it running!


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## crazy72

Thanks John. Yep, I have to say that now that it's getting closer, I'm getting a little excited myself. I know I have to resist the urge to speed up the last steps though. I want to make the most of the planning stages. Not that often that you get to set up a new tank!


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## crazy72

Arcteryx asked for pics of the Hamilton strips, so here are a couple. With and without flash since I'm not sure which one shows it best. There are 2 strips. I removed the T5HO bulbs and the reflectors that came with the tank.


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## crazy72

Did the electrical prep. There's no shelf in the canister filter compartment, so I hung everything off hooks and screws into the panels. Pics below. I know it'll make many of you shrug, but for me this is right up there in the top 10 of my DYI feats. The only step up from this that I can see is to build my own house. :lol:



















In fact I did (a lot) more with the tank today. Pics to come in due time.


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## 2wheelsx2

Very nice. That's how all DIY's all start. In fact, it may be time for you to upgrade to a Digital Aquatics Lite controller.


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## crazy72

2wheelsx2 said:


> Very nice. That's how all DIY's all start. In fact, it may be time for you to upgrade to a Digital Aquatics Lite controller.


He he yes I actually thought of this. There's 3 timers in there. It begs for something more compact. I'll look into these controllers, but not too soon because I want to amortise my DYI effort first.


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## jobber

Will the attaching hoses fit your eheim?
I forecast a tropical monsoon will soon be flooding the floor of the Vinceza rainforest in the inside of course....with the help of a python


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## crazy72

jobber604 said:


> Will the attaching hoses fit your eheim?


I hope so. They come with metal clips that you can adjust so it should be no problem.

Famous last words.


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## 2wheelsx2

I think you'd want to remove the ribbed hose and attach the Eheim hose directly to the clamps underneath the tank. Or you can get a ball valve similar to this half inch one, but in 5/8": Two Little Fishies Ball Valve (1/2 Inch)

As discussed at lunch, then you can attach/detach whatever you want.


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## crazy72

2wheelsx2 said:


> I think you'd want to remove the ribbed hose and attach the Eheim hose directly to the clamps underneath the tank. Or you can get a ball valve similar to this half inch one, but in 5/8": Two Little Fishies Ball Valve (1/2 Inch)
> 
> As discussed at lunch, then you can attach/detach whatever you want.


Yes you're right about the ribbed hose. I'll do that. In fact you're probably right about the valve too. I might have to make another trip to J&L. It's way out there for me though. But this would probably be a good thing to have. I'll try. Thanks for the tip.


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## tony1928

The ball valve is a great idea. I valved everything I have going to soft hose. You just never know when you need to do some maintenance. Just be aware that sometimes the ball valves are very hard to turn. So depending on your application, sometimes applying torque to a certain area or part on the tank is not a good idea, then maybe go with a gate valve which from my experience is very easy to open and close. 

Looking forward to more pics Franck!


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## Luke78

There's three timers you got there,i am assuming one controls the lights,the other two are for? During our conversation the other day you mentioned an eheim is replacing the fluval , are you transferring over from the other setup?


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## 2wheelsx2

crazy72 said:


> Yes you're right about the ribbed hose. I'll do that. In fact you're probably right about the valve too. I might have to make another trip to J&L. It's way out there for me though. But this would probably be a good thing to have. I'll try. Thanks for the tip.


Unfortunately, I ran into this problem. Fish stores normally only have 1/2" or 1" ball valves typical of PVC and hose. Oops, I spoke too soon, J&L has the 5/8" Two Little Fishies Ball Valve (5/8 Inch)

If you really need it, I might be going out to J&L and I can get you a couple. I need some new test kits as mine are all expired. Let me know.


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## crazy72

tony1928 said:


> The ball valve is a great idea. I valved everything I have going to soft hose. You just never know when you need to do some maintenance. Just be aware that sometimes the ball valves are very hard to turn. So depending on your application, sometimes applying torque to a certain area or part on the tank is not a good idea, then maybe go with a gate valve which from my experience is very easy to open and close.
> 
> Looking forward to more pics Franck!


Thanks for the tip, Tony. I'll certainly keep an eye on that.



Luke78 said:


> There's three timers you got there,i am assuming one controls the lights,the other two are for? During our conversation the other day you mentioned an eheim is replacing the fluval , are you transferring over from the other setup?


One timer for the LED lights, one for the stand light (likely only a couple of evening hours, if that) and one for a powerhead and an air pump (likely a couple of hours too, but likely not in the evening because I can't stand the noise). Convoluted, yes. 



2wheelsx2 said:


> Unfortunately, I ran into this problem. Fish stores normally only have 1/2" or 1" ball valves typical of PVC and hose. Oops, I spoke too soon, J&L has the 5/8" Two Little Fishies Ball Valve (5/8 Inch)
> 
> If you really need it, I might be going out to J&L and I can get you a couple. I need some new test kits as mine are all expired. Let me know.


Thanks Gary. As discussed. I'll zoom by J&L tomorrow night to pick them up as well as a couple of other things. Yes, I had seen the 5/8" too. Last thing I need before I can flood it!


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## 2wheelsx2

crazy72 said:


> One timer for the LED lights, one for the stand light (likely only a couple of evening hours, if that) and one for a powerhead and an air pump (likely a couple of hours too, but likely not in the evening because I can't stand the noise). Convoluted, yes.


Get rid of the air pump and run a full time HK550 set 2 inches below the surface aimed at an up angle. I don't run air pumps in any of my tanks, including the cube which is at 29 C and don't have any problems. I hate the noise of air pumps and venturi powerheads. On your way to J&L you should pop by and I'll show you how it works on my cube. In my 46 bow, I have an HK 1050 down low for the plecos and the spraybar from the 2075 aimed at 20 degrees or so above horizontal to boil the surface. That tank is at 28 and once again, no problems.


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## crazy72

2wheelsx2 said:


> Get rid of the air pump and run a full time HK550 set 2 inches below the surface aimed at an up angle. I don't run air pumps in any of my tanks, including the cube which is at 29 C and don't have any problems. I hate the noise of air pumps and venturi powerheads. On your way to J&L you should pop by and I'll show you how it works on my cube. In my 46 bow, I have an HK 1050 down low for the plecos and the spraybar from the 2075 aimed at 20 degrees or so above horizontal to boil the surface. That tank is at 28 and once again, no problems.


I thought of that actually. The question comes down to whether I'd like the look of air bubbles going up or not. Hum...

Are you mentioning the temp because the surface agitation will also cool the tank down?


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## 2wheelsx2

crazy72 said:


> I thought of that actually. The question comes down to whether I'd like the look of air bubbles going up or not. Hum...
> 
> Are you mentioning the temp because the surface agitation will also cool the tank down?


That you have to choose. I hate the sound and look of bubbles. I want clear water.

The temp I mention because at the temps I keep for the plecos and the discus, the dissolved O2 would be lower than in my other tanks which I keep at 26 (or the ADA cube which is room temp - 18). So if I don't have a problem with the O2 content at 29, you shouldn't have a problem at 27 or 26.


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## jobber

I'm with Gary on this one. Since I sleep with my tank in the same room, I had to get rid of the air pump. I like the setup quiet as well as looking at fish and not bubbles.
Had a discussion with Gary the first few times when I visited his big cube and I never looked back with providing enough surface agitation and getting rid of the air pump. Provides for a quieter environment without the humming and buzzing noise from the air pump and the bubbling noise. Plus it gives the tank a more natural look and and sound. The hydor koralia is so under-rated for it's purpose and application in the fresh water application.


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## crazy72

I'm with you guys on the air pump noise. That's why I had it on a separate timer. It doesn't need to be on all the time if it's for oxygenation only.

I think it comes down to a personal choice between bubbles and surface agitation (which also creates a nice lighting effect especially with the LEDs). Something to think about. Between now and tonight. :bigsmile:


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## tony1928

The underwater moonlight with bubbles does look good depending on the setup. I'm not a big fan of bubbles either. Especially with the noise from a venturi powerhead or an airpump. The Hydor Ario devices don't use an external airpump to make the bubbles so perhaps that will help with the noise issue. My other pet peeve of the air bubbles is that where they break the surface, they usually cause the lid to be constantly wet. 

With all those timers, I think I agree that you will benefit from a DA controller.


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## crazy72

I wasn't thinking underwater LEDs. I was saying that surface agitation with a powerhead also creates a nice lighting effect. But yes, I see what you're saying about bubbles breaking at the surface. Hum...

