Beardedbillygoat’s Fish & Shrimp Tank Journal

[Beardedbillygoat1975]

Oh man @Streetwisethat is a great Gen X flashback! Thank you!

[Beardedbillygoat1975]

Well this was a good reminder that I owe a fishroom update. 

The whiteclouds are looking great. Nice bellies and color. They’re eating brine like it was their job. I’m really hoping we can get to the point where the nighttime lows are up in the 50-60s consistently so I can put them outside. 

Sorry about the glass. 

My platys and guppies are doing great. I am going to sell my first group of the dwarf platys. I have a ton of guppies I need to thin the heard. There’s a whole tote with blue guppies that need to be sorted.

 

[Guppysnail]

Those platys look amazing!  I’m looking forward to seeing pictures of the white clouds from the top!  

[Beardedbillygoat1975]

In terms of the other tanks I’m embarrassed about the mill and ink platy tank. I need to do a good clean tonight and video that one. 

The bristlenose tank is doing well I see tons of baby’s each night but they’re shy during lights on. I’m planning a good clean of the HOB filter tonight and I’m hoping with a big water change and some clean water might induce some breeding. I was doing better when I was keeping the temp up and then dropping it with my water changes but now suddenly the heaters aren’t keeping up. Yeah! New heaters will eat up all the money I make on the platys and guppies. Their relatives the Rio Tocantin look great nice full belly’s, bristles are starting to show up. 
 

The other tank I’ve not show is my blue dream clown killi tank. Here’s a loan male whose not shown any sign of being intimidated.

 

[Atitagain]

Have you got your white clouds outside yet? I put mine out yesterday they are still hiding so I haven’t seen them since I put them in. Your platys look great! I love that color, I just separated my male and female sunburst platy for breeding I put them in a 10G. 

[Beardedbillygoat1975]

Not yet. Overnight temps still in the 30s. If they were high 40s low 50s at night I’d put them out.

[Beardedbillygoat1975]

Wow, it seems amazing to me that it’s been 2 weeks since I updated the journal. Much has changed personally and professionally but as for the hobby well things have been in a state of stasis, which all things considered is a good thing.

On a personal and professional note we’re getting the hell out of Bend. My employer is a mess and it’s time for me to move on to greener pastures. Found a very wonderful and potentially lucrative opportunity in the Seattle area so that’s where I’m headed. Hello GSAS and Coop, Beardedbillygoat is coming. As to where not sure. I’ll have a half day clinic in Federal Way once a week so South Seattle and surrounding burbs is possible but really with my hours we can live anywhere and be fine. It feels like everywhere in Seattle area is a 30 min to 2 hour commute no matter how you slice it. 

Tank wise I did a huge clean out of moss, algae and some dying Madagascar lace plant leaves in The Sad Bowl. The light since then is great and has a lovely shimmer. The shrimp, livebearers and my BN pleco are happy and it shows. 

I did some shifting in my eldest sons tank awhile back. One of the Krobia had gotten huge and was bullying the tank. I mean he’s a male cichlid and he was ready to breed and with no female available his energy had to go somewhere and well it did - lost all the marble hatchets and 2 of the black mollies. I moved him to my 45 g display and he’s settling in to a hierarchy with Spikey Feathers and Bluey. So I then purchased 5 more Krobia from Dan’s Fish and now have a very nice fairly well mannered group. Eventually I see these going into a 40 breeder all to themselves although they seem to do very well with BN plecos so that may be an option. 

I have really enjoyed the maturation process of DJ Turbo the hybrid betta’s 7.5 cube tank. It was a joy to put together. The materials were so fun to play with. I had amazing plants on hand. It really came together beautifully. I’m proud of it and I can’t say that about a lot of my tanks. It really is an accumulation of all I’ve learned in the last 3 years plus the prior 33 years. Scary when you cite those kinds of numbers?!

In looking for our next home it’s been amazing to have a wife/partner/friend whose included my hobby in the decisions. We’ll have fish room 2.0 and I’m really excited. Probably a basement she really is creeped out by basements so this is asking a lot of her. Taking all I’ve learned from this adventure and putting it towards this next one is really exciting. Large air pump and air loop? Check. Auto water changing rack or 2? Check. 
It’s been hard to curb my collectoritis lately. I have a tank that is begging for some ancistrus and I’ve had my eye on either Wabenmuster or something similar Ancistrus -wise ie unique. But I’m holding back for now. When I get closer I’ll update on how I’m going to move all this but I’m pretty sure this will be a rental van all it’s own at this point. 
I hope all my Nermy friends and peeps are well and thriving. For a long time I wasn’t thriving professionally and this opportunity along with the process of finding it has really restored some of my faith in the last 17 years of work I’ve done. Have fun everyone!  

