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Am I right to understand pressboard can refer to OSB, chipboard or MDF (amongst others)? In my experience, mass produced cabinets are melamine (or similar) faced chipboard. I agree that water damages such materials, but that would most likely occur at the edges of exposed boards, and the...

Looking at the pictures, how level the floor is has little to do with the bowing of the top of the stand. That is due to the strentgh of the cabinet's materials (probably chipboard, like most kitchen cabinets in the UK), the spacing of the vertical supports and the compressibility of the...

Fair point - I'd not thought that bit through. Not being a CO₂ buff, I might be confusing reactors and diffusers :rolleyes: but yeah, I was thnking of something inline.

Fair enough. Certainly what I've read since has suggested air locks are a potential issue, so perhaps something like a DIY CO₂ reactor (only fed with O₂) on the output of the flow pump makes sense? As discussed elswhere, for better of for worse, all my filter media is under the tank.

Everyone can join the back of the queue on blame. The responsibility is all mine for the dimensional confusion. I hoped w/h/d would be clear enough (not least as it was consistent with x/y/z axes) but was aware of the ambiguity of the d. I wrestled with the idea of w/h/f2b but that seemed...

I keep learning new reasons why my tank is badly designed. (I designed it!) It is 110cm (w) x 75cm (h) x 30cm (d) with a cover glass about 1cm from the surface. Belatedly, I've learned this design reduces potential for gas exchange at the surface. I can see how this might reduce plant growth...

If our local premier branch of well a known aquatics-only chain is anything to go by, ⅓ of their retail price could still be nearly full whack at others in the area. (Peacock Gudgeon £20ea in one LFS, and £8 in another.) It's difficult not to consider breeding as a side hustle.

You've probably worked out running costs, but if not, this article is interesting.

I'm not a structural engineer, so don't blame me if this is wrong, but ... In the UK, houses of any age typically have the same floor construction for both ground floor and first floor. ie floor boards over joists. All the garden sheds I've had have had floors with far thinner floor boards. So...

Re question 2 - cheap tanks. Would you need "fish tanks"? Could you use plastic storage boxes? A 35L box from Really Useful Storage Boxes is about £15, and whilst it's not remotely as clear as glass, as a breading tank, do you care?

I timed how long it takes me to do a water change. I've got a system in place, and valves and hoses fitted to one filter to pump water in and out. Short of fitting a higher-powered pump (which is on my Xmas list) it couldn't get much more efficient. It still takes about 1h 20min to change...

TLA has reminded me their main question is how much of a problem. It would be if the empty shells weren't separated out. In a moderately planted, well populated, good sized tank, would they get eaten by inverts or would their decay provide any nutrients for plants?

Not even an air atone?

I believe their intention is to cobble together some heath-robinson affair with a coke bottle and bits like an air pump that have been cluttering up the place for years. (TLA is also a complete cheap-@r$e. 🤣)

Posting for "a friend" who only wishes to be identified as The Lazy Aquarist ...😅 TLA has found an unopened bottle of brine shrimp eggs at the back of their cupboard. They're only planning of feeding them to their fish maybe once or twice a week, and not with the aim.of raising fry, and...

(I'm sure the answers to this are going to get very technical very quickly :D :D :D but here goes ...) Is there any significant correlation between leaf size and how efficient a plant is at consuming nutrients in a tank?

27 possible failure points because I have two canister filters that each have their own intakes and spray bars. Then there's a system of (4) taps and (2) T-pieces that means I can use one of the filters to pump water out of, and back into the tank through barbed & threaded hose tails. (The top...

I used to worry about leaks. I don't now. I have something like 27 possible failure points in my cabinet, with just standard barbed fittings. The only precautions I've taken are to heat the hoses in boiling water when fitting them, put 2mm cable ties around them. No jubilee clips or anything...

Just in case anyone has a similar question, I think I've come up with a cheap, simple genius solution: Put a 2L bottle of water in the freezer. Once its frozen, move the bottle to the tank. (Adjust size of bottle for your tank size.) Repeat every day or two. I'll try to remember to report back...

With the current weather, my tank is sitting at around 30°c with the heater turned off. It's not in direct sunlight. Is this likely to be a problem for the short period the British Summer lasts? (On the up side, my shrimp seem a lot more active.)

A cheaper, simpler option would be to use (aquarium safe) silicone sealant on the hose fittings. It'll be a PITA disconnecting it all but it will make the chance of leaks negligible.

Mostly slow growing plants for me. My tank is a PITA to trim plants in it and I'm a bit lazy when it comes to maintenance. That said, I am contemplating adding some Wisteria, which IIRC is quick growing. But that's as much about sucking nutrients out of the water column than speed of growth.

