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Planted Ten Gallon Adventure

AceMcCannon

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AceMcCannon

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I thought I would try to document my progress and adventures with a small planted tank. I've had aquariums in the past, but I never put a lot of effort into aquarium plants. That changes today. I picked up an in expensive Aqueon ten gallon, nice black stand to put it on and with the wife's approval we are off. 😎 (I'm gonna do my best to post and update as often as I can.)

IMG_20230618_124658_Bokeh.jpg

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AceMcCannon Apprentice

AceMcCannon

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On 6/19/2023 at 12:21 PM, TheMosster said:

nice! any ideas on planting and stocking?

Thanks! Nothing too wild, but I'm considering   6 chili rasboras and  6 pygmy corys. If it's not too crowded, I'd love a couple rocket killifish or blue eyed rainbowfish as my centerpiece fish. 

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On 6/19/2023 at 3:24 PM, AceMcCannon said:

Thanks! Nothing too wild, but I'm considering   6 chili rasboras and  6 pygmy corys. If it's not too crowded, I'd love a couple rocket killifish or blue eyed rainbowfish as my centerpiece fish. 

chili rasboras, pygmy cories, and rocket killis or rainbowfish sounds like a nice setup. But if you were to do that, make sure the killis/rainbows are not outcompeting the rasboras for food, as they are more active then the rasboras, and will get the food when it hits the top as appose to the rasboras which like to eat in the middle.

You've technically got all 3 layers covered, though i heard the pygmies dont follow that rule very well. (they swim in the middle).

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AceMcCannon Apprentice

AceMcCannon

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On 6/19/2023 at 12:26 PM, TheMosster said:

chili rasboras, pygmy cories, and rocket killis or rainbowfish sounds like a nice setup.

You've technically got all 3 layers covered, though i heard the pygmies dont follow that rule very well. (they swim in the middle).

That's the plan, I've never kept chili rasboras and they seem like a good fish, but I'm really torn by them or the ember tetras. 

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TheMosster Enthusiast

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On 6/19/2023 at 3:29 PM, AceMcCannon said:

That's the plan, I've never kept chili rasboras and they seem like a good fish, but I'm really torn by them or the ember tetras. 

i feel you, i had the same struggle when i got my cories, i was torn between which one i wanted to get.

I cant help you with embers vs chilis as i havent kept ember tetras before.

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AceMcCannon Apprentice

AceMcCannon

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On 6/19/2023 at 12:32 PM, TheMosster said:

i feel you, i had the same struggle when i got my cories, i was torn between which one i wanted to get.

I cant help you with embers vs chilis as i havent kept ember tetras before.

Lol it's challenging to decide sometimes. With cories, I feel c. habrosus or hastatus would be best for my tank. 

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PineSong Grand Master

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On 6/19/2023 at 1:44 PM, AceMcCannon said:

I thought I would try to document my progress and adventures with a small planted tank. I've had aquariums in the past, but I never put a lot of effort into aquarium plants. That changes today. I picked up an in expensive Aqueon ten gallon, nice black stand to put it on and with the wife's approval we are off. 😎 (I'm gonna do my best to post and update as often as I can.)

IMG_20230618_124658_Bokeh.jpg

Ahhh, so soothing and exciting to see all the possibilities still before you! Looking forward to seeing what you do next!

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AceMcCannon Apprentice

AceMcCannon

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Alright, update coming sooner than I expected. My friend was needing some stuff for his aquarium anyway, so off to Aquarium co-op we went. Nothing too fancy on my end; I decided I was okay with the space being taken up and am using a sponge filter along with the house brand aquarium pump. I also picked up a 16" easy plant led light and it seems to fit perfectly with the tank. Now on to the exciting part, the plants! Between my online research and talking to staff at the shop, I picked out the following. 

Anubias nana "petite"

Moneywort

Watersprite

Pogostemon Stellatus Octopus 

With my new supplies in hand and my buddy with some new tank additions, we made our way home for me to begin the setup. 

