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Yeah. heh heh... learning curve and all that... :banghead: i tossed the old filter cartridges before i learned that. Read about it right after the fact. At least it's a mistake I won't be needing to ever make again, right?

Awesome. I'm still in the tail end of the nitrogen cycle and just got a Marineland Penguin 350 filter to replace the stock filter (which will no doubt slow down the process) so I'm going to give it a month or so to even out before buying a new fixture and taking the next step. It's going to be...

The solarmax light still gets the tank within the 2 watt per gallon range so I'm perfectly happy with that. The price is right in the sweet spot too. This is exactly the type of advice I wanted to see. I'm willing to take the time and effort to do what's necessary to make a beautiful, healthy...

Thanks for the input. Do you recommend a particular brand/model? I just keep seeing these pics of gorgeous planted tanks with such vibrant colors and I want my tank to look that way too. There are so many options out there it's hard to know where to even start...

It's 16" from the water surface to the gravel. I did find this other light in the meantime: Amazon.com: Odyssea 36" T5 HO Quad Aquarium Light Fluorescent Hood Fixture w/4 LED - Plant 4x39W: Pet Supplies The plant version doesn't have any reviews but the marine version gets about 4 stars out...

Hey guys, I'm looking for some lighting advice. I have a 38 gallon tropical freshwater glass tank with a 36" wide rim and I'd like to get it nicely planted but all I have is the stock light that came with it. It's just a cheap single 24" T8 fixture that I've got a Flora*Sun bulb installed in...

Does it have a hood? We have a small hooded 2 gallon betta bowl that came with a tiny night light style bulb. I replaced the original bulb with a mini-base candelabra cfl and it works great for the plant we have in there. Given the small size of the tank, it's actually brighter than our 38...

A little update.. I haven't gotten my shipment yet, but I was doing another PWC because the nitrites were starting to work their way back up a little and discovered that one of the supposedly "aquatic" plants that I got from Petco was rotting. It still looked alive, but the smell was...

Thanks for the compliment. :) I just got off from amazon. I ordered the API fresh water master test kit, a python no spill clean and fill aquarium maintenance system (AWESOME!!!) and a background. I had actually previously considered getting a background for the tank but never got around to...

Thanks for all the advice. I definitely came to the right place. I'll be looking into a few things this evening. I uploaded a pic in case anybody was curious what it looks like. I'd like to get the bottom carpeted in plants like a pond bed or something. I can't remember for the life of me...

After the two water changes my nitrite level is minuscule. Definitely less than .25 ppm. (at least according to the dip sticks) I'll definitely get the vial test kit shortly to confirm. I currently don't have any way to test for ammonia. pH at the tap and in the tank after sitting overnight...

Ok then that's great. Yes. I've been using the multi test dipsticks that test nitrates, nitrites, ph, carbamate hardness and general hardness. I wasn't aware that the vial tests were better. I'll be picking some up. The nitrate level as indicated was also high but not as severely so though...

Hello all. I have maintained a few >=20 gallon aquariums in the past, but just got a new 38 gallon for the living room about three weeks ago. All was well with the measurements at first and I neglected to test the water for about a week. At first the nitrates/nitrites measurements didn't even...