Hey Folks

[CascadianGrown]

Hey there!

Thanks to Cory and the Aquarium Co-op team for making this space available for us all to connect!

Washington native here.

I kept cichlids several years ago; I had a couple of Chocolate Cichlids (Hypselecara temporalis) and some Electric Blue Jack Dempseys (Rocio octofasciata) before life took a change and I found myself in a new house and attending college. I, just recently, finished my Bachelors program and I am looking to get back into the hobby - I would much rather stare at a fish tank than a television these days; I miss it!

Just to bare my soul a little... Aside from finishing college, I recently lost my best friend to the police overreacting and then a few weeks later had to put my 10-year old puppy down. Needless to say, I had a hard time coping and the shock of it all left me bedridden due to some previous neck and back injuries I sustained some years ago. I found myself needing an outlet, something to keep me sane, and the idea of keeping fish again seemed to be the only thing that settled my mind down. Luckily, I stumbled across the Aquarium Co-op Youtube page and I've probably spent the last three weeks or more, just letting the videos play and hitting the like button when I was awake - yeah, it kept playing while I was sleeping too! Cory's videos have quite literally helped me put myself back together by keeping my mind off my troubles and allowing me to digest things as I can handle it. I haven't managed to catch a Live yet, I just realized today that my notifications weren't set correctly, but it's something I certainly hope to do in the near future.

I am very appreciative of the content.

On a lighter note, I am planning on starting with a 40-gallon breeder tank - hoping to score one on the next $1/gallon sale, and set it up on what used to be my study table, next to my computer. Thanks to all of Cory's honest feedback - as well as that of some related channels, KGTropicals comes to mind but is definitely not the only one - I've kind of worked out the details about the system but I cant seem to make up my mind on the fish to start with.

I want to mount a HOB Aquatop 110 on the end of a 40-gallon breeder, with a Sponge filter on each side - and those nifty pvc corners pieces on top to direct the flow and essentially make a cheap river tank. I'm handy enough to build a wooden hood that I can paint the inside with Dryloc so that it doesnt rot away, and then fix a Finnex Stingray 24" LED in the middle of. This will give me roughly 6" on each end that are unlit, and I'm excited to see how the light casts through the tank on those edges. I'm still debating on what to use for a close-fitting top to the aquarium, to limit evaporation and any splashing from hitting the LED light. An Aquatop AP-100, I'm hoping, pushes enough air to keep the two sponge filters busy. And I'm sure I'll end up with a Ziss Brine Shrimp Hatchery and those nifty USB Nano Air pumps, because I know that I want to get into breeding... something(s).

I love the Hypselecara temporalis that I used to keep, but they'll have to wait until I can upgrade myself to an actual fish room. The only fish I've come across, that I desperately wanted to keep the first time around, are the L128 (Hemiancistrus sp.) which means I would need some of those pleco caves. And they seem to have them at The Wet Spot, so that's cool. I haven't quite worked out if there is anything else I could keep in the same tank, that I could also breed down the line, but I'm sure there are multiple choices that might cope in my "river tank" concept.

I thought to maybe bypass the L128's for right now, because I'm also interested in the Cherry Shrimp, and Rummynose tetras. If I could find Rainbow Shiners somewhere - those fish are beautiful! - I would gladly commit to however many I could stuff in the 40-gallon breeder, but they seem to be hard to find. And then I might need some Cory's or some Oto's to help manage the algae...?

Also, the degree that I just graduated with was in Herbalism, and this program involved a lot of plant cultivation - so I am highly interested in involving myself with aquatic plants and their cultivation, I want to give it an honest shot. I don't know if it will be in the 40-breeder or a second tank to come shortly, but it's definitely something that I want to get into. If I go the route of the shrimp/rummynose/etc, the plants would work wonderfully but I'm not sure how much the L128's would terrorize some plants.

That's about as far as I've made it so far; thanks again for providing the space to blab all my thoughts onto virtual paper and I hope to make some new friends here soon!

Blessings,
Cas

Edited August 25, 2020 by CascadianGrown

[CascadianGrown]

I couldn't wait - picked up the 40-gallon breeder tank already

Here soon, I'll be hitting up Aquarium Co-op for a bunch of the rest of it
Might just make the trip north, so I don't have to wait and they don't have to lose the money on shipping

So excited!

If anyone knows where to get some Rainbow Shiners or Jae Barbs, I would love a connection!

Hope everyone is doing good today!
Cas

Edited August 25, 2020 by CascadianGrown