# 1/25/08 Tank Pics



## DiPpY eGgS (Mar 6, 2005)

I thought I would share some new pics with you.

The tank still doesn't look the way I wanted it to from the beginning, but is that much closer. The medium light is throwing off my timing..lol
I'm used to plants growing at an astronomical pace with 3wpg.

George is growing nice, and looking better every week. He started eating in front of me now, and seems to be comming out of his shell even more.

Any comments/suggestions/questions welcome as usual- Thanks for stopping by the Aquarium Plant forum!

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## AKSkirmish (Jun 24, 2005)

Gosh Dang them are impressive pics------even more impressive tank setup Dippy-
Always top notch from you Sir....


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## DiPpY eGgS (Mar 6, 2005)

AKSkirmish said:


> Gosh Dang them are impressive pics------even more impressive tank setup Dippy-
> Always top notch from you Sir....:nod:


Thanks AK!
IMO, I haven't gotten the hang of my camera, even yet.. I'm a slow learner as far as cameras are concearned! But comming from you, I'll take that as a wonderful compliment! 
I love checking out all of your pics even if I do not comment all the time. Thanks a lot for sharing what you do with the P-fury community, I appreciate all that you are to this site!


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## Sheppard (Jul 8, 2004)

Wow Dippy, incredible!!!!
I was thinking the growth was fast, because your tank sure filled out quick! Unless time is just flying by me. 
I really like the layout how you have it densely planted on the side with all that open area.
Great job


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## DiPpY eGgS (Mar 6, 2005)

Sheppard said:


> Wow Dippy, incredible!!!!
> I was thinking the growth was fast, because your tank sure filled out quick! Unless time is just flying by me.
> I really like the layout how you have it densely planted on the side with all that open area.
> Great job


Thanks, Sheppard!

It grew fast, but I used to run a 3wpg tank that blew this one away as far as growth time lol. 
This tank will need at least another 6 weeks for the rotundafolia to look right, and by that time, I'll probably have to redo the HM and maybe the crypts..









I'm glad you like the layout! I made it that way for the rhom, so he has room to fill out & swim


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## AKSkirmish (Jun 24, 2005)

DiPpY eGgS said:


> Gosh Dang them are impressive pics------even more impressive tank setup Dippy-
> Always top notch from you Sir....:nod:


Thanks AK!
IMO, I haven't gotten the hang of my camera, even yet.. I'm a slow learner as far as cameras are concearned! But comming from you, I'll take that as a wonderful compliment! 
I love checking out all of your pics even if I do not comment all the time. Thanks a lot for sharing what you do with the P-fury community, I appreciate all that you are to this site!
[/quote]

N/P Dippy Sir....
Taking pics without flash isn't as easy as it seems-I have gotten spoiled lately with my pics....They come way too easy for me now---Kinda spoils the fun in it actually.....But the benefits from it are huge..
FYI-Cleaning your glass before pics will help tremendously Dippy







But other than that man-You got a good take on what you need to due with what ya got it seems....Keep it up....I have taken thousands of pics to get to the point I am at.....









Thanks for your kind words also-They are appreciated


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## TFMBIGDOG99 (Mar 19, 2006)

Dippy if you have some HM to sell, LMK!


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## DiPpY eGgS (Mar 6, 2005)

AKSkirmish said:


> Dippy if you have some HM to sell, LMK!


In a couple weeks, I'll have plenty!

I just gave away probably a soft-ball sized clump to a local member lol


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## CLUSTER ONE (Aug 2, 2006)

nice looking plants
what lighting do you have? like brand wise

one thing i dont liek is the foreground plant , to me it looks like some parts (that lump in the back) could be trimmed or cut back so it looks more even. I dont know what your planning , but some rocks or wood betwwen the plants i thing would be better to take away from the straight line plant transition. You probably know much more about plants then me , but thats what i would do. looks sweetthough and cant wait till i can grow them like that.

ps have you ever used sump regulators? and are ph monitors nessisary or could i just put the co2 system on a timer?


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## jharrison (Dec 7, 2004)

What is that ground cover plant in the front?


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## ryanimpreza (Jul 19, 2006)

all I can think of is "sweet stuff right there"


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## DiPpY eGgS (Mar 6, 2005)

sean-820 said:


> all I can think of is "sweet stuff right there"


Thank you much, sir, glad you like it


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## maknwar (Jul 16, 2007)

looking good!!!!


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## MiGsTeR (Jan 19, 2008)

See it only took a few days!


