135g SA "Renewal" Project

[DarylMac]

Back is painted.
Stand is levelled.

Side to side (lengthwise);


And front to back;



I've got the tank on the stand and I've started installing the hardscape. So far I have a 4.5 foot branch and 180 pounds of river rock.

Tomorrow I'll wash sand, put it in the tank, then add some plants and smaller stones, along with the rest of my wood pieces.

 

[DarylMac]

As you can see I still have sanding & painting to do, but this laundry service works like a charm for filling the tank.



Plan is to fill about 80% and then use my python to suck out any large bits of crud while dropping water back to 50% or so. Then I'll start adding sand and other decor.

 

[DarylMac]

Well, 100 lbs of Target brand pool filter sand is washed and in the tank. As is about 200 lbs of rock, and almost all of my driftwood. I have one extra piece with java fern attavhed that I will sell locally.

Bleeding hearts, bushy nose plecos, and Siamese Algae Eaters are back in the tank.

The rest of my fish are hanging out in the 75 waiting for my wife to get home so I can bag them up & trade them in...

More pics to come tonight once it gets dark so I have less glare.

 

[DarylMac]

So here's the new scape (sans plants)... 5 juveniles Andinocara Rivulatus are floating at the moment.



If I get a chance tomorrow I'll pick up some Vals, and small sword species if they're in stock.

The next project will be re-arranging my filters so that all the intakes are at one end, and the outlets at the other.

I'm also going to have to do something about those blue Rena intakes. They're horrid against the black background.

 

[robham777]

Looking good!

 

[Cichlid Junkie]

I like the way its coming along.

 

[DarylMac]

Ok. Plants are in. I'm not great at aquascaping so I'm not thrilled with how manicured the tank looks at the moment, but I know if I'm patient the plants will fill in and the cichlids will redecorate and it will all come together. I'll post a full tank shot later when there is less glare. Now for some fish photos!

I believe what I have here is possibly a Male (left) & Female (right);


And maybe another male?


And maybe another female?


There's one more that I did not get a photo of. To be honest I can't even really tell them all apart yet...

There is one (at least) fish that has almost no colour on the seam of it's tail - does anyone know if that colour will come? I have read in one of these recent GT threads that the seam of colour on the tail can actually change from white to yellow to orange or vice versa as the fish grows - but I'm wondering if an absence of colour on the end of the caudal fin is indicative of poor genetics, colour wise anyhow.

 

[DarylMac]

 

[robham777]

Those look like some high quality rivulatus, and the aquascaping looks great imo.

 

[isde02]

Aquascaping looks great to me to