Cost And Time Short-Cuts For Fish

Ltygress

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Most of us who have been around fish for a while know NOT to buy the professional sump containers, because making your own even from old aquariums is much cheaper.

But there are actually LOTS of ways to cut costs or time in this hobby. I'll name a few here, and you all can join in if you know of anything else. This is primarily for the hobbyists in the U.S., but there may be other versions in the U.K. similar to these.

Substrate - for gravel, go to Lowes Home Improvement stores. They have a good-sized bag of "pea gravel" that is quartz-based. One bag covers the bottom of a 30G aquarium for just $4 a bag. Quartz itself is safe for aquariums. Just rinse it very well before using it.
Bonus: I used two different sized strainers to rinse mine. A plastic one with large holes, and one made of screen. The screen caught finer particles that I use for guppy fry, where they can't go down under the gravel and possibly get stuck or crushed.

PH adjustments - Vinegar is acidic and Baking Soda is alkaline. But I would use these sparingly, as sudden spikes in either direction is worse than being on the wrong side of the PH scale. But you can often get the PH to an even 7.0 and use tiny amounts of this to "nudge" it in the direction you want.

Fine-Mesh Nets for Fry - Don't bother. Use airline tubing to siphon the fry into a different container.

Airline tubing - speaking of it, don't bother getting it from a pet shop. The same exact stuff, made from the same exact materials, in the same exact fashion, is sold at many home improvement stores by the foot. This is also particularly helpful if you need a lot to cover several tanks with. You can buy as much - or as little - as you need.

Hoods - Unless it's a standard 10G tank, it could be much cheaper to just buy pieces of acrylic to cover the top, and some type of LED lights to sit somewhere above that. Actually, it may be cheaper for a 10G tank as well, depending on where you live.

Slate Rock, Driftwood, etc - LOOK AROUND YOU! I found slate rock covering the ground of a very tiny wooded area in... an apartment complex! For Driftwood, I have made my own using hardwood logs found outdoors. The key is to treat it properly before using it. Find a container that it will fit in, which can hold water. Fill it with enough water to cover the object. Add lots of bleach - enough that you can smell the chlorine. Let it sit for FIVE DAYS to penetrate any pourous surfaces. Then rinse and let it soak in plain water for five days to weaken the bleach that soaked i to the material. The bleach will also weaken on it's own over time, but this step helps speed up the process. Then rinse again and soak five more days in water treated with a dechlorinator, and you're done!
WARNING: ALWAYS research rocks before you use them. Granite, for example, is alkali and could really affect your PH. Quartz is safe, and most slate rock is safe. Yellowish rocks usually have sulfur and aren't safe at all. Any metallic rocks are often iron-based which can not only be deadly, but could create rust right in your fish tank!


Anyone have anything to add?
 
For maintenance I've found a turkey baster is one of the best bits of kit I could buy.  If you have fine substrate you can easily clean it using this.  And it acts like a handheld vacuum for smaller bare bottom tanks or breeding\isolation containers.
 
Don't be put off by older rusty looking aquarium stands if a second hand tank comes your way.  Take a wire brush to it and clean away any loose paint and rust. Paint it with something like Hammerite* (smooth coat is best) and it will look as good as new, if not better.
 
 
 
*other products are available :)
 
 
Hoods -
If you are handy with tools you can build your own. I did.
 
That cost $30 and 2 hours work. There are lots of plans ideas and how too on youtube
2iw3k8.jpg

 
I am going to try something like this using a new plastic 44 gallon drum on my 2 foot tank, ( the drum will be in the garage on the other side of the wall).
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OxFb3EeZ7l8
Why you ask?
 
Because then even thou my tank is 70 litre 2 foot, My water capacity for that tank will be 270 litres, Make sense?  Yes I know bigger water changes and all that but with that much water everything should be real stable.
 
I almost forgot the bettas.

Don't go buying a $15 bowl for a betta. I don't recommend small cotainers at all, but if you are dead-set on a betta "bowl" find a local thrift store and look for those clear glass vases. I bought two female bettas in an "emergency" (you'd have to read the betta forums) and got three of those short, fat, glass vases for them for 50 cents each. Add gravel from the source I mentioned above and viola, pretty betta bowls!

But thankfully once these girls release their eggs, they'll be placed in much larger community tanks.
 
Ltygress said:
For Driftwood, I have made my own using hardwood logs found outdoors. The key is to treat it properly before using it. Find a container that it will fit in, which can hold water. Fill it with enough water to cover the object. Add lots of bleach - enough that you can smell the chlorine.
 
