Need help with filters for ACF

[Geoff]

The water will not stay clean for even a week! I have a Nano10 external filter, and change most (75%) of the water on a weekly basis. I change the water in the filter at the same time. I use a reverse-osmosis setup we have for the house as the water source, and add in dechlorination powder prior to the water change (and leave it for a few hours before I change the water).

Within a few days it gets green and smelly.
Wife complains.
I change water again...

I suspect the main reason that your tank's getting green and smelly after a few days is because it's receiving too much light. If the tank's receiving direct sunlight or is artificially illuminated, I suggest either that you move the tank to a darker location or remove, or significantly reduce, its exposure to artificial light.

[TerryInLeesburg]

Dan;

I am not sure what you mean about tank "cycling". When I change the water I change all of it, rinse the sand, take the filter apart and rise it - basically clean everything so it doesn't stink.
Guess I need to read up on this now - so much to learn, here I thought I was just getting an easy no-muss pet for my son!
Live and learn

Geoff;

It does not get direct light, but it is pretty bright in there. I will have to talk....er....negotiate... with the wife for a new location.

Thanks so for the help
Terry

[Geoff]

Dan;

I am not sure what you mean about tank "cycling". When I change the water I change all of it, rinse the sand, take the filter apart and rise it - basically clean everything so it doesn't stink.
Guess I need to read up on this now - so much to learn, here I thought I was just getting an easy no-muss pet for my son!
Live and learn

Dan was referring to "The Nitrogen Cycle". It'd probably be best for you to Google it. There's loads of info about it out there.

Geoff;

It does not get direct light, but it is pretty bright in there. I will have to talk....er....negotiate... with the wife for a new location.

Instead of relocating the tank you could try shading up to three sides of it with card or a black plastic trash bag cut to size.

[DanDrobates]

Thank you Geoff I should have clarified my post regarding nitrogen. And Terry, you are actually too thorough with your tank maintenance. You don’t need to change all the water at a time. 10 percent is fine. I applaud your commitment to your animal but you’re making too much work for yourself. Once a tank is fully acclimated and has passed it’s nitrogen cycling ( two weeks or more sometimes) it will require much less maintenance. Only if you add excessive food and add multiple animals will you have to do so much cleaning.




weeks

[Geoff]

Terry, Dan's post reflects my own thoughts, especially his observation that you appear to be making too much work for yourself, albeit with the best of intentions. I’ve been back over your original post and it seems to me that it shouldn’t be too difficult for you to get things onto a more easily manageable and less time-consuming footing.

In my opinion your filter is inappropriate for a 5 gallon tank containing a 2-inch frog. It’s claimed to have a turnover rate of 80 gallons an hour, which means that your tank’s water’s passing through it 16 times every hour (384 times a day), which is excessive and unnecessary for a 2-inch frog. Aside from the fact that it’s not presently serving any useful purpose if the water's getting green and smelly in a few days, I imagine that it must also be creating considerable water turbulence in the tank. This wouldn’t be a problem if it contained fish but Xenopus frogs occur naturally in pools where the water's still or very slow-moving. It follows therefore, that if a frog’s kept in a tank with a lot of water movement at all levels, it’s having to survive in conditions for which it’s not naturally adapted.

I think that a box or foam filter powered by a low-output air pump would be a more appropriate arrangement for such a small tank and frog. There are a lot of YouTube videos illustrating these things and explaining how they work. If you do that and keep the tank shaded I think you’ll have a lot less work to do.

Finally, one of the reasons that I kept these frogs for 26 years was that they were so easy and undemanding to maintain successfully. You’ll probably find it encouraging to read the posts in this old thread that was started almost 9 years ago: http://www.frogforum.net/showthread....rog-age-record

Good luck.