Now is a great time to refamiliarize ourselves with what’s in our aquarium, how they support our trout, and solutions to common problems. All of your fish have survived the break, so here’s one more refresher for the new year!
Water Quality Levels
You all should be familiar with typical chem test levels, but here’s a reminder for the start of the year:
Ammonia- Less than 1 mg/l (ppm).
Nitrite- Near zero (ppm), once bacteria are established in the filter system
Nitrate- Below 40 ppm (mg/l)
pH- the pH scale runs from 1 (acid) to 14 (basic). 7 is "neutral". A pH of 7.4 – 8.4 is fine for our trout
Keeping a record of your chem test levels is important! This way, you can see if something isn’t resolving.
Common Equipment Problems→ Solutions
FILTER
QUESTION: What do I do if the filter canister is making a loud/rattling noise or is hot to the touch?
This is an indication that water is not moving through the filter pump properly.
Locate the filter outflow nozzle just beneath the surface of the water in your tank. Check to see if water is flowing out by putting your finger in front of it.
If water is NOT flowing:
Unplug your filter and let it cool down for 15 minutes.
Check to make sure that any screening over your outflow nozzle is clear of debris. Remove it and rinse off as needed. Check the water intake for the filter (at the end of the long plastic tube going to the bottom of your tank). If there is screening around the intake, make sure it is free of debris. Remove it, rinse off and replace. (All parts of the intake cage can be removed and replaced by hand. You won't break it!)
You can have students help with this! It’s good to have an extra set of hands holding the tube near the surface of the water, and swatting away fish that may get sucked in.
After 15 minutes, restart your filter. First, locate the gray/red gently manual pump handle on the top of the filter canister. Pump it up and down several times. Water should flow out of the outflow nozzle when you pump. Plug in the filter, and evaluate. A few extra manual pump strokes may be necessary.
If the filter is still rattling, or not pumping water, you have a broken impeller or impeller shaft. Leave the filter unplugged. Call DCL, and we will come out to replace the piece.
CHILLER
QUESTION: My chiller isn’t functioning properly, what could be wrong?
For a variety of potential malfunctions, the first thing to do is to power down the unit (unplug or switch off) and wait 10 seconds before restarting. This reset may do the trick; if not, call us.
QUESTION: My chiller is on, but water in the tank is not getting cold enough, what could be happening?
The chiller's "Pre-filter" may be clogged. This is a black foam cylinder attached to the submersible pump in your aquarium. If it has a lot of debris stuck to it, or appears to be squeezed together, it needs cleaning.
1. Follow the black cord from the submersible pump to the power supply and unplug it OR keep it running and have someone hold it near the surface to swat away fish while you continue with the following steps.
2. Pull the whole unit toward the surface, slide the foam filter cylinder off its frame and rinse it out.
3. Replace the clean foam filter, PLUG THE PUMP IN IF YOU TURNED IT OFF.
4. You should notice an immediate increase in water flow through the chiller system. Your aquarium should begin to cool over the next 15-20 minutes
If these solutions don’t fix your chiller problem, call DCL and we’ll come out to help find a solution.
AIR PUMP
QUESTION: How come my blue air pump is buzzing but there are no bubbles coming from the airstone at the bottom of the aquarium?
To address noise, shift the pump away from any other surfaces. Also make sure that the rubber feet on the bottom of the pump are in place.
If no bubbles are rising from the airstone, follow the clear airline from the airstone to the blue air pump. Make sure all connections are in place. Occasionally, they can be pulled apart, and can be easily reconnected by hand.
If neither of these options helps, unplug the airpump and call DCL. Your fish will be fine for several days.
Other Common Issues
If your intake/outflow cages don’t have netting on them, fish can get sucked in! While your trout are still small, make sure there is some type of filter preventing this
Ensure all intake and outflow tubes are secured! Sometimes, these can be bumped out of place and cause a leak.
If your fish are in a warm tank or being removed to fix a problem, you can tape/add a bag of ice to their temporary location to keep the temperature low!
Main Takeaways
If your filter is ratting and you can’t find a solution, unplug it
If your chiller isn’t cooling properly and cleaning/resetting it doesn’t work, call DCL
If your bubbler isn’t producing bubbles, check all connections are in place
A longer version of this review is in our Tech Support Tab in this blog post. It’s great to be able to troubleshoot, but if you’re worried about the health of your tank send an email to education@discovercayugalake.org AND bill@discovercayugalake.org
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