lefty o

made the trip to Twin City Guppy's today. been meaning to, and since Cory, and Zenzo were to be there today, good time as any. lets start with its a nice small store, clean tanks etc. if you have watched Cory's videos, he has called their red dragon guppies the best guppies ever. well let me tell you, i picked up a trio. the males are pretty darned nice red dragons, but the females are spectacular. if you like dragon guppies, and were on the fence about getting some, they are that nice. met, and talked with Zenzo for a minute or two, saw Cory, but holy cow he had folks lined up outside the store to talk with him. i guess people drove in from several hours out. if you are in the area today, pop in and check out the store.

java ferns dont look bad, so thats good. for the val, they really like some roots tabs. stem plants, i wont advise, if you keep them alive at all you've got me beat.

as long as the tank is fully supported, its fine.

i think the idea is fine, 1/2" or 3/4" will add a bunch of strength to the table top. as for the legs buckling, no guarantee's in life, but thats why i suggest sitting on the thing and wiggling around. if it does not feel sturdy doing that, dont put anything heavy on it. if it feels sturdy, use it. a 200# person wiggling around on a table will stress those legs far more than a stationary 350# aquarium.

you can just set the plywood on top of the table, no need for screws or glue. the weight of the aquarium will hold it down.

2nd one. you'll definately want some plants sticking up vs just moss.

in my opinion, if using something under a rimmed tank, it should be along the lines of a yoga mat, or mouse pad type material. too thick will push up on the bottom of the tank, and that could lead to cracking.

amen to that!

that was about my week, 1 tank a day til they were done. more than 1 a day is too onerous.

welcome aboard. dont sweat being on this forum, its a much more civil place than most.

might be safe with pygmy cory's.

its kind of do what makes you feel best. giving med trio should treat most of anything that they come in with. qt for a month wont cure anything, but should give long enough for anything bad to happen without you introducing them to your other fish.

thats fairly well built (better than much of what is sold as aquarium stands). sit on it, wiggle around. does it feel sturdy?

i hear that. id love to have the lights on in my big tank 12 hours a day, but it would be a big green mess. its all a compromise.

honestly, it is about finding the balance between light , and nutrients available in the tank, and type of plants. i myself would give a try at 75% intensity for either 1 6hr period, or 2 3ish hour periods a day, and try that for a month and see how it goes. when dealing with lighting, and plants/algae you have to make an adjustment, then wait it out to see what happens, then make another adjustment, etc.

is it near a window. direct sunlight is one of the main culprits towards making green water.

good advice, and id lean more towards 6 hours of total light, of course depending on intensity.

a baseline for gravel is 1.5# per gallon, and i find i usually do about 2# per gallon.

water is 8 something pounds per gallon, plus weight of tank, gravel is heavier than the water, filtration, tops, lights etc. i use a ballpark of 10# per gallon for a tank, then add to it a few pounds for insurance. im into overkill, if a tank weighed 295#, im not putting it on something that can only handle 300#.

sleepless rantings can be entertaining!🤪

if the table is large enough, looks like its probably sturdy enough. id sit on it, maybe even have a friend join you sitting on it, and wiggle around a little bit. if it feels solid, then its likely fine. just for consideration, a 29 gallon tank is a good 350# when full.

this has been a thing around here for a lot of years. boats/people can either through being lazy, or careless move lots of invasive things. whether it is zebra mussels, milfoil, etc. once a body of water is infested, it is virtually impossible to rid it of invasives.

nitrates arent out of control, if the plants are looking healthy, stay the course.

what do the plants look like, and have you done any water testing? you could be doing too much, too little, or just right.

i dont know about heat, but a few bristlenose pleco's would be good for bottom feeders. they stay 5-6" max.