Wilderness - Snyper's first scaped nano

[snyper564]

Ok i have been working on this the past week trying to source everything and figure out what i was going to do, but here it is my first scaped nano - Wilderness.

Tank specs:

15l nano tank (1ft)
11w 6500k cfl
Sera Floranette A
Daro Aqua Flourish
Sponge filter - DIY (http://www.tropicalaquarium.co.za/showthread.php?t=3841)

The tank is planted with dwarf hairgrass, the heater is hidden behind the driftwood and has java moss(thanks Slojo) attached to it i have checked the tank and the temp is fine everywhere .There are 3 slate rocks. And 3 vallisneria that will eventually grow thick enough to hide the filter.
Ill post pics again to show the plant growth. The tank is cycled and ready to go :)

The pics just dont seem to do the tank justice.

[Nirv]

Looks good - I look forward to how it will turn out :)

[Zoom]

Looks very cool.

Watch our for condensation under that hood. The CFL's don't like moisture AT ALL.

[Kel-Sol]

Wow, Stephen!!!! That looks brilliant. The driftwood in the back + moss is a really nice touch.

[windfire]

awesome tank dude it should look good when it grows in. what livestock are you going to put in it?

[Vis]

Like the idea Snyper. Just one question: how long is that hairgrass? It looks a little tall for dwarf.

[Henk Hugo]

Like the idea Snyper. Just one question: how long is that hairgrass? It looks a little tall for dwarf.

looks like immersed growth vs submersed growth

[snyper564]

@nirv me2:)
@zoom i used the waterproof sockets again they work well on all the tanks i have cfls on
@kel-sol thanks the driftwood will look really good once the moss takes over
@windfire its for my crowntail betta(Basil) he is navigating the grass well ill be putting in a betta hammock for him to rest on he sleeps on the driftwood and the gravel at the moment
@vis the fact that you mention that make me think i put hairgrass in its abt 8cm in length if its hg and not the dwarf then ill just trim here is a pic pls id it so i know if its the dwarf or not


looks like immersed growth vs submersed growth

Stupid question but what do you mean:bigsmile:

[Henk Hugo]

immersed = outside of water with wet feet
submersed = wet all round

most plants have two dif sets of leaves/growth pattern for immersed or submersed

hairgrass is black listed btw - Eleocharis acicularis - Eleocharis parvulus

Plant being grown in LARGE scale by local aquatic plant farms. It is very well established in the hobby - technically illegal but not inforced - just like apple snails

[Vis]

looks like immersed growth vs submersed growth

OK interesting. The dwarf hairgrass I have never grow longer than max 5 cm submerged or emersed.


pls id it so i know if its the dwarf or not


Not that great on plant Id sorry but they look very long. Maybe give it a trim after it settled and see how it grows back.

[Henk Hugo]

Vissie - as i said - out of water it grows tall, in water it grows short... immersed vs submersed

[snyper564]

Vissie - as i said - out of water it grows tall, in water it grows short... immersed vs submersed
Thanks. From what you can see in the pic wat type of hairgrass do i have

[Henk Hugo]

it is E. parvula with immersed growth. it will regrow as submersed growth once it settles in under water. Rememebr most aquatic plants are grown on commercial scale as immersed.

[snyper564]

it is E. parvula with immersed growth. it will regrow as submersed growth once it settles in under water. Rememebr most aquatic plants are grown on commercial scale as immersed.

Thanks for the id, i saw that all the plants that arrive at the lfs just have wet pots and have dry tops(leaves) before they put them into the tanks.

[Henk Hugo]

yea - the true aquatics will then freak out, shed the immersed leaves and grow submersed ones and the non-aquatics will freak out, shed their leaves and die

[Kel-Sol]

Thanks for the info, Henk! Did not know about submersed vs. immersed growth.

[Henk Hugo]

Always a plesure Kel-Sol.

What you will notice if you allow some true aquatic stem plants to grow past the water line in your fishtank the leaves will change to immersed at the top and submersed under water. same plant 2 dif sets of leaves

[snyper564]

Ok here is the latest tank shot. With my betta Basil in it.

