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Post by kagome on Nov 28, 2008 17:53:45 GMT -5
I've got a million questions, so here's a few more:
1. How many adult severums could I comfortably have in my 38g? My husband keeps swearing that I could have three.
2. I've been using Prime to detoxify the ammonia in my new tank and doing frequent water changes. Do I still have to wait for the ammonia to completely go down before I add any more fish in with the loaches? Especially since I would like to put my larger loach from my 10g into the 38g with the other loaches so he will have buddies.
3. Since the 10g has been doing well for several weeks and has no sign of sickness, is it probably safe to add some gravel from the old tank to the new tank to try and speed up the last of this ammonia cycle?
Thanks in advance for help guys, you're the best!
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Post by kagome on Nov 28, 2008 17:45:43 GMT -5
So I've completely decided that I'm going to put green severums in the tank. I just don't know how many I could put in the tank because they do get pretty big. I used to have some big gold severums in a 45g and they did really well. I'd like to get two small ones and let them grow up. I know some people trade in fish when they get too big, but I really don't like to do that because when I take on an animal I feel that I have made a commitment to keep it and take care of it for the rest of it's life. I felt terrible about the tanks that I've had to give up and I still miss the fish and wish I had them back. So if the tank can't sustain at least two adult severums than I guess I will have to come up with some other species to put in the tank. My husband keeps arguing that the tank can sustain at least three adult severums because we keep the tank so clean. I tend to listen to his opinion about such things. When he was married to his first wife in West Virginia he had tanks all over his house, he even had a community tank that had fish from every continent except Antarctica. So he keeps pushing for three severums, I think he misses his old ones. If I could manage three severums I guess I'd want two greens and one gold. I'd love to get a red or a blue but they are not available around here.
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Post by kagome on Nov 27, 2008 13:39:01 GMT -5
I had a nippy nine inch long Gold Severum, if you put your hand anywhere near his cave he would lunge out and bite the you know what out of you! These kinds of fish don't have sharp teeth so although they can pinch hard enough to hurt at times it's not going to actually injure you at all. It will just startle the heck out of you when you're not expecting it.
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Post by kagome on Nov 26, 2008 23:48:50 GMT -5
Freshwater or saltwater nerite? If it's a freshwater one you don't have to worry about it breeding because they need brackish water for their eggs to hatch. But if they do lay eggs you've got to get them out soon because if they harden they're hard to get off. I've had mostly apple snails but I had a few nerites once. Since I have loaches in all of my tanks I don't think I'll have any more any time soon.
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Post by kagome on Nov 26, 2008 23:36:44 GMT -5
I can understand that you wanted to save the space for something special. But YoYo's aren't only good for snail eating they have nifty personalities and are pretty to boot. They are spunky little fish, you might really like them. I had one in the angel tank that was killed off by someone pouring a drink in it and he was a real character and was a great little scavenger that really kept the bottom and decorations very clean.
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Post by kagome on Nov 26, 2008 20:23:38 GMT -5
They must be the cockroaches of fish tanks huh? That is soooo true! My blue gourami ate a big apple snail once. He even cracked part of the shell open. Maybe you should pick one up. Oh, and a loach of any size is an eating MACHINE! I would suggest the YoYo, though, a clown will get too big for your tank eventually.
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Post by kagome on Nov 26, 2008 14:45:48 GMT -5
At this point I have decided against the rams. I just don't think it will work out unless I make some other major investments that I'm not willing or able to make right now. So I'm trying to decide on something else AND get my husband to agree to it, not an easy task. I thought I would go with angels since the tank is pretty much perfect for them. But then my husband was whining that a single species tank is boring and that he wants something else. I was thinking of some green severums. We used to have some full-size golds in our old 45g and they did really well, we had them for ten years until we sold them. It's funny that my husband was unhappy about the angels but then he was all about the severums. I guess he just likes them better. So now I have two questions:
1. What else goes well with angels and clown loaches that's hardy?
2. Could I have two full size green severums in a 38g with 4 clown loaches and probably a pleco eventually or is that too much of a bio-load? (I know severums and the loaches are compatible, I had them together before)
Thanks for all your help guys!
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Post by kagome on Nov 26, 2008 0:00:08 GMT -5
My new filter for my ten gallon that I ordered from Carl arrived yesterday. I had to cut out the plastic lid with a pair of tin snips. The precut snap out parts only made the hole six inches wide and the filter was eight inches wide. I was nervous at first about making the cut, if I messed up there was no way to fix it. But I have to admit that I did a really good job and I'm pretty proud of myself for it. I got the filter to fit perfectly. I tinkered with the surface skimmer to get it set properly and attached the sponge prefilter. It started right up with no problems and it really works great. I'm really glad that I went with the bigger filter because now I have more flow in the tank and the fish seem to really like it. After an hour of the new filter running they seemed much happier and more active, especially the clown loach. I'm so glad to have that off the list of things to do, especially since family is coming in tonight and mom and I will start cooking for Thanksgiving tomorrow.
I did water changes in both tanks tonight and vacuumed the gravel really well. The ammonia in the big tank is suddenly reading as 1.0. I've been using Prime and so I'm not worried that I will lose fish, I just really wish this cycle would decide to end. It seems like it is taking forever. But I guess in the meantime it is giving me plenty of time to figure out just what kind of fish I want to add to the tank. I think I've pretty much decided against rams at this point. I think when we eventually have room for more tanks that I will set up a 20g that is solely dedicated to a pair of rams. But I want something that is a bit easier to maintain and hardier for this 38g. I'm really leaning towards some green severums.
