Mary W.

Maybe just try leaving a few batches of eggs in the community tank - if it's heavily planted and you're feeding enough (Repashy community blend and bottom scratcher are my corys' favorites), a few of the fry will probably make it and sounds like that's all you're looking for - Either way, hope you have success eventually, the little guys are so much fun -

Thank you so much for posting this video! Wonderful pictures of the eggs and fry and great info. I have Ember tetras in a heavily-planted community tank and am hoping for a few babies some day but so far no luck -

Definitely beautiful tank. Are you sure those are micro-swords, not dwarf sag you got instead? Those grass like plants can be tough to tell apart even for plant vendors. It may be that whatever it is will just keep growing to where its comfortable in the ecosystem of your tank. Maybe try transplanting some of it farther back and see if you like it there better?

Leeches "inchworm" across flat surfaces, squiggle through the substrate, and also swim freely like little snakes. Their heads are the narrow pointy end of them. Planaria slide along the glass without inchworming, have diamond shaped heads with eyespots. So yeah watch how they move.

Leave that mulm on your gravel alone - the fry will eat it and/or whatever's growing in it. I have two planted community tanks with pygmy corys making fry - The fry are TINY, stay on the bottom usually where there is a good layer of mulm near rocks or dense plants, and they nibble at the mulm. Have fun with them they're AWESOME -

Aquarium Co-op sponge filter has worked very well for me - Sturdy and clean design. I also have two Tidal-55 HOBs, on a 20 long and a 40 breeder. Went with them rather than Aquaclears because they're self-priming so will restart if electricity goes off and on again when no one is home. Both have worked like a charm, and one has been running for two years. They're quiet, and sturdier than the Aquaclears. Only thing I don't like is that the components fit together so tightly it's a tussle to get them apart for cleaning. But once you have them apart the cleaning is easy and they're a snap to put back together. If any Tidal users out there have tips for taking them apart, would be much appreciated!

You can run it through the dishwasher (without soap or dishes, of course!). Just make sure it won't hit any of the moving dishwasher parts.

I've had one of these in my tank with pygmy corys for close to a year and have not seen a barbel problem. I initially just set it on the substrate but it never "stuck", and now that the moss has grown into a big bush the mesh floats an inch or so off the substrate and the corys like to hang out under it, it's their favorite hideout. In sum, the mesh has not been a problem in my experience.

What are people's thoughts on Repashy? My corys (Pygmy and False Julii) like the community blend. Has anyone tried bottom scratcher for corys?

My pygmy corys spawn regularly in my heavily-planted community tanks, which also contain tetras, shrimp, and snails. Water is soft and slightly acidic. They lay the eggs on the plants, I have never seen any on the glass. Good luck with yours - it's lots of fun if you do get babies.

My moss ball looked like that, some algae growing on top and a bit mushy. I followed a suggestion in an online source and rinsed it off in cold tap water, then put it in a cup of water in the refrigerator for 24H. It really perked it up, so now I do that every few weeks. I've used plain seltzer water a couple of times and it seemed to like that as well. Evidently the lakes they grow in naturally are in colder climates (northern Japan, Iceland, etc), and also they are constantly gently rolling around so not picking up stuff as they might in our tanks. So you might consider that. Good luck with it!

I've had glowlights for two years and they have never jumped. I leave the tank lid half open much of the time. They're lovely fish, peaceful and hardy. The stripe on mine is more orange-gold than pink. I find them beautiful.

The longer the piece, the better it will float. If those were just little bits you cut off, yeah they will sink at first, but give them a chance. A piece six or eight inches long will float for you -

The part you cut off (the stem with the fresh growth at the tip) can be left to float in the tank. It will grow roots and eventually side branches. Mine actually seem to do best as floaters.

Like this, on each side of the bottom of the rectangle. Gives you little "tabs" that will hold the screen in place at the bottom, after you tuck the vertical edges into the right and left outermost slits in the surface skimmer.

To keep duckweed out of that top skimmer, you can take a rectangle of plastic needlepoint canvas, slit it at the bottom a centimeter or so on each side, and pop it in. Easy and effective.

Re fenbendazole, did consider it but never tried it. What info I could find was mixed on whether it would be effective against leeches in the environment. It kills intestinal worms by paralyzing them and allowing them to be excreted. I also read somewhere that it can harm corydoras - Who knows, but anyway I was leery and didn't try it.

Tore down the tank and started fresh, after trying for three months to eradicate them (tank maintenance, filter cleaning, planaria/leech traps, levamisole (in Expel-P), and praziquantel (in Prazipro)). I was worried they would get into my other tank where I have shrimp, and also they set up housekeeping in my HOB filter which was definitely gross. It's possible your loaches will eat them - I never saw my corys (pygmy and false Julii) go after them. Someone more experienced than me recommended a gourami but I never tried that.

That looks like an Asian Freshwater Leech (Barbronia weberi). I recently had an infestation of these in my planted tank, I believe they came in as eggs or tiny wormlets I didn't appreciate, with an order of plants. I never saw them harm my fish (corys and tetras), but read that they will kill shrimp - fortunately none in this tank. Here's a picture of one of mine.