Miller's Journal

[nabokovfan87]

Amazing accomplishment. Well done!!!!

[Mmiller2001]

On 11/19/2023 at 5:25 PM, nabokovfan87 said:

Amazing accomplishment. Well done!!!!

Thank you so much! Can’t wait for 2024.

[gjcarew]

Absolutely gorgeous. I'm glad to see all your hard work pay off. 

It's my birthday today, and this is an amazing birthday present. It's been wonderful to be able to follow your journey, and I really appreciate the gesture. 

I can't wait to see what you do next year!

[nabokovfan87]

Happy Birthday @gjcarew!

[Mmiller2001]

On 11/19/2023 at 7:24 PM, gjcarew said:

Absolutely gorgeous. I'm glad to see all your hard work pay off. 

It's my birthday today, and this is an amazing birthday present. It's been wonderful to be able to follow your journey, and I really appreciate the gesture. 

I can't wait to see what you do next year!

Thank you. And happy birthday. Next year I better see you there.

[Odd Duck]

On 11/19/2023 at 10:04 AM, Mmiller2001 said:

Results announced this morning. I took second place.

I dedicated this tank to @gjcarewfor his endless support and assistance.

The Second Hand of Carew

I’m so very proud of you!  Congratulations - well deserved!  Following along has been so fascinating and a true privilege.  Plus your tank is gorgeous, of course!  What a nice dedication and tribute to @gjcarew!  You are an exceptional human to work so hard and be so dedicated to your goal, then have the consideration and take time to dedicate it to your friend and mentor. 

Someone on this forum inspires me in one way or another, every time I start reading.  Today, it was you!  You have inspired me to keep pushing forward, keep learning, and keep working towards the ideal.  Even if you don’t think things are going perfectly, you might be surprised at what you can create or achieve.  This is what I need to tell myself and yes, I know I’ve told you essentially that many times.  😆  We should all be easier on ourselves and more forgiving to ourselves.  We are almost always our own worst critics.    We need to practice kindness to ourselves more often.

Keep up the good work and I can’t wait to see next year’s entry!

[DaveO]

Wow! 

That is absolutely an awesome work of art. It's hard to believe you did all this in just nine months or so. You are truly gifted.

[Mmiller2001]

On 11/20/2023 at 3:16 AM, DaveO said:

Wow! 

That is absolutely an awesome work of art. It's hard to believe you did all this in just nine months or so. You are truly gifted.

Thank you. It was a stressful 9 months . I honestly couldn't have done it without my wife behind the scenes making the work flow easier. She's a trooper for sure.

[JoeQ]

On 11/20/2023 at 9:55 AM, Mmiller2001 said:

Thank you. It was a stressful 9 months . I honestly couldn't have done it without my wife behind the scenes making the work flow easier. She's a trooper for sure.

Who designed it? Maybe I can hire that person out to draw me a color coded & easy to read planted tank schematic!!! 🤣

[Mmiller2001]

On 11/20/2023 at 12:46 AM, Odd Duck said:

I’m so very proud of you!  Congratulations - well deserved!  Following along has been so fascinating and a true privilege.  Plus your tank is gorgeous, of course!  What a nice dedication and tribute to @gjcarew!  You are an exceptional human to work so hard and be so dedicated to your goal, then have the consideration and take time to dedicate it to your friend and mentor. 

Someone on this forum inspires me in one way or another, every time I start reading.  Today, it was you!  You have inspired me to keep pushing forward, keep learning, and keep working towards the ideal.  Even if you don’t think things are going perfectly, you might be surprised at what you can create or achieve.  This is what I need to tell myself and yes, I know I’ve told you essentially that many times.  😆  We should all be easier on ourselves and more forgiving to ourselves.  We are almost always our own worst critics.    We need to practice kindness to ourselves more often.

Keep up the good work and I can’t wait to see next year’s entry!

Wow, I'm humbled. Thank you for such kind words, seriously. I think back to when I first joined and realize I was such a jerk 😆. Being here literally changed who I am today. I must thank you and everyone here for being a part of this journey and I'm a better person because of you all. Again, thank you! Without the support from everyone, this was never possible.

