# Things I wish I'd known



## vauxhallmark (10 Mar 2009)

Idea for a thread - things that you absolutely take for granted now, but which were a revelation when you first realised it.

Don't be embarrassed about sounding thick for not realising before - the point is that there are things which are hardly ever mentioned in books or on the web which could help new (or not so new) hobbyists if shared.

I'll start with three of my biggest D'oh!! moments:   

TOWELS ARE YOUR FRIENDS

No matter how careful you are, or how high tech your water changing system is, you will always spill water on the floor, or on the front glass of the aquarium when you're changing water, or trimming plants. Cover the floor in front of the aquarium with a towel, you can always use it to dry your hands if you don't spill anything! And you can polish the outside of the front glass when you're finished.

TRY AND MAKE WATER CHANGES EASIER

It's going to be different for everyone, depending on water source, drain location, tank size, etc., but spend a few minutes thinking how you can make your water change as easy as possible - you'll be less likely to miss one then. Some of the things I do are:

~ Make sure (as far as possible) that all equipment is mounted where you don't have to turn it off to do a water change. Hinged luminaires or hanging lights are great for this, and position heaters and filter intakes where there'll still be underwater at 'low tide' You might not be able to do this for everything, but the fewer things you have to turn off the better (easier for you, and no chance of forgetting to turn them on again). I do turn my filter down a bit as the spray bar splashes a lot, but the flow adjuster is easy to reach.

~ Get a measuring jug and a permanent marker, and fill you containers with water and mark them - eg I use 9l containers, and have them marked in litres up the side. If you know exactly how much water you're going to ad (27l for a normal change for me) then it's easy to take the internal measurement of your tank in cm and calculate how far down from the desired waterline you need to drain - I've got a tiny mark on the side of the tank glass which is exactly where I need to drain down to. (if I had a drain I would make a rigid syphon tube that extended exactly that deep into the tank, put a filter strainer on the end, and just set it going, but I don't, so have to use buckets.) So I just syphon out to my mark, and then start the containers syphoning back into the tank (I try and position tanks where there's something higher than the tank to stand full water containers on for adding new water). I like to add it slowly, so I use a really small diameter tube, but I can leave one container empty into the tank, and just come back and change it when it's empty. I know that the last one won't overfill the tank, so I can leave the house once that one's started.

~ Don't forget that the old tank water is great for house or garden plants! Re-use those fertilisers!

RAZOR BLADES ARE YOUR FRIENDS

I tried every possible method of removing algae from the glass walls before razor blades, but now I don't use anything else. You may have no algae on your walls, which is great, but I find that after a month or two, even if you can't see any, if you give it a scrape you can see the difference in the clarity of the glass, so it must be growing at a low level for me all the time. They get rid of any limescale lines too. It would be lovely to think that I had an algae free tank, but this proves to me otherwise. Take the time to polish the outside of your tank at the same time - wipe them down with a wet cloth or sponge (or just dip your hand in the tank and wet them if you're feeling lazy  8) ) and wipe dry quickly with a dry cloth, t-shirt, or (a bar-keeping trick) scrunched up newspaper. (Most bars have lots of mirrors, so you have to know the best way of cleaning them! Also the best way to clean windows.) If you're really making an effort put some vinegar in the water you use to clean the outside glasses. Every tank looks better with clean glass.

So tell us some of your tips, just little things that make you aquarium keeping a bit easier, or more fun, or more efficient. 

Hope to pick up some great new tips,

Mark


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## james3200 (10 Mar 2009)

I use a sieve almost every week when i syphon out the bright sand from my discus tank which has been mixed up with aquasoil and other bits, sand looks new after that


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## Egmel (10 Mar 2009)

Save your leftover tights/stockings, they're useful for filter media, purigen, popping over the end of the hosepipe when you're siphoning out water.

Plastic tubs are great for organising the inside of your under-tank-cabinet.

