SupersoNick95

Here ya go!

The filter I’m looking at is about 250 gallons per hour. Do spray bars usually reduce flow by quite a bit?

Currently running 2 filters in my 20 Long Shell Dweller tank. I am considering switching to a canister filter because I'd like to: 1. Decrease visual clutter. I really enjoy the look of a tank with no visible filtration. 2. Increase Biological Filtration. I'd really like for the fish to have the best environment possible. Here are the 2 filters I'm currently running and what i think the pros/cons are: Marineland 125 Pro: Pros: large media basket, relatively quiet Cons: there is a slight hum, hopefully it doesn't get worse over time Sicce Shark ADV 400: Pros: Completely Silent; Extremely easily to clean; highly customizable filter basket. Cons: Very high flow, almost too much; looks very ugly in such a shallow tank; Shell Dweller fry will definitely get sucked up and there's no way to prevent it. (I mainly use it for water polishing which I have now realized may be overkill in itself because there is no way to lower the flow). Would a SunSun 602 be good enough to meet my needs? Ive heard that while not the best, they are great value for the price. The flow is substantially higher than both my current filters combined as it is rated for 75 gallons. Im sure that i can baffle the flow with the use of a spray bar anyways. I'm most concerned about adequate surface area for beneficial bacteria. I know you can never have enough beneficial bacteria. I know many will point out that maintenance is easier on hang on backs but the ability to have the filter completely apart from the tank is a plus for me. Are canister filters in general near silent? I'd prefer almost no hum since its in my bedroom. Since id be storing it in a cabinet im sure sound dampening would help.

Thanks so much, I’m new to all of this and am most worried about my breeding pair of apistos getting sick. Should I go ahead and treat with fungus cure?

Thanks for the tip! So you’re saying the fungus may have just formed because it was injured not specifically because it was the fungus itself that killed him?

pH: 6.8 Nitrates ≈10ppm Hardness: 20ppm Nitrite: 0ppm Ammonia: 0ppm KH/Buffer: 40-60 Water Temperature: 75-79 (read below) so I recently noticed this red phantom tetra had a large weird spot on its side and assumed he had gotten injured when I was attempting to grab another fish out of my tank to donate. I couldn’t get any pictures unfortunately. Next day I Saw a couple small white spots, which looked like common sign of ich on another phantom tetra. after the fear of ich had set in, I raised the temp of the tank from 75 to 79, slowly over the course of a day. I also added aquarium salt to try and combat any ich or fungus while I waited for Ich X to come in the mail. I used Cory’s recommended 1 tbsp per 3 gallons. I had to leave the house for a day so I turned off the lights to let the fish calm down. came back home 24 hours later and found the image below. The tetra which I had assumed was injured had in fact developed a type of fungus and was dead belly up in the tank. The fungus was in the same exact spot where I observed what I thought was an injury. Whether it died as a result of the fungus or the fungus developed as the fish was rotting, I have no clue. good news, I believe the white spots on the other phantom were stress ich, as they seem to have disappeared from its fin. The salt and raising of temp seemed to have worked for now. I have been running this tank unheated as I live in Florida and my room is heated to 76. I have noticed the temp fluctuate throughout the day and believe these low temps may have stressed the phantom tetras and caused stress ich. This is only a theory though and would really appreciate any advice. is my tank possibly infected with a fungus and should I treat it with Ich X? I have read ich x is also great for fungal infections.

My water was probably not the issue pH is around 8.4 with no ammonia no nitrites and barely any nitrates using the aquarium co-op test strips. Thankfully Rick from Sand City cichlids just emailed me back he offered to send me the whole order again at no charge with an extra Fish in just for the wait because they don’t ship on Thursdays. so I’m pretty happy about that I don’t really think it was their fault it may have been in transport I’m thinking because they have very good reviews. I think the heat was a factor because they traveled all the way from Ohio to Miami and it’s pretty hot down here right now so that’s probably what happened

Yes. About 5 minutes after acclimation.

No idea. 3 were dead when I got them, 4th was dying. It was overnight shipping.

