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eSporks posted:Can anyone recommend an outlet timer? I've bought a few now and none of them work reliably. I ended up switching to a wemo plug so I can control tank lights with my phone, and because they're silent. Outlet timers I've used have made a clicking noise that's noticable in a quiet room.
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Jun 6, 2019 16:38
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DeadlyMuffin posted:I ended up switching to a wemo plug so I can control tank lights with my phone, and because they're silent. Outlet timers I've used have made a clicking noise that's noticable in a quiet room. What's the failstate on the wemo plugs if the power goes out? I've considered going this route
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Jun 6, 2019 16:53
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Haven't tried wemo, but 2 of the 4 timers I have tried have been smart plugs. They lost connection constantly and were expensive paper weights. I have a programmable electronic one right now that works ok, but it doesn't have a manual on/off override.
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Jun 6, 2019 17:11
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I'm using ebay bought made-in-china digital timers as the mechanical clicky ones always seem to fail on me. Couldn't tell you a brand name though. Both the ones I have you can override, one just outright toggles between timer/override, the other you need to mash it a couple of times to cycle between auto on/on/auto off/off. It's fine and easy to use though because they made that button huge compared to the other ones.
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Jun 6, 2019 17:18
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I use the same cheap electronic timers. one of each and haven't had an issue yet.
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Jun 6, 2019 18:25
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I recommend not getting the Century brand timers, I had a bunch of problems with a few of them and when I went to review on Amazon they wouldn't accept any more reviews.
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Jun 6, 2019 18:27
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w00tmonger posted:What's the failstate on the wemo plugs if the power goes out? I've considered going this route I think they found the wifi again, but defaulted to off. I'll check when I get home.
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Jun 6, 2019 18:57
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Can anyone help me diagnose algae?  Water: - Originally RO, now blended RO/Spring to keep KH/GH above 30 Ferts: - Flourish 2x a week - Flourish Nitrogen 3-4x a week (trying to get it to actually read > 20ppm NO3 on the shake-sticks is difficult!) - Flourish Potassium 2x a week - Flourish Phosphate 1x a week - CO2 injected with a bubble ladder (so far, atomizer arrives tomorrow) -- rate is enough to make plants pearl, but I don't know the concentration yet. Tank: - Marineland 5gal Lighting: - Hagen Fluval Nano on the default schedule I've got a lot of green-spot, which I thought originally came from poor ferts, but it continues to grow after keeping ferts dosed and adding CO2. The plants have pinholes (despite potassium!), and the edges of new growth are curled. Pictures:    
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Jun 6, 2019 19:23
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I have a major algae issue. I just pulled like a pound of green thread/hair algae out of my tank. It turns out one of my java moss patches was completely overrun by algae and I had to remove it Unfortunately, my Blue Velvet shrimp and 2 Kuhli loaches lived in that patch and are now "homeless" How do I prevent this proliferation of algae in the future? There's still algae growing on the plants and leaves that I can't get off, and its everywhere. Also I was thinking about getting more Blue Velvet shrimp now that it has been about 1.5 months since I got the Blue Velvets and all 3 are still alive. How many should there be for a colony? I was thinking of getting 12 more for a total of 15 shrimp.
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Jun 6, 2019 23:10
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I've got smart plugs on all my tanks. One of the plugs had some random problems but got resolved when I just unplugged it and renamed it. Most of the problems I've had seem to come from me renaming plugs or pulling them out but not deactivating them or their timers so my phone gets confused. I've never had any problem with them not reconnecting after a power outage, but they do default to off sometimes.
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Jun 7, 2019 04:40
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Do you guys think something like this would be cool? After a pump, before the rest of the filter stuff.  https://www.amazon.com/Rusco-34-100-F-Polyester-Screened-Spin-Down/dp/B005FYN7VU?ref_=bl_dp_s_web_8314066011 The koi are getting big, they wont be able to stay in this for long.
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Jun 7, 2019 06:52
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I think it will block up pretty quickly. But if you set it up right, like with a bypass, maybe easy to clean? I've seen a few koi filter setups on YouTube and they are often huge epic systems with multiple modules such as swirl filters, moving media beds, bog filters, shower filters, anoxic biocenosis baskets, drum filters and more. The ideal situation seems to be aim to make it uncloggable, easy to do regular maintenance (turn a tap to remove slurry of solids) or have parts that don't require much cleaning at all. Waste processing at a huge scale is a bit different than for regular tropical fishkeeping. Still the same principles of providing surfaces for bacteria but colonies can take months to become large enough and mechanical filtration is much more important.
