Welcome, Guest. Please login or register.
March 28, 2024, 01:35:13 PM

Login with username, password and session length

Search:     Advanced search
we're back, baby
*
Home Help Search Login Register
f13.net  |  f13.net General Forums  |  General Discussion  |  Topic: Fish Tanks 0 Members and 1 Guest are viewing this topic.
Pages: 1 ... 7 8 [9] 10 11 Go Down Print
Author Topic: Fish Tanks  (Read 166780 times)
Mandella
Terracotta Army
Posts: 1235


Reply #280 on: January 31, 2016, 09:44:11 AM



This site has a great list of small schooling fish: https://www.bobstropicalplants.com/shop/en/29-schooling-fish



So then you've had good experience ordering fish off the internet? I'm nervous about it, especially in the winter, but all the local pet stores are chains staffed by sometimes enthusiastic, but rarely expert, teens. The local pet stores suck, is what I'm saying.

That Finnex 24/7 is listing at Amazon for $117.66 right now. Remote, programmable light levels and colors, holy crap I want to play with this!

Thanks 01101010 and Arinon for the fish suggestions. I'm checking out every one. These are all some cool looking critters, although I did first misread that as "Runnynose Tetra."  ACK!
Mandella
Terracotta Army
Posts: 1235


Reply #281 on: February 01, 2016, 12:24:21 PM

Well crap. This can't be good.




Is that structural? It doesn't look easily repairable, so if that little strip was actually holding the top of the bowfront to the rest of the aquarium it looks like I'd better put a new aquarium on the list too.

That's actually not that bad, since I have all the pumps and heaters and such. Even makes it a little easier to move too. I'll have to exactly match the dimensions since it's on a pretty nice stand, but it's nothing too exotic I don't think...
01101010
Terracotta Army
Posts: 12002

You call it an accident. I call it justice.


Reply #282 on: February 01, 2016, 01:11:49 PM

Been there.... only had the center support snap on a 72g bowfront. You definitely NEED that. Over time, your seals will break from the pressure over time. If you are a bit handy, you can order that part (the entire plastic frame on the top of your tank). Take a razor and run it under the plastic along the glass to break as much silicon seal as possible and then carefully pry off the plastic frame. then just scrape off the rest of the silicon completely, then reseal with fresh silicon and press the new top frame back on.

The 72g bowfront we had we got for $20 because of that broken frame piece. We got the piece for $10 from the LFS owner that my X knew. Easy job for a $40 72g. Well worth it.

Does any one know where the love of God goes...When the waves turn the minutes to hours? -G. Lightfoot
Mandella
Terracotta Army
Posts: 1235


Reply #283 on: February 01, 2016, 03:44:09 PM

Arrg. Yeah, googling around shows me I either need to fix it or replace the top trim pronto. Don't see a good way to fix it that would look worth a damn, and the tank is 14/15 years old, bought from an out of town chain (PetSmart, if I remember correctly). I have no idea what make it is, or if PetSmart still carries this brand.

I guess I should consider myself lucky that I haven't already had a floor full of fish and water. I'll slap a temporary padded clamp over the top of the tank and see about running to the store tomorrow and maybe just maybe they'll be able to order me another top trim -- although with this place more than likely they'll just try to sell me a whole new tank.

As an addendum, the measurements I made before were across the end dimensions. The tank is actually 20" by 36" by 12" narrow/16" bow. So what is that? Without dragging out my calculus I'm guessing 46/47 gallons?
01101010
Terracotta Army
Posts: 12002

You call it an accident. I call it justice.


Reply #284 on: February 01, 2016, 03:53:04 PM

No idea... standard Marineland tanks are 46g (36" x 16" x 20"). Seems like yours.

Does any one know where the love of God goes...When the waves turn the minutes to hours? -G. Lightfoot
Raph
Developers
Posts: 1472

Title delayed while we "find the fun."


