25G - South America Community Tank

[bizfromqc]

Well let me burst your bubble right away, there's no Amazon biotope.... YET!  

I just got started setting up my new 25G tank (the 3rd in 6 weeks as peekay rightfully noticed). The plan is to eventually set it up as an amazon biotope or the closest I can get to it anyways.

This is an old tank that I entirely re-silliconed, a major PITA as I'm sure daworldisblack can attest as well  

I ended up buying a new stand (Perfecto Majesty) because my wife and I didn't feel too confident about the one we had (came with the tank). The Perfecto is entirely made of pine and is solid as a rock. It's also got plenty of room to hide all the gizmos under the tank.

So here's a bit more about the tank:

- Perfecto Majesty black stand (30" x 12")
- 25G Hagen tank (30" long x 12" wide x 16" high)
- Fluval 205 external canister filter
- Marineland 24-36" DoubleBright LED with 8 whites and 4 blue (moonlights)
- Marineland 100W submersible heater
- 50 lbs of white pool filter sand (some sort of white silica that I cant recall the name)

I also decided to skip the aquarium background plastic and/or vinyl and paint it directly. I am really glad I made this decision as it looks AWESOME. No bubbles, no unsticking, nothing. Just a nice black background. I used two coats of the Krylon Fusion brand of paint (spray), I highly recommend it to everyone if you plan on sticking to one background color (and apply it outside if you can because the stuff smells).

That's it for now (for this tank at least). Some picture so you guys can go oooooh and ahhhh (the sound I make when i see LED reflections in water LOL)

[DaWolfe]

Nice, can not wait to see the progress.  The background is sweet.  I would love to do it to my tank but it would be very hard work, unless I can paint with a roller instead of a spray...

BTW I am not returning the other 50lbs bag of sand for you... 

You now have 55 gallons, your're getting there...

Dan

[bizfromqc]

They do make Krylon Fusion in a roll-on paint but I haven't seen it offered here locally just the spray.
I'll keep the extra 50lbs of sand for another eventual project

[touchofsky]

It looks great!  I just love the look of the LED's on the water and once you get the filters running, the water movement will make a lovely shimmer.

With the case of tankitis you have, you probably won't have that big bag of pfs left over for long 

[bizfromqc]

It looks great!  I just love the look of the LED's on the water and once you get the filters running, the water movement will make a lovely shimmer.

With the case of tankitis you have, you probably won't have that big bag of pfs left over for long 

The shimmer is, for me at least, the best part about having LED lights, it's really cool. I also love having an open top and a very thin sleek looking fixture on top.

I started the filter last night but the water is still a bit cloudy, should clear up in a couple of days. The white pfs is neat looking for a little sprinkle of black particles in there, sharp! 18$ with taxes for 2 bags of 50lbs

That's it (for now at least) for new tanks, I don't want to turn that MTS (Multi-tank Syndrome) into an AWS (Angry Wife Syndrome) 

[Monte]

Where did you buy that pool filter sand. Nice colour.

[bizfromqc]

Where did you buy that pool filter sand. Nice colour.

Thanks for looking!

Mermaid pools on Ogilvie. All the other pool places I called didn't have any (and the HD and Rona's of this world don't seem to carry the white silica sand at this time of the year).

I already have two other tanks with the black natural stone for pool filtration and wanted to try the white sand. It's really nice, you can't really see it from the pictures but it's all white with some specs of black in it. An interesting mix.

[Monte]

Great thanks. I tried Mermaids on Merivale Rd. And they told me they would not have any until March.I will go and get some on Ogilvie.

[charlie]

Nice Eric, it`s getting tough to keep up with all the projects you have on the go, i can forsee another few tanks in the near future & then you can say to the boss "i think i`m going to consolidate all these small tanks into 2 big tanks 
Errol
psssst start a shrimp tank , not as hard to breed as some make it out to be, stick to the basics & don`t over think .

[bizfromqc]

Well, it's teardown time  

Everything was just going GREAT with this tank up to now. Painted the background, got my canister filter setup, go the LED lights going, got a new stand, got some white sand... It was all coming together...

Except, this morning, I sat on the couch and noticed an orange spot in the white sand substrate... Closer look, ITS RUST and it's everywhere in the tank!

