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I hope they manage to shed succesfully soon! Must be quite a high-light setup.

Hahaha. I recognise one or two of the usernames in those threads from past debates about plant/biofiltration on other aquatic forums, not really surpising to see that certain individuals still don't like to accept new data that is super-relavent to their hobby, even nearly 10 years on😅. Crazy...

You could, I fussed around with timers and dosing at certain times at first, but when my timer settings failed I found it doesnt seem to matter if it was tuned off, as long as if I dosed daily. Turning off the UV for a short time on a very regular basis like that still reduces effectiveness and...

UV can be beneficial in a few ways when set up with the correct wattage and flow rate for it's intended purposes. I like to use it on fish tanks I consider heavily stocked, when adding new fish or if I have a fish that had/has an uknown disease. With a high enough wattage and a low flow rate...

Slow reply but just in case anyone is wondering in the future...that's nerite poop! 🙃 It's just stuck to the shell with the snails slime lol, lovely!

Poor thing! As others have said, next time she moults it should get better. It's just a bad moult, it happens occasionally, don't worry :). Just be aware the next moult might be more difficult, so keep an eye on her. If your not already feeding a specialist invertabrate food containing a...

Yes, those are deffo daphnia cysts, not sure which species though sorry! I used to seperate them out from fairy shrimp and triops eggs you can buy mixed toether in dried pond detritus and hatch them in pure water with no minerals (like rain or RO). I'm not sure what would trigger these ones to...

Hmmm, is it more seaweedy, or like an eggy sulphur smell? I find seaweedy smells tend to come with more algae, and eggy smells with lots of decaying organics - both could be happening here! Almost certainly IMO it's just that disturbing the submerse plant roots has also disturbed the waste...

Shouldn't be a problem, especially after 2 years. I would keep as many floating plants as you can and don't remove all the floating ones your removing at once though, just to avoid any temporary water quality fluctuations from suddenly removing 70% plant mass. Removing submerse growth is always...

Just wanted to say thanks for this recommendation, and that Vetark Fluke-Solve worked brilliantly for clearing the scutariella from my "wild" Neocaridina that arrived with this parasite! I was super worried about adding artifical chemical treatment to my invert tank, but noticed no issues with...

Yay my favourite thread is back 😁. Funny the frog came indoors with the fish! Would be cool if you got some hybrid goldfish fry that look like wakins! I love goldfish but am scared to breed fancies again, since so many of the fry end up deformed with odd shaped eyes, fins, spine etc. and need...

Fluval Sea Liquid Calcium is just calcium chloride, dissolved in water. So you are paying for the packaging and fuel/logistics costs of shipping mainly water. I used to use Kent Marine Liquid Calcium (which is the same) all the time for my snails due to my soft water, until I realised it is...

Almost, but not quite comic sans lol 🙃. Joking aside, I think it's a great update!

Ah, I did totally miss this, sorry! My mind registered this as the same link Zozo posted for some reason 😅. Having now read it, I can say with certainty Dennis Wong never implies it's a fallacy that fish food and tap water provide all the nutiritents plants need. He simply explained that in his...

Let's be clear I'm not advocating avoiding fertilisers for any reason, just clarifying that fish food and the water do contain everything needed for plant growth and extra fertiliser simply is not nessesary for a planted tank. Adding fertiliser obviously makes it easier, but I totally would...

It's not a fallacy at all, you are just misconstruing what I've stated ;). Every element essential for plant growth is present betweeen fish food and tap water, you don't need to add more unless you want to avoid any particular element being a limiting factor to growth. But without adding any...

After reading about these set-ups and dosing regimes, I can't see any particular evidence that a lack of any nutrient is inhibiting growth. Fish food and and the ADA substrate could contain all of the nutrients needed, the higher the light intensty and the more CO2 provided, the less likely...

Your rasboras are deffo in for a treat! Nice to see a big happy Amano shrimp too ☺️.

Fish poop can provide everything plants need, as fish food and tap water contain all the elements nessesary to grow plants. Many people keep planted aquariums with no fertiliser added or water changes (such as Walstad style tanks), the plants just grow much more slowly compared to tanks with...

Water simply goes in down though the sponges, and out up through the media baskets. Same design since the 04 series, but each new iteration seems to have slightly more efficient media choices, a stronger pump and more durable priming handle.

