/aq/ Aquarium General

Guy whose housesitter switched off his heater and filter here. So far I've lost one shrimp and one fish. Could be worse but I'm still upset.

>>2416958 #
It baffles me that she was so concerned about "saving energy" in someone else's house.
I guess I shouldn't be surprised, given how stupid people are.

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so i just got gifted a fish bowl with two small guppies and live plants. i think it's about 4 litres (1gal). it doesn't have a light, heater or a filter. i don't have any experience in keeping fish but i know bowls aren't ideal. should i invest in a bigger tank right away or is there a way to make the fish comfortable in the bowl? should i definitely buy some kind of filter? what else do i need? i haven't tested the water yet.

pic not mine but similar

>>2417086
buy at least a 5 gal fishtank but preferably a minimum of 10 && get a filter. i use sponge filters with airpumps but you can buy a HOB (hang over back) filter or one might come with the aquarium if you buy a kit. u also need a heater and probably some substrate, are those live plants

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Watching a bunch of pygmy cories scoot along the bottom with each other as they forage is so great. Feels like my tank is finally perfect, that this particular fish is thriving.

>>2417086
They can't really breathe without water movement, and the lack of a filter catridge is going to make waste and other nasty shit build up in the water pretty fast. Not a great existence. If you care about making your fish happy, get yourself an actual 5-gal kit with filter and pump and all that included.

Is it possible for amano shrimp to eat a small fish overnight? One of my dwarf rasboras was wasting away from old age for a long time and today it's missing from the tank. I did a thorough tank clean and gravel vac and and there's not a trace of it. I'm paranoid that it's stuck somewhere and it's going to cause an ammonia spike.

>>2417092
I'm jealous. I want pygmy cories so fucking bad. Too bad the only pet store that has them sells them for $8 each and I'm a poorfag.

>>2417040
I think she might have been legitimately retarded. She did a bunch of other stupid shit too, like re-arranging some of my furniture and clothes despite me telling her to leave everything alone. Just my luck to get someone like that.

>>2417086
A filtered 5 gallon tank is good enough as a bare minimum for a couple guppies, but 10 gallons end up costing about the same and will give you more options for the future. You can get a basic 10 gallon kit (tank, filter, light) for $30 new. Also try classifieds like Craigslist.

The bowl can be used just for plants, or you can try dwarf shrimp in it.

>>2417086
I'm sorry anon but you can't keep any fish in 1gal. Guppies especially aren't suited to a very small tank. You better buy a proper tank or you'll have dead guppies pretty soon.

Though you could keep a small shrimp colony in the bowl. Shrimp need a lot less space than fish and 10 or more can live in that bowl easily.

>>2417107
8 dollar pygmies? That's rough. I work at Petco and I got some pygmies for 0.99 cents plus my employee discount, but we haven't gotten them since so I had to go somewhere that sells them for 2.99 each. Feels steep for how small and fragile they are. $8 is not worth it IMO.

So, I bought 4 guppies for my tank the other day and there were two fry that hitchhiked along with them. One of the fry was in the bag, so I was able to put it into a cup of water. The other fry made it into the tank and somehow survived the night as I noticed it the next day.
So I got one of those 3-way breeders and put the two fry in it. They are growing up quick, buy my two angels are constantly watching them. I hope they don't get ate when I release them into the actual tank.

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My anubis uprooted and is hanging on by this one thread. I wonder if it can pull itself back down.

Do fish actually "play" in filter currents? My ember tetras have the whole tank to swim around in but they seem to love grouping up and throwing themselves at the tiny spot where the current tide is strongest, which blows them all over the place. I can never tell if they do that on purpose or if they're just unaware and trying to "attack" it or fight the current especially hard due to instinct or something.

>>2417086
lmao what kind of gift is this??? they just gave you a damn problem
you're gunna have to spend more money on this "gift" than they did

>>2417213
>I wonder if it can pull itself back down.
No, but given enough time it might anchor to the driftwood instead.

>>2417247
I've seen this in a few different fish that supposedly "don't like" strong flow. As long as there are low flow areas in the tank as well I wouldn't worry about it.
I used to have a male feeder guppy who would actually manage to swim up the filter current and jump into the compartment of my HOB. I named him Salmon.

>>2417299
Too late. My damn snail crawled on it and now it's floating at the top.

>>2417300
just use some thread or fishing line and tie it down

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>>2417247
My fish love playing in the currents.

>>2417306
I can bury it again, I just wanted to see if it would somehow root itself back in the ground on its own.

>>2417299
>>2417307
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jKryoIprSQc

Their behavior is exactly like the fish in this vid. They will often group up and go flying at the current, let it push them away, then turn around and go for it again. They don't do it constantly and definitely have more space than not in the tank to be in calm water so it makes me think it is intentional.

>>2417310
yep! they are just having fun. well, as much as fish can have at least.

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>>2417137
Look at this hungry fuck.

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Pretty shitty day, my fish are great and my landlord called and decided that the no pet rule will now cover fish. I guess a buddy of his told him that fish tanks make mold and mildew in the walls and ruins paint. And my personal favorite "ruining the floor support beams"

Now I gotta get rid of my fish or break out of a lease..bye fishies.

Also, these are my precious Corys seath and crystal I have 12 Cory and these 2 chill together and ignore the others.

>>2417325
How big is your aquarium? Pretty shitty rule though. I hate renting.

>>2417325
landlords can't generally change the lease after it's been signed. He broke the lease, not you. Talk to lawyers. Yes, they might be able to help.

they'll definitely be able to help if you refuse his changes and get kicked out for it. Personally I'd just shoot him an email or certified letter announcing that I won't be complying with his changes and if he doesn't like it he may take you to court.

>>2417325
You should be grandfathered into the terms of the lease you signed up for, meaning you could at least keep the tank until the lease is up.

>>2417336
>>2417339
Hmm...interesting thought there.

I have a friend who owes me a favor, might have him look into it.

Really don't wanna piss off the landlord though...

But damn I love my fish.
>>2417330
60 gallon

>>2417325
>seath and crystal
Nice

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Frog help! African dwarf frogs like all frogs lay eggs, so why is mine bloated so much, regardless of mating it appears like dropsy? Maybe not and its something to do with mating

>>2417435
that doesnt look normal

>>2417435
that is dropsy

>>2417439
>>2417438
What's weird is it goes away and comes back a lot

>>2417443
that is very strange. i have a pair and i never see that sort of thing

>>2417446
It also seems directly correlated to breeding. They are too young to make offspring, yet every time she is mounted, she bloats as in pic related. I am starting to think she is suffocating or something odd, because before I can even look back at the frog, she has come back down and the bloat is gone. I was staring at it for 10 minutes bloated, barely swimming, with a male on her back, and looked at my snail, looked back, and she was not in the same location.;

I then thought, okay, I will count all 6 of my frogs, counted all 6, and none of them were bloated whatsoever.

This is all a ~30 second timeframe. Very strange, and no research leads to these symptoms.

I am starting to believe it has some sort of sickness unrelated to dropsy

Cutting back on feeding for a day

>>2417450
adding another thing--

Dropsy apparently affects the legs and arms, yet my frog in pic related has no bloating there, this is so odd and I'm afraid I can't find any information on the internet related to this beyond dropsy, which I am starting to doubt. When it is dismounted, it deflates-- whether it gets air or not-- I have not been able to see how it deflates itself.. but it is nearly instant. I looked at it bloated, pic related, looked away, looked back, and its to normal size... Dropsy just won't do that.. And both times it has been inflated, it was mating... Perhaps a reproductive system failure or lympathic disease triggered by premature mating? It is a small, very young frog

Hopefully some pros here can figure this out with me, since it may happen to another frogkeeper one day

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>"How are your fish today?" edition

>>2417345
>Hmm...interesting thought there.
>I have a friend who owes me a favor, might have him look into it.
>Really don't wanna piss off the landlord though...
>But damn I love my fish.
There is ZERO reason for your landlord to get pissed. Don't be autistic about it and approach him like a normal human being.

You have lived in your apartment for quite some time with that fish tank. A few more months until your lease ends shouldn't be a big deal.

That anon is totally right: you signed a lease. It is a contract that goes both ways. He can't just change anything he wants in the middle willy nilly. For instance he can't raise your rent 50% at months six just because his other properties failed or whatever. Renters have rights as well.

