New Fish!

[AquaNut]

I went crazy at the lfs yesterday!! I went in to check out the latest fish and plants, maybe pick out a new betta, and possibly pick up a new filter because the one on my 45 gallon is so loud, it drives me nuts. I ended up leaving with a new Aquaclear 300, a few plants, two new Russian Blue female guppies that I couldn't resist due to their size and colour, three kuhli loaches, two baby silver dollars (the cutest things ever) to go with my lonely two gigantic ones, two more golden barbs to complete my school, and a beautiful new betta boy. I love all my new additions, and the new betta is right here beside me, watching me type.

 

[Alien Anna]

Blimey! You must have spent a bomb! Congratulations on your new purchasses - its very exciting getting new fish. Let us know how they settle in.

 

[platypus]

Oooh are these your first kuhli's? I want some so bad - let me know how yours get on!

 

[AquaNut]

Anna - Yes, I spent more than I should have, but oh well! I recently went back to work for the first time in years (been at home with my three year old), and I'm feeling like my fish and I need to celebrate! I'm shopping the classifieds for bigger digs for them (maybe a 90 gallon mwuahahaha).

Platypus - Yes, they're my first kuhlis, and I'm really excited! They're verrrrry small, and of course, they're hiding under some bogwood, but they're very very cute! I actually have very fine gravel in that tank, but know they like sand, so I put a couple of cups of very well rinsed, sterile play sand in there, in case they want to dig around in it. So far, I've only noticed all my cories crowding onto the sand to hang out. As mentioned above, I'm shopping for a larger tank for that community, so when I find one, I intend to make it at least partially sand substrate for the lil guys.

I know it would have been better to buy the fish AFTER I find the new tank, but in this little town, it could literally be a year or more before I see silver dollars and kuhlis again.

 

[FloridaFishGuy]

Sounds like you got some great fish there Aquanut. How much were the silver dollars? I would love to gets some later when i get a better tank becuase they look so great!!

 

[AquaNut]

In my little town, the silver dollars were $9.99 each. My other two were purchased a few years ago and I'm sure they were $7.99 each. I bet if you live somewhere bigger than this, you can get them cheaper. Fish tend to be expensive here. However, silver dollars are particularly nervous and easy to stress out, so I wouldn't want to buy them out of town and transport them 80 km or more in a plastic bag. Besides, if people like me don't support our lfs, we may lose it entirely, and that would be very very bad indeed.

 

[Inchworm]

Hello AquaNut,

I was very interested to learn that your corys, when given the choice of sand or gravel, seem to have chosen the sand. I've been following this issue and perhaps will change some of my cory tanks to sand bottoms. Please let me know if they continue to prefer it after the novelty wears off.

You will like the AquaClear 300. I have one in my 55 gal., which is probably a bit overstocked with goldfish, and it performs like a champ! I do, however, keep a wad of filter floss in the basket on top of the sponge. This lets me go for longer periods of time between cleanings and increases the filtration by providing more places for the dirt to get trapped. It does not seem to put any additional strain on the motor.

 

[AquaNut]

Hi Inchworm

I didn't actually see this reply yesterday. My cories are still liking the little patch of sand. I'm actually feeling pretty guilty watching them crowd around it. lol I could swear they're all looking at me and saying, "It's about time lady! Why didn't you give us some sand years ago?!?" I only see two kuhlis at any given time, but I'm not too concerned yet. They're very small and the tank is fairly big. Plus, there's lots of wood and stones they can hide under or behind.

As for the Aquaclear 300, I have one on my 33 gallon tank already; that's how I knew to get another one! You do exactly what I do. I keep the sponge in it and stuff the rest of it full of filter floss.