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The Southern-fried side-by-side 55s [turned 75s] Project


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On 4/16/2022 at 9:58 AM, Odd Duck said:

I would vote for the blues/greens to make the color of the teak really pop.  I can’t wait to see how your stand comes out, let alone the tank!

I agree, blues/greens. Of course blue & green are my favorite colors, so maybe I am biased... 😀

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On 4/16/2022 at 12:10 PM, ndfi78 said:

I agree, blues/greens. Of course blue & green are my favorite colors, so maybe I am biased... 😀

@Odd Duck I'm starting to feel bad that the sofa will cover much of it. But maybe not always. We are leaning towards blues/greens, but deep tones. Our drapes are floor length x4 windows and a persimmon paisley, so there are a lot of warm tones on the other walls in this room. 

Going down the milk paint rabbit hole atm, like the durability of the mineral base and traditional nature of it as well as the dull velvety finish. Trying to figure out if we can make that happen for less than $100 of primer/paint/topcoat combo of some sort but looking unlikely. But something in bayberry green or soldier blue seems to be topping our lists atm.

EDIT: Paint on order, should be here on 4/20 (lol). Managed to find and order it without using any big tech or big box - I knew those years of woodworking magazines stored around the house would be useful one day.

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This color probably doesn't hold appeal for a lot of folks, especially younger ones. 80s teen me would have hated it! But it was part of life in a colonial house as a kid just outside of New England. People that visit our home here always think it is over 200yo and it was built to look that way, so it will be right at home here. They make a coordinated top coat for durability that I also plan to use since it most likely will get some water on it from time to time 😇

Edited by Jawjagrrl
added paint purchase
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Okay... hardscape happened in the 55 while listening to the members livestream this afternoon. I've been torn with keeping the background just a background.... or working with it and being diorama-ish. I approached with more of a diorama in mind because it seemed interesting and I haven't really seen it in most of the scaping I've seen. The "roots" of the big tree will be covered in moss to match the image eventually, while a clear spot is maintained in front of the brightest area. I plan to use red root floaters up top but keep that bright area open so the lighting will be consistent to the image also. Thoughts/tweaks? FWIW. the image is much more vibrant than the camera is capturing - feels very pacific northwest hiking trail.

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Here it is sprayed down - this gravel and accent rock really changes for the better wet. Buddha may or may not stay, I had gotten with the idea of it half buried, lost ruins style. In this concept it would be obscured over time by stem plant intentionally so you only see bits peek through.

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But I actually think it will really shine in moonlight mode - maybe this tank really needs moody and/or evening active fish like loaches?

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Here's what I'm considering plantwise if the hardscape is a go as is. I also have jungle val and corkscrew sword, but they don't feel right to me here - this is feeling more temperate rainforest.

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I welcome feedback and hope to plant out over the next day or two.

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I like the hardscape, especially the Buddha. For my taste I would lean the second vertical wood piece from the right, perhaps against the wood on the far right.  To my eye two vertical pieces look slightly out of place. 

edit you could do some moss on the to wood pieces on the right to make them look like trees which could be cool as well

Edited by freemoney
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I really like how you have brought the background into the tank!

What does it look like under warmer (red) lights?

The only thing I would tilt is Buddha's head a tad. Just to give the "rain forest is reclaiming the land" feel. To uphold the theme, and add a little more drama to the scene, do you have any darker small rocks? And maybe add some darker substrate to the right 1/3 of the tank as well as to the back 1/8 corner of the left side, to give the illusion of a creek or a path (lighter that you already have in there) running through the forest, between the trees. If you create a vanishing point of the creek/path  to the back right, behind the Buddha and the two trees you have in the tank on the right, and the large trees in your background fabric on the right side, it would appear to an observer as if we had strolled in to the side of a small stream, and would further pull the fabric into a solid visual perspective for massive trees in the distance.

This could be reinforced with your wood on the left in the tank connecting more to the tree trunk by removing some of the green growth you have hypothetically placed, and adding some darker substrate around the tree roots. Not tons darker, just dark enough to tie into the dirt in your background.

Plants could be used to edge the creek/path (if you like the creek idea, you'll improve the illusion by using some soil bags to elevate the back bank on the left, and the front bank on the right), and a wider variety of sizes and colors of stones/ river pebbles will also give you some more depth regardless of which approach you choose to take with the substrate.

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On 4/17/2022 at 12:18 AM, freemoney said:

I like the hardscape, especially the Buddha. For my taste I would lean the second vertical wood piece from the right, perhaps against the wood on the far right.  To my eye two vertical pieces look slightly out of place. 

edit you could do some moss on the to wood pieces on the right to make them look like trees which could be cool as well

There are actually 3 pieces of wood there and I agree that something needs to shift but undecided which one and where. This little stand of "trees" mirrors the growth pattern of the ones behind them in the image, but I need to break the symmetry a bit more.

