Taco

I relate to this topic a lot. My step father has shown interest in the hobby especially as of late, so together we resealed a 40 gal, built a stand and stocked it. The guy's high stress so I figured a fish tank would mellow him out, give him a creative outlet, maybe a small sense of accomplishment. The problems come when feeding, water changes and lighting schedules are discussed. I try to keep things simple like feeding once a day, limited light, and me personally handling water changes, but the tank can't seem to stay the way it needs. He likes to feed multiple times a day, wakes at 4 am and lights the tank till 10pm most days. Were now running into a bit of an staghorn algae problem. I've tried to explain the science behind low feeding/light but I get the impression he thinks I'm trying to 'outsmart' him. He then does the exact opposite, as if to spite me. We've argued about tank Temps, the 40 is stocked with an oranda goldfish, 6 danios, 1 hillstream loach and some cherries. Colder temp fishes so I try to keep the temp around 70 also to slow down metabolisms a bit, but often find my heater adjusted to 76 or 78. Any conversation usually turns into a bit of an argument at the expense of the fishes, well kinda, they usually get more food afterward. As my love and knowledge of the hobby grows, i feel compelled to try and fact check or lend my thinking. Its definitely a balance. Lately I've been putting CO Op videos in the background that roughly relate to the tank, in an attempt to give him info from someone else who he may listen to. I view it as a learning process, though I'm not sure if I'm truly helping him learn since I'm sort of micro managing the tank. Would it be cruel to let him take his lumps at the expense of the fish?

Looks like myrio to me. I've Been actually researching myriophyllum lately and this seems to look like it. Love the fluffiness of the plant plus I've been reading that they grow really quick. Lots of different types but this one looks like the common named "frill" or "foxtail" myrio.

Crazy. Catching local fish for an aquarium is definitely up there on my list for fish keeping! So cool.

Sold some mystery snails to my lfs Went in a couple times and saw no mystery snails in the tank, yet they were marked on the glass at $7 a piece. I asked if he would be interested in my snails and to my surprise he wanted all of them! Especially when I told him half were albino. Out of about 40 snails I sold half since his price was dependant on size. Figure ill bring the rest in when they are bigger. Ended up getting 10 bucks credit for 20 of em at 50 cents a pop! Not bad I guess, the snails were about the size of a marble.

Looking into substrate alternatives when I thought of blasting sand, as it comes in 50lbs bags for about $12. But considering what the sand is used for, will it bother any fins or gills? Specifically Black Diamond blasting sand. I plan on putting a couple fancy goldfish and maybe some Corydoras into a new tank and want no issues. Anyone use this before?

I agree with Ben E. best thing I did was take my water to get tested, I too purchased one of the liquid kits and had a hard time telling what exactly the results were reading. Getting my water tested gave me a starting point to work back from. If possible try test strips. Leaves out human error a bit, plus tends to be easier to understand

I had a similar situation with a gourami just like yours. I found him laying in the exact position you have pictured, bent and stiff. I too chalked it up as a bladder issue. The little guy I had would be active for an hour or so, then lay on the gravel or plant leaves as if he was tired/out of breath. I tried separating him but he eventually passed. There is something called Dwarf Gourami disease. I thought maybe this could help? Dwarf Gourami Disease Guide HELPUSFISH.COM So many fishes have died because the hobbyist did not know enough. Simple tricks could have prevented the death of these fishes. This is quite [...]

Hello everyone! I purchased my first 20gal tank a few months back and stocked it with 8 guppies and snails/shrimp. My ultimate goal for the tank was to simply have a thriving planted ecosystem and after binge watching co-op video’s I was excited for the challenge. I’ve surprised myself with how well the tank has come along, 3 weeks ago I discovered fry in the tank which seems to be the ultimate indication that you have a happy/healthy tank! I happily purchased a 5gal for the 20ish fry because I read that other females may eat them. No big deal, right? Well, 2 days ago I had 2 more batches of fry and now have 40 to 50 fry in the main tank and about 20 in the secondary tank. After realizing I have 5 females and some quick math there seems to be many more fish in the future if I continue the trend. Any suggestions on what to do with the fry? I’m also wondering if separating the fry is part of the issue. Should I have a “survival of the fittest” approach and let some get eaten? Feed less often?

Similar situation. Bought a used tank, looked great, but after purchase noticed a chipped corner/edge similar to yours near the bottom of the tank. After a quick youtube sesh, Home Depot had what I needed. Try siliconing plastic corner guard to the outside of the tank if its not necessarily a display tank. Doesn't look the best but it'll hold. Comes in 4 or 8ft sections. https://www.homedepot.com/p/TRIMACO-1-1-8-in-x-1-1-8-in-x-4-ft-Plastic-Corner-Guard-Commercial-01184G/100118843?MERCH=REC-_-pipsem-_-202061361-_-100118843-_-N Check this video.