Journal Rosette Jungle Tank – AquaEl Ultrascaper 90 Home Office Build Journal

[BranchScape]

Trying a true journal format. Let me know if it's too much writing. My natural tendency is to bullet point everything.​

The Mishap That Started It All​

This whole project began at 6:30 a.m., courtesy of my Oase Biomaster Thermo 250 deciding to serenade me with impeller noise while I was trying to work from home. Biofilm on the impeller — nothing dramatic — but the sound was maddening, especially with an 8 a.m. call with our London office looming. So I did what any aquarist does under pressure: a lightning‑fast pre‑filter and impeller clean.

That’s when the universe decided to intervene.

While disconnecting the hoses — the same routine I’ve done countless times — the lock failed. Suddenly a vacuum of water blasted across the floor of my upstairs alcove “office.” I yanked the intake and outflow from my 60U, stopping the torrent, but not before a solid gallon had soaked into the floorboards.

My wife woke up to the sound of chaos and the sight of me standing in a puddle. Understandably, she was not thrilled. The alcove has cathedral ceilings, so every noise echoes, and the massive 8‑foot cabinet we built with her dad years ago makes cleaning underneath nearly impossible. It’s not a space designed for aquariums, humidity, or early‑morning filter geysers.

As we cleaned, she admitted she hated having tanks and equipment out in the open upstairs. Fair enough. When we built the house, the plan was always for my “stuff” to live in the downstairs office while she had the rest of the house. But during COVID she needed privacy for patient calls, so I gave her the office and moved my stuff upstairs. Now her role has changed — two days in the hospital, one day from home — and the need for that arrangement is gone.

So I floated the idea: What if I moved everything back downstairs, consolidated the two smaller tanks into one larger, beautifully executed setup — something like the living room tank she actually likes? Less noise, less humidity upstairs, and I get a proper scaping space again.

To my mild shock, she was completely on board. From a mishap came opportunity.

Choosing the Tank​

Once the idea settled, I had to pick the right aquarium. I landed on the AquaEl Ultrascaper 90 — the dimensions are perfect, and I’d been eyeing it ever since researching the Skylight Hyperspot and AquaEl’s filter lineup. The tank was designed with the scapers at AquaShow in Poland, and their sample layouts are right up there with ADA, ADG, and Green Aqua imo.

Finding one in the U.S. was the next challenge. I reached out to the AquaEl rep, asked about the Hypermax for my living room tank, and inquired about Ultrascaper 90 availability. He pointed me to Fish Tanks Direct — and with a discount code in hand, I placed the order for the snow variant. My only quandy was to go for the cheaper one and get a Netlea AT5S to hang or try their newer attractive but inferior light option (RGB vs WBG). I chose to try their light as it looked interesting and the PAR on paper is more than enough.

Link for reference:https://fishtanksdirect.com/aquael-ultrascape-90-with-ultra-slim-snow-tank-light-cabinet/

Atlanta Weekend & Tank Comparisons​

Right after ordering, we had a weekend trip to Atlanta for one of my wife’s appointments. On Friday we visited the botanical garden, grabbed food, and while she was at her appointment Saturday, I made the rounds to three local fish stores. The Aquarium was an option but a Saturday solo but spending roughly $100 to be around 10 million families sounded less enjoyable than exploring ATL suburbs and seeing the stores and their tanks.

Premiere Aquatics had a beautiful setup UNS 90U and one for sale as well but at nearly $2,000 out the door it wasn't a great deal. Plus the tank is taller than I wanted, it wasn’t the right fit. I did pick up two gorgeous rose swords and a great piece of ghost wood.

I went to one store in Alpharetta but it was out of literally everything, not sure if they are doing poorly or just sell out fast and under order. I did buy a crinum there. Plus I liked driving from Premier to their.

