Substrate is pool filter sand grain size 0.7 to 1.25 mm. No additives, just an 8 cm thick layer of sand (4 cm at the front)
The lighting is 5 bars of
DayTime Matrix LED lamps. These bars can be fitted with LED modules of 10 Watts each. The LEDs used in these modules have 180 lm/Watt which is about twice the light output per Watt compared to a HO T5 lamp. Alltogether I have 25 of those modules in warm white, natural white and cool white. Cool in the front of the tank, natural in the middle, and warm in the back. Never did any PAR measurements because I am convinced there is more than enough. Lights are controlled with a TC420 dimmer, and are at 100% for 10 minutes each hour, and at only 20% in between. After 18:00 (when I am at home) the lights are on at 40% until 23:00 at which point they start to dim back to 0%.
Filtering is done with an eheim canister filter. This filter also drives the CO2 diffuser and an UV lamp (which is never on) and because of that the flow from the filter is insufficient. Additional flow comes from a Sicce Voyager #3 stream pump (4500 litre/hour) which is very quiet but maybe a bit overkill.
Maintenance is done each sunday afternoon and I try to stick to that. I do waterchanges of app. 75% and refill with 50/50 tapwater and RO water. The water in the aquarium is usually about 400 uS after I refilled it. Then I add ferts. Everything in one go, daily dosing is just too much trouble. I always add the same combination of ferts and I never do any testing (other than pH and conductivity)
I also occasionally stick a
GrowCaps capsule between the roots of plants that I think can use a boost. Growcap is a slow-release fertiliser, it's a mix of coated and uncoated stuff, this way there is an initial dose followed by the slower long-term dose.
Fishload is: 50 Paracheirodon simulans, 25 Hyphessobrycon sweglesi, 8 Procatopus similis, 14 Otocinclus macrospilus (i think...) and 16 Amano shrimp.