Holland tank

[fischkopp]

I was playing a bit with some new camera toys, so I thought I might try to take a picture of my tank. The planted one. It's slowly recovering from a long summer.



For the techy folks:

• Tank: Hagen 55gal, 48Lx13Dx20H
• Substrate: Fluorite black, medium sized, 2.5 inch or so deep
• Light: 3x54W T5HO, 2x Giesemann Aquaflora, 2x Giesemann Midday, 9 hours
• CO2: yupp, injected via 2 ceramic diffusers in both back corners, dispersed and distributed via MJ400, 9 hours, 1.5 hours before light
• Filtration: 2x Eheim classic 2213, filled with Siporax only
• Flow: via spraybar filter output and both MJ powerheads
• Air: comes on after light off for a few hours to ensure sufficient O2
• Heater: no, temperature averages ideally around 25deg celsius
• Water change: 95% weekly
• Fertilization: daily, in hopefully sufficient but not excessive amounts

Enjoy.

edit: image size

[nissannx]

looks great!!!! I was never successful with plants but looks like you have it figured out lol. I am also surprised you get all that growth on only 3 t-5. I am assuming the c02 makes all the difference. Any fish in that setup?

[redbelly]

95% weekly water changes, wow good for you!
I did not realize that a planted tank required such large and regular water changes.
Is that to improve clarity?

Nice looking tank!

[RoxyDog]

Pretty!  I love to look at planted tanks but don't know how you guys deal with the upkeep.

[Fishnut]

Beautiful!  Why the 95% water change though?

[Brine]

very nice tank indeed 

[dan2x38]

Cool nice setups.... Dutch tanks are fishless plants only (for the most part). I did think I saw an Otto Cat in there though.

[freshfishies]

what is the octopus-looking plant in the back left? The crinkly one :p It's beautiful!

[fischkopp]

Thanks.

Those 95% water changes sound a little scary, I know. But I haven't had any adverse effects by doing it. The idea behind it is to control the amount of fertilizers in the tank without measuring anything. Many of you are well aware of EI dosing; but the 50% water changes aren't enough to "reset" the water conditions. Unused nutrients would only be removed by 50%, thus accumulating in the tank over time. A time bomb. On the other hand I know my tap water and can tailor my fertilization as I see a need by observing the growth of the plants. Hope this makes sense to you.

There is little fish in there. One of my lessons learned is that it is best to give a tank one purpose, and one purpose only. For example, if you have a fancy wild caught fish, you would setup an aquarium just for that species to provide your little friends with the best possible environment, anything else would be secondary. Apply this concept to a planted tank: I want to provide the plants with the best conditions, so I just don't want to worry about any fish in there. Fish and food can adds an unknown variable. So I simply keep my fish in other thanks. Also, I like to experiment a lot, and some of those experiments have been proven to be lethal in the past ...

I am not saying that you can't keep fish in a planted tank, it simply gives me more control and less headaches. There are a couple fish in there that I find essential: about 10-20 otocinclus. These little guys keep everything pristine, a must have for a planted tank. Recently I also added 3 siamese alge eater. Never had any before, but it seems like they live up to their reputation. All the fish have to live from what they can find in the tank (algae); they are not given any supplemental food.

That solitary plant on the left is Crinum calamistratum.

[fischkopp]

A little update.

The layout is work in progress. I decided to go with a more natural look, allowing the plants to get mixed up a bit. It's slowly getting there ...

[Jeff1192]

Wow.....I can't find any algae in those shots.....haha. I completely agree with you that the fish and feeding add all sorts of variables that make it hard to control things. I have always had a bit of a BBA problem in my tank. I recently cut my feedings down and it has done wonders for cutting down the BBA (I was really bad for over-feeding).

Tank looks great.

Jeff

[charlie]

Fantastic job Robert, looking good.

[OttawaFolkFestivum]

Great Stuff. Thanks for the updates.

[sas]

What a beautiful tank, I like the wild look .
Thanks for posting.

[fischkopp]

I believe this tank is up since the end of 2008 and still going. With a change in vegetation ...

[exv152]

Excellent tank! I really like the different textures and colours mixed together. Good example of a dutch-style planted tank. Just surprised you don't have more comments on this thread given how nice your tank is. Thanks for sharing.

[sas]

Awesome tank:o.........it's still wild and wooly. Love it.
Are you still doing the Water change: 95% weekly
Fertilization: daily?

[Nyx]

Absolutely stunning! Thanks for sharing the pic. Your tanks are always an inspiration.

[brotherluv]

Oh my goodness not only does that tank look amazing but It's a stunning picture as well!  

[Janny]

Wow! Absolutely gorgeous!

[fischkopp]

Thank you!

Yes, I try to keep up with the weekly water changes, although life gets a bit in the way of that. But the tank is still being drained to the bottom. Every 2-4 weeks depending on the species I will prune a little, but not all at once if I can help it. I decided to keep this kinda "wild nature dutch style" look with plants grouped here and there as I find it easier to maintain and also interesting to look at.

