Just Checking Before I Jump...

[richrich]

Hello,

Thanks to all for previous advice, I now have all my equiptment:

1 x Aqua one, 200 litre - The aquarium has Wet and dry trickle filter system built into the hood aqua one

2. Heater / thermostat, 12 plants (to collect when tank ready),

3. Water treatment for chlorine / tap water

4. Selection of tester kits for amonia, nitrates etc.

Now, before I start adding water I just want to get this right, my plan is this.

1. Wipe the inside of the tank out with clean tap water
2. Add the sand/gravel base & ornaments (after rinsing out in tap water.
3. I have a bag of gravel designed to aid plant growth (add to the area I want the plants to be planted in due course)
4. Fill with 200 litres of water via hosepipe (I hope no one is going to say a bucket is better as that may take a while
5. Add the correct amount of water / chlorine treatment for 200 litres
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6. Wash the filter parts (as per instructions it came with)
7. Let filters and tank run for a few days
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My local shop where I purchased the kit then told me to bring a water sample after about 3 days and they will test and advise when ready to have the plants and after that a further test to determine when to add the first fish. They suggested 6 initial fish (cant recall name but they were only about 1.50 each and i am told are very hardy and ideal for starting a tank.

Im I doing this correctly or can anyone see any problems with how I plan to start this up.

Many thanks

 

[doresy]

Ok so forget about going back to the LFS in three days......please.

Oh, great choice of tank BTW.

What we do nowadays is something called a 'fishless cycle' LFS are a bit behind on this (I suspect on purpose as there is no money in it for them!) Please read.........CLICK HERE

If you follow that then added to what you have done so far then success is only weeks away!!!

Oh, don't forget to switch on your heater and a timer plug for your lights may be a good idea


EDIT: one last thing, take out and keep the plastic trays that have white wool on one side and carbon granuals inside. These are only required to remove old medications. Replace it with a layer of just white wool media.

 

[Richard120]

lol as above! It's going to take at least six weeks I would imagine before the tank's ready for fish! IMO though you can get cracking with plants right from day one. I'll give you whatever odds you want they're going to sell you leopard danios. Thay ARE hardy wee fish but please try and consider whether or not you want them in your tank in six months time! Sacrificial fish is not nice! Personally, I LOVE Danios but I'd rather spend a little more (and it really is only a little more) and get the glowlight or zebra variety...

Back to cycling... BE PATIENT!!! It's hard, but worth it

 

[richrich]

one last thing, take out and keep the plastic trays that have white wool on one side and carbon granuals inside

In the filter system in the hood there are 2 trays, left and right side. In the left side, I have a bag of carbon, on the right side a bag of ceramic noodles.

I then have a fine white sponge and a heavier black one. They both come together and one set for the left and one set for the right.

Do I understand you correctly that you are saying leave the carbon in one side and the noodles in the other but remove the white and black sponges.

Thanks

 

[doresy]

one last thing, take out and keep the plastic trays that have white wool on one side and carbon granuals inside

In the filter system in the hood there are 2 trays, left and right side. In the left side, I have a bag of carbon, on the right side a bag of ceramic noodles.

I then have a fine white sponge and a heavier black one. They both come together and one set for the left and one set for the right.

Do I understand you correctly that you are saying leave the carbon in one side and the noodles in the other but remove the white and black sponges.

Thanks

Ok, your contents are different to mine but I am familar with it.
Don't wory about one side and the other it was just the way it's been packed. Usually I would say you put the same set up in each side.
This is how I would set it up....ok?
The carbon bag I would not use, put it away somewhere safe to be used at a time that you have been using medication to treat something and want to remove them.
The black sponges are NOT carbon they are just black. Place one of these in the bottom of each tray.
The noodles they give you are not usually enough for a layer each side (I purchased some extrs) but divide the bag equally between the trays.
Finally, place the white media on top of the noodles each side.

Once you have cycled the tank you just need to rinse the (top) white media in old tank water each time you do a partial water change. The noodles and lower foam need much less attention. Every few months GENTLY rinse ONLY ONE SIDE (again in old tank water) Next time do the other side.

The reason we clean filter media in old tank water is to preserve the bacteria. Chlorine will kill it. You only need to gently clear the sludge so if there isn't any then leave it. The bacteria can't be seen with the naked eye. By only cleaning one side it leaves the other at 'full strength'.....understand?

 

[Piltdownpaul]

Hi-i have the aqua 602t with 2 compartments- I have set my filters up as thus- Spray bar on the left-just under this i have the black coarse filter and under that loads of ceramic noodles-on the right i occasionally have a carbon with a fine filter above it with the water running out to the right- I had real fun trying to find out how to set these filters up and contacted a friend in australia with my set up so i copied hers. Its been fine for over 1 and a half years .

