ajbroome Posted January 9, 2004 Report Share Posted January 9, 2004 Fishkeepers, I'm a strong advocate of regular water changes for aquaria but lately I find that I don't have as much time as I used to and am thinking of finding a quicker way to do my water changes. The set up is something like this: A fishroom at the back of my garage, currently holds 30 odd tanks (all around the 2ft size or under) but there is room for some more (one wall is still bare, whether that stays bare, becomes home to more (a dozen or so) 2ft tanks or a couple of 4fts remains to be seen). There is no nearby tap so currently water is siphoned into a bucket, carried to the drain and emptied. Fresh water is mixed inside the house and carried to the fishroom where it is siphoned back into the tank. A typical water change consists of about 10 x 20L buckets each way and takes about 3hrs or so (about 4 CDs on the garage stereo - I hope my neighbours like Fred Eaglesmith). Then there are some coldwater and turtle/amphibian tanks in the garage itself, but I generally just run the hose for those. There are tanks inside the house too but they're less of an issue. I could use the above method with minimal problems when I had fewer tanks (about half as many) and lived in a place with an internal access garage. Now it's becoming too much like work, especially with various things (cats, plants, people etc) to trip over between the fishroom and the bathroom and assorted distractions along the way (Mmmm... liquor cabinet... slobber slobber, drool... what's happening on TV?...er, where was I? ) Has anyone in NZ used 'Python' style water changes on multiple tanks over a long period? Does anyone have one laying around, under-used? Know where I can get one in NZ? People in Hamilton, what's that thing Brian at the Goldfish Bowl uses all the time? Should I get a big barrel (to be filled from the hose), some high wattage heaters and a water pump? That would at least eliminate a chunk of the the filling step/ I'm not interested in 'central' filtration. It's asking for disease problems (IMHO) unless lots of expensive kit is bought (UV etc) and I like to be able to tweak water conditions from time to time. Not to mention I use peat in some tanks for killies to spawn in. I also can't risk fry ending up in the wrong tank. On top of that, I'm not keen to drill tanks. So, anybody got any suggestions? Nothing is completely out of the question at this stage. People are welcome to visit to come up with ideas... Thanks, in advance, Andrew. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Caryl Posted January 9, 2004 Report Share Posted January 9, 2004 This won't be much help Andrew but I use a python for my 4ft lounge tank and don't know if it would work for multiple tanks unless the tanks are considerably lower than the water source. If I use the python to siphon water out the front door the length is such that it does not draw enough current through the hose and therefore does not do a good job of cleaning the gravel and hasn't enough oomph to lift larger particles of dead leaves and poo. This means I siphon using an ordinary siphon tube and empty it into a couple of 30 litre barrels which I then drag out the door (about 2 metres to the edge of the verandah). To put water back into the tank I use the siphon attached to the sink tap (a dual hot/cold) but it is extremely slow as the top of the tank is about the same height (or a little lower) than the tap. I also can't put too much pressure through or water goes everywhere so it takes half an hour or more to refill 60 or so litres. I dare not leave it either in case I forget it is filling I am wondering if you could set up some sort of watering system like the Plassay (except fatter hoses going to each tank) to fill them, and dig a drain near the garage (or in the middle of the floor but if I remember correctly it is concrete) where you can empty siphoned water, or put in overflows. If you did lots of small water changes you only need cold water and you could use a timer to turn it off in case you forget. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ajbroome Posted January 9, 2004 Author Report Share Posted January 9, 2004 Caryl said... > I use a python for my 4ft lounge tank and don't know if it > would work for multiple tanks unless the tanks are considerably > lower than the water source. Doesn't yours have the 'venturi' water pump that attaches to the tap? That's the whole attraction of 'pythons' I thought... http://www.pythonproducts.com/nospill.htm BTW: I've notified them of the metric conversion error > I am wondering if you could set up some sort of watering > system like the Plassay (except fatter hoses going to each > tank) to fill them... That's the kind of thing I'm thinking about... > ... and dig a drain near the garage (or in the middle of the > floor but if I remember correctly it is concrete) where you > can empty siphoned water, or put in overflows. Actually, now that you mention it - I remember there is a drain on the outside of the back of the garage. Perhaps I could poke a hole in the garage wall somehow and put a big-bore hose through it and down the drain... Hmmm.... that could work... Thanks for the thought. Andrew. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dark Posted January 9, 2004 Report Share Posted January 9, 2004 i have a couple of ideas but upon consulting the family engineer and looking around the net for prices i have come to the conclusion that you are probably looking at over $10,000 for a brand new fully automated setup. the setup, however, would do the following: Empty to a point and fill each of your tanks individually with fresh, treated water at a specified temperature on an automatic basis with manual overrides. each tank could be set with unique adjustments to temperature and water treatment agents, and indicators would alert the up-coming need to renew water treatment/medication sources. and of course it comes complete with safety overrides and wet/dry pumps. aside from the system itself the only requirements would be drainage and a water source. how much did you want to spend again? i have another idea which i'll post for you when i get a scanner working - i actually think i'll be able to afford to build this one though... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pegasus Posted January 9, 2004 Report Share Posted January 9, 2004 Here's a simple solution that I was going to put in my fishroom until my son took it over. It worked fine on three tanks, and I can see no reason for it not working on a full fishroom provided the plumbing is set up correctly with water feeds and drains. http://homepages.paradise.net.nz/grumpygr/AUTOFILL.htm Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Warren Posted January 9, 2004 Report Share Posted January 9, 2004 I've got an idea more suited to a new fishroom setup so I doubt if it will be helpful to you. Keep all tanks as small as possible. Make a false bottom in each tank that slopes forward to a single point where the tank just happens to be drilled. Have a second drill hole in a tank wall (near the top) as an overflow. Set up a drip system so the water is constantly changed at about 10-20% per week. The excess water will overflow and go down the drain. On the second hole (in the bottom at the low corner) fit a tap with a tube leading to the same drain. All the muck will accumulate in this corner. Simply opening the tap will flush it away. If you quickly zoom round the night before using the taps and wipe the glass on each tank the muck will have settled by the following day. This speeds up the process of cleaning. Just the simple operation of x taps for a couple of seconds each and the tanks are all clean. Then you can sod-off as the tanks will auto refill an start to overflow again... Cool wot! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alan Posted January 9, 2004 Report Share Posted January 9, 2004 I use a couple of those big blue drums, filled with water, in the fishroom, so the temp is the required heat all ready. From this I have a long 3/4" plastic pipe, with pump attached, to refill tanks. Removing: I hand syphon using a gravel cleaner, but as a watch has to be kept for any elusive fish, the water goes to a bucket, and then out to water the garden or lawn. I have got provision for the waste to go to an internal drain I put in, this is primarily used when empting the bigger tanks. Alan Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Midas Posted January 10, 2004 Report Share Posted January 10, 2004 AJ, if you are going to buy a python consider just buying the replacement venturi part, not the whole system. This part only costs ~$15 as opposed to ~$100 for the whole python system. I pretty sure you can still get the replacement part from wet pets. This is what I did and works quite well, plus was alot cheaper. The threaded fittings on the venturi part are not standard and I have had to use a couple of rubber washers to ensure that the standard garden hose fittings that you buy here in NZ form a seal onto the venturi part. Also make sure that the tubing you use is strong enough not to collaspe under the vacuum generated by the venturi when in use (most tubing seems fine). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
clothahump Posted January 25, 2004 Report Share Posted January 25, 2004 Is there anywhere you could put a large enough sump to contain enough water for a 20% change? If so you could set up a system like this, I set this up last year for a friend who is unable to carry the water as he has a bad back. The 4 foot tank is his sump, twice a week he turns off the pump, drains the water and refills with a hose from a mixer tap so it is roughly the correct temperature, turns the pump back on and he is finished. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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