Lauren A

@AnnajakHi, I was just thinking of you and wondering how your little man is doing?

Sounds really stressful. You could always tie some anubias or buchephalandra to the rocks or wood? I apologize if you already did this. It would create more little areas to hide and scurry off to and looks really pretty.

@CosmicAshholeThey are so adorable and your tank looks great!!!!

@CosmicAshholeYou’re welcome! I’m so glad I could help! one thing I have to mention is to make sure you rinse off any bio media because it can be really dusty/chalky and cloud up your water. With the matrix I actually let it soak in conditioned water for a day after rinsing it. I don’t find it to be as messy as some other brands out there. I will keep an eye one your progress and questions. It’s really cool you are journaling your journey! Good luck with your plants too!!

@CosmicAshholeI’m so sorry to hear about your tetras that passed. That’s so sad. I have HOB’s and also had the same questions on it and contacted the company that makes it and will explain what the said to do. I never use the carbon unless I’m remove medications. Some people like using it so I think it comes down to preference. I use the Matrix, Fluvals bio foam 106/107 and a bio plate that came with my filter. I cut the foam to a piece that will fit to slide into the filter. You could use any filter floss too - anything to trap particles from the dirty water. This should be the first point of contact when the water enters your filter. Then I just put the Matrix in. Depending on what type of media you get you may have to put it in a mesh bag but the Matrix is fine without it. So, the bio plate/bio media would be the last point of contact before it enters the tank again. Others might have a better method but this has worked great for me and what was recommended by Aqua Top. I can’t say what method would be best for your situation as far as acclimating them. I don’t want to give you the wrong advice so maybe someone else could help. I only have bettas as far as fish go. When I’ve moved them in the past to a new tank I add stability which you’re already doing and use the same filter media in the tank they are coming from. Sometimes the same filter. I’m sorry I’m not more helpful.

@CosmicAshhole I’m so happy things are leveling off for you! I agree with a previous post mentioning that sometimes water changes are done more frequently during the cycling process but the stability works great to speed up the process. To keep your bacteria levels good I would add some bio balls or any bio media if you haven’t already, like the Matrix. There are a ton out there though but I’m having good luck with this one in particular. I’m so happy your new babies came too! I can’t wait to see a pic when they are in their new home!! Hope you’re having a great day!

@AnnajakSprry for all of the messages but there’s another additive called Kordon’s Fish Protector that would be even better. It contains echinacea and vitamin B12 and it speeds up healing time excellently for fin rot and I’m sure would work great in your situation too. it also reduces fish stress. Here’s a pic. It’s a great product. I really hope he’s doing well.

@AnnajakWhen Yogi had the tumors I always worried about his immune system. There is a product that was recommended to me that has a ton of vitamins and antioxidants in it. It’s called Vita Chem by Boyd Enterprises. I do not use it all the time but you definitely can. I might even start using it on Buddy’s tank. They sell it on Amazon and Chewy. It’s worth trying to give him immune system a boost. Just a thought. This is what it looks like if you want to look into it. Here’s the link. https://www.chewy.com/boyd-vita-chem-freshwater-formula/dp/183213?utm_source=google-product&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=hg&utm_content=Boyd&utm_term=&gclid=CjwKCAjwwqaGBhBKEiwAMk-FtKpqGMS2c8qyo7HYsMcmy8G3iOIzqbcqq-z94V_ShDwQY753dwifhhoC6ncQAvD_BwE

Hi @Annajak Hi, I’m sorry I was not on here for a couple days. I wanted to check in to see how he is feeling. Did the tea or tannins go okay? How are the snails?

Hi @Annajak, They really did shrink a lot. I‘m so happy he’s responding so well to the salt treatment. I feel bad but I’m not sure about the snails and the tea. That’s such a good question and I wish I knew the answer. He’s really improved a lot. How is he acting?

@tnnlynchThat would be my guess but it is hard to say. I always experienced the opposite issue in my betta tanks because my tap water is soft and the substrate I use further softens the water. I did a little reading up on dragon stone since I’ve never used it and it definitely can raise Ph and Gh. Maybe someone else with more knowledge on dragon stone and hard tap water. They might offer help lowering these levels. Sorry I’m not more helpful! Good luck with this though.

@CosmicAshholeSorry for all of the comments. You should also consider adding biological media to your filtration if you have not already. I’ve had great success with Seachem Matrix but there are many options out there. i think I’ve touched on everything I can offer but if you have more questions feel free to throw them my way!

