Malawis and buffers...

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I

ikevi

Fire Eel
MFK Member
Nov 19, 2006
1,228
17
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Oregon
So I am cranking away at my beast of a tank, and I think I really should go sand just since I like the look a little better.

The problem is that I really do need to use shells to keep my tank stable. SO does anyone have any idea how many shells are needed to accomplish this? I think I may just put about 2 gallons worth in my sumps. Do you think that will be enough for ~270 gallon of really soft water? They would be in the area with the pumps so I think a lot of water flow would go over them. Heck worse comes to worse I put some in the over flow area right?

Anyways does anyone have any clue how much (say in weight) of shells it takes for say 10 gallons to sit at say 7.8. (IE where the shells really stop doing anything.)
 
I have always just guessed and checked it a couple of days later to see where it was. If it's too low, add some more.
 
The amount of shells really only determines how long it will take for enough limestone to dissolve to restore the balance you need. If you only have a few shells it may take weeks for the balance to be restored after a water change. If you have heaps of them sitting in a good water flow it will happen quickly.

So like Ziggy says, put some in and see what happens. If things aren't happening fast enough, add some more. :D

Cheers

Ian
 
ugh. The check and see method. I would have figured that people by now would have recorded what they have gotten. Well I will look around.
 
just add a bunck of crushed coral to the sump. I have neutral hard water here so 2-3 lbs in the HOBs does the trick for me.
 
Ah yes those are good. I actually do use seachems buffers. But with shells or crushed coral things stay much more stable over time. (My water has like no Kh/GH.) Anyways I will record what I see happens when I get this new tank fully running. (I am hoping I can fill it this weekend.)

bal;1345044; said:
they have, and it can be a lot easier than guess-estimating....

http://kensfish.com/phbuffers.html
Click to expand...
 
i have sand in my 180 mbuna, but i keep 3 knee-high pantyhose stuffed with crushed coral in the sump--and it works great.
 
270 hey nice you deserve a beast like that .I have 2 large filter bags completly full of agronite and I have been a steady 8.4 so far. I put them in my sump in the end of the filtration b4 it goes to the pump.Welcome to the world of doing nothing but staring in to a glass box with fish you think are trying to comunicate with you for days upon end lol..My fish have finally started to move the gravel around and exspose the usj system .Make a journal of the build!!
 
A journal... hm mostly me trying something. Realizing it isn't working, running to home depot, returning something buying something new. Now I think I am on track, though I doubt I will fill till after the 28th since I will be gone for a week. (I do plan to test with just the pump and overflow filled before that though.) SO far I have returned about 100 bucks worth of stuff. And I have to use 2" diameter piping, which has been giving me a pain with leaking. (And of course I have had fun with getting silicon all over the place.) But if I am feeling up to it I will snap some shots and update the picture thread.
 
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