Newbie needs help

[whazzup]

Hi there. I purchased a house and they left a tank of African cichlids. I've been to local fish store for help and I think I am getting most of the info I need.

I have 2 questions that maybe you all can help with:

First, there is/was a beautiful fluorescent light setup. Six bulbs and a ballast. It worked when we first moved in but doesn't work anymore. The replacement ballast is > $150, and then you have to deal with replacement bulbs, etc. I think I am going to go LED. Any thoughts on this?

Second, there is an Aqua Ultraviolet system and the bulb looks like it's never been replaced. The system was disconnected when I moved in and the bulb is literally stuck to the connector. Any advice on how to remove the bulb so I can replace it? It's a 57 watt thing.

I appreciate the help.

 

[nirbhao]

I can't speak to the ultraviolet system, but, yes, go LED.

 

[whazzup]

Thanks. The store has a 48" LED light bar with multiple colors and remote control. Does that sound about right?

 

[nirbhao]

That sounds like what I have, except mine is 36".

 

[whazzup]

So I got 2 30" LED lights and pretty happy. IIRC the fluorescents were brighter. Not sure what I should do now, keep 'em or replace 'em. It's ok, not perfect. Anyone have any suggestions on good lights? I think these are Aqueons. Thanks

 

[Warriorplantedt]

the Led lights should be OK if you want brighter light check out Aqua neat on eBay they are cheap but if its fish only I think you will be happy. Thats pretty sweet that you got a ready made cichlid tank though. the U/V sterilizer is really optional as long as you dont overfeed and your filtration is adequate. How big is the aquarium and how many/type of cichlids do you have?

 

[whazzup]

New issue

I just did a water change of about 25%. The fish were very mellow for a while. The first time I did this I just changed the water. This time I cleaned some of the rock. Now the water is all full of "Schmutz". The fish became more active after a while and look happy now. Did I do something wrong or will everything calm back down to Normal?

 

[Warriorplantedt]

That's normal what you want to do is periodicly clean your filter media as well like this
1 take old water that's been removed that's in your bucket
2 remove filter media (be sure to unplug filter)
3 rinse filter media thoroughly in bucket of tank water
4 replace media
5 replace water treated with Dechlorinater
6 turn on filter

Hope this helps

 

[whazzup]

Thanks. I'm not sure where my filter media is. This is all new to me as I purchased a home with an advanced system. It has a sump system in the garage and there are bio balls. I haven't taken the filtration system apart but I was advised to add a mechanical filter prior to the box of bio balls. Is that what you are talking about? The fish store called it filter floss or something like that.

 

[Warriorplantedt]

O yeah ! Dont touch the bio balls!!!!! or the sump that is where your nitrifiying bacteria live. take a photo of the filtration system and pm me and I will walk you through it no worries

 

[Warriorplantedt]

without actually having eyes on your setup all I can do is give generic advice if I see it I can help you fix it no doubt. sounds like your tank is drilled and running a sump with a canister and a pre filter if that is the case then it is an easy fix.

 

[whazzup]

This is what I know. The water returns from the tank to the filter on the left side and passes through the bio-balls and across the divider to the right side. There it is sucked into the yellow pump which send most of the water back to the tank. There is a T that sends some of the water to the chiller/warmer which then sends it to the UV light and back to the sump (left side, that is the green hose). I think the returning water enters the left side of the tank and is dispersed across all the bio-balls. I was advised to add the mechanical filter product to the black plastic thing on the left. I was also advised to leave the bio-balls alone.

For the record, I did my first water exchange about 3 weeks ago and the nitrite/nitrate measurement on the test strips did not budge in the 3 weeks since I did the exchange. I just did another exchange because everything I read says to do it every 2-4 weeks. I was told the previous owner had a service come once a month,

 

[Warriorplantedt]

ok I see to keep it simple your set up is ok but it has stuff that you just dont need. to fix what you have though, I would recommend a flush. chiller and uv are obsolete chiclids dont need chillers the only thing that comes to mind is the number of lights he had on it and somebody in the service that came out suckered him into buying a bunch of worthless garbage. the gunk comes from the hoses and the pump not being cleaned and the whole thing is working overtime because they dont have a filter on it at all which baffels me If you can afford it purchase a canister filter and have it installed but dont use the same folks the previous person used you can sale that chiller and it will pay for your canister in the mean time your fish will be fine just keep doing water changes nothing else the bio is good if they have lasted this long you just need to get filtration going to get rid of those nitrates. I am sorry for the rant but it pains me to to see people get ripped off. And the people who sold this guy that stuff should know better. We will get your tank good just ask away and keep me posted.

