Evolution of a 40 Breeder

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Anthraxx

New Member
So ive recently decided i wanted to downsize, my 125 was just too much to deal with after all these years and with a move coming up i didnt really wanna have to worry about moving it. it led me to build and setup an old favorite of mine, the Tang Shelldweller tank. Really the inspiration came from a lot of the smaller planted setups ive seen on here, Cichlid-gal had this amazing brown background w/ rocks and plants and i just loved it so much i had to copy it a bit :D. Only hardware i had to buy was the new light able to deal with plants (a current sattelite+ LED light, which btw i love!) everything else was pretty much scavenged off the big tank. thankfully i had some plants lying around in a growout setup after they failed in the big tank. got pics of a cpl of the scapes so far and there will be more to come when i add the group of Lamprologus Specious. please give me any feedback as its a work in progress. Thanks for reading and enjoy the pics, the sponge filters are temporary i just wanted to make sure it cycled properly.



 
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Anonymous

Guest
The set up looks great. What type of rocks are these called? They look awesome! Are you going to have rock dwellers in this set up too?
 
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Anthraxx

New Member
its all Lace rock, igneous rock from the deserts of utah. created when lava would surge up underneath an ancient sea. as for the rock dwellers theyre already in there, just too hidden to see most of the time lolz. 7 julidichromis transcriptus "bemba"
 
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Anonymous

Guest
julidichromis transcriptus "bemba", ohhhhhhhh..... I like....
 
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cichlid-gal

New Member
Anthraxx said:
Really the inspiration came from a lot of the smaller planted setups ive seen on here, Cichlid-gal had this amazing brown background w/ rocks and plants and i just loved it so much i had to copy it a bit :D.
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Thanks Anthrax but I think your tank does a bag up job of showcasing what a really nice aquascape can do for a tank. Mine, although much loved, leaves some stuff to be desired. You have done a great job of giving height to your rocks (I have a terrible time with that as my rocks weigh like a ton each...LOL). The lacerock is lovely and I especially like the live green plants tucked into it. Can't wait to see the fish and the final setup. Looking bangin!
 
hose91

hose91

Member
Ooooh, Black Occies, nice choice!! Tank looks great. I'll echo Donna's comment that you make the height of the rocks look effortless. Unless you look closely, it looks like one continuous formation, which is very cool. I'm partial to the middle pic with the large "canyon" down the center. I dunno, I just think it looks cool and gives nice variation to the "rockline", if you will!

What color is the background? White, off white, or tan (or none of the above!). I'd like to closely mimic this setup into a 40G breeder and haven't put a background on the tank yet (it's in my garage atm), and I'm considering a 3D BG from Univ Rocks, or painting it black, brown, dark green, or tan.

Really, really like it, very nicely done. Do you think you have enough room for a dither fish? In addition to the shellie and julie, I'm considering a small school of dwarf Irian red rainbows or something simliar. Know they're not tang, but cool nonetheless, and hopefully there's one that doesn't mind hard, alkaline water.

Can't wait to see the growth on your plants and fish, and the Sat+ does a great job of lighting that tank, hopefully there's enough for the plants!
 
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Anthraxx

New Member
i was actually going to do the same thing with rainbows myself. cory has the furcata rainbows in stock from time to time and they fit the bill perfectly, not getting larger then 2'' and enjoying a harder ph. plus they have a nice little bit of yellow which i always enjoyed. the background is a tan color that shows up better when i have the red/green spectrum better highlighted, blue tends to wash everything out. i got the idea from one of donas setups that has a much darker tan then the one i used (id go darker then you think if i were u) the sand is also a nice tan color (from the co-op, only place that had tan sand) mixed with some leftover crushed coral substrate i had from the 125 (still have a 10g full btw) as for the rocks i really liked the canyon thing too but there just isnt enough of a gap between the two rock piles for the fish to differentiate between the two, still needs some more work scaping, but overall im happy with it. if you want to go the 3d bg route make sure you find some rock that closely mimics the BG. it really helps blend it all together. Hope this has inspired some of you to take a closer look at some of the smaller cichlids  :shock: :suspect: :shock: 
 
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Anonymous

Guest
^  :spoton: I too like the break in the rock pile. Once these ferns fill in will add a whole different look than what is seen here. It'll be a few months before that happens but I think it'll look awesome!
 
hose91

hose91

Member
That's a great look, love the way you sloped it back from the middle! Where are all the Julies? I zoomed in a bit, trying to look for them on all the pics. Do they all hide under the rockpiles all the time or are they a bit more active? Love to see them if you have any snaps!
 
ShortyKiloGyrl

ShortyKiloGyrl

Well-Known Member
Staff member
I agree this last set up for scape looks great! Can't wait to see some fish in there! I'm waiting for a tank to cycle and plants to grow in a bit then I am getting some Pseudomugil cf. Paskai, Irian Red Neon Rainbow, myself and either blue neon rasbora or green neon tetra.
 
hose91

hose91

Member
ShortyKiloGyrl said:
I agree this last set up for scape looks great! Can't wait to  see some fish in there! I'm waiting for a tank to cycle and plants to grow in a bit then I am getting some Pseudomugil cf. Paskai, Irian Red Neon Rainbow, myself and either blue neon rasbora or green neon tetra.
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Sweet! Love to see that tank when you get it set up and stocked!! Is that your ADA tank? Thought that was pretty good work, and those fish will look great.
 
ShortyKiloGyrl

ShortyKiloGyrl

Well-Known Member
Staff member
Yes it's my ADA tank :) I got another HUGE plant order coming in probably next week so do more work with it. I'm leaning toward the green neons for it though since they are better for the high light without floating plants.
 
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Anthraxx

New Member
Its the 36-48'' fixture, i prefer having a light that goes the full tank length, the adjustable legs thing is cool but its honestly kinda lame at the same time. there is fish in there already, really hoping that the dither fish will help bring out all the julies and keep them on their toes. they typically dont like to go far from the rocks. once they get used to the rocks again they will go right back to punking everyone and thats when ill see a couple come out. im really hoping to just get two pairs outta this group, one for each pile, then i can start removing some of the extra rock to try and give the shellies more room. really appreciate all the compliments guys, helps make it all worth it. especially if it inspires any of you to give shellies a shot :)
 
DMD123

DMD123

Administrator
Staff member
Contributing Member Level III
Agree on the lighting, I like the light going the full length of the tank too!  :spoton: 
 
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cichlid-gal

New Member
Anthrax I have a lone furcata now (had three that I won in a GSAS doorprise, lost one to acclimation, then had a really nice pair).  I lost my female doing the tank switchover from the 33G to the 75G planted...I think I caught her up in some of the plants I cleared out...one minute she was there then next not.  I'm not sure what happened.  Anyway...now have this lone male.  He flirts all day long with the Congo females and males.  Displaying like crazy and busy busy busy.  I really think you will like these guys.  I was hoping to beef up my group next time I was in Seattle and got to Corys if he had some.   They are cool little fish.

 
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Anthraxx

New Member
Added shells in anticipation of todays shellie arrival. my order of 6 Lamprologus Specious is currently settling into their new digs (thankfully a few ran straight into shells, these julies are vicious) will have pics up in the next few days to showcase the newcomers.
 
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