A Beginner's 20g Long Aquarium (Platys + Pygmy Corys)

[JackGulley]

I have a cool idea for redecorating the back right corner:
At the moment I just have a patch of java moss there. It's like the shrimps' little fortress; they retreat there to molt or just when they don't want to deal with the fish. I'm going to keep that, but instead of just placing it on the substrate, I'm going to put pond stones in a little hill, with a small open spot in the center of it. I'll arrange the gaps between the stones so the small shrimp and cories can get through, but the other fish can't. Then, I'll use the java moss patch as a "lid" for the top of the little cave, so I can take it off to put food in there!

 

[JackGulley]

The shape of the rocks would end up looking something like these hills that appear in a few places in BotW/TotK, but wider and flatter

 

[Seisage]

I had some duckweed earlier, but it started making a mess when it got blown around by the filter so I purged it. There are still a few baby bits of it... I would like to look into more pleasant floating plants.

I have amazon frogbit and water lettuce (Pistia) and I love them! The water lettuce is taking a bit longer to get established, but they both grow wicked fast. I'll always recommend floaters not just because fish like them, but because they add so much in terms of biological filtration. They grow so fast because they have access to the air (basically as much CO2 as they want), which means they suck up as much nitrogen as they can get their roots on. They're really easy to care for too, although you may want to dose ferts because they can deplete micronutrients really quickly.

Word of advice: From what I can tell, most stores don't sell floaters. I haven't seen any for sale at either LFSs or big box pet stores. Best way to get some is from other hobbyists. Personally, I found sellers on FB marketplace. People usually sell them for really cheap since they grow so fast. Do keep in mind that they can quickly become invasive in local waterways. It doesn't seem like there are any floaters that are illegal in Georgia, but you should always let floaters completely dry out and then put them in the garbage in order to dispose of them.

Yep, it's one of the reasons it's either loved or loathed in the hobby. I'm on the loathe side because it does make that mess, and also because once you have it, it's almost impossible to get rid of.

It reproduces fast, and a single leaf can quickly get out of control. If you spot any, get it out, immediately! Check under tank rim, the filter, any equipment etc, because it seems like even one dried out lead stuck on a net or something can rehydrate and then start another duckweed infestation.

That 5.5gal I adopted had a duckweed infestation along with the cyanobacteria... Apparently the previous owner was convinced by TikTok videos to get some. It can be a really pretty surface cover if you're willing to deal with the hassle! But it's just not for me either. Thankfully, I've managed to eradicate it from that tank through constant removal during every water change. I was also extremely diligent when putting the floaters in the 25gal. The frogbit came covered in duckweed and I spent quite a while picking every little bit of duckweed off of each frogbit plant The effort paid off though, because I haven't seen any duckweed growing in that tank!

The shape of the rocks would end up looking something like these hills that appear in a few places in BotW/TotK, but wider and flatter

Ooooh. A scape inspired by the newer Zelda games would be so pretty. I'm very much in favor of this. Also a great idea to have a secret little food cave!

 

[JackGulley]

Some of the leaves on my largest plant (I think the name is something like "ocelot"? I always buy plants and then immediately forget what they're called) are melting. It could just be because they're blocked by the other leaves, but I'd like to avoid it if I can. Thoughts?

 

[AdoraBelle Dearheart]

Some of the leaves on my largest plant (I think the name is something like "ocelot"? I always buy plants and then immediately forget what they're called) are melting. It could just be because they're blocked by the other leaves, but I'd like to avoid it if I can. Thoughts?View attachment 335756

It's just an amazon sword plant, 'ocelot' is the variety, because of the splotches on the leaves.

They're usually grown emersed, now that it's submerged, the plant has to convert forms, so it can take in nutrients in a different way, so the new leaves are emerging from the crown, old leaves from it's emersed form melting back. Completely normal, and not to worry about!

They're greedy root feeders though, so worth adding a root tab underneath it now and then.

Hard to tell from the pic, but it looks as though it might be buried just a smidge too deep. Lift the plant slightly so that the crown - where all the new leaves are emerging from the centre - is up above the surface of the substrate, so new leaves can emerge. It doesn't like the crown to be buried, but otherwise it looks great!