Substrate came from Mermaid pools on Ogilvie and is sold as Nepheline Syenite. Researched the web and all sources pointed out to it being safe and most of the people said it was the equivalent of white silica sand. Some people even claiimed to have been using it for years without any problems.

So what's up with my batch?!? RUST??? It looks as if most of the substrate is made of sillica but there's some black speckles in it, I just assumed it was part of the mining process and didn't make a big deal out of it. Turns out that some, not all, of these black specks are all rusting !!!

Now there's no way I can keep this in my tank. First of all, rust is no good and i was planning on doing an amazon biotope in there. Water probably turned to liquid rock but I have no way to tell since I dont have a test kit.

Now water hardness is not something that's entirely bad if you're keeping a specie that likes hard water but I can't see anyone wanting RUST in their tank, for that reason, I'm going to have to take recommend people not use it.

Worst part now is I have to take everytying down, clean it and start over... i'm just thankful there was no fish in there yet.

[touchofsky]

I have pool filter sand in two of my tanks, and have never had a problem with rust.  My sand does not have the black specks in it.  It is uniformly white.  The brand is Unimin and it is nepheline syenite.

You didn't add any root tabs to the tank, did you?  I have had rust on my sand after adding API brand root tabs.  It didn't actually cause any problems.  After a water change or two it disappeared.

[Timm3h]

I have pool filter sand in two of my tanks, and have never had a problem with rust.  My sand does not have the black specks in it.  It is uniformly white.  The brand is Unimin and it is nepheline syenite.

You didn't add any root tabs to the tank, did you?  I have had rust on my sand after adding API brand root tabs.  It didn't actually cause any problems.  After a water change or two it disappeared.

What brand are you using that doesn't have any problems? Fresh water or salt?

[touchofsky]

My tanks are freshwater and the brand is Unimin.

[bizfromqc]

I have pool filter sand in two of my tanks, and have never had a problem with rust.  My sand does not have the black specks in it.  It is uniformly white.  The brand is Unimin and it is nepheline syenite.

You didn't add any root tabs to the tank, did you?  I have had rust on my sand after adding API brand root tabs.  It didn't actually cause any problems.  After a water change or two it disappeared.

That's the weirdest thing ever. I have exactly the same thing you have, also from Unimin and you can see what it did in the pictures. It's not anything I added since I didn't add anything. That tank had water, sand, a heater and a filter, that's it.

I really wonder what could have done this. Is this something I should be worried about (at first thought It would seem to be a concern) but maybe it's not a big deal ?!? I don't know what to do, I really don't want to start over but I will if I have to.

Valerie, you have the same stuff from the same company yet yours doesn't have any black particles in it? You can see my stuff in the picture I posted earlier, is it much different than yours? You'd thing the same company making the same sand would be similar... What about your water hardness, how is it?

I've searched the Internet and it seems no one else reported any problems with this stuff... WEIRD.

[touchofsky]

My sand doesn't have the black particles in it.  It is uniformly white.  I haven't tested the hardness of the water in either tank, but I am currently keeping angelfish, corydoras, ancistrus, glass bloodfins and harlequin rasboras in the tanks without any problem.  Also, keeping a variety of plants.  As I mentioned, I did have some streaks of rust on my sand right after adding API root tabs.  They broke up a bit when I was putting them in the substrate, and they are high in iron, so I am sure that is what caused the rust.  I just vacuumed the sand lightly while doing water changes, and the rust disappeared.  I didn't experience any problems in the tank because of it.

The only thing I can see different is that the printing on the bag I bought is blue and not green and my sand was in a paper bag.

[bizfromqc]

My sand doesn't have the black particles in it.  It is uniformly white.  I haven't tested the hardness of the water in either tank, but I am currently keeping angelfish, corydoras, ancistrus, glass bloodfins and harlequin rasboras in the tanks without any problem.  Also, keeping a variety of plants.  As I mentioned, I did have some streaks of rust on my sand right after adding API root tabs.  They broke up a bit when I was putting them in the substrate, and they are high in iron, so I am sure that is what caused the rust.  I just vacuumed the sand lightly while doing water changes, and the rust disappeared.  I didn't experience any problems in the tank because of it.

The only thing I can see different is that the printing on the bag I bought is blue and not green and my sand was in a paper bag.

When and where did you get your sand?

[touchofsky]

I bought it last summer at Tropicana Pools and Spa in Arnprior.

