25 Gallon, some questions about starting it up

[logansmomma1228]

I got it today and all I can say is It's not a huge tank, but it is bigger than I expected. It came with everything (hood, light,filter,filter cartridges, fish food, automatic fish feeder, a net, a vacuum, and some awesome decorations) all for 60$. Thanks for the craigslist reference, mommytron

I am not sure what kind of bulb came in the hood though? It appears to be a fluorescent (sp?) light. It says 17W on it. Does that equal 6700K? Don't know what I'm talking about, I just want to make sure it will be decent lighting for planting. I am getting low light plants to start but I would like to build up to modereate light plants eventually.

Also I got PFS, and I am nervous to cleaning it when I do PWC's. I'm nervous that the vacuum will suck it up or that if I get a hair pick to "comb" it that I will jack it up. Any tips? Oh and to wash it I can put in a sock right, to let it rinse out good?

How do you use a gravel vaccum? Lol I want to do my first PWC.

One more thing, I got some Malaysian driftwood from the LFS the other day and it has been sitting in water for about 2 days time not. There is no color to the water at all in fact it seems crystal clear.

 

[mgamer20o0]

17w is the amount of power the light uses. there should be more markings on the bulb. i assume its fluorescent lighting. prob t12.... you might be able to get away with like anubias and java ferns though i would look to retro fit the hood.

the sand is cheap even if you do suck some out. how i do wc with sand is just go over the top kicking up the dirt and sucking them out.

 

[HeathB]

If you go to a store where lights are sold, on the box it should say how many watts it is. Elsewhere on the box it will mark the color temperature of the bulb in something something K (i.e. 6700K) Another thing those kind of bulbs will sometimes have written on the box is something like "Daylight" as opposed to "soft white"

Soft white is on the lower end of the colors, and daylight on the higher end. The daylight stuff is closer to the color of the sun's light, which plants prefer.

 

[CA_BroncoFan]

I wouldnt worry about the pfs being sucked up, ive never had it, but i do have play sand and i believe it is lighter and mine doesnt get completely sucked up even if i put it way down there.

 

[DragonFish71]

Go to Lowe's, Walmart (cheapest) or any store that sells lightbulbs, look for 6500K Daylight bulbs.


I have PFS and love it. So much so that I'm going to use it in our new tank too. It's very easy to clean, I skim lightly over mine then plunge the gravel vac in about an inch to sift the sand, no problems with losing any of it.

Malaysian DW is a slow releasing wood. Meaning it slowly releases the tannins instead of like mopani that turns water brown in a day (even with soaking).

 

[mommytron]

you're very welcome glad it worked out for you!

i decided today that i am going to go with PFS in our 20 gal. i really want cories and i want them to be happy and playful so i'm set on sand now. since i'm doing light colored sand we decided to do some plants as well for a more realistic look. we picked up this gorgeous piece of mopani driftwood at petco. i stuck it in the bucket and before it was even done filling with water, the water was brown! i've already change it twice today and it's the color of snapple still. but i also got a piece of malaysian from our LFS and i wish i soaked it longer because after 2 days the water seemed clear. however when we put it in and started the cycle (with the bad ammonia, long story ) the water turned a slight tint of brownish and never changed (until we tore down the tank). so I boiled the chunk in hopes of saving it and the water got so brown! not sure what other people's thoughts are but i would just boil the heck out of it if i were you.

 

[mellawson]

Congrats on your tank! Just run the vacuum at a slight angle along the surface of the sand some sand might get sucked in but just shake it out I've yet to wind up with sand in my bucket once I get all the poo up I use the vac to stir my sand up a bit. I would go with a pillow case instead of a sock to rinse out your sand you can get more done at one time and remember wet sand sticks to everything.

 

[mommytron]

what about a used pillowcase? i've heard that detergents can mess with things

 

[mellawson]

Well some would probably say so but my guess would be all the water your gonna be running through it would probably take care of anything that might be harm full. I used an old pillow case and I didn't have any problem other than a huge mess and a sore back by the time I got done.

 

[logansmomma1228]

what about a used pillowcase? i've heard that detergents can mess with things

I wouldn't use anything that has been washed with soap, I wouldn't want to see you go through that again! lol. I googled how to rinse PFS out and found another easy way. This is how I did it:

I cut the bag open and poured it into a bucket,filling it about halfway.

I took my shower head, turned it on so there was some pressure (but not too much) and let it rinse the sand out while I mixed it with my hand.

Once the bucket was almost full of water I just tilted it to the side and let the water drain out, but not letting the sand escape. I repeated this until the water was clear. My water didn't turn brown or anything, but it was kind of sudsy looking and there was some black stuff that came out of it as well.

Then I hauled it over to my tank and scooped it in!

Thanks Mel, yes there is sand in my bathroom still but it was fun to play in! And to my surprise it didn't get all goopy or muddy or anything, it was like playing at the beach

 

[mommytron]

that's exactly how i would've done it. it's how i rinsed the gravel i had before, too.