vietcong whitecloud edition. Previous >>4297860

vietcong whitecloud edition

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Discus anything aquarium related here, including inhabitants, decor, and issues. Before asking questions in this thread, make sure you give us at least some details when asking a question, such as:

>Tank size (include dimensions, not just volume)
>Parameters (ammonia, nitrite, pH, GH, KH)
>Any inhabitants + how long you've had them
>Pictures are always helpful

Tank Cycling:
>www.modestfish.com/how-to-cycle-your-aquarium/

Stocking and Water Change Calculator:
>www.aqadvisor.com/AqAdvisor.php
>www.hamzasreef.com/Contents/Calculators/EffectiveWaterChange.php

Articles and Care Guides:
>www.seriouslyfish.com/knowledge-base/
>www.practicalfishkeeping.co.uk/
>www.theaquariumwiki.com/wiki/

Aquatic Plant Database:
>www.aquaticplantcentral.com/forumapc/plantfinder/all.php
>www.flowgrow.de/db/aquaticplants

Saltwater shit:
>brs 5 minute guides

[
>https://reefbuilders.com/reef-tank-setup/

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  1. 2 years ago
    Anonymous

    I was going in for some tubifex but saw this guy getting beat up by some hatchet fish…

    Hope the little rascal will have a speedy recover, to day he’s been very sluggish

  2. 2 years ago
    Anonymous

    Is it possible my flow is too strong for the khulis? I have an Aqueon Aquatic Flow 500 GPH powerhead aimed at the upper-top back glass to blow the Co2 and work with the output flow of the sponge filter to make the water circulate to hopefully disperse Co2 and nutrients all around the tank. The plants kind of gently move, it doesn't seem that the flow is really intense except maybe towards the top column (it's a 29g Aqueon so it's pretty tall.)

    Is it possible the powerhead is just a bit too much, and is making them less likely to come out?

    I've turned it off, fed them, and did some testing of the water parameters. 77F, picture attached. My pH could be a bit too high for them, but I've seen a lot of people say that isn't too much.

    My lighting is a Fluval Plant 3.0, which is usually at max settings (now through glass), maybe just the lighting is too strong for them?

    Or am I just overthinking it and they're still just adjusting/desiring a bigger group?

    • 2 years ago
      Anonymous

      give them time, the less you have the longer they will take to feel comfortable coming out of hiding. also give them more spaces to hide and you might see them more, this is because theyll feel more comfortable knowing there ample places to noodle into if they get spooked. but getting a few more wont hurt at all.

      • 2 years ago
        Anonymous

        Gotcha, I have a lot of plants growing in now, and have been trimming tops and replanting them. There's a lot of places they should be able to noodle into, but there could always be more. I will look into maybe some more bushy plants, but I feel like it's getting maxed out on space pretty quickly to plant. Still some mid-ground area, so maybe there.

        A close friend advised against going all the way up to 10, but maybe just to 7 would be enough to make them feel comfortable if they don't show up over time.

        I just don't like that I can't see them to check on their health, but they're pretty new so if I'm not doing anything shockingly wrong for them then I suppose it's the waiting game.

        • 2 years ago
          Anonymous

          Did your friend say why 10 is too many? The extra 3 bioload isn't going to be much but 50% more in the school very well might.

          Also, as others said, it'll take time either way, but I really don't see much reason to add 2 rather than 5.

          • 2 years ago
            Anonymous

            Yeah, I kind of disagree with them, but they have a lot more experience. They think that in my 29 gallon they will be a bit too large when they grow up to have 10.

            10 would be doubling my current 5. I don't intend to put a lot more in the tank other than pea puffers and shrimp.

  3. 2 years ago
    Anonymous

    smallest gars? might consider getting one or two for my 40BR, could be cool.

    • 2 years ago
      Anonymous

      >40
      >gar
      lolno
      If you want something you might be able to convince someone who doesn't know anything about fish is a gar you could look into halfbeaks. They're actually a livebearer that have long mouths and like to chill around top water.

  4. 2 years ago
    Anonymous

    Day 4 (I think) of the khulis still hiding. I can see nibbles taken out of pellets that I drop in, but have only spotted one twice since the first day. Definitely thinking of adding at least a few more, even if I don't go all the way up to 10 total.

    They just have a hella good hiding spot behind the big rock in my tank.

    Interestingly enough, I suddenly have a few snails with fully developed shells. I don't mind them, but they don't have the typical mystery snail shells, they're more pointed.

  5. 2 years ago
    Anonymous

    My toddler loves frogs; what's the smallest size fish I can keep in a community tank with African dwarf frogs without losing them? Will adult male guppies be safe, or too small? I know the ADFs are terrible hunters but I really don't want to have to explain why the froggy is eating his fish friends.

    • 2 years ago
      Anonymous

      Bettas can work

      Could even do a few females

    • 2 years ago
      Anonymous

      How big is the tank? also how many frogs? They can get bigger, at my lfs has some that are so big I first thought they were african clawed frogs instead lol.

      • 2 years ago
        Anonymous

        I've got a 30 gallon (36x12x16) with the smallest fish being male guppies. I've heard they're social so I'd probably add 4 if any.

  6. 2 years ago
    Anonymous

    Just got a new crystal glass 10g. Influence my stocking /aq/bros

    • 2 years ago
      Anonymous

      Pair of apistogramma, smaller species like bitaeniata or trifaciata. Optionally some pencil fish, I like the purple but green and three stripe are also good. Nothing else is acceptable.

      • 2 years ago
        Anonymous

        Are pencil fish fry safe? I'd actually consider keeping apistos but I'd like them to breed with some other fish in the tank too.

        • 2 years ago
          Anonymous

          Very little is truly fry safe, but pencil fish have small mouths and will get fricked up by the apistos if they try anything with their eggs, so aren't likely to cause too much harm.

  7. 2 years ago
    Anonymous

    Anyone have any experience with homemade fish food? I often see gelatin as an ingredient, why not egg instead? Complete protein and people probably already have egg at home anyway. Could add only whites or yolk and whites. The difference is that it will harden during the cooking process so better leave it in the shape/size you want it to be. Any downside I’m overlooking?

    • 2 years ago
      Anonymous

      I've seen people use egg on YouTube to feed fry.

    • 2 years ago
      Anonymous

      I would guess it's about stability in water, egg will dissolve quickly into tiny bits which is why you see it used as a fry food.
      No actual experience though so I dunno

      • 2 years ago
        Anonymous

        I've seen people use egg on YouTube to feed fry.

        cooked egg yolk breaks into a powder but if you mix it with the whites or just use the whites it becomes an omelette that is stable on water.

    • 2 years ago
      Anonymous

      For marine fish I dice scallops into mush and then freeze it into cubes. One of the healthiest and most balanced things you can feed them.

      • 2 years ago
        Anonymous

        Think I could do this with zebra mussels for freshwater?

        • 2 years ago
          Anonymous

          Probably. I spent a lot of time artistically searching through possible foods to find the best thing.
          Just make sure it has a lot of nutrients and don't have some crazy shit that's bad if you eat too much of it.

          • 2 years ago
            Anonymous

            Zebra mussels are invasive in the river where I live. I can harvest them off rocks on the shore. They're toxic for human consumption though

      • 2 years ago
        Anonymous

        I had aquariums in the past, moved to a different country and don’t have any but plant to grow my own carrots, tomatoes and paprika and maybe spinach, thinking about blending it with garlic, egg, maybe shrimp and/or spirulina and use it to feed crustaceans and/or neon tetra. Alternate it with color enhancing fish food and live food like artemia.

  8. 2 years ago
    Anonymous

    My shrimp tank apparently has scuds. But also fish.

    Am I fricked?

    • 2 years ago
      Anonymous

      >My shrimp tank apparently has scuds

      • 2 years ago
        Anonymous

        I've heard they will kill or out compete baby shrimp. Idk I've got a lot of fish, plants, snails, and shrimp in there, hopefully won't end up having much of an impact. The planaria and Hydra both seemed to die back or disappear without any problems.

        • 2 years ago
          Anonymous

          Ive seen a handful of hyrda in my shrimp tank and it's worrying me. Anything specific you did?

          At least the lone female GBR is colored up and is basically back to ignoring them being dicks. Just swims off and goes about her day. Idk why it was getting her so down yesterday, but that's what happened to the other female about a week before she died, but they were much more vicious with her. There was no ignoring that.

          • 2 years ago
            Anonymous

            I did literally nothing, except also keep guppies and Daisy's ricefish in with them.

            Actually come to think of it they disappeared when I had the prawns. Could have been the prawns. Don't recommend as a means of Hydra control. But I doubt they got all of it, it's a really resilient critter

            • 2 years ago
              Anonymous

              Bon appetit, gays.

              I'm guessing there's nothing I can do to help a shrimp molt? Racing strip red cherry has popcorned off the substrate a couple times. Got a grip on a shell standing upright now, so fingers crossed.

              Hm, might be time to add the pandas, and maybe even the medakas. I wanted to wait until I saw a new generation of shrimp but they might help the shrimplets more than hurt them. I know two big females dropped eggs recently, so ideally there's some in the 3 inches of java moss on the driftwood.

              • 2 years ago
                Anonymous

                If the shrimp is stuck, you can grab just the molt with some tweezers or such, and the shrimp will try to dart away from you and thus the molt. It'll scare the shit outta the shrimp but if it's gonna die anyways, you've got better odds this way. I saved a shrimp once doing that, but it died next molt anyways, ymmv.

                You should also be good to add both, though medaka will be safer of the two. But if you get juvenile Pandas (which is likely), by the time they're large enough to potentially hurt anything but the smallest shrimp, you'll have a couple generations of adults. If you have some thick moss, abundant floaters, and/or porous hardscape, you'll have at least a few survivors - corys aren't much of hunters, they'll just hoover up anything on the ground they fit in their mouths.

              • 2 years ago
                Anonymous

                >You should also be good to add both, though medaka will be safer of the two.

                Really? I would have assumed the exact opposite. Granted, I'm not at all familiar with rice fish. Need to get acquainted fast if I'm gonna breed em I guess.

                What kind of Cory cats get you guys goin'? I know long fin pandas will be in demand and I fricking want some anyway. Considering breeding sterbai, even though I got over wantimg them a decade ago when they seemed to be the new hotness.

              • 2 years ago
                Anonymous

                Medaka are smaller, with smaller mouths, is all. Either of them are pretty safe, but panda corys get to be much bigger overall fish, 1.5-2x the length and 3-4x the width, so have bigger mouths.

                In terms of Cory catfish, the money fish are Gold, Orange, or Green Laser - if you wanna go full moneybags, albino gold laser (so white with gold stripe) are $80+/ea, any time I see them. Bonus points as they will school with standard Bronze corys, though verdict is still out on whether they're a different species. Personally I've got a mix of Habrosus, Venezuelanus (orange, not Schultzi/Black Ven), and Gold Lasers in my tank, but Skunk and Agassiz were the other two colors I considered.

              • 2 years ago
                Anonymous

                I was considering orange Venezuelans but I coudn't really tell if they weren't in demand or just not widely available. Also, not much breeding info out there, but they're just a variety of another species aren't they?

                Man, I wish I could hit a fricking button to make my shrimp come out for a head count. There's 4 massive females I can keep trace of and 3 we're out for pellet and 2 went back into hiding after a few. So I know some are fricking off doing something.
                All the big females dropped eggs together like yesterday or they day before, but they aren't berried up again which worried me. Aren't they supposed to go straight to the next batch?
                The shrimp make me so fricking anxious. I guess because I want them to establish so badly so I can stop worrying. That and turn a potential cash sink into pretty much surefire cash flow.

              • 2 years ago
                Anonymous

                Christ, I hope they didn't eat the eggs because I stopped feeding for a few days because of hydra...
                They would have been days away from hatching at most.

              • 2 years ago
                Anonymous

                Dang, went to tweezer her and she was gone. So 2 down, 10 left (I hope). Seems impossible to do a full count. I'm just happy if I can count 4 reasonably quickly.

              • 2 years ago
                Anonymous

                She was fricked though. Reverse ring of death with a little slit no where near big enough.
                At least I've seen 6 successful molt casings.

              • 2 years ago
                Anonymous

                Oh, yeah, and bully pressure is split amongst the two females now. Turns out Chad wants to nut and his b***h, Dot, isn't giving up the ass. Better than them ganging up on Bloop, who was getting worn down despite her resilient stoicism.

      • 2 years ago
        Anonymous

        He's probably fine if it's a mixed ecosystem, but there's shrimp only tank horror stories of them breeding endlessly, first eating all the algae, then all the plants, and then all the shrimp and anything else.
        I'd take a punch in the face over someone dropping them in my shrimp tank.

        • 2 years ago
          Anonymous

          Thanks for making it clear that I will never breed these demons for live feed for my puffers.

  9. 2 years ago
    Anonymous

    for a first tank do you guys think I should go with live plants or put fake ones in? how hard is it to do live plants? if I do live plants can I plant them in gravel or do I need to use sand or whatever this Fluval Plant Stratum stuff is?

