Galen's 20 Long tank
- Thread starter galen
- Start date
Que
I wish I was a fish I wish.
My favorite tank when I was a kid was my 20g long with a mirrored back. I thought it was the coolest tank. It looked twice as deep and I only had to buy half as much plants and fish as a regular 20 long. LOL
Q
Q
Mate were is the tank kept. Could just do with a slither of ply surrounding the block would make it a little more pleasing to the eye. This can then be stained or painted as disired.
My old man is a joiner and if you made a soft wood fram for the ply you could probably get away with a couple of hinged doors to keep it all neat.
I take it the first photo's were soon after you set up??
Rob
My old man is a joiner and if you made a soft wood fram for the ply you could probably get away with a couple of hinged doors to keep it all neat.
I take it the first photo's were soon after you set up??
Rob
Sand makes a great looking substrate...but with a few issues...Make sure your not using 'sharp' sand ie. sand that has been 'made' (like brikies/builders sand) this stuff is the silica content (feldspar) that binds a lot of rocks together...it is a by product of crushing rocks for gravel...the term 'sharp' sand means just how it sounds...the sand (being broken bits of feldspar/silica) has sharp edges, which will damage the mouths of fish that dig in it.
Most 'river' or washed sand (play sand usualy falls in this category, but id check with the supplier to make sure) has been pummeled about, the sand rubs against itself and 'rounds' the corners off. Much nicer for those fish that like to rearange your tank (as most cichlids do).
One of the other main issues (which directly relates to your photos) is that its best not to have your filter running while you have a 'wet sandstorm going' that sand will clog your filter media and much worse...will wear your pumps impeler out in no time...best to let the cloud settle on its own b4 you put your filter in (the filter will actualy increase the amount of time it takes for your tank to clear, due to the disturbance the water makes (the sand particles will drop out of still water, but will just keep spining around in a current).
Another problem that you may encounter down the track is the cleaning saga...your vac system that you use on your gravel will just suck your sand right outa the tank!
If you hover a hose just above the surface of the sand (youl get the hang of it with only a little practice) you will be able to suck up the detrius left by the fish. (white sand can be a bit of a hassle to keep clean)
Also the sand will collect 'pockets' of filth under the surface which can (and will over time) build up bad bacteria and some pretty toxic gasses.
The way to deal with this is usually to 'churn' the sand every couple of months (and thus releasing any built up pockets of muck).
Having said all this ... I would hate to scare anyone off from using sand as it realy is a great looking base for any tank, and realy isnt that hard to care for once youve had a little practice.
Also it is a good idea to mix some crushed calcium caarbonate to any sand that you use (CA's about 1 part CC to 4 or 5 parts sand...Africans need a higher concentration), as its larger grain size can help with stoping compacating and adds an extra 'buffer' to your tanks chamistry. Africans espacialy like a good mix of it as it raises the ph of the water (some fish definetly dont like this so make sure you ask a few qustions b4 jumpin in)
I just got home from the RSL and have a 'wobly boot on' so dont judge me to harshly on my grammar/spelling/facts
Most 'river' or washed sand (play sand usualy falls in this category, but id check with the supplier to make sure) has been pummeled about, the sand rubs against itself and 'rounds' the corners off. Much nicer for those fish that like to rearange your tank (as most cichlids do).
One of the other main issues (which directly relates to your photos) is that its best not to have your filter running while you have a 'wet sandstorm going' that sand will clog your filter media and much worse...will wear your pumps impeler out in no time...best to let the cloud settle on its own b4 you put your filter in (the filter will actualy increase the amount of time it takes for your tank to clear, due to the disturbance the water makes (the sand particles will drop out of still water, but will just keep spining around in a current).
Another problem that you may encounter down the track is the cleaning saga...your vac system that you use on your gravel will just suck your sand right outa the tank!
If you hover a hose just above the surface of the sand (youl get the hang of it with only a little practice) you will be able to suck up the detrius left by the fish. (white sand can be a bit of a hassle to keep clean)
Also the sand will collect 'pockets' of filth under the surface which can (and will over time) build up bad bacteria and some pretty toxic gasses.
The way to deal with this is usually to 'churn' the sand every couple of months (and thus releasing any built up pockets of muck).
Having said all this ... I would hate to scare anyone off from using sand as it realy is a great looking base for any tank, and realy isnt that hard to care for once youve had a little practice.
