[Hidden talents and party tricks]

I've never shown this at a party, but I can twist my tongue upside down. That also means I can put it in a vertical position. 😛

[Empty Tank Syndrome! 😢]

If you're interested, we also have a blog post on aquarium cycling on the Aquarium Co-Op website as well: https://www.aquariumcoop.com/blogs/aquarium/fish-tank-cycling

[Hiding sponge filters]

I've got two sponge filters in the back two corners of this tank. I like the Aquarium Co-Op sponges because the black sponge blends in with my background and the green tube blends in with plants. There is very little hardscape in this aquarium, and yet the sponge filter on the left is barely visible because of the tall background plants.

[Parasite ID??]

Do you think it's vorticella or something similar? Here are two forum posts I found that show pics/video of it. 

 

 

[Mollies]

@Kirsten brings up some good points. I had a dwarf platy (similar body shape to a balloon molly) that died when giving birth and I wondered if it was from her body shape. On the other hand, I also have very soft water (low GH), so it could have been complications from that. Ever since I started adding extra minerals using Seachem Equilibrium, none of the other dwarf platies have had issues giving birth. I'm still not sure to this day what the cause was. 🤷‍♀️

[Who can identify?]

@Melissa Ann Nope. From what I've seen, it could potentially to kill your plants if you let it completely cover all their leaves so that they can't photosynthesize anymore. Luckily, blue-green algae is fairly easy to rub off with your fingers and suck it up with an aquarium siphon.

[Who can identify?]

Here's an article from the Aquarium Co-Op blog that details some treatment steps:

https://www.aquariumcoop.com/blogs/aquarium/blue-green-algae

[Treating something external with no impact on mortality or behavior - So confused]

Could be. I haven't worked with limias before, but both my mollies and platies had problems when my GH was too low, so I ended up treating them in a quarantine tank with 1 Tbsp aquarium salt per 1 gallon of water in the short term (great for external diseases like fungus and parasites) and dosing Seachem Equilibrium in the long term. The extra minerals made my plants perk up as well, so now I try to keep at least 7-10° GH.

[Diagnosing Algae Issue (Part 2)]

If you want to keep your 10 hours of light, you could also raise the light. Your java fern is looking great by the way!

[How do I find ACO's member only videos?]

Here is the Members Only playlist link in case you want to share it with anyone: 

https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=UUMONJuJfXCKNWu4-VifYixs8A

 

[Equilibrium vs wonder shell]

@RightOnJonCrane I tend to just pick one or the other. 👍

[Algae wall...]

Yes, I grew mine by a) not scraping down the back wall, b) putting my light closer to the back of the tank, and c) not having any snails. Nature takes care of the rest. 🙂

[Can I temporarily keep a pair of apistos in a 5.5 gallon.]

@Chris287 Food-safe plastic is generally the best, and I believe you can look up the code from the icon/number on the plastic tub. I've had good luck with Sterilite containers from Walmart because I researched the type of plastic they use and it won't melt from an aquarium heater. The thicker the plastic the better because I've noticed that my 12-gallon plastic tub starts to bow out when I put in more than 11 gallons. It won't leak/break, but the lid sometimes takes a little adjusting to make it fit snuggly.

[Levamisole & water parameters]

Here are the levamisole instructions from Greg Sage that I posted in one of my videos. Hope it helps!

[Neo Tank Crisis]

I have very soft water and I highly recommend using Seachem Equilibrium because it's easy to measure, raises GH quickly and safely, and contains calcium, magnesium, iron, and manganese. It does cloud the water if you dump too much of it all at once, so aquariumcoop.com says:

Quote

To raise mineral content/general hardness (GH) by 3 degrees hardness, add 16 g (1 tablespoon) for every 80 L (20 US gallons) when setting up an aquarium or when making water changes. For optimum solubility, Seachem recommends mixing with 1 L (1 qt.) of water (the resulting mixture will have a white opaque appearance). When this mixture is added to the aquarium, it will impart a slight haze that should clear within 15–30 minutes.

Also, you can feed calcium-rich foods to your shrimp like Hikari Shrimp Cuisine or Shrimp King Mineral. Hope that helps!

[New Buce Tank - Inspiration needed]

Maybe floating plants like dwarf water lettuce or Amazon frogbit? Both grow really long roots if you let them, are good at sucking up nitrogen, and can help with blocking out some light so that the buce won't get too covered in algae.

Update: nevermind, I saw that you're going to be adding red root floaters, which are also gorgeous. 🙂

[Betta Behavior]

Could be normal. My betta fish is less than 1 year old and is what I would consider to be fairly active. When I looked at him just now, he was lying down on the ground with his fins draped over a cryptocoryne plant. Then a minute later, he swam away, examined the sponge filter, and then took a breath from the water surface. Afterwards, he came back next to the crypt plant, trying to snuggle next to it and find a comfortable resting position. When I glanced back, he was gone again. Just another day in the life of a male betta. 🤷‍♀️

[White Stuff]

@Frank No way! Did you stop feeding BBS? Something must have happened. Mine is still going strong...

[Real Jobs vs. Hobby Jobs...why do they feel so much better?]

@Kirsten , I used to crochet a ton for fun, but as soon as someone offered to pay me for making products, I realized I hated making identical baby hats one after another like a machine. The only way I could truly enjoy my hobby is if I did it for myself without trying to make money. 

That's also why I don't want to be a full-time YouTuber. I enjoy teaching people and making videos, but once I start focusing on the views and revenue too much, it starts sucking the joy out of everything. I'd rather just do it for fun and make a little side money to pay for my aquarium hobby, new books, and nail polish. 🙂

Aquarium Co-Op is a great fit for me because I'm writing for work but it's about aquarium fish that I'm interested in. Very similar to how you're editing patterns and using your technical writing skills, but in a field that you're interested in. Plus, I don't work on weekends, so that helps with having a healthy work/life balance.

[White Stuff]

@Frank Haha, probably when I stop feeding BBS!

[White Stuff]

I have this exact same problem in my 10-gallon tank! My first guess is that perhaps the fish aren't eating all the live baby brine shrimp I feed every day, so there are leftovers in the substrate and then the fungus climbs upward from there. My second guess is that I have a lot of mulm buildup in that tank from the catappa leaves I keep adding to lower the pH. I haven't been adding as many leaves recently and I also did a lot of gravel vacuuming, and I noticed the fungus growth has decreased. Soooo, yeah... excess organics in the substrate of some sort is my current theory.

[What is typical CO2 ppm in a low tech tank?]

I've seen numbers around 2-5 ppm as well (link1, link2, link3). I believe the second link goes into more discussion as to how they arrived at their calculations.

[CO2 system for 10g tank?]

@Daave The local brewery supply store I bought my cylinder from just started offering refills, but previously they didn't. I believe a 5lb refill costs $15 at their place, and they said they would give me back my same cylinder (which is pretty unusual from what I've heard).

[CO2 system for 10g tank?]

I don't have much experience with different brands of regulator kits, but when I asked@Lizzie Block what size CO2 tank to get for a 10G tank, she recommended a 5 lb. tank. I went to a name-brand, commercial welding store and it was priced at $135 (to get a brand-new, filled tank). Then I went to a mom and pop home brewery supply store and the same product was only $99. So, it's definitely worth shopping around a bit when it comes to the CO2 tank. Good luck with your new setup; I've had a lot of fun with my first high tech tank!

[Stingray 2 Versus 1]

I have a Stingray 2 and it ended up being way to bright for a low tech system. Went back to using a Stingray 1 and am much happier with the algae under control again.