    • 2 years ago
      Anonymous

      Gravels fine, just insert root tabs under the plants or go for plants that can attach to the decor.
      Stratum is good anyway, but be warned you HAVE to rinse that shit a good 10-20 times.
      But other than that, live plants are easy and do well in most type of water, though high PH and sand makes things a bit more difficult.
      But if you don't really want to deal with a hornwort shedding its shit or java fern turning brown, go for fake silk plants. Less chances for the fish to injure themselves on it.

      • 2 years ago
        Anonymous

        i could have used that 'wash the shit out of it' advice before i put the sand in my tank

        now i've gotta do the substrate cleaning from the tank

        • 2 years ago
          Anonymous

          just wait the water will settle and clear doing shit in there will only make it worse. get live plants at petco and a cheap light and heater and you should be good to go for almost any freshwater fish that fits your tank.

          • 2 years ago
            Anonymous

            it's already settled and it's not crystal clear the way i want

            im gonna do this before all the fish come in, it's basically my last chance to ever get this done before plants and fish make it impossible

            i understand every water change involves substrate cleaning but im not going to have the chance to stir it up one final time

            • 2 years ago
              Anonymous

              Give it a day to settle, anon. Aquariums take time.

              • 2 years ago
                Anonymous

                just finished.

                cleaned it all up so all the bacteria from the substrate is fricked. crystal clear now
                rearranged the plants so that theyre placed instead of just in the water to survive.

                will take a picture soon but here's the template im using to place my plants

            • 2 years ago
              Anonymous

              > im gonna do this before all the fish come in, it's basically my last chance to ever get this done before plants and fish make it impossible
              Do fricking what?? You’re probably going to be a terrible fish keeper, sounds like you have no patience and you don’t even know what you’re doing. Find a way to settle down and let the tank take a few days, like do you even know what cycling is? Please don’t abuse fish anon

              • 2 years ago
                Anonymous

                You can keep your midwit opinion to yourself

                I probably know as much as you do at this point and will only improve faster than you could ever hope to

                I’m sorry but that’s the reality, I’m not as low IQ as you. Really

              • 2 years ago
                Anonymous

                >trying to rush through setting up a fishtank and acting like itll be fine
                it wont, yorue a double Black person moron but go ahead and waste all your money on fish that keep dying.

              • 2 years ago
                Anonymous

                If that’s what happened to you that’s on you

                Again, i probably know as much or more at this point than you do

              • 2 years ago
                Anonymous

                >didnt even know about washing substrate until TODAY
                >wants to act like he knows anything
                this is a bit.

    • 2 years ago
      Anonymous

      Use gravel over a soil substrate and don't look back.

  10. 2 years ago
    Anonymous

    I want fiddler crabs
    is this a bad idea? nothing will go wrong, right?

    https://www.instructables.com/Under-water-Dry-zone-for-fiddler-crabs/

    • 2 years ago
      Anonymous

      How does the air get replaced? I see an airtube but no bubbles.
      Also could cause a fishtank apocalypse if the sand weighing it down comes out enough for it to burst to the surface.

  11. 2 years ago
    Anonymous

    >gbr pair starting to harass lone female out of the blue
    >going out if their way to look for her
    >55 gallon tank is 50% plants by volume
    >look for advice
    >"I added a plant to my 29 gallon and now all three pairs get along fine!"

    • 2 years ago
      Anonymous

      Do you have other dithers in the tank? some tetras might be something else they can chase away that will be too fast to get beat up.

      • 2 years ago
        Anonymous

        Yeah, 25 neons. Frustrating. I may just move her to another tank, but she'll be a bit chilly.

        • 2 years ago
          Anonymous

          Guess they're just cichlids being cichlids. I had a pair of blood parrots that fricked like rabbits for 5 months, then one day the male decided he didn't want the female anywhere near him and beat the shit out of her.

          • 2 years ago
            Anonymous

            Probably. I knew I was in over my head the moment they started coloring up. At least I've seen eggs. Wish my 10 gallon would age 6 months instantly so I can plop those buttholes in there when they need to frick (off).
            Also got GSA showing up, but diatoms are finally slowing down. I wasn't aware of and guess I never fully went through the "algae cycle" when I had this tank fully operational for a couple months a decade ago. At least I hope that's what's going on.
            Looks like the same thing is happening in the 40 gallon but the shrimp are getting everywhere they can reach. Output from fluval 307 is a bit much for them I guess.

            • 2 years ago
              Anonymous

              that's a beautiful shrimp

              15 dorrar

  12. 2 years ago
    Anonymous

    Has anyone bred zebra acaras or other dwarf acaras? I have recently aquired a pair of zebra acaras and a few laetacara species and am gonna start playing around with the ph and tds. Anyone have any experience?

    • 2 years ago
      Anonymous

      My Nannacara anomala have been breeding for me regularly. My tapwater is soft, around neutral pH. Been feeding them a mix of repashy, frozen foods, insect-based pellets, and a variety of live foods.

      • 2 years ago
        Anonymous

        I have been looking for N. anomala for ages. Did you get them from a lfs or buy them online? Also what are other tank params? Stock, size filtration etc.

  13. 2 years ago
    Anonymous

    Is it ok to feed your fish only once a day? Everyone says 2-3 times a day online but I don't know if that's a meme

    • 2 years ago
      Anonymous

      Yes, 2-3 times is overkill pushed by food manufacturers. An adult fish doesn't need much food, lots of people do every other day or put in "fast days", but one of their eyeball's worth of food each day is plenty.

    • 2 years ago
      Anonymous

      Every other day is good for most adult fish, or every day for higher metabolism fish. If you have fry, you may want to feed more to achieve a faster growth rate, but doing so will cause your nitrates to go up so you will need to manage your chemistry well. The best feeding regimen is on the conservative side and is something you can consistently execute. Fish love consistency. Hope that helped!

  14. 2 years ago
    Anonymous

    I'm about ready to give up on microswords as a low tech carpeting plant. It grows fine, but every single runner ends up in the water column, and I'm not sure if it's the fish, the snails, the mild water flow, or what, but it's been 4 months and the three pots' worth have become vibrant, tiny clumps surrounded by encroaching Val.

    Any recommendations for replacement? I have fluorite capped aquasoil, unheated tank so 70-80 F. I like the look of hydrocotyle tripartita but am concerned it'll have the same issue or worse, so at this point leaning toward basic b***h Shoreweed.

  15. 2 years ago
    Anonymous

    hey, so I'm new to fish tanks and was wondering if I use tap water am I able to put it into the tank then add the dechlorinator if I don't have fish in there yet and let the filters run for a few days or should I go get 5 gallon buckets and de chlorinate those then pour them in.

    • 2 years ago
      Anonymous

      I'm pretty new, too but the consensus that I got is either way is fine. The issues with the individual bucket version is the dosing, but I don't think even that is a big deal. It's just easier to dose the tank for the amount you'll put in and then dump it in from the tap. This may also vary if your tap water needs more treatment, though.

      I'd like to hear from more experienced people, but that is what I've gathered from googling.

    • 2 years ago
      Anonymous

      Yes you can but generally it's best to add the dechlor to the new water or to the tank right before adding it. Chlorine can turbo your bacteria, even in very small amounts - it precipitates too fast to really harm fish, but losing a large chunk of your filtration can definitely hurt them.

  16. 2 years ago
    Anonymous

    I've never seen a Florida Flagfish at my local shops, are they just an American thing or have I not been looking hard enough?

    • 2 years ago
      Anonymous

      They are literally an American thing. Only found in Florida, looks like the US flag, not exported much (as we don't have huge breeding facilities like in Asia).

      hey, so I'm new to fish tanks and was wondering if I use tap water am I able to put it into the tank then add the dechlorinator if I don't have fish in there yet and let the filters run for a few days or should I go get 5 gallon buckets and de chlorinate those then pour them in.

      I'm pretty new, too but the consensus that I got is either way is fine. The issues with the individual bucket version is the dosing, but I don't think even that is a big deal. It's just easier to dose the tank for the amount you'll put in and then dump it in from the tap. This may also vary if your tap water needs more treatment, though.

      I'd like to hear from more experienced people, but that is what I've gathered from googling.

      You can definitely fill the tank up and add dechlorinator. Dechlorinator works in minutes. Once your fish is in there, there are some arguments to be had of doing dechlorination out of the tank, but generally both ways are acceptable. My issue with doing it in the tank are:
      1) You're just having to use more dechlorinator.
      2) Probably doesn't feel great to have a blast of chlorine in the face while the dechlorinator hasn't mixed well yet.
      3) You're already temp-matching water in the bucket: might as well add dechlorinator.

      • 2 years ago
        Anonymous

        So here's my question as a noob, how are people generally temperature matching the water? A separate heater for that? Or does it only matter with big water changes?

        • 2 years ago
          Anonymous

          For my 10 gallon that is unheated I just let the water sit in a bucket over night. For my 75 I end up having to use some hot water mixed in to get it close, especially in the winter. I was skeptical of using it since I was always taught water that went through a water heater wasn't meant for drinking but I haven't had any problems.

        • 2 years ago
          Anonymous

          >temp matching
          For my small tanks I'll fill an empty bucket and let it sit a couple hours, this also helps some various things dissipate into the air, and general drops my tap TDS by a few dozen ppm. For a bigger tank, I don't bother, and the tank temp just drops a few degrees during the process. Water temp can vary drastically across a even just a few feet of water in the real world, and I've never noticed any adverse effect on my stock from going tap to bucket (plus dechlor) to tank.

        • 2 years ago
          Anonymous

          If it's a small water change, you don't need to worry about it. For instance if you put 1 gallon of actual ice in a 20G tank at 78F, it's going to lower the temp to just slightly under 76F when it is all melted (which, btw, is why every summer I cringe at the people telling everyone to put a frozen 16 oz bottle of water in a fricking 20G tank as if that'll do something). For some stock even a large change doesn't matter that much within reason. Like a pleco won't get shocked with temp change unless it's absolutely massive (hard scaled fish tend to take temp changes much better than soft scaled fish).

          I personally have a separate heater for my saltwater changes since I tend to let that mix overnight (regardless of what the label says, it is best practice to mix for a few hours at least because the parameters don't settle right away: BRStv did a comparison on all their salt brands and they all changed over time significantly).

          For freshwater I just have a thermometer and try to adjust the tap to be reasonably close. If I'm really lazy I just stick my finger in and best guess.

      • 2 years ago
        Anonymous

        so I just add whatever amount I need in dechlorinator for the amount of gallons im adding then add the water? and do you usually just let the filters run for a few days before getting fish?

        • 2 years ago
          Anonymous

          Yes, you need to run the filters for a while before fish, or you risk killing fish with nitrite poisoning. Google nitrogen cycle or how to cycle an aquarium, but the gist of it is you need to add some sort of ammonia source and run the filters for a few weeks to get the bacteria that turns various organic waste (potentially toxic) into mostly harmless Nitrate, which is then removed by water changes and plants.

          If you don't want to wait, you can do a "fish in cycle" but it's more effort and not great for the fish, so if you go that way, you need to put in a very small number of hardy fish, a single betta or platy or a trio of feeder minnows are common choices, and then still wait for the cycle to complete before adding more.

        • 2 years ago
          Anonymous

          If you're adding dechlorinator to the tank, always add enough to dechlorinate the entire, full tank. If you're adding dechlorinator before to the bucket, you only need enough for the bucket.

          As for starting a new tank, I haven't started either a totally new, from scratch, fresh or saltwater tank in literally over a decade so I may be the wrong person to ask. However the next immediate concern after dechlorination is the development of Nitrifying bacteria, Nitrosomonas and Nitrobacter, which takes weeks. However lots of people have added fish Day 1 with plenty of success. Waiting a few days doesn't really make a difference vs adding Day 1.

          You can speed up the cycle with various techniques (adding established media, adding detritus juice from a squeezed established sponge, added bottled bacteria; that is in order of effectiveness).

          You either add your fish in right away and mitigate any issues you go, or you wait weeks to be safe and develop a decently mature biofilter. Most here prefer the latter. On the one hand, people have had success both ways. On the other, the biggest asset in this hobby is patience so... might as well practice now. That said, I most definitely started a tank or two years ago fish first and those fish are still with me.

  17. 2 years ago
    Anonymous

    Is it dumb that I got little snails and I think they're cute and not pests (yet)?

    • 2 years ago
      Anonymous

      I loved my little snails when I first started. I still don't mind them, though my ramshorn and bladder snail populations have cratered due to losing out on food competition, so it's mostly MTS pests in my tanks.

      Regardless, I still think snails are fun to watch, any size or type.

  18. 2 years ago
    Anonymous

    Well today I learned that, once again, the "internet at large" doesn't know shit about this hobby. All the crowing about low nitrates in freshwater, but actual experimental research has found that you need really high nitrate to be acutely toxic. As in, 800 ppm for guppy fry. See pic - note that the measurements are in NO3-N, whereas the API test kit looks at straight nitrate, which translates to 4.4x the ppm.

