Killer's New 55G Planted

[MCHRKiller]

Ill start with the specs for you :)

Lighting: 3*32watt T8 Flourescent...2*5500K ZooMed Tropic Sun, 1*8000K All-Glass....on ~12hrs per day. Once I get off my lazy bum and order a timer I will have them on from 11pm-4pm and off from 4-6pm and on from 6pm-1am

Filtration: Rena XP3 canister, Penguin 330 minus biowheels

Substrate: 3.5 bags Flourite...3" deep substrate on each end with a gradual decline of substrate to the middle being 1.5"

Ferts: M,W,F 1 cap of Flourish Excel; Flourish Comprehensive 1/2 cap on W; and Flourish Potassium 1 cap on W. I also dose with Flourish root tabs under the crypts.

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Here she is on the 1st day of being planted
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Right end
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Middle
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Left end

[MCHRKiller]

2 more pics on the first day
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my favorite female betta

[angelcakes]

thats an awesome peice of wood in there!!!
tank is also looking good:19:
2 more pics i'll edit,nice female betta

[MCHRKiller]

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I got this monster C.wendtii bronze in yesterday. I split it up and put most of it on my right end some others along the back right and then took the baby plants and put into my 15G.


*Edit* Thanks Angelcakes :) Thats probably my favorite piece of wood out of all of my tanks.

[angelcakes]

nice looking plant,thanks for putting the name in,killer are these fast growers?

[MCHRKiller]

What a diffrence a week makes, eh? With the addition of the previously mentioned C.wendtii...I got in some nice Rotala and Ludwiga today...combine that with some good growth from the other plants and shes looking a bit less bald :)
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Right
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Middle
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Left

[MCHRKiller]

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Female bettas love java moss
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around 20-25 new leaves from a crypt in a week...im impressed
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I just like this picture :P

[MCHRKiller]

nice looking plant,thanks for putting the name in,killer are these fast growers?
Not really, this tank is a low-tech...low light setup. Mostly done with Crypts, java moss, java ferns, a couple of baby melon swords and baby tropica swords. My recent additions of Rotala and Ludwiga however should grow pretty quickly...I added them mostly for some height and to choke out any future potential algae. My green crypts however are proving me wrong...I can only hope they continue :)

This is all Im going to add to it till the first of the year, then I have plans to order a show size mother Anubias barteri from aquariumplants.com and put it in the center. Surrounding it by some more rocks and some Anubias nana or maybe some Anubias nana "petite".Hopefully by then my stems will have gotten some good growth and they can all be positioned along the main back of the tank.

[angelcakes]

all is awesome, i like the way you have decorated the tank:19:

[KingFisher]

MC, it looks awesome! Very natural looking. I hope you keep this thread updated so I can see how it progresses as the plants grow.:ssmile:

[MCHRKiller]

Thanks :) I plan to keep this thread updated weekly. If I had thought about it i would have taken some pics of the plants I got in today. Sadly that pic of the monster crypt was from the seller, I cant take credit for it. Its nice to see how things started with these planted tanks...I look at it now and look at pics from a week ago and think wow it was pretty bare :P Im gonna probably work on stocking my fish up for right now.

I have right now just 6 female bettas, 5 tiger barbs, and a few random tetras left from shoals of years past, and my infamous feeder goldfish that wont grow. I think Im going to move my 6" un-identified pleco from the 150G...hes been pestering Gator real bad lately and hes one h*ll of a good algae eater :)

[mac]

Hi,
Your tank looks great.

I love your log.

mac

[Sharon]

The tank looks GREAT! thumbs2: It gives me hope, as I'm just srarting to try live plants...

[LORENZO]

:19: Crypts and that colour substrate with the the driftwood very edenic looking. What a job!!!!!! So bettas like the java moss i do not have any of that and that might make a good addition to the community tank i have. Do you feed those crypts extra iron?

[MCHRKiller]

Thanks everyone :)

Sharon: If I can keep live plants anybody can :P Just pick really easy plants to start with go low light/low tech and have good equipment and you should be fine.

Lorenzo: Thank you I am going for kind of an enchanted garden sort of deal. Mostly because my piece of wood reminds me of some kind lord of the rings/lost time tree. The bettas all like to dig threw the moss and lie in it...every betta Ive ever had *loves* java moss...guess it makes a soft bed. Besides the iron in the substrate and whats in the Flourish tabs and liquid they dont get any other source of Iron. Flourite is great because it contains Iron in itself so deficiencies are rare using it. I do dose extra Potassium as Ive had deficiency problems in the past.

