[Getting back into the hobby after 15 years]

I've removed one of the sponge filters and replaced it with a medium-sized Lee's Triple-Flow internal box filter because I'm tired of waste exploding everywhere any time I try to do tank maintenance.  The box filter is full of Aquarium Co-op Bio Rings and Big Kahuna filter floss cut to fit, and I replaced the default airstone with a Ziss one from Aquarium Co-op.  I also removed the last of the plastic grass mats, as they were just collecting waste.  Less than 24 hours later and the white, courser section of filter floss is covered in waste that had either escaped the previous filter or otherwise hadn't been filtered 😧

My intention is to replace the other sponge filter with a small Triple-Flow in a few months.

[Getting back into the hobby after 15 years]

Checking in again after a couple months.  Things are mostly the same, though I now have a second wave of baby Mollys.  They're starting to become bolder, though they still avoid the biggest female.  I did lose one female Molly during this time, and I'm down to 3 Danios.  All of the other fish, though, are doing fine.

Yesterday, I even noticed something new: I had a new, tiny Peppered Cory!  Yes, it seems that my Corys have bred at least once!  I confirmed it earlier today: I now have six Peppered Corys (including an itty bitty baby) and one albino.

[Getting back into the hobby after 15 years]

Baby fish count is up to six!  A couple are getting too big to be considered snacks by even the big female and are getting much bolder.

[Getting back into the hobby after 15 years]

Spotted two baby Mollies this morning.  Hopefully there’s enough cover for them to grow up!

[Getting back into the hobby after 15 years]

The pleco didn't make it..

[Getting back into the hobby after 15 years]

It’s been awhile since my last update.  The Mollys have settled in nicely.  The females are all in various states of pregnancy, but any fry seem to get eaten immediately.  I’ve purchased some plastic plant clusters to give any further fry more of a chance.  I had gotten down to six danios, but all the other fish were thriving.  I just added four danios and a clown pleco to help the snails with the algae on the walls.

 

 

[Getting back into the hobby after 15 years]

On 4/27/2022 at 9:11 AM, hannah662parker said:

If you got the gourami from Petco it's possible that it just wasn't strong enough, had weak genetics or was already sick. It could be multiple things. It could be the same but I usually have better luck at a small local fish store. I always get sick fish at Petsmart or Petco. I can't recommend Platies enough! They are so hardy and fun. I had bad luck with mollies but I hope that yours do well and thrive 🙂 I think livebearers are underrated as centerpiece fish, their energy is awesome. I think they should be able to keep up with your danios well. 

All of my fish have come from the same Petco, and most of them have done very well.  I did lose half of my initial batch of Corys (one albino confirmed dead, one albino and one peppered missing), but the second batch has absolutely thrived.  All three of those three peppered Corys started growing immediately and haven't shown any signs of slowing down.  I might have lost one or two Danios during all of this time, but it's hard to get an accurate count of them when they're constantly moving.  I've got at least eight or nine out of the original eleven in there.

The gourami was the outlier, and he lasted more than six weeks.

[Getting back into the hobby after 15 years]

Decided to go with some Mollies to replace the gourami.  Got three females and one male.  They weren’t in the tank for 15 minutes and the male was already pestering females.

[Getting back into the hobby after 15 years]

Checked the water again today (did a water change and a filter cleaning yesterday after finding the dead fish).  Using the Aquarium Co-op test strips my results were:

Ammonia: 0

Nitrate: 10

Nitrite: 0

Hardness (GH): 300

Buffer (KH): 80

PH: 8.0

Chlorine: 0

 

So, good water conditions, if very hard.  Maybe the Gourami just couldn't handle the PH?  Thinking about replacing it with some platies and/or mollies.  I'm also starting to get a little bit of algae on the sides of the tank now that spring is here and the tank is getting more indirect sunlight.  The bladder snails didn't seem to be making a dent in it, so I had to get a scraper.  Maybe I should invest in a bristlenose pleco?

[Getting back into the hobby after 15 years]

Found the gourami dead this morning.  No idea what happened, since all the other fish are thriving.

[Getting back into the hobby after 15 years]

I ended up getting a neon blue dwarf gourami, who I’ve named Blue for the time being.  He’s still very shy, but he did enjoy some frozen bloodworms as a first meal.

I had to do a little pruning of my stem plants and water lily, as they were starting to block out the light for the other plants.

[Getting back into the hobby after 15 years]

My water parameters remain steady, so I think I’ll be adding a gourami of some sort tomorrow.  I take it that a Blue Gourami will get too big, so I’m thinking of a fire or neon blue.

[Getting back into the hobby after 15 years]

One week after adding the new fish.  The plants are really taking off—especially that dwarf water lily.  I’m up to five lily pads, and it’s kinda starting to take over that corner of the tank.

[Getting back into the hobby after 15 years]

Went to Petco today and brought home some new fish.  I ended up getting five danios (originally four, but the employee added another when he noticed that one had a bendy spine and might not make it) and three peppered Corys.

 

[Getting back into the hobby after 15 years]

On 1/11/2022 at 12:02 PM, Torrey said:

Danios can be like little sharks. The fewer danios in the tank, the more aggressive they will be. 

I have found that the larger the group, the more comfortable (and therefore less bullying) danios seem to be. Having 12 danios in a tank is much less bullying than 6, and 30+ almost eliminates bullying as the danios will take turns playing follow the leader.

