h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

Great entry Petkan!

My only criticism is the use of the word "stuff" in the last paragraph. It's a very minor thing, but it would read better if you replaced it with "items" or "equipment". Otherwise, this is a top entry! Well done.

Thank you everyone for your comments! I've updated the entry, following many of your suggestions. There is now a note about these "starter kits", and the siphon, net and algae cleaner are all included. Oh, and the "stuff" is now "equipment"

I've never used an UGF, so I'm not experienced with this kind of filters, but I hear reports that it's actually better for the plants. I don't know if it's true.

About the plastic plants - yeah, they are a nice alternative for those who don't need the hassle of growing real aquatic plants. I'll be doing a separate entry on plants someday.

Well, I might just have a wrong sense of aesthetics, but I think that all fish look better with dark gravel below. Of course, everyone has the right to choose, but that's what I'd recommend.

All the hoods I've seen so far are made of glass, and usually painted black. However, maybe that's something that only the local aquarists here do

Over here, when you buy a pump, it comes with all the tubing and airstones, too. I'm sure that common sense will tell everyone that they need these aditional items...

About boiling gravel - I've read this recommendation in one or two books, but it only refers to gravel that you've got from the Great Outdoors. If you get it from a fish store, it doesn't need this extra treatment.

It's obvious that the tank should not be filled to the top, and I'm planning to put it on another entry, which deals with adding water and fish to the new fish tank.

Thank you again - I hope the entry is now ready to be reviewed again, and, hopefully, approved for the next stage!


Petkan

Much improved!

I haven't had much success growing plants, so I might be wrong, but I thought plants needed special 'pink and blue' lights, because chlorophyll was insensitive to most of the sun's spectrum.

I like the full spectrum lights because the tank and fish are prettier to my eye.

"These could be made of glass, wood, or another material"

The hood on our aquarium is made of black plastic - not black painted glass, and contains the lights, and both a charcoal filter and a biowheel. It's not quite an 'all-in-one' starters kit because we have a seperate heater, and it's possibly a lot easier to deal with than some of the starter kits I've seen, but I wouldn't disapprove of starter kits quite as strongly as you have Petkan. They may be the aquarist version of 'dumbing down' in that they make things just too easy and stop people learning the basics, but they *can* get someone interested in the hobby who may then go on to learn more about it

Can you describe the algae cleaner it a bit more? All you need to say is something about it being a bit of sponge/rubber on a stick - rather like a squeegee.

I think it's important to add in the section about decoration that you should boil any stones or rocks which you pick up from a lake or a river - we didn't, and ended up with a terrible algae problem for a time. We also have both driftwood and petrified wood as decoration in our aquarium.

Well, I still think that starter kits are not always adequate, but you're right, the wording was too strong; I've modified the entry according to your suggestions.

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