@Torrey Thanks for such extensive and thoughtful feedback - feels like being in school for a good crit that makes the project better. I think if you could see the image in the detail I get to we'd be on the same page. The image is the edge of a hilly wooded area and the light is coming from reflected light on the other side of a gorge you can barely make out, You can tell how close to the edge we are from how much the trees on the left are leaning towards it. There is a path to the right of the big tree that follows the edge of "our" side of the gorge and is the effective vanishing point of the photo. The path would continue to the front right corner of the tank as the photographer is standing in it. As we look at it, it is about to follow out to the edge of the gorge that curves left behind the big tree.

The Java ferns in the drawing follow the extended path from the image. To me there is so much flow from left to right from the big tree (the gravel there has been banked up about 7" from the front) that it makes sense for the path to conform to it and the suggestion of the landscape arcing around us. The dwarf lily should obscure the vanishing point of the pathway behind the big tree at the back and it runs to the front edge on the far right.

I do agree that more variety of rock would help and I will likely pilfer some of the smaller ones I have on order for the 75s. The substrate however was the darkest natural gravel I could find that wasn't dyed, coated or dipped in wax. But there are botanicals coming in after the planting that I think will achieve the dark aspects we want to see - leaves, nut shells and seed pods - especially magnolia pods if I can *ever* get them to sink. I did see some 1" black pebbles at the big box last week, might take a chance on those.

I have made the error (it really only shows in person) of trying to make the path darker than the rest when it should be the reverse as the lightest area of the tank as proposed (and also darker as it gets close to the front of the tank since our image light source is in the distance). A bit of gemstone creek gravel should help with that.

So much for "setting up the 55 real quick for a holding tank" idea! But I'm not one to do anything halfway. that said, our favorite angels are on sale through the end of the month, so I best push forward! I can't currently hook up the python to any sink on the second floor without an adapter so hunting for that this afternoon as the stand moves along in the shop. I've had three failed surgeries on my dominant shoulder top ligament and the buckets of water are not really possible anymore - I did fill this halfway last night, 2 gals at a time so I could keep the wood submerged as some is still wanting to float.

EDIT: Forgot to add that warm light - especially "golden hour" light with all the warm white and red - looks fantastic. I think everything would be happy with it except perhaps the tripartita which was my "take a chance" plant.

Edited by Jawjagrrl
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@Jawjagrrl I can help with the magnolia pods: Boil in a crockpot, pressure cooker or InstaPot. They will then sink for you, and you can freeze the tannin tea to use as needed.

I went back and followed your explanation while looking at the image again, I follow.

If you haven't looked at the interview with Josh Sim on the Green Aqua YouTube channel, I would recommend checking him out before changing your 3 upright trees. He comes from an artist perspective as well, and I suspect you will find the "missing secret" in one of his videos.

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  • 2 weeks later...

Feels like ages since an update, just a lot going on with sick pets, lost orders, cyanobacteria outbreaks, sick fish, new fry...!

The bedroom 55 got wet on 4/17, planted on 4/20. Lots of haze that I thought was from the gravel (spoiler: it wasn't). Playing with the fluval app a lot, but I think this setup looks best with lots of warm light by day and could be perhaps even better in moonlight mode. Since we'll see this most often at bedtime, maybe this needs to be a loach/catfish haven? Hardscape got tweaked a bit, plants are more or less where I had planned. The terrestrial moss was really nice to work with in large sections, will see how it holds up.

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I got a great deal on a DIY CO2 kit I've been eyeing since last summer and thought it would be worth trying, even if it gets moved around to jumpstart new setups. This one uses a citric acid/baking soda reaction and has a solenoid run by one of Cory's nifty wifi plugs to schedule on/off. I'm running an hour before lights on, off 2 hours before it shifts to moonlight mode. Liking this kit so far.

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Lot of tweaks with equipment placement and assembly (still considering adding the powerhead to the sponge filters and making use of the airstone elsewhere. The sponge just wasn't enough flow when used at one end of the tank as I need to. I'm still having to use a few rocks to hold down some of the more stubborn wood pieces, so I haven't yet tweaked the pebbles and added botanicals yet. There are the first residents though - some bladder snails that were part of my efforts to seed the tank, which also included:

  • Sponge that had been in another tank for 3 weeks
  • Very dirty filter floss that got replaced from another tank
  • ALL the water change water from my downstairs nano tanks, lots of mulm, etc.
  • rock wool from all the AQ plants, plus the plants themselves
  • floaters from my plant quarantine tank, which included several ramshorn hitchikers (almost a trade for the BGA breakout they also caused - and illness in my betta tank).

Going through the usual outbreak of white slime on some of the wood that I see often with my foraged items. The grape vine wood has been the worst by far, but the snails seem to enjoy it and after almost 2 weeks seems to be settling down. I used a hydrogen peroxide bath on this wood since it was too large to boil, but everything behaving about the same as it cycles.

