Planted 5 Gallon Video/Picture Diary.

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FishCrazyBenBOMB

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Well I redid my 5 gallon and i'm going to have it be heavily planted with no fertz, 20W 6500K Spiral flurecent bulb, Co2 DIY Ladder Hagen thing. (Co2 thing is in my 10 gallon for now until I switch it over to this tank.)

Plants:
JavaMoss
Corkscrew Val
Hornwort

Plants being moved from 10 gallon to this tank:
C. Wendtii
Java Fern
More Corkscrew Val
More JavaMoss


Fish:
Nimbochromis Venustus "Giraffe Hap."
Pseudotropheus Lombardoi "Kenyi Cichlid" (Female)
***Both cichlids are very small and are just in there temp. so they can get big enough for my 60 gallon cichlid setup.

This is a video and picture log so I will have pictures and videos ofcourse ha.


Well have fun viewing. It would be great if you posted some comments you have or any suggestions, I will do anything to make this better.


Well here a video!


[=http://s373.photobucket.com/albums/oo180/FishCrazyBenBOMB/?action=view&current=DSCN1196.flv[/url]
 
Sweet tank, Ben! That's going to be a killer when it grows out. You might want something tall on the right - but not anything that will take the focal point away from your main tree thing (which I like a lot). Actually, the Java moss grown large and full on the right would do the trick beautifully.

In a week or so I'll send you some Java fern - Microsorum Pteropus 'Wendilov.' I think it will look good tied to the tree. Anyway, if you don't like the looks of it, you can use it elsewhere... or in another tank... or, I hear it tastes pretty good with a little salad dressing. :)
 
Thanks man, oh and thanks for sending the java fern. If you do send it this wekk I would try to send it friday so it gets here on monday or tuesday since christmas is on thrusday and christmas eve is on wensday, but whatever works for you :D.

Yeah i'm ordering all my new 200 bucks worth of stuff tmorrow so i'm excited, most of it is for breeding my shrimp. All this stuff your sending me I might have to send you some shrimp once my business gets going sometime in may-june a.k.a. this summer.


Yeah I love that tree thing as well, i've had it since I started aquariums hardcore like lol. It's awesome. This is like one of my only tanks I actually like just because it looks so natural. Plus those cichlids just pull it together especially that giraffe hap.
 
Neat video! It looks like some of your Java Moss Experiment -- the one with the rubber bands -- got a little loose? Or just moving them around? It'll be neat to compare when the moss is attached.
 
Neat video! It looks like some of your Java Moss Experiment -- the one with the rubber bands -- got a little loose? Or just moving them around? It'll be neat to compare when the moss is attached.


Yeah I moved stuff around so I could if that tree thing in there. I removed the rubberbands since most of it was rooted, i'll prob. just trim the lose stuff off and let the moss grow nice and dense.


Oh and the thing I did when I put the javamoss on a round rock and put the neat around it, made it flat on the rock, rooted down in only 4 days. I think it worked great :D

Yeah thanks, I think this is one of my favorite tanks now, might just be because I love the fish in it but still omg I love the tank now Lol.
 
I recently found out that I don't think that my one "giraffe cichlid" is actually a "giraffe cichlid". I think I might have mixed it up with this cichlid Haplochromis Livingstong. They are very much the same, that might be. I don't know i'm confused lol.
 
I did some new scaping of things, moved some rocks around, took some out, added some more corkscrew val. I removed the hood from the light so my plants get more light to it. I tied some java fern onto the tree thing, looks cool. I removed the hornwort because I didn't really like it. I added some C. wendtii from the 10G. I added a little piece of driftwood cover in javamoss. I also took out that ugly intake filter and replaced it with my HOB whisper 20 Power filter with adjustable flow rate.

Read the red below please.


Please give me some suggestions on aquascaping this, I don't honestly like it much at all.


Heres the vid.

http://s373.photobucket.com/albums/oo180/FishCrazyBenBOMB/?action=view&current=DSCN1197.flv]URL]
 
Even better.

BTW, how long did it take for the moss to adhere to the rocks and/or driftwood? And how often do you have to trim back the moss?
 
Even better.

BTW, how long did it take for the moss to adhere to the rocks and/or driftwood? And how often do you have to trim back the moss?


Some of my moss took 3 days to root down, some took 2 weeks, I don't know why the difference but yeah.

