Posts by Avery

A 30-gallon tank is a decent size for them when they are younger, although as they grow and reach their adult size, ideally you would need 120+ gallons (for a single species). If you are trying to keep multiple lion fish within an aquarium, I'd say it's safer to go with 200+ gallons in order to have enough room for them to not hit or run into each other as they explore their habitat.

To be fair, it's nothing that you may be doing, but rather than poor genetics when it comes to guppies and other super popular freshwater aquarium fish. Dropsy is normally just a term for when a fish has liquid collecting inside of its abdomen when it shouldn't (and hence its bloated, scales that are spike-like).

I think it really depends on if you want to go with all new equipment or try to get second-hand used equipment - and also how you want to set up your tank in terms of equipment style/types (ex; protein skimmer or not). I'd say a good safe bet is anywhere between $300-800, which is super vague but can cover everything you need for a 30-gallon tank.

Is this your first tank, or have you done others that are saltwater? Ideally lion fish need far bigger than a 30-gallon tank unless you plan to re-home it once it gets bigger from a smaller size.

Since my children have hit summer break, one of the teachers had a few of these and other fish species that they were trying to give away to the parents. I decided I'd take some of these frogs, and put them into a more ideal tank setup that only has them as a species and check if I can get some of them to breed.

Detailed Information

Tank: Top Fin 10 Gallon

Filter: Top Fin 10 Gallon Adjustable Filter HOB (set to middle setting)

Lighting: Stock (Top Fin Gallon LED fixture)

Substrate: Fluval Plant Stratum

Flora: Anubias Congesis (3x), Amazon Swords (2x)

Fauna: African Dwarf Frog (8x), Mystery Snail (2x)

Are you able to upload a photo by chance to make sure that what you are quoting/referencing is actually Brown Diatoms?

I believe this really can only be determined by your stocking and your tank's rated volume of water. You wouldn't want to put a canister filter in a 10-gallon tank since it would blow around the water way too fast for most all species.

I would say in my experience, it would go (from best to worst); Canister Filters, Internal Filters, Hang On Back Filters, Undergravel Filters.

I would say it's a mixed bag of yes and no. Ideally, you want to feed a balanced diet to all fish, containing at least a difference of 2-3 foods that are fed on a rotation. However, due to the size difference between bigger fish and the diet each species needs based on where it's mostly located, I would say more on the no size to make sure that you have the correct diet being fed to each fish (and that the food can fit within their mouth).

I'd say that it really depends on your species of fish. Maybe times feeding once every other day works best (since fish in the wild don't get fed every single day), but the only exception to this rule would be fish that don't have a stomach (ex; Goldfish), or if you have higher temperatures in the water than ideal (ex; >80F degrees would probably be best to feed a smaller amount each day since their metabolism is increased).

The best part is that when you start to make that association that whenever you are near the tank, it means feeding time, and they start to head to the surface or swim as close as possible to the glass of the tank to get “closer” to you and follow you around if you move/walk.

If you are a fish breeder (or accidentally breeder from those species that reproduce like crazy), what do you do to make sure that the fry and parents don’t get attacked or eaten by other fish (and for some species protecting the fry from the parents themselves)? Do you use a breeder box, another tank, and how do you make sure you don’t shock the fry from moving them from one tank water to another?

A year or two ago, the biggest con was pricing - LEDs were insanely expensive compared to their bulb and ballast counterparts. Nowadays, LEDs are the go to option due to their extremely low price and almost lifetime lifespan. The biggest con these days with LEDs is the fact that many are so badly underpowered (trying to cut costs), so you end up with a light that is just helpful for visually seeing but not helpful for any plant growth (for freshwater tanks) or coral growth (for saltwater tanks).

I highly recommend not using any type of harsh chemical, since you have to really clean it with water to make sure none of it leaches out or is left in any tiny amounts once you are done. I clean pretty badly coffered algae tanks with white vinegar, a rough sponge (think scrub-daddy sponge material), and using a bunch of arm strength to get it all off.

My personal favorite schooling fish are Neon Tetra. In large numbers they just look like a bunch of shiny fish moving all at once and their metallic like coloration makes them pop even more.

You can honestly use any, it really depends on the plants you want to keep. Many people use LEDs that have various coloration on their normal setting (so blue, green, red, and normal white LEDs on) to promote all colorations for plant growth.

Other times if you need high light, you can use ballasts since they promote far more PAR at a cheaper price but need to be replaced (the bulbs) once they die out.

Ironically, I don't think that I have ever personally seen a collar aquarium pump on any tank - but after looking online and seeing it's an extremely small air pump that mounts on the tank itself, I might have to give this a shot whenever I have someone who has a setup that needs an air pump that is quiet.

Have you ever tried to take the trim that is around your tank, and replace it with anything else or a different possible design? Did you contact the manufacture directly to order this, or did you get this from one of their suppliers?

I agree that any uneaten food could be marked as a sign of not eating, although the biggest sign would be any type of bloat problems with any fish, or they are growing rather larger in terms of width compared to overall size. I'd say to slowly drop in enough food so that you can watch each fish get a few pieces, since their stomachs are only the size of their eyeballs in many species (it is far easier to overfeed fish than it is to underfeed).

I think it honestly depends on how big is your tank, what are your lighting requirements/that you have, and also are you looking for some more background coverage plants that match yours already? Do you have any decorations that you are trying to place plants around with?

I've seen them at many of my local fish stores, but I personally haven't ever kept them. The sad part is that many don't know that they need access to air directly, or that they do need some salt in their tank in order to molt correctly (they are not purely freshwater). As you even pointed out, sand is ideal since with gravel they can break their legs/claw which then makes them prone to infection or not being able to move when they need to.

I agree - I believe it's honestly really about trying to feed the fish/fishes in your aquarium, with the correct diet, and to their feeding needs. Fish that don't have any stomachs (as you noted, like Goldfish) will need to be fed far more frequently compared to fish that do. Temperature and other conditions can also play a factor in feeding since many fish during colder temperatures, may not actually need any food (or very limited) as their metabolism slows down.