xXInkedPhoenixX

@Eric G you absolutely can do that, many people "hot rod" their filter systems (no matter what they are using), tuning it to their needs. The Fluval pads from what I can see are like the ACO water polishing filter pad. What the finer filters do is take out all the small particles that get past coarse filter sponge. Finer sponge does tend to clog a lot faster than coarse. Depending on what you are keeping/how often you clean/what kind of debris your tank might have changing out types of filter media can really help. I never hurts to try. P.S. Coarse pads last a whole lot longer and are easier to clean than fine pads- so if you can make the swap I recommend it.

OK! Got a chance to talk to Intrepid Partner about the SPECIFICS of the tank he decided to order from Custom Aquariums. Thanks @Cory for pointing us this direction- at first we thought- geez that's a weird/obvious name for a custom aquarium company but looked into as well as many other companies (glass, acrylic) during this process, and they have been nothing but helpful and professional according to Intrepid Partner. They were aware what this build would be from the beginning (gigantic nano fish tank) and have been helpful with recommendations and build ideas. Information I have so far is as follows: Should arrive around the first part of December. Tank will be 7ft long x 22 wide (narrower for the space) x 24 tall this will equal 196 gallons....this is 2ft shorter than we had discussed before which is perfectly OK for me, that's 2ft less I have to scape! The other 2 dimensions are as we had discussed before. It will be low iron Starfire glass. The tank will be a framed version- he decided not to do the seamless/mitered glass look because well, we live in earthquake country and the frame will help keep it all together. They are painting the end that will be facing the wall and drilled for plumbing (sump), they are also leaving the bottom of the tank "rough" which is fine since we are using substrate. It will come with 2x MP40 wavemakers to help circulate the water since it's peninsula style- they are adjustable and since operate magnetically- easy to move - hopefully we aren't going to be blowing away the fish! He also got 2 corner sump pumps. Tank will come with its own lights and a lid. He also got the heater. They like to try and sell you substrate but Intrepid Partner passed on this and told them we would find our own. He was given max dimensions so he says he'll be ordering metal to start the cabinet. I can't wait to see what he comes up with. Admiration of Intrepid Partner's skills is a great understatement, he is not only an amazing car builder he's super crafty and artistic. Whatever it is - it will be awesome. He designed and made me this birdhouse for Christmas to give you an idea of the skill level: I'll be starting work on fish species and parameter requirements. Similar to @dasaltemelosguy and his massive tanks- considering all needs and trying to find a happy medium. Thankfully it shouldn't be too tricky for me- most of my dream fish are similar in needs just never had enough space to get them. Now it looks like I will!

Wow! What amazing tanks! I would have to echo @Shadow about the pvc but knowing you from here I HIGHLY doubt you didn't engineer it out prior to this even being set up. I admire your skill my friend. They are absolutely stunning. That along with trying to make sure everyone is as optimal as they can be is definitely science and magic all at once.

@dasaltemelosguy, thanks I'll definitely look at your journal. I still plan on only doing nano fish in this tank nothing bigger than say a long finned-pleco, roseline shark or silver tip tetra. Everyone of course will have to get along and like similar parameters so that will be an ongoing thing. This I think will be an interesting build. Being a custom tank it will be a room divider, Intrepid Partner decided the dimensions and did all the talking with Custom Tanks (low iron glass, and I think he got black silicone). I don't have the current measurements however last we spoke it will be at least 9ft long and will be a bit more narrow than a typical large tank due to the divider title- it will be tall but neither of us are concerned about that. He is going to build the cabinet himself (he works metal for a living building custom cars and used to work in a lumber mill) we've been under the house to look at reinforcement recently and to our delight there is a cement wall all along where the tank will go (as it used to be the wall to the garage but the house was remodeled)- so stability shouldn't be an issue at all. This is how it will look in a floor plan the blue is the tank of course: I'm actually more nervous about scaping a tank that you can see on 3 sides with 2 of those sides being 9 ft long. Oi. @lefty o it really is going to be cool I'm excited! @anewbie and I can totally see why it's hard to take a decent picture of a large tank. With a tank that is a divider like it will be I doubt any pictures that aren't taken up close are going to be good. Scaping and fishkeeping will be my responsibility. Intrepid Partner, this is his favorite part- geeking out on building and tech. He is very supportive of my hobby and is looking forward to just kicking back and watching it. I'm very lucky.

