Torrey

My T4' has a UGF on the right side (under gravel and big river rocks), and has sand on the other third of the tank under the waterfall. Best of all worlds, especially with the new TopFin UF series that allows you to snap together the UGF in whatever configuration is needed. I have found it to be more fragile than the old UGF, however I discovered putting it on top of egg crate light diffuser vastly increases UGF flow😁. Conversely, putting egg crate light diffuser on top of the UGF supports larger rocks and pieces of wood on top of the UGF. As for the TDS helping to fine tune, my ZeroWater experiment was totally worth the expenditure, as the 20 cup model that came with the free TDS monitor was only a few dollars more than the TDS monitor I was going to buy anyways. I figured if I didn't like the ZeroWater filter, and never used it again, getting a reliable TDS monitor out of it made the risk worth it. I have not been disappointed, and Patient Spouse™ has also approved.

You explained it better than I did, thanks.

If you get a chance to check out Dr Diana Walstad's "Treatise on the Planted Aquarium" I found it to be incredibly helpful in stepping up my planted tank game, and set the foundation for having my first success with red plants (they do require brighter lights than what typical plants need... so I added side lighting). For anyone not interested in CO2 for their tanks, it's a great approach. Dirt is not a mandatory substrate for success (my experience with my water supply was a much better initial success.... with a rapid growth pattern I loved, followed by a lot of pinholes and other plant nutrient deficiency symptoms, which sped up my learning curve if not my immediate success rate, lol). The light siesta approach? Literal night & day difference in algae. More than worth what I invested in better timers, lol. My tanks are on a 4 on/4 off/ 4 hours on schedule, and my pico tanks are on a 4 on/ 4 off/ 4 on/3 off/3 on schedule that is turning out to be the sweet spot for minimal algae growth and fantastic plant growth. Picos get a little reflected from the building across the way ambient light from outside.

My understanding of the chemistry involved is Prime binds ammonia, nitrites & nitrates for 48 hours, acting as a buffer. The salts that are used to bind to the ammonia in chloramine (to break the hydrogen & nitrogen bonds of the NH2Cl) work as a protective buffer for approximately 48 hours, before those bonds break down, releasing the nitrogen and hydrogen as NO3 & H2O (nitrates and water) as long as the beneficial bacteria colony is large enough to change ammonia and nitrites into nitrates in under 48 hours. Meaning it's a bandaid that can buy you a little time, but shouldn't be relied on as a permanent solution.

Update time: The T4' as we call it will be getting Zebra danios in the next month or so, to help with population control of endler fry. That is infinitely easier than trying to catch them and remove them😅 Tank is requiring weekly plant removal now, as we finally eliminated the cyanobacteria and don't want it to come back!!! The Scapes from Scraps tank finally has inhabitants: The next-door neighbor tank, "Endler Bachelor Pad" is thriving with side lighting: In my bedroom tanks and Karma's Turtle pond, all the tanks are off of heaters now! Walstad is halfway done with a rescape, I cleaned out a LOT of hair algae from the blue guppy tank because I had intentionally added some hair algae for the nerites.... then moved the nerites to the T4' tank... and *forgot* to remove the hair algae clump...🤦🏼‍♂️ So... it grew. And grew.... and GREW. Definitely grows faster than the moss balls! I will be redoing the canvas mesh that give the fry a "safe" place to escape the adult guppies in the next few weeks. Despite temperatures down in the 50's in the pond thanks to the turtle heater going out in January, the "cull" endlers didn't get the memo to slow down on breeding. Only reason I don't have sky high nitrates is because Karma was brumating and stayed out of the pond, allowing the plants to grow even faster than the fish were breeding. Karma woke up today, and ate all the plants that grew on her landside (chia, watersprite, lettuces, kales, radishes, ferns, and some marigolds that survived her last salad rampage). So I planted new seeds around the perimeter of the pond for spring salad for Karma and will be moving plants from the T4' to the Turtle Pond as Karma eats them. LFS is needing to replace some tanks, so I don't currently have a recipient for the 100+ feeder surplus/month my tanks provide. The blue guppies I picked up at our club meeting last year are obviously an endler hybrid and have a gorgeous "lace" pattern of blues and yellows on the body, and a more endler style tail. Explains their hardiness, these are *not* the super sensitive guppies I tried out a few years ago. The longfin danios they are currently sharing a tank with (downsize results from when I prepped for surgery) are culling the slower swimming fry and influencing the tail shape and colors in just 6 generations. I am looking at the feasibility of outcrossing to a couple of my endler males with double swords to see what I get color morphology and tail shape wise. Fry grow out tank has 3 floating fry boxes of endler fry waiting to be sexed, plus another 20 danio fry, plus my select male endlers who are already proven breeders with gorgeous BIG black eyes, nice "eye spots', and the double sword I covet. I started two local NMAS members on amphipods, and the amphipod tank is still recovering. Took the full 24 hours to consume the green beans this week, so won't be doing much with them for another month or two. Now that the Co-op has its own heater, spouse and I discussed stocking options, and will be making the T4' an "Americas Tank" of cool water species either next fall or spring (depending on when the NANF we are looking at will be available) and the dining room tank will be the warmer fish species of NANF to get the really pretty colors the Patient Spouse™ was asking for and I was concerned wouldn't tolerate our 65 F to 68 F house. Win-Win-Win Have a great weekend everyone!

