FishRBeautiful

I had a Platy who kept having babies. I never had males with her but there were males in the tank I bought her from. If you catch them when they’re I don’t know, maybe 2 or so weeks old (I never kept track), you can move them to a tank with a betta. My betta ate a pretty decent size one I didn’t notice was born for a while. Gulped it in one bite. I also took a bunch to Petco. They take fish you don’t want. Also, my daughter had a tank of 3 or 4 female Platys. After a few months, one of them turned into a male. I don’t know if it just hadn’t developed yet and was still young or if it actually changed. All may baby Platys always look like females. I think they must get a gonopodium when they get older. Hope that’s helpful.

So this is the second time (picture attached of first and second time), I found my Nerite snails on top of each other. Is this normal? Are they friends or mating? I have no salt in my water right now. So sorry for the algae in pics. It’s a work in progress for this new fish tank hobbyist.

Actually, looking at the picture posted by Chick-in-of-theSea. My gravel is pea gravel (from Menard’s) so it’s bigger than that. So maybe that’s why sand might sink into mine. I could test it out in a small bowl with just a little bit and see if that happens.

Thanks for the input! Everyone has such great ideas. I want to try them all. Probably will try at least a few at some point in life. I actually just got new sand and plan to wash it tomorrow. Bought play sand and pool filter sand. If play sand is too dirty, I don’t have to go back to the store (Town is 35 minutes away) for pool filter sand. The play sand seems course so I’m not sure if my Cory’s and Kuhli loaches will like that. I got to thinking if I put sand on top of gravel, some of it will drop down into and mix with the gravel. The problem I thought of is if I ever want to use that gravel for a gravel bottom tank. Still undecided.

LOL He’s fat and lazy and thought he didn’t have to go downstairs now. I only know because I saw 4 paw prints and a wet spot. And to his credit, it’s the exact container I use for his litter box downstairs, color and all. Thats great advice and makes perfect sense.

Your aquarium looks awesome! I wonder if the algae left in my gravel would cause problems if I did a sand cap instead. But some plants would love the gravel for roots also. How would you add new plants without mixing sand and gravel though? And I have bad news. My daughter’s cat peed in the sand I had washed and was almost finished drying so I have to buy more and start over. A warning to all the cat owners. Ha! I was drying it so it didn’t grow mildew or something because I wasn’t going to start the project right away.

That’s another great method. I’ll definitely keep that in mind for down the road when my youngest is old enough to be left to herself for a while. I’m sure I’ll do this more than once as I’m enjoying fishkeeping. I did have a thought and was debating about doing sand on one half and gravel on the other. Because what if the algae the fish & snails eat is all in the gravel. They might starve. LOL I’ll do some research. Might be too complicated to gravel vac. And about the catfish, that’s good to know . I’m good about trying to minimize the stress on my fish as much as possible.

I may have heard that. At first, I didn’t get Cories because I was too scared to even clean the tank. But I love them so much I took the risk. No stings so far. Now I have loaches and a pleco and probably get more catfish. They’ll probably end up being some of my favorite fish. I’ll be sure not to trap them.

I read quite a few times that Cories have spines or something that cut and also can release a poison but I’m not sure if the poison thing is proven or a theory. Also I read Kuhli loaches have stingers under their eyes but I don’t think it releases a poison. Love the gravel vacuuming advice! You saved me a lot I bet. I’ve been overfeeding my fish so my cories and loaches don’t starve so my gravel is always nasty when I vacuum. A few days ago, I found out about and got sinking catfish/loach food/tablet things. Problem is my platies found out and go eat them after they finish their food and get fat. Oh well! I take my large (5 gallon) and small (maybe 2 1/2 gallon) rinsed fish tank cleaning bucket outside. I fill the large one with maybe 3-5 inches of sand or gravel that I plan to use for substrate at a time. Then, I turn my crazy high pressure hose nose on full blast so the substrate gets stirred and mixed with the water. When the bucket is full, I dump the dirty water out and repeat like 10 times. Clean substrate goes in my small bucket and maybe some other clean bins so it can be spread out and dry if needed. Haven’t found out if the sand will dry yet though.

Ok, thank you! That’s a great idea! I was thinking I don’t know how I’d do the whole project at one time because it would take forever. I might take your advice and switch it out during a water change when the water is slightly low and filter is off. And I wouldn’t want to remove my fish. They’d all freak out and probably get ich or something. Do I need to worry about getting stung by the cories or Kuhli loaches if I’m digging in the substrate? The gravel is too heavy for them to burrow in

I had a male Platy that chased all my fish but one specific (and I think infertile) Platy that was his own color he chased the most, just to be mean, not to mate. I kept adding female Platys and he only chased the one, all over the tank, even out of her hiding spots. But if any other fish of any kind came near him, he did the same thing, fin nipped them away. After lots of research, I decided he was a bully and surrendered him to the lfs. He’s still there and I’ve thought to buy him back a million times because I grew attached. He’s so pretty but so mean. But your video is exactly what mine did. I’m a new fish keeper so maybe someone else can chime in.

