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I'm setting up a very low tech, 20G planted tank (for anyone that read my 23.7G log - this is the tank that was relegated to the garage).

This is a non C02, low light tank.

My 43.5G tank was the donor to this tank in many ways, donating matrix & filter pads, as well as 50% of the water & the few plants you will see (clippings of wisteria).

The substrate is JBL Flora Basis Plus topped off with black gravel.

Here is the 1st picture - a full shot of the tank, taken a few minutes after the water went in. It's still a little cloudy, but not too bad.

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Cheers
TW

following are a few close up shots of various parts of the tank. They're more for me (just rocks & wisteria - nothing much to see). Just skip forward to the final pic, cause I have a few questions.

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Cheers
TW

another

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Cheers
TW

Good start.

I really like the rocks you used. Hoepfully the westeria won't consume them so you can see them anymore. Are you going to leave the front open like that or try and plant something to cover?


Rick
See all my pictures at Google Web Albums

last one.

You will have noted the bareness of the front of the tank, as I had nothing on hand to plant there. I was thinking of some crypts, small rocks and/or driftwood with java moss tied on, and anubias that don't grow too big. I thought I'd also get some longer wisteria to fill out the back of the tank.

Any suggestions would be welcomed.

Keeping in mind no C02, what should the fert schedule be for the tank? I thought I should include Flourish excel too, so as to at least get some carbon in there.

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Cheers
TW

Hey Rick

You were quick, I hadn't finished with my pics yet.

I really like the rocks you used. Hopefully the wisteria won't consume them so you can see them anymore.

Thanks for the compliment. These were rocks I bought when setting up my 43.5G, but never used them. Mainly the wisteria will stay behind the rocks. I have one or 2 tiny sprigs in front of the rocks, but they won't stay. Only there to add some green until I can get to LFS to buy more suitable plants for the front.

Are you going to leave the front open like that or try and plant something to cover?

Nope, I want to plant something. Looking for suggestions for easy but small plants for the front. I'd like them to be small, cause I want to be able to the rocks.

Thanks for the reply.

Cheers
TW

Robyn,

I think you will have to tell your husband that he needs to create an account here at FP to qualify for support on HIS tank

Just kidding, but it would be kind of funny to see you two going back and forth on a particular layout here online.

Tank looks good so far, but you know you need more plants soon.

For the foreground, have you thought about ech. tenellus? Should not grow too tall and still would allow to view the rocks.

Ingo

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Proud Member of the New Jersey Aquatic Gardeners Club

I think you will have to tell your husband that he needs to create an account here at FP to qualify for support on HIS tank

Nope, won't happen, the tanks are my role. Technically his tank, but lay-out wise, I can pretty much do what I want with it. He gets to pick the fish. (Off topic: His other new tank we're picking up on Saturday is a worry, he wants marine)

Thanks for the compliment Ingo. Yep, I know more plants are needed. Last night I just used what I had at hand. Would have stolen more wisteria from the 43.G, but I want to see if it helps the free swimming fry to make it, so didn't take as much as I originally planned. I looked up ech. tenellus http://plantgeek.net/plantguide_search.php?search=tenellus&type=Search Is this what you mean? Says medium or high light. Tank only has 2 x 11W (so only just over 1wpg). Would Narrow leaf chain sword be the better choice, as it is medium. I didn't realise till just now how low the lights are. I'll have to investigate any upgrade options. Will anything grow?

BTW, what ferts do you think. I added traces & excel last night in accordance with bottle. What about my powder ferts?

Cheers
TW

Just my opinion, but if you bunch all the wisteria near the back center behind the rocks and add vallisneria to both corners, it might actually look really nice and very simple too.

Thanks inkodinkomalinko for the suggestion. I like vals too especially the contortionist variety. But I've had them before & I found that platys love them too. They make short work of destroying a good bunch in under a week. As platys will be the main fish in this tank, it may not work.

But thanks for the suggestion - visually, I would have liked it too.



Cheers
TW

Robyn,

When referring to Narrow leaf chain sword one has to be careful. I found references to 3 different Ech. under this common name, tenellus, quadricostatus, and bolivianus. Now, I don't have any other than tenellus myself, but it appears as if the others require at least the same amount of light and grow taller (quadricostatus - the one that seems to be mentioned most when using the common name - grows to 6 inches).

Another idea for a foreground under lower light could be to affix moss on small flat rocks and place them on the substrate. The problem here is that you have to be careful that the moss doesn't spread out over the substrate as it would potentially cover all of your substrate - but that would take quite some time.

Ingo

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Proud Member of the New Jersey Aquatic Gardeners Club

Another small plant option is dwarf sag. I've had good luck with it in low-light tanks

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There is water at the bottom of the ocean

BTW, what ferts do you think I need for these low light plants. I been adding traces & excel in accordance with bottle. What about my powder ferts? Do I need them?

