75 Gallon

lucius · November 15, 2013, 09:35:30 PM

So as if my fish keeping life wasn't busy enough, I had to get another big tank.

I will be dismantling my two 20 gallon tanks and merging them into one. For now, it will probably be just low light plants and a large school of small tetras.

First thing I did was put in a dedicated line for my fish tanks. The electrician was kind enough to label the circuit accordingly.

I also decided to build my own stand using the DIY plans found on the internet. Initially I was going to assemble it in the garage and bring it downstairs. I'm glad I didn't.

Fast forward two weeks and after two fill ups, just in time for the arrival of the latest KensFish Group Order.

Day 1 - With contents of one of the 20 gallon tanks with extra gravel and rocks and driftwood. I will add the contents of the other tank once it's cycled.

Day 1.5 to 2 - Fun with fungus

Day 3 - Five glowlight tetras added to aid in the cycling. BTW, I also transferred six sponges from my other canister filter.

Intense Moon Setting on LED Fixture

bettabreeder · November 16, 2013, 12:18:48 AM

Awesome job man! look forward to following your progress!

exv152 · November 16, 2013, 08:18:05 AM

Nice start. I built myself a 125g & 75g stand using similar plans. Any plans to finish the stand with finer wood finish, cabinet doors and maybe stain?

Mike L · November 16, 2013, 08:50:45 AM

Very nice. I was wondering what all the item's you had where for when I picked up my order. The stand looks like the first piece of a fish tank wall. Lol. How are you liking the new light.
Mike

lucius · November 16, 2013, 10:05:29 AM

Quote from: exv152 on November 16, 2013, 08:18:05 AM
Nice start. I built myself a 125g & 75g stand using similar plans. Any plans to finish the stand with finer wood finish, cabinet doors and maybe stain?

I don't think so. The unfinished stand goes with the décor of the unfinished basement.

lucius · November 16, 2013, 10:23:52 AM

Quote from: Mike L on November 16, 2013, 08:50:45 AM
Very nice. I was wondering what all the item's you had where for when I picked up my order. The stand looks like the first piece of a fish tank wall. Lol. How are you liking the new light.
Mike

So far so good. There are a lot of light options and I can't picture myself flipping through the options all the time. The thunder and light option doesn't seem very random but I only tried it once. I know the intensity of the light works for java fern because on my 20 gallon, the java ferns produced plantlets in a just a few months. The fixture itself is very low profile.

Two things that are an issue, maybe. Current recommends placing a glass cover between the tank and light fixture so I'm guessing the casing is water resistant and not water proof. On my 20 gallon, I didn't do this but for the larger light fixture, I am leaving the glass there. The other issue, on one side there are two wires coming out. One is for the power and it can be detached from the power cube. The other wire is for the IR sensor and it can't be detached. When I first placed the light fixture, I used double side tape and placed it on the 2x4 above the tank. Then I went to remove the light fixture to do some work and had to take the sensor down. It would have been more convenient if you can detach the sensor as well.

lucius · January 01, 2014, 06:36:20 PM

With the exception of a bit of ich, the 75 is coming along. The white fungus on the driftwood is almost all gone and I've added an AC110 filter and CO2.

lucius · May 10, 2014, 08:57:07 PM

I thought I update the thread a bit. I ditched the Current LED fixture and bought an Aquatic Life Dual Lamp T5-HO light fixture. The java fern and anubias were doing fine but not the other plants.

I also tried many new things.

First sword plant, I think it's a Red Flame Sword.

Also tried my luck with some amano and cherry shrimp.

This amano shrimp was trying to get at this assassin snail.

My first type of snail. They are breeding in my other tank.

Hey this mirror doesn't seem to work properly.

The next thing I will do is put in some other type of colour plants so the tank is not so greenish.

charlie · May 10, 2014, 09:02:21 PM

Good work Brian, plants look healthy.
Keep up the good work & thanks for sharing.
Errol

exv152 · May 10, 2014, 09:11:30 PM

Tank looks nice and you got some nice crypt growth. What kind of substrate are you using?

lucius · May 11, 2014, 12:41:24 PM

I'm just using gravel with flourish tabs.

daworldisblack · May 12, 2014, 10:11:27 AM

Wow Brian, glad you decided to join in on the Green Side of things

This looks amazing! Did you have a Satellite or a Satellite plus?

lucius · May 12, 2014, 12:56:45 PM

It was the Plus version on there.

lucius · August 04, 2014, 10:32:40 PM

Bit of an update. Lots of changes recently and a very expensive couple of months.

Started off by getting a second CO2 regulator and separating my two tanks so that they each have their own CO2 system.

Secondly, I switched out some mechanical timers for digital ones so now all the lights turn on and off within a minute of each other instead of 10 to 15 minutes apart. The two solenoids are on digital timers as well.

Third, I decided to try the inline diffusors so I ordered two from Green Leaf Aquariums.

I ended up cutting too much of the tubing off but luckily I had enough slack to begin with.

Test without CO2, still lots of flow.

The back of the tank. I have to reposition the inline diffusor so that the air tubing is facing outwards but other than that, it seems to be holding up.

I rescaped the 75 gallon and put the crypt at the back since it's so big. I installed the diffusor on the outtake of the canister filter so I still get a bit of the 7-Up effect but the bubbles aren't as big compared to the Fluval disk diffusor. (CO2 is not on in this pic) I positioned the powerhead so that it pushes the CO2 across the tank when it comes out of the outtake.

While cleaning out my canister filter, I discovered a butt load of cherry shrimp.

androo303 · August 06, 2014, 08:34:09 PM

Amazing!! I can see you have mad skills!

daworldisblack · August 06, 2014, 10:07:57 PM

Quote from: androo303 on August 06, 2014, 08:34:09 PM
Amazing!! I can see you have mad skills!

Skillzzzz.. Brian's the man!

exv152 · August 07, 2014, 02:00:28 PM

Nice job on the tank. I've found quite a few RCS in my canister filters, for some reason they like to hang out there and eat the gunk off the filter pads, go figure. Another option for your co2 would've been to split the feed right after the solenoid, with two needle valves and two bubble counters. Another tip, if you're ever looking for another up aqua inline diffuser you can get them on ebay for $19-$25 all-in with free shipping. Same unit GLA sells for double that.

charlie · August 07, 2014, 02:18:40 PM

Real nice work Brian, the progress in your updates reflect your dedication to research.
Looking forward to the next update.

QuoteAnother option for your co2 would've been to split the feed right after the solenoid, with two needle valves and two bubble counters

I think that`s the way he had it prior to having dedicated co2 rigs.

lucius · August 07, 2014, 10:48:13 PM

Yeah, I had two needle valves and two bubble counters after the solenoid at one point. I wanted more flexibility in case I ever decided to move some stuff around in my fish corner. Also, if there was an issue with the CO2 hardware, it would only affect one tank.

Believe it or not, I only just signed up for a paypal account earlier this week. So ebay wasn't an option for me when I bought the two inline diffusors. After all the shipping and brokerage fees, each diffusor cost me roughly $61

so I will definitely check ebay next time first.

lucius · October 04, 2014, 08:24:52 PM

Just posting an update.

I have had a explosion in my population of assassin snails.

My crazy bamboo shrimp. It won't move unless I'm right on top of it.

My windelov fern is finally growing. It remained small for quite some time.

My monthly splurge. I bought this plantlet of trident fern of ebay.

Current tank shot.