5 Gallon Planted Tank

[Brian_Nano12g]

My new drop checker is already here (pretty fast from China). But it's crooked. I will probably post a pic of it later.

Dang... you really do have the worst luck with China goods. But if it will make you feel better, I bought two of those and one was crooked too. You could try sending the seller a message with your dissatisfaction and, more than likely, they'll just send you another for free.

 

[Billbug68]

Yeah, that stuff is hit or miss. One of mine looks a little odd, but you get what you pay for. When stuff is like 5 bucks shipped, I'm not complainin...

 

[maxwellag]

Sorry I didn't post pics, I have been so busy I promise I will later tonight.

 

[maxwellag]

Ok, here's the new drop checker (notice the slightly crooked bell)

It's not a huge deal I guess. It is only noticeable when viewing it like the picture above. When it's on the tank, you can't see it at all.

Here's an FTS (before I clean the algae... I will do that later)

The HC seems to be doing ok, other than some of it getting a bit uprooted.

I'm 100% positive that lack of co2 isn't the cause, considering the drop checker is yellow

I might try raising the light, but I really don't have much of an option to do so. I am not allowed to hang anything from the ceiling or walls, so it has to be from the ground (I mean the stand) up.

I will clean it up a bit and post some new pics soon.

 

[Brian_Nano12g]

Did you try messaging the seller? I'm telling you, you might end up getting a free one.

As for co2 and that algae, unfortunately spiro loves high light, ferts, and co2. It will just grow with it. Hope you figure it out.

Edit:

If your goal is to reduce light intensity, you can use widow screen if suspending the light isn't ideal for your situation.

 

[maxwellag]

Did you try messaging the seller? I'm telling you, you might end up getting a free one.

As for co2 and that algae, unfortunately spiro loves high light, ferts, and co2. It will just grow with it. Hope you figure it out.

Edit:

If your goal is to reduce light intensity, you can use widow screen if suspending the light isn't ideal for your situation.

Yeah, I was thinking about that. It might me visible unless I do a really really good job of concealing. I will look into it.

 

[Brian_Nano12g]

Bill has done it. I never tried it. But he mentioned to me that he took apart the Ray 2 and somehow put the window screen on the inside of the splash shield. So it will be concealed and reduce your light output by approx. 30%.

 

[maxwellag]

Cleaned! (Well, I did the best I could :/ )

Removing spyrogyra is not fun at all. The strands are almost impossible to fully get rid of manually. I did a 50% WC and re-dosed N, P, K, T and Excel. I (temporarily) raised the light. It looks super fancy

Is it just me, or does the lighting in this shot *almost* look like a pro FTS? The lighting seems very close to that of a professional rimless FTS. Must be something with the angle of reflection because I raised the light. That is, of course, disregarding the gray lines

The reflections on the glass make the tank seem cleaner than it really is. If I look through the sides, I can see little yellow/green spots on the glass. I will leave it like that for a week or so and see how it does. It only raised it about 3 inches, so I don't expect it to do much. It's worth a try I guess. My next option is Algaefix or window screen.

 

[Brian_Nano12g]

The light does look cool elevated like that, I mean just imagining it as suspended. That styro scares me a bit, but luckily that Ray 2 is longer than the tank! If you can't put anything into the ceiling or wall to suspend it, why not try making a DIY conduit light hanger? It's pretty cheap. The only thing that's expensive is the bender but you can always return it and get your money back.

 

[Jkeating8]

I'm sure there's a way to rig one of those 15$ zoo med stands to work with this.

 

[maxwellag]

I'm sure there's a way to rig one of those 15$ zoo med stands to work with this.

Do you mean this? I think it looks kind of ugly...

 

[Fresh2o]

You might try a no frills solution using shelf brackets. Not my tank (JungleFowl's 10 gallon planted tank):

 

[maxwellag]

You might try a no frills solution using shelf brackets. Not my tank (JungleFowl's 10 gallon planted tank):

Good idea. While that would work, I think I prefer the conduit hanger. It looks much nicer than the ugly mounting legs. I'm just not sure I'd be able to pull it off. The Zoomed one looks like it would work fine, but it isn't the most attractive and has a hook at the end of the horizontal bar.

 

[Jkeating8]

Do you mean this? I think it looks kind of ugly...

I agree that's it is not aesthetically pleasing, but I think if kept behind the tank you would only be able to see the small bar. This wouldn't look bad, IMO.

 

[maxwellag]

I think I will try window screen for now. It is the easiest and cheapest option I have.

 

[Billbug68]

It's not that difficult. There's only two screws on each end cap. Remove the screws from the end WITHOUT the switch and wire, then the splash guard slides right out. I cut a piece of widow screen, put it between the LEDs and splash guard, then replaced end cap. No big deal.

 

[Jkeating8]

The only thing that confuses me is that the HC seems to really grow up and not out.

 

[Billbug68]

The only thing that confuses me is that the HC seems to really grow up and not out.

Didn't even notice that... I wonder why it's not creeping...

 

[aqua_chem]

It's not that difficult. There's only two screws on each end cap. Remove the screws from the end WITHOUT the switch and wire, then the splash guard slides right out. I cut a piece of widow screen, put it between the LEDs and splash guard, then replaced end cap. No big deal.

That seems unnecessarily complicated. I just wrapped it around my entire fixture, cut it so that I had about an inch or so of overlap, and secured it with paper clamps. This was a Hagen Glo fixture, so I was a little worried about heat, but it ended up not being a problem, so I don't think it would be a problem with LEDs either.


EDIT: I also used 2x4 to elevate a fixture off my tank. I fall on the practical end of the practical-aesthetic spectrum with things like this.

 

[Billbug68]

That seems unnecessarily complicated. I just wrapped it around my entire fixture, cut it so that I had about an inch or so of overlap, and secured it with paper clamps. This was a Hagen Glo fixture, so I was a little worried about heat, but it ended up not being a problem, so I don't think it would be a problem with LEDs either. EDIT: I also used 2x4 to elevate a fixture off my tank. I fall on the practical end of the practical-aesthetic spectrum with things like this.

It's really not all that complicated. Removing two screws doesn't take a rocket scientist... And it's also much more ascetically pleasing, than an entire fixture wrapped in window screen. On another note, aqua, any ideas why his HC would grow up in high light?