[MCHRKiller]

Bit early this week, but Im gonna be busy the next few days and probably wouldnt have had time for the update then.
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Full tank shot :)
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Left side-the C.lutea is sprouting out more and more leaves and really filling in nicely, the C.wendtii behind it is gaining some new leaves probably added on a couple since the last update.
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Left/Middle-the Rotala has really taken off! tons of growth
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Middle-filling in nicely, the back C.wendtii bronze are from that huge mother plant they have stopped melting and seem to be holding their own I see a few new leaves starting to peep threw.

[MCHRKiller]

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Right side-Mother wendtii is starting to recover no more melting and I did a trim of the lodest leaves, I see a new leaf or two coming. The move seems to have hurt her more than her daughter plants. The java fern is starting to improve it was pretty ratty when I got it in a few weeks ago. I pulled it completely out of the substrate and the flourite it attached to is holding it down otherwide its hovering righ above the bottom seems to be working well for it.
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I just kinda liked this shot
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Its a jungle in there :)
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New growth.

[MCHRKiller]

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Pleco
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Catfight in the sorority house.

[Taurus]

Catfight in the sorority house.

Meoooow!

Beautiful fish, plants, wood...beautiful tank and labor of love !!
Hats off to you Jenn. :22:

[MCHRKiller]

Thank you :) Planted tanks are still relatively uncharted waters for me, Ive always kept fish that would maul any live plant they saw or was to enwrapped in bare setups used for breeding to care about decor.

[MCHRKiller]

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Not a huge change...but some noticeable growth to the left end. D*mn that C.lutea is growing into a great plant, wish I had 20 more just like it :lol: My Rotala(behind log on left end) is averaging about an inch a week growth...ive also noticed its getting alot busier and is turning into a lovely pinkish brown color with some copper hues. Now I kow it wont turn full on red in my lighitng but this is a pleasant change.
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Crypts....C.lutea is in front
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Middle shots with some of the tiger barbs and tetras

[MCHRKiller]

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Plecos favorite hiding place
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Love the bettas "WTF" expression
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2 blue girls
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the money shot for this week

[MCHRKiller]

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My 2 new fish!!! I got an exceptionally nice group of dwarf gourami in yesterday so I packed these 2 guys home for my tank...this pic was taken about 10minutes after being released
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If I were a female dwarf G...Id be highly attracted to him

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Video...click pic:
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*warning* I I was listening to the pumpkins while making this video...you may want to turn your volume donw a tad

[wolf_eyes]

nice choice in music:ezpi_wink1:

The tank is coming along rather nicely. Plants look happy and healthy and so do the fish. It's good that you got some good gouramis; everyone seems to be have trouble finding stock that stays alive. It's kind of sad really.

[OscarFan]

Thats an awesome tank. And those gouramis are some of the best ive ever seen. And does that TigerBarb have a lateral bar along with its vertical??

[MCHRKiller]

Yeah...I know my LFS has gotten some pretty weak looking gourami expecially dwarves...but this shipment they were all robust, active and feeding well. They ate as soon as i released them as well, kinda like theyd been there their whole lives. Yes he does have a lateral stripe that connects 2 of his horizontal ones...he also has more black and thicker stripes than most tigerbarbs to :)

[Lady Hobbs]

Wow. Love all of it. The plants, the wood, the substrate. Nice job there.

[MCHRKiller]

Thanks Lady Hobbs :)

[Hailey]

Wow! you have the tank I want! lol
And all I can think about is that piece of wood! Where did you get it? Did you buy it, or find it? And if you bought it, how much did it go for?

Great tank!!!thumbs2:

[Ellen4God]

Great job! The Gouramis are gorgeous.

[mac]

Hi Killer.

Your tank looks great. Just wondering do your Crypts seem to die of and get very soft umm squishy stems and leaves appear after a few weeks, then new leaves grow out?

mac

[MCHRKiller]

Thanks everyone :) The Dwarf Gs have settled in very nicely...theyre turning into real pigs actually. I did buy the driftwood from a seller called RockArtSource on ebay, I *think* I paid around $75 for the piece with shipping. They have alot of great wood/rock on there. Ill probably get off my lazy bum and order some of those smooth river stones for another tank eventually.

So far after my initial melt after being put into the tank I havent lose any leaves. I know in my previous 40G...if the crypts lost a leaf it would kind of turn squishy and then another new leaf or a couple would sprout up.

