Kronosdelsol

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You can buy the Milwaukee regulator online through ebay for $120 and deal with Milwaukee directly for warranty or pay the extra $20 and just bring it back to Big Als. If anything, it would be the solenoid going, but that isn't common. I would then call local welding shops and see how much they charge for a 5, 10 or 20 lbs co2 tank. Some shops sell refurbished tanks so you just drop the tank off when it runs out and they give you a new one. For a charge that is, but it's still a very good deal.

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This is my suggestion. If they still have those plants you mentioned in post #1 then I would, do the 4 day black out again, then take out one bulb and only have the other bulb on for 6 hrs a day. If there is direct sunlight hitting the tank then only turn the light on for 3-4 hrs. Stop using co2 entirely. Those are all low light plants and don't really need injected co2 (assuming there is fish in there now). Don't fertilize for the next two weeks, then check the levels and slowly fertilize one only (e.g., kno3) and see how that reacts. The most important thing is to tell them to make small changes slowly. They need to learn how the environment reacts. I would throw in some fast growing plants to suck up the excess nutrients. Maybe hornwort or watersprite.

Fishful Thinking - That's similar to Tom Barr's low tech setup, except you eventually drop the co2 and water changes entirely.

Vallisneria is right. The plants consume the nitrates and its the filter's good bacteria that converts the harmful nitrite (NO2) into nitrate (NO3). We do water changes to remove nitrates, but in a planted tank you don't need to. Unless of course you are over dosing the nitrates and it is affecting your fauna. Water changes are good, unless you are going El Natural. Lost everyone yet? Yes you should be okay without a filter. You only need it for mechanical filtration. Many people have success with it as long as you have a low fauna community and semi amount of plants. Rhonda Wilson popularized this. I had no filter or way of moving water in my tanks for a long time. There was no problem assuming you have a low fauna population. Diana Walstad's book is a good read but not for everyone. She offers a low tech setup which uses low light, mineralized soil substrate, no water changes, low fish population. You would also be limited to certain plants. Some people have success with it, others don't. It ultimately comes down to how your plants are currently getting their nutrients and how fast you want your plants to grow and look. Maybe provide more details on your setup.

Very nice, congrats. :thumbs: The fun part is when you catch the female and release the fry from her mouth. If you plan on doing that, that is.

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Thanks everyone. I picked up a Nova heavy duty analog timer from CT. Let's hope this lasts this time.

I just had my third Woods Model TIM1200 – Indoor Heavy Duty Appliance Timer fail on me within the last 6 months. I was going to try their digital line but then realize that Coralife and Marineland both have manual timers. Can anyone recommend a good timer that has lasted them for years? It doesn't matter if it is built into a surge protector or stand alone. Thanks

I have had good luck using the Polyurethane tubing at home depot ($5 for 20 ft). However, that stuff is very stiff to begin with. EDIT: I found this site. Polyurethane is much better than silicone tubing. The lower the number, the better the resistance. You can also buy the polyethylene or polypropylene tubing from home depot instead. I'm not sure how stiff those are to begin with.

This person called Hagen back in 2007 and they did not recommend having anything in line with the filter. What if you T off the outlet and split the outflow to both sides of the tank? You can then have the inline on the one side and larger diameter on the other.

Nice to meet you.

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Don't bother with the watts/gal rule. It is a old system designed for T12 lighting and does not apply here as PC or T5 lights eliminate that problem. If the tank looks bright at the bottom of the substrate then you should have adequate lighting. Are your lights held together in one fixture or spread apart individually. It's hard to cover an 18" deep tank. If they are together, I would either raise your current lights up 5 - 10" above your tank to get more light coverage temporary until you can purchase some more lights. I would recommend a dual T5HO set and add it in addition to your current fixture. I always see people selling 36" T5 fixtures on here. You should be able to fit a 5lbs CO2 bottle somewhere as they are pretty small. But as we know, that will be a $200 expense going to pressurized CO2. Definitely purchase a CO2 drop checker for $8 on Ebay. You should at least know how much CO2 you have in your tank. If you turn off the filter for several hours, do you see pearling? Maybe the water current is too strong and is diffusing the CO2. How are you diffusing your CO2 into your tank? The crypt melting is normal. The stem melting isn't but this is a new tank setup right? Those are all easy low light plants. Are the stems melting at the bottom? Maybe you were too rough when planting them or not enough light is hitting it. Prune them and replant the tops elsewhere in the tank to verify. You said that you are dosing Seachem Excel. Are you dosing according to the label? Stop dosing that and see what happens. It is known to melt plants. Remember your new setup will not behave like your old setup. I order dry ferts from http://aquariumfertilizer.com/ It's cheaper and easier than traveling to all these hydroponic stores.

I have never met you before but can I put the following assumption out there? You attended the CAS meeting the day after the auction regarding Salt Water setups and then got hooked. -roll-

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I have a pair of botia rostrata and they eat snails. They make a mess out of any carpet plants, thats for sure. They also reach 6 inches (maybe 8 one day), but then that is only 1 inch smaller than your bristle nose. Another way of removing the MTS is by anchoring a fresh uncooked piece of lettuce in just before lights out. Then take it out the next morning. You will capture a lot of them.

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