/aq/ - Aquarium General - Pleco Edition

File: maxresdefault.jpg (179KB, 1920x1080px) Image search: [Google]

179KB, 1920x1080px

Someday, I hope to have a pleco tank.

It would be long and relatively shallow with lots of branches and plants.

>>2371507
Plecos are fucking cool. It's like a window into prehistoric times.

What's the minimum space that they need?

>>2371567
the smallest plecos (only get 3-4 inches) need about 10 gallons to themselves to thrive

So I have

-seeded floramax from another tank into my 10 gallon
-seeded filter media from said tank in a 50 gallon HOB
-freshly dechlorinated tap

anyone have experience doing this? About how long did it take to cycle? Google is giving me everything from 2 to 8 weeks for seeded and it seems a bit off

File: Screenshot_2017-05-02-17-11-41.png (2MB, 1920x1080px) Image search: [Google]

2MB, 1920x1080px

I just got this tiny guy and he is already getting along with the rest of the loach crew. Hopefully I can get a picture of all 5 of my loaches cuddling.

>>2371697
A seeded tank takes zero weeks to cycle, technically. Very little of the bacteria is in the water column.

However, you have to take into account bioload. If you have a 30 gallon tank with a dozen neon tetras with two bags of media, the colony won't be that dense.

So taking half that media to a 50 gallon then stocking said 50 gallon with goldfish and you might as well have not seeded at all.

However taking that same media into that 50 gallon then adding just a few young dwarf Cichlids and you'll stay cycled.

As with any setup of any size, start slow, start small. Let your tank grow into the full load.

How sensitive are the bacteria to changes in temperature and ph?

>>2371780
Moreso than healthy fish.

But like fish, they don't all suddenly die at once.

Blind oscar is 'attacking' things in his tank.

Or...trying to tear them up? I have no idea, but he finds the current and swims really fast and crazy in it, then moves over and will head but the bottom of his filter. And he's pushing his rocks around.

How do Oscars usually act guys?

File: Snapseed.jpg (4MB, 4032x3024px) Image search: [Google]

4MB, 4032x3024px

doing a water change and I'm about to do some remodeling, what do you suggest?

The mollies are getting big so they'll be moving out. There are 3 cherries and 2 amanos, I mainly want to know what (very small) fish could replace them

File: 20170502_215147.jpg (3MB, 3264x1836px) Image search: [Google]

3MB, 3264x1836px

Guys I have a sneaking suspicion that my microglanis iheringi is eating my neon tetras and/or WCMs has anyone had one that does this? I swear I had more than 4 wcm, but I don't see them or bodies anywhere.

Also itroduced my growing albino Cory fry to the tank, now that I think about it there spikes may keep them alive from the bumblebee, we'll see.

File: AlbinoGlowlight6.jpg (40KB, 639x624px) Image search: [Google]

40KB, 639x624px

I have a weird question. Do human-bred strains/morphs of fish know they're a certain species? For instance I have these albino glow-light tetras. They school together, and they kind of school with/interact with my ember tetras. But would these albinos properly school with naturally-colored glow-lights? Would the natural ones accept the albinos? How do the albinos know to school together when they are abnormal colors, since they don't know that they themselves are albino? Is it just behavior?

>>2371853
Depends on the species.

Most home species will shoal with other species, for instance neon tetras will shoal with flame tetras, or even tiger barbs will shoal with black tetras and they're not even the same classification. Thus weird colorations from even glofish will still shoal normally.

However some species are way more picky and won't shoal with any other species. These species tend to form the best schools though.

Regardless, in a stress-free, predator-less environment, fish tend to stop schooling or even shoaling very much.

>>2371823
Danios, various tetras, endler's livebearers, guppies I suppose... there's tons of microfish choices. What are your goals?

>>2371507
I've looked at that picture probably half a dozen times and I just now saw the monster pleco on the left.

>>2371872
I thought it was some kind of wood, you just blew my mind.

>>2371872
wow fuck me

>>2371869
I like the mollies a lot, just wish they were smaller. When the bitchy one gets an attitude the other one can't get away from her.

Not really interested in a lot of schooling fish since they just look like a swarm of flies to me but a small sorority would be nice. Gouramis and female bettas are some of my favorites but I'm not sure which microfish have a similar vibe

>>2371865
>in a stress-free, predator-less environment, fish tend to stop schooling or even shoaling very much.

really? i was wondering why my fish don't school very much and kinda just do their own thing with intermittent school-swimming behaviors, wondered if i didn't have enough in there or something

My Neon tetras are always chasing each other around. At first I thought they were playing with each other, but now I'm worried they're attacking or bullying each other. I have noticed injured fins on any fish yet though. What do?

>>2372012
let them fuck in peace probably

>>2372012
*I havent

what happens when I'm too lazy to rinse carbon properly?

>>2372090
The surface area will become saturated then it will start putting junk back in the water.

Just get rid of your carbon. Tons of big time aquarists don't even run carbon ever.

Really all you need is the mechanical and bio filters.

>>2372090
If you're talking about on water change, like >>2372116 said. If you're talking about before you put it into the tank, you can get a really dark stain like from unrinsed bogwood. It's probably harmless and I imagine you can buy something to get rid of it in the same way. But it only takes a few minutes to properly wash it so don't be lazy.

>>2372116
>Just get rid of your carbon. Tons of big time aquarists don't even run carbon ever.

Why?

Is there an easy way to deal with orange algae? It's starting to cover my plants and I cant easily get it off of them because I'm afraid they'll break if I rub too hard.

I'm doing once a week 20% water changes, less light per day (around 6 hours per day now, dont want to do less than that due to live plants), I also bought 5 ghost shrimp but I doubt theyre going to have a huge impact.

Any ideas?

My betta won't stop eating algae wafers. I feed him frozen bloodworms and shrimp every day or other day and he definitely gets a full belly on them, but whenever he sees a wafer get dropped in the tank he'll peck at it before the snails or anything else can even eat it.

Is this bad for him? I don't understand why he wolfs it down when he has a full stomach, I thought they were carnivores.

>>2371904
How big is your tank? Why not a sorority Betta tank?

>>2371982
Sometimes you can induce that behavior in wierd ways, like introducing more neons or having wide open spaces, but it all boils down to a bit of stress. Eg, tons more tetras = crowding. Wide open spaces like in an iwagumi tank is stressful due to nowhere to hide. A tiny bit of stress is probably not that bad though.

>>2372179
Doesn't really do anything that water changes and water conditioner don't do better.

>>2372116
By bio filter do you mean like a filter with a sponge inside?

I have a new 5 gallon tank and want to cycle it as fast as possible. If I use filter media, or the filter itself from my old tank and put some low light plants in how long do I need to wait before putting fish in?

Would it go faster if I took water from an established tank as well as a filter?

>>2372254
unless you put fish in as a source of ammonia, or put ammonium chloride in yourself, there won't be anything for the good bacteria in the filter media to thrive on.

>>2372257
I typically put fish food in as a source when I am cycling normally then eventually fish.

Come to the discord. We've got a few really helpful and knowledgable people in the aquatics section.

>>2372254
If the filter is already cycled then it's good to go.

>>2372197
Read the algae wafers ingredients. Most of them use fish meal. Also algae usually isn't even the first ingredient.

>>2372245
The most common filter components are:
Bio-filter - this is usually ceramic, porous material that bacteria will colonize. This is the most important part of your aquarium. In the case of a sponge filter, it is indeed a big fine sponge. In the case of fluidized filters, it is plastic bits. In the case of undergravel filters, your bio-filter is shit, but it tries to use gravel. The bacteria feed off of ammonia (fish waste, among other things), turning it into nitrite, then turning it into nitrate.

Mechanical - this is just a coarse sponge filter to make sure debris doesn't clog up your shit.

Chemical - carbon. Like a Britta but less effective due to surface area exposure. Water conditioner takes care of most of what carbon is supposed to do anyway. Water changes are more effective than carbon at keeping the water clearer. Also just not overfeeding keeps it clearer.

Wet/dry - this just aerates water better. Can be a grate the water passes through, can be a wheel, can be a waterfall system.

Only the first one is absolutely necessary. Second one is important. The rest are not.

>>2372180
Try a one hour break of light. E.g. 3 hour on, one off, three on. I've read some hypothesis that algae will have a harder time adapting than higher evolved plants. I'm trying it now. Week one seems ok. Plants at least are not having problems continuing growth. Not sure about algae.

Are there any calm small fish or other options that I could put in a ten gallon with a betta? I have some plants and a lot of pothos on the top, and I want just one more thing to help feel the plants because I don't think the single betta is cuttin it.

And also because I want one more thing but obviously can't put another betta in there.

Cory cats are too active though, and I don't want my betta stressed. And he will definitely mow-down shrimp, I have tried.

If there is any other kind of slow moving creature that will produce just a bit more waste, then my tank will be pretty balanced.

>>2372279
Dude, it completely defeats the purpose of the site. If I wanted to use Discord, I would find a fish forum ON Discord.

You're basically doing the equivalent of "come to Facebook, Come to Skype" etc.

There's no reason for me to, just stop it.

>>2372409
I wasn't asking YOU John.

>>2372446
You asked the thread in general, therefor you asked me as well.

Now shut the fuck up and make me a sandwhich Becky.

Redpill me on filters? I'm trying to find a filter for my 5gal that won't create too much current and the pet store suggested an under gravel with coal.

>>2372459
How many fish?

I have a whisper 3i in a 5 gallon with a single betta, java moss, and pothos. It barely creates any flow, so it's basically perfect for him alone. But if you are planning on going nano with a slightly bigger bio-load and maybe no plants, get a regular 5-10 gallon filter and put a plastic water bottle on it to slow the flow.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IOkh_BB_OLc

Could also do a DIY one

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kiDrZPqHKTs

>>2372459
Sponge filter

>>2372459
https://www.amazon.com/XY-2831-Sponge-Filter-Aquarium-10-gallon/dp/B0056XVF82/ref=sr_1_6?ie=UTF8&qid=1493856861&sr=8-6&keywords=sponge+filter+aquarium

get this, an air pump and some airline tubing. I use this with the spout turned into the tank glass

>>2372459
Your local pet store is shit and that guy should not be in charge of the fish department.

No one should use undergravel filters. The BEST reason anyone can think of to use them is, "They're not that terrible." Seriously.

>>2372487>>2372513
These guys have it right. Sponge filters are even cheaper than undergravel (which is undergravel's main selling point), but are more effective and easier to clean and are far less susceptible to new aquarist syndrome (i.e. you overfeed).

>>2372408
Dario dario

a.k.a. Scarlet Badis

Not the easiest to find locally though.

Someone redpill me on yoyo loaches.
Why is mine such a violent radical?
Is this an isolated incident?

>>2372532
>The BEST reason anyone can think of to use them is, "They're not that terrible." Seriously.

Not true, you can also use their parts for various uses, should you have ended up with one on hand. A friend used it to breed danios and I used it to built a platform for a basking turtle once.

>>2372532
Can you recommend a good one for a 20 gal?

>>2372578
they're all kind of the same m8. It's a cheap piece of plastic with cheap sponge wrapped around it. Just look for one appropriate for a 20 gallon and get a pump for a 20 gallon

>>2372583
alternately, you can get two meant for 10 gallons, a splitter and enough tubing to cut in half so you can use the same pump for both

I need some help adding ferts to my planted tank.

