gBOYsc2

For filtration google - Hamburg mattenfilter

Yes I am well aware of the HMF's. I am considering it but after doing some research yesterday I read a fellow had problems doing it in his 20 long. I guess it is hard to get proper water circulation with a HMF in a 20 long but I thought maybe I can just put 1 on each side of the tank. And do them corner style instead of across the whole end of the tank. Now I'm not sure if the short height of the 20 long causes problems with the HMF having a short travel distance for the air to pull the water through the tube?

Not 100% sure but I may consider using a different tank size/dimensions I just LOVE 20 longs. It is my favourite small tank. BUt I think I will be going with either HMF or simple breeder style filter. It will be the simplest and most cost effective.

Great little project. I can't wait to see what will be stocked in there. I gotta ask what kind of pump you are going to use that has a low enough gph for this tank?

Welcome back pal !

Blake

Hey Blake thanks! Glad to see you're still around. Will ya have any moss clippings for sale in the next couple months?

I'm going to jump in here as I work in the lighting industry. My company sells led strip lighting between 6-12 dollars a foot that comes with high bond tape to attach and is 6300k. Attach it to a power supply (30 dollars) and then connect a plugin and you're good to go. This is all CSA approved with a 5 year guarantee and is here in calgary. Sounds pretty economical to me. In fact, I might have use some of my old samples and try this.

Awesome news. I wonder if they are similar to computer LED strip lights to illuminate the inside of your computer which can be connected to a molex power and maybe powered by one of these?

http://www.dazmode.com/store/product/2a_12v_5v_external_dc_power_supply_molex_for_system_testing/

Awesome! Thanks j! This seems to be a good, cheap, easy option for me as it is quite close even.

Ok, the fluo tube is $5. Ten bucks for a couple a year. What's the burnt LED replacement cost?

I mean, if you want LED, then by all means, go for it. Just don't pretend it is an economical option

Fourescent bulbs are only 5 dollars? Where and what size? Are they 6500k?

and....... I never said anything about it being an economical option. jeez. I don't know what you are getting at......

On #1, you can go with play sand available from Home Depot or Rona or the like (very cheap) or you can go for sand blasting sand, which is more coarse and not too expensive either. It is available from sand blasting suppliers - check Edmonton yellow pages. Gravel or sand from Burnco is the cheapest option of all; you can get a ton for ten bucks, but it contains limestone, so if you are concerned about water softness and acidity, probably not a good option.

On #2, personally, the added cost of LED lights will never be justified by the savings on electricity bills. Compared to fluorescent, let's say 50W of saving for 10 hours a day equals 0.5 kWh or about 5 cents per day. This is a whopping $1.50 a month or $18 a year. Your LED would pay back may be in a decade, if it had lasted that long.

Good point Znaika, but I never said I wanted it to pay for itself over time. I am simply a fan of LED lighting low power consumption for the aquarium!

You have to keep in mind bulb replacement when factoring cost too. If you replace every 6-12 months as many many hobbyists recommend the led fixture may pay for itself very quickly indeed.

Exactly! Just another reason I am a big fan on LED's. And I am very willing to DIY if I can get proper lighting by doing it myself.

Sorry to bring this old thread back up but could I get some clarification. What size Sil do we want? I seen sil 1 to sil 9 recommended. Also does anyone have any pics? I will be needing quite a bit of this stuff and don't want to make a wrong purchase.

Hi guys. After moving 3 times in the past 2 years and settling into a home which should be semi permanent for at least a few years I have decided to I want to get back into the aquahobby. It's been over a year and I have lost touch and forgot a lot of information. I'm hoping I can get a little help here.

I am planning to build a tank rack in the basement to house 3 to 6 20 gallon long tanks. Not sure. I think with 6 I could have everything I want. Apisto's, tetras and shrimp in 1. cherry barbs, cories, shrimp, ottos in one. TIGER BARBS!(my favourite) in 1. And that would leave me 3 spare tanks. Maybe 1 for shrimp and 1 or 2 for apisto breeding/pairing. There are so many kinds of fish that I love and you just can't have them all in one 20g tank. A massive tank is out of the question and I would like to have the option for breeding in the event I am ever so lucky to experience it again.

Now with all that being said I have a bunch of questions. A couple simple ones to start.