BTW, what kind of fish are you planning on keeping?  My water is hard from my well, and I don't have a problem with cardinals, neons, angelfish, etc.  Fish that are normally thought of a soft water fish.

[touchofsky]

Rust is basically iron, so if that is what it is, it isn't inherently bad (depending on how much there is, of course).

[bizfromqc]

I bought it last summer at Tropicana Pools and Spa in Arnprior.

BTW, what kind of fish are you planning on keeping?  My water is hard from my well, and I don't have a problem with cardinals, neons, angelfish, etc.  Fish that are normally thought of a soft water fish.

Original plan was for more apistos, probably A. Baenschi inka.

Wouldn't happen to have more of that sand that I could buy off you hey?   I really like the look of white sand and the apistos would love the fine sand too...

[touchofsky]

I only have about a cup of it left.  I wish I had more.  I can call the pool place in Arnprior next week and see if they have more. 

[bizfromqc]

I only have about a cup of it left.  I wish I had more.  I can call the pool place in Arnprior next week and see if they have more. 

Thanks for answering all my questions Valerie 

Worst comes to worst, I guess I can fall back on play sand. Not white but it'll do...

[touchofsky]

How much rust is in the tank?  Is it only a few pieces?  If so, it may not be a major concern. 

[bizfromqc]

How much rust is in the tank?  Is it only a few pieces?  If so, it may not be a major concern. 

Couple of places/spots, its definitely not taking over the substrate. Maybe I should just live with it. I'll sleep on it, la nuit porte conseil 

[touchofsky]

I would pick out the few pieces that you are seeing, and see if it comes back.  Rust is basically iron, and we add iron to grow plants, so unless there is really a lot of it, I can't see it being a problem.  People put rocks in their tanks that sometimes have a bit of iron in them, and a bit of rust, and it isn't a big problem.  I wouldn't pull the substrate out yet, if it were me.

[DaWolfe]

Eric, I would take the few spots out and see if it comes back. 

The tank is empty now right (no plants and no fish)  so for now you have noting to loose but time.  I would put a few plants in there now, like a fern or a moss.

Dan

[bizfromqc]

Eric, I would take the few spots out and see if it comes back. 

The tank is empty now right (no plants and no fish)  so for now you have noting to loose but time.  I would put a few plants in there now, like a fern or a moss.

Dan

Yep, empty, I got nothing to add to it yet and I'm not in a hurry really. I'm on the lookout for some nice bogwood.

The more I think about it, the more I think I'm going to leave the sand AS IS.

[charlie]

Yep, empty, I got nothing to add to it yet and I'm not in a hurry really. I'm on the lookout for some nice bogwood.

The more I think about it, the more I think I'm going to leave the sand AS IS.

If you are not in a hurry, you should hold off until the Giant Auction in a few weeks, a good chance some nice substrate will show up as well as wood etc or you can out bid everyone on the starfire planted tank & have no need for the 20 
Errol

[bizfromqc]

If you are not in a hurry, you should hold off until the Giant Auction in a few weeks, a good chance some nice substrate will show up as well as wood etc or you can out bid everyone on the starfire planted tank & have no need for the 20 
Errol

Good idea for the wood and substrate.

Bad idea for the starfire tank, that's a one-way ticket to sleeping on the couch LOL

[charlie]

Good idea for the wood and substrate.

Bad idea for the starfire tank, that's a one-way ticket to sleeping on the couch LOL

All depends on how you deliver the acquisition
" Look honey, are we lucky or what,we won the main door prize."

[touchofsky]

LOL! 

[daworldisblack]

All depends on how you deliver the acquisition
" Look honey, are we lucky or what,we won the main door prize."

LMAO! Sorry to hear about the iron specks in there Eric, but hope it gets resolved soon one way or another - let it be or starphire?!

[bizfromqc]

Little update.

Well I decided to try it out like that, I'm keeping the sand. Why? Because it looks good and a little iron never killed anyone? We'll see...

My faithful scouts, the terrific mean tank cycling machines, Zebra Danios (3 of them) have now moved to the tank as semi-permanent residents.

They should get the cycle going slowly but surely and "test" out my water 

The Hagen Glo fixture you see on the picture is now gone to a new home. I just got an email from FedEx to say my new MarineLand DB LED fixture is waiting on my door step :-)

I'm going to look into a spraybar (DIY or new) for the Fluval 205 because I think it creates too much current in there.

Waiting on the Giant Auction to score some nice drift/bog/root wood to put in there. Don't mind the coconut caves, they won't stay there.

[bettabreeder]

Looks good. Can't wait to see it once you get everything into that tank.


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[bizfromqc]

Got my new MarineLand Double Bright LED fixture, it's looking good 
It's my second one exactly like that, I just love the look of these things. Once again MOPS came through with getting the fixture to my house in about 24 hours, these guys just rock.

[bettabreeder]

That's awesome! Definitely have to order from them in the future


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[touchofsky]

Looks great.  I am glad that you were able to get the light that you wanted.

[bizfromqc]

Haven't updated this thread in a little while now since the tank was pretty dull with nothing in itt but sand and a couple of zebra danios 

Well I got a couple of plants and a piece of wood at the auction and added them to the tank. Originally it was going to aim for an Amazon biotope but I decided to move away from that and make it a bit broader so not to limit my selection of fauna/flora.

So for now, I'll aim for a South America Community tank (until I change my mind LOL).

- Piece of wood attached to slate
- Cabomba caroliniana
- Echinodorus Amazonicus
- Echinodorus Parviflorus
- Coconut shell

The Amazon sword plant will definitely outgrow the tank but I'll keep it in check. I want it to fill the right side of the tank and it should work great for that, that's why it's pretty much by itself now with enough room to grow.

As for the Cabomba caroliniana, I go two batches from the giant auction and they look totally different. Must have been grown in different conditions. Hopefully they'll even out in my tank under the same conditions (left and right of the piece of wood, different batches)

I may add a small piece of wood to the front-right side of the tank to balance things out but I'm still unsure about it.

I also want to add some foreground plant, probably Echinodorus tenellus (that I missed at the auction ) to fill the front part of the tank and add some more green. I haven't decided on weather or not to use smaller rocks in the tank.

The tank is still cycling and undergoing 30-40% daily WC.

Right now the tank houses 4 zebra danios (to help cycling the tank) that will come out when the tank is cycled since they're not from SA 

I haven't finalized the stocklist yet (need more research) but I was thinking something along the lines of:
- 1 pair of either Apistogramma or GBR
- 7-8 Cardinal Tetras
- 5-6 Corys
- 1-2 Albino Bristlenose Pleco

Eric

[daworldisblack]

Nice Driftwood! I like the SA idea and GBRs are definitely going to be awesome! They look nice!

[touchofsky]

Looks great.  I will be curious to see how your Amazon sword grows under the LED's.  I have an Ozelot type sword and it has remained fairly short and compact.  I don't know if it is the particular variety or the light, since the plant wasn't labelled.

[bizfromqc]

Nice Driftwood! I like the SA idea and GBRs are definitely going to be awesome! They look nice!

Thanks for the comments. I've got some GBR fry/juvies, approximately 1.5 months old in a 10G grow-out tank. Hopefully as they grow and develop I'll be able to sex them and possibly move a pair/trio to this tank OR another pair of apistos. Don't know yet...

Just for kicks, this is where the GBR fry are now. They love to hang out on the sponge or in the moss.

Eric

[touchofsky]

You have lots of neat things going on 

[bizfromqc]

Looks great.  I will be curious to see how your Amazon sword grows under the LED's.  I have an Ozelot type sword and it has remained fairly short and compact.  I don't know if it is the particular variety or the light, since the plant wasn't labelled.

It's one of the main reasons I got it, to try it out with the LED (and to go with the SA theme). It would actually be OK with me if it didn't grow what much in there since I only have so much height/space available.

If it goes out of control, i'll remove it and propagate the Cabomba to the back-right of the tank and get more SA Crypts in the mid-ground. I'd be OK with both scenarios.

Thanks for your comments.

[daworldisblack]

Thanks for the comments. I've got some GBR fry/juvies, approximately 1.5 months old in a 10G grow-out tank. Hopefully as they grow and develop I'll be able to sex them and possibly move a pair/trio to this tank OR another pair of apistos. Don't know yet...

Just for kicks, this is where the GBR fry are now. They love to hang out on the sponge or in the moss.

