THE MAINTENANCE
Changing the water: Despite my efforts to create a natural balance, it is not perfect in all
glasses.
I
 need to change the water from time to time, roughly every
month or two, in two of the them, as the water start to be "milky". I let the
fresh water sit in a jar for half a day or more, to
avoid small bubbles of air in the aquarium, and get the temperature
right.
While I suck-up the
old water, I "vacuum clean" the button of the aquarium as
well. This way, some of the added nutrition is removed again, to obtain a balance.
I fill the fresh water on with the tube as well.
Without fish that need feeding, it avoid changing water for long
periods - years actually. Only the break-down of the decorations add nutrition, and the
rest is recycled by plants and shrimps.
Feeding the shrimps - and plants: I have actually started feeding
the shrimps - and thereby the plants: The eight glasses share a single
boiled kidney bean every week. After some time, the hungry plants did
respond, while the shrimps don't show any change.
Depending on the animals and amount of nutrition in
the specific aquarium, I might have to clean the front-glass from time to time.
I use a folded piece of toilet-paper, held with the
tweezers.
Besides from that, I might have to get rite of some offspring
of the shrimps from time to time.
I am actually started having only shrimps of the same sex in each
aquarium, except the breeding ones.
 Pruning
the plants: After I started feeding, not only the Java Moss need
pruning, although only every third month or so. The Java Moss is planted
in bunched, tied together with a sewing-string. I add a new lasso a few
centimetres up, and cut-off the button. The grass is just weeded along
with the Bladderwort, while the Cuba and Water Hyssop are pruned. The
Anubias need more nutrition to grow into an issue. The Moremo Algae it
just removed: It will soon reclaim the area.
Se my gear
on this page. |