    • 2 years ago
      Anonymous

      This is not news. aquariumscience already covered this and we post that website here all the time.

      However, feel free to keep a high NO3 tank and see how you fare. You will find that it is not so cut and dry. Both this list and aquariumscience only study the effects in the short term, specifically on fish. It does not reveal how your tank will become covered uncontrollably with algae along with the massive snail population boom that goes with it, or the additional stressors on the fish weakening their immune systems, or the massive overpopulation of detritus worms and all kinds of weird shit from not regularly cleaning your tank. It is specifically toxicity of NO3.

      If you don't want to do maintenance, just don't get a pet. I don't mean just fish, I mean any pet, except perhaps a pet rock.

      • 2 years ago
        Anonymous

        Holy projection, batman. Never said anything about letting nitrates get that high or not doing maintenance, just that nitrates directly poisoning fish is basically a myth.

        • 2 years ago
          Anonymous

          >unprompted post declaring community at large wrong about NO3
          >I... I definitely wasn't planning on letting Nitrates run that high!
          Then why bother mentioning it? Nice backtrack, bro.

        • 2 years ago
          Anonymous

          The effects of nitrogenous waste are highly, highly dependent on species. Especially true of ammonia and nitrite which have variable toxicity at different pH.

          That said, a lack of acute toxicity doesn't necessarily mean chronic toxicity isn't there. There isn't a lot of research on that matter and excessive nitrate levels are usually indicative of some kind of deficiency in your system that will indirectly cause other problems.

  19. 2 years ago
    Anonymous

    I should've gotten more than 5 amanos, this hair algae just wont quit.

    • 2 years ago
      Anonymous

      If you have a big enough tank siamese algae eaters will genocide hair algae real quick. I had 3 in a 75 kill hair algae in a week and that was with regular feedings, they're dickheads to each other though I would recommend only one.

      • 2 years ago
        Anonymous

        I'm running a 29g planted with 5 khulis now and soon 5 amano, maybe eventually 10 khulis and 6-8ish pea puffers. Not sure if they'll all jive, but I'll definitely give it some thought.

      • 2 years ago
        Anonymous

        I'm running a 29g planted with 5 khulis now and soon 5 amano, maybe eventually 10 khulis and 6-8ish pea puffers. Not sure if they'll all jive, but I'll definitely give it some thought.

        Flag fish will do it too, and don't get as big or need as large of a school. They can be nippy, though. Doubt the kuhlis would get harassed, but the puffers might.

        I added a few to a tank that was overrun with algae and it got nuked almost overnight. They're machines.

        • 2 years ago
          Anonymous

          I'd be honestly more worried that the puffers would nip them.

          • 2 years ago
            Anonymous

            Nah they're much larger and faster than dwarf puffers and fairly intelligent for fish - if a puffer nipped them, they'd probably body it afterwards. Or they'd just ignore it, and either way it would hurt them because they're very tough fish with essentially no SMASHING and SLAMMING in their genetic line.

            I was thinking of flying foxes when I said you needed a school, always get those mixed with true SAEs. If you can get one that's not mislabeled, one SAE would probably do better, but a male/female pair or harem setup with flagfish would look prettier (imo).

      • 2 years ago
        Anonymous

        Why won't my homosexual siamese algae eater touch hair algae?

        • 2 years ago
          Anonymous

          Are you feeding it too much? mine went crazy for it.
          Pretty sure that it's the bulk of their diet in the wild so it's not something that you have to train them to go after. Try adding in some fasting days when you don't feed at all and see if they go after it more.

  20. 2 years ago
    Anonymous

    Anyone know what are some breeding signs to look out for in shellies? I've seen my female try to lure the only male into her shell. She'd swim and make the male follow her and she'd get into the shell but the male wouldn't follow her in. Is this breeding behaviour?

  21. 2 years ago
    Anonymous

    Got a lot of dust algae building up on my side/back glass. Should I get Otos or Snails to keep it down? I don't really like bristlenoses.

    • 2 years ago
      Anonymous

      Then you're in luck because BNPs are not very good algae eaters.

      Nerites or amano are the best choices for low bioload algae eating. Otos, stiphodon gobies, flagfish, or SAEs all do pretty good job otherwise.

      • 2 years ago
        Anonymous

        I've already got Amanos and a horde of Cherry Shrimp but they struggle to stick to the glass. Sometimes I'll see a shrimplet hanging on but they don't make a dent in it. I'd rather not deal with Nerite eggs and I don't have any hair algae problems so I guess I'll pick up some Otos.

  22. 2 years ago
    Anonymous

    will my plants survive without having the water cycled? no nitrates?

    • 2 years ago
      Anonymous

      Generally yes. They won't grow much, might melt back a bit, but shouldn't die. Adding plants will likely speed up the cycle even, because they come from somewhere else that has bacteria.

      my water ph is relatively high, it's testing at like 7.4 or 7.6. there should be no reason it should be that high
      i've still yet to get a water hardness tester but the old pipes will be causing problems there i guess

      ammonia at 0.25
      nitrite at 0
      nitrate at 0

      it's been a few days since ive put in the quickstart. how long should it take before the ammonia subsides to 0? and i start getting nitrite and nitrate readings. do i need a decent amount of ammonia to start the process?

      is there a minimum i should be aiming for?

      That's pretty normal for tap water, mine is 7.6 pH with about 10 gH and 3 KH, and that's once I run it cold for a couple minutes. If you aren't keeping blackwater fish, it probably won't matter, just plan stocking accordingly.

      To your other question, yes you probably want more ammonia in there (the more you put in, the more bacteria grows to eat it), keep adding or shadow feeding or however you're doing it it doesn't really matter. In terms of timing, it's taken me anywhere from 5 to 15 days from first ammonia to first nitrite in a virgin tank. Just keep adding ammonia now and again, and waiting. Adding plants or hardscape that's been in another tank will potentially speed it up, but beyond that or finding a friend who can give you some seeded material, it's a patience game.

  23. 2 years ago
    Anonymous

    do you guys know any good /aq/ youtube channels? also I want to know more about plants, If you know some sites to look and investigate

  24. 2 years ago
    Anonymous

    my water ph is relatively high, it's testing at like 7.4 or 7.6. there should be no reason it should be that high
    i've still yet to get a water hardness tester but the old pipes will be causing problems there i guess

    ammonia at 0.25
    nitrite at 0
    nitrate at 0

    it's been a few days since ive put in the quickstart. how long should it take before the ammonia subsides to 0? and i start getting nitrite and nitrate readings. do i need a decent amount of ammonia to start the process?

    is there a minimum i should be aiming for?

  25. 2 years ago
    Anonymous

    im gonna eat all your shrimp

    • 2 years ago
      Anonymous

      Jokes on you, I can't even buy freshwater shrimp.

  26. 2 years ago
    Anonymous

    Is it ok to leave a shrimp pellet overnight or is it better to remove it when you think they've eaten enough? My khulis are really skittish so they're not visibly eating, but it looks like they might've nibbled half of one of the pellets. I dropped two in.

    • 2 years ago
      Anonymous

      If it’s in a heavily planted tank with good filtration, then it’s fine I think. Add shrimp if you don’t have them already.

      • 2 years ago
        Anonymous

        Shrimps are on the way. It's decently heavily planted, but a lot hasn't fully grown in yet. I'm using a double sponge filter for now (really been considering upgrading, but haven't had any issues yet).

        Maybe I should just remove them to be safe, if they haven't eaten them after they've been in there for like 3 hours maybe they wont.

    • 2 years ago
      Anonymous

      I've never had any leftover food sitting on the substrate in the mornings, I've got about 10-14 kuhlis (can't remember when I counted them all. Last time I moved tank I guess?).
      If there is leftover food in the mornings, then IMO either they will not touch it or you're overfeeding them already. I would recommend trying out some vegetables, leafy greens etc, not as nutrient or fat dense but variation etc.

      Regardless, if you're lucky enough to see them during the day, don't squander the moment.

  27. 2 years ago
    Anonymous
  28. 2 years ago
    Anonymous

    aquarium light malfunctioning
    $40 off craigslist + some t5 bulbss (narrow expensive bulbs)
    i cant find any numbers or id info on it
    can anyone id this based on the pic?

    the problem:
    i have the light on a timer, it doesnt turn on when the timer is switched on, but if i tap it, the light does turn on!
    when the light has been running and is 'warmed up' it will turn on when the timer turns on
    but
    if it has not been used for an hour or so and is not 'warmed up', when the timer switches to 'on' the device does not turn on unless i tap it. what is going on??

    • 2 years ago
      Anonymous

      old style light with a condenser that's dying. you might be able to access it. my old aquarium light has one.

  29. 2 years ago
    Anonymous

    >try vibra bites for my apisto borellis
    >they immediately home in on it, think i have a home run new food for them, normally they're picky with dry food
    >watch male hold it in his mouth for 30 seconds then discreetly spit it out
    that was $8 you b***h, at least the platys will eat it. but they'll eat anything.

  30. 2 years ago
    Anonymous

    Did I get scammed? Or is this shit legit?

    • 2 years ago
      Anonymous

      most shrimp minerals and other shit like that are woo bullshit. I've kept bee shrimp in the most basic b***h setups just buffered with some crushed coral.

    • 2 years ago
      Anonymous

      If you use RO water and need to remineralize it's probably good. If you aren't using RO... questionable.

    • 2 years ago
      Anonymous

      I use it in my tanks. Has no copper in it so its a decent all in one liquid fertilizer for low tech planted tanks and shrimp tanks.

    • 2 years ago
      Anonymous

      I use Thrive, S and C in different tanks, it seems to work for my plants, they stopped developing the little pinholes in their leaves and have been growing a lot more steadily.

  31. 2 years ago
    Anonymous

    Do only Boomers keep rainbowfish? When I was a kid, I remember them being one of the most common fish in stores, and now I don't ever see them, or even hear them discussed.

    • 2 years ago
      Anonymous

      Probably. They tend toward bigger flatter fish. I looked at them for a second until I saw these little chads next to them. Legions of zippy fish are far more interesting than a few lunking turds.
      Cory cats >>>>>>>> plecos, for example.

    • 2 years ago
      Anonymous

      https://i.imgur.com/TOsmVyd.jpg

      Probably. They tend toward bigger flatter fish. I looked at them for a second until I saw these little chads next to them. Legions of zippy fish are far more interesting than a few lunking turds.
      Cory cats >>>>>>>> plecos, for example.

      In my purely anecdotal experience I've noticed that boomers are in fact much more likely to keep just a few big fish than a community tank full of little fish.
      All monster fish keepers seem to be boomers too. Why is this?

      • 2 years ago
        Anonymous

        It takes a shitload of money and space to keep monster fish. Who do you think would have the money to do it? House-owning Boomers or NEETs living in a one bedroom apartment?

        You can also scale up small fish to large aquariums (see Takashi Amano's exhibits), but you can't scale large fish to small tanks.

        Nothing against either. I like both small and large fish.

        • 2 years ago
          Anonymous

          >famous aquarist
          >named after a shrimp
          What are the odds?

        • 2 years ago
          Anonymous

          Man, you reminded me that he's no longer around and made me sad. Dude was a fricking God of this hobby.

          • 2 years ago
            Anonymous

            I once went to an exhibition of his tanks and it was what made me go from spongebobs and neon gravel to being a massive planted tank gay

          • 2 years ago
            Anonymous

            I only hope that one day my shitty attempt at a 'scape comes together so well. Right now, my Co2 is not nearly enough and the hair algae is making everything ugly. Feel like I've got years of growth to go before it looks full, too.

        • 2 years ago
          Anonymous

          Nah, I don't think that's it. I've been seeing boomers keep fish as long as the tank theyre in for decades now. But nice try, boomer.

        • 2 years ago
          Anonymous

          I actually had in my original post that I can't even stand the sight of kissing fish anymore because every other fricking boomer I knew had two constantly "kissing" in a 20-30 gallon.

  32. 2 years ago
    Anonymous

    Am I weird for thinking that my Fluval Plant 3.0 being so close above the glass top will cause it to crack due to temperature?

  33. 2 years ago
    Anonymous

    Tips for acclimating shrimp without tubing? I got Amanos on the way but I got no tubing or way to heat the drip container. Also afraid of them jumping out.

    • 2 years ago
      Anonymous

      I've added amanos straight to the tank without acclimation with 0 deaths before they're bullet proof compared to cherries.
      If you really can't drip acclimate I'm sure just adding a small amount of water ever 5-10 minutes will work.

      • 2 years ago
        Anonymous

        Yeah, I was more worried about the temp, but because it’s a breather bag they’ll be in I can’t just float it. Am I just over thinking it and can net them out and plop the, in?

        • 2 years ago
          Anonymous

          If the tank is close to room temp you can just let them sit in the bag in the room for a while.
          With shipped fish the main concern is getting them out of their own shit, with shrimp you have to worry more about parameter changes.

          If you really are worried just get them into a small bowl or something and add some water from the tank every 5 minutes. Temp will get closer and they'll be less shocked.

