- Problems with algae? - Yes! - Regular water changes? - Yes. - Overfeeding? - Of course not! Well, maybe a little bit. - Gravel cleaning? - Uhmm, what? - How often do you vacuum your gravel? - Am I supose to even do that?
Since I established my early (still growing) setup, I had a problem figuring out how to efficently and more conviniently clean the gravel from food and other debris, independently from regular water changes. No matter how many Plecos, Amano shrimps, Snails, Ancistrus and Siamensis Algae eaters with Plants as their compagnion you may have, you can never replace a good vacuum cleaning device from time to time. Very much like our homes that need regular fresh air and vacuuming.
I did use regular syphoning to do 2 jobs in 1 - while changing water I cleaned as much gravel surface as could, but soon realised that syphon drains water way too fast for such task, so either I had to re-pump portion of water back (slow) or invent something smarter.
Currently, there are many commercial solutions, but to tell you the truth I got a little bit tired testing (by which I mean buying) every possible gadget of this kind just to see it is a complete failure or over-priced product. Very time-consuming and expencive process.
So, it is time for yet another Do-It-Yourself. Inspiration for this device is obvious: SERA Gravel Cleaner which uses an air-pump (not included) to drive dirt above water surface level and gravity (free fall) to pass it through the filtering media and let the clean water return back into aquarium. Technical explanation can be found in physics, under section that covers fluid mechanics. In concept, it is the same principle as EHEIM Automatic Gravel Cleaner, but that model is a bit more advanced (and thus is the price) since it uses battery operated pump integrated into cleaner's body. SERA model is not expensive at all, it really works and if you want to save yourself any trouble, then by all means go ahead and buy it. On the other hand, since this device is essentially so simple, you can save a couple of bucks and spent it elswhere. It would be petty not to try to build it at least.
I used a cheap syphon (2$) I already had. I was very dissapointed at first when I bought it because it was almost usless for gravel syphoning, but later unscrewed few parts and figured it works better without them and can acctually be a very valuable tool with minor tweakings. From the video you can see a detailed process to make automatic gravel cleaner.
At the end, things to consider: wider sucking pipe requires stronger air-pump, but it will give you a wider cleaning area. Also, if you get a strong suction force that overfills your filtering section on the top try lowering air-pump position (e.g. put it down on the floor) or use cheap regulating valve to limit amount of air being pumped. On the other side, watchout for the fish and little organisms like snails and shrimps!
Now you can do your regular gravel maintenance. Happy vacuuming!
note: click on pictures to load full-size animated sequence Since aquarium hobby popularity rises each and every day due to various reasons (web talk, easier knowledge access, equipment availability, lower costs, increasing curiosity etc.) and as new technologies mature in their own way, it is "natural" to witness the inevitable fusion of these two worlds. Today I'll cover various software tools currently available for an average or advanced aquarium hobbyists. FishKeeper Something as a courtesy, I'll start my review with FishKeeper, simple example that reminds many of us how software looked one or two decades ago (no flashy graphics and bloated options, just a core industrial functionality). This tool even today has almost everything you'll need to keep track of events in you aquarium. Alas, navigating through these menus is very tiresome and this alone could be the very reason to avoid it. Other then this, it is ok, especially if you consider it's manufacturing date.
AquaLog AquaLog is somewhat newer tool then a previous example and from the first look that becomes obvious. It is, in a way, just a little better organized Notepad with columns, nothing exciting about it, but it does look simple and descriptive. It has simple reminder of upcomming events (like filter cleaning or water changes), which alerts you at program startup. Considering it's price (free!), can I complain?
Aquarix Now, Aquarix is a completely different beast then two previous entries. This software is around for many years, and since it survived the influence of time, it has evolved to an extremely versitile tool. It has many advanced options like tracking complete aquarium cost including electricity and water bills with automatic calculation (but, it has a flow I'll describe in a minute), many usefull tools (calculators) and graphical representation of all measured or calculated data. I want one copy, thank you very much! From the screenshots (click to load animated .gifs) you can see that user has a vast variety of options, including units customisation, behaviour of some functions, up to customizing colours of different parameters. As if nothing is missing! Since there is a beta trial available, there is no need for an in-depth review, go and try it by yourself. I'll note that calculating power consumption is a bit unrealistic (not so precise), for e.g., heater does not work all the time because it only maintains water temperature (so it is very hard to predict how much power this device acctually spends). But, to stop picking hairs, I'll stop here. Great thing is that several calculators are additionally included in a dedicated sub-menu like CO2 bubble counter, CO2-pH-KH table, water mixing with various temperatures etc. Nothing you cannot find with Google (read more below), but graphical representation with sliders is very convinient in contrast to common fill-in blank fields and formulas! I would like to see more of these tools in the future versions. One of the greatest features of Aquarix tool is it's own database (demo comes with restricted version) that contains about 1200 most popular fish, plant and invertebrae species. Of course, you can add your own and make it more complete. Still, many pictures in the demo version are missing. In one word, if you are in a need for a detailed logging tool with extremely detailed data inputs (including fish and equipment cost) then stop looking and try Aquarix. You will be surprised, since hardly there is a competition out there.