Eric

Nice! They'll be sexable around the 2Month mark usually but depends for others! I have a pair right now and they are just around 3 Months old or so and they are nice!

[bizfromqc]

You have lots of neat things going on 

Keeps me busy and out of trouble... well, most of the time anyways

[touchofsky]

Mine is showing lovely colour and growing well, but has remained about 6-8" tall.  I should actually move it closer to the front.  

I don't know whether most people would think MTS is actually staying out of trouble 

[bizfromqc]

Nice! They'll be sexable around the 2Month mark usually but depends for others! I have a pair right now and they are just around 3 Months old or so and they are nice!

I think I can probably tell which way they'll end up just by the size since half are basically twice the size of the rest but we'll see.

Two months hey? How big are they?

I got mine from another forum member who told me they were about a month old when I got them and I've had them for about 3 weeks now so they're pushing 2 months but still very tiny.

He was feeding them mostly paramecium and I continued that for a couple of days and then switched to 100% BBS twice a day. I think I may have lost a couple in the process but they ones that made it just boomed in size but still very tiny if I compare them to my 1 month old apisto fry (which are about twice the size of the biggest GBR fry).

I was told they take a bit of time to get going but once they do, they grow quickly. This is my first time with GBR fry so I have 0 experience and can't comment on growth except than compare to other fry I have.

[bizfromqc]

Mine is showing lovely colour and growing well, but has remained about 6-8" tall.  I should actually move it closer to the front.  

I don't know whether most people would think MTS is actually staying out of trouble 

The answer to everything would be to get my wife into the hobby but I highly doubt that will happen. That's why I love OVAS, people understand me LOL

[touchofsky]

My husband doesn't actively participate in my aquarium hobby, but he is very supportive and enjoys the tanks a lot, especially since I do all of the work 

He is actually a bit of an enabler, and never discourages me from any of my crazy antics 

[exv152]

My husband doesn't actively participate in my aquarium hobby, but he is very supportive and enjoys the tanks a lot, especially since I do all of the work 

He is actually a bit of an enabler, and never discourages me from any of my crazy antics 

I guess that makes my wife a dis-abler!!! lol

[daworldisblack]

Two months hey? How big are they?

Male is about 1 1/4" in length and female is 1" it looks like.


The Pair


Female

I got mine from another forum member who told me they were about a month old when I got them and I've had them for about 3 weeks now so they're pushing 2 months but still very tiny.

He was feeding them mostly paramecium and I continued that for a couple of days and then switched to 100% BBS twice a day. I think I may have lost a couple in the process but they ones that made it just boomed in size but still very tiny if I compare them to my 1 month old apisto fry (which are about twice the size of the biggest GBR fry).

I was told they take a bit of time to get going but once they do, they grow quickly. This is my first time with GBR fry so I have 0 experience and can't comment on growth except than compare to other fry I have.

I bet you got them from Richard too :p Same here. Very nice colours. I feed mine whiteworms and bloodworms. Recently they've also started eating flakes after seeing all the other neons and dwarf gouramies attack the snowfall of flakes! They really do love white worms so a culture of that should be sweet!




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[touchofsky]

Ha!  I am sure if I had put in a bid on the Starfire and won, my husband would have happily loaded it in the car.  I had to really stop myself!!!  I usually don't have a lot of willpower  

[touchofsky]

daworldisblack,
They are very pretty!

[daworldisblack]

daworldisblack,
They are very pretty!

Thanks Val! They are my main attractions in my aquarium. Little shiny disco balls heh heh

[touchofsky]

Too many nice fish, and not enough tanks!

[bizfromqc]

Male is about 1 1/4" in length and female is 1" it looks like.

...

I bet you got them from Richard too :p Same here. Very nice colours. I feed mine whiteworms and bloodworms. Recently they've also started eating flakes after seeing all the other neons and dwarf gouramies attack the snowfall of flakes! They really do love white worms so a culture of that should be sweet!

Yep, got them from Richard when I got his two 10G 

Mine can't be two months then, they're really a looooooot smaller than the ones in your picture. I got some freeze dried bloodworms at the auction, I'll add that to their diet on top of the BBS.

I'll try to take a snap of them and post the picture but they're pretty shy and very small 

[Stussi613]

I have the exact same sand, same black flecks and no rust. It's been in the tank for over a year with no issues.

