Baroness

http://www.ebay.com/itm/NEW-AQUATEK-CO2-Regulator-Mini-with-Integrated-COOL-TOUCH-Solenoid-/230840227751 I got one of these, fits straight on a paintball CO2 tank.

I think it was around $140 including shipping from ebay. I think it took about 3 weeks to get here. It's working really well, had about 5 weeks and still going on first 20oz paintball cylinder. No need for any adapters, just attach paintball tank and co2 tubing.

I have some rocks that might be suitable for you to use. Would you like me to post them to you? :rotf:

I just got a CF1200. Very happy with it. It doesn't put out as much flow as I was expecting, so would be fine in a smaller tank. My tank is 180 L.

Yep, I bought one of those as shown above. Ive had mine for about a week, but yes, Im pretty happy with mine too.

The Aquatek mini regulator is made to run directly from a paintball tank with no adapter. I went in to the sports shop today and tried a paintball tank on it and it fit. Hubby knows the guy at the gas filling place here in Wanganui. The gas place guy also play paintball. He said the paintball guys are selling their CO2 tanks and moving to compressed air for their markers/guns so there may be some 2nd hand CO2 tanks available. The gas place guy also said if a CO2 tank is under 1.5 litres then it doesn't require certification. It was my understanding that the regulation was for tanks over 500ml, but I'm sure the gas place guy would know more than me. lol. A 12oz tank or soda stream tank is about 500ml (I think - thanks google) but if I can get a bigger tank all the better. I'm hoping to get a 20oz tank, but there may be bigger paintball tanks available. I did take a gamble importing it without checking if it fit NZ paintball tanks, but all the info I could find online seemed to suggest NZ and US paintball tanks are the same thread size...which it appears they are as the NZ paintball tank fit the US regulator. Just waiting for a reply from gas place guy on any 2nd hand tanks, hopefully this weekend. Then to replace plug to a NZ version. Also waiting on a diffuser in the post....and a drop checker. Hopefully will be up and running soon.

Voltage is fine it runs on 230v as well. Paintball tanks are the same size here as in the US as far as I am aware. I know there is different sizes. I will be taking it to try on a paintball tank tomorrow.

Hubby kindly bought me a regulator to set up CO2 for my 180 litre tank. I ordered the Aquatek Paintball regulator from ebay. It came with CO2 tubing and a bubble counter/ valve/ diffuser He just needs to change the plug for NZ and then we are off to get a paintball cylinder tomorrow. Pen is there so you can get an idea of the size. I have to decide what size tank to get. There are 12,16 and 20 oz refillable paintball cylinders. Apparently the 12 oz ones are under the governments regulated size and don't have any regulations regarding filling etc, but the larger ones are subject to the regulations and require a stamped date and retesting every 5 years.

Thanks for your help. CF1200 ordered and hopefully on its way today. Now I need to hide it from my husband. LOL :roll:

Lol, I was just surprised. Ive not had a canister filter since I used an ancient eheim years ago. It wasn't as big as that though.

Now got 3 votes for Cf1200 and none for SunSun....

Ok, thanks So 2 votes for CF1200 Are they really 440 tall? 520 tall with taps? That's fricken huge! Where do I put it? It wont fit in the tank stand LOL! And 7.1kgs? I wont be able to lift that sucker when its full of water.....

Thanks for reply 1 vote for Aqua One CF1200

I'm looking at getting an external filter for my Jewel Rio 180. Tank size is 180 litres on external/outside dimensions, but when I measure where the actual water is inside the tank I get a volume of 165 litres. So, I'm wanting to get an external filter for it. I have narrowed down my (budget allowing) choices to either a Aqua One CF1000 or CF1200 or a SunSun 1000 litres per hour or 1400 litres per hour. I have read reviews on here and online and found people seem to think these filters do OK. My questions are... Is more filtration better? Does UV make any difference? Will I be wishing I got it if I don't? I am planning on rescaping my tank. I currently run the Jewel filter it came with and have the 3D background etc....I will be taking all the internal stuff out and redoing the set-up. Im loving the look of a planted tank and want to use pressurised CO2 to grow a jungle. I will run some tropical fishies, but not a heavy load of fish.

I got a bunch of WCMM in my tank and have just spent the morning cleaning the BGA out of it. After doing some reading I need to water change, vacuum gravel and increase flow. Can do all this. Another point was to look at how much I'm feeding to reduce the amount of waste in the tank. I just have the cheapest flakes from LFS :oops: with the intention of getting a better food for them. Can someone recommend me a food or foods that would be good for WCMM. Also how much to feed them? I have about 70 WCMM. Thanks.

Well scratch that post and the hours of research I did into different light systems... I found an article on Juwel lights saying how they wont work if one tube is blown, so I took the bulbs out, and the endcaps off, and decided to interchange all my bulbs ( I have 4) to see if it was just a blown bulb. replacing the 2 bulbs I had first to try them, and bugga me, the friggen thing just lit up!!!! I have tryed and tryed to get that blimmen thing to go with no luck.....and then it just starts. I very carefully removed the bulbs - to put the end caps back on, reassembled it all and BINGO!!! a Juwel lighthood that works. YAY!! Hubby will be pleased, now I only have to buy expensive replacement Juwel tubes LOL. Sorry to waste your time if you read all this. :facepalm:

Hi, Ive been absent a while and my tank has been packed away. Now Ive set it up again, and the light hood is blown. The tank is a Juwel Rio 180. I bought light hood and it stopped working, returrned it, got a replacement which also stopped working.... I faffed around too much and now the light hood is outside of warranty, so it cant be replaced. Im looking at buying another lighthood ($240 + shipping) OR replacing the ballast in my lighthood... seems to be a common problem in the Juwels...theres a tutorial online how to replace....The light is a sealed unit and cant be taken apart easily, needs to be cut open and glued back up....I havent costed the price of replacement ballast yet, but replacement tubes are $60 each. sigh. OR using the existing unit and running LED strip lights inside....again I havent costed, but have read you need to spend more for a better result OR retrofitting the existing lighthood to run T5 LED tubes.... initial cost might be around $120? from a quick search, but tubes are cheaper, cheaper to run and need less replacement....I dont know what type of light tube I need to run either??? Im running the Rio 180 on the standard filter it came with as a coldwater setup. I want to have a planted tank with a school of WCMM. My husband is Mr. Fix it and is quite happy to build, wire up whatever is the best solution. Basically I want the cheapest, easiest solution, haha.... my hubby is not happy about the $$$ spent on the original light hood for it to cark it after 3 months and the same for the second one. Another option I was contemplating was a different light hood made to fit on the Juwel lid. Any help appreciated....

Just wanting to add... I am driving from Wanganui to Palmy and back for the meeting if anyone wants a ride. I will also be going fish shopping at Wetpets and Animates before going home.

I will be there.... 8)

I have structured background on the rear wall....also I moved the filter box to the other end of the tank, so the outlet pipe sits differently to 'normal' tis OK . I will persevere and find the perfect spot. I dont mind it stirring up the surface a bit....plus mine is in my dining room - not my bedroom so noise is not an important issue. 8)

because then it blasts the plants.... :roll: I move it almost everyday trying to find the sweet spot

wow thats awesome... you make me want a tank with no water in

I just set one up in the last couple of weeks. mostly quiet but sometimes the lids rattle and need adjusting. My pump/filter (original) seems very powerful and blows the plants around. I get a bit of spashing noise from the outflow distubing the surface.

It is the structured backgound http://www.hollywoodfishfarm.co.nz/prod ... hp?id=1554 and the terraces are shaped pieces that fit in the tank to create another level Instructions said to silicone?

Because when I put the terrace bits in I sealed underneath and behind with silicone and used my fingers to smooth it out.... Is there an easier way? :oops: