Author Topic: My Natural Tanks (Read 2655 times)

extrameat · « **on:** August 11, 2011, 02:20:06 AM »

Hey guys,
ill keep a journal of my NPT tanks here so that i could keep track of there progress.
feel free to comment on them

im here to learn

here's my 50gal breeder Home tank

started on June 12, 2011

June 26, 2011

July 27, 2011

i will try to upload my office tank soon

Thanks for viewing

** UncleEl ** · « **Reply #1 on:** August 12, 2011, 01:35:36 AM »

Hello extrameat-

Looks Good! I like it!

Keep it up!

El.

extrameat · « **Reply #2 on:** August 22, 2011, 12:42:01 AM »

My 2nd El Natural tank (office tank)
65 gals
started on Aug 8, 2011
pic taken Aug 22, 2011

haecklers · « **Reply #3 on:** August 22, 2011, 03:19:42 AM »

That looks really nice! Awesome job!

extrameat · « **Reply #4 on:** August 23, 2011, 08:25:15 AM »

Thanks Haeklers!

update on my 1st tank (home tank)
Photos taken on Aug. 23, 2011

My new Fish

No dosing,
No C02
No water change, yet
added rotala at back right
fish: 1 GBR
1 Oto
10 glowlight
8 endler guppy
5 Rummy nose
30+/- Neon tetra
RCS
Assassin snails

einahpets65 · « **Reply #5 on:** August 23, 2011, 09:35:40 AM »

Wow, you're tank is amazing looking! What is it that ground covering you have? I would love to have something similar in my tank.

** UncleEl ** · « **Reply #6 on:** August 23, 2011, 03:08:58 PM »

Dude!

The 50 gallon NPT is SWEET! And full of beautiful fish

!

El.

** Just so you know, I've set pic#2 as a background on my PC. Your pics are impressive!

extrameat · « **Reply #7 on:** August 23, 2011, 09:14:35 PM »

thanks Uncle EL
i just got lucky with that shot haha
i haven't fed my fish yet that day so they were begging for their fill hehe
i love NPT tanks, u just set them up do everything right from the start and let it grow out. no need dosing or water change
you could also add a bit more fish compared to normal tanks hehe.
now its time to go on to my next proj! 350 gal comm tank here i come! hehehe

einahpets65
foreground plants are e. quadricostatus, h. tenellus, marsilea hijatsu, and dwarf sag
i like the e. quadricostatus the most. adapts and spreads fast and low maintenance!

good luck!

** UncleEl ** · « **Reply #8 on:** August 24, 2011, 04:56:27 PM »

WHAT??

A 350 gallon community tank? YIKES

!!

Pics please, pics please,... (when you get there!).

El.

Pancraciomabary · « **Reply #9 on:** August 25, 2011, 04:13:56 AM »

I liked your tank.Indeed your tank is looking great and also the fishes in it are beautiful.

** UncleEl ** · « **Reply #10 on:** August 25, 2011, 12:52:01 PM »

Hello Pancraciomabary-

Not to highjack this thread; but, welcome to The Forum. We look forward to your posts!

El.

extrameat · « **Reply #11 on:** August 27, 2011, 10:02:15 AM »

Thanks for the comment Pancraciomabary!

added 20 pcs of Local freshwater shrimps in to the tank today. too bad some were too small and was eaten by the hungry pack of neons haha. anyway, while i was looking for the shrimps when the lights turned on, i have discovered baby assassin snails! i have found at least 5 small assassin snails around the tank haha hope the dont eat their young!

