Skroob

So...the med trio....i can see using it in a business setting. Not so much for home use. Here are my reasons for this. 1. I don't deal with tons of people coming to look at and buy my fish. So medicating external complications that are not presenting seems a waste of money and time. 2. I can't see inside the fish so I treat for internal parasites. 3. Over medication can create issues with resistant strains of bacteria and other illnesses. 4. Things like using the med trio are kind of blanket solutions. For the home aquarist, I feel it can retard new hobbyists from actually trying to figure out what symptoms go with what disease. Instead...just throw the med trio at it.

Wash your hands before and after. You don't know what oils or such you may have picked up about the house. Then wash after you are done because you don't know what you could have picked up in your tank. But honestly...its just good hygene. Even more so in these times.

Tidal hobs. Easy to hot rod. Quiet. Doesn't need primed.

You will either need to mix multiple substrates to get the consistency you want. Or look into using a soil " system " such as Contosoil which has 3 sizes of regular , fine, and ultra fine. The more planted tank geared substrates will cost you a lot more than say mixing gravel, plant substrate, and sand together.

I stick to 76 for general tropical. 72 for cooler species. Base tanks on the show or centerpiece fish and then plan accordingly.

barbel erosion is a water quality issue. Not a substrate issue. You can have Corys on sand and still have barbel erosion due to conditions in the tank. You can also keep them on lava rock and have perfectly intact barbels in healthy water. This is just one more myth in fish husbandry.

Honestly. Shrimp king. You don't get quite as much with it. But what you do get is quite a bit better.

If you are looking on the cheap any budget 10 to 20 long with sponge filters will work. Or Dennerle Shrimp King kits are pricey but not too bad for the price. ($145ish) Aqueon makes a 7.5G shrimp kit which isn't hateful either. And wouldn't be too bad if you don't want to create your own set up. ($65-89ish)

Hello Everyone! My name is Doug. Skroob is my nickname and I am totally fine with being called that. I have been keeping fish off and on for the past 30 years. And my current projects are a 40 breeder and a 20 long. Looking forward to helping out and enjoying the forum.