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2020-01-02T00:00:00+01:00 2020-01-02T00:00:00+01:00 https://www.olibetta.uk/info/blog/shrimp-guidelines Olibetta uk@olibetta.com https://www.olibetta.uk/ For fish, there are minimum requirements in Germany - guidelines for keeping them in the aquarium, and in Austria and other countries, there are similar laws. Unlike for fish, these laws and guidelines do not apply to shrimp - so you can keep them completely legally in aquariums under 60 cm in length. The little crawlers easily have enough space in a smaller nano aquarium because the animals do not swim much and live on the surface. You can also design a nano tank so that the small, pretty dwarf shrimp feel really comfortable in it. However, you should note that the internal filters included in the standard complete sets with 54 litres are usually not suitable for shrimp - here they can get inside the filter, where they are chopped up by the filter wheel. Here you either have to buy a shrimp-proof internal filter - or you choose the NanoCube Complete from Dennerle. With this chic part, all accessories were developed with shrimp in mind and tested for their suitability for shrimp. Nano aquariums are not for beginners? Are you kidding me? Are you serious when you say that! One very often hears the objection that small aquariums are not for beginners - one can now confidently see that as refuted! The technology is so advanced that there are now high-quality filters, lighting systems and even the possibility of professional CO2 fertilisation for nano aquariums. The selection of aquarium plants is also much larger these days, and there are many more nano plants and even nano aquarium decorations. If you read in a bit and avoid a few basic beginner mistakes right from the start, nothing stands in the way of successful shrimp farming, so - don't be fooled! An important point in shrimp farming: the water There are many different dwarf shrimps in the aquarium hobby, which come from different biotopes and therefore also need different water values. Fortunately, today it is the case that you have to choose your desired fill for your tap water. Because a nano aquarium is naturally not particularly large, you can use osmosis water and mineral salt to produce the water that your favourite shrimp need. This is really not difficult at all - the mineral salt is measured accordingly and stirred into the water. That's it, every recipe is more complicated. Shrimp from soft water! The prime example of a soft water shrimp is the popular red and white or black and white bee shrimp, also called crystal red or crystal black, a real eye-catcher. It comes from biotopes with very soft water and would like to have that in the aquarium too. You can keep bee shrimp in harder water, but often the offspring do not come up there or the animals get sick, and that does not have to be. Measure the osmosis water and mineral salt with the enclosed spoon and add, stir briefly, pour into the aquarium, and you're done. You really don't need to be afraid of that, the procedure is absolutely not complicated. You can recognise the mineral salt for soft water shrimp by the addition of GH +. The Bee Salt GH + by Dennerle is such a salt that is very suitable for keeping bee shrimp. Shrimp from hard water! A great example of hard water shrimp are the great colourful Neocaridina. They can cope with almost all water values that seep out of the line in our latitudes. The relatively insensitive Neocaridina shrimp are definitely suitable for beginners and are good for reproduction and can be kept in tap water in many regions. Then why are there hardening salts for Neocaridina (recognizable by the addition GH / KH +), such as the Shrimp Salt GH / KH + from Dennerle? Unfortunately, the water hardness is not everything - there can be all sorts of undesirable things in tap water, for example, the waterworks sometimes use chlorine or silver because of a germ load, and in some houses, there are still copper pipes for the water - silver, chlorine and copper are very toxic to ours aquarium inhabitants! If you don't want to work with osmosis water and mineral salt, you should drain the water well to prevent copper deposits. More copper is released from the pipes in warm water, so it is better to fill the replacement water for the aquarium cold. If in doubt, just leave it a day in front of the heater so that it can reach room temperature. To eliminate chlorine, run the water over the shower head into your aquarium bucket. The strong water movement reliably drives the chlorine out. You can also whirl the water for your aquarium properly with an air pump for a few hours. Unfortunately, there is no solution against silver in tap water, but silver is also a deadly poison for shrimp. If you want to be on the safe side here, you'd better get a water purifier that binds all dangerous substances like heavy metals and other stuff that nobody needs in tap water. The Dennerle Clear Water Elixir and the Dennerle Aqua Elixier are such water purifiers. With the Dennerle Clear Water Elixir , the water first becomes a little cloudy and then absolutely clear and brilliantly transparent. The temperature in the aquarium! Most dwarf shrimps do not come from tropical regions and do not need to be so terribly warm in the aquarium. Room temperature, i.e. 18 to 24 ° C, is enough for them. A heating element is only necessary if you want to keep shrimp from warmer areas or if you live in an igloo. Here too, Dennerle's Nano Thermo Compact offers ideally fitting heating solutions for your nano aquarium, which are not mercilessly over-dimensioned but are ideal for the small water volume. The filter in the aquarium - internal filter! Internal filters are often used in nano aquariums. What you get in retail is unfortunately often not suitable for shrimps, because the filters suck the water through large slots through which smaller shrimps can pass. The inner workings of these internal filters are unfortunately such that the filter wheel is located just behind the slots - here the shrimp are literally chopped up. Dennerle has solved the problem with the nano corner filter. Here the slots are also available (how else should the water get into the filter, there is no other way ...), but the filter is designed so that even the smallest shrimp can definitely not reach the filter wheel - to do so they need tools and shrimp generally cannot operate them. If that's not enough for you - no problem, there is a fine grid to clip onto the filter, the Dennerle Baby Protect . In no time the filter is absolutely baby shrimp safe. For heavily populated aquariums, in which a lot is fed and in which the filter has to do more, we recommend the filter attachment Nano Filter Extension instead of the Baby Protect, with which you can practically double the filter volume. The filter in the aquarium - external filter and backpack filter! External filters and backpack filters such as the Dennerle Nano Scaper's Flow Hangon Filter do not live like an internal filter inside the aquarium, but outside the water. The backpack filter hangs on the aquarium glass, the external filter is next to the basin or below, in the aquarium cabinet. The advantage: they do not take up any space in the aquarium (and, to be honest, internal filters are sometimes a bit ugly ...). With the external filter or the backpack filter, the water inlet is often a weak point in the shrimp pool - the slots are also quite large, and the inside of the filter is not safe for shrimp. You can either defuse these water inlets with an appropriate piece of filter sponge or with a stainless steel tube. The filter in the aquarium - basics! No matter which filter type you choose, it must pass through day and night. The actual cleaning work in the filter is done by bacteria that break down organic substances in the water that are potentially harmful to shrimp and render them harmless. To do this, they need oxygen, which freshwater from the aquarium brings them. If you turn the filter off overnight, they will die and then they will no longer work ... so notice: Always let the filter run through. The filter is cleaned when you find that there is visibly less water coming out - then the filter media are clogged. You simply wash filter mats and similar sponge material under running water - without detergent! If it no longer gets clean, which can happen with filter fleece, for example, you have to insert a new filter cartridge. Ventilation in the aquarium! During the day, the plants release oxygen into the water, at night they consume some. If there is a lack of oxygen overnight, which can occur in well-planted tanks, it has proven to be useful to ventilate the aquarium. For example, if the temperature in the water rises in summer, less oxygen is stored. It can also make sense to ventilate the aquarium with a stone and an air pump or with an oxidizer. This is how additional oxygen comes into play, which is good for the aquarium inhabitants. The substrate in the aquarium Optimal for shrimp from rather hard water (Neocaridina, Amano and others) is a neutral natural gravel like the Dennerle Plantahunter gravel or shrimp gravel . Here you can live out and also use gravel in different colours or different sized grains. Shrimps from soft water like bee shrimp or Taiwanese like to sit on dark ground, which stabilises the water values and makes the water softer. The Dennerle Shrimp Soil is a good choice for this. The break-in period The ecosystem in the aquarium needs to be broken in first. Let your new aquarium run in for at least two weeks without stocking. You do the rest completely: So it is planted, filled with water, and the equipment such as filters, lights and - if available - CO2 is connected and runs like normal operation. The necessary bacteria can now form here, converting toxic ammonia and nitrite into