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DIY CO2 Yeast Reactor

For those of you that want to go the Yeast reactor way use the following instructions.

 

Ingredients:
2 cups sugar
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp yeast

 

Start with a small cup or bowl and add a small amount of lukewarm water and a pinch or two of sugar. Mix in the yeast with a fork, stirring vigorously until the water is bubbly. This will help to "activate" dry yeast by adding oxygen, preventing mass die-offs that occur if you just dump the yeast into the water. Let this sit while you prepare the container, or for at least 10 minutes, and stir every few minutes to keep the water oxygenated. 

Rinse out your container if you have used it before to remove all traces of alcohol. Fill it about 2/3 of the way with lukewarm water. Tap water is fine. 

Using a funnel, add the 2 cups sugar and the baking soda to the water in the container. If you've used the container before, it's likely you don't have a lid you can use to close it up and shake it, so just put the palm of your hand over the opening and turn it upside down over the sink and shake it gently, making sure to keep the seal with your hand. The point is just to dissolve most of the sugar in the water (otherwise it will just sit on the bottom). If you haven't used the container yet, wait to drill a hole in the lid till after you've shaken it up, just to save yourself a sticky hand. 

If it's been about 10 minutes or longer, pour the yeast and water mixture into the container using a funnel. No need to mix it up, just put the lid on and it should start producing CO2 in anywhere from a few hours (I've had it start in around 1 hour!) to 12 hours depending on how well you activated the yeast. 

If you don't have any bubbles after 12 hours, you've probably either got bad yeast or leaks.

 

CO2 / KH / pH table.

 

KH     pH

6.0

6.2

6.4

6.6

6.8

7.0

7.2

7.4

7.6

7.8

8.0

0.5

15

9.5

6.0

3.8

2.4

1.5

0.9

0.6

0.4

0.23

0.15

1.0

30

19

12

8

4.8

3

1.9

1.2

0.8

0.5

0.3

1.5

45

28

18

11

7.1

4.5

2.8

1.8

1.1

0.7

0.45

2.0

60

38

24

15

9.5

6

3.8

2.4

1.5

1.0

0.6

2.5

75

47

30

19

12

7.5

4.7

3

1.9

1.2

0.75

3.0

90

57

36

23

14

9

5.7

3.6

2.3

1.4

0.9

3.5

105

68

42

26

17

10.5

6.6

4.2

2.6

1.7

1.0

4.0

120

75

48

30

19

12

7.6

4.8

3.0

1.9

1.2

5.0

150

95

60

38

24

15

9.5

6

3.8

2.4

1.5

6.0

180

114

72

45

29

18

11

7.2

4.5

2.9

1.8

8.0

240

151

96

60

38

24

15

9.6

6.0

3.8

2.4

10.0

300

189

119

75

48

30

19

12

7.5

4.8

3

15.0

450

284

179

113

71

45

28

18

11.3

7.1

4.5

 

Green = Good CO2 levels
10-25ppm
Good CO2 levels are also shown in BOLD.

Yellow = High CO2 levels
Over 25ppm
Levels over 25 can be harmful to your fish

White = Low CO2 levels
Less than 10ppm

 

How to Culture Daphnia

The Daphnia, or 'Water Flea'
The Daphnia, or 'Water Flea'

Daphnia are small, freshwater crustaceans found in most ponds and lakes. They are a favourite live food of tropical and saltwater aquarium fish. The two most common species, D. pulex and D. magna, are what we will be culturing to feed our fish. I have had some success doing this, and I'll share that with you.


Things You'll Need:

  • At least two 5-gallon buckets
  • Aged, clean water
  • A daphnia starter culture
  1. Step 1

    START A GREEN WATER CULTURE -- Daphnia feed on unicellular algae, or 'green water.' You must have an active culture of algae to feed your daphnia. Place your buckets of water outside in direct sun if it's above 60F. Otherwise, what I do in the winter is keep my buckets indoors under bright lights 24 hours/day. You should get green water in several days or weeks.

     

  2. Step 2

    GET A DAPHNIA STARTER CULTURE -- You can collect your own from a local pond or lake. Daphnia are attracted to light. What I did once was, at a local pond at night, I held a lantern out over the water. Within about 10 minutes, I had 1000s of Daphnia swarming up to the light. Just collect some lake water in a jar, net them, and put them in your jar. Easy!

     

  3. Step 3
    This is how green your water should be -- full of daphnia food!
     
    This is how green your water should be -- full of daphnia food!

    INTRODUCE YOUR DAPHNIA CULTURE -- You should not be able to see through the water - yes, it's that green. Dump the starter culture of daphnia into one of the buckets. Maintain the light source over all the buckets to keep the algae growing.

     

  4. Step 4
    If I were a fish, I would see this and say YUM!
     
    If I were a fish, I would see this and say YUM!

    HARVEST AND PROPAGATE YOUR DAPHNIA -- As the daphnia grow and multiply, they will eventually consume all of the algae in the water and it will become clear. This is why you have more than one bucket. Harvest the daphnia from the first bucket and feed these to your fish, while you take another starter culture from this and add it to another bucket full of green water. You should have at least three buckets going at all times; one for harvesting from a mature culture, one for starting a new culture, and one with just green water.

