Posts by darrie53

Has anyone modified the head of the protein skimmer in order to allow for it to either work more efficiently or possibly collect more protein matter than the tray it came with?

Do you ever check the expiration date for your chemicals, or testing kits? Have you ever used anything that is either expired before or about to be?

Clownfish tend to be the way starting fish, due to their ability to handle a bigger range of water parameter changes that a new saltwater tank owner will have. Ideally many start with hermit crabs or snails since it will be highly evident if something is wrong (and the bottom of the water tends to house most of the waste/bad chemicals vs. the middle to top).

Have you ever used freshwater lights in a saltwater tank, and if so, how did it end up? Was the saltwater tank just a fish only setup, or did it have more like corals? How did you supplement the light needs for corals or live rock?

ALWAYS make sure that you have an overflow box, to where if there was a power outage that the overflow box would handle it and cut off the water supply so it never exceeds outside of your tank

Good luck getting results

When you bought it, did you look under it without the commonly found blue lights to enhance their color? I’ve bought a few and everytime they have those blue lights it can make it appear wildly different if you don’t have the same light spectrum they are shown under.

Yeah the 50% off tank sales, Black Friday, or whenever some of the bigger tank brands have discounts due to overstocking or discontinuing some model lines.

Liquid test kits since they are the most reliable, although tend to be a pain in the ass to learn at first if you aren’t used to measuring liquids and mixing things together nicely

I always wanted to try these but wasn’t too sure on the dirt to use, and how to get out the extra crap they put in the dirt like wood chips. Also wouldn’t it get messy fast if the fish swim around it or if you have to clean your tank?

No only those that require high light conditions, which probably also require CO2 and other aspects. Just look for the plants that are labeled low to medium light and you will be good with almost any light setup.

Would you be willing to ship? Any photos?

I’ve tend to sift the sand or rinse it out slightly with saltwater (not a hose or freshwater like I’d do for regular sand of a freshwater tank).

I’ve found Amazon to be extremely cheap due to not having stocking issues like local stores do. Otherwise checking out those stores that are resell stores might be able to save some $$

I know my local store that is a family business does testing for both saltwater and freshwater tanks. No idea on brackish though, I’d assume so?

Big chain wise I think only Petco does

Does anyone have any good guides on how to do this? Or possibly any software or guidelines based on tank size? My worry is that I don’t either build the braces (corners) correctly to withstand a bunch of weight once the tank is full. And I ain’t trying to have a tank explode randomly in the middle of the night with a bunch of water gushing all over the floor.

I just did this to my tank, with those cheap $5 LED light bars from Walmart. It makes it 100% easier to actually see things with these tank stands that are enclosed.

Do you have any updates on where you added the driftwood at? I’m curious since I’m thinking about getting a turtle after reading that article guide on here.

I never thought about that, I don’t but after looking up some horror stories - yeah I’ll go ahead and wear them now.

I’ve replaced a few from tanks I’ve tried to buy that had the plastic busted, but as far as driving them in, that’s a hard no 🚫