Search results for query: *

Hi, For me it would have generally been, manual removal, clean, water change and repeat but obviously using the Walstad method prohibits this, but then again adding algaesides probably goes against the grain too. This seems like a good idea but beware on the front page of the website for this...

Thanks for the link. I will have a read and a further ponder.

Hi all, They aren't really an algae eater, although they will scrape algae from hard surfaces at night. I often see them on the aquarium glass feeding, but I can't actually see what they are feeding on. You can just trap them, if you use a net the shrimps will swim off and you can remove the...

Day 5 update. Never have I ever seen water so clear. Don’t know if it can be seen from pictures. I am using Seachem Purigen and carbon. Water tests are showing ammonia and nitrite at zero. Livestock doing well. I have Juncus repens from pots and Eleocharis vivipara in-vitro planted in the back...

Thank you for the info. Perhaps I should try a different / more powerful siphon before introducing MTS

I got some Crypts at AquaH aswell so planted Flamingo Pinks in here aswell. The contrast looks good against the moss and wood etc.

Hi, Just wanted to add something to this. This post was good timing as I was looking to buy from an online seller for the first time. I contacted all of the companies listed above. After about a week I heard back from some. Wildwood said I should keep checking their website for availability...

Lovely Nano, Nice that they let you. Only 1 place i have worked has let me have a tank, but it had to fit inside a A4 sheet of paper, so was only one of the Azoo Picos Good choice with the Blue Leopard Ramshorns. They sell for a good price when you have enough to sell.

Hey Welcome to UKAPS :greenfinger:

Hello Bazz, Thank you very much for taking the time to contribute to my little project 😊 I welcome any and all advice and as you say it takes longer than we think / longer than we want for a tank to be fish ready. I have parked the idea of fish for a few weeks longer as I can concentrate on...

Hello and welcome to UKAPS Steve 😊 Great bunch of knowledgeable and nice folk here so we hope you enjoy you’re stay 😊

I am setting up a new tank with mostly buce and it’s been dark cycled for a month. I ordered plants and received them yesterday. Unfortunately I went to stop at my local co2 supplier and they had run out of tanks of co2 to exchange and wouldn’t fill my tank. They won’t have co2 until...

Hello :wave:, welcome to UKAPS.

Sorry for late reply. Here is a couple of photos, tanks are 3 weeks old

My planted mess 60-50-50

Hi, my name is Steve and I’ve been keeping tropical fish on and off over the years, but am definitely not an expert. I currently have a five foot tank which has an under gravel filter system, but I’m about to dismantle it as it’s being moved to another room in the house. I’m planning on setting...

They are adorable! I've wanted them for a long time. I will be getting more of them in due course.

I asked ChatGPT to make a table that would show "the calculated equilibrium pH values for water at 20°C with varying alkalinity (measured in dKH) and CO2 levels. The CO2 levels are presented as atmospheric concentration (ppm) and the resulting dissolved concentration in water (ppm)." and below...

Hi all, Because UKAPS is the fount of all knowledge, <"Only Fools and Horses"> gets a <"few mentions">. cheers Darrel

Ill think on it, but I will leave you with this.....

Hi all, Welcome to UKAPS, I think you need a German speaking Discus keeper to advise you (I am neither), but I don't think the low electrical conductivity is a problem. I've kept L129 (Hypancistrus debilittera <"https://www.planetcatfish.com/common/species.php?species_id=211">) and they are...

Hi all, Yes that is it, pH isn't a useful measurement in RO because of the lack of solutes. You can just ignore the pH of the RO, it is a blank slate. No need to be, the pH reduction due to CO2 addition doesn't reduce the alkalinity, you just have more Total Inorganic Carbon (TIC) <"dissolved...

Thanks for the awesome reply. One at a time per your reply. I’ve heard measuring ph of ro water can be trickle because it devoid of almost everything. Should I assume my RO water is the ph at which it comes from the tap? It also sits in holding tanks before I tap it and that’s has to be a day...

Hi all, They are gorgeous little fish <"corydoras hastatus">. cheers Darrel

Hi all, Possibly, if it really was Lemna minor? It might <"put off punters"> and you wouldn't get any repeat sales? But on the other hand "pump in a bucket" will be indestructible (and last for ever), so we wouldn't get any repeat sales any way. It is a difficult one. Free <"Secret...

Free duckweed with every pump in a bucket? 🙂

Yes i think i was on the right pathway, but just hit a dilemma? I don’t think a biomaster would fit inside the ADA style homemade cabinet I’m about to attempt to make 😁😅

Hi all, The problem is <"with the lack of solutes"> in the RO <"water">, it just means that pH is a moveable feast. It shouldn't be, you could only get a higher pH value if you weren't at equilibrium with atmospheric CO2 levels, e.g. CO2 levels were below the equilibrium point. That sounds...