 

[Matty P]

lol as above! It's going to take at least six weeks I would imagine before the tank's ready for fish!

That isn't true at all, it can take anything from 2 weeks onwards, some even less than that. My tank was fully cycled after about two and a half weeks.

 

[backtotropical]

mine took 3 1/2 weeks

 

[richrich]

I have set my filters up as thus- Spray bar on the left-just under this i have the black coarse filter and under that loads of ceramic noodles-on the right i occasionally have a carbon with a fine filter above it with the water running out to the right

I have so far found this inbuilt filter system a bit hard to work out, the instructions are poor to say the least.

Spray bar on the left

Mine seem to spray the water into both left and right compartments (the incoming pipe between the left and right cmpartment is a 'T' bar so splits the water to both compartments and the water after running through the filters trickles out from whichever compartment (left or right) it is in.

with the water running out to the right

I cant see any means to have it only filter back to the tank via one compartment or the other. Both sides have trickle holes to return the water. It seems the water sprayed into the left compartment gets filtered via whatever medium you have in the left compartment and then trickes back at the bottom of the left compartment and vice versa for the right.

What does seem strange to me is the pump head has a big square flat face with label with all the electrical details on and this is the side that goes down into the tank and faces out ??? When you look into the tank, you can read all the electrical writing and details on the label ??? On the opposite side which faces the back of the tank is a nice grooved rounded face. It loos to me like it should fit the other way round but there seems no way to reverse 180 degrees due to the fitttings ??

The carbon bag I would not use, put it away somewhere safe to be used at a time that you have been using medication to treat something and want to remove them.

The manual that came with the aquarium says "carbon removes organic and inorganic substances. These substances if not removed cause the water to go yellow/brown and can cause foaming on the surface, if treating fish with medication, remove the carbon"

It is clear the manufactures tell you the story that makes them the most after sales money but is carbon needed or not. Aqua One manual suggests it is really important. From what I have seen on here, it seems all that is needed is white wool, black filter pad and ceramic noodles. Does any one else agree / disagree ?

 

[Aphotic Phoenix]

Okay so here is the deal about Activated Carbon....

- First of all, it can last as little as a few days up to a few weeks...it just depends on how much "stuff" is in the water for it to remove. There really isn't any good way to tell when exactly it's used up either.
- It can help remove some unhealthy things from the water, but it can also remove stuff that your plants want...so in that respect it's a fairly mixed bag.
- Activated Carbon is quite good at removing Tannins (which can cause yellow water), and Phenols (which can cause a fishy smell)...but in that situation you are really just covering up a problem. Tannins are released from driftwood, but also from fish waste! Regular water changes and proper maint should prevent a build-up of tannins in the water. Secondly, a well maintained and properly cycled tank should smell kind of like fresh soil...if a "fishy smell" is present I take that as a sign of a problem or that an extra water change may be in order, but if I was using a carbon filter, how would I have known?
- Some people really like to use Activated Carbon all of the time, but you will have to replace it at least every four weeks. Just leaving old used-up carbon in isn't a great idea since it will eventually grind down to powder.

 

[merry78]

i have two smaller aqua one setups, and i say NO! to carbon.
I only use it after the full course of a medication is complete, to remove the meds from the water.
i am also annoyed by the powerheads ugly sticker facing toward the front of the tank, but as far as i can see, you can't do anything about it.

 

[richrich]

i am also annoyed by the powerheads ugly sticker facing toward the front of the tank, but as far as i can see, you can't do anything about it.

Hi Merry 78, well if you have the same issue it can't be that have anything wrong. I find it amazing that a fish tank is deigned for people to look in so what do they do, designa power head with a huge square front and slap a great big technical label on it and design it to face the front of the aquarium, it really is an unbelievable mistake.

Who do they think wants to look at fish and see a great big label telling you about the power consumption of the pump

I will have to visit my lfs and see if there is anything I can get to cover it. I am wondering about some type of net or mesh or similar.

The other annoying thing is that to remove the hood, you have to unplug the T bar sprayer behind in the filter part in order to get the cable as it runs from the hood through the filter area and under the T-bar.

 

[merry78]

Who do they think wants to look at fish and see a great big label telling you about the power consumption of the pump

I will have to visit my lfs and see if there is anything I can get to cover it. I am wondering about some type of net or mesh or similar.

ooooh, ooh, something i have always wanted to do after seeing it in a show.....
get a piece of clean, chemical free flyscreen, fold it into a sandwich, and use java moss for the filling. Then the java moss gradually grows out through the holes in the screen after you tie/suction cup it onto whatever you want to mask. looks fabulous!! (makes like a moss wall of any shape or size you want...beautiful!)
java moss doesn't need heaps of light to grow, and is as tough as boots, so maybe you could use this idea to mask your powerhead! or maybe i will....

hello to you too, by the way, welcome to the forum!
merry.