Originally Posted by
OC Discus
Paul,
Just an update. Today is the second or third day without any vacuuming, as I've had a very bad head and chest cold. As of this moment, all feces has totally dissolved and been removed from the tank except one or two small pieces. This morning there were about 3 fairly large black solid pieces, about half the size of an English Pea. Even those have broken down, dissolved, and been sucked up by the filters. I currently don't have any decorations in the tank, so nothing is obstructing the water flow. Two of my filters pull in water from about 1/2 way up the tank- one on each end. The other filter pulls water from the bottom and is located in the middle. I would like to add a decoration, like an artificial log or tree stump. However, the poop tends to gather around these things and they block the flow of the water. We'll see.
So far I am very happy with the purigen reactor. Tomorrow I'll do a 75% water change, put clean floss in my 2 hang on the back filters, and vacuum the sand. I might wipe the glass one last time for good measure, though it doesn't look like it needs it. Nitrates, ammonia, and nitrite remain at 0. The water and glass remain crystal clear. Also, as you said, the fish look very healthy in their color, fins, eyes, etc. Two of my fish were turning orange after feeding beefheart exclusively for about three weeks. Slowly their color is going back to normal.
I hope the good results continue. We shall see. Thank you again.
BTW- Where did your artificial reef come from? The guys on the tv show "Fish Tank Kings" specialize in those. Their business is called, living color.
Also, you ever get a build up of debris under the reef? How do you maintain that?