 

[whazzup]

Thanks for the quick reply.

What do you mean by a flush? How do I do that?

And you are saying I should get a canister filter and have it installed in the system, I guess, in lieu of the chiller and the UV?

ok I see to keep it simple your set up is ok but it has stuff that you just dont need. to fix what you have though, I would recommend a flush. chiller and uv are obsolete chiclids dont need chillers the only thing that comes to mind is the number of lights he had on it and somebody in the service that came out suckered him into buying a bunch of worthless garbage. the gunk comes from the hoses and the pump not being cleaned and the whole thing is working overtime because they dont have a filter on it at all which baffels me If you can afford it purchase a canister filter and have it installed but dont use the same folks the previous person used you can sale that chiller and it will pay for your canister in the mean time your fish will be fine just keep doing water changes nothing else the bio is good if they have lasted this long you just need to get filtration going to get rid of those nitrates. I am sorry for the rant but it pains me to to see people get ripped off. And the people who sold this guy that stuff should know better. We will get your tank good just ask away and keep me posted.

 

[Warriorplantedt]

yes you should. what I mean by flush is to disconnect what you are able to and flush it ( ie. the hoses and more importantly the pump) as for the bio balls it wont crash your tank if you rinse them off either. Frankly I think it would help. Heres why,
Bacteria are living creatures too, the live reproduce and die just like all life does in order for them to efficiently do their jobs you need healthy viable bacteria, since your nitrates are high your bacteria are not performing up to par and it means you dont have enough this is where the filter comes into play. so clean what you can put it back and keep doing water changes until you can get a filter on your system. Also throttle back on the feeding and Im not sure but I need to know size of tank in gallons if you dont know measure it and I will tell you and how many fish ar ein there? hope this helps. ( for peace of mind after all this gets sorted out you WILL be rewarded with a beautiful tank and it will remove stress instead of stress you out) hang in there we will get it fixed.

 

[Warriorplantedt]

yes you should. what I mean by flush is to disconnect what you are able to and flush it ( ie. the hoses and more importantly the pump) as for the bio balls it wont crash your tank if you rinse them off either. Frankly I think it would help. Heres why,
Bacteria are living creatures too, the live reproduce and die just like all life does in order for them to efficiently do their jobs you need healthy viable bacteria, since your nitrates are high your bacteria are not performing up to par and it means you dont have enough this is where the filter comes into play. so clean what you can put it back and keep doing water changes until you can get a filter on your system. Also throttle back on the feeding and Im not sure but I need to know size of tank in gallons if you dont know measure it and I will tell you and how many fish ar ein there? hope this helps. ( for peace of mind after all this gets sorted out you WILL be rewarded with a beautiful tank and it will remove stress instead of stress you out) hang in there we will get it fixed.

When you rinse just get the gunk off it does not have to be "squeaky clean" just rinse off the gunk.
If you need step by step let me know I will have my Phone on me so I can get back to you if im not home.

 

[Fresh2o]

I would choose a well designed sump over a canister for maintenance reasons. In your particular setup I would place a sheet of foam and/or filter floss above the bioballs for two reasons:
1. Easy removal of physical waste before it has a chance to break down. Less nutrients introduced into the system (this includes nitrates).
2. Less chance of fouling the biomedia.

 

[whazzup]

Thanks. I'm not sure I was clear. Both nitrates and nitrites were imperceptible on the test strip. That was even after 3 weeks between water exchanges.

I will get a physical filter to place inside the box the distributes the water across the bio balls. That box does open up and can accommodate the " filter floss" the fish store recommended.

 

[whazzup]

Feeding time

I've read that you are supposed to feed until it takes 2 minutes to eat the food. Others say just feed a little. When I feed nary a morsel hits the bottom and the fish clamor for every last crumb. Am I underfeeding? How do you know what is right?

 

[nirbhao]

Healthy fish act hungry. Unless you have bottom feeders, it sounds like you're doing fine.