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If your using pure RO water your would want to remineralize your RO water with seachems equilibrium or similar product

My friend Jen from Smallworld Aquatics gave me 8 of these to put in my ADF tank and breed for BAP points. I’ve only had them for 2 days along with a terrible cold 😣 so I do not have a lot of info on them. she sent me this photo which shows a momma with eggs. You can see them as she carries them around to deposit. Pretty cool. Neither her photo or my photo show the beautiful blue in the body. Once I get well I’ll play with lights to see if I can get some good photos and videos.

Okay. I understand completely. My normal gh is 300. My kh is close to 200. And I have the high iron as well as iron bacteria in my well. And I use ro as well Ro is fine. But you’re going to need to remineralize it to have success. And you’re going to have to be consistent. we just have to find a way to help you do that now. there are several ways to do this. Crushed coral works. Seachem equilibrium with acid and alkaline buffer works. Aragonite. Oyster shell. Wonder shell works. It’s just a matter of what you want to use. Or you could even do a mixture of your tap and Ro

I use a tap:RO blend and remineralize with Equilibrium. It's designed for planted tanks; it's got calcium and magnesium, the two elements that make up "general hardness," but it's got some other things, too, added for the benefit of plants. But it's a good, stable, repeatable product. Crushed coral will raise your KH in a slow, gentle sort of way. Baking soda will raise your KH, but it's very fast and strong, so be very careful with it if you're going to use it. I'd advise crushed coral over baking soda, for what it's worth.

