Speakeasy

I don't use carbon but once in a blue moon, but I do always have it on hand. If I want to just spruce up a tank, but mostly for removing meds, should I need to medicate a tank. Also great to have on hand should outside toxins make their way into a tank. Case in point, i caught a cold last year and my girlfriend sparyed a can of Lysol into the air each day so she wouldn't get sick and I run air pumps on all my tanks.

Some of the old heads in my tank...

@Mitch Norton i don't see why thay wouldn't work. Personally I like having them on opposite sides of the tank for over all tank flow, being that I have 40 breeders and longs. That being said i would definitely double stack one in like 29 or two double stacks in a 75

Guess my question is why does it have to be one or the other. I don't have many tanks but the ones I do i run an aquarium coop sponge and a hikari bacto sponge, each with its own nano pump. I love em both for different reasons. The fine spone gets clogged up every 2 weeks or so which is what i want it to do. Its awesome at mechanical filtration, so much so I don't need to bag it before I take it out of the tank just pull it up by the air line and have never gotten a cloud of muck off it. But as those fine pores start to clog any bacteria in there are dying off which is why I love the course sponge. It never clogs, like ever, a year after putting it in the tank and it still looks like the day I put it in there. I have never cleaned it. With all that surface area and and water movement, I'm pretty sure that thing is a biological filtering power house. Where one falls the other rises, which is why I love both. But I do have to say the AqCoop spone looks better, which is why I bought a second just to throw a fine sponge on it and they both match and blend into the tank. But I'm weird like that.

The plan was to put em in a tank, but when it came time i couldn't do it, just wanted to keep the pond. The guy coming out of the water is a pickerel rush I believe, planted in a fabric pot sitting on a milk crate...gonna repot it, try and bounce it back. Got a bush of water sprite again planted in a 1 gallon fabric pot with about 3 inches of aquarium gravel, cool thing about fabric pots, you can fold them down to whatever depth you want them. Also have some anubius that wasn't doing to well in a tank but in the pond it started to boom. And water hyissinth

At the beginning of March this year, I started my first outdoor mini pond. Given what a summer its been, I found myself spending countless hours sitting next to that pond and staring into it...like I was a crystal ball or something of the like. I didn't find any answers, so to speak, but I did find some peace. So when summer ended I couldn't bear the thought of it going away, and so, I've been taking steps and making moves lol. Which is to say I moved my outdoor mini pond indoors. It's not yet finished (grow lights are on the way) but here are some pictures. I've heard that fish tanks are a thing that exist but there's just something about a pond. I'm curious as to how many like minded individuals there are out there. If you have an indoor mini pond lets see em

Research bog filters....mostly used for large ponds, but can be recreated with fish tanks. I've used large marina breeder boxes with some degree of success.....most small "bog" plants will work indoors, grasses grow fast and work great at removing nitrate but are a pain to keep up with the maintenance

@Dean’s Fishroom Like so much technology, we tend to ask "How can it be done?" Long before asking "Should we even do it?"

@DaveSamsell I tried to DM you this but the form seems to be a bit buggy. Hey wanted to DM you this cause I think its outside the scope of this form. When it comes to resistors, whethers its 4, 5 or 6 band the "coding" is universal. The first 4 bands always indicate the resistive value, 5th band indicates tolerance, and the 6th band indicates temperature coefficient. Each band after the 4th just gives you a little bit more information about the resistor at a glance, but doesn't change how you calculate the resisitive value. The 4th band is always a metallic color (gold, silver being the most common). The metallic color is specifically the 4th band in that it lets you know how to orientated the resistor in order to "read" the bands in the right order. I'm super interested in your wind power project. When you get it up and running let me know how, please.

I see , looks like Cory might could have gone with a different manufacturer for newer pumps. That being said still a 51 ohm resistor in parallel to the load. Wind power, thats cool. Let me know how that goes. I attempted once, basically hooked a fan blade to an alternator from an ATV, I honestly thought it would be that simple. I failed at wind power but succeeded at creating a piece of modern art lol. You must succeed where I have failed.