WWW
Reply #285 on: February 01, 2016, 04:36:34 PM



This site has a great list of small schooling fish: https://www.bobstropicalplants.com/shop/en/29-schooling-fish



So then you've had good experience ordering fish off the internet? I'm nervous about it, especially in the winter, but all the local pet stores are chains staffed by sometimes enthusiastic, but rarely expert, teens. The local pet stores suck, is what I'm saying.

Never ordered livestock online before this week. I just did so yesterday for the first time and will let you know how it goes. I just happened to be on that site looking for dry ferts.

Quote
That Finnex 24/7 is listing at Amazon for $117.66 right now. Remote, programmable light levels and colors, holy crap I want to play with this!

If you do the automatic 24/7 cycle, you can't program it. If you program it, you have to manage it yourself, or use an Arduino or something and hook up an IR controller to it.

I need the 48in not the 36in, Amazon has that for $152. I can find it locally for $123.
01101010
Terracotta Army
Posts: 12002

You call it an accident. I call it justice.


Reply #286 on: February 01, 2016, 06:32:14 PM

Arrg. Yeah, googling around shows me I either need to fix it or replace the top trim pronto. Don't see a good way to fix it that would look worth a damn, and the tank is 14/15 years old, bought from an out of town chain (PetSmart, if I remember correctly). I have no idea what make it is, or if PetSmart still carries this brand.

I guess I should consider myself lucky that I haven't already had a floor full of fish and water. I'll slap a temporary padded clamp over the top of the tank and see about running to the store tomorrow and maybe just maybe they'll be able to order me another top trim -- although with this place more than likely they'll just try to sell me a whole new tank.

As an addendum, the measurements I made before were across the end dimensions. The tank is actually 20" by 36" by 12" narrow/16" bow. So what is that? Without dragging out my calculus I'm guessing 46/47 gallons?

Oh and btw, this is THE site for ordering livestock: http://www.aquabid.com/

It's the EBay of fish, but without the cons. Never had a problem with them and my X never did either. She had a few here and there that arrived dead, but the seller was quick to replace or refund as long as you provided proof so definitely photograph or better, video capture your unpacking. Lots of times, sellers will include one or two more fish in a school 'just in case.' Just be wary of ordering in the dead of summer due to the packages sitting in trucks prior to delivery. Winter is less a problem given the use of heat packs - shipping costs a bit more, but still worth it in the long run for the fish you want.

Does any one know where the love of God goes...When the waves turn the minutes to hours? -G. Lightfoot
Raph
Developers
Posts: 1472

Title delayed while we "find the fun."


WWW
Reply #287 on: February 05, 2016, 11:08:34 PM

Added black sand on top of the gravel in the new shrimp tank, and also an airstone running 24/7, and the shrimp are much more active, Still hiding a lot. I think I lost two and have four left.

Hopefully get the 20 more by mail next week.

Plants seem to have mostly taken hold.
Ironwood
Terracotta Army
Posts: 28240


Reply #288 on: February 06, 2016, 06:08:03 AM

I can't keep shrimp.  At all.  If I tot up how much cash I've spent trying, it would just depress the fuck out of me.

"Mr Soft Owl has Seen Some Shit." - Sun Tzu
Raph
Developers
Posts: 1472

Title delayed while we "find the fun."


WWW
Reply #289 on: February 06, 2016, 10:57:23 AM

I currently suspect that my issue was water softness. We have a water softener on the house, and the water I was putting in the tank was coming out at 0 KH and 0 GH. So when the shrimp molted, they died because they couldn't rebuild their shell.

I have added calcium in the form of cuttlebone plus I added Seachem Equilibrium, and brought the GH and KH up to what the Internets recommend as target levels.

The shrimp definitely got more active after there was more oxygenation and the hardness issue was dealt with. But it is hard to tell if it was just because they were getting acclimated to the tank. They then got braver again when I added the sand... maybe because it changed the tank from light substrate to dark, maybe because they came from a tank with sand at some point? Who knows. Point is, I can actually see them occasionally now. Dark substrate is also supposed to encourage them to color up more.