On your YouTube video, inside "studio" you can edit the permissions for your video. It's under the "more" on the first section (under "Is this video made for kids") it needs you to click on "allow embedding"

Tanks go through a series of algae growths that correlate pretty closely to the age of the tank. It's why Cory did the video on the value of a *seasoned* tank versus a cycled tank. A cycled tank has the beneficial bacteria growing, but a seasoned tank has gone through the "awkward teen stage" and has already had the diatom algae ==> hair algae ==> Staghorn/BBA growth stages, and as long as the tank is not getting more light than the plants need and there are no nutrient deficiencies/imbalances negatively impacting plant growth, the aquarium will achieve a kind of homeostasis and you won't have excessive algae growth. The more plants you have, the easier it is to find the "sweet spot" in my experience. Before I got better at keeping aquarium plants alive, I used emersed plant growth (pothos, dracaena, philodendron, spider plant, marsh marigold, etc) so there were roots in the tank sucking out the nitrates and giving fish places to hide in the roots as well as appropriate support for microfauna to grow in the tank. That microfauna is like a 24 hour buffet for fish (especially fry) to graze on, and those microfauna require live plants as well as algae to do their best. A tank with zero algae isn't actually a healthy tank. Try to be patient as your tank moves through the awkward teen stage, and evolves into a thriving ecosystem.

Quit looking, and finally found the picture😏 ... by accident. You can see how the light from underneath the test tube makes it easier to see the "real color". IRL it works much better, and I don't have to use the grayscale method... my friend who is monochromatic colorblind does.

For the test tubes, I found using my cell phone flashlight feature (exact same size as the test tube) from *below* and good lighting plus an 8x10 white piece of paper behind the API card, gives the best readings. For colorblind individuals, take a picture with another phone and use the grayscale trick illustrated in the accessibility post. White background, sadly I can't find my photograph from last year when I used the cell phone flashlight under the test tube to illustrate from the bottom up.... Just like with test strips, you can take a picture of the test tube against the white background with the API color card beside the test tube. Use the editing software to move the photograph into grayscale Compare the grayscale image for an accurate reading.

For anyone reading along, please be aware that melaleuca is the ingredient in "Fix" medications, and is a known lung irritant (I tried to bring over the peer-reviewed literature, but the link won't work due to paywall). It damages the labyrinth organ in bettas, gouramis, and other labyrinth organ fish. I cannot, in good conscience, recommend allowing any essential oil compounds around surface breathing (labyrinth organ) fish, where they can't avoid the essential oil if it irritates them. I follow this article from a reputable veterinary school in my decision making process. I have grown various kitchen herbs out of the tops of my tanks to help my office (when I had a separate office for doula clients) and now my home smell better. Plus, having fresh herbs was how I slowly won my Patient Spouse™ over to the multiple tank concept. Some folx will freak out over strongly aromatic plants around tanks, with legitimate concerns about those plant oils getting into the tank when trimming the plants (see my link from the vet school article above) and we do have a responsibility to not contaminate the living environment of our pets with potentially unsafe compounds. I have never had any problems growing jasmine, mint, lemon bacopa, yellow trout lily, marsh marigolds, pothos, dracaena, blue flag iris or swamp hibiscus (some need more space than others). With a little work, philodendron, wandering jew, and a host of other plants will also grow well as riparian plants out of the aquarium, as long as lighting needs are met. Additional benefits of using plants to bring better smells, is the roots lower nitrate levels in the tank. I recently rooted a rose cutting in my tank, and I am currently experimenting to identify the best fertilizer for the rose to do well. Paperwhite flowers also do well with their roots (not their bulbs) in the aquarium water....however the smell of paperwhites is way too strong for me.😅

