# My 1/2 gallon planted nano journal



## coldmantis (Apr 5, 2010)

*Started March 6th 2011*

So I decided to try out a planted nano tank, but I needed something small that I can put in my bedroom, I have very good hearing and I am a very light sleeper. I was debating whether or not to filter this thing, I know if I leave it unfiltered I would be doing water changes more frequently which I'm not a fan of.

_*Equiptment*_
1/2g cube vase at 15h cm x 15L cm
chrome Finnish desk lamp with 1x15w cfl on for 10 hours a day
boyu 2015 3 gallon filter

*Livestock*
no idea yet just 1 guppy fry to cycle the tank

*Plants*
Dwarf Hairgrass
Dwarf Baby Tears Cuba
Blyxa
Daily dose of excel, micro+macro 1 hour before lights turn on

$10 cube vase from walmart









$10 Lamp from walmart









Top View









Hardscape done









Planting done, 1 blyxa and some hc cuba and since the tank is so small I planted the cuba 1 stem at a time









Tank is filled with old water that consisted of tap+r/o from a 29gallon









cuba looking good, I was going to do a glosso carpet but since this is my first time dealing with hc cuba I decided to give hc cuba carpet a try









Decided to get a filter, I went to big al's scarb hoping to get a red sea nano but the fish guy said they stopped carrying it, I asked him is this boyu china filter as quiet as the red sea and he said "it should be"...... $10 bucks spent on filter









This is probably the only filter that will fit such a small tank as this, and it has a flow adjuster I set it to the lowest and replace the original media with a ac sponge and filter floss and btw why is this filter purple!!!!!









Filter itself is good but makes a very low it vibrating noise, and since I have very good hearing the filter is now on when I'm awake and off when I'm going to sleep.....









*March 10th*

Got some DHG


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## solarz (Aug 31, 2010)

I like that filter! Boyu you say? And you found it at Big Al's? I'll have to keep an eye on that...

I would put some shrimps in there, as any fishes are going to feel really cramped.

what substrate are you using?


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## coldmantis (Apr 5, 2010)

ya boyu w somthing 2015 it's 10 bucks at big als they have tons the last time I was there, as for shrimp that's the plan the guppy fry is just there to cycle the tank, the sand is black beauty blasting sand.


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## Ciddian (Mar 15, 2006)

awee that tank is just so lovely!


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## Jsu (Dec 4, 2009)

This looks nice. What kind of substrate are you use and CO2?


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## coldmantis (Apr 5, 2010)

Ciddian said:


> awee that tank is just so lovely!


thanks!!!!!


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## coldmantis (Apr 5, 2010)

Jsu said:


> This looks nice. What kind of substrate are you use and CO2?


the substrate is black beauty black blasting sand, I do have 2 spare pressurized paintball co2 but since it's so small I don't feel like running it here, and it's in my bedroom, there is a good chance I will hear the co2 when it leaves the diffuser. so no pressurized co2 for this small thing, just daily excel and micro+macro.


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## laurahmm (Apr 1, 2010)

Looking good 
I can't wait to see what it looks like when the carpet fills in and if it can do it without co2. 
I set up a tank for my sisters bedroom as well and having same problem. I can't find a filter that is quiet enough for her. Let me know if you find one


Laura


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## coldmantis (Apr 5, 2010)

I'm pretty sure red sea nano filter is quiet, I read many reviews about it and everyone says it's the quietest and most efficient for it's size unfortunately big als' stopped carrying it....


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## igor.kanshyn (Jan 14, 2010)

Wow, that's cool!

We need more pictures ....


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## coldmantis (Apr 5, 2010)

I'll try to update every week, so far the blyxa looks like it's starting to melt away, not sure if it's my setup or that the blyxa I planted was already dying before I put it in there. had to take off co2 on my 29gallon where the blyxa was from because I found a couple of crs babies, so then everything is covered with bba.....


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## coldmantis (Apr 5, 2010)

hey igor,
is all of your yellow shrimp really yellow, everysingle one of them or is it like mines where there are a few that's not really yellow head to tail.


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## igor.kanshyn (Jan 14, 2010)

coldmantis said:


> hey igor,
> is all of your yellow shrimp really yellow, everysingle one of them or is it like mines where there are a few that's not really yellow head to tail.


They show their color when they are big adults. They are all yellow, some might be a little better. I was planned to make another session of selecting breeding, but I can't select best shrimps now. They are all perfect.