Other software: There are several other programs I simply couldn't review because either there is no trial version or I could not register to download it. AquarioGuest and Aquarien-Planer are these examples.
Of course, I will mention free Chuck's Planted Aquarium Calculator that helps you mix your own plant fertilizers powders, but I won't review it since it is very well known tool to aquatic community. Also, there are several very interesting web calculator tools here The AquaTools including a 3D aid in your future aquarium design. Also, UK magazine Practical Fishkeeping has a massive range of availabale calculators. Please note, as with any of these calculators, take the results with a grain of salt.
At the end, for many hobbyists simple Notepad or Google/OpenOffice/Excel spreadsheet logging can be more than enough. Point here is, you should not spent too much time editing entries in software while your aquarium needs maintenace or just a relaxing look...
English: (scroll down for links and video) CO2(Carbon dioxide) is the main source ofC (Carbon)for aquatic plants, element which is the main building block of all life on Earth. Yes, you can guess it right - it is found in aboundance in natural environment like rivers, lakes, seas and oceans, but it is very rare in our aquariums with non-soil based substrates (due to rich dissolved organic carbon any additional CO2 in soil-based substrates is often unnecessery and according to Diana Walstad soil-based aquariums guru not a wise thing either.)
There are several methods already developed in aquarium hobby durring last few decades, the most obvious one is a direct CO2 gas injection from a compressed container. The most expensive one for an average aquarist, I'm afraid. Other, more "disguised" products in term of both effectiveness and price are CO2 tablets which are only (if any) good for low-light aquariums below 50-60 liters or so (avoid at any cost, which is no cost at all) and deodorant-like mini canisters with compressed CO2 and diffusor kits. Third, more recently developed method for adding carbon is in its "liquid" form (note: this is not liquid CO2 which some reffer to by mistake). More precisely, an organic compoundGlutaraldehydehas a property to act as a source of bio-available carbon for most (but not all) aquatic plants. Also, it is a potent chemical that has a negative effect on some algae species. Unfortunatelly, it is not prefered or ideal source of carbon plants are used to in their evolution cycle, so adding carbon in their natural CO2 form is still best. And this will hold the truth for another millenia or so (though, I do not want to underestimate modern science).
So, I come to the point of this writing, Do-It-Yourself CO2 generator. It is the most fun and educational way to learn more about nature and your aquarium, which is the point of this hobby in the first place anyway. I have to admit now that I would be seriously tempted to buy proffessional CO2 system just because of that fascinating and fun part missing in all that "hi tech" mechanics.
Where did I start? Bellow of this writting I gave a list of all usefull articles I found on the interweb in my quest for knowledge about DIY CO2. Sorry, no re-invented hot water in this entry. But I'll describe in short how I did it with few variations (so called "improvements") + including video will be enough, I hope.
In essence, I followedthis instructablewith a minor variations. Instead of silicone sealing I usedplastic glue gun. In my first attempt I did try silicone, but later found this solution more easier, faster and effective to seal plastic. I also plan to try no-sealant version later. As for the recipe ("juice") I used the jello version modified from countless recipes: Mix 0.5 liters of 1-day old tap water (not fresh!), 300 grams of common suggar and 1 tsp. of baking soda. Use mixer to make it compact and dissolve suggar more rapidly, then boil all to 100 degree Celsius (212 Farenheit) with a bag of gelatine powder. Let it cool for a 15-20 minutes then put it in a clean 1.5 liter plastic bottle (you can scale this for bigger bottles, I started with this one). Put the bottle in the fridge and wait for at least 12 hours to allow gelatine to compact. Be patient, trust me. Afterwards, use 0,5 liter of lukewarm water (35-45 C/95-115 F) and mix 1/4-1/2 tsp. of instant yeast (for bread baking) plus one huge tbsp. of suggar. Mix it well and put it in the bottle. Shake it well, close it well and finally deploy the system.