comparatively harmless nitrate. You can accelerate the formation of the bacteria by inoculating your aquarium, i.e. adding a bacterial preparation with live filter bacteria to the fresh basin. For example, the Aquarium Starter Rapid from Dennerle is a highly recommended product. Then you should also feed your aquarium, which still looks empty, but is just bustling with microscopic life. You can add a little shrimp food to the aquarium - but only a little. So they have something to do and their number adapts to the range of feed. If you use animals after the break-in period, bacteria are already there and the biological burden on your shrimp and snails is limited. If you measure water during the break-in period - for example with the Dennerle water test strips 6-in-1 - you will find that the longer your aquarium has been run in, you will get very different results. This is because different bacteria let off steam and multiply. First the content of ammonium (NH3) / ammonia (NH4) increases and decreases again, then you can measure the nitrite (NO2), which is toxic to fish and invertebrates, in higher concentrations - this is the so-called nitrite peak. You can only populate your new aquarium with a clear conscience if this substance drops below the detection limit again. If you have used the Dennerle Aquarium Starter Rapid , it may happen that the nitrite peak is very weak or does not take place at all. If after two weeks nothing has happened and you have vaccinated your aquarium, you can assume that everything fits as far as possible and use shrimp. The stock in the aquarium! Shrimp are small, but they do have social behavior and are group animals. From 10 animals per species is a good guideline. The Amano shrimp, for example, are very active shrimp. They swim a lot and are generally very lively, so they need an aquarium with an edge length of at least 60 cm. You can put other dwarf shrimp types in a NanoCube with a capacity of 10 or 20 litres. What is important here is not so much the swimming space as the surfaces on which the dwarfs crouch and which they can graze. The water change and the aquarium maintenance! In general, you can say that a weekly water change of 10-30% is optimal. If you feed a lot and fertilise your plants properly, you should change 50% water, so that no unwanted substances accumulate in the water. When changing water, you can also clean the panels. If you do this every week, they won't get so dirty that you can run around with methods other than the alginator. With many shrimp breeders, you will see that they do not clean the back wall and the side windows of the aquarium because here the baby shrimp find a lot of growth and you can watch them grow. If you want to be absolutely sure that you don't suck in shrimps when you change the water, you can either look closely or simply secure the hose with a nylon sock. Once a month, you should combine the water change in your aquarium with a cleaning campaign and vacuum the gravel. This is very easy with the Dennerle Gravel Cleaner. Especially in the places where you normally feed, the suction is exciting and should not fail. It is best to fill the freshwater into your aquarium with a watering can with a shower attachment. A strong jet of water would mix up the furnishings, we don't want that! If you use water conditioners, hardening salts or other water care products, mix them with your freshwater in the said watering can before filling and stir well. Keeps body and soul together - the food! Shrimps eat all kinds of coverings and films in the aquarium: algae, bacteria, other microorganisms ... so they do not starve so quickly. Shrimp feed should be adapted to its eating habits in nature - a lot of plant food and proteins from invertebrates such as insects (larvae). Dennerle has worked extensively on this and uses only the best ingredients for a long and healthy shrimp life in the shrimp king series. A special shrimp food - leaves in the aquarium! Brown autumn leaves are also found in the natural waters of the invertebrates and are part of their favourite food. In addition to fibre, it also contains tannins and humic substances that help all aquatic crustaceans to shed and can even bind pollutants. In addition, particularly tasty biofilms are formed here, which the shrimps graze very happily. Brown autumn leaves from all common domestic deciduous trees are suitable. You should always have two or three leaves in the aquarium - at the same time, it looks very natural and doubles as a nice aquarium decoration. If you don't have access to clean foliage, you can use sea almond leaves from controlled sources. Dennerle even offers them in a suitable size for nanos. Happahappa for the plants - fertilising in the aquarium! You often hear: No fertiliser in the shrimp aquarium! There is copper in it! But don't worry - if you follow the dosage instructions, no aquarium plant fertiliser will harm your little crawlers. If it contains copper at all, then only very low concentrations, which do not harm the animals. Dennerle plant fertilisers for aquariums are specially tailored to shrimp and the like and do not endanger your animals. The aquarium decoration - roots! There are many different aquarium roots, all of which are well suited for shrimp aquariums. Some of them are still floating up initially. You can either pre-water these roots or simply hold them down with a stone until they soak up water and then stay on their own. Natural root wood often colours the aquarium water more or less brown. This does not harm the shrimp, and after a while, the effect wears off on its own. Shortly after insertion, you will notice a whitish coating on some aquarium roots. This is not mould, but a bacterial coating. The microbes utilise sugar residues in the wood and crumble again on their own when they are used up. The aquarium decoration - stones! When you set up an aquarium for soft water shrimp such as the red and white or black and white bee shrimp, you have to make sure that the aquarium stones do not contain any lime that would harden the water. You can easily check it - just drop some vinegar essence or other stronger acid on the stone and see if it starts to foam. This would mean that it contains lime and should therefore only be used in an aquarium in which there is no soft water with an acidic pH. Such stones are more suitable for an aquarium with Neocaridina like Red Fire or Red Sakura. Conclusion! All in all, that's it - a not so short outline of the shrimp farming, but it really gives you everything you need to know to successfully get started with the little crawlers. It's not that difficult, dare! We hope you enjoy your new aquarium! Your Chris Luckhaup

2019-12-23T00:00:00+01:00 2019-12-23T00:00:00+01:00 https://www.olibetta.uk/info/blog/tools-in-the-aquarium Olibetta uk@olibetta.com https://www.olibetta.uk/ Aquascaping is still very trendy and you may wonder, if you're new to it, what tools will I need? Or even if any are required? Aren't the good old hands doing it? Why special tools for the aquarium at all? At the latest, however, when you try to plant your aquarium reasonably nicely as a traditional aquarist, you want something that is less clumsy than the human hand. Especially in a nano basin, fine foreground plants are very difficult if you only have your fingers available as tools. With normal tweezers or household scissors, of course, it works somehow, but rather badly than right, because most of the tools commonly used in the household are simply too short - this makes the work really tedious. Luckily, the manufacturers already thought something about it when they developed aquascaping tools! These tools are much more suitable for working in the aquarium because they have a good length. So you do not have to dive head over heels into the aquarium, but can comfortably come from above with the tool and do not have to get your arms wet. Which tool for which purpose? Planting Tweezers: Plant tweezers are particularly effective in planting your aquarium plants in the ground. The planting tweezers XL by Dennerle is a proud 45 cm long and thanks to its thin tips it can go anywhere, even in rough places between stones or roots. The gripping surfaces are grooved and hold the plants comfortably without squeezing them. You can also use the tweezers to sink fertiliser balls or fertiliser capsules ( Dennerle NutriBalls or PowerTabs ) into the substrate close to the roots of your aquarium plants if the greens like to have an extra dose of nutrients. You can also use this pair of tweezers to fish out anything that doesn't belong in your aquarium - dead plants or other remains. And you can even use it to poke the ground quickly if you suspect something is bothering you. The Nano Aquascaping Set by Dennerle also includes plant tweezers that work just like the big sister in XL, but which is much more suitable for a smaller nano aquarium because it is significantly shorter with a total length of 27 cm. You can get into every corner in small cubes and manoeuvre more skillfully. Planting Tips A little tip on the side: if you do not cut the leaves off your stem plants on the piece that comes into the ground, but instead leave the petiole and a small part of the leaf, you have created a kind of small barbs that your stem plant keeps in the ground and prevents them from floating. Another tip on the side: The use of foreground plants can even lead you to despair with tweezers, the roots are often too fine. and the buoyancy is too high. You can easily remedy this with a little trick. With conventionally produced aquatic plants with rock wool at the roots, you do not remove all of the stone wool, but leave the top centimetre close to the plant. When inserted, it acts as an anchor and increases the adherence of the plant to the substrate. Of course, this does not work with plants grown in vitro ... there is no stone