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Turns out this guy most likely is not an aquarium, I took the water out today in preperation for taking it apart and there are no seals for waterproofing at all. Oh well i'm still going to turn it into an aquarium, I'll just add the seals, I amazed it held up for a week with all that water in it and no silicone seals.

>>2417474
Shrimp paradise?

>>2417491
The landlord might be a shitter who has a lease TERMS CAN CHANGE AT ANY TIME. But I think that might be illegal, at worst he would have to give you whatever the legally required eviction time is, and you would pay no penalty of any kind for breaking the lease.

>>2417521
Yep

>>2417510
Is it glass or acrylic?

>>2417529
Glass, I'm going to take it apart and redo the silicone anyways, also adding a euro brace or just a regular cross brace depending on the glass I can find.

>>2417450
Not sure if dwarf frogs do it, but I've heard some frogs puff themselves up as a defensive response to predators or unwillingness to mate to an aggressor.

Just throwing it out there.

>>2417524
Totally right. He might put in some shitty clause, but even those have legal limits and in these cases it's super easy to get out of a lease with no penalties.

Regardless, good luck anon. Renting is such a shit world.

>>2417537
terrariums and vivariums use thinner glass than aquariums. That's why your glass was bowing. That thing shouldn't be holding water, it's not built for it. Even if you fix the seams the glass will break.

https://discord.gg/7x7U8s anyone wanna join my discord? better than the other animal discord.

>>2417550
If he reinforces it enough, in the right places, it would work. I'm the guy with a bunch of tempered glass shelves, and basically if I make sure the glass is supported by something strong enough every 12 inches I could probably make some big tanks. In his case it's probably better to just get a real aquarium at this point, cost-wise, unless he has the materials and tools on hand already, and wants to risk it leaking/exploding.

>>2417550
>>2417554
It's 1/4" thick non tempered glass, it'll be fine for a 40 breeder, i just need to find a scrap piece for the brace/s. Im planning to reattach the bottom rim when I reassemble it. It shouldn't cost more than $25 bucks for the supplies (i have a caulk gun just need silicone, some more razors, painters tape, maybe a glass cutter, and a scrap pice of glass). If it explodes my house is tile floor in the room I plan on having it so oh well I guess, Im sure it'll be fine though.

>>2417565
>It's 1/4" thick
lolno

So I had a 20 gallon for several years. Gravel, some plants, at first a HOB then a sponge filter. Started with petsmart neon tetras, eventually ended up with some shelldwellers. These were fully grown when I got them and several died in a power outage while I was away. The rest died of natural causes one by one over the next year... or so I thought. See, the tank, with nothing in it and the light broken, went neglected by me for like 7 months. No feeding, no water changes, filter on but partially clogged. I decided to redo it completely so I pulled everything out, emptied it, and removed the gravel... to find a single shelldweller alive in the gravel! He was faded and skinny, but alive. I put him in my pond because that was the only option available at the time (I found him with the gravel out of water) and hopefully he will survive for now.

>>2417573
https://www.monsterfishkeepers.com/forums/threads/glass-thickness-guide.139898/
I'll take my chance, I know you contrarians like to try and shit on anything you get the chance to, but I'm confident it'll hold.

>>2417645
You don't know how to measure.

You posted a pic of something much thinner than 1/4". It might be 1/8".

>>2417649
Yeah I'm off by half when I measured it, your eyes and my shit picture should be the judge instead. I'm certain it is 6mm /1/4", look at the side with some trim still on it, it would have exploded already when it was bowing if it was 3mm.

>>2417652
>I'm certain it is 6mm /1/4",
it's not.

if it was you'd post a pic of the measure.

but it's not and we both know it.

>>2417654
Sheeeeit, you're right my dude, good eye. it's 4mm, I'm gonna cut it up and make a smaller tank. I got all fuckin excited trying to get a good pic next to the measure and then noticed i was off by 2/32nd of an inch when I didn't use the end of the tape, oopsie! I guess I shouldn't have measured it stoned, kek.

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>>2417656
kek

>>2417656
I was going to offer to buy you a real tank but if you've got weed I guess you can afford one.

>>2417089
>>2417094
>>2417118
>>2417122
thanks guys. i don't have room for anything bigger than 5 gallon, so this will have to do.

>>2417271
ikr. they were convinced the fish were fine in the bowl.

>>2417686
/aq/ has never kept fish in a bowl and they think it's doomed to failure or at least a terrible life for the fish.

Like most of the info on /aq/, this is false.

in reality fish can be perfectly happy in an unfiltered, unheated bowl. You just have to feed them very little and change the water fairly often. That's it.

that kind of regimented discipline is well beyond the retards here though. So they assume you can't handle it either.

>>2417691
>(You)

>>2417521
man why wont MY grass grow like that?

>>2417553
>dead invite

I like the existing server and there are good reasons why it's as large as it is. A lot of servers die off because of incompetence and shitposting being left uncontrolled, but Mystical's server has always had a equal balance. Most of it is also /herp/ and /aq/ people running the show with inverts sprinkled everywhere. There's no reason to make alternative servers and just continue to eat up traffic when /an/ already has an abnormally large server as it is.

http://discord.gg/PkHpg8U

>>2417775
If you're European, the server probably not a great option. It's very American-oriented, but there are several europoors in the shadows. I thought just one server was a mistake back then, having another will just kill the board completely.

>>2417785
>If you're European, the server probably not a great option. It's very American-oriented, but there are several europoors in the shadows.

Depends. On some days all the americucks aren't there until the evening, which is the middle of the night for yuropoors on others it's more balanced.

>>2417775
I don't know man people seem fucking stupid their. I joined and quit right away.

>>2417702
Let it root and throw in a few root tabs and it takeover in no time

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>>2417790
You're not in a position to call anyone stupid if you confuse their and there

>>2417790
Discord attracts idiots, but this server is far better than the previous one from months back, which was nothing but some trap with a cult of personality and many beta orbiters.

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>>2417795
Server a shit

>>2417797
>Lucy da Empress

kek it was only a """/an/ server""" for two weeks until """she""" realised she could get men to donate to her patron in order to see """her""" feminise benis, then up and deleted it after a few months.

>>2417800
Did that actually happen?

I can see why people are against discord here if they joined that shitshow

>>2417805
Yeah. Lucy's server was the original /an/ server way back in 2015-2016 when Discord was just barely not mainstream. Not many people remember her though or wiped their memories of her away.

Then /aqherp/ was a joint thing that was only shilled a few times before they gave up and it became a circlejerk. Mystical's server is the current one that most people are aware of and it's a more successful continuation of /aqherp/ that effectively became the main server for /an/.

>>2417691
Nigga believe me I've kept fish in bowls multiple times, doing multiple water changes a week, and it just doesn't work for longer than a month or two.

>>2417686
5gal is ok. The guppies should be fine but in my experience they do tend to jump out of small tanks so put some floating weeds in there to stop them.
Here are some other good nano tank choices:
>betta
>shrimp
>Endler's livebearer
>dwarf rasbora
>celestial pearl danio
>dwarf pea puffer (should be kept alone)

There's probably more that I can't remember right now. I've got a heavily planted 5gal with shrimp and a few dwarf rasboras. Everyone is happy. Just remember to do water changes twice a week or more often.

>>2417619
bait

>>2417916
No, it's a true story. Please refrain from saying "bait" in the context of keeping small aquarium fish.

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>>2417916
>>2417928

>>2417900
>it just doesn't work for longer than a month or two
then you didn't "keep" them. You failed.

not everyone sucks like you.

>>2417956
When I was a kid, my grandma kept a betta in a vase with a pothos in it for years and I don't even remember her feeding it. Sometimes he would be floating at the top and that would be when she changed the water. We were on well water.

can aqt pls identify this fish?
http://imgur.com/a/vmLGc

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>>2417981
seriously pls help

>>2417993
Emperor Tetra
Literally took me seconds to google it "freshwater fish black stripe yellow fin"

>>2418001
>Emperor Tetra
Thanks anon

>>2417107
Amano Shrimp do eat dead fish and if said fish is pretty small (like your dwarf rasbora) chances are there is not a single trace left.

That beiing said I would check plants, stones/driftwood/decorations and your filter, dead bodies tend to end up in strange places

>>2417965
Your grandma tortured a fish? Cool story.

>>2417900
thank you for help anon. i ended up buying a 8 gallon. it has a top so jumping out won't be a problem i expect.

