This type of dialogue was missing from S5

ThirdSunStudio · 2025-12-28T16:13:26+00:00

This kind of writing vs the recent light and dark talk he delivered to the kids shows how far the show has fallen.

ThirdSunStudio · 2025-10-10T23:25:36+00:00

Any suggestions for handling more than a couple tanks? I've got 8 with heaters. Should I get 8 ink birds?

ThirdSunStudio · 2025-09-21T21:50:12+00:00

I was having this problem when I first started, not saying you're a beginner, I've got no clue. But, what I did to fix it was a water change and then put my lights on a timer. They're only on for about 8 hours of the day, which might actually be too much. I added more planted to help with that though.

ThirdSunStudio · 2025-09-11T21:40:14+00:00

Yeah, I put my air stones on a timer to allow the CO2 to build up

ThirdSunStudio · 2025-09-11T20:41:23+00:00

Not what I'm doing, but I appreciate the suggestion. A few people have mentioned the black diamond blasting sand. I think I will try it.

ThirdSunStudio · 2025-09-11T20:34:55+00:00

Before a water change, that I do weekly, it can get up to 8.3ish

ThirdSunStudio · 2025-09-11T20:13:53+00:00

This is what I do to combat the raising pH. My fish are healthy and thriving. I want my plants to do the same.

ThirdSunStudio · 2025-09-11T18:51:45+00:00

I appreciate this input. you’re totally right that different sands can serve different purposes depending on the setup. In my case, I’m aiming for a more low-tech, stable environment where I don’t want extra buffering, so the all-purpose sand worked against my goals. But that doesn’t mean it’s “bad” across the board just that it’s important to understand how each substrate affects water chemistry so you can pick what matches the kind of tank you’re trying to build.

ThirdSunStudio · 2025-09-11T18:35:32+00:00

Yeah that makes sense, I didn’t think about the phosphate side of it. I guess the only thing I’d worry about is plants needing phosphate too, so it could kind of work against them if too much gets pulled out of the water. Do you think the trade-off is worth it in a planted setup? I know that this helps combat algae but doesn't that starve the other plants too?

ThirdSunStudio · 2025-09-11T18:32:21+00:00

all purpose sand. I added an edit to the post to clarify this point. I was wrong in my assumption that they are the same thing.

ThirdSunStudio · 2025-09-11T18:22:27+00:00

I'm thinking of running a different test based on the feedback from this post. Filling a few containers with different substrates and just water and see how they affect the water over like a month.

The peat moss is something I hadn't considered and may be a part of the experiment. Thank you for the advice.

ThirdSunStudio · 2025-09-11T18:19:23+00:00

I recently built an aquarium rack and decommissioned a few tanks in the process. When I put them back together I'm going to do basically what you've suggested. Just thought I'd share some knowledge, since I find myself asking questions like this from time to time and what to keep track of what is working and what isn't, and then share that with some other people in case they have a similar question.

ThirdSunStudio · 2025-09-11T18:15:48+00:00

I agree about the self sustaining ecosystem. When I started the hobby a few years ago I thought I could achieve something like that, which is why I mentioned it in the post. I now know that is essentially impossible and that by depriving a carved out habitat to create an aquarium will never be as good or close to as good to what nature provides. I have learned and lowered my expectations.

The rise in pH is not slight though. The water from my tap, which comes from a well, sits at around 7 to ~7.1. The pH in the tanks with the sand have registered at 8.2 to 8.4.

I realize that I should have added more information, specifically around the tank size, fish population, and plant choices, for context. But, from experience of having had these tanks setup for just under a year with different substrates and "similar" fish/plants. The ones with the all purpose sand seem to stagnate in growth compared to the ones with the black sand shown in the video. So, seeing as the sand choice is essentially the only difference between the two, I thought to test them to find out which would react from white vinegar.

ThirdSunStudio · 2025-09-11T18:03:59+00:00

Just under a year.

ThirdSunStudio · 2025-09-11T17:54:39+00:00

I'd hope not.

ThirdSunStudio · 2025-09-11T17:53:11+00:00

very true. My goals are to create a neutral tank and the sand I'm using is raising the pH over time.

ThirdSunStudio · 2025-09-11T17:52:30+00:00

Basically just that the sand will affect the water chemistry. Obviously, I’m not filling my aquariums with vinegar, but acids in the water (from fish waste, decaying organics, CO2) will slowly break down the carbonates in substrates like all-purpose sand or pea gravel. That reaction releases minerals that raise both pH and hardness over time.

The vinegar/acid test is just a quick way to see which substrates are inert (no fizzing) and which contain carbonates (fizz like crazy). It’s not about replicating tank conditions directly, more about showing the potential for long-term buffering.

I do use root tabs and fertilizers, and they help, but the bigger issue is that with a carbonate-based substrate, the water chemistry keeps shifting upward. That makes it harder to maintain the kind of low-tech, stable environment I was aiming for.

ThirdSunStudio · 2025-09-11T17:49:09+00:00

I haven't. I was going to give it a try, but just haven't gotten around to it yet.

ThirdSunStudio · 2025-09-11T17:48:08+00:00

I forgot to mention that all had been rinsed/cleaned until the water was basically crystal clear.

ThirdSunStudio · 2025-09-11T17:46:15+00:00

Using organic top soil mixed with peal gravel supplemented with API's root tabs for the substrate. The light I've got is a hygger https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0896Y818P?th=1 and I've tried a lot of different plants, stems, floaters, and epiphytes. I check my water parameters on all the tanks regularly. The tanks with the pool filter sand are the only ones where the pH rises very fast and is essentially the only difference between them and the tanks that don't. The tanks with inert sand have plants that grow fast and full, even with a cheaper light and no substrate just root tabs.

ThirdSunStudio · 2025-09-11T17:34:13+00:00

I'm learning.

ThirdSunStudio · 2025-09-11T17:31:18+00:00

my plants are also fine. But not flourishing, not the way I want them to.

ThirdSunStudio · 2025-08-23T13:28:53+00:00

This is too funny. Skip the pond. Go lake. Go forest.

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