[bizfromqc]

I have the exact same sand, same black flecks and no rust. It's been in the tank for over a year with no issues.

Might have been a different batch or something but so far, it only seems like a cosmetic issue and I barely notice it anymore 

But really, there's no way I'm pulling a substrate swap at this point LOL

[bizfromqc]

Daily WC are getting old so I decided to let it ride and switch to weekly until the tank is cycled. I will dose 3-4 times the recommended Prime every two days to keep things non toxic in there for the troopers (Zebra Danios).

One of the leaves of the Echinodorus amazonicus (Amazon Sword) had a pea size brown spot when I got it (from the auction) and decided to remove the leave before the rest of it turned brown and keep things tidy in there (I'm just like that... lol).

Two words... HOLY COW. That plant's been in the tank since Sunday evening and I could barely nudge it, roots have grown like mad (might be the root tab I used, who knows). Anyways, I was just surprised to see how quickly it settled in. Now I'm eager to see if and how it will grow in my tank (LED, sand, Excel, Excel Comp and root tabs).

I was wondering if adding iron (liquid form) to the mix would be a good thing or am I basically covered using the root tabs (API Root tabs + Iron). The root tabs I have mention that it's 3-1-1 (NPK) and 5% Iron. I'm going to guess that since all I have in there now are swords who are mainly root feeders that I would be OK with just the tabs.

I do have a huge bunch of Cabomba caroliniana that may also benefit from Iron supplementation (fast growing stem plant to help balance slow growth of swords) but would like to hear people's thoughts on this.

[touchofsky]

I would say that using the API tabs will provide enough iron, since they are heavy in iron and I have found that swords like them.

The Flourish Comprehensive has iron, too, and should be enough for the stem plants.

[bizfromqc]

I would say that using the API tabs will provide enough iron, since they are heavy in iron and I have found that swords like them.

The Flourish Comprehensive has iron, too, and should be enough for the stem plants.

Good to hear  Thanks!

[bizfromqc]

Quick little update.

Got my hands on 5 (I really wanted 6 but they only had 5...) long fin peppered corys (Corydoras Paleatus). They are really cool looking little guys but are a little shy now since I put them in the tank. They're currently hanging out at the base of the Cabomba carloliniana but will try to take pics of them when they come out 

[Lurch1]

I talked to BA and they said they should have some agassizi's in 3 weeks.

[bizfromqc]

I removed my female A. cacatuoides from the 20G and the male A. cacatuoides from the 10g and reunited them in the 25G.

The babies are now old enough to be on their own (almost 6 weeks now) and my male was getting a little lonely  Didn't take too long for them to pair up again and they've been swimming along nicely since then. The male coloured up like crazy, I think he's trying to conquer the heart of his lady once more 

The corys are now out and about swimming in a group, it's really nice to see them all together, makes for a really interesting tank.

That's it for fish for a little while to give the tank enough time to adjust to the new bioload. In a couple of weeks, I want to add some cardinal tetras and a bushynose pleco.

Eric

[daworldisblack]

Sounds like everything thing is going well 'swimmingly' eh? The project sounds pretty exciting! You going to add splashes of blue and red to the orang from your cacatuoides once you get the cardinals in! Should look real nice! Can't believe its already been 6 weeks that the fry have been around!

[bizfromqc]

Sounds like everything thing is going well 'swimmingly' eh? The project sounds pretty exciting! You going to add splashes of blue and red to the orang from your cacatuoides once you get the cardinals in! Should look real nice! Can't believe its already been 6 weeks that the fry have been around!

Seems like they get bigger everyday. The GBR juvies have also exploded, they're now bigger than the apistos!

[daworldisblack]

Seems like they get bigger everyday. The GBR juvies have also exploded, they're now bigger than the apistos!

Very nice! They'll be colourful little guys/gals soon! Mine remind me of disco balls haha. Looking forward to pics!

[bizfromqc]

A video of some of the corys and the cacatuoides couple.

[embed=425,349]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TQom6Juz9xg[/embed]

[freshfishies]

probably a silly question...but I can't figure it out :s

What's GBR? 

[bizfromqc]

probably a silly question...but I can't figure it out :s

What's GBR? 

My bad... German Blue Ram. Mikrogeophagus ramirezi.

[daworldisblack]

probably a silly question...but I can't figure it out :s

What's GBR?  