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I didn't have ramshorns before this last order of floating plants, but I really like them. All the ones I got seem to have pink feet and pearl-like shells.

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First water tests looked like this:

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No idea why the PH is so high - our tap is 7.1, but very hard (300ish). I did use root tabs (some opened and sprinkled) so I expected some ammonia, but has not gone even as high as 1.0, so all the seeding did help.

A BGA outbreak that began on the moss before the substrate was frustrating, but treated with a really effective product I posted about in a thread on BGA elsewhere to very good effect.

Before:

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After:

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The plants from the COOP are great - ZERO crypt melt and new leaves already. I stole the red lily from the shrimp tank and it's quite happy too. The water sprite and pogostemon have almost doubled in the 10 days they have been planted.

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The new CO-OP heater arrived today (so fast, ordered this on Saturday, arrived on Monday!) and will be going in this one AND the 75s. Really like the design, much easier to hide than the old glass tubes.

Meanwhile the 75s project moves slowly forward. Supply chain issues? Nope - just good old shipping issues. The cleats I ordered made it as far as a facility in ATL on the 16th... never to be seen again. The seller of the Peace River Jelly Bean pebbles I ordered on the 7th never got past printing the shipping label. Much back and forth with Amazon before getting resolved and reorders, which both seem to be actually en route this time.

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But... I'm soaking wood and botanicals, still stalking my stump every day deciding how to best cut it aesthetically. Accidentally cultured something in the tank my wood has been soaking in...a sure sign of spring that for us in Jawja is now summer. I think these are damselfly larvae, literally HUNDREDS of them inching around one of the 75s yesterday while it was in the 80s outside:

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Lots of time in the shop the last few days on the stand, which is coming together nicely - and it's motivated us to get the place in order. Lots of discussion of how to design the front panels and we will be making use of the teak offcuts to create the illusion that the full front is teak between the top and bottom rails. Patient Spouse™ made bottom selves with plywood topped with laminate that will be notched to fit into the bottom of each side. 20220430_142822.jpg.d6d1e90721ab2c9f265273178e217f42.jpg

Rails added to receive the bottom shelves. The brown crossbar is leftover from my chicken coop build from 2 years ago that we managed to complete and still be married 😉

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Patient Spouse™ started building out his plan to create not just shelves on the bottom, but a tray of sorts using plastic trim used for finished carpentry these days. Once in place it will be sealed with silicone so if in the future we have equipment stored that could leak, we can capture a gallon or three without ruining the hardwood floor. The collection of clamps (this is a woodworker's shop) got a workout this past weekend!

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Meanwhile I was prepping the stand for paint (which did arrive right on time). Lots of dings and scrapes from moving around since 2000 that were patched, but not all of them - wanting to preserve some of the history of this piece. The end panels are actually upcycled MDF from an old furniture template from my husband's business. 20220501_135247.jpg.9e26675d460526c39714d72817627a60.jpg

I had a gallon of paint that was given to me one day at Lowes by a guy in the paint department that wanted it gone. My former starving art student self was triggered by this at the time and took it home with no idea how it would be used. Turned out to be perfect for the interior of the stand as a Williamsburg Blue flat latex.

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The outside got a couple of coats of the milk paint, which was interesting to work with. I masked off the verticals in the front, which will receive a veneer of sorts with the teak panel offcuts.

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A few hot sweaty hours later (it was upper 80s here today) it was blue all over. me slightly less so.

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Patient Spouse™ was quite pleased when he got home to this... and homemade tagine dinner too. It's really starting to feel like a piece of furniture now and not just plywood taking up space in the back basement!

NEXT UP: Let's talk plants and fish!

Edited by Jawjagrrl
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On 5/2/2022 at 10:29 PM, Tihshho said:

Those larvae look to be mosquito larvae, oddly enough they make for good fish food. 

They are over 1/4" long, seems really big for mosquitoes? I wish I had fish large enough to feed them to right now as you are totally right - live food!

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  • 2 weeks later...

CHAPTER 5: Fish chat and a surprise for Patient Spouse™

Today's update comes to you from in front of the new Patient Spouse™"fun angel tank" because this old 55 now features something it hasn't since 2007: Fish!

After a couple hurdles getting this tank cycled, it was finally ready, happy plants and snails for 3 weeks. Lots of chat with Patient Spouse™ about what might live in this setup despite the earlier jokes about "fun angels". He doesn't know they are here yet, but the first inhabitants arrived from AquaHuna this morning - two days from Seattle to Jawja...not bad! First residents are:

4 Roseline Sharks (we both love these)
5* Siamese Algae Eaters (schooling with the sharks as I had hoped and with luck will work in the little bits of hair algae)
4 Dwarf chain loaches

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I already know we will be getting more of these awesome little loaches, which were super active right out of the bag and schooling with everyone. I think they may be Buddhists as their favorite place to hang out so far is around the little temple area in the right corner 🙂 Hopefully as they mature they can keep the bladder snails in check.

