# redoing the Fluval Edge



## katienaha (May 9, 2010)

Hey everyone. So the Fluval edge is getting a re-do. Everything got terribly neglected this past summer with 2 deaths in my life, but I'm gearing back up into the regular routine. 

I blew TWO pumps on that fluval edge... and I have determined its the substrate and the pump combo, so I am switching away from the eco complete and going to switch to natural gravel, which I have a bin of in my shed. 

Now I need to determine what to put in there.. the blue pearl shrimp I had in there did not make it through the 2 months of neglect. 

Would white cloud mountain minnows be a good choice for such a small tank?? What other tiny fish can you all suggest for this tank? Rummynose tetras perhaps, 6, with good water change schedule?

Looking forward to the suggestions!


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## Ebonbolt (Aug 12, 2011)

Fluval edge is 6 gallons I think? If so, pygmy cories + cardinal/rummy nose tetras would probably be good. It would have to be planted though. In my 6 gallon I currently have a single betta in a 6 gallon, and will be adding 5 pygmy cories and a few otos in a bit.


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## DR1V3N (Apr 22, 2010)

katienaha said:


> I blew TWO pumps on that fluval edge... and I have determined its the substrate and the pump combo, so I am switching away from the eco complete and going to switch to natural gravel, which I have a bin of in my shed...


Hmmm... when you say you blew 2 pumps, are you talking about the stock aquaclear 20 filter pump?

If so, i had that same issue although I had sand as substrate back then and little grains of sand would get swept up and jam the impeller. Detaching the filter pump and rinsing it out well fixes that instantly. Hard to imagine this happening with eco complete though as the grains are much larger.

You can also get a fluval sponge pre-filter for cheap, $3-5 at your LFS. Turning off your filter during water changes would also prevent this from happening with eco complete.

As for stocking, rummies would probably outgrow the edge very quickly. I tried a few smaller varieties of tetra like neon etc. They stayed healthy but would stay still most of the time and not really school or even swim around much once they got bigger.

White clouds sound good. You may want to try micro fish like rasboras (chilli, mosquito, galaxy) I've found them very active even in a small tank. Pea puffers work out well too and for cleaners: otocinculus, amano shrimp.


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## Elle (Oct 25, 2010)

I've got guppies in mine right now with white sand and BC jade rocks, but am thinking about redoing eventually with chili rasboras or something similar.

White clouds are active swimmers like danios and really need more space than a 6g. Chili rasboras or anything little and bright would probably look good, and are small enough to do fine in that setup. We have chili rasboras in the 10g shrimp tank and they do fine.


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## jbyoung00008 (May 16, 2011)

I have a small planted hexagon tank at my work its maybe 3 gallons and have tried many different fish. Some do well while others dont. Ive tried rummy nose, neon tetras, rasboras and they all seemed un happy so I brought them home to a bigger tank. Platies seem to do okay if you have only 2, zebra danios , oto cats, cory's, bumble bee goby's all were happy.


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## Atom (Apr 21, 2010)

How about some dario darios, sparkling gourami, norman's lampeye or threadfins?


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## katienaha (May 9, 2010)

These are some good suggestions. If I decided to stick with sand, would shell dwellers be a bad pick for this size tank? Instinct says no.

You know I've never kept the humble guppy before. Tempting.

I can see how the right betta could make this tank shine!! And its all closed off...I've only ever had suicidal bettas!


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## Ebonbolt (Aug 12, 2011)

shellies could work I suppose, not certain though as I don't know all that much about africans. More of a SA person


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## Morainy (Apr 21, 2010)

Oh, that's great news, Katie. I look forward to seeing your pics!

I have a tank of white cloud minnows and I don't think they'd be happy in a small tank. They like to swim rapidly back and forth across a tank. 