[Guppysnail]

Congratulations!  I’m so excited for you to be making a positive life move. I’m certain it is scary and exciting at th same time to embark on this new adventure.  I wish you ease of transition.  I’m also a tiny bit envious of your new proximity to ACO. 😁

[Odd Duck]

Congrats!  Sometimes a job transition is just what you need to gain a new enthusiasm for life, work, and hobbies.  Maybe I need to just move so I can make myself tackle the Herculean task of putting together my fish room.  Hmmmm.

Good luck with the move and in the new job.  You’ve got this!

[OnlyGenusCaps]

Congrats, sir!  I wish I was moving...  😕  I'm stoked for you though!  I love the PNW.  Half my family is all from there.  I mean, I'd even take Bend, but I digress.  It was great catching up with your setup, and I'm looking forward to the updates post move too!  Good luck.

[Atitagain]

Congratulations, can’t wait to see plans for fishroom 2.0. And glad you have this opportunity to thrive in your professional life as well.

[Beardedbillygoat1975]

@Guppysnailmy wife keeps asking me if this move is just about the Coop and GSAS and my answer has remained the same - it is a pretty sweet bonus to all the other good this move will bring us as a family. 

@Odd Duckand @AtitagainI certainly have learned a ton from the process of putting 1.0 together. It will just end up being about the space I am allotted and then working from there. Professionally it is just a great gig and people who are rational and professional something I have not seen from management in a long time. Although money doesn't fix problems it can prevent them!

@OnlyGenusCapssome of the tanks are exactly how I would want them and now the thought of taking them down is sad a little bit but then again it's an opportunity to do things differently and maybe better!

I wish I had been able to stock up on tanks and store them up in Seattle from the latest 50% sale but I will probably being going the sterilite tote way for a lot.

My wife has already told me that the insulation walls on fishroom 1.0 will need to come down and that the 2 fish racks will need to go along the wall instead of in the U-shaped room configuration. I think this will mean doing something with my Goliad farms scud/daphnia project and it's back up. To the yard they go. I need to put my white clouds out and get their pond setup to make the entry look nice. Or at least that's my excuse!

 

[eatyourpeas]

Congratulations!!! It is going to be fun having you as a neighbor. Please keep us posted, and looking forward to maybe seeing you at a GSAS meeting! 😃

[Beardedbillygoat1975]

Thanks so much @eatyourpeas! Yes it is super exciting to be part of the even more Nermy community up north. Now I just need to sort out all my particulars with the move. I find myself watching every YT I can about moving fish and tanks. 

[Beardedbillygoat1975]

Tonight was about getting my mind, body and spirit in the right frame for the 6 more days of hospital service ahead. Our work environment is a bit toxic at present due to tremendous tumult so that does flow downhill and there you are. 
I decided I didn’t have it in me to take on the bigger projects I really need to tackle in terms of water changes and maintenance. Instead, I cleaned up and trimmed The Betta Cube. 7.5 g of pure bliss. I’m really enjoying some purple bamboo I purchased and have growing emersed. Along with my pothos, lucky bamboo and philodendron it’s really looking lovely. I’ve changed the lighting so I can enjoy it more at night. 
The diversity of the planting really became apparent as I trimmed up the retrospiralis red, my crypt flamingos and getting a lot of dead leaves off the Anubias nana. I have some AR that’s just starting to peek up the back and some larger crypts like my green gecko, undulata and some parva seem to be really settling in. Here’s some pics and a video.  

Thanks for taking a look. Constructive criticism always appreciated. Have fun!

[Guppysnail]

This look wonderful.  Those rocks give it such a unique look. Very tranquil.

[anewbie]

What is that thing labelled mini that is on the side of the tank ?

[Minanora]

Congratulations! I'm happy to get caught up on your adventures! Moving is exciting! I love it up there. I look forward to hearing all about your move!

[Torrey]

On 6/1/2022 at 11:56 AM, Beardedbillygoat1975 said:

On a personal and professional note we’re getting the hell out of Bend. My employer is a mess and it’s time for me to move on to greener pastures.

Can't say our experience with bend was any different, if I'd known I would have encouraged you to check out UNM-H for their sign on bonus right now. I suspect you'll love working Seattle, Children's didn't have as many politics issues, Federal Way had good pay as well. Bellevue is a 20 minute drive or a two hour drive depending on time of day, with a lot more green spaces for the kids, the mall has a chess board with life size chess pieces, and maybe 30 minutes from the Co-op except rush hour. Kent and Covington have an awesome parade and very family friendly.

