What Did You do With Your Tank Today?

[1midniterider]

Getting more into a routine with the new tank, performed chem tests, 50% pwc, gravel vac and cleaned the aquatic ornaments. I tend to clean the ornaments monthly. Also added a UV filter to the setup. I plan to run it continuously for about two weeks and then about 2 hours daily.

Checked on the snail eggs... No real change yet, but they appear a bit darker. I'm surprised there are not more egg clusters with as much mating is going on. I am curious as to the color of the snails when they hatch. Placed two pieces of cuttlebone in the substrate.

I also could not locate the last two Amano Shrimp. I fear they have perished. I have not had much success in keeping them alive more than a couple of months.

 

[1midniterider]

Note to self.... After a pwc remember to open the filter outlet valve when you turn the filter on. This will help to avoid mini tank cycles. Big oops. I forgot open the outlet valve. I was wondering why a London Fog was rolling in my tank. I just barely avoided a disaster because I'm headed away for the weekend. If I had not caught this mistake I probably would have returned to very ill or dead fish.

 

[Living Tree]

Scrubbed Algae

There was algea all over my 3.5 gallon tank. Took me 4 minutes to get most of it off. May need to move it's location because it gets sun in tge morning

 

[1midniterider]

Since my last update, I've added some cholla wood to the tank. The inhabitants are finally relaxing and warming up to my presence again. Now when I come around they don't "run" to the other side of the tank. So today I simply enjoyed the view.

Oops, almost forgot. One of the Amano Shrimp finally made its presence known. The other soon to be new arrivals seem to be doing ok...

 

[1midniterider]

Simply enjoying the view.

 

[BigRedsReefs10]

Water change day on both tanks, added some red ludwiga to the 40 and rotalla indica to the shrimp tank and 4 emerald eye rasboras to the shrimp tank

 

[Autumnsky]

Been sooo busy with things unexpected not relating to fish.

Last week had to prepared for a short notice trip left Wed and just got back today. Had done pwc on all except the 72G.

Fish got to fast for 3 days.

Found the light timer on 2 tanks the 12G Edge and the 6.5G Thai Betta cube are running too long getting too much algae.

Also a surprise swam past in the 12G Edge, a new young Pencil fish. It is 1/3rd the size of the adults in the tank, and I never have seen it before!!! Honestly the tank was in the background of a bunch of boxes slowly getting put away after remodeling. So it's hard to see in there especially as it is full of Java Fern and mosses and now extra, extra, algae.

My next batch of Blue Mystery snails is looking like they are maturing pretty quickly I see darkening colors in the clutch/eggs!!!

 

[1midniterider]

Returned from another weekend getaway to a slightly cloudy tank. I assumed it was from the liquid fertilizer I used just before our departure. The cloudiness may been caused by the demise of one my Mystery Snails. I found it underneath the filter inlet, the foot partially eaten. The hard protective piece missing.

 

[Autumnsky]

A bunch of pics loaded up at the Bettas thread still need to load the Koi Betta pics.

http://www.aquariumadvice.com/forums/f19/post-your-betta-pics-here-175380-135.html#post3528800

Wine glass is doing well.

A number of Pygmy Cories an Endler and Guppy and snails and tons of these shrimp.

One of the funny Shrimp - note the Xlong front claw legs and the red cuffs

This isn't the best quality pic, but you can see how this one looks similar to a Koi.

This is the supposed "Orange" Thai Imported HM Plakat now the most deep blue and orange head and tail.

Picasso

Imported Thai OHM Betta

Autumn Phoenix

The tail has now got some glory blue edging the color light on him there it doesn't show up as great as in person.

 

[1midniterider]

My water clarity has returned now that dead snail has been removed from the tank. So this morning was just a moment to enjoy the view.

 

[1midniterider]

Today chem check, 50% pwc and liquid fertilizer dose. All levels are good. The two MIA Amano Shrimp reappeared after not being seen for a couple of weeks. The smaller Mystery Snail egg cluster somehow got detached and sitting on the bottom of the tank. I'm guessing it is no longer viable. Noted some changes on the larger cluster. Still hopeful...

 

[Autumnsky]

The MS egg snail babies need air. Water drowns them. After they are hatched their gills work.

Mine (MS) popped out over the last 2 days, not that many hatched this time. I just wanted "some" of my Blue baby Mystery snails to make it (more would have been good but I have been away at critical times when the babies were really small) and I know there are still a few roaming around the tank. I added a heater preset 78F, didn't really think about it, though the babies would appreciate a bit of warmness.

Soooo...

Have been considering different fish to add to the mix. And shrimp. One of the Instagram friends mentioned a question of what is your favorite shrimp... That was actually a hard, very hard question. Not that I can't keep pretty much any shrimp I would want. But which is my favorite - I guess a question for the Aquaria OT later this evening.

Anyway I am shopping for a couple kinds of shrimp. There was a realllllly nice group of PRL SS being offered for sale and a pretty high price. ($$$ that's the down side)

Also keeping an eye out for a longer than 4 foot bowfront used bargain price. Congos and Clown Loaches future home.