I currently have high/medium lighting and CO2 but my swords aren't looking very good. I have root tabs in place and before that I was just using Flourish and Flourish Excel.

I found an EI calculator online and was wondering if its best to ditch the Flourish and manually dose everything EI tells me to or if I just add more Flourish it will work out.

>>2372543
Thanks anon, I'm looking into them and where I can get them online. Most of the online stores I'm finding aren't telling me if they are wild caught or captive bred though, and don't seem to be giving me much of an option to pick out males or females.

damn... pretty sure i've got the beginnings of ich. one fish has a white spot on it (just one) and i see another has two white spots on its head...

i am starting treatment now, hope i can get rid of it.

>>2372012
Are they new? Tetras in a shoal usually have to develop a hierarchy when introduced to each other and this is normal behavior. Small fin nips will grow back in a few weeks, but if one is getting exceedingly agressive you can remove from the water for a few minutes and put them back. Also, you should have tetras in schools of at least 5 and they do better in odd numbers. I have 7 black neons and this happened when I first got them too but now everyone gets along.

>>2372197
Bettas eat a varied diet, and feeding them veggies can help in digestion.

>>2371572
>10 gallons

You want a 20 long bare minimum for ancistrus to be comfy. Plecos are shitting machines.

>>2371853
Fish in the wild are more likely to shoal based on size, not species. In the tank though without any threat of predation who knows

How do I treat ich without raising temperature (kills my plants) or killing my catfish, shrimp, or snails.

It's actually one of my hoplo catfish that has a white spot. I thought it was fungus, put in less than half the dose of melafix, but it didn't help much obv. I dipped him in ich medication and his spot went down a bit, but he's slapping himself against shit and possibly infecting other fish.

I have a UV bulb in my canister filter I have since turned on.

I wouldn't be devastated if he died, but I do wanna get rid of the ich or at least stop it from spreading.

>>2373115
i am dealing with ich right now. i am going to avoid the heating thing since i don't want to buy a whole new heater.

right now i am adding 3 teaspoons per gallon of epsom salt to the tank and doing daily water changes. it is removing the ich spores from my fish without any apparent ill effect to the fish. i have corycats in the tank too who don't seem to care about the added salt.

i am going to be dosing coppersafe into the tank though, because i heard that's the fastest treatment. be sure to remove any inverts and possibly plants. the copper will remain in the tank for about a month. but i don't really have the time or money to waste on random other treatments, chelated copper seems like the best bet.

>>2373126
>how do i treat ich without killing anything
>suggests copper and salt
>>2373115
Don't listen to this guy.

>>2373131
you realize raising temp and adding random meds can kill fish, too?

literally any potential treatment of a parasite or bacteria can kill your fish. it's a matter of risking a sick fish's life vs the entire tank. like i said i've been dosing salt for the past few days and not noticed any ill effects. just don't use iodized salt and make sure to dissolve the salt into a brine before adding it to the tank. epsom is better than aquarium salt, and cheaper.

>>2373133
samefag and adding to this, melafix is useless. i work at petco. we're supposed to, by policy, use melafix to treat random shit. it never works. it's snake oil.

also avoiding raising temp AND using meds. choose one or the other. i don't like the idea of possibly cooking my fish and i feel medication overdose is much easier to treat than an overheated tank.

>>2373133
>>2373126
Is it possible to do this in dips? I wouldn't use the copper for fear of releasing the fish back in the tank with any traces of copper, I don't know much about this obv.

But is it possible to do salt dips to a catfish? Wouldn't it burn their skin since they don't have scales or whatever?

I'm working on getting a 20gal ready for a hospital tank, but it has two female bettas I need to place elsewhere. I'd hate to lose anyone.

>>2373138
salt dips are tough for me. i find it hard to catch fish since my tank is heavily planted and i don't want to add to stress when they are sick. but if you are afraid of hurting your tank you could try a dip.

like i said, i have cories and they don't seem affected by the salt i have added, and the ich spores are disappearing/wounds are healing. that said i don't think salt kills the free-swimming ich so medication should be used in conjunction.

and like i said epsom salt is better than aqua salt. just get a bag of pure epsom for the bath. you can use it pretty safely at 3 tsp per gallon or a bit more.

>>2373143
I have aquarium salt from someone's free 55gal that I got, I'll try that.

Won't ich just go away? I'm not even sure that it is ich. It looked like a fuzzier/slightly bigger spot than what ich usually looks like to me.

Also, I read somewhere that uv sterilizers help?

>>2373153
can you get a pic at all?

if it's fuzzy then it sounds like columnaris, which is extremely contagious and kills fish fast. it wiped out about 15 of my fish in a few hours once. fortunately it also dies in salt, very quickly.

neither of these really go away on their own though. you may get an exceptionally strong and healthy fish who fights off the ich and is then resistant to it, but columnaris is much more dangerous.

File: Mystery Fish.jpg (528KB, 1500x1000px) Image search: [Google]

528KB, 1500x1000px

Sup guys.

I ordered some Rasboras for my tank and one of them is not like the other. However, I'm not sure what it is. It sometimes seems to school with the others, but then other times I see it off on it's own for a while.

Any ideas?

File: lil fish.jpg (496KB, 1500x1000px) Image search: [Google]

496KB, 1500x1000px

>>2373173
Clearer picture. Took forever though. Little fucker.

>>2373178

Looks like a very young Serpae Tetra

I bought a plant with snail eggs and now I'm having a snail infestation. I like them though and don't want to kill them. Can they be bad for my fish?

Also can a snail (very small, less than 1cm) live in an uncycled tank provided there's plants and algae?

>>2373205
No they won't bother fish at all.

And possibly, what kind of snails are they?

>>2373217
I don't know, they look like nerite snails but their shells are uniform brown.

They won't raise the bioload much, will they? I'm trying to do a nano tank (5gal)

>>2373200
Well fuck. That's unfortunate.

They get quite a bit bigger than the Rasboras, no?

Doubt they'll school much after he puts on some size. Also it's only a 10g.

File: black-racer-nerite-snail-shell-pattern.jpg (95KB, 720x405px) Image search: [Google]

95KB, 720x405px

>>2373226
black racer nerite

So the naja grass I recently bought came in the mail today

I got a few extras it seems including a sprig or two of hornwort, can anyone ID these?

http://imgur.com/ZzJczNH
possible amazon sword?

http://imgur.com/a/LMqrc
no idea WHAT this seaweed looking squiggle is though

Added bonus
http://imgur.com/OT5qVSM
Nekki the feathertail(?)
http://imgur.com/6D2rorh
nameless chinese algae eater who'll son be the scourge of my Community tanks. Fucking love these things

>>2372656
Might want to try http://msjinkzd.com/ she's a fairly big YouTuber in the fish world and she'll help you with sexing. I don't see any in stock at the moment but it doesn't hurt to ask if they'll be in stock soon.

Note, not entirely sure but I think male Dario dario only get that really deep red when they're looking to bone some fish bitches.

Again, Rachel would definitely know. She's a really nice lady. Met her at the Big Fish Deal just recently.

File: 68c265e5ff365b91ad675b16f4b18402.jpg (214KB, 640x426px) Image search: [Google]

214KB, 640x426px

Do any of you guys have pygmy cories? Have you observed them chasing other fish?

I was watching my group and one of my ember tetras came down and pecked at one of the cories. Suddenly a different cory came flying up and chased the FUCK out of the ember tetra, like all over the tank before settling down. It almost looked like the cory was trying to protect the other one. Pretty funny but idk if that was random or what.

File: IMAG0210.jpg (1MB, 3264x1836px) Image search: [Google]

1MB, 3264x1836px

So fiance finally came around to wanting to do proper fish care for his Oscar.

I've been treating his water every three days or so and put some pothos in the top, but other than that I have been trying really hard to leave it be and let him do his own thing.

I have been nagging him a bit about cleaning itand he kept putting it off. So yesterday when he went to get his fish out and vacuum and do a watrr change, he kicked up a BUNCH of old shit that has just been sitting in there.

I think seeing that was the turning poimt for him cause I could tell he felt guilty. I explained to him, again, that that stuff is literally poisening the water and burning his fishes gills, and explained that that's why most home goldfish only make itto about three years. I also told him that's why he should leave the pothos in.

So after that little incident, he asked me to do a full cleaning and get the sand out so that the fish can eat without sucking up sand every time. He's also started saving moneyfor a 55 gallon set-up, but that might have to wait till we move because our current roommate/landlord might not want a tank that big in his house.

So until then, this is the tankand I was wondering if you guys could help provide some suggestions for making it look cool while leaving the bottom mostly bare.

I personally like that central piece and the pothos roots coming down. It reminds me of a barren wasteland.

Fiance wants to get a back for it to stick on as well.

>>2373321
That's alright if they don't get good color. And thank you for the recommendation, I will definitely shoot her a message soon.

Honestly, I want a companion for my betta. I've been doing a lot of reading, both online and in the library, and though alot of info say they can be agressive and do ok with being solitary, much it is also pointing to them getting some stimulation and ease from having a few other peaceful community fish.

Even though I know he's just begging most of the time, Sinbad is ALWAYS watching me when I'm in the room and trying to get my attention. If I get superbusy with work and can just do the bare minimum of feed him twice a day, he sulks. I don'tknow how else to describe that.

He won't be as active, won't come tome as quicklywhen I call him, and he won't explore his tank as much. He'll just swim from the top to bottom and sleep, maybe peck at something if it looks like food.

I want to just try it with one single fish, and if it doesn't work, then I have two other betta tanks I could put the fish in. And if those fail too, I'll get it it's own 5 gallon.

>>2373321
>watching Rachel O leary vid on Dario

>strong prey drive

>they WILL eat your shrimp

GOD DAMNIT

Alright, back to square one.

Wonder if a Hex toy would freak him out. I'm too hesitant to put anything else in there because the tanks actual width is just a few inches shy of a five gallon.

File: smokey-veils-angelfish.jpg (66KB, 600x450px) Image search: [Google]

66KB, 600x450px

Did You Know?

Angelfish (pterophyllum) were actually originally called Anglefish by the European breeders producing them in the early 1930's. Early on it was established that perfect, show quality individuals would need to have heads formed at a near-perfect 90° angle (the downward slope on top of the head and then the turn down into the pectoral fins).

However, once the Anglefish breeding hobby was introduced to the Americas, miscommunications occurred, leading breeders in the states to mistakenly call them "Angelfish", which made enough sense because of their long, flowing fins. The species quickly took off in the newly forming aquarium hobby, and the name stuck, even to this day.

>>2373405
Are you a women or a gay?

Not much you can do with bare bottom except a background

>>2373422
Heh, that's kinda cool.
>>2373427
>Not much you can do with bare bottom except a background

Hmm, what about any kind of plants? Obviously it can't take up too much room, but I could put something in a little cup with some rinsed sand or dirt topped with gravel.

>>2373431
Bare bottom tanks are fucking patrician tier, ESPECIALLY if you have a high waste output animal in there. You see the shit and grossness so much easier, so you clean it out more often and it always looks nice. If not, you're punished with a disgusting substrate of shit particles and you deserve it for not cleaning your goddamned tank. Literally every aquarium I own is bare bottom and I've discovered that it truly is the closest thing to what God wanted from aquarium hobbyists

>>2373450
I imagine you're forced to clean it often not only because of the unpleasant sight, but because of all the beneficial bacteria you don't have, since they attach mainly to gravel and deco while there's just a bit in the filter.