Then I got lucky at Optimum Aquarium — they had an AquaEl Ultrascaper 90 in stock that had arrived that week, priced at a very respectable $1,000 (without the light). If the cabinet had been white, I would’ve bought it on the spot. They also had a wide range of tanks, which let me compare my choice to the Fluval Opti White 90 (a very reasonable $700) and several Aquatlantis rimless tanks I didn’t even know were available in the U.S. Their shallow 80 is especially cool — tank, stand, and light for $830, I would get a different color but I like the concept. They also had a bunch of healthy Dwarf Sag for $3 dollars so I bought a 4 bunches to use as I couldn't find dwarf chain swords easily online and heleiatium tenellum is a little too small.

My takeaways:

• Fluval Opti White 90: Nice tank but a bit small and too tall, the stand feels cheap and lightweight. Attractive for the price, but not my pick.
• Aquatlantis: Surprisingly impressive. I’d choose them over Fluval at similar price points.
• UNS 90U: The stands are unquestionably superior. The tank mitering is spectacular.
• AquaEl Ultrascaper 90:
  
  • Stand: Best flat‑pack stand I’ve seen, though still a flat‑pack.
  • Glass: Equal quality to UNS but no mitering.
  • Dimensions: 90 × 60 × 45 — absolutely perfect.
    
    • Incredible depth
    • Lower height makes it ideal for seated viewing
    • Easier to work in
    • Better top‑down perspective

I left Atlanta feeling completely validated in my choice and excited for delivery day.

 

[MrJG]

Subbed, so much depth to play with. Can’t wait to see where this goes!

 

[TRyan]

That's a perfect size tank. Great setup! Looking forward to see how it turns out.

Sorry to hear about your Oase 250 mishap. Are you moving away from the biomaster filters now?

 

[Kwyet]

It’s a strong argument for double taps! I look forward to seeing all of this come together.

 

[BranchScape]

That's a perfect size tank. Great setup! Looking forward to see how it turns out.

Sorry to hear about your Oase 250 mishap. Are you moving away from the biomaster filters now?

yes, I am all in on Aquael currently as they flow more akin to an FX, have a prefilter, are cheaper and silent. If I wasn't I would copy Rocco and do netlea prefilter(s) and a DC pump.

 

[JayP]

yes, I am all in on Aquael currently as they flow more akin to an FX, have a prefilter, are cheaper and silent. If I wasn't I would copy Rocco and do netlea prefilter(s) and a DC pump.

Just to be clear, when you say cheaper, you mean cheaper than using 2 Biomasters. The price I've seen for the Hypermax is considerably more than a single Biomaster Thermo 850.

 

[BranchScape]

Just to be clear, when you say cheaper, you mean cheaper than using 2 Biomasters. The price I've seen for the Hypermax is considerably more than a single Biomaster Thermo 850.

An Ultramax 2k is the equivalent (better really) to a 850 and is much cheaper (250 before coupons), aka the cost of a Biomaster 250. The Hypermax was a pure luxury buy but it is the cheapest way to get that level of flow from a canister.

 

[BranchScape]

My delivery date was set for April 7th, which gave me a little breathing room to finalize the hardscape concept and plant palette. The vision was clear in my head: an eddy — a pocket of calm water formed behind a mass of stone and wood. The idea came partly from Biotopia’s Brazil videos and partly from my time kayaking the NC Green River Gorge, where fallen trees wedge themselves between boulders and create deep, still pools behind them. I wanted to capture that feeling: turbulence in front, tranquility behind. Granted the concept sounds good my skills however...

With that in mind, I initially imagined using large river stones from a landscaping yard paired with chunky, character-rich wood.

Hardscape Decisions​

For wood, I already had three pieces of Texas Select shipped from ADG — two large, one small. One of the large pieces and the small one were currently in my 60U, which I’d be breaking down, so they were guaranteed to be reused. I also had the ghost wood I picked up in Atlanta and an smattering of wood I got off Etsy with this build in mind. I hauled everything into the garage and started experimenting with combinations.

For rock, I started off using the river stones from my backyard and as going to supplement them with more from a local landscape yard. I didnt like it though as the stone took up too much space. Then I decided I needed to go back to the mountain of Ohko stone (for me it's a lot at least) I’d ordered back in 2025 when I bought the 60U from BRS — a full package deal that had been taking up space ever since. Once I started playing with it, the decision made itself. Ohko is easier to stack, easier to shape, and doesn't take up as much space.