wool here. After planting, carefully sprinkle them with a little aquarium gravel or soil so that they are slightly covered. The extra weight keeps them down until they are rooted. You can also cover the coarse ground with a layer of fine ground, in which the fine roots of the foreground plants gain a foothold much faster and find better grip. Shears The use of pruning shears is somehow self-explanatory. It is suitable for shortening moss cushions that are too large, stem plants that have become too long, you can use them to remove old leaves that have become unsightly, or to thin out and shorten rosette plants that are too large. It also does a good job preparing the plants for use. You can use it to shorten the roots to 3-4 cm in length so that they branch out immediately after planting and are not squeezed when planted. The Nano pruning shears in the Nano Aquascaping Set by Dennerle are 25 cm long and also super manoeuvrable in small aquariums. Planting Tips Another small tip on the side: If you plant needle ledges, you should simply cut off the fine leaves about 1-2 cm above the roots. The plant drives new leaves from below and becomes very beautiful. The old leaves would reject them anyway, and the scourge in the aquarium can be infinitely annoying because it really sticks in every corner. Another small tip on the side: have you bought stem plants in a pot that sit in stone wool, and you want to save yourself the pinching of the rock wool (which every aquarist will understand all too well, there is actually nothing more annoying when preparing plants) - Simply remove the stems from above the pot and shorten the bottom 3-5 leaves as described in the first small tip above. Stem plants are notorious for rooting out incredibly quickly, so you can just use the bare stems and the plant will do the rest. Gravel spatula With the gravel spatula in the Nano Aquascaping Set, you can make the substrate pretty smooth. Nothing messes up the sight of an otherwise lovingly and carefully decorated aquascape like an unevenly distributed, uneven ground full of levers and holes. It doesn't have to be like this... the gravel spatula from the Nano Aquascaping Set by Dennerle has a total length of 32 cm and two spatula ends of different widths, one 15 and one 68 mm wide. With this, you can smooth the floor flat between roots or stones. Cleanator Not a classic aquascaping tool, but a useful and versatile tool in the aquarium is the Dennerle Cleanator. With the double-sided sponge, you clean your aquarium glass flawlessly, and the silvery, rough stainless steel side even grabs stains and deposits from hard and unruly algae such as spot algae or crust algae. Guaranteed scratch-free, stainless steel is softer than glass. Nano alginator The Nano Alginator is also a useful little cleaning tool for the aquarium, especially for Nano Cubes and Scaper Aquariums with their curved corners in the front. The cleaning surface is somewhat rounded, and so it comes into these corners, something that conventional magnetic disc cleaners cannot do. The extra flat inner part easily slips behind the device and pushes through all kinds of decoration without getting caught. The neodymium magnet is really strong with a holding force of 2.5 kg and holds reliably. Especially before taking photos in the aquarium, the use of the Dennerle Cleanator and / or the Nano Alginator is really recommended, otherwise, you will stamp out all possible particles on the aquarium glass from your photos for hours afterwards. You probably have something better to do ... for example to enjoy your aquarium free of stains. We hope you enjoy your aquarium! Chris Luckhaup

2019-12-23T00:00:00+01:00 2019-12-23T00:00:00+01:00 https://www.olibetta.uk/info/blog/water-treatment Olibetta uk@olibetta.com https://www.olibetta.uk/ Tap water is not just tap water, and if it works well for one in the aquarium, it does not mean that it works just as well in another pool in another area. What water values do my aquarium animals need? You have to look closely - not every fish can tolerate every water - especially if you want to breed - and invertebrates such as shrimps quickly become critical when the water values in the aquarium are wrong. Not only water hardness is a factor, but also things like nitrate or phosphate, for example. In some areas, the maximum level of 50 mg / l nitrate is regularly reached, and this can lead to moulting problems and even death for sensitive shrimps. Sulawesi shrimp even need very special water, simply to survive. But aquarium fish like the discus also don't like hard water, and others like the colourful cichlids from the African lakes of the Tanganyika and Malawi ravines should not be kept in acidic soft water. Soft water is also absolutely necessary for breeding many tetras, even if it can be kept in harder water, as with red neon. Adapt the water to the fish and not vice versa! But even if the fish or shrimp just tolerate harder water, you should ask yourself whether you really have to force a soft water animal into hard water if there is another way. Of course, when choosing the aquarium animals, you can simply limit yourself to what is good with the water values specified in the tap water, but you can just as well adapt the water to the shrimp. This is very easy with osmosis water and a corresponding mineral salt. Toxins in tap water! Even if the water values that we can measure are ok in your tap water, there are still many other factors that can also be dangerous: For example, chlorine added to a bacterial load in tap water is absolutely deadly for our aquarium animals. Shrimps get there in seconds, and fish can be severely damaged and even die. Heavy metals such as copper are released from old water pipes, and they are also fatally toxic to shrimp. Has it worked well in tap water for years? Unfortunately, this is not a guarantee, but it can still happen at any time that the water is disinfected with chlorine or silver (often even without warning). Absolutely harmless for humans, absolutely deadly for shrimp. Sometimes the dreaded polyphosphates are added to the tap water, which can even stop reproduction in fish and spawning fungi in crabs. They can also trigger algae plagues. For this reason, many responsible aquarists opt for water treatment and the use of an osmosis system. Water treatment - for which aquarium inhabitants makes sense? Whether or not it makes sense to use treated osmosis water in the aquarium depends on a number of factors. In the end, every aquarist has to decide whether water has to be treated for less sensitive animals such as Neocaridina shrimp or more robust fish. To a certain extent, of course, this depends on the water quality. However, many aquarium owners have had the experience that their more robust aquarium animals in treated osmosis water suddenly felt much better, that they ate better, their colours became more beautiful, they reproduced better and looked healthier and happier overall. How does osmosis work? The osmosis system is equipped with a membrane that allows the tiny water molecules to pass through, but nothing else. Therefore, the water that is extracted here is very pure. The Dennerle Osmose Professional 190 has a maximum output of 190 l per day (at 25 ° and 4.1 bar pressure). The ratio of osmosis water to residual water is 1: 2.5 - 1: 4 (depending on the temperature and the water pressure). This system is equipped with a flushing valve, which ensures an increased lifespan of the membrane and high continuous output, with which you remove performance-reducing deposits on the membrane. If you need less osmosis water, maybe the Osmose Compact 130 with a maximum output of 130 l per day (at 25 ° and 4.1 bar pressure) is the right choice for you. Here, too, the ratio of osmosis water to residual water is 1: 2.5 - 1: 4 (depending on the temperature and the water pressure). A little tip: With the wastewater from the osmosis system, you can water the flowers, for example. Can you just use osmosis water like that? Osmosis water is highly pure water, which means that it no longer contains minerals and the conductance is close to zero. There is no buffer at all for the pH value here, which means that the pH value can rush to unimagined depths or rise sharply. Pure osmosis water is therefore not suitable for aquarium animals. However, there are products that can be used to produce the exact water values that animals need: mineral salts. The same applies of course to demineralised water and rainwater or very soft spring water. Help, there are so many mineral salts - which one should I use? If you care for tropical fish and plants in the aquarium, the osmosis ReMineral + by Dennerle is perfect for most species. It increases the total hardness and the carbonate hardness in a good ratio and stabilises the pH. A full measuring spoon increases the total hardness by 2 degrees and the carbonate hardness by 1.3 degrees. This corresponds to a conductance of 140 µS / cm. Here you simply add as much salt as your fish need. If you want to take care of shrimp, you should first look at the types you want. Neocaridina have a hard time in very soft water, they need harder water with some carbonate hardness. You can do this with the ShrimpKing Shrimp Salt GH + / KH +. Here you get a pH value of approx. 