Having a sustainable tank that doesn't require much cleaning or water changes is what god intended for people who want to keep animals who exist in 4 dimensions inside little glass boxes.

I have a 40 gallon with a Fluval 50 power filter which i like, get's 200gph and has a nice media basket and adjustable flow rate but i have 2 bristlenose plecos and blue hi fin platys and the plecos shit a ridiculous amount, I'm doing too many water changes because the water is getting gross quick, I was thinking about getting a second Fluval 50 and having one on full flow with poly fiber, the foam bio block and all my ceramic media and then running the other on the low flow (the manual says this is 66 gallons per hour) with poly fiber, lots of carbon zeolite mix and purigen to act as a water polisher.

Is this a good idea or am i going to get way too much water movement?

>>2373372
They sometimes chase after one of my endler guppies but nothing serious.
More concerning is that they all lie in one corner and when they come out and I'm near the tank they hide again. 95% of the time I never see them.
>feelsbadman.jpg

>>2373726
What does your tank look like?

What fish do you have in it?

My pygmies don't even flinch when I get near the tank to look at them.

File: 20170505_184754.jpg (3MB, 4160x2496px) Image search: [Google]

3MB, 4160x2496px

>>2373733
Pic related. Taken 5min ago. Obviously needs gardening. Hard to see is that it's planted in the background with Rotala and Pogostemon octopus on the left side.

Stocked with 4x Endler guppies, 1x normal guppies (all males), 5 Pygmy cories and 4 Corydoras habrosus (leftovers).
Tank is 40cm x 25cm x 25cm x25cm. 25 litres, making it 6.6 gallons.

>>2373726
Is it worth getting them? I don't feel like forking out 6 bucks a piece on something I won't even see.

>>2373758
I've got them for 1,79€ (approx. 1,90$) here in Germany. They are extremely cute. Maybe getting a bigger group (>10) will let them show up more.

>>2373754
It's a bit hard to tell from the pic, do you have hiding spots like a tunnel or a cave or anything? Shaded spots? 6.6 is not a whole lot of floor space. Combined with lack of hiding spots and so many fish above them might be stressing the Cories out.

File: foto_no_exif (80).jpg (1MB, 1600x967px) Image search: [Google]

1MB, 1600x967px

my aquarium with african dwarf frogs
r8

>>2373845
clutter/10

>>2373828
Good hiding spots are the spaces between the rocks with the Riccia moss, some smaller rocks to the left (you can see them in pic, they're dark) and the leafs of an Anuba nana on the ground (left corner, not seeable in pic). They love their hiding spot under the filter behind those Riccia rocks the most.
You think 5 Guppies are too many fish? I especially got them to ease up the Pygmies. Didn't help.
The Corydoras habrosus are not so shy, they don't mind me.

File: 20170505_165959-1.jpg (938KB, 1937x2581px) Image search: [Google]

938KB, 1937x2581px

Help me /an/

I took some pics of my hoplo. She's a pretty girl.
>>2373160

File: 20170505_165946-1.jpg (704KB, 1633x2674px) Image search: [Google]

704KB, 1633x2674px

>>2373950
And another

>>2373895
Well you have more than 5 guppies you said. I don't know. I only have 3 pygmies at the moment and they are very active and bold. Not sure what could be causing yours to be so shy other than maybe too much activity above them.

>>2373754
>6.6 gallons

Dude that is a lot of fish for such a small tank. Especially fish that are good swimmers.

I had a ten gallon with five cories and six harlequin rasbora, and I felt like even that was pushing it for space.

>>2373456
>, but because of all the beneficial bacteria you don't have, since they attach mainly to gravel and deco while there's just a bit in the filter.
lol

This is so wrong.

Your filter has orders of magnitude more beneficial bacteria than all the surfaces of your tank combined.

First off, even a highly decorated tank does not have that much surface area compared to porous ceramic media or even sponge filters.

Second, even if you did (for instance you have lots of ceramic/pottery as decoration/cover, which still is nowhere near the surface area of even mediocre ceramic media, but for the sake of argument we'll say it is), the beneficial bacteria won't grow and sustain itself nearly as readily because the 100% of your aquarium's turnover is through your filter by design. Oxygen and nutrient transport anywhere else except your filter is comparably pathetic, even if you have circulation pumps. Practically everything goes through the filter; that's its purpose. That is the most ideal place for you bacteria, and that's where they will go.

If you don't believe me, feel free to swap out your filter media out for a few days and watch your ammonia spike.

>>2373950
Oh wow, cool lookin fish anon. What type?
>>2373958
>Not sure what could be causing yours to be so shy


There's too many fishing in something that's half the size of the basic ten gallon. I have a single betta in a five gallon with a bare bottom and just the barest of hiding spaces and it STILL looks like he doesn't have much room.

I might push his tank by adding one other small/micro fish, but even then, I change things around once a week to stimulate him.

I'm not saying the guy is killing his fish, they might have good water quality, but for such a small space, they probably feel like a human living with eight roommates in one apartment. Just not enough room to feel comfortable.

>>2373817
I live in a small town in bumfuck nowhere where the only pet shop that sells them does so for $6.

I only have a 5gal though, don't think 10+ will be ok in there.

File: BxEI0L7.jpg (281KB, 1440x2560px) Image search: [Google]

281KB, 1440x2560px

Hey, I've been very interested in making a small Saltwater tank, but I'm not sure what I want or what will be safe. I'm thinking of a 5/6-10 Gallon tank with a piece of driftwood in the middle, and only a 1-3 small saltwater fish or crab (I don't want a reef tank, but a more rustic beach one akin to pic related).

Is this plausible? I've done some looking up into it on my own, but a lot of sources seem to be discussing small tanks relating to Live-Rock and coral, as well as saying small saltwater tanks aren't a good idea. Can you tell me if this'll be fine, what type of fish/inverts will work fine, and any further readings relating to this type?

File: 10g.jpg (554KB, 1500x1000px) Image search: [Google]

554KB, 1500x1000px

Just recently stocked my 10g.

As I mentioned earlier in the thread, I accidentally got what someone identified as a Serpae tetra in place of one of the Rasbora.

That's 4 Rasbora and 1 Tetra. They seem to school for now, but we'll see how long that lasts.

Like the idiot I am, I listened to the shopkeep and got a fiddler crab as clean up. They were fresh out of snails. Only after getting home and doing my own research did I learn that they actually prefer brackish water and land area, hence the somewhat lowered water level. He seems alright so far. He picked my driftwood clean the first day and chills on the top of it most of the time. I'm working on getting something with more surface area in there for him, too.

So what do you guys think? Should I be setting up another tank specifically for the crab? I've read mixed things online about keeping them in freshwater with no adverse affects.

Also, should I be looking at possibly getting a couple of tetra so the oddball isn't stressed?

Nitrates 80-160
Nitrite 0-0.5
pH 6-6.5
KH 80
GH 0-30

Test didnt have on for ammonia but what the fuck is going on with my Nitrates? Did a water change yesterday, dosing with Excel.

I have Frogbit and Salvinia but it hasnt exploded yet, is that the problem there or do I need to do bigger water changes? I do 20% a week

this is from API's 5-in-1 test kit for that anon that was curious awhile back

File: IMG_20170505_160804.jpg (72KB, 505x674px) Image search: [Google]

72KB, 505x674px

>>2374057
a helpful image

>>2374069
It's probably my eyes/your photo, but your pH there looks more like 8 than 6.

>>2374071
I dont know what to trust. From just looking at it, I get the numbers I posted but the colors DO look more clear through my camera lens

retested and got
40-80
0.5
7-7.5
80
0-30

still dont know what to make of those nitrates. Unless my anubias are rotting?

>>2373994
Get saltwater shrimp. They're very cool. Friend of mine had a small saltwater tank with rock pool shrimp including transparent ones (don't know the name). There's colourful ones too.

In fact anything that likes rock pools might do well in a small salt water tank. Why not look into gobies?

>>2374057
>>2374069
Test your tap water first. If you're doing 100% water changes and your tap is 40 ppm, you're still fucked.

If not your tap, check to make sure there's nothing dead in there decaying.

Third, if none of those pan out, you're overfeeding or your fish simply don't like the food you give them and they're not eating it.

Finally, how stocked is your tank?

>>2374087
>Test your tap water first
will do, I need to let it sit overnight/24 hours for accuracy, right?

>check to make sure there's nothing dead in there decaying

It must be my anubias then. I was told they would come back as long as the rhizome is there but it looks like the rhizome is beyond saving. I figured that since the roots were still green it might be recovering. Guess not

It's a ten gallon with one betta and a juvenile chinese algae eater. As far as feeding goes,the betta gets bloodworms and a few pellets, all of which he eats. The CAE gets aliitle spirulina tab once a week and otherwise eats by doing its thing naturally

tank is planted mostly with floating type plants and pothos

File: IMG_20170503_224806289.jpg (3MB, 4608x2592px) Image search: [Google]

3MB, 4608x2592px

What is this fish? It ate all my guppies. Apart from that seems pretty chill

>>2373979
Hoplo catfish

>>2374122
african leaf fish

>>2374122
what the hell is wrong with the water

>>2374122
Why did you put an unknown fish in your tank?

>>2374079
Seconding shrimp and other small inverts. Recently got some Sexy Shrimp for my tank and they look great in nanos since they'd get lost in big tanks. Other cute small critters like Pom Pom Crabs or Harlequin Shrimp (if you're willing to cultivate starfish) and various hermit crabs. Lots of snail options too.

>>2374011
your fucking up noob do your homework next time

>>2374122
your a stupid cunt stay out of the hobby because you are obviously autistic also bait

>>2373754
cramped/10 ten gallons are cheap as fuck your denying your fish the bare minimum

Howdy folks.

I've had a 5g set up for about two months now. About a month ago I got three Amano shrimp and I loved watching them going about doing shrimp things.

A week ago I got a Betta (the original purpose behind getting the tank) and all my shrimp have disappeared. They are still there and haven't been eaten but they all just hang out under the filter now.

Do you think they'll come out?

>>2372197
I'd like to know more about Betta diet myself. I've been doing the following so far either once or twice a day:
Flakes
Worms
Peas
Fast
Worms
Flakes
Peas (clean every seventh day).

How's that for him?

>>2374430
Correction. One does seem to have gone - the largest of them and I can't find a body. That's an awful lot for a well fed Betta to have nommed.

I've got a 10 gallon tank with 7 neon tetras and 4 ghost shrimp. According to aqua advisor, my stocking level is 72%. What fish should I get next?

>>2374451
3 to 5 more neon tetra

>>2374452
i want some more variety tho

>when you're dosing meds in your tank and after one day, realize which fish are strong and which are weak

fuck, /aq/... some of my fish do not like this medication at all, they're just floating in place and not eating while some are acting normal. i want to do a water change to remove some of the meds but then that'd fuck up the dosage and might not get rid of the parasites... but i hate seeing them like this...

>>2374475
3 to 5 cardinal tetra

File: 1412352918783.jpg (10KB, 251x242px) Image search: [Google]

10KB, 251x242px

>>2374501

>>2374451
2-3 Cory Cats

>>2374149
>>>2374122 (You)
>african leaf fish
Thanks bro, it seems to like flakes and guppies. What else is supposed to eat?

