FLFishChik

I managed to get 2/3 of my 8ft x 4ft raised garden bed weeded. Doesn’t seem like much but when your taking care of an incapacitated spouse, haven’t really been active in 18 months since taking an at home job and have multiple animals to look after… it’s monumental. Will finish the rest tomorrow and hopefully get some veggies planted this weekend!

Coffee with the fishes. My favorite time of day. Tried to get some good shots of the Rummynose Rasbora, but it’s like they sense the moment my finger presses the button and they dart off. Little goobers Congo tetra are starting to get the outlines in their tails and dorsal… hoping I have more than 2 males. Lemon Tetra aren’t very Lemony looking… more yellow in the pics than in person, hoping they gain more color.

Well… no, usually people put goldfish in tanks they want to eradicate duckweed from 😂

This might be helpful 😁 https://www.aquariumcoop.com/blogs/aquarium/goldfish-plants

For a weekend, they’ll be ok without food. In general, tetras can go 7-10 days without food as long as they are being well fed leading up to that.

I love my little Embers, they are one of the most entertaining fish in my tanks. Not shy, always at the glass when I walk by begging for treats.... and their little orange bodies just POP against the green backdrop of plants. They are so cool.

Well, let’s start with the basics. What’s your budget? Do you have a light? Your tank may or may not be cycled with a nitrite reading of 0.5 ppm. I’m leaning towards “not fully cycled”. You should have a reading of ammonia 0, nitrites 0, and nitrates under 20 ppm. If you aren’t seeing any nitrates, then your tank probably isn’t cycled just yet. as for stocking- you’ll be very limited on what you can keep in a 5.5g. While a single Bronze Cory will technically fit, they are happier and less stressed in groups of at least 3 (though 6 are recommended) which will be far too much for a 5.5g tank and would be more suited to a minimum tank size of 10g (20g is better). as for the current tank… you could do a single Betta with a Nerite or Mystery snail and a couple of Ghost shrimp. That’s about the limit. You may want to consider upgrading to a 10g so that you have more options as far as stocking goes. Petco regularly has sales on tanks and you can pick one up for about $12.

It looks ( in my opinion) like Green water or Green Dust algae. Either way, it would mean there’s an excess of light and/or nutrients. ACO has an article about different types of algae and how to get it under control https://www.aquariumcoop.com/blogs/aquarium/aquarium-algae#:~:text=Brown (and sometimes green) diatom,shrimp) like to eat it.

Well, everything seems to be going well. Got some growing pains happening, but I expected that. Water gets cloudy, then clear, then cloudy… I suspect I am over feeding (trying to make sure everyone gets some food) so I’ve reduced the amount I give at feedings. Probably need to add quite a few more plants to help with water quality. I keep testing every other day just to make sure everything is good. Did have a Congo Tetra that developed some white fuzzy growth on his/her body at the base of the dorsal fin and at the tail. Netted him/her out (that was a joy - not) and into a hospital tank with low dose of aquarium salt for 5 days. Fuzzies seem to be fine. Did a 30% water change and am now waiting the 7 days before I do another to see if comes back. So far, everyone else in the big tank seem to be doing well- no fuzzies. I’ve never had this many fish at once, so figuring out how much to feed is brand new territory. The Tetras are eating machines. They swarm the top of the tank anytime I walk by. The Rummynose Rasbora aren’t as eager and tend to hang towards the back, unwilling to participate in the feeding frenzy. They are the reason I think I may be over feeding as I’m so afraid they won’t get to the food. I really need to dial it in though. They are beautiful though and now I want an entire tank full of them. I’m surprised I don’t see more of them in the hobby. Those colors are stunning. Corys and Kuhli do their thing… always busy. Mango, the Lemon Blue Eye BN Pleco is steadily growing… I am now more certain that Mango is female- not a bristle in sight. added a 2nd Aquasky to the tank (Amazon lost the original order, sent a replacement, then the “lost” one showed up- score) so, since one light didn’t seem to be really lighting both front and back of the tank, I solved that issue… now all the tanks imperfections are illuminated for the world to see. Brilliant. The Vallisneria has FINALLY started to grow upwards. Man, do I struggle with that dang plant. Seems everyone else thinks it’s an easy plant, but then again, I seem to be able to grow Crypts without issue and haven’t had one really melt yet. Go figure. The Buce is… bucing, the Java Fern stopped making babies. Thinking about adding some taller stem plants but not sure which ones just yet. I did add an Aponogeton Ulvaceus that did nothing for almost 2 weeks but, now seems to be shooting up a new leaf every other day. Looking forward to seeing how it grows out.