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Post by kagome on Nov 25, 2008 12:36:19 GMT -5
I'm really wondering at this point if I am going to attempt doing rams at all. It seems like they are very difficult to keep and that the conditions of my tank just aren't right for them. I think the water is a bit too hard, I don't have any sort of live plants in the tank, and I'm worried about the Ph. I know I can add driftwood to the tank and help keep it soft and at a lower Ph, but I'm just not sure that will be enough to make up for the other things. Plus rams are pretty expensive just to have them all die on me. My husband had rams before in a community tank and so I'm going to have to have some long discussions with him about costs and other factors. It's kind of funny that everyone talks about how rams need soft water when my husband had them up in West Virginia where the water is very hard and he did nothing to soften the water and his rams did great until his crayfish ate them one day. Anyway, I know I'm going to do some sort of SA cichlid, I'm just not sure what kind yet.
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Post by kagome on Nov 23, 2008 23:57:03 GMT -5
I'm sorry that your fish died! It seems like really experienced and responsible fish owners on this forum are having a really hard time with the rams lately. I'm beginning to question whether or not I want to even try them. Did you get these rams as small size jueveniles or as adults?
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Post by kagome on Nov 23, 2008 23:53:07 GMT -5
I had a fish that turned up with wounds like this before, very much like what you are describing and what it looks like in the picture. What it turned out to be was two territorial fish sparring with each other and biting the same part of the side over and over again. Have you noticed anyone acting aggressively or is this fish acting stressed at all?
I am definitely not the expert that a lot of people are on this forum, but I would think that if a course of treatment fixed a similar problem before that it would stand to reason that that should be the first place for you to start.
I hope that's helpful, sorry your fish is sick.
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Post by kagome on Nov 23, 2008 22:42:48 GMT -5
Eve--The tank is 44" long, 20" tall and 10 1/2" from front to back. Only small size angels are readily available. Will that be OK? How do I tell a female from a male with the angels?
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Post by kagome on Nov 22, 2008 19:21:16 GMT -5
Welcome to the forums! This is a really friendly forum and everyone is great about helping people out with questions and problems. Or you can just share your own experiences with your own tanks. Glad to have you as part of our group! ;D
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Post by kagome on Nov 21, 2008 22:40:24 GMT -5
I'm so sorry that the little guy died. Sometimes at the end of the day all you can say is that you did your best with nothing but excellent intentions in your heart. I'm sure you're frustrated and disheartened at the moment but I hope that you are not too discouraged. I wish you the best of luck with your new fish endeavors.
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Post by kagome on Nov 21, 2008 14:08:31 GMT -5
So I was reading Carl's article about ammonia cycling and in it Carl mentions that a small amount of ammonia is evaporated surface agitation. So I pointed the outtake of my powerhead up a bit so that it causes much more swirling at the surface. I figured it really couldn't hurt anything and would probably better oxygenate the water. Now that the outtake is pointed that way the clown loaches are swimming into the current and letting themselves be swept away and then they swim right back and do it again. It the cutest thing, they are such goofy fish but that's why I like them so much.
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Post by kagome on Nov 21, 2008 13:51:44 GMT -5
I've read that sometimes you have to tempt them with extra tasty food like frozen mixes and that sort of thing. Unfortunately, I think the rams can be very sensitive to change and go off their feed.
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Post by kagome on Nov 21, 2008 0:15:50 GMT -5
Hang in there Cash! I know you've had a tough time of it lately but it will get easier. Once you have stable tank conditions everything should even out and you should be able to spend more time enjoying your tank and MUCH less testing, changing, fretting and adding medicine and chemicals. Maintaining stability in your tank is actually pretty simple once you get everything there in the first place. So chin up! You'll make it through this!
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DIY?
Nov 21, 2008 0:08:58 GMT -5
Post by kagome on Nov 21, 2008 0:08:58 GMT -5
BRB= Be Right Back (usually when on IM or chat)
BRB Bio= Be Right Back Bio-break (they have to go to the bathroom)
OMG= Oh My God
WTF= What The F*#$
IRL= In Real Life
IDK= I Don't Know
I'm sure there's tons more but that was all I could think of off the top of my head.
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Post by kagome on Nov 21, 2008 0:03:15 GMT -5
I am so totally pulling for you and your little fish! I really hope this new medicine works for you!
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Post by kagome on Nov 20, 2008 23:47:52 GMT -5
no worries, of course my little brain forgot to put down the most important number right now, the damn ammonia is at 1.0 which is actually up. It has been hovering between 0.5 and 0.25 so I'm a little confused because I've been doing everything the exact same. I've made sure to put in adequate Prime to keep it from hurting the fish. I'm doing small water changes almost every day using Prime as the water conditioner. And since I'm feeding the loaches the sinking bottom feeder wafers so I know I'm feeding the exact same amount. They're not leaving any food either, I see them eat it every time, they're little piggy fish and they're bigger now so I know they can easily eat that amount of food. I'm really hoping that this (insert harsh expletive here) ammonia cycle is getting ready to be done already. I really wish the 10g hadn't gotten sick so I could have seeded the new tank, but I guess we can't always get what we want.
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