Amiga Plus 1995 #2/Amiga Plus CD - 1995 - No. 2.iso/internet/faq/englisch/aquaria

Text File | 1995-04-11 | 184.3 KB | 4,226 lines

Archive-name: aquaria/general-faq/README
Rec-aquaria-archive-name: general-faq/README
Alt-aquaria-archive-name: general-faq/README
Sci-aquaria-archive-name: general-faq/README
Posting-Frequency: monthly


    Introduction to FAQ (Frequently Asked Questions) for *.aquaria

The monthly posting to rec.aquaria, alt.aquaria, and sci.aquaria will
consist of this introduction followed by the FAQ in five additional
postings.

The FAQ will be available through anonymous FTP on ftp.cco.caltech.edu
(131.215.48.151), located in Pasadena, California, in the directory
pub/aquaria/FAQfiles/Usenet.  Login through ftp with 'anonymous' as
your username.  At the present time it is also available at
caldera.usc.edu (128.125.51.47), located in Los Angeles, California;
the FAQ files are located in the directory pub/aquaria.

The FAQ currently consists of the following files:

File name | Topics                        |  Last update | Size
----------+-------------------------------+--------------+------
README    | Introduction & update notes   | Sept. 03 1994| 6876
beginner  | Beginner stuff and books      | Dec. 23 1993 | 50984
filters   | Filters, Air pumps, misc equip| Jan. 15 1994 | 34694
mail      | Mail order and Magazines      | Jan. 15 1994 | 16050
plants    | Plants, algae, snails      | Dec. 23 1993 | 50128
water     | Water quality and disease     | Dec. 23 1993 | 27640

Correspondence regarding the FAQ may currently be sent to me, Dustin
Laurence, at [e-mail], since we are without a
maintainer.  However, I am _not_ the author, nor even the maintainer.
The FAQ was written by and is owned by the readers of the usenet
aquaria newsgroups.  I merely make it available from a convenient site
in the aquaria archives, and make sure that it is posted regularly.

Please note that the maintainer(s) are editors, not authors.  They're
not experts, they don't know the best fish for you to rear, they don't
conduct surveys and they normally don't write the FAQ itself.  That's
up to you.  They just _edit_.  Thank you -- The management.

HOWEVER:

The FAQ is currently orphaned, without a maintainer.  I will almost
certainly _not_ make changes or additions, no matter how easy, useful,
or necessarily.  I am merely providing a foster home to make sure it
is available while we are without a maintainer.

The Honor Roll:

I think it is only right that we thank the former maintainers of the
FAQ; it is a thankless job, and anyone foolish^H^H^H^H^H^H^H selfless
enough to volunteer to maintain it for a time deserves our thanks.

These are the only names I know at the moment.  Further names should
be added, if anyone can remember who they are.

Dates:

4/22/94 to present   None, foster home provided by Dustin

??? to 4/22/94       Tony Li ([e-mail]) AND
                     Patti Beadles ([e-mail]).

before 4/22/94       Heroes lost in the mists of time.

Revision history:

Rev 1.24 12/09/94

Added Aquatic Technology in the mail order section.

Rev 1.23 9/3/94

Put the FAQ in official orphan status, changed the headers to reflect
this.  Fixed them up in preparation for posting to the *.answers
groups, including changing file name from FAQ.README to just
README.  Added the honor roll. -- Dustin

Rev 1.22 1/15/94

Updated filter prices, mail order phone numbers.  Added a FAQ mirror site.

Rev 1.21 12/23/93

Added "Archive-name" lines to all files.

Rev 1.20 12/7/93

Added pointer to Marine Fish Monthly from Brad Eacker.

Rev 1.19 11/22/93

Add cycling section from Davin Milun.

Rev 1.18 8/12/93

Fix phone number for MOPS.

Rev 1.17 8/6/93

Patch from Mark Hebets for tank sizes.

Rev 1.16  6/1/93

Plant patch from Shaji Bhaskar.  Change of FAQ host to caldera.

Rev 1.15  5/4/93

Added plant basics from George Booth.

Rev 1.14  4/15/93

Hardness, algae, snail sections from George Booth.  More plant stuff from
Dennis Bednarek.  Power consumption and tank size data from Peter Stonard.
Nitrogen tests from Dustin Laurence, et. al.

Rev 1.13  2/26/93

Added mail order survey from Dean Fear.

Rev 1.12  2/23/93

Added Drosophila handling hint from Matt Rhoten.

Rev 1.11  1/11/93

Addition from Paul Prior on filtering, esp. cannister filters.  Fixed
spelling errors.

Rev 1.10  1/4/93

Remove dangling pointer to Pat White.  Add address for Vinny Kutty.

Rev 1.9   10/24/92

Added contributions on chiller sizing, fixed minor bug in plants. added
mail order info on live rock.

Rev 1.8   10/10/92

Added contributions on live food, mail order pond places.  Added missing
disclaimer to FAQ.plants.

Rev 1.7   8/21/92

Added plants

Rev 1.6   7/7/92

Removed a contributor per their request.

Rev 1.5   7/3/92

Added contribution from Dave Beverstock on power filters.

Rev 1.4   6/1/92

Added a recommendation to test air pumps under load.

Rev 1.3   2/11/91

Added Oleg's recommendations on books.  Updated phone numbers for mail
order houses.

Rev 1.2   10/4/91

A few other minor administrative changes.

Rev 1.1      6/19/91

Minor administrative changes, ran it through a spelling checker.

Collected the contributors names and addresses into a "phone book" at the
end of this file.  This will make it easier to change addresses when people
move around, as the address is only listed in one place.

Rev 1.0   3/23/91

UPDATE NOTES:  What's changed in the FAQ:
-------------
I thought I would just write this when I enter new stuff into the
four part FAQ.  The newest set of the FAQ (dated 3/23/91) contains:

-    stuff about moving aquaria,
-    yet another modification of the protein skimmer description
     (will we ever get this right :-)
-    a brief (very very brief) description of the history behind
     *.aquaria
-    useful data on weight/volume of water
-    brief description of air pumps
-    miscellaneous stuff.

You may notice that I've begun to include names (and addresses) of
other authors.  I did not include this practice when we were just
booting up because it would have been too confusing, and there were
quite a lot of contributors.

If you would like to be included in a list of contributors (and be
famous through posterity), please re-email me.  (Unfortunately, to
conserve disk space and preserve sanity, I purged old inputs).

Thanks to y'all.

Tim Yiu


Contributors:
Dennis Bednarek         [e-mail]
Dave Beverstock            [e-mail]
George Booth             [e-mail]
Ron Burns             [e-mail]
Diane DeMers            [e-mail]
Dean Fear            [e-mail]
Georg Jander             [e-mail]
Oleg Kiselev            [e-mail]
Ken Koellner              [e-mail]
Vinny Kutty            [e-mail]
Dustin L. Laurence        [e-mail]
Mike Loughlin             [e-mail]
Paul Prior            [e-mail]
Mathew Rhoten            [e-mail]
Keith Rogers              [e-mail]
Timothy Shimeall        [e-mail]
Greg Smith                [e-mail]
Spass Stoiantschewsky        [e-mail]
Peter J. Stonard        [e-mail]
Ray Wallace               [e-mail]
Tim Yiu                [e-mail]
???                [e-mail]
--
Clues for the clueless, personal.peeves edition:

The net is _not_ the information superhighway.  There isn't one.
It isn't cyberspace either.
Archive-name: aquaria/general-faq/beginner
Rec-aquaria-archive-name: general-faq/beginner
Alt-aquaria-archive-name: general-faq/beginner
Sci-aquaria-archive-name: general-faq/beginner
Posting-Frequency: monthly


             Beginner topics and books

Rev. 1.23 9/3/94

Prologue:
---------
This monthly series is intended to address some of the frequently
asked questions (FAQ) on the rec., alt., and sci.aquaria newsgroups.
Because the answers may not be complete, please feel free to ask
questions.  This is only intended to address first level concerns, and
not to dampen discussions.  Please see the file README for pointers to
other topics.

Please review and send any corrections or inputs to the FAQ
maintainers with "(FAQ)" in the subject line.  You are absolutely
welcomed to tackle (i.e. WRITE) sections that have not been written
yet.

We've received recommendations to put email address "pointers" in the
FAQ to vector questions to specific experts on particular subjects.
If you would like to offer yourself as such an expert, please send me
your email address and the specific topics you want to host.  Please
include an email path that is generally accessible to the greatest
number of people.

GLOSSARY OF COMMONLY USED ABBREVIATIONS AND TERMS:
--------------------------------------------------

     AFM     = Aquarium Fish Magazine
     CO2     = Chemical symbol for carbon dioxide
     DIY     = Do-it-yourselfer type articles (somewhat equivalent
               to the FAMA "For what it's worth" column)
     (F)     = Used in subject line to indicate Freshwater
               discussion
     FAMA    = Freshwater And Marine Aquarium (magazine)
     H2O     = Water
     (M)     = Used in subject line to indicate Marine discussion
     MFM     = Marine Fish Monthly (magazine)
     M/O     = Mail Order
     NH3     = Chemical symbol for ammonia (highly toxic)
     NH4+    = Chemical symbol for ammonium ion (not so toxic)
     NO2-    = Chemical symbol for nitrite ion (toxic)
     NO3-    = Chemical symbol for nitrate ion (not so toxic)
     O3      = Ozone.  Highly reactive and unstable form of oxygen.
     pH      = Measure of acidity/alkalinity (See H2O quality)
     ppm     = Parts per million
     RO      = Reverse Osmosis (See filters)
     RUGF    = Reverse UGF
     sp.     = Species not identified; i.e. Cichlasoma sp.
     TFH     = Tropical Fish Hobbyist (magazine)
     UGF     = Under-Gravel Filter (See filters)


Anaerobic    = Without Oxygen.  In aquaria, this typically refers
               bacterial activity in water of low oxygen content.
Bettas       = Siamese Fighting Fish (Betta Splendens).  Often
               named Alpha for annoyingly obvious reasons :-).
               Often misspelled as Betas.
Redox        = Reduction-oxidation potential.  Measured in millivolts
           (mV).  Higher means better water quality.

REC.AQUARIA, ALT.AQUARIA, SCI.AQUARIA:
--------------------------------------
     A common question is why are there three newsgroups dedicated
to talking a aquaria related topics.  The actual story is quite
long and dirty, and will be written up at a later time.  For those
who don't know the history, let me whet your appetite by describing
the history with the name (of my creation):  "The Great Aquarian
Flame Wars."  [or maybe "The Dumb and the Fishless" :-)]  A more
complete story by Richard Sexton should be on the aquaria archive
somewhere.
     The simple answer to the reason of why three groups is that
not all sites receive all three newsgroups.  The best solution (given the
existing setup) is to cross-post hobbyist-type articles to both
rec. and alt.aquaria.  Sci.aquaria should be reserved for egghead
discussions of fishy science in Latin :-) (e.g., physiology,
taxonomy, plant biology and ecology ... any topic ending in a "y").
     Although cross-posting will result in some people receiving
duplicate articles (because some newsreaders will not "mark"
articles as being read across newsgroups), this is generally the
best solution).

STARTING A NEW AQUARIUM:
------------------------
     Before one buys and sets up an aquarium for the first time,
one should buy or borrow a good beginner's book on the subject.  A
list of suggestions is included in this message.  The most important
ingredient in a new aquarium is patience.

     In summary, the following is a flow for setting up an
aquarium.

-    Decide on the type of fish and the number. DO NOT RUSH OUT AND
     BUY THE FISH YET!!
-    Decide on real/plastic plants.
-    Read up on the requirements and the compatibility (of flora
     and fauna).
-    Review choice of flora and fauna.
-    Determine size and type of aquarium.
     >>Rules of thumb:<<
     *    12 sq. in. of surface area per inch of ADULT fish (not
          including tail).  This is a very rough rule of thumb.
     *    Tall fish look good in tall tanks.  A tall tank with a
          given surface area will support the SAME number of fish
          as a short tank with the same surface area. (See above).
     *    Most fish prefer long/wide tanks.  We humanoids generally
          prefer tall tanks; they look better.
     *    PLASTIC vs. GLASS:
          Glass tanks weigh more and cost a lot less than plastic
          (acrylic/Plexiglass(TM)) tanks.  Plastic is easily
          scratched; glass can crack and spring a leak, or worst
          yet, shatter.  Fish look better in acrylic tanks (if it's
          quality plastic) because the index of refraction of
          acrylic is closer to the index of refraction of water.
     *    Each gallon of water weighs 8.5 pounds. Make sure your
          floor can support the weight.  Also ensure a stable
          platform.
     *    Larger aquaria are subject to less fluctuation of temperature
          and water quality.  Get the largest you can afford.
-    Choose a filtration system most appropriate for your fish and
     aquarium.  In general, water should be turned over 3-5 times
     an hour depending on fish load.  (See filters).
-    Determine size of heater.
     >>Rules of thumb:<<
     *    2.5 watts per gallon of water (for example, a 10 gallon
          tank needs a 25 watt heater).
     *    When possible, use two heaters to achieve desired wattage
          instead of one large heater (even distribution of heat,
          backup in case of breakage).
     *    Submersible heaters, for the most part, are a better
          choice.  Check the  manufacturers' instructions to see if
          the heater is salt-water compatible if you intend to use
          it in a brackish or salt-water tank.
-    Check prices. (See Mail Order).  Be cautious about "Starter
     Kits" and "Package Deals"; more often than not, they contain
     equipment that is obsolete, or is woefully inadequate for the
     task, or is simply unnecessary.
-    Re-evaluate everything based on budget.
-    Buy and setup aquarium.
-    Some may choose to "paint" the back of the aquarium (black or
     blue) at this point.  Others may want to add commercially
     available aquarium backing (poster-like photos of plants).
     It's infinitely easier when the aquarium is dry.
-    If you choose UGFs (see filters), set this up first.
-    If you're using gravel, rinse it.
-    Set up the heater where there is water flow so the heat can be
     evenly distributed.  Do not bury it in the gravel.
-    Do not plug in anything electrical while setting up.
-    Let the aquarium cycle for one-three weeks.  (See the section below
     titled CYCLING A NEW AQUARIUM.)
-    If you get a used tank, be very careful.  Test for leaks
     by filling the tank either in the bath tub or in the
     drive-way/on the lawn, where the leak will do least harm.
     Check all seals and re-seal the tank with *aquarium safe*
     silicone cement (Dow Chemicals and others make that stuff; buy
     it from hardware stores where the price is 25% of what you
     will pay for the same item in a pet shop).  Aquarium safe
     means no fungicides or other poisons which will leach into
     your aquarium and kill your fish.  READ THE LABEL.
-    Plant all plants at the same time, but before you add fish.
     Your work becomes much easier if the tank is only half full of
     water.  See Plant Books for more info.
-    Add rock work and decorations after washing these.
-    Introduce fish into the aquarium over a length of time. (i.e.
     don't buy all the fish on the same day and dump them into the
     aquarium.  Spread it out over time.)  Start with the hardiest
     fish.
-    Don't introduce the pet store water with the fish.  Pet store
     water can contain all sorts of parasites and nasty beasties
     which may cause problems later.
-    One technique to slowly acclimate your new fish to your tank
     is to put the fish and its accompanying pet store water in a
     small, clean bucket (one that's never had soap or other
     chemicals in it) and establish a siphon with a piece of
     airline tubing with airstones at either end. This slow drip of
     water should fill the bucket in about an hour, when you should
     then carefully net the fish out and put them in the tank.
-    Change 25% of the water every three weeks and maintain
     filters.  >>This cannot be stressed enough!<<  Regular
     cleaning of your mechanical filter (sponges, whatever) and
     regular partial water changes will allow you to have a
     successful tank with less than *15 minute of maintenance per
     week*.  De-chloraminate water before you put it in your tank.
-    Test water regularly with test kits to ensure water quality is
     acceptable.


CYCLING A NEW AQUARIUM:  Contributor: Davin Milun
-----------------------

When setting up a new tank, the first thing that one has to do is to
let the tank "cycle", usually for 1-4 weeks.  In short, this will allow time
    - for any chlorine/chloramine in the tap water to dissipate,
    - for you to see if there are water leaks,
    - for the nitrogen cycle to start.

The most complex of the above is getting the nitrogen cycle started,
which means letting the natural beneficial bacterial growth begin to
establish itself. (See the Water FAQ for details on nitrogen cycle.)

If you wish to get rid of chloramine and/or chlorine quickly (instead
of letting the water sit for a while), consider using commercially
available de-chlor[am]inators, like Kordon's AmQuell, NovaQua etc..

For the nitrogen cycle to get started in a tank, some source of ammonia is
needed.

The most common way of getting this ammonia is to wait a day or two
after setting up the tank (so that chlor[am]ine can dissipate), make
sure that your water is clear, and then put in a few hardy and
inexpensive fish.  The fish waste contains the ammonia, on which the
bacteria live.  Some suggested species include: platies, various
danios, the more hardy tetras, white clouds (if your water is
coolish) and some people even suggest using goldfish.

A big question is how many fish should be added.  Opinions on this
vary greatly, but the long and short of it is the following:
- The more fish you add, the quicker your tank will cycle, but the
  more likely it is that the fish will die of ammonia poisoning
  before the cycling is complete.
- The bacteria colonies will only grow as large as needed to process
  the amount of ammonia that is present.  So, this means that you
  should ALWAYS add more fish slowly, even after the cycling is
  complete. (You can cycle with one fish, but then you get a small
  colony of bacteria.  If you then dump in lots more fish, because you
  think that your tank has cycled, many of them will probably die of
  ammonia poisoning, because the bacteria won't be able to keep up.)

A very rough rule of thumb that seems fairly agreeable is: you should
start with not more than 2 to 4 inches of fish per 10 gallons of tank
size.

An alternative to adding fish is to add ammonia (or ammonium
chloride).  Get some straight ammonia (with no detergents, scents
or additives).  Use an eye dropper to put a couple of drops per 10
gallons in the tank daily, and let it cycle that way.

You can also help the cycling process get started by borrowing
bacteria from another tank.  If you (or a friend) have an established
tank (running over 6 months and healthy), you can put an easily moved
filter (like a sponge filter: see Filters) into that tank for a week
or so.  This will provide a healthy colony of nitrogen-removing
bacteria for your new tank.  Put this aged filter in your tank prior
to adding fish.  Be sure not to let it dry out or get too hot or cold
during the move.

If you will be using a UGF or a filter packed with gravel (see
Filters), you could take some gravel from the established tank,
especially if it also uses a UGF. This will help you start the
bio-filtration much more quickly.

During the cycling, the ammonia levels will swing wildly, and then go
to zero.  The nitrite levels will spike, and then go to zero.  You can
either buy a test kit, and follow the levels yourself, or else you
could ask your fish store to test your water after a week or so.
Once the nitrites have dropped back to zero, your tank is cycled.

If the ammonia levels get too high during cycling, you can do a
partial water change to reduce the levels.  Remember that the water
that you add should be dechlor[am]inated.



MOVING AN AQUARIUM:  Contributor: Timothy Shimeall
-------------------

The best word on moving fish (and in this discussion, fish
includes all aquarium animal life), beyond very short distances, is
DON'T.  Travel is very stressful on fish, and even with the best
precautions you should expect to lose several.  Given this is true,
you may want to seriously consider selling off your stock and
getting new fish at your destination.

If, given the above, you still want to try to move fish, then the
following may help to minimize the pain and loss of fish.

The task of moving fish basically splits into two tasks: moving the
tank, and then (later) moving the fish.  Do not attempt to move the
fish in their tank.

Moving the tank
---------------

The main problem in moving the tank is the filtration system.
After a very few hours (less than a day) without a flow of
oxygen-laden water, aerobic bacteria start to die.  This means that
if you are moving a short distance (an hours drive or so), it may
be possible to preserve your bacteria colony.  But beyond that,
you'll need to restart the bacteria.  (No, bacteria don't die after
an hour, but you need to account for tear down, packing, unpacking
and setup time, and have the total be only a few hours.)  This
leads to the following process:

1) Put your fish in a holding container (more on that below)

2) Drain your tank.  If the move is going to be short, preserve
some of the water to help preserve the bacteria colony.

3) Disassemble your tank.  Aquarium plants will survive a fair
amount of time if their roots are kept wet, so it should be possible
 to bag them with some water and set them aside for hand-moving.
If the move is going to be short, put your filter medium in a
sealed container (preferably a never-used pail or other
chemical-free hard-sided container) without cleaning it.  For long
moves, either clean or discard your filter media.  Pumps, heaters,
etc. can be packed as any fragile appliance.

4) Move your tank.  Don't use a moving company or professional
packers, unless you have absolutely no choice AND you can supervise
them packing the tank and loading it in the truck.  It's far better
to move it yourself.