Yeah i was thinking in the right direction for sure. But I’ve just stumbled across a little hurdle? I have a few days off work, and I’m about to embark on building a 45p style cabinet . I’m bloody hopeless at DIY, but fancy giving it a try? Anyways, I don’t think a biomaster would actually fit...

Hi all, I think you are right, by the time you can <"detect ammonia">? It is already too late. That is just fantastic. I genuinely think it could be, the aquarium market wouldn't be huge, but there are applications in aquaculture and waste water management. Aquaponics might be an option...

Hello, New to this site but have been keeping fish and plants for more than 50 years, yes I’m old 🤪 Currently running 2 planted tanks with C02 and doing PPS auto dosing. Tanks are only about a month old. The startup went very well, absolutely no algae issues other than some minor diatom issues...

Hi all, I understand where you are coming from, but they will be different in shade. The green colour comes from the mix of protonated (yellow) and unprotonated (blue) <"bromothymol blue"> molecules. You definitely can differentiate differing shades of green <"The scientific background to the...

Small update. Recently a friend of mine who works at a part-time fish store helped me to pick up a Hoplisma caudimaculatum and 3 Hoplisoma concolor. Probably one of the better stores in my city as they don't misidentify fish and take husbandry quite seriously. I would have gone down to the shop...

Im currently looking into swapping my tank contents into a new one. What is the best way of doing this? Current tank has been running for 2 years and I plan on trying to remove and reused most of the contents. Would the soil be reusable or would I create an ammonia spike if I disturb it? I had...

I think the 250 will be quite strong but it’s not not doable with your logic above. A spin lily pipe and a co2 reactor would also go far in reducing the in tank current without affecting flow too much. I have a thermo 100 on a 36p and that itself is too strong so I connected my CO2 reactor...

Easiest option without buying anything new is to swap 350 into larger tank as stated and use the 250 on your 45P, might be worth trying it with a lily pipe or a spin pipe or something which can help reduced the turbulence. Failing that, if you want a less flow but with an integrated heater than...

Hi all, That is a good question and I'm not sure there is an exact definition. I've regarded "active soils" as substrates that reduce hardness and alkalinity via ion exchange - <"ShrimpKing Active Soil 8 l">, and "plant growth substrates" as substrates where those ion exchange sites have...

Hello all! Been a long time since I've set up or maintained a planted tank now, feeling very out of the loop even after trying to read up again so looking for a bit of guidance please. I've got a large 6ft aquarium that I'm setting up and want to have some aquatic plants in to keep the display...

thanks @Bradders the 250 has only been on my larger tank for a couple weeks, so I’m doubtful it’ll have any biological goodness in there at the moment. I only added the 250 to that tank for some extra mechanical filtration i.e mainly sponges as i packed the 350 with more bio media. If i were...

could you please describe how you set up the eheim liberty filter? Do you have a photo of it?

Good point. I think I could put the DC holder outside of the chamber to be visible, with air connection to the chamber. The sensor is on a dark-start, cycling aquarium now, but I can pour a bottle of soda water to get some CO2 action in there. I'll schedule it for a weekend so I could take...

I am going to become a share holder!

I assume the filters on your 160 liters are mature? If so you are in a good position in some ways. Add the new 350 the 160L to work alongside the old 350. If you can be bothered, take 1 sponge from the old 350, place at the bottom of the new 350 which will help it establish quicker. The 250...

In the sensor chamber I was thinking. We hear a lot about how the drop checker lags behind the actual CO2 levels, but I've never seen that (lack of) responsiveness accurately quantified.

I can share the code and wiring if you need it.

...i want to showcase it all nicely. It does get ambient light from the shrimp nano next to it, but that's not enough for me. The Enclosure tank is 20*10*10 which is perfect for this size of mantid and gives me the height I need to scape and make sure it has enough vertical height for the...

Do you mean in the sensor chamber or the aquarium? It doesn't matter I guess. Technically doable, but I am not sure that the DC could keep up with the rapid CO2 changes in my tanks. In the DC, there is an additional equilibration between the air and the still DC solution which slows down the...

Morning all. So, I’m after some advice/ recommendations on what filter would be suitable for a 45p? I have what i think could be an option already, but your recommendation would help immensely. At the minute i have two biomaster filters running my 160ltr tank, a 350 and a 250, but i also have a...

Seriously tempted by the next one happening in October.

It is fair to point out that a drop checker does not come with a numerical readout for how green the greenness is, but there are easy ways to take this measurement digitally if that's important to you. The problem with numerical readouts, and this is particularly true for pH amongst the digital...

This is awesome - there is a commercial product waiting to happen here!

I bought a 'dwarf' Spathiphyllum for my tank - it stayed 'dwarf' for a few months, and then must have thought "nah, I'm not staying small anymore" - now the leaves can get in excess of 40cm.

