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Microscopes

DogTailRed2

Member
Joined
23 Sep 2021
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70
Location
UK
Does anyone use a microscope to identify algaes, pathogens, parasites etc in the aquarium?
If so which make, model and magnifications do you recommend?
 
I don't use a microscope to identify algae but I'm a frequent microscope user day to day. You'll be primarily wanting 40-100x as parasites are quite large. Stear clear of oil immersion unless you're really keen - they can be expensive. The model really won't need to be too high end for this.

I might take some hair green into work and snap some photos later 😂
 
I don't use a microscope to identify algae but I'm a frequent microscope user day to day. You'll be primarily wanting 40-100x as parasites are quite large. Stear clear of oil immersion unless you're really keen - they can be expensive. The model really won't need to be too high end for this.

I might take some hair green into work and snap some photos later 😂
Thanks. I'll be looking at the cheaper end then. I have a relatively good kiddies microscope but the optics are not great. But it does magnify.
 
It depends really on what detail you want. Oil immersion is better for intracellular views, but the amount of oil lens which you can go through if you don't take care of it can be quite annoying!

I honestly don't think a microscope would help too much with identification either, in a practical sense.

Anyone got access to an electron microscope? :p
 

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I have an old vintage Erma Tokyo laboratory microscope in a wooden box with a variety of lenses. I took it home from the college I worked at when they became obsolete and got replaced with modern types. And I gave it a try to watch what I all could find in my tanks. But even with a microscope and documentations etc., it still is pretty darn difficult to properly ID algae. There are too many species that can look really similar with only minor detail differences. Next to that proper documentation is also hard to find.

For myself, it was fun to have and to look at things but once seen it I came to the conclusion it all isn't really worth it to invest in a better digital microscope. Since concerning algae ID I really didn't know what I was looking at other than it was algae and the rest stayed a guess. And actually, in most cases, the naked eye already reveals in which corner to look for Family ID.

If you're not planning to make it a proper in-depth study and if it's just for fun... Then as aid above, don't dig too deep into your budget and 40 x 100 is more than enough to see proper details. For this, you can find some rather cheap digital USB microscopes that show a live image on your PC screen or mobile phone. :)
 
I'm doing this for fun but also to try and identify algae from bacteria and maybe parasites and disease.
Is that even possible with a hobby microscope?
 
I got a cheap USB digital microscope that hooks up with my PC to view object. The optical lens is mediocre but the magnification, 1600x, is quite powerful and good enough to ID algae and critters, but not good enough for bacteria. My old 900x optical microscope costed 100x more money, but overkill for aquarium use.
 
I'm doing this for fun but also to try and identify algae from bacteria and maybe parasites and disease.
Is that even possible with a hobby microscope?
Parasites yes, bacteria might be a bit iffy (think 10x eye piece with 100x lense to get good detail... 1000x).
 
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