5) Reassemble your tank at your destination.  If you're doing a
short move you should have enough dechlorinated/treated water
available on arrival to fill your tank and get water moving through
your filter.  If you're doing a long move, then set your tank up as
if it was a new tank-- including a week-long delay before putting
fish in the tank.  Initially, put in a few hardy fish to get the
nitrate cycle established.  After the tank is stable, put the fish
from your old home back in.

Moving the fish
---------------

There are three basic problems in moving the fish:
  - where do you put them while you're moving the tank (a week+)
  - how do you pack them
  - how do you support them while they're being moved

Where do you put them?  Two basic options:
+ A friend's tank
+ A pet store tank

Some pet stores will, for a fee, board fish during a move.  A
signed contract, detailing what responsibilities the pet store is
assuming, is a very good idea.   Some pet stores, for a further
fee, will pack and air-ship the fish to you on request.  This isn't
cheap.

Bear in mind that you'll be leaving the fish there for at least a
couple of weeks.

How do you pack them?

For short periods of time (a couple of hours, tops) you can put the
fish in sealed bags, half-filled with air.  This time can be
stretched somewhat by filling with oxygen, rather than air.  Put
the bags in a padded, compartmentalized container, and ship by air.
(This is basically how pet stores receive their fish).  For larger
fish, or longer trips, one can use a sealed bucket for each fish,
rather than a bag.

How do you support them on the move?

Fish basically won't eat during the move.  They're too stressed,
and you don't want to degrade the water quality by the food,
anyway.  Fish can survive a week or so without food if they've been
previously well fed.

Try to maintain an even temperature, perhaps by placing the fish in
a sealed cooler, or compartmentalized cooler.

For long trips, particularly by car, a battery-powered airpump and
airstone is a good idea (if not a must).

After the move, slowly condition the fish to the new tank location,
as you would in adding new fish to a tank.

GOOD BEGINNER BOOKS:    Contributed by Oleg Kiselev
--------------------
     Most aquarium books are reasonable in their advice.  Do be
careful of older books which were written before some of the more
recent advances in the science of aquaria were made.  Issues such
as the nitrogen cycle will probably not be covered well.  Libraries
are an excellent source of books, and one should go the library
first before spending any money.

Titles:

Baensh's Aquarium Atlas                 ~$22-28
Marine Aquarium Handbook by Martin Moe  ~$10
Vierke's Aquarium Book                  $10-15
Marine Aquarium Reference:
Systems and Invertebrates by Moe        ~$22-25
The Concise Encyclopedia of Aq. Fish    ~$10
     (Dick Mills)

Many of the "Fishkeeper's Guide" Books by Tetra press are quite
good, and are available for around $6-$10.  For plant books,
Barron's and Tetra's (~$5-6) are suggested.

FRESHWATER books:
A decent aquarium reference book need not be expensive or very
detailed.  What it must have is:
    - enough common species to make it usable
      (200-300 species is sufficient for most purposes)
    - recognizable pictures of fish to use as the identification
      guide descriptions of the species including:
        + length the fish will attain
        + typical behavior (and community tank compatibility)
        + spawning requirements
        + dietary needs
        + minimal tank size
        + water quality and temperature
    - some basic suggestions on how to set up an aquarium
    - some minimal info on fish diseases

There are many books that satisfy these requirements.  They are very
inexpensive and there is no excuse for someone to spend $20+ on the fish
that will die in 3-4 weeks instead of buying a book that would prevent
these losses for a lot less money.

For under $10:

Simon&Schuster's "Pocket Guide to Aquarium Fishes" which lists for $7
and can be found for $4 in discount book shops.  Not an "end-all"
reference volume but at least it does not lie too much.  I probably
like it because it has an excellent photo of Aphyosemion filamentosum
that looks just about like the A. filamentosum I have. (ISBN 0-671-25451-0)

At Crown Books and other "remaindered" book sellers, you will find a
book edited by Dick Mills that is called "The Concise Encyclopedia of
Tropical Aquarium Fishes" if it's published by Crescent (and Tetra's
Junior Atlas of Tropical Aquarium Fishes" if it's published by Tetra).
It covers all the basic ideas about setting up an aquarium and has
descriptions and fair quality photos of over 300 species of fish (the
book is not in front of me so can't give you more detail).  It's
published by Salamander Press in Europe and Tetra (Crescent) in US.
(Crescent edition ISBN 0-517-66776-2)

At Tower Books and other "mainstream" bookseller chains and larger book
stores, you will find Barron's series of translation of German aquarium
books, all between $5 and $8, concentrating on specific categories of
fish (Killifishes (ISBN 0-8120-4475-4), Cichlids (ISBN 0-8120-4597-1)),
or breeding (Ines Scheurman's "Aquarium Fish Breeding" (ISBN
0-8120-4474-6)), or general aquarium maintenance, or plants.  All of
these books give a beginner a solid introduction to what and why of the
the filtration, water chemistry and so on.  Any of these books make an
excellent starting point.  They don't have very many color photos,
which probably contributed to the low price, but have a lot of
drawings.

Also near the $10 mark (and a lot less through mail-order), are the
Tetra/Salamander series of "Fishkeeper's Guide To..." books.  They are
available at a number of "normal" book stores and I recommend "...
Healthy Aquarium" and "...Community Fishes" as the better beginner
books.  The rest of the series is quite good as well and any one of
these books should be a great start.

"The Innes Book" -- it is a thick volume that has gone through a dozen
publishers and something like 50 editions.  The newer ones will
probably be a bit more up to date, but the older ones are not bad,
either.  They range from $2 to $15 and my preference is for the oldest
editions.  I am personally looking for a leather bound printing from
early 30's.  Don't expect the fish names to match the current nomenclature
or in some case even the real species -- for the last 40 years "The Innes
Book" has had a picture of A. filamentosum for their Aphyosemion gardneri.

These are the cheapest books.  If you are willing to spend $15-20 (and
you better be willing to spend that much on the books if you are go
to spend that much on the fish!), the number of books is larger and the
amount of information increases.

Between $15 and $20 the books get larger, more colorful and complete:

van Ramshorst's Aquarium Encyclopedia published by HPBooks and sold by
Waldenbooks is a translation from Dutch and at $17.95 is among the
better "shopping list" aquarium books.  It is full of very good quality
color photos, covers over 570 species of fish, 80 species of plants,
all aspects of aquarium design, building, set-up, decor, etc.  Not much
on filtration, but that's all in FAQ, so not a big flaw for a USENET
reader.

Crown Books used to sell "The Living Aquarium", a translation from
Swedish published by Crescent Books.  It's close to $20 and does not
have descriptions of too many species, but has a lot of detailed
diagrams, goes into the black arts of filtration and lighting and
attempts to cover cold water and tropical fresh water, cold water and
tropical marine and brackish aquaria, suggesting the species and decor
for them.  It also has a section on building aquaria, as all European
books seem to.

MORE EXPENSIVE AND/OR SPECIALTY BOOKS:

There are many other books that are not cheap even when you buy them
mail-order (a sure way to save 50% on the price).  Many of these books
cost so much because of the large number of color photos in them and
because of the production values that went in.  You will have to decide
for yourself if it's worth your money to buy these and if you will find
something really worth while in them (I have spent several hundred $$$
on such books over the last few years and do not regret buying any of
them).  If nothing else, these books make great coffee table books that
are bound to get all sorts of comments from house guests.

WHERE TO FIND THE CHEAPEST BOOKS:

Look through the used book stores.  Books from 20-30 years ago may have
wrong Latin names for some of the fish, claim that certain species of
now-common fish are hard to breed, and may have less than adequate
coverage of filtration, but those books are still excellent general
references and (should) cost very little.

WHAT NOT TO BUY:

AVOID any books by TFH that are less than 100 pages or have a word
"Beginner" in the title.  Leaf through the book: if you see lots of
photos of products placed so that brand names are obvious and easy to
read, or you find a bunch of photos of grinning gap-toothed kids
holding up various pieces of equipment or poking their hands into an
aquarium -- put this book away and never look at it again.  These books
are (in my opinion) utter garbage.

There are a few exceptions to that rule in the TFH line: Dr. Jubb's
"Nothobranchius", 2 volumes of Jocher's "Spawning Problem Fishes" and
Windelow's "Aquatic Plants", but they fall into the "specialty"
category).

USEFUL DATA:   Contributor: [e-mail]
------------
Useful numbers for fresh water:

One foot of fresh water depth == .445 psi.

231 cu inches (in ^ 3) = 1 gallon

1 cu foot (ft ^ 3) = 7.48 gallons  =  1728 in^3

1 gallon H2O at 4C weighs 8.57 lbs /* this is derived from the
                          atmospheres/ft number, somebody
                          with a CRC can go get the right number,
                          but this is within a few % */

Example:

44x16x16 tank = 11264 in^3 = 48.76 gallons.

Tank will weigh 418 lbs (roughly) (+ rocks which have an SG much
higher than 1, so you can *roughly* say " + rocks ")

The pressure at the bottom of the tank will be .59 psi, or 85 psf,
roughly  13% more than the standard loading for code
construction,so catch an extra joist or three with the stand!!

Along the bottom strip of the tank, you will have a total
(uniformly spread side to side) force of ( 15.5/12*.445*44 = 25lbs)
pushing outwards against your joints.

The total force on the long side will be ( 8/12*.445*44*16 = 208
pounds).

/* Note:  In general, this is NOT half of the water weight.  This
is a coincidence due to the same bottom and side shape. */

Other useful points...

     Weight = psi at bottom * bottom area
          ( (44x16=704 in^2)  * .445*16/12 = 418 lbs)
Note: If this doesn't give you the same answer as the volume
calculation SOMETHING IS WRONG!

     Standard (new) wood joist floor loading is 75 psf.  This
corresponds to one 14" high tank of any other dimensions.  Before
you build that 30" high tank, think about where it goes!  For odd
houses and houses not to code, this may be worse (or better, who
knows?).

Common tank sizes (courtesy of All-Glass Aquariums)
---------------------------------------------------

These match the table on the back of Catalog AA693, but are sorted by
the tank's "footprint".

Tank Size       Exact Outside Dimensions        Weight  Weight  Tempered
                (inches) (L x W x H)            Empty   Full    Bottom
                (Including frame)               (lbs)   (lbs)

10 Leader       20 1/4  x 10 1/2  x 12 9/16     11      111
15 High         20 1/4  x 10 1/2  x 18 3/4      22      170
20 X-High       20 1/4  x 10 1/2  x 23 3/4      32      232

10 Long         24 1/4  x  8 1/2  x 12 5/8      16      116
15 Show         24 1/4  x  8 1/2  x 16 5/8      22      170

15 Gallon       24 1/4  x 12 1/2  x 12 3/4      21      170
20 High         24 1/4  x 12 1/2  x 16 3/4      25      225
25 Gallon       24 1/4  x 12 1/2  x 20 3/4      32      282
30 X-High       24 1/4  x 12 1/2  x 24 3/4      41      340

20 Long         30 1/4  x 12 1/2  x 12 3/4      25      225
29 Gallon       30 1/4  x 12 1/2  x 18 3/4      40      330
37 Gallon       30 1/4  x 12 1/2  x 22 3/4      45      415     X

26 Flatback     36 1/4  x 12 1/2  x 16 5/8      42      300     X
23 Long         36 1/4  x 12 5/8  x 13          32      253
30 Gallon       36 1/4  x 12 5/8  x 16 3/4      43      343
38 Gallon       36 1/4  x 12 5/8  x 19 3/4      47      427
45 Gallon       36 1/4  x 12 5/8  x 23 3/4      66      515     X

30 Breeder      36 3/16 x 18 1/4  x 12 15/16    48      348
40 Breeder      36 3/16 x 18 1/4  x 16 15/16    58      458

50 Gallon       36 7/8  x 19      x 19 5/8      100     600
65 Gallon       36 7/8  x 19      x 24 5/8      126     775

33 Long         48 1/4  x 12 3/4  x 12 7/8      52      382     X
40 Long         48 1/4  x 12 3/4  x 16 7/8      55      455     X
45 Long         48 1/4  x 12 3/4  x 19          60      510     X
55 Gallon       48 1/4  x 12 3/4  x 21          78      625     X
60 Gallon       48 3/8  x 12 7/8  x 23 7/8      111     710     X

80 X-High       48 7/8  x 14      x 30 3/4      200     990

75 Gallon       48 1/2  x 18 1/2  x 21 3/8      140     850
90 Gallon       48 1/2  x 18 1/2  x 25 3/8      160     1050
110 X-High      48 7/8  x 19      x 30 3/4      228     1320

120 Gallon      48 1/2  x 24 1/4  x 25 1/2      215     1400

100 Gallon      72 1/2  x 18 1/2  x 19 3/8      182     1150
125 Gallon      72 1/2  x 18 1/2  x 23 3/8      206     1400
150 Gallon      72 1/2  x 18 1/2  x 28 1/2      338     1800

180 Gallon      72 1/2  x 24 1/2  x 25 5/8      338     2100

2 1/2 Mini      12 3/16 x  6 1/8  x  8 1/8      2.6     27
5 1/2 Gallon    16 3/16 x  8 3/8  x 10 1/2      7       62

4 Designer       8 1/4  x  8 1/4  x 18 7/8      9       49
6 Designer       8 1/4  x  8 1/4  x 24 7/8      10.5    70
10 Designer     13 5/8  x 13 5/8  x 19          18.5    115
15 Designer     13 5/8  x 13 5/8  x 25          25.5    175

10 Hexagon      14 1/2  x 12 9/16 x 18 3/4      12      110
20 Hexagon      18 3/4  x 16 1/4  x 20 5/8      23      220     X
35 Hexagon      23 1/4  x 20 3/16 x 24 3/4      43      390     X
60 Hexagon      27 1/4  x 24 1/8  x 29 1/2      110     750     X


Metric conversions of tank length, to nearest cm:

      Inches     cm

      8 1/4      21
      12 3/16    31
      13 5/8     35
      16 3/16    41
      20 1/4     51
      24 1/4     62
      30 1/4     77
      36 7/8     94
      48 1/4    123
      48 7/8    124
      72 1/2    184

LIVE FOOD    Contributed by Oleg Kiselev and Steve Bartling
---------

The advantages of live foods over frozen and prepared foods are:

1) the uneaten food will not immediately decay and load up
   the filtration system,

2) foods can be raised in controlled conditions and be free of
   disease causing bacteria

3) most importantly, fish LOVE grabbing things that try to run away

Here are some live foods you can easily culture at home, to the extend that
I and some people on the NET have had experience with them:

BABY BRINE SHRIMP  (Artemia spp., usually A. salina)
    Uses:    baby brine shrimp are a food of choice for the newly hatched
        fry of egg-layers and other small fish.
    Culturing:  To hatch brine shrimp, you need very little.  You can
        build a hatchery out of almost anything.  I used to
        use 1 gal plastic water/milk jugs, and now use 12 oz
        soda bottles; Richard Sexton used 2 liter soda bottles
        in a rack; stores sell "shrimpolators" and plastic
        hatching cones.  Everything works, but a container with
        a concave or conical bottom is the best because the
        water flow has no dead spots.  Add air tubing connected
        to a small pump, put a light over it and keep
        temperature around 85 degrees if you want the shrimp to
        hatch faster.

        Ed Warner's book suggests 3.5 table spoons of uniodized
        salt per gallon of water.  He suggests using the
        cheapest salt available, like the water softener salt
        at $3 for 50 lb.  SF Bay Brand recommends hardening
        the water to improve hatching and shrimp survival, so
        adding some Epsom salt and a tiny pinch of baking soda
        may be a good idea.

        To have the shrimp hatch and not die the water in the
        culture has to be vigorously turned over to keep the
        shrimp in suspension.  I do this by aerating the water
        just like everyone else.  I use a 12' length of rigid
        air tubing attached to a 3' tail of flexible tubing
        attached to an air pump.  The rigid section keeps the
        hose from slipping out of the container.  I do not use
        an airstone, mostly because airstones crud up and clog
        too often in this environment.

        To get nauplii (hatched brine shrimp) out, I turn off
        the air, put a piece of rigid air (1/8") tubing with
        2-3 ft of flex tubing attached into the culture, let
        the stuff settle.  The shrimp egg cases will collect on
        top of the water, the shrimp ought to sink to the
        bottom (if the water is not too saline).  Then I just
        siphon the millions of wriggling shrimp off into a brine
        shrimp (fine) net, dump the lot into a cup of water and
        use an eye dropper to dispense to the fish.

        The nauplii will live in the tank for up to 24 hours.

    Sources:    eggs can be bought in most aquarium and pet shops or mail
        order.  Because I use almost 1 tsp/day to feed my fish, I
        buy 1 lb cans, which comes out much less expensive than the
        tiny ampoules sold in stores.  I keep the cans in the freezer
        and hold what I need for 2-3 weeks in a small, tight-lid
        jar.

        Ed Warner insists that the eggs of brine shrimp need at
        least a year of incubation to become ready to hatch.  He
        goes on to say that a low yield from a newly opened can of
        shrimp eggs may be due to insufficient incubation time and
        that the best hatches come from the eggs that had been kept
        for a few years, with the eggs kept for 5 years in a vacuum
        packed airtight container giving perfect 100% hatch rates.


ADULT BRINE SHRIMP:
    Uses:    Just about all fish under 5" long will readily eat brine
        shrimp.

    Culturing:  Don't bother.  The yields from the cultures are very low
        and it's easier to culture Daphnia and buy live brine shrimp
        in the pet shops.

        If you REALLY want to try them, get a large open top
        container (an aquarium, a garden tub, a baby wading pool),
        fill it with real or synthetic salt water and seed it with
        some green water and nutrients (fertilizer tabs or what have
        you) and wait for the water to turn yellow-green.  Throw in
        some baby brine shrimp or the adult shrimp you got in a pet
        shop and wait.  Adding small amounts of brewers yeast,
        APR and other micro-foods will help promote the shrimp
        growth.  It helps to put the culture in a brightly indirectly
        lit place to promote microalgae growth.

    Sources:    See above.

DAPHNIA ("water fleas", tiny crustaceans of Daphnia pulex and D. magna spp.)
    Uses:       these crustaceans are probably the most ideal food for
        the smaller fresh water -- Daphnia do not die in the
        tank and will eat microscopic garbage while they live.
        They come in a variety of sizes -- from hardly visible
        to over 1/8".  This is a typical source of food for
        many fish in the wild.

    Culturing:  I have used everything from betta bowls to 32 gal
        trashcans.  I feed the small indoor cultures various
        algae scrapings and tank sludge, as well as deactivated
        brewers yeast, powdered milk and APR (artificial
        plankton stuff from OSI).  Green water works best and
        that's what I use in my outdoor cultures.  To make
        green water, I use a weak solution of Miracle Grow and
        chelated iron in dechlorinated water, seeded with the
        "pea soup" water I try to cultivate.  If you leave a
        water full of nutrients out in full sun, within weeks
        you will have green water from the airborne algae
        spores.

        I have read that blender-pulverized lettuce works great
        in small amounts, but never tried it.

        For a while now I have been seeding fry tanks and bowls
        with Daphnia -- the Daphnia eat the bacteria that may
        be hazardous to the fry and generally purify water and
        the fry will eat them as they get larger.

        Another thing I tried was dumping freshly hatched fry into
        Daphnia cultures (about 2 fry/liter) and not paying any
        attention to them for weeks.  It worked, but not as well as
        I hoped.  The fry kept in equivalent sized tanks and fed
        more intensively grew faster.

        Use a shrimp net or a fine fish net to catch Daphnia.

    Sources:    catch the Daphnia in a local lake (but beware of parasites
            like Hydra and various carnivorous insects), get a clean
        culture from a local aquarium club or mail order.

CYCLOPS
    Uses:       same as Daphnia, but predatory.  Can damage eggs
        and very young egg-layer fry.  Nauplii can be used like
        brine shrimp nauplii.

    Culturing:  as Daphnia (but less numerous per the same volume).

    Sources:    often comes with the culture of worms or as contaminants
        in Daphnia cultures.  Very hard to eradicate once they
        start breeding in the tank.  Also mail order and club
        auctions, as Daphnia.

MOSQUITO LARVAE:
    Uses:    most adult fish of smaller species love them.  As long as
        fish are bigger than the larvae, they'll eat them.
        Aquatic larvae of flying insects is the main ingredient in
        the diet of many small fish in the wild.

    Culturing:  very simple.  Put a wide-mouth bucket or a barrel
        or a tub of water outside.  Throw in small amounts of
        evaporated milk or grass clippings in a nylon bag to
        seed the water with bacteria and promote the growth of
        infusoria, mosquito larvae's food sources; green water
        works well, too.  Some people even use manure!  If
        there are mosquitoes in your area, 2-3 weeks later you
        will have larva in your water.  I use a coarse fish net
        to scoop up the larva and feed them to the mid-water
        and top-feeding fish.

    Sources:    Wait for the little bloodsuckers to discover your bucket of
        evil-smelling bacterial soup, or go find "floats" of mosquito
        eggs in a nearby lake or puddle.

