a few questions

  • We are currently upgrading MFK. thanks! -neo
R

rjssniper

Feeder Fish
MFK Member
Jan 31, 2011
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ohio
1. based of what ive read and asked around i understand carbon helps make the water crystal clear. i went to the lfs the other day and boaght some small packets of carbon to put in along with bio wheel cartriges. when i put them in the dust darkened my tank....understandable.....immediatly i noticed my bass were rubbing all over stuff. obviously they were somewhat stressed so i took the packets out. i dont have a high quality canister filter yet so untill then i was trying to find ways to really clear up my water. should i just put the packet in and wait a while. i thought the carbon sediment in the water might be grazing their skin and they would be ok ounce it settles. just a thought.

2. ive had a bluegill in there i purchased from a hatchery my bass have doubled in size in the time i have them but the blue gill grows VERY slowly is that just their growth rate. he gets everything my bass get and for a pellet feed im using omega one.

3. i have all fish but 1 bass converted to the pellets. weekly or once every two weeks i purchase a dozen fathead minnows that he loves but he refuses to eat the pellets if he eats a few minnows every one to two weeks is he starving? and should i feed minnows more often? thanks in advance all advice and comments welcome
 
Carbon will get the water clearer, if the lack of clarity is due to dissolved chemicals (usually nitrates or tannins). If the water is cloudy from suspended particles, you need finer mechanical filtration. Either way, increased size and/or frequency of water changes should help.

Bluegill grow pretty rapidly in my experience. Some individuals just grow slowly. It's also possible your fish has worms or pathogens that are slowing his growth.

Just watch your fish's belly. If it gets really sunken, he's starving. Otherwise, he's fine. He'll be more likely to switch to pellets if you quit giving him minnows, though; hunger is the best seasoning!
 
Carbon should always be rinsed before use....should say something about it on the label. Also, you shouldnt rely on carbon to keep your water clean...if it's off color, figure out what's causing it and fix that. As for the bass that won't eat pellets, continuing feeding feeders will just make it harder for it to switch, and may also spread parasites to all your fish. Most fish can easily go 1-2 months without eating, just starve it a bit longer and then try the pellets.
 
growth rate of yor large mouth is nearly double of what your bluegills is. bluegill typically will get 4-5 inches in a year, bass will be 10-12"

carbon should always be rinsed, it probably also messed with the water some adding all the dust and debris in there. what sort of not clear is your tank? you dont offer much there to help it. is it yellow, is it brown, green, white, blue, orange?? it can be any number of those colors and they all stem from different things
 
my tank water is a clear color and it is fairly clear but its not like BAM! clear thats all. i look at some other photos and videos on youtube at how amazing their tank looks and i think to myself wow thats awesome. and what always seems to bring them out is water clearity. if i had to guess my bluegill has grow an inch in 7 mos. in that time i have treated the tank a couple times for external parasites so should i treat with melafix for worms? my bass stomach looks like its slightly sunken in after a weeks worth of pellets but ill hold off on minnows for a while.
 
Some tank specs would help, as per the water clarity. I've found that frequent gravel vacing and water changes are the best way to maintain water clarity. Bass are incredibly dirty fish, they need more water changes and cleaning than most other fish.
 
scroll down to "thought i would post an update and some pics" thread theres a few close ups an a full tank shot. i do a 30-50% water change weekly but very seldom vaccum gravel, seems every time i do my ammonia spikes even though i only vace 1/4 of the gravel.
 
Diatom filters will really help with clarity from what I hear (I have no personal experience with them). It seems like you have a good w/c change schedule, what is the tank size, and what all is in it? What do you have for filtration?
 
i have a 75 gallon tank with bass, bullhead, 1 bluegill, and koi.....all juvies nothing over 6-7 inches. filtration is a penguin biowheel 350 im debating a marinland magnum hangon canister filter for some assistance and water polishing.
 
What are your water parameters? What is your maintance schedule? Carbon isn't really nessisary, I never use it unless I want to remove meds and then only for a day or two. 50% weekly water changes with gravel vacuming should be enough to keep your tank and fish in good shape. Also don't clean your filter too often over cleanning or changing the media (floss) too much will kill off too much benifical bacteria putting your tank into a mini cycle that will cloud the water. You should just rinse the filter midea in a bucket of tank water every two weeks or when you see the floss is clogged and the water is running out the bypass, only replacing it once every couple of months and then only half of it at a time. If your water is yellowed you went too long between water changes.

As far as feeding goes stop using feeders and force them to eat pellets, a healthy fish will not starve it self if food is available. It's a battle of wills and you have the upper hand. GL
 
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