Fish room

First topic message reminder :

I am back in Mtl so it is time to work on the fish room. It is not as big as it sounds; it is a closet where the water tank is located and measures about 3 x 1.5 metres and that space includes the water tank. The advantage is that thanks to that tank, the temperatures are quite high (currently my water is still 25 degrees without a heater) so I will only need a heater in winter time if breeding e.g. my angels.

For those that have seen the thread on CAC, I have a gorilla rack in there from which I want to use only 3 shelves for tanks, and the other 2 will be for storing stuff. Then there is a small Ikea rack on which I have a 29 gallon and on the shelf below there is space for 2 5 gallons side by side.

The first task will be to replace the rather thin shelves of the big rack with 3/4 plywood. I want to varnish them with boat varnish to protect them from the inevitable water that will drop on them.

Then I need an electrician to put in some extra outlets plus I assume the current 2 circuits that are part of that room (1 for the water tank and 1 for the air exchanger) need to get extra amperage.

Until here it is all pretty straight forward. The third task will be lighting. Gary's system with hanging lamps is only possible for the one tank that is on a top shelf. The rest will need some other kind of lighting.

As the space between the shelves is quite small, I wonder what the best option would be. Installing shelf wide T5's? Should I buy these LED plastic chains/hoses that you buy by the metre? Anybody any ideas?

You plan to demineralize your soil? Will you be adding any nutrients back to it? The potting mix you have has a lot of twigs and organic matter in it. There won't be much left after you demineralize it. I just put mine in right out of the bag and capped it. The organic matter will break down slowly over time providing nutrients to your plants. So far I haven't had an algae bloom and we have been running for three weeks!

Sorry, it is called 'mineralising the soil' . Here is the article about it:
http://www.aquaticplantcentral.com/forumapc/library/52554-how-mineralized-soil-substrate-aaron-talbot.html 

hello_rockview12 wrote:  So far I haven't had an algae bloom and we have been running for three weeks!

Don't worry its coming  

mineralizing the MGOCPM will help on tannin's and ammonia . I use it straight out of the bag no sifting soak it in a bucket for a week or two ( not to much water you should be able to make a snow ball out of it )

the dirt guy wrote:

hello_rockview12 wrote:  So far I haven't had an algae bloom and we have been running for three weeks!

Don't worry its coming  

Oh no!   

the dirt guy wrote:mineralizing the MGOCPM will help on tannin's and ammonia . I use it straight out of the bag no sifting soak it in a bucket for a week or two ( not to much water you should be able to make a snow ball out of it )

Considering trying a dirt tank myself, so why would you soak it for week or two?

Steve

Sbenson11 wrote:Considering trying a dirt tank myself, so why would you soak it for week or two?

Steve

I don't know whether soaking the soil has the same effect as 'mineralising' it, but the procedure as described in the link I posted is for:
'Mineralizing the soil beforehand helps to speed the breakdown of organic materials in the soil. In turn the mineralized soil will help shorten the initial algae outbreak period that many aquarists experience when using a soil substrate. Soil mineralization occurs from exposing bacteria, enzymes and other soil microbes to oxygen in a moist environment. The microbes break down the organic materials in the soil into bio-available minerals. As an added bonus these new bio-available forms of nutrients are generally only available to plants and not to algae.'

Today the electrician came: I am lucky, the outlet is already by itself on a sole circuit! So the only thing he needed to do is to put a gfi.

This was easy; however it turns out that the apartment has lots of things that are not electricity conform and this apartment is from 2007! They are not dangerous, but the constructor should not have been allowed to sell them like that... Where was the building inspection or are they also now testifying in front of the Charbonneau commission?!

Once the temperatures go up a bit, I will put one more coating of the oil, and from tomorrow onwards, I can start installing the tanks.

Getting water into that room will prove to be a bit more difficult as the space available is small and I am afraid I cannot find an appropriately sized sink for that space. The only way to do it then is to make a 'Mexican sink' which is basically a tiled enclosure with a drain. However, this is much more elaborate to do.

If you are going to mineralize your soil I understand that regular top soil is a better choice as it doesn't have as much organic matter in it. Once you remove the organic matter from the MGOPM you won't have much left. I have done a great amount of reading into both methods over the past few months.

