Here is a pic of the tank I'm setting up for my acid phreaks (bamboos and bumblebees):
This is done on the cheap but is all stuff that won't react with acid. The white is the play sand the pink is Rose quartz and the darker stuff is chunks of broken up Blue Pearl counter top. Blue Pearl is a really nice granite. The rose quarts was collected in Canada on a rock collecting trip. The countertop was in a dumpster behind a tile store. This stuff was just about free.
You can see the power head atop the gravel filter take up tube.
Thanks everyone for your replies,
Badflash, I was under the impression that it would not be possible to use an undergravel filter with sand - is this not the case?
I have contacted 'B&Q' in the UK, who are the only company I can think off that sounds remotely like Home Depot. Hopefully they will have some white silica sand
raptor83 wrote:Thanks everyone for your replies,
Badflash, I was under the impression that it would not be possible to use an undergravel filter with sand - is this not the case?
badflash wrote: white play sand on top with platic door screening on top of the filter to kep the play sand from clogging it up.
It all depends on surface area and the strength of your powerhead. A 180gph powerhead in a 55 gallon tank spreads the suction over a very large area so the sand is not disturbed. A 180gph in a 10 gallon would result in a sand storm and a broken powerhead. Just find the proper balance.
20 gallons is a huge area, and sand is quite porus. The problem with sand is that unless you put something (like plastic screening) on top of the filter the sand will fall in and fill in the underside of the filter.
I have an over the side filter in several 10 gallon tanks. The suction tube sticks down in the uptake tube of the undergravel filter. I got a ruubber o-ring from home depot to seal it up so it take a good suction.
The flow is reduced for sure, but plenty high for my bamboos that will shortly be moving to the big tank.
All of my tanks have undergravel filters with either sand or gravel. Both work well.
i asked my lfs about sand type gravels, they all say that it will compact and create poisones gases that will get trapped and when released will kill the fish. should i mix the sand and gravel together? is pure sand ok? should i have some type of animals that will dig down into it? if so which types? shrimp shrimp shirmp
thanks
good idea thanks, i have mts, pond, and small ramshorn snails. but i think only the mts dig in the sand. how long have you had this set up with the sand and mts for? i might have to try this thanks
shrimp shrimp shrimp
fishbreed wrote:good idea thanks, i have mts, pond, and small ramshorn snails. but i think only the mts dig in the sand. how long have you had this set up with the sand and mts for? i might have to try this thanks shrimp shrimp shrimp
Listen...it's absolutely unnecessary to mock the forum rules by adding ridiculous and totally out of place "shrimp" references to your postings. I noticed you did that in your "i want to see endler's photos" posting, too, *after* I warned you to stay on topic (i.e. talk about shrimp). Instead of heeding my warning or responding to it, you just quietly go and change your post by adding "shrimp" somewhere in the sentence.
Honestly, my patience is coming to an end. I realize you want to participate in this forum, but I have now warned you several times about blatantly and *knowingly* breaking the rules and then you continue to mock the rules with such remarks. This is absolutely the last warning. Any other stunt like this or anything resembling this and you're gone.
My sand tank was set up last September. I have MTS and pond snails as well. The sand is compacted and the MTS don't dig in very far. Poison gas? That is nonsense.
uh interesting, so no poisen gases build up. thats cool then. i have read it in some older fish books and some lfs's have said that to. but this is mostly from the old time info and the lfs's are older people in general to. in fact now that i think about it the only petshop i have seen sale sand was from a young fish guy.
The poison gas myth is just that.. a myth. I have used standard home depot sand in all of my tanks for years and a 75/25 flourite/sand blend for planted tanks and have never had any reason to believe poison gas could build up and kill your livestock. I have never heard of anyone losing livestock because of a "killer bubble" either and I read several invert/fish/plant forums. In nature who comes along and beats the sand around with a big stick so lakes around the world aren't poisoned to death? Sounds like some bs AZ aquatics would say lol.
Sorry to bring my thread up yet again! (I thought it better to do that than making a new one)
I have decided im going to get some Red Cherry Shrimp to try and breed as they seem to be quite hardy, and are the only other type of shrimp apart from bamboos that I have been able to find here in the UK.
The RCS are going to be kept with some small fish - Mountain Cloud Minnow and Glass Catfish, aswell as the Bamboo Shrimp I mentioned before.
My question is; will the RCS babies (if they have any) be eatan by the fish? and do they require an special conditions, or food?
