Leaderboard

Well genetics have got quite interesting and fish have quite a few pigments. I am sure somewhere down the line someone figured out that you can keep the albinism gene and artificially select for all pigments to be missing except melanin As is the case for these chocolate albinos. Something interesting of note I have seen in native rockfishes that could perhaps pertain to this yellow albino molly is that I have noticed very rarely rockfish will have random streaks of yellow even in rockfish species that do not appear to have any yellow. It appears to be some sort of gene defect in the red pigmentation that makes it highlighter yellow. I wish I could share pics of some specimens ive seen it is truly wild. It looks as if someone has been grabbing random rockfish out of the wild and splattering them with yellow fluorescent paint. I just want to make a note: I don’t know very much about genes and gene manipulation. I just see things in the wild and say “oh that’s pretty neat! The fish lab guys aren’t gonna believe this” and thats about the extent of it

I just wanted to point out that algae wafers really aren't very good for corys. They need more protein.

About a month or so ago I collected and hatched over 100 panda cories. The most I've ever had at a time is 30 so it's been a lot. The increase of fry plus other factors crashed my growout tank and so my fry tank has had to hold juveniles longer than it usually does. While dealing with all of that, the adults have been constantly spawning. For 2 weeks they decided to spawn every single day even!! I started ignoring the spawning mops and letting the eggs mostly be eaten but now I have about a dozen fry showing up in the main tank. Just tonight I checked the mops and found TONS more eggs. Someone please stop putting viagra in the tank lol So, I think I know why they are so "excited" moreso than ever before. It's known that the presence of young can trigger a species to spawn. I think it's also causing them to not stop. It started with me adding 2 juveniles to the tank that I wanted to keep. I believe me ignoring the mops and assuming the eggs would be eaten made it worse. It caused younger and greater numbers of fry to be introduced. I even noticed that as those fry grew older, the spawning has slowed down.

Hello, just wanted to introduce myself. I’m a biology teacher in Missouri, and I’ve had freshwater aquariums ever since I was a boy. I’m especially a fan of percomorph fishes, ie cichlids, sunfishes, and anabantoids. I also like livebearers, minnows, and catfishes, as well as snails, frogs, and turtles After taking a break for a few years, I recently got back into the hobby. I currently have three tanks: - A 10-gal with one African dwarf frog and bladder snails. - A 29-gal tank just cycling with bladder snails. - A 55-gal tank with about 200 guppies. The plan is to use the 55 for angelfish, blue gouramis, and a red tail shark. I’m thinking of using the 29 for the guppies, and perhaps dwarf gouramis and/or kribensis cichlids. The 10 will likely be getting a couple more African dwarf frogs soon. Well, that’s all for now. Looking forward to some nice chats soon.

Yeah it does but I am getting a new one that is sturdy before I fill it up @macdaddy36, I will upgrade substrate and all that too, thanks for the suggestions!

My LFS sells them like that (tied together) and I never had any luck. I bought some beautiful looking java fern online that was potted in rock wool. It looked amazing for a couple weeks, but as it adjusted to my water it started getting those black spots and producing new shoots. Much of the original plants have melted away now, but the new growth is doing much better.

Second one looks like Hygrophila pinnatifida. Agree on the first, too, Temple Plant, Hygrophila corymbosa like @EricksonAquatics and @JE47 said.

You can also make a ring from clear airline tubing and use an airline suction cup on the glass to keep it in place. I did this when I had red root floaters. My tanks are rimmed and I keep the water line above the bottom of the rim, so you couldn’t really see the tubing or the small suction cup.

Then maybe it's time to clean it up...

The answer is both yes and no and mostly it depends. Each snail is different. Sometimes they do leave because there is something they don't like in the tank. Sometimes they just want to explore. I would first investigate any reason they may want to leave. I've had dozens of nerites of over 20 different species and here's some reasons I've found they leave: 1. Water quality - this is kind of a no brainer. It's the first thing to check for any aquatic creature and it seems you've already explored this. 2. Lack of food - nerites are hard to feed. They typically will not accept commercial foods but rely on natural sources. Make sure the tank has plenty of natural algae. If you are concerned you can add some cholla wood. They love it. 3. Fear - one time I added a yoyo loach to a tank and noticed the nerite snails started leaving the tank. I should have moved the snails before adding the loach anyway but it was interesting to me to see them leave. I have also once had a snail who didn't like a betta. The betta never bothered it and the other snails were fine with the betta but just 1 snail wasn't comfortable so I put it in a different tank. 4. GH or PH - make sure PH is above 7.0 and GH is 6 or higher.

This is a big reason I got rid of mine. They are a boring fish to me. I like fish that are active and they are some of the laziest fish I've ever kept.

I agree with the assessment of the first plant the second plant looks similar to water wisteria but don't quote me on that

1. That stand looks sketchy to me. Are you sure it can handle the weight of the tank? 2. If your betta only died a week ago your tank still probably has significant colonies of beneficial bacteria. Also, since you have another tank with cycled media you can use that to pretty much instantly cycle new tanks. 3. I would strongly recommend upgrading the substrate and lighting to grow plants. I have nicrew and aquaneat leds both of which are less than $20 on Amazon and grow plants well. I always thought a densely planted 5 gallon would look great with a some sparkling gourami.

You can't really reliably sex discus without them being fully mature and truthfully, you have to see their breeding apparatus. As far as one discus being alone... it's certainly not ideal. If money is an issue, I'd steer very clear of discus. A single fully grown discus from a reputable source might "work" in this situation, at least temporarily. But the odds are slim. And that fish is going to run you something in the $250 neighborhood. You could conceivably do 5-6 in the 55, but speaking as someone who has 7 in a 75. It takes a boatload of water changes to keep them in good shape. I average 5x90% water changes per week and for the first 18 months or so it was every day.

I would definitely get some dither fish! I have a pair of beautiful red severums that just crammed themselves behind the filter intakes and rocks for probably the first month i had them anytime i walked into the room, i was having to setup a camera infront of the tank to get a look at them, threw some scissortail rasboras from another tank in there and within about a week they would come out but were very skittish,I then would not feed for a few days then feeding baby brine or blood worms and just standing back from the tank while they ate, then slowly work my way closer to the tank, now a few months later those two are front and center 99% of the time when i walk in the room!

Going off of a reply I made to an earlier post… I thought I’d share how I spend my weekends and see who leads as an exciting life as I do. 😂 Starting Friday evenings… it’s Repashy making time. By Thursday night I’ve used up (or rather, the fish have) my week’s supply of Repashy… so, it’s time to make a new batch. Right now, I have Super Green and Community Plus… I combined both this time. Now that mine and Mr. FishChik’s dinner is done, it’s time for a cuppa joe and fish feeding time. I like to sit and watch them eat while I sip my coffee. Saturdays are tank maintenance days. Cleaning glass inside and out, trimming plants, water change if needed and just general tidying up. Also the Fertilizing day. Spending afternoons reading about fish, checking out the forums and watching all the fish YouTube’s. Always dreaming about my bucket list fish. Sunday - is rest day. It’s also fish fasting day. I sometimes tend to over feed trying to make sure everyone gets some food.. so Sundays give the tank a chance catch up. Usually spend a good amount of time just enjoying the view of the tanks. They really are relaxing to watch. the rest of the week is busy with husbands dialysis, nurse visits, occupational therapists visits and physical therapists visits. Each one will take time to gaze at the aquariums and admire the fish. Life has changed a LOT for us in the past few months. Very grateful for the therapy my aquariums give me. Something joyful and peaceful to focus on amid the chaos. It’s the little things and moments in life that help us keep going.

I don’t know but I’m curious. I have started working with the albino yellow metal lace guppies and wondered the same thing.

The video I saw today was this: (kinda loud music in the background, warning, keep the volume dow)

It will grow reasonably well for most, but might not have as much color as some get without CO2.

Here's a little bit better shot of the lone baby on it's third day swimming. It is already getting some color. I need to get busy and get some fry growing in the breeding tank to keep her company. Next week perhaps.