7 to 7.5. A measuring spoon hardens 40 litres of water to a GH of 6-8 and a KH of about 3-4 - ideal for shrimps that prefer harder water with a little carbonate hardness. Bee shrimps and other shrimps from soft water such as Taiwan shrimps or bumblebee shrimps, which are kept on an active soil, do not like carbonate hardness at all, and the active soil would also be quickly saturated by an existing KH. That's why Dennerle has the ShrimpKing Bee Salt, which brings the pH to 6 to 6.5. A level measuring spoon gives a total hardness of 5-6 degrees, while the carbonate hardness is not raised at all. Then the conductivity is around 250 to 280 microsiemens. For the specialists among the shrimps, the great red Sulawesi prawns Caridina dennerli, you cannot use normal tap water. They are used to very special water from their home. With the ShrimpKing Sulawesi Salt you bring osmosis water to a pH of 7.8 to 8.5 and increase the total hardness as well as the carbonate hardness. Here the natural growth is encouraged - a must for the small Sulawesi shrimps, who do nothing but feed them all day long. A level measuring spoon per 20 litres of water increases the total hardness to 6 to 7 degrees and the conductivity to 270 to 380 microsiemens. If you only have to raise the carbonate hardness in the water because the total hardness actually fits as far as possible and you only want to stabilise your pH value, you can use the liquid KH + elixir from Dennerle. 20 ml per 100 l of aquarium water loosen the KH by 0.6 degrees and the conductivity by 20 microsiemens / cm. Important tips for dealing with mineral salts! Please only add the salt to the freshwater and do not add it directly to the aquarium to avoid strong fluctuations in the water values. This is extremely important, especially with sensitive shrimps! If, contrary to expectations, all of the salt in the water does not dissolve, add the components that have not dissolved to the aquarium. They then dissolve a little later in the filter, so that's not a problem. You close the tin with the mineral salt for the aquarium immediately after use, because the salt draws water from the air and can then clump up badly. Then you couldn't use it anymore. More water additives! With the Humin Elixir you add humic substances to your aquarium water that practically all freshwater fish know and like from their biotopes. There is practically no body of water in which there are no humic substances. They arise when organic material is broken down. In the past it was assumed that humic substances had no effect, today we know that they can improve the health of fish and invertebrate aquatic animals decisively, that they strengthen the mucous membranes and can help shrimp to shed. With the Dennerle Humin Elixir you give your aquarium inhabitants an extra push in the right direction and supports them in staying healthy. Fish from waters with black water in particular benefit enormously from this water purifier! Discus, angelfish, neons in particular, but also many dwarf cichlids from South America and catfish are very grateful for adding humic substances - dwarf shrimps too by the way. The Dennerle Humin Elixir does not give the water an annoying colour, but can also be processed without a brown tinge. With the Vital Elixir by Dennerle you create a healthy environment for your aquarium fish. It contains aloe vera, which cares for the mucous membrane, and you add important minerals to the aquarium water that are quickly used up. In this way, you can avoid diseases in your fish that are caused by a lack of trace elements. For this purpose, shrimp and crayfish have the Nano Crusta Mineral , which contains valuable montmorillonite and natural, bioactive calcium and magnesium. This not only binds pollutants in the aquarium water but also provides your crawlers in the aquarium with important minerals for building tanks. We hope you enjoy your aquarium! Chris Luckhaup

2019-12-23T00:00:00+01:00 2019-12-23T00:00:00+01:00 https://www.olibetta.uk/info/blog/feed-your-shrimp-properly Olibetta uk@olibetta.com https://www.olibetta.uk/ For the care of dwarf shrimp in the aquarium, the wildest feeding tips circulate, even spaghetti or bananas are occasionally recommended here - also things that almost never fall into the streams in the natural biotopes! If we want to know how to properly feed shrimp, we have to look at what they eat in their home. One quickly realizes that shrimp are not picky with leftovers and more or less really dig in to what they find - but they simply don't find many different things. Most of the dwarf shrimp eat leaves in their streams, which fall off the trees and then end up in the water. Furthermore, of course, plants and plant remains. It cannot be ruled out that there is sometimes fruit in the stream - but rarely (usually the streams do not meander through orchards). Then now and then insect larva, water snail or even a fallen animal (but also here - this happens really rarely and is definitely not part of the main diet). In addition to leaves, dwarf shrimps, in their very clean streams, mainly feed on the growth that forms on all surfaces. These biofilms consist of bacteria (excellent protein suppliers), algae, fungi, yeast and other microorganisms. They are high in protein and contain minerals - all in all quite substantial. If you were to feed as much in the aquarium as it might happen in the stream (for example, if a larger fruit falls into the water), you would also quickly have a huge problem. In the stream, the shrimp has a water change of 100% every second, which is not really feasible in the aquarium, and the filter is definitely completely overwhelmed with such a sudden high nutrient load. This quickly leads to huge problems such as bacterial blooms and a lack of oxygen in the aquarium that has washed out. Your aquarium inhabitants can even die from it or it will make them sick. You therefore feed shrimps in the aquarium rather sparingly. Your main food should mainly be based on plants. Protein-containing biofilms can also be found here everywhere, so that the shrimp can easily supply themselves with proteins in tanks that are not too heavily populated. There are indications that shrimp react with molting problems when their protein in their food is not optimally usable, so the protein intake should definitely not be exaggerated. Meat from mammals has no business in the shrimp aquarium. Shrimp do not have intestinal muscles, they just push the food through. So you need a certain amount to make digestion work smoothly, and it shouldn't be too substantial. So fibre is really very important to them. In order to boost the immune system of shrimp, ß-glucan is now a recognised agent - it occurs in the outer skin of many germs and signals increased awareness of the shrimp's immune system - a "hello-wake up" for the disease defense. If you buy shrimp feed, you should always make sure that it contains ß-glucan. Shrimps can swim, but spend most of the time on the ground or on other surfaces in the aquarium. So it is quite important that the feed goes down straight away and does not remain in the area for a long time. A good staple food for every day contains all the important nutrients and building materials that your shrimp want for healthy, not too fast, but also not too slow growth and good reproduction. With a good basic food such as the directly sinking ShrimpKing Complete from Dennerle, you can cover the needs of your dwarf shrimp very well. The proteins and essential amino acids in the Dennerle shrimp feed come from bacteria and aquatic feed animals, so they are well tolerated. Shrimp King uses various leaves and bark as a source of fibre, and algae and various vegetables serve as a source of vitamins. In order to boost the immune system of the shrimp, the feed developers have added a good portion of ß-glucan from yeast. In principle you do not need anything other than this basic feed with a moderate shrimp stock. But who is sensible when it comes to favourites? The cute little crawlers are also happy about a treat - and here, pure vegetable nibbles such as the Crusta Spinach Stixx or the Crusta Nettle Stixx from Dennerle are best suited. Snacking with a guilty conscience is no longer a problem for your shrimp. You can also make them extremely happy with the vitamin-rich and mineral- containing nano algae food leaves (by the way, your racer snails in the aquarium, too). Shrimp King Snow Pops made from soy bran are not only tasty and healthy, they also offer you the opportunity to provide your shrimp with a good food for several days that they literally fly on. Since the high-quality, protein-rich and vital substance-containing soy bran hardly pollutes the water, you can even feed it here for two or three days. The pops form a feeding turf in which every shrimp comes to the feed. This avoids stress and makes the Snow Pops a real superfood for shrimp. If your aquarium is more heavily populated, the shrimp may no longer find enough biofilms to feed on. Then you should specifically refill with compatible proteins twice a week so that your shrimp females still develop eggs and the egg quality is right. With the Shrimp King Protein food sticks for targeted nutritional supplements with high-quality proteins and essential amino acids, you will definitely not go wrong here. If your water is very low in minerals, you should supplement minerals with the shrimp feed - shrimp need a good portion of minerals for their shell! Shrimp King Mineral food sticks contain easily usable calcium for a stable tank structure and the all-rounder mineral montmorillonite, which can help with molting. ShrimpKing Mineral not only tastes good for your dwarf shrimps, it is ideal for feeding crayfish, dwarf crayfish, crabs and even snails - they also need calcium for their shell. With the most popular shrimps for the aquarium, the bee shrimp and their relatives, the smallest dwarfs are not really mobile. Bee shrimp babies are more or less always in one place during the first days of life. If there is no food there, bad luck! For this reason, an aquarium with baby shrimp is often given dust feed such as the Shrimp King Baby microgranules. It is distributed evenly in the pool, so that everyone gets their portion. If the larger shrimp catch something of it, it's not bad, the Shrimp King Baby is also a very good feed for them. While some people are still discussing coloured food, others are already looking forward to beautiful, colourful shrimps ... natural astanxanthines are also part of the daily food of shrimps in nature. These substances can not only colour, but they also play a very important role in the immune system of the shrimp! These natural colour enhancers are included in Shrimp King Color . Especially colourful shrimp species can give you a push in the right direction. What they cannot do - turn a transparent shrimp into a bright red shrimp. But nobody wants that either. And then we have the specialists among the shrimps - fan shrimps prefer to eat fine floating particles, which they filter out of the water with their fans. This is quite tricky in a clean aquarium, and so Dennerle has developed Shrimp King Atyopsis, a special dust food for these great animals. It also floats in the water for a long time and does not sink too quickly, so your Atya, Atyopsis and Atyoida fan shrimps are well looked after. We hope you enjoy your new aquarium! Chris Luckhaup

