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My wife has a tank with African Dwarf frogs in it. She feeds them every day, but the maintenance is fairly low overall. I have Cherry Shrimp in one of my tanks, and thry are also enjoyable as well.
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Feb 22, 2014 05:48
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| # ? May 11, 2024 17:42 |
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Just started my first planted tank and I'm really pumped with how it's looking so far. Just a little 8 gallon I picked up on boxing day, but I plan on making this the test to convert my larger 20 gallon or possibly even go ham and but a 40. Ground cover in the front gave me a bit of problem on the left, but I figure it will fill out with time. 
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Feb 22, 2014 17:17
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I feel like they have popped up in this thread before, but what are those taller plants in the back? Very nice little setup.
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Feb 22, 2014 19:11
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I think it's cabomba.
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Feb 22, 2014 20:21
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It could be that or Hornwort... I am thinking the latter as I had that in my tanks at one point.
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Feb 22, 2014 21:29
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It could also be ambulia. drat all those similar looking plants!
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Feb 22, 2014 22:47
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I'm about to get a 30 gallon aquarium (36"x17"x12"), and I'm trying to think up stocking ideas. So far I have this: 1 rubberlip pleco 1 blue angelfish (scalare) 10 cherry barbs 5 kuhli loaches According to aqadvisor, my aquarium stocking level is 102%, which seems only technically overstocked, but I'm not sure how reliable that calculator is. What do you guys think? Should I cut back a bit? Could I add more? Also, I'm a little worried about the angelfish since they're labeled semi-aggressive and the rest of the fish are peaceful (the loaches are even described as timid). Should I take it out?
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Feb 23, 2014 03:07
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Zandorv posted:I'm about to get a 30 gallon aquarium (36"x17"x12"), and I'm trying to think up stocking ideas. So far I have this:
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Feb 23, 2014 03:42
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Really? The site I'm looking at says they max out at 6"! Is there a smaller pleco I might be able to keep?
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Feb 23, 2014 04:19
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I have never seen a rubberlip/nose get over 5 inches. They do like high oxygenated water though. But you can easily keep one, or a bristlenose pleco in your size tank. Keep an eye on the angel, but cherry barbs are not anywhere near as nippy as rosey or tiger barbs, so it should be fine.
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Feb 23, 2014 04:26
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Does anyone find most aquarium furniture just kind of ugly? Are there any real alternatives to Petco/Petsmart that aren't a fortune?
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Feb 23, 2014 05:41
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Do you mean tank stands or the stuff that goes in the tanks, for decor? I usually use driftwood and slate rock, and get both on Aquabid.
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Feb 23, 2014 05:59
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SynthOrange posted:My 4g tank is a tiny version of what you're describing. Lots of plants, snails and shrimp. I can forget about feeding them since they're all biofilm grazers and all that does is slow down population growth. Light helps the plants and the biofilm grows off nutrients from the animals. The only maintainence I do on that tank is to clean out the filter sponge every 2 months or so. That tank's water is absolutely pristine. The only issue is that I occasionally have to cull some MTS snails, but that's easy as getting a pair of solid tongs and squashing them, then that feeds the shrimp. Bait and Swatch posted:My wife has a tank with African Dwarf frogs in it. She feeds them every day, but the maintenance is fairly low overall. I have Cherry Shrimp in one of my tanks, and thry are also enjoyable as well. Thank you both! I'm liking the sound of the cherry shrimp with snails idea. I still have quite a lot of MTS (chain loaches got a lot but not all).
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Feb 23, 2014 07:10
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Cowslips Warren posted:Do you mean tank stands or the stuff that goes in the tanks, for decor? I usually use driftwood and slate rock, and get both on Aquabid. Tank stands.
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Feb 23, 2014 07:51
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Help me goons. It's 3am and I am surfing amazon for aquariums. I want to have a sweet aquarium but have never had one before. Is setting my money on fire for one of those sweet looking fluval edge aquariums a terrible idea? What should a literaly and complete newbie do here.
