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Apologies for the delay. Thanks very much for the detailed replies and also the link to the Journal. Not sure how I missed that. More than enough for now.

Hey, Just wondering if you guys could please provide some tips on how best to use a lot of high rocks in a scape. I really like the great work done by Pedro Rosa in "The Forsaken World Aquarium": http://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLgdyuZMqiXbhhkk3dwRRbfyKF29RTDKtI Below are some...

I'm actually in Dubai otherwise i'd take you up on the offer Darrel, thanks. I'll keep an eye out here though. Ok, i'll continue to monitor and do water changes. So I don't need to worry about the substrate creating this Nitrite due to how it was stored? That is my main worry. It's great...

Hey guys, Looking for a bit of advice please. I setup a small low tech tank for my 4 x German Blue Rams last Friday. I used a new bag of ADA Amazonia however the substrate has been in a bucket of water for the last 4 months and I kept draining and replacing the water every 2 weeks, give or...

How big is your tank? If it's 250 litres+ how about an automated (scheduled) water changer?

You could even rub the "S" out and pretend it's from Takashi Amano. :)

Sounds good. I don't suppose you have any before and after pictures?

It's looking amazing! Great Journal, learning a lot. Going to be some very lucky fish/shrimp to eventually move in here :)

OK, I think I know what you mean. Are you talking about these? (Chocbox):

Wow, quick reply. :) I'm actually in Dubai so not sure we have those extender blocks. I'll check though. Failing that could I just buy some of this cable and manually extend myself? ie: Twist exposed wires together and tape up? Or is there a better solution?

I've purchased a couple of Koralia Nano powerheads however the cables are not long enough to reach my multi-plug adaptor. Would I be ok to just cut the cable in the middle and connect an extra piece of cable in the middle? Is there anything special I should consider? Connection type / Wire...

Message received and clear as gin! Cheers Clive.

Thanks for reading and for the quick replies. Sure, I can work on playing with this and try to increase the CO2 prior to lights on. Thanks for confirming Clive. I'm in Dubai, where liquid carbon isn't really available, so i'll work on what Tim said to increase CO2 while not losing fish...

Forgot to mention: Lights are: 3 hours back 2 bulbs 3 hours front 2 bulbs The only algae I can see is the green spots on the glass which needs manually removing every 2 to 3 weeks (not too bad).

Guys, Seems the harder I try the worse things get. I'd really welcome any input as its getting a bit demoralising to be honest. About 7 or 8 weeks ago I moved from a ceramic diffuser to an inline large UP Atomizer. Regulator was increased to 36 psi as recommended and I quickly got it tuned...

Thanks for the great replies guys. Much appreciated.

Hey, Installed an inline atomizer yesterday and just have a couple of questions. Atomizer : UP Inline Large Super CO2 Atomizer http://www.tankscape.co.uk/co2-and-glassware/atomizers/UP-Inline-Large-Super-CO2-Atomizer-16-22mm-(D-519-16-L) Regulator : Set to 36 psi as recommended When CO2 is...

Hi, I have a similar situation next week. Leaving 5th returning 13th. Someone will be around to drop a pre-portioned bit of food in once or twice but I don't want them dosing etc as unsure which days they can do. Would you recommend turning the lights off for the complete trip? Does it matter...

Whenever I google 2224 the posts are mainly from 2008/2009. I had assumed the 2424 was the newer, and possibly improved, version? I've read that the 2224 is nowhere near the 700 lph as quoted so was hoping this might be better.

Guys, Anyone know if the new Eheim eXperience range is available anywhere in the UK? I'm interested in the 250 (2424). http://www.eheim.com/en_GB/products/tec ... experience I'll be visiting the UK early December and hoping to order one to bring back with me. Cheers.

This has turned into a great thread with plenty of good information. Also nice link to the Atomiser thread as well. Cheers. Paul - I'm pretty much in the same situation as you right now and learning a lot from here. From what i've read and been told, don't try to think of it as "low light"...