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Sadly the algae eaters arrived with almost half DOA 😞 but AH was really responsive about it - they cover losses for the first three days, which is really nice. One more is weak, but improving and trying to eat, so fingers crossed. I had gotten 8 with the hopes of moving 6 into the 75s and keeping 2 in this setup to make the roseline school feel larger to them, but we may add a couple more of them anyway. The hunt continues for those fun angels with an auction closing this weekend that will hopefully complete this setup.

But on to the 75s!

I have updates coming on the stand, which is getting close to complete, which means I need to get moving on my wood selections and finally deal with The Stump. But I want to get feedback on what I hope to keep in each one, with the general feel of an Amazon river biotope that features a slower flow, heavily planted left side that appears to open up into more open, faster water as it "moves" around an imagined bend in the stream created by the stump in the center.

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PROPOSED LEFT SIDE/TETRA COMMUNITY:

  • 20 Rummynose Tetras (my all time favorite tetra!)
  • 10 Bloodfin tetras 
  • 10 x-ray tetras
  • 10 silvertip tetras
  • 10 green neon tetras (already on hand)
  • 10 cardinal/neon tetras
  • 6 diamond tetras
  • 6-10 "red" tetras - ember, serpae, etc.
  • 1-2 siamese algae eaters (on hand)
  • calico bristlenose pleco (already on hand - add another for breeding?)
  • 6-12 corydoras - gold laser or orange venezuelan
  • Pair apistogramma cacautoides "triple red" or "orange flash"
  • 6-10 top dweller TBD - eques pencilfish/wrestling halfbeaks/hatchets

PROPOSED RIGHT SIDE/PEACEFUL(ish)CICHLID COMMUNITY:

  • ? Geophagus Redhead Tapajos 
  • ? Angelfish to compliment the mature tapajo coloring, possibly Phillipine blue, platinum, etc.
  • 8-10 congo tetras (not SA, but we love them and see as a Columbian tetra alternative for hard water)
  • Blue eyed lemon bristlenose or Red Whiptail cat
  • Diamond tetras (if they prove too boisterous for the left tank)
  • 1-2 siamese algae eaters (on hand)

The right side is trickier as the Geos are my top priority, while my husband loves the angels. But he's getting angels upstairs, so.... how many of each can I pull off in a planted 75 with good line of sight breaks? I'd love to breed the geos - will probably breed the angels in the 55 before these as a priority.

Thoughts on volume, combinations of inhabitants, etc? Our water is moderately hard (200ish?) and roughly neutral at 7.1. I plan for the left side to be much more planted than my concept image, almost jungle style. More wood and less plants on the right side to allow for more big fish swim space and knowing the geos would likely dig them up anyway (epiphytes in order here).

Feedback from NERMS that have kept these species before is very welcome as most will be new for me. Thanks!!

Edited by Jawjagrrl
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  • 2 weeks later...

CHAPTER 6: A Firm Foundation

The last couple of weeks have been all about the stand for the 75s and stocking the "fun angel 55" tank. My angels are on delay however, but I had a chance to nab some gorgeous Congo Tetras last week that settled in immediately, colored up and are already eating me out of house and home! You gotta love getting fish from a new vendor to you and finding the bag water and your tank water this close of a match!

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I never had a bedroom tank before, and it's really a zen way to start and finish the day.

But about that stand!

My last update ended with paint, which got a top coat and the trays completed - plywood with laminate "floor" and plastic trim lip that will be sealed to be watertight - it should hold as much as 2 gallons should something disastrous occur, like a leak in a canister (that may never happen as we are liking sponge filters in the 55). But a safe storage for wet buckets, etc. A couple of snags getting them in, but workaround was found 🙂

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It was finally time to measure twice (thrice!) the teak panels for final size and cut the doors. The left and right side openings are not identical, so each pair was cut to fit, with grain matching done where possible. Teak is tough given it's salt content, but no match for a fresh saw blade. The purchased panels were pretty square to start, which was good as the humidity has been climbing rapidly as we move into full summer - we hit 88 the day these were cut and sealed with Danish Oil.

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I proposed that we "veneer" the verticals on the front using some of the offcuts from our teak blanks with an eye to creating the appearance of one long panel. Thankfully Patient Spouse™ was receptive to my idea and patient while I insisted on a rather complicated glue up in the center that used bookmatched pieces that mirrored a nice bit of grain detail. We put the number of clamps we own to the test that weekend!

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I got busy sanding and sealing the panels while the wrappers got a glueup onto the frame. Exciting to see those colors pop! Took some of the sting out of listening to my baseball team trying and often failing to make it to a .500 record while we worked.

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Things were going almost too smoothly - and then we went to unclamp the center panel, and glue was stuck to one of the clamping pieces - that pulled a hunk of wood grain out of a very visible spot 😞 But Patient Spouse™ was able to carefully chisel out the tiny chunk and glue it up, perfectly matched! By the time I got it sanded, it was like it never happened. Oiling the vertical supports really brought them to life and I was sure we'd made the right call to cover them.

