Fishperson
Aquarium Advice Addict
The gray fuzz happened to me too. I think it is just a mystery. Anyway, it went away after I put some fish in.
New South American 29 gal tank
- Thread starter Coryluv
- Start date
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Thanks for the encouragement. Even though I've had tanks before starting this planted tank without having seeded media is a new experience.
Weekly report. On time this week. I got a black static-cling background but haven't added it because I don't want to disturb the filter at this delicate part of the cycle. Installing the background properly would require removing the filter.
In the past few days the nitrite shows signs of dropping. After reading 1 ppm yesterday I gave it another 1 ppm dose of ammonia. The nitrite read .5 ppm this morning. This is a very good sign. Barring something stupid on my part, I expect to see this cycle completing soon.
Both swords are putting out their weekly leaf. This week I did some subtle relocation of some of the dwarf sag and the ludwigia. I trimmed some of the tallest bacopa and replanted the cuttings. I also gently "raked" the sand and refined the hills and valleys. I used an old Tupperware spork that works well as a gardening tool with no worries of it scratching the tank. I'm still using a 1/2 dose of Flourish Excel as well as the root tabs and Comprehensive.
For the very low light I have, I'm amazed that my plants are doing so well. I only have one t8 Utlrasun. The fixture won't take a second bulb. I'm looking at LED lights that would at least bring me up into the low light category. I'm currently growing plants with less than 1 watt per gallon. Every plant I have has grown, though the dwarf sag and ludwigia are a slow go. When I first planned this tank I really wasn't sure about live plants and they were a bit of an afterthought, so the light fixture is just what came with the tank.
The snails are doing a good job. They are really keeping things clean, especially the grey stuff on the driftwood. They love that stuff. No plant damage either. The very slight algae or biofilm on the tank sides also seems to be a snail favorite.
That's it for now. It's four weeks today since I planted and two weeks since I abandoned the dead shrimp in favor of ammonia for the cycle. Thanks again for following.
In the past few days the nitrite shows signs of dropping. After reading 1 ppm yesterday I gave it another 1 ppm dose of ammonia. The nitrite read .5 ppm this morning. This is a very good sign. Barring something stupid on my part, I expect to see this cycle completing soon.
Both swords are putting out their weekly leaf. This week I did some subtle relocation of some of the dwarf sag and the ludwigia. I trimmed some of the tallest bacopa and replanted the cuttings. I also gently "raked" the sand and refined the hills and valleys. I used an old Tupperware spork that works well as a gardening tool with no worries of it scratching the tank. I'm still using a 1/2 dose of Flourish Excel as well as the root tabs and Comprehensive.
For the very low light I have, I'm amazed that my plants are doing so well. I only have one t8 Utlrasun. The fixture won't take a second bulb. I'm looking at LED lights that would at least bring me up into the low light category. I'm currently growing plants with less than 1 watt per gallon. Every plant I have has grown, though the dwarf sag and ludwigia are a slow go. When I first planned this tank I really wasn't sure about live plants and they were a bit of an afterthought, so the light fixture is just what came with the tank.
The snails are doing a good job. They are really keeping things clean, especially the grey stuff on the driftwood. They love that stuff. No plant damage either. The very slight algae or biofilm on the tank sides also seems to be a snail favorite.
That's it for now. It's four weeks today since I planted and two weeks since I abandoned the dead shrimp in favor of ammonia for the cycle. Thanks again for following.
thursyanna
Aquarium Advice Freak
I love your tank. The plants look great. I'm just starting to plant my new 20 gal. I have to wait for payday to get more plants though. I don't know if I did something right or something wrong but my tank cycled in about 3 days. I did a fishless cycle. I still haven't added any fish though because I'm putting a couple of pea puffers in there and right now I'm just trying to get plants and snails established. Keep sending pictures of your tank! I like watching the transformation!
Thanks thursyanna. I hope I get to see pics of your new 20 soon. Pea puffers sound neat. If you've posted pics already please pm me so I can see them!
I hear you on waiting for payday. BTDT. Can't wait to see your plants.
If your tank cycled in three days, you did something right. I know what slowed mine down, my nitrites got above 5 ppm. Now that I've fine tuned my reading of the test I'd not leave it that high for nearly a week like I did out of not understanding what I was seeing. After my getting the nitrites to readable levels it took a week for them to start to come down in a way that indicates the beneficial bacteria are ramping up.