Waiting a week for 5 shell dwellers from a reputable seller and then having 4 dead on arrival. If I have to pay for the $55 shipping for replacements I’ll probably decline. It’s really frustrating.

Ordered 5 Neolamprologus Similis shell dwellers from Sand City Cichlids. sadly 3 were DOA and a 4th was swimming belly up. 5th is alive but it is sitting at the bottom of my tank breathing heavily and barely moving. I have emailed them to see what avenues we can take. I trust they’ll help me because I’ve seen many great reviews, specifically on Zenzo’s channel, but I’m more concerned about getting a refund/exchange on the 4th and 5th fish. The 4th fish which was swimming belly up I let hang out in my tank after acclimation and it quickly died. 5th one isn’t looking too good either. I’m worried about losing out on 2 new fish to start my colony. My tank is set up with good pH (8.4) for lake tang fish, and no ammonia or nitrites, very low nitrates. Their policy says clear pictures of the fish “ in the bag”, just don’t feel it’d be fair to classify a fish as alive even though it’s on its last couple of breaths. anyone dealt with their refund/exchange process before? Any tips on how I should deal with this?

Thanks zenzo! I decided on rehoming the Juli. I’m going to keep it as a species only Similis tank!

Hi everyone, was wondering if anyone experienced in African Cichlids could chime in. I have a 20 long set up for tanganyikans. currently have one Julidochromis Regani, adding 5 shell dwellers (similis) next week. id like to add just one more fish. Is this even possible? I really enjoy brichiardi cichlids and would only want to add a single fish as to avoid any aggression from breeding.

My biggest worry is that my pH is even lower than the 6.4 that the Aquarium Co-op strips can register. I stopped by a local LFS just now and picked up Seachem Alkaline Regulator. I'm going to dose the tank at half the suggested dosage so that i don't shock the fish. My tap water is a pH of 7.2 so this should be good to help raise it temporarily. I am going to look into putting the crushed coral as a substitute for biological media in the HOB as zenzo suggested. Are there any other "buffers" i can add to the tank other than crushed coral? I'll continue the PraziPro treatment regimen just in case as the fish so far don't seem to mind.

I noticed that my water has barely any buffer or water hardness. Maybe this is why my water struggles to maintain neutral. I’ll look into buffering it with some more crushed coral.

My ZIP is 33027

I live on the East Coast, Miramar in southern Broward county. I use city water. Thank you! Is there any harm in keeping the medication in for the full course of treatment? all the fish were doing fine until i introduced that seemingly sick gourami.

Thanks for the feedback! So it could just be gill burn? It will be pretty difficult for me to move all the fish into a new tank, so is there anyway i can safely raise the pH to then drop it slowly again over time? I have no idea why my pH drops so rapidly. Could it be that i don't have enough buffer? I have 1 pound of crushed coral in the back of the tank just sitting. My tap water after being dechlorinated and sitting for a day reads at about 7.2 pH.

Tank is a planted 20 Gallon Long. I am running three filters at the moment. A Tidal 35, a Sicce shark ADV 600 (not in the picture because i just installed it last night), and a sponge filter. I plan on removing the Sponge after it has helped seed the Sicce internal filter. pH: 6.5 Nitrates: 10ppm Hardness: Using Co-op test strips; somewhere between 0-25 GH Nitrite: 0 Ammonia: 0 KH/Buffer: 40ppm Water Temperature: 76 degrees; i run an unheated tank; I live in South Florida, and it rarely ever gets cold enough to drop overall temps in the house. I first noticed flashing when i brought home a red honey gourami. Within a day i noticed him breathing heavily and sitting at the bottom of the tank. He would then start flashing for about a minute straight. This happened infrequently for the next 24 hours. But he was basically sitting at the bottom all the time. I removed him from the tank and placed him in a large container with a cycled sponge filter and set the temp to 79 up from 76. He was dead by the next morning. The next day i noticed one of the larger platies flashing. Two days later i stupidly brought home 2 apistos. But i figured i could "Quarantine" them along with the entire tank since id be treating the entire community with prazipro. Fearing that i may have gill flukes on my hands, considering the recently passed gourami's heavy breathing, flashing and lethargy, i ordered some PraziPro. It has been about 2 days since i began the PraziPro treatment and have yet to see the platy flash again. I plan on following the Aquarium Coop Method of letting the fish rest for about 2 weeks then redosing the tank to kill any new flukes that may have hatched. I did however see the two apistos "flashing" up against the sand. I have read conflicting things about how prazi works. Some say it kills flukes within 24 hours, others say it kills over the 5-7 day period. What is the general consensus? Also should i raise the temperature of my dank a couple degrees? i feel that i am "overstocked"; and I read in the pinned section about common treatments that overstocking will exacerbate gill flukes and internal parasites. Am i overstocked? I'm new to the hobby but this maybe a huge mistake regardless. 2 Apistogramma Cacatuoides 5 Platies (3 larger twin bars; 2 smaller tuxedo platies; 1 male to 4 females) 6 Panda Cories 14 Harlequin Rasbora 1 Hillstream loach I plan on rehoming the three larger twin bar platies. I do want to finish treatment so that i do not pass on any disease to a future owner or a donor LFS. The hillstream loach will probably be next to rehome...if i can even catch him.

