HH Morant

It is good to let the sponge filters go a long time between cleanings. They become better biological filters that way. Cleaning them too often or too thoroughly makes it difficult for the good bacteria to become established.

Miss White.

The Aquarium co-op quarantine procedure calls for no water changes for 7 days. See Cory's video "The Best Way To Ensure Your Fish Are Healthy" on Youtube.

I would be concerned about increased aggression and fighting which might be caused by the fish witnessing all the gratuitous violence on TV. Just kidding. More likely to bore the fish to death, so maybe a screen might really save lives.

The under-gravel filter is a much better biological filter than the sponge filter you are considering to replace it. The UGF plus the canister may be over-filtration, but that keeps your water clear and your fish healthy. A UGF is certainly compatible with water-column feeding plants. Root feeders might send roots down through the filter plates, reducing flow a little. I understand the point being made above - that a root tab won't be as effective if water is flowing through the gravel and carrying away the nutrients. Still, you might try some if you want, just to see what will grow.

That's about 315 pounds of water, plus the aquarium itself. The substrate displaces some water, but is heavier than water, so it adds weight. So anything that a couple of 200-pound guys could sit on without breaking will work. I like Daniel's idea of rolling tool chests. Might as well make the aquarium portable!

Ketchup

I have read a lot of the articles (there are hundreds of pages) at aquariumscience.org. The author argues that medication in the water column does not get into the fish's gut, where internal parasites are, and even if it did it is so drastically diluted that it would be ineffective. His reasoning makes sense. I know most people in the hobby disagree. Other than the labels on the medications I am not sure what the counter-arguments are. Of course, the first thought is that the companies cannot sell products with false claims on the label. I tried to find some law, government department, or regulation dictating what companies can say on their labels for aquarium water treatments and fish medications, or at least saying that the labels have to be accurate, but I haven't found any yet.

Every tank is different because of the number of fish, the size of the fish, how much food goes into the tank, how many plants, etc. It is not really possible to do a calculation, so people decide how often to do water changes and how much water to change by testing the water to figure out when a water change needs to be done. By testing the water you will learn how much nitrate your tank generates and how often you need to change the water (and how much) in order to keep the nitrate level where you want it. Lots of people do 50% water changes, so that is not extreme. I often do 67% water changes. If you do smaller water changes, you will need to do them more often. If your test shows 80 ppm nitrates and you do a 10% water change, you still have 72 ppm nitrates. Your water change routine may need to change over time if your fish are growing or you increase the number of fish, so you should test occasionally to make sure your water change routine is resulting in the nitrate level you want. Periodic testing also helps warn of ammonia/nitrite problems, which can happen unexpectedly.

Wow. Discus are beautiful fish. I am just too lazy to do that. And I couldn't go out of town for 3-4 days (much less a week) without hiring an expert to take care of my fish. Looks like angels for the new tank!

How often do you change water? I am considering getting discus for a new tank but I saw several experts saying they change water every 3 days to keep discus healthy. That would be a deal killer for me.

Got a new mobile phone. Bragged about the camera. Showed photos. All shots of my fish.

And it will get as tall as you want!

Ich-X

Yes, same here. The bag of Black Diamond I bought seems to have 3 different sizes marked on the bottom (1240, 1630, and 2040). There are 3 sizes smaller than that (higher number means smaller particle size) and one size larger (1040).

See an article entitled "Ammonia Toxicity and the PH Relationship," And also the chart included in the aquariumscience.org article titled "Ammonia, Nitrite, Nitrate, and Chlorine." It is hard to tell what is causing the ammonia spike. I have never had to deal with a ph crash, so maybe someone else can say how to determine whether that has happened and if so what to do about it. The API test kit I have only goes down to 6.0. I don't know how to determine whether it is lower than that. I would do just what you are doing, changing water and re-testing.

If your ph is still around 6, your ammonia level would have to be extremely high to harm the fish. The lower your ph, the lower the percentage of your measured ammonia that is free ammonia (the toxic kind). The flip side of that is that beneficial bacteria does not grow much at a ph of 6 because it needs the free ammonia to feed on. What is your ammonia level after the water changes?

Thank you, Sudofish. Unfortunately, there are no Rural King stores in Texas. I will probably end up using the medium particle size, as that has worked for others. That size is available at Tractor Supply in Katy, Tx, just a few miles away.

It should be interesting. I am afraid that I, too, lack an understanding of the science/chemistry involved. I have seen "anoxic" used to describe a lack of oxygen and also to describe a low-oxygen condition. In either case, it has never been clear to me how to expose aquarium water, which should not be anoxic by any definition, to an anoxic location where nitrates are removed. If aquarium water is flowing through the location, it would seem that the location cannot remain anoxic. If aquarium water is not flowing through it, how can nitrates be removed from the aquarium water? This may not be a legitimate problem, but in my head it is a roadblock to considering anoxic removal of nitrates. Good luck!

Is it thought that algae and biofilm have a significant effect on nitrates? I am sure algae consumes some nitrates but I never heard it touted as a fix for nitrates. And what is the definition of biofilm?

I have decided to use coal slag blasting media as a substrate. It comes in different particle sizes. I bought a 50 pound bag of medium Black Diamond. On the bottom of the bag three different sizes (1240, 1630, and 2040) are marked, so I assume the "medium" includes all three of these sizes. The bag indicates that there is one size that is coarser, 1040. I think I would like larger size particles than are in the "medium" bag. If anyone has a preference as to particle size for coal slag substrate, I would appreciate your advice and the reasons you prefer your choice. I got the medium Black Diamond at Tractor Supply, but they tell me they do not sell any larger particle size. So if I wanted a coarser (larger particle size) coal slag blasting sand, where could I buy it? I am in Houston, Texas. Thanks.

Wow, I am sorry that is happening to you and your fish. I don't know how long your aquarium has been set up. If this is the first time you have used the local water, maybe not long. I know that beneficial bacteria does not grow very well at a pH of six, so I am wondering what your ammonia/nitrite levels are. Sorry I don't have more to offer.

When you say you had a high level of nitrites, My first question would be "how high?" The tank has not had time to become well-established, so this is probably a hiccup in your cycle. I would do water changes to keep the nitrite level low until your filter develops the bacteria necessary to oxidize the nitrite. If you have access to a seasoned sponge filter or seasoned media from another tank, that could be helpful. I doubt that nitrites harmed the plants. I am not sure what the leaf discoloration is in the pictures. It could be algae growing on the leaves.

Great video, Fish Folk. The acaras look great. You are single-handedly increasing the world's EBA population! I like the shot of the baby plecos sitting on the adult.

Looks a little bloated.