          • 2 years ago
            Anonymous

            just get a plastic cup and add a bit of water every few minutes, do this for ~1 hour. then just yeet them in (without the water you acclimated) amanos are quite possibly the single hardest non pest aquarium creature to kill, so theyll be fine.

            Thanks anon, the room sits around 70-72 while the tank is around 77, so it was enough of a change but a quicker version of the drip acclimation by transferring water into a bucket at a faster rate should serve, I hope.

            Is it true these frickers will jump out, I don’t want to find my cat crunching on a fresh snack when I look away from the bucket lol

        • 2 years ago
          Anonymous

          just get a plastic cup and add a bit of water every few minutes, do this for ~1 hour. then just yeet them in (without the water you acclimated) amanos are quite possibly the single hardest non pest aquarium creature to kill, so theyll be fine.

          • 2 years ago
            Anonymous

            There are some fish that are as survivable - goldfish and mosquitofish for example - but this anon is pretty much correct, amano are stupid hardy. They also commonly live much longer than you'd expect - there are endless anecdotes of people with amanos that make it a decade or longer.

      • 2 years ago
        Anonymous

        Hm, I may have lucked out. I had like 5 deaths over the first month in a group of about 30. I figured that was normal when some people said expect to lose up to half.
        Anyways, I floated the bag for 20 minutes, added it to an equal amount of tank water, and then added a gallon worth of tank water over a couple hours (poured from the jug like a waiter lol), finally dumping the whole bucket in.
        I had guests over when they showed up, in my defense.

        • 2 years ago
          Anonymous

          I actually did basically the same but shorter with the red cherries as the seller said an hour should be fine. Lost one of the dozen, see three molts and three acting like they're gonna molt soon.

    • 2 years ago
      Anonymous

      What size tank? Tubing is very useful for slow water changes if the tank is smaller than 20 gallons, and gradual water changes are safer for shrimp.

      Also if they're amanos (honestly probably cherries too) they don't need the drip. Only sensitive cardinias are likely to have problems with gH and ph shock. In fact, if they were shipped its possible for the elevated ammonia in their original water, which converts from ammonium when the water gets an influx of oxygen as you cut the bag, to be more dangerous than the shock of just temperature acclimation.

      • 2 years ago
        Anonymous

        It’s a 29 gallon, and I know that there in those breathable bags. But thanks for the reassurance!

  34. 2 years ago
    Anonymous

    Is 10 Khuli loaches, 5 amano shrimp, and like 8 pea puffers too much for a 29 gallon? It’s pretty heavily planted, but not grown in yet. Only thinking of adding the khulis and shrimp for now, but for the future.

  35. 2 years ago
    Anonymous

    How do you keep shrimp well-fed in a tank with fast and active bottom-feeding fish that hoover up everything that touches the substrate?
    I've had a few amanos for months and a handful of red cherries for a few weeks, they seem to be fine but I'm scared they'll start to starve

    • 2 years ago
      Anonymous

      It's really hard to starve shrimp. But you can get bacterae of other similar "biofilm support" powders if you're worried.

      • 2 years ago
        Anonymous

        shrimp need almost no food unless you're trying to shrimpmaxx. I have like 3 shrimp in a 0.2 gallon bowl that i never feed and they've been alive for about a year now. They don't breed but they live just fine.

        Frig. Wish I knew this before I pozzed myself with hydra by overfeeding. They seem to be disappearing in their own; the snails eat them sometimes. I hope they didn't just relocate somewhere shrimplets will be.

    • 2 years ago
      Anonymous

      shrimp need almost no food unless you're trying to shrimpmaxx. I have like 3 shrimp in a 0.2 gallon bowl that i never feed and they've been alive for about a year now. They don't breed but they live just fine.

  36. 2 years ago
    Anonymous

    So it turns out that "five potted buce" translates to roughly 30 little plants. My hardscape is now stacked with green, and my hands and (somehow) hair have superglue on them.

    • 2 years ago
      Anonymous

      Where'd you buy from, been thinking about some buce for my tank but I worry when they're sold as potted that it will end up being only one or two plants. That shit happened to me a year ago, got some wavy green and it was two good sized plants but one was too far down in the rock wool and the rhyzome melted.

      • 2 years ago
        Anonymous

        This was my first time buying from BucePlant, but they had a sale on 5 pots of mixed buce and one of my apps found a 15% off discount code, so it ended up being like $40 for the five pots. I ended up with most of what I'd have picked myself - a kedang, black pearl, Catherine, godzilla (only one I was meh on but the leaves are 5"+ and I got three big ass rhzomes plus a couple two-three leafers) and tricolor velvet.

      • 2 years ago
        Anonymous

        Oh and for what it's worth, I also got some crypt (wendetti gecko) from them and it was a generous, well potted and packaged portion. Given the flat shipping, I was quite happy with the order.

        I looked up the code too, it was TEAMBUCEFB, not sure if it's still active but I bet it is.

        • 2 years ago
          Anonymous

          That was who I bought from before too, I remember I got two pots of crypts and ended up with like 11 individual plants. Something about them trying to charge $7 for insulated boxes when I looked recently rubbed me the wrong way.

  37. 2 years ago
    Anonymous

    >wake up to find one of my fish bloated but still active
    >eh maybe I can still save him
    >take 10 minutes to set up quarantine tank
    >in the space of those 10 minutes my tiny 1/4 inch baby dwarf crayfish fricking dragged the sick fish to the bottom and murdered it
    Well frick man.

    • 2 years ago
      Anonymous

      I remember warning you about that dwarf crayfish, if you're the same anon.

      Sorry about your fish.

  38. 2 years ago
    Anonymous

    1. Wait for air hose / Wait for air stone
    2. Cycle fish tank / test water
    3. Clean substrate, water change
    4. Clean intake sponge
    5. Arrange plants
    6. Heater, temperature controller
    7. Air pump / Put in air stones and ornaments
    8. Wait for Ice Brick
    9. Trip to aquarium store
    a. Pick up order / frozen foods
    b. Pick up mela/pimafix
    10. Setup quarantine aquarium
    a. Clean substrate
    b. Install filter
    c. Cycle
    d. 2nd heater
    11. Install Wavemaker
    12. Buy pleco at petbarn, test water at petbarn. test at home, ammonia, nitrite, nitrate. 0 0 x
    a. Buy fishnet
    13. Buy panda Corydoras
    a. Quarantine them 2-4 weeks
    b. Consider pygmy Corydoras in the same purchase
    14. Snails, Shrimps & A Betta

    15. Cut new hose lengths and pieces. CALCULATE THOROUGLY
    16. Install tap connectors
    17. Add all filter media
    a. Poly-fiber, cotton, 3x foam
    18. Install in/outlet

    Power Outlets Required:
    Filter
    RGB LED Strip
    LED Strip
    Air Pump
    Heater
    Temperature Controller
    Wavemaker

    It's been a wild ride and I'm only getting started.

    Which corydoras besides the pygmy, are on the smaller side, common enough and never get beyond 3cm or so? I like the look of the albino corydoras in the store immensenly but it's like buying puppies and getting rid of the fullsized dog etc.
    They just get too big for my taste and I'm trying to research suitable cories to get. mostly settled on pandas but could be swayed for similis or hasbrosus if i can find them

    • 2 years ago
      Anonymous

      Get habrosus (salt and pepper) cories. Much more interesting fish than pygmies imo and don't get much bigger

      • 2 years ago
        Anonymous

        holy shit i just found a seller.
        i think this is it.

    • 2 years ago
      Anonymous

      The only other tiny cory species I know of that you didn't mention would be nanus and hastatus, they both seem uncommon though.

    • 2 years ago
      Anonymous

      >small corys
      Habrosus ("salt and pepper"), pygmy, and hastatus are the three most common ones. The latter two are very shy and are mid-column fish, hastatus is theorized to have evolved to mimic and coschool with a specific type of tetra, so habrosus is the best choice for mini cory. They are pretty calm - I had a school down to 3 at one point and they were still out and about - and act like big corys, digging in the sand and hanging out near the bottom, so I highly recommend them. Get to no more than 3cm, and all of my males have stopped growing at about 2-2.5cm.

      Panda are a bit bigger, I'd say 4cm rather than 3, but probably the smallest of the super common corys, and are also one of the most energetic if you keep them in a big enough school.

      If you don't have snails you care much about, look into rosy and Dwarf chain loaches, they fit a similar niche.

      >he doesnt know
      Seachem uses spores that activate on dilution, as to not cause die off during storage.

      Stability says on the bottle you can add fish day one, it has a 4,8/5 rating based on mora than 6000 amazon reviews.

      Shit works.

      Seachem's own research shows no increased speed of cycling. Just because people rate it well doesn't mean it actually does anything - there are so many other ways to unintentionally kickstart your cycle that newbies would never consider that all the Amazon reviews in the world mean nothing. I'm not saying it doesn't actually help start the cycle, just there has been no proof I've ever been able to find or see, only anecdotal evidence on both sides and inconclusive official (seachem) and unofficial experiments.

      If I sold a sterile rubber ball to add when you start an aquarium and promised that it helped, 90% of buyers would say it works, because the process of starting the aquarium inevitably gets the nitrogen cycle, eventually. And roughly half of them would finish cycling quicker than the average cycle time. Doesn't mean the ball had anything to do with it.

  39. 2 years ago
    Anonymous

    Weird question but has anyone here preserved their fish after death? If so, how do you do it?
    I just really, really like wet specimens and as a kid I wanted to have my own museum cabinet. One of my fish just died and I would really like to try it out.

    • 2 years ago
      Anonymous

      Resin is usually the go-to for anything not huge.

      • 2 years ago
        Anonymous

        Don't you need to fix specimens in formalin anyway before putting in resin or otherwise they rot? Feel like you might as well just keep it in formalin at that point

        • 2 years ago
          Anonymous

          They look way, way better in resin even if you were going the extra step and doing actual preserving. Also, they will last way, way longer than any internet commando will be willing to admit. Literally every dude out there will be like, "DON'T DO IT IT'LL DECAYYYY!111!!!" Yet lots of people have done it successfully anyway for a long, long ass time. But yes, someday it should theoretically decay. The tricky part is really just getting excess moisture out (and doing it without making the fish look like an anchovy). Droplets of water are rather bad for resin.

          It's an extremely low risk/low cost experiment.

          • 2 years ago
            Anonymous

            Thanks for the link anon. I ordered formalin online already so I can preserve them for good, formalin won't frick up resin right?

  40. 2 years ago
    Anonymous

    The noodles have yet to come out. I think I have too good of hiding spots for them, because I can't even see them hiding.

    Dropped an algae wafer in close to their hiding spots, hopefully they'll come out for it. They've got to be hungry sometime.

    • 2 years ago
      Anonymous

      In a few months of having them, I've never seen my kuhlis eat, ever. I just drop in a wafer before lights out and in the morning it's gone. If I drop it earlier in the day they just won't eat until it's dark.

    • 2 years ago
      Anonymous

      You need more of them to feel safe. The saying I've heard is you need a plate's worth to see any pastas.

      On another note, I was peacefully watching my livebearer tank a few minutes ago, and it occurs to me that for such a peaceful looking environment, there's a whole lot of rape.

      • 2 years ago
        Anonymous

        In the livebearer's defense it's pretty much just males handing females some cum. Females can pretty much decide wether they want to get pregnant or not.

      • 2 years ago
        Anonymous

        I thought 5 would be enough, but maybe I should go get 5 more.

        • 2 years ago
          Anonymous

          Remember that in the wild, most shoaling fish live in groups of at least a couple dozen, and schooling fish tend to have hundreds to thousands. Shy breeds in particular basically need to see another fish they recognize (dither species can sometimes do it) or they're going to try and hide.

          • 2 years ago
            Anonymous

            Any place you would recommend for getting more as well as shrimp?

            Down the line I wanted pea puffers and while some people have had khulis in with them, I was worried. But maybe having a bigger group will make them less likely to get bullied.

  41. 2 years ago
    Anonymous

    Would not eating be a sign of internal parasites? I have one fish that will either not go after food or ends up spitting out everything.
    A lot of the others in the group seem to bloat after eating even small amounts so I'm thinking I need to treat the whole tank for internal parasites.

  42. 2 years ago
    Anonymous

    Shrimpchads, can I get some help on an ID? Can't tell if it's tangerine tiger or a low grade orange rili neo

    • 2 years ago
      Anonymous

      Second angle, if it helps.

      • 2 years ago
        Anonymous

        https://i.imgur.com/LiRUfGQ.jpg

        Shrimpchads, can I get some help on an ID? Can't tell if it's tangerine tiger or a low grade orange rili neo

        Low grade orange rili

        • 2 years ago
          Anonymous

          Thanks. For future reference, anything specific that tipped you off?

  43. 2 years ago
    Anonymous

    > It's a Betta decided to build the bubble nest in the feeding ring episode

    Of all the places why this one?

    • 2 years ago
      Anonymous

      Calmest, clearest water. Easy structure to adhere to. There's every reason for him to build it there and none (to him) not to.

  44. 2 years ago
    Anonymous

    Dumbass swordtail is still trying to frick my flag fish. Mostly the smaller males.

