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I only ever set up one tank and I fishless cycled it. Before buying a single piece of equipment I did my research and found this site. I went to several lfs's before I found one that was supportive of the idea, even though they said they didn't do it with their own tanks. It did not take all...

I've had a bristlenose in my tank for about 3 weeks now. When I first introduced it, I had a good deal of algae on some surfaces. In about three days he got it down to reasonable levels. I then started supplementing his diet with algae wafers. I noticed after that, that he got kind of lazy...

Some Vallisneria about two weeks ago. I suppose insects could have come in on that.

It definitely looked like a damsel fly larva. According to the linked article, the presence of insects indicates good water quality, although the damsel fly can tolerate less than perfect conditions. So how does a damsel fly larva get in my tank (or sea monkeys for that matter)? Is it...

I don't think there's much nutritional value in cucumber either and everyone seems to feed their plecos that. Maybe I'm mistaken.

I was doing a water change yesterday and a bit of a vacuum of the gravel. When I went to dump out the water in the sink I saw a little creature swimming around. I'd say it was about an inch long, and it was mostly tail. The tail took up about 2/3 of the body mass. The rest of the animal had...

Welcome Wanda. I'm pretty much a newbie, too, but these folks got me started on the right track, so much so that I feel confident giving you a little free advice. Of course, you have to take that for what it's worth. You get what you pay for! So what do you mean by water testing? Do you...

We had a goldfish in a bowl, too. It lived for about 4 years. My mother used to change the water every week, as well. She would set aside the water overnight so that the chlorine would dissipate. Still, I don't think the fish was very happy. I went to the Sesame Street site and wrote this...

No, not really. Maybe my tone reflects the fact that I don't think they'll do anything about it.

Yes, that is Elmo's pet goldfish Dorothy and as you may or may not know Elmo is a very popular character. At least 25% of the show is dedicated to Elmo and Dorothy figures quite prominently in the segment. Perhaps we should contact Sesame Street and inform them that they are tacitly endorsing...

Yes, the eggs from my (pest) snails are very visible. They are generally on plant leaves. As yvez9 describes, they are jelly-like with white spots. It seems like it would be a tasty snack for a fish. A Kuhlii Loach would be cool but it goes against the "biotope" I'm trying to form and...

Does she have any other redeeming qualities? Maybe you should offer to go over to her house and help her with her tank. Who knows what might develop? ;)

Yes, I did want to keep all of my species from the New World at least. I have always liked kuhlii loaches though. I have a small tank (30 gallons) that will be centered around a pair or a small harem of dwarf cichlids. Clown Loaches are definitely out.

Bump! ^ Anybody? There must be some small fish from South America that likes to eat snail eggs. Or maybe not!

I've got a bit of a snail problem in my tank. I'm managing to keep the population down just by pulling out snails when I see them and especially when cleaning the tank. However, I do notice a lot of eggs. My thinking was that if I could get rid of the eggs I'd have much less of a problem. I...

I just find that it doesn't stay in one place; pieces of hornwort float all over the tank. The smaller pieces eventually get caught in the filter intake tube. When I clean the tank I find bits of hornwort all over the place. Maybe I'm doing something wrong with it. I just cleaned out the...

Thanks for the advice. Once per day sparingly is good then. Water quality hasn't been a problem as of yet but as I add a few more fish it may become an issue.

I'm feeding flakes and frozen. I can't get my bristlenose to eat veggies yet, although some of the tetras pick at the algae wafers.

I was wondering where all the posts are from the people who did vote yes. Stand up and be counted. Make your voices be heard!

I've read all of the warnings to newbies about overfeeding. I've been very cautious about it, but perhaps too much so. I've actually cut back feedings to once per day. I have 8 flame tetras and 1 bristlenose cat. I usually throw one algae wafer in for the bristlenose each night, he seems to...

:unsure: ?

I find myself staring at my plants for 20 minutes sometimes. I guess I'm just very easily amused.

