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Philip

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Posts posted by Philip

  1. I would take a sample to someone else, like your local fish store and see what they get. If I had to guess I'd say your test strips have reached their expiration date. 

    One thing I will say, as a chemist, the Aquarium Co-op test strips that I have used have been dead on, and I spot check them against expensive equipment that I use in a lab. 

    Good luck,

     

     

    • Like 1
  2. I've kept Otocinclus for decades and they have alway hung out together and generally moved around as a group, but lately I have about 7 of them that are acting like I've never seen. It might not be exactly schooling behavior, more shoaling, but they keep in a very tight group and move everywhere very quickly and in tight group. Up and down the entire height of the tank and back and forth across the whole tank. It's kind of cool. 

    They used to be content to hang out in a spot for hours but now they are all full of energy. Nothing has changed, they are all happy and healthy. Big fat bellies. I suppose it should be something to enjoy and think things change once in awhile, but it seems so strange to me. 

    Could this be breeding behavior? Or possibly something is stressing them out? 

    • Like 1
  3. I have a general question when it comes to CPD breeding. Are the adults more prone to eat the eggs or the newly hatched fry. The reason for asking is because I'm trying to decide on a setup for breeding. If the eggs are more at risk, I'm thinking I need to get the adults out of the tank, or collect the eggs, as soon as possible. If the fry are more at risk, I can leave the adults in the tank longer and therefore allow them to drop more eggs. 

    Just guessing, but I imagine they are both at risk, but I'd like to know what the best course of action to take from someone with actual experience.

    Thank you in advance. 

  4. I'm sure you are in the ballpark. I'm hesitant to chime in when I'm using a $1,700 pH meter and don't want to come off sounding like other people are wrong. We are talking about being accurate to .002 which is absurd in the fish hobby. 

    When it comes to what we do with aquariums, we just need to be able to troubleshoot or know we are fine. If you want to know exact numbers it will cost you big bucks, and is unnecessary. 

    It's also why I'm a fan of the test strips. Fast, easy and pretty reliable. Can't beat that. 

    • Like 3
  5. Sir,

    I use a Hach 411d, calibrated daily. Maybe I misread your results but I thought you got 7.8 and the sample you brought in was 7.75. This is about the difference you get with CO2 absorption. Not just from adding CO2 to your tank, which you would see locally, but from air in the sample. 

    Note that it will not change a lot. You won't go from 7.8 to 6.5 for example, but the amount you got is reasonable. 

    You are correct about your assumptions with pH. I have said in the past, and I believe Cory has said similar, but you really can't look at something like pH on it's own and make broad assumptions. You really need to take it in context with all your other parameters. 

    I believe your thinking is on the right track, but don't put too much stock in one thing or one reading. Look at it as a whole. 

    • Like 2
  6. 1 hour ago, Cory said:

    Seems very strange you're getting 7.8 ph with the api test kit. I think all the water we've ever tested from Seattle has been below 7.0 ph. How old is your api test kit? It would seem odd that your pH is off. The strips were extensive tested with know lab solutions, and against pH meters. They were very accurate. I'd love to get the bottom of why your readings are different than expected.

    Not to get too geeky, but wet chemistry is notorious for skewed results. pH meters drift and should be calibrated often. I like to test buffers to check accuracy and even titrate using phenophthalein so I know exactly where 8.3 is. I would totally trust that for comparison to make sure my meters are spot on. 

    Keep in mind that I am a water chemist and have very high end bench meters and spectrophotometers. The cheap meters most people have are pretty good, but I wouldn't go to the bank on them. For those taking their water to the fish store, or University in this case, you are very prone to CO2 absorption because of time and how the sample is usually stored, so I wouldn't trust their pH readings.  The variance you got can easily be explained by that. Both can be right. Fill bottle all the way with no air trapped. Minimize time in-between. It's best to read pH right away, expect it to go down a little over time. 

    Also, if you have lower conductivity water, where there is little buffer, some of these results, especially pH can swing. 

    If I were a betting man I'd say the test strips are more reliable. 

    Sorry so long. 