Did you have seeded material? Having had seeded material in the past I had never seen a nitrite test above 0 before. I've started tanks with seeded material and judicious stocking that never registered any ammonia or nitrite. This cycling without old filter material has been a new experience for me.
I hear you on waiting for payday. BTDT. Can't wait to see your plants.
If your tank cycled in three days, you did something right. I know what slowed mine down, my nitrites got above 5 ppm. Now that I've fine tuned my reading of the test I'd not leave it that high for nearly a week like I did out of not understanding what I was seeing. After my getting the nitrites to readable levels it took a week for them to start to come down in a way that indicates the beneficial bacteria are ramping up.
Did you have seeded material? Having had seeded material in the past I had never seen a nitrite test above 0 before. I've started tanks with seeded material and judicious stocking that never registered any ammonia or nitrite. This cycling without old filter material has been a new experience for me.
This was a big week. First, on Tuesday, my tank finished cycling. Then on Wednesday, my new Current Freshwater LED+ light unit arrived. So now my plants have good low level lighting. I'm still low tech and low light, but I have better low light. But the big news is that on Friday I went to my LFS and got a small school of rummy nose Tetras. They were out of the gold pristella tetras, but I'm on the waiting list and they will call. I was planning on 2 species of South American tetras and these guys are so nice. What a beautiful little fish species.
One day I'm gonna get a better camera and post a better pic, but here is this week's tank shot. Hopefully, you can see five of the rummys. I still haven't decided which corys I'll get when the tank is a little older, but there will be 6 corys as well as the gold pristella tetras. I've been checking various combinations and numbers on Aqadvisor. The last thing I want to do is overstock.
I forget to ask at the LFS which species of rummy these are, but I found this site:
http://www.peteducation.com/article.cfm?c=16+1955&aid=2546
Mine are definitely Hemigrammus bleheri.
I did a drip acclimation because I'm most comfortable with that way of acclimating. I didn't feed them yesterday and I kept the lights out. Today, I gave them a small meal. Everyone is swimming vigorously, schooling, eating and has bright rosey noses. While nothing is guaranteed with keeping fish, it is a good start. 0 ammonia and 0 nitrite this morning. I don't take things for granted, especially with such a new tank, so I'm testing daily for a while.
Thanks again for following this!
One day I'm gonna get a better camera and post a better pic, but here is this week's tank shot. Hopefully, you can see five of the rummys. I still haven't decided which corys I'll get when the tank is a little older, but there will be 6 corys as well as the gold pristella tetras. I've been checking various combinations and numbers on Aqadvisor. The last thing I want to do is overstock.
I forget to ask at the LFS which species of rummy these are, but I found this site:
http://www.peteducation.com/article.cfm?c=16+1955&aid=2546
Mine are definitely Hemigrammus bleheri.
I did a drip acclimation because I'm most comfortable with that way of acclimating. I didn't feed them yesterday and I kept the lights out. Today, I gave them a small meal. Everyone is swimming vigorously, schooling, eating and has bright rosey noses. While nothing is guaranteed with keeping fish, it is a good start. 0 ammonia and 0 nitrite this morning. I don't take things for granted, especially with such a new tank, so I'm testing daily for a while.
Thanks again for following this!
Fishperson
Aquarium Advice Addict
Watch for fin rot. Over half of my rummy noses had that when I bought them. But they are really cool and active.
Thanks Fishperson. In the meantime, fins are intact, but I lost a couple.
Yesterday morning started with all fish schooling and looking great. Mid-morning, one stopped schooling and had labored breathing. That one died last night. An ich spot (looked like a sugar grain and I had ich in a tank once many years ago so I've seen it) appeared yesterday afternoon on the side of another. That one had stopped schooling as of this morning, had the labored breathing, and died this afternoon. I'm wondering if the ich was hiding in the gills. Glad there was something I could see on the one yesterday. I immediately raised the temp, dropped in an airstone, and put the tank under treatment. Will do daily water changes for the duration. All tests are good through today with amm 0, nitrite 0 and nitrate 10.
I'm hoping for the best. The remaining 4 are schooling, active, and eating (feeding ever so sparingly). So there is still hope. This sucks, I'm really bummed, but ich happens.