     

  5. Step 5

    STORE YOUR DAPHNIA -- If I had too many daphnia to feed my fish, I would store them in a neat way. Fill an ice cube tray 1/2 way with water. Net out some daphnia from your culture and fill each cube in the tray the rest of the way with live daphnia, then freeze it. To feed your fish, just drop one of the cubes into your tank and voila! You have a slow-release daphnia feeder! :-)

 

 

Brine Shrimp Hatchery

What you need
A 1.5 litre plastic bottle with a cap
A one-way gang valve
An air pump

Tools
A knife
A sharp object

How to do it

1.Use the knife to cut off the bottom one-third of the bottle.

2.Use the sharp object to make a small hole in the bottle cap. The hole should be somewhat smaller than the gang valve to avoid leakage.

3.Force the gang valve through the hole in the cap. (If the hole got too big, you will need to seal it using silicon.)

4.Fill the bottle with ordinary tap water and carefully check for leaks before you prepare the saltwater.

5.The saltwater should consist of 1 tablespoon of marine salt for each litre of water. It is important not to use ordinary kitchen salt.

6.Pour the saltwater into the bottle.

7.Add a small scoop of brine shrimp eggs. It is important not to use too many eggs.

8.Screw the lid on and connect the one-way gang valve to the air pump.

9.Turn on the air pump and wait for the eggs to hatch. It will normally take at least 24 hours.

10.When it is time to harvest the brine shrimps, close the gang valve, add 0.5 L of tap water to the bottle and wait. After approximately 5 minutes, three layers will have formed in the bottle. The top layer will consist of empty egg shells, the mid layer of clear water and the bottom layer of brine shrimp. 

11.Release the gang-valve and let the solution flow into another bottle. As the water level in the first bottle decreases, the empty egg shells will get stuck to the sides of the bottle. If you are careful it is therefore quite easy to get the brine shrimp to flow into the new bottle and leave the discarded egg shells behind in the old bottle. They are now ready to be fed to your fishes.

  

Brine shrimp tip # 1
When you have purchases brine shrimp eggs, place them in the refrigerator at once. Ideally stick to shops that store their brine shrimp eggs in a similar fashion since this will increase the chances of a high hatching rate. The vegetable compartment of a refrigerator will normally hold an ideal temperature for storing brine shrimp eggs.

Brine shrimp tip # 2
The nutritional value of brine shrimp drops by the hour after hatching. You should therefore feed them to your fish right away, or place them in a growing aquarium where you can fatten them up on nutritious food, thus restoring their nutritional value.

 

 

Growing Adult Brine Shrimp

General Info:


Brine shrimps or artemia is a zooplankton used as fry food although Brine shrimps can be grown to about 20 mm (0.8 inch) in length and be a valuable food source for adult fishes. What makes brine shrimps such ideal fry food is their good nutritional value, that they can live 5 hours in fresh water before they die and the fact that the eggs can be stored for many years as long as they are kept away from water and oxygen. Once the tried eggs are returned into oxygenated saltwater they resume their development and hatch. This is an adaptation to living in dessert lakes that dries out.

The hatching time is depending on the temperature and takes 15 to 20 hours at 25°C (77°F). A Higher temperature shortens hatching time. The optimal hatching temperature is depending on the origin of the brine shrimps however temperatures between 25-30°C (77-86°F) are to be recommended.

- Recommended salinity is 30-35 ppt (1.022-1.026 density)

- PH 8.0 (pH 6.0-9.0 is acceptable)

Once they hatch they enter the Umbrella stage during which the larva doesn’t feed since they don’t have any developed mouth or anus. They survive on their yolk sack during this time.

After 12 hours they enter the second stage if development and start feeding by filtering micro algae from the water. The nauplii grows fast and can reach adulthood in 8 days. Brine shrimp can live for up to 3 month.
Since this article is focusing on growing your brine shrimp to adulthood I will not address the question of how to hatch brine shrimp.

Caring for your Brine shrimp

There are several factors that contribute to the successful raising of brine shrimp to adult size. The two most important besides given the brine shrimp the above stated water perimeters are:

• Feeding: brine shrimp are not hard to feed. They accepts most foods the can filter out of the water as long as it’s not to big and doesn’t dissolve in water. There are brine shrimp food available in pet stores that contains micro algae for the nauplii to eat however there are quite a few cheaper alternative that you can by in your regular grocery store. Examples on this are Yeast, wheat flour, soybean powder, egg yolk. It’s hard to know how much to feed the nauplii however the transparency of the water can be of help. The first weeks you should be able to se about 15 cm in the water. When the nauplii grows the food concentration should be kept a little lower and a water transparency of 25 cm is recommended. Food levels should be kept constant so frequent feedings are required.