    • Like 3
  7. On 3/25/2021 at 8:23 AM, ChefConfit said:

    Just another thought. A lot of t3dechlorinators do more than just dechlorinate. I know several detoxify ammonia, nitrite and nitrate, and bind heavy metals. Could any of those reactions consume O2? 

    Anything which there is oxidation taking place there will be a gain of oxygen, but that doesn't necessarily mean you will gain O2 in the form of free oxygen gas. You may have 3CO absorb the O2 and become 3CO2. 

    I think the point of the original question was asking if some reactions resulted in more O2 in an aquarium. The answer is probably yes with most of these examples, but not enough to really matter.  At least in the long term balance of the aquarium. 

  8. On 3/25/2021 at 7:33 AM, RockMongler said:

    That's kind of specifically what I mean by complex.  It is not a simple system.  It's complex because there are a lot of things going on at once in the same system, and a chemistry layperson (which is most people in the world, and the hobby) is going to assume everything always works out as nicely as you learned in a high school chemistry course.  There are a lot of 'moving parts' in the chemistry of our tanks.  The kind of chemistry most people get taught in school doesn't necessarily dig into systems where there are tons of things going on, and only look at clean, closed, ideal conditions.  As someone who teaches high school chemistry, I wouldn't want to even start talking about partial combustion considering the hard time most people have with the super straight forward basic chemistry concepts.

    The big take away for most fish keepers is that the ideal reaction you look up for something usually isn't the whole picture.  If you run out of one thing that the reaction is relying upon, different things are very likely to happen with the remaining materials.  They won't always just sit there and do nothing.

    So true and not just for Chemistry, but for life in general. 

  9. I have always had great luck with most frozen foods like beef heart and bloodworms. Best results are with a floating strainer to drop the cube in. 

    Also I feed chopped up red worms I raise and some pellet. They seem to love everything. No experience seeing them feed on the bottom. 

    On a related note, if you want to see a larger Cichlid go nuts, feed them whole red worms. They suck them in so fast that worm is probably wondering where the heck he is way before he realizes it's too late. 

    • Like 1
  10. 18 hours ago, RockMongler said:

    The thing to remember about chemistry, especially in complex systems like a fish tank, is the 'ideal' reaction (which are the ones you look up for sodium thiosulfate and chlorine/chloramine) isn't the only possibility.  Sometimes the excess sulfate that isn't binding up the stuff you want out of your water, will react with the oxygen.  Its the same way that burning methane ususally doesn't generate carbon monoxide, it ususally makes water and carbon dioxide.  But, if you are burning methane under lower oxygen conditions, you can start getting carbon monoxide forming instead of carbon dioxide.

    Exactly. In your example you are more often than not getting incomplete combustion, resulting in CO. In most cases you want extra O2 to make sure you are using up all the carbon.  The reactions are not really complex nor unexpected, it's just so many different things going on at once it's hard to simplify. 

  11. On 3/17/2021 at 11:24 PM, Cory said:

    The concept is, plumb the back flush valve on a fx6 straight to a drain. Inbetween the filter and the drain put a solenoid. Then, Dean through he remembered he read somewhere that if you close one of the valves, it does essentially a powered flush. We'll be exploring this. We can then use a solenoid on the say return line, have it close, so the pump, pumps water out the back flush port. If this method doesn't work on the powered version, I plan to use a kasa wifi timer to turn off the filter for say 5 minutes, open the valve to allow water to drain from the canister daily. Then top off with the auto water change after.

     

    The goal would be, with daily flushing, maybe I could have an extended time between cleaning. Hopefully like 6 months or longer.

    That will work, especially on suspended solids that settle out. However it will promote a certain amount of biofilm. A slime that bacteria produce to protect themselves. Whether that slime will slough off or you will have to go after it mechanically or chemically will have to be seen. 

    In the long run I think you guys have a good plan and are testing out methods that should be very helpful to the hobby in the future. Thanks. 

  12. 2 hours ago, Hobbit said:

    Fruit flies seem soft and juicy. Do you raise the wingless variety @Philip?

    Hobbit,

    I have not had any in a year as I redo my fish room. Only a few tanks right now. I raised the flightless ones Drosophila melanogaster and also the hydei.  Depends on the size of your fish. The melanogaster are pretty small. 

