Hello from Texas

[lindabee53]

Hey!  I'm just getting back into aquariums after a long hiatus.  My ex had them and I've just gotten them back.  I have three small ones:  a 20-gallon tall, a 5-gallon, and a 3-gallon.  The smallest one sat on my desk and had mostly plants, one betta, and some shrimp.  My betta lived just over four years from when I got him.

At this point, I have the 20-gallon tank clean and in place in my living room.  I need to replace some equipment, although I always had a fairly simple setup.  It will be heavily planted (moreso than before) and have a bunch of fish - cory cats, neon tetras, and a betta.  That's pretty much what I had before and they did well.

My crochet/sewing chair faces the tank at an angle, so I'll be able to see it and enjoy it once everything is set up and going well.  I couldn't see any point in putting it somewhere I couldn't practically all the time.

Best regards to all,

Lindabee

[xXInkedPhoenixX]

Hi! Welcome to the forum! 

[lindabee53]

Thank you!  Any advice or information you feel like sharing will be gratefully accepted.

[Atitagain]

Welcome to the forum, the 20G sounds like it will be an interesting set up. 😀

[GameCzar]

Welcome fellow Texan!

[JettsPapa]

Welcome to the forum.  I'm in southeast Texas myself.

[lefty o]

welcome aboard.

[Odd Duck]

North central Texas, here.

[Griznatch]

Welcome to the forum!

[lindabee53]

Okay, quick question - what is a nerm?

Thanks for all the welcomes.  All you Texans, I'm north of Austin about an hour.  And I'm not a real Texan, but I've been here a while.

I haven't had an aquarium in 12-13 years, so I'm flying by the seat of my pants.  Feel free to advise, correct, suggest.

[CalmedByFish]

On 10/11/2021 at 11:14 AM, lindabee53 said:

Okay, quick question - what is a nerm?

Thanks for all the welcomes.  All you Texans, I'm north of Austin about an hour.  And I'm not a real Texan, but I've been here a while.

I haven't had an aquarium in 12-13 years, so I'm flying by the seat of my pants.  Feel free to advise, correct, suggest.

Welcome! 

"Nerm" was just a mouth fumble that caught on. It refers to a normal person, who's also a nerd about fish. Normal+nerd+(not enough coffee?) = "nerm."

Best advice: Research research research before taking action. (Sorry, I chance to be in a rush right now. Just needed a fish break. Toodles.)

Edited October 11, 2021 by CalmedByFish

[CalmedByFish]

On 10/10/2021 at 11:08 PM, lindabee53 said:

Thank you!  Any advice or information you feel like sharing will be gratefully accepted.

Now that I've got a minute...

Although you've been out of the hobby for a while, it sounds like you've got at least basic knowledge, given your descriptions of your previous fish. Is that accurate?

If it's not fresh in your mind, I'd say to get re-acquainted with the nitrogen cycle, and liquid test kits. 

When you get the test kits, test all the parameters of your tap water, so you've got your bearings on what you have to work with.

Double-check that those parameters match up with what your preferred species of fish need. (If they don't, there may be easy ways to adjust the water. Or if not, there may turn out to be other fun fishies that do match up with the water.)

By the time your tank(s) is cycled, have a plan in place for quarantine. And though a lot of people don't quarantine plants, at least consider it.

If you haven't yet, hunt down some high-quality videos on YouTube on fishkeeping. There are many videos intended for beginners, which are also good for those of us who just need a refresher, or need to get the intensely confused looks off our faces. 😜 Although Aquarium Co-Op has a very helpful channel (and blog), so do many other people!

Off the top of my head, the only other advice I can think of is the dreaded "P word." Patience. Bleck! 

Edited October 11, 2021 by CalmedByFish

[lindabee53]

I think your assessment of what I said is pretty accurate.  I had small tanks for years, but, as I said, it's been a lot of years that I haven't.  I've watched a lot of videos, often late into the night - shingles keeps me from sleeping much.  😒  I doubt I'll have fish before Thanksgiving, and that's okay.  I'll order plants this week and get that going.

I pulled out my 3-gallon tank to use for quarantine and hope it'll be big enough.  I hadn't thought of quarantining plants, never even heard of doing it, but I'll look into it.

