hi, im new here. also kinda new to planted aquarium. i spend last 6 hours to read through V10 (google search direct me there lol!) and till V11.... my brain is half damaged.

can i suggest few thing? on the first page, please put up more information to ease noob like me. i got so lost with so many jargon/magic name/'insert japanese name' style, pattern, method etc....its difficult to google them one by one via mobile internet i think its better to have a simple collection of proper introduction on page01/post01. it will greatly help noob like me. and stop noob like me asking 'what soil do you use?'

2 years back, i saw a friend of mine keeping shrimp, thats when i got hook with this little small creature. his tank are not those planted tank (just one big chuck of moss). then i been trying to keep shrimp but keep dying(now i know, wrong parameter of water from this thread).... until i meet a guy who introduce me into planted aquarium for shrimp.

i have sooooo many question, but i bet i going get the normal "please google, or read my blog" reply. so i think i'd start slow.

First question:
to start a small tank around 40-60L tank, how much costing usually to start for the plants/soil/chemical thingie (which i see a lot video pouring over the soil?) i know it varies, but for a starter, we cant jump into 1k of costing rite? what would you sempai suggest? below 100? below 500?

2. how much cost to use/maintain a CO2 system? for a starter.

i hope i wont get bomb.

This post has been edited by ieR: Feb 24 2013, 08:59 PM

Sorry you have to bear with me. im kinda on very tight budget. so i have to plan really properly on my purchase.... else only can go the poorman way, DIY.

qz4eva: thanks XD

ok, should we discuss it here(so other can learn) or better in PM? my friend asked me to get those liquid type dose... 4-5 drops a day when lights up...

just read up the DIY CO2. and ohhh its that easy~ can grab everything easily. i think i will give it a try tomorrow after work.

i) CO2 are given by 'creatures' living in my tank arent sufficient?

ii) i read some guide mention, too much 'movement'(FAN etc) on water surface can create fast lost of CO2, true?

i got like 50 tiny snails in my tank, but i think its fine, they are helping eating up the algae..

errrr... well its now 50 because lately i keep kacau the floor bed, causing fish shit flying around and i overfeeding lately XD hence the snail suddenly multiply. in the pass i once stop feeding, the snails would reduce itselfs, so i think all i need to do, stop feeding hehehe. anyway, they are really really really tiny, like 1-2mm only

emily: i've been reading awefully a lot, still kicking start my tank...

here is what happen to the 'nitrogen cycle' in the water.
1. fish/living things shit, and pee... waste turn into ammonia.
2. when enough ammonia, nitrite-forming bacteria will start to form/grow...hence turning the ammonia into Nitrite.
3. when nitrate starts to gathered enough, nitrAte-forming bacteria will start form/grow and covert the nitrIte to nitrAte
4. NitrAte will get more and more and more... NitrAte is pretty much Harmless.... but this is where "water change" comes in, by doing 25-35% water change, the nitrate will be throw out and new water will bring the nitrate down again.

(i hope i write the right thing... correct me if im wrong)

another thing i read... usually, the ceramic rings are put after the filter. since filter usually used to catch 'dirt/shits'... its pointless to put the ring before the filter to gather those shit too, since u will kill the bacteria when u clean the rings, why not put after the filter, let the filter clean up the shit (and u can wash the filters when its blocked with dirt), and left ammonia that pass through, to the rings where the bacteria will form and makes the ammonia/nitrite to harmless nitrate, since the ring wont get caught up with dirt, so u dont have to wash it, hence the bacteria will always be happy staying there.

