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CalmedByFish

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Everything posted by CalmedByFish

  1. For various medical reasons, I haven't been able to go inside a fish store for about 6 years. Last time I went, I bought my 1 angelfish, and he had to be my only fish for at least 4 years. Maybe a year ago, I ordered endlers online. A few months ago, I ordered platies. They've all been sanity savers. For the last week, I thought I was going to be able to go into a great lfs, hand off a lot of endlers, and buy a few more species I've been wanting for a long time. I put in a lot of work to do it. I emailed with the owner about the endlers, watched videos of the inside of the store, and looked up online posts about the place and people. I knew that I'd need to prioritize, get the fish I wanted in priority order, and just get out. But still, I was going to get to buy fishies, in person, all on one day. At least, surely, the one I wanted most. I was so excited. But it wasn't long ago that I moved. I've been doing all my shopping as delivery or curbside pickup, so I hadn't realized that the new state I live in doesn't require everyone to keep their masks on in public places. Unfortunately, I'm among the people for whom mask mandates are in place. So after years of wanting to, and a week of thinking I'd get to and planning ahead carefully, and being so excited, I didn't get to go in. An employee came out to take my extra endlers. Then I waited in the parking lot for the store owner to come out. I spent that time carefully not looking in the store's open door because the one glance I gave made me want to cry. The owner came out and gave me a card stating that I have store credit for X dollars... that I can't even use. I'm guessing a lot of you can sympathize with how disappointing this is. I'd been afraid something might go wrong, so I'd had in mind that if it did, I'd order fish online when I got home (at least the one I want most), and it'd arrive near my birthday. Turns out that because of the time of year, nobody's shipping fish until well after my birthday. Rightly so, but it's so disheartening. I guess this is similar to a "my main tank broke" post. I just wanted to share my sadness with people who understand how big of a deal it is. Thanks for caring, guys. This is a good group.
  2. @CorydorasEthan Chunky monkeys! 🙂 I read an anecdote yesterday of a paleatus living to age 35, so I got interested. I like their coloring more than the stripey types. I strongly consider quite a few fish and end up on not getting them, but currently, paleatus are my big "HMMM." My only concern is bio load, which is why I asked about size.
  3. I thought MY childhood 10 gallon was bad! You SO win! 🤣 Edit: I just noticed that paper was selling alligators. I take back my previous statement. Whoever bought the alligator wins. 🙄
  4. That's me, too. I'm aiming for being Calmed by Fish, not Grieved by Bad Luck. Those are very different goals.
  5. My plan is to breed enough of them in their own tank that I'm in no danger of losing them all, then experiment with putting a couple big ones in each tank I'd like them to live in. I'm thinking surely at least 1 tank will turn out to be a safe place for them to live. At that point, maybe I can put them all into the safe fish tank(s), and no longer have a shrimp-only tank.
  6. Peaceful and lively. Nice combo! That white cory on the right is making me laugh. The way it swims seems overly enthusiastic. 😂
  7. I won't pretend I'm established. I've been struggling for months. But that also means I've watched a zillion videos, taking notes. Snails are great to have with shrimp. As long as that tank keeps ammonia near zero, it sounds like your best bet to me. In fact, shrimp eat (or just pick through?) snail poo to get what the snails didn't digest. It's also recommended to keep snails with a small shrimp population just so the cycle doesn't crash. Small tank size also might be good. For the shrimp to mate, the males need to be able to find the female in the few hours she's able to mate per month. I finally got a berried shrimp when I put them in something with a small floor space. Fish mouths, on the other hand, are likely a problem. So between snails, small tank size, and fish populations, I think the only one to have any concern about is the fish.
  8. @Guppysnail and @Hobbit You're both geniuses. To make it easy to put mesh over the holes, maybe the holes could be cut in the plastic, and then a leg of hosiery pulled up over the container, with the top of the hosiery rolling itself over the top of the plastic. Bonus points: It'd look SO classy!
  9. 😂 Relatable. I'd say to pause and get the new bioload stabilized. Particularly so if you could get comparable fish later instead of never ever getting them.
  10. Like little peacocks! That blue one on the bottom is really cool.
  11. I'm no expert in acrylic, but here's the info I've got. I have a child with special needs that involve fierce head-butting. To keep fish long term, I needed a custom-made tank that would be impossible for an adult to intentionally break. It's only 29 gallons, but is 1" thick acrylic. If I remember right, ACO's 800 gallon is also about 1" thick. If I were doing a project like the one you're considering, I think I'd find out what thickness would be good for avoiding a break, what thickness would be good for insulation, and then get something thicker than both - just for peace of mind.