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## Winkyee (Feb 17, 2003)

Damn that looks nice!
Good Job Joe..


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## SeedlessOne (Nov 21, 2006)

Redonkulous as usual







....there are a few of you guys that have A+ show tanks. Thanks for sharing and helping out so much in the plant forum.


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## ju5tin95 (Nov 25, 2008)

what kind of plant is in the first pic the dark one? and its a low -light yes? its always nice to see your tank man... maybe add some of those rocks that look like they are part of a cliff? ive seen it in this youtube video that is from a aquascaping contest


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## lo4life (Aug 12, 2008)

I dont have anything to say lol... Everyone took the words outta my mouth! Tank is amazing as always. Damn I wish I had ur talent for putting plants together!


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## traumatic (Jan 29, 2003)

that looks great! totally not overdone, wonderful growth too...


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## Ibanez247 (Nov 9, 2006)

Your rhom is coming out of his shell because he is so traumatized by the beauty around him lol. Sweet tank setup. IS that a 55 gallon tank and if so whats the aomunt of light wattage you are using?


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## SeedlessOne (Nov 21, 2006)

Pretty sure its a 75g....


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## CLUSTER ONE (Aug 2, 2006)

Sorry I ment sumo regulator. Have you heard of or used these?


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## SeedlessOne (Nov 21, 2006)

Sumo are suppose to be the sh*t. Maknwar runs one and loves it. Ill be buying mine very very soon. They now come with ideal valves which are top of the line also. Pretty much one of the best regs for aquariums bottom line.


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## Rough996 (Oct 3, 2006)

My mouth dropped when I opened this topic. BEAUTIFUL!

I do have a question though: With those plants layering most of the bottom, are you concerned with uneaten foods or poop raising your ammonia and nitite levels? How do you handle that? OK, that's two questions, but let's call the second one a "follow on".


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## SeedlessOne (Nov 21, 2006)

Rough996 said:


> My mouth dropped when I opened this topic. BEAUTIFUL!
> 
> I do have a question though: With those plants layering most of the bottom, are you concerned with uneaten foods or poop raising your ammonia and nitite levels? How do you handle that? OK, that's two questions, but let's call the second one a "follow on".


With a heavly planted tank the plants keep the levels in check.....


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## Rough996 (Oct 3, 2006)

SeedlessOne said:


> With a heavly planted tank the plants keep the levels in check.....


I need to get on board. I TRIED once - was futile. I bought some swords and a sort of grass (forget the name now) from Petsmart - of all places - and followed the nutrient instructions to get them to take hold, but all I ended up with was some beat up looking plants and a SLEW of SNAILS. I still find a snail or two in my tank - 1.5 years later. I think my lighting may have been the problem in giving the plants what they needed.

If you (or anybody else) have any good referenences on starting a planted tank - a thorough, but not TOO thorough (no resource that would require a college professor to explain to me) - PLEASE SHARE. I need the A-Z steps.


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## Ibanez247 (Nov 9, 2006)

SeedlessOne said:


> My mouth dropped when I opened this topic. BEAUTIFUL!
> 
> I do have a question though: With those plants layering most of the bottom, are you concerned with uneaten foods or poop raising your ammonia and nitite levels? How do you handle that? OK, that's two questions, but let's call the second one a "follow on".


With a heavly planted tank the plants keep the levels in check.....
[/quote]

Definetly right there. My tank use to be full of plants and I never had param problems. I remover 3/4 of the plants and planned on replanting but never got around to it. A month later algae blooms and water params start goin out of whack. Still fighting that battle but I think Im going to put a lot of plants back in along with the every three day water change and I should be golden once again. Still man thats a sweet setup


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## pbucch (Nov 18, 2008)

looks great man, do you think that HC would grow in a 55 gal with 67 watts of light.


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## DiPpY eGgS (Mar 6, 2005)

Thanks a lot everybody for all your excellent advice, and comments!
You guys keep me going in this hobby.



> what kind of plant is in the first pic the dark one? and its a low -light yes?


That is _Cryptocoryne wendtii_. Yes, it is a low light plant. Loves light as well, I gotta tell ya. lol



> IS that a 55 gallon tank and if so whats the aomunt of light wattage you are using?


It is a 75, and I am using 110w of 6700k PC, with a 1.5-2hr 'burst' with another 110w 5500k PC about halfway through the photoperiod.



> Sorry I ment sumo regulator. Have you heard of or used these?