The place I ordered the shrimp from also had green neons (half size of regular neons) but they lost the entire tank due to an accident right as I ordered. :( So I am getting more embers and some pygmy cories instead.
Ironwood
Terracotta Army
Posts: 28240


Reply #290 on: February 06, 2016, 04:54:59 PM

Interesting.  Scottish water is some of the softest shit around.

I may think on that.

"Mr Soft Owl has Seen Some Shit." - Sun Tzu
Raph
Developers
Posts: 1472

Title delayed while we "find the fun."


WWW
Reply #291 on: February 12, 2016, 11:45:38 PM

I had a successful shrimp molt today, so it may be that my issue there is solved, for now.

The shrimp and fish arrived fine. But in the two days since, I have lost one of the four pygmy corys. Boy, they're tiny, too.
Mandella
Terracotta Army
Posts: 1235


Reply #292 on: February 13, 2016, 08:41:48 AM

I've been playing the "we do our orders on Sunday, we'll order the top frame for you then -- oh that supplier doesn't have it, we'll order from our other supplier Thursday!" game.

Right. It's Saturday no word. Guess I drive the hour to an actual half-way professional fish shop next week and get this taken care of.

Or start seriously checking Ebay and Craigslist.

Either way, it's been long enough now I'm going to have to start a new cycle with the tank to be on the safe side.
Raph
Developers
Posts: 1472

Title delayed while we "find the fun."


WWW
Reply #293 on: February 26, 2016, 03:55:16 PM

So far, three of the 24 shrimp I got have died. But I have seen many molts. I added two more pygmy corys in that tank, and also a couple of nerite snails. The 16g looks dramatically different already, lots of plant growth.

The big tank: I ripped out a pile of the willow hygro, and sold the clown loaches and grown SAEs to the LFS. I got $70 for them -- each of those loaches probably will sell for $25-50 apiece. To backfill, I got a small shoal of six dwarf loaches -- sidthimunki -- which are quite fun and four tiny SAEs. Continuing the migration towards mostly smaller fish.
Raph
Developers
Posts: 1472

Title delayed while we "find the fun."


WWW
Reply #294 on: February 28, 2016, 12:37:36 PM

I updated the tank jounral on my site. Pics of the small tank in chronological order:

January setup:


Early Feb:


Mid Feb:


Now:

Mandella
Terracotta Army
Posts: 1235


Reply #295 on: February 28, 2016, 02:14:38 PM

You could feed a Manatee with all the foliage from that tank.

(And I mean that in a good way   Oh ho ho ho. Reallllly?)

I finally tracked down an actual owner/operator of a non-chain fish store and, wow, what a different experience. Good news is that he has replaced or repaired the top frame on many an aquarium (even texted his supplier while we were talking to get quotes on parts), bad news is that, as the aquarium is over thirteen years old it might just be better to replace the whole unit (that tank is only around $175.00 bare bones -- and the replacement frame would end up being $40.00 to $50.00).

On the other hand, he brought up something I hadn't thought of -- the tank I have can be converted to a terrarium pretty easy and sold for around $40.00 retail, or $20.00 to him. Or I could just get some lizards and keep it. So there is that.

Unfortunately all this futzing around has lost the best window of opportunity this year -- spring always brings a lot of other projects demanding my time. I was hoping to have it set up and going by now and could go into maintenance mode for a few months.
Raph
Developers
Posts: 1472

Title delayed while we "find the fun."


WWW
Reply #296 on: February 28, 2016, 03:46:25 PM

Here's the 80g... way more foliage in this one. :)

Ironwood
Terracotta Army
Posts: 28240


Reply #297 on: February 29, 2016, 04:16:52 AM

That's a pretty looking tank.

"Mr Soft Owl has Seen Some Shit." - Sun Tzu
Count Nerfedalot
Terracotta Army
Posts: 1041


Reply #298 on: February 29, 2016, 08:59:25 PM

I see algae growing on the slate in pic 4 of the small tank. How do you keep it under control and not kill the fish?

