thegrandpoohbah

That's the cause of your cloudy water. If the filter is new then the tank is probably not cycled yet.

Despite what the packaging says, an AC50 is nowhere near enough filtration for a 55G tank. Consider upgrading to an AC70 at least. I've no idea what size your fish are now but they will all grow to a pretty decent size and that little filter will not be able to keep up. I run my two 50G tanks using a Rena XP2 and XP3 and odds are I don't have as big a fish load as you do.

So far so good. I put in a few random clippings including: Cryptocoryne balansae, Cryptocoryne wendtii 'Mi Oya', Vallisneria and Hygrophila polysperma. The fish haven't started nibbling yet so they should be able to take root. I'm using pool filter sand as the substrate. Also, it helps that the fish are only 0.75 to 1.5" big.

I want to put some Cryptocoryne balansae into my 50G with some P. saulosi juvies. Just wondering if the plants will survive. Has anyone done this before and what were your results?

96W of flourescent light will only be enough for softies and mushrooms. If you want LPS, SPS or clams then be prepared to shell out a whole lot more moolah for better lights. On a 24" tank your best bet would be a 150W metal halide fixture with power compact actinic supplementation or a 4 x 24W T5HO fixture with individual parabolic reflectors over each bulb. The T5HO has the same wattage as the T6 fixture you're looking at but the reflectors are what makes the difference. Flat, one piece reflectors or even contoured reflectors do not reflect the light as efficiently as parabolic reflectors do. What it comes down to is what do you want to keep in terms of corals and how much money are you willing to spend? I've been looking at lighting options for a 24G Nanocube and anything decent is going to run over $300.

Goldfish are cold water fish, everything else you listed is tropical so right there you have some compatibility issues. Also, keep in mind that clown loaches can grow almost as big as your pleco (albeit, very slowly) so that would be one very heavily stocked tank.

If you wanted schooling fish then Denisoni barbs would be better. They would be big enough to not become dinner. A bit pricey though...

Go with a T5HO if you want to do plants, regular output T5 bulbs won't cut it in a tank that deep. As for CO2, you will need it if you upgrade your lights. Ferts and root tabs will help with plant growth but will not provide the carbon that they need. You COULD use Flourish Excel by Seachem but that gets expensive for a large tank.

My favourite schooling fish are Harlequin rasboras. Or, if you have a big enough tank, some Denisoni barbs.

Get some Prime by Seachem. It is a water conditioner that also detoxifies ammonia. Expensive but worth it, especially given your current situation.

If you can't buy decent food locally you can always order it online.

I like Omega One myself, mostly because the first two ingredients aren't fish meal and wheat flour. Most people here swear by New Life Spectrum as well. What do you feed now?

As stated, usually caused by improper nutrition. Make sure to feed a high quality food. If you choose to treat with meds, metronidazole is about the only thing that actually works.

Actually, the cycling process takes closer to 4 weeks. Unless you were using seeded filter media from an existing established tank.

Looks like a Fluval 2 Plus internal filter.

Looks more like a 33G. Still, I wouldn't want to take that chance.

Just checked it out and it wasn't worth the time. The fishroom is big but a lot of tanks are still empty and it looks like they haven't quite finished the construction. Half the dry goods didn't have prices yet and neither did any of the tanks on display. I'm hoping that this was a soft opening and not their idea of a grand opening. Time will tell I guess.

Anyone know if there will be any grand opening specials or sales?

Because liquid waste is channeled from the tank into a series of underground pipes where it is released into the soil (usually underneath the lawn) and broken down by bacteria. I'm guessing salt water would kill the lawn, hence the original poster's dilemma.

Here's the tank a few weeks ago. Everything was growing in nicely. Then the val started taking over and crowding out the Pogostemon. So I ripped it all out and replaced it with some hygro (I think). I'm still not happy with the way it looks but this will do for now until I can find a better plant for the back right corner. I also need to paint the intake tube black so it blends into the background better.

For platy and guppy fry finely crushed flake food is sufficient. I'd skip the breeding trap though as mom will tend to eat them all. Just make sure the tank has lots of hiding places (java moss is great) and they will have a much better chance at survival. Gestation period is roughly 30 days so make sure you have lots of tank space or you will soon be overrun with fry.

18" tubes will either be 15 or 20W. In a 55G tank that is definitely not enough to grow any carpet plants. I'd look into a power compact fluorescent (PC) or T5HO (high output) fixture which will give you a lot more options for plants. Be prepared to spend some money though.

How much light do you have? Just about any carpet plant will require good lighting (>2WPG) and CO2 to grow properly. Otherwise they tend to grow tall and scraggly.

Aluminum doesn't rust but makes a lousy reflector unless it is polished.

Actually, only the fake coral piece in the middle rotates.