I used to have a Playmobile bicycle in my tank for the fish to use, and have comtemplated a 1/100th scale Sherman tank.

Pleanty of that crap in my garage.:(

Bear with me!!!!!!! This is little more than a thought experiment at the moment, and I doubt it will ever be much more for me. But I like the idea. And I'm sure there are 1000 reasons not to do it, and I'm interested in ways to theoretically make it work. So ... tuck the Don'ts and Can'ts and...

I've not seen Walstead mentioned for a couple of years. I've not read her book(s) specifically, and am unaware of her thoughts on "nano" environments. The demijohn I have has a wider neck than that shown above, but I was already thinking it was problematic.

I think this may be a very salient point. Interrsting to know it can be done. It's unlikely I'll actually get round to doing - it was just a thought.

I have a spare demijohn and stumbled across this Instructable. It seems to suggest you could effectively have a viable shrimp nano in a bottle without any filtration. This is counterintuitive, based on everything I've learned about aquariums, but other than Amans in a planted fish tank, I have...

I'm not sure I follow. Do you have pics?

Mine is around 50gal with a centre support. I figured I'd rather regret over engineering it because it's heavy than regret under engineering it because it wasn't up to the job.

Have just found out about the Dennerle Cleanator. "The stainless steel wool on one side removes even the most stubborn algae and residues, without scratching the glass". I'd never thought of using wire wool to clean aquariums - is there any reason not to use somethings like 000 wire wool?

Thanks Kalum. Much appreciated.

Is that metric not-a-lot, or imperial not-a-lot?

I've seen bags of Java Moss sold by weight online, but can't find any info on what sort of area it will cover. I'm planning to use it as both a carpet type plant and attached to some bogwood. What sort of area might a 10g bag cover?

Thanks for the link. I'll see what I can find. As for watch need and why ... it doesn't really matter why if I can find it

I'd like more than a bung because a threaded cap is more secure.

Thanks, Yes, I want tp put a screw cap on the end of a 16mm (int dai) hose. I can't find apropriate hosetails / hosebarbs on that site.

Does anyone know where I can get a threaded end cap for 16mm hose. Something like this ... (Not sure img link is working so ... https://1drv.ms/u/s!AiSdxKZH7MXJgTxWzGObRUVJfpb6 ) I know I can get them for something around 2" hoses, but I can't find them for 16mm. Thanks

I've got some of the bushes, but they won't get round 180° / 1" radius bends. (Things I wish I'd thought of when I built it #27) I like the hot water idea, though iven that will be challenging as I can't easily disconnect the spray bar. (Things I wish I'd thought of when I built it #28) Need...

Thanks. Cleaning the hoses is difficult. (They're long and difficult to disconnect and access.) Are there any non-mechanical methods for helping clear hoses? Floaating plants aren't a great option unfortunately as light is realtively low (2x3ft T8s) and the tank is around 2ft deep. I'm not...

For probably 6 months my 250L tank has been neglected. I NEED to get it back up and running properly. And as quickly as possible. Reasonably well planted with Crypts and Anubis. It has had a filter running but the flow has been lower than ideal. The filter has not been cleaned for months and...

****** on a bike! I think it would be easier to do water changes with a chipped mug than set all that lot up. ;-)

Is the Reefoat anything more than a bucket with a pump and a timer?

Usually for cleaning out pipes etc. Really? What's it oxidising when the bottle is closed? Sorted. Ta.

Entirely possible. I don't know.But in a 250L tank there is the possibility that the distribution of chlorine etc and dechlorinator don't match. A couple of times I've had a lot of dust algae to scrape off the glass. Once this is in the water it can take 10-15min to get filtered out of the...

Ok. +1 for pythons. Though I'd disagree about adding decjlorinator to a bucket - considering I leave that to warm up with a spare aquarium heater, I've been working on the theory that that has a good chance to work before it's added to the tank.

Sadly adding a mains feed would involve either lifting most of the kitchen floor, taking down the ceiling or going through an external wall twice. And a water butt would put give me a similar situation to which I already have, as I have indoor space and would still have to decant it and heat it.

Do you mean a system that is filled constantly, but very slowly, from the mains water, and then overflows into a drain? If so, nice idea, but there's no easy way to route mains water to the tank on a permanent basis.

My tank is 250L and 2ft deep. For water changes it's always been "easiest" to ... pump water from the tank into a 25L canister (I have a small external pump for this) drag the canister outside and empty it fill the canister with tap water add dechlorinator etc, heat the canister to match the...