Few notes here: do not use fresh tap water by any means to prepare the mixture, since it is probably rich in chlorine and yeast do not like it (it is a poison for those little guys, think of it the same way as for your fish). I had an idea to add a drop of SERA AquaTan conditioner prior making, but I later pulled off from it and just used one of the pre-filled bottles I use for my home plants. There are various gelatines on the market so you'll have to experiment a bit with this part to find the best. Also, after boiling the jello mixture do not pour it immediatelly into the bottle, since it will difform its shape. Let it cool for 15-20 minutes first. Use only lukewarm water (again, not fresh tap water!) for the yeast mixture, since it will speed up production process.
Final advice: Never block CO2 injection during night with a common regulating valves, this will put your bottle, check valve or silicon hose at a huge pressure test. If you want to disable CO2 injection during the night when plants respirate CO2 and not produce oxygen, simply untwist the cap of a bottle a little just to hear the hiss sound and release the pressure build-up; twist it again first thing in the morning. I come to this idea not just because of the fish own benefit, but since diffusing CO2 in a fashion as presented in the video is a little noisy, it irritaded me at night when I go to sleep. Coincidently, untwisting the cap, releasing the pressure and letting air get in also have a benefit for the yeast: alchohol (ethanol) can evaporate and extend their life (read about aerobic and anaerobic conditions of yeast fermentation in John LeVasseu's document below).
At the end, I connected everything to an existing internal filter which acts as a diffusor (or reactor if you like, still no DIY-Splitting-Atoms here). Due simple laws of physics it is paramount to break huge CO2 bubbles into smaller ones if we want to keep as much CO2 dissolved in water as possible. As you can see from the video, it works really great. There are more good stuff about yeast and DIY CO2 system you can discover if you read some of the links below. Happy and succesifull planting!
Srpski: CO2 (ugljen dioksid) je glavni izvor C (ugljenika), osnovnog elementa u izgradnji proteina i amino-kiselina (tkiva i organa) svih živih bića na Zemlji (izreka "sve u svemu začin C" ipak ima naučnu pozadinu). CO2 postoji u izobilju u prirodnom okruženju kao što su reke, jezera, mora i okeani, ali je prilično redak u našim akvarijumima baziranih na substratu bez zemlje ukoliko ga na neki način ne dodamo (zemlja kao podloga oslobađa dovoljne količine CO2 u procesu raspadanja organskih materija).
Postoji nekoliko metoda koji su razvijeni u akvaristici poslednjih nekoliko decenija, od kojih je najočigledniji direktno dodavanje CO2 gasa iz kompresovane boce. Na žalost, ovo je i najskuplji način jer zahteva veliko početno ulaganje (150-200 evra minimum). Drugi način su CO2 tablete koje su efikasne samo u slabo osvetljenim akvarijumima malih zapremina do 50-60 litara. Treći, skorije razvijeni metod, je dodavanje ugljenika u njegovoj tečnoj formi kao i svako drugo đubrivo za bilje (napomena: ovo nije tečni CO2 kako ga mnogi pogrešno nazivaju). Konkretno, dodaje se organsko jedinjenje Glutaraldehyde iz koga većina biljaka (mada ne sve) mogu dobiti preko potrebni element. Ova hemikalija ima i propratni nus efekat da u povećanoj dozi ima negativan efekat na pojedine vrste algi (BBA ili končasta). Ipak, ovo nije najprirodniji način snabdevanja bilja koje su tokom svog evolutivnog procesa navikle na CO2, pa je dodavanje ugljenika u njegovoj prirodnoj CO2 formi ipak poželjan metod.
Dakle, "uradi sam" CO2 reaktor poenta je čitave ove priče. Ujedno, ovo je i zanimljiv način da naučimo nešto novo o prirodi i samom akvarijumu, što je uostalom i poenta ovog hobija.
Kako sam započeo projekat? U suštini, pratio sam ova korak-po-korak uputstva, uz izvesne modifikacije, normalno. Na primer, umesto silikona koristio sam plastični pištolj za dihtovanje otvora za crevo koje izlazi iz generatora (prvobitno sam probao silikon, ali mi je potom sinula ideja o topljenoj plastici kao logičnije rešenje). Što se tiče recepta, umesto klasičnog i uobičajenog šećera, kvasca i vode koristio sam žele-varijantu iz prostog razloga jer trenutno nemam puno bilja (to će se u skorije vreme, nadam se, promeniti) i što na ovaj način ekonomičnije iskorišćavam šećer kao pogonsko gorivo. Na primer, ukoliko reakcija stane na pola puta usled prevelike količine etanola, sve što treba da uradim je da zamenim mešavinu kvasca dok nerastvoreni žele (šećer) ostaje na dnu. Takođe, ovakav miks duže traje uz ravnomerniju i sporiju reakciju oslobađanje CO2.