Wishing you the best, and glad you have your betta cube to generate a nice LoFi chill vibe for you.

[Odd Duck]

Looking great!  But what is this purple bamboo of which you speak?  Must see pics, forthwith!

[Beardedbillygoat1975]

@Odd Duck the purple bamboo was a find on one of the plant groups from FaceBook. Those groups are dangerous to the pocket book. I will get a good pick and post it. 

@anewbiecheap Amazon glass cleaner. good for easy to remove dust algae not the caked on stuff. Small size is nice easy to put out of the way. 

@Minanorathanks for the encouragement. Seeking my bliss and dragging my family with me. Wife is onboard, the plan is to tell the boys this weekend so that our oldest can say his goodbyes to his friends who won't be in school related camp this summer. 

@Torreyyep Bend, ughh it is just so sad, alas don't want to dwell just really feel for my co-workers. As for New Mexico, we are really just lovers of the temperate rain forest and the coast. My uncle lived in the Jemez when he worked at Los Alamos lab and still lives there part time. We are seriously considering one of the islands and I have been in touch with @Patrick_Gbut it is a little daunting making a big move plus a move to an island. We shall see! So far Bothel, Woodinville, and Shoreline have been tossed around. My wife comes from a family of architects and she occasionally throws a new build in the mix. Absolutely on the traffic, my plan is to utilize the express busses and light rail/trains as much as possible. If we do the islands would be using the walk up ferry water taxi and finally getting my dream Brompton folding bike with an e-assist. 

[Beardedbillygoat1975]

This week has been a bit nutty. I have packed up about a 1/4 of the house to show it. We had some buyers come by yesterday and they are very interested so may be able to do a private party deal 🤞! 
Fish wise I’m keeping up with water changes on the fish room, betta cube and the 45 but need to give the upstairs tanks some love this weekend. 
In the fishroom things are going pretty well. My whiteclouds are doing great. Have about a dozen babies in there and hopefully I’ll find more when I move them this weekend and they can hatch out without being predated on. 

Thanks again to @WhitecloudDynastyfor these beautiful fish! 
I have a great grouP of swordtails- koi tricolor lyretails. I have one non lyretail male so I can keep this line going. My only other option would be to pull the lyretail males out and cut the gonopodiums to allow them to breed. Lots of academic papers on this. Not sure with a non-lyretail male this is necessary. I also have a GBR female (I believe) from @Fish Folk and some F82 killi females you may see. https://youtube.com/shorts/-i5CJdk2xmo?feature=share
And once again it’s time to cull my Blue Hawaiian Moscows and my Fireball dwarf platys. I’ve got a ton of babies of both. Hopefully the cull will go well this weekend and I can set up a time next week to bring them in. 

Hopefully we’ll hear from the buyer this weekend and be able to keep packing and be ready to move on sooner than later this summer! 

[Odd Duck]

On 6/17/2022 at 11:45 AM, Beardedbillygoat1975 said:

it’s time to cull my Blue Hawaiian Moscows

Soooooo, would they be offered on the BST section of the forum?  😍  Asking for a friend.

[Beardedbillygoat1975]

@Odd DuckI think once I settle in Seattle it would make sense as the shipping would be faster from there then here in Bend - it add an extra day. But I have looked at breeder bags on Amazon. Think I can do better elsewhere on the web just haven’t really looked that hard. I’d say the BHM, fireballs, and blue neos would be easily done by later fall. I’m hoping to build up my calico longfin group enough to do that but they slowed down a lot lately and it’ll be interesting how the rest of the summer and then the move treats them. I think I may look for another LF reverse trio to add after the move.

Setup my ponds. It’s been cold and rainy here. Unseasonably so. But I’ve seen good weather in the forecast and if I don’t start now I’ll never be able to do it. Here’s some pics. The planter pond will be filtered within ACO large sponge and the 50 g Rubbermaid is unfiltered but think the hyacinth can do the job nicely.

I’ve also just picked up 10 Ancistrus sp. Pucallpa golds. I’ve kind of decided to stick with Ancistrus. In the future I’ll get L181/183s, green dragons and eventually a colony of Wabenmuster’s. Medusa’s would be cool too. They just work so well with neos, livebearers and other fish that it seems like the best fit for my fish room. Plus just means more money to spend on livebearers and corys. I have an order in with Greg Sage and have some plants coming in for summer tubbing. It will be a short season this year.  

Update on the house is we may have sold it before it even was to go on the market. 🤞

[Odd Duck]

I’ll be looking forward to hear when you’re ready to ship some of those Blue Hawaiian Moscows.

Is the purple bamboo the purple tinted grassy looking stuff in your tub/pond?