Matt's 220 Litre Aquaoak

8 otocinclus
10 galaxy rasbora
8 cardinal tetra
8 rummy nose terta
8 harlequin rasbora (mix of normal and purple)
8 sparkling gourami
4 german blue ram
4 checkerboard cichlid
10 pygmy cory (I've decided to give these a go, especially now I can get a larger shoal)

I'd like my tank to look something like this:


<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SVJWKpyaCyM" target="_blank">http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SVJWKpyaCyM</a>


Though a low tech version eg. without carpeting plants.

I'm going to use a fluval U4 internal filter as these get very good reviews which I will hide behind the wood.

Above is my thinking over a year ago in anticipation of upgrading my tank to a 200litre Aquaoak. Well, as you may have seen in the Gallery thread for my current tank, this is now finally becoming a reality, though due to a slight miscalculation on measurements previously the tank I'm getting it actually rated as 220litres. Given the exterior dimensions of the tank the calculated volume is 220.9litres.

This probably leads to my first question... the filter I'm now going for is an external with inbuilt heater as I really want to keep as much equipment outside the tank as possible. No good hinging a U4 and not a heater! If I take a cm off each dimension to allow from the thickness of the glass on both sides and allow a bit of room for an air gap at the top of the tank I get to 205litres. As most of us know, you should extract 10% of the water volume from your stocking calculations to take account of the volume taken up by substrate and decorations etc. my tanks are also heavily planted. So... my question is, do you think Ill be OK on with a filter rated for a 200litre tank? It's not that its significantly more expensive or anything than the 300litre rated filter, I am a more worried about the noise of the larger filter. It's going in my sitting room and so the quieter the better.

Also thought I'd share my latest favourite YouTube video regarding the aquascape for the tank !... https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=Z_dBQfPo4Ec

As for lighting, I'm thinking about the Fluval Aquasky, does anyone have these? I'm trying to find out if they will work off a normal plug in timer so I can continue to have a siesta period in the middle of the day.

As for stocking, my thoughts have developed but only slightly...:
3 otocinclus
3 cobalt blue goby
10 galaxy rasbora
10 ember tetra
8 cardinal tetra
8 rummy nose terta
8 five band barbs or harlequin rasbora
4 honey gourami
6 rams - 2 German blue, 2 neon blue, 2 golden
checkerboard cichlid - if I can get hold of them I might add a pair
6 false julli cory

Deepening on exact choices, that puts me at 80-90% stocked using the internal filter option on the community creator. My water hardness is 160ppm so I think the all works...  I also like kuhli loaches and maybe hatchetfish for the top and and and and and... 

Other thoughts:
Plants - existing, plus... narrow leaf java fern, eleocharis montevidensis
Rocks - not the current ones but can't decide if I like dragon stone, not sure what else looks better (more research required!!)
Substrate - like the video, sand in front possibly graduating from gravel near the rocks, and I was thinking ADA aquasoil behind the rock work as it helps reduce hardness though this stuff is expensive so filler of crushed lava rock underneath (may encourage denitrifying bacteria see https://www.aquaessentials.co.uk/blog/2015/11/the-hidden-benefits-of-lava-rock.html)

I'm going to try and write up my plans for transferring stuff over to the new tank, filter media, fish, decorations etc as I'd appreciate any thoughts on this.

Have I missed anything?? (Winner of the long post award right here)

Thanks Sue. Good to know about the noise levels with externals, the oversized one would cettainly give me a lot of confidence in things.

It was the aquasky that i thought about getting. I bought the tank withowithout any accessories as the range offered to go with it was limited and i wanted to be able to go away and research things/look at prices on the net etc.

Thanks for the warning re the rams too, I'm also concerned 6 might be too many for the size of tank, but both of these things are risks I'm willing to take especially as I will now have a spare tank on hand if required.  I'm a huge fan of this species!!

I'm actually salivating in delight at reading your proposed stock - if only I had the space...

I don't think there's much I can add to Sue's comprehensive advice other than that potentially increasing the numbers of otocinclus to the recommended 6 in Seriouslyfish - I know they're not a shoaling species but I wonder if it's their timid nature which causes that site to recommend 6. The section on Behaviour & Compatibility makes interesting reading re it not being an ideal community fish and "should be kept alone or at most with diminutive, non-aggressive characids, smaller callichthyid or loricariid catfishes, and perhaps freshwater shrimp" but I know you've had them for some time and it seems yours have settled in fine as they are (with the existing stock anyway). Having more cichlids might make them feel a little more timid, in which case this may be the time to increase the number of otos.