2019-11-14T00:00:00+01:00 2019-11-14T00:00:00+01:00 https://www.olibetta.uk/info/blog/feed-your-ornamental-fish-properly Olibetta uk@olibetta.com https://www.olibetta.uk/ Feed fish correctly, prevent problems in the aquarium Fish food in the aquarium is a hugely important and quite often a highly underestimated factor - it not only serves to feed the ornamental fish, but it can also cause some problems in the aquarium if it is handled incorrectly. Quite often it happens that the direct cause of the problems with fish feed cannot be recognised at all. So many aquarists have already gritted their teeth on such things as algae plagues and do not come to the cause because they do not change the food - because they do not see the connection with the food at all. But if you don't fix the cause, there is no sustainable solution! Cheap flake food from any roughly chopped ingredients, bought in a 1000-gram can, which is in the cupboard for a correspondingly long time and is simply fed to all the fish in the aquarium, can cause problems: from sick fish, dying much too soon, but also from pests to algae plagues, unsuitable fish food can be the cause for a lot of unsightly things in the aquarium. Connection with slug pests! A very often heard tip in the groups on Facebook is, for example, that if you have too many aquarium snails, you simply have to feed a lot less - but some people feed really little and still have a snail problem. If the food does not match the needs of the fish, or if something difficult to digest has been processed in the cheap food, there is simply too much "behind" ... The fish cannot use this food properly and literally poop out the nutrients. The snails are happy because they also eat the remains of fish, at this point they are quite painless. The poor fish are starving and the snails are happy anyway. Rats! so you have fed too little in vain! Algae pests and fish food! The same applies to algal plagues and algal blooms. If the fish cannot get the nutrients in the feed, they come out again. From the fish droppings, they can seep into the water and not only "fertilise" the aquarium plants, but also the algae. You can then frantically add fertiliser, tap CO2 onto the aquarium and do something else - if you continue to feed the same garbage and do not consistently carry out the other measures, there will always be problems here. Fish food and cloudy water! Cloudy water is often due to a bacterial bloom. You can recognize this above all from the fact that the water is whitely cloudy, so not green or brown. If you are not sure whether your water has a green tint, hold a white customer card in the water just behind the window. Bacteria, like algae, need nutrients, and fish feed that is not well utilised provides them with just that. A good fish food with usable nutrients is also an insurance against cloudy water and bacterial blooms. How do you recognise good fish food? Good fish food is fully declared - a transparent list of all ingredients and raw materials on the label is a good start! It is important that you make sure that it does not contain cheap fillers. The presence of attractants is also not a good sign, sometimes the aromas are used to hide inferior raw materials that the fish would not eat in life. Fish meal is also not good food for all fish - very few fish are predatory fish that feed other fish, but rather omnivores that feed mainly on insects, plants and algae. Even the pure carnivores among the fish such as Bettas do not eat other fish in nature, but rather worms, insects, insect larvae and small crabs. Hard feed vs. soft lining! Hard food granules can even hurt a sensitive fish mouth when bitten, which can lead to fungal infections. We don't want that! Soft feed granules are therefore not only equivalent to feed animals from nature, but also actively protect the fish from consequential damage caused by unsuitable feeding. Which food is good for my fish? The omnivores In the community aquarium, it is tricky to feed specifically. The good news: Most popular aquarium fish such as guppies, neons, scalars, many catfish and the like are omnivores and get along super well with a feed made from plant and animal components. The granulated food Dennerle Complete Gourmet Menu , for example, is such a balanced food with a soft consistency, just like the Complete Gourmet Flakes . No fish meal was used here, and the nutrients are so open that the fish can use them very well and therefore give less sturdy droppings. If you want to admire more beautiful colours in your fish, you can also use the Dennerle Color Booster To fall back on. Here Dennerle simply added some astaxanthin to the main food that your fish need to develop great colours. If you tend to look after small fish in your aquarium, it is worth taking a look at the Neon & Co. Booster from Dennerle . The finer feed granulate is aimed specifically at tetras, bearblings and barbels and also at guppies in the aquarium, which might be a little more difficult with the larger pellets of the main feed. Again, the needs of the omnivores are perfectly covered, and high-quality insects and krill cover the need for animal protein, while high-quality plant components cover the vegetarian part that these small omnivores also need. The Guppy & Co. Booster is also aimed at omnivores. There are many natural ingredients that act like a colour booster and can provide great colours for the colourful guppies. The sensitive and now unfortunately quite susceptible guppies are supported with a mix of immune-boosting ingredients such as beta-glucan. It contains a higher proportion of plants because guppies like to eat something green in nature. The Cookies Special Menu by Dennerle has also been designed for omnivores. These rapidly sinking food chips serve the bottom dwellers among the omnivorous aquarium fish, i.e. armoured catfish, loach, finfish and thorn eyes and many catfish. Of course, one or the other guppy will pluck the tabs, but the fact that the cookies sink quickly means that the bottom dwellers in the aquarium still get their ration. The specialists! But there are not only omnivores in the aquarium, there are also food specialists. Fighting fish are an example here. They are pure carnivores in nature, which do not even pluck algae in exceptional cases. Food with too high plant components causes their intestines to stick together. They can even get sick or die earlier! Frozen food and live food are a good choice for them, but if you don't have space in the freezer or don't like stinking live food crops on the window ledge, Dennerle has launched an alternative with the Betta Booster on the market. There is also a vegetable content here, but it is comparatively significantly lower than in general fish feed. Why are there plant-based food at all? Quite simply - Bettas also eat plant-based foods in nature, namely the intestinal contents of their prey animals, which mainly feed on algae and the like! The Betta Booster is also a great feed for gouramis and guramis, which is just by the way. For carnivores, but also for omnivores, the valuable freeze-dried Calanus FD Natural by Dennerle offers a great variety. Here Dennerle has packed arctic zooplankton in cans - super aromatic and of a size suitable for all small to medium-sized aquarium fish. With the nutrient-rich natural food Calanus FD Natural, you even get wild catches. The Dennerle Pleco Menu is aimed specifically at catfish that mainly clean algae from the panes and decorations in the aquarium and also feed other growths. This contains leaves that provide the catfish with fibre for a functioning intestine, vitamin-rich vegetables and of course algae. A small proportion of insect larvae and crustaceans mimic the proportion of animals growing up that catfish automatically take in with them in nature. The hard surface ensures that the catfish can not only vacuum clean their feed, but that they have to work properly to get something from it - just like in nature! This ensures variety and combats boredom. Goldy Booster is a special granulate for goldfish. They need animal and vegetable ingredients about half half, and they like a little larger granules. Dennerle has naturally considered Goldy Booster. How good that the special high-quality Dennerle food is now also available for goldfish and their breeding forms such as lion's head, shubunkin and comet! Continuing with the food specialists... Many cichlids and dwarf cichlids are not omnivores, but up-and-coming eaters (mostly vegetarians, with the occasional small crab that still sat in the algae) or the more predatory cichlids (which nevertheless absorb a certain amount of plant food via the intestines of their feed animals). With Cichlid Veggy Dennerle has set new standards in the feeding of cichlids and dwarf cichlids in the aquarium for the up-and-coming eaters and vegetarians among the cichlids and with Cichlid Carny for the carnivores. Of course, Dennerle also pays homage to the king of aquaristics, the discus. Discuss are often quite difficult to keep because they not only have high demands on water values but are also hard to come by on artificial feed. Diskus Soft is a special soft granulate that feels like a soft insect larval body in the disc mouth and creates a great eating experience for the discs. In addition, the beautiful discus fish are also perfectly supplied with the all animal and vegetable ingredients that they need. With natural aquatic animals as protein suppliers - no mammals were processed here, which is absolutely important for the health of the discus. Classic cattle heart feeding is now very controversial. We at Olibetta are very proud that we were able to win Dennerle as a partner for our online shop with its high-quality fish feed series. You only buy the best fish feed from us, which not only avoids polluting your fish and also the entire biosystem in your aquarium but can actively improve it. We hope you enjoy your new aquarium! Chris Luckhaup

