[Get an aquarium, they said]

Hi folks, I kind of lost interest in this stuff (shrimps and plants still alive and well though).

I have talked about my PLA prints doing just fine. Now a bit further down the line, I must admit that they don't. Several parts have degraded. For functional parts, don't use PLA in water. Most recently, a filter part broke. They seemed fine for more than a year, but at least two different PLA filament makes eventually got brittle or just lost integrity. 

For decorations and such, I wouldn't worry (I don't believe it's unsafe).

[Keeping fish in a rented apartment]

It's understandable to be wary of large aquariums. Water damage is not pretty. And the risk is never 0%.

When asking, if asking, maybe describe it as not large. This is even true, I think; 100l would probably be considered medium. 🙂

(I wouldn't ask, but be set to remove it fast and humbly in case of complaint.)

[Get an aquarium, they said]

On 7/27/2022 at 8:47 PM, nabokovfan87 said:

Wow!  That's amazing.  I need to get mine to do this!!!!

Very beautiful photo.

Thank you!

I wonder if it happened thanks to borderline overgrown tank status, it could kind of brace itself on the tangle of mostly Rotala rotundifolia. It may also have tried really hard to get to the light, again because of the coverage. Or it was simply about time 🙂 but it seems to me they aren't rigid enough to stand tall above water without some scaffolding...

[Get an aquarium, they said]

Bacopa caroliniana (if memory serves me) breached the surface and treated me to a flower.

[heaters: vertically or horizontally]

I have the heater hidden in a separate space, vertical, with deliberate circulation. I agree that horizontal near the bottom makes the most sense, and I agree that if circulation is... at all, it'll be fine regardless.

[Get an aquarium, they said]

Maybe! I think I have no further ID contribution than as seen on page5. ^^

[Get an aquarium, they said]

Rebuilding the filtering, I am using a longer tube. To make it less ugly, I glued coir to it. 

[Can you recommend a quiet air pump?]

I have an "Eheim 100" on a stone slab on foam in a cupboard, not quiet enough for me. I think the similar "200" has two outlets. 

[Get an aquarium, they said]

On 4/10/2022 at 3:31 PM, ndfi78 said:

Well, at least you have a good attitude about it. 😄

Well, once it's over it's nothing to be upset about. Primarily I just want to be a little eccentric or unexpected. 😛 

Sometimes I can actually trick myself into enjoying things that ain't terrific. Sometimes.

 

On 4/11/2022 at 2:05 PM, drewzero1 said:

Oof! Sorry to hear about your filter, and also your Hercules snails. Mine died a few months ago after getting stuck behind the heater.

One lives. Unfortunately, I can't reach the guy who gave me them (he thought it was all MTS!). Them getting stuck, that must suck. Bad luck.

[Get an aquarium, they said]

I was in bed and heard a noise, I assumed it was my daughter coming home, though she didn't answer my "hello". Well, maybe she had to go to the bathroom urgently, or perhaps it was the neighbors being noisy. A little too loud to be from next door really, and maybe the sound of splashing water, neighbors be crazy? But I really had to go and have a look around. 

My ingenious filter thing had slipped, and maybe 20 gallons of water had squirted onto the floor! Suspicious steaming from the electrical stuff!

Such fun, so inspiring 😃 

I didnt think this would happen, but I should have taken into consideration that it might. 

Mostly taken care of now, all is well. 

[Get an aquarium, they said]

Yeah, it's a bit overgrown, but I like it a little wild. Extremely low effort, hehe. It is a bit strange; my hornwort was doing fine but not fantastic, not growing too long before the other end began looking tired. Then this madness. I didn't knowingly change anything. Still quite low fertilization. I haven't checked in on chemistry for ages. Nitrates has always been way lower than people tend to find desirable. Epiphytes seem fine but stay small, stem plants and crypts kind of thriving.

The one thing that did change, maybe or maybe not related, is that circulation pumps started acting up so I added the device described above. 

Cheers!

[Get an aquarium, they said]

Hornwort suddenly going for it. 

[Water Changes - Adding in water]

On 3/3/2022 at 4:26 PM, dasaltemelosguy said:

 

 

Excellent, actual numbers 👌

Not feasable for "inline" manual water change at hobbyist budget then. 

[Adding substrate to established tank]

I guess there is a risk that the gunk in the old substrate rots if it's trapped under new substrate and circulation stops. 

[Snails]

On 3/3/2022 at 2:27 AM, Kurt Brutting said:

Out of everything my wife’s favorite is my one golden mystery snail. They are such characters!

They sure are! Them wifes. 

[Water Changes - Adding in water]

I do buckets, though not weekly. While I don't have chlorine, I'd rather not use tap warm-water. (I don't trust plants to prevent copper build-up, in particular.) 

Now, I only have shrimp and snails, but to be a good guy I don't like to refill with too cold water, so I add some water from a kettle to the cold water bucket. 

[Chlorine (but not chloramine) can be removed simply by "airing" the water, no? Surely there are clever ways to speed the dissipation up. /google google/ ah, UV light!] 

[Scale Inhibitors]

It should be safe.

Changes to water chemistry / properties are minor and not in any obvious way harmful. Some fish foods contain polyphosphates.

[Ideal tds range]

TDS (or rather the conductivity which is what's measured) can be interesting, especially as a nifty way to detect a change to tap water or tank chemistry. It is not extremely useful as an isolated measure - in my opinion. It is not clear what it means. 

(It's a little bit like asking how many items will fit in a suitcase; you'd want to know how large and soft they are. And the size of the bag.)

[Tap water has ammonia]

Unless tap water ammonia levels go up more, partial water changes should be cool, right?

If you need large water changes or if (tap) levels go up, one option is to leave tap water in a tub with some floating or emersed plants a while. If that is convenient in your situation. 

(I really don't speak from experience, trying to make sense of it anyway. I also don't know much about chlorine and chloramine complications) 

 

[Tap water has ammonia]

I imagine a cycled and / or planted tank wouldn't mind that at all?

[plant melt]

When they are somewhat happy they grow pretty fast, so one workaround is to transplant small pieces only, putting a limit on the mess. I usually throw away parts beginning to turn brown. I don't think those parts will recover, but the plant may, with new growth. I am no expert.

[Radar Ceiling Tile aquarium safe?]

I guess it will be OK, from typical composition of such tiles. Maybe I wouldn't use them anyway, since it is hard to ascertain that they are harmless. But I would be tempted, it's a good idea!

Sometimes they put paper in the mix, it might decompose, possibly not cool. Recycled newsprint is slightly toxic. If you do try, do put some in water for some time first to get a feel for it (and leach possible traces of ill stuff).

[From Tarantulas to Aquariums: Ethics and Sustainability]

I don't keep fish (as of yet), just hobby bred invertebrates. One aspect, maybe a hair off topic, of the hobby that I find disturbing is the reckless use of chemicals and medicine. Flushing down live broad spectrum antibiotics should not be considered normal practice. IMO.

[Get an aquarium, they said]

Thanks Torrey, I'll keep it in mind for sure.

[Get an aquarium, they said]

Cool, always things to learn!

I do think that calcium may not be the case here. The tap water is rather hard and calciumy if I recall correctly, and no obvious signs on other plants.