I have several different Crypts in both tanks but my fav by far is Crypt “Tropica”. It’s just beautiful. The jagged looking rocks in the 75g were purchased at Petsmart in a bag and called “Mountain Stone”. The smooth ones are “Mexican Beach Pebbles” and were purchased at Home Depot. I was originally going to use them in my garden, but decided I needed more rocks in my aquarium 😁 the wood is 3 separate pieces- the light colored center one is actually fake ( I didn’t think about how it wouldn’t change color over time like real wood does). I purchased it at PetSmart because I could not find a real one tall enough. The ones on either side are real Spider Wood, also purchased from PetSmart the small plant you zoomed in on is Buce. I think it’s “Brownie”, but not entirely sure

In my 29g, it’s this area with a Crypt Tropica forest. This was originally 1 plant that has now been divided over the year into 5 very beautiful plants. (The original is in the back behind the lava rock) and in the 75g, it’s my Java Fern Island

I've have 4 Oto's in my 29g tank for 2 years and I rarely see them except once the tank lights are out. I *can* find them if I look really hard, they are usually stretched out on a Driftwood limb and blending in almost perfectly or inside one of the caves created by the spiderwood in the tank. Every now and then I will question whether I may have lost one or two.. only to see them all on the glass either very early in the morning before the lights come on or very late at night after the lights go out. They don't seem to like being out in the open and hang out in the heaviest planted parts of the tank. Sometimes, I can lure them out with some zucchini.

It also adds more water volume for your Betta.

I don’t use it in my tanks. While I love a dense, well planted scape, I keep it simple and put my focus on the inhabitants. The plants I use are low light, low maintenance… a lot of epiphytes, crypts, Vallisneria. A root tab every now and then and some Easy Green liquid pretty much does the trick. It just comes down to “I don’t want to be bothered with”… possible ammonia spikes, murky water, extra critters( tho it’s probably not that big of an issue), worrying about light levels, if I need Co2… I like it simple. The Less work, the more enjoyable for me

@Tropical Fish Gallery Welcome to the forum! I’m at the opposite corner of the U.S. (FL), and I want to find a reason to go to Seattle just so I can spend all my money at ACO!

Welcome! And your tank looks so beautiful!

Ah, Pea Puffers. Well, you *can* technically keep up to 4 in a 15g tank (5g for the first one, additional 3g for each Puffer after that.). Pea puffers can become territorial… so you will need to provide sight breaks and vegetation for them to be comfortable. Feeding… they prefer Live foods like Bladder Snails and Ramshorn Snails and it’s a good idea to have an established source for these as each Pp will eat 3-5 at a feeding. I speak from experience on this. I had two 5g tanks set up to farm snails. 1 for Ramshorn and 1 for bladder snails. You’ll need a month or two to get a good population going before getting your pea puffers. Pea puffers are NOTORIOUSLY difficult to transition to prepared foods like flakes or pellets. So you will need things like Frozen Blood Worms, Frozen Brine Shrimp, Frozen Mysis Shrimp etc. to supplement the snails. You can also culture your own white worm, black worm and grindal worms if you are up for it. They are also *mostly* wild caught and even when they aren’t, they tend to come with mega intestinal parasites (again… speaking from experience) you WILL need to quarantine and most likely deworm them regardless if the original breeder has “dewormed” them previously. though they are promoted as “beginner” fish, they are not. They are “beginner” if you’re experienced with other fish and are looking to get your feet wet in the puffer realm, but they are work. If you take the time to prepare in advance, do your research, make sure you have the necessary tank requirements, the necessary meds for your quarantine and deworming process, and the necessary foods your puffers will need and keep the water pristine, then yes- you can have more than 1 Pea puffer in a 15g tank. Trust me when I say that the better prepared you are BEFORE your Puffers arrive, the better off both you and they will be. I do not say any of this to discourage you at all… but I want to try and save you the heartbreak I suffered when trying to save 8 puffers after having been told they had been “quarantined and dewormed “ only to lose all 8 in a months time. I mistakenly thought that would be enough. By the time I realized and started treating, it was too late. @Odd Duck can probably give you the step by step on how to do the initial quarantine and deworm because they were very, very helpful when I was desperate to save mine

