New planted tank

Rudi... do these propellors (sorry for calling thim impellellors... had the wording wrong) not cause problems with fish being sucked in from the back? (Excuse the ignorance... I've never really looked at them). Just the marine guy I know who runs them says he puts them into his rocks so that this doesn't happen. (It may be a fishy tale... I know)

And what do I ask for at the LPS if I want one?

 

The pumps are called Flow pumps or Vibration pumps.The pump doesn't have a intake hole like a power head does.The 'prop' is housed/enclosed in a plastic cage,i.e.fish cant get near the prop when it's operating.
I'll take a pic of the box it came in and put it up.

 

Dude, think about it this way... Do you think that people with marine tanks would put up to 4 of them in their tanks, if they turned your fish into sushi? I don't think so. I mean, the cheapest marine fish go for around R100 each. I sure as hell wouldn't bugger around with things that could kill very expensive fish. And I have 4 of them in my marine tank. Except, I have the Seio models...

The only think at risk in a marine tank is an Anemone. They get chopped up by them, not the fish.

I think it's a brilliant idea.

PS: Go to the LFS and ask them for Seio's or Sun Sun pumps. They are fairly inexpensive as well. The smaller models go for around R250 and upwards. I think the Sun Suns are actually cheaper. (They must say PROPELLER on them though.)

 

Thanks Slagter. I will chat to Dolphin when I am ready to order!

 

hey rudi, awesome tank! can you please tell me where to get laterite?

thanks

 

cheddar,
You'll have to source laterite in nature,red clay.Or you can use iron nails as a source for iron,just push them into the substrate where you need them.
Something else you can try is Chelated Iron,you get this at your local nursery.It's just a bit tricky to add to the tank.
Rudi

 

The dimensions in this tank are in centimeters, yes? What is your current dosing regimen and your photoperiod?

 

I really like these lush planted tanks. Wish I had this vast selection of plants. Sigh. Well done so far Rudi. Looking forward to seeing the scape when its 'done'

 

The Tank dimensions in cm are:120(l)x60(w)x55(h)
I use the Estimated Index dosing regime,Macros-3x a week,Micros-3x a week.
Photo period is 12 hours.
Rudi.

 

First, I want to say what I didn't get to say before. Lovely tank. I like the growth, very lush, and the colors really pop out at you. I'm a fan of color.

Interesting. As I read through your thread, I noticed you had some algae issues in the beginning. My current planted tank has an 8 hour photoperiod. My first planted tank, however, had the same photoperiod as yours and used EI.

ECS

 

@ HCS,
Some of the plants I used were already infected with algae,so all that was transfered to the new tank.A mistake I made was to run the lights full tilt from the beginning,I should have halved the photoperiod for the first couple off weeks and let the plants acclimate better.But I got through all that reasonably unscathed,except for the green water,which was a pain in the back side.

 

Green water is difficult. I had it once, in my first Planted tank. It went away slowly but surely when I started upping the CO2 and dosing with EI. While I don't use EI anymore (way too lazy, just use TPN+ now), it had value at the time.

Yes, a 6 hour photoperiod in the beginning would probably have prevented it.

ECS

 

Tpn+ ?

 

Tropica Plant Nutrition +

A liquid fertiliser from the UK. It doses both macros and micros in one handy bottle. I swear by it and though I live in the USA, I will pay the shipping to bring it over to the USA where I live (fixed it, Cheetah). See, I'm a classical singer and a professor, so I can't be bothered with complicated dosing regimens, mixing ferts, and stuff like that. I'd prefer to just dose and go. I can adjust the amount as needed. Very convenient.

ECS

 

Now that is a very kind offer from you Eye Candy...... any chance that you could fax me some???:bigsmile:

 

You know that's not what I meant. Besides, it's probably banned where you are. :bigsmile:

 

He! He!..... Nothing is banned where I am... (unless Henk sees it)..... Only joking Henk.... only joking......

 

I need to get some of this TPN+ as I mainly focus on mosses and low tech
tanks so this EI does not appeal to me to much even though guys like
Rudi use it very effectively.

 

I've run high tech tanks on the stuff too. Works great. No fuss, just dose more to reflect the higher nutrient demands of a high-tech tank and change 50% of the water weekly like when you follow EI. Granted, my high tech tanks tend to be rather small, 10g or less. A big tank on TPN+ can get expensive, especially if it's a high-tech tank.

ECS

 

Geeze Candy.... You speak in riddles..... "High tech Tanks".... "Follow EI", "TPN+".... You're losing me........ Just communicate in Afrikaans, so we all can understand!!:bigsmile: