Question # 2 Back Drop

I'm debating back drops for what my mother has deemed the "Goofy Texas Tank". My pallet o plants is in, I'm going to pick those up. So now it's time to debate back drop. I like the idea of reflective backing because it gives the illusion of more space. I'm not sure how that would set with the fishies though. My other thought was plain blue or black. Are any better than others? It is a tall tank and I use the area behind there as storage so I'd really rather not leave it open.

 

The best back drop is obvious..... a giant picture of the Alamo


ooooo and you could get one of those plastic six shooters from the toy section as decoration!!!


Sorry I couldn't resist.

 

I usually change 10% every week. The "specialist" at the LFS said that's all I need with live plants. She never clarified how many plants would help the bioload, etc. Anyhow, after reading here, I've decided to do a larger water change. I usually, fill a five gallon bucket, treat it, heat it, and run it on a filter until I need the water for a change. Given what was explained to be about shocking and stressing the fish, this seemed the most logical approach. A different "specialist" said that was overkill for a little ten gallon tank.... which would feel the effects much more readily than a larger tank... to my reasoning. Anyhow, now i'm wondering, is it overkill to put pretreated and heated water in or would they not know the difference between that and treated fresh tap water?

Given that my plants moved, I plan on doing larger changes more often til my horwort arrives. How much is enough for ten gallons of hard, 7.5 PH, almost alkeline water?

On the heat, is there a reason you don't use water from the hot and cold taps to avoid having to heat the replacement water? I have always ran water straight from the taps into the tank at approximately the same temperature [a degree or two either way is not going to hurt most fish, but there are some exceptions]. I squirt in the conditioner as it starts to fill. But I have large tanks and need to use a Python, so this is the only way. As long as the parameters (pH and hardness) between the tank and tap water are reasonably close, this works fine.

The volume of the water change depends upon the needs of the system. The more and larger the fish, the more essential it is to change more water regularly, at least once a week. I have planted aquaria but I still do 50% water changes every week. With heavily planted tanks, and provided the fish load is minimal, fewer water changes are required. The fish determine these.

Byron.

 

On the heat, is there a reason you don't use water from the hot and cold taps to avoid having to heat the replacement water? I have always ran water straight from the taps into the tank at approximately the same temperature [a

I don't use water from the hot tap because I've seen the inside of a hot water heater up close and personal.... Its NASTY. My rule of thumb is that hot water is for bathing, not consuming. Perhaps it's an odd paranoia (read phobia) but I feel better knowing they're not swimming in it.

 

As for backdrops, I bought one that had black on one side and blue (graduating from very dark on the bottom to darkish on the top) on the other. I put both up and thought that the black made the tanks look smaller than the blue (I have 35 and 75 litre, approx 9 and 20 US gallons). The blue seemed to me to give more an illusion of depth than the black side.

 

Good point made by Byron about the water changes and being dependent on the stocking and size of the stock in your tank.

I too have a planted tank, and I keep many smaller fish, and I'm not where near capacity, I do about a 30% water change every week. I too use the same method Byron, using a siphon to drain my tank and long tube, connected to my faucet and I temper the water as close as the human hand can tell....

As for the backdrop, I use to have the same blue backdrop as mentioned by tanker (weird we have two 'tanker's...haha)...and I noticed when I switched to my current black background I don't regret it for a minute. The black background with the darker colored gravel really, really make the green of the plants 'pop' so to speak and bring great contrast with the colors of the fish.

I would steer clear of any sort of "reflector" back ground, keep in mind most of the fish we keep come from streams and creeks/rivers, where it's naturally 'darker'...before I made the transformation to my planted aquaria, I had crystals and white gravel in my tank. It was very bright and I did some research found that my fish didn't care for it, so out it went.

What plants did you end up ordering? Have you thought about what lighting you're going to use??

 

What I do.... For the 55 Gallon. I have two 5 Gallon buckets under the tank in the cabinet. I use my hose to fill those. I treat that water, and keep a little filter in each. That way whenever I need to change water, It's ready. Then, when I change water I siphen out of the tank, directly out the window of the house (the dog loves it), Then I use a hose with a pump on it to pull the water from the two buckets into the tank. No lifting, no spillage.

 

byron do you do the full dosage for the water condition based on your tank size? or just the dosage for the amount of water you are changing?

 

I would only dose for the water being added, not for the enitre tank volume.

 

The only part of your method I would question is the need for filtration for the new water. Assuming you don't have anything living in those buckets, there really ought to be nothing to filter, right?

 

Throw in a Labrador and no matter how sterile you think something should be, (I keep lids on EVERYTHING) you will find pet hair in it. I vacuum daily, bathe him weekly, and still can't walk out of the house with out dog hair on me. It's no great shakes but it does ensure I'm not dumping dog fur in with the fish.

 

I understand the conundrum. I have a dog and two cats. I've experienced a lot of success just skimming the buckets of water. But, if the filters accomplish your desired end, then who's to argue? :-D

The hair will eventually cause problems with a lot of filters, so make sure to keep up on that.

 

This thread is enlightening. I'm going to look into buying a python (or some tubing and something to connect to the sink...)

Anyways, to answer the original post, I do think it's overkill. If you can, what I do is I have a digital thermometer, and get the water from the faucet to the correct temperature and then fill the bucket. Keep an eye though as the temperature can change. Never had a problem with this method. Also, using this method you won't keep it out very long and won't have to worry about dog hair.

 

I looked into buying a python....but $60 seemed like a lot when I was looking around....what I did was buy a siphon from Petco, then bought the clear tubing from lowes. It was like $12 for 25 feet of tubing...I siphon and hook the long tube to the end of it, and run it down the hall and into the bathroom tub. Then I remove the siphon at the one end and drop it into the tank. I then hook an attachment to the end that was in the tub and screw it into my faucet, and temper the water then fill it up as described before.

Its not an "offical python" but it's the Johnny D special!!! does the same thing basically

 

I tested my hot water by itself and it is actually different from the cold water. I suspected, but now I know.

PH 8.2
Ammo .5~1.0
Nitrite 0 ppm
Nitrate 0 ~ 5 ppm

 

I tested my hot water by itself and it is actually different from the cold water. I suspected, but now I know.

PH 8.2
Ammo .5~1.0
Nitrite 0 ppm
Nitrate 0 ~ 5 ppm

I'm not saying it may not be possible, but I would be very skeptical of differing parameters for hot and cold water; the water is the same source and I wouldn't think anything inside the heater could alter pH or nitrates. It may add metals, but that is completely different. There is the CO2 issue, of course.

Run hot and cold together at normal aquarium temp, then collect a glass of water and let it sit 24 hours, then test for pH, etc. That will give you a fairly accurate reading of the tap water.

 

I have a 20 gallon and 10 gallon tank I setup to prepare water for water changes. I have a heater and koralia 2 pump for water circulation. I ensure that the change water is identical in temperature and PH prior to changing the water. I am a bit excessive (sometimes I even use RO-DI water for changing water on my discus tank).

I agree with the way that you are currently changing the water.