BLACK WORMS:
    Uses:    these disgusting, bacteria-infested stinkers are among the
        best sources of protein for the fish and are an excellent
        conditioning food for breeding preparation.

        WARNING: frequent feedings will cause the fish to become fat
        and impair breeding.  Also, diseases are far more likely on a
        steady diet of worms.

        ANOTHER WARNING: if you have gravel in your tank, worms will
        burrow into it and hide, fouling up the tank.

    Culturing:    May not be worth it.  Worms will live on the bottom of a tank,
        eating scum and breeding.  I fed them banana peels.  Filter
        water intensively.  Collect them by sieving gravel with worms
        through a net.  Messy, laborious and there are easier
        sources of protein.

    Sources:    most aquarium shops have these uglies.

    (Tubifex are even uglier and stinkier and if you know what's good for you
    you will not attempt to raise them.  It *is* possible, but consider --
    they live in sewage, eating human shit, carrying hepatitis....  Ugh!)

GRINDAL WORMS (very small worms):
    Uses:    these worms are small (up to 1/2") and can feed a variety
        of small fishes.  Because of the way they are raised,
        they are totally disease free.  They do not burrow as
        readily as other worms and live in the water for a few
        days.  Great for bottom feeders and any fish fast
        enough to grab food sinking to the bottom or smart
        enough to look for it (i.e. just about all fish).

    Culturing:    get a plastic shoe box (I get mine at Target on sale for $1),
        fill it with sterile potting soil and peat moss mix (50-50),
        or just potting soil, get it moist, perhaps nuke it in the
        microwave oven for 5 minutes to thoroughly sterilize it, let
        it cool, dump a small starter culture of worms into it
        and sprinkle some high protein cereal powder (Gerber, for
        instance) every time you see all of it gone -- and watch them
        breed!  Put a piece of glass on the soil and the worms will
        crawl on it.  I wash the worms off the glass into a cup with
        clean water and use a large medicine dropper (1 tsp) to
        dispense.  If you use troughs to place food, the glass will be
        free of potentially water-clouding soil.  One healthy culture
        produces enough for me to feed about 100 small fish.

        Remember to keep the culture moist but not soaked and
        soupy.  Spray it with dechlorinated water now and then.

        Cultures like this often get over-run with mites and/or
        gnats.  Both pests can be fed to the fish and are readily
        eaten, but soon become a nuisance.  Should this happen,
        take some worms and keep them in a cup of water for 3-4
        hours.  This will drown the infestation and you can use the
        worms as a new starter culture.  I have had some spotty luck
        salvaging the old infested cultures, but it's occasionally
        worth the effort.

        If the worms are not growing well, try adjusting the soil's
        pH by mixing a bit of baking soda into it to neutralize the
        peat's acidity.

        An interesting technique of culturing worms is used by some
        German killi breeders.  They use open-celled foam that sits
        in a tray filled with water and is covered by a piece of
        glass.  This method is cleaner than the soil/peat one.

    Sources:    friends, local aquarium clubs and mail order.

WHITE WORMS (small worms):
    Uses:    these worms are up to 1" long and are good for feeding
        fish under 3"-4" long.

    Culturing:    Similar to Grindal worms, but these worms fair very badly
        at high temperatures.  Keep them under 70F.  They will eat
        the same foods as Grindals, but a number of sources suggest
        that white bread soaked in milk is a very good food for
        these worms.

        Keep these worms in complete darkness.  They will come out
        of the soil and coat the bread, devouring it shortly and
        clustering in a writhing mass.  Pluck this mass of worms
        off the soil and use it to feed the fish.  The worms will
        hide in the soil as soon as the light strikes them, so be
        swift about grabbing them!

    Sources:    same as Grindals.

EARTHWORMS:
    Uses:    feeding of medium and large fish (over 4" long).

    Culturing:    Here is an excerpt from an article posted by Steve Bartling
        ([e-mail]) over 2 years ago.
    >To raise earthworms cheaply and easily :
    >
    >
    >1) build a box out of wood ( any size is fine, a bigger box
    >   = more worms ) ( apt dwellers can make do with a 1' x 1' x 8" box)
    >
    >   a) attach the top with two cheap hinges
    >   b) drill/cut two 2-inch holes in the front of the box
    >      in such a way as to line up the bottom of the hole
    >      with the bottom of the inside of the box
    >   c) paint the box with any outdoor rated, oil based paint.
    >   d) place a small piece of fine plastic screen against
    >      holes that were drilled/cut. Make sure that you place
    >      the screen on the inside of the box. Firmly nail the
    >      screen into place. The screen will allow the box to drain,
    >      but will not allow the worms to escape.
    >
    >The box is now complete.
    >
    >2) prepare the box for worms
    >
    >   a) buy enough peat moss from a garden supply store or nursery
    >      to fill up the box ( remember the peat moss will compact
    >      after it gets soaking wet )
    >   b) place the peat moss in the box and completely soak the
    >      peat moss ( stir it up until you are sure it is uniformly
    >      wet ).
    >   c) get 6 bricks
    >   d) place one brick at each front corner and two bricks at each
    >      rear corner so that the box slopes forward and can drain
    >      from the holes.
    >   e) place a pan under the holes to catch the future runoff
    >      ( unless you place the box outside ). Note, after worms
    >      are growing, the runoff is great for plants.
    >
    >3) Now, for the worms
    >
    >   a) go buy three or four boxes of the smallest worms that
    >      you can find at a fish and tackle shop.
    >   b) put the worms in the box
    >   c) buy some corn meal ( a small bag will last forever !! )
    >      This is all the worms need for adequate nutrition.
    >   d) every three or four days, sprinkle a LIGHT layer of corn
    >      meal on top of the peat moss. Note : before you apply
    >      each new layer, use a small, tined garden hand tool to
    >      stir up the peat moss and to mix the corn meal left over
    >      from the previous feeding into the peat moss.
    >   e) Wait about a month, and you will discover that you have
    >      literally millions of worms ranging in size from
    >      tiny little young worms to fully adult worms. The baby
    >      worms can be used for small fish and very young fish, while
    >      the larger worms will easily satisfy the live food
    >      requirements of even the most ravenous large fish.
    >   f) this is an infinitely renewable resource !!! You can
    >      not possibly feed your fish enough worms to reduce
    >      or even dent the supply. I have been keeping worms
    >      for fishing and for fish food for 17 years, TRUST ME !!
    >   g) the peat moss must be kept damp by periodic watering.
    >      Don't over water !! Do not allow it to dry out !! The
    >      worms will die QUICKLY if the peat moss dries out.
    >      Fortunately, peat moss retains water very well, and
    >      watering is rarely needed.
    >   h) The worms must not be allowed to freeze. The worms and the
    >      worm box will not smell and can be kept in garages or closets
    >      during the winter. The worms do not like being baked in
    >      the full evening sun in the summer ( you will kill them ).
    >      Place them in a shady location if they are left outside.
    >   i) keep the lid closed, worms like it dark.
    >
    >4) Other uses for Earthworms !
    >
    >   a) potted plants love earthworms !!
    >   b) gardens love earthworms !!
    >   c) lawns love earthworms !!
    >   d) fish love earthworms !!
    >   e) Gorbeshev loves earthworms !!
    >      Well, maybe not :-)
    >

    Sources: your back yard, bait shops, gardening shops, aquarium clubs.

INFUSORIA (microscopic aquatic protozoans)
    Uses:    feeding of newly hatched fry.
    Culturing:    I use green water (i.e. natural algae growth) and banana
        peal.  Others use yeast, drops of milk, boiled lettuce,
        other plant material, alfalfa pellets, etc.

        I feed by using an eye dropper to just add the critters to
        the fry jars.

    Sources:    old tank water, friends, mail order.

MICROWORMS (Nematodes)
    Uses:    these microscopic worms are good for feeding newly hatched fry
        and the smallest fish.
    Culturing:  Get some Oatmeal pablum or Gerber high-protein cereal
        mixed with enough water to form a paste, put it in a
        dish.  Add some live yeast (Fleishman's) or a generous
        portion of deactivated brewers yeast (the latter method
        does not create nearly as smelly a culture as the
        active yeast!).  Seed with a small quantity of
        Nematodes.  In about a week, start "harvesting" the
        Nematodes off the sides of the dish (I use a Q-tip or a
        brush) or place a flat piece of plastic or wood onto
        the culture and scrape the worms off with a razor when
        they become numerous (you can use a piece of a popsicle
        stick as this "collection platform").  Wash them out in
        a glass of clean water, dump them into the tank.
        Remember to keep the culture wet and when it starts
        turning dark and intolerably stinky, clone it to a
        clean container being careful not to transfer any of
        the fouled substrate -- just the Nematodes that had
        climbed up the walls of the container.

    Sources:    friends, clubs, mail order.

FRUIT FLIES, WINGLESS and FLIGHTLESS (Drosophila species):
    Uses:    The fruit flies are the closest analog to the natural diet
           for most killifish and many other small fish.

    Culturing:    I use 1/2 gal fruit juice bottles.  The media is a mail
        order instant mush that seems to be some sort of
        instant mashed potatoes substance that smells like pure
        starch mixed with fungicides.  I use enough to get a
        1/4-1/2" layer of media at the bottom of the bottle and
        add enough water to get it to a sourcream-like
        consistency.  It should be dense enough to not run when you
        tilt the bottle.  Next I place a 2 layer roll of plastic
        "bug screen" mesh into the bottle, so the flies and
        maggots have somewhere to climb out of the wet goo --
        it seems to help their survival.  I dump in a few fruit
        flies, perhaps a dozen.  Finally, the bottle is
        stoppered with a wad of filter floss, so my flies can't
        get out and the wild fruit flies and other critters
        can't get in.

        2 weeks later I have newly hatched fruit flies ready to
        be fed to the fish.  The culture keeps producing for 2
        months or so and should be "cloned" after some 6 weeks
        of operation.  When you see the previously cream-colored
        media become dark and "used up" looking, it's time for
        the new culture.  It's probably easier and safer to
        clone the culture every 4-6 weeks and be ready for the
        eventual crash of the old culture.

        To feed the fish, I sharply shake the bottle to knock the
        flies away from the stopper, open a fish tank cover, open
        the bottle, turn it up side down and give it a few taps,
        shaking out a dozen or more flies every shake.  The media
        gets thick enough by then to not drip out.

        CAUTION!  These flies are wingless/flightless, but not
        legless.  They will walk up the sides of the tank, crawl out
        through the cracks and head straight for your kitchen and
        the bunch of grapes you left out.  They may be fish food,
        but they are still fruit flies.  Feed them to fish in small
        doses.

        There are several different strains of usable fruit flies.
        Some are smaller than 1/8", others are over 3/16".  Some are
        completely wingless or have vestigial stubby wings (wingless),
        others have the wings that are so large that they are useless
        (flightless).  The flies I have now are the huge, flightless
        kind.

        CAUTION!  The "wingless" fruit flies will sprout functional
        wings if they are kept at high temperatures, so keep the
        culture cool.  One advice I have encountered: open the jar
        outdoors, let the winged flies fly away, then make sure the
        rest pupate at a cooler temperature.

        HINT: You can chill a jar of Drosophila in a refrigerator
        for a few minutes to make them sluggish and/or immobile.
        This makes them lots easier to handle when you're breeding
        up a new batch, and also makes them less likely to wander
        off and eat your food.  Your fish might not like to eat
        them cold and still, though.

    Sources:    Same as everything else, friends, clubs, mail order.

Disclaimer:
-----------
Some answers listed above may reflect personal biases of the author
and the FAQ's contributors.  In cases where the answers name
specific products and their respective manufacturers, these are not
to be taken as endorsements, nor commercials for the manufacturer.
Where cost information is stated (magazine subscription rates),
this is based on "street" information, and are in no way binding on
the publisher.  The answers contained in this series pertain to
discussions on the rec. and alt.aquaria newsgroups, and are by no means
exhaustive.  This series is not intended to take the place of good
aquarium books on the subject matter.

Copyright:
----------
The FAQ owes its existence to the contributors of the net, and as
such it belongs to the readers of rec.aquaria and alt.aquaria.
Copies can be made freely, as long as it is distributed at no
charge, and the disclaimers and the copyright notice are included.

--
Clues for the clueless, personal.peeves edition:

The net is _not_ the information superhighway.  There isn't one.
It isn't cyberspace either.
Archive-name: aquaria/general-faq/filters
Rec-aquaria-archive-name: general-faq/filters
Alt-aquaria-archive-name: general-faq/filters
Sci-aquaria-archive-name: general-faq/filters
Posting-Frequency: monthly


                  Filters

Rev 1.23 9/3/94

Prologue:
---------
This monthly series is intended to address some of the frequently
asked questions (FAQ) on the rec., alt., and sci.aquaria newsgroups.
Because the answers may not be complete, please feel free to ask
questions.  This is only intended to address first level concerns, and
not to dampen discussions.  Please see the file README for pointers to
other topics.

Please review and send any corrections or inputs to the FAQ maintainers
with "(FAQ)" in the subject line.  You are absolutely welcomed to tackle
(i.e. WRITE) sections that have not been written yet.

I've received recommendations to put email address "pointers" in
the FAQ to vector questions to specific experts on particular
subjects.  If you would like to offer yourself as such an expert,
please send me your email address and the specific topics you want
to host.  Please include an email path that is generally accessible
to the greatest number of people.

FILTERS AND RELATED QUESTIONS:
------------------------------
     Filtration is very important to the welfare of your guests,
and as such there are many different kinds of filters.  Since there
are many brands and opinions, one should post requests for
recommendations.  Equipment that is typically found on advanced
aquarists' systems are also noted.  These are typically more
expensive, and are generally not needed by, nor recommended for
beginners.
     In general, if one needs to rinse/wash filter media, one
should never use soap or hot water (or for that matter, very cold
water).  This would serve to kill the beneficial bacterial colonies
in the filter media.  (See nitrogen cycle).  Use the reject water
siphoned out your aquarium to wash/rinse filter media.
     The following filter discussions are arranged alphabetically,
with related topics grouped arranged separately at the end.

BUBBLE UP FILTERS
     These are specific examples of internal filters.  These use
streams of air bubbles to push water up and out of a tube, thereby
creating a pull of water into the filter through the filter media.
(See INTERNAL FILTERS).

CANNISTER FILTERS
     These are large plastic "cannisters" typically located outside
of and under the aquarium in the cabinet. They are designed with a
powerful pump which draws water through an in-take hose located in
the aquarium, pushes it at a relatively high pressure through the
filter medium, and forces it back to the aquarium through the
return hose.  (Many times, this water is sprayed across the surface
of the water to create aeration).

The question: "Which cannister filter should I buy?" is one of the most
frequently asked FAQs on *.aquaria and each time it comes up there
is discussion of the relative merits of each of the major brands.

General Comments:

Eheims:  The cadillac of cannister filters.  Very solid construction
    and operate virtually silently.  Significantly more expensive than
    other brands (see below).  Eheim recommends smaller models for
    larger tanks than the others and almost everyone buys larger than
    they say (2217 for a 55 gallon tank, for example, rather than the
    2213 which they recommend).  The Eheim cannister is a single
    hollow tube with water entering from a 90 degree tube at the
    bottom and flowing upwards through whatever you've packed in and
    pumped out the top.  They do not come with shut-off valves (a
    must-have for easy cannister maintenance), but these may be
    purchased separately (approximately $30).  Eheims have been dark
    translucent green with green hoses and black motor encasing.  The
    hose-clamping system is very solid.  Other options such as
    pre-filters, surface extractors and oxygen diffusers are available
    (and many will work with other brands).  They can also be ordered
    with built-in heaters (freshwater use only).  Made in Germany.

Fluvals:  Fluval filters have a slightly different design than the
    Eheims. Fluvals have the water enter and exit from the top of the
    filter. The entering water flows down around a central core which
    contains the filter media, and then returns up through that core
    to pass through the media.  The modular media containers which fit
    into the Fluval filter allow for easy changing/cleaning of any
    segment of the media without disturbing the others.  However there
    may be some small degree of media bypass from this design.  Flow
    rates are higher than the Eheim models.  Fluvals come with
    included on/off valves and a diffuser bar.  They recently were
    changed to a dark grey/black translucent color with beige hoses.
    Slightly older models are brown/tan with orange hoses.  There is
    no difference between the models except the color.  Fluvals are
    also very quiet, though not absolutely silent like the Eheims.  I
    sleep with one 2 feet from the head of my bed and can't hear it at
    night, however.  The hose-attachment clamps are screw-down type
    and can be hard to turn.  They are secure if attached correctly.
    Made in Italy.

Magnum:   Magnum recently changed their design from the 200/330 series
    up to the more modern 220/350.  The older models required oiling
    and generated a fair amount of noise compared with the others.
    The new models are magnetic impeller driven just like the Fluval
    and Eheims.  There is also a new Magnum product called the "HOT"
    magnum (Hang-On-Tank) which I have not evaluated. It appears to be
    an over-the-back filter which has a lower flow rate (250 gals) than
    the bigger Magnums, but require no hoses and may be easier to
    set up.  Magnums have traditionally been the cheapest option when
    buying a cannister filter.  Their design has the water entering
    the top of the filter, and being forced through a central
    container from the sides (as compared with bottom to top in the
    Fluvals) then to be pumped out the top again.  Magnum filters
    utilize a "cartridge" system which includes  carbon containers and
    micron cartridges.  The micron cartridges can be used with diatom
    powder to provide diatom filtration (see Diatom filters).  The
    filter cartridges are usually covered by a floss sleeve to provide
    coarse mechanical filtration.  Magnum filters provide a high flow
    rate but hold substantially less filtration media than the others.
    Construction is generally considered to be of cheaper materials
    than the other filters, with hoses being held on with rubber
    straps rather than screw down valves for example.  Magnums usually
    are a hot debating point in the cannister filter selection process:
    some people have had wonderful experiences with them and others
    have not been so lucky.  Made in America.

    Some functional information is below.  Numbers taken from
    manufacturers literature.  Keep in mind that flow rates will vary
    depending on what the unit is packed with and how high the water
    must be pumped.  The numbers listed below should be considered the
    maximum possible (they are generally listed with no media in
    place.  Additional backpressure will reduce flow substantially,
    especially on smaller models).

        GPH   Electric   Manufacturers  Cost (FAMA)
               Usage     Recommended    (US$ 1/94)    Filtering
              (watts)    Tank Size                    Volume
Eheim
------
2211:   80       5w      <40 gal.        $51            1 L
2213:   116      8w      <65 gal.        $56            3 L
2215:   165      15w     <90 gal.        $90            4 L
2217:   260      20w     <125 gal.       $130           6 L
2250:   380      ??      <265 gal.       $200           ??
2260:   500      ??      <400 gal.       $260           ??

Fluval
------
103:    103      7w      <25 gal.        $46            1.18 L
203:    111      7w      <50 gal.        $44            2.22 L
303:    222      15w     <70 gal.        $58            3.70 L
403:    317      22w     <100 gal.       $88           6.48 L

Magnum
------
HOT:    250      ??      ??              $58            ??
220     220      ??      ??              $45            ??
350     350      ??      ??              $55            ??

CHEMICAL FILTERS  (advanced)
     Ion exchange resins are used to deionize new water.  Also,
synthetic resins designed to adsorb specific ions (like phosphates,
or nitrates, or sulphates) are now available.  See ads in FAMA and
other such magazines for new items.  Thiel has chapters on chemical
filtration in his books, so does Moe (see Books).  Carbon is also a
form of chemical filtration.

DIATOM FILTERS  (advanced)
     These can be described as purely mechanical filters.  It relies on the
diatomaceous earth (skeletons of tiny animals called diatoms [Diatom comes
from the Greek: diatomos meaning "cut in two"]) which "cling" onto dirt and
a fine mesh screen to capture the "dirty" diatoms.  Because of the
efficiency, diatom filters are also called water polishers.  These are not
used over long periods (they clog up very quickly), and hence cannot be
considered good biological filters.

Diatom skeletons are composed of silica and there has been some
speculation as to whether usage in marine aquariums will lead to "brown
algae" explosions.

EXTERNAL FILTERS
     Oftentimes, this is used to denote power filters.  But this
not always the case.  (See POWER FILTERS)

FOAM FRACTIONATION
     See PROTEIN SKIMMERS.

INTERNAL FILTERS
     These filters are plastic cartridges that fit inside the
aquarium.  Dirty water is drawn into the filter through slits
located on either the top or sides of the body.  The method of
water propulsion can be motorized, or bubble driven.  Maintenance
of these filters can be difficult.  Many times, as one lifts the
filter out of the aquarium, dirty water backwashes out into the
tank.
     Some designs, like Lee's Triple Flow and similar models by
Penn Plax and Marineland do not have this problem.  They also cost
more, of course :-)  Also, one has to immerse entire appendages
into the tank to access the filter.  This type of filter is only
recommended for up to 20 gallons.  You may be surprised how
inexpensive external power filters (EPF) can be and how quiet they
are.  Always consider power filters unless you are raising fry,
spawning live-bearers or killies in a "natural" setup, or need
minimal flow (for spawning bubble-nest builders).

