Rescaped My DSM, Need Opinions

[csmith]

My DSM has sat idle since December, due to nothing but my laziness, and in that time it accumulated wall to wall moss. Me being me, I decided to just remove the top inch of the substrate instead of picking each and every piece of moss off and also took the time to add worm castings beneath the flourite. I also added what I had left of onyx sand so my lilaeopsis mauritiana would send its shoots under the substrate instead of on top.
Does this tank look too..predictable now? Maybe a little too simplified with the wood and rock sitting in the center? I did it to try to form a "natural" barrier (shown in picture 3) where the lilaeopsis mauritiana would stop growing, as well as set up a little area for my future cory's to hide. Any ideas, opinions and critiques are welcome.

 

[csmith]

Any ideas, opinions and critiques are welcome.

..and wanted?

Also, my driftwood is showing fairly predominant white mold spots now. Anyway to combat this, or is it just the price of admission with DSM's?

 

[Gerryd]

Hi,

It seems a bit over moist to me???

Anyhoo, do you plan on placing anything behind/on the rock/wood structure? Some bolbitus or nice java variety may look good there....

Hard to say until your lawn comes in a bit more..

I think the cories will like it....

I would remove the wood and clean it manually..

Maybe just remove and soak it until flooding time? That way it leaches while waiting and mold is not an issue?

 

[csmith]

Alright, so the moss has come back in a form I can't really remove. It's still growing upright on the flourite, but the sand itself is green. It's just a thin layer across the entire surface. Is there anyway to get rid of it, as I do believe the byproduct of stuff like this is BGA upon flooding? I'd really rather not scrape each grain of sand off. Seems tedious.

 

[LoudCreature]

Try drying the substrate a bit, small cup pressed just an inch below the surface, let it drain for a couple of hours then paper towels can help, some use KH2PO4.

We have started dusting Sodium percarbonate. Biollante’s been experimenting with Sodium percarbonate and Hydrogen peroxide, we are not impressed in the aquarium but seem to be getting good results on exposed areas.

Biollante says try 1 part 3% Hydrogen peroxide with 4 parts distilled water, mist the entire tank then spray heavily around the plants, paying particular attention to any unwanted gunk. Need to do this a couple of times a day.

LC

 

[csmith]

Ask and Ye Shall Receive

I took some pictures of my tank to show my water level. Once I redid the scape I left the water level incredibly low. It doesn't sit more than half an inch above the lower rim of the tank.

In taking the pictures I found some very bad things. I already have BGA around the substrate. A lot of BGA. Gah, I can't even keep algae out of an aquarium with no water. I can only guess the worm castings have sent this tank over the edge. What's weird is I didn't notice this stuff until I took pictures, for some reason the picture shows what you can barely see with the naked eye.

Front of the tank, in the center.

Rear of the tank, again in the center.

I do have good new growth from the Lilaeopsis mauritiana. I guess every cloud has its silver lining.

I'll give the 1-4 hydrogen peroxide/water mix a shot. How does this affect the moss but not the plants?

As far as the BGA, any solutions to that? I'd assume I'm stuck making a wall a la jonny_ftm (post 42, 45 and 46). Maybe I can kill it so I don't have to?

 

[LoudCreature]

The H2O2 seems to only damage primitive plants, stay away from moss or ferns you want.

Blot dry the substrate with towels if any water first then apply H2O2.

It looks wet, not humid, I don’t know how to say it. Maybe air circulation?

If no KH2PO4 or Sodium percarbonate, try light sprinkle CaSO4 or even corn starch on substarte and between plants.

We have found same with photos often show more than expected. A Biollante trick is to photograph then enlarge and sharpen, apply filters. A good magnifying glass or jewelers loop works wonders too.

Never hurts to take samples and try treatments before exposing entire tank, kind of like trying cleaning product on carpet that does not show.

LC

 

[csmith]

The H2O2 seems to only damage primitive plants, stay away from moss or ferns you want.

Blot dry the substrate with towels if any water first then apply H2O2.

It looks wet, not humid, I don’t know how to say it. Maybe air circulation?

If no KH2PO4 or Sodium percarbonate, try light sprinkle CaSO4 or even corn starch on substarte and between plants.

We have found same with photos often show more than expected. A Biollante trick is to photograph then enlarge and sharpen, apply filters. A good magnifying glass or jewelers loop works wonders too.

Never hurts to take samples and try treatments before exposing entire tank, kind of like trying cleaning product on carpet that does not show.

LC

Just to clarify two things.
1. The KH2PO4, you're saying add a very light, but full, dusting across the entire substrate correct? It would appear the effective ingredient here is PO4?
2. Dry off the substrate then spray it with distilled water/H2O2? Does the drying off matter? Kind of counterintuitive.

 

[LoudCreature]

Just to clarify two things.
1. The KH2PO4, you're saying add a very light, but full, dusting across the entire substrate correct? It would appear the effective ingredient here is PO4?
2. Dry off the substrate then spray it with distilled water/H2O2? Does the drying off matter? Kind of counterintuitive.

Yes to all of the above, sort of.

The “kind-of” is based on what I see in the photos.

Start with the moist versus wet, the rule we “kind-of” follow is any standing water is bad, if you make a small depression and it fills in, “puddles” the substrate is wet.

The advantage KH2PO4 is that it adds PO4 while helping to dry. The CaSO4 and obviously cornstarch mainly control the moisture.

When using any of the above we do not worry too much about exact amounts, some places will end up with a little more, it really should not require a lot, but no harm if you happen to dump a bunch.

The H2O2 is more effective if the surfaces are not too wet as well.

Biollante says hi.

LC

 

[csmith]

Sometimes I Think I Should Be on a Short Bus

So I got home today and mixed up some H2O2/distilled water. Sprayed everything down and all of that, then came here to make sure I did it right. Yeah, 200 mL H2O2 mixed with 400 mL distilled water. Just a tad strong. Hopefully everything makes it through. What really caught my attention was that fizzing sound hydrogen peroxide makes, like when you put it on a wound. Weird stuff. I made it a point to spray very well where the substrate meets the glass, maybe the stuff will make it down between the glass and the substrate to get to the BGA. Time will tell. This Saturday I'll be laying down the KH2PO4 and I'll give the H2O2 some time to wear down before reapplying.

 

[LoudCreature]

If it didn't burn the plants I would not worry. should have killed off bugs.

I don't think the half-life of H2O2 is that great.

Biollante has been putting sodium percarbonate all over the place, he says it is just solid H2O2. so as long as you didn't burn the plants you wanted, then the stronger solution is more effective.

Since you started the H2O2 keep it up for a couple times a day for 4 days.

The fizzy thing means it has found stuff

LC