Lol.. i was going to pull your leg and say they're Gargantuan Belching Rhinos :p Clearly Eric is no fun haha

[freshfishies]

hahahaha! I like that gargantuan belching rhinos...hehe
aaaand I can't believe I didn't figure that out..lol! I was thinking 'something' blue ram...DUH!

[bizfromqc]

...
gargantuan belching rhinos...hehe
...

I don't know if those would fit in any of my tanks though 

[Peekay]

I don't know if those would fit in any of my tanks though 

*shrugs*  Oh well, you'd better get another one.   

[bizfromqc]

Tank update.

Plants are growing well. Had to trim some of the swords leaves (both parviflorus and amazonicus) because they had some brown spots and didn't look too good. I read that a lot of these plants are grown emersed and some of the leaves can melt when submersed but will grow just fine after.

The amazon sword didn't grow in height that much but there's a lot of new leaves growing from the base. The parviflorus has a crazy long sort of "runner" as tall as the plant itself that is starting to develop new leaves. I'm not quite sure how I'm supposed to propagate it (suggestions welcomed). Check out the pic of the sword, it's pretty neat.

Both bunches of Cabomba caroliniana are really growing well. Already trimmed one bunch and added the trimmings to another tank and it's almost grown back up to where I trimmed it.

On the down side, there's some green algae developing on the top part of the driftwood piece, closest to the LED light. Nothing too crazy but still a bit annoying. I'm hoping that when I get my BN pleco, he'll munch on it and make it disappear (until i figure out why I'm getting the algae in the first place).

Some pictures for your enjoyment.

[daworldisblack]

Looking real nice!! As for the Algae, looks like GSA (http://www.theplantedtank.co.uk/algae.htm)

[bizfromqc]

New guy on the block added Wednesday 

[touchofsky]

He/she should keep your tank clean 

[Lurch1]

Your tank is looking awesome!

[bizfromqc]

Your tank is looking awesome!

Thank you for the kind words.

There's a big gap on the right side of the tank that i'd like to fill with a very small piece of driftwood and possibly another sword (I'm just waiting for the runner to be big enough from my other sword to snip/replant) and some E. tenellus for the foreground (if I can ever find it) 

[Peekay]

Nice pleco!  Where did you get it? 
I'm looking for just the standard BN. 

[bizfromqc]

Well here we go again. My female is in brood colors again and has been going in and out of the coco-hut starting last evening.

My wife said the entrance to the coco-hut was entirely covered with sand when she came home from work. A little while after, it was cleared and both the male and female stayed in there for hours!!! Since then, she keeps popping in and out of the coco-hut, flashes to the male and bolts back in. If he doesn't get the message loud and clear, he's a little slow on the uptake  They've done it before and know how it's done so I have faith in them but seriously, where am I going to put them ?!? LOL I was hoping they'd give me enough time to raise the other juvies before they would go at it again...

On another note, the corys seem to be having a good time in the tank and loving the sand, sometimes totally burying their heads in it to find food. I might have gone overboard with feeding them when I originally got them so I'm skipping 2-3 days feeding to let them catch up. The pleco is slowly but surely getting rid of all the fuzz that developed on the piece of wood in the tank.

Some pictures for your enjoyment (and my posting addiction)

[bizfromqc]

Nice pleco!  Where did you get it? 
I'm looking for just the standard BN. 

From my good friends at La Niche.
It was the last albino one but they still had a couple of standard BN left. Give'em a call.

[touchofsky]

Eric,
Big Al's in the west end, has a whole tank of what they call "dwarf sword".  It is exactly what I bought and I am pretty sure it is Echinodorus tenellus.  What they have now must have been grown emersed (above water).  When I bought it there last fall, it looked like what they now have. Once planted in my tank, it turned into the submerged version and sent out lots of runners.  They have it priced at 2 for $6.99.  I only paid 99 cents for mine, but I think they were on sale because they were pretty shabby at the time.  Here is an interesting page about chain swords grown both submerged and emersed.
http://www.aquatic-gardeners.org/Chainswords-NeilFrank.htm 

[daworldisblack]

Love it! You feed my addiction to see pics of others' tanks ! Haha. Looking good Eric!