As to the DA controller, you guys are going to cause my financial demise! I think I need to sell my T5HO bulbs really soon and leave the money on the kitchen counter. :bigsmile:


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## 2wheelsx2

I don't know how much your timers cost, but with 2 of my digital ones (that hold settings after a power outage), I'm half way to a DA controller already, and it doesn't have a heat controller, which I am finding more and more a "must have". The nice part of a powerhead is that it's very low wattage and can be run 24/7 (as small as a 425 should be plenty in your tank) and will aid in not only bring in O2, but also maximize the utilization of atmospheric CO2 in low tech, lightly planted tanks. I'm using this technique more and more in my pleco tanks.


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## crazy72

I think I'll hold off on the DA controller for now. First to keep peace in my family, and second to amortise this DYI work of art that I did. :bigsmile:

For oxygenation, the other alternative for me is to raise the internal pipe all the way to the water surface. But given the relatively low flow of the 2075 I have the feeling that I might need a powerhead to create more water movement anyway. So the pipe half way up and a HK below the surface as you suggest might be the way to go. Supposing I decide that I agree with you guys w.r.t. the look of bubbles, of course.


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## 2wheelsx2

Try before you buy Franck. Don't get an HK. I got one for you. If you don't like it, give it back and get that air pump. Don't ask me how many heaters, powerheads, lights and other stuff I got sitting in a fish closet that my wife gave me to keep my junk out of the way.


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## jobber

These guys are such bad influences. I'm just shaking head.



Sent from my Samsung Mobile using Tapatalk


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## 2wheelsx2

jobber604 said:


> These guys are such bad influences. I'm just shaking head.


Yeah, didn't someone say they didn't need CO2? Don't worry, you'll have a controller soon too.


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## crazy72

Ha ha that's too funny. True though. So Gary, listen: I DO NOT NEED CO2 MYSELF. Ok? That's final. 

Thanks for the HK offer. I think I'll take you up on it. I'll PM you when I know when I can come over.


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## tony1928

Hahaha, we're just trying to relay our past experiences to Franck so he doesn't end up, like me, with a box full of spare parts that cost alot of $. I guess that goes for most fishkeepers. We all have that closet full of gear that we're not quite sure what to do with. LOL.



jobber604 said:


> These guys are such bad influences. I'm just shaking head.
> 
> Sent from my Samsung Mobile using Tapatalk


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## jobber

Haha. Just bugging you guys with more seniority. Goes back to the phrase go big or go home. Waited a year but ended up succumbing and score a pressurized co2 system. 

This project of Franck's is exciting. The looks of the tank is amazing.

With respect to the digital controllers, do you have them turn on circulation pumps once the lights are out?

Sent from my Samsung Mobile using Tapatalk


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## 2wheelsx2

I leave my pumps on 24/7, but you can certainly turn them on (most people actually turn them off/slow them down) to let the fish rest, as they need less O2 when they are resting anyway.


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## theinnkeeper

I have a feeling this ones going to turn out nicer than the old one you had in the living room.


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## crazy72

theinnkeeper said:


> I have a feeling this ones going to turn out nicer than the old one you had in the living room.


So you weren't impressed with the old one, eh? :bigsmile:

But yes, I definitely agree. This one is something else for sure. And being pretty much done with the scape, I'm getting even more excited. I think it's going to look pretty cool.


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## Luke78

Gary/Franck,

Not to steal your thunder here, if you have any extra HK's kicking around iam interested as well.I am gonna add a second one to create some extra flow.All my cats now hang out right where the other HK is positioned now and they love it,especially the plecos! The tetras enjoy this too and catch them playing in and outta the flow.Had it positioned too high before, and now it way lower.



2wheelsx2 said:


> Try before you buy Franck. Don't get an HK. I got one for you. If you don't like it, give it back and get that air pump. Don't ask me how many heaters, powerheads, lights and other stuff I got sitting in a fish closet that my wife gave me to keep my junk out of the way.


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## Luke78

Ming,

Just think about what's gonna happen when you get your larger setup up and running! We are all gonna come by and christen it with gifts! You just wait



jobber604 said:


> These guys are such bad influences. I'm just shaking head.
> 
> Sent from my Samsung Mobile using Tapatalk


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## crazy72

One more teaser pic. 

I tried to go to J&L last night to pick up a couple of valves, but got stuck in a monster traffic jam so I turned around. I decided to connect the filter with the ribbed hose for now, and I'll add the valves later on (the tank doesn't need to be emptied for that). So here we are with the 2075 inside. And my old XP3 on the other tank. The 2075 was a little noisy in the 48G stand, but in this one it's extremely silent. Which is great because it's in our living room and I'm a bit of a noise freak. The XP3, on the other hand, is on the noisy side in the 48G stand. I had forgotten how much of a higher pitch hum it has. I'll probably be on the lookout for a good deal on a new Pro 3...

Anyway, here's what it's like inside the 260 stand. No leaks so far...


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## 2wheelsx2

Very nice. DA controller, Hydor inline heater, and your setup will be a work of art.


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## crazy72

I couldn't resist one last teaser pic. Last one. Promise.


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## 2wheelsx2

Very nice....skunks?


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## crazy72

2wheelsx2 said:


> Very nice....skunks?


Yup. Skunks indeed. Very cute.


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## Luke78

Looks like things are coming together,equipment wise and stock.So all of your fluval connections are compatible and properly connected to your eheim? Liking the foam padding beneath the eheim.Skunks good pickup, not to throw you off or deter you from keeping them but watch your water perimeters with these guys.Any drastic changes can take their tolls on them.Been reading up on them,and most sources say they are very sensitive to high nitrite and nitrate levels.Super clean water is a must,but i doubt you will have any issues you got things under control


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## crazy72

The hosing diameter is close enough. I used screwhose clamps and it seems to work. I've been checking for leaks regularly. So far so good...

I usually keep a low bioload in my tanks and this one will be no exception. So hopefully the skunks will be ok. Time will tell.


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## crazy72

All right folks, the tank is up! I'm only half-satisfied with the scape so it might change a bit, but that's what it is for now and I'll take some time to consider before I change it. Thanks again to April for the stump. It looks really great in there.

The stocking is a bit on the low side for now, with an grand total of 9 skunk cories, but that's ok too. I'll go slowly and add the fish that I really want, rather than those that are available now. I'm in no rush.

On with the pics! Trying to show pics with and without the stand light since it changes the aspect quite a bit. Comments and suggestions welcome.





































The stump has started leaching the white stuff. I might get a BNP to take care of it, or I might just brush it off. Haven't decided.










And finally a pic of the skunks. They are a bit shy still, so no good pics. I'll shamelessly share a crappy one. :bigsmile:


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## Momobobo

Love the stump, want to get one just like it  Those skunk cories looks amazing!


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## tony1928

The stand light works for me Franck. Looks classy. I like how it lights up a bit of the bottom of the stump.


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## 2wheelsx2

You may want to consider moving the stump slightly to the right, then you can you it to obscure the heaters and the intakes a bit and also make the setting a bit less symmetrical, and more natural.


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## crazy72

Thanks guys.

Gary, I see what you're saying, but there are also advantages to having the stump in the middle. It's really big in there, so the bowfront shape accommodates it better if it's in the middle. Also the stand light is in the middle, and it really looks cool when it shines on the stump as Tony pointed out. Still, something to consider, I agree. I might give it a quick try after I get a couple of days without putting both arms in the tank.


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## 2wheelsx2

I think it's one of those things that you have to play around with for a bit. Move it and look at it for a few days. I like the rocks/slate on the left. Well place, but I might have gone higher with it. Another thing you can try with the intake is to grow some long stem plants or Vals in front of it and it'll take care of it.


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## crazy72

Yes I agree. Move things around and look at it for a few days. That's the only way for me.

Funny you mention this about the slate. I bought 60 pounds of slate! I was thinking I'd go way higher, but seeing the stump so big in the middle made me want to keep it as the sole centre of attention and keep the slate more discrete. But then again, I'll probably get used to the size of the stump, and be ready to add slate later on. Up to 60 pounds of it!


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## Morainy

That tank is stunning, Franck! It is a work of art. What a great playroom for the cories, too.


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## Luke78

Franck,

Forgot to add to my previous post, your gonna need a pleco or two in there as well to compliment the rest of the cats, and this beautiful setup


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## crazy72

Morainy said:


> That tank is stunning, Franck! It is a work of art. What a great playroom for the cories, too.


Thanks Maureen. I agree, but I have no credit to take in that. It's a work of art by the Fluval industrial design people. And yes, the cories do seem to like it. They are out and about a lot more now. Lots of space. Nearly 10 Gallons per fish. 



