Aquarium Software Review

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...

Aquarium Moonlight / Mesečina

English:
Moonlight simulation in aquariums can look pretty astonishing and it is mainly added as a visual effect. According to some research, it can also trigger corals and some fish to spawn, but, to be fair, according to my very experienced friend who is by profession biologist and very devoted freshwater, saltwater and reef aquarist, this fake moonlight effect with couple of LEDs does not have any noticable effect. But never the less, it still looks pretty cool. Well, that counts, too!

Simple moonlight effect can be added to an aquarium using few low-to-moderate brightness blue LEDs (Light Emitting Diode), resistor and a small AC-DC adaptor attached to separate timer. But, even simpler solution is to use factory made Flex LED module with integrated LEDs on a printed circuit board and resistors on a flexible self-adhesive strip. Flex LED strips can be easily shortened into smaller segments to suite your aquarium (the shortest segment is 4.5 cm with 3 LEDs in the model I have used below). In any number of segments we always use the same voltage output (12 Volts DC), which makes it ideal for easy Do-It-Yourself (DIY) aquarium project.

For small and medium home aquariums under no circumstances do not use popular high-power LEDs (few thousands of mili-candela intensity and several Watts in electrical power), since this type of lamps are used to replace regular aquarium lightning, not for moonlight or dawn simulation!

Since there are various types of Flex LED models on the market, your creativity will have to contribute to their variable implementation. I used a simple plastic rod from a drying rack to attach flexible strip to it. Also, you can use plastic circles or any other wave-shaped object. It is also possible to attach strips directly to the aqurium glass, whether from the inner or the outer side. It is really up to you and your taste (or imagination).

Another neat trick you can use thanks to variable DC voltage output from an adaptor is to lower the voltage via switch so you can dynamically adjust your moonlight intensity. No need for cutting segments! More exotic solutions can implement a microcontroller for simulation of moon phases, but as I stated above, all that effort could be a bit pointless.

In my case I used 21 LEDs strip (31.5 cm) which I got from my local electronics shop. They are moderately heated with nominal current supply of 150 mA @ 12 Volts. As you can see from a pictures below, they are very bright with each LED emiting around 200 mC (mili-candela) of light.

Beside Flex LED strip, you will need a cheap AC-DC adaptor for 12 Volts and a timer to program your dawn and moonlight effect. Altought this low-intensity LED light normally does not affect plants and fish population in a negative way, Flex LED with numerous LEDs could be conciderably brighter then few ordinary LEDs, so you should provide a period of complete darkness for a few hours. Below you can see a simple diagram how I did it.

Srpski:
Simulacija mesečine u akvarijumu može izgledati zapanjujuće i uglavnom se postavlja kao vizuelni efekat. Prema nekim istraživanjima, mesečina može doprineti razmnožavanju nekih vrsta riba i korala, ali da budem potpuno iskren, prema mom prijatelju biologu koji je pasionirani slatkovodni, morski i koralni akvarista, ova lažna mesečina sa nekoliko dioda nema gotovo nikakvog uticaja. Ipak, važi da izgleda efektno. I to se računa, zar ne?

Jednostavan efekat mesečine može se postići upotrebom svega nekoliko slabih ili umereno svetlih plavih svetlećih dioda (LED - Light Emitting Diode), redno vezanog otpornika i AC-DC adaptera koji se priključuje na poseban tajmer. Ipak, još jednostavnije rešenje je upotreba Flex LED modula u obliku fleksibilne (savitljive) trake na kojoj je integrisana štampa sa otpornicima i diodama. Flex LED traka se može seći po potrebi na manje segmente (najkraći segment je 4.5 cm sa 3 diode kod modela koji sam ja upotrebio). Bez obzira na broj segmenta, Flex LED se uvek napaja preko napona od 12 volti, što dodatno pojednostavljuje samogradnju.

Za manje i srednje kućne akvarijume nikako ne smemo koristiti popularne "high-power" diode (nekoliko desetina hiljada mili-kandela intenziteta svetla i nekoliko vati električne snage), jer se ove diode koriste kao zamena za regularno osvetljenje u akvarijumu, a ne simulaciju zore i mesečine!

Obzirom da na tržištu postoje različiti Flex LED modeli, vaša kreativnost treba da vam pomogne u njihovoj implementaciji. Ja sam, konkretno, upotrebio plastičnu dršku ofingera na koji sam zalepio fleksibilnu LED traku. Takođe, možete upotrebiti plastične krugove (tacne) ili bilo koju talasastu formu da biste pričvrstili diode i sprečili njihovo kidanje.

Da biste prilagodili intenzitet mesečine, ne morate nužno skraćivati Flex LED traku. Dovoljno je da na AC-DC adapteru smanjite izlazni napon i time ćete već postići slabiji intenzitet uz ravnomernu disperziju svetlosti duž čitavog akvarijuma. Egzotična rešenja mogu sadržati i mikrokontroler sa simulacijom različitih faza meseca, ali kao što sam na početku rekao, sav taj trud može biti nepotreban.