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Jun 7, 2019 08:40
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Phi230 posted:I have a major algae issue. I just pulled like a pound of green thread/hair algae out of my tank. It turns out one of my java moss patches was completely overrun by algae and I had to remove it You can try a light schedule that's 4 hours on, 2-4 off, and 4 on again - plants can deal with this better than algae can and it'll give them an advantage. You can also try using Excel - if you do a full dose every other day combined with large water changes, that should knock the algae right back. Do that for a week and you should see a big improvement. Also - just removing the 'home base' of algae may be enough to tilt the scales overall. Over time if your parameters are right it should get better naturally. If you do all three of these - dark period, Excel, and removing what you can - you should have very good odds of a positive outcome. You'll want to make sure you're using an appropriate level of fertilizers too, of course. As far as getting more shrimp goes - if you have at least one male and female in your current three, their numbers should grow naturally over time. There's nothing wrong with getting more either, of course. 15 should be fine. In my 5 gallon shrimp tank, I just give a certain unchanging amount of Bacter AE daily as their only food (other than calcium blocks) and the population has increased naturally over time to reach an appropriate level. It's fun to spot all the little shrimp babies!
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Jun 7, 2019 15:17
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Mozi posted:You can try a light schedule that's 4 hours on, 2-4 off, and 4 on again - plants can deal with this better than algae can and it'll give them an advantage. Well I've had all 3 for like 2 months now and there's been no babies or pregnancies so either they're all female or all male. Will excel hurt my fish? I have multiple scale-less fish like Cory cats and kuhli loaches. I haven't been using excel because I've heard it kills fish. Will dark periods hurt my fish too? I haven't been using calcium to feed the shrimp, just normal fish food, but I mostly leave the shells of dead bladder snails in for a while that my assassin snails kill. I've heard shrimp like Tums. Is that safe to use?
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Jun 7, 2019 15:38
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Stoca Zola posted:I think it will block up pretty quickly. But if you set it up right, like with a bypass, maybe easy to clean? I've seen a few koi filter setups on YouTube and they are often huge epic systems with multiple modules such as swirl filters, moving media beds, bog filters, shower filters, anoxic biocenosis baskets, drum filters and more. The ideal situation seems to be aim to make it uncloggable, easy to do regular maintenance (turn a tap to remove slurry of solids) or have parts that don't require much cleaning at all. Waste processing at a huge scale is a bit different than for regular tropical fishkeeping. Still the same principles of providing surfaces for bacteria but colonies can take months to become large enough and mechanical filtration is much more important. I'm gonna go with a filter sock for now, but I have dreams of opening that valve with a solenoid.
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Jun 7, 2019 17:21
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Phi230 posted:Well I've had all 3 for like 2 months now and there's been no babies or pregnancies so either they're all female or all male. Hm - Excel doesn't hurt my Corys at all (have 3 kinds, salt and peps and the two dwarf/pygmy kinds), but I'm not sure about loaches - might want to check that out more. Dark periods won't hurt your fish at all, no. It's possible they may not enjoy the sudden dark->light change, but given that the dark period is generally in the middle of the day, there will be some light regardless, so you're not plunging them into total darkness out of nowhere. Depending on your water the shrimp may or may not enjoy supplemental calcium - it helps for me. Tums, being mostly calcium, seem like they would work - personally I get these: http://aqualibra.co.uk/ They're really great in my experience.
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Jun 7, 2019 19:09
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I'll try like 1/4 or 1/5 of a tums tablet and see how they react. Will bamboo shrimp enjoy calcium too?
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Jun 7, 2019 19:48
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Wondershell all da way baybee. Go wondershells
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Jun 7, 2019 20:15
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Woke up this morning and one of my kuhli loaches was dead, checked nitrate level and it was above 40ppm. I've never seen this tank get above 5-10ppm even after going over a week without a water change. I feel really guilty for not checking nitrates earlier in the week, poor lil guy probably would have survived E: something weird is happening, I've done two 25% water changes and tested 20 mins after doing them, nitrates back to zero. 3 hours after the water changes nitrates are back to above 20ppm. Any ideas? This has never happened before El Pollo Blanco fucked around with this message at 08:08 on Jun 9, 2019 |
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Jun 9, 2019 02:44
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So my wife and I spoke about the new reef tank I mentioned before and it looks like I might be upgrading from the Nano to a 36 x 18 with a Starfire front pane. I'll need a second light, a second powerhead, a bigger skimmer, a sump, and uh, cash.
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Jun 9, 2019 03:47
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DeadlyMuffin posted:Does anyone run a canister filter? If so, do you have a favorite media? I've never bothered with any specific media beyond what comes with the canisters outside of some uniquely large sump setups I've done, but to me the answer to this question is always "more coarse sponge." It provides double duty for mechanical and biological filtration, both as a prefilter and as extra stuffed into the canister itself. Can't go wrong. Phi230 posted:Will excel hurt my fish? I have multiple scale-less fish like Cory cats and kuhli loaches. I haven't been using excel because I've heard it kills fish. I've never had a single issue with Excel or any other algaecide chemical in my tanks, not even with shrimp. Fish don't really care about dark periods unless you have some unique fish or ambush predators in your setup (like Leopard Gouramis or something). If you're using default lighting setting and you have a Fluval light I've found that the default is always far too high. I usually run mine for about 6-6.5 hours (no blackout period) and I don't have any algae issues. Keep in mind that algae can still feed off of the blue "night" lights; I always turn mine completely off after the day cycle. Hair algae can also build up in areas with poor water flow, so providing a little turbulence around the fern will help prevent it from taking residence again once you remove it, but won't do anything to get rid of it once it's there. Siamese Algae Eaters are a great way to deal with this if you don't want to change your flow setup, but I don't recommend getting fish for housekeeping. BONGHITZ posted:Wondershell all da way baybee. Go wondershells This. All day long. Wrath of the Bitch King fucked around with this message at 11:16 on Jun 9, 2019 |
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Jun 9, 2019 11:13
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Be sure to follow the dosing instructions for Excel. You're putting in a small quantity daily. There was an emergency a few pages back where someone dumped the entire bottle because they misinterpreted the bottle.
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Jun 9, 2019 11:17
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El Pollo Blanco posted:E: something weird is happening, I've done two 25% water changes and tested 20 mins after doing them, nitrates back to zero. 3 hours after the water changes nitrates are back to above 20ppm. Any ideas? This has never happened before Jeez - there must be something in the tank that's producing that - there's not another dead fish stuck somewhere, or some old food or something? Have you cleaned your filter? Synthbuttrange posted:Be sure to follow the dosing instructions for Excel. You're putting in a small quantity daily. I also have success just using the large dose on my weekly water changes and not using it otherwise, as a maintenance thing. When there's a lot of algae you can do the heavy doses whenever you want as long as you do a water change first.
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Jun 9, 2019 12:41
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Saltwater mixing station is all set up: I guess this means I'm actually going to start a tank. My wallet weeps. On the plus side I made my first torsion box to raise the brutes high enough to install a spout for drainage into buckets. Fun little project.
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Jun 10, 2019 17:10
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My goldfish over the last couple of weeks have just eaten every plant in the tank. They've even ripped the hell out of the anubias plants but they can't actually eat them so they just shred them up into stringy things which end up clogging up the filter and forcing me to take it apart every few days. I switched brands of flakes so maybe they don't like the new one or aren't getting enough of something they were getting before from it. I might switch back and see what happens (not that there's any plants left to really test it on). Or I guess they could just need more fun because they're bigger? Or maybe they're just being goldfish. I'm done venting.
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Jun 10, 2019 23:11
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My rosy barbs were the same really, I think it is just their nature to try eating every plant and the only thing that slowed them down was filling them up on duckweed. Mum's pond goldfish don't hurt her waterlillies or pond weed but again they have access to duckweed. TKIY your setup looks good! Everything you can do to make life easier for yourself is worth doing.
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Jun 11, 2019 03:42
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That's why this tank will have a controller, an ATO, and auto dosing. I've really only Nanos without any automation in the past and frankly gently caress that.
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Jun 11, 2019 04:40
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Its hot outside, the nitrite test reads a deep dank purple.