I wonder if this is reason cory switches to dan's

I wonder how this will work out since it is a conflict of interest for Cory who also sells plants.

In remembrance of all the plants that could have been part of the planted jungle tank dream, but have past to the next life. To the java moss that was meant cling and cover the driftwood, only to disappear tiny sprig by tiny sprig, to the moneywort that was meant to provide entertainment and cover for the frogs only that slowly melt into nothingness, to the duckweed that was just gone one morning never to return, to the Indian ferns that floated away into the great beyond stem by stem, to the banana plants that returned to the substrate to nourish the the brown sludge along the bottom of the tank, to the velvet green algae that once covered my rocks and wood only to leave me once my love for you developed, to the hair algae that use to gently wave at me from within the current of the filters providing beautiful green movement, and finally to the last of my black beard algae that would fringe the rocks and wave like graceful anemones as the fish swam around you, You will be missed, but I will continue forward until I find the plant(s) that was meant for me.

That's thread I bet. I can't even see the rhizomes. The big box store get java fern that are e bundled up and they don't warn you about it.

I believe you are using something like this: Silicone sealant (such as GE silicone 1 sealant) will form a very strong bond to properly cleaned glass. So put a layer silicone on the glass then put the plastic canvas on top of it. Then put another layer of silicone over the plastic canvas. So you are not glueing the plastic canvas to the glass, you embedding the plastic canvas into a layer of silicone which is bonded to the glass. I hope that makes sense. Put masking tape down to get clean lines and it should look nice.

You could add some crushed coral to help raise your KH and GH you would want to add one pound of crushed coral per 10 gallons to the substrate or in a media bag in your filter @Guupy42

I used greenhouse panels which are polycarbonate and cheap when you figure a 4x8 sheet was 50 dollars I cut drilled and put hinges that are clear check my journal thread.

Of course you would 😀. Most people would. But… if you look closely, it does have a kind of beauty to it too. Yours looks very alive and healthy 😀. It’s all relative. 🤣 I think this is kinda cool in a different kind of way

Ramshorns come in an insane variety of colors. It's seemingly endless for real. I've done some diving into exploring their genetics and used to selective breed them for about a year and I still find new colors and varieties.

Besides the look, there’s really nothing wrong with algae. LRB aquatics uses algae in his tanks. Have heard Bentley Pascoe was thinking about using black beard in an aqua scape. Iv’e seen black beard in some of Cory’s tanks. It honestly doesn’t have to be a big deal. Adding siamese algae eaters or Florida flag fish will help. Some people get really into having well manicured display tanks. Which is great. But that’s a whole other rabbit hole some people go down. Most average people just want healthy fish. Heck, most average keepers are quite content with colorful gravel and plastic plants for that matter. It really is in the eye of the beholder.

You could try buce, it’s similar to Anubias and stays pretty tiny! It’s also a rhizome plant so you can glue it to your rock again. Something that helped my Anubias in direct light was adding a floating ring full of floating plants right above it. Helps shade it out and keep it happy and algae-free!

That's a good idea, too. Mine are about the size of a big pea, on average.

@Tanked Thanks that's actually reassuring, so many videos and forums saying so many things like cutting up my cartridge or never touching it at all and to only replace if really necessary. But from what you said Im gonna put a filter sponge with the old cartridge behind it for a week and take out the cartridge after. Thanks for the replies guys!

Mine always hang out in their favorite plant. Even when I upgraded to a larger tank and moved both them and "their" plant, they still found the same plant and still hang out by it even though there's several other plants now. Some of the younger/smaller ones might explore a bit - but for the most part they don't do much except eat, and when I'm lucky, spawn.

Probably correct. Add to that, if was insect eggs, the fish would be gorging themselves. Eggs are delicious and nutritious

I always appreciate when the fishkeeping hobby gives me an excuse to buy some new toy

Cut the tubes. (The green tubes) See pic. (Nano filter in my 5g shrimp tank) Another option is take the Nano Filter apart, Toss one basket, cut the black sponge in half, now you have a 1/2 sized nano.