>>2374542
thx senpai

>>2374152
>>>2374122 (You)
>what the hell is wrong with the water
Water is clean, algae is in spots because the catfish do that, I like to leave it as food and only scrub it once every 2 months. Due for a scrub soon

>>2374228
>>>2374122 (You)
>Why did you put an unknown fish in your tank?
Guy told me it was a gourami, didn't tell me it was a bloody assassin

>>2374386
>>>2374122 (You)
>your a stupid cunt stay out of the hobby because you are obviously autistic also bait
That's a little rude, only asking for some help. We're all learning

>>2374605
He's just trolling, man. He's
>>2374385
>>2374386
>>2374389
Samefagging.

File: 20170506_102905.jpg (3MB, 4032x3024px) Image search: [Google]

3MB, 4032x3024px

Just changed from gravel to black sand in my 29 gallon. The cory cats already laying eggs, the danios are eating said eggs, and the platies are chilling with the Neon sword.
Love the way the sand makes the greenery pop.

>>2374500
Run charcoal to remove meds.

Do you guys think my local fish shop will hand me some Trumpet snails for free? Kind of need them for my sand bottom tank.

>>2374735
Best thing to do is to ask them instead of us here.

File: 20170506_193007-1.jpg (990KB, 2883x1734px) Image search: [Google]

990KB, 2883x1734px

Hey I've been off a while I'm job training. Figured I'd update this once sludge aquarium that was so generously gifted by aunt.

I planted some hornworth and it's taken really well. I really liked how it looked despite a lot of people saying it sheds it's needles a lot. (It has as you can tell near the filter intake but nothing disastrous)

My Danio are total assholes who I want to slaughter. I really wish these weren't in the aquarium when it was given to me. I tried some guppies but they killed them. So I'm trying some Bueno Aires. I figured they're too large for the danio to mess with. Bonus that they don't have much vibrancy or fin length on them.

My friend have me a gold mystery snail to deal with the algae problem that's starting. (Evident on the leaves and filter canister). To which I also bought a Julii Cory cat.

I really want to do more with this but I am very much capped on space at the moment so I'm thinking I'll slowly transition over to live plants in the future.

File: 1486868657972.jpg (332KB, 637x720px) Image search: [Google]

332KB, 637x720px

>>2374892
I have a shoal of danios in my 29 gallon (4x Long Fins, 2x Pearls). My Swordtail and Male Platy keep them in check, my Cory cats also chase them around too. Got them because my girl friend wanted to add something to my tank, so now I can't get a betta as my center piece.

I keep hoping to come home to dead danios, but to no avail. They're tough little fuckers.

>>2374095
>will do, I need to let it sit overnight/24 hours for accuracy, right?
Eh, debatable, but hey, it won't hurt. I mean, by the time you see this answer it would have been more than 24 hours already.

>It must be my anubias then. I was told they would come back as long as the rhizome is there but it looks like the rhizome is beyond saving. I figured that since the roots were still green it might be recovering. Guess not
It's unlikely that would be contributing to THAT much nitrate. You would have to have a LOT of decaying plant stuff, and not just, "oh this one plant is beyond salvaging," more like, "WTF this looks like someone left a bowl of salad sitting out in the sun all day."
>It's a ten gallon with one betta and a juvenile chinese algae eater. As far as feeding goes,the betta gets bloodworms and a few pellets, all of which he eats. The CAE gets aliitle spirulina tab once a week and otherwise eats by doing its thing naturally

>tank is planted mostly with floating type plants and pothos

That's pretty weird. I dunno man. You seem to be doing all the right things.

>>2375088
>That's pretty weird. I dunno man.
It's probably his tap water.

It's usually the fucking tap water.

>>2375115
Different anon here, but curious what your experience with tap water has been? We'll probably be moving in the next couple months and I don't know if our water will be different, but I want to know about signs to look for.

The area we are at now gets city water pumped into a giant tank for the few people that live on this hill, so I have to treat it, but I don't know if that water is the same water that is used in the middle of town.

>>2375122
water quality varies widely by location but none of it is great. Nitrates and phosphates aren't a problem for humans so most places have a fair amount.

you could test the water and see, but most cities use multiple different water sources throughout the year, or single sources that vary in quality throughout the year.

serious aquarists use RO/DI.

>>2375127
Hmm...well I suppose that's good to know.

In all honesty though, how much does it usually effect fish? Like has much research been done on it? Is their a huge difference in years or health of a fish vs. perfect water?

>>2375147
it only really matters if you're breeding fish or keeping saltwater.

some delicate fish such as wild discus can't handle elevated nitrates, but that's not common.

the real problem is that pretty much any fish will start to die when nitrate goes over about 80, so if your tapwater is at 40 to begin with you have much less room for error or laziness.

>>2375088
tested. My tap was 0 for nitrates, is that weird? That part of the strip didnt change at all when I dipped it

for the Anubia, I had 3. Two of which browned and melted to the point of squishing apart if I lightly poked them with a chopstick. I was told as long as it was still there, i'd come back. And well, while I was skeptical about that I waited it out. They looked gross in their own right but didnt look to be fouling my water so I didnt think much on it

the only other thing rotting could be a few of the salvinia that get dunked occasionally but if its that, i'll be really surprised

>>2375147
>has much research been done on it?
Briefly, yes. There's thousands of research papers on the subject.
>Is their a huge difference in years or health of a fish vs. perfect water?
again, yes.

but this isn't a thing most aquarists will care about. Your average aquarium fish is going to die young for other reasons than chronic nitrate poisoning. And fish are cheap. So it's not really a huge selling point for the average freshwater aquarists.

for instance, plant fertilizers contain huge amounts of nitrate, this isn't something the average aquarist is going to care about even though it shortens the life of their fish. It really doesn't matter unless your fish cost more than your plants. Which is pretty rare in freshwater.

>>2375155
using any ferts or soils?

>>2375159
caribsea floramax and flourish excel at about 5ml

>>2375156
Well what if you just care about your fish though and want to try and give them a good and interesting life?

>>2375161
I'm not aware of either product elevating nitrate, though I don't know how they react when plant growth is insufficient.

If I were you I'd be changing 50% of water and watching to see how fast nitrates bounce up. If they're coming back fast those plants are probably rotten. It's possible for them to decompose without fouling the water.

>>2375163
eh. Even the shittiest short life in your tank is probably going to be better than any life in the wild. But if you're a purist you'll look for strategies to reduce or export nitrates. Water changes and plants are both good options. If your tap water sucks then RO/DI is a worthy investment.

I have one, it cost me all of $119 I think. I've been using it for a couple years without changing media, but my local water isn't bad.

>>2375161
I'm also assuming your test kit is good because it read 0 at the tap and high in the tank. Assuming you used the same kit for both tests.

>>2375174
>If I were you I'd be changing 50% of water and watching to see how fast nitrates bounce up. If they're coming back fast those plants are probably rotten. It's possible for them to decompose without fouling the water.

will do. I did about 30% yesterday and it's still at 80 so im still worried. Hopefully 50% makes some difference because otherwise im going to have to uproot and move all this shit

>>2375069

Nope, originally the tank was given to me with a Betta. Apparently they had lived together for a couple years. As soon as I gained possession they killed him. I tried guppies and they killed him too. My heater broke the one night and sent the temp up to the high 80s low 90s and they still lived. I seriously hate these fuckers. They kill every centre piece fish I want.

Looking for suggestion and reassurance that my tank won't be overcrowded.

I'm thinking of setting up a tank with a pair of rams, 8 Corydoras habrosus, 12 x-ray tetras and maybe something else but i'm not sure what. I'm trying to pick species that live in same location as well. Would these animals overcrowd a 23inch tank (about 13gallon)?

File: 1490834874771.jpg (72KB, 378x750px) Image search: [Google]

72KB, 378x750px

>>2375338
Danios are notorious fin nippers, so it's surprising there was ever a betta in the tank with them. They're also known to become aggressive towards other fish in an attempt to show dominance, they even do it trying to claim territory from other fish.

You should buy an oscar, let it eat them, then return the oscar because he was "too aggressive" and get something else. or you could just flush them down the toilet and start over.

File: muhtnak.png (29KB, 550x190px) Image search: [Google]

29KB, 550x190px

>>2375349
AqAdvisor is your friend anon.

Lets you put in your tank dimensions (or select from the drop down menu), put in your filter type, then select the species and number of them.

I can already tell you that you're probably going to be overstocked in such a small tank with that many fish.

Pic Related. my 29 Tall with an Aquaclear 50 and Aquaclear 30 filter on it and the fish I have in it.

File: adsd.png (18KB, 550x110px) Image search: [Google]

18KB, 550x110px

>>2375353
Thanks, I've used it but I've also read it isn't super reliable. I guess it gives me an idea of what I can do at least.

Maybe I'll reduce the number of corys to 6 and don't add anything else then.

>>2375357
like anything of that nature, it's a guideline, not a rule. I do recommend over filtration if you plan to keep a greater number of fish, just to cover bases

>>2375362
It said I had 800% recommended filtration for the fish I want, I might use my eheim classic 150 I have laying around.

>>2375369
My bad I typed wrong the gallons/hour and made it liters/hours instead. It's still over 200% recommended filtration

>>2375371
Ideally you want to filter the tank at least 4 or more times an hour, so Gallons Per Hour are a big deal. Between my two AquaClears, I have 350 Gallons per hour, so my tank is filtering nearly 12 times my tank volume an hour. Shit stays CLEAR, shrimp have sponges on the intakes to hang out on, and the platys pick algae off them too.

>>2374892
Cories don't eat algae. They're carnivores.

>>2375478
They're omnivores anon. They will eat algae, but can't survive on it alone. The anon should have gotten a trio of Oto cats or a gaggle of amano shrimp for algae.

>>2375374
>>2375371
I would also suggest a more aggressive water change schedule for densely stocked tanks. Not so much MORE per change but more frequently.

>>2375478

I know, I was told they'd help. Plus imo they're gorgeous small cat fish. It's nice to have something on the bottom other than fish shit and pest snails.

>>2375351

Yeah after they killed the guppies I had I tried to kill them. I purposely let nitrates and nitrites get really high, but they seriously don't die. I'm about to slap them online for free and hope someone bites. To be honest, I'm really like these bueno aires a lot and would much rather go buy two more after I get rid of the danio and one more julii.

SIDE NOTE! Does anyone know where I can buy test strips in bulk online? I've checked ebay and amazon and from what I could find are poor reviews or similarly priced items. Im getting shafted in store. 25strips/$20 I found a few different digital ones. Are they any good?

>wake up
>go to check on my fish friends
>overnight a tetra has somehow gotten stuck in a plant and apparently suffocated to death
RIP, sweet prince.

>"the species does best when kept in a European-style aquarium"
What's the difference between "European-style" and "American-style" tanks? Is it just the stereotype of decorating with plastic castles vs live plants?

>>2371982
This is actually a bit annoying to me. I got a pair of angelfish and twenty cardinal tetras because I wanted that stereotypical "Amazon river" tank, but my scalare are too nice so the tetras just spread out and do whatever. The only time I get a nice, tight shoal is when I'm doing a water change.

>>2375705
European style tanks usually have a speedo and a baguette.

