anewbie
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Posts posted by anewbie
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For myself the 55 is a horrible aquarium; it is too tall; and not wide enough. I like the 40B; 65; and 75 depending on needs. If you have tall fishes (angels for example) you want at least 18 inch height; taller depending on species. 18 inch is a good target for min. width for larger (> 29) aquariums. This of course is a matter of personal taste as lots of people love 55.
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Just feeding the frys bbs; the head in the foreground is daddy and mom is with the frys. If you look closely you see the orange belly of the frys cause they are stuffed with bbs. They are around 20 days old so i'll have to do this another 2 or 3 weeks - 3 times a day.... i doubt i'll post pictures every time i feed them 😉
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On 3/28/2023 at 3:39 PM, Lennie said:
I never said someone has suggested a hongsloi. I said I checked their sizes online, due to it being mentioned as the biggest of them all previously. I was comparing sizes, as you mentioned only borelli was possible due to being on the smaller side in terms of size.
I understand the potential agression very well and I appreciate everyone sharing experiences. I read everything in detail, I wouldn't like to cause any repeating. I just don't wanna make a mistake.
I've read about their breeding report on the site you recommended to me in another thread.
"I placed a pair of A. Hongsloi of unknown parentage in a homemade breeding tank of about 7 gallons. The tank measures about 23"L x 7"W x 8"H so it is quite long in relation to wide. I placed about 3/4" of fine sand on the bottom and place several broken pots for caves along with several large rocks placed to divide the sight lines in the tank. I added several water sprite plants anchored with small stones and several clumps of java moss. Finally I added a couple of handfuls of Oak leaves.
It didn't take long for the pair to settle in and within a couple of days the female had nearly sealed herself into one of the caves. The male seemed oblivious and enjoyed the tank. After 8 days the female began to bring the fry out of the cave. The first day they were still living on their yolk sacs and did very little swimming and made no attempt to feed. However by the second day mother was sheparding the fry around the tank under the close supervision of the male. He was an active partner in brood care and the female welcomed him into the shoal of fry. After several weeks the female began to make a few courtship displays to the male but never was their any aggression between them."http://www.dwarfcichlid.com/Apistogramma_hongsloi.php
So I'm just asking and trying to learn.
The fellow breeding them is extremely knowledgeable - hongsloi is one of those quasi-pair forming species and so the m/f aggression is lower for a time once they accept each other - though they can break up and some individual males end up being far more aggressive (macs are another such species). I suspect he kept them in a larger aquarium and placed them in the 7 to breed them. This is a bit different than your configuration. i strongly suspect he is using the 7 to 'breed' them but they are not in their full time - in addition his aquarium has a lot of length so the separation area is much larger. You are welcome to try a pair of hongsloi in your aquarium but i would not recommend it - also upon purchase you need to make sure you have a pair as the tank is not large enough for normal courtship and bonding. They are not a small fish so you will need to do large frequent water changes. There is more to size than length. They are not super active but mine did use the full 29.
On 3/28/2023 at 5:06 PM, Lennie said:fire reds look very wild at my lfs too!!! Maybe they are more agressive than normal agassiziis? Like normal german blue rams and black rams. Black rams having reputation of being more agressive. Who knows! Pretty sure one female killed another in my lfs too.
So from your "peaceful" experience, the only option I have is alenquers. Which is way too expensive for a reason.
alenquers and fire red are equally aggressive.
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On 3/28/2023 at 3:22 PM, Lennie said:
What I'm confused about is, internet says apisto hongsloi reaches 7cm adult size. which means 2.75''. That's half of the size of my L199 living in a 60x40cm footprint tank but tall. If hongsloi is the biggest one between all of these, then it should be okay in terms of fish size I guess, as they are not really active swimmers. Like even a betta can reach 3'' size itself in some cases. @anewbie
If it has nothing to do with fish size but only potential agression then idk.