Hi, Looks like you're going for a top end high tech tank. One thing you might be struggling with is that most people on here recommend 10x filtration. ie: a filter with 700 lph on a 70 litre tank. Your tank is about 65 litres so you should be looking at 650 lph minimum. The classic 250 only...

Thanks for the replies. That link was VERY good. Really appreciate that, I had searched the forum but did not see that one.

Hey, Well, exactly 1 day after seeing this photo and having the fish described as Electric Blue Rams my LFS has received an order of German Blue Rams and Bolivian Rams. :D The fish are currently in quarantine in the shop after travelling and will be available in the next few days. I'm...

Looks amazing. Pretty jealous of you guys able to attend. 2 Questions about the photos: What are these blue fish? Did one of the UKAPS members create this? I would like to contact them with some questions

Hi, Your situaiton sounds similar to mine. I'm using an Eheim 2260 with the 1262 pump (3,400 lph) on a 1.5m tank. My spray bar is 1.3m long. I'd recommend reading my thread for more detailed information: http://ukaps.org/forum/viewtopic.php?f= ... 10#p242117 By the way, I wouldn't go with a...

Anyone else seeing this or just me? Beautiful tank.

I love my Juwel Rio (even more now the internal filter is removed) but that All Ponds Solutions looks sweet. How much with the lights? May have to keep an eye on the water evaporation though

Hi, Yes, I am very grateful for the feedback and have no doubts now that my issues are CO2 & flow related. I'm going to try and switch over from a large Ceramic diffuser to a large Atomizer. Just waiting for the bits and bobs to arrive in the next week or so. To be honest, from the distance I...

Re: Baby shrimp successfully hatched from a dead female! Nice to hear it worked for you. I found this article a while back but never put it into practise : http://www.planetinverts.com/Artificall ... 0Eggs.html Sounds similar to your situation.

Thanks for the replies. I do plan on making some changes to the CO2 in the next couple of weeks, leaning towards the AM1000 minus the bio balls at the moment. Once that is improved, using the drop checkers, i'll wait and see if flow is still an issue. Hesitant to increase the Ferts at the...

Thanks. I believe this plant is Microsorum pteropus 'Windeløv'. I can't seem to find anything about tentacles. Could this be a type of algae? Hi, the plants were purchased from Tropica. I'm not sure if they grow emersed or not. I think once the new growth gets to a reasonable size I may try...

Hi, Can some of you more experienced members please take a look at my photos and try to steer me in the right direction into getting my tank on the right path? It's my first tank and I am kind of learning as i'm going along. Tank is around 2 to 3 months old: Juwel Rio 400 (125 gallons). CO2...

I don't think so. I have one and it appears to be fixed at 1 bar. My plan is to try and use it on a 60 x 30 x 30 tank with an UP Atomiser even though it states 1.5 bar. Is this what you're thinking?

Really nice post Clive. I always seem to get great visualisations in my head while reading your posts, helps the information stay in there. R, If price wasn't enough of an advantage between EI and purchased ferts, you must have read the saying "every tank is different"? Well EI dosing allows...

Personally I would say hold off on the safe start and just wait out the cycle period, it will be better in the end. You're nearly there anyway. I did the same as you, the Nitrates started to appear around 21 to 25 days, and then cycle finished fairly quickly after that. Perhaps reduce the...

Looks like Infinity Aquariums are getting a TV show: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ILnvRnfb ... re=g-all-u Here's their YouTube channel: http://www.youtube.com/user/InfinityAquariums They also do the occasional planted tank: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8t2iFUBt2yo&feature=plcp Another...

OK, thanks. I see they have an iPad app so will check that out later. £3.99 per download sounds expensive though. How much is the magazine?

What is PKF? Is it available online (PDF format)? Perhaps via Apple App Store? Thanks

I'd be keen to give this a go but it says it ships from Hong Kong with a 3 to 5 week lead time. Is this what you did? I had a few of these included in a shipment from the green machine but they always end up leaking for me after 2 weeks: I'm using them on my CO2 line but the water in the drop...