Now I want this algae in my tank lol! Very interesting, I'm sure my nerites and plecs would eat it faster than it could grow though, unlike the BBA which they basically ignore once established.

I remember looking on eBay for antique (non-stainless steel) nails after reading a similar discussion on UKAPS in the past. In the thread I remember, somebody had jokingly pointed out that this is basically what ADA sell with a very high mark-up 🤣. If I ever considered doing a Walstad tank with...

Just make sure they are buried deep in the substrate and don't come loose (otherwise you could have an ammonia spike). I prefer the clay+peat fertiliser balls now, you can make them yourself, or buy them cheaply online too. Osmocote leaves little platic balls kicking around the tank and...

On top of the explained redundancy of adding more copper, it's also one of the more risky to overdose for some tank inhabitants, especialy invertebrates like shrimp and snails. As mentioned above, metals are toxic to many orgainsims in relatively low concentrations. Generally people worry too...

I find my fast growing stem plants always show signs of potassium deficiency when I just dose my mix of KNO3 and KH2PO4, so I usually just add a teaspoon(ish) of soluble "Sulphate of Potash" to the bucket whenever adding new water to the tank. I usually add Epsom salt (magnesium sulphate) at the...

Differing opinions on water changes but I'd personally always do extra water changes if I saw an injury/illness. A 50% change every day shouldn't create any instabilitites or fish issues IMO unless the tank is improperly set up, or you have drastically different stats in your tap water compared...

I've fed frozen daphnia and Amano/cherry shrimp gobble it up fine, the same as any other frozen food. Not particuialry beneficial for shrimp, not bad either. It's a natural food higher in protein than many dedicated shrimp foods, so not ideal as a main diet but the extra protein is maybe good...

That is quite low! But do you have any indications of calcium deficency, are you wanting to prevent moulting issues with freshwater shrimp, or something else specific? If it's just for plants and you have soft water it's probably easier and better for your plants to just chuck some shells or...

They are different sizes physcially so won't fit unfortunately!

What is the "risk" you are worried about? As explained above, the Eheim Classics have a more simple design with less bypass, making them better at actually filtering. However, your priority seems to be turnover (as it should be for a typical lightly/medium stocked planted tank), and unless you...

Would deffo reccomend oyster shells! I'm sure the cherries would be fine without it, but with those stats, both cherries and tigers would appreciate some extra minerals from the oyster grit anyway, so why not? :) You could even just hide a few shells from the beach in the tank and test the...

CaCl2 is great :). I use a DIY liquid made with it sometimes, just for peace-of-mind that my snails/shrimp/triops have enough bioavailable calcium in my soft tap water - although it's probably not needed at all. Many years ago people used to reccomend Kent Marine Liquid Calcium, "Snail Strong"...

I enjoy learing about the chemsitry and often make my own fert mixes, but I presume you are making your own because you can't readily/cheaply source a pre-made trace mix where your located in the Phillipines ATM? Your current mix seems great, assuming your dosing macros separately and aren't...

I used to use a 2213 and 2215 personally, and still have the 2215 sitting in the shed where it's been for years. I replaced them with Fluval 105s and a 405 over 10 years ago, and the Fluvals are stll going stong! I chose to get Fluvals for ease of manitenence. The Eheim classics get great...

Could be environmental, since your not injecting CO2, the plants will be competing heavily with each other for this, and the Juncus may just be compartitlevly bad at this in your specific conditions. It could even be the influeunce of allelopathy, or your plants/beneficial biofilm may be...

Old topic, but thought I would note for future readers - those look like nerite eggs on it's shell to me! If the snails have been kept with nerites at any point in time, like in a dealers tank, that could be where they came from.

I also use Tescos thin bleach for recharging Purigen and it goes white, I think I maybe get 5-10 recharges before it's permenantly stained light brown and I change it. I soak in bleach for 24h then rinse it under that tap and leave it in some DI/RO water for another 24h with some dry sodium...

H.polysperma "Rosanverig" is a bit different from other red/variegated plant varieties in that the colouration is believed to be caused by infection of a specific virus as opposed to purely genetic traits, so it makes sense to me that it responds to light differently than other red plants :).

I think we've all been there! I bought a round indoor tub pond to house my growing goldfish after being inspired by this thread...many life distractions happened and it is currently still just being used as a storage box for aquarium related stuff... I come to this thread for aquatic...

