New Construction Thread

[John]

Very nice and thorough walk-through thread, Matt. Many thanks for sharing this with us. I'm currently working on a "fancy" 10g vert using the same principles, but with LECA/hydroton instead of the egg crate.

[Mcbobs]

Hydroton/LECA also works very well, but with the heavy piece of driftwood, I didnt want it settling into the false bottom over time. Also, with larger aquariums, although hydroton/LECA is very light, it can still get too heavy to move easily. That's why I prefer to use egg crate with a pea gravel facade in front of it. It provides the best of both worlds (weight vs. appearance)!

In any case, plan on more pictures tomorrow! I'm trying to get this one done as fast as possible and still look really good. At first, it might be a little sparse in planting, but this weekend, I'll be picking up a ton more plants when I go home to KC. It should be 100% done by this time next week.

-Matt

OH! John! Don't forget to put up pictures of your fancy 10gallon when you get it done as well! I LOVE seeing other people's finished vivs!