My 20g tank build: it's finally coming together

After much kvetching and back and forth, I've moved forward with a 20 gallon build:

It's going to be heavily planted 20 gallon high. I have an Aquaclear 50 HOB. I plan on using the blue/white (classic) and white/white (premium) foam pads, plus a 100 micron polishing pad, followed by 2 bags of biomax ceramic tubes for bio filtration.

My planned plants:

• Anubias
• Microsword and Chainsword (or dwarf hairgrass)
• Java fern
• Cambomba
• Hornwort
• Ludwigia
• Swords
• Water Sprite
• ThaI onion plant
• Water wisteria
• Monte Carlo
• Moss matt

My planned stocking:

• 5 blue velvet shrimp
• 2 golden mystery snails
• 3 6 zebra nerite snails
• 3 trapdoor snails
• 12 neon tetras kubotaI rasboras
• 1 betta

I have my affixed hardscaping in place. I have added "rails" around the top of the aquarium and have eggcrate as an "escape-stop" for any critters coming up the walls. The glass aquarium lid is here, and I have my lighting. I'm going DIY on the lighting, and plan on having 3 desk lamps mounted over the aquarium, each with a 60w equiv CFL. According to all the calculations I can find online, this should give me ~ 33 lumens per liter.

Some pics from the build so far. Happy for any feedback, or suggestions. As the build slowly comes together from her on out, I'll update with photos and progress.

~E

 

Sounds nice but the only thing I can already see coming is neons and bettas aren't temp compatible. Cardinals I believe will be better in a warmer tank with the betta. aside from that cool build

 

Ah. The research I'd seen showed an overlap in the 76* area. Upper end for neons and lower end for betas. But, thanks tho...lemme research cardinals now....

kallililly1973 since you mentioned temps, I went through all my previous pages for potential tank mates specifically looking at temp ranges.

So, cardinals look to have a better temp overlap, but I'm seeing they're "expert level" care, and I'm definitely not that.

Other options that have a nice range overlap for an 80* tank, and are reportedly across a few sites not to be fin-nippers are:

• kubotaI rasboras
• black phantom tetras

Other temp appropriate options (but I've read some potential fin nippiness):

• x-ray tetras
• diamond tetras

 

What about some endlers? Would they be temp compatible? They’d be pretty cool

 

What about some endlers? Would they be temp compatible? They’d be pretty cool

will they breed in a community tank?

 

Have you looked at harlequin rasboras? Those actually live in the same place bettas do.

 

will they breed in a community tank?

I have absolutely no clue. I’ve just seen them with bettas on other posts here and think they are adorable lol.

 

Yes they will, they are just a different breed of guppy.

 

I did look at harlequin rasboras because of just that! And of course, all the information I could see is conflicting - some say "yes", others say "no". SMH.

So far, the kubotaI rasboras are the only ones I've seen that I haven't found "no" for. Though I worry about their size.

 

Well betta tank mates are a very flimsy topic. Every betta has a different personality, so there’s no guarantee that they will get along with other fish. That’s why different people say different things. You’re best bet is to get a betta (female is the best option but in the end it doesn’t matter) that is already in a tank with other fish, and get a peaceful schooling fish that won’t bother you’re betta. My betta for example, is a very spicy girl, but doesn’t try to kill other fish. Just the occasional chase. Bottom feeders are the best idea for bettas, because they usually don’t occupy the same tank level. Hope this helps.

 

My bettas live with dwarf Rasbora (maculata I think). Very peaceful...

(Sorry it is so hard to get a pic on the fly - this is literally right now)

 

My bettas live with dwarf Rasbora (maculata I think). Very peaceful...

(Sorry it is so hard to get a pic on the fly - this is literally right now)
View attachment 632869

I would suggest this too. Especially for a 20g, better to go with some nano species. Cardinals tetras and harlequin rasboras are good tank mates for a Betta but I think they get too big for a 20 gallon and it'll look crowded.

Some nano species to consider are rasboras maculatas, chilI rasboras, ember tetras, green neon tetras and espeI rasboras. The kubutaI rasboras you're thinking of also falls under this category

You can also consider picking out a species that contrasts with your Bettas color, e.g. blue Betta with chilI rasboras.

 

Thanks for all the suggestions. As of now, I'm leaning towards the kubotai, since they're small and fast and likely to avoid the betta, if he tries to be at all aggressive.