I've I've done this a few times with damselfly nymphs that came into my aquariums on plants, cost me quite a few betta fry though, which I was quite conflicted about, but damsels are smaller so most fry quickly grew too large to be at risk! https://i.imgur.com/bPhcYDF.jpg...

Aww now they might starve :P. J/k I'm sure they'll find some mosquito larvae or something to eat, they may just grow up a bit slower. Loving the pics as always :).

Raising Amano zoes is hard, I've tried and failed miserably before, lets hope they just never had the opportunity to and then forgot to post, but the documentation and effort here is commendable even if they all died!

She is very skinny (on top of not being pregnant - rare for Endlers!) and unhealthy looking :/. Could just be and older, weaker individual that hasn't been able to compete for food in the shop tank, or there could be some internal illness. What does her poo look like? (Is she eating OK?)

They are grow lights that give off a very pink light, like an even pinker version of the Salvinia Grolux or Arcadia Original tropical florescent bulbs. They grow plants well but look very unnatural over an aquarium. You would also need a heat sink (ideally with a fan) or they are a bit of a...

I've kinda suspected this for a while now, the "moss balls" we buy for aquariums do look a bit different (longer/courser algal strands) and less uniform than pictures of examples collected from nature. I guess true Marimo algae needs colder water with less competition from other algae and plant...

I've used them too, I got some freebie root fertiliser balls in my last order :thumbup:.

You might like the thread below :). https://www.ukaps.org/forum/threads/little-shop-of-horrors-how-ei-frightened-the-gardener.123/

Just that EI kit is needed, it already includes chelated trace elements and a separate bottle for them too :).

There are massive benefits with the dry kit IMO - the trace mix ad macro mix are separate so it's more effective, it's cheaper (your not paying to have heavy water transported), more environmentally friendly and will last longer in storage. Some people see iron deficiency in their plants when...

Nope, no need to avoid them! Red plants are great, and not necessarily harder to grow than green plants :). A select few red species in particular can be a bit fussy, mainly preferring softer water and requiring high light levels, but most don't have this issue. Also, some red species may grow...

Cladophora - I have the same stuff that loves to smother my Anubias, Bolbitis and even water lettuce roots. I don't mind it too much, although it is a bit time consuming picking it off leaves when I do a water change. I started to get it after adding several Marimo "moss balls" too, so I...

Love that slate mini wall btw!

Mine do the same, I have a couple of hybrid Nepenthes that used to grow lots of pitchers in my old house, but have only made one or two random pitchers since I moved house in 2014 :/. It's good that the air in my house isn't very humid...but I do low-key hope the next place I live has higher...

I've used both now, I actually only tried Rhizotonic after seeing this thread. Personally, for aquarium use I would stick to Rhizotonic as it is formulated specifically with hydroponic use in mind, while the other cheaper alternatives may be even better than Rhizotonic for use in other growing...

I've been using Stanley/utility blades to clean aquarium glass* for 10+ years and wont go back to using anything else. Very cheap, clean very well, faster and better than anything else. No expensive holder needed, obviously just be careful because it's a sharp blade. Magnet cleaners always...

Can't really tell without a video, there's no actual breeding shown in the pictures, but the big one is a female and the small one on top is deffo a male (the one behind very much looks like a male too, but without knowing how large they are now I wouldent want to make a more definite judgement...

Hungry fish of most species will take advantage of weakened individuals...how many fish are in the tank and how often/how much do you feed? That particular juvenile guppy might have been more hungry for some reason, or even just genetically more "aggressive", and once the other fish observe an...

"Good enough", yep! That's pretty low light, but shade loving slow growers like Anubias and Java fern and most aquatic mosses would do fantastic. The reduced CO2 demand from the slower growth will make things easy and you should have relativity little algae growth. Remember the plants will...

Have you thought about foliar feeding the emergent leaves? Maybe it would respond to that? Just a couple of light sprays very early in the morning before any direct sunlight or later in the day as the sun goes down. If it responds positively, I would presume something else it getting the...

Very healthy looking! I love Drosera and have plants to grow many more from seed. I don't actually have any regular D.capensis, but my D.capensis "Giant" has just started o flower at the same time as yours (I've attached some pictures below). Mine is 5 years old started from seed and is in a...

