Mary Burns wrote:
"Mister Gardener" wrote in message
...
On 3 May 2006 17:05:50 -0700, "Frank" wrote:

mcahill wrote,
The 90 gal is not currently set up but I have a Emporer 400
and a UGF with 100 lbs of gravel.....

Unless your using a RF (reverse flow) powerhead on the under gravel
filter ((UGF)(RFUGF)) I sure would think twice on using one. With it
set-up as a RF, at least the solid waste stays on top of the gravel
where it can be removed by your power filter or siphon. I set-up my
first two 90 gal. planted tanks with the RFUGF, went the extra on
lighting and CO2. The plants went nuts, roots cloged the UGF plates
within a couple of months causing hydrogen sulfide pockets within the
gravel - some plants started dying while other grew great, tanks
smelled like rotten eggs, that end of the house (where my wife made me
sleep)smelled like rotten eggs, and we had to eat out every meal. I was
going to go back to non-planted tanks, or the wife was eather going to
kill me, or move me and the tanks out of the house (she had already
called a couple of her friends - they didn't want me eather - I hope it
was the tanks they didn't want). To make a long story short, the UGF
came out of the tanks, they were replanted, a second bio-wheel power
filter was installed on each tank, the tanks, plants, and fish look
great and I'm sleeping back in the bedroom (even though the wife won't
feed the fish anymore or help with their maintenance). Beleave me,
after using UGF for over 30 years, you don't want to use them in a
planted tank with RF power heads, and you don't want to use them in a
non-planted tank without them being RF as DOCs build-up for to quickly.
Get your tank a second twin bio-wheel filter or canister and you might
not get kicked out of your house!

I am hoping to move the Whisper #2, the gravel, and the plants from the
20 into the 90 in order to do a non-cycling transfer. Will this work ?

It's not the tank or amount of water that's being cycled, it's the
filter. If you move the same bio-load along with it's filter, you
shouldn't get but mabe a small mini spike, due to the lack of the
bio-film on the new tanks glass, rocks, gravel, etc.

I currently have eight small Angels (dime to quarter size) in a 20 gal
tank. I am growing them out in this tank for a few months before I
move them over to a 90 gal....

A few months! The quarter size ones should be moved within a few weeks
if they are in a 20 gal. long tank. And mabe another month if they are
in a 20 gal. high. ................... Frank

I used to employ an undergravel together with a power filter and
figured it doesn't get any better than this. Of course, the discovery
of RF UG did get better and so it goes. But there has been a long
standing, decades, debate over possible bad effects on fish,
especially those with fancy flowing fins, like angels and fancy
guppies, from undergravel filtration. As I got more into plants, I
moved away from UG filtration. Another hotly debated issue on some
fronts, plants and UG. But my most outstanding memory of undergravel
filters was the necessity of lifting them up and cleaning out the goop
every few months, or year, depending. That was one messy task. And I
never could avoid it, sooner or later, it was going to need the whole
tank overhaul. And to those who will immediately tell me about their
UG filtered tanks that have required no heavy maintenance for 15
years, I say more power to you.

Back to the original post - I will re-emphasis the urgency of moving
those young angels into the big tank soon. Very soon. And your Whisper
2 is an older model, the only difference between it and the newer is
the addition of the bio sponge. If you haven't already, Whisper sells
the sponge and frame to instantly upgrade your older model for less
than 3 dollars. A worthwhile purchase.


-- Mister Gardener
-- Pull the WEED to email me


I agree with not using an UG for angels. I have recently removed it on one
of my angel tanks, where they were not doing as well as others without UG
filters, despite same food and water changes. Since, they have really grown
and no one is sick at all. I don't know why, but as they are thriving now,
it's all that matters. Most breeders use barebottom tanks for spawning and
growing out angels as the gravel stores stuff hostile to young angels. My
spawning pairs have a barebottom part where they always spawn in the same
place and just a small amount of gravel with live plants on the other side.
They look after the babies/wigglers on the bare side and always move them to
the planted area as they become free swimmers. The babies use the plants as
a safe place to explore and even try to hide from mum and dad, who try to
keep them all together!!! Mary

Do you still use the powerheads for airiation ? Or, do you just employ
the power filters ?