Personally, my advice would be to simply embrace the tannins (they're good for your plants & fish), but I also understand not everyone wants yellow water 😅 I am a total nerd, so let me add in some scientific knowledge here. I haven't used spider wood or any other driftwood with a tannin problem in aquariums, but I do collect wood pieces from the beach & local hikes for my garden or my grandpa's pond. Sometimes I will find a piece that is really dirty, has a lot of tannins, or still has phloem, cork cambium, or bark/cork. Anatomy of a Tree Heartwood is dead wood. It is old growth cells (sapwood, vascular cambium, phloem, or cork cambium/cork) that has died and now only serve the purpose of structural support. Sapwood aids in transpiration: which is water vapor exiting through the leaves of the tree. Vascular cambium is new sapwood growth, but does not do much for transpiration; it is simply a new expansion of sapwood. Phloem serves in the transportation of sugar - it takes sugar from the leaves (which is produced by photosynthesis) to the roots. Cork cambium is the cells of the bark and the bark serves as protection of the inner layers. [note: bark is also called cork.] If you cut through phloem, you cut through sugar transport... which kills the tree, as it cannot gain nutrients any more. If you cut through only a section of the phloem (so not completely cutting the entire trunk) or only one limb, the tree does not die. Tannins within Tree Trunks & Limbs There are two kinds of tannins: condensed tannins and hydrolysable tannins. Condensed tannins are found in food and byproducts, and can generally be ignored. Hydrolysable tannins are found in tree bark, stumps, limbs, trunks, leaves, and some nuts/seeds. Both condensed tannins and hydrolysable tannins aid the tree in protection, whether protecting against fungus, bacteria, disease/rot, or insects. Hydrolysable tannins are primarily made up of ellagic acid, gallic acid, and sugar [glucose]. Ellagic acid and gallic acid have anti-bacterial and anti-inflammatory abilities, hence fighting against diseases & whatnot. Chemically, ellagic acid and gallic acid are actually white, but when exposed to oxygen, turns brown/yellow. Considering that hydrolysable tannins primarily protect the tree from external threats (disease, fungus and bacteria, insect, etc), most tree species have the highest concentration within their bark and cork cambium, with tannin concentrations following within the phloem and then cambium. Sapwood and heartwood is [typically] incredibly low in tannin content. What kills trees Trees die from a removal of access to nutrients and/or roots. Because of this, trees die for six main reasons. 1. Drought. Trees need water for nutrients. In the process of transpiration, trees take water from the soil through the roots, up the sapwood, and out through the underside of leaves or needles. Without water, trees cannot take in carbon dioxide, and, in addition to an absence of water movement, therefore cannot create nutrients. 2. Drowning. While many wetland trees have adapted to low-oxygen conditions, with many of them constantly living in water, most tree roots cannot tolerate saturated soil or being submerged in water. This essentially suffocates the tree, as the aeration in the soil which usually provides oxygen is absent, making it so the tree cannot obtain oxygen via the roots. Additionally, this can disrupt the photosynthesis process, as the sunlight and carbon dioxide is disproportionate to water. 3. Disease. Disease is a wide term, but typically means an organism (bacteria, fungi, or some other simple organism) is saprophytic or parasitic, taking away nutrients from the tree. 4. Insects. Many varieties of insects eat the bark, sap, and inner wood of trees. Many insects lay their eggs in trees or house in trees. Bugs can kill trees by: a) burrowing deep within the bark, or to the inner wood, of trees b) sucking sap and other nutrients from the tree c) disturbing photosynthesis and other nutrient transfers d) spreading disease e) … and more. 5. Cutting. Due to logging, this is the most common reason for tree death. Without access to the phloem, the roots are deprived of sugar, and starves. 6. Excess nutrients (also called fertilizer damage). This is the best way to go about killing a tree or limb if you want a specific part of the tree. Nutrients such as magnesium, calcium, potassium, phosphorus, iron, and boron are very important, but can be deadly in excess. How this all applies to tannins in wood (AKA: TL;DR) Tannins are highly present in bark and cork cambium, so it is best practice to remove the bark from driftwood if any is present. I use a potato peeler that is specifically for plant use (not for eating!), but any knife, razor, or even your own hands will do a good job. If the bark or cork cambium is hard to get off, soak it for an hour in hot salt water. You can use table salt or epsom salt. By removing the bark, you remove a high concentration of tannins. Hot water leaches out tannins in high quantities, as heat triggers a transfer of nutrients. Salt causes fertilizer damage – the excess of nutrients suffocates the tree. I would use 1 cup of epsom salt per every quart of water. Allow it to dissolve before putting the wood in. Soak this for at least half an hour. For cooking salts, mix one-fourth to one-half cup of salt for every quart of water. The process is the same. After soaking, use a rag or abrasive scrubber and scrub the wood all over with hot water. Rinse with lukewarm to cold water, and repeat if needed. Chances are, you’re going to need to do this at least twice. Using a razor the peel layers between soaking & scrubbing can also help, but depends on the wood piece. As a relatively last resort, soak it in boiling vinegar concentrate (one fourth cup of vinegar per quart of water.) This will engage several nutrients and help leech the tannins. You can also mix salt and vinegar, but be sure to thoroughly rinse several times before putting it in the tank. Hope my long-winded nerdy info-dump helped! Haha...

Hoping my Borneo loaches will make more Borneo loaches in here!

I like all of the input! I am fairly new to the aquarium hobby (~a year of trial and error and lots of money spent). These were things I never really considered before! 😊 Panda cories look cool!

Sorry if we come on a little strong 😂. We get excited sometimes. Especially if we think it’s a newbie that really needs help We’re really good at helping If we can get you to stable water. Panda corys would be great. They’re so cute and goofy. Probably 10 would be great in your 20. Then a small topside school would be good.

Here's a good primer (apologies if you know all this already): https://www.aquariumcoop.com/blogs/aquarium/ph-gh-kh

There are corys that will work. But stabilizing your water is key. Before we add fish. this is vital. Or anything we suggest is more than likely going to fail. use of Ro is fine. But you need a stabilizer with it. Your gh should be anywhere from 120 to 300 for most fish. The key being that you can be consistent with it. And a kh of 40 at least would be good. It helps to stabilize your ph. out of curiosity. What are you concerned about that you won’t use the water from your kitchen sink

You know. That’s what I like best about this forum. I remember very well the feeling of not knowing. It’s kind of overwhelming. And try to help when I can. 😁

Your tank gh and kh sound really unstable. If you test your tap water from the sink. What does it read. the next question. What fish do you really want. The answer to that is how you set up your tank. Substrate. Filter. Plants. Actually that’s the question everyone should ask first. Cause that even determines tank size.

