Tank Overhaul Log - 29 Gallon

[spilzer]

Last week I finally had time to get started on overhauling my 29 gallon FW into a fully (low-tech) planted tank. The steps I've taken so far are small and few but I wanted to start this log in anticipation of the numerous questions, comments, etc. that are bound to come up during this process. My goal is to tank with just under 2WPG, densely planted, no-C02, driftwood and rocks, and peaceful community fish (tetras, angels, pleco, etc.)

Here's the equipment I started with:
29 Gallon All-Glass Aquarium (30"x12"x18")
30" All-Glass Deluxe Fluorescent Hood
Eheim Liberty 200 HOB filter
12" Aquatic Gardens Profile Heater
Spectra Stone "Nutmeg" gravel

Here’s the equipment I’m upgrading to:
Twin-Tube 30" Versa-Top
Nova Extreme T5 30" 48W
60 lbs of Eco-Complete
Eheim ECCO Canister Filter 2232

So far I've only be able to take two steps towards the new tank.

First: I removed the Spectra Stone substrate so that the tank is now bare bottomed. I did this a few months ago when I moved into a new apartment and had to empty the tank anyway to transfer it. Ever since I've been meaning to lay down the Eco but don't ever seem to have time to do such a large project. I'm hoping to do it this Saturday, but we'll see. It's amazing how quickly you can see mulm build up without a substrate! I've been trying to save some of it as a starter layer for my Eco, is this a bad idea? Or should I get rid of it all before putting in my new substrate?

Second: I tested out the ECCO filter as I have never had a canister filter before. I used the following order for the media baskets (from bottom to top) 1. course filter pad, 2. Ehfisubstrat Pro, 3. fine filter pad. I put the filter on the stand beneath my tank, hooked up the hoses and got ready to prime the thing. I wasn't totally sure how to make it work because I got the filter from a friend and it didn't have the instructions with it and so as I tried to start it I managed to create a huge puddle on my floor! I quickly shut the valves on the intake/outake hoses and got a bucket to put the filter in. It was a total mess so I spent a while cleaning up. At this point it was getting late and I didn't have time to try again. I was gone away for the weekend so I still haven't had a chance to get it up and running but I think I have a better idea what to do now. I learned the hard way that it's important to ensure the hose valves are shut before trying to close the canister and that there is enough room for the lid so water isn't displaced out of the filter onto your floor. I'll be trying again tomorrow so I'll update then with how it goes.

Anyway, I'm excited to even get a few small things done on this tank. I'll try to include some pictures tomorrow too of what the tank looks like now as a "before" that I can compare to later when I have a rocking planted tank.

 

[neilanh]

Looks good, I think you'll be happy with the equipment selections you've made.

About the mulm under the eco. There's no reason to leave it there, as the eco should contain everything you need, but there's no harm in doing it either IMO.

Out of curiousity, what bulbs did you select for your new T5 fixture?

 

[spilzer]

I went with the bulbs it came with a 10,000K and a 6,700K each at 24W. I thought that I would try out the mixed colors look because a lot of people here have said they prefer that to all 10,000K or all 6,700K. I haven't had a chance to get the thing up and running yet so I'll have to wait and see what I think before I declare and opinion. I don't have it out of the box yet so maybe I should wait to ask but does anyone know the best way to mount this fixture? Does it come with legs to raise it off the glass of the versa-top? Can I put it directly on the glass?

 

[neilanh]

I have tanks that I've mixed the colors on just like you, and I like it.

I don't know if that fixture comes with legs or not, sorry.

 

[spilzer]

I'm going to try to take a look at the fixture tonight (it's my first free night in a while) so I guess I'll find out soon!

If it doesn't have legs what would be the best way of mounting it?

 

[Purrbox]

You could rest it directly on the glass canopy, or the legs could be bought separately for a few dollars if they have the necessary mounting hardware.

 

[pitt420dude]

Why 60lbs? That seems like quite a lot. I used 50lbs to cover my 55 gal with a 4" base.

As far as your light, just make sure it is high enough so that when bubbles break the surface and "pop" they don't get water on the bulbs.

Regarding your filter: I used more than a few large towels to clean up some mishaps when breaking in my Fluval 304 cannister filter. Trial and error and you'll quickly figure out the best way to service and maintain it. Sounds like you've already learned a tip to avoid big spills, lol.

Good luck and I feel obligated to ask for pics when you're ready.

 

[blazeyreef]

Why 60lbs? That seems like quite a lot. I used 50lbs to cover my 55 gal with a 4" base.

As far as your light, just make sure it is high enough so that when bubbles break the surface and "pop" they don't get water on the bulbs.

Regarding your filter: I used more than a few large towels to clean up some mishaps when breaking in my Fluval 304 cannister filter. Trial and error and you'll quickly figure out the best way to service and maintain it. Sounds like you've already learned a tip to avoid big spills, lol.

Good luck and I feel obligated to ask for pics when you're ready.

really? 40lbs wasnt enough for my 29gall...

 

[neilanh]

Yeah, I think I put 50 pounds in my 29gallon.

 

[spilzer]

Why 60lbs? That seems like quite a lot. I used 50lbs to cover my 55 gal with a 4" base.

I used a substrate calculator and given my tank dimensions it said I'd need 60lbs for a 3" depth.

But actually I had a small debate with myself because 60 seemed like a lot of Eco but I wasn't confident that 40 would be quite enough. Ultimately I decided I would be happier with a little bit extra than not enough. Also if I ended up wanting 60 but had only ordered 40 I would have to pay more shipping (~another 10$) for the single bag than it would cost to add another bag onto my already large order (just a couple $ more).