I have a new color pattern now. Those shrimps they a little different. I'm trying to breed that gene string separately


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## Beijing08 (Jul 19, 2010)

good stuff, you got 1 step ahead of me. I'm going to set up a 0.9gallon nano right on my night stand!!!!!!!

Congrats on the progress though. I personally would not use the filter. Just too much flow for that tank u could get some algae growth. However, I stand to be corrected

another thing is, you'd be surprised how many North American brands are just rebranding a Chinese product. For instance, JBJ uses the same factory as Boyu. Essentially it's just the matter of which label they choose to put on. The red sea nano is also purple, and has a low vibrating noise. 

anyways, those were my 2 cents. good luck with the project.
p.s. now my tank won't be as "original"


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## coldmantis (Apr 5, 2010)

I find that when you set this boyu on the lowest possible flow after a while the motor make a noise the same noise a ac makes when the impellar is getting old and needs to be replaced. I might exchange it when I have time, I'm pretty sure it hasn't been a week yet. I'm wondering if big als will take exchange when it's pass a week and your a vip card member?


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## laurahmm (Apr 1, 2010)

I find the filter on big al's website however it is only for up to 2 gallons and my sister's tank is 4 gallons. I might still order it, I dont know yet.

http://www.bigalsonline.com/Fish_Filters_Power-Filters_Nano-Filter_8438785_82.html?tc=fish


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## igor.kanshyn (Jan 14, 2010)

laurahmm said:


> I find the filter on big al's website however it is only for up to 2 gallons and my sister's tank is 4 gallons. I might still order it, I dont know yet.
> 
> http://www.bigalsonline.com/Fish_Filters_Power-Filters_Nano-Filter_8438785_82.html?tc=fish


It's not bad, I use it.
The only problem that it makes some vibration to the tank. It might appear because my tank is rimless.


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## ShrimpieLove (Apr 26, 2010)

thats so awesome! really nice to follow along your thread, I have the same container here at home and have always wondered how things might grow in it but have never tried... great job!!


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## novice (Mar 14, 2006)

coldmantis said:


> I found a couple of crs babies,


fingers x'ed -hope they grow and multiply -

I like the nano set up - looking forward to more pics -

must check for the jebo nano filters -

BTW - how much did the redsea nano filters cost ?


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## coldmantis (Apr 5, 2010)

novice said:


> fingers x'ed -hope they grow and multiply -
> 
> I like the nano set up - looking forward to more pics -
> 
> ...


I think the red sea version is around 17 and this boyu is 10, they looked exactly the same, they even use the same media, I think the only difference is that red sea has a better design when it comes to the flow adjuster, red sea's is on the top and this one is on the front.


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## SAMhap (Jun 20, 2010)

looks sexy there mantis.
more pics will be good.


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## coldmantis (Apr 5, 2010)

this is actually my first time using seachem excel, I wasn't aware that excel had enough carbon source to make plants pearl. To my surprise I saw a little pearling on my hc cuba


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## coldmantis (Apr 5, 2010)

*March 16th 2011*

Just did the first water change, Turkey Baster FTW , When I first planted the hc cuba I did it one stem at a time and I'm glad I did that the growth I got from just a week is impressive. However the Blyxa looks like it's got another week before it dies . Also added 3 super small stems of rotala(the pinkish ones) by the rock just some randomness here. Not much growth going on for the DHG.


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## coldmantis (Apr 5, 2010)

*March 31st 2011*

So it's been a while since an update, I been busy painfully rescaping my 29g yellow/crs tank, I couldn't decide on a carpet plant so I said what the hell I do all of them. Back to the half gallon tank, because it was so neglected all walls on the tank is completely covered with algae, had a fun time scraping it off.

Growth is not bad better then I expected some algae on the hc cuba and everything else due to neglect.










Toss in 3 small yellows just to fill some space, the baby guppy is growing fast surprisingly in such a small tank.










The HC cuba is really going and is almost done covering the front, blyxa is still alive and kicking still very small though, and the DHG is starting to spread and some blades are turning brown.










*29G*

Before










Days After, took hours to plant all the carpeting plants, DHG in the back, some ambulia on the back left, a stem of unknown red plant from planter(thank you), left middle glosso, left front HC cuba, right middle Riccia, right front UG (thanks again planter). I hope everything fills in and maybe if all the plants looks good I just keep it as a 5 carpet plant tank.


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## camboy012406 (Jun 11, 2010)

looks like a park bro but looks beautiful.


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## coldmantis (Apr 5, 2010)

*January 5th 2012*

Decided to resurrect this tank for no reason at all, currently growing UG and Staurogyne repens Emersed.


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