[bizfromqc]

Eric,
Big Al's in the west end, has a whole tank of what they call "dwarf sword".  It is exactly what I bought and I am pretty sure it is Echinodorus tenellus.  What they have now must have been grown emersed (above water).  When I bought it there last fall, it looked like what they now have. Once planted in my tank, it turned into the submerged version and sent out lots of runners.  They have it priced at 2 for $6.99.  I only paid 99 cents for mine, but I think they were on sale because they were pretty shabby at the time.  Here is an interesting page about chain swords grown both submerged and emersed.
http://www.aquatic-gardeners.org/Chainswords-NeilFrank.htm 

Very interesting link, thanks for that Val!

[bizfromqc]

Updated FTS of the tank.

Went to BA's midnight madness and added a couple more fishes/plants to the tank. New additions are neons, more peppered corys and some "dwarf swords". Also trimmed some of the stem plants to keep them in check.

This is what's in there now
- 13 neon tetras
- 9 peppered corys
- 1 Albino BN pleco
- 1 couple A. cacatuoides.

You can see the female A. cacatuoides hanging out in the coco-hut in the picture. I'm pretty sure she's taking care of a bunch of eggs in there.

[brotherluv]

Your tank is looking pretty awesome!  I'm hope the little guys have babies!

[bizfromqc]

Your tank is looking pretty awesome!  I'm hope the little guys have babies!

Thanks for the comments.

Part of me wants them to be successful again but where will I put them?!? LOL I've got about 50 of their offsprings (7 weeks old now) in my other tank 

[touchofsky]

I am glad that you made it to Big Al's and I hope that your 'dwarf swords' behave as mine did, and send out runners for you.  Mine lost the big leaves and sent up thinner more grass like leaves pretty quickly.

Your tank is looking really great.  Congratulations on your success with it.  I can imagine that you have mixed feelings about more babies!

[bizfromqc]

I am glad that you made it to Big Al's and I hope that your 'dwarf swords' behave as mine did, and send out runners for you.  Mine lost the big leaves and sent up thinner more grass like leaves pretty quickly.

Your tank is looking really great.  Congratulations on your success with it.  I can imagine that you have mixed feelings about more babies!

I'm glad I got out there too, all plants were 25% off and I got a killer deal on the corys and neons.

Some of the swords I got already had some beginning of runners forming near the root structure, I hope they continue that way and do good in my tank. I do like the look of the leaves now but would prefer a thinner more grass like leave. Either way, I'll be happy.

As for the babies, I'm going to let nature take its course this time. If some of them make it in the community tank, then they deserve it 

[touchofsky]

I was tempted by the neons, but I really am fully stocked, so have to control myself 

[bizfromqc]

The neons were a huuuuuuuuge hit with my two little girls (5 and 2 yrs old). They couldn't care less about cichlids, corys and plecos, they love the neons 

[bizfromqc]

Tank update, April 20th.

18 Neon Tetras
8 Peppered Corys
2 Apistogramma cacatuoides
3 BN Plecos (1 albino female, 1 female and 1 male)

[embed=425,349]http://youtu.be/7VRjiR2zyII[/embed]

[bizfromqc]

Decided to plan a substrate swap on this puppy.

OUT: White Silica Sand
IN:  Black eco-complete

The white substrate is just NOT working with that much fish in there, especially the plecos and corys who are crazy pooping machines.

It will also give me the chance to give a good scrub to my driftwood and plants. Have a crazy case of BBA and some other nasties right now... I've not been too good with the glut dosing (metricide) and I'm paying for it.

So here's the plan
1) Move water into large bucket with heater and powerhead
2) Move fish into bucket
3) Remove all plants, clean and set aside
4) Remove driftwood, clean and set aside
5) Empty tank
6) Remove substrate
7) Install driftwood
8 Put new substrate
9) Plant plants
10) Put fish back

I also got Andrew's old paintball co2 on the cheap so I'm going to hook it up on there and hope for the best. I'm hoping the nutrient rich substrate and pressurized co2 will help with the nasties.

I may cut down on bioload as well. It will also allow my apistos to maybe have another run at breeding. I know it's happened a couple of times in the past (almost like clockwork, every 3 weeks) but would last for a couple of days before the plecos would ninja their way into the coconut cave and wreak havoc on the eggs.

Keep on the lookout for coryss and bn plecos in the classifieds soon, let me know if any of you are interested...

Eric