So, I now have 60lbs but I haven't put it in the tank yet so I might not use all of it. Though that may be dangerous because I know if I have extra substrate I'll want to get a tank to put it in and we all know where that would lead...

 

[pitt420dude]

Hmm...looks like I was wrong. Not the first time and probably won't be the last, lol.

I guess it's b/c my 55 gal casts sucha narrow footprint. It's probably alot taller so the gallonage isn't as important as the footprint for substrate purposes.

 

[spilzer]

Yeah that makes a lot of sense. Anyway, I'm definitely going to lay down the Eco tonight so I can let you know how much I have left when I'm done.

 

[spilzer]

UPDATE:

I finally had time over the weekend to complete the first stages of the overhaul. I have lots of pictures (before and after) that I'm eager to post but have to wait until after work tonight because they are on my home computer.

The tank looks so great now, I'm super happy and can't wait to see all my plants start to fill in.

A list of all the new things in my tank: rocks, driftwood, substrate, background, filter, light fixture, and of course plants!

I also tested my water for the first time in a while. These are the results:
pH 7.4
NH4 0
NO2 0
NO3 7
KH 3
GH 71.6

The first four tests are all exactly where they should be but this was the first time I've ever tested KH or GH. Do my numbers look okay? The instructions for the API test said that anything below 3 dKH was low and wouldn't have good buffering capacity. How about if you're just at 3?

Anyway, I'm thrilled with the work I've put in and I can't wait until I can share that with everyone in picture form.

Edited to add:
In all my excitement I forgot to list the types of plants I put in. Here they are:

• Elodea (Elodea densa) which I understand is the same as Anacharis
• Anubias nana (Anubias barteri v. 'nana')
• Ozelot Sword (Echinodorus x. 'Ozelot')
• Java Moss (Vesicularia dubyana)
• Two plants from the "assorted" bin at the LFS. I think one is some sort of Bacopa and the other is either another type of Anubias or Sword

 

[neilanh]

Congrats! Pics, Pics Pics!

Soft water like yours will have special considerations, but a lot of the nicer, rarer plants prefer soft water, so consider yourself lucky! My KH is 4-5, so it's not much different than mine.

 

[spilzer]

What kind of special considerations? Do I just have to watch extra carefully for pH swings?

Also:
During the overhaul I started running an ECCO 2232 canister filter in addition to my Liberty 200 HOB filter with the idea that eventually I would take the Liberty HOB off the tank completely. Does anyone have any ideas on how long I should wait before removing the old filter to ensure that the new filter is colonized? I know cycling can take up to 6 weeks but I'm not starting a brand new tank and there is LOTS of seeded material in there already.

 

[Purrbox]

If you can cram the media from your old filter into the new one, remove as soon as you're ready. Other wise I'd try to wait at least a month to ensure that the new filter is well colonized.

 

[pitt420dude]

A month should be good. Since you have so much surface area for teh ben bact. to adhere to in there already, I'd bet even after 2 weeks you would still be fine. Better make it a month though just to be safe.

 

[spilzer]

I bet I could manage to get the old media into the new canister but that would involve opening it up and last time I tried that I made a terrific mess. I think I'll just play the waiting game...a month isn't so long considering how long I've been waiting for this upgrade.

 

[spilzer]

UPDATE:

The new setup is coming along very, very nicely. I'm super pleased with how everything looks and I'm sure my fish are happy about it too. I've been eagerly watching for signs of plant growth and so far it's been slow, but I kind of expected that with <2WPG. I think that the Anacharis is doing the best so far, though my Anubias is also looking pretty happy. I have to resist the urge to constantly be in there mucking about and rescaping but I think it's wisest to let things settle down a bit.

Edited to add pictures:
Okay, looks like I Photobucket is going to work for me. Yay, PICS!

This was my tank way back when I started. Notice the plastic plants, blech!

Then I upgraded to a few live plants, but I had no idea what I was doing (evidence: the white edge non-aquatic in the corner).

When I moved apartments I decided to upgrade to a fully planted tank. I left the bottom bare until I was ready to put in EcoComplete (it seemed silly to put the gravel back after moving when I was just going to remove it later).

The draining process was the first time I had used a python. I loved it and will be using for water changes from now on.

Here you can see my full setup with the holding "tank" that housed my fish during the process.

Refilling after changing the background, adding EcoComplete, replacing driftwood and PLANTING!

The finished product.

I'm so proud of all the work I put into this and the results. I can't wait to see all my plants grow in. I love coming home now and sitting and watching all the action in my tank. It'll be fun to watch it as it matures.

 

[spilzer]

Does Eheim make a spraybar attachment for their ECCO canister filters? I'd really like to get something to extend the outflow's elbow hard-tubing.

You can see in the picture above that I had used some of the green Eheim flexible tubing which I tried puncturing holes in. I had a really tough time making them big enough and the water wouldn't flow out the holes. I also had a mishap with some otos making their way into the tubing which was really sad so for now I've taken it out.

One option I thought of was trying to get a small length of PVC that I could drill holes into, I guess that's essentially what an Eheim spray-bar is anyway. I tried Home Depot but they didn't carry lengths of PVC so maybe I need to find a plumbing store.

Does anyone have experience with DIY spraybars that could lend some advice about the best way to attach one to the filter outflow? What joints and other pieces will I need to make a spray-bar?