[mac]

So the meting of the leaves is no real problem?

mac

[MCHRKiller]

Its something crypts do in a response to change IMO...some will have more problems with melting than others. My giant mother C.wendtii lost about 1/4 of her leaves before it was finally over due to being shipped. My other crypts lost maybe 3-4 tops....just depends :)

[MCHRKiller]

3 weeks later!:)

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Over the last few weeks Ive been pruning my crypts back to get them to get more full and bushy than tall...and I think its working quite well. My Rotala has been growing about an inch a week...and the crypts finally have got a good foot hold in the tank now.
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Monster C.lutea and some green and bronze wendtiis in the rear...I did another prune on the wendtiis this evening thus why they are kinda low took all the old leaves off :)
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The rotala which was affected by some diatom algae now beginning to really win the battle against the algae.
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Mother plant got a big trim today as well...she has really thickened up as well

[MCHRKiller]

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lol...my barbs and tetras all shoal together, poor things dont know any better. I added 3 rosey barbs as I noticed a bit of brush algae on some of my rocks 3 days in its all gone
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Some of the girls....

[Deleted User]

Those are fantastic pics of some great set ups. Nice video too. Great job,. :19:

[tim k]

Tank looks great and the tree reminds me of the movie Sleepy Hollow.
Maybe that's what you could name the tank LOL.
Great job.

Oh and you should never turn the Pumkins downthumbs2:

Tim K

[MCHRKiller]

THanks :) I may take your advise and name the tank Sleepy Hollow...that is kinda nifty. lol

[Northernguy]

Very nice job!thumbs2: Love it!:22:

[sandy_n]

Looking really good...:thumb:

[MCHRKiller]

Just did a HUGE overhaul on the tank today. I put in an additional bag of flourite, took everything out of the tank and put in the metric ton of Manzanita that Ive had soaking. I think its a good improvement...just needs the multitude of crypts to grow in some more. Pics coming either today or tomorrow :)

[Wiggs]

Cant wait to see the pics MC :)

[MCHRKiller]

Moved a HOT mag on the tank for a couple hours and its crystal clear so I decided to go ahead and take pics :)


Here is what the tank looked like before:
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And heres what it looks like after 6hrs workthumbs2:
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[MCHRKiller]

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[MCHRKiller]

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Bruce the pleco seems to enjoy the remodel
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New fish! I decided to bring home a kisser that got packed into the store in a 1G tank...Ive named him "The Pink Nightmare" :hmm3grin2orange:

[Cameron]

wow thats pretty crazy, cant wait to see it start to grow out!thumbs2:

[bushwhacker]

killer send me the piece of wood on the right side of the before pic.... lol it matches the one in my tank

[MCHRKiller]

That piece was sold several weeks ago :) It was to big for the tank to sit right...it really needed a wider tank to work out.

Thanks for the comments tho :)

[bushwhacker]

arrrgggg i bet it woulda set in my 75 lol just my luck.... if it wasnt for bad luck i wouldnt have any at all

[MCHRKiller]

I had originally bought it for my 100G, it was just a bit to small for it....but yeah it would have worked out fine in a 75. lol, you and I are in bout the same boat far as luck goes thats for sure

[wolf_eyes]

I really like the sticks and small pieces of wood over the big pieces. It adds a lot of neat lines and design to the tank. Kudos

[Taurus]

Jenn, your project is coming along beautifully! You've got some serious skills there!! :22: I'm a big fan. thumbs2:

[MCHRKiller]

Thanks :)

The manzanita on the left side of the tank I think needs something done to it but Im not going to bother with it until the plants grow out some more in a few weeks.

[Northernguy]

Killer tanks Jenn!:19: I love all the driftwood! Those smaller peices really give them an obstacle course to play in!Nice idea!
Your plants look great too!:22:

[robflanker]

Stunning looking tank MCHR. Really impressive. I like the tree branch with the many different limbs hanging out. It adds some interest to all levels of the tank.

Kudos!

[MCHRKiller]

Thanks for the comments :) I really do enjoy my tank alot more like this than the before. Hopefully its on the right path this time around :22:

[Northernguy]

Thanks for the comments :) I really do enjoy my tank alot more like this than the before. Hopefully its on the right path this time around :22:
:hmm3grin2orange: Only till you get sick of it again and say its time for a change! Then you rip it and start over!lolthumbs2: Change is always good.It gives the fish places to re-explore!
I am never happy with my tanks,for very long!:22:

[fishbum]

Nice looking tank.I like the re-do.It has more of an Asian feel to it with the new drift wood.

