[Can I leave Java Moss on the metal thing it’s attached to?]

I still think the addition of such a metal grid might have caused the death of my nerite, but I cannot be completely certain. I had her in a holding tank for plants, and two days later after having added a moss attached to the grid it was dead. Perhaps a coincidence.

[Seachem Flourish Dosing]

On 8/23/2022 at 8:31 AM, macdaddy36 said:

How much should I dose in my planted tank?

20 gallons.

Low tech, low light 

Ph 8.2

Gh and Kh: Very High.

Fish and Snails.

I have a few other questions

Do I need to halve the dose because I have loaches?

Does it need to be refrigerated? It says on the bottle to refrigerate 3 months after opening.

Is it supposed to be a greenish brown color?

TIA

Writing this after a bottle of red wine, so take it with a grain of salt, but I pretty much gave up on Seachem products. I never got Flourish to work for me, apart from the fact it is difficult to measure in smaller quantities, needs to be in the fridge, and the bottle always leaked it seemed. Seachem Prime smells like no other water conditioner. Does not "repair" slime coat. Easy Green line, no probs, super easy to dose, not leaking, no fridge, etc. Every other water conditioner does the same and more than Prime.

[My 36 Gallon Bowfront Return to Fishkeeping]

On 8/26/2022 at 4:08 PM, flyingcow said:

 

 

Edit: as an aside, plugging a submersible pump into a smart plug so you can control it with your phone rather than scrambling to unplug it when the tank is full is game changing...

While I agree that a lot of "smart" can be helpful, be careful which smart plugs you use. My KASA one used to run aquarium lights but had to be dismissed since it always forgot its schedule after a power outage and kept the lights off. This was several years ago. Might be that glitch is fixed, but it was super annoying.

[I went to the bathroom for one moment...]

On 8/26/2022 at 12:06 AM, SimmonsSnailsNScales said:

One time I thought I was really clever by pumping water out of a big tote in the bathtub all the way to the living room fish tank through some PVC that I had accumulated in the garage.  As soon as I fired up the pump an elbow fitting shot of and sprayed water everywhere. My GF was not happy with me. I'm not sure what I was thinking. By the time I had that monstrosity of a "short cut" set up I could have already been done with the water change. I guess I was just bored and wanted to tinker with something.....

I am still trying to make water changes "fun" and safe. So far, the best solution I found on my 20G is to have an ATO, a 14G reservoir, and to perform daily small water changes, all done in about 5 minutes. The ATO takes care of what I disliked the most: carefully filling up the tank from a bucket or pitcher. Of course, at some point the reservoir needs to be replenished, but it is more easily accessible than the 20L on top of my shelf.

[Nano lights - Lominie Bar 10]

Looking great those lights and naturally I had to look up this brand on Ama zon. I need a new light for my 10G. 

[What did you get done today?]

On 8/18/2022 at 7:51 PM, nabokovfan87 said:

Good to see you're keeping spirits high.  I hope everyone around you and you are doing well going through all of that 🙂

Thanks, yes, we were able to shield the significant other from it while I and the kid are isolating.

[Starting a fish room]

Looks very representable.

[Making tank maintenance easier]

I second the pitcher. This is how I add water to my 10G after a change. You could do 1 pitcher a day water changes or what ever amounts to your preferred % of wc by the end of a week if you change weekly.

[Dwarf hair grass]

I am believer of 12 hours tropical days in my tanks. So, I do let them run 12 hours. The light I do have on top of the 10g is marginal. Probably going to upgrade to a SkyLedPlus there too and give it another try.

[Dwarf hair grass]

Yes, the tissue culture from Pet and companies can be great. I rely on Nicrew SkyLED+ on my 20L which is cheap, adjustable, and does not forget its setting after a power outage. I have Stratum myself in a 10G but failed to achieve what you did probably due to light. I am going to check out your light.

[Adding carbonated water instead of using CO2?]

On 8/18/2022 at 10:07 AM, Hobbit said:

@Cawafuoshi thanks!! I’ll have to look into those.

To get it green, I had to up the dosing though. Again, as a backup or temporary solution it works, or in low tech where you want to give easy plants a boost it could also be used long term when dosing according to instructions.

[Dwarf hair grass]

Nice work! Could you share which light and if CO2 was used? I am not good at guessing substrates, but is it Stratum? And perhaps, who is the supplier of your grass? Thanks a bunch!

[New here]

I am a newbie on the forum, too. Have ordered from the Coop several times in the past two year or so. Only joined the forum since I wanted to ask a question regarding their pair of scissors but got sucked up in the many other threads and forgot to post my question 😄

 

Welcome and happy "fishing"

[What did you get done today?]

Already have been sitting 3 hours in front of my two planted tanks, enjoying observing #1 and cannot wait for #2 to switch its light on (the both tanks are not synched). Such pleasure if you have nothing but time due to COVID isolation. 

[Adding carbonated water instead of using CO2?]

I second the Fzone, ZRDR, or similar brand DIY systems. They simply work and mixing and setting up one takes literally minutes plus the time for the reaction to build up the gas (several hours, best do be done after lights are off, so CO2 can build up until next day). For larger tanks or longer run time, there is a 4 liter system available. What one wants to invest in is a better diffuser that works with the lower pressure in these systems. I found the Aquario/FZone Neo Co2 diffuser to be a great one.

Another way of enriching the water with Co2 I found to be the SERA CO2 tabs, especially as a back up and temporary solution, not long term. They can get the drop checker green and plants respond.

[Background Info]

On 8/18/2022 at 8:14 AM, PotatoFish said:

You could try using tape and black foam board instead of paper. I think it holds up better, especially if you accidentally get some water back there and wet it.

Yes, that is the one. So many options.

[Adding crushed coral to increase water hardness]

Beautiful garden like scape. Do your snails exhibit any deficiencies?

[Cure for MTS?]

My MTS has stalled at 3 tanks, but the 14G cube only serves as a water reservoir for the ATO to the 20L. For one, I have run out of space on top of the dedicated shelf. Secondly, I rather try improving the two planted tanks little by little than have to deal with a mess of many tanks. Third, I do not enjoy water changes, and two tanks are enough work to stay consistent. But I admit, I have been eyeing the cube recently asking myself, how to plant or stock it should I decide I do not need the automatic top off system. 

 

[Background Info]

Once I painted with some acrylic, but I prefer the cardboard solution. This way, I can change backgrounds between black and blue. 

[5 gallons tank - Stock with a pea puffer or 6-7 celestial pearl danios?]

Coming from a 5G, I so much enjoy the stability of my 10G in terms of water quality, room for fish and plants that I would not go back to a 5G ever. I understand if $, space, or weight are of concern, but the 10G basically runs itself with minimal maintenance from my part that I can say to keep the 5G this stable, I had to be on top of it almost every day. If you can, I would consider at the very least a 10G tank and enjoy the more stocking options it brings to the table.