Who is suggesting hongsloi is ok? I certainly never suggested them and explicitly said the aquarium is too small for them. At this point I think i've said everything i can say and I'm just repeating myself... and believe me i have made a lot of mistakes and i have seen other very experience fish keeper run into the same issue. While different individual have different aggression level don't underestimate the aggression and fishes know how to kill other fishes. You won't necessarily see rip fins or other obvious damage; you don't kill a fish by nipping at it.
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On 3/28/2023 at 3:14 PM, nabokovfan87 said:
Tank is 21x12x8" tall in terms of inches.
In terms of footprint I think that's right between a 10G and 15G aquarium with a different height.
That's what I said way near the top - well i didn't give the dimension but noted the size between 10/15.
On 3/28/2023 at 3:14 PM, nabokovfan87 said:The biggest question is whether or not there's enough floorspace and enough height. I don't know the answer to that! In terms of water volume it's 40L or just over 10G.
I assume water changes aren't a concern or issue, but the question just being is that space for a pair adequate? Especially if like you're saying the male is moved out of the tank when need be?
The problem is aggression level between m/f so the floor space is the problem - i named one species that will work (i have mine in a 10) and the only other species i would consider are borelli but that is pushing it.
On 3/28/2023 at 3:14 PM, nabokovfan87 said:I have read through all the replies above, wanted to share the dimensions/converted and ask those questions.
For the setup you mentioned can it be setup like a ram tank with a wall on 3 sides as opposed to a cave or do they specifically need a ceiling?
Is it an ok setup for a 3-4" pair of fish as opposed to a 6" fish? I believe that's the size for apisto, but as I said I'm just hear to learn!
The problem is enough space to handle aggression between m/f - they need to be able to escape from each other or one will die.
On 3/28/2023 at 3:14 PM, nabokovfan87 said:I think the goal for Lennie is to have a tank dedicated for them and that can easily be made blackwater or lower PH for that breeding without causing issues in his other tanks.
@tolstoy21ccan you share some of your setups as well!? I know you have some awesome stuff. I saw some fishroom photos but nothing specific in terms of breeding setups. Did see the video of the apisto swimming in and out of the skull 🙂 .
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On 3/28/2023 at 12:13 PM, Mmiller2001 said:
Google it and see what you think.
sounds like generally brass breaks down but it isn't over night - as to how fast it breaks down - depends on the quality of the component and i have no way to judge that. I have to use a pressure regulator and those seem to be lead free brass so i'm stuck there i think.
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On 3/28/2023 at 12:13 PM, NOLANANO said:
I don't think that's a foregone conclusion. Sure that's definitely a possibility (maybe a strong one) but I had a pair of GBRs with a lone female in my tank before and they coexisted. The lone female definitely wasn't as happy as the pair but they didn't kill her. It was a heavily planted 75G so there was room to escape.
Yes of course it depends on a lot of factor but generally speaking they will not like her very much and depending on individual aggression level she might be able to escape or she might not but either way she will be stressed and live a shorten life. So i will rephrase it is a combination that in general doesn't work out well.
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On 3/28/2023 at 11:51 AM, Mmiller2001 said:
I've read, but who knows, brass may or may not add copper to the aquarium. Just FYI.
Here's what I built yesterday.
Hum. Not sure about brass leaching; i suppose i could look for a polyp nip to barb fitting. In the aquarium with this reactor a trace of copper won't harm anything it isn't blackwater or shrimp and any snails that happen to get into the aquarium will quickly be eaten by the loaches. My gut feeling is given the size of the aquarium (550 gallons) and the limited exposure to the brass fitting it is likely ok but i'll look for polyp fittings.
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On 3/28/2023 at 11:56 AM, Lennie said:
Well, I can put them in my 50cube tank too. Would it be a better choice?
But it is a community tank and will make breeding pretty hard I bet. Also a pair may bully the tank mates??
That tank has a mystery snail, 4 red lizard whiptails, 5 rosy barbs, 16 pygmy cories. Tannins and heavily planted:
The other tank I recently set up. 100cmx40x40. 160liters/42 gallon approximately. This one will have 3 SAE, 1 L199 pleco, 3 black blue rams (1m:2f), honey gourami, 5 sterbai corys and 9 rummy noses moved into. I am taking their original tank down.
