Starting my second tank, a 40 breeder!

Hey guys, Just got my first tank back in April, a 10 gallon. I’ve caught the bug and excited to say that I’ve started on my second tank. I’d like to post here so you guys can see it and give me a hand if needed.

With the help of everyone here I’ve selected my equipment, livestock, substrate/decorations, and plants. This will be a low tech planted tank dosing liquid ferts and root tabs. Mostly peaceful community. So here goes:

Tank: Glass 40 breeder
Lid: hinged Glass lid
Stand: Basic metal Petco stand
Light: Finnex Planted+ 24/7 HLC
Filter: Aquaclear 70 and sponge Filter
Heater: Fluval E 300w
Air pump: tetra whisper 60
Substrate: Caribsea supernatural Peace River gravel (very fine gravel, more like coarse sand and very smooth, natural colored)//Pool filter sand on one side
Decorations: Manzanita wood, dragon stone, river pebbles, various larger rocks
Plants: various low to medium light plants
Livestock:
3 Pearl Gouramis
2 Bolivian Rams
16 Harlequin Rasboras
8 Sterbai Corys
1 BN Pleco
Amano Shrimp
Nerite Snails

I’ve had this tank almost 3 weeks and it’s taken me that long to figure out all those specifics...what a project! And it’s crazy how much I’ve spent it’s been close to $800 and will be more like $1000 all said and done seems insane!

I did the background today—I had some 1/8” hardboard lying around so I cut it out and spray painted it the color I wanted (dark green) and I friction fitted it between the top and bottom rims in the back—fits perfect no tape needed!

At this point I’m waiting for my driftwood to be delivered from Manzanita driftwood.com, and at that point I will order plants. Then cycling then fish!
Hope you enjoy the build and I’ve attached pics so far let me know what you think
PS I’m not using all the rocks in that picture some are rocks that my son collected

 

I'm in the process of transferring the plants / fish from my 54 in to my also brand new 40B w/ petco metal stand. The 54 is going to become an Angel / GBR tank once moved and set back up, no plants though. I'm going to try and do some suspended manzanita (I've never hung wood like that inside a tank, so we'll see), a stump-like spider wood, black sand, and black seiryu stone.

I plasti dipped the back and one side, and went with a 50lb white PFS / 5lb black sand mix (so I'm not trying to chase keeping PFS pure white). I think I'm going to end up rescaping a lot, I think I have more floor space in this 40 gallon than I did in the 54 gallon. I think I'm going to end up picking up more wood, and I think I'm going to try and get a nice little jungle of vals going.

We should touch base on this project in a few months to compare how these 2 are doing. Since a lot of the basics are the same, and we're looking at pretty similar timelines.

Edit: We're filling up on this end. Hoping to have my Kuhli's in there tonight. They've been ina plastic QT tub for almost 2 months now.

 

I'm in the process of transferring the plants / fish from my 54 in to my also brand new 40B w/ petco metal stand. The 54 is going to become an Angel / GBR tank once moved and set back up, no plants though. I'm going to try and do some suspended manzanita (I've never hung wood like that inside a tank, so we'll see), a stump-like spider wood, black sand, and black seiryu stone.

I plasti dipped the back and one side, and went with a 50lb white PFS / 5lb black sand mix (so I'm not trying to chase keeping PFS pure white). I think I'm going to end up rescaping a lot, I think I have more floor space in this 40 gallon than I did in the 54 gallon. I think I'm going to end up picking up more wood, and I think I'm going to try and get a nice little jungle of vals going.

We should touch base on this project in a few months to compare how these 2 are doing. Since a lot of the basics are the same, and we're looking at pretty similar timelines.

I love the idea of suspending the manzanita, I can’t wait to see how that comes out. Also I want to do a Vallisneria jungle as well.. our projects do have a lot of similarities we should definitely touch base. I plan on doing a down sloping manzanita from left to right, where it ends will transition to sand on the right 1/3 of the tank. But, like you, this is evolving and I’m sure will change plenty as I set it up.