In recent weeks I had a bit of an dust algae issue, which forced me to re-think the dosing a bit. Dosing is daily: 1/32 trace, 1/8 KNO3, 1/8 CaN02, 1/16 K2SO4, 1/32 KH2PO4, in that order. I believe I was dosing traces and nitrate too heavy before. The tank bounced back within two weeks, but there are still gaps to fill. I think I give up on foreground plants since the tank is not very deep (plants from the back will shade the front) and go over to mid-ground plant like blyxa japonica or staurogyne repens. Will see how that goes ...

[daworldisblack]

Thank you!

Yes, I try to keep up with the weekly water changes, although life gets a bit in the way of that. But the tank is still being drained to the bottom. Every 2-4 weeks depending on the species I will prune a little, but not all at once if I can help it. I decided to keep this kinda "wild nature dutch style" look with plants grouped here and there as I find it easier to maintain and also interesting to look at.

In recent weeks I had a bit of an dust algae issue, which forced me to re-think the dosing a bit. Dosing is daily: 1/32 trace, 1/8 KNO3, 1/8 CaN02, 1/16 K2SO4, 1/32 KH2PO4, in that order. I believe I was dosing traces and nitrate too heavy before. The tank bounced back within two weeks, but there are still gaps to fill. I think I give up on foreground plants since the tank is not very deep (plants from the back will shade the front) and go over to mid-ground plant like blyxa japonica or staurogyne repens. Will see how that goes ...

Any root tabs? I dont know what I can do to make my crinium happy. It doesn't look as happy as yours! Did it take time to establish?

[fischkopp]

Any root tabs? I dont know what I can do to make my crinium happy. It doesn't look as happy as yours! Did it take time to establish?

Mmh. I added some DIY root ferts a few years back, and I keep finding some every once in a while when up-rooting plants. I might have also added some Seachem root tabs at some point. But I never noticed any big improvement by adding any of them. The dosing seem to provide enough nutrients, and the substrate is supposed to buffer a bit of them as well. I can't really prove that, but recently I added two swords for recovery to the tank and they are doing really great.

As for the Crinium, I don't do anything special. They do take some time, months on occasion, to establish when being moved to a different tank. But in this tank they seem to do well. I had the issue that I lost two mother plants that were rotting from the bulb. I could never explain why as other smaller Ciniums right beside it did well. It could have been that the trace dosing were too high, and too much got absorbed over time. But I don't know for sure.

Here another pic of pearling plants that I took while playing with my camera toy in the fish room.


Proserpinaca palustris ''Cuba''

[Peekay]

This tank is really interesting.. such a variety of sp.  The longer I look, the more I see!
What's the one on the right that has tiny leaves arranged like a wheat stalk on long harder stems? 

[charlie]

Thanks for sharing Robert , always a ppleasure seeing other tanks & yours i`m sure will inspire more tanks, great job.
Errol

[bettabreeder]

simply a stunning tank.

[daworldisblack]

What's the one on the right that has tiny leaves arranged like a wheat stalk on long harder stems?  

Thats Hygrophila Pinnatifida Brenda Interesting leaf shape and the undersides have a nice colour too!

[Janny]

Thats Hygrophila Pinnatifida Brenda Interesting leaf shape and the undersides have a nice colour too!

It's beautiful - another new one for me to add to my "wish list".

Stunning tank - inspiring.

[fischkopp]

Thats Hygrophila Pinnatifida Brenda Interesting leaf shape and the undersides have a nice colour too!

Yes. That's it. An interesting one for sure; I don't remember when I got it from Errol, but it's been a few month. Hygrophila pinnatifida can be quite invasive under high light, but its not very light hungry. I guess you could tell that already by it's dark coloration. You can plant it in the dark corner, or shaded by other plants around it. This slows the growth, but doesn't harm the plant at all. 

Thanks everyone for their comments. The tank is due for a little trim. Will try to post some pics afterwards. Just don't expect nice aquascaping ... 

[fischkopp]

I promised an update after pruning, so here it comes. Luckily the CO2 ran out, so I won't have to deal with all those air bubbles in the tank.

There is, once again, a bit more fish in the tank. I added a school of Aphyocharax rathbuni; they are still young so they don't quite show all their colour yet. Maybe in a few more weeks from now. There is also a young pair of Apistogramma norberti that I got at the giant auction.

Not pictured, because hidden most of the time, is a reverse trio of Ctenopoma ansorgii that might have to go. The tetras seem to trigger their appetite ...

[exv152]

Hey fischkopf, I saw some green fire tetras at BAs the other day and was pondering buying some, but ended up settling for some colombian tetras which look quite similar. I read their colours will really come out in a planted tank, and that seems to be the case in your tank, and that they tend to change colour hues as they mature. Nice choice. How many did you buy?