2019-11-11T00:00:00+01:00 2019-11-11T00:00:00+01:00 https://www.olibetta.uk/info/blog/to-set-up-an-aquarium Olibetta uk@olibetta.com https://www.olibetta.uk/ Setting up an aquarium is really not a doctoral thesis. For everyone who doesn't really trust the topic of "aquaristics", there is a step-by-step instruction here in the blog. We will show you how to do it best and how your aquarium will be really great, even if you only just got into the topic. The right aquarium With a large Dennerle Nano Cube you are on the right side. The beautiful shape with the rounded corners at the front really fits into every room, and the basin is no longer that small with an edge length of 38 x 38 x 43 cm. This Nano Cube holds 60 litres - an ideal amount of water for beginners. Smaller aquariums are a bit more susceptible because the smaller amount of water doesn't buffer as much, but here you already have a very decent pool at the start. The Nano Cube is perfect for keeping shrimps and dwarf crabs, and even a single betta would feel really good here. Included in the complete set In the Dennerle Nano Cube Complete Style LED 5.0 we have everything our heart desires. This complete set includes the filter ( Nano Eckfilter XL), which ensures healthy, clean water and in which useful filter bacteria can settle that reduce water pollution. At the same time, the Nano corner filter is shrimp-proof and effective, with a long service life between the necessary cleanings. Even if small shrimps get into the filter space, it is impossible for them to get to the filter wheel. Simply open it and bring it out safe and sound. Furthermore, the complete set Nano Cube Complete Style comes with a Style LED L. With this lighting, you can provide even the most demanding aquarium plants with enough light so that they can grow healthy, vigorous and beautiful. The black back wall Scaper's Back is also included in the set. It provides your aquarium plants and animals with the right stage and lets their colours really shine. The complete set also comes with a substrate: with 6 kg of Sulawesi Black shrimp gravel and the DeponitMix nutrient medium, you provide your plants with a good foundation. You will also find a foam pad in the set (this is important because the smallest grains of sand under the floor glass can cause such tension that the glass scratches, the foam balances the pressure and simultaneously insulates downwards) and a cover plate that reduces evaporation and can prevent animals from jumping out. What else do I need? In principle, this complete set includes everything you need to get started right away. You still need possibly a timer for the light, plants, aquarium decorations (i.e. roots and / or stones - the so-called hardscape) and of course water. Animals not yet, they will come later. Check out pictures of cubes and get ideas for decorating - that's the very first step. Where should the aquarium be? Too much light can trigger algal blooms, and direct sunlight heats up the water quite a bit. For these reasons, your new aquarium should definitely not be directly at the window, but rather in the room. It is practical if there is a socket nearby - filters and lights need electricity. Directly in front of a heater, the water evaporation is higher, which is not bad in itself - you just have to refill it from time to time. Before setting up The first thing you do is attach the backing film. This works best as long as the pool is still empty because you can put it on the glass (definitely put a towel under or the foam pad so that there are no scratches). The film holds by adhesive force and contains no phthalates. Don't cut them, you'll do that later when everything is in place. A thin film of water on the back wall helps enormously when applying the film, so you first moisten the outside of the back window briefly. Then you start in a corner and put the foil on. Spread them evenly so that there are no air bubbles. It didn't work right away? Not bad at all - because no glue is used here, you can simply remove the film and start the next attempt. Maybe you need some practice, but then it looks really good. When the film is in place, use a knife to run along the edge of the glass and cut it perfectly. Setting up Did you find the right place? Then put the foam pad right side up and place the empty cube (now with backing film) on it. Now it can really start! First, you attach the filter in one of the back corners. Quite a few aquarists lovingly decorated their aquarium - only to find out later that they had forgotten the filter and could change everything again because there was no space. The filter is not yet inserted! Bed composition Have you already thought about where the plants should sit? Very good. At this point, you fill in the culture medium. Make sure that you always leave space for the side windows - otherwise, you will see the light layer of nutrient medium later, it doesn't have to be that way. Then you spread the first layers of crystal quartz gravel in the back corners and start building your hardscape. Put the largest stones or roots and fill up with gravel as you plant. Now you also distribute gravel in the front area. Make sure that you let the ground rise to the back- much more perspective is added to your layout and it looks much deeper than if everything is just lying flat. Prepare plants When the roots and stones are in place and the substrate lies, you can plant. Before doing so, you should prepare the plants. Potted plants are stuffed, the stone wool is removed from the roots and divided into smaller pieces. As little as possible of the stone wool should get into the aquarium. Then cut back the roots to approx. 2-3 cm so that they have an incentive to branch well straight away. With stem plants, you can save yourself the fuss and just cut them off over the pot (which you then throw away). The individual stems take root pretty quickly as soon as you put them in the bottom of the aquarium. If you have chosen InVitro grown plants in the lidded pot, it is even easier - briefly rinse off the nutrient liquid and divide the plants into smaller pieces, done. Then dampen a kitchen towel or a few pieces of Zewa and cover the plants carefully so that they do not wither. Plant Planting goes very well with long planting tweezers. The easiest way is to fill in a little water until the ground in the front area is barely covered. When filling, the substrate may be swirled around, you can avoid this by placing some foil or paper in the aquarium and pouring the water on it very slowly. Now it is the turn of the foreground plants - this is where it is best to use aquarium plants that are short-lived - Marsilea, Cuban pearl herb or Glossostigma, for example. It would be a shame if there were tall plants in front that overgrow the windscreen and you could only look at a green area ... If the foreground plants are seated, pour a little gravel on the base of the roots again so that everything also holds well and pour some water until the middle ground is slightly under water. Put some paper or foil on the hardscape to protect it. Now comes the middle ground. Rosette plants such as cryptocorynes are very popular here. With them you can plant your hardscape very nicely. You can also use your hardscape with moss or epiphytes like fern, bucephalandra or Plant Anubias - traditionally tied with a little thread or - much easier - fixed with a few drops of superglue. Don't worry, cyanoacrylate-based superglue is not toxic to your aquarium inhabitants later! When the middle ground is planted, repeat the pouring of the water. In the background you put higher aquarium plants such as Vallisneria or stem plants . Finished. Do you like it? Then put your paper or foil in the aquarium one last time and fill the water up to the top. Now you insert the filter and mount the light. First set the timer to a short lighting time of 6-8 hours - the new plants first have to adjust and do not grow as quickly. If there is a lot of light, you will otherwise bring an algae plague into the house, so - first of all only illuminate little. When the plants start to grow, you can gradually increase the lighting time to 10-12 hours. Warm-up time Your aquarium should now run in for a few weeks without animal residents - so the biological balance can be established. You can help with preparations such as the Aquarium Starter Rapid from Dennerle, which immediately brings in the necessary microorganisms. In this case, you can use the first snails after a few days, utilise the residues and get the biological system going. If your water test (for example the WaterTest 6in1 from Dennerle) shows that there is no nitrite in the aquarium water, you can fill your aquarium step by step. We hope you enjoy your new aquarium! Chris Luckhaup