...and here I thought that weekly cleanings and water changes was being pretty good about it. So far, I've been changing water and cleaning weekly (some weeks I clean more than others) and I thought I was on top of things. I wouldn't say I'm lazy, it's just that I'm a family man with two small...

Thanks to everyone for their responses. First let me tell you that I've had the bristlenose for about 10 days now and he's doing really well. He scampers all over the tank, even during the day. Although he's not a particularly fancy fish, he's not an exotic pleco or anything, I think he has...

Wow! I didn't expect to have so many people dispute this rule. At least now I know to take it with a grain of salt. However, I think the concept is useful, especially for someone like me. By thinking in terms of inch per gallon it made me consider my tank stock a bit more. It forces me to...

Maybe it's not a gallon per week but I do need to add a bit more water back in than I take out. Basically I'm taking out about 5 gallons with every water change and then topping off the tank after that. So at the minimum, I'm doing almost 17% water change per week. Yes, I do have a cover. I...

Yeah, I know what you guys are saying about the bristlenose. I've already seen some of his work. Actually, when I first got him I was amazed at what he created! That was when the tank had been building algae for a few weeks with no fish in it. There was a lot for him to much on. Since then...

For cichlids I was thinking of cockatoos. That's why I wanted three - one male and two females. Others have warned me about having only a pair as the male may torment the female to no end. At least with two, although one female may become "dominant" there is another fish to distract the male.

Well, I certainly don't listen to everything that the lfs tells me otherwise I wouldn't need this site, but it's good advice nonetheless. It seems like with everything else, that common sense prevails. Salt has its place but shouldn't be overdone or used as a matter of course. I can...

I've been trying to come up with a routine for my tank for water changes and cleaning. It's a 30 gallon tank, that currently houses 8 small flame tetras and a juvenile bristlenose catfish. Will this schedule work: Week 1 - 15-20% water change (I usually take out about 5 gallons of water and...

Recently, when I bought my bristlenose catfish, the sales guy at my lfs told me he thought it would be beneficial to add salt to my tank - 1 teaspoon/5 gallons. He said it helps the fish and that they do it in all of their freshwater tanks. I read the package on the aquarium salt and it seems...

OK, thanks for putting things in perspective. So what you're saying is that the rule is good for beginners and that if you go over an inch per gallon you need to be aware of possible dangers. Also you need to be aware of what type of fish you're putting into tank. For instance, an oscar can...

I'm wondering about the inch per gallon rule and how many people stick to it. Are there instances when you can stretch it a little bit? I've read that people who keep African cichlids tend to overstock to counteract aggression. Are there other times when you can stretch it a little? This...

I had a little grayish white fuzz grow on my driftwood when I first set up my tank. I was more concerned with cycling it than worrying about fuzz or algae. I actually forgot all about it until reading this thread. Maybe yours will just go away, too.

I think that once you have more than two tanks in a room the focus of the room becomes the fish tanks, no matter what else you may happen to do in there. I voted for three.

Just to add to the discussion... I'm developing quite a number of snails myself it seems. One thing I'm wondering is what's wrong with snails. They don't seem to be bothering anything. Actually, I think they're eating algae off of my plants, although they don't seem to eat much of anything...

Actually Griz, my original thoughts when first deciding to get a tank were pretty much along the same line as your tank. Dwarf cichlids as the main fish, a school of tetras, otos, corys and a bristlenose. Unfortunately, at first I thought I was going to get a 40 gallon but space and money were...

My bristlenose does a spotty job of cleaning algae. When I first introduced him into the tank there was an abundance of algae and he made a big difference. However, he has his spots where he likes to graze and ignores other areas. Generally he's good with rocks and driftwood if they are easy...

Shows you how much I know! :S

If you do flush your fish make sure they go down all the way. Here's a reason not to flush: After college, I lived in a two family house with a couple of roommates. A bunch of friends kind of cycled through the house and one of the previous housemates had set up a fishtank. However, he...