Tons of floor space on the 40b! Lots of options for aquascaping.

I really like the seiryu stones too, the ones I picked out are similar to them. I’m interested in the black and white sand combo, I almost went that route but chose the gravel last minute.

I couldn’t resist—I threw in some substrate and rocks, got the light on a snapped a pic.

 

Beautiful looking tank, and your build looks amazing! We can tell you've done a lot of research. Keep sending us photos as this develops.

 

Beautiful looking tank, and your build looks amazing! We can tell you've done a lot of research. Keep sending us photos as this develops.

Thank you for the compliment, much appreciated! I’ll keep the photos coming

 

Hey guys, just an update to my progress!

I added a background to one side of the tank.

Also, my driftwood arrived today, it’s smaller than I expected but I am confident it will look good with all the plants I have planned.

In addition I did order plants from Aquarium Coop, DustinsFishtanks, kallililly1973, and Vishaquatics. Aq Coop I ordered Saturday evening so it would be shipped Monday morning, and not only did they somehow dispatch it that night, it made it all the way here today! So I have done plants too lol.

I ended up ordering:
Elodea
Pearlweed
Bacopa Caroliana
Jungle Vals
Water wisteria
Java moss
Italian Val
Pogostemon Stellatus
Dwarf Sag
Amazon Sword
Scarlet Temple
Red Melon Sword
Ludwigia Repens
Bacopa Monnieri

I know it’s a lot, but I want a jungle! It’s an experiment and I hope it works out. I’m a bit nervous but the very worst that could happen is I'm out a little money, I’ll learn from my mistakes, and try it again. I plan on adding slow growing plants such as Anubias, crypts, and ferns later on.

hope to have this thing planted and cycling by the weekend.

 

Leak check/driftwood soak/float plants

Aq Coop plants are beautiful, healthy, and well packaged

 

Can't wait to see the progress! 40 breeder is my favorite of the "small" tanks. They just feel bigger than they actually are because of the depth. We have two and like you, we have the Petco Imaginarium stands (40B stands are actually kind of hard to come by, especially cheap).

 

Should have bought a 150 gallon.
You will be in a bigger tank again in 4 to 6 months.
I went 28-55-135, have 33 fish through all 3.
Welcome to the habit.

 

I've got my fish and plants transferred over from my 54 and just ordered the crypt Balansae (if I can get this to grow out, it should curl about halfway across the top of my 40B from right to left similar to vals), more crypt lucens, and some Hygro Wisteria to mix in with my other stems, and another order of it to float in my 54 when I get it set back up (only plants I plan on having in that one). I would consider picking up another one of your lights so you've got coverage front to back for all those plants. I ended up running out yesterday for a 2nd one. Your 40 is coming along beautifully, I love the swoop of that Manzanita. I need to start looking for a couple of Manzanita stumps for setting my 54 back up.

 

Should have bought a 150 gallon.

Nah, 40B's have the advantage of being extremely manageable on top of being really flexible. Big enough to not be a "little" tank, small enough that you won't need to spend hours on maintenance. If I could only ever do one size of tank forever, it'd be a 40B. The only reason I have any plans on getting another big tank is for Oscars. They were the first fish my wife and I kept as adults (separately, before we knew each other). I messed up so many things with mine that I've always wanted to do another Oscar and spoil the out of her / him, knowing what I know now, with a better budget to do it on. It won't be until after the kiddo is out of the house, and we can move the spare bedroom out of the basement, though.

 

Nah, 40B's have the advantage of being extremely manageable on top of being really flexible. Big enough to not be a "little" tank, small enough that you won't need to spend hours on maintenance. If I could only ever do one size of tank forever, it'd be a 40B. The only reason I have any plans on getting another big tank is for Oscars. They were the first fish my wife and I kept as adults (separately, before we knew each other). I messed up so many things with mine that I've always wanted to do another Oscar and spoil the **** out of her / him, knowing what I know now, with a better budget to do it on. It won't be until after the kiddo is out of the house, and we can move the spare bedroom out of the basement, though.

