first timer w/ a 55

[Da Squid]

Its actually not too hard to move the substrate with the water in. I washed it really well so there is very little dust kicked up. Great point about not having anything directly in the center.
I'm intrigued by this shelf idea! I think I'll need to boil more rocks to pull it off... but if I could start it maybe 6 inches high and 5 inches back from the front glass it could look pretty interesting. Even better if I could serpentine it a little so its not just a straight line. The trick would be getting it to hold back all the substrate. I might need to get some slate in there somewhere to keep the sand from spilling down. With the driftwood comming out the top of the shelf that would really be something.
Does this sound plausible? I'll roll up my sleaves and get to work tonight. Thanks for the inspiration!

 

[Sicklid]

That is totally plausible. Sounds good, I hope you can pull it off!

 

[Da Squid]

Whew, you loose track of time while working with this stuff! I'm not where I want to be yet, but I think I like where this is going.
I was thinking of putting the shelf at a more dramatic angle tomorrow. Starting near the front corner and making it travel to the back of the tank near the middle. This could give an illusion of depth? I feel like height difference is lost when looking at the tank front on and want to try and call more attention to it with intersecting angles. Drift wood was just haphazardly put in there as I'm not sure what to do with it yet.

 

[Sicklid]

Yes, you did almost exactly what I pictured in my mind when I suggested the terracing, looks great... And yes, the front-on view is difficult to achieve a good aquascape with in a 55 b/c of the lack of space. You have a good start, much more effective than just a pile of rocks in the corner! I think you are doing great for a first timer, better than my first shot which was some plastic plants and teal blue gravel...

 

[severum mama]

Looks excellent to me! It's going to be stunning when you get it planted, and you definitely have the lighting for it, LOL. Keep us updated.

 

[eja206]

i really really like your tank! great work. looks sort of amazon-y. well, i guess it will even more when there are plants in! please continue to upload photos. what fish are going in? xx

 

[ingg]

Looks a lot better! Way ahead of my first scape. I also happened to start with a 55g at planted tanks, and they are a real challenge because of the lack of depth.

For that piece of driftwood - see if you can work it in so it looks like an exposed root attached to the vertical piece in rear right. Have it come forward off of it, pointing right out at you along the substrate. It'd give the illuion of this big tree there, with an exposed root poking out of your foreground...

Also, here is a trick for levelling the front substrate line - take painter's tape or the like, and tape a straight line where you want the substrate to be to, and then level it to the tape. Remove tape, whammo, dead straight line.

 

[Da Squid]

Thanks for all the help and compliments everyone! I'll try that tree root idea. If I do any dramatic changes to the tank tonight I'll post some pics. Otherwise I'll wait till the planting and then ask for more advice .
It probably will be an amazon tank. The water is at least as low as PH 6 but it could be worse for all I know. I started cycling on april 28 and still havent seen any nitrites so it'll be a while till the fish come. Most likely some friendly schooling fish, mollies, and some sort of interesting bottom feeders. Bottom feeders were always my favorite growing up.

 

[Da Squid]

Whew, ok... Fort's plant package came. He really hooked me up! A thousand thanks to his botanical brilliance. I'm a bit intimidated by it all still. I wasn't sure which end of each plant was up .
Here are some initial pictures. Though I deeply care for all aquascaping advice, my initial need now is to find out if I planted something that should be tied or if I put a really tall plant in the front visa/versa.

I have some vague idea's of the names of these plants, but I could be wrong. The Plantgeek website has helped me out a good bit so far.
As always, comments greatly needed and the sooner the better!

 

[Sicklid]

I think you should just let the plants settle in and start to grow... You have a great beginning, let them take off and get established before you move em around! It looks fine... And when the plants mature, you will see the real adult plants size and you can get a better feel for its place in the scape.

Good job!

 

[Da Squid]

Thanks! That was my goal: to get them in the water that I could utilize any bene bacteria on them as well as to let 'em soak up the light after being stuck in a box. And to plant them deep enough that I wont find a salad floating at the top of the tank tomorrow.
Well, if no one see's any major problems then I'm going to go have a victory beer with my girlfriend. Thanks all!

 

[Sicklid]

And thus, another planted tank junkie is born... Now, when you get ready for DIY c02, let us know, lol... Even a couple of 2 liter soda bottles with check valves and a glass diffuser in there will make those plants grow like, well, like aquatic plants! You can even use the canister filter as a diffuser, but a glass one or even an airstone is fine for a low-tech home-brew setup..

Have fun with it, and enjoy that beer there, Squidward!

 

[Da Squid]

Haha. Way ahead of you. I already told my family and friends to kick in money to me next christmas that I may go buy a CO2 system. Though from reading reviews on here I think I may go all out with a pressurized system. I do hope to have a high light tank in the future after I get some hands on experience.

 

[Sicklid]

That's good... You would be surprised though, what you can achieve with your current lighting and a DIY system. Even a little bit of c02 goes a long way... But hey, I am not one to talk people out of the desire to go for greatness!

 

[Da Squid]

Just a quick update and some questions. I'm seeing new growth on all the plants! Though its strange. Some of the leaves on the stems are clearly dead. They are gray and see through and when I touch them they sort of melt away. Yet those same stems are showing lots of new green growth at the top. I've been gently running my fingers through them to kick all the dead stuff away. Is that wise?
Also, I'm getting quite a bit of long green hair algae on the glass and plants. I run a mag scraper over the glass and twirl a tooth brush around the plants (though this isnt too successful) but I was wondering if there are any more permanent solutions to slowing this algae down. Lights are on about 8 hours a day (54 watt T5)

The tank has been cycling for well over a month and still no signs of nitrites. My last act of desperation is to ask my lfs for advice and probably try some bacteria in a bottle. ammonia is around 4 ppm and no fish obviously.

 

[JustOneMore20]

Sounds like you have low lighting....so some of the plants may have had to adjust...meaning some of the growth dies off while new grows. Some plants may not do well in the low lighting....not sure what you have, but either case could be possible.

 

[Da Squid]

All the plants should be low light. That makes sense about adjustment though. They likely came from a higher lighted tank that was no doubt healthier. In any event, they seem to be doing well.

I read on plantgeek that thread algae is a result of excess iron. I suppose that is from my tap water and there is nothing I can do about it other than the toothbrush method?

 

[Sicklid]

Florida Flag fish make short work of that, but otherwise, have you started c02?

 

[Da Squid]

No, not yet. I plan on looking into that around the holidays but right now I'm trying to keep it low tech and at least get some fish first.

 

[Sicklid]

Dude! What could be more low tech than a bottle of sugar and yeast with a tube into the tank??? Seriously, it is so simple a monkey can do it, and presto! Lush plants and zero algae...

This is not to say I didn't battle algae in there for a bit, but it was mostly blue green algae that I eradicated with antibiotics... After that, I did not have ANY algae, ever! A little chunk of Java Moss and a bunch of stem plants, a few bottles of fertilizers... It is not hard, and then when you are ready to upgrade you will have a handle on the really important stuff, like knowing when and how much to dose ferts..