Also it is a good idea to mix some crushed calcium caarbonate to any sand that you use (CA's about 1 part CC to 4 or 5 parts sand...Africans need a higher concentration), as its larger grain size can help with stoping compacating and adds an extra 'buffer' to your tanks chamistry. Africans espacialy like a good mix of it as it raises the ph of the water (some fish definetly dont like this so make sure you ask a few qustions b4 jumpin in)
I just got home from the RSL and have a 'wobly boot on' so dont judge me to harshly on my grammar/spelling/facts
ok. well, the sandstorm cleared up literally overnight. that was not sand in the water column; it was a very fine residual of the substrate i put into thge tank. the water clarifier did the trick. best part is that a very fine layer has now settled upon the top level of the substrate, which is very very light. therefore, this morning i am taking the gravel vac and siphoning off as much of the fine particles as possible. i came up witht he idea od using a gravel vac last nite when i saw the thin, very light layer that was collecting on top of the substrate.
i knew the risk of running the filter with all that sand in there. however, after adding the water clarifier the filter eeasily cleaned up the fine particles from the water column with no damagae whatsover from the filter. the impeller ran quietly the whole time, so it must have cleaned up the finer particles and not the bigger sand substrate, which has settled.
due to all that, last nite i bumped all the fish out and into the other tank.
thank you for all the posts and suggestions!
yes, i do plan on painting the concrtete and wood! although, the bareness of it is somehow differrent and attartcive. but we'll see how long that lasts!
a work in progress for sure!
i should have explained that the last pic of my first posts wasa pic of the tilpaia in my old tank- not the one going through a sandstorm!
i knew the risk of running the filter with all that sand in there. however, after adding the water clarifier the filter eeasily cleaned up the fine particles from the water column with no damagae whatsover from the filter. the impeller ran quietly the whole time, so it must have cleaned up the finer particles and not the bigger sand substrate, which has settled.
due to all that, last nite i bumped all the fish out and into the other tank.
thank you for all the posts and suggestions!
yes, i do plan on painting the concrtete and wood! although, the bareness of it is somehow differrent and attartcive. but we'll see how long that lasts!
a work in progress for sure!
i should have explained that the last pic of my first posts wasa pic of the tilpaia in my old tank- not the one going through a sandstorm!
Sand makes a great looking substrate...but with a few issues...Make sure your not using 'sharp' sand ie. sand that has been 'made' (like brikies/builders sand) this stuff is the silica content (feldspar) that binds a lot of rocks together...it is a by product of crushing rocks for gravel...the term 'sharp' sand means just how it sounds...the sand (being broken bits of feldspar/silica) has sharp edges, which will damage the mouths of fish that dig in it.
Most 'river' or washed sand (play sand usualy falls in this category, but id check with the supplier to make sure) has been pummeled about, the sand rubs against itself and 'rounds' the corners off. Much nicer for those fish that like to rearange your tank (as most cichlids do).
One of the other main issues (which directly relates to your photos) is that its best not to have your filter running while you have a 'wet sandstorm going' that sand will clog your filter media and much worse...will wear your pumps impeler out in no time...best to let the cloud settle on its own b4 you put your filter in (the filter will actualy increase the amount of time it takes for your tank to clear, due to the disturbance the water makes (the sand particles will drop out of still water, but will just keep spining around in a current).
Another problem that you may encounter down the track is the cleaning saga...your vac system that you use on your gravel will just suck your sand right outa the tank!
If you hover a hose just above the surface of the sand (youl get the hang of it with only a little practice) you will be able to suck up the detrius left by the fish. (white sand can be a bit of a hassle to keep clean)
Also the sand will collect 'pockets' of filth under the surface which can (and will over time) build up bad bacteria and some pretty toxic gasses.
The way to deal with this is usually to 'churn' the sand every couple of months (and thus releasing any built up pockets of muck).
Having said all this ... I would hate to scare anyone off from using sand as it realy is a great looking base for any tank, and realy isnt that hard to care for once youve had a little practice.
Also it is a good idea to mix some crushed calcium caarbonate to any sand that you use (CA's about 1 part CC to 4 or 5 parts sand...Africans need a higher concentration), as its larger grain size can help with stoping compacating and adds an extra 'buffer' to your tanks chamistry. Africans espacialy like a good mix of it as it raises the ph of the water (some fish definetly dont like this so make sure you ask a few qustions b4 jumpin in)
I just got home from the RSL and have a 'wobly boot on' so dont judge me to harshly on my grammar/spelling/facts
thanks for all the advice!
Yes cleared up well...nice Cave...is it a real skull or a clay model...what is it (Looks like a Sabre Tooth Tiger to me :0)
Its a very rich looking coloured sand, should hide the mess nicely...white sand can be a ****** to keep clean....
Its a very rich looking coloured sand, should hide the mess nicely...white sand can be a ****** to keep clean..
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