Hello! Congrats on your new Betta. To answer your questions… 1. Epiphyte plants do not require any substrate and can be glued or tied to rocks and driftwood. Anubias, Java Fern and Buce are all epiphytes. Betta appreciate broad leaf plants like Anubias as they will often use them as resting spots. 2. Yes, your Betta can have tank mates, but you will be very limited by the size of tank. A Nerite or Mystery snail and maybe a couple of larger shrimp (depending on your Betta) will be about all you’ll be able to house in a 5g tank with your Betta 3. cycling a tank is a little more than just adding water from the bowl. If there is gravel you may want to consider adding a scoop of that into the tank as well (put it in a piece of pantyhose and tie it off and place it close to the filter), this will help get some beneficial bacteria going. You might want to invest in a bottled bacteria like Seachem stability, Fritzzyme 7 or Tetra Safestart to help it along. 4. You’re going to need to get some water testing supplies. Either the API master test kit or the ACO test trips (both the Ammonia Strips and the Multi strips). You’ll need to test the water often for Ammonia,Nitrites and Nitrates and do water changes accordingly- especially if you are planning to add your Betta right away. Here is a good place to learn how to cycle your aquarium using several different methods… https://www.aquariumcoop.com/blogs/aquarium/fish-tank-cycling

Absolutely. They can hitchhike on plants, snails, driftwood, soil… media taken from another tank. They are perfectly normal part of an aquarium.

It’s difficult to tell exactly what that is on the glass. It could just be some sort of detritus worm ( there are many that fall into that category… like spaghetti worms)

does it look like the worm in this article? https://www.aquariumcoop.com/blogs/aquarium/hydra

I live in Fl with about the same weather temperature wise. You can do Guppy’s in a patio pond but keep these things in mind… shade- your going to want to keep it mostly shaded, especially in the summer. Small ponds don’t take long to heat up. I have mine under a large patio umbrella but there is an hour or 2 in late afternoon when the sun gets to it Oxygen. You’ll definitely want an air stone to keep the water oxygenated to help keep the water cooler. I even have a small HOB filter on mine (mostly for the water sound) but it help with surface agitation and discouraging mosquitoes. plants. So fish can escape to some shade if needed feed less during warmer months.

Lort! Well, I would like to remind you that you ASKED for this… I take no responsibility for your reaction 😂 I feed twice daily Morning feeding I cycle between 3 Staple foods and evening feedings between 2 Bottom feeder foods and 5 frozen/freeze dried foods mornings are 1 of 3 : Xtreme Nano Pellets, Bug Bites Pellets or Bug Bites flakes evenings for bottom feeders are either Xtreme Bottom Feeder wafers or Repashy (Soilent green, Bottom Scratchers, or Community plus- whichever I made that week) evenings for the rest of the tank is 1 of 5: freeze dried Tubifex worms Frozen Brine Shrimp, Frozen Baby Brine, Frozen Mysis Shrimp or Frozen Blood worms Once or twice a week I toss in a blanched or canned veggie (cucumber, zucchini or green beans) for the Otocinclus and BN Pleco Sundays is fasting day Yes, I know I’m extra

Aquarium Co Op has an article on how to do a Fish In Cycle. You might find this helpful Cloudy water is common in brand new aquarium set ups and is usually due to a bacterial bloom (sudden rise in nitrifying bacteria). https://www.aquariumcoop.com/blogs/aquarium/fish-tank-cycling

That is awesome!