I haven't considered this one as most people said don't keep rams and apistos together.
Rams are pair forming; once a pair forms the other two will gang up and likely kill the third.
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On 3/28/2023 at 10:51 AM, Lennie said:
They are all so pretty!
I was with a friend who is not a fishkeeper. She is like,, these look pretty boring, why do you even want them? Get something colorful 🤣
Why is alenquer so expensive? Are they rare or something? Borellii is less than half of the price of alenquers. Hongsloi and elizabethae are same price, in the middle.
Just a market thing and possibly an import cost; they are typically the same price unless wc - you could check if they are wc.
The problem is your aquarium is very small so the only one i would even consider of those is the borelli and that is pushing the limit of what your aquarium can handle. I've not seen opal with yellow fin before (typically the opal have blue fins); i am curious if any of these are wc or if they are all line bred and if line bred where they were imported from. WC borelli and agasizzi can be spectacular. The borelli is also very adaptable to temp and water conditions - it is typically a white water fish. If you get a pair you will have to keep a close eye on them during the breeding cycle and make sure yo have hiding places in your aquarium (a cave is not a hiding area).
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On 3/24/2023 at 10:13 PM, Kendall’s Aquarium said:
Aquabid, getgills are great sources as well. Just make sure to pay attention to the sellers and read reviews
I consider these awful sources UNLESS you are familiar with the seller; this also true for ebay as none of these sites are the actual store - but 'warehouses' of stores and the quality depends on the individual seller or store.
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A lot of generic things are being said but you need context:
over night vs priority - depends on species and temp - and size of fish. In some cases overnight is mandatory and other an extra expense.
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As to buying local or mail-order - in part money can play a role - but it also depends on the quality of your local store. I rather buy from a reliable place via mail order than unreliable place locally.
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I can't remember if we are allowed to list specific stores on this site so i will play it safe and not give you my list of reliable stores - but all the reliable one shipping is between $40 and $65 and they only send overnight.
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I know we can mention aquahuana - and i will say over all the quality of their stock is a bit lacking compare to the first tier stores - but for simple stuff like tetra, barbs and such that are a dime of a dozen they are ok - their fishes have been disease free; they have cheap shipping and good prices. However for rare species, cichild, or fishes or 'substance' (i.e, not dither or groupie) i won't use them any longer - the quality has been disappointing over-all. Too many runts/ammonia burn or similar issues. I can give some direct comparison but to do so i would have to mention the alternative store and i don't think that is allowed here. Having said that i would use aquahuana for stuff like cheap tetra, barbs, rasbora, ... they are inexpensive enough that a few duds of defects isn't a big deal.
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Macs are similar to hongsloi - being a larger fish that is quasi pair forming and less aggression between male/female.
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I'm confused why your kh is 20 and your gh is 0; something sounds wrong or artifical. Perhaps kh is 20ppm and not 20 degrees? That would make more sense which means you have extremely soft tap; but then why is your ph 8 - again that could be an additive. Did you let the water sit overnight before testing ph?
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From the species you listed and size of your aquarium borelli is your best bet but it is a risk that comes down to the aggression level of individuals and how you scape the aquarium - using lots of leaves is helpful because the fishes will hide under them - as well as control the water chemistry.
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The condition of the aquarium and setup depends somewhat on species; I'm not a fan 'caves' per sey but yes apisto like nook and crannies they can defend. I tend to make mine more natural using driftwood and stone; but coconut shells and flower pots are used by a lot of folks.
If i did the conversion correctly your aquarium is somewhere between 10 and 15 so quite small with 12 inch wide and 20 inches long so it is quite small for many of these species. Experience breeders can breed them via adding the fishes and then removing the male.
fire reds is not a species; I presume you likely mean agassiz but I've seen the colour use with other species. To breed they need acidic soft water but not as extreme as blackwater. I'd suggest at least a 20 long for this species.
borellis are a white water fish and will breed in more neutral water that is not excessively hard. They are also a bit more passive and a good starting fish. Like other harem breeders the male needs a place to hide when the female has egg/frys - a 20 long is good size but they can be bred in a 15 with much care.