You could get an A4 sheet of stainless steel mesh on eBay pretty cheaply and make our own intake. You'd get to choose the size of the mesh too. I did this and just wrapped it around the top part of an old Fluval intake, wrapping the bottom with a small piece of stocking and securing everything...

The way that particular Aqua-el filter (pretty low flow IME), the heater would ideally be right next to the filter :thumbup:. If this will be a "high-tech" CO2 injected tank, you will probably need to add an extra circulation pump to keep CO2 distribution consistent, at which point it doesn't...

Just keep a relatively clean aquarium with little organic debris lying around and they won't breed out of control, if you have soft water they wont breed and grow as fast either. Also, with a large population of cherry shrimp, the shrimp will always out compete the snails (and sometimes eat the...

I mean, it's possible that they sent you multiple whole sporangia in a bag, but unfortunately that doesn't look like what is even in the eBay listing's pictures :(. As Fissidens is a moss, it has spores instead of relatively large seeds like in the pictures. I would guess they will say they...

Realy sorry to say OP, but I have to say I think Zozo is right about the "seeds" being a scam :( . I've seen the seeds/spores many different aquatic plant and moss species available for sale on eBay, usually the deal is too good to be true. I purchased some Glossostigma seeds on a whim, as you...

I would personally rule out the otos and the RCS, most likely culprits are the Amano shrimp and SAE. I've had the same damage in the past with just SAE but I never saw them eat the plants, I figured they had accidentally broken the growing tips when trying to eat algae from them, I don't think...

In the UK I've only been to the Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh (I live in Edinburgh so visit multiple times a year, it's free apart from most of the glasshouses) and Benmore, I do really want to visit more too though. Not sure how it compares to other botanic gardens around the UK, but I think...

Your making me want to start adding CO2 again, beautiful pearling! Was this taken mid-photoperiod or just after a water change?

I had always assumed that Rhizotonic was basically just expensive water and some B vitamins like Super Thrive (which I've always kinda wanted to try, but the marketing just screams "snake oil" haha), but if it has kelp or seaweed in it too, I can see it being a very useful product in the way you...

My 105 and 405 are over 10 years old and still going strong, if one of them dies I'd probably replace it with the newer model, but there doesn't seem to be any features compelling me to upgrade.

I've always been a lurker at the Barr Report forums but don't think I ever posted there, I remember migrating here from Tropical Fish Forums in 2008, quite a few experienced members came from the TFF aquatic plant section, and UKAPS was an official exception to their rules against linking to...

I learnt a lot from that post, thanks! :) I've had a lily tuber for many years that I've been taking out and giving a "rest" period in a tub of damp sphagnum for a couple of months every year whenever it stops growing, after reading your post, it seems I may not need to be going through this...

Loved your previous bathtub journals and very much looking forward to this one, thanks for always sharing your garden paradise :). These threads are full of inspiration, even though my outdoor water gardening attempts haven't really amounted to more than floating plants in multiple buckets of...

Yep, some people do put them in their fridge for a dormant period lol, I don't really like that idea though as I would prefer them to have some light and circulation. While lighting triggers do help to signal dormancy, they do seem to have an actual requirement for a cold rest period as well...

Nice pictures! :) Rub/shake the flowers a bit and you might get seeds (they can self pollinate). You can also cut the slower stalk and use it to propagate a clone by just sticking it in the media next to the parent (low success rate, but also very low-effort and has worked for me a couple of...

Wow, that is very interesting. A plant that almost seems to practice agriculture, thanks for sharing!

Will be following with interest, I've never managed to raise the larvae but have been meaning to make a proper attempt for years. Good luck! :)

The same happens to my ramshorns if I keep them in any tank/jar that gets direct sunlight. Right now I just have a bumblebee nerite in my goldfish tank with BBA on her shell, doesn't look as stylish lol but I'll try snap a quick pic next time she's out out at the front .

I would probably only ever use those smart plugs for lighting tbh, wouldn't trust them for something like a CO2 solenoid!

I use a "smart plug", you can easily set various on/off schedules via an app on your phone and also turn the aquarium lights on/off using the app when your at home, if you ever want to for some reason lol. Works great for me :)...

Any Vallisneria sp. should do great with goldfish, I have "Jungle Vallis" in sand with my goldfish (also "low-tech"). Try to let it establish itself before adding the goldfish if you can, or place some nice smooth round sandstone pebbles on top of the newly planted Vallis to reduce the chances...