  45. 2 years ago
    Anonymous

    I can't get over how tiny shrimplets are! This one is probably 2-3 weeks old even, not nearly as small as they come.

    • 2 years ago
      Anonymous

      My shrimp feed my redfin shark. Very few shrimplets make it to adulthood in my tank.

  46. 2 years ago
    Anonymous

    what height do you all have your substrate at?
    enough to keep plants? any other considerations?

  47. 2 years ago
    Anonymous

    Thinking about getting some MTS but I know they breed like rabbits, any tips for keeping their population under control?

  48. 2 years ago
    Anonymous

    how to instantly cycle my tank?

    or at least speed up the process significantly?

    dropped food as ammonia source, dumped bacteria. just wait now?

    • 2 years ago
      Anonymous

      Seachem stability cycles it instantly, you just need to dose every day for the first week

      • 2 years ago
        Anonymous

        >trusting the seachem israelites
        nah. bottled bacteria is pretty much a scam.

        Thinking about getting some MTS but I know they breed like rabbits, any tips for keeping their population under control?

        They don't breed that much compared to bladder/pond/ramshorn snails, just dont feed excessively. If you get too many snails add assassin snails and reduce feeding or feed something that doesn't hit the bottom like a floating food.

      • 2 years ago
        Anonymous

        how to instantly cycle my tank?

        or at least speed up the process significantly?

        dropped food as ammonia source, dumped bacteria. just wait now?

        Be wary of "bottled bacteria". They might help, or they might do nothing, depending on your luck and the one you choose.

        Adding a mature filter, or even just some filtration material, speeds things up significantly, but there's no way to instantly cycle.

        • 2 years ago
          Anonymous

          i'm just waiting on a good airstone, the air hoses and my water to cycle.
          planning on a water change once these things arrive/happen and then onto the new fish

          a tiny 3cm pleco to start. got him an anubias

          • 2 years ago
            Anonymous

            >tiny pleco
            I hope you do know the smallest Plecos grow to 4" and the biggest to over 24". Also give it some sort of real wood, a lot of them need some to chew on in order to not die.

            https://i.imgur.com/g62AWE7.jpg

            [...]
            [...]
            Medaka gang rise up

            I can't for the life of me find any koi/tricolor medaka for sale in the US. I would drop redcap money on them, if I could find them, those in the pic are fricking gorgeous.

            what height do you all have your substrate at?
            enough to keep plants? any other considerations?

            I aim for about 3", but I also have settled on a nutrient rich soil capped by fluorite as my go-to for plants. If I were to do a fully sand bottom tank, I'd stop at 1-2".

            • 2 years ago
              Anonymous

              bristlenose, so yeah, i'm ready for it to grow. i just like knowing that i had them small. if i manage to keep them alive that is.

              is it possible to buy more than one type of fish and quarantine them in the same tank? or is that unreasonable and i should just bite the shipping fee cost everytime

              and the 2-4 week quarantine time.

              what's the protocol on all of this, do i go slow adding the fish or can i rush it once everything is set?

              • 2 years ago
                Anonymous

                I don't quarantine personally. If you're getting fish from a reputable seller, you shouldn't need to. But if you decide to, yes you can quarantine them together - the point is to be able to make sure they don't have any communicable diseases before you introduce them to your main tank.

        • 2 years ago
          Anonymous

          >he doesnt know
          Seachem uses spores that activate on dilution, as to not cause die off during storage.

          Stability says on the bottle you can add fish day one, it has a 4,8/5 rating based on mora than 6000 amazon reviews.

          Shit works.

    • 2 years ago
      Anonymous

      I doubt anything would beat a used filter from a healthy old tank

      • 2 years ago
        Anonymous

        It's what I've always done.
        Grab a spare or get the filter I'll be using with the new tank and let it filter alongside in an existing tank for a month or two beforehand.
        Never understood the "I need to get a new tank NOW and I want to fill it with fish NOW" then go get the tank, filter, substrate, lights etc whatever you don't already have on hand. Too rushed, too impatient, but that's just me and we're all autistic here.

  49. 2 years ago
    Anonymous

    Frick, my betta jumped out of his tank while I was at work.
    Found his dried husk on the floor when I got home...

    • 2 years ago
      Anonymous

      I'm sorry to hear, anon. Sometimes fish do be that way.

  50. 2 years ago
    Anonymous

    has anyone here had any luck with ordering fish online? the nearest pet stores are at least a 3 hour drive. obviously i wouldn't necessarily trust eBay sellers per se, but I'm not sure how shipping fish works, particularly when its cold. do they just get instructed to hold at the post office or something?

    • 2 years ago
      Anonymous

      I can't imagine a couple pieces of wood getting fuzzy again after rescape caused the death when I see some of the shrimp eating it and there's still some specks of fuzz in my 40g. I hope it was just stress.

      If you tell the post office to hold it and your USPS office isn't a turd, they will. Usually sellers offer 2 hr doa refund with pic/video of delivery (read description obviously, sometimes as is) so you gotta watch that tracking.

    • 2 years ago
      Anonymous

      I just received 9 healthy medaka I bought on ebay yesterday. Shrimp last week. They ship with breather bags which work by way of witch magic. Post office leaves the boxes by the door and I get them after work. The door is in the shade and it's been in the 70s so it's fine. I probably won't do this during the winter or hottest part of summer, so I'm stocking up now.

    • 2 years ago
      Anonymous

      Nearly all of my fish (100+) were purchased online. I had a few DOAs, but the combination of convenience and price makes it worth it, for me.

      Aquahuna is great, aquaticarts is pretty good but shipping is brutal, bioacuatica (only place I've found Odessa barbs for good price) and glassgrown (both dot com) are smaller ones I've used to really good results.

  51. 2 years ago
    Anonymous

    Are amano really the best for eating algae? They're kind of boring, I'm not going lie.

    • 2 years ago
      Anonymous

      Visually, I mean.

      • 2 years ago
        Anonymous

        Compared to other shrimp? Several times over. They're not necessarily better than some fish though. But yeah it's unfortunate they're not nearly as nice looking as caridina or neos.

        • 2 years ago
          Anonymous

          Short Nose Algae Shrimp (Caridina Longirostris) shrimp do about as good of a job and look different, if not necessarily any better or worse. They can reproduce in freshwater, too.

          • 2 years ago
            Anonymous

            Nice, didn't even know about these, thanks.

  52. 2 years ago
    Anonymous

    Oдeca barbs are so fricking good looking bros.

    • 2 years ago
      Anonymous

      They really are.

  53. 2 years ago
    Anonymous

    >buy blue velvets a month and a half ago
    >the best looking one dies the next day with no apparent cause
    >buy red cherries a day ago
    >the best looking one just turned up dead with no apparent cause
    Come ON.

    • 2 years ago
      Anonymous

      i killed them, not sorry tbh. learn to appreciate wild type shrimp.

    • 2 years ago
      Anonymous

      Okay, nvm. One guy colored up to look like a fire red. Wish I hadn't seen him because now the witches of fate are eyeballin' him.

  54. 2 years ago
    Anonymous

    Well, I went for shrimp but they didn’t have literally any shrimp in stock. So I came home with some moronic noodle (khuli loaches). I got a mix between dried blood worms and I accidentally grabbed the marine sinking pellets. Not sure the label marine is an issue. Got some bottom feeder tablets on the way and access to algae wafers. Now, that all said, my little noodle dudes are all hiding away. I didn’t expect them to eat anything today, but I also didn’t want to put food in and just leave it because ammonia, etc. Should I or am I correct in thinking they’ll it likely eat today. There is plenty of stuff on the substrate, which I’ve heard they will eat some of…

    Any loach bros got tips?

    • 2 years ago
      Anonymous

      They’ll not likely eat today, I mean*

    • 2 years ago
      Anonymous

      Coolies mostly eat towards night/dusk. I would put one in around the time the lights go off and check tomorrow morning, if it's gone they're eating good. If not you might want to fast them a day for them to get adjusted. Loaches aren't very picky generally so it shouldn't be a problem. Also marine vs freshwater food generally doesn't matter.

      • 2 years ago
        Anonymous

        Is it ok to leave food in for that long?

        You need at least 3 or 4 noodles for you to actually see them. They're super hiders. I put 1 single one in my 30 gallon and have seen it once in 6 months. Might be dead idk.

        I have 5, I probably should’ve said.

        • 2 years ago
          Anonymous

          Yes, overnight for a single pellet would be fine. I use shrimp and snails to never have to worry about removing food though.

          • 2 years ago
            Anonymous

            Oh these pellets are actually rather small, same for the worms. My roommate has algae wafers but he’s no currently around so I can’t open his bag.

            They’re the Omega One Marine Small Sinking Pellets. I didn’t think they were ideal, but the selection at this lfs kind sucked, so that’s why I had some stuff Amazon next day on the way.

            What brand would you recommend? I def intend on getting shrimp to help, I’m just not sure where the level of leftover would cause ammonia spike as I’m pretty new to this and my tank is not incredibly seasoned.

            • 2 years ago
              Anonymous

              I like the xtreme sinking algae wafers. All of my fish go ballistic for them. Shrimp also love them as much or more than 'specialist' shrimp food.

    • 2 years ago
      Anonymous

      You need at least 3 or 4 noodles for you to actually see them. They're super hiders. I put 1 single one in my 30 gallon and have seen it once in 6 months. Might be dead idk.

    • 2 years ago
      Anonymous

      gardenofedershrimp is the best online site to order shrimp from. Ordered 100 shrimp from him in 2 seperate orders. Only a single DOA between them.

      • 2 years ago
        Anonymous

        Shout out to eBay for shrimp, I've had as good luck there as anywhere.

        Oh these pellets are actually rather small, same for the worms. My roommate has algae wafers but he’s no currently around so I can’t open his bag.

        They’re the Omega One Marine Small Sinking Pellets. I didn’t think they were ideal, but the selection at this lfs kind sucked, so that’s why I had some stuff Amazon next day on the way.

        What brand would you recommend? I def intend on getting shrimp to help, I’m just not sure where the level of leftover would cause ammonia spike as I’m pretty new to this and my tank is not incredibly seasoned.

        They should be fine eating marine stuff. Hikari is the go-to recommendation for fish foods - personally I'm a big fan of "ultra fresh" brand, no idea if they sell anywhere but Amazon but I got the small semi-floating pellets, loved them, and now have a bunch of their other stuff. Just avoid flakes for anything that doesn't explicitly need it, you can get fricking tiny (micrometer scale) pellets if you need to feed tiny mouths and uneaten flake fouls the water rather than falling down to the bottom for snails.

  55. 2 years ago
    Anonymous

    >put 4 sinking algae wafers in 4 corners of the tank so my shy new fish have a chance
    >everyone pushes all of them to the center anyways while eating them
    >alpha loach is now guarding all four of them

    • 2 years ago
      Anonymous
  56. 2 years ago
    Anonymous

    All the duckweed in my betta tank recently died off. Does this mean it's time for the quarterly water change?

  57. 2 years ago
    Anonymous

    post your favourite cichlid

    • 2 years ago
      Anonymous
  58. 2 years ago
    Anonymous

    Still trying to get a picture of these guys, they sometimes sit still for a whole half second once they've been fed.
    Did finally manage to get some of the sparkle on camera though, really like that I went with these guys.

  59. 2 years ago
    Anonymous

    What the frick, I had more than 25 Malawa shrimp in my tank, and I haven't seen any in a week. No corpses, no evidence of problems, other shrimp species all out doing shrimp stuff, no bodies from other shrimp either, but I haven't seen a single Malawa since last Monday.

    I'm hoping they show back up but mostly I'm just confused because they were doing great and breeding, and didn't even apparently crash, just disappeared.

  60. 2 years ago
    Anonymous

    my betta yeeted himself onto the carpet sometime last night :/
    I now have an open cycled 10 gal
    ideas on what to put in it?

    • 2 years ago
      Anonymous

      Medaka. Or pea puffers. Or shrimp. Or take the killifish pill.

      • 2 years ago
        Anonymous

        Not that anon but I'm interested in Kilis. Give me the quick rundown.

        • 2 years ago
          Anonymous

          They're easy to keep but can be hard to find, some of them need the eggs to be pulled out and dry before they can hatch, and most of them don't live long because in the wild their habitats literally dry up every year, and then when rain refills it the eggs hatch and the next generation repeats.

          • 2 years ago
            Anonymous

            That's pretty neat.

      • 2 years ago
        Anonymous

        https://i.imgur.com/0wJ9acn.jpg

        Still trying to get a picture of these guys, they sometimes sit still for a whole half second once they've been fed.
        Did finally manage to get some of the sparkle on camera though, really like that I went with these guys.

        I just received 9 healthy medaka I bought on ebay yesterday. Shrimp last week. They ship with breather bags which work by way of witch magic. Post office leaves the boxes by the door and I get them after work. The door is in the shade and it's been in the 70s so it's fine. I probably won't do this during the winter or hottest part of summer, so I'm stocking up now.