@CosmicAshholeHere’s a good article on New Tank Syndrome. The Stability will aid in this. I’d start with a 40-50% water change as well. https://www.practicalfishkeeping.co.uk/features/problem-solver-new-tank-syndrome/

@CosmicAshholeI would go ahead and do a water change since you have otos and snails already in the tank and your levels are quite high. Always add Prime to dechlorinate your water before adding to your tank. This will aid in reducing Nitrites. You’re striving for Nitrates between 5-15 ppm, ideally below 20. Ammonia 0 and Nitrites 0. You could also add Stability to give your biological filter a kick start. I am not familiar with Oto’s but since they are sensitive by nature, reducing those Ammonia and Nitrites will only make them happier! Good luck!

Hi, @tnnlynch Your tank looks so pretty! I know that Dragon Stone can raise Gh levels. I’m not sure if this is the case with your setup. It also might just be a matter of your tank still establishing itself. Good luck! Looks great!

@CalmedByFishHi, I know you’re really pressed for time but with “hitchhiker” snails I’ve had good luck with my local Petco taking them. It’s worth a shot if you are local. They’ve even taken mystery snails I could not keep. Otherwise, everyone on here seems to have really good knowledge and thoughts on this. good luck with your snails and moving!

If you have about 5-6 IAL’s on hand, I really think the IAL tea will help a lot. It’s sort of a long process to get it really dark but you could make a big batch of it to have on hand for later too.

@AnnajakHi, I have never done a salt dip but I have added it to my aquarium. Here’s a good article from AC’s website. I think both methods probably work equally well but I don’t want to steer you in the wrong direction. Hopefully this helps. https://www.aquariumcoop.com/blogs/aquarium/aquarium-salt-for-sick-fish

@AnnajakOne more thing, watch for any fuzz that may develop on the tumor. This would indicate a fungal infection. For this along with the IAL tea I would recommend using a methylene blue dip. I know Kordon’s sells it. like I noted before, I’m not an expert and others on the forum might have a better treatment idea. If a fungus develops there are medication options like Fungus Cure I think it’s made by API. I will keep an eye on his progress. Again, best of luck. I understand how stressful it is. Take care.

@AnnajakHi, I had a betta with lymphocystitis. I will say in advance that I am not an expert but I did gain a lot of knowledge on this on a betta fish forum and through my own research. Anyway, the tumors he developed, some quite big, did dissolve or burst themselves without issue. It was not a pleasant thing to see but it did resolve itself on his own. If you do not use Indian almond leaves I would highly suggest ordering some. You can boil them in dechlorinated water to make a strong tea, you need it the color or bourbon, add this to the water so that the tank water is a brown color. Also remove any carbon if you have it in your filter. This will remove meds and the tannins from the leaves. Also float a leaf in his tank. The salt treatment is also worth trying. I used aquarium salt and not epsom but I do know epson can be used. You might want to up your water changes as well to keep his water really clean to prevent infection if it bursts. Unfortunately my betta eventually did develop a very large tumor on his head that eventually burst and he succumbed to the injury and passed. I don’t say this to discourage you because I know tumors are common in bettas and they function just fine with them. Try the Indian almond leaf tea. It has many antibacterial and anti fungal properties that at the very least may prevent infection and offer him comfort. I would also recommend removing anything sharp in his tank that might disrupt the tumor too early, if there are any. Just in case. I wish you both luck. He’s a beautiful boy!

This is great info. I had no idea. Your snails are really cool looking. I’ve never seen a racer before and wow, that’s such a cool pattern. Thank you for all of your help and sharing the pic. I really appreciate it. I hope you have a nice night! Take care

Hi @Cherish Thank you so much for your help. I honestly am not sure if they are wild caught but I’m assuming so since that seems to be the consensus. I know they came from Florida and I do trust my LFS. I will go ahead and give them a couple weeks at least hoping they still look as handsome/pretty as they are now! Thank you again!

@KBOzzie59Awesome! Thanks for your help. I may need to open my own shop to sell these! I’m running out of space lol. Appreciate your quick reply. Have a great day!

Hi, I have a dwarf chain sword that has produced 8+ plantlets over the past couple of weeks. I bought this from Aquarium Co-op and planted about 2.5 weeks ago. Beautiful plant. Anyway, I’m real excited about all of this growth but need a little help. I read you should wait until the plantlet(s) are half the size of the mother plant before cutting the the runner and rooting it in the substrate. How would I go about doing this if the first plantlets is now half the size but the plantlets running off it are not. I will put a pic up since it’s hard to explain. Should I just plant all of them? As you can they are not running along the substrate any longer. They started floating up. Please don’t mind the algae. Working on it! Thank you in advance. Lauren Thanks for your help! Hope this all makes sense.

Hi @Cherish Thank you so much for your help. I honestly am not sure if they are wild caught but I’m assuming so since that seems to be the consensus. I know they came from Florida and I do trust my LFS. I will go ahead and give them a couple weeks at least hoping they still look as handsome/pretty as they are now! Thank you again!