PlanetCatfish.com

Lloydy wrote:I was curious as to why you decided to go for lots of smaller / medium size tanks rather than a smaller number of big tanks? An issue with space / layout, or just that you like to keep lots of different fish and therefore need the large number of tanks with different setups?

I'm more interested in breeding different species than keeping lots of fish or some big fish. It's more of a challenge too.

Jools

drpleco wrote:I'm not sure if they ship to the UK, but I got my air system supplies from http://www.jehmco.com. I use the 80 liter per minute linear air pump and it supplies plenty if air for 1000 gallons with about 40 outlets. It's rated for up to 80 outlets so I have room to expand.

Yes, I've always liked these linear pumps. However it's not the shipping that concerns me rather the difference in voltage supply in our two countries.

The noise isn't so much an issue and shipping to the UK might be expensive so I will probably go for something UK based unless I can be sure about the power issue.

These are good suggestions, does anyone else have any?


Jools

Jools wrote: The noise isn't so much an issue and shipping to the UK might be expensive so I will probably go for something UK based unless I can be sure about the power issue.

I believe Jehmco will supply 220V versions of the linear piston pumps on request. I got hooked on them after seeing a couple in operation in the US and had a hell of a time tracking one down in India, where I am now.

Turns out most of these pumps are manufactured in Japan and sold under various brand names abroad. "Medo" and "Alita" seem to be commonly used trade names. They are commonly sold for outdoor goldfish ponds, and small sewage treatment facilities, amongst other uses. I finally got mine (a 220v model, equivalent to Jehmco's LPH80) direct from Japan via an import facility that mainly deals in hospital equipment. Ended up costing me the equivalent of just over 120 GBP, including shipping and import fees. All I needed was an adapter to fit the plug to the power outlet here.

You might want to check with garden pond suppliers first before looking to get one from abroad.

retro_gk is right - the models jehmco sells are originally from Japan. I didn't climb up to check mine but I remember the instructions and box marked in Japanese. I like the pumps and my only complaint is that the air has to be "tweaked" so that all of the sponges have equal pressure. Shallow tanks have to be tuned back and even different types of sponge filters in the same tank can be problematic. I just go around a few times a week and make sure everything is flowing properly and it seems to be mostly stable once the initial adjustments are made.

Here are a couple shots from my fishroom:

Here are my pumps. One is the 80 liter model and the other is the 27 liter model. The big pump powers the perimeter of the room (1000 gallons) while the smaller one powers an island in the middle (500 gallons). I did it this way because I had the smaller pump from a previous small fishroom and it wasnt useful as a backup if I bought a 120 liter pump for the entire room. Both pumps are on a shelf suspended from the ceiling so that they're above the water line of the highest tank:



And some "plumbing"




I put elbows on the top of my sponge filters to create more surface disturbance:



And here are a couple shots to show that the system works:
a TON of tiger endlers:


kribensis;



alenquer L333

Wow! Great videos Jools!

After watching the videos, I Inmediately looked into your species list for the remarkeble catfish Neosilurus ater.

Never seen it before, truly magnificent creature.

drpleco,

OK, those metal air taps look handy and I think they might be US only but I am sure I could get a job lot. What are you using to seal them into the PVC pipe?

Jools

Jools,

I used Teflon tape on the valves and to attach the pumps to the PVC. I used 1" PVC, but i'd use 3\4" if I did it again. I'm not sure, but I might lose a small amount of pressure with the bigger pipe. I primed and glued all if the PVC to PVC joints.

I imagine that you have connections here in the us, but I'd be happy to ship anything to you that you can't get in the UK. Here's a random link to Teflon tape, in case it's something you're not familliar with. Https://www.hardwareworld.com/12x520-Te ... NHD0U.aspx

Andy

Hi,

at least "on the continent", these metal valves do exist, as well; I use them, too. Around 1.50€/2 pcs., so they are not too expensive. Don´t remember which company they are from, but I could get them even in the pet section of a DIY shop (so they shouldn´t be rare). If needed, I could find out which company made mine.

