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I've never kept fishes but I've been thinking about setting up a small tank to mess around with some (small) aquatic plants for a while. The spot I have in mind is only 13"x17"—as far as I can tell my options at that size are to buy a cube tank, make/buy something custom, or go gently caress myself. Am I looking in the wrong places or is that about right? And if it is, any particular recommendations for ~11-13" cubes (the one VelociBacon posted earlier this page looks pretty good, though it seems like most places ain't got none)?
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Sep 30, 2021 12:57
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Ok Comboomer posted:the basic plants that you’d put/that would comfortably fit and thrive in a small starter planted aquarium aren’t really the kind that are super interesting from a horticulture standpoint (there’s only so much fun to be had with Anubias, Java fern, etc if you aren’t primarily into aquascaping or creating an environment for fish/etc), but a nice planter pond/bog garden can hold things like water lilies, lotuses, many kinds of sarracenias, bladderworts, etc. which seems a lot more your speed. I duno, there's something I like about tiny little plants. I would be approaching it more like an aquascape and if things went well putting some fish in eventually. That's part of why I'd prefer to find something with a little extra depth vs a cube if such a thing exists (which I don't think it does, at least not without sacrificing height). I made this thing last winter to fill the built-in thing for holding a cable box and poo poo that I don't use in my living room which is part of what made me want to mess around with aquascaping a little aquarium:      
Wallet fucked around with this message at 15:02 on Sep 30, 2021 |
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Sep 30, 2021 14:55
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Ok Comboomer posted:If you’re dead-set on something pico-scale (5 gal or less) then definitely get a glass lid for it. Many of those kit/cube dealies already come with one and petco/etc sells ones that fit standard tank sizes for like ~$15 I mean deeper/longer (in the non vertical dimension) relative to a cube; the one I was looking at is 8 gallons (11 1/2" x 11 1/2" x 14"). I don't seem to be able to find any 10 gallon tanks that will fit in a 13" x 17" space, they seem to all be around 10" x 20". Wallet fucked around with this message at 15:41 on Sep 30, 2021 |
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Sep 30, 2021 15:34
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Stoca Zola posted:There are a lot of DIY how to build a tank tutorials online too if you're handy, when you're looking at small water volumes like this you don't need to worry about bracing the tank or anything complex, I think a 12 x 12 x 16 ten gallon would look pretty sweet and get you out of the really dodgy "too small" zone. Yeah, I may just try making one as it doesn't seem terribly complicated. I don't really want to deal with cutting glass but there's a place nearby I've had cut glass for me before for other poo poo. Probably something like 12" wide x 16" long by 14" high which would be a little under 12 gallons.
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Sep 30, 2021 20:09
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JuffoWup posted:Instead of glass, perhaps look into acrylic. I'm sort of worried I'd end up scratching the poo poo out of it and at that size glass doesn't seem particularly cumbersome. Are you suggesting it just because I don't want to deal with cutting glass (cutting acrylic nicely also kind of sucks rear end in my experience) or just in general?
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Sep 30, 2021 20:18
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I successfully* made a tank out of glass that holds water and it's only somewhat hideous   Now I guess I have to get some stuff to put in it. I got an AquaClear 50 at least for now, but I don't particularly want to gently caress around with the charcoal poo poo it comes with. I replaced the space it would fill with extra biological media, which I hope/assume is fine? * Other than a bunch of extremely sloppy silicone I still have to clean up.
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Nov 11, 2021 14:29
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Stoca Zola posted:I think it looks great! Good choice of light, good choice of filter. Maybe not a good choice of stand though, how heavy is it going to be full of water? I can't tell the size but one of my favourite calculators could probably work out the weight for you https://www.hamzasreef.com/Contents/Calculators/TankWeight.php It's only 13"x17"x14" so not super heavy. I built the stand out of cherry to hold plants and I don't think it should have any problem with the weight but I guess if it explodes we'll know I was wrong. It's on the right part where the lamp is in this photo so also directly above a lot of leg: 
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Nov 11, 2021 22:19
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Asterite34 posted:13"x17"x14" comes out to about 13.4 gallons. The rule of thumb for aquariums is 1 gallon = 1 lb of weight with all the gravel and equipment and stuff. That comes out to ~130 pounds. Any stand you put that on you should feel confident a person could stand on. I was mostly joking. Given the size of the legs (~18" deep 3/4" wide), the distance between them, and the bending strength of cherry I'd be pretty confident dancing on it with a friend and have stood on it in the past. When watered the plants on the longer spans are likely heavier than the tank will be.
