Recent content by BBradbury

Hello Brush... Yes. It appears your lighting isn't strong enough. The leaves on top may be shading those below. Anyway, it would be a good idea to research the lighting needs of the plants you have to see if you're giving it to them. Most plants that need to be planted in the bottom...

Hello Rhe... I'm not into high tech tanks, but I can tell you from my limited experience that oxygen will drive off carbon dioxide, which as you know is an important plant nutrient. B

Hello Sorg... Welcome. I'm with you on a lot of your interests. I keep a lot of tanks from 20 to 300 gallons and am always looking for simpler ways of tank keeping. I'm old school and keep my tanks the old fashioned way. I don't go in for a lot of gizmos and chemicals. Hope we have some...

Outdoor Tank Thanks Autumn. The Water lettuce was some I got from you a couple of summers ago. Remember? By the way, I still have the Goldfish and Minnows you gifted me. They're getting pretty big. B

Hi Maz... Actually cloudy water is a sign that a form of less than beneficial bacteria is trying to develop in the tank. A larger water change is always a good idea if you notice something out of the ordinary is going on in your tank. The best thing for your tank is removing and replacing...

Hello erik... Can you tell me if you have strong lighting? If you dose CO2, you're essentially telling the plants you want faster growth. However, the plants won't respond unless you give them very bright light to go with the CO2. B

Outdoor Tank Hello AA... Attached is a picture of my 300 gallon tank from last summer. I'm hoping it will be just as nice this summer. B https://i.imgur.com/uunez4i.jpg

Hello again... Marineland and Exo-Terra brands are the least spendy canisters. I would recommend a couple of sponge filters if your aim is to aerate and filter the water. If you're interested in saving money on filters and media, look at the sponge filters from Aquarium Solutions. I use the...

Hello Fin... Vacuuming isn't necessary. If you remove and replace half the tank water weekly, you'll remove everything that has dissolved in the water. If you want to vacuum, then wave the siphon back and forth just above the sand to clean the organic material from the bottom. You can also...

Hello DC... Just curious. Why do you need a canister filter? B

Hello Nomad... You can put chemicals in the tank, but you don't know how your fish will react to something foreign in their water. I really wouldn't do it. You need to clean up the water, so start removing and replacing half the water a couple of times a week and add a couple of teaspoons of...

Hello JPA... Sounds to me like you could rid yourself of the tank and not be too concerned. If there's the slightest doubt about keeping the tank, then I'd opt for selling it. If you're not 100 percent committed to keeping it, then don't. B

Hello tris... This Guppy doesn't look healthy to me. What's your tank maintenance routine? In particular, your water change routine. A 20 gallon tank needs half the water removed and replaced every few days. B

Hello Bof... As long as your main tank is extremely clean, you can introduce your new fish. The chances of a virus or parasite infecting a healthy fish in pure water conditions is very remote. B

Hello rl... If you feed a small variety daily, the fish will be fine. Most have a stomach the size of one of their eyes, so they don't require much food. A fasting day is fine, but if you change half or more of the tank water weekly, you'll remove any waste material that's dissolved in the...