Search results

My tank specs: ----------------- Size: 25 gallons (30 x 12 x 16) Light: 4x23-CF-6500 k ~ 3.7 WPG Filter: Eheim 2213 / spray bar substrate : 2.5" 100% Fluorite Temp: 79-81 F gH : 3-4 dH (achieved by adding CaCO3 to tap water) kH : 3-4 dkH (achieved by adding NaHCO3 to tap water) pH ...

I think I should get paid for the tank I keep, or at least have it declared a "national resource of significant scientific interest" :). Why? Because I grow every kind of algae known to aquarists in this tank of mine in some quantity. All is good, however. We are only talking a few...

I decided to start a routine of controlling algae by limiting phosphates. I got me an accurate nitrate kit, some pharmaceutical grade KNO3 and KCl (for accuracy) and started dosing daily with SC flourish trace element mix. To control an outbreak of staghorn algae when I first started, I dosed...

All right, at first it was fun to watch. Now it is becoming an unsightly mess. All of the stem plants are growing roots in the water column outside the substrate. Is this something I have to learn to admire, or is there something that needs to be done I'm not doing? The ludwigia repens is doing...

I gather an N-P-K ratio of 10-1-20 or 10-1-10 is desired in a planted aquarium. Most Terrestrial Plant Fertilizers have way too much phosphate. But how about the ones that don’t like these two by Schultz (see links below). Would they be safe to use in a planted tank? Thanks...

How do you achieve this balance? With a kH=7, the pH should be in the vicinity of 8. More details please.

Thanks for all the help :D

This is true according to, at least, the common view. Some views I've read quote that levels of several hundred ppm can be tolorated by tropical fish. Regardless, the pH swing was probably too rapid and could have caused the death.

At a pH ~6.2 and a kH of 4, the dissolved CO2 concentrations is estimated at 75 mg/L! This is toxic and the fish would most likely die of CO2 poisoning.

I had 4 neons for a while. One of them seemed to have picked a "prime real estate spot" (in the shadow of a piece of mopani wood in a heavily planted area of the tank and has been defending it. I added 2 more to the tank and this behaviour still continues. It chases other neons away from its...

Has anyone observed territorial behaviour in the Neon Tetra in a planted tank or otherwise? Thanks

I have never seen anything like it in my life! My tank has gone into athletic hyperactivity. After changing the substrate to Fluorite and adding a DIY hood delivering close to 3.7 watts/gallon I did not get much of a response. I then added a DIY CO2 source diffused through an airs one and...

It looks very much like a red tiger lotus. For some reason, I though for sure the leaves were attached to a piece of wood. Perhaps it was a bulb after all! 8O. I'll dig it up tonight to double check. Is the bulb to be kept at the substrate surface or burried?

What I did is start a batch on the weekend and then another on Wednesday. I attached the two bottles to an airsotone in the tank using a T connector. They are going strong after a week now. I figured I'll change each batch after 2 weeks. This should provide a continuous (overlapped) supply...

On the weekend I purchased a very interesting plant from the LFS. The leaves are brown-red and have the shape of the arrowhead plant shown here The plant was sold as a group of low-lying leaves/stems/small roots attached/tied to a piece of wood. The piece of wood was totally covered, I...

Well, a few weeks back I changed my substrate to Fluorite and setup a DIY light system over the tank that can supply 1x23 to 4x23 Watts of Daylight (5000k or 6500k) to my 25 gallon. At the time, the tank was stocked as follows: 1 adult + 2 juvenile platys 4 neon tetras 1 ghost shrimp 2 asian...

Thanks TG. I did redo the cap-line using two layers of glue just in case; in the first layer I used contact cement and let it sit for 24 hrs. In the second layer I used 'bulldog' liquid nails extended over the contact cement into the cap and line surfaces. I'll see how this performs. However...

Second time I've tried this now with no luck. - 1 well rinsed 2L Pepsi bottle - 1 cup sugar - 2 cups of warm-hot water to dissolve the sugar - 4 cups of cold water : result is 6 cups luke warm sugar water - 1 tsp baker's yeast (stored in the fridge) - half a dozen shakes I have a check valve...

Got my answer! Thanks for pointing it out just the same, I would have done it again otherwise.

Why do you say this Rex? What is this stuff?

I used a fine sieve to wash small batches of fluorite over a bucket using *COLD* water (warm-hot water seems to cause a lot of fines to become suspended in the water). I didn't handle the material aggressively so it ran reasonably clear. I did a final rinse in the bucket. It was a little cloudy...

Iwas actually "rubbing" the fluorite grains and that was producing more and more fines. Ok, so I rinse well and place in the tanks. Will the murky water kill my fish (few neons and platys)? I will be planting the aquarium over a period of time. Should I expect cloudy water every time I stick...

This is not the red stuff, just the regular fluorite. It seems to have organics in it and the like. Some folks suggested that I rinse it over a door screen. But I may lose too much of the finer (sand) grain sizes that way. Good to know I was not only my bad luck :). The black grains are very...

I picked up two bags of fluorite for my 25G. The instructions on the bag say rinse before use to wash off the dust. Well I rinsed for over an hour in a 22L bucket and the water is still brown. It seems that warm/hot water get dirtier than cold(er) water. Am I simply washing off the fines, or...

Thanks!