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Nov 11, 2021 22:55
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Ok Comboomer posted:Homie those plants definitely do not weigh a combined 130lbs wet. They're heavier than you might think between the gritty mix and the ceramic pots (and the fancy schmancy copper trays someone on Etsy made for me  ). I did the math because I don't have a scale handy and the one with the Pachycereus on the bottom is >30 pounds dry sans plant on its own (~22 pounds for 2.7 gallons of gritty mix says the manufacturer and another ten for the pot based on Amazon) and the shallow one with the Aloes is similar (less volume but a heavier pot). Napkin math and my pot volume spreadsheet (don't ask) says just the gritty in the other pots on that shelf is another 30 pounds.Anyway I'm just going to gently caress around with some fairly basic freshwater plants (not planning on CO2 unless it turns out I gots to) and some wood and rocks and poo poo and see how it goes. The 50 is probably overkill for 12 gallons of plants but you can adjust the flow so I don't imagine it will hurt anything as long as I don't let it create a wave pool. Reef tanks are rad as hell but they seem like a massive ballache, particularly at that scale. My only prior aquarium experience was with a goldfish in a bowl when I was three and I'm told that it was traumatic. Wallet fucked around with this message at 00:50 on Nov 12, 2021 |
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Nov 12, 2021 00:47
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Is a lid going to be basically mandatory or should I be fine without one? I don't want to have to try and cut something out of glass that leaves a big enough opening for the filter. I have some plexi around I think it might be too wibbly wobbly to not droop, but I guess I could get acrylic or something. Edit: Also is there any particular reason I should bother dosing ammonia if I have no intention of adding fish in the immediate future? Ok Comboomer posted:That said, I’m excited to share with you the Good News of macroalgae keeping, the hot new trend in the hobby and IMO a much less stressful way to do nano saltwater than corals. This is fascinating and bizarre. If I hadn't already ordered plants I would be mighty tempted. Wallet fucked around with this message at 02:46 on Nov 12, 2021 |
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Nov 12, 2021 02:36
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It looks just like a real aquarium.
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Nov 13, 2021 23:01
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VelociBacon posted:I think if you have the dedication to keep it maintained you should actually use a substrate with nutrients in it. I didn't have algae issues *from that* so I think so long as you get plants in it quite quickly you'll be fine. I'm just about at the end of my first week attempting this. No algae issues yet but there's always time. I significantly overplanted (at least I think I did, probably a bit shy $200 of plants in a 13 gallon) which will hopefully slow it down. About half of the plants are already rooting into the substrate and I don't think I've killed any yet but I see a lot of pruning in my future. I'll try and post some pictures whenever it stops being murky red from the stratum I capped the planted tank substrate with 
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Nov 20, 2021 00:31
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I finally got in some finer mechanical media last night and after some sleeping it's finally clearing up enough to see through the water . Of course getting a picture without massive reflections in the middle of the day in a room with a bunch of windows is not going well. Do people just wait for dark or is there some magic method I'm missing?    I kind of set it up like a little canyon—the thing on the left is a hunk of driftwood I siliconed to the glass because it wouldn't stand up otherwise. Still a lot of dusty poo poo settled on the bottom I probably have to gravel vac out and I need to tidy up the cords, but it's looking alright for week 1 I think.
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Nov 20, 2021 16:17
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VelociBacon posted:Looks good! I have been a tiny bit but (and maybe I'm just being an idiot here) the tests I have only test Nitrite/Nitrate and not ammonia directly so I'm not sure how to know exactly how much I should be adding. I ordered some that do cover ammonia but they're taking forever.
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Nov 20, 2021 18:07
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Aerofallosov posted:The freshwater master kit of testing is: API Water Test Kit. It lets you test a bunch of things and is closer than strips. Strips are a good 'look and see' kind of thing. That's the one I ordered (or half of it anyway, the ammonia/nitrate/nitrite part) it's just being slow as gently caress in shipping. I'm not ramping up for fish so I'm not in a massive hury. I'm also not currently heating it which may be a mistake.
