somecallmedaniel16
Aquarium Advice Activist
Hey AA!
So after over 2 years, I have returned to start up my tank again - I had to take down my tank at the end of high school because I couldn't have a tank in my dorm, but now I am living off campus so I decided to pick up the hobby again!
This round, I decided to try using higher light - I am using the same fixture from high school but with higher-wattage bulbs and I am using the stock light fixture (with a replaced bulb) as well.
Equipment
20G high glass tank
Whisper 20 power filter (stock HOB)
100 W heater
Coralife Aqualight T5 dual lamp, 1 x 10,000K Coralife 24W bulb, 1 x 6,700K Coralife 24W bulb
DIY CO2 bottle
Mix of Eco-Complete and gravel for substrate
Stock
5 x Tiger Barb
Plants
Baby tears
Pogostemon stellatus
Rotala indica
Amazon sword
Wisteria
Hydrocotyle sp. japan
Ludwigia repens
------
I just got in all the plant clippings (except for the wisteria and swords, which have been in as long as the barbs) today from another AA member, Junglefowl! A big thanks to him for the plant package! I will start dosing ferts later this week; I am going to try the EI system as demonstrated in this Youtube video by PlantedTankUK. I bought the salts and some 500 mL bottles that should be arriving in a couple days.
So, I have a couple questions for you all, and I think I will just post questions for advice and help on this thread unless I have really pertinent help, in which case I will probably search for solutions online.
As I mentioned, I only have 5 tiger barbs in my tank now. They are doing well, and they look healthy although they haven't quite gotten their richer red color yet (bought them from Petsmart about 10 days ago). As my plants fill in and I see that the tank's parameters are becoming more balanced, I thought I would add a couple more fish. What fish do you all think would look best and would be most compatible? I was considering adding up to 3 more tiger barbs and ending my stock there, knowing that they grow to over 2" and they're semi-aggressive as well.
Secondly, I'm having a problem with one of my pieces of driftwood, the largest one (in the middle). I don't know what kind it is, but I have boiled it twice for about 30 minutes each time and it's been in my tank for about 2 weeks, yet it's still not sinking on its own; it's being propped down by the stone towards the back left corner. Do you know any solutions to this? Perhaps just leave it in an outside container for several weeks and see if it will sink then? I have another piece of driftwood that I had used all the way back in high school (2.5 years ago) that had some java moss attached to it. I decided to keep the stick, thinking I might use it later if I ever set up my tank again. The java moss isn't doing too well though - I have heard a couple stories of people reviving their moss even after long periods of time out of the water, but we'll see.
Here's one picture - the water is cloudy because I've been fiddling with the plants and did a PWC and gravel filter earlier, but it's a start!
Thanks everyone! Looking forward to this.
So after over 2 years, I have returned to start up my tank again - I had to take down my tank at the end of high school because I couldn't have a tank in my dorm, but now I am living off campus so I decided to pick up the hobby again!
This round, I decided to try using higher light - I am using the same fixture from high school but with higher-wattage bulbs and I am using the stock light fixture (with a replaced bulb) as well.
Equipment
20G high glass tank
Whisper 20 power filter (stock HOB)
100 W heater
Coralife Aqualight T5 dual lamp, 1 x 10,000K Coralife 24W bulb, 1 x 6,700K Coralife 24W bulb
DIY CO2 bottle
Mix of Eco-Complete and gravel for substrate
Stock
5 x Tiger Barb
Plants
Baby tears
Pogostemon stellatus
Rotala indica
Amazon sword
Wisteria
Hydrocotyle sp. japan
Ludwigia repens
------
I just got in all the plant clippings (except for the wisteria and swords, which have been in as long as the barbs) today from another AA member, Junglefowl! A big thanks to him for the plant package! I will start dosing ferts later this week; I am going to try the EI system as demonstrated in this Youtube video by PlantedTankUK. I bought the salts and some 500 mL bottles that should be arriving in a couple days.
So, I have a couple questions for you all, and I think I will just post questions for advice and help on this thread unless I have really pertinent help, in which case I will probably search for solutions online.
As I mentioned, I only have 5 tiger barbs in my tank now. They are doing well, and they look healthy although they haven't quite gotten their richer red color yet (bought them from Petsmart about 10 days ago). As my plants fill in and I see that the tank's parameters are becoming more balanced, I thought I would add a couple more fish. What fish do you all think would look best and would be most compatible? I was considering adding up to 3 more tiger barbs and ending my stock there, knowing that they grow to over 2" and they're semi-aggressive as well.
Secondly, I'm having a problem with one of my pieces of driftwood, the largest one (in the middle). I don't know what kind it is, but I have boiled it twice for about 30 minutes each time and it's been in my tank for about 2 weeks, yet it's still not sinking on its own; it's being propped down by the stone towards the back left corner. Do you know any solutions to this? Perhaps just leave it in an outside container for several weeks and see if it will sink then? I have another piece of driftwood that I had used all the way back in high school (2.5 years ago) that had some java moss attached to it. I decided to keep the stick, thinking I might use it later if I ever set up my tank again. The java moss isn't doing too well though - I have heard a couple stories of people reviving their moss even after long periods of time out of the water, but we'll see.
Here's one picture - the water is cloudy because I've been fiddling with the plants and did a PWC and gravel filter earlier, but it's a start!
Thanks everyone! Looking forward to this.