Powerhead distributes CO2 Today I shifted the location of the CO2 diffuser from the left wall of the tank to behind the moutain and underneath the powerhead. The atomised CO2 gets sucked up directly into the flow and actively pushed around the tank. Previously I had the diffuser on the opposite side of the tank […]
Read more →Category: Tools of the trade
Equipment and methods: CO2 gear, lighting, filtration, controllers, setup techniques.
Refreshing the Ludwigia palustris mini ‘Super Red’ “Stem plants” are those that have leaves coming off a central stem and contrast with rosette plants with leaves sprouting from a central locus. Stem plants grow fast, and can get big so require some maintenance. The easiest method is to simply cut off and discard the tops […]
Read more →Managing CO2 flow rate satisfactorily is particularly difficult for smaller aquariums; it’s very easy to have the CO2 come blasting out, but a nice steady well-controlled bubbling takes some work. The usual combination of regulator and needle valve can work, and adding in a secondary flow restrictor between the two can be a big help. […]
Read more →I use disposable CO2 tanks marketed for MIG (metal inert gas) welding that are filled with 600 g of liquid CO2. One of the challenges I’ve faced with injected CO2 gas in the Fireplace Aquarium is getting really precise control over the CO2 flow rate. The problem is that I need the CO2 gas flow rate […]
Read more →Advantages of a programmable aquarium lighting controller With the Kessil A80 LED, or most other aquarium lights, you don’t actually need a programmable controller, however, without a controller your options are to hand adjust light and colour twice a day, or more practically, to manually set the light and colour and then plug the light […]
Read more →The Kessil A80 ‘Tuna Sun’ is the smallest size LED light Kessil sells with a spectral output optimised for plant growth in freshwater aquaria. It has both tunable spectal temperature (from red to blue/white) and tunable intensity. There are terminals that can be connected to a 10V supply to control the intensity electronically. Kessils are […]
Read more →Injecting CO2 gas into an aquarium with a diffuser supports plant growth A CO2 diffuser is a device you push CO2 gas through that breaks the gas into microfine bubbles so the CO2 can more easily dissolve into the water (forming carbonic acid). I use a ceramic/acrylic/glass one from AquaRio and it does a nice […]
Read more →A drop checker is a simple and reliable device for measuring the level of dissolved CO2 in aquarium water. The drop checker hangs from the wall of the tank inside the tank and completely underwater, e.g. with a suction cup, and contains a liquid with a pH indicator dye in the “drop” portion which is […]
Read more →About every three weeks or so I have to give the algae a good scrapedown with a credit card blank. It involves getting essentially my whole arm into the tank with some complicated manoevering to get through the narrow access at the top of the aquarium. It takes a pretty good hour to get things […]
Read more →Why good water flow is important for an aquarium It is well established that good water movement is important in salt-water reef tanks where anemones need to have some wave action to move food around over them but the benefit to freshwater setups might be less obvious. In a live aquarium plant setup with injected […]
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