Search results

Using a Plenum in a Freshwater Aquarium In some ways the plenum takes the undergravel filter back to it's roots by ever so slowly moving water through the substrate. Some feel that the UGF was compromised when greater and greater flow rates were falsely presumed to improve filtration. In...

I guess it depends on the size of the frozen 'chunk' and the number of fish you have. I culture white worms and often harvest more worms than I need, so I freeze in ice cubes. I have so many fish that I'll drop a frozen cube or two in each tank. The fish (just love white worms) will swarm and...

It all started when my mouse nest infested DR Trimmer resulted in my setting traps to remove the unwanted rodents...MY BAD! lol

I think you just need to let nature take it's course as any intervention would likely cause more harm than good. After so much time, the prognosis for the fry is not good. :-(

You can often find parts on Amazon and/or Ebay and often other vendors of the product carry parts.

Sadly I have not seen any trace of Taco since his disappearance. Without so much as a thank-you or a goodbye he's gone off to some other world. I hope his journey was without regret. :-(

I have started many tanks by 'cleaning' sponges from a healthy, established tank into the water of a new tank. My friend Byron has reported several times that he has started new tanks with merely lots of plants as plants, especially fast growing (often floating) plants will use ammonia as their...

Thread jacked twice, then shut down....woe is me!

Well truth be told, I set traps in the shed and have caught a few mice now! The shed is closed pretty tight so I'm confused as to how they get in there. In any case, it's likely the mouse lost more than it's home. footnote: I really don't like killing critters - "live and let live", otherwise...

With multiple pairs (which is fine in a large tank with lots of cover) I think if I was serious about breeding them, I would remove fertilized eggs into a hatchery aquarium.... a single pair of angels in a tank by themselves (NOT a community tank, or multiple pairs), may learn to raise their...

Yep, it's like a conversation that may begin talking about the weather, then a body will say 'that reminds me of...' - something totally unrelated! lol Last week I discovered that my Ryobi electric blower no longer works. Not sure if it's the blower or the battery and the lithium ion batteries...

Thread jackers....jeez :)

You might establish a relationship with a local fish store. Chain stores won't be interested as all their fish are wholesaled by corporate deals. However, most 'mom and pop' fish stores often welcome stock from local breeders. I have a setup with a local shop that takes about 2-3 dozen fish a...

The adjuster is a plastic piece that inserts into the lower rear of the filter and is rotated to adjust the level of the rear or the filter. Without it, the filter will angle towards the rear an if/when full/over full, water may spill out the rear instead of the front into the tank. Mine have...

Aquaclear's are great so you don't need different filters... > For the adjuster you say falls out (mine never have!) just determine the correct setting and use a drop of super glue (I'm a fan of Max1 German glue). Alternatively a bit of gum or clay in the hole could also work. > For the...

I'd rather not flog a dead horse, but as long as there is light and nutrients, plants will grow. Now many systems come with lights that are fine for viewing fish, but not always intense enough to support some plants, especially rooted plants down below where light levels may suffer. This is why...

I thought I mentioned fast growing floating plants as many plants (like anubias and java fern to name a couple) are slow growing and not real ammonia sponges.

Cyano is a bacteria and you may need to treat with an anti-bacterial to resolve?

You might think so....but I remember a time in the dark ages of the hobby when little or nothing was known or communicated about the nitrogen cycle...and yet the hobby (and fish) survived. ~

I jump into this thread late I know but thought I'd add my two cents worth.... The 'trouble' with gravel is that uneaten food and detritus all too easily gets down under, decays, and without routine gravel vacuuming, can become a 'nitrate factory'. Now you can routinely vacuum gravel, but it's...

It is a hobby MYTH that you need 6-8 weeks to 'CYCLE' an aquarium, but this gets parroted about all the time. ALL you need is enough beneficial bacteria (or PLANTS) to process ammonia and nitrite into nitrates. I've repeatedly started new tanks by 'cleaning' a sponge from an established...

As the others above have stated, you need a brush of some sort. I attached a small/medium brush to a stick (you might use a 3' dowel - in my case, I repurposed a driveway marker). The process is easiest done outside with a garden hose...you can do it inside but requires greater care not to spew...

Generally speaking, there's no such thing as too much clean, FRESH water. Sure, plants, especially fast growing plants help purify water as they use nutrients (aka pollution) as food, converting them into plant tissue. There is also a host of bacteria and microbes (see The Very Best Aquarium...

+1 - There is typically no such thing as too much clean, fresh water! Routine periodic partial water changes are key in keeping aquarium water suitable for happy, healthy fish and inverts. (top offs do not sufficiently replace polluted water. :)

Live Food Cultures and Collection

I almost always roll my eyes when someone writes that they made this or that change 'and never looked back', but... Years ago now I switched from gravel to about 3-4" of sand - sometimes pool filter, sometimes play sand...AND I never touch the sand so as not to disturb the intricate and valuable...

Don't worry about a layer of mulm/detritus on the bottom as it really doesn't hurt anything. Charles Clapsaddle of Goliad Farms in South Texas finds that the mulm in the bottom of his vats is beneficial, not only housing beneficial bacteria, but also culturing paramecium as an additional food...

Sorry for your loss. :-(

Check out Power Failure and When The Lights Go Out. :)

Sadly, only one time!

At a club meeting a few years ago I bought a bag of guppy grass. When I got home I was rinsing it in the sink when I discovered a critter...a cute little brown knewt. He's lived in a 5g aquarium in my unheated basement for about the last 3 years. He loved white worms and daphnia and got a little...

Yep, when I was on the Maid of the Mist! :) (I think I still have it too! lol)

I have stood in amazement more than once at the tourist edge of Niagara Falls at the millions of gallons of fresh water that flows 24/7, 365 in the Niagara river and between the Great Lakes. And then again the output of the Amazon river is so great that fresh water can be collected 12 miles out...

Undergravel filters are great, BUT require routine maintenance (e.g. gravel vacuuming) to keep from becoming a 'nitrate factory'. It's much more efficient to have an untouched sand substrate and a HOB or canister filter. Now I'm a fan of the Aquaclear HOB's but the fairly new Seachem Tidal...

Many creatures will leave home if/when conditions are not good. In doing research on Mystery Snails, a fellow on Youtube with a tank full said they would leave the tank in search of food if he didn't add a whole can of green beans every day! So whether it's water quality or not enough food...

I added some cuttlebone and a handful of crushed coral in a bag in the Aquaclear 50 HOB filter.. .

I might add come crushed coral to the filter but believe that it's not just the water, but they need calcium in their diet - still not sure of the best way to provide this.??