1. Substrate. Where can I get VERY CHEAP substrate and what are my options? I would like a sand or something that is friendly to corydoras. IIRC people use pool filter sand? Any other options? The tanks will all be lightly planted. Just a few small swords and some moss and some wood. Maybe something else. Nothing crazy with co2 or anything.

2. Lighting. I see now in the past couple years there are TONS of LED lights on the market. I am willing to dish out a bit extra for this because I love the near no power consumption. Any options for fairly simple DIY so I can have a large long unit across 2 20 longs?? I'm also willing to make simple use of flourescent lights if I can get away for VERY cheap. Any suggestions?

3. Filtration. What is generally used for a "tank wall" or "tank rack"? Should I just throw a HOB on each of them? Air driven sponge filters like breeder style? Or would it be best to set up some kind of sump/plumbing unit that will filter all tanks at once? I'm not sure I have never done a setup like this.

I will be doing lots of homework over the next few weeks. I know this is a lot, I don't expect you guys to do all this homework for me but what I am looking for is any input with experience or suggestions for this project. It would help speed up the process very much. Thanks in advance!

I think most any fish will do fine in our water except for the most sensitive ones. If you decide to go with cories I would get them a few more buddies. They like to be in schools.

LOL HOW CAN YOU ASK ME A QUESTION LIKE THAT!? STARCRAFT 2 is GOD LOL. (just a figure of speech no offense to anyone).

I started my RTS career with Dune 2 the first CnC and Warcraft: Orcs & Humans. Although the original CnC was cool back then I never really stuck with the series. I was always a big fan of Blizzard Games since back then so stuck with that series. I would have to say Starcraft 2 is the best RTS I have played to date. It will be really hard to top. The community is also hands down best RTS community out there because of the progression of Battle.net over the years. I;m nowhere near being pro but I absolutely love to watch the korean broadcast professional games on GOMtv.net. You should check it out sometime. It's insane that people actually make a living off the game. $87,000 USD for first prize in each season hosted every month.

The fissidens are kickin along. I just have them floating in a 1g cube with some guppy fry along with a bunch I got from Blake as well. Just patiently waiting to use them for the 3.5.

I do the standard EI dosing for a 20g

1/4 tsp KNO3 3x a week . DO you think it's possible this isn't enough for my tank?

I just don't know what is best. I definitely don't want to create any superbugs or wreck my biofilter. I get different advice from everywhere I post. Maybe I should try your advice first. You seem quite the experienced hobbiest. I wish it was as easy as last time I battled it a couple of years ago. It was simple as adding more nitrogen and poof a few days later it was all gone.

The plants are pretty healthy but some are starting to fade a bit. I guess losing a bit is better then losing them all.

When doing the blackout method do I continue dosing? Or just do the double dose on the day I start the blackout?

Thanks for the info Jvision!

Nice vid. The grass is spread out really well it should fill in in no time. I really like some of the shots particularly the Amano grazing and the CPD. Also the gentle music is a nice touch.

The tank is still in Idle mode. I am going to be moving in 2 months and I figure I am just going to wait till then to get it completely set up. I have been really busy between Starcraft 2, Civ 5, Shogun 2: Total War and Pablo. LOL

Time for an update. This tank has gone to hell in a month. It is very disheartening. It has been completely invaded by the dreaded cyanobacteria. It is just depressing to look at the tank. I have even considered shutting it down and getting rid of it but I would be really disappointed with myself as that would be a quitter type move. If I do that then what is the point in starting my 3.5g project? I tried nearly everything I could find on the net with exception of 3 things. Blackout, H2O2 and Antibiotics. I tried increasing and decreasing my nitrates, I tried increasing and decreasing my CO2, I tried increasing flow and aeration. I tried manually removing the stuff. Nothing has worked. I even tried neglecting the tank for the past week and that surely didn't help at all.

After a bunch of researching on the internet I have decided at last to resort to using antibiotics which I will start either today or tomorrow. I picked up some Erythromycin from Petsmart the other day.

Here are some pics.

Mar. 14, 2011

Hopefully the next ones I post will be nice lol.

And here's a little bonus pic I decided to throw in something nice to look at after all the eyesores!

What are your CO2 readings? If they're low, that can cause BGA.

