Nanoplanner - Aquarium Task Widget

Nanoplanner is a Yahoo widget that helps, especially beginners, with listing a schedule of tasks for the upkeep of your aquarium.

Various duties can are included and a "advised" time on when to attend to these jobs but you can choose when it is best to perform suck chores. Notice the yellow, green and red color on the second pic. The task change color to remind you it time to clean filter or change water and so forth. Example in pic 1 with "check water chemistry".

You can choose what you tasks are. Not all tasks are needed unless you have massive tank. If you are like me and have a small 10-20 gal tank, you just need to pay attention to water changes, checking chemistry and other remedial task. Currently I have on my Nanoplanner is as follows: Check Water Chemistry -2 days, Add Supplements - 4 days,  Change Carbon -Every Month (30 days), Clean Filter - Every two months (60 days), Change Water - 4 days, Change Chemical Media - Every Three Months(90 days), Check Supplies - Every Month (30 days). 

Most recently I had a bacterial bloom, a white cloudy tinge to me water. That is why some of my tasks are in short intervals. I coincide adding my supplements with water changes. Things I add with water changes include Aqueon Water Conditioner, API Aquarium Salt and every two-three weeks Seachem Neutral Regulator. That last one I have to keep track of mentally. Reasons being that the Nanoplanner is not fully customizable. You are subject to the tasks they have listed. Besides, you don't have to add Seachem Neutral Regulator on a regular basic. If you do your water chemistry checks on you scheduled time and see the pH is high, add some Seachem Neutral Regulator. I try to do it bi-monthly.

Now about a couple other tasks that I have listed I will explain, especially pertaining to my filter. I recently switched filter from an Aqueon QuietFlow 10 to an AquaClear 20. The Aqueon filter is a tight mesh cartridge with a little bit of carbon inside. It was fine at the beginning but with my recent bloom was a hassle. That is when I invested in an AquaClear 20. Reviews were good on this one and it was in my price range. I like it very much and it helped to eradicate my bacterial problem. It is appealing to me also is that the body is clear so you can see what's going on with out taking apart. Also this brand has 3 filter medias to cycle water through. A sponge filter, carbon and Biomax.  Because of these three different filter medias, I assigned my Nanoplanner tasks as such according to Aquaclear's specs for my filter system: Carbon(Change Carbon) - Every Month, Sponge(Clean Filter) - Every Two Months(60 days) and Biomax(Change Chemical Media) - Every Three Months(90 days).

In all this widget is very helpful. Not very customizable as stated but a must have for beginner fish hobbyist.