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I also use a 5 gallon bucket, but I use a 2 quart pitcher to "dip" the water back in until the water in the bucket is too low to fill it, then I can pour the rest in. That way I don't have to make as many trips. Like the PPs, I use a gravel vacuum and add dechlor to each bucket full. For temp, I...

I do have plants. Java fern which seems to be doing quite well, and swords, which do not. I'm using pure silica sand, and I have a few rocks that passed the vinegar test with flying colors. :/ Kinda exciting to know my tank is so stable other than the ph. How urgent is that high of a ph...

LOL I called a local sandblasting company to ask where they got their silica sand. Called there and got 100lbs of pure silica sand for less than $10. Still have over half of it in the bag. :D I used black poster board. No tape, no nothing. The bottom sits on the trim and the HOB filters hold...

OK, so I haven't done a water change in 2 weeks on my 75 gallon tank. Got my new API master test kit this past week and used it today. Ammonia: 0 :good: Nitrite: 0 :good: Nitrate: <5ppm :blink: Closer to 0 than 5. :blink: :blink: Ph: 8.1 :crazy: Tested the Ph of my tap water and it's...

Those are beautiful!! I like snails, too! :D What kind do you have? I have ramshorns, trumpets and what the guy called "Pixie" snails, but I think they are mystery snails? Not sure, but those are my favorites and are kept separate from my loaches. LOL PMing you!

Are any of those good for beginners with low-ish lighting requirements?

I have a 100, a 200 and a 350 and I LOVE my Penguins. The 100 I got "free" when I bought a used 10 gallon tank for $10. That was my introduction to Penguin. The 200 I paid about $18 for on Amazon. The 350 was a whopping $31 shipped, but only $4 out of pocket thanks to free gift cards. :D I love...

That would probably make them cost prohibitive, never mind they'd not likely survive their journey. LOL

I bought three little bitty swords recently, but would love more depending on cost. :)

Meant to mention that the loaches are still mere babes themselves. @3" each.

I'll PM you my info so we'll be ready to go ahead when you have some extra again. :D Thank you!

Thanks. I'll put the deformed babies in the big tank and let nature take its course on them. If any survive I'll euthanize before they get too big. If my girls were bred with anything other than a red wag, it happened before I got them, or they aren't "purebred" red wags. I'm ok with that. :)...

I'm in the US. :( Are you in the US? That's really pretty! What are the light requirements? Is it one of the good beginner plants? I'd love to get some! I have no idea how to ship plants, but my snails came wrapped in wet newspaper. Seems like that would work for plants, too.

As my lil platies are getting bigger, I've noticed some a few of them are a little, well, off. It looks kinda like the tail is growing out from the belly instead of the back, giving them a camel look. It also only seems to be the ones with a "sunburst" coloration and not the red wag babies. The...

Thanks again, Aaron. I have some rocks my son picked up when we went to gawk at the three mile wide Mississippi River (I'm just outside Memphis, assuming you've heard about it?). I remember reading once upon a time there was a test you could do to make sure the calcium content or something was...

OK, I think I'll just let them float then. Thanks!

Thanks, Aaron. Now I'm having a problem with my Amazon swords not staying put. I don't know if my loaches are uprooting them or if they are just floating away. Could I try putting them in my q-tank until they get better roots and then moving them?

Can you clarify? Do you mean the roots or the entire plant? In the pictures of her watergarden the plants are growing a good couple feet out of the water. I'm worried I may be getting in over my head trying something like that, but I love irises. Always have.

"Just" Java Moss? LOL That's what I was HOPING it was! :D Thanks! I've got someone who has yellow iris she's pulling out of her water garden. Has anyone ever used something like this in an aquarium setting?

I would love some java moss. I've looked in my LFSs (except Petco, I refuse to ever go there again :grr: ) and haven't been able to locate any. Being a newbie to planted tanks, I have nothing to offer, though.

BTW... I found a stowaway in my java fern. Would someone mind identifying this? And a recommendation for how to get it going well would be great, too.

Thanks, Aaron. I've been itching to redo the scaping and thin out some of the plastic a bit to see if my clown loaches will school up better with more room and being able to see each other better in there. One of them seems to prefer the company of my emerald cory cats and dances with them. LOL...

No one?

Thanks, OldMan. I think I'll go back to feeding 3x a day and continue with frequent water changes. :D

I'm new to this, too, and decided to just deal with the tea stained water and do more frequent, smaller water changes until the driftwood stops releasing it, but I've read you can boil it for an hour and that will get rid of most of it, and sterilize it at the same time. I got some silica sand...

About 6 weeks ago two of my platies had their babies and I quite a few of them in a 10g nursery tank. There were originally about 40, and not sure how many there are now (they just will not stay still!), but it's apparent we've lost more than a few along the way, but no idea where they've gone...

I've got a 75 gallon tank and decided I want to go planted. I picked up some driftwood and java fern last weekend. Got a wicked huge mass of java fern for $8! :D Anyway, I split this huge mass up and started tying it to my driftwood pieces and a river stone. The bits I separated off look pretty...

No one? I guess if it was a bad idea someone would jump in and say "No, don't do it!" Will wait a little longer and if still no responses I'll give it a try and keep a close eye on the water quality on the opposite end of the tank from the filter. :huh: On a funny note... One of my clown...

I've had my Penguin filter (200gph) in the middle of the back of the tank, and I'm just curious if putting it on one end would generate better water circulation. I get a lot of crud in the bottom, and haven't yet perfected vacuuming my sand substrate without losing sand or totally destroying the...

I think the main problem is that there is no guarantee there will be ANY live bacteria in a bottle sitting on a shelf. What has been feeding it to keep it alive?

The loaches are about 4" long each. I've got 5 of them. They truly deserve their name. LOL What is your setup?

Hmmmmm.... He'd like that. LOL I pulled Lady 1 from the trap and let all the lil ones go in the nursery tank and put her back in so I wouldn't feel like I needed to watch her so close anymore. She had gone about an hour since the last birth. She still has a gravid spot and what looks like eyes...

Oh, yea. It's been a lot of fun!! Even my nasty attitude 15 year old got into it. LOL

Hopefully one of the non-chain LFS's will take them off my hands. I think from now on I will leave the mamas in the tank and let nature take its course. :unsure:

28 newborns in the trap now. :crazy:

LOL Found a few more in the big tank and she's got 13 in the trap with her now. I think that's 27 now? I kinda lost count as to how many I've put in the nursery tank. They certainly seem much happier in there. They are swimming around instead of hiding. :)

Found 3 more fry in the big tank and moved them to the nursery tank. Put Lady 1 in the trap and she's had 2 more!!! We have 12 total now!! ETA... Make that 3! LOL She dropped another while I was posting!

So I turned Lady 1 loose this morning since she hadn't dropped any fry. I decided to do some more vacuuming today since I noticed last night that as I added the new water a lot of gunk was getting swept around by the water, so I poured water to agitate while I vacuumed. Saw another baby. Got...

Yes. I'm going to be getting another tank soon and probably making this 38 gallon tank a platy only tank, and sticking with red wags. I've got 5 females and 1 male, so I don't think it will require much trying. LOL I gave her some crushed freeze dried shrimp and she ate it. I guess I'll leave...

Thanks, Lyra! I'm pretty confident Lady 2 is the mother of this fry. 6 days ago she was the bigger of the two and now she's not, and I also don't see the white ball on her anymore. She either had her babies and the rest were eaten or she reabsorbed them. That or Lady 1 had just the one tonight...