[Mmiller2001]

On 11/20/2023 at 8:09 AM, JoeQ said:

Who designed it? Maybe I can hire that person out to draw me a color coded & easy to read planted tank schematic!!! 🤣

So this is a long story, but I did and she did. Early on, @gjcarewposted that NBAT article (hopefully everyone looked through it 😆) and we studied it for months. I just basically threw in plants and watched them grow. I would then trim or top and replant. Over time I could see how each plant responded and the shapes they formed. We would then start moving the groups around to separate leaf shape, color and to form shadows. We would then watch for a week and each of us offered our opinions if it was working or not. Each water change, we would make the changes we thought were needed. My hands would be in the tank and she had fast food trays where she was cutting plants to length. Once that was done, she would guide me with each stem placement. While I was finishing up planting/ trimming, she would be setting up equipment for the water change. She played a huge part in this tank and it was better from it. I guess I would say it was my vision made better with her influence.

[JoeQ]

On 11/20/2023 at 10:40 AM, Mmiller2001 said:

So this is a long story, but I did and she did. Early on, @gjcarewposted that NBAT article (hopefully everyone looked through it 😆) and we studied it for months. I just basically threw in plants and watched them grow. I would then trim or top and replant. Over time I could see how each plant responded and the shapes they formed. We would then start moving the groups around to separate leaf shape, color and to form shadows. We would then watch for a week and each of us offered our opinions if it was working or not. Each water change, we would make the changes we thought were needed. My hands would be in the tank and she had fast food trays where she was cutting plants to length. Once that was done, she would guide me with each stem placement. While I was finishing up planting/ trimming, she would be setting up equipment for the water change. She played a huge part in this tank and it was better from it. I guess I would say it was my vision made better with her influence.

Sounds like a sweat shop operation to me!!! I'm exhausted from just reading all that, all joking a side, congrats!! That post was a great peak behind the curtain of what it takes to create a tank of that caliber! 👏👏👏👏👏

[jwcarlson]

I struggle to keep my dying java ferns tied to ill placed driftwood and someone on the same forum does something like this!  Wildly impressive, @Mmiller2001... that's absolutely beautiful!  

[Mmiller2001]

On 11/20/2023 at 1:14 PM, jwcarlson said:

I struggle to keep my dying java ferns tied to ill placed driftwood and someone on the same forum does something like this!  Wildly impressive, @Mmiller2001... that's absolutely beautiful!  

Thank you so much. I have a confession, I have never successfully grown a Java fern. They always turn black and die. I’ve given up on them. 😃

[TheSwissAquarist]

On 11/19/2023 at 5:04 PM, Mmiller2001 said:

Results announced this morning. I took second place.

I dedicated this tank to @gjcarewfor his endless support and assistance.

The Second Hand of Carew

Huge congrats! Definitely well-earned. I wonder what first place looked like. 😅

[Mmiller2001]

On 11/21/2023 at 6:29 AM, TheSwissAquarist said:

Huge congrats! Definitely well-earned. I wonder what first place looked like. 😅

Thank you. First placed definitely deserved it. It was well executed.

https://showcase.aquatic-gardeners.org/2023/show692.html

[Supermassive]

On 1/5/2022 at 12:47 PM, Mmiller2001 said:

 

Congratulations on the second place finish. Its magnificent. I hope I can make something that incredible some day... or maybe not lol. The amount of work seems insane.

Do you use test kits for all these values or do you just trust that the math works out when dosing? Id be interested to know what all test kits you use for the tank.

 

[Mmiller2001]

On 11/21/2023 at 8:34 AM, Supermassive said:

Congratulations on the second place finish. Its magnificent. I hope I can make something that incredible some day... or maybe not lol. The amount of work seems insane.

Do you use test kits for all these values or do you just trust that the math works out when dosing? Id be interested to know what all test kits you use for the tank.

 

Thank you so much.

So the above chart was for my older tank I no longer have, just FYI. To answer your question, I trust the dosing math which is then controlled through water changes should anything slide out of range. I use RO/DI water so I can start from zero on all parameters. I front load all my macro nutrients (N,P,K) and then dose Micro's (trace elements) throughout the week. Front loading means all of my macro's are refreshed and reset water change day. I have 2 Brute grey trash cans (NSF safe) I fill with the RO water. The advantage here is I know the exact amount of water. I fill them to the brim and then remove 1 gallon of water. 1 Brute is 44 gallons and the other is 32 gallons. So I know I have exactly 43 gallons and 31 gallons of water. There is/ are online nutrient calculators that will allow me to select a specific ppm for each nutrient. Ca, Mg (GH) and then (N,P,K). Basically, I'm dosing the storage water just like anyone would dose their fish tank. No mater how much water I change, the incoming water matches the outgoing water. This is how I maintain near perfect water stability. As for KH, I had been dosing none but have recently started to dose a small amount (.7KH). Reason being when I ripped this tank up, something happened and my pH was nearing 4.6. Needless to say, my fish definitely did not enjoy 4.6. I prefer to not dose any KH as it's just easier to work the tank in this manner, but until this strange occurrence ends, I will continue to dose KH. I use to believe my tanks were 0dKH, but recently @Galabareducated me and water by nature has a very small amount of KH via the whole science stuff that goes on. It's a very small amount so near 0.

