A 40 Gallon Journey

[Crazybob]

Hello out there,

Welcome to my first attempt at a journal! I've clearly never attempted this before so please bear with me for a bit. Recently I had to rehome some Africans which freed up my 40 gallon tank (48"x12.5"x18")and debated in my head as to what to do. I first thought about a dwarf cichlid community tank, however when I was looking on the forums and I saw people's posts/questions/general showings off of their green terrors I thought 'YES! I want that'. This began a new journey of completely changing stocking options and the like, and I was very excited.

Little did I realize I was unable to house such a fish and quickly my dreams were crushed then reborn anew thanks to the likes of minnt, onidrase, and dieses madchen. They were kind enough to suggest a Blue Acara as my center piece, and after a bit of research (and a lot of questions) I was sold on the beautiful fishes. Having never seen them in person I was skeptical about my LFS's keeping them in stock, but looking around I discovered that there was a tank of about 20 1" fish waiting for me.

I spent the rest of the weekend removing all of the rocks and giving my tank a deep cleaning for it's new inhabitants. Once the rocks were removed and all of the deep down dirt was cleaned out I rebuilt my aquascape (which I'm still not terribly great at) and refilled my tank and was ready for the babies. I have attached a picture of my tank before filling out water (Can someone explain how you can attach images that are larger? I'm not sure I quite understand image posting yet)

 

[Crazybob]

Okay, in lieu of fully understanding how image posting works I'm forced to add another reply...

So, Sunday rolls around and it's opening weekend for football (American football anyway)! I contented myself with waiting to get fish until Monday as the store closes early on Sunday's and I would not make it in time. However! my beloved Bills once again proved to be completely awful so I skipped out early to get my babes. I have picked up 10 Bleeding Heart Tetras as well as the largest/best looking Blue Acara they had (he/she is an inch at best, still in bag at photo).

They all seem to be getting along fine. The Acara has made a home in one of the caves and all the tetra are schooling nicely. They are all eating well (I'm feeding twice a day as they're all still young) but the acara is still a little skittish come dinner time and usually lets the tetras have their fill. Everyone's colors are very pretty and I'm super happy with my selection. The only thing I still want to get are some Hoplo Catfish to make my total stocking as follows:

1 Blue Acara
10 Bleeding Heart Tetras
3-4 Hoplo Catfish

I am also thinking about adding some plantlife to the tank, particularly, Anubias nana on the wood and some Amazon Swords around the back.

Also, I did not find the catfish at the stores so I still have to make an internet purchase it appears and the only place I have been able to find them is at petsolutions. I think this weekend I will go to the store to see if they will make a special purchase for me.

 

[thereverendturtle]

Here's a link to a reputable dealer out of Oregon.
http/www.aquabid.com/cgi-bin/auction/auction.cgi?fwcatfishc&1347918510

By the fins and color, I would say you have a male blue acara. Tank looks good, once the plants are added, will be spectacular.

 

[minnnt]

Hey Bob. Tank looks good upto yet, although I think the left hand side could do with a bit of work to help it look a little less 'placed'

The BA looks good too. Once they colour up they are brilliant fish. My LFS has some young wild caught ones in atm. Very tempting indeed.

 

[Crazybob]

Thanks for the advice guys. Checked out the main site for the wet spot and the store looks fantastic, I'm going to keep an eye on the auction but I'd like to check with my store to see if I can get them from there if possible. Minnnt, I agree it looks too constructed, I had problems trying to create caves without the rocks feeling like they could fall with the slightest push. I'll have another go at it when I buy and place the plants.

Quick update since I'm now home. The Blue Acara seems to be content to stay in his cave, even when I fed them. I'm just assuming that is due to his new surroundings. Overall everyone still seems to be in good shape.

 

[thereverendturtle]

Maybe try removing the slate and just using the other stones. Once you get lots of plants in there, you may not even need the rocks.

 

[minnnt]

I think the use of more wood would look a lot more natural. Use the rocks dotted around the tank as a kind of sub hardscape.

I would also use sand rather than gravel. Your Blue Acara will want to make himself some pits so sand will be better. It will also be nicer for the Hoplo's too. It is also easier to clean than gravel.

 

[Crazybob]

Good stuff, I looked into converting to sand and it doesn't seem terribly difficult so I think I may go that route. will I need to add some fertilizer for the plants that will be going in the sand? And how long can I expect to keep plants before the acara decides to shred them? If its a while would dirt be an option to go down? Or possibly sand over dirt?

 

[minnnt]

Nope, they will be fine with sand, no need to add any fertiliser or soils. The Acara should leave them alone unless he decides he needs to dig a pit right where you plant them.

An alternative would be to go with Java Fern as they will also be attatched to wood (or rocks) so even if he does go digging then they won't be disrupted. You can get a few different kinds of Anubias. Look out for Heterophila. It gets quite big so would add some height like the Amazon Swords you planned.

 

[Crazybob]

Will do reverend, I was using it to try to create as big of caves as I could whole being able to stack. I think this weekend will be a restructuring time. I'll pick up some sand today (50 lb bag) and try to get it washed between now and Sat, and look around for plants.

On a side note my fish store does carry hoplos but they were not on this weeks list. I think I'll wait them out for a little before purchasing online.

 

[Crazybob]

Okay, so I got home tonight.a noticed a white fuzz on my piece of wood and I have no idea what it is has anyone experienced this when newly putting in a piece

 

[Electric Warrior]

Okay, so I got home tonight.a noticed a white fuzz on my piece of wood and I have no idea what it is has anyone experienced this when newly putting in a piece

Yeah, it is totally fine. It usually clears up in a few weeks and is harmless. Do you have Mopani wood?

 

[Crazybob]

From a quick search it does look to be Mopani wood. I'm glad to hear it is harmless thanks warrior. Picked up some sand today, got a 50 lb bag as well as ~25 lb from left over sand from our fire pit that I'll mix with it. The 50 lb bag seemed small, which is why I think I need the extra sand.

 

[minnnt]

Sounds good. Make sure you wash the sand thoroughly.
The white fungus is just something that happens, its rather unexplained but it is totally harmless.

 

[Crazybob]

Well, after a solid 6 hours of working it has been done! Sand is in and the water is good put the fish in about an hour ago and things seem to be going okay. I think I have figured out the picture thing so here is another goe at it..

Original Setup:

The new and (hopefully) improved setup!:

from another angle:

Sorry about the glare, I'll have another go at it when it gets dark. You may notice there is a new stand to go with the setup, my wood stand seemed to have creaked a bit and the stand was not fully support the two short sides of the tank I put the old wrought iron stand under it for good measure.