I'm probably not getting fish in the tank until sometime after the new year, so I have plenty of time to adjust my thinking. First is to finish the build, then the plants, getting cycled, and then the inverts. Fish would only come after all of that is set-up and working well.

Here's what I've drafted for plant placement (gray is the rocks, brown is wood):

 

KubotaI are a dream fish of mine, id love to see others with them, so yessss to them if you can fit them

 

It's the new year and with things settling back into place, I've picked up on building my set-up. Today I just ordered my CO2 system.

• A 5 gallon CO2 tank
• a dual-gauge regulator with solenoid valve and bubble counter
• an accurate pH controller
• ceramic diffuser

My bf is going to kill me, but oh well.

 

The CO2 system came in and everything seems to be good with that.

I got the shelf and lighting up over the tank. It's not in "final" mode, but I have it lit up to see if I'm going to have a heat problem.

 

After much kvetching and back and forth, I've moved forward with a 20 gallon build:

It's going to be heavily planted 20 gallon high. I have an Aquaclear 50 HOB. I plan on using the blue/white (classic) and white/white (premium) foam pads, plus a 100 micron polishing pad, followed by 2 bags of biomax ceramic tubes for bio filtration.

My planned plants:

• Anubias
• Microsword and Chainsword (or dwarf hairgrass)
• Java fern
• Cambomba
• Hornwort
• Ludwigia
• Swords
• Water Sprite
• ThaI onion plant
• Water wisteria
• Monte Carlo
• Moss matt

My planned stocking:

• 5 blue velvet shrimp
• 2 golden mystery snails
• 3 6 zebra nerite snails
• 3 trapdoor snails
• 12 neon tetras kubotaI rasboras
• 1 betta

I have my affixed hardscaping in place. I have added "rails" around the top of the aquarium and have eggcrate as an "escape-stop" for any critters coming up the walls. The glass aquarium lid is here, and I have my lighting. I'm going DIY on the lighting, and plan on having 3 desk lamps mounted over the aquarium, each with a 60w equiv CFL. According to all the calculations I can find online, this should give me ~ 33 lumens per liter.

Some pics from the build so far. Happy for any feedback, or suggestions. As the build slowly comes together from her on out, I'll update with photos and progress.

~E

What is under the 2 rocks in the first picture?

 

What is under the 2 rocks in the first picture?

Great Stuff spray foam. I used it to build risers for the rocks. That side of the aquarium will have a deeper substrate than the right side, and I wanted to securely raise the rocks. I have a make a couple more for that side of the tank.

 

Great Stuff spray foam. I used it to build risers for the rocks. That side of the aquarium will have a deeper substrate than the right side, and I wanted to securely raise the rocks. I have a make a couple more for that side of the tank.

It’s aquarium safe?

 

It’s aquarium safe?

Once cured, there is no toxicity. It had been air curing for over 2 months before it went in there, and has been in there for another month at least.

 

Once cured, there is no toxicity. It had been air curing for over 2 months before it went in there, and has been in there for another month at least.

Is it the regular foam or the Pond & Stone foam? I definitely see benefits to using it, I’ve just never seen or heard of it used in an aquarium before.

 

Is it the regular foam or the Pond & Stone foam? I definitely see benefits to using it, I’ve just never seen or heard of it used in an aquarium before.

I used the regular since I already have it. Many people use the regular, tho if the more expensive Pond & Stone makes you feel better, go for that.

 

I ordered plants today. The next big step in my set-up.

I ordered:

• Micro Sword
• Anubias nana (x2)
• Anubias nana petite
• Spiralis (x2)
• Ludwigia Broad
• Red Cyrpto
• Wisteria
• Red Rubin
• Cabomba (x2)
• Red root floaters
• Corkscrew Vallisneria (x4)
• Barclaya Longifolia
• MinI Pellia on a mat
• Phoenix moss on a mat

It's a bit different of a combination of plants than I intended, but I had to deal with what was available. Most of the things are a straight swap for some other stuff, e.g. the Barclaya for the Onion Plant. And I may swap the Cabomba to the left side of the tank and put the Vallisneria on the right. I'd like to break up the "blade leafed" stuff more than having them all shifted to one side of the tank.

Would love to hear if some of you have had success or failures with any of these.