        Medaka gang rise up

  61. 2 years ago
    Anonymous

    One of my female guppies actually got better from whatever it is that makes them do shimmying. She started Friday, I did a water change to no immediate effect and assumed she'd die over the weekend, but now her fins aren't clamped and she's swimming normally.

    Feels good to get a win instead of another notch on the hood. Goddamn do fancy guppies suck at being alive.

  62. 2 years ago
    Anonymous

    Plop or drop or drip?

  63. 2 years ago
    Anonymous

    My garras have white spots on the face and the face only
    What the frick does that mean?

    • 2 years ago
      Anonymous

      Big or small white spots? Are they raised? How long have they been there? Panda garra or something else?

      Could be anything from ich to a tumor to scraped scales.

      • 2 years ago
        Anonymous

        They resemble ampullae and have a clear pattern, actually i think it's nothing to worry about, just what pic rel is
        Sorry for the alarmism

  64. 2 years ago
    Anonymous

    anyone else photography guys in here? I have a 1:1 macro lens I bought for taking pics of bugs and it makes some kinda neat aquarium photos. Hard to get the light right tho.

    • 2 years ago
      Anonymous

      I know absolutely nothing about photography but I'd love the ability to take better pictures than what my shitty phone camera can do. Any advice?

      • 2 years ago
        Anonymous

        Whitebalance is a big thing. Normally your phone has a „pro“ mode when taking pics, play around with the settings a bit

  65. 2 years ago
    Anonymous
    • 2 years ago
      Anonymous

      How slow do you need to be devoured by a regular snail.

      • 2 years ago
        Anonymous

        He was just having his belly rubbed and got too ticklish 🙂

  66. 2 years ago
    Anonymous

    Welp, I'm an idiot.
    I bought the tank and will uplift it when I make some friends who can assist with the relocation.

    • 2 years ago
      Anonymous

      Wait, you didn't pay and leave the tank with the seller did you? Possession may not be 9/10ths of the law, but some people will treat it like it is.
      How big? I manlet-handled a 55 gallon myself with a hand dolly and some duct tape.

      • 2 years ago
        Anonymous

        Damn, got a like 12 hydra in a high flow corner the 40 gallon. They won't hurt any shrimplets where they are now, but Fricked up and put some crushed flake food into flow because I thought saw a shrimplet, even though that's why a hydra showed up before.
        Will Cory cats eat hydras? I might add them early; I was only waiting for the sake of shrimplets anyway.
        Should I just cut way back on food? Sinking pellet only? Buy (fug) no planaria?
        Hitting them directly with metricide 28 seems to frick them up as well, maybe since they're the green variety, so I'll get on that at lights on.

      • 2 years ago
        Anonymous

        It was listed on the local rag, he took it down and was going to pay on wed arvo as he agreed to 2.7 cash.
        Just got a text this morning saying someone offered him 4k and he's taking that offer, so back to square 1 I guess. Bit of a dick move but hey.
        There's a local tank builder that can do an almost identical tank (low iron, not starphire or w/e) for about 1.5k so I'll get to building a stand for it and tank it in due time.

      • 2 years ago
        Anonymous

        Oh
        >how big
        460lbsnot including stand, waterbox reef pro 180.5.

  67. 2 years ago
    Anonymous

    I think it's finally time, boys. I am going to grab some shrimp tomorrow by happen stance, so it's time for a water change and then retesting to be sure.

    • 2 years ago
      Anonymous

      Nice, keep us updated.
      What shrimp are you getting?

      • 2 years ago
        Anonymous

        Will do, I haven’t decided entirely. Will kind of depend on what they have, but since I want them to eat my hair algae amano might be the ideal. Blue dreams are so pretty, though.

  68. 2 years ago
    Anonymous

    4 shubunkins in a 20 long, how long will that last them? biggest one is like 5'' with tail. Considering bringing them inside, they have a 100gal tub that ends up being an algae factory where i never see them because i cant control the sunlight on it. Kinda want to switch that tub over to medaka or something next summer.

    Eventually I'll have a 55 or something downstairs but i need a bunch of money first. Might take a couple of years. If I let them winter outside this year it should keep their growth down I think. One day in the far distant future I kind of want to build a pond out there but that's a lot more money. They all increased at least 20% in size over the summer despite me forgetting about them for months at a time.

  69. 2 years ago
    Anonymous

    >Alien betta’s tail still looks a little rough despite weeks of treatment and water changes
    >Every other fin completely healed
    I hate chronic fin rot so fricking much

    • 2 years ago
      Anonymous

      Got any pictures?
      If it doesn't heal it's probably either caused by the water quality/parameters or stress.

      I had problems with pH fluctuations and it gave my fish small holes in the fins, it cleared up once I got the pH under control.

      • 2 years ago
        Anonymous

        https://i.imgur.com/uxGIUki.jpg

        Try feeding him different foods. I have like 3-4 neon tetras that won't heal up from the 25 of 28 that came with ripped rotten fins 2 months on, and they're the pickiest eaters.
        Is it milky or fuzzy? Let me know what works for you either way.

        Blather:
        It looks like standard fin rot that occasionally flares to columnaris for a day or two maybe with stress. Frigging neon immune systems. Antiobiots (maracyn 1, gram positive though) didn't seem to help enough. They're much more peaceful amongst each other now, but I'm just not willing to drop another $10 of medicine on $6 of butthole tetras.
        I want to try melafix for the price, but I'm scared, and I've heard resistance is widespread after it was initially so effective for so cheap everyone used it. butthole tetras might have to be guinea pigs for a couple drops of pure tea tree oil. You can watch it heal impetigo sores in real time. Also, may crush up some of the doxycyclines I have for my beautiful high test back and mix with food.

        Here’s how he looks now. His tail fin was roughly 98% filled in a few days ago, but it started getting raggedy again almost as soon as I stopped dosing Sulfaplex. I’ve been doing daily water changes to expedite the healing, but relapsing as soon as I cut the meds is annoying. Even a Petsmart betta I have has had a more linear healing process.
        I currently feed him Tropical Soft Line (Polish brand) pellets, but I’ll try a probiotic formula to see if that helps.
        I also ran into this video that says that alien bettas are actually more prone to disease than true wild types and on par with most fancy domestics.

        If this treatment keeps going around in circles, I might consider giving him away or trading for a different fish.

        • 2 years ago
          Anonymous

          Also, this back-and-forth has been going on since May, and I got him in February. I tried several other treatments before it looked as though Sulfaplex was finally making a difference. He’s spent more time in this temporary hospital container than his actual home tank, and it’s really starting to get at me.

          • 2 years ago
            Anonymous

            I got that New Life Spectrum food today to start feeding him, and hopefully that’ll clear up the fin rot for good. That video on alien bettas still has me uneasy.

    • 2 years ago
      Anonymous

      Try feeding him different foods. I have like 3-4 neon tetras that won't heal up from the 25 of 28 that came with ripped rotten fins 2 months on, and they're the pickiest eaters.
      Is it milky or fuzzy? Let me know what works for you either way.

      Blather:
      It looks like standard fin rot that occasionally flares to columnaris for a day or two maybe with stress. Frigging neon immune systems. Antiobiots (maracyn 1, gram positive though) didn't seem to help enough. They're much more peaceful amongst each other now, but I'm just not willing to drop another $10 of medicine on $6 of butthole tetras.
      I want to try melafix for the price, but I'm scared, and I've heard resistance is widespread after it was initially so effective for so cheap everyone used it. butthole tetras might have to be guinea pigs for a couple drops of pure tea tree oil. You can watch it heal impetigo sores in real time. Also, may crush up some of the doxycyclines I have for my beautiful high test back and mix with food.

  70. 2 years ago
    Anonymous

    Everyone is fricking happy, parameters are stables, tank remains clean, there is no aggression whatsoever.

    Shit looks empty, should I add anything else or I would ruin the balance?

    • 2 years ago
      Anonymous

      First of all, don't add shrimp or snails (except rabbit snails, maybe) to your Aqadvisor, they're hilariously over weighted by the Calc.

      Secondly, get like 6-10 more of those corys asap. You'll enjoy them more and they'll be much happier and more active and confident.

      Lastly, after that you probably still have space to double the tetras or add as many as a dozen similar sized fish - zebra danios or white clouds are always fun.

    • 2 years ago
      Anonymous

      dude that's way understocked, aqadvisor is extremely conservative, which I respect in some senses but it leads to morons who dont understand that touting these numbers for a tool designed for novices as religion.

      I find 150% on aqadvisor to be the magic number in a well planted tank where the nitrates from stock start to balance out. I shoot for stocking levels where I consistently have 20-50ish ppm nitrate which ensures the plants dont need me to baby them with fertilizer, while i also never have to water change only top off. Fish poopoo and peepee are free. Neons should kind of be on the lower end of that though.

  71. 2 years ago
    Anonymous

    I just spent the last hour picking out every last duckweed from my very inconveniently designed tank

    Fricker who sold me the Java moss knew i was a noob and didn’t quarantine for this shit

    Better to learn this way than with the life of a fish i guess

    • 2 years ago
      Anonymous

      >free duckweed
      Did you message the seller and thank him him for the freebie?
      I myself have only two kinds of duckweed, which I believe to be lemna minor and lemna valdiviana, but I'm hoping one day to expand my collection to include some of the more exotic species like lemna triscula.

      • 2 years ago
        Anonymous

        >lemna minor and lemna valdiviana

        Thank you. I knew I had the former but I was losing my mind trying to figure out if some were just big mutants. I think I actually have 3 species.

        >forgot to wash stem plants from 55 before putting them in the 29

        Lol frick. It was probably like two but it will be 30 by now, and 200 by the time I feel like doing it. If you stay on top of it it's easy. Just poke it lightly with really dry finger tip if you get one in there.

  72. 2 years ago
    Anonymous

    DIY Overflow box/sump question:

    Does glass thickness matter for the overflow box and sump dividing walls? Until an overflow box starts overflowing, it's basically like the front of an aquarium, subject to the same forces as the tank. There's tons written about how to select your glass thickness when it comes to building an actual tank, but for dividing walls/overflows it's never mentioned. Having an overflow dividing wall fail seems like a spectacularly bad event.

    • 2 years ago
      Anonymous

      This would only matter if it were a full height, weir-type, i.e. something that goes all the way down. See pic. The typical overflow that is only around 6" high is going to be subjected only to water pressure of a depth of 6". Full height weirs are not as popular as overflow boxes as they do take up display space and have some maintenance concerns but I like them. They completely destroy any overflow box on flow.

      But yeah, it's probably a topic that doesn't get enough thought. The saving grace is that the weirs are generally made of polycarbonate and are generally shaped a cylindrical arch, meaning they're pretty strong and able to flex more than glass without risking structural integrity. I DIY a lot of this stuff and I tend to go thicker as well.

      • 2 years ago
        Anonymous

        >some maintenance concerns

        What are those concerns? I was indeed looking to make a weir-type overflow, that goes all the way down.

        Specifically (if anyone cares), I want to DIY a corner aquarium with an offset front window, and put a weir overflow with a durston drain in the back corner, mostly obscured by an artificial background. It's a way to smooth out the sharp corner (but indeed, it will take up some space inside).

        You gave me an idea to maybe just put an overflow box at the top, and obscure it behind an overhanging fake background... which would create some nice caves/hideouts for animals.

        • 2 years ago
          Anonymous

          [...]
          And thanks for the explanation by the way! It cleared it up for me, and like I said, gave me a new idea.

          Mostly just that in any kind of overflow, stuff going to where it shouldn't is something that will always happen. In an overflow box like pic related, it's super easy to clean out really well because you can reach every crevice. In a full weir, it's a pain in the ass to clear up anything down there. I've found this mostly concerns saltwater though. For instance I've had some rather expensive and delicate sea lettuce slugs who can squeeze into the smallest spaces get stuck at the bottom and didn't seem to want to get sucked all the way to the filter sock for me to pick out. Leaving them there is certain death as they would have no food and not nearly enough light for photosynthesis. I've also seen some horror shows of aiptasia growing in there since they can seemingly grow anywhere with even a tiny amount of light. Imagine you have a standard 4' x 2' x 2' ~120G tank, that's some long ass tongs to try to reach the bottom. I remember I accidentally dropped a kind of spacer ring for some other equipment down there, and it was just too much a pain in the ass and I ended up leaving it for like two years lol (it was silicone so I was unconcerned). It somehow did not want to get washed out (I'm guessing since at the time both the ring and the weir were new and shiny, the surfaces were so unblemished they created a cold seal strong enough to stick just a little bit).

          Your plan though looks quite good though, so I personally wouldn't shy away from a full height weir.

      • 2 years ago
        Anonymous

        https://i.imgur.com/6b9H9HN.png

        >some maintenance concerns

        What are those concerns? I was indeed looking to make a weir-type overflow, that goes all the way down.

        Specifically (if anyone cares), I want to DIY a corner aquarium with an offset front window, and put a weir overflow with a durston drain in the back corner, mostly obscured by an artificial background. It's a way to smooth out the sharp corner (but indeed, it will take up some space inside).