Yup, been there done that! Which is why I now have a spreadsheet that keeps my data for me... like setup date, etc. Which really paid off when I had my surgery, and when I had my stroke last year! Easy to catch fluctuations if I am not relying on memory.

I second Fish Folk, especially looking at the tail damage. What does your tap water test at, and how often do you do WC?

I lost my entire colony when I got covid in 2020 and was unable to do water changes for a few months. The water showed depletion of key minerals: magnesium and calcium were nearly non-existent. Water quality (ammonia, nitrites, nitrates, pH) stayed stable... Talking to some local shrimp breeders, the strongest hypothesis is the plants, snails & shrimp consumed the minerals and the colony crashed due to mineral deficiency. The plants absorbed the nutrients released by the shrimps' deaths, and didn't show the deficiencies to the same degree they would have, if the shrimp had not died. I never got an ammonia spike reading on my tests from shrimp deaths, probably because I didn't test the water before the plants had absorbed the ammonia (hungry plants). My new set-up I am remineralizing water and doing daily dosing of ferts (break the weekly dose into 7 parts, so same amount of ferts divided into 7 parts) to reduce stress on the shrimp. This also means I don't have to use a dechlorinator for my shrimp tank or my turtle pond, which some research is indicating may be healthier water for shelled creatures. I do know that I have more copepods in my water column when I am able to either use aged water or distilled /ZeroWater that is remineralized. 1. Yes, I do drip new water into my shrimp tank regardless of size of water change because one dead colony was traumatic enough. 2. I am seeing an improvement in plant growth, and reduction in any kind of algae (and elimination of cyanobacteria) with daily fert dosing... even if I miss a day. 3. I am already seeing an improvement of snail shell growth, so another indicator that consistent water quality benefits all my inhabitants.

Some of us just refer to it as the Murphy's Law of Fishkeeping: Double redundancy is prevention of emergencies (dripoe) I seem to recall you explaining this in a livestream a few years ago? Part of your rational of why it was better to have more than one [smaller] heater in the tank than to have a single larger heater in the tank.

@xXInkedPhoenixX I'm having a second go round with shrimp, now that I have the ZeroWater filter (lab confirmed it removed all the copper) and I am remineralizing the water, plus alternating on Easy Green and SeaChem Flourish Complete (better iron absorption for the plants). I am checking out dividing the weekly dosing into daily amounts, to add additional safety components for the shrimp. Everyone molted, I think I witnessed a mating, and the shrimp attacked the green bean yesterday... so early indicators of potential success? I am hoping the WonderShells plus the remineralization approach will keep shrimp healthy even if I have another health challenge. It's the decision I made for the Scapes from Scraps tank, I'm fairly confident the small size will keep it from being cost prohibitive. UGF and substrate are almost 2 years old, so very established cycle. Video of the tank revealed a ton of copepods in the tank on Monday, indicating the best possible stability in a tiny tank for shrimp. In other words, at $10/filter for the ZeroFilter (plus the initial system includes a free TDS monitor) and ~40 gallons/ per filter, it may be possible for you to try shrimp in a small container (under 5 gallon system) especially if it's heavily planted. Yes, shrimp are most vulnerable in the first 24 hours after a molt, which is part of why I decided to try the daily microdosing for plants instead of weekly dosing for this tiny system.