.....now a work in progress. Intrepid Partner has ordered the tank from Custom Tanks...196 gallons here we come....

Welcome to the forum! Best place on the internet for fish keeping IMO!

The answer is no. A wood chewing pleco might get rid of them on wood but that wouldn't be intentional. There really is no avoiding a female Nerite leaving eggs on every surface, but in my opinion their work in my tanks far outweigh the unwanted decoration. The eggs fade over time, I generally just scrape them off viewing glass and call it good.

This is the best Nitrogen Cycle video, with M&Ms This forum is also a good place to ask questions when you want to understand things better! Happy YouTubing!

Hi! Welcome to the forum. You can be a fish keeper on a budget and keep your fish happy don't worry there! People are always willing to trade and give away fish items. When you let them know you're in highschool they are often willing to help. Look for your local aquarium club and go to a meeting! Or join their social media! @Colu might be able to help with the medication/sick fish in the class, I tagged so they can see and maybe has a suggestion!

Well. Sad to report, my little Serket did not make it. S.I.P my little rescue girl. 😔

@nabokovfan87 Yes, I have unexpired Maracyn hehe. And you're right I was thinking too about neg/pos meds as well.

@Guppysnail might be able to answer this however, I understand how you feel about pulling eggs, but if you consider getting them almost as soon as they're laid they are just "fertilized" kind of like chicken eggs. That's how I look at them, and yes most people cannot afford a full hatch. What I usually do is pull the large sacks and keep the small ones, they do happen. I'm not sure there's an easy way to separate the eggs without damaging them. But maybe our Mystery Snail keepers know a trick.

Ammonia burn should clear with time and good water provided the fish aren't too damaged. Some think water treatment with aloe does help the process (usually bottles with "stress" in the name). What is most concerning now is potential secondary bacterial infections so I would be dilligent about good, aerated water and keeping an eyeball on any potential reasons to medicate. If you have IAL on hand I'd consider putting that in or making a tea so the water stays clear of any debris.

@Colu @Odd Duck wondering. Serket is doing "ok" but yesterday after I may have stressed her out a little by doing a cleaning her injured gill area got inflamed and very red, maybe even bloody. It's back down today but considering a med change. I do have Maracyn2 (it's expired within the last year but probably still effective enough), unexpired Marycyn AND expired but possibly still effective FURAN2 (which as we all know is pulled from availability now). Do you still think Maracyn2?

So at @Colu's advice and @Odd Duck's concurrence I was expecting to do a water change and put in Maracyn2 to replace the Kanaplex. However, she seems to be doing very well- swimming a bit more normally than she was and though I wish I would have gotten a top down picture when I put her in QT, this morning it's not as inflamed as it was when I put her in. She didn't eat any bloodworms but doesn't seem too stressed despite still being confined to the floating breeder. So I made the executive decision to go with dose 2 of the Kanaplex. She also has a tablespoon of aquarium salt and the IAL is coloring up the water nicely. Here is a pic of her today, ignore the bubble near her eye area that's on the surface of the water, she's blown quite a few, hopefully out of being comfortable. Or maybe they're just oxygen bubbles.

ABSOLUTELY beautiful tanks and inhabitants! Very sorry to hear about Morti. Was a beautiful little crusty.

The simple answer is, yes, all Betta have the ability to jump (I've watched some delightful YouTube videos where owners have taught their female and male Betta to jump out of the water for food-- females jump higher btw) so keeping a lid on a Betta tank is a good precautionary thing to do regardless of how low the waterline is. Here is another thought though and a pro-lid scenario- Betta are air breathers and in order to breathe optimally they need some humidity in their air- this is accomplished by a heated tank with a lid.

