# 70G High Tech Dutch Aquarium



## Consigliere (Jun 11, 2009)

*70G High Tech Jungle Aquarium*

I have been working on a Dutch aquarium for the last month and half or so with a little documentation here and there on the status of the aquarium. I have decided to consolidate all the information onto one source and post links on the various forums I follow. All the aquarium info is available here with plenty of photos:

http://canaquaticgardens.wordpress.com/


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## Platypus (Jun 2, 2009)

Wow nice tank. Also some good journaling skills.


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## Consigliere (Jun 11, 2009)

Thanks for the nice comments. I'm glad you liked the journaling. I have always found that other folks journals have been the most useful learning tools for myself so I have tried to pay that forward to the rest of the community.


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## Consigliere (Jun 11, 2009)

I have taken the dutch tag off this tank. I'm not sure how to classify it now. I think more jungle but really not much of a traditional style. I've done some major trimming and replanting on the right side of the tank. All the species in there couldn't survive long term and be healthy. I have scaled back to growing only a Nasea 'Tropica' species, Limnophilia Aromatica, Ludwigia vent. 'Cuba', HM and Rotala Walichii. I've also expanded the Blyxa Japonica towards the front and moved the Red Rubin Sword more towards the back where a plant of its size belongs. Here's the tank the afternoon after the trim.










I've also moved the rocks around a bit as they were getting lost in the plants. I realized they cannot be anywhere near the back and contribute anything to the tank. Midground is about right for the sizes I have. I seem to have won the war with the algae in this tank. The final corrective action that balanced things out was moving the light up about 3" from the original height above the tank. It is now about 6-8" above the tank. I haven't seen any BBA or hair algae in weeks. There has been some GDA on the glass but it is pretty minor and is receding. The dry ferts have been great so far. Tons of pearling on the plants and some great colourations and no algae. The fish seem to be doing very well too. Active and eating lots. The raspboras are starting to get to a decent enough size that they should be able to hold up against the discus they eventually will be hanging out with. I'm hoping the right side should be back grown in and should be more sustainable long term within 2 weeks. I need to hide that ugly equipment somehow. I'm still working out the camera settings that take the best pics so stay tuned for more pics as I try the new camera out.


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## noved (Jul 14, 2009)

*hi*

I was wondering about the dry ferts that you mention. Can I ask which ferts you buy and where you got them from. I'm looking for some myself, but I'm still in the learning stages and unsure of what would be my best choice without spending too much money.


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## Consigliere (Jun 11, 2009)

I went with aqauriumfertilizer.com and got 1lb each of CSM+B Plantex (micros), Potassium Nitrate (Nitrates), Mono Potassium Phosphate (Phosphates) and Potassium Sulfate (Potassium). Ask them to take out 3oz of Potassium Phosphate and you will save $12 on shipping. Total is about $35 USD or something like that. I've got 3 tanks (10, 20, 70G) on EI method 3x per week and should have enough to last 3 -6 months I figure. In terms of cost, absolutely the best way to go. It is more work and research to do though. Right now I have a pretty good system going. I mix my ferts for the week in one sitting and store them until dosing day. I measure the dry ferts into individual leftover bottles from liquid ferts and then put tank water in to mix. Shake it up and either dump the bottle in or store it with a label for later. Smaller tanks are a bit tougher to measure for but overall it is pretty simple. I use the Fertilator Calculator member function at APC forum to figure out how much for each tank.


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## noved (Jul 14, 2009)

Thanks for the detailed info. I will have to look into this soon as I can find a co2 setup refilling station in my area.


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## Consigliere (Jun 11, 2009)

Welding shops are what to look for for CO2 refills. They are usually the best and cheapest.


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## Consigliere (Jun 11, 2009)

*Pic Update Sept 9*

Since the big hacking and rescaping I haven't had much to do with this tank other than re-planting the stems that have unrooted and floated to the surface. I did another trim the other day. Even the slow growers are starting to grow at pretty good rates now. I have noticed that 1 of the Red Rubin leaves has some holes in it. Potassium deficiency in dosing maybe? I've been using Fertilator on APC forum to calculate ferts and have kept the N and K dosing to the lower end of the range. I've been slowly increasing the K dosing with the new dry ferts but don't think I'm quite there yet.