There's a fair amount of math, as it's not so simple as the 2 watts/gallon that was recommended in the 70's. 1. Degrees the heater is expected to raise the temp of the tank (big difference between a 68 F room needing a heater to keep the water comfortable for 72 F fish, and a 68 F room needing to keep discus happy at 85 F) 2. Temp changes in the home (we had no central anything in Washington state, so daytime house temps were on average 10 F to 20 F warmer than night time temps.) 3. *Then* the size of the tank comes into play. I remember Cory has discussed in multiple livestreams the various components, and why 2 heaters were better than 1 heater.... but I can't remember how many years ago he included the link with the chart. Anyone else remember? Or did Irene do a video with a chart for determining how many watts were needed?

Yes, my idea as well. TBH, my ADHD autistic brain probably won't *like* the blinky blinky, *AND* I have already learned from my Pur filter, the blinky blinky is an excellent addition! I have not run out of Pur filters, even with our low income issues, ever since the company added blinking yellow lights. I *always* buy a replacement within 2 weeks of the yellow lights blinking at me. With the pymeter external control, it will be interesting to see how many additional hours of use we get from the heaters. @Cory, I said "perfect timing" above because I am making another order on the 3rd, when the disability check comes in. I look forward to testing out the lifespan😍 (Honestly, *never* thought I would be saying that I was looking forward to testing a heater! I dislike them so much, I have removed them from all my tanks, and have delayed my new set-up because my room temps don't support the fish I really wanted, and I've spent months researching NANF alternatives. Now, the NANF will be going in Patient Spouse's™ 4' tank😉)

Depends on your LFS. A lot of people are recognizing the benefits of not needing heaters in tanks, and are starting to buy fish that work *with* their water and environment instead of fighting it... I have not had any problems selling mine, especially as mine are hardy, healthy and attractive (not pandas, my 2 types of danios, my strains of endlers, and my guppies).

Yup, unlike Sudoku, my brain does not like this, lol!

Perfect timing Cory!!!

I would recommend trying Guppysnail's trick: These are anubias and swords, and a java windelov instead of stems, but the same concept: These are airline suction cups, and I have run a ziptie around the plants and hooked it in the airline holder. I start the suction cups so a few leaves are partially exposed to help speed up the transition process. As soon as I get new submerged growth, I trim back the emergent growth and lower the suction cups. Once I have a healthy root system, stem plants and *non* rhizome plants are planted in the substrate and rhizome plants have their roots (not the rhizome) tucked into some wood or under a rock, leaving the rhizome fully exposed. (Thank you @Guppysnail for this brilliant idea, and it trains the roots to grow in the proper direction, unlike my old method of floating!)

Atitagain, I am finally getting my cyano under control. Mmiller may be on to soemthing with his correlation between TDS and cyano. The tank it started in had TDS near 1,000 once I finally got a digital meter, so I switched to using ZeroWater for all top offs, and a mixture of ZeroWater and Pur filtered tap water to get all of my tanks under 300 TDS. I have lost a little of buffer, so obviously haven't completely stabilized everything yet... but I pulled out 3 cups worth of hair algae from my blue guppy breeder (I had forgotten to remove what I had intentionally introduced for the nerites🤦🏼‍♂️) easily, and I am not seeing any new cyano outbreaks. Occasionally I still find an old watersprite branch with a little on it, but the last two 5 gallon trims out of Patient Spouse's™ tank had *no* cyano smell!!!!!

We can blame it on the **tiny** print, lol. I have wanted to rewrite the API manual for decades for accessibility reasons. Until I joined some fish forums I didn't realize how common of a mistake this is. When I see a consistent error in communication (directions given regularly not being registered as intended by the recipient) that tells me it's not my autism that meant I disliked the directions, it's a failure for directions to be written in a manner that makes sense to a lot of different brains. I don't follow the booklet, I should type my directions into a Google doc for folx in here. In between more accessible font, and putting important information like shake this reagent until your arm hurts, then shake some more in bold makes a huge difference. (That was copied from my chem notebook.... decades ago)

Are you positive you have an amano? I have frequently found shrimp labeled incorrectly, although with the ability of pet stores to use the internet to confirm identity of species, I am seeing it far less now than a decade or more ago. https://animaldiversity.org/accounts/Palaemonetes_paludosus/

Even my blue guppies (technically they are a guppy/endler cross) have acclimated to tanks at room temp (65 in winter to 78 in summer). The key is to not allow major temperature swings....