Hey guys. Im keeping a Alligator gar in my 75 for the meantime before i build my monster tank. I have a full UGF with a tetra whisper 100 air pump and a Penguin biowheel 350 on my 75 gal. Do i really need the UGF in order to keep my gar healthy? I wouldnt mind keeping the UGF if it didnt have those annoying tubes running in the back and taking up space for my fast growing gar. Anyone have any advice on this? thankss
Do i really need my UGF?
- Thread starter kj01fl@live.com
- Start date
I wouldn't just get rid of the ugf, I'd get rid of gravel all together. I recently got rid of all the substrate in my 150 and it's the best thing I've done to the tank to help water quality and to keep it looking nice. The gravel will hold poop and create amonia even if you have an ugf.
greatfulxdead;3043638; said:
If you're going to get rid of your gravel, do it in several steps, as your substrate does contain a large amount of the biological filtering capacity of your tank, and removing it all at once will cause an ammonia spike.
Many claim substrates to be ammonia "factories", but this is usually only the case if you aren't properly maintaining it. If you vacuum it regularly and have sufficient water movement, gravel can act as a very effective in tank biofilter.
that said, you don't need the ugf for good water quality. They are only really effective if you have a good flow rate through the riser tubes, which is difficult to get without a large air pump, or a decent in-tank water pump.
Okay cool! Im still gonna ponder it for a little while longer. I definately notice the ammonia spike even when i just unplug my air pump for a few. I guess I have plent of time right now but im gonna need to make a change soon enough. Thanks for the help. Anyone else have any info?
I would keep it, but run it with powerheads if you can rather than the old air pump/lift tube setup. But you probably don't need it, it's just the gator gar in the tank?
CTU2fan;3047025; said:
Il consider that. And no i have a few cichlids and an asain gar in there as well. Im planning on dropping off the cichlids at the LFS before my gator gar eats them lol