Yesterday morning started with all fish schooling and looking great. Mid-morning, one stopped schooling and had labored breathing. That one died last night. An ich spot (looked like a sugar grain and I had ich in a tank once many years ago so I've seen it) appeared yesterday afternoon on the side of another. That one had stopped schooling as of this morning, had the labored breathing, and died this afternoon. I'm wondering if the ich was hiding in the gills. Glad there was something I could see on the one yesterday. I immediately raised the temp, dropped in an airstone, and put the tank under treatment. Will do daily water changes for the duration. All tests are good through today with amm 0, nitrite 0 and nitrate 10.
I'm hoping for the best. The remaining 4 are schooling, active, and eating (feeding ever so sparingly). So there is still hope. This sucks, I'm really bummed, but ich happens.
Old Scales
Aquarium Advice Addict
Coryluv.
I luv your name. I am a coryluv'R myself. I have a 29g amazonian tank also. (Every fish in it has an adipose fin, lol). I have six Julie corys and they are my favorites in the tank. Your build looks awesome. Take your time on the build and savor every moment. It's about the most fun time with a tank. Will be watching your progress. What kind of lighting are you going with? OS.
I luv your name. I am a coryluv'R myself. I have a 29g amazonian tank also. (Every fish in it has an adipose fin, lol). I have six Julie corys and they are my favorites in the tank. Your build looks awesome. Take your time on the build and savor every moment. It's about the most fun time with a tank. Will be watching your progress. What kind of lighting are you going with? OS.
Old Scales
Aquarium Advice Addict
Oops my bad. JUst saw the post about your lights. OS.
Thanks Old Scales. Julii corys are very cute. Of course getting Ich with the first fish this weekend is not as much fun, but it goes with the territory and I've instituted appropriate treatment. I do savor the build and it will always be a labor of love. I got a Current Freshwater Satellite LED+ for lighting. I love it and would recommend it for any low tech low light planted or for fish only freshwater set up.
monaro_gto
Aquarium Advice Activist
Maybe i missed it but what kind of sand did you use? Your tank looks great btw
thursyanna
Aquarium Advice Freak
Sorry, I've been out of town. I did finally get a few more plants. My pea puffer got swim bladder so I moved him back to the 5 gal. He seems happier there. I think he must have gotten swim bladder from the CO2 I'm running. I decided to go with 5 female bettas, 1 bumblebee goby, 3 red cherry shrimp, and 2 nerite snails.
I did use seeded material from my 55 gal which made the cycling go faster I think.
Petco black sand. Thanks for the compliment. Very kind of you.
No problem. Hope you had a great trip. Your tank and fish sound great. Seeding is the way to if you are able!
This has been just short of two months since this tank and thread were started. It has been a while between updates. And there's a reason for that. I had a real tank disaster.
It is not easy to admit publicly, but I was so wrong on the ich diagnosis. In fact what looked like an ich spot of it actually turned into columnaris. I now believe it was a loose scale or something. I'm not sure which of the columnaris like disease bacteria it was of course. So with that said it was gray slime, had the classic saddleback look, killed some of my fish with it never showing up on their bodies, and was ultimately cured with a full round of Maracyn and Maracyn 2.
Of the 6 rummy-nose tetras I so carefully transported and added to the tank on June 1, only one survived. I have been really bummed and heart sick. The good news is my survivor fish has healed nicely and seems to be doing well. The other good news is the bio filter was not totally killed. The other good news is that theplants are still thriving.
After the disaster the water cleared up pretty quickly. I did use some charcoal in the filter to completely remove the meds. So after over week with no more signs of disease, good test parameters, and good looking and smelling water, I went to a different LFS (not that I blame the first one, just wanted to try something different) to get five more rummy nose tetras. I felt some urgency not to leave my one fish alone for too long. I made sure to have a bottle of Dr. Tim's One and Only on hand just in case my biofilter was not up to the task.
As luck would have it of course this store that "always" has rummy nose tetras was completely out of them. Now here comes the part where I feel guilty. I wasn't able to come home without fish. I got seven x-ray pristella tetras. I should've gotten more rummys to make a school for them, but that wasn't an option at this time. That was four days ago and so far so good. I breathed a sigh of relief when I got past the first 48 hours. Pristellas are much hardier than rummys are. It was nice getting them half-price on sale, too.
If you've been following you know that originally I wanted gold pristellas. There's nothing more to that change of plans except a last-minute decision to go with the x-rays.
Like many I have no quarantine or hospital tank. And like many who have been through disaster, I'm seriously trying to figure out how to get going on one. Now that I've got the pristellas in there I really don't want to add more fish without knowing they're not going to bring disease with them. Of course columnaris is endemic, but weakened fish that have just been transported succumb to it more easily. I want to add more rummys for my survivor as soon as I can. Happily he seems no more stressed with the pristellas than he seemed without them. He even schools with them sometimes.
