New Project - 180L bow front tank

[knightym06]

Hello,

In a moment of madness a few weeks ago I started bidding on a Jewel Vision 180 I saw on ebay and ended up winning it for a £100. After a 3 hour drive the next day I collected it and its occupants (a large plec of unknown type and a large silver dollar) and safely got the lot back again.

After a new pump and new lights I got it clean and working as it was filthy, don't know how the fish we're alive to be honest but never mind.

Anyway, I've put a sand substrate in this one and a bunch of plants off ebay, just need to get some more bog wood and other bits to finish it off.

As you can see from the pics the the fish living in there are quite large, the plec is very happy and loves digging in the sand (does a great job of stirring it up to stop gas build ups lol) however I really don't know what to do with the silver dollar, it doesn't seem to eat any plant matter like I thought it would and i'm just unsure about keeping it really so any advice would be welcome!

Also how do you go about cleaning when the tank has sand in? Ive found that my syphon doesn't lift the rubbish off the bottom and collects sand so any tips there would be helpful.

I'll upload more pics as my other fish move over to it.

MK.

 

[Floyd R Turbo]

You should be able to hover the siphon tip right over the bottom and suck the waste off the sand without sucking up too much sand.

I have siphoned sugar-fine reef sand in the reef tank I maintain without sucking out a significant amount of sand, I find that if you stick the siphon end into the sand at an angle, it will 'liquidize' the sand and suck out the waste while the sand will slide down the side. I control the flow by putting my finger over the end of the siphon hose, or with a Python by using the shut-off valve. With a Python going to the toilet or to the outside, I have found you get less suction than a hand siphon, and it's a little harder to suck the waste out but you lose no sand.

Hope this helps. What kind of siphon are you using?

 

[maxst2]

That is an awesome deal you got for that tank!

Looks just as awesome as well.

 

[Tasha93x]

That's a great deal you got there! Looks lovely.