Subj : Re: The Mystery Almost Solved
To : Michael Grant
From : Jeff Snyder
Date : Fri Jul 03 2009 05:24 pm
On 07/03/09, Jeff Snyder quoted Michael Grant: The Mystery Almost
Solved.
MG> No, just gravel. It's 75 gallons, so I'd need a pretty powerful powerhead
MG> to drive a UGF for it.
I don't know what the dimensions of your tank are, but if it is four feet
long, a Penguin 1140 powerhead situated in the back left and right corners
might cover it. But if it is a wide (front to back) tank, like say 24", or
if it is five feet long, then you might need to double that number to four
powerheads.
On a typical four-foot tank, I would always use a UGF with a Penguin 1140
powerhead on a lift tube in the back left and right corners. In addition, I
would use two Penguin 330 Bio-Wheel filters, one on the back left side, and
one on the back right side. This worked great for both freshwater and marine
tanks. Of course, I no longer use UGF's.
MG> I've been looking at sand. A local shop has sand that is suited to what
MG> African cichlids are used to. I think it may have even said that it was
MG> from Malawi lake itself. I may add that when I do the teardown.
I don't really think that you need any kind of "special" sand. As long as it
is thoroughly cleaned, and you are sure that it doesn't contain any chemical
contaminants, it will suit your purposes fine, and your fish will be blowing
you kisses for months! It also looks so nice in the tank. :)
As far as the sand being from Lake Malawi, it could be, but it sounds like a
lot of salesman hype to me...and they'll probably charge you an arm and a
leg for sand that they probably got from a nearby construction site! :)
My sand, and my rocks -- limestone and coral rock -- all came from my back
yard. Of course, I live on an island, so I have a distinct advantage which
you may not have. Even our water here is perfect for Malawi cichlids. In
fact, when I bred Angels and Discus over a dozen years ago, I had to use
those water-softening pillows to soften the water enough so that they would
breed.
MG> I have a very good canister filter, although I do admit that I tend to let
MG> it go too long between cleaning at times.
Other than the canister filter, do you use anything else for water
circulation? If not, you might want to consider adding a strong powerhead to
the back left and right corners of the tank. I suggest Penguin 1140's. Point
them diagonally so that they are both pointing towards the front center
section of the tank. If you point them directly ahead, you might have a
watery mess to deal with. Just a suggestion.
I used to use Magnum canister filters, but no longer do. The problem here is
that we have frequent power outages. If a canister is left off for too long,
you end up with a lethal anaerobic environment. When the power returns, all
of that hydrogen sulfide and methane gets shot into the tank. Not only does
it smell bad, but you might end up with some dead fish bodies floating in
your tank. :)
Jeff Snyder, SysOp - Armageddon BBS Visit us at endtimeprophecy.org port 23
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