>>2375705
European style tanks have turban-wearing fish that drive lorries over all the other fish.

>>2375705

American style tanks usually have a Walmart store decor included in the kit, and underwater mobility scooters for obese fish.

>>2375705
"European style" usually means a gravel substrate, live plants, driftwood and a sponge filter. "American style" means that you don't spit at the mere idea of plastic plants, a bare bottom, or an undergravel filter. There's also some difference in the fish kept, "European style" often means that you keep only fish from the same geographical region together, to simulate the natural environment of them.

It's of course also massively stereotyped.

Last week I got two amanos and one bamboo shrimp for my tank. The amanos came out of hiding almost immediately, but the bamboo shrimp has been nailed behind the filter all week. I see him swim around a bit after I turn the lights off, but as soon as they come back on he's back behind the filter. How long can I expect him to behave like this? I'm a bit worried because he is neither molting nor feeding.

>>2374011
>tank
Looks great, I've used the same set up before. Removed the internal filter because it was loud and it clogged up eventually. Heater is great.

>fiddler crab
Refund it and get freshwater shrimp or snals for cleaners. Retards exist online like they do here, Anon. No matter what they say.

>fish under school limit
Add more rasboras, at least 6 in total, and possibly add 4 tetras. I don't recommend overstocking to have both Rasboras and Tetras, but if your parameters can manage, it should be fine. I've done it myself, though I'm not proud of it.

>>2375766
>bamboo shrimp near the filter
Normal sign, they use their "fans" to propel food into their mouths, I hope you have something special like powdered spirulina so they could eat

>>2375818
He isn't feeding behind the filter, its only inlet is on the front. He's behind the filter.

Well, if they don't get enough food by filtering they'll start scavenging the tank floor. If I see him do that, my plan is to drop some powered sinking flakes over him and add some to the filter flow when he's filtering.
Is it unusual for a shrimp to hide for a week and not eat? I haven't seen him scavenging during the night yet.

File: 20170506_102902[1].jpg (3MB, 4032x3024px) Image search: [Google]

3MB, 4032x3024px

>>2375705
I'm very much against the use of plastic plants, personally, because of your situation. I've had guppies get impaled on fake hornwort, I've seen bettas get their fins shredded by plastic plants that come in those betta bowl kits. You basically don't see that in a live plant aquarium, where the plants have flexibility and are not rigid. Plus, planted tanks on the whole tend to be overall healthier for everything in them, albeit a little more maintenance is required.

Personally my 29g is planted. Black sand bottom, root tabs near anything tha tuses runners or roots. I used terracotta pots with gravel for some of my wisteria bundles, and I let a bunch of anacharis float around the top. My 6 Amano shrimp love to sift through the sand for delicious bits, and my cory cats love to dig into it while on the prowl and wont damage their barbels. I also added some trumpet snails, because they'll burrow through the sand and help churn it up.

Planted tank will run you more to set up initially, but in the long run it can house more fish, has a high quality of life for your fishy friends, and if you propagate your plants you can either sell the excess plants to a fish shop, give them to friends, or use to create a second planted tank.

>>2375887
Nah, it wasn't a plastic plant, it was a live amazon leaf plant. Somehow the fish had gotten stuck head-first between the stalks at the bottom.

>>2375813
>Looks great
Thanks.
>Refund it
I'm actually going to setup a crabitat for him and get a couple more. I'm getting another 10 gallon and some sand to make a beachhead. It will be brackish.
>under school limit
I was always planning to get more after I made sure I didn't make any oversights and accidentally kill the fish. The tetra, of course, threw a small wrench in that plan. Looks like I'll just have to stock it a little heavier than I anticipated. Shouldn't be a problem. I'm pretty anal about monitoring it and my 5g Betta tank.

File: 4233264017_ce95f943a2_z.jpg (81KB, 640x343px) Image search: [Google]

81KB, 640x343px

So I want to make a 5gal tank with shrimp and maybe some rasboras. I need to cycle but I only have an ammonia test kit, no nitrate/nitrate test kit. Plus I have seeded filter media. How long will the cycling take and how can I monitor it with only the ammonia test kit?

File: image.jpg (1MB, 2592x1936px) Image search: [Google]

1MB, 2592x1936px

OKAY LISTEN;
Here is a very simple way to almost completely neutralise aggression in Tiger Barb, just in case any of you are having trouble with them.
1. Keep them in a very large tank - with all that space they will either make their own patch or be able to get away from any conflict easily.
2. Surround them with lots of peaceful tempermented fish - Neon Tetras or Harliquinn Rasboras I've found work really really well for this step.
3. Make sure they have (preferably live) plants or crevices to hide in - this step can be used for more than just Tiger Barb, Electric Lab Cichlids and other small aggressive fish generally appreciate this more than you might think!
4. Keep them in a group of 6 or more - pretty basic knowledge to any aquarium owner, I know. But this is a very important factor in keeping your Tiger Barb placid as it allows them to create their own little pecking order amongst themselves.
5. MAKE SURE THEY ARE WELL FED - I cannot stress this enough! Usually the two main reasons they're classed as major fin-nippers is because they're either not being kept in large enough numbers or are not being fed enough.

> pic related, it's my tank
I've had huge success with keeping Tiger Barb amongst other fish such as Angelfish, Mollies, my mystery Gourami (pictured above, BTW can anyone tell me what type of Gourami she is? I have a suspicion that she's either a Twospot or a juvenile Giant..) and other fish many wouldn't generally consider okay to house with Tiger Barb.
Hope this helps!
- Anon

>>2375994
The important bit about keeping multiple of one species to keep it calm is to give it some friends to shoal with. If your tetra is shoaling with the rasboras, and isn't getting bullied by them, you don't need to add more tetras. He'll be content with his adopted family.

>>2376058
Why can't you buy a nitrate kit? You'll want one eventually anyway, why not get one right away and do things properly from the start?

>>2376180
Do I need a nitrite kit AND a nitrate kit or do both come in the same kit?

They're just so fucking expensive where I live. About $20.

>>2375938
Sounds like nature took it's course in weeding out the weak and stupid then.

>>2376186
Well, that's what they cost. If you want to save some money you could buy paper test strips. Less accurate, but better than nothing.

>>2376058
Go to your LFS and ask if they'll do a water test for you, they'll often help out newbies.

>>2376197
Paper test strips cost more actually.

>>2376199
Oh? It's the opposite where I live, but the difference is pretty small.

>>2376198
Wow the woman at my LFS is a cunt.

>Can you please do a water test for me?
>yeah only if you buy this goldfish food
>Can't I pay for the test without buying the goldfish food?
>nah you can't, we only do it for those that buy the food
>But I don't need goldfish food
>if you don't like our system just get out

>>2376369
Yeah, that's cuntish. This is how it should be:

>i'm cycling my tank, would you mind doing a water test for me to see if it's done?
>sure, just a minute

>yeah, you're cycled
>cool, then I'll buy a sack of fish from you

>>2376380
Definitely. Never going back there again. Too bad it's the only fish store I can get to during the week without hiring an uber.

Also my pond snail keeps crawling up the wall of the tank then throwing itself off to float upside down on the surface of the water. Why's it trying to commit sudoku?

>>2376369
Should have bought the goldfish food and then have your credit card company cancel the charge.

>>2376387
>>2376380
Yea, don't bother with them again. I work in a saltwater store and people bring in water to be tested for everything (nitrates, nitrites, ammonia, calcium, KH, pH, even some people make me do the PITA magnesium test) We do them all for free, for anyone that walks in our door. I've tested peoples water who have never bought anything from us, competitors, even freshwater (we don't sell anything freshwater, but we still do have a few test kits around cuz of this). If you can't do that, how are you going to tell the customer anything about their tank? They just don't care enough.

>>2376435
Yeah, not doing water tests is kind of dumb. You get people in the store in the first place, and since you're helping them they'll feel that they have to buy something to give back the favour, and they'll remember how helpful you were and come back the next time they need something for their tank.

>>2371805
Lazy and dopey. Try reducing filter flow?

So my hot tub-to-pond project has already run into a problem

I'm set to build this thing but the breaks are being put on my plan because of the dogs. I'm fairly certain neither of our two dogs would hop into a jacuzzi filled with water. even to snatch a fish out of it but saying so doesnt assure anyone

So how to I keep a medium to large dog out of it? Regular netting wouldn't work

>>2371904
Sparkling gourami stay quite small.
Or you can get some other livebearers, since they'll have similar behavior to the mollies. Least killis are tiny, and you can find guppies in all the same colors mollies come in.

>>2372656
Most places only sell males and I don't believe they're commonly captive bred.
Females are a pale greenish gray color, not bright at all. If anyone would have females it'd be msjinkzd.

>>2373205
>>2373226
You have pond/bladder snails. Nerite eggs don't hatch in freshwater and they aren't kept in stores small enough to be hitchhikers.
The ammonia would have to get crazy high before it killed a pond snail, partly since they breathe from the air.
They'll regulate their own population relative to how much food there is for them. If you're not overfeeding, they won't get out of control and won't significantly affect the bioload.

>>2376472
Snailfag here, I'm using them to cycle a new tank. I figured they should work a bit for their free food. So far they don't give a fuck about ammonia.

I think my amanos killed my betta. I say this because last night I saw him hanging around the top of the tank when an amano swam up, grabbed onto his tail and didn't let go until the betta got him off. The shrimp, a few seconds later, did the same thing. He stopped once the betta hid behind some plants.

I woke up this morning with a shell of a betta attached to the filter intake with the amanos eating him.

Has anyone heard of this happening and can you even keep amanos with bettas? The only thing I can think of is a starving amano thought the slow moving betta was sick and tried to get a good meal in.

>>2376526
I'm sorry anon. Betta must've been sick or weak already for that to happen.

File: ee57064e3907f9878c91a2f44c6c220e.jpg (73KB, 698x463px) Image search: [Google]

73KB, 698x463px

>>2373431
The oscar might knock over a cup and spill the gravel everywhere. You can do rhizome plants (anubias, java fern) and moss on some driftwood or rocks.

>>2376471
Dogs are smart, train them to not go into the water. Build it, let the dogs out, and if you see them about to jump in, give them a stern no and stare them down.

>>2374600
Anything meaty. Guppies won't hurt it occasionally, but they're not healthy as an everyday thing.
Bloodworms and pellets are good staples. If he eats off the surface you can also feed him bugs like crickets and waxworms. Just be careful of anything wild caught that might have pesticides on them.

>>2374604
It is a gourami. Lots of gourami are predatory. They aren't especially aggressive, though. Anything that's too big to eat will be left alone.

>>2374892
Your schools are really small and if that's a ten gallon, it's going to be really cramped for full grown Buenos Aires tetras.
Mystery snails aren't good algae eaters and cories are worse. Cories also really shouldn't be kept alone.

Sorry m8, but you're off to a pretty bad start.

>>2376141
A 12M HCl bath for 30-60 minutes will also easily and completely neutralize the aggression in Tiger Barb.

>>2376556
That's pretty fucking aesthetic.

>>2376528
I'm really bummed. He always swam to the edge when I was doing dishes hoping to get fed.

I want another betta but I'm scared the shrimp will do it again.

Do i need to decominate my tank before I get another (if I do)? He didn't look sick at all. He ate fine, his fins looked good, etc.