Thanks Tony, I was leaning in that direction but it's always reassuring to learn someone else is thinking the same way and I haven't missed something obvious. I moved her over to the 15 gal yesterday morning just after I saw your post. For the rest of yesterday she was sticking to the tank walls and her gils looked a little inflamed/like maybe she was hyperventilating....but I'm happy to report that she's back to her usual behavior moving throughout the tank and grazing off the wood hardscape today! I got a glance when she was against the side of the tank and her gils look their normal light pink as well, so too soon to declare it a definitive success but I'm optimistic. I really appreciate you taking the time to respond to my post, it helps a lot for a nervous new fish keeper ❤️

I have some floating frog bit and I just added a single Anubis nana a couple of days ago. So mostly plastic plants but hoping to get to a planted tank within the next year or so. GH: 0 (sometimes it goes up to 100) NO3: 0-10 NO2: 0 Cl2: 0 KH: 0 (Its always been at this) pH: 6.4-6.8 (Usually on the lower end) Temperature: 78 Degrees F The tank has been up and running for about a year. I don't remember exactly what bacteria I used to cycle it but I believe it was "TopFin Readistart Nitrifying Bacteria Starter"

Hi local Washington customers! Here is your third update for March! In our fish orders this week we received some cool larger predatory fish as well as some peaceful community tank favorites! We also got in some lush looking plants and, in case you didn't know, we have two different varieties of floating plants for sale, too! Check out the highlight photos of these new additions below! For more info head over to the full newsletter linked below or reach out by leaving a comment below or emailing us at the retail store directly at store@aquariumcoop.com. Click Here to Read the Full Newsletter! Which highlighted fish or plant is your favorite? 😋

It certainly could be ready. I would add some ammonia so that you get a non-zero reading. Then wait for the ammonia and nitrite to hit zero.

Don't know if it's gut loading or not but the Mazuri Omnivore gel food disappeared faster than any previous food source - gel food chunks the size of the 1/2 dog food pellets were gone in 12 hours in the Grindal worm cultures. Loaded up the same size last night, all gone this morning. The Grindals moved right off the Weetabix/ nutritional yeast flake combo (which they've always loved) and onto the gel food. I'll do a feeding this morning and see if the numbers increase as well. Started 3 new cultures last night on coconut fiber scrub pads (trying to get cleaner feedings as opposedto substrate). 1 with 2 feeding zones - gel food and flakes/crushed cereal sides (because I'm used to the volume the yeast and cereal produce). 1 each with only the yeast/ cereal mix & Omnivore gel food. If the cultures become stable, I'll feed each gutloaded worm to individual tanks of Daisy's Ricefish and see if health and egg production are affected. Should be interesting.