 

 

 

 

IMG_20230618_130859.jpg

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nabokovfan87 Grand Master

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That's a wonderful selection for wood! Nice eye.

On 6/19/2023 at 10:35 PM, AceMcCannon said:

Between my online research and talking to staff at the shop, I picked out the following. 

Anubias nana "petite"

Moneywort

Watersprite

Pogostemon Stellatus Octopus 

Just be careful. PSO will seriously outgrow that tank. I think watersprite might too but you can keep it tamed short.  Something like bacopa Caroliniana is great too. Similar to moneywort with a slightly different shape. Microsword is also really nice too!

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AceMcCannon Apprentice

AceMcCannon

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Alright folks. I took my time, but I started with adding the Activ-Flora to the tank. This was pretty straightforward. I did try to remember my training and have the substrate slope towards the front left corner, but I think I mostly did an "okay" job. I didn't have any fancy aquascaping tools, but I discovered a bamboo spatula works in a pinch 😉

I set the wood pieces into place but discovered some trimming was needed if the sponge filter was going to fit properly. Out to the garage for pruning shears, a couple calculated snips and things were looking good, at least by my standards. 

IMG_20230618_133811.jpg

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AceMcCannon

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Bare with me folks as I only slightly know what I'm doing. But nature willing I got the plants mostly positioned in spots I like, though not totally sure about the anubias nana. 

While breaking apart the plants and preparing to plant, I noticed these orange balls. Eggs? Fertilizer? I squeezed one out of curiosity, it was hard, but has goo inside when it popped. 

IMG_20230618_141655.jpg

IMG_20230618_140942.jpg

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AceMcCannon

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As I was filling the tank with a water, I suddenly realized "I should have soaked my piece of wood", which I then decided "Oh well" and carried on. I filled slowly, as I didn't want to disturb the substrate or newly homed plants. About halfway through as I was feeling more and more confident about the wood, it started to float 😐 Fortunately I had picked up some lava rock, which I wasn't intending to use, but was the perfect solution to keep the wood in place. 

After filling the tank I hooked the filter up to the air pump, added 4 oz of Fritz Zyme 7 and now I get to play the waiting game 😁

Im biased, but I'm happy with the setup so far. It's basic as hell, but I find it charming. I look forward to being able to add creatures to it. 

IMG_20230618_154430.jpg

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Nothing too crazy for updates; the tank has been running for about four days. I will say, the tank was noticeably more clear when I came home from work and their was a bit of white algae on the wood and one of the plants. Otherwise, so far so good. 

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Chick-In-Of-TheSea Grand Master

Chick-In-Of-TheSea

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On 6/20/2023 at 10:46 PM, AceMcCannon said:

It's basic as hell, but I find it charming

I love it.

On 6/20/2023 at 12:19 PM, AceMcCannon said:

the Activ-Flora

The Activ-Flora may leech ammonia for a bit or mess with pH.  That's fine.  The plants will consume the ammonia as they start to grow, and the pH will stabilize as the tank matures.

11 hours ago, AceMcCannon said:

their was a bit of white algae on the wood and one of the plants

That's biofilm.  Common with a new piece of driftwood.  A lot of creatures like to eat it - especially snails and plecos, but some other fish will eat it too.  It has protein and fiber.  Given you don't have any organisms yet, you can always remove it with a toothbrush and suck it out with a siphon.

You should start to see brown diatoms in the near future.

On 6/20/2023 at 10:46 PM, AceMcCannon said:

added 4 oz of Fritz Zyme 7

Good thinking!  That will give you a nice jump start to your cycle.

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On 6/23/2023 at 5:20 AM, Chick-In-Of-TheSea said:

That's biofilm.  Common with a new piece of driftwood.  A lot of creatures like to eat it - especially snails and plecos, but some other fish will eat it too.  It has protein and fiber.  Given you don't have any organisms yet, you can always remove it with a toothbrush and suck it out with a siphon.

Do shrimp eat it as well? I was planning on neocaridina shrimp as it was. 

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