Came back from a relatively regular weekend away to do tank maintenance. Sad this week to have lost one of my Kuhli Loaches who jumped out of the tank found dead on the carpet. I was very bummed. Moreso bummed because upon my return discovered that my beloved rescue GloBetta, Serket is also very sick. Maybe @Odd Duck or @Colu could consult with me but this could either be something very bad like Dropsy/Tumor or something also bad but maybe not fatal-- a very severe injury. What I can see is one side of her face is inflamed (and 2 days prior she was perfectly fine in all ways) scales are up, and redness in the gill area. The OTHER side of her face is almost totally normal but probably a bit malformed due to the otherside being so severely out of whack. She is also not swimming well- mostly sinking head down. My hope is that she injured herself on something in the tank and that I can save her because if it's the other there is likely no hope. I have quarantined her in a 3 gallon with Kanaplex and IAL. She is isolated to a floating breeder due to her swimming issue and I put one of her Betta Leaves in there so she can sit comfortably close to the surface. She has been mostly resting there since she discovered that. She can move around some ok, just not her usual graceful self at all. This morning I got her to eat a bit of thawed frozen bloodworm. This is the picture of her damaged side (could not get her to sit still for a pic of the other side): Trying to go to a happier note now, the shrimp in the Medieval tank are doing very well. I've seen at least a half dozen babies at one time but I suspect there might be more. I've seen only a couple larger adults that are likely the originals at a time so I'm not sure how many original shrimp I have left. However, with the amount of little shrimp I have I should be able to create a small colony out of them. This is very cool for me since my prior attempts at keeping shrimp were a fail! The Julii Cory in the Parent tank are doing well. As mentioned previously they must be having babies because I've seen fry (and have unfortunately found deceased fry) in the tank. I believe I spotted a juvenile Cory yesterday but was unable to confirm for sure. I think the Cory have also helped the Otos be a little more outgoing- that and the siesta and my odd hours with the lights being off during times I spot them is also a factor. I catch them up front more often than their usual spots by the back large sponge filter. It's really nice to see them. My Otos are so beautiful.

From the sounds of your start method it's likely bacteria bloom. I would leave it as long as you have no fish in there. It's only a potential danger when that's the case. The bacteria will settle if you let it and water will clear. Generally you don't have to do water changes when cycling. You're just waiting for ammonia to show, then nitrite, then nitrate. When the first two are 0 and you have some Nitrate you're ready to go!

Hi Cindy, welcome to the forum. Question: How are you starting this tank? Did you add someone else's used media? Bottled bacteria? Ammonia method? Also, post a pic of the tank if you can. Without that info my guess is what you might have is a bacterial bloom. This is NOT uncommon in new tanks and if you have no inhabitants I would leave it be until it clears- as changing water often exacerbates the issue.

You're welcome. Good luck!

Sounds like you've had a WONDERFUL transformative summer all around! Fantastic! Very inspirational!

Wow! Super cool, thanks for sharing the life under the microscope!

I would say it's very likely some sort of swim bladder disease. There are other diseases that can cause similar things like Whirling Disease but that is probably unlikely in your case. Swim bladder is often caused by bacterial infections. Because his tail is also torn this could be a traumatic injury issue. The fish could have been bullied or trapped by decor and has now damaged itself. I would keep their water VERY clean and treat with an antibacterial medication. Only time will tell if it heals itself. Whether or not it has a bacterial infection you'll want to treat to prevent one from happening if it isn't already. You also may need to hand feed the fish if it can't get to food. I had a Neon that had a severe swimbladder injury and had to hand feed it thawed bloodworms. Black Neon Swimming Vertically? What I've done so far....

Fish'N the Box. Schrodinger's Fish Club (of theoretical fish keeping)