Ah, with that footprint it might be risky having more than 1 pair of rams, just possibly 2. I wouldn't go for 3 pairs though. I wasn't sure if it was a long tank or a tall tank. My 180 litre has a 107 x 45 footprint but it is not very tall or I wouldn't be able to reach the bottom.

I just looked up checkerboard cichlids and they are another one that likes higher than usual temperatures - Seriously Fish recommends 27 - 30 deg C. It doesn't say anything about keeping them with other cichlids though.

My contribution is going to be more technical! I don't have the aquasky, but I've got fluval's other LED lights. The main question for me, is what controller was it working off? I bought the Fluval controller, which is also marketed for the aquasky, but would not recommend it. It is an extremely basic 2 channel power 'dimmer'. My LEDs have the ability to dim and be blue, but that functionality is operated by the remote control. Hence, I never use it because I have my lights working off analogue socket timers (which, incidentally are the noisiest bit of kit associated with my tank!) I imagine in the future I will invest in a decent controller, but that's pretty far down my list at the moment.

My other comment is about the crushed lava rock as a filler. I would just be careful how much you crush it. The article you linked, suggests it's benefits are because of it's porous nature. I would worry that you'd lose a lot of that if you crushed it too much.

In the past I've had Cardinal tetras and harlequin rasboras (with kuhli loaches). I won't be putting cardinals back in my tank (for no reason other than I fancy a change) but the harlies and kuhlis are staying. Kuhlis are my favourite fish - the only ones I will keep restocking. Though not very often as they're long lived. And I intend to stock five band barbs, when I get there. So I think your choice of fish is great.

If you do manage to find / make space for the kuhlis, I'd suggest that you don't need to leave open space for them. Based on the behaviour of mine, I would expect to receive kuhlis draped over rocks (if you go for a design like the George farmer nature tank you linked).

I'd kept space clear for my kuhlis, but even with dither fish they didn't come out much, only really for feeding. When my tank was neglected, the crypts spread over pretty much the whole of the substrate and I found that the kuhlis would come out a lot more. As long as they have crypt leaves over their heads, they seemed happy. I never succeeded with parva, so my crypts are all small to medium. Ie the leaves sit between 5 and 10cm above the substrate. This is enough to make the kuhlis feel comfortable without actually obscuring the substrate from my view.

As I rearrange, I'm increasing the number of plants that provide cover, but higher up. The kuhlis also seem happy with this. The area of substrate that looks 'clear' (and will eventually be replaced with sand) has java fern narrow leaf and bolbitus providing shade to it. I'm hoping that with the sand, this will become the kuhlis favourite place.

Also the harlies swim amongst the leaves - which is a nice effect to watch.

What timers do you have for your lights? I'm also intrigued with which controller you're thinking of for the aquasky. Will it allow you to program the different colour effects?

I'm the same - value the ability to have a siesta more than the ramping function. But I'm still on analogue timers!

I'd wonder whether it is worth the extra money for the bells and whistles of the aquasky if you don't plan to use that extra functionality?

I would be extremely interested if you do (decide to look and) find a controller that allows you to use the extras.

Here is a write up of version 1 of the process I'm hoping to follow when I upgrade to my new tank. I would welcome any thoughts you may have to improve it.

