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captaincritical said:
Thanks for the input! My only concern is that my phone camera makes it look more pink than it appears to the naked eye. Either way it appears to be stable, so I suppose that's what's important.
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stable is the most important thing for sure
 
Thanks very much for the input, folks!

I've been sitting here thinking all day about what I should do with my aquarium over the next few days. I go to pick up my seeded media tomorrow from a gentleman I found locally. I don't drive but my parents will be in town so they're planning on giving me a lift. He says I can have as much as I need, because he has 24 tanks up and running (!!!).

I can't decide if I should finish cycling fishlessly (how's that for an adverb?) with the active filter media, knowing that I don't have access to ammonia and would have to mess up my tank with uneaten fish food, or if I should pick up a small number of fish to feed the BB once I get them. Would this be cruel? Would the fish be harmed in any way so long as I do frequent PWCs and keep a really close eye on my water parameters? I've seen so many people say that it's possible to cycle a tank "instantly" with dirty filter media, but I'm not sure how much faith to put in that kind of statement.

Suggestions? If waiting is better, I'll wait. It'll probably be 2 or 3 weeks before I have access to immediate, non-bus transportation again, but if that's what's best for the fish, then that's what I'll do.
 
I would wait. If you can just add the fish food or a frozen shrimp from the market. With seeded media it will only take a few days or a week to cycle fully
 
I'll probably go with the fish food then. Do you think putting it in the toe of a pair of pantyhose would keep the mess to a minimum?

The shrimp idea is definitely a no-go. In addition to my four cats, who would inevitably try and get at it, I'm a vegetarian and I don't like the idea of a dead animal decaying in my apartment. =P
 
captaincritical said:
I'll probably go with the fish food then. Do you think putting it in the toe of a pair of pantyhose would keep the mess to a minimum?

The shrimp idea is definitely a no-go. In addition to my four cats, who would inevitably try and get at it, I'm a vegetarian and I don't like the idea of a dead animal decaying in my apartment. =P
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Yes definetly, the panty hose idea is very good!!! I never thought about that. Also crank your heat up to about 86 to speed the cycle up a bit!!!
 
I am inching ever closer to fish ownership! :ROFLMAO:

Picked up my seeded media today from a lovely gentleman I met through the local pet classifieds. My mother was in town this evening so he gave us both a tour of his basement. He has 23 tanks up and running! All of his fish looked very healthy and happy. I was going from tank to tank naming things for my mother, and he mentioned that I really knew my fish. If only he knew that I've spent the last month online reading anything and everything I could find about them! He also gave me information about our local aquaria club, which I definitely plan on joining. It was a great night.

I brought the dirty sponge media back home and installed it right away, and then went out for dinner and some shopping. We ended up at one of my LFSs (I wonder how that happened?) and I came home with some Java Moss and some new tank decorations. After I positioned a new rock and the moss, I tested my water just on a whim.

My ammonia has already gone down a little, from 0.5 to 0.25! I didn't see any nitrites at all, but I was gone for about 4 hours after I put in the seeded media. I now have a reading of 5.0 for nitrates. I don't think I've ever been so thrilled to see the colour orange! Is this even possible? Is 4 hours enough time for newly-added BB to convert ammonia to nitrates? :blink:

Anyway, here are some pictures of my tank with the new stuff added. I still have a piece of driftwood to work in somehow, but it can wait until tomorrow.

Can you tell how excited I am about seemingly trivial things?! :lol:

img_2855322_0_e6d3644785b6e3b3bcdcfd0fcdb26071.jpg

Forgive my little pieces of floating moss; I'd just put it in.

img_2855322_1_3f635e67bac408b6193f6d4c19169748.jpg
 
Awesome! I'm guessing this guy has some serious bb going! I'm not surprised they chowed down on your tank that fast at all! My Lfs have me some super charged bugs too! Very happy this is going so well over there:)
 
Thank you! Me too. Levels look about the same this morning. I added a pinch of fish food to keep things going. At least with my unexpected hitchhiker snails, I've got something to watch until everything is nicely cycled. Their little snout things are strangely adorable.
 
captaincritical said:
Thank you! Me too. Levels look about the same this morning. I added a pinch of fish food to keep things going. At least with my unexpected hitchhiker snails, I've got something to watch until everything is nicely cycled. Their little snout things are strangely adorable.
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the mts will eat your fish food so you may want to stick it in the filter or suspend it in pantyhose or a mesh satchel..
 