How many Danios should I add?  And should I try to replace the Corys that I haven't seen in a week?  I haven't seen any bodies, and there hasn't been an ammonia spike or anything.

I'm not sure what my stocking numbers should be if I'm also trying to have a gourami in the tank.

[Getting back into the hobby after 15 years]

Since I’m unsure whether the two Corys I haven’t seen are dead or just shy, my feeding pattern is to drop 4-5 API sinking catfish pellets in the front parts of the tank and one in the back behind the driftwood.  That way there’s plenty if I’m down to three, and one in the back in case the other two are shy.  I also need to give a little extra because the Danios also like to go after the pellets, regardless if they’ve just eaten.

Speaking of the Danios, I can’t be sure whether they bullied that albino Cory to death.  I noticed one had part of its dorsal fin missing, and that the Danios were chasing it around.  I can’t tell if that’s the one that died, because by the time I got home and found the body it didn’t have any fins left…

[Getting back into the hobby after 15 years]

One week since adding the Corys, and my water parameters have stabilized. I have only seen three of the new fish since the one albino died, but also haven’t seen any bodies…

Plants are growing well.  I’ve got a lily pad, and while cleaning algae off the lid I noticed that one of the bulbs I planted in the back has quietly been growing this entire time.  The snails have done a great job keeping algae out of the tank.

[Getting back into the hobby after 15 years]

Got home from work to find that one of the albino Corys had died.  Checked my water and found 0 ammonia and 1.0 nitrite.  Nitrates are at the usual level.

[Getting back into the hobby after 15 years]

Added six Cory cats to the tank (3 pepper, 3 albino) yesterday.  They mostly seem to have settled in, though my biggest danio seems to enjoy harassing one of the albinos.*  Having never kept Corys, I had a question about feeding them:  about how many API bottom-feeder pellets should I be giving them per feeding?  Mine seem to have a knack for rooting around everywhere *except* where the pellets land.  Should it be one pellet per fish?  Two?  Any tips on how to distribute them or what to do to keep the danios occupied?  These danios are a greedy bunch, and it's already hard to measure the "how much they can eat in 60 seconds" rule when one or two of them are faster than the others.

Also, is it unusual for Corys to hide a lot when they're newly introduced?  I know I have six in there, and none have died as far as I can tell, but I only ever seem to see four of them at a time.

[Getting back into the hobby after 15 years]

New Year, new post!

Some of the plants are really starting to take off!  The water onion (?) on the left and the lily on the right have shown a ton of growth in the last two weeks.  Both swords are thriving, while the Wisterias are sort of hanging on.  The other stem plants are getting taller, but shed leaves every day.  The crypts are doing well, even the one in the shadow of the sword.

Speaking of the swords, I’m curious what’s causing some of the leaves to melt.  Are those parts not getting light?

All six danios are doing well, and I’ve got at least ten bladder snails.  I’m thinking it’s about time to add more stock, but I’m unsure what.  More danios?  Cory cats?  Platies?

Water is stable, but nitrates remain naturally high.  I get ~80 from both the tank and regular tap water.  Maybe some floating plants would help?  Not sure what might work without taking over and killing the other plants.

[Getting back into the hobby after 15 years]

It's been two weeks with the Danios, and my water parameters remain stable.  Zero Ammonia, zero nitrites, nitrates hovering somewhere between 40 and 80 at all times.  I'm wondering when it would be OK to start adding more fish, and what those next fish should be.

More danios?  Platies/Mollies?  Wait a few more weeks and get Cory cats?

[Getting back into the hobby after 15 years]

Had the day off, so I actually got to see the tank during the day for a change.  Looks like the water onion bulbs are finally sprouting, and the lily has a lot of growth.  

[Getting back into the hobby after 15 years]

The tank one week after adding the danios.  Made a run to get some more crypts, as well as a rock with a little anubias on it.  The water parameters haven’t changed, though it’s still cloudy from adding the plants.

Gave the danios a treat of freeze dried brine shrimp and they went crazy for it!

About how long should I wait before adding more fish, and what should I add next?  More danios?  Mollies or platies for cleanup?  Cory cats?  I also think I’m going to go with a gourami of some sort as my centerpiece, but I’m torn between the blue, powder blue dwarf and neon dwarf.

 

[Getting back into the hobby after 15 years]

On 12/10/2021 at 2:51 PM, Beardedbillygoat1975 said:

@MatticusRexxorthis looks great, well done! looks like the wisteria or water sprite is starting to take off again on the right and the other plants have new growth as well as those swords look very healthy. Great job. How do your numbers look after adding the danios? 

My numbers are the same.  Ammonia 0, Nitrites 0, Nitrate ~60-80.  It was like that even before introducing fish, right after a water change.  This is all either former farmland or surrounded by farmland, so I guess there's no helping that.  Maybe add more plants?  I'd like something more for the foreground, since the dwarf hairgrass doesn't seem to be thriving.

[Getting back into the hobby after 15 years]

It’s been a few days since I added my first fish, and things are going smoothly.  The danios are getting settled in, and seem to have already eaten any detritus worms swimming around.  I’ve got them on a diet of API tropical flakes, one small pinch twice a day.  I also give them a treat of freeze-dried bloodworms every few days.

My crypts are doing well, and the swords seem to be really taking off.  The lily bulb has sprouted.  In the left corner, I’m not sure if another bulb has sprouted, or if the stem plants I propagated sent runners.