I just bought an albino oscar and blood parrot chiclid. Firsts for both types of fish for me...they are cool, I have them together in my 28 gallon for now.
The oscar is cool haha,chiclid is nest looking as well.

 

I'm not sure if I want to do anything in the Oscar tank besides a couple of Oscars and maybe a common pleco (we're thinking 180 - 200G tank). I love cichlids, I probably wouldn't keep fish if they didn't exist. I'm becoming particularly fond of dwarf cichlids. Any of them, all of them. I'm still hoping that I can bring in another type of dwarf in to my 40B with the harem of Keyholes in there now. If I do, I'd prefer trying Leatacara Curviceps (dwarf smiling Acara) or a pair of Bolivians. I'll probably try that before I get my 54 set all the way back up. If it doesn't work out, I can move the Curviceps in to the 54 with the Angels and maybe Cory's going in there and call them good.

 

I'm not sure if I want to do anything in the Oscar tank besides a couple of Oscars and maybe a common pleco (we're thinking 180 - 200G tank). I love cichlids, I probably wouldn't keep fish if they didn't exist. I'm becoming particularly fond of dwarf cichlids. Any of them, all of them. I'm still hoping that I can bring in another type of dwarf in to my 40B with the harem of Keyholes in there now. If I do, I'd prefer trying Leatacara Curviceps (dwarf smiling Acara) or a pair of Bolivians. I'll probably try that before I get my 54 set all the way back up. If it doesn't work out, I can move the Curviceps in to the 54 with the Angels and maybe Cory's going in there and call them good.

I just got 2 small Angel's today ,my kids insisted to tantrum level..
They are with the oscar and chiclid.

 

Can't wait to see the progress! 40 breeder is my favorite of the "small" tanks. They just feel bigger than they actually are because of the depth. We have two and like you, we have the Petco Imaginarium stands (40B stands are actually kind of hard to come by, especially cheap).

I love all the floor space on the 40B!
Agreed about the stand—everything out there is either super expensive or junk (or both)...imaginarium stand seemed like the best bet for the $. Curious , do you put a mat down? I just put the 4 pads on the corners, and it seems ok.

 

Should have bought a 150 gallon.
You will be in a bigger tank again in 4 to 6 months.
I went 28-55-135, have 33 fish through all 3.
Welcome to the habit.

4-6 months is optimistic, I was thinking more like 2-3months
I almost went with a 75, then I started worrying about load bearing Capacities lol. But in reality I do like sort of building up to the bigger tanks, gives me something to look forward to

 

I've got my fish and plants transferred over from my 54 and just ordered the crypt Balansae (if I can get this to grow out, it should curl about halfway across the top of my 40B from right to left similar to vals), more crypt lucens, and some Hygro Wisteria to mix in with my other stems, and another order of it to float in my 54 when I get it set back up (only plants I plan on having in that one). I would consider picking up another one of your lights so you've got coverage front to back for all those plants. I ended up running out yesterday for a 2nd one. Your 40 is coming along beautifully, I love the swoop of that Manzanita. I need to start looking for a couple of Manzanita stumps for setting my 54 back up.

Sounds awesome, really cool plant choices.

I was just thinking about possibly needing a second light, and at this point what’s another $50-$100 to do this correctly.

and thank you! Glad you like it so far.

 

4-6 months is optimistic, I was thinking more like 2-3months
I almost went with a 75, then I started worrying about load bearing Capacities lol. But in reality I do like sort of building up to the bigger tanks, gives me something to look forward to

Hahaha, cinder blocks make a good stand....just saying

 

I definitely want to do a cichlid tank someday. In fact I think of all the fish in this tank I’m most excited for the pair of Rams.

You guys gave me some good ideas here—I can convince the wife for two more tanks “for the kids”

 

Hahaha, cinder blocks make a good stand....just saying

You know, I’ve heard that, and I’m thinking that will be the stand for my next tank. Cheap and functional

 

You know, I’ve heard that, and I’m thinking that will be the stand for my next tank. Cheap and functional

Cinder blocks are a buck each.
An o.e.x pressure treated piece of plywood will make a good base and you dont have to worry about all the weight on four corners with a stand,rather evenly distributed weight through the whole stand.

