Recommendations for new tank

[Ch4rlie]

It's such a beautiful tank @Ch4rlie! What are your current ones?

Well, I do not actually have any tanks up and running at the moment

That tank was one of the last one I had before moving house and had to close it down and sell everything fishtank wise which had to be done at the time

BUT I have very recently bought a 13.5gal Fluval Evo saltwater tank and am planning on getting a Juwel Vision 180 tank as well for freshwater, so I got plans

 

[AdoraBelle Dearheart]

No, I did not actually go high tech with Co2 on that particular tank, pretty much a low/med tech set up as the lights were good and I dosed weekly liquid ferts (Tropica Premium) and loads of root tabs (Seachem Flourish tabs) every few months.

And YES, well done for recognising Blyxa japonica, a really neat little foreground plant to fill in blank spaces, really do like this plant and easy to grow, bit of a slow grower but grows nicely though.

It looks like shrimp heaven Bet they loved it!
Thank you, I'm still learning different plants, I really wanted to get some Blyxa japonica for my new set up, but couldn't find any grown in-vitro at a good price when I was plant shopping. Haven't had that plant yet, or any buces, but will when I can I also find it hard to tell the grass like ones apart sometimes, practice makes perfect hopefully!

Going to read your journal thread for that tank when I can. Hope you make journal threads for your new set ups!

 

[seangee]

And YES, well done for recognising Blyxa japonica, a really neat little foreground plant to fill in blank spaces, really do like this plant and easy to grow, bit of a slow grower but grows nicely though.

Not that easy. I really wanted it in my nano when I was still hoping for an authetic Lake Inle biotope. COuld not make it work

 

[Ch4rlie]

Not that easy. I really wanted it in my nano when I was still hoping for an authetic Lake Inle biotope. COuld not make it work

Do you know what, I think it’s because I fairly had hard water and failed at loads of different plant when members recommended plants they had and came to realise they had soft water.

Am unsure if you have hard or soft water but this definitely plays a part in plant growing, what works for some may not work for others.

Trail and error more than anything, lord knows how much money I threw away when plants failed in some of my set ups! But worth it in the end though

 

[PheonixKingZ]

@ClownLurch
I agree with what @Ch4rlie said, about the internal vs external filter.

 

[AilyNC]

I finally was set on the Clearseal 36" x 18" x 12", found a hinged glass top from Aqueon that I could get shipped from the US. Set on Fluval E Series 200W heater placed horizontally & the Eheim 130 Aquaball adjustable flow filter with Sponge only at 21cm height.

Trued to order online but glitch with website. Called & got a very confused person acting cagey. Googled more & found awful reviews of company & apparently they're well dodge.

So I called a trusted shop & they can order tank in for me. They're getting me a quote on making a sliding glass top.

Once I get the tank I'll start a journal. But I'm still research stock and wondering about a good community tank from some below:

Water hardness is 307ppm & pH 8 (tank) and size 36" base x 18" depth & 12" height. 34 gallons or 127 litres. I already have lots of orange so want some blues and greens to add variety in colour.

Endlers
L129 Pleco****definitely want****
Lemon Ancistrus L144****can I have 2 small Plecos? In a 36" base?****
Odessa barb
Zebra/celestial Pearl/turquoise/LFWC Danio
Platies***have 2 adults & 6-8 fry***
Molly lyretail silver & black
Guppies
Barb (denison/cherry/green tiger)

Unsure if these are ok, SF research was unclear:
Fintail blue eyed rainbow fish (can't find but REALLY want)
Killifish (SF says tank size, pH & hardness ok)
Dwarf Pufferfish
Rainbow fish

 

[AilyNC]

Apologies about the typos.

I am interested in shrimp but don't feel experienced enough for them. I might end up running two tanks - the new 127L/34G and old 58L/16G. But I first will put everything in new tank and probably use the small tank as a quarantine tank while I get everyone settled

 

[PheonixKingZ]

What questions do you have on shrimp?

 

[AilyNC]

What questions do you have on shrimp?

Would they be suitable in community tank with some fish listed above? Are they ok with Plecos? Do they need extra or different care as fish? Will they multiply and form a column and crawl out of the tank and kill me?

 

[Essjay]

If you do end up getting an Aquaball filter, I strongly recommend that you buy a replacement impeller shaft at the same time. The shaft is a small ceramic rod which easily broken if you are not very careful and the filter won't work without it. I speak from experience. I now have a spare in the cupboard at all times.
This is what I mean

Eheim Aquaball 180 Impeller Shaft & Bearings 7480500

Eheim replacement spare part aquaball 180 (2012) internal filter Impeller Shaft & Bearings 7480500

www.eheim-aquarium-parts.co.uk

This site lists it as bing just for one model but they all have the same shaft.

 

[AilyNC]

If you do end up getting an Aquaball filter, I strongly recommend that you buy a replacement impeller shaft at the same time. The shaft is a small ceramic rod which easily broken if you are not very careful and the filter won't work without it. I speak from experience. I now have a spare in the cupboard at all times.
This is what I mean

Eheim Aquaball 180 Impeller Shaft & Bearings 7480500

Eheim replacement spare part aquaball 180 (2012) internal filter Impeller Shaft & Bearings 7480500

www.eheim-aquarium-parts.co.uk

This site lists it as bing just for one model but they all have the same shaft.

Cool thanks. The shop actually said while they stock Eheim they don't really recommend any more. The filter he suggested I think was a JBL internal filter but I can't remember the model.

 

[PheonixKingZ]

Would they be suitable in community tank with some fish listed above? Are they ok with Plecos? Do they need extra or different care as fish? Will they multiply and form a column and crawl out of the tank and kill me?

1( Yes. Some fish may try to chase them, but as long as you feed the fish well, and the tank is pretty well planted, you shouldn’t have any issues
2( Yes, totally OK. My pleco will sometimes swing his tail at them if they are eating his cucumber.
3( I would say less, but pretty much the same.
4( Ehh... no, lol. They will repopulate pretty fast.

 

[Essjay]

I like the Eheims, I don't know why they don't recommend them any more - unless it's because they've had complaints when people break the impeller shaft

 

[AilyNC]

Yeah he said they don't think they're as good as they used to me. He was supposed to call me back today with a quote. I'll call them tomorrow & try get the tank ordered anyway. I'm happy with the Eheim Aquaball 130 from my reading.
I think I'll set the new tank up then maybe shrimp too. I think my kid would get a kick of them.

 

[Ch4rlie]

Yes, Eheim do make excellent filters but they are not quite as well built as they used to be.

I have two Eheim filters as spares as I am loathe to let them go!

But excellent tip from essjay as it’s always worth having spare impeller shaft as when one goes during maintenance clean its really and truly annoying and panic stations starts to sink in trying to get hold of one quickly from any LFS to get your tank back up and running again before too long.

Always worth keeping spares of anything you think is essential, spare heater, spare parts and even spare filters in case your current one goes klonk! You never know!