Aquarist - a fishkeeping hobby :)

ooOOooGravy

Hi all, one of my hobbys is fishkeeping, not beeing at it that long... anyone out there a fellow Aquarist?

Current tank and stock:

Juwel Vision 180 (180ltr): with standard Juwel filtration.
3 x 2.5" Common Bristlenose Plecos
1 x 6" Mystis Mystcetus Catfish
2 x 2" Apisto. cacatuoide

Just sold on all my tetras and corys to make way for Malawis!
iv changed the substrate from gravel to coral sand, and added 20kg of ocean rock, not unsuprising the p.h is already 8.1, top job!

Plan in motion...

-Already have a Aqua One External cf-1000 second hand, buying the media this weekend and installing it -Should be getting my new Fluval U3 Internal in the next week and installing that.
-leave to run and cycle both new filters with the Standard Juwel in situ. for at least a week
-sell off the Apisto's
-get a stock of 12 to 15 Malawis (7 of which will be Yellow labs, (2 male, 5 female))
-leave 3 to 4 weeks and remove that ugly Standard Juwel Filter

Vah-lah! a piece of Lake Malawi in my living room!

what you people got and enjoying at the moment?

UpToAnyCool

Not an aquarist - but REALLY fascinated - would you consider posting a few photos? :flowerforyou:

gaeljo

I love fish, I've had them my whole life. Right now have 2 koi and a goldfish in my pond but I bring them in my aquarium in the winter. I realize it's not sexy, but I don't have time for more technical fish at this point. I always wanted a salt water aquarium, but again, I just don't have the time right now. Someday I will though...

JennyJH

Just got Guppies and a common plec at the moment - wonk be messing with restocking until after my holiday.

One word of advice - add the Malawis in small groups and check the ammonia/nitrite/nitrates to ensure the 'mini-cycle' has finished before adding any more.

And I'm sure you know to use media from the Juwel filter in the new filter to speed things up.

Have fun - it's a great hobby.

vim_n_vigor

I have three goldfish that I think at some point were cross bred with pirhanhas. They attack through the glass! I try so hard to get the water in that tank to be clear, but it is always cloudy. I don't think I would be able to keep fish that require a more stable environment than goldfish seeing as I can't get their water clear!

katharos3

Not an aquarist - but REALLY fascinated - would you consider posting a few photos? :flowerforyou:

Yes, please post pictures! Growing up, we had tanks in every room of our house, and I loved it! I would have fish right now, but we have been moving around the country for the last few years and fish don't like long moves. Someday though, we will settle down and I will have a house full of fish again.

JennyJH

Actually, goldfish are one of the hardest fish to keep in a tank. They are filthy and need a huge tank with serious over filtration to cope with their bio-load.


If you can rehome them to someone with a pond, add a heater (and filter if you don't already have one) you could try much easier fish like guppies.

I like guppies.

diverchic73

I got bitten by the fish bug after I started diving 5 years ago.

I've got the below:

Tank 1
3 Dwarf Puffers (Pea / Malabar Puffers)
1 Purple Apple Snail
1 Blue Apple Snail
1 Clown Plecostomus
? cherry shrimp

Tank 2
1 Clown Plecostomus
3 Pepper Corydoras
4 other Corydoras
8 Tiger Barbs
1 Bolivian Ram
8 Dwarf Neon Rainbows (going to store this weekend as they've been breeding and I don't have room for them all now)

Tank 3
1 Monotrete Abei (Abei Puffer)

Tank 4
1 Monotrete Palembangenisis (Palembang / Humpback / Dragon / Black River Puffer)

I'd have more but I don't have the space for any more fish tanks... or the time for the maintenance on more!

Dwarf Puffer


I don't have access to pics of my other fish with me

JennyJH

How big is your tank 1 diverchic? That is the set up my son wants for the 100lt tank - dwarf puffers and shrimp with maybe a snail or two. It has guppies in it at the moment to keep the filter going, but they can go back in the main tank.

ooOOooGravy

ill get some photos on UpToAnyCool tonight when im home, no problems!

Cheers Jenny yeah i moving media about when i install my new filters and leaving it a week with extra fish before removing a few and adding 2 lots of 7 to 8 Malawis. the 3 filters in unison should be capable of handling that amount of fish at once as ill be turning the water over 10 times per hour and filtering for a 550 ltr tank im my diddy 180 (165 after displacment)

iv always wanted a pond but very expensive and alot of hard work to start with lol might make a good exercise routine lol
not too bothered about marine yet, maybe when i win lotto or something lol just to convert my tank, not including fish would cost in-exess of 300 to 400 pound :S (if equipment water and rocks were bought new)

i love goldfish our lass' nanny has two and iv taken them on doing their water changes and getting them a new filter and such, its like they are mine now lol

stripeyrache

I have a 30L BiOrb which is currently housing a single amano shrimp!
The last of my cardinal tetras passed last week and I'm thinking of just going for platys now.
Will probably need to cycle the tank beforehand so the shrimp may have to go on a little holiday to my friends house!
I do love my tank though and when it's fully stocked and got all the plants on it is so pretty, I could watch it for hours!