I got a picture of a little fish so I did my part. Lol

Guava leaves and jackfruit leaves are very good, they have medicinal properties

So, when I completed maintenance last week, I had a little extra time and decided to do a couple extra things. One of those extra things was replacing a heater in the 20 long. It just hadn’t been holding temp like it was, it was much bigger than I anticipated when it arrived (even though it was 100 watt, and I’d purchased that one before), and I realized I had a brand new 50 watt that I had forgotten about. Out with the foot long 100 watt, and in with the new 50 watt. The next day the Chili’s and the Green Neons were hiding in the back, and weren’t frantically munching down on the live baby brine shrimp like they normally do. Something was up, but I wasn’t sure what it was. I started to retrace my steps. I put in water conditioner, right? I had to. They would’ve died if I didn’t, and the chlorine should’ve been gassed off by that time anyways. No bodies on the substrate. Was it the Poly Fil I replaced? No, I do that every week without issues. I just kept going down the list, and then the heater came to mind. It was the only change, so I unplugged it. Left it in the tank, but unplugged. The next day they were still hiding. Maybe not quite as much, but all still huddled up in the Pothos roots. Yesterday they were still hiding. I just couldn’t figure out why they were hiding, but weren’t sick and weren’t dying. I came home tonight, and they were way more out and about than they had been. Success! Not quite where they used to be, but we’re seeing progress. When I told my girlfriend about it, she said, “well, I did put that rain coat up. Maybe they were scared of the coat”. And then it dawned on me… It rained and snowed for a couple of days straight over here, and we had our rain coats hung on the back pole of the rack. Those big, scary, not moving giants outside the tank had them huddled up scared for their lives. Put the jackets away now that it’s not raining and snowing, and they’re out and about 🤦‍♂️. Heater is now plugged back in, and I’m assuming they’ll be back out in the front smashing brine shrimp in no time. This hobby is always full of surprises, lol.

I meant this fella: @JorgeO I reversed image searched and it shows up as indian swampweed (Hygrophila polysperma) ? If you pulled em from the river you wouldn't know but it looks right to me! Regardless, thanks for the aquascaping inspo!!!

If you want lots of fish in a small tank, I would suggest something like chili rasboras.

I started this tank a few days ago I got it from a science teacher who's leaving my school. I recently put some sand, river rocks, and wood in and the tanks is also cycling! I'm hoping to plant with valisernia and some types of crypts and maybe anubis nana petite. For inhabitants, I'm planning a type of snail and a pea puffer

Purchased from etsy and just put it on the filter from aquarium coop a moment ago. Seems to do the trick so far, now I need to go shrimp shopping. It's from galaxy glow studios. I have seen them mentioned in forum posts, but not a lot of pictures. This was max flow, I usually keep it on the lowest position. Better for the picture maybe. Hopefully useful for someone. 🙂

All of the swords I've had do something similar where they melt away but eventually grow new leaves. IME, A good way to tell whether the leaves were grown emerged is that the original leaves I get are more rounded, where as the leaves that grow later are pointed (like an actual sword). I usually just trim them once they turn yellow.

Male tails are distinctly different than females; but i can't tell a thing from your pictures.

Don't worry! My recipe for snello has salmon, egg shells, zucchini, cucumber, potato, peas, and spirulina ^^

And I thought that I had an algae problem.😁 I found the picture in picture option! 30 minutes got me some bubbles and a shadow. Between: the Eagle Camera, my own fish cam, and visits here, my productivity is pretty close to none.

hey sorry for late reply, so I have seen some awesome ideas for center piece fish for biggger tanks (because for a lil bit I was thinking of buying one) and I stumbled across the Pearl gourami(s). They look amazing, maybe angelfish. You could get possibly some nice rainbow fish, i like that idea of the Congo tetras too, dwarf gourami(s) are awesome obviously, they could be good for a 75 for sure, but I hear that a good one is the blue acara and I have to say, wow, what a good looking fish! I am sure u have seen it but here is a pic, love these guys, (never kept one obviously but I have seen this fish lots of times!)There is some options, hope this helps 🙂

Yes, very well could just be an injury of some kind. I had some tannin extract on hand, so I added some of that to the tank; might grab some Indian almond or catappa leaves tomorrow. I am definitely going to keep an eye on it. Will post new pics in a week. Thanks for the suggestion!

Personally for me, I like a lighter colored substrate for blue shrimp. It pops their color more imo.

Well, the Congo Tetra would be the Main Focal fish… but I’m open to suggestions! What’s your opinion?

The best substrate for shrimp is whatever one you like the most. Probably not the answer you want, but it’s the honest answer. The shrimp won’t care what substrate they’re on, so pick the one you like the best. If anything, research what a light substrate vs a dark substrate does to the appearance of their color.

