Guppy Guy

Yes, but like I said, it is perfectly fine as long as you soak it first.

No wonder goldfish like it! It tastes like bugs! Yummy 🤤 😂

I always do that, even for “aquarium safe” things. I use krylon fusion to paint my custom PVC decorations, and I still soak them in a bucket before putting in a tank, and I’m glad I do. The first time I soaked them, the water had a distinct smell of dried spray paint, evidence that it leached something. After a month or so, the smell went away, and everything was cool 😎. That was almost a year ago, and the log is still in a tank doing great!

I agree. Any time I get a new spool of PLA, I melt it with a soldering iron to see if it smells like sweet corn. 9/10 it does, but I am glad I did it for that 1/10 time…

I use Tianse PLA, but it looks different from when I got my spools 3 years ago(I print small things few and far between. 3 spools lasts me awhile). I don’t know if they changed the formula with the packaging, so good luck. I have used the blue and green in aquariums without problem for 6 months, then they start breaking down. I have the white as well, but I haven’t tried it in a tank yet.

As crazy as it sounds, my PLA will actually degrade in a aquarium after 6 months. It starts getting holes in it and breaking apart. Also, a little off topic, but I 3d printed a custom soap dish for my bathroom sink, and after 8 months, it is all cracked up and falling apart. With my experience, PLA seems to be like those “biodegradable” styrofoam cups which really only break down into micro-plastics, and not nitrogenous material like kitchen scraps. Of course, it varies by brand, and by the sounds of it, I got the 1 brand that actually “breaks down”. And I honestly don’t know if thats good or bad 😂.

As far as safe materials go, your best bet is PLA, but it is only good for about 6 months before it starts breaking down. Another option is ABS, and while it will last much longer then PLA will, some brands will leach. Your best bet will be something like a white or black ABS, as they likely will not leach. I have heard that food safe PETG is ok as well(the top pic of my net clip is PETG), but I don’t know about long term submersion. The net clip is only in the water a few seconds at a time, so it is hard to know the details of its safety. I would still set up a test piece in a jar for a few months, testing the water regularly to see if it changes over time. With me making so many things for my tanks, I have a dedicated system for testing, but that is a little overkill (even by my standards 🙃). I am currently getting ready to test a custom wheel decoration made out of ABS, but I have to print it first, and if you know ABS, making it stick to the build plate is a challenge in itself. I’ll update this eventually with a link.

At least its not just me 😂

Thanks. I use fusion 360 for my projects, but I can only use half of it. It is a stupid steep learning curve. I have been using it for 2 years, and still can only draw up simple things.

Today, I am getting ready to plant my reeds mentioned here. I put them in some tank water on the edge, and I will plant them sometime this week. Also, I am considering planting an avocado seed in this tank as well. Will update with my decision soon.

Unless you somehow kill it like me 😅. You should put that in the aquarium memes thread.

Nice model! Are you trying to make a sort of larger aquaclear? For the Co2 reactor, I would suggest you put the Co2 input by the pump outlet so the filter floss/foam will diffuse it. Also, I assume that there will be a hook of some sort to hang the filter on the back of the tank, as well as an output pipe? With the heater compartment, it looks like it is on the opposite side of the water flow. If you have a heater in the filter, it is EXTREMELY important to make sure it has excellent water flow, or it may melt a hole right through the filter. 💦 I would also recommend some sort of an overflow in case it becomes clogged. I would have a notch above the input tube that allows water to fall back into the tank if the level gets too high due to clogged media. One more thing, what software did you use to render that? That looks really good. Almost like the pics fluval has on their boxes.

While walking a local river trail today, I saw these reeds growing in the shallows and on the banks. I decided to grab a few for my aquariums and try growing them. I grabbed 2 large specimens, and broke them apart when I got home into about 20 pieces. I rinsed all the dirt off, and after I soak them for a day or two to ensure that the dirt is gone, I will plant them in various tanks. I was thinking in the 3 gallon aquaponics tank with only the roots submerged, and fully submerged in the 30 gallon. They seem to grow similarly to crypts, so I will put them in with those. I will plant the reeds in a few days and update this then.

