MAKING THE BIG SHALLOW EVEN BETTER! FINAL TWEAKS BEFORE ADDING FISH!

[@dack4545]

Just some handy tips move your fog maker or out a panel on the back of your cabinet so the fog doesn't get into your control box and ruin everything water and electricity 🚫⚠️🚱and put a lid with a small cut out on your low water tank underneath your main tank, i dont even care about your cardboard boxes on the other side, im sure nothing in there can be damaged, but I do love how its coming along your videos are really good, just trying to help a fellow aquarist out 👍🏻🇦🇺

[@StandswithafistPiper]

Awesome channel - its so good to have hobbies that bring you joy. Nurturing nature 😉

[@studiofzone8292]

Thanks for liking our ATO

[@jackkoh66sg]

Hi MJ according to the yellowish water, you can try to temporary using a HOB filter hide it at the back and put in some active cabon and seachem phrosguard than with a thin layer of filter mate, after that change it every 4-5 day it will really help you to such up the tanin materia

[@ManGeshWarik]

Like the automation process… Cool…

[@anoobis_]

All the automation stuff is just so satisfying to watch. 🥴

[@Eroc.48]

I commented on a video about a year ago when you had a video on doing a dry start with moss on wood. I stated that I used the same humidifier you are using now with plastic wrap covering the top to keep the moisture in. Just placed a bowl of water inside with the humidifier to keep the moss wet while it set into the wood. It's seemed to work very well, although that was my first dry start I have ever tried.

[@silentseawolf]

YEAH, MIST! it adds a very nice touch. you might consider tossing a bag of activated charcoal into a Hang on back filter to zap the tannins, even though it will also mess with your ferts too. I have also seen KaveMan Aquatics replace his ceramic bio media in his canister filter with plastic pot scrubbers, and it cleared his water in a over stocked cichlid tank. Opposite problem I know, since you have no stock yet. Still, there is a lot I'm still learning about this hobby, just the same as you.

[@teenagescaper6753]

Some under water lights would look cool hidden under wood, so when lights off you get a pond kind of look

[@MJAquascaping]

That is a cool idea indeed!

[@sergeiz.5815]

Big shallow looks awesome 😊

[@nunuland69]

Awesome set up Mark! Love that mist maker and the auto top off. Going to have to get one of those for my wife's Betta sorority tank.

[@ChristosChristos]

With all those mist, waterfalls and the huge surface of the shallow tank, trust me when I say this, go and purchase an EHEIM waterrefill kit which uses sound waves to keep refilling your water when it evaporates. You just stick it outside the glass. I bought 4x for my 4x shallow aquariums. I just refill the spare bottles inside each cabinet and I’m done with them for the next 3 weeks, which I do the water changes

[@ChristosChristos]

Oh. I wrote this before I watched the infrared one you got. The issue with infrared is that if it gets clogged by anything, like a snail, dirt, or salts, there is a chance it will overflow the tank :( The EHEIM one I proposed, is a lot more expensive, but it uses another technology

[@SlickNick3]

Hey Mark not sure if you’ve tried yet but put some purigen in your filter and see if that helps clear the tank up!

[@JurijsJutjajevs]

Using a UNS tank as an ATO reservoir 🤑 good job after all. I’m curious what happened to the Biomaster and how it’s no longer noisy?

[@piacnm]

Very interesting and you did good in the DIY 👍 very jealous 😄 cant get over how beautyfull the hydrocotyle leucocephale is working and spreading ♥️ mine under water seems so soft and its amazing that it can stand Up like yours do 🤩

[@williammcdowell6257]

Auto top up, an excellent idea, and your DIY skills proved up the task, impressive sliding drawers for water reservoir and filter. Mister may prove really useful for emergent plants. My only slight concern might be condensation in the flat come the winter when windows are closed, but you have run open tanks for years so presumably you have found ways to manage the potential problem. Automatic dosing is probably a step too far for me personally, and no doubt in time the CO2 will return. Good job all round, very interesting content Mark, thanks as always.

