I Guess It's Time To End The Hobby.

[Cazgar]

White sand tends to look green after a while.
Play sand is available from most DIY stores, & is a more natural colour.
If you want black, then have a look on eBay or amazon
I wouldn't risk sand from a construction site as you don't know what might be in it

 

[FishBlast]

Hope it all works out!

Thanks. Well, I'll go to the bank maybe tomorrow or on Thursday (which would be 3rd day after the money was sent).
After that I'll see what aquarium I can find, dechlor. plants and sand.
I just hope dad won't start blackmailing me for the money. He's already acting like he doesn't want to pay the internet and while I don't really care about the internet, I still have a job that relies on that.

Yeah I was thinking of natural sand too (that brownish one) but I don't know if they will sell it. Should be even cheaper than the white one (though I wouldn't mind it turning green if it were white).

 

[micko]

In the UK there are shops such as Argos, Homebase and Toys R Us. It will be harder to find play sand this time of year compared to the spring/summer as its sold mainly for kids to play in a sand box. I'm unsure what places are available to you where you are.
Buying sand from a fish shop will be more expensive as its sold as 'aquarium sand' therefore, more money.
You can use building sand depending where it comes from though, you don't really want any salt content to be in it. Just wash it well, many, many times and yes a bowl would be fine to use it to clean. A bucket would be easier but if ones not available then you have to make do with what you have.

 

[FishBlast]

In the UK there are shops such as Argos, Homebase and Toys R Us. It will be harder to find play sand this time of year compared to the spring/summer as its sold mainly for kids to play in a sand box. I'm unsure what places are available to you where you are.
Buying sand from a fish shop will be more expensive as its sold as 'aquarium sand' therefore, more money.
You can use building sand depending where it comes from though, you don't really want any salt content to be in it. Just wash it well, many, many times and yes a bowl would be fine to use it to clean. A bucket would be easier but if ones not available then you have to make do with what you have.

I found that some shops sell natural sand for 3 Ron (that's very very low for a price) and that it's safe for aquarium. Special sand for aquarium also varies between 4 ron and 50 ron as the most expensive but ugly looking lol.
It appears like the uglier the sand, the more expensive. I'll get fine sand. Should work well for Tzuppy.
Just hope the other fish won't start eating it.

 

[FishBlast]

One thing that I keep wondering is: Why does my red swordtail swim tilted (not much but a bit noticeable) at night. She's been doing this ever since I got her, but I don't understand why at night only.
I have read somewhere that it could be that they turn their back to the light and it does seem like she tilts towards the direction the light is coming from.
But it's really odd that only she does this and not the other fish. She also only tilts like that when she goes to the side of the tank where light shines. Is that normal? (I got used to her doing that but I keep wondering if it's a birth defect or an odd habit she picked up, aside from sitting with the catfish most of the time).

 

[FishBlast]

I hate it when I have to choose between 2 important things. I want to choose my fish over the internet, as my dad's expecting me to pay for the internet (basically blackmailing me AGAIN into spending money on what he wants).
I want to buy that tank and dechlorinator, but I'll lose internet for idk how long (well I might not lose my job but it will certainly slow down the development).
I cannot expect my money being returned if I'd pay for the internet either. I know my dad. He STILL owes me money to this day. So I won't be getting it back any time soon if I'd give in.
So what to do? How to get out of this situation? Should I wait till dad has enough money to pay for the internet and barely then take out the money? Else he'll find a way to blackmail me, such as keeping me without food or water. -.-

 

[Rummynose]

Why don't you tell your dad that he can deduct the Internet cost from the money he owes you. Then he'll owe you less, and you would not have to worry about having to pay out any money to him right now or losing the Internet.

About washing the sand, I heard people having used pillow cases for that. You just keep rinsing the sand in there until it runs clear.

 

[FishBlast]

Why don't you tell your dad that he can deduct the Internet cost from the money he owes you. Then he'll owe you less, and you would not have to worry about having to pay out any money to him right now or losing the Internet.

About washing the sand, I heard people having used pillow cases for that. You just keep rinsing the sand in there until it runs clear.

Yeah, deduct but he doesn't HAVE enough money to pay the internet. So he basically re-spent the money he owed me anyway to keep his bank payments up. And if I'll pay when I'll get the money from my bank, I may never see my money back unless he'd return them on my birthday (which is also his job's pay day). But I don't want to wait that long. I want to get that tank now. I mean, I haven't worked just to pay to work again.

Well... can't use mom's pillow cases. She'll probably put the aquarium over my head for that. I'll just have to shake the bowl and take out the useless part of sand.

EDIT: Dad said that he will pay this time, but next time it will come out of my payment.

