Derpy lucky bamboo

[Guppysnail]

I have both the straight and curly lucky bamboo in all my tanks supported with egg crate.  The stem it larger than 1 or two holes but if I go to 4 it falls through. Even those that I can squeeze in a 2 hole slot lean and tilt and look higgly piggly. I know folks like @dasaltemelosguy and @Odd Duck and @Isaac M keep theirs upright looking so neat instead of sloppy. How does everyone do this. My stems do not reach the substrate only 3-5 inches into the tank actually. I have tried a few methods to no avail they still lean over. Any and all tips and tricks to rig this so it stands tall and proud would be terrific. Thanks 😁

[BETTA999]

mmm never had seen sloppy bamboo but when i kept bamboo they sure like a lot of water {lol you have them in an aquarium } do they recive light or they grow above them maybe the pothos are making competition to the bamboos and the wobly thing is normal its suposed to get strait in the future

[Guppysnail]

On 1/27/2022 at 10:31 AM, bettta999 said:

mmm never had seen sloppy bamboo but when i kept bamboo they sure like a lot of water {lol you have them in an aquarium } do they recive light or they grow above them maybe the pothos are making competition to the bamboos and the wobly thing is normal its suposed to get strait in the future

It is straight and healthy has grow light the problem is the stability of the structure they reside in to support them to point to the ceiling 

[BETTA999]

i now put a ring of foam around so you can ajust the position

[Isaac M]

@Guppysnail I keep mine straight by resting it against other things at the top and the bottom is in the gravel. If you want to keep it floating in the egg crate like you have it, I would cut up some aquarium coop coarse foam and stuff it into the egg crate holes sort of how @bettta999 said. In other words, you will pretty much need to brace it in all directions to keep it standing straight up. Other than that, I would recommend using a method with planters that hang around the rim sort of how I have some of my riparian plants. That will allow you to plant it in a substrate where it can stand straight and out of the water. This method will also free up a lot of space for maintenance, feeding, etc. 

[Guppysnail]

On 1/27/2022 at 2:42 PM, Isaac M said:

@Guppysnail I keep mine straight by resting it against other things at the top and the bottom is in the gravel. If you want to keep it floating in the egg crate like you have it, I would cut up some aquarium coop coarse foam and stuff it into the egg crate holes sort of how @bettta999 said. In other words, you will pretty much need to brace it in all directions to keep it standing straight up. Other than that, I would recommend using a method with planters that hang around the rim sort of how I have some of my riparian plants. That will allow you to plant it in a substrate where it can stand straight and out of the water. This method will also free up a lot of space for maintenance, feeding, etc. 

thanks I was considering the planter method but that shaded the planters with ludwiga beneath. The lucky bamboo are still too short and would be completely submerged if I rested them on the bottom. I like the foam idea. I have a sheet of matten foam I’m going to try. The steel wire you showed me that I used for pothos just isn’t enough for these. It keeps it above water but not straight. I’ll post my foam results as soon as I place it.

[Isaac M]

You could try finding a planter that is not very wide as lucky bamboo roots stay really small. This should allow the ludwigia to get light. And you could plant ludwigia trimmings in the planter to grow it emersed. The steel wire will only work if you can brace it in thirds in all 4 directions. But yes the foam should help. Depending on how tall it is/ gets, it can start to lean though over time. 

[Atitagain]

Not sure if this is the exact one @Odd Duckuses but drill appropriate size hole in bottom. Can be used at top and bottom if bamboo is long enough. 
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my bamboo is way to short to even reach one at the top but this is what I plan to use when it’s long enough. And mind you I am protecting the bamboo from being abused by an Oscar and African cichlids (think odd duck has it on a jack Dempsey tank) so maybe overkill for you just to keep it straight.

[Guppysnail]

I used the foam and it did well enough. Some are just too top heavy with very short stems. My pothos took a beating when I moved everything into the fishroom but it will grow in full enough to hide the foam. Eventually the lucky bamboo will grow enough to hit the bottom. The planters @Odd Duckuse won’t work as I have the ludwiga in the suction cup planters along the back the bottom of the stems will be too shaded. I’m pleased with the foam for now. They all point straight instead of every way but straight. Thank you all for the ideas. 

this is a very top heavy one but the foam helped. 

[dasaltemelosguy]

At first, when the stalks were shorter and thinner, I just didn't cut one end of the plastic in a quadrant, and it held them in place like a spring:

They soon outgrew that idea!

But Nylon hardware and Tie-Wraps worked really well and are very inexpensive:

 

Ace Hardware, Lowes, HD, they all have lots of this hardware in stock. 

BTW @dmurray407 mounted his in a stunningly beautiful array. But I forgot to ask how he mounted them!

 

[Guppysnail]

On 1/27/2022 at 7:10 PM, dasaltemelosguy said:

At first, when the stalks were shorter and thinner, I just didn't cut one end of the plastic in a quadrant, and it held them in place like a spring:

They soon outgrew that idea!

But Nylon hardware and Tie-Wraps worked really well and are very inexpensive:

 

Ace Hardware, Lowes, HD, they all have lots of this hardware in stock. 

BTW @dmurray407 mounted his in a stunningly beautiful array. But I forgot to ask how he mounted them!

 

This is genius. Ace is less than a mile from me 😁. I knew I couldn’t see your mountings in the tank. Now I know!  I have not seen @dmurray407 setup for lucky bamboo but would like too!  

[Odd Duck]

@Guppysnail, @Atitagain.  My bamboo I purchased with long straight section then the curly bit and it’s anchored top and bottom.  The sponge caddies I’m using I can’t get anymore “out of stock and not sure when or if it will be available again”.  I just ordered another one to see if it’s soft enough or if it’s brittle like the first ones I ordered that shattered when I tried to drill.

My original idea was to anchor the bottom, then use the shower caddies to anchor the top and layer egg crate over the very top for maximum bracing.  But I found the sponge caddy was enough at the top without the egg crate.  I think for short stems, you could easily just stick the bottom into the sponge caddy with no drilling, then use the egg crate like you are with something else to steady it a bit more, like @dasaltemelosguy almost spring loaded idea or the zip tie and plastic bolt, or @bettta999 method of surrounding it with foam.

[dmurray407]

On 1/27/2022 at 6:10 PM, dasaltemelosguy said:

BTW @dmurray407 mounted his in a stunningly beautiful array. But I forgot to ask how he mounted them!

 

I just cut a square hole (4 squares) in the grid with side cutter snips and then rolled a strip of filter foam around the plant where it was going to go. Works great and allows for plant's growth. I also put some Spider plants on the other side of the aquarium by just using a forstner bit to drill a hole in the plastic strip that goes along the back-this seems to be working pretty well.

Edited January 28, 2022 by dmurray407
Added photos