>>2376526
The slow moving betta was sick. I know if my good ole betta, Masta (get it? mastabetta?), he wouldve fucked up a shrimp if it touched him, even in his old year when he was 6. Dude was was the most ripped betta ive ever seen, but I always kept a powerhead in his tank that he loved to run like a treadmill. During his 6 years I kept him with RCS, dwarf cories, even another male betta, and no harm was ever done. He nipped a 1 inch streamer off of my angel when the angel nipped him. Angel never fucked with him again.

Bottom line, you probably bought a little bitch betta from petco or some shit. Get one from overseas. Only the asians have the nice betta strains of actually strong, well mannered bettas. Well, i can't attest all will be well mannered cuz they certainly aren't bred for that, but mine lived with another male in a 55g just fine for a year.

>>2376708
Both were bought from overseas on aquabid. Both were beautiful bettas living peacefully in a community tank. It wasn't till I added a gourami (big mistake) and it devoured the other male betta in the night. The next night, it went after masta. Ofcourse, Masta was victorious, and left the fight missing a scale and a few pieces of fin. The gourami was blind in one eye, he died a few days later. I could've saved him, but he brought it on himself and I wasn't going to heal him so he could kill Masta.

Of all the fish I ever owned, why is the one that I want back a fucking betta?

I miss that fucking fish.

>>2376712
>>2376708
One last post about Masta, of how he died.

When I noticed he was getting old and started staying in his mason jar more (he had a mason jar that was his home ever since I got him, it traveled with him from tank to tank), I let him retire from the community fish tank life and gave him to my dad, who has a little 10g hex thats super densely planted with java ferns. Very little flow, and only a few neon tetras he could chase if he wanted. Well, he stayed there for a year while I went off to finish my last year of college. My dad told me he was never sure if he was alive or dead cuz he stayed so deep in the plants, only coming out a few times a week to eat food. Then I came home from college one weekend, go to look at my dads tank, and Masta comes charging out of the java ferns, swimming up and down on the glass like he was so happy to see me. My dad was stunned, Masta never does that for him.

Last time I saw Masta.

File: fresh fish.jpg (3MB, 4032x3024px) Image search: [Google]

3MB, 4032x3024px

Looking for a general idea of how I'm doing and general suggestions... native tank. All fish caught yesterday or today. No visually obvious problems with any fish at this time.

50 gal 48x16x18 iirc
filter is a filstar xl i had from back when i had a snapping turtle (dirty bastards)
175 gph power head and a generic walmart long bubble stone

I count (not 100% sure on all species)

2 black crappie
6 red breasted sunfish or maybe hybrid red breasted
3 green sunfish
2 bluegil


I'm worried the big crappie might be too large for the tank (about 7-8 inches), opinion ? I hear if well fed he will not be a hazard to the others though.

>>2376369
Go to Petco or PetSmart. They do it for free.

>Go to PetCo to buy live plants.
>Their Aquarist (seruiously, thats what his name bad said) approaches me, offers the customer service smile.
>Explain that I've got a fever, and only planting my 29g tank will cure it.
>Guy immediately tries to sell me some 100g monstrosity because "It's better if you go bigger"
>Laugh it off, explain I'm just planting my 29g, and biggest I can currently go for my stand is 75g.
>Tries to sell me plants with massively different requirements.
>Notice a Discus swimming around in the plant tank, half alive.
>Guy tries to sell me a sick discus, swears they're super easy to take care of.
>Ended up leaving cause the guy was fucking nuts.

Meanwhile, if I go to the local aquarium shop, the people running it don't push jack shit on me.
>Walk into Aquarium shop.
>"Hey hows it going! Do you have any questions? Anything I might help ya find?"
>"Are you fresh or salt?"
>"Do you need a water test? We do them for free! "
>"If you need us to get anything, or have any questions come see me here or just mention it to one of the other three here today!"
>All with a god damn smile and actual joy for their jobs.

I don't care if I'm paying an extra 25% mark up, these guys take great care of their customers. They hooked me up with a ton of plants, and when I mentioned I was planting it, the guy helping me gave me a print out of how to make a DIY CO2 system.

>>2376724
Oh also am i safe to add some of these large river snails i have locally ? They are non-indigenous Chinese mystery snails apparently which shouldn't be an issue but I'm just not sure on diseases.

File: Snapseed.jpg (2MB, 3024x2372px) Image search: [Google]

2MB, 3024x2372px

Gonna replace the java moss with something else, there's a strip of substrate concealed in the back

>>2376724
Seems like too many fish for the size of tank, brah.

>>2376724
Just a heads up anon, full grown bluegill can get really territorial, especially during spawning season. Most people recommend only a pair of bluegill to a tank.

>>2376724
given the tank size if I were you I would keep the crappie and maybe a bluegill pair and make soup from the rest

the crappie looks amazing though

>>2376728
Wild snails are riddled with parasites, I would advise against having them anywhere near your tank.

>>2376724
Also anon, careful with keeping anything considered a legal gamefish as a pet. Fish and Game consider it part of your daily limit, and in some states its illegal to keep game fish as pets.

>>2376731
Yeah that's what I'm worried about, I ran one of those not-agreed upon general rule calculators and came up with 26 inches of fish. I'm betting I'm at a bit over that before counting the big guy.

File: fresh fish2.jpg (3MB, 4032x3024px) Image search: [Google]

3MB, 4032x3024px

>>2376738
25/day limit no size restrictions here.

Definitely king of the tank. I will post again in a week or so with whatever happened.

>>2376726

Yeah, I literally do not trust Petsmart testing my water at all.

Here's why.

>Petsmart I live by has an insane fish section manager.
>Prime is dirt cheap at my Petsmart because not to many people in the hobby, and they have too much stock.
>Loading up on Prime, some new tubing, a new heater and various things.
>Decide to check out the fish stock.
>Behold, they actually have a few decent things that look healthy, very active.
>I'll bite. Why not.
>Manager tells me I can't get the fish I want because they're 'advanced' fish, she wants a water sample so I don't return them a day later saying they died and Petsmart is at fault.
>Whatever. Decided I really wanted them so I'd go home and get the cunt some water.
>Bring it in.
>Watch as she struggles to read the colours on her strips after testing the water.
>Calls over two more employees for their OPINIONS.
>Called herself the fish expert.

What I learned.
Petsmart in my area has some nice fish. Employees are insane. Their live plants are garbage, and crammed into gross tubs with 1000 pest snails on every plant, all of different requirements, and way way over priced. They take off the ID tags and don't even know what half the shit in there is.

5/10, accessories are broad. over 5 aisles of fish product. Great prices due to low demand in my area. live fish are beautiful. employees are insane, and the plants are nasty.

>>2376726
>Aquarist
Aquarist is a word used by people in the hobby. If Joey "King of DIY" Mullen calls himself an aquarist (he does), then it's an okay title in my book. It sounded awkward to me at first but I've gotten used to it.

>>2376471
Clear corrugated roofing panels. Cheap as fuck, durable, and if they break, they're cheap as fuck. Did I mention they're cheap?

Attach them when your dogs are in your backyard unsupervised, and throw them in a corner when they're not.

>>2376186
I would get a nitrate test kit then. Nitrate in the long term is a much more important test. After your tank is established, you aren't going to give two shits about ammonia or nitrite.

If you're not rushing trying to stock your tank, don't worry about it too much. Just keep testing ammonia and nitrate. If your ammonia never goes above 0 ppm and your nitrate is slowly going up week on week, you're probably okay.

>Friend has had two betta die on her in a week.
>She visist me, sees my betta tank.
>She freaks out and asks me how my tank stays so clean and clear.
>Explain basic fish care.
>She realizes she's just been throwing the fish into a bowl of tapwater.

She didn't even read shit. Not a care sheet, not a fucking website. Just thought she could buy a betta from Wal-Mart and dump it into a bowl of water from the tap. Fucking dumb dumbs.

>>2376724
Look like Redear sunfish to me. Redbreast usually have much more vibrant chests.

>>2376755
Petsmart plants are cultured...

>>2376442
Agreed. I'm not the anon that you replied to, but I work at a LFS and we charge for water testing to encourage people to buy and learn how to test at home. Though I've found that it's really hard to also sell people test kits but then again it's usually people that don't believe that the nitrogen cycle is a thing that you should probably know. Maybe it's just me but I like the convenience of being able to test at home whenever. Especially for saltwater.

File: 20170509_012126.jpg (3MB, 3264x1836px) Image search: [Google]

3MB, 3264x1836px

>>2376884

Me and my SO are having a disagreement:
Is it safe to use only purified/distilled water (to during kind you buy by the gallon in a general store) water changes? We have no filter on our tap and SO is insisting that it's better to get purified/distilled water and use that instead of having to dechlorinate tap water. We have a 10 gallon tank with a couple Cory cats atm.

>>2376904
it is NOT safe for water changes without adding a buffer.

It IS safe for topping evaporation.

>>2376904
As you probably realize the problem is that RODI or distilled water lacks essential mineral salts for life. So if you use it you have to add those minerals back in. This is usually in the form of a powdered buffer which is more expensive than just using tap water.

it doesn't matter when topping evaporation though, because when water evaporates out of the tank it leaves the minerals behind. So just replacing the water with pure water is fine- the minerals from the tap water are still in the tank.

with regular water changes evaporation isn't much of a problem though, so it's best to use tap water so long as your drinking water doesn't contain copper or abnormally high levels of phosphate or nitrate.

File: 7f5e93abdf864671ba6fd57122597528.jpg (69KB, 640x804px) Image search: [Google]

69KB, 640x804px

I have a question:

Does anyone here know anything about Ranger Plecos? I have a small tank and I'm looking at getting an ancistrus for it. Ranger Plecos, apparently, stay smaller than even the Ancistrus.

Picture unrelated.

>>2376882
Yeah, I didn't mean that you should expect your LFS to do all your water tests for you. But a few times while you're still getting started, I think is fair enough, after that you could maybe make it clear that you sell the kits to do water testing.

My "ancistrus" is two years old now, and only about 3.5 inches long. He also doesn't have any of the barbs on his mouth. Is it a female ancistrus, or some other kind of pleco? I feed him algae wafers regularly so I don't think it's dwarfing.

I've caught a huge spider under a glass. Can I feed it to my angelfish?

>>2376787
Jesus that's fucking depressing.

When will the "fish are entry level pets" meme end? Fish are the most complicated pets I've ever had and I've had dogs, rodents, birds and rabbits.

>>2377029
Yeah. Dogs just need regular walks, food and a stern owner. Cats are even simpler, just a litter box and food. Fish? Start off by becoming a professor in chemistry, and maybe you'll be able to keep a tetra alive.

File: image.jpg (180KB, 1041x912px) Image search: [Google]

180KB, 1041x912px

Where's the anon who was having trouble with ich? I used this stuff and all of it cleared up within a couple of days. It says it treats up to a month afterward, too.

To the anon who said copper and salt kills your fish: I had no casualties. And I have the notoriously fragile pygmy cories in my tank. As long as you follow the coppersafe dosage instructions it should be fine, never overdose it. And use epsom salt to help clear up wounds and kill off other nasties in the process.

>>2377029
>>2377043
I don't understand this. I consider fish entry-level so long as you're not a dumbass. The only issue tends to arise when people are setting up a new tank and have no idea what to do, but that is easily remedied by understanding the nitrogen cycle, which is really not complicated at all.