Edit 2: He paid. So all I'll have to worry about tomorrow is to check the bank and then look for good tank deals (if the transaction worked like I saw on screen).

 

[FishBlast]

Does anyone have any knowledge about the different Hoplo catfish species? I need to find out what kind of Hoplo mine is.
I have looked up Megalechis Thoracatum, Litoralle, Dwarf Hoplo, Picta... none of them look like mine. Some have a too-flat head, others have red eyes and none of those have the odd pectoral fin tips that point towards the tail of the fish.

My Hoplo is around 15 cm (I just tried to measure him and may be less than that, maybe 13 cm), dark-brown by day and light-brown by night with black spots. His eyes are yellow (can be seen in my avatar), his tail has this bar on it and it's round.

This is a pic of him I took 1 month ago. Will take more pics tomorrow so that I won't need to use the flash tonight. Hopefully with his new tank too.
You can still see his unusual-tipped pectoral fins if you look closely. Not at the orange rays but at the fin itself.

 

[FishBlast]

Have to go to the bank this afternoon. Pff but got to wait till dad gets back.
Anyway more pics of Tzup, maybe someone can identify his Hoplo species.

Also, Bee further along her pregnancy.

Cracker's moving so fast I can't even catch him, will try later when I'll feed them the bloodworms. Already gave them some daphnia but he likes bloodworms more.

Ah there we go, he finally sits still enough seconds for me to catch him.

 

[FishBlast]

Ok, things are looking up now. Got my payment, so boss kept his word. Now I need to plan this well. Need to see about a stand and see how much my room offers for the aquarium. I want my little friends to be where I am so that I can keep them supervised.
I also will visit the pet shop tomorrow for food / dechlorinator and check out the aquariums. If none are within budget, I'll check out other shops. If none are within required dimensions, then plan C: Building aquarium. Low cost but more work, more stuff becomes available.

 

[CezzaXV]

Second hand aquariums are always a lot cheaper than brand new ones. I'd highly recommend you go down that route, especially if money is tight.

 

[FishBlast]

Second hand aquariums are always a lot cheaper than brand new ones. I'd highly recommend you go down that route, especially if money is tight.

Yeah i know but there's also a risk of getting a cracked one, or one with toxic silicone. And I'm not up for online purchase as it requires transport (which may end up costing more than the new ones).
I'll see what they have, and what others have and then figure out which one to get. I've made a thread about the possible options.
Will measure the spot I have available for the tank as soon as dad gets home so that he can give me his uh... what ever that thing is called, it's like a metallic flexible ruler that goes into a roll. Then we'll decide on the stand for it and how long the aquarium can be.

 

[Rummynose]

Second hand aquariums are always a lot cheaper than brand new ones. I'd highly recommend you go down that route, especially if money is tight.

Yeah i know but there's also a risk of getting a cracked one, or one with toxic silicone. And I'm not up for online purchase as it requires transport (which may end up costing more than the new ones).
I'll see what they have, and what others have and then figure out which one to get. I've made a thread about the possible options.
Will measure the spot I have available for the tank as soon as dad gets home so that he can give me his uh... what ever that thing is called, it's like a metallic flexible ruler that goes into a roll. Then we'll decide on the stand for it and how long the aquarium can be.

The word you're looking for is measuring tape. lol

Do you not have something like a Craig's list, kijiji, or other local online second hand site? Then you can inspect the aquarium before you buy it and don't have to worry about shipping costs. Oftentimes they are being sold with the stand!

 

[FishBlast]

Second hand aquariums are always a lot cheaper than brand new ones. I'd highly recommend you go down that route, especially if money is tight.

Yeah i know but there's also a risk of getting a cracked one, or one with toxic silicone. And I'm not up for online purchase as it requires transport (which may end up costing more than the new ones).
I'll see what they have, and what others have and then figure out which one to get. I've made a thread about the possible options.
Will measure the spot I have available for the tank as soon as dad gets home so that he can give me his uh... what ever that thing is called, it's like a metallic flexible ruler that goes into a roll. Then we'll decide on the stand for it and how long the aquarium can be.

The word you're looking for is measuring tape. lol

Do you not have something like a Craig's list, kijiji, or other local online second hand site? Then you can inspect the aquarium before you buy it and don't have to worry about shipping costs. Oftentimes they are being sold with the stand!

Thanks.

Not that I know of. I only see shops that sell mostly online or if they do sell offline they have some prices X_X A 100L tank with a lid and filter is like 100-200$, sometimes more if it comes with filter + heater. And for some reason most 100Ls are more in height than length.

With stand they get to 400$. I need a special stand though, as I want my turtle's pool to go right under it.