Plant Philosophy​

The plant selection came from a moment of honesty: I admire the aquascapers (some are on here) who can maintain immaculate stem walls with surgeon‑level precision… but I am not one of them. My patience and dexterity have limits. So instead of a stem‑heavy scape, I decided to build the foundation around Echinodorus — specifically, newer varieties that stay reasonably compact and offer interesting colors and textures.

From there, the plan was to reuse the plants currently living in my upstairs tanks which are now “temporary storage” , then supplement with more crypts and Buce. The swords (aside from the two I bought in Atlanta) came from Dustin’s, as did the crypts except for Pink Flamingo. The Buce came from BucePlant thanks to a pile of discounts and coupons I’d been hoarding.

Substrate

Caribsea Jungle River- Chewy sale spoils
UNS Seqouia
UNS Controsoil - new and reusing some.
AF Lava Soil

Plant List​

Echinodorus​

• 5 × A‑Flame (I cannot wait for these to color up)
• 3 × Rose
• 1 × Fantastic Color
• 2 × St. Elmo’s Fire

Cryptocoryne​

• Pink Flamingo
• Mioya
• Undulata Red

Stems​

• Limnophila Aromatica
• Rotala Orange Juice
• Bacopa salzmannii ‘Purple’
• Nomaphila stricta (Siamensis)
• Hygrophila pinnatifida

Epiphytes​

• Bucephalandra Brownie Blue (pot)
• Bucephalandra Catherinae Red (pot)
• Bucephalandra Purple Blue
• Bucephalandra Brownie Ghost
• Bucephalandra Brownie Phoenix
• Narrow Leaf Java Fern Mini
• Java Fern Trident
• Bolbitis heudelotii
• Piptospatha ridleyi (whatever remains that hasn’t melted)

Other​

• Crinum calamistratum
• Juncus repens
• Dwarf Sag
• Eriocaulon sp. ‘Vietnam’

The tank arrived without any issues, and I took a half day off so I could get the stand built and hopefully tackle the rest of the setup over the weekend. The stand itself is a solid flat‑pack — definitely not UNS quality, but perfectly serviceable — and assembly took about an hour. The only real annoyance was the leveling mat; I really wish manufacturers would just pre‑affix them the way Waterbox does. Once everything was together, though, my first impression is that this tank has depth. In the hands of someone with real scaping talent, the 90×60 footprint could become something extraordinary. But it's just me so I started putting in what I had mocked out that wasn't in a tank.

 

[Phish Tank]

I left Atlanta feeling completely validated in my choice and excited for delivery day.

Of the fish stores you visited, which would you recommend for a visit. I'll be in Atlanta next month and I'm always up for visiting a fish store

 

[BranchScape]

Of the fish stores you visited, which would you recommend for a visit. I'll be in Atlanta next month and I'm always up for visiting a fish store

Premiere was the best in the northwest section I drove around. It's a bit small but has a interesting mix of plants and fish and actually sells C02 setups. Optimum was second, I enjoyed it as I got to see a ton of tank options to contrast with the the tank I bought. Plus they had a good bit of large interesting manzanita, fish selection and plant selection were very limited. Southern Aquatics was pretty empty but that could just mean they sell out. There are a few more stores I didn't go to as they are much further north east.

 

[NC AL]

This will be a nice tank for sure!

 

[BranchScape]

I never really followed up on this tank the way I intended. Between maintaining two aquariums and everything else going on, I just didn’t have the time to sit down and journal properly.

That said, this aquarium has been a mix of wins and frustrations. The biggest surprise is that every plant except the swords and crypts — the ones meant to be the stars — has thrived. I made the mistake of managing the tank by TDS alone, just like my older setups, without checking GH. I’d been running around 2–3 dGH, and it clearly held the swords back. Their older leaves collected GSA, and while I’ve never had algae issues beyond GSA, it was pretty rough on the glass and old foliage for a long stretch.

