Returned to hobby after a hiatus, questions

Discussion in 'Freshwater Aquariums' started by Jfriend33, Apr 17, 2014.

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  1. Sataly

    Sataly Coral Banded Shrimp

    Joined:
    Apr 24, 2014
    Messages:
    360
    Location:
    Spring Texas
    Thing with plecos is that they get lazy. Its rare for them to actually "kill" another fish but it does happen. When I was more into fw I had a royal pleco that was a lazy good for nothing till he got a taste for discus and started to literally jumping on the sides of them and sucking on them till they stressed out so much it killed them. The Otto cats are great additions and won't harm anything. i would keep those barbs fed well. Ive heard some stories here and there that they can and have turn to eating other fish if tempted enough.

    And you can never have to much filtration for a fw! When I did tropheus I had a wetdry rated for a 120 and 2 2215 classics. Clean tank = super happy trophs.

    Edit: that's whst I grt for not reading thoroughly. Thoguht you had albino bristle nose plecos but yet Chinese algae eaters woth do the same thing as some plecos will.
     
    Last edited: May 8, 2014
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  3. Jfriend33

    Jfriend33 Plankton

    Joined:
    Apr 17, 2014
    Messages:
    9
    Thanks for your input. If the Golden algae eaters get too big or aggressive I'll relocate or rehome them.

    The green barbs are food hogs! Great personality tho! They see me and they go nuts! They see the food container and they want dinner!

    I have an issue with my water parameters. I just purchased a new api kit. It expires in 2019.
    nitrates 10ppm
    nitrites. 0ppm
    Ammonia 0
    Ph 8.2

    Upon testing my tapwater the regular pH turned blue or 7.6. But I went ahead and retested with the high end ph and it was 7.4. Why would this happen?

    I also let my tap sample set out overnight 24 hrs later I retested. Apparently dissolved c02 can cause a false high reading? It still tested the same.

    I've never had my pH go above 8 unless using specific rocks for cichlids.

    In fact my pH always was around 6.6 when filtered through peat for discus. The pH all those years ago of the tap was 7.2. I dunno it's really confusing. I guess I'll do more water changes.

    So my petco had some duetto filters clearanced. I now have a 100gph filter blowing on the bottom. The fish really love swimming against the current!

    The algae eaters hate it. They try cleaning against the current then get blown away lol.

    They also had a Fluval 306 original price $169 marked half off. Only missing tubing. Never used. The woman said to call back soon when the gm was gone and she'd give me a deal I couldn't resist! So hopefully I'll get it for 75% off or more. Then I'll keep it for a bigger tank or resell on eBay!

    Anybody ever use rain water in their tank? Considering having my nephew use it for water changes who has extremely hard 8.8ph water. That wouldn't need a buffer like RO water would it?
     
  4. Jfriend33

    Jfriend33 Plankton

    Joined:
    Apr 17, 2014
    Messages:
    9
    Do you guys think $150 for a 75 gallon tank with a good stand, hood, lights, and a few emperor filters is a good deal? No wooden canopy. Tank is 5 years old, doesn't leak, comes from a trusted source.
     
  5. Jfriend33

    Jfriend33 Plankton

    Joined:
    Apr 17, 2014
    Messages:
    9
    [​IMG][​IMG]

    My new algae scrubber I built with my nephew. Using an led clamp light for now.

    Worried about mineral deposits forming on my Eclipse hood.
     
  6. Marshall O

    Marshall O Giant Squid

    Joined:
    Jun 19, 2012
    Messages:
    3,517
    Location:
    Central MA
    I would hold out for one that is reef ready with a sump, return pump, and plumbing personally. You should be able to get one for about the same price or maybe a little more.
     
  7. Jfriend33

    Jfriend33 Plankton

    Joined:
    Apr 17, 2014
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    [​IMG]

    $159?!?!

    Man if I knew these would be this valuable....