Yes, I know I'm paranoid, but am I paranoid enough?
Ironwood
Terracotta Army
Posts: 28240


Reply #299 on: March 01, 2016, 01:04:22 AM

Yeah, I'd like to know the answer to that too...

"Mr Soft Owl has Seen Some Shit." - Sun Tzu
Raph
Developers
Posts: 1472

Title delayed while we "find the fun."


WWW
Reply #300 on: March 01, 2016, 11:32:21 AM

The algae on the slate is eaten by both the otocinclus and the nerite snails. After the snails go through it, they leave little spiral patterns drawn in it. :)

That's not the algae I am worried about. I am more worried about the green spot that you can barely see on the leaves of the higher-up plants, and the hair algae that is growing on the rock in the center behind the slate and up on the algae scrubbing magnet. Nothing I have eats that -- you would need killifish or SAEs, and both of those aren't shrimp safe. I could try Amano shrimp... they are usually safe with red cherries.

I do run a UV sterilizer in the tank, but it's been off for a little while. There's basically a tad too much light, the tank gets indirect sunshine from some windows and the weather lately has been neautiful so the shades aren't pulled. If I stay good about fertilizing and adding liquid CO2 on a regular basis, the plants should outcompete everything, in theory.
Raph
Developers
Posts: 1472

Title delayed while we "find the fun."


WWW
Reply #301 on: March 08, 2016, 09:17:07 PM

More shrimp have continued to die, or just vanish from time to time. But I think I figured out my problem. It's TDS -- total dissolved solids. Water comes out of the tap very soft -- zero GH and KH -- but adding minerals to get where it needs to be for shrimp raises the TDS too high. Fish don't care very much, but shrimp do.

That means I need to use RO/DI water in the shrimp tank. Which is rather annoying.
01101010
Terracotta Army
Posts: 12002

You call it an accident. I call it justice.


Reply #302 on: March 09, 2016, 04:14:51 AM

More shrimp have continued to die, or just vanish from time to time. But I think I figured out my problem. It's TDS -- total dissolved solids. Water comes out of the tap very soft -- zero GH and KH -- but adding minerals to get where it needs to be for shrimp raises the TDS too high. Fish don't care very much, but shrimp do.

That means I need to use RO/DI water in the shrimp tank. Which is rather annoying.

Yeah, that type of system is pretty much when you know you are hardcore in the hobby.

Does any one know where the love of God goes...When the waves turn the minutes to hours? -G. Lightfoot
Ironwood
Terracotta Army
Posts: 28240


Reply #303 on: March 09, 2016, 04:24:11 AM

I'm lost.  Too many acronyms, too many dead shrimp.

I mean, seriously.  In Elena's tank I've seen fields, endless fields, where shrimp are grown for 5 quid a time only to die.  It's getting to be pretty much like bread and circuses in that tank.

"Mr Soft Owl has Seen Some Shit." - Sun Tzu
brellium
Terracotta Army
Posts: 1296


Reply #304 on: March 09, 2016, 09:12:19 PM

I kinda want to have fish, but I think I'd just go the route of either catfish of a Jack Dempsey, the catfish are frequently nigh impossible to kill.

When my I was a kid my mother had one of those big 80-120 gallon tanks, populated it full of fish and a singular Jack Dempsey. A week or two later it a was tank populated  by a singular Jack Dempsey. She repopulated the tank and a week or two later it was populated by a singular Jack Dempsey.

She was not impressed and put in the tank about a dozen fish that were known to be carnivorous. A week later it populated by a singular Jack Dempsey. A day or two later I had a 10 gallon in my room populated by a singular Jack Dempsey.
« Last Edit: March 09, 2016, 09:17:36 PM by brellium »

‎"One must see in every human being only that which is worthy of praise. When this is done, one can be a friend to the whole human race. If, however, we look at people from the standpoint of their faults, then being a friend to them is a formidable task."
—‘Abdu’l-Bahá
Raph
Developers
Posts: 1472

Title delayed while we "find the fun."


