Letting the fish nerd out!

[AndrewK]

My tank

Hello everyone! I have been a low level fish keeper for 10+ years but I am focused on being a better fish keeper. I currently have a 75 gallon tank with a new group of fish (except one).

My current set up includes:

Marineland 350 and Cascade 1000 with a foam filter on the intake.

Angelfish (x2)

Pearl Gourami (x2)

Fancy guppy (x2...which is now 5)

Neon tetra (x8)

Red eye tetra (x8)

Pictus catfish 

Molly (bought 4 but one has survived)

Common pleco (had it for 6+ years and is 12-15" long)

Senegal bichir

Live plants/moss balls (I am just getting started with live plants and would like to get rid of the fake plants.)

 

I bought the guppies knowing the fry would be eaten by the angelfish. I bought the neons before the Senegal and know that they will/could also end up as food. 

 

My "to do" list:

The background worked great when I had Tiger Oscars but really takes away from the fish I have now.

Getting a better light.

More plants.

Getting a 2nd tank to keep my larger fish, leaving the 75 as a nano tank.

 

I've been learning a lot from Cory's live Q&As, which I am incredibly grateful for, and look forward to learning and hopefully contributing to the community here. I don't have any kid photos of the tank so I uploaded the most recent video of it and linked it above.

 

[Lemon]

2 minutes ago, AndrewK said:

My tank

Hello everyone! I have been a low level fish keeper for 10+ years but I am focused on being a better fish keeper. I currently have a 75 gallon tank with a new group of fish (except one).

Welcome 🙂 What do you mean low level fish keeper?

[AndrewK]

I had a 55 gallon for years that I managed to keep fish alive (angelfish, tetras, had a clown loach). I considered myself a low level fish keeper because I was able to keep fish alive but maybe not thrive. Now I want to have my fish thrive.

 

2 things brought this on, the first was my last pair of angelfish were my first breeding fish ever. Granted the pleco would eat all the eggs everytime it was still cool to have. Once that group of fish got old I decided to get 2 tiger oscars and the 75 gallon. It wasn't a great experience, I quickly realized I had a lot to learn and want thriving fish. The tigers lasted awhile but they were constantly sick and I don't want that experience again. To me that means I need to up my fish keeping game.

[H.K.Luterman]

Adorable little baby senegal bichir. I currently have two in a 75; one is a big 8 inch male and the other is a little 5 inch albino.

[AndrewK]

Everyone in our family is a huge fan of the dinosaur! It has doubled in size since getting him a couple weeks ago. Is there anything specific to the bichir that I should know about? Or any tips or advise? Thank you!

[H.K.Luterman]

28 minutes ago, AndrewK said:

Everyone in our family is a huge fan of the dinosaur! It has doubled in size since getting him a couple weeks ago. Is there anything specific to the bichir that I should know about? Or any tips or advise? Thank you!

It should be fine in that tank for life, it's a great size for a senegal. I'd be wary of that pleco, some develop a taste for bichir slime coat and can kill them. If you ever see your bichir covered in cloudy, raggedy looking slime, it means the pleco is feeding on him and they must be separated. I'm not saying it WILL happen, but just something to be mindful of. And any fish that is smaller than 3 inches long will be fair game for the bichir, but I think you know that already. 

When it's over 5 inches long, you can tell what sex it is using this handy picture:

Feed meaty foods. Mine love frozen tilapia, brine shrimp, blood worms, and sinking carnivore pellets. 

Here's some footage of my two:

 

I added that soap caddy on the left side of the tank for the big male to sit on. He's too heavy now to sit in the plants to rest. Not something hugely necessary but something to consider.

 

[Lemon]

On 4/5/2021 at 12:58 PM, AndrewK said:

I had a 55 gallon for years that I managed to keep fish alive (angelfish, tetras, had a clown loach). I considered myself a low level fish keeper because I was able to keep fish alive but maybe not thrive. Now I want to have my fish thrive.

okay I'm probably a low level fishkeeper too. 

[CorydorasEthan]

On 4/5/2021 at 12:40 PM, AndrewK said:

My tank

Hello everyone! I have been a low level fish keeper for 10+ years but I am focused on being a better fish keeper. I currently have a 75 gallon tank with a new group of fish (except one).

My current set up includes:

Marineland 350 and Cascade 1000 with a foam filter on the intake.

Angelfish (x2)

Pearl Gourami (x2)

Fancy guppy (x2...which is now 5)

Neon tetra (x8)

Red eye tetra (x8)

Pictus catfish 

Molly (bought 4 but one has survived)

Common pleco (had it for 6+ years and is 12-15" long)

Senegal bichir

Live plants/moss balls (I am just getting started with live plants and would like to get rid of the fake plants.)

 

I bought the guppies knowing the fry would be eaten by the angelfish. I bought the neons before the Senegal and know that they will/could also end up as food. 

 

My "to do" list:

The background worked great when I had Tiger Oscars but really takes away from the fish I have now.

Getting a better light.

More plants.

Getting a 2nd tank to keep my larger fish, leaving the 75 as a nano tank.

 

I've been learning a lot from Cory's live Q&As, which I am incredibly grateful for, and look forward to learning and hopefully contributing to the community here. I don't have any kid photos of the tank so I uploaded the most recent video of it and linked it above.

 

Welcome to the forum! That tank sounds like a fun one!

[AndrewK]

23 hours ago, H.K.Luterman said:

It should be fine in that tank for life, it's a great size for a senegal. I'd be wary of that pleco, some develop a taste for bichir slime coat and can kill them. If you ever see your bichir covered in cloudy, raggedy looking slime, it means the pleco is feeding on him and they must be separated. I'm not saying it WILL happen, but just something to be mindful of. And any fish that is smaller than 3 inches long will be fair game for the bichir, but I think you know that already. 

When it's over 5 inches long, you can tell what sex it is using this handy picture:

Feed meaty foods. Mine love frozen tilapia, brine shrimp, blood worms, and sinking carnivore pellets. 

Here's some footage of my two:

 

I added that soap caddy on the left side of the tank for the big male to sit on. He's too heavy now to sit in the plants to rest. Not something hugely necessary but something to consider.

 

Thank you for the info and feeding tips and your tank looks awesome!

I've read about the possible issue between the bichir and pleco and if that does happen, it will be my excuse to get a 2nd tank.

The soap caddy idea is pretty clever. So far my bichir spends most of his day hiding in a barrel or behind the fake plants. He used to be inside the boat but I don't think he fits anymore. I wonder if I put a soap caddy mine if mine would sit on it.

[AndrewK]

14 minutes ago, CorydorasEthan said:

Welcome to the forum! That tank sounds like a fun one!

Thank you. It's certainly my favorite tank mix so far. I love watching it all the time, my kids and wife love watching feeding time.

[H.K.Luterman]

11 minutes ago, AndrewK said:

Thank you for the info and feeding tips and your tank looks awesome!

I've read about the possible issue between the bichir and pleco and if that does happen, it will be my excuse to get a 2nd tank.

The soap caddy idea is pretty clever. So far my bichir spends most of his day hiding in a barrel or behind the fake plants. He used to be inside the boat but I don't think he fits anymore. I wonder if I put a soap caddy mine if mine would sit on it.

They can be pretty skittish and hide a lot when they're little. As he gets bigger he will be out and about much more. The only thing about the soap caddy is that it has little holes in it; just make sure your little guy is big enough that he can't get stuck in it when he goes up to get air. Probably wouldn't happen but I tend to worry about everything.