i know it cant hurt anything, but like you said...this is no solution to the problem and i wanted to reinforce that. the solution to the problem above is to keep a proper and consistant maintenance schedule.E_americanus;1536068; said:
Haley the Cuban Gar
- Thread starter xander
- Start date
definitely agree; unfortunately (for the gar more than for us) we all thought a proper schedule was already well in place. at least things seem to be moving in the right direction now--demjor19;1536107; said:
--solomon
stocklist:
1 -20" cuban gar
2 -15" spotted gars
1 -13" alligator gar(removing him this sat)
2 -9" senegal bichirs
1 -5" PNT
1 -8" SAL(in the isolation box)
Feeding:
5 pcs of prawns(after cutting down) every tuesday and friday
Tablespoon of pellets occasionally(my smaller spotted gar doesn't take the prawns.)
Filtration:
i'm running two filters. i'll post pics to elaborate.
Water changes:
I'm doing 30% WCs once every 2 days
1 -20" cuban gar
2 -15" spotted gars
1 -13" alligator gar(removing him this sat)
2 -9" senegal bichirs
1 -5" PNT
1 -8" SAL(in the isolation box)
Feeding:
5 pcs of prawns(after cutting down) every tuesday and friday
Tablespoon of pellets occasionally(my smaller spotted gar doesn't take the prawns.)
Filtration:
i'm running two filters. i'll post pics to elaborate.
Water changes:
I'm doing 30% WCs once every 2 days
first off, im running two filters.
Stackable over head Filter
3 trays of wool and 3 trays of biomedia.
biomedia:
i was told that bioballs aren't too good for fresh water, so i got new media.
one tray is bioballs
second is ceremic rings
third is ceremic rings with coral media
Biofilter
this's just a lump of filter wool, before running through 2ft of coral media.
Stackable over head Filter
3 trays of wool and 3 trays of biomedia.
biomedia:
i was told that bioballs aren't too good for fresh water, so i got new media.
one tray is bioballs
second is ceremic rings
third is ceremic rings with coral media
Biofilter
this's just a lump of filter wool, before running through 2ft of coral media.
ok thanks for the info, that helps a lot! i do have a couple initial questions/suggestions:
-what is a "PNT"? i hope it isn't referring to a pig-nose turtle aka fly river turtle...as these should generally not be kept with fishes, and just about all turtles will eventually shred up gars. then again, i am only guessing at the PNT definition.
-bioballs work just fine for freshwater...was it a saltwater person that told you not to use them (the latter part of the statement is just out of curiosity)? anyway, i would replace the filter floss/wool in your filters with ceramic rings or bioballs...the wool accumulates crap much more IMO and looses efficacy rather quickly when this happens...its also going to trap a lot more waste which can lead to spikes, etc.
you won't want to remove and replace all at once. i would suggest removing a portion of the wool OR if there is empty space, place the rings above or below the wool (whichever way runs the water through the wool first) that way the bacteria from the wool can readily colonize the ceramic rings/bioballs. after several days/a week of leaving it like this, remove the wool and just keep the bioballs and rings. you could still use the wool in some places, but i would replace it each month as it's just going to trap garbage.
30% every other day is good for now until things calm down in the tank. keep checking the water, at least once every few days. check the pH before AND after a water change and let us know the results on both.
eventually you can moved to water changes just once a week, but i'd say keep the present regimen for at least another full week--
--solomon
-what is a "PNT"? i hope it isn't referring to a pig-nose turtle aka fly river turtle...as these should generally not be kept with fishes, and just about all turtles will eventually shred up gars. then again, i am only guessing at the PNT definition.
-bioballs work just fine for freshwater...was it a saltwater person that told you not to use them (the latter part of the statement is just out of curiosity)? anyway, i would replace the filter floss/wool in your filters with ceramic rings or bioballs...the wool accumulates crap much more IMO and looses efficacy rather quickly when this happens...its also going to trap a lot more waste which can lead to spikes, etc.
you won't want to remove and replace all at once. i would suggest removing a portion of the wool OR if there is empty space, place the rings above or below the wool (whichever way runs the water through the wool first) that way the bacteria from the wool can readily colonize the ceramic rings/bioballs. after several days/a week of leaving it like this, remove the wool and just keep the bioballs and rings. you could still use the wool in some places, but i would replace it each month as it's just going to trap garbage.
30% every other day is good for now until things calm down in the tank. keep checking the water, at least once every few days. check the pH before AND after a water change and let us know the results on both.
eventually you can moved to water changes just once a week, but i'd say keep the present regimen for at least another full week--
--solomon
you're right. but he doesn't do any damage. and he's getting out at the end of the month or so, when my bro gets the pond done.E_americanus;1536182; said:
no it was a lfs keeper, not one of those lfsppl though, i really respect and trust this guy. but when i change it to bioballs, what happens to all the crap and gunk that the wool collects? dont they clog up the balls and kill the BB?
for the rest, Noted. thanks for the great help!