You might want to check out my forum topic in the DIY section. Clive has been helping me with something similar. How big is your tank? The 16/22mm eheim tube will stretch over 1/2inch PVC. This is what I did for a 1.3m spray bar. Fluval sell a spray bar kit which I think is cheap in the UK...

Hey Clive, Thanks for the reply. I'll leave the setup for a week and see how it goes. It'll be like a bootcamp for the fish, gets them up and moving instead of sitting on the bottom :) My drop checker actually turned back to dark blue this morning so I guess the surface movement is good. It...

Hey Clive, Thanks for all your help. It took a bit of time but I finally got the spray bar installed yesterday. Sadly it was too difficult on my own to physically measure the output flow due to the 1.3m spray bar. How important is this? I can try and talk the wife into helping at some point. I...

Firstly, I want to state that you're about to read advice from a guy that is only installing his first spray bar TOMORROW :) I have a thread in the DIY section and Clive (ceg4048) has been helping me too. He stated that the output size of all the holes needs to equal the output size of the...

Have any of you tried to build or put together an ADA Opti-White style tank? I've never seen one in the flesh and just wondering how they are put together? Assuming we are looking at the front pane, how is this siliconed to the base? Is it pressed down onto the base or pressed up against the...

Looking good. Is it wrong admiring another man's wood? Just a quick question on the Eheim 2211. How do you find it for a 30 to 40 litre? I've just picked one up and thinking about it for a similar size tank. Did you pack it with filter media? I was going to fill 1/2 to 3/4 with siporax and the...

Guys, I have found this: This sounds promising but what does it mean? What is a module and why do you need it? What is a dimmable driver and how do you set it? Sorry, like I said in the first post, i'm pretty clueless on this topic. Could someone offer some basic help?

Thanks for the help and advice. I did a little test today and the 16/22mm tube did in fact stretch with hot water and slid on with some vegetable oil. So i'll give the hose tails a complete miss and relax a bit. I've cut and cemented the PVC today for the Intake, Outflow + Spray Bar. Spray...

Hey guys, I've ordered this for a small 2ft shrimp tank i'm going to build: http://www.thatpetplace.com/truelumen-p ... white-24in I'm just waiting for it to arrive so I can finalise the exact length of the tank. Not sure if I want the LED resting on the glass yet or on the stilts. As I said...

Hi, I've just ordered some LED Strips which can be dimmed and come with an inline manual dimmer. The plan is to have the LEDs on a timer but I wondered if it would be possible to have them fade in and out on the timer as well? Could someone please explain to me in basic terms and steps how...

Ditto. Looks amazing. Please tell me this isn't your first tank and that you've been doing this for a while. :)

Thanks Clive, really appreciate your input. All makes sense. I'll stick to the reduced lighting until I get the external filter installed and improve the CO2 flow, and will forget about the test kits and red plants for now. Is there anything I should be doing with the GSA? Or should I just...

I'm trying to see if I can source the Fluval Spray Bar kit here but looks doubtful. Failing that i'm probably going to have to go with the PVC spray bar. I'm as confused as you. It turns out 1/2" PVC isn't 1/2 inch. See here (http://www.all-about-pipe.com/pvc-pipe-dimensions.html). 1/2" has OD...

Thanks Clive By CO2 issue, do you mean bad circulation or not enough CO2? I guess these are related and bad circulation causes not enough in some areas. When I tested my PO4 prior to the WC it mentioned 1.8ppm. In your tutorial (http://www.ukaps.org/EI.htm) you mention a recommended value of...

Hey, I'll try and explain whats happening and it would be great if you could offer some advice. Tank Info: Tank is a Juwel Rio 400 (125g) with pressurised CO2 using a 50mm DoAqua! Ceramic Diffuser. It's currently positioned below the internal filter's outflow which blows the bubbles down and...

