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Thread: New tank is almost ready!

  1. #1
    Moderator Team AquaticNerd's Avatar
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    Default New tank is almost ready!

    Hi Everyone!

    After doing tons of research online here at SimplyDiscus and some careful planning - my tank is starting to come together.

    Some details about the aquarium - it is a PlanetAquariums Crystalline tank, with the dimensions 48x21x20, which is around 90 US Gallons (87 to be exact). The plan is to have a semi-planted tank, with structure on one side of the aquarium and open swimming space on the other. For filtration I'm using a Bashsea SS-36 sump containing MarinePure bio-block and bio-balls for biological filtration (filter sock for mechanical filtration). The past few weeks I've been working on getting all the supplies together and getting the tank plumbed.

    My goal here is to purchase adult discus so my family can enjoy the tank faster and so I can spend time enjoying the fish without all the high maintenance of juvenile discus (been there). Anyways, the whole goal here is to post progress pictures, so here are pictures of the sump finally plumbed up (pardon the mess as well - I was still in the process of cleaning and organizing all my gear)!

    Here shows the front of the sump with plumbing (what l and others will be seeing if the stand is opened


    And here shows the back - note that I still haven't cleaned off the sharpie marks for my alignment


    And finally my initial design for the driftwood pieces I have.

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    Registered Member BrendanJ23's Avatar
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    Default Re: New tank is almost ready!

    I love it. It looks so neat and clean, especially being a rimless tank. I like the simplicity and it should look nice with a few anubias/java ferns attached in and around the driftwood with maybe some val in the background . Might I ask what the purpose of the egg crate is?

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    Registered Member Shan_Evolved's Avatar
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    Default Re: New tank is almost ready!

    Very clean. What is the white mat in the tank? Whats it for?

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    Default Re: New tank is almost ready!

    Hi BrendanJ23, I appreciate the comments! You're right on track for what I'm kind of going for - I have some Anubias Nana 'petite' and some Flame Moss/Java Moss to go on the wood structure. I might even put a little val in the back, but haven't totally decided on it yet.

    As far as the white mat on the bottom - that is an Egg Crate Light Panel. I initially thought I was going to leave it in there to protect the bottom from wood and rocks, but considering the small amount of substrate that is going to go in the open swimming space would have left the egg crate exposed. I ended up taking it out, but it kept me from potentially scratching the glass when I was toying around with how I wanted the wood and other structure to look. After taking it out, I used it as a guide for the dimensions of the tank so I could tweak the layout of the hardscape further without any potential disasters.

    Speaking of final layout, I think I've got my hardscape down, so here's what it will look like before getting moss on it. Also note that it's in its final location before filling.

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    Default Re: New tank is almost ready!

    Looks great - very clean and elegant! Any idea about the stocking yet?

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    Default Re: New tank is almost ready!

    Thanks for that! My whole goal was to give a side of cover for line of sight breaks in case of aggression and a side of free-swimming space. I will probably modify the layout a little bit to give more free-swimming space.

    I've been dreaming up this aquarium for quite some time and stalking Kenny's Discus ever since.

    The plan here is to have all adults from the get-go, 6-8 depending on other stock. Bottom fish I'm looking to go with a group of 10 Sterbai Corydoras, and then the ever popular Cardinal Tetra for dither fish (maybe a group of 20 or so). For this setup, I'm thinking a mixture of blue/red discus (neon sapphire, tiger turquoise, blue scorp, etc) depending on what stock Kenny has when the aquarium is fully cycled. Discus are going in first, then planning on getting the others around the 4-6 month mark after I've had time to observe their behavior, make sure they're eating properly, etc.

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    Registered Member Shan_Evolved's Avatar
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    Default Re: New tank is almost ready!

    Looks fantastic! Only thing I would consider doing for aesthetics is to hang the lights. But it still looks good this way

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    Default Re: New tank is almost ready!

    Sounds good. I would suggest getting at least 30-50 Cardinal Tetra. I initially started with 30 fish but was barely able to see them in an 80-gallon aquarium. Looking forward to following the process.
    Last edited by BasNL; 10-24-2019 at 03:33 AM.

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    Default Re: New tank is almost ready!

    Couple of mistakes have happened so far.

    1. The driftwood that I had been soaking for 2 weeks (mostly submerged) is still not waterlogged. Going on 4 weeks now without it sinking, so I'm starting to get worried that it won't ever sink. Hopefully by the time the tank has cycled it will sink.
    2. The planted tank substrate that I used is affecting my water chemistry too much. My pH from the tap (after aging) is around 7.6-7.8. With the planted soil I'm using - barely exposed to the water column, my pH is sitting around 6.4. Too much of a pH swing for my liking and too risky for my future discus to deal with. I'm going to have to remove all the decor to get at the substrate and replace it with sand.

