Getting My Groove Back...

  • We are currently upgrading MFK. thanks! -neo
Agreed. I don’t believe dorsal fin count is the be-all end-all in the PBB discussion. Having had my fair share of PBB come through my tanks, they have an a certain look and shape to them that you can’t readily articulate into words. The jury is still out on this particular piece, but I trust the chain that led him here. I guess we’ll see what clean water and good food does over time.

Great stuff man!
 
Yup. The plan is in its infancy and probably a couple months out, but it will be my Mona Lisa. Nice acrylic tank, big K1 sump, 24/7 drip, in-line growout tank plumbed into the same system, etc etc.


You buy into the K1 hype ? For Polys ?

But yeah excited for you man.

In other news, this Koliba is an absolute dream to own. Some bichers just have that monster gene. You know what I’m talking about: they eat right out of the bag, never skip a meal, and are bottomless pits come feeding time. That’s this guy, verbatim. He will eat until he’s more round than long LOL. I fully anticipate this guy to crest the 18” mark before the year is up.

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Yeah unfortunately my koloton is the opposite. By far the slowest growing LJ I've ever owned.
 
J jaws7777 no hype man, K1 is the real deal. I believe water parameters are the final frontier to monster polys. K1 can handle insanely large bioloads. It stands to reason that the better water quality, the better results. That, coupled with a constant stream of fresh water will provide the nutrients needed could be the swing to get over that 18-24” roadblock we often experience in bichers raised in captivity.

I’ve seen what a drip system does for fish in friends’ tanks and it’s unreal. Fish literally grow 2-3x faster than a tank with traditional water changes.
 
Big poly needs
A) lots of quality food pellets, cut fish variety
B) water quality not just parameters but toms of fresh water since poly release growth inhibiting hormones into the water which is why any have issues getting over the 16 to 20 range
C) if you can't drip need tons of water changes big reason I change 200 gallons 3 times a week on my tank. I feed 4 to 5 times a week
D) genetics if a bichir eats alot and has good genes they will grow.
E) as far as k1 vs other media both work great I think the k1 hypes is real because it has the ability to break ammonia down so fast is for the hype but in Asia so many sump s are at least half the size of the tank filled with a section of mechanical then crammed with as much ceramic rings media as possible.
K1 or other media work great but imo food and fresh water are the keys to growth. Good luck look forward to it.
 
J jaws7777 no hype man, K1 is the real deal. I believe water parameters are the final frontier to monster polys. K1 can handle insanely large bioloads. It stands to reason that the better water quality, the better results. That, coupled with a constant stream of fresh water will provide the nutrients needed could be the swing to get over that 18-24” roadblock we often experience in bichers raised in captivity.

I’ve seen what a drip system does for fish in friends’ tanks and it’s unreal. Fish literally grow 2-3x faster than a tank with traditional water changes.

Big poly needs
A) lots of quality food pellets, cut fish variety
B) water quality not just parameters but toms of fresh water since poly release growth inhibiting hormones into the water which is why any have issues getting over the 16 to 20 range
C) if you can't drip need tons of water changes big reason I change 200 gallons 3 times a week on my tank. I feed 4 to 5 times a week
D) genetics if a bichir eats alot and has good genes they will grow.
E) as far as k1 vs other media both work great I think the k1 hypes is real because it has the ability to break ammonia down so fast is for the hype but in Asia so many sump s are at least half the size of the tank filled with a section of mechanical then crammed with as much ceramic rings media as possible.
K1 or other media work great but imo food and fresh water are the keys to growth. Good luck look forward to it.

No doubt water quality is a must. You guys weren't too active when I was in in nitrate reduction mission lol.

My thing with K1 is if reg bio is producing water with 0 ammonia and nitrites then is k1 really that much better ?

You'll never hear me talk bad about drips. I'm a big fan and still planning on doing one. Only reason why I'm iffy is because it would be draining into a sump pit. Worried that if the sump pump ever fails... Bad things lol
 
No doubt water quality is a must. You guys weren't too active when I was in in nitrate reduction mission lol.

My thing with K1 is if reg bio is producing water with 0 ammonia and nitrites then is k1 really that much better ?

You'll never hear me talk bad about drips. I'm a big fan and still planning on doing one. Only reason why I'm iffy is because it would be draining into a sump pit. Worried that if the sump pump ever fails... Bad things lol


J jaws7777 I think k1 primarily just convert the ammonia to 0 extremely fast and is extremely efficient at doing it. I have the same fear is you pumps fail blackout you lose your set up a lot faster than a regular submerged sump setup which keeps me away from the k1.

And the biggest thing to me is if in Asia they're doing big sumps with just tons of ceramics and a lot of mechanical if it's good enough for them that's good enough for me so that's why I use it.
 
J jaws7777 I think k1 primarily just convert the ammonia to 0 extremely fast and is extremely efficient at doing it. I have the same fear is you pumps fail blackout you lose your set up a lot faster than a regular submerged sump setup which keeps me away from the k1.

And the biggest thing to me is if in Asia they're doing big sumps with just tons of ceramics and a lot of mechanical if it's good enough for them that's good enough for me so that's why I use it.

It must have it's place I know the Ray guys love it. As long as I don't see ammonia I'm not worried now if the stuff reduces nitrates and lowers TDS then I'm all in lol
 
J jaws7777 I think k1 primarily just convert the ammonia to 0 extremely fast and is extremely efficient at doing it. I have the same fear is you pumps fail blackout you lose your set up a lot faster than a regular submerged sump setup which keeps me away from the k1.

And the biggest thing to me is if in Asia they're doing big sumps with just tons of ceramics and a lot of mechanical if it's good enough for them that's good enough for me so that's why I use it.

I agree. I would never use just 1 kind of biological media. Bacteria will colonize all your media it may be in greater concentration in areas that are more hospitable like k1. K1 is really effective because of how much oxygen it receives and the motion. The boiling causes old bacteria to fall off allowing younger stronger bacteria to flourish the added oxygenation helps the bacteria to convert the ammonia and nitrite as quickly as possible. If you plan on k1 I'd have some ceramic or lava rock or sponge in the sump somewhere too.
 
don't wanna spoil the party but I reckon that PBB may actually be a nigerian lap.. buuut as you said, the jury is still out so do keep us updated!

Great looking koliba btw :)

No worries. I’m still apprehensive to attach a label to him because I have my suspicions as well. Whatever it is, it’s got a home here.

As far as K1, I’m a believer. My last setup had a K1 sump and the results spoke for themselves. I must have had 30+ fish in the tank, all big, and the water was invisible. I would test the water periodically, and never a blip of ammonia or nitrite, even after feeding 2-3 tilapia fillets daily for a week. The stuff is the truth. In the never ending chase for perfect water, I think the answer is clear.

But I also agree, the more media, the better. I have ~50lbs of Eheim Substrat Pro and misc ceramic media sitting in boxes that I’ve collected over the years. I’m sure that will find it’s way into the new setup as well. I’ve also amassed s nice collection of Marine Pure media as well. That stuff claims to have anaerobic areas to eliminate nitrates as well, but I’ve never used it, so I’ll reserve judgement until it’s been in use for a few months.

All in all, I’m glad the bicher community embraces filter tech like the ray guys. So many people slap a couple Aquaclears and cheap canisters on their big tanks and call it a day because, let’s face it, bichers will survive a nuclear fallout LOL. We’re leagues behind the hobbyists overseas. Let’s change that!
 
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