[fischkopp]

I had a couple of these tetras in a smaller tank a while back. They really look quite plain in fish stores, but once they settle in their red is pretty punchy. I like the silver tips, and the back becomes darker green-metallic - that probably where the name comes form. Plus they tend to stay very small 3-4cm maybe. I like small fish. There are about 60-70 in the tank right now.

[Peekay]

Amazing.   

[bettabreeder]

Awesome tank!


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[exv152]

Nordländer! (I assume you`re German from your name), I especially like your attention to the colour scheme. Amazing piece of art.

[fischkopp]

Glad you are enjoying it!

Yes, German roots cannot be denied.  Not sure if I would call it art. For me it's like a collection of favourite plants gone wild. 

[Cheebs]

Holy wow!!! I am blown away by the beauty of this tank. You often hear of people switching to saltwater for various reasons, but darn it, this really makes me want s freshwater tank!

[exv152]

Favourite plants to you, but definitely artistic to others.  I do have to ask one question, why do you dose K2SO4 in your daily regimen? Is it for the K?

[fischkopp]

Holy wow!!! I am blown away by the beauty of this tank. You often hear of people switching to saltwater for various reasons, but darn it, this really makes me want s freshwater tank!

Thanks. It's a good that this hobby has many sides. For me it's the affection for things green.

I do have to ask one question, why do you dose K2SO4 in your daily regimen? Is it for the K?

Yes. Not sure if it is really needed, but K isn't something you want to be short of. I use it mainly because half of the nitrate dosing is done via calcium nitrate. I wouldn't use it if i dose potassium nitrate only.

[sylros]

Your tank is an inspiration to folks like me who's only been in the hobby of PT for a short while. If you think your tank is wild, wait until you see the latest picture of mine! It's changed from last time you've seen it.

I think that one can't be too averse in moving plants in the tank, as I think it will need to be done to give it the various levels or 3D effect your tank has. For the first time, thanks to the last OVAS meeting, I've got red in my tank...that helps.

Thanks for sharing...that new camera is working awesome as your pics are amazing!

[fischkopp]

Thanks for your kind words. It has taken me a while to learn how to keep red plants alive; once you get a hang of it its very rewarding. There are quite a few plants that I still have difficulties with, but what matters in the end is what you do with what you keep in your tank. Possibilities are endless.

[fischkopp]

Went camping this summer and came back to find my tank in this shape. It basically stayed like that for two three month. And when I went for another trip, the tank cleared up again. Guess one break in the summer wasn't enough ...

[Peekay]

 

Even your algae has a bright, healthy glow! 
Glad it finally cleared up. 

[exv152]

Hey Robert, Goes to show you tanks sometimes have a way of rectifying themselves. Any idea what may have caused a spike in ammonia?

[fischkopp]

I would say the cause was lack of maintenance/fertilizing, creating an imbalance. Presumable one of the macros bottomed out I assume. Water changes and general fertilizing routine didn't clear it up. Only once I doubled phosphates, in combination with light reduction, it went back to normal.

[fischkopp]

Wow. This tank has been running for more than four years. It had it downs, mainly during the summer months, but for the most time it has been a great journey. But sometime you know when its time to do the final pruning and move on to some new projects.

This tank will stay where it is, but it's being turned into a fish only tank. Awesome fish. More on that later.

Nature has gone wild.

And there is no holding back.

Ludwigia inclinata var cuba grows quite well above the surface.

That green patch in the corner is Hemianthus micranthemoides (Pearl Weed). It used to be a MaxiJet 400.

Would you have guessed this is Proserpinaca palustris var Cuba? It's emerged form it rather un-spectecular.

Pruned. Drain the water. Catch the fish. Done.

[Dan]

I was looking at your originally posted specs and noticed that you said your started your Co2 injection 1.5 hours before turning on the lights. I am getting ready to try this it out (cant beat proof and your tank speaks for itself) but was wondering why you are doing this?

[pm]

I was looking at your originally posted specs and noticed that you said your started your Co2 injection 1.5 hours before turning on the lights. I am getting ready to try this it out (cant beat proof and your tank speaks for itself) but was wondering why you are doing this?

can't speak for fischkopp, but I have mine do the same (but only 45 min in advance of lights ) to get the co2 levels up so that once the lights kick in there is co2 available for the plants.  I don't know if it actually makes a difference, but plants do start to pearl earlier using this method. (or at least for me)

[fischkopp]

Yupp, pm nailed it. Once the light come on you want to make sure that the plants have everything they need to grow. Skimp on important CO2 and algae will happy to chime in to get rid of all those other nutrients.

[blueknight0303]

awesome tank!.. hope you can bring it back to its original state!

[fischkopp]

Thanks! This tank is no planted tank no more. Just a lot of wood, and a few fish.