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Feb 23, 2014 10:58
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Zandorv posted:Really? The site I'm looking at says they max out at 6"! Is there a smaller pleco I might be able to keep? Yeah, my bad. I have been operating on bad info. I just googled it and very few people agree with me on the max size. And those that do are company I would rather not have (pet smart lists them as 10"). Sorry about that . As far as the Edge goes, it's hard to compare to other tanks. Based purely on cost per gallon, it's a bad investment. For about the same amount of money you could get a 29 gallon beginners kit and be able to do a lot more. But it won't be an Edge. If the small size of the tank appeals to you and the uniqueness is worth the extra cash to you, you probably won't regret it. They are very well reviewed and come from a reputable company. You will just be very limited in stocking options. Slugworth fucked around with this message at 15:04 on Feb 23, 2014 |
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Feb 23, 2014 14:54
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Ramadu posted:Help me goons. It's 3am and I am surfing amazon for aquariums. I want to have a sweet aquarium but have never had one before. Is setting my money on fire for one of those sweet looking fluval edge aquariums a terrible idea? What should a literaly and complete newbie do here. Apparently the top opening on Fluval edges is really small and makes doing any tank maintenance a pain in the bum, you're probably better off buying the largest bog standard aquarium you can afford or looking to see if there any promising second hand tanks in your area. That's how I got my current one and it was a really good bargain. Plus plain aquariums are really versatile, you can choose the style of filter you want, take the hood off and grow emersed plants along the edge (this is how mine is set up) and really play about with the lighting.
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Feb 23, 2014 14:58
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I loved my edge  I did tank maintenance with a small tube and a toothbrush for the corners, it worked fine. Just don't plan to have much stock or plant very heavily, as the light is only in the center. I did anubias, small driftwood, and my paddletail newt as the solo resident.
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Feb 24, 2014 01:11
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Ramadu posted:Help me goons. It's 3am and I am surfing amazon for aquariums. I want to have a sweet aquarium but have never had one before. Is setting my money on fire for one of those sweet looking fluval edge aquariums a terrible idea? What should a literaly and complete newbie do here. If you want something small that looks more modern, but don't want to drop a bundle for a first tank, I got myself a Tetra 3-gallon cube, and with an aftermarket filter and light the whole setup cost me ~$60 and looks really nice. It's plastic though, so it scratches fairly easily. The fluvals are drat sexy though. I've been eyeing one for a second shrimp tank just because I have the perfect spot for it...
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Feb 24, 2014 04:47
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I love my edge, but 5 gallons is really small. if I were buying one I'd get the tall (10 gal?) one in a second. cleans great with a little mag sponge, filtering is good, and it looks beautiful. Everyone who sees it says nice things. my only worry is that it is so little I will eventually get bored and buy a bigger tank that won't be so pretty.
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Feb 24, 2014 08:29
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Is there any difference between sea salt, ionized salt, etc (obvious not flavored salt) and "aquarium salt" i may see for sale at my lfs?
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Feb 24, 2014 18:10
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xxEightxx posted:Is there any difference between sea salt, ionized salt, etc (obvious not flavored salt) and "aquarium salt" i may see for sale at my lfs? Sea salt is generally gonna refer to a saltwater tank and contain minerals and trace elements that are at best useless and at worst dangerous in a freshwater setup. Aquarium salt will generally refer to a freshwater additive. Iodized salt to the best of my knowledge has no place in any tank.
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Feb 24, 2014 18:54
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Slugworth posted:Sea salt is generally gonna refer to a saltwater tank and contain minerals and trace elements that are at best useless and at worst dangerous in a freshwater setup. Aquarium salt will generally refer to a freshwater additive. Iodized salt to the best of my knowledge has no place in any tank. I have used dishwasher salt instead of aquarium salt to treat a bacterial infection in my fish (after much googling to check it was safe) and it's worked like a charm.