    Don't let the fact that they can't fly fool you, they are lightning fast and if you are not accustomed to handling them, when you open the lid they will get everywhere. 

    A little shaky-shaky on the surface of the water and it's amazing. 

    The maggots are also a very tasty treat. For the fish, not me. 

    • Like 1
  13. Just now, Will Billy said:

    One of these days ima convert you to snails @Philip lol. Just kidding, but your post did give me quite a chuckle. 

    You might. But for now nothing gets by my first line of defenses until I decide. All it will take is one to sneak in and I'll be picking snails for the next four months. 

    It would have to be one that I can have neutered or is celibate. 

    • Haha 1
  14. 1 hour ago, KaitieG said:

    I'd reiterate @Will Billy's question about the Nitrate test.  It looks to me like you have a little bit of Nitrate showing on that test.  The directions on the test say to shake the bottle and then shake the crud out of the vial, but I don't think the directions get across how much you actually have to SHAKE the test solution bottles! 

    I was waiting and waiting and waiting for my first tank to cycle.  I finally took water into my LFS (an hour away) and watched an employee do the test.  She smacked those nitrate solution bottles on the counter and shook and shook and banged again and shook some more.  Ta da--I had nitrates!  The solutions in the nitrate bottles form crystals that have to get broken up and mixed in for it to work.  I still use my liquid kit to double check readings sometimes, but I have switched to using tetra test strips most of the time because I can test a lot more often without my arm falling off!  

    Excellent advice. What we call "sloppy chemistry" can be the root cause of a lot of frustration. 

    Take your time make sure you are doing things correctly, each and every time. The worst offenders are people who have done it a million times and don't think about it.  I've been guilty myself. 

    Rule this out first. 

    • Like 1
  15. On 2/28/2021 at 8:22 PM, Dawn T said:

    I LOVE oscars, but I'm not sure I'll ever have a tank big enough to truly accommodate a pair of them like I had years ago. Are there any other cichlids that have the same type of personality but don't get so big? Maybe something that gets no more than 8-10" at most.

    Lots of other good fish, but there isn't anything quite like an Oscar. 

  16. 5 hours ago, CT_ said:

    The Ziss really does look like the Cadillac* of brine hatchers.  I want one but I can't justify paying so much for one.  But I think if you want the least hassle for the most hatches that's probably the way to go.

     

    *Note to readers under 80 years old: Cadillac was the quintessential luxury car brand in America before it was just a "grandpa car" brand that ran really lame ads trying to remind younger people they existed

    It's only money. 

    Caddies are (were) nice cars for sure, but I've always been a Packard man myself. 

    • Like 1
  17. I hear you. My backyard pond had ducks for years until the Geese gave them the boot. 

    As far as snails go, I used to think the same way until they drove me nuts trying to keep them under control. It will take a lot more than a couple of sad eye on the end of stalks to sway me. 

    P.S. I know the problem with out of control populations is my fault. I don't deny that. 

    • Like 2
  18. 7 hours ago, Kirsten said:

    I'd be more inclined to put snails in a shrimp tank for the complementary feeding styles: nerites for algae on the glass, MTS for aerating the sand, shrimp for the fine particles and detailing. And, often being larger and heavier feeders than neo shrimp, snails have a larger biological footprint which, I think, helps keep your biofilter going strong.

    I'm an "anti-snail" guy but some of the people here have made me question my stance. Slightly mind you, but I can't believe I'm even considering it. 

    • Like 4
    • Haha 1
  19. Mr. B,

    I agree with Mr. Billy. Figure out where your baseline is and work with that. 

    By the way, I'm assuming you have had this condition from the beginning and not something that has come up lately? Just checking because that would be a whole different story.

    • Like 1
    • Thanks 1
  20. Got a few of them not too long ago. Very happy with them so far. I have always liked the bio-wheel on the Marineland and was hesitant to try something else. 

    The only ding I'd give it is the smallest one (35) doesn't have an intake tube. It was too shallow for my needs. It's set aside right now. 

    Very easy to clean and more room in the compartment. Easy to adjust the flow. I wouldn't say it was a homerun changing them, but I don't regret it. 

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