29 August 2011

5 months after setup








Tank:
Lighting:
Mist:
Hardscape:
Plants:
100cm x 30cm x 40cm (h)
Arcadia Overtank 2x39watt T5
Venta Ultrasonic
seiryu stones, redmoor driftwood, gravel
Ulmus Parvifolia, native moss (2 kinds), and a few unknown..


I also use a piece of plexiglass with 2 ventilation holes to cover the tank, and a pc case fan for air circulation working at 4.5V/12V.
Mist and fan are on for a couple of minutes every half an hour (not simultaneously).
Lights are on for 12 hours a day, but I plan to follow the real photoperiod according to the seasons.
I only have to spray it every other day and change water once or twice a week, as there is no filtration. No fertilization is needed for now.
The tree is in it's own pot so it needs special care. It's my first bonsai so I'm just learning how to keep it alive.. :P

12 comments:

  1. This is STUNNING! The most awesome, what I have seen so far. Congrats mate! You should write some details, and story about the tank, I would be delighted to read it. ;)

    ReplyDelete
  2. Hi Stevo :)
    Thank you my friend and I think you're right. I might add some details in the existing posts..
    Of course you can ask anything here..
    Thanks again for your comment :D

    ReplyDelete
  3. I got a lot of questions, so I think I should waith for the post, not to write down the answers twice. But I will tell You the subjects, to make your 'work' easier, what to write about ;). Filtration, Fertilizers, Water Change, Mistmaker, Ventilation, Lighting (Power+Hour), and plants of course. ;) One word: everything related to this beauty.

    I'm planning to rebuild my current setup 80(w)x35(d)x50(h) aquarium into a paludarium, but I want to keep about 80 litres for my fishes. I'm open minded for any suggestions, tricks, and technical issues. Thanks mate.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Stevo, sorry for the delay, it's been a weird weekend..
    I've added some info as you can see, if I forgot anything please ask.

    Your paludarium sounds really interesting, I would make something like mine, but with underwater plants too.. :)

    ReplyDelete
  5. Hi Nasos!
    Thanks for updating the post, no prob, I'm not in a hurry! I appreciate it! But I still got some questions :D Do you "dry the plants" totally with the pc fan? I have checked your mist maker, and realised it is a common humidifier, not designed for terrariums, is it working properly, and enough for your needs?

    Good luck with the bonsai, it's a tough thing, keeping it alive. :)

    I would be pleased to see a video of this little nature, before-during-after mistmaking, but only if you got some free time. ;) Cheery mate.

    ReplyDelete
  6. Well, the fan is working really slow and only for a minute just to keep some air flowing. I think it's necessary for the tree and to avoid any possible fungus. According to my hydrometer, humidity drops at a very slow rate when the fan is on and I can keep it between 75 and 95% this way. Plants don't totally dry out, but some extra spraying is needed every now and then, If I want the moss to keep growing. Otherwise it is just sustained as it is.

    Venta was a rather quick buy, but I'm very pleased with it. Actually I don't know much about vivariums etc. I just went my own way, being mostly intrigued by the idea of keeping a bonsai in my old tank. I am just happy it all works for now.. If you have any suggestions about anything, I'd be glad to hear them :)

    A video is already on schedule ;)

    ReplyDelete
  7. Can't wait to see the movie! ;)
    This is a good and working system, so there is no point to change on anything. With the decoration, I can clearly see you got good eyes for the natural looking, little stones around the tree, the riverside also. Have you thought about taking some moss on the "tree/wood"? It's just too clean to be the piece of the nature in real life.
    The weakest point is the left background, behind the wood, that big leaves ruin the size of the scape I think. Without them we can easily think this is much more bigger... What do you think?

    Ah, and finally this is still my favourite! ;)

    ReplyDelete
  8. Thank you my friend but it looks that your eyes are not bad either.. :)
    During setup, I tried to put some moss on the driftwood but it looked kinda funny, so I rejected the idea. Maybe I should give it one more chance by putting some trims and let it grow on its own.. ;)
    You are also right about the big leaves, this plant is in there until I find something more suitable.
    There are many more small things I don't like, but the major problem is the tank's width. It's 100cm long but only 30cm wide (don't be fooled by the ultrawide lens I use :P), which is really limiting as far as perspective is concerned. If it was around 50cm, a whole mountainscape could fit behind it.. :)

    ReplyDelete
  9. I'm in almost the same situation, my tank is 35 cm deep. :D Will be a tough thing, to make it bigger..
    Maybe, You can trie some ferns in the left corner, maybe emersed bolbitis heudelotti, but not sure.
    If you want to see a really nice mountain layout, I admit this is an aquarium, but amazing.

    http://www.akvakertesz.hu/viewtopic.php?f=7&t=1904&start=110 Do not mind the hungarian language, google translater is really helpful :D The pictures worth to check it.
    (That was a workshop in Hungary, that's why a lot of photos.)

    ReplyDelete
  10. 80x35cm is a much better ratio, but not good enough, maybe you should reconsider getting a new proper tank before you begin.
    I loved the mountainscape from the link, a planted aquarium/vivarium of this type is in my wishlist.. If only I had more free time..
    Thanks man :)

    ReplyDelete
  11. This is absolutely fantastic, great pics and I especially like the the clours. Matching, looks like a great "design"

    ReplyDelete
  12. Thank you for your comments :)

    ReplyDelete