• Aquarium maintenance: Brine shrimp are usually kept in small tanks which means that water quality may deteriorate quickly. This means that water changes are of utmost importance. I recommend changing at least 20% two times a week. This is to prevent low oxygen levels which will be a result of poor water quality. It’s also important to clean the bottom of the tank since brine shrimp moult very often during their way to adult hood which leaves a lot of remains on the bottom of the tank which may deteriorate the water quality. This should be done by night using a flashlight to draw the brine shrimp to the surface. Brine shrimp are drawn to light and the light from the flashlight will attract the brine shrimp to the light source keeping them safe while you are cleaning the bottom of the tank.

Breeding brine shrimp
If well cared for and kept in a low salinity then your adult brine shrimp will (might) spawn in your aquarium. Every adult female is capable of producing 75 nauplii a day or rather 300 nauplii every 4 days. They will be able to spawn 10 times during a normal lifespan. However if well cared for they can as I stated earlier life for as long as 3 month and during that entire time spawn every 4 days.

 

T5 Vs. T8 Fluorescent Lights

Fluorescent lights are classified by wattage, shape and diameter. The "T" in T5s and T8s refers to the tubular shape of the bulb, while the number refers to its diameter. Their light output is measured in lumens. Older fluorescent lights, like T12s and T38s, use a process called electromagnetic induction to produce light. However, this is less efficient than the latest technologies as of 2010; newer T5s and T8s use more efficient, cost-effective methods.

    T8 Basics

  1. T8s are considered the predecessor to the T5, though they are available with the newer lighting technologies (versus electromagnetic induction). T8s run on less mercury than the older fluorescent bulbs and also flicker less, are quieter and produce less heat than standard T12s. T8s have consistent light output, as well.

    T5 Basics

  2. T5s are 40 percent smaller than T8s, but can contain as much or even more light in the same area. A high-output, 4-foot-long T5 bulb with a lumen rating of 5,000 can produce twice the light as the same size T8 bulb. That means it would take more T8 fixtures than high-output T5 fixtures to get the same amount of light.

    T5 vs. T8 Cost, Maintenance and Availability

  3. The newer T5s are more expensive than their T8 predecessors, but they're also more efficient and lower maintenance. This can translate into overall, long-term savings on commercial and residential structures and projects---especially large-scale examples. However, T5 and T8 bulbs and fixtures are still widely available in 2, 3, 4 and 5-foot lengths as of 2010.

    Uses

  4. T5s and T8s are used in new constructions, such as housing, commercial and industrial structures, though they are more common in commercial and industrial buildings than residential ones. T5s are becoming more common due to their many benefits and are also used for other purposes, such as in fish aquariums, terrariums (particularly for exotic desert-dwelling reptiles like tortoises, geckos and pythons), desk lighting, display lighting, indirect lighting, backlighting, task lighting, trade show lighting and medical settings.

    Fluorescent Lighting Technology

  5. Because fluorescent lights are more efficient and generally more cost-effective in the long-term than incandescent bulbs, they are becoming more popular in a variety of forms. Compact fluorescent lights (CFLs) are the everyday home versions of T8s and T5s in that they use efficient fluorescent lighting technology and are fitted for lamps and other light fixtures that are common in residential homes and would customarily use incandescent bulbs---unlike T5 and T8 bulbs that need specific fixtures.

 

How to Take Apart a Glass Aquarium

Whether your aquarium suffered an irreparable crack and you want to recycle it or you simply want to use the glass for a do-it-yourself project, taking apart a glass aquarium, particularly a large one, requires preparation and care. You'll need to take precautions not to hurt yourself, so gather up some gloves and safety goggles, and remember to be gentle with the following procedures so that you don't do any (further) damage to the glass. And, obviously, make sure the tank has been fully emptied and dried before proceeding.

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

  • Protective gloves
  • Protective goggles
  • Razor blade or scraper
  • Towels
  • Soft mallet
  • Your Wife's Hairdryer
  • Fishing line
  • Rough sponge
  1. Step 1

    Put on your protective goggles and gloves.

     

  2. Step 2

    Place the tank over a spread out towel (or several towels depending on the size of the tank). This is to safely capture any glass fragments that may chip off during the process.

     

  3. Step 3

    Remove any trim. The trim is the plastic around the top and bottom of the aquarium and can be removed by softly hitting it with a mallet, loosening it. You'll then need to wiggle it with your hands until it comes loose and can be removed. Be careful when striking it as to not break the glass.

     

  4. Step 4

    Scrape the silicone off the corners of the tank using the razor blade or razor scraper. This silicone adhesive holds the five pieces of glass together. Remove as much of it as you can from around the edges of the tank. The glass pieces should still hold together, however, as there's still silicone connecting them (where the individual pieces of glass meet). That will be removed next.

     

  5. Step 5

    Apply heat using the hairdryer to a corner of the aquarium. This will soften the silicone holding the glass sheets together.

     

  6. Step 6

    Cut in between the two intersecting pieces of glass in the corner using the fishing line. You should be able to saw through the thin layer of silicone between the panes of glass.

     

  7. Step 7

    Repeat steps 5 and 6 with all four corners of the tank and where the bottom glass sheet meets the four wall sheets. If done correctly, you should be able to separate all five panes of glass from each other.

     

  8. Step 8

    Remove any remaining traces of silicone using the rough sponge