As for micro's, this can be a bit more challenging. I do use a "professional" mix I receive from Joey Harvey (BurrAqua). Unfortunately, there is no good micro mix available at a lower cost and his micro's are the most cost effective and balanced correctly. I target a weekly total of .45ppm Fe as proxy. I dose 3 times a week, the first being immediately after my water change so I can get Fe off the floor. I then dose the following 2 a few days apart. So basically each dose is .45/3. Each dose is .15 Fe as proxy. As of today, I'm seeing a micro toxicity in 1 plant so I'm going to reduce micros. This week will just be 2 doses for a total of .3 Fe as proxy. Hopefully the plant will respond well and the others will remain happy.

As for test kits, I really just don't test any more. If you do 50 or more % water changes, I just see a reason to test. If something weird starts showing, I just use my TDS meter to make sure everything (nutrient wise) is in line with what's expected. If I dosed correctly and didn't forget to add something, my water always shows about 170 to 190 TDS. If I see lower, I forget to add something, if higher then something died and I need to find it or possible I overdosed a nutrient. Kits I have on hand are GH/KH and Nitrate.

Edited November 21, 2023 by Mmiller2001

[Supermassive]

@Mmiller2001 Thank you for the detailed response. How hard is it to mess up what you are doing? Would you recommend somebody without much experience to do EI dosing? Or do you need a lot of knowledge to keep it under control. I'm thinking its definitely less work but you need a lot more knowledge to do it that way.

I'm just a little conflicted with my aquarium philosophy. I'm not sure what I want to do going forward. I wish there was a more structured, kind of step by step way to learn. I've learned just how much I don't know from reading this journal lol.

[Mmiller2001]

On 11/21/2023 at 9:45 AM, Supermassive said:

@Mmiller2001 Thank you for the detailed response. How hard is it to mess up what you are doing? Would you recommend somebody without much experience to do EI dosing? Or do you need a lot of knowledge to keep it under control. I'm thinking its definitely less work but you need a lot more knowledge to do it that way.

I'm just a little conflicted with my aquarium philosophy. I'm not sure what I want to do going forward. I wish there was a more structured, kind of step by step way to learn. I've learned just how much I don't know from reading this journal lol.

I would recommend it to everyone. It saves you a ton of money and it's so easy to do. 

Do you use CO2?

 

[JoeQ]

On 11/21/2023 at 11:45 AM, Supermassive said:

Would you recommend somebody without much experience to do EI dosing? Or do you need a lot of knowledge to keep it under control.

This made me laugh, if an idiot like me could do it, anyone can! The one thing I do recommend is having co2 with EI dosing!

[Supermassive]

On 11/21/2023 at 12:26 PM, Mmiller2001 said:

Do you use CO2?

I haven't started or tried CO2 yet. I don't have the funds for it.

On 11/21/2023 at 12:31 PM, JoeQ said:

This made me laugh, if an idiot like me could do it, anyone can! The one thing I do recommend is having co2 with EI dosing!

Lol. Thank you. I was just about to ask if you can do EI without CO2

[JoeQ]

On 11/21/2023 at 12:34 PM, Supermassive said:

I haven't started or tried CO2 yet. I don't have the funds for it.

Lol. Thank you. I was just about to ask if you can do EI without CO2

You most likely can, I've tried it with my non co2 10g but I didn't have the patience (nor the intrest) to dial in the dosing days. 

[Supermassive]

On 11/21/2023 at 12:40 PM, JoeQ said:

You most likely can, I've tried it with my non co2 10g but I didn't have the patience (nor the intrest) to dial in the dosing days.

Is that because its more difficult to dial in without CO2 or because you just didn't want to put the effort in at the time?

[Mmiller2001]

On 11/21/2023 at 10:34 AM, Supermassive said:

I haven't started or tried CO2 yet. I don't have the funds for it.

Lol. Thank you. I was just about to ask if you can do EI without CO2

Indeed you can. Just have to lower the totals a bit.