        You gave me an idea to maybe just put an overflow box at the top, and obscure it behind an overhanging fake background... which would create some nice caves/hideouts for animals.

        And thanks for the explanation by the way! It cleared it up for me, and like I said, gave me a new idea.

  73. 2 years ago
    Anonymous

    Guy trying to catch crayfish in Japan from the other thread. Just put my trap in the water today. Forgot to take a photo before doing that. I went out with friends and had little time before it got dark. Also the spot I planned to put my trap was drained and became too shallow to put it. I scoured the area and found a place deep enough for it where the tiny stream meets a small river. Hopefully there are lots of crayfish on the river who will get in the trap and there aren’t any other animal that will frick up the trap. The main bait was left over chicken bones and a chicken wing I rubbed chilli powder. The secondary bait to season it was a mix of onion, garlic, an old tomato that was in the fridge and agar to make it into a block. The bumpy ride to the location broke down the agar block and it just fell out of the traps. I will put it on paper bags next time and let the crayfish use their claws to tear the bags and reach the bait. I really hope that The weather forecast is correct and we won’t have any heavy rain because this could means turn the slow current into a strong one breaking the line and taking my trap down the river.

    • 2 years ago
      Anonymous

      Are there crayfish that actually have that coloration in your area? Because that would be awesome.

      • 2 years ago
        Anonymous

        No, the one in the photo is this one https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cherax_pulcher

        I would love to have those in an aquarium but still doesn't know where to find them for sale.

        The ones I saw where the American crayfish, an invasive species.

    • 2 years ago
      Anonymous

      No, the one in the photo is this one https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cherax_pulcher

      I would love to have those in an aquarium but still doesn't know where to find them for sale.

      The ones I saw where the American crayfish, an invasive species.

      Just checked the trap and it was a failure. Still don’t know if the trap works or not, the spot I hastily put my trap didn’t seem to have a strong current but debris accumulated on it and dragged it until it was half out of water and with the bait out of water no crayfish got inside. At least no fox/tanuki didn’t destroy the trap to get the bait. Now with daylight I could find a better spot (I think) so I put the trap with the now soggy bait and I hope I can get something out of it later. On the bright side I found some tiny crabs living here. We are too far away from the ocean so it probably reproduces entirely on fresh water. This means that I might be able to breed them in an aquarium. There was also some small colorful fish. With it and it seemed like a peaceful species.

      • 2 years ago
        Anonymous

        Btw this was 1 meter away from the street.

      • 2 years ago
        Anonymous

        https://i.imgur.com/eTchhyn.jpg

        Btw this was 1 meter away from the street.

        Ok, this is the trap, it stayed in a place with lots of light during day so not the ideal. Hopefully this spot will be available next weekend so I can leave the trap overnight. Weather forecast is for rain and it might change the water flow. If the flow is too strong I might get the debris issue again.

        • 2 years ago
          Anonymous

          Got 3 crayfish, two small fished and a small crab. Released them all except the crayfish. 3 crayfishes are not enough for a meal but I want to try them anyway since I never had them before. Also there is the experiment about giving garlic/onion/chilli pepper and see if they get seasoned by it from inside.

  74. 2 years ago
    Anonymous

    Lowest dwelling micro rasbora?

    • 2 years ago
      Anonymous

      Least (aka exclamation point) Rasbora - Boraras urophthalmoides. They hang out mostly in the lower middle or right above the substrate.

      • 2 years ago
        Anonymous

        Neat, thank you very much!
        Would you be able to give a top to bottom of where the different nano rasboras tend to hang out, if you are familiar with them?

        • 2 years ago
          Anonymous

          I don't claim to be an expert, but they're mostly very similar. The reason Least (and I think Pygmy) are on the bottom more than others is their natural habitat is very dark, so any aquarium lights will drive them further down.

          The rest of the micros I've kept or researched tend to be like a swarm of livebearers, they mostly hang out in "the middle" in a fairly tight group, which really means they go all over but don't hang out right at the top or on the substrate.

          If you haven't kept them before, just make sure you have fairly soft water to start (they can adjust slowly to harder but are sensitive because they're so tiny), and I'd recommend kubotai, Phoenix (who stay a bit more toward the top) or chilis. Just get at least 12 and ideally 20+ of any of those, as they're fricking tiny fish and a little shy. If I were to start a new tank for them, I'd put 24 phoenix rasboras with 10 habrosus corys in a 10 or 15 gallon tank. Add a ton of leaf litter and wooden hardscape, then cover the ground and wood with as many plants as you can fit - for cover not nitrate absorption - plus your floater of choice, and baby you've got a stew going.

  75. 2 years ago
    Anonymous

    I hope that plastic has been run through a deprofabulator and left out to rest for a minimum of 40 hours in the waxing moonlight before applying them to the interconnects like that.

    >Tfw treating the acoustics of a whole room with Mikro pooblz®©
    Amazing, who even bother buying high end gear when I can just throw these on on my mobile phone and fill the room with the fidelity and clarity my ears deserve?

    • 2 years ago
      Anonymous

      Is there anything wrong with my dwarf gourami swimming at night?
      It's an even more leisurely pace of his usual stroll across the top to the right, down the spray bar flow, weave through the plants back to the top left, paddle around a bit, repeat.
      Sometimes he's oblivious while doing it, like he's sleep swimming.

    • 2 years ago
      Anonymous

      Is there anything wrong with my dwarf gourami swimming at night?
      It's an even more leisurely pace of his usual stroll across the top to the right, down the spray bar flow, weave through the plants back to the top left, paddle around a bit, repeat.
      Sometimes he's oblivious while doing it, like he's sleep swimming.

      Oops, here's another (you) on me. Keep the change, ya filthy animal.

  76. 2 years ago
    Anonymous

    Been a few years, finally setting up a betta tank again.
    What do you feed your bettas?
    I've always given mine sinking pellets like this
    <===

    Is there anything better I could be using?

    • 2 years ago
      Anonymous

      Floating worms

      I have a betta in a 3 gallon alone

  77. 2 years ago
    Anonymous

    I have access to (legal?) vast volumes of ironsand (chiefly titanomagnetite), and would like to know if anyone has heard anywhere about using it in a saltwater setup. I just really like the contrast it provides. Like a barebottom, but also functional. I asked a local reef store if they've ever heard of using it and said there had been discussions over it but apparently that started and ended with silica content.
    2 anecdotal stories about random coral deaths and not having that issue again after removing it, but I feel that could have been coincidental with any number of things.

    Go to a reef forum and ask about it? Been using it in 3 freshwater tanks for a combined 4 years and nothing out of the ordinary, my tanks don;t even know what diatoms are.

    • 2 years ago
      Anonymous

      Well, practically any sand has a lot of silicates. Not sure if titanomagnetite would have more but I kind of doubt that would be something you couldn't work around (dose shit tons of copepods early on, for instance). I would have some concern about the actual iron (and to a lesser extent Ti). There are lots of anecdotal accounts of people having issues with a reef tank then finding a screw fell in the tank and rusted over, causing Fe to spike to actual readable levels. However that too may be coincidental.

      https://reefs.com/magazine/chemistry-and-the-aquarium-iron-in-a-reef-tank/
      Article by Randy Holmes-Farley. For those unfamiliar, he is a reefing god. Much of what we know today that is not broscience is due to him. In this article, he goes into dosing Fe and actually does a super dose to see if will negatively affect the tank; it didn't. But he admits he doesn't keep everything so he can't account for everything.

      • 2 years ago
        Anonymous

        Cheers for the link.
        Mandarin dragonets are to blame for my desire to run a saltwater tank, so a copepod population demolishing diatoms would be an ideal, intentional and best-case scenario, even if silicates are to blame for a breakout of photosynthetic organisms. From what I understand, that particular assay of ironsand shouldn't be an issue on account of it being blown out of a volcano and gradually worn down to tiny sand particles after traveling 400-500km up the west coast.

        I'll give

        • 2 years ago
          Anonymous

          I'll just give, apparently.

  78. 2 years ago
    Anonymous

    hows this look so far for a 75 gallon I inherited? planning on setting it up in my back room and already found some neat driftwood online.built a light rack above it so it gets ~4-6 watts per gallon, plus c02 injection. idea is to plant it real heavy. Honey Gourami seem to be the only "flat" fish that are peaceful enough to school and still be colorful. now I just need mid-level swimmers. I know aqadvisior is pretty conservative with the stocking calc, but im not sure how conservative.

    • 2 years ago
      Anonymous

      I'm probably the last guy you should ask, but I'd guess you could double that and get away with the standard 25% a week in 75g. Maybe up to 33%.

      • 2 years ago
        Anonymous

        https://i.imgur.com/uqwQ5iX.png

        It's incredibly conservative. See pic attached, doesn't even include the tons of snails or the stiphodon gobies. I do a 40% pwc every week or two and with the latest plants that isn't even to control nitrates, just for EI dosing ferts and adding new minerals.

        Dope. Was thinking what I had seemed a bit sparse for pic related. Bought some big bits of wood from Houston Manzanita. Hopefully it's a bit better about describing shit that eBay driftwood. Now I just need to find an auto on/off for the lights that actually DIMS them off instead of just instant-cutting the power. Closest I've found is pic related but frick paying ~70$ for what is essentially a timed dimmer switch.

        • 2 years ago
          Anonymous

          Frick, forgot link

          https://www.dimmersystem.com/en/p/automatic-dimmer-time-switch-timer

          Would need two, one for "sunrise/sunset" and one for a moonlight

    • 2 years ago
      Anonymous

      It's incredibly conservative. See pic attached, doesn't even include the tons of snails or the stiphodon gobies. I do a 40% pwc every week or two and with the latest plants that isn't even to control nitrates, just for EI dosing ferts and adding new minerals.

  79. 2 years ago
    Anonymous

    how high is all your substrate?

    2''? 3'"?

  80. 2 years ago
    Anonymous

    i've straight up bought too many ornaments

    tiny ass 30 gallon

  81. 2 years ago
    Anonymous

    Frick, that was way too much new life pellet. I ain't vacuuming today so guess its time for the hold outs to get used to it.
    The fish that do eat it heal faster and have better temperment anyway.

  82. 2 years ago
    Anonymous

    My sparkling gouramis have acquired a taste only for white worms, it seems. Frozen bloodworms, artemia and copepods seem to be left for later but ultimately ignored until I next feed them worms.
    I feed the culture with oats, wholegrain bread ends, greek yoghurt, yeast and the remnants of any cereal. They're a bit high in protein but other than that I don't think there would be much of a problem only feeding them white worms, would there?

  83. 2 years ago
    Anonymous

    >Sleeby pills ran out on Friday
    >Painkillers and antidepressants ran out last night, fell asleep around 5am and it's 8.30am now

    If nobody else snags that Waterbox 180.5 by Monday evening, it's fricking mine, boiz, before I get re-medicated and back out.

  84. 2 years ago
    Anonymous

    How finnicky are tetras? Can I do fish in cycles?

    • 2 years ago
      Anonymous

      depends on the tetra
      yes but it's still generally wiser not to unless you have to.

    • 2 years ago
      Anonymous

      Are you competent enough in doing such a thing that you can avoid permanent gill damage with a fish-in cycle?

  85. 2 years ago
    Anonymous

    One of my angels got cucked pretty bad this week. Him and the biggest angel that I thought was a male were looking like they were about to pair at the start of the week, then my smaller male beat him up and paired off with her.

    Poor dude got his mouth hurt and has been having trouble eating for the past couple days. I've had to sneak him some bloodworms since he can't chew the pellets well.

  86. 2 years ago
    Anonymous

    didn't clean my substrate super thoroughly. 5 washes instead of 8-10, not that it suggested it but i feel like that would be the sweet spot

    the water isn't clear but it's not murky. it's cloudy, will it subside or get filtered?

    or am i going to have to clean the substrate from the tank, because that's going to be a terrifying b***h

    • 2 years ago
      Anonymous

      Just roll with it, I'd say. You washed better than I do, and I use blasting slag.
      I'd say that caused my diatoms, but it's more likely my well water.
      I was actually going to b***h about people destroying all the huge silicate quartz boulders around here. Then I thought about a 125 gallon tank with hard scape made entirely of perfect white quartz. Most big pieces have imperfections, but if you cracked that boulder right you could get like 9...

    • 2 years ago
      Anonymous

      If you have mechanical filtration, it should have 90% of it picked out over the next 2 water changes and a filter clean if not all.

  87. 2 years ago
    Anonymous

    My brine shrimp hatchery fricking broke and leaked half of its contents on the floor. Should I take the aquarium coop pill and buy their ready made hatchery?

    • 2 years ago
      Anonymous

      im a noob but hardcore at heart and they seem like they think through their products.

      you probably wont be disappointed

  88. 2 years ago
    Anonymous

    Can I get a moon/10 rating.
    Over 9000 hours in scrap resin.