MECHANICAL vs. BIOLOGICAL
     Almost all filters perform mechanical filtration, and most
perform biological filtration.  The difference between these is
that mechanical filters will capture and remove suspended particles
from the water, clearing the water in the process. (The filter
media obviously becomes dirty, and must be cleaned every once in a
while).  Biological filters provide habitats for beneficial
bacteria that breakdown nitrogen compounds from biological waste
into progressively less toxic forms (ammonia -> ammonium ->
nitrites -> nitrates - > nitrogen).  (This is a gross over
simplification.  See nitrogen cycle in H20 quality).

POWER FILTERS
     This is the common name for filters that hang on the back of
the aquarium.  Two basic types exist.  In one case, water is drawn
through siphon action into the filter media, and expelled by a
pump.  In the second case, water is drawn by a pump into the filter
media and the allowed to trickle back into the tank.  A major
benefit of such a filter is the ease of maintenance.  The location
and design of the filter allows for quick and non-messy removal of
dirty filter media.

PRE-FILTERS  (advanced)
     This are filters used primarily to remove most of the
particles from the water before it arrives at a primary filter,
which may be located in a difficult to clean area.  The filter
media on pre-filters are removed and replaced easily, thus reducing
the number of times one has to change/maintain the media in the
primary filter.

PROTEIN SKIMMERS  (advanced)
     Protein skimmers, also known as foam fractioners, are an
unusual type of chemical filter.  They are primarily used in
marine aquaria, because they require the formation of foam which
form more readily in salt water.  Protein skimmers can be used in
freshwater, but will be less efficient, and may require greater
flows of air to produce sufficient foam.  They remove from the
water a wide variety of organic compounds (e.g.. proteins) that
normally collect on the surface of the tank water.
     These compounds, surface active molecules, are attracted to
the air-water boundary by their molecular structure.  Large amounts
of these compounds are often visible to the aquarist as slicks,
sheens, or thin scum on the tank surface.  In addition to the
presence of films on the surface of the water, an abundance of
these compounds is signalled by increased stability of bubbles
floating on the water.  This stability can result in large rafts of
bubbles spanning the surface of the tank, and very large bubbles
grown from many successive merges of smaller bubbles.
     A protein skimmer consists of a space where fine air bubbles
are encouraged to mix with circulating tank water, and a means for
collecting the resulting foam and removing this foam from the tank.
Typically, a mist of fine bubbles is allowed to rise in a column of
circulating water, forming foam in a small chamber at the top of
the column.  This foam rises upwards through a narrow opening, and
flows into a collection cup which must be periodically emptied.  In
a properly adjusted protein skimmer, some amount of foam is present
all the time in the chamber, but will only rise high enough to
reach the cup and be collected when surface-active compounds are
present in sufficient quantity to stabilize the foam.

REEF FILTERS  (advanced)
     See WET/DRY FILTERS.

REVERSE UGF  (advanced)
     This uses the same gravel plate as a regular UGF except that
water is pumped down an uplift tube (in this case a misnomer),
under the plate, and then *UP* through the gravel.  The water
traveling through the uplift tube must be clean, since it would be
very difficult to clean under the gravel plate.  The water can come
from the output of a filter (cannister filter for example), or can
come from a new generation of powerheads (submersible centrifugal
water pumps) has a "reverse flow" feature which makes it easier to
use them for reverse flow UGF.  (See POWERHEADS).  The powerhead
should be outfitted with some sort of pre-filter such as a sponge.
     Since the mechanical filtration will have been taken care of already,
the reverse UGF is primarily a biological filter.  It has the alleged
benefit of keeping fish filth suspended in the water, or at least not being
sucked down under the UGF plate; allowing for easier removal during tank
maintenance/vacuuming.
     Because most aquarium equipment was not designed to work in
this manner, one typically has to rig up one's own hose adaptors to
connect the output hose to the uplift tube.
     Recently there have been several products designed specifically for
RUGF use.  Marineland is one company that sells RUGF units consisting of
powerheads, prefilters and connection tubing.  Other companies sell reverse
flow powerheads, but it is VERY important to use only systems which have
adequate pre-filtration, and not just pump water under the plates.

RO FILTERS  (advanced)
     These purely mechanical filters that are used to purify water
from the tap before introduction into the aquarium.  These devices
use a thin membrane that only allows water molecules (and a few
other smaller dissolved ions) to pass through to the output.  The
unwanted water and materials are redirected to the drain.  This
filtration method wastes water.  RO Filters can also be found at
building supply stores since household drinking water filtration
also uses the same technique.
     There are two common types of RO filters sold.  One uses a
cellulose tri-acetate (CTA) membrane, and the other uses a thin
film composite (TFC) membrane.  The TFC membrane is the best for
aquarium use.
     Because the rate of RO water production depends on water pressure,
temperature, and solute concentrations it is important to realize that
unless you have optimal levels of all those above you will probably
only get 50-80% of the production rate advertised.  Drops in
temperature below the 70 degree range usually measured (winter time,
for example) will drastically reduce production.

SKIMMER (see Protein Skimmer) (advanced)
     This term can refer to surface skimmers as well as protein
skimmers.  Surface skimmers are essentially boxes set just below
the surface level of the aquarium.  Water "spills" into this box
and is drawn out to a filter (by siphon or mechanical means).  This
oftentimes removes the surface "slick" found on marine aquarium.

SPONGE FILTERS
     These are open cell sponges that are connected to some
mechanical device (bubbler, power head, pump etc.) that will draw
water into the sponge.  Because of the large surface area/water
flow ratio, the suction is not strong enough at any given point on
the sponge to trap fry or other small fish (as opposed to, for
example, the intake hose of a cannister filter).  These are often
used for breeding tanks etc.  Fish filth is trapped in the sponge,
which is rinsed every once in a while for maintenance.  Most
sponges are shaped in such a way that, as filth clog up particular
areas, the suction collect waste in other areas.  The sponge also
serves as a biological filter.

TRICKLE FILTERS  (advanced)
     See WET/DRY FILTERS.


TURNOVER RATE
     The number of times the volume of water in the tank should
pass through the filtration system in an hour.  The general rule is
3-5 tanks/hour, unless the fish load is very light, in which case
.5-1 tanks/hour is OK.  Cannister filter instructions suggest 1-2
tanks/hour.  High turnover rates are probably beneficial (more
filtration), as long as the fish are not swimming for their lives
constantly.

UNDERGRAVEL FILTERS (UGF)
     This filter is a plastic plate with holes/slits that is placed
first in the aquarium, after which gravel is poured on top.  Water
is drawn through the gravel, and impelled up and out through uplift
tubes (typically located in the rear corners of the tank).  The
impelling method could be bubblers or power heads.  The gravel
becomes the filter media for both mechanical and biological
filtration.  This means that the gravel should be "vacuumed" every
once in a while.  As the gravel becomes clogged, water bypasses the
clogged areas, and these become sites for unhealthy bacterial
activity.
     There has been much debate over the use of UGFs.

WET/DRY FILTERS (advanced)
     These filters enhance the metabolic activity of the beneficial
bacteria by providing good conditions for their growth.  These are
very much in favor with marine aquarists, especially reef aquarists
whose guests require clean stable water.
     The principle of operation is as follows:  Water is sprayed
(by a revolving spray bar) or trickled/dripped (by a plate with
lots of holes) over a media that is largely exposed to air (i.e.
not immersed in water).  As the relatively random patterns of water
trickle over the media, the large surface of the media is
constantly kept wet with a thin film of water.  The large surface
area can dissolve lots of oxygen and may de-gas (expel) a number of
other things, most notably ammonia (NH3) and CO2.  The media houses
lots of bacteria which takes the oxygen and converts NH3/NH4+ into
NO2- (nitrite), and NO2- into NO3- (nitrate).  This is the "dry"
phase.
     The "wet" section is a submersed media which can be one or
both of the following: a purely biological filter, or a
denitrification filter.  A number of sources have been suggesting
that it contributes more to oxygen depletion than to any meaningful
nitrification.  A denitrification filter is created by placing a
large submerged sponge in the path of the water, allowing some
water to *slowly* flow through the sponge, while most of the water
passes over it.  In the nearly anaerobic cells of the sponge,
nitrites are converted to nitrogen by Pseudomonas and other
bacteria (however, Thiel and others have been very critical of this
method of denitrification); chemical "augmentation" -- a dolomite
or other calciferous material is used to leach calcium carbonate
into the water to replenish  what gets metabolized by plants; and
supplemental filtration, like a bag of activated carbon or some
Chemi-Pure.

     The water which is relatively depleted of oxygen, is passed
into the wet phase, which supposedly converts the NO3- into
nitrogen and some oxygen.  This water then gets pumped back into
the tank.
     Wet/dry filters are not cheap, and because of this, the net
contributors often come up with suggestions for rolling your own.
Keep your eyes peeled for these messages.

Filtration Related issues:
--------------------------

AIR FILTERS
     Some aquarists take the output of air pumps and bubble the air
through water in a closed jar.  The air is then taken through the
lid into the aquarium bubbler.  This serves to dissolve air borne
chemicals (such as mineral oils from the pump) in the jar water
before it gets into the aquarium.  Also useful for households that
have smokers.

GRANULATED ACTIVATED CHARCOAL/CARBON
     These are small pellets of carbon manufactured from organic
material (such as bones).  These pellets contain microscopic
caverns that are the right size to trap certain molecules or ions
(called adsorption as opposed to absorption).  After a period of 3-
6 months or so, the carbon becomes ineffective.  It cannot be "re-
activated" by heating in your home oven unless you have a blast
furnace at home.

OZONE
     Ozone is a highly reactive form of oxygen, and it is bubbled
through water in a special reactor to oxidize organic waste
material and some toxins (rendering them less harmful).  Since it
is so reactive, it is invariably bubbled through carbon (so
leftover ozone forms carbon dioxide) before being released into the
atmosphere.

PEAT
     This is an organic material made of composted forest fibers.
Peat is rich in humic acid and tannin, and is sort of like tea.
Its effect on water similar to tea.  It softens water and leaves
the water slightly acidic (and yellow).  It is used for lowering
and buffering water for sensitive fish.  Peat also helps chelate
some metals and make them usable by plants.  There are two
varieties of peat available: "normal" peat which consists of small
particles (much like peat used in gardening) and *fibrous* peat
that looks like a bunch of long strands and twigs (this is
sometimes referred to as "German" peat and it is nearly impossible
to buy in this country except in tiny, extremely overpriced
packages of Fluval and Eheim brand in aquarium shops.
     Garden peat can be bought dirt cheap in bulk from garden supply
stores.  MAKE SURE IT HAS NO FERTILIZERS OR FUNGICIDES -- these will kill
your fish.  According to Oleg Kiselev, Canadian peat, especially "Sunshine"
brand, seems to be safe.  Oleg has also used "Black Magic" gardening peat
with equal success.  ALWAYS RINSE PEAT BEFORE USING and many books
recommend you boil it a few times, too.  Oleg usually boils peat 3-4 times
and stores it wet.
     Peat is very important for killifish spawning.

POWER HEADS
     These are miniature pumps that draw water through uplift tubes
(associated with UGFs) and impel it into the aquarium.  They often
come with a feature that allows air to be drawn into the outflow
resulting in a fine mist of bubbles.  (This is due to something
called Venturi action).  The water output can usually be directed
in any direction, and up or down.  Some even have a reverse feature
for Reverse UGF systems.
     Although sometimes used as pumps, these are not really
designed to push water up any distance.  They are designed to draw
water and push it out laterally.

UV STERILIZERS
     Ultraviolet light sterilizers are used in series with  filters
to kill water borne parasites (such as ich) and/or bacteria.
Although not strictly a filter, it does ultimately remove harmful
organisms.  When used in reef tanks or breeder tanks where the
occupants depend on microscopic organisms in the water for food,
these should not be turned on during feeding time.

ZEOLITE
     Zeolite is a naturally occurring mineral that can exchange
"hard" metallic ions (like magnesium and calcium) for soft metallic
ions (like sodium).  This softens water.  Zeolite also adsorbs
ammonia.  Zeolite will not work in salt water.  It is reactivated
by immersing it in a strong salt solution for 24 hours.

POWER FILTERS

A power filter is a box shaped filter that is hung on the back of an
aquarium.  An intake pipe projects down into the tank and the output of the
filter flows from spillway(s) on the body of the filter over the side of
the tank and into the tank.  The other major type of filter that is similar
to a power filter is the cannister filter.

Why use a power filter?

1.  Space: These filters can be small relative to the volume that they pump
    through the filter.  They hang neatly over the side of the tank.  Most
    people put them on the back, where no one can see them, and where the
    space is wasted anyway.  *WARNING* All filters claim to pump a certain
    volume per unit of time.  This figure is sometimes tested by using
    clean (or no) filter media.  The actual volume pumped will start at the
    published value and decrease to zero if the filter media is not cleaned
    or changed.

2.  Noise: Power filters seem to be relatively quiet compared to other
    popular filters.

3.  Cost: The initial cost for a power filter is low.

4.  Easy of maintainance: Most of the filter media for a power filter is
    available prepackaged (but at additional cost).  Power filters provide
    easy access to the filter and media because it's part of the tank, in a
    convenient location.  Disassembly of the filter is straightforward and
    simple. Some filters will also allow you to insert media that was not
    specifically designed for that filter.  Some filters are designed for
    you to throw away your biologically active media if you follow the
    manufacturer's instructions (this is bad, see below).

Major Manufacturers of Power Filters
    (GPH = US gallons/per hour).
    Prices are approximate mail order prices in $US.

        Name     GPH    $    GPH/$
Aquaclear    Mini    100    10    10
(Hagen)        150    150    14    10.7
        200    200    14    14.3
        300    300    21    14.3
        500    428    38    11.3

Whisper        Compact    100    10    10
(Second Nature)    1    150    13    11.5
        2    200    14    14.3
        3    300    21    14.3
        5    400    31    12.9

Penguin        110    110    12    9.2
w/biowheel    160    160    14    11.4
(Marineland)    300    300    22    13.6

Canistar    MX    155    18    8.6
(Penn-Plax)

Supreme Aquamaster PME     120     14    8.6
        Aquamaster PMSW  ?      25
        Aquamaster PLSW 300     29      10.3
        Aquaking        300     32      9.4
        Superking       600     41    14.6

Overview of Perceived Performance.

Mechanical Filtration/Chemical Filtration

The key to mechanical and chemical filtration with a power filter is the
amount of media that the water must pass through.  Ideally, all the water
that passes through the filter also must pass through all of the media.

The Aquaclear and Canistar filters should work the best at
mechanical/chemical filtration.  They push all the input water through all of
the media.  The Aquaclear will allow water around the media if the media is
clogged.  Look for backflow coming out near the siphon tube.  The Whispers
and Penguins (except the Penguin 300) design allow some of the water to
pass by the chemical filtration (carbon, ammo-chips etc.), but all the
water must pass through the dacron mesh.  The Penguin 300 has a "media
basket", 2 removable containers in the filter body so you can add your own
media to help filter the water, this design addition makes it difficult for
any water to pass by the media.  The diatom water polishing mode on the
Canistar seems to be iffy.


Biological Filtration

The main concern here is whether or not you throw away the bacteria's happy
home when it comes time to clean the filter.  There is probably little
difference in the performance of dacron vs. foam for harboring bacteria.

The Aquaclear has a foam insert to harbor helpful bacteria.  You may rinse
it and put it back in the filter, without ever buying new foam.  No helpful
bacteria are lost if this is done correctly.  Also the "force all the water
through the filter" concept discussed above applies here too, all the water
must pass over the bacteria, which may clean it better.  A caveat is that
the fast flow through the sponge does lower the ability of the filter to
get rid of NH4 in 1 pass, but the increased volume over a typical cannister
filter may make up for that.  The Whisper's, Penguin's and Canistar's'
dacron pad eventually must be thrown out, thus losing the bacteria.
Ingenious solutions have been invented to minimize this problem, but IMHO
the Aquaclear is superior in this regard.  The Penguin is like the Whisper,
except that it has an added device called a Bio-wheel.  It probably helps,
but there are mixed reports on this.  The wheel may need regular,
infrequent maintenance to prevent clogging.

The Supreme models are unique in that they do not use the troublesome
magnetic-impeller water-immersed motors.  Their motors are large industrial
air-cooled ones that sit on top of the filter and run the impeller via a
plastic shaft.  Also, they use siphon tubes to bring the water into the filter
box, and pump the filtered water back to the aquarium, preventing the impeller
from shredding and thus reducing the particle size in the influent.

Other gotchas/Special features

The Aquaclear has good sponge media, and allows the use of media bags so
you can fill your own.  The carbon bags cost a bit, but they seem to use
good carbon.

The Penguin biowheel has a tendency to stop if it gets dirty.  If the wheel
isn't' turning, it isn't working.

Power consumption

   Not all equipment really consumes the amount of power that it's
rated for.  If you want an accurate measurement of your power
consumption, it may be possible to borrow a Kilowatt-hour meter from
your local utility company.  Not everyone answering the phone will
know what you want, but be determined.

The meter is placed in line with your equipment, so you will need to
rewire your tank so that all of the items to be monitored are plugged
into the meter.  The meter is similar to the one that comes into your
house, except that it is configured for 120V 2 wire.  The meter has a
granularity of one kilowatt hour, so if you're measuring something
that draws little power, it may take a while to get an accurate
reading.

Summary

There are no clearly superior filters here, although the Whisper seems to
lose in almost every category (your mileage may vary).  The Aquaclear
series is probably the best overall, however, if you need a big filter, the
Penguin 300 may be better because it has the Bio-Wheel and the media
baskets.

AIR PUMPS:
----------

Keep away from cheap pumps.  Make sure they are UL listed (as you should
with all other electrical devices you are planning to use with your
aquarium).  Listen to the pump (under load!) before you buy it.  If you can
hear it in the noisy petshop, imagine what it will sound like in your
silent house at 2 AM.  It is also a good idea to get a pump that is not too
much more powerful than you need - more powerful pumps are invariably more
noisy.

As a general rule, "adjustable" air pumps are worth extra money
only if the adjustment is electronic, rather than by a by-pass
valve.  The former is more quiet.  Make sure your pump is
positioned above the water level of your tank, because power
failures and other events can cause water to back-siphon into the
pump and flood it.  You can also use "check-valves" available at
pet shops to make certain that this does not happen.

The following is from Spass Stoiantschewsky:

[e-mail]

and the last name is spelled "stoiantschewsky", my system
has it spelled wrong...always has, probably always will...

the address will probably change, but i haven't the faintest
idea when...it should have already changed...

best pump tested at depth to date: Tetra luft g
best pump volume (shallow depth) to date: whisper 1000
noisiest pumps: whisper
quietest pumps: challenger (?), followed closely by Tetra and
silencer.

best buy in pumps: Tetra luft g

noise level measurements are purely by ear.

i'd like to talk to people who have pumps they particularly like
or dislike and anyone who has pumps that haven't been tested (easy
test).
untested pumps: schego, iwaki, wisa, supra
tested pumps: whisper, silencer, Tetra, challenger

[Ed. Note.  Spass will post a more complete article soon. ;-) ]

CHILLER SIZING
--------------

Water Temperature Pull Down From Room Temperature (Degrees Fahrenheit) *
               5o      10o      15o      20o      25o
             ----     ----     ----     ----     ----
Horsepower
----------
1/6           200      100       67       50       40
1/5           560      280      187      140      112
1/4           800      400      267      200      160
1/3          1000      500      333      250      200
1/2          1440      720      480      360      288
3/4          2600     1300      867      650      520

                      Tank Size
                  ---------
* Tank sizes represent the maximum volume for each horsepower and
temperature combination.  To provide a margin of safety, add
20 percent to the tank volume when determining chiller requirement.

Reprinted with permission from _Aquarium Fish Magazine_, Vol. 5,
No. 3, December 1992.


Disclaimer:
-----------
Some answers listed above may reflect personal biases of the author
and the FAQ's contributors.  In cases where the answers name
specific products and their respective manufacturers, these are not
to be taken as endorsements, nor commercials for the manufacturer.
Where cost information is stated (magazine subscription rates),
this is based on "street" information, and are in no way binding on
the publisher.  The answers contained in this series pertain to
discussions on the rec. and alt.aquaria newsgroups, and are by no means
exhaustive.  This series is not intended to take the place of good
aquarium books on the subject matter.

Copyright:
----------
The FAQ owes its existence to the contributors of the net, and as
such it belongs to the readers of rec.aquaria and alt.aquaria.
Copies can be made freely, as long as it is distributed at no
charge, and the disclaimers and the copyright notice are included.