I don't know about using tap water.  In this town, most of us use bottled water for cooking and drinking, although the water quality reports say it's fine for drinking.  The water's pretty hard:  38 per a recent report.  I know I've seen some things about softening water, but I don't remember what or where.  I'll look for it.  I used bottled water before and it worked, but I had only small tanks.  My largest is still my 20-gallon.

Thank you so much for the advice, information, and reminders - also for the time you took to write.

[CalmedByFish]

On 10/12/2021 at 1:12 AM, lindabee53 said:

I've watched a lot of videos, often late into the night - shingles keeps me from sleeping much.  😒  

I pulled out my 3-gallon tank to use for quarantine and hope it'll be big enough.  I hadn't thought of quarantining plants, never even heard of doing it, but I'll look into it.

In this town, most of us use bottled water for cooking and drinking, although the water quality reports say it's fine for drinking.  

Thank you so much for the advice, information, and reminders - also for the time you took to write.

Sorry about the shingles. I hope the aquarium stuff is at least a helpful distraction. 

I'd hesitate to use the 3 gallon for quarantine. Most QT meds are dosed per 10 gallons, so it'd be hard to come close to accurate dosing. I've used a 5 gallon, and aimed to put 6 gallons' worth of a dose of med in to make sure I get enough. Something else to think about is that during a course of meds, it's easiest to be set up such that you can avoid doing water changes until the med course is done (often 1 week). I don't know if you could keep 3 gallons of water clean that long. Maybe - but it seems iffy to me, particularly if you chance to have baby fish born during QT, since they would need fed often. 

Quarantining a plant once kept me from putting black beard algae in my tanks. I'll never not quarantine again. That convinced me! On the flip side, hopefully your plants will bring in helpful things like safe microfauna, or snails that don't annoy you. (But that doesn't mean to not quarantine. You can move the good critters into the permanent tank when you move the plants in.)

It might be good to find the facts to prove that your tap water is dangerous or safe. If most people won't consume it, but the report says it's safe, something is off somewhere. I have heard of water reports that are inaccurate and shouldn't be trusted... but regardless, it might be beneficial to figure out the discrepancy between human behavior and human reporting.

And you're welcome!  

[DannyBWell]

Welcome to the forum!

[Colu]

Welcome to the forum

[GameCzar]

On 10/12/2021 at 1:12 AM, lindabee53 said:

I think your assessment of what I said is pretty accurate.  I had small tanks for years, but, as I said, it's been a lot of years that I haven't.  I've watched a lot of videos, often late into the night - shingles keeps me from sleeping much.  😒  I doubt I'll have fish before Thanksgiving, and that's okay.  I'll order plants this week and get that going.

I pulled out my 3-gallon tank to use for quarantine and hope it'll be big enough.  I hadn't thought of quarantining plants, never even heard of doing it, but I'll look into it.

I don't know about using tap water.  In this town, most of us use bottled water for cooking and drinking, although the water quality reports say it's fine for drinking.  The water's pretty hard:  38 per a recent report.  I know I've seen some things about softening water, but I don't remember what or where.  I'll look for it.  I used bottled water before and it worked, but I had only small tanks.  My largest is still my 20-gallon.

Thank you so much for the advice, information, and reminders - also for the time you took to write.

Best thing to do is just test your tap water and see exactly what parameters it has and try to match livestock to it rather than try to fix your water.    There's lots of fish that prefer hard water, so your tap might be just what you need.

Also, 3 gallons can be your quarantine tank, but as @CalmedByFish pointed out, the dosages are usually listed for 10 gallons so you'll have to do some math.   

I personally don't quarantine plants I get from trusted sources, but you should probably check for snails and eggs unless you want a lot of friends. 😉

[lindabee53]

@CalmedByFish and @GameCzar, thanks for the advice and additional info.  

The biggest problem with the water, aside from hardness, is the taste.  Okay, the smell can be offputting sometimes, too.  However, there are people who do drink it, usually people who were raised here.  The water is tested by the state pretty regularly, mostly because our infrastructure is in bad shape and our water goes out frequently and has to be tested before a boil-water notice can be rescinded.  In fact, we're under a boil-water notice now and the water went out again this morning.  🤪

For now, the 3-gallon tank will have to do.  It's all I have right now.  Maybe later I'll be able to get another tank.

I've been looking at the plants at Aquarium Co-op, so. . . trusted source?  I found that I want them all, but have pared the list down.  I had a lightly planted aquarium before, but I want something more heavily planted this time.  The only plant I'm really questioning is the Tiger Lotus - it might grow to be a bit large.  Or it might die, I suppose.

