Lights, Fishes… Action!
You’ve got the tank, you’ve got the fish and the plants and the gravel, you’ve got the filters and the bacteria and the lights. What else did you need?
Well, have you looked at how well your water is moving? If you have a power filter, it might be helping, but the odds are it’s not doing enough – you might need to look at adding a powerhead, a water director, or a wavemaker to add a little more action to your tank.
Here’s a quick list of all the benefits of having a steady liquid “breeze” circulating through your whole tank:
A moving current will spread nutrients and oxygen to all of the fish, plants and bacteria in your tank. This will enhance your biological filtration, which reduces the amount of toxins floating in the water.
I always remember that moving water is really important in regulating temperature, keeping the water temperature stable by distributing heat evenly. I noticed that it can also prevent hot spots from developing near lights or motors, or cold spots in distant corners of the tank.
A current that moves through the whole tank will prevent the formation of “dead spots”, where the water is stagnant and oxygen-poor, and where fish and food wastes collect and decay. I hate these – spots like this increase the toxins in the water, foster algae growth, and make your water cloudy and disgusting. The moving water also stirs up debris and particles, so that they’re suspended in the water where your mechanical filter can remove them, rather than settling in a scummy layer on your tank furniture and gravel.
Probably the most important benefit your aquarium gets from moving water is oxygenation. By disturbing the surface of the tank, it increases the amount of water exposed to the air, leading to a quicker exchange of gases. The water molecules release carbon dioxide wastes and absorb tons of oxygen. Richly oxygenated water is absolutely essential to keeping your fish, plants and bacteria healthy. Keeping the bacteria healthy, in turn, helps to maintain pH level, and keep ammonia and phosphate levels to a minimum.
And finally, maybe it’s just my imagination, but I think my fish are actually healthier and happier when they get to test their muscles by swimming against a gentle current. To be honest, I just think it’s more FUN for them to be in water that moves!
September 12th, 2008 at 8:40 pm
I want to get a new light action fresh water fishing rod/reel?
Does anybody have any recommendation on what rod/reel combo to get. I will primarily be fishing for trout and bass in lakes and streams.
September 13th, 2008 at 1:42 am
.get a light spinning rod and open faced reel. They start at around $40 and up for beginners . The cheap ones don't last all that long but it might be OK for you .Later ,Once you know what you want you can get some better equipment.Don't go too heavy on the line 8lb test should be enough.
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September 13th, 2008 at 1:44 am
the best combo you can get in my opinion would be a pfluger president, thats a very strong durable long lasting reals
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simi pro angler
September 13th, 2008 at 1:46 am
to on ebay and get a used but be selective Garcia Mitchell 300 spinning reel… then go to Walmart or bass pro and get an ugly stick 5.5ft or 6ft…. 8 lb. line when you fish for trout use a 4lb leader for bait (powerbait rocks for trout - yellow or chartruse email me for more info)
The Garcia Mitchell reel may be used but it will last you forever if you take care of it…and you really have to try to break an ugly stick!!!
If you feel comfortable go with Berkley Fireline and get the 10 lb line it has the same diameter as 4lb mono line.
http://www.cabelas.com/cabelas/en/templates/links/link.jsp?id=0003186112727a&type=product&cmCat=SEARCH&returnPage=search-results1.jsp&QueryText=fireline&N=4887&Ntk=Products&Ntx=mode+matchall&Nty=1&Ntt=fireline&noImage=0
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40+ years drowning worms and enjoying the scenario on lakes and streams…
September 13th, 2008 at 1:48 am
This is a great combo from BPS for what you're fishing for http://www.basspro.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/Product_10151_-1_10001_90849_100003002_100000000_100003000_100-3-2
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September 13th, 2008 at 1:50 am
I would strongly suggest a light action Ugly Stik. I personally own an Ugly Stik Lite ultra-light 5′ rod. For stream fishing this is my choice of rod. In most streams in my neck of the woods there is a lot of brush, and low limbed trees, so the shortness of the rod comes in handy when bushwacking down a stream. This rod also has a lot of backbone and also takes a lot of punishment. I remember once tripping and falling forward and my rod tip jamming in the ground. I thought for sure that it was going to bust as I regained my balance, but sure enough the tip just bent and took the fall. if it was a straight up graphite rod it would have snapped for sure. So for an all purpose rod, you cant beat the Ugly Stik line of rods for the performance and money. Great value.
For the reel, I perfer Shimano. I own several. If you are going to do a small amount of fishing, then I would go with the less expensive reels like the Sidestab, or Sonora. If you do a fair amount of fishing I would go with the Solastace, or the Symetre. I own all three and have never had a problem. They are all smooth, cast very well and the drags are great even on the cheep ones. Just as an example. I was fishing for walleye.. I was using the Sidestab (a $29.99 reel). I was reeling in my lure and ended up hooking into a 45″ 28 pound musky. This musky had lost of room to run and did. My drag was singing like crazy as he went on his runs, but I did manage to get him in, and I figure if their 30 dollar reels can deal with that, and have no problems, their more expensive ones have to be just as good or better. In my opinion, you cant go wrong with Shimano.
In my humble opinion if you were asking me in a store to pick out a basic, dependable combo for the average joe, I would go with an Utlra Light Ugly Stick Lite 5 to 6 feet long and a Shimano Sidestab 1500RE.
Hope this helps, and good luck!
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