FishObsessed

Plus it would be cheaper than getting another tank, and I can still keep my blue plastic plants

@ADMWNDSR83lol...not at all. Might actually be pretty cool!

@ADMWNDSR83 I have considered that but I also really like plastic plants lol

I currently have 6 of them in a 38 gal with 8 reg tiger Barbs, 2 Starfire Red GloFish tiger Barbs, 3 male platies, and 2 gold mystery snails ( so 16 tigers altogether). The green tigers were sold as 3 green and 3 Platinum, but I really think all six of them are "green platinum" bc it depends on the angle I look at them they can look regular green, shimmery green, or blue, or platinum green. The green ones swim with just each other often, as well as with the whole group of tigers. I have soft acidic tap water so I added crushed coral and a Wonder Shell to the tank and that made them more active. They pretty much completely leave the platies alone. And I just added my snails and have only noticed some light pecking curiosity and then they seem like they will leave them alone. So I agree that snails should be good with them. On the other hand, I did have 3 emerald green corydoras in the tank when I first started adding tigers to it (8 regular tigers, no green or red ones yet) and they did get picked on and the tigers stole their food (bottom feeder pellets). All 3 are now dead and gone 😞 PERHAPS they had a disease, but I can't help but wonder if they were stressed and starved. I wouldn't personally mix corys or tiger barbs again....or any other slow eater bc these guys are very vigorous eaters and they also scavenge for food from the gravel and plants too. I'm still having some issues with this tank...flashing type behavior etc. so I don't know if there was a disease introduced a while back (I started the tank 4 mos. ago with the 3 platies, and 3 corydoras and gradually added the rest) that is still around but they can be very active fish. Link is video I couldn't upload: https://photos.app.goo.gl/7Cddnk4rk9EWYod27 Not the best quality but hope this helps.

Lol ..... my husband probably gets tired of hearing "fish talk" too Welcome!

I currently have a 38 gallon with all fake plants, but id like to try a tank with all real ones. What tank size has worked well for you, and should I focus on length or height? Lastly, what small fish (schooling or not) have been your favorite for planted tanks? Thanks!

@Mandabunny love the tanks! I might try mixing too...I love the splash of color in with the green. And also like the GloFish tetras! Thank you for the pics 😊

@ccurtis my nitrate nitrite is good...I checked yesterday. Ammonia doesn't show on my api test strips. They're more active with the coral but still showing the other symptoms

Mixed coral into the gravel, stirred it up and rearranged the tank. They're kinda moving around more so maybe that will help. Now I just need to figure out what to do about my 2 sunset platies that will not let my wag platy (all males) out of hiding without stalking and chasing him. I'd get females but don't like the look of pregnan live-bearers lol

My Tiger Barb's always end up doing this no matter what I do. They will spend most of the day hovering with a few swimming around. They've had moments of being active and mating. But here they are again crowded around my intake tube. They also twitch their heads occasionally, scrape on stuff, and will randomly swim erratically to the top for a quick gulp of air. No visible sicknesses except for maybe?? mildly open red gills. As I write this I have 2 males doing their fin-flare fighting thing so they must not feel too bad. I have soft acidic water and have tried various things to get my fish to "act normal". Aquarium salt, tetra balance plus, api ph 7.0, Wonder Shell, api general Cure, an air stone, water changes. Is it normal for tb to be this finicky? Im about to scoop them all out and take them to a pet store and get a hardier fish that will thrive in my tank. It's no fun watching fish that don't seem to be thriving in your tank.ugh frustrated I should add I also have 3 platies that don't seem 100 either. And they would be going with the tiger Barb's to the pet store lol. I know I might need to add some kind of medicine but I really don't want to do that. I've only had this Aquarium for 4 mos and I've made a lot of changes to it with the background and decor and I wish I had picked different fish altogether. Sorry for my "rant" can anyone relate? Edit: meant to add that my next step is adding crushed coral to the tank...either in the substrate or media bad in hob filter.

I have a 38 gallon aquarium and wondered if 3 marble angelfish and 6 GloFish tetras (I know, but I like them) would be overstocking it? And will both these fish be ok with soft acidic water: 6.2 ph...6.5 if I add api ph. Gh is 15-30 ppm if I use a Wonder Shell, and almost 0Gh without one. Kh is 40-80ppm thanks to the api ph adjuster. Thanks for any input

Welcome to the forum! I know you posted on one of my topics already but i wanted to comment on this one. Your tanks look good!

This made me chuckle. Welcome to the forum! I'm in NC so sorta "neighbors" Your tank looks good!

Welcome @Ben_RF! Fellow North Carolinian as well....closer to Charlotte.

@Alisoni know! I just have the one, but there are so many fish out there that I like. And now I'm thinking a betta tank would be cool. And one or two 20 gallon tanks with live plants and smaller fish. Lol you could easily fork over a ton of money on this hobby @Ben Ellison I have wondered if it would work to just get mainly the top of the gravel and go around the plants and decor and let the rest of the stuff in the gravel support the biological bacteria.

@Ben Ellison I like the guppy tank....do you have your plants in gravel? And if so, how do you clean it?...i.e. do you gravel vac at all or around the plants?

@StephenP2003 her tank looks pretty cool! What fish are in there? I see a guppy and are those rainbows? @Streetwise thanks! This forum has been pretty great so far. I'm actually thinking about getting a 20gal or so and trying out my plants in that one...I like the look of a smaller planted tank with guppies or another small fish. But I don't know how my husband will feel. He surprised me with my current tank and I dont think he knew what he was getting into lol. But he's pretty supportive so we'll see @Matthew those are some impressive fake plants! I like the tank Thanks all for the replies!

Looks good; I saw your post about stocking this tank....Hope you enjoy it! I personally could spend hours in a day watching my fish tank.

I'm in the Charlotte metro area

Thanks for sharing...and for the pics, I love to see the pictures! @Paul the discus tank looks great... ...the nc water seems like it would be perfect for them

Looks like I might be getting some cholla wood. Thanks guys

Is cholla wood good for attaching plants like java fern? Can you just push it down into the wood and let it do it's thing or do you need to use wire? Ive never successfully kept a planted tank but I'm interested in sticking my toe in the water.... Thanks for any input

I'm researching considering trying a real planted tank, but curious if anyone else utilizes fake plants here?

Welcome fellow North Carolinian. I'm researching considering going to a real planted tank as well. Currently I have a 38 gallon...all fake plants of course. Good luck on your project!

@genuine_red your pic is amazing ...those dwarf chain loaches look awesome and the contrast of the green neons....you could always get more green neons? Or this would allow an opportunity to get another cool fish you've thought about. I'm sorry you had that happen though.