Things finally started turning around once I began dosing APT Sky during water changes. It’s early days, but the improvement is obvious — Crypts, Swords, Lagenandra, and Buce all look noticeably better. The Rotala and Erio. V. were perfectly fine at low GH, but the heavy root feeders clearly weren’t. I’m planning to run the tank at higher GH for a month or two and see how the plants respond before making any design decisions.

Hardscape Challenges​

This tank also came with its share of hardscape drama. Several pieces of wood floated, and the largest one still has a slight lift to it. I had a whole bag of UNS Kona weighing it down after it broke my glue-up just one week in — and that continued for four months. I even drilled into it hoping to hit an air pocket. No luck.

My favorite swords also stayed tiny — so small you practically have to press your face to the glass to find them. It’s made me seriously consider reworking the rear planting. I’m leaning toward more stems while keeping Crypt spiralis, Crinum, and Cyperus helferi. Honestly, I could pull the sand and do a proper carpet without much effort. The bones of the layout are solid, so a full teardown isn’t necessary.

Instead of being frustrated, I’m choosing to see this tank as a great learning experience. If I can carve out the time, I want to do a 60U contest scape, using both the plants and the lessons from this setup.

Fish Successes​

The fish have been the undeniable highlight.

• Black Ruby Barbs Think better-looking Tiger Barbs with none of the aggression but all the energy. Watching the males color up and chase each other is endlessly entertaining.
• Laetacara dorsigera (Red-breasted Acara) Easily the most peaceful cichlid I’ve ever kept. They look friendly, act friendly, and might honestly be my favorite fish of all time.
• Dwarf Chain Loach (Ambastaia sidthimunki) Fantastic little fish — full of personality. They grow slower than I expected, but they switch from hyperactive to napping in ridiculous spots instantly.
• Pearl Gourami I love watching them swing their pelvic fins around like little antennae, inspecting everything with such deliberate curiosity.
• Rummy Nose Rasbora Beautiful fish, but probably my one stocking mistake. I didn’t realize they were all males, which is disappointing since I’ll never get a female. Being wild-caught, they were already full-grown and have shorter lifespans, especially after being kept and transported in soft water when they actually prefer harder water. I’d only keep them again if I could source females and had a hard-water tank like the one I had in SoCal.

Upcoming Plant Work​

I’ll be dividing my ferns soon, and anything I don’t plan to use in the 60U scape will be available. I also did a division in my 120P — I have a lot of Narrow Mini, which I’ll be putting up for sale. The Trident and ADA Narrow need more time before I split and offer them.


If you want, I can help you turn this into a proper long-form journal entry, a blog-style post, or even a running tank diary you update over time.

turn this into a proper long-form journal entry

Here is a fully expanded, polished, long‑form journal entry — structured, reflective, and written with the tone of an aquascaper documenting a meaningful chapter in a tank’s life. It reads like something you’d publish on a personal site or aquascaping forum.

A Long‑Form Journal: Four Months Inside the Ultrascaper Jungle​

I’ve realized I never truly followed up on this tank the way I meant to. Between maintaining two aquariums, juggling plant work, and everything else life throws at me, the time to sit down and journal simply evaporated. But the tank kept evolving — sometimes beautifully, sometimes stubbornly — and now feels like the right moment to capture what actually happened over these past months.

What follows is the story of a layout that taught me more than I expected: about water chemistry, about patience, about wood that refuses to sink, and about fish that ended up being the unexpected heart of the whole system.

The Early Months: Hits, Misses, and a GH Problem I Created Myself​

From the start, this tank was a mix of triumphs and frustrations. The biggest irony is that every plant except the ones meant to be the stars — the swords and crypts — thrived without hesitation. The stems exploded, the Erio stayed happy, the Rotala never complained. Meanwhile, the heavy root feeders sulked.

The culprit was embarrassingly simple: I never checked GH. I managed the tank by TDS alone, just like my older setups, assuming it would be “close enough.” It wasn’t. I’d been running 2–3 dGH, and the swords made their displeasure known. Their older leaves collected GSA, and while GSA is the only algae I ever deal with, it was relentless — coating the glass, clinging to old foliage, and refusing to back down.