Someone started a topic on changing substrate but different situation. I’m not sure if I’m supposed to add my dilemma to that discussion or start a new topic so starting new. I have a 20 gallon with gravel that I want to put sand in. The gravel is from Menard’s and has been in my tank since I started fishkeeping in January. I bought pool filter sand at Menard’s and washed this week. Others online say this sand is safe but I’m a little nervous. I can’t afford expensive aquarium sand so considering this alternative. My big question is how in the world do I change from gravel to sand with all those live fish in there? Is there a way to minimize debris and dust? And is it a good idea? And how do I make sure not to kill the good bacteria? I have a hang on back filter.

After looking at your post further and watching the videos, I’m thinking I should play with more types of food, instead of just overfeeding. My filter shoots a lot of food down to the bottom so I almost have to overfeed to be sure Platys get enough. That’s one of the downsides to an HOB filter I guess. Might consider Otocinclus. They are super cool and could help long term. I’ve found poop and nitrates are easier to clean than algae. I also have curtains I can close and do sometimes if the sun makes too much algae. (The tank is in my bedroom so closed curtains don’t matter.) Behaviorally, my fish all seem happy except the cories that hang together but seem to be looking for others. And all my fish hide sometimes but I do have a 4 year old and a cat. It’s feeding time so no one is hiding now. One more pic

Wow! This is so helpful and informative. Thanks for taking the time to address my issues. And I do see the cories taking naps often, with their eyes open, during the day. I imagine anacharis and the plastic plants are too hard to eat off. I’ve thought of getting ottos but if I keep adding algae eating fish to my tank (because I love them so much), it’s eventually going to get overstocked and possibly cause fighting over the algae? And mess up my water parameters. My cories still need friends. I can see they are lonely. I’m going to read your post in more detail when I have time tonight and then refer to it to help me make decisions. Again, thanks for all your time and info.

I don’t think my cories are very nocturnal. They swim all day and hide at night. I had 4 but two left. It’s a 20 gallon. Trying not to overstock but they probably need friends. That’s helpful! Target feeding would prevent me having to vacuum so much food all the time. The algae wafers are just because I don’t want my fish to starve but my pleco doesn’t eat them. He eats the driftwood a lot, and algae off my big rock and gravel. My water parameters are pristine. I think the plants and filter do a good job. And the algae eaters help also.

Good to know. I got ghost shrimp in my 5 gallon. I don’t really like them; they remind me of bugs. I’ll probably just have to clean my plants more and find a better way for that issue. Or get real ones. Thanks for the Cory food recommendations. I could try sinking Cory food instead of overfeeding so much. It would help. I wonder if that’s what happened to my two Cory’s. Or if they were just bad ones. Not sure. And I may have read most fish don’t eat hair algae but I can’t recall exactly what it said, but thankfully I don’t think I have that.

I definitely understand the confusion. What I’m concerned about is that there is not enough algae on surfaces like glass where they do eat but too much on surfaces like fake plants that they do not eat. I also thought I posted the following but it didn’t go through. I should add that I overfeed my fish because I don’t want bottom dwellers to starve. I also have one that never gets fat and she is often so shy, she hides and doesn’t eat until the rest leave. She’s also my favorite that I’ve had the longest. She’s the only fish we’ve name so far. So I asked the pet store and they said algae wafers are fine. And I assumed my overfeeding and filter that sends food to the bottom worked. Should I get something else for the catfish? The food that gets pushed to the bottom is for omnivores.

Thanks for taking time to respond! When I had too much algae, I cut back on the light to little to none. But I’ve been using the light 8-12 hours and it’s still not making any new algae for the fish to eat (or so I fear) so I’ve used algae wafers. I don’t want my fish to starve and I lost 2 catfish for some reason (I’ve had them less than 2 weeks so maybe they were sick but who knows.) The fish don’t eat algae off the plants too much. That’s where I heard hillstream loaches come in. Not sure though. 99% of the algae on the glass is green algae that the snail eats. I read if you clean it, it releases into the water and may kill all your fish. It’s from the sun because it’s exactly where the sun shines through the window when I open curtains. Is that the algae that kills fish? You may or may not know. There’s two green algae’s. I think this is green spot? i hadn’t thought of steel brushes. Would that harm fragile fake coral? For bleach, I’m very anti bleach. I’ve bought maybe 10 gallon bottles in my 40 years of life. I’m slightly allergic but sometimes it’s the only way. I’ve see articles and I’m sure it would work but I’m just not sure I want to risk my fish. The plastic plants start to fall apart in hot water so I’m scared to boil them for sure. I should add that I overfeed my fish because I don’t want bottom dwellers to starve. I also have one that never gets fat and she is often so shy, she hides and doesn’t eat until the rest leave. She’s also my favorite that I’ve had the longest. She’s the only fish we’ve name so far.