Even if you fuck up massively it's pretty easy to fix. I'm a seasoned fish keeper and I fucked up setting up a new tank recently. It took about 3 months to remedy it, but it's just fine now. The problems in fishkeeping arise mainly from being impatient. After your tank is all set up it's incredibly easy to keep and is pretty low-maintenance.

>>2376967
Yeah, most people get it eventually after I explained it's cheaper to buy the kits than to drive here and pay for a test. I don't mind showing people how to test at all so they can see how easy it is, even Salifert tests have step by step instructions. What does bother me though is people driving an hour or two to get here for a water test instead of saving the time to do it at home.

>>2377072
Agree on the impatient thing, people don't like to hear that we wait a month or two before any fish are introduced. So many customers buy a tank at Petco/smart and come to us for fish and are surprised when I tell them their one day old tank is unsafe. I barely need to mess with my freshwater tanks anymore since they're seasoned.

>>2377190
To be fair, fish-in cycles do work. I started my last tank with a few drops of bacteria booster, my toughest ancistrus, and a few zebra danios. No apparent health effects on the fish, and the tank was properly cycled when I did my first test the week after.

I have algae that grows all over everything in my 30 gallon. I have algae killer I add once a month, but it doesn't seem like I'm getting to the bottom issue of why it's growing. I do a 25% water change every week and a 80% water change every month to six weeks. I have one giant red belly piranha who is a messy eater and shots a LOT. He had a bro in his tank, but he was being super aggressive and I had to separate them. The other tank doesn't really have the same issue. Only fish I've ever owned where I has to wear gloves to move his tank rocks around. The aquarium has 3 plants that are alive and well but not thriving. It has cheap LED lighting but gets a good amount of light from outside even when the windows are covered.

>>2377072
Entry level needs a lot of asterisks behind it.

I recently started, again, after quite the hiatus. I used to keep goldfish in a 10 gallon and we had tropicals when I was a small child. I decided I needed a hobby to get my mind off of my dog's passing and took up fishkeeping again.

Keeping a few fancy goldens in a 10 gallon was easy as hell. Currently, I have 5 Cherry barb in my 20 gal and it's, again, real easy. Little more work as I also have plants now. Probably picking up a small pleco and a gourami after I've done a few more water tests.

They're easy. If you had a little 5 gal and stocked with a pair of small fish? That's an entry level pet for a kid.

That said, there are better options. You want an entry level pet because kids have the attention span of around fuck and all. You want something cheap, something robust, and something expendable. A 5 gallon set up?

For a complete kit, that'd probably be like $40. The fish? Maybe $6 since you don't have much wiggle room with only 5 gal. At least, I wouldn't push it. For the necessary chemicals and additives? That's probably another $30. Substrate and decor? I can get gravel substrate for about .50 cents a pound at my LFS. I like doing about a pound per gallon, so there's $2.50.

So, $78.50 for a simple 5 gallon set up.

So, it's entry level for adolescents, teens, and adults. For kids? Go with the good old potted plant trial.

>>2377198
>good amount of light from outside even when the windows are covered.
Found your problem. Natural light has a very high PAR compared to aquarium lights. Any imbalance between lighting, CO2, and fertilizers will cause blooms. Likely you have too much light for the amount of available CO2.

Well my Betta has been living happily for a couple years with a little community of snail and Amano shrimp. Today he killed all four shrimp. He's never even paid any attention to them before.

Is there anything I can do aside from shouting "Bad fish!" A few times?

>>2377203
Multiple fancies in a 10 gallon? That seems impossible given that they can grow to softball size, anon. How long did they live?

But yeah, setup is the most you'll ever spend on a tank. After that? No cleaning up solid waste, no cleaning out the entire cage, no buying lights over and over, no weird smells (except for if your tank re-cycles but it's easy to contain it under a lid), and very interesting to watch because there's always activity in the tank. Fish really are amazing, worth the patience, and very little work once you're all set up.

>>2377211
I had two that came from a friend's breeding operation. They stayed pretty tiny, even as adults. I say they're fancy, but I'm not sure. They looked fancy, with the big tails, but I could be wrong. They lasted a few years until said friend offered to buy them back since the Black Moor turned out really nice. He was a friend, so I gave them back free of charge.

Admittedly, still a newbie and I know fuck all about goldfish breeds. I definitely lean tropical and will probably start looking into a saltwater set up at some point in the future.

>>2377209
Nope, just random temperament from your fish. I keep amanos with angelfish, who are a lot bigger than bettas, and, if anything, it's the fish who are afraid of the shrimp, judging by how quickly the fish flee if the shrimp move near them.

Bettas are called fighting fish for a reason. They're usually only aggressive towards other fish with big, fancy fins, but clearly yours threw a tantrum.

>>2376793

Yeah, come to the Petsmart in my local and tell me the same thing.

They're literally in tubs on the floor with barely any water, what little water there is is brown and smells like a rotting bag of leaves, they're all half dead with 1000 pest snails eating them.

>>2377215
Only asking out of curiosity because I'd love goldfish, but my largest tank is a 10 gallon.

How much could you overstock a non Cichlid tank? I understand it would require more care. Currently I have a 37 gallon tank with two filters rated for 40 gallons (Top fin Power Filter 40 and Top Fin Internal Filter 40) sitting at 96% stocking. I would like to have a small school of top level fish, like Zebra Danio's. Adding 5 of the Zebra's puts me at 110%. Currently there are 7 Tiger Barbs, 3 Buenos Aires Tetra's, and a juvenile Rainbow Shark (I know the tank isn't a perfect size for him).

>>2377276
Don't keep goldfish in aquariums, they're pond fish. You'd need an enormous aquarium, and goldfish shit so much you would only have the one and still need to do serious water changes.
Just grab a ten gallon heater and fifteen gallon sponge filter, do a tropical setup. Gouramis are beautiful and have interesting behaviours, tetras and danios are very energetic and fun to watch, and most of them can even be bred at home.

Ten gallons is plenty for a small school of small tetra and a betta, for instance. I would do six neon tetras (never go fewer than that together, they'll get stressed), a male betta and an amano shrimp. Add in a plant or two and a small bit of driftwood and you could have a very happy and easily managed little tank.

>>2377282
You can go to something like 150%, but you're going to need to do a lot of water tests until you get a grip on the more frequent waterchanges you'll need.

>>2377287
Yeah, I have nano species in my 10g right now. But I love goldfish and have always wanted some.

A pond is of my budget unfortunately.

File: b14d7d87c3541d761581bf28b70886d7.jpg (65KB, 800x600px) Image search: [Google]

65KB, 800x600px

>>2377276
I wish I could be of more help, but I can't honestly say I'm going to be of much help. Sorry about that, anon.

They were very easy to care for, I can tell you that. I was curious and had to call up the dude to see if they were still kicking. The black moor JUST died 3 weeks ago. That would've placed him around 10 years of age or so. He was easy to keep track of as he's the only moor he's had. He lost track of the other one I gave him. Though, if I were to do it again? I would've gone with a bigger tank. He told me ten would be fine so long as I was diligent about the water changes. However, I know a lot more now than I did then, so I would still prefer the larger tank.

I picked up a 20 at my LFS for a little over $70, which included filter, lights, heater, some food, and dechlorinator.

It's just about done with a fish cycle using cherry barbs and they're doing really well. They have a nice personality and are brave little guys. I can reach into the tank, adjust the plants and they'll gather around my hand. It might be a nice alternative to goldfish. You could fit 4-5 in a 10 gal. They have a wide temperature spread (72-82F/22-27C) and a neutral pH.

>>2377264
I've been hit and miss with chain stores.

There's a Walmart near my LFS. I'm not too shy about buying from a Walmart since I know how to deal with the fish there. When I got to the pets aisle? It was like an aquatic fucking Jonestown. It was pretty bad. Plecos, cichlids, angel fish, all belly up and it's so bad that you can barely see the lighting in the tank.

Now, there's a Walmart closer to me and I swear the guy that's the head of the pets department there is a fishkeeper at home since I never see any dead fish, water's clear, tanks are never over stocked. They still shouldn't be selling common plecos, but that's the mart for you.

Been to Petco and a Petsmart with similar results to the first. Slimy plants and dead fish.

>>2377291
And I love tigers, but that doesn't mean I can keep one in my apartment. Sorry anon, but goldfish aren't really aquarium fish, they want ponds or enormous tanks to be happy. Don't torture an animal you love by keeping it in too small a tank. Twenty five gallons minimum for a fancy goldfish, forty for a regular goldfish.

File: wtf.jpg (123KB, 500x333px) Image search: [Google]

123KB, 500x333px

>Come home from work
>One of my newer bettas is laying on ground of his tank
>Slight panic
>Start talking to him
>No response
>Tap on glass lightly
>No response
>Tap on glass really hard so it makes a good loud noise
>He jerks but otherwise no movement
>FUCK
>Start to look around for water treatment so I can start a water change
>Look back and he starts to get up
>Swims around a minute then starts begging for food like nothing is wrong

I think I just woke him up, but I'm used to seeing him laying in the roots of the plants up top. Still, gave me a good scare considering I don't have any clue how old he is.

Just got my Africans from live fish direct today. They' all seem happy and healthy except for one of the yellow labs. He's going wherever he wants just fine, but he's oriented art a 45 degree angle and seems to be working pretty hard at it. Swim bladder issue? I checked Google but couldn't find anything where the person asking didn't know how to cycle a tank properly. My tank was fully cycled for a week before I even ordered the fish. 0 ammonia, 0 nitrite 5.

>>2377305
Anything *except* people who didn't know how to cycle a tank

>>2377305
He might be constipated. Boil some peas, and peel them, then feed them to him (after they've cooled back down).

>>2377291
A 20 or 30 gallon isn't that much, and considering you wouldn't need a heater, it would be cheaper.

Just get a 30 and two of the small/smaller variety of fancies that don't grow to be fucking huge.

>>2377194
Not my preferred method but yes, I guess they can work in some cases. But in the case of new customers that want to get some of the more delicate or trickier fish to do a fish-in, at least I warn them beforehand in case their purchases die. Good thing we have a lot of Danios.

Sometimes I wonder about customers who have gone and I haven't seen for awhile. Dunno if their fish are alive or not.

>>2377190
>are surprised when I tell them their one day old tank is unsafe
Oh anon, to be innocent like you.
Last summer I worked at a pet shop chain in my country. I was told "your job is to sell the merchandise" when I told a woman she shouldn't buy both the tank and a the fish at the same time and my boss happened to overhear.
So idiotic, considering they put me on the fish and turtle section in the first place because I knew about how to run aquariums.

>>2377341
Chains are always about playing the short game, sadly.

Can I keep a blue acara with a bunch of amano shrimp and cardinal tetras in a 200l? All I can find is that they want 120l or more and get up to 15cm long, so cardinals and amanos should be big enough, right?

>>2377346
My LFS is a chain store, but they actually have a really good guy handling the fish section. He even orders in saltwater fish if you ask him (their saltwater stock normally is just clownfish and hermit crabs).

My god damn Clown Pleco died today, fucker was gorgeous. I think he starved himself to death, as he refused to leave the safety of his driftwood for anything. He suddenly came out, swam a little bit, flipped on his back and his eyes glazed over.