>>2418034
She also put her last two dogs down by ODing them on the dog's pain meds.

>>2418020
While doing my gravel vac I turned my tank inside out and checked all plants and decorations. I'm paranoid about dead things getting stuck and giving me ammonia problems. Looks like they did eat it leaving no trace behind. Thanks anon.

I also keep finding empty snail shells among the gravel. Looks like the amanos are taking care of my snail problem as well.

>>2418151
>I also keep finding empty snail shells among the gravel. Looks like the amanos are taking care of my snail problem as well.
Unlikely. The snails are probably dying of natural causes. You'll find dead snail shells at the bottom of any tank that contains snails.

>>2417345
If you want help writing a letter or anything, let me know, anon. I'm not a lawyer, but I work in law, so I'm okay at this sort of thing

>>2418152
I constantly see the shrimp crowding the snails and climbing all over them. Sometimes they even knock them off plants. I assumed they were eating or at least killing them.

>lfs has kuhlis in
>start getting real sad because I don't have a cycled QT tank
>just remember I put an extra sponge filter in my main tank months ago
Feels good, man. I've seen dozens of people recommend having a spare sponge filter in your tank for stuff just like this, but I do have one concern. Doesn't taking a filter out of your tank mean that your tank will "crash" a bit afterwards? After all, you ARE taking away some bio filtration. Should I actually be concerned about this? I'm really worried about killing my RCS, I only just got their population started. )-:

>>2418047
My friend's mom gave her dog speed once. Old people should never really be trusted with anything living, honestly.

>>2418241
>Should I actually be concerned about this?
if you're lightly stocked it won't be a problem, but I'd test ammonia anyways.

The problem is each filter can only hold half as many bacteria as the tank can support. It's not like one is full of bacteria and the other is picking up the extra- they'll both have the same amount of bacteria. So no matter how you cut it you're removing 1/2 of your biofilter assuming they're both the same size.

this isn't a problem if the tank isn't overstocked for one filter though. The one you leave in will build up to full capacity in a matter of a few days.

>tl;dr: your concern is valid. try it but test water.

>>2418241
If it helps any we don't normally cycle or even necessarily filter our QT tanks. That would require keeping some fish in the QT tank all the time, which defeats the purpose.

most people just run a bare tank and handle ammonia with water changes and vacuuming out waste and leftover food regularly. It's a bit of work, but you're not doing it for long.

I was hoping my black kuhlis and stripeys would get along and 'hangout' but while the black kuhlis are super active when I feed them and chill in plain view, the stripeys just chill in my sump for most of the day/night

im wondering if I should get MORE stripeys since there are only 3 of them compared to my 6 black ones

>>2418292
Could cycle and maintain qt tanks with a small number of (healthy) feeders?

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Can I see your aquariums? I need some inspo. My wife is undecided but I want to set up a new tank. Here's my old ones

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5 gal shrimp house. I think it was still cycling at this photo

>>2418546
Added guppies last night, cat isn't sure what to think. A bunch of my plants are melting (mostly my R. Rotundifolia and C. Helferi, although a few S. Repens are as well). Petsmart is doing a buy 4 get 2 free on fish and I seriously considered just shooting the tank to "fully" stocked with guppies, sterbai cories, and a betta for guppy fry control, wasn't ready to commit to ten dollars per sterbai on a tank with no fish yet.

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>>2418558
fOrgOT mY piCTUre

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>>2418558
No shrimps? ??? Anon I am disappoint. In this tank, I introduced a dozen cherry shrimp. The population grew to a point where after a year. I took a one month vacation to China and returned to find everything was perfectly fine. No more need for water change or feeding. The shrimp had craftily taken over some moss for a nursery. The more adventurous baby shrimp provided food for the fish.

The tannins in the water and overgrowth of plants created a great ecosystem.

I wish I had a photo of the final version. The driftwood was replaced with a larger specimen and a moss wall was added under the filter. 60 gal for reference.

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>>2418558
The original.

I was all about channeling Takashi Amano when I found this. It was lovely. I wish I had a photo of the grown out tank. Perhaps I was too in love with it. The ex convinced me it was too big...

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Anyone here has experience with Atman aquariums? Are they good?

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>>2418546
125 gallon, same tank as OP pic.
I just trimmed the ambulia and took out about 5 pounds of duckweed and salvinia. I feel like I should trim back the Ludwigia forest canopy, but I also really like the way it looks.

>>2418569
planning on either amanos or rcs but not sure which.

>>2417435
>female pumped with so much frog semen it inflated

>>2418562
are your plants even alive

>>2418592
not settled yet, adapting to immersion is melting them, they were cultured

>>2418583
I recommend rcs to get a head start. I've always found them to be playful. I nicknamed one of mine Phelps. He loved to swim around all day while the others were working.

>>2418579
Looks great!

I'm a big fan of having half the tank as a forest. It let's you really fill it up. Can throw some rams in with pretty much everything if you have a forest.

I feel your pain on the trimming though.

>>2418558
PetSmart cories are so horribly overpriced. Is there nowhere else you can get them from? I've never had any luck with tissue cultured C. helferi. The Crypt undulata and Limnophila heterophylla are pretty easy.
Also bettas very rarely get along very well with male guppies. Maybe do a dwarf gourami instead.

>>2418562
20 gallon? Is everything in there from PetSmart?

so what do you guys do with your fish when they breed? do you let the fry fend for themselves or try to nurse them to a bigger size? do people sell their fish to their LFS? i cant imagine that one would get much money for it.

>>2418627
I woud have to order, rural PA has shit for LFS. Gourami is another idea I had for a centrepiece. Petco and Petsmart, what I didn't own already from an LFS in AZ.

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Can anyone ID this snail?

>>2418679
looks like a standard black mystery snail

>>2418635
i always wonder this too. i have nano fish and every site recommends breeding them. and i'm just like... why? i guess i could raise them but their parents would still be alive when they become adults and then i'd just have too many fish. but selling them/giving them to a pet store seems like a waste of time. why should i breed them? and no i don't buy species that aren't already captive bred.

>>2418687
Damn, I was hoping for something cooler. I've seen a few of them in my tank, hitchhikers from the plants I bought. I also have 1 standard (or possibly more) pond snail. I don't want them to eat all my plants, but I need something to eat the algae.

>>2418635
kiddie pool in the yard that local stray cats have been conditioned to frequent

>have some algae in tank
>don't have any "algae eaters"
>just feed fish less
>fish begin to eat the algae
>algae gone in a couple days

Dumbass people buying plecos for their 10 gallons to "eat algae" when it gets too big and is a shitmachine.

>>2418689
mystery snails are cool and can get big though. just be sure to add calcium to the water/their diet or their shells disintegrate. they shouldn't be eating live plants unless they are starving. just give them algae wafers

>>2418724
I already give algae wafers for whatever will eat them, but I haven't seen any of the snails touch them though.
I will let them live. I don't really care. I was hoping for a snail infestation so I could have an excuse to get some assassin snails.

>>2418558
Helferi will but will comeback. Mine did really good until I ran out of ferts.

>>2418728
they probably just aren't that hungry then

also i don't think assassin snails will go after mystery snails but i might be wrong. just buy ramshorn snails, they are small breed like crazy and are perfect for assassins to hunt

>>2418721
I mean, buying plecos for algae is still retarded, but your plan doesn't work unless people have very specific fish species.

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I can't catch a break! Anyone know what this black shit on my minnow is? I noticed it yesterday and it seems to be on a few of the other minnows as well. I started ODing Floursh Excel 4 days ago to combat the rust-looking algae you see on the rock. Several of my other plants have hair algae on them. Is it related? How do I fix this?

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Any Betta owners out there willing to give some tips? Was given a female crown tail and a 2 gal tank as a gift from some co-workers, "since anon is a fish fag." I have an old 5 gal tank that will soon start a fish-less cycle, so for the time being I will be using the 2 gal. My crown tail is fairly small, most likely approaching maturity, which I think was bought at a LPS. I know that the growth rate for Bettas is quick so the tank is temporary. My question is, to reduce ammonia levels would a 50% water change be efficient since I don't want to cause to much stress on my crown tail with a sudden influx of temperature change?

Water temps are at a solid 80-81 degrees Fahrenheit with a 7.5w heater, since its a small tank. Tank is filtered. Fairly new to Bettas. Ive searched Betta forums and either found information that consists:
>You fucking monster putting a betta in anything below 5 gal, kys
or
>Hurr durr take only 10% out idiot you don't want to ruin your cycle

Any experiences help.

