Qattarra

Wow I can't wait to see them !( maybe Patrick can take some pics j/k lol) Where did they come from?

What I've done is brought in a picture I downloaded from a website to a lady at our local potter's guild and asked her to make me some. It was also cheaper that buying them on Aquabid.

Hi . Sounds like a fun tank. Is it for sale?The ray for sale? How much?

:welcome: to AA

For plants you might have some success with the vals and maybe anubias. The rest will be eaten quickly.

This page may give you some inspiration . Look at the ones where the rocks all lay in the same direction , IMO it looks more appealing to the eye as there is flow and continuity.

http://aqualandpetsplus.com/Decor%20Rocks.htm

It's been demonstrated a lot that a sturdy, properly made tank can withstand a huge amount of weight and pressure from large rocks. I'm sure you could find this in archives . I do believe the use of egg crate is to buffer the fall should a large rock get knocked over.

I'm sorry you haven't found playing around with your design fun About every 3 months I'll pull my african tank apart for a few reasons. 1. I overfeed (guilty) so I want to vacuum up around the bottom . 2. I look for babies. 3. I like to re-arrange the "look". 4. My finned friends like to uproot my flora plastica so I need to replant ,lol. I'm currently using large lava rocks that don't slip against each other. They are very rough however so I have considered sanding them down to smooth them off a bit but that may wreck the wild look . I may someday decide to switch it up and go with the boulder look.

Looks like terrific parents. During feedings , it's dinner and a show lol .

I think it looks fun . I would be concerned with stability though. Can the fish dig under or next to it? Do you have more rocks? It might look more natural and be more sturdy if the rocks were all laying in the same direction ( horizontal). Just my two bits. Keep experimenting and enjoy it.

"thud" , hummm , might be brain damaged lol. Are they good producers?

Awesome! The next steps are water changes and learning your water chemistry.

:welcome: to AA. Indeed we have some great people on here and advice is always free.

I myself, have never kept salt water tanks but there are many on here who have .

Are you preparing by fishless cycling your tank?

Thank you Brian . Sad to see you go . Good luck in your future endeavors.

General tidy-ups is a wet issue for me as I'm not 6'6", not even 5'6". I siphon 50% of the water out, use a sponge on a stick and a long vacuum hose. Sometimes (if I've been overfeeding) I'll refill the tank and drain 1/2 again. This gives me a total of 75% WC. I use Prime and a hose right from the tap. My hardest part is if I'm re-sealing or cleaning out the tank completely. Then I need an extra person or two .

Vieja synspilum

http://www.cichlid-forum.com/profiles/species.php?id=105

Sounds diseased to me .

Do you come down to Edmonton for shopping? I'm sure we could help you get rid of them ;D

I'm always willing to take some feeders

:welcome: to AA Sue

Convicts ...yummm yummmm...lungfish food ;D

The only recipe I know of for convicts are male+female=babies lol. They'll likely lay eggs on a hard surface like a large smooth rock .

Hi and :welcome: . So MTS is rampant lol . What are you keeping in those 11 tanks? Sue

Fish stores also market ``water softening pillows''. They use the same ion-exchange principle. One ``recharges'' the pillow by soaking it in a salt water solution, then places it in the tank where the sodium ions are released into the water and replaced by calcium and magnesium ions. After a few hours or days, the pillow (along with the calcium and magnesium) are removed, and the pillow recharged. The pillows sold in stores are too small to work well in practice, and shouldn't be used for the same reason cited above.

Peat moss softens water and reduces its hardness (GH). The most effective way to soften water via peat is to aerate water for 1-2 weeks in a bucket containing peat moss. For example, get a (plastic) bucket of the appropriate size. Then, get a large quantity of peat (a gallon or more), boil it (so that it sinks), stuff it in a pillow case, and place it in the water bucket. Use an air pump to aerate it. In 1-2 weeks, the water will be softer and more acidic. Use this aged water when making partial water changes on your tank.

Peat can be bought at pet shops, but it is expensive. It is much more cost-effective to buy it in bulk at a local gardening shop. Read labels carefully! You don't want to use peat containing fertilizers or other additives.

Although some folks place peat in the filters of their tanks, the technique has a number of drawbacks. First, peat clogs easily, so adding peat isn't always effective. Second, peat can be messy and may cloud the water in your tank. Third, the exact quantity of peat needed to effectively soften your water is difficult to estimate. Using the wrong amount results in the wrong water chemistry. Finally, when doing water changes, your tank's chemistry changes when new water is added (it has the wrong properties). Over the next few days, the chemistry changes as the peat takes effect. Using aged water helps ensure that the chemistry of your tank doesn't fluctuate while doing water changes.

Hard water can also be softened by diluting it with distilled water or R/O water. R/O (reverse-osmosis) water is purified water made by a R/O unit. Unfortunately, R/O units are too expensive ($100-$500) for most hobbyists. R/O water can also be purchased at some fish stores, but for most folks the expense and hassle are not worth it. The same applies to distilled water purchased at grocery stores.

baking soda? Epson salts?

"I guess the other options are placing some of the new media and pads in the new tank and let them sit few a weeks"

Sorry for the confusion . I meant if you decide to cycle the tank before then you'll need to take steps to do so . I agree , just move everything over, I do not think you'll need to cycle first as you should already have enough bacs to maintain your bio load.

I would do just that , hang the old filter onto the new tank (if you can). If not do use all the media from the old tank . You could hang it in a large fish net or mesh stocking in front of the water return so the water flows through it. If all you have are guppies, they don't have a lot of a bio footprint in a 90, put them in . Make sure the water is not cold for them , it has to be a t least as warm as the old tank . As for the gravel , you could put that into the new tank too but in a plastic basin so you could easily remove it later.

What else will you eventually add to this tank? I'm thinking you could later add plants, the guppies will love it.

Keep in mind, you can't cycle a new tank just by running it a few weeks. If you haven't already, read up on the fishless cycle.