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Hi and welcome. Your pH won't have dropped for no reason and there are a couple of possibilities that I can think of. First is that you've got rocks or something else in your tank that is reacting with the water and changing the pH. Second is that the co2 in the tap water is gassing off after a...

You could get a largish group of the smaller rainbows in a tank that size. Perhaps dwarf neon rainbows or threadfin rainbows? A group of 9 or 12 would look really good. That would give you room for 6 corys on the bottom and an angel or perhaps a couple of golden wonder panchax for the top of the...

Has anyone any idea what I should do with the MASSIVE long flower stalks that are wrapped across the surface from my Aponogeton ulvaceus? The flowers looked nice but are dying off now. Do I just chop the huge stalk off just above the bulb? Also how do I trim the leaves? In the same way, just...

It's a BN plec so will be okay. Thanks for your advice, will crack on and get three and see how they go. If I get twelve in total I'll prob get 4 males and 8 females. That sound okay?

I've a 180 litre cycled medium planted tank with a plec and small angel in it at the moment. Is a group of 9 or 12 dwarf rainbows compatible with these? I'm thinking that they should be okay (won't add them all at once).

I'd be interested in others' opinions on this too. I'm dosing every other day and following the instructions (5ml per 200 litre). And sorry to hijack but when you work out the dosing, you work it out on the volume of water in the tank not the volume of substrate and water, right? I've got a 180...

I bought a bristlenose plec from MA in Newbury last week for £6.50. He's about 2.5 inches long.

Sorry, should have added that I've started with Flourish Excel today in lieu of running CO2 (I know it's not perfect but hopefully will help). I will have to look into what ferts I need to put into the water. I think the best way is def to use CO2, but that's not an option at the moment as...

Verminator, do you mean the water wisteria on the back left that I've got too bunched up, don't think I've got any Ceraptopteris? I've spaced it out a bit now and moved the cabomba across a bit too. I will set aside an evening to sort out the HC, couldn't face doing it today :no:! I've got a...

I got a black background and stuck it on with veg oil. Just put a few drops on the back of the tank, spread it across the entire surface, squeeze the air out and job's done! Really good looking finish.

So, I've added the substrate, added some bogwood, and added some plants... They've only been in a couple of days. I was hoping to follow the "why we don't need to cycle planted tanks' school of thought but I've got a couple of questions: 1) Is my tank classed as "heavily planted"? Perhaps I...

Link doesn't appear to work for me.

Thanks both for the reassurance. Currently in the process of washing the play sand and will add it tomorrow! Chris

Hi everyone, I'm new to planted tanks and after some advice. One day I'll hopefully know enough to give some! I'm in the process of setting up my Rio 180 as a low tech planted tank. I've added 2-3cm of JBL Aqubasis Plus to the floor of the tank and have purchased some Argos Play Sand that I had...

How many of each have you got in there? Looking to stock a Rio 180 with Malawis and might copy you! :good:

How many Saulosi would you recommend?

I'm getting an Eheim 2075 so I should have pretty good filtration. Will look into the Saulosi. When you say a couple of species, do you have any specifically in mind?

Could anyone help me with some stocking advice please? I've a Rio 180 (180 litre, 3ft tank) which I'm thinking about stocking with Malawis. Would 12 Pseudotropheus Demasoni and 3 Labidochromis Caeruleus (1m 2f) work? I'd put a lot of rock work in with them. Is there any scope for bottom dwellers...

The tank comes with the T5 unit and I don't think you can fit T8s in the place of T5s. But stand ready to be corrected... Will go with that solution then. Will limit the photoperiod and look into those plants. Hopefully I won't have any masive problems and haven't read that all new Rio 180's...

Thanks for your experiences, that's exactly what I'm after. Don't blame you for losing confidence in it! Not sure if two externals will fit in my cabinet (diy stand with shelf on one side) but it's another option to consider. Is there a notable difference with noise levels bewteen the 2075 and 2217?

