My first aquarium setup

Blue Planet 100 Litre

Model: EG520 (Rectangle Aquarium)
Aquarium Dimensions: 66 x 38 x 49 cm (LxDxH)
Water Capacity: 100 Litres
Pump Capacity: 550 L/hr
Wattage: 26 watts
Lamp: 2 x 13 watt T-5 Tubes (inclusive)

Blue Planet aquariums come complete with a fully pressurized, 3-stage filter and water pump, on-top of the aquarium unit. Adjustable flow regulator to suit various fish types or as required. Tanks are suitable for either Fresh & Saltwater fish.

Filter box includes; wool, sponge, charcoal and bio-balls.
Hood design is 100% rimless, and eliminates water and salt stains around the edge of the aquarium hood.



Ref - http://www.masterpet.com/Products/Fish/Fish-Tanks/Fish-Tanks3/Blue-Planet-Kingdom-100/?tab=dflt


I added 7 KGs of medium grain sized gravel. It is dark coloured and I find that the fish look better against it.I started adding fish and plants over the 1 month as the tank cycled and settled.

Plants -

Lilaeopsis (Brazilian micro sword) Foreground plan

Hair Grass (trimmed and planted in bunches)

Anubis (moved where light is less)

Water Wisteria

Curly Ivy

2 more plants that currently cannot be identified. Bought it without understanding anything about them. They looked good.

Fish -

2 Blue Rams

6 Rosy Barbs

4 Albino Corydoras

2 Rainbow fish

2 Neon Tetra

2 Platy

As you can see there are obvious mistakes I made in the excitement of starting a new tank. I got plants just because they looked good without understanding their requirements. I also found out later that the Curly Ivy is not aquatic and it started to die after a month or so. 


When I choose the fish I added too many and did not think if the fish would go well together. I did not think about the fish and the plants compatibility either. I was lucky the LFS was ready to take the Rosy barbs back since they kept uprooting the Lilaeopsis and few other plants. 

It was not all bad though and there were a few things that I did right -

• I waited for the tank to cycle before adding any fish.
• The high number of plants kept algae outbreaks under control.
• Completed 25% water changes every week

 In my opinion it is very important to find a good LFS with staff who are helpful and have good knowledge about aquariums. I still don't have a water testing kit, but the LFS is kind enough to test a sample for me. 

I hope to keep a log of all the changes I make to correct the mistakes and also list all the resources on the internet that I am referring to to learn about planted freshwater aquariums. If any one can identify the plants on the left of the tank, please leave a comment.