--
Clues for the clueless, personal.peeves edition:

The net is _not_ the information superhighway.  There isn't one.
It isn't cyberspace either.
Archive-name: aquaria/general-faq/mail
Rec-aquaria-archive-name: general-faq/mail
Alt-aquaria-archive-name: general-faq/mail
Sci-aquaria-archive-name: general-faq/mail
Posting-Frequency: monthly


           Magazines and mail order information

Rev 1.23 9/3/94

Prologue:
---------
This monthly series is intended to address some of the frequently
asked questions (FAQ) on the rec., alt., and sci.aquaria newsgroups.
Because the answers may not be complete, please feel free to ask
questions.  This is only intended to address first level concerns, and
not to dampen discussions.  Please see the file README for pointers to
other topics.

Please review and send any corrections or inputs to the FAQ maintainers
with "(FAQ)" in the subject line.  You are absolutely welcomed to tackle
(i.e. WRITE) sections that have not been written yet.

I've received recommendations to put email address "pointers" in
the FAQ to vector questions to specific experts on particular
subjects.  If you would like to offer yourself as such an expert,
please send me your email address and the specific topics you want
to host.  Please include an email path that is generally accessible
to the greatest number of people.

NOTE:
-----

This section of the FAQ is NOT updated regularly.  It is almost certainly
not up to date.

MAGAZINES:
----------
Freshwater and Marine Aquarium  (monthly)
          P.O. Box 487,
          Sierra Madre, CA 91024
          Phone [phone]

          1yr/12 iss.    $22.00
          2yr/24 iss.    $43.00

          Outside US     $27.50/yr  (no 2 year subscr.)

Tropical Fish Hobbyist  (monthly)
          One TFH Plaza,
          Neptune City, NJ 07753
          Phone [phone]

          1yr/12 iss.    $25.00

          Foreign - add $11.00/yr

     **note:   The edition found in retail stores often does NOT
               have mail order ads; the home subscription edition
               does.  Do not buy one at the store for m/o
               addresses without checking it out first.

Aquarium Fish Magazine  (monthly)

          The following special offer is made by _AFM_ for readers of
      the *.aquaria newsgroups.

*****************************************************************************
As a special offer to readers of *.aquaria, subscriptions to _Aquarium Fish
Magazine_ are being made available at a special price.  You can receive a
2-year subscription for only $23.97.  This offer applies to both new
subscriptions and renewals, and represents a significant savings over the
normal subscription cost of 2 years for $38.00.  In other words, you get 2
years for the price of 1.

To take advantage of this offer, send a check or money order to the address
below.  You must include the subscription department in the address in order
to receive the special price.

                       Aquarium Fish Magazine
                       Subscription Dept. FHNT
                       P.O. Box 6040
                       Mission Viejo, CA 92690
                       USA

Canadian subscribers please add $8 and foreign subscribers please add $12 to
the subscription price.  Please pay by international money order.
******************************************************************************

Practical Fishkeeping  (British mag)
          MOTORSPORT
          RR1 Box 200 D.
          Jonesburg MO 63351-9616

          US     - $42.00 per year

KOI USA (bi-monthly)
          KOI USA
          P.O. Box 1
          Midway City, CA 92665
          U.S.A.

          6 issues per year
          $15 in U.S., US$ 19.50 in Canada

Marine Fish Monthly
    Publishing Concepts Corp.
    3243 Highway 61
    East Luttrell, TN  37779

    1yr/12 iss.    $20.00
    Canada        $28.00/yr
    Foreign        $35.00/yr (US $ required)

    1-800-937-3963 for subscription by phone

MAIL ORDER:
-----------
     Although prices are lower through mail order, one must
consider the cost of the shipping and handling, the delay time if
product is not in stock, and the fact that the mail order company
will typically not answer detailed questions.  Your local retailer
on the other hand must pay for the overhead of inventory, and often
times are willing to answer questions.  We need to collectively
ensure the survival of good, helpful stores with fair prices.

The following are just some of the larger m/o places.  There are many more
to be found in magazines in ads.

TFP- That Fish Place             800-733-3829
MOP- Mail Order Pet Shop         800-366-7387 ordering and product info
                 800-326-6677 customer service
                 800-877-3834 fax
                 916-928-0215 CA local
                 516-595-1717 NY local
PW - Pet Warehouse               800-443-1160
                                 800-443-1176 after 5 Eastern & Wknds
DLC- Daleco                      219-747-7376
WTA- Wet Thumb Aquatics          313-725-0960
                 313-725-7394 fax

                TFP   MOP        PW   DLC   WTA
Price           1.5   1.2        2.0  2.5   1.0
Selection       1.6   1.9        2.3  1.5   3.0
Service         1.7   2.3        1.0  2.0   1.0
Processing      2.1   2.0        1.0  1.5   1.0
Completeness    1.6   2.1        1.3  2.0   2.0
Correctness     1.1   1.4        1.0  1.5   1.0
Damage          1.0   1.2        1.0  1.0   1.0

Sum             10.6  12.1       9.6  12    10
# Responses     11    10         3    2     1
Avg        1.5   1.7     1.3  1.7   1.4

Criterion:

Price - total cost of an average order.
1 - excellent, 2 - good, 3 - fair, 4 - pet shop

Selection: do they carry what you want?
1 - anything you could possibly want, 2 - good, 3 - fair, 4 - poor.

Customer service: are they pleasant on the phone? Do the sales
people provide accurate product information? Are printed materials
helpful?
1 - excellent, 2 - good, 3 - fair, 4 - why are you calling and
bothering them?

Order processing: how fast is your order processed? (When does it
leave the warehouse? Not when do you actually receive it, as this
varies with your location!)
1 - same day, 2 - 1-3 days, 3- longer than three days.

Order completeness: they have in stock what you ordered?
1 - rarely a stock out, 2 - occasional, 3 - often items are out of
stock.

Order correctness: they send what you ordered?
1 - never a problem, 2 - minor problems, 3 - common problem.

Order damage: do you ever receive broken items?
1 - never a problem, 2 - minor problems, 3 - common problem.

A Quick and Dirty Five Item Price Check, shipping not included:

                TFP   MOP        PW   DLC   WTA

Python WC       21.79 21.79     21.88 24.95 21.00
AquaClear Mini  9.95  9.99       9.98 13.95  n/c*(Supreme)
H. Cich Gold    5.89  3.89       3.98  5.28 4.35*(Nippon Cich Dlx)
Bio Bags 24pk   10.95 11.29     10.89 16.99  n/c (Ginger 4 packs)
Ebo Jag. 100w   14.29 12.29     14.29 14.25 15.00 (Rena "F")
Stress Coat 16oz 3.95  3.99      3.98  5.95  n/c (Mydor products)

                66.82 63.24    65.00  81.37  n/c

n/c= not comparable, WTA does not carry these exact brands.

***Remember that shipping cost and sales tax (if applicable) must
be considered in your final cost.**

The Big fish:
____________________
That Fish Place
237 Centerville Rd.
Lancaster, PA 17603

Clearly, a favored source for mail order.  Best catalogue (very
useful for ordering from other places).   I received no "horror"
stories, only one minor complaint.

Good Source for: Plants

Shipping: Actual Cost
____________________
Mail Order Pet Shop
250W Executive Drive       1338 North Market Blvd.
Edgewood, Ny 11717         Sacramento, CA 95834

Probably the total lowest cost place for supplies.  However, it
seems that people either love or hate them.  I received several
complaints about service and bulk products being shorted etc.
People like their flat fee for shipping.

Shipping: $2.99 orders <= $10, $5.99 orders> $10

The small fry:
____________________

Pet Warehouse
Dept. FA-122
P.O. Box 20250
Dayton, OH 45420

Not used extensively.  However, I received many positive comments.
People like their quick service.

Shipping:  $30 or <   $3.95
           $30-45     4.75
           $45-60     5.75
           $60-75     6.75
           $75-150    8.50
           $150 or >  10.50

--------------------
Daleco
3340 Land Drive
Fort Wayne, IN 46809-1531

Has many unusual items.  Shipping is included in prices for orders
over $30 but prices still seem high.  Complaint received that back
ordered items was "just forgotten about."

Good Source for: Live Food Cultures, Dupla Products, LaMotte Test
Kits

Shipping: Free, orders under $30.00 require a $3.00 handling fee

--------------------
Wet Thumb Aquatic
52700 Base St.
New Baltimore, MI 48047

Smaller outfit.  Their selection is not great but prices are very
good.  They are more breeder oriented. They ship same day. Free
shipping for orders over $75.

Good Source for: Regenerative Blowers and Reverse Osmosis units.

Shipping:  $25 or <   2.50
           $25-45     3.50
           $45-60     4.50
           $60-75     5.50
           $75 or >   Free

--------------------
Others mentioned but not ranked:

Botany Bay: aquatic garden supplies, order was placed but shipment
had not been received by time of survey. 206-537-5223

Delaware Aquatics Imports: Water grown aquatic plants and supplies.
Many people like their plants. 302-738-4042

Spectacular Sea System: Specializing in marine lighting and
accessories ranked 3,3,1,1,1,1,1 305-941-3792

Aquatic Technology: Specializing in reef tank related items, books,
Reef additives, icecap ballasts, endcaps, skimmers 216-235-8263

POND MAIL ORDER:    Contributed by Diane DeMers
----------------
These are from ads in Sunset, Horticulture, and Fine Gardening magazines.
I've tried my best to get all the info correct; I don't have any first-hand
knowledge (yet) with any except the catalogs from Lilypons. Note: these
were all "regular" ads; I didn't look through the classified sections of
these magazines.


Dolphin Outdoors
Fiberglass Ponds for gardens and fish
[phone]
Send SASE for brochure and prices
1808 W. Campbell Ave
Campbell, CA 95008

Hermitage Garden Pools
[phone]
Fiberglass garden pools, rock waterfalls, self-contained redwood
waterwheels; bubbling fantasias
Send $1.00 for color catalog
PO Box 361, Dept. A
Canastoga, NY 13032

Lilypons Water Gardens
pond liners, accessories, plants (lilies, lotus, etc), fish, etc.
100-page Catalog subscription $5.00
[Personal note: I've never bought anything from them yet, but I do
like their catalog]
3 locations:
Dept. 1626
PO Box 10
Buckeystown, MD 21717-0010
[phone]

Dept. 1626
PO Box 188
Brookshire, TX 77423-0188
[phone]

Dept. 1626
PO Box 1130
Thermal, CA 92274-1130
[phone] or [phone] (different ads had different Ph # here)

Paradise Water Gardens
[phone]  FAX: [phone]
Great books on water gardening (too numerous to list here); water lilies,
fountains, pumps, Koi, goldfish, aquatic plants, tub gardens.
Send $3.00 for a 60-page full-color catalog
56 May St. FN06
Whitman, MA 02382

Pets Unlimited
[phone]
Featuring TetraPond products
Send $3.00 for color brochure, price list, plus "Digest for a Successful
Pond"
1888 Drew
Clearwater, FL 34625

Resource Conservation Technology, Inc.
[phone]
Butyl Pond liners. 20-year warranty. Won't harm fish or plants, won't
stiffen in cold weather, resists sunlight better than plastics. Call or
write for literature and samples of the liner and Liner Protection Fabric.
2633 N. Calvert St.
Baltimore, MD 21218

Slocum Water Gardens
Water Lily Catalog: water lilies, lotus, fancy Goldfish
Complete info on tubs, concrete pools, and ponds
Send $3.00
Slocum Water Gardens, Dept. FI592
1101 Cypress Gardens Rd.
Winter Haven, FL 33880

TetraPond
32-mil, flexible PVC liners, 10-year guarantee; accessory products,
fish and plant foods, water treatments, etc.
Write for free "how-to" brochure
Tetra Sales (USA)
Department P-9208
201 Tabor Road,
Morris Plains, NJ 07950

Van Ness Water Gardens
Water lilies, bog plants, info, pumps, filters, maintenance
[phone]   For 56-page color catalog, send $4.00
2460 N. Euclid , Dept. 877
Upland, CA 91786-1199

Waterford Gardens
[phone]
Water Lilies, bog plants, lotus, pools and accessories, ornamental fish
$5.00 for 1992 catalog
74 East Allendale Road, Dept F
Saddle River, NJ 07458

Waterland USA
Fountains for your home, patio, or garden
[phone] Call for free brochure
27071 Cabot Rd., Suite 116
Laguna Hills, CA 92653

William Tricker, Inc.
[phone]
Rare and unusual varieties of water lilies, aquatic plants, fish, etc.
Send $3.00 for full-color catalog
7125 Tanglewood Drive
Independence, OH 44131

MAIL ORDER LIVE ROCK (Contributed by Ron Burns)
--------------------

A listing of all FAMA advertisers Selling live rock in their ads.
From FAMA Sept. 1992

1)  Coral Solutions.  [phone]    [phone] FAX
    Indonesian, Caribbean, Mexican.
    No pricing listed.

2)  Conch Republic Aquatics, Inc.  1-800-TO-CONCH  [phone] FAX
    Macro-Algae coral base rock
    35lb/Box
    <10 boxes  $1.50 / lb   (few of us order more than 350 lbs at a time)
    Ricordea and Gorgonian Rock
    No pricing listed

3)  Caribbean Creatures  1-800-728-3999   [phone] FAX
    Purple coralline encrusted live reef rock
    $89.95 / Box   no info on amount in box

4)  Natural Aquariums Unlimited  [phone]   [phone] FAX
    live rock available   no other info

5)  Reef Rock International  [phone]
    Mexican live rock  Encrusting coralline algae
    35-40lb/box
    #1 grade $124.00 / box
    #2 grade $ 86.00 / box
    #3 grade $ 62.00 / box
        No explanation of grade, or if any of them made it past 3rd grade

6)  Pisces Coral & Fish  [phone]
    Sea of Cortez and Caribbean  Encrusting algaes and corallines
    sizes 2" to 24"
    $1.45 / lb   30 lb minimum   or
    $49.95/box   35-40lb/box

7)  Zoo Tech  1-800-231-9005
    "Weekly live rock specials"   No other info

8)  Reef Displays of the Florida Keys, Inc. [phone]  [phone] FAX
    Fresh and cured live rock / Caribbean decorative live rock
    no pricing info

9)  Exotic Aquaria, Inc.   1-800-622-5877orders [phone] [phone] Fax
    Cured live rock
    30lb/box
    $125.00/box

10) Reef Scapers  [phone]
    Florida live rock
    30lb/box
    Plant rock - $40.00 / box
    Reef rock -  $70.00 / box

11) Canine Cutlery and World of Aquatics [phone]  [phone] Fax
    Live rock
    no other info

12) Brantana Aquatics [phone]  [phone] Fax
    Live Rock
    Christmas worm $6.00/lb
    Halimeda & Coralline Algae $4.00/lb

13) Exotic, Fresh & Reef Enterprises 1-800-882-7489  [phone] Fax
    Live Rock Florida keys rock fresh or cured
    30lb/box
    $70.00/box

14) The Reef, Etcetera  [phone]
    Live aquarium reef rock
    2" to 24"
    35-40lb/box
    $45.95

15) C & B Distributors  [phone]   [phone] Fax
    Live Rock
    Plant Rock
    no other info

16) Cortez Handcaught Marines, Inc.  [phone]  [phone] Fax
    "tank raised, live rock" ???
    No other info

17) Dolfin International Import/Export [phone]  [phone] Fax
    Live Rock by the pound cleaned and cured
    no other info

18) Caribbean Connection  [phone]   [phone] Fax
    Live Rock  /  Plant Rock
    By the pound, from the diver
    no pricing ( "Competitive Priced" )

Disclaimer:
-----------
Some answers listed above may reflect personal biases of the author
and the FAQ's contributors.  In cases where the answers name
specific products and their respective manufacturers, these are not
to be taken as endorsements, nor commercials for the manufacturer.
Where cost information is stated (magazine subscription rates),
this is based on "street" information, and are in no way binding on
the publisher.  The answers contained in this series pertain to
discussions on the rec. and alt.aquaria newsgroups, and are by no means
exhaustive.  This series is not intended to take the place of good
aquarium books on the subject matter.

Copyright:
----------
The FAQ owes its existence to the contributors of the net, and as
such it belongs to the readers of rec.aquaria and alt.aquaria.
Copies can be made freely, as long as it is distributed at no
charge, and the disclaimers and the copyright notice are included.
--
Clues for the clueless, personal.peeves edition:

The net is _not_ the information superhighway.  There isn't one.
It isn't cyberspace either.
Archive-name: aquaria/general-faq/plants
Rec-aquaria-archive-name: general-faq/plants
Alt-aquaria-archive-name: general-faq/plants
Sci-aquaria-archive-name: general-faq/plants
Posting-Frequency: monthly


                  Plants

Rev. 1.23 9/3/94

Prologue:
---------
This monthly series is intended to address some of the frequently
asked questions (FAQ) on the rec., alt., and sci.aquaria newsgroups.
Because the answers may not be complete, please feel free to ask
questions.  This is only intended to address first level concerns, and
not to dampen discussions.  Please see the file README for pointers to
other topics.

Please review and send any corrections or inputs to the FAQ maintainers
with "(FAQ)" in the subject line.  You are absolutely welcomed to tackle
(i.e. WRITE) sections that have not been written yet.

We've received recommendations to put email address "pointers" in
the FAQ to vector questions to specific experts on particular
subjects.  If you would like to offer yourself as such an expert,
please send me your email address and the specific topics you want
to host.  Please include an email path that is generally accessible
to the greatest number of people.

Plant Basics
------------

Plants need certain things to grow: light, CO2, nutrients and trace
elements.  This should be no surprise.  What is generally not known is
that plants need these things in fixed proportions (and unfortunately,
the proportions vary with each type of plant).  For example, if you
have plenty of light, CO2, nutrients and most trace elements but not
enough of one specific trace element for a plant, the trace element in
short supply will determine how well that plant grows even though
other plants do fine.  This explains why some plants are "easier" than
others - their needs are typically supplied by tap water or other
incidental sources.  If the plants aren't able to utililize all the
nutrients due to a shortage of one or more specific elements, the
"excess" nutrients and light energy will be wasted or be used by
algae.

In general, there is no information available that says "this plant
needs this much light, CO2, nutrients and trace elements".  Aquarists
can only determine "what works for me" by tedious trial and error.
Aquarists who follow the Dupla "Optimum Aquarium" regimen try to
ensure that all the requirements of all the plants are met, but this
leads to expensive and complex systems.

LIGHT

Light is very important for photosynthesis since it supplies the
energy required to drive the chemical reactions involved.  The plants
use light energy primarily in the blue and red spectrum but an
aquarium will look better to people if full spectrum lighting is used.

Light intensity and spectrum are more important than duration.  You
can't make up for dimmer bulbs by leaving them on longer.  10-12
hours per day is usually sufficient.  You need about 1.5 to 3 watts
per gallon, with deeper tanks requiring more intensity.

It is important to balance light intensity with other nutrients.
Intense lighting will be wasted if not enough CO2 and nutrients are
available to support the needs for photosynthesis.

CO2

This is very important to plant growth.  Without sufficient quantities
of dissolved CO2, photosynthesis cannot take place.  Most tanks will
have some CO2 due to fish respiration but this is usually not enough
to get "lush" growth.  Some plants do not need much CO2 and some
plants like Cryptocorynes actually seem to do worse with higher levels
of CO2.

Typical levels of CO2 in a non-CO2-injected aquarium are in the range
of 1-3 ppm.  Most plants will flourish with levels of 10-20 ppm but
this requires some type of CO2 injection.  With lower levels of CO2,
the plants will not be able to utilize high levels of light and
nutrients and the extra light and nutrients will be used by algae.

NUTRIENTS

Beyond the "building blocks of life" provided by water and CO2
(oxygen, hydrogen and carbon), two other important nutrients are
required: nitrogen and potassium.  Nitrogen is usually available in
sufficient quantities from fish waste in the form of ammonium (NH4+).
Most plants will prefer ammonium but some will use the end product of
the nitrification cycle, nitrate (NO3-).  Ammonium is the preferred
source since it takes less energy to use that form of nitrogen.  A
good test for ammonium levels is to monitor nitrates.  If the nitrates
are 0 ppm, you know that all the nitrogen is being used.  This may
indicate that some plants are starving for nitrogen.  It also might
indicate that a perfect balance has been acheived, but that is
unlikely.

Potassium (K+) is also usually available from fish food.  Unfortunately,
potassium is difficult to measure in the water.  If there are enough
nitrates, there is usually enough potassium.  Some fertilizers contain
additional potassium and can be used to be on the safe side.

TRACE ELEMENTS

Trace elements are those things required in very small quantities yet
are still vital to plant growth.  These are taken in by the plant in
ion form.  The more important trace elements are sulfur (SO4--),
calcium (Ca++), phosphorus (HPO4--/H2PO4-), magnesium (Mg++) and iron
(Fe++).

Sulfur, calcium and magnesium are usually found in tap water.  If the
water has too little general hardness (< 3 degrees dH), calcium and/or
magnesium may be in short supply.  This can be remedied by adding
calcium and magnesium sulfate in small quantities.

