First time aquascaping

[plantgirl02]

Hey guys,
I'm new to the site. I've been keeping fish for years but finally decided to do a heavily planted tank, something I've wanted for a long time. I have a 29 gallon, 65 watt Sunpaq 6700 light, Fluorite substrate. I am dosing with ferts from instructions given to me by a highly reputable store nearby. I'll probably add fish in a week or so...

Anyway, it is all planted now and I feel like I did random acts of planting.. I don't know what looks good.. I don't think it looks right. Any suggestions? It is cloudy because I stirred up the Fluorite. Remember it's my first time aquascaping

And a question, I found 2 snails scavenging around. Did some research and they look like Malaysian Trumpet Snails. How do you feel about snails? I think it's cool that they eat algae but don't want a billion of them.

Thanks in advance for any input.

 

[Thever]

I've become a believer in nerite snails, as a voracious eater of the slimy stuff and they dont reproduce(not in fresh water anyways )

Looks good so far

 

[fort384]

I think it is a good start. Much better than my first attempt.

Consider adding some more hardscape, like rocks, or a nice large piece of driftwood. Then you can attach plants or mosses to the hardscape using fishing line... eventually those plants will take off, and give you some great levels in your tank.

 

[joy13]

Is that anubia you have on the right that is flowering? I can't tell if the rhizome is planted or not, they do better tied to either a rock or drift wood. It should really look nice once it fills in.

I like snails, I know if I overfeed I will have to many, if I see my MTS trying to abandon the tank or see them crawling around during the day there is something wrong with the water and time for a quick PWC. MTS are live bearing snails and also you only need one to have a little one.

Are you going to be using CO2?

 

[elwaine]

Ditto on the Anubias (if that's what it is, the rizome should not be covered in the substrate).

The tank is looking very nice. As far as how it should look: it should look anyway that is pleasing to you. Some prefer aquagardens with "rules" that dictate type of plants, their distribution, color, over all balance and design. There are people who prefer the "raw" look of nature without the formal look of a cared for garden. There are those who just want an asthetic look without regard to nature and have beautiful tanks with stautes as well as lovely plants. Plants can dominate the scene, or simply be lovely backgrounds (as in the Iwagami style).

So in a very real way, the planted tank is not supposed to look right to anyone other than the one who planted it. That's my $.02 anyway... others may disagree and they'd be wrong

My suggestion is to look at many of the planted aquariums you'll see in this and in other forums and then try to copy the design that most appeals to you. Over time, it will become entirely your own creation as you will eventually move and/or replace plants to your liking, no matter how you started out. And I must say you started out beautifully!

I happen to like having snails in a planted aquarium... the smal pond snails that is. I have two types. One is foot ball shaped and the other is ram's horn shaped. Neither exceeds 1/4 inch. Ordinary pond snails eat algae and debris. They do not eat healthy plants (contrary to what others might tell you) but they do keep the inside glass spotless. I've not cleaned the inside glass on either of my 2 planted tanks since the snail popluation grew... and that's been at least 2 months. Prior to that I had to clean the glass every week or so. Also, I was starting to get black beard algae on some of my plants. The snails ate the algae and left the plant leaves looking great. Finally, since I wanted the look of a natural Florida backwater pond or bog, the snails add to that scene. - I've no experience with Nerites or with the large snails that are sold for fresh water tanks.

 

[plantgirl02]

Thanks you guys! I was just not feeling right about it, but hey, we all have to start somewhere And now that I've woken up and my tank is clear, it looks better!

Yes, that is an Anubias flowering on the right. Thanks for the advice on not burying the rhizome. I will fix that now! Do I just bury the roots and that's it? Or just use a couple weights and not bury anything? I'm going to tie 1 or 2 to my driftwood but not sure what to do with the others.

I think I will try to reorganize the driftwood to make it look more prominent.. maybe get a bigger piece sometime later.

And, I think I'm going to keep these couple snails. I'm sure I'll have more than a couple soon, but I think it looks kind of cool too.. and it would be sweet not to have to clean my glass!

I really appreciate all of the replies!!

 

[plantgirl02]

Oh.. and no CO2. I'm using Seachem Excel though. My plant guy told me to start out using 1/4 of the dose and then increasing it a 1/4 every 2 weeks.

 

[Jnam]

Excell works but will get costly over time. Using CO2 to get your carbon is a cheaper alternative. IMO

 

[addicted2fish]

looks good for your 1st time, try to get some filter floss *(walmart batting for quilts like a baby blanket ) just make sure its 100% polyester, and use a little of that in your filter, make sure none gets in' tank . shoudl help the tank clear up cystal clear. I think you did a really good job, would love to see a now' pic.

 

[plantgirl02]

Thanks guys. My tank is a little cloudy today, I hope it isn't but it may be a bacterial bloom.. going to do some tests on it. Once it clears up, I'll be sure to post more pix as I did change some stuff around!

 

[plantgirl02]

Ok, had to post this even though it's a little cloudy. I tested and there is 0 ammonia, so I don't know what's going on. My next water change is Friday..

 

[FishCrazyBenBOMB]

Lookin' good.

 

[plantgirl02]

Thanks I wish I could take the picture better, but you get the idea

 

[sg3531]

Nice layout, am new in planted tank too, far more natural setup than mine. Ah, picking up tips from your thread.

 

[joy13]

Your tank looks a lot better with the clear water!! I am sure you will be rescaping it as your plants mature, something I do all the time. I usually tie my anubia to driftwood or a small rock that way if they want to root in the substrate it can.

 

[plantgirl02]

I bought 13 fish and 6 ghost shrimp this past weekend. 6 Bloodfin Tetras, 3 Red Wag Swordtails (2 female, 1 male), 4 Glowlight Tetras and 1 Glowlight Rasbora -- it was in the same tank as the other glowlights.. didn't realize it was different til I got home.

Here are some new pictures .. wish it didn't look so crazy bright?

 

[addicted2fish]

looks good, try turning your flash off, if your not doing that already , and as you look into before taking the shot, look at the light comong in, you can go in differnt angels to get the glare off. very nice fish !!! great job on plants !! they look great ! ~~

 

[elwaine]

Happy fish and happy plants... well done!

The pictures look fine. Flash is difficult to use because of reflections (which you've avoided nicely), but you will get blurs for fish if you don't use the flash.

I've found two tricks that work well: (as already mentioned) I try angling the camera - usually towards the bottom of the tank. Second, I cheat and post process my images in Photoshop.

 

[brutus]

Tank looks good. It is hard to take good pics.Do you use a image editor?

 

[Jchillin]

I wish my tank looked as good when I first started in planted. I didn't see anyone address your 0 ammonia issue. This is one of the many reasons I delved into planted... no ammonia or nitrite issues because the plants gobble it up. How cool is that?

I liked elwaine's "aquascape" explanation, it was very thorough and described the varying elements of planted "Aquascaping". I personally prefer the "grow out jungle" look over the "cultured garden" look. I leave the garden look to my actual earth bound garden.