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Hinges were added with the plan of flush mounting them. That led to some issues that made a surface mount work better, so I was able to add those during the week. So close! I saved mounting the hinges to the stand for PS with longer screws given these are fairly heavy doors.

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A lively discussion was had in another thread about the door handle hardware - we had some misgivings about the small cleats we had. Bigger cleats like this? Keep these? A larger bronze cleat?

https://forum.aquariumcoop.com/topic/23672-and-now-for-something-totally-different-stand-design-input/

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In the end I opted for a base cleat that is less likely to be mistaken for tieback hardware for curtains and ordered them - oddly enough from pretty close to Aquarium Coop! So those will get added later after the stand is inside.

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I got the trays sealed up, which really made them look a lot tidier and hopefully will keep our hardwood floors dry.

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Doors are mounted!!

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We had good helpers that enjoyed the shade on our first 90-degree day.

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Hooks were added for tools, and power strips mounted up top to ensure drip loops.

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PS installed the magnet closures while I (gasp!) prepared the room to receive the stand! After over 23 years it was hard to believe this was actually finished and becoming part of our home.

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Got it on the pickup (with more doggie help) and to the front door. A little elbow grease and it was inside!

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And... voila! It's finally in place. I think I'd be more excited but a thousand setup details are already on my mind. I think PS has earned a murphy hat, don't you?

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Soon, my pretty packages, soon...

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Sugar finds it necessary to guard the aquarium sand...

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It's finally time to deal with that stump once and for all!

Next up - tanks and cleats hopefully installed and some plain plant talk!

 

Edited by Jawjagrrl
Adding pics
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More update later, but thought I would share this milestone... tanks (with backgrounds and egg crate bottoms) in the house and ON THE STAND! Proper mounting hardware for cleat handles acquired, hopefully those get added this weekend as well.11942.jpeg.694c12569760faca22c38f811a2071c9.jpeg

It makes me smile to open the fluval app and see the lights for these two on the list! They all show the silicone fingerprints left all over these things when they were manufactured. Some don't show until the glass is wet. Oh well, the price was right and I'm really glad I took the advice to upgrade these from the 55s. The proportions look so much better.

 

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On 5/22/2022 at 7:47 PM, Jawjagrrl said:

20220522_181033.jpg.633208fddc17b80dcd1540abdebb57c9.jpg

Aesthetically, This is one of the nicest setups I've seen.  I'm very jealous!  I really enjoy everything you and the family have done with the tanks to get them to this point!

Looking forward to seeing it and how much that bench gets used!

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On 5/30/2022 at 12:04 AM, nabokovfan87 said:

Aesthetically, This is one of the nicest setups I've seen.  I'm very jealous!  I really enjoy everything you and the family have done with the tanks to get them to this point!

Looking forward to seeing it and how much that bench gets used!

Thats really nice of you to say. I think it has revived my husband's woodworking love (i have woodworking YT in my ear as I type). And I think that's great as his retirement approaches 🙂

There *was* a couch in front of this... that I never loved but was serviceable and gifted to us. I can't bear to replace it despite my desire to stretch out and watch like I did in the 90s while my cat laid on the back and watched the Mbuna. 🙂

I do like the ottoman there - reminds me of an art gallery, which I suppose applies here too if I can make these tanks as nice as what's in my mind's eye. It may be time to ditch the sofa and just have a cool chair in the corner (the only TV in the house is on the wall to the right of the photos). I"ll get a double feature once these tanks are "alive".

On 5/29/2022 at 8:04 PM, ShySnail said:

They look phenomenal moved in to the house - I can't wait to see them scaped and stocked!

Me too! Now I am nervous that my scaping won't live up to the stand/setup. See what you think of the proposed fish lists a bit earlier in the journal. I hope to share plant lists next to see other ideas on good SA plants!

Edited by Jawjagrrl
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On 5/30/2022 at 3:26 PM, Jawjagrrl said:

Thats really nice of you to say. I think it has revived my husband's woodworking love (i have woodworking YT in my ear as I type). And I think that's great as his retirement approaches 🙂

There *was* a couch in front of this... that I never loved but was serviceable and gifted to us. I can't bear to replace it despite my desire to stretch out and watch like I did in the 90s while my cat laid on the back and watched the Mbuna. 🙂

I do like the ottoman there - reminds me of an art gallery, which I suppose applies here too if I can make these tanks as nice as what's in my mind's eye. It may be time to ditch the sofa and just have a cool chair in the corner (the only TV in the house is on the wall to the right of the photos). I"ll get a double feature once these tanks are "alive".

Me too! Now I am nervous that my scaping won't live up to the stand/setup. See what you think of the proposed fish lists a bit earlier in the journal. I hope to share plant lists next to see other ideas on good SA plants!