    Another thinking I'm not really liking is my bio-media. Currently using a mixture of MarinePure bio-balls (which are fine) and MarinePure 8x8x4" block, which seems to be crumbling into pieces. Any recommendations for better bio-media? A reactor perhaps? Convert the middle of my sump into a complete MBBR section? Perhaps swap it out with all MarinePure balls?

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    Default Re: New tank is almost ready!

    Couple of options with the drift wood. You can drill a few 1/8" dia holes into the back of the driftwood to get better water penetration or alternately attach to a slate base. I have drilled with 1/4 masonry bits (spray with water and don't push too hard) and then used a peg and gorilla glue (once cured this is completely inert). Epoxy is probably safe too once cured.

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    Default Re: New tank is almost ready!

    Is that "Seiryu stone" aka Ying Stone? You my want to look into how that will affect your PH also.

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    Default Re: New tank is almost ready!

    Regarding your second issue, try a couple of water changes before pulling out the plant substrate. De pH drop is usually a lot higher initially and should become less pretty soon.

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    Registered Member Cove Beach's Avatar
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    Default Re: New tank is almost ready!

    You can also use marine grade stainless steel screws to secure the slate to the stubborn driftwood. I had 30 lbs sections that were corks!
    You might take a look at Poret foam from Swiss Tropicals for your bio-media also.

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    Default Re: New tank is almost ready!

    Quote Originally Posted by dspeers View Post
    Couple of options with the drift wood. You can drill a few 1/8" dia holes into the back of the driftwood to get better water penetration or alternately attach to a slate base. I have drilled with 1/4 masonry bits (spray with water and don't push too hard) and then used a peg and gorilla glue (once cured this is completely inert). Epoxy is probably safe too once cured.
    I had some slate attached to it initially for the original soak - the only problem is that they were not in the orientation that they are in the display, and they'd be sticking up out of the display too much.

    Quote Originally Posted by guggas View Post
    Is that "Seiryu stone" aka Ying Stone? You my want to look into how that will affect your PH also.
    It is Seiryu stone - I've already used it to test with my aged water and it did not affect it. My aged water has a pH of 7.6-7.8. It has a KH of 6-7 (barely turned color at 6, fully turned at 7) and a GH of 10-11, which is pretty hard water IMO. After letting the rocks sit in the water for a week I didn't notice any affect on pH, GH or KH due to the hardness of my water already and the fact that it's already alkaline. I've read where it can affect the chemistry of your water, but everyone also seems to agree that it's mostly in soft and acidic water, where the acidity will eat at the carbonates in the stone. I also washed the stones in a Muriatic acid bath to get rid of most of the surface carbonates.

    I've read where some users have coated the stones in marine-safe clear epoxy to seal the stones, but I don't want to go that route if I can help it. If it comes down to it, I'll remove the rock completely and find something more inert such as (Ohko) Dragonstone.

    Quote Originally Posted by BasNL View Post
    Regarding your second issue, try a couple of water changes before pulling out the plant substrate. De pH drop is usually a lot higher initially and should become less pretty soon.
    I would like to try this, but I'm afraid if it doesn't settle down it'll affect my discus. Since I'm planning on adults of 6"+, they're going to be pretty costly and I can't take that risk. The plant substrate has to go. Just an excuse to start a fully planted tank

    Quote Originally Posted by Cove Beach View Post
    You can also use marine grade stainless steel screws to secure the slate to the stubborn driftwood. I had 30 lbs sections that were corks!
    You might take a look at Poret foam from Swiss Tropicals for your bio-media also.
    I'll have to take a look at Poret foam - the middle section of my sump isn't situated for it. I don't think they'd get enough flow through them to be of use, but the section next to my return might be good. Seems pretty cheap too so I'll check it out. Thanks!

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    Default Re: New tank is almost ready!

    A little progress update!

    The tank is running great - still in the cycling process, just waiting for those nitrites to drop. Wood and rocks have started growing some diatoms due to the rise in nitrates from the cycle, so it's lights our for my moss and anubias (they 2 hours/day now).

    I've been using 5 gallon buckets to lug water from my upstairs faucet to where the tank is located downstairs for water top-offs. I've finally had the time to fix the plumbing in the basement and put a valve in so I can easily fill my Brute can. Sharkbite fittings are great for exposed plumbing. My original intent was to solder the copper together with a tee, but I found out that my main shutoff inside my house doesn't close completely, so I had to resort to using some Sharkbites.

    Ignore the water stain on the back of some of my drywall. I went to do my pressure testing and forgot that I left the valve open that's connected to the hose!





    Last edited by AquaticNerd; 11-08-2019 at 12:05 PM.

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