First planted tank....progress thread.

[gil_ong]

Originally Posted by COM

Gil - what happened to your fish?

i turned them all in for an all-shrimp tank.

i think i'll have to get me some Harlequin Rasboras. my wife would really like to see some fish.

[gil_ong]

i had a dream last night about having harlequin rasboras in my tank, so i went to the LFS this morning and bought a dozen.

they started working on the little white specks and the little white worms the moment i released them into the tank.

[trashion]

Boy, Gil, I'm looking to get rid of mine! I would have sent them to you.

[gil_ong]

Originally Posted by trashion

Boy, Gil, I'm looking to get rid of mine! I would have sent them to you.

hmmm.... you still could.

[trashion]

16 harlies is a lot in a 20 gal But I suppose I could. I'll PM you when I get the specifics figured out.

[DLM]

Originally Posted by COM

If interested, why not add some big schools of Harlequin Rasboras and Porkchop Rasboras? They are fantastic and have amazing color patterns. They are also very hardy.

My fish deaths have stopped...finally. Out of the 50+ neons/cardinals I put in...I'm left with a combo of 10. Only 7 of my emperor tetras are left (out of 15)....and I still have all 14 penguin tetras. Since things stabalized, I added some more plants earlier this week...and decided to try more fish. I couldn't decide on which Rasbora to try....so I went with two types. Ordered the fish Wed., picked them up yesterday. 21 Hengelis, and 12 Harlequins....hopefully they will be stronger than the other fish I've tried. Thanks again for the suggestion....I love the look of those hengelis and harlequins.

A few pics from last night:




Hengelis:



Harlequin:


The emperors and penguins begging for food.....and the penguins are the only fish that seem to eat what I give them:



Not sure why my fish are so picky about eating. I can't tell if they are afraid to hang out at top long enough to eat (very tall and open tank), or they just don't like what I'm giving them. I watch every fish other than the penguins spit their food out after they taste it. They are still alive...so they must be eating something. I'm trying regular "tropical fish flakes", spirulina flakes, tube worm cubes, and frozen brine shrimp (emperors actually like this). The fish I have in my office tank aren't picky at all and eat whatever they see (neons, rasboras...and a brevis in a 12 gallon tank). I'll keep treating them like I do my kid.....give them plenty of choices and let them eat what they eat.

[fishboy689]

Very nice

Scary catfish

[DLM]

Came home yesterday and found a box from gil_ong.

It contained these:


And these:


I just hope they do as good in my tank as they are in his.

Guess I'll go ahead and post yet another pic of my tank with the new additions from Gil up front on the far left, and far right of the tank (and a few more Amazon Swords in the middle):




I almost threw out all the hornwort I had...pulled it out of the trash can and wrapped it around my filter pieces though (top left and right of the tank). Some of the fish like to use it to hide when they are in the upper area of the tank....guess it doesn't look too bad just floating around in the corner. Plan on keeping it trimmed though because the stuff had gone nuts and was taking over the tank. Still need something tall in the middle...I'm hoping the wisteria will get tall and I'll plant some more on the right to balance things out.

[Ichthius]

Your tank is beautiful! It's progressed nicely. Love it.

[gil_ong]

DLM, did you get any Vals from Fish on t3h OT? those things are supposed to grow up to 12 inches, so it might work well for filling in the bare spot.

[DLM]

Originally Posted by Ichthius

Your tank is beautiful! It's progressed nicely. Love it.

Thanks. It's been a learning experience for sure..

Originally Posted by gil_ong

DLM, did you get any Vals from Fish on t3h OT? those things are supposed to grow up to 12 inches, so it might work well for filling in the bare spot.

I got some, but by the time it got here it was in rough shape. Mostly brown and the tips already rotting. The pieces had nice roots so I still have hope for the small chunks that survived. Leaves are green now...just not growing. If they don't show some growth soon, I'll try putting them in a different spot with more light.

[gil_ong]

mine look similarly sad.

they're recovering, but aren't really growing. between the 4 vals that i received, i think i'm getting 2 new shoots. hope they hang in there and come around.

[blcknwitecuban]

your tank is beautiful! very nice for your first planted.

[DLM]

Originally Posted by blcknwitecuban

your tank is beautiful! very nice for your first planted.

Thanks. Took a new pic last night. Still haven't planted one of the potted cryps or the baby tears. We're moving next month so I figure I'll just plant them at the new home. Moving this tank is going to be a freakin' nightmare.... If I had known we were going to move 3 months ago, I wouldn't have started this tank.




The problem I'm having now is the green algae takeover... I have to clean the glass every other day, and it's starting to cover the leaves of the plants and the snails. The driftwood is practically green now...



Gil's plants are doing great (plants on far right and left of the tank). Thanks again Gil!

[gil_ong]

the tank looks fantastic. glad you like the plants, D.

i've recently been looking into Malaysian Trumpet Snails to help with the algae and to keep the substarte loose. haven't really looked into where to get them. let me know if you come across any.

[UroStealth]

I'm loving it.