[@petervandieren]

Nice! I also have some of these plans, but I am even more clumsy than you. So I keep postponing them.

[@cory8906]

Mist maker is next level 🙏🏼

[@rickyabdullah4758]

Nice big shallow update 👍🏻

[@thecincinnatikid5133]

Going through the same situation

[@SidsDrakon]

Man the tank is looking amazing. I does not look very cloudy on the video could be because of the water change. Also I kind of like the look with the tanned water. Does not look bad. Either way the tanks look amazing.

[@DRaquascapes]

I usually add ramshorn snails at that point,no fish yet. Test it every few days.

[@dlioncoulthurst778]

Looking good Bro....Hoorah!!

[@cagrahmetodabas5230]

amazing system that you do

[@noahcwb]

The mist maker would work great timed to go off around dawn and dusk

[@MJAquascaping]

Yesss!!!

[@wildanwijayaofficial2068]

nice job mj,love this project.

[@suewestby824]

Sweet setup!

[@TiSc384]

Very nice. You again should try with Corydoras. When they have some darker places they should not be shy anymore. Mine are very often in the front of the aquarium and the dont care when Im moving in front of the aquarium. They love to lay underneath roofs of plants or wood.

[@MJAquascaping]

Definitely going for Cory's with this one!

[@jamesgrant3343]

Immediately bought an Auto Top Off that you showed - gonna be a game changer of me!! Sadly the affiliate link to FZone didn’t offer prices in GBP so couldn’t support you there. However - the tank is looking really really great. The longest I’ve had to wait for wood to stop leaching noticeably… 1year. I kid you not! Be great to see some armano shrimp and a few ramshorns now it’s planted - keep the algae in check and the plants maintained, add basically no bioload. The ferts dosing system looks great - but it’s not a heavily planted tank - will you get a lot of algae…?) anyway - really enjoyed the video. Thank you.

[@benscape2761]

You should add few moss on top of your wood?

[@pantomathind]

just add an aerator it will get cleared overnight

[@MrFloRolf]

You should replace your water reservoir with a bucket that has a lid (just drill a small hole for the tube). That way nothing evaporates and it doesn't spill everywhere when you pull the cabinet out too quickly :D

[@Ekforreal]

Dream tank😍😍

[@petrfrolich7544]

As usual very cool inspiring video, thank you. Can not wait for next week video of fish releasing ;)

[@faridsattari6005]

Try happy life liquid filter media. It always makes my water crystal clear

[@michaelstruyf8641]

Cant wait for the fish!

[@aadityawakode846]

Auto water fill can be tested quickly 5-10% water removed from the aquarium. This way you can test if it refills and also the overflow. One more suggestion for the pull out DIY systems on the extra water and filter. The weight of these things are quite heavy so everytime you pull them out it will tense the screwing... So my suggestion would be whenever you pull these out put a block under the shelf it will take weight and cause no harm... BTW I loved your gadget upgrade ❤️

[@MJAquascaping]

Thanks for the suggestions!

[@aadityawakode846]

@@MJAquascaping dayyyyymmmnnn!! You are quick in replying. Hope my suggestions help 🤗❤️

[@michaelhoremans1337]

heel vet geworde!

[@malligarajendran3649]

With fertilizer vs without fertilizer pls make video

[@richardcolligon4277]

That's really awesome!

[@raybro2216]

Fantastic video Mark and the Aquascape is up there with the best on KZbin, absolutely stunning! I noticed in some videos you add Potassium when you think your plants need something extra for healthy growth, How often and how much do you dose? I also add Potassium and on your advice in an earlier post i cut down on my ferts and plant growth is doing fine, Just need your advice on how much Potassium and how often i should dose my 90ltr heavily planted tank, Cheers Mark and keep up with the stunning Aquascapes.