Thanks again to all for the welcome and the advice.  Toss anything my way - I won't take offense.  Probably.

[Jawjagrrl]

On 10/10/2021 at 11:46 PM, lindabee53 said:

Hey!  I'm just getting back into aquariums after a long hiatus.  My ex had them and I've just gotten them back.  I have three small ones:  a 20-gallon tall, a 5-gallon, and a 3-gallon.  The smallest one sat on my desk and had mostly plants, one betta, and some shrimp.  My betta lived just over four years from when I got him.

At this point, I have the 20-gallon tank clean and in place in my living room.  I need to replace some equipment, although I always had a fairly simple setup.  It will be heavily planted (moreso than before) and have a bunch of fish - cory cats, neon tetras, and a betta.  That's pretty much what I had before and they did well.

My crochet/sewing chair faces the tank at an angle, so I'll be able to see it and enjoy it once everything is set up and going well.  I couldn't see any point in putting it somewhere I couldn't practically all the time.

Best regards to all,

Lindabee

Welcome! Seems like a lot of us are coming back after being out of the hobby for awhile - I got the bug again this summer after being obsessed in the 90s/early 00s. Enjoying the nano tanks, even the one that's my problem child atm. 😄

My best advice would be to add your chosen betta to the setup LAST. You might have been lucky with a relaxed betta before and might again - or you could get my shrimp killing, snail harassing boy that tolerates my rasboras (they were there first) and nothing else. My other betta is a bit less aggressive, but I had to add additional hiding spots for my kuhli loaches because they moved into "his" tank and not the other way around. 

That said, a 20 is large enough that more bettas will probably (mostly) behave themselves. But I've learned to have a backup plan in case he doesn't. Good luck with your tank! I have one in our den next to my husband's fave chair (getting him hooked), but the others are in the kitchen which gets a lot of traffic throughout the day. Being close to the sink is really nice too.

[lindabee53]

Jawjagirl, welcome to you, too!  I never have seen a betta go after shrimp or snails, but I expect that's a function of my bettas' personalities.

Boris (my last betta) went into my tank last.  I think it kept him from being territorial, but maybe that's just my way of seeing it.  And he was a very laid back fish - he would hang with the school of neon tetras I had.  Hooper, the betta I had in the tank before Boris was less relaxed, but not especially aggressive.  Maybe I just got lucky.

My 20-gallon tank was at the end of the couch where my ex liked to sit, and he enjoyed it. . . as long as he didn't have to do anything with it.  The 5-gallon was in the bedroom, and the 3-gallon was on my desk at work.  I don't think I influenced anyone else.

Good luck with your journey back into the water world!

[CalmedByFish]

On 10/12/2021 at 1:01 PM, lindabee53 said:

I've been looking at the plants at Aquarium Co-op, so. . . trusted source? 

Thanks again to all for the welcome and the advice.  Toss anything my way - I won't take offense.  Probably.

That "probably" made me laugh! It's so honest! 

I consider ACO to be a trusted source for plants. But that's not because they're perfect - it's because they attempt to be. A conscientious source is very likely to get you better results than people who are strictly motivated by the profit.

It's still possible for ACO plants to arrive with something undesirable, and from any source, snails are just a given. (Though I think that's good.) 

Just a heads-up. Maybe you already have enough experience to know this, but it's super common for a plant species to simply not work in a person's water or tank, often inexplicably. I always suggest not spending money on more than 1 of a specific plant until you've confirmed that it can do well for you. Odds are better if you get 1 each of a larger number of species, then go back later for more of the ones that worked.

[lindabee53]

Usually I'm called "blunt" or "undiplomatic," not "honest."  Glad it made you laugh, though.

I've been putting together an order of plants and you must've been looking over my shoulder while I picked two or three of some.  So, good advice about getting one and waiting to see what works.  I'll still keep multiple of the Anubias I picked out, because I've had them before and they did well.  The others, I picked things I'm not familiar with because they appealed to me - maybe not the best of plans.  I guess I'll change things up a bit.

I had snails before; they aren't a problem.

[Odd Duck]

On 10/12/2021 at 1:01 PM, lindabee53 said:

The only plant I'm really questioning is the Tiger Lotus - it might grow to be a bit large.

