New Setup Questions
#1 Guest_toddandmarlana_*
Posted 23 July 2010 - 02:44 PM
My questions are about the filters for the new tank, what would be the best type of filter systems to use? It came with one of the ones that goes over the side of the tank?
Also I have read on other threads that its better to buy river rock than to go get it from the river and clean it, those of you that have rock in your tanks what do you use? I am questioning why using rocks from the river is not ok but using the driftwood is (we will be putting driftwood in as well!)
Also I have read that to keep down on agression there should be plenty of hiding places and different areas for the fish and that with bluegill its best to overpopulate to manage agression, what is your experience with this?
Thanks for all the advice you have already given in the other threads I have been reading! NANFA is truly the best online resource for Native fish aquariums I have found! I will hopefully be posting pictures of the tank along the way and look forward to enjoying this for many years to come (as I believe we have already become addicted!)
#2 Guest_Okiimiru_*
Posted 23 July 2010 - 03:15 PM
My questions are about the filters for the new tank, what would be the best type of filter systems to use? It came with one of the ones that goes over the side of the tank?
With a 125 gallon tank, or really any large tank, it's best to have a couple filters instead of a single large one.
The efficacy of a single large filter degrades over time, so even if you could find one rated for a 125 gallon aquarium, I doubt it would still function for that capacity after 6 months. Also, multiple small filters are nice because even if one of them goes out, you're still okay during the time it takes you to go buy another. Multiple filters also mean more water flow throughout the tank. Two small filters at each end mean less stagnant areas than just one large filter at one end.
I am going to leave this for you to read. http://www.fishkeepi...ing-article.htm Think about the surface area of the filter system. The more surface area you have, the more bacteria are able to live in your filter media. Sponges are an example of a high surface area material. Never rinse your filter media with [chlorinated] tap water. The beneficial bacteria would die. Similarly never let the media dry out.
I recommend filters that have a mechanical filtration area (to remove particles from the water), a biological filtration area (a high surface area medium for the beneficial bacteria to live on) and a chemical filtration area (for example, tanks with wood in them don't get yellow water if there is fresh activated carbon in the filter. Replace activated carbon every two to three weeks). I am a fan of waterfall filters because it is so easy to modify and monitor them. That's probably what you got with your tank. Picture of a waterfall filter: http://www.aquarticl...g/Waterfall.JPG
If something happens in an undergravel system, you can't see it and don't notice. Also, undergravel systems are not compatible with small grained substrates of the kind necessary for growing plants (unless you plant them in a pot and then put the pot in the gravel. You could do that). And undergravel systems can kill baby fish, sucking them right under.
You will have to regularly maintenance your filter, removing organic matter from the mechanical filtration part. Never turn a filter on without water in it. And work on it only after you have unplugged it. Take your filter apart once a month and clean it out. There will be slime in there. And if you plan on having baby fish, stick some nylon or some small hole netting over the filter's intake valve. Or a sponge rubber banded into place and cut to fit. Don't let it get sucked up into the filter, of course. Actually, that's a good idea even if you don't have baby fish because the rubber banded barrier acts as a first layer of mechanical filtration, keeping floating bits of stuff out of your filter. That's very important if you have live plants, since they tend to shed their dead parts every now and then, which can get sucked up into your filter and clog it.
Remember to test your new filter system:
1. It should disturb the surface of the water.
2. Sprinkle some food in and watch where it flows to test the amount of current. There should be no truly stagnant areas in the water.
Edited by Okiimiru, 23 July 2010 - 03:19 PM.
#4 Guest_schambers_*
Posted 23 July 2010 - 04:02 PM
#6 Guest_Skipjack_*
Posted 23 July 2010 - 10:25 PM
Anyway, I am now using fluvals in combo with fluidized bed filters on large tanks. You have to fab up a diverter valve system to channel a percentage of the outflow from the fluval into the sand filter, otherwise you have to throttle the filter back so far that you lose efficiency. Fluidized bed filters have so much more surface area than other biological filters, and they do not lose efficincy with age. The sand particles are constantly bumping into each other, and therefore remain clean, and cannot become clogged. On a tank that size I would use two canister filters, one being hooked up to a flidized bed. That is way overkill, in fact one can, and the fluidized bed is more than enough, but as mentioned above extra filtration is great in the event of a system crash. Oh, and the fluidized bed filters are more dynamic, and recover quicker, and adjust to a varying stocking density. Hang on back filters are junk, plain and simple. Wet/drys with sumps are great, but require some extra plumbing that you may or may not want want to get into, but again they age, and the media clogs and loses efficiency.
For small tanks 30 gallons or less, sponge filters cant be beat, and are great supplemental filtration for larger tanks. If you are running an airstone, you might as well be be running a sponge filter.