>>2418755
Did you add bacteria?

>>2418771
I've added the recommended amount to the 2 gal. Just iffy on how much water to remove weekly for the ammonia that the bacteria cant cope with.

>>2418732
I've heard that if you have a herd of assassins they'll gangbang a mystery snail to death.

>>2418755
Speaking from experience with quarantine tanks (not bettas), just feed very lightly and do 25-50% changes twice a week or so.
The less she eats, the less she shits, and they only need one or two pellets a day to be okay.

>>2418781
Do you have water quality tests?

>>2418734
Looks like generic finrot. Just do water changes. You can use Melafix if you want, but it won't necessarily make a big difference.

>>2418790
Does fin rot affect the scales like that? Top of his back is black, almost looks like he was rolling in dirt.

>>2418771
>Did you add bacteria?
I love how /aq/ unironically asks this like adding bacteria does anything.

they all die because you add them before they have ammonia to eat.

>>2418819
If there are fish in the water, then there is ammonia for the bacteria.

>>2418821
it takes days or weeks for fish to release enough ammonia to feed your bacteria.

and even if you wait days or weeks for ammonia to build up it will take several more weeks after you add bacteria for nitrite to build up, so those bacteria will die either way.

>>2418819
>>2418824
>muh conjecture trumps any and all empirical evidence

>>2418828
what empirical evidence have you provided?

if anyone starts looking for empirical evidence they're going to find it's all on my side.

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>>2418830
Many such charts.

>>2418831
ah, you're retarded.

your chart shows sufficient ammonia ON THE TENTH DAY.

It also doesn't say how many fish or what size tank, which directly influences the speed ammonia builds up.

that chart assumes a fully stocked tank.

I'm sorry about your disability.

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>>2418734
Does anyone think it could be this:
https://fishpathogens.net/printpdf/850

I have been doing research for several hours but I'm still not sure.

>>2418857
Maybe I am overthinking it but I am going to do a complete teardown, clean everything, fill with fresh water and all that good shit, and then treat with Melafix. Gonna get some hydrogen peroxide to clean everything with. Hopefully it helps.

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I just bought a new plant today which I believe is some anubias, but I'm not really sure (not pictured)

I was wondering for my little betta how much flow on the filter is too much? I have it set to about half way, and he seems just fine, very happy really, but I noticed the leaves of the new plant flutter a lot under the filter. Just kinda a constant moving in the current.

Do you think I should turn the filter down all the way? I want him to be able to enjoy as much of his tank and plants and stuff without having to worry about current, but I want to keep water moving and not stagnant.

Also, I grabbed a small snail from the pet store for some algea cleanup. Was this a bad idea? How quick will I have billions of tons of escargot?

Pic related, it's my betta, Sir Charles Wormsworth.

>>2418635
I dump them in my turtle tank. They still grow and breed there too so it's a self sustaining food source for the turtle.

>>2418868
that should probably kill them.

why would you treat a suspected parasite with a mild antibacterial?
why would you sterilize a tank when the infection is in the fish?
why would you attempt to treat something when you don't know what it is or even if it's a problem?
do you know that most diseases are triggered by stress?
if so, why would you further stress your fish by tearing the tank down?
are you familiar with the idea of a biofilter?
how are you going to keep the biofilter alive while you sterilize the tank?
if the biofilter survives, doesn't that mean pathogens could survive in the biofilter as well?

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bought some honey gouramis today for my 50 gal to eat up any fry extra my platys produce as i have too many of the fuckers

already love them, think they are going to be tank favourites alongside my cory elegans. love how they explore with their feelers

>>2418883
>why would you treat a suspected parasite with a mild antibacterial?
On closer inspection, it looks nothing like the picture. I got a second set of eyes on it and we concluded it was not a parasite.
>why would you sterilize a tank when the infection is in the fish?
I suspected the infection is in the tank because I moved 1 sponge filter and a marimo ball to a betta tank several days ago and now the betta is exhibiting fin rot signs.
>>2418883
>why would you attempt to treat something when you don't know what it is or even if it's a problem?
The fish are turning black, I'm sure there is a problem.
>do you know that most diseases are triggered by stress?
Yes.
>if so, why would you further stress your fish by tearing the tank down?
They can deal with it, I'm sure. I will put everything back the way it was, hopefully that helps them cope.
>are you familiar with the idea of a biofilter?
Yes, I have two large sponge filters in addition to a HOB.
>>2418883
>how are you going to keep the biofilter alive while you sterilize the tank?
I'm going to sterilize the biofilter as well.
>>2418883
>how are you going to keep the biofilter alive while you sterilize the tank?
I'm not.
>>2418883
>if the biofilter survives, doesn't that mean pathogens could survive in the biofilter as well?
It won't and neither will the pathogens.

A lot of questions.

>>2418892
>A lot of questions
I'm trying to lead you to the understanding that sterilizing the tank does no fucking good when the disease is in the fish, not the surfaces of the tank.

You seem to have it all figured out though. Let us know how it turns out!
>I'm going to sterilize the biofilter as well.
lol'd out loud

>>2418894
Where did the fish get the disease from? I had to have been in the tank. At least, that is what I'm thinking... I'm new to all of this, this is really my first big tank. We will see how it goes.

>>2418896
It depends.
if it's a parasite it was in the fish or some animal when you bought it.
If it's bacterial it's in the fish, the water, the air, and on your skin.
if it's fungal it's also in the fish, the water, the air, and on your skin.

The only one of these situations where sterilizing the tank would do any good is if your fish are saltwater animals infected with marine ich, but that doesn't seem likely, and even then we don't usually sterilize the tank. It's much cheaper to leave it fallow for a year and let all the parasites in it die of natural causes.
You might also sterilize a tank in cases of whirling disease or contagious septicemia in freshwater, but in those cases you'd also kill the fish.

In every other possible case it's much cheaper and more effective to either treat the disease in place or move the fish to a QT tank for treatment. Sterilizing the tank surfaces does nothing except stress and kill your fish.

>>2418830
People use it and it works. As backed up by testing the water.

>>2418838
>that chart assumes a fully stocked tank.
So fully stock the tank, dunce.

>>2418873
>I was wondering for my little betta how much flow on the filter is too much?
If he's able to swim without difficulty it's fine.

>Was this a bad idea? How quick will I have billions of tons of escargot?
Depends on the type of snail and the size of the tank.

>>2418908
>People use it and it works. As backed up by testing the water
you will have 0 ammonia on day one and two whether it works or not.

>So fully stock the tank, dunce
you don't have to tell me, I never use that snake oil stuff.

you need to tell the people using it. Fully stock the tank. Wait 10 days. If your fish are still alive then dose the bacteria into your filter.

even then you still have to wait 2-4 weeks for nitrite to build up so you can dose bacteria again.

nobody ever does this stuff though. So the bacteria just die.

>>2418901
Well, I really hope they do survive this. I just got the H2O2 and the Melafix. This gives me something to do for a while anyways and it gives me peace of mind. I noticed the problem in my oldest minnow, since I had since about December. Then I noticed it in more of my minnows, some from my first batch, some from my most recent batch. Finally, I noticed it in some of my neon tetra, so that is what leads me to believe it is in the tank.

>>2418932
well the cool part is they're already sick so when you kill them you can blame it on their disease rather than your treatments.

but in 5 or 10 years you may begin to notice that all the fish you try to cure die, and many of the ones you ignore get better. With even more experience you may notice that keeping good water conditions prevents your fish from getting sick at all.

but those are perhaps lessons we need to each learn on our own.

>>2418945
I would bet you $5 per fish that they survive if I knew you in person.

>>2418953
you wouldn't be arguing with me if you knew me in person.

>>2418957
Not the betting type, eh?

>>2418789
I do, I check ppm level every other day and do a 20-30% water change when levels increase. I want to know if increasing the amount of water being changed reduces how frequent I need to change contaminated water. I feel like I'm stressing out my Betta by constantly draining water and adding new water. I have a feeling that it doesnt matter how much water is changed but I rather read from other anons with experiences first before accepting my thought.

>>2418960
I don't usually trust poor people.

no bet is necessary though. Do your thing and learn.

>>2418967
Ok and when they don't die, then what? Will you concede? I really don't see why you think they are going to die.