Luke78 said:


> Franck,
> 
> Forgot to add to my previous post, your gonna need a pleco or two in there as well to compliment the rest of the cats, and this beautiful setup


Luke, yes I'm considering doing that, mostly to take care of the white stuff that's being leached by the stump. Someone we both know offered me some BNPs. I might take him up on the offer. But I haven't completely decided yet, because I don't think I'd want plecos in there long term, and catching them would be tricky!


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## 2wheelsx2

How about some otos Franck? They're low bioload and will take care of that problem also. Plus they're neat little fish.


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## jobber

and they're also part of the pleco family


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## Fansons

You should top up water to the line, you know what I am saying. Your filter room is a bit small, or should I say your filter is big haha. My 48g version can fit in two canister filter

I have a feeling you will remove the stump out later. I did that long time ago, but it was causing more trouble than good.


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## crazy72

2wheelsx2 said:


> How about some otos Franck? They're low bioload and will take care of that problem also. Plus they're neat little fish.





jobber604 said:


> and they're also part of the pleco family


Ottos? Humm yes that's an idea. I don't know much (read: anything) about these guys. I'll do some research. Thanks for the suggestion.



Fansons said:


> You should top up water to the line, you know what I am saying. Your filter room is a bit small, or should I say your filter is big haha. My 48g version can fit in two canister filter


Fansons, I'm sorry but no, I have no idea what you're talking about.


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## crazy72

Ok here's a second kick at the can. I followed Gary's suggestion to move the stump to the right, and that created enough space on the left that going higher with the slate looked like a good idea again. I'll have to leave it like this for a couple of days, but I think I rather prefer it like this. It's funny that moving the stump to the right, although it doesn't actually hide the heater and tubes, makes them a lot less noticeable. The relatively large size of the stump on that side is what catches the eye. And the stand light still looks good on the stump. Looks like Gary was right. THIS TIME! :bigsmile:

The cories are coming out a lot more. All 9 of them. You can count . I didn't know about skunk cories before. They're reaaaally cute!


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## 2wheelsx2

Now that's rockin'. You're getting there. I think something tall in the back left like wood or maybe a sword plant and this thing would be AWESOME! Loving this. So much so I might have to get some of the big rocks out of my Bowfront and get some slabs like you got there.


----------



## crazy72

2wheelsx2 said:


> I think something tall in the back left like wood or maybe a sword plant and this thing would be AWESOME!


Exactly. Hence the PM this afternoon. 

If you're looking for slate and need help figuring out which type is tank safe, let me know. :bigsmile:


----------



## 2wheelsx2

The people at Northwest Landscaping probably think we're stalkers.....


----------



## crazy72

Actually I talked to the lady there, and she's into fish keeping too! She has a huge pond with large kois and big ugly albino catfish. She showed me pics and everything. She used to import kois apparently. So no worries there, she's our friend!


----------



## crazy72

Interestingly, I often see the cories picking at the wood. I'm wondering if it's possible that they eventually take care of the white slime. Whadyathink?


----------



## 2wheelsx2

Nice...they'll probably get some of it, but you'll still have some left.


----------



## jobber

Loving the rock placement and nice piece of wood. Those skunks look like happy campers enjoying their new home.
The white fuzz will go away soon.


----------



## Morainy

I think the fuzz will disappear on its own and with the cories help. But otos were a wonderful suggestion. They remain tiny (not a lot bigger than pygmy corydoras) and I've found them to be very easy to look after. You don't have to do anything for them as long as there's something in the tank for them to eat; they just sucker onto plants and the glass and look after themselves. They spend very little time on the substrate. They'll probably latch onto that piece of wood and be invisible much of the time, but they aren't really shy. I've found them less shy than plecos, anyway.

I like skunk corydoras. They seem playful. But corydoras are always wonderful in a group with lots of swimming space. Like a bunch of little kids!


----------



## crazy72

Thanks Maureen. Do otos produce as much waste as plecos? (for the same use in the tank I mean, so let's say 5 otos compared to one pleco). I imagine yes, being vegetarian myself. :bigsmile:

Anyone knows where I could see/buy them?


----------



## Morainy

No, I have not noticed that otos have much of a bioload. They are very skinny, they don't have the bulk that a pleco has. They are really going to disappear in your tank. I wouldn't even count the otos in a tank your size. 
Otos can be inexpensive, too, and are widely available. Some varieties are fancier than others (zebra otos) but they are all very cute.


----------



## 2wheelsx2

Charles still has some zebra otos, I think, but they are rarer and more expensive. PetSmart always seems to have them but are about $4 a piece. KE always has them for about that price also. They produce a less waste, maybe more like 7 or 8 otos to one BNP. (And yes, they are plecos, or sucker mouthed catfish, technically speaking).


----------



## Fansons

crazy72 said:


> Ottos? Humm yes that's an idea. I don't know much (read: anything) about these guys. I'll do some research. Thanks for the suggestion.
> 
> Fansons, I'm sorry but no, I have no idea what you're talking about.


I thought your tank has "maximum water line" sticker inside, like mine lol. No?


----------



## crazy72

Fansons said:


> I thought your tank has "maximum water line" sticker inside, like mine lol. No?


Oh I see what you're saying. And I hadn't noticed that the level was so low on these pics. Yes, I've raised it. But thanks for pointing it out.


----------



## Fansons

crazy72 said:


> Interestingly, I often see the cories picking at the wood. I'm wondering if it's possible that they eventually take care of the white slime. Whadyathink?


Those white thing will keep showing up until one day, you will see little running white bugs of the size of fine CO2 bobble. My experience talk lol.


----------



## 2wheelsx2

Fansons said:


> Those white thing will keep showing up until one day, you will see little running white bugs of the size of fine CO2 bobble. My experience talk lol.


If that happened, you got your wood from a bad source. Did you collect it yourself?


----------



## Fansons

2wheelsx2 said:


> If that happened, you got your wood from a bad source. Did you collect it yourself?


Yes, too bad. I didn't have much exp, but now I know how to treat it.


----------



## crazy72

A quick update. The anubias seem to be thriving under the LEDs, and the skunks survived the first week. I added an adorable baby BNP from Ming (including delivery services :bigsmile, and today I picked up a dozen serpaes from IPU. They're still juvies and not fully coloured up, but they look good. I really like serpae, and strangely I had never kept any, so I had made them a priority for this tank.

Tank shot and a pic of one of the serpaes. They're small and move fast, so they're not easy to photograph. As to the baby BNP, he's no bigger than a finger nail and he has a big stump to hide in, so I don't see much of him, so no pic at this point. But I did see him briefly tonight, so he did make it though the first day.


----------



## crazy72

Just a quick update. I paid another visit to April last week to buy a few manzy branches to fill up the space on the top left hand side of the tank. After a few days soaking, here there are in the tank. They do the job very well.

In other news, I moved my cardinals into this tank too, and after a few scary minutes where the serpaes chased them around, everything fell into place and everyone now gets along nicely. The anubias as growing slowly but surely, and the skunk cories are still quite shy but seem healthy. They're nice and active when they come out. And the stump is still leaching some white slime, but definitely less.

The next additions should follow shortly. One more school of tetras, and after that it'll be pretty much fully stocked for now (yes, very light bioload, this is the way I like my tanks).


----------



## Luke78

Looks fantastic Franck, like the skinny branches of manzanita hanging down.Clean, simple, and an eye catcher i bet in your home! Thanks for sharing, keep the updates coming when the new additions settle in!


----------



## Chappy

Very, very pretty, Franck. I think the only thing it may be missing is a couple dozen schooling kribs. I'll bring some to you on Saturday  !!!! Nice job; you should be very happy with this tank.


----------



## Morainy

A gorgeous tank, Franck. Work of art.

I've got cardinals in one of my tanks now, too. They are stunning, aren't they? Like ribbons of electric rainbow.


----------



## crazy72

Thank you for the kind words. One thing that I don't quite like is that the sand doesn't go up to the level of the stand light, so I don't always see the cories very well when they come out to the front glass and I sit on the couch. I might be adding more sand at some point. Or raise the couch :bigsmile:. Adding enough sand would make it a very thick layer though, so I don't know. I guess you can call this a drawback with this tank. But I still love it. 

Shelley, no kribs in there, no. Sorry. If you bring a couple dozen kribs on Saturday, we'll just have to eat them. How about a krib moussaka? :bigsmile:

Maureen, yes, absolutely, cardinals are stunning. To me there's something magical and fascinating about them. Still my favourite fish, after all these years. In fact, after the school or rummys that I'll be adding soon, I'm thinking that increasing the school of cardinals is the last thing that I might do with this tank. Ok, ok, and some marbled hatchets too.


