[Bottom tank ideas]

I don't have shell dwellers...yet! 

[What's your dream aquarium product that doesn’t exist?]

On 10/2/2020 at 3:40 PM, Ben_RF said:

I have spent a week trying to find a pre-made basket/tray/container that I would be able to hook over the side of one of my aquariums grow plants in the water. I am sure it exist, I just have not had luck finding it.  I am starting to think at this point, I may need to DIY it.  

I use breeder boxes and leave a gap in the lid. 

[Bottom tank ideas]

I have a rack with three tanks (and a 55 not shown). Top tank is Ziggy the Betta and middle is a shrimp & snail tank. The bottom tank (20 long) is currently being used for temporary plant storage. I'd like to scape and populate it, but I'm trying to decide what combination of planting substrate and fish would make for the best viewing. Silly, maybe, but since it's empty now, I might as well dream. Most good planting substrate is dark, which would lend itself to lighter fish, but I also like the look of the shell dweller and other cichlid tanks with lighter substrates. Suggestions? Should I do a planted tank or not? What would you put in a bottom tank? 

TIA, 

Mo

[Adhesive gel]

This is good to know, since I just used it because I couldn't find Super Glue brand. Thanks! 

[Coir liner in tanks?]

I'm putting in an empty (of fish) tank so I'll check the parameters for a few weeks. 

[Coir liner in tanks?]

Thanks, y'all! I can deal with tannins. 

[Coir liner in tanks?]

I searched for coir or coconut fiber and didn't see anything. Does anyone know if coir liners are aquarium-safe? They're just coconut fiber and meant for lining houseplant containers, so they are plant-safe. I have a tank with river sand and aragonite substrate, but I'm not sure if that's good for growing root-feeding plants. I'm thinking I could put them in little terra cotta pots with grow substrate and place them on top of the aquarium substrate. 

TIA, 

Mo 

[How to get rid of snails]

I added 8 assassin snails in a 55 gal and the bladder snail issue has been resolved. I also got 5 yo-yo loaches, but now they just eat  bloodworms. 😂

[How to get rid of snails]

I second what Irene said about using Alum. I used it on a 20 gal long tank that had plants but no fish and it cleared out all the snails. . The tank is super clear, too! Alum is used in water management to clear up muddy or green water in ponds, so that makes sense. (search "alum use in waterways"). It is toxic at high concentrations and can cause pH fluctuations, so I kept fish out of that aquarium for several weeks and water changes and let the cycle recover. 

 

[Do Aquaclears rattle?]

Mine don’t rattle, but one of them has the cover off to accommodate plants. In my experience, most of the noise comes from the waterfall unless you keep the waterline just under the lip. 

[Clown Pleco okay?]

I can’t get a decent photo, but it’s color looks better today and less bloated. Fingers crossed! 

[Clown Pleco okay?]

3 hours ago, Cory said:

The color seems off for this fish, I wonder if it is having internal problems. 

I'm going to try and catch it and get it into a quarantine tank. 

[Hi from Vermont]

20 hours ago, Streetwise said:

Welcome @MoRia. I'm so happy to finally see another Vermonter on here! I live right near exit 10.

I would encourage you to start a tank journal and show off some more photos and stories of your tanks.

Cheers

Thanks! I'm in Essex. Here are some better photos of my setup. 

 

 

[Clown Pleco okay?]

I've had this little one for about four months and this is probably the third or fourth time I've seen it. 🤣 He looks a little bloated? Or is this normal? Everyone else in the community tank (55gal) are fine. Parameters: 7.2 pH, 0 ammonia/nitrite, 20 nitrates, 50ppm kH, ~300ppm dH. (I'm in the process of raising kH with aragonite.) 

 

TIA, 

Mo 

[Hi from Vermont]

Hi there!

I'm relatively new to the hobby, starting with a 10 gallon tank last Summer. Now I have 2-10 gal, 2-20 long, a 55 community tank and an empty 30 breeder in the garage. I also have one 5 gal quarantine tank in the bathroom because ... why not? Aquarium Co-op's YouTube channel and community have been incredibly helpful in the journey!  

My current stock is:

• 55 gallon: panda corys, harlequin rasboras, pearl danios, bn pleco, clown pleco, amanos, assassin snails, one nerite, guppies, mollies
• 20 gallon long: galaxy rasboras, guppies, yoyo loaches, hillstream loach, cherry shrimp, amano shrimp
• 10 gallon: betta
• 10 gallon fish quarantine and 20 gallon plant quarantine

I'm currently researching NW cichlids or shell dwellers (for the 30) and hope to setup a deck pond next summer. 

See you online! 

mo

[Alum bath for vallisneria?]

Thanks. I'll try with one plant and see how it goes. 

[What do you use for your Repashy molds?]

I use a silicone candy bar mold and got these miniature kitchen tools. 

[Alum bath for vallisneria?]

Hi there! 

I want to move some vallisneria plants to a different tank, but they're heavily infested with Ramshorn snails. Can I dip vallisneria in an alum bath? I know alum can destroy some fragile plants like guppy grass, but I've never heard of results from doing it with val. 

Thanks so much in advance, 

Mo