40b Dart tank - Natural style build Journal

[ndame88]

Great, can't wait to see how you put in the substrate around the rocks for plants, isos, and springtails.

Best of luck

[DigitalPunk]

Ok soil was added to cover the egg crate on the bottom of the tank We used Unfertilized and organic top soil and covered that with Flourite <Back>. I then added in the proper amount of de chlorinated water and put the heater in the tank and the small filter. I will let it run like this for several days and let the water settle before doing anything else.

When I added the soil I removed the bulk of the rocks to make sure I got the soil in most of the bottom. But now all of it to keep the weight of the tank down some. I took a picture but it looks like a hot mess right now.

I also got some glass cut for the lid at a local glass shop for around $14. Much cheaper than buying some kind of plastic to cut to size.

The order for the rest of the materials has been delayed due to the weather. Should be shipped tomorrow.

[DigitalPunk]

Here a re a few pics of the progress tonight. I forgot to take pics of the Aquatic substrate being added. When the Flourite came in I realized that it was not going to be enough to accomplish what I was looking for. So I went to HD and bought some regular old topsoil. I added about 1.5 inches of it across the bottom. Then covered that in a .5 to .75 inch layer of the Flourite.

I then filled the tank to the desired depth with De Chlorinated tap water.



I previously had gathered some Leaves and sticks from the yard (We have an ancient Oak and Pecan tree in the yard). I had to dig them out from under 12 inches of snow so I did this in advance so they could dry out and be picked through. I then boiled the sticks and the leaves for 1 hour. After that everything was rinsed several times with de chlorinated tap water and then left in a tub to soak in the same type of water for 24 hours.




Tonight I ripped the leaves into smaller pieces and started lining the bottom of the tank with leaves and dropping a few sticks in the water. Once I was done and I sat back to look at it I realized the water was not deep enough for the look I was going for. So I reworked the bottom and middle layer of rocks and raised the whole top landmass by 2 inches or so. I added 2 more gallons of water and then added some more leaves in.






I don't have the hinge or handle for the glass top yet but I placed the 2 pieces on top of the tank after I placed the aquatic heater where left space for it and setup the sponge filter. I placed a crappy analog Thermometer and Hydrometer in the tank so I can test out heating the tank with the water heater. It took it all of 2 mins to fog the glass up so I can't see into it. So now I will let it sit and let the water do it's thing for 24 hours or so. I might go buy some shrimp tomorrow and place them in the water to see how they do. I am not going to do anything to treat the water further and will the the nitrogen cycle start on it's own when it is ready.