We never used to cycle tanks...

coupedefleur said:
That crazy chemical was "hypo"- something that amateur photographers used to develop film.
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That was/is Sodium thiosulphate, and many of us still use it.

Now old...old is slate-bottomed, steel-framed tanks held together with black sealing cement, early sand-filled electric heaters with seperate controllers, homemade sand filters, aerators run by brass piston air-pumps connected to real rubber hosing that rotted in time....thats old.
 
I remember my first tank that didn't have a slate bottom... I was skeptical. LOL

Remember those big tan air pumps?, Man I wish I could remember the name... They were considered high end, expensive at the time. They were round, mine was about 8 inches tall, maybe 5 inches diameter. You could get rebuild kits, so you would never have to buy another air pump...
 
CaptnDan said:
Remember those big tan air pumps?, Man I wish I could remember the name... They were considered high end, expensive at the time. They were round, mine was about 8 inches tall, maybe 5 inches diameter. You could get rebuild kits, so you would never have to buy another air pump...
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Thibergs were cylindrical, but not 5" diameter, and I believe most were white....perhaps another similar brand?

One of my first was an old cylinder pump, electrically-driven with a leather belt, and a fabric-covered cord with a bakelite plug.

Interestingly enough, glass-bottomed tanks were in use as early as 1923, but not popularised until the sixties.
 
Does that mean I can use my old 5g tank without killing my fish ? I was given an old steel framed black sealant 5g. The inside bottom paint (?) had flaked off completely revealing zinc (maybe?) or galvanized steel or whatever it was they used back then for the bottom of the tank. It's glass on all vertical panes. It doesn't leak but I have it in the donate pile for the last few months. Maybe it'd be safe in pinch ? :hi:
 
This pump was shaped more like a Lava Lamp, sort of. The bottom tapered (flared) out, and was about an inch and a half. That was dark brown. From there it tapered in all the way to the top. That part was tan.

I hate not being able to remember....

As to that tank.... The metal on the bottom sounds scary. Not so sure I'd use it.
 
CaptnDan said:
Many thanks to Native American!

I was going to post a thread on the equipment forum, and by chance I ran across his post that mentioned a no longer manufactured pump called "Silent Giant".

That's it.
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I always remember my sister buying me a Silent Giant Pump for my 10th Birthday....found one at a garage sale a few years back. And I use to buy my fish at the pet sections of Sears and Woolworths! My first tank was a 10g metal frame in 1967 (after the gold fish bowls with the carnival gold fish of course!). I've gone "retro" and have 5g and 20g metal frame tanks that are water tight and a slate bottom metal 10g that needs to be tested.
 
I had a Silent Giant, too.

I looked up the hypo, and it said "grains"-

If you've got an old frame tank with a slate or metal bottom, you can fix it. Silicone will not stick to slate! One method I've heard of was putting a band of epoxy around the edge of the slate. I called the mfgr of the epoxy brand, and they said "not under the waterline, not tested food-safe, don't do it"

My solution is to silicone a piece of glass over the bottom of the tank. It just needs to seal to the sides- water pressure will hold it down against the slate.
 
CaptnDan said:
"Silent Giant".

That's it.
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Aha...I shall have to pick one up.
 
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