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nabokovfan87

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Everything posted by nabokovfan87

  1. nabokovfan87
    This is normal. Certain plecos will graze off wood (like a clown pleco) while BNP and RLP will tend to use the grass or wafer types of foods. If you're seeing aggression, just be sure to target feed the pleco outside of its cave during the afternoon when all the lights go out. I don't think the pleco is too big, but if it does keep growing, that's a clear concern that you did not end up with a BNP.
  2. nabokovfan87
    The ammonia is likely from the fish respiration, not the fertilizers. They contain nitrates, not ammonia, usually. Some do contain ammonia though. Stability is a great thing to use for this specific situation. A few notes, this is from my experience and this is just what I've done for as long as I can remember. When you're cycling a tank and having issues..... 1. Daily 50% water change 2. Dose in your dechlorinator and add in water 3. Dose in your bacteria for the 1-week directions. The bacteria then has 24 hours to do it's thing until the next dose. It'll work, you can do your water changes, and you keep the fish healthy during the 3-5 days of ammonia - nitrates. Per seachem's website, dose dechlorinator once every 24 hours at most.
  3. nabokovfan87
    @Cinnebuns This might be of some help for you! Very cool project, nice results.
  4. nabokovfan87
    10-14 days. 5-7 if you have low stocking. <--- This is from starting with new equipment and media. Sidenote.... most people often forget that bacteria likes oxygenation to grow.
  5. nabokovfan87
    The wood and soil substrate will drop the PH over time and the stone will boost it up over time. I think you'll be fine. Just test it weekly for the first few months if possible to track changes over time. At about ~3 months, you should be at a place where things are stable. Much like everything, you control the environment by doing water changes. If you run into issues, you just do water changes. If things are building up and you're only changing 25% of the water, then consider changing 50% of the water each time. You'll find out that there's a lot of stress and confusion and the best way to get through things..... the #1 secret to keeping fish.... is to just test the water and make notes, observe, and keep an eye on things.
  6. nabokovfan87
    Seachem acid buffer, yes. or you do water changes with RO / Distilled water. you mean soothing and enjoyable!
  7. nabokovfan87
    I just use a sponge, like one for dishes or paper towel. anything stronger and you risk marking the glass.
  8. nabokovfan87
    I understand. I did that. The stuff still will get everywhere and it's not as easy ot an experience as the afformentioned one. Totally manageable, just not the preference. I wonder if there's a way to manufacturer in air release holes that let the air out but not the fert powder.
  9. nabokovfan87
    https://www.glasses.com/gl-us/blog/crazed-lenses Basically lots of tiny abrasions and it looks foggy. It can happen to glass over time. Other common reasons are cleaner residues (likely not an issue) or the water deposits or bacteria growing. The most common reason I would argue for a tank appearing foggy is that the water isn't quite clear. But, that is the tank not necessarily the glass being foggy.
  10. nabokovfan87
    @TeeJay can you share your experience on your tank with the small x07 filter? I believe you also tested the spray bar option? I agree though, probably a bit too strong for a Betta, I do think there are canisters that make sense for 20G and up tanks.
  11. nabokovfan87
    It looks like something growing on the leaf as opposed to the plant itself.
  12. nabokovfan87
    There was no photo attached. You can try moving things temporarily to a tote and running a vinegar soak. Given the age of the tank, is it possible to be crazing or more likely to be hard water deposits?
  13. nabokovfan87
    Shrimp need a little bit of copper, it's often in shrimp food for this reason as well. Seeing it in any fertilizer should not be a concern due to the very, very small dose. I have used both. I think the flourish tabs, especially the old ones when the co-op used to sell them, were the best you could get. I don't like the gel caps because they tend to hold air. In terms of ease of use, reliability, and my experience with the two products, cost aside, I do prefer the seachem ones.
  14. nabokovfan87
    It's beautiful! 🙂
  15. nabokovfan87
    Worms. Definitely the worms.
  16. nabokovfan87
    That's how I do it! I think you'll have success with this method. Food is your ammonia source And then the bacteria is your starter. As long as filtration is working and able to mechanically and biologically cycle the tank, then you're good to go. Keep the tank stocking light and that also helps too. Just a normal amount. Usually a pinch every few days. Once you have food in there, just give it time. You might only have to "feed the tank" 2x a week at first while it's getting going.
  17. nabokovfan87
    They sure love moss, don't they! Especially when it's not been cleaned yet. 😂
  18. nabokovfan87
    API sells the liquid test kits. They are really easy to use. You just count the drops as you add them to the water sample in the vials one by one. 152 ppm is a good place to start, but just keep in mind that if it's for shrimp you do want to have some ability to monitor it. The moss and susswassertang sounds great! In my shrimp setup I've added ferns and just place then around the tank with plant weights. That's already in the plans so that's great. Have you ever considered some types of hygrophila, Bacopa, or Starogyne species of plants? They are stems and depending on your setup can be a little forgiving if you're having major issues with stems. They do have a unique look too, which works well. The soil is there, so it's just down to light, maintenance, technique, and fertilization! Hopefully with the support of the plant people here on the forums we can get some stems going a bit better for you!
  19. nabokovfan87
    I can't tell without a photo! 😂
  20. nabokovfan87
    The Brita filter is basically like running carbon in your filter. Not a huge need to run your aquarium water changes through that. What size is your tank? Usually what people use is about 1 lb per gallon, I believe. If you're using much more, like 3-5lbs per gallon of water, that's where I would use caution.
  21. nabokovfan87
    That's awesome, congratulations!
  22. nabokovfan87
    What @Lennie was mentioning is called an off-gas test. Essentially, the oxygenation and PH of the water can change depending on how stable the ions are. Using an air stone and testing after 24 hours is going to give you an accurate PH and then we can compare that to the tank. So.... KH is around 4. Mine is at 3-4 and I'm sitting right at 6.8-7.2 PH on average. Ultimately, the KH is high enough to keep everything stable, and so your water is actually pretty perfect given the GH:KH ratio as well. 24 hours minimum. 7.0 is what I think a lot of people consider as "ideal" but your PH need is going to change based on what the fish you're keeping require.
  23. nabokovfan87
    You can also add an air store to help the fish. Please try to get. A photo of the area if possible.
  24. nabokovfan87
    Please post photos of the tail. I would suggest making a new thread for your issue with full water parameters and details. Unfortunately there's a few reasons for stress and redness to occur on a fish. It is very likely the stress from PH crashing due to low KH played a factor here. https://www.aquariumcoop.com/blogs/aquarium/ph-gh-kh
  25. nabokovfan87
    Flourish excel is an algaecide not a fertilizer.
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