Vivaria idea - Page 2

Ciddian · 11-16-05, 01:15 PM

good thought on the UGF....

I dont know about the aq burning out.. i've had mine for 5+years like that with no probs. But i make sure the water lvl is high enough and the sponge is clean. Just my experience...but i dont doubt it.

See i would rather scrap the UGF myself... and just go with a good filter. You will get that "good" bacteria on and in your gravel eather way over time. You dont need a UGF. They are a huge pain if they get clogged.
But if you will take the time to do syphon your gravel to get the bigger wastes and to flush out that ugf then it should be alright.

But hey... i dunno. I think the fun of trying it all out is neat. I think its the only way to really get a good understanding of how it all works.

-okapi- · 11-16-05, 08:52 PM

I talked to a guy at petsmart, he said to scrap the UGF idea too, same reasons as you. Plus my frog, when she gets bigger will kick the gravel around alot. This also takes care of my cory cat problem, the frog will keep gravel clean when she swims, so no need for catfish. He also said that most of the plants i chose will be too brittle for my frog, so ive gotta rethink my setup. Java fern, java moss, grasslike plants are ok, but not like 8 or 9 of the 13 i had listed. He said apple or Ramshorn snails were ok if my plants are fast growing and i have good light. He also said to use clay balls instead of gravel. Im really gonna have to seriously rethink my whole setup

Ciddian · 11-16-05, 11:55 PM

Dont feel too down about it

Its a good experience i think!

Here are some plants i was thinking of while i was working...

Try some nana, anubias...its suposed to be tough stuff.....i dont know how well a trample by a frog will do but worth a try.
Also try an algae ball.... I dont remeber the exact name but they are pretty cool little things. Your frog can push it all around if it wants...all the better for the ball lol.
Java fern is a great one, Swords... They will get a lot tougher as they grow too.
Moss is great....why not try a more exotic moss too? Christmass moss is very cool and there are is a whole lot more out there.
Some floating plants like water sprite will look great too!!

Greg West · 11-17-05, 01:01 PM

Just a note on the clayballs. If you are putting something over them they work well for a substrate. They can float though, so you can't just put them in the water like you would do with graveil. I thought you could and found out the hard way when Itried to set up a tank.

Greg

Ciddian · 11-17-05, 08:44 PM

I've never seen those before... I'll have to go look myself.
I am a fan of flourite for the bottom....Super simple.

-okapi- · 11-17-05, 08:52 PM

flourite, what exactally is that? pet store guy mentioned them...

Ciddian · 11-17-05, 09:26 PM

Ohhh flourite is just like those clay balls i suppose but its just like gravel. You can put it as a bottom layer in your tank and then put whatevery gravel you wish over it. The plants slowly grow into the clay layer and its suposed to be great for them. I have some in my nano and my plants are growing like wild.

-okapi- · 11-17-05, 09:32 PM

I see, ill have to look more into this then, because i dont want to have a bunch of clay balls floating around whenever my frog shifts the gravel.

Ciddian · 11-17-05, 09:55 PM

Here is what it looks like, just so you have an idea
flourite

And here is a pic of those Marimo Algae balls i was talking about. ^^
Kinda hard to find from time to time around here. They make me giggle. lol. They slowly roll and get shapped in rivers untill they are nice and round. Supposed to be good houses for good bacteria
Marimo Algae ball

-okapi- · 11-18-05, 11:35 AM

lol, ive seen those before when i was surfing the web for aquatic plants, but dont they need colder water? I think thats why i didnt look into them, or maybe its cuz i like java moss better?

Ciddian · 11-19-05, 02:46 PM

Oohh you know i am not sure myself.. O_o Java moss is great, very versatile! ^^
If you need a handful i cant send you some. Are you in canada or us?

-okapi- · 11-26-05, 08:37 PM

im in kentucky, theres a store that sells all kinds of water plants about 20 mins north of here in cincinnati. Ill have to wait till after christmas to work on the tank though, im just getting my ideas strait right now. The algae balls are from hardwatered(?), deep, cold lakes in north eastern europe.

-okapi- · 11-30-05, 09:34 PM

Ok, for canister filters Ive come up with a list of a few that might work, but I need advice. Which one should I choose? The tank will have fish, A LOT of plants, and a bull frog. The aquarium is 20 inches tall, and I will have 2 inches of flourite, 1 inch of gravel, then water up to the 16th inch of the tank. That means the water will be about 13 inches above the gravel. The deep end will be 2ft long, then the slope will be 1ft, and the land area will be 1ft. Im not good at math, so i have no clue how many gallons that is, however since I will have a big frog, i know i need a big filter. Which one should i use?

http://www.bigalsonline.com/catalog/...d1=2885;pcid2=
Fluval 104: Recommended for aquariums up to 25 gallons in size. $54.99

http://www.bigalsonline.com/catalog/...d1=2885;pcid2=
Fluval 204: Recommended for aquariums up to 40 gallons in size. $64.99

http://www.bigalsonline.com/catalog/...d1=2885;pcid2=
RENA Filstar XP 1 Canister Filter: Recommended for aquariums up to 45 gallons in size. $59.99

http://www.bigalsonline.com/catalog/...d1=2885;pcid2=
Eheim Filter 2213: suitable for tanks up to 65 gallons. $72.99

http://www.bigalsonline.com/catalog/...d1=2885;pcid2=
Hydor Prime 10: use with aquariums in the 20-40 gallon range. $69.99

Ciddian · 12-02-05, 12:17 AM

I think big als just started carrying that hydor prime...or its on the new side anyways. I have been looking at it myself so i wasnt sure of it compleatly. It looks fairly good.
The neat thing about those products are that you can purchase an inline heater for it.. Which i thought was interesting.

The Ehiem is supposed to be the best. So go for that if you can, but the on you are looking at is the old models... If you dont mind that cylindrical style and loose filter media go for it. You really shouldnt touch that filter for a few months anyways. Thats the nice thing about it.
Just be careful about the o-ring that seals the top. If you get it be wary about kinking the rubber.

Fluvals are alright... but usually dont do too well with too much bioload.. so you'll just have to clean it a bit sooner. Also... I personally am unsure about the ribbed flexi tubeing that they have for it now... I like the normal tubing myself. I wasnt sure if you would have black algae build up in the grooves.

But the number one thing is to shoot for the biggest filter you can, and the filters Flow rates are usually done without media...so expect your ghp to go down slightly.

I used to work with big als online, customer service... So this is bits of stuff i hear from customers lol

Hope that helps!!

Ciddian · 12-02-05, 12:20 AM

Oohh and the filstar is suposed to be alright.... its just a lower grade. I heard that some people had issues with bubbles getting stuck in a groove under the top. If you give it a lil wiggle and try to prime again i hear it works.
Just watch the side clamps with the fluvals and the filstar

The fluval has trays for your media to sit in as well i think the filstar does as well.
If you pick up a fish mag the next time your at the pet store thier flyer type thing gives you a nice cross section ^^