[MCHRKiller]

lol! You know Ive never had that desire with my 15G high...the only reason its getting ripped out in a couple of weeks is to remove some filament algae, thin out the vals and add some extra substrate. Itll look just like it did before really :)

Thanks Fishbum, that was my intention as well as it is an asian inspired tank it should atleast have the vibe of one :22:

[aitkenkingfish]

very nice I love live planted tanks:19:

[MCHRKiller]

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Thought Id add a pic before my ton of java fern gets in. Not a whole big lot has changed other than Ive added some young Apon. crispus and my mass of crypts are filling it...they are responding well to the addition of nitrogen :)

[Taurus]

I like the piles of manazita branches in each back corner. They provide a nice frame work for the plants. I'll do the same in my 29 with manazita branches in just one corner and fix java fern and moss to the frame. I'll leave the right side open so the Angel has an open area to swim about. The branches, fern, and moss will serve as cover for the pristella tetras.

It's coming along beautifully Jenn. thumbs2:

[MCHRKiller]

Thanks Taurus! Im sure your angel would love having that area of dense cover and then the area of open swimming space :) I like to look at my pic from a few weeks ago and this one its the only way i can tell that Javafern has grown it grows at the pace of a snail. But that lonely strand of hornwort floating around in there has grown 3x its size lol, I just leave it as it just kind of showed up in there one day. Ive never owned hornwort either.

[Taurus]

Hornwart? Oh..you mean the nitrate sponge. Yeah, I noticed it there. Has it shed any needles?

[MCHRKiller]

lol yep :P Nope and I abuse that poor strand its up in the current flying around. It gets wrapped up on the python. It just keeps growing anyway.

[MCHRKiller]

I rigged myself up a "dusk" setting on my tank until I find the perfect lighting upgrade with moon lamps. But this is 2*12" wallyworld grow lamps which come on right before the main lighting goes off for about an hour and a half before night time. The fish usually get fed during this dusk time and they seem to enjoy the change :)

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First time using the "sport" setting on my camera...not the greatest ever...but those are 4 of my little killer barbs.

I have added a large bunch of Sunset Hygro on the right side which I thinkcompletes that end...and I added a super nice bunch of Ludwigia repens to the left end so when it and those apons grow it will be nice and lush down there. I think this will be it until things grow and fill in...I suspect that when I upgrade to a HOT5 fixture growth will pick up some as well. But I did add 6 Harlequin Rasboras...I may up their number to 9-10, and with my current load of fish the tank is more than stocked as well :) Now we just wait and see how the next few months progress!

[Northernguy]

That tank is filling in beautifully!
Great job!thumbs2:

[rich311k]

Looks great. It is becoming a really nice setup.

[Owlbehere]

May I ask how you rigged up the "Dusk" Lights, They look AMAZING!

[MCHRKiller]

lol...its really ghetto. I bought 2 of those little 12" under cabinet/grow light fixtures which come to about standard tank lighting for a 55G tank...and since they are really small I covered them in aluminum foil to make a "reflector" and spray pained the outside black to sort of blend in better behind my normal lighting(AllGlass triple tube T8 strip) I just have some solid 9.5" pieces of glass on this tank so I can use the full top of it right now for lighting so it works...also really cheap only $6 for glass tops cut and edges smoothed at lowes compared to the $40 versa tops. But anyway I have my main light on a timer...and I put these 2 new little lights on a separate timer to come on about 20mins before the main light goes off then it stays on around an hour and a half by itself. About a $20 investment...I will use on my 100G SA/CA tank when I upgrade this tanks lighting to a more clean open top setup later this summer :)

Thanks for the comments everyone...feedback is greatly appreciated :22:

[MCHRKiller]

Just thought it was time for an update of the 55G :)

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[rich311k]

Looking good. nice tank.

[MCHRKiller]

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[MCHRKiller]

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5ft long and over a ft wide strand of hornwort balled up

[MCHRKiller]

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Last 2 are views from my desk :)

[wolf_eyes]

Love the needle java fern, it looks really nice in that tank. How are you liking the hornwort? I found it to be a little too untamable for my own tastes but it looks nice in your tank.

[CenturionElite]

Love the way you have the driftwood in there. When I get a bigger tank I might ask you for advice ;)

[MCHRKiller]

Well considering I never purchased any and apparently a few needles came in on the moss or something and it grew to that mass I like it pretty well. :14: Really tho I do like it as its a great spastic weed to control excess nutrients and fight back algae. The fish also seem to really enjoy it so I leave it and trim it when it gets to large to wad up into that spot.

