Tank Presentation: Custom Corner Tank

Update 2013.11.04

Update: 2013.09.17

The 125 litre corner tank above has changed quite a bit (don't mind the algae), the breeding pair of Pelvicachromis taeniatus "nigeria red" had to move to a separate tank. The pair was moved as they were getting to aggressive during spawning to let me keep community fish in this tank.

One Red Tiger Lotus, Nymphaea zenkeri which had outgrown one of my smaller tanks has been added and I think it really makes the difference.

12 Ember Tetra, Hyphessobrycon amandae moved in and they really seem to enjoy this environment and are constantly schooling. The colour of this fish also matches that of the Red Lotus plant very well.

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I got this tank around Christmas 2012 and thought it would be a good idea to record the evolution of the set-up, something I wish that I would have done with other tanks.

As I noticed that my set-ups had become more and more functional and less nice to look at, I wanted something nice for the living room.

There was a perfect stand for a tank in the house and I decided to get a unique  custom built tank to fit it.

 

The aquarium was designed and built by Rainbow Aquatics in Dublin and they did a very good job.

Tank dimensions; 

62 x 62 x 40cm with one corner “cut” off, holding roughly 125 litres.

Filtration:

600 l/h powerhead with a large sponge attached for both mechanical and biological filtration plus an air-pump running a smaller sponge which rarely is cleaned.

Heating:

Jäger 125W

Lighting:

Standard bulb for a 54l tank

This is the most recent photo of the tank, the interior comprise of two roots and two branches, one of the roots and both branches were picked (and treated) by myself from the beach.

The substrate is a mix of very fine sand and small pebbles, the layer is not thick enough to support any plant which means that there are several plastic pots containing clay and pebbles supporting the rooted plants.

Plants include:

2 Vallisneria

2 Echinodorus

1 Microsorum

2 Anubias

Fish list;

Pair of Pelvicachromis taeniatus "Nigerian Red",

group of Corydoras panda,

various Guppies,

two juvenile Ancistrus

At the moment the Pelvicachromis are raising their first batch of fry in the tank, I'm extremely impressed with the parental instincts of this fish, fighting of two hungry Ancistrus is not an easy tank.

The above photo was taken just after that the tank was set up, as you can see allot has changed since. 

 

Photo of the tank just after that the background was painted. The photo gives an idea of the shape of this aquarium.

I will try to update this post every now and then to show what is happening in the tank.

I have thought about adding either a large school of Cardinal Tetras or Ember Tetras, an other alternative would be to go complete West African as that is something that I have never done but for the moment I'm happy with the tank as a general community.

Thanks for watching,

Andreas