dikspence

Thanks guys. I'll give them both a call.

Where is a good place to buy a small cleanup crew (10 gallon nano)? I'm looking to get some of the following: Astrea Snails Nassarius Snails Cerith Snails Blue Leg Hermit Crabs Left Handed Hermit Crabs Red Scarlet Hermit Crabs Cleaner Shrimp Fire (Blood) Shrimp Peppermint Shrimp Does anyone have any suggestions on where to look in Edmonton? I've been looking at J&L Aquatics (they have some nice packages available) but the shipping looks quite expensive. Perhaps I should arrange a group order.

I've bought from SIL Industrial Minerals before. They sell sandblasting sand in a variety of sizes. I got a 90lb bag of "SIL 9" for $9 I think (was about 18 months ago so price probably changed). http://www.sil.ab.ca/contact_us.htm

Welcome to AA.

Welcome.

If the top of the tank is open then it is ok for the plants to grow out of the top. On the other hand if you have a full hood I would recommend that you trim the plants so they don't get tangled in the lights (don't want to start a fire). I've found that trimming the top 1/3 of the plant off works well. You can either replant the top or just throw it away.

I was at Big Al's here in Edmonton a few weeks back and I was talking to Damian (I think that was his name) about a new planted tank I am planning on setting up. He was super excited about some new Red Sea products that were on order. Well I was in again yesturday and happened to mention the new products to him again. He got even more excited because the items had come in just that morning, he was actually codeing them into the computer when I showed up. The 3 products that he was showing me were a CO2 system simmilar to the Nutrafin kit. A continous CO2 monitor, and substrate heating coils called "Root Therm". I ended up buying the Root Therm kit only to find out that it was the 40W 100gal version (I wanted the other 20W 40gal version). In total he said that they had 4 of the 100gal kits in stock including the one that I got. I payed $89.99 for the 40W 100gal and at that price they arn't going to last very long I don't think. The information on the box is as follows: Substrate heating system for aquatic plants The warmth provided by the Root Therm results in a gentle water circulation throughout the substrate, supplying the roots with the nutrients they require for optimum plant growth. Root Therm should be used in conjunction with a regular aquarium heater-thermostat th heat the water. Root Therm 160 Heating Cable - 20W - 3M/10ft Cable Anchor - 10 units Suction Cups - 10 units 24V Transformer - 20W Suitable for Aquarium - 160 liters/40gal Root Therm 400 Heating Cable - 40W - 5M/16.4ft Cable Anchor - 12 units Suction Cups - 12 units 24V Transformer - 40W Suitable for Aquarium - 400 liters/100gal I thought that there would be a few people interested in these new products so I decided to pass the information along. The best part of the whole deal is the price. Less that a hundred bucks for heating coils. I couldn't find the Dupla coils for less than 2-3 hundred.

Thank you all for your infomative posts. AndyL, I have also read that plants use NH3/4 before NO3. I was hoping that this would help my cause of adding most of the fish at once. I will be running a DIY CO2 system on this tank. Pressurized would be better but my budget doesn't allow for it right now. The way that I am looking at the situation is this: Cycling a tank is important because it gives the bacteria time to grow on the filter media, substrate, plants, decorations, driftwood, etc. Plants in an aquarium also use up a large portion of fish waste (ammonia, nitrite, nitrate) in addition to the bacteria. I'm thinking that instead of waiting for the bacteria to grow by adding a few fish at a time I can just add it in at the beggining of the tanks life. Of course I cannot add the entire about of bacteria but if I maximize the amount of "stuff" from older, established tanks I hope to get enough to keep the fish healthy. The plants will also play a big role in this, which is why I am going to startup the tank the night of the edmonton auction which I hope to buy a bunch of large healthy plants. I also plan on adding filter media, driftwood, gravel, and plants from my other 2 tanks.

Thank you all for the warm welcome. To answer your question J-ROC I found the site through the A.C.E. website.

Hello, As some of you may know I am in the middle of setting up a new 30gal Asian biotype tank. This tank will be home to 20-30 Harlequin Rasboras, a pair of Gouramis and 4-6 SAEs. A tenative plant list is as follows: Green Hygro (Hygrophila polysperma), Java fern (Microsorum pteropus), Watersprite (Ceratopteris thalictroides), Italian Val (Vallisneria spiralis). I am interested in adding all of the Rasoras at the same time. If I "seed" the tank with filter media, plants, driftwood, gravel from other tanks would that be enough bacteria to support 30 fish or should I do a fishless cycle and if so would that harm the plants. P.S. I know that the fish load sounds a little high but I have more than adequite filteration (Fluval 304) and I love the look of a big shoal of fish. Thanks in advance for all your input.

I am currently setting up a 30gal Asian biotype tank. I wish to keep SAEs in the tank for algae control but I am unsure of how many. I recently purchased the "GEO System Aquarium Guide" from Paradise Pets. One of the tank setups that they have explain has 8 SAEs in a 21gal tank. I personaly think that this is a little to much since SAE are known to grow to ~6in. For my tank I am thinking that 4-6 would be sufficent. What are your thoughts? P.S. The tank will be stocked with Harlequin Rasboras and a pair of Gouramis.

Hello Everyone, My name is Richard Spence and I am 19. I live in North-East Edmonton just outside of Castledowns. I have been keeping fish for the past 2 years. Currently I am running 2 10gal tanks. One of them has Zebra Danios, Neon Tetras, and some Ghost Shrimp. The other tank is being used to grow out some plant clippings that I bought for a 30gal that I am in the middle of setting up. The 10gal contains 2 SAE, 2 Otos, and 1 Pl*co. As for plants I have 2 Java Ferns, a bunch of Stargrass, a bunch of Water Sprite, a Water Onion, and a bunch of Ludwigia Reopens. The 30gal will be set up in a matter of weeks. Currently I am building the stand and canopy and I am hoping to finish the project just before the upcoming aution. This way I can buy somemore plants for it. I look forward to participating in this forum both to gain information and to help others out.