[@sergeiz.5815]

I left a like since you are keeping me employed shopping on Amazon:)

[@ChristosChristos]

For remote controlling during vacations, put your refilling sensor system on a Philips hue plug and switch it on whenever you want, from wherever you are in the world. And an ip camera to see the evaporated water

[@samg1879]

You've just turned this into the best tank I've ever seen. Seriously would love this in my living room

[@oliverwinsome6059]

Buddy I like your vids, the cloudiness you can solve by using purigen.. this stuff is amazing to get rid off lost of stuff.. I use it for a long time now and it makes your water crystal clear in hours.

[@jawjagrrl]

He used it on this one but it didn't help. It's just going to take time with that wood to settle in.

[@namelessone5968]

the cloudiness actually makes it much more natural, wish I could do something similar in the future if I can and have a big school of rummynose in it

[@tomelliottguitartutor1325]

I wouldn’t worry about the cloudiness, with this hobby it is very easy to get impatient. It is common with some wood that leaching tannins and cloudiness take along time to clear. I would hang in there as it will clear…. It could just take some time

[@berndtwiest4571]

Mooie upgrades. Ik weet wel dat die mistmakers (trilplaatje)warm kunnen worden, dus kijk wel uit met evt garnalen of algeneters.

[@MJAquascaping]

Thanks Bernd! Ik hou het in de gaten

[@youtubeviewer9523]

I missed the last video on the big shallow - and this is the first time I have seen it. It looks amazing!!

[@williamwescott4213]

Nicely different layout and planting. Shallowness has a lot to be said for it. On another topic, won't the fertilizer crystallize on the ends of those tubes that deliver it? I'm guessing you'll have to wipe them off every other day. Would it work to put them under the water level, especially now that it is going to be consistent because of the ATO?

[@MrVili83]

Salut mark, super cool la video. Mais le plus cool ses ce système de remplissage j'ai très hate au retour de se système. Et comme d'habitude vidéo top et agréable à regarder. :)

[@logan.vanderbeck]

Tank looks great! Coming from the salt water side, you can significantly extend the life and reliability of your ATO by putting it on a digital outlet timer. You can turn it on for a minute or two, a few times a day to check if the water is topped off. If fails and it happens to get stuck on, it’ll only fill the tank for a minute before the outlet shuts off.

[@MJAquascaping]

Great tip! Definitely going to implement this one! Thanks a lot!

[@ChristosChristos]

With the automatic overflow system, buy those hydro-alarms from Amazon that have 2 diodes on the bottom and place them on top of a kitchen paper piece next to the aquarium and next to your filter. The moment the paper becomes wet, the alarm will sound and you will save yourself a lot of trouble with the floor and wood damages you might had if you didn’t notice in time. I am keeping 1 alarm next to each of my aquariums. Keep in mind, you need to replace the 9V battery every 4 years.

[@AquaBenyStyle]

Some things make the job a lot easier 👍😎👌

[@beginnerguppy7457]

👏

[@Sylph127]

How about put some emersed H. Tripartita on the wood

[@MJAquascaping]

Definitely going to try that!

[@n.c.3137]

Hi there. Have you seen any of MD tanks videos? He uses Api accuclear when he has a cloudy tank and within an hour it's crystal clear. It's amazing stuff. Basically it's a particle binder, similar to what they use in swimming pools. Check it out. 👍

[@MJAquascaping]

Of course I watch his videos! I've used similar products, but maybe i will buy a bottle of accuclear as well

[@grey7513]

Great setp-up. Looking forward to hearing your thoughts on the new equipment: auto dosing, top-up, temp control etc

[@amID0n]

This is definitely your best tank yet! Respect!

[@christianjacquet4095]

Bravo , Joli bac , très dynamique 👍

[@waterlover]

Love it

[@stonecoldcarebear]

It would be interesting to see how far you can push automation on this tank over time

[@MJAquascaping]

What else would you add?

[@stonecoldcarebear]

@@MJAquascaping I've always been curious as to how much time/effort a ph controller could save you on a larger tank. But honestly that's probably overkill. Your tank setup is great already.

[@jawjagrrl]

There's always autofeeders like Aquarium Co-op has, even auto water changer systems but the latter isn't practical in this case. I do love how Cory at the Co-op has so much of his big fishroom automated. I enjoy the maintenance on my tanks though (a bit easier when it's 9 tanks and not 100+).