Bought a 3 pak of Aponogoton sprouted bulbs and in 1.5 day they have doubled in length. That tank will obviously not be the ideal home for them at appx 12" tall plant are about 7 inches tall, lol.

And in searching for a particular Guppy, I wandered into my local Petco which happened to be tearing out their tanks for a re-model next week and the few fish left all are half price.

So since my 46G SW needed a few fish I brought home a couple.

A new Clown Fish and a Pygmy Angel. Misc. snails and a small Decorator crab.

Did a 5 gallon water change for the SW, acclimated and put in the new inhabitants. I will post a couple pics in a few.

Because I bought a few Guppies to add to the 12G snail tank!

 

[Autumnsky]

Clownfish
Two sides are varied

 

[Autumnsky]

Decorator Crab

 

[Autumnsky]

Lady snail looking for a place for eggs. And I know the glass is dirty :/

"S'up? See ya!"

 

[1midniterider]

I've been preoccupied with replacing the kitchen cabinet beneath the sink and repairing not one, not two but three leaks...

So this morning I noticed one of my Dalmatian Mollies is very swollen.. Looks like three times its normal width... I'm guessing she is pregnant... Well at least I'm hoping its nothing else...

 

[1midniterider]

Checked on the swollen Molly when I got home from work and it was swimming around. A few hours later it was dead, upside down on the aquarium bottom. What was the cause? Other than the bloated belly there were no other symptoms noted. From what I read, the bloated belly is a symptom, not the root cause. No other fish appear to affected.

I checked chems... Nitrates were a bit high, performed a 50% pwc. Added API Stress Coat+ and API Aquarium Salt (about of recommended level).

 

[Autumnsky]

To catch up on the past few days.

Lost the male Micariff Guppy.

Snail ate and I couldn't take it back for an exchange...

2F Yellow Micariff Guppies are doing fine. Eat like piggies.

Then found a male and female African Dwarf Frog - brought them home for fun tank friends for the grand kids to be extra interested in the tanks.

AND....my first "Tylo" - Tylomelania snail, a yellow and blackish body "Volcano" or "Rabbit" snail called Bunny snail... "I didn't know there was bunny snails" says the almost 4 year old. (He is quite aware of MS, MTS & RH snails. )

Today I picked up 4 Guppies. One mosaic red tail, 2, Japan Blue double Sword Tail, 1 Female Probably Tequila Sunrise.

The tank of the Cobra /Snakeskin fish were sick The ones I actually went in for.) I would have taken a variety of colors probably 5 of them There was a rose /Pink was soooo pretty.

Got some staple foods a couple days ago.

Yesterday I walked by the wine glass tank and found much amusement in this view looking down top.

Snacking snails. Out of the water! Sitting on top of the cuttlebone still floating on the top the water

It was like they were having a Labor Day (USA holiday) picnic yesterday! Very amusing.

Will get a couple pics of the Bunny snail and the frogs look like ADF.

Maybe the Guppies when we get them settled in the tank.

 

[Autumnsky]

Decided to challenge myself to a timed pwc dash...

It takes about 25 to 30 min. to empty the maximum amount of water in the 72G using the drain of the FX-5 filter. This makes about 65% pwc.

So the challenge is empty all the water possible / 72G in the 30 minutes...
Plus
about 8G water removal from the SW 46G
5G water change in the 12G Snails and Guppy tank
1.75G pwc in the 5G Spec V
and
2G pwc 12G Edge nano fish
2G pwc from the Wine Glass tank
2G pwc from the Thai Betta 6G cube

And in the middle I made 5G of SW

Ran out of time but added 5 min and easily completed that part of the challenge.

Scraped most of the visible glass in the 72G with a razor blade. Removed a handful of yellowing leaves. Adjusted the left side DW.

Took another 10 min to fill up the 72G and add the first of 2 buckets of SW, and make the other bucket after completing the pwc. Still need to add the last SW bucket for the 8G pwc to really be complete. It takes a little bit to dissolve the salt.

So all done with water changes before the hour was up.



Got this pic last night when a friend mentioned seeing a new critter in the SW. I saw this frightful sight. Decorator Crab covered himself with algae...no no decorator crab! He is sitting on my algae mess container.

And snapped this right after filling the 72G. All the Congo Tetras were hiding and the Neons were happily hanging around the center of the tank where they always like to be. Tank still a bit cloudy...

After a little rest, I might do a clean up of the 12G mess Edge tank. The light was on way too long and lots of algae when I was away on a trip. There were a few Amano Shrimp 2 Blue MS 5 or 6 Nannostomus Marginatus Pencilfish and 8 or so Boraras Brigittae,

So much Moss I can hardly see the fish swimming around. But also an overgrown mess of algae on the glass. Really ugly.

 

[Barliman]

Checked on the swollen Molly when I got home from work and it was swimming around. A few hours later it was dead, upside down on the aquarium bottom. What was the cause?

I didn't notice any "pine-coning" in the photos, so I don't think it was dropsy. It may be that she was bound up and unable to give birth, which killed her.