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Nov 20, 2021 21:39
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Warbadger posted:Mine cycled fine without heating - what temperature do you keep the location? Around 70, it's in my house. The cycling guide I read recommended going way up in temp for the bacteria but I don't really care about it being cycled beyond what the plants need. The ones I've checked on seem to already be doing a good job rooting in—based on reading I was really expecting to see some melting but I haven't yet. The only thing I'm not sure on is the Fissidens fontanus as some of it seems to be browning a bit. Hoping it makes it It's also possible I have the Nymphaea stellata upside down but based on photos it seems like unlike terrestrial bulbs aquatic bulbs basically root out the top?Bonus photo sans-reflection.  I want to gravel vac all of the stratum dust off but I'm pretty sure I'd accidentally suck some of the plants up if I tried that right now. I don't think the nanners have rooted in yet. Wallet fucked around with this message at 15:20 on Nov 21, 2021 |
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Nov 21, 2021 15:15
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This may be a stupid question but I'm working on cycling and the guide linked in the OP suggests you're aiming for 4ppm ammonia while you're building up bacteria. Obviously I can add/wait/test but ~10 drops of ammonia from a pipette in 13 gallons seems to only yield about 0.25 ppm which would make 4 ppm a fairly significant amount. I was hoping for a sanity check before I dump a bunch in and pee-burn all of my plants to death.
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Nov 30, 2021 03:44
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I've seen a few tiny little snails lately in my ~13 gallon that must have come in on my plants. None larger than that, though one of them had a much lighter color to its shell. How worried should I be and should I do anything beyond removing them? 
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Dec 4, 2021 18:37
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Asterite34 posted:Looks like your usual pond snails that always hitchhike into planted tanks. They're largely harmless and don't really attack live plants much, they prefer algae and biofilms and stuff that's decayed a bit. They're a bit of a clean-up crew honestly, though some people find them unsightly and they can add a little bit to the bioload if you're at all concerned about that. Sounds like it's not a big deal so I'm not sure I care as long as they don't take over. There's no fish in there for now so I guess they have free reign.
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Dec 4, 2021 19:35
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I got some very small corydoras in the mail unexpectedly early this morning. Box life didn't seem to have agreed with them but they're all dooting around doing whatever it is fish do now. They're cute but they don't listen to instructions very well. 
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Dec 9, 2021 00:13
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How precise do I need to be with dechlorinator? If I'm just topping up I don't really have a way to measure it super accurately.
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Dec 9, 2021 18:33
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It's Frit'z complete conditioner specifically
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Dec 9, 2021 18:47
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Mikey Purp posted:Actually, after closer inspection, could this possibly be roots/the start of a new rhizome? Weirdly, there seem to be a lot of young leaves growing from the tips of the old leaves on this and the other java ferns in the tank. Is that a thing? Very confusing. Yes, they make new plantlets by growing roots out of their leaves. The bit that's rooting eventually breaks off or can be removed and it becomes a new plant. (To be more accurate an entire clone is growing out of the leaf but whatever—it's how they replicate whereas the rhizomatous growth just spreads an individual plant further.) Wallet fucked around with this message at 22:55 on Dec 10, 2021 |
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Dec 10, 2021 22:51
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I return with more dumb questions. The corys don't exactly scramble to eat immediately but they are interested and the sinking pellets I've been feeding do all disappear after a little while. I'm not really sure to tell how much is enough and if they all actually got some, though? Also I had read somewhere they could be shy but they don't seem to give a single lonesome gently caress about chilling in the open.
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Dec 11, 2021 03:17
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Stoca Zola posted:To me, corys are like bumbling roombas. Today one of them discovered that if you swim into the bubbles from the airstone and you're a tiny fish they lift you to the surface and then spent multiple hours doing it over and over again.
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Dec 11, 2021 23:52
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I got some Pseudomugil luminatus to hang out with the Corydoras. I knew they would be small but they're really small so hopefully they'll eat easily. Even harder to get a picture of that is something approximating in focus. The corydoras seem a lot more active since they went in there, for whatever reason, and it seems like they're maybe starting to recognize when it's feeding time cause they all come hang out in front.
