Discus/American Cichlid Tanks Journal

[Shadow]

First fish arrived, unboxed(all alive and appear to be healthy) and acclimated. Added to the tank and they are hiding. GBRs are coloring up nicely but the Rummynose are very light and all hanging together bar one lone soldier chilling under the main wood focal point. Video once they get use to their new home and color up. 

[Shadow]

 

[Shadow]

Some updates for the friendos following along...

Tank #1 aka 55 gal was going well, looked fully cycled after seeding, using Fritz 7 and ghost feeding for 10 days after set up. Got readings I wanted with parameters, so added first livestock consisting of 4 German Blue Rams & 10 Rummynose Tetras. Got the livestock from Jack Wattley so I could see how their shipping went before going with them for my Discus in the future. All came in healthy and well, but during the week after additions I had a weird nitrite spike to 1.0, no ammonia or nitrate spike, but I believe it affected one of the GBRs adversely and it succumbed quickly, but suddenly, yesterday morning. Luckily the rest of the livestock look to be happy, fat and sassy...including a quick YT short of the tank this morning. Parameters from last night and today all normal, looks cycled, no nitrite present. Still staying with daily water changes for the next few days just to be safe. Also, added a bit more oxygen to the water to pump it up more in case of any weird spikes again. 

Tank #2 is a wait and see atm. I am still torn on what I want to put in it. Originally I thought Discus again, but I have wanted a riverscape with Rainbowfish for a long time now. So might do angels and rainbows as I want a new home for my black angelfish, Black Phillip or Blackie as I call him. He has gotten sooooooo big! Easily my favorite fish and I want to move him back into a large tank as he started in the main one in the living room before being bullied nearly to death by the Blues in there. He deserves to be the feature guy in the 75 gal and get plenty of room to move about as he gets big n beautiful. 

Anyways, there's some updates and here's that video!! Happy Sunday!!! 

 

[Shadow]

Will drop some new pics and video later on, but tank is going well. Had a stinker breakout of blackbeard algae and had to scrap some plants that, due to my not researching, completely died and were taken over. I since have restocked the tank with some new plants that handle higher temps better. Tank is fine and cycled, besides the one GBR casualty for some unknown reason, everyone else is good. Even have a few surprise bladder snails from new plants I am sure. The 3 GBRs are getting on well and barely argue anymore. I call them the Three Amigos...Ned Nederlander, Lucky Day and Dusty Bottoms. Prob the most personable fish next to my Black Angel, Philip, that I keep. @Lennie 3 red whiptails arrive this week from @DansFish. Also got a small school of Kerri Blue Emperor Tetras coming with some Amano Shrimp. Will be last stock until I decide on when Discus will be added. My largest tank to date, going into the fish room, is on hold until I get my water change system installed. Have ideas jotted down and want it all installed so I can handle water changes a little easier on weekends. Kinda doing my shoulder in lifting buckets. Anyways, hope all reading are well and more to come here!

[Shadow]

Update on Tank #1 via video...added Kerri Blue Emperors, Red Whiptails and Amanos...cannot see the Whiptails and Amanos in video, but they are all alive & well. Well at least the Whiptails are... only seen about 3 of the Amanos since putting them in. Both blend perfectly with the coarse sand bottom. 😅

@Lennie @nabokovfan87 @Chick-In-Of-TheSea @Guppysnail @Fish Folk 😉 

 

 

[Chick-In-Of-TheSea]

Love the scape!

[Shadow]

More livestock added yesterday...all the rest are doing great. With new plant additions, no dead loss really and no hair algae. I think cutting the lights earlier just after dark has helped greatly along with the addition of the amano shrimp and whiptails. BTW @Lennie, the whiptails are doing great! All 3 acclimated amazingly to the tank... @DansFish def has some nice ones. FYI. 

Newest livestock(via The Wet Spot & DansFish): Colletti Tetras & a small school of 7 Sterbai Corys just for @nabokovfan87...they are the life of the tank already! 🤣

[Lennie]

On 10/12/2023 at 5:33 AM, Shadow said:

BTW @Lennie, the whiptails are doing great! All 3 acclimated amazingly to the tank...

Im glad to hear that. They are amazing fish

 

I managed to breed mine in a species only tank with perfecting parameters and environment. However keeping fry alive was super hard. I hope I can nail that part one day. Would be great to have baby whiptails swimming around 🥰🥰

 

 

[Shadow]

So I saw a really cool idea for a riverbank tank and think this is the direction I want to go in. I want the riverbank to overhang given the effect of a tree's roots over the riverbank. 

Livestocking seems a hodge podge atm...I want it to house a lot of rare tetras & pencilfish for schooling. I will end up breaking down my kitty only tank and then adding my plecos into this tank as they will need a larger tank to grow out than the 20 long they are in currently.(I will start to breakdown my original 3 tanks in the fish room and shrimp tanks to begin a big project....more to come) My favorite fish, my surviving black angelfish Phillip aka Blackie, he have his final home. I plan to add him some company in via Imperial Tropicals. They have some incredible Red Koi Angels they are selling soon and I am on the waitlist for. I am talking mostly red and orange with a tad black Red Koi...very vibrant and some of the prettiest I have seen hands down. I am still thinking of adding a few larger schooling fish like Congo Tetras or Rainbows to the mix as well as I plan on it being a minimum 75 gal tank but likely closer to 100.

 

My plan is to begin the remodel of the fish room to make it more energy efficient and including a water change system to make my life easier. Anyways, more on that soon. Will prob make a journal for it as well cuz I am clueless and learning everything I am trying, but with some more research, I think I can do it proper. 