 

Hardscape is done and the tank is filled; running it now to get out what's left of the cloudiness from the sand.

A couple more photos: one is the "betta house", and the other is the "shrimp playground".

 

Questions for those more knowledgeable:

1. I'm going to set-up the CO2 system tomorrow, and I have an electronic pH monitor. If the pH rises above a set point, the system will turn on the CO2. If it gets below a set point, the system will turn on the air pump. How do I know if there's enough CO2 in the tank, for any given pH? Or is this something that's kind of standard (e.g. perfect CO2 for a planted tank will be at X.X pH)?
2. Regarding planted tanks and mystery snails. Every plant and fish I've chosen could be just find in a 7.0 pH tank, except the mystery snails (which I've read is to be 7.6 - 8.4). This is simply too alkaline for virtually all my plants and the betta. Can someone who has kept mystery snails share if this information is correct; that they require a more alkaline water than even nerites or japanese trapdoor? I don't want to put him in an environment that just eats away his shell.

Thanks!

YAY. First batch of plants is here! They're in a strong alum bath and will be for a few hours. I'm a little concerned the val is already melted for most of the length of the leaves, and I'm surprised by the size of the barclaya (I wasn't expecting a 16" plant to be shipped when it's only about 2" in size).

Anyways, here's to hoping everything works out just fine! And I can get them planted this evening.

 

Getting the CO2 right is proving to be troublesome:

1. Before adding in the plants, my pH was 7.6
2. I added the plants, and did a 50% WC, and the pH was down to about 6.4
3. Using the pH controller and airstones, I got it back up to 7.0 overnight.
4. The drop checker is still indicating blue (not enough CO2)
5. My thought was to run the CO2 on at 1-2 bps, and use the pH controller/airstones to balance the decrease in pH.
6. However, the pH quickly dropped back down to 6.4 and the airstones couldn't keep up and balance the push downward.

How do I fine tune the CO2? It seems that adding any CO2 to the tank pushes the pH into the low-6 range and I have to turn it off to not harm the plants.

Anyways, here's the first pic with plants in it.

 

More plants and more pics! The build it together. Now I have to dial in my CO2, and once I'm fully cycled, introduce my clean-up crew.

I have my "rainfall" scheme set-up. This is really to help offset the "plunge" where the HOB return comes back into the tank. It's set as lot as possible, but still created a significant downward force in the tank. I heard that bettas don't like a lot of that, so, I came up with a solution - my "rainfall return". One image is at water level and the other is from beneath.

 

Continues along. Day 8, and I still have no appreciable ammonia, nitrites, or nitrates. I have been using Seachem Stability daily per instructions to help give it a head-start, but I'm not seeing anything begin to happen in the tank, even an increase in nitrates, as of yet. (AM = .25; NI = 0.0; NA = <5.0)

Get to the weekend and do a 25% water change and see where I am. I think I have my CO2 dialed in now; tuning it on about 1.5 hours before the lights and getting toa pH 6.3-6.4 before the lights come on. Then turning it off with the lights 8 hours later. I turn on a an airstone about 4-5 hours after that and let it run until the CO2 turns on in the morning. Degassed I started around pH 7.3-7.5, but now it's closer to 7.6-7.7. I wonder if the addition of all the plants and driftwood has gradually raised the pH of the tank, or not. I'm still awaiting my kH test to get here, so I can have that information in my backpocket.

I did remove the activated carbon from the filter when I planted the tank; I didn't want it to remove any trace nutrients. I have Purigen on order, and will add that to my HOB. That may help with the cloudiness and yellow-tinge to the water.

So far, so good; I'm hoping that things continue going well and I get to a cycled tank soon for my fauna.

 

ChanyI since you've been so helpful on the CO2, I wanted to pick your brain about my cycle.

So, I'm on day 12, and I've not had a blip of ammonia, nitrite, or nitrates. Is that normal? As you know, I have a planted tank, with no fish. I have used seachem stability to seed the bacteria into the tank, per instructions. Is it possible that I'm cycled and the plants are just absorbing all the nitrates, so they're reading at zero?

I have left a lot of the plant material in there, so I know there's decaying bio-matter; I added a few pinches of fish flake early in the process, too, and just left those in there. Am I too early to see the cycle happening? Have to managed to get cycled and not know it?