I like to use fine sand with goldfish, but if you think that will be too messy, fine gravel.

I'll second both water mint (add to salads/sandwiches) and L.aromatica (add to stir-fry), I haven't eaten any submersed growth though. I've also grown basil with it's roots in the aquarium but it really does better in a pot on the windowsill.

Yeah, can't be 100% sure without a clearer close-up, but the movement in the video and the shape are consistent with harmless ostracods. In all of the pictures, they can only be seen feeding on already dead plant tissue. I think your plants are suffering from a deficiency of potassium (possibly...

Awesome, well spotted, cheers Darrel! Definitely a Hygrophila spp.! Could be H.corymbosa of some variety, time to sift through hundreds of Google image search results lol! If the Chinese eBay seller had just sold these has "Hygrophila sp. seeds", I would have bought them anyway :lol:. Some of...

2 X weekly water changes is only "too many" if you want to do less, in which case you should feed your fish less or just keep less fish in the tank :). Hydrogen peroxide is only going to kill algae that you squirt it on, it will not stop algae growing back on the leaves, in fact it could damage...

Built-in UV systems are very inefficient and are only useful in preventing green water - something that shouldn't be a constant issue in a planted tank anyway, so are only remotely useful for the first few weeks, after which the bulbs just wastes electricity with no measurable benefits for the...

If you think excess phosphates cause algae, you don't understand EI ;). It's the healthy plant growth from adding excess nutrients (EI) that combats algae, not limiting the nutrients to certain levels. If you want to feed your fish more, feed your fish more. It will increase organic waste...

As you are actively growing biofilm for feeding, sounds like everything is in hand. IMO I very much doubt you are doing too many water changes, more likely to be too few if you are having dying shrimp. TDS doesn't indicate too much really, what's your tap water TDS/other stats like? What are...

Are you seeing any magnesium or calcium deficiencies? If not, then no need to add anything else. Adding more will give you no improvements. Not sure? Then adding a little extra can't hurt, at worst it will just be a waste of time. The whole point of EI is to keep things easy by dosing more...

This is definitely due to it trying to adapt to the new conditions, it's not doing too well, but could recover! I find in my non-CO2 tanks it easily melts like this if its is placed somewhere with far more light than it was receiving before. Can you move the rhizomes somewhere with more shade...

Being full of air...would cork bark not rot quite quickly under water? I've used cork bark in vivariums and paludariums, never really thought of using it submerged because it is so buoyant, seems like such an awkward thing to use to me!

I cant see any bugs? The black specs just look like algae/silt but the pictures aren't really clear enough to see, it maybe looks like a bug in the 5th pic but can't ID it without more detail Insects aren't normally a problem for submersed plants in aquariums, if there was any in there, they...

Repashy Soilent Green would be perfect for feeding them. What you are feeding already sounds great though, I'd be personally feeding more algae wafers if they are breeding and you have growing babies. My favorite wafers are Hikari, the mini ones are an idea size for ottos :thumbup:. Congrats...

Just thought I'd post an update - this plant is still growing well, it has flowered and now has what looks like seed pods: Still no idea what species it actually is though, it tries to grow submersed too but I have it in a goldfish tank so any new shoots are quickly eaten. The main stems are...

Still growing! Although it seems to be deficient in iron and/or nitrogen, and the top part of the plant has grown past the T5 luminaire so doesn't receive much light. Also the two big fancy goldfish in the tank have eaten most of the roots :lol:. I've placed more stones in the tank to help...

Critical for what though? :) For myself, with soft water, I find it is critically important to add GH booster in order to avoid spinal/fin deformities in guppy fry and also to avoid potassium deficiency in certain fast growing stem plants like Hygrophila polysperma. If I wasn't breeding hard...

Looks great! That tree trunk is especially nice, will be even more beautiful once the ferns start growing on it. I think 3 x T5 tubes is too much for a non-CO2 tank, unless you have some floating plants to block light. Personally, I would also dose more nutrients for the epiphytic plants. It's...

Welcome ;).

As Darrel says, definitely don't. I use the stuff for cooking and sometimes for hatching brine shrimp because I have a bag of it, I also have a lamp made of it because I think it looks nice. It is mainly sodium chloride, I've read some theories that the minerals in it could be from brine shrimp...