Step 1 - Putting new tank in place
I want the new 220litre tank to be sited where my current 64 litre tank is already. Therefore I plan to remove as much water as possible from the current tank, before moving it to a temporary location a few feet away. I realise that ideally all water should be drained from the tank for this step but I feel that this is the best compromise rather than stressing the fish overly by attempting to catch them etc. I will store 24 litres of water removed from the tank in buckets. I'll have maybe an inch left in the tank - 10 or 15 litres whilst it is moved and then will refill with tap water as if Ive done a large water change. I should be able to gently lift the cabinet the tank is on with the water removed and move it slowly across to its temporary location.
Step 2 - Doing the hardscape in the new tank
I have produced a sketch of the layout for the new tank which I can follow in this step and so I know what I need to purchase. The substrate will be a combination of sand and ADA Aquasoil separated by rocks, and volcanic rock will be used as a filler under the aquasoil .The aquasoil releases ammonia initially which is great for plants getting started but not for fish.  I know I want to use this substrate as it gently lowers hardness and pH a little which is something important to me for my rams. But the release of ammonia from the aquasoil makes things a little complicated.  Heres the plan...
Step 3 - Taking the plunge
At this point I cant get much further without adding water so the plan would be than the following day I would do another 'water change' on the current tank, using the removed water to begin to fill the new tank (I know theres not much bacteria in water but I feel like I may as well), to plant the first plants. The first plants to go in would be the carpeting plants. Some of which I am growing currently and some of which will no doubt be new. At this point the water level in the tank need only be far enough above the substrate that I can get the new filter running. The new filter will be set up to include some media (no more than a third initially) from the existing filter (placed first in the direction of flow).
Step 4 - Water tests
Wait for stable water parameters in the new tank. If ammonia gets too high for any reason, add water from mature 64 litre to dilute (and fill tank).
Step 5 - Adding the first fish
Following stable readings, and the substrate ammonia release having subsided, I then need to add a new source of ammonia to the new tank to keep the bacteria alive in the filter and the plants fed. I would plan to move across the harlequin rasbora first as the hardest non territorial fish. If the water level needs raising at all or if nitrates are high, this can be done at this time again using water from the current tank as part of a water change. Water testing to follow ensure no ammonia/nitrite spike.
Step 6 - Increasing stocking and planting
Further water tests will then identify when I can transfer over the galaxy rasbora (smallest fish so lowest bioload) then the corys, and finally the cardinal tetra (largest bioload). This means adding 8cm fish to 9cm existing stocking, then 9cm to 17cm, then 12cm to 26cm stocking. I feel that this is workable as the filter should be capable of dealing with about 18cm of stocking from the start due one third of the media being transferred from the current filter.  I can then add more as I add the corys. The riskiest bit would the be the addition of the cardinals (increase of 46% which would not be accompanied by more media as there would only be the large sponge left. I will also be doing some additional planting in the new tank at this stage with newly purchased plants and there will still be very few fish in a large volume of water. I think this is therefore doable. I will need to start doing regular water changes anyway by this time on the new tank as part of my routine maintenance and these can be timed appropriately.
Step 7 - Moving existing plants and wood into the new tank
At this point I cant progress further without starting to break down my current 64litre tank a bit as I want to reuse most if not all of the plants and the wood. These will therefore be moved into the new tank at this point.  However, the 64litre tank could become very bare as a result. The remining stocking will be x1 goby, x1 otocinclus, x2 rams. The rams will need structure of some kind to form territories and the other 2 fish will get stressed if they cannot hide away if the rams pester them. As such I will add an old bogwood piece I have back into the tank and will go to the lfs to colect the new additional rams and then add them to the new tank along with the current rams at the same time. This will mean all rams enter the new tank at the same time and will stop any territories being set up before new ones are added, mitigating the risk of any in-fighting. This will add approximately 14cm of stocking (new ones not fully grown) to a filter running 38cm. This is a 37% increase and again a few fish in a large volume of water so I believe doable without too much risk.
Step 8 - Transferring remaining fish
The other inhabitants of the 64 litre tank would then be added to the new tank once water parameters are confirmed to be stable. At this point the 64 litre tank will be empty of fish. Decorations would be removed (stones, bogwood and a couple of plants) temporarily whilst an attempt is made to move as many shrimp as possible into the new tank trying my best to move only the best looking and reddest specimens (i have some older orange 'cheap' shrimp too). I realise I'll never be 100% successful in getting them all which is fine as I intend to keep the current 64litre tank running and am happy for this to contain shrimp and for subsequent transfers to be made. The 64 litre tank will then need some rescaping to make it look reasonable again and I need to add some fish back in to keep the filter bacteria alive. I believe I could add about 9cm of fish (x3 3cm fish) at this point as the filter will be able to cope with 7cm just transferred out to the new tank and some dormant bacteria from rams etc being removed aprox a week ago. Again copious water testing throughout. Im not certain what I want to do with this tank long term and will make use of it in the short term as a quarantine for new fish so stock added will be used to increase schoal sizes in the main tank.
Step 9 - Further increasing stocking in the new tank.
Increase schoal sizes of existing fish starting with corys (as only 9cm additional required) leaving gobies and otocinclus till last due to ditoms and algae needing to grow. Add more red cherry shrimp to increase the gene pool. Then adding new species, make use of quarantine throughout and ensure building 'stocking' level for quarantine tank back up slowly with each purchase.

Thanks Sue, I had the same thoughts re plants meaning that the filter doesn't actually hold much bacteria. I struggled to quantify this and so have simply gone with the best plan I can.  It will ultimately be a balancing act between filter media and plants being moved to match with the transfers of the fish depending on the test results in both tanks.  I just hope that I dont have 2 fish-in cycles on my hands!!

I am sort of hoping that I can have this done by mid Feb if at all possible when we have visitors staying with us.  Of course, the fishes health with have to have to be the priority but it would be nice to be in a good place by then.

Fortunately in line with the above, I got the call from Maidenhead today... the tanks arrived!! Even they couldnt quite believe it... I suppose they must have had a cancelled order or something!