Recent content by Rak9378

:) good luck!! Keep us updated on your progress!

Thx for the kind words clembo. :) Those are lace rocks. It's actually three pieces that I was able to stack to make a wall. My favorite part is the little cave they created at the bottom. The fish love swimming through there.

I have a 54g corner bow. Like fishyd, I think the depth a corner bowfront provides is the best attribute and should be worked into the scape. When I did mine I tried to set it up so that there was a focal point closer to the front and then a bigger focal point in the back to really give it a...

Ok so I wanted to close the loop on the discussion regarding Prime possibly causing false ammonia readings when using a Salicylate based test kit like API. So I posted on the Seachem discussion board asking for clarification of the Prime FAQ and I finally got a response. According to Seachem's...

Hey Paul, Redirecting the outflow has definitely helped. I haven't added any additional filtration at this point but I might at some point. I also realized I need to give the outflow tube a really good cleaning. I think there is a lot of junk in the tube and I'm sure cleaning it out will help...

If Trates are going up that must mean some of the Trites must have been processed, no? Unfortunately I just think the API test is going to be unreliable at these parameter levels. If there is anything that YouTube video by Dr. Hovanec showed its that at significantly elevated levels hobbyist...

So do you guys ever sleep?? LOL This is great stuff. Just catching up as I have been crazy busy at work. I had no idea the bacteria need the carbonate in order to flourish. I thought the only role the carbonate played was keeping pH stable. Learning a ton here Thren - I may have capacity to...

Have you tested KH? The buffering capacity of your water might be too low which resulted in your pH drop.

The reason your cycle is taking so long is because your pH and temp are both too low. Ideal temperature for the bacteria to grow is between 75-85. As for pH, the ammonia oxidizing bacteria begin to significantly slow down when pH is under 6.5 and pretty much stop at 6.0. Has your pH been that...

That makes a lot of sense! I completely avoided science in college with the exception of psychology. Lol BTW, my kids are the same age as yours. So I totally get the struggle between work, time for kids, and time for a hobby!!! It's not easy!!

Thx for the tip Caliban. I'm going to look into that. I hated chemistry in high school....maybe this time I will pay attention!!! :lol:

New toy!!!! :) :)

Now that is a handy skill for an aquarium hobbyist!! You're like a human colorimeter!!! :lol: Now that is interesting. My ammonia test results appear to match the warmer tone of the API chart. I happen to dose iron as part of a fertilizer regiment and I have a lot of driftwood in my tank. So...

I think it's difficult to tell from that picture. When you posted it did you think it was 0 or .25? How does it compare to the shade/color you have been seeing? When did you last dose Prime? For what it's worth my ammonia test result is pure yellow...no hint of green. But I think everyone...

Ok good! :) So based on your pH of 7.6 and temp of 78, a total ammonia reading of .25 means that there would mean that there is only .0059 of toxic ammonia (NH3) in the tank. The rest is all in the non-toxic form (NH4). As you saw in that thread the level of NH3 where ammonia toxicity starts to...