the resistor is definitely a 51 ohm and is sodered in in parallel with the load...its a ballasting resistor ment to increase the overall power consumption of the device. Why would the manufacturer do such a thing? Well the current draw for the motor in these pumps are so low that "smart" batteries like anker don't even recognize them as a draw and turn off in 15 to 30 seconds. These battery packs are designed to output alot of power quickly to charge power hungery devices such as cell phones. So pump manufacturer added these resistors so smart batteries will recognize them as a legitimate device connected. Aside from that the resistor provides no functionality to the motor, its a resistive load in parallel to the actual load adding to the circuit's overall power consumption. Think of it this way, if the motor needed the resister the manufacturer would have added it internally to the motor. Instead the manufacturer took motors it all ready had and adapted it to purpose. So long as you have a device that can recognize such a low current draw, which the charge controller can, you will be fine removing it. I will say if you do do this mod make sure these pumps are dedicated to the solar system because odds are the will no longer work with any backup battery packs you have. But in a pinch you can soder them back in. That being said if you don't wish to remove the resistors 2 pumps can be run on a 22Ah battery with 30 watt solar panel 😉

I turned my AC110 into a glorified sponge filter the bottom half is for mechanical filtration consisting of 20ppi, 30ppi and 45ppi (corse, medium, fine) sponge then the top block is the original aquaclear sponge for bio. The top sponge never clogs because it all gets caught up is the bottom. The whole thing takes a few minutes to clean.

I don't know about tums, but you can mix calcium supplements ment for reptiles (get it without vitamin D3) in with some repashy or other gel food and keep a zoo med banquet block in the tank. That what I used to do when growing out mystery snails. Which is good for growing new shell...wondershell and crushed coral for to help them keep the shell they already have

This is my snail breeding tub...about 10 gallons with crushed coral undergravel filter, super wonder shell and zoo med banquet block to hes supplement dietary calcium. Even still I have some shell erosion on my older snails....granted that many snails in 10 gallon is an extreme but you can see how tough it is to keep their shells from eroding

I have to apologize, I linked the wrong extra usb output item...dont get me wrong it will work but its a single usb output heres a link for a dual output "Original post has been updated with this link" Not affiliated https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B07FLZ6Q5L/ref=ox_sc_act_image_2?smid=A2N5NE5XPDEZYK&psc=1 For that matter you can always hook up 12volt "cigarette lighter" output then use whatever car adapter usb outputs you may have floating around. Not affiliated https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B07448P2GH/ref=ox_sc_act_image_1?smid=A4R9RZO6QOEKY&psc=1

Hey all, so last time I posted a solar set up for the usb nano pump, it was for one pump. A sort of plug and play set up you didn't have to think about but is expensive, considering it was only powering one pump. Then I saw this video: And realized you can cut the power consumption of AqCoop usb nano pump to 3/16 of a watt. Knowing that for about $100 you can build a small solar system to power 4 of the AqCoop nano pumps. Provided you take advantage of the hack in the video. I mathed it out and and a 20 watt panel with a 12Ah battery will power 4 usb nano pumps for most people living in the USA. I'm a project manager for a small solar installation company for people who are in need of credentials. In the picture I used parts I happened to have laying around the shop. That being said I made a shopping list should you want to build one for yourself. None of the following links are affiliated Panel and charge controller kit: https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B07RZBVTGR/ref=ox_sc_act_image_2?smid=AETKFZLJFO5AR&psc= Battery: https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B00K53FG5Q/ref=ox_sc_act_image_1?smid=ATVPDKIKX0DER&psc=1 Honestly thats all you need to get started running two pumps because the charge controller that comes with the solar panel has 2 usb outputs. If you want to run more than 2 pumps; Extra usb outputs: "updated to a dual usb output" https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B07FLZ6Q5L/ref=ox_sc_act_image_2?smid=A2N5NE5XPDEZYK&psc=1 Optional battery leads: https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B07M5M8ZCG/ref=ox_sc_act_image_2?smid=A35S5P187G2BY3&psc=1 I say optional because you can just use the gator clips as I have, but if you want a more solid cleaner connection and you don't have the tools or parts to make your own leads, then here's an option. I also use this tub to contain the system but you can use any tub really, this is just what I had laying around. https://www.homedepot.com/p/HDX-7-Gal-Tough-Storage-Bin-in-Black-206152/305185634 Putting the system together is pretty straightforward once you get the parts in your hand but I can make a video for the form should anybody want me to. Key thing to remember connect your battery to the charge controller BEFORE you connect your solar panel. Also if you have any questions on how to size a system, let's say you want it to run 10 pumps or you want to build a system to run a liner piston pump feel free to ask.