Konkretno, Flex LED za moj akvarijum sam nabavio ovde (može se naručiti pouzećem proizvoljna dužina trake tj. broj segmenata). Pri naponu od 12 volti 21 dioda zahteva 150 mA struje (ili 20 mA po segmentu), a to može zadovoljiti i najmanji AC-DC adapter koji se može uzeti na pijaci. Sa slike ispod se može videti da su vrlo sjajne sa svojih 200 mC (mili-kandela) intenziteta svetlosti po diodi.

Pored Flex LED trake, trebaće vam i tajmer kako biste isprogramirali simulaciju rane zore i mesečine. Iako plavo LED svetlo slabog intenziteta normalno ne ometa ribe i biljke u svom ciklusu, poduža Flex LED traka može sadržati poprilično dioda, pa je potrebno isključiti ovo osvetljenje i obezbediti period potpunog mraka. Ispod je dat raspored osvetljenja u mom slučaju.

New Setup / Nova Postavka

English:
After several days of preparation, I finally got everything to complete a new setup. I used JBL Florapol as a base substrate, AquaClay as mid-layer and common gravel on the top. I decided to use layer structure, altought I could (or should) mix some Florapol with AquaClay at the bottom. Also, I got an advice from a friend to put some tiny amount of quality humus in AquaClay layer to lower the pH level, but since too many complications lately I decided to proceed without this time. If needed, I can easily introduce some humus as part of my filter media.

Srpski:
Nakon nekoliko dana priprema, konačno sam nabavio sve za novu postavku. Koristio sam JBL Florapol kao osnovu, AquaClay kao srednji sloj i obični šljunak na vrhu. Odlučio sam se za slojevitu strukturu, mada sam prema uputstvu trebao da izmešam deo Florapol-a sa AquaClay-om u sredini. Takođe, dobio sam savet od prijatelja da bi valjalo posuti malo kvalitetnog humusa u sloju sa AquaClay-om radi snižavanja pH (zakiseljavanje sredine), ali usled previše komplikacija u poslednje vreme odlučio sam da ovoga puta idem sa prostijom postavkom. Ukoliko kasnije bude potrebe, postaviću vrećicu humusa u sklopu filtera.

STEP 1

* First I moved aquarium into bathroom, put it in the tub and washed inner side with KMnO4 solution (Potassium Permanganate). Afterwards I showered it with hot and cold water

* Prvo sam premestio akvarijum u kadu kupatila i isprao unutrašnje zidove rastvorom KMnO4 (Kalijum Permenganat). Nakon toga sam ga detaljno istuširao toplom i hladnom vodom



STEP 2

* Second step was adding JBL Florapol at the bottom. I decided to put it as a base layer because Florapol clay has tendency to congeal over time and I want to prevent AquaClay clogging.

* Drugi korak je bio postavljanje JBL Florapol-a na dnu. Odlučio sam da Florapol postavim na dnu iz razloga što se glina tokom vremena steže i može zapušiti AquaClay



STEP 3

* Third step was adding plastic net to prevent Florapol from raising up

* Treći sloj je plastična mreža (za komarce) koja sprečava podizanje Florapola i zamućivanje vode


STEP 4

* Fourth step was AquaClay which I previously rinsed in hot and cold water sequentially. I advice you to rinse it to remove fine red dust particles and to make AquaClay absorb water more easily. According to manufacturer I should put around 15 liters of AquaClay, but that was a bit too much for me, so I put only 5 liters (around 2 cm)

* Potom sam postavio AquaClay koju sam prethodno isprao redom u toploj i hladnoj vodi. Savetujem vam da obavezno isperete AquaClay kako bi uklonili finu crvenu prašinu i postigli brže potapanje u vodi. Po preporuci proizvođača za moj akvarijum bi trebalo oko 15 litara podloge, ali to mi je ipak bilo previše na uštrb litraže vode pa sam postavio svega 5 litara (oko 2 cm)



STEP 5

* Another layer of plastic net to prevent AquaClay accidental resurfacing
* Novi sloj mreže koja sprečava isplivavanje AquaClay-a



STEP 6

* 20 Kg of common gravel with 3-5 mm granulation
* 20 Kg šljunka granulacije 3-5 mm



STEP 7

* Finally some rocks, driftwood (previously cured in water) and tap water treated with SERA AquaTan

* Konačno kamenje, panj (prethodno prokuvani) i voda tretirana SERA AquaTan kondicionerom



STEP 8

* After 2 days water temperature was stabilized so I returned Cabomba Caroliniana and Echinodorus plants

* Nakon 2 dana temperatura vode se stabilizovala pa sam vratio Cabomba Caroliniana i Echinodorus-e



STEP 9

* Next few days I'll add some new plants. This is my new setup at night with moonlight effect turned on (I'll describe this DIY project in my next blog entry)

* Narednih dana dodaću još neke biljke. Ovo je igled trenutne postavke noću sa efektom mesečine (o kojoj ću pisati u narednom izdanju)