No I havn't sorry. After what Seedless said, Imma have to check them out tho



> I do have a question though: With those plants layering most of the bottom, are you concerned with uneaten foods or poop raising your ammonia and nitite levels? How do you handle that? OK, that's two questions, but let's call the second one a "follow on".


Good question. I try to feed my fish exactly what he will eat so I don't have to 'fish' out his leftovers(pun intended) and I also try to cram my filters with tons of bio-media so if my bacteria don't eat up excess ammonia build up(on occasion), the plants will, or should.
I actually have to add nitrates on a weekly basis.



> If you (or anybody else) have any good referenences on starting a planted tank - a thorough, but not TOO thorough (no resource that would require a college professor to explain to me) - PLEASE SHARE. I need the A-Z steps.


Try this to start, let me know if it helps



> do you think that HC would grow in a 55 gal with 67 watts of light


I doubt HC would, but HM (pictured) should.
I get mine like that with 110w over a 75g, w CO2. Oh, and I have another 110w burst for almost 2 hrs every photoperiod.


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## pbucch (Nov 18, 2008)

Damnit, I think CO2 is necessary to have sucess.

great job on your tank!


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## JustJoshinYa (Mar 25, 2006)

Beautiful rhom ohh and the tank aint half bad either lol, man i want to upgrade my 55gallon to a 75 or 90 soo bad so i can do some setup like this dippy, but with money and the economy and all i doubt i can. i wish i had room to add some HM like yours i bought some but it turned out to be giant tears and grew to the top of the water and now my subulata has taken over and there is no room to try with the baby tears


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## lo4life (Aug 12, 2008)

pbucch said:


> Damnit, I think CO2 is necessary to have sucess.
> 
> great job on your tank!


It truely is the next step. You can seriously tell from day to day how much the plants grow. I have a jungle val that i swear grows about 1/4 of a inch a day.


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## SeedlessOne (Nov 21, 2006)

lo4life said:


> Damnit, I think CO2 is necessary to have sucess.
> 
> great job on your tank!


It truely is the next step. You can seriously tell from day to day how much the plants grow. I have a jungle val that i swear grows about 1/4 of a inch a day.
[/quote]

I do agree with it being the next step but its not required to have a nice planted tank. There are plenty of fantastic no CO2 tanks. So people should not see this as something needed to have a planted tank....

And on a side note......lo4lfe post a pic of the tank...


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## DiPpY eGgS (Mar 6, 2005)

SeedlessOne said:


> Damnit, I think CO2 is necessary to have sucess.
> 
> great job on your tank!


It truely is the next step. You can seriously tell from day to day how much the plants grow. I have a jungle val that i swear grows about 1/4 of a inch a day.
[/quote]

I do agree with it being the next step but its not required to have a nice planted tank. * There are plenty of fantastic no CO2 tanks. * *So people should not see this as something needed to have a planted tank....*
And on a side note......lo4lfe post a pic of the tank...
[/quote]

I agree completely.

I just went with a CO2 system so I could grow plants faster. It can take a long time for a low non co2 tank to grow in.


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## Sheppard (Jul 8, 2004)

Definitley keep us updated in the future Dippy! I actually have a Glossostigma question for you, but I will PM it.


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## DiPpY eGgS (Mar 6, 2005)

For sure, man.

IMO this tank still needs some work. The Rotala rotundafolia is not full yet. Plus I want to change a couple little things in there too.


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## pyrokingbrand (Nov 30, 2004)

Beautiful pics Dippy. George is a stud.


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## lo4life (Aug 12, 2008)

SeedlessOne said:


> Damnit, I think CO2 is necessary to have sucess.
> 
> great job on your tank!


It truely is the next step. You can seriously tell from day to day how much the plants grow. I have a jungle val that i swear grows about 1/4 of a inch a day.
[/quote]

I do agree with it being the next step but its not required to have a nice planted tank. There are plenty of fantastic no CO2 tanks. So people should not see this as something needed to have a planted tank....

And on a side note......*lo4lfe post a pic of the tank...*

[/quote]

Dont know if you saw it but i do have a pic up now.. Nothing special at the moment just wanted to show the growth of the vals using Co2..


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## thedude8 (Oct 6, 2008)

DiPpY eGgS said:


> I just gave away probably a soft-ball sized clump to a local member lol


Thanks again


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## nataz (Mar 31, 2006)

Lookin good Dippy Eggs. Rhom looks great also.


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## DiPpY eGgS (Mar 6, 2005)

thedude8 said:


> Lookin good Dippy Eggs. Rhom looks great also.


Thanks Nataz!

What's up with your tank? When you gonna share with us?


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