Recent content by DBTetraguy

Yes they are white and threadlike, I lost a prize Betta in another tank and two mollies to teh same infestation, I believe they where introduced with plants as that is the only thing the two tanks had in common. I had purchased some camboda and after quarentining it I had not noticed any...

Despite my attempts at quarentining new arrivals I have somehow gotten an infestation of some sort of work that lives in the substrate. I believe them to be some type of nematode they range in length from 1/4 inch to 3/4 inch long and are not apparent unless the substrate is disturbed at this...

Thanks for all the input, so far I have eliminated the extra carbon in my filter stackup, the integrated carbon in the mechanical filter is a much smaller quanity, so far no problems and my nutrient levels iron, potassium, etc seem to have stabilized a bit, the plants are growing a bit faster...

I think Im going to try eliminating carbon from my fliters for a while (at least from my secondary refillable cartridge, unless anyone knows where I can get a carbon free filter for an Emperor 280. To bad I dont have a second tank I could use as a control and turn this into an informative...

There are main reason Im hesitant to remove activated carbon from my system is that carbon acts as a clarifier to enhance viewability and light transmission in the water column. Im also fearful of the odor that may occur should it be eliminated. I guess these are small considerations, and Im...

Ive read several places that activated carbon in the flltration system is bad for planted tanks because "it absorbs trace elements necessary for plant growth". I have yet to find any literature that explains what trace elements will be absorbed, or how much the use of activated carbon affects...

I finally got the lights set up, 110 watt bright kit, wasnt too hard to install. The aquarium looks much better, waiting to see how the plants grow now. Drew

Yep, I keep three Bueas Aries Tetras, they are pretty mischevious little fellows, they ate all my duckweed and give my other plants a pretty good pruning (not too hard on my amazon swords). THey are also pretty aggressive at feeding time I have to keep them and my Betta from tangling over...

Finally :D Nitrite levels where undetectable this evening for the first time. Things seem to be going quite well, all fish are healthy, including the black skirt Tetra that had previously been ill. I'd like to thank everyone here for thier help in getting me off to a good start. Im sure I will...

Your right on the money Logan, in the last couple days Ive seen a drop in the nitrite levels, Paitence pays hehehehe. THanks for the help. Drew

Corvus, I have another species to add to the list that loves to eat duckweed. Id say within 2 hours of putting about 10% surface coverage on my tank it was gone my Buenos Aries Tetras aka Hemigrammus caudovittatus, absolutely loved it. My girlfriend got a huge kick out of watching me scold...

The aluminum tape is a great idea and something I have readily available to me, awesome idea. As for the duckweed, I kinda like that idea, any precautions on water level etc for its use? I ask because I currently fill my tank to just above (about an eight inch above) my upper frame, that gives...

Great idea on the Lighting Logan, I can use some spare PC cooling fans I have around here with one of those radio shack adapters that should make for some nice ventilation. I will keep you guys posted on how the tank is doing, right now Im having some minor chemical problems, cant seem to get...

After setting up my tank I got the expected ammonia spike (initially it went to .5 ppm) and within three days was not detectable. The problem Im having is that the nitrites dont want to come down. Ive been doing twice weekly 25%-50% water changes to keep nitrites below 2ppm. Ive been...

THanks for the advice Thanks for the information guys. As far as the CO2 goes, Ive had the Hagen system on the tank for a few days and I already see results (those lil oxygen bubbles on the bottoms of the leaves wherent there before, and the color of the plants has improved. Ive had...