Phosphorus can be measured in the water and should be present in
quantities less than 0.2 ppm of phosphate.  If the nitrates are OK,
phosphorus levels are usually also OK.

Iron may be present in tap water in the correct ionic state (Fe++) but
will quickly oxidize to a form unusable by plants.  To prevent this,
chelated iron mixtures can be used.  The chelator prevents the iron
from oxidizing and makes it easy for the plants to assimilate.  The
iron concentration should be less than 0.2 ppm.

Other trace elements are needed in extremely small quantities and can
usually be provided in fish food or specialized trace element
formulations.  Note that some of these elements are toxic in anything
but trace amounts so the addition of trace elements should be done
very carefully.

OTHER INFORMATION

Some plants can concentrate carbon, potassium, nitrogen, phosphorus,
iron or the lesser trace elements and store it for later use.  This
means that plants may do well for awhile, using stored nutrients, and
then mysteriously wither if they can't replenish their supply.  This
also means that some plants may "outcompete" others for required
nutrients, preventing the other plants from doing well.

Reqular water changes are an important part of keeping a planted
aquarium healthy since many of the nutrients and trace elements are in
tap water.  Changing 25% every two weeks is recommended.

The substrate can play a major role in the availability of nutrients.
Nutrients can be put in the substrate when an aquarium is setup by
mixing laterite (tropical clay), potting soil, peat moss or commercial
equivalents into the lower layer of gravel.  These additives will
release some necessary elements and provide chelating sites so that the
correct ionic states are maintained.  However, if nutrients aren't
replaced, the substrate will eventually be exhausted and the plants
will begin to do poorly.

If laterite or peat is used in the substrate and a very slow flow of
water can be forced through the substrate, water-born nutrients will
be chelated by the laterite or peat.  This will provide a continuous
source of nutrients in the substrate.  Substrate heating coils are
recommended for this since they can provide slow convection currents.
They are expensive, however.

The following table is based on data from the Feb, 1988 "Today's
Aquarium, the International Magazine of the Optimum Aquarium",
("Aquarium Heute" in German), published by Aquadocumenta Verlag GmbH.

      Average nutrient content of plants and aquarium water

+-----------------------------------------------------------------+
| Symbol  Nutrient        Plant     Water    Absorbed as    Concen|
|                         mg/kg      mg/l                   Factor|
+-----------------------------------------------------------------+
| O       Oxygen         48,000    880,000   H2O             0.02 |
|   Abundantly available in the water                             |
|                                                                 |
| C       Carbon         36,000     Varies   CO2(HCO3-)      1000 |
|   Absent if no CO2 injection                                    |
|                                                                 |
| H       Hydrogen        6,000    110,000   H2O             0.02 |
|   Abundantly available in the water                             |
|                                                                 |
| K       Potassium       3,600          5   K+              1000 |
|   Sufficient with good feeding, otherwise fertilizing           |
|                                                                 |
| N       Nitrogen        3,200          5   NH4+/NO3-       1000 |
|   Too much nitrate with good fish feeding                       |
|                                                                 |
| S       Sulphur           660         15   SO4--             50 |
|   Source: fish food and mains water                             |
|                                                                 |
| Ca      Calcium           650         90   Ca++              10 |
|   Absent in soft water                                          |
|                                                                 |
| P       Phosphorus        460        0.1   HPO4--/H2PO4-   1000 |
|   Too many phosphates with good fish feeding                    |
|                                                                 |
| Mg      Magnesium         210         18   Mg++              10 |
|   Absent in soft water                                          |
|                                                                 |
| Fe      Iron               15          0   Fe++/Fe+++      1000 |
|   Absent under good light, unless fertilized                    |
|                                                                 |
| Other   Trace elements     10          0   Ions            1000 |
|   Sufficient with good feeding, otherwise fertilizer            |
+-----------------------------------------------------------------+

Notes:  "mg/kg" and "mg/l" are roughly parts per million or "ppm"

"Concen Factor" is how much plants can store beyond their needs for
growth, i.e., plants can store 1000 times more iron than they need.


Lighting
--------

All plants have a cycle in which during the light hours they use CO2
and release Oxygen through a process called photosynthesis.  During
the dark hours the opposite occurs and the plants use Oxygen and
release CO2 in a process referred to as respiration.  In most aquarium
plants the period of photosynthesis in nature is between 10 and 12
hours Which should be duplicated as closely as possible in the aquarium
to allow a balance between the two processes.

In nature some plants are located in large open ponds and receive a
large quantity of light, others are located in triple canopy jungles
and receive low quantities of light.  Each variety of plant has its own
light requirements and for best aquarium results these requirements
should be met as much as possible.  In this FAQ we will divide the
plants into groupings that require low light, low to moderate light,
moderate to bright light, and bright light.  There are also bog plants
that are often sold as aquarium plants which we shall not cover in this
FAQ except to mention here that there lighting requirements are usually
greater than even the bright grouping.

Fluorescent lighting is the most economical means of establishing a broad
spectrum of light in an adequate quantity for the survival of aquatic
plants.  It is recommended that broad spectrum tubes be used to produce the
proper lighting similar to the varieties sold in plant stores and aquarium
stores, rather than the standard cool white bulbs available at hardware
stores.  People have had good luck with almost any of the "full spectrum"
or plant specific bulbs (Vita-Lite, GE Chroma 50 and 75, Phillips
Agro-Lite, UltraLume and Advantage X).  The more expensive "three phosphor"
bulbs like Triton and Penn-Plax Ultra-TriLux seem to have a more realistic
color rendition.  You can combine different types of bulbs to acheive the
same results but the tri-phosphor bulbs are generally much brighter than
less expensive types.  Note that fluorescent bulbs age and will lose
intensity over time.  It is recommended that bulbs be changed every 6-12
months (try to have the bulbs on a rotating schedule, i.e., a new bulb
every 3 months rather than 2 new bulbs every 6 months).

When calculating the amount of lighting you will need there is a general
of thumb.  First multiply the surface area of the aquarium by the distance
from the light source to the top of the gravel.  Then depending on the
type of plants you desire multiply this by one of the factors given below.

    Low light plants        0.08
    Low to Moderate light plants    0.12
    Moderate to Bright light plants    0.18
    Bright light plants        0.27

This will give you the ideal watt hours of fluorescent lighting that you need.
Divide this number by 11 and you now have the approximate total wattage of
lights you need.  Unfortunately this number may not be equal to what is
available in bulbs so find the combination of wattage that will most closely
match this requirement and adjust the available time to match the watt hour
calculation.

example:
    required watt hours is 1440, divided by 11, is 131 watts of power.
    since the closest is 3, 40 watt tubes we divide 1440, by the
    120 watt total and we find we need 12 hours of lighting at this
    level.
warning:
    A common mistake is to deviate greatly from the 11 hour of light
    to compensate for low or high wattage.  If the light time exceeds
    16 hours more wattage should be added to reduce this time, Or if
    the light time is less than 8 hours less wattage must be used
    to allow adequate time for photosynthesis.

When selecting plants also keep in mind that large center plants will
shade the smaller plants under them and that higher light requiring
plants should not be selected for small filler plants.

Fertilization
-------------

Well to start the section on fertilization I'll describe some of the
practices first described to me by an older aquarium plant enthusiast,
that I do not recommend.  He started the base of his aquariums with
a 1 inch layer of well aged cow manure, followed with a 2 inch
layer of peat moss, and finally another 2 inch layer of beach sand.
This was an old practice in early (pre 1940's) aquariums across
europe.  However with today's knowledge I believe that a base like this
creates a greater possibility of breeding disease than proves beneficial
to aquarium plants.  However lets look at modern interpretations of his
layering.

The initial layer was well aged cow manure.  This was an invitation for
all forms of viruses, bacteria etc to flourish in his tanks, however it did
produce an abundance of nitrates, sulphates, phosphates, potassium and
other minerals needed by plants.  In the modern aquarium we have several
granulated fertilizers that can be added to our root medium to safely
add these needed compounds, and elements.  And after the initial set up the
proper cycling of this balanced world will begin to create its own supply
of these.

The next layer that he used was that of peat moss.  This is even debatable
today as to its benefits and draw backs.  It does create a softer environment
for aquarium roots to grow in, provides some needed elements, and minerals,
as well a helps in controlling the hardness and ph of the water.  However
it again is adding an area for unwanted diseases to enter the aquarium and
to survive.  Therefore I suggest that if this media is added it be properly
sterilized, and that you read the FAQ on water quality to assure that you
not creating more harm than good.

This brings us down to the final layer he used of fine beach sand.  I have
found that the finer the sand the better anchoring of the roots, and also
the better the plants flourish.  What I usually purchase is the finest grit
of red flint gravel that I can find or a commercially available product
called black beauty which is also fine.  For appearance I like a mixture
of these two "sands" which I sift through window screening to remove all the
larger particles.  The only true problems that I see with the old method of
using beach sand is to insure it is sterile and that it will not effect the
ph or hardness of your water from excesses of minerals.  Again see the FAQ
on water quality.

Additional fertilizers can be added in liquid state from time to time.  There
are several commercially available, I myself like the ones made by Tetra but
I cannot speak for the others since I have never used them.

Heating
-------

Heating can be another important issue if the aquarium is used to house
cooler water species of fish.  Most aquarium plants come from tropical
areas where there water temperatures seldom dip under 72 degrees F..  The
most important part of the plants to keep warm are the roots, therefore
in aquariums with lower water temperatures it is best to have undergravel
heating to assure the gravel temperature stays over 70 degrees F..  In
normal tanks with tropical fish maintained at temperatures between 75 and
90 degrees F. the temperature of the gravel is rarely important.

Low light plants
----------------

Cryptocoryne affinis
    A long pointed leaved plant with emerald green leaves and red
    undersides that grows well under limited light.  It's ideal
    temperature range is from 72 to 79 degrees F. and Ph range of 6.8
    to 7.0.  It is ideal as a foreground plant in larger aquariums, or
    center plants in smaller tanks.

Cryptocoryne nevillii
    A bright green leaved plant that grows up to 4 inches, and can
    tolerate anywhere from a low to bright range in lighting.  It is
    extremely adaptable and only requires a water temperature of at
    least 68 degrees F.  It is best used as a filler or fore ground
    plant in aquariums of any size.

Cryptocoryne wendtii
    A wrinkled leaved plant growing up to 8 inches tall usually pale
    green in color.  It is adaptable from low to bright lighting
    situations requires a hardness near 5 with a ph around 7.0.  It
    makes a great plant in small aquariums and a filler in larger
    aquariums.

Vesicularia dudyana
    Also called Java Moss this plant forms thick tangled masses in tanks
    with subdued or very low lighting.  It is usually dark green in color
    and makes ideal hiding places for newly born live bearing fish.  It
    only requires a minimum temperature of 75 degrees.



Low to moderate light plants
----------------------------

Acorus (Japanese Rush)
    There are many species of this plant that vary in size from 4
    inches to 18 inches.  The leaves are spiked and usually light to
    bright green in color.  This is a cooler water plant and does best
    in aquariums in the 60 degree range.

Anubias nana
    A wide leafed plant that grows to only 4 inches in a deep green
    color.  It creates a lovely foreground plant in larger aquariums.
    It ideally likes a water temperature of about 77 degrees and will
    tolerate low to moderately low light.

Aponogenton madagascariensis (Madagascar Lace Plant)
    The Madagascar lace plant is one of the most sought after center
    plants of aquarium plants and often the most disappointing.  This
    plant often to a length of 20 inches and has leaves that look like
    finely woven lace.  This however is a bulb plant and therefore has
    a limited growing period followed by a disappointing period of
    dormancy.  The only particulars on this plant is that while it
    cannot tolerate water under 55 degrees it also will die in waters
    over 80 degrees.

Echinodorus sp. (various sword plants)
    This grouping includes such plants as the popular Amazon Sword,
    Ruffled Sword plants, Radian Sword plants.  These are perhaps the
    most popular of the center and even background plants in aquariums.
    The ideal conditions for these plants is a ph around 7.0, hardness
    between 3 and 18 dH and temperatures in the 70's.  If the
    conditions are correct this can be one of the most rewarding of the
    groups of aquarium plants.

Nomaphila Stricta (Hygropholia)
    Usually sold as a bunch plant it consists of green to reddish green
     leaves that branch off a vertically growing stem and makes a fine
    corner grouping.  These plants are very hardy and only prefer water
    temperatures around 70 degrees.


Sagittaria
    This group can be be described as a grouping of various straight
    bladed green grasses.  Depending upon the variety they can be used
    as background or foreground plants.  If enough light is provided
    they are quite adaptable to most other conditions.

Bright to moderate light plants
-------------------------------

Bacopa caroliniana (Giant Bacopa)
    A bog (not a true aquarium) plant that is used as a filler or
    background plant.  A pale green to red plant with a wide stem that
    has leaves branching off of it.  Usually grows up to 12 inches long
    and desires hard water 10 to 15 Dh neutral Ph and cooler water
    around 70 degrees.

Ludwigia
    A grouping of plants including the commonly called Red Ludwigia,
    and Green Ludwigia.  This is a bunch plant with stiff stems and
    wide leaves that grows up to 15 inches long.  It makes a fine
    corner or background grouping and is not particular to aquarium
    conditions other than its desire for considerable light.

Bright light plants
-------------------

Cobomba
    This makes a great bunch plant with many fine leaves coming of a
    central stem in a very highly lighted aquarium.  The leaves
    resemble fine pine needles and depending on the variety range in
    color from greens to reds.  However if the lighting is inadequate
    these fine needles have a tendency to litter up the aquarium.

Hygrophila polysperma

Ricca fluitans

Synnema triflorum (Water Wisteria)

    This plant, also known as Hygrophila difformis, is easy to grow,
    and has finely branched, bright green leaves that contrast very
    well with darker leaved plants.  The plant is easily propagated
    from cuttings, and even pieces of the leaf will grow roots and
    establish themselves.

Ceratopteris thalictroides (Water Sprite)

    This plant is a true water fern that is often grown floating,
    although it can be grown rooted in the gravel.  In submerged form,
    it resembles Water Wisteria.  As a floating plant, it provides
    shade, and the roots serve as shelter to fish fry.  It grows
    rapidly, and the floating form is especially helpful in controlling
    algae.  It produces baby plants on older leaves.

Vallisneria
    This is another grouping of grasses with a tendency for them to be
    finer and more delicate appearing.  There are various species
    that can be used as foreground or background plants.  These again
    only require an abundance of light.

CO2 in the aquarium
-------------------
     Anyone who has observed the explosive growth of aquarium plants in
response to carbon dioxide (CO2) fertilization must be convinced of the
usefulness of this system.  Certainly, there are thousands of aquarium
hobbyists who do not give their plants any sort of special treatment and
still end up with a fairly nice display.  However, truly luxuriant
growth, the sort that you see on the covers of aquarium magazines and in
pictures of "Dutch aquariums," can only be achieved by fertilizing with
CO2.
     During photosynthesis, plants use light energy to capture CO2.  This
CO2 is used to build the basic carbon structures from which all plant
material is made.  In a poorly lit aquarium, light is likely to be what
limits the rate of plant growth.  The amount of CO2 produced by fish- and
bacterial respiration is more than enough to allow photosynthesis under
these conditions.  If on the other hand, you try to make your plants grow
faster by adding more light, it is likely that there will not be enough
CO2 in your aquarium.  The plants simply can not grow as fast as they
would like to, given the available light energy.
     The easiest way to increase the amount of CO2 in an aquarium is to
buy a tank of CO2 and let it bubble into the water.  Several, mostly
German, companies sell systems for adding CO2 into the outflow of your
cannister filter.  If you buy your CO2 system from someone like Dupla, you
are likely to spend about $300.  That seems a bit pricey, doesn't it?
Fortunately, it is very easy and also a fair bit cheaper to buy a CO2
tank at a local welding supply place and use it to bubble CO2 into the
water.

CO2 in the tank is under high pressure.  A pressure regulator brings this
pressure down to a manageable level, and ordinary aquarium air valves can
be used to regulate the flow to individual aquariums.  The CO2 reactor is
simply a small chamber that allows the CO2 to be dissolved in the water
before it escapes into the air.  Outflow from a filter or a pump enters the
top of the reactor; CO2 is bubbled in from the bottom.  To give the CO2
more time to dissolve, one can add a system of baffles to trap the gas as
it is moving up.  Near the top of the reactor, there should be a small hole
to vent other gasses, which may be present in small amounts in the
compressed CO2.  These gasses do not dissolve as readily in water as CO2
does.
     I purchased my CO2 tank and regulator at Wesco on Vassar Street in
Cambridge.  Their current (May 1992) prices are: 5 lbs CO2, $52.50, refill
$9.74; 20 lbs CO2, $101.75, refill $19.55.  A CO2 pressure regulator is
"$79 and change."  People who have better welding connections than I do
might be able to get things more cheaply than that.  Refills are
generally not a very big expense.  My 20 lb CO2 tank is used on three
aquariums (30, 65, and 110 gallons) and lasts about three years between
refills.  That works out to about $2 per aquarium per year.  Other
possible sources of CO2 that I have not investigated are CO2 fire
extinguishers and the CO2 cannisters they use to but the bubbles in beer
and soft drinks.  Don't bother trying to rig up something with dry ice,
it is too complicated.
     The tubing and valves that I use for my CO2 setup are the sort that
one buys for use with the aquarium air pumps.  It is better to get the
brass rather than the plastic valves, since it is easier to make fine
adjustments with them and they also tend to leak less.  Even a tiny leak
can empty out a gas tank distressingly quickly.  I check all of my valves
and connections with a soap solution and make sure that no bubbles
appear.
     The CO2 reactor can easily be constructed out of any wide bore tube.
I use the lift tubes from an undergravel filter in my aquariums.  Local
aquarium enthusiast Jim Bardwell does well with the top half of a
one-liter coke bottle, with the filter hose attached to where the cap
should be.  It is best to use a clear plastic, so that one can see what
is happening inside.  Baffles, designed to let the water cascade down in
one direction and to trap the CO2 moving in the other direction, are
helpful, but not absolutely necessary.  I make my baffles out of foam
cubes that I cut to the right size and shape to fit inside the tube.  Jim
simply lets the CO2 collect at the top of the reactor, where the water is
coming in.  He does not have a vent and does not seem to have a problem
with excess gas accumulating.
     While a small increase in the amount of CO2 in the water causes lush
plant growth, too much CO2 can prove to be toxic.  CO2 dissolved in water
forms carbonic acid (H2CO3).  With weakly buffered water, like what comes
out of the tap in the Boston area, adding too much CO2 can bring the pH
down to as low as 3.  That is not quite as acidic as Coca Cola, but about
equal to vinegar.  Naturally, this can cause death or other serious
reactions in your fish and plants.
     One can buy CO2 test kits that measure the actual level of CO2 in
the water, but measuring the pH and counting the bubbles in the CO2
reactor works just about as well.  It is best to start off by adding CO2
very slowly (about one to three bubbles per minute) and increasing the
rate until a small, but measurable drop in pH is achieved.  In my
30-gallon aquarium, I add one bubble of CO2 every three to four seconds
to bring the pH from 7 to between 6 and 6.5.  How much CO2 one needs to
add varies from aquarium to aquarium and can depend on several factors:
the size of the aquarium, how fast the plants are growing, the number of
fish, how much food is decaying on the bottom, the buffering capacity of
the water, the types of rock and gravel, and how well ventilated the
surface of the water is.  However, anything in the range of one bubble
every two to fifteen seconds seems to work pretty well.  Bubble size will
vary with the diameter of the tubing.  I am referring to the sort of
bubbles that come out of the end of ordinary, one eighth inch inside
diameter aquarium air tubing.
     By using a CO2 reactor, you are saturating the water with CO2, and
any excessive agitation of the water surface or bubbling of air through
the water will cause the CO2 to escape into the atmosphere, just about as
quickly as you can add it.  Thus, at least during the day, you should
*not* have an airstone or an undergravel filter turned on.  If you have a
plant aquarium, you should probably not be using an undergravel filter,
anyway, since most kinds of plants do better without one.
     When the lights are on, plants use CO2 and produce oxygen.  In my
tanks, so much oxygen is being produced, that I can often see it forming
streams of bubbles from the plants.  At night, on the other hand, the plants
are actually using oxygen (and not CO2)  If there are not too many fish in
the aquarium, then the oxygen produced by the plants during the day will
tide everyone over until the next morning.  However, if you notice that you
fish are gasping at the surface in the mornings, they are obviously running
out of oxygen.  To remedy this problem, you can simply turn on an air
stone when the lights go out.  This will keep up the oxygen level and
remove excess CO2.  I have the aquarium lights and an air pump on two
separate timers; when one turns on, the other one turns off.  It would
also be fairly easy to rig up a solenoid valve for the CO2 supply and
have it turn the CO2 on and off with the same timer that is regulating
the lights.
     The system that I have described here and use is a very basic one
that works well.  For those who like those sorts of things, the
automation possibilities are almost limitless.  My brother Albrecht, who
is an electronics whiz, has his entire aquarium run be a TRS-80 computer.
Among many other things, the computer measures the pH, adds more CO2 if
the pH is above a predetermined level, and sounds an alarm if the CO2
tank is running low.  Fortunately, you don't need all of that to have a
truly great-looking plant tank.  There are more than thirty kinds of
thriving plants in my aquariums;  I have to weed out bunches once a week,
and I have enough extras to supply all of my aquarium friends and still
sell some at the monthly BAS auction.  The fish are also doing well and
reproducing.
     CO2 makes it easy to grow aquarium plants, but it is not a cure-all.
You still have to observe some of the other essentials of proper plant
care.  Aquarium plants need a lot of light.  When using fluorescent
bulbs, I usually figure about four watts per gallon.  Wide-spectrum plant
and aquarium bulbs seem to work better than the "soft white" ones that you
can buy at the hardware store.  The amount of iron in most aquariums is
too low for maximum plant growth.  I supplement the iron by adding
"Micronized Iron" to the cannister filter (about one teaspoon at every
cleaning) and "Ortho Greenol" directly to the water (two drops per ten
gallons per day).  Both of these are available at gardening stores.
Other nutrients and trace elements that your plants need are usually
taken care of when you feed the fish and do water changes (frequently).
Also, don't forget the regular sacrifices of goat entrails to the
aquarium gods, at midnight when the moon is full.