It's been a couple of weeks of dosing the following EI on my 125g 3 times week: 1 tsp KN03 1/2 tsp Monopotassium Phosphate 3 tsp Magnesium Sulphate 2 times week: 1/2 tsp trace elements These values were recorded just before my 50% weekly water change today: pH: 6.0 NO3: 40 PO4: 1.8 Fe: 0.8...

Re: Water changes when cycling? Planting early shouldn't be an issue but definitely add CO2 and keep the ammonia at the appropriate level. Like I said, too much ammonia will cause your cycle to be longer and possibly do harm to the plants. If you keep an eye on it then you should be fine. I...

Re: Water changes when cycling? Oh, and I was advised that it is sometimes best to only put the plants in after the ammonia has stopped leaching as this can sometimes cause the plants to melt beyond repair. So if possible, cycle the tank, empty 90% of the water, install the plants, then refill...

Re: Water changes when cycling? I have a 125g tank and was advised to keep the ammonia at 3ppm during the fishless cycle. I used 3 bags of ADA Amazonia in my 125g tank and found that it leached over 5ppm. I therefore did 30% water changes every 3 to 4 days to try and keep ammonia around 3ppm...

Clive, Thanks for the detailed reply. Noted your points on the intake and I'll try and position it to capture dirt. 3/4" PVC fits snug to the 25/34mm tube so this is sorted. I'm still struggling a bit with the outflow. I have 2 options: 1) Use the standard tube (16/22mm) and connect to a...

Do any of you guys keep and breed Blue Pearl Shrimps? I recently picked up a few for a dedicated nano shrimp tank. I can't seem to find firm or consistant parameters for keeping these shrimp and just wondered what were your parameters? Are the colours bright and are they breeding ok? Thanks.

Hi, haven't started yet, just getting all the bits together and planning. Thanks for the tip on the hose fitting. I'll keep a look out for those. The filter will be underneath the tank in the left side cabinet. Given the choice which assembly should be the longest? The Intake or the Spray Bar...

Hi, The standard fittings for my eheim 2260 do not fit too well on my tank so i'm thinking of DIYing a new PVC Intake and Spray Bar Outflow. I'm going to use the tubes that came with the filter and put both into 2-way tap connectors. What is then the best way to connect the tubes to the PVC...

Hi, It's essentially an empty 18ltr bin with no trays or compartments. They provide a little plastic stand with 4 legs that everything sits on but I think that's it. See this thread where the guy fills to the top : http://www.monsterfishkeepers.com/forum ... ost2460726 My query is if I fill...

A couple of people have mentioned only part filling the external filter to improve water flow. I just wondered if this would cause a problem with the water flow inside the filter? I mean, if the canister is only half filled then could the water entering the bottom, and being pushed up, dislodge...

I think you know this but don't squeeze the white pad into the tank, you'll put the dirt back in. Just rinse in a bowl of tank water to remove the dirt then replace.

Why do people say "they are up themselves"? I guess everyone's experience is different but for me they are by far the BEST company I have dealt with in the industry. They have always gone out of their way to actually talk to me and explain things in detail, either on the phone or via email...

I'm waiting to subscribe to the Journal! :)

LOL :D Yeah, i'm pretty fixed in my head for setting this up separately and running both for a time. He's offered me this for 50 GBP (he said it was his wholesale price) : http://www.zooplus.co.uk/shop/fish/filt ... lter/48416 Appreciate the comments on the Siporax but the above seems like...

Cheers for the replies. Main aim is to improve the water flow. Getting rid of the black box is a bonus. Appreciate the comments regarding instant cycling of the new filter by using the old media but i'd rather move away from these sponges and properly setup the new filter. I hear when correctly...

I'm looking to pick up an Eheim 2260 later this week with a view to improve water flow and replace my internal Juwel filter, will run both for around 3 months, then this will be the only pump / filter on my Juwel Rio 400 (125 g / 450 l). I will probably also swap the pump for the Eheim 1262 (900...