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Feb 24, 2014 19:03
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Marine salt is good for making saltwater and brackish water. It is also good for live bearers and inverts. Aquarium salt is pretty much useless and is often grabbed for making brackish water instead of marine, which causes the water to not actually be brackish. Table salt may contain additives that could be toxic to fish. Certain fish like a bit of salt, and some, such as Corys, will die from it.
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Feb 24, 2014 19:05
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I use no-additive rock salt to treat a sick freshwater tank, worked well every time I've needed it.
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Feb 25, 2014 07:01
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Cowslips Warren posted:I have never seen a rubberlip/nose get over 5 inches. They do like high oxygenated water though. But you can easily keep one, or a bristlenose pleco in your size tank. I have a rubberlip that has not grown in the two years I have owned it and it is under 4in. also I hardly ever see him out but when I do and he spots me.. *poof* gone like a rocket.
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Feb 25, 2014 17:24
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Fejsze posted:If you want something small that looks more modern, but don't want to drop a bundle for a first tank, I got myself a Tetra 3-gallon cube, and with an aftermarket filter and light the whole setup cost me ~$60 and looks really nice. It's plastic though, so it scratches fairly easily. Yeah that modern sexiness is what really drew me to them. I managed not to give in and buy something in t he middle of the night but I still want a tank. Are there any guides/suggestions for a total newbie to this fish stuff? Money isn't too much of an object right now but obviously keeping costs low owns.
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Feb 25, 2014 18:03
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I'm after some advice around my Rainbow fish if anyone has any thoughts. They seem to like spending most of their time nosing the glass, to the point where they are all starting to get rub marks. They obviously do this a lot more in the evenings around feeding time, but you can look at the tank any time the lights are on and see similar behaviour. I was wondering if this might be down to reflections? It's always brighter in the tank than outside while the lights are on. The Danios don't seem interested, we have some new Guppies which behave in a similar way every so often but it seems constant with the Rainbows. Water levels are all good, everything seems healthy, any ideas? I don't like fish with sore noses. Jekub fucked around with this message at 22:05 on Feb 25, 2014 |
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Feb 25, 2014 20:25
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Hello fish thread! I used to keep a few fish years ago and resurrected an old 20gal tall tank now that my daughter is old enough to express an interest in pets. We had a bit of a rough time getting the tank cycled, but things seem good now since the nitrates dropped overnight a couple weeks ago. We have three indestructible fish (2 female balloon mollies and a male platy), but are having terrible luck introducing anything else. The ph is very high around here 8+. Ammonia, nitrates, etc seem to test ok, and the water isn't too hot or cold. We tried a few guppies and a male mollie. One guppy started swimming erratically and then died. The other started doing the same thing and had tiny white dots all over her and died the next day. The male mollie just got really lethargic and died, no white dots on him. The male guppy seems perfectly fine, and my three original fish are also fine. The fish that died, did so within one our two days from purchase from a petco. I really don't want to kill any more fish, but i would like a few more in the tank. Any thoughts? I'm really not that great at fish ailments yet. The tank is somewhat planted and has been running for about 2 months total (maybe half of that filly cycled)
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Feb 25, 2014 21:05
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I've got an idea. Don't buy fish from Petco.
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Feb 25, 2014 21:32
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You've been doing regular water changes during the course of the cycling or have you done nothing since? Some fish are sensitive to pH levels but I have not heard of them just up and dying. What process are you using to introduce the new fish into the aquarium?
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Feb 25, 2014 21:50
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Partial water changes weekly or so. Introduction into the tank by placing the new bag into the water to let any temperature differences equalize. After that i let the fish out of the bag. If that is shocking them, I'll try leaving them in and adding aquarium water into the bag first. I know the large chains are not the best choice for fish, but haven't had this level of problems in the past. I live in a town that has no other aquatics stores. Looks like there is a fish specialty store about an hour away from here.
