Earlier in my post about aeration after lights is turned off, I am not specifically mention that this aeration method (directly) will make your aquarium, algae free. It is to make your aquarium healthy. With healthy aquarium, plant will grow, fish are happy and you most likely to have no or minor problems with algae from the start. Algae will always be a main issue if you are not taking care of underlying causes such as CO2, fertilization etc. If algae already there, that is another issue.

Sometimes, you have to take several steps to remedy a problem, not just with a single step, and later come back, says it does not work!. This is ridiculous. I do not believe if someone says, take this one single step, to solve all your problems. Do you? Please do not make your own conclusion without reading and researching carefully. So you see, the first good step leads to another good things, followed by another good steps that eventually leads to healthy aquarium. And be patience. Even with all right steps taken, sometimes the problems just won't go away. It takes time too.

For me, I always divide my algae problems into three parts. One, the algae that we see, already blooming in the aquarium. And the ways to get rid of it. Either manually removing it (scrubbing, brushing, pulling etc), or using the algae eaters, and to the extreme using antibiotics or algaecides. Second the underlying causes. Not enough CO2? Stable? Ferts? NO3?, PO4?. Third, preventive steps. How to make sure it will never happened again. This aeration method falls under this third part, for me. Most people only taking care the first part. For them as long as cannot see algae anymore then it is ok. But after few days, weeks or months, the same thing happened all over again. And says this method does not works, that method does not work. Even says that algae eaters are lazy!!!, useless. They call it, an algae eater for a reason. Really %#%$&^#&^...(assume that!)

Is this method proven?. Not sure really. Hey, if Amano do it, it is good enough for me. Do I have to dig deeper to know exactly why?. No. I like to enjoy my planted aquarium now!..seeya..

Best Regards

Hi,

More details on the cooling fan used.

Use a commercial cooling fan before but then decided to use a computer casing fan instead. The commercial cooling fan is a bit noisier and heavier.


Manage to get around 25ºC lowest to 29ºC highest. This picture was taken around 2.00 pm (26ºC).

Every 3-4 days, I have to top up the water lost due to the water evaporation (1-2 inches).

Best Regards

Nice tank...
That a lot of lightings... 8 tube of 36W PL..


Stanley

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Thanks Stanley,

Yes, it is about 4.8watt/per US gallon. I think I need to cut down the lighting to slow down the plant growth a bit. Until now, everything is great, I can plant and have a nice growth of those plants that normally I won't dare trying i.e. E. Crineum, Toninas etc.

Some update, picture taken early this month. Wait till you see the tank at the end of this month!.


Best Regards

Hi,

Got this glosso looks like plant, Marsilea Minuta, a small clump from a friend. Hope to replace the glosso since this plant growth rate is much slower than glosso, and maintenance wise, should be more easy.

Left is Marsilea Minuta (darker green), on the bottom right is glosso for comparison.

What do you guys think?

Best Regards

YUP...M.minuta takes 3 times longer to grow compared to glosso, but EASY they are not!
their runners runs deep into the substrate and its diffcult to jugde their progress and where the next shoot will pop up.
check your PH ..dont let it drop under 6.8, M.minuta are quite sensitive to lower ph...and algae is quite a problem and could really ruin an otherwise beautifull species.

btw ...how long have u planted your glosso?...surprise to see they still not on their runners....or my eyes are playing tricks on me.

do agree....its nice to see a carpet full M.minuta...too bad i lack prolong patience for this species....had some in my tank...after a month or so i only spotted 3 new shoots...and the leaf on the parent plant is getting bigger...which is not a good sign.

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Everyone Has a Photographic Memory..........some just dont have film!

Btw nash ...i see u have a pretty neat and complete setup...truly an invitation to try a more diffcult species......have u thought about this?
its a shame really not to see any reds in your setup....and i asure u ...your setup and equipments are tailor made for it....especially your soil.

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Thanks ari,

Here is a better picture of Marsilea Minuta (not mine though ).
After having this plant on hand, I believe the runners of this plant are not runs deep as deep as described by you as you can see in the picture too. Marsilea Minuta is classified as fern, low light tolerant, but like java fern, will do great (grow a bit faster) with higher light and CO2. I am not sure about the pH though. Although have been collecting information on this plant before, only recently actually got this plant. It have been 3 weeks now. Hope the plant will grow nice in my tank.

About the glosso, have been trimming runaway runners every week, so that is why. It have been almost 2 months since replanting the glosso. Your eyes are fine.

About the red plants, actually I have, Rotala Rotundifolia, P. Stellata (removed after stunted) and L. Aromatica. Only thing is only manage to get yellow to orange, not intense red on this plants, maybe due to high NO3 dosing (not willing to take risk of NO3 bottom out, and induce BGA).

Best Regards

yea...u learn more abt M.minuta...then u teach me...i sure love to have a carpet full of them....glosso is getting to be a little boring nowdays.
when i got mine fron a very KEDEKUT fren...i got only 4 tiny leafs with roots...and they are not even on runners..
i have seen this setup in jakarta...the m.minuta in full carpet formation and yet the runners are invisible except for the side of the tank...and the runners could be seen running under the gravel....hahaha...i havent reach that level yet with m.minuta....so the info u about to find out could come in handy.


hahaha...Reds are not as easy as many would think..i spend almost 5 years before i found out the truth about reds...and i give u this tip in less that 1 minute....NEVER ever expect to get perfect red condition if u bought your red plant in submerged form...it would never happen.
and this has got nothing to do with No3 dosing or what ever...the thing is i never bother or create extra headache worrying about those chemistry thing...sort like me being one of the old school guys....and if u ask me about No3..i would say ...saya tak tau!

your stellata is a fine example....this is not an easy plant to grow if u got them in submerged form. but if u get them in emerged form u have a bigger chances of see this beautifully plant establishing itself in your tank....and this where u test your skill........from emerged...to submerged to full grown species. dont just buy a bushy coconut tree look alike stellata ...poke it the back portion of your tank...and expect it to grown nicely.....it never happen!

and what more ...to grow good stellata in the background...u have to plant them first...before any other plants. once they have rooted...only then in u put in other plants....a slow time consuming process

so the word is ...if u ever setup red species setup....your tank will look Botak for the first 2 months....after that and if u do your homework..the result would be....wow!
but how many planters have the patience for that??

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Everyone Has a Photographic Memory..........some just dont have film!

Hi,

Almost forget to update the progress on this tank at the end of this month as promised.

Will do some major rescaping after this. This what I love about ADA Aquasoil, make it possible to grow almost any plant species, IMHO, and the speed at which plants grow makes for a constantly changing aquascape.

Also will tear down my other cichlid tank soon. Not decided yet what to use for the substrate. The Ocean Free substrate looks good enough but quite expensive too, if not mistaken, > RM90 per 5kg bag. The Red Sea Florabase soil found at the Pet Family, Taman Megah looks ok too, but read somewhere, have to replace every year. The cost almost the same as ADA though. Maybe will go for Holland/Lapis sand with API First Layer Pure Laterite or Sera Floredepot at the bottom instead. Have been using JBL products exclusively especially the JBL Aquabasis base fert with Holland/Lapis sand on top for this 2 feet tank, and quite satisfied with it, IME. Hmmm..so many choices...

Best Regards