What about killifish? I had some Nothobranchius killies in an 8 gallon Fluval and they were beautiful. They're not a long-living fish but they're lovely and they're also fairly happy in smaller tanks. I also think that celestial pearl danios/galaxy rasboras are nice in a small tank. And they go well with shrimp, too. (I think the Nothos might eat shrmip)


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## blazingazn (Sep 18, 2011)

I was wondering how Neon Tetras would be in the Edge?

Looking to put about 8 small Neon Tetras in the tank for about half a year.
Then maybe add 3 Cherry Shrimp after some time?

Also the Aquaclear filter inside is rated for 20 Gallon correct?


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## teija (Sep 30, 2010)

You might be pushing it with 8 neons, but you could probably manage 6. I was considering getting an Edge to re-home my 6 neons. Probably best to start your own thread for this


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## djamm (Sep 25, 2010)

katienaha said:


> I can see how the right betta could make this tank shine!! And its all closed off...I've only ever had suicidal bettas!


If you end up with a betta in this tank, make sure you don't fill the tank entirely. Leave a little air at the top as they need to breathe.


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## teija (Sep 30, 2010)

djamm said:


> If you end up with a betta in this tank, make sure you don't fill the tank entirely. Leave a little air at the top as they need to breathe.


+1... This is the reason I didn't end up buying the Edge for my new betta home... you would have to keep the water away from the top to create some air space.


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## Elle (Oct 25, 2010)

The Edge doesn't make a good betta tank. You can't fill it all the way up with a betta in there, because the air space isn't big enough for them, and it doesn't look right if it's not full. I'd give the betta a miss and go with something else.

We have a Fluval Chi with a betta in it...I got a piece of acrylic cut for it to make a lid, and it stops evaporation/heat loss/betta-cides.


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## teija (Sep 30, 2010)

Great idea on the acrylic cover, Elle! How do you keep the droplets from the fountain from getting all over it?

And yes, as a betta tank, I think they would be happier in the Chi (but with a lid or lower water level to prevent them from jumping).


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## Elle (Oct 25, 2010)

I got Djamm to make a cardboard template of the tank top with a cutout for the filter and about 1/2" space around the filter to allow the water to cascade down. I took the template to Glass Station on the Mary Hill Bypass and had them cut it in acrylic for about $10. You can pile the pebbles in the filter basket to minimize the splash factor. I get some droplets but no leakage as long as the lid isn't touching the sides of the filter.

The end result was a U shaped lid that looked something like this:


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## Elle (Oct 25, 2010)

We did the same thing for the 3g mini-bowfront Picotope tank, which is the other betta tank.


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## blazingazn (Sep 18, 2011)

Elle your awesome.

Thanks for the tip, we'll probably get an acrylic top cut for some of our tanks!


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## Elle (Oct 25, 2010)

Aw, thanks!  

Credit is actually due to Djamm, it was his idea.  I just point to the tank and go "I want XYZ". I'll try to post a pic of the tanks so you can see what the lids actually look like. Most of the time you don't even see the lid unless you're right at the tank.

I love my husband. :bigsmile:


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## katienaha (May 9, 2010)

finally filled it! using natural gravel only that i recycled from projects long ago. i dont expect to plant it either, likely just some rock decorations. i am going with male guppies and one of my many bristlenose plecos. currently i just dropped a couple ramshorn snails in there to multiply as i have 3 hungry assassin snails right now in the big tank. im sure they will asist in a tiny amount of the cycle too.


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## katienaha (May 9, 2010)

martialid10t said:


> Hmmm... when you say you blew 2 pumps, are you talking about the stock aquaclear 20 filter pump?
> 
> If so, i had that same issue although I had sand as substrate back then and little grains of sand would get swept up and jam the impeller. Detaching the filter pump and rinsing it out well fixes that instantly. Hard to imagine this happening with eco complete though as the grains are much larger.


Thanks I managed to ressurect the pump! I even took a bit of baking soda and vinegar to the gunk buildup and it runs nice and quiet now. I did switch away from the eco complete though.


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## katienaha (May 9, 2010)

Well I ended up choosing pea puffers  got two, and a few decorative rocks, but no plants at this point.


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