Tips and Tricks on Creating Amazing Aquascapes.

[Leishman]

 

[EnLight]

Any suggestions for mine? I feel like it's missing something.

 

[Harold Green]

Looks like you're off to a good start with some nice Coraline algae. What is your lighting? In the pictures the colors in the tank don't stand out well but that may just be the photograph. I'd try to add a couple of taller specimens, perhaps gorgonians like a brown candelabra. I would also suggest a few brightly colored specimens ( brain corals, acans, mushrooms).

 

[EnLight]

Looks like you're off to a good start with some nice Coraline algae. What is your lighting? In the pictures the colors in the tank don't stand out well but that may just be the photograph. I'd try to add a couple of taller specimens, perhaps gorgonians like a brown candelabra. I would also suggest a few brightly colored specimens ( brain corals, acans, mushrooms).

My lighting is an Orbit Marine LED pro. Could be two issues with the colors, either I can't find the right balance of blues/white for the tank (which I'm constantly adjusting, trying to find what works), and taking pictures with my iphone 5. I can't seem to get any good pictures with it and it bugs the hell out of me lol. But you nailed what kind of corals I'm going for, I just ordered a gorgornian, some acans, and a mushroom from aqua SD. I had a nice green brain coral but lost it yesterday morning actually.

 

[Harold Green]

You may have to add more lighting to the tank if you don't have enough intensity. Later I would try to raise a monti cap. The oranges are fairly easy to grow with good water and enough light. The can grow rapidly with some very interesting shapes. What happened to the brain coral? I have some that are several years old and get fed daily and they require about the same conditions as the acans. I really hate to suggest this but the mushrooms can be a pretty good indicator of lighting. The like fairly low intensity lighting. Too low for most corals. If you have to shade them to get them to stretch out then you've got fairly intense lighting. If they look happy out directly under your lights you probably need more intensity for sps and lps corals although I have seen lower light tanks with some nice soft corals growing well in them.

 

[ali.farzinrad]

Looks like you're off to a good start with some nice Coraline algae. What is your lighting? In the pictures the colors in the tank don't stand out well but that may just be the photograph. I'd try to add a couple of taller specimens, perhaps gorgonians like a brown candelabra. I would also suggest a few brightly colored specimens ( brain corals, acans, mushrooms).

Hey, nice tank, but I think those purple areas are not Caroline, cause it's just in some rocks and also on sands, I think they are "" cyanobacteria "" and it's dangerous.
Scratch them with your nail, if you could take them out easily, then cry, cause it's cyanobacteria, but if they were hard, then they are Caroline and it's good.

Any suggestions for mine? I feel like it's missing something.

 

[ss95003]

The purple is clearly coralline, you can even see it on his back glass. Now is there a possible small patch of cyno in the sand in middle of tank yes.

 

[ali.farzinrad]

The purple is clearly coralline, you can even see it on his back glass. Now is there a possible small patch of cyno in the sand in middle of tank yes.

If it's Caroline, why just some of rocks have it and others not?
The best way to find out is what I said, scratching them, if it was hard to scratch it's Caroline but if not, it's cyano
If you pay attention, the parts that are purple, has cyano on sands.

 

[Reefrookie220]

If it's Caroline, why just some of rocks have it and others not?
The best way to find out is what I said, scratching them, if it was hard to scratch it's Caroline but if not, it's cyano
If you pay attention, the parts that are purple, has cyano on sands.

Cyanobacteria is red as well,at least I've never seen it purple.

I think the lesson to be learned here is that there are others more knowledgeable than ourselves, bow to it and continue to learn, otherwise how is a man to better himself. Just my .02


Also, awesome torch coral, they are my favorite.

 

[ss95003]

If it's Caroline, why just some of rocks have it and others not?
The best way to find out is what I said, scratching them, if it was hard to scratch it's Caroline but if not, it's cyano
If you pay attention, the parts that are purple, has cyano on sands.

Does he need to smell it too or just scratch it?

 

[sawdonkey]

Any suggestions for mine? I feel like it's missing something.

This looks good, and that is definitely coralline (with a little cyano on the sand). What I like to do when aquascaping is to build the basic structure with big pieces of rock, which you have done. Then, I like to take small pieces of rock (about half the size of your fist) and use epoxy and super glue to glue them into the crevices between the bigger rocks. This smoothes the transition from rock to rock and makes your scape look like one structure rather than stacked up rocks. Good luck.

 

[s2nhle]

wow, I love the coralline that is on your rock and on your back of the tank also.

 

[ali.farzinrad]

Does he need to smell it too or just scratch it?

I don't what's the smell look like but I have heard some about it.

 

[s2nhle]

what ever it is. it is looking nice to me.

 

[Vivid Aquariums]

Quick aquascaping tip. Gluing small pieces of rubble rock to exposed pipes in the aquarium or the overflow box can give you more places to mount coral while helping to hide the pipes & overflow box. You can use concrete as sandpaper to sand down one side of the live rock creating a flat edge that is easy to glue to flat surfaces.

Dave

 

[eric3316]

Any suggestions for mine? I feel like it's missing something.

I think your tank is looking pretty good!

 

[s2nhle]

Quick aquascaping tip. Gluing small pieces of rubble rock to exposed pipes in the aquarium or the overflow box can give you more places to mount coral while helping to hide the pipes & overflow box. You can use concrete as sandpaper to sand down one side of the live rock creating a flat edge that is easy to glue to flat surfaces.

Dave

+1 Great tips. thank you for sharing.

 

[FranklinDattein]

Do you have any tips for aquascaping small tanks, like 2ft cubes?

I find it hard to apply the "rule of thirds" to tanks below 4ft long. I end up with little surface for corals or a large pile of rock.

 

[Crackem]

I tried to copy an aquascape I found on another forum and since I'm not as handy as I'd like to be with a drill and acrylic rods I sent some photos to a guy that makes his own aquascapes. My rocks have been leaching alkalinity so I don't think they were cured properly. I sent my water sample to triton to be tested and the opinions I got were that my parameters were within normal or acceptable levels. Po4 was 0.02

Pics aren't the greatest either so I'll try to update when I can.

 

[TD13]

What about a corner reef tank? Getting ready to set up a 54 corner....