[@KraljHD]

Make sure that the mist isn't hitting your wall. It can cause fungus to develop on it.

[@georgedenho7795]

Hey MJ, I was having similar problems with a tank of mine, the wood made my water supper cloudy. It lasted for 2 months and wasn’t getting better. So I just got a UV light and I made a DIY sump tank that the water goes through before it enters the filter, my water has never been so clear on any one of my tanks like this one, and the tank is still perfectly cycled, and I have no problems with the fish

[@MJAquascaping]

That's great! We will see how this goes, and if the situation is not improving I will try a UV

[@jasoncarty2175]

Top job mark,I really like the diy drawer on the filter,might have a go myself!👍great vid mate,can't wait for the blueberry tetras🤣🤣🤣👌👍✌️

[@MichaHejduk]

Your best work, i would like to see some more plants under the water :D But i got your idea and it's still amazing 🤩

[@lindapeppin2441]

How are you keeping the cycle going without fish? Are you adding Dr Timms?

[@MJAquascaping]

I'm adding some fish food every few days 😊

[@claytoncharman1246]

Its looking so good already , The cloudy water gives it some character , but it will definitely look stunning when its cleared. Hang in there !

[@MJAquascaping]

Thank you so much 😀 Yeah few more days and it will be good!

[@alvinlee1816]

will the moisture inside the cabinet causes the wooden cabinet to rot? that seems to be a concern to me

[@MJAquascaping]

Was a little bit concerned about that as well, so I put a lid on the reservoir 😊

[@melsATL]

Super completo! Menudo acuario te estás haciendo. Deseando ver a esos peces nuevos, espero que estén a la altura del proyecto 🤪 un saludo!!!!

[@adamngai]

What's the last gadget link, the one magnetic mount auto top up water level gadget, Thanks

[@jacobfawley3336]

Remember to turn the ATO off when doing water changes. ;) I was worried that the ATO wouldn’t work for this purpose because of the surface turbulence being too much, but the placement of the sensor seems good. Nice upgrades 👍.

[@SwatejK]

Very interesting DIY project.. Ques- does the auto topoff system have a non return valve..? So it doesn't siphon out water from the tank into the top up tank..?

[@MJAquascaping]

Yep! It has a non return valve included in the package!

[@SwatejK]

@@MJAquascaping Thanks for the info :)

[@Agnus78]

Very nice, however i wonder why you installed automatic ferts pumps and not that CO2 system? It looks like you have very little amount of plants and they are not very demanding. You could manually pump all in one fert once a week i guess. Anyway, its beautiful tank well designed! Looking forward for your updates! :)

[@MJAquascaping]

Yeah so I'm thinking because the only plants that are fully submerged are some tennelus and dwarf sagitaria, and they are easy and don't need CO2. The other plants are all growing out of the water and can get CO2 from the air. The reason I'm dosing quite a lot of ferts is because I have some big plants (echinodorus, pontederia) and I want them to grow quite fast!

[@Agnus78]

@@MJAquascaping Rgr, makes sense now :) good luck

[@darrenderousse4804]

This scape looks amazing! Hopefully you get that clear water you want! I’m usually not a big fan of the misters! Most of the time there’s way to much mist and you can’t see the above water section! But this is the perfect amount of mist! Looks so cool! Great job with the set up Mark! Keep up the great content!

[@sergeiz.5815]

Using API ACCU-Clear cloudy water should clear up in 24 hours

[@xhongxina286]

Be patient with it that wood is gonna take a while to stabilize but it’s gonna be amazing but it does I have a similar scape and I almost tore it down, Im so happy I didn’t

[@jawjagrrl]

I had one kind of wood that produced that early stage fungus/biofilm for a good six weeks, but I stuck it out because I liked those pieces so much. My dwarf chain loaches love anything that grows on that wood over anything else in the tank.