>>2418966
>I want to know if increasing the amount of water being changed reduces how frequent I need to change contaminated water
it does.

the reason it's not recommended is because larger water changes are more likely to produce sudden swings in pH and temperature which can both be problems.

>>2418969
>Will you concede?
concede what? I'm advising you, not arguing with you.

you're free to ignore my advice and see what happens. I'm not going to be happy if I'm right or sad if I'm wrong. I don't care. I hope your fish survive you cycling the tank with them in it. They might.

but probably not if they're starting off sick to begin with.

>>2418975
>concede what? I'm advising you, not arguing with you.
>you wouldn't be arguing with me if you knew me in person.
Actually glad I don't know you in person. Thanks for your "advice". Let's see what happens.

>>2418977
you arguing with me does not constitute me arguing with you.

>glad I don't know you in person.
we don't travel in the same circles.

>>2418983
Now you are arguing with me.

>>2418985
am not.

>>2418988
XD

>>2417674
I just decided to use it for a couple mice for my daughter. I've got a 55 and a 20 long, looking to swoop up a 100g+ plus on craigslist asap.

>>2418966
/an gonna hate me but for a betta i wouldn't hesitate to keep it in a cup and 100% change water when I felt like it and rarely feed it until your other tank is up. Like once a week. I also wouldn't hesitate to do 100% water change on the 2 gallons. small tanks like that have always had strange fluctuation for me. or you could dose amquel and solve your problems but you better triple check the dosage and disregard testing.

>>2418755
>>2418771
>>2419033
Large water changes are not a problem in simple freshwater systems.

If you are using the same tap source and treating it the same with just a conditioner, you only need to worry about matching temperature. pH should be the same, as would ppm if you are concerned about that (e.g. you're keeping shrimp).

The temperature problem can be easily solved by having this magic thing called a thermometer.

This is the reason why I advocate testing your water before you ever get fish. Get fish suited to your tap parameters. You will have a much easier time.

As for cycling, THE BACTERIA IS NOT IN THE WATER COLUMN. Very, very little bacteria will survive in the water column, thus water changes don't do shit to bacteria (assuming you are using a water conditioner). It will be in the media mostly along with the other components in your filter (like the mechanical filter tends to hold quite a bit).

Bottled bacteria probably isn't going to help as much as regular, very frequent, water changes as you are starting a new tank.

You could probably shave some time off with bottled bacteria if you know how to use it.

>>2419053
Ooh I should add, by the time you notice the ammonia, the bacteria in your cycle is already feeding off of it. They get to it before you will. Don't worry about doing water changes too much.

However you have two tanks so who gives a fuck? Just do large water changes in the 2 gallon holding tank and do a fishless cycle in the other (or be pro and dump the 2 gallon water into the 5 gallon every water change).

>>2418932
The reason the other anon is disagreeing with your methodology is that there is a very, very, very common trend with sick fishes.

1) New fishkeepers blame everything but water quality.
2) New fishkeepers jump to all solutions except improving water quality, especially the buying medication route - this is reinforced by chain petshops peddling things like melafix, because it is literally their job to sell more merchandise.
3) New fishkeepers lose fish

More experienced fishkeepers tend to do this with sick fish:
1) check parameters
2) water change like a mofo
3) fish get better

>>2418914
>you will have 0 ammonia on day one and two whether it works or not.
And zero ammonia on week two and week three.

>>2418890
Yes. Very cute!

>>2419072
Well, I have all of my fish, shrimp, and snails in a 10 gallon. They seem to be doing OK. The other tank was filthy. Drained all the water, took everything out. Scrubbing everything with H2O2 and then putting it all back together. I'm only going to fill it about halfway and go from there. We will see in the next few days how everything goes. I'll be doing 25% changes daily for probably a week, and it will be easier in 20 gallons instead of 50. My tank water smelt like a pond. I don't know if that is normal or not.

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>>2418617
Thanks. The stocking is a real mishmash, geographically, but everyone seems to be getting along just fine.
The (two male) rams are inexplicably in their breeding garb after I thinned out the floating plants, but I also saw them lip locking for the first time. They usually just follow each other around and hang out together.

>>2419108
>And zero ammonia on week two and week three.
yes, this is also normal whether you use bottled bacteria or not.

the real test is in between day 3 and week 2, when ammonia normally builds up in the tank. That is assuming fish-in cycling. Using food as the ammonia source delays the whole thing by weeks since you have to wait for the food to rot which is a bacterial cycle in itself.

>>2419128
Smelling like a pond is normal for a cycled tank. What really matters is how strong the smell is. If you can only smell it from being right in front of the tank, feeding the tank close, then that is perfectly normal. But if you smell if from several feet away or more, then it is time for a good cleaning. In my tanks I have to stick my nose 6" away from the open water (hood off/ through the feeding hole) to smell anything.

>>2419053
>>2419059
>>2419072
wisdom

>>2419140
Well the water had a weak pond smell to it if you are hovering over it, but the smell was really strong as I got the gravel out. Reminded me of a city park with lots of geese.

Has anyone kept neon tetras and a betta together in a tank before? Should I add the betta after the tetras have been in there a while, or should I remove any thought of a betta? I'm worried I don't have too much space for the tetras to hide.

>>2419150
I had my betta with some neon tetra before I got him his own tank. They never had any problems. I added the betta at the same time as the neon tetra.

>>2419152
Oh ok neat! Thanks for the response man, I appreciate it.

>>2419149
That makes sense since the gravel would have the detritus (fish crap and uneaten food) mixed in it.

Is it okay to feed red cherry shrimp nothing but cucumber and other vegetables? I've been keeping them like this for a month but I noticed the pet store sells lots of shrimp food. Should I buy it or is it unnecessary?

>>2419300
They tend to grow faster and breed more prolifically if you occasionally feed them high protein foods, but they'll survive just fine on veggies.

If you want to keep them on a whole food diet, I'd suggest adding dried seaweed (eg nori from Walmart) to their diet for its iodine content, and bloodworms work for the high protein meal.

Most dry fish foods simply exist for the sake of convenience.

>>2419321
Thanks. How often do they need bloodworms? I'm scared of the bloodworms shitting up the tank and causing ammonia problems.

>>2419108
i agree with you adnon. but if you really want to debate.

Don't wash your media with warm water it will kill the bacteria.
Don't wash your media with chlorinated water it will kill the bacteria.
Don't wash your bacteria too often the bacteria will vanish.
Media needs constant flow and oxygen or they will die off.
VS
Bacteria live indefinitely in a bottle on a hot truck to a pet store shelf. They live both in a powder form and a liquid form in a bottle with no air, no water circulation and at all temperature extremes.

One of these has to be false. Either bacteria can't live in a bottle or they are not remotely sensitive to how you clean them, etc. Yet there are also graphs that show bacteria drops after turning off your air stone. The most modern filters rely heavily on O2.

But yet all forums believe all these ideas to be true.

>>2419140
that pond smell is ammonia. it shouldn't smell like that. maybe if you are rinsing the filter but that about it. normally you shouldn't smell your tank. i know something is wrong with my pond if i can smell it.

>>2419331
i don't think he means live bloomworms

>>2419331
A small amount once a week is plenty

>>2419340
Frozen, typically.

>>2419335
The manufacturers will claim that the bottled bacteria are a proprietary strain being held in a medium that allows them to survive in a dormant state for over a year.
All I know is that when people use it (the API and Tetra brands, specifically) and have their water regularly tested, it cuts cycling time significantly vs without a supplement. I also know someone who used API Quick Start to set up brand new grow out tanks for baby angelfish because she was paranoid about pathogens being in transferred filter media, and she never had issues with it.
So I'm simply basing my stance off of what empirical evidence I've seen supporting that it does work, rather than the conjecture that says it shouldn't.

And for the record I've never actually suggested to anyone here that they buy or use it. If anyone here wants to try it, I fully recommend saving the bottle and the receipt, and returning it if you're dissatisfied with the results in any way.

>>2419335
>One of these has to be false.
No.

In adverse conditions most bacteria can enter a state of dormancy that is very resistant and can last for a very, very long time.

It takes time to enter dormancy. If they are purposely brought into this state they can remain viable in that bottle basically forever. When conditions allow it (i.e. putting them in your tank) they leave dormancy and resume their metabolic state.

They have no time to enter dormancy if you just take your media out of the tank and wash it with something that can kill them.