----------



## Morainy

I like your sand, Franck. Can you remind me what kind it is?


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## crazy72

Morainy said:


> I like your sand, Franck. Can you remind me what kind it is?


It's 3M sand. Yes, I really like it. It's not available any more, but I hear there are other types/brands that are very similar. I remember that Elle organised a group buy recently. You could contact her to see if there's any left from the group buy.


----------



## Diztrbd1

Looks great Franck! been a bit since I seen it. The scape looks great!


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## crazy72

Diztrbd1 said:


> Looks great Franck! been a bit since I seen it. The scape looks great!


Thanks John.


----------



## jobber

crazy72 said:


>


Darn nice piece of lumber in the tank. Has the fuzzy white stuff subside yet?
Nice 'scape with the pieces of slate.


----------



## JohnnyAppleSnail

Very Nice scaping,looks great!


----------



## crazy72

Thanks for the kind words. I'm really enjoying this tank. It's the nicest I've ever had for sure, and I tell myself so every time I see it. I don't regret spending the money on it. So much so that I'm eying a few pieces of equipment to add to it... 

Ming, the white slime is still here, but it's definitely going away. Slowly but surely. I do find a lot in the filter every time I clean it. And it's probably not coincidental, but your baby BNP has doubled in size. :bigsmile:


----------



## crazy72

I knew there was a reason that stand was made bigger than the tank. :bigsmile:


----------



## 2wheelsx2

Nice "fishing" spot.


----------



## Luke78

The kitty sure has grown since you last posted, and has taken to your setup i see.Interesting to see how the tetras are schooling in a tight group i wonder why



crazy72 said:


> I knew there was a reason that stand was made bigger than the tank. :bigsmile:


----------



## crazy72

A quick update. The tank is doing great. The stump has pretty much finished leeching the white/brown fuzz and the anubias have grown nicely. I added a school of rummies a few weeks ago, and I love them. They are very active and constantly patrol the tank together. The other inhabitants are also doing well. The serpaes have coloured up and look pretty good. They eat like pigs. I have them for sale at the moment, together with the skunk cories. To make space for other fish, including my lemon tetras that I'll likely move up from my 48G. And I'll likely shut down the 48G and keep only this one tank. That's the plan, anyway.

On with the pics.


----------



## tony1928

Very nice Franck! Love the rummies. I'm still waiting for mine to grow out. The first group of lemons I got with Ming have finally developed into adults. I have a few of them where the lower? (no idea what its called) is actually not yellow but a shade of orange. Looks like your rummies have put on some nice size since we got them.


----------



## crazy72

Thanks Tony. Yes, the rummies have definitely grown. I had never kept rummies before. I really like them.

Shades of orange on your lemons? I've never seen that on mine. Could it be the lighting? Or maybe a slightly different blood line. Must be nice.


----------



## crazy72

Update night for me. Making the most of an evening as a bachelor. 

I sold the serpaes and the skunk cories, partly to make room for my lemons (that was before they decided to lay eggs and I therefore decided to keep the 48G they're in), and partly because I wanted to limit this tank to the fish that I had really wanted for it: sterbais, rummies and cardinals, while keeping a low bioload. I removed so much gunk from under the flat stones when I caught the skunk cories, that I decided to do without the layers of stones. So I am down to one layer on the left, which means nowhere for the gunk to hide. I love it.

So the new fish are 10 sterbais from Pat and 15 small cardinals from Fantasy. My "old" cardinals look like submarines in there compared to the new ones. Everyone is doing well and the tank has reached a certain balance that suits me perfectly at the moment.

On with the pics.


----------



## jobber

Kidding me? A blossoming anubias, beautiful!


----------



## crazy72

jobber604 said:


> Kidding me? A blossoming anubias, beautiful!


Thanks Ming. Yes, I guess it means that these LEDs do the trick for anubias.


----------



## Chappy

The tank looks absolutely beautiful, Franck. Awesome, awesome job 
Shelley


----------



## crazy72

Thank you, Shelley. I have to admit that I really like it. Usually when I look at my tanks there's always something that I feel like changing. But not with this one. It really suits me right now, exactly as it is. Plus you know where it is, in our living room right at the top of the stairs, so it's the first thing you see when you go up the stairs, and it's a natural point of focus when you sit on the coach. I'm really enjoying that. I'm glad I spent the money.


----------



## crazy72

Long time no update! 6 months!

Seeing Ming's journal update made me feel like updating mine too. So here you go. Thanks Ming. 

The tank is now nearly one year old, and doing great. Wonderfully low maintenance. I'm loving that! Everyone is doing well. I don't think I've lost a single fish.

Full tank shots:



















Right-hand side:










Left-hand side (bubbles on the glass because today was w/c day):










The only new fish since the last update: first my 3 lemon tetras, that were born and raised here. Here's one of them anyway. They are now full adult size and brightly coloured:










And finally, brand new addition today. I hope the flow won't be too much for him. He seems all right for now.



















Thanks for looking.


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## 2wheelsx2

Looking good Franck. Those low maintenance lower tech tanks are what keeps us in the hobby sometimes, when life is hectic.


----------



## Foxtail

Looks nice Franck, your lemons parents are in my 120 gallon now and joined by 13 more, I picked up off another member. How did you get that anubia to bloom?

Sent via the Shining.


----------



## jobber

Very nice update. Your anubias bloom is the most amazing thing, especially having it bloom in a low tech tank. 

Definitely been awhile update, but it was such a great summer!

Sent from my Samsung Mobile using Tapatalk


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## Luke78

Looking good Franck, basic and simple is the way to go sometimes.Glad to see everyone is settling in nicely, liking that betta by the way.Hope all is well with you and the family!


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## Alkatraz

Love the green with white sand!


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk HD


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## crazy72

Thank you all for the nice comments.

With respect to the anubia bloom, I really don't do anything. A bit of Flourish every week or so, which is probably as good as nothing at all. But maybe that's the key! Low light (LEDs), low tech, and low knowledge! :bigsmile:


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## crazy72

A short update. I sold my BNP because he/she had a tendency to bully the sterbais at feeding time. My sterbais are pretty shy so I'm hoping they'll become more comfortable without the BNP around. My lighting is LEDs so hopefully I won't have an algae problem even without the BNP. It was fine before with the same lights in my previous Vicenza so there's hope. This one is in a room with more natural lights though, so we'll have to see. And if I need something to eat algae, I'll probably try otos.

I also added a school of black-winged hatchets from Fantasy. It had been a while since I had hatchets. I love these little guys.

Click on the image to play the vid. The UV filter is on because I just added the hatchets. I'll leave it on for a couple of weeks. My (semi) alternative to quarantine.



Thanks for watching.


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## jobber

Glad to see you're back in action and at the store in person. Nice new additions and great video. Fish looks very healthy and not skittish. The plants in your tanks have always grown so lush


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## 77_Bus_Girl

Such a beautiful setup there. I love the hatchets!


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## crazy72

jobber said:


> Glad to see you're back in action and at the store in person. Nice new additions and great video. Fish looks very healthy and not skittish. The plants in your tanks have always grown so lush


Thanks Ming. I see that you're back in action big time yourself! That's great.



77_Bus_Girl said:


> Such a beautiful setup there. I love the hatchets!


Thanks, Bus_Girl. I love your avatar, btw.


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## Foxtail

Your tank looks great. I love hatchets but I don't have lids... by the way, your lemons are still going strong, they are now in my 120 gallon.








Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using Tapatalk 2


----------



## 77_Bus_Girl

crazy72 said:


> Thanks, Bus_Girl. I love your avatar, btw.


Hey thanks! It's an illustration I did from a photo I took. I have it printed on canvas about 5 or more feet wide in my living room.  I did a whole series of Vancouver landmarks in a similar style.


----------



## crazy72

77_Bus_Girl said:


> Hey thanks! It's an illustration I did from a photo I took. I have it printed on canvas about 5 or more feet wide in my living room.  I did a whole series of Vancouver landmarks in a similar style.


Wow the 5' one must be quite something!

This sign is probably my favourite Vancouver landmark. I think it's really cool.


----------



## crazy72

Foxtail said:


> Your tank looks great. I love hatchets but I don't have lids... by the way, your lemons are still going strong, they are now in my 120 gallon.


Hey thanks Foxtail. And thanks for posting this pic, too. It's great to see that these guys are still going strong. I still have their offspring in my tank. All 3 of them. Probably not a big enough school for them to be perfectly happy, but on the other hand they get to live with their siblings!