    • 2 years ago
      Anonymous

      Looks dope

  89. 2 years ago
    Anonymous

    apparently they just made glo cories

  90. 2 years ago
    Anonymous

    Correct son. Don't make the same mistakes everyone like myself has made and bought new. Someone somewhere is always upgrading. I started with the Fluval and later the Waterbox new and I regret it. Should've just got a nice second hand tank like the Waterbox 64 I saw the other day for $600USD with two AI Primes. Frick me anon.

  91. 2 years ago
    Anonymous

    >three wired probes read higher than heater by 3 degrees F
    >one fork thermometer and mercury thermometer are within an acceptable .5 degrees F

    Spooky. The one probe was working fine before. I figured it got crimped by the heavy lid. Maybe I should get retested for radon.

    • 2 years ago
      Anonymous

      >Get REtested for Radon
      Is that a normal thing?

      • 2 years ago
        Anonymous

        Idk, I guess I'm talking out of my ass. I'm on huge shale deposit hills so I'm sure it shifts, which could expose new uranium or whatever.
        S'all good tho. It was my sound system, pretty sure. Heater is horizontal at bottom so it dits .5-1F cooler than most of the tank, so pic is fine. It was reading 82F before.

        Amateurtip: play music at a whisper and slowly increas to loud over a few days with new fish and they don't give a frick about loud music, even when sleeping.

        • 2 years ago
          Anonymous

          I've found the same, though I must be getting old because I might crank it up to 1/2 once in a blue moon.
          Haven't noticed any change in behavior between my quiet and my loud, so I hope they don't mind it lol. Never turned on my sub, though, I'd feel guilty.

          • 2 years ago
            Anonymous

            Sorry, guess I took this picture in the middle of summer or something. Southern hemisphere ftw!
            Do people still use ftw?

            Hahaha.

            Then what?

            Thats gonna be a shit ton of rock, sand, Lighting. Do it bro. I've spent 1.5k in coral alone filling up my shitty beginner Fluval 13.5.

            DO IT.

            I ASKED MY MUM FOR MONEY BUT SHE SAID NO.
            I'll scrape together what I can, shitball the owner and see if it sticks. Then I can wait a year before I have all the equipment to run it.

            • 2 years ago
              Anonymous

              I mean. Waterbox Aquariums are very nice. I got a 15 Peninsula. Corals are closed for the night right now. Still dealing with the ugle phase on this b***h.

              • 2 years ago
                Anonymous

                There are a few listings for dismantled Aqua one 400 S2's (Brand new is almost 3k), Neptune 600 but comes with fish and no corals etc.
                I'd rather build from the ground up and have been watching too much BRStv where they mention upgrade factor one billion times so I just want to go poor once with one tank and nip it in the bud.
                >Reefapalooza
                Goddamn Americans getting huge coral meets.
                It's very pretty, anon.

              • 2 years ago
                Anonymous

                Sellers bottom dollar is 2.7, bank of mum can lend out 1.2 @ 0% interest. Delicious tendies.

  92. 2 years ago
    Anonymous

    Help me.
    I made a mistake, I saw a waterbox 180.5 pro on the local rag and I can almost buy it outright. Comes with tank, stand and original sump/plumbing but no accessories at all. Stahp.

    • 2 years ago
      Anonymous

      Hahaha.

      Then what?

      Thats gonna be a shit ton of rock, sand, Lighting. Do it bro. I've spent 1.5k in coral alone filling up my shitty beginner Fluval 13.5.

      DO IT.

      • 2 years ago
        Anonymous

        Don't do it, man, it's not wo- RUIN YOUR FRICKING LIFE SO I CAN OWN YOUR TANK VICARIOUSLY I WANT TO DO IT SO BAD!!!

        • 2 years ago
          Anonymous

          Can't send video. Too big. it's not even full of coral yet. 3 months in so far. So much money, worth every penny.

          • 2 years ago
            Anonymous

            >3 months
            Damn homie how loaded are you?
            https://easternmarineaquariums.co.nz/collections/coral

            • 2 years ago
              Anonymous

              I mean. Enough to buy this shit. That Torch in the middle I just picked up at Reef a Polooza was $250.

          • 2 years ago
            Anonymous

            Am I tripping or is that a massive overhang?

            • 2 years ago
              Anonymous

              Just a Aquafarm G5 95w LED. Still slowing ramping up power. Doesn't POP the corals colors like I want though.

  93. 2 years ago
    Anonymous

    It's happening, boys! This is definitely lighter than yesterday. Maybe soon I can add something to eat some of this algae and do a water change without being afraid of ruining the cycle which I feel like might also help with the hair menace.

    • 2 years ago
      Anonymous

      Continue to pursue that which you have been following so very well - patience.

      • 2 years ago
        Anonymous

        For sure, I'm just watching my plants losing the battle against the algae slowly and hoping to be able to do something more like give some amanos a feast soon.

        I wont rush it, but the algae fight is so annoying. Looking over and seeing these bold ass hairs streaming into my focal points.

        I did trim and replant some stuff that was getting rather long to try to give more oomph for the battle.

        • 2 years ago
          Anonymous

          Fair enough, nutrient export is wise with algae going uncontested.

  94. 2 years ago
    Anonymous

    What are some good predator salt water fish for a 200 gallon tank? I’m wanting a centerpiece fish
    So far my ideas are
    >red emperor snapper
    >sohal tang (not a predator I know)
    >bumblebee grouper (gets waay too big)

  95. 2 years ago
    Anonymous

    WHERE IS minimum size.webm POSTER

    • 2 years ago
      Anonymous

      >stop using ozone generator in basement for fish and shrimp sake
      >starting to smell a little fish store-esque
      >turns out some people pay hundreds for aquarium ozone injection
      Huh. Probably like audiophiles with elephant dick cables, but good to know.

      He's slipping.

      • 2 years ago
        Anonymous

        I'd argue that there is a difference between smelling and not smelling a fish tank, versus stupid frickwad limpdicks buying dumbass cables like these. Don't even get me goddamn started. Spend $20k on snake oil bullshit but listen to their music in an echo chamber because they have put 0 effort or money into treating their room acoustically.

        • 2 years ago
          Anonymous

          To the credit of that image, there does appear to be a baffling panel on the wall and a bass trap in the corner. Probably because they chose hardwood flooring.

        • 2 years ago
          Anonymous

          I meant insofar as the people that inject ozone into the aquarium for fish health or whatever. There might be proof it works, though. Idk. General consensus on ozone in humans seems to be "we don't know, don't huff it or hide in a bunker. Maybe a little is good."

          • 2 years ago
            Anonymous

            Oh right right, gotcha.
            Personally, I'd avoid it just over the fact that it is a rather powerful oxidizer.

        • 2 years ago
          Anonymous

          All that when they could just use some frickin' rocks to adjust the frequencies or whatever the hell these were supposed to do...

      • 2 years ago
        Anonymous

        What temp is better for cherries? ~68-73 without heater, or ~72-78 with?
        Can't adjust it unfortunately. 50w preset to "78" actually just applies a certain amount of power in intervals that raises temp about 4.5 degrees (raises less the lower the temp, obv). Not complaining for $7.

        • 2 years ago
          Anonymous

          I think I'm gonna go for the heater. Seems slightly more stable and faster breeding should offset the larger ratio of males born and hopefully doesn't increase disease.
          I'd consider 73.5 ideal.

          • 2 years ago
            Anonymous

            Trial and error, anon. Heck, why not both eh EH EH?

            • 2 years ago
              Anonymous

              No, spoonfeed me anon.

              Definitely gonna use the heater, though I'm think lower might be better for shrimp. Didn't think about the plants, which will probably get b***hy under 72.

              • 2 years ago
                Anonymous

                I would be able to help, if our country didn't have a ban on importing freshwater shrimp.
                I've usually seen most people fretting around the 68-72 range, but no idea how many different types vary on that figure.

              • 2 years ago
                Anonymous

                Fix yer fricking leaves or lose em, lotus.

                Is there any issue with plugging a 50w preset heater into a timer? Considering just running it at night. Between lamp during the day and heat off/down at night that should make things as stable as I'll get em for now.

                That sucks. Where you at?

              • 2 years ago
                Anonymous

                I thought these guys were just a really cool color form, the ones that were kinda fluorescent or seemed to "glow" even under the regular light.
                Now I'm pretty sure they're guys that skipped a molt or got a super thick exoskeleton from too much calcium to metabolism (food/temp). This is the last one left of the 4 like that, including filter fricked tard boy.

              • 2 years ago
                Anonymous

                New Zealand.
                >Coral banded shrimp in NZ - $140-180
                >In the US - as low as $20

              • 2 years ago
                Anonymous

                How? Isn‘t nz right next to aussieland? Don‘t they have a frickton of coral reeflife?

              • 2 years ago
                Anonymous

                It's like 1200 miles of ocean between the two, and NZ has incredibly strict import laws due to being an island nation with a unique ecology.

        • 2 years ago
          Anonymous

          Cherries really don't care, just don't let the temp shift too fast. And by they don't care, I mean 65-85 should show no difference in health, just slower growth and reproduction (and longer lives as a result) at the low end.

          Plants really depend on the plant, some thrive in the high 60s and some need 75+ to show much growth. Any of the "easy" plants that get recommended all the time will survive and grow anywhere in that range, just faster at the high end - you may be seeing a pattern here.

          • 2 years ago
            Anonymous

            Yeah, I'm overthinking it. From what I've read, it sounds like a hotter (pre)colony is faster and a (cooler (pre)colony is more stable, for a multitude of reasons.
            I'm gonna put the heater in because what's worked in the 40 is let the plants do "water changes" for me most of the time.
            Although, is there any reason I can't plug a 50w preset heater into a timer? I feel like it'd be unsafe with a larger, less "dumb" heater, but idk.

        • 2 years ago
          Anonymous

          the former. most (neo)caridina species except sulawesi do better with cooler temperatures. they can survive temps in the high 70s but they probably won't live as long and will also be more susceptible to various environmental stressors.

    • 2 years ago
      Anonymous

      There was no thread title and I'm out in the boonies without cell service for a wedding.

      Still, people need to know. See attached

      For sure, I'm just watching my plants losing the battle against the algae slowly and hoping to be able to do something more like give some amanos a feast soon.

      I wont rush it, but the algae fight is so annoying. Looking over and seeing these bold ass hairs streaming into my focal points.

      I did trim and replant some stuff that was getting rather long to try to give more oomph for the battle.

      Heavy algae growth (usually diatoms but idk if they're actually different) early is a bit of a "phase" of a new aquariums. Something about using up all the available nutrients from the substrate and anything else added in at the start, that doesn't get meaningfully replenished with your water changes. A month or so after the cycle, most of it will disappear almost overnight, in my experience.

      • 2 years ago
        Anonymous

        >a month or so after the cycle, most of it will disappear almost overnight, in my experience.

        Man, I fricking wish. I might have to break down and get a powerful ass light setup for my old 55 display even though I want to get breeding tanks and stock so bad.
        The secret to success for me seems to be hit the tank with a blinding amount of light, and reduce the time if that doesn't work.

        • 2 years ago
          Anonymous

          It it doesn't disappear, then it's time to use it as food. Flag fish, SAEs, platys, shrimp, snails, you got a lot of options. Hell, you can even get a Chinese Algae Eater and turn your tank into a bloodbath.

          • 2 years ago
            Anonymous

            What's got a low bioload that won't compete heavily with my loaches? Though maybe a little healthy food competition would do them good...

            Just realize latest bump in excel might have been too much, looks like I burnt crinum. Never getting these frickin things again. Expensive, don't propagate, and die back if you look at them funny. The shipping alone is enough to make it look like you bought something worth 50¢ instead of $15.
            Biggest one that was well established and kicking ass dying because loaches jiggled roots a little loose getting food. Same thing happened to the smaller one a couple weeks ago. They root with the strength of a premmy on ketamine.
            I did get a little one inch baby hitchhiker that's invincible. I wonder why they don't just sell a ziplock full of those for $15. Same reason the cure for herpes will stay behind locked doors I guess.

            • 2 years ago
              Anonymous

              I was thinking otos, but then again, I didn't even know anything else ate glass diatoms.

            • 2 years ago
              Anonymous

              Amano are as low bioload as you can get - shrimp are essentially zero. Get 5 or 10 of them and see if that fixes it.

              • 2 years ago
                Anonymous

                I have one (bought over an inch long) but I don't think they'll come out even in numbers. I saw him for 30 seconds when he was added until my gourmi tried to eat him. My dwarf gourm still spends time looking for him daily. I only know he's alive from molts.
                I hope I'm wrong, because once I have enough neo culls I'm gonna sneak em into the plants at night and hope for the best. Too bad he's the lightest sleeping fish I've ever seen.

      • 2 years ago
        Anonymous
        • 2 years ago
          Anonymous

          Show off. You better treat my girls good and give me fry, because I'm not buying any GBRs on purpose.

          Needs a red kerchief.

          • 2 years ago
            Anonymous

            What about buying them accidentally?

            • 2 years ago
              Anonymous

              That's why I have them. Pretty inexperienced and they were sold as Bolivian rams.
              It probably won't happen again, but I'm not the most perceptive man, either.

  96. 2 years ago
    Anonymous

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