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Chick-In-Of-TheSea

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Everything posted by Chick-In-Of-TheSea

  1. Chick-In-Of-TheSea
    Your ultimate goal is to get to zero. If you keep getting anything above that, water change 25% with Prime and test again the next day. After the ammonia goes away you’ll do the same thing with any nitrite readings. Anything above zero, water change & test next day. Yes, that is ok. Just follow her cues. She probably feels vulnerable right now. Nothing is a rush other than keeping the water safe for her through testing and maintenance. It is really great that she is coming out to eat. Bettas love those!! Happy holidays to you as well!
  2. Chick-In-Of-TheSea
    Happy Thanksgiving @Guppysnail!
  3. Chick-In-Of-TheSea
    Not sure if mentioned yet but Marina S10 HOB for the 10 gal tank. Add a baffle or suction cup soap dish with flat marbles in it under the outflow to control current. The pump sits in the tank and it self primes. Easy peasy!
  4. Chick-In-Of-TheSea
    As I recall, the rest of the R&M gang is in YOUR tank, @Lennie! We still need to get you a Summer. Think we can sneak a clutch past customs? 😈
  5. Chick-In-Of-TheSea
    Happy Thanksgiving! Everybody is eating pumpkin!
  6. Chick-In-Of-TheSea
    I don’t have experience with those products in particular, and cannot advise on that. Looks like stability is bacteria (like Fritz Zyme 7) and Stress Guard stimulates slime coat (like Stress Coat). Salt will do the same thing: stimulate slime coat. If you use salt, no need for Stress Guard. Safe ammonia is zero. Any amount of ammonia is toxic, unless it is “locked up” with Prime. Remember the lock-up effect only lasts a day. One thing I can suggest though, is to add extra air. The more products in the tank, the more air the fish will require. Even dechlorinator reduces dissolved oxygen levels in the tank.
  7. Chick-In-Of-TheSea
    To add to this suggestion, I would recommend getting the cycle resolved first so things don’t get weird again. LOL Then later you can work on the filter media, but you’ll want to do that when you have some bottled bacteria on hand. You’ll want to ensure that there are always beneficial bacteria on your filter media to consume the harmful ammonia and nitrite. I like Fritz Zyme 7, but there is one that is stronger (more beneficial bacteria) and is made especially for new tanks: it is called Fritz Turbo Start.
  8. Chick-In-Of-TheSea
    Hi @JillianGarcia05 and welcome to the forum! Your intuition about the tank not cycling is correct. Normally it takes a few weeks to cycle a tank (fishless cycle). You are now in a fish-in cycle, and the algae you see (I’m assuming it’s brown/dusty) is called diatoms. That is a good sign that means the cycle is underway. From this point, you will need to keep your fish safe from ammonia and nitrite. Those are the 2 things to watch. Daily routine: Water test ammonia, nitrite, nitrate Water change 25% using Prime The water change will dilute ammonia, and any that remains will be detoxified by the Prime. You WILL still get an ammonia (or nitrite) reading even with the Prime. That’s ok. It didn’t go away; it was made safe. The detoxifying effects of Prime last about a day, and that’s why you’ll need to stay on top of this routine. Once you start reading nitrate, and 0 ammonia, 0 nitrite, your cycle is complete. 🔥 HOT TIP: live plants EAT ammonia, nitrite, and nitrate (in that order of preference). Add those if you can! Your fish’s eye may have been injured. You can help the fish by adding Indian almond leaves to the water as well as a level 1 salt dose (1 Tbsp per 3 gallon). Using aquarium salt (not marine salt) dissolve it in a cup of tank water first, then slowly pour it into your tank. https://www.aquariumcoop.com/blogs/aquarium/aquarium-salt-for-sick-fish. Salt is a broad-spectrum treatment and so are the leaves, so if you haven’t pinpointed the exact diagnosis, that’s ok. Once you get your leaves into the water, I would recommend pulling out the plastic plants to prevent further injury and either replace with silk as @Kaiju suggested, or live plants. Plastic plants are usually no issue.. except with bettas. Here are 2 videos that I find very helpful for your situation. This filter video shows what you can do to improve your filter. As @JE47 pointed out, changing a cartridge could restart your cycle. The dirty truth of it is, the filter manufacturers would like to continue to make profit, so they lead customers to believe that regular cartridge replacements are the best thing to do. That’s not the best thing in the interest of your fish’s or tank’s health.
  9. Chick-In-Of-TheSea
    My nerites will eat boiled green bean and boiled zucchini. I use a plant weight to weigh them down.
  10. Chick-In-Of-TheSea
    Little blue snail needs a name.
  11. Chick-In-Of-TheSea
    So true and it also serves as a hide. But they are very floaty! I had to weigh mine down with a rock because boiling and plant weights didn’t sink it. Imagine living in a house you can eat though. 🙂
  12. Chick-In-Of-TheSea
    My shrimpies like the alder cones. They like them most when they’ve been in the tank awhile and have biofilm and algae. They don’t like banana leaves, even when I pre soak them. Idk why. They like lotus pods and casuarina cones too. There is another one they like that is shaped like a star; I forget what it is called. Here’s a photo. You can see they’ve picked at it.