My local pharmacist has stopped stocking 9% H2O2. Any thoughts on what the best concentration is and where is most cost effective to buy it?

So no merits for two periods of 4hrs and smaller doses before each?

I have my lighting set to go on for a couple of hours in the morning and about 5hrs in the evening. It's light isabout 1.3 w/gal. I'm going to start using liquid carbon, and I know this is best added around the begining of the time lights go on. If I add it when the lights go on in the evening...

Without wanting to seem ungrateful, that has been discussed at length on the thread I linked to.

In the wake of my recent disaster, any recommendations for hardy fish? (Nothing excessively hardy as I need some degree of Canay-in-a-coal-mine, but something that isn't going to croak in10 min.)

I've got one, brand new filter that's rated to turn the tank over about 10 times an hour (with its current level of water) and it hasn't stopped. So I don't think that's the issue.

You can get white crystals forming round the top of a bottle of Milton. I'm not sure what they are, so I guess this is possible, but as the only nooks and crannies that any of the solution could get to are still about 3" above the water, I'd be surprised if this is the cause.

It's about a month since I cleaned (and then rinsed) the tank. Would any Cl not have gassed off in that time? I wouldn't say it's just hoping for the best. I've not had anythihng like this in 15yrs of keeping fish.

Whilst the tank was only partly filled when I introduced fish, I think I'd been pretty thorough rinsing the whole tank before I even put the plants in, so I'd be surprised if that's the cause. I know it's easy to blame someone else rather than want to take responsibility for screwing up, but I...

I shall call the water company again and see if I can ascertain exactly what they put in the ware. It's not a crippling amount of money to replace the livestock, maybe £50-£100 but if they have added something that's caused the problem, is there is any chance of compensation, or is it likely...

I don't inject CO2 of use liquid carbon so I think that can be ruled out. The tank is well oxygenated as there is a spray bar along the length of the tank and its jets were well above the surface constantly causing lots of air bubbles. I know cyanide is used to catch wild fish, but I can't...

I did speak to the water company and they have replaced a fire hydrant today, but that was several roads away. Even then the Fluval dechlorinator I have says it deals with chloramines. The tank and pump had been circulating for the best part of a month. It had additional plants and water added...

Today I added some fresh water to my tank, and within a couple of hours, all my livestock was dead. (Fish, snails and shrimp.) Existing 220L tank that's been recently re-commssioned. Moderate number of plants that have been in for either about a month, or about a fortnight. New filtration, and...

As Ian says, if disolved you might need to concern yourself, but probably not otherwise. The same considerations would be needed for "cement". If you coat it with a small layer of Miliput you should be safe. Could you not use rocks rather than polystyrene? Again they can be stuck together with...

It's possible I glass impedes more light than I realise, and has therefore has more effect on plants, but if not, would that not be the least visible solution? It's more robust than perspex, easy to clean, and IMHO far less obvious than any mesh. Any glazer will be able to cut you something to...

Having recently moved house I drained my tank, cleaned (almost) everything hard / inorganic and am starting again (mostly) from scratch. The filtration is all new, so after replanting, the tank is getting "fishless cycled". So far the tank has been left entirely unsupervised while I was away...

I like the idea of Excel for the substrate (assuming I understand what it does correctly). When you say overdose for 20-30min ... What concentration are you thinking of? Are you suggesting just soaking the substrate in that solution and then rinsing it? How will the snails cope with that?

Thanks.

Thanks Darrel I was thinking I probably wouldn't treat the substrate as I don't want to kill the snails. If I'm left with algal spores, so be it. How much if an issue is the salt?

Milton sterilising fluid. I think it may be hypo (but the printing is too small for me to read).

Before I moved house stripped my main tank down I had more algae than I'm happy with, so am considering using Milton to kill off the algae on everything hard (pipes, pumps, glass, hardscaping etc.) and then recycling the tank. The substrate is Adakama and has stayed just covered in water as...

I've had one for several years and never had any leaks. I have smooth hose as well. If you do have leaks, it may be because the hose wall is too thin, so wrapping the end in plumbers tape / PTFE might help. This worked for me with an external power head with similar fittings.

Even when the tank was delivered and empty it was a significant two person lift. This time it will be moved by pros and there's no way it's getting moved with water in it. It's just the sequence of strip-down I need to figure out.

About 2 miles.

What's the best way to move a well planted tank? Obviously my fish and shrimp will need catching and transporting in bags in insulate boxes, the filters need to stay wet, and it all needs to be done as quickly as possible, but without stripping the plants out a couple of days before and "letting...