Top 10 plant tips (ok, we're missing 1 ;-)
------------------------------------------
Tips on helping plants survive:

0)   Buy a good book or send email to Vinny Kutty.  (See books).
1)   Get rid of the bulb that came with the hood...get rid of the
     hood. Use two strip lights or get a shop light if your tank is
     4 feet long. Under-illumination is the main reason for wilting
     plants.
2)   Change some of that ancient water...and keep changing a little
     bit every week.  (Some plants react badly to dramatic changes)
3)   Get rid of big, plant-eating and other herbivorous creatures.
4)   Change bulbs at least once a year. Vitalite, Chroma 75,
     Colortone 75,Triton, Grolux, Agrolite are all good lights. The
     last two are plant lights and they are pinkish in color, so
     mix them with other bulbs. Stay away from Cool white and other
     cheapies.  Also do not change all tubes at the same time.
5)   Plant densely. Don't try to save a couple of bucks here. Good
     beginning plants are Water sprite (can be floating or rooted),
     Hygrophila polysperma (sold as Hygro), Elodea (needs bright
     light), Vallisneria, Hornwort (floating stemmed plant), Java
     Moss (hardy as hell), Amazon swords (occasionally picky, but
     always recommended). Buy as many as you can and plant each
     species in groups. Be careful not to bury the crown (the
     junction of the roots and leaves) of plants like Amazon swords
     and Vallisneria.
6)   Algae will appear if there is enough light for the plants and
     the water contains phosphates and nitrates. Remedy: increase
     water changes, reduce feeding, reduce number of fish and add
     algae-eating fish like Otocinclus and bush-nose/bristle-nose
     pleco.
7)   You need at least 3" of gravel. 4-5 inches is better.  Of
     course, a 10 gallon tank with 5" of gravel will look odd, so
     you decide how much you need.
8)   STAY AWAY FROM ALL FERTILIZERS!!! Unless you want an algae
     garden.  Just do those water changes and if you want to get
     real fancy, you can add trace elements (Ferroplant etc.).
     Remember that most land based fertilizers are toxic for fish.

Algae Types
===========

The following descriptions and control techniques are for common
types of algae found in freshwater aquaria.

There are two categories of algae of concern to aquarists: "good" and
"bad".  Good algae is present in small quantities, is indicative of
good water quality and is easily kept in check by algae eating fish or
simple removal during routine maintenance.  This algae is a natural
consequence of having a container of water with nutrients and a light
source.

Bad algae is either an indicator of bad water quality or is a type
of algae that tends to overtake the tank and ruin the aesthetics
the aquarist is trying to achieve.  The label of "bad" is entirely
subjective.  For example, one type of green, hair-like algae is
considered a plague by some American aquarists, yet is cultivated
by European aquarists as a valuable addition to most tanks, serving
as a dietary supplement for the fish.

Blue-green, slime or smear algae
--------------------------------

Grows rapidly in blue-green, slimy sheets.  Spreads rapidly over
almost everything and usually indicates poor water quality.  However,
blue-green algae can fix nitrogen and may be seen in aquariums with
extremely low nitrates.  Sometimes seen in small quantities between
the substrate and aquarium sides.  Will smother and kill plants.

This is actually cyanobacteria.  It can be physically removed, but
this is not a viable long term solution as the aquarium conditions are
still favorable for it and it will return quickly.  Treatment with 200
mg of erythromycin phosphate per 10 gallons of water will usually
eliminate blue-green algae but some experts feel it may also have
adverse effects on the biological filter bed.  If erythromycin is used
for treatment, ammonia and nitrite levels should be carefully
monitored.

Brown algae
-----------

Forms in soft brown clumpy patches. In the freshwater aquarium, these
are usually diatoms.  Usually indicates a lack of light or an excess
of silicates.  Increased light levels will usually make it disappear.
Easily removed by wiping the glass or siphon vacuuming the affected
area.

Green water
-----------

Green unicellular algae will sometimes reproduce so rapidly that the
water will turn green.  This is commonly called an "algae bloom" and
is usually caused by too much light like direct sunlight.

An algae bloom can be removed by filtering with micron cartridges or
diatom filters.  UV sterilizers can prevent the bloom in the first
place.  Green water is very useful in the raising of daphnia and brine
shrimp.

Film algae
----------

Grows on the aquarium glass and forms a thin haze.  Easily removed
by wiping the glass.  Considered normal with the higher light levels
needed for good plant growth.

Spot algae
----------

Grows in thin, hard, circular, bright green spots, usually on the
aquarium glass but also on plants under high light conditions.
Considered normal for planted tanks.  Must be mechanically removed.
On acrylic aquariums, use a cloth pad or a gentle scouring pad like a
cosmetic "Buff-Puff" and a lot of elbow grease.  On glass tanks,
scraping with a razor blade is most effective.

Fuzz algae
----------

Grows mostly on plant leaves as separate, short (2-3mm) strands.
Considered normal.  It might be a less "virulent" form of "beard"
algae.  Easily controlled with algae eaters such as black mollies,
otocinclus, pekoltia and siamese algae eaters.

Beard algae
-----------

Grows on plant leaves and is bright green.  Individual strands have a
very fine texture but it grows in thick patches and looks just like a
green beard.  It grows up to 4 cm.  It cannot be removed mechanically.
This does not indicate bad water quality but grows very fast and
overtakes the tank, making it a "bad" alga.  Can be eliminated with
Simazine (Aquarium Pharmaceuticals "Algae-Destroyer").

Hair algae
----------

Grows in bright green clumps in the gravel, around the base of plants
like Echinodorus and around mechanical objects.  It has a coarser
texture than "beard algae".  Beard algae will ripple in the water
current, hair algae tends to form matted clumps.  Individual strands
can get to 5 cm or more.  This is easy to remove mechanically by
twirling a toothbrush in it.  Can be troublesome if left unchecked.
This is a popular food supplement for fish among European aquarists.

Thread algae
------------

Grows in long, thin strands up to 30 cm or more.  Tends toward a
dull green color (hard to tell because it is so thin).  Usually
indicates an excess of iron (>0.15 ppm).  Easily removed with a
toothbrush like hair algae.

Staghorn algae
--------------

Looks like individual strands of hair algae but tends to grow in
single branching strands like a deer antler and is grey-green.  Seems
to grow mostly on tank equipment near the surface.  Difficult to
remove mechanically.  Soak affected equipment in a 25% solution of
household bleach and water to remove it.

Brush algae
-----------

This grows in feathery black tufts 2-3 mm long and tends to collect on
slower growing leaves like Anubias, some Echinodorus and other wide
leaf plants.  Also tends to collect on mechanical equipment.  This is
actually a red alga in the genus Audouinella (other names:
Acrochaetium, Rhodochorton, Chantransia).

It cannot easily be removed mechanically.  Remove and discard the
affected leaves.  Equipment can be soaked in a 25% bleach solution,
then scrubbed to remove the dead algae.  Siamese Algae Eaters
(Epalzeorhynchos siamensis) are known to eat this algae and can keep
it in check.  A more drastic measure is treatment with copper.


Prophylactics for Algae
-----------------------

Algal spores are everywhere and will always be present in an aquarium
unless drastic measures are taken.  For fish only tanks, a properly
set up ultraviolet sterilizer will kill algal spores in the water and
prevent them from gaining a toehold.

For planted tanks, this is not a good solution since the UV light will
also oxidize trace elements needed by the plants and will limit the
plant's growth potential.  Unfortunately, conditions that are good for
growing plants are also good for growing algae.  Fortunately, plants
will usually out compete algae for the available nutrients.  However,
if there is an imbalance of nutrients, algae will opportunistically
use whatever is not used by the higher order plants.  Different algae
will utilize different nutrients, causing sporadic outbreaks of new
algae types in apparently stable tanks when a temporary imbalance
occurs.

An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.  To avoid introducing
a new algae type to a planted tank with new plants, a simple bleach
dip seems to work well.  Mix 1 part bleach in 19 parts water and dip
the new plant in it for 2 minutes.  Immediately rinse the plant in
running water, then immerse it water containing a chlorine remover to
neutralize any remaining bleach.  This will kill the algae and only
temporarily slow down a healthy plant.  Plants in poor condition may
succumb to this treatment, but they probably would not have lasted
anyway.


Algae Eaters
============

The most effective control of algae in a planted aquaria is via algae
eating fish.  It is especially critical in the set up of a new tank to
make sure algae does not get established before the plants have had a
chance to establish themselves.  For this reason and to help the
biological filtration get established, it is recommended that some
hardy algae eaters are added right away.

Black mollies
-------------

Black sailfin mollies are excellent candidates for the break-in period
of a planted tank since they are cheap and easy to find.  They are
usually considered expendable and are removed after a month or so.  It
is important to NOT FEED THEM.  If they are fed, they will not be
quite so eager to consume algae.  When they are hungry, they are eager
consumers of most algae types seen during the break-in period.

Otocinclus sp.
--------------

Otocinclus are diligent algae eaters, but are best kept in schools
due to their small size.  One per 10 gallons is a useful rule of thumb.
Various species of otos are seen in the shops at various times; most
are good algae eaters but some seem to prefer the slime coat on fish
to algae.  Unfortunately, there seems to be no way to distinguish the
"attack otos" from normal otos.

Otos seem to be very delicate fish, but this is probably due to
capture and shipping abuse rather than an inherent weakness.  When a
fish shop gets some in, it is wise to wait a while before purchasing
to account for die offs.  Most people report getting a dozen and
having them die over a period of a few months until just a couple are
left.  Those then seem to last for a long time.

"Plecostomus" sp.
-----------------

Plecostomus is the generic name for a wide range of sucker-mouth fish.
Only the smaller types are useful in a planted tank, since the larger
varieties tend to eat the plant right along with the algae.  Two
common types that are useful are the "bristle-nose plecostomus" and
the "clown plecostomus" or Pekoltia.  Both stay under 4" long and
don't seem to cause too much plant damage.  Sometimes broad-leafed
plants like Amazon swords will be scraped a little too closely by
the plecos, so they bear watching.

Their diet can be supplemented by blanched zucchini and bottom feeder
tablets.  They also appreciate a chunk of driftwood in the aquarium to
satisfy their need for cellulose.

Siamese Algae Eater
-------------------

Siamese algae eaters, Epalzeorhynchos siamensis, is a very good algae
eater and is known to eat black brush (red) algae.  The only problem
is that these fish are hard to find.  There are two common fish in
this family.  The most commonly seen is Epalzeorhynchos kallopterus,
commonly known as the Flying Fox.  The Flying Fox is the more
attractive of the two.  It tends to have a brownish body with a very
distinct, sharp-edged black stripe with a distinct, thin gold or
bronze stripe above it.  These tend to be very aggressive when they
are full grown and don't eat red algae (as far as one aquarium
reference is concerned).

The other member is the Siamese Algae Eater.  It is the same shape as
the Flying Fox but tends toward a silverish body with a somewhat
ragged black stripe.  There may be an indistinct gold or bronze stripe
above the black.  These are definitely not aggressive; they are good
companions for discus and small tetras.

When they are young, the differences between E. kallopterus and E.
siamensis may not be very apparent, especially if you haven't seen
both types together.  Unfortunately, most wholesalers don't sell fish
to stores by their scientific name and the common names that are used
sometimes get pretty silly (like "siamese flying fox").  If you
really can't tell which one the store has, buy it anyway, but be
prepared to sacrifice it if it turns out to be the wrong kind (unless
your fish aren't bothered by it, of course).

Farlowella
----------

Farlowella are useful algae eaters although they are very sensitive to
water conditions.  They type known as the Royal Farlowella will get
too large for a plant tank and may cause damage.


Snails
======

Snails are usually considered disasters in a plant tank, but with
dense planting and good plant growing conditions, the right type of
snail can be very useful by consuming dead plant material and
detritus.  Any damage they do cause will be compensated for by
fast plant growth.

Water Hardness
--------------

Most snails do best in harder/alkaline water.  If the hardness/ph
drops below a certain point, their shells will start to dissolve
and/or grow improperly (the behavior seems to be based on species).
Malaysian trumpet snails seem the hardiest, showing little adverse
effect from soft water.  The Ramshorn snails shell will start to
dissolve, and gaps will form in the new shell growth.  Mystery snails
will form gaps.  Most of these problems can be corrected by hardening
the water, and the snails will recover, although exterior shell damage
(from dissolving) will remain.

Malaysian trumpet snail
-----------------------

The Malaysian snail, Melanoides tubercularia, is an interesting
creature in that it lives in the substrate during the day and only
comes out at night.  Its shell is a perfect cone shape and gets to
about 2 cm long.  It is a livebearing snail and reproduces quite
readily.  It is considered beneficial to a plant tank and doesn't seen
to harm plants, even in large populations.  They are hard to find for
sale, but usually come for free on plant shipments.  If desired, Clown
Loaches will keep them and other snails well under control.

Ramshorn
--------

Ramshorn snails are very common and come in various sizes.  Their
shape is as their name suggests.  The smaller varieties (under 1 cm)
are not too damaging to a plant tank, although they seem to relish the
tender leaves of the Hygrophila family.

The other type is the dark and light brown striped Columbian Ramshorn
that can grow big as large as 2 inches in diameter.  The stripes run
the length of the shell with a pattern of random width light-dark-
light stripes that stays constant throughout the snails life.  These
snails are *extremely* prolific and have a terrific appetite for
plants.

Pond
----

Pond snails are football shaped snails under 2 cm in length.  They
are to be avoided, as they will happily eat all your plants.

Mystery (Apple)
---------------

One of the most beautiful kinds of snails are the Mystery snails.  These
snails have a shape similar to the Pond snail, but their spiral is
rounder, and they grow much larger.  They can reach tennis-ball size if
well taken care of.  The come in many varieties.  The snail's body can
be dark, or almost albino (very light with a bright orange speckle
pattern).  The shell can be dark, bright orange, albino, or
multi-colored striped (length-wise like the Ramshorn).  The Apple snail
variety typically has the multi-colored stripes, with a dark body.  In
general these snails don't eat living plants.  They prefer algae and dead
plant/animal material (canned spinach will get you a very large Mystery
snail).


Snail Prophylactics
-------------------

To guard against unwanted snails, use a weak potassium permanganate
solution.  The Manual of Fish Health recommends a concentration of 10
mg/l as a 10-minute bath as a general disenfectant for aquarium
plants.  Then rinse them in running water.  This kills snail eggs and
parasites and might guard against algae spores.

Alum is also useful.  Get "Alum U.S.P." at the drug store.  Soak the
plants in a gallon of water that has up to 10 teaspoons of Alum.  The
Alum kills microscopic bugs.  Longer soaks (2-3 days) will kill snail
eggs and/or snails.

Disclaimer:
-----------
Some answers listed above may reflect personal biases of the author
and the FAQ's contributors.  In cases where the answers name
specific products and their respective manufacturers, these are not
to be taken as endorsements, nor commercials for the manufacturer.
Where cost information is stated (magazine subscription rates),
this is based on "street" information, and are in no way binding on
the publisher.  The answers contained in this series pertain to
discussions on the rec. and alt.aquaria newsgroups, and are by no means
exhaustive.  This series is not intended to take the place of good
aquarium books on the subject matter.

Copyright:
----------
The FAQ owes its existence to the contributors of the net, and as
such it belongs to the readers of rec.aquaria and alt.aquaria.
Copies can be made freely, as long as it is distributed at no
charge, and the disclaimers and the copyright notice are included.

--
Clues for the clueless, personal.peeves edition:

The net is _not_ the information superhighway.  There isn't one.
It isn't cyberspace either.
Archive-name: aquaria/general-faq/water
Rec-aquaria-archive-name: general-faq/water
Alt-aquaria-archive-name: general-faq/water
Sci-aquaria-archive-name: general-faq/water
Posting-Frequency: monthly


                   Water Quality

Rev 1.23 9/3/94

Prologue:
---------
This monthly series is intended to address some of the frequently
asked questions (FAQ) on the rec., alt., and sci.aquaria newsgroups.
Because the answers may not be complete, please feel free to ask
questions.  This is only intended to address first level concerns, and
not to dampen discussions.  Please see the file README for pointers to
other topics.

Please review and send any corrections or inputs to the FAQ maintainers
with "(FAQ)" in the subject line.  You are absolutely welcomed to tackle
(i.e. WRITE) sections that have not been written yet.

I've received recommendations to put email address "pointers" in
the FAQ to vector questions to specific experts on particular
subjects.  If you would like to offer yourself as such an expert,
please send me your email address and the specific topics you want
to host.  Please include an email path that is generally accessible
to the greatest number of people.


WATER QUALITY, NITROGEN CYCLE AND FISH DISEASE PREVENTION:
----------------------------------------------------------
     Water quality is important to the health of your piscine
guests.  In fact, most diseases and parasitic infections are due to
lowered immunal defenses because of poor nutrition and bad water
quality.  So, if your fish are diseased, the first suspect is
usually your water.
     In the wild, most fish live in large bodies of water that
minimizes the changes in water quality.  (i.e. the ocean remains
very constant in salinity, temperature, etc. because it is so
large.  Therefore, marine aquaria require constant vigilant
care).  So depending on the fish, the constancy of the water
quality is also important.

WATER QUALITY
     Besides the nitrogen cycle and the disposal of organic waste,
there are other factors that influence water quality.  Air pumps
can draw contaminated air (read smoker exhalations) into the water.
Other pollutants include paint, insecticides etc.  Therefore air
should be filtered before being pumped into the water.  (See
FILTERS).  Another major form of contaminants are our hands.  If we
do not wash our hands, we carry Lord-knows-what into the water (do
you know where your hands have been?).  If we wash them, we bring
minute traces of soap which is very bad for the mucous on the fish.
The best thing is to rinse our hands in very hot water.

NITROGEN CYCLE
     Ecosystems absorb and make use of the biological/metabolic
waste.  The waste (pee and poo) from animals breaks down into
ammonia and other nitrogen compounds which are used by other
organisms (such as plants) in the ecosystem.
     Ammonia (NH3) and ammonium (NH4+) exist in equilibrium with
the exact ratios depending on pH (higher pH allows for more
ammonia).  Ammonia is poisonous to fish in just about any
concentration (ammonium is relatively harmless).  It is converted
by bacteria of Nitrosomonas species (among others) to nitrite,
which is also toxic (but less so).  Nitrite, in turn, is converted
to relatively harmless nitrate by the bacteria of Nitrobacter
species (among others).  This is where things usually stop in an
aquarium.
     Despite the mistaken notion promoted by all too many aquarium
books, nitrates are not readily taken up by the plants and actually
stop the plants' growth in high concentrations.  There are two ways
to get rid of the nitrates (which become stressful for fish above
60 ppm concentrations): partial water changes and denitrification.
The former is the easiest and least expensive method.  The latter
can be done by using bacteria of Pseudomonas species living in
nearly anaerobic conditions in very slow flow and long-path filters
or by ion-exchange (see Chemical Filtration).  Both are not at all
cheap or very easy to tune.  So stick to partial water changes.
     Plants are somewhat useful in the nitrogen cycle.  It is now
believed that they absorb ammonium and in doing so, they shunt the
nitrogen cycle by shifting the ammonia/ammonium balance.  This in
turn causes more ammonia to be converted to ammonium to maintain
the balance at a specific pH.  But because a large number of plants
are needed (most fish concentrations in the wild are much lower
than that found in aquaria), one should stick with water changes.

 [The preceding is a generalization.  The real bio-chemistry of the
nitrogen cycle and all its aspects is very complex.  And, of
course, all of this is irrelevant to well-tuned salt-water reef
tanks].