[Slojo]

Snyper it looks cool.
I must see that tank eye-to-eye.

[Kel-Sol]

Snyper it looks cool.
I must see that tank eye-to-eye.

Tanks always look better in real life!

[snyper564]

Ok popped in the moonlight quickly for the nano will do the diy on that sometime the light encircles the rock nicely and looks stunning when all the lights are off

[f-fish]

Nice ... is that a single blue LED - are you planning on running the moonlight on a timer or will you be leaving it on all night ?

[snyper564]

Its a single blue 3.5v led connected to a transformer with the necessary resistors. if I leave it on for the night I just put it off in the morning wen I feed the fish I have the main lights on a timer though to ensure acurate timing. I leave it on the entire night as the light only shines on this one spot leaving many places for the betta to rest in peace

[f-fish]

Ok - I'd love to know when / if you see algae growth on that rock and not on the rest of the scape. If I am understanding this correctly you will have some form of light on that rock 24/7 so I would expect algae at some stage no mater how good your water parameters are.

[snyper564]

Yip that's correct well most evenings, ill let u no wen I see algae - if I do :)

[Zoom]

I doubt you will see algae on that rock because of the led. The light isn't intense enough to spark an algae bloom. I would beleive that the photo makes it look brighter than what it really is because of the darkness around. The camera would compensate for it, and thus make the blue LED look actually brighter than it is.

[Kel-Sol]

Zoom, you're right. I've seen the tank with the light on and it's definately not that bright.
Stephen, I thought you only had the light on for show every now and again but the blue looks really nice.

[Vis]

That moonlight looks awesome snyper. Will need to try it. Where did you get the supplies?

[snyper564]

I used an old torch charger it was 6.5v so I used 3 resistors from communica or electronics 123 to bring it down to 3.5v for the led then I stuck it into an electronic block which is stuck under the hood

Zoom and kelly ur right the light is not to bright just perfect for the nano the camera def compensates and makes it look a lot brighter

[Ruan]

How did I miss this thread?
I love what your doing with the hairgrass!

[Kel-Sol]

How did I miss this thread?
I love what your doing with the hairgrass!

Unfortunately Stephen/Snyper had to take the hairgrass out and plant it in "clumps" and not spread out because the gravel vac-ing was an absolute mission! But the tank still looks super awesome.

[Ruan]

Unfortunately Stephen/Snyper had to take the hairgrass out and plant it in "clumps" and not spread out because the gravel vac-ing was an absolute mission! But the tank still looks super awesome.
Sad but so true, I'm also considering removing my hairgrass. All the tank debris gets cought in it.

BTW, where's your tank thread, I was looking for it.

[JulsM2908]

well done snyper, i also seem to have missed this one!
Looks very nice, any new pics with the hairgrass replanted?

:blink1::blink1:

[Kel-Sol]

@ Ruan. My full tank shot is at http://www.tropicalaquarium.co.za/showpost.php?p=59137&postcount=28. Though that was a while ago. Since then my fish died and I got a new one. Tossed all those plants and the cave... Hence my signature. Waiting for some extra time and money and I'll make my tank spiffy, but I scape like rubbish so not sure how that'll turn out.

@ Juls. Will get Stephen to post some updated pics up for you guys.

[Ruan]

@ Ruan. My full tank shot is at http://www.tropicalaquarium.co.za/showpost.php?p=59137&postcount=28. Though that was a while ago. Since then my fish died and I got a new one. Tossed all those plants and the cave... Hence my signature. Waiting for some extra time and money and I'll make my tank spiffy, but I scape like rubbish so not sure how that'll turn out.

@ Juls. Will get Stephen to post some updated pics up for you guys.
Why not go for a rockscape?

[Kel-Sol]

Why not go for a rockscape?

That's a good idea. I could add one or two rocks but I'm more into heavily planted tanks. I want a jungle tank! So I need to save up for nice plants...