# Critique wanted: 3' demasoni/lab tank setup (pic)



## Cichlidaevid (Jul 27, 2009)

So here is the new aquascape on my little 3' lab/demasoni tank. I got the holey rock and limestone from fields around my home (free is great!). There are actually plenty of fish in the tank, they just all hid from me when I approached. (There are TONS of hiding spots in this set up). Sorry fot the crappy pic, I took it in a hurry with a cell phone...

Here it is: Let me have it!


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## BurgerKing (Jul 1, 2008)

I think it looks great! What kind of substrate are you using, it's difficult to tell in this picture.


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## Cichlidaevid (Jul 27, 2009)

The substrate is your generic crushed coral. The plants are silk valisnerias and dwarf hair grass. (No algae built up yet). The background is a black shiny thing I got at the pet store, but for some reason it looks smeared in the picture. It actually looks very, very black in person with no irregularities. I'll try to get a better picture from the sides when I get home tonight....hopefully with those skittish fish featured! :wink:

The odd-looking plant at the top right is an algae-covered silk one that I had in the tank before I re-scaped. I had a few fish that would get chased to the top that would use it for cover, so I put it in the new set up thinking they would need it for escape. That does not appear to be the case, however, since there are so many more caves and holes for them to hide in. I'll probablypull it out in favor for a different one, or to add some more rock to the right side. This new set up has only been up for about a week....


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## Cichlidaevid (Jul 27, 2009)

:-?


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## Cichlidaevid (Jul 27, 2009)

:-?


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## ladybugzcrunch (Jul 26, 2009)

I like it! That rock is great. I wish my free looked like that!!!! What are the tank dimensions?


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## css virginia (Jan 29, 2007)

Tank decor looks good...I like it. 8)


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## aussy612 (Jan 31, 2009)

one think i would do is try to push the rock into the substrate, and then slightly pull it out. this (hopefully) will make the rock look like it is coming ot of the ground rather than sitting ontop of it.


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## Cichlidaevid (Jul 27, 2009)

This tank has a footprint of 3' x 1'. It is 19" tall, which I belive makes this a 38-40 gallon tank.

The rocks are almost sitting on the botom glass....there is only about a quarter inch of crushed coral underneath them to act as a sort of "cushion" and to spread the weight of the rocks a bit.
I then added the rest of the crushed coral around the rocks. You would be very surprised to see how few rocks this actually is. I decided to go with large rocks so that I could easily remove them for cleaning. I simply added ust a few smaller rocks to give it visual balance. With this set up, I can remove just 6 large rocks and 6 small rocks and access all of the substrate for cleaning.

Previously, with the river rock/granite/slate set-up I had, it was a nightmare for maintenance. It looked okay, but the thought of regularly removing so many rocks (and then trying to restack them for maximum cave numbers) was daunting. This was the reason I often times let the vacuuming go for too long.

This is one of the many benefits of holey rock. You can get many hiding places with just a few strategically placed pieces which can be easily removed for cleaning.


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## ladybugzcrunch (Jul 26, 2009)

Sounds like a 40g breeder. 12-15 demasoni would look fab in there.


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## Cichlidaevid (Jul 27, 2009)

ladybugzcrunch said:


> Sounds like a 40g breeder. 12-15 demasoni would look fab in there.


I think the breeder tanks are much wider, with an 18" wide foot print and are not as tall. (This tank is 3' x 1' on the bottom and is 19" tall.)

I actually have 10 demasonis in the tank right now that have reached maturity. There are also several Yellow Labs as well. Somewhere an albino dwarf bristlenose pleco is resting, too.


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## Addesyn (Jul 1, 2009)

Nice rock!


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