Thr33Swords Posted August 8, 2013 Author Report Share Posted August 8, 2013 New flatmate moved in yesterday: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SamH Posted August 8, 2013 Report Share Posted August 8, 2013 Your new fish looks great! I bet he's loving all of that room. Did you plant the crypts yet? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thr33Swords Posted August 8, 2013 Author Report Share Posted August 8, 2013 Your new fish looks great! I bet he's loving all of that room. Did you plant the crypts yet? Haha, yeah She was a bit shy at first, but soon went for a wonder checking out all the nooks and crannies Yeah I have, I planted them around the rocks on the right hand side of the tank. Once they get big enough I'll get rid of the fake plants. I want to try get a nice and big amazon sword as well at some stage to fill that corner. I'll put up pics of them a little later once they've grown a bit. Thanks for the plants and the angel btw Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SamH Posted August 8, 2013 Report Share Posted August 8, 2013 Yeah that sounds like her, wait till it's feeding time and you won't be able to get rid of her :lol: I'm loving my amazon sword, they're awesome feature plants. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thr33Swords Posted August 8, 2013 Author Report Share Posted August 8, 2013 Guess I'll find out today Hopefully my gourami don't scare her off too much, agressive little eaters that they are... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TomGilberg Posted August 9, 2013 Report Share Posted August 9, 2013 i wouldnt use a Co2 dosing method for a short time, if you're gonna ddoit id recommend sticking to it. Thats because flucauting Co2 levels cause algae, black beard algae. you dont want black beard algae, noone does. not any sane anyway. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Godly3vil Posted August 9, 2013 Report Share Posted August 9, 2013 Excel won't matter Tom, it's not actually co2 so doesn't effect parameters like pressurized co2 does. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thr33Swords Posted August 10, 2013 Author Report Share Posted August 10, 2013 I'll see how the plants do without excel, it should be fine I'd think. I can see new leaves appearing all the time and they're getting taller by the day. I have no algae in the tank at all, it doesn't seem to grow very fast and my 3 baby bristlenoses are doing a damn fine job keeping the tank algae free. After replanting the tank, however, my plants are being eaten, most of the older leaves have been ripped off or has chunks missing. I think my siamese algae eater could be the culprit. I'm hoping that new leaves will replace the ones that were destroyed. I also noticed a tiny snail in the tank this morning, but I believe it hitched a ride in with new plants that I planted the other day. I can't see any other ones. I decided to leave it alone for now, but I'll keep a close eye on the tank to make sure snails don't become a problem. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TomGilberg Posted August 10, 2013 Report Share Posted August 10, 2013 a friend of mine had a planted tank he dosed with excel, he then stopped and got BBA, hmm perhaps it was something else. with the snail thing.. if you dont want it to become a problem remove them as soon as you see them! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thr33Swords Posted August 10, 2013 Author Report Share Posted August 10, 2013 Guess I'll keep an eye out haha, the snail I saw has moved and I can't see it now. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NoFishing Posted August 10, 2013 Report Share Posted August 10, 2013 First there was one.... First time I saw a snail I thought, no worries, one little snail isn't so bad. Now I have 8 chain loaches on full time snail catching patrol across two tanks. :lar: Even with all those loaches I still see the occasional snail too, but they are well under control now. :thup: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thr33Swords Posted August 10, 2013 Author Report Share Posted August 10, 2013 Haha, yeah I hear they reproduce like crazy. Been doing some reading on population control, and I reckon if they do get a bit carried away, I kinda like clown loaches anyway, so could get a few Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SamH Posted August 10, 2013 Report Share Posted August 10, 2013 Why the dislike of snails? They clean up any left overs, tackle the algae and keep the substrate healthy. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Li@m Posted August 10, 2013 Report Share Posted August 10, 2013 Why the dislike of snails? They clean up any left overs, tackle the algae and keep the substrate healthy. :iag: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thr33Swords Posted August 10, 2013 Author Report Share Posted August 10, 2013 Oh I'm not saying I want to get rid of them, I just don't want their numbers to explode and become a problem. That's why I decided to leave this little one alone instead of taking it out Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Flosty Posted August 11, 2013 Report Share Posted August 11, 2013 I am not a big fan of snails either I have read about all the benefits but still try and rid my tanks of them, generally not very successfully They also add to the bioload, so when you have thousands of them thats not so good Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NoFishing Posted August 11, 2013 Report Share Posted August 11, 2013 Why the dislike of snails? They clean up any left overs, tackle the algae and keep the substrate healthy. They don't look very nice when there's more than a few, and not part of my master plan. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dr A Posted August 11, 2013 Report Share Posted August 11, 2013 They also add to the bioload, so when you have thousands of them thats not so good I kinda disagree with that statement. Without getting too deep and meaningful - An aquarium is for the most part a closed system, the only external factor that came in was 1 (hypothetically, it could have been more) original snail and whatever food you're inputting. For there to be more snails it stands to reason that they're eating and reproducing matter (energy) that was already present within the system. ahem. I agree that having a population explosion and (and crash?) probably isn't good - but an equilibrium is fine. Moreover, I don't think anyone's done controlled tests about the "bioload" of aquariums with/without snails. The whole thing seems pretty sketchy to me. FWIW My own little 15L tank still has a load of snails in it, seemingly without "food" as there's been no fish and no fish food in there for some time now, and most of the plant matter has been removed. Surely this shows a bit more of a complex food web in action. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
blueether Posted August 11, 2013 Report Share Posted August 11, 2013 I kinda disagree with that statement. Without getting too deep and meaningful - An aquarium is for the most part a closed system, the only external factor that came in was 1 (hypothetically, it could have been more) original snail and whatever food you're inputting. For there to be more snails it stands to reason that they're eating and reproducing matter (energy) that was already present within the system. ahem. I agree that having a population explosion and (and crash?) probably isn't good - but an equilibrium is fine. Moreover, I don't think anyone's done controlled tests about the "bioload" of aquariums with/without snails. The whole thing seems pretty sketchy to me. FWIW My own little 15L tank still has a load of snails in it, seemingly without "food" as there's been no fish and no fish food in there for some time now, and most of the plant matter has been removed. Surely this shows a bit more of a complex food web in action. :gpo2: I have always thought it an odd statement as well, they can't build up a huge population without excess food (from feeding or light). I note that the population of snails in one tank has dropped since I added kuhli loaches and 2 red whiptails. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alanmin4304 Posted August 11, 2013 Report Share Posted August 11, 2013 They don't do well in acid water or low calcium either. Generally I think snails are feeding on uneaten food so their food source is outside of the enclosed system. Their waste increases the bioload but like most things in an aquarium it is all about balance. Snails added to fry tanks make the waste easier to siphon off but baby corries do the same thing and have more value at the end. You pays ya pennies and takes ya pick. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thr33Swords Posted August 13, 2013 Author Report Share Posted August 13, 2013 I will leave the little bugger in there, but still keep a close eye on the tank. The plants are growing really well again after the complete rescape I did, even the plants that got their leaves ripped off my my fish (I blame the Siamese Algea Eater - I've seen the little bastard nibbling on a plant). I will soon need to do a trim, as some of the plants are starting to reach the water level again. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thr33Swords Posted August 14, 2013 Author Report Share Posted August 14, 2013 So, update time I took a short video a while ago, after doing the rescape (I forgot about it, and finally uploaded it to YooToob): http://youtu.be/kY78kTyp3eo First of all, I spotted the little snail again last night so I took a photo of it: I have also added a friend for my angel fish (but I might end up putting the new one in a different tank, looks like the first one is picking on the other): And here's the first angel displaying some really nice and dark colours: As for the plants, they are almost hitting the top again, so will start replanting some again soon. Hopefully I'll get enough so I can remove the fake plants in the right hand side: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SamH Posted August 14, 2013 Report Share Posted August 14, 2013 He's a stunner, you will need about 4-5 more angels to spread the aggression though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thr33Swords Posted August 14, 2013 Author Report Share Posted August 14, 2013 He's a stunner, you will need about 4-5 more angels to spread the aggression though. Yeah I've noticed, so on Tuesday (payday) I'll go get some more. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
amtiskaw Posted August 14, 2013 Report Share Posted August 14, 2013 If you're worried about the snail then now is the time to remove any you see, plus any egg clusters you can spot - before your plants grow and you'll be fighting a losing battle. Eggs are really hard to spot, they just look like little patches of translucent jelly. I wouldn't bother though - just try not to over-feed and the snails will keep in check and be beneficial. By the way, nice tank That driftwood is crying out for some Java fern I reckon :dnc1: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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