I can totally picture a long, antique, chaise lounge set up in front of the tanks with the arm on the side away from the TV.  You could alternately watch TV or tanks however the mood struck.  Only need a squishy satin pillow and a tiny side table for your drink.  Picture this but arm on the other end.  Maybe a bit simpler on wood carvings to not clash too much with the stand.  Perfection for reading or viewing.  😉 😃 

 

1B1B4EF5-093C-415D-9D06-79AC6DB0BFC3.jpeg

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On 5/12/2022 at 4:00 PM, Jawjagrrl said:

CHAPTER 5: Fish chat and a surprise for Patient Spouse™

Today's update comes to you from in front of the new Patient Spouse™"fun angel tank" because this old 55 now features something it hasn't since 2007: Fish!

After a couple hurdles getting this tank cycled, it was finally ready, happy plants and snails for 3 weeks. Lots of chat with Patient Spouse™ about what might live in this setup despite the earlier jokes about "fun angels". He doesn't know they are here yet, but the first inhabitants arrived from AquaHuna this morning - two days from Seattle to Jawja...not bad! First residents are:

4 Roseline Sharks (we both love these)
5* Siamese Algae Eaters (schooling with the sharks as I had hoped and with luck will work in the little bits of hair algae)
4 Dwarf chain loaches

20220510_084806.jpg.3a6929539bd60ac7998b4de79d747a87.jpg

20220510_085137.jpg.7b59a2f05514d8755dae305340236d15.jpg

20220512_121933.jpg.eeb929aa93e9635bcca09dc2e2795ec4.jpg

I already know we will be getting more of these awesome little loaches, which were super active right out of the bag and schooling with everyone. I think they may be Buddhists as their favorite place to hang out so far is around the little temple area in the right corner 🙂 Hopefully as they mature they can keep the bladder snails in check.

20220512_130631.jpg.448464fc842a1f2226f52bc000af9599.jpg

Sadly the algae eaters arrived with almost half DOA 😞 but AH was really responsive about it - they cover losses for the first three days, which is really nice. One more is weak, but improving and trying to eat, so fingers crossed. I had gotten 8 with the hopes of moving 6 into the 75s and keeping 2 in this setup to make the roseline school feel larger to them, but we may add a couple more of them anyway. The hunt continues for those fun angels with an auction closing this weekend that will hopefully complete this setup.

But on to the 75s!

I have updates coming on the stand, which is getting close to complete, which means I need to get moving on my wood selections and finally deal with The Stump. But I want to get feedback on what I hope to keep in each one, with the general feel of an Amazon river biotope that features a slower flow, heavily planted left side that appears to open up into more open, faster water as it "moves" around an imagined bend in the stream created by the stump in the center.

twin55sprojectv3.png.44a405938f8b4bfbf3e7cce49dfa9921.png

PROPOSED LEFT SIDE/TETRA COMMUNITY:

  • 20 Rummynose Tetras (my all time favorite tetra!)
  • 10 Bloodfin tetras 
  • 10 x-ray tetras
  • 10 silvertip tetras
  • 10 green neon tetras (already on hand)
  • 10 cardinal/neon tetras
  • 6 diamond tetras
  • 6-10 "red" tetras - ember, serpae, etc.
  • 1-2 siamese algae eaters (on hand)
  • calico bristlenose pleco (already on hand - add another for breeding?)
  • 6-12 corydoras - gold laser or orange venezuelan
  • Pair apistogramma cacautoides "triple red" or "orange flash"
  • 6-10 top dweller TBD - eques pencilfish/wrestling halfbeaks/hatchets

PROPOSED RIGHT SIDE/PEACEFUL(ish)CICHLID COMMUNITY:

  • ? Geophagus Redhead Tapajos 
  • ? Angelfish to compliment the mature tapajo coloring, possibly Phillipine blue, platinum, etc.
  • 8-10 congo tetras (not SA, but we love them and see as a Columbian tetra alternative for hard water)
  • Blue eyed lemon bristlenose or Red Whiptail cat
  • Diamond tetras (if they prove too boisterous for the left tank)
  • 1-2 siamese algae eaters (on hand)

The right side is trickier as the Geos are my top priority, while my husband loves the angels. But he's getting angels upstairs, so.... how many of each can I pull off in a planted 75 with good line of sight breaks? I'd love to breed the geos - will probably breed the angels in the 55 before these as a priority.

Thoughts on volume, combinations of inhabitants, etc? Our water is moderately hard (200ish?) and roughly neutral at 7.1. I plan for the left side to be much more planted than my concept image, almost jungle style. More wood and less plants on the right side to allow for more big fish swim space and knowing the geos would likely dig them up anyway (epiphytes in order here).

Feedback from NERMS that have kept these species before is very welcome as most will be new for me. Thanks!!

Loving your lists, but angels don’t necessarily like faster moving water.  How “fast” are you talking?  Angels should always be a pair OR a decent sized group to disperse aggression.  They’re still cichlids, elegant cichlids, but they still have attitude.  My pair are currently herding around the other 2 in my angel tank, including the big boy that is at least double their weight (he thicc).