Ill try to get a decent shot of my 350 tank soon. for know it only has anubias in it and 0 maintenance haha just feed the fish and let it do its own thing haha.

einahpets65 · « **Reply #12 on:** August 27, 2011, 06:28:09 PM »

Wow, I'm really jealous that you got your assassin snails to breed! I think I might have spotted two breeding the other day, but I'm not sure and from what I've been reading I won't find out for a while yet. Do yours eat other snails in the tank, or do they exist on the leftover food from the fish?

extrameat · « **Reply #13 on:** August 28, 2011, 07:56:35 AM »

hey guys, here's a pic of the baby a. snails. they are among the Marsilea.

i saw them one time eating the other pond snails in my tank so i guess that's what they are living off

here's a pic of my 350 Uncle El
it's super neglected haha i just tried what kind of plants i could put with my light set up

will be planning to re-set this tank next

** UncleEl ** · « **Reply #14 on:** September 02, 2011, 09:54:39 AM »

Hello-

The 350 is cool as-is! You have some neat-looking plants in it!

I'm definitely a fan of the hanging spiral CFLs - you can truly get a lot of light from them (whether they're considered efficient or not). When I get a chance, I'll update everyone on what growing under my spiral CFL (in the 2.5 gallon nano, Dragon's Den).

BTW, what kind of plant is in the middle of the 350 (with the standing frons)?

You know that the 350 would be the perfect tank to grow a BUNCH of Crypts! Take a look at these links:

http://www.aquaticplantcentral.com/forumapc/aquarium-pictures/browseimages.php?c=11&userid=&t=
http://crypts.home.xs4all.nl/Cryptocoryne/Botanical/alphabet.html

More Crypts than you can shake a stick at

!

Later,...

El.

extrameat · « **Reply #15 on:** September 04, 2011, 02:59:34 AM »

hey UncleEL!
yeah im pretty excited to set up my 350.. its a custom size tank. 6ft long 40" wide and 30" tall..
i do have some questions about CFL lights! on that tank, im using
3x Energy saving bulbs from Philips
and
4x 24w 10000k solarmax t5HO on the tank.
question is, would i have enough light to grow plants?
im planning to fill this tank with plants like as you were saying, crypts, aponogetons, valis, dwarf sag and anubias
Easy and hardy plants.

the plant in the middle is a radican sword which became a snack for the 5 plecos in the tank as of the moment haha.

haecklers · « **Reply #16 on:** September 04, 2011, 05:16:48 AM »

If you're keeping the plecos in there, be warned, mine have eaten almost everything I've put in the tanks eventually. I have one banana plant left and some really tough kind of crypt with long strap-like leaves. They even kill vallisneria eventually.

Maybe start a back-up tank to put a few in as replacements or something. I'll post in my journal (all my tanks) about the pleco destruction sometime later today.

extrameat · « **Reply #17 on:** September 04, 2011, 08:45:06 AM »

Thanks for the warning heacklers!
no worries. when i rebuild my big tank, ill take them out and put them in another tank. for now, i am just trying the lighting for this tank. any suggestions on lighting a big tank? and how to apply walstad method on it?

i'd want to keep channa bleheri in that tank with other fish that would not become prey for them haha

extrameat · « **Reply #18 on:** September 11, 2011, 07:18:58 PM »

been adding a bunch of new fish into my office tank for the past couple of weeks
sadly, they all end up dead
added 3 peacock gobies into my tank 2 weeks ago and after a while, all 3 died. they had white mouths when they died.
last week i added 3 emperor tetras. today, i found 1 dead and 2 badly injured.
none of the old fish are dead or hurt. what could be the problem?

haecklers · « **Reply #19 on:** September 12, 2011, 04:04:25 AM »

That's a shame about your new fish!

There's a disease that causes the white mouth. I think it's fungal.

As for the badly injured ones, what else do you have in the tank?

extrameat · « **Reply #20 on:** September 12, 2011, 08:29:25 PM »

waaaaa! i thinks its fungus and its spreading to my other fishes! the infected fish has white patches on its dorsal fin resembling a saddle and is gasping for air. what should i do?

i have
7 neon rainbows (1 is in a quarantine tank)
8 Serpae
20+ neons
4 ottos
2 danios

extrameat · « **Reply #21 on:** December 11, 2011, 07:41:23 PM »

hey guys, its been a while since i visited here.
i just want to ask why some the of leaves of my plants are falling off?