 

Plants prefer ammonia, it's likely that, if they are growing fast enough, will use the ammonia up before the bacteria have a change at it.

This is why I don't cycle planted tanks, instead, I plant the tank and work on getting the plants growing and thriving, algae minimized, CO2 dialed in, and a water change schedule going. After all that, I slowly start adding a few fish at a time, waiting a week or so before adding another grouping.

 

Plants prefer ammonia, it's likely that, if they are growing fast enough, will use the ammonia up before the bacteria have a change at it.

This is why I don't cycle planted tanks, instead, I plant the tank and work on getting the plants growing and thriving, algae minimized, CO2 dialed in, and a water change schedule going. After all that, I slowly start adding a few fish at a time, waiting a week or so before adding another grouping.

OK....makes perfect sense to me. At this stage, I'm trying to get the plants growing (my Val has completed melted away and I don't know if they're coming back). I don't have any algae growth (knock on wood) except for the driftwood fuzz. Thanks to you, I'm getting better on the CO2, though with my KH rising from rocks it seems, that's a little more trouble at the time.

Good news though: we're under a shelter-in-place order for the next 2 weeks, at minimum, so I have plenty of time to monitor.

 

The struggle continues. I have upgraded the lights, and shifted to an LED bulb with 1500 lumens per (x3). That increases my lumens/liter from 39 to 68. I know that seems like a lot, but the aquarium has a glass cover, egg crate and window screen between the light and the water surface; it seems to reduce the light in the tank, so I don't feel like it's "overly bright".

It seems the plants have not made the adjustment as well as I'd like. All my Val has melted and doesn't seem to be coming back. Some stems of the wisteria seems OK; others not. Same with the ludwiga. I can't tell if the red root floaters are doing OK or not. I do have some new growth coming out on one of the spiralis, which is good news.

The phoenix moss looks like it's having a good time, and the mini pellia is so-so for now. The only large plants that seem to be thriving are the cabomba and the crypts.

Water parameters:

• Temp: 77
• kH: 5
• pH: 7.5 (degassed); 6.4 (CO2 active during day)
• Ammonia: 0
• Nitrites: 0
• Nitrates: 0

 

You may want to start dosing ferts with a heavily planted setup

Also I'm not sure if you got an answer but you mentioned a co2 system where if the pH dropped a certain level the air pump turns on and vise versa? I think most co2 systems just have a timer and the pH should balance out itself

great build regardless

 

You may want to start dosing ferts with a heavily planted setup

Also I'm not sure if you got an answer but you mentioned a co2 system where if the pH dropped a certain level the air pump turns on and vise versa? I think most co2 systems just have a timer and the pH should balance out itself

great build regardless

I turned off the automatic CO2 system. Now it's just set to a timer: 1 hour before lights on to 1 hour before lights off.

I was hoping that the seachem flourite black contained enough of the ferts already that I wouldn't need to add more right away. That being said, do you recommend something particular, or just in general. I know Seachem has their stuff all broken down: iron, nitrogen, potassium, trace, etc.

 

i haven't used any ferts since my tank is slightly overstocked but I've heard great things about thrive and easy green

 

Flourite is completely inert, and contains no nutrients.

 

I use flourite and I can say myself it definitely does something. Is there an article or something that says that flourite is inert that I can read please

 

I was under the impression that Flourite was sort of like the Miracle-Gro of aquarium substrates. Had I known I needed to use root tabs or other ferts, I would have already purchased them. Go figure!

 

So, I did some work in the tank today. I moved the wisteria, and some of the cabomba to the right side where the vals had been, and I removed the microsword, and all the red root floaters, as they were all dead.

I picked up some flourish and root tabs at the local Petco today and dosed the tank. I'm hoping this will perk up the plants and make me feel less of a failure.

I emailed aquatic arts to add to my shrimp order, and get some more mini pellia, a buce, and some snails. I'd like to get more red root floaters, and some chopstick snails, but they aren't in stock. I may make another purchase when they're available.

 

WHAT A DAY OF FERTS MAKE!

Today, I've already had to increase the CO2 to get my 1.1 drop in pH. I have pearling visible. The stem plants are standing up straighter. I'm super happy! Thank goodness y'all told me that Flourite Black is completely inert!

I got my email from Aquatic Arts this morning; they're adding to my order, and I'll get everything except the chopsticks. I need the clean-up crew, for sure!