This is super cool @WhitecloudDynasty ..I wouldn't call myself a fish breeder...but i do breed (snakes) My particular obsession is pairing ressive genes together and I love danios here's a video worth checking out...its about ballbpythons....but a double ressive project is a double ressive project, doesn't matter if its ball pythons, danios, or donkeys...the math is the same When he is talking about "double het" that would be your F1 generation...het, short for heterozygous, means its carrying a copy of a gene from one parent ergo it is not visual for the gene and double het, well its carrying 1 copy of 2 different genes

Top Fin (petsmart brand) undergravel filter upright tubes fit sponge filters like they were made for them @Tre

If you're not worried about keeping critter in the glass box, you can use it just like a flower pot. Just give yourself about 4 inches of drainage...look up wicking beds...you really want to get cool with it..drop an earth worm or two....plants coming out the top of the tank, roots spreading in the tank...and ever now and again a worm tunneling along the glass

Does it have to be fish related? I can think of a few things to do with a cracked tank. Nothing which holds water...if you get a lid and light my head goes stright to a terrarium. Check out bio active set ups...just minus the reptile....i know not to many ppl are into bugs (me included) but there are a ton of really cool harmless ones. That could allow you to turn a busted tank into a really cool little ecosystem.

Solar panel: https://www.amazon.com/KINGSOLAR-Portable-Waterproof-Foldable-Electronic/dp/B07Y8CQWQD Battery bank: https://www.amazon.com/Updated-Compact-10000mAh-Technology-Portable/dp/B07YB9K7WJ Cord Packs: https://www.amazon.com/Anker-2-Pack-Premium-Charging-Samsung/dp/B07DC5PPFV https://www.amazon.com/USB-Extension-Cable-Male-Female/dp/B07PGZT8WX Spliter: https://www.amazon.com/CGTime-Extender-Splitter-Charger-Extension/dp/B06ZY98462 These are not affiliated links. Again you can save a bit of coin by shopping around on the cordage. But I do strongly recommend this battery. I tested 12 different batteries (including anker) before I found one that worked without effort. If you all ready have a battery pack test it and let me know if it works. I am currently searching for a large capacity battery, but can no longer afford to throw money at batteries that may or may not work.

@Bill Smith grand total was about $90....48 of those dollars being the solar panel. The battery pack was under $15. I bought 2 meter cord as well as 2 packs cause I can always use extra cords. As well as a longer spliter. If you bought single cord packs and or shorter cords you can bring the price down. I can put links to what I used but I don't know what the rules are regarding that.

Yes...ish, so the battery sits in a plastic shoe box with holes punched in it, letting it vent and the cords to come out. The panel sits up by my house giving it a bit of protection, but otherwise I have a plastic sheet protecting the ports. And everything is up off the ground. The post was getting long and the sun was setting. Tomorrow I'll post about weather proofing when I get some pictures. @Streetwise

Hey all, so i have been experimenting with a bunch of solar options for the USB nano pump and through it all i came up with this set up. Its been running for little over a month now without issue I've had many different failures leading me to this conclusion. The USB nano pump needs a USB nano solar system. Sure I can build or buy a solar generator, but such things get expensive, if not down right complicated. Being that USB is kinda plug and play I wanted a plug and play system that was easy to set up....lets go over the parts shall we.First i went with this King Solar 21watt foldout solar panel because it has two USB ports (this will prove to be important), it has a kickstand for easy "deployment" and 21 watts seems like its big enough for were i live.Next is the battery bank. I landed on this Pursun 10,000mAh (10Ah for the engineers). Now this choice did not come lightly. I experimented with many different batteries. Unfortunately most battery packs do not have pass-through capability, which is to say they can't give a charge while receiving a charge. This pack is no different in this regard, but i did figure out a work around. Also alot of battery packs need to be turned back on after being charged, which means everyday after sunset you have to go out and turn the thing on for it to work through the night. This battery does not have to be turned on every night. It will switch from taking a charge to giving a charge without you having to interact with it....and it has a digital display which is kinda sweet. Let's go over cords and connectors for the system.USB male to USB female extention cord. USB to USB C type cord (commonly used to charge android phones today) USB female to 2 USB male spliter (commonly used to power external hard drives). This part is paramount. It solves the pass-through problem i spoke of earlier. Allowing the solar panel to charge the battery while powering the pump during the day and allowing the battery to takeover at night. Well thats cool, but how's it all go together? Let seeFirst i plug the pump into the spliter, allowing the pump to accept power from 2 different sources. Next I plug one of the spliter ends into the battery. Then I attach the solar panel to the other side of the spliter, using the USB male to female extension cord Finally I attach the battery to the solar panel using the USB to USB C type cord. And that's it you're off to the races. What do I like about this system? Well the battery never over heats because its sitting in the shade while the solar panel is having fun in the sun. Also its modular, if any one part goes bad, I can replace it without scraping the whole system.

This is my beta tank and if you look at the bottom right hand corner you can kinda make out one of these box filter...basically if you pick the right color lid for your citter keeper you can get them to blend in with the tank.