Well crap! I had high hopes for the chili rasboras. When I purchased the initial 8 of them I specifically asked the person at the local fish store whether rummy nosed tetras would eat the chili rasboras and was assured that they would not. Then I put the chilis in and only counted 7. I […]
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Planted aquarium using CO2 injection with fish+snails+shrimp; project-specific notes and maintenance.
Chili rasboras There’s a new addition to the Fireplace Aquarium – chili rasboras! I’ve been thinking there’s room for some more fish residents and the chili rasboras at LFS seemed to tick all the right boxes.
Read more →Two months after the massive pruning of the Bucephalandra caterina and the Anubias nana ‘Pinto’ in an effort to control the black beard algae (BBA) that was colonising them, the battle is lost. Further, inspection showed the BBA had thoroughly colonised the Cryptocoryne parva as well. I have come around to thinking of BBA as […]
Read more →The last massive epiphyte trim was nearly 10 months ago, so time to go at it again. I didn’t actually mind the overgrown appearance and the fish seemed to like hanging out under the middle layer of Anubias nana ‘Pinto’. There was considerable shading of the bottom of the Fireplace Aquarium but I didn’t notice […]
Read more →Regular and substantial water changes for an aquarium are a good idea. With EI fertiliser dosing the built-in assumption is that at least 50% of the water will be changed out every week to prevent a build-up of excess fertilisers. Both the Fireplace Aquarium and the Shrimphaus follow this maintenance schedule, although lately I have […]
Read more →Microsorum pteropus ‘Windelov’ also known as Leptochilus pteropus is one of the many varieties of Java fern. I picked up a pot from Pro Shrimp in an order that also included Alternanthera reineckii ‘Mini’. Developed by Tropica, the ‘Windelov’ version I received was grown by Aquadip. The ‘Windelov’ arrived totally overgrown and just a touch […]
Read more →After an unsuccessful go with Alternanthera reineckii (didn’t thrive) and another with Alternanthera reineckii ‘Rosanervig’ (eaten by Amano shrimp), I’m giving it try with Alternanthera reineckii ‘Mini’. This AR ‘Mini’ came from Pro Shrimp, and was grown by Tropica. I have had mixed results purchasing aquatic plant tissue culture cups before, but this AR ‘Mini’ cup […]
Read more →It’s been around 18 months since the Bucephalandra caterina and Anubias nana ‘Pinto’ were planted in the Fireplace Aquarium so time for a massive trim! Ephiphytes on the mountain before and after trimming The bucephalandra and anubias have both done really well, overachieved in a some ways in fact. The caterina at the top of the […]
Read more →I’ve been looking for a red plant to replace the Ludwigia palustris mini ‘Super Red’ which is an awesome stem plant, but which comfortably exceeds 50 cm in length and so is really too large for the Fireplace Aquarium – keeping it trimmed was just too much hassle. Previously, I had a go with Alternanthera […]
Read more →The goal is to do something nice with this victorian-era fireplace seen on the left of this photo of the dining room. The big brick wall on the right is the back of the inglenook fireplace from the main reception room. The rounded-looking thing between the two is the back of a bread oven from […]
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