120g Congo Biotope Journal
- Thread starter creativityasaweapon
- Start date
Thanks! And, yes, that blue tape is there to keep the glass free of black paint the trim will be painted with. Just to lazy to actually paint the thing! We were actually thinking maybe 15 Congo Tetras in there. We've never really had a legitimate school of something before. I work 10 hr. days and my shifts fall just at the right time of day to miss our lfs' hours, so Tuesday is the soonest fish will be seen in here.
There is a new addition to the tank! Yesterday our local club had an auction and my fiance bought me a really nice Java Fern, and some African Water Fern! I hope the fern takes off! After filling the and planting it, another fixture is definitely needed, but I'm not sure if 4 t8s are going to be enough. The tank is 2' deep, and I'm sticking with lower light plants (besides some dwarf hairgrass), but I think I'll be keeping my eyes open for a decent T5 fixture. I've also been playing around with buying a pressurized co2 system. Does anyone have some recommendations to cheaper but reliable systems? I've never used one, and don't want to spend a lot, considering this was supposed to be a low-tech tank, but after some reading, I think it'd be best for my setup and the picture I have in my mind.
I would take pictures, but unfortunately the water is still super cloudy, but I'll be doing a big wc in preparation for some Congo Tetras I'll hopefully be adding tonight that should clear it up.
I would take pictures, but unfortunately the water is still super cloudy, but I'll be doing a big wc in preparation for some Congo Tetras I'll hopefully be adding tonight that should clear it up.
I wouldn't leave the blue tape too long on the glass because it does get brittle after awhile and you'll need a razor blade to remove the adhesive and that might be difficult on the sides of the tank since it appears to sit in an alcove.
Nice job on the background and the addition of plants looks good.
I'm surprised that you will be adding fish so soon after the setup. Are you using a cycling product?
Nice job on the background and the addition of plants looks good.
I'm surprised that you will be adding fish so soon after the setup. Are you using a cycling product?
The tape comes off soon, but that's a good point! As far as adding the fish, we have several filters on tanks that are ready to be shuffled around when need be. This tank has the Nexx filters on it with a very seasoned Emperor 400. We did in fact add fish tonight, 7 Congo Tetras and we went ahead and got an Elephant Nose. This is the way the stocking is going to be for a while so I can make up my mind on the final stocking. Any suggestions?
Well, today was a good day...
I got the FX5 and Cascade for $50
The man who sold it to me doesn't run a filter on his tank anymore and said that he didn't care what it went for as long as someone would get some use out of it. So, the fx5 goes on the ray tank and the cascade is going to supplement the nexx that is currently on this tank. So far the plants have been melting slightly, and I'm now debating on whether or not I should get the quad T5 Odyssea fixture or not. Pictures of the tank to come tonight!
I got the FX5 and Cascade for $50
The man who sold it to me doesn't run a filter on his tank anymore and said that he didn't care what it went for as long as someone would get some use out of it. So, the fx5 goes on the ray tank and the cascade is going to supplement the nexx that is currently on this tank. So far the plants have been melting slightly, and I'm now debating on whether or not I should get the quad T5 Odyssea fixture or not. Pictures of the tank to come tonight!Well, I know it's been a while since my last post, but we recently rescued an African Grey and that has taken a majority of our life recently, but now I can put a little time into this again.
So, since I last posted I got every filter up and running, sold some stuff and no longer have any HOBs running! The house is so quiet!!
As an early Christmas present my fiance got me the quad fixture and I think the plants are picking up. Now it's just finding the balance of light. Right now it's on for 8 hrs a day and I've seen some decent growth, but nothing like I've heard Val is capable of. They all melted but immediately started to grow back, that's normal, but they haven't grown taller and they're throwing out runners like crazy. I had this experience with val before. Can anyone lend some info on this?
I've also had major brown algae, and that stuff on play sand turns into a hard plate. Not fun. I would normally battle with wc's but I also don't want to overchange for the sake of the plants, so I'm hoping that in time this will clear up.
Anyway, here's the whole point of this post...
So, since I last posted I got every filter up and running, sold some stuff and no longer have any HOBs running! The house is so quiet!!
As an early Christmas present my fiance got me the quad fixture and I think the plants are picking up. Now it's just finding the balance of light. Right now it's on for 8 hrs a day and I've seen some decent growth, but nothing like I've heard Val is capable of. They all melted but immediately started to grow back, that's normal, but they haven't grown taller and they're throwing out runners like crazy. I had this experience with val before. Can anyone lend some info on this?
I've also had major brown algae, and that stuff on play sand turns into a hard plate. Not fun. I would normally battle with wc's but I also don't want to overchange for the sake of the plants, so I'm hoping that in time this will clear up.
Anyway, here's the whole point of this post...
I was thinking of doing a Congo biotope myself a few months back, but have trouble making room. 
I had Congo tetras and elephant nose on my list too. In a 120 maybe you could add a group of ropefish, an african butterfly fish, one of the buffalo head species of cichlids, etc. There's a lot of cool species throughout the Congo!
Sent from my iPhone using MonsterAquariaNetwork app
I had Congo tetras and elephant nose on my list too. In a 120 maybe you could add a group of ropefish, an african butterfly fish, one of the buffalo head species of cichlids, etc. There's a lot of cool species throughout the Congo!Sent from my iPhone using MonsterAquariaNetwork app
