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My tank has grown in a lot over the seven months since I set it up. Some of the plants grew much bigger and faster than I was led to expect. There's a monster echinodorus along the left edge of the tank and some red Cryptocoryne affinis that got 'yuge real fast and I dunno why (on the right behind the wood). I lost a mat of Riccardia (chancy without CO2 so not a huge surprise), and I have a couple Bolbitis that never really took though they're still alive. Interestingly the java ferns that were making babies like mad in the old tank aren't growing nearly as fast in the new one. May just be that there's more competition for nutrients in the water column, I guess. I don't see the kuhli loaches nearly as often as I used to before everything grew in which is kind of a bummer, though the corydoras still come out to swim around now and then. Probably shouldn't have put the crypts in front, but I thought they were going to stay smaller. On the plus side I didn't put any moss or floating plants in this tank so pruning is pretty easy and nothing is trying to blob and swallow the whole tank.   I've still just got regular rear end GE grow bulbs on the tank. I guess it might look nicer with an actual aquarium light but they seem to be expensive as gently caress for no particular reason. The snails seem to easily keep up with the algae growth except on the lid, which I have to wipe off once a month or so. So far it's much lower maintenance than the ~13 gallon I had prior. Stoca Zola posted:Or to look at the cost and complexity of a CO2/high lighting set up and be overwhelmed or put off. Or sometimes it’s just the immediacy of “my fish needs cover, I can’t wait for this cutting to grow”. Personally I went through so many different plants until I found the few basic and obvious species that grow well for me and give me free plants forever, and I understand why not everyone has the money or patience for that. Most places that sell aquatic plants seem to do a pretty good job of explaining if the plant really needs extra CO2 or not. Aquatic plants seem pretty chill as long as you have an appropriate substrate. Of course if you already have a tank with sand and no plants and you're just feeding plants into it one at a time and watching them die I imagine that's pretty disheartening. Also seems like it's probably a lot easier to balance things out if you start with a lot of plants instead of just one or two. I will also say that I've only bought plants from two places (Buce and Aquarium Co-Op) and I've ended up with four different kinds of snails (in addition to the Nerites I put in on purpose) and god knows what else (pretty sure there's a small species of planaria in there though they don't seem to be bothering anything except the bladder snails). I like having them in there but I know some people really hate snails. Wallet fucked around with this message at 00:15 on Sep 13, 2022 |
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Sep 13, 2022 00:10
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| # ¿ May 11, 2024 18:04 |
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Lareine posted:My tank has been sitting dry for 10 years and I'm getting conflicting information on whether or not to reseal. Am I going to have to reseal it or is it fine if it doesn't leak? You may not have to but since the tank is currently empty it seems like it's probably worth it. Having the silicone sit dry is, as I understand it, going to reduce its lifespan. If it's nearing the end it's certainly going to be a lot less of a headache to just reseal it now than have it start leaking in two years when your tank is really getting good.
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Sep 13, 2022 13:43
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