>>2419365
>I'm simply basing my stance off of what empirical evidence I've seen
all you've provided is anecdotal evidence.

which makes sense since there isn't an empirical evidence that it works.

it doesn't hurt anything. It just doesn't do anything.

>>2419470
Empirical means it's based on observation or experience rather than thought experiments.

>>2419475
only in the very loosest terms.

in reality most people's observations are biased and flawed so we ignore them. Even if they're accurate, they may not be representative.

so we do experiments to see if something is true or if people are just retarded thinking it is. There are no scientific experiments supporting your case because it's not true.

mistaken observations aren't empirical evidence. They're not evidence at all.

>>2419476
ur a cunt

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A question guys

I just tested the water of my aquarium and got incredible hihg PH, and very hard water.

What do?

>>2419475
>Empirical means it's based on observation or experience rather than thought experiments.
No.


Empirical means it is based on a rigorously designed scientific experiement.

Anecdotal is observation and experience without an experiment.

Thought experiement is theoretical.

Please stop spouting bullshit, you can't even get the terms right.

>>2419517
Oh sorry, what wasn't completed.

Empirical needs the addendum that the experiment can be and has been replicated by others.

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THICC

>>2419517
there is no scientific experiments that they don't work because the people that make that shit aren't going to fund an experiment showing its utter garbage.

>be a scientist who likes their paycheck
> get aquarium industry study.
> shit yeah it works here is a graph with almost no refutable data
> do you have any other studies for me to work on?
>bacteria dormancy, apparently they are everywhere but we need them dormant in a bottle, not alive or dead. just dormant but not like already appear out of nowhere in your aquarium we need special ones.
>ok no problem I found some.
>there in this bottle be sure to put some ammonia in the bottle so they live.

>>2419544
Well of course not. I personally don't even think they purposely put these bacteria into dormancy so they can ship them, because if they did you could have WAY higher concentrations in there and wouldn't need so much of the stuff.

What likely happens is they just fill it up with some random mix of shit and as it gets hot, nutrients decline and so on many bacteria in there die and the ones that can and are fast enough go into dormancy. As far as we know about 80% of bacteria can go dormant but I doubt that many make it in time in that bottle. The ones that you get in your bottle are basically the lucky survivors.
>there in this bottle be sure to put some ammonia in the bottle so they live.
That's the joke. Dormant bacteria don't need anything. Most don't even need water.

They live as long as conditions don't get ultra extreme, like 80+ °C and extremely high or low pH (we're talking serious skin burns for humans here, not 8.5 or 6.0). Laboratory autoclaves designed to kill bacteria usually run 120°C and 150 bar for an hour.

>>2419476
>>2419517
That's the definition. That my observations aren't peer reviewed and under laboratory conditions is a different and separate matter.

Talk about fish. This is stupid.

>>2419544
>>2419559
The bottles include Nitrosomonas species which are facultative anaerobes. In aerobic mode they turn ammonia and ammonium into nitrite. In anaerobic mode they reverse the process turning nitrate into a number of toxic gasses.

So to get them dormant the manufacturer just deprives them of oxygen and nitrates. They switch into anaerobic mode and then shut down for lack of food. When they're dumped in the tank they're suddenly exposed to oxygen so they begin aerobic metabolism. Of course there's not usually enough ammonia present in a new tank so most will starve. Also light kills them so most would die in the water column anyways.

even if they do speed up colonization of the biofilter, the bottles don't contain dormant Nitrobacter species needed to finish the cycle by converting nitrite to nitrate. This is because Nitrobacters are obligate aerobes. They just die without oxygen. Not that it matters since there's no nitrite in a new tank so they'd also starve to death quickly.

These products can perhaps help a cycled tank if the filter is harmed, but they presumably do little or nothing to speed up cycling a new tank.

>>2419610
>That my observations aren't peer reviewed and under laboratory conditions is a different and separate matter.
your observations aren't by definition observations, they're deductions based on assumptions and incomplete data.

experiments are designed to turn them into actual observations by removing the guesswork and assumption.

>Talk about fish. This is stupid.
sorry, I find bettas and wmm's a bit boring. Bacteria are immensely more interesting.

Guys I woke up from my 100% change this morning and all of my fish were dead ;_;

>>2419670
You're the guy with the minnows?

>>2419516
get fish that like hard water?

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>>2419678
;_;
They were my only friends

>>2419670
I'm sorry, that sucks

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>>2419696
It's ok, they actually survived with no problems!

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>>2419699
Well, I did lose one ghost shrimp ;_;

>>2419702
this isn't really the part you need to worry about.

if you sterilized your filter you're now going to cycle a tank full of fish. The slaughter will begin in a week or two.

>>2419704
Doubtful. They survived the first cycle, this will survive this one and the next.

>>2419706
and you wonder why they got sick?
geezus

>>2419708
They will be fine.

>>2419714
don't forget your melafix. you need an antibacterial to slow the cycle way down.

>>2419715
>nitrospira are gram positive bacteria
Ok.

>>2419706
>Doubtful. They survived the first cycle, this will survive this one and the next.
>I survived one car crash, I can survive the next.
Faulty logic, however it is entirely possible to get them to be okay through the cycle if you are on top of your water changes. /aq/ is pretty autistic about cycling but with fish that aren't super sensitive, like Discus, you can do just fine with frequent water changes until the tank is cycled.

It's not ideal and kind of silly that you would both create more unnecessary stress for your fish and more work for yourself, but it can be done.

>>2419164
>>2419149
That tends to mean you haven't been cleaning your tank enough and/or you have been feeding too much.

My observations on tank cycling coincide with >>2419140 though. The only time a tank should really stink up a room would be during the middle of a cycle.

>>2419128
But like I said previously, if you are doing such frequent water changes, you'll probably be alright.

>>2419739
>melafix isn't a broad spectrum antibacterial

>>2419756
>>2419759
I probably was overfeeding. I have several foods I usually feed at once. Two types of flakes, slow sinking pellets, and algae wafers. After the fish eat, I usually put in a cube of tubifex worms for the frogs. When the frogs finish, I remove the uneaten worms. I was feeding twice per day with no food on Sundays. I think I need some more bottom dwellers for my clean-up crew.
I'll be doing 25% daily for a week and we will see how it goes. I think everything will be OK.

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>>2419764
your on a feeding schedule for japanese koi.
you have frogs and fish?
umm you should really change water based off the numbers your getting when it starts to cycle again. you don't want to crash the cycle but your nitrites might go crazy with a feeding schedule like that. and why feed twice a day and then fast on sundays? is that a religious thing.

How expensive is co2 injection in the long term? Is it otherwise hard to manage? Well, at least harder than managing algae growth and such, which seems to be the alternative.

>>2419764
Protip: most shrimp are terrible for clean-up. The reason why they're so light on your bioload is because they don't eat/poop much. This includes the ghost shrimp, crystal red shrimp, etc (basically any variation of Caridina cantonensis and Neocaridina davidi). It would take a truly massive army of them to make a significant dent in cleanup. I've heard other shrimp such as Amano are much better, but I've never kept them as I just really like the look of CRS and blue neocardina davidi.

Conversely, plecos are terrible for cleanup because they have a huge bioload.

Otocinclus perhaps would be a better choice.

>>2417674
I swooped up this 60 with all the accesories and stand for $25 bucks today, we'll see what works when I get to cleaning it up tomorrow but I consider it a steal for just the stand and tank alone, did I do good this time? btw I ended up using the terrarium for my daughters mice.

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>>2419845
forgot pic

>>2419842
I started out with a bag of "25" from Petsmart, maybe I needed more in a 55? There are better shrimp, I'm sure, but you cant beat 10 shrimp for less than $3.
I have a pleco and he is a waste machine. I'm not sure he even eats any algae or anything of the sort, because he is always flying around the tank and doing weird shit like hanging upside down on something for 3 seconds and then he is right-side-up on something else...
I was thinking about getting some otos but I haven't looked into them much at all. I had some cories but they died a week or so ago.

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my goldfish n loaches.
i want new fish in this tank.
Should i buy some kind of fish?

>>2419858
this fishtank is 5 gal n i use a HOB filter

>>2419858
bait or mentally retarded

>>2419860
No, Ideally you should have 10 Gallons per goldfish if you plan on keeping them, the loach needs more space too. Basically get a bigger tank for those guys and put some shrimp in that tiny thing.

