# What should i get for media on my new xp3?



## holmes14 (Apr 15, 2007)

Alright so tomorrow im gonna buy a xp3 from petsmart unless u guys know any better deals goin on? i think it comes with a couple filtration things right? what else should i get with it for media, i have a 75 gallon with 6 red bellys so whatever will help keep it the cleanest?

also i have developed a snail prob, is there any chemicals that wont hurt my p's that can help keep them in check? i need help with all these tiny little bastards please. and i dont wanna take down and clean the tank


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## BOy2K (Oct 24, 2007)

here ya go mate

http://www.piranha-fury.com/pfury/index.php?showtopic=165110


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## pirayaman (Nov 3, 2007)

holmes4 said:


> Alright so tomorrow im gonna buy a xp3 from petsmart unless u guys know any better deals goin on? i think it comes with a couple filtration things right? what else should i get with it for media, i have a 75 gallon with 6 red bellys so whatever will help keep it the cleanest?
> 
> also i have developed a snail prob, is there any chemicals that wont hurt my p's that can help keep them in check? i need help with all these tiny little bastards please. and i dont wanna take down and clean the tank


did you print out the online price take it to the petsmart and youll get it for their online price wich is like 50 bucks cheaper you could also get a emp 400 for 42 dollars

oh and if you do that you can afford to get the xp4 wich is rated for 265 gallons i have one its pretty good


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## Ihavebigpiranha (Aug 19, 2004)

snails only multiply if there is a sufficient food source.

vacuum your gravel thoroughly and ensure that you don't feed more food than your fish eat at feeding time. if there's no extra food the snails will starve off.


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## holmes14 (Apr 15, 2007)

Thanks, looks like im gonna use what comes with it and some pot scrubbers. Ill be more careful about leftover food but im usually pretty good about it.

Is there any chemicals i could put in my tank to help kill them off tho? that wont hurt pirahnas?


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## holmes14 (Apr 15, 2007)

oh and i already have a biowheel filter, i think its the step below the 400 but it still does a pretty good job. Once i get this xp3 it should be much better tho.. and im gonna order it online because they have free shipping and the closest petsmart is a hour away from me


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## maknwar (Jul 16, 2007)

try bigalsonline.com, they got em for $90.


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## ChilDawg (Apr 30, 2006)

I'm not a big fan of using snail-killing chemicals with fishes, but that's just me. I can't imagine that they're all that safe and, even if they wind up being safe, what about the potential spike in ammonia or nitrite if the snails are as big of a problem as you say? Piles of decomposing dead snails don't seem like they would be the best for your tank...


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## Piranha Dan (Nov 11, 2007)

Couldn't you just scrape them out of the tank and flush them or thow them in the garden of someone you don't like or something? They're not that hard to catch.


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## holmes14 (Apr 15, 2007)

Thanks for the tip on bigalsonline... great deal! I ordered a xp3 a powerhead, nice heater, and a bunch of lil things.

The snails actually are hard to get because theres allot of tiny ones in the gravel that the python wont quite suck up becaues there to heavy... and what am i soposed to do be picking snails out of a piranha tank? no thanks.

So back to my question, does anyone know if theres any snail killer stuff that wont hurt my piranhas?


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## Ihavebigpiranha (Aug 19, 2004)

holmes4 said:


> Thanks for the tip on bigalsonline... great deal! I ordered a xp3 a powerhead, nice heater, and a bunch of lil things.
> 
> The snails actually are hard to get because theres allot of tiny ones in the gravel that the python wont quite suck up becaues there to heavy... and what am i soposed to do be picking snails out of a piranha tank? no thanks.
> 
> So back to my question, does anyone know if theres any snail killer stuff that wont hurt my piranhas?


there's stuff called 'had a snail' but I don't think anyone on here is going to suggest you use chemicals for treatment, you can tie a string on a piece of cucumber and drop it in the tank and the snails will gather on it to eat and you can pull them out that way easier.

what do you feed your fish, how big are your fish? Don't feed them more than they *need* or else they just chew it up and spit it out leaving snail food.

I rather like having the small snails I have, they do a terrific job eating leftover food.


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## holmes14 (Apr 15, 2007)

i tried the cucumber thing once but cucumbers just float on the top and they didnt collect much snails?

How thick of slices do you use? and is there any tricks to the cucumber thing, what do u mean tie a string to it.. they dont sink anyways or can you make them sit at the bottom?

I feed them shrimp, fish fillets, squid.. a good variety.. there are 6 rbs that are prob 4-5'' and i feed them once a day. Ill make sure to get the food out of there sooner and make sure not to overfead. I guess ill try the cucumber thing again but can someone help me with those questions. Thanks


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## ChilDawg (Apr 30, 2006)

Try a cooking technique known as "blanching".


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## holmes14 (Apr 15, 2007)

can you please further describe that? cook the cucumbers? lol you have me all sorts of discombobulated


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## ChilDawg (Apr 30, 2006)

http://busycooks.about.com/library/glossary/bldefblanch.htm

I might have been ill-informed. My impression was that you blanched the veggies to get them to sink, but apparently they are blanched to be easier to eat...that might not be your worry. A new thing that I've been reading is that squeezing the air out of cucumber might be beneficial. Another option is to spear it with a stainless steel spoon that has been soaked in plain water (to make sure that dish soap, et cetera, is not still on the spoon)...


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## Piranha Dan (Nov 11, 2007)

Here's that "Had A Snail" product somebody posted about:

http://www.thatpetplace.com/pet/group/1405/product.web

Only problem is you'll still have to go 'fishing' to get the dead ones out of there. Rotting snail carcasses would probably play hell with your water parameters.


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## holmes14 (Apr 15, 2007)

thanks guys, i think im gonna try the cucumber thing first but does anyone have a post on here or anything describing how it should be done? cause last time i did it the slices just floated on the top and didnt to a whole lot


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## ChilDawg (Apr 30, 2006)

Read three posts up...


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## holmes14 (Apr 15, 2007)

I dont see any info on how to do the cucumber thing 3 posts up? But anyways i got my xp3 in, and got it up and running... i used what they gave me with it and then i got a bunch of plastic sos pads or whatever they call those pan scrubbers. I filled up all the other compartments with those. I love this filter it seems to be working great and my water is crystal clear. Thanks for the tip on a website!


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