thanks

extrameat · « **Reply #22 on:** May 08, 2012, 07:58:22 PM »

here's an update of my tank in the office
the lotus died.. i think the trumpet snails ate the roots

haecklers · « **Reply #23 on:** May 09, 2012, 05:16:33 AM »

Those photos look AWESOME!!!!!

extrameat · « **Reply #24 on:** May 09, 2012, 05:22:07 PM »

thanks haecklers!
any suggestions on how to keep leaves from stem plants falling off?

haecklers · « **Reply #25 on:** May 09, 2012, 05:36:52 PM »

Nope! Sorry! It could be partially natural as they grow toward the light they shed the lower leaves. Maybe more light from the side but that might make weird looking growth.

** UncleEl ** · « **Reply #26 on:** May 09, 2012, 08:52:31 PM »

WOW! AWESOME PICS!

That's excellent color saturation. How vibrant! I'm jealous (of the tank and your photo skills).

You gotta tell us how you got the pics to post. Did you do something unusual?

About the stem plants losing leaves: Are all stem plants losing leaves or only on certain plants? If it's on certain individual plants, I'd say it's probably that the plant "wants" more light than it's getting or the stems are "old". Old stem plants get "senile" from the bottom up. They lose the ability to transmit nutrients up and down the stem. It get's harder and harder to grow leaves, photosynthesize, etc. They lose vigor. Next time you prune, keep and replant the stem tops and discard the bottom and roots.

If a lot of stems (or most stem plants) are dropping leaves, it may be a toxin issue. Maybe, an increased schedule of water changes and use of carbon, in your filter, can get rid of it. If you use it, add Excel. It hinders a lot of algaes and adds Carbon (a kind of artificial CO2). In my tank, Excel helped when growth rate slowed. The density of my plants' leaves increased, too.

Good luck.

El.

extrameat · « **Reply #27 on:** May 10, 2012, 05:20:52 AM »

thanks uncle El!
i'm just playing with my new cam. i took a lot of pics and i was just standing in front of the tank until the fish stayed still and i took pics haha. also, my fish are not scared of me... every time i go near the tank, they swim up to the glass and interact with me. oh yeah, i think i took the pics after i fed them so they are not that active

extrameat · « **Reply #28 on:** January 13, 2013, 07:53:37 AM »

Hey guys,
its been a long time since i posted on this forum! just wanted to update my journal
here the latest from my office tank
65 gal NPT tank
no dosing no co2 just feeding regularly.
some of the older fishes have died of so i decided to put some discus in this tank.
hope you guys would like it!

i will be re-doing my other tank soon.
it has been over run by the valis haha.

** UncleEl ** · « **Reply #29 on:** January 20, 2013, 04:27:46 PM »

Hello extrameat-

"Lke it..." YEAH!

Dude - tell us EXACTLY how you posted the pics. You know we've been having a pic issue on The Forum. So, what'd you do? And how?

The 65 is really cool. I definitely like the Val. How's that 350 gallon Big-Ole-Tank doing? Pics please!

Keep up the good work.

El.

extrameat · « **Reply #30 on:** January 22, 2013, 08:04:33 AM »

hi uncleEl,
i just used photobucket.com to upload my pics then past the link here.
thanks for commenting! i thought that there was no more people visiting this site anymore haha.
i decided not to go planted with the 350 cause it was too expensive to maintain. maybe next time if i decide to make a sun roof for it so electricity bill will not sky rocket haha so for now its a monster tank. gars and snakehead tank

oh by the way, im going to start a new tank. is just a 12x12" cube. im thinking of putting stem plants for a background. could you suggest any that would not need co2 injection?

thanks

** UncleEl ** · « **Reply #31 on:** January 27, 2013, 01:11:33 PM »

Hello extrameat-

We're definitely still here (maybe in reduced numbers).

For one, I'd LOVE to see pics of the 350 with Snakeheads and Gars. Where, in the world, did you find Snakeheads?!?

As to the 12" cube, look for stem plants that are fast-growing. Fast growers eat nutrients and usually lead to a algae-free tank.

