sarah_casper Posted November 1, 2015 Share Posted November 1, 2015 100 litre tank and 10kgs of rock... Thoughts / opinions? Planning on stock being 2 clowns, a goby and something else maybe, not sure what. Coral wise will be a few softies and the odd lps. Cup of sand in there at the minute from a fellow reefer but have 10kg of fine coral sand on the way. Thanks! Link to comment
Pinner Reef Posted November 1, 2015 Share Posted November 1, 2015 I like it! Flat rock up front might get covered in sand but otherwise very balanced and natural looking. Link to comment
sarah_casper Posted November 1, 2015 Author Share Posted November 1, 2015 Thanks, and good point! Might have to move that one Some side shots too for perspective.. Link to comment
Pinner Reef Posted November 1, 2015 Share Posted November 1, 2015 Wow the tank is much thinner than I expected. That makes it a lot more difficult to scape. Still a good job tho. Is that a coral in there? Link to comment
Halo_003 Posted November 2, 2015 Share Posted November 2, 2015 If it were me I would break the rock into smaller chunks, maybe even use less, and go for something like one of these tanks... On ReefCentral by V1 - http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showpost.php?p=19561363&postcount=1413 SunnyX on RC - http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showpost.php?p=15231327&postcount=10 With smaller chunks of rock you can control the height vs width ratio much more easily. Link to comment
ajmckay Posted November 2, 2015 Share Posted November 2, 2015 So I assume you're looking for critiques? You have an interesting tank size - where are you located? Anyways - I think the scape you've chosen here works pretty good. Normally there are a few rules I try to follow: 1) No rocks within about 1" of any sides. Now because your tank is pretty narrow I think that you'll probably have to have some rocks touching the back wall. My main reason for this is to keep flow moving but also to make things easier to clean. I think you can find a way to deal with this though. 2) Avoid the "stack of rocks" look. I had that in my first tank BAD. It seems your rocks fit together pretty good, and while there are some holes they don't seem too forced. What I notice though is the distinct pyramid shape and how the rocks fit into it - IMO looks a bit unnatural. Also the rock on the far right on the 2nd layer high looks a bit unstable. 3) Stability. The rock has to be stable enough that snails or other forces don't knock things over. Some corals are really fragile and if a rock topples on top of one it could mean bad things. 4) Coral placement and grow out. Try to get a hand around what kinds of coral you want - assuming you want coral. Try to envision that tiny 1 or 2 head frogspawn blown up into a dozen and it's the size of a softball. This kind of gets you thinking long term - so you should have an idea of how long you'll have this tank set up. When you're arranging rocks in the tank I find it's helpful to think "I could put this coral over here" and try to work that into the scape. IME this is more successful than arranging the rocks how you like them and then trying to figure out where to put all this cool coral. 5) Minimalist. This sort of relates to #4 but further enforces how important cohesiveness is. In our nano tanks we need to be really thoughtful of interactions. So minimalist means recognizing coral placement, grow out, flow requirements, cleaning requirements, etc... For example it's a lot easier to clean a tank that isn't stuffed to the brim with live rock. Corals grow best when there's a variety of locations to put them so that you can tailor the amount of light and flow that reaches a particular coral. Compare the popular reef tanks of 10-15 + years ago to those of today. Minimalist scapes offer enhanced options for optimal coral health while still providing adequate biological filtration. 6) Depth of field. IME the best scapes have the best illusion of depth. While it's difficult to do having things at different distances front-to-back helps enhance the feeling of size and space. Do some image searches here and find what you like 7) Don't be afraid to break your rock. It's tough because it's expensive and "natural" but judicious use of a hack saw (to make flat, stable bottoms), chisel, grinder, or whatever helps you produce the rock scapes you want. Good luck! Try to have it out now before you star adding livestock. Link to comment