ooOOooGravy

nice tanks diverchic73! you like your puffers! not kept them myself, but have read they need the tank space! and dont like friend much, even dwarfs?

i had a sort attempt a breeding Apistos in a second tank but getting soft water qualiy with low ph in my area was impossible lol so iv opted for the high ph fish to hopefully breed i think even my BNs might have a chance of breeding in the tank too, who knows?

i have a small 15ltr im itching to set up as a small red cherry shrimp tank, and farm the excess young for live food in main tank and sell on, but not ot round it it as yet. however i do love shrimp they are so great to watch!

diverchic73

How big is your tank 1 diverchic? That is the set up my son wants for the 100lt tank - dwarf puffers and shrimp with maybe a snail or two. It has guppies in it at the moment to keep the filter going, but they can go back in the main tank.

Hi, I'm not sure of the exact size but I go by a minimum of 5 gallons per dwarf puffer plus more for the plec and the snails.

One thing with puffers is that they are VERY high maintenance.

Weekly tank cleans with minimum 50% water change every time due to their high bioload.

you like your puffers! not kept them myself, but have read they need the tank space! and dont like friend much, even dwarfs?

LOVE my puffs - they def do need their space though as they need very good water conditions. The Dwarf Puffs are communal and get along as long as there are nooks and crannies and plants and stuff and they're not always looking at each other.

A lot of other puffs are very aggressive - or are piscevorours so would eat other fish in the tank. My Palembang is a piscevor and the Abe is extremely aggressive so neither of them will every have tankmates that aren't intended as food (shirmp or crabs normally).

JennyJH

Thanks for the info - that is high maintenance!! Definately wait until I have more time for them:laugh:

AEcklar813

We love fish here In our living room we have a 75 gallon tank with cichlids and some chaser fish. Actually a lot of our cichlids are dying now =( Also in our living room we have a 20 gallon tank with some small cichlids in them. In our daughters room we have a tank with a turtle. We are animal lovers though. We also have a dog, a cat, and a bunny.

rhan90

I've had fish on/off since I was young, but for the last 2 years I've been trying to be a better fishkeeper and learn as much as I can I'm a bit of a fish nut, always wanting to learn that bit more and see different fish species. I'm pretty much religious with my weekly water changes and have pretty good success with my fish, compared to when I was younger and knew very little. I have tropical community fish at the moment, but would love to own discus one day (one day!) and dabble with saltwater. I still live at home, so no more tanks until I have my own place in a few years time.

Currently have three tanks:
Aqua one ar850 (approx 160 litres)
- 1 full-grown male bristlenose
-4 platies
-1 balloon molly
-6 pygmy corydoras (corydoras pygmaeous)
-5 kuhli loaches
-many cherry shrimp

2foot long tank:
-some small, male platy fry
-2 adult peppered corydoras, 1 younger one and 1 baby one Also appears to be 2 even younger babies hiding!

Aqua one 340 pro:
-assorted platy fry

The cory breeding thing is a very new thing for me, I lovingly refer to them as my 'fatsos' in honour of my first cory whom is still here, fatso She's about 4 years old or so and is an awesome fish. Cories will always have a place in my heart

I'm a member of a really great fish forum, if anyone is interested in knowing which, just ask I haven't been on there in ages, but it is a very friendly, helpful place to get information and see the beautiful fish other people have. It was what really drove me to learn more about fishkeeping and realise how much I can do to improve the lives of my fish.

ooOOooGravy

im struggling on how to get photos on the forum, but ill put a pic on my profile ones of my catfish, shes been named Bella after my fiancée dog, as they share similar behaviour... hyper activeness at inappropriate times lol

NoWeighJose74

LOVE that I found this thread! I'm a fellow fishkeeper.

Mine is a 6ft 125gallon freshwater with Live plants tank. The main pieces are my 9 Discus.
Also have a school of about 100 cardinal tetras, cory cats and about 100 Amano shrimp.

Here are a few pics:

porffor

What a great thread!! bumping it up so I can re-read it later properly.

I got bitten by the fish bug after I started diving 5 years ago.