Loving your progress and plans.

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On 5/12/2022 at 4:00 PM, Jawjagrrl said:

CHAPTER 5: Fish chat and a surprise for Patient Spouse™

Today's update comes to you from in front of the new Patient Spouse™"fun angel tank" because this old 55 now features something it hasn't since 2007: Fish!

After a couple hurdles getting this tank cycled, it was finally ready, happy plants and snails for 3 weeks. Lots of chat with Patient Spouse™ about what might live in this setup despite the earlier jokes about "fun angels". He doesn't know they are here yet, but the first inhabitants arrived from AquaHuna this morning - two days from Seattle to Jawja...not bad! First residents are:

4 Roseline Sharks (we both love these)
5* Siamese Algae Eaters (schooling with the sharks as I had hoped and with luck will work in the little bits of hair algae)
4 Dwarf chain loaches

20220510_084806.jpg.3a6929539bd60ac7998b4de79d747a87.jpg

20220510_085137.jpg.7b59a2f05514d8755dae305340236d15.jpg

20220512_121933.jpg.eeb929aa93e9635bcca09dc2e2795ec4.jpg

I already know we will be getting more of these awesome little loaches, which were super active right out of the bag and schooling with everyone. I think they may be Buddhists as their favorite place to hang out so far is around the little temple area in the right corner 🙂 Hopefully as they mature they can keep the bladder snails in check.

20220512_130631.jpg.448464fc842a1f2226f52bc000af9599.jpg

Sadly the algae eaters arrived with almost half DOA 😞 but AH was really responsive about it - they cover losses for the first three days, which is really nice. One more is weak, but improving and trying to eat, so fingers crossed. I had gotten 8 with the hopes of moving 6 into the 75s and keeping 2 in this setup to make the roseline school feel larger to them, but we may add a couple more of them anyway. The hunt continues for those fun angels with an auction closing this weekend that will hopefully complete this setup.

But on to the 75s!

I have updates coming on the stand, which is getting close to complete, which means I need to get moving on my wood selections and finally deal with The Stump. But I want to get feedback on what I hope to keep in each one, with the general feel of an Amazon river biotope that features a slower flow, heavily planted left side that appears to open up into more open, faster water as it "moves" around an imagined bend in the stream created by the stump in the center.

twin55sprojectv3.png.44a405938f8b4bfbf3e7cce49dfa9921.png

PROPOSED LEFT SIDE/TETRA COMMUNITY:

  • 20 Rummynose Tetras (my all time favorite tetra!)
  • 10 Bloodfin tetras 
  • 10 x-ray tetras
  • 10 silvertip tetras
  • 10 green neon tetras (already on hand)
  • 10 cardinal/neon tetras
  • 6 diamond tetras
  • 6-10 "red" tetras - ember, serpae, etc.
  • 1-2 siamese algae eaters (on hand)
  • calico bristlenose pleco (already on hand - add another for breeding?)
  • 6-12 corydoras - gold laser or orange venezuelan
  • Pair apistogramma cacautoides "triple red" or "orange flash"
  • 6-10 top dweller TBD - eques pencilfish/wrestling halfbeaks/hatchets

PROPOSED RIGHT SIDE/PEACEFUL(ish)CICHLID COMMUNITY:

  • ? Geophagus Redhead Tapajos 
  • ? Angelfish to compliment the mature tapajo coloring, possibly Phillipine blue, platinum, etc.
  • 8-10 congo tetras (not SA, but we love them and see as a Columbian tetra alternative for hard water)
  • Blue eyed lemon bristlenose or Red Whiptail cat
  • Diamond tetras (if they prove too boisterous for the left tank)
  • 1-2 siamese algae eaters (on hand)

The right side is trickier as the Geos are my top priority, while my husband loves the angels. But he's getting angels upstairs, so.... how many of each can I pull off in a planted 75 with good line of sight breaks? I'd love to breed the geos - will probably breed the angels in the 55 before these as a priority.

Thoughts on volume, combinations of inhabitants, etc? Our water is moderately hard (200ish?) and roughly neutral at 7.1. I plan for the left side to be much more planted than my concept image, almost jungle style. More wood and less plants on the right side to allow for more big fish swim space and knowing the geos would likely dig them up anyway (epiphytes in order here).

Feedback from NERMS that have kept these species before is very welcome as most will be new for me. Thanks!!

Your fish list looks fantastic! I'm currently in the process of building a similar tetra community in a 40 breeder. One thing that I've noticed with mine is, now that I have 2 of my 3 planned schools of tetras in the tank, adding another species of tetra would make the tank feel too cluttered. So, I'm going to focus on bumping up the numbers in my two current schools instead. I don't think the fish would mind my adding another school at all, but from an aesthetics standpoint, it would drive me crazy in the long run.

