When my Red Sea mixture runs out I am looking to do my own.
Can someone give me a recipe for a one litre bottle please?
Trea.
Rena Aqualife 120 x 40- 250l :
Plants: Vallisneria spiralis ''Tiger'', Bacopa monnieri, Limnophila sessiliflora, Hygrophila corymbosa 'Siamensis', Echinodorus 'rubin', Anubias barteri var. nana, Java Fern, Cryptocoryne wendtii 'Green', Limnobium laevigatum
Fish:- 14 x Harlequin Rasboras, 3 x Bristlenose Plecs
I owe it all to Lilac-Froggy
240g of sugar 1tea-spoon (5ml) of Bicarb of Soda ¼ tea-spoon of (bread or champagne!!) yeast.
Lasts about 14-21 days and saves a fortune
Mike
"It is infinitely more exciting to live a life of catastrophic failures than a life of could-haves, should-haves & would-haves." Moh Hon Meng
Thank you
Where do you get your champagne yeast?
Will prob use bakers yeast anyway but good to know.
Trea
I've not used the champers yeast; no idea where to get it.
I just use the cheapo brand/own name bread yeast from the supermarket - it works wonders
Best wishes
how do you set that up.....???
do you need special equipment??
2 sword tails (sophie, karen ) , 1 black shark (Al) R.I.P) ,1 golden sucking catfish (bannana) 1 silver sucking cat (Lionel) ,3 brnoze corys (fred, norman and nigel), 3 white clouds (little fishies), 2 Kuhli loaches (iggy and pop), 2 zebra danio (roberto and Garth),
new 3 foot tank yay!!!! thanks mum and dad!!
Thanks Mike!
Laura: I got a fermentation set up, there are plenty around. Mine is the Red Sea Turbo. Go to this site www.aquaessentials.co.uk/index.php and check out what they've got. You can get cheaper if you find one you like. When the bottle is empty you can fill it with the recipe above to save on buying refills, they both contain the same stuff anyway.
Alternatively you can make your own kit using a soda bottle and silicon tubing, but I wouldn't want to try it myself, me and DIY don't mix!
At least I can con myself that this DIY is like cooking, so thats ok
Trea,
That's the same make I have - so I know it works really well!
There is just one snag with mine - I have to clear the funnel of debris (build-up of "crud" coming down the pipe) about once a week; then the bubbles just flow.
It's maybe 'cos I live in a hard-water area or the mixing of the ingredients; either way, it's nothing major and worth the inconvenience when you total up how much money you are saving by not buying the maker's "ready mix".
Novice - again: There is just one snag with mine - I have to clear the funnel of debris (build-up of "crud" coming down the pipe) about once a week; then the bubbles just flow.
Thanks Mike, thats good to know.
I haven't had any crud yet but I'll watch out for that when I do the DIY mix.
As mike's said that's the mixture I use in my Red Sea set up Trea
Also as he says, the bit on the end of the venturi pump gets blocked with build up from the mixture also tiny snails have managed to get into mine which also blocks it. Check it everyday as it sometimes soon gets blocked.
Champagne yeast is quite expensive compared to other yeast, but is supposed to work better as it ferments slower and lasts longer. But, the quick dried yeast for bread works ok. I have found Allinson's in sachets to be very good. You could also try brewer's yeast. Whatever you use it mustn't be old and stale otherwise it won't work
Don't fill the container too full with water. Leave about 2 inches from the top of the bottle to allow plenty of room for the gas to develop. I also use black CO2 tubing . Probably makes no difference to the tube provided, but mine had gone blue due to protozin treatments. The black blends into the tank well too
Thanks for that advice Jan, I'm hoping not to get too overrun with snails this time. My Goldfish tank was heaving with trumpets, absolutely heaving!
I will remember to check the venturi as you said.
I also use normal yeast and sugar and it works fine... I'd not heard about the Bicarb bit before though - what's the purpose of this?
From what I've read it helps to neutralise the acid produced during the process. But I've alos read that the sodium by product produced by the bicarb ends up killing the yeast just as quickly.
However, as I've not actually done a DIY recipe before I'm not sure how accurate that is.
I will be using this quite a lot, could we get it , or a list of recipes for different volumes perhaps, stickied ?
Stickied for you!
Thank you!