Egg crate and Diamond goby

[leftyblite]

I just got a diamond goby and I have a couple of small openings in the back of my tank that it could possibly escape from. I keep reading on this site about an item called egg crate. What is it and where can I buy it??? Any help would be appreciated.

 

[stephish]

Home Depot or Lowe's type of stores carry it. It's the white plastic grating used in the light panels of drop ceilings. I think they come in like 2 x 3 foot sections for less than $5.

 

[bonesnapper]

When they say that they are jumpers, they are exagerating. I never have had a fish jump. I have had a lot of Gobies, and half of my tank was not covered and still none of them jumped.

 

[skipperdz]

Well I Lost 2 Gobies, A Diamond And A Tiger Stripe, I Got Glass Tops Now They Just Jump Into The Overflow!

 

[leftyblite]

Once I get the egg crate then it just gets cut to fit???

 

[m0nk]

Originally Posted by leftyblite
Once I get the egg crate then it just gets cut to fit???

Well, you cut it at home, but yeah. I've picked up a few 2'x4' for $11 each at Lowes. They look like the picture below, though that's after I cut it to fit my HOB skimmer and powerhead cords:

Also, I recommend against getting glass lids. Having a glass lid keeps air out so there's not much gas exchange. This has been linked to low pH and low oxygen levels in the water. Using egg crate prevents this from being an issue since air can move freely in and out. I have it on top of all of my tanks (20L, 29g, 55g, and soon a 180g).

 

[leftyblite]

Egg crate instead of glass lid? This is the first I've ever heard of this. Is this better??

 

[nano reefer]

helps control temp, and allows for better oxygenation. glass reduces evaporation though.

 

[m0nk]

Originally Posted by leftyblite
Egg crate instead of glass lid? This is the first I've ever heard of this. Is this better??

Yes, much better, for the gas exchange/oxygenation factor (ph fluctuates too much in a closed environment). In fact, there's even less lighting loss because salt creep really reduces the glass lid's ability to let light through much more than egg crate.

 

[metweezer]

But how about salt creep accumulating on the egg crate

 

[stephish]

Originally Posted by metweezer
But how about salt creep accumulating on the egg crate

I rinse mine off with the top off water when I pour it in.
I lost 2 midas blennies to carpet surfing.

 

[sepulatian]

I too lost a goby to jumping. He was not harassed at all. He had plenty of caves and burrows that he dug himself. He decided to jump one day when I was not home. Cover your tank. Eggcrate works very well and allows more oxygen to hit the surface. You will still need surface agitation though.

 

[leftyblite]

Thought I had lost him beacuse I hadn't seen him or seen any sand move for a couple of days. Tonite I came home and there was a huge mound of sand near the front of my my tank. HE LIVES

I bought the egg crate this morning and will put it over the top of the tank very soon. Still wish I could eventually see him though. My wife and one of my daughters don't quite belive that I bought another fish.

 

[dragonzim]

I've lost 2 Diamond Gobies to carpet surfing even through the holes in eggcrate.

 

[leftyblite]

He is actually out moving around right now around the rear of my tank. My tank is set up as kind of a room divider so I can see both sides and right now he is looking and me, then moving some sand then coming back to check me out again.

 

[nml]

I lost 3 diamonds through the egg crate holes. I am now thinking of placing some screening over the egg crate.
Some one suggested getting Plexiglas and drilling smaller holes in it. Has anyone tried this?

 

[sk8shorty01]

I actually have glass tops on my 220g (I did not build the tank, I bought it used) and it has an expansion tube on the back that allows water to come in, get mixed with air, and then it gets sent back into the tank. Its hard to explain but I could probably draw a picture really quick. I will post one in a second...

 

[al mc]

Originally Posted by NML
http:///forum/post/2494888
I lost 3 diamonds through the egg crate holes. I am now thinking of placing some screening over the egg crate.
Some one suggested getting Plexiglas and drilling smaller holes in it. Has anyone tried this?
This is what I did over my overflows. I used a piece of egg crate, cut to size, then got the plastic screening that you would use to replace broken screen doors/windows. I 'zip' tied it to the egg crate.
It is not pretty, but it works.

 

[sk8shorty01]

Here you go... Now I have to explain it.. There are two bulkheads on the back of the tank that go into this tube. The one on the bottom leads to the small pipe that runs inside of the other pipe, the one up top goes into the big pipe. The one on the bottom is the inlet into the piping, so the water comes in through the bulkhead, goes up the small pipe in the middle, and then flows into the large pipe which has an airstone inside that aerates the water. The bubbles rise to the top and do not go into the tank and the water goes back into the tank through the upper bulkhead. Because of how this was designed the water level in the display can only drain as far as the top bulkhead because once the level drops below that inner pipe the bottom bulkhead no longer allows water through. That means that the water drains to the same height as the pipe that is inside of the large diameter pipe. Its a strange design but after I set everything up and figured it all out it seems to be working pretty good. This tank has been up since May (I think) with no problems yet.

 

[kwolfskill]

I was told that yes, gobies can and do get through the holes of egg crate, but that they will only do this at the edges (front, back, and sides) where they follow the glass of the tank up, and not in the middle. So, I was told to put an extra 4 inch strip over the egg crate around the edges. Anyone else heard of this?