Rainbow tank Roman themed make over

[New2fishlovinit]

So I did my rainbow tank as a “roman” kind of theme with 2 big pieces of decor. Can see them in this Before Photo




the lighter one on the end is huge - it’s impossible to vacuum the edges. the moss Is a mess with a bunch of dead and it’s covering up other plants - there is an anubis on lava rock and a couple others. The mess at the top is another thing .., I want the floating…but it’s just a tangled jumble and some Leaves have black algae. Lastly the Vals at the front left …not sure why but that where they want to grow ..id like them to back up. Oh there is also a huge Anubis attached to an 8” piece of driftwood that can barely be seen.


I always type from Ipad so if I type badly I blame that lol.

Im journaling this to keep myself on task and get any input from the awesome folks here.

Do I need/should put a tall piece on right - driftwood or other decor/plant ?
experiance moving Vals or getting them to grow densely and not spread out?
Any ideas on how to attach pennywort ? I’ve set in substrate but it rots and floats away.
Ideas on better way to create water flow ?

you can see the direction of the pretty strong current at the top, much less water movement on lower half of tank. I could add a sponge or a internal filter …something I’m considering for more flow and to replace airation from current air stone in the decor. Not sure how to where to direct …


anyway - always have a few projects going and this one has been bugging me input always welcome.

 

[BigManAquatics]

If it was me, i would take the ruins out before putti g in driftwood, but that is simply because i hate mixing different themes together like that!! I either have to go all "natural" themed, or just plain deck it out as cheesy as possible!! No in between or mixing for me.

 

[New2fishlovinit]

Well I got part way today .. two decor pieces left .. my Stargate in the corner and the pillars in the middle. It made quite a mess when I pulled up the big piece. Tons of dead moss and filter intake was very clogged. I pulled a couple of the Anubis and sprayed them down with hydrogen peroxide rinsed and put the big one on driftwood back, the other two I relocated for now. I added a sponge filter to the corner for now. I am going to pick through the moss, it’s tangled in with the grass .. pulled up a bunches trying get moss out. Tank was already messy so I’ll do more tomorrow. Fish seem unsure about the open space. The moss ball is still attracting them.

 

[TClare]

I do agree with BigManAquatics in that I would not mix driftwood with the Roman ruins. For one thing the scale would be wrong, the ruins would look like toys. While my tanks are always natural themed, I actually quite like how your tank looked, it didn’t look cheesy, it looked like ancient ruins overgrown by jungle vegetation!

As for the Vallisneria, I have had the same experience with it popping up along the front, yes, you can uproot it and replant it where you want (though more may come later).

 

[StarGirl]

Vals are easy to maneuver. Just cut the runners in between plants and re plant them where you want them. As TClare said you did have a really good ruins tank. Most times when you see them they do look cheesy.

 

[Leeman75]

I like the overgrown ruins too!

I've never really considered Rainbows, but the one on the right by the columns in the first picture is really cool!! What kind is that?

 

[New2fishlovinit]

Ahh thanks for kind words all. I did not mind it so much as a look, but that big piece was a pain to work around and was .. 1/4 or if not more of tank “floor” space. Pretty sure it was 12” wide circle. It barely fit the width - can see in second photo where I could not scrape as good . I have some other much smaller pieces of Roman theme I did not use cause out of scale … but maybe as a remembrance

new photos tomorrow

thanks for the advice on the Vals. getting them to stay put after I cut them out that can get me .. it’s a challenge and partly why I tend to have trouble planting the back of tanks … short people problem. got to jam them down deep Can’t reach. I’ll see how agitated the tank is tomorrow and do a little replant perhaps.
thanks again for positive vibes

I like the overgrown ruins too!

I've never really considered Rainbows, but the one on the right by the columns in the first picture is really cool!! What kind is that?

I have a pair and that’s the boy. They are thick for rainbows at least my others, I think he shows more orange than yellow because of the orange from other males. They are commonly called Yellow rainbows. Melanotaenia herbertaxelrodi is the “scientific“ name I think it’s one of the people who brought them into the hobby.

Zoomed.

 

[YouBettaBelieveIt]

I love your tank! I’m a sucker for a natural scape, and the Roman ruins are a really good idea. I think the only thing I would add, if this were my tank, is more plant variety and possibly some larger rocks. Java moss would look cool on those ruins, just tie some on the columns with fishing line.

 

[Nopsu]

Do I see a stargate tho?!

 

[New2fishlovinit]

Do I see a stargate tho?!

Yes, yes you do. I posted a guard the gate picture in rainbow fish pics section haha!