I like to keep mine thick and dense so once I see it growing up to around 2-3in I trim it down to anywhere from 1/4'' to 3/4''. It grows back pretty fast.


You have any suggestions for aquascaping at this point for me?
 
oky doky artichokee,

i would add more sand to add some elevation, seems kinda flat.

you have to wait for the plants to grow out to scape with them. right now its more the hardscape i think you arnt pleased with.

adding depth and elevation may be a nice touch while you wait for your java moss grow out (even tho it grows soooo slooooooooooo). maybe partaily bury some rocks.
 
oky doky artichokee,

i would add more sand to add some elevation, seems kinda flat.

you have to wait for the plants to grow out to scape with them. right now its more the hardscape i think you arnt pleased with.

adding depth and elevation may be a nice touch while you wait for your java moss grow out (even tho it grows soooo slooooooooooo). maybe partaily bury some rocks.


Ok. Well I ordered some black moon sand for that sand that I will be replacing the sand that is in there now with. Where do you think I should add the elevation to, left side, back side, right side ect. Be more specific pretty please :D
 
Tell me what you think of it now,...

Ben, I like the second version you posted better than this one... but that is a matter of personal taste, and doesn't mean too much of anything. The one suggestion I might offer is that you spend a lot of time just looking at the tank and try to visualize what it will look like fully planted - rather than concentrating just on the hardsacpe.

I want this to look as good as possible.
IMHO, the thing that makes an aquarium look as good as possible is the plants that grow their.

(check your PM)
 
Ben, I like the second version you posted better than this one... but that is a matter of personal taste, and doesn't mean too much of anything. The one suggestion I might offer is that you spend a lot of time just looking at the tank and try to visualize what it will look like fully planted - rather than concentrating just on the hardsacpe.


IMHO, the thing that makes an aquarium look as good as possible is the plants that grow their.

(check your PM)


Ok, and checked pm.
 
you have a great slope effect from left to right my problem is it draws my eye to the center chunk of moss and it makes that tank fee smaller. What if you take that piece of DW that has the moss attatched to it and bury it slightly in the sand in the same spont only horizontal not vertical. The right side is lacking slightly in scape maybe something a little larger in the middleground. The tank feels bigger than 5 gallons because of your rockwood decoration thing. Something is just missing on the right side
 
Very Nice!

Thanks man!

you have a great slope effect from left to right my problem is it draws my eye to the center chunk of moss and it makes that tank fee smaller. What if you take that piece of DW that has the moss attatched to it and bury it slightly in the sand in the same spont only horizontal not vertical. The right side is lacking slightly in scape maybe something a little larger in the middleground. The tank feels bigger than 5 gallons because of your rockwood decoration thing. Something is just missing on the right side


I'm going to try to attempt some more scaping tonight. I don't want to do a whole lot since I think my new black moon sand will be getting here early next week, monday or tuesday. Once I get it i'm going to replace it with my sand I got in there now. I might do something cool and leave some of the sand in there now and put it into the center front. It will be cool don't worry :D. Like I said don't want to do a whole lot since i'm going to take all the sand out of the tank anyways and replace it with the black, that means uprooting and moving everything.

I'll post a new vid up tonight most likely.
 
I've done quite a bit to it, but don't feel like explaining it all so i'll let the video do the talking for me. Just one thing I would like to say though is that i'm replacing the sand in there now with black moon sand, and replacing the gravel river with the sand in there now.


Compare my last video to this one and tell me if you like it better. Also if you have any more suggestions tell me like you did before.


=http://s373.photobucket.com/albums/oo180/FishCrazyBenBOMB/?action=view&current=DSCN1202.flv]
 
i think it looks great!

how are you going to change your substrate? i did it a while ago and it was
MEEEEESSSSYY

i would elevate the back toward the front to make it seem longer, rather than having the front higher, or have a mound in the middle sloping down.

the other rocks look nice. tons of strings on that 1 rock and java moss. looks like a hostage moss being strapped to a rock for questioning!! but he will not talk!!

i love black sand! i think that will look great.
 
Thanks man. I'll prob. change it the same way I changed my gravel, just get a cup and start scupping lol. I'll will most likely move the two cichlids while doing this, just to put less stress on them.

After I get the black sand in I will basically mimic what I have now but do some tweaks like the elevating the back and such.

Keep in touch! :D
 
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