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Jun 11, 2019 20:53
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Does anyone have any experience buying cheap Chinese goods from aliexpress? Im thinking about getting a mess of these socks, but I don't want to get owned. https://www.aliexpress.com/item/150...-dde7c504f245-1
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Jun 12, 2019 08:27
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My only experience with cheap Chinese filter sponges was the residues from manufacturing lingering and poisoning my fish. Possibly not an issue with this style of sock, different materials and process. High nitrites plus fish? Add salt to reduce nitrite poisoning or change out some water. Add more filter media. No fish? Looks like your media is developing a good population of initial nitrifying bacteria.
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Jun 12, 2019 08:53
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BONGHITZ posted:Does anyone have any experience buying cheap Chinese goods from aliexpress? I think they might be ok if you treat them as potentially one time use only. I got some cheap chinese socks from ebay, and they all disintegrated first time through the wash. For $1.60 a pop though that might be ok. I ended up spending some more on Amazon for some nicer quality ones, but they have held up through 5-6 wash cycles so far.
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Jun 12, 2019 13:58
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What do you guys suggest for aquarium hoods/lights? I just ordered a stand for a 29G tank. I'm gonna set it up and then pick up a 29G community tank for my tetras, angelfish, and some neons to replace my 10G "death tank". I ordered a filter for a 50G and I'm gonna pick up some gravel from Lowes because I realized they sell the same poo poo for $3 for a huge bag when I was buying stuff for my garden. The real money I spends seems like it goes into the hood and light. I've been buying the big pre made Aqueon black plastic ones and I like them and all but they can get real pricey. That seems crazy to me when I see some wire screens sitting next to it for $10. I don't know if the screen is really a good idea for splashing or keeping a light dry. I've looked up DIY stuff and like this guy says polycarbonate siding but its a big piece that runs $40 and needs a table saw and precise cuts and I suck at that. This guy's working with something a little cheaper and using scissors, which seems more doable for my skillset, but theother guy said that stuff was flimsy and bad. Then I see people making glass ones and other stuff but it all seems catered more to people making things in large numbers for fish rooms or selling or something. So I dunno. Are the pre made ones just the best value and choice or am I missing an easy fix?
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Jun 12, 2019 22:30
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Just got back from the LFS and a new tank has been ordered: 36 x 18 x 18, Starfire front, black silicone, polished and beveled edges, black tape, euro bracing, black painted back, with black acrylic overflow. Overflow will have three 3/4" bulkheads for a bean animal drain setup and there are two 3/4" return holes in the back panel. Time to build a stand. TKIY fucked around with this message at 03:07 on Jun 13, 2019 |
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Jun 12, 2019 22:52
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That sounds badass. Be sure to take lots of pics during your build!
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Jun 13, 2019 00:24
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I plan to. Hopefully no one minds the reef derail.
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Jun 13, 2019 03:07
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I mind alot, because I also want to make one. https://www.bulkreefsupply.com/hawaiian-black-arag-alive-live-reef-sand.html is this stuff cool? I'll chase any gimmick.
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Jun 13, 2019 03:21
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Went to the LFS and the guy who owns the place had a used saltwater setup he wanted to get rid of that he got from a local dentist's office: a 65 gallon setup with sump tank, stand, canopy, and all the fixins for $200. Couldn't say no to that. Guess my daughter is going to get her Nemo tank sooner than anticipated.
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Jun 13, 2019 04:50
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Wrath of the Bitch King posted:Went to the LFS and the guy who owns the place had a used saltwater setup he wanted to get rid of that he got from a local dentist's office: a 65 gallon setup with sump tank, stand, canopy, and all the fixins for $200. Couldn't say no to that. Maybe we should start a SW thread?
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Jun 13, 2019 15:55
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I think it's fine in here honestly, this thread hardly moves super fast as it is and the old sw thread would go weeks between posts.
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Jun 13, 2019 16:07
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Enos Cabell posted:I think it's fine in here honestly, this thread hardly moves super fast as it is and the old sw thread would go weeks between posts. All good then. Appreciate it. Got two coats of Kilz on the mixing stand last night:  Going to paint it on that wall behind too since I'll be mounting the RO/DI there. Ordered a cheap pump good for 300GPH at 4' head to mix the saltwater, and I'll get it all plumbed up this weekend. Planning to run the RODI through a tee with valves and a float valve in each container so I can fill the SW directly from the RO unit if I'm not in a hurry.
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Jun 13, 2019 16:17
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