Post by perrywing on Jul 1, 2020 21:03:30 GMT -5
So I finally got around to setting up that 10 gallon Ceph tank I've been wanting to do for ages now. This is where I'll post the setup process and progress pics from here on out.
So my plan was to do something similar to my original cephalotus wall:
But scale it up to 10 gallons.
I intend on tweaking the tank parameters to closely mimic the ones they experience in the wild, on the cliffside coasts of extreme southwest Australia near Albany. This means giving them proper seasonal photoperiods and appropriate daytime/nighttime temperature fluctuations (22C-26C daytime temps in summer, 10C-15C daytime temps in winter and spring:summer:fall:winter to 12:14:12:10 hrs of light). The goal is to put them through dormancy and eventually get them to flower for me (hopefully!).
I also plan to add drosera that grow alongside wild cephs, such as hamiltonii, pulchella, and scorpiodes.
I don't really plan on adding native moss species, simply because I'm not knowledgeable on moss types and I'm not sure I could even find them in the first place.
I apologise in advance - the photos are a little blurry because the lighting in the basement kinda sucks.
First step was to fill the 10 gallon with lava rock, to help give the slope structure and stability, and to also cut down on the weight and medium.
Sorry for the glare and the fact there's already peat on the rocks - I totally forgot to take a picture of just the rocks. Oops!
I originally intended to use layers of plaskolite egg crate to give the slope stability, but it didn't pan out - it was too heavy.
Next I filled in all the gaps with a mix of washed peat and sand, and gave the tank a decent slope. The bottom of the tank has a medium that is heavier but better-draining (more sand), and towards the top, the medium is lighter and more moisture-retentive (less sand).
I sprayed the slope with distilled water to make sure there were no air pockets and to settle the medium into place.
I would have liked a steeper slope similar to my mini wall, but it's just not practical - the small size of the tank does not allow for such a slope. I may tweak with this some more, as I'd really like it to be steeper.
I planned on having a screen lid to help aerate the tank and to help cool it down if it overheats from the lights.
And so next is lighting - and this is where I may have a bit of trouble.
I purchased a 6500k LED grow light from Amazon designed specifically for freshwater aquarium plants in a 10-gallon tank, but when it arrived in the mail, it was a lot smaller than I thought it would be:
It's bright enough I guess, but the issue I have is that it's simply not heating up enough to reach the summer daytime temps I need. It's hovering between 16C and 17C, which is great for nighttime and winter temps, but not daytime summer ones.
Because of this, I am thinking of replacing the LEDs with T5 HO lights, still with 6500k, at least for the summer, to help raise the temperature to where it needs to be. I may switch the lighting back to the LEDs for the winter, so that it doesn't heat the tank up too much. I'm not exactly sure what I'll do here yet.
Once that's done, the next step will be to add the moss in order to give the slope some more structure and hold it all together so it doesn't collapse or sag. Once some moss has colonised the tank, I'll add the typical cephs, maybe some German Giant, and some drosera.
bonfield was a huge help in this setup - he gave me tips and suggestions, and sent me a TON of cephs for this tank, and was awesome enough to even send me a few small drosera hamiltonii, which grow alongside cephs in the wild. Thanks so much Cole!!!
Here's the army of cephs I'll eventually add to the tank:
And here's the hamiltonii I'll add as well:
It's a little rough but already unfurling new leaves!
I'll add to this thread whenever I update anything in the tank.
If anyone has any suggestions or tips, I'd love to hear them! Also, if you happen to have any leads on drosera pulchella and drosera scorpiodes that would be awesome!
So my plan was to do something similar to my original cephalotus wall:
But scale it up to 10 gallons.
I intend on tweaking the tank parameters to closely mimic the ones they experience in the wild, on the cliffside coasts of extreme southwest Australia near Albany. This means giving them proper seasonal photoperiods and appropriate daytime/nighttime temperature fluctuations (22C-26C daytime temps in summer, 10C-15C daytime temps in winter and spring:summer:fall:winter to 12:14:12:10 hrs of light). The goal is to put them through dormancy and eventually get them to flower for me (hopefully!).
I also plan to add drosera that grow alongside wild cephs, such as hamiltonii, pulchella, and scorpiodes.
I don't really plan on adding native moss species, simply because I'm not knowledgeable on moss types and I'm not sure I could even find them in the first place.
I apologise in advance - the photos are a little blurry because the lighting in the basement kinda sucks.
First step was to fill the 10 gallon with lava rock, to help give the slope structure and stability, and to also cut down on the weight and medium.
Sorry for the glare and the fact there's already peat on the rocks - I totally forgot to take a picture of just the rocks. Oops!
I originally intended to use layers of plaskolite egg crate to give the slope stability, but it didn't pan out - it was too heavy.
Next I filled in all the gaps with a mix of washed peat and sand, and gave the tank a decent slope. The bottom of the tank has a medium that is heavier but better-draining (more sand), and towards the top, the medium is lighter and more moisture-retentive (less sand).
I sprayed the slope with distilled water to make sure there were no air pockets and to settle the medium into place.
I would have liked a steeper slope similar to my mini wall, but it's just not practical - the small size of the tank does not allow for such a slope. I may tweak with this some more, as I'd really like it to be steeper.
I planned on having a screen lid to help aerate the tank and to help cool it down if it overheats from the lights.
And so next is lighting - and this is where I may have a bit of trouble.
I purchased a 6500k LED grow light from Amazon designed specifically for freshwater aquarium plants in a 10-gallon tank, but when it arrived in the mail, it was a lot smaller than I thought it would be:
It's bright enough I guess, but the issue I have is that it's simply not heating up enough to reach the summer daytime temps I need. It's hovering between 16C and 17C, which is great for nighttime and winter temps, but not daytime summer ones.
Because of this, I am thinking of replacing the LEDs with T5 HO lights, still with 6500k, at least for the summer, to help raise the temperature to where it needs to be. I may switch the lighting back to the LEDs for the winter, so that it doesn't heat the tank up too much. I'm not exactly sure what I'll do here yet.
Once that's done, the next step will be to add the moss in order to give the slope some more structure and hold it all together so it doesn't collapse or sag. Once some moss has colonised the tank, I'll add the typical cephs, maybe some German Giant, and some drosera.
bonfield was a huge help in this setup - he gave me tips and suggestions, and sent me a TON of cephs for this tank, and was awesome enough to even send me a few small drosera hamiltonii, which grow alongside cephs in the wild. Thanks so much Cole!!!
Here's the army of cephs I'll eventually add to the tank:
And here's the hamiltonii I'll add as well:
It's a little rough but already unfurling new leaves!
I'll add to this thread whenever I update anything in the tank.
If anyone has any suggestions or tips, I'd love to hear them! Also, if you happen to have any leads on drosera pulchella and drosera scorpiodes that would be awesome!