Well, that technically changes with kids. Sometimes you desperately do

There is a topic in forum announcements that should have the answer. Its the little link chain button next to the smiley face when you go to edit your signature.

Same here. I've been using Seachem Safe for well over a decade on 20 gallon to 135 gallon tanks. I just put a 1/4 teaspoon of safe in a plastic cup of tank water, stir & pour it in right when I start to refill the tank during a water change.

To be clear it is the top piece the initial elbow will probably have to be glued but the piece that fits in on top should not and the elbow must be straight up. If they tilt then the piece on top (not sure what you call it; perhaps intake) will be crooked and the top grid will be more exposed making it easier for small fishes to get into the sump; of course if you cover this with fine netting that should help but then if the side holes get clogged you will have a big wet mess (there are pros and cons to everything - the best option would be if CA sold a top that had much finer holes).

the one you have had success with, and are therefore confident in it is the right one, or best one. for me, i have been using stress coat for 27 or 28 years, so for me its best. ive dabbled with others, and they seem to work decently well, but hard to change what works. my best advice for these products is to buy in bulk. if you can, half gallon or gallon jugs are way cheaper per use vs 16ounce bottles. buy one small bottle once, then refill from the big jug as needed.

Bissell looks content on his custom couch.

Yes and no... I have years of experience, but I am still trying to fully tackle/stop this monster. My suggestions on what to do is to "fix everything" which is a short way of saying to go through a checklist and fix a variety of potential issues. One of the big ones I had an issue with the light spread (light too close, not covering the tank fully). Light strength, first too high, then too low, now we're back up to higher %. Light duration slightly too long. Not enough circulation of CO2 when dosing CO2. Poor circulation in general due to filtration setup. Dead spots = home for BBA, regardless of light. If the flow is too high in one spot, it loves that too because water pushes the spores on that spot consistently. A tip Bentley Pascoe gave me on a stream was to set the light for normal % and limit the window to 4 hours max. Run that for a few weeks. It helped SO MUCH to contain the algae and let the plants sustain. Light is the key here, but there's a lot going on. Clean the filter, clean the tank more, get rid of waste and debris in the substrate. Make sure pumps and filters are adequate and up to the task. More is more..... More filtration is often used on high tech aquascapes for a reason. Hopefully that helps.

@KaitieG I don’t use tidals but my Marineland do this also. I use my python or I have a short 1 inch hose to vacuum the HOBs when I clean media. A turkey baster would not handle mine either.

I've had this same issue with my 110 and know exactly what you're talking about. At first it didn't happen for me and then got worse and worse over time. More mulm and gunk shooting out of the filter after I would turn it on from cleaning it. Super frustrating when I'd just changed the water and cleaned the tank. I'd rinse the sponges and other media and the media basket, so it wasn't coming from there. I figured it out last week. The answer is that yes, you have to clean out the reservoir on the filter itself. Not necessarily every time you rinse the media, but periodically. There is a shocking amount of mulm and gunk that builds up in the housing of the filter itself. At least I was shocked! It's a pain to take the whole filter off the tank, and I think the turkey baster idea would accomplish a lot of the same thing so long as you do it pretty regularly. A turkey baster wouldn't have handled mine! It could at least extend the time between the unhooking the whole filter thing. But cleaning the filter box itself out didn't turn out to be that bad of a job once I knew to do it.

At the moment I am using: Seachem prime, Fritz complete, and whatever water conditioner Topfin makes, all of them are working perfectly fine and dechlorinating water. Really for me it just comes down to convenience. The Complete has a pump head which makes it easier for water changes on my larger tank, i got a large drop bottle of prime for free which works great for water changes on my smaller tanks, and the Topfin was free as well. As far as i can tell dechlorinating wise there is not much of a difference, just a difference in prices and branding.

Still going! I did get a tab under it after I posted originally. Now starting to make some moves. 😁

It could just be adjusting. I bought quite a few Java fern recently and they were emersed grown, so they take a little while to settle in, convert and get growing.