Tropical fish don't like really cold water changes - make sure the shower is running at the right temp before you connect it to the hosepipe for refilling.

Most of the rules stated are rules of thumb and as you learn more about your tank you should feel free to break them as often as you need to!


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## hellohefalump (10 Mar 2009)

> Tropical fish don't like really cold water changes


although it can trigger spawning  my angel fish lay eggs after a cold water change.  Not TOO cold though.  Only a couple of degrees lower than the tank


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## aaronnorth (10 Mar 2009)

Incase you have a bow front tank like me and the razor blade is not option then i find scourers useful as it has a rough and a smooth side for all algaes! Toothbrushes are handy too for getting into the corners, or cleaning rocks etc. (Saintly uses an electric toothbrush i believe!)


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## Joecoral (10 Mar 2009)

why can't you use razor blades on a bowfront? Just go (carefully) horizontally along the curve and not up and down


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## Tony Swinney (10 Mar 2009)

I wish I'd known how easy it is to scratch front of the tank, when a bit of the sand gets stuck in the scourer your using   

Which led to......

A pale, or white background will show up glass scratches far less than a dark background


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## George Farmer (10 Mar 2009)

vauxhallmark said:
			
		

> Idea for a thread - things that you absolutely take for granted now, but which were a revelation when you first realised it.


Neat idea.  My top 5 - more general tips.  Some of which still fly in the face of some advice given by big manufacturers and may provide some enlightenment to newcomers.

Nitrate and phosphate are important nutrients that don't cause algae in the planted tank.  Lack of these nutrients can cause algae.

Good filtration and circulation are important for most set ups.

You can grow most 'demanding' plants with low to moderate light, providing there's good nutrients and circulation.

CO2 isn't necessary for 'demanding' plants.  Liquid carbon alternatives are effective and economical in smaller aquaria.

Hardscape is very important for effective aquascaping.


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## Stu Worrall (10 Mar 2009)

something I learned from talking to the others at the TGM day..

Shorter photoperiod for a new tank.

Id read and read about lighting and how7-8 ish hours was ok and enough for a planted tank.  What I hadnt read however was that with low plantmass and a new tank and filter starting off with 5 hours photoperioids then building up over the weeks will help combat the dreaded algae


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## aaronnorth (14 Mar 2009)

Joecoral said:
			
		

> why can't you use razor blades on a bowfront? Just go (carefully) horizontally along the curve and not up and down



i just find it easier with a scourer


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## billy boy (14 Mar 2009)

[quote="Egmel"

Tropical fish don't like really cold water changes - make sure the shower is running at the right temp before you connect it to the hosepipe for refilling.![/quote]

Interesting idea, How do connect the hosepipe to the shower?


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## hellohefalump (14 Mar 2009)

circulation, circulation, circulation!

Wash filter sponges in old tank water not under the tap.

Position large tanks within easy reach of taps (for filling up) and windows (for dumping old water).


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## JamesM (14 Mar 2009)

Tank don't need water changes.


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## jay (14 Mar 2009)

JamesM said:
			
		

> Tank don't need water changes.



So I've been getting wet/breaking my back, cabinet, and floor for nothing?


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## JamesM (14 Mar 2009)

Depends on your setup obviously 

Clive and Tom Barr recommend 0 - 1 water change a year on low tech setups as this keeps the water and co2 more stable. Its different if you're injecting co2 with high light, etc.

Since doing this a year ago, all signs of algae have gone, water clarity is superb, fish are healthy with no losses, and I'm happy without making the mess I used to


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## Egmel (16 Mar 2009)

billy boy said:
			
		

> Egmel said:
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My shower pipe unscrews near the tap end and I screw a hoselock tap connector (with the white adjuster) to that bit, was a lucky discovery


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## Steve Smith (16 Mar 2009)

Wish I'd known that tweezers made planting *so* much easier!