The blyxa japonica has been taking off since being put directly under the light, towards the front of the tank. It's getting pretty red as well. The crypt balansae on the right side are well over 18" now. I can't see any runners of small balansae yet though. Anyone have any experience with balansae reproducing in there tanks they can share?
Right now I am thinking I am going to trade the rotalla wallichi in the front right for the didiplis diandra in the 10G tank. It just doesn't fit with this tank. I'm going to let it grow to the surface before I decide but right now it is overwhelmed in this tank....I think anyways.
It seems like the green algae on the front glass pane has been expanding its presence of late. Any thoughts on working this algae out of the mix? I'm thinking it is low water flow to the front of the tank that is causing this. I haven't been keeping up on cleaning the filter intake screens to make sure the flow in the tank is optimum. Am I on the right track here, or just hoping?
I would have to say, as a nylon carpet fibre spinning process engineer by profession, I love the troubleshooting process of algae in an aquarium. About 15 variables maximum (if you include the obscure stuff), and usually only dealing with 1-2 variables at a time. In my job I deal with hundreds of process variables and hundreds of human interactions and get paid to optimize them all. Working in aquariums is a simple and rewarding as testing gets. I really appreciated some of the commentary by Tom Barr on the recent The Planted Aquarium Podcast on testing in tanks and using your current situation as your control. Spot on comments and some great synopsis of the danger of trusting the forums. The forums are some of the best sources of information on the net, actually, the best, but as Tom stated, you will always have someone who replies to your post saying it won't work. His ultimate point is perfect; if you have a theory, just test it and see what happens. See the results and then refine/rethink your hypothesis and move on to the next test. These aquariums we run are complex systems but there are limited variables that influence the outcomes we are looking for. Test the variables, note the results and learn. That is how to approach the hobby and your own setups. Eventually you will get things dialed in precisely....and then you will change it all.


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## Mr Fishies (Sep 21, 2007)

Consigliere said:


> The crypt balansae on the right side are well over 18" now. I can't see any runners of small balansae yet though. Anyone have any experience with balansae reproducing in there tanks they can share?


Yes, they can take months after transplanting before you'll see any plantlets appear, and don't be surprised if they are not close to the parent plant. I've had runners grow hidden under the gravel, stretch 12-18" away from the main plant and suddenly 4-5 small plants appear in a row, usually where I didn't really want them! Before they pop up there is often no evidence anything is happening.


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## Consigliere (Jun 11, 2009)

Thanks for the info on the balansae. I will keep my eyes open for rogue plantlets popping up!


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## Consigliere (Jun 11, 2009)

These guys are my favourite fish in the tank. I think they are a type of pygmy or miniature cory. At feeding time these guys are really active. Most of the time they are foraging through the plants for food. The blyxa japonica seems to be a favourite hang out in the tank right now. I've got a few shots but nothing super close up. They move too fast to get them focused for a good closeup.










4 Pandas with a Bronze Cory










Diggin' for food










Pandas sucking on some worms


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## KnaveTO (May 13, 2007)

Pandas are one of the smaller breeds of cories ot there, there is however a Pygmy cory that is even smaller than those guys. My experience with pandas has unfortunately never been good. I find they are sensitive to water parameters.


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## Consigliere (Jun 11, 2009)

I've added a bunch of new rummynose tetras to this tank again. The total is up to 13 now, but I have yet to count 13 in sight at once so one or two others may have died as well. I'm normally not a big fan of silver based fish but these guys are quite nice. Very active and the larger ones have some pretty distinct red faces and striped tails.

When I introduced the new batch of rummy nose there was an outbreak of ick on them after 2 days in the tank. Some ick guard and leaving the drip system going for a few days seems to have cleared it up. This has been an issue before from a certain LFS.

Here's a full tank shot. Soon all the riccia floaters will be gone and you will be able to see the left side better.


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## Doctor T (Apr 23, 2009)

Beautiful looking tank! All your tanks look great and I enjoyed reading more on site. Thanks for sharing. Wish my cories were my active like yours when the lights are on in my tank.


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