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This isn't exactly a Journal, although it may become one. I am relatively new member here and thought I should introduce my tanks.

THis 150 x 60 x 60 cm tank has been running for at least a decade with the same inert fine gravel media and Eheim CLassic filters. However, it had never had real plants in it until around a year ago, when I decided to try my hand at converting it to a planted aquarium and getting rid of all the plastic plants. I had been having some success with low tech planted smaller shrimp aquaria but this was a whole new challenge.


THe big main difference was 60cm depth ot the aquarium which creates just enormous differences in PAR a different points in the aquarium, and PAR levels at the substrate are not high. I have not been able to afford expensive lights yet so am simply running a pair of 120cm Hygger 36W luminaires. Two lights minimum were needed to cover the 60cm depth of the aquarium.
I struggled a lot with most species for a long time and the game changer was deciding to take the plunge with CO2, and I added a fire extinguisher system around 4 months ago. Now injected into a Horizontal Yugang reactor for nice clear water. THings became a lot easier with 30 ppm of CO2. Another significant improvement was adding boluses of aquatic compost and, more recently, a high nutrient aquasoil underneath the gravel using a "sawn-off-10ml syringe"
I have been through a number of different fertilizing schemes and products and have recently (2 weeks ago) settled on adding my own DIY dry salts in a daily EI scheme as water column ferts.

So ........
lights - 2 x 120cm 42W Hygger luminaires.
filtration - 3 x Eheim Classic 2217 ecternal filters,
substrate - inert fine gravel with injected compost and aquasoil boluses for root nutrition.
water column ferts - dry salts , daily EI scheme. One 50% weekly water change.
Water - RO, remineralised to 5 dGH with Salty Shrimp Bee Minerals GH+. Zero dKH.
CO2 - fire extinguisher cylinder system injected via a Yugang reactor. 30 ppm CO2 achieved throughout lighting period.
Oase Crystalskim 600 surface skimmer.

CUrrent plants. .........
Alternanthera reineckii rosaefolia
Bacopa amplexicaulis Aquafleur
Blyxa japonica
Cryptocoryne balansae
Cryptocoryne Wendtii Red
Eriocaulon sp vietnam
Hygrophila corymbosa
Hygrophila polysperma
Hygrophila polysperma Rosanervig
Hygrophila triflora
Limnophila heterophylla
Limnophila rugosa
Ludwigia palustris “super red”
Pogostemon helferi
Pogostemon samsonii
Rotala Bossii
Rotala Colorata

FIsh ...........
6" electric blue acara
Golden gourami
SAE
10 x Congo tetras
4 x scissortail rasboras
12 x harlequins
4 x cherry barbs
4 x Corydorus sterbai
1 x Stiphodon ornatus (at least 12 years old).
6 x Otocinclus
8 x Whitefin bentosi tetras
2 x amano shrimp
probably plus a few I've forgotten. basically the fish load is pretty high and fish poop/food waste contributes very significantly to the N & P input into the tank.

Most of the current plant species are doing well. The Rotala colorata is growing like a weed and has to be trimmed heavily weekly. The Limnophila heterophylla I want to phase out as it grows 12" per week and has been useful to serve a purpose as other plants have established but I am becoming fed up of cutting it back 3-4 times a week. Thankfully there are only a couple of small patches remaining and I think I will be able to phase them out within a few weeks.

The main problem I have had is, of course, algae. I admit I have constantly changed multiple things in quick succession so I think I have generallly been causing quite a bit of plant stress and have been reaping the consequences of this with GDA mostly. The front glass has needed cleaning twice weekly until very recently.
THankfully I have managed to achive rather more of a settled state over the last 2 weeks and foresee only slow and occasional changes from this point. I have my long term fert scheme sorted out and steady. Daily dosing gives me nice and steady levels. NO3 now really only changes within roughly a 6-7 ppm range during the week. LIghting is steady and now seems appropriate. PAR is around 20 on the substrate, up to around 100 near the surface, so its a relatively low/medium light set up. PLant growth is now generally fast enough for me and I hope that I am approaching having the plant mass to see then end of the constant GDA conflict.

I am sure there will be further evolution to come but thats where we are at the moment.
Heres a couple more pics. The angle makes it look as if there is a large swathe of unplanted gravel at the front of the tank but in reality its only about 5cm I like to maintain a bit of a space for front glass maintenance and to create a bit of a clearer space on the substrate for me to view fish doing their thing. the substrate is also much deeper than it appears as the tank is at least 1" deeper than the wooden front part of the stand.