All of that to say, make sure you start your stocking with your absolute must haves, in case you end up in a similar predicament.  🙂 

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On 5/30/2022 at 7:29 PM, Odd Duck said:

Loving your lists, but angels don’t necessarily like faster moving water.  How “fast” are you talking?  Angels should always be a pair OR a decent sized group to disperse aggression.  They’re still cichlids, elegant cichlids, but they still have attitude.  My pair are currently herding around the other 2 in my angel tank, including the big boy that is at least double their weight (he thicc).

Loving your progress and plans.

There will be some difference in how a theoretical river shaped the scapes you will see and how much flow there *actually* is. The center of the two tanks will feature a tree that has slowly been eroded out by the water over time as the bank shifted further into it's space. In nature the water would of course win over time of course, but while the tree maintains life/fights decay, it's an impediment to the water that gets slowed a bit to go around it. Debris gets dropped as it passes by and the tetra space is a bit more like an eddy as the water moves along beyond the slice we get to see in my den.

What will actually be happening is two large sponge filters will run the tetra tank - will see if any additional filtration is needed for good surface air exchange. The angel/geo side will also have two sponges and a powerhead fitted with a prefilter sponge once I figure out which size sponge it requires (or it may just be attached to the stacked sponges if that appears to create enough flow to avoid dead spots). 

I am new to sponge filters and setup my 55 with two medium ones stacked, thinking that would be enough. But I had dead zones in the tank with almost no water movement and had to add a powerhead I'd already bought for the tetra setup. It has a pre sponge on it and faces front - when it was on the end it really was a river feel - and that seems to be a good compromise. 

If the tanks were just for me, there would be no angels in the 75 - we will already have some in the 55 - but this was a key element of engagement for my husband and the fish he kept coming back to again and again as he got more interested. I kept cichlids when I was in the hobby before and enjoyed them, but they feel to me now like a bit of a limitation. My beloved oscars = few other fish, Mbuna = few other fish: regional community setups are so much more flexible.

I'm trying to figure out how many geos and how many angels can coexist in a 75 without overloading it or creating a war zone. They will share the space with likely just the school of congo tetras (10 if the ones shipping today all make it) and bristlenose of some sort for added cleanup that can handle both of the bigger fish species. My preference in terms of number is more of the geos - I want to do tapajos based on look and smaller size than some like the Winemilleri, Svenii, etc. Am I looking at only a pair of angels in that case do you think?

On 5/30/2022 at 7:21 PM, Odd Duck said:

I can totally picture a long, antique, chaise lounge set up in front of the tanks with the arm on the side away from the TV.  You could alternately watch TV or tanks however the mood struck.  Only need a squishy satin pillow and a tiny side table for your drink.  Picture this but arm on the other end.  Maybe a bit simpler on wood carvings to not clash too much with the stand.  Perfection for reading or viewing.  😉 😃 

 

1B1B4EF5-093C-415D-9D06-79AC6DB0BFC3.jpeg

We have similar thoughts on this, just different styles. The den is mix of traditional early american pieces because of the house design itself that has found an unlikely alliance with some subtle midcentury pieces. I do have a midcentury chaise elsewhere in the house that was mine before we got married (I was into the space age bachelor pad look back then), but it would need to recovered to go in this room. The high end is actually on the correct side...

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On 5/30/2022 at 10:11 PM, ShySnail said:

Your fish list looks fantastic! I'm currently in the process of building a similar tetra community in a 40 breeder. One thing that I've noticed with mine is, now that I have 2 of my 3 planned schools of tetras in the tank, adding another species of tetra would make the tank feel too cluttered. So, I'm going to focus on bumping up the numbers in my two current schools instead. I don't think the fish would mind my adding another school at all, but from an aesthetics standpoint, it would drive me crazy in the long run.

All of that to say, make sure you start your stocking with your absolute must haves, in case you end up in a similar predicament.  🙂 

So what schools have you settled on? There are so many good choices it is hard to narrow down!

My list in terms of how many kinds was loosely interpreted from an amazon setup I saw done on MD fish tanks about a year ago - he still has the fish but redid the scape recently. I really liked the silver tip and xrays he had - the Buenos Aires too, but I think they could be bullies. I have the green neons already and love them, rummies are a must. It may depend on what's available as I get to the stocking point. I was seeing more rummies online recently after a dry spell, but they seem to be disappearing again.

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MD's Amazon tank is really great - I love that he added the EBA when he redid it. I had silver tips on my list too, but they weren't in stock when I was ready to order fish. It seems like they were everywhere I looked...until I actually had a place for them. LOL

The two schools of tetra that I settled on are black phantoms and neons. I was really concerned about the neons since they're known to be delicate and I have incredibly hard water with high pH, but they've been doing beautifully. Other inhabitants are: panda cories, a rubber lip pleco, amano shrimp, multiple snails species, and some neocardina that must have teleported from my other setup, because I know I didn't add them. Sneaky little things. 

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