Water Change

[Tolak]

A sponge over the intake will keep fish from going on a ride;

 

[waterdrop]

I've toyed with the idea of getting hold of/DIY'ing a Python to allow me to drain water from the tank straight into the kitchen sink (care of the mixer tap) and then fill it back up again without having to lift a bucket! Tho I am a little concerned about accidentally suck up a fish! And not using enough dechlorinator...

I only have a 110litre tank atm so I alright using my 10litre buckets for now, but if we get a 240litre tank I don't like the idea of having to lug more than twice the number of buckets of water around!

I do exactly that by not using my Python valve attachement but just giving the "tub end" a suck to start the draining process, then switching that same end over to the faucet adapter on the sink for the tank refill down the hall 50 feet away.

Tolak's big picture there is a great idea and goes to a question I've had for a while as to whether a "protector sponge" like that, fitted over the gravel cleaning cylinder, would slow down the out-siphoning so much that one wouldn't want to use it for time periods when one is just siphoning out rather than gravel-cleaning? Does my question make sense?

Could one make this with just any old block of sponge or does it have to be a certain type to let plenty of water (but not small fish, lol) through? I seem to remember something about "close-celled" or "open-celled" foam??

~~waterdrop~~

 

[Tolak]

Open cell sponge lets water flow through without a problem. Closed cell slows it, sometimes severely.

 

[fatheadminnow]

Would the sponges that the ACs use for their mechanical filtration be okay?

-FHM

 

[OldMan47]

Those are a nice open cell sponge but a fairly fine sponge to be using with a gravel vac. Most of the stuff you want to remove won't go through the filter sponge, it is made to be a filter.

 

[fatheadminnow]

Yeah, I just put one at the inlet to my filter, just to help keep some of the larger debris out of the impeller.

-FHM

 

[OldMan47]

I also have them on a couple of filter inlets to keep fry from taking a ride into my canisters.

 

[Angel47]

Hi,

When I filled my 125 litre tank up from new I used a coldwater garden hose to fill it most of the way then topped up with hot water to get it to a fairly good temp (used floating thermometer). When I got near the top I put dechlorinator (the right dose for the entire tank) and mixed it up with the last bit of water needed to fill the tank, and added it in.

Was that ok doing it that way?

thanks

Maz

 

[Bobtastic]

I've just bought all the bits to make a DIY python and it has work very well on filling up the fish tank, but haven't tried draining it yet... So don't know if it will be as efficient as the bucket technique yet on the gravel cleaning and water changes.

 

[jmkgreen]

I filled my 400L up from the outside tap over the weekend via hose.

My 70L was a doddle to a 75% water change with 3x 12L buckets.

I guess a really long bit of hose could work from the kitchen tap for refilling the big tank but it's the other side of the house. And I'd need to check the water temperature then attach the hose with the water still running ( = a right mess).

 

[waterdrop]

Maz, yes what you did is fine!

Bob, I drain via the gravel cleaning cylinder section being attached to a long clear python hose going 50 feet down the hall to a catch-bucket placed in a bathtub (or in the garden in the summer sometimes or when weather is nice.) I just give the far end a suck to get it started and the siphon drop (typical tank cabinet height) is enough to get some nice gravel cleaning accomplished.

jmkgreen, there are faucets you can get that separate the temperature control from the on/off/force control. I have one of these on the bathroom faucet where I do the draining mentioned in the previous paragraph. This allows me to take a cup of tank water from the tank-draining-catch-bucket, place it on the sink and hand match its temperature to to the faucet temp I'm adjusting. Then I can attach the same drain hose to this faucet, turn it on and know I'm getting the temperature I already adjusted. These types of fixtures are fairly commonly available for sinks and tubs if you reach a point in your household life where you can justify it.

~~waterdrop~~

 

[Vareg]

Hoses, I agree