Thanks all. I think I've got enough try and keep be busy. Removing mulm may be a labour, as there is almost no substrate not covered in Crypts (or the little Vallis that's left), but where there's a will ... Yes. That's the one. Will try to get round to posting a pic.

Thanks. I'll have a read of that link later. In the meantime, the rest meant little to me I'm afraid. (Maybe the link will help.) Is there any value directly to the plants in having "a large calcium reserve within the substrate"? Does Adakama have humic compounds? My substrate is 100%...

Presumably that means the there are no ions useful to plants are that are available to them through their roots? Is there a simple to remedy that which wouldn't involve stripping the tank and wouldn't pose a risk to flora or fauna? Or is it even worth it?

I was under the impression Adakama was a good thing, a good way to get pollutants out of the water column and into the plants via the roots but had wondered whether it had a "finite" life. Or maybe I've got that wrong. Considering it's been in there for 3 or 4 years, and we've got very hard...

No, but IIRC liquid carbon is bad for Valis.

My 240L tank's been going for several years. Where I used to have Valis, Crypt Wenditi and Amazon Swords (all pretty healthy), the swords have disappeared, a lot of the Valis has gone and the crypts have pretty much taken over. I improved the flow a few months ago by adding a power head, and...

That's a bit like asking someone to show you a picture of their fungal toe nail infection, but I'll see what I can do.

I'd like to replace about half of the crypts anyway, it's all blighted with algae, and I figured the wysteria would starve the algae better as it's quicker growing.

Thanks Rob. I've ordered some ferts, will probably tear out a lot of the afflicted crypts and get something like some wysteria, and water changes are progressing. I think this will take a lot of work. Thanks for the advice.

What sort of period should you hope to be able to de-algae a tank this size if using EI and lowering light?

I'm wary of algicides, based on what Ceg has said: Though I have a lotof sympathy with getting back "on an even keel"!!!!! I'll try a blackout again, though it's not made much difference on it's own when I've tried it before. That said I've improved the flow since then. There's probably 4 or...

(Reworded post above - I guess it didn't really ask the question I'm looking for an answer to.)

What data will help?

250L tank. Some Vallis. Lots of Crypt Wenditi (more than I want.) Lots of algae of various types, on most of the plants and all the hardscaping. I'd rather not have to do a complete strip down and replant with new. I have another (smaller) tank I can move all the fish & inverts into on a...

Who sells the best value brine shrimp eggs? I'm sure I've seen someone on the forum say "the guy I get kind from is great" but I don't remember any details.

Thanks. I'd understood they could last for decades, but maybe that's just a myth.

Each time I've hatched some brine shrimp there seem to have been a relatively high proportion of eggs that didn't hatch. 1) Is this normal? 2) I've read that some Killifish eggs will go through more than one wet / dry / wet cycle before hatching. Dies the same apply to Brine Shrimp and if so...

I think others will confirm that carpet plants will struggle without CO2. Liquid CO2 could solve that but if you want Valis as background plants (which is easy to grow) that doesn't like liquid CO2. My low maintenance tank has done pretty well with Adakama substrate.

If you can find something the right size, how about putting a length of heat shrink tube over it. (And you can probably pick up a heat gun on eBay for just a few quid.)

Thanks. How much should fry be fed? Say I have 10 fry, is 1ml of infusoria culture, twice a day, likely to be enough, in 250ml of water, or should I be aiming for 10ml or more?

Have been thinking about using card a bit more. My one concern is whether card rotting round the roots would cause the roots to rot. If it does work, it might be a good solution for very small plants, like hairgrass or mini swords. When I tried them, they all floated to the surface before they...

I'd read that Puffers need to be kept in a species tanks. Is that not the case?

Have a look for plastic tube supplies on eBay and make one yourself if you've got a hot air gun.

Is there anything else you could use that will biodegrade harmlessly in a sensible amount of time? I'm wondering about using some thin card (something like toilet roll tube which isn't full of china clay) - a small square with a slot cut into it and gently put round the plant base. If it's wrll...

I'm trying to culture some infusoria to feed some Killifish fry I'm trying to hatch, but I'm not certain whether I've got there yet. 1L plastic bottle. Contains tank water, a plec wafer, small piece of lettuce. Lightly oxygenated via air stone. Kept on window sill for 3 days so far. Day 0 ...

+1 for Assassins. I started with 3 about 2yrs ago, and have since sold on about 40 or 50, (which sounds a lot until you consider they cost nothing to breed), but I rarely see more than 2 or 3 at a time, and in a previous 60Ltank I could take out 30 pest snails every day for a while.