My Main Display Tank

wouldn't it be easier, with your two net construction, to leave one side open, when pieces get detached, you just add them back between the nets from the side?

 

Wow look's great
:top:

 

I thought about that, but was worried my clown loaches would somehow worm themselves in between the nets if there is a slight opening. I doubt it is in their character to try that, but you never know.

So continuing from the previous post, this is what it looks like after "replanting":



Not great, but give it a week or so!

As a further update, the Aponogeton Crispus flower finally broke through the surface. How long does it take before it opens and drops seeds?



Regards
L

 

Hi

A quick update. I'll answer my own question. The A. Crispus flower opened yesterday. I will take some pics tonight and post here.

Regards
L

 

Laure your plants look absolutely awesome love the carpet .....

 

Possible BGA?

Hi

I recently thought I killed cyanobacteria with a 3-day blackout, but apparently not. I started noticed some algae, which may or may not be cyanobacteria.

I read all over the web regarding killing cyanobacteria (BGA) with erythromycin (EM). I also know that Prof Dirk sells Happy Life Algin Special, which he said was very successful at killing BGA over a 4 week period. I managed to get hold of some EM from a pharmacist friend. 30 x 250mg capsules for R25. I have some algae in my tank which I think is BGA, but I am not 100% convinced. It hasn't overtaken anything. It is not on the substrate in large amounts. However, I do see small air bubbles on top of the substrate after about 3 hours of lights on. Some of the gravel pieces are green in colour, like they are covered in algae individually, but I see no green film. I can't see any green slime on the gravel, as it is normally described. There is probably some BGA on my moss, as it appears that the moss is also pearling like crazy. I have some Limnophila Sessiliflora stems where the older growth have a definite green film over the fine leaves. It is dificult to identify. It could be BGA, or just some form of filamentous green algae.

So I filled up an old glass tank I had lying around. It takes 15 litres, which is 4 gallons. The recommended dosage for EM is 200mg per 10 gallons. I cut off a few Sessiliflora stems and placed them in this tank with some dechlorinated water. No filter, no heater, no lights. I placed the glass tank where some sunlight would hit it during the day, just to be sure I don't kill BGA with a blackout, but EM instead.

According to my calculations, I need to dose this 4 gallon tank with 80mg EM. This would be the standard dosage if I had fish and a biological filter in this tank. But I don't and I wanted to prove this is BGA. If it died, it is definitely BGA, and then I can treat my main tank accordingly. So I overdosed and added an entire 250mg capsule to the 4 gallon. Now the waiting starts.

A few hours later I noticed some pearling of the BGA, but not anything like I normally see in my main tank. The next morning there was no change. I wonder how long the EM takes to start killing BGA, if this is in fact BGA? Tonight I noticed no change either. Most sources on the web claim they start dying on day 3 of treatment. So tomorrow night will be 48 hours into the experiment. I will report back the day after.

BGA will not get me down! It may have won the first battle, but not the war!

Regards
Lauré

 

Now that's the spirit!!!! Down with BGA!!!!!

 

:beer:

 

Looking good Laure!! I like the natural look of it all. I really like the Nymphea plants. I have a few in some of my tanks too!!

 

Hi

I have decided to buy a second external cannister filter for a few reasons, but mainly to increase the flow in the tank. I do not think I am under-filtered with respect to media surface area, but I think I can benefit from additional water movement inside the tank. I can go and add a few powerheads, but I'd like to minimise the equipment inside the tank. So an additional external cannister it will be. This also provides the extra benefit of a backup in case of component failure, and I can also clean the filters alternately, thereby minimizing the disturbance of the biological filtration.

I need some help in deciding how to place the second filter.

My existing filter's inlet is in the back right corner. The outlet spraybar is in the back left, facing forward. So flow is from left to right. The spraybar is just slightly below the water surface so that it creates just a gentle surface movement, but mostly moves the water closer to the substrate.

Shall I
a) place the 2nd filter's inlet and outlet in the same areas, so that I increase the left to right current (flow rate would be theoretically the sum of the 2 filters)
b) place the 2nd filter's inlet on the left of the tank and the outlet on the right
c) do something totally different?

Regards
Lauré

 

I'd suggest putting them the same way as your first cannister. My thinking is that if you put the new cannisters inlet near the outlet of the existing cannister, all you'll really be doing is sucking up most of the already filtered water and sending it back down to the other cannister. Let's see what everyone else suggests.

 

I agree with Veegal on the canisters and I will give you the same advice. Place the inlets and outlets at opposite ends. In this way you can filter more debris or unwanted material at a faster rate.

 

That was my thinking too. So far I have 2 people agreeing. Let's see if anybody else comes up with a good reason to go for option (b) or (c).

 

I will add my agreement to Vee and Asgar - much better way

 

I agree on option a as well, it will also give you a greater flow effect in the tank, as the current from two opposite ends will surely cancel each other out.

One end inlet, other outlet sounds good

 

OK let me update this. I have now had this stem in a small glass tank with water for a few days. I have been double dosing erythromycin every send day and kept switling the water around to ensure it get to the cyano. It is not really growing, but it ain't dead either. I would really expect it to be dead by now. This means that either it is not cyano, or it is resistant to EM. If the latter, then there is a big problem. I have not read anywhere on the web of anybody experiencing resistant strains of cyano. But everybody that treated their cyano problem with EM were specifically treating the slimy growth on the gravel. Could there be more than one type?

Here is a picture of the stem with the algae on it



It looks like cyano, but maybe it isn't? Notice the thin blue-green sheet of growth between the sessiliflora leaves. Then on the leave itself is a thread-like green growth which is more like regular green algae. It can be wiped off quite easily without damaging the plant.

Can anybody help?

Regards
Lauré

 

So many people online and no response? I'd like to hear Prof Dirk's opinion here.

Please note that this is an experiment in a tank with nothing else but the sessiliflora stem. So maybe there are other factors at play here? Do I need continious water movement for the medication to be effective? I wouldn't think so. It is disolved and surely will kill the cyano if indeed this is cyano...

 

Yup - definitely looks like algae to me

 

Em, yeah. Algae for sure. :smile1: But is it cyano or something else? I am pretty convinced its cyano, byt erythromycin ain't killng it. Sooooo....is it cyano?

 

Looks like BGA to me, not Cyano... I could be wrong though.