Thanks for the comments everyone :22: Manzanita is a great wood I highly advocate it to anyone looking to scape a tank

[mac]

Great tank mate,

Looks very nice. It is maturing very well.

mac

[Z Fish Man]

Wow amazing progress it looks really matured now. I can't wait now until I get the ferts going in my tank. First thing I'm getting when get back on Sunday.

[MCHRKiller]

Thanks guys :22: The tank has came a very long way since December thats for sure! Its slowly growing into the tank I always wanted it to be :) I expect in another 6 weeks itll look even better when that short rotala grows up and fills in that left end. I also have a 9" Cryptocoryne pontederiifolia coming in the mail for that left end of the tank as well as it needs some green down there to break up the monotony of redish tones.

[Taurus]

It looks great Jenn. Takashi Amano had nothing on you, except his fame. thumbs2:

[MCHRKiller]

lol! Many would beg to differ on that statement, but thanks :afro:

I will admit that this tank has impressed me at how well it has been doing lately.

[brianyu]

thumbs2: mice tanks
can u tell us all kind of plant you have there

[MCHRKiller]

Certainly :)

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1- Rotala rotundifolia
2- Ludwigia repens
3- Hornwort
4- Suset Hygro
5- Needle Leaf Java Fern
6- Regular Java Fern
7- C.wendtii "copper"
8- Dwarf Sag
9- C.wendtii x lucens
10-C.wendtii "gecko"
11-Java Moss
12-C.wendtii "tropica"
13-C.wendtii "red"
14-A.crispus(not grown tall enough to see yet)
15-C.wendtii "copper"
16-Red tiger lotus
17-Dwarf Sag
18-C.wendtii "tropica"

and there is a rock covered in java moss and a few stems of Ludwigia repens not in the photo on the right side

[brianyu]

thumbs2: wao thanks

[Wild Turkey]

Very cool tank MH, looks great! Very thick

Saw this thread before but didnt comment for some reason, sorry!

[Kadina]

Wow, that is beautiful. I really like the fact that it is a lowtech tank, yet it is stunning!

[MCHRKiller]

I think thats a common misconception alot of people have about low-tech planted tanks, they assume nothing will grow and if it does it wont grow well.

Thanks everyone for the kind words :22:

[rich311k]

Very nice tank! Looks great.

[MCHRKiller]

Some updates on this as well!

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[MCHRKiller]

I was reading back through this thread, seeing the changes of this tank so far and came across the tank when I did the big overhaul to the current hardscape. Consequently it was exactly 6months ago on 4-11-09, heres a photo for comparison
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[Anomaly]

Looks great!! Your plants have filled in quite nicely!

[ISquishWorms]

Wow great looking tank I hope my tank one day looks as good as yours. My plants seem to be quite pale at the moment almost yellow in places. :-/ Also my ferns have like brown rusty patches on which then turn into holes.

[MCHRKiller]

Sounds like nutrient deficiencies. I had some issues with that myself, I was dosing just Flourish Comprehensive...wasnt providing enough Nitrogen or Potassium to my plants so I had to start giving them a weekly dose of that as well. After that they picked right up :22:

[MCHRKiller]

I put my overheard light to use and took some pics of the 55 :)

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full tank
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[MCHRKiller]

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Otos
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Tigerbarb
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[Lab_Rat]

Looks great Jenn!

[Goodbye]

Awesome tank and fish! thumbs2:

[cfgsteak]

Very impressive!

[MCHRKiller]

Thanks guys :22:

Im thinking about upgrading my lighting to some HOT5s, preferably fishneedits because of the cost. Id like the 4*54W so I could run 2 bulbs 6hrs a day and then have a 2hr burst in the middle of the day with all 4 going...it also has LEDs. But Im starting to think theyre not gonna come back in stock :14:

[Taurus]

Jenn, I was just reviewing this thread because I remember how much I loved the look of this tank. It was a great project. The tiger barbs are really sharp looking. Sorry you had to loose it in the storm, but this journal makes a great reference for me.

[MCHRKiller]

Thanks Taurus, it was a great learning experience with the tank. I like to look at it as it got moved on to bigger and better things. A good portion of plants survived, and 3 of the Rosey barbs made it. I never was quite content with the scape it always lacked consistant flow I think. :11: