Dabbling

how do i make fish tank ornaments?

im a yr 12 student currently making fish tank ornament for my major work in design tech
im a yr 12 student, making fish tank ornaments for my major design project.

what materials should i use?

It comes down to materials and making sure your using inert ones.

PVC tubing would work great creating an ornament.

Think of using plastics like that that are inert and will sink.

Stay away from rocks and anything you have to paint even though you can use krylon paints and a 3 week drying period,

Rocks love to spike ph levels and kill fish as there is no way of knowing how much lime or calcuim is hidden within the rock.

Good Luck!!

What Causes a Cloudy Fish Tank and What Can Sort it Out?

One problem that often baffles, even experienced, aquarists is what causes a cloudy fish tank? The solution is not entirely straight forward as, depending on when your fish tank turns cloudy and what colour it turns, there may be different reasons for it happening.

Let's look at a new tank and move forward through the tanks life cycle.

When a tank is first set up the water may well seem cloudy immediately. This is simply caused by microscopic air bubbles being trapped in the water and will disappear after a few hours.

A new tank has yet to complete the nitrogen cycle so is not able to cope with with the biological waste produced by your fish. As the nitrogen cycle gets under way you may find the water turning milky. This is usually a sign that the bacterial stage of the nitrogen cycle has started. Bacteria start to multiply so quickly that they can make teh water appear cloudy. Although unsightly this will pass as the nitrogen cycle gets established and settles down. Partial water changes of 10-15% will help to reduce this. Be careful not to over-feed any fish that you have as this can add to the problem.

If the tank is brand new and you have not yet added fish or started to cycle the tank, cloudiness may be due to an ornament reacting with the water. Are all your ornaments aquarium friendly and were they all rinsed thoroughly before you set up the tank. If one of your ornaments is dissolving, then it needs to be taken out of the tank and a large water change needs to be carried out to maintain water quality.

Bogwood may leech a yellowy brown stain into the water. This will settle down with time and water changes and is harmless. The wood is simply adding tannin to the water. Cleaning the wood thoroughly in clean water can prevent this. As the wood ages and starts to grow its own covering the tannin problems will stop. Water changes will gradually get rid of this dis-colouration.

There are a few things that you can do to help keep all forms of cloudiness at bay.

Avoid over-feeding your fish. Feed enough so that the fish can eat it all in about two minutes. Any more than this and you will end up with excess waste in the water which can cause cloudy water.

Keep the gravel clean. vacuum the gravel when you do water changes. Use bottom feeding fish, snails and shrimps to clean up leftover food

Do not overpopulate your tank. Stick to the inch to a gallon rule but be sensible about it. An inch of Neon Tetra is a lot less than an inch of Guppy. Also remember the snail population. They can breed quickly and they produce waste in exactly the same way as fish. An occasional cull may be needed.

Rather than doing large water changes stick to frequent smaller water changes. Change half of your water in one go and you can upset the balance of the tank leading to a bacterial bloom as the cycle re-establishes itself.

Most causes of cloudy water can be solved with time and a good maintenance routine. Regular water changes will solve most water quality problems
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Fish tank 30 gallons