My 20 Gallon Tank Journey!

[Bettafanatic]

So I finally got my 20 gallon tank up and running, and the journey to turning it into a successful planted aquarium begins now!

Tank info:
Lighting: zoo med T5HO fixture 48W
Substrate: eco-complete
Using Seachem Flourish Excel
Filtration: AquaClear 30

Stock:
1 dwarf gourami
8 harlequin rasboras
8 neon tetras
3 otos
4 amano shrimp

Plants:
-camboba
-banana plant
-dwarf anubias
-dwarf hairgrass

11-5-12
Today I got all the supplies in the mail and the tank is mostly set up. I had to cut the taller piece of driftwood because my cover didn't allow it to be as tall as it was, so I cut halfway through the top piece and then banged it with a hammer (which probably wasn't a very good idea) so now it's short enough. I'll post pictures soon!

I'm also going to order all the plants from liveaquaria right now.

 

[Bettafanatic]

Pictures of the setup so far. It's just driftwood for now. I tilted the branch coming out of the taller piece towards the back a little since these were taken.

First picture is the aquaclear filter, the second is the full tank shot, and the third is the taller driftwood piece that's my favorite. What do you think?

 

[eTrain]

I'm curious to see what you do with the plants. I feel like you will soon be upgrading.

 

[Bettafanatic]

I'm curious to see what you do with the plants. I feel like you will soon be upgrading.

I have a bit of a plan about the plant placement. An upgrade is wishful thinking but a 20 L is the maximum of what'll fit on my kitchen counter.

So the plants are ordered. I ordered four banana plants, five cambobas, six anubias nana (the barteri were too expensive ), and eight dwarf hairgrass. They should arrive on Wednesday, so I've got a bit of time to plan things out. and make sure all the equipment are working properly. And I have to get some suction cups for the airstone.

 

[marsh]

If your plants arrive in little pots, my advice if you are like me is to arrange all the plants and let them sit in their new "spots" for a little while to make sure you really like the layout.

I wish I had done that from the start and been less rushed because all my plants have been uprooted and moved around and several have suffered. I love gardening and I do the same thing with my potted plants, I put them all out on the deck, snap a photo, and move them all around again. A few days later I look at my photos and I feel like the choice has made itself. I love visual problem solving and playing with color and texture in the plantscapes. Some people take it to a whole other level, like the Dutch style tanks and Japanese natural scapes, completely amazing!

Let us know how the plants look when they arrive, I was looking at their website and drooling over the variety!

 

[Bettafanatic]

I'll try that, thanks for the suggestions Marsh. I agree with not rushing to plant anything.

Does anyone know if its possible to plant a dwarf Anubia sideways?

 

[Fresh2o]

I like how you cut out the plastic strip in pic #3...reduced evaporation and escapees. Wish i thought of that; I just cut the strip through. But it allows for some side to side filter movement as needed.
I was able to reuse the plastic strip and fashion it into a lip for the HOB (see pic) to allow water to travel along the surface rather than splash down into the tank at 45 degrees. I have a 20L and it's not too deep and I did not the filter output pummeling the plants. Plus it is quieter.

 

[Bettafanatic]

Pretty smart of you. I might have to end up fashioning something to break the current too, because I have a feeling the output will beat up my camboba.

 

[Wy Renegade]

I'll try that, thanks for the suggestions Marsh. I agree with not rushing to plant anything.

Does anyone know if its possible to plant a dwarf Anubia sideways?

Dwarf Anubias, like all the Anubias should not be planted in the substrate, but rather should be attached to rock or driftwood using string or fishing line. Therefore, I would say you should be able to attach it sideways to your driftwood or whatever you like. How it will grow from there will probably be determined by the lighting it receives.

 

[Bettafanatic]

Dwarf Anubias, like all the Anubias should not be planted in the substrate, but rather should be attached to rock or driftwood using string or fishing line. Therefore, I would say you should be able to attach it sideways to your driftwood or whatever you like. How it will grow from there will probably be determined by the lighting it receives.

I'm aware of that. All the anubias will be going on the driftwood.

Finally got the shipping confirmation on my plants and the order number! Unfortunately only the dwarf hairgrass are potted so I won't be able to take as much time as I would've liked deciding on placement. But I won't rush into anything.

 

[Wy Renegade]

Does anyone know if its possible to plant a dwarf Anubia sideways?

I'm aware of that. All the anubias will be going on the driftwood.

So I'm confused by why you asked, if you were already aware of the answer?

 

[Bettafanatic]

No I meant that I'm aware that the anubias have to go on driftwood and not in the substrate. I was just wondering if I could plant one sideways.

 

[Wy Renegade]

Ah gotcha. I see it planted on foam walls and driftwood in the sideways position in lots of photos and so assume that it also grows that way along the riverbank where it normally occurs, so you should be ok to do so.

 

[Bettafanatic]

Bad news. The plants won't be coming until Thursday Until then, any placement suggestions are much appreciated!

 

[Bettafanatic]

I finally got my plants today! They arrived in the mail about an hour after I got back from school. They were pretty poorly packaged. Most of them were almost dry. It was a bit disappointing since the last time I ordered plants they were packaged perfectly.

The banana plants were really disappointing. They were tiny and had pretty beaten up leaves. In the end I couldn't even find a place for them because I ended up recieving a LOT more camboba then I paid for, so I'm putting them in my other tank instead. I also ran out of places for the camboba O_O Remind me next time to buy from a store so I know what I'm paying for.

In the end I thought the outcome was pretty good. I can't wait until the camboba grow taller because the anubias are doing a pretty good job of hiding them. I actually had to remove one of the anubias because it was blocking a good portion of the camboba, and I might have to take out one more, but I'm waiting to see how they grow. The anubias are pretty nice but I wish I'd placed them differently, but it's too late now since I can't move the driftwood without uprooting some camboba. But I'll do it later.

The only plant that was absolutely perfect was the dwarf hairgrass. They were a lot bigger than what I thought they'd be, so I almost ran out of room. But when I cut some of the bunches in half it fit fine. I can't wait until they connect and I have a nice group of them.

So what do you guys think? I might play with it a little but for now I just want to see how they grow. Any suggestions on the anubia placement?

 

[marsh]

Wow those Anubias look nice!! In my lfs those are $12-$22 for nice big specimens. The banana plants, a bit puny I agree, but I got one of those a week ago and it has shed and replaced one of its three leaves already so I bet they will improve quickly.

I have not use cambomba which one is that again?

 

[Bettafanatic]

The camboba are the ones in the back. They're very soft leaved plants. It's a bit hard to describe, but so far I really like them! It must be fun to swim through a big forest of those.

 

[Bettafanatic]

I ended up adding the rest of the camboba. No space for it in my other tank so I managed to fit it all in there.

I added the first dosage of ammonia as well. I was waiting for the plants to come. I dosed 3 mL but I have to check what the level is once I get home.

 

[Bettafanatic]

Cycle is going well. I already have nitrites! The readings so far are:

Ammonia: 1 ppm (I added 2 mL)
Nitrites: .5 ppm
pH: 7.6

Any thoughts on that?

 

[marsh]

Cycle is going well. I already have nitrites! The readings so far are:

Ammonia: 1 ppm (I added 2 mL)
Nitrites: .5 ppm
pH: 7.6

Any thoughts on that?

Cool beans! Keep it steady freddy

Hey by the way what is the temperature in your tank? When I cycled I was advised to keep the temp pretty high, like 80-85.. It was supposed to help speed things up-- don't take my word for it, but it worked for me, cycle done in <3 weeks