Recept: u pola litre vode sipati 300 gr šećera, 1 kašikicu sode bikarbone i kesicu želatina (CentroProizvod želatin se pokazao kao solidan za ovu količinu). Mikserom umutiti ovu smesu da bi se šećer i želatin brže rastopili i bolje sjedinili, potom staviti na ringlu da proključa. Prohladiti obavezno 15-20 minuta i tek onda naliti u plastičnu flašu. Obavezno sačekati, jer vrela smeša na 100 C lako istu deformiše (ja sam koristio VODA VODA, može bilo koja druga, naravno). Flašu ostaviti u frižideru da odstoji makar 12h (poželjno 24h), dok se žele ne stegne. Potom napraviti smesu pola litre vode (obavezno mlaka, 35-45 C), 1/2 kašikice instant kvasca (opet CentroProizvod) i velike kašike šećera, dobro izmešati, naliti u flašu sa zgusnutim želeom, dobro izmućkati da se ubrza reakcija, zavrnuti čep i pustiti sistem u rad. Potrebno je nekih pola sata da krenu prvi balončići, a narednih 24h da se čitav sistem stabilizuje. Pre povezivanja na akvarijum možete postaviti crevo u čašu vode da biste prekontrolisali da li sve funkcioniše kako treba. Važna napomena: ne koristiti svežu vodu (česmovaču), već isključivo odstojalu 24h za pripremu "goriva" (kao za zalivanje cveća). Kao i ribe, kvasac je osetljiv na hlor. Nosio sam se mišlju da stavim kap AquaTan-a u vodu pre pripreme, ali sam odustao.
Važan savet: Nikada ne zatvarajte dotok CO2 tokom noći uz pomoć protočnih ventila! Ovo će stvoriti enormni pritisak u flaši, što u najboljem slučaju može izbaciti sigurnosni ventil i razliti deo mešavine po sobi. Ako ne želite dodavati CO2 tokom noći, prosto odvrnite čep flaše taman toliko da oslobodite nagomilani pritisak i pustite vazduh. Na ovu ideju došao sam slučajno i to ne samo zbog zdravlja ribica, nego i zbog sebe jer me je rad difuzora tokom noći iritirao. Kao dodatna korist, otvaranjem reaktora tokom noći omogućava da nagomilani etanol ispari čime se stvara zdravija atmosfera za napredovanje kvasca i proizvodnju CO2 narednog dana.
Na videu se može videti kako to sve funkcioniše u praksi, generator sam povezao na usisni deo filter pumpe koji sada igra ulogu difuzora (tzv. CO2 reaktora). Zbog prostog zakona fizike od izuzetne je važnosti izdeliti krupne mehure na što sitnije ukoliko želimo da efikasno rastvorimo i zadržimo veće količine CO2 gasa u vodi. Na linkovima ispod možete pronaći dopunske informacije i iskustva drugih kolega akvarista. Puno sreće u uzgajanju akvarijumskog bilja!
English: In the past few weeks I had a lot of adventure. After the first fish death and boom of diatoms (brown algae), I improved aquarium lightning which gave almost immediate result after 3 days: diatoms had practically withdrawn.
I had another fish loss after 15 days (green Barbus T.) with identical symptoms as the Pleco (denial of food and being idle for several days). This time, I doubt that the culprit was infamous Ammonia (NH3), because about the same time I got another visit from a friendly algae species - this time a sort of hairy algae (probably Staghorn Algae, as a beginner it is very difficult for me to precisely identify them) that took my plant leaves on Water Wisteria (Hygrophila difformis) and especially Eusteralis stellata (which almost collapsed under them!). I also got a few Green Spot algae.
Other residents are good for now, but the situation with the algae was disturbing sight, so I started with intensive water change regime (30-50% per week), siphoning the bottom (has plenty of waste apparently), sieasta lighting regime (10-14h and 16-22h) and lower feeding of my fish, which is expected to contribute to the reduction of algae and raise water quality.
As an experiment and further measure in algae combat (which treatens to become a full featured war as it seems), from 14th to 16th November I introduced a complete light shut-off in hope that it would send a clear message to mr/mrs algae, but they were apparently not affected at all - and still act as a very, very dear uninvited guests in my aquarium...
In the meantime, I started studying DIY fertilizers for plants (KNO3, K2SO4, KCL, KH2PO4 and trace elements) and realized that it is not at all complicated to make those components at home, not to mention financial advantage over the brand products in store.