----------



## crazy72

Updating this journal the other day gave me the nudge to go and read it again from the start. It made me realise how much the anubias have grown in a year. So I thought I'd post a couple of pics taken from the right hand side of the tank, showing how much it has filled in over there. This is to be compared to the pics that I posted when I first set up the tank. Say post #69. It's the same plants, I don't think I added any since that pic. They've just grown so much. Who da thunk it!

I used the flash here so that the ones at the back of the stump would be visible.



















And a full tank shot for good measure. No flash there.


----------



## jobber

crazy72 said:


> ......
> 
> And a full tank shot for good measure. No flash there.


That's quite the growth for anubias, plus having it flower!


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## dabandit1

Gorgeous!!!


----------



## crazy72

jobber said:


> That's quite the growth for anubias, plus having it flower!





dabandit1 said:


> Gorgeous!!!


Thank you both. Yeah, I hope to be sitting here in another year and look at these pics and think wow look at how much they've grown again!


----------



## 2wheelsx2

Very impressive growth indeed for no CO2 and extremely low light. Those Hamiltions can't be more than 5 or 6 watts total.


----------



## crazy72

2wheelsx2 said:


> Very impressive growth indeed for no CO2 and extremely low light. Those Hamiltions can't be more than 5 or 6 watts total.


I don't even know what they are rated at, but something like that, I would think, yes.

In any case, I figure I probably have $150 or more worth of anubias in there. That's more than what my livestock is worth! :bigsmile:


----------



## crazy72

Time for an update, as a few things have changed recently.

I removed the BNP in the hope of making the cories less shy. So far I don't really see an improvement, but that was the plan. I also added a dozen hatchet fish, and a dozen cardinals to increase the school to about 30. I love the visual effect of the larger school.

On with the pics!

Tank shots. You can see the hatchets at the top, but I'm unable to take a decent close-up of these guys.



















The cardinals starting to look more like a cloud:










The shy sterbais:










One of the lemons from my lemon breeding experiment:










The only non-SA inhabitant:










Finally a decent pic of a rummy. I love these guys.










Thanks for looking.


----------



## charles

Perhaps you have to few corys. They do get less shy in a larger group.


----------



## 2wheelsx2

charles said:


> Perhaps you have to few corys. They do get less shy in a larger group.


I agree with this. I don't know if you have room for it, but at a dozen or more, they are much more active in the open.


----------



## crazy72

I have 10. Should be a decent school. I don't know if I want to add more. 

It's not that I don't see them. They are very healthy, plump and active, and they are out all the time, it's just that they zoom back under the stump any time that someone moves around the tank. If I sit there and don't move for a few seconds, then they come out again...


----------



## jobber

Very nice pictures. Indeed been awhile...even the anubias are growing out of control but giving the tank a very nice contrasting colour. That school of cardinals sure does look pretty.

The LEDs sure does do a good job projecting just enough of ambience. Very calm and relaxing looking at your tank pictures.

Your sterbais are too smart. Its true they are a bit more skittish but I can see you have to keep an eye on not stocking anymore. Your sterbai numbers are good, and I'm sure they'll procreate in the near future on their own. Even when I had 30 panda cories, they'd still dart away. Just their natural behaviour. Just forces you to stand still and admire the tank a bit longer to see them come back out in search for food.

Great up date and glad to see this tank flourishing. Another inspiring tank journal.

Sent from my mobile phone


----------



## The Guy

Hey Franck your tank looks awesome as always, sterbias are my favorite cory. When I had mine they spawned, very cool fish indeed and glad to see your back at it again.
Cheers Laurie


----------



## crazy72

jobber said:


> Very nice pictures. Indeed been awhile...even the anubias are growing out of control but giving the tank a very nice contrasting colour. That school of cardinals sure does look pretty.
> 
> The LEDs sure does do a good job projecting just enough of ambience. Very calm and relaxing looking at your tank pictures.
> 
> Your sterbais are too smart. Its true they are a bit more skittish but I can see you have to keep an eye on not stocking anymore. Your sterbai numbers are good, and I'm sure they'll procreate in the near future on their own. Even when I had 30 panda cories, they'd still dart away. Just their natural behaviour. Just forces you to stand still and admire the tank a bit longer to see them come back out in search for food.
> 
> Great up date and glad to see this tank flourishing. Another inspiring tank journal.
> 
> Sent from my mobile phone


Thanks Ming. Yes, it's remarkable how much nicer the cardinal school is now that it's a little bigger. I just love cardinals. One day I might well go with Charles' infamous teaser of 100 cardinals...



The Guy said:


> Hey Franck your tank looks awesome as always, sterbias are my favorite cory. When I had mine they spawned, very cool fish indeed and glad to see your back at it again.
> Cheers Laurie


Thanks Laurie. Yes, I pretty much took a 6 months leave from the forum. It's good to be back. I see that you've gone salty big time. Good for you. Your 90G reef looks amazing.


----------



## crazy72

Two developments to report. First, the stand light is now a moonlight. I first looked into buying a blue bulb, but it turns out that this is a T4 bulb, so not so easy to find in blue. So... I went the good old way and painted the bulb blue! Pic below. It works for me. 










The second thing that's new is... in the pic below. I bought one of these for my shrimp tank, and found it so cool that I splashed out and bought another one for this tank. Not cheap, but I love it! And J&L loves me right now. :bigsmile:










Here's a pic showing the controller on the side, with both the LEDs and the moonlight on.










In other news, everyone in here seems to be doing well. The cardinals that I got from Charles recently have grown nicely and don't look so small anymore compared to the "old" ones. The rummies, cories, hatchets and betta are still going strong. And I suspect the lemons might be breeding. I saw a little dance a few times that looks awfully similar to what their parents did when they bred. I'm keeping an eye on them to see if I can see any eggs being released, but no luck so far...


----------



## 2wheelsx2

Very nice Franck. Yeah, once you get a controller for one tank, you can never go back. Too bad I have 6 tanks now...or I'd have one on each one....although I'm still planning on it.


----------



## shift

Beautiful tank Franck


----------



## tony1928

Night light is a cool look. Good idea! The controller is great. In fact great bang for the buck. 

Sent from my SGH-I317M using Tapatalk 2


----------



## crazy72

Thanks guys. Staring at the tank right now.


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## jobber

Nice technological addition to the tank. Do you have the pH probe with the DA Reef lite?

Staring and not sharing with us haha. Hope your lemons can build up the colony. I suspected my group was doing the tetra dance past week.

Sent from my mobile phone


----------



## crazy72

jobber said:


> Nice technological addition to the tank. Do you have the pH probe with the DA Reef lite?
> 
> Staring and not sharing with us haha. Hope your lemons can build up the colony. I suspected my group was doing the tetra dance past week.
> 
> Sent from my mobile phone


No, I have "only" the level 1 RKL. Temperature probe only. The level 3 version that has the pH probe is more than double the price. Nearly $300. I just can't justify it for my use. Having 2 of these level 1 units is already borderline for my conscience. 

As to the lemons, there is no way that any fry can survive in this tank with all the other tetras...


----------



## 2wheelsx2

Yes, it's difficult to justify the pH probe for FW unless you got some really fancy delicate flat fish. I think the L1 is good for 99.9% of the FW fishkeepers.


----------



## crazy72

A quick update, to report that my anubias have not been doing so well lately. Some brown algae has developed on the leaves, and a few leaves have taken a yellow colour too. The yellowing isn't new, but the algae is, and I don't like it one bit. I'm wondering whether it could be the fact that I removed the BNP a while back, so today I added a bunch of ottos. We'll see if they can help. Otherwise I might start looking into pressurised CO2...


----------



## crazy72

These little otos are amazing. They had most of the algae cleaned-up in a matter of 48 hours. Pic below, to be compared with the second pic in the previous post. Really quite spectacular. Plus they're always out and about. Very active and cute. It's the first time I keep otos, and I have to say that I really like them. Now I just have to feed them some veggies occasionally to make sure they don't starve. So far all 6 have made it.


----------



## jobber

You're not the only one with the recent extra algae bloom. Probably from the extra sunlight hours direct or indirect. Thank goodness for otos


----------



## crazy72

*Vicenza 260 limited edition*

Loooong time no update! This is just to say that I'm still alive and well, and occasionally lurking on the forum. Down to one tank after my less-than-stellar experience with shrimps. But the one tank is still going strong. It's been up for 2 years now. Not many changes to it. The otos that I had just added when I last updated this journal last May, all died off after a few weeks. So I stayed without an algae cleaning crew for a while. And of course BBA started to get out of control on the anubias. So around September I decided to try another set of otos. This time from Charles. 6 of them. And this time, they all made it! They are nice and fat, and my tank is clean again. I did have to cut off the anubia leaves where BBA had grown too much, but now they're keeping everything nice and clean. Good little fellas.

