The Red Apricot

I washed the sand. And washed it. And washed it... That darn bucket probably weighed half as much as I do.

Now, as far as the pictures go, I haven't really gotten the tank anywhere near where I'm happy with it as far as the "landscaping" goes. I want a lot more plants, and a larger piece of driftwood (the little one will be going in my 10 gallon tank in a couple days, I just wanted to make sure it wasn't treated with copper any other goodies which would kill my shrimp, so I'm using those snails in the 55 gallon as guinea pigs, so to speak).

So, that leads me to another question; if I were to go out and find some (freshwater) driftwood, how would I go about making it tank-safe?

Attached Images

	p8270555.jpg (37.1 KB, 8 views)
	P8270556.JPG (38.5 KB, 11 views)
	P8270557.JPG (34.9 KB, 11 views)

clinton1621

For driftwood, you can boil it for 15 minutes or so, or if its too big to boil you can also put it in a large tub (bathtub or large bucket) and pour the boiling water over it.

I personally recommend getting Malaysian driftwood, it is pretty cheap, and it sinks by itself.... I actually have several pieces the size of a dime that sink, unlike most other all other driftwood that requires either months of soaking or using slate to keep it from floating. Take a look at my thread showing pics of my driftwood.... (that I only paid about 20 bucks for all of it)

My 30g planted and the fish =)

The Red Apricot

That driftwood is crazy pretty. Where/how do you get it? Because none of my local pet shops really have any selection of driftwood at all (except maybe this one reptile place... hrm...)

clinton1621

I got it at a place in Ohio called Jacks Aquarium and Pets, but you can probably find it at some fish stores or online.

rifter098

they sell it on www.drsfostersmith.com also, if u wanted to order it online
check ebay and craigslist if u want to see the actual piece

clinton1621

I didnt see the Malaysian driftwood on there... the Mobani driftwood that they have is not the same, so I dont know if it sinks like the Malaysian driftwood.

clinton1621

Here are a few sites that carry it....

http://64.26.25.241/Merchant2/mercha...gory_Code=dmpd


http://www.apethouse.com/

http://www.aquaticeco.com/subcategor...ian-Driftwood/

rifter098

o my fault, but yes it does sink when put in a tank (no soaking) and i like the 2-tone coloring of this stuff, its smoother also, so it wouldnt rip the pearls fins

clinton1621

Yeah the Malaysian does have some rough spots, I sanded all the points and rough areas down on mine.

The Red Apricot

Thanks for the suggestions! I'll definitely check out those sites, and the local fish places.

clinton1621; thanks, but Ohio isn't particularly local for me-- I live about an hour south of LA.

clinton1621

I saw that earlier, I was just mentioning where I got mine from lol, thats why I posted all the links to order it online =)

The Red Apricot

=P I forgot that I had entered California as my location, or I totally wouldn't have corrected you. My bad. Still, I really appreciate it.

Do you know of anywhere to get less pricey plants? The ones at the pet stores are usually sort of sad, and they're crazy expensive.

clinton1621

I bought all of mine from an aquarium store named Aquarium Adventure.... I know they have some of these stores in different states but I'm not sure about Cali

Some of the members on here sell live plants =)
Try posting a thread asking who might have live plants to sell on the cheap and ship them

Blub

Can't help on pricey plants (If they're labelled then it is often worth the money) because I'm in the UK, but I can help you a bit with the aquascaping. Driftwood makes a good centrepiece, so put that inbetween one of the corners and the middle. That massive Echindorus on the right side unbalances the left a bit, so the difwood would be best there, with the Java ferns growing on it. I see you planted the java fern's rhizom in the sand - big mistake there as they need their rhizome above the substrate. The one on the far left is a good one.When you get the wood, I'd the java ferns down to that. And put a lot of Hygro at the back so it's a little hygro forest, and Dwarf hairgrass as a carpet in the front. (This is why you don't get involved with aquascapers!) Get a lot of crypts, and put them inbetween the big plants and the carpet to make a mid ground.

If your large Echindorus dies off, leave it in there. Often echindoruses die off after they are introduced to a new tank, but re grow soon enough so you have nothing to worry about. Remember to un bunch or un pot all pants you buy.

The Red Apricot

I didn't know that about the java fern, thank you. I was planning on moving all of the plants. They are where they are right now because of light issues. The bulbs in the hood at the moment suck a little bit, and so until I can go out and get better lights, most all of the plants are just sort of plopped down where they're receive light.

Thanks for the helpful advice on aquascaping, though. =3 It's appreciated.

The Red Apricot

Slight update: I think the whole cycling thing is starting to work. The ammonia was up to .25, and the nitrate is at 20, and the nitrite is between 0 and .5, but closer to 0.

Blub

Coming along nicely!

The Red Apricot

Both the nitrite and nitrate were basically zero when I checked last night, but the ammonia has gone up to .5, which I take is a good thing?

I have another question; if I were to get the two bristlenoses, and the few pearls, would I be able to have glowlight tetras in with them, or would they get eaten? Or would there not be enough room left to have enough for them to be happy...? They're just a thought at this point, I'm not terribly invested in the idea-- at one point I was thinking about putting them in my ten gallon with this little fish I have now (some sort of mosquito fish or something; he came in a box with the crawfish I used to have) but decided against it. As I've spent more time looking at the different fish, I realized I really dig the little schooling guys like the neon/glowlight/cardinal tetras, but I don't want to put something in the tank with the pearls that will compete with them in terms of color, if that makes any sense.