I had a feeling that’s what’s going on. Male is a lot smaller but packs way more color. I think the female is just making him know who’s boss hahaha…. for now… Good to know about the harem. Should I stick with just two or should I get one more female? I’m not necessarily interested in breeding them but I also wouldn’t mind.

Yesterday I went to a local fish farm here in Miami, and bought what I believe is a Male and Female pair of Apistogramma Cacatuoides. Idk if they are super red, double red, etc. The one with the darker more prominent stripe was sold to me as female, the one with the less pronounced stripe and more colorful finnage was sold to me as a male. Also, the one sold to me as a female, while not really discernible through camera, is quite a bit more yellow than the other. so far they seem to stick together but they do squabble here and there. Is this normal between sexes? I know it’s very hard to tell their sex when they are young. Mine are only about 1 inch, so they’ve got lots of growing to do.

So I have a new-ish 20 gallon long, fully cycled, and this is what I have in there: 10 Harlequin Rasboras 3 twin bar Platies 6 Panda Corydoras 1 Dwarf Gourami I also have a lot plants for such a new tank, I’ve got a about 5 Java ferns, some Anubias, and jungle Val. All the fish enjoy swimming through the vegetation. Tank also has an Aquarium Co-op medium sponge filter and a Tidal 35 HOB for some extra water clarity. My concern is my dwarf Gourami. I bought it fully knowing the risks associated with their aggression. So far mine has been pretty calm BUT has “snapped” at a couple fish. If he roams the bottom and a panda Cory gets a little too excited he’ll snap at it. Same with the platies. He doesn’t chase anything except for the harlequins on an infrequent basis. I think it’s because the harlequins could be a bit hyperactive at times. My water parameters are near perfect, but I would like to raise the hardness just a bit for the platies. is he just the “boss of the tank”? He seems to inhabit the two top left corners of the tank, which is really cute because he likes to rest on and under the plant leaves. He doesn’t pick on the other fish during feedings, and mostly sticks to floating pellets. He’s actually starting to become a sort of “wet pet” for me. He likes to come up to the front of tank when I get close. I would really love to keep him. any thoughts?

Like others have stated, I would not do anything to your tank other than adding a PH buffer like crushed coral. Your Nitrites are pretty much non-existent, this means the Beneficial Bacteria have not finished "eating" the ammonia. (Please someone correct me if I'm wrong). Same thing happened in my 20 gallon. I added a used filter from a much smaller tank and it took about a week for teh bacteria to convert everything to nitrates. Try getting some used filter media or bio media from an LFS. I added 4 bio-balls from a local store and it really sped up the process.

I had a similar issue last week, was cycling a new 20 gallon with used filter media but my PH was crazy low, like a 6.0. It stalled the cycled for a bit. I just recently got some crushed coral from CO-OP and a little goes a long way. Site says 1 pound for every 10 gallons i think? i only added half and my PH rebounded nicely to about 7.2. DO NOT USE PH UP OR DOWN CHEMS, especially if you are doing a fish in cycle. Stresses the fish when the PH jumps so rapidly.