 

Cinder blocks are a buck each.
An o.e.x pressure treated piece of plywood will make a good base and you dont have to worry about all the weight on four corners with a stand,rather evenly distributed weight through the whole stand.

3/4” for the plywood you think?

 

I love all the floor space on the 40B!
Agreed about the stand—everything out there is either super expensive or junk (or both)...imaginarium stand seemed like the best bet for the $. Curious , do you put a mat down? I just put the 4 pads on the corners, and it seems ok.

No mat here. Just the pads.

 

Looks good! I also love the 40 b and have two of them. The first was a freebie and I didn’t even know what size it was. Once I found out, I set up a second!

 

Looks good! I also love the 40 b and have two of them. The first was a freebie and I didn’t even know what size it was. Once I found out, I set up a second!

Thanks! Great size tank for sure

 

Lots of my plants have arrived, floating them in the tank. Going to be planting today, I’ll update later with pics.

 

The Balansae, Lucens, and Wisteria are supposed to get here today. Instead of going with a canister, I'm debating getting an Aquaclear powerhead and attaching it to a sponge filter on one side and spray bar on the other to get the flow across the top of the tank that I want.

 

The Balansae, Lucens, and Wisteria are supposed to get here today. Instead of going with a canister, I'm debating getting an Aquaclear powerhead and attaching it to a sponge filter on one side and spray bar on the other to get the flow across the top of the tank that I want.

Excellent, keep us posted on what you end up going with.
I’m still waiting on a package of plants. And then I’ll be ordering foreground and slow growers in a month or so

 

Alright guys, here it is. Still waiting on more plants, but at least we are up and running and cycling! I think the aquascape came out really nice. It still needs some tweaking and filling in, but I’m definitely pleased with how it turned out.
Water is a bit cloudy, I included a picture with no water. Let me know what you think!

 

Alright guys, here it is. Still waiting on more plants, but at least we are up and running and cycling! I think the aquascape came out really nice. It still needs some tweaking and filling in, but I’m definitely pleased with how it turned out.
Water is a bit cloudy, I included a picture with no water. Let me know what you think!
View attachment 711375

This is beautifully done! I'm totally saving this post as inspiration for when I redo my 37.

 

This is beautifully done! I'm totally saving this post as inspiration for when I redo my 37.

^ this makes me so happy I was lucky to have my wife and her artistic eye help me out. I’ll post another pic once the water clears up and the rest of the plants are in. Thank you again, it means a lot that this tank can be an inspiration!

 

I have a new 40 breeder (March) and I love it. I have a hinged top as well and an AC 70. I used Flourite black sand tho I much prefer the look of BDBS. I love the green backing. It’s just wood?! So cool!!

 

I have a new 40 breeder (March) and I love it. I have a hinged top as well and an AC 70. I used Flourite black sand tho I much prefer the look of BDBS. I love the green backing. It’s just wood?! So cool!!

Thanks! Yeah it’s just hardboard which is like a glorified cardboard/MDF that I picked up at Home Depot. I spray painted it with Krylon (I believe the color was Spanish moss) and just fitted it between the tank rims. I’m glad you like the color—I know most people including myself do blue or black but for this tank I wanted to try something a little different, I figured the green would hide algae and blend in with both the plants and the sponge filter

I think I’m going to use the BDBS on my next tank, I’ve heard good stuff about it!

 

Thanks! Yeah it’s just hardboard which is like a glorified cardboard/MDF that I picked up at Home Depot. I spray painted it with Krylon (I believe the color was Spanish moss) and just fitted it between the tank rims. I’m glad you like the color—I know most people including myself do blue or black but for this tank I wanted to try something a little different, I figured the green would hide algae and blend in with both the plants and the sponge filter

I think I’m going to use the BDBS on my next tank, I’ve heard good stuff about it!

