Hey folks. Wanted to share my minnow tank I have started after getting some good ideas from this board! 
The goal is to keep keep anywhere from 1 to 3 dozen minnows in my garage as 'standby' fishing minnows so I don't have to deal with my local bait shop's horrible business hours! I'll try to keep a few dozen on hand, take them fishing when I want, bring home any unused minnows, and replenish during the week as needed so I'm always ready to go. At least that is the goal! 
And by the way, this is my very first kind of aquarium so I know I have a lot to learn. That is why I am here.
The tank is a standard Rubbermaid 18 gallon storage box. I plan to keep it about half full so maybe 9 gallons. After trying 4 different pumps (on 4 different trips to the pet store) I finally settled on a Maxi-Jet 900 (230 gph). I have a 500 gph bilge pump for a boat but thought it caused too much turbulence in the water and would stress the minnows. I'm also using a bubbler for aeration. I'm currently using a timer to cycle the pump and aerator on/off every 15 minutes.
The filter is a household water filter I bought at Lowes. Fittings were also from Lowes in the outdoor irrigation section. I installed a length of PVC down the center of the filter housing to force the water to first flow through the filter media, then it is drawn into the holes I drilled in the lower section of the PVC pipe. Water exits as it flows back up the pipe and out the outflow fittings. The pipe is cut to the exact length to fit into indentions that held the original water filter cartridge in place.
I have 2 scrubbies I am going to add inside the filter today to augment the floss. I should be able to open up the center of the scrubbie enough to slide them down over the PVC pipe. I think they will fill the space perfectly.
My goal with the filter is to handle both mechanical filtration and hope it develops as a biofilter to eliminate ammonia. Am I on the right track?
The floss has been in place one week and I am currently doing 25 - 50% water exchanges with dechlorinated water once a week (I add blue baitsaver crystals that are supposed to eliminate chlorine). I can smell it a bit when I go in the garage so am hoping the biofilter part develops soon.
If water flows from top to bottom would you have it pass through the scrubbies first or the floss?
The goal is to keep keep anywhere from 1 to 3 dozen minnows in my garage as 'standby' fishing minnows so I don't have to deal with my local bait shop's horrible business hours! I'll try to keep a few dozen on hand, take them fishing when I want, bring home any unused minnows, and replenish during the week as needed so I'm always ready to go. At least that is the goal! And by the way, this is my very first kind of aquarium so I know I have a lot to learn. That is why I am here.The tank is a standard Rubbermaid 18 gallon storage box. I plan to keep it about half full so maybe 9 gallons. After trying 4 different pumps (on 4 different trips to the pet store) I finally settled on a Maxi-Jet 900 (230 gph). I have a 500 gph bilge pump for a boat but thought it caused too much turbulence in the water and would stress the minnows. I'm also using a bubbler for aeration. I'm currently using a timer to cycle the pump and aerator on/off every 15 minutes.
The filter is a household water filter I bought at Lowes. Fittings were also from Lowes in the outdoor irrigation section. I installed a length of PVC down the center of the filter housing to force the water to first flow through the filter media, then it is drawn into the holes I drilled in the lower section of the PVC pipe. Water exits as it flows back up the pipe and out the outflow fittings. The pipe is cut to the exact length to fit into indentions that held the original water filter cartridge in place.
I have 2 scrubbies I am going to add inside the filter today to augment the floss. I should be able to open up the center of the scrubbie enough to slide them down over the PVC pipe. I think they will fill the space perfectly.
My goal with the filter is to handle both mechanical filtration and hope it develops as a biofilter to eliminate ammonia. Am I on the right track?
The floss has been in place one week and I am currently doing 25 - 50% water exchanges with dechlorinated water once a week (I add blue baitsaver crystals that are supposed to eliminate chlorine). I can smell it a bit when I go in the garage so am hoping the biofilter part develops soon.
If water flows from top to bottom would you have it pass through the scrubbies first or the floss?
