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varanidguy

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Everything posted by varanidguy

  1. varanidguy
    What Cory said, lobelia cardinalis turns green when you grow it submerged. But it is a gorgeous green and grows very bushy under the right conditions, and very rapidly so it's great at being a nutrient sponge.
  2. varanidguy
    Co2 is essential in a planted tank, but whether you should artificially introduce more depends entirely on what plants you want to grow and what your goals are. You can grow a great variety of plants without having to inject co2 into your system, and many shrimp tank keepers prefer using what have been dubbed "low tech" plants. What kind of light will you be using? Are you planning on using a nutrient rich substrate such as ADA Amazonia, Controsoil, Tropica soil, etc? What kind of shrimp are you going to be raising?
  3. varanidguy
    Yep, it's completely normal. Stratum has a decent CEC so it will absorb hardness, both GH and KH, and nutrients.
  4. varanidguy
    I'm not sure on the technical differences, but it's essentially the same thing as Seachem Safe but far less concentrated, and Seachem Safe is just the powder version of Prime. All great products.
  5. varanidguy
    Your water parameters look good. I keep mine at 78ish but they can handle a wide range, GH @ 6 degrees and KH @ 5 degrees - pH without co2 injection 8.2. What do you feed them?
  6. varanidguy
    Did you find your cray dead? What are your water parameters, including GH, KH, and pH? I've found with even CPO's they like things on the harder side - really neutral and above, with some GH.
  7. varanidguy
    I had something similar happen with an AquaClear filter also. It got to the point where it wouldn't run at all, even if I tried to "jump start" the impellar by moving the blades manually with a plastic pick. When I touched the motor it was getting super hot, so I knew that the motor was at least trying. Before purchasing a new filter, I replaced the impellar and impellar shaft and now it works like new again. Much cheaper than purchasing a whole new filter.
  8. varanidguy
    BBA is caused by an imbalance - typically too much light coupled with too little co2 available to the plants for the amount of light you're running. Another factor is built-up organic waste, such as mulm, old melting leaves, or new plants that are added and subsequently melt when they're adapting to your tank's parameters. If you're only getting it in certain spots, address those areas and consider adding more plant mass. If you're getting it throughout the tank, consider lowering the light levels in your tank, doing a thorough cleaning of the filter (in tank water, don't kill that precious bacteria), and increasing the plant mass. You want the plants to outcompete the algae. But keep in mind, more plants means more demand for nutrients. Don't feel bad, though. Planted tankers have all had struggles with this stuff. In the planted tank world, it's not if you get BBA, it's when. I currently am dealing with remnants after a big rescape.
  9. varanidguy
    I'd just mount it so the logo is right side up and readable. I doubt it would make a huge difference. That style of atomizer likes to run at a decently high PSI, I had to run mine at a minimum of 35 to get good performance.
  10. varanidguy
    They're getting energy from your light and nutrients so it kick started the transitioning process. What you're experiencing is perfectly normal. In 3-4 weeks they'll look a lot better. Patience is the hardest part of the planted tank hobby.
  11. varanidguy
    I was eyeballing archers. Now got five. Thankfully the wife wasn't too upset with spending that much money on fish lol. Resting the bank account for now, but maybe some more apistos. I feel like you can never have too many apistos.
  12. varanidguy
    I'm practically in love with New Life Spectrum. The ingredients are top notch, quality is great, doesn't foul the water, and I've never had an issue with fish not eating it. I've heard great things about XTreme and plan on trying it someday. But for now, my staple is New Life Spectrum. Additionally I'll feed frozen blood worms, mysis shrimp, and brine shrimp as well as live roaches. I breed the roaches for monitor lizards, but when they're newborns, even tetras and rainbows can eat them. And my archers appreciate the bugs.
  13. varanidguy
    Yeah, I bet it's algae. Even looks like it's pearling. lol
  14. varanidguy
    Is that on the outside? If so, looks like algae. A sponge should be sufficient. However, if that's INSIDE the heater, I'd toss it and get a new one.
  15. varanidguy
    It may just be the choice of food. Have you tried the Repashy Community Plus?
  16. varanidguy
    The small newborns my tetras, apisto, and even rainbows will take down. My archers eat plumper nymphs about the size of a medium cricket or a little smaller.
  17. varanidguy
    Right now I'm feeding New Life Spectrum Float, Thera A+, and Algae Wafers, Omega One Shrimp Pellets, frozen bloodworms, mysis shrimp, and brine shrimp, and live baby dubia roaches. My CPO and shrimp tank will feedings of Hikari Crab Cuisine and a broken up NLS Algae Wafer. New Life Spectrum is my favorite dry/prepared food I've ever tried, the stuff is ridiculously high quality. I have a bottle of Repashy Community Plus but I haven't remembered to prepare more of it.
  18. varanidguy
    I had six, now only have two. I believe the other 4 have escaped. Lesson learned...was hoping to breed them but the two that are left look like females. They are now living in a 10 with a much more secure lid.
  19. varanidguy
    I think your methods are perfect. I've personally seen African rift lake cichlids kept in low pH water and it's not pretty. They are one of the fish, I think, where it really matters. They should definitely be kept above neutral long term.
  20. varanidguy
    That is a much better way than I could explain it. lol Your water without crushed coral should be fine for keeping soft-water fish. So long as there's at least one degree of carbonate hardness, the pH should remain stable (providing that value doesn't change from other sources). With 9 degrees of GH, your water doesn't really need any additional GH. BUT if you're having success with crushed coral, then why change it? Just some food for thought.
  21. varanidguy
    He's a well-educated guy in the exact subject discussed here. Not to commit an appeal to authority fallacy, but it's not like his claims are without merit. I'd say give them both a shot - they're inexpensive and it would be the only surefire way to see which type you prefer.
  22. varanidguy
    Generally speaking, yes that's what they mean in regards to KH and pH. GH is a factor in some instances, but typically the effect is much more mild to the point where it's generally not worried about so long as the water does have some GH in it. Insofar as GH sensitive species...if there are any, I'd wager it would be wild caught fish from naturally acidic and soft environments. But even that's not always the case. For instance, I keep two-spot catfish in my 75 gallon, they are wild caught, purchased as adults and subadults. Their natural habitat is peat swamps, so naturally they come from very soft and acidic water. They are kept in a pH of 8.2 with a dKH of 5. They're doing very well - active, eating, great coloration, no signs of long-term stress. But, if you look up their care requirements, it's always suggested to keep them in biotope aquariums with dim lighting, and very soft acidic water.
  23. varanidguy
    That's an interesting idea. Like aquatic composting.
  24. varanidguy
    Hey Cory! My goal was to go with as little plant maintenance as possible. So my thought process was to plant mostly root feeders (similar to what's seen on the right side) and provide them with nutrients in the substrate rather than water column dosing. Either via root tabs, some sort of soil, or perhaps both. I did the mixture of aqua soil and sand in a 40 breeder, but it gets heavily fertilized, huge water changes, and a slather of co2 injection.
  25. varanidguy
    Would you be willing to pay APR as store credit? lol
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