I would be careful with bleach. Wood is porous and will absorb the bleach. Even with additional soaking it can take a long time to leach back out. I've heard some horror stories that were the result of overdoing bleach. Better safe than sorry has been my approach.
 
RobRocksFishTank said:
 
For Driftwood, I have made my own using hardwood logs found outdoors. The key is to treat it properly before using it. Find a container that it will fit in, which can hold water. Fill it with enough water to cover the object. Add lots of bleach - enough that you can smell the chlorine.
 
I would be careful with bleach. Wood is porous and will absorb the bleach. Even with additional soaking it can take a long time to leach back out. I've heard some horror stories that were the result of overdoing bleach. Better safe than sorry has been my approach.
 
 
Just out of interest what would be the best way to "cure" wood for aquatic use?
 
My youngest pup has got into the habit of bringing large pieces back to the garden (we're sure he's training to fight a stag), and the last piece is magnificent and would look great in a tank I'd like to set up.  Unfortunately I have no idea what type of wood it is and whether it's a hard wood or will just rot to a pulp.
A piece like this from a LFS would cost me £70+ upwards easily.
 
That's why there is a third soaking with a dechlorinator though. I've never had problems since using the three-soak method.
 
"Lots of bleach" can mean different things to different people. Bleach is dangerous and needs to be handled carefully when associated with fish. It has to be plain bleach and should be used in as small a quantity as possible. Maybe you should quantify your statement with an actual amount per gallon that would be considered safe. 
 
Ltygress said:
PH adjustments - Vinegar is acidic and Baking Soda is alkaline. But I would use these sparingly, as sudden spikes in either direction is worse than being on the wrong side of the PH scale. But you can often get the PH to an even 7.0 and use tiny amounts of this to "nudge" it in the direction you want.
 
This is a fairly dangerous way of adjusting ph levels.
 
Baking soda will raise the pH, used fairly often for Rift lake Chichlids set ups I believe.
However, have not heard of vinegar being used for this purpose of adjusting ph levels, but certainly would not recommend this. Fluctating ph levels are not good for any fish species and would only say experienced keepers and a lot of research should be pursued before attempting to adjust ph levels, easy to adjust short term, much harder to keep at steady levels long term.
 
 
Ltygress said:
Driftwood, I have made my own using hardwood logs found outdoors. The key is to treat it properly before using it. Find a container that it will fit in, which can hold water. Fill it with enough water to cover the object. Add lots of bleach - enough that you can smell the chlorine. Let it sit for FIVE DAYS to penetrate any pourous surfaces. Then rinse and let it soak in plain water for five days to weaken the bleach that soaked i to the material. The bleach will also weaken on it's own over time, but this step helps speed up the process. Then rinse again and soak five more days in water treated with a dechlorinator, and you're done!
 
Imho i do not think bleach is a good way of treating any wood for aquarium use. I generally use tap water and a scrubber and scrub off any loose particles and dirt etc, then pour a kettle full of water over the wood to help get rid of any bugs or eggs.
 
For a start bleach will break down the wood much quicker, not to mention the danger of adding bleach to wood is the possibility of it being absorbed and therefore leaching into the water column in fish tank.
 
 
Ltygress said:
WARNING: ALWAYS research rocks before you use them. Granite, for example, is alkali and could really affect your PH. Quartz is safe, and most slate rock is safe. Yellowish rocks usually have sulfur and aren't safe at all. Any metallic rocks are often iron-based which can not only be deadly, but could create rust right in your fish tank!
 
Granite does not affect pH at all, its perfectly safe to use.
 
Graphite however, is not recommended.
 
Limestone will dissolve in tanks, this will affect ph over time.
 
Sorry if you feel I am solely picking these out, but a lot of times, misinformation is more dangerous than ignorance :/
 
 
Don't go buying a $15 bowl for a betta. I don't recommend small cotainers at all, but if you are dead-set on a betta "bowl" find a local thrift store and look for those clear glass vases
 
Now I say this with all due respect.
 
Anybody placing a betta in one of those vases is guilty of animal cruelty and should be banned from ever owning another fish.
 
Bettas are beautiful active fish that should be kept in a minimum of a 20 litre cube, If I had it my way a 2 foot tank would be the absolute minimum required by law. 
 
I completely agree which is why I said I don't recommend small containers at all. Of course you know my trouble with that from the betta forum - not just small containers, but males and females in close proximity.

BUT those vases are better than the cups they live in at the LFS. And I can't talk EVERYONE out of using a bowl for them. I did consider not posting that info, but thought about people I have know who just kept their LFS betta in that plastic cup!

At least the bowl (vase) is a full gallon of water for them!
 

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