Well.. 24 hours in and we’re in our “Bacterial Bloom” phase. Woot (trying to find joy in all phases of the process 😁) giving the temperature in the tank time to stabilize before moving filter media over from the 29g.

Here's a couple of videos of the tank with 100 juvenile panda cories. This one i moved some stuff around to show how many it looks like when they are zooming.

Oh, that sounds nice. I hope it grows easily for me. Thank you.

Yes most of the round leaves will melt but you will have a handful that will stick around as the plant develops its needle leaf submerged growth. I hope you enjoy the plant, I really love the look of rotala and this kind of rotala has been so easy fro me to grow.

We use greenhouse sheets, as mentioned above. Cory has a youtube video on this. Here is a photo of mine (lid was lifted a little because I had some airline wedged in there): https://forum.aquariumcoop.com/topic/33733-helplessnewbies-20g-planted-tank/?do=findComment&comment=321291

Some cut a sheet of polycarbonate for a lid. If you have a Lowe's or HomeDepot check them out. @Spaghider

I would reach out to companies that you value yourself and are happy with the values that they embrace like co-op has or a number of the others, be it the customer service, or the focus on the environment, etc.. Someplace that will drive your passion and not lead you to dreading the work. I may be in manufacturing but I love the fact that the parts I build are for school buses and to UPS trucks. I can tell anyone that I build parts responsible for the kids to go to school. You want that level of passion.

Put it in the garden. It’s so nutrient rich my flowers go crazy. Worm castings are the best fertilizer…even better than used tank water.

First attempts at swimming

Yeah, she said she had to sacrifice a fish and send it to a fish scientist or doctor, and they did a necropsy to find the issue which is otherwise undiagnosable. But she knew it was genetic and she had been breeding those fish, so she just took care to not sell the offspring. Instead she kept them. Ah.... When I watched it I noted two things. First, her betta had some nutrient deficiencies because she was using one food over and over. This was the basis for me for my shrimp to feed multiple brands and rotate them in/out. I do this with the fish as well. The "black area" on the head was tested by the vet to be some form of external protozoan parasite causing damage. She mentions treating it with ich-x + salt with some success and some of it having no impact. She does have follow-up videos, but I haven't had the chance to sit and watch through all of the related content. This video mentions bacteria as well, similar to what Colu mentioned. It basically, similar to what Dan's Fish is going through with their in-house vet, taught me that there is so much that we don't understand as a hobbyist about diseases. It's extremely tough.

My black loach taking a break. My kuhli loaches do similar. They are so funny to watch. I have 4 of each. Usually only see 3 maybe 4 at a time. One time we counted 7! Yay. Hoping I still have all 8. My 45 g dirted tank.

We have wigglers 🥰

I have seen articles on Danionellas before as suitable nano fish, noone mentioned the noise, but tbh noone has seen them in like 20 years in the hobby here. I was looking for them not so long ago, but now I sure am glad I didnt get them 🙂

Angry man knows I’m wanting to steal his eggs. Momma stole eggs Interestingly the first batch the girl ate on one of her turns to watch the eggs. This batch he chased her away since yesterday. She was allowed no turns egg sitting. I feel bad taking his eggs but I know she will eventually gobble the wigglers. He is very interesting to watch. He spends 2 hours after they are laid going back over making certain every egg is fertilized. Throughout his fanning he sweeps the eggs with his pelvic fins and rolls sideways to sweep the eggs with his pectorals.

What size is your outdoor tub vs your indoor tank? @Jimmy pure speculation here, as I don't have 1st hand knowledge, but what I'm thinking is that while a 20L is plenty big for rice fish to live in, it's not so large that they couldn't patrol the whole thing regularly. They'd be likely to find the fry pretty easily...

Yes, I have a couple in the tank. Negative just the rice fish. I’m probably just gonna move eggs to separate tank or specimen cup.