Well I will say the tank I have with bdbs is non planted bc I’m only a year into this so I got the flourite so I could plant. So not sure how it does with plants. Also that is my show tank and it’s acrylic and has a black back already. It’s a 30 flatback hex.

Soooo on my 40 breeder which is glass I want a different look and not blue. I never even thought of green! I don’t like patterns bc I can’t see half my fish lol. Even in my acrylic I couldn’t find my black angel ever (she was tiny and I moved her anyway!). I am coping your idea totally. The tank is backed up to a wall and I can’t wait. Thank you! You really (or I really) haven’t seen any green backs I’ve seen either blue black or patterns. I would love 3D though the two I’ve seen are $$83 and $$146 and sometimes I spill on the back from changing the filter etc so not doing that. Plus now I love your green as much! Sorry to ramble on and keep us posted!!

 

Thanks! Yeah it’s just hardboard which is like a glorified cardboard/MDF that I picked up at Home Depot. I spray painted it with Krylon (I believe the color was Spanish moss) and just fitted it between the tank rims. I’m glad you like the color—I know most people including myself do blue or black but for this tank I wanted to try something a little different, I figured the green would hide algae and blend in with both the plants and the sponge filter

I think I’m going to use the BDBS on my next tank, I’ve heard good stuff about it!

So what dimensions did you cut it to to pop in and hold by itself?

 

So what dimensions did you cut it to to pop in and hold by itself?

So I believe it was 36” x 14” but don’t remember exactly, the best thing to do is measure in between the black rims. I cut mine a little big and then I had to sand it down to get it to fit. The cut doesn’t have to be perfect because the bottom of the hardboard will be hidden by the substrate...and if it’s cut a little small some clear packing tape will hold it against the rim, and nobody will ever notice

The substrate I’m using is inert and has no benefit to plants either, but I’m using root tabs and liquid fertilizer. If I was growing more difficult plants I would use something such as Aquasoil. I’m new to this as well but learning a lot on here, and having a blast with it ! (and putting a dent in the bank account lol)
Good luck with your tank and keep us posted on it!

 

Ok guys an update as promised with the tank...it is now fully planted and the water has cleared up. I hesitate to say it’s “done” because this will always be a work in progress, but it’s as done as it will be for now!
My ammonia is currently dropping rapidly but nitrites not being processed yet.
I’m looking forward to adding fish when the time is right. And I’m keeping my fingers crossed that these plants will thrive and grow out. I just ordered a second light for the tank (Fluval Aquasky) and Im now dosing ez green twice a week, and iron and equilibrium once a week. I’ve got quite a bit of melt going on, as well as some diatom algae, but I also see new growth so that’s exciting.

For those who are interested here is a complete list of the plants that are in the tank:

Bacopa Caroliana
Assorted Vals
Water wisteria
Java moss
Pogostemon stellatus octopus
Dwarf sag
Amazon sword
Red melon sword
Scarlet temple
Ludwigia repens
Elodea
Pearlweed
Hydrocotyle japan
Diplidis diandra
Bocopa australis
Mayaca fluviatilis
Cardamine lyrata
Anbubias (nana, nana petite, Barteri golden coin and Galbra, coffeefolia)
Crypts (lutea, tropica, wendtii, parva)

Once I get fish in I will update with more pics, in the meantime check out some new ones:

 

Gorgeous! I never seem to put in enough plants at first and then seem to always play catch-up.
Cant wait to see it in a few months!

 

Gorgeous! I never seem to put in enough plants at first and then seem to always play catch-up.
Cant wait to see it in a few months!

I’ve been working closely with an experienced forum member and his biggest piece of advice was to plant densely from the start. If it wasn’t for him I wouldn’t have this many plants lol! It cost me a fortune and I think that’s why many people including myself would hesitate to add so many. But apparently it really helps out in balancing the tank and preventing algae (as well as looking awesome lol).
Thanks for the compliment and I will post pics once the fish are added and as plants grow out

 

I’m setting up a 10 g and plan to try to get it densely planted from the start. I’m taking my time so wish me luck lol!