Elizabethae i believe require true blackwater to breed.
hongsloi are a larger fish and unless i made a mistake on the size of your aquarium it is too small for them. They are quasi pair forming at times and sometime harem - m/f aggression is lower than some species like agassiz. I believe they are clear water fish and will breed in ph just below 7 and tds around 80-90.
Your best best are borellis in your size aquarium though i think it is on the small side. Another species that works well in a small aquarium is pucallpaensis; they are smaller than borelli (and not as colourful) but quasi pair forming so not so much aggression between m/f once they agree to breed.
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You did not mention your gh or tds but i suspect they are quite hard. For borelli you could mix 20% tap with 80% ro and probably end up with something that works - around kh 5 but it would be useful to know your gh. For the other species you will need more ro water - for elizabeth you have to setup a tank with lots of botanicals and ro water - and try to stablize it with tds around 40 and ph 5.5. Again given the size of the aquarium you could end up with male killing female or vice versa.
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When you scape the aquarium yuo want lots of hardscape to block line of sight so the fishes have place to hide from each other. While individuals have different level of aggression it can in many cases be quite extreme.
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What size are they; also domestic cacatuoides are very hard to sex when young since the inbreeding has muck with the colour and fin shapes. They should be fine as a group till they reach sexual maturity.
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Kleiner bar swords are nice; they do require a lot of light - another plant that the small one reminds a bit of is frans stoffels echinodorus. This one is more subtle than rubin and melon in colouring - but again when the plant is small it is harder to identify the colour pattern. I'm nearly 100% sure it is not red flame or ozelot because they tend to be richer green with streaks even when small though i suppose without light it might go pale.
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On 3/25/2023 at 9:39 PM, brevilo99 said:
Thank you for taking the time to drop some names. It seems Rasboras are fairly popular here. I've never kept them and many of the names being talked about I have no idea about so I'm reading up on them, I should have actually mentioned what you stated about the swimming area as the spiderwood and plants take up a lot of space,
Rasbora like Tetra is just a large genus with diverse members; the reason I think they tend to be popular is many of the species are relative small which fit folks smaller setup (a 29 is not exactly small relatively speaking) - and while there are small tetra like green neon and ember many common tetra are larger.
A 29 is fairly tall so fishes that tend towards the top will not be impacted by your spiderwood (unless your piece is 25 inches high). Taking this into account - i will mention that kubotai rasbora while very active tend towards the very top; cardinals while they tend to 'hide' lower in dense plants et all are not super active so they won't be bothered by the spider wood or plants. Ember are also not very active and tend to stay more mid level. I'm not trying to push a specific species but I think you should consider what you want when you pick a specific species (and you can go with more than one species) whether it be danio, tetra, rasbora, ... just pay attention to the type of water they require vs what you have (most will want moderately soft or at least not super hard); the temp range if you end up with more than one species and activity level. I'm actually a big fan of serpae tetra and cherry barbs as well as kubotai, cardinals, .... there is no right answer here and as I mentioned there are 100's of species to select from and if you ask other people they will their favorites for various reasons - frequently it is 'look' which is a personal thing and should be discounted (as your preference in that department might differ) but sometime it is behavior of a specific species.
I will not that certain species have been heavily inbred or have a reputation of not being very healthy (such as neon tetra) and with those species you should probably try to buy wild caught samples as they tend to be a lot healthier (more robust).
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I don't think the 2nd is red melon; having said that i can' t put my finger on it. I've had red melon in both submersed and emersed form and it is a bit different having said that when the plant is small it is harder to (for me) to determine type.
