Zoom's set up

OK, so everyone has a thread of their own tank, and the progress going into it. So I thought I would have my own as well. So maybe I'm a little late in posting my thread up... as I've had my tank up and running for a few months already... but based on the fact that I will be completely re-scaping my tank within the next few weeks, I figured it's best to start. Also thought it a good idea to keep it here as like a journal whereby I can go back and look at where I have come from...

Some of you may have been following my threads from the beginning... and if you do a search on my threads, you will find out that I started keeping fish literally a few months ago. (around Feb I think). All my questions were very trivial questions, but what I can say is that without TASA, I would have had a HUGE number of oopsies... which thankfully I have avoided.

My interest was spawned by a house my company took over with regards to completing the building project. (See pic 1). Inside the house was a huge marine tank, which attracted my interest from the word go. My wife was never keen on fish keeping... but one evening, after receiving a small "fishbowl" vase with flowers in, asked if she could keep a fish in the fish bowl. Well.. the bowl barely held 1 litre of water... so I sent HER off to the LPS to go do research on keeping fish. I had done MY research, now I needed to test the waters and see how serious SHE was.

1 week later we had spent our 1st grand and came home with a lovely Boyu 40litre tank.

This tank lasted exactly 4 weeks until, as most of you will recall from my threads, I was blessed with a lovely 160litre tank.

We have had the 160l set up for a few months now. Touch wood I have not had any sicknesses or illnesses yet... but I have had a few fatalities. Some silly (owner induced), some cause by filter sucking them up, and others unknown why. (Some fish simply disappeared... altho I believe the snails assisted in that.)

With the assistance and advice on TASA, I have ventured into real plants, as apposed to the R750.00 I spent on silk plants!! (Thanks guys!). I have fiddled with DIY CO2, and now using some other fancy CO2 (will post info later).

The newly planned re-scape was started by my company venturing into new building technology, requiring ultra-super fine silica sand. 6 TONS of the stuff arrived at my warehouse in Midrand... and I could NOT refuse to put it into my tank! (Pics 2 is of my current sand. 3 is my new sand.)

Last night I decided to get a few handful of this sand cleaned... and living in a third floor flat, makes it a little more challanging than what most of you are accustomed to. I have to clean all my sand IN THE BATH. (Pic 4).

I eventually resorted to sitting on a stool at the basin, putting 1 cup of sand into a jug, filling the jug with water, swirling the water with a stick, and pouring the water out. This was repeated another 5 times until 1 cup of sand was cleaned.

2 HOURS later, ALL I had managed to clean was 1 bucket of sand! (PIC 5).

I was planning on doing some more cleaning this evening, and possibly Friday evening, and hopefully start the rescape by the weekend. Unfortunately a work accident today has resulted in a rather painful gash and removal of a lot of skin on my thumb, and therefor do not feel comfortable working with such fine sand and the open wound. I will however, if time permits me, be buying a pair of gloves tomorrow in order to allow me to work without exposing the wound to the elements.

In the meantime, could you guys advise me on what substrate I could put UNDER the new silica sand, as i would LOVE to make my tank a reasonably heavy planted tank... and know the that substrate is 50% of the growth.

 

Howzit Zoom... Perhaps you'd be interested in putting some riversand under your fancy-sand? It's not as fine, but still beautifully soft... I may have some left over when I'm done with the 4ft, I'll let you know.

 

Quickest way I got my sand clean was to fill a bucket half way then stick a hose right to the bottom so the water fills up from the bottom and then stir it with one hand, found this worked well.

 

HAHA, thats exactly what i do! Works like a charm!

 

Zoom just know now that no matter how clear the water is in the bucket the water in the tank will be a little cloudy when filling it. Regent power heads with filter baskets cycling the tank clears the tank quickly. To get the cloudiness to go away i use to use as many as 3 pumps at once.
Mongwopman -- LOL --

 

lol, to clean my 40 kg of NORMAL pool filtersand took me about an hour as well, so much crap and silt and dust etc that needs to come out.
I took do the whole, hosepipe down the bucket through the sand thing.

So, zoom, have you tested the substrate for vac-purposes yet?

ie will it stay, or get sucked up?

 

Yeah, I'm curious about this too... does it get sucked up?

 

No, it's too heavy to be syphoned out the tank. I promise. It looks good though!! I have to wash 80 kilos of that stuff this weekend!! Not looking forward to it...

Ok, here's another idea for what to put under your Silica Sand.

Rose shrub mix. A normal bag found at the nursery. Put a small amount on the bottom of your tank. Maybe 1cm thick. Make sure you leave space between the tank glass and the layer so you don't have a brown layer when looking from the front and sides.

Add a couple of MTS (Malasian Trumpet Snails) in to make sure that no air pockets develop in the gravel. This will become poisonous. The snails mix it up when the burrow into the gravel.

Works as a great fertilizer for the plant roots...

If not that, then use Flourite.

 

I tried that pricipal (remember I don't have a garden with hosepipe etc.) The gravel is so fine that is churn so much and gets washed out the top. I have to fill the jug, swirl, let the sand settle, (about 10 secs) and then pour the water out.

Yes I have tested. With a very wide vacuum, it doesn't suck too much sand out... but with the narrow vac, I'll end up taking more sand out than water. I.E I can't really plunge the vaccuum into the sand to do a deep clean. Even with the large vac a small portion of sand it taken out. It'll all come down to learning how to vacuum gently and methodically

I'll try find flourite... but I believe there is a shortage in the country. I also cannot find Malasian Trumpet snails ANYWHERE... and no LPS keeps them, or even has them by accident.

 

the ship is still on its way aparently, alot of LFSs are waiting for it too, theres a shipment already sent out.... i'm also looking for some seachem stuff that AK hasn't got atm cuz the "...shipment is still on its way..."

 

Well... it is almost a week later, and I still have not cleaned any more sand.. still the one bucket only. The accident at work where I cut my thumb rather badly landed up with a visit to the doctor, whereby an antibiotic was prescribed, and some facy antibiotic pads was put onto the wound. I was also instructed to keep the thumb dry.

I will also only be getting the Flourite this weekend hopfully... so no point in rushing. The wife will be working next week, which will give me some beaufitul 'alone' time to rescape the tank, and do everything without her giving me the "beady" eye about the mess.

One of my work associates has a small nursery where he collects and sells Cycads, aloes and that type of plants, and today I noticed some beautiful rocks. It's apparently Iron rocks, so shouldn't change the chemical properties of water... He said I can help myself to a few pieces for my tank. (He is the guy who originally GAVE me my 160litre tank!)

So all happening slowly.

Patience is the name of the game in fish keeping!

 

i say, go buy a pack of balloons, and stick one over your thumb, wrap the end in insulation tape and voila, no more excuses

 

I might do some cleaning this evening... all depends on where the evening goes... if I TASA all night, then obviously not.

 

Since when has an amputation stopped MTS ????

 

Hey... doc's orders... and I need my thumb long term.. How am I suppose to carry all the new tanks I'll be buying without my thumb

 

Still got 4 fingers and a stump

 

My wife will die!

 

bu thats the reason God was gratefull enough to grace you with a spare thumb!

 

I would love to see a pic of your hand if you have a spare thumb dude....

 

but i do.......it's on my other hand!