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Retirement and forum shutdown (17 Jan 2022)

Hi,

John Howell who has managed the forum for years is getting on and wishes to retire from the role of managing it.
Over the years, he has managed the forum through good days and bad days and he has always been fair.
He has managed to bring his passion for fish keeping to the forum and keep it going for so long.

I wish to thank John for his hard work in keeping the forum going.

With John wishing to "retire" from the role of managing the forum and the forum receiving very little traffic, I think we must agree that forum has come to a natural conclusion and it's time to put it to rest.

I am proposing that the forum be made read-only from March 2022 onwards and that no new users or content be created. The website is still registered for several more years, so the content will still be accessible but no new topics or replies will be allowed.

If there is interest from the ITFS or other fish keeping clubs, we may redirect traffic to them or to a Facebook group but will not actively manage it.

I'd like to thank everyone over the years who helped with forum, posted a reply, started a new topic, ask a question and helped a newbie in fish keeping. And thank you to the sponsors who helped us along the away. Hopefully it made the hobby stronger.

I'd especially like to thank John Howell and Valerie Rousseau for all of their contributions, without them the forum would have never been has successful.

Thank you
Darragh Sherwin

New planted tank project. Finally has water in it

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27 Apr 2013 11:54 - 19 May 2013 16:32 #1 by Q_Comets (Declan Chambers)
Hi all

I am starting a vision 180 planted tank and I will need help of course.

So far I have put in a substrate divider, a piece of light acrylic siliconed in place. Behind this will be aqua basis topped with a dark gravel and the rest will be a light coloured gravel still shopping for these. I'll add a pic when the substrate is in and if I can find suitable stone a kind of stone wall effect.

Next on the shopping list is new t5s and reflectors.

So to the inevitable questions.

Are the juwel high lite day tubes suitable for plants or is there a standout brand in tubes?

I want to avoid an algae bloom early on, how best do I go about this? I do have plants in another tank if I plant lots at once will they out compete the algae? I will be using easy carbo. Would a uv filter be a good idea?

For planting/cycling can I plant first and cycle after? Just thinking it would be easier to work in a not full tank.

Thanks in advance for the help I'll try to get pics up at various stages.

Rgds
Dec
Last edit: 19 May 2013 16:32 by Q_Comets (Declan Chambers).

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27 Apr 2013 12:12 #2 by JohnH (John)
Dec,
It's a pity you're so far away from Dublin,
The speakers at tonight's 'get-together' at the Red Cow,organised by Seahorse Aquariums, include someone from Dennerle who would have been eminently able to answer any questions you might have with regard to planted tanks.

No good for me, however, I would need someone to talk about killing plants - although I seem to have this function pretty well honed already.

Hopefully someone here can answer your questions - or send you a link or two for other websites dealing with the subject.

John

Location:
N. Tipp

We're just two lost souls swimming in a fish bowl - year after year.


ITFS member.



It's a long way to Tipperary.

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27 Apr 2013 12:42 #3 by Q_Comets (Declan Chambers)
yeah John living in kerry has its advantages but a surplus of fish shops is not one of them.

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27 Apr 2013 13:08 #4 by JohnH (John)

yeah John living in kerry has its advantages but a surplus of fish shops is not one of them.


Much the same as here in North Tipp, but I guess my Dublin trip takes me 2-1/2 hours, it's probably longer for you!

John

Location:
N. Tipp

We're just two lost souls swimming in a fish bowl - year after year.


ITFS member.



It's a long way to Tipperary.

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27 Apr 2013 17:39 #5 by Q_Comets (Declan Chambers)
Did I mention there were some advantages. I can almost throw a stone in this river from my house.


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27 Apr 2013 23:47 #6 by hammie (Neil Hammerton)
A river like that is certainly an advantage, as rivers like that are nearly always surrounded with natural beauty!

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06 May 2013 13:35 #7 by Q_Comets (Declan Chambers)
So while I am waiting to get the remaining substrate, I would like to get a shoal of something small colourful mid to top fish.

PH 7.4

Current stock that will be moving from current tank
10ish rummynoses
2 apisto 1 adult 1 juvi
2 medium angels
2 ottos
1 Pleco, LFS said would only get to about 5 inchs max but will be rehomed if getting too big

All suggestions welcome
Dec

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18 May 2013 10:08 - 18 May 2013 10:46 #8 by Q_Comets (Declan Chambers)
So here is my effort to have different substrates. Planted section in the back has aqua basis plus on the button hopefully it will stay there, there is a strip of acrylic along the rock line. What do ye think will the stones all fall all over the place when the water goes in?




Don't know why I. Is upside down you'll have to turn you computer upside down I guess ;)



Image inverted - I really don't know why it changes image orientation - will have to look into this at some point.
Last edit: 18 May 2013 10:46 by JohnH (John). Reason: Inverted image

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18 May 2013 10:48 #9 by JohnH (John)
I think the rocks, if fairly well placed (ie if they are stable) should stay 'put' - provided the water is introduced slooooowly.

John

Location:
N. Tipp

We're just two lost souls swimming in a fish bowl - year after year.