You are right to question the tiger lotus.  I have a Nymphea lotus ‘Zenkeri’ (a similar dwarf lily) in my 100 gallon tank that currently has pads that are probably almost as wide as your little 3 gallon tank.  It would completely cover the entire surface of my tiny 2.1 gallon nano tank.  This lily started in a 6 gallon and I had to move it after only a couple weeks.  It went into a 20 gallon long and again needed to be moved in a couple more weeks.  It went into a 29 gallon holding tank for a few months where I had to keep it trimmed hard to keep it under control.  Most tiger lotus plants will outgrow a 3 gallon in 2-4 weeks time.  As much as I like dwarf lilies, I think it will cause more problems than it’s worth unless you can quickly upgrade it to a 29 or bigger.

Maybe consider a Cryptocoryne ‘Pink Flamingo’ instead.  All Crypts are prone to melting after shipping or transplanting, pinks a little worse than many, but once it settles, it would give you a terrific pop of color and could grow big enough to be very cool in a 3 gallon without completely overtaking the entire tank.  A small tank lets the light get into the bottom of the tank more effectively and my Pink Panthers and Pink Flamingos are happiest in my shallower tanks since I’m too much of a tightwad to spend for a fancy light.

Anubias and Java ferns are both excellent choices - I might suggest the Windelov version of Java fern since it has such an interesting texture and doesn’t get quite as tall as the original form. It would still be tall enough to be a background plant for you.  It would be more proportionate for a 3 gallon and is still a rich, medium to darkish green color.  And maybe try a couple Anubias nana ‘Golden’ for a great contrast with the Java fern and the Crypt. ‘Pink Flamingo’.

Crypt. lucens would be a great choice for a slow growing carpeting size plant.  It stays only about 3” tall and will SLOWLY grow into a dense lighter green carpet (you might want to buy 2-4 pots to get it rolling).  Slow carpeting is good for such a small tank since a fast carpeting plant would likely be a continuous and constant battle of trimming.

The C. lucens and Java fern would be closest in color, then the A. ‘Golden’ would be the next closest in color to the C. lucens, so gluing the ‘Golden’ to a piece of driftwood would get it closer to the light which will maintain its lighter green color a bit better (give it good water flow if you can) and separate it from the plant closest in color.  Then your Java fern (whichever form you like and IF that’s what you decide to use) could go lower on the wood piece (it grows taller and would stick out of the water if glued too high).  Your ‘Pink Flamingo’ either as a centerpiece plant or in the opposite front corner of your cluster of C. lucens.  They are similar in shape but the Pink Flamingo is bigger and wider (and pink!) and the lucens is very narrow, much shorter, and a bright, light green.

Pogostemon helferii is also a great smaller plant with a very bright, almost neon green color with interestingly crinkly margined leaves (front right in my “6 G Volcano” tank in my sig).  It is pretty slow growing in low tech but has a very different look to it than a Crypt if you wanted a different texture instead.  I have Crypt ‘Pink Panther’ in the front left of the same tank (‘Pink Panther’ and ‘Pink Flamingo’ are pretty interchangeable and are thought to be 2 different varietal names for the same plant).

I do love planning a tank, even if it’s not mine!  Feel free to use or trash any suggestions, I certainly won’t take it personally.  😆 😉 I’m not an expert by any means, but I’ve been intensely reading up on plants over the last couple years since restarting with fish after a significant hiatus.  I’m happy to answer any questions I can and will leave other questions up to others if I can’t answer them with confidence.

[Taco Playz]

Welcome!

[lindabee53]

Thank you for all the information, Odd Duck!  I had already removed the Tiger Lotus from my list - somewhere on here I found a post with photos.  It's beautiful, but as my BIG tank is 20 gallons, I think it would be a bit much.  

I have C. lucens on my list, but not some of the others you mentioned.  I have some Mopani wood quietly leaching tannins in a bin right now, and one of the pieces will be an upright, so your idea of sticking an Anubias Golden to the driftwood sounds good.  I saw the Pogestemon helferii in your tank and I do like it.  I'm starting with just a few plants - I think I have seven or eight on my list right now - and will get more as I can.

I looked at your aquariums and they're beautiful!  I kept thinking, ooh, I want that one and that one and that one.  I'm really only working on my 20-gallon tall right now and you've given me some great ideas.  A couple of the plants you suggested were on my list already, and I can see that I need to add more.  I'm sure I'll be referring to your post for what to do and how to do it.

Thank you so much!