  12. For the moment, I'd say to act like this tank and everything in it have something contagious. They may not, but it sounds like you're not sure yet. So that would mean what's in the tank doesn't go (potentially) contaminate other tanks, and what's healthy in other tanks needs to stay where it is and keep being healthy. If you think taking the one endler out of that tank might help him survive, I'd say to put him in a QT tank, rather than in a tank that doesn't have this problem. I know it's not great for endlers to be solo, but it's also not awful.
  13. I'm so sorry this happened. I'm guessing other people will have more ideas, but my first thought is electrical current. The mention of filter floss makes me think you have a HOB filter. Heaters can be zappy, too. Have you noticed any feeling of static when you've touched the water? Or is there any chance some substance got into the water - like lotion, air freshener, etc?
  14. @Colu I know some species of fish are notorious for having intestinal worms, which I hear are a real pain in the neck to get rid of. I'd love to have some khulis, and I hear tale they're practically indestructible. But the only thing I was able to find about them carrying infectious junk is that their skin makes them more susceptible to ich and injury than scaled critters. Do you know anything about the typical health - or lack thereof - of wild caught khulis?
  15. A ridiculously thick piece of acrylic would be much safer than glass. If it is ridiculously thick, it won't break, and it'll be a far better insulator than glass. It should also hold up well in sunlight. (It scratches easier than glass, but that can be buffed out. And scratches are much preferable to breaks.)
  16. I'm finding conflicting info online about 2 things. How bad are they about eating shrimplets? Do they tend to be wild-caught or tank-bred? (I don't want the wild-caught high risk of internal parasites.)
  17. Yikes! Glad you caught it!
  18. I re-looked through the cory species, and still wasn't coming up with one I really liked. But that got my attention back onto khuli loaches, so I looked at their details again. They really appeal to me, and match my tank and parameters with one exception. I'd have to be careful getting them adjusted to my high pH. So I hunted around online to see if it can even be done, and found quite a few people saying their khulis are healthy at a pH near mine. I'll keep my eyes and ears open for more ideas, but I think your corydora suggestion might've landed me on a happy solution. Thank you.
  19. I've researched every species of fish I can find, and am not coming up with a good fit for this. I have a 29 gallon with 1 angry angel, and 6 solid red dwarf platies. I'd love to add something other than red or black, that won't argue with the angel, and won't get chomped by him. (He easily eats slender 1" fish.) In a few months, I'll add some of these platies' fry, currently in a grow-out. So: Bigger than a slender inch. Won't fight with the angel. Not red or black. Low bioload. pH 8.3. If you have ideas, I'll research or re-research them. Thank you!
  20. I recently moved cross-country. Just for the sake of your emotions, I have a suggestion. Perhaps you could manage to take a single favorite fish? If you're flying, maybe you could mail it to yourself? Fish are regularly mailed, so maybe. Or at least a favorite plant? They're certainly more durable than animals in the mail or in luggage. You could wrap it in damp paper towels, in a ziploc, and just stick it wherever it won't get smooshed and won't freeze. Whether by mail or by wheels, the 72 hour heat packs that ACO sells could be really helpful. I used a bunch while traveling. Just trying to help you not have to let go of everything. ❤️ By the way, if the limitation at the next house is the landlord/lease, it's worth reading the fine print. Sometimes it speaks of dogs and cats, but doesn't specify other pets by species. Hello, loophole. Or it might specify a number of gallons per tank as your limitation. Perhaps you could have a durable, reasonably clear tote instead of glass, so the landlord won't be scared of a break. If nothing else, you could put a plant in a smallish strong container and call it a houseplant... that chances to have a snail. Oops - how'd that get in there?! I don't advocate for being a knucklehead, but seriously, sometimes landlords just simply have no idea that a tank doesn't have to pose any danger at all to their property. They do have a right to protect the structure, but really, they just don't know it's not a problem.
  21. Happy Whatever You Celebrate to you and your fishies! (I'm celebrating "Ice Cream is Healthy Because I Said So" Day. 🤣)
  22. I'm struggling against nitrates too at the moment, but I recently put fresh root tabs in the tank, and this consistently happens when I add more than 1-2. My knowledge is limited, but I can at least confirm that root tabs can be really bad about sending the nitrates through the roof. For what it's worth, I'm having the best success at nitrate control in 2 specific scenarios: a tank whose only plant is hornwort that gets daily sun, and a tank whose only plant is frogbit that gets daily sun. I use pothos in other tanks, but for whatever reason, I don't find it to be effective.
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