New things - sand - media for tank bottom

[Alice B]

I am an undergravel filter fish keeper. I will never do a deep sand bed. Did one on a small reef when they became fashionable in 2003 and it cost me a tang. But a thin sand bed, with air driven sponge filtration so I don't have to worry about sand in impellers, I would think about. I have some pond plant media I was thinking about putting under the sand, it's about 1/8th inch particles and ceramic with trace elements, and I got Black Diamond sand. Brought it home, read somewhere that it might be radioactive, and yes this is from coal slag. I don't want to kill my fish. It's my 29 gallon, 6 cory cats (julii and bronze 3 of each) and 3 mollies. Anyone tried this? Don't mind my chinese takeout planters, I don't have a lot of time for decorating in spring. The sand is just beautiful. I heard about it from another fish keeper. But....

 

[itiwhetu]

I wouldn't be putting that in my tank.

 

[Alice B]

There are people in Texas that do it. I only spent about $10 on it, on the recommendation of DFW Fishkeepers group. I'm not sure what I'm going to do with it, but I don't think it's going in the tank. I'm trying not to set up an undergravel filter in this tank. I'd like a dark substrate. That isn't rough on cory cat whiskers. Any ideas?

 

[itiwhetu]

Just the fact it has "Abrasive Products" on the big puts me off. I have never had a problem with Cory's on a fine river gravel over an under-gravel filter, I know everyone here says Cory's needs sand. I am in the belief that cory's whiskers get damaged by high nitrates or incorrect pH long before the substrate they are kept on.

 

[Alice B]

I think I am going to give up the sand idea. If I had a bigger house, and I could have a geophagus because I had a large enough tank, I would find some kind of suitable sand. I think I will drop an undergravel in the 29 later today, move the fish out to the 29 quarantine in the garage so I can get the UG and gravel in, and maybe do something more attractive with the plants. Anyone ever pot in this stuff?

 

[Slaphppy7]

Why do you use a UGF?

Just curious...

 

[Alice B]

Easy. Been using them since about 1985. Hate priming canister filters. Sponge are ok, but ugly

 

[Back in the fold]

Why do you use a UGF?

Just curious...

For some reason the old under gravel filter has fallen from favor. So far from favor that it is considered to be some sort of blunder to be using one anymore. I disagree most vociferously . They were all I had eons ago and they were great. The gravel bed itself that sits atop the filter plate is a huge place for good bacteria to grow. Sand is now the preferred substrate , at least in these circles , and would fall through the slits but there are finer gravels available. I've read that a UGF will acidify your water but I don't see how that is so if you do your regular water changes along with deep gravel vacuuming . The only drawback I ever had with a UGF was Kuhlii Loaches swimming down the uplift tubes and disappearing into the center of the earth. Josh Weigert recently wrote an article on Kuhlii's in TFH and said that's where a lot of them mysteriously spawn. I have a reset in mind for one of my 20's and I am going to go back to the venerable under gravel filter with it. JEHMCO sells them.

 

[Alice B]

The UGF does not acidify your water. CO2 from the fish and bacteria acidify the water if KH is low, especially if you fall behind on water changes and don't have limestone or other KH/pH boosting things in the tank. A UGF in a 55 gallon tank with a footprint of 12 inches by 48 inches has 396 square inches of filter. Compared to a hang on back filter with maybe 12 to 24 square inches. Because clogged up filters in canisters or hang ons get your attention, maybe a UG makes it easier to fall behind on water changes, and then you get acidity.

On that deep gravel vacuuming - a wise shop owner educated me. Only deeply vac 25% of gravel surface - move ornaments off and deeply vac one quarter of the tank each month. If you do weekly water changes you still only deeply vac one quarter of the tank each month, and do a different quarter, each month. You will lose fewer fish that way. I ran a reef loaded with fish and corals and an anemone with an undergravel filter, a HOT Magnum and a home made protein skimmer. From 1995 to 2001. The gravel bed was crushed coral and 3 inches deep to help support pH and I did kalkwasser every morning, trace etc weekly. Water change every 2 weeks, didn't vacuum that gravel, just maybe the top inch. Cost me a fortune but it was gorgeous.

A lot of why I stayed with UG's was the fact that I had 3 children and 13 aquariums and that's a whole lot of filter cartridges I could not afford. Kids are grown but I am still not a fan of wasting money on filter cartridges. And it only takes one hang on filter overflowing due to dirty cartridges into a power strip that isn't on an outlet with a gfci to make a real scary situation. I was a busy person. That didn't actually happen to me but I know someone it happened to. Given that I am basically gone for 3 months in spring, well I just threw out the cartridges on the free hang on that came with my 55. I didn't replace them. I have some filter pad I can put behind the blue bacteria screen they now put in these things if I need to clear the water, for right now there are no cartridges, just that screen. I don't have any that fit, not going to the store.

 

[Slaphppy7]

How often do you clean the UGF?

You don't have to use cartridges in HOBs, the ones that are designed right or customizable, anyway...

Cycled, established tanks don't need to be "overfiltered"

 

[Alice B]

I clean 25% of the UGF per month. even if I do more water changes. If you have tough fish you might get away with doing the whole thing, but a low level nitrite spike is not good for delicate babies and why put them thru it.

My 55 is massively over filtered right now because it was set up in December 2021, cold start with 5 guppies and a bottle of FritzZyme 7, fully stocked about 8 weeks later with a lot of guppies and 3 plecos. Has a couple of sponges and the HOB because those are being cultured to restart my 40 gallon in a few months. the 55 does have an undergravel filter, airdriven on one side, powerhead on the other, as well.

 

[Slaphppy7]

How are your nitrAte readings? You use a liquid test kit?

 

[Back in the fold]

@Alice B Thank you for that information about only deep gravel vaccing 25% of the area at a time. That makes perfect sense to me.

 

[Alice B]

How are your nitrAte readings? You use a liquid test kit?

my nitrate readings vary on when I did water changes, right now on sponge filters in my 29 gallon, with no ugf or other filter, before last water change my 29 was at 80ppm. I usually use a tetra kit. because they are always perfect with the API and I know API nitrite kit isn't accurate enough. I found some leftover drytab and that's what read 80. They don't make anymore but those were excellent tests

 

[Alice B]

@Slaphppy7 I tested my 55 with undergravel before tonight's water change, and nitrates were between 0 and 20. The frogbit is yellowgreen and looking like dying, no real algae, red cyanobacteria back. I have a lighting issue. And for now I have plastic lids floating on the side without frogbit to reduce the light.