For soft water, I'd recommend:

Hygrophila polysperma (green form or sunset form).
Limnophila aquatica, L. aromatica, or L. sessiliflora.
Any Ludwigia. (L. repens, L. arcuata, L. brevipes, etc.).
Any Rotala.

For hard source water, try:

Bacopa monnieri or B. caroliniana.
Ceratophyllum demersum.
Sagittaria subulata (prob too large for a 12" cube tank).

Enjoy the new tank. New tanks give you nothing but options!

El.

** UncleEl ** · « **Reply #32 on:** January 27, 2013, 01:15:03 PM »

extrameat-

Also, "Thanks" for the word on Photobucket. I may breakdown and use their service - gotta find a way to link pics (without going to a lot of trouble).

El.

extrameat · « **Reply #33 on:** January 28, 2013, 12:02:41 AM »

Hi uncleEl,
Glad to hear that are still some people visiting this site

Sadly, my giant snakehead passed away yesterday. It was more than 27" long already.

On the upside, I already bought 2 new snakeheads. I'll try to post some pics when they get bigger next time.

Thanks for the suggestion! i also want to try hg in my cube. would it grow well with out co2?

Good luck with using photobucket! Looking forward to see updates of your tank

extrameat · « **Reply #34 on:** February 08, 2013, 11:56:20 PM »

good new today, i have found 2 baby lemon tetras while i was feeding my tank. hopefully they won't be eaten by the bigger fishes in the coming days

they are as small as the native shirmps in my tank.. about less than half an inch

also i want to ask if it is ok to put a large piece of rock on top of dirt tanks?
would this be bad for the soil underneath?

hope you could reply soon
thanks

** UncleEl ** · « **Reply #35 on:** February 18, 2013, 07:32:32 PM »

Hello extrameat-

Sorry for the delay - been a lot going on!

Hygrophila difformis and Hygrophila polysperma will grow without CO2. The biggest thing, for your plants, is to keep the surface agitation near zero. Surface agitation drives off CO2 and increases O2. And since CO2 is a necessary plant "nutrient", it must be present for photosynthesis and plant growth. Of these two plants, H. difformis has medium growth speed (at best); H.polysperma can be classified as "rampant" - it grows fast in good conditions. I, personally, LOVE H.polysperma - it eats Nitrates like crazy. This keeps algae to a minimum. LOVE IT!

IRT your question about rocks covering the soil: Try to keep that to a minimum. Natural organisms live in the soil and need Oxygen to live. While consuming the organic particles in the soil, they produce CO2 (that's where CO2 comes from in a "Natural Aquarium"). In areas where O2 is low (or nonexistent - called anaerobic zones) a different bacteria colonizes. It's byproducts include H2S (Hydrogen Sulfide). Besides smelling like rotten eggs, it is poisonous to plant roots and animals that breath too much (fish and shrimp). So, keep the soil covering to a minimum. You can "cheat" a little. Pile up some large pea gravel and place rocks or driftwood over it. The pockets between gravel pieces will allow Oxygen into the soil.

Go get 'em Tiger!

El.

extrameat · « **Reply #36 on:** February 19, 2013, 10:30:16 PM »

Thank a lot for the tip Uncle EL!
i have already re-done my tank last week. Good thing i did what you said above! i just dug up the soil where i wanted to place the rocks and put in a big piece of flat rock underneath then capped it with a little gravel and placed the decorative rocks above it. no soil under those parts

thanks for the explanation about it! very valuable piece of info i learned today and it confirms about what i read in D. Walstads book

i also like Hygrophila Polysperma but its hard to look for them here in my area. hope i could get some soon.

extrameat · « **Reply #37 on:** February 26, 2013, 08:17:42 AM »

lemon tetra fingerling

another NPT tank in the office

** UncleEl ** · « **Reply #38 on:** February 26, 2013, 10:07:22 PM »

Nice pics extrameat!

I especially like the 3 Amazon sword plants, in the bottom pic.

I love those sword plants!

El.

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Author Topic: My Natural Tanks (Read 2655 times)