Fuck I liked him. Guess I'll have to look for something else. I'm thinking Oto cats or MORE AMANOS.

Any recommendations anons? 29g Planted aquarium. Platys, Danios, Cory Cats, and Amano Shrimp.

>>2377440
Hillstream loaches.

>>2371505

Q.

I really want to set up another aquarium. I'm thinking 20gal freshwater. I have a 5 and 10 gallon set up currently they've been running for a couple years. I cycled them individually and am wondering how I would start a cycle with another aquariums water. Approximately how much water would I add? Would it just be easier to throw in some of the old filter media?

>two and a half years ago
>setting up tank
>get a pair or nerite snails because they look so cool
>two months later
>snail eggs all over my driftwood, filter and glass
>regret the snails
>one month later
>one of the snails dies
>quiet sigh of relief, now they can't go on mating, I think
>eggs continue appearing all over everything
>"It'll die soon enough, it's just a snail..."
>read that their average lifespan is a year
>two years later, today
>the remaining snail is still going strong, and still pooping out eggs all over everything
I swear, this little fucker is living this long just to annoy me.

>>2377462
It's not the water, it's the filter, decoartions, and substrate. Those are the places the bacteria live. One trick is to run the filter along side your current filter in another tank, or take the filter from your existing tank, and run it for 3 days or so. That will get you cycled fast as fuck. You can also put some of the media from one filter into the other to start your cycle.

>>2377462
What I do is grab a handful of gravel from the old tank, fill it up with fresh water, crumble some food flakes in there to get the bacteria in the gravel multiplying, then turn on the filter. Then I take the filter sponge from my established tank, and squeeze some of it out over the intake on the new filter. Presto, bacteria transplanted.

>>2377462
Get some Tetra Safe Start Plus. Condition tank. Then dump the entire fucking bottle into your tank. Presto, tank cycled!

Anyone here with small shrimp tanks ie >5 gallons that could share some pics? I'm looking for design ideas.

>>2377288
Thanks Anon, I'll make sure to figure out my water changes.

>too depressed to properly take care of my fish

It was fun why it lasted i guess

>>2377518
If anything, taking care of my fish makes me happier.

And it's not like it's a lot of work. Initial startup, maybe. After that, feed 'em once a day. Change water once a week. Stimulate them here and there.

Not exactly the most demanding pet.

>>2377469
put coppersafe in the tank

it's harmless to fish in small doses and it's good for killing bacteria, parasites, algae, and snails within days

>>2377518
>letting your fish die slowly of neglect because you're sad
Noice

I'm on day 3 of cycling my tank with fish food and live pond snails. Ammonia readings still at 0 even though I see snail shit in the tank. Is this normal?

>>2377569
3 days isn't really enough to take away any real measurements, unless you kickstarted the cycle with an old filter or substrate.

Give it another week and check again.

>>2377570
Thanks anon.

Should I keep adding fish food every day?

>>2377573
No. Just let it do it's thing, man. Patience is a virtue.

I've let all my tanks cycle naturally. It takes longer, but I almost always have perfect results that last.

>>2377575
I was told the bacteria would die if I stop adding fish food, will they be ok without it?

>>2377578
Nah dude.

You have snails in there? You've already added some fish food?

It'll be good.

Although you could add some flakes for your snails every now and again.

>>2377518
>making innocent creatures live in their own filth, slowly dying of exposure to nitrate because you're a sad sack.

Don't do that to them, give the tank and fish to someone who wants them.

>>2377209
Ive had this happen with my boy Dragon. Housed him with Ghost Shrimp that he mostly left alone. He was a chill betta. Then one day one of the ghost shrimp poked him during a nap. He killed all six of them after that.

Awhile after that I housed him with my sorority. He got along and mostly ignored the females but female number 7 nipped at him. He removed most of her fins for the slight and spent the rest of the time harassing the rest of the females. Had to remove number 7 and reintroduce Dragon to restore peace

File: 20170510_013139.jpg (3MB, 3264x1836px) Image search: [Google]

3MB, 3264x1836px

>>2377665

File: 20170510_013521.jpg (2MB, 3264x1836px) Image search: [Google]

2MB, 3264x1836px

>>2377668
White cloud minnow moving extremely fast

File: 20170510_014027.jpg (2MB, 3264x1836px) Image search: [Google]

2MB, 3264x1836px

>>2377672
It's a feast tonight bois

>>2377545
>>2377588

I fucking implied I was giving them away

> given a 20 gallon tank recently

Never had an aquarium before so what should I fill this bitch up with, /aq/? Mind all I have is the tank at the moment

>>2377730
Read up on the nitrogen cycle in tanks and get yourself a heater because there's much more variety in tropical to keep you interested.

>>2377729
No you didn't. Retard.

Maybe you're not depressed. Maybe you just have autism.

I'm thinking of doing a 40g Breeder tank and making it into a Endler's Colony tank. Plant it up really well, then put two breeding sets in of 3 to start and watch the magic happen. Only other things in it would be amano shrimp. That or a platy colony.

>>2377730
As a first time aquarist, probably guppies, platys, or neon tetras. I personally really like endlers livebearers. Read up like>>2377747 suggested. Don't skimp out on filtration and get a test kit. They don't have to be fancy or expensive. A simple sponge filter is great and cheap. Just don't get fooled into undergravel like Petco chains will try to bamboozle you into.

>>2377674
>all these meme fish

>>2377798
>It was fun why it lasted

I guess autists cant into subtext

Gonna have to move soon.

I really don't want to get rid of my bettas, but more than likely they won't allowany pets.

I'm thinking of winning them over by temporarily putting the bettas in small bowls and showing the manager that so they don't worryabout water damage from an aquarium. Once I'm there, then I think I'll work on setting up some outside tanks and making them weather proof. I'm already experimenting with an emptytank right now.

What kind of media does /aq/ use for freshwater?

I have been reading that some planted tank owners don't use carbon and tend to replace it with my sponge/physical media.

As of now I just run the basic chemical, biological, and physical media with the chemical being ammonia/carbon combination.

Any tips would be appreciated.

>>2377977
How will management know you have tanks in your apartment?

If you ever need them to enter for anything just cover them with a blanket and make sure they don't screw with the cover. How many tanks do you have?

>>2377879
>meme fish
Go back to rebbit

>>2377978
I prefer sponge. My 50gal though has a triple filtration system with sponge, carbon and ceramics. The goldfish in there have been doing great for 8+ years (except for an ich outbreak caused by introducing a new fish incorrectly)

>>2377978
My canisters have medium and fine holed sponge and ceramic ring biomedia. My larger tanks have carbon. I'm thinking of switching to marinepure bioballs since they're easier to clean. I run those in my saltwater and it's been doing well. It's been debated whether or not carbon is essential to run for planted tanks, I personally don't know if it's making my tanks better.

>>2377538
I don't want to kill the snail. If I wanted to I could just pick her up and toss her out through the window. It would feed cruel to kill an animal just because I made a mistake.

>>2375766
Bamboo shrimp are very water sensitive in my experience. They are also filter feeders, so I hope you've got some sort of water flow that it can sit in

>>2375938
I've had platys do this, dumb fuckers

>>2377847
>undergravel
Explain this to me and why it's not favorable. I got all my stuff from a nice little fish store and not a chain.

I am genuinely curious.

>>2377449
Seconding this. Hillstream loaches are cool af.

>>2377665
>>2377668
>>2377672
>>2377674
NGL, that's some really nice aquascaping. Mine blows, at the present but I'm going to try and improve it real soon here.

>>2376526
Betta must have been sick. Amano shrimp are weak as fuck, and a healthy betta would have demolished them

>>2378167
It's a heavily planted tank, and I've aimed the filter exhaust to blow pretty strongly over some amazon leaf plants and a clump of wood, so I think there should be enough to feed off and some good places for him to perch.

>>2377983
Three, and I would rather not lie about it. Managers don't put up with that type of bullshit around here. You just tell them up front if you have pets, and sometimes they work with you, sometimes they don't.

>>2378171
speculation on undergravel filters
>caveman technology
>can harvest 100% concentrated fish shit extract
>pain in the ass to clean because of trapped fish shit
>limited to permeable substrate

literally why have a undergravel filter when you can service a more flexible one?

>>2378296
That makes a lot of sense. Thanks for the clarification!

>>2376716
These posts were worth reading, long live Masta.

I have a 100l tank and a 150l filter. There's a cheap 250l tank without filter for sale in the area. Is it possible to run the large tank with the smaller filter for a month or two until I have enough money to get a big filter? The tank would be unstocked while it cycles and after it's cycled I'd probably keep just a small shoal of tetras or something else, understocking it basically.

Would that work?

File: tank.jpg (823KB, 1296x972px) Image search: [Google]

823KB, 1296x972px

Back again with Test readings. I got the Tetra kit this time

Nitrates are sitting at around 60
Nitrites rose to 5ish somehow
pH reads at around 8+ which is a lot higher than the API tests suggested
GH 75
KH 30
chlorine and ammonia at 0

Ive just gotten my purigen in the mail and have cholla would arriving in a few days for the pH but I still can't figure out why my nitrates are so high to begin with. Tested my tap water and there are no nitrates in it

Using Caribsea Floramax, was dosing with Excel but stopped

Plants:
-1 cup of Naja Grass
-2 pothos vines
-1 handful of frogbit, salvinia and dwarf water lettuce
-1 Anubia nana
-1 small Jungle Val
-3 meme balls

Fish
-1 betta
-1 chinese algae eater

Other
-empty snail shell

in the middle of another water change but here's a current picture. Where the hell is my problem? I mention the shell because I washed it out and there's no smell of rotting snail inside but you never know

>>2378301
no
just buy a filter you faggot

>>2378171
Ty m8

>>2377879
Yep, I started my tank on this board, and these were recommendations from anons. I will be getting rid of my albino corydoras once the youngins get a bit bigger, neons too. My DWG isn't doing well and I hope removing the corys will help. Once it's established idk what to get maybe just more WCMs. Like 50

>>2375766
Okay, panic over. This night I checked on him twice, and he was feeding both times. Once on top of the filter, waving his fans around, and the other time on an amazon sword plant nowhere near the exhaust, but whatever he likes I guess. He still hid when the lights came on, but it's nice to know he's at least eating again, and particularly that he's eating well enough to not eat shit from the substrate. Maybe he'll come out during the day after another week or two.

>>2378462
Cory cats are cute, but yeah, I really don't see what people like about the albino ones.

File: 20170508_065918.jpg (4MB, 4032x3024px) Image search: [Google]

4MB, 4032x3024px

>Got a 10g Betta Tank going,
>Looks pristine.
>Ares is cruisin" the glass, wigglin' between his anacharis, sitting on the micro swords.
>Nips at trumpet snails periodically because "The fuck is this moving rock thing?"
>Decide to test him, because I want to raise red cherry shrimp.
>Set breeder box in his tank.
>Net one of the dwarf white mollies my friend pawned onto me from my 29g.
>thing is a third Ares' size.
>Ares kind of ignores the box for a bit.
>Betta senses tingle.
>Zoomed straight toward this white invader.
>Engage Rage Mode.
>Flares up, starts flailing at the breeder box.
>Molly sits there and takes it like a bitch.
>Laugh heartedly, egg Ares on.
>Finally take the molly out.
I guess I can't have Red Cherries in with him, but holy shit he's a champ.