  13. Chick-In-Of-TheSea
    In your quarantine tank, do keep an eye on ammonia level if you added the salt all at once. The salt will slow the beneficial bacteria on the filter. It will spring back; it just takes time. If you have a reading, do a 25% water change and use a dechlorinator detoxifies ammonia, such as Prime or Fritz Complete. Repeat the ammonia test daily. I'm so sorry for your losses. Keep your chin up and keep going! You got this.
  14. Chick-In-Of-TheSea
  15. Chick-In-Of-TheSea
    I have a Marina 200 and an s10. The s15 is similar to the s10 in its flow pattern, allowing an extra compartment for capacity. Here’s my current loadout for my s10. I held ACO coarse sponge next to it so you can see the bulk, which is likely not adequate for this filter. This gap is an intentional contingency, as this filter lacks a proper bypass chute. In the event of clogged floss, which can happen quickly in a small filter box, the water will first try to overflow at the intake tube, then will rise within the filter box, creating risk of overflow. This gap circumvents that risk, as I’m not going to be checking my filter everyday. Life gets busy, and I might forget. Lately I run it with the lid off also, so I can keep an eye on things. Further, these slim filters have slots that are designed to keep media in place. Could you squish a larger sponge past it? Sure. But would the HOB overflow? Probably. Closeup of slots I either use ACO polishing pad: or Aqua-Flo pond & aquarium filter media. It comes in a big roll which you’ll never think you’ll use, but you will, and you’ll save a bunch of money. Biomedia is an excellent idea, especially since the s15 has that 3rd compartment. I have not loaded any, as I’m using the s10 as a secondary filter to polish the water. The primary filter is a fine sponge filter. Highly considering going 100% HOB though to free up space in the tank and to have more control over mechanical filtration and media. The shrimps do like to cling to the sponge filter though, so, still deciding what to do. Perhaps just downsize the sponge filter. I am using a water bottle baffle on the S10 since I have shrimplets that get blown around otherwise. I ordered a proper filter baffle from Etsy, as the water bottle baffle falls off during maintenance. @Big Dog Mom Matrix is a good choice of biomedia, but if you are looking to grow live plants, you may want to switch to something that will not remove nitrates, which are needed by plants. Here is what I use for a planted tank. Do weekly testing of nitrates and water change as needed ( >40 ).
  16. Chick-In-Of-TheSea
    @Sherry there is a YouTuber called Mark’s Shrimp Tanks. Very good info there!
  17. Chick-In-Of-TheSea
    And so it begins again. They are turning over a new leaf! (I see the shrimps; they are turning.. hehe 🙄) I give them the soggy, ready to fall apart leaves from Geppetto’s tank and they love them. Geppetto’s tank is hotter by about 7 degrees, and leaves tend to break down quicker there. Another blue jelly type shrimp (on bottom left edge) with that black inkspot pattern. See the green carapace? Signature for a blue jelly. (I think. I don’t really research too much into the genetics. I just allow stuff to happen and make sure everyone is healthy). I heard someone (Secret History, perhaps?) say in a video, wild types have the most potential.
  18. Chick-In-Of-TheSea
    Wandered over to the fishroom and the leaf skeleton has already been revealed.
  19. Chick-In-Of-TheSea
    Was sitting watching shrimps yesterday with the magnifying glass. They were picking apart a soggy catappa leaf. Satisfying to see the shrimp empty a cell of the leaf, allowing light to shine through, and moving onto the next. The leaf skeleton should be ready for me later today. I have at least 2 lovely red shrimp: a warm chestnut color. They were swimming about. The key to getting shrimps to swim more is time between feedings and floating plants. Feed shrimps if they are swimming/active but if they are just sitting or walking, they are not that hungry. I woke up this morning to the tickle of whiskers on my cheek, little puffs of air and sniff sniff noises on my eyebrow, a long warm purr and a massage (kneading). Very pleasant way to wake up, despite the 5am hour. My view was something like this.
  20. Chick-In-Of-TheSea
    I am so so very sorry for your losses. I agree with what @Odd Duck suggested for the seltzer (plants) and 3% peroxide (tank, substrate, equipment). Welcome to the forum also. Glad you are here, and we will help you however we can.
  21. Chick-In-Of-TheSea
    They really are! I was surprised!
  22. Chick-In-Of-TheSea
    Visited Gatorland today More photos here
  23. Chick-In-Of-TheSea
    Visit to gatorland Tidbits of knowledge- To escape a gator, run straight, not zig zag. To be released by a gator, bonk its nose. A lot of nerves in the nose. Poking eyes doesn’t do anything. The eyes just retract down into the head when they are poked.
  24. Chick-In-Of-TheSea
    How Snoopy troubleshoots a bloodworm block 😆 Also, Spike has a nice healthy appetite this morning.
  25. Chick-In-Of-TheSea
    Been struggling with some cloudy water which resulted in a big water change and more mechanical filtration, amongst other things. Today the tank looks “pretty ok”. Not perfect but not terrible either. The last fellow looks like a blue jelly.
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