Jennifer V

Thank you! I might just try that. Ramshorn and bladder snails are so easy, I'm sure they would be fine in a tub for a day or two.

Oh I love the black and white theme! Do you have it setup yet? Love to see it!

They are so funny that way! Mine have recently started refusing bloodworms. They're picky little murder beans. I have mine in a heavily planted 10 g. Oddly enough, we accidentally introduced neo shrimp to the tank and they couldn't care less about them. They eat the shrimplettes but leave the adults alone. Thinking about trying to add some Amano Shrimp for algae control so hopefully they'll ignore those as well. It's so interesting to learn about their different personalities. I'd love to see your setup! This isn't the best pic, but this is mine. I'm not sure if I love the floating PSO. It seems to be spreading algae across the tank more than anything, but I think the peas like the cover. They're more active since I added it.

So glad you posted this! I've been researching cories for well over a year and have found that some people are rather fanatical about the type of substrate, grain size, etc that is necessary for them.

This is so frustrating! I bought plants from what I thought was a reputable source and boom, planaria. I haven't seen a decline in shrimp or snails, but it's still really bothersome.

Uhg! I just used Expel-P to try to get rid of the planaria in my tank and sadly, it didn't work and I'm now seeing more than ever, so I suppose I'm in a similar boat. My tank has about a million bladder and ramshorn snails in it for my pea puffers so I can't use other meds. I do have a glass traps to catch the planaria. Am I doomed to dealing with them forever now?

Same! If I leave it be, it looks beautiful. If I try to do anything to it, it gets mad at me and pouts.

I love this idea! And Princess is stunning! I started in the hobby 2.5 years ago and my first and only fish are pea puffers. (I didn't know what I was getting into when I let my wife pick puffers for our first fish.) I currently have three, all named after cheeses -- Jack, Muenster and Pecorino (Rino for short). 🐡

I've had issues when I glue the actual rhizome so now I just glue the roots. That being said, of the rhizome is mushy, it's a goner, but if it's healthy, I would lean toward deficiency.

I'm rescaping my 5g using all anubias. So excited to show pics of when it's done! Chewy has Peace River. I used it for my first tank and loved it. I'm also debating sands for keeping cories and keep going back to Torpedo Beach and Carolina Creek. Moonlight and Sunset Gold are just way to fine.

Very cool! I'd love to see it when it's all done. I'm thinking of doing something similar and using anubias nana petite as dividers.

Could you repost the photo again? I'm not sure if it's me or not, but I can't see the photo and I'd love to because I think you and I have the same general plan. 🌱

How long has your tank been set up? How long have you had the original five? The lack of nitrates leads me to believe the tank may not have been able to cope with the addition of the new fish. Pea puffers are messy little fish that create a large bioload. In addition, eight peas may cause too much bioload for a tank that size.

I think I'll buy an ACO medium sponge filter and start running it in there so when I'm ready for my 20L I'll already have one of my filters packed with BB. I just ripped the band-aid off and tested the water after months of not doing it. Results are good! PH: 7.6 Ammonia: 0 Nitrite: 0 Nitrates: 40 GH: 12 KH: 3 I'm still going to add the extra filter but I'm happy with what I just saw.

I have a small ACO sponge filter in there now. What do you recommend I do to increase biological support? This is blowing my mind! I never thought tiny shrimp and snails would overload a tank!

Great questions! They're helping kind of gauge where I am right now, two and a half years since I set up my first tank. I'm in a bit of a funk about my tanks and what I'm doing right versus wrong, although I think the idea of doing things "wrong" might be too harsh of a criticism. I feel like my 10g pea puffer tank and my 5g snail/shrimp tank are both having issues. I just lost my very first fish ever, a female pea, and I'm not sure why. Could be old age because I've had her and her tankmates since the beginning of my journey. She just suddenly stopped eating and was gone the next day. It broke my heart! The remaining three peas just hang out on their own rather than together and have suddenly become picky eaters so I constantly worry about losing the others. I know some pea purists would suggest getting a bigger tank and adding more peas, but I'm not sure that's the way to go for me personally. They're such complex fish and I adore them but I may go with easier fish to care for in my next tank. Is that wrong? Am I being lazy? I'm not sure. Open to feedback. The snails in my 5g aren't reproducing as quickly as I need to feed the peas all of the sudden. I suspect the shrimp are outcompeting the snails for food, but the tank is prone to parameter shifts, so I'm reluctant to start feeding much more than I am, although I think with more WCs and testing, I can proceed with caution. Open to feedback about the best way to tackle this issue as well. Now, the good news, I recently left a job that gave me zero time to focus on my tanks, so now I have more time to attend to them and interact with you lovely people here. As you know, I decided to rescape the 5g and impulse purchased a 20L to start planning. Yippee! I also purchased some new shrimp food, which is very exciting for me for some reason. Sometimes it's the little things! And really started to dig in to attacking the algae in the puffer tank, although I think most of it looks pretty. Overall, the hobby makes me so happy and I'm very thankful I've created more work-life balance so I can enjoy them again. And I appreciate you for guiding me back into the hobby in a way that makes me feel prepared and excited for the future. 🐡🌱

Yes! Carolina Creek looks perfect! Thank you! Oh I like the Activ-Flora much better!

Should I use that instead of Eco Complete? Which color do you have?

Oh yeah that's very small but could satisfy the itch I have to get a new one until I dive into setting up my 20 long. I was thinking that! The shrimp I have in the other tank were skittle culls so now most of them are brown or clear with a few strange colors here and there. It would be nice to have maybe a whole tank of one vibrant color.

Excellent points! Lidded tank it is!

Well that sounds doable! I already have a shrimp/snail tank so what should I put in it? Is it too small to be a quarantine tank? If I do use it as a quarantine tank, should I just keep it to maybe a cool mystery snail? I've always wanted one!

I'm just going off of what I learned from the lovely folks here that 0-20 ppm is not ideal for plant growth and ACO aims for 50 ppm for optimal plant growth. But you're right, there is a tricky balance between algae and plant growth that we need to keep an eye on.

Could you sell or give away scuds to local hobbyists? People who keep fish like pea puffers will gladly take them.

As @AllFishNoBrakes mentioned, ~40 ppm nitrates isn't anything to worry about. My pea puffer tank has always been around 40 ppm and they are happy little fish. Plants need at least 20 ppm so I think consistency is the key here. I would stuff the tank with as many fast growing plants as you can and let them suck up some of the nitrates

Love, love, love this tank! Makes me want to buy one but I promised myself I'd never get a nano tank again because my 5g has been such a pain. You may have changed my mind! I need a quarantine tank anyway. Now what to put in it?