[@Agrabelek_Michal_K]

Fog maker do the job 👍🌶️🤷 +10 to "like a boss" ;D

[@vamshimv4779]

The water in the reservoir of auto top off should be agitated with atleast an air pump, I have seen this system in my local aquarium stores and keeping water in the reservoir for that long is not good without agitation, everything else is fantastic on your big shallow.

[@MJAquascaping]

Good one thanks!

[@jawjagrrl]

He could actually run a line from that trickle setup he did for the wood into that container - not a ton of flow but probably enough.

[@jamesgrant3343]

Using RO water with zero minerals or bacteria will help a lot as it’s for topping off you wouldn’t be increasing the dissolved solids over time in the tank (the water that evaporates will leave behind the dissolved solids so replacing that evaporated water with demineralised water prevents increasing the %age dissolved solids over time. If you do a eco-system (no water changes for long periods) then using demineralised water to top off prevents increasing the water hardness over time (the volume lost to evaporation is significant if you have a large open topped tropical aquarium)

[@tombarb2864]

Very nice…this may sound strange with its simplicity but have you tried using some activated carbon to clear tannins and cloudiness? Don’t know if it would upset other parameters or not. What do you think? I love this design 😎

[@MJAquascaping]

Hmm no actually I haven't tried activated carbon yet. Water is almost clear now, but next time I will try that!

[@nickbleggi1457]

How long did the reservoir last?

[@MJAquascaping]

Never really tested, but I'm sure it could easily last a month in summer.

[@jeremywade4987]

I think it would have been cool to see some fish in the dirtier water. Obviously not forever but it would have an extremely natural look for a bit which could be cool. Thanks for all you do I started this hobby just 6 months ago when I stumbled on your stuff! Keep it up!

[@asier2001]

Make amonia test just in case, so much wood could create amonia spikes. Regards

[@matthijs3102]

Welke ladegeleider (merk/winkel) heb je hiervoor gebruikt. Ik zit ook al een tijdje te overwegen om dit systeem te maken in mijn kast.

[@MKM070]

Thx for giving credits for the drawer idea. Not :p

[@MJAquascaping]

I remember someone mentioning this idea to me, I just forgot who it was 😰 If it was you, then yes thanks a lot!👍

[@MKM070]

@@MJAquascaping yw ! ;)

[@Myndi78]

Haha all you need now is Roomba algeascraper then its all automatic 😂

[@metallixro]

I dunno man I liked the previous big shallow better, this half hardscape outside the tank isnt my jam. Theres like too much hardscape makes the tank look a lot smaller.

[@bigben8369]

Steadily improving! Looking forward to seeing the livestock! Have you tried clearing the water with purigen and/or UV?

[@MJAquascaping]

I haven't tried a UV yet

[@michael_mayer]

ph 9.5?

[@MJAquascaping]

Nah that's not correct 😊 I currently don't have the ph sensor plugged in, so it's just giving a random number somehow.

[@TheHavnmonkey]

Really enjoying your channel, very well produced and informative. As of this week I have converted my house to only freshwater aquariums. Broke down my 20g Saltwater and traded the fish and corals in for store credit. In it's place will be a 40g breeder that I am attempting to aquascape like clear stream only stocked with nano fish (black neon tetras, rasboras, cory's, maybe a showpiece apistogramma, shrimp and snails. It's not as shallow as this aquarium, but it is as shallow as my budget will allow at this time. I don't think I will have any hardscape sticking above the surface on this build, but I may do something like this down the line. My betta is in a 5g rimless and he may be moving over to a new 10g rimless, the 5g will most likely be converted to an emersed scape with only snail and maybe shrimp.

[@regurgitated]

Nice wrok! What brand is the cabinet?

[@MJAquascaping]

It's from Juwel! It's basically the stand for the Juwel Rio 350

[@bartekszewczyk6069]

Don’t add fish yet. There is no plants under water so it takes much longer to setup balance. Wait, can be even 3 months but for sure finally you will see magic.

[@francosmit05]

Love your content... Can i please contact you personally?

[@MJAquascaping]

Sure! Just send me a message on Facebook or Instagram