NOTES ON NITROGEN TESTS  (Dustin Laurence, [e-mail])

Tests for nitrogen compounds (ammonia or NH3, nitrite or NH2--, and nitrate
or NH3-) measure the substance in question on one of two scales; ion
concentration or nitrogen-ion concentration.  Concentration is generally
expressed in ppm (parts per million).  Ion concentration is then written as
ppm NH3, ppm NO2--, or ppm NO3-, and nitrogen-ion concentration is written
as ppm N-NH3, ppm N-NO2--, or ppm N-NO3-.  (When these symbols are typeset
in a book or instruction sheet, the number are written as subscripts below
the letters and the minus signs which follow NO2 and NO3 are written as
superscripts; the charges (minus signs) are often omitted entirely.)

The difference between these measures is not difficult to understand, but it
can cause a lot of confusion because it is often not obvious which measure
that a particular author or test kit refers to.  First, the bottom line for
those who don't want to know the details:

  [N-NH3] (ammonia-nitrogen) = 0.8 [NH3] (ammonia ion)
                             or
                       [NH3] = 1.3 [N-NH3]


[N-NO2--] (nitrite-nitrogen) = 0.3 [NO2--] (nitrite ion)
                             or
                     [NO2--] = 3.3[N-NO2--]


 [N-NO3-] (nitrate-nitrogen) = 0.23 [NO3-] (nitrate ion)
                             or
                      [NO3-] = 4.4 [N-NO3-]

Where [] indicates concentration in parts per million (ppm).

Ammonia and nitrite concentrations should be too low to measure with hobby
equipment in a cycled aquarium, so the distinction between the two measures
is rarely useful to the amateur hobbyist; 1.3 times zero is still zero!
However, nitrate concentrations will in general not only be nonzero but
increase over time, and it is important for the aquarist to monitor their
levels as necessary and to know what levels are acceptable for her tank.
Therefore, you can usually buy relatively cheap ammonia and nitrite kits and
spend more on a good nitrate kit.

One general rule of thumb is never buy a kit that asks you to compare the
color of a clear liquid to a color on an opaque chart; comparisons of colors
of vastly different optical depths are very hard to estimate.  Good kits
give you a colored transparency for the comparison.

You can't trust the zero of many kits!  Do a test on distilled, reverse
osmosis, or de-ionized water; often you will get a false reading.  Subtract
this reading from each test of your aquarium water for a somewhat better
estimate of what the true levels are.

Most aquarium authors give recommendations for acceptable nitrate levels in
terms of nitrate ion concentrations.  Recommendations for marine tanks range
from 10 to 40ppm nitrate ion for fish-only tanks and <5 to 10ppm nitrate ion
for reef systems, though many fish-only tanks run at much higher levels
(sometimes with no ill effects, and sometimes...).  On the other hand, many
tests read in terms of nitrogen-ion concentrations, since this measure is
more commonly used by professionals.  Trouble often occurs when the hobbyist
measures her nitrate levels in nitrogen-ion concentrations and unwarily
compares the resulting number with a recommendation in ion concentrations,
possibly resulting in nitrate concentrations up to four times that intended.

If a nitrate test does not mention which scale is being used, it may be
possible to determine this by testing an established, well maintained tank.
However, someone who has access to a well maintained tank usually already
knows the scale of his favorite test, and most often it is the person who
is trying to set up a tank for the first time that needs this information.
A list of common tests and their measure is included at the end of this
section as well.

If you absolutely must use a test that does not mention the scale, it is best
to be safe and assume nitrogen-ion concentration.  However, one may
legitimately question the likely quality of a test which does not provide
this information, and a move to a better test is probably indicated.

Now the details: the measure of concentration used on both scales is parts
per million, abbreviated ppm, which means: units of mass of the measured
substance per million units of mass of the final solution. (For aquarist's
purposes, this is identical to milligrams per liter, or mg/l; one liter of
fresh water is almost exactly one kilogram, and a liter of salt water is
only a couple of percent more.)

On the ion scale we measure the mass of the complete ion which makes up the
substance, while in the nitrogen-ion scale we only measure the mass of the
nitrogen atom in that ion.  The first scale measures the concentration of
nitrate ions, while the second measures the concentration of nitrogen in
the form of nitrate.  In fact, it could be called the "nitrogen as nitrate"
scale.

Which scale is more natural depends on one's intent.  Most aquarists are
interested in the toxicity of, say, nitrate ions in aquarium water, in
which case the ion scale is the most natural; it directly measures the
amount of the toxic ion present.  On the other hand, a biologist may be
studying the nitrogen cycle in a particular system, and would thus be
interested in measuring the total amount of inorganic nitrogenous wastes
present in a water sample.  Then the nitrogen-ion scale is most natural,
since the concentrations can be added directly.  One could not add the ion
concentrations for this purpose; this would be exactly like adding apples
and oranges.

The conversions between the scales is easily derived as follows:

        mass of the complete ion
[ion] = ------------------------ [nitrogen-ion]
        mass of a nitrogen atom

And clearly 1 over this conversion factor is used when converting ion
concentration to nitrogen-ion concentration.  The interested reader can
reproduce the above numbers with this formula and the following information.

Masses:

To within a percent, we can use mass of a hydrogen atom (H) = 1, mass of a
nitrogen atom (N) = 14, and mass of an oxygen atom (O) = 16.

Chemical Species  Formula  Mass

Nitrate ion       NO3-     14+3*16=62
Nitrite ion       NO2--    14+2*16=46
Ammonium ion      NH4+      14+4*1=18
Ammonia molecule  NH3       14+3*1=17

The calculation for the ammonia conversion factor is complicated by the fact
that in solution ammonia exists in two forms.  In a given sample of water,
part of the ammonia will be in the form of ammonia (NH3) and part in the form
of ammonium ions (NH4+).  Further, the ratio of ammonia to ammonium is pH
dependent.  However, even if we assume that the ammonia present is all in
one form or the other, the difference between the resulting numbers is not
significant for our purposes (1.21 vs 1.29).

The commonly quoted figure of 1.3 probably results from the fact that if
the ratio of the two species was exactly 50%, the conversion factor would
be exactly 1.25.  Since at the pH of most aquaria more of the ions are
ammonium than ammonia,  the conversion factor must be more than 1.25 and
so we round to 1.3.  [This last sentence is a guess on my part, since I
don't really know what the pH of the average freshwater aquarium is.  It
should be true for all marine aquaria.]

The following is an (incomplete) list of common tests, the measure used
by each, and comments be various people on the net.

DryTab                      ion

    From Dustin Laurence:

        These kits are IMHO almost completely worthless.  Buy something
        like the SeaTest kits instead for good, fairly inexpensive tests.

Dupla                       ion?

    From Ken Koellner:

        English instructions are translated from the German with European
        conventions intact.  American aquarists beware things like 0,2
        for 0.2 .

HACH Saltwatermaster kit    nitrogen-ion

    From Mike Loughlin:

        Designed for aquaculture, sensitive to low concentrations.  Excellent
        technical support.  Cost: $35.75 in the 1992 catalog.

HATCH low range nitrate     nitrogen-ion

    From Greg Smith:

        Range: 0-1ppm N-NO3 in .02 increments.  Smallest readable
        increment: .02ppm.  Cost: ~55.  Comments: repeatable, consistent, kit
        uses colorwheel.  This is the best kit I have used, better than
        lamotte, seatest, kordon.  Number of tests: (30, 50? not sure).

    Keith Rogers Adds:

        Note that you get erroneous results in salt water unless you get the
        proper SW version of NitraVer 6 (one of the reagents used).  They will
        *not* substitute the SW reagent in place of the FW one.  So, if you
        need the kit for SW you also need to buy the other reagent for an
        extra $18.50.  Shipping cost is $8.  The up side to this is you get a
        FW and SW nitrate kit which is better than all the rest bar none.

Kordon low range nitrate    nitrogen

    From Greg Smith:

        Range: 0-55ppm NO3.  Smallest readable increment: 5ppm.  Cost ~10.
        Number of tests: (10 or 20 not sure).  Comments: good kit.

Lamotte                     nitrogen-ion?

SeaTest                     nitrogen-ion

    From Dustin Laurence:

        Good kits for average aquarists.  Reef aquarists will want a better
        (and more expensive!) nitrate kit after their reef has matured.

    From Ray Wallace (on nitrate kit):

        Range: 0-12 mg/L (ppm) and 0-100 mg/L (ppm) Nitrate-Nitrogen (NO3-N)
        scales.  Uses a slide with gradual color scales.  Smallest numbered
        increment is 1.2.  25 tests using premeasured powder in packets.

PRACTICAL FRESHWATER HARDNESS

  Water hardness is of interest to aquarists for two reasons: to
provide the proper environment for the fish and to help stabilize the
pH in the aquarium.  There are two types of water hardness: general
hardness (GH) and carbonate hardness (KH).  A third term commonly used
is total hardness which is a combination of GH and KH.  Since it is
important to know both the GH and KH, the use of total hardness can be
misleading and should be avoided.

GENERAL HARDNESS

  General hardness is primarily the measure of calcium (Ca++) and
magnesium (Mg++) ions in the water.  Other ions can contribute to GH
but their effects are usually insignificant and the other ions are
difficult to measure.  GH will not directly affect pH although "hard"
water is generally alkaline due to some interaction of GH and KH.

  GH is commonly expressed in parts per million (ppm) of calcium
carbonate (CaCO3), degrees hardness (dH) or, more properly, the molar
concentration of CaCO3.  One German degree hardness (dH) is 10 mg of
calcium oxide (CaO) per liter.  In the U.S., hardness is usually
measured in ppm of CaCO3.  A German dH is 17.8 ppm CaCO3.  A molar
concentration of 1 milliequivalent per liter (mEq/l) = 2.8 dH = 50
ppm.  Note that most test kits give the hardness in units of CaCO3;
this means the hardness is equivalent to that much CaCO3 in water but
does not mean it actually came from CaCO3.  Water hardness follows
these guidelines:

      0 -  4 dH,    0 -   70 ppm : very soft
      4 -  8 dH,   70 -  140 ppm : soft
      8 - 12 dH,  140 -  210 ppm : medium hard
     12 - 18 dH,  210 -  320 ppm : fairly hard
     18 - 30 dH,  320 -  530 ppm : hard
     higher : liquid rock (Lake Malawi and Los Angeles, CA)

  General hardness is the more important of the two in biological
processes.  When a fish or plant is said to prefer "hard" or "soft"
water, this is referring to GH.  Incorrect GH will affect the transfer
of nutrients and waste products through cell membranes and can affect
egg fertility, proper functioning of internal organs such as kidneys
and growth.  Within reason, most fish and plants can successfully
adapt to local GH conditions, although breeding may be impaired.

CARBONATE HARDNESS

  Carbonate hardness (KH) is the measure of bicarbonate (HCO3-) and
carbonate (CO3--) ions in the water.  In freshwater aquariums of
neutral pH, bicarbonate ions predominate and in saltwater aquariums,
carbonate ions begin to play a role.  Alkalinity is the measure of the
total acid binding capacity (all the anions which can bind with free
H+) but is comprised mostly of carbonate hardness in freshwater
systems.  Thus, in practical freshwater usage, the terms carbonate
hardness, acid binding, acid buffering capacity and alkalinity are
used interchangeably.  In an aquarium, KH acts as a chemical buffering
agent, helping to stabilize pH.  KH is generally referred to in degrees
hardness and is expressed in CaCO3 equivalents just like GH.

  In simple terms, pH is determined by the negative log of the
concentration of free hydrogen ions (H+) in the water.  If you add a
strong acid such as nitric acid to water, it completely dissociates
into hydrogen ions (H+) and its "conjugate base" or "salt", NO3- or
nitrate.  The hydrogen ions freed in the reaction then increase the
concentration of hydrogen ions and reduce the pH.  Since nitric acid
is the end product of the nitrogen cycle, this explains why aquarium
pH tends to decrease and nitrates tend to increase over time.

  When the aquarium has some carbonate buffering in it, the
bicarbonate ions will combine with the excess hydrogen ions to form
carbonic acid (H2CO3) which then slowly breaks down into CO2 and
water.  Since the excess hydrogen ions are used in the reaction, the
pH does not change very much.  Over time, as the carbonate ions are
used up, the buffering capacity will drop and larger pH changes will
be noted.  From this it is clear why aquariums with low KH seem
unstable - as acid is produced by biological action, the KH is used
up; when it is gone, the pH is free to drop rapidly as H+ ions are
generated.

ADJUSTING FRESHWATER HARDNESS

  If your local water is too hard for the fish and plants you desire,
it can be softened.  There are many ways to do this but some are more
suited to aquarium use than others.  The best (and most expensive, of
course) is to use a reverse osmosis (RO) deionizer and mix the
resulting water (GH=0) with tap water to get the desired GH.  Peat
moss can be used to soften and condition the water for use in South
American cichlid tanks, but will add a slight tea color to the water.
Peat filtering may be difficult to control.  Peat should be boiled
first to kill any unwanted organisms.

  Commercial water softening resin "pillows" can be used on a small
scale, but are not effective for larger amounts of water.  Water
softening systems designed for large scale home use (like bath water)
are not suitable since they use an ion exchange principle: usually
sodium ions are substituted for calcium and magnesium ions and excess
sodium is not desired in the aquarium.  An even worse practice is to
use a cation exchange resin in the hydrogen ion form and use it to
pull divalent ions out of the water.

  If the local GH is too low, it can be raised by adding calcium
sulfate and/or magnesium sulfate.  This has the drawback of
introducing sulfates (SO4--) into the water, so care should be
exercised.  Calcium carbonate can be used, but it will also raise the
KH (this is ideal for the lucky few who have naturally soft water).
Various combinations can be used to produce the desired results.

  Carbonate hardness can be reduced by boiling the water (impractical
for all but the smallest aquariums; let it cool before adding to the
tank :-) or by peat filtering.

  Carbonate hardness can be easily increased by adding sodium
bicarbonate.  Calcium carbonate will increase both KH and GH in equal
parts.

  One teaspoon (about 6 grams) of sodium bicarbonate (NaHCO3) per 50
liters of water will increase KH by 4 degrees and will not increase
general hardness.  Two teaspoons (about 4 grams) of calcium carbonate
(CaCO3) per 50 liters of water will increase both KH and GH by 4
degrees.  Different proportions of each can be used to get the correct
KH/GH balance dictated by the fish and plants in the tank.  Since it
is difficult to accurately measure small quantities of dry chemicals
at home, a test kit should be used to verify the actual KH and GH that
is achieved.


FRESHWATER CHEMISTRY DETAILS

  In more detail, the pH of a buffered solution can be expressed by the
Henderson-Hasselbach equation:

                base
  pH = pK + log ----
                acid

where pK is one or more "equilibrium dissociation constants" of the
weak acid.  In the bicarbonate and carbonate buffering cases, this is:

                  HCO3-                            CO3--
  pH = 6.37 + log -----    and    pH = 10.25 + log -----
                  H2CO3                            HCO3-

Note that the pK values are affected rather appreciably by temperature
and chlorinity.  If you plot the pH versus the ratio of base to acid,
you will get a logarithmic graph something like this:

 100% base             ,---------      ,----------
                      /               /
              H2CO3  |     HCO3-     |      CO3--
  50% mix     + CO2  |<- pH=6.37     |<- pH=10.25
                     |               |
                     /               /
 100% acid  --------`       --------`

       pH   ...5...6...7...8...9...10..11..12...

Bicarbonate buffering is effective over ratios from 1:100 up to
100:1.  This gives an effective pH range of 4.37 to 8.37, which, not
coincidently, defines the pH range of most aquatic life.

  If you add bicarbonate ions (for example, by adding sodium
bicarbonate or calcium carbonate), the base to acid ratio will
increase and the pH will increase.  From the graph, the rate of
increase will be determined by the pH you started with: at pH = 6.37,
you will need a lot of bicarbonate ions to change the pH; at pH=7.5,
you will need a lot less.  (Note: the chemical equilibria of the
various components of the carbonate system (CO2, H2CO3, HCO3- and
CO3--) are very complex and are beyond the capability of the author to
fully describe).

  The rise in pH that occurs when KH is added will be balanced to a
degree by the dissolved CO2 in the water.  Fortunately, CO2 is also a
result of the nitrification process and fish and plant respiration so
it is readily available.  The CO2 will form small amounts of carbonic
acid and bicarbonate which will tend to reduce the pH.  This mechanism
gives us a way to regulate pH in the aquarium.

  If the pH of an aquarium is determined PRIMARILY by the carbonate
buffering system, then the relation of pH and KH and dissolved CO2 is
fixed.  You can change either KH or CO2 to set the pH.  An automatic CO2
injection system will measure pH and inject CO2 to lower it if it
exceeds a set point.  In this case KH is fixed.  As the CO2 is used by
plants and diffuses into the atmosphere, the pH will rise.  The
controller cycles the CO2 on and off to keep the pH around a fixed
value.

  The following chart shows dissolved CO2 levels in ppm for a range of
KH and pH values:

                 degrees KH
            2    3    4    5    6
         +------------------------
     6.6 | 15   23   30   38   46
     6.7 | 12   18   24   30   36
     6.8 |  9   14   19   24   28
 pH  6.9 |  7   12   15   19   23
     7.0 |  6    9   12   15   18
     7.1 |  5    7    9   12   14
     7.2 |  4    6    8    9   11
     7.3 |  3    4    6    7    9
     7.4 | 2.4   3    5    6    7
     7.5 | 1.9  2.5  3.5   5    5
     7.6 | 1.5   2   2.5   3    4
     7.7 |  1   1.5   2   2.5   3
     7.8 | 0.9  1.1  1.5   2    2
     7.9 | 0.6  0.9   1   1.2  1.6
     8.0 | 0.5  0.7  0.9   1   1.2

Note that typical dissolved CO2 levels in a moderately stocked
aquarium will be in the range of 2-3 ppm.  From the chart, it is clear
that almost any carbonate hardness will produce a pH in the mid 7
range unless extra CO2 is added.  For a typical planted aquarium,
pH=6.9, KH=4 and CO2=15 ppm is just about ideal.

PRACTICAL SALTWATER HARDNESS (to be written!)

FISH DISEASE PREVENTION
     Nutrition, water quality, and sanitary practices should
prevent most diseases.  Healthy fish have a way of fending off
attacks.
     Good sanitary practices include: not pouring pet store water
into an established tank, not buying diseased fish , not using the
same net between aquaria without first rinsing, and storing the
net in a clean, non-dusty place.
     Many times, live food are the most nutritious (for fish that
are meat eaters), but carry with them a danger of parasites and
disease.  Most notable are live tubifex worms (collected from
sewers and other nasty habitats; buy the freeze-dried variety),
goldfish (these are often sick by the time they are in the store),
pond collected daphnia etc.  One should always inspect the food
before offering it to the fish.

WHEN FISH ARE SICK
     When your fish are sick, you can post for diagnoses
(Consultation of a fish book is probably preferred).  Please
include as much information as you can gather.

1.   Describe the condition of the fish with any externally visible
     growths, symptoms, behavioral modifications etc.  Also, post
     the length of time this has been going on.
2.   Describe the aquarium setup.  How big is the aquarium, how
     many fish, what kinds and how large?  How frequent are water
     changes performed?  Lighting and lack of?
3.   Test the water and post pH, temperature and possible
     fluctuations, color, smell.  (taste? :-)
4.   If you have the kits, test and post the ammonium, nitrite,
     nitrate and hardness levels.
5.   Describe medication already used, and the after effects.

     Some medication companies (such as Mardel) print a diagnoses
chart and include this with the medicine.  Of course they recommend
their own brands as a cure for everything.  Find out the disease
and consult the net for recommendations.
     Many people recommend a hospital tank for isolating sick fish.
The smaller hospital setup has the added benefit of minimizing the
amount of medicine used.  If hospital tanks are not left constantly
running, and are stored away, starting up one of these will be the
equivalent of starting a new aquarium.  A biological filtration
will need to be started, or seeded from the old filters.  (Some
types of treatment makes this irrelevant since the medicine will
kill all the beneficial bacteria).


Disclaimer:
-----------
Some answers listed above may reflect personal biases of the author
and the FAQ's contributors.  In cases where the answers name
specific products and their respective manufacturers, these are not
to be taken as endorsements, nor commercials for the manufacturer.
Where cost information is stated (magazine subscription rates),
this is based on "street" information, and are in no way binding on
the publisher.  The answers contained in this series pertain to
discussions on the rec. and alt.aquaria newsgroups, and are by no means
exhaustive.  This series is not intended to take the place of good
aquarium books on the subject matter.

Copyright:
----------
The FAQ owes its existence to the contributors of the net, and as
such it belongs to the readers of rec.aquaria and alt.aquaria.
Copies can be made freely, as long as it is distributed at no
charge, and the disclaimers and the copyright notice are included.

--
Clues for the clueless, personal.peeves edition:

The net is _not_ the information superhighway.  There isn't one.
It isn't cyberspace either.