I have lost a few cardinals recently due to what seems to be neon tetra disease. I had to cull a couple of them last week. Hopefully that is behind me now. And everyone else, cories, rummies, lemon tetras, and hatchets, are doing great.

I do have a few additions coming, and I will update when they are in.

Pics below.


----------



## jobber

Nice seeing you Franck! Very beautiful anubias garden vine. Very peaceful and serene scape.


----------



## crazy72

Thanks Ming. Yours is pretty cool too. One of the threads that I still regularly visit.


----------



## crazy72

I find myself spending some time on the forum again, so I thought I might as well update this journal.

It's been almost a year since the last update. Not much has changed, actually. The main thing is that I got a major algae bloom in the spring as a result of overfeeding while I was away for a few weeks. I had to trim down the anubias quite a bit. Then I decided over the summer to finally go with pressurized C02. I only inject a little bit, but it makes a difference for sure.

Full tank shot:



Fish-wise, I lost a few of my biggest cardinals, likely to old age, so I visited Charles and added a few to the school. There are now 25 to 30 of them.



I also lost a couple of rummys and hatchets to a CO2 spike in the fall (my fault - lesson learned). And my old betta passed away as well (old age). Here is the new one, from Fantasy. He's doing great so far.





Otherwise, my lemons are still going strong, and I often toy with the idea of breeding them again. But not enough time/energy at this moment.



Finally, my sterbais are still here, all 10 of them, and they are now breeding. I see them at it regularly in the morning before the lights come on. But the eggs don't have a chance in there. The rummys follow the dance to snap up the eggs as they are scattered. It's fun to watch. It's tempting to start a new tank and breed them, but same thing though, not enough time or energy.



That's all for now. I still love this tank, and I'm glad I splashed out and forked out the additional money when I bought it. Well worth it over the course of all these years.

Thanks for looking!


----------



## 2wheelsx2

Tank looks great Franck. Nice to see the change to CO2 although the tough lessons are always sad to hear as I had my own when I started.


----------



## crazy72

Thanks Gary. Yes, I came home from work one day and they were all either at the surface gasping for oxygen, or already at the bottom apparently lifeless. I was very lucky to be able to save most of them. I only lost 4 or 5. It could have been a lot worse. I'm much more careful with the C02 now. A double-edged sword for sure...


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## jobber

Thanks for the tank update. I can see the anubias growing lushfully. Those lemon tetras are going 5 years now?


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## crazy72

Thanks Ming. Based on this here: http://www.bcaquaria.com/forum/bree...-breeding-experiment-july-28-end-story-28427/, they were born in the spring of 2012. So 2 and a half years. Their life is still ahead of them.


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## 2wheelsx2

Yeah, these lemons seems to be long lived for tetras. While my rummy nose and cardinals have died off, the lemons I got when we met up at Pat's are still going strong in my 125 gallon. I should have got them for my 100 gallon cube as they've outlived pretty much all the tetras I've owned. Maybe it's time to get some for the cube.


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## crazy72

Yeah I remember that night. It was fun. 

My rummys are still from that shipment actually. About half of what I got are still alive. But yes, the lemons are a cool fish. Quite underrated IMHO. They don't school as closely as rummys, but they seem to be more playful, and have a more complex social structure. Although some of this behaviour might have to do with breeding too. Hard to tell sometimes when the eggs are so tiny that you can't see them being released. In any case, yes a nice school of them would sure look good in your cube.


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## Daryl

Very nice. Since adding the CO2 have you increased light or started dosing? I'm tempted to add CO2 to my current set up but I don't want to go full blown hi-tech either... I like what I see with your set-up and would love to hear more about what lies behind the curtain if you will.


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## crazy72

Thank you. And thanks for asking what lies behind the curtain. I'm afraid my answer will be somewhat underwhelming, though. I have a confession to make.  

There isn't much behind the curtain. I haven't done anything different since adding the CO2. Same lighting (LED), no dosing, no GH/KH testing. In fact I really don't know what I'm doing with plants. I like low maintenance, so I don't want to go into dosing. I inject little CO2 (about a bubble per second), and I can see it makes a difference, and that's enough to make me content. There's still algae, just less of it and the growth of the anubias is now fast enough that I can trim down the leaves with too much algae on them without hampering the overall growth. When I see some of the setups from the plant gurus on here, there's no doubt in my mind that what I have here is wayyyy suboptimal with respect to plants. But that's ok with me. I'm not very ambitious on that front. My primary objective is for my fish to be healthy, and for the tank to look good to me. Green anubias and I'm a happy camper. 

I'm still happy I invested in the CO2 setup, though. It does make a big difference. Even with emptiness behind the curtain. :bigsmile:


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## 2wheelsx2

The CO2 is making a difference in that it is adding carbon. Your fish are adding the nitrates and probably some of the foods are adding phosphates. Water changes are adding trace elements. This is something a lot of people don't understand. CO2 makes it possible to grow more plants with the same or less light as long as the plants are not high light demanding. And Anubias, Crypts and Java Fern (I know you only have Anubias) and most low light plants are really only deficient in carbon in the average tank. People usually try to solve problems by adding more light when it's really actually throwing things further out of whack. In my 20 gallon I am using about 8 watts of Beamswork LEDs to grow Subwassterang, Anubias and Crypts. All I do is add a little GH buffer and Glute. Lately I noticed a bit of green spot algae and started adding a bit of phosphate but that's pretty much it. Minimal algae, steady but slow growing plants, low nitrates and happy breeding fish. 

I suspect you have found that magic formula too Franck.


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## crazy72

Exactly. The argument that carbon deficiency is the main issue for plants in the average tank is something that I read in many places (including in Gary's posts :bigsmile, and that's what convinced me to go with CO2. Gary also brings the point that it depends on the plants, and I only have low light plants (anubias). I'm sure it would be a different story with more demanding plants. But that won't happen here!


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## Daryl

crazy72 said:


> There isn't much behind the curtain. I haven't done anything different since adding the CO2. Same lighting (LED), no dosing, no GH/KH testing. In fact I really don't know what I'm doing with plants. I like low maintenance, so I don't want to go into dosing. I inject little CO2 (about a bubble per second), and I can see it makes a difference, and that's enough to make me content.


That's actually what I was hoping to hear... I prefer sitting in front of my tank; opposed to being armpit deep in it.


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## crazy72

Daryl said:


> That's actually what I was hoping to hear... I prefer sitting in front of my tank; opposed to being armpit deep in it.


Right. So yes, pressurized CO2 can absolutely work for this, and doesn't require you to go all-in with dosing and higher lighting. It definitely makes a big difference on its own.


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## Daryl

crazy72 said:


> Right. So yes, pressurized CO2 can absolutely work for this, and doesn't require you to go all-in with dosing and higher lighting. It definitely makes a big difference on its own.


So what does your CO2 system entail; obviously you have a tank, regulator, diffuser. What else do you have? I saw on page 16 you showed a photo of a digital controller - is that part of the CO2 system?

I'm planning on getting a CO2 set-up for my tank and I don't really know where to start... I like what you've got going so figured I would pick your brain if you don't mind.

Edit: Back in the day (8 to 10 years ago or so) I had a low tech planted set-up with DIY CO2. The old rule of thumb was 1 to 3 watts per gallon for low to high light set-ups... Of course, light technology has come a long way; how many "watts" are you running with your LED's? (I did read you have LED's didn't I?).


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## crazy72

I have the basic CO2 setup that a lot of folks have: a 5lbs cylinder with this regulator here: Milwaukee CO2 Regulator with Needle Valve & Solenoid. And a cheap diffuser.

You'll find a lot of reviews of the Millwaukee regulator online. Basically it's not a very good regulator but it's decent for the relatively low price (yes, these things can get expensive!). Not very good here means that the flow is not always very stable. You set it to a certain flow, and a few hours later the flow has drifted up or down. Dangerous game for the people who inject a lot of CO2 for high-light plants, close to the danger zone for their fish. And I hear the issue actually gets worse at higher flows. For me it's not that big of a deal because I don't inject much anyway. I don't even use a drop checker. I have made it part of my daily routine to check the bubble count every morning and every evening (I know that a drop checker doesn't measure the exact same thing, but bubble count is safe in my case because it's so low). And at the moment I don't even use the solenoid to turn the CO2 off at night. There seems to be some controversy about this. Basically, at night your plants don't consume CO2 and produce O2, but the opposite. So some people say it's bad to inject CO2 at night. Others say that if you turn it off at night then you might get pH swings between night and day. For me the winning argument was that I noticed that the flow out of the regulator gets thrown off when I put the solenoid on a timer. The bubble count tends to be much higher when it turns back on. And for quite a while. It might not be a real issue if it eventually goes back down, but I didn't like the idea. It just seems safer to me to keep the flow constant. Again, I inject so little that all these things are not much of an issue in my case. It's when you inject a lot that you need to worry about them.

