Posts by Avery

    Betta fish have such a wide personality that it can be hard to say that they may be completely fine with your shrimp (some will keep pecking at them as if they are food, etc.). Some good fish are normally those of similar size (tetras are a good example), or those commonly referred to as dither fish (almost all species of danios for example).

    Can you define dying? Are the leaves turning yellow and then fading away, or is something else going on?

    How far away from the surface of the water are the plants located, and does your water test just fine (do you have fish in there, shrimp, or any other sort of livestock)?

    I can't think of any fish that can't digest cucumber, although what tends to happen is the fish will eat more than they can actually handle (they are opportunistic feeders and will overeat) so they will end up bloated. I'd try to place smaller pieces in the tank, or possibly do it overnight so the shrimp have a better chance of finishing it off compared to the fish that should be sleeping.

    I wouldn't say that they are common, but they are the unfortunate part of keeping any animal that has been bred elsewhere, shipped (where their immunity really drops and they can become infected easily), and then placed into their final aquarium once purchased from a store that is also holding them in a community styled tank.

    I would always suggest asking what treatment any fish has been given once it has arrived at the fish store, and trying to watch for it over a period of time > 5 minutes to make sure that it's acting normal (especially once it comes to eating). As always, I HIGHLY recommend placing the fish into a quarantine tank for a few weeks just to make sure that the fish doesn't show any other illnesses that it may not have displayed at the fish store.

    Since a vast majority of algae tends to come when there is a chemical imbalance, and that can normally be solved with dosing the correct fertilizers to provide the balance needed, have you tried to remove algae this way or not? The only big reason that I can see this being a backup method, is that it does require dosing every day and the changes won't be rapid (it can take a while for the algae to all die off).

    How are thinkings going with your tank?

    This looks similar to how I had my shrimp tank set up when I had them in a 10-gallon. I still have the same amazon sword plant too. I just have it in the smaller tank now in a pot. I have had to cut it down a few times, especially after an issue with black beard but it held on.

    They are going well! I actually have had them mate a few times, but due to the lack of plants I have on the surface of the water, the eggs didn't hatch (or did hatch, but got sucked into the filter). I'm working on adding a pre-filter sponge to the intake, along with getting more plants to be at the surface of the water to protect the eggs.

    I'd probably say that my favorite freshwater fish to add into any tank would be Neon Tetras. Their bright coloration, and the way that they school when afraid or shoal when they are calm just makes for a great shiny color to any community tank (especially when they are in big numbers, such as >20 together).

    Makes you wonder if they are going to increase the sizes offered since they have also expanded outside of just the Aqueon tanks now.

    I’m sure they will, especially as you noted that they offered far more than just open tanks for this sale (included other different tank shapes and sizes).

    I’m also super curious what will happen to the consistency of this sale as inflation rises (will we expect 50% off to become the common 20% off they have been randomly doing?).

    Right now I plan on keeping them as a species-only tank since ideally, I'm looking to have them breed out.

    I’m not too worried about them jumping since the water parameters are good, and the lid I have on this mostly covers the whole tank but a gap in the back between the heater and filter output.

    I think it really depends on what you have going down that drain, and how frequently it is used. I'm sure, like anything that has to handle water, algae can form and grow over time. A perfect example of this would be a shower, which can form brown algae when not cleaned over a very long time period (and green algae if exposed to sunlight).

    I'd just say that making sure you have all of the equipment beforehand, works ideal. Having tubes to do water changes easier, buckets for holding everything else, and also having sponges/brushes in order to clean the aquarium glass or any decorations that may have any debris from waste/food leftover that could be stuck in.

    I think the term "too much light" really can mean "lights on too long" since fish require to have a day and night cycle like humans and other species (unless you talk about species that live in pitch-black their whole life). Algae can grow in either condition where there is excess light, or sometimes when there isn't truly enough (it may appear discolored as it's growing and dying at the same time).