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Dec 14, 2021 23:53
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I only had to buy like 10 different foods but the little luminatus seem to like (or at least be capable of mouthing) the Hikari Micro Pellets and the smallest Bug Bites. I haven't found anything they go bananas for but apparently they aren't aggressive feeders in general; going to try some frozen stuff this week. Edit: I take it back, they really like tiny bits of broken up mysis. Anyway, I did have a dumb algae question: I don't seem to have any noticeable algae growing in the tank in general (I assume the freeloader Bladder Snails are cleaning some poo poo up, they've laid some eggs so I assume they are finding plenty to eat). The one exception is some black stuff growing on part of a piece of wood that is right where the strongest flow from the filter return is. I have some christmas moss that is doing well (the Fissidens fontanus I had all seemed to be dying so I pulled it before it could muck things up), and I was thinking about trying to propagate some to that spot, but if I put moss there is that actually likely to slow the algae down or would I just be dooming that patch of moss to a life of sadness and algae goop? Wallet fucked around with this message at 15:44 on Dec 18, 2021 |
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Dec 18, 2021 14:53
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This might be kind of a stupid question, but how do people decide on a fish diet? I've had my little fishes for a month or so now (some Corydoras habrosus and some Pseudomugil luminatus) and I've tried probably 12 or so different foods to see what they'd actually eat. I've ended up with 5 well received dry/freeze dried foods and a couple of frozen options, which seems like (hopefully) a reasonable variety, but I'm not sure how I should be deciding which ones to feed and how to rotate them. Should I be picking a staple food and rotating in other stuff for variety, and if so how do I figure out what food(s) make good staples? Or should I be rotating through more or less equally? I have read that frozen food is generally better, but they seem to like some of the dried food more so maybe I'm just feeding the wrong frozen poo poo. The luminatus are very small and seem to have a hard time mouthing certain things. They'll eat frozen brine shrimp but only the smallest pieces of it—what's the smallest readily available frozen food option? I wasn't able to find anything useful googling and I'd rather not spend hundreds of dollars trying every frozen food under the sun. Wallet fucked around with this message at 14:49 on Dec 30, 2021 |
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Dec 30, 2021 14:47
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Stoca Zola posted:I've seen frozen Daphnia, and you might be able to feed ocean nutrition instant baby brine. Growing your own worms (micro, Walter, banana, grindal, whatever culture you can get) can help too. You want to make sure you have an appropriate mix of protein and plant matter depending on the fish, and quality dry foods often have a better blend of nutrients than frozen whole foods. Frozen whole foods have roughage (from exoskeletons) which can help fish digestion. Variety makes sure you cover all your bases, all you can really do is read labels to try and avoid or minimise filler ingredients and watch the condition of your fish. If they eat readily and look healthy it doesn't matter if it's frozen or flakes. Thanks—I'll give Daphnia a try at least. How does freeze dried compare to frozen re: roughage? Cowslips Warren posted:Edit: my fish all get fed a mixture of repashy, mostly bottom feeder and morning wood, with a little bit of fry grow in there, or I toss them fluvals bug bites, which seems to be something that all of the fish go crazy on. The smallest bug bites are one of the things they take, but none of them are aggressive feeders. If the luminatus have a favorite it's crumbled up freeze dried brine shrimp, everything else they're pretty chill about. I haven't tried any gel foods so far, but maybe I'll give that a shot. No one (except the snails) seems to have any interest whatsoever in even the smallest sinking wafer foods, but maybe they will when they're bigger.
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Dec 30, 2021 23:06
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I have two Nymphoides aquatica I put near the front of my little tank that were just hanging around putting in roots for the last two or three weeks, and then I woke up one morning and the leaves on one of them had tripled in size over night, and within two days the other one started doing it. I haven't generally seen the leaves so huge in photos, at least not submerged. Fifteen days ago:  And last night:  (Also added a thin layer of coarse sand between the pictures which seems to make the corys happy) My assumption is that this is just a thing they do and they're going to start heading toward the surface, but should I be reducing available light or anything to encourage them to go up or will they do it on their own? Schwack posted:You might like the Aquaclear HOB's. They've at least got an adjustable flow. The waterfall on your current filter must be insane to be digging out substrate on a 29 gallon. I have an Aquaclear 50 on a ~13 gallon and it doesn't drop water that hard even with the adjustable flow all the way open, for reference. I have a sponge on the intake but it doesn't seem to have a massive impact on flow. Cowslips Warren posted:I do sponges on all my tanks (but they aren't display tanks), and two is better than one, just in case one gets blocked, you still have air flow. Wallet fucked around with this message at 18:57 on Jan 7, 2022 |
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Jan 7, 2022 18:53
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candystarlight posted:If you're willing to drop $20, there are a lot of sellers on Etsy that will make 3D printed baffles for the major filters. They'll also make custom baffles if you provide measurements. I didn't even think about this. I briefly tried making one myself out of acrylic but it didn't go so well. Just ordered one to hopefully direct the outflow from mine a little better.