I would love to see things that need no power cord! If someone could put Tesla’s wireless energy system in lights and filters, all you need it one plug that wirelessly transfers energy to the tank! This is also how wireless phone charging works.

I think you mean cardinals! 😂

Funny you mention that, I’ve been trying to figure out how to make an auto brine shrimp hatchery/feeder. I don’t know how to even attempt it, but I can at least try! Eventually….

Is it just me, or does Helsinki look like a starfish?

Maybe, just maybe.

Super old post, I know. But is that live stream ever coming? I’ll be there!!

Thanks @Widgets! I will probably start with purple light, and eventually switch to blue light and see which one provides faster growth, and less algae. Sometime soon, I will get around to starting a journey of this tank, so I will link that below if I do.

Does anyone has a recommendation for light color? I don’t know if blue/red/purple will work best.

Thanks! I only have (far too many) guppies in that tank, so snail feeding won’t be an issue. Do you have a color recommendation?

I was in aldi the other day and found this grow light on sale and thought it would be a good pothos grower. The only issue with it is it is either blue, red, or purple light. No White. I have been using a standard LED desk lamp on my 3 gallon tank(see footer links) that grows pothos pretty well, and I am pretty sure that either @Guppysnail or @Fish Folk does the same(can’t remember who, sorry!) so this will be in interesting experiment on what grows faster. The light also has settings for brightness and timers, so setting advice is appreciated. The light doesn’t really go into the tank, as there is a hood on it, but it illuminates the wall behind it. I don’t care if it causes algae on the back wall, and I might even like that, but I don’t want algae in the rest of the tank. Will the light cause that? Here are some pics. Thanks in advance!

This is purely coincidental, but I got this articulated in the pond armor newsletter today. Thought you might appreciate it. https://www.pondarmor.com/fish-safe-epoxy-choosing-a-fish-safe-coating-for-your-pond/?awt_a=Adu9&awt_l=99vBu&awt_m=3vNHYbUeWimr0u9&utm_source=aweber&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=emal-drip&utm_content=Fish-Safe-Epoxy

So I know I am all over the board here, so try to stay with me. For your application, I would think that pond armor is a safe bet. I know you want to stay away from epoxy’s, but it has been proven time and time again by popular people on the internet(Joey Mullen, aka The King Of DIY; Tanner Serpa, aka Serpa Design; and more). If you are like me and try to avoid epoxy at all costs, I use krylon fusion. But a note on that: KRYLON FUSION IS NOT AQUARIUM SAFE IMMEDIATELY! While everyone says that it is “aquarium safe”, that is only partially true. It is aquarium safe, but only after you soak it in water for a few weeks the same way you would soak driftwood. This get rid of leaching chemicals that would be in your tank otherwise. After a few weeks, though, it’s done leaching and is perfectly safe. While I have no knowledge about paint-on aquarium-safe paints, I have a pretty big hunch that most brush-applied paints will do something similar, so I would soak it anyways. Also, generally speaking, more coats of paint is better, as it provides a better seal. There is no such thing as a waterproof paint! It is just how long they are water resistant! This is an opinion, but one I strongly support nonetheless. Some paints will only last a few years in water, if any, but others will stay sealed for many years. I have found krylon fusion to stay sealed for 3-5 years before it starts flaking off, but the flakes won’t hurt the fish. Epoxy on the other hand, such as pond armor, will stay sealed for a really long time, quite possibly for decades. My point here is that paint that is “aquarium safe” may or may not be at first, or in the long run. If you skipped all that for an answer, here it is: I would use krylon fusion. Just soak your board in water for a few weeks(if its not submersible, find something else to paint) after applying it, and you are good to go. I would expect at least 5 years out of it before it has to be repainted since it isn’t submerged all the time. Another pro to krylon fusion is its easy to find at any lowes, and some other hardware stores(not home depot for some reason), and is really cheap at $5 a bottle. Good luck!