sarah_casper Posted November 3, 2015 Author Share Posted November 3, 2015 Wow the tank is much thinner than I expected. That makes it a lot more difficult to scape. Still a good job tho. Is that a coral in there? I think the picture makes it look thinner than it is ... its 40x60x47cm Yeah it is - the guy I got my sand from was throwing it in the bin!! I did tell him I wasn't ready for corals but it was either watch him throw it away or put it in my tank. If it were me I would break the rock into smaller chunks, maybe even use less, and go for something like one of these tanks... On ReefCentral by V1 - http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showpost.php?p=19561363&postcount=1413 SunnyX on RC - http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showpost.php?p=15231327&postcount=10 With smaller chunks of rock you can control the height vs width ratio much more easily. I don't think my tank is big enough to make it look like that... they look good though! So I assume you're looking for critiques? You have an interesting tank size - where are you located? Anyways - I think the scape you've chosen here works pretty good. Normally there are a few rules I try to follow: 1) No rocks within about 1" of any sides. Now because your tank is pretty narrow I think that you'll probably have to have some rocks touching the back wall. My main reason for this is to keep flow moving but also to make things easier to clean. I think you can find a way to deal with this though. 2) Avoid the "stack of rocks" look. I had that in my first tank BAD. It seems your rocks fit together pretty good, and while there are some holes they don't seem too forced. What I notice though is the distinct pyramid shape and how the rocks fit into it - IMO looks a bit unnatural. Also the rock on the far right on the 2nd layer high looks a bit unstable. 3) Stability. The rock has to be stable enough that snails or other forces don't knock things over. Some corals are really fragile and if a rock topples on top of one it could mean bad things. 4) Coral placement and grow out. Try to get a hand around what kinds of coral you want - assuming you want coral. Try to envision that tiny 1 or 2 head frogspawn blown up into a dozen and it's the size of a softball. This kind of gets you thinking long term - so you should have an idea of how long you'll have this tank set up. When you're arranging rocks in the tank I find it's helpful to think "I could put this coral over here" and try to work that into the scape. IME this is more successful than arranging the rocks how you like them and then trying to figure out where to put all this cool coral. 5) Minimalist. This sort of relates to #4 but further enforces how important cohesiveness is. In our nano tanks we need to be really thoughtful of interactions. So minimalist means recognizing coral placement, grow out, flow requirements, cleaning requirements, etc... For example it's a lot easier to clean a tank that isn't stuffed to the brim with live rock. Corals grow best when there's a variety of locations to put them so that you can tailor the amount of light and flow that reaches a particular coral. Compare the popular reef tanks of 10-15 + years ago to those of today. Minimalist scapes offer enhanced options for optimal coral health while still providing adequate biological filtration. 6) Depth of field. IME the best scapes have the best illusion of depth. While it's difficult to do having things at different distances front-to-back helps enhance the feeling of size and space. Do some image searches here and find what you like 7) Don't be afraid to break your rock. It's tough because it's expensive and "natural" but judicious use of a hack saw (to make flat, stable bottoms), chisel, grinder, or whatever helps you produce the rock scapes you want. Good luck! Try to have it out now before you star adding livestock. A very detailed response thankyou! Some really good tips in there. I'm located in Leicestershire in England. Its a 100 litre AquaOne AquaNano 60. My scape has now changed though... it wasn't as stable as I thought Will play around with it over the next couple of weeks. Link to comment
sarah_casper Posted November 3, 2015 Author Share Posted November 3, 2015 Had another go... Lots of caves this time, and brought most the rocks away from the back wall. Link to comment
Halo_003 Posted November 3, 2015 Share Posted November 3, 2015 I think the picture makes it look thinner than it is ... its 40x60x47cm Yeah it is - the guy I got my sand from was throwing it in the bin!! I did tell him I wasn't ready for corals but it was either watch him throw it away or put it in my tank. I don't think my tank is big enough to make it look like that... they look good though! When it comes to scaping, anything is possible with sufficient desire. Keep in mind you have 25 gallons to play with, that's plenty to do anything. I (personally!) can't stand the look of a rock wall, it's really hard to actually get corals all situated in to and have any cohesion. Link to comment
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