Cheers, Sandor

Teflon take is definitely available in all good DIY/Hardware/Plumbing stores. There are two "qualities" - regular, thin variety, and the thicker "gas approved" variety. I'm pretty sure 3 ten-thousands of an inch is the thinner variety.

I don't think you loose pressure using a bigger pipe... You just need more volume of air before the pressure is built up fully.

--
Mats

I can't imagine my life without Teflon tape. Home Depot type places sell it for less than $2 American for 2 or 3 rolls.
Amanda

Thanks for the advice chaps, very helpful. I knew teflon tape, just as a different name. Right, well once the l-number convention is finished I think I will look into "air plumbing" the fishroom. Might be a job for Christmas.

Jools

I use a standard HI-Blow 40 in my small fish house. It connects to a couple of Jehmco manifolds on a ring. Enough for a couple of decent sized racks.

Godfrey has sent me a suggested one and it looks quite good. It 48DB loud however I don't really know how loud that is. Some fans for daftly overclocked CPUs come close to that loud, so it can't be too bad. Let's see how it goes, will post picks!



Jools

Any more pictures Jools?

Did you sort you airline plumbing out?

hi guys,
i wonder why many people built their air supply to the tanks ...starting with a interuptor...i drill my holes 1mm smaller then the hose, stick the hose about 3cm in. that's it above each tank i add a interuptor ...so i dont need to climb on chairs to switch off the air of any tank???

;) farid ;)

I set mine up with the valves tapped into the PVC for two reasons: 1. It's more airtight because I can Teflon-tape the valves for a good seal and 2. The airline runs straight into the sponge filters and an additional valve/interruptor in the middle would cost additional money. It's not a bad idea, though, for the future. For now I don't mind the climbs.

Once set though do you find the need to keep messing with the taps anyway?

drpleco wrote:Iand an additional valve/interruptor in the middle would cost additional money.

hi there,
you wont need more money for my system... you just safe the teflon tape any glue as the hoses are just sealed enough by their own pressure. the valves are just on a usable distance

it's just important to drill with a sharp drill to have nice holes with sharp edges, like that the hose will fit and seal with no problem ;)

I can post some pics later

regards
farid

Jools did you get a pump sorted cos I'm pretty sure I got a big pond pump kicking round somewhere you can have for postage or I' gonna be in Aberdeen in Jan around 11th.

Matt

hi guys,
i just found some old pics of my system..(german sorry) but you get the idea ...
http://www.fischauge.net/beitraege/tech ... kammer.php

farid

We use Algarde airline connectors tapped directly into a drilled hole in the main air feed, this gives a very tight fit and we don't get any leakage. We can then use whatever air valves we see fit (although again, we normally use Algarde).

Jacob helping me catch some new spp. for the room.

Jools

Wow! Look how big he is.
-Shane

He looks like his mum. That boy has certainly grown in about 9 months time. Quite a change since we last saw him.
Were you comfortable with him "catching" the fish?

He actually managed to catch two of them, but they are not too hard to catch with a big net in a container and he was more pushing it around than anything else. He's only allowed in the fishroom with Daddy and most of the time tied into a chair. Otherwise I have to watch him like a hawk, even so, he has still managed to "post" a pleco cave torch into aquatic doom.

Jools

more pictures or updates plz? fish or children.

A quick pictoral tour of some of the fish in Jools fishroom, I spent a few days after the CSG Convention, was good fun.
Certainly far from being all the species in the fishroom but you get a taste of what goes on in there.
Mind you, some did manage to follow me home to Canada.And still going strong Birger

Thanks Birger, those are great! Nice to know that yet another fishroom has been "infected" by Scottish cherry shrimp.

Jools

Jools,
Are those killies from Uganda?
-Shane

Shane wrote:Jools,
Are those killies from Uganda?
-Shane

Yup, they're now in Canada.

Jools