RiversGirl Encases 40 Gallons of Freshwater

[cm12setx]

Sorry to hear about the tetra. It does stink to have fish pass with out finding why. Keep you chin up. It gettes better.
The space in your filter where the carbon goes, can you remove it and add more creamic stone for BB?

[Slaphppy7]

Sorry to hear about the neon, Rivers...don't beat yourself up over it, if the rest of the fish seem fine, it's just one of those things we go through when first starting out...I lost one of the 2 plecos I bought a few weeks after stocking my tank, for no apparent reason that I could figure out...all of the rest of the fish were fine

I know nothing about that Fluval sub, but if you kept all bio-media wet, in tank water, and just removed gunk and dirt, your BB loss should be minimal...good job getting it cleaned up, gunky filters can affect trAte levels

Don't dare be "embarrassed" that you did not think the place in the filter would be better-suited filled with bio media, you are LEARNING and doing what you have learned will help your fish and tank...that's the BEST that can be asked of a beginning fish keeper

I really want to know what those carbon "inserts" look like, and how they are built...I'm sure one of us here could improvise something, anything that BB would readily grow on to take their place

Do not reconsider getting the corys, my dear...yes, many tetras are easy to keep, but neons do require a little special extra care...if your water params are fine, and I know you know how to test properly, chalk up the neon deaths to something other than the conditions of your tank...it happens

And I don't mean to nag, but the sooner we get extra filtration on that tank, the better, IMO

Slap-

[darkmerlin21]

Sorry to hear about the Tetra RG. Try not to worry too much, sounds like you've done all that you could to be sure the environment was the best it could be. Sometimes stuff like that just happens. Please do get the Cories.. they are so fun and would be a great addition to your wonderful tank!

[RiversGirl]

Sorry to hear about the tetra. It does stink to have fish pass with out finding why. Keep you chin up. It gettes better.
The space in your filter where the carbon goes, can you remove it and add more creamic stone for BB?

Thank you for the kind words cm.

The 2 places where the carbon/sponge (which are glued to one another, it seems like) are directly inside the intakes, which goes down the full side -- both right and left. This fits in this tray like plastic holder, which holds it in place. I should be able to find a big enough sponge and either squish it or cut it to fit into the tray (I think?)

The U4 filter, looking at it from the front (with X-ray vision) looks like:
Filter wall left side intake vents // sponge-carbon pad // rectangular basket filled with bio media // carbon-sponge pad // filter wall right side intake vents

The flow of water (I'm pretty sure goes like this) is sucked in through both sides, then it gets pushed through the media basket, to the front and out.

I do need good sponge material just inside of those intakes, otherwise my shrimp would get sucked in, I think.

Sorry to hear about the Tetra RG. Try not to worry too much, sounds like you've done all that you could to be sure the environment was the best it could be. Sometimes stuff like that just happens. Please do get the Cories.. they are so fun and would be a great addition to your wonderful tank!

Thank you dm. I have wanted Cories since my very first stocking plan... I do want to add them, I just would feel bad if there is something I'm over looking and I put them into an unhealthy environment.

Sorry to hear about the neon, Rivers...don't beat yourself up over it, if the rest of the fish seem fine, it's just one of those things we go through when first starting out...I lost one of the 2 plecos I bought a few weeks after stocking my tank, for no apparent reason that I could figure out...all of the rest of the fish were fine

Thank you. I guess I did ‘chalk it up’ to newbee status for the first one, and to being away for the second dead neon… but the third one in as many months seems like there must be something I’m doing or not doing.

I know nothing about that Fluval sub, but if you kept all bio-media wet, in tank water, and just removed gunk and dirt, your BB loss should be minimal...good job getting it cleaned up, gunky filters can affect trAte levels

OK good – thank you for the reassurance. I did not let it dry out. I did have to remove it all the way out of the tank though.

Don't dare be "embarrassed" that you did not think the place in the filter would be better-suited filled with bio media, you are LEARNING and doing what you have learned will help your fish and tank...that's the BEST that can be asked of a beginning fish keeper

I really want to know what those carbon "inserts" look like, and how they are built...I'm sure one of us here could improvise something, anything that BB would readily grow on to take their place

Do not reconsider getting the corys, my dear...yes, many tetras are easy to keep, but neons do require a little special extra care...if your water params are fine, and I know you know how to test properly, chalk up the neon deaths to something other than the conditions of your tank...it happens

And I don't mean to nag, but the sooner we get extra filtration on that tank, the better, IMO

In addition to the bio media I've ordered, I’ve also ordered that pre-filter from h4n.

Oh! I was going to let you know he sells food in smaller quantities too. Just scroll all the way to near the bottom to see the ‘by the ounce’ foods.

I sure do appreciate being able to come here.

