December 2006 Tank of the Month: Tony Gomez - Library

December 2006 Tank of the Month: Tony Gomez

Introduction and background
My venture into aquariums started about three years ago, if my memory serves me well. I started with a basic fish only tank which was home to some rescued fish. That same month, I added a pressurized CO2 system and 3.8 WPG. I went off the deep end right away and loved it since.

The tank
The tank and stand are custom made for me by a local shop.

Mature Tank

Lights, tubes, watt, spectrum, K
The lights are T5HO Techlights, using the GE Starcoats. Even though I have experience with PCs and NOs, I'll take the T5s over them any day.

CO2 system, pressurized, DIY, noCO2, diffusor, reactor
5 lb. cylinder with a DIY reactor

Substrate, type, layers, any fertilization in the substrate
ADA Amazonia and powersand special. The substrate is actually about one and a half years old right now and and still doing well for me.

Hardscape, driftwood, rocks
Manzanita from Manzanita Burlworks - The Source for Quality Handcrafted Manzanita Products. This scape uses a bunch of individual branches grouped together and rocks that were sent to me by a friend (thanks again!). Unfortunately, you can't see them in the final product.

Filtration, maintainance, water change, replacement of the tubes, trimming
I am horrible at this. I try to do weekly water changes, but sometimes I go three weeks without a WC (like right now).

Inhabitants, plants, fish, invertebrates
Hyphessobrycon pulchripinnis, Neocaridina denticulata, Otocinclus affinis and Planorbis corneus.

The Lemon tetras have an interesting story. In the previous scape, I had a large school of them, but a CO2 accident nearly wiped them all out. A few adults and juviniles survived and spawned again. resulting in the new school. They really liked to breed in the japonica.

Fertilization (in the water column) and feeding
I aim for daily dosing. However, these days, I tend to dose depending on how the tank looks. (Over time, I learned how to judge the tank’s nutrient needs by observation.)

As for trimming...practically non-existent. I re-planted the blyxa once and periodically trimmed the ludwigia.

The fish are fed daily, with periods of no food.

Basically, I just enjoy the tank and hardly touch it.

Water parameters
I don't know. I stopped measuring water parameters about six months into the hobby.

Aquascaping
When I scape, I kinda just go with the flow. I get my hardscape material in hand and just play around with it. When things look like how I want them, I set it and go from there.

Every tank I created was a new learning experience. This time, I wanted to have a full-blown scape with both rock and wood as a hardscape. This was my first experience in using both materials in a serious project. I used my personal classic combo of plants and then tossed in the stems. I didn't go overboard with stems by any means, because I wanted this tank to be extremely easy to maintain.

Final words
My advice to new people in the hobby: don't get overwhelmed. Take things slowly and look at lots of aquascapes. Take your time in finding what appeals to you and learn what scapes are low and high maintenance. When you know what you want, get your hardscape materials and play around with them for a while.

Some people have a talent for eyeing a good hardscape, while others work hard at it. This is ok.

Don't hesitate to post images of your hardscape and/or layout to get some feedback. If you are still stuck, DO NOT give up.

There is nothing wrong in copying another tank, if that’s what you enjoy doing. Even if you try really hard to duplicate it, you won’t. In the end, it will still be your handiwork, simply inspired by another.