The Digital Aquatics controller is not really related to the CO2. It's just a nice controller that allows you to program things and set alarms on temperature bounds, for instance, and gives easy control of various components for water changes, etc. I really like it actually. One thing with respect to CO2 is that you can buy an extension that gives you a pH probe, and then you can set an alarm based on it. One day, perhaps...

As to LED lights, I use these here: Hamilton White LED Lighting Strip (44 Inch). I stuck them underneath the cover of my tank. I have 2 whites and 1 blue that comes on for a couple of hours in the evening. I don't even know the rating of the whites. I think they used to have it on the J&L website, but no more it seems. These lights are relatively pricey. There are lots of cheaper alternatives now. I bought these about 5 years ago when there were not that many LED strips out there. But they're very good. Completely waterproof, which was important for me because they are right above the water. But again, the LED technology has improved a lot in 5 years and I imagine you can find better/cheaper alternatives now.

Boy that was quite a novel!


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## Daryl

Thank you very much for all of that info. I'll probably have more questions; but I'll take them to another part of the forum so as not to hi-jack your thread!

What I can/should add here is to say that I am truly inspired by your tank, Tom's 60p planted tank, and Bonsai Dave's big tank... Years ago I was completely immersed in the aquaria culture/community (pun intended)... A move to the main land, change in careers, and starting a family kept me so busy that I was pretty much out of the hobby for the last 6 years (but I always had at least 1 tank running). 

Now that my kids are a little older (4.5 & 2.5 yrs), I have a little more time on hands and came to this site looking for inspiration - I didn't have to look far!


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## crazy72

You're most welcome. My pleasure. And thanks for the kind words. You're welcome to keep asking questions, either here or by PM. This is what the forum is for!

I had a similar path: I kept fish as a teenager in a previous life and on a different continent, and then went completely out of the hobby for almost 20 years. Started again when my kids were roughly the same age as yours. I find it's a great hobby to have with your kids. Something you can do and discuss with them. My little one (now 9) is really into it. The only thing is I wish they did more water changes. :bigsmile:


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## Daryl

Alright, I'll ask another question!

Do you use a diffuser or reactor? If so, which?


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## crazy72

Daryl said:


> Alright, I'll ask another question!
> 
> Do you use a diffuser or reactor? If so, which?


I use a plastic diffuser. The cheap kind. And looking at the size of the "micro" bubbles, I don't think it's doing a very good job. In fact, if you or anyone reading this has suggestions about a good diffuser, I'd love to hear them...


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## gklaw

Mmm. You are tempting me to use my last CO2 tank kicking around.

As for diffuser. 

Try the wood air stones used for SW skimmer. I found them even better than the expansive ceramic air stone. That said, seems like everyone are using the injectors (forgot what they are called). I believe Pat sells them. At one point I was going to use that myself. Those should last forever.

I had made probably a couple of thousand pieces of wood airstone for JL and KE. They produce superfine bubbles necessary for skimming to happen. If you are dosing one bubble a second, the chance is that the bubble will be so fine that you won't even see them coming out. In fact, I put mine close to the canister filter intake to mix them with the water through the filter so there is very little lose of the CO2 escape to the air.
The catch: wood does deteriorate when submerged in water. So with time the bubble will becomes bigger. I think they cost $3-$3.50 each at the store. Of course, it cost me nowhere close to that. The little wood cube cost may be $0.25. It all labour making them.
The ones I made for SW skimmers were 4 inches long. The ones sold by Lee/Coral Life are 2 or 3 inches long. When I was dosing CO2, I made some 1" wood stone (might still have some kicking around). They are good for months but I forgot when exactly or if I ever changed it.

If there is interest, I could produce and sell those at probably $1 - $1.50 each. That said, at the price, I will need a quite bit of interest and will not be selling them one at a time. There is a big of set up to produce one - cutting little pieces of wood (1" cubes) drill and tap each piece, sand and clean the saw dust ....  JL buy at least a couple hundreds at a time.


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## 2wheelsx2

Get a bazooka diffuser from Pat. Works like a champ. I haven't cleaned mine in 3 years of use and the microbubbles are fine. The only concern is that these diffusers require proper CO2 tubing and a higher working pressure (like 40 PSI or so) at the regulator.


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## Daryl

Are the plastic & wood diffusers described above located _inside_ the aquarium? I recently made the switch to an in-line heater and I have to say I love having one less piece of equipment inside the tank! I see that J&L and Canadian Aquatics sell inline reactors; I really like the idea of these devices as they kept out of the tank.

Having said that, these diffusers you're both talking about seem pretty small, like maybe the size of an air stone? I presume you could just use zip ties to fasten the tubing that connects to the diffuser to either the filter intake or outlet so that it is tucked out of the way on a piece of equipment that _has_ to be inside the tank. Problem solved...

Here's a question I never imagined I'd find myself asking a stranger on the interwebz: Do you mind posting a few pictures of your equipment? Errr, your _CO2 equipment_, (obviously)!

I want to make DIY in-takes and outlets for my XP3 and seeing how other people set-up their C02 systems could impact my final design choice.


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## crazy72

Thanks for chiming in, Gordon and Gary. Another approach that a lot of people seem to be taking is to go with an inline diffuser. That seems to make sense, to further break the bubbles down, plus it's inconspicuous. But in my case, I used the Fluval ribbed hoses to connect the 2075, and I like these hoses because their flexibility makes them easy to connect (not much space inside the cabinet). But they're not as easy to cut and reconnect as regular hoses. Not to mention that I'm not exactly a handyman...

Daryl, yes you're correct the diffuser is very small and can be attached to something else. The only thing is it needs to be right side up, so that limits your choices a bit. I have mine as Gordon described: tucked in between the intake and output pipes, so that the bubbles get pushed into the tank by the output flow as they move up the water column. 

As to pictures of my equipment, it's pretty straightforward really, especially with the internal piping in the Vicenza. The intake and output tubes are fixed, you can only move the output head up or down and I have mine right at the top to create surface movement. As I said I have the diffuser right in between these two pipes, and the cylinder fits inside the cabinet (barely, because there isn't a huge amount of space and the 2075 is not small). If you'd like to see it in person, PM me and you're welcome to come and have a look.


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## 2wheelsx2

I use the inline atomizer alone with a bazooka diffuser in my 125 gallon. The only problem I would see is if it leaks. The other factor would be you can't see if it's dirty/plugged. I've noticed a slight degradation in performance after a few years (based on plant growth and algae appearance). This is the one I am talking about. Up Aqua Inline CO2 Atomizer 16 22mm Aquarium Atomic Diffuser Reactor | eBay


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## crazy72

2wheelsx2 said:


> I use the inline atomizer alone with a bazooka diffuser in my 125 gallon. The only problem I would see is if it leaks. The other factor would be you can't see if it's dirty/plugged. I've noticed a slight degradation in performance after a few years (based on plant growth and algae appearance). This is the one I am talking about. Up Aqua Inline CO2 Atomizer 16 22mm Aquarium Atomic Diffuser Reactor | eBay


You mean it leaks CO2, right? Not water, I hope!


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## 2wheelsx2

No I actually meant water. It's one of the reasons I haven't cleaned mine. The more inline things you put on the hoses, the more chances one of the connection would leak. All the weight also puts stress on the connectors. I have a UV and the atomizer inline on a 2028 and I'm always paranoid something will leak. 125 gallons of water on the floor is not something I look forward too. I've had a few leaks, both related to the seals or the adapter on the 2028 but was able to catch it earlier, fortunately. When one has 6 tanks and 7 canister filters, the chances of something leaking is always on my mind.


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## Daryl

2wheelsx2 said:


> I use the inline atomizer alone with a bazooka diffuser in my 125 gallon. The only problem I would see is if it leaks. The other factor would be you can't see if it's dirty/plugged. I've noticed a slight degradation in performance after a few years (based on plant growth and algae appearance). This is the one I am talking about. Up Aqua Inline CO2 Atomizer 16 22mm Aquarium Atomic Diffuser Reactor | eBay


That's the inline atomizer I was interested in... The newer model has a replaceable clay diffuser inside it - do you mean you use the bazooka _inside_ this atomizer, or in addition to this atomizer?