Hi, I started fishkeeping in January. My main tank is 20 gallons. I’ve made a lot of changes since I started. In about February, I got a very large decorative vertical rock for the center decor and have a fake coral as well as fake plants and live anacharis and then of course gravel (pea gravel, which I got from Menard’s after lots of research; it’s not sharp and I cleaned it well outside in the winter. LOL Still wondering if pool filter sand would be better). Before I got the tank, I found a video on gravel vacuuming but I did not foresee the algae problems I’m facing. I have some plants that grow algae after 1 week and some are just too hard and too much work to clean. (Soaking in hot water/vinegar, using toothbrush) I’ve had no luck cleaning the large rock but I got a Bristlenose pleco who has done spectacular. I also got a Nerite snail to clean the green spot algae and surprisingly he has cleaned the 100% impossible to clean coral. I’ve scrubbed that with a toothbrush. He needs a friend (or 10) to help him clean all that coral because he forgets about it and goes elsewhere. I also got a couple Cory catfish (2 died) and 2 Kuhli loaches (2 days ago). I have 4 female Platys and their two “kids”. I’m just wondering how to best clean my tank. I do like a 40% water change (with gravel vac) every 10ish days to two weeks (because I try to wait a month or until my nitrates get to 20 but I can’t stand how gross I know it is in my tank). I have well water so no chlorine. Ph is 7.4-7.8ish because I have a driftwood. My gravel definitely has algae but I don’t think most of it is visible, just slimy. Is your experience that cheap plants (Amazon) or plastic plants are harder to maintain than live plants? I used salt to kill ich a couple months ago and my live plants are brownish so maybe salt killed them? Also, I’m enjoying all the algae eaters but my tank can’t seem to make enough algae on the glass to feed them. And would like to get more catfish or a hillstream loach. Am I over cleaning it? I read not to clean the green algae so you don’t spread it in your tank so I’m leaving it for the snail. Would a hillstream loach clean the plants? (One lady I follow said hers did) Or should I try other plants, live or plastic? Sorry for the unorganized long winded thought but wanted to include all my questions. Any advice for making my tank create lots of algae but not cover all my plants would be appreciated. I don’t have tons of money so affordable suggestions are appreciated. Thanks anyone who makes it through my post and has ideas!

Thanks! I’m probably going to get Cory’s and then keep this post to see what else I can add. So all of these recommendations work with Cory’s and Platys?

OK, I’ll probably look into some Corys. That was my original plan. and I thought of schooling fish like tetras, but I think some of them can be nippy and I don’t feel like they interact with you as much. if I had a bigger tank, I would definitely do a schooling fish also. My tank is 81. I didn’t know that was bad for my platies. I keep turning the temperature down, but I guess I haven’t turned it down enough yet. I heard apistogramas can be aggressive. Is that true?

I’m trying to figure out what I’m going to do with my 20 gallon. I have 7 female platies, 3 not full grown yet. Peaceful tank but needs more. Thinking to add cories but first need to figure out which centerpiece fish to get. Lots of experts say you can do a ram, maybe a a German blue? Others say a dwarf gourami. I can’t do honey gourami because only one local store has them and I don’t feel comfortable buying fish from that store. Also considered hillstream loach or Bristlenose Pleco. My platies seem to like the top of the tank. Could I do just maybe 3 or 4 cories and a ram? And also a pleco? Or is that too much? Super protective of my platies so I don’t want anything that may chance attacking or scaring them.

Ok, thanks! That’s helpful to hear about experiences. I imagine I’ll have some trial and error and do one thing at a time. This is her. I’m guessing she’s a half moon but they don’t sell female bettas by breed at my pet store. They sell them from a tank instead of a cup.

That makes sense. Thanks! I would have gotten the 10 gallon but my husband would probably kill me. LOL So maybe I’ll try some other types of snails then. What are your thoughts on the ghost shrimp? I heard they can attack bettas? Would bettas attack them? Or is a 5 gallon too small for them with a Betta?

Hi, I’m new to the forums and started fishkeeping in early January. I’m wondering if anyone has advice. I have a 20 gallon with 7 checkered barbs and 3 female Platys and a female betta. I bought a 5 gallon tank last night and plan to move my betta in there. Everything is fine but it stresses me out watching her in a community tank. She’s working hard to be in charge and probably stressed about it and the Platys often hide when she wants control and they eat all her food because she eats so slow. I have to lead her to her food and hand feed her and hope she eats it before they get it. And they’re getting some of hers no matter what which I imagine is not good for them. Wondering if you have suggestions for tank mates for her 5 gallon. I had a really cool mystery snail that died (apparently the smallest concentration of salt possible still kills them) and my 11 year old daughter saw the Betta attack the snail sometimes so probably no snails. Thought of putting the barbs in there but not sure that would be a good idea. They only pay attention to each other and stay at the bottom but Betta does go to the bottom. And it may overstock the tank? What about a couple Otos? . Can you get just one or two shrimp? Or one kuhli loach? And should I get live plants? I’m open to other ideas as well. Thanks for your suggestions.