This is an amazing experiment. I’ve been playing around with ESP32s for tank automation (water changes, cooling etc) and am very keen on seeing if I can incorporate this somewhere into my sensor suite. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

This is how the tank is looking now....absolutely stunning.

Alternatively, there is the $30-50 DIY option, it needs some wiring and programming skills though.

There seems to be a massive market for C02 measuring equipment that is both accurate and cost effective! I had a look at one of CO2 measuring units and was shocked to see $2,500 was not uncommon in the price range!

This is a good rule of thumb to work, but a ph drop of 1 would certainly mean different levels of injected CO2 in ppm at different levels of kh (and pre-injection ph levels).

Esha 2000 wird schlecht von Wirbelosen wie Schnecken und Garnelen vertragen. Sollte man nicht machen habe gerade eine ausführliche Gebrauchsanweisung zur Hand. Halte ehh nicht so viel von esha 2000 exit und Co alleine schon weil diese Medikamente das Wasser so eklig färben. Es gibt in Hamburg...

a DC shows that there is a certain concentration of CO2 present, but not the exact amount of ppm. Because your DC gets a green color at a CO2 concentration of 15ppm but you also have a green dropchecker at a concentration of 25ppm CO2

Hallo liebe Aquaristik Fans... Bin hier grad ganz neu und betreibe dieses schöne Hobby nun ca 28 Jahre. Aber man lernt ja nie aus. Ich habe vor 12 Wochen massive Vorbereitungen getroffen um nun kommende Woche endlich meine Parasiten freie Diskus Fisch Haltung und Pflege zu starten. Am...

Don't count on MTS to remove detritus. MTS will consume uneaten food and contribute more detritus from pooping and diseased shells. The only way to reduce detritus is through substrate vacuuming. I regret introducing MTS to my shrimp tank and now I have to find way to reduce their population...

Understandable point of view, but this is in fact just what a drop checker does.

Wait, I thought an "active" soil referred to it's ability to hold nutrients (CEC) rather than its store of adsorbed acid cations? So you can have a soil that has lost its buffering capacity but is still active. No?

It's a really good filter for larger aquariums. Not only is the media capacity in the FX6 huge, but the working circulation specification is also more honest and accurate. Combining both of these features will (over time) allow for plenty of turnover through lots of bio-media. Great that you...

I don't know who else would have beaten him up -- the only other Bristlenose leaves him well alone and there's nothing else looking ragged to imply fin-nipping. I've got some long-fin coreys and they're all fine. The biggest things in there apart from those are the rosy tetras :(. @Bradders I...

As I said just enjoy it and enjoy this forum. There are a huge amount of members that have a crazy amount of knowledge of the fishkeeping world on here and it's a great place to learn

Any buffer system will affect the alkalinity if the pH is within ~1 pH of the buffer's pKa (the same rule does not apply to bicarbonate buffer because of the gas nature of the "acid" part of the buffer). From your examples, phosphate would make a good buffer between ~6.2 and 8.2. For a...

Personally I wouldn't be tempted to add any fish for a good couple of weeks yet, the dark start is good for cycling the 'Nitrogen cycle' but it wasn't until you put those plants in 1.5 weeks ago that the Biorhythm would have kicked off, plus I can see that a lot, if not most of your plants have...

Didcot? Nice employer lets you run a tank. I’m not sure mine would let me, given the electricity use.

It is my workplace. I ask my boss and his answer was a fish tank why? People have plants on their deck. So is that a yes or a no and he did not answer so I just did it. He comes over from time to time to see how the shrimp are getting on. Most people when they see are very curious and come...

Nice one 👍🏻 thanks for the reassurance. Yeah i really want to try and keep it as simple as possible, but not get lazy with it, if that makes sense? I kinda regret actually posting this thread to be honest! It’s not a cheap hobby as everyone knows ( all dependant on what you want of course ) and...

I can second this. I have the 850, fully packed with material, running my 320l tank with CO2 reactor and it’s just perfect. I’d aim for a 250 or even 350 on this tank.

.

Hi mate, I live in Canterbury so not far from you and as Darrel said I also have hard water. I've just learnt to live with it and I've just worked out what works and what doesn't. Some plants thrive and some just don't but that's the beauty of it, a bit of trial and error. I also only use tap...

I've been trying to eradicate Christmas Moss from my CO2 injected tank for about two years now and I never put any in there, it obviously came in with other plants. I remove all I can find but a couple of months later I'll find a batch growing out of a clump of Buce.

I don’t think you have a problem just yet - at least not an obvious one. The L Super Red will wither at the substrate level if it grows too dense and you skip trimming for a while. I can’t speak to the H Siamensis as I haven’t cultivated this plant before but pinholes are usually an Iron/...