My drop checker always reads light green almost yellowish. I like to keep it a little high. I have the double drop checker which also holds a reference solution as well as the indicator solution so I can accurately read it since I don't have good eyes. With a reg drop checker I wouldn't notice a minor shift in color.

Last year I was having lots of issues with BGA. I ended up having to do 2 black outs about 6 weeks apart. The first one killed all the BGA but it came back. I already had high co2, and I adjusted the water flow but I guess that wasn't the cause so it came back. I did a second black out and started to dose kno3 on a more regular basis in a high quantity and that seems to have worked. I also upped my water changes. Its been about 6 months and it hasn't come back.

So I would suggest doing a black out, upping your co2, adjust your lights, and then fiddle with the kno3.

How often do you do water changes? 40-80ppm of kno3 seems high for a planted tank. How many plants do you have and hows the growth? Maybe describe your setup(how plants, lights,co2 etc)

I do 10g(little more then 50%) water change every Sunday and do EI dosing, so KNO3 every second day. The tank is literally jam packed with plants, there is absolutely no substrate available to plan anything else. The growth was great until the cyano started to cover surfaces of the plants. The setup is 20g. I have 48w of T5HO. 1 6500k and 1 650nm (Roseate) bulb. Pressurized CO2. EI dosing with dry fertilizers. I have Rotala nanjenshan(which is where the cyano started), Diplis diandra, Hemianthus micranthemum, Pogostemon helferi, and Hemianthus callutrichoides.

Jvision's advice is on point. It has to be to be nitrates and co2. do as he suggest. I don't trust test kits..even calibrated. solution drop sizes can differ so much..

Also if you haven't already, clean your filter. I would keep the spray bar that you removed...Maybe even add a little hydor. The more flow the better.

Plant mass creates a whole new set of problems..lower flow, deficiencies, competition for co2, added organics...Your light doesn't leave much room for error.

Doesn't a spraybar create a more gentle flow, which would be less in a sense? I do have a Hydor Koralia Nano kickin around. I used to use it when the system was run in a 50g. The problem is it would create waaaaaaay too much flow for my fish and would blow them around everywhere. They like really gentle flow and don't seem to do well with a strong flow. So I installed a small HOB with about 30 gph flow rate.

I guess I am left with one option..... THE BLACK OUT! Any suggestions how to do this? Black garbage bags? How about the co2 gasoff? Some will need to escape into the air I imagine or else the water will become waay to saturated no? How would I go about making sure that some of the CO2 in the air above the tank can escape?

Thanks for all the help so far.

Yes I have read several accounts of peoples Stealth Pro heaters exploding, destroying their whole tank and causing massive water damage to their houses from Aquatic Plant Central and The Planted Tank.

I was getting readings of 40-80 ppm nitrates so i dont think that is the cause. Also I have read the blackout method works great but I don't want to just get rid of it, I want to fix the cause of it. Any other suggestions? If all else fails I will definitely do the blackout but that is only a temporary fix.

HELP! I have been having a lot of trouble combating the cyanobacteria that appeared in my tank a few weeks ago. At first I thought it was flow related because it was only in the are that my spraybar didn't reach to. Then I installed a second spraybar to extend the original one. This seemed to only make it worse. So I completely removed the spraybar and also installed a tiny HOB filter to increase oxygenation and help circulation. I also cleaned up the filter and did large water changes in between. Nothing seems to be working. It is starting to creep everywhere in my tank and I cannot figure it out.

Any help or advice would be greatly appreciated!

Very nice. I love gourami's particularly the honey gourami and dwarf sparkling gourami.

I think any carnivorous or omnivorous fish would eat a shrimp if they will fit into the mouth. Even small fish like cardinal tetras. Be sure to have lots of hiding places like kimmi7 says.

I think I will be doing shrimp only in the 3.5g so I would be interested in this.

I checked out his thread on those kits it's quite the amazing price. half the price I paid for all 3 of my tools.

w00t w00t! I got my lily pipes in the mail today! I'm such a..... grandmasboy that I forgot to order the clear tubing so pretty much all I need now is the tubing and some plants and I'm ready to go!

I got mine at Big Als. I don't see the need to spend a ton of money. I think I paid approximately 20 bucks each. All you need is a straight long pair of tweezers, some straight long scissors and some curved long scissors.