Work Travel and Tank Maintenance

[sairving]

Hey everyone, so my employer offered me the opportunity to become a trainer for my current position. I'm still waiting for more information and when certification classes will be. If it's anything like it has been in the past, company wide, there aren't many trainers. Most likely there will be some travel involved.  

I have a 10 gallon tank with plants, a betta, a nerite snail, and a random pygmy cory. Feeding the fish won't be a problem. I can get a weekly pill container and put food in it for the days I would not be around. Normally, I do a 30% weekly water change but can upped to 50%. The light runs about 9 hours. I would even consider shotening the photo period. My biggest issue is fertilizer. 

I mix my own and hoping my family adds the correct amount is just asking for trouble. I've been using the pps pro system. Should I start experimenting with low tech EI dosing? Maybe cut the dosing back to three days a week?

All in ones haven't always had enough macro nutrients, which is why I bought dry ferts. 

[ScottieB]

Is pps still mixed up in batches? I might be wrong but if you mix up a week at a time just get a small dosing pump like this one: https://www.bulkreefsupply.com/reefing/Dosing-Pump

Then put it on a Kasa wifi outlet and program it to add your specific volume at certain times during the day. Not sure if that helps but just a thought. 

And congrats on the new position!

[nabokovfan87]

On 8/9/2022 at 6:45 AM, sairving said:

I would even consider shotening the photo period. My biggest issue is fertilizer.

I wouldn't mess with the photo length. 

Eufy has the decent quality camera you can view the tank.  You can use kasa outlets and view what is / isn't powered. It's a great tool to have for the sake of trying to ensure what is and isn't working for you.

Something like easy green might make things a lot more tolerable. If you're doing anything extravagent then I highly recommend the red sea or the seachem dosing pumps (if you can find them).  They both work the same way, should be fine. Before you leave, you check things, and you can find one that is app controlled.

[sairving]

On 8/9/2022 at 9:13 PM, ScottieB said:

Is pps still mixed up in batches? I might be wrong but if you mix up a week at a time just get a small dosing pump like this one: https://www.bulkreefsupply.com/reefing/Dosing-Pump

Then put it on a Kasa wifi outlet and program it to add your specific volume at certain times during the day. Not sure if that helps but just a thought. 

And congrats on the new position!

I mix up about 250 ml per batch. I'll look into the dosing pump. There will be a 6-12 week delay before I'm working in general. Had an accident Wed evening.  Long story short I have an avulsion fracture. Instead of tearing my rotator cuff, I tore the bone that it attaches too.  Good news is, bone grows, so it shouldn't need surgery.  Now I have to get people to help with tank maintenance.

[Patrick_G]

Sorry about the fracture. That doesn’t sound fun. ☹️

I’m with @ScottieB, an auto doser would work great. 

[sairving]

On 8/11/2022 at 12:34 PM, Patrick_G said:

Sorry about the fracture. That doesn’t sound fun. ☹️

I’m with @ScottieB, an auto doser would work great. 

My biggest problem is getting comfortable. Orthopedic doctor gave me a much nicer sling than the ER.

[Patrick_G]

On 8/11/2022 at 11:42 AM, sairving said:

My biggest problem is getting comfortable. Orthopedic doctor gave me a much nicer sling than the ER.

I totally understand. Being a mountain biker, ex skateboarder and a greenhorn downhill skier I end up with more of these type of injuries than I would like. Ibuprofen is your friend!