Quiet's Return = Fish!

[QuietPlotter]

Hi friends!

After taking down all my tanks I just found my Aquaclear...75 I believe I was using on my 10g..The thing is up to the brim in algae. I cleaned out the filter casing but all the tubes are disgusting, can anyone help me ou5?


Starting afresh, this time more challenging!

I need your opinion. (Also just realized it's a 45 not 75 that'd be overkill)..

-Substrate! Was looking forward to some plant friendly gravel as a bottom layer and SAND as a top layer but I'm deathly afraid. All I see is 'OMG sand got stuck in my Aquaclear!'..Thing is, I had some noise issues with it and just put petroleum jelly on the motor, dead silent after. That's 1.


Tank setup will be like so:

White sand, dark background
Live plants (Crypts/Etc>you reccomend)
One large piece of DW
A cave...

that's it.


So help me. I've get precisely $140 I've saved up from bagging groceries. I am willing to spend ~ 100 of it. Substrate. Fish. Plants.


Also completely forgot Seachem Prime doses..Just help me remember!

my name is jason bourne & I am an aquarist xD

 

[Ian086]

Hi friends!

After taking down all my tanks I just found my Aquaclear...75 I believe I was using on my 10g..The thing is up to the brim in algae. I cleaned out the filter casing but all the tubes are disgusting, can anyone help me ou5?


Starting afresh, this time more challenging!

I need your opinion. (Also just realized it's a 45 not 75 that'd be overkill)..

-Substrate! Was looking forward to some plant friendly gravel as a bottom layer and SAND as a top layer but I'm deathly afraid. All I see is 'OMG sand got stuck in my Aquaclear!'..Thing is, I had some noise issues with it and just put petroleum jelly on the motor, dead silent after. That's 1.


Tank setup will be like so:

White sand, dark background
Live plants (Crypts/Etc>you reccomend)
One large piece of DW
A cave...

that's it.


So help me. I've get precisely $140 I've saved up from bagging groceries. I am willing to spend ~ 100 of it. Substrate. Fish. Plants.


Also completely forgot Seachem Prime doses..Just help me remember!

my name is jason bourne & I am an aquarist xD

Hey, to clean the tubes, soak them in a water/bleach solution. 10/3 should do the trick. You could soak the tube in very warm but not hot water before putting them in the water/bleach solution. This will loosen the caked on algae. You can buy tube cleaners online or instore. Even a baby's bottle cleaner brush will do, as long as the tube are straight. If not flexible ones are available. Make sure to give the tube a really good rinse in warm water before re-using them...
The background, paint it on. Black is very nice on tropical and dark blue also looks great. Acrylic paint is best to use, super easy to do and cheap. Also it can be easily removed from GLASS tanks, if needed. A razor blade does the job.
Prime is 5ml per 200l-->2.5ml per 100l-->1.25ml per 50l etc etc.
Don't worry about sand in your filter. If you wash the sand really well first, you'll get rid of the light floaty sand that make it's way into filters. Keep the inlet pipe about 2" above the substrate....
Plants, i'm afraid, i can't help you there. Hope this helps....

 

[QuietPlotter]

Thank you so so much.

lol

 

[Ian086]

Thank you so so much.

lol

Yeah they are pretty grubby alright!!!. Yeah a nice warm water bath, then a water/bleach bath. Then try and get a brush like this and just pull it through a few times and they should come up like new. Again just give a good rinse before adding to the tank....
Marina Hagen Filter Flexible Tube Hose Cleaning Brush | eBay

 

[jlk]

Hi Quiet! Here's my tip of the day, especially with budget in mind. Your going need to chose sand or gravel. Mixing them doesn't work well if you want the sand on top. The gravel will all migrate to the top in no time. Pool filter sand is an inexpensive option ($10 or less/50lb) but it needs to be rinsed very well. I think it does better job with basic plants than gravel and it's heavy grain sand that doesn't cloud or get stuck in your filters. Just a suggestion anyway!

 

[QuietPlotter]

Okay, stopping buy @ walmart to grab a tank & a hood because they're cheap as dirt. I assume PFS is available there as well? And just found $75 extra on a card I've been saving so budget extended lol.

Just really worried about filter.

Probably gonna stock with a ram of sorts and oto's.... not very sure

 

[jlk]

You will only find pool filter sand at a pool supply type store. Not something walmart carries. It will not harm or get stuck in your filter- just rinse it very very well! I switched all my tanks to pfs awhile ago and never had an issue with sand and filters. And theres tons of filtration with my messy guys.

Have you checked the classifieds here to see if anyone has any deals on plants for you? They will likely be cheaper than lfs. Or check craigslist- I know in my area theres quite a few people that sell plants inexpensively because they do not want to deal with shipping them.

 

[QuietPlotter]

I know a store 20 min away that sells everything at an insanely low price, so we're good on that.. And okay, brb checking google maps for a pool store

 

[Rare]

If you have a home depot or lowe's in your area, they sell it there as well. It's on the outside area where they sell plants, rock etc. That's where I bought mine

 

[QuietPlotter]

got the sand!

 

[QuietPlotter]

solution is running