So I got a Fluval Edge 6gal for my birthday in April after not keeping fish for many many years.
I immediately realized that I wanted more space and bigger tank so upgraded to the 12gal. I was immediately impressed by this beautiful aquarium, however the learning curve was steep as there are a lot of things to consider when you are trying to setup an aquarium and the opening is very small. It was difficult to get things like wood and rocks in, but after a few purchasing mishaps I am happy with the progress.
My plants really suffered the first couple months and didn't really grow too much, so I decided that some things needed to change
Firstly I started dosing with Flourish and within a few days the plants looked like they had been on vacation. But then.... Dun dun dun.... The Red Cherry Shrimps started dieing. I started with 18 and then with a week the numbers plummeted to 9. I was devastated and ran to my LFS and picked up some Alkaline buffer and a gH kH test kit.
As soon as I got home I tested my water and gH was 5, kH was 2! A month earlier I had a snail population explosion. The snails must have been using up all the calcium carbonate in the water and each time my shrimp molted their carapaces were getting softer and less strong and eventually died.
I did a water change and for the following week I buffered the water daily with alkaline buffer. Within a few hours the first addition of alkaline buffer my shrimp were swimming around and behaving much better.
Ok so, by this point I was completely obsessed to make my aquarium flourish for real.
The stock LEDights that come with the tank are simply inadequate. At first as a renewed newbie to the hobby I was happy with them, but quickly realized that for a planted tank as deep as the 12 gal Edge, the lights had to be much stronger. I did a bit of research and decided to make my own light upgrade (see pictures). The difference is literally night and day. My Celestial Pearl Danios and glass cats are getting used to the increased light and the colours of the CPDs are really coming out. I love the look of the light upgrade as it is unobtrusive and still suits the sleek look of the Fluval Edge.
So with increased light and increased nutrients the next obvious step was CO2. For about $15 I setup a DIY system and within a few days the plants are greening and pinking up nicely and all plants are pearling. After 3 days of having the DIY co2 system running these are my water quality reports:
0. Ammonia
0. Nitrite
5. Nitrate
6.2 pH
11 kH
6 gH
78 deg F
Since adding the co2 unit, my pH has dropped down to 6.2 from 8.0. I am worried as I don't want drastic pH swings because they stress out the critters. I am still a little confused around all these values and not sure if this is a good thing. Anyone willing to comment...... I know all about ammonia, nitrate and nitrite, but it is the gH and kH that I am concerned about and how it related to pH with the co2 system. I have never dosed an aquarium before and just a little weary as I have spent a fair $$ on my fish and don't want to lose them.
I have attached some pictures of how things are looking,
Oh and before I forget, I have noticed a little patch of blue green algae growing in the corner of my tank that is closest to the window and gets the most light. Any suggestions to get rid of this..... Picture attached.
I immediately realized that I wanted more space and bigger tank so upgraded to the 12gal. I was immediately impressed by this beautiful aquarium, however the learning curve was steep as there are a lot of things to consider when you are trying to setup an aquarium and the opening is very small. It was difficult to get things like wood and rocks in, but after a few purchasing mishaps I am happy with the progress.
My plants really suffered the first couple months and didn't really grow too much, so I decided that some things needed to change
Firstly I started dosing with Flourish and within a few days the plants looked like they had been on vacation. But then.... Dun dun dun.... The Red Cherry Shrimps started dieing. I started with 18 and then with a week the numbers plummeted to 9. I was devastated and ran to my LFS and picked up some Alkaline buffer and a gH kH test kit.
As soon as I got home I tested my water and gH was 5, kH was 2! A month earlier I had a snail population explosion. The snails must have been using up all the calcium carbonate in the water and each time my shrimp molted their carapaces were getting softer and less strong and eventually died.
I did a water change and for the following week I buffered the water daily with alkaline buffer. Within a few hours the first addition of alkaline buffer my shrimp were swimming around and behaving much better.
Ok so, by this point I was completely obsessed to make my aquarium flourish for real.
The stock LEDights that come with the tank are simply inadequate. At first as a renewed newbie to the hobby I was happy with them, but quickly realized that for a planted tank as deep as the 12 gal Edge, the lights had to be much stronger. I did a bit of research and decided to make my own light upgrade (see pictures). The difference is literally night and day. My Celestial Pearl Danios and glass cats are getting used to the increased light and the colours of the CPDs are really coming out. I love the look of the light upgrade as it is unobtrusive and still suits the sleek look of the Fluval Edge.
So with increased light and increased nutrients the next obvious step was CO2. For about $15 I setup a DIY system and within a few days the plants are greening and pinking up nicely and all plants are pearling. After 3 days of having the DIY co2 system running these are my water quality reports:
0. Ammonia
0. Nitrite
5. Nitrate
6.2 pH
11 kH
6 gH
78 deg F
Since adding the co2 unit, my pH has dropped down to 6.2 from 8.0. I am worried as I don't want drastic pH swings because they stress out the critters. I am still a little confused around all these values and not sure if this is a good thing. Anyone willing to comment...... I know all about ammonia, nitrate and nitrite, but it is the gH and kH that I am concerned about and how it related to pH with the co2 system. I have never dosed an aquarium before and just a little weary as I have spent a fair $$ on my fish and don't want to lose them.
I have attached some pictures of how things are looking,
Oh and before I forget, I have noticed a little patch of blue green algae growing in the corner of my tank that is closest to the window and gets the most light. Any suggestions to get rid of this..... Picture attached.
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