However, I avoided one extremely important nutrient for aquarium plants from the beginning of this hobby out of ignorance or fear from the unknown: C (Carbon). The easiest way for beginners to supplement it is in the form of liquid carbon (e.g. products like EasyLife EasyCarbo or Seachem Flourish Excel) that are added in small concentrations (because it is a very aggressive chemical) which provide plants with the basic building element in all organic life.
Since liquid carbon is not available at the moment in my local stores and it is not the most practical/economical/healthy solution anyway, I tried with another well-known approach. I shut down air pump/airstone (although I love those bubbles) to passively increase concentration of CO2 (carbon dioxide, from which plants naturally draw the necessary carbon). Lately I've learned that concentration of dissolved CO2 this way can be increased to a 4 ppm at most (also, fish respiration must be taken acount), so this was not very helpfull. For a regular photosynthesis dissolved CO2 must reach a value of at least 15 ppm.
As a last step, I decided to finally try a DIY CO2 reactor with yeast and sugar which I'll describe in my next blog entry.
Srpski: Proteklih nekoliko nedelja bilo je dosta dogodovština, pa ukratko da ih pomenem. Nakon prvih ribica i buma diatoma (braon algi), unapređeno svetlo dalo je rezultat za svega 3 dana: diatomi su se praktično povukli.
Nakon gubitka Pleco-a usledio je još jedan gubitak nakon 15 dana (zelena Barbus T.) sa identičnim simptomima (odbijanje hrane i mirovanje nekoliko dana). Ovoga puta sumnjam da je krivac Amonijak (NH3), jer upravo tih dana snašla me je i invazija dlakavih algi (končasta ili Staghorn alga, kao počtniku teško mi je da ih precizno identifikujem) koje su se preko noći razrasle na listovima Hrasta (Hygrophila difformis) i posebno Eusteralis stellata (koja je i skoro propala usled istih!). Takođe, na zadnjem staklu pojavilo se i nekoliko zelenih tačkastih algi.
Ostali stanovnici su za sada dobro, ali je situacija sa algama bila uznemiravajući prizor, ne samo zbog vizuelnog izgleda. Krenuo sam sa intenzivnijom izmenom vode (30-50% nedeljno) i sifoniranjem dna (otpada na dnu ima na pretek), siesta sistemom osvetljenja (10-14h i 16-22h) i polu-gladovanjem ribica, što je trebalo da doprinese smanjenju algi i opštem povećanju kvaliteta vode.
Kao eksperiment i dopunsku meru u borbi protiv algi (koja očigledno preti da preraste u pravi rat), od 14.11. do 16.11 sam uveo kompletno odsustvo neonskog osvetljenja u nadi da će se povući, no alge se nisu previše uznemirile zbog toga - i dalje su moji vrlo dragi nepozvani gosti... :)
U međuvremenu, krenuo sam sa studiranjem DIY đubriva za biljke (KNO3, K2SO4, KCL, KH2PO4 i mešavinu mikro elemenata) i shvatio da uopšte nije komplikovano izraditi ih sam u kućnoj radinosti, a o finasijskoj prednosti u odnosu na kupovna da i ne pišem.
Međutim, jedan izuzetno važan hranljivi sastojak za akvarijumsko bilje izbegavao sam od samog početka svog hobija što iz neznanja, što iz straha od nepoznatog: C (ugljenik). Najjednostavniji način za početnike je tečni ugljenik (npr. EasyLife EasyCarbo ili Seachem Flourish Excel) koji se dodaju u malim koncentracijama (jer je u pitanju vrlo agresivan aldehid) i obezbeđuju biljke osnovnim graditeljskim elementom kod svih organskih stvorenja.
Kako EasyCarbo mesecima praktično ne postoji na našem tržištu, a to ionako nije najpraktičniji/najekonomičniji/najzdraviji metod, pokušao sam da pasivnom metodom kompletnim isključivanjem vazdušne pumpe i raspršivača (mada obožavam balončiće) koliko-toliko povećam koncentraciju CO2 (ugljen dioksid, iz koga biljke primarno izvlače neophodni ugljenik). To nije urodilo plodom, jer se koncentracija rastvorenog CO2 na ovaj način može povećati na maksimalno 4 ppm (a treba uzeti u obzir i CO2 koji se oslobađa disanjem riba), a fotosintezu moramo dostići vrednost od barem 15 ppm.
Kao poslednji korak, odlučio sam da se oprobam u DIY CO2 reaktoru sa šećerom i kvascem o kome ću pisati u narednom izdanju.
