Schuyler Posted February 12, 2023 Author Share Posted February 12, 2023 On 2/12/2023 at 4:41 AM, TheSwissAquarist said: Where’s the hairgrass going? Front ‘lawn’ in the 40 gal? Yeah I wanted something short for the front right side. So it's not quite going to be a lawn but at least a patch of grass. On 2/12/2023 at 5:00 AM, TheSwissAquarist said: What sort of filter are you using btw?? It's a Fluval 407 with a pre-filter sponge and a spray bar. Looking back it's definitely overkill. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Schuyler Posted February 16, 2023 Author Share Posted February 16, 2023 If you want to plant dwarf hairgrass in an established aquarium here are some toys based on my experience: 1) Don't 2) DON'T 3) If you really want to do it, then ask yourself why. Because you don't actually want to do it. It took me like three minutes per clump just to get them to stay in place. Then I would go to plant the next one and the previous one would float up. They don't seem to have very long roots to shove deep into the substrate like you would with stems. Anyway, here's what it looks like after what felt like hours of fighting them to stay put: Also, just tried out the ACO test strips... Not sure what to make of the hardness reading. It looks like it's off the charts but my other brand says it's around 40 ppm (the newly added soil is softening the water some) 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheSwissAquarist Posted February 16, 2023 Share Posted February 16, 2023 On 2/16/2023 at 7:45 AM, Schuyler said: If you want to plant dwarf hairgrass in an established aquarium here are some toys based on my experience: 1) Don't 2) DON'T 3) If you really want to do it, then ask yourself why. Because you don't actually want to do it. It took me like three minutes per clump just to get them to stay in place. Then I would go to plant the next one and the previous one would float up. They don't seem to have very long roots to shove deep into the substrate like you would with stems. Anyway, here's what it looks like after what felt like hours of fighting them to stay put: Also, just tried out the ACO test strips... Not sure what to make of the hardness reading. It looks like it's off the charts but my other brand says it's around 40 ppm (the newly added soil is softening the water some) 4) Dry start the aquarium and grow it from seed. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Schuyler Posted February 16, 2023 Author Share Posted February 16, 2023 On 2/15/2023 at 11:44 PM, TheSwissAquarist said: 4) Dry start the aquarium and grow it from seed. Yeah everyone I've seen used it just wets the soil, plants it, waits a bit, and then add water slowly. What I ended up doing was putting small pieces of rock down next to the clumps to help pin then in place Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheSwissAquarist Posted February 16, 2023 Share Posted February 16, 2023 On 2/16/2023 at 3:34 PM, Schuyler said: What I ended up doing was putting small pieces of rock down next to the clumps to help pin then in place Rubber bands also help...if you want it weighed down by a rock. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Schuyler Posted February 18, 2023 Author Share Posted February 18, 2023 Look at this big mama(?) shrimp I just found in my tank (guppy for scale): I'm tempted to try and see if I can selectively breed for size. If it could ever be caught... 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Schuyler Posted February 21, 2023 Author Share Posted February 21, 2023 One of the red root floaters I got from ACO a week ago is blooming Tried to measure how big that brown shrimp was. I'd say it's at least an inch: The female killi isn't feeling so hot after getting sucked up during a water change. She's found a new hiding place that he can't reach her: It's also odd just how big of an impact lighting has on his color. He almost looks albino in that picture. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Doke Posted February 21, 2023 Share Posted February 21, 2023 I have to say the 40 is looking AMAZING! Once I have more space I'm hoping to do a 40g breeder cold water river tank 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Schuyler Posted February 24, 2023 Author Share Posted February 24, 2023 On 10/15/2022 at 10:10 PM, Schuyler said: First think that happened when I opened the canister: my son picked up the media rack and dropped it on my toes. I'll spare you the picture but they are black and blue (bio rings are heavy). Well four months later I finally clipped the last piece of toenail with a bruise from this. It was also a big tank maintenance day. Here's what I have to do to get the python to reach from the bathroom sink to the tank: The chairs are set up like telephone poles. Here's before the cleanup: And after: I trimmed the moss in the middle, removed some moss from the rocks that was mixed in with the Java Fern, trimmed the rotala, removed more pogostemon octopus, and planted some stems that had been floating. Here's all the moss that was pulled out: And a guppy carrying and a piece of duckweed. They do this all the time and I'm not totally sure what is going on... The next thing that needs to be done is to remove that val. 1 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheSwissAquarist Posted February 24, 2023 Share Posted February 24, 2023 Looking as good as ever! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Schuyler Posted February 28, 2023 Author Share Posted February 28, 2023 My wife jinxed it... She was just saying how the guppies hasn't had babies for a while. Well guess what, there are 14 little wigglers now. On a similar note, there is a molted shrimp shell and the males are going nuts. There must be a female out there with eggs. Less nice note, BBA has started to pop up again in a few places. Going to have to up my water changes again and do some cleanup. There is a short half hour on clear mornings where the sun is angles just right so that it shines into the tank. When that light hits the gourami, they really live up to their name. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Schuyler Posted March 5, 2023 Author Share Posted March 5, 2023 (edited) I think the guppy fry were eaten... They are nowhere to be seen. Maybe I'm actually underfeeding? Not directly related but I found this awesome killifish (Fundulopanchax gresensi Takwai) on this Aquabid sale and it's so tempting but I already have some other eggs in the mail (if USPS/customs doesn't lose them. It was against my better judgment because of the temperatures but they just look so cool. Here it is: Edited March 8, 2023 by Schuyler 1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Schuyler Posted March 16, 2023 Author Share Posted March 16, 2023 Today I pulled roughly half of the floating plants, the extra piece of wood, and the coconut hit with its moss and moved them to my killi tanks. It now feels much more open and has more space in the middle. There was a bunch of mulm that built up between the coconut hut and the surrounding rocks. Here's what it looked like before: Here's after: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheSwissAquarist Posted March 16, 2023 Share Posted March 16, 2023 Have the new killi eggs arrived yet? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Schuyler Posted March 16, 2023 Author Share Posted March 16, 2023 (edited) On 3/15/2023 at 11:13 PM, TheSwissAquarist said: Have the new killi eggs arrived yet? No... Apparently China Post Express' idea of "express deliver" is a month. We'll see how viable the eggs are when they arrive. But there are a ton of eggs beginning available on Aquabid in Europe now. There are about two dozen listings from France, Germany, and Bulgaria. If you're still thinking about ordering Edited March 16, 2023 by Schuyler Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheSwissAquarist Posted March 16, 2023 Share Posted March 16, 2023 On 3/16/2023 at 2:23 PM, Schuyler said: But there are a ton of eggs beginning available on Aquabid in Europe now. There are about two dozen listings from France, Germany, and Bulgaria. If you're still thinking about ordering I really should look harder! 😅 I actually have a decent set up which I could put them in... Thanks again for offering to send some all the way from the states! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Schuyler Posted March 18, 2023 Author Share Posted March 18, 2023 I heard the gourami croaking tonight! I was talking with my wife when we heard a weird noise. A weird creaking at night normally means a kid is awake so we got quite to see if there was crying. But nothing, so we started talking quite. Then there was the sound again. Like a "click-click brr-rr-rr" and it was a bit unnerving hearing it come from inside the house without knowing what it was. It's like an otherworldly frog croaking in the distance. It took three or four times before I realized it was coming from the aquarium. Then it was really cool instead of creepy. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Schuyler Posted March 20, 2023 Author Share Posted March 20, 2023 On 3/15/2023 at 11:13 PM, TheSwissAquarist said: Have the new killi eggs arrived yet? They have arrived! ... In New York ... They're still in transit bet at least they're in the US and the tracking is updating again. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
itsfoxtail Posted March 21, 2023 Share Posted March 21, 2023 On 3/19/2023 at 10:14 PM, Schuyler said: They have arrived! ... In New York ... They're still in transit bet at least they're in the US and the tracking is updating again. How long have they been in transit? Fingers crossed they're all still viable! Ordering fish/eggs from overseas always gives me anxiety. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Schuyler Posted March 21, 2023 Author Share Posted March 21, 2023 On 3/20/2023 at 7:29 PM, itsfoxtail said: How long have they been in transit? Fingers crossed they're all still viable! Ordering fish/eggs from overseas always gives me anxiety. It will be a month tomorrow. I'm really curious to see if there's any indication on the box about where all it went. From Feb 21 until Feb 27 there were daily updates on where it was. Then there was complete radio silence for three weeks. Turns out China Post Express only tracks your package inside their country so I have no idea where it went because then it finally showed up it was in New York on the other side of the country. By the time they get here this eggs will have practically circumnavigated the globe. The one positive thing is that they normally take three to four months to develop in optimal conditions. Fingers crossed that there's at least a few viable. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Schuyler Posted March 24, 2023 Author Share Posted March 24, 2023 Guess what finally arrived today! But guess who is out of town so can't look inside to see how it did... 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheSwissAquarist Posted March 24, 2023 Share Posted March 24, 2023 On 3/24/2023 at 5:45 AM, Schuyler said: But guess who is out of town so can't look inside to see how it did... Torture! 😜 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Schuyler Posted March 30, 2023 Author Share Posted March 30, 2023 Finally home and I've had a chance to look at the eggs. The bag says they were collected 2/2/23 so they're right at about 8 weeks. They're closely related to N Korthausae which had an incubation time of 10-16 weeks. I'm going to incubate them warm and hope they start developing soon. There are still intact egg and that's the part I was most concerned about. No eyes or anything in the eggs but they didn't sure off and melt away. Now we wait again... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Schuyler Posted April 3, 2023 Author Share Posted April 3, 2023 Fun story: We got back from vacation a few days ago and on the drive back we stopped by ACO. My son walked up to a tank, looked in, and said "There are swordtails in here!" And sure enough there were. The crazy thing is I've never talked to him about swordtails he must have just seen them in a video we watched at least a month ago. He also picked the killifish sticker without me prompting. Less fun stuff: The female Eggersi Killifish died while we were gone. I think it was probably her time or at least close to it. She has been showing signs of getting old. Now Finn is all alone and looking pretty old himself. In the main tank the had been a major outbreak of BBA. So tomorrow I'm going to go in there and do a big clean. Luckily it's all on rocks and hardscape so I can just pick it of then do a water change. I may need to adjust the lights a bit too. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheSwissAquarist Posted April 3, 2023 Share Posted April 3, 2023 Sorry for your loss😞. I’ve heard that MTS is contagious. Maybe your son has also become contaminated? 😂 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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