Jungle Fan

Aquarist Gallerist Motto: "Show Me The Monet!"😄

I like the Green Leaf Aquariums Regulators best because of their lifetime warranty, and because they are made in Gainesville, Florida, whereas CO2Art is a German company. Their customer service is extremely responsive and when I had a question I sent in on a Saturday evening I was surprised to get an answer back within 15 minutes. Now this might have been an exception but I sure was impressed.

Mine love the Igapo Explorer Repashy, zucchini slices, blanched lettuce, spirulina wafers, and what keeps me happy - algae. They're also not above pilfering the cichlid pellets, and shrimp food if no one else is around.

CO2Art, or Green Leaf Aquariums for the regulator. I would go with a decent dual stage regulator, with bubble counter, and solenoid that will help you prevent end of cylinder dump and you will be able to put it on a timer and to use it again regardless what size of tank you are getting next. https://greenleafaquariums.com/categories/co2-equipment/gla-co2-regulators.html https://www.co2art.us/collections/co2-regulators I've had good luck with cylinders from online brewer shops for anywhere from $60 to $80 including shipping, like: https://www.kegworks.com/5-lb-aluminum-co2-air-tank/ Make sure you get a good CO2 check valve to prevent your regulator from getting flooded with water and ruined, I use the one from Dennerle, and don't forget to use CO2 line instead of air line because CO2 is corrosive to tubing and check valve membranes in air line equipment. The best diffuser in my experience is the Aquario Neo available from Aquarium Co-Op: https://www.aquariumcoop.com/collections/plant-supplies/products/aquario-neo-co2-diffuser It produces the finest mist of CO2 I have seen in all my years of using CO2 in my tanks and it's not as easily breakable like the glass diffusers with the ceramic disks. Finally I'd also recommend getting a glass drop checker to be able to see if your CO2 level is in the ballpark.

No restrictions, or bans that I have noticed here in Colorado,

It's biofilm, made up of bacteria that cause a build up of protein waste around them in a fine film, and yes my shrimp and otocinclus were crazy about the little bit of it I had in my tank at start up after having pre-soaked the wood for several months. It will go away with time, or your can remove it with a brush if it disturbs you while you do a water change, but it will likely return and eventually disappear over time. It's not harmful just maybe not aesthetically pleasing to the eye.

@Biotope Biologistwith the Kessils remember to consider that the point source array LED also creates light and shade spots in your tank, especially in the presence of hardscape so it is important to keep that in mind when planting. The shimmer, just like in rivers in nature is produced by surface water movement, so you can increase, or decrease the effect by directing waterflow. I've never used the A160WE Tuna Suns, but I love my A360X Tuna Suns.

If you want to set up 10+ you might want to look at standardizing so you don't have to fiddle with each lights settings at a time, something like the Fluval Plant 3.0 LED would be great so you can access them from the same control app and clone settings. Of course all of this depends to a huge degree on what you have set as your budget. With the Kessils I'm using I could control several tanks and chain their lights and run them off the same setting. However, 'could' is the operative word here, the two Kessil A360X, Spectral controller, two goosenecks, and another cable ran about $1,300. This is my dream tank and I saved up for it for quite a bit. I no longer keep more than three tanks now, the 75 gallon, a plant holding tank, and a tank for my two aging plecos. When I kept a fish room and multiple large tanks my lights were based on planted tank or not, availabililty, and affordability. Uniformity can be easier, and can look very nice but the question is will it cover all the needs, still be affordable, and how much does it disturb you if the lights aren't uniform. Those are questions only you can answer. With my Kessils I'm aware that some people hate the shimmer, some like myself love them because they replicate the way natural sunlight looks under water much better with their point array than a light that distributes light evenly coming from lots of LEDs without creating dark and shaded spots as well. Many aren't aware that the amount of shimmer of the Kessils is dependent on surface movement, less movement less, to no shimmer. Having shade and light is something you need to consider when planting with these, especially in the presence of wood. Kessils are a preference, not a need to have but they remind me of days when I was younger snorkeling the Crystal River in Florida to watch manatees, or collecting fossils in rivers and creeks in various states. Would I recommend Kessils as a go to light for a fish room, no I would not, there are more economical lights out there, although they could make life easier but the cost would be prohibitive As long as one considers all the features of lights one wants and needs, and can balance them with their budget standardizing is a very nice option. When I kept my fish room, affordability and light features in regards to purpose were my deciding factors over standardization; and 'affordabilty' was still debatable with the need to replace several T5 HO fluorescent tubes every few months, even though I bought them from a local lighting shop at a discount for bulk purchases back then. LED's are way more affordable in that regard. It's another way I could justify my Kessils to myself LOL, however those who never bought tube lights lack the frame of reference in regards to expense over multiple years.

I would cut the photoperiod down to about 8 hours and see how your stem plants are o.k. with it and if you still have algae problems. While I use Kessils on my tank and they do give the shimmer effect of sun light in a creek when combined with surface water movement, I'm not a big fan of cloud, and other special effects. I recently got rid of the blue moon lights I had added because they effectively just added hours of light only algae was able to use. Special lighting effects tend to just add to the complexity of figuring out the right dosage in a puzzle that already has lots of other parts like duration, and intensity of light, water quality, and CO2 level (if you are adding CO2), and special needs for stem plants, or root feeders. I know a lot of folks are happy with the special effects but in a heavily planted tank with lots of other things to tinker with and plenty of individual light settings in regards to color and intensity it's the one thing where I simplified. Like I said try by reducing the photoperiod to 8 hours and go from there. It's easier to figure out if you don't change too much at the same time. Sometimes the amount of fish food, or how often you feed can also be a factor.