I want more loaches

but I dont have anymore space goddammit

Im thinking about killing the koi hogging my sixty gallon. The assholes that bought it refuse to get it its own tank or pond or whatever. I was thinking of doing a 100% water change without actually dechlorinating the water to kill it and THEN dechlorinating so petsmart testers cant say shit but would that be enough?

>>2419855
I get my ghost shrimp for 25 cents each, I use em as feeders for my red tail tinfoil barbs sometimes.

>>2419863
or better yet you could drown yourself

>>2419865
would YOU keep a 6 inch koi in a sixty gallon long? If I give it away, someone will just buy more. It has to die and I have to rub it in their faces for the cycle to stop

>>2419862
oh...
i can't buy new tank because i have 5 tank in my room
i decide to put small shrimps kn this tiny this tank

>>2419864
You...you MONSTER!

>>2419866
Just sell it, I had a friend who would grow out petsmart koi in a tank and resell them on craigslist for profit.

>>2419869
ive considered it but someone is always here. And this koi in particular is a genetic mess. It's spine is curved upwards and it's pectoral fins are clamped shut. I don't think i'd get takers honestly

>>2419845
>did I do good this time?
Excellent!

you're gonna love that 60, so many more stocking options than a 40 for not a lot more space. I love mine.

>my very favorite fish are feeder or "use these to start your cycle and bring them back for credit in real fish if they survive" tier

very sad but also amazing

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I have a 60 gallon with 10 tiger barbs, 5 boesmans rainbowfish, 2 pearl gouramis,and a red tailed shark. Its halfway planted with more spreading around. What kind of inverts can i add besides snails? I was thinking crawfish but i dont want them hurting the fish if thats possibe for them and shrimp would just hide

>>2419855
>>2419864
In a 55 gal we're really talking about 50+ ghost shrimp to make a real difference. They're cool and they're cheap but don't depend on them to do much for you. I personally keep/breed Neocardina davidi var blue (planning on a new tank with the yellow variety) but they don't do sheeeet for cleanup. Some of them give no fucks and grab flakes/pellets away from the community fish during feeding time.

>>2419972
>5 boesmans rainbowfish
I've always wanted to keep these but it just never works out with any of my plans.
You're in a tough spot because anything that won't hurt your fish would get eaten and anything that won't get eaten may be aggressive towards your fish.

Maybe a Procambarus clarkii? (cobolt blue "lobster", a.k.a. a blue crayfish) Supposedly they're not aggressive towards fish unless they're slow moving.


>>2419845
That is an insane deal. Stand alone is more than $60 for a real wood one like that.

>>2419969
What's your favorite fish?

>>2419972
freshwater clams? Barbs would eat any shrimp I can think of. Maybe certain crabs would be fine?

>>2420020
That is exactly what my ghost shrimp do. Barely do anything for cleanup. I'm trying to find some ramshorn snails locally, but I don't want to pay $3/snail.

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Rate my Betta /aq/

Also post your bettas, I wanna see more beautiful bettas.

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>>2420191
I haven't taken many recent pics of him.

>>2416954
Do turt aquariums count? I'm in the process of setting up my turt aquarium and I'm findinn more and more that the 20 gallon tank i'm usin seems to just be too small for even the smallest turtle (just purchased a yearling musk turtle since its my first turt.)
I'm kindof nervous that he might not get the most out of it, especially with it being a tall rather than wide. Should I just cancel the order and order an axol?
I was just kindof gifted the aquarium and then purchased the equipment
Aquariums made for turts are fuckin expensive man

this has got to be the slowest and most boring general on all of 4chan

>>2420191
3/10 wanna rate mine?

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>>2420191

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most based fish

>>2420214
More of a /herp/ question, but I'll put in my 2 cents.

Compared to other animals, it takes a huge amount of work to maintain a clean turtle aquarium, and even the smallest turtles would outgrow a 20 high almost instantly.

An axolotl would be a much better fit, or any other number of newts, frogs, fish, etc. Turtles are generally much easier to maintain in outdoor ponds.

anyone up too some cool shit? im breeding my own line of endlers and im gonna start a large palladium soon

>>2420265
to* again high af

>>2420265
>large palladium
?

Do you guys think corys could eliminate scuds in a tank completely?

I have a tank that used to be a shrimp only tank. Scuds made their way in via some plants at some point. So, I moved the shrimp out and made it into a guppy and pepper cory tank. Obviously, the fish will eat the scuds every chance they get. But since they live in the substrate, do you think there's a possibility they'd get rid of them all?

I never see them out anymore but I haven't ruled out the possibility they're still in there. Just curious really. They make a nice food for the fish and all.

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>>2420265
>>2420266
>>2420292
I think he meant an Paludarium

>>2420364
Yeah sorry i meant paludarium

>>2420294
Naw they wont be completely eradicated just the population kept down if you want to kill them AND I MEAN KILL THEM ALL do what i did when i was in your exact situation look up dog dewormer treatments that are safe for shrimp and fish at very low amount i had 11 cherry shrimp several berried females i treated the tank with fembenzole and i killed all of them in 2 treatments the only downside was several of the shrimp hat were berried lost the eggs but oh well they dont do good with anything that stresses them anyways so thats expected

>>2420406
i mean i killed all the worms i didnt kill any of the shrimp

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>>2420400
Here is my frog habitat. Not sure what I would classify it as.

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>>2420430
Look, there she is!

>>2420256
Thanks my man
Pretty fuckin new here, literally my first time on /an/ and just getting the lay of the land given I'm new to anything kept in a tank. I have got a 40 gallon but its a tall and everything I've read and seen tells me turtles will prefer shallow but long enclosures, not being great swimmers. I would figure deeper water would be acceptable too but it doesnt seem it so I'm just seeking expert advice. I also got a 30 tall out of the deal but aside from being shorter has the same dimensions

>>2420440
You don't have to fill the tank completely. One of my friends had a turtle in probably a 60 gallon or so but it wasn't filled all the way.

>>2420446
What I mean is that I think if the turtle has room to swim, I feel like it would be ok to keep it in a smaller one and upgrade when it grows.

Does anyone have a DIY guide on those above water fish spheres?

>>2420265
Gonna make a small outdoor pond/waterfall for my porch.

Got two metal basins. One is ten gallons, and the other is fourteen gallons.

How do I improve water quality, /aq/?

I don't want to change all water since it will be bad for fishes, I've been doing some water changes and stuff.

What else could help?

>>2420503
buy a second filter
vacuum your substrate
buy RO water or an RO maker
add plants
feed WAY less
have less fish
change water more often
lower your temperature

did I miss any?

>>2420509
thanks man

>>2420513
you're welcome

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Hey /aq/, looking for some advice.
My 20 gal has had no fish in it for several months and so I let it fall to shit, all that was in there was plants and RCS (and cooincidentally there are now near a thousand of the little fuckers). I cleaned it up today and replanted with the freshest offshoots I could harvest and am looking to finally restock.
My plan was 5 Pygmy Cory cats, 10 ember tetras, 10 green neon tetras and a pair of German rams. My question is if this sounds ok? Aqadvisor tells me I'm not overstocked and as you can see I'm running double filtration but I've heard mixed things about rams and how their temperament is. I want to know if anyone has kept them in a similar set up before. The plan was to let the plants grow back in and introduce the rams last to stop territory disputes.

Here's a pic of the tank and for those concerned I moved my old stock to the tanks I take care of at school because I knew home would be stressful for the last few months and I knew my tank would fall to shit, but now that I have time I just wanna keep my 4 favourite small species.

what would be a good price to sell my water spangles? I was thinking 25 cents each or 5 for a dollar

No one in my area even sells aquatic plants locally. I'm planning on selling frogbit and dwarf water lettuce when those grow out more but have no idea what to price those at either

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I have had a slight green water problem in my aquarium over the last two/three months since setting up my aquarium.
I tried adding carbon, and that only slightly helped.
My solution was to introduce daphnia. They'll eat the algae, and then I'll introducing fish to eat them

My 50 gallon tank finally arrived today, and I've glued the 3D background in with aquarium silicone. It should be 48 hours to dry when you're gluing a tank together from glass panes, does it take as long when it's just a background?

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>>2420468
You mean like this? Easiest way would be to submerge a container in the tank, flip it upside down, then support it so it's at the height you want.