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Feb 25, 2014 22:08
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Beastyfella posted:Partial water changes weekly or so. Introduction into the tank by placing the new bag into the water to let any temperature differences equalize. After that i let the fish out of the bag. If that is shocking them, I'll try leaving them in and adding aquarium water into the bag first. I'll make a suggestion and others may chime in on this but insofar as the acclimation I would suggest you drip acclimate and not using the method of letting the bag get to temperature. The difference in the water between Petco and your tank water is vastly different and the temperature shock is the least of your worries there.
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Feb 25, 2014 22:23
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Sounds like good advice. How long should i let them acclimate using that method?
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Feb 25, 2014 22:25
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Beastyfella posted:Sounds like good advice. How long should i let them acclimate using that method? I use the same method for fish as my shrimp etc. so I put them into a temporary container.. I use one of those small critter keepers just for this. I have to pieces of airline tubing cut to lengths long enough to reach from the aquarium to the keeper. I have one of these little valves inline  and set it so it is on a semi-fast drip but not running water. The goal is to double the volume in about an hours time. At that point I use a turkey baster I bought just for this and remove about half the volume. I let it go for another half hour before I net the fish and move them over. The end game is to replace about 90-95% of the water the fish came in with the new water. I never ever allow the water from any other source enter my tanks though because you never know what you are introducing into the environment. There are a few different approaches to this same technique but all more or less want you to replace the volume of water the fish is in with the 100% of the new water it will be kept in over the period of at least one hour, the more time the merrier but always a slow drip vs. fast. A couple of articles on dripping, that first one is very similar to my setup. http://www.fishchannel.com/fish-health/disease-prevention/drip-acclimation.aspx http://www.liveaquaria.com/PIC/article.cfm?aid=290 demonR6 fucked around with this message at 00:39 on Feb 26, 2014 |
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Feb 26, 2014 00:36
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Ramadu posted:Yeah that modern sexiness is what really drew me to them. I managed not to give in and buy something in t he middle of the night but I still want a tank. Are there any guides/suggestions for a total newbie to this fish stuff? Money isn't too much of an object right now but obviously keeping costs low owns. Everything the thread regulars have is right in the OP, divided up into many different sections! If you're still unsure about anything after going through it, or if anything is unclear, bring it up and we'll help.
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Feb 26, 2014 01:33
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For drip acclamation, I've been using this guy http://www.amazon.com/Doradon-FA18X-Aquarium-Acclimation-System/dp/B005YIVJSU/ Same process as demon's, but uses the bag they come in as the container. Also allows temperature adjustment to happen as well since the bag is left in the aquarium.
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Feb 26, 2014 08:46
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Woke up this morning and found Destro, my red empress hap, floating dead at the top of the tank. He looked really beat up, and I'm not sure what happened to him. Last night he looked perfectly fine, and I've never seen any fish picking on him in the two years I've had him. I've lost a few fish over the years to various things, but this one really sucks.  RIP you beautiful bastard  DSC_6703.jpg by meramsey, on Flickr
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Feb 26, 2014 15:16
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JuffoWup posted:For drip acclamation, I've been using this guy Holy crap that is interesting!
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Feb 26, 2014 15:40
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| # ? May 11, 2024 17:42 |
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Speaking of Fluval Edges...I just got the 12 gallon and have been cycling it. There's just a piece of driftwood and some dirt and sand so far. It got one of those milky bacterial blooms and while I was waiting for it to clear up, the impeller in the filter broke (I think it sucked up some sand while I was moving the driftwood around). I ordered a replacement part but meanwhile it's been sitting around for 4-5 days with no filtration and a bacterial bloom. Pretty gross. My question is: should I just drain out all the murky water and start over, or try to salvage this batch? If salvage, where would I even start? I haven't tested the water quality because quite frankly I'm a little scared to.
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Feb 26, 2014 16:19
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