[Slaphppy7]

Good update, thanks Rivers...yes, I'd recommend buying an AC110 sponge...it's big, you can kind of figure out what sizes (planks, or slab shapes?) you would need to cut it into to fill the spaces where you'll remove the carbon sponges...take your time, and kind of plan each size and piece you'll need...rinse them well after you cut them to size, and replace those carbon sponges with your DIY sponges...you'll need a good set of kitchen shears, or some heavy duty scissors (clean, of course)

Do one at a time if you want, and tailor the DIY's to the spaces you have to fill...maybe a few days in between each, to let the BB settle in

I'm glad to hear you have the mesh pre-filter ordered, you'll like it, and thanks for thi heads-up on the foods he sells!

[Compass]

Don't worry about the neon. They aren't as hardy as you think. The fact that you have only lost three since you got them is pretty good for a first time tank owner. You only need to start worrying if you are getting several deaths a week. Then something is going on. Glad you ordered the Corys I can't wait till they get here!! lol That's why I came over here tonight. "I need to see if Rivers got her cories and if not, I need to scold her for it." lol

[steeler58]

Don't beat yourself up over the Neon as Matt and Rob already advised you. They are so "mass produced" I would blame in on weak genes, more than I would you. Cory's can be tough sometimes but if your tank is "seasoned" like it is, you should do fine :)

[cm12setx]

If i can get on a real pc i will look into info on your filter for a macgiver fix for the carbon thing.

[RiversGirl]

Good update, thanks Rivers...yes, I'd recommend buying an AC110 sponge...it's big, you can kind of figure out what sizes (planks, or slab shapes?) you would need to cut it into to fill the spaces where you'll remove the carbon sponges...take your time, and kind of plan each size and piece you'll need...rinse them well after you cut them to size, and replace those carbon sponges with your DIY sponges...you'll need a good set of kitchen shears, or some heavy duty scissors (clean, of course)

Do one at a time if you want, and tailor the DIY's to the spaces you have to fill...maybe a few days in between each, to let the BB settle in

I'm glad to hear you have the mesh pre-filter ordered, you'll like it, and thanks for thi heads-up on the foods he sells!

Awesome info. I'll seek out one of those sponges. Thank you very much for the guidance.

I won't go into my paranoia regarding the scissors I ended up designating as tank scissors... *blush*

Don't worry about the neon. They aren't as hardy as you think. The fact that you have only lost three since you got them is pretty good for a first time tank owner. You only need to start worrying if you are getting several deaths a week. Then something is going on. Glad you ordered the Corys I can't wait till they get here!! lol That's why I came over here tonight. "I need to see if Rivers got her cories and if not, I need to scold her for it." lol

Thank you so much for saying so. *hugs* you for your kind words.

*grins* too, over your checking on me regarding the Corys -- I am super-excited. Was going to add them in last week and the LFS was sold out! The (so very nice) manager told me they'd order more for late this week.

I could have sworn I read some articles recommending to get them in a ratio of 2m/1f (but of course I can't seem to find where I read that now) so I think I'll do that, if the store can sex them. If anyone has info on the best ratio for these, I'd sure like to hear it.

I'm thinking 9. But then I was also thinking that perhaps I don't need *so much* going on (as Kevin suggested a while back) and perhaps I should get 15 and have the Sterbai Cory be my only floor region school. (Decisions are hard when options are nearly limitless!) It is great fun 'playing' with it all, in my head though.

Don't beat yourself up over the Neon as Matt and Rob already advised you. They are so "mass produced" I would blame in on weak genes, more than I would you. Cory's can be tough sometimes but if your tank is "seasoned" like it is, you should do fine :)

Thank you so very much Lee. *smiles*

I've always wondered what exactly 'seasoned' is. Is there a sort of benchmark, for that?

If i can get on a real pc i will look into info on your filter for a macgiver fix for the carbon thing.

I'd appreciate any of that, yes please. Those sorts of fixes often seem to be the best suited ones. I'm hopeful that Matt's idea will work well for this filter (with the AC 110 sponge) but you'd think there is a market for just a big flat of sponge, just for cut-to-size projects. I just am not looking in the right place, or something.

[Compass]

Thank you so much for saying so. *hugs* you for your kind words.

*grins* too, over your checking on me regarding the Corys -- I am super-excited. Was going to add them in last week and the LFS was sold out! The (so very nice) manager told me they'd order more for late this week.

I could have sworn I read some articles recommending to get them in a ratio of 2m/1f (but of course I can't seem to find where I read that now) so I think I'll do that, if the store can sex them. If anyone has info on the best ratio for these, I'd sure like to hear it.

I'm thinking 9. But then I was also thinking that perhaps I don't need *so much* going on (as Kevin suggested a while back) and perhaps I should get 15 and have the Sterbai Cory be my only floor region school. (Decisions are hard when options are nearly limitless!) It is great fun 'playing' with it all, in my head though.

Lol you are welcome. Don't worry about sexing the cories. Just get a big bunch of them. They are rather hard to sex and it isn't necessary. I would get the 15 Sterbai myself and see what happens.