Things finally shifted when I started dosing APT Sky during water changes. It’s still early, but the difference is already visible. The Crypts, Swords, Lagenandra, and Buce all look more confident, more upright, more alive. The Rotala and Erio were perfectly fine at low GH, but the root feeders clearly needed more.

I’m planning to run the tank at higher GH for a month or two and watch how the plants respond before making any big design decisions. This feels like the right moment to pause, observe, and let the tank tell me what it wants.

Hardscape Drama: The Wood That Would Not Sink​

This tank also came with its own hardscape saga. Several pieces of wood floated, but one in particular became the villain of the story. Even after months, it still has a slight lift to it. I had a full bag of UNS Kona weighing it down after it broke my glue-up just one week in — and that continued for four months. I even drilled holes into it, hoping to hit an air pocket. Nothing.

It’s almost funny now, but at the time it was maddening.

Meanwhile, my favorite swords stayed tiny — so small you practically have to press your face to the glass to find them. That alone has made me seriously consider reworking the rear planting. I’m leaning toward a heavier stem presence while keeping Crypt spiralis, Crinum, and Cyperus helferi as structural anchors. Honestly, I could pull the sand and do a proper carpet without much effort.

The bones of the layout are strong. I don’t need a teardown. I just need a recalibration.

And instead of frustration, I’m choosing to see this as a learning experience — one that’s already shaping how I want to approach my next project. If I can carve out the time, I want to build a 60U contest scape, using both the plants and the lessons from this tank.

The Fish: The Unexpected Joy of the Whole System​

If the plants were a mixed bag, the fish were pure success. Every species added something special, and together they became the soul of the tank.

Black Ruby Barbs​

Imagine Tiger Barbs but better looking, with none of the aggression and all of the energy. Watching the males color up and chase each other is endlessly entertaining — a constant pulse of motion and personality.

Laetacara dorsigera (Red‑breasted Acara)​

These might be the most peaceful cichlids I’ve ever kept. They look friendly, act friendly, and have this gentle presence that makes them instantly endearing. They might honestly be my favorite fish of all time.

Dwarf Chain Loach (Ambastaia sidthimunki)​

Fantastic little fish — full of personality and mischief. They grow slower than I expected, but they switch from hyperactive to napping in ridiculous spots instantly. They’re comic relief in fish form.

Pearl Gourami​

I love watching them swing their pelvic fins like delicate antennae, inspecting everything with slow, deliberate curiosity. They add a calm counterbalance to the barbs’ energy.

Rummy Nose Rasbora​

Beautiful fish, but probably my one stocking mistake. I didn’t realize they were all males, which is disappointing since I’ll never get a female. Being wild-caught, they were already full-grown and have shorter lifespans — especially after being kept and transported in soft water when they actually prefer harder water. I’d only keep them again if I could source females and had a hard-water tank like the one I had in SoCal.

Looking Ahead: Plant Divisions and Future Scapes​

I’ll be dividing my ferns soon, and anything I don’t plan to use in the 60U scape will be available. I also did a division in my 120P — I have a lot of Narrow Mini, which I’ll be putting up for sale. The Trident and ADA Narrow need more time before I split and offer them.

This tank may not have gone exactly as planned, but it’s given me a clearer understanding of what I want to build next — and a deeper appreciation for the plants and fish that thrived despite my mistakes.

It’s been a journey worth documenting, even if it took me four months to finally sit down and write it.

Photos:

First two are day of setup photos, the next is a week or two later with the bag. Then a gif of today and a photo of my favorite swords noting how small they are and suboptimal they are in this setup. Lastly my fern and lily divisions I will start to offer up from my 120P, I will do the same with plants form here when I decide what to do.

 

[Koan]

I didn’t realize they were all males, which is disappointing since I’ll never get a female.

Dansfish gets tank-raised M/F pairs in from time to time

If you sign up for the wish list they send stocking alerts to your email

https://dansfish.com/product.detail/5074/Cyprinidae-Rasboras-Rummynose-Rasbora-Pair-(1M1F)-(Sawbwa-resplendens)