This post has been edited by ieR: Feb 27 2013, 03:21 AM

angry at poslaju failed to deliver stuff i order... sigh... scare shrimp suicide later.

btw. my idea of my tank... its just a simple planted tank with rojak plant and hiding spot for shrimps (since my purpose was to keep shrimps )

oh thanks for the tips!!! the soil is some leftover from a friend who got them from LFS, he also have no idea what soil it is...

emily: i did a DIY my co2 two days ago, i use "IV Drip" set cost me rm5 from pharmacy, it has around 1 meter tube, needles, one way valve thing, and a drip control valve.... i used those wet tissue as filter, and yea, they create real tiny bubble too. the drip control valve are able to completely close the airflow if u wanted it to stop. but my tube on the bottle cap burst the silicon out yesterday coz pressure too high~ i need to redo the recipe and use superglue for the bottle cap tubing.

i used to keep this... just (forever alone) one shrimp... i keep it for a year+ in my old badly scape tank, from about 4mm to 40mm (with claw its 50mm) and due to stressed died 3 days after i did my new scape... and this shrimp is a big bully, always bully my otto (i think thats an otto?), from the pic, u can see its as big as my otto... and my otto loves to disturb it too... the otto loves to follow the shrimp from behind when the shrimp looking for food... follow follow follow... and everytime my light are on, the otto will go to the shrimp hiding place, and shake its tail there to bait the shrimp to come out to pinch it...... damn i miss the shrimp. i bet my otto miss the shrimp too.. (can see my otto less active ever since)



ok, back to my new scape tank... after the water clears after filling the water.... .



btw, the 2 piece sushi (small stone), actually, i plan to do like a japanese zen garden... but you know thing never goes according to plan haha...

a weel later


3 weeks later...


and finally got my new shrimps this morning, its from deric79k
but now i have no idea where is everyone hiding... -___- i setup too much hiding spot

im from sarawak >.<||| any pharmacy will have the infusion (IV drip) set, i got mine for rm5. yea, all in one. and a bottle and some superglue(skip silicon, not strong enough) and make the recipe half what the internet say, 1 cup super, 1/2 teaspoon of yeast, and a pinch of baking soda. fill the 1.5litre to 50%... then u test see the bubble ok or not (only after 1 hour only u start see bubble). if u wan more bubble, just mix another 500ml mix, 1 cup sugar and 1/2 teaspoon yeast.

@kimimaro_kun, oh, thanks for the correction, i'm blur with fishes breed and shrimp lol! SAE... it seem very friendly with my shrimps... XD

@Kytz, i think its what ppl called 2 feet, last time my friend help me calculate, he told me is a 40 litre tank... actually how do i count them... gimme a minute i go find a ruler to measure

20inch wide, 12inch height, and 11 inch deep.
50cm wide, 30cm height, 28cm deep. how to calculate my water in litre? lol! coz i always simply drip 3 drip during water change... lol!

oh yeap, its a 41litre capacity, filled up to 39litre 10(US) gallon~ okok i have to keep that in mind if i gonna drop any chem for the water. thanks Kurangak~

oh, its some DIY thing to control the outflow of the water... coz the water flow too hard, making fish/shrimp waste from the floor all come out make my tank more dirty, then i put plants on it, so kinda like a half natural filtering...

ok, out he goes...

-kytz-: planted aquarium is all about patience... there is no short cut. why now just give it a slow month to build up, even the plants need 1-2 month to spread nicely.

where is the LIKE buttonnnn!!! niceeee!

i tried to revive my HC many times, but still the same look from 1month ago. do they really grow that slow? and sensitive? if touch touch touch, they start dying @.@... and deric79k, what other alternative low/short growing plant can recommend?

wrongly post. sorry

This post has been edited by ieR: Mar 2 2013, 07:14 PM

emily, my opinion, which i have the same problem when i just transfer the plant into a tank with new water. maybe its plant "skinning" due to changes of water/new environment, after a while, (with heavy flow of water from filter) eventually it will be clean.

i just gotten some water test kit.
my nitrate is zero... puzzled... tank is 2 month old, WC 7 days ago.
the worst part is, my KH, is over 100ppm (about 6gpg)... when did it goes wrong? i afraid shrimp might not like it... btw,.. my cherry red now is turning deep dark cherry red... is it bad sign? T.T