I ended up disassembling both the sensor and the aquarium, so unfortunately there is no update on the aeration effect. However, I do not expect to get very different data from my previous experiment. I have rebuilt the sensor, and it has now a few modifications: I pump water inside the box...

TDS is not the problem Nope, your plants shows otherwise. You have aquasoil and dose NO3 25ppm, PO4 - 2.5ppm, K - 20ppm, thereby filled up with nutrient capsules is asking for a nutrients lockdown. imo

When using a pH pen (such as the 1 point pH drop method) the KH is not relevant. for example; for a tank with 'Easy Plants' I use a drop of 0.8. For Medium Plants a pH drop of 1.0 and for a High Energy tank a pH drop of 1.2 Works as a charm, and I have not come across any better method yet.

To come back at the TDS; My tapwater is 235... Could a too high TDS value cause this kind of trouble? At first i thought it would be PO4 or K related, but those values are good. So I'm a bit lost...

Not really, it depends on how you view potassium as an issue. It really varies. You also need to consider the overall parameters—potassium is just one big piece of the puzzle. For most hobbyists, if the plants are growing, that’s all that matters. Excess potassium doesn’t necessarily stop plant...

I think this is an important point to note. Low O2 levels combined with CO2 not escaping during the night suggest that gas exchange is very slow, most likely due to low surface agitation. Increasing surface agitation would help with both oxygen delivery and CO2 degassing during the night. While...

I went deep into this rabbit hole when I restarted with the hobby 2 years ago. I may have misunderstood the principles so am happy to be corrected: There are a couple of issues at play with trying to determine CO2 concentrations. Namely that you need to know your kh (and case in point being the...

Are you able to check the actual AC power usage to see if its coil is still taking the manuals quoted Wattage,. If its within spec then likely its ok , could be worth trying a new impellor and associate impellor parts, replacing the hoses, filter pads/sponges and giving all the internals a...

No, I don't. The discrepancy between the equilibrium with the atmospheric CO2 and the 3 ppm was one of the reasons I started running some gas-exchange experiments. If you look at my first experiment, the water left in the air without aeration reached 2.7 ppm after 24 hours, although the...

Ahh really appreciate your opinion. I thought we had over stocked it haha? I ended up buying a second filter for it in the hope i didn’t harm any fish or plants. Probably slight over kill on my part.

Thanks darrel I’ll definitely have a good read on those links you’ve shared. Funny you should mention about the frogbit, because for the last couple of weeks, it’s changed? The roots weren’t growing and i had what looked like diatoms showing agin on what little roots there were. In the last few...

Thanks Darrel For cleaning I use a gravel vac and clean up any poop etc off the substrate, I change 18 litres of water to make the tap safe equation nice and simple (1ml to 9 litres) which is a 32% change. I haven't done anything with the filters until the last change where I removed one of...

I think a drop checker is not meant to measure CO2, and certainly not to adjust the CO2. It is meant to get an indication of a possible deviation of the CO2 concentration. It is not called a drop 'checker' for reason. I'm convinst the best way for us hobbyists to adjust the Co2 is still by...

What a fab distraction. Is this a home office, or did you convince your workplace to let you have an on-desk distraction? If so, please tell us your ways...

Good to know, thanks Darrel. Hopefully, MTS, RCS, and some TLC will do the trick!

Thanks Ollie! He's half of what I thought was a dwarf variety (clearly not). I might swap him out for his smaller brother in the bathroom (delaying the problem, woo!), or a slightly less chunky syngonium😅 the roots are fantastically intertwined with the moss wall, mattenfilter, substrate and...

Writing on the PC and having the pics on the phone, it takes some time and a few edits to get it all in the post hehe

Hi all, It might be, it is certainly <"worth trying">. You tend to get a lot of black <"tea grout"> faeces with all crustaceans (including shrimps and Asellus), and I'm not sure the MTS (Melanoides tuberculata) will be interested in these, they don't have a <"lot of food value"> left. cheers...

I'm excited to see photos! Hope the fish all settled in well :)

I think you can normally find the dwarf varieties in supermarkets and Homebase, and repot that big fella to enjoy him outside the tank!

Tank looks great! Plants all look healthy from what I can see and it looks like sensible stocking you've went with, it looks much better than my first effort a couple of years back :)

Finally was able to snag a photo of the Kribs. They’re sneaky fish but seem to be getting more comfortable being out when the lights are one. Did some maintenance and thinned out the moss this weekend. House is starting to look like people actually live in it.

It has been a few months past 2 years, so the second iteration of this tank was undone. Previous journal. Issues with the previous setup: too much jungle, hard to make maintenance, I didn't trim the anubias and it got out of control, many plants pressed against the glass because of all the...

Hi Darrel, Would a combination of MTS and Red Cherry Shrimp be effective on keeping the sand clean? Cheers