If this were your tank... (0.7MB of pics)

[jschall]

I would get rid of the sand. Get some eco complete or ADA. Not put in any fake plants but get some real plants and add more fish.

There are more fish than are visible in the pic. I could've waited for a better picture:
Delhezi bichir (grows 14")
2 Senegal bichir (grows 9-12")
Reed/rope fish (grows 20+ inches but is very very snakelike)
African knife fish (grows 8")
5 (formerly 6) Congo tetras (grows 3-4")
African butterfly fish (grows 3-4")

I'm planning on adding a Spotted Climbing Perch (grows 6-8") as soon as I can actually FIND one. If I order online I'll be paying close to $80 for it.
Anyway, I may get more congo tetras. They're doing pretty well except for that one that got eaten.

On the sand: I want sand. I don't like gravel, waste gets trapped in it too easily. It's also dangerous for bichirs, I've heard bichirs can eat gravel and get impacted or choke sometimes. Also, the sand is really a lot darker in person than it is on camera.

Any word on taller grasslike plants good in the low light? (Which I want to keep, bichirs and knife fish prefer subdued lighting.)

 

[boldtogether]

Absolutly keep the sand! Get some longer driftwood and angle it from the top down like roots. Why no fake plants? Do you have the whole CO2 set-up and such for plants? I do like the cong idea for a tank with sand!

 

[jschall]

Absolutly keep the sand! Get some longer driftwood and angle it from the top down like roots. Why no fake plants? Do you have the whole CO2 set-up and such for plants? I do like the cong idea for a tank with sand!

I'm having a lot of trouble finding driftwood. I got all my mopani wood from a local petco, but they don't have any more good pieces and haven't seemed to order more. I'll have to ask them to.

No fake plants because they NEVER look real, they're harder to take care of (seriously, you have to clean algae off them and replace them when they fall apart. real plants just need some ferts that I already dose and they grow), they're not as beneficial (they don't absorb nitrogenous waste they don't prevent algae from growing and they don't harbor as much nitrifying bacteria), and there's no pride in compromising when you can create a natural environment.

I don't have CO2, but I does flourish and flourish excel.

 

[tyndall72]

Id buy some bichirs and be a happy camper

 

[Khormid]

I would also put like 50+ clown loaches in there, but thats my own personal thing lol.

Last I recall, VS gets up to 6 inches. Regardless still likely to become bichir food. Or at least a chew toy.

Made me laugh. I needed that.