I like the otocinclus photobombing too, haha.

 

[JackGulley]

It's just an amazon sword plant, 'ocelot' is the variety, because of the splotches on the leaves.

They're usually grown emersed, now that it's submerged, the plant has to convert forms, so it can take in nutrients in a different way, so the new leaves are emerging from the crown, old leaves from it's emersed form melting back. Completely normal, and not to worry about!

Weird, the plant was submerged in the store

They're greedy root feeders though, so worth adding a root tab underneath it now and then.

Hard to tell from the pic, but it looks as though it might be buried just a smidge too deep. Lift the plant slightly so that the crown - where all the new leaves are emerging from the centre - is up above the surface of the substrate, so new leaves can emerge. It doesn't like the crown to be buried, but otherwise it looks great!

I can confirm they are not buried too deep, as a matter of fact I had a hard time sticking the in the substrate. It's out of the gravel all the way up to the first few millimeters of roots; every time I tried to bury it better I made it worse so I decided to just let it pull itself back down as it grew.

I like the otocinclus photobombing too, haha.

And the cory. It's so funny to me because the four of them will swim all over tank together, and then spontaneously all four will go to different places in the tank and sleep for 10-20 minutes, at seemingly random times of day.

 

[AdoraBelle Dearheart]

Weird, the plant was submerged in the store

It won't have been in the store tanks for long, and it takes a while longer than that for the plant to begin to convert and produce the converted new leaves, then the older ones melt back. It's normal, don't worry about it. Leave the leaves on, the outer ones should die back first, but once they've fully browned or gone soft, like the one at the very front low in the photo, you can snip them off with scissors.

 

[JackGulley]

Is this a sign of parasites? Should I be worried?

 

[MuddyWaters]

I do mean to have a black background, but I dropped my construction paper in the water last time I did a water change and I haven't replaced it yet

I have always used poster board or construction paper for backgrounds, but mine inevitably get wet and look bad. This time I went to the hardware store and bought some flat black latex paint. I slapped it on there and it works wonderfully! No worries about it getting wet and looking bad. Also, since it's latex you can scrape it off pretty easily (from what I read- haven't had to do that yet). One thing I noticed was that I had to put some on, let it dry (for about 20 minutes) and then put more. It doesn't go on smoothly like it would on a wall.

 

[MuddyWaters]

View attachment 335772Is this a sign of parasites? Should I be worried?

I read an article that indicated there are lots of reasons for long white poop that are not parasites or something bad. What I took away after reading was that if there aren't other signs of stress, there's likely nothing wrong.

 

[emeraldking]

Speaking of breeding, the other female (Gertrude) is pregnant! I've noticed she's a little bit rounder than the others for about a week, and today I noticed a prominent gravid spot. I'm a little bit confused tho, because judging by her shape (rounder but not square at all) and how long I've noticed it, I would expect her to only be recently pregnant. But today she had a dilated cloaca, and the male was harassing her a little bit, which I've read are signs of imminent birth? Although to be fair the male wasn't waiting to eat babies; he was trying to mate

Well, a pregnant guppy that is almost due doesn't have to square off. She can still have a round belly when almost due. A female will square off if she's used her max gestation period. Nothing more.

 

[AdoraBelle Dearheart]

Well, a pregnant guppy that is almost due doesn't have to square off. She can still have a round belly when almost due. A female will square off if she's used her max gestation period. Nothing more.

Pssst...... it's a platy....

But it sounds like OP is interested in the species and colour variety of platy he has, think he has a trio if I remember rightly, so I'm sure he'd love to hear from you what species of platy and colour variety he has, he's interested in the one that's more yellow than the others.

 

[emeraldking]

Pssst...... it's a platy....

LOL! Same goes for a platy.

These are orange tuxedo calico platies.

 

[Whiskyfish]

Love the tank, hardscape looks great. Are the plants just growing in that?

 

[noahm]

I have always used poster board or construction paper for backgrounds, but mine inevitably get wet and look bad. This time I went to the hardware store and bought some flat black latex paint.

Blackout film Try static vinyl film. Tons of it (colors) on amazon and comes off easily if you want to change it. You just spray water on the glass and squeegie out any bubbles.