>>2420865
>be me
>do this
>do a water change
>go under the level of the jar lip
>splosh
>wave kicks up fish shit in the entire tank

>>2420440
No problem.

Using a smaller tank as a grow out is fine. I don't know what a 30 tall is. People generally recommend tanks with footprints of 4-6 sq ft, and rule of thumb for turtles is 10 gallons of water for every inch their shell is long. Growth rates depend on the species and a variety of environmental and genetic factors, but you can try looking up a growth chart for your species.

>>2420562
Should be fine, just make sure the flow from the filters isn't going to be too strong for them.
German and Bolivian rams are among the most peaceful cichlids you can buy. They shouldn't bother the other fish. Whether or not the two get along with each other will be up to them. Even if they decide they don't like each other, it's unusual for there to be anything more than a slight scuffle.
If you want to play it safe you can just get a single ram. Or you can go the suggested route for obtaining a pair and get 6 mixed sex juveniles, allow two of them to pair off, then return/trade/give away the other four.

>>2420584
I can't even give mine away, but there are several local shops around me and a couple of groups. The local shops give me a couple bucks store credit if I bring them a gallon bag full of it.
You'll just have to set a price and see how it goes. Give it time and adjust accordingly.

>>2420805
Yes. You should give the silicone at least 48 hours to fully cure before filling the tank. If it's in a poorly ventilated or humid spot it could take longer.

>>2420875
That's just an inherent fault of any "upside down" aquarium. When you put form over function you end up with shitty compromises.

You can use an airline hose to blow bubbles into the upturned container to drain it slowly.

>>2420912
>If it's in a poorly ventilated or humid spot it could take longer
Thanks for the tip, I placed a fan in the tank and turned on my air conditioning. It's going to be so dry in there.

>>2420918
Id leave for much longer than that. Typically seven days and your set for ever

>>2417691
>(You)

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>>2421054
I have a dynamic IP so I don't get (You)'s

on the plus side I never notice if I get b& either

>>2420982
Yeah, I will. If it could have been done during the weekend it would have been great, but 48 hours means I'll just leave this thing in the garage until it's rock solid.

My new filter has a stupid low distance between the maximum and minimum water levels, and isn't easily movable. How bad for the bacteria would it be to power the filter off for an hour or so whenever I do a water change? The filter media would still be submerged the whole time, there just wouldn't be any flow over it.

>>2421463
It would be as bad for them as if you held your breath for 3 or 4 seconds

>>2421465
Alright. I was just asking because my LFS guy made me paranoid about always keeping the power on when I started out a few years ago. Guy insisted I buy a UPS for the filter and thermo in case of a power outage.

>>2421466
Unless you have some really intense saltwater setup, it's the middle of winter and your house has no insulation, or the tank is already in poor condition.

It's unlikely your fish will die from a few days of neglect or filter/power shutdown.

Then again I'm assuming you have live plants and a clean up crew.

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Hi /aq/, this is a downright bizarre idea but I want your help nonetheless. Ever since I was a young child, I've been obsessed with eels. My dream is to have a room full of tanks filled with different kinds of freshwater eels. What eels and other eel-like creatures can you keep in captivity without too much difficulty?
On my list already for the future:
>kuhli loach
>polypterus
>tire track eel
>fire eel
>spaghetti eel
Any eels I'm missing? Also what is the easiest eel to take care of?

>>2421499
The only things that makes caring for freshwater eels difficult is their size, pretty much all of them get up to two feet or more and the fact they'll be more than happy to eat anything they can fit in their mouths.

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Help me pick a fish.
>don't have much room (I got about 60cm x 40cm x 40cm to spare, that's about 50lt)
>piss-poor
>beginner

Also,
>would prefer a plain, "natural"-looking fish (as in silvery, gray or black) over multicolored, clown-vomit fish
>would prefer getting one medium-small fish over multiple tiny ones
>want the tank itself to be as minimalist as possible (just sand and a few rocks, no plants and shit)

I was thinking about getting a male convict cichlid. What do you think? Any recommendations?

Assuming the issue isn't disease or parasites, would a corydora have the ability to grow its tail back over time?

I think I made the mistake of keeping some corys in with a CPO. I figured a 20G long would be big enough that it wouldn't be an issue. But I woke up one morning and one of my corys tail was missing. Other than that, he seems to be fine. He's still swimming and seemingly eating properly.

Granted, I don't know for sure if the CPO was the culprit but I think it's likely and yeah, I took it out and put it into another tank.

>>2421533
Lemme just translate that into something my stupid American brain will understand and I'm on the case.

>>2421533
Get a Bala shark! They're pretty big, have very shiny silver bodies and black edges on their fins. Very active and curious fish.

>>2421572
He's only got space for a 20 gallon, and only a 20H at that matter, I think. I'm thinking he's on the right track with a cichlid, but the females are smaller than males. Cichlids also do well for the "just rocks" decoration he wants.

A bala shark should not be kept in that space.

>>2421577
I read 50lt and thought 50 gallon.

>>2421577
Yeah, as much as I love how bala sharks and other torpedo-shaped fish look like, they get too big for me.
And as far as male vs female goes, I'd just prefer a male convict because they get a tiny bit bigger and they don't get that red/orange spot the females get, but I don't care too much about that.

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>>2419702
>>2419699
>that neon gravel scattered around
>those filters
>all those random aquarium "chemicals"
>wtf is behind tank
Dude...

>>2421584

A male convict is like the absolute largest fish you could keep.

http://www.aqadvisor.com/AqAdvisor.php?AquTankName=&AquListBoxTank=Choose&AquTankLength=24&AquTankDepth=12&AquTankHeight=16&AquListBoxFilter=Choose&AquTextFilterRate=N%2FA+&AquListBoxFilter2=Choose&AquTextFilterRate2=N%2FA+&FormSubmit=Display+only+suitable+species+for+your+tank&AquFilterString=&AqSearchLengthMin=4&AqSearchLengthMax=8&AqSearchTempMin=&AqSearchTempMax=&AquTextBoxSize=&AquTextBoxQuantity=&AquTextBoxRemoveQuantity=&AlreadySelected=&FilterMode=Display+all+species&AqTempUnit=C&AqVolUnit=gUS&AqLengthUnit=inch&AqSortType=cname&FilterQuantity=2&AqJuvMode=1&AqSpeciesWindowSize=short&AqSearchMode=advanced

>>2421596

AqAdvisor clearly does not believe in any sort of URL-shortening techniques. My bad.

>>2421596
>>2421597
It's okay, thanks for the link, it's gonna be useful.

I have a 10 gallon FW aquarium. What would you put in there /aq/?

>>2421600
arowana

>>2421600
Nile crocodile.

>>2421600
Several Scarlet Badis

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>>2421514
When I have the money to establish my eel utopia, size won't be an issue.

Kuhlis, spaghetti eels and tire track eels don't grow large though do they?

>>2421622
Kuhli are loach, not eels, spaghetti can still exceed a foot long and tire tracks are two footers.

>>2421631
Thanks for letting me know anon. I guess I've never met anyone who had a large tire track because my aquarium owning friends are shit at taking care of them. Always made me mad.

I guess I'll make do with kuhlis until the eel utopia is realized. I don't care much about classification btw. If it looks like an eel it is an eel to me.

Any other eels that stay small?

What's a good PAR for my plants?

I have pearlweed, dwarf sag and kleiner bar sword. I'm pretty sure my light is too high but I don't know what to set it to

>>2421649
Not eels, but they look similar.

Bichir
Senegal
Palmas
Ropefish
Macrognathus pancalus

But you should be prepared to not see a lot of these fish. Most of them are nocturnal or otherwise hide (Kuhlis can burrow for days).

>>2421719
>Kuhlis can burrow for days
this

I have 9 of them and I only see 3 of them regularly even at night in almost total darkness

>>2421600
Put
>1 Betta
>2 gourami
>5 neon tetra
>3 creamsickle platys
>1 snail
>1 ortchulus
Should work for a 10g

>>2416958
Then clean your own fuking house if you gonna be complaing like a lil bitch

New
>>2422099
>>2422099
>>2422099

anyone think algae eaters are better then manually cleaning algae? examples. ghost shrimp, freshwater snail.

>>2422770
Nothing compares to manually cleaning algae. Don't get a cleanup squad just because you want them to clean up, they should be fish you're actually interested in keeping too.

>>2423069
thanks for the info