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Kubotai rasbora are very active but small fishes that like modest temp; if you look at them closely they actually have a blue stripe that adds to their beauty but swimming you won't notice it much. In my 29 i keep ember tetra with a pare of nannacara amolae; she mostly ignores the tetra but goes after the male with a vengence - you know how dare you leave me with all these eggs to care for - and she really does beat the crap out of him - anyway a 29 is a decent size aquarium. If you are on the east side there are some decent stores; in the middle/west not so much. To be honest there are hundreds of fishes that likely meet your critera - i'll name a few suitable for a 29:
cardinal tetra
green neon tetra
kubotai rasbora
(dozen other rasbora)
cherry barbs
(most barbs can get a bit larger but cherry stays a decent size - around the size of a cardinal)
white fin rosy tetra (these along with many other species like phantom, serpae, ...) get a bit larger and i'd limit myself to around 6 or 8.
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While kubtai rasbora are a fast schooling fish - they are rather small - i would avoid larger schooling fishes like rummynose as the aquarium really isn't large enough for them (lack of swimming area) -- cardinals are the same size as rummy but they don't swim much - they like to just sit in the plants looking pretty.
You could also consider something like pygmy cory - they are a bit different than other cory (besides being small; smaller than cardinal tetras) they love to swim and school.
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The risk is that if the frame around the bottom is not level or if the glass panel in the frame is not level you can create a stress fracture when you fill the tank and eventually the bottom can catastrophically fail. Aqueon warranty is only valid on an approved stand and only covers tank damage (a small amount); if your tank ruptures then it will dump 75 gallons on the floor. If your floor is a cement block in the basement not a huge deal; if it is a finished wood floor on the third floor you can do more than $50,000 in damage. Having said all of this it might as aqueon state just settle and all is fine. I actually had a home made tank on a wood stand that wobble back and forth (stand wobbled not the aquarium) and it never broke in 10 years i owned it (it was purchased used from someone who was going into the army who purchased it from someone who whatever so who knows how old it was). However, i did have a brand new 40B from aqueon that split after 14 months down the bottom and caused $20,000 in damage (home owners covered it but still....); generally speaking i've been unhappy with aqueon aquariums but having said that unless you buy custom made aquariums (or make your own) they probably all come from the same factories though in truth the larger ones seem better made or at least better job with silicon - or did the last time i checked. Having said all of this - good luck !
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On 3/22/2023 at 6:38 AM, Mmiller2001 said:
Basically, you create a lazy river under a column of CO2. This large surface area contact diffuses the CO2 into the water and is carried to the tank. To picture it, imagine an artic ice sheet over the ocean; where the ice is the CO2 and the water has current under the ice. The contact area melts that ice and pulls it along the current.
I guess the critical aspect is to make sure the co2 never gets below the exit point; else you will waste undisolved co2; this suggest the bigger (diameter) of the tube the better ?
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I have had pairs take a break up to 8 weeks though usually 4ish week break. Mine seem to go in spurt. If she has frys after two weeks i think she should bring them out - but certainly the first 10 days or so she could stay in there - first there is the eggs hatching; then you have wrigglers where they eat the egg sack but can't really swim - then they become free swimming and then she would bring them out. As to duration of each period temp plays a role but 3 to 6 days for eggs to hatch (usually closer to 4ish); 2ish days as pure wrigglers and another 3 or 4 days till they can swim - so she could in fact have something in the cave with her for 8 to 12 days before she starts bringing them out. Then again she could just be avoiding the male 😉
She might have frys in the cave; or she might be avoiding the male.
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age - fully developing; still growing. Has the female turned yellow? Btw the female picks the male so you could try putting two males in there and see who she picks; of course the risk is one of the males kills the others...
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Are you sure both the male and female are sexually mature ?
What did you get done today?
in Photos, Videos & Journals
Posted
Noticed one of my 'dwarf' lilies showing off its 'dwarf'ness (this is nearly a foot in diameter):
I waited till one of the adults serape swam into the image so you could get a feel for scale:
The species is Nymphaea stellata; so just remember that next time you order a dwarf lily for your 5 gallon aquarium 😉