I recently moved from South Africa to Canada. The process of moving took a year to get the visa, and i had sold everything near the beginning of the process. needless to say It wasn't long before the itch to start up a tank got the better of me.
Luckily i managed to find a second hand Waterbox pinnacle 25 in good nik pretty quickly and got started.
The Hardware:
- Hygger clip-on 14W Aquarium light (Cheap and has Ramp up/ramp down functionality)
- 100w heater (not sure of the brand)
- Fluval Bio-stratum
- Yeast CO² generator
As you've probably picked up, this will be a budget build (Except for the soil, somethings you can change as you go along. and some things are a pain in the ass)
After running through a couple of ideas in my head i settled on a shoreline looking scape.


To stabilize the rocks that could potentially fall, i used cotton and superglue. It doesn't look great but I'm hoping the places that are visible will eventually get covered by plants or algae.

Starting the hobby from scratch has its drawbacks. For example, not having pipes to fill and drain the tank. I'm pretty sure filling this thing by pouring water straight from the bucket gave me a few extra grey hairs. Needless to say i went past the LFS (only one freshwater shop in my city) the next day.

Options for plants were pretty limited at the LFS but got some things to get started while the rest of the plants get delivered.
Ordered Plant list:
- Micranthemum 'Monte Carlo'
- Nymphoides Aquatica (Banana Plant)
- Echinodorus Ozelot (Green Ozelot Sword)
- Echinodorus 'Chocolate Marble'
- Anubias Nana 'Petite'
- Nymphaea Tiger Lotus Red
- Vesicularia Ferriei 'Weeping Moss'
- Bucephalandra sp. Kedagang
I've probably gone a little overboard with the plants but I'll deal with that at a later stage. If i feel the tank is too over crowded I guess I'll have no choice but to start looking for tank number 2
Livestock wise, I'll be gradually adding things as the tank starts to establish itself. The plan may change along the way but my idea is:
- Shrimp (likely Red Rili)
- Rabbit snails
- Otocinclus
- Either Threadfin Rainbows or Forktail blue eye rainbow fish
- A fancy pleco. I'm leaning towards a blue phantom but I'll see what is available at the time.
And now comes the hardest part...... the wait.