I'll keep that in mind, thanks. Right now they're so tiny I doubt they could even make a dent in it before it breaks down. If my ammonia doesn't rise, I'll go buy a pair of knee-highs for sure.
 
captaincritical said:
I'll keep that in mind, thanks. Right now they're so tiny I doubt they could even make a dent in it before it breaks down. If my ammonia doesn't rise, I'll go buy a pair of knee-highs for sure.
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do not underestimate mts, after they've bred.. For every 2 you see there is probably 30 you don't..
 
... I'll get some knee highs later today. :lol:

I'm still trying to decide on my final stocking plan. I now understand how everyone ends up with multiple tanks. SO MANY CHOICES.

I saw some glowlight danios at the LFS last night that were absolutely stunning and now I think I have to have some. So active and colourful!

Also the man who gave me the seeded media has offered to give me an albino bristlenose pleco or two because his bred not too long ago. I think for my tank, one would be more than adequate.

I'm also thinking that if I do keep shrimp, it should be in a separate nano tank so they act more naturally. I've read that they seem happier in species-only settings. Plus it's an excuse for another tank. :whistle:

That leaves my stocking looking something like this:
6 Diamond Tetras
8 Glowlight Danios
6 Peppered Cories (the most affordable ones my LFS has)
8000 Hitchhiking Snails
1 Albino Bristlenose Pleco

AqAdvisor puts that at around 92% stocking. Good idea?
 
captaincritical said:
... I'll get some knee highs later today. :lol: I'm still trying to decide on my final stocking plan. I now understand how everyone ends up with multiple tanks. SO MANY CHOICES. I saw some glowlight danios at the LFS last night that were absolutely stunning and now I think I have to have some. So active and colourful! Also the man who gave me the seeded media has offered to give me an albino bristlenose pleco or two because his bred not too long ago. I think for my tank, one would be more than adequate. I'm also thinking that if I do keep shrimp, it should be in a separate nano tank so they act more naturally. I've read that they seem happier in species-only settings. Plus it's an excuse for another tank. :whistle: That leaves my stocking looking something like this: 6 Diamond Tetras 8 Glowlight Danios 6 Peppered Cories (the most affordable ones my LFS has) 8000 Hitchhiking Snails 1 Albino Bristlenose Pleco AqAdvisor puts that at around 92% stocking. Good idea?
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yup! Why I have 3;) I'm not a fan if the unnatural looking fish.. Abn are great, I have one myself. I think one would be good for now, they are poop machines! A 5.5 gal shrimp tank sounds good! Maybe a betta too.. I like the sticklist minus the glos, what about neons??
 
Just wanted to clarify that I'm talking about GlowLIGHT Danios, not Glo Fish. They're a naturally occurring species, Danio Choprae.

Glo Fish are illegal here in Canada. And rightly so, I think. I'm with you on the unnatural-looking fish. With so many beautiful fish out there, why modify them genetically?
 
captaincritical said:
Just wanted to clarify that I'm talking about GlowLIGHT Danios, not Glo Fish. They're a naturally occurring species, Danio Choprae. Glo Fish are illegal here in Canada. And rightly so, I think. I'm with you on the unnatural-looking fish. With so many beautiful fish out there, why modify them genetically?
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gotcha! Just googled them, they look awesome!! I wish they were illegal here, hideous..
 
I don't know that I'd call them hideous, but they're certainly not a favourite of mine. I understand they were created for a helpful purpose, but to then capitalize on it seems... I don't know. Underhanded? Opportunistic, definitely.

Mostly I just think it's unnecessary. Copyrighting a living thing just seems so cold.
 
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