The real good news is this is about bringing this thread to a close. While there are no guarantees that something still couldn't go wrong, the fact that my second batch of fish has lived more than 48 hours before dropping dead feels like a success. I know, its too soon to breathe completely easy, but at least its a good start this time. Daily test parameters attest to a functioning biofilter, with 0 ammonia and 0 nitrite with 8 fish. My nitrates are also 0, but I did a lot of water changes during the disaster and I do have plants. Once there are fish in the tank its really moving beyond getting started. So I'll be ending this and starting some kind of a tank journal or something. Here's a few last pictures on this thread.
I tried and failed on the static cling black background, btw. It wrinkled and got permanent clear spots during my best installation efforts. Due to that, it looked horrible. Maybe someday I'll try something different.
In closing, I'd really appreciate any ideas or advice for setting up that quarantine tank. References to good threads here or articles elsewhere would be appreciated as well as any personal experience. I'm on a limited budget for a while after all that money spent on trying to save my fish.
It is not easy to admit publicly, but I was so wrong on the ich diagnosis. In fact what looked like an ich spot of it actually turned into columnaris. I now believe it was a loose scale or something. I'm not sure which of the columnaris like disease bacteria it was of course. So with that said it was gray slime, had the classic saddleback look, killed some of my fish with it never showing up on their bodies, and was ultimately cured with a full round of Maracyn and Maracyn 2.
Of the 6 rummy-nose tetras I so carefully transported and added to the tank on June 1, only one survived. I have been really bummed and heart sick. The good news is my survivor fish has healed nicely and seems to be doing well. The other good news is the bio filter was not totally killed. The other good news is that theplants are still thriving.
After the disaster the water cleared up pretty quickly. I did use some charcoal in the filter to completely remove the meds. So after over week with no more signs of disease, good test parameters, and good looking and smelling water, I went to a different LFS (not that I blame the first one, just wanted to try something different) to get five more rummy nose tetras. I felt some urgency not to leave my one fish alone for too long. I made sure to have a bottle of Dr. Tim's One and Only on hand just in case my biofilter was not up to the task.
As luck would have it of course this store that "always" has rummy nose tetras was completely out of them. Now here comes the part where I feel guilty. I wasn't able to come home without fish. I got seven x-ray pristella tetras. I should've gotten more rummys to make a school for them, but that wasn't an option at this time. That was four days ago and so far so good. I breathed a sigh of relief when I got past the first 48 hours. Pristellas are much hardier than rummys are. It was nice getting them half-price on sale, too.
If you've been following you know that originally I wanted gold pristellas. There's nothing more to that change of plans except a last-minute decision to go with the x-rays.
Like many I have no quarantine or hospital tank. And like many who have been through disaster, I'm seriously trying to figure out how to get going on one. Now that I've got the pristellas in there I really don't want to add more fish without knowing they're not going to bring disease with them. Of course columnaris is endemic, but weakened fish that have just been transported succumb to it more easily. I want to add more rummys for my survivor as soon as I can. Happily he seems no more stressed with the pristellas than he seemed without them. He even schools with them sometimes.
The real good news is this is about bringing this thread to a close. While there are no guarantees that something still couldn't go wrong, the fact that my second batch of fish has lived more than 48 hours before dropping dead feels like a success. I know, its too soon to breathe completely easy, but at least its a good start this time. Daily test parameters attest to a functioning biofilter, with 0 ammonia and 0 nitrite with 8 fish. My nitrates are also 0, but I did a lot of water changes during the disaster and I do have plants. Once there are fish in the tank its really moving beyond getting started. So I'll be ending this and starting some kind of a tank journal or something. Here's a few last pictures on this thread.
I tried and failed on the static cling black background, btw. It wrinkled and got permanent clear spots during my best installation efforts. Due to that, it looked horrible. Maybe someday I'll try something different.
In closing, I'd really appreciate any ideas or advice for setting up that quarantine tank. References to good threads here or articles elsewhere would be appreciated as well as any personal experience. I'm on a limited budget for a while after all that money spent on trying to save my fish.
HUKIT
Aquarium Advice Addict
Tieberion
Aquarium Advice Freak
Oh wow, that tank has really come together, love the way you have it setup, def two thumbs up for the décor alone!
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