ITFS member.



It's a long way to Tipperary.

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18 May 2013 10:54 #10 by Q_Comets (Declan Chambers)
Thx johnh for the rotate and advice. I have a small siphon not much bigger than air line was going to use that for filling, hoping to not have sand everywhere also.

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18 May 2013 11:09 #11 by JohnH (John)
That should do the trick - I use a normal-sized mug sitting in a saucer and trickle the water into the mug which in turn trickles into and out of the saucer - making as little a disturbance as possible.
You will probably find that some of the sand will float in the meniscus of the water, but this can be easily sunk afterwards.
John

Location:
N. Tipp

We're just two lost souls swimming in a fish bowl - year after year.


ITFS member.



It's a long way to Tipperary.

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18 May 2013 11:20 #12 by Q_Comets (Declan Chambers)
Thx didn't think of a cup to go with the saucer

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18 May 2013 20:00 #13 by Q_Comets (Declan Chambers)
So started filling very slowly. Lemon jelly warned me about the substrates mixing but no one told me gravel floats. Spent a while getting bits of green out of sand already. Will update when plants are in.


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19 May 2013 16:37 #14 by Q_Comets (Declan Chambers)
So the kettle has had a nervous break down and the tank is finally full. Not sure a bout the plant layout yet it looks so different now that it is full. I planted at about 20% full.


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19 May 2013 17:08 #15 by LemonJelly (Johnny Cowley)

Lemon jelly warned me about the substrates mixing but no one told me gravel floats. Spent a while getting bits of green out of sand already.


HA! Surface tension is a bugger!

Tank looks really good. Nice sharp lines. What's going in it?

"The only thing that burns in Hell is the part of you that won't let go of your life; your memories, your attachments. They burn them all away. But they're not punishing you.They're freeing your soul."

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19 May 2013 17:34 #16 by Q_Comets (Declan Chambers)
Thx

Currently in other tank rummy noses 1 angel 1 apisto caca 2 ottos 1 Pleco. Hoping to add male angel female apisto and a small group of something for higher in the tank. Pleco will have to be rehomed depending on how fast it grows

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19 May 2013 18:44 #17 by hammie (Neil Hammerton)
Looks great....
It will look fantastic in a few weeks when it settles more and grows a bit

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19 May 2013 22:21 #18 by JohnH (John)
It's when it all comes together as this has that you can sit back and relax - I don't think!!!

Give yourself a big pat on the back - you deserve it.

As Hammie says, once the plants start reproducing and filling up the spaces a bit more you'll have a better idea of how the completed aquascape will look.

John

Location:
N. Tipp

We're just two lost souls swimming in a fish bowl - year after year.


ITFS member.



It's a long way to Tipperary.

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20 May 2013 06:44 #19 by Q_Comets (Declan Chambers)
Thx lads. One kinda lost Anubias to move then just watch and wait and see how it grows in. Must admit I did give myself a little pat on the back.

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31 Jul 2013 23:07 - 31 Jul 2013 23:08 #20 by Q_Comets (Declan Chambers)
Looks like this now

Hmmm let me try that on the PC
Last edit: 31 Jul 2013 23:08 by Q_Comets (Declan Chambers).

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01 Aug 2013 13:42 #21 by fionakoi (Fiona Wynne)
looking forward to seeing the updated photo. I'm changing my tank around at the moment and doing something new myself so its great to see what others are doing. Your set up looks great. Fiona

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01 Aug 2013 14:12 - 02 Aug 2013 14:25 #22 by Q_Comets (Declan Chambers)
Hi

Hopefully John will help me out again and stick in the pic(s)





(Sorry for the delay - was involuntarily offline for the past day).

Looking good - most impressive and well worth the effort and expenditure.

John
Last edit: 02 Aug 2013 14:25 by JohnH (John). Reason: Added pics for Q

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02 Aug 2013 19:46 #23 by Q_Comets (Declan Chambers)
Thx again John

Was having no luck with iPhone or PC

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03 Aug 2013 10:42 #24 by jeff (Jeff Scully)
Looks amazing we'll done it makes me want to start another tank :-/

Where the tongue slips, it speaks the truth.

A life making mistakes is not only more honourable, but more useful than a life spent doing nothing at all.

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03 Aug 2013 11:12 #25 by Q_Comets (Declan Chambers)
Thx Jeff but admit it if it was a pic of an empty tank it would make you want to start a new tank. Sure we're all the same

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03 Aug 2013 13:02 #26 by JustinK (Justin Kelly)
If you used the water from the other tank and a filter from it,
then your tank would be ready for fish.
You dont need to worry about cycling if plant only.
Its a nice layout and gave me an idea for my tank too :-)

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03 Aug 2013 13:59 #27 by Q_Comets (Declan Chambers)
glad to be a little help. I assume we will see the new tank as it develops

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14 Sep 2013 20:14 #28 by Karolis (Karolis Austynas)

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14 Sep 2013 21:16 #29 by Q_Comets (Declan Chambers)

very nice tank


Thx all the Vallis is gone now, decided I don't like it. Hoping to get something nice next week while I'm in Dublin

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