I've got the below:

Tank 1
3 Dwarf Puffers (Pea / Malabar Puffers)
1 Purple Apple Snail
1 Blue Apple Snail
1 Clown Plecostomus
? cherry shrimp

Tank 2
1 Clown Plecostomus
3 Pepper Corydoras
4 other Corydoras
8 Tiger Barbs
1 Bolivian Ram
8 Dwarf Neon Rainbows (going to store this weekend as they've been breeding and I don't have room for them all now)

Tank 3
1 Monotrete Abei (Abei Puffer)

Tank 4
1 Monotrete Palembangenisis (Palembang / Humpback / Dragon / Black River Puffer)

I'd have more but I don't have the space for any more fish tanks... or the time for the maintenance on more!

Dwarf Puffer


I don't have access to pics of my other fish with me

I have a lonely little dwarf puffer (hannibal as he eat his mate..) in a solo 18" tank.
My main tank is 36" / 120L with
2 fully grown leopard bush fish
4 bristlenose plecs (1 male 3 female though no breeding to my disapointment)
1 red tailed shark
6 various breed corydoras
and a fish I can't remember what it is! :huh: :laugh:

Need to liven that tank up as I lost my barbs some time ago and when the leopards and the bottom dwellers are hiding it's a bit 'still' in their.. can't have anything small though as the bushfish do the whole 'vortex' eating so open their mouths with membranes super wide.

porffor

LOVE that I found this thread! I'm a fellow fishkeeper.

Mine is a 6ft 125gallon freshwater with Live plants tank. The main pieces are my 9 Discus.
Also have a school of about 100 cardinal tetras, cory cats and about 100 Amano shrimp.

Here are a few pics:

Wow and wow and well WOW!! love it.

ooOOooGravy

Glad rhis thread got back up and running, stunning Discus tank there mate! Be proud! How do you add photos to threads and ill pop some on, update on my tank.

3 bristlenose pleco, think they are all male still juvies and difficult to tell
Albino Mystis mycetus catfish
1 male yellow lab
3 zebra reefs ice blue 1f 2m
1 male Alonacara stuartgarnti
2 male Copdiochromis borleyi
And another bright blue mbuna iv yet to identify,
Will be adding another 4 in next fortnight

crisanderson27

I used to keep a 300gal planted tank. I really enjoyed the challenge of maintaining the balance necessary to keep the plants thriving, without Co2 injection etc. It's been a few years lol...and my choice of fish wasn't exactly conventional...but it worked well lol.

I'll have to see if I can dig up any pictures. They're all mostly on my old PC...so it may not be possible.

NoWeighJose74

Glad rhis thread got back up and running, stunning Discus tank there mate! Be proud! How do you add photos to threads and ill pop some on, update on my tank.

3 bristlenose pleco, think they are all male still juvies and difficult to tell
Albino Mystis mycetus catfish
1 male yellow lab
3 zebra reefs ice blue 1f 2m
1 male Alonacara stuartgarnti
2 male Copdiochromis borleyi
And another bright blue mbuna iv yet to identify,
Will be adding another 4 in next fortnight

You have to upload them to a hosting site. I use photobucket. Then you can link them from there.

NoWeighJose74

I used to keep a 300gal planted tank. I really enjoyed the challenge of maintaining the balance necessary to keep the plants thriving, without Co2 injection etc. It's been a few years lol...and my choice of fish wasn't exactly conventional...but it worked well lol.

I'll have to see if I can dig up any pictures. They're all mostly on my old PC...so it may not be possible.

Man I'd kill for a 300gal! I've been tempted to upsize, but my wife would probably kill me lol.

I have high lighting, so I'm using CO2 injection and dry fertilizer supplementation. My largest discus is about 7" across.

crisanderson27

I used to keep a 300gal planted tank. I really enjoyed the challenge of maintaining the balance necessary to keep the plants thriving, without Co2 injection etc. It's been a few years lol...and my choice of fish wasn't exactly conventional...but it worked well lol.

I'll have to see if I can dig up any pictures. They're all mostly on my old PC...so it may not be possible.

Man I'd kill for a 300gal! I've been tempted to upsize, but my wife would probably kill me lol.

I have high lighting, so I'm using CO2 injection and dry fertilizer supplementation. My largest discus is about 7" across.

It was fun...the thing was basically a room divider. My wife both loved, and hated it.

For lighting, I was using (yes, and when I say it worked...I was selling plants on aquaria central like mad) four Home Depot reflected shop lights (I believe T8...been awhile) with the best bulbs home depot had. I used strictly bio filtration, and kept enough plecos to keep the algae down. I supplemented their food with tablets as well...and used half the recommended dosage of liquid fertilizer. I can't remember the brand name...but it's the one everyone uses. I used the 3m acrylic pool sand, in black...by the way. Awesome stuff once you get it to settle. I had some really cool driftwood, too.

Everyone told me the thing wouldn't work...lol. As I kept posting more and more pictures though...the results surprised even me. It ended up a beautiful tank...planted only slightly heavier than yours...but with slightly less ground cover.