Posts by Avery

Quote from darrie53

Do you have any updates on where you added the driftwood at? I’m curious since I’m thinking about getting a turtle after reading that article guide on here.

Yes! I just added in 3 more photos, to show the updates. I took the piece of driftwood from my column tank since my local store that has driftwood in bulk has been out for awhile now, and have added in some Anubias since the turtle ate all of the Anacharis that was in there before. Additionally, you can see the nice calcium lines forming on the glass and on the equipment (which I won’t really take care of until I move this turtle into its final, bigger aquarium setup).

Have you kept a clam only tank before? And if so, what was your experience with them and how did you have the tank laid out (any corals, live rocks, or decorations)? Is there anything that you would have wished you knew beforehand that would have made your experience (and others who might try it after reading your experience) night and day better?

I would suggest getting a PAR light meter, since it can sit at the bottom of your tank or at any level and tell you the actual light reading it’s getting back (since fish swimming around will change the light level slightly and same with the surface agitation).

I normally don’t mind the snails unless they are huge pests one. Then I would avoid getting a fish just to eat the snails (same said when people have algae problems and get an algae eater) as once the problem is gone, you have an additional thing to kept fed differently in your tank.

I would probably advise, if you have no sensitive species and have verified this through each species’ profile, that something copper based wouldn’t hurt them and you don’t plan to do many changes soon with your stocking, to dose with medicine and then heavily gravel vac + huge huge water changes after.

Otherwise I would advise to use vegetables on a fork and in the middle of the night to pull it out every so often and get the snails that way. It’s less ideal since not all of the snails may actually go to that food source, but should help keep numbers in check if done frequently enough.

Looks like an event started last weekend, and ends November 28 2021. I’m not sure if this is regional since my contact and area don’t have this going on, but just as a word to all to check!

With a bunch of the shopping still being done online, minus the handful of stores or pieces of equipment that are just too big to handle online (ex; Petsmart’s deal on their aquarium tank and stand combo), what are you looking to try to grab this season?

Where do you purchase your shells for your crabs and snails at, and how do you disinfect them properly if you purchased them at a craft store for example? Do you look for any specific designs or types of shells (non-painted, for example)? Have you tried using any shells that aren't actually shells but were created from a molding of some kind?

Like any new substrate (or even re-used substrate), do you tend to rinse it out thoroughly or do you just put it into your tank and let any debris settle out over time? Do you have any types of tests that you do to determine if you actually need to rinse it out (ex; putting some in a bucket and stirring it around to see if it makes the water cloudy)?

I’m not too sure, it really depends if they have a way to label out your given tanks or if they really will only let you link one at a time (which I feel like is the worst case possible).

Did you give it a shot and see what happens/happened?

With all the types of foods out there, which ones you do you feed your fish and why?

With some species it can honestly be super easy to catch them in a net, however others are either super fast or are super smart and can avoid being caught in a net for awhile. What are your go to methods to make sure you can catch all of the fish in your tank with a net if needed?

I think efficiency really can only be talked about based on how big your tank size is, and other equipment. As far as more reliable, it tends to be those that aren’t cheap when it comes to protein skimmers and those with brands you know will be around (ex; name brands) for warranty and part reasons alone.

From a chemical reaction standpoint, I believe that it would take a large amount of time for any element to be fully released and not able to be re-captured by any substrate. Similar to how many use those (in freshwater) planted tank substrates such as Flourite which will release and soak up specific chemicals.

I do always try to keep a fine layer around the whole bottom, and dependent on species I will add more in specific areas to try to have them be more comfortable by creating hills in the sand as if it was done naturally by the tide/current.

I’ve seen people use all different types of sand that come in a bulk like pricing/package, such as you noted pool filter sand, play sand, or the black diamond grit blasting sand. I’ve even seen people who try to buy those plastic pebbles (the ones with weight) to use, or the colorful rocks that you see for sale for like 1 bag full (a handheld bag) for $2 (these rocks are cheap when bought in bulk).

I try to not recommend adding a breeder box or separating into a different tank, since it can add some additional stress especially due to the fact that many of the breeder boxes are small and kind of restrict their movement in the tank. Additionally, many livebearers eat their own fry without realizing as they have no parental aspects (unlike cichlids, for example) for their fry.

An ideal case is to just add many of hiding spots where the adult fish cannot get towards (having some type of bigger next near the bottom, adding additional plants that are thick to provide them with shelter and cover, etc.).

I will normally take some flake food, or even better, sometime small like a leaf and see how it will move around. By dropping it at various levels in the water column and different areas in the tank, you can see where the water current is going and what it would be like for a fish. This also gives you a good idea of dead spots (areas where there is no current so debris and other things settle).

I’ve never personally heard of any anemones having ich, are you sure that there aren’t any other invertebrates (hitchhikers even) that may have been accidentally added in who carried it? It could also be that those snails (not sure if you added them proper or not) may have carried it and now it’s finally showing traces.

I’d separate out in another QT tank to make sure, but ideally if your main tank is fishless running an ich treatment should take care of everything including treating the snails.

I know that there are a bunch of people who have seen this happen, specifically due to the fact that the gender of a livebearer is noted to be done by whichever organs are done first (I’m not sure if there is any actual studies done on this matter or not).

In other cases, it could be seen where a female gives birth, and then gets fin nipped on their bottom fin to appear to look like a male’s fin/organ. Or their fin grows out longer similar to like a high-fin variety, which can give a false positive. Similar to how some high-fin makes look like females but to their fin being longer and flowing, like a female’s would be.

I’m not sure if there is enough of an actual science study done to confirm this or not, however many other species (examples include clownfish) can swap genders if there aren’t enough of the current gender to support breeding in their current environment. Many believe that this trait is in other fish/aquatic species, with some being unconfirmed such as with livebearers.

Have you installed any bulkheads in your own aquarium, and if so, do you have any tips & tricks that others should know about?

Additionally, did you completely drill the tank or just install the bulkhead into a pre-drilled hole?

Inside of your aquarium(s), what would you consider to be your centerpiece fish in them? Is it a lone species, or is it a giant shoal/school of fish that just catches your eye as they move around the tank?