Cheers
TW

Oh yes Robyn, you do

Think about it. Why would smaller and/or slower growing plants not need their basic nutrition? Basically, all plants have the same needs (let's not consider that red plants need more iron, all plants need iron and so forth), no matter what.

A low light/low tech tank simply needs less frequency of dosing, maybe twice a week, maybe even only once.

Ingo

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Proud Member of the New Jersey Aquatic Gardeners Club

I haven't updated this log for a while, so thought it was time for a picture. I've continued to use this tank for my QT & the just visible glimpse of red at bottom/middle front of tank is my new male Apisto. Fairly happy with how things are progressing in this tank.



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Cheers
TW

I couldn't agree more with your assesment of the tank. It looks very nice and I am sure the Apistos will be fine. Just one thing, and I am not even certain about that. I think your tank is what, 24" long? This would mean that the male apisto could claim all of this as his territory and he might give the female a hard time when he is not "in the mood". Keep your eyes open on her, if she is hiding all the time then this is what may be going on. I would assume this behaviour could kick in after they have settled, so within about 4 days. If she hides only briefly then there is nothing to worry about.

About the tank in itself. Seems like a wonderful QT to me

Ingo

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Proud Member of the New Jersey Aquatic Gardeners Club

It's a 20G high bow front, it's around 20 inches long at the back. Thanks for the tip on the male & femal apisto. So far, only 24hrs, but no-one is hiding. She is out and about and so is he. They are most often not too far apart, either you spot him & she is not far behind, or visa versa. Sometimes, they are separate, but so far the norm is that they are never too far apart for too long.

As they settle in, I'll watch for changes. Hope it works out though, as the plan is for them to move into the community & it's a bow front, with 33 inch width at the back. I like them very much & notice little new things about them, like the male has his lips outlined in light blue. Makes him look cranky, but cute too. So far, I'm referring to them as my married couple.

Cheers
TW

So far, I'm referring to them as my married couple.

Why, are they arguing all the time?

You could be lucky and they already decided to be a couple, that would be soooo nice . I agree, in particular in the first two weeks I noticed all the nuances of mine, like little red here and there, blue dots, solid black lines on the female's fins, and what not. Certainly a fish that is worth its money.

Ingo

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Proud Member of the New Jersey Aquatic Gardeners Club

Very excited. I think I have been lucky with my Apistos (my married couple). They've been in QT for around 2 weeks & I was doing a water change today. So, I pick up a piece of driftwood I have in there so I could gravel vac & underneath, stuck there, are a bunch of eggs. I think they must be the apistos', as they have been hanging around there a bit & have been chasing others away. I don't think it would be the rainbow's, as they would be a bit too big to have squeezed under the small gap in the driftwood.

Not sure what to do to look after these, but decided to remove the rainbows & put them into the community a littler earlier than I planned, so that there would be less potential egg or fry eaters in that tank. I've left 2 endlers & 2 red platys in with them, as I don't want to mix the red platys with my gold twin bars, nor do I want to mix my endlers with my guppys.

I hope the endlers & platys do not eat the Apistos fry.

What to give these little fry to eat, when they hatch? For my livebearers, I had some liquid fry food, then followed by finely crushed flakes. I guess the same, although the liquid food messes up the water a bit.

I hope these eggs hatch & that I didn't harm them when I lifted the driftwood. I wonder how long they've been there and how long I have to wait.

Cheers
TW

I hope the endlers & platys do not eat the Apistos fry.

If they get to them then they sure will eat them, sorry to tell you. Almost all fish would eat all other fish (and eggs) as long as they fit in their mouths.

Like you, I am also most certain that the eggs are from the Apistos as rainbows are egg scatteres and don't lay them in batches.

Hatching should be somewhere between 5 to 8 days after the eggs were laid, a few days later the fry would be free swimming and that is when they would need food (before that they eat their egg sack). Best food for fry is freshly hatched baby brime shrimp, if available. You would have to purchase them now and set up a colony in a container to have them hatch maybe just in time (never did that, so I don't know more about it.

I read that fry also would grow well on smushed up egg, but I don't know the details, like raw or boiled, white and/or yellow, and what not. The problem here is that it fouls the water rather quickly.

Feeding should be done with a pipette (forgot if that is the real word, I mean the small thing shaped like a turkey baster) releasing the food in the area where the fry is located to achieve maximum food exposure with the least mess in the tank.

Setting up a fry tank is another option. Getting them out of the main tank is also best done with a baster.

Overall, raising the fry is a tough challenge and will take much longer than platy fry (or the like).

Ingo

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Proud Member of the New Jersey Aquatic Gardeners Club