2019-08-05T00:00:00+02:00 2019-08-05T00:00:00+02:00 https://www.olibetta.uk/info/blog/water-care Olibetta uk@olibetta.com https://www.olibetta.uk/ Water care in the aquarium plays an enormously important role - after all, water is the medium in which all living things in the aquarium have to cope with, be it fish, shrimp, crayfish, snails or other invertebrates, the aquarium plants and - not to forget - the useful microorganisms, that take care of organic pollution and that not only mineralise feed residues and make them available for the plants but also remove such harmful substances as nitrite and ammonia from the water. The key to good water care is, therefore, a well-functioning aquarium filter. The "good" bacteria are not only here, but on all surfaces underwater - but they occur in the filter in particularly high population densities because the conditions are optimal for them here: A good, large area for colonisation, always fresh, oxygen-rich water and a steady supply of nutrients that they can metabolise. The Dennerle corner filter is a good choice in small aquariums, and the Scapers' Flow Hangon filter is ideal for larger aquariums. How do these useful bacteria get into the aquarium? The nitrifiers are actually soil bacteria that can survive in water - provided they get enough oxygen. Therefore, there are always some bacteria in the air, which are whirled up as dust with dry earth. Theoretically, it would be enough to simply leave an aquarium open for a certain amount of time, and the necessary bacteria come with the dust virtually "on their own". Another option would be to squeeze out filter sludge from a running aquarium in the freshly set-up pool - or to bring furnishings or plants from running tanks into the new aquarium. The disadvantage of these methods is that you have to rely on chance and you can never be sure that the bacteria that land best in the aquarium really land in the aquarium. This is because each aquarium forms its own bacterial flora, which is composed individually of a wide variety of different bacteria, which does not necessarily work equally well in the next system. It is, therefore, better to use a highly effective bacterial starter such as the Dennerle Aquarium Starter Rapid to introduce a variety of different types of bacteria, from which the constellation that best suits this aquarium and this biological system can crystallise. Another important aspect here is the second component, the bacteria booster. This nutrient solution ensures a perfect start because it allows the bacteria to establish themselves correctly. This means that the aquarium can be filled much faster in an emergency and does not take six weeks to stand until the system is properly ready. For the care of the bacterial population in the running aquarium, it makes sense to inoculate each time the filter is cleaned, after a medication treatment or if there are problems such as an excessive build-up of mud or unstable water values (especially if the nitrite value increases). Even in running aquariums, it can happen that the conditions change and the bacterial population then no longer fit 100%! Re-Vaccination works best with the BactoElixier Bio from Dennerle. The ampoules provide optimal support for the filter bacteria in the running aquarium. The BactoElixier FB7 also offers a balanced mixed culture of useful bacteria and brings the composition of the microorganism population back into shape. It supports the formation of biofilms, which is particularly advantageous in aquariums with shrimps, snails or some fish such as L-catfish. Biofilms are a very important part of their daily feed and provide the animals with the necessary proteins, and with the BactoElixier FB7 you can recharge and regenerate these biofilms. How do you recognise possible problems now? Well, the water values should give you information here. Major changes usually require intervention. With the test strips of the WaterTest 6in1 from Dennerle, you can see at a glance the six most important water values in the aquarium - the pH, the carbonate hardness (KH), the total hardness (GH), the nitrate value (NO3), the nitrite value (NO2) and chlorine (Cl ). Here you can intervene immediately if something develops in the wrong direction. The carbonate hardness in the aquarium is mysteriously getting less and less? Metabolic processes of the bacteria in the filter can cause this, but aquarium snails can also pull carbonate hardness out of the water because they need lime for their shells. With the KH + Elixir from Dennerle you can prevent an acid decrease and provide your aquarium animals and especially the snails with vital lime. With this conditioner, you can specifically increase the carbonate hardness and adapt it to the needs of your aquarium inhabitants. The Clear Water Elixir by Dennerle binds water cloudiness and unpleasant smells - this means of water maintenance can also be very useful in the aquarium, especially for aquascapers or other people who find clear water in the aquarium important. The zeolite particles attract pollution like little magnets. After the addition, they cloud the water really hard, but then settle in the filter and leave crystal-clear water with wonderful brilliance. Note: Tap water is not aquarium water! It is processed in waterworks so that it is safe for humans to drink, but it loses some properties that benefit fish and invertebrates and of course, the aquatic plants in the aquarium, and other things (such as chlorine or polyphosphates) are added, which can even harm your aquarium animals. So if you use tap water to replenish your aquarium, you should treat the replacement water with Dennerle's Aqua Elixier to eliminate possible toxins such as copper or chlorine. You add substances that are filtered out as undesirable in the water by the waterworks but are actually urgently needed by fish and invertebrates, with this water purifier. It also contains a protective colloid that cares for the gills, fin skin and, above all, the mucous membrane of the fish and protects them from aggressive water. The Vital Elixir also contains substances such as vitamins and trace elements that are missing in drinking water or are in the wrong composition and that are urgently needed in the aquarium. With this water additive, you can prevent diseases that can be caused by a lack of trace elements in animals and plants in the aquarium. Dennerle has developed the Nano Crusta Mineral especially for invertebrates and especially for shrimps in the aquarium, which supplies them with a mixture of minerals and trace elements that are specially tailored to them and makes them fit. We hope you enjoy your new aquarium! Chris Luckhaup

2019-08-02T00:00:00+02:00 2019-08-02T00:00:00+02:00 https://www.olibetta.uk/info/blog/active-substrates Olibetta uk@olibetta.com https://www.olibetta.uk/ So-called active soil is an integral part of aquaristics. It has established itself, especially, in aquascaping and shrimp farming. But what is Soil? This substrate for the aquarium is a natural soil that is fired twice at low temperatures. Soil is used in freshwater aquariums and influences the water values - hence the name "active" Soil. Soil, in particular, lowers the carbonate hardness (KH) and thus also influences the pH value. Many shrimp that are very popular in aquaristics come from streams in southern China with very soft water. A popular representative of this group is the popular bee shrimp (Caridina logemanni) with all its relatives, including Taiwan shrimp (Caridina sp.) And the now popular hybrid breeds such as Galaxy Fishbone, Blue Boa, Zeus Bee, Red Devil and others. Many tropical tetras, catfish, South American cichlids and other aquarium fish also like soft water that they know from their biotopes. Most of the tropical aquatic plants cultivated in aquariums also prefer soft and slightly acidic water. In Germany, Austria and Switzerland, very hard tap water comes from the tap in very many regions, and this can lead to problems with keeping or reproducing in these aquarium fish, invertebrates, and many plant species also don't develop their full splendour because of this. The use of active soil has therefore practically turned soft water aquariums and plant aquariums upside down and revolutionised shrimp farming in particular. But what is behind the miracle ground, what can active soil do? How is it produced and what are its limits? Aquarium soil, however, is not an ordinary earth that someone quickly scratched up in the garden, but a mixture of different dark soils with very specific properties. The mix ratio is carefully balanced, and the soil is mixed and then fired so that it can take effect in the aquarium. At Dennerle there are two different types of soil: the Scaper's Soil for plant aquariums, which is pre-fertilised with important nutrients, and the non-fertilised Shrimp King Active Soil for shrimp aquariums. Both soils have in common that they lower the carbonate hardness and stabilise the pH value and the water quality. The topsoil used for the Dennerle Soils is largely of volcanic origin. Volcanic earths are fertile and naturally rich in minerals. Lighter, mineral-rich soil is mixed with the almost black "Black Soil" to give the soil its beautiful dark colour. This is how colourful shrimp and the colours of the green and red plants really come into their own. During the production of the soil, the earths are mixed together in a very specific mixing ratio, so that the typical round soil grains are created. Then the manufacturer sifts out the roughest chunks. The right level of moisture is important for the subsequent soil quality, so the floor is now prepared for firing. The round soil grains are fired twice in kilns specially designed for this purpose. So they are a bit more stable and do not disintegrate in the water. However, since the firing temperature is chosen to be quite low, Soil is still quite soft. Its hardness is not comparable to that of