@Daniell it was the only place that had a 75 Gallon tank available in the dimensions I wanted, unless I would have been willing to drive another 150 miles at the time, and the lockdown complicated things. Unfortunately it only came as a combo. Petsmart is usually just a stop for cat food for us, generally I'm not too thrilled about their aquarium section and prefer to buy from my LFS. Then again it definitely beat garage sale and possibly having to reseal.

The amount of fertilizer you add will depend on what type of lights you have and what intensity of light they produce. For Easy Green, since you are new to using it follow the instructions on the bottle in regards to your tank size and once a week if your lights are low light, and if your lights are medium lights dose twice. Make sure to add root tabs for your crypts because they are root feeders and need that extra iron and potassium; Rotala indica, being a potential red plant can benefit from the iron as well. How you do water changes will depend on testing, however I'm a big believer in 50% weekly water changes and it has served me well.

I concur with @MannyI bought a 75 gallon Marineland tank and stand combo from Petsmart last year, and while the tank was fine though not the best in regards to cleaned up silicone the stand was abominable. It was made from pressed wood, nearly 1/2 inch difference in height from front to back and diagonally across it was off by 3/8 inch as well. Combined with our living room floor that is off more than I would like it would've been a recipe for disaster, so my wife and I chucked the stand and had a custom stand built locally out of white oak, in mission furniture style with an internal 1.25" inch square tube steel frame on 8 adjustable load bearing feet that can hold the complete weight of the full tank each. The Marineland light is just enough to see what's in your tank, not to grow plants. All in all if I'm buying another tank I'll buy separately and it won't be a Petsmart combo, or Marineland. Buying the combo just added to the overall expense because I had to buy new lights and a reliable stand anyway. All that said I'm happy with the looks of my tank and stand now.

ORD once again but I like it!🙂👍

😄👍👍 ORD!!!!!

When it comes to plants "The tank is not enough!" LOL😄

One I collected from New Mexico, cut and polished, and two pieces of Ocean Jasper I collected on the Oregon coast and polished.

Wyoming, and Montana have lots of agates as well.

@StreetwiseORD but LOL. Flounders also were the first fish prescribed by doctors as a diet for COVID patients. Not because they had any special nutritional benefits, but because they were the only thing they could slide under the door without having to open it.

@MACAgates are perfect for the aquarium, I've got some red carnelian, obsidian, and flint in mine.

My advice to you would be to use a citric acid based DIY system over a yeast system; they last longer, have better output, are not as dependent on temperature, and there is generally no such thing as more potency of one one batch over another as comes with getting different strains of yeast. Here a video and a few links you might find helpful: https://www.wikihow.com/Make-a-CO2-Reactor-for-an-Aquarium https://www.swog.sg/2013/02/24/aquarium-diy-co2-kit-vinegar-and-baking-soda/ A word of caution: I once started with a glass bell that was filled with CO2 via a hose from a cylinder and that was refilled sporadically when the cork floating inside the bell had reached the top, then I went to yeast, then on to citric acid/ bicarbonate, then on to single stage regulators, and on to dual stage regulators with solenoid on a 5 lb. cylinder. I've also got all kinds of devices in a box as means of delivery from diffusers, to atomizers, to reactors, in tank, and in line. It's an addictive slippery slope, and you'll likely be hooked once you see the results.

Duhh, I need to pay more attention to detail, you had said it in the very headline! Sorry about that. With it being such a nicely planted 10 gallon I would absolutely try to go with the killifish, I would look on Aquabid, they usually have quite a selection listed. https://www.aquabid.com/

Depending on how porous the rock is bleach can be absorbed by it, and even it is rinsed well possibly released over time if it is re-used in an aquarium again. Hydrogen peroxide will react with the water while rinsing and in contact with water turns into water itself over 48 hours. My preference would be the hydrogen peroxide that's why I also use it when I soak driftwood rather than boiling it which destroys its surface cell structure and let's it rot faster than it normally would.

How big is the tank? A 30 gallon would be ideal for a pair, 20 long might work. If less than that I'd go with the killifish, or the shrimp. Not that I'm anti-betta but I could see you wanting some variety, although there are some very impressive options for bettas out there these days.

I'm with @H.K.Luterman on that one, if it is just on the rock take it out and scrub it off after treating it with hydrogen peroxide. But I would not place it back in the tank because if nothing else in your tank is affected it's likely something in the rock could have attracted it. Don't expect your otos, or clown pleco to clean this up; no bristlenosed pleco, or any other algae eating living aquarium dweller will eat cyanobacteria. These two articles will give you some further info about what this is, and what your options are : https://smartaquariumguide.com/blue-green-algae-cyanobacteria/ The second article is not from the aquarist's point of view but just to give you an idea that even the CDC is concerned with the effects of what some call 'blue green algae' but actually is cyanobacteria. https://www.cdc.gov/habs/materials/factsheet-cyanobacterial-habs.html

It depends on how you define 'hurt'. Will they grow better and be able to use offered nutrients better when you add CO2, provided you are also providing sufficient light? Absolutely will they grow better with CO2. If your question is will they become dependent on it and die when you no longer provide CO2? No. However, if your other factors like the correct nutrients, and light aren't supplied in sufficient amounts they might. DIY CO2 is not that reliable that you will necessarily see drastic, and overwhelming differences to begin with. That is not to say that you won't see any, but stopping it won't make your plants shrivel up and die.