Recent content by chrisethompson

The liquid test kits are the most accurate and therefore are the best. However, I find the strips that you dip in the water are good at times when you may otherwise not bother checking the water. I use the 5 in 1 tests that cover PH, Nitrate, Nitrite, Water Hardness and Alkalinity. They're...

I have 5 platys with some very new fry (less than one week old) and I've hatched brine shrimp to feed them. I'm using an upside down 2L bottle DIY hatchery. Seems to work well. My question is how much shrimp should I add to the tank when I feed the fish. Even a small amount drained out of...

I started a 20 gallon and cycled it with a pinch of food each day. I put in about the right amount of food for a couple of fish. Perhaps 4-6 small flakes. That seemed to work nicely. It cycled fully in about 3 weeks. I did a deep gravel vacuum, then I then added 2 fish each week for 4 weeks...

Thanks for all the advice. I'm going to try this again tomorrow night. I'll test for leaks, but I also suspect that the heat could have killed the yeast. I'm going to make sure that I am nearer the bottom of the temperature range, rather than near the top.

I just put a DIY CO2 generator together. I rehydrated the yeast with some 100 deg F water and a bit of sugar. After 10 mins I added to the soda bottle. 12 hours later there is no gas coming out. How long should it take to start? Perhaps I did not rehydrate or start the yeast correctly. Or...

Yes, the water out of the tap tests for Ammonia. I understood this confirmed that there was Chloramine in the water. (I know for a fact that they do use Chloramine). When I add the correct dose of AquaSafe the ammonia level is reduced, but not eliminated. I need some advice because I don't...

It's Red Sea brand. Has three reagents. Two of them apprear to be Sodium Hydroxide and the other is Sodium Nitroprusside.

I live in Arlington VA, just across the river from DC. I'm setting up a tank for the first time and realize that I have to neutralize the Chloramine in the tap water. However when I add AquaSafe the water still tests for ammonia. Even when I add three times the dose, the water still have...