sand or gravel. After cooling, the desired grits are sieved out, dried briefly and then packaged. The relatively large, round soil grains flow well through the aquarium so that no foul spots or anaerobic areas can form. The roots of the plants are continuously supplied with nutrients and oxygen, and plants with fine roots can also take root very well on the rather soft soil surface. A great advantage of active soil is the stabilisation of the water values. Both the Scaper's Soil and the Shrimp King Active Soil act as ion exchangers and bind calcium ions from the water. This will soften the water and lower the pH. This natural soil also contains humic substances that stabilise the pH in the range of 5.5 to 6.5, which is advantageous for many shrimps and aquatic plants, so the pH does not fall into the bottomless and an acid decrease is prevented. Hardwater inhabitants like African cichlids, most crayfish and all other aquarium inhabitants who need hard water are definitely not candidates for an aquarium with an active soil! This can lead to major health problems, including illness and death. Plants from biotopes with hard water should also not be kept in such an aquarium. The absorption capacity and the ability to exchange ions from active soil are naturally limited. If a Soil aquarium is operated with hard tap water, Soil quickly becomes saturated and can then no longer work. In this case you will notice a gradual increase in water hardness. When changing water with hard tap water, the pH value jumps - first it rises sharply, then it drops sharply again. This is not a problem in a plant aquarium, but in shrimp aquariums this effect can be fatal for the residents. The sensitive bee shrimp, in particular, do not like this phenomenon at all and acknowledge it with diseases and moulting problems. For this reason, we recommend soft water adapted for soils in shrimp aquariums. If the tap water is unsuitable, the Dennerle Osmose Compact 130 or 190 osmosis system is recommended. The osmosis water is then remineralised with an appropriate mineral salt (for bee shrimp we recommend the Shrimp King Bee Salt GH + for hardening) and is then ideal for the shrimp aquarium. So the soil also lasts much longer! Calcareous, hardening rock in the aquarium can also cause the soil to quickly become saturated and thus exhausted. As a rule of thumb, we recommend replacing active soil after two years at the latest - or when the pH begins to rise. We hope you enjoy your new aquarium! Chris Luckhaup

2019-06-13T00:00:00+02:00 2019-06-13T00:00:00+02:00 https://www.olibetta.uk/info/blog/nano-aquariums-1 Olibetta uk@olibetta.com https://www.olibetta.uk/ Nano aquaristics has become a hobby in recent years and has come to stay. While small aquariums used to be more of a case for specialists, they have now reached the centre of their hobby, and often even the very first aquarium is such a nano tank. This is certainly partly due to the fact that the effort required to maintain a small aquarium is significantly more pleasant - 5 litres of water can be changed faster than 200 litres - and partly due to the incredible attractiveness of a nicely decorated nanocube. We must not forget the handiness. A small pool of 20 litres is simply set up (and moved) much faster than a giant 400-litre colossus, and you don't need any extra furniture or a structural engineer. A nano fits on the living room cabinet or even on the desk. Overall, you can simply integrate a nano aquarium much better into your living situation and enjoy it in everyday life. A very important factor here, of course, is that the industry has recognized the signs of the times and followed along with its developments. The company Dennerle can confidently stick the medal of a pioneer on the lapel - with its chic NanoCubes and Scaper's Tanks , it has brought the nano trend out of the aquarium cellars and made it socially acceptable. The right accessories helped, of course! Now nobody has to improvise anymore if they want to have a nano set up. The beautifully designed Nano Style LED lighting and of course the practical, shrimp- proof Nano corner filter are factors that have had a significant impact on nano-aquaristics and made them much more user-friendly. There is now even a nano disc magnet with which you can get perfectly into the rounded corners of the cubes. Incidentally, the elegantly rounded seamless front edges of the high-quality glass aquariums have become a trademark of Dennerle. In the meantime, not only are the cube-shaped nanocubes available, but also the rectangular scaper's tanks in various sizes. The tanks offer a little more space, especially for more complex aquarium layouts and aquascapes. Their large base area is particularly beautiful in relation to the height - there is a lot of space behind for aquarium design. The Scaper's Tanks are not only ideal for aquascaping, but also for keeping dwarf crabs, because these animals in the aquarium are almost exclusively on foot and therefore the base area plays a much more important role for them than the height. They don't really need a swimming pool anyway. Since keeping fish in aquariums under 54 litres is not recommended in Germany (and is even forbidden in Austria), small aquariums were previously reserved for a small number of breeders specialising in special fish with little space requirement. In the meantime, however, dwarf shrimp and dwarf crabs are still enjoying growing popularity in aquaristics, and for these animals, the cubes and scaper's tanks are really ideal. You can keep the colourful dwarf shrimp perfectly in an aquarium from 20 litres, but even a single fighting fish feels very comfortable in a weeded nano. What would be more suitable here than a nicely planted cube or scaper's tank with a stylish nano style LED light over it? The inconspicuous corner filter was specially developed for shrimp farming, and there is a suitable attachment filter for the Scaper's Tank. Setting up a nano aquarium is extremely easy to use - and inexpensive. You don't need much! A bit of soil - here the water-neutral nano shrimp gravel comes in a practical two-kilo pack - so you won't have to stand around the opened 10 kg gravel bag for a long time, which is actually just annoying. This gravel is even available in black. If you want to take care of plants that require a lot of nutrients, you can use the Nano DeponitMix to bring a nutrient-rich substrate under the gravel. A little tip: If you do not fill the DeponitMix up to the glass, but leave about two centimetres at the edge, you will not see a two-coloured layer on the glass pane later. If you would like to keep bee shrimp, you can use the Shrimp King Active Soil, which automatically adjusts the water accordingly that bee shrimp and other shrimp that prefer soft water are comfortable in it. If you want to have turbo-like plant growth in a nano aquarium and value a particularly plant-friendly environment, you can also use the Scaper's Soil, which is pre-fertilised and provides the plants with all the nutrients they need for 2 years. You can also set accents on the floor with the great Plantahunter natural gravel, which can come up with unusual shapes and sizes and natural stone colours. When it comes to the design of the substrate, your imagination is limited to the four glass walls of the aquarium. And sometimes not even that - many aquascapers have already expanded their NanoCubes and built a landscape around them, which is unusual at first, but actually looks really great. Then we come to the so-called hardscape - the establishment with roots and stones. At the roots, what is allowed is allowed (and fits in the aquarium ... if necessary, you have to use a saw). There is a tiny limitation to the stones, if bee shrimp or other shrimps are to be kept from soft water - then calcareous stones are not well suited because they can make the water harder. You can easily find out whether the stones contain lime: Put a little vinegar essence on them, and when it foams, there is lime in the stone. The roots and stones are rather placed in the middle ground in the aquarium. You can plant them with moss, for example, or with epiphytes such as small Anubias (for example, Anubias nana "Pangolino) or Bucephalandra. If you use planted roots in the aquarium furnishings, it is best to spray them with a little water, so that the leaves do not wither, then the aquarium is filled with so little water that it is just above the substrate - this simplifies planting considerably. Nano aquariums have predominantly small, not quite as strong growing plants. For example, mosses or small foreground plants such as Marsilea or Glossostigma in the foreground are perfect. The middle ground is planted with slightly taller plants that grow to be about 5-10 cm tall. Plants that are actually offered as middle ground plants have proven themselves for further back. In cubes, you should make sure that the plants don't grow too wide, in Scaper's Tank the design options are more generous thanks to the significantly larger footprint. Then the aquarium is carefully filled with water. The rather small amounts of water can be easily poured in with a watering can, here no hose has to be brought through half the apartment. Make sure that the watering can definitely have a spout, or place a small saucer or something similar in the aquarium through which you let the water run in. Now plop the corner filter with the suction cups into one of the two rear corners, hang the Scaper's Flow on the back wall of the aquarium. Heat-loving animals like a fighting fish get a Nano ThermoCompact heater. All you have to do is plug in the electrical devices, done! Pro tip: Let your aquarium run in for two to three weeks without trimmings so that sufficient bacteria can form in the filter that can break down pollutants from the water. We hope you enjoy your new aquarium! Chris Luckhaup