Edited October 18, 2023 by Shadow

[TheSwissAquarist]

@Schuyler has been doing a riverbank setup; maybe you could scale it up? 

[Schuyler]

On 10/18/2023 at 12:12 AM, TheSwissAquarist said:

@Schuyler has been doing a riverbank setup; maybe you could scale it up?

I'm definitely interested in seeing how you approach it. I'm not sure if my 3D printed version would be realistically viable at that scale but maybe the egg crate and foam could work.

I have a bunch of reference videos in my Cameroon Biotope journal if you want some ideas

[Shadow]

On 10/18/2023 at 9:11 AM, Schuyler said:

I'm definitely interested in seeing how you approach it. I'm not sure if my 3D printed version would be realistically viable at that scale but maybe the egg crate and foam could work.

I have a bunch of reference videos in my Cameroon Biotope journal if you want some ideas

Yea was thinking of using crates of some sort along with aquarium safe foam. 

[Shadow]

Been waiting on these to drop from Imperial Tropicals as they said it would be around Halloween AND I GOT A PAIR!!! Soooo stoked!! Red Devil Koi Angels! 🙂

 

[Shadow]

And of course, as usual, UPS ignores Live Fish on box and keeps them on the truck all day....by 7pm per usual. 🙄

[Guppysnail]

On 11/2/2023 at 3:07 PM, Shadow said:

And of course, as usual, UPS ignores Live Fish on box and keeps them on the truck all day....by 7pm per usual. 🙄

Ups has an option for early am delivery…fee associated. I always use that feature since my ups does not come until after 7pm. 

[Shadow]

On 11/2/2023 at 2:20 PM, Guppysnail said:

Ups has an option for early am delivery…fee associated. I always use that feature since my ups does not come until after 7pm. 

I never see it on that option, just to drop at a UPS Store. I never do that as last time I did they had stacked a bunch of boxes on top and didn't read the labels. 

[Shadow]

In other news...here's a rough blue print of my new office/fish room or offish so to speak. 

Left side under TV will be a 8 ft long x 3 ft high hand built rack to house multiple tanks. 
Bottom will be largest close to 12 ft long x 3 ft high which will house my largest tank to come early next year, but plan on it being 100+ gal. 
Beside it in the corner, that cylinder will be my water collection bladder that will house water for my tanks to make water changes easier. 
Along the right wall will be my already purchased racking system that I bought from Sams and was going to originally house multiple tanks including a big one which at that time would be around 75 gal. Decided to turn this rack into a breeding project rack as I want to delve more into that side of things, also include some quarantine tanks just in case. Will also move all my shrimp tanks there. This will begin this weekend as I start this massive project while I recover from the first part of my oral surgery. 

Lastly, against the wall between the closet and door way my newest purchase, a Waterbox Eden 40, will be arriving tomorrow and will be scaped in the upcoming weeks to be Black Philip aka Blackie, my black Angel aka my favorite fish's new home. I plan to do something cool for him and all my kitties will go in there from the all kitty tank. I also plan on adding in some higher end tetras which will eventually go to breeding projects, as I want to start there. 

Moving my desk off the wall under the tv to be able to see all my tanks and not have my back to most of them. I want to enjoy them and at the same time not sit so close to my tv. Will take some cord management and some work, also learning to do carpentry proper, but I am up for the task and want to do this right. Also adding a lot of plants to the room, not just to the tank. 🙂 Will update here as I go along. 

[TheSwissAquarist]

Can’t wait to see it come together! 

[Shadow]

On 11/3/2023 at 2:11 AM, TheSwissAquarist said:

Can’t wait to see it come together! 

First section set up...got pump from AOC, the awesome piston powered one, today. Have all the airline, sponge filters, PVC pipe, etc to build the air system this weekend. Got my first fancy tank for the room put together, Waterbox Eden 40. It seems a really well built cabinet and the tank is super fancy. Will be getting another Oase Biomaster, as I really prefer them to Fluval after having both. It will be the future home of Black Philip my rescue angel fish from the big living room tank that survived the bullying of the Philippine Blues. Will scape and set that tank up this weekend I hope before beginning work on the air system. Once all that is going, I can work on scaping specific tanks for breeding and keeping others prepared for clean bottom or quarantine tanks. Here are a couple snapshots! 

[TheSwissAquarist]

What are you planning to breed? I can see that becoming a good Rainbowfish or cichlid rack…

[Shadow]

On 11/8/2023 at 12:52 AM, TheSwissAquarist said:

What are you planning to breed? I can see that becoming a good Rainbowfish or cichlid rack…

Not sure yet, a couple will be clean bottom and have some spawning media for tetras but to start I will just have a planted tank for them there until they get to maturity as most likely they will only be a few months old when I get them and from what I understand they need to be at around 7 months at the earliest to start spawning. On the far wall that hasn't been created yet, I am planning on multiple tanks just to house Apistos and African Cichlids. Some tanks on these racks I think I will house some of the cichlids I plan on moving to larger tanks. Just not sure Africans can really handle the sponge filter only setup. But to start will get some Apistos and rarer Tetras to begin breeding projects. 

[Shadow]

Just installed the PVC for airlines, used fittings that @Dean’s Fishroom suggested in his fry system set up. Super easy to use and added plumbers tape to the threaded side to ensure no air will escape the holes. Bought wrong hose for connection end, so need to go and buy new adapter/hose then should be able to hook up and test.