WWW
Reply #305 on: March 26, 2016, 04:53:08 PM

While I was at GDC, not only did all the shrimp die but my wife didn't keep up the fertilizer routine so now the small tank has hair algae. Trying to pull it back from the brink now...
01101010
Terracotta Army
Posts: 12002

You call it an accident. I call it justice.


Reply #306 on: March 26, 2016, 07:11:34 PM

While I was at GDC, not only did all the shrimp die but my wife didn't keep up the fertilizer routine so now the small tank has hair algae. Trying to pull it back from the brink now...

Precisely why I go with the low-no maintenance plants and keep the lights off most of the day.  awesome, for real

Does any one know where the love of God goes...When the waves turn the minutes to hours? -G. Lightfoot
Raph
Developers
Posts: 1472

Title delayed while we "find the fun."


WWW
Reply #307 on: March 27, 2016, 08:29:32 PM

01101010
Terracotta Army
Posts: 12002

You call it an accident. I call it justice.


Reply #308 on: September 07, 2016, 02:28:36 PM



36g bowfront.

Soon....


edit: holy pic size batman... sry

Does any one know where the love of God goes...When the waves turn the minutes to hours? -G. Lightfoot
Viin
Terracotta Army
Posts: 6159


Reply #309 on: September 07, 2016, 02:53:27 PM

Nice! I wish I had a good spot for a bigger tank like that.

- Viin
01101010
Terracotta Army
Posts: 12002

You call it an accident. I call it justice.


Reply #310 on: September 09, 2016, 11:02:17 AM

Going to my LFS tonight for some driftwood, maybe some plants, and see what equipment they have. I need a longer intake tube so hopefully they'll have something compatible. Home Depot failed me in that regard. Should be cycled in a week or so since I am seeding with my 5 gal established tank. Dosed ammonia at 4ppm Tuesday and started seeding yesterday so hope I start seeing that come down and the nitrites rise by Sunday. We'll see though. More pics when I start making some progress.

Does any one know where the love of God goes...When the waves turn the minutes to hours? -G. Lightfoot
01101010
Terracotta Army
Posts: 12002

You call it an accident. I call it justice.


Reply #311 on: September 10, 2016, 01:21:28 PM



Was going to go with a bigger driftwood piece until I noticed the prices... I need to get into the driftwood business. But this will do for now. Hoping to get some stones from the local streams. Then once cycled... probably some rummynose or harlequin rasboras.

Does any one know where the love of God goes...When the waves turn the minutes to hours? -G. Lightfoot
Raph
Developers
Posts: 1472

Title delayed while we "find the fun."


WWW
Reply #312 on: September 11, 2016, 02:57:25 PM

What plant is that on the right?
01101010
Terracotta Army
Posts: 12002

You call it an accident. I call it justice.


Reply #313 on: September 11, 2016, 03:24:26 PM

http://tropica.com/en/plants/plantdetails/Rotalarotundifolia(033)/4447

Came as a single clump from my LFS, but I separated it a bit to space it out some.

Does any one know where the love of God goes...When the waves turn the minutes to hours? -G. Lightfoot
01101010
Terracotta Army
Posts: 12002

You call it an accident. I call it justice.


Reply #314 on: September 14, 2016, 05:46:24 PM

Tank is now in the last stage of cycling. Water change tomorrow and then maintenance doses of ammonia till I find some fish I want. And still need some rocks...

Does any one know where the love of God goes...When the waves turn the minutes to hours? -G. Lightfoot
Pages: 1 ... 7 8 [9] 10 11 Go Up Print 
f13.net  |  f13.net General Forums  |  General Discussion  |  Topic: Fish Tanks  
Jump to:  

Powered by SMF 1.1.10 | SMF © 2006-2009, Simple Machines LLC