And, that is a great story about your daughter wanting real fish. I have to agree with her, what better to learn about than the creatures in your own back yard. Good luck, and if you need some assistance with fishless cycling of your tank, I use a product from aquatic ecosystems that consists of ammonia chloride. It works fantastically. It comes in an awful big quantity, so it is not practical for most people to buy, but I might be persuaded to ship a bit out if anyone wants to try it. Of course I would need some cash to cover the cost of shipping, and the material.
#7 Guest_toddandmarlana_*
Posted 26 July 2010 - 09:27 PM
#8 Guest_Okiimiru_*
Posted 27 July 2010 - 09:07 AM
Are there any problems with having an aquarium set up outside? I know the temperatures varies more, and I am thinking that is my biggest concern.
Simulating seasons is actually a great thing. Some fish won't breed without a "trigger", something that in their natural habitat induces them to spawn. One common trigger is an increase in temperature and lengthening of daylight hours to represent the change from winter to spring (example: goldfish and koi). But simulating seasons is a little different from freezing/cooking your fish to death. Outdoors, you're more likely to do the latter.
What is your climate like? Are we talking Wisconsin winters or Florida winters? 'Cause they're two entirely different things.
For cold weather:
Even when exposed to exactly the same environment, a tank gets colder than a large body of water does. A large pond overwinters better than a small pond, yeah? So this means that even though your fish might be from your area and therefore accustomed to the minimum temperature there, the tank that they're in might get colder than their natural body of water would. In the winter, make sure to have a couple thermometers in different spots in the tank and watch it so that the temperature doesn't dip below the fish's comfort range. The tank is not a pond, and it can get too cold if you don't heat it. You might need two heaters if one doesn't get the temperature up to your fish's comfort range. Two smaller heaters in both ends of your tank is better one large heater in one spot. The heat is more evenly distributed if you have more than one heater, you won't be up a creek if one breaks because the other one will heat the water during the time you go out to the store and buy another heater, and it costs less to buy two small heaters (generally) than it does to buy one large one.
For hot weather:
Your tank isn't in direct sunlight, right? I hope not. Again, the difference between the place the fish came from and the tank it will live in now is space. In the summer, fish in the wild are able to swim away into deeper or shaded water when it gets too hot for them. They can't do that in your tank. So if the sun shines directly on your water, it might get too hot and your fish might get stressed. It's better to put the tank in shade and then use a heater to heat it if it gets too cold than it is to put the tank in direct sun and then try to cool it somehow (never a fun thing to do). So think about the maximum temperature that your garage gets in the summer, because that's what your fish will have to endure.
Water:
Remember that you've got to get the water from your water supply over to where the tank is. This is the same thing I told my step dad when he wanted me to set up a tank on the second (carpeted) floor. If the water supply is on the first floor and there are stairs in between it and the tank, then I just don't think it's a good idea.
If your water supply is just too far away, you can collect rainwater in a barrel(there are DIY construction plans online. Build it safely. It should cost around $80 to $120). And you can get a long gravel siphon and drain all the way out to your yard or sink.
Critters:
Don't let them eat your fish. Raccoons break into my garage all the time, and I can only imagine the look of joy on the face of any raccoon to stumble into your garage with a 125 gallon tank in it. Buy a secure lid, and consider buying a motion activated ultrasonic alarm; they only cost $10. I think the brand name is "bark off". They're great for keeping critters away.
Edit: It's not bark off; that's activated by noise (not by motion). The motion activated one isn't that much more expensive, though, $35 on http://www.amazon.co...R/dp/B00281NGAU
Edited by Okiimiru, 27 July 2010 - 10:06 AM.
#9 Guest_toddandmarlana_*
Posted 27 July 2010 - 09:45 AM
#10 Guest_Pigfarmer111_*
Posted 29 July 2010 - 01:05 PM
-Hang on back filters are junk, plain and simple.
I have kept 2 heavily stocked African cichlid (mbuna) 75G tanks for several years running 2 AC110 HOB filters on each, never had any problems. 50% water changes weekly and regular filter maintenance has always done the trick for me.
Joe
Edited by Pigfarmer111, 29 July 2010 - 01:06 PM.
#11 Guest_toddandmarlana_*
Posted 29 August 2010 - 06:39 PM
#12 Guest_schambers_*
Posted 29 August 2010 - 09:22 PM
On collecting from polluted waters, I guess if there were somewhere cleaner to collect, I'd go there. If there were fish that I could only get in a polluted spot, I'd try it and quarantine them for a long time. If they don't die immediately after you bring them home, I'd treat them with something mild to help them recover. Mild medications would be Melafix, Pimafix, maybe some Maroxy. I'd collect them in the fall, it's the best time of the year. They aren't spawning, the water is cool, and the fish should be in the best possible shape. I've never actually done this, so maybe someone with some real life experience can chime in.
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