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More frogbit thinning as the ceratopteris thalictroides is starting to take over.
Dialled the light back to 9 hours because I was starting to see more algae than I like on the frogbit roots.
More hygrophila splitting - in case you think they aren't growing well my original 10 stems have turned into 27. Don't think I need anymore so now they can go up.
Much more ludwigia splitting. Every time one sticks its head above the parapet I chop it off and bury it. That explains the gap in the surface plants in the pic - there is an advantage of having a shallow tank right next to where you work.
Removed the coconut shell caves for now. I am still thinking of dwarf cichlids but it won't be for a few months yet. Next addition is likely to be a group of boraras brigittae. I have said for some time I'd like a large tank with hundreds of nano fish. Well this isn't a large tank - but its not a nano either :)

Stumpy has shown considerable improvement. The white (infection?) on her caudal and dorsal fins has almost completely gone. I can no longer pick her out with the lights off or in a photo and have to look really carefully to spot her. There does seem to be some regrowth on the dorsal fin. The tail may just be wishful thinking - it was really badly damaged. Its remarkable how resilient the little guys are. A week ago I gave her no chance and thought I was wasting my time trying.
20200626_165230.jpg
 
Is this the tank you have the dimmer on Sean?

Does it work by just setting a % of light you want to come through the unit.
 
seangee said:
20 hyphessobrycon amandae now installed. I have spent the last 5 hours being distracted by them settling in. Ignoring the stress of being moved from LFS this morning its as close to a natural environment as I can give them right now. The plants need to grow more but with the lights off and the stained water they appear remarkably relaxed when viewed by ambient light only. These are tiny (definitely juves) and less than half the length of my adult CPD. SF cites them as inhabiting the mid to upper areas of the tank while other sources say mid to lower. My observations so far suggest the other sources are correct, although they do occasionally venture into the upper half. I think pencilfish would make very good tankmates indeed.

And when I say they I mean all 20 of them. Their behaviour is definitely more schooling than shoaling. Occasionally they split into 2 large groups but then come back together very quickly. I have never seen a single fish or a small group break away as my other tetras do. @Retired Viking you absolutely need more! :) They are quite active and not at all timid or shy. I have not fed them yet but they certainly look like they are expecting to be fed when I dip a finger in the water. I can certainly see why so many sources suggest they are highly under-rated. Udpdate on the schooling: I just spotted one that allowed himself to get isolated from the group, he looked to be in a state of total panic for about 15 seconds before he spotted the group and rejoined them.

Just in case you hadn't noticed I am completely charmed by these little guys (and gals). I will definitely be increasing the group size once I am satisfied the tank can support them. In fact I have decided to defer the apistos for at least a few weeks (perhaps months) and enjoy watching the gang grow up in a species only tank. IMO the school (and by all accounts they stay that way) is a centrepiece all on its own.

Oh no: what of it turns into another SA community with tetras, corys and pencilfish? But at least I know what I like ;)
Only 20 minutes till lights on :kana:
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You didn’t QT them first??? Ich is going around like crazy. Hope you don’t have to deal with what I am!
 
Russjw said:
Is this the tank you have the dimmer on Sean?

Does it work by just setting a % of light you want to come through the unit.
Click to expand...
No its not. I had an old arcadia stretch unit (now sold as arcadia stretch classic :)) lying around which has incompatible connectors. So far so good and it will dim when the tannins increase after I stop daily water changes.

But yes that is exactly how it works. Instructions in the pack were clear enough and closely resembled English ;)
 
Deanasue said:
You didn’t QT them first??? Ich is going around like crazy. Hope you don’t have to deal with what I am!
Click to expand...
Its a new tank with nothing else in it :dunno:

Edit: Oh and all my tanks are over 30 degrees with the heaters unplugged ...
 
Oh. That’s why I added mine directly to it too but I have now infected the tank. Hopefully, you won’t have the same luck. :)
 
Deanasue said:
Oh. That’s why I added mine directly to it too but I have now infected the tank. Hopefully, you won’t have the same luck. :)
Click to expand...
Been in 9 days now. Touch wood no problems so far. I did pick them up in the shop so got a good look at them. I also know they were in the shop tank for over a month.
I'm afraid the damaged fins were my fault due to inattention. She sneaked in to the filter while I had the lid off to cram it with (hard) media from another tank. I didn't notice till the next morning when I did a head count and went looking for the missing one :(
 
Trivial upate. I decided to wave an API test strip at it this morning. Reading for nitrite, nitrate, GH & KH were all zero. pH was 6 so also zero as far as the test is concerned (it doesn't go below 6). Fortunately this is what I expected or I would have to question if the strips were working. I have a Seachem pH alert thingy that reads between 5.8 and 5.4. I was quite sceptical about it but got the ammonia alert on a whim and could only get the twin pack. Surprisingly it is about what I expected.

Then this afternoon I decided I didn't need the internal filter and would hook up a sponge filter. This worked perfectly but I remembered why I opted for the internal. I could not live with the noise. The pump is moderately quiet (for an air pump) but the tank is right next to my head when I am working. Even in normal times I try to work from home 1 or 2 days a week so that's a non-starter and the internal stays.

Oh and I ordered 20 boraras brigittae aka chilli rasbora, aka mosquito rasbora :). And they aren't even rasbora (which is why we avoid confusion by using the proper name @Deanasue ;))
 
They have a new favourite food!
Prepared food that is. They love microworms but I don't feed these more than once or twice a week.
They love bug bites but their mouths are too small which means it sinks too quickly. They absolutely refuse to eat off the substrate - and many of the species profiles confirm this. With no substrate feeders this could get messy so I have been feeding the floating plants rather than the fish. This has been a good compromise as they soften in the roots and then drop through when the fish start foraging. They aren't massive fans of Omega One flakes (crushed).

So I did a search for powdered fry food and today fed them with JBL NovoTom which is a fine powder, mostly decapsulated brine shrimp cysts. It floats for ages and was a massive hit. Tried it on the other nano species and this is the first food I have found that induces the CPD to rush to the surface to eat. They have a similar problem with the size of bug bites but as they will eat off the substrate I can ensure they get enough food. No need to mention the microdevario kubotai, they attack everything as if they have been starved for a month :)
 
Love watching your embers:wub:Where do you have your tanks GH and PH at? I am still working on softening my water. Today is my water exchange day so I am taking a breather.
 
Retired Viking said:
Love watching your embers:wub:Where do you have your tanks GH and PH at? I am still working on softening my water. Today is my water exchange day so I am taking a breather.
Click to expand...
This is a straight RO tank so GH=KH=0, which suits these as well as their soon to be tank mates. pH is somewhere South of 6. The Seachem thingy you can see on the side of the tank says 5.6 - no idea how accurate that is but the 2 brands of strips I used both show 6 (minimum they go to).
 
seangee said:
This is a straight RO tank so GH=KH=0, which suits these as well as their soon to be tank mates. pH is somewhere South of 6. The Seachem thingy you can see on the side of the tank says 5.6 - no idea how accurate that is but the 2 brands of strips I used both show 6 (minimum they go to).
Click to expand...
Thanks, I use the Seachem ammonia alert, have not tried their PH. I have been adding RO slowly since starting to soften my water. I started at 134GH and now at 102 GH. Today I took out 23 gallons and added 10 RO and 6 treated tap. I am going to try and add a gallon or so a day of RO water to bring it back up to the top. (7 gallons).
 
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