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Jan 8, 2022 00:19
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ce gars posted:While you wait for that one to arrive, you can try making one out of a water bottle! Luckily the fish don't seem to care about the amount of flow and they swim right through the spot the outflow drops even though they're still tiny, I just want to redirect it somewhat to improve circulation because of where I had to put the filter.
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Jan 8, 2022 00:32
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Desert Bus posted:They are super cheap at Home Depot/Menards/etc. but i dunno if Covid supply chain issues have hit cheap wood shims like they have all other wood products. Doesn't seem like it, from what I've seen.
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Jan 25, 2022 00:40
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I was topping up the water in my tank just now and I found a surprise. Hard to get a photo of but that little black stripe on the right side of the Nymphoides aquatica pad there is some kind of fry. I thought all of the fish were still too young for breeding so I really wasn't expecting it. The only things in there are Corydoras habrosus and Pseudomugil luminatus so it must be one of the two, and the male Pseudomugil have started looking more adult so maybe it's them. I assume someone will end up eating it, but is there anything I should do to give the little guy a fighting chance?
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Jan 25, 2022 02:26
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My nymphoides aquatica continue to be a problem. Whenever I see them in videos or photos or whatever in other people's tanks they have small reasonable leaves, but the largest leaves on mine are literally the size of my hand. They're covering the entire bottom of the tank where they are now. I may have to get another tank just so I have somewhere to put them . Do aquatic plants respond alright to pruning? I may try snipping some off and seeing if they'll chill out now that they have floating leaves as well.
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Feb 2, 2022 15:12
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Ok Comboomer posted:Yeah, depending on your plant species/light/nutrient situation frequent pruning can be a normal part of keeping a planted tank I actually like the floating leaves, but I wasn't expecting the underwater growth to get so yuge. They still have a couple of their "original" leaves that are maybe an 1 1/2 x 1 1/2" inches or so, but they also both have three or four leaves that must be 5 or 6 inches wide. I have a little sand patch in the front where I usually feed the corys but I can't get food down there anymore unless I shake it off the leaves. There's a poor crypt under one of them that's probably dying of light deprivation by now.
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Feb 2, 2022 15:24
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Ok Comboomer posted:time to get your second tank I'm setting up an office and I'm thinking of putting a 40 breeder or something around that size in there, but that probably won't be for a while. I definitely have more plants in my 13 gallon than it really needs now that they're all growing like crazy. There's three or four java ferns in there each carrying 4 or 5 or 6 babies that I assume they're going to drop at some point and I ain't got nowhere to put them.
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Feb 2, 2022 15:35
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Ok Comboomer posted:Plus, something like a tub means growing stuff like Sarracenia, lotus, mangrove, etc. I mean, you could probably grow Sarracenia out the top of an aquarium if you had the right substrate for it. I'm not sure how they would handle how nutrient rich a good planted tank is, though.
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Feb 2, 2022 17:59
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As I mentioned a little while ago I'm looking at setting up a larger tank in my office since I've been enjoying the 13 gallon I made and the little fellers in there have been doing well. I had a few questions though. I was originally thinking of a 40 breeder, but the spot I have available could accommodate quite a bit larger. Is, say, a 55 a lot more work than a 40 or is it about the same just with a bit more room? As far as I can tell a standard 65 is the same footprint as a 40 breeder just with more vertical space which might be worth it for more plant options. Also I'm still scouting local fish stores (I've been to all but 2 that are reasonably convenient and haven't been terribly impressed) but if I don't find a decent one, do people have any website recommendations for fish? I got the ones I have from AquaticArts and have no complaints, but I'd like to look around a few more places to get a better feel for what my options might be.
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Feb 11, 2022 15:50
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Enos Cabell posted:I'd go for a standard 75g over a 55g in pretty much every circumstance. The extra depth front to back really opens up a lot more possibilities for both fish and scaping. No matter what volume I end up with I'm definitely going for an 18" 'deep' (front to the back) tank vs something skinny like a standard 55, for sure. My little 13 gallon is 17" deep and that felt restrictive enough.
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Feb 11, 2022 18:27
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