# My 55 gal. Walstad tank about 3 weeks in. Have some questions please HELP :)



## BigMek (Dec 6, 2016)

Unfortunately I can't see your picture. Clicking the link tells me "No shared content".

For your filter, if you took the cartridge out did you put anything in the empty space? A sponge on the intake is a great idea for scooping out fine particulates and keeping shrimp out, but if you didn't put anything in the filter body you've got plenty more potential in that filter. Aqua Clear sponges will fit in Bio-Wheels, or you could get some other type of bio-media like ceramic rings or such. Personally I only have powerheads with sponge prefilters in my Walstad tanks and apparently have plenty of biological filtering (consistent 0/0/0 on water tests), but if you're going to run a HOB why not maximize it?

By the way I would put something like pantyhose around your wavemaker to keep it from eating your shrimp.

1) Yeah the water is probably turning brown from tannins. Water changes or activated carbon in your filter are the only ways I know to remove them, but if you don't mind the brownish color I've read tannins can have some benefits (anti-bad-bacterial properties IIRC). They will not go away on their own unfortunately.

2) Soft water will eventually prove fatal to shrimp and snails. You can get cuttlebone from your local pet store - it's in the bird section - smash it up with a hammer and toss a few pieces in. In the long term you may want to consider some type of remineralizer, but I don't know anything about those since I have liquid rock in my tap. Your other numbers look good, congrats.

3) Swords grow completely different leaves immersed vs. emmersed; you might be experiencing the normal melt as the plant transitions to new growth. Without being able to see your pictures I'm really just guessing though.

4) I can't really give any advice on stocking levels. I keep my tanks stocked relatively light, but part of that is not wanting to spend money on fish. If you do add more fish, your limiting factor is going to be bio-filtration. If you take full advantage of your HOB like I mentioned you could definitely add more fish in a 55, you just have to remember your nitrates will build up faster. On the other hand if you add more fish and more plants, you can probably balance things out pretty well. Consider adding some Vals, they look great growing along the back wall and they grow like weeds. Fast growing plants and floaters are your best defense against nitrates.

5) Personally I only clean the algae off my front glass, the rest I leave for the snails and shrimp to eat. I'd say it depends on what kind of algae it is and how much it bothers you. Diatoms or Green Dust Algae are to be expected in the early stages of a tank, especially a soil tank, and generally resolve on their own. If you get any hairy stuff though you'll want to go after it before it spreads. I don't see any reason to not add more snails and shrimp, I find Amanos fascinating to watch. They're hilarious around feeding time, they swarm out from behind their rocks, steal flakes from my fish and run off with them.


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## mihzyd77 (Jan 11, 2017)

Hi BigMek...please try again I uploaded new link.

Bump: BigMek thanks for all the great info.

So do I just smash up the cuttle bone and throw it into the tank? Or can I add it to the filter box? Also I saw the Fluval polishing pad that looked like I just stuff it into the filter box. Is this the same stuff you mentioned to put in there to expand my bio filtration? 

Also can I wrap one of those Fluval Sponges around my Powerhead and secure it with a wire tie to protect my shrimp and kind of mini Bio-Filter?

Thanks again!


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## BigMek (Dec 6, 2016)

Yeah that browning on the sword looks like normal melt. You can add cuttlebone to the tank or filter, doesn't matter, I just don't have a filter box to throw mine into. 

For optimizing your filter check out this video. Skip to 23:00 for specifics about Bio-Wheel filters. And yeah putting a sponge around your powerhead would protect shrimp and increase bio-filtration, great idea.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ipTDkQsT6HQ

Edit: Same video starting at about 14:40 goes into a sponge/ceramic ring combination.


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## mihzyd77 (Jan 11, 2017)

Great! Thanks so much BigMek! Any other surprises I should know about for the next few weeks/months? or ?


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## BigMek (Dec 6, 2016)

Nothing really comes to mind that's Walstad-specific, just the usual things to watch out for in new aquariums. I would suggest making sure some food gets down to your amano shrimp though, mine really seem to appreciate it and that way you don't have to worry about them running out of algae. Though honestly it's not like you'll be able to stop them from eating your fish food, I've seen mine grab flakes out of midwater


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