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## aaronnorth (16 Mar 2009)

planting HC individualy gives a much better carpet... and backache  worth it though IME


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## StevenA (16 Mar 2009)

Wish I'd known about UKAPS when I got back into planted tanks, would've made life so much easier


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## Superman (16 Mar 2009)

Dont rush into planted tanks, make sure you can grow plants first before spending loads of money on plant that then will have to be pulled out.


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## aaronnorth (16 Mar 2009)

save up for everything you need before setting up, it makes things so much easier rather than trying to miss out on things then adding them at a later date.

everytime someone else posts something another pops into  my head lol


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## Tom (16 Mar 2009)

High tech tanks go wrong and waste lots of money! Low tech FTW!!!! OK, now dodge bullets!


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## Aeropars (16 Mar 2009)

Things i wish I'd known.... err pretty much everything!

The flow thing was somethign i never kmnew about until recently and as such my tanks suffered.


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## Superman (16 Mar 2009)

Don't buy too many plants, they'll grow in quick enough.


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## Mark Evans (16 Mar 2009)

Superman said:
			
		

> Don't buy too many plants, they'll grow in quick enough.



thats a strange one  :?:


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## Superman (16 Mar 2009)

saintly said:
			
		

> Superman said:
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I always buy too many pots from shops, I go crazy and then realise I've got a few pots too many. I still use them but its a bit of a squeeze, hence the jungle feel to my 180ltr! Just a few pounds would of been saved.


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## Mark Evans (16 Mar 2009)

Superman said:
			
		

> I go crazy and then realise I've got a few pots too many



good point, i'm guiltyof the same, but now have the ability of taking back what i dont use. point taken mate. sorry


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## Mark Evans (16 Mar 2009)

when i look back to my early days, roughly a year ago. Finding co2 and EI was the turning point for me to grow plants.

the best bits of info ever..... they may not be the originators of these ideas(they maybe) but it's these guys that changed my aquascaping life

turnover.  george farmer
co2.         from TFF, later fined tuned by CEG
EI.            from TFF jamesc, later fined tuned by CEG

lighting for 6 hours on start up. believe it or not rich from AE

lastly....discovering amano. i wished i'd found him sooner

dose enough EI and co2 you dont need your blades and scrapers


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## glenn (16 Mar 2009)

stock tank filters suck. i wish i knew this befor i started. 10x turnover FTW.  
also i wish i knew about the importance of very large water changes at start of a new set up to avoid algae.


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## JamesM (16 Mar 2009)

Double Clutching can save gearboxes on track days  


ok, so its slightly off topic, but I still wish I'd known beforehand


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## Garuf (16 Mar 2009)

haha, on my tank (a 54l) it's a bucket a day keeps the algae away. I think the most important thing is getting everything stable and balanced as soon as possible. Especially co2.


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## mjenner (26 Mar 2009)

That despite it's leaden weight (and rock-like resistance to my saw), the root wood I've got in my tank actually floats!

It was pre-soaked at the shop, but I've been waiting with a dry tank for so long for my plants and looking at positioning that it dried out, a fact I'd forgotten until 50% through filling the tank at about midnight when it decided to make a bid for the freedom and the surface taking half my scape with it! 

Only a hasty grab whilst grabbing the nearest safe heavyish thing (a plate I'd used for filling earlier) with my foot and somehow trying to get it back into the tank and get it on top of the root (whilst at the same time trying to avoid spilling a bucket of water on the carpet!) averted disaster! 

Lesson for next-time... put a big rock on top first, just in-case, then take it off carefully AFTER the tank's filled! 

Matt


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## zalun (27 Mar 2009)

*Build two tanks*

Two tanks would work for me much better than the one I have 

Start with two tanks in mind, first create as good as you can, and learn the errors. If it is a tank in the living room family will force many things on you (put the fish too early and such). Then, after the first tank looks acceptable (a month or two after start) start with designing the second one which will not suffer from early errors. It should have size which will suite you best, you may also use plants, bacteria, test kits, etc. from the first tank which you'd be able to rescape later on.


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