Separators

[Cinnebuns]

Nobody makes tank separators well. At least none I've seen. I have been using a sponge to seperate my fry tanks. It's probably the closest to perfect I have seen for any product, but very young fry still are able to swim under it. 

I know youtube has some videos of people making their own, but I don't trust myself to do those well enough. I'm wondering if a 3D Printer might be the answer. What I'm invisioning is to 3D print a frame to size. Then cover it with a material. I can't think of what it's called, but I'm thinking that material they use for some sewing hobby. Ugh I can't describe it well right now.  

Does this sound like it may work? I'm not entirely sure how it would alll come together. It's more an idea without all the specifics. 

[Fish Folk]

I think the sewing material you’re referring to is simply called “canvas.” It used to be called “Darice Mesh.”

But these holes are too large. Fry will swim through. You’d need to 3D print much smaller holes.

For 3D printing… maybe @TheDukeAnumber1 or @FlyingFishKeeper could jump in. I think they’ve been doing some 3D printing re: aquarium parts. I know there’s others here too.

As for your sponge divider problem, I’d like to see your setup. I find a 40 ppi matten filter foam works wonderfully.

I push it down into the substrate a ways, and make sure it pushes out / expands out to create a little pressure on the sides. I cut it to rise right up underneath the rim, so the glass lid rests on it. I’ve not had problems with fry passing through.

 

Edited May 9, 2022 by Fish Folk

[Tihshho]

On 5/9/2022 at 2:25 AM, Cinnebuns said:

I know youtube has some videos of people making their own, but I don't trust myself to do those well enough. I'm wondering if a 3D Printer might be the answer. What I'm invisioning is to 3D print a frame to size. Then cover it with a material. I can't think of what it's called, but I'm thinking that material they use for some sewing hobby. Ugh I can't describe it well right now.  

3D printing is a wonderful addition to a lot of hobbys. When it comes to aquariums you're going to need to use the right material though. Material science is key because some plastics used in FDM printing are biodegradable, others leach out toxins, others react with water as a solvent, and others warp with heat or moisture and heat. The thing about 3D printing as well is it's not as easy as buy a printer, material and you're good. There is a handful of tuning involved for each printer profile, material profile, and depending on the size/orientation of the prints custom support profiles. I'll also add, depending on the room your print in, temperature and humidity affect the spooled material, so you might need to invest in an enclosure to manage the environmentals of the material OR the print area while a job is being worked on. I rapid prototype, produce some products with FDM and SLA printing at home. I've got a room dedicated to it. I wouldn't recommend printing in a room that has drafts/near a HVAC vent/fan that's always on or one that gets humidity from a tank in the room. 

Also, in terms of SLA (resin printing) you'll see some people online have videos of something they made and put in tanks. Consumer resins on the market are caustic. The consumer curing station/setups available don't fully cure the print only a few layers deep enough for it to be solid and not sticky to the touch. To use resin (higher quality prints with the availability of finer detail) you'll need to find medical grade resins that are also considered food safe. This isn't easy let alone affordable for most, so FDM would be the best bet as the primary printing style for aquaria.  

[Cinnebuns]

On 5/9/2022 at 6:54 AM, Fish Folk said:

I push it down into the substrate a ways, and make sure it pushes out / expands out to create a little pressure on the sides.

That might be my problem. It's bare bottom. I've tried to push it down as much as I can but fry seem to still get through. It's only when they are really tiny. Eventually they stop migrating once they've grown enough. 

I'll get a pic in a bit. My cat decided to sit on my lap just now and life demands I spend time with him when he does this lol

[Cinnebuns]

@Fish Folk

@Fish Folk

Side 1 snails:

 

Side 2 snails

[Cinnebuns]

I just noticed the 2 alive cories on side 1 have much better color today and look normal so i do think the intense cleaning did something. Whether it was that substrate stuff or foul water idk. I am going to daily if not 2x a day clean for a couple days here. 

Also, not sure of those rams on side 1 are dying. They don't smell yet but that doesn't mean they aren't on their way out. 

Edited May 9, 2022 by Cinnebuns

[Fish Folk]

How warm does that water get? Looking at sunlight… just curious.

[Cinnebuns]

That's interesting because side 1 (the bad side) is closer to the window. It was a different tank that got cracked but i did have bad algae problems on that side before because of that. I've since added black poster board on that side of the tank. 

Side 1 tests 76.2F and side 2 78.8F. The heater is on side 2. 

I just realized I got confused with the 2 different threads and posted a response from the 1 about cory fry here. Sigh. Long day. Idk if moving it around is worth it haha

[TheDukeAnumber1]

On 5/9/2022 at 1:25 AM, Cinnebuns said:

Nobody makes tank separators well. At least none I've seen. I have been using a sponge to seperate my fry tanks. It's probably the closest to perfect I have seen for any product, but very young fry still are able to swim under it. 

I know youtube has some videos of people making their own, but I don't trust myself to do those well enough. I'm wondering if a 3D Printer might be the answer. What I'm invisioning is to 3D print a frame to size. Then cover it with a material. I can't think of what it's called, but I'm thinking that material they use for some sewing hobby. Ugh I can't describe it well right now.  

Does this sound like it may work? I'm not entirely sure how it would alll come together. It's more an idea without all the specifics. 

I do think this could definitely work but you will need to pick up a little CAD, tinkercad would get you through this project no problem. I don't think a 3d printer is a good idea for just a one off project but if you do get one imo you would find it useful for aquariums in general and other misc things too.

 

@Tihshho

Quote

3D printing is a wonderful addition to a lot of hobbys. When it comes to aquariums you're going to need to use the right material though. Material science is key because some plastics used in FDM printing are biodegradable, others leach out toxins, others react with water as a solvent, and others warp with heat or moisture and heat. The thing about 3D printing as well is it's not as easy as buy a printer, material and you're good. There is a handful of tuning involved for each printer profile, material profile, and depending on the size/orientation of the prints custom support profiles. I'll also add, depending on the room your print in, temperature and humidity affect the spooled material, so you might need to invest in an enclosure to manage the environmentals of the material OR the print area while a job is being worked on.

I agree and those are fair warnings, but imo if you buy a halfway decent printer and use PLA filament, everything is going to be fine for aquarium use. There are decent & not crazy pricy printers out there that have pre-setup filament profiles too and won't require much tuning. There is no 100% plug n play FDM printer but some machines are near it with their features and profiles and imo it isn't difficult to get halfway decent PLA prints.

[Tihshho]

PLA has been nothing but problematic for aquarium use IME. Adding PLA products to the tank result in algae blooms. You also need to be sure not to use exotic PLA filaments that contain metals, wood, etc etc. No PLA is equal, and even the sources of them change blends based on sources of core materials, dyes and other things. PETG is the way to go for longevity and not leaching stuff into the water column. 

[TheDukeAnumber1]

Quote

Adding PLA products to the tank result in algae blooms.

Wow that's bizarre, I haven't had any noticable issues with PLA causing problems in my aquariums, even experimenting with an "exotic" brass filled PLA. I do agree that not all PLA's are equal and I think it is important to get quality PLA for a reliable source. And I do agree PETG is a good way to go too.