Thanks for your views. Had almost decided on the 2075, until I read about arobinson1984's probs! Was it not still in warranty? Or did the replacements have the same prob?

Hello all. It's early days and I'm planning my new tank; I've settled on a Rio 180 (180 litres, 39 uk gallons). I'm keen to go green and plant but not keen on CO2 and the added expense/complications so want to go low tech. Reading the pinned guides I notice that it is recommended sticking with...

I'll be replacing the internal to add a bit of space and for aesthetic reasons. And because most posts here seem to recommend doing so! Had the XP2 down as a possible on my list. Will explore the differences. Suppose my main consideration is whether they're audible. The eheim 2076 looks...

Thanks for your thoughts all. Do any of them vary in noise levels? Tank is going to be in my living room and to keep the wife happy it needs to be as quiet as possible.

Would appreciate anyone's thoughts on what eheim external I should get for my rio 180? I'm going to be stocking dwarf rainbows and a few others. Eheim 2217? Or is the 2075 worth the additional cost? Or is that overkill for a 180 litre tank? Or should I look at another brand? I'm a little...

Thought I'd add that I too have read a lot of posts detailing how CO2 induced pH changes do not harm fish and should be ignored. As mentioned, it's the gH and kH changing pH that you need to worry about. Will try and dig out a link to an artile I found explaining the chemistry behind this...

Agree that CO2 is deadly, but just wanted to add that that's not because it changes your pH. CO2 induced pH changes have virtually no influence on fish. In this case it could be that CO2 levels got too high and became toxic?

Also worth considering that if the desk bows even slightly then your tank will be in big trouble. If it has a centre support this will help prevent it bowing. Agree that photos are essential to answer the question.

Hello everyone, just thought I'd share my experiences building a tank stand adding some comments on where I went wrong along the way! Hopefully someone will find it useful. I used 44mm x 44mm PSE as a frame skeleton and 12mm MDF for covering. I primed with two coats of Wickes MDF primer and...

Cheers Drobby, I've already got it bookmarked from one of your previous posts I think. Really useful site.

Completely agree they are different and of course people should test their own hardness (GH and KH) first. But in fishkeeping the thing that really matters is the dissolved mineral content (KH and GH) that affects pH. pH fluctuations from dissolved gas content (ie CO2) are a very different...

I'm with drobbyb on this one, although they are indeed technically different pH is very closely related to hardness. Hard water generally has a high pH and soft water has a lower one.

Thanks for the input. I'll look at getting some smaller rainbows. Will the hard water be a problem for them do you think?

Hi eveyone, some advice for a newbie if you could please! I'm coming towards the end of my cabinet build and am shortly going to get a Juwel Rio 180 with an external. For those not aware the tank is 101 x 41 x 50 cm and holds 180 litres or 40 gallons. I want to go for a low tech planted tank...

Thanks for your advice. Not considered an external heater before. Not sure what tank to get. Good to know that Fluval is easier if you're going to remove the internals straight away.

Considering the Rena XP2 or Eheim 2217 or 2075. Not ordered the tank yet (hoping to get 125 litre or 180 (wife says it's too big though...) or even finished the stand but got so many ideas! Too much painting and sanding going on at the moment. Is it the right move in planning to remove the Juwel...

Building my own stand so should fit!

Out of interest, are the tetratec filters quiet? Planning on getting my first tank soon, prob a Juwel rio 125 or vision 180 and am umming and erring over whether to rip out the internal straight away and get an external. Would you recommend the tetratec? Need something as quiet as possible to...

Thanks for your help people, I'll get the jigsaw out and start cutting!

Hi. I'm looking for some advice for a stand build I'm doing. It's a basic cupboard design 68cm tall, 102cm length and 46cm depth. I'm prob going to get a Juwel vision 180 to go on it. Question is, I may want to upgrade to an external and remove the Juwel internal right from the word go (any...