And leaks are always a concern when introducing "in-line" equipment. It would have to be a catastrophic failure to empty the entire aquarium - but still, being that I am planning to build a DIY intake/outlet for my canister filter I've contemplated adding a siphon break to minimize the amount of water that would get dumped on the floor in the event of said failure...


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## 2wheelsx2

No, my 125 gallon is 6 feet long. I learned early on that 1 CO2 injection point doesn't get CO2 probably circulated in the tank so I would have localized massive outbreaks of BBA. I have a bazooka diffuser on the left side of the tank under the FX5 outlet and an atomizer inline with the 2028 on the right side. XP3 is running in the middle. My life would have been a lot easier if I had sumped the tank and injected CO2 into sump and had 2 points of return flow into the tank. That's likely in the future, but not any time soon as I have no place to store 50+ catfish (plecos and cories) and 100+ tetras anywhere else.


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## Daryl

Oh - gotcha.

A while ago I had to paint the wall/trim behind my tank (a 75g). What I did was get two big Rubbermaid garbage cans from Rona and line them with black garbage bags. All the fish went into 1 tank with my XP3 and a heater. All my hardscape went into the other. I took my time and had them in the cans for a few days - didn't lose a single fish. I returned the Rubbermaid cans for a refund when I was done... If you want to sump you're tank; it can be done...

To the OP - sorry about the derail!


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## 2wheelsx2

Yeah, it can be done, but not by this man.  I would have to find a space for this stuff (along with my home office which also has a CO2 injected ADA cube on the desk, my kids toy storage and train table, the water aging rubbermaid container) and then move the tank out and drill it and then test fit and do all the plumbing. All the while, the stuff would be in the middle of my basement home office. Not going to happen.  My master plan is actually more devious. That is to upgrade this tank to a bigger one as part of my permanent office wall and then sell the 125. See how things all work out?


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## crazy72

Daryl said:


> To the OP - sorry about the derail!


No worries at all. Keep it coming. This is probably more interesting for most people out there than the pictures of my betta.


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## 2wheelsx2

Actually I meant to ask your about the betta? Any signs of stress from the lower pH/higher flow? I had a crowntail in the 15 gallon when it was planted and that guy was one unhappy camper until I gave him away.


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## crazy72

So far so good. My pH is not that low. I haven't tested it in a while, but it's probably close to neutral. And the flow is not that high either (the Pro 3s don't have a very high flow). One thing is I have powerheads that come on every so often and make a bit of a torrent in there. The rummies and the lemons love to play in it. The betta has figured it out and he goes to an area of the tank where things are calmer. And he weathers the storm there. It's actually fun to see him go there as soon as the powerheads come on now. Smart little things.


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## 2wheelsx2

Yeah, I guess in a bigger tank they have more places they can go to. Might be something to think about as I've always loved betta, but can't stand putting them in little bowls.


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## crazy72

Quick update. Added a school of these little guys. They are starting to colour up nicely. A few of them died within days, but after that all have been well. I have 10 now. The first day, I found the betta with a CPD in his mouth. I'm guessing she was already dead when he picked her up, but in doubt, he had to go. I had a nice 5G Fluval tank that I had never set up, so he's there in jail now. He doesn't seem to mind too much...

Photos are crappy, I know, but these guys are really very small. And I'm a really very bad with a camera.


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## jobber

Those are the most interactive and beautiful little fish I had the pleasure keeping before. They seem to always be chasing each other around. Hope you are able to breed them.


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## crazy72

jobber said:


> Hope you are able to breed them.


Already hatching a plan...


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## crazy72

Full tank shot. Not much has changed in the last couple of months. I moved some branches/anubias around, and the CPDs have grown and coloured up nicely. Things are good.


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## Hammer

That's a nice tank. It has a "just enough" look ,not overdone, which makes it look clean, classy, and very natural. Well done


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## crazy72

Hammer said:


> That's a nice tank. It has a "just enough" look ,not overdone, which makes it look clean, classy, and very natural. Well done


Hey thanks a lot, Hammer. Very kind of you. I realise that it doesn't even come close to many of the tanks here or elsewhere on other forums, but after 3 years I have to say that I still like this tank. I never feel like changing things around. It suits me in a humble kind of way.

A quick update while I'm at it: I added some water lettuce recently. I got some for my shrimp tank and I had too much for it so I dropped some in this tank too. I haven't yet decided whether I like the look of it, but it's clear that the hatchets and CPDs really like it. They are often in it and the hatchets in particular seem less skittish when I get close to the tank. I might keep it if it does well enough in there.


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## crazy72

Time for an update... nearly 4 years after the last one! I have been away from the forum for a while because life got a little too busy. So here am I back!

This tank hasn't changed much. A little more wood, anubias have grown, but overall not many changes. I still like it the way it is. Stock wise, I went into GBRs for a while but without much success. I did have a couple of spawns (that I screwed up, but that's another story), but overall they never really thrived and they slowly died off. I sold the last one and I went with apistos instead. A group of fairly rare F1 Apistogramma sp. Nanay/Melgar that I bought from a breeder in Alberta. They are not the most colourful apisto but they are very mild tempered and seem to thrive in my water parameters. First spawn last week. Free swimming fry out of the cave this week. They probably won't make it with all these tetras around, but we'll see. So far the parents are doing a great job looking after the fry together.

Anyway, thanks for reading/looking .



















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## 2wheelsx2

Looking good, Franck. If you ever want some L260 you know who to call....


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## crazy72

Hi Gary! Great to hear from you. Thanks for the offer, and congrats on breeding them. They are a beautiful fish for sure. I don't have any plecos at the moment and I might well take you up on your offer at some point. I was very tempted by the small ranger plecos that were for sale on here a couple of weeks ago. I very nearly pulled the trigger, and they would have gone into this tank here. But in the end I got cold feet. My 13-year old son has grown into a passionate fish keeper over the last couple of years, and has "encouraged" (should I say "pushed", "forced"?  ) me into more tanks and breeding projects than I am entirely comfortable with. I feel a bit overwhelmed at the moment. Too many tanks to maintain and too many fry to feed! So anyway, no plecos for me at the moment. Until it changes of course. And then for sure your L260 will be near the top of my list!


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## 2wheelsx2

Hahaha, we are in the same boat. I am trying to reduce tanks. I cleaned out my 15 gallon growout and April has all those plecos now. I will be taking down the 20 gal with the big mess of Anubias and then I'll be down to 4 tanks. That's the reason i am offering L260 to people too. I eventually want to shut down that breeding setup down too as my work as been very busy and I am travelling a lot. I got rid of all my discus too.


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## crazy72

I’d be interested in some of your anubias when you take down your 20 gal. Please let me know. 


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## tredford8

crazy72 said:


> Time for an update... nearly 4 years after the last one! I have been away from the forum for a while because life got a little too busy. So here am I back!
> 
> This tank hasn't changed much. A little more wood, anubias have grown, but overall not many changes. I still like it the way it is. Stock wise, I went into GBRs for a while but without much success. I did have a couple of spawns (that I screwed up, but that's another story), but overall they never really thrived and they slowly died off. I sold the last one and I went with apistos instead. A group of fairly rare F1 Apistogramma sp. Nanay/Melgar that I bought from a breeder in Alberta. They are not the most colourful apisto but they are very mild tempered and seem to thrive in my water parameters. First spawn last week. Free swimming fry out of the cave this week. They probably won't make it with all these tetras around, but we'll see. So far the parents are doing a great job looking after the fry together.
> 
> Anyway, thanks for reading/looking .
> 
> Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


It's never too late for an update.  Nice tank, and those Apistos look awesome! I really like the driftwood layout, and those bunches of Anubias really look mature and healthy.


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## crazy72

tredford8 said:


> It's never too late for an update.  Nice tank, and those Apistos look awesome! I really like the driftwood layout, and those bunches of Anubias really look mature and healthy.


Thanks for the kind words! The anubias are indeed mature and healthy, but unfortunately not algae free, and it's gotten a bit worse recently. I think I have only one or two otos left and they probably can't keep up. I bought a bunch of amanos from Pat at Canadian Aquatics last week, and hopefully they'll help. So far they seem to be hiding all the time, but hopefully they do go out and graze on the algae at night. Unless they've become snack for the apistos already. An expensive snack, that would have been.


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## crazy72

Some of the fry are still alive. Mom in bright yellow robe defending them during a BBS feeding. She's doing a great job.










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