What is the difference between regular topsoil and organic Miracle Gro for this matter?

I won't be removing anything in this process. What I understand is that by wetting the soil, you allow microbes to process it in a way that it is easier for the plants to uptake the nutrients.

mikebike wrote:I pick up nylon stockings and panty hose at the $ store when they are 4 for a $1 : or cheaper.
put the cleaned potting soil in them and place it where you want it.
Cover the poting soil logs and or insert plants into them.

I am curious how this works, as I am also considering trying dirt. Do you have these soil logs all along the bottom under the cap? Wouldn't that make it more difficult to plant the plants. Do you cut holes in the nylon for the plants or do you place the plants between the logs and let the roots find their way in?

I have set up a new thread about 'dirt' tanks in the plants section to continue the discussion.

Sorry, I guess your original thread got hijacked. I am looking forward to hearing how your fish room progresses. Keep us posted and thanks for the photos.

Starfish wrote:Sorry, I guess your original thread got hijacked. I am looking forward to hearing how your fish room progresses. Keep us posted and thanks for the photos.

It is not a problem, I thought it would only be more convenient to talk about 'dirt' tanks in a separate thread.

http://www.amazon.com/Pedestal-Sink-Small-Bathroom-Victorian/dp/B001BBTMRO/ref=pd_sim_sbs_hi_2

Would this idea work?

I was focused on getting a sink in which I could fit a bucket, as then we would be able to use it also for cleaning. However, I think that is not going to work with the space available.

I should just try to get a sink that fits in the space available, put a faucet with a screw thread above it, and then buy the appropriate length of washing machine hose so I can fill up buckets.

Your proposal made me just think of this Gary, so thanks!

Sbenson11 wrote:

JayB wrote:When we installed an automatic washer & dryer (replacement for our old wringer washer) years ago,

WOW...

Your even more of an antique then I though you were.  

Not that I have any idea how far back a wringer/washer would have been, I have heard stories of these things, but it was way before my time.

Steve

Yes, I am an antique. :lol:However, I did have that wringer washer until the late 1970's as I couldn't afford an automatic washer until then. The old wringers did the job... just took lots of work.

Sbenson11 wrote:3 coats applied by a cloth? sounds like a messy, stinky project. I am hoping to subcontract my wood preserver to one of my staff, maybe.

That doesn't help Biulu... unless you're going to send one of your staff to Montreal to help. 

Biulu, the Mexican sink sounds like a lot of work. What are the measurements of the available space for a sink?

I am actually ahead of Steve in this game; I am done with the painting.... I was going to install the shelves today and put all the tanks in their final space. However, I noticed that the shelves still smell heavily so I am taking advantage of the sunny, dry day to put them outside on the balcony for another few hours.

You are right Jay, the Mexican sink looks easy to construct but it is expensive because of the sealing etc. So, I have decided that I need to go with a normal sink (see my last post). The space available is around 40 cm wide and 30 cm deep.

Biulu wrote:The space available is around 40 cm wide and 30 cm deep.

Darn that it a small area... I did a quick search of laundry/utility tubs so see if I could find anything but no luck.

I found already several options including a corner sink which seems to provide the best space use...

Thanks to my better half that was so clever to look under industrial sinks, we found the following:

http://www.globalindustrial.ca/p/plumbing/sinks/hand/wall-mount-hand-sink-14-x-10-x-5-includes-faucet

Sweet, nice find.

Steve

yep! I only need to check now with the plumber whether he can attach it to the wall as the wall is like cardboard and can't hold much.... I still have to get used to the fact that here not all walls are made of brick or concrete.....

So, tanks are all in their final place. As you can see I am using this room also a winter place for my orchids. That is why I have replaced the main bulb with one that has day light. There is room for expansion, in terms of tanks, but this won't happen until I travel less.

In the last picture, above the buckets is where the sink is supposed to come.

The installation of the sink and attaching the extra power cords in a proper way (plus the set-up of the 20 gallon long) are the only things left to do.


DSC00294 by Biulu, on Flickr


DSC00295 by Biulu, on Flickr


DSC00296 by Biulu, on Flickr

Looks good. That is a very small space for a sink. Hope it works out.