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Thanks, everyone! I wiped off the fungus as you suggested, Retired Viking. I also researched it, and apparently the fungal growth is something that occurs in the first few weeks as the wood is adapting to the aquatic environment and doesn't continue after a few weeks. I hope that's true! We...

New questions! 1. Plants are planted. I forgot something important . . . to wash the plants before putting them in the tank to remove invaders (snails). Suggestions for safe eradication? 2. Some sort of weird blue fungus is growing on one of the cut ends of the spider wood I put in . . . Is it...

Okay! We'll just use tap water with no neutral regulator. We deliberately planned in time for the plants--6 weeks is the minimum time, and adding fish will depend on how the plants are doing. I have seen the disasters that can occur when people rush. We have planted some fast-growing and some...

Yes, we have no fish at this time. My plan was to let the tank cycle and stabilize with the plants for at least 6 weeks to two months, then get the fish. Should we do a water change ASAP and use only tap water? At this time, we have 15 gallons of DI water and about 45 gallons of tap water.

THANK YOU!! This is great information! The LFS sold me Seachem's "Neutral Regulator." I have already used some of that in the tank (we have enough plants in it now that we've got it about 3/4 full of water). I want to use whatever is best, so if I need to get the API and use it instead in the...

DONE! :-D

So how do you set the heating level and the cooling level on the Inkbird so that it will run each heater separately?

We retrieved the box from the recycle bin, and these are fully submersible heaters. Whew! Bit by bit by bit, we are building an aquarium!

Yes. We wanted to put one heater at each end of the tank and also put the spray bar at one end with the intake at the other end. Does it matter if the top of the heater ends up in water, at least partially?

Okay, next question: If the bottom end of the heater is in the sand, is that a problem? These heaters are really looooong! We are trying to juggle the heater (Eheim) and the spray bar of the Eheim filter and really struggling with placement.

So the reason I was thinking half deionized water and half tap water is because years ago, it seemed to be most effective in keeping fish alive. If I did all tap water, even outgassing chlorine and, later when the city began using chloramines, adding dechlorinators, the fish did not do well. Do...

I plan to finish washing the last 50 pounds today, then measure. If I don't have 2 inches in front with 3-4 inches in back, I'll go get another bag. I saw a tip to put black construction paper on the back, so I roped my husband into helping me with that this morning. He turned out to be quite...

I have been washing sand, about 8 cups at a time, a couple hours a day, for a number of days. Today I finished washing 100 pounds of sand. Why does it feel as if I wash away 1 to 2 cups of sand out of every 8 cups? Here's hoping the last 50 pound bag is enough to get my 2-inches minimum depth...

My LYS is doing Zoom gatherings for knitting; you might ask your LYS whether they've considered doing them!

YES! A fellow reptile/amphibian person! Until the end of December 2019, I was the Rescue Liaison for our local herp society. I'm still on the rescue team, and several of the animals I have are rescues!

My oldest granddaughter just got her first hive! She has been wanting to become a beekeeper for years!

What fun reading all the different hobbies and activities! I remember the days of trying to keep up with children at home and having little to no time to do any personal hobbies; I miss those children now that they're grown! I keep snakes, lizards, and frogs; I build terraria and vivaria...

Ah. So one can use the "cooling" outlet for one heater and the "heating" outlet for the other. I didn't realize that; good to know! That will save some $!

Now looking at heaters. It appears that I need two 300W heaters, one at each end of my tank, each externally controlled by an Inkbird temperature controller (total of two controllers). I'm finding so many different, conflicting reviews . . . I'm confused! I've looked at EHEIM Jagers, Fluval Es...

Oooh, another new thing to get! Okay! Thank you, utahfish and essjay! So my new shopping list (not including plants!) includes: 1 bottle of bacteria 1 bottle of ammonia 1 airstone and pump for backup when needed. Thank goodness our LFS will do curbside deliveries!

Thanks, PhoenixKing--yes, we are estimating about 900 pounds of weight total, so moving the cabinet and tank NOW is definitely best! Third question (rather, set of questions)! I was reviewing posts about using dechlorinators and got reminded about aeration. I forgot to get any airstones or...

First, Byron and Everyone: Thank you VERY much for all the great information and tips! Everyone is so helpful--I'm so glad to be joining this community! Byron, your response to this first question is especially helpful, as it would be awful to fill the tank with it too close to the wall to do...

Hi, folks! We are getting ready to set up a 75-gallon aquarium after being out of the fish-keeping hobby for about 25 years, so I am being very careful in my preparation, taking my time to do my research and plan. My husband is part of the "we," but he has zero experience in this hobby. We have...

My son and his wife found this kitty in the parking lot of a Pizza Hut, living off scraps and bread ends of pizza. They had to trap her to catch her, as she was pretty feral, though she knew humans could be a source of food. Now, about 10 years later, she's fairly tame except she hates to be...

Will do--after I go pick up the play sand I ordered from Home Depot, as our city is going into lockdown tomorrow at midnight! I'm just hoping I can get some plants to get started building the aquarium!

This is pretty helpful information, as I was reading a book that recommended commercial soil-based substrates if one wants to grow healthy plants. Now it seems that may not be the best advice; if so, I don't have to spend so much! I am wondering--how would it work to use play sand as a lower...

Thanks for the substrate and filter tips! I am still in research mode on those items! I definitely want to grow live plants, so I'll be searching for lighting of an appropriate spectrum and brightness for healthy plant growth.

ROFL! The only tank I have smaller than 55 gallons is a 20-gallon paludarium with two Bombina orientalis (Fire-bellied frogs, aka toads) in it! As I am literally just now getting back into fish, it will be awhile before I have any fish tanks smaller than the 75 I'm diving into first! But thanks...

Excited about enjoying some fun projects!

Hi, all, Over 20 years ago, I had several tanks with a 55 being the largest, then I got into reptile rescue and ended up giving away all my fish and converting tanks to snake, lizard, and frog habitats. Now I'm getting ready to retire from my work on the Board of an international nonprofit...