Hey Iain, How's that pump working out? I'm still torn between adding a dedicated external pump to greatly improve circulation or perhaps adding an external filter for improved filtration and slightly improved circulation. Do you have any thoughts on the Eheim Classic 1500XL (2260)? I believe...

Cheers Iain, Any chance of updating your findings on this thread after testing? Noted your points on the head height. I'll measure and check that out. Any information on this: Does the pump come with anything?

Looks very nice but shipping to Dubai would prob cost 1000x more than it's value. :) Once I get sorted i'll DIY one. Perhaps it was your DIY thread I was looking at yesterday. Regarding the pumps, apologies for being a noob but how are they setup? If I go external then the pump will most...

Thanks for the tip. I've searched a lot about spray bars and they do seem like a good option. Would 1 long spray bar along the top of the back wall be enough, spraying water towards the front glass? I'm probably not going to install an external filter system yet so could I run a spray bar from...

Thanks guys, i'm just now starting to find time to look into this in more detail. So really the extra flow is to just help circulate the CO2 and EI dosing and not really to do with extra filtering? At the moment i'm not in a position to change the filter system so will remain with the internal...

Just wanted to say thanks again to everyone for the very quick and informative information. Time to grow some plants! :D

I'd welcome any thoughts on the level of sulphur. I'm estimating 0.2ppm per week based on 1.3% and 1 tsp per week. This site appears to say some Sulphur is ok and yet another item to "Stimulates rapid plant growth", god help me :) http://www.yamatogreen.com/plantnutrients101.htm The Fetrilon...

Thanks guys, :thumbup: Here's my current setup: Juwel Rio 400 (450 litres) - 150cm x 55cm x 55cm I believe Juwel Jumbo Internal Filter (1000 litres per hour) Pressurised CO2 (5 kg I think) 50mm Do!Aqua Ceramic Diffuser - below filter outflow which helps circulate the bubbles I've started...

Clive / Hoggie, cheers for the replies and help with the calculations. These make sense and i'm going to give it a go. No need for the walk-through on the exact ppm calculations for now :) Can you please help me understand why Magnesium Sulphate is used? Is it just to harden the water? If so...

Cheers Clive, that makes sense. The EI document here mentions 0.5ppm per week so I can calculate this now : http://www.ukaps.org/EI.htm Could you please help show me how to work out the following: Nitrate (NO3) 20ppm per week Potassium (K) 30ppm per week Phosphate (PO4) 3ppm per week Magnesium...

Hi guys, Thanks for the reassuring replies. What is the best way to work out the ppm levels of the elements? Is there a formula or is it more of a test and see, using liquid tests? If using a liquid test when is the best time to test? Shortly after dosing?

Hi, I know these products are available via mail order but I am currently living in the Middle East - Dubai. It would be too difficult to bring in powders and have to explain to customs etc. Based on this, does anyone think the above would be suitable? Are the element percentages/ratios of...

Guys, I'm struggling to purchase CSM+B locally. Do you think this would be suitable? Based on these ratios could I just dose as normal CSM+B? Sorry, I'm very new to EI dosing. Thanks

wow, wasn't planning on using the cover on my nano shrimp tank next week - not so sure now. I bet good money your dog isn't so slow next time! :)

Seriously, cheers Ceg for your reply. Very clear. Much appreciated

Hi, I have a large CO2 diffuser below the outflow pump of my internal filter. This does a good job of pushing the tiny CO2 bubbles along the back wall of the tank. Everything looks good but the trouble is not many bubbles are reaching the front of the tank. Should I be using something to help...

Are there are real differences between Potassium / Dipotassium / Monopotassium Phosphate or can all be substituted for EI dosing? I've requested Mono from a local supplier but it's going to be another week. While reading on the internet people talk